Chapter 112
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 112
Chapter Title: The Guest
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A visitor.
Supernatural power.
Aura, mana, spiritual energy, and so on.
The source of all wonders, the fundamental force behind them.
The depth and breadth of power one could wield depended entirely on whether they could control it. The difference was like that between heaven and earth.
The distinction was so great that those with 1- or 2-star abilities were considered low-level Awakened Ones, while those at 3-stars and above were called high-level Awakened Ones and used as the standard for nobility.
A 3-star Awakened One was that rare, and among them, a Master-tier Awakened One was of even greater value.
What if that person was a knight, trained as a weapon of war and versed in a family’s secret arts—and a member of a knight order directly under one of the One Hundred Great Families, no less?
They could truly name their own price.
They were talents so precious that not just any mid-tier noble, but even high-ranking nobles would rush out barefoot to greet them.
This was especially true during a war, where every bit of strength was valuable.
“Lilit should have arrived by now.”
The city of eternal night, Janwol.
From its highest floor, a blonde girl swirled a wine glass.
Elise smiled haughtily as she thought of the gift she had sent to the White-Masked Young Master.
She might have been a knightess who was helpless during the last raid, but…
That was only because her opponents were the hounds of the hunting city, and she happened to be in poor condition at the time.
While perhaps not as insane as an Unlight's personal maid, becoming a guard knight for the Vlad family was no simple feat.
It was only natural for Elise to be confident in her gift.
“Someone of Lilit’s caliber should be of considerable help to my benefactor.”
Based on her investigations so far, the White-Masked Young Master’s retinue was pitifully small for someone of his reputation.
In a situation where every high-level Awakened One counted, a talent like Lilit would be a most welcome addition.
It was a reward worthy of being called a gift.
Especially with the little extra she had sent along.
“Of course, it’s far from enough to repay him for my life… but it should be sufficient to convey my intentions.”
That she had not forgotten the grace the White-Masked Young Master had shown her, and that she would one day repay him in full.
It was an extravagant gift merely to convey that sentiment, but Elise felt not a shred of regret.
She was simply filled with a quiet anticipation.
He might be so grateful for her gift that he would visit her again to express his thanks.
“…I should prepare a better wine.”
Lost in that hopeful expectation.
Elise smiled pleasantly and raised her wine glass.
***
“Um… about that knight. Did you really have to send her back like that?”
“Indeed. It was quite insulting to a knight who came to help.”
Just one day.
No, half a day.
From Janwol City all the way to the City of Aberrations.
That was how long Lilit, who had finally arrived after such a long journey, stayed at the Walong Manor before she left.
The shock must have been considerable, as the knightess had departed the manor with a dazed expression.
It was only natural that Naru and the Vault Keeper, who had watched her leave, would have something to say.
From a practical standpoint.
And from a moral one.
Dion’s act of sending Lilit away when she had come all this way to help could easily be seen as an insult to the Vlad family.
But Dion just shrugged nonchalantly.
“There’s a reason to send her back.”
“What reason?”
“The fact that she’s our dear sucker’s personal guard.”
“What?”
What kind of reason was that?
As Naru looked on in confusion, Parsha, who stood behind Dion, stated blankly.
“It means that if she were to stay at the Walong Manor, the Young Master’s identity could be exposed.”
“Oh, but can’t you just keep your mask on?”
“The Young Master’s face is one thing, but there is no way to hide myself and the rest of my kin.”
“Ah…”
At Arsha’s supplement.
Naru let out a short groan.
No matter how excellent the Mask of the Comedic Lord Baekmyeon was at concealing one’s identity, Elise was still Dion’s fiancée.
Her personal guard would naturally know of his personal maid, Parsha.
And if she were to see the dark elves, even the world’s biggest fool would begin to suspect a connection between Dion and the White-Masked Young Master.
In that respect.
They had been lucky this time.
The slave soldiers were standing guard at the gates in preparation for a Ghost Fiend Union attack, and Parsha’s quick thinking had allowed them to hide the dark elves.
“Is it that important of an issue?”
“It is important enough that if the information leaks, a Transcendent Awakened One could invade our domain at any moment.”
“…Now that you put it that way, it does sound very important.”
Arsha calmly explained to the Vault Keeper, who had been wondering why he had to so desperately hide his identity even from his fiancée.
With the annihilation of the Soma Knight Order, the Iron-Blooded Mad Demon, Ren, was surely searching for Dion with bloodshot eyes.
If he were to be discovered, they would be plunged into a danger incomparable to being targeted by the Ghost Fiend Union.
…The irony was that the Vault Keeper, the one who had annihilated the Soma Knight Order, knew nothing of this.
“Still, refusing the Vlad family’s goodwill seems just as dangerous…”
“It’s fine. That’s why I made sure to entertain her before sending her off.”
“Entertaining her was just serving her a single meal, wasn’t it?”
“She was satisfied, wasn’t she?”
“You call that satisfied? She barely touched her food and just sipped her wine before leaving.”
“That’s why she was satisfied.”
“……???”
To their confused expressions.
Dion grinned and said.
“If she wasn’t satisfied, she wouldn’t have asked if she could purchase more wine, would she?”
“…You mean to tell me that the box that knight was carrying so preciously, as if it were a treasure, was filled with wine?”
“Yep. I sent a box to my dear sucker too, so she won’t feel left out.”
To Elise, a candidate for the succession of one of the One Hundred Great Families, a few bottles of wine should have been a trivial matter.
What was he so confident about?
Dion smirked at his skeptical vassals and retainers.
The fact that he had mixed a little of his blood into the wine he sent as a gift was a secret known only to him.
‘My blood is like a potent drug to vampires.’
【Blood Fiend Star】 was a Trait at the pinnacle of all blood-type attributes.
Moreover, as Dion grew, the power of the Blood Fiend Star contained within his blood deepened.
In his second life, the main reason Elise had been reduced to a sucker despite breaking off her engagement with Dion was because she couldn’t overcome the power of his blood.
…Conversely, it was also the reason the Vlad family had fanatically pursued him.
‘Hmm, it’s best to keep a moderate distance from the Vlads.’
The Blood Fiend Star Trait was a double-edged sword.
It might be different once he had sufficient power.
But getting too close to the Vlad family could result in him being captured and raised like livestock.
That was why he’d had to fight them to the death in his second life.
Considering the hardships of that time, Dion wanted to avoid getting too close to the Vlad family at this stage.
It was best to maintain a loose connection with just Elise, who was a truly easy mark.
In any case, from that perspective.
Lilit’s visit was more of a nuisance than a help to Dion, but…
“And even though I sent the rest back, I still properly received the gift my dear sucker gave me.”
The one Lilit had brought.
And left behind in place of the wine.
Seeing Dion grin at the box filled with ten red vials.
Parsha said bluntly.
“No matter how precious Blood Potions are, I doubt they are more valuable than a knight from the Crimson Knight Order who requested to join the campaign.”
“Yep. That’s why I only accepted the potions.”
“…What do you mean by that?”
“If I accept too great a reward now, it’ll be harder to fleece my dear sucker more later under the pretext of repaying her kindness.”
“……”
Lacking as a fiancé.
And now as a benefactor who had helped him.
As his personal maid directed a look one might give the world’s worst scum at the boy who was fleecing his fiancée for all she was worth.
Dion continued nonchalantly.
“Besides, I have an immediate use for the potions.”
“I suppose so…”
“If we use the potions, we can move up the schedule.”
“Using precious Blood Potions on this is a great waste, but considering the current situation, I don’t think it would be a loss.”
“……?”
Only the other vassals who had been on the expedition with Dion nodded as if they understood their purpose.
Only Parsha narrowed her eyes, suspicious.
Dion spoke casually.
“Parsha, contact the Orc ahjussi.”
“What should I tell him?”
“That we’re ready now.”
“…Are you serious?”
“Of course.”
Hearing his words.
Ignoring Parsha, who was staring at him as if to ask if her young master had gone mad.
With a broad smile on his face.
Dion said.
“There are honey pots rolling around everywhere. It’d be a waste of all our hard work to just sit and watch, wouldn’t it?”
***
The Ghost Fiend Union and the Anti-Bandit Alliance.
The scales of the two fiercely warring factions were, to anyone’s eyes, tipped in favor of the Ghost Fiend Union.
No matter how strong Urk was.
And no matter that Lar Arga was injured.
The Anti-Bandit Alliance was simply too outmatched to face the Ghost Fiend Union, which consisted of a whopping 49 families.
This was especially true because the Union never faced Urk head-on, instead fighting by nibbling away at the weaker families one by one.
But that was the story of a few days ago.
After Dion’s return.
The tide of the war shifted dramatically.
It wasn't just because the pirate lord who led the Chumgeomwon had been captured whole.
There were plenty of pirate lords, and it was commonplace, even expected, for a few families to be wiped out during a war.
The reason the situation had been overturned was singular.
It was due to the presence of the Calamity Princess, Pandora.
After she returned with Dion.
As if to vent all his pent-up frustration, Urk had entrusted the defense of Narkrang Castle to Pandora and now roamed the battlefronts with the Narkrang Knights.
Urk’s movements, now incomparably faster and more elusive than when he was tied to Narkrang Castle, were enough to push back the faltering front lines in an instant.
When a Transcendent Awakened One was alone.
And when they had someone to watch their back.
The difference between the two was that immense.
It was why the hierarchy among not just the high nobility, but even the One Hundred Great Families, was determined by how many Transcendent Awakened Ones a family possessed.
Of course, even so.
The Ghost Fiend Union was still the Ghost Fiend Union.
As one of the most prominent noble factions in the City of Aberrations, they immediately responded.
They began to move more stealthily and cunningly than before, thoroughly avoiding any confrontation with Urk.
Urk, charging around like a bull.
The Ghost Fiend Union, hiding and buzzing like mosquitoes.
Even as they chased each other’s tails in a delicate balance, both Urk and the Ghost Fiend Union had their own strategies.
The Ghost Fiend Union hoped that if they dragged out the time, the recovered Lar Arga would join the war.
Urk had the final move of deploying Pandora herself.
As each side prepared their hidden cards and engaged in a battle of wits, the one-sided war grew more complex.
Now, which side had the advantage.
And who would be the victor of this war.
No one could dare to predict.
But…
“Yawn, this is boring. Ambushes are fine for a day or two. But all those Anti-Bandit Alliance bastards are just hiding behind the Lord of Narkrang Castle and won’t come out…”
“My, my lord! This is terrible!”
“What’s all the ruckus? That old monster, the Lord of Narkrang Castle, is over by the [Collapsed Highway], so there’s no way he’d show up here.”
“Enemies! Unidentified enemies are approaching our domain!”
“…What kind of bullshit is that? If a Divine Beast were approaching, our Driver would have noticed.”
“They aren’t using Divine Beasts! They’re riding warhorses, so we didn’t notice them!”
“Impossible! In the middle of a Labyrinth like this, without a Divine Beast, who would be crazy enough to move with only warhorses…!”
The bandit nobles would soon find out.
The Lord of Narkrang Castle, Urk.
The Calamity Princess, Pandora.
They might not be as strong.
Or as overwhelming as those two.
But the Anti-Bandit Alliance had a hunter who was more lethal, more cunning, and above all, more skilled in the art of war than them.
“The, the White-Masked Young Master?!”
“And what’s with that insane number of high-level Awakened Ones? Don’t tell me those are all slave soldiers?!”
“Run! Hurry and move the Divine Beast…! Gack!”
That was the moment the White-Masked Young Master broke his long, yet short, seclusion and officially entered the war.
The weight that shattered the tense balance of the war, and the mercenary group whose white masks alone would haunt the nightmares of the Ghost Fiend Union’s bandit nobles.
It was the moment the White Ghost Legion (白鬼團) was established in Odobaekryeong.