Chapter 109
Chapter 109
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 109
Chapter Title: The Master of Familiars
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Kalrag Dvoulash was the supreme authority on familiar crafting.
There were many ways to prove this, but Kalrag employed a very simple method.
He never showed up in person. A doll mimicking him took his place instead.
Unless it was a family meeting or Enricasil business, it was rare for him to leave his laboratory.
He was that confident. All thanks to the Dvoulash house magic used to create familiars.
Until now, only two people had seen through the doll: Ezekiel and Ariella.
And today, one more was added. Damian Renekht.
“How did you notice it was a doll?”
Ezekiel was the top familiar expert right below Kalrag himself, and Ariella needed no introduction as the current greatest mage in the world.
Even Rubia, so favored by magic, couldn’t distinguish Kalrag’s familiars.
Damian had shown remarkable skill lately, but there were still plenty of mages better than him, Rubia included.
“I knew the moment I first laid eyes on you.”
“…You’re not messing with me, are you?”
“One glance, and it was clear you weren’t human. What more explanation do you need?”
It was truly that simple. Damian spoke calmly, but even he couldn’t offer anything beyond that.
It really wasn’t human. If it registered as a familiar no matter how you sliced it, what other proof was required?
“So you attacked me purely on instinct? Without a thought for the fallout?”
“Lord Kalrag is an outstanding mage, isn’t he? The real you could have easily parried an attack like mine.”
“Hah, really…”
This wasn’t the first time Kalrag had run such a test. Yet among those who’d faced it, no one had ever attacked him outright.
They never dreamed the person before them could be a familiar. They unconsciously ruled out the possibility.
After agonizing deliberation, they’d timidly ask, “Could it be?” or “No way?”—not because they’d spotted the doll, but because they knew Kalrag’s prowess in familiar crafting.
Ariella and Ezekiel had dismantled the familiar piece by piece with their keen analytical minds.
Even they would intuitively perceive one of Kalrag’s familiars as human.
Not Damian. He lacked that innate human perception.
“Just good instincts, I suppose… You’re more interesting than I expected.”
Kalrag cleared away the shattered doll and took a seat on the sofa. Doubt still clouded his face.
*Why did he sense it like that?*
Now facing the real Kalrag, the mystery only deepened.
There was zero difference in appearance between the Kalrag before him and the familiar.
Yet he’d perceived this man as human, but the broken doll? Not even close.
Was it all those experiences? Contracting with the lords of hell, trapped in a world forged by magic, wielding the power of the mountain hermit.
Layer upon layer, honing Damian’s senses to a razor’s edge.
“Anyway, I passed your test. How long do I have to stay cooped up in this cramped room?”
“Ah, my apologies. It’s been ages since someone sparked my curiosity like this… Hm?”
“Kyaa~.”
A cute sound interrupted their conversation with Kalrag. It came from the bone fragment.
“Oh ho. Lord Damian’s familiar? Truly… unique.”
“Kyaa! Kyaa!”
As if it understood they were talking about it, the green flame flared wildly.
Hard to tell if it was delight or displeasure.
He’d originally planned to leave it at the annex. Its power wouldn’t be needed much for this job.
*-Kyaak! Kyaak!*
*-Damian. This one’s a no-go.*
*-I’m outmatched too, young master.*
But it refused fiercely. Even with Paruzan and Anna holding it back, it wouldn’t leave Damian’s arms.
It seemed to grasp that he was trying to ditch it somewhere else. More pet than demon or familiar.
In any case, even the empire’s greatest familiar crafter sensed nothing amiss from the bone.
What expression would Kalrag make if he realized the thing he was eyeing was a demon?
“Mind if I touch it? …How on earth did you program it to turn out like this?”
“Kyaaak! Kyaaak!”
The bone fragment, naturally, rejected the stranger’s hand outright.
Even as Kalrag pleaded with Damian, there was nothing to be done.
“It’s a familiar born from an accidental process. I was hoping for some advice on why it acts this way.”
“Hah, really. An unintended familiar moving this naturally…”
The bone fragment’s behavior deviated sharply from any standard familiar.
Not enough to scream “demon,” but plenty to raise eyebrows.
Anyone else might overlook it, but a talent like Kalrag? Fairly likely.
The best counter in these cases? Slap on the word “accident.”
Most experiments defy a mage’s intentions. From such flukes come unreproducible masterpieces.
“Oh dear, I got sidetracked again. Still, chatting alone with the Empire’s Greatest Beauty—who enchants even men—I quite enjoyed myself.”
Kalrag rose and offered a handshake. As Damian clasped it—
“—An. Damian!”
Erewin suddenly barreled in and threw her arms around him. She was even sobbing. The sincerity only made it creepier.
“Do you have any idea how worried this big sis was? Where the hell have you been… L-Lord Kalrag?”
Just as Erewin loved to boast, a resplendent banquet hall materialized.
Grabbing Kalrag’s hand had teleported them to dead center.
The chairman and Damian’s entrance. The gathered Enricasil members had no choice but to turn their eyes.
“Proud comrades. Members of Enricasil, whose history predates even the Empire itself.”
Kalrag ascended the podium. A wine glass gleamed in his hand.
“Today, Enricasil’s chairman, Kalrag Dvoulash, presents a new brother to you all.”
*Pop.* The surroundings plunged into darkness in an instant. A lone spotlight bathed Damian’s position.
“Of imperial blood, the Empire’s Greatest Beauty, master of the green flame, rising star of the Magic Tower. The man captivating the empire’s masses. Damian Renekht joins our family today. I declare it.”
*Clap clap clap clap clap!!* Erewin’s applause rang the loudest. She was desperate to flaunt her connection to him.
“Then, enjoy the banquet.”
With those words, the hall blazed back to life. Handshake requests immediately swarmed Damian.
It had been ages since a new member. And this one? Damian, whose star was skyrocketing.
“Lord Damian. Do you remember me by chance?”
“Never dreamed I’d meet you like this. It’s the greatest joy since I joined Enricasil.”
The women, especially, approached with bold enthusiasm. Polite, yet fervent.
“Everyone, cool it a little. I get the interest in my little brother, but show some maturity as Enricasil members.”
Erewin played the overprotective guardian, hovering at Damian’s side.
She’d introduce greeters by name and head off anyone veering too close.
*At least it saves hassle.*
Useful for now, so he let her run with it.
“You two… get along better than I thought.”
After the frenzy died down, Daellas approached.
Three imperial family members in Enricasil, all together.
“What nonsense, big bro. Damian and I have been tight since we were kids. Right, Damian? Why. We were bathing together just a few years back.”
A gruesome memory slithered up.
Not Erewin dragging him to the bath, but the humiliation Anna endured because of it.
Damian merely offered a faint smile. Dredging up the past here changed nothing.
Besides, he already knew Erewin would pay for it all eventually.
“Damian, take your time looking around. Anyone acts shady, you tell this sis right away. Daellas bro, got a minute?”
Erewin dragged Daellas off. The hall had private nooks for such talks.
She planned to grill him about Elgana.
Pointless, of course. She’d likely get grilled instead: *Why suspect my steward?*
Exactly what Damian wanted. Crumble the orthodox faction from within. Nothing sows discord like mutual suspicion.
*-♪♩♪♬♩♪♬-*
Music swelled as the banquet hit its stride.
There were performers, but no humans among them. Every non-member was one of Kalrag’s familiars.
“That last hunt we did together was truly memorable.”
“Caught your latest comedy. The way you weave in philosophy every time—pure admiration.”
“Your son got his knighthood? Haha. Congratulations.”
Clusters of guests sipped and chatted lightly. Surface-level pleasantries, mostly.
“This is Anytic. The game from Anya, head of Hilton Merchant Group’s Anya Division.”
Some spiced things up with board or card games, but Anytic stole the show by far.
“Lord Damian, care for a game?”
“Come join us. Word is you’re tight with Hilton Merchant Group—good at this too?”
No plans to forge bonds with Enricasil members. Still, it had been ages since Anytic. Tempting.
A few rounds with Anya at the tower, then nothing.
*Now a member, gotta do *something*.*
Idle hands would just let Erewin buzz around. No thanks to that skirt-chasing.
‘That side’ wouldn’t spark trouble first anyway. Pulling the trigger? That was Damian’s job.
“…….”
“…….”
The faces of Anytic’s bold challengers twisted subtly. They hadn’t expected a total rout without firing a shot.
“Fun game.”
Lip service. Their skills didn’t even match Dylan’s.
Afterward, Damian mingled and scouted the room.
Enricasil was social at its core. Crassly put, a drinking club.
But the connections forged here swayed the empire’s politics plenty.
Imperial family members belonged, alongside key imperial assembly figures.
Everyone obsessed over building and tending those ties.
Membership alone bred massive belonging—they milked it for all it was worth.
“First time crossing paths like this. Lord Leonard, correct?”
Apart from the bustle, one man nursed a drink by a pillar.
Leonard Mueller.
Captain of the Imperial Knights’ 3rd Division.
“Should’ve greeted you first—my apologies. Imperial Knight Leonard, at your service, Lord Damian Renekht.”
“We’re not in the palace. No need for formalities between Enricasil members.”
“Please, say no such thing. Imperial Knights serve the imperial family anywhere.”
“Then why skulk in the corner? Enjoy Enricasil properly.”
“Ahaha. Truth be told, it’s beyond me. Barely scraped in on a recommendation, but this vibe? Not my scene. Give me training any day.”
“Well, can’t be helped.”
*Because you’re a fake.* Leonard didn’t catch Damian’s final mutter.
*Boom!* A thunderous blast swallowed the music whole.
“Trouble?”
“What’s that noise?”
Conversations cut dead. Eyes locked on the source.
“Guuh…!”
They beheld Leonard, slammed to the floor—and Damian gazing down coldly.
Enricasil’s ancient history had just witnessed its first act of violence.