Chapter 173: Vacation (9)

Splash!

Crimson droplets of blood sprayed into the air along the trajectory of a swung greatsword.

Darius, who had already cut down dozens of demonic beasts, furrowed his brows and raised his head.

“I have no idea how many of them there are.”

Not long after Carl and his subordinates gathered people from the surrounding villages, a horde of demonic beasts launched an attack.

The problem was that their numbers were far from ordinary.

Thanks to the repaired palisades and the traps they’d set up, the beasts’ paths of entry were limited.

They had barely managed to fend them off with the Leipzig soldiers and the village patrol, but no one could guarantee how long they would hold if the battle dragged on.

‘That aside……’

Even while cutting down the beasts, Darius kept glancing around, searching for signs.

The messengers who had gone to nearby villages were returning steadily, but Carl had not shown up even though an hour had already passed.

‘Did he encounter a horde of beasts?’

If he were on the run, that would at least be fortunate.

Once this side was secured, he could go and help.

But if something had gone wrong……

Slash!

Darius mercilessly beheaded another demonic beast.

As if whipping himself for entertaining such weak thoughts, he gritted his teeth.

“Brother better get here soon.”

He’d heard that the horde of beasts was attacking not only the village but also the territory.

In that situation, it was questionable whether his brother could spare troops so easily, but Darius had no choice but to trust him on that.

—Kiiing.

Suddenly, the beasts’ behavior changed.

The frenzied creatures, filled with madness, abruptly froze in place.

—……

They lifted their heads, looked at the sky, exchanged glances with their kin beside them, and finally turned their eyes toward the humans they had just been fighting.

Step.

Then, they quietly turned and began to leave.

Not just one, but all the beasts that had been attacking the village.

“Now’s the time……!”

“Wait.”

Just as the commanders were about to order a full assault, Darius reached out and stopped them.

They might have more battlefield experience, but when it came to hunting demonic beasts, he knew a thing or two himself.

‘I don’t sense any killing intent or madness.’

The backs of the retreating beasts were eerily calm.

Completely different from their earlier rampage.

There was no need to provoke them unnecessarily as they crossed the broken palisade and exited the village.

Clatter.

Once the beasts had completely withdrawn, Darius and the soldiers lowered their weapons and let out short breaths.

“Why did they leave?”

“……Whatever the reason, we must do our part. First, treat the wounded and repair the palisades. The beasts might attack again.”

“Understood.”

The soldiers executed the orders with swift coordination.

Meanwhile, Darius, who was staring into the darkness, bit his lip, unable to hide his unease.

He wanted to charge into the forest immediately, but if the beasts returned while he was gone, the village wouldn’t survive another attack.

Clop, clop.

How long had he waited?

In the distance, a group of figures approached the village.

Darius dashed out to meet them.

“Brother!”

“Darius! Is the village safe?”

“We barely managed to fend off a wave of beasts! More importantly, please guard the village! I need to go look for Carl!”

“Carl? You’re going to look for Carl? Don’t tell me he’s not in the village?”

“He went with the messengers to rally people from nearby villages, but he hasn’t returned. I think he might have run into a horde of beasts.”

“Damn……”

Carius bit his lip with a troubled expression.

“Sir Luiden. Please defend the village. I will accompany Darius to search the Forest of Nore.”

“I will send soldiers with sharp eyes.”

At Luden’s signal, a few agile-looking soldiers rushed forward.

Carius nodded in gratitude and was just about to enter the forest with them when—

Rustle.

Bushes nearby rustled, and someone approached.

Clang!

Not only Luden, but Carius, Darius, and the rest all drew their swords in unison.

This area had just been teeming with demonic beasts.

Thud.

But the one who emerged was none other than Carl.

“Carl!”

“You’re safe, thank goodness……”

Darius let out a deep sigh of relief and ran toward his younger brother.

There was no way someone who had passed the Trial of ‘Justice’ and inherited that sword would fall so easily to mere beasts.

But the figure of his brother, now clearly visible through the dim light, was in a pitiful state.

“Those wounds…”

“Medic! He needs treatment!”

“……I’m fine.”

Carl wiped his lips and calmed the others.

Still, he was forced to sit against a nearby tree and have his wounds examined.

“These don’t look like injuries from beasts.”

“What did this to you?”

Carius frowned as he examined Carl’s wounds.

They were puncture wounds, clearly made by something sharp.

Deep enough to expose bone and muscle—it wouldn’t have been strange if he had died.

“It was black mages. The ones who manipulated the beasts into attacking the territory were black mages hiding in the Forest of Nore.”

“……Black mages?”

“Tell us more. Where exactly are they located?”

Darius crouched down, looking as if he’d sprint off at any moment.

If Carl’s words were true, this was indeed a grave matter.

Black mages were dangerous elements who could destroy an entire territory with just a handful of people.

But Carl waved his hand as if to say it was nothing and calmed his brothers.

“It’s fine. They’re all dead.”

“No way……”

“Are those wounds from fighting the black mages?”

“I didn’t try to fight. They were performing a ritual to summon something. I just interrupted it. They all died from the failed ritual, and I got hurt while fighting the monster that burst out of the summoning circle.”

“Then what happened to that monster……?”

“The summoning must’ve been unstable, because it vanished after a while. There are traces deeper in the forest, so we can check once the sun comes up.”

Carl finally let out a short breath, looking like he could breathe again.

Since the fierce battle with Lancelot had taken place in another dimension, no traces had been left in the forest.

The only things remaining were the signs of the black mages’ summoning ritual and minor battle damage.

There was no need to fabricate anything—it was the perfect setup to pin it all on them.

“Black mages, huh.”

“This isn’t just some minor incident.”

“Then the reason the demonic beasts withdrew must be that the black mages’ deaths broke their brainwashing.”

Everyone nodded at Luden’s comment.

The beasts’ sudden halt and retreat had been bizarre, after all.

It seemed likely that the brainwashing had been broken, returning them to their senses upon the black mages’ deaths.

“Well done. You saved many lives.”

Carius praised his younger brother while gently patting his head.

“Brother, even so, we should take Carl back for now. His wounds are serious, and he might suffer aftereffects from what the black mages did.”

“You’re right. Let’s return quickly and have a priest examine him. We should also report to Father.”

“Understood.”

Carl nodded and rose to his feet.

Thanks to receiving first aid, moving around was much easier than before.

“……”

While leaving the forest with his brothers, Carl glanced back for a moment.

A vague sense of unease lingered.

But he had erased all traces perfectly, and there had been no mistakes in the process.

So he dismissed it as nothing more than a feeling and moved on.

The state of emergency declared in the Leipzig territory due to the beast attack was lifted at dawn.

Count Leipzig, who had stayed up all night on the ramparts with his knights, could not hide his surprise when he heard the report brought by Carl and his brothers.

“There were black mages in the Forest of Nore?”

“We should send the knights to investigate immediately. Black mages are like cockroaches. The ones conducting the ritual can’t be all of them.”

Count Leipzig nodded gravely.

He, too, had experienced firsthand how persistent black mages could be in the past.

They were a cancer that had no place in the territory and needed to be eradicated as soon as they were discovered.

The Empire’s policy also did not tolerate black magic.

As soon as the sun rose, the gates opened, and a group of knights marched toward the Forest of Nore.

Meanwhile, Carl, who had returned to the mansion, received treatment from a priest of the Earth Church.

Ssshhh.

As the pure white divine power seeped into his body, the remaining demonic energy was washed away, and his body regained its former vitality.

The Earth Church priest wiped the sweat from his brow and spoke to Count Leipzig.

“The black mages’ demonic energy was intense. I had to use half of my divine power just to purify it. As long as he takes holy water or potions for a few days, there should be no major issues.”

“Thank you.”

“No, it is we who should thank you. You saw through and stopped the vile scheme of those black mages.”

Carl gave an awkward smile at the priest’s words.

‘What a waste. I was planning to absorb the rest using demonic arts.’

Traces of the demonic energy from Lancelot still lingered within his body.

He had planned to consume what the divine power couldn’t purify using his divine arts, but thanks to the pressure from his family, he had no choice but to entrust the matter to the priest.

Still, since the innermost energy hadn’t been completely cleansed, he could at least absorb that much later.

“Well done, Carl. Don’t overdo it for now and rest at the mansion.”

“Yes, sir.”

Carl nodded obediently.

The urgent matters had been roughly settled, and the rest only required receiving reports.

And as he received treatment through divine power from the Earth Church priest, one realization struck him.

‘Absorbing divinity from another faith seems to affect Kailos’ divinity.’

Was it trying to absorb the other god’s divinity as befitted its master’s nature, or was it rejecting it?

He could feel the faint remnants of Kailos’ divinity reacting ever so slightly.

“Priest.”

“Yes, Young Master Carlos. What is it?”

“Would it be alright if I visited later? I have some questions about divine power.”

“Oh ho.”

The priest beamed at Carl’s question.

Though Carl’s true intent was to copy the secrets and operation of divine power, the priest took it as a genuine curiosity about religion and the gods.

The priest of the Earth Church drew a holy sign before his chest and nodded deeply.

“Anytime, as much as you wish. The church’s doors are always wide open to the young lambs. Even if it’s not me, the other priests will welcome you kindly.”

He was the youngest master beloved by Count Leipzig.

Even setting religious matters aside, the local branch of the church rooted in Leipzig had no reason not to stay close.

“Yes, then I’ll look forward to that time.”

However, whether he was truly a lamb or a sly wolf in sheep’s clothing was something they didn’t seem to realize.

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