Chapter 137
Chapter 137
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 137
Chapter Title: The Alliance's Far West Branch
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Alliance Far West Branch.
As the name implied, it was an adventurer guild branch established at the westernmost edge of the continent, its purpose to serve as a base camp for those exploring Trident Point.
Unlike other branches typically attached to cities, the Far West Branch was a city unto itself.
“Wow, Rain! It’s the Far West Branch! It’s several times more impressive than what I saw in books!”
“Impressive, impressive, impressive.”
“Auuw!”
In the middle of a swamp, fantastical flame stones rose in a circle, and the city built upon those stone pillars boasted a rugged yet sturdy appearance.
No one knew how a city could be built atop those ancient flame stones, or by what principle it was maintained even now.
Legend had it that the legendary Ain adventurer, Nils Blantz, had built it from the ground up with his own hands.
‘Nils……’
The name stirred a faint ache in his chest, one so nostalgic it hurt.
Why wouldn’t it? In that fierce and horrific summer three hundred years ago, our party hadn’t been alone on the battlefield.
There had been several who supported us wholeheartedly back then—people who had become the precursors to modern adventurers. Nils Blantz, the master craftsman, had been one of them……
“Why do you think Nils built this place?”
“Hm?”
“He said after the journey ended, he was done with adventuring for good……”
He murmured it with a wistful smile, then quickly covered by saying he remembered reading about it in a book.
Eldvihi was eyeing him with deep suspicion. Of course, with the helmet on, her expression was hidden, but that gaze was unmistakable.
Then, after a long pause, when Eldvihi finally spoke, his heart plummeted.
“Great Mage Lin.”
The expression on his face at that moment…… Come to think of it, Eldvihi had seen him call Pippi “Pippi” multiple times.
Had she pieced it together right then?
But even if she sensed something off, how could she be so certain? Maybe she was just probing?
“You really don’t know? He explored ruins to find a way to heal your body. This place was built for that purpose.”
“Huh?”
“We Ain are different from you humans. He didn’t just pray like an idiot or wait around. He must have been searching for a way somehow.”
There was no stopping the painful, bitter smile that formed. That gruff little old man, curmudgeonly beyond measure……
And so, it was the height of irony. A fortress built to bring him back had now become a fortress blocking his path.
At least it was fortunate that most of the Seven Calamities hadn’t emerged from the depths…… But to think even worse beings had arrived.
“The Imperial Army’s made it here too.”
Kasena bit her lip.
Lacking any defensive functions of its own, the branch had over five thousand troops arrayed neatly before it.
The Imperial Army, with its orderly ranks and fluttering banners, was a sight to behold. The morning sun shattered dazzlingly off the soldiers’ armor.
The Imperial Army was the emperor’s sword. Unlike lords in war who conscripted farmers and carpenters willy-nilly and shoved spears into their hands, every soldier was a professional.
Even in the chaos of the civil war three hundred years ago, their ferocity shone, to the point where the fronts they held could be safely ignored.
‘That number…… It’s safe to say nearly half the Imperial Army is here.’
A hundred knights skilled in Mana Chains, three hundred mounted retainers serving as heavy cavalry.
The roughly four thousand infantry appeared uniformly armed and disciplined, moving in perfect unison under unified command.
Bringing up the rear would be five hundred archers and a special magic unit of five powerful battle mages.
‘The organization is almost identical to three hundred years ago.’
The grand banner bore the emblem of the Black Tortoise clutching the Holy Grail…… Unless it was the emperor himself, command fell to imperial blood.
By Eldvihi’s standards, the ragtag gold-rank adventurers were positioned on the right flank in adventurer parties, functioning as a detached force.
“No choice but to break through, huh.”
Griffion, the leader of the warriors, let out a sigh-tinged voice. Rain shook his head immediately.
“You beastkin are strong, no doubt…… But you can’t fight the Imperial Army. Not in a group battle like this. You mustn’t.”
Even if they could win, beastkin shedding human blood would spell disaster. Everything would go up in smoke.
If anything, this was a good thing……
He’d thought he’d have to convince the adventurers first, then the emperor. But if he could just sway the emperor, the adventurers would fall in line.
“So what do we do?!”
“What, what, what.”
As Kasena tilted her head, Aki, strapped to Rain’s back, mimicked her.
“Au?”
Normally, Kasena would have melted at the cuteness and hugged Aki tight…… But
With execution by the Imperial Army as traitors looming, even the ever-cheerful Kasena swallowed hard in tension.
At that moment, a figure who appeared to be the overall commander raised a hand from horseback in the Imperial ranks, and a clear horn blast pierced the air sharply.
“Rain, they’re coming!”
As Kasena said, the archers stepped forward, nocking arrows in unison. Simultaneously, a massive magic barrier unfurled in the sky.
Imperial engagement tactics…… A reinforcement array pushing amplified Delvashirts to the limit.
Arrows passing through gained immense mana, turning the rain of shafts into mana spikes that devastated like a meteor shower.
“Got a plan?”
Eldvihi, who had been about to head back after her guide duties, asked in an intrigued tone.
“Of course. Time to put what I learned at the academy to use.”
He flashed a grin, and everyone tilted their heads: Kasena, Pippi, Griffion, Opus, all the warrior leaders, even Aki.
“If you want to explain something to a crowd, first you have to grab their attention.”
What? As Eldvihi narrowed her eyes, the Imperial archers loosed in unison.
The air filled with the buzz of giant hornets…… blotting out the morning sun…… an merciless baptism of death raining down like hail.
But in that instant, as the magic barrier shattered above Rain’s palm, stunned murmurs erupted from the Imperial front lines.
“W-What the hell is that?!”
It was a mirage.
Seductive and lethal as a mirage, flames stretching from one horizon to the other incinerated the mana-infused arrows in a flash.
Bewilderment flickered in the eyes of Willis Kepel, deputy captain of the special magic unit, an Atlas (3-star) rank.
‘What the……? How does that flame’s instant deployment cover such range? How much mana does it take?’
Whether pre-drawn with Remidier style or formed with Bargante seals…… It didn’t matter.
The spell’s scope was a marvel unto itself, hinting at the caster’s mana prowess beyond imagination.
Covering the entire horizon with magic? It transcended human limits.
“……”
A similar assessment formed in the mind of Seigan Wolf Blado, Glados (4-star) rank and the era’s strongest mage.
A dangerous one.
More than any mage he’d faced.
“Enemy caster approaching!”
“Mana signatures…… two. No, three?”
“What’s with that chilling presence……?”
Piercing the flame curtain, two figures emerged. The special unit mages sensed three signatures, but only two appeared.
“Hmm, someone hiding with stealth magic?”
Bow Star Leoren whistled amusedly, then downed the strong liquor from the leather flask at his waist.
He drew the White Spear Bow Serwebon from his back, and the bow of the hero party’s Bow Star Kies scattered life’s light across the heavens and earth.
“Shy one, huh? Let’s see if you stay hidden after this!”
Point-assault archers had long been the nemesis of area-effect mages.
A mana lance focused on one spot pierced mages’ vast barriers with ease.
Few mages could block Leoren’s full-power shots—maybe countable on one hand. If he had to name one, perhaps former Magic Tower Lord Skalji Ludwig Grandpa.
“Drunken Archer Secret Technique: Thousand Oriole Slaughter.”
Drawing the string, extreme mana wove into illusory arrows in his grip, scattering eerie cyan-white light.
“T-Thousand Oriole Slaughter……!”
“The sound of a thousand birds crying as the arrow flies……!”
“The ultimate secret technique of the greatest Bow Star in history, Kies……!”
Even these impeccably disciplined Imperial soldiers rarely saw a Bow Star go all-out, so they whispered excitedly like children.
One, draw.
Two, unify mana.
Three, release smoothly.
As the bowstring twanged like fresh leaves in spring breeze, the world seemed to drown in cyan-white, and the arrow streaked past the soldiers’ heads in a blink, hurtling beyond.
“O, Ooooh……!”
A beat later, an ear-shattering boom exploded, whipping clothes in a fierce gale.
“No matter how strong, nothing against a Bow Star!”
“Hit by a Bow Star’s arrow? Done for!”
Everyone assumed the traitor would be skewered…….
But the next instant, Leoren’s brows shot up in shock as he peered far with his vision-enhancing eyes.
‘The arrow vanished……?’
What power had erased it? No, that wasn’t it. The arrow had self-destructed right before the target.
“Why?”
He blinked dazedly as the White Spear Bow Serwebon wailed, scattering mournful light. Once, twice, thrice, endlessly.
‘Your doing? Why? It glowed like this before too.’
The clueless soldiers could only gulp in stunned silence.
Such an impossibility……
Casually nullifying a Bow Star’s secret technique? What kind of monster is that?
“Not me.”
At that moment, Magic Tower Lord Seigan Wolf Blado leisurely parted the Imperial ranks and stepped forward.
Of course. No mere archer could handle that level of mage.
By personally slaying the traitor, he would prove his—and his house’s—unwavering loyalty.
“S-Seigan! The top battle mage who climbed to platinum rank 2!”
Kasena, advancing beside Rain, whispered joyfully. Both wore deep hoods hiding their faces.
Seigan, whom Rain had met at the Magic Houses Conference. They hadn’t talked back then—he’d been indifferent to worldly affairs.
Facing her now, her intimidating presence was terrifying…… So this was the era’s strongest battle mage.
‘Ah, this won’t do……’
He struggled to calm the pounding in his chest. Fear? Tension? No.
His blood was boiling.
He couldn’t deny the urge to test how far he lagged behind this pinnacle of the current generation, compared to his own peak in the previous era.
‘Perfect opponent to test Alakish’s power—and draw all eyes.’
Reveal his identity after, or alongside, achieving that goal.
He carefully handed Aki to Kasena, then traced a long line through the air with his finger. Ancient flames ignited along the path, coalescing into illusory fragments that formed the Four Flame Spears.
Gripping and twirling the Four Flame Spears into position, he provocatively beckoned the pinnacle three hundred years his junior.
“Let’s see what the era’s strongest battle mage can do.”