Chapter 44
Chapter 44
Translator: Penny
Chapter 44
Posthumous Prescription 1
Raioner was in a foul mood.
Normally, Spirits remained in the Spirit Realm, manifesting on the mortal plane through specific magical artifacts as intermediaries.
Raioner, too, typically appeared in the world this way.
Though it was a contract, it was a fixed arrangement where Raioner held the upper hand and humans were merely subordinates.
Aiyo, Lord Spirit! I've prepared a Superior Magic Stone!
Great Raioner! I've brought you a dead Demonic Beast to absorb its magical energy!
Zzzz...! Very well, I commend your efforts and shall grant you one wish.
Thank you! Actually, there's this merchant I don't like...
This life of consuming high-quality magical energy while being served by humans wasn't so bad.
Especially a fool like Theo was the perfect Contractor.
The work wasn't difficult, and the provided magic was of remarkably high quality—it couldn't get any better.
Whoosh! Hey, I heard you're doing great lately!
The fire spirit Salamander flicked its tongue as it approached.
Zzzzt...! Uh, what rumors have been spreading?
Whoosh! They say your Contractor is a complete pushover! They're saying your magic reserves have increased significantly.
Shriek─ I heard that too! They say the human you contracted with worships you like a god! Oh my, good for you, dear!
This time, the wind spirit Sylph fluttered down and began hopping around on Raioner's head.
Tch... Ahahaha... Yeah, he totally worships me...
I'm so jealous! Whoosh! I wish I could find a sucker like that and just leech off their magic forever!
Whoosh! Humans are just our pawns! I burned my last Contractor because I didn't like him! How dare he offer me such cheap magic?!
Raioner swallowed hard as he eavesdropped on their conversation.
Lower Spirits struggled to grow on their own.
To overcome this, they formed contracts with humans, lending their power in exchange for magic to fuel their growth.
Of course, the humans' desires were laughably petty—using the Spirits' abilities to harm or kill others in trivial power struggles. But since the price was high-quality magic, it was an undeniably profitable arrangement for the Spirits.
Oh my~ Drip~ Everyone's gathered here?
At that moment, Undine, the water spirit, flowed through the air toward them like a stream.
So you're all gathered around Raioner, the most popular spirit these days~? Drip, drip~ I can't even remember when I manifested.
Whoosh! Hey, Undine! You'll find a clueless Contractor like Raioner soon enough and get to go outside too!
Exactly! Shrrk— Let's all get stronger together! One day, the five of us will become High Spirits of the Spirit Realm!
Whoosh! But hasn't Gnome arrived yet?
Salamander flicked his tongue, searching for Gnome, the earth spirit.
Shrrrk— Gnome seems to have manifested! I heard his new human Contractor worships him like crazy!
Drip... I'm so jealous, really. Raioner, tell us about your Contractor too. What kind of idiot is yours? They're human, right?
Zzz... uh...? Y-yes... they're human. Zzz...
Whoosh! I can't imagine how a mere human can tolerate Raioner's foul temper.
Salamander's words were met with enthusiastic agreement: [ Exactly! ][ Right, right! ]
At first glance, one might assume Salamander, as a fire spirit with a fiery personality, would be the most intimidating. But in truth, Raioner's prickly and sharp temperament made him the most formidable.
Raioner forced an awkward smile, his gaze darting nervously away.
Drip... What does your human call you? Lord Spirit? Master? Lord Raioner?
Whoosh, don't we all take turns using them? I used to call him Lord Fire Spirit.
I used to call him Lord Sylph! Whoosh—do you shock them with electricity when they misbehave?
Raioner licked his lips, searching for nonexistent saliva. He suddenly understood what humans meant by "dry lips."
R-right? Zzzzt... C-call me Master...
Whoosh, just like my friend! You've got those humans firmly under your thumb!
Drip~ What do you do when a human doesn't listen?
Huh? Zzzzt... I-I twist their bodies...
The other Spirits' eyes widened, and they burst into applause at Raioner's answer.
It was quite a groundbreaking method.
Swish—Let's meet outside when we manifest later, okay?
That's a great idea! Whoosh—We can just show the human the map and order him where to go!
Zzz... M-meet outside?
Swish—You have to show us your human slave!
Just as Raioner was hesitating, trying to come up with an answer,
Boom—
A pitch-black hole opened above his head.
It was a signal from his Contractor, summoning him.
Whoosh—Speak of the tiger, and it appears! Looks like that human slave isn't noble material either!
The human seems desperate. Drip—Why don't we take our time leaving? It's fun!
Swish—That's a great idea! Let's make him beg before we go!
N-no! Zzz...! I-I have to go!
Raioner, his face pale, shook off their hands.
Whoosh! What's wrong, Raioner? Why are you acting so strange all of a sudden?
I-If I'm late, I'll die! Zzzzz... M-My body is twisting! H-Hiiiik! I have to go!
Raioner's body was sucked into a black hole and vanished without a trace.
...
...?
A heavy silence settled over them.
The remaining friends exchanged glances, trying to make sense of what had just happened.
W-Whoosh... When he said "die if I'm late," he must have meant humans, right?
Shriek... Ah, that must be it! If a Contractor dies, they can't manifest again.
Right...? Drip... Raioner has become much kinder than before.
Unaware that the Lightning Spirit was living as a captive of humans, they quietly dispersed.
"Raioner."
H-hic! D-did you call me, Master?! Zzzz...
"You're late. It took you four seconds to manifest. Does it usually take this long for you to appear?" Agron asked, gripping Raioner's torso and shaking him from side to side.
Raioner felt as if his circulation had been cut off and weakly slapped Agron's massive fist with his tiny palm.
Kuaang! I-I'm sorry... Zzzz... M-my friends were nearby, so I was delayed...
"Hmm, friends? Where were you before manifesting?"
I-I was in the Spirit Realm...
Baek Woon and Elena, who were standing nearby, exchanged startled glances at his answer.
The Spirit Realm was a hypothetical realm imagined by humans, a place whose true nature remained a mystery to all.
"Heh, who would have thought I'd hear the term 'Spirit Realm' from a spirit's mouth?"
"Master, if what this spirit says is true, there must be many more spirits in the Spirit Realm besides Raioner."
"Hmm, is that true?"
Did I say something I shouldn't have?
Raioner hesitated, his eyes darting around nervously.
As far as he remembered, there was no rule forbidding him from mentioning the Spirit Realm.
Well, even if I did talk about it... it's not like anyone could actually go there. And even if humans somehow managed to reach it, they'd just be killed by the High Spirits.
Yes, that's right. Zzzzt... There are many other spirits in the Spirit Realm besides me.
"What are your friends' names?"
Raioner, looking slightly tense, recited his friends' names.
"Uh... Zzzzz... Undine of Water, Sylph of Wind, Salamander of Fire, and Gnome of Earth..."
But if Agron were to give an order that would harm even one of his friends, Raioner was prepared to defy the command and fight Agron to the death.
To Raioner, his friends were closer than family.
"Hmm, I see. A warrior must cherish his friends. Get along well."
Contrary to Raioner's expectations, Agron uttered something completely unexpected.
"Uh... Zzzzz... A-alright."
Raioner unconsciously bowed his head.
For the first time, Agron seemed like a decent person.
"Theo called out their names," Agron announced to the assembled group.
"The organization that sold the drugs is said to be a small-time drug dealer called 'Kobuul.' They primarily operate in the Capital."
"Damn it! A Baron selling drugs in the Capital?!"
Lawrence roughly chewed his dessert and slammed his fork down.
His mind seemed to go blank with rage.
He couldn't understand why these vermin kept crawling back out no matter how many times they were caught.
Drugs weren't just something that ruined people; they were a virulent plague that could shake the very foundations of a city.
"I swear I'll catch those bastards and tear them limb from limb!"
"Hey, Lawrence."
"Don't try to stop me! I'm going to tell the Chiefs to wipe them out completely!"
"That's not it. Put the fork down gently."
"...Huh?"
"You'll break the table."
This bastard?
Lawrence cursed inwardly at Agron's words, but he still carefully wiped the spot where he had slammed the fork with his sleeve.
He was terrified of being scolded by Agron.
"First, the drug dealer 'Kobuul' operates in a decentralized network, making it difficult to capture them all at once with our limited resources. As Lawrence suggested, we'll entrust this to the Royal Army. Their larger forces will have a much better chance of success."
"Understood! I'll coordinate with My Father and the Chiefs to round them all up!"
"Hmm, and the enemies we'll be facing are the organization that supplied Theo with magical power."
Baek Woon, who had been listening from his seat, patted his lower back with his fist and asked, "After brewing potions all night at Agron's command, my back feels like it's about to break."
"Tell me, Agron, what about the forces behind the human trafficking? We need to bring them in too."
Agron nodded in agreement. "Don't worry. They're the ones who supplied the Organization with magical power."
"The same people who ordered the human trafficking also provided the magical power... Could it be...?"
"Yes, you're right."
Agron picked up the snake ornament he had placed on the table and continued, "It's Ananta."
For a nobleman who had lived a life of ease, there was no place more dreadful than the dungeon.
Death was the most feared end, but sometimes pain could be an even greater terror.
Theo, repulsed by the screams echoing from other cells and the rats and maggots crawling over his body, confessed everything he knew without holding back.
"They say Ananta's Organization was the one who gave me this ring."
"Then why would they help Theo without any apparent benefit, Master?"
"Perhaps Theo himself was the objective, not some scheme they hoped to achieve through him."
"What do you mean by that...?" Elena asked, tilting her head in confusion.
"It seems they subtly aided Theo in his ambition to become the Lord of Veilain."
"So, they weren't trying to achieve anything through chaos. The chaos itself was the goal."
Agron nodded at Elena's words.
While the specifics would require interrogating the culprits directly, one thing was clear: Ananta kept appearing before him.
"But wouldn't they have already fled? The rumors about Theo's capture must have spread far and wide by now," Lawrence said.
"Hmm, I've considered that too. But we should still be able to find some traces if we search thoroughly."
"Is that even possible?"
"Jacob has some tracking skills, so it's not entirely impossible. I'll head to Sachsen. You stay here and wait with the Elder."
"Uh... alright."
Agron took only Elena with him and set off for Sachsen.
Baek Woon's back ached, and Lawrence would be useless in battle, so Agron arrived in Sachsen with only Elena.
Agron immediately summoned Jacob and relayed the information he had gleaned from interrogating Theo.
"I see... I'll investigate."
Using the tracking skills he had learned in his youth, Jacob began searching the places Ananta might have used as hideouts.
After searching for some time, Jacob stopped at an abandoned mine shaft.
A sinister aura permeated the air, and there were signs that multiple people had been there recently.
The mine appeared to have been inactive for some time, as all the equipment was broken and dilapidated.
The broad blade of a pickaxe was shattered, and the handle of a shovel lay broken and discarded nearby.
It seemed Theo had halted mining operations upon becoming Lord.
"What did they mine here?"
Agron turned to Jacob, who had taken the lead, and asked, "The villagers say it's a gold mine."
"A gold mine... That's odd. Sachsen's reports never mentioned anything like that."
Agron had meticulously documented every specialty product and current condition of every region within the Veilain Fief. Yet no record from Sachsen ever mentioned gold mining.
"I suspect Ludicain and Theo deliberately concealed it."
"Hmm, quite the scheming family." Agron shook his head.
Gold has always been the most valuable mineral throughout history. If a gold mine were discovered within a fief, neighboring lords—and even the Great Lord overseeing them all—would likely salivate at the prospect.
Moreover, Ludicain wasn't one to flatter others. He had lived his life concealing his ambition and claws, so he would have kept the information about the gold mine tightly hidden.
Reporting the gold mine would have meant handing over at least a portion of the shares and taxes to the Head of House, even if he didn't have to surrender the entire mine.
Perhaps he had remained silent to avoid such an outcome.
"Count, shouldn't we charge Ludicain with additional crimes?"
"Hmm, hasn't he been sold to the slave traders yet?"
"Not yet, Count."
"Warriors despise lies. It would be best to properly educate him before selling him to the slave traders."
"I will handle it properly, Count," Jacob said confidently, thumping his chest with his fist.
They plunged into the darkness, following the winding tunnels.
After some time, the single tunnel branched into multiple paths.
"Master, from here, Jacob and I will proceed alone. It's best if you wait here, in case any of the fleeing groups try to escape this way," Elena suggested cautiously.
With the tunnel splitting into multiple paths, it was impossible for all three of them to explore only one route.
That meant they would have to split up, but Elena couldn't bear to send Agron alone.
Even though Agron was far stronger than her, he was the one she had sworn to protect throughout her life.
"It's fine. We'll split into three groups," Agron said with a faint smile.
"But Master..."
"If I'm ever in danger, I'll call out for you, Elena."
Elena couldn't argue further and simply nodded.
They entered the diverging tunnels separately.
Elena expanded her senses to their widest range, tracking Agron's position as she moved forward.
However, as the distance grew and thick layers of rock blocked their connection, the signal gradually weakened.
📝 Translator’s Note:
You may notice that certain lines or phrases in this novel appear both in their original Korean (or Hanja) form and in English translation.
This is intentional — these phrases are classical idioms, divine titles, or poetic expressions that carry layered meanings.
To preserve their original tone and authenticity, the raw text has been kept for reference, while the English interpretation is provided right before or after it. This helps convey both the literal and cultural nuance of the original work.
but if you guys dont want tha raw for future chapters or my future other novels u can just text me on discord and say so discord name Mr.Penny