Chapter 72. The Spirit’s Voice
Time flowed slowly.
The magical power gathering at the lich’s fingertips.
The magic bullet crashing against his barrier and scattering.
Even Vivian’s startled expression.
In Binaeril’s field of vision, time was stretched to its limit.
Binaeril urgently skimmed through the list of every spell he could use.
The magical powers that had been gathering in the creature’s shadow failed to achieve their purpose and dissipated.
“Stop, I said stop!”
Binaeril chanted whatever incantations came to mind, raising his imagination to its peak.
Nothing was of any use.
Magic to control an opponent held little utility against an opponent stronger than oneself.
It was proof that the lich’s abilities were in no way inferior to Binaeril’s.
But such cold judgment was of no use whatsoever now.
Fear welled up in Vivian’s pupils.
She was facing imminent death.
‘Is there no way? A way?’
While Binaeril desperately raised his magical power, a ray of light burst from the ring he wore.
[I… block…!]
It was a voice Binaeril had never heard before.
But also an all-too-familiar voice. Binaeril forgot his surroundings and focused entirely on that voice in an instant.
[I’ll block it, Binaeril!]
The burst of light was no illusion.
Balam’s eyes gleamed.
Balam was a black magician. A high-ranking one at that.
His plan had been to receive sacrifices from the Lord of Paguin and take them to Rotphalen.
Even when a strange interloper appeared and blew off half his head, he had not despaired.
After all, his physical body was merely expendable; his soul was stored in a Life Vessel in Rotphalen.
Since the plan was already ruined, he had intended to silence the remaining humans along with the interloper, but…
With a cry, the spirit that flew in wielded a bizarre power.
“What is this?”
Balam was bewildered.
His magical power, which had been gathering at his fingers, scattered in pieces.
He tried drawing magical power together once more, but it was futile.
The magical power was escaping his control.
As if the magical power itself possessed a will and was rejecting him.
It was a repulsive force he had experienced for the first time in his life.
“What have you done, brat!”
The dense magical powers imbued in his voice were gradually dispersing as well.
Balam faced the brat’s spirit with eye sockets that revealed nothing within.
The spirit’s doing was obvious.
“Absurd!”
Binaeril did not miss the opening.
He didn’t know the exact reason, but that lich was flustered.
If he missed the opportunity Eden had created, Vivian’s safety would be in danger.
Crack!
The magic bullet that left Binaeril’s hand struck Balam’s head precisely.
At the deafening explosion above her head, Vivian let out a sharp scream.
Binaeril quickly rushed in and pulled Vivian away from him.
“Shoot forth like a storm!”
He couldn’t rest assured just because the head was shattered.
This was the same creature that had moved perfectly fine even after losing half its head.
Binaeril’s bombardment continued until Balam’s body was torn to pieces.
“Huff, huff.”
He breathed in ragged gasps.
Vivian awkwardly retreated backward from her seated position, distancing herself from them.
Something touched her wrist.
Looking around the underground space, corpses were strewn everywhere.
…Only two people were alive.
Corpses wearing black hoods and the body of the Lord of Paguin with his eyes wide open.
Amidst them, Binaeril stood with his entire body drenched in sweat.
“Miss Vivian, are you alright?”
That same man extended his hand to Vivian.
Vivian recalled a certain scene in that instant.
She felt she could understand how the Second Princess felt when she embraced Binaeril at the Essen royal palace.
“Yes, I’m fine.”
She took Binaeril’s hand and stood up.
The Duke’s roar resounded so thunderously that it felt as though all of Paguin Castle might take flight.
Duke Dukes, startled awake by the urgent report he heard upon waking, glared at Binaeril.
Binaeril felt inexplicably intimidated even though he had done nothing wrong.
Anyone would feel that way when faced with the Duke’s fierce expression.
Only now did Binaeril understand the servile attitude the Lord of Paguin had displayed.
“Lord Binaeril, is that true?”
“Yes. The Lord of Paguin was kidnapping village residents and supplying them to the black magicians. There is no doubt that the black magicians were carrying out some scheme through the residents……”
“Is it really true that our daughter was nearly hurt!”
“…Ah, yes. Fortunately, she is unharmed. The Lord of Paguin was killed in a surprise attack……”
“Our daughter, Vivian! Where is Vivian!”
Binaeril pressed his brow and raised his finger to point in a direction.
“She is resting over there.”
“Vi—vi—an—!”
Duke Dukes dashed out in the direction he had been told.
“…If the young lady had so much as a scratch, I wouldn’t have survived either.”
The Duke’s world revolved solely around his daughter.
Binaeril followed the Duke into the room.
“Vivian!”
“Uwaaah, Vivian!”
The sight of the bear-like Duke burying himself in his cat-sized daughter and weeping was a spectacle almost too agonizing to watch.
“I’m fine. Stop it, Father.”
It seemed that nothing was more shocking to him than the fact that his daughter’s safety had been threatened right before his eyes.
Thanks to some time and Vivian’s persistent soothing, the Duke was barely able to compose his emotions.
The commotion he caused had awakened all the other knights of the Duke who had been resting within the castle.
Binaeril calmly reported once more before the gathered crowd.
This time, omitting everything about Vivian.
The other knights, including Beron and Asdal, fixed their eyes on the Duke as soon as they heard Binaeril’s story.
“Check the lord’s chambers.”
About one-third of the knights departed to search the underground space Binaeril had described.
“Half of the remaining men, gather all personnel within the castle. Bind them, make them kneel, and have them report one by one what they know of this situation.”
“Lastly, you lot assemble the residents as soon as dawn breaks and verify the facts. Find out whether the lord coerced and kidnapped the residents or if he operated in secret.”
And so, even the last soldiers received their orders and left.
Truly, a Duke was a Duke.
The figure who had shown a foolish side before his daughter was starkly different from his current demeanor.
Now, only the Duke, Binaeril, and Vivian remained.
Finally, Duke Dukes shifted his gaze to Binaeril and called his name.
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Thank you for saving my daughter.”
He lowered his head and expressed his gratitude.
“It is nothing. Since I uncovered the matter, it was only right that I saw it through.”
“No. This was an incident that occurred within the Duchy without you needing to invite danger. Had you not noticed, I would have left Paguin Castle just like this. I express my gratitude once more, including for my daughter’s sake.”
Duke Dukes was certainly a man of formal courtesy.
“The moment we arrive at my castle, I shall reward you fittingly.”
“…Thank you.”
Hearing the Duke’s words, something came to Binaeril’s mind.
“Your Grace.”
“What is it?”
“What do you think the black magicians were doing with the residents?”
“Well. I am a layman when it comes to magic, so I do not know what they were planning. Perhaps they were engaging in cannibalism?”
At the appearance of the horrifying word, Vivian’s expression turned pale.
“Did Your Grace not speak to me earlier about the happenings in the Duchy?”
“Hmm? In the Duchy? Surely you do not mean the appearance of those undead?”
“That is correct. Why do you ask?”
The Duke’s face rapidly hardened the moment he posed the question back to Binaeril.
“Surely…?”
“That is what I think. I have never heard of such a number of undead occurring naturally. Some organization must be involved.”
“You mean that organization is a group of black magicians?”
“Yes. Black magicians mostly operate individually. But the black magicians we fought today appeared to be moving as a group.”
This was no trivial matter.
As the Duke listened to Binaeril, he gradually realized that today’s incident was not simply the personal deviation of a castle lord.
“Similar things may be happening in other places besides Paguin Castle.”
“Then the matter is becoming too large…… We would have to investigate the entire vast Duchy.”
“Or there may be another way.”
“What way?”
“Strike their base.”
At Binaeril’s words, the Duke stroked his chin.
“But did you not say the last black magician escaped? Do you perhaps have some idea of where their base might be?”
“Rotphalen.”
The Duke’s body trembled at the mention of that place.
Because it was the place where the undead had first begun to appear.
Binaeril looked at the Duke’s trembling pupils and conveyed his request.
“I do not need a reward. Your Grace. Please take me with you to Rotphalen.”
While Duke Dukes and his soldiers took care of the aftermath at Paguin Castle, Binaeril was given time to rest.
But it was not a situation where he could rest comfortably. Binaeril had something he needed to do.
No, should he say there was someone he needed to talk to?
A familiar spirit popped out of his ring.
[Binaeril! Can you hear my voice?]
The spirit, uncertain of his reaction, asked again.
[Can you hear? Can you hear me?]
“Yes. I hear you.”
Eden gasped in surprise, covered her mouth with both hands, fluttered up into the air, and circled around Binaeril.
Binaeril burst into laughter.
It was such an Eden-like, innocent reaction.
[I had so much I wanted to say! Hmm, hmm. Starting from the library in that tower where I was trapped. Hmm, Grandmother! Do you remember that grandmother in the mountains? Ah, speaking of grandmothers, the Wind Spirit was really scary.]
Eden was pouring out everything that came to mind in her excitement.
It was a childlike manner of speaking where the topic she wanted to discuss changed from moment to moment.
Like an experienced nursemaid, Binaeril did not stop Eden and waited until she calmed down.
…Even that took considerably longer than Binaeril had expected.
“Eden, but how is it that I can suddenly hear your voice?”
It wasn’t something Eden could know.
Could it be that his affinity had simply risen as he spent time with the spirit?
‘Come to think of it, there have been many occasions lately where I coordinated with Eden.’
Since leaving Essen and coming to Paguin Castle, he had fought countless times with the Duke’s knights.
Eden had read Binaeril’s heart and helped him, continuously coordinating their movements.
Binaeril answered his own question.
But the answer that came from Eden’s mouth was unexpected.
[She was blocking it!]
The spirit’s finger pointed at a clear target.
Toward the old book hanging at Binaeril’s waist.
Veritas fluttered her dust-covered pages in response to her accusation.
Judging by Binaeril’s experience, that reaction was….
‘A sneer?’
Veritas was mocking Eden.
Eden clenched both fists tightly, trembled, and glared at the Book of Veritas, fuming with rage.
[It’s because of her that I couldn’t talk to Binaeril!]