Episode 1129
Episode 1129
The Fire Giants retrieved the remains of their fallen comrade from Juzen's ashes.
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, they turned to Lee Han and asked:
By the way. When will you challenge our king?
"?"
The question came so naturally that for a moment Lee Han wondered if he was actually acquainted with them.
Unless they'd been regularly exchanging letters like 'Challenging dimension rulers is my hobby, where should I go next?' 'The Fire Giant King seems good, didn't you already challenge the Frost Giant King?' there was no way they'd ask so casually...
-Calm down!
Just as Lee Han was about to reply that such a thing would never happen even if all dimensions collapsed, Hamster quickly squeaked a warning.
"What do you mean calm down?"
-Don't underestimate the Fire Giants' temperament. Frost Giants may be cold and rational, but these ones are hot-blooded and fiery.
"...Who said anything about cold and rational??"
Lee Han was shocked again.
Among all the giants he'd met so far (though admittedly that was just the Einrogard Giant and the Frost Giant), the Frost Giants had been the most vicious, persistent, tenacious and emotional bunch.
These were the same guys who'd take one look at you and go 'Ah, you're a challenger recognized by our king! Fight me!' - and someone calls them cold and rational?
But no matter how unfairly treated Lee Han felt, Hamster paid no heed.
Truth doesn't change just because someone feels wronged.
-Besides, many of their kin were just slaughtered. Parts of the corpses were stolen as sacrificial offerings too.
Hamster squeaked while pointing at the sky.
The crimson-stained atmosphere was trembling with heat, almost as if symbolizing the Fire Giants' rage.
Would outright refusing these enraged giants really be wise?
"...So what am I supposed to do then?"
-Stall them! You're good at that thing you do!
'What's that supposed to mean?'
Lee Han bristled slightly.
Anyone hearing that would think he was some habitual liar.
If he had the leisure, he'd have showered Hamster with grape bullets, but with Fire Giants loitering right in front of him, Lee Han swallowed his anger.
"Understood... I'll visit when I have some free time soon!"
Oh! Very well.
The Fire Giants were utterly delighted by Lee Han's soulless answer.
Even the violently trembling sky suddenly grew calm.
Our king will be expecting you, challenger. Congratulations.
"......"
-D-don't worry. It's not like you'll ever meet. You'll never meet.
Under Lee Han's icy glare, Hamster hastily made excuses.
"What the-?!"
Nigisor shouted in shock as his friend suddenly entered another dimension.
Siana and Dijiling were equally startled. Before the battle started, hadn't they specifically agreed not to send signals like this?
-Suspicious enemy, defensive posture, attack, nearby support available.
From the professors working elsewhere in the village to the Death Knights who'd come with the carriage -
Even without Lee Han's orders, everyone knew a defensive battle would be most effective here.
But then the person himself chases the enemy into another dimension? It was downright absurd.
"Hey, Wardanaz!"
When Siana shouted - forgetting all priestly decorum - Dijiling urgently tried to stop her.
"Perhaps there were circumstances..."
"...Let's deal with the remaining enemies first, then pursue!"
Nigisor once again summoned flames, creating a whirlwind of fire.
By outside standards, Einrogard students' "defensive" battles were already quite aggressive to begin with.
And now they'd abandoned defense entirely for full offense - the flames' power exceeded all expectations.
'This is really strange. The spirits are helping me.'
Normally he should have needed rest, yet his mana remained stable. Nigisor marveled at this again.
Of course, the surviving mercenaries were having the worst time.
Trying to flee while poisoned, only for this insane priest to have some personal vendetta...
"Enter the house next to you."
"Y-you! You're sane now?!"
The mercenaries were shocked.
Who would've thought the mad prophet would suddenly regain his senses and give proper advice?
They'd already given up, thinking he'd gone completely insane with all that muttering...
"The wall will collapse."
"R-really!"
The mercenaries threw themselves into the empty neighboring house and brought down the wall. The already cracked and partially missing brick wall crumbled instantly.
Faced with this sudden obstacle, Nigisor was taken aback.
'How? Did he calculate this in advance?'
"There's a divination magic user over there!"
Dijiling coughed violently as she shouted.
She had sacrificed a handful of her hair to perform impromptu divination, only to find her foresight blocked. It was a clash between divination mages.
"Take out everything we've got! We're breaking through the village and escaping!"
The mercenaries pulled out all their possessions—scrolls, potions, everything.
In their minds, Juzen had already disappeared long ago. Why would they bother with someone who'd fled alone?
"Prophet! Advise us! Which direction should we go?"
"Southweee... blergh blergh blergh blergh!!"
"...Damn it!!"
The mercenaries spat out their frustration at the prophet suddenly malfunctioning again.
Just why was this happening?
But the reason soon became clear to them as well.
From the very dimension where Juzen had vanished, the enemy mage had somehow returned and was now charging at them, radiating killing intent.
'Not letting a single one escape!'
Lee Han's murderous aura was enough to make the battle-hardened mercenaries' nerves stand on end.
Truthfully, these mercenaries had no reason to be this threatened. They weren't evil god worshippers—they were merely hired for money.
But from Lee Han's perspective, there was no way to know how deeply involved they were with Juzen.
What if even one escaped and returned to the evil god cult to deliver Juzen's message?
"Stop! Take one more step and I'll release this monster into the village!"
One of the mercenaries pulled out a steel flask and threatened. The flask trembled violently, as if proving it contained a considerably powerful monster.
The next moment, the mercenary suddenly hurled the flask into the air. It landed naturally in Lee Han's grasp.
"????"
Neither illusion magic nor psychokinesis could manipulate something so seamlessly without any signs. The mercenary blinked in confusion.
"Stop! Anyone who doesn't stop will die!"
"You bastard...!"
The mercenaries were dumbfounded as their own threat was thrown back at them.
One mercenary at the front activated the magical barrier imbued in his gauntlet in a desperate attempt to block the mage's advance.
Lee Han drew his sword and slashed through it. The black magnetite sword absorbed the magic and shattered the gauntlet.
That single strike crushed even the mercenaries' will to fight. The remaining ones coughed from poison and dropped their weapons.
"Sur, surrende—"
Whack!
Lee Han smacked the mercenary's face with his staff, then paused.
"Were you trying to surrender?"
"......"
Another mercenary, meeting his gaze, nodded reflexively.
"Then you should've said so sooner. I thought you were attacking."
"Y-yes, you're absolutely right."
The mercenary immediately resorted to flattery.
He did feel bad for his comrade, who had taken an unnecessary extra hit—but what could he do?
The living had to survive!
The reason Ibinta—once the leader of the Capital Underground Fortress bandits and a former member of the vile adventurer party <Shadows of Kangla>—had survived was thanks to the Skeleton Principal's generosity.
Thanks to this grand mage, who always saw the good in people and gave them second chances, Ibinta had been able to become a new man.
—Or so he would say if anyone asked.
"...Yes."
Ibinta nodded with a stiff expression.
The death knights he traveled with offered advice as useful as their formidable combat prowess.
He wasn't entirely sure how useful it really was, but from Ibinta's perspective, he didn't have many options.
If he didn't want an executioner's blade flying at his back, he had to do as he was told.
"But when are you planning to search for those evil god worshippers?"
Ibinta cautiously probed with his question.
Truthfully, he had every reason to be anxious.
Having heard so much about the wicked grand mage's infamy, how could he feel at ease when nothing was happening?
If anything, the anxiety only grew.
Since he had been ordered to assist in tracking down the evil god worshippers, Ibinta wanted to achieve something—anything—to prove his worth.
Only then could he extend his life and delay being sent to the infamous underground prison of Einrogard.
But Ibinta's enthusiasm backfired.
—'This vicious criminal. Finally showing his true colors, huh.'
The knights reprimanded Ibinta with severe sternness.
"Have you no human heart? You're even more cruel than us undead. Can't you see how these villagers are suffering? And you want to go hunt Evil God Worshippers?"
"N-no... That's not..."
Having misspoken and received the knights' fierce rebuke, Ibinta hung his head low.
Was suggesting they hunt Evil God Worshippers really such an unacceptable thing to say?
'Don't tell me... That damn archmage's disciple just needed an errand boy and picked me for it.'
At this point, Ibinta was starting to think the Evil God Worshipper hunt was just an excuse—that Gonadaltes' disciple had simply needed a useful lackey.
"If you stay still, the Evil God Worshipper scum will reveal themselves in due time."
"Huh? So you've laid traps?"
Ibinta wondered if some grand plan had been prepared without his knowledge.
"No. Nothing like that. But judging by the Successor's track record, just taking on requests means that eventually..."
"Shh. Quiet. How can you leak such heavenly secrets to an outsider? What if they tattle to the Successor?"
"Right."
"???"
As the knights whispered and ended their conversation, Ibinta grew even more confused.
What in the world were they talking about?
"Enough noise. Go help ten villagers and return. We need to see if you're still just a wicked bandit at heart, Ibinta of the Iron Arm."
'Iron Cloak, you mean...'
Still, Ibinta trudged off obediently.
Since the existing priests and Professor Garcia were already assisting villagers in the square, he had to go further out to find people to help.
After painstakingly searching and barely managing to help ten people, he returned—only for the knights to immediately explode in anger.
"The Evil God Worshippers appeared—where have you been?!"
"Huh?!"
"Hurry! The Evil God Worshipper scum tried fleeing through dimensions but got caught by the Successor. Go help with the interrogation."
"But... what..."
Ibinta couldn't comprehend any of this.
Not only had a battle broken out while he was briefly away, but the notoriously elusive Evil God Worshippers had been captured this easily?
...Was this what the Death Knights meant earlier by 'they'll appear if you stay still'?
'What kind of trick did they pull...?'
When he arrived, Lee Han and his friends sat exhausted on nearby rocks, looking utterly drained.
The professors and priests were discussing the recent events in grave tones.
"Surely this disaster couldn't be..."
"Probably not... I think those scum just exploited..."
"But how did that student return from the Fire Giant dimension..."
"...Could it just be coincidence...?"
"Get that mercenary to spill what they're hiding."
The Death Knights ordered Ibinta.
Seasoned mercenaries like these rarely confessed easily, even when captured.
The difference in punishment between 'knowingly collaborating with Evil God Worshippers' and 'just moving together for high pay' was astronomical.
Not to mention the threat of retaliation from the Evil God Worshippers themselves.
Using Illusion Magic to probe their minds one by one would take too much time and resources, so confession remained the best method.
If someone like Ibinta explained the situation and guaranteed their safety...
"Hey! Aren't you the cobbler?!"
Ibinta blurted out in shock.
Among the mercenaries, he'd spotted a familiar face—a former comrade from the <Shadows of Kangla> party.
"You're... the cloak-maker...!"
"Yeah! Perfect. Look—I got captured too, but I'm guaranteed safety and working like this now! See?"
Ibinta desperately tried to persuade his old colleague.
He was also from the Shadows of Kangla, had been a bandit, but thanks to this pursuit, his crimes were forgiven...
...If you contribute too, you might avoid Imperial courts, prisons, or Einrogard's underground!
Whether it was the persuasion (or Ibinta's seemingly unharmed state), his old comrade finally relented after some hesitation.
"...Fine. What do you want to know?"
"Who was that dead Evil God Worshipper earlier? Tell me everything."
"Juzen, you mean? You probably already heard him rage earlier about being from the Bagrak Family's disciples, but he was originally a fallen vampire noble from the west—had a lot of grudges. The guy couldn't open his mouth without cursing. Even though their cult wasn't in a position for revenge, he kept shouting earlier purely out of spite..."
"Ooh...!"
Ibinta beamed.
This was pretty significant, wasn't it?
"......"
But the atmosphere turned strange.
Not just Lee Han, but even the Death Knights were staring at Ibinta with looks of utter shock.