Chapter 65
Chapter 65
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: A Fate Worse Than Death
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The moment the Torchbearer moved, the blue flames in the brazier flickered violently.
Loan observed the flow of mana connecting the Torchbearer and the fire, while simultaneously extending his Convection toward Lucas.
Just as Lucas was about to place his hand on his claymore, he flinched at the strange pressure exerted on his body.
He didn't turn his gaze, but knowing it was Loan's doing, he stopped drawing his sword and quickly backed away from his enemies.
It was a fortunate turn of events.
It allowed him to escape the Torchbearer's notice.
"You! And you!"
Through the crowd that had naturally parted, the massive Torchbearer extended a finger.
He pointed directly at the two from Libertha, the man and woman who had first been talking to Lucas.
They turned their attention to the Torchbearer, their swords still aimed at Lucas.
"You know what happens when a sword is drawn in the bridge district."
The Torchbearer's voice held enough authority to stir the mist.
The man and woman's voices trembled in response.
"No, it started with that guy, who provoked us with his insolent remarks. We were just trying to scare him…"
"I apologize for breaking the unwritten rule, but this has nothing to do with you. We'll make sure no harm comes to you, so mind your own business."
Perhaps the sudden situation had clouded their judgment. Their attitudes didn't even match.
The Torchbearer shook his massive head quickly.
"An unwritten rule can only persist if it is upheld. There are no exceptions. Therefore, you will pay for your sins."
A resolute stance from a colossal figure.
Loan felt a strong conviction that the Torchbearer's words would be carried out.
Even the onlookers felt it, so it was only natural that the tips of Libertha's swords moved toward the Torchbearer.
*Clang-!*
*Shing—*
Seeing their comrades threatened, the rest of the Libertha group behind them drew their swords in unison.
Five in total.
The faint haze shimmering on each blade proved they were all considerable experts.
The Torchbearer, seeming utterly unconcerned, took a bold step toward them.
The Libertha members were the first to strike.
*Swoosh—!*
Moving from different directions, their swords descended on a single point simultaneously.
Though hidden by his curly hair, their blades aimed for where his neck must be, somewhere between his head and shoulders.
Perhaps they felt that stabbing or slashing his body would be futile. Even without words, they were of one mind.
Yet the Torchbearer still stood with his hands hanging loose, making no move to defend himself.
Just as Loan considered intervening, readying his Convection…
*Clang-Clang—Ting!*
A series of unfitting sounds rang out from around the Torchbearer's neck.
The hardness of his hair was astonishing, enough to block swords imbued with Aura.
Startled and momentarily dumbfounded, the Libertha members watched as the Torchbearer's fists came crashing down on their heads.
*CRACK! CRUNCH!*
Again, the sound was not what one would expect from a fist meeting a skull. The impact was so powerful that the men's heads were driven deep into their collarbones.
Just like that, two of them were dead.
"You crazy bastard!"
The remaining three changed their tactics.
They immediately launched a coordinated attack, aiming their swords at the Torchbearer's ankles and the backs of his knees.
The next moment, with a loud stomp, the Torchbearer leaped into the air.
As Libertha's swords sliced through the dust he kicked up, the Torchbearer seamlessly transitioned to his next move.
He tore at his own beard with both hands.
Then, he channeled Aura into the curly hair clutched between his fingers.
He shoved the clumps of stiff, straightened hair, now shimmering with a haze, into the nostrils of the men left open after their attacks.
At the bizarre and uncanny attack—
"Hah!"
A gasp escaped Loan's lips.
The two who had been quarreling with Lucas died on the spot, their nostrils stuffed full of hair.
And then there was one.
"What kind of monster is this…"
He lost his will to fight and dropped his sword to the ground.
He took a futile step backward.
The Torchbearer moved forward to close the distance, extending one hand downward.
His other hand hovered near his mouth, as if preparing to pluck more hair.
Just as a tearing sound was heard, Loan used his Narrow Path to quickly move to the Torchbearer's side.
"Sir, wait a moment."
"Hmm?"
The Torchbearer looked at Loan with a puzzled expression.
Unsure of what was happening but guessing Loan was up to something again, Lucas quickly moved to block the last man's escape route.
His hand was still just resting on the hilt of his claymore.
After a brief exchange of glances with Lucas, Loan spoke to the Torchbearer.
"It would be a waste to kill him."
The Torchbearer, looking down at Loan, tilted his head.
"A waste?"
"Yes. Rather than just killing him, I thought it would be better if he could be of some use to the world."
"How could a scoundrel like this be of any use?"
He turned his gaze.
The remaining Libertha member, his eyes meeting the Torchbearer's, trembled like a leaf and lowered his head.
He had thought death was certain, but the boy's unexpected appearance had bought him a moment of time.
He didn't know who the boy was, but seeing the Torchbearer pause at his words, he felt a glimmer of hope that a path to survival might open.
He brought his hands together pleadingly, his posture utterly submissive.
"I was wrong. I'm truly sorry. If you give me a chance, as the young gentleman said…"
Loan, who had been carefully observing the man's inner workings, cut him off.
"It's a shame that you have to burn your own life force to keep the fire lit. Wouldn't it be better if there was a way to use someone else's life instead?"
"Hmm?"
"Huh?"
The Torchbearer and the Libertha member expressed their confusion at the same time.
Loan smiled and said,
"If he uses his body to sustain the undying flame, he will suffer eternal agony until death, atoning for his past sins."
The Libertha man's face turned deathly pale.
Loan didn't stop.
"Besides, this man possesses a considerable amount of magical power. It would extend the life of the flame significantly, and it would also serve as a good example for upholding the unwritten rule here."
"I understand your meaning, but I don't see how you could possibly do that."
The Torchbearer furrowed his brow and tilted his head, but his face was filled with curiosity.
Loan threw back his cloak and said,
"Allow me to introduce myself properly. I am Oz of the Union's Faith Division, a wielder of magic named Loan. I will help you."
***
"Hey, why are you making things complicated? You should've just let him die."
After tying the Libertha man to a chair, Lucas whispered to Loan.
"We need the Torchbearers' help to cross this place too. As a member of the Union, I wanted to repay them somehow. And in that situation just now, you could have been in danger as well."
"...That's because those guys were getting on my nerves, so I couldn't hold back either. Something about kidnapping and modifying kids."
"Modifying them?"
"Yeah. Something about forcibly altering their minds."
"Hmm…"
If the Graves communicated with each other, it was plausible they could use black magic or the power of dark priests to concoct such schemes.
Still, the priority now was to lessen the burden on the Torchbearer's life force.
Loan said,
"Let's talk about this again after we get out of here."
"Alright. Well, when we get to Vartino, the Stability Division will probably know something. Anyway, what are you going to do with him?"
Loan shrugged and stood before the bound Libertha member.
As his next actions were to be kept secret, the onlookers had all been moved to a safe distance.
Loan asked the Torchbearer,
"The reason you could connect your life force to that brazier is because it's a special magical artifact, right?"
"Yes. A keen observation."
"The flame responded to your breath, and the flow was never broken. To be more precise, I felt a connection between your nostrils and the brazier."
"..."
It was a secret, of a sort.
Loan had already seen it through the flow of mana, but the Torchbearer feigned ignorance, wondering if Loan had deduced it from his actions.
"Ha, haha. You must have thought so after seeing me attack their nostrils with my hair. There was no particular reason for that…"
It could be true, or it could not.
He usually expelled the source of his mana with his breath, so he might have unconsciously targeted what he felt was a person's most vital point.
Loan smiled.
"It's alright. There's no one else to hear. Besides, you'll need to understand that for my magic to make sense."
He then turned back to the man who was to become a sacrifice for the flame.
A muffled scream escaped from his gagged mouth.
"Mmph! Mmmph!"
"I was once in a position similar to yours. I had my life force drained by something called a Human Tree. For you, this brazier will now serve the same role as that Human Tree."
"Mmph, mmmph!"
Loan observed the man's body in depth.
Specifically, the flow of mana circulating within him according to the cultivation method he practiced.
Mana, tinged with a murky light, emanated faintly from his core, moving without rest.
An enemy he may be, but he was quite well-trained.
*Scrape-scrape-*
Loan moved behind the man and slowly pushed the chair he was tied to forward.
Until his knees touched the brazier.
The muffled screams grew louder.
"My friends and I had to keep reading books. They must have decided it was a good way to extract mana steadily."
"Mmph-mmph!"
"Instead of reading books, you will feel constant pain. It won't be enough to kill you, but it should allow us to draw out your magical power a bit more forcefully."
As if to endure the pain, the flow of his mana grew more intense.
Watching this, Loan refined his Convection over and over.
Making it more precise and slender than when he had shot water droplets from his fingertips.
His target was the man's core.
After envisioning a virtual Narrow Path—a single route passing through the man's nostrils to his core—he instantly infused his mana into the circulating flow.
Trying to hold his breath was useless.
Soon, Loan's fine thread of Convection reached the man's core, following the flow of his mana.
At first, Loan synchronized his mana circulation with the man's, then gradually, he pulled the current with his own will, making it faster and stronger.
Finally, the man's mana began to flow in reverse, following the new current Loan had created.
The mana that had tried to remain inside his body to endure the pain was now forced out through his breath.
Loan guided the procession of mana into the brazier. The faint mist in the air helped to stabilize the Convection.
*Fwoosh-!*
For a moment, the blue flame flared brightly.
Then, it returned to its usual size and brightness.
Thanks to this, the mana connecting the Torchbearer to the brazier had thinned to a transparent thread.
"Sir. I think you can rest a little easier now."
"Ooh… I certainly feel lighter."
He was so delighted that he jumped up and down.
A moment of elation continued.
Loan watched him with a pleased expression before speaking.
"Well then, we'll continue on to Vartino. How long will it take?"
"You should plan for two days. You'll meet four more Torchbearers."
He then cast his gaze into the distance.
Far away, four flames flickered in sequence.
"Ah, it would be great if I could help the other Torchbearers too…"
"Indeed, they are all old like me. It would be wonderful if you could."
Lost in thought for a moment, the Torchbearer took a small, torch-shaped badge from his clothes and handed it to Loan.
"This is the badge that symbolizes our clan. I give this to you as a gift of gratitude. You are as good as one of our own."
"I didn't do it expecting anything in return."
The Torchbearer shook his head and continued.
"If you wear it on your chest, the other Torchbearers will recognize it. They will have seen the flames flickering here, so they will listen to you. You may now draw your sword in the bridge district."
"Ah, really?"
It meant that if he ran into any Graves, he was free to use them as kindling.