Episode 16
One morning when a cold wind was blowing.
The once bustling city gate was now utterly deserted, with no one attempting to pass through. The guards guarding the gate yawned and chatted, then fell silent when they saw the sergeant's face glaring at them.
Johnny, the security chief who was looking at the newly recruited guards after the disaster, sighed deeply and hardened his expression.
Two people approached from the opposite direction. Their faces were covered by black robes, reminding me of the recent tragedy.
“Stop! Show your face.”
The guards raised their weapons with tense expressions. Their bodies were half-tilted back, suggesting they were contemplating escape.
The moment Johnny, who had been cursing inwardly, took a step forward.
“You guys are having a hard time.”
One of the approaching men spoke, lifting the robe covering his head.
What was revealed was a middle-aged man with a strong impression. He took a small medal from his bosom and showed it to me.
“Just in case, I’m asking, is this the Bellive territory?”
“Right, but. This is….”
“A badge proving your status as a freelance knight.”
Johnny's expression changed suddenly as he examined the medal with a suspicious eye. It was because he noticed the royal emblem engraved in the center.
"The timing wasn't right, so I couldn't stand on the battlefield with the warrior, but I'm on a pilgrimage out of admiration for him. I understand this is the city closest to the Demon Realm."
“Excuse me. …Who’s next to you?”
"Oh, this is my group. I'm a bit of a picky person. I hope you understand."
Johnny frowned for a moment, then answered as if he had no other choice.
“Understood. Welcome to the Bellive Estate.”
“Thank you.”
“However, please be careful as the atmosphere in the territory has not been good recently.”
The knight passed him by casually and answered.
“I already know that.”
How long had the man walked, leaving the security chief looking at him with questioning eyes?
A young woman's voice was heard from inside the tightly pressed robe.
“You say I have a difficult personality?”
A sharp voice. But the man answered indifferently.
“Don’t worry about it. Unlike me, your face is quite well-known.”
“It’s not something you can find out in a remote place like this.”
“There’s no harm in being careful.”
The woman sighed.
“Yes, yes. I understand. Are you the only one who thinks you’re great?”
Ignoring the woman's sarcasm, the knight looked around.
"I don't see any special traces. It must be because quite some time has passed."
Most of the traces of battle—the soldiers' corpses, their weapons, the bloodstains—have long since disappeared. But there was something as etched in the faces of those who had lost relatives that was as undeniably etched.
As the man bent down and ran his hand along the ground, signaling to the woman, a murmur came from inside his robe.
“Finding Mana.”
A strange wave spread out in a circle, centered around the woman.
“Did you find it?”
The man asked the woman, who had closed her eyes and concentrated for a long time, but received a nervous reply.
"Be quiet. Do you think it's easy to find traces of something that's been around for weeks, let alone a day or two? It's a good thing we're in the middle of nowhere. In the city, this would be unthinkable."
“Okay, I understand. Just wait.”
“Anyway, those stupid guys who just build muscle. If you make a fuss one more time, I won’t let you stay still… I found you!”
The woman glared and strode forward without hesitation. The man, about to say something, remembered his earlier warning and quietly followed her.
The place we arrived at was a small general store. It seemed to be well-maintained, and the exterior was quite clean.
“Welcome.”
The wizard began to look around without responding to the mistress's weak greeting.
The man sighed and spoke to the mistress instead of her.
“The store seems a little empty….”
"ah."
The hostess paused for a moment to answer the unexpected question.
“Originally, these things didn't sell well, but after my husband left, they started selling surprisingly well.”
“…I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s okay. It was a long time ago.”
The hostess tries to smile.
The man chose a small flowerpot near the counter, handed over a gold coin, and continued speaking.
“I have a few questions for you. Speaking of your husband leaving, is it possible…?”
"Yes. That warlock's work. My husband worked in the guard."
The hostess answered, showing no interest in the gold coins.
“People seem to be talking about him as a hero or something… Well, I wonder. Even so, is it even possible for a warlock to be a hero?”
“….”
"You never know. If my husband were alive, I might have felt the same way. Fortunately, his colleagues are considerate, so things aren't difficult. ...But the child I was quite attached to hasn't been seen since that day."
The hostess said so and sat down. Only then did the man notice that her fingernails were torn and mangled.
“But, can I not go?”
"yes?"
“It looks like the group is going to go first.”
Only then did the man turn to look at the wizard, greet him, and head outside.
“Excuse me. Okay.”
On the counter, there were still unclaimed flower pots and gold coins.
After that, the man asked the wizard who had been wandering around for a while.
“So, what do you think?”
“Judging by the faint traces of magical power remaining, I think he’s a black magician… but I’m not sure. What kind of magic did he use, and what level is it?”
“….”
When the man looked at the wizard with cold eyes, she shouted angrily.
"I told you! It's too late. Besides, the sect and the magic tower have already stirred things up, so it's almost a miracle that we've even figured this much out."
At the woman's words, the man asked back with a puzzled look.
“I understand it’s a church, but to the top of the mountain?”
"Isn't that obvious? Even if he was my son, it's because a direct descendant of the Red Tower Lord died."
"hmm."
The woman, who had been whining for a while, sighed in exhaustion at the sight of the man's unresponsive appearance.
“Still, it seems like coming here wasn’t all in vain.”
“Is that so?”
"The magic he manifested that day must have been hundreds of times, if not more. Even I wouldn't be able to do that many times. Even if it was low-level magic, there's no way he only used low-level magic."
The wizard spoke with confidence.
"If that level of black magic were unleashed, the entire city would normally be polluted, making it uninhabitable. But judging by the current situation, it seems like their disposition is rather moderate. Their skills, of course, go without saying."
“I see.”
"Yes. I don't know how it happened, but there's definitely a high-ranking black magician who refused the Demon King's summons and survived."
At the wizard's assertion, the man was troubled.
“What are you worried about?”
“Of course, it’s inevitable that you’ll be worried.”
The existence of a powerful wizard is welcome, but what if that person turns out to be a high-ranking warlock?
"He saved the poor, even risking revealing his hidden identity. Even if you set aside the fact that he's a warlock, it couldn't be more perfect."
“Can you take that apart and look at it?”
The warlock is evil.
They worshipped the devil to gain power and knowledge, and did not hesitate to sacrifice human bodies.
“Just as not all priests are good, not all warlocks are evil.”
The man finished his thought at the wizard's addition.
“Right. So that’s why rumors spread about him being a hero and all. A hero, a hero….”
The man muttered for a moment, as if pondering the matter.
"It's something we can only decide upon after meeting him, but for now, let's settle on recruiting him. And then."
A smile appeared on the man's face for the first time.
“Contact the headquarters.”
"what?"
"A new warrior has been born. Spread the word."
* * *
Late at night.
A group of people were riding horses and riding along a forest path.
“Is it still far?”
"The trail is getting closer. We're almost there."
Breathing that is completely unshaken even on a galloping horse.
A powerful white horse, incomparable to any other warhorse. Covered in white armor, each bearing a sacred relic.
These men, having received a revelation about the Demon King's emergence, set out to investigate the Demon Realm. They were the Holy Knights, one of the sect's most powerful forces.
A faint trace of fatigue lingered on their faces. It was a rare sight for members of a sect capable of restoring stamina through divine power.
“It seems like I can catch it, but I can’t.”
After hearing rumors of a black magician responsible for massacres in a city I visited to investigate the demon world, I've been tracking his trail for over a week.
Even if you weren't a heretic inquisitor who specialized in hunting down black magicians, this was a situation that would be quite humiliating.
“But, Captain.”
“Why is that?”
“He’s just a warlock, why do we have to chase him like this?”
Although only one person asked the question, the expressions on the faces of the others were not much different.
The knight commander, his expression hardened, slowly slowed his horse, came to a complete stop, and then spoke.
"I was just about to embark on an investigation into the Demon Realm, following a revelation that a new Demon Lord had been born. But what does it mean that traces of a black magician have just appeared?"
The members let out a sigh as if they had just realized something.
"Everyone, wake up. The other person might not be human."
“Well, isn’t that dangerous? We’re the only ones taking on the Demon King….”
“If he were a demon king with full power, then yes. But.”
If he had been a full-fledged demon lord—or even a high-ranking demon—the entire city would have vanished without a trace. However, interrogating the surviving poor revealed that he had sustained significant injuries in battle.
"If it's at that level, we can easily subdue it with our current number of personnel. In the name of the Almighty Goddess. So let's go. There's no time to delay."
The Holy Knights urged their words again. Despite hearing that they might face the Demon King, their spirits were stronger than ever.
After running for a long time, they arrived at a small open space in the middle of the forest.
A campfire still burning and a bag unpacked. Anyone could tell that they had just left in a hurry.
The members who got off their horses quickly searched the surroundings and gathered.
“The traces end here.”
“What about magic?”
“There’s no trace of magic either. It’s as if it had just evaporated….”
The Knight Commander's expression distorted at the words of the member.
"It looks like he's using some evil trick. We're going to split up and search for him. He probably hasn't gotten far yet."
"yes!"
The members quickly disperse.
The knight commander, who had remained until the end and was looking down on the empty lot, also moved to find the warlock.
How much time has passed since then?
One side of the empty lot began to sway, and a person appeared.
“…Phew. I almost died.”
A man with a pale, tired face. He was a young man who could no longer be called a boy.
"You're being a bit harsh. Both your body and your magical core have grown beyond comparison. Compared to the first trial, this is nothing.
“That’s true, but….”
The young man's true identity is Jude.
Based on the magical power that had increased significantly through passing trials, he was able to maintain deceptive magic for a fairly long period of time.
-There's no time to babble. We don't know when they'll be back, so move quickly.
“Okay, okay.”
Jude said, picking up the bag that had been thrown on the ground.
“We’ll be there soon, right?”
-Oh, yeah.
“The Demon King’s hidden treasure? I’m looking forward to it.”
The place he left.
The bonfire that was burning alone was extinguished by the wind.
Darkness fell over the forest.
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