episode_0011

His evidence for remembering his missing past was somewhat flimsy, but it was worth suspecting.

That’s understandable, because out of the blue, Cassis Lenokhonen had warned us to be careful.

‘Judging by your attitude, I don’t think you remember the details. Does your soul remember?’

No, that doesn’t make sense. If he had remembered the past when his soul disappeared, he wouldn’t have recognized himself on the first night.

The soul is the thickest blood engraved on a person. If memories were imprinted there, John should have remembered them as soon as he saw Francia.

‘I don’t know.’

Of course, it is true that the rumor about Cassis Lenokhonen is dangerous. He is called a battlefield demon who even takes the heads of surrendered opponents.

Also, he was a man who breathed life into the 1st Civil Service’s allies, so it was not easy for other generals to deal with him.

‘Did he just tell me to be careful because of those rumors?’

Francia licked her lips as she looked at the back of John’s head. She wanted to ask him. If he remembered.

But he couldn’t say that. It was considered one of the most forbidden things about magic to announce that he had returned.

I don’t know the exact reason. It’s just that the mythical celestial wizard who created the spell wrote it that way in his magic book.

‘What on earth is it?’

Francia was also frustrated because there was no information about the magic that violated the law of causality other than the written description.

“All troops, ready!”

As Francia’s worries deepened, those who had prepared to go on an expedition began to mount their horses one by one.

“Francia?”

John tilted his head. Francia was holding his arm tightly and not letting go.

“Oh, sorry. I was just thinking for a moment.”

Francia smiled awkwardly and let go of Johan’s arm.

“… Do you need to be careful?”

“I know.”

“And the demons are running wild.”

“The devils are running wild?”

John’s eyebrows furrowed subtly. Only those who walk the path of the devil can cause the demons to run wild.

‘Well, Francia would know. It happens often during den reconnaissance missions.’

Practitioners or magicians who walk the path of magic make their bases near the dens where demons swarm.

Because communication with demons deepens the path of magic.

These sorcerers were able to control or cause the demons to go berserk, making them the most dangerous beings for the officers on a mission to scout the den.

“I will be careful.”

John smiled and patted Francia on the head. Only then did she smile faintly and turn around.

“John! Come quickly!”

At that moment, the deputy commander, Tersis, who was leading the horse in front, called out to him.

“Yes, I will go now!”

John adjusted his robe, ran towards Tersis, and took hold of the reins.

“What do you think, are you good at riding horses?”

“I’m not very good at it. I learned it when I was very young.”

“Haha! But if you can pass the test, then you must be at least good at basics!”

Tersis rubbed John’s shoulder a few times with his large hand and laughed heartily.

“You don’t have to be so nervous. The unit you joined is under my direct command.”

“That’s reassuring. I’m glad to be with you, Vice-Chief.”

John smiled faintly, then stepped onto the saddle and mounted his horse.

It was the final hurdle to becoming a formal special wizard.

* * *

The march, which began in the morning, continued until dark.

After taking breaks and eating meals here and there, we were finally able to arrive at the eastern cave of the empire at night.

The air had suddenly changed, and I could understand why it was called a cave.

“Let’s set up an outpost here. If we go any further, we’ll probably attract the attention of the demons.”

“Yes!”

Following Fedelian’s words, the knight struck the flag he was holding on the ground.

“Set up an outpost!”

Then the soldiers and knights began to move around him and set up their tents.

“More inside!”

“Spread it out!”

While they were setting up their tents.

John looked around for Francia. The unit was completely opposite, so she didn’t seem to be there.

‘Well, I didn’t want you to be here with me either.’

This is the first mission of a civil servant, and the beginning of everything: the reconnaissance mission to the lair.

In this situation, it would be detrimental to military discipline to hang out with her and make noise.

“Oh my, who are you looking for?”

At that moment, a woman’s voice was heard from behind him. John turned his gaze in the direction of the sound.

“Latalen 1st Class- No, Violet.”

“I’m glad you call me by my name.”

Violet chuckled and placed a hand on Johan’s shoulder. Her red lips twisted into a captivating smile.

“How is it, it’s your first den reconnaissance mission. Are you nervous?”

“I’m not particularly nervous because there are reliable people around.”

“Oh, really? It’s normal to be so nervous that you can’t even sleep properly.”

Violet ran her smooth hands up his shoulders and caressed his cheek.

“Your skin is also good. Do you take care of it separately?”

“No special management required.”

“Is that so? I’m jealous. Hehe.”

What is it that makes you laugh so well? Yohan’s eyes sank coldly.

‘I wish you would stop doing this.’

And his expression hardened. This kind of contact was something he always had when meeting women, so he was used to it, but Violet’s touch was so unnecessarily sticky that it made him feel uncomfortable.

“Violet. I’m sorry to say this, but─”

“Oh, don’t touch me?”

She, who had been reading his expression from the beginning, took her hand away and let out a subtle smile.

“When I see John, I feel like touching him.”

“… … .”

“I’m sorry if I offended you?”

Violet tilted her head slightly.

“John has a very strong wall. It’s like he has a lover.”

“… … .”

John remained silent and avoided answering.

I don’t plan on hiding the fact that I’m in a relationship with Francia, but I need to keep that information to Violet as much as possible.

“You’re not answering. It’s not fun.”

When there was no answer, her face quickly changed to an indifferent one and she shrugged her shoulders.

“I thought you were nervous, so I did that to help you relax. Well, John wasn’t nervous at all.”

“Since it’s going to happen anyway, I’m just saying let’s do our best and not waste our emotions on useless things.”

“Haha, I like that part too.”

She stepped back and gave John a quick nod.

“Then I guess I’ll go now?”

“Of course. You must be busy.”

“Hoohoo.”

Violet left, leaving a meaningful smile behind.

‘I don’t know what you’re thinking.’

At first I thought it was a jealousy inducing tactic, but it didn’t seem to be that. There was no need to do this when Cassis wasn’t around.

‘There must be something you want.’

I don’t know. I must be missing something, but nothing comes to mind.

“Ah, John. You were here!”

As he was lost in thought, looking at the place where Violet had left, Tersis called out to Johan from behind.

“What’s going on?”

“Nothing much. I just thought I should explain the schedule.”

Tersis smiled cheerfully and continued his explanation.

“First of all, today is a day of rest. The real reconnaissance mission begins tomorrow morning. The main task is to divide into units, decide on a direction, and check the state of the cave there.”

John nodded and listened to him.

“The reason for checking the den is simple, as you know. If their numbers increase too much, there is a possibility of a ‘demon overflow’, which would be a problem even for the empire.”

Demon overflow. Literally, it refers to the number of demons increasing so much that they are moving out of the demon den area.

“It’s not always good to have a lot of land.”

“Yeah.”

The Rosino Empire is the largest nation on the continent. There are bound to be many caves whose origins are unknown.

However, we cannot eliminate the cave. Because if we touch the abyss gate connected to it, it cannot be turned back.

Therefore, the best option for managing the den was for officials or knights to occasionally go out and manage the number of demons.

“Anyway, get some rest today. We have to go south.”

“Yes.”

Tersis patted John on the back a few times, smiled satisfied, and walked in the direction of his tent.

John narrowed his eyes and looked in the direction where the crown prince was. It was advantageous that he could see it from anywhere since it was in the center of the outpost.

‘You never know when or what he’ll do. You have to be careful.’

The downside was that you couldn’t see inside.

‘He’s the crown prince by name, so he won’t do anything himself… … .’

The number of shadows he has under his command is close to several thousand, as the crown prince is the center of the empire.

There is no choice but to raise the level of alertness to the maximum.

‘But don’t worry. If necessary, you can use the Book of Disaster.’

I don’t know how powerful the Book of Disaster, which contains the magic to cause disaster, is, but looking at the pattern and the magical power that goes into it – it’s definitely not ordinary.

‘If something goes wrong, you can just turn it all upside down.’

It was one day left until the mission to scout the lair.

* * *

Sabak. Sabak.

Late at night. Most of the troops are asleep, and only a small number of soldiers on guard duty are awake.

Sabak. Sabak.

Crown Prince Fedelian Rosino was walking through a dense forest.

Normally, it would be normal to have an escort, but he was a special knight and the second sword of the empire. There was no problem with him wandering through the forest of the lair.

There were dozens of shadows attached, so it wasn’t that dangerous.

Sabak. Sabak.

I walked through the forest for a while, clearing away the branches that clung to my legs.

Fedelian was able to meet some robed men in a clearing in the forest.

“Are you here?”

“Yeah.”

The one at the front among the robed men walked out and greeted Fedelian.

“It’s hard to meet you once. Why don’t you just talk to me through the shadow? I don’t understand what you mean by you have to see me.”

Fedelian frowned and showed his displeasure.

The man wearing a robe bowed his head.

“I’m really sorry about that part. But, I really wanted to show you this… … .”

The man took out a bright red bead from his bosom. It looked like a glass bead. Inside, a blood-colored magical energy was swirling.

“Hoo. What is this?”

Fedelian asked with interest.

“This is made by gathering the life force of demons. If you use this as a basis for magic, even if you are a top-class demon, it is impossible for you to refuse orders.”

A smile appeared on his lips as he heard the story.

If you can control a special demon, it will be a great weapon of war, and it will be of great help in the operation you are thinking of now.

“Are you done with the experiment?”

“Of course.”

The man wearing the robe turned inside out continued speaking, putting a red glass bead in his bosom.

“But it requires a fairly complex spell. So, the downside is that I have to use it myself.”

“Hmm.”

Fedelian stroked his chin. There is a shadow, so there is no problem with communication.

However, the problem was that I had to borrow the power of the magic practitioners.

Because I can’t use that power whenever and wherever I want.

“What is the potential for development?”

“As of now, it’s infinite.”

“Okay then.”

Fedelian smiled faintly after hearing the answer he had been waiting for.

“Have you decided on the first use for that bead?”

“Not yet.”

“Then let’s use it this time.”

Fedelian placed a hand on the robed man’s shoulder and twisted the corner of his mouth in a bitter way.

“There is a unit going to the southern cave to scout. Then move the special magician. There, kill the special magician named Johan Harsen.”

“Oh,” he added.

“You can kill all the unit members moving together, just make sure to get the job done.”