Chapter 381: The Second Continental War (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 381: The Second Continental War (4)
Verde swallowed hard.
The missing Tower Master.
The mages sprawled across the floor.
And the menacing aura radiating from Edwin Hector—everything screamed that things had gone terribly wrong.
'If I tell the truth, I'll die.'
It was an absolute certainty. His instincts screamed the warning.
Under normal circumstances, he would have assessed the situation and silenced any witnesses. Instead, Verde forced his expression to remain neutral, feigning ignorance.
"...What on earth do you mean by that? I merely rushed here after receiving a report of a disturbance. I know nothing that requires an explanation. If anything, it is you who must explain yourself, Prince Edwin Hector. Where is the Master of the Magic Tower, and why did you attack the Sky Mages? If you cannot provide a proper explanation, I will not let this matter slide."
He was right. The situation demanded answers.
As the mages surrounded them with tense expressions, Edwin Hector looked around nonchalantly and spoke.
"It is quite strange. Why would my master, who usually never hid our private conversations, use Silence magic today to prevent any sound from leaking out? Why did the Sky Mages stop Butler from checking the office? And why did you, who supposedly rushed here upon hearing the news, immediately try to make excuses rather than showing anger at the sight of these corpses?"
"Do not slander me with baseless speculation."
"It is far too coincidental to be mere speculation. Thus, I came up with a hypothesis. You are in league with the Master of the Sky Magic Tower. As the Deputy Tower Master who fills his vacancy, there is no way you could be ignorant of the truth—that the Sky Magic Tower is under Kronos's control. But why did you rush here in such a hurry, bringing only a handful of mages? It wasn't just because of an unexpected variable. It means that if this matter leaks out, it will create a problem you cannot handle."
In that brief moment, Edwin Hector had grasped the entire situation. With only fragmentary pieces of information, he had painted the full picture in his mind.
"The Sky Magic Tower is a faction formed by mages drawn to its reputation as the continent's greatest. Subjugating all of them through mind control would be impossible. Therefore, a select few, like you, must have maintained the tower's power while keeping the truth hidden. Verde. I believe that is the reason you came running in such a frenzy. What do you think? Do my words still sound absurd and baseless to you?"
The atmosphere froze.
It was merely a hypothesis. An absurd, seemingly meaningless story. But having his secret pierced so accurately, Verde felt his mind grind to a halt, unable to formulate a proper response.
That split-second hesitation was enough.
"Your face says you've been found out." Edwin Hector smiled.
The hypothesis was the absolute truth. The Sky Magic Tower had hidden its dark secrets to grow its power, and aside from the few mages who followed Verde, no one else knew. That was why they had rushed. If Edwin Hector revealed the secret of the Sky Magic Tower, the house of cards they had painstakingly built over the years would crumble.
A taut tension hung in the air.
At that exact moment, cutting through the silence, Verde channeled his mana.
"Attack, now—!"
Flash!
Crackle!
He was blinded. Verde's vision vanished in an instant. He stared blankly, unable to even finish casting his spell.
"Chain Lightning."
Edwin Hector pointed his finger. In the spot he indicated, the mages who had tried to carry out Verde's command lay collapsed, charred black.
* * *
Chain Lightning.
It was a 3rd Circle spell. It was a level of magic that the Sky Mages should have easily reacted to, yet none of them had even noticed the spell being cast. It was incredibly fast and devastatingly powerful. Unbelievable for a 3rd Circle spell, the mages electrocuted by the Chain Lightning met their deaths without putting up a shred of resistance.
"..."
Verde was left speechless, his pupils trembling. To his knowledge, Edwin Hector was a 5th Circle Mage, but the power displayed just now was absolutely not of that level.
'To cast Chain Lightning with this much power, he must be at least at the 6th Circle... perhaps even higher.'
Confusion swirled in his mind. It made no sense.
Suddenly, a sinister thought crossed his mind. Perhaps the reason the Master of the Sky Magic Tower had vanished was because of Edwin Hector.
"Butler, bind Verde."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Verde didn't even think of resisting. Overwhelmed by Edwin Hector's oppressive mana, he allowed himself to be bound while still in a daze. His head was slammed onto the floor. Even as his arms were tied, he could not hide his utter bewilderment.
It was exactly as he suspected.
In the mental world, having fought a fierce battle, Edwin Hector had unleashed an explosion of darkness and absorbed the mana of the Master of the Sky Magic Tower. The sheer volume of mana was vast. It far exceeded what five Circles could accommodate, leading to a dangerous situation where his body convulsed—just as Butler had witnessed.
But at that critical moment, his Upper Dantian exerted its power.
The pathway leading to his Upper Dantian opened to receive the mana. As the circulation between his Upper Dantian and his Circles was established, he began to absorb all of it. It was a true stroke of miraculous fortune. As time passed, his five Circles grew and hardened to a degree that completely transcended normal standards. And as if that weren't enough, new Circles began to form.
Around his heart, seven Circles had formed.
People used to say that what Edwin Hector lacked was not talent, but time.
But now, by absorbing the mana of the Master of the Sky Magic Tower, he had filled that void. It was a variable that even Roman Dmitry had not anticipated. In the brief moments before Verde arrived, Edwin Hector had achieved a monumental breakthrough.
Clatter, clatter!
"What is the meaning of this?!"
"Edwin Hector! Release the Deputy Tower Master!"
Hearing the commotion, mages came rushing in.
They were completely bewildered. To the mages who did not know the truth, it looked as though Edwin Hector had bound the Deputy Tower Master and slaughtered the Sky Mages. This was an expected reaction. Knowing how the scene would be perceived, Edwin Hector had secured Verde as a hostage before the other mages could arrive.
Facing the hostile aura of the gathered mages, Edwin Hector spoke with a calm, composed face.
"From this moment on, I shall show you the truth. Image Memory."
He materialized the memory he had personally experienced, projecting it from his mind.
"You must be wondering. What on earth is happening? What exactly did I, whom you have served as your master, do to you?"
It was the voice of the Master of the Sky Magic Tower.
The faces of the crowd were painted with shock. The words spoken to Edwin Hector exposed the ugly truth, and the mages who had shown hostility just moments ago now looked utterly confused. From that point on, no further explanation was needed. The memory projected by Image Memory—the dark truth of the Sky Magic Tower—perfectly justified Verde's capture.
Soon, the memory faded. Looking at the bewildered crowd, Edwin Hector spoke.
"This is the reason I attacked the Sky Mages, and this is the truth of the Sky Magic Tower that you did not know. The Master of the Sky Magic Tower was a dog of Kronos. On the surface, he pretended to care for mages and condemned the Kronos Empire as the mastermind behind the disappearances of mages. But in secret, he satisfied his own desires by constantly devouring the Circles of talented mages."
All eyes locked onto him. The crowd began to seethe with anger.
"The Sky Magic Tower has lost its way. But if you are willing to face the truth and correct what is wrong..."
A crisis was an opportunity. Edwin Hector had completely turned the situation around.
"Follow me. I shall show you a new path."
Two days before the invasion of Valhalla, an unexpected variable occurred in the Hector Kingdom—one that no one could have anticipated.
* * *
The next day.
Unlike the Hector Kingdom, which had overcome its crisis, a literal living hell of chaos and carnage unfolded at the Umberto border.
Boom!
Rumble!
The castle walls crumbled.
Although they had layered magical defenses in preparation for this day, there was no way to withstand the explosive magical onslaught of the Kronos Empire. The walls collapsed just a few hours after the attack began. A massive army of hundreds of thousands rushed forward, pouring into the fortress. From that moment on, the soldiers of Umberto had no choice but to watch their comrades die in droves.
"Stop the ene— Argh!"
"Aaaargh!"
Screams echoed from all directions. No matter where one looked, there was not a single shred of hope. Once the defenses were breached, there was no way to stop the flames of death from spreading.
"Hold the line to the end! If this place falls, there is no hope for the Umberto Kingdom!"
Slash!
Squelch!
Calderon Drake unleashed his Aura, cutting down the enemies before him.
Already drenched in blood, he showed no sign of retreating even as he faced the endless waves of soldiers. He was prepared to die right here. He knew all too well that if Umberto's greatest barrier fell so helplessly, the frontline defense posts would follow, and the entire kingdom of Umberto would crumble like a sandcastle.
Crash!
Rumble!
He flared his Aura. Cutting down a Kronos knight rampaging through the ranks, he urgently questioned his subordinate.
"What about reinforcements?!"
"It's impossible to get enough reinforcements to turn the tide! The riots in the Lawless Zone have grown so severe that the subjugation force sent there is completely tied down. Furthermore, since Valhalla has deployed troops near the Frank border, both Frank and Redford are preparing for a decisive battle against them. They promised to scrape together whatever troops they could, but that alone won't be enough to stop the massive army of Kronos!"
"Damn it!" Calderon Drake's face contorted.
He felt utterly helpless. When the new Kingdom Alliance was founded, he had envisioned a brighter future. He had believed that by following Roman Dmitry, they could finally build a proper nation. However, the power of the Empire, which had ruled the continent for ages, was far too overwhelming.
If possible, he had wanted to buy time using only Umberto's strength—time for Roman Dmitry to leave Valhalla's territory. Now that the Empire had revealed its ambitions, he had wanted to prove that the Kingdom Alliance was not to be trifled with, even without Dmitry's direct intervention.
But there was no miracle. The truth was plain. If they could have defended themselves with their own strength from the beginning, the Kingdom Alliance would never have been reduced to such a miserable state.
Splat.
He slashed through another enemy soldier and roared, "Contact Dmitry immediately! Tell them that if they do not send reinforcements, Umberto cannot hold out any longer!"
It was a desperate plea, grasping at straws.
But contrary to his sliver of hope, just a few minutes later, Calderon Drake received a despairing report.
Even Dmitry was under attack by Kronos.
* * *
It was a familiar sight.
Beyond the walls of Dmitry, the space distorted. Kronos soldiers, led by Mystic, began to emerge from the rift.
"...Kronos is truly a terrifying nation."
Atop the castle wall, Knight Commander Jonathan swallowed hard.
The continent had been turned upside down. The Kronos Empire had attacked Umberto and Cairo simultaneously, mobilizing over a million troops, yet they still managed to dispatch a separate strike force to Dmitry. Furthermore, witnessing the shocking sight of them transporting a massive army without a Warp Gate made him realize, once again, exactly what kind of monster they were waging war against.
However, Dmitry had not been idle.
The events of that fateful day had left a deep scar. On the day Dmitry was last attacked, countless people had died, and figures like Henderson had risked their lives to protect it. Since then, Dmitry had prepared thoroughly. If the same situation were to occur again, they would ensure a different outcome. To guarantee that no harm would come to Dmitry even in the absence of Roman Dmitry, everyone, led by Knight Commander Jonathan, had poured their blood, sweat, and tears into fortifying their home.
He turned to his lieutenant.
"Are the siege defenses ready?"
"Everything is prepared, sir."
"Tell the soldiers: we are not defending simply to hold out. We will crush the enemies who dared to attack Dmitry and exact our revenge for the past. We will prove to the world that Dmitry is no longer a land that can be easily coveted."
"I will convey those exact words, sir."
The lieutenant's eyes shone with resolve. With a sharp salute, he turned to leave.
Knight Commander Jonathan assigned everyone to their designated positions, but there was one person who caught his eye, gnawing at his instincts.
"Lord Ares. May I ask you something?"
"Speak."
Ares. The man newly rising as the second-in-command of Dmitry.
The people trusted him. They believed that even without Roman Dmitry, as long as Ares was there, they could withstand any powerful enemy.
"Lord Ares, your designated position is not there. I clearly requested that you take charge of the right castle wall. Why are you standing near the castle gate? And above all..."
A few days ago, Lucas of the Hao Sect had warned him of a potential, unforeseen variable.
"Is the reason you did not accompany Young Master Roman Dmitry to Valhalla truly just because you were tired?"
Ares had been excluded from the journey to Valhalla. It was not by another's will. He himself had claimed that his previous duties there had been exhausting, which was why he chose to remain in Dmitry.
At Knight Commander Jonathan's question, the air shifted.
"...The nuance of your words sounds quite dangerous. Am I mistaken?"
Ares looked at Knight Commander Jonathan, his expression turning ice-cold.