Hello. The weather is terribly hot. Writing in a cramped little room with poor ventilation,
I think I’ve gone a bit out of my mind.^^ There are lots of typos, lots of mistakes, and in any case, even if I had ten mouths,
I would have nothing to say.
First of all, mistaking “lock” for “rock” and writing “deafness” as “mute” were clearly
my mistakes.^^ I should be posting only after thorough proofreading, but I failed to do so, and for that I bow
my head in apology.
Come to think of it, proofreading really never seems to end no matter how much you do it. Even after revising
the online version at least three times before sending the manuscript, my editor spends nearly a full fortnight
immersed in proofreading it. Of course, there’s the final proofread as well. But even after passing through every stage,
typos inevitably appear in the published book. Is there a limit to human effort?
My editor said that three or four typos in a book is actually considered very good…….
I’m still rambling, aren’t I? Why am I suddenly talking about proofreading?
To get to the point, I intend to take a hiatus for the time being. I think it would be better to rest properly, recharge my body and mind,
and then resume serialization.
I believe that posting chapters without sincerity is an insult to the readers who read my work,
and even if perfect proofreading is impossible, I feel it is my duty to at least show a certain degree of care.
I still have a little stockpiled material left, but I will proofread it once more before posting it. Then, to everyone who pointed out my mistakes,
I sincerely thank you.
P.S. I plan to post extra chapters once the hiatus is over, so please don’t throw too many stones at me…….^^
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Two days had passed since he left the mansion. Damon was now walking leisurely along the main road.
At present, he had taken on the appearance of Zengart, whose looks were in no way conspicuous. Because he looked like an ordinary old man one might see anywhere,
he drew no attention from people at all, and Damon was able to enjoy his journey in great comfort. Pausing briefly along the way, Damon
unfolded his map.
“Let’s see. The place Zengart told me about was called Sebain, wasn’t it?”
While listening to Zengart’s experiences from his wandering days, Damon had been able to find a place that perfectly suited
his purpose. A place where people did not set foot, and which was sufficiently remote. According to Zengart’s explanation,
that environment had been created artificially.
“There is a village called Sebain on the frontier of the inland kingdom of Antros. Among the people,
it is known as a land of terror. The people of Antros will not go there under any circumstances.
That is because an utterly wicked necromancer named Winterdale lives there.
This is a rumor I heard when I passed through that area five years ago.”
Recalling Zengart’s explanation, Damon knew that this was precisely the place he had been searching for.
If it was so infamous, then it was an excellent place for him to devote himself to research without concern.
Though it had an owner, that did not matter. He could simply drive the owner out and take it for himself.
Damon smacked his lips as if regretting something.
“A necromancer, huh. What a shame. If it were a lich, I’d have just smashed it to pieces.”
No matter how wicked a necromancer might be, he was still human. As long as Damon was bound by the restriction of the Sevenfold Severance Forbidden Art,
there was no way for him to kill the man, so he would have no choice but to simply drive him away.
“In any case, how kind of him to spread such an evil reputation for my sake. I suppose I’ll gratefully accept it?”
Unfortunately, the region called Sebain was quite far to reach on foot. It was a place one could only arrive at
after nearly two months of walking northwest. Since the coordinates were marked on the map, Damon decided to
teleport there at once.
“I’ve been delayed a few days longer than expected, so it would be best to save time, wouldn’t it?”
Damon secretly drew mana together.
Sssssss.
An immense amount of mana gathered. Damon had now surpassed the bounds of an ordinary mage.
For most decent mages, it was normal to be exhausted after casting one or two high-level spells.
But Damon was different. Even after firing Hellfire, the ultimate magic, more than ten times,
he could remain calm.
That was because his foundation in magic was solid. What mage in the world could learn magic slowly
over the span of five hundred years? Moreover, this was possible because Doil had thoroughly built up his fundamentals.
When he thought of his master, Damon’s eyes gradually began to redden.
“Master. This disciple will surely avenge you. Please believe in me.”
Regrettably, Damon had not been able to carry out his master’s second request. Because he had been captured
by Verkis, he had failed to look after Doil’s son. He had gained power, but five hundred years
had passed, and since he did not even know whether the man’s descendants were alive or dead, there was nothing he could do.
“Will I be able to find a castle called Brokenheart in Arcadia?”
He thought it was probably difficult to expect any possibility. Meanwhile, the mana had gathered, and
Damon cast teleportation without delay.
“Teleport.”
The shape of a magic circle seemed to flicker around his body, and then his body vanished in an instant.
Without a trace.
Damon safely appeared on the outskirts of Sebain. Unfortunately, that place was the center of the village.
“Uwaah!”
The people were horrified when they saw Damon appear in a flash of light. There was no one who would not be startled
at the sight of a person appearing out of nowhere. Of course, Damon could not help being startled as well.
If they had been standing at the exact coordinates, they might have died instantly. Even if he was
a 9th Circle Master. Damon’s face twisted sharply.
“That damned bastard…….”
As far as Damon was concerned, he could only blame the person who had made the map. That detestable bastard who had marked the coordinates
right in the middle of the village. In any case, since he had, by great fortune, emerged safely,
he stroked his chest in relief and began to move. Just then, someone urgently called out to him.
“W-would you please wait a moment?”
“What is it?”
Damon deliberately imitated an aged voice as he asked in return. The appearance he had taken was that of an old man.
Therefore, he had to act accordingly. The one who had stopped Damon was also an old man.
Judging by his attire, he seemed to hold a fairly important position in the village. Beside him stood a young man dressed like a farmer,
carrying a pitchfork. A strange sense of expectation lingered on the old man’s face.
“A-are you perhaps a mage?”
“I am.”
Because he had arrived by teleportation, Damon had no choice but to speak honestly. At the word “mage,”
a bright look of delight appeared on the old man’s face.
“T-then please help us. I ask because you know how to teleport.
To us, this is truly a desperate matter.”
“What in the world is the problem?”
As Damon widened his eyes, the old man eagerly explained the situation. Listening to the explanation,
Damon learned that the man was the village chief.
“There is an evil necromancer here named Winterdale, who has long spread his infamy.
Because of him, many villagers have died miserably. There is hardly anyone among the villagers
who has not lost family or relatives.”
It would have been a lie to say he was not interested when the man mentioned the very person he had come to seek.
A pleased look appeared on Damon’s face.
“And so?”
“Unable to abandon our livelihoods, we have continuously requested help from various places.
Of course, His Majesty our king sent many punitive forces, but it was impossible. The fellow’s skill was so great
that the soldiers only ended up as corpses, every last one of them. But perhaps our prayers reached the heavens,
for at last saviors arrived. They were the imperial guard knights and court mages of the mighty Krosen Empire.”
At this unexpected news, Damon narrowed his eyes. Of course, he had already grasped the fact that the Krosen Empire
was the most powerful in Arcadia. If they were imperial guard knights and court mages of such a great empire,
then even a powerful necromancer would not be able to withstand them. Growing urgent, Damon pressed him for an answer.
Amusingly enough, he was more worried about the necromancer’s safety.
“And what was the result? Did the fellow die?”
The result was truly anticlimactic. The punitive force that had entered deep into the necromancer’s dwelling
had to return without even seeing the culprit’s shadow. Though they stayed for a full three days,
the necromancer did not appear, and because the corpse poison (葬毒) rising from the bodies was so severe,
the punitive force eventually had no choice but to withdraw. Returning to the village, the punitive force confidently declared
that the necromancer had been eliminated.
“The necromancer has fled. So do not worry at all and devote yourselves to your livelihoods.
And send men to clean up his dwelling. There were corpses piled up like a mountain there.”
Leaving only those words behind, the punitive force returned to the Krosen Empire. Reassured, the villagers soon
went up the mountain to collect the bodies. However…….
The village chief’s face twisted to an extreme degree.
“The fellow had not fled. On the contrary, he attacked us when we went to retrieve the corpses.
Because of that, many people died yet again. That is why we have no choice but to make this request of you, Master Mage.”
Damon, who had been tense, was finally able to feel relieved at the village chief’s words that the necromancer had appeared again.
In order to achieve his purpose, the man absolutely had to be alive. Judging by the circumstances, he did not seem to be
all that powerful.
“Has this happened often?”
After hesitating for a moment, the village chief soon confessed the truth.
“In fact, this is the third time. His Majesty our king once sent as many as five hundred soldiers accompanied by mages,
and that happened exactly twice. I do not know whether it was coincidence or inevitability, but the fellow did not appear then either.”
Damon nodded as if he understood.
“I see.”
Knowing that it was an excessive request, the village chief kept bowing at the waist.
“I beg you, please.”
“I am a mage as well, so is there really any need for that?”
However, instead of teleporting, Damon asked them to guide him there. Naturally, the village chief looked very puzzled.
“What do you mean?”
Damon confidently thumped his chest.
“If it is that sort of fellow, there is no need to call the Krosen Knights. I, too, am a mage who takes pride in my strength.
I will deal with him for you.”
“T-there is no need for you to take such a risk…….”
“Come now! Did you not see me teleport here? Teleportation is 4th Circle magic.
It is not magic just anyone can use.”
At those words, the village chief’s face immediately brightened. It was the sort of look one might see in a person
who had recovered hope in a desperate situation. He bent at the waist as if overwhelmed with gratitude.
“T-then I shall entrust this to you. In the meantime, perhaps you could come to my house and have a meal first…….”
“I do not think that will be necessary. I am in a hurry, so please quickly assign someone to guide me.”
“Understood.”
The village chief quickly called the young man beside him. The young man promptly set his pitchfork down on the ground.
“He is my son. If you follow him, you will be able to reach the fellow’s dwelling.”
“Very well.”
The necromancer’s dwelling was farther than expected. The two had to walk for a full two hours through an exceedingly rugged mountain path,
one where even a narrow trail was barely properly formed, before they could reach their destination.
Of course, Damon was extremely satisfied with the road’s incomparable roughness. The village chief’s son
hesitantly stretched out his hand and pointed to the entrance of a pitch-black cave at the base of a cliff.
“That is the place.”
From the way his legs were trembling, he seemed terribly frightened. Damon looked at him
and nodded.
“I understand. You should return to the village now. If I dispose of the fellow, I will send word to the village……”
“U-understood.”
“If I do not return, then assume I was done in by him. As you know, the dead
cannot speak. Asking the Krosen Knights for help should come after that.”
“Y-yes, I will.”
Nodding, the young man turned around as if he did not want to remain there even a moment longer,
and began retracing the path he had come down. From the sight of him running in a panic, one could tell
just how great his fear of the necromancer was.
“That fellow, really…… At any rate, it seems certain I won’t be going to the village.”
Whether he subdued the necromancer or not, Damon had no need to go to the village, so he silently
moved forward. As he walked, the cave entrance in the cliff, which had seemed far away, gradually drew closer.
Damon became interested in the necromancer named Winterdale.
“I wonder what sort of fellow he is.”
He enjoyed attacking villagers, but when a powerful punitive force came, he did not appear.
In Damon’s mind, that was not coincidence but inevitability. His opponent was surely a necromancer who was not
particularly powerful.
“If he is weak, I should regard him as around 5th Circle. Black mages below that can hardly become
necromancers, after all.”
Of course, even a hundred necromancers of that level could not be Damon’s match. He was the only
9th Circle Master in the world. But even for him, there was something he clearly had to pay attention to.
“If he judges me to be a strong enemy, he will surely hide, won’t he? In that case, I should appear relatively weak.”
Damon used magic to conceal his Circle. Since it was a method he had always used on Gedenhide,
the spell was executed at once. Generally, if mages faced another mage of a lower Circle than themselves,
they could quickly see through that mage’s level of magic. But the reverse was impossible.
Therefore, if one could not discern the opponent’s level, then nine times out of ten, the opponent had to be of a higher Circle.
Taking that into account, Damon transformed his outwardly visible magic level to around 4th Circle.
If his Circle was this low, the fellow would surely not be wary of him at all.
“Now then, shall we begin the necromancer hunt?”
Fully prepared, Damon stepped straight into the cave without hesitation.