CHAPTER 1

After the awarding ceremony, the soldiers of the Coalition Army were given two gold coins each, enough for them to live without working for a year or two. The family of the soldiers who perished in battle was given three gold coins and each of them was posthumously given a bronze medal for sacrificing their lives for the sake of the Kingdom. It wasn’t much, but the rewards were enough to appease the returning soldiers and the souls of those who died.

There were rumors that the National Treasury was almost depleted, that the Kingdom would soon undergo a financial crisis. But despite this, King Alvis made sure to reward the soldiers who fought in the front lines for the country.

Lark believed that the king was right. The money wouldn’t bring the dead back to life, but it would propel the family left behind to continue living forward.

After the rewards were handed out, the Coalition Army was disbanded. The soldiers started going back to their home town.

Lark and his men were currently outside the city’s gates, on their way to Blackstone Town.

“Brother,” said Lui. “Why don’t you visit Gryphon City? With your recent achievements, I believe it’ll be possible to change Father’s mind. We can live together again in the Duchy. There’ll no longer be a need for you to live in that small town!”

Lark shook his head. “It’s been several months since I left my territory. I need to go back soon. And, brother, you don’t understand. I like Blackstone Town.”

Lui already expected this answer, especially after he heard Lark rejecting the king’s offer of becoming the ruler of Tranta City. Still, he had to ask. He wanted to leave no regrets behind.

“I see.” Lui clenched his fists. “After I take care of the matters in our Duchy, I’ll come to visit you.”

Lark smiled. “You can visit Blackstone Town at any time.”

“And that master of yours?”

“I’ll introduce you to him when the time comes.”

Satisfied with this answer, Lui bade his goodbye and left with his men. The moment Lui left, a middle-aged man with a missing arm approached Lark’s group. Zacharia rode his mount and stopped right next to Lark.

“Going back to that town?”

The war veteran was as stoic as before. He looked disinterested despite asking Lark this question.

“Yes,” Lark nodded, “Baro—no, Viscount. It’s Viscount Zacharia now, right?”

A faint smile formed on Zacharia’s face. He seemed really pleased about being elevated to a Viscount. It was a dream of his ancestors, after all. And he achieved this feat in his generation.

“I heard your sword broke,” said Zacharia. He ordered his soldiers, “The chest, give it to him.”

Zacharia’s soldiers handed Lark a medium-sized chest. Lark opened it, revealing several black ingots.

“Mithril?” said Lark.

Zacharia was surprised that Lark identified the item at first glance. “It’s not much, but it should be enough to make a sword or two. There’s a blacksmith in Lion City called Garma. Tell him I sent you. He knows how to forge weapons out of mithril. He’ll surely help you.”

Even in the black market of Lion City, mithril was impossible to find. Even Big Mona would have a hard time getting his hands on it, despite being a renowned merchant of a major city.

To think that he’ll get his hands on several mithril ingots at once, and for free at that.

Lark closed the chest. “Thank you. I’ll surely repay this favor someday.”

Zacharia looked at him quizzically. “What are you saying, Commander Lark? You’ve saved my life—and the lives of my soldiers. This alone isn’t enough to repay that.”

The soldiers of Zacharia nodded. They all saw Lark favorably, unlike the soldiers of Arzen.

Lark smiled wryly. “Mithril’s not something you can buy with money.”

This was true, especially now that the Dwarven Kingdom had closed off its borders to the other races.

“Then… with this gift, let’s just say that we’re even,” said Lark. He reached out his hand.

Zacharia dismounted and shook Lark’s hand. “I’m envious of your father, the duke. My oldest son will turn ten years old this year. I sincerely hope he’ll grow up like you.”

Zacharia said these words without even flinching. Lark scratched his cheeks in embarrassment.

Zacharia stared at Lark for a moment. “Commander Lark, have you met Valcres before?”

It was a familiar name. Lark didn’t expect to hear it from Zacharia’s mouth.

“The Lord of Lion City?”

Zacharia nodded. “That’s right. That psychopath. The sadistic bastard who loves beastmen meat.”

Zacharia was obviously disgusted. The way he spat those words felt as though Valcres was the most despicable man in the world. It seemed that the two of them had a history, but Lark decided not to ask.

Austen and George looked at each other. They’d been living in Lion City for several years. Indeed, there were rumors among the rats of the slums that the Lord of the City would feed on beastmen meat every now and then. The rumors were so absurd and disgusting that the brothers dismissed it. But to think that it was actually true. Austen and George shivered at this revelation.

“Beastmen meat?” Lark frowned. It was the first time he’d heard of it.

“Be careful of him,” warned Zacharia. “That one’s a backstabbing bastard.”

Zacharia firmly believed that the territory governed by Lark would eventually prosper until it became a small city. Lord Valcres might someday point his sword at Lark and decide to swallow up his territory. Valcres was greedy, after all.

Lark seriously considered Zacharia’s words. Although the time they’d spent in the battlefield was brief, he knew that the war veteran was a trustworthy person.

“Thank you,” said Lark. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Zacharia mounted his horse. “If you have the time, come visit the Leonard School. My brother’s the current headmaster. I’ll give you a personal tour.”

Lark smiled. “I’ll be sure to visit someday.”

After that exchange, Zacharia and his men left the capital. Slowly, the number of soldiers camped outside the city dwindled. The Coalition Army had really disbanded.

Lark turned toward his men. Over half the Blackstone Knights perished in battle, and a few dozen soldiers died as well. It was not a bad number, but Lark still felt that it was such a waste to have lost so many soldiers. He could create more Blackstone Knights, but he could never bring those who died back to life.

Lark looked at his disciples.

George and Austen were now both capable of casting first-tier spells. Anandra, on the other hand, had grown considerably stronger after facing innumerable imperial soldiers and after personally fighting General Rizel.

And the last disciple. Chryselle.

Lark and Chryselle locked eyes with each other for a moment. She smiled, her eyes filled with excitement, as though she was thrilled to finally go to Blackstone Town.

“Shall we go?” Lark asked his men.

“Yes, Young Master!”

Lark and his men started moving toward Blackstone Town. Behind them were several carts containing hundreds of iron ingots, seeds, and other crops. These were bought at the capital at a relatively cheaper price with the help of the royal family—tax-free.

Lark planned on creating more living suits of armor to help with the massive northern farmlands. Furthermore, it was finally time to convert the western fields of Blackstone Town into arable land. These seeds and new crops would be a great addition to the vast fields of wheat in his territory.

A group of riders approached Lark’s group. The lead knight spoke, “Are you Lark Marcus?”

Lark noticed that the five knights were protecting the rider at the center. A figure clad in a hooded cloak.

“That’s right,” said Lark.

The five knights were obviously elites. The rider at their center was probably a prominent figure in this territory.

The lead knight spoke to the hooded figure, “Princess, it’s fine now.”

Princess?

Lark looked bewilderedly at the rider at the center. She slowly pulled down the hood, revealing a familiar face.

“Princess Esmeralda?” Lark was stunned upon seeing the princess here.

They were already several hours away from the capital. What was she doing here? In the middle of the wilderness?

The princess was clearly disgruntled. She locked eyes with Lark for a moment then immediately averted her gaze.

She looked at the leader of the knights. “Parzival! I can’t believe you’re forcing me to go with this lot! Even if it’s the order of my father, aren’t you supposed to be serving me? Aren’t you my personal knight? We could have gone to that place even without their help!”

Parzival bowed his head. “I’m sorry, Princess. But I cannot go against the wishes of His Majesty.”

Esmeralda glared at the knights. It was clear that she was brought here against her wishes.

“What’s the meaning of this?” asked Lark.

Parzival pulled out a scroll and read its contents. “As decreed by His Majesty, Princess Esmeralda will undergo cultural exchange training at Blackstone Town. This will last for a year. Until then, she won’t be allowed to come back to the capital, unless special circumstances permitted otherwise.”

It sounded stupid. It was obvious that this was a mere pretext of the king to force the princess to come with him.

Cultural exchange training? Just the name alone sounded ridiculous. No wonder the princess was clearly distraught by this development. She also glared at Lark; clearly unhappy about what was happening.

“She’s a princess,” said Lark. “We’ll be passing through monster-infested territories before reaching Blackstone Town.”

Parzival replied confidently, “All of us here are high-ranking knights of the capital. We’ll be responsible for the safety of Princess Esmeralda.”

It was good to hear. At the very least, Lark did not want to be responsible for the security of a royal. He already had his hands full with managing Blackstone Town.

Parzival looked at the coachman momentarily and was stunned upon realizing who it was. It seemed that the famous Mikael Garios was the knight assigned to observe Lark. Currently, Mikael was dressed in dirty tunic as he guided the horses pulling the carts.

Mikael noticed the gaze of Parzival. He wordlessly told the young knight to avert his gaze and mind his own business. Parzival momentarily shuddered upon meeting Mikael’s eyes. He could still remember the hellish training he underwent several years ago in the Military Academy under Instructor Mikael.

Lark looked at the sulking princess then at the knights following behind her.

“Princess,” said Lark. “It’ll take us several weeks before we reach Blackstone Town. Although it’s a bit dirty, we do have free space inside the third cart.”

Although peevish, the princess muttered her thanks then went inside the cart Lark indicated. She must have been tired after riding for several hours to catch up with Lark’s group, as she immediately fell asleep despite the constant rattling of the cart.

After the princess fell asleep, Lark told Parzival, “I expected her to turn tail after hearing that it’ll take several weeks to reach our destination.”

“Well… there’s another reason why she’s coming to your territory. The Endless Forest. The princess deemed that she might find the item she was looking for there,” Parzival replied carefully.

Lark shot a quizzical gaze. “What do you mean?”

Parzival fell silent and didn’t utter another word.

It was true that the king forced her to come to Blackstone Town in hopes that his daughter would become closer to Lark. It seemed that the king highly regarded Lark’s talent in warfare and his ability to govern his territory. He deemed that the second son of Duke Drakus would someday become a prominent figure of the Kingdom. As a monarch, he could not let this opportunity pass.

But the reason why the princess eventually yielded to her father’s request was because of a particular item:

Tears of Ubroxia.

The princess’ personal knights were aware that the king was slowly dying from an unknown curse. And it seemed that the princess found out a few months before that the tears of a certain flower may potentially cure her dying father, and that that flower was known to grow only in two places—the Forbidden Region and the Endless Forest.

The Forbidden Region was too dangerous, even if an entire army escorted her. The only alternative was the Endless Forest.

The king didn’t know that his daughter agreed to come to Blackstone Town because of this.

Thus, despite being clearly against the idea of marriage, the princess eventually conceded and agreed to come along with Lark and his small army. Parzival and his fellow knights felt relieved at this. The princess would be a lot safer during their travel if they rode along with this group.

“What item is the princess looking for?” Lark asked again.

Parzival shook his head. “Nothing. Please pretend you didn’t hear me talking about it. The princess will surely be furious at me if she finds out.”

Lark was curious. What were they trying to find inside the Endless Forest that the princess was willing to travel to a faraway town in the middle of the wilderness?

Seeing that the knight was unwilling to divulge any more information about the matter, Lark decided not to pursue it any further.

CHAPTER 2

When night came, Lark’s group camped in the middle of the forest. His soldiers pitched tents and made campfires. They started grilling the meat they bought from the capital.

To the sheltered princess, this was an entirely new experience. This was the first time she would be sleeping outside—although she’d been given the free space in the third cart as her own private quarters. It was not much, but she knew she still had it better than the soldiers who would be sleeping on cold hard ground.

Sitting near the campfire, the princess observed the soldiers around her. Most of them were merrily chatting the night away, while those who wore full plate armor simply stood nearby. She heard from her knights that the latter weren’t human.

“Princess, you might catch a cold if you stay outside for too long.”

Parzival handed the princess a wool blanket. The princess wrapped herself with it and continued gazing at the campfire, at the crackling and burning kindling, at the sparks which would occasionally fly up into the air.

“Parzival, what if we can’t find it?” said the princess.

“Then we’ll keep searching, for another place, for another way.”

Parzival knew that there were other groups searching for a way to cure the king’s curse. He even heard recently that the Captain of the Royal Knights would be organizing an expedition to the Forbidden Region. A group of handpicked elites would venture there and search for the flower.

The princess must have been somewhat satisfied with her knight’s answer. She no longer sulked. She regained the glimmer in her eyes.

“I heard that the Endless Forest is big,” she said. Her voice was filled with conviction. “We’ll surely find it. Even if it takes us months, a year—we’ll keep looking.”

Parzival smiled. “Your knights will be sure to protect you, Princess.”

After eating dinner, the princess went back inside her cart and fell asleep. Her personal knights took turns guarding her.

Parzival went toward the cart located at the rear. He leaned on it and spoke to the coachman.

“It’s been a while, Instructor.”

The coachman— Mikael—looked at the direction where Lark was located. After making sure that no one was eavesdropping, he spoke, “Parzival. I didn’t expect to see you here, and with the princess at that.”

“A whim of His Majesty,” said Parzival. “And it so happens that it coincided with the current goal of the princess.”

Parzival studied his former instructor’s appearance. Currently, Mikael looked like a serf. His clothes were worn out and his skin was dirty, as though he hadn’t taken a bath for several days.

“I also didn’t expect to see Instructor here,” said Parzival. “I didn’t know that you’re the observer assigned to Lark Marcus.”

“It’s more than half a year now that I’ve been observing him,” said Mikael. “A basket full of surprises. Sometimes I’ve even started questioning if he’s really just a kid.”

This was the first time Parzival had heard Mikael praise someone to this extent. He also heard of Lark’s feats during the war with the Empire.

“Radulf’s been assigned to observe Kalavinka Kelvin,” said Parzival. “The last time we met, he told me that the kid’s a shut-in, but becomes a demon during a naval battle.”

“The genius of the Navy, huh?” Mikael had heard of Kalavinka before.

“The Mullgray Pirates are becoming hard to keep in check lately,” said Parzival. “I heard they even started attacking the ports of the Empire. But they were always defeated by Kalavinka.”

“It’s great that the young ones are stepping up,” said Mikael.

There were a lot of talented individuals in the younger generation. And, surprisingly, most of them came from noble families.

Lui Marcus, Kalavinka Kelvin, Lark Marcus.

Even the three sons of Count Boris—Aris, Mokuva and Arzen—had already made a name for themselves, despite their young age. Unfortunately, the Boris brothers weren’t eligible for the competition for the throne.

“If Kalavinka wins the competition for the throne, we might enter the golden age of sea exploration.” Parzival grinned just thinking about it. “And Lui Marcus is not a bad choic—”

Parzival stopped midway. He and Mikael noticed several eyes glowing in the darkness of the forest. Soon, growls were heard. All of the soldiers immediately pulled out their weapons and the knights of Princess Esmeralda surrounded the cart where she slept.

“Wolves,” Mikael said calmly. He could clearly see the wolves hidden in the sea of trees. “Parzival, the princess.”

The wolves slowly approached the camp. Drool dripped from their mouths. The scent of grilled meat must have attracted the pack.

Parzival immediately went toward the cart where the princess was located. She must have been woken up by the clanking of metal and the growling sounds, as she opened the flap covering her cart and looked outside, only to be terrified upon seeing over a dozen wolves slowly approaching the camp.

“Princess, it’s dangerous. Please go back inside.”

Parzival stood right in front of the princess, his hand holding his sword.

The leader of the pack howled, and, on cue, the entire wolf pack attacked. The soldiers were about to engage in battle when lightning suddenly rained down from the sky and struck several wolves at once. The lightning crackled dangerously as it burned down the wolves’ bodies. The yelps and death throes of the wolves echoed in the forest.

Seeing this, the remaining wolves immediately halted in their tracks. Even the alpha wolf was apparently terrorized, frozen in place, unable to attack.

After the lightning spell ended, several scorched bodies laid on the forest ground, lifeless.

The soldiers looked at the red-haired woman who cast the spell. Unbaffled that the soldiers were looking at her, Chryselle pointed a finger at the alpha wolf. A bolt of lightning shot out and pierced the target’s body, killing it on the spot.

After the death of their leader, the rest of the wolves immediately scurried out of sight, disappearing into the dark forest.

Chryselle sighed and wiped the sweat off her forehead. She was glad that her spell had worked perfectly.

“Chantless magic,” said Lark. “Quite impressive for someone your age.”

Chryselle smiled wryly after hearing that from Lark—a magician younger and more powerful than her.

“Oh! As expected of an Elde—”

Austen almost blurted out her identity. Chryselle covered Austen’s mouth and glared at him. Lark smiled, amused upon seeing this sight. Chryselle would probably become stronger than this once she underwent Lark’s private magic lessons. She already had the fundamentals, after all.

“Who’s that?”

Parzival and his fellow knights stared at the red-haired woman. Just from that spell alone, they were sure she was a high-ranking magician of the Kingdom. The princess was wide-eyed as she looked at Chryselle. It was the first time she had encountered such a strong female magician.

“Princess?”

Parzival was surprised when the princess suddenly jumped out of the cart and approached the red-haired woman.

“That was amazing!” said Princess Esmeralda. “And you’re quite beautiful too! How perfect!”

Chryselle froze when the princess suddenly approached her and muttered embarrassing praises. She didn’t reply, not knowing what to say.

The princess’ eyes were glimmering as she stared at Chryselle.

“Ah, I haven’t introduced the two of you to each other,” said Lark. “This is Princess Esmeralda, the youngest daughter of His Majesty.”

Chryselle nodded slowly. She knew this already.

“And Chryselle,” said Lark. “My fourth disciple.”

The princess stared dumbfoundedly at Lark after that last statement. “D-Disciple? Her?”

The sheltered princess couldn’t understand why someone like her, who could kill several wolves at once, was a mere disciple of a young man who hadn’t even undergone the coming of age ceremony.

The princess was a very easy person to read, unlike Lark.

Chryselle bent her head forward slightly and made a curtsy. She held elegance only seen in High Nobles. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Princess. I heard that you’re also coming to Blackstone Town. We’ll be seeing each other often then. I hope we can get along.”

The princess was thrilled at those words. She found Chryselle as beautiful as her second oldest sister. Furthermore, unlike the royals, she was very capable in magic spells.

“Chryselle, is it?” The princess held out her hand. “You can just call me Esmeralda. There’s no need for formalities! Become my friend!”

How straightforward.

The princess had frequently avoided Lark’s gaze since they’d met, but she seemed determined to make Chryselle her friend. Lark smiled at this innocence.

Chryselle smiled. Her voice was soothing. “Is that so? This is my first time making a friend from the royal family.”

The two chattered with each other. The princess completely forgot the fact that they were almost attacked by wolves just a while ago. Parzival and the rest of the knights were conflicted about whether or not this was a good development.

“Well, at least the princess has made a friend,” sighed Parzival.

Parzival looked at Lark’s group. There were a lot of strong people in this army—even his former instructor was here, pretending to be a mere coachman. Tagging along with them was indeed a wise decision. At the very least, the princess would be safe until they’d arrived at their destination.

***

Days passed by quickly.

As they made their way toward Blackstone Town, the group was occasionally attacked by monsters, but the living suits of armor and the Blackstone Soldier easily dealt with them. It seemed that after fighting with the imperial soldiers, mere goblins and kobolds no longer felt threatening to them.

There was also a group of archers with frighteningly strong firepower. Each of their arrows was capable of shattering the skulls of the kobolds, rendering the monsters unable to even initiate an attack.

No wonder Instructor Mikael remained calm all throughout the journey. He was already aware of the strength of this army.

The group arrived at Wizzert City and started restocking their rations.

Lark asked Chryselle if she wanted to visit the tower for a moment while they restocked their supplies, but she adamantly refused the offer. She also concealed her identity with a hooded cloak and refused to come inside the city, afraid that her brother would detect her magic signature if she came closer.

Lark’s group stayed in the city for only a few hours, before continuing their journey toward Blackstone Town.

Finally, the group arrived at the Lake of Full Moon. The lake was vast, probably as large as the capital itself. The water was crystal clear, as though it had never been soiled by human hands.

“Leader,” one of the knights said to Parzival. “Those ruins…”

Parzival frowned as he looked at the direction where the knight pointed at. A ruined fortress was seen near the lake. The walls had crumbled and the watchtowers had fallen down the ground.

Before coming, the knights did their research. They knew that they would need to pass this dangerous lake in order to arrive at Blackstone Town. They knew that during a full moon, thousands of monsters would come out of this lake and attack everyone nearby.

“It’ll be a week before another full moon comes,” said Parzival. “There’ll be no need for us to fight the monsters of the lake.”

The knights were relieved upon hearing this.

“Chryselle, look!” The princess gawked at the lake. “Isn’t it beautiful!”

Currently, Chryselle and the princess were inside the same cart. They both stared at the crystal-clear water of the lake, admiring its beauty. This was the first time the princess had seen a lake of this scale. It was so large that she couldn’t see its end.

“Yes, it’s beautiful, Princess.” Chryselle smiled as she watched the glimmering eyes of Princess Esmeralda.

Chryselle knew that this lake was monster-infested, that it would turn into the most horrendous place on this continent once the twin moons appeared in the sky. But she decided not to tell that to the princess. They would simply be passing through this place, after all. She did not want to shatter such a pure soul.

After passing the lake, the group eventually arrived at Lion City. The towers Lark built for the city were still intact. And judging by the scorch marks they saw outside, it seemed that the monsters from the lake could no longer even come close—they were immediately shot down by the towers before they could even climb the walls.

Lark decided they would stay here for the night. He rented an entire inn for his men then went to visit the merchants guild.

After revealing his identity, the clerk’s eyes widened.

“W-Wait a moment, please!” she said, almost squeaking. “I’ll inform the head merchant right away!”

She ran up the stairs and moments after, returned, and said to him, “The head merchant agreed to meet you. This way, please!”

Lark was led to the same room on the second floor. But this time, he could no longer feel any guards hiding next to the walls.

Big Mona entered the room. He grinned broadly upon seeing Lark. “My dearest partner! I’m so glad you’ve come back alive!”

The middle-grade potion had been selling for a fortune these days, and even the low-grade healing potions were selling like rye bread. Their quality was far superior to those made by the alchemists in the capital. Soldiers, mercenaries, and even nobles started coveting them.

Furthermore, the kalrane stones were starting to become popular among the High Nobles. Big Mona had made several hundred gold coins from them since his deal with Lark started.

To Big Mona, Lark was like God Gaia—the God of Earth, Harvest, and Benevolence. He was really pleased when Lark came to give him a visit.

Big Mona poured wine into a goblet and handed it to Lark. “Please drink. It’s been months since we’ve last seen each other. How’s the capital? I heard you’re the one who slew the Ghost of the Empire.”

Lark sipped his wine. “Just a lucky strike.”

“Is that so?” Big Mona understood that Lark didn’t want to recount the story.

“How are the towers?” said Lark.

“Perfect. After the towers were completed, the monsters from the lake couldn’t even come close to the city. The soldiers are also becoming more proficient in using them. During the last wave, we suffered zero casualties.”

Lark was impressed. The soldiers were probably capable now of freely shifting the tower blocks located at its base, switching from long-range, single magic attacks to shorter-range, wide-area spells.

Now that Lion City was capable of suppressing the monsters, Lark would no longer have to worry about them reaching his territory.

“The monster corpses?” said Lark.

Big Mona started filling his mouth with snacks. He spoke, his mouth half-full. “We’ve sent them to Blackstone Town. I’ve always kept my part of the deal, partner.”

There were probably hundreds of monster corpses stored in the underground chamber of his mansion by now, rotting. Lark was satisfied that he could immediately proceed with creating more Blackstone Knights once he arrived at the town.

“How long are you going to stay here?” said Big Mona.

“We’ll go back to Blackstone Town tomorrow morning.”

Big Mona rubbed his chin. “Tomorrow, huh? Listen—” Big Mona’s voice turned serious all of a sudden. “Valcres plans on subjugating the monsters of the lake.”

Shrewd. Cowardly. These were Lark’s first impression of the Lord of Lion City when he’d met him back then. Lark had not expected that stubby man to organize a subjugation force to clear the lake of monsters.

“That’s impossible,” said Lark. “It’ll be a suicide mission.”

Based on reports, the monsters attacking Lion City were only a portion of the monsters from the lake. Although a major city, Lion City had only a few thousand soldiers to protect its territory. Even if the City Lord sent all of them to subjugate the monsters of the lake, it would be impossible to kill all of those monsters.

“That’s right,” Big Mona agreed.

“How does he plan to subjugate them?” said Lark.

“About that,” Big Mona said slowly, “Valcres hopes that you’ll be able to build some towers near the lake. You’ll have a few weeks to finish it with the help of the soldiers after the next full moon passes.”

“No,” said Lark. “Tell him that I won’t be building any more towers for his city. If he truly wishes to subjugate the monsters of the lake, ask for help from the royal family.”

This should be enough to deter the foolish lord from sending his soldiers to their deaths.

Based on the available data on the lake, Lark surmised that it was not simply a monster-infested region. There was no way tens of thousands of monsters could remain hidden underneath that lake for almost a month, only to come out once the full moon was high above the sky.

Even if they cleared all the monsters during the full moon, there was no guarantee that they wouldn’t respawn afterward. Lark felt that it was too foolish to form a subjugation team with just the current information they had in their hands.

Big Mona shared Lark’s sentiments. He seemed pleased at Lark’s reply. He chuckled. “Of course, I’ll be sure to tell the lord that.”

“Why does the lord suddenly want to subjugate the monsters of the lake?” said Lark. “I heard that the lake had remained untouched for several decades. Even the previous lord of this city didn’t dare touch those monsters.”

“Money,” said Big Mona. “We’ve recently learned that there’s an adamantine vein deep within the lake.”

Lark’s interest was piqued. An adamantine vein was hard to find, even back in the Magic Empire. It was the ideal material when making a maginus and other magic weapons.

“Normally, it would take several days, or weeks to mine a single ore. It’s harder than mithril, after all,” said Big Mona. “But with the vein’s current location, we’d be lucky enough to mine even one in a month or two. And there’s also the monsters of the lake to consider.”

“I see.”

Everything finally made sense. Why Lord Valcres suddenly started organizing a subjugation force to annihilate the monsters of the lake. If he gained unrestricted access to the adamantine vein, he’d become one of the richest lords not just in this country, but in the entire continent.

“I’ve already told Valcres to forget about the adamantine,” said Big Mona. “I’m pretty sure we’re not the first ones to discover it. The previous lord might even be aware of it but decided to conceal this fact to the general public. There’s a reason why no one managed to mine those ores all these years.”

Lark was reminded of the mithril given to him by Viscount Zacharia.

“I heard there’s a blacksmith called Garma in this city,” said Lark. “Do you know where I can find him?”

“Ah. That old man’s quite famous.” Big Mona walked toward the map of the city plastered on the wall and pointed at the place where the smithy was located. “Here. Just ask around. He’s pretty famous around the area, so it should be pretty easy to find him. But that old man’s grumpy. He’s quite picky and won’t take just any request.”

Lark was told that the blacksmith would immediately agree to work on his weapon as long as he mentioned Zacharia’s name. He was confident that the blacksmith would agree to make him a weapon made out of mithril.

CHAPTER 3

After meeting with Big Mona, Lark immediately went toward the smithy. It was easy to find since it was the only smithy in that area. Although it was already dusk, the sound of hammer striking iron resounded in the street. Lark followed it and arrived at a rundown bungalow. From the windows, Lark could see a muscular old man next to the furnace.

Lark knocked on the door. After several seconds, there was no reply. It seemed that the old man was too absorbed in his work to bother checking who’s knocking at this hour.

Lark knocked again. “Hello? I’m here to meet the blacksmith, Garma.”

The old man glanced at Lark, frowned, then continued striking the iron with the hammer.

Lark pondered whether or not he should wait for the old man to finish, but eventually decided against it. There was no guarantee that the blacksmith would be done anytime soon, and he’d decided to go back to Blackstone Town tomorrow morning with his men.

“I came here under the recommendation of Viscount Zacharia.”

At those words, the old man halted. He stared at Lark for several seconds, before placing down the hammer. With loud, brisk steps, he yanked the door open and glared at the unwanted visitor.

“What is it, kid?” he said, spit flying out of his mouth.

“I came here under the recommendation of Viscount Zacharia,” repeated Lark, unfazed by the glaring muscular old man. “Are you the blacksmith called Garma?”

The old man studied Lark from head to foot. The kid reeked of the word noble and he didn’t like it.

“That’s right.” Garma nodded. “What do you want?”

Lark dropped the bag he was holding, creating loud clanking sound. He opened it and revealed several silver-black ingots inside.

The hostile glare of the blacksmith vanished in an instant. His eyes widened. “Mithril?” he breathed. He stared at Lark for a moment. “This Viscount you spoke of—”

“—A former Baron,” said Lark.

Finally, Garma understood. Slowly, a grin formed on the grumpy old man’s lips. He clenched his fists. “That bastard. Zacharia… He became a Viscount, huh?”

Garma looked outside. It was already dark.

“Name?” said Garma.

“Lark Marcus. Lord of Blackstone Town.”

Garma seemed unfazed by the fact that Lark was a noble. He did not even care that he seemed to be part of House Marcus—one of the three Ducal Houses of the Kingdom.

“I heard the news of the Empire’s defeat,” said the blacksmith. “How’d you meet that fighting maniac? That Zacharia?”

Fighting maniac? The former Baron did not give such an impression during the brief time the two of them had spent during the war.

“Viscount Zacharia was appointed as the Commander of the First Army,” said Lark. “And I was assigned as the Commander of the Third Army.”

Garma nodded. He already knew this based on the story circulating among the masses, but he wanted to hear it from Lark firsthand regardless.

“Come in, kid,” said the blacksmith. “I want to hear the rest of the story.”

Lark entered the smithy, the door was shut, and the blacksmith started serving water and brown bread. After hearing Lark’s recount of the story, and after confirming that Zacharia was indeed the one who’d sent him, Garma’s demeanor took a hundred- and eighty-degree turn.

“Hahaha!” The blacksmith laughed boisterously as he repeatedly slammed his muscular hands on the table before him. “Zacharia got his ass handed to him by General Alvaren, huh!”

Garma wiped the tears at the corner of his eyes. For some reason, he was really amused after hearing that his friend was defeated on his first encounter with the Magic Slayer.

As Lark continued his recount of the story, he noticed that the blacksmith was interested only in the parts the Viscount was in.

After remembering that the Viscount was certain that Garma would help him as long as Lark mentioned his name, Lark’s curiously pondered on their relationship.

Lark finally asked, “What’s your relationship with the Viscount?”

“I’m his half-brother,” said Garma.

Seeing Lark’s surprise, the blacksmith added, “I threw away my nobility as soon as I took the hammer. I was born to become a blacksmith, and I will die as a blacksmith. The hammer and the furnace are the air I breathe.”

Garma’s eyes were filled with conviction. He was definitely a craftsman proud of his work.

For a moment, Lark felt that it was such a waste that such a passionate individual was working at Lion City and not at the capital. He must have had his reasons; Lark decided not to ask.

“Then, the mithril—”

“—I’ll do it.”

Lark smiled broadly. He was glad that the blacksmith agreed to his request easily, just like Zacharia stated. Although it was possible to create weapons by smelting iron using magic, the same was not true for mithril. Lark would need a blacksmith capable of handling mithril in order to forge weapons made out of it.

“What kind of weapon do you want?” said Garma. “With that amount, it’ll be possible to create a sword and a spear.”

Lark took out a parchment and showed the weapon’s design to the blacksmith. “This one.”

Garma was surprised. It was neither a sword nor a spear.

A cube with peculiar intertwining symbols engraved on them. The inside was hollow, as though meant to contain a certain item. Furthermore, it was designed in a way that made it possible for the cube to break into eight smaller pieces.

Garma had been a blacksmith his entire life, but this was the first time he’d seen such a peculiar design.

“This is?” Garma could not understand what the item was for.

“A medium,” said Lark. “I can always buy swords made of iron, but I might not get my hands on mithril again. It would be a waste to use them to forge common weapons.”

“A medium,” repeated the blacksmith.

“I’m sure you’ve seen the towers protecting this city from the monsters of the lake,” said Lark. “Think of it as a smaller, portable version of them.”

Garma easily understood what this meant. He stared at the blueprint. Indeed, the base of the towers resembled the one drawn in this blueprint.

For the first time since they’d met, the blacksmith was flustered. “Is it really okay for you to give me this? What if I decide to sell this blueprint to the nobles? To the Magic Tower?”

Lark shook his head. “You’re someone the Viscount trusted.” Lark sipped his water and added, “And someone like you, who has spent all his life as a blacksmith, wouldn’t let such an opportunity pass by. It’s not every day you’ll get the chance to work on an item capable of rivaling the magician’s towers, right?”

Lark trusted in his ability to judge people. This grumpy old man probably wouldn’t even tell other people he’d met Lark.

The blacksmith took the blueprint then stared at the mithril. “The size?”

Lark tapped his head with a finger. “The size of a human head. How many can you make?”

The blacksmith fell silent for a moment. “Although mithril’s far stronger than iron, it’ll require at least two ingots to complete one of them, since I’ll have to engrave those symbols on the cube’s walls. There’s also this peculiar design I have to consider. I take it that it should be possible for a large cube to break into eight smaller pieces, correct?”

Lark nodded.

The blacksmith raised two fingers. “Two cubes. Twelve gold coins each. Give me half a month and I’ll deliver them to you personally.”

Lark looked at the blacksmith with eyes filled with interest. He was expecting that it would take him at least a month to finish, but to think that he was capable of finishing it in just two weeks—he was certainly a capable blacksmith. The price offered was also neither too cheap nor too expensive, considering the skills needed to finish this work.

Unfortunately, the number of ingots at hand was limited. Lark wasn’t sure if he could get his hands on them again any time soon, considering their rarity. But this amount of metal should be enough to create his desired magic item. Creating the cube wouldn’t be possible with just any metal.

Lark grinned. “Perfect.”

After their meeting, Lark bought a cheap iron sword from Garma’s shop and went back to the inn. Morning came and their group set out for Blackstone Town.

***

The entire Blackstone Town was in an uproar upon the arrival of Lark and his men. It seemed that the news of their victory had already spread even to this remote place, as banners hung on the streets and everyone was in a festive mood.

“Young Master!” Gaston willed back the tears in his eyes. “I’m really glad that you’re safe!”

More than a thousand citizens of Blackstone Town cheered as Lark and his men passed through the main road leading toward the Central Plaza. Lark could see several unfamiliar faces. They also passed through several newly built residences, and there was even a newly opened tavern near the Central Plaza.

The entire town was bustling with life. A stark contrast to the dreary and hopeless atmosphere it had almost a year ago.

“It feels like the population of Blackstone Town doubled in number,” said Lark.

“Tripled,” corrected Gaston, his voice filled with pride. “We have a little over three thousand people living in Blackstone Town now.”

Lark was surprised. He expected the immigrants to be five hundred at most. It seemed that their recruitment notices in the cities were more effective than he’d thought.

Well, it was to be expected, considering the monthly salaries they’d offered.

“Young Master,” said Gaston. “We’ve managed to fill the job vacancies, and we’ve also recruited almost a hundred new soldiers. But at this rate, we’ll run out of gold in the treasury. The remaining funds are only enough to pay everyone’s salaries for the next two months.”

This was expected. After all, Lark made sure that the town’s development wouldn’t be halted, even in his absence. Infrastructures were being built left and right concurrently. And they did not stop with the recruitment of helping hands for the mines, farmlands, and for the security of Blackstone Town. There was also the free food they’d been giving out, at least until the harvest season arrived.

“I met Big Mona before coming back here,” said Lark. “I’ve collected the rent for the towers at Lion City. There’s also the reward from His Majesty too. Do not halt our projects. Once Blackstone Town becomes self-sustainable, everything will eventually come back to us in the form of taxes.”

The large-scale project of building several residences was eating away over a hundred gold coins from the treasury each month. But over time, it would also become one of the biggest sources of revenue for Lark’s territory.

“Of course.” Gaston bowed his head. “As you wish.”

“The status of the northern farmlands?”

“We’ve started the second batch of harvest last week. The farmers are working on them even now as we speak.”

Lark smiled. It was good news. After several months of arduous work, they were finally reaping the fruits of their labor.

The amount of wheat in the northern farmland was enough to feed even a major city. With Blackstone Town’s current population, there would definitely be a surplus. It meant an additional source of funds for their territory.

“The granaries?” said Lark.

“Ready to use,” said Gaston. “Sir Silver Claw built them near the mansion. And just like you’ve requested, it’s almost five stories tall.”

“I’ll leave the harvest in your hands, Gaston. It should be possible for us to store a year’s worth of wheat in the granary. This way, our people won’t die of hunger during winter. For the excess, coordinate with the merchants from Lion City. I’ve already told Big Mona about this.”

While this conversation was ongoing, Mikael—currently disguised as a coachman—listened. He was stunned upon seeing the developments the town underwent during the time they were away. And now, it seemed that the Lord of Blackstone Town had also solved the food problem.

The other city lords were currently struggling with filling the bellies of their subjects since it hadn’t even been a year since the last Black Famine. It was hard to imagine that a town like this, situated in the middle of the wilderness, had managed to produce so much wheat that they’ll be selling the excess to the nearby territories of the Kingdom.

When they finally entered the mansion, Lark introduced the people clad in hooded cloaks.

“Gaston, this is Her Highness,” said Lark, “Princess Esmeralda. Youngest daughter of His Majesty. Behind her are her knights.”

Princess Esmeralda and her knights pulled down their hoods. They didn’t bow or salute, but they acknowledged the butler with their eyes.

Gaston fell silent. He probably hadn’t expected the young master to bring a woman home, moreover a royal at that.

Gaston bowed his head at the princess. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Your Highness.”

The butler faced Lark. He carefully asked, “Young Master, does His Majesty know… that the princess is here?”

The butler was worried that the princess had eloped with the young master. If that was true, then they would be soon facing the wrath of the royal family. Gaston shivered at the thought.

“Don’t worry. The princess is here under the orders of His Majesty. What did His Majesty call it? Cultural exchange training?” Lark chuckled at the stupid name.

The princess’ face flushed slightly, but she kept her silence. She also thought that it sounded ridiculous.

Lark noticed the confusion within the butler’s eyes, but he did not elaborate further. He did not mention that the king asked him to marry the princess—and that he refused the offer.

It would only add unnecessary commotion, something Lark did not wish for at the moment. Some words were better left unsaid, Lark thought.

“And this is Chryselle,” Lark introduced Chryselle to the butler. “Although temporary, she’s my newest disciple.”

Gaston and Chryselle locked eyes with each other.

Chryselle smiled at the butler and lightly bowed her head. “Pleasure to meet you, Sir. I’ll be staying at Blackstone Town for the moment. I hope we can get along.”

The red-haired woman’s every movement was filled with elegance and grace. Gaston was sure that she was a High Noble. The only question was from which family.

Gaston bowed his head. “It’s also a pleasure to meet you, Lady Chryselle.”

Gaston said to Lark, “We’ve prepared a banquet for the Young Master and his men. Please, this way.”

Gaston led the group toward the grand hall of the mansion. The large wooden table was filled with several delicacies and bards played next to the staircase. Lark noticed that this feast was more extravagant than usual. Last time he checked, there were no bards in Blackstone Town. They must have been from Lion City, or from other nearby territories.

Once everyone was inside the grand hall, Gaston signaled the servants. On cue, a large banner fell down the ceiling.

Lark’s eyes widened upon reading the words written on it.

Congratulations on your victory against the Empire, Young Master.

And

Happy Seventeenth Birthday.

Lark didn’t even know it was his birthday. He had no idea since he did not inherit the memories of the previous owner of his body.

His disciples—Anandra, George, Austen, and Chryselle—stared at him. They didn’t know that it was the birthday of their master, and they hadn’t prepared a single gift. Even the princess cast glances his way every now and then.

The servants cheered, and the soldiers soon followed suit. The entire grand hall was filled with a celebratory mood. Everyone kept greeting the young master.

Seventeen was considered an adult in this world. It was one of the most important events in one’s life not only for nobles but even for commoners. No wonder the grand hall was filled with luxurious delicacies.

“It’s been three days since your birthday,” said Gaston. “But since you were not yet here, we decided to postpone the celebration until today. Happy birthday, Young Master.”

Gaston looked at Lark as though looking at his own son. The old man was smiling gently, his face filled with wrinkles. He had been taking care of Lark since his birth. Gaston never had a son, nor a wife. To the old man, Lark was his family. This was why he chose to follow Lark all the way here, even after he was exiled by the duke.

Gaston handed Lark a small wooden box.

“It’s not much, but please accept the gift of this old man.”

Lark opened the box and took out the necklace inside. It was made of silver and a small green gemstone was attached to it. Although it was probably not that expensive, this was the first birthday gift Lark had received since taking over this body.

Lark was filled with various emotions but decided not to show it on his face. He smiled broadly. “Thank you. I’ll be sure to cherish this gift.”

That night, Lark’s group ate and drank merrily until midnight.

CHAPTER 4

The next day, Lark gathered the officials of Blackstone Town inside the mansion. Several people sat in the room. A medium-sized map of the region was plastered on the wall.

Lark looked at all the people gathered.

The officer in charge of the Southern District, including the livestock and the umami salts—Pico.

The head mason of Blackstone Town and the officer in charge of the Eastern District—Silver Claw.

The head of the farmers—Oliver.

The head miner—Cooper.

The so-called scholar and current teacher of the soldiers—Melody.

The captain of the Blackstone Soldiers—Qarat.

And finally, Lark’s butler—Gaston.

These men had been supporting Blackstone Town for almost a year now, and they had continued to do so even after Lark left for the war. Although not everyone was talented, they all held the best interest of the town in mind. Lark was sure of this.

Lark cleared his throat. “First, I’d like to thank everyone for managing the town while I was away. I’ve already been briefed by Gaston beforehand regarding the developments the town underwent during my absence.”

The butler nodded at the young master’s words.

“I gathered all of you here today for several reasons,” said Lark. “First, to hear your reports, the status regarding your assigned regions. Second, to make some important announcements, particularly about the direction Blackstone Town is going to take in the future. And third, to allocate an appropriate budget to each department.”

Lark looked at the dark-skinned man across the room. “First, let’s hear from the Southern District.”

Pico was obviously terrified of the idea of giving a status report before everyone. He stuttered, “A-After the snow melted, we planted more Loi Plants as planned. C-Currently, we’re able to produce around half a kilo of umami salt each day. Just like the Young Master said, it’s possible to store the salt for months, as long as it’s kept away from insects and bugs.”

Spices were expensive in this era and the price of ordinary salt was high. It was no wonder that even in major cities, the food seemed bland compared to that served back in the Magic Empire.

“I’ve already spoken with a few local seamstresses,” said Lark. “We’ll pack the salt into smaller bags. The supply is limited, so we’ll aim for higher prices by using exquisite packaging aimed to attract the nobility and by advertising it as a limited item. Judging by the food in Lion City and the capital, I’m confident that umami salt will become a big hit once introduced to the local market.”

Pico gained more confidence upon hearing the young master’s words. He hadn’t expected the umami salt to hold this much significance in their acquisition of funds.

“The Poultry Farm?” said Lark

Pico cleared his throat. “We finished the construction of the coops two months ago. The device introduced by the young master was simply amazing. We’ve been hatching almost a hundred eggs each day and even after selling the chickens to our local market, there are still enough to export to Lion City.”

“Good work.” Lark nodded. He looked at everyone in the room and said, “I’m sure all of you are aware of this already—our priority is the local market, the market of Blackstone Town. The nearby territories are secondary. This is especially true now that we’re getting an influx of immigrants from the city and the other towns and villages in the nearby territories. Our people are our greatest asset in developing this town, and to retain them, we’ll have to make sure there’s ample and affordable food in the local market.”

“Yes, Young Master!” the officers replied.

Lark looked at the document he held in his hand. He spoke to the head mason, “Silver Claw. I’ve seen the newly built tavern in the Central Plaza. Impressive as always.”

Silver Claw smiled. “Thank you, Young Master. The second floor’s an inn, catered to travelers. With Blackstone Town’s current growth, there’s no doubt that people will come flocking in the future. We already have several travelers coming from Lion City. The tavern and inn have been generating a steady flow of income these past few weeks.”

Lark pointed at an area on the map, at the Eastern District of Blackstone Town.

“Now that the library’s been finished, I plan on building a small school next to it,” said Lark. “Two stories tall, three rooms each floor. We’ll be conducting classes there, so each room should be large enough to accommodate at least a hundred people at once.”

Silver Claw rubbed his chin and nodded in understanding. “I see. So this is the reason the Young Lord insisted on leaving the plot of land next to the library vacant.”

“For now, building the school will be your top priority,” said Lark. “How soon can you finish this task?”

“We’ve managed to hire more workers lately, due to the sudden influx of immigrants. It should be possible to finish it in a month. Maybe less than that.”

“Perfect,” said Lark. “Next, Melody.”

The so-called Scholar eagerly replied, “Yes!”

“Starting today, every night, you are to come to the mansion and learn Arithmetic and Language from me. I know you’ve already been studying them using the books I gave you before, but there might be a bottleneck. There’s a limit when learning everything on your own. I also bought several books from the capital. History, Theology, Agriculture, and Geography. I don’t believe there’s a conflict with the law if we were to mass reproduce these books in Blackstone Town and use them in our curriculum.”

Books were considered expensive commodities in this era. Copying already written books and mass producing them using the tools on the third floor of the library would greatly reduce their expenses. Thankfully, there was no law prohibiting the reproduction of books in this Kingdom.

Lark looked at everyone in the room. “The night lessons apply to everyone else in this room, apart from the head mason. All of you are to come to the mansion each night and learn how to read and write. I will also teach you basic arithmetic afterward. We’ll continue doing this until I’ve taught you the basics. Understood?”

The other officers were surprised that they were also included in this, but they nodded their heads regardless.

“Yes, Young Master!”

“The school will become Melody’s battleground. You’ll be tasked to teach the citizens of Blackstone Town,” said Lark. “This time not just the soldiers, even the serfs, the servants, the miners, the farmers. All of them, regardless of rank and status.”

Melody felt the heavy weight of responsibility on her shoulders, but she did not back down. For some reason, she found joy in teaching other people. She always came home feeling fulfilled after teaching the soldiers the basics of reading and writing.

“We’ll try to find assistants for Melody later on, but with the Kingdom’s current level of education, we’ll have to settle for what we have for now.”

Lark turned toward the middle-aged man sitting next to Pico.

“Oliver.”

Unlike Pico, Oliver seemed unperturbed upon the mention of his name. He bobbed his head and began his report. “We started the harvest last week. A surprisingly abundant harvest, considering the fact that the Northern Land was considered to be nonarable for the past several years.”

Oliver grinned. “I’m not sure if the Young Master has seen it, but the unending gold and green is amazing! I’ve never seen such a vast wheat field! We’ve been harvesting so much wheat that we’re almost close to filling the entire granary! With this, our people will no longer have to fear dying of hunger during winter!”

Oliver’s last words had a great impact on the officers. Just a year ago, several people died from hunger and the cold. But after all these reformations, it seemed that such things would now become distant memories. They would no longer fear the coming of winter.

After Oliver, the head miner gave his report. According to him, they’d managed to uncover two more areas in the mine, and it seemed that the seventh area was by far the largest one so far. The only downside was it was way too deep underground and, with the lack of flowing air, the miners were at risk of dying from asphyxia.

Until they managed to find a way to solve this problem, Lark decided that mining would be limited to the sixth area of the cavern.

Captain Qarat also gave a brief report regarding the status of the soldiers. Although they’d lost a lot of their men during the war with the Empire, over a hundred new recruits had joined their ranks. It seemed that the soldiers who’d joined the war with the Empire were now being revered by the new recruits. The first day the veterans returned to the town, the recruits started asking them to tell stories about the war during their free time.

Lark found it amusing that the soldiers—who couldn’t even kill mere goblins several months ago—were now considered war veterans by the new recruits. Well, their skills had indeed increased a lot since then. Lark was even confident that they wouldn’t lose to the soldiers of Lion City. Surviving the war with the Empire was also a tremendous feat by itself, and Lark had no intention of dismissing the achievements of his soldiers.

After everyone had given their reports. Lark discussed the direction Blackstone Town was going to take. Mainly, he discussed the projects he had formulated during his absence. After earning a hefty sum from the war, he now had enough funds to support several concurrent projects in Blackstone Town.

He also started allocating the budget for each department. Silver Claw was especially stunned after his department received a thousand gold coins, meant for building a watermill and a waterway connected to the town, and for the development of residences and school in the Eastern District.

***

After meeting the officials of Blackstone Town, Lark went straight toward the underground chamber of the mansion. Just like before, a putrid stench assaulted him the moment he opened the metallic door. For a moment, he wondered how the servants managed to store all the monster corpses here.

Lark cast his spell and a translucent bubble formed around his head, preventing the stench from assaulting his nose any further. He breathed a sigh of relief.

“The smell will go up and fill the entire mansion at this rate,” he said after shutting the door. “I need to finish this quickly.”

Lark cast an orb of light and willed it to hover up, lighting up the entire chamber, revealing the mountain of corpses filling up almost half of the room. Most of them were the same gorilla-frog monsters he encountered back then. He spotted several peculiar ones, like the humanoid lizards and the monsters resembling a flying fish. It seemed that there was a variety of monsters living in the lake.

Lark grabbed the ormatane and gold dust sitting in the corner of the room and started drawing magic circles on the ground. After he was done, he placed the iron ingots at the center of the magic formation and started pouring his mana into the runes, activating the spell.

The iron ingots melted and slowly formed a distinct shape.

Since there was no longer a need to consider appearances, Lark decided to create the Blackstone Knights using the same design he used with the basilisks: Humanoid with a slender body, prioritizing performance over appearance. The arms had three joints instead of two, reaching all the way to the foot. The fingers were thin and designed to be capable of performing complex tasks.

It looked like a monster used to scare unruly children. But since his subjects had gotten used to these living suits of armor, producing more of them shouldn’t be much of a problem.

Lark looked at the monster corpses filling half the room. A long time had passed since they’d been stored here. He was sure that most of them had already lost their essence, rendering them unusable in the ritual. He just had to make do with the monster corpses whose essences were still intact.

Lark kept creating living humanoid armors one after another. Thankfully, his mana pool had been greatly expanded and he still had excess left, even after creating more than a dozen of them. He dedicated the entire day to make the bodies until his mana pool was wrung dry.

Two days afterwards, after replenishing his mana reserves, Lark proceeded with attaching the monsters’ essences into the humanoid bodies. Just as he expected, more than half of the corpses were no longer usable in the ritual, and he ended up only making twenty new Blackstone Knights as a result.

There were still several humanoid bodies left. Lark decided to use them later, once the next batch of monster corpses was delivered from Lion City. Twenty new Blackstone Knights were fewer than the original plan, but he had to make do with them for now.

CHAPTER 5

Lark issued a recruitment notice for the restoration of the Western Land. At the Central Plaza, where hundreds of people pass by daily, a written notice was pinned on the board and several workers started actively recruiting those without a job.

After the restoration of the Northern Land showed results through the current abundant harvest, people were eager to join in the next project. Several people started signing up to be included among those who would be cultivating the Western Land.

In just a couple of days, they managed to recruit the required number of men. The workers immediately gathered the treated composts and the magic tools used to till the soil and transported them to the west.

Unlike before, Lark no longer had to directly explain to the new recruits how to use the magic tools, how to properly spread the composts, and how to till the soil. All explanations were done by the head farmer, Oliver. Lark simply stood there and listened, as the new recruits gawked in amazement after the magic tools were introduced to them.

The humanoids who would be assisting them in the restoration of the Western Land were also introduced to everyone. Just like Lark expected, the new recruits, although wary, no longer feared the humanoids—who resembled monsters—after being exposed to them every day in Blackstone Town. On the contrary, some of them even cheered after realizing that they’d be assisted by them since everyone had seen how strong these beings were.

This reception was a stark contrast to how the farmers in the North reacted when the humanoids were introduced back then. It was apparent that, gradually, the town and its residents were growing by each passing day.

After all preparations for the restoration of the Western Land had been taken care of, Lark summoned Captain Qarat and the herbalist of Blackstone Town, Mores, to his office in the mansion.

“My Lord!” Captain Qarat saluted. “You called for us?”

Herbalist Mores imitated the salute of the captain.

“I plan on clearing a portion of the Endless Forest of trees,” said Lark. “We’ll be expanding the Eastern Residential District. But the Endless Forest is simply too large and it’d be reckless if we suddenly started cutting down a massive number of trees without first scouting the area.”

Captain Qarat understood what the young master was trying to accomplish. He also thought that it would be reckless to cut down numerous trees and delve deeper into the forest without any form of reconnaissance. After all, the mine was previously a goblin’s den. There might be more monsters in the forest that they were unaware of.

“You’re called Mores, correct?” Lark said to the herbalist.

“Yes, Young Lord.”

The herbalist was a typical middle-aged man seen in Blackstone Town. But according to the data they’d gathered, he was the most knowledgeable person in this territory when it came to the Endless Forest. It was the place where he’d been gathering the herbs he’d been selling, after all.

“I’m going to organize a scouting party in the Endless Forest,” said Lark. “And I hope that you can guide them. Of course, you’ll be appropriately compensated. Furthermore, you’ll be accompanied by the soldiers and several Blackstone Knights in the process. They’ll prioritize your safety above everything else.”

Herbalist Mores had heard of how powerful the Blackstone Knights were. Furthermore, he’d be accompanied by the so-called veteran soldiers who’d survived the war with the Empire. He’d been wandering the Endless Forest for over a decade now and he was sure that there were no monsters in the area around a day away from the edge of the forest.

The only threats were the dangerous animals he’d sometimes encountered. But with such powerful escorts, those ferocious beasts wouldn’t even be a threat at all. Mores thought that this was a chance to earn a hefty sum with minimal risk to his life.

“I’ll be glad to do it, Young Lord.”

Lark nodded. “Good.”

Lark turned to Qarat. “A dozen soldiers, six Blackstone Knights. You’ll be divided into six teams; each should be escorted by a Blackstone Knight. You’ll be tasked to scout the area around thirty kilometers from the mines. All reconnaissance activities are to be postponed once dusk comes. Everyone will gather together at an agreed location when that time comes. I don’t want anyone to lose their life for this mission. Bring at least two weeks’ worth of rations with you.”

The captain was surprised that the young master was asking them to bring two weeks’ worth of supplies. If things went well, they could probably come back to deliver their findings in just a week.

“Understood!”

After the captain and the herbalist had been briefed of their mission, Lark summoned Austen, George, and Chryselle into his office in the mansion.

“Sorry for holding it off until now,” Lark said to Chryselle. “As promised, we’ll start with your magic lessons today.”

Chryselle was thrilled at this declaration. “Yes!”

Lark grabbed the thick book on his table and tossed it toward Chryselle. Although the book was heavy, it slowly and perfectly landed on her hands as though someone controlled its speed and trajectory.

“Have you seen this book before?”

Chryselle stared at the book, frowned, and bobbed her head. “Yes. It’s the book written by the former royal court magician, Algrove Aria. My great-great-grandfather.”

“As I thought. The two of you are related.”

“He’s the founder of the Magic Academy and is said to be one of the strongest magicians who lived in this country. This book is the one the first years and seconds years use in the Magic Academy.”

“I bought that book in the capital and read it on our way here to Blackstone Town,” said Lark. “There are a lot of interesting things written in that book, and most of them are correct.”

Chryselle didn’t miss the latter part of Lark’s statement. Lark was implying that there were several mistakes in the book written by her great-great-grandfather. She did not take offense and continued listening intently.

“You know how to dispel magic?”

Chryselle nodded. “Yes. We were taught how to dispel the five basic elements.”

“Perfect. Before I proceed with the basic lessons regarding magic formations, I want to correct a simple misconception. As someone taught in the way of magic with that book as the guide, it must have been engraved deeply into your mind.”

Lark willed the small piece of wood placed on top of his table to hover up. He cast his spell and its tip started blazing into fire. He cast another spell and an orb of fire, around the size of a fist, manifested itself next to the burning wood.

“Try to dispel the fire spell I cast. Both of them.”

Chryselle cast her spell and the orb of fire slowly dissipated and vanished. The wood, on the other hand, was still burning fiercely.

“Now tell me why the wood remains untouched by your spell, while the fire orb was easily dispelled by it.”

A first-year student of the Magic Academy may have found it hard to answer this question, but to Chryselle—the Fifth Elder of the tower—the answer was glaringly obvious.

“The answer is simple,” she said. “The orb is fueled by mana, the wood isn’t. By disrupting the mana which formed the inner circuit of the spell, the spell was unable to maintain its shape, thus the fire dissipated. The Grand Magician Algrove defined magic as the creation of a phenomenon through mana. The process of manipulating mana to achieve a desired result. A dispel is meant to disrupt the fuel—the mana.”

“And this concept is taught to all students in the Magic Academy?”

“Yes.”

Lark sighed. As he’d thought, it seemed that the magicians in the Kingdom were performing their magic with this book as the basis of their spells—as their foundation. There were a lot of useful things written in this book, but some of them were simply inefficient. Those who learned magic with such an inefficient system would eventually reach a bottleneck and fail to achieve greater heights. The basic magic formations alone, written in this book, had several flaws.

“A dispel is meant to nullify the elements. It doesn’t matter if it’s fueled by magic or not. This is one of the things separating mediocre magicians from true ones.”

It was a statement rejecting the teachings of the Grand Magician Algrove—the Founder of the Magic Academy.

“Cast an orb of fire,” said Lark.

Chryselle nodded and cast an orb of fire.

“Watch closely,” said Lark. “This is a real dispel.”

Lark pointed a finger toward the orb of fire and the burning wood, and in an instant, both of their flames instantly vanished, as though blown away by an invisible giant.

Chryselle’s eyes widened as she realized that Lark dispelled even the fire unfueled by mana.

“The Grand Magician Algrove defined magic as the creation of a phenomenon with the use of mana,” said Lark. “It’s not entirely wrong. But my definition of magic is this: It is merely an alteration. We do not create and consume anything; we merely alter it. A common misconception written in the book is that mana is a fuel, when in reality it is not. Mana is an existence we alter into a distinct form in order to accomplish the phenomenon called magic. This concept is the reason why unstructured magic, spells which do not use any magic formation, exist.

“Hypothetically speaking, if by chance a magician is confined in a space where ambient mana did not exist and he used up all of his mana reserves, he would never recover his mana no matter how long he rested. This is because mana is never created by the magician himself. This is the same reason why the Magic Empire collapsed, based on the story you told me. The Dragon Vein—the source of all mana—was wrung dry by the cataclysm and the magicians never recovered their mana after using up all of their reserves.”

The memories of his previous life passed through Lark’s mind. He felt mixed emotions after reminiscing about his days in the Magic Empire. If the planetary alignment, which happened every ten thousand years, did not occur, maybe the Magic Empire would still exist even in this timeline.

If he was still alive during the cataclysm, maybe they could have closed the void and prevented the mana of this world from leaking out.

Lark canceled his floating spell and the burned wood dropped to the ground.

“After reading this book, I realized why General Alvaren remained undefeated until this recent war with the Empire,” said Lark. “Only those capable of unstructured magic are capable of fighting against him one-on-one. This is the reason why my brother and Viscount Zacharia lost. It’s truly fortunate that the Sword Saint was there during that battle. Only someone like him, who isn’t fully reliant on magic, could defeat the Magic Slayer of the Empire.”

Chryselle was momentarily speechless after hearing these things. Everything Lark said made sense, and if she took his words as reality, then dispelling even spells “unfueled” by mana should be feasible. It was only a matter of how good a magician was in alteration.

“You probably grew up believing the words written in that book,” said Lark. “But as long as you’re under my tutelage, you’ll have to throw several of those things away. We’ll correct all the misconceptions taught to you from a young age.”

Chryselle clenched her fists. “Yes!”

Lark liked those determined eyes of hers. “Then let’s start today’s magic lesson.”

***

The magic lessons continued until dusk.

After dinner, Lark received an unexpected guest in the mansion.

“Princess,” said Lark. “Had I known you were coming tonight, I would have prepared a proper reception.”

The princess looked conflicted. She looked down and remained silent for a moment. Behind her were her personal knights.

Lark waited patiently for her to speak.

“I heard that you’re conducting an expedition to the Endless Forest.” She finally raised her head and stared straight into Lark’s eyes. “I want you to let us come along with the soldiers.”

The latter part of her statement was said with conviction, clearly not taking no for an answer. This was the first time Lark had seen that fierce look in her eyes, as though this expedition meant the world to her, as though she was carrying a heavy weight of responsibility on her shoulders.

Lark remained calm and replied, “I need a reason to let you tag along, Princess.”

The princess bit her lip. “That… I cannot tell you. I’m sorry.”

“My head will come rolling should anything happen to you while you’re in my territory,” Lark said gently. “Unless I know the reason and I judge that it is worth the risk of a royal joining the expedition, I shall have to decline, Your Highness.”

The princess looked at Parzival and silently pleaded for help. The knight understood what the princess was trying to convey and nodded his head.

“The five of us will be responsible for the princess’ safety,” said Parzival. “Rest assured that nothing will happen to Her Highness as long as she’s with us. Her safety will be our utmost priority.”

Lark fell silent. He started pondering whether or not he should let the princess join the expedition.

Truthfully, the Endless Forest was full of mysteries. They were frequently attacked by monsters on their way to the capital, and even the forests near the major cities weren’t safe to traveling merchants. But the Endless Forest was different. It was eerily peaceful, as though someone was controlling all the creatures living inside it. Even the goblins who previously inhabited the mines never attacked Blackstone Town.

Furthermore, the Endless Forest was absurdly large, to the point that it was presumed to be larger than the entire Kingdom of Lukas. All attempts to map the place proved futile due to its sheer size. Even with flight magic, Lark was unable to make a map.

After weighing all possible scenarios, Lark made up his mind. He decided that it would be too dangerous to let the princess wander the Endless Forest, even if she was escorted by the knights.

“I need a reason, Princess,” repeated Lark. “Unless I hear the reason you wish to go, I can’t let you join the expedition forces.”

The princess closed her eyes and sighed. Eventually, she spoke to her knights. “We’re leaving.”

She could have lied her way out of this, but she simply chose to remain silent. Lark found this quite admirable.

She bowed her head. “Sorry for disturbing you at this hour, Lord Lark.”

The knights looked like they wanted to say something but eventually decided against it.

After the visitors left, Lark summoned Anandra and Captain Qarat.

“You called for us, Young Lord?” Anandra and Qarat saluted.

“The princess just left the mansion a while ago. She wishes to join the expedition forces.”

“Ah, she did ask me this morning about the reconnaissance mission to the Endless Forest,” said the Captain of the Blackstone Soldiers. “But why does the princess want to join the expedition?”

“I asked her the same question,” said Lark. “But she refused to answer. Listen, I want the two of you to monitor the movements of the princess and her men. Do not let her take part in the expedition, and you are to inform me immediately if she suddenly enters the Endless Forest.”

Captain Qarat was clearly uncomfortable monitoring the movements of a royal. He hesitated for a moment before he replied. Anandra, on the other hand, immediately made his response. To him, the royals did not matter. His master was Lark Marcus, no one else.

“As you wish, My Lord.”

“Y-Yes, Young Lord!”

Lark had a bad premonition about this. Those eyes filled with conviction—she would surely enter the forest despite Lark’s refusal.

Lark sighed. This was one of the reasons why he hated being associated with royals.

CHAPTER 6

“Princess, maybe it’d be better if we tell the lord the truth?” said Parzival.

“No.” The princess shook her head. “Didn’t Uncle Carlos tell us what would happen if the state of the king’s health is revealed to the public?”

General Carlos, the retired general and close friend of His Majesty, strictly told them to keep this secret under wraps. He was afraid that the moment the power-hungry nobles learned of this, there would be civil war. Although the curse running through the blood of the royal family was an open secret among nobilities, the exact state King Alvis’ current health hadn’t been disclosed to most nobles.

To the anti-royal faction, a king on his deathbed was nothing but an unmoving target. They would definitely plot schemes to worsen the disease and stop any attempts at finding the cure. The princess wanted to avoid this from happening at all costs.

“But maybe if it’s Lord Lark—the hero who valiantly fought for the Kingdom against the Empire,” Parzival said carefully. “Maybe he’ll understand? There’s a limit on what we can accomplish with just our number.”

A princess. Her five knights.

With just the six of them, it’d be near impossible to thoroughly comb even a portion of the forest. This was why they requested the Lord of Blackstone Town to let them accompany the expedition. If they were with the soldiers and the Blackstone Knights, then they wouldn’t need to worry about the princess’ safety at the very least. They could also discreetly task the soldiers to report to them if they saw a certain flower in the forest, although this carried the risk of being found out by the Lord of Blackstone Town later on.

“I can’t trust him,” she said. “For now, we’ll proceed with the search with just the six of us.”

Parzival had heard stories regarding Lark Marcus from his former instructor, Mikael. Unlike the princess, he knew that the bad rumors surrounding the noble were groundless. He knew that Lark was a virtuous ruler despite his notorious reputation. Even Instructor Mikael doubted the reason why Lark was thrown away to this town by his own father.

But he couldn’t go against the princess’ wish. As the leader of her personal knights, Parzival decided to obey.

“Yes, Princess.” Parzival bowed his head. “I’ll make preparations right away.”

Parzival and the knights spent an entire day gathering the necessary supplies for their search of the flower in the Endless Forest. At least two weeks’ worth of rations, a portable camp, potions, armors and weapons. They also managed to rent a mule from one of the visiting merchants.

The next day, at the crack of dawn, their group gathered at the Eastern District, near the entrance of the Endless Forest. The mule carried their supplies and the princess, while the knights—armed to the teeth—stood beside it.

“We’re being watched,” said Parzival.

He noticed that the moment they entered the Eastern District, a few soldiers started following them from a distance. An official from Blackstone Town definitely tasked the soldiers to monitor them.

How nosy.

The princess clicked her tongue. “Tomas.”

Tomas, the most proficient in magic among the knights, nodded his head. “Yes, Princess.”

“Erase our presence,” she said.

Tomas channeled mana into his bracer. The gem embedded in the magic tool glowed and mist started enveloping the area. Like a mirage, the images of the princess and her knights distorted then vanished. The soldiers watching them from a safe distance were dumbfounded at this. They immediately reported to the captain that they’d lost track of the group.

***

Lark received the reports of his men. The princess still went inside the forest despite his refusal to let her take part in the expedition.

Although she was accompanied by the knights, he couldn’t help but worry. She was a royal, after all. And she was entrusted to him by His Majesty in the pretext of learning the culture of this part of the Kingdom. Should anything happen to her, it would cause an uproar.

“Young Lord!” Captain Qarat got down on one knee. “I should have personally monitored the princess. This is clearly my blunder! Please allow me to enter the forest with the soldiers and bring her back!”

For a moment, the image of Captain Qarat’s overlapped with Anandra’s.

This guy—he was starting to sound like his first disciple as time went by. Lark glanced at Anandra, who stood silently next to his table, then at the captain.

The knights seemed to have used some unusual magic to shake off the tail. Even if the captain was there personally, Lark doubted if he could trace the princess’ footsteps. The captain was decent in leading his men, but he was no magician like Lark, nor was he a natural-born fighter like Anandra.

“Lord,” Anandra spoke. “Just give the order and I’ll immediately bring the princess back to Blackstone Town.”

Lark shook his head. “No. It’s fine. Captain Qarat, the training of the recruits is going to start soon. You should go back to the arena.”

There were over a hundred new soldiers in Blackstone Town. Just like the veterans, they would undergo daily stamina training, mastery of the basic movements of the spear, and actual combat practice with the humanoids in the arena. Even now, only Anandra was capable of defeating the humanoid basilisks at their full strength. But he’d heard that Captain Qarat and several soldiers were now capable of landing a few hits on them.

This clearly showed that his soldiers were growing stronger by each passing day. There would come a time when they would finally be worthy of wielding the magic spears Lark was secretly creating in the basement of the mansion. Giving them those weapons now would hinder their growth, and Lark wanted to avoid this from happening at all costs.

“Yes, Young Lord.” The captain stood up and lowered his head.

“And forget the princess’ disappearance,” said Lark. “Maybe it’s better this way. She’s a princess of this Kingdom. We can’t really stop her from entering the forest if she’s that determined.”

After dismissing the captain and Anandra, Lark immediately activated the surveillance crystal. He gave an order to the familiars gathered throughout the entire region. More than a dozen birds immediately flew toward the mansion and entered Lark’s office through the window. Lark tied communication crystals on several of them, before ordering them to fly toward the Endless Forest. He ordered them to search for the princess and her men.

They disappeared not long ago, so they should still be nearby. Lark expected to find them in just a few hours, but to his surprise, he could not find even a trace of them after several hours. It was already night when Lark finally found them through the light coming from the campfire. The group had set up camp near the Rile River.

The raven controlled by Lark flew down and landed on the branch of a nearby tree. He watched and listened to the group below using the communication crystal tied around the raven’s body.

“Princess, dinner’s ready,” said one of the knights.

The princess accepted the bowl filled with hot soup. Large portions of meat floated on top of it.

“Thank you,” she said. Her entire body was clad in a thick cloak.

“Tomas, the defensive spells?” said Parzival.

“They’re working just fine. We’ll be safe from projectiles and sudden attacks as long as we’re inside this camp.”

After looking carefully, Lark saw an inconspicuous circle surrounding the entire camp. It was probably the demarcation point of the protection spell Tomas had cast.

“We’ll be taking turns guarding the camp,” said Parzival. “We’ll take shifts every four hours. Noctus and I will be in charge of guarding the camp until an hour past midnight.”

The rest of the knights nodded. “Understood!”

Lark noticed that the knights removed all of their traces. Unless one was nearby, it’d be hard to even notice the glowing campfire. This definitely meant that the knights were well-trained and competent, but it also meant that it would be hard for Lark to send help in times of peril. Just locating them in the middle of this forest would be a pain.

“Parzival.”

“Yes, Princess?”

“Thank you,” she said softly. “And the other knights too. I’m really grateful that all of you came here with me today.”

The knights froze upon hearing this. Slowly, smiles formed on their faces. They had been watching over the princess since she was young. She was one of the kindest souls they’d known throughout their lives.

“This much is natural, Princess,” said Parzival. “We are your knights. We’ll help you find that flower, no matter what.”

“The leader is right, Your Highness.”

Lark finally found a lead to what the princess was looking for.

A flower? She entered the forest to find a certain flower?

The princess nodded. Her eyes glistened, she bit her lower lip, and nodded with determination. “We’ll immediately resume our search tomorrow at dawn. We’ll cover each as area as planned. We’ll come back to the town only once we’ve consumed our rations, then start with the search once again. We’re not giving up until we find it!”

“Yes, Princess!” Her knights responded resolutely.

Lark continued observing the group even after the princess entered the portable tent and fell asleep. Unfortunately, no conversations regarding the flower occurred after that. Lark did not have any idea what kind of flower they were looking for in the Endless Forest. He also did not know why they were desperately looking for it in the first place.

Before going to sleep, Lark ordered a few of his familiars to follow the group from a safe distance. He left the channel connecting the familiars to the vision crystal open. He decided to watch over them again once they started moving out first thing in the morning.

***

The next several days were uneventful.

The princess and her knights had gone deep into the forest but were still unable to find what they were looking for.

Fortunately, there had been no monster attacks to their group. Aside from the recent incident of a snake hidden in the shrubberies almost biting the princess, their search for the flower had gone without hitch or strife.

On the third day of observing the princess’ group, Lark finally found out the name of the flower they were looking for.

The Tears of Ubroxia.

To think that he would hear that name from the knight’s mouth.

It was one of the healing methods he revealed to Silver Claw back then, when he was desperate for someone to heal his daughter.

Unfortunately, Lark doubted they would find the flower even if they searched the entire forest for it. The Tears of Ubroxia grew only in mana-dense areas: the lower floors of great labyrinths, underneath mana wells, lairs of dragons, and any other areas connected to the Dragon Vein below.

Even if they searched for a year, they might not find the flower in this forest. After all, the amount of ambient mana in this region was mediocre. It was simply unsuitable for the Tears of Ubroxia’s to grow.

“A waste of time.”

Lark arrived at this conclusion. He heard that a dragon was guarding the borders of the Dwarven Kingdom. They would probably have a higher chance of finding the flower near that dragon’s lair, since those prideful creatures frequently resided in mana-dense areas.

They could also dive to the lower floors of a great labyrinth and try their luck, but they would surely suffer numerous casualties in the process, and there was no guarantee that the strong monsters residing on the lower floors hadn’t already eaten the flower.

The last and safest option was to find a place connected to the Dragon Vein below. Or, if the Goddess of Luck smiled upon them, a mana well. It had the highest chance for an Ubroxia to grow and bloom into a flower.

There was also the question of whether or not the Tears of Ubroxia was enough to heal His Majesty.

“The king is ill, huh?” Lark mumbled as he continued watching the group through the vision crystal.

He still hadn’t learned what kind of illness struck the king of this country. But based on the conversation of the knights and the princess, His Majesty only had a few years to live, hence his issuance of the decree for the competition for the throne.

Lark remembered the king who appointed him as the Commander of the Third Army. Despite the opposition from the other nobles, the king did not waver in his beliefs and appointed Lark to lead the Kingdom’s soldiers in a battle which would determine the fate of the entire country.

Although the king was no genius tactician, nor was he a great magician, he was a benevolent ruler who truly loved the Kingdom. Lark found it a waste for such a kind monarch to succumb to his death due to an illness.

Unfortunately, Lark was unable to glean any further information regarding the king’s illness from the conversations of the princess and her men.

CHAPTER 7

While the princess and her men were searching for the flower in the Endless Forest, Lark continued with the management of his territory. Each morning, he would read through piles of documents in his office, all the while listening to the reports of his subordinates.

“The Central Market’s doing extremely well despite being opened only for a week,” reported Gaston. “Aside from wheat, eggs, animal skin, meat and fish, we’ve also started selling local herbs and medicine. The local seamstresses also opened up their stalls on the second floor.”

Lark flipped through the documents handed to him by Gaston. The Central Market was an establishment located in the Central Plaza and opened just a week ago. Surprisingly, despite the fixed price policy they implemented to all vendors in the Central Market, several merchants still chose to open up their stalls there.

“It’s going far better than expected, huh?” said Lark.

“Yes, Young Master. The merchants shunned the proposal at first, after they heard of the fixed price policy implemented by the lord. But after they learned about the decreased taxes imposed on all members, some of them reconsidered.”

Lark nodded in satisfaction at this. Although the fixed price policy had its drawbacks—such as culling healthy competition among merchants—the benefits outweighed the downsides. Currently, after the abundant harvest and the implementation of the fixed price policy to all stalls in the Central Market, the price of wheat was at its lowest. The price of wheat was almost a third of last year’s. Right now, even the poorer residents were able to eat their meals at least twice a day.

“Young Master, if you’ll allow this old man to voice out his opinion.”

“Speak.”

“Although the residents clearly benefit from the fixed price policy, I’m afraid several people might take advantage of this decree. Especially the merchants from the city.”

Lark understood what the butler was trying to say. Not all territories in the Kingdom had an abundant harvest this season. Some had been devastated by the Black Famine, and there were even some villages on the brink of dying from starvation. No wonder people were migrating to this territory, especially after hearing of the recruitment notices and the abundant harvest.

Merchants from the city would probably try to take advantage of this decree by buying cheap wheat and meat from Blackstone Town and selling them to the starving territories.

“There’s nothing to worry about,” said Lark. “We’ll be imposing large tariffs to all exported products from unassociated merchants. That should be enough to deter the greedy ones from taking advantage of this policy. This decree is for my people, and for my people only.”

Loud knocks were heard and a servant entered. “Young Master, Captain Qarat’s here.”

“Let him in.”

The Captain of the Blackstone Soldiers entered Lark’s office. He immediately saluted and said, “You called for me, sir?”

Lark placed the documents he held on the table. He looked at the captain and nodded. “How many soldiers do we have at our disposal?”

“A hundred and seventy soldiers, My Lord.”

“A hundred and seventy, huh?” repeated Lark. “Listen, I plan on creating a separate division in the military. The town’s population has grown tremendously these past several months and according to the reports, there has been an increase in incidences of theft and violence in the town.”

“A separate division, My Lord?”

“I plan on establishing a Ministry of Defense. And under it will be two divisions. The military and the police.”

In cities, the patrol or the police was responsible for the safety of the residents. Their responsibilities were a bit different from the military, whose purpose was to kill bandits and monsters in the surrounding regions.

“The police will be responsible for maintaining public order and safety, enforcing the law, and preventing, detecting, and investigating criminal activities. They’ll also be in charge of inspecting the goods coming in and out of our territory.”

Lark and Qarat locked eyes with each other.

“Captain, I want you to select two of your most trusted men. Together with my most trusted guard, Clarkson, they’ll be responsible for overseeing the entire police department. I heard that there are over a hundred recruits in the military. Half of them shall serve as the patrols of this city.”

Lark pointed at Qarat. “And Captain Qarat, starting today, you are promoted to the Commander of the Military.”

It was the position previously held by Anandra. For a moment, Qarat could not believe what he’d just heard.

Qarat stuttered his reply, “U-Understood! I-I’ll do my best to meet the Lord’s expectations!”

Lark chuckled. “No need to be so stiff. The two men who’ll be leading the police. Do you have anyone in mind?”

Qarat pondered for a moment. “Yes. I do and I’m sure we could trust them. They’ve been protecting this town as hunters, even before the young master became the lord of this territory.”

Lark was intrigued on who the two might be. “Hunters, huh? After explaining things to them, tell them to come and see me in my office.”

“As you wish.” Qarat bowed.

After the soldier left, Lark summoned the head mason into his office.

Silver Claw’s entire body was covered with sweat, on his shoulders was a drenched towel. His clothes had mud stains here and there.

“Sorry for summoning you here, I’m sure you’ve been busy,” said Lark.

Silver Claw shook his head. “Please feel free to call me any time, Young Master.”

Lark took out a parchment and handed it to the mason. “Take a look at this.”

Silver Claw stared at the parchment for a moment. “This is?”

“A design for the Town Hall,” said Lark. “Feel free to alter it to your will, I’m sure you’re more knowledgeable than me in this field. But, if possible, I would like you to adhere to the size and floors of the building.”

“This Town Hall will be larger than the mansion,” said Silver Claw. “It’ll take us several months to finish this thing, and there’s also the large amount of money we’ll end up using that we should consider.”

“I received a hefty sum from His Majesty. Funding the project won’t be a problem,” said Lark. “This Town Hall will someday become the core and foundation of this territory. Along with the school, I’d like you to prioritize this project.”

According to the design given by Lark, the Town Hall would be five stories tall and large enough to accommodate five hundred people.

“I plan on establishing several departments soon. The Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Medicine, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Infrastructure, and Ministry of Labor. All of them will be under the Town Hall.”

As someone who’d lived in a major city for decades, Silver Claw understood what the Young Master was trying to convey. Even Lion City had something similar, although they did not have a structure to house all those departments. The hierarchy of Lion City’s ruling class was also vague, with the lord holding most of the power.

“I understand,” said the mason. “I’ll start working on this right away. But Young Master, regarding the location… wouldn’t it be better if we build the Town Hall near the Central Plaza?”

“No. We’ll build it in the Eastern District.” Lark shot down the idea. “You’ve heard that I’ve sent several soldiers to scout the Endless Forest, right?”

The mason nodded.

“If the expedition goes well, we’ll start clearing a portion of the Endless Forest. From the east, we’ll start expanding the town. This is why we’ll build the Town Hall at the current border of the Eastern District. Someday, when the territory has expanded, it’ll be the heart—the center—of Blackstone Town.”

Silver Claw finally understood the reason why the young master wanted to build the Town Hall at such location. This young lord already anticipated the next steps they would undertake in the future. Silver Claw was truly glad that they had such a competent leader ruling this town.

After meeting with the mason, Lark met with the merchants from Lion City to discuss the prices and terms for the umami salt and the wheat they’d be exporting to the other territories. Unlike others, the merchants under Big Mona weren’t given heavy tariffs in Lark’s territory. In exchange, Lark was given some authority over the merchants guild in Lion City. He could freely request for rare materials and goods not found in the Eastern Region at a very reasonable price, and the merchants guild even provided some soldiers to guard the route from Blackstone Town to Lion City. Next week, the merchants guild would be lending several carts and horses to Blackstone Town—for free.

***

The princess and her men finally returned to Blackstone Town after a week of exploring the Endless Forest. As expected, they returned empty-handed. They did not even find any leads on the whereabouts of the flower.

The soldiers sent by Qarat to scout the Endless Forest also returned, bringing good news with them.

They did not encounter any monsters during the expedition, nor did they spot any potential dens of monsters. Everything was simply an unending sea of trees. There were wild animals who tried to attack them now and then, but those were easily taken care of by the experienced soldiers. They did not pose any threat at all, thus Lark decided to proceed with the clearing of the forest.

Upon receiving Lark’s command, dozens of workers started cutting the trees in the Endless Forest. The forest was absurdly large, and even if Lark cut down thousands of trees, it would hardly be noticed.

Later on, the felled trees would be used to build houses and other important structures for the town. The areas cleared of trees would be converted into residential areas. With the help of the strong adhesives they obtained from the shells of the kelnup flies, coupled with cement, it should be possible to build houses for more than a thousand migrants within the next few months. Once these residences were completed, it would provide another steady source of income for treasury.

During dinner, Lark invited the princess and her knights to the mansion.

The princess was reluctant at first, but eventually decided to accept the offer. Although she was a princess, she’d been taught that it would be rude to decline the invite of a lord without any valid reason.

“Thank you for coming tonight, Princess.” Lark sat at the head of the table, with the princess on the chair to his right. “I heard you just returned from the expedition.”

The word ‘expedition’ clearly touched a nerve. The princess scowled at the mention of the word.

“I’d rather not talk about it,” she said. “You’re probably disappointed that we ignored your previous words and went ahead with our own expedition, but the Endless Forest isn’t owned by anyone. We’re free to come and go there as we wish.”

Lark nodded in understanding, despite the childish reasoning of the princess. He could have retorted that His Majesty gave him sovereign over the Endless Forest during the last awarding ceremony, but eventually decided to refrain from mentioning it. He knew that no matter what he said or did, this woman would still go to there until she found the flower. Antagonizing her would not bring him any benefits.

“Princess, if you could tell me the reason for your expedition, then this lord will do what he can to help you,” said Lark.

He did not reveal the fact that he already knew what the princess was trying to find. He wanted to take things slowly, one step at a time.

The princess’ face contorted. She looked at Parzival, and after the knight shook his head, she muttered, “I can’t. I’m sorry.”

“Is that so?” Lark replied softly. “If the princess doesn’t wish to reveal her secrets, then I won’t pry any further. But please remember, Your Highness, as the Lord of Blackstone Town, I hold power over hundreds of men. You’ll achieve your goals much faster with my help.”

The princess knew this already, but she was still conflicted whether or not Lark was someone trustworthy. She’d even discussed this with the knights several times before, and they eventually came to the consensus that it’d be better for them to keep this a secret. After all, it could drive the entire Kingdom into civil war if the people learned that His Majesty was on his death bed. The anti-royal faction would surely grab this opportunity to usurp all authority.

They still had a few years, according to the chief healer treating His Majesty. Hopefully, they’d be able to find that flower by then. And hopefully, the flower would be enough to stop the curse of Agares.

“Thank you,” said the princess. “But I’d rather not bother Lord Lark with it.”

Lark did not reply and simply nodded his head in understanding.

“Lord,” said Parzival. “We heard that the soldiers are done with the expedition.”

“That’s right.”

“Then, could we borrow the guide the soldiers hired?”

Indeed, things would progress much easier if they had the herbalist’s help. Maybe with this, they’ll realize that their efforts were futile—that it’d be near impossible to find the Tears of Ubroxia in the Endless Forest. Hopefully, Mores was knowledgeable enough to point out the fact that the flower grew only in mana-dense areas.

“Herbalist Mores,” said Lark. “He’s the most knowledgeable among everyone when it comes to the Endless Forest. As long as he agrees to help, sure, I don’t mind if you include him in your next expedition.”

There was a pause. Lark added, “On the condition that if you ever find yourself in a precarious situation, you’ll immediately retreat and stop the expedition.”

The face of the princess visibly brightened. She smiled broadly. “Thank you!”

Parzival bowed his head lightly. “Thank you, Lord Lark.”

Lark smiled back. That night, the dinner ended without the princess confiding her secrets to Lark.

CHAPTER 8

The next day, while inside his office in the mansion, Lark received his weekly newspaper from the traveling merchants of Lion City.

It seemed that while he was on his way back to Blackstone Town, a storm had brewed in the capital of the Kingdom. Several shocking events unfolded one after another, enough to stir up the masses.

“Duke Kelvin’s convicted of high treason?” said Lark as he read the newspaper.

According to the news, after the Empire’s defeat at Yorkshaire Mountain Range, Rock Castle was also freed of enemy soldiers. The royal court magicians tasked to rescue Lancaster Kelvin were successful, and they managed to annihilate all the enemies occupying the fort.

But this did not change the fact that the Kelvin Duchy refused to take part in the war with the Empire. Under the pretext that the heir of the House Kelvin was under the enemy’s hands, Duke Kelvin forbade all of his soldiers from taking part in the war. This was a tremendous blow to the Kingdom’s overall military might. After all, the Kelvin Army was the second most powerful army in the Kingdom, next only to the Marcus Army.

After their victory, the king and his ministers summoned Duke Kelvin to the capital. After heated discussions, the duke was sentenced to lifetime imprisonment and a hundred lashes.

For a moment, Lark was worried that this would result in civil war. The Kelvin Duchy owned five out of the seven major ports in the Kingdom, and they also boasted a strong army of hussars. They held enough military might to threaten the throne.

But after reading some more, Lark was surprised to find out that the duke silently accepted his punishment and was locked up in the capital’s dungeon without any resistance. According to the news, the duke negotiated with the king: He would accept his due punishment as long as he was not stripped of his title and nobility. This way, his sons would still be eligible for the competition for the throne. Afraid of a civil war toppling the entire Kingdom, the king agreed to the duke’s demands.

Duke Kelvin was apparently confident that one of his sons would win the competition. And by the time a Kelvin ascended to the throne, he would naturally be freed from the dungeon. If things went according to the plan, then he would only have to endure for three more years.

Lark sipped his tea. He continued reading the news.

“The Empire sent an envoy, huh?”

A few days after the duke was convicted of lifetime imprisonment, an envoy from the Empire arrived at the capital. Post-war reparations were immediately discussed by both parties, with the Empire demanding the Kingdom to return the captives locked up in the dungeons of Akash City, along with the glaive of General Alvaren. Although the Empire refused to sign a peace treaty with the Kingdom, according to the news, they agreed to pay a hefty sum to retrieve the maginus and for the captives to be returned to their homeland.

Lark nodded in satisfaction at this. The maginus—although a mere replica—should be worth at least thirty thousand gold coins, probably more. There were also the captives in Akash City they had to consider. Five hundred soldiers, and two of them were from prominent families in the Empire. Their freedom should have netted the Kingdom at least tens of thousands in gold coins.

Lark was glad that he chose to lock them up in the dungeons back then instead of killing them, despite the potential risks they would pose against his army. After the post-war reparations, the financial burden on the Kingdom should have been lessened somewhat.

And the last—but the biggest—news in the Kingdom.

Lark’s eyes widened as he read this part:

His Majesty, King Alvis Lukas VI, collapsed during the celebratory banquet!

According to the news, numerous eyewitnesses saw a black haze enveloping the king’s body moments before he keeled over. The king’s entire skin turned purple-black and he started vomiting blood. It was only after a royal court magician came over and cast healing spells on His Majesty that the king’s complexion returned to normal.

This scene caused an uproar during the banquet and the news quickly spread throughout the mainland. Some speculated that His Majesty was poisoned by his enemies, while some spread rumors that His Majesty had already been ill for several years, hence his declaration about the competition for the throne. There were also rumors saying that Duke Kelvin was behind all this, despite being currently locked up in the dungeons.

Lark put down the newspaper and leaned on his chair. He started putting the pieces of the puzzle together.

The Tears of Ubroxia.

The king’s sudden collapse.

The black haze enveloping His Majesty.

The purple-black marks covering the king’s entire body.

“A contract with a demon?” said Lark.

This was the only conclusion he could come up with. The only common point of all the evidence presented before him.

But why would His Majesty form a contract with a demon? Lark could not understand this. Although he’d only met the king a few times, His Majesty struck him as someone fair and just, a virtuous ruler who cared about the people, the Kingdom.

Lark could not understand why such a kind ruler would form a contract with a demon.

Lark sighed. He knew the only way to find out the truth about this matter was to ask the princess herself. He ordered the butler to summon the princess to his office. Thankfully, the princess and her men were still preparing for their next expedition in the Endless Forest and hadn’t left Blackstone Town yet.

An hour later, the princess entered his office. She was accompanied by Parzival and another knight.

Lark did not bother dismissing her guards. He immediately went straight to the point.

The moment the door was shut tight, Lark spoke, “Did His Majesty make a contract with a demon?”

The princess and her knights froze. Their eyes widened, almost popping out, after hearing this question. Just this reaction alone gave them away, but Lark remained silent and waited for the princess to reply regardless.

“W-What are you talking about?” said the Princess.

Lark slid the newspaper toward her. “Here. Read the last page.”

The princess nervously took the newspaper and after reading the last page, her eyes shook. Her entire body trembled. She croaked, “F-Father!”

The two knights immediately went to the princess’ side.

“What happened, Princess?” Parzival asked.

The princess bit her lip hard, her entire body still trembling from what she’d just read.

“The king collapsed,” Lark answered Parzival instead. “I’ve known for quite some time now that you’ve been looking for the Tears of Ubroxia. And after reading the news, everything finally made sense. It’s apparent now why you’re looking for the flower.”

Parzival stared at Lark. “H-How? How did you know that we’re looking for that flower?”

Lark snapped his fingers. From the open window, a raven flew inside the office. It landed on top of Lark’s desk then cawed. A small gemstone was tied around the raven’s neck.

Lark stroked the raven’s head. “This little guy here has been following your group for several days now. I’ve heard everything.”

“You dare plant a spy on the princess?” snarled Parzival. He grabbed the hilt of his weapon but didn’t pull out his sword. “I know you’re the lord of this city, but the princess is part of the royal family!”

“I know,” said Lark. He didn’t flinch and simply stared at the glaring Parzival. “But His Majesty gave me the sovereignty over the Endless Forest during the last awarding ceremony. I have rights to monitor all trespassers into my territory—even if it’s the princess herself. I forbade you to enter the forest, right? But you didn’t listen.”

Parzival couldn’t refute this rebuttal. He clenched his fists but didn’t say another word.

The princess was still silent, her eyes glued on the newspaper.

“Princess,” said Lark. “I need you to tell me the truth. The reason why you’re searching for the flower. You’ve read the news. The King collapsed. Everyone already knows that His Majesty is ill. There shouldn’t be much difference if you tell me now.”

“Even if I tell you,” the princess willed her tears back, “nothing will change. Even the royal court magicians and the healers of the capital couldn’t find a cure for father’s curse!”

“A curse,” repeated Lark.

The princess paused. She realized she had blurted important information out. Realizing that the cat was already out of the bag, she decided to tell Lark everything.

She bit her lip, nodded once then said, “Yes. A curse.”

Silence befell the room. The raven cawed, flapped its wings then flew out of the window.

“You asked me if my father made a pact with a demon.” The princess shook her head. “No. He didn’t. My father is currently ill due to the curse running down the blood of the royal family. A curse which originated from the king who founded this Kingdom.”

The princess continued with her story.

According to her, the first King of Lukas made a pact with a demon called Agares. In exchange for helping the human found a kingdom, the demon would take a portion of the lives of all the king’s descendants—particularly those who ascended the throne. This was why all the previous kings died young, the oldest of them was said to have been the current king—King Alvis Lukas VI.

The demon fulfilled his part of the deal and the small city of the first king prospered and became the Kingdom it was today. Agares was said to be a virtuous creature, despite being a demon. He even compromised and took only a small portion of the life of the monarchs. This was the reason why the royal family did not condemn Agares. But as the Kingdom grew and expanded, the short lives of its rulers proved to be a problem. Their bodies also became weak and sickly from a young age, making it hard for them to lead the country.

“I see,” said Lark, after hearing the story. “Judging by your story, this demon, Agares, should be at least a High Demon. The prerequisite of a Demon Lord.”

For a moment, Lark remembered the times he fought with the Demon Lords back in his previous life. He almost died several times, but, without a doubt, it was one of the most exhilarating moments in his life. He wondered if the Demon Lords he’d fought back then were still alive. Demons were known to have very long lifespans, after all.

“A High Demon?” said the princess.

“Yes, a High Demon.” Lark nodded. “Tears of Ubroxia, a high-grade mana stone, ormatane and gold dust, blood of the sacrifice, and a phylactery—preferably made of adamantite, but mithril should be enough for a short ritual. These are the things you’ll need to sever the link binding the demon and the royal blood.”

The princess and her men looked at Lark quizzically. The royal court magician told them that ingesting the Tears of Ubroxia would temporarily halt the progression of the curse. They weren’t told about its ability to sever the link entirely.

“I-It’s possible to sever the link entirely?” said the princess.

“Of course. It’s also possible even without the flower, but we’ll need at least a dozen high-grade mana stones to compensate for it, to make it work.”

The male basilisk produced only a middle-grade mana stone. The female basilisk, on the other hand, dropped a high-grade. Gathering more than a dozen of them would definitely be hard, since basilisks were already considered calamity class monsters in this Kingdom.

Hearing that there was a way to finally rid the royal family of this curse, the princess unconsciously leaned forward and grasped Lark’s hands. She stared straight into his eyes. “Is this true? You really have a way to save Father?”

The princess continued gripping Lark’s hands tight, not willing to let go until she received her answer.

“That’s right, but princess,” said Lark. “There’s one problem.”

The princess frowned. “What is it?”

“I told you we’ll need a phylactery, right?” said Lark. “There’s a very high chance that this demon called Agares would appear after the completion of the ritual. No matter how virtuous this demon is, he’s still a demon. He wouldn’t simply allow the contract to be severed without putting up a fight. Although there are exemptions, demons generally hate humankind.”

The princess shivered upon hearing this. To think that they would need to face the wrath of a High Demon to successfully cure His Majesty—just the mere thought made her entire body tremble. Even Parzival turned pale at this revelation. If a High Demon—said to be almost as powerful as a dragon—appeared at the capital, the entire Kingdom would face the risk of annihilation.

“The demon surely planted a fragment into the founding king of this nation, and this fragment is passed down to each succeeding generation. The moment the ritual is complete, this fragment will become the link, the passageway for this so-called Agares to cross over. But if we have a phylactery to store this fragment, it should be possible for us to seal the passage before the demon could even have the chance to cross over.”

The princess finally let go of Lark’s hands. Her face visibly brightened upon hearing the last part of the statement.

“Then we can prevent the demon from appearing after we cure Father!” she said excitedly.

Lark raised his index finger. “But we’ll need a strong phylactery, Princess. As I’ve said before, adamantite is the ideal. If by chance Agares is stronger than a High Demon, a mithril phylactery wouldn’t be enough to contain the fragment. He’ll appear before us, sooner or later. And by that time, we’ll have no choice but to face him in a battle of life or death.”

CHAPTER 9

Princess Esmeralda was thrilled upon learning that the Lord of Blackstone Town was knowledgeable of curses. With just a few pieces of evidence presented to him, he even managed to come up with the conclusion that His Majesty had an existing contract with a demon.

But her excitement was short-lived.

Lark soon revealed that she would probably not find the flower in the Endless Forest. According to him, the Tears of Ubroxia grew only in mana-dense areas—and the Endless Forest was clearly not among those places.

“Then… we’ve wasted our time coming all the way here?” she said in dismay. Just the journey to Blackstone Town alone took them a month.

“That’s not true, Princess.” Parzival stared at Lark. “We’ve gained something more valuable by coming to Blackstone Town.”

The princess understood what Parzival was trying to convey. Indeed, meeting Lark was a godsend. Even the royal court magicians didn’t know the way to rid the royal family of the curse, but this young man before them had just declared that it would be possible to sever the link entirely.

She steeled her resolve. If they couldn’t find the flower in this region, then they’d just need to find it somewhere else. It was definitely for the best that they’d learned this early that they couldn’t find the flower in the Endless Forest.

“Mana-dense places,” she said. “Do you have any places in mind, Lord Lark?”

“I’m afraid I’m not familiar with the topography and territories of this Kingdom. But what we should be looking for are these three: labyrinths, mana wells, or any areas connected to the Dragon Vein below. Those three will always contain the greatest amount of ambient mana, a place suitable for the growth of the flower. We could also try our luck at the territory near a dragon’s lair, but I doubt His Majesty will permit an expedition to that land since it might incite war with the Dwarven Kingdom.”

Parzival frowned. All of the areas mentioned by Lark were terribly dangerous places usually infested with monsters.

The princess said slowly, “Parzival, what about the City of Bones?”

“Absolutely not, Princess!” said Parzival, his voice almost a shout. “It’s called a forbidden region for a reason! Even the United Grakas Alliance doesn’t dare go through that territory in fear of annihilation!”

“But there’s a labyrinth at the center of the ruins, right? And it’s one of the two places they told us about. The place where we could potentially find the flower!”

“Princess, I’m curious,” said Lark. “Who told you that you’ll be able to find the Tears of Ubroxia at the Endless Forest?”

The princess looked at Parzival, wordless asking if it was alright to reveal this information to Lark. After Parzival subtly bobbed his head in confirmation, the princess said, “The royal court magician, Lady Ropianna. She’s a magician under the direct supervision of the royal family. She’s been protecting the crown for several decades now, and she’s also the one who’s been halting the progression of my father’s curse with her magic. If not for her, the curse would have already killed Father several years ago.”

“She’s capable of halting the progression of a curse from a High Demon?” mumbled Lark. “Impressive.” Lark pondered for several seconds. “Did she tell you the reason why she considered the Endless Forest?”

Lark had visited the Endless Forest several times before when he was making the map of the surrounding region, and he did not encounter any mana-dense areas nearby. Based on the story of the princess, this royal court magician seemed capable. Lark could not understand how someone of her caliber would make this simple mistake.

The princess shook her head. “She didn’t tell us the reason…”

Parzival added, “It’s a bit vague… The lady simply said that we’ll find the cure to His Majesty’s curse in the Endless Forest and at the Forbidden Region. She said this was the Water God’s revelation to her at the temple.”

For some reason, Parzival stared at Lark as though he’d arrived at a realization. As though he finally understood what the Water God’s message to the royal court magician meant.

Lark remained silent upon the mention of the Water God. Even now, he still did not believe in the existence of such higher beings. Even back in his past life, he’d never encountered them, nor did they make contact with the humans. Even if they did exist, Lark deemed that they were probably just massive aggregations of mana capable of coherent thoughts, just like the demons.

“Are there other labyrinths in this Kingdom, aside from the Forbidden Region?” said Lark.

“There are none,” said Parzival.

“How about mana wells?”

“There’s only one mana well in the entire continent,” said Parzival. “And it’s located at the center of the Empire’s capital.”

Lark sighed. “Then the Forbidden Region’s the only remaining option.”

Parzival looked at the princess, then at Lark. “I believe there’s no need for us to go to that dangerous place ourselves. The captain of the royal knights and his men are probably on their way toward that labyrinth as we speak. Before we left the capital, the royal knights were already organizing an expedition to find the flower in the Forbidden Region. They finally have a chance to organize an army for expedition now that the Imperial Army has retreated from our land.”

Parzival was obviously against the princess going to such a dangerous place. Lark agreed with the knight on this. Even if he went to the Forbidden Region, he wouldn’t take the princess with him. She’d only be dead weight.

“An army of knights is already on its way toward the labyrinth to search for the flower, huh?” said Lark.

Parzival nodded. “It’s an elite unit serving directly under the king. The captain is the son of Sword Saint Marrozo. I heard that before the Sword Saint became bedridden due to old age, he managed to pass down his sword techniques to the captain.”

Lark heard before that there were two Sword Saints in this Kingdom. He’d met Master Alexander several times before, but this was the first time he’d heard the name of the second Sword Saint. Unfortunately, based on Parzival’s story, the Sword Saint was already bedridden.

“Since an elite unit is already on its way to the Forbidden Region to retrieve the flower,” said Lark. “All we can do now is wait. Please send a message to the capital. List down all the things I’ve told you and have them procure the materials immediately. Also, if by any chance they’d be able to gather a dozen high-grade mana stones, we can also use those as an alternative option.”

The last part of the statement was probably wishful-thinking, Lark knew.

“Understood!” Parzival said firmly. “I’ll send out a messenger immediately!”

The princess frowned. “Parzival, why are you agreeing to what Lord Lark’s saying? Isn’t it better if we also go to the Forbidden Region? What if the royal knights can’t retrieve the flower!”

Lark stared at the princess. He pondered for a moment if he should say what was on his mind to the princess.

“And what difference will it make if you’re there, Princess?” Lark asked. He didn’t hesitate to shatter the princess’ naïve way of thinking. “You’ll be dead weight. Baggage. It’ll only make it harder for the army to retrieve the flower if they also have to protect you in that labyrinth.”

The princess’ entire face flushed, probably from anger, or maybe from shame—Lark was not sure. And he didn’t care.

Lark glanced at Parzival. The knight did not have the slightest intention of bringing the princess to the Forbidden Region, no matter what. He stood silently next to the princess, not bothering to refute Lark’s statement.

Lark and Parzival wordlessly agreed that this would be in the princess’ best interests.

The princess couldn’t utter another word. Her entire body trembled as tears started forming at the corner of her eyes.

Seeing this, Lark sighed. What a sheltered woman, he thought.

“The best course of action, for now, is to wait,” Lark repeated. “I promise you that once the army gets hold of the flower, we’ll depart for the capital immediately to cure the curse of His Majesty.”

The princess slowly bobbed her heard in acknowledgment but didn’t utter a reply.

“Parzival,” said Lark.

“Yes?”

“Would it be possible to get hold of adamantite?”

“I’m afraid it’ll be near impossible, Lord Lark, even with the help of the royal family,” said Parzival. “But I could probably procure some mithril for the creation of the phylactery.”

“I see.”

For a moment, Lark was reminded of the adamantite vein deep within the lake. But mining those ores as they were right now would be extremely difficult with tens of thousands of monsters spawning in that area.

“There’s a blacksmith in Lion City capable of forging items using mithril,” said Lark. “We can probably ask him to build us the phylactery, but the process will probably take several weeks. Please prioritize the procurement of the mithril ingots—at least two of them—and the high-grade mana stone.”

“Of course.” Parzival bowed his head. “I’ll work on it immediately.”

***

After her meeting with Lark, Princess Esmeralda shut herself inside the guest room in the mansion. She curled her body and silently sobbed.

She felt powerless. In her entire life, this was the first time someone directly told her that she would be nothing but dead weight.

Various emotions—frustration, anger, embarrassment and helplessness—filled her heart. Back then, she’d wanted to slap the Lord of Blackstone Town in the face for blatantly telling her to stay still and not be a hindrance to the army. But in the end, she couldn’t do it. She knew within herself that all of what Lark Marcus said was correct. She knew that even if she personally went to the Forbidden Region, nothing would change. She’d just be deadweight.

Princess Esmeralda’s face contorted as tears flowed freely down her face. Snot dripped from her nose as she sobbed. She gripped the pillows tight as she suppressed a shout of frustration.

The princess stayed cooped up in her room, refusing food and audience even from her personal knights. It was only the next day when she finally decided to go out. By then, her eyes were puffy from crying all night.

After breakfast, she saw Chryselle practicing magic in the mansion garden.

To the princess, the sight was surreal. Chryselle was almost the same age as her, but she was already highly proficient in magic. There was also this indescribable strength seeping through those crimson eyes, the same strength the princess could see in her knights.

Chryselle felt a gaze on her. She turned around and was surprised to find the princess staring at her with wide eyes.

“Princess?”

The princess flinched upon realizing that she was discovered. “S-Sorry, did I interrupt your training?”

Like an elder sister, Chryselle smiled. “Not at all. I was just thinking of taking a break.”

Chryselle wiped the sweat on her forehead using the back of her hand.

“What brought you here, Princess?”

Princess Esmeralda averted her gaze after hearing this question. “I’m… just walking around.”

Chryselle noticed the princess’ puffy eyes. She was sure that the princess must have been crying nonstop before she came, although she didn’t know why. And she had no intention of prying into the secrets of a royal.

“Walking around, I see.” Chryselle was still smiling. “Then would you like to join me for tea? There’s this interesting book I found in the library of Blackstone Town recently. We can read together if you want, Princess.”

Beautiful, strong, kind. Chryselle really reminded the princess of her older sisters. Princess Esmeralda was thrilled at the invitation. She immediately agreed.

“Of course!” she said. “I’d love to!”

Chryselle chuckled. She began preparing the tea. At the same time, she handed the book to the princess.

“This is the book?” The princess was puzzled, particularly at the book’s title. “Principles of a Just Sovereign,” mumbled the princess. “By Evander Alaester.”

As a royal, the princess had been exposed to various literature since she was young. But this was the first time she’d heard of the book’s title. This was also the first time she heard of Evander Alaester.

Chryselle looked at the princess with eyes filled with understanding. “You’ve probably never heard of him. But the author—Evander Alaester—is a prominent figure among the magicians of Wizzert. He’s like a God to us magicians, you see.”

“God to the magicians?”

“Yes, Princess.” Chryselle placed a cup of tea before Esmeralda. “I was surprised when I saw a book written by that magician sitting on the shelves of this town’s library. And you know what’s more surprising, Your Highness?”

There was a small pause.

“That book was clearly written just recently,” said Chryselle. “A mass-produced book. Almost a hundred of them. And it’s mandatory for all soldiers to read it.”

Chryselle looked at the third floor of the mansion. Particularly at the office of the current lord.

CHAPTER 10

Days quickly passed by. The farmers finally finished harvesting the crops in the Northern Land. As planned, Blackstone Town started exporting the excess wheat, poultry, and umami salt to the nearby territories.

The umami salt in particular caused an uproar among the masses. Unlike the sea salt from the Kelvin Duchy, the umami salt added an unexplainable meaty taste to their dishes. Just a few days after it arrived in Lion City and Mavas City, it quickly became a hot topic among restaurants and inns. Even nobles started taking interest in the new product from Blackstone Town.

Gaston was thrilled when money started to finally flow into the treasury. They were close to being in the red just a month ago. But now, the amount of money coming in was enough to sustain the current developments of Blackstone Town.

They were no longer relying on the revenue from just the kalranes and potions to sustain the territory. With the addition of the income from exported crops, meat, and spices, they finally broke even.

At the same time, the blacksmith commissioned by Lark at Lion City arrived at Blackstone Town. Garma went straight to the mansion to deliver the mithril cubes he’d created. As he had promised, he finished the product in just two weeks.

“You must have been busy,” said Lark. “Thank you for coming all the way here just to deliver these.”

Placed on top of his desk were two silver-black cubes the size of a head. Each of them was made of mithril. On their walls, complex intertwining figures were carved.

“I wouldn’t be able to sleep if I let some servant deliver this to you.” Garma didn’t bother with formalities and addressed Lark casually. “Mithril’s damn expensive and rare. I’d rather kill myself than have an item made of mithril be stolen by some lowly bandit in the forest.”

Lark thought that he could have sent it through the merchants since those men were protected by hired mercenaries during their travel. Garma probably had another reason for delivering this personally to Blackstone Town.

“Kid, this is the first time I’ve seen an item like that,” said Garma. “I followed the blueprints faithfully, but even now I can’t see how those cubes are supposed to work, with their insides hollow and all.”

“That’s not surprising.” Lark nodded in understanding. “It’s a personal design of mine.”

He touched one of the cubes and channeled mana into it. Slowly, the symbols carved on the walls glowed. The cube separated into eight smaller pieces, forming small gaps, revealing the hollow interior.

“It’s a medium, a container.”

Lark’s mana slowly flowed toward the hollow center of the cube, forming a translucent aggregation of mana visible even to the blacksmith’s eyes. At first, it was just a small lump the size of a wheat grain. But as Lark continued supplying it with mana, it eventually grew into the size of a pebble.

“Crystallized mana,” said Lark. “Pretty, isn’t it?”

Garma agreed. It was indeed beautiful, like a polished gemstone. Even now, the crystallized mana at the center of the cube continued sucking Lark’s mana, slowly growing in size with each passing moment.

“It’ll be extremely hard to expand the mana pool of this body any further unless I get my hands on another high-grade mana stone,” said Lark. “I tried looking for decent-quality mana stones in the capital, but to no avail.”

He’d realized the limits of his current shell a long time ago. Although he still continued training his mana pool every night, it was apparent that his progress would continue at a slow pace without the aid of an external force like a high-grade mana stone.

His current body’s mana core was too mediocre. If only he had the same core as his disciples—George and Austen—reaching greater heights would have been easier.

Well, he decided to be thankful that he didn’t end up with a body with a defective core. This was still better than nothing. He decided to make do with what he currently had in his hands.

“But with the help of these items.” Lark grinned. “It should be possible to store mana in a separate space. An external container. In this case, these mithril cubes.”

For several minutes, Garma and Lark silently watched as the crystallized mana inside the cube grew in size. By the time Lark was done, it was already the size of a fist. Lark breathed deeply and exhaled. He’d used up more than half of his entire mana.

Lark grinned as he looked at the translucent lump of mana inside the cube. The amount of mana stored in a single cube should be enough to enable him to cast a tenth-tier spell without expending his own mana reserves. If he used both cubes, even Grand Scale Magic should be possible.

“This is perfect,” Lark said in satisfaction. “It’s really hard to believe that you managed to create these two on the first try. The stored mana doesn’t seep out at all. I don’t have to worry about losing the mana I’ve stored in these mediums.”

Garma laughed. Nothing was more euphoric than hearing a client praise his work as a blacksmith. “Of course, kid! I’ve been a blacksmith my entire life! Iron or mithril! It doesn’t matter, I can make any item you want!”

Garma’s laughter echoed even in the hallway.

After he filled the first cube to full capacity, Lark deactivated the runes and they reverted to their former state—a dull, silver-black cube with carved symbols on its walls. The gaps on the walls closed and they could no longer see the crystallized mana inside.

To Garma’s surprise, the deactivated cube floated up and hovered above Lark.

“Mithril’s a great conductor of mana,” Lark said after seeing the curious gaze of the blacksmith. “You’re the one who carved those peculiar symbols on its walls. You’re probably curious about their function.”

Garma nodded. He came here to deliver it personally out of curiosity. As a craftsman, he wanted to fully understand the item he’d just made for this noble.

“Flight magic, shield magic, and the five elements—fire, water, wind, earth, and lightning.” Lark willed the cube to hover down and stop right in front of him. It slowly spun around, showing the symbols carved on its walls. “This cube serves not only as storage of mana. It could also instantly cast basic spells on its own. Although it could only cast weak spells until the third tier, it should be enough to aid me during battle.”

Garma was dumbstruck after hearing Lark’s explanation. He had no idea that he’d created such an absurd item. The words ‘instantly cast spells’ resounded in his mind. Lark regarded third-tier spells as weak, but Garma knew that a third-tier lightning bolt was more than enough to kill your average soldier. Add the outrageous ‘instant cast’ function, this seemingly harmless cube was definitely a tool for carnage.

No wonder those peculiar symbols he carved on the cube’s walls felt like magic formations.

They were magic formations.

Garma felt that the rare mithril was really well spent on these items. He finally understood why Lark immediately opted to have these things created instead of a sword or a spear.

Lark remembered the phylactery they needed to create to store the fragment of a demon.

“Ah, sorry for asking this when you’ve just created these cubes for me,” said Lark. “But would it be possible for you to create another item made of mithril for me?”

Garma wondered how Lark got his hands on another mithril ore. He had to admit, he was curious what kind of item the noble was going to request him to make this time.

“Another item made of mithril,” mumbled Garma.

Lark took out a rolled parchment and handed it the blacksmith. After unfurling it, Garma stared at the blueprint. It was neither a mithril cube nor was it a spear or a sword.

“A vase?” Garma frowned.

“A phylactery,” said Lark. “Have you heard legends of liches? Beings who let go of their humanity in pursuit of immortality.”

Garma had heard of them. As a kid, he’d frequently read tales about these greedy magicians who, in exchange for immortal life, stored their souls in phylacteries and took over the body of an undead. Although never in his wildest dreams would he have expected that he’d one day receive a commission to create a soul jar.

Garma stared at Lark. “Kid, my brother recommended me to you, so you must be a trustworthy person. That damn Zacharia’s a good judge of character, after all.” Garma gripped the blueprint, crumpling half of it. He looked enraged for some reason. “You’re still young. I can help you create as many mithril cubes as you want, but creating a phylactery is out of the question.” Garma’s voice was firm. He stared at Lark with eyes filled with resolve.

Lark realized that Garma was misunderstanding his words.

“Ah, I should have worded it better.” Lark rubbed his forehead. He chuckled. “I have no plans on becoming a lich, old man. That phylactery, it’s… to heal a certain someone. I need a container made out of mithril or adamantite to sever a curse bound to a person’s blood.”

Garma locked eyes with Lark. After several seconds of awkward silence, he sighed. The young man didn’t seem to be lying, at least that was what his intuition was telling him right now.

“Let me think about it,” said Garma. “Just find me in the same smithy in Lion City once you have the mithril.”

At least, Garma no longer outright refused him. But Lark could feel that the blacksmith was still a bit uneasy making a phylactery.

Three loud knocks were heard and a servant entered. He said, “Young Lord, Her Highness is here to see you.”

Lark wondered why the princess suddenly came to see him.

“Let her in.”

After being given permission to enter, a young woman entered Lark’s office. She halted the moment she saw the muscular, sweaty old man standing before Lark’s desk.

“Ah, Princess,” said Lark. “What’s brought you here today?”

Princess Esmeralda looked at the unknown man timidly. She contemplated if she should come back at another time.

“He’s the blacksmith who’ll be creating the phylactery.” Lark decided to introduce him to get rid of the princess’ uneasiness. “Garma. The famous blacksmith of Lion City.”

Garma smiled wryly after hearing the word ‘famous.’ He was sure that he had a terrible reputation in Lion City, especially since he frequently refused commissions from the nobles of the city. If he didn’t like the person, he wouldn’t take the request. No wonder even Big Mona called him a grumpy old man.

Lark added. “This young lady here is the youngest daughter of King Alvis, Princess Esmeralda. She’s the client you’ll be working with for the phylactery.”

Garma stared at the princess then gave a nod of acknowledgment.

After hearing that the muscular old man was the one who’ll be making the phylactery for her father, the princess’ eyes glimmered. She made several strides and grasped the rough hands of the blacksmith.

“So you’re Garma!” said the Princess excitedly. “Thank you for coming all this way from Lion City just to listen to our request!”

The princess was clearly mistaken about why Garma had come to Blackstone Town, but the two men decided to ignore it. She looked so happy and they didn’t want to shatter it.

Although Garma heard that she was a princess, he still didn’t bother sticking with formalities. After the princess let go of his hands, Garma scratched the inside of his ear using his pinky finger. He grinned mischievously. “I didn’t know you have a wife, kid. And a Princess of the Kingdom at that. Damn player. You’ll soon become part of the royal family, huh?”

The princess froze upon hearing those words. Her face flushed and she took a few steps back. For some reason, her gaze became glued on the ground.

Seeing this, Garma chuckled. The Princess was too innocent, he thought. “I’m kidding. There’s no need to be so embarrassed. It was just a joke, Princess.”

Garma cackled, his laughter echoing even into the hallway. Lark was amazed that this blacksmith could remain so unrestrained even when speaking to Her Highness.

Lark decided to give the princess a way out. He asked, “So what did you come here for, Princess?”

The princess was clearly uneasy. Garma and Lark noticed this. They nodded at each other.

“I’ll be on my way,” said Garma. “Just visit me at my smithy once you want the item made.”

Lark stood up and bowed his head. “I will. Thank you, Sir.”

After Garma left, the Princess finally spoke. “I-I’ve thought about what you said to me several days ago,” she said. “That it won’t change anything even if I went with the expedition to the Forbidden Region.”

Lark listened silently. He remembered the harsh words he’d said to her back then.

“It’s true. I’m powerless! I’m not good with the sword like Parzival, and I’m not proficient in magic like Chryselle! No wonder you told me I’ll be just baggage.”

The princess clenched her fists. She looked at Lark straight in the eyes. “That’s why, please… I heard from Chryselle that you’re probably the greatest mage in this country. Please teach me magic!”

Silence befell the room.

Lark stared at the quivering princess. Judging by her personality, it must have taken everything just to say these things to him in person.

After some time, he spoke, “I dislike being entangled with royals.”

Lark knew firsthand how bothersome it was to be associated with High Nobles, especially back in his previous life.

“Learning magic is not something you decide out of a whim, Princess.” Lark raised three fingers. “Talent, mana pool, unwavering determination. You need at least two of these three to be even remotely proficient in magic. There are a lot of people with talent but they were born with mediocre mana pool—and they could never achieve greater heights because of that. There are people with vast mana pools but lack the talent to utilize it, and they’re stuck with lackluster spells incapable of killing even the weakest beasts.”

“And unwavering determination, Princess. Determination. Unless you can prove to me that you have all these three, I won’t teach you.”

“But you said that you only need to fulfill two of them to be even remotely proficient!” protested the princess.

“I told you. I dislike being involved with royals,” said Lark. He blatantly showed that he had no interest in taking her in as a student. “Curing His Majesty is a matter of life or death, and there’s nothing I can do but help with it. But teaching you magic is an entirely different matter, Your Highness.”

The Princess bit her lip. “As long as I fulfill all three, you’ll teach me?”

There was a small pause before Lark replied.

“Of course.”

The Princess turned around and went for the door. She planned on seeking Chryselle’s help after this. For some strange reason, she really wanted to prove this idiotic lord wrong. This Lark Marcus was too arrogant. He even refused to become the magic instructor of a royal.

“Don’t go back on your promise.”

Seeing those determined eyes, Lark smiled. “I won’t. You have my word, Princess.”

CHAPTER 11

The royal knights under the crown’s direct command made their way to the Forbidden Region of the Kingdom. After passing through Boris County, they kept heading southwest, eventually arriving at a vast, dead plain. The ground was barren, filled with cracks, and not a single plant was in sight. From the cracks, green smoke oozed out.

“Pitch the tents, ground tie the horses,” said Symon, the captain of the royal knights. “The masks, put them on.”

The knights started putting masks on themselves and the horses. They started pitching tents. The royal court magician—Wisgarus “The Fortress”—started casting his spell, creating a two-meter-tall rock wall around them.

“Are we camping here for the night?” said Wisgarus, a small middle-aged man with balding hair.

Captain Symon nodded. “Yes, Lord Magician. It’ll be better for my men to rest before we dive into the labyrinth at the center of the ruin. We’re still far from the City of Bones, so it should be safe.”

Wisgarus didn’t seem satisfied with the captain’s plan. He looked at the green smoke oozing out of the cracks on the ground. He didn’t like the idea of camping on the ground filled with flesh-eating poison.

“Minerva,” said Wisgarus.

A stubby woman with graying hair sighed. “I know.”

She cast her spells and a translucent bubble enclosed the entire camp, filtering out the green smoke and preventing it from entering. It was only after the woman cast her barrier did Wisgarus finally relax.

Although the stubby woman looked unreliable at first glance, she was among the royal court magicians of the Kingdom. Minerva “The Sylphid,” the most proficient magician in the Kingdom when it came to barrier magic.

These two magicians held the most formidable defensive spells in the entire Kingdom. During the last war with the Empire, they were tasked with defending the capital as the Coalition Army made its way toward Yorkshaire Fortress. But after the king collapsed during the celebratory banquet, these shields were now tasked to retrieve a certain flower in this region.

“Wisgarus,” said Minerva. “What do you think of this expedition?”

The two royal court magicians gazed at the knights moving about.

“You heard the divination of Ropianna, right?” Wisgarus smiled wryly. “But you still came here, despite that.”

Minerva clicked her tongue. “All of these young ones would die if I didn’t come. That damn flower. Why did it have to grow inside a labyrinth, of all places?”

“But there’s also the Endless Forest?” Wisgarus chuckled.

“Don’t be stupid. You know it too. The flower won’t grow in that region. It’s clearly a decoy to prevent that naïve princess from leading her knights to this region. The real thing is in here. Inside that stupid dungeon.”

Wisgarus and Minerva fell silent. According to the divination by Ropianna, more than half of the Royal Knights would die during this expedition. Still, the two of them came regardless. Maybe this way, they’d be able to prevent more deaths.

Unfortunately, the divination from the Water God didn’t tell them whether or not the expedition would be a success. It simply told them that more than half of the expedition members would perish in battle.

The two royal court magicians hoped that their presence here would be enough to tilt the odds in their favor.

***

After resting overnight, the expedition team immediately set out at dawn, leaving behind the porters and the horses at the camp. Armed to the teeth and carrying several days’ worth of rations, they entered the ruins.

According to historians, these ruins dated back several centuries ago, at a time when the Kingdom hadn’t yet existed. Some historians claimed that it was older than the Great Empire itself, that it was a ruined city from the age of magic.

No one knew why the ruins were protected by very strong monsters, nor why a labyrinth was at its center. They could only speculate on what kind of treasure was being kept there.

The expedition team continued moving toward the heart of the ruin, all the while avoiding the flesh-eating smoke oozing out of the ground. Their entire body was clad in armor, preventing the smoke from directly touching their skin.

It was a known fact that the moment the green smoke touched one’s skin, it would corrode it just like the spit of a male basilisk. This was the reason very few dared to venture into this territory. The foolish ones who did so, frequently found themselves melted into nothing but bones.

After walking for an hour, the expedition team finally encountered monsters.

Five serpents, with bodies resembling cacti, shot out of the ground unannounced and attacked the royal knights. Each of them was at least seven meters long, with bodies large enough to swallow a person whole. Some of them tried swallowing their prey, while the rest spat out greenish fluid which screamed of the word ‘poison.’

Fortunately, these monsters weren’t covered in hard scales like the basilisks. The royal knights easily fended off the attacks and killed the green serpents in less than a minute.

As expected of an elite unit composed entirely of Royal Knights and two royal court magicians, monsters of this caliber weren’t even a threat at all.

Without resting, the expedition team continued its way toward the heart of the ruins—toward the labyrinth at the center. As they came nearer the labyrinth, more and more monsters started appearing.

Sand-burrowing centipedes, rock golems, poison wisps, man-devouring cacti. Monsters capable of wiping out platoons of regular soldiers kept attacking them one after another.

When a horde of giant, poisonous scorpions appeared, the expedition team finally started suffering casualties.

Minerva furrowed her brows. They hadn’t even reached the labyrinth yet, but the knights were already dying. The number of monsters infesting the ruins was simply endless. Even after killing several of them, hordes would still come and attack them.

Maybe this expedition was a mistake after all. It was simply too dangerous to challenge the Forbidden Region.

As she was contemplating whether or not to suggest a retreat, Wisgarus started to cast his magic. Three carriage-sized golems sprouted from the ground and blocked the hordes of giant scorpions. With every sweep of their hands, several giant scorpions were sent flying.

“Now!” shouted Wisgarus.

The knights understood and immediately used this opening to run toward the labyrinth.

The labyrinth was in stark contrast to the ruins. It stood majestically tall, and it reminded the knights of the temple in the capital. The walls were covered in bronze, and two large statues of knights holding spears stood right at the entrance. It looked brand new, as though the monsters in the ruins had never touched it.

According to records, the monsters in the ruins wouldn’t give chase once you’d reached the entrance to the labyrinth. For some reason, even the ferocious monsters refused to come near it.

With the golems holding off the horde of giant scorpions, the expedition team finally made it to the labyrinth’s entrance. They halted next to the large statues to catch their breath. As expected, the giant scorpions stopped chasing after them after reaching this place.

Captain Symon looked at his men. They’d just lost seven royal knights from that encounter, even after receiving help from two royal court magicians. Now, only around eighty knights remained.

Captain Symon steeled his resolve. Now was not the time to feel disheartened.

“Royal knights!” snarled Captain Symon. “We’ll be entering the labyrinth soon. Be vigilant and never lose your focus! Our goal is the flower. The Tears of Ubroxia. I’m sure everyone has been briefed beforehand what the flower looks like. The moment you see it, inform everyone! We’ll immediately retreat once we get the flower! Understood?”

“Yes, Captain!” the knights replied in unison.

After catching their breath and fixing their weapons and tools, the expedition team entered the labyrinth. Minerva cast several orbs of light and illuminated their immediate surroundings.

For a moment, she was stunned seeing the labyrinth’s interior. It was beautiful, as though this place hadn’t been touched by the passage of time.

The murals on the walls looked brand new, and even the bronze-plated pillars glimmered upon the touch of light. Whoever made this labyrinth must have been a very wealthy figure in the past. And judging by the monsters roaming in the ruins, the creator of this labyrinth didn’t have the slightest intention of letting people trespass.

Wisgarus stared silently at the murals on the walls. While looking at them, he couldn’t help but feel shivers. He’d studied the archaic language of the lost era—the age of the Magic Empire. He could read some of the letters carved on the walls and pillars.

“Qeurvanu,” mumbled Wisgarus. “I see. So this labyrinth was created by the God of Poison.”

Minerva froze upon hearing this. Qeurvanu was a magician from the age of magic. Although he died after attempting to revive his master, he was said to be the sole magician to have reached the pinnacle of poison magic. Poison strong enough to reduce its prey to nothing but bones.

Captain Symon noticed the terrified faces of the royal court magicians.

“Lord Magician,” the Captain said grimly. “I do not know who Qeurvanu is, but he must have been a very powerful magician, for him to be dubbed as the God of Poison. Still, I have no intention of turning back until we get our hands on the flower. I’m sure the other knights feel the same.”

Minerva and Wisgarus looked at each other. Honestly, they wanted to stop this expedition now that they’d found out that this place was created by Qeurvanu. But considering Captain Symon’s personality, they knew that trying to convince him would be futile.

The captain and his knights would surely try to retrieve the flower even if Minerva and Wisgarus left the team.

“No matter what?” said Minerva.

“No matter what,” Captain Symon said firmly.

Minerva sighed. “Alright.”

Wisgarus rubbed his forehead. He was starting to feel his head ache.

“Younglings,” he said to the knights, “we’ll probably encounter poisonous traps and monsters here. Prepare yourselves. We’ll continue with the expedition, but be sure to heed our orders.”

The knights had resolved themselves before coming to this place. They replied resolutely, “Yes!”

“Symon, I can read some of the words written here,” said Wisgarus. “There might be traps. Let me lead the way.”

“Of course. As you wish.”

“Minerva, you’ll be responsible for the rear.”

“I know, old man,” she spat.

With Wisgarus at the lead, the expedition team started the search for the flower on the first floor of the labyrinth. Surprisingly, the first floor didn’t have any monsters or traps in it. It was simply filled with beautiful murals, depicting what it was like back in the magic era.

It took them three hours to search through the entire first floor. Although it was unfortunate that they couldn’t find the flower, they managed to confirm that this floor was a safe haven for the expedition team. They decided to rest here for the day and continue with their search tomorrow, on the second floor of the labyrinth.

The next day, they immediately went toward the stairs leading to the second floor. An ominous placard stood right at the entrance. It was written with archaic words and letters from the era of magic, but Wisgarus managed to decipher it:

Beyond this door is a place of anguish and death.

An ominous warning from the God of Poison himself.

After reading this, Wisgarus couldn’t help but shudder. The mural next to the entrance to the second floor was especially disturbing. It depicted an image of a monster with seven serpentine heads.

CHAPTER 12

After a long flight of stairs, the expedition team arrived on the second floor of the labyrinth. It was a stark contrast to the first floor; instead of a grandiose hall filled with murals, the second floor was your typical cavern with uneven ground, stale air, and forked paths. Glowing plants, which resembled algae, covered portions of the walls, providing some illumination to the expedition team.

Wisgarus cast his spell and two humanoid golems sprouted out of the ground. He cast another spell and a floating eyeball clad in flames manifested itself before him. The eyeball moved several meters in front of the expedition team, the golems closely following behind it.

“Poison wisps ahead,” said Wisgarus.

The floating eyeball enabled him to see far into the distance, despite the darkness of the cavern.

Upon hearing of the presence of poison wisps, Minerva immediately cast her barrier magic. Translucent bubbles surrounded each member of the expedition team. The moment they finally confronted the wisps, the barriers prevented the poisonous gas from making contact with the knights’ bodies.

The knights easily culled the poisonous wisps they encountered along the way. With barriers protecting the knights, the floating smoke monsters were killed one after another after their nucleus was shattered by sword strikes.

As they went deeper into the second floor of the labyrinth, the golems finally activated some of the labyrinth’s traps.

Clicking sounds were heard, and a gap between the walls opened. A split second after, dozens of arrows shot from the wall and pierced the body of the two golems, its impact strong enough to shatter even their heads. Judging by the sizzling sound after the arrow made contact with rocks, it was probably poisonous and corrosive.

And as though the arrows weren’t enough, the spikes above the ceiling formed cracks and fell down, destroying what remained of the golem’s bodies. Clouds of dust flew about and the expedition team stared at the remnants, their expressions grim.

Although they’d encountered only poison wisps so far, it seemed that the second floor was filled with traps. And to make things worse, those traps were clearly poisoned. Thankfully, they had two royal court magicians with them. They should be able to safely move past this area as long as they tread carefully.

After his golems were destroyed, Wisgarus cast his spell once again and created a fresh batch of golems. Just like before, the floating eyeball and the golems moved in front of the expedition team. The traps—from pits, poison arrows, whirling blades, and spears—shot toward the golems one after another, destroying them in an instant.

Wisgarus continued creating golems to bear the full brunt of those traps. The knights, on the other hand, dealt with the poison wisps. This simple tactic proved effective, as they finally arrived at the entrance to the third floor of the labyrinth.

As expected, they didn’t encounter any flowers on the second floor. According to the divination from the Water God, the flower was located on the lower floors of the labyrinth.

Just like before, the expedition team descended a long flight of stairs and arrived at the third floor. It also resembled a cavern, but the walls were twice as wide. Large webs filled the walls and the ceiling.

Wisgarus halted in his tracks. Noticing the magician’s hesitation, Captain Symon asked, “What is it, Lord Magician?”

Wisgarus frowned. Using the floating eye, he saw an ominous-looking sight at the room ahead.

“Eggs. Human-sized eggs,” he said. He looked at Minerva and added, “Three of them.”

Wisgarus started casting his spell. The ground below him shook and shot up, before latching to his body and forming an armor. From head to foot, scales made of strengthened rock covered Wisgarus’ body. This was the infamous spell that earned Wisgarus his moniker—The Fortress. It was well-known that Wisgarus’ rock armor was stronger than iron, and at the same time as flexible as hemp rope.

The members of the expedition team realized the gravity of the current situation, for Wisgarus to cast one of his strongest spells the moment he stepped foot on the third floor.

“We’ll probably encounter an arachnia,” he said. “I don’t know exactly how many of them are here, but there might be more than one. Prepare yourselves.”

The knights’ expressions turned grim. They pulled out their swords and shields. Minerva created several small magic formations next to her, ready to activate them at a moment’s notice.

They were all veterans, and all of them knew what kind of a monster an arachnia was.

Seven years ago, an arachnia appeared in the forest of Tranta, near the Marcus Duchy. Although it didn’t attack the city, it annihilated all the bandits in the forest, along with the passing merchants and travelers. Although the Marcus Army successfully subjugated the monster, it cost them several hundred men in the process.

It was a calamity class monster comparable to a basilisk.

As the expedition team moved forward, they finally arrived at the place Wisgarus indicated. Large cobwebs filled more than half the room, and three human-sized eggs were seen at the corner, pulsating with life. The eggs were glowing. At their center, they could see a brown organ—probably the heart—throbbing, filling the entire room with an ominous thumping sound.

The knights gripped their weapons tight, ready to strike at the arachnia the moment it arrived. They quickly scanned the room, but to their surprise, they couldn’t find the monster.

The eggs were a clear indication that the mother was here somewhere. The fact that they didn’t immediately encounter it started filling the knights with terror. They knew that it could suddenly pounce at them at any moment. It was only a question of when.

Minerva couldn’t shake off her uneasiness. Something was definitely wrong. She activated one of the pre-made magic formations and cast her spell. A gust of wind blew into the room, scanning it for the presence of monsters.

Minerva’s eyes widened.

A realization dawned.

The predator was right in front of them, but they didn’t even realize it.

“In front of you!” she shouted. “Watch out!”

She activated another spell and a barrier of wind formed in front of the expedition team. As though on cue, the arachnia deactivated its camouflage and appeared right in front of the knights. It was colossal, far larger than the arachnia the Marcus Army subjugated seven years ago. Its fifteen-meter body loomed in front of the expedition team, silvery threads dripping down its mouth.

It was amazing that such a gargantuan monster had been concealing its body from the expedition team for quite some time, simply waiting for the perfect opportunity to attack.

The arachnia screeched, drowning out all the sounds in the cavern. Its belly bulged and it opened its mouth wide, before spitting out dozens of hardened silvery threads. The threads—as sharp and strong as javelins—were blocked by Minerva’s barrier. Seeing this, the arachnia raised several of its legs and struck the barrier, immediately shattering it.

Captain Symon’s instinct screamed at him. He roared, “Royal knights! Disperse!”

Immediately, the knights scattered across the room.

“Attack!”

And shot toward the arachnia without fear for their lives.

To their surprise, the arachnia jumped up and latched itself onto the ceiling, before again shooting several hardened threads. The knights skillfully evaded the attack, while some of them parried it with sword strikes.

Captain Symon amplified the strength of his body with magic. He gnashed his teeth, and with the entire strength of his lower body, ran on the wall then jumped toward the arachnia on the ceiling.

The arachnia screeched, as though accepting the challenge of the human before it. It raised several legs and struck at the captain. Surprisingly, the arachnia lost in the battle of strength. The captain parried the arachnia’s legs and spun his body, striking at the legs of the arachnia, creating several cuts on it. Using the momentum, he propelled his body forward and stabbed at the arachnia’s belly. Blue blood flowed from the wound and the arachnia screeched in pain and anger.

It jumped toward the ground, aiming to crush the captain using the impact. But Captain Symon was quick to react. He pulled out his sword and kicked off the arachnia’s body, before softly landing on the ground.

The moment the arachnia struck the ground, the impact shook the entire cavern and dust flew around. Wisgarus cast his spell and spikes protruded out of the ground, impaling the arachnia’s body. Minerva formed chains with wind magic and bound the monster’s legs.

Although the wind chain immediately started forming cracks as the arachnia struggled to break free, it gave the knights enough time to deal damage to its body. They repeatedly stabbed and slashed at it, not giving the spider monster time to recuperate.

Captain Symon moved around and even started cutting off its legs. As expected of the son of Sword Saint Marrozo, his every strike was filled with strength and precision.

For a moment, the knights were stunned that they were doing incredibly well against a calamity class monster. Still, they didn’t lose focus and kept releasing attacks one after another, not stopping until they were sure that the giant spider was dead.

Sensing that its death was imminent, the spider violently struggled. It finally broke free from the wind chain and the earth spikes. Although it lost three of its legs, it still screeched violently and started spitting out its threads, piercing the walls and the bodies of a few unfortunate knights.

The tip of its belly opened and white smoke shot out, filling the entire room, rendering the knights’ visibility nearly zero. The arachnia activated its camouflage magic once again and disappeared from sight.

Unfortunately for the arachnia, the so-called ‘Sylphid’ tagged along with this expedition team. Minerva immediately cast her spell and gusts of wind blew inside the cavern, blowing away the white smoke. Minerva pointed a finger at the place where she felt the arachnia was hiding. At her fingertip, wind started compressing, before shooting out like a javelin. The spell struck the arachnia right at the belly, dispelling its camouflage magic.

The moment the giant spider’s location was revealed, Captain Symon immediately shot toward it and started cutting its remaining legs. Wisgarus supported the captain with earth spikes, rock chains, and earth golems, while the knights started throwing knives at the giant spider.

The arachnia screeched violently. Although the knights couldn’t understand the monster’s language, it felt like it was violently cursing everyone. It probably felt frustrated that it couldn’t kill mere humans.

Using this opening, Minerva cast a tenth-tier spell, consuming more than half of her mana pool in the process. It was a long chant. Layers upon layers of runes formed on a preexisting magic formation. After almost a minute, she finally completed her magic.

The magic formation brightly glowed and shattered into minute pieces.

A translucent female humanoid, its long hair flowing freely, manifested itself in front of the giant spider. Seeing this, Captain Symon and the rest of the knights moved back.

If Wisgarus was known for his impregnable armor, Minerva was known for her tenth-tier spell—the spell capable of summoning a sylphid.

With the arachnia on the verge of dying, this tenth-tier spell was definitely enough to deal the fatal blow.

The sylphid embraced the arachnia’s body, and a second after, a violent explosion rang out through the entire cavern, sending clouds of dust about. The ground and the walls shook, muffling the death throes of the arachnia.

After the spell ended, silence befell the cavern.

The clouds of dust receded, revealing the mutilated corpse of the calamity class monster. Blotches of blue blood scattered on the walls and on the ground.

Seeing the giant spider dead, the expedition team finally breathed sighs of relief. They lost five knights during the battle, a surprisingly low number of casualties, considering the fact that this arachnia was even larger than the one which appeared near the Marcus Duchy seven years ago.

Captain Symon stared at the corpse, then at the two royal court magicians. If not for these two—who boasted the strongest defensive spells in the entire Kingdom—they would have probably lost more lives. They might have even lost the battle. Without these two, Captain Symon wouldn’t have been sure of the outcome.

“Lord Magician,” said Captain Symon. “What about the eggs?”

Wisgarus immediately replied. There was no need to think of the answer. “Destroy them.”

Captain Symon bowed his head. He ordered his knights to destroy the eggs of the arachnia. They even went as far as combing the entire room to search for more eggs, just in case some were hidden underneath the large cobwebs.

Minerva approached the body of the dead giant spider. She touched its half-destroyed head and cast another spell. Several blades of wind struck the head one after another, eventually splitting it in half. Minerva grabbed the head and pulled it open. She grabbed the bluish gemstone inside it.

Although her hands were covered in monster blood, Minerva grinned after seeing the gemstone up close.

“High-grade mana stone,” said Wisgarus.

“It’s mine, old man,” said Minerva. She wiped the blood off the gemstone using a cloth and stored it inside her bag. “I dealt the finishing blow, after all.”

Wisgarus wanted to argue that it was a team effort, but eventually chose to shut his mouth. He’d known Minerva for decades. This stubby woman was especially fond of beautiful gemstones. She had a collection of middle-grade mana stones in her mansion, and she refused to sell them even after being offered exorbitant prices by merchants and nobles.

She wouldn’t let go of her collection of middle-grade mana stones. She obviously wouldn’t let go of this one.

“Symon,” she said. “I can have this one, right? I’ll give proper compensations later, so let me have this stone.”

Since Wisgarus conceded already, all that’s left was the approval of the captain.

Captain Symon nodded. “Of course. And there’s no need to compensate the knights. We’re simply grateful that Lady Minerva accompanied us to the Forbidden Region. Our lives and the mission are more important than a mere gemstone.”

Minerva was clearly satisfied with the captain’s answer. She hummed as she looked around the cavern. “I’ve summoned a sylphid,” said Minerva. “I’m sure there are no other monsters on this floor. We can rest here as we treat the injured.”

That was reassuring.

Captain Symon asked the magicians, “Lord Magician, how much time do you need to recover your mana?”

He knew that both of them expended large amounts of mana during that fight. If they went down to the lower floors in such depleted states, the entire expedition team might be annihilated.

Wisgarus rubbed his chin. “I’ll be fine after five hours, but for Minerva…”

“Half a day,” she said. “Although I’ve used up almost all of my mana during the battle, this is a labyrinth.”

Indeed, the ambient mana here was several times greater than the other parts of the Kingdom. Recovering mana would be far easier.

Captain Symon nodded. “Understood!”

He turned to his men. “We’ll camp here for now. Everyone, rest, recuperate. Search the entire floor for the flower!”

CHAPTER 13

The expedition team combed the entire third floor of the labyrinth but didn’t find the flower. After recuperating for a couple of hours, they descended another long flight of stairs and finally arrived at the fourth floor of the dungeon.

This floor seemed like an entirely different world.

Everyone looked at their surroundings in amazement.

Gigantic trees reaching all the way to the ceiling, colossal roots covering most of the ground. Brown and red leaves formed canopies. Innumerable particles of light, which resembled fireflies, floated in the air. Even without light magic, the expedition team could clearly see everything.

“Wow,” a voice filled with admiration escaped the lips of a knight.

They hadn’t expected to see a forest underneath this dungeon. The trees looked ancient, each of them was several times larger than the trees seen in the forest near the capital.

Looking around, there were grasses, shrubberies, and different kinds of plants growing on the ground. This floor felt like the perfect place for them to find the Tears of Ubroxia.

“The last floor was an arachnia,” Minerva pessimistically spat. “Now, what kind of monster are we supposed to fight in this forest?”

The knights looked warily around their surroundings. After encountering all sorts of monsters imaginable in this Forbidden Region, they’d resolved themselves to fight to their deaths, no matter what monsters came to be their opponent.

With Wisgarus at the lead, the expedition team moved through the sea of trees, all the while looking out for any plant with a semblance of the flower.

After half an hour, the sea of trees ended and they arrived at a grassland. Looking beyond, they could see a large statue of a middle-aged man wearing an exquisite robe. He was holding a book in his left hand, and a staff in the other.

As the expedition team came closer to the statue, they realized how colossal it was. The head almost reached the ceiling, and its body alone was more than thirty meters wide. But the most absurd thing was the fact that it was made entirely of gold.

Whoever made this dungeon was truly a filthy rich bastard. There was no doubt about that.

After confirming that there were no traps, Wisgarus approached the foot of the statue. A stone tablet was erected next to it.

He read the words written on the tablet. “This shrine is dedicated to my master. The Sun, the Lord of all magicians.”

Wisgarus was well-versed in history. He immediately understood to whom the message was pertaining.

“So, that’s the statue of Evander Alaester?” said Minerva.

Wisgarus looked up. “Seems like it.”

Captain Symon also looked up and stared at the statue. This was the first time he’d heard of Evander Alaester. He wondered who this man was, for him to be enshrined by the God of Poison himself. Furthermore, this was the first time he’d seen something as grandiose as this. The value of this colossal statue made entirely of gold would be enough to sustain the Kingdom for several years.

Wisgarus rubbed his chin. “We might have just hit the jackpot.”

“What do you mean?” said Minerva.

“This floor is obviously sacred ground for Quervanu. If my hunch is correct, this floor doesn’t have any monsters.”

Minerva fell silent. Indeed, they hadn’t encountered any monsters since coming here.

“We’ll need to search the entire floor, just to be safe,” she said.

“Of course,” Wisgarus agreed. “Symon, this should be a good place to camp. Tell your knights to form teams to scout the area for monsters. If we’re lucky, we might finally find the flower in this place.”

“Yes. Understood.”

Captain Symon immediately issued out his orders. Four teams, composed of twelve knights each, were tasked to scout the surrounding areas. The rest started pitching tents. Wisgarus created a rock wall to enclose the camp and Minerva cast her barrier over it.

After an hour, the scouts came back, bringing with them great news.

“We didn’t encounter any monsters. There’s a small lake west of here, and to the east is a large hole on the ground. We believe it’s the entrance to the next floor of the labyrinth.”

Minerva looked at Wisgarus. “There are no monsters. What do you think?”

The two of them felt uneasy about the current situation. So far, dangerous monsters had been blocking their path as they went deeper into this labyrinth. But now, they suddenly found themselves in a floor devoid of any monsters.

Wisgarus sighed. “There’s no use in overthinking things. We’ll immediately move out to search for the flower. And I want to see the giant hole—the so-called entrance to the next floor—myself.”

Wisgarus looked above once again. He stared at the statue of Evander Alaester. For a moment, the magician looked like a God overseeing this entire floor.

After receiving their orders from the captain, the knights moved out in smaller groups and started searching for the flower. Minerva and Wisgarus, on the other hand, went directly toward the entrance to the next floor. Upon arrival, they realized that the knights had understated the size of the hole.

It easily spanned thirty meters in diameter, and looking down, you could see nothing but the abyss. Wisgarus threw a rock in it, and it took a full minute before they heard the sound of impact.

Curious about what was inside the hole, Minerva cast several orbs of light and willed them to go inside. They peered down at the hole as the orbs of light flew down.

After the orbs reached the bottom, Wisgarus and Minerva’s eyes widened, their hair stood on end. Their entire bodies trembled as color drained off their faces.

An absurdly large monster was sleeping inside.

Its seven serpentine heads intertwined with each other; its snouts were similar to a dragon’s. Its four gigantic wings were folded, covering half of its body.

“W-What the hell is that?” Wisgarus croaked.

Chills crawled down their spines. By size alone, the monster was comparable to the statue of Evander Alaester.

The royal court magicians realized that the knights were wrong.

This hole was not the entrance to the next floor.

It was a damnable monster den.

“T-The lights!” said Wisgarus. “Put out the lights!”

Minerva immediately cancelled her spell and the orbs of light vanished. The two of them stood there, frozen, unable to breathe. The sheer size of that creature made the arachnia on the third floor look like a cute little spider.

Seconds passed and the two breathed sighs of relief. Luckily their little disturbance wasn’t enough to wake up the creature.

Wisgarus remembered the mural on the entrance to the second floor. He was sure now that it was pertaining to this monster.

“W-We should search for the flower quickly and get out of here as soon as possible!” he said.

Minerva agreed. They couldn’t see how mere humans could win against that monster. They were sure that if it hadn’t been contained in this labyrinth, it would have destroyed the entire Kingdom long ago.

The two royal court magicians immediately went back to their camp and relayed what they discovered to the rest of the royal knights. After hearing their story, even the royal knights visibly panicked. Only Captain Symon remained calm and composed.

“I think we’ve more or less confirmed that there are no monsters here aside from the one sleeping inside the giant hole,” said Captain Symon. “There’s no longer any need to search in groups. Everyone, disperse and comb the entire floor for the flower. Avoid going near the giant hole. The last thing we want is for the monster to wake up. This giant statue will be our gathering spot. The moment you find the flower, return to this camp and fire the red flare.”

He snarled, “Go!”

“Yes, Captain!”

Time was of great essence since they didn’t know when the creature would wake up. Immediately, the knights moved out and scattered as they searched for the flower.

Wisgarus was also about to join the search when he noticed the placard at the foot of the statue, partly hidden by the tall grass.

He parted the grass and read the words engraved on the placard:

I do believe that master will come back to us again. I have stored master’s treasures in this shrine, in hopes that it’ll prove useful once the master is resurrected. Kubarkava believes the same and even went to great lengths to tame the Earth Scylla to protect this territory.

Wisgarus remembered the things he read in history books. According to the Grand Historian, Gustav Chavalion, two of Evander Alaester’s disciples tried performing the ritual of the dead to revive their master. He was sure that those two were Quervanu—the God of Poison, and Kubarkava—the dragon devourer.

Unfortunately, the ritual failed and the two famous disciples lost their lives in the process.

After reading the words written here, he finally understood why that seven-headed monster was here. It was actually here to protect the treasure from outsiders.

Wisgarus told Minerva what he’d just discovered. As expected, the woman’s eyes shone greedily after hearing the story.

“That Evander Alaester’s treasure is being kept on this floor of the labyrinth?” she said, almost squeaking.

“I believe it’s inside this giant statue,” said Wisgarus. He started knocking on the foot of the statue, hoping to find an entrance of some sort. “It wouldn’t make any sense, otherwise.”

Although the flower was important to cure His Majesty, the two royal court magicians simply couldn’t let this opportunity of a lifetime to escape their grasp. All magicians who’d studied their history knew how powerful Evander Alaester was.

During his prime, that magician was said to have laid waste to an entire tribe of Red Dragons just to save one of his disciples. There was also a story of how he single-handedly stopped a Demon Lord’s army from reaching the Magic Empire.

He was without a doubt one of the magicians who’d reached the pinnacle of magic. A God among humans.

And now, the opportunity to get their hands on Evander’s treasures was presented before them. How could they let this chance pass by?

Using different spells, the two royal court magicians earnestly searched for the entrance. After several hours, they finally found it.

“To think that the entrance is located at the statue’s mouth,” said Minerva. “We’ve been looking in the wrong place for several hours.”

Using their spells, they climbed up and reached the mouth of the giant statue. Wisgarus pried the mouth open and the two of them entered through the gap. He cast an orb of light, revealing the bronze door inside.

“Interesting,” said Wisgarus.

A complex magic formation was engraved on the door. Judging by the runes, it was an extremely strong defensive spell meant to block the entry of unwanted visitors. Luckily, it’d been too long since the two disciples of Evander created this place, and the spell had probably vanished entirely due to the passage of time. Otherwise, the strength of just two royal court magicians wouldn’t be enough to forcefully open the entrance.

Wisgarus and Minerva looked at each other. Just in case there were traps the moment they entered, the two of them readied their spells.

Wisgarus twisted the door’s handle and pushed it open. The door creaked and the orb of light illuminated the statue’s interior. A long, winding staircase led toward the foot of the statue. The two royal court magicians immediately went down the stairs. The moment they arrived at the bottom, they were stunned speechless.

Mountains of gold coins, dating back from the Magic Empire, covered the floor. They could also see several mithril ingots piled up in a corner. There were also adamantite ores, dozens of high-grade mana stones, and other crystals and gemstones the two magicians failed to recognize. At the center of the mountain of treasures was a golden pillar holding a sword.

For several minutes, Wisgarus and Minerva were slack-jawed, speechless. They hadn’t expected to encounter Evander Alaester’s treasure in this labyrinth.

CHAPTER 14

“Is… is this real?” breathed Minerva.

The amount of treasure covering the floor would probably be enough to sustain the Kingdom for more than a century. Furthermore, they could see several magic items half-buried in the mountain of gold. Judging by Evander’s reputation, each of those was probably items heard of only in the legends.

“T-That sword!” Minerva was panting from excitement. “I-It looks exactly like the weapon used by Evander when he fought the Demon Lord’s army!”

Wisgarus looked at the sword held by the golden pillar. Its translucent white blade gave off a soft glow, its platinum hilt embedded with five gemstones of different colors. According to the legends, each of those gemstones represented the five basic elements.

The Sword of Morpheus.

A sword capable of changing its shape in accordance with its master’s will. It could become a staff, a shield, a spear, a bow, a bracelet. The blade was made of crystallized mana from the Dragon Vein below. The hilt was made of adamantite, and each of the five gemstones was made from the core of an Elemental.

According to legends, the blade was capable of absorbing tremendous amounts of ambient mana in the surroundings, and the five gemstones render it capable of performing high-level spells, while reducing the cast time of magic formations.

It was the most prized treasure of Evander Alaester. After his death, numerous magicians and demons tried searching for this weapon, but to no avail.

This weapon—capable of even cutting through adamantite—was the inspiration when the first maginus was created.

Who would have thought that his disciples hid the weapon inside this labyrinth?

The two royal court magicians knew that whoever gets their hands on that treasure would gain unfathomable strength. Peerless power capable of destroying even a tribe of dragons. Overwhelming strength capable of stopping a Demon Lord’s army on their own.

Minerva swallowed dry spit. She trembled as she stared at the Sword of Morpheus. The beauty of this sword shamed even her most prized possessions. She knew she had to get her hands on this weapon no matter what.

Without warning, she ran toward the golden pillar and grabbed the sword.

“Are you an idiot!” yelled Wisgarus. “What if there are traps!”

Minerva salivated as she caressed the sword in her hand. She took it out of the golden pillar and rubbed it against her cheeks. Like a maniac, she repeatedly murmured, “The Sword of Morpheus… the Sword of Morpheus!”

Wisgarus looked around nervously, afraid that some trap would suddenly activate inside the treasure room. Right now, just a single look at Minerva was enough for him to arrive at the conclusion that the woman had lost it. She had given in to her greed.

Ever since she was young, this female magician loved beautiful things—and this sword was definitely the most beautiful artifact they’d seen in their life. No wonder she was so rapt by it.

As Minerva was rubbing the sword against her cheeks, the symbols carved on the walls glowed. The ground shook, the mountain of gold coins clanked, and a deafening roar was heard outside. Minerva jolted out of her trance as the roar continued to echo from the outside. She locked eyes with Wisgarus.

“T-The Earth Scylla.” Wisgarus trembled. “I-It woke up!”

Color drained from Minerva’s face, but she still didn’t let go of the sword. If worse came to worst, she’d flee the dungeon alone with the Sword of Morpheus.

This was her life’s greatest find. She’d keep this sword, no matter what.

As she was racking her brain for a way out, the runes and symbols on the wall started spinning, and a ten-meter large magic formation manifested itself above them. The magic formation activated, and the runes shattered like glass, dispersing into numerous particles of light.

An invisible force started compressing the bodies of the two royal court magicians. Thankfully, Wisgarus never removed the magic armor covering his entire body. It was his strongest defensive spell, capable of surviving several blows from gigantic monsters.

But Minerva wasn’t as fortunate.

The moment the trap was activated, her body was instantly compressed. Her body burst and her innards splattered on the treasure-covered ground.

Wisgarus trembled upon witnessing the death of his comrade.

There was no scream.

Everything happened in an instant.

“Damn it.” He gnashed his teeth.

Unable to withstand the invisible force trying to crush his body, his armor started forming cracks. He knew that it was only a matter of time before he would meet the same fate as Minerva.

Unlike the female magician, he held no interest in these glittering things. Indeed, the Sword of Morpheus was enticing, but the life of His Majesty preceded everything. He had sworn allegiance to King Alvis. He could not afford to die here without warning those on the outside.

Knowing that there was no way for him to escape the treasure room, he resolved himself to at least relay a message to the captain.

“At least let the knights survive.” He gritted his teeth and summoned all of his remaining strength.

Using all of his remaining mana, he cast a spell. A chunk of earth separated from his armor and formed a sparrow.

“Relay the message to Captain Symon!” he snarled. “That they need to get out of this floor! Now!”

Filled with all of Wisgarus’ remaining mana, the sparrow momentarily resisted the invisible force in the treasure room.

The sparrow flapped its wings, flew up, and escaped through the open door. Engraved on its small body was Wisgarus’ last message to the captain. Hopefully with this, the knights would immediately escape this labyrinth.

Wisgarus smiled wryly. Who would have known that they’d be the cause of the demise of this expedition? He was sure that had they not entered this treasure room, the Earth Scylla would have remained in its slumber.

We’ve been too greedy.

His armor finally shattered. As though an invisible giant grabbed his entire body, balled it, and crushed it with its gigantic hands, his body burst and his innards splattered.

The Sword of Morpheus slowly floated up and twisted for a moment, as though looking at the corpses beneath its blade, before returning on top of the golden pillar.

***

Captain Symon furrowed his brows as overlapping roars echoed from a distance. The ground rumbled then stopped. A large shadow flew past, creating a gust of wind.

The royal knights who’d been diligently looking for the flower froze upon seeing the seven-headed monster.

“What… the hell,” breathed one of the knights.

Including the head, the monster was at least fifty meters long. Its entire body was covered with iridescent scales, it’s four wings similar to a dragon’s. The seven heads continued to roar, as though enraged that it had been woken from its slumber.

Upon seeing the knights near the lake, one of the heads opened its mouth wide, and without warning, spat out a colossal ball of fire.

The knights, caught off guard, were hit by the ball of fire and were reduced to crisp and dust in an instant. The ball of fire evaporated a portion of the lake, making white smoke swirl up toward the ceiling.

The creature was not only big. It held absurdly strong firepower.

Seeing what had happened to their comrades, the knights trembled in utter despair. It was apparent that this creature woke up just to annihilate them—the intruders. They couldn’t imagine how they could probably survive this monster.

Captain Symon shot the red flare. Seeing the red powder exploding in the sky, the knights shook off their fears, amplified the strength of their bodies using magic, and ran toward the giant statue.

The seven-headed creature looked at the humans running below. Another head opened its mouth and shot a ball of lightning to another group of knights. Unable to evade it on time, some of them put their shields up, but any form of resistance proved futile as the ball of lightning simply swallowed the group of knights, killing them in an instant.

The remaining knights gnashed their teeth and continued running toward their meeting point.

The knights scattered all throughout the floor made their way toward the golden statue, all the while the monster kept releasing spells, killing the knights one after another.

The moment Captain Symon arrived at the foot of the statue, a sparrow made of earth magic flew toward him and landed on the palm of his hand.

He read the words written on the body of the sparrow.

We’re probably already dead by the time you read this. The Sword of Morpheus. The trap inside the treasure room in the statue was activated. Symon, take your men and leave this floor immediately.

Captain Symon’s eyes shook. He unconsciously gripped the stone sparrow tight, crushing its wings. He looked at his men fleeing from a distance.

This was definitely a message from Lord Wisgarus.

With the royal court magicians dead, escaping the Forbidden Region would be exponentially harder, especially with that abhorrent monster flying around this floor.

Were they going to die here, unable to achieve anything?

“Captain!”

The knights who’d managed to survive gathered at the foot of the statue.

“Your orders!”

The knights were pallid as they nervously looked at the monster in the sky. If that monster suddenly decided to blast this place with its spell, the entire expedition team would be wiped out.

Captain Symon stared at the seven-headed creature, then at the stone sparrow in his hand. If what Wisgarus said was correct, and a treasure room was indeed inside this statue, then staying here should be their best option.

If his hunch was right, the monster was here to protect the treasure inside the statue. It should not attack them as long as they stayed near here.

“Hold your ground,” said Captain Symon. “Do not leave this camp. We’re staying here, next to the golden statue.”

“B-But what if the monster suddenly attacks?”

“Then we’ll die,” said the captain. He clenched his fists.

It was an all-or-nothing gamble.

The knights swallowed the lumps in their throats. The monster continued hovering above, observing the humans. But for some reason, it stopped attacking after the knights reached the golden statue of Evander Alaester.

After several minutes, the monster snorted, landed on the ground, and observed the humans from a distance. The knights sighed with relief upon seeing this.

It seemed that the captain’s decision was correct.

“C-Captain, what about Lord Wisgarus and Lady Minerva?”

They hadn’t seen the two royal court magicians since they’d left to search for the flower.

Captain Symon fell silent for a moment. Eventually, he decided to tell his men the truth. “The two of them are probably dead.”

He showed them the broken sparrow and the message written on its back. “Lord Wisgarus sent me this.”

After reading the message written on the sparrow, the knights looked at the golden statue in disbelief. The treasure room inside it was one thing, but to think that the two royal court magicians died from the traps installed inside the treasure room—it sounded preposterous.

As despair started encroaching on the members of the expedition team, a young knight stepped forward. With a voice filled with uncertainty, he said to the captain, “C-Captain, this is the flower we’re looking for, right?”

He opened his cupped hands, revealing a small flower which seemed to have been sculpted from ice. At its center was a tear-shaped azure gemstone.

Captain Symon’s eyes widened upon seeing this. The rest of the knights were speechless.

“T-This!” said Captain Symon. “Where did you find this?”

The flower in the hands of the young knight matched perfectly with the description given to them by Lady Ropianna. Without a doubt, this was the Tears of Ubroxia.

“I… I saw it growing near the giant boulder opposite the direction of the lake.” Even the young knight who found the flower couldn’t believe it was the real thing.

Captain Symon placed both of his hands on the shoulder of the young knight. With an overly excited voice, he shouted, “Well done! Well done!”

This was the first time they’d seen the captain this happy. And this was also the first time he praised someone so earnestly.

But the jubilant expression of the captain was understandable. With this flower in their hands, the lives they’d lost during this expedition would no longer be for naught. As long as they somehow managed to get past the monster and escaped to the third floor, the rest of their escape should be comparatively easier.

They carefully stored the flower inside a metallic box and gave it to the man with the highest odds of surviving their current predicament—to Captain Symon himself.

With the Tears of Ubroxia in his hands, Captain Symon started devising a plan. He knew that it’d be impossible for all of them to return home alive.

Sacrifices were inevitable.

He steeled his resolve.

They needed to bring this flower back to the capital, no matter the cost.

CHAPTER 15

Time passed by peacefully in Blackstone Town.

The school next to the library had been completed: two floors, three rooms each, capable of accommodating more than a hundred people at once.

At the same time, they’d managed to mass-produce the books Lark bought from the capital. Currently, several dozen books about Agriculture, History, Geography, and Religion filled the shelves of the local library. These books would be used by the students studying the basic curriculum of the school. There had been an announcement some time ago that those who managed to finish the course would be eligible for key positions in Blackstone Town.

Lark also finished writing another book entitled Lost Paradise. It was a fiction novel, unlike his first book, Principles of a Just Sovereign.

This new book recounted the story of an orphan sold to slave merchants at a very young age. It depicted the orphan’s struggles, his escape, and eventually, his freedom. A story of an orphan from the countryside, an orphan with great talent in sword and magic.

Lost Paradise heavily criticized slavery and corruption in governments, and it romanticized the bravery of knights, scholars, and magicians.

The readers probably wouldn’t have expected this, but the simple breathing techniques the protagonist used in this book were actually applicable in real life.

If one tried these breathing techniques, it’d be possible for them to gather mana more efficiently into their bodies. A way to expand a person’s mana pool was also included in the story, and ways of healing several diseases using rare plants were also described in great detail.

Lost Paradise was a treasure trove in disguise.

Lark excitedly awaited the day when someone eventually discovered that all of the techniques used by the protagonist in his novel were reproducible in real life. It would definitely be amusing to see.

Just like before, the book was written by someone called Evander Alaester.

“My Lord, we’ve finished spreading the compost in the Western Land,” said Gaston.

Lark had been sitting in his office for several hours now. On top of his desk was a pile of documents. Every day, he made sure to check the progress of all of Blackstone Town’s projects, and he also looked at their current finances.

“We’ll proceed with planting the seeds tomorrow as planned.” Lark didn’t take his eyes off the document he was holding as he spoke.

“Of course, My Lord.”

“With the school building finished, I want you to allocate more men for the road projects,” said Lark. “The road leading to Lion City will be our priority.”

The main road leading to the heart of Blackstone Town was already complete, and it branched into several smaller roads leading to different key locations in the territory.

With the discovery of the sixth and seventh area in the mines, the number of kalranes produced each day increased by half. Lark ordered the officials to allocate a third of the kalranes they mined each day for Blackstone Town. They used these kalrane stones to light up the newly built residential district, and some were also installed at the road leading toward Lion City.

There had been incidences of people stealing the kalrane stones installed on top of wooden posts, but with the recent establishment of the police, such incidences dwindled.

Three loud knocks were heard on the door. Upon opening, a servant mumbled something to the butler then handed him a sealed letter.

After the servant left, Gaston handed the letter to Lark.

“This is?” Lark stared at the blue seal.

“A letter from the Temple of Nereus,” said Gaston.

“The Temple of the Water God?” Lark ripped open the letter and started reading its contents.

The first part was filled with pleasantries. The temple praised Lark for his valor during the war with the Empire. They also praised him for culling the Black Famine, and for defeating the Third Legion of the United Grakas Alliance.

The second part contained the real message.

Lark fell silent for a moment as he pondered. The offer of the temple would definitely elevate the status of his territory, but he was still unsure of the temple’s real aim—the reason why they were giving the lord of a small town such favor.

“They wish to build a temple in Blackstone Town,” Lark said to Gaston.

Gaston’s eyes glimmered in excitement. “T-That’s great! A temple under one of the seven Gods is among the prerequisites for a town to become a city!”

Lark agreed. It was indeed godsend that they would no longer have to request to have a temple built in Blackstone Town. In this Kingdom, there were five prerequisites in order for a town to be elevated into a city: a population of at least five thousand, an established temple under one of the seven Gods, a local government, a merchants guild, and a royal charter.

With the current influx of immigrants from various territories in the east, they would eventually reach a population of five thousand by next year. Establishing a merchants guild would be tricky but feasible, especially with the help of Big Mona. And now that the Priests of Nereus had voiced their wish to establish a temple in Blackstone Town, all that was left was the royal charter from the crown.

But something was bothering Lark. He found it eerie that the Priests of Nereus had suddenly reached out to them now, of all times. What was their aim?

There’s no use in overthinking things. Lark shook off unnecessary thoughts.

He said to Gaston, “Send a letter to the Temple of the Water God in Lion City. Tell them that I am giving them the approval to build a temple in Blackstone Town. If they need any help in establishing the temple, I want you to assist them as much as possible.”

Gaston bowed. “As you wish, My Lord.”

After the butler left the office, loud footsteps were heard in the hallway. Someone yanked the door open.

Princess Esmeralda, along with her five knights walked briskly toward Lark’s desk. They were panting, as though they had run all the way toward this place.

“What’s the matter, Princess?” Lark decided to ignore the fact that the princess had suddenly barged in unannounced. Judging by their faces, the reason for their visit must be important.

“They found the flower!” the princess said, breathlessly.

She slammed a newspaper onto Lark’s desk. “I received this from the traveling merchants just a while ago.”

The princess was agitated, while the knights were visibly tense. Lark took the newspaper and read its contents.

It had been more than a month since His Majesty collapsed. The king still showed no signs of waking up. The ministers tried to quell the rumors, but speculation had already spread among the citizens of the Kingdom.

The majority believed that this incident was a ploy of the Emperor, a retaliation after the Empire’s defeat in Yorkshaire. But there was speculation that the king had been cursed by a powerful magician. A curse powerful enough to resist healing spells of high priests and royal court magicians.

Who is it? Who is the perpetrator targeting the life of His Majesty?

The expedition team, they sent out over a month ago to obtain a certain item to cure His Majesty, have finally returned. Out of eighty-nine men, only five have returned alive. The royal court magicians who accompanied them—The Fortress and The Sylphid—both perished in battle. Their captain managed to return alive, but lost his right arm during their escape. The four other knights who escaped with him are currently in critical condition. The five of them are currently recuperating in the Temple of the Earth in Boris County.

Losing the royal knights, an elite unit, is a terrible blow to the Kingdom. Unfortunately, no one knows if the expedition was a success—if they managed to obtain that certain item.

The citizens of the Kingdom want to know—

—If His Majesty dies, who will ascend the throne?

After he finished reading the newspaper, Lark leaned on his chair and momentarily stared at the ceiling. The expedition team was almost annihilated. In order to obtain the Tears of Ubroxia, almost a hundred elite knights died in the process.

“You said they found the flower?” said Lark. He hadn’t read any news regarding it in the paper.

The Princess nodded. She looked at Parzival.

“That’s right,” said Parzival. “We’ve sent the capital the list of items we’ll need to sever the curse of His Majesty. We received their reply just now, and they told us that the flower is already on its way to the capital.”

“I see,” said Lark.

It made sense that a different group was tasked to deliver the Tears of Ubroxia to the capital. The captain was severely injured and his men who’d managed to survive were in critical condition.

“We’ve got the flower,” said Lark. “Now we’ll only need the mithril for the phylactery, plus a high-grade mana stone.”

The rest of the items needed to sever the curse were easy to find, aside from those two he mentioned.

Parzival made a signal to his comrades. The other knights placed a leather sack on top of Lark’s desk.

“Mithril ingots. Three of them,” said Parzival. “And one high-grade mana stone. All were sent by Lady Ropianna herself.”

Lark was surprised by the latter part of Parzival’s statement. He hadn’t expected that royal court magician to send all of these highly-coveted items to him, a mere lord of a small town.

“Although there are limits to her magic, Lady Ropianna is a seer,” said the Princess. “She must have judged your method to be correct.”

“It’s pretty hard to gather all these items, even with the help of the royal family,” added Parzival. “She must have gone to great lengths just to obtain them. I heard that the high-grade mana stone was taken out of the Lady’s family heirloom.”

Hearing this, it was apparent that the royal court magician did everything she could to obtain the items Lark listed.

“A seer,” Lark mumbled, his interest piqued.

Even back in the Magic Empire, people capable of seeing glimpses of the future were rare. They were highly coveted, no matter where they went.

Although several lives were lost in the process, with the help of this so-called seer, they were now only a few steps away from curing His Majesty. As long as Agares was no stronger than a High Demon, everything should work perfectly. They should be able to sever the link entirely.

“Send another message to the capital,” said Lark. “Tell them that they should absolutely not use the Tears of Ubroxia, no matter what.”

Parzival saluted. “I will send the fastest messenger right away.”

“We’ll depart for Lion City tomorrow morning to meet the blacksmith.” Lark looked at the leather sack containing the mithril ingots. “If everything proceeds smoothly, it should be possible to complete the phylactery in a week.”

Garma managed to complete the mithril cubes in just two weeks. Creating the phylactery should be a piece of cake for a blacksmith of his caliber. The sooner the blacksmith finished it, the better.

“And one more thing.” Lark raised a finger. “We need a desolated place to perform the ritual. Plus an army and several magicians.”

“An army?” Parzival shot a quizzical gaze.

“Yes. An army,” repeated Lark. “If by some rotten luck the ritual fails—if the fragment of the demon called Agares breaks the phylactery—we’ll end up face-to-face with that monster. In my current state, even I will find it hard to defeat a High Demon all by myself. We’ll need all the reinforcements we can possibly get. We don’t want to involve innocent people in this mess. We need a place devoid of innocent civilians, a place to conduct the ritual.”

CHAPTER 16

Unlike when Lark first left his territory to embark on a journey toward the capital, he no longer felt unsettled leaving the management of the town in his subordinates’ hands. He was now confident of his men’s capabilities. He was sure that they would manage Blackstone Town properly during his absence.

Lark summoned the officials of his territory to his office.

“I’ll be gone for a couple of months,” said Lark. “Although I can’t disclose the exact reason why… I’ll be heading to the capital.”

“You’re leaving again?” said Silver Claw.

It felt like just yesterday when Lark gathered his soldiers and went to the western front to participate in the war against the Empire.

“It can’t be helped,” said Lark. “There are things which need my physical presence. I’ll be looking forward to seeing the Town Hall. I hope it’s complete by the time I come back.”

“Sounds like you’ll be gone for quite some time.” Silver Claw scratched his cheeks. He was the only officer in this room who could talk informally with Lark. “The Town Hall will be done before autumn ends. Leave it to me.”

“End of autumn, huh?”

Lark was reminded that winter was looming. That season marked his first year since coming to this timeline.

Lark slid a document toward Pico. “This the proof of payment for the livestock we’ve ordered from Lion City. Six pairs of cattle, ten pairs of goats, fifteen sheep, five horses.” Pico took the document and slowly read the first page. “It’ll take some time, but I hope that there will come a time when we’ll no longer have to order livestock from the nearby territories. Coordinate with Silver Claw for the sheds. Be sure everything’s done before winter arrives.”

“Yes, Young Lord!”

The south was a vast grassland. It was the perfect place for the animals to graze around.

“Oliver,” said Lark.

“Yes, My Lord!”

“While I’m gone, you’ll have full authority over the northern and western farmlands,” said Lark. “Although we already have enough food stored in the granaries to last us throughout winter, the rise in our territory’s population is steep. I want all of the wheat seeds planted in the Northern Land by the end of this month. Remember, there’s no such thing as too much food—we can always export the excess to the surrounding regions.”

“Leave it to me, Lord.” Oliver bowed his head. “We’re already halfway done with planting the seeds. I’m confident in meeting our Lord’s deadline.”

Lark nodded in satisfaction at this. “Very well. I expect a lot from you.” He looked at all of the officers in the room. “The same goes for everyone here. Coordinate with each other while I’m away.”

“Yes, Lord!”

***

Along with all of his disciples, the princess, and her knights, Lark made his way to Lion City. Unlike before, the road leading toward the city was visibly more secure: mercenaries hired by the merchants guild patrolled the road, and some of the paths were lit by kalrane stones. They even passed by a small cabin, which served as a garrison for the mercenaries, on their way to the city.

After arriving at the city, Lark went straight to the smithy, while the rest of the group lodged at an inn.

Upon the princess’ insistent request, Chryselle ended up sharing the same room with Her Highness.

Princess Esmeralda sat on the bed and patted the wool blanket. “Hey, at this rate, I’ll never learn how to use magic, will I?”

Chryselle didn’t immediately respond to the princess’ question. She carefully thought of her next words. “You can, Your Highness. But becoming a disciple of Master Lark is out of the question.” Chryselle slowly added, “But you can always learn from someone else. You’re a princess of this Kingdom, after all.”

A few weeks ago, Chryselle heard from Lark himself that he had no intentions of teaching the princess any spells. According to him, the princess lacked the fundamentals to become a decent magician. She had mediocre mana pool, and her talent in magic was very subpar. Chryselle confirmed this herself when the princess asked her to teach her the magic basics.

The princess would eventually become capable of casting first-tier to second-tier spells if she persevered, but that was probably her limit. She would not achieve greater heights than this.

The princess slumped on the bed. She sighed. “You’re a princess of the kingdom, after all—I’ve heard these words a lot, even when I was still at the capital. It’s frustrating. Whenever people look at me, they only see my status as the princess of this country.”

Chryselle simply listened and didn’t utter a reply. As one of the elders of the Magic Tower, she understood what the Princess was going through right now.

“Princess this, princess that,” she angrily mumbled. “Can’t they see anything aside from that useless title!”

Realizing that she had raised her voice, she looked at Chryselle apologetically. But after the princess remembered once again when Lark called her mere baggage, frustration started swelling up within her.

“I can always get another magician to teach me, that’s right,” said the Princess. “But that’s also like saying I’ve given up. That that stupid Lark Marcus was right!”

Chryselle smiled at the fuming princess. She looked cute, despite her childish remarks. Maybe it would feel like this, if she had a younger sister?

Although Chryselle had been dubbed as a magic prodigy ever since she was a child, she could still understand where the princess was coming from.

Chryselle sat on the bed, right next to the princess. She said, “How about the sword, Your Highness?”

Princess Esmeralda shook her head. “I don’t like swords. Parzival tried teaching me swordsmanship when I was little. He said I have talent with it, but just the mere thought of cutting another person with a blade is enough to make my stomach churn. I can’t do it.”

Chryselle thought that magic was similar to the blade, probably even more barbaric and cruel. Since she was a child, she had seen firsthand what magic was capable of.

But it was apparent that the princess had already made her mind to become a magician, no matter what. Chryselle felt no merit in convincing her otherwise.

“Hey, Chryselle.”

“Yes, Princess?”

“I told you to just call me Esmeralda.” The Princess pouted. “How long do you think it’ll take the blacksmith to finish the phylactery?”

Lark was currently at the smithy, discussing the details with the blacksmith. Since they already had the flower and the rest of the materials in their hands, all that was left was the phylactery.

“Master Lark said it’ll probably take at least several days, a week at most.”

“A week,” the princess mumbled to herself as she stared at the ceiling. A week felt too long right now. “I wonder… how my father is. Lady Ropianna’s with him, so nothing too dangerous should happen, right?” The Princess sighed.

The bells of the city rang. Numerous footsteps were heard outside.

Chryselle stood up, swept away the curtains and opened the window on the second floor. Below them, she saw several soldiers running toward the direction of the western gate.

“What’s happening outside?”

Curious of the clamor outside the inn, the princess peeked her head out of the window. She noticed that the residents started going back to their homes, the door of the nearby inns and taverns were shut, and more soldiers started moving toward the west.

“Monsters again, eh?” one of the soldiers below said.

“That’s obvious, idiot. It’s a full moon tonight.”

Chryselle and the princess looked up and saw the twin crimson moons above.

Chyselle understood immediately what was happening. Near this city was that monster-infested lake. She heard that for the last several months, the monsters of the lake had started attacking the human settlements in the area.

Loud knocks were heard at their door. Chryselle opened it and Parzival and the rest of the knights entered the room. After the door was shut, Parzival said, “Princess, monsters are attacking the city. We should probably get out of here while we still can.”

The hair on the princess’ nape bristled upon hearing this. She stuttered, “M-Monsters? Why are monsters attacking here? It’s one of our Kingdom’s major cities!”

“I asked one of the inn’s servants. She said the monsters probably came from the Lake of the Full Moon,” said Parzival. “Hundreds, if not thousands of them, are attacking the city right now.”

Color started draining from the princess’ face. She’d been sheltered in the king’s castle her entire life. The idea of a city being overrun by monsters never crossed her mind. The mere thought of innocent civilians being eaten by those beasts was too terrifying.

“Don’t worry, princess,” said Tomas. “The soldiers are gathering at the western gate even now as we speak. Even if the military fails, we’ll make sure the princess safely escap—”

“—There’s no need for that,” Chryselle finally spoke. She was the only one in the room who’d remained calm throughout the conversation. “If this monster invasion is as terrible as you guys make it out to be, the citizens of this city would have already left a long time ago. People value their lives above anything else, after all. I saw the soldiers down below just a few minutes ago. And they looked too carefree for someone going to confront a horde of monsters.”

Now that Chryselle mentioned it, the princess also realized it. She also saw the soldiers moving toward the western gates. Some of them were merrily chatting with each other, as though going to a picnic.

“Then are you saying that this monster invasion is a trivial matter?” Parzival frowned. He clearly did not like the fact that Chryselle was dismissing the potential danger of this monster invasion.

“I’m saying that the city probably has a way to defeat all of those monsters,” said Chryselle. “You’ve seen the towers before, right?”

Parzival and the rest of the knights remembered the towers scattered throughout the city. Each of them looked imposing, as though they were relics from the ancient era.

Parzival was about to utter a reply when several loud explosions were heard outside. Looking through the window, they saw a nearby tower activate. At its tip, several balls of lightning started forming, before shooting toward the west. Bright light momentarily illuminated the night sky as streaks of light shot forward.

Shortly after that, another tower was activated, and several balls of lightning once again shot toward the same direction.

“Amazing,” muttered the princess. “Parzival, I want to see it! Let’s look at the towers!”

Anything related to magic was fascinating for her, even when she was still a kid. The Princess ran out of the room.

“Princess!”

Her knights immediately followed suit. Chryselle also decided to go with them. She wanted to see for herself what those towers were capable of.

Soon, their group arrived at the area near the gate.

Contrary to their expectations, the soldiers weren’t fighting with the monster horde. Instead, they simply stood before the gates, forming a human barricade, ready to cut down any monsters who managed to bypass the walls.

“It’s dangerous here,” one of the soldiers said to them. “Go back home, keep your door shut, and sleep. There’s no need for you to worry. The monsters will all be dead by morning.” The soldier spoke with absolute confidence, as though this monster invasion was a mere daily occurrence.

Every now and then, beams of light would shoot out of the towers in the city, creating loud explosions outside the walls. Even from this distance, they could hear the cries and death throes of the invading monsters, and the scent of charred flesh started permeating the air.

It was a one-sided slaughter.

“T-Tomas,” said Parzival. “Aren’t these towers very similar to the ones in Wizzert City?”

Tomas was slack-jawed as he nodded his head. “Y-Yes. There’s no mistaking it.”

“But impossible,” said Parzival. “The elders of Wizzert would never allow another city to use their towers. So how—”

“—They’re not from Wizzert,” the soldier from before interjected. “They’re towers commissioned by Lord Valcres. I heard that these towers were designed by the Lord of Blackstone Town.”

“By the Lord of Blackstone Town?” said the princess.

An unexpected name suddenly came out of the soldier’s mouth. Everyone, aside from Chryselle, was dumbfounded upon learning this fact. For a moment, they doubted if what they’d heard was right.

“What was his name again? That young man from the Marcus Family? Pretty neat invention, don’t you think?” The soldier stared at the princess and her knights. He sighed. “Look, we always get curious daredevils like you during this time of the month. But there’s literally nothing to see here aside from flashy explosions and deafening sound. Go back home.” The soldier looked around. “The commander will punish me if they see you here.”

***

By the time the princess and her knights went back to the inn, Lark had already returned. He was standing at the hallway on the second floor, waiting for them to come back. Next to him were Anandra, George, and Austen.

“You’re back,” said Lark.

The princess stared curiously at Lark. She had not expected that the one who invented those towers was someone they knew all along. He never mentioned anything related to those magic towers, after all.

It seemed that the Lord of Blackstone Town was somewhat popular among the citizens of Lion City. After he created the magic towers, the citizens no longer feared the coming of the next full moon. They no longer feared the monster horde. They were simply grateful that they could continue their peaceful lives in this region.

“Her Highness’ room is the largest,” said Lark. “Let’s go inside first and discuss the things I’ve talked about with the blacksmith.”

The princess agreed.

After everyone was inside the room, Lark went straight to the point. “Five days. Garma told me that it’ll be possible to complete the mithril phylactery in five days.”

The princess breathed a sigh of relief. It was faster than she expected. “So we’ll have to stay at Lion City until then, huh?” said Princess Esmeralda.

“That’s right.” Lark nodded. “It’s a full moon tonight, and the monsters will keep attacking the city for the next two to three days. We can’t go out of the city even if we want to. It’ll be too dangerous. But staying in the city should be safe, as long as we stay inside the walls, under the protection of the towers.”

Lark noticed the peculiar gazes of those around him, particularly the princess and her knights. He decided to dismiss it.

He added, “We’ll go to the merchants guild tomorrow morning to gather additional rations and materials.”

CHAPTER 17

Five days had passed. The monsters attacking the city had retreated to the lake. At the same time, the phylactery had been completed.

Unlike the mithril cubes, the phylactery had a simple design, with runes engraved only in its interior. If not for its silver-black sheen which screamed of the word ‘mithril’, people would have mistaken it for an ordinary jar.

After obtaining the phylactery, Lark’s group immediately set out to the capital. They hired the fastest carriage in city, and would change horses upon reaching the next territory, stopping only to restock their rations now and then.

***

It had been more than two months since the king collapsed. Although the healers and magicians managed to stabilize the king somewhat, he still hadn’t woken up.

Inside the administrative office of the king’s castle, the ministers and other various officials of the capital gathered.

Everyone gathered here knew the truth of the king’s current predicament. They all knew that the king was currently afflicted by the demonic pact running through the blood of the royal family. A curse passed down from generations to generations.

“It’s been a week since that item arrived at the capital,” said Lord Hais, one of the ministers of the Kingdom. “Isn’t it about time we use it to cure His Majesty? Various rumors are already going around the capital and the other cities of the Kingdom. The citizens are demanding to know the current state of His Majesty.”

“There are already rumors that His Majesty’s dead,” said another minister. “I’m sure the neighboring countries have already heard what happened to the king. Thankfully, Everfrost is keeping the Great Empire in check—”

“—But the Mullgray Pirates have already started gathering their fleets,” said another official.

“The port in Aurora Island was finished just recently. I’m confident that the Kalavinka Navy can hold off those damn barbarians.”

“Are you stupid? The Kalavinka Navy may be strong, but the pirates outnumber them more than a dozen times! It’s only a matter of time before we lose Aurora Island again!”

“What did you say? Are you doubting the might of our Kingdom’s navy!”

“I’m just stating the reality! We’ve lost Aurora Island before and we’ll lose it again this time!”

“Enough!” Marquis Carlos snarled.

Everyone immediately shut their mouths. Silence befell the administrative office.

Although Carlos was a mere marquis, he was the closest friend of His Majesty. Furthermore, he was among the prominent figures of this Kingdom—a retired general, a man who once led tens of thousands of soldiers to war back in his prime.

Despite his age, the marquis could easily snap the neck of these bickering officials.

“We’re here to discuss the current status of His Majesty. Take your petty arguments somewhere else.”

Marquis Carlos looked at the hunched, elderly woman who’d remained silent until now. “Please let us hear your thoughts, Lady Ropianna. There must be a reason why you insisted that we postpone healing the king.”

Ropianna took out a parchment from her cloak. “Almost a hundred lives were lost just to obtain the flower,” she said, her voice raspy. “His Majesty would surely regain consciousness once he consumed the flower, but it wouldn’t cut the root of this problem. The same thing would happen again. A few weeks after this, maybe months, and if we’re lucky, maybe a year. But it is certain that His Majesty would collapse again, eventually.”

She handed the parchment to Marquis Carlos.

“This is?” Marquis Carlos started reading the letter.

“A letter from Princess Esmeralda,” she said.

Marquis Carlos frowned as he read the letter. “They have a way of curing His Majesty?”

“Yes,” said Ropianna. “After receiving this message, I asked for a divination from the Water God. I asked God Nereus if this is the correct path.”

There was momentary silence. The elderly magician slowly spoke, “And the Water God agreed that this is the best path for the Kingdom.”

The officials looked at each other. There had never been a time when the divination of the Water God was incorrect. Although the messages were frequently abstract, when followed faithfully, it would eventually lead the believer to the right path.

“The Princess and her men, along with the Lord of Blackstone Town are on their way here as we speak,” said Ropianna.

“Lord of Blackstone Town?” asked Lord Hais.

Marquis Carlos showed them the letter from the Princess. “Princess Esmeralda says that the Lord of Blackstone Town has found a way to sever the king’s curse.”

The eyes of Lord Hais and the other officials widened for a moment. First was the Black Famine, and now this? How the hell did that brat obtain such crucial information?

“Ridiculous!” said Lord Hais. “How can a mere lord of a small town know how to cure the curse of His Majesty! It’s a demonic pact that’s been passed down through the royal family! It can’t be broken that easily!”

For some reason, Lord Hais seemed more agitated than usual.

“But the Water God has already given us the answer.” Marquis Carlos looked at Lady Ropianna. “The Water God believes that this is the right path, isn’t that right, Lady Magician?”

Ropianna closed her eyes and slowly nodded her head.

One of the officials sighed. “The Water God is never wrong. She has already given us the approval. All that’s left is for us to wait for the princess group’s arrival.”

No one could rebuke this statement. If they did, it would be tantamount to questioning the words of a God.

***

After the meeting, Lord Hais immediately went to the castle’s dungeon. Clad in cloak and escorted by three of his most trusted men, he went to the lower floors of the dungeon.

Using magic, they moved through the guarded cells and eventually arrived at the prison where Duke Kelvin was being held.

“Do it,” said Lord Hais.

One of his men activated his spell, creating a mirage next to the prison gate. The guards didn’t notice the group’s arrival, and they safely entered Duke Kelvin’s cell.

“It’s been a while, Duke.” Lord Hais pulled down his hood, revealing his face.

Duke Kelvin had gotten thinner than before. He no longer looked like a bloated pig, and his stubble had grown thicker.

“Hais.” Duke Kelvin didn’t seem surprised to see him. He looked at the oblivious guards next to the prison gate, then at the three men behind Lord Hais. “How’s Alvis?”

Lord Hais bowed his head, and the three men behind him did the same. “His Majesty is still unconscious at the moment. I’ve made sure that he ingests the toxin every other day. Even that damnable Ropianna and Carlos don’t suspect a thing.”

Duke Kelvin gloated upon hearing this. He laughed. “Serves him right! That damn bastard dared to lock me up in this filthy cell? Once my son ascends the throne, I’ll make sure to slaughter everyone with the blood of the royal family!”

For a moment, Duke Kelvin looked like a maniac thirsting for human flesh.

Unbeknownst to everyone else, the collapse of the king was a ploy of Duke Kelvin. Despite being locked up in the dungeon, he still managed to pull the strings and ordered his men to poison His Majesty. And since they’d managed to turn the chief healer to the Kelvin Faction, it was never revealed that His Majesty had been poisoned.

Furthermore, the poison used was made from the toxin of an alcavar ringtail turtle. A rare species found only in the ports of the Kelvin Duchy. Although its toxin easily dissolved in the blood, it wasn’t immediately fatal. But prolonged exposure to it would eventually cripple the body and destroy the meridians.

With the king’s body weakened, the curse of Agares used this opportunity to devour His Majesty’s soul.

It was a perfect plan concocted by Duke Kelvin the moment he was locked away in this filthy dungeon. He was sure that right now, no one suspected that a prisoner like him was pulling the strings.

“But we have a bit of a problem, Duke.”

Duke Kelvin broke out of his fantasy. “A problem?”

“It seems that Princess Esmeralda has found a way to sever the curse of His Majesty.”

Duke Kelvin turned grim. “What do you mean? How did that sheltered brat find a way to sever a pact made with a demon?”

It sounded ridiculous. After all, even the seer wasn’t able to cure His Majesty. She was capable of halting the progression of the curse, but that was all.

“According to her, the Lord of Blackstone Town is capable of curing His Majesty,” said Lord Hais. “And this was confirmed by Lady Ropianna herself after a divination.”

The duke’s eyes widened. The Princess was one thing, but if even the Water God approved of the method, then there was a very high chance that it would work. God Nereus had no reason to lie to mere mortals, after all.

If the king’s curse was severed, then all of their plans would be for naught. Without a doubt, the moment the king was healed, that Marcus brat would have the highest chance of ascending the throne.

“We can’t let that happen,” Duke Kelvin mumbled to himself. He started biting his lip. After some time, he looked at Lord Hais and said, “Where is the princess right now?”

“We aren’t sure, Duke,” said Lord Hais. “But judging by the letter, they’ll probably arrive at the capital in a couple of days.”

Duke Kelvin clicked his tongue. “A couple of days, huh? Listen, I want you to mobilize the Black Midas.”

“The Black Midas?”

Duke Kelvin nodded.

One of the nine divisions of Black Midas was sent to kill the Lord of Blackstone Town several months ago. But, for some reason, Duke Kelvin never heard from them since then. Since Lark Marcus was still alive, they must have perished during their attempt to kill him.

“I’ll give you command over five out of the remaining eight divisions of Black Midas. Make sure the princess and that Marcus brat never make it to the capital,” said Duke Kelvin.

Lord Hais was thrilled.

The Marcus Family was well-known for its military, the Youchesters were well-known for their fertile land, while the Kelvins were known for their hussars and the Black Midas.

The Black Midas were the most prominent organization ruling the underworld of the Kingdom. The organization—composed of nine powerful divisions—dealt with slave trading, human trafficking, prostitution, drugs, and other illegal activities within the Kingdom. Due to their sheer size, and with the backing of powerful officials, the royal family had never managed to cull them even after several generations had passed.

“Give me your hand,” said the duke.

Lord Hais prevented his emotions from showing on his face. He held out his hand, and Duke Kelvin channeled his mana into Lord Hais’ body. Slowly, five small insignias formed on the back of Lord Hais’ left hand, before becoming faint and disappearing. Each of them represented its respective division in Black Midas.

With this, the members of Black Midas would unquestionably follow Lord Hais’ command.

“Prevent the princess’ group from stepping foot in the capital, no matter what,” said Duke Kelvin.

Lord Hais bowed, a grin forming on his face. “I will follow your command, Duke.”

***

After Lord Hais left the dungeon, he went straight to his mansion in the inner district of the capital. He was still shuddering from euphoria. He still could not believe that he’d gained control over five divisions of the infamous Black Midas.

He went to his room and chased out the servants and the guards.

“That moron,” he chuckled. “After I kill the princess and the king, you’ll be next Duke Kelvin.”

Duke Kelvin was the perfect scapegoat. Blaming him for the death of the princess and His Majesty should be easy, especially now that he had the command over five divisions of this underground organization.

He raised his hand over his face and channeled some mana into his hand. Several insignias started appearing on his skin. They looked beautiful, no matter how much he stared at them.

“Let’s try summoning some of them, shall we?” Lord Hais licked his lips and channeled mana into the five crests.

Several seconds passed by and he felt an invisible thread connecting him to five different people scattered throughout the capital.

Minutes passed and the five stared appearing in front of him, one after another. All of them momentarily looked at Lord Hais quizzically, but after seeing the crests on the back of his hand, they bowed their heads and knelt silently.

Lord Hais shuddered upon seeing the five people gathered in front of him. Each of these men was probably capable of killing all of the guards in his mansion alone. And now, all of them were under his command.

Five commanders of Black Midas were kneeling in front of him right now. Lord Hais was thrilled just thinking about it.

No wonder Duke Kelvin held so much confidence despite being locked up in the dungeon. If he wished to, he could easily escape prison with the help of these monsters.

These five divisions are mine now, Kelvin.

Although Duke Kelvin still held power over three divisions of Black Midas, Lord Hais was confident of taking care of them once the time came.

Lord Hais cleared his throat.

“I have a job for all of you,” he said.

The five men continued kneeling before him, unmoving. As expected of top-notch assassins.

“Princess Esmeralda, her knights, Lark Marcus,” said Lord Hais. “I want you to kill these people I’ve mentioned. Make sure they never set foot in the capital, no matter what. Do you understand?”

“Yes, My Lord!” the five replied in unison.

Lord Hais shuddered in ecstasy. This must be the feeling of someone holding absolute power capable of killing prominent figures with just the snap of a finger.

“Gather all of your men.” Lord Hais grinned broadly. “Kill all of them.”

CHAPTER 18

Since time was of the essence, Lark’s group didn’t stop in any cities to spend the night. Instead, they hired the fastest carriage, stopping only to allow the horses to recuperate for a couple of hours, before moving out again for the capital.

Everything had been going smoothly. At this rate, they would arrive at their destination several days earlier than they anticipated.

Two horse-drawn carriages moved through the forest leading to the capital.

“We’re almost there, Your Highness,” said Parzival, as he looked through the window of the carriage. The sea of trees blurred as they sped by.

The princess clenched her fists. Finally, she would see her father. And this time, she would no longer be the helpless daughter she was.

“Parzival, we’ll be able to finally cure my father, right?” said the princess. It was more of question for herself than her knight.

“We can only hope for the best, Princess,” said Parzival.

Parzival remembered the town ruled by Lark Marcus. Even now, he still wondered how the second son of Duke Drakus had managed to develop that territory to such extent.

The princess probably hadn’t noticed it, but that town was growing at an exponential rate, despite being surrounded by nothing but vast wilderness. He’d seen the water system, the farmlands, the paved roads, the Southern District, and the structures being built in the east. A ruler as competent as that lord wouldn’t lie to them regarding the cure of His Majesty, right?

As Parzival was lost in his thoughts, the carriage suddenly stopped.

Parzival said to the coachman. “What happened? Why did you stop?”

“About that,” the coachman replied meekly. “A fallen tree’s blocking the path, Sir.”

“A tree?”

Parzival peeked outside the window and saw a large tree blocking the road.

“We’ll move the tree out of the way, Your Highness. Please stay inside the carriage.”

Parzival nodded at his fellow knights—Tomas and Andrew. The three of them went out of the carriage, while the remaining two knights remained inside with the princess.

“Let’s quickly move this tree out of the wa—”

Parzival stopped abruptly. He noticed something peculiar with the tree. Looking closely, its large trunk was cut cleanly. He realized that the tree was deliberately put here in the middle of the road.

His instinct screamed at him that this might be a trap.

He was about to warn his fellow knights when suddenly, arrows flew from the sea of trees. Parzival quickly parried them with his sword, but the unsuspecting Andrew and Tomas were mercilessly shot down by the arrows. The horses neighed and the coachman cried—even they weren’t spared from the surprise attack.

“Tomas! Andrew!” shouted Parzival. “Damn it! We’re under attack!”

Hundreds of men clad in black started appearing from the shadow of the nearby trees. Those at the rear continued firing their arrows, while those in front started running toward Parzival.

At the corner of his eye, Parzival saw Tomas gasping for air, his neck pierced by an arrow. But despite being on the verge of death, Tomas forced his body to move. He touched his bracer and activated its stored magic. A dome-shaped barrier made of mana appeared and enclosed the two carriages, preventing the arrows from hitting them. The men clad in black started striking the barrier with their sword, but it was surprisingly strong, forming only minute cracks with each strike.

Tomas grinned after he successfully activated his magic. His hands fell and he finally went limp.

Parzival used this opening and ran toward his two comrades. Andre was hit by the arrow right at the head. He was dead. And now, Tomas was on his last breath.

“T-Tomas!” cried Parzival.

Everything had happened in an instant. He couldn’t even warn them as the arrows shot toward them from the forest.

The remaining two knights came out of the first carriage, and upon seeing the hundreds of men clad in black surrounding them, pulled out their weapons. Lark, Chryselle, and Anandra also came out of the second carriage.

Lark looked around him—at the dead coachmen and horses, the dying knight, and the hundreds of enemies surrounding them.

“Tomas!” croaked Parzival. “Please!”

Tomas had long stopped gasping for air, right after activating his spell.

Lark approached the unmoving knight and pulled the arrow stuck in his neck, making some blood splatter on his cheek. With brisk but calm movements, Lark took a small vial from his pouch and poured the liquid inside onto the wound of the dying knight.

To Parzival’s surprise, the wound on Tomas’ neck sizzled and rapidly closed on its own.

What the hell was that thing, for it to heal a deep wound in a matter of seconds? Even the alchemists in the capital shouldn’t be capable of creating a potion as potent as this.

A burst of light shot from Lark’s fingertips and struck the chest of Tomas. A few seconds after, Tomas opened his eyes, gasped for air, and vomited out bile and clotted blood. He coughed several times, his chest rapidly rising and falling.

“He should be fine. Although it’ll take a couple of hours before he can move around like he used to before,” said Lark. He looked around them. Although he’d managed to prevent the knight from dying, the fact that they were currently surrounded by hundreds of enemies remained.

Outside the barrier, five men, who appeared to be the leaders of the group gazed at Parzival and Lark.

“That’s Parzival, the knight of Princess Esmeralda,” said one of them. He then looked at Lark. “Silver hair, blue eyes. A member of the Marcus Family, without a doubt. Lark Marcus. The princess. Her knights.” The man snapped his fingers. “Bring their lifeless bodies to me.”

On cue, the attacks of the assassins became fiercer. It was only a matter of time before the barrier Tomas had cast would shatter.

The hair at Parzival’s nape bristled upon meeting the gaze of those five men. For some reason, they reminded him of Instructor Mikael.

Parzival wondered what would happen if those five did have the same strength as the instructor. Even if all the knights here gave up their lives, the princess still might not survive.

“Go back to the carriage. My disciples and I will handle these guys,” said Lark. He activated the mithril cubes and they started flying toward him, until the two hovered right above his head.

“But—” Parzival could see that these guys weren’t your ordinary, everyday assassins.

“—We need someone to restrain and protect the princess. That sheltered brat might suddenly jump out of the carriage at any time.”

At the corner of his eye, Lark saw the princess looking at what was happening outside through the carriage’s window.

Parzival was still hesitant.

“Look, only if the knights are protecting the Princess,” said Lark, “will I be able fight to my heart’s content.”

Although it felt like Lark was telling them that they’d be just a hindrance, Parzival and the knights finally conceded and accepted Lark’s proposal. They went back to their carriage and surrounded it, ready to intercept any attacks against the princess.

They’d heard from credible sources that the second son of Duke Drakus was a monster magician. Furthermore, they’d also seen during their stay in Blackstone Town the strength of Chryselle and Anandra.

If worse comes to worst, in the event that Lark and his disciples were defeated, they could just use the opening to grab the princess and run away to safety.

After all, the princess was their top priority. Everything else was secondary.

Finally, Tomas’ barrier broke. Arrows started pouring from the sky and dozens of assassins ran toward Lark, Anandra, and Chryselle.

Lark activated the runes in one of the mithril cubes, and two dome-shaped barriers made of wind magic enclosed the first and second carriage. Unlike Tomas’ spell, this wind barrier repaired itself immediately, and would continue to do so until the crystallized mana inside the first mithril cube was depleted.

Three assassins finally reached Lark. Without hesitation, they aimed for his neck with their blades. Lark activated the second mithril cube and it separated into eight smaller pieces. Three of them moved immediately and parried the attacks of the three assassins.

Using this opening, the remaining five pieces spun around violently and shot forward, piercing the heads of the assassins, shattering their skulls and killing them in an instant.

At the same time, Lark cast three spells concurrently. Wind blades, lightning spears, and earth spikes shot toward the other enemies, killing them one after another.

Chryselle, also cast her spell, creating three lightning serpents, which immediately slithered through the battlefield, devouring the assassins. As expected of an Elder of Wizzert. She could hold her ground even against dozens of enemies.

Anandra, on the other hand, used the same old technique he was familiar with—he amplified the strength of his body with mana, and started cutting down his enemies using his sword. The enemies couldn’t even touch him, as he simply sidestepped and dodged each attack, as though he’d already memorized his enemies’ pattern of attack beforehand.

While Lark and his two disciples were busy dealing with the assassins, several men tried attacking the two carriages. But to their horror, the moment they touched the barrier, their bodies were immediately cleaved in half by wind magic.

Another group of assassins tried to shatter it using their swords, only to meet the same fate as the ones before them. The moment their swords struck the barrier, the barrier spell retaliated and cut their bodies with wind blades.

Seeing this, the other assassins no longer tried to break the barrier with brute force. Those capable of magic started firing spells at it, one after another.

Lark frowned. Although there was still a lot of crystallized mana stored inside the first cube, it would be quickly depleted if the enemies repeatedly bombarded the barrier with their spells. He knew he had to finish the fight quickly, before the cubes ran out of mana. Otherwise, he would be forced to protect those inside the carriages himself.

He strictly forbade Austen and George from joining the battle. They were currently inside the carriage, hiding. Their spell casting speed was still too slow; the enemies would have killed them several times before they could even complete a simple fireball spell.

“Let’s end this,” Lark mumbled.

At the same time, five men, who appeared to be this assassin group’s leaders, started to move. One of them used concealment magic and blended with the shadows around them. He vanished then emerged, like a fish in water, from Lark’s shadow. Without a sound, he stabbed his sword toward Lark’s neck.

But to the assassin’s surprise, the pieces of the mithril cube blocked the attack. The leader immediately cast his spell and his shadow distorted, turning into six spears, before shooting toward Lark.

The pieces of mithril cube blocked each strike, as though they had a life of their own. Filled with disbelief that a mere artifact was blocking all of his attacks, the assassin leader started cussing and sped up his attacks.

Lark pulled out the cheap iron sword he bought from Garma’s shop. He amplified the strength of his body using magic and started striking back at the assassin leader.

The mithril cubes also started to go on the offensive, but the six shadow spears managed to parry its attacks. The assassin leader was clearly proficient with the sword, as Lark failed to land a single strike on him despite the help of the mithril cube.

“Annoying.” Lark clicked his tongue.

If swordsmanship wasn’t enough, then he’d just supplement what he was lacking with magic.

With Lark’s absurdly fast spell casting speed, two magic circles appeared on the ground. The ground trembled, and for a moment, the assassin leader lost his footing. Using this opening, a large stone golem rose from the ground and grabbed the assassin leader. Without hesitation, the golem crushed the human using its large hands. The assassin leader coughed out blood.

A piece of mithril shot toward the assassin leader, shattering his skull.

Lark had yet to catch his breath when two assassin leaders appeared behind him. One tried to stab him with the sword, while the other summoned several earth spikes from the ground.

Lark leaped back, but the two assassin leaders immediately followed through with their attacks. The first one channeled lightning magic into his sword and slashed at Lark, while the other one willed the earth spikes to transform into earth serpents and chase after its target.

Despite its large size, Lark’s stone golem moved agilely in front of its master and shielded him from the attacks. It crossed both its arms and absorbed the brunt force of the impact.

The lightning spell destroyed the arms of the golem, while the earth serpents shattered its trunk. The golem knelt, before forming numerous cracks and turning into dust.

Without stopping, the two assassin leaders shot toward Lark. At the same time, dozens of their subordinates also aimed for his life. Some of them started firing orbs of lightning, wind blades, ice shards, poison arrows.

The moment Lark blocked or dodged an attack, another one would shoot toward him in an instant.

This group must have heard of his feats in the war with the Empire, as they made sure not to give him any room to breathe and cast magic. They continued firing spells one after another, forcing Lark to be on the defensive.

Lark quickly scanned the battlefield. Chryselle was being pushed back after an assassin leader started targeting her. She’d been forced to create several mana shields to block the incessant attacks from all around her. Anandra, on the other hand, was massacring several assassins using skill and brute force alone. Even the assassin leader targeting him had already lost an arm and was now trying to maintain his distance.

Lark looked at the barrier protecting the carriage. It should be able to block attacks for a few minutes more, before the mithril cube eventually ran out of mana.

Let’s finish this.

The pieces of mithril cubes scattered and moved about, blocking the attacks of Lark’s enemies. Using this opening, Lark cast flight magic and flew up into the sky. A colossal amount of mana started oozing out of his body and a thirty-meter wide magic circle started forming above him.

With absurdly fast casting speed incomparable even to royal court magicians, layers upon layers of runes started forming and overlapping with each other, creating the magic circle.

The assassins must have realized that Lark was trying to cast Grand Scale Magic. They desperately fired spells at him one after another, but the pieces of mithril formed a translucent barrier and blocked all of the attacks, giving Lark enough time to complete his spell.

Lark grinned. These guys were strong, but they were nothing but small fries when compared to General Alvaren. Thinking back to his fight against that old man, this fight seemed trivial.

Grand Scale Magic wasn’t enough to kill the Magic Slayer of the Empire. But it should be more than enough to kill these pesky flies.

Without uttering a word, Lark activated his spell.

Grand Scale Magic—Will of the Dryad.

The ground shook and the trees started uprooting themselves. Faces, which resembled a human in despair, started forming on the bark of the trees.

“W-What’s happening?!” cried one of the assassins.

Everyone was aghast when the entire forest came to life. The moment the trees uprooted themselves, they started slaughtering the assassins. Roots and branches shot from all directions and pierced the bodies of Lark’s enemies. Leaves infused with mana turned into blades and rained down, cutting the assassins on the ground.

“What the hell is this!?”

“Why are the trees suddenly attacking us!?”

Shouts, screams, and death throes echoed in the forest as the sea of trees continued slaughtering the assassins.

The assassin leaders resisted, and they even managed to cut and burn down several monster trees. But Lark knew that it was only a matter of time before all of the assassins were annihilated.

Minutes passed. The assassin leaders realized they couldn’t win and tried retreating, but the monster trees formed barriers made of roots and twigs.

There was no escaping the living forest.

Seeing that escape was near impossible, the assassins fought for dear life. They cut down the trees one after another, but soon, the accumulated injuries and fatigue started to wear them down. Those who stopped to recuperate for a second were pierced by a root, and those who failed to protect their backs were cut by the mana-infused leaves.

The assassins were dropping dead like kelnup flies.

When almost all of the enemies were dead, Lark flew down and landed on the ground. He walked toward the only remaining survivor—the assassin leader Chryselle had fought.

The limping assassin leader glared at Lark for a moment, before pointing his blade at his own neck. Since they’d failed, he’d rather die than be interrogated by this monster.

“I still have questions for you.”

Vines quickly shot up from the ground and ensnared the assassin leader’s body. The assassin tried to move his body but failed.

If killing himself with the blade isn’t feasible, then magic was the only remaining option. The assassin leader tried summoning earth spikes from the ground to pierce his body, but to his surprise, his spell wouldn’t activate no matter what.

He stared at Lark and realized that this young man had just interfered with his spell, cancelling it right at the middle of runes formation.

The assassin leader’s eyes widened.

Impossible.

That feat should be impossible to pull off unless one had spell casting speed several times faster than your average magician. Furthermore, one would need an absurdly fine control over his mana to interfere with the spell of another magician.

It was easy to guess what was going through the assassin’s mind after looking at his stupefied expression.

“It’s pretty easy to cancel low-tier spells of a disabled enemy. There are a limited number of spells you could cast in a short time, after all,” Lark said.

Lark grabbed the assassin leader’s mask and pulled it off.

Bald head, thick mustache, round eyes. A man in his mid-forties. He looked ordinary, the face of someone you’d frequently see on the roadside.

The assassin glared at Lark, his face clearly saying that he wouldn’t spill out any information, no matter what.

“I still have some mana left in the mithril cubes.” Lark grinned. He found it amusing. “I don’t mind spending an entire day reading fragments of your memories.”

The assassin leader shuddered upon hearing those words. He never knew such magic existed.

Lark placed his hand on the assassin’s face.

“Now, let’s start.”

CHAPTER 19

After reading the fragments of memories of the assassin, Lark found the reason their group was suddenly attacked on their way to the capital. Although the information he got wasn’t complete, it was enough to link the pieces of the puzzle together.

It seemed that a high-ranking official was the one behind the attack. Lord Hais, a minister of the Kingdom and one of the royal advisors of His Majesty.

When Lark told everyone, the princess and the knights couldn’t believe it. According to them, Lord Hais was a benevolent man and was among the most loyal retainers of His Majesty, even before he ascended the throne. He was among the pillars of the king’s faction, together with Lady Ropianna, the retired General Carlos, and Viscount Lakian.

Had Lark not read the memories of the assassin, that man would have been among the last to be suspected among the nobles.

“Impossible.” Princess Esmeralda was holding the dead body of her knight, Andrew. Tears flowed from her eyes. “Why would Uncle Hais order these assassins to kill us?”

“According to the memories of this assassin, there’s another high-ranking official is pulling the strings. There’s a possibility that your uncle is merely a pawn,” said Lark. “But this doesn’t change the fact that he ordered our assassination.”

The princess sobbed. She gripped the dead body of Andrew tight. This knight had pledged his loyalty to her when she was still a child. She still couldn’t believe that the man had died like this.

When was the last time she thanked her knights for always being by her side? She wished she could talk to Andrew one last time. She wished she could tell him how grateful she was to him, that despite her having no political power, he still chose to serve her regardless.

Lark stared at the sobbing princess. “I’m sorry I couldn’t save him too.”

Lark had lost several comrades back in his previous life. He knew the feeling of losing someone special. That wrenching sensation in your heart as you tried to reject the reality in front of you.

The princess bobbed her head but didn’t reply. She continued to sob, all the while hugging the dead body tight.

Lark looked around them. Fallen trees and a few hundred dead bodies littered the ground. Now that the Grand Scale Magic had ended, the forest returned to its silence.

For a moment, he regretted that he spared only one assassin. He should have kept another one alive.

I tried diving deeper into the assassin’s memories, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t find any information regarding the other high-ranking official.

Only the name of Lord Hais came out of the memories of the assassin, as though they’d been conditioned to never reveal the name of the other official.

The demon’s not the only thing we need to worried about, huh?

With this incident, it was clear that they had enemies in the Kingdom. And these enemies wanted to stop them stepping even a single foot in the capital.

“My Lord.” Anandra bowed his head. “What should we do with the assassin?”

Lark looked at the last remaining assassin. The man looked like a walking corpse, a man without a will of his own. This was the adverse effect of memory-reading magic. Lark was sure that right now, the man was on the verge of insanity.

“Tie him up, gag his mouth.” Lark didn’t pity the man in the slightest. Had the situation been reversed, their group would have been the one on the receiving end. “I purposely didn’t shatter his mind. In several days, he’ll eventually recover. He’ll have his use later on.”

“Understood,” said Anandra.

This man might become their trump card to force this so-called Lord Hais to confess his crimes. Killing him here would be foolish.

“Chryselle, can you cast a ward spell to prevent him from using his magic once he wakes up?” said Lark.

“Please leave it to me.”

After Anandra was done tying up the man, Chryselle started casting her spell. A chain of light wrapped around the man’s chest, before disappearing from sight. Although it wasn’t perfect, it should be enough to deter this assassin from casting his magic once he recovered.

Lark was satisfied at this. His disciples were becoming more and more reliable as time went by.

Lark turned to the princess and her knights. “Princess, do you still wish to go to the capital?”

The princess rubbed her puffy eyes. “What do you mean? Of course, I’m going!”

The princess looked at the dead body in her hands. “I can’t let his death go to waste. We’re definitely going to cure Father!”

Lark looked at the dead horses and coachmen.

Parzival followed Lark’s gaze and sighed. “The carriages are still intact, but there’s no way we can use them when all the horses are dead. I guess we’ll be walking to the capital.”

Lark took out a map from his sling bag. Based on their current location, it would take them at least four days to arrive at the capital by foot.

That would be too dangerous.

They did not know when another group of assassins would attack them. It would still be better to move by cart, since it would at least confer some protection from attacks.

“Austen, George,” Lark called out the brothers.

“Young master?”

“I’ll be borrowing your bodies for a moment.”

Austen and George instinctively took a step back. Right now, the young master was looking at them with mischievous eyes.

“Bodies? W-What do you mean, Young Master?” George asked.

Lark found those fearful eyes amusing. Did these two really think he was some sort of a demon?

“My mana’s almost depleted after casting Grand Scale Magic and after reading the memories of that assassin, so the two of you’ll have to help me. It will be a bit painful, but I’ll try to make it as tolerable as possible,” said Lark. “Come over here.”

Although reluctant, George and Austen approached the young master.

Lark stared at the brothers. “George should be enough for now.” Lark placed his hand on George’s chest. “It will be uncomfortable and a bit painful, but please try to endure.”

Lark guided the mana inside George’s body and started casting an eight-tier spell. Numerous runes started manifesting above them, forming a large magic formation. At the same time, George felt pain course through his entire body, as though dozens of needles were piercing his skin. An adverse effect of forcefully casting a high-ranking spell. Seeing the pained expression of his disciple, Lark slowed down the formation of runes as he tried to reduce the pain as much as possible.

“I’m sorry. But this is our best option as of this moment,” Lark said.

George gnashed his teeth and nodded. After a few minutes, the magic formation was finally complete.

“Follow my lead,” Lark said to George. “Now, activate your magic.”

With Lark guiding the flow of mana, George activated the spell. The boy’s eyes widened the moment the magic formation glowed and shattered into particles of light. Although he’d been guided by his master, this was the first time George had cast a high-ranking spell.

Slowly, two translucent white horses manifested before them. The mounts were so beautiful that it would have been easy to mistaken them as creatures from the legends. The horses neighed. One of them gently rubbed its head against George’s shoulder.

“T-This…” breathed George. “I was the one who cast this magic?”

The horses looked like moving crystals. On their head, two small horns protruded.

“How’s it?” Lark grinned. “Based on the amount of mana the spell consumed, it’ll take at least a day before the horses disappear. We will have already arrived at the capital by then.”

George was thrilled. He hugged the neck of the horse and even started thinking of a name. Austen frowned as he looked at the mythical-looking creatures. He wanted one too.

“Young Master,” Austen looked at George with envy, “if we need more of those things to pull the carriages—”

“—Those two are more than enough,” said Lark.

Austen gazed at the horses jealously. Right now, George was stroking their manes.

“Someday, will I be able to do that too?” Austen finally asked.

“Of course,” Lark replied without hesitation. “The two of you are still young. Just keep practicing and you’ll be able to do this on your own someday. You already have the required amount of mana, after all. For someone so young like yourselves, time is your reliable ally.”

After attaching the horses to the carriages, and after removing the trees blocking the road, the group resumed their journey to the capital. But unlike before, for some reason, the princess now sat in the same carriage as Lark and his disciples.

There was awkward silence as the princess peeked at Lark now and then. She seemed to have something to say, but would decide to keep the words to herself at the last moment.

Eventually, Lark broke the ice. “What is it, Princess?” Lark smiled, amicably, as to not frighten Her Highness.

The Princess’ face flushed upon seeing this. She could still vividly remember when Lark almost single-handedly wiped out all of the assassins. It was the first time she’d seen someone so powerful and capable. For a moment, she questioned how someone younger than her could be so well-versed in magic.

“I… I haven’t thanked you before,” she finally blurted the words out. Lark listened. “I know t-that this might sound foolish, that a princess like me is thinking this way,” said Princess Esmeralda, “b-but I consider those knights part of my family.” Tears started forming at the corner of the princess’ eyes. She bowed her head, her platinum hair covering half her face. “F-For saving Tomas. Thank you. Thank you very much.”

For a moment, silence befell the second carriage, with only the muffled sobs of the princess as the background.

“I understand what you mean,” said Lark. “The butler at Blackstone Town, the mason, the kitchen staff, even the gardener at the mansion.” Lark looked at all of his disciples seated in the carriage. “And these disciples of mine. All of them. They’re family.”

George and Austen bewilderedly stared at the young master for a moment, while Anandra simply remained stoic and silent. Chryselle, on the other hand, averted her gaze, her face a bit redder than before.

The princess raised her head and gazed at Lark. She softly said, “Family... Even the servants?” This was the first time she’d heard a noble say something like this. And for some reason, she completely agreed with it. She remembered the maids attending to her every needs back in the capital ever since she was a child—Roseanne, Julie, and Krista—she also considered those three maids as family.

“Of course.” Lark smiled broadly.

The face of the Princess flushed even further. She started staring at the floor. She mumbled, “Is… that so?”

Lark opened the window and looked outside. At this rate, they would arrive at the capital one day from now.

***

Lord Hais paced back and forth in his room in his mansion. It had been more than a day since he’d lost contact with Black Midas.

“Still no news yet?” said Lord Hais.

One of the two men kneeling in the room spoke. “We’ve yet to receive any reports from Black Midas, My Lord.”

“What the hell are those bastards doing?” he snarled, his voice echoing inside the room. “Those incompetent maggots! If they failed in killing the princess, then they should at least report to me, their new lord!” Lord Hais huffed, his face contorted in anger.

Black Midas was the undisputed strongest assassin group in the entire Kingdom. He knew that there was no way those assassins would make a rookie mistake such as not reporting back to him. If they suddenly lost contact with them, then it meant only one thing—they had all been killed by their enemy.

But that was impossible.

There were a few hundred of those assassins. Furthermore, the division leaders of that assassin group were monsters capable of single-handedly killing all of his guards.

“Damn it.” Lord Hais clicked his tongue.

For a moment, he wondered if this was a ploy of Duke Kelvin. Maybe that fat bastard merely pretended to have transferred authority over his men to him. As he was lost in his thoughts, loud knocks were heard on the door.

“My Lord, we’ve received a message from the crown,” a man’s voice was heard outside the door.

The two men kneeling on the floor bowed their heads, before disappearing from sight.

“Enter,” said Lord Hais.

The butler entered the room, bowed his head, and relayed his message. “My Lord, it seems that the princess and her men have arrived at the capital.”

Lord Hais stiffened. A bead of sweat flowed down his forehead. “H-How… Since when?”

“I believe they arrived a couple of hours ago, My Lord. They’re currently at the king’s castle.”

Lord Hais lost strength in his legs. He sat on the couch and stared at the carpeted floor for a moment. “If the princess safely arrived at the capital… then it means…”

It meant that Black Midas failed.

“My Lord?” The butler shot a worried gaze at his master. “Are you feeling unwell? Should I call a healer?”

Lord Hais shook his head. “N-No, I’m fine.”

He started collecting himself. Even if Black Midas failed to assassinate the princess and her men, it did not necessarily mean that his involvement in the assassination had been revealed to everyone else. After all, all members of Black Midas were bound by the oath of silence. They would not divulge information regarding their master, no matter what.

Lord Hais stood up, fixed his garb, and breathed in and out. “Ready the carriage. It’s been some time since I last saw my beloved niece.”

Lord Hais had decided. If all else failed, he could just pin all the blame on Duke Kelvin.

CHAPTER 20

The arrival of Lark’s group caused a bit of an uproar in the capital. It was unavoidable. After all, the crystal horses and the carriages riddled with arrows stood out like a sore thumb. Fortunately, Parzival was a well-known knight in the capital. Using his authority, they easily bypassed the checkpoints and arrived at the king’s castle.

Word regarding their group must have gone around, since by the time they’d arrived at the gates, several people were already waiting for them at the entrance. The retired General Carlos, the Seer of the Kingdom, Lady Ropianna, Priestess Thea of the Temple of the Water God, and a dozen royal guards silently watched as Lark’s group disembarked from their carriages.

Some of them stared at the crystal horses in bewilderment, while some furrowed their brows as they looked at the arrow-riddled carriages. When the knights brought out the captured assassin, the faces of everyone tensed for a moment.

“What happened, Princess?” General Carlos hurriedly tried supporting the princess as she got down the carriage.

“Andrew, he’s dead,” said the princess in a low, trembling voice.

General Carlos’ eyes immediately darted toward the opened door of the carriage. Inside was a body wrapped in cloth.

After General Carlos retired, he became one of the instructors of the knights and the soldiers of the capital. Andrew was among his students. A quiet squire back then. He couldn’t believe that the knight had perished at such a young age.

“Black Midas,” said a young man with short, silver hair. General Carlos immediately recognized him. He was the hero who defeated the Ghost of the Empire. “They attacked our group while we were on our way to the capital.”

Lark gazed at the assassin kneeling on the floor for a moment. The assassin was looking at the ground blankly, with drool dripping from his mouth.

“Black Midas,” mumbled General Carlos.

Even when Carlos was still a child, that assassin group had been ruling the underground syndicates of the Kingdom. Their reach was vast and it was impossible to trace which high-ranking officials were backing them up.

Black Midas seldomly fail in their assassination attempts. General Carlos was simply glad that the princess had returned unscathed from this ordeal.

“More importantly,” said Lark, “can I see His Majesty?”

Judging by the memories of the assassin, the king collapsed because of the poison fed to him daily.

General Carlos looked at Lady Ropianna. The hunched, elderly woman bobbed her head. If the seer approved of it, this must be the correct path to take.

“Follow me.”

General Carlos ordered the royal guards to make way, and he started leading Lark’s group toward the king’s room on the third floor of the castle.

The castle was vast, and it would take them a couple of minutes before arriving at their destination. Lark looked at the elderly woman walking next to him. He noticed that she was using magic to lift her feet momentarily as she walked, thus reducing the stress on her frail body. It was a simple but practical use of magic. Although it looked easy at first glance, one would need fine control over mana to apply this technique to everyday life.

Noticing Lark’s gaze, the elderly woman looked at him and smiled, forming numerous wrinkles on her face. She said in a raspy voice, “You must the infamous war hero, Lark Marcus.”

War Hero? Lark did not know that such a title was starting to spread among the people after his victory against the Empire in Yorkshaire City.

The elderly woman continued, “Oh my, I haven’t introduced myself yet. Forgive me.” She chuckled. “Ropianna Aria, one of the royal court magicians of the Kingdom.”

Hearing the woman’s last name, Lark glanced at Chryselle. For a moment, he wondered if the two were related to each other. But judging by their indifferent expressions, having similar surnames must have been a mere coincidence.

“Lark Marcus, Lord of Blackstone Town.” Lark bowed his head. “I’ve heard from Parzival that you took out the high-grade mana stone from a family heirloom. Thank you.”

Lady Ropianna shook her head. “Protecting the royal family is my duty. We should be the one thanking you instead. Coming all the way here from the eastern wilderness…”

Lady Ropianna looked at the leather bag carried by Lark. “I take it that the phylactery is complete?”

Lark smiled. “Yes. The blacksmith did a great job creating it. Let’s just hope it’ll be enough to contain that thing.”

Lady Ropianna was the one who’d received Parzival’s letters, and she was also the one who’d given her approval to fully support Lark’s plan. She knew that if the phylactery wasn’t strong enough to hold the fragment, they would eventually find themselves face-to-face with that legendary demon.

They finally reached the room where the king was resting. Upon seeing Lady Ropianna and General Carlos, the guards made way and opened the door.

Standing inside the room was the Grand Chamberlain and the chief healer of the capital. An old man, who reminded Lark of a withered tree, was lying on the bed. It’d only been a couple of months since he’d last seen His Majesty. For him to be reduced to such a state—If they delayed the treatment any longer, he would die soon at this rate.

“Ah, General Carlos! Lady Ropianna!” The Grand Chamberlain had large bags underneath his eyes. His eyes darted toward the princess and Lark.

Lark scanned the room. He said, “Pardon me, but are you the chief healer? The one in charge of treating His Majesty?”

The chief healer, a man in his mid-fifties, was surprised by the sudden question of this unknown guest. He stared at Lark for a moment before nodding his head. “That’s right—”

Without warning, a bolt of lightning shot out of Lark’s fingertip and struck the chief healer. Although Lark purposely reduced its strength to avoid killing his target, it was enough to render the chief healer immobile for a moment. He knelt and started gasping for air.

General Carlos instinctively pulled out his sword and pointed it Lark’s neck. “You dare use magic before His Majesty?”

Although the general was old and retired, he held the same gaze as a ferocious beast.

“The king’s being poisoned by that bastard,” said Lark. He ignored the blade pointed at his neck and cast another spell. Vines grew from the ground and ensnared the body of the chief healer.

Everyone in the room looked at the chief healer after hearing Lark’s remark. They noticed that the chief healer was aghast, as though he couldn’t believe how Lark found out. What an amateur. His face revealed his thoughts in an instant.

“Alcavar ringtail turtle, was it?” said Lark. “Its poison isn’t immediately fatal, but when taken in large amounts, it’ll cripple the body and destroy the meridians. No wonder the curse of the royals started acting up now, of all times.”

The chief healer’s body trembled.

“Treason is a crime punishable by death,” said Lark. “Your wife, children, grandchildren. Everyone down to the fourth generation will be executed. Even if the crown is lenient, burning by the stake should be enough to rectify your mistakes.”

Lark looked at the elderly woman using the corner of his eyes. Noticing his gaze, Lady Ropianna creased her eyebrows and nodded her head, confirming Lark’s words. She was surprised to hear that His Majesty had been poisoned. Furthermore, that it was done by the chief healer himself.

After hearing that even his grandchildren would be executed, all thoughts of denying the accusation escaped the chief healer. The man was obviously not used to threats like these. Still bound by the vines, the chief healer pleaded, “My grandchild is only five! He’s innocent! Everything’s part of the plan of Lord Hais. If I didn’t poison His Majesty, he would have killed my family.”

Although they weren’t sure if the reason for the chief healer’s betrayal was true, the fact that he’d admitted to the crime was more than enough. Furthermore, he gave out the name of the one behind this ploy.

“Lord Hais?” The Grand Chamberlain couldn’t believe what he’d heard. That minister was among the pillars of the king’s faction. He was among the nobles His Majesty trusted the most.

“Aldur! You fucking traitor!” snarled General Carlos. “His Majesty trusted you! Even if you somehow manage to avoid the death penalty, I’ll personally make sure to feed you to the myrmekes!”

Being subjected to the retired general’s glare was enough for the chief healer to tremble non-stop.

Lark took out a vial from his pouch and handed it to Lady Ropianna. “This should be enough to detoxify the body of His Majesty. Luckily, they used a weak toxin.” Lady Ropianna looked at the red liquid sloshing inside the vial. Seeing her curious gaze, Lark said, “Middle-grade healing potion.”

Lady Ropianna and General Carlos looked at each other. The two of them had been trying to find ways to cure the king for quite some time now. Several months ago, they’d heard of a mysterious potion circulating in the black market. A miracle medicine which originated from the eastern part of the Kingdom.

A single vial cost a hundred gold coins, and according to their intel, it was more potent that the ones produced by the alchemists of the royal family. Large wounds would heal in a rate visible to the human eyes; the potion’s ability to heal was even better than the most expensive medicines sold in the capital.

Unfortunately, the supply was scarce to the point that they failed to get their hands on it even after offering triple the amount. This was to be expected, since Lark made sure to produce only four to five vials of those potions each month. And when Lark went to the front lines to participate in the war, the production of these middle-grade potions stopped.

To think that they’d get their hands on one of those potions now, of all times.

Lady Ropianna opened the vial, dipped a finger inside and licked the liquid on her finger. After confirming that it wouldn’t harm those who consumed it, she carefully administered it to His Majesty.

After a minute, the king’s skin started regaining its healthy color. Although he was still emaciated, he no longer looked like a withered twig. The middle-grade potion would do nothing to halt the curse, but it was more than enough to neutralize the poison from His Majesty’s body.

Lady Ropianna carefully studied His Majesty for a moment, before casting several healing spells on his body.

To Lark’s surprise, he didn’t recognize more than half the spells the seer used to heal His Majesty. They were probably no stronger than third-tier healing spells judging by the flow of mana, but the mere fact that it was the first time Lark encountered them made him wonder of the other magic people used in this timeline.

He decided that once given the chance, he would study the magic in this Kingdom. Some people might glorify him to be one of the strongest magicians to have ever lived, but Lark never considered himself omniscient in magic. He knew that even if he spent hundreds of years studying, it’d be impossible to learn everything.

The king finally opened his eyes. Seeing this, the princess shouted, “Father!” and went to his side. She grasped his hand, and repeatedly mumbled, “Thank God! Thank God!”

“Esmeralda?” The king felt the firm grip of his daughter. “What are you doing here?” The last he remembered, she went to Blackstone Town under the pretext of a ‘cultural exchange program.’

The King’s eyes scanned the room. He gazed at the chief healer bound by the vines, General Carlos, the Grand Chamberlain, the priestess of the temple, the seer, and finally, Lark Marcus.

“Ropianna,” said King Alvis.

“Your Majesty.” The hunched, elderly woman bowed her head. “I’m glad you’re finally awake.”

“What happened here?” asked King Alvis, his voice weak.

Lady Ropianna deliberated for a moment if it was wise to tell the king everything, when he’d just woken up. But after some thinking, she decided to reveal everything that transpired.

The king listened silently as the seer told him everything she knew. After she was done, the king sighed and looked at the chief healer.

“Aldur,” said King Alvis. “Why?”

To the chief healer’s surprise, the eyes of the king held no anger, only sadness and regret. The eyes of someone who’d been betrayed by a very close friend.

Under normal circumstances, the chief healer would have tried making excuses at this moment, but after seeing King Alvis’ gaze, he simply bowed his head and closed his eyes. He mumbled, “I’m sorry.”

Silence befell the room.

After some time, General Carlos spoke, “Your Majesty, regarding Lord Hais…”

“Let none of this leak to the outside,” said the king. “We do not know who our enemies are, right now. Invite all the ministers, government officials, royal court magicians, and nobles to the throne room, including Minister Hais.”

“Understood.” General Carlos saluted.

“Let’s see what my friend, Lord Hais, has to say,” said the King.

He sounded lonely, as though he’d lost a member of his family.

CHAPTER 21

The moment Lord Hais arrived at the king’s castle and disembarked from his carriage, he was immediately seized by several soldiers.

“What’s the meaning of this?” snarled Lord Hais. “Unhand me at once!”

A familiar raspy voice replied, “We’ve just finished talking with the princess’ group just now, Minister Hais, surely you understand what this is all about?”

Lord Hais’ eyes widened and he immediately understood. His worst fears had come true. But how did they pry the information out of those assassins? How did they bypass the oath of silence binding them? He furrowed his eyebrows, trying to feign his innocence as much as possible. “Yes, I heard that Esmeralda has returned. That’s why I immediately rushed here to the castle.” He glared at the guards holding him down. “Only to be mistreated by these imbeciles!”

The guards momentarily shrank from his glare, but they didn’t release him regardless.

“Ropianna, this is a transgression! A crime against a minister of the Kingdom!” Lord Hais continued glaring at everyone around him. “Even if you’re a royal court magician, you will not escape punishment!” Lord Hais started dishing out threats, but the elderly woman simply stared at him, unperturbed by his words. Her eyes were filled with disappointment.

“Take him to the throne room,” said Lady Ropianna.

“Yes, Lady Magician!”

His hands cuffed and his magic sealed by the royal court magician, Lord Hais was taken to the throne room.

To Lord Hais’ surprise, the throne room was already half full by the time he arrived. All of the remaining ministers of the Kingdom, nobles from different factions, royal court magicians, various officials of the capital, and even the retired General Carlos were already inside. Judging by their surprised faces when the guards brought him in, they were still in the dark about what was going on right now.

General Carlos, clad in plate armor, nodded at Lady Ropianna. It seemed that in this room, only these two knew what was going on at the current moment.

Murmurs filled the throne room as everyone looked at Lord Hais. He was forced to kneel on the floor, his body tied with chains and with magic.

Although some nobles friendly with Lord Hais started to protest against his current treatment, none of them dared to forcefully ask for him to be released, especially after seeing the glare of the retired general.

The buzz continued, until the gigantic double doors of the throne room were opened, and Viscount Lakian, the Grand Chamberlain of the King, entered. He tapped his staff against the ground. Silence befell the throne room at once.

“The embodiment of God Nruz. The Heart of the Sun. His Majesty, King Alvis Lukas VI has arrived. Everyone, show your respect.”

Everyone in the throne room was struck speechless when an emaciated old man started walking toward the throne. He looked ill and weak, but his every movement was the epitome of the word regal.

“K-King Alvis?” whispered one of the nobles.

Everyone knew that the king had collapsed and hadn’t woken up yet. They hadn’t expected to see the king here, awake and walking.

The first to kneel were the retired General Carlos and Lady Ropianna, followed by the royal guards. Seeing this, everyone else followed suit. The sound of the king’s footsteps echoed in the throne room.

Behind the king, the princess, and her knights, several other unfamiliar faces followed behind.

After the king sat on the throne, he spoke, “Everyone, rise. You may raise your heads.”

Everyone stood up and looked at the king sitting on the throne. Now that they’d taken a careful look, it was indeed King Alvis. There was no doubt about it.

Standing next to the king was Princess Esmeralda, and right next to the princess was a young man with short silver hair and clear blue eyes. Just a single look was enough for the nobles to realize the identity of that person. But what was the second son of Duke Drakus doing here at the capital? And why was he standing next to the princess?

Everyone in the throne room held several questions in their mind. Judging by the sudden summon of the crown, something big was going to happen moments from now.

The king looked at everyone in the room, before his eyes landed on Lord Hais. “Hais, it’s been a while,” said the king.

Lord Hais, still shackled by metallic chains and magic, bowed his head. “Yes, Your Majesty. I’m truly glad to see you safe and sound.”

The face of the king contorted for a moment upon hearing those words. Was it anger, disappointment, sadness? No one was sure. Everyone here knew that Lord Hais was among the pillars of the king’s faction. They could not understand why Lord Hais was currently kneeling there, his body bound by chains.

Silence befell the throne room.

Eventually, the King sighed and rubbed his temples. “Hais, I’m disappointed in you.”

“F-Forgive me, but I do not understand, Your Majesty,” said Lord Hais in a trembling voice.

General Carlos snorted. “Stop feigning ignorance. We already know that you’re the reason for His Majesty’s collapse.”

Those words stirred everyone in the throne room. They couldn’t believe that a rift had formed between the king and the minister. Furthermore, it seemed that Lord Hais tried to harm His Majesty.

Lord Hais continued to tremble. He still did his best to feign ignorance of what was going on. “I… I don’t understand, Your Majesty! I’ve been your faithful ally, even before your coronation. I would never dare harm you!” Lord Hais glared at Lady Ropianna and General Carlos. “I don’t know what kind of lies those two fed you, my King! But please believe me!”

Lord Hais noticed the princess standing next to the king. She wore a look of disappointment as she looked at her uncle.

“Princess Esmeralda, please tell your father! You know that Uncle Hais would never do something to harm His Majesty, right?”

The princess bit her lip and shook her head, disagreeing with all the things Lord Hais just said.

Lord Hais’ eyes darted toward the young man standing next to the princess. Lord Hais did not like the pair of blue eyes that were looking at him as though he was garbage.

“Bring in the chief healer,” said the king.

On cue, a man in his mid-fifties was brought into the throne room by the guards. Just like Lord Hais, the chief healer was bound by chains.

“The chief healer already confessed to the crime this morning,” said the king.

Shivers crawled down Lord Hais’ spine upon hearing this.

The king said to the chief healer, “Aldur, let everyone in this room hear it.”

Before Lord Hais could stop him, the chief healer started recounting the story in a desperately loud voice. Spit flew out as the chief healer blabbered his mouth nonstop. At the same time, the everyone’s face slowly transitioned from disbelief, to disgust, and eventually, anger.

According to the chief healer, Lord Hais was the one pulling the strings—the one behind the collapse of His Majesty. After he captured the chief healer’s only grandchild, the minister coerced the chief healer to slowly feed poison to the king, eventually resulting in His Majesty’s collapse during the banquet.

“H-His Majesty is already weak from age,” said the chief healer. “W-With the help of the poison, the curse used this opportunity to start devouring the king’s soul.”

To some of the government officials, this was the first time they’d heard of this curse. But most of the nobles in the room were aware that an incurable curse ran down the blood of the royal family. It was just simply taboo to talk about it.

“Lies!” shouted Lord Hais. “Why would I poison the king? Everyone knows that I’m loyal to His Majesty! If we think about it, who will gain the most if His Majesty suddenly dies? Surely, it isn’t me! How about the Kelvins! The Marcuses! The Youchesters!”

Lord Hais started pushing the blame to others. “None of my sons are eligible for the throne! As part of the king’s faction, if His Majesty dies, we’ll be the ones to suffer the most!”

A buzz filled the throne room once again. The nobles and government officials started discussing things among themselves. The argument of Lord Hais was valid, after all. They could not see what the minister would gain from this ploy.

“The chief healer is obviously trying to frame me, Your Majesty!” pleaded Lord Hais. “They’re trying to break one of the pillars of your faction! Please reconsider, my king!”

The king fell silent. Everything Lord Hais had said made sense.

He looked at the priestess from the Temple of the Water God. “Priestess Thea. Could you perform an Oath of Veracity for us?”

“I’d be happy to, Your Majesty.” The priestess bowed her head and moved to where Lord Hais was situated.

The king said to Lord Hais, “In front of all these witnesses, we will now conduct an Oath of Veracity. If what you are saying is truly correct, you shall be freed from all allegations and criminal liabilities.”

Color started draining from Lord Hais’ face as the priestess came closer.

“But if it is found that you are behind the attempted assassination,” the king paused for a few seconds, as though he couldn’t bring himself to say his next words, “you shall be publicly executed.”

The priestess finally stood before Lord Hais. In a soft voice, she said, “Please forgive my impudence, but we shall proceed with the ritual, minister.”

The priestess took out a dagger and made a small cut on the Lord Hais’ finger. With practiced movements, she started performing the ritual. Slowly, a small magic formation formed underneath her feet.

Lord Hais panicked. Once the Oath of Veracity was complete, he would have no choice but to tell everyone the truth. Even a simple lie would subject his body to the most excruciating pain possible.

Realizing that he had no way out of this mess, he decided to confess everything. It would be better to speak now, while the oath hadn’t bound his body yet.

“I’ll tell you everything!” he shouted. Lord Hais breathed in. “That’s right! I’m the one behind the poisoning of His Majesty!”

There was momentary silence, before the crowd burst into outrage. Those loyal to the crown were glaring at him, while the fence-sitters held bewildered gazes.

The king grabbed his chest after hearing Lord Hais’ words.

“Your Majesty!” said one of the guards.

“I’m fine,” breathed King Alvis. Tears started forming at the corner of his eyes. For some reason, this betrayal felt more painful than the curse. He felt his heart being squeezed as the words of his friend echoed in his mind.

Princess Esmeralda clenched her fists and bit her lip, but managed to hold back her tears. She remained standing next to her father, concerned of his well-being.

“Hais, when we were young,” King Alvis struggled to say his words due to the squeezing pain in his heart, “we both dreamed of a better Kingdom. Isn’t that right? I was merely the Crown Prince back then, and you were just the deputy to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Back then, you repeatedly proposed several reforms for the Kingdom, ways to improve the lives of the citizens.”

The pain became more unbearable as the King reminisced. This was more painful than the betrayal of the chief healer.

“When my father died and the Southern Faction revolted, you were the first person to come to my aid.” The king gripped the armrest. “You rallied your troops to quell the rebellion, along with Carlos, Ropianna, and Mikael. You never left my side until the end of the Bloody Thorn Plains Incident.”

That incident solidified the King’s trust in Lord Hais. When all seemed lost and the rebels managed to breach the capital, Lord Hais was among those who stood valiantly at the front lines.

“So why?” The king’s snarl echoed in the throne room. His chest rapidly rose and fell. When the anguish became unbearable, it finally turned into anger. “Why did you do it?” said the king. “Was it for money, for power? You could have told me and I would have done what I could to help you! We’re friends, aren’t we?!”

No one expected such words to come out of the king’s mouth. Just now, King Alvis spoke to Lord Hais not as the ruler of this Kingdom, but as a lifelong friend. As a comrade who’d been with him through numerous tribulations.

“Lock him up in the dungeon.” The King spoke through gritted teeth. “In accordance to the laws of the Kingdom, he shall be executed in public at a later date.”

Several guards immediately moved to drag away Lord Hais from the throne room.

“W-Wait! I was merely forced into this, Your Majesty!” shouted Lord Hais. “Please believe me. It’s all part of that man’s plan!”

King Alvis raised his hand and the soldiers stopped.

“Speak.”

“Everything was part of Du—”

Duke Kelvin’s plans.

For some reason, Lord House couldn’t utter those words out loud.

He felt a tingling sensation on his hand, specifically at the part where Duke Kelvin engraved the crests of Black Midas. Slowly, Lord Hais’ eyes widened. He realized the real reason Duke Kelvin easily gave him these crests. The tingling sensation started to burn, and the crests started sucking in all the mana in his body.

“What’s happening?!”

Lord Hais raised his hand and noticed that it was swelling at a noticeable rate. The same was true for his face, trunk, and legs.

“I-It hurts! H-Help! Help me!”

Lord Hais screamed. Slowly, his body bloated, as though he’d swallowed large amounts of water.

Lark Marcus was the first one to react among the crowd. He leaped toward Lord Hais and placed a hand on his chest and channeled his mana into it, immediately suppressing the body from growing any further than this.

But it was too late.

Blood and muddy water started flowing from Lord Hais’ eyes, ears, and mouth. Seeing this, Lark gave up all thoughts of saving him. He took a few steps back and cast a small dome-shaped barrier spell, enclosing Lord Hais’ body.

The bloated body finally burst, sending innards, blood, and muddy water flying about. Thankfully, the barrier spell blocked everything, preventing them from splattering the surrounding officials.

The nobles started screaming in fright, while the royal guards immediately moved in front of His Majesty.

Lark was in dismay as he stared at what remained of Lord Hais’ body. If he had been a few seconds quicker to respond, he would have been able to prevent the spell from killing the minister.

“What… happened?” said the king. “Why did Hais suddenly…”

Lady Ropianna trudged toward what remained of Lord Hais’ body. After closely inspecting the remains, she said, “An Oath of Death, Your Majesty. And the repercussions and restrictions placed on this one are… quite brutal, it seems.”

She looked at Lark, as though asking for confirmation. The young man simply stood there, his eyes fixated on the disfigured corpse.

“An Oath of Death,” said King Alvis. “I’ve seen one before… But is it supposed to be as ruthless as this?”

“It isn’t usually,” said Lady Ropianna.

Piercing the heart with magic was more than sufficient to kill a person, and this was the most common form of repercussion in an Oath of Death. Even for Lady Ropianna, this was the first time she’d encountered such an extremely brutal case.

“It seems that even Minister Hais didn’t know that he was under the oath,” she said. The minister’s reaction as before his death was peculiar, no matter how she thought about it.

Lady Ropianna looked at the king and added, “But one thing is for sure—there’s another person behind the attempted assassination of His Majesty.”

CHAPTER 22

“Another person,” repeated King Alvis. The words of Lady Ropianna echoed in his mind. He rubbed his brows as his head started to ache. So many events transpired the moment he woke up, taking their toll on his mind.

Who was it? Who was the man behind Lord Hais? The real culprit pulling the strings.

While the king was in deep thought, Elias, one of the three royal court magicians present in the throne room, approached the disfigured corpse. He glanced at Lark and passed by him. Upon reaching the corpse of Lord Hais, he bent down and grabbed the sundered hand lying on the ground. The faces of the nobles and government officials who saw this contorted from disgust.

“Interesting,” said the royal court magician. “The spell just ended, but there are no longer any traces of magic left in his corpse.”

Blood dripped down the severed hand he was holding.

“Elias, what do you think?” said the king.

Elias was the best archer of the Kingdom and ranked among the royal court magicians. His eyesight and reflexes were far better than your average soldier. It was well-known that he could even catch an arrow with his fingers.

Surprisingly, despite being an archer, Elias’ skin was whiter than snow. It was as though his body was drained of all blood, as though he’d never been exposed to the scorching sun before.

Elias ‘Farsight’ saw everything moments before Lord Hais’ death. He was sure that not just one, but five crests activated before the minister’s body burst into pieces. But now that he’d personally checked the minister’s corpse, there were no longer any traces of magic left in it. It was peculiar.

“If I’m not mistaken… the minister was bound by five Oaths of Death, Your Majesty,” said Elias.

“F-Five?” said the king.

It was unheard of. Just one was enough to kill a person.

“Priestess Thea,” said Elias. His black eyes were a stark contrast to his pale, white skin. “Is it possible for a single person to undergo five Oaths of Death at the same time?”

Priestess Thea stared at the corpse of the minister then shook her head. “I’m… not sure. I’ve heard from a fellow priest regarding two concurrent oaths, but five? It’s probably never been done before, and I don’t see any merit in doing so.”

It seemed that five oaths had never been attempted before. Even the priestess from the Water God’s Temple did not know the answer to his question.

“Is that so?” Elias frowned. “Then was it a mistake?”

As Elias started doubting what he saw, the young man standing silently near the corpse spoke.

“I also saw them,” said Lark. “Five crests. The first one pierced the minister’s chest, and the remaining four forced their way through his mana core and overloaded his inner circuit. His body couldn’t handle the rampaging mana—” Lark looked at the disfigured corpse on the ground. “—And burst into pieces.”

Elias was surprised to hear a detailed explanation of what transpired. Even he, the best archer of the Kingdom, couldn’t catch all those details at once.

“I agree with what Lady Ropianna said,” said Lark. “It seemed that the minister wasn’t aware that he was bound by an Oath of Death.”

The petrified expression of the minister moments before his death was still vivid in everyone’s mind. It wasn’t the face of someone who knew beforehand that he was going to die.

***

Due to Lord Hais’ unexpected death, Lady Ropianna suggested that they postpone discussing the method to sever the curse running through the blood of the royal family to a later date.

Lord Hais was among the most trusted vassals of King Alvis and one of his closest friends. The minister’s betrayal, coupled with his gruesome death, had taken a toll on His Majesty’s mental health.

After that incident, the king followed Lady Ropianna’s advice and rested in his room for two days, refusing any and all audiences from his subjects.

On the third day, the king finally summoned Lark’s group to the throne room to discuss the method proposed in the letter.

When Lark and his disciples arrived in the throne room, nobles belonging to the king’s faction, royal knights, royal court magicians, various government officials, and the princess and her knights were already inside.

There were fewer people gathered here today than last time. Lark surmised that the king summoned only his trusted vassals.

Lark started with formalities. Together with his disciples, he knelt on one knee and bowed his head.

“It’s an honor to be in the presence of Your Majesty!”

“I-It’s an honor to be in the presence of Your Majesty!”

Chryselle and Anandra performed the stance with swift but graceful movements, as though they’d practiced it several times before. Austen and George’s movements, on the other hand, were stiff and awkward. The brothers were too nervous and stuttered the words out.

“Please rise,” said King Alvis. “There’s no need for useless formalities. Especially after saving this old man’s life.”

Lark and his disciples stood up and they finally gazed at the king. The old man sitting on the throne looked better than before. Although he’d locked himself inside his room after that incident, it seemed that he hadn’t neglected his health. His cheeks no longer looked sunken and his skin had regained its vibrant color.

“Everyone here has already been briefed regarding the method you’ve proposed in your letter,” said King Alvis. “And the royal court magicians have analyzed this so-called phylactery we’ll be using to sever the curse.”

Lark looked at the royal court magicians standing just below the throne. Lady Ropianna was gently smiling at him, Elias ‘Farsight’ was staring at Anandra, while the remaining royal court magician—a muscular bald man who could be easily mistaken as a mercenary—held a fierce gaze.

“Ropianna, please tell us what you think,” said the king.

Lady Ropianna bowed her head at the king for a moment, before turning her gaze to the crowd. Everyone turned silent. Her raspy voice was surprisingly audible. “Frankly speaking, three days isn’t enough time for us to fully analyze the phylactery,” said the elderly female magician.

The nobles and government officials understood what those words meant: the magic engraved in that item was probably complex enough that even royal court magicians were unable to fully understand it in just a couple of days.

Lady Ropianna pointed a finger at the black bag sitting next to her feet. It opened by itself and a silver-black jar hovered up and stopped right above her head. It slowly spun around.

She said, “The exterior’s quite plain, and if not for its silver-black sheen, it would have been difficult to identify this as a magic item at first glance. But the interior… it’s the first time I’ve seen such a complex magic circle. It’s amazing that the blacksmith managed to engrave those overlapping magic formations inside this thing.”

Lady Ropianna paused and said to Lark, “I think it is safe to assume that the magic engraved in this jar is meant to suppress the so-called demon’s fragment.”

“That is correct, lady magician,” said Lark.

Lady Ropianna pondered. “I see. As expected… Judging by the runes, it’s probably a barrier spell. A very strong one at that. Tenth-tier magic might not be enough to suppress the fragment… then is it… Grand Scale Magic? But it’s never been done before…”

Her last few words trailed off.

Hearing this, Elias frowned. “Hey, Ropianna,” said Elias. “We’ve discussed it beforehand, right? It’s impossible to engrave Grand Scale Magic into an artifact! Moreover in an item as small as that! It’s probably tenth-tier at most. Stop with the useless questions—”

“—Sir Lark Marcus still hasn’t answered my question.” Ropianna cast a glare at Elias. “Don’t butt in, Farsight.”

“Seriously, this old woman.” Elias clicked his tongue.

Ropianna turned to Lark and smiled. “What kind of spell is engraved inside the mithril jar? I’ve been halting the progression of the curse of His Majesty for several years now. I’m quite sure that the demon who helped found this Kingdom is a ridiculously strong one.”

Lark knew that whether or not they’d proceed with his suggested method depended on his answer to this one. It seemed that to Lady Ropianna, anything less than Grand Scale Magic wouldn’t be enough to restrain the demonic fragment.

Lark agreed on her sentiment.

“It’s a spell called Heaven’s Dominion,” said Lark. “A barrier spell, just like Lady Ropianna speculated.”

Chryselle stared at Lark in astonishment upon hearing the name of the spell. Lady Ropianna and Elias, on the other hand, were unperturbed. It seemed that they weren’t familiar with the spell.

The bald royal court magician who’d been silent until now chuckled. He glared at Lark and said mockingly, “How funny. Brat, do you even know what kind of spell Heaven’s Dominion is?”

Ropianna furrowed her brows at that statement. “Nickolai.”

Nickolai looked at Ropianna and Elias. “The two of you probably aren’t aware of it, but the name of the spell that kid spouted—it’s the same spell protecting the Dwarven Kingdom as of this moment.” Nickolai smirked. He roared, as though what Lark just said was the most offensive thing he’d heard, “Heaven’s Dominion isn’t Grand Scale Magic, kid! It’s a magic exclusive to dragons! Are you taking us for fools, you shitty brat?”

Nickolai’s voice echoed in the throne room. The nobles and government officials flinched, while General Carlos held a dissatisfied gaze. He was about to reprimand the royal court magician for shouting while under the presence of the His Majesty, but King Alvis wordlessly stopped him. Seeing Lark’s confident gaze, King Alvis decided to see how things would play out.

“T-The barrier spell that has been protecting the Dwarven Kingdom for centuries?” one of the nobles said.

“I-If we have such a spell engraved in that mithril jar then maybe…”

“Stop dreaming,” Nickolai said to the nobles. “You heard what Farsight said a while ago, right? It’s impossible to engrave anything beyond tenth-tier magic into an artifact. Heaven’s Dominion is Pinnacle Grade Magic. A spell even Grand Scale Magic couldn’t compare to. And this kid is telling us that a spell exclusive to dragons is going to be activated the moment we pour mana into that phylactery?” Nickolai sneered. “This brat is clearly delusional. It seems that we’ve wasted all that wait for nothing.”

King Alvis stroked his beard. “Lark Marcus. Is everything Nickolai said true?

Lark remained stoic despite Nickolai’s mocking words. “Half of it, yes.”

Nickolai glared at Lark.

“Half of it?” said King Alvis. “I am no magician, so I hope you can explain everything to me in a manner I can understand.”

“Of course, Your Majesty,” said Lark. “It’s true that Heaven’s Dominion is Pinnacle Grade Magic. The highest tier of magic there is. But it isn’t true that it’s impossible to engrave spells higher than tenth-tier into artifacts. This phylactery is testament to that. And it also isn’t true that Heaven’s Dominion is a spell exclusive to dragons.”

The throne room was silent as everyone listened to Lark’s words.

Lark raised his index finger. “Mana capacity. It’s one of the fundamental things separating dragons from humans. Even if a hundred ordinary magicians pooled all of their mana, it probably wouldn’t be enough to cast a single Pinnacle Grade Magic spell. But dragons are different. If a dragon used up all of the mana stored in its body, it should be possible for it to cast Pinnacle Grade Magic on its own, without external help. Without artifacts, fancy rituals and magic formations.”

Lark continued, “Theoretically speaking, if there exists a human with a mana pool comparable to dragons, and he has a medium to channel that enormous amount of mana into, it should be possible for him to also cast Pinnacle Grade Magic on his own. A dragon’s resilient body is capable of acting as a medium, but humans would need artifacts—made of mithril or adamantite—to perform Pinnacle Grade Magic.”

The reason Lark considered the Sword of Morpheus his most prized possession was because of this. It was the perfect medium when performing the highest tier spells. It didn’t break even after he’d cast consecutive Pinnacle Grade Magic spells when he fended off the Demon Lord’s army on his own, back then.

“Interesting,” said the King. “Ropianna, what do you think?”

“It’s plausible, Your Majesty.” Lady Ropianna bobbed her head. “If this young man’s logic is truly correct, we can assume that Pinnacle Grade Magic isn’t exclusive to dragons. I wonder… Maybe this misconception was borne from the fact that no human in our Kingdom’s history has ever managed to cast the highest tier of magic? I should look more into this theory, once we’ve taken care of the curse.”

“Plausible?” Nickolai snorted. “You said it yourself, kid. You’ll need mana comparable to dragons to perform that magic!”

“That’s what the flower is for,” said Lark. “Tears of Ubroxia is not really a flower, but a crystallized form of mana. You must have seen it yourselves, those petals that look like they’ve been sculpted from ice.”

It was the same reason why it grew only in mana-dense areas.

“I have two questions, if you don’t mind,” said Lady Ropianna. “First… I’ve seen the flower myself. Indeed, there are vast amounts of mana contained inside the flower, but I doubt it’ll be enough to supply the amount needed to perform Pinnacle Grade Magic. Second, I heard that you requested all available royal court magicians and soldiers to be present during the magic ritual, in case the demon called Agares successfully crosses over to this Kingdom. You even requested for an isolated place where we can perform the spell. A place without any innocent civilians.”

The magic holding the phylactery vanished and the mithril jar fell on Lady Ropianna’s hands. It was very light, compared to its size.

Lady Ropianna continued, “No matter how strong the demon is, it’ll be extremely hard to break a barrier created from Pinnacle Grade Magic. There must be a reason why you requested the royal family mobilize the military.”

Everyone’s attention was on Lark once again. He said, “You are correct. The amount of mana inside the flower is comparable to probably only three to four high-grade mana stones. It isn’t enough to supply the colossal amount of mana needed to perform Pinnacle Grade Magic. But Tears of Ubroxia is special in a way that it is formed by sucking in ambient mana. The same will be true the moment it’s been pulverized into dust and used to activate the magic formation in the mithril jar. The mana the flower is lacking, we’ll forcefully gather from the surroundings.”

“As for your second question, the answer is simple. The spell itself isn’t the problem. The problem lies with the phylactery. Like I’ve told you before, adamantite is the ideal material for this. A chain is no stronger than its weakest link. No matter how strong Heaven’s Dominion is, if the phylactery can’t contain the spell, the demon’s fragment will break out sooner or later.”

CHAPTER 23

After several hours of heated discussion, everyone in the throne room finally came to a consensus—they decided to go with Lark’s suggestion, but under one strict condition: The ritual should be done in a place far from the capital, a desolated place with no innocent civilians.

It was decided that the ritual would be done at Fork Meadow. A vast grassland to the east of Golden Wheat City, right next to the border of the Dwarven Kingdom.

Lady Ropianna revealed to everyone that the moment things went out of hand, she planned on including the dwarves in this mess. Even if she was unable to subdue the demon, she was confident of luring it toward the border of the Dwarven Kingdom. Surely, the dragon guarding its border wouldn’t sit still if a powerful demon suddenly appeared near its protected territory.

Lark was amazed that the elderly female magician thought of this tactic. Shrewd, shameless, but ingenious regardless.

Without further delay, the royal family started mobilizing the army. A thousand elite soldiers, three royal court magicians, a dozen priests capable of healing spells, two hundred mercenaries, and two hundred royal guards made their way toward Fork Meadow.

Over a dozen carts filled with rations, weapons, and sundries moved out of the capital. Coupled with the army marching toward the east, the residents of the capital feared that war had erupted once again. Various rumors about why the army stationed in the capital had been mobilized spread among the masses.

The army moved relentlessly toward the meadow, eventually reaching it after almost two weeks.

During this time, Lark refilled the mana inside the mithril cubes. He also started enchanting the sword he bought from Garma, fortifying its strength severalfold.

By the time they’d arrived, the villages in the meadow were already empty. All villagers had already been evacuated to the Youchester Duchy.

Lark and his disciples disembarked from their carriage.

“What a huge mountain,” said George.

A colossal mountain range, comparable to Yorkshaire, formed a natural barrier to the east, its tip touching the clouds.

“It’s even larger than Yorkshaire.” Austen had to look all the way up to see the top.

“That’s where the dwarves live,” said Lark. “Do you see that white haze over there?” George and Austen stared at the white haze obscuring the lower half of the mountain range. “That’s the famous barrier protecting the Dwarven Kingdom.” George and Austen gawked at the white haze after hearing Lark’s words.

Nickolai was right. It was Pinnacle Grade Magic. Lark was sure of it. Even from this distance, he could feel the vast amounts of mana maintaining the spell. The dragon must have been supplying it with mana on a regular basis, since the barrier was still at its strongest even after centuries had passed.

Seeing the barrier with his own eyes confirmed the presence of the dragon. Those creatures, which could live for more than a millennium, would sometimes hibernate for several years, and he was worried that it would have been sleeping since winter was looming. But now, he was sure that the dragon was awake after seeing the barrier at its full strength.

Lark looked around. The soldiers were currently making camp, the royal guards started setting up defenses, while the mercenaries started installing traps.

Lark told everyone in the throne room back then that High Demons and above were capable of summoning lesser demons at their beck and call. Agares wouldn’t be their only problem once the phylactery failed to contain the fragment. If worse comes to worst, they might face a demon horde. This was why the royal family enlisted the help of these mercenaries. Unlike your regular soldiers, these unruly men had vast amounts of experience in dealing with monsters.

“Sir Lark, we’re done with the preparations. We’ve gathered all the necessary materials,” said a soldier. He pointed at a large clearing where several sacks filled with ormatane and gold dust sat.

The phylactery and the high-grade mana stone were with him, the flower was with Lady Ropianna. Lark decided to draw the magic formation now.

Lark cast his spell and a fire serpent manifested before him. It slithered around and started burning the grasses around him, creating a fifty-meter wide scorched clearing, before finally dissipating.

Lark nodded in satisfaction at the now grassless patch of land. He grabbed the sacks containing the ormatane and gold dust and started mixing the two. Using magic, the large sack flew up, tilted to the side, and the mixture of ormatane and gold dust started pouring on the ground, forming a twenty-meter wide magic formation.

The three royal court magicians watched wordlessly as Lark drew the magic formation on the ground. As layers upon layers of runes were drawn, they realized that the magic formation greatly resembled the one inside the phylactery’s. If Lark’s words were indeed true, then right now, they were witnessing with their own eyes the creation of the magic formation of a Pinnacle Grade Spell.

“Hey, the kid’s quite skilled, isn’t he?” said Farsight.

Nickolai remained silent, while Lady Ropianna bobbed her head.

Impressively, the dust mixture didn’t stop flowing and continued drawing the magic formation, without interruption. It seemed simple at first glance, but the three royal court magicians knew more than anyone here how hard it was to achieve this. This was how the mana was supposed to flow once the magic formation was completed—freely flowing, without halt or disturbance. This went to show how familiar Lark was with this Pinnacle Grade Spell.

After half an hour, Lark finally stopped. The large sack filled with the dust mixture was almost empty by now. He placed the sack down to the side.

“Lady magician, the flower,” Lark said to Ropianna.

Lady Ropianna walked gingerly toward Lark, as though afraid of breaking the small wooden chest in her hands. Upon reaching Lark, she opened it and handed him the flower.

“Thank you,” said Lark.

The elderly female magician wore her usual benign smile. “That was… quite enlightening to watch. The technique you used to circumvent the overlapping runes at the third and fourth layer was ingenious. Farsight and Nickolai probably won’t admit it, but they definitely learned something incredibly useful today.”

“Is that so?” chuckled Lark. He looked at Farsight and was immediately greeted by a frown. It seemed that the best archer of the Kingdom had keen hearing; he definitely heard the words Lady Ropianna said just now.

“I’ll grind this flower into dust,” said Lark. “Lady magician… After this, there’s no going back.”

“We know,” said Lady Ropianna.

After Lady Ropianna moved back to where the rest of the royal court magicians were standing, Lark started grinding the flower into dust. Its petals, which looked as though they’d been sculpted from ice, formed cracks and shattered into numerous minute pieces. Even its core was pulverized.

Lark used the dust created from the Tears of Ubroxia to complete the innermost layer of the magic formation.

Lark approached the king, who’d been watching him from a distance. He bowed. “Your Majesty, the magic formation is almost complete. All that’s left is the blood of the sacrifice.”

“My blood, huh?” said King Alvis. “Of course. Take as much as you need.”

It sounded as though the king was willing to give him half a bucket of blood if needed. Lark politely smiled. “Three drops should do, Your Majesty. Please follow me.”

Lark led the king to the center of the magic formation. He handed him a small knife. “Whenever you’re ready, Your Majesty.”

King Alvis unhesitatingly pressed his thumb against the blade. Blood dripped down the wound and fell into the phylactery’s mouth. Upon the third drop of blood, the magic circle came into life. Beautiful azure runes glowed and the layers of magic formation started spinning around.

Lark amplified his voice using magic. He said to everyone present, “Listen. We will now conduct the ritual to sever the curse running through the blood of the royals. Soldiers, priests, mercenaries, magicians—battle could break out moments from now. Ready yourselves.”

The tension in the air became palpable.

The military officers began issuing out commands. The soldiers and mercenaries pulled out their weapons, all the while the priests and the royal court magicians readied their spells.

Elias ‘Farsight’ had already moved a kilometer away, his arrow pointed in Lark’s direction. If the phylactery broke and the demon appeared, he would immediately fire his strongest magic arrows at it.

Lady Ropianna started preparing the spell—Grand Sanctuary. A ninth-tier spell capable of healing hundreds of people at once. At the same time, she also cast Indomitable Shield on the King. Although it was only a fifth-tier barrier spell, it was a lot better than leaving His Majesty unguarded. Nickolai, on the other hand, cast the ninth-tier spell—Trident of the Lightning God. Three fifteen-meter large lightning spears appeared at the sky, all of them pointed at the direction of the phylactery.

Seeing the spells cast by these famous magicians reassured the soldiers and mercenaries. Some of them even thought that it was overkill. No matter how they thought of it, it’d be impossible for a creature to survive after being impaled by those three gargantuan lightning spears.

“Your Majesty,” said Lark. “Your safety will be our top priority. If the demon breaks out of the phylactery, just as we planned, we’ll immediately flee in the direction of the Dwarven Kingdom.”

The King nodded. He also agreed with this plan, since they’ll be luring the demon away from the direction of the Kingdom of Lukas.

Lark breathed in deeply and said in a firm voice, “Let’s start.”

He took out the high-grade mana stone and forced the mana stored inside to break out. Large amounts of mana started oozing out of the stone. Lark forced it to move into the phylactery, activating the magic formation engraved inside it.

Like a glutton, the phylactery sucked in all the mana oozing out of the high-grade mana stone. Slowly, the runes carved inside it activated. As though it had a life of its own, it tasted the drops of blood inside it and started yearning for more. King Alvis felt an indescribable force pulling him toward the mithril jar. For a moment, he was afraid that the phylactery would suck him inside.

“It’s uncomfortable, but please endure, Your Majesty,” said Lark as he continued guiding the mana inside the phylactery. “What the phylactery is yearning for isn’t your blood, but the fragment flowing through it.”

True enough, King Alvis felt something separate from his body, before going inside the phylactery. It was a peculiar sensation, as though a piece of himself had been torn away and eaten by the mithril jar.

After confirming that the fragment was finally inside the phylactery, Lark immediately started gathering the mana required to activate the Pinnacle Grade Spell—Heaven’s Dominion. By this time, the high-grade mana stone had already been wrung dry. It was now the turn of the flower to supply the amount of mana needed for the ritual.

The ground rumbled as the twenty-meter large magic formation was activated. The runes came to life, starting from the inner layer of the magic formation, spreading toward the outside. At the same time, the grinded pieces of the flower started sucking in ambient mana. The amount being gathered was so colossal that even the non-magicians could see the torrent of mana. This process went on for several minutes, until the mana in their immediate surroundings had been sucked dry.

Finally, they’d gathered enough mana for the Pinnacle Grade Spell.

Lark wordlessly activated the spell—Heaven’s Dominion.

A barrier made from the strongest defensive spell started enclosing the phylactery. It wrapped around it several times, forming a translucent shield resembling glass.

The ground stopped rumbling.

Now that the fragment was inside the phylactery, with a Pinnacle Grade Spell protecting it, all that was left was severing the link.

“I’ll sever the link now, Your Majesty,” said Lark, his face a bit anxious compared to before.

In his current state, even he would find it hard to win against a High Demon, moreover if it was on the level of a Demon Lord. He knew that there was a high chance that he’d die here, the moment he tried severing the link. Well, he could probably make it out alive if he ran away by himself. But that was the last resort he decided he’d make.

Seeing the conflicted expression of Lark, who remained stoic even after being mocked and threatened by Nickolai, the king knew that the most dangerous part of the ritual had come. He nervously swallowed the lump in his throat.

King Alvis closed his eyes. “Do it.”

Now that the fragment had been separated from His Majesty’s body, severing the link was a trivial thing. Cutting it using mana should do the trick.

Lark manipulated his mana and started separating the small, inconspicuous thread linking the fragment and the King.

And cut it.

The moment the link was severed, an eerie screeching sound echoed from the phylactery. It was so incessantly loud that Lark and King Alvis reflexively covered their ears.

After the screeching sound died, loud thud sounds reverberated in the meadow. It was the same sound as a battering ram hitting a portcullis, only ten times louder.

With bated breath, everyone stared at the phylactery. The sound was coming from that small silver-black jar. With each thud sound, the jar shook, almost toppling over from impact. Whatever was currently contained inside the mithril jar was struggling to get out.

“W-What’s that?” One of the soldiers watching the ritual cried out.

Black wisp seeped out of the phylactery and flew up into the sky, forming a massive ball of black smoke the size of two carriages combined. At the center of the black smoke, a golden, slit-like eye looked at the humans on the meadow below.

“Kid,” Nickolai gnashed his teeth. “Did the ritual fail?”

The three colossal spears of lightning pointed their tips at the black smoke at the sky. Nickolai was ready to fire his spell at the demon at any time.

A kilometer away from this place, Lark felt the undulating mana from Elias ‘Farsight’. It seemed that the best archer of the Kingdom had gathered vast amounts of mana into his arrow, ready to strike down the demon.

“No,” said Lark. He looked at the phylactery. The mithril jar showed no signs of breaking as of this moment. “As long as the medium is intact, that demon will still be bound by Heaven’s Dominion.”

Nickolai didn’t seem to be convinced of Lark’s answer. His lightning spears aimed at the black smoke crackled dangerously.

“If the demon’s still bound by the spell, then... what the hell is that?”

The golden eye inside the black smoke continued observing the humans below. Even Lark found it peculiar. He could not understand the actions taken by the demon just now. It seemed that instead of using the fragment to open a portal to this location, the demon opted to just observe the humans using vision magic. It no longer tried breaking the mithril jar the moment it saw the humans.

After heavy silence, an eerie voice spoke. It was as though five men were speaking the same words, at the same time. The voice resounded in the meadow.

“I see. You are the descendant of that human,” said the black smoke. The golden eye was looking straight at King Alvis. “Interesting. Truly interesting.”

The golden eye quickly scanned the surroundings. The army below, the mountain range to the east, the colossal lightning spears and magic arrows aimed at it, and finally, at the mithril jar sitting on the ground.

The golden eye clad in black smoke slowly hovered down. Lark signaled the royal court magicians not to fire their spells at it. Right now, Heaven’s Dominion was still enclosing the phylactery. The demon would be unable to do anything to them as long as that spell was still active.

The moment the golden eye was directly above King Alvis, it said, “Tristan… You really resemble that snotty brat. Now… this brings back fond memories. How pleasant.”

The eyes of King Alvis slowly grew wide. He hadn’t expected such words to come out of the demon’s mouth.

King Tristan Lukas I was the founding king of this nation. According to the history passed down the royal family, he was the king who made a pact with the demon called Agares.

“A-Are you the demon called Agares?” said King Alvis.

The black smoke closed its eye for a moment. “Agares. Indeed, Tristan used to call me by that name.” Although the demon’s voice sounded eerie, it seemed that right now, it was laughing, as though the mention of its name brought pleasant memories.

“That cheeky brat’s descendant managed to sever the curse in the end, huh? I’m glad.” The demon chuckled.

Slowly, the black smoke started dissipating.

“I would have loved to stay some more and listen to stories, descendant of Tristan. But the miasma shrouding this fragment will damage the medium, should I linger in this plane any longer. Listen, Barkuvara is going to wake up soon. Strengthen your forces. Seek the protection of the dragons. The moment he wakes up, my tribe will no longer be able to prevent the demon race from slaughtering the humans. Everything… is only a matter of time. Descendant of Tristan, use everything you have to ensure your survival.”

And the smoke and the golden eye disappeared completely.

Silence fell.

Everyone was too stunned about what had just transpired to utter a single word. They’d expected to fight a life-or-death battle, but the demon they feared ended up giving them a warning about an impending doom instead.

Lark grabbed the phylactery on the ground. It was still in fairly good condition. For some reason, the demon called Agares made sure not to damage the mithril jar. Even the mana maintaining the Pinnacle Grade Magic was left untouched. Truly, that demon was a peculiar one.

For some reason, it felt as though Agares deliberately suppressed the fragment to avoid damaging the phylactery. Lark smiled wryly at this thought.

They’d been worried for nothing, after all.

“Barkuvara,” mumbled King Alvis. He’d heard that name several times before.

The Blue Moonlight Troupe frequently performed plays reenacting the battle between the avatar of the Sun God and the Demon Lord Barkuvara.

EPILOGUE

Contrary to everyone’s expectations, the ritual at Fork Meadow ended with no casualties. Furthermore, the demon left without even destroying the mithril jar and the Pinnacle Grade Spell. None of them could contain their joy, since they’d just survived what was supposed to be a life-or-death situation.

It felt as though the Goddess of Luck smiled upon them.

That very same night, instead of going to the nearest city, King Alvis decided to hold a feast on Fork Meadow. A large bonfire was lit at the camp and food was unsparingly handed out to the soldiers and mercenaries. It was a sumptuous feast composed mainly of grilled meat, bread, wheat soup, and mead.

Lark wondered where the supplies team got hold of the alcohol, when it was strictly forbidden on a military expedition like this. Well, there was no use in pondering over useless things.

“Anandra, you’re not going to eat?” said Lark.

Anandra was leaning on their carriage, his sword dangling on his waist. “I’m still on guard duty, My Lord. I will have my fill later once everyo—”

Lark tossed a bottle of mead to him and Anandra caught it nimbly. “Stop being stubborn. Although our group is currently camped at the periphery of this army, there’s a very slim chance someone would suddenly attack us with all of these soldiers around. You’re not some old man. Join us.”

Austen and George snickered, their mouths still filled with grilled meat. The two always called Anandra ‘old man’ behind his back. And during the days when the brothers were more audacious, they would sometimes openly call him ‘gramps.’

Anandra heeded Lark’s request. He sat down next to the brothers and cast an icy gaze at the two for a moment. Austen froze, while George choked on the food in his mouth.

It was subtle, but Lark was sure that Anandra smirked after seeing George gasp for air.

“You’re picking on kids now?” chuckled Lark. He moved his cup right in front of Anandra and said, “Let’s drink.” Anandra hesitated for a moment before opening the bottle of alcohol. He filled Lark’s cup half full. Anandra’s expression as he stared at the bottle in his hand was a dead giveaway. He was definitely wondering if they were even allowed to drink this thing. “Even the top brass are drinking.” Lark gulped down his cup in one go. “And we won’t get drunk on mead anyway.”

Anandra was surprised that Lark was lenient on this. He also grabbed a cup and silently started drinking. Around them, the sound of soldiers laughing reverberated.

Lark looked at Chryselle, who until now, was looking silently at the direction of the bonfire. The meat in her hand was almost untouched.

“You look gloomy,” Lark said to her. “Is something the matter?”

Chryselle looked at him and sighed. “Master Lark… what do you think of the demon’s words? The things it said before it vanished.”

“That His Majesty is the spitting image of King Tristan?” joshed Lark.

“Not that!” said Chryselle.

Lark chuckled.

“What I’m talking about is Bar—”

“—Barkuvara,” said Lark. “It’s surprising. It seems you’re familiar with the name.”

“Everyone who studied in the Magic Academy is familiar with him,” she said. “That’s the same Demon Lord who destroyed the Magic Empire over a millennium ago.”

Lark understood where she was coming from, and what she was worried about. Although the soldiers were currently in a festive mood after this morning, the royal court magicians looked uneasy. Their worries were probably the same as Chryselle’s.

“The demon said it himself, that Barkuvara is still asleep as of this moment,” she said. “After hearing that, everything finally made sense. Why after destroying the Magic Empire, the demons suddenly went into hiding and didn’t come out even after a millennium had passed.” Chryselle looked down and tightened her grip on the grilled meat in her hand. “If that demon suddenly wakes up…”

Lark remembered the words uttered by Agares before he disappeared.

The moment he wakes up, my tribe will no longer be able to prevent the demon race from slaughtering the humans. Everything… is only a matter of time.

Lark also had several questions after hearing those words. He had several conjectures, especially after seeing the magic used by Agares during their short encounter, but he knew it’d be impossible to come up with any conclusion with the little amount of information they currently had.

Even if they moped all day and feared for the impending doom of the human race, nothing would change. Lark decided to at least enjoy the festivities tonight and drink to his heart’s content.

“Even if the demons suddenly come out of their hiding and started attacking the humans, we won’t be annihilated without a fight,” said Lark.

Chryselle looked up and stared at him. There was indescribable strength seeping through those blue eyes. Once again, she questioned if the person in front of her was really someone who’d just come of age.

“And even if Barkuvara wakes up today, it’s not like he’ll be able to incite the demons to attack human nations the next day. Just like us humans, demons have an established hierarchy. Just think of it like the nobility. I’m pretty sure someone else is ruling over the demon race right now, with Barkuvara absent for over a millennium. Agares is probably part of that ruling class, since they’re able to stop the demons from slaughtering the humans. The demon said it himself, right?”

Lark plopped himself on the grass and looked at the clear sky. “And besides, humans aren’t weak. The human race survived the Cataclysm and the Descent. It’s the same even at today. They’ll always find ways to survive, no matter what.”

Chryselle also looked up. For some reason, the sky looked beautiful tonight. She smiled. “You’re right.”

While the two were enjoying the view of the night sky, a familiar voice said, “Here you are.”

Lark looked at the source and saw Farsight walking toward his direction. The man’s skin was as white as before. His black eyes were even darker than the night itself.

“His Majesty’s calling for you,” said Farsight. “Come with me.”

For a moment, Farsight looked at the direction of Anandra, then at the brothers devouring the food, before finally resting on the red-haired woman.

Lark stood up and dusted his clothes. For a royal court magician to personally come and get him, the matter must be of great importance.

“What is it about?” said Lark.

“You’ll know when we get there,” Farsight gave an apathetic reply.

After telling his disciples that he’d be right back after meeting His Majesty, Lark followed Farsight all the way to the largest tent at the center of the camp. The guards standing outside saluted upon seeing the royal court magician and Lark.

“His Majesty is waiting for you, please come inside,” said one of the guards.

Farsight swept away the tent’s flap and entered, along with Lark.

King Alvis, Lady Ropianna, Nickolai, General Carlos, and several high-ranking officers in the military were already inside. They stood around a round wooden table. At the center of the table was the phylactery. Even now, it was lightly glowing. A crystal-like substance was still enclosing it.

“It’s an honor to be in the presence of Your Majesty.” Lark bowed the moment he entered the tent.

“As I said before, there’s no need for formalities, especially when we’re not inside the throne room,” said King Alvis.

The king never looked as healthy as he was tonight. The numerous small black patches on his skin had vanished entirely. After the curse was severed, Lady Ropianna’s healing spells had worked wonders on the king. It looked as though the king had become younger by five years.

King Alvis directed his gaze at the direction of the tent’s entrance. Outside, the ebullient voices and laughter of the soldiers resounded.

“It’ll be a shame if you aren’t able to enjoy the feast because of this old man here.” King Alvis smiled gently. “So I’ll make this quick. We plan on giving you an appropriate reward for this feat the moment we went back to the capital. Please use this time to think of what you want. As long as it is within my abilities, and as long as it is something that will not harm the Kingdom, I promise to grant your desires.”

Lark already had several things in mind. If they included the Endless Forest, his territory in the east was probably even larger than the entire Kingdom itself. He had an incredibly vast territory—but he lacked people. He lacked manpower.

“I’m forever grateful. I’ll think about it carefully, Your Majesty.” Lark bowed his head.

“The kid keeps getting accomplishments one after another.” Nickolai smirked. “It’s not even a half a year since the war with the Empire had ended. It’s like he has the devil’s luck or something.”

King Alvis ignored Nickolai’s derisive statement. He laughed heartily. “Isn’t that right? With all these achievements… at this rate, you’ll end up becoming the heir to the throne a few years from now!”

Although the King was probably jesting, everyone in the room stared at His Majesty in shock. The words of a royal carried far greater weight than those of a normal individual’s.

Who would have known a year ago that Lark Marcus, the candidate said to have the least chance of winning the competition, would be praised personally by the king like this? Had the king said these words in the throne room and the nobles heard of it, those hungry hyenas would have turncoat to Lark Marcus’ side and flocked to him like flies.

And as though that statement wasn’t enough, the king added, “You’ve been taking care of my daughter for quite some time too.” King Alvis smiled mischievously. “How about it? Why don’t you take her as your wife already?” The king laughed boisterously, not minding his status as a sovereign.

Lark thought they’d discussed this before already. It seemed that the king had no intention of giving up that easily.

“Taking care of His Majesty’s daughter?” said one of the military officers. “T-The Flower of the capital? Princess Esmeralda?”

The military officers started having weird ideas after hearing the words of His Majesty. Lark was worried that at this rate, a weird rumor was going to spread.

The king was clearly enjoying this. The old man’s broad grin never slid down his face.

Lady Ropianna smiled wryly. “Your Majesty.”

The king scratched his cheek. “Ah, that was fun.” He coughed and said to Lark, “Please forgive this old man. Let’s proceed to the topic, shall we?”

King Alvis straightened his garb and signaled Lark and Elias to come closer to the table. Everyone looked at the phylactery placed on top of it.

“Nickolai and Ropianna have finished analyzing this thing,” said King Alvis. “And according to them, the Pinnacle Grade Magic enclosing it is still active.” King Alvis looked at Lark expectantly.

“That’s correct, Your Majesty,” said Lark. “The phylactery and the Pinnacle Grade Magic contained inside were practically untouched.”

King Alvis stroked his ashen beard. “Even the phylactery, huh? Can you tell us the reason for this?”

Lark paused for a moment as he deliberated if what he was going to say was the proper response to this statement. After all, to humans who’d never met demons before their entire life, his next words wouldn’t make any sense.

“I believe that answer is quite simple, Your Majesty. The demon called Agares didn’t resist the spell and simply let his fragment disappear completely. The demon did not try to destroy the phylactery at all.”

“Ropianna said the same thing to us before you arrived,” said King Alvis. “Based on the demon’s words before he disappeared, it seemed that he’s quite fond of humans. But is it possible for a demon to be so… amicable with humans?”

In history books, demons had been depicted as the cruelest of monsters. Creatures who hated humans to their cores. Lark could understand the confused expressions of everyone gathered in this room.

“And Barkuvara…” said King Alvis. “Isn’t that the name of that Demon Lord?”

“I believe so. Not all demons are born with names. To demons, names are special. There should only be one demon with the name of Barkuvara,” said Lark. “It’s impossible to give the same name to a different demon, Your Majesty.”

The air inside the tent suddenly became heavier than before. They all heard what the demon said back then before it disappeared—that the Demon Lord Barkuvara was going to wake up soon. That everything was only a matter of time.

The name of that Demon Lord was frequently associated with myths and legends. And now, in the foreseeable future, it seemed that there was a chance they would meet that monster in flesh.

“As for Your Majesty’s question regarding the nature of demons,” said Lark. “Not all demons are evil. This, I truly believe. It’s not black and white. Even demons have their own nation, their own society, their own aspirations and convictions.”

“So, are you saying that Agares is part of demon faction who wish to coexist with humans?”

“I believe so, Your Majesty. That demon is definitely powerful enough to destroy the medium holding the Pinnacle Grade Spell, but it chose to let itself be suppressed instead.”

Lark pointed a finger at the phylactery on the table and it slowly floated toward him. The moment he grabbed hold of it, he willed the pinnacle magic inside to heed his command. The crystal-like substance enclosing the phylactery rapidly expanded. In just a second, it enclosed everyone gathered around the table.

“This is probably Agares’ way of telling us to make sure to keep this mithril jar intact. Right now, we have on our hands the same Pinnacle Grade Spell protecting the Dwarven Kingdom.”

The King’s eyes slowly widened. He realized the implications of Lark’s words. “D-Don’t tell me…” breathed the King. “You can control the diameter of the barrier at will?”

“As long as I’m holding the medium,” said Lark. “That’s correct.”

Nickolai shuddered for a moment. He said to the king, “Forgive me, Your Majesty. But I’ll need to test out something.”

A sword made of lightning suddenly appeared in Nickolai’s hand. His muscles bulged, he gnashed his teeth, and made an earth-shattering strike at the crystal-like dome enclosing everyone.

The sword of lightning struck the barrier but didn’t make any scratches or dent on it.

The sword of lightning dissipated.

Nickolai stared at the phylactery Lark was holding. “The strength of this barrier is real,” said Nickolai. “Kid, the dragon managed to enclose the entire Dwarven Kingdom with this spell. Perhaps, it’s possible to do the same?”

The military officers looked at Lark expectantly. If that was indeed possible, it would greatly reduce the number of casualties in the military. Monsters would no longer be a threat if a pinnacle grade barrier was protecting the entire Kingdom.

“It’s impossible to cover the entire Kingdom,” said Lark.

Those inside the tent were dejected upon hearing this.

“The medium maintaining the barrier of the Dwarven Kingdom is the dragon’s body itself, while we have this mithril jar holding our spell. It’ll be like comparing iron with rye bread. We can probably cover the entire capital with the spell, but anything beyond that, the phylactery will break.”

“I see,” said King Alvis. “But that’s still a lot better than nothing, isn’t it?”

“I agree,” said General Carlos. “If a barrier as strong as this one is protecting the capital, we can allocate more soldiers to the frontiers. It’ll greatly alleviate the burden on the Kingdom.” The general rubbed his chin. He slowly added, “The dragon managed to put a restriction on its barrier spell—only dwarves are allowed entry into the Dwarven Kingdom. Could you do that too, Sir Lark?”

“It should be possible. A barrier which permits only the entry of humans,” said Lark. “Please just give me some time to alter some runes on the medium.”

General Carlos smiled. “Thank you. The knights who lost their lives just to obtain the flower must be smiling from the heavens right now. Their deaths weren’t in vain. We managed to sever His Majesty’s curse, and now, we’ve obtained the strongest barrier spell to protect the capital.”

Everyone in the room agreed to the general’s statement.

“But it’s still a shame, isn’t it,” said Lady Ropianna. “If only Wisgarus and Minerva didn’t try to obtain that so-called Sword of Morpheus. Maybe they wouldn’t have lost so many lives. Maybe the majority of the royal knights are now with us, enjoying the fruits of their success.”

“Ropianna!” snarled Nickolai. “Didn’t you say that we should keep that information a secret?”

Lady Ropianna titled her head. “He saved the life of the king. He’s no outsider. And Sir Lark doesn’t strike me as someone who wouldn’t be able to control his greed. Honestly speaking, I’m more worried about you, Nickolai.”

“What did you say?” Nickolai glared.

“Nickolai, you heard what the survivors of that expedition said, right? The monster guarding the treasure isn’t something mere humans could hope to match. You started gathering your disciples after hearing of the sword. Please don’t be foolish. We already lost two royal court magicians this year.”

While Lady Ropianna and Nickolai were bickering with each other, Lark interjected.

“W-What did you say?” said Lark. “Sword of Morpheus?”

For some reason, he was visibly shaken. As though he’d never expected to hear the name of that sword here, of all places.

End of Book 5

AFTERWORD AND WHERE TO FIND THE REST OF THE CHAPTERS

Hello~

Thank you for purchasing the fifth book of my novel. The next book/arc will be focusing on the Forbidden Region and the treasure stored in the labyrinth.

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