Chapter 159
Chapter 159
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Tracking
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Erpu was a fairly large city, but even so, it wasn't hard to track down the man presumed to be a Transcendent.
"That giant knight was with two stunning beauties. One looked like his lover. Not sure if she was part of the group, but another beauty joined them later."
That was the testimony of the innkeeper named San-dul.
"Yes, they left such a strong impression that I couldn't forget them if I tried. I saw them head out not long after the Marquis's group took the elf with them. With three women."
Marie heard the same from the soldier guarding the south gate.
He stood out so much that plenty of people remembered him.
"Three women?"
"Yes, three women. They had hoods pulled low, but they couldn't fool my eyes. Anyone could tell they were women."
'So, he really is part of the group that ambushed Marquis Alex's party? The ones with him were probably elves. Did he help the elves? Or is he collecting them...?'
If he had close ties to elves, the hunters in the elf forest would have raised hell by now.
Marie returned to their safehouse and rendezvoused with Michael to exchange information.
They learned that the group had visited an information broker to investigate Marquis Alex's party—and Slumber as well.
After heading out the south gate in pursuit of the Marquis's group, their trail went cold.
She spread out a map.
Marie pointed to a spot on the road south of Erpu and said,
"The ambush site is here. Given the circumstances, it's unlikely they shared the same destination as the Marquis's group. They were probably tailing them for the attack. Still, we should check it out."
Marie looked at Michael and said,
"Michael, you go to Fez, their initial destination. There probably won't be much, but check the battle site. I'll head to Bolin."
"What about support?"
"You go to Fez. I'll contact you to link up in Laventa."
"Got it."
"A staff?"
Lilliana tilted her head at my question.
"Yes, a staff with tracking magic on it. Luna said she couldn't dispel it."
"Oh ho... And you want me to remove it...?"
"Exactly. Of course, I'm not asking you to do it for free. I'll pay you."
"Payment, huh... Do you know how expensive I am?"
I pulled a C-rank mana stone from my inventory and showed it to Lilliana.
"Hm? Oh... That's a pretty nice mana stone. That as payment?"
"Yep."
"A mana stone isn't bad, but... how about letting me collect a bit of your blood instead?"
"How much?"
"Cheap at one liter. With your build, it should be fine."
Lilliana was utterly shameless.
"......"
"Ahem... 500mL."
"......"
"Ah, fine, stop glaring like that. 200mL, that's my limit!"
"I'll let it go at that."
"Cheapskate."
Lilliana grumbled as she lightly shook her parasol.
The surrounding mana stirred.
"What did you just do?"
"What a foolish question. Didn't I say it had tracking magic? This prevents it from tracking when you take out the staff. Now, pull it out."
I took Marquis Alex's staff from my inventory and handed it to Lilliana.
"Oh! It's loaded with mithril. Top-grade mana stone too. Hmm, they really slathered money all over this thing."
Lilliana turned the staff over in her hands, inspecting it.
"Un-ho, this staff is too good for you to use. It's a bit clumsy, but the materials are top-notch. Dismantling it would yield some fine components. Un-ho, care to hand it over to me?"
"......."
Lilliana was already eyeing the staff with greed.
"Cut the nonsense and dispel the tracking magic."
"Cheapskate."
She was still sore about the blood haggling.
Who was the cheapskate here?
"Done. It's not as good as my gear, but it has solid enchantments. Boosts mana efficiency, stores some mana, Absolute Shield usable once a day. And you can cast Explosion without incantation by channeling your mana."
"Explosion?"
"You don't know Explosion? It's the most common blast spell. Used a lot in wars."
"Like Fireball?"
".......Fireball is fire magic!!"
"Isn't it the same?"
".....You ignorant fool. Explosion is more on the physical side."
"Ah, got it."
I had no clue.
But pressing her would drag this out, so I pretended to understand.
"So, basically, anyone can use magic with this staff."
"Not anyone. Only knights or mages who can handle mana."
"Nice. Let's test it."
"Feel the staff's mana circuits? Channel mana into the core at the tip along the circuits."
I infused mana, and the blue orb near the staff's head turned black and spun.
Black mana gathered into a sphere a short distance from the tip.
"Oh."
I couldn't help but exclaim at the sight.
"Feel the mana pathway connected to Explosion? Cut it off to fire. Direction is wherever the staff points. Hey! Don't point it this way!! You trying to kill us?!"
".....Ahem."
After getting scolded by Lilliana, I turned the staff toward a distant tree and fired the orb.
-Thung!
The black sphere shot forward and exploded against the tree.
-Boom!!
The power was impressive.
About a 10-meter radius was devastated.
"If I put in more mana, does the power go up?"
"In theory, yes, but there's a limit."
The speed was a bit lacking.
Slower than my mana spears.
Still, it gave me a decent AoE attack.
"What do you think, Ayla? Can't say I'm not a mage anymore, right?"
"Staff crutch."
Ayla scoffed at my words.
"Did I hear that right? You, a mage? Ridiculous. Calling you a mage insults real mages."
"Lilliana, was that necessary?"
"It's not harsh. It's fact."
".........Fine, no mage for me."
"Hm, don't be so disappointed. If you become my apprentice, you could be a proper mage. Un-ho, what do you say? Tempted?"
Lilliana seemed a bit sorry when I gave up and offered consolation—or something like it.
"Admitting it now?"
Ayla, meanwhile, was smug, like she'd gained an ally.
"Nah, from now on, I'm a magic swordsman."
"......"
"......"
Marie arrived in Bolin.
"Not four women, but two? And a mage?"
"Yes... but they absolutely didn't look like mages."
Doni and Billy, the men guarding the palisade gate, spilled answers readily after a few coins.
'Some kind of disguise? But it's too sloppy for that... Adding the elf the Marquis caught makes four... Where did the other two elves go? Anyway, this is the right track. Slumber really was the destination...'
Their travel speed was incredibly fast.
Calculating the dates, they were even quicker than her, a specialist in such matters.
'Because they're elves?'
Marie had pushed hard herself, and night was falling, so she decided to stay the night at the village inn.
When everyone was deep in sleep.
-Creak.
Someone intruded into Marie's room.
Marie swiftly subdued the intruder.
And tied him to a chair.
"Where are you from?"
"W-what are you talking about? Let me go!!"
"Yell all you want. I've put up a barrier."
"D-do you know who I am?"
"That's what I want to know."
Marie sliced off one of the intruder's finger segments.
"Argh!!"
"Talk."
"P-please.... T-Travers."
"Travers?"
"I-I'm the village chief's son!"
"Village chief's son?"
"Y-yes."
Was it true?
Should she verify?
No need.
Even if true, it gained her nothing.
-Snip.
"Aaaagh!! Why?!"
"Tell the truth."
"I-I told the truth."
"Where are you from?"
"Fuck! I'm from here!"
-Snip!
"Truth."
Travers flared up, but fear gripped him at Marie's emotionless eyes.
"P-please...."
-Snip!
Travers kept losing finger segments until he spilled every secret in his head.
Like blaming a witch for a woman he raped and killed.
Forced to work in the mines after capture.
Witch hunted and rescued by villagers.
Bored of it all, he sneaked into the room to rape another.
A plain-looking woman traveling alone.
An outsider, so no qualms.
"High chance he's really the chief's son. No useful info."
Marie gazed indifferently at Travers, bloodied and slumped in the chair.
His breath had already stopped from her brutal torture.
Outside the window, it was still dark.
"Still time before dawn."
Marie left the blood-soaked corpse in the chair and lay down in bed.
Even in the blood-scented room, she fell into deep sleep.
By dawn, she slipped out of the village unnoticed.
The innkeeper entered Marie's room, discovered the gruesome corpse, and nearly fainted in shock.
It was much later that the village realized the mangled body was Travers.