Archmage (3)
The trio set off from Golden Mountain immediately.
Owen, his stingy servant Ben, and the archmage Bellatel.
The tracking fell entirely to Bellatel.
His magic effectively traced the dark elves, but there was another problem.
"These bastards are really annoying... How the hell did they get through here?"
"No way they just climbed the cliff, right?"
"Yeah. Hard to believe, but..."
The dark elves traversed paths that seemed utterly impassable, thanks to their innate sense of balance.
The route was filled with obstacles no normal person would even dream of attempting.
Gazing up at the sheer cliff, it was nothing short of astonishing.
"Damn... Even a ranger with specialist mountain training might hesitate, but they scaled this barehanded."
It continued like that.
Whatever the terrain threw at them, they cut straight through toward their destination.
"Do they lose their pride if they take a detour or something?"
Owen grew increasingly baffled.
Following their trail, some sections clearly would've been faster to go around.
Yet they strained to maintain a straight line even then.
Crazy bastards. Then again...
Owen was reminded anew that dark elves were a gathering of every lunatic under the sun.
Every twisted scheme in the world seemed to originate in their heads.
As they skirted a massive peak that begged to be climbed unnecessarily, Owen asked Bellatel,
"Looks like we can predict their destination thanks to these straight-line fetishists. If we follow this path straight, where does it lead?"
Bellatel didn't answer right away, swallowing a groan.
"Hmmm..."
"Where to?"
"Edel."
"Edel—the biggest city around here? Home to the Albert family main house."
"Right. If dark elves are heading there, this isn't a minor issue."
Owen grasped Bellatel's implication at once.
Edel was currently a chaotic city.
Internally, a fierce power struggle raged around the young family head; externally, it wavered between aligning with the emperor's direct territory or the established eastern forces.
Problems piled up inside and out, making unrest inevitable.
If a sinister band of dark elves marched in, something was bound to explode.
"Guess we have to check Edel. Kid."
"Bellatel, sir. Didn't you retire from worldly affairs after going into hiding?"
"This is the exception. They killed my guest. The herb garden's ruin is secondary by comparison."
"You're awfully tight with orcs, humanity's enemies."
"Kid, you'd best ditch that black-and-white worldview. Not all orcs are our foes."
Bellatel said no more, urging his mule onward, leaving Owen no choice but to follow.
It was obvious he wouldn't help until this was resolved.
Two days later, the group arrived within sight of Edel.
"The dark elves' trail cuts off at the city. Looks like they infiltrated after all. Kid."
"Call me Owen, please. Bellatel, sir."
"Hmph, don't like 'kid,' huh?"
As Bellatel chided him, Owen couldn't help thinking it was the Alberts again.
Keep clashing with those Albert scum, and now I'm at their home turf.
The city walls loomed high, exuding wealth.
But inside, the atmosphere was utter pandemonium.
Terrified citizens were a common sight.
"What the hell's going on...? Ugh!"
Ben, voicing his confusion, soon pinched his nose in disgust.
Owen and Bellatel grimaced too.
A foul, rotting stench rode the wind.
It was no smell for a city.
"What is this? Young master. Owheek!"
"Corpse rot. A ton of it. You'd only get this in a battlefield."
In the end, driven out by the stench, they retreated outside the city.
Only after settling at a quiet inn on the outskirts did they hear the story from the owner.
"Don't get me started. There was a massacre two days ago."
"Massacre?"
When Owen pressed, the innkeeper glanced around fearfully before speaking.
"Yes. Nearly a hundred nobles opposing Family Head Garen Albert and their followers were slaughtered. Their bodies are still hanging in the city square like fruit on a vine."
"Whoa, a hundred strung up?"
"Don't remind me. That's why the rotting stench blankets the city. I have deliveries to make, but I've been putting it off."
"Tell us the details."
The innkeeper's tale went like this.
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The Albert family was currently ruled by the young head called Garen Albert.
The problem? Garen wasn't a wise ruler but a spoiled puppet.
"The widow 'Hanna,' Garen's lover, wields great influence. He's completely under her skirt."
"Hmm... That alone wouldn't suffice. The family elders wouldn't stand for it."
"Actually, Hanna has another backer: Garen's uncle. The most powerful figure in the Alberts, manipulating Garen at will."
"So no clash between the widow Hanna and the uncle? Two puppeteers for one doll."
"Ah, rumor has it they're in a secret affair."
"What? But Hanna's Garen's lover?"
"That's true too."
"Huh?"
"Word is, the uncle introduced Hanna to Garen. Gave his lover to his nephew, essentially."
Ben, listening beside them, finally lost his temper.
"What beasts! So the uncle and that widow Hanna are partners in crime!"
The innkeeper nodded at Ben's summary.
"Exactly. The uncle had his lover seduce the young nephew, who's now head over heels for the mature woman's charms."
Even Owen, well-versed in noble scandals, clicked his tongue.
"What depravity... No opposition?"
"Of course. The faction centered on Garen's paternal grandmother opposes them."
The problem was that the opposition was just as vile.
The grandmother had abused Garen in his youth, souring their relationship.
Rumors even swirled she was involved in his parents' deaths.
Bellatel shook his head.
"Edel's still a den of demons."
Both sides chased power, gaining no public support.
"Which faction were the dead from?"
"The grandmother's."
"They must've spoken up."
"Yes, aggressively. They tried assassinating Garen."
"Huh?"
The uncle and Hanna's power stemmed from Garen.
The opposition planned to eliminate him and install his four-year-old brother as head.
But the plot leaked early, leading to a mass execution.
The scheming grandmother barely escaped by cutting ties in time.
"There's something odd, though."
"What?"
"On paper, Garen's side was weaker. Most lesser knight families loyal to the Alberts sided with the grandmother."
"And Garen's?"
"Mercenaries. Numbers matched, but riffraff without loyalty..."
"Yet the grandmother's side got massacred?"
"Yes. A surprise attack, but the outcome shocked everyone. Edel's been buzzing about it nonstop."
Owen suddenly thought of dark elves.
A powerful force that recently entered Edel—suspicious.
Glancing aside, Bellatel nodded faintly, sharing the hunch.
Owen dismissed the innkeeper.
"Thanks for the info."
"No trouble."
Alone now, Bellatel spoke first.
"Highly suspicious. But how'd that uncle and widow connect with dark elves?"
"Rare for dark elves to partner with humans. That Hanna woman especially—she's an outsider."
"True enough."
They pondered where to investigate first.
Even an archmage couldn't just smash everything.
Hiding or not, he was still an imperial citizen bound by law.
Dozens of dark elves made for a tough foe.
Even Bellatel risked ambush.
"More complicated than expected, Bellatel, sir. Bigger than orc revenge."
"Urgh... Can't abandon it. Leave it be, and Karaku might storm Edel alone."
"Orc temperament—he'd do it. But Karaku's wise; he'll rally others."
"Right. Orcs rampaging near imperial territory? Near wartime. Better I intervene to keep Karaku in line."
Bellatel stroked his beard reluctantly.
He seemed to have a plan but hesitated.
"Any advice?"
"Hmph... No choice. We'll contact 'Seymour Lady,' Garen's grandmother."
"You know her?"
"Yes. Long ago, I worked for her late husband in Edel. Met her then."
"You seem reluctant. Bad blood?"
"No, good relations. Solid business: I handled magic jobs, she paid well. She trusts me. Problem's her vicious nature—hard to stomach. Why I left Edel."
"A hellcat from youth, eh?"
"If only temperament. Rumors say she killed her own child. No choice now. She's cornered; she'll welcome me eagerly. Mages make prime assets."
Bellatel proposed investigating dark elves from Seymour Lady's side.
"If they're truly with Garen, eliminate them. Power struggles after? Not our concern. Cut out the dark elf tumor like surgery and leave. Sound good?"
"Agreed. Best way for outsiders like us to dive into Edel's intrigue."
"Exactly. Aligning with her makes tracking and purging dark elves natural."
Bellatel's grudge, but Owen's interest grew.
Dark elves—his hated foes—were involved.
Couldn't ignore them now.
His honed blade of revenge must one day reach the dark elf queen.
Those beautiful eyes that stabbed my body that day... unforgettable.
Long-lived dark elf, still enduring in the frozen north.
But not unscathed.
He and Tanares lost to numbers, but inflicted heavy losses.
The queen had made a pact with Owen, then betrayed him, drawing her blade.
A curse followed.
Still active, no doubt.
Owen could exploit it when the time came.
Potent curse, but time-limited—20 years gone, nearing end.
Time to act before then.
"Bellatel, sir. How to contact her?"
"Magic. Costly, but clean."
Bellatel summoned a tiny bird with magic.
It took a note in its beak and vanished swiftly.
"Now we wait."
They rested at the inn; the reply came quickly.
Hours later, a knight arrived with a squire.
"Archmage Bellatel?"
Forewarned, his manner was polite.
"Yes. From the Lady?"
"Indeed. She bids you come tonight."
Seymour Lady, desperate, jumped at the contact—like rain in drought.
She sent her noblest young retainer.
"Good. Heard she's in trouble, so I came. Mind if my squire joins? This fellow."
Owen suddenly became the archmage's squire but stayed silent.
"Understood. Rest; carriage returns soon."
Thus, Owen and Bellatel plunged into Edel's power struggle heart.
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