Ch.224Episode 12 – The Strongest Mage in History

It was a time of endurance.

The north wind raged through the fog, and merciless hammering pounded the blood-stained snow mountain.

Land trampled by the cursed monster’s army.

Only after the steel rain and wind subsided did peace finally come to that place where the living and dead were entangled.

After the darkest hour had passed.

As the fog lifted.

The crimson dawn rising from the east illuminated the collapsed ruins.

Gently embracing the scars of war.

It was the end of a long battle that had felt like a midsummer night’s dream.

Episode 12 – The Strongest Magician in History

It was morning.

Not even the clouds that usually covered the northern sky, painting the world in gloomy colors, were present.

The clear northern sky, a rare sight seen perhaps once every few years. The warm sunlight tickled my skin like a child’s whispering voice.

The snow mountain, covered with fresh snow that had accumulated overnight, was a breathtaking sight.

Looking at the pristine snow mountain, the exceptionally clear sky, and the brightening dawn, I felt like I was sitting in a famous art gallery, gazing at a masterpiece.

I gazed at the dawn tickling my face through the tent and suddenly muttered:

“…It’s morning.”

Too monotone a comment for such a rare scenery.

But until just yesterday, I thought I might never see the rising sun again. Perhaps even such a simple appreciation was enough to convey meaning.

As I sat on the makeshift bed thinking to myself, a snow-white hand suddenly reached in and pulled back the tent flap.

“…Ah.”

Lucia, who opened the tent and entered, widened her blue eyes for a moment.

Then she greeted me with a gentle smile.

“You’re awake. When did you wake up?”

“Just now.”

It was the beginning of a new morning.

*

After a long night, morning had arrived.

It was only a day, but much had happened during that time. No, rather than calling them happenings, it would be better to call them incidents.

From the crack of dawn, I sat in a circle with people who had gathered and engaged in conversation.

“Yesterday, I really thought I was going to die…”

“But you didn’t.”

“That’s true…”

The monster’s attack on the Rift, the defeat of the armored division. We conducted a raid with just over a dozen people to catch the monster, and the Imperial Army fought desperately at the defense line against corpse spiders attacking from all directions.

If the advance party from the Order and Magic Tower, or the main force consisting of the Holy Knight Order and Magic Corps, hadn’t arrived in time, the Rift might have become a playground for corpse spiders by now.

Fortunately, the person who had appropriately handled the situation to prevent such a disaster was present here.

“…Sigh.”

Francesca crossed her legs and let out a light sigh.

“I’m grateful everyone came, but… how much better would it have been if you’d arrived a bit earlier? To think we struggled for hours just to catch one spider…”

“At least they came, right? By the way, where are the Imperial Army’s magicians?”

“I don’t know. Maybe they got lost…”

The Holy Knight Order and Magic Corps, who received the request for support, rushed to the area with the Rift in one go.

And Ferretti and Martinez, who volunteered as the advance party, even brought troops to help catch the giant spider.

Especially Ferretti, with his outstanding skills, worked with Francesca to break the creature’s carapace so Camilla’s attacks could properly penetrate.

After beheading the giant spider, the main forces of the Order and Magic Tower arrived and successfully attacked the rear of the corpse spiders that had been assaulting the defense lines from all directions. By anyone’s standards, this battle was a complete defeat for the monsters.

“Though we almost died when that spider bastard pulled some tricks at the end… Anyway, it’s fortunate things worked out well. Are you two alright?”

Francesca nodded in response.

“That’s good.”

I had confirmed that neither Camilla nor Francesca were injured, and Ferretti, Martinez, and the others hadn’t sustained any injuries either, so it was fortunate news.

If only the next words hadn’t followed.

“What’s fortunate about it?”

My body stiffened at the voice coming from right beside me.

Turning my creaking neck with difficulty, I saw Lucia looking at me with a cold face, in the middle of unwrapping a blood-stained bandage.

“Everyone else is fine, but you’re the only one who came back injured.”

“Uh, well, that’s…”

“Never mind. Don’t say anything.”

Lucia unwrapped the bloody bandage and wrapped a new one around her forearm.

Then she wrapped the bandage so tightly that her hand trembled, and tied it with a forceful knot.

“Ouch.”

“Don’t pretend it hurts.”

“No, isn’t this too tight?”

“It’s properly tied. Are you doubting my skills right now?”

“That’s not it, but…”

“Then keep quiet.”

Lucia cut me off with a stern tone that suggested she wouldn’t tolerate any objections.

The wound on my forearm was from when I shoved my gun into the mouth of a charging corpse spider, and the creature clawed at me with its legs just before dying.

Fortunately, it was a small one, so its legs didn’t reach my face, but the arm holding the gun was an exception.

Since it wasn’t an urgent wound and there were many seriously injured people, I had only wrapped a bandage and postponed treatment, but it seemed Lucia intended to treat this wound today.

Or perhaps she planned to tighten the bandage until my wrist broke, ending my hand’s existence.

Each time she pulled the bandage with her rough touch, my forearm convulsed and my palm trembled, but Lucia didn’t care at all.

“Um… Holy Maiden. Couldn’t you just heal it with holy power instead of wrapping a bandage?”

“……”

Suddenly, Lucia’s hands stopped wrapping the bandage.

After silently staring at me for a moment, Lucia pulled the bandage strongly with an expressionless face, silencing me.

*

Many people overlook the fact that just because a battle ends doesn’t mean everything is over.

It’s only truly finished after the complicated and hellish procedures of collecting the wounded, reorganizing troops, pulling damaged units to the rear, and filling the gaps with intact regiments.

The Imperial Army defending the Rift reorganized its units.

“Send the wounded to where the priests are!”

“All magicians, follow me. By the way, when is the heavy equipment for clearing debris arriving?”

“Alright! Alright!”

The Imperial Army worked on reorganization throughout the night.

They classified the lightly and severely wounded, and pulled troops from relatively intact battalions to insert into those that had suffered heavy losses.

The Imperial Army’s tasks became incredibly complex because the terrain had completely changed due to the bombardment from the corps and division artillery. Even trying to descend the mountain range was difficult as one path was completely blocked, and it would take considerable time to restore it.

Additionally, the Imperial Army mobilized magicians to clear the debris of collapsed fortifications and buildings.

After magicians plowed the ground to clear debris, officers salvaged usable materials and quickly incinerated encryption materials and secret documents that they hadn’t had time to destroy during yesterday’s retreat, before anyone could take them.

I looked at the smoke rising from various parts of the unit.

“What a waste.”

Given that they were entrusted with the critical mission of defending the Rift, there must have been quite a lot of good information here. Intelligence that would be coveted by Abas, Fatalia, the Order, Latuan, the Rushan Federal Kingdom, and even countries from the far East.

Such items were now turning to ashes in drums, which was truly regrettable.

Why didn’t I think of stealing them yesterday? Regret washed over me, but it was already too late.

I turned my gaze away from the rising smoke and clicked my tongue.

“Hey! Get out of the way!”

A sharp voice pierced my eardrums.

Looking up, I saw a golem about to walk right past me.

“This is a path for golems! It’s dangerous, so please use another route!”

The magician riding the golem shouted and hurriedly left the path. A cape with the emblem of the Thaumaturgy School fluttered like a flag in the rough wind.

A magician from the Magic Tower’s Magic Corps.

Yesterday, it was the Holy Knight Order and Magic Corps who came here after receiving Francesca’s contact. The advance party arrived first, and by the time the giant spider died, the main forces of both sides had arrived.

I watched the Magic Tower’s battle magicians passing by with quick steps.

At that moment, I spotted a familiar person among the group.

“Who do we have here? Isn’t it Lord Martinez?”

“Who… Ah, Officer, it’s you.”

Juan Pablo Martinez, the head of personnel dispatched from the Magic Tower’s Secretariat.

Since we had fought together against the giant spider yesterday, I could approach him without any formal introduction.

“What brings you here? You seem quite busy this morning.”

“I’m on my way to eliminate the remnants.”

“Remnants?”

“I’m referring to the corpse spiders that escaped yesterday.”

“Ah, the corpse spiders…”

Martinez, leading the Magic Corps’ battle magicians, was heading out to eliminate the corpse spiders.

As soon as the giant spider—whether queen or general—died, the swarm of corpse spiders scattered and fled in all directions, like cockroaches hiding in furniture crevices to escape the light.

Those escaped corpse spiders had spread throughout the entire mountain range surrounding the basin where the Rift was located.

Normally, the Imperial Army defending the Rift and the divisions stationed below the mountain range should go out to eliminate them, but…

“They seem quite short-handed. It’s not easy to ask the Imperial side for help.”

“I see…”

Those people have been dead for a long time.

I turned my gaze to look at an empty space in the distance. There were dozens of people lying covered with black cloth on the empty parade ground.

Although there was an armored division, most of the troops deployed at the Rift were infantry. It’s easier to dispatch an infantry company than to bring a single tank up to the top of a steep mountain.

As I had roughly anticipated, the Imperial Army’s casualties were significant. Including the bodies they couldn’t recover, hundreds might have died.

“The battle seems to have been more intense than imagined.”

“It certainly was. When will the Imperial Army send reinforcements?”

“I heard they’ll send an advance party from below the mountain range sometime today. Artillery support is also planned.”

The Magic Corps decided to eliminate the monsters spread throughout the mountain range in place of the Imperial Army. According to Martinez, they would receive assistance from the adjacent Imperial Army division.

Of course, the Holy Knight Order was no exception. The more people to fight, the better.

However,

“I noticed yesterday that there were Inquisitors mixed in with the Holy Knight Order’s main force.”

“Inquisitors? Are you saying there are Inquisitors here?”

“Yes, Officer.”

The Holy Knight Order that arrived at the Rift included not only Holy Knights but also Inquisitors.

And Inquisitors were among the types of people that magicians found most uncomfortable.

“I wonder why they came too.”

“Probably for Holy Maiden Lucia’s safety. Since she’s a saint, they must have accompanied her for protection.”

When Lucia became a saint and visited Abas, Inquisitors accompanied her. More precisely, they had their names added to the visitor list after prior coordination with Abas intelligence agencies.

It wasn’t unusual for intelligence officers to accompany a state guest on a foreign visit, so I didn’t particularly mind, but Martinez and the Magic Tower magicians seemed quite bothered by the fact that Inquisitors were nearby. They were showing signs of discomfort.

Well, how could magicians and Inquisitors sit together and converse amicably? The Order must have given them a hard time.

Of course, it’s none of my business.

Anyway, I’m glad to have heard good information. I tried to placate Martinez to avoid unnecessary friction.

“There’s no need to worry too much.”

“Time is running short. I’ll be going now. Please give my regards to the Administrator.”

“Take care.”

After a brief bow, Martinez led the battle magicians and disappeared into the forest.

I walked toward where my unit was, mentally recording everything I saw. It wasn’t particularly for company business; it was just a habit. A kind of occupational disease.

Monsters attacked a military unit. Moreover, that unit was defending the Rift, a national critical facility.

This alone was strange enough, but now the Imperial Army, Holy Knight Order, and Magic Corps were gathered in one place. What would happen when people who absolutely cannot mix, like oil and water, gather in one place?

I don’t know yet, but they certainly won’t stay quiet.

When three people agree on something, even a non-existent tiger will appear, and when five people gather, at least one of them will do something stupid.

“Lady Lyudmila?”

“Yes.”

“I’m really sorry to bother you during this busy time, but could you send a message to the Military Government Command?”

“No problem. I’ll relay it to my unit. Please tell me.”

I used the Imperial Army’s communication network to contact the Military Government Command. I told them that as soon as Camilla, Lucia, and Francesca finished their business, we would leave the Rift immediately.

No matter how powerful the Imperial Army is, by what authority could they stop our party? Especially a Holy Maiden, an Alchemist, and a Hero. The Military Government Command replied that we could do as we pleased. Besides, the vehicle we came in was destroyed, so we couldn’t move anyway.

With a relaxed mind, I roamed around, carefully observing what was happening.

But as is often the case in life,

The incident came much faster than I had anticipated.

*

It was deep into the night.

In the time when the warm sunlight had disappeared and darkness had fallen heavily, I was slowly organizing the content for my report in a temporary tent set up to replace the collapsed quarters.

It was around the time I had roughly finished the draft when someone came to my quarters.

“Do you have a moment?”

“Who… Ah, Holy Maiden Lucia.”

It was Lucia.

As always, she was wearing a snow-white cassock and holding a lantern in one hand. Judging by the snow accumulated on her cloak, she must have been outside somewhere.

Since it was night, the wind was colder than expected, so I quickly invited her inside.

“Please come in.”

“Yes.”

Lucia didn’t add anything else. Given her usual character, there should have been some longer pleasantries, but there weren’t.

Something was off.

I tilted my head in confusion and began:

“Would you like some tea?”

“No, I’m fine.”

Lucia flatly refused. Without even brushing off the snow on her shoulders, she continued:

“I heard from Lord Ferretti yesterday. That the Imperial Army had dispatched magicians.”

A conversation that started abruptly. At the sudden mention of Imperial Army magicians, I nodded.

“And if my memory serves me right, they were mentioned in our conversation this morning too. Isn’t that right?”

“Yes, they were.”

Lucia silently stared at me.

Honestly, I didn’t notice earlier, but her expression was somewhat dark.

Whoosh, a cold wind entered through the open gap and made the lantern sway. In the precariously flickering lantern light, shadows fell across Lucia’s face.

“…Holy Maiden?”

“……”

“…Lucia?”

Lucia, who had been maintaining silence, closed her eyes for a moment.

As if deep in thought, she closed her eyes, then slowly lifted her eyelids and stared directly at me.

“…Actually, a report just came in from the Holy Knight Order. On their way back from eliminating monsters, they found some people, and it seems they are those magicians.”

“Is that so? But why are you telling me this…”

“Let’s go out first.”

Lucia threw open the tent flap.

“I think it would be better for you to see for yourself.”