I Became the Narrow-Eyed Henchman of the Evil Boss – Chapter 175

Chapter 175: Ten Commandments Frontline (2)

“Even if we’re talking about assassination, the target is a lord of the Ten Magic Towers. Do you really think the master of Yellow Thunder Tower would meekly allow themselves to be killed?”

“For all your concerns, let me introduce someone who has actually attempted to assassinate them. Everyone, please welcome Mr. Demus! He works in the same organization as Proditor and holds an identical rank.”

Lampades clutched his head in frustration.

As Lampades struggled to process this madness, Demus pulled Orthes aside to the corner of the room.

“Are you sure about this? If this goes wrong and Lampades snitches on us…”

“Haha. Don’t worry,” Orthes replied with a breezy smile. “Lampades would never do that. He cares far too much for his people.”

Orthes’ tone was casual, but his words were double-edged. He was implying trust, but the underlying message to Lampades was clear: We’re all on this ship together. If it sinks, we all drown.

And Orthes was right. They had sailed too far into dangerous waters to back out now.

Moreover—

“I’m in charge of this ship’s lifeboat.”

Or, more accurately, Lampades was the one building the lifeboat. Securing Yellow Thunder was the only way to create a refuge, a safe haven to escape retaliation from the other Towers if they sought vengeance in the future.

For the sake of his people, Lampades steeled himself. He would put everything he had into this fight.

The greater the risk, the greater the reward. If I’m staking everything, I’ll claim more than everything in return!

With a grim resolve, he made up his mind. Hector, watching from the sidelines, sighed internally.

Ah, Orthes…

You really don’t know how to pick your friends, do you?

As Hector observed his one and only disciple’s knack for surrounding himself with questionable individuals, he felt a pang of sorrow. Orthes had a talent for inviting chaos into his life, and Hector’s old heart ached at the realization.

***

“Let me hear it again. What exactly is the situation with the master of Yellow Thunder Tower?”

“Hmm, well… Our order has been persecuted by the Ten Towers for centuries. But we’ve had our moments of retaliation, and the current lord of Yellow Thunder was injured during one of those moments, by the previous head of our order—”

Demus explained the situation to Lampades, describing the Yellow Thunder lord’s injury and the circumstances surrounding it. After Demus’ assassination attempt, the tower lord had ceased all public appearances.

Sensing something suspicious, the Divine Cult had used every internal contact within Argos to uncover the lord’s current condition.

“When I attempted the assassination, the lord went berserk. The damage must have been severe, as they’re now unable to leave the tower at all. They’re said to be conscious for no more than one or two hours a day.”

“So… in a weakened, incapacitated state, the tower lord is vulnerable enough to assassinate.”

“Exactly. But the real problem lies with the elders. The ones I saw were skilled enough to subdue a rampaging tower lord, even if they needed the advantage of numbers to do so.”

As the explanation wrapped up, Orthes gestured to Proditor, who had been casually examining the reception room.

“This is where Proditor’s role becomes crucial. In theory, he can open a door to any location in the world.”

“Well… that’s only if the coordinates are properly secured. Otherwise, it’s dangerous,” Proditor said with a shrug.

“Lampades’ radar technology will handle that part. It’s possible we’ve stumbled upon a dangerous yet effective combination,” Orthes said with a sly grin.

Lampades wanted to protest that his radar was designed for extra-dimensional exploration, not for pinpointing specific locations in this world.

But on second thought, it wasn’t entirely impossible. If he used the energy output of the Ten Commandments as a basis for calculating coordinates, it just might work. Reluctantly, he swallowed his objections.

“So, Lampades,” Orthes continued.

“What now?”

“The problem is that Proditor’s ability relies on divine power. As you know, the Towers are hypersensitive to any use of divine power. The moment it’s detected, they’ll swallow their pride and immediately request reinforcements from the other Towers.”

Demus nodded in agreement. As a priest of the war god, he knew this analysis was spot-on. When it came to the Divine Cult, the Ten Towers—normally riddled with infighting—demonstrated remarkable cooperation.

“That’s why your role is critical, Lampades. The moment the succession war begins, you’ll need to paralyze Yellow Thunder’s information and communication systems.”

“Are you joking?”

“Not at all,” Orthes said with a shrug, wearing an expression that suggested everything was already prepared.

But this time, Lampades refused to agree so easily.

“The succession war takes place within the domain of the Ten Towers. Without significant time or an enormous amount of magic stones, invading their control is almost impossible. Unless you have an artifact on par with the Ten Commandments, large-scale magic of that scale simply isn’t feasible.”

Lampades gestured to Hector, as if to point out that this was precisely why they had brought aura-users as their vanguard.

“You’re correct, Lampades. But who said we need an artifact on par with the Ten Commandments? What if we have an artifact that can use the Ten Commandments themselves?”

“If something like that existed, my tower would have been a dark tower by now!”

“Oh, but you acquired it fairly recently.”

Recently? Dark memories stirred in Lampades’ mind.

The relic Orthes had gifted him, supposedly as a “present.” A discovery from the Torres faction.

The last legacy of Manubia Tower, which had dared to challenge Yellow Thunder—and failed.

“The Talisman of Thunder…?”

“Yes, the Talisman of Thunder. I told you it could fully convert mana into magical energy. But, in fact, it has another function.”

Orthes’ next words were prefaced by the usual disclaimer: “This is purely theoretical, of course.” He explained that this additional functionality was inferred from the relic’s origin and that the strategy would have to be adjusted if the hypothesis proved false.

But Lampades, with a sinking feeling, already knew Orthes’ hypothesis was correct.

Orthes was that kind of man.

The Talisman of Thunder’s hidden function wasn’t just converting mana into magical energy—it could also do the reverse. It could convert magical energy back into mana. A flawless, bidirectional transformation with no loss.

This unforeseen function had emerged from the fusion of the artifact’s original properties with the Silver Thread Parasite and Keranos, the Thunderbolt Lord. Though an accident, Carisia had modified the relic to safely access this hidden capability when necessary.

Following Carisia’s instructions, Orthes activated the release command. A golden orb began to glow, its surface etched with silver patterns.

“Behold, the final legacy of Manubia Tower.”

Mana into magical energy. Magical energy back into mana.

The possibilities raced through Lampades’ mind. The relic was perfect for the succession war. It could neutralize the Ten Commandments’ domination of ambient magical energy by converting it into mana, which their allies could control. A perfect countermeasure against the Ten Commandments’ control.

The artifact must have been created by the last lord of Manubia Tower, Keranos, before their ultimate defeat against Yellow Thunder.

Lampades shuddered. Everything—the relic, the strategy—felt like it had been crafted to dismantle the Ten Towers.

But there was one final detail to confirm.

“You said this relic was for Astrafe.”

“Yes.”

Cold. Lampades took a deep breath, preparing for the worst.

“However, exposing Astrafe to the current situation would be far too dangerous.”

Unexpected. Lampades waited for Orthes to elaborate.

“Astrafe, wielding the Talisman of Thunder, would signal the rebirth of Manubia Tower. But that would draw far too much attention.”

Astrafe, wielding the relic to its fullest, was Orthes’ hidden card for the Mage King. The King’s magic was unparalleled, but the Talisman didn’t target magic itself—it targeted the magical energy required to use it. A completely unforeseen artifact, absent from the original history.

They couldn’t reveal the Talisman’s full potential in the succession war.

Lampades interpreted this as evidence of Orthes’ lingering humanity. He had once suspected Orthes and Astrafe of being family, and this preferential treatment only deepened his suspicions.

But in a way, it was comforting. If Orthes was sparing Astrafe, perhaps he truly wasn’t planning to “burn the whole world to ash,” as he once claimed.

“Too much attention, you say.”

“Exactly. If the succession war goes as planned and we topple all the Towers, it won’t matter. But if it doesn’t, the attention could be problematic.”

The Talisman’s discovery had been linked to the Torres faction, which was later exposed as a collaborator of Argyrion. If rumors of collusion resurfaced, Lampades Tower’s reputation would be on shaky ground, even after ascending to the Ten Towers.

If Orthes intended to use Lampades Tower as a fallback, then avoiding suspicion was paramount.

But Lampades sensed there was more to Orthes’ reasoning than simple practicality.

“So, who will use it? Do you already have someone in mind?”

Orthes looked at Lampades with a rare expression of genuine confusion—emotions seldom graced his face.

“…Me?”

“Of course! The assassin needs the assassination tool, don’t they?”