Chapter 24
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Life and Death (2)
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He struck the kid's head with the long staff he was holding.
"Ow."
"Release the magic. That man is a guest."
"M-Master. A guest? He's an imperial mage, isn't he? The one commanding demons..."
"I know that too. But now's not the time to show hostility. Liscia will explain."
I shook my wrist, scattering the mana chains that had bound the kid. Surely he didn't think something like this could restrain anyone.
The kid looked visibly disappointed as his magic vanished.
"You've heard about me, it seems."
I was far more intrigued by the old man riding the moving chair than by the amateur kid.
What principle made that chair move on its own? I wanted to disassemble it right then and there.
Kingdom mages really did come up with the strangest ideas.
"Show some respect to Master! You rude punk!"
I decided to ignore the little mage. His master got the same treatment.
"You heard. Liscia came to consult me about whether your idea was feasible."
"So, what's your opinion? Lagot Althur."
I'd heard he'd badly injured his leg, yet here he was, riding that chair right on the front lines.
The old man regarded me with cautious eyes.
"Troian Empire magic is completely different from ours... I can't say for sure if it's feasible, but I intend to believe your story."
"Why?"
"Because you have no reason to lie. This endless war—the Demon Emperor will win it in the end. It's slowly draining our future, and the hope of ever defeating him is fading away."
Lagot Althur maneuvered his chair closer to the conference room.
His age was impossible to gauge, piled on over countless years, but the keen glint in his eyes rivaled that of the great knights and warriors gathered there.
"The Demon Emperor even seems to be savoring the process. He could crush us in one fell swoop, yet he holds back.
I don't know what you're planning, but I trust Liscia, and she trusts you."
The old man's piercing gaze made my shoulders stiffen. It felt like he was reading my mind.
"And one more thing—this old survivor's intuition from this brutal world."
Lagot Althur let out a hearty laugh.
I frowned.
Talking to this old man made me feel like he was peering right into my head.
Different magic systems or not, he was worthy of the title Archmage.
Soon after, Liscia emerged into the corridor to call me, having tidied up the conference room.
She spotted Althur and his disciple, greeted them politely, and led them inside first.
Then I followed her summons into the conference room.
The moment I took a single step inside, the air in the room shifted completely.
The alliance knights and warriors spotted me and simultaneously gripped their weapons, leaping to their feet.
It took quite a while for the chaos to die down.
"......Liberic!"
I awoke screaming.
Agonizing heat and pain wracked my entire body as I thrashed about.
The memory of darkness closing in before my eyes kept replaying endlessly.
The nail embedded in my body gnawed at me from the inside. Choking pain left me gasping, unable to even scream properly.
"Liberic! Pull yourself together!"
Someone pinned my shoulders down hard.
My dark vision gradually cleared.
The one who'd woken me was a massive gray-furred wolf—the same one who'd told me to flee from atop Prion's walls.
The wolf straddled me, shoving his face close.
I clutched his fur, panting heavily.
"H-How...?"
"I followed your trail. Sneaking around that mansion wasn't easy."
The wolf scanned our surroundings warily as he spoke.
Knowing someone was there with me brought a gradual calm.
The searing pain ebbed bit by bit, and my panicked breathing from fear slowed.
Only then did I have the presence of mind to look around.
It was the same room I'd been trapped in before. The mangled corpse and scattered dark red bloodstains remained untouched.
The only change was me.
I was covered in blood, a thick restraint locked around my neck. A chain connected to it was fixed to the window frame.
Confirming I'd calmed, the wolf bit into the chain and yanked, trying to free it.
I glanced down at my bloodstained body.
By my last memory... my chest had been pierced, and I'd been thrown into the seal.
I'd thought I was dead.
"How am I... still alive?"
The wolf paused his efforts and glanced back at me.
His red eyes were those of a demon, but they held a gentle light unlike others of his kind.
"I know roughly what happened to you. But save the worrying for later. Getting out of here comes first."
The wolf resumed tugging at the chain with a metallic clank.
But the moment footsteps approached from outside, the wolf vanished in the blink of an eye.
"Oh! You're awake."
The door burst open, and Grivis entered with a man in black robes—the same one who'd nailed me down with spikes and chains.
I instinctively shrank back, retreating.
Grivis flashed a chilling smile and extended a hand to me.
"No need to be scared, Liberic. Glad you pulled through."
Unsure of his intent, I stared at his offered hand.
Grivis's smiling face hardened slightly.
"I heard a handshake is basic courtesy. Was I mistaken?"
His casual words carried a terrifying killing intent that made my spine crawl.
With trembling hand, I grasped his cold fingers.
"Good, good. That's a fine start. I'm Drok Grivis. This is Paygin. Apologies for the late intro—we had to confirm if you were truly worthy."
"W-Worthy...?"
"Yeah. Whether you qualify as our 'vessel.' Thought you might've died for a second there, but you recovered. Lucky. Paygin's a bit hot-tempered—cut you some slack."
As he spoke, Grivis ruffled my hair roughly with his callused hand. Meant to be friendly, no doubt, but the force only added pain.
My body shook, making the heavy restraint and chain around my neck clank.
Grivis went "Hm" and tapped the chain.
"Bear with this too. Outside, plenty still see you as lunch. Step out, and you die—our efforts wasted. Get it?"
Grivis chuckled like it was a great joke, but neither I nor Paygin beside him laughed.
"Alright, let's check those wounds."
Grivis reached for me. I twisted away, slapping his hand aside.
It wasn't kindness or for my sake. I knew resistance was futile, but I had no intention of complying meekly.
"Stay back."
"Not planning to play nice, huh."
Grivis grabbed my wrist and yanked. I was pulled forward effortlessly.
"Let go!"
In an instant, he pinned me down and clamped his other hand over my mouth.
I tried biting his palm, thrashing wildly, but couldn't overcome the difference in strength and size.
"Seems you're under some delusion, Liberic."
His cold hand touched my chest.
In that moment, scorching agony flared through me, my vision flashing white.
Amid the shaking haze, Grivis cackled.
"This inside you is why you're still alive. Shouldn't you be grateful to me?"
"Like I'd... thank a filthy... demon..."
I ground my teeth, forcing out the words.
My heart pounded wildly, as if it wasn't mine. Each beat stole my breath.
"Says the guy who's no ordinary human himself."
No. That can't be...
The words never left my lips. I blacked out in despair.
Coming up with a way to seal Demon Emperor Berkis hadn't taken long.
Only I knew his weakness, so only I could devise—and execute—that method.
Thus, with the alliance's aid, I imprisoned Demon Emperor Berkis within my heart.
The red seal formed from my heart consisted of two magics: 'Regression Seal' and 'Severance Barrier.'
The 'Regression Seal' reverted Berkis's sealed power inward to sustain the seal, while the 'Severance Barrier' isolated it from external influence.
I constructed both firmly, expending all my mana to complete them.
Using my heart as medium meant certain death, so I entrusted the aftermath to Liscia and the alliance mages.
Thanks to the Severance Barrier, the red seal would seem mere a red stone to posterity—but who knew what the future held.
And yet...
One fragment of the red seal now hovered before my eyes.
The magic was crumbling bit by bit, vile power leaking from within.
The demons' intent was clear.
They'd use me—this 'vessel'—to gather the fragments, then release Demon Emperor Berkis.
Was that why I'd been reborn?
"......Ugh."
Tears wouldn't stop. I leaned into the arms embracing my shoulders, head bowed.
Better if I'd never been reborn.
It wasn't my choice. I hadn't wanted to live...
"Liberic. We have to get out of here."
"I don't know..."
My voice came out hoarse. I squeezed my eyes shut.
"Maybe it'd be better to just die here..."
"Liberic."
The man lifted my head.
Vision blurred by tears, but I recognized him: the demon imprisoned in the sealed cell, who'd come to Prius.
The man who'd been a wolf was human again.
While I'd passed out, he'd returned and wrenched the chain free from the window frame.
"Stay here, and you can't do anything you want—not even die or live. They control that. So we escape."
"Ah..."
His voice cleared my mind bit by bit.
Can't choose life or death here... I swallowed the words painfully.
My twelve-year-old mind ached with terror, but the soul of Luther Rendike, who'd lived ages, began thinking rationally.
Grivis wouldn't let me die.
He wanted to unleash the Demon Emperor.
"No time. They'll be back."
I wiped my tears with my hand.
Body still trembling, I sharpened my focus.
"Okay. Let's go."
The man nodded and leaned toward me.
As I startled, reaching to grab him, his body transformed in a flash into the massive gray-furred wolf.
The shift was so swift I couldn't fathom how.
The wolf—with the same eyes as before—slid under my arm.
"Climb on and grip my scruff tight."
I gathered the chain from the restraint to keep it from snagging, then clutched the wolf's scruff firmly.
His fur was soft and plush, warm beneath. His size easily bore me without issue, steady and secure.
But how did he plan to escape from this locked room?
"How...?"
Before I finished, my body lurched forward.
I tensed my arms on his scruff to hold on.
Opening my squeezed-shut eyes, I saw an unfamiliar corridor.
"......did you do that?"
I couldn't believe we'd exited the room in an instant.
The corridor felt empty, only a chill air lingering.
"Explanations later. Escape first. Hold tight."
I trusted the wolf's words and clung fast.
In one breath, he moved again.
In that brief moment, I barely caught his body leaning forward, mana rising, fur bristling.