Chapter 17
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: A Tenacious Bastard
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“So, you’re not from the North?”
“No, sir. I’m from a city in the eastern part of the central region. I learned from a certain mage.”
“No wonder your magic lacks fundamentals. Continue.”
“Yes, so after learning magic…”
“My apologies, but let’s skip to why you came here. Your life story isn’t my cup of tea.”
“Yes, so I was serving as a noble’s personal mage in a castle in the upper central region when one day, some men in masks came to see me.”
“Masks?”
“Yes, they looked like crows.”
Crow masks. Galahad muttered softly. He knew who they were. They used to be his business.
“The Black Magic Society?”
“Yes, you know of them. They asked if I wanted to get my hands on some manastones.”
“They’ve changed their methods. And that’s why you came to the North?”
“Yes.”
“Right, so you were ordered to take mole hound monsters and dig? And inside there’s a mage named Karl and another unidentified person? Twelve mole hounds?”
“Yes, I’ve told you everything. So please, now—”
“Hmm, let’s hear it again from the beginning.”
“I just told you! This is the fourth time! Shit!”
“Tut, tut. It seems you haven’t been fully persuaded yet. For a man of your appearance, you’re quite stubborn.”
“Aaaargh! I was wrong! I was wrong! I’ll tell you again!”
“Good. This time, could you be a bit quicker?”
****
‘The Black Magic Society.’
Galahad muttered to himself, a mana cigarette between his lips.
There was no such thing as black magic. Magic was just magic. The reason it was called ‘black magic’ was because their methods differed from those of ordinary mages.
The black mages revered the Demon Race as the origin of magic, praising them and devouring humans just as they did. They were also anarchists who denied the Empire.
They were an organization the Intelligence Bureau paid special attention to, and also a card they played often.
For instance, if a noble was caught secretly embezzling taxes, they would be quietly disposed of, and the blame would be pinned on the black mages to instill fear.
Galahad, believing their existence did nothing to help stop the Demon King, had intended to wipe them all out, but he had never managed to catch the main body.
He had wondered where they were hiding.
‘So they were in the North.’
Galahad flicked his cigarette. Gray ash fluttered down.
‘So, did a monster tamer join the Black Magic Society? Or did they find a monster tamer’s artifact?’
It was a rather important question.
To solve it, he first had to catch the ones digging that tunnel.
‘One mage stronger than this one, one unidentified person, and twelve mole hounds. There could be more.’
This was the information the man named Bern had provided. He had confirmed it several times, so it was unlikely to be a lie.
However, Bern’s rank didn’t seem very high. There could be forces he didn’t know about.
Karl, Bern’s superior, wasn’t a problem.
Even if he was stronger than this man, he was still just a mage, no match for Galahad. The only mages who could pose a threat to him were holed up in the Twilight Magic Tower.
The twelve mole hounds could be dealt with by putting his subordinates to work.
‘The unidentified person is the problem.’
A rather large variable.
The safe bet was to wait for Adrianna, but…
They had already taken care of one of them. There was a chance the others had noticed and would flee.
The magic circle carved into the monster’s belly—he couldn’t let a single one of them get away.
Ever since arriving in the North… no, ever since leaving the Intelligence Bureau, it seemed there hadn’t been a single quiet day.
‘Good.’
Galahad flicked his cigarette, running calculations and checking them. As he was running them again, he heard footsteps from behind.
A heavy yet steady stride—it was Gilberton.
The magic circle on the monster must have been a raw nerve for him; his pace was twice as fast as usual.
“What happened?”
Gilberton’s sword was caked in red blood. He must have been in such a hurry that he hadn’t even wiped it clean, despite how meticulously he usually cared for his blade.
Behind him, Damian, Tom, and Gwen appeared in turn. They all looked a mess. Damian, in particular, was covered in red.
“Took you longer than I expected.”
“…We were dealing with monsters, after all. The 1st Battalion primarily handles the Demon Race. Monsters are usually dealt with by regular soldiers or knights with heavy weapons.”
It sounded like they were more effective against humans. It wasn’t hard to understand. A sword was indeed too short to deal with the black beasts.
“A plausible excuse.”
That probably wasn’t the only problem.
Damian and Gilberton were polar opposites in nature. Damian was a born predator, while Gilberton was an upright knight. And then there were Gwen and Tom, left behind like scarecrows.
‘I’ll have to get them in sync on the way.’
The fastest way to build teamwork was always in the heat of battle.
“So, what happened?”
Gilberton asked again.
“He said they’re digging with mole hounds. Behind them are one mage and one unidentified person. There could be more.”
“A tunnel, you say?”
As Galahad nodded, Gilberton’s expression grew grave.
“Has this happened before?”
“Monsters usually break through or climb over the walls. But occasionally, tunnels like this are discovered. It’s why there’s a constant stream of monsters and demons inside the walls.”
“There’s one other possibility. It could be a manastone mine.”
“……A manastone mine?”
“Manastones are quite popular in the capital.”
Gilberton narrowed his eyes.
“In any case, we have to catch the ones who carved magic circles on demons, don’t we? And we have to stop this insidious tunnel.”
“We must catch them, without question.”
“It would be best to call for support, but they’re likely to escape in the meantime. We’ve already taken down one mage and four mole hounds. They’ll catch on quickly.”
“That’s unacceptable!”
‘Such a strong reaction.’
The Gilberton he had seen until now was a man who rarely showed his emotions. But now, emotion flickered across his face.
Emotion was a crack. A weakness. And also a motivation to act.
‘It seems the magic circles on the monsters mean something more to the knights of the North.’
Galahad’s eyes narrowed. Then he smiled.
He had no intention of letting them go in the first place. This was the prize of his first mission, a thread leading to the rat-like Black Magic Society, and a clue about the monster tamer.
He was prepared to go in alone if he had to.
He was confident enough.
“Well now, we must save the North from crisis, mustn’t we? Is everyone ready to be heroes?”
Gwen looked like she was about to cry, and Tom looked like he was about to vomit. Gilberton wore an expression like he’d just been stabbed.
*Tweet*. Gilberton put his fingers to his lips and whistled. The cry of a bird was heard, and a large hawk descended. It was a magnificent hawk with a white head.
The hawk flew down naturally and landed on Gilberton’s shoulder. Gwen, who had been denied permission to touch it earlier, looked dejected.
‘A messenger hawk. How very northern.’
Gilberton opened the small tube on the hawk’s leg and took out a piece of paper. He wrote something on it and put it back. The hawk flew off and disappeared.
“I’ve sent a message to Lady Adrianna.”
“Well done. Now, let’s move out immediately.”
Galahad brushed the snow from his shoulders and led the way.
Just then, Gilberton asked in a low voice.
“What happened to that man from before?”
Instead of answering, Galahad simply waved his staff.
Gilberton didn’t ask any more questions.
****
Upon arriving at the location the man had described, they were met by a massive cave.
The mana concentration in the area was quite dense.
‘Did it dig through solid rock? Monsters will be monsters.’
Galahad clicked his tongue at the sight of the enormous hole. Just then, he felt something at the entrance.
“Wait, hold up.”
Gilberton, who had been in the lead, stopped dead in his tracks. Galahad narrowed his eyes and scattered his mana around.
“There’s an alarm spell set up. A meticulous fellow.”
“Please disarm it quickly.”
“You make it sound so easy. If alarm spells were that easy to disarm, would they be called alarm spells? They’d be ‘welcome’ spells.”
“You can’t disarm it?”
“No, I already did.”
“Then why…”
“I wouldn’t want to raise your standards too high because of me. Other mages might feel unfairly judged. This is to prevent that.”
“You’re making jokes even in a situation like this?”
“I’m being serious.”
Galahad examined the magic circle, which was carved almost secretively to one side. A rough stone was embedded in its center.
“A manastone.”
“Is this that manastone? It just looks like a rock.”
“If you look closely, you can see a faint light emanating from it.”
Galahad carefully removed the manastone. The value of a manastone was judged by the amount of light it held, and this was of the lowest grade.
After neutralizing the magic, he stepped inside.
Galahad gauged the width of the cave. At this size…
“Three mole hounds at most. The perfect size.”
“What’s so perfect about it?”
Instead of answering, Galahad’s lips curled into a smile.
“Alright, Gilberton and Damian, take the front. I’ll cover the rear. Tom, you take the shield.”
“…What about me?!”
Galahad quietly observed Gwen. To transfer magic efficiently, Gwen needed to cling to him first.
It would be more effective if she felt a desperate helplessness and craved magic like a drowning person grasping at a demon’s hand. She wasn’t there yet.
However, that didn’t mean she was entirely useless.
He dug out the manastone section from the staff he had brought. The top part was large enough, making it a suitable size. He glanced at the magic circle carved on the staff for a moment, then casually scraped off a few parts.
He then held it out to Gwen.
“Grab the end of this.”
“……Huh?”
Gwen tilted her head for a moment before grabbing the end of the staff.
“Ouch! What is this? It feels weird!”
“That’s just how it is.”
By modifying the magic circle that drew mana from the manastone, he could make excellent use of the scarecrow Gwen.
‘A large, walking, auto-refilling manastone. A bit noisy, but that’s its only flaw.’
Galahad looked at Gwen with a satisfied expression.
With an unknown enemy in the back, he planned to conserve as much of the Demon Race’s blood as possible.
“Adultery is a capital offense in the North.”
“Stop with the nonsense and focus.”
Gilberton clicked his tongue and stepped forward.
“Alright, this is your first mission, and your first training exercise.”
****
‘Why in the world am I here…’
Tom swallowed hard.
They were up against mole hounds. Mole hounds!
A single one could overwhelm a squad, and two could wipe one out. They were creatures that burst from the ground and dragged people away, earning them the name “earth ghosts.”
And he was willingly walking into a place that had twelve of them.
Damian and Gilberton were here, but even they had struggled against just three mole hounds earlier.
Besides, unlike them, Tom was just a regular soldier.
“Alright, looks like they’ve noticed us! Everyone, get ready!”
Just then, the cave began to shake violently.
In the distance, he could see mole hounds rushing toward them. He hadn’t realized it when they were underground, but seeing them charge from the outside was incredibly intimidating.
“Damian, you’re a natural beast. Go in deep. Think only of yourself.”
“Yes, brother.”
The conversation between Damian and Galahad was remarkably calm.
“And Sir Gilberton, you don’t need to worry about what’s behind you.”
Instead of answering, Gilberton furrowed his brow. A fierce blue energy surged around the hand gripping his sword.
“Tom, when I call you, run out and block with your shield. Just think of it as throwing your body on the line.”
Throw his body on the line with a shield. Tom forced down the retort that rose to his lips.
At that moment, the cave filled with mole hounds. Their characteristically sharp teeth quivered.
“Alright, everyone, focus. Damian!”
Damian shot forward. His movements were as astounding as ever.
This left Gilberton to face three mole hounds alone. The situation was even worse than before.
How in the world were they going to—
“Flame Dance.”
“……Guh!”
Something massive flew past from behind him.
It was a stream of fire so large it filled the entire cave.
How could a human cast such magic? Tom’s mouth fell open in awe.
*Krrrrrrrk!* The mole hounds, now on fire, thrashed about. The dark cave was instantly illuminated.
The grotesque forms of the mole hounds were laid bare. Viscous fluid oozed from between their melting carapaces. It was a sight he feared he’d see in his dreams.
Damian slid under the flames and disappeared, looking for all the world like he had thrown himself into the fire.
A blue light erupted from Gilberton’s sword. He sliced through a mole hound’s head with ease. The one next to it tried to crush him.
Gilberton stepped back and calmly swung his sword horizontally. It was different from before, when he had only charged forward.
*Crunch*. The aura easily sliced through its leg. A scream erupted from the mole hound’s mouth. Gilberton’s sword moved fluidly. The mole hound continued to advance.
Gilberton’s sword was sharp, but it was small compared to the mole hound.
“Now! Tom!”
Tom charged forward on instinct.
The ground split open and a mole hound’s leg shot up. *Thud!* The heavy impact on his shield sent Tom tumbling backward.
He desperately fought to regain his senses and get up, only to see Gilberton cutting down the mole hound.
He had faced three of them, yet his movements were smoother than before.
Only one thing had changed.
“Good! Sir Gilberton, did you see that? Even Tom can block one.”
Galahad had joined them.
Galahad’s magic was threatening, but that wasn’t the reason for the current situation.
The crucial factor was Galahad’s coordination.
He had sent Damian deeper in, preventing him from getting tangled up with Gilberton, and actively used Tom to free up Gilberton’s movements.
Only then did Tom realize that Gilberton had been held back because of them.
“Tom, are you alright?”
“Yes! I’m fine!”
At Gilberton’s heavy voice, Tom spat out the blood in his mouth and raised his shield.
Beyond Gilberton, he could see the horrific, burnt figures of the mole hounds.
Their enraged roars filled the cave. The pressure made his legs tremble, and a cold sweat ran down his back. This must be hell.
Why am I here? I’m just a regular soldier.
“I’ll be casting a flash of light periodically. Do not turn around, no matter what.”
That indifferent command made the situation feel trivial.
He couldn’t even attack, just take a hit and roll backward, but being able to do even that was something.
“Here comes the light!”
Along with the calm voice, a brilliant light flooded from behind.
Tom tightened his grip on his shield’s strap.
****
‘What is this…’
Karl bit his lip.
The plan had been perfect. They had diverted the North’s attention and received the mole hound monsters.
They had found a blind spot in the patrol routes between watchtowers and set up their location there.
But why…
“The mole hounds are being pushed back. Hmm, a failure, I suppose. I didn’t expect this.”
At the monotonous voice from his side, Karl dropped to his knees.
“No! We can finish this! Just one more chance—”
The figure calmly pressed its foot down on Karl’s pleading hand. It was painful, but Karl desperately endured it. He knew that if he let go of this hand, he would die.
The figure wore a crow mask, so its face was hidden.
“Do you know who that man in the lead is? That’s the knight, Gilberton. He’s caused our side considerable damage. Thanks to him, there’s a hefty bounty on his head. We couldn’t deal with him because he was always with Adrianna. You’re a lucky man. If it weren’t for Gilberton, I’d have no reason to step in.”
The Crow Mask spoke in an androgynous voice. Karl didn’t understand what it meant, but he nodded anyway.
“How many manastones are left?”
Karl hastily took out all the manastones he had and offered them up.
They were manastones he wouldn’t get to eat if he failed anyway. There was no need to be stingy now.
“……Should I wake… *him*?”
At Karl’s question, the Crow Mask glanced down.
“You want to summon *him*? Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
“B-but…”
“You’re a timid one. Don’t worry. With this many manastones in my hand, what threat is Gilberton?”
The Crow Mask let out a sinister laugh.
“But besides Gilberton, there’s another person—”
“Another person? Ah, you mean the riffraff in the back. They must be Gilberton’s soldiers. Nothing to see there…”
The Crow Mask trailed off, suddenly stopping.
It craned its neck forward, as if trying to get a better look at something in the distance.
After a moment, the Crow Mask tilted its head to the side. *Crrrack*. A strange sound echoed.
“What are you doing?”
“……Sir?”
“Go wake him up now!”
At the Crow Mask’s shout, Karl shot to his feet.
Just a moment ago, he was yelling not to wake him, so why the sudden change…
“You followed me all the way here? You tenacious bastard!”
The Crow Mask shouted, its voice trembling.
Its gaze was fixed on a well-dressed man.
“Hurry up and wake him! Wake him! Just open the cave! What are you doing! You fucking idiot! Do you want to die?! That—that tenacious bastard! So you finally came all this way!”
At the Crow Mask’s roar, Karl scrambled away.
Who in the world was that man?