Chapter 157
Chapter 157
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 157
Chapter Title: Protecting the Continent
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Swoosh!
The figure standing at the edge of the sandbar vanished in an instant.
I stared blankly in that direction.
"Isn't this the Island of the Dead? Why is there someone here?"
On the surface, the Island of the Dead seemed quite peaceful and ordinary.
But a closer look revealed it was by no means a place fit for human habitation.
I'd experienced it just today, after all.
That black object that had flown in from the east and crashed into the water.
If the sea was in such chaos, the island couldn't possibly be unscathed.
"…What are you suddenly talking about?"
Having apparently overheard my muttering, Rhys Ganiol asked the question with weary eyes.
"There was a human-like figure over there."
"Oh, that can't be."
The Vice-Commander's reaction was perfectly reasonable.
But what I had seen was no illusion.
*I definitely felt a presence.*
It was absolutely not a phantom.
By completely conquering Esmeranta's Tower, I had gained a considerable immunity to illusions.
That didn't mean I was completely unaffected.
Only that I could detect a sense of wrongness.
That was why I was certain the human shadow I had just seen was no illusion.
"It could be a being from the Dark Continent."
As I stared back toward the forest, I heard Rhys Ganiol's voice.
I frowned and slowly nodded.
I found the Vice-Commander's opinion quite plausible.
This place was quite close to the Dark Continent, after all.
"Anyway, what exactly are we supposed to be looking for on this Island of the Dead?"
Pushing the thoughts aside, I asked the fundamental question.
Rhys Ganiol then took out a stiff piece of paper and said,
"This building. It's information we found by scouring ancient texts."
A cylindrical building reminiscent of a temple.
Though rather short, it could also be seen as a massive tower.
In any case, the drawing the Vice-Commander showed me felt very similar to something I knew.
"Esmeranta's Tower?"
"It seems you've already visited a similar place?"
"I've seen it from a distance. But are you saying there's one on the Island of the Dead too?"
"The text was too old and badly damaged, so its credibility is quite low. But..."
"But?"
"We didn't find it in the Forest of the Dead, so there's a chance it could be here."
"And if not, it would be on the Dark Continent itself?"
Rhys Ganiol nodded gravely.
Of course, the chance of our destination being on the Dark Continent was very slim.
Because the barrier known as the Deep Sea Dragon's Tsunami made travel impossible.
"In any case, we call this building Padiac's Tower. We took the name directly from its creator."
The Vice-Commander's explanation was quite detailed.
But my fundamental question remained unanswered.
"So, I understand the destination. What I'm asking is what this 'Latio' thing is."
"That is…"
"I need at least some basic information. Like what actions I shouldn't take. That way, we won't repeat the same mistakes, right?"
When I brought up the case of the Grand Magia, Rhys Ganiol had no choice but to agree.
Of course, my offer to help was just an excuse; the question was purely for my own benefit.
To make use of the energy dwelling in the black orb, I needed to know what this was.
"We don't know the details ourselves, but we have found out a few things. That this energy came from the Dark Continent, and that it possesses immense power."
"What kind of power?"
"We surmise that it's a power that repels demonic energy."
An energy that came from the Dark Continent but rejects the power of the Dark Continent.
It was an intriguing hypothesis.
I narrowed my eyes and stared at the paper the Vice-Commander had offered me.
But it was at that very moment.
*Wait, could it be?*
I snapped my head up and gazed at him intently.
A flicker of bewilderment crossed Rhys Ganiol's clear eyes.
"Why are you suddenly looking at me like that?"
"You first encountered Latio in Esmeranta's Tower."
"…!"
"And you found out you had to combine five of them into one after that. Is my deduction correct?"
The Vice-Commander was silent for a long time.
It seemed I had hit the nail right on the head.
I gave a triumphant smile and shrugged.
"Making such deductions isn't that difficult. Not for a genius like me, anyway."
"…"
Even as I spouted such self-aggrandizing nonsense, Rhys Ganiol didn't respond.
He was just staring blankly at something.
Feeling something was off, I waved my hand in front of his face.
*Whoosh, whoosh!*
"Hey. Vice-Commander?"
But it had no effect.
Finally, the Vice-Commander began to stumble toward the forest.
Despite the fact that it was growing dark, making it extremely dangerous to enter the island's interior.
His unfocused eyes and swaying gait.
I sensed that something had infiltrated this greasy man's mind.
"Damn! Something… something is happening!"
There were many techniques that could deceive a person's senses.
The Rantzverger's stealth arts and the Gray Tower's illusion magic operated on similar principles, in a broad sense.
But this case, where his mind was completely suppressed, was quite different.
It wasn't just deception; it had reached the stage of controlling his very body.
*Of all people, why did it have to be him and not me?*
A proper mage would surely be able to break such a mental attack.
But as I was now, I had no way to wake Rhys Ganiol.
Could I just beat him up to dispel the mental attack…?
"Wait, that might actually work."
By the time the idea flashed through my mind, Rhys was already far away.
He was just about to step into the forest.
For some reason, I had a feeling that if he entered that forest, something terrible would happen.
"Ah, to hell with it!"
I dashed forward and delivered a full-force palm smash to the Vice-Commander's back.
Thwack!
But did I put too much force into it?
The figure, which had been stumbling forward, went tumbling head over heels.
After rolling several times and kicking up sand, Rhys Ganiol ended up inside the forest.
He finally bounced violently and landed in a bush.
"Uh-oh? I, I didn't expect that."
I held a grudge, yes, but I didn't hit him hard enough to kill.
It must be because that mage is so scrawny.
I shook my head vigorously and stepped forward cautiously.
My goal was to find Rhys in the forest, which was filled with an ominous energy.
But then, I suddenly heard a familiar voice.
"Are you looking for this man?"
Someone had burst out of the bushes and spoken to me.
I instinctively reached to draw the Black Dragon Sword.
But the moment I saw the person's face, I froze on the spot.
Fiery hair and world-weary eyes.
The mysterious person I met on the Island of the Dead was none other than…
*Camil Felton? What is he doing here?*
***
The strange silence was broken by Rhys Ganiol, who had been knocked out by the back-smash.
"A-a pleasure to meet you. I am Rhys Ganiol, Vice-Commander of the Everfilt Magic Corps."
"Camil Felton."
Despite likely being disoriented, Rhys started with introductions.
It seemed he was relieved that this was neither an enemy nor an illusion.
Otherwise, he wouldn't be so composed.
I deliberately said nothing and watched the two of them.
*I'm not Ray Carter right now.*
Acting like I knew him could lead to trouble.
The conversation was led not by the taciturn Camil, but by Vice-Commander Rhys.
"But why is the Felton family here?"
"I believe that's our line. It looks like you're the latecomers. Why are you here?"
Rhys Ganiol glanced at me before showing him the paper with the drawing of Padiac's Tower.
"We're looking for this building."
"There are no such massive structures on this island. We're living in tents ourselves."
"Did it collapse from age?"
"More likely, whatever it was, it was destroyed."
"Why?"
"You must have seen it too, right? The Demonic Ring."
"Ah…"
When Camil gestured toward the sea with his chin, the Vice-Commander let out a soft exclamation.
It seemed the Felton family called the giant black object that had struck the water's surface a 'Demonic Ring.'
*True, with things like that flying around, it wouldn't be strange if the building was pulverized.*
For me, finding Latio wasn't a desperate need anyway.
But Rhys Ganiol was anxiously biting his nails.
If Padiac's Tower had been destroyed, it was highly likely that Latio had also vanished somewhere.
"Anyway, it's dangerous to stay out here like this."
The pause in the conversation was unexpectedly filled by Camil.
As if just realizing something, the Vice-Commander quickly turned his head.
"Come to think of it, I was hit by an unknown mental attack, wasn't I? Lord Ray saved me."
I just smacked him one, and he's dressing it up like that.
I felt a little sorry… Like hell I did. I was cursing inwardly.
*What am I supposed to do if you suddenly expose my real name?*
I hadn't expected to meet anyone on the Island of the Dead, so I hadn't prepared a fake name.
But I'm a direct descendant of the Rantzverger family and an assassin; is it okay to just throw my name around like that?
The moment I shot Rhys Ganiol an incredulous look, a questioning voice came from my side.
It was Camil Felton's.
"Ray?"
My heart sank, but I turned around nonchalantly and said,
"Don't you think you're being a bit too familiar for a first meeting?"
"Ah, is that so? It's just that your aura is a bit similar to someone I know."
"Is that right? Well then, can we cut the chatter and I ask you a question?"
As I switched to informal speech and retorted, Camil looked slightly taken aback.
He probably didn't expect me to be so assertive, even knowing he was a direct descendant of the Felton family.
*But was that too much like Ray Carter?*
In any case, I didn't seem to have time to worry about such trivialities.
I looked Camil Felton straight in the eye and pointed with my thumb at the Demonic Ring floating far out at sea.
"What is the Felton family doing here? Is it related to that monstrosity?"
"…"
Camil was silent for a while.
It seemed the Island of the Dead held some great secret.
Just in case, I moved my hand to my waist.
I was prepared to draw the Black Dragon Sword and respond if necessary.
But soon, that became unnecessary.
Because, surprisingly, Camil readily revealed the Felton's purpose.
"We are… protecting the continent."