Chapter 80: Each Other’s Business

The island where they fought completely disappeared after the destructive onslaught from Meteor Shower, Mind’s Blade: Blood Moon, and the explosion from the shattering of the Demon God’s Orb. It was enough destructive power to completely annihilate the island from existence.

The Vermont Empire realized this case and dispatched an investigation team. In the nearby seas, the naval security witnessed the great explosions and alerted the mainland.

The dispatched investigation team were the Imperial Magicians and Vermont Special Forces 3rd Division.

They could only be shocked at the devastated scenery.

The obliterated island was one thing, but the eerie mana continued to whirlpool into nothingness. It was the main reason as to why they couldn’t approach the remnants of the island.

‘What the hell happened here?’

And the Special Forces soldiers who were tracking down Quikantel and Enya felt their hearts sink.

They knew that the destruction before them was definitely related to the whereabouts of the contractor and her dragon.

An Imperial Magician—who was watching the scene—approached the Special Forces.

“Division Leader Wratch, it seems that Silver Dragon Quikantel had a battle here. The silver dragon’s mana… and the wind dragon’s mana can be detected here.”

“The wind dragon… Are you sure?”

“Yes. I think it’s the Zipfels’ Vyuretta. He was the only wind dragon who came near this area. And I can detect a human’s mana… but I can’t determine whose it is.”

Wratch placed his hand on his forehead.

Why did they fight? No answers immediately came to mind.

‘The human’s mana is highly likely to be from Olta’s contractor, Enya. Maybe it’s related to the “thing” that the Zipfels are making? Shit, I should have kept more eyes on the log cabin…!’

The ‘thing’ he referred to was the Demon God’s Orb.

Currently, there weren’t many in the Vermont Empire who knew about the orb. The only ones who knew of its existence were the emperor, the Special Forces Division Leaders, and some imperial ministers.

However, none of them exactly knew its abilities and functions, nor did they know the item’s name.

They only had knowledge of the Zipfels making an artifact involving the ‘contractors of gods’.

“Division Leader! The navy discovered parts of a dragon’s corpse on the opposite side of the island.”

The discovered pieces of flesh and scales were stuck to some remnants of dead trees floating in the ocean.

“…They’re certainly from the silver dragon’s wing and the wind dragon’s tail.”

The imperial magician verified after looking at the remains.

“Gather all of the remains in the ocean. Make sure you don’t let it fall into that void!”

In the following hours, the investigation team was able to recover many pieces of flesh, bones, and scales.

The imperial magicians concluded that both dragons died from the battle, and reporting such news to the emperor was Wratch’s job.

“Indeed, just like you said, this may be related to the artifact that they are making. Does that mean you didn’t identify what caused the whirlpool that superseded the island?”

“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty.”

“There seems to be many uncertainties within your reports. And you didn’t even identify Quikantel’s guests.”

“My apologies, Your Imperial Majesty.”

“Well, you probably didn’t do it on purpose. If you are not able to find them, then they must be extraordinary people. Still, I believe that you can track them in the end.”

Wratch lowered his head.

“Anyway… In our perspective, we should be praying that both dragons are dead. Else, they’d see it as a threat. First, let’s wait for the Zipfel Clan’s official declaration.”

“What shall we tell our press?”

“Tell them to cover it up for now. If Enya isn’t found until tonight, then declare her as missing. Quikantel probably just died with her. The nobles at the academy would be delighted.”

After Wratch left, the emperor sat alone in the office and thought to himself.

‘I should dispatch more of the Special Forces near the Zipfel Clan. Too many things happened while I wasn’t paying attention.’

* * *

At the topmost floor of the Zipfel Clan’s Tower of Magicians, a man looking into a crystal ball spoke.

“Andrei… is dead.”

The man was Kelliark Zipfel, the Zipfel Clan’s current patriarch.

Although Andrei was his younger brother, finding out that the second-in-command had died didn’t really affect him.

Unlike the world’s perception of his appearance, he had the face of a young adult. Anyone who didn’t know what Kelliark looked like back in his youth wouldn’t be able to immediately identify him on the streets.

[What? Your brother died? What do you mean? That crystal ball… You can’t see anything inside it. It’s just for decoration. Is that supposed to be another unfunny joke, Kelliark?]

The only being who could talk to Kelliark Zipfel this comfortably was Fire Dragon Kadun—one of the God of Flames Sheenu’s dragons and Kelliark’s guardian dragon. He was slowly cooking a meat skewer using the breath coming out of his snout.

“No, not through the crystal, you idiot. I can feel it. My younger brother just died. I’m not kidding.”

Kadun stopped turning his skewer.

[Hm… so you say it’s true. Maybe he lost to Quikantel? Didn’t he take the Demon God’s Orb with him? He also had Vyuretta. Ah, since Andrei died, then did Vyuretta perish as well? Either way, Quikantel should have been an easy opponent if he had the orb’s power by his side.]

“No idea. Perhaps the silver dragon was stronger than we thought, or a third party helped them.”

[Quikantel? That bitch is strong, but not enough to fight both of them. She’s definitely not enough against the orb!]

Chomp!

Kadun chewed off a bite of the skewer. Kelliark looked at him and gently grinned.

“If that’s so, then it means that there was a third party. Who do you think it is?”

[How the fuck would I know? Dumbass.]

Kelliark frowned at the dragon’s words.

[…It’s probably a dragon! Last time, didn’t Kinzelo say that ‘a dragon controlling the shadows’ killed the cemetery giants? Then it could be Misha. Very likely.]

“By Misha do you mean Black Dragon Murakan’s sister?”

[Yeah, her. That bitch wouldn’t feel fear from the orb’s power. She may not be as strong as Murakan in his prime, but she’s still super strong.]

“Your duty has been determined, Kadun.”

[To go find Misha? I guess I do all the dirty work. I’ll try to find her, but don’t expect anything from me. If a black dragon tries their best to hide, even the God of Searching wouldn’t be able to find them.]

“I’ll just trust you, Kadun. Either way, losing the orb is kind of a pain in the ass.”

[Do you even give a single fuck that your brother just died?]

“Well, I knew that dumbass would die at some point. A while back, he just waltzed into Cyron’s banquet without an ounce of fear, and I was pretty worked up. I didn’t think he’d take the orb with him to the grave, though.”

[We gotta call the Fragmentor to make it again. Without that, we can’t go for the Runcandels before Cyron dies. And the kings of the Black Sea…]

“I know. I know already. Man, this is all a mess. Just in case, I should go get rid of all evidence of the orb. I got more dirty work than you, Kadun.”

[You should be doing that much. In order to become the God of the World, that is.]

* * *

In Bouvard Gaston’s Fragmented Workshop located in the Curano Dukedom, Vishukel sat down as he suppressed his hateful wrath and emotion.

“Ah, welcome, Sir Vishukel! Good timing. I was craving those sweet potato croquettes of yours. Hehe… No croquettes today…?”

“Listen closely, Bouvard. I came after hearing from the traitors of the Vermont Imperial Family. It seems that the Zipfel Clan used the Demon God’s Orb behind our backs.”

“What? They did?”

“Yes. In the Vermont Empire’s ocean territory, a silver dragon and wind dragon had a big battle, and an island got annihilated. And because of the remaining mana, there’s a whirlpool in the middle of the ocean that wouldn’t disappear… It’s definitely caused by the orb’s destruction.”

Hearing this, Bouvard jumped up from his seat and shouted.

“Urrrrggghhh! That orb was my creation! I’m sure I warned them not to use it in its incomplete state! I’ll never forgive them if it’s true!”

As Bouvard threw a tantrum, Vishukel grimaced.

‘The day to kill this dumbass hog strays further. He has to remake the orb.’

The Zipfels came up with the initial idea, but Bouvard took care of the orb’s creation.

Thus, the orb’s ownership was equally shared between the Zipfel Clan and Kinzelo group.

“Even our leader is furious. Since our alliance with the Zipfels could shatter at any moment, don’t communicate with them for the time being.”

* * *

Two days later.

“Young Master Jin, welcome back!”

Jin and his companions arrived at Kashimir’s mansion in Tikan. Kashimir and the agents of the Seven-Colored Peacock came out to the courtyard to greet them. And Gilly—who was awaiting their arrival—frantically ran to them.

“Young Master! Are you alright?”

“Strawberry Pie. Haha, I’m okay.”

Gilly had heard about Enya’s plight, and never slept one bit as she worried about Jin. She turned her head towards Luna, and immediately bowed.

“It’s alright, Gilly. I heard on the way here, but the youngest seems to love you a lot. Please continue to take care of him.”

“Luna…? Wait… The White Whale, Lady Luna Runcandel?”

“Ah, you must be Sir Kashimir. Greetings. I am Luna Runcandel.”

“I can’t believe that Lady Luna would come to my residence. It is my honor to serve you. Please, come in. You have all done well.”

As they entered the mansion, Kashimir spoke before Jin could open his mouth.

“Young Master Jin, I must tell you something first. Earlier today, about three hours ago, my daughter’s guardian dragon returned.”

Jin’s eyes widened.

“Lathry returned?”

“Yes, but there’s something weird. It seems like Lathry has a gap in their memory for the time they went missing. For now, Lathry is beside my daughter, but it seems like they couldn’t understand the situation themself. Maybe it wasn’t a kidnapping?”

“It definitely was. Quikantel got a confession directly from Vyuretta.”

A thought suddenly came to Jin.

‘Maybe the Zipfels are concerned about other clans discovering the existence of the orb, so they’re getting rid of all evidence regarding the situation. Then, it’s likely that they would purposefully erase Lathry’s memories to protect its secrecy.’

With this in mind, Jin explained the events at the island, and Kashimir nodded as he listened.

“Those are some extreme situations… I feel bad that I forced you into such circumstances while I powerlessly remained in Tikan. An artifact that swallows contractors whole… What the hell is happening in the Zipfel Clan…?”

“There’s only one reason to make a replica of the Orb of Origin, twerp.”

Murakan opened his mouth. Jin, Quikantel, and Luna nodded.

On the way to Tikan, they had heard more about the Orb of Origin.

“They’re trying to become a god in order to rule the world… Well, I don’t know if things will go how they want it to, though.”

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