episode_0142

Four days after Ellen’s chip.

The food left in front of the door still hasn’t been touched.

Anne couldn’t stand it any longer.

“Princess. Please, look at my face and talk to me.”

“… … ”

“If you don’t open the door, I’ll break it and come in, your highness.”

“… … ”

“You allowed me to come in? ”

No answer came back.

Anne let out a deep sigh.

Kwaaang-!!

He concentrated his magical power into his fist and slammed the door.

“… ?”

He frowned.

It’s a fist strengthened by magical power, although not all of its strength was drawn out.

But it doesn’t move at all.

How tightly is it blocked?

“… Are you not in front of the door? If you are, please step back?”

Woohoo-!!

Mana Heart squeezes magical power beyond its limit.

A body reinforced in several layers.

There would be backlash later, but it was much better than Elin starving to death like this.

“Sigh!”

With a roar so loud that it made the surrounding air tremble.

Kwaaang-!!

The wall around the door frame was shattered.

The door, which was protected by eight layers of barriers and chains, was intact.

Anne gently shook her wrists and went inside.

If the same thing had just happened, it would be something to pay attention to.

“… … ”

Ellen sat blankly leaning against the back of the bed.

“Your Majesty.”

Anne ran right up to Ellen.

As expected, Ellen didn’t pay any attention to Anne.

Just like a doll with a broken string, she’s hanging limply and looking somewhere with out-of-focus eyes.

Anne wiped away Ellen’s darkened eyes.

“Oh my, Your Majesty… … .”

I sighed involuntarily.

The tear stains remain clearly.

Skin that has become dull and flaky.

Bloodshot eyes with burst blood vessels.

It seems like he didn’t even sleep and just cried.

“What are you going to do if you really collapse like this… … !”

Crying is an act that consumes a great deal of physical energy.

Besides, I didn’t even drink water, let alone food.

It was inevitable that Elin, who was already thin, would lose weight.

“Please drink some water first.”

“… … ”

“Please… I’ll die like this, Your Highness.”

I tried holding out the cup.

Still, Ellen did not turn her head to Anne.

It was as if I couldn’t hear anything or see anything.

Still, just entering the room is meaningful.

Anne sat down next to him and bowed her head deeply.

“I was wrong, Your Majesty. If I were your person, I should have reported Luke’s condition right away. I was stupid and didn’t properly understand the situation.”

Anne continued to apologize, whether Ellen listened or not.

“If the princess holds me accountable, I will somehow return all the salary I have received so far and leave. If you say you don’t even want to see me, I will leave right away. So… … .”

Anne held Ellen’s hand tightly.

“Please, eat something. You can’t keep doing this.”

How many tears have I shed?

There was a clear trace of tears being wiped away on the back of his hand.

“I need to find Luke and have a proper conversation with him. Are you just going to give up like this? Are you going to accept this kind of breakup without even knowing what’s going on?”

No matter how much I thought about it, this wasn’t it.

If you leave, you have to leave with some understanding.

What on earth are they doing to the princess?

If Anne could go back in time, she would have broken Luke’s legs and tied him to the bed in an instant.

“Then you must cheer up, Princess. I will definitely help you find Luke… … .”

Anne looked up from her words in surprise.

At one point, Ellen was looking straight at Anne.

“How are you going to… … find it?”

With a voice that was hoarse and cracked, Elin opened her mouth for the first time in four days.

* * * * *

“Hmm, this is really, really the last time, you reckless sage.”

Bertain, who had finished the contract, spoke in a trembling voice.

It was the dragon’s nature to sign a contract if it received a fair price, but in this case, it couldn’t shake off the feeling of unease.

The little boy who was given the title of wise man is doing such a stupid thing.

I was deeply troubled as to whether I should take back the title even now.

“What are you talking about?”

Shu-

Luke tilted his head as he opened a portal in the corner of the cave.

《There’s really not much time left. Time will pass by before you can even blink… … But what are you doing now?》

Bertain couldn’t contain his curiosity and asked.

“This is a portal that connects to the Magic Tower.”

《How… No, why?》

It was not easy to use magic in the cave of Bertain, where magical power was concentrated.

Strictly speaking, it is close to impossible.

Of course, even if the difficulty level was exceeded, there was no reason to cast magic inside the cave.

“I left it open so that if you have any questions or need anything, you can come right away.”

《Are you crazy?》

Bertain swore at the shameless answer.

“Mad sage. Aren’t you afraid of this body?”

“What’s there to be afraid of when you’re going to die soon?”

“What if I catch you and eat you?”

“There’s no reason for that.”

There wasn’t any.

It’s not like Luke has as much magical power as Elin.

《Still, that’s true. How did you use magic? The backlash must have been considerable.》

“Reviewed and written by me.”

In fact, Luke had a red stream of blood running down the corner of his mouth.

“Wouldn’t it be better to borrow Bertain’s wisdom and finish it quickly rather than living up to the full 3 months?”

《… So. Are you saying that you will shorten your remaining lifespan to do what you have to do?》

“Yes.”

“Can I open your head and take a look?”

“How could it be possible?”

Luke frowned and stepped back.

From Bertain’s point of view, it was absurd.

No, you sacrificed your soul to get a healthy body and then you roll it over until trouble comes?

“Do you have a habit of enjoying pain?”

“I don’t know why you misunderstand like that.”

《… … 》

Not even knowing that he had achieved the feat of silenced a dragon.

Luke said with a tired face.

“I’ll stop here for today. I’ll come back next time.”

《No, this is crazy-》

But it seemed like Berthain was swearing again from behind.

Luke didn’t have the energy to respond any further, so he took the portal back to the tower.

“I guess I’ll just change locations and take a short break.”

I went up to the top floor.

Press the blank walls in the given order.

Roll your feet three times.

Kurur-

A hidden room was revealed.

This is a space that was not even revealed to Lanian.

Inside there was a lever that could be pulled.

Luke pulled the lever with all his might, channeling his magic.

Wooo-!!

The tower shook as if an earthquake had occurred.

With tremendous vibration.

Pot!

The surrounding scenery has changed.

The location of the entire tower was moved.

Somewhere in the northern snowfields, where even Luke doesn’t know exactly where.

It was the completion of Luke’s magic tower that no one could find.

“… ?”

It should definitely be that way.

Outside the window, a crowd of people could be seen approaching the tower.

* * * * *

After Elin’s coming of age ceremony.

The secret task force returned north again.

As far as I know, I don’t know what the Duke is doing after he goes into hiding.

We had to hurry and find traces related to the devil.

“Haa… Captain. Aren’t we going to finish the northern map like this?”

The door opener… no, the barrier magician Tristin let out a deep sigh.

No matter how vast the North is, the secret task force investigated for two years without a single day of rest.

I went out and explored the northern outskirts where no one had ever been before.

I somehow ended up filling up 3/4 of the northern map.

Actually, completing the map was not a problem.

If technology were more advanced than it is now, the Empire would be able to exploit the vast snowfields of the North and the resources buried beneath them.

“I think His Majesty is starting to get suspicious too… .”

The problem is that the secret task force’s mission is not to complete the map.

-I never thought Duke Bertain would plot something like that… Yes, let’s investigate quickly.

The Secret Service is an organization that carries out the Emperor’s orders from unseen locations.

Upon hearing of the Duke of Bertain’s betrayal, orders were given to thoroughly investigate the Devil’s Mark.

-Is it really true that Carlchad Bertain is trying to summon the devil?

But even after two years of wandering around the snowfield all day long, I couldn’t find any signs, not even a trace of a human being.

It must have been frustrating for the emperor.

If there is a justification, I will issue an arrest warrant for Karlchad Bertain.

Without clear evidence, we can’t mobilize the entire imperial military.

“It seems like a lot of money has been lost… .”

“There’s no choice.”

It’s not for nothing that the northern outskirts are not explored.

Even in the Northern Duke’s territory, Glaze, a biting wind blows.

If you go up just a little bit more, your lungs will freeze the moment you inhale.

Haven’t you seen any reckless adventurers frozen on their way here?

To survive this terrible cold, a huge amount of thermal artifacts were needed.

All of the expenses were paid by the imperial family.

“Ahh… Why did I leave home to suffer like this… . Now I feel like I’m going to vomit just looking at it. It would be nice to have a base.”

Just walking around for a bit would have to be used until the insulation artifact reached the end of its lifespan.

So, of course, camping was impossible.

One reason northern exploration was slow was because we had to return to Glaze Estate every day.

“A base in the North? Isn’t that too absurd for someone from Glaze?”

“Shh. Isn’t Tristin just talking nonsense because she’s tired, sis?”

The twin siblings who followed behind.

Tristen glared at Cheryl Howard and Watt Howard as they whispered.

“I know it’s nonsense, right? I’m not just saying this because I’m frustrated.”

The Howard siblings were battle magicians of fantastic skill.

The twin who usually got on Tristin’s nerves was a real pain in the ass.

“And isn’t it worth building a stronghold? How many people have challenged the northern outskirts so far… … Huh?”

It was something I muttered while thinking that it was impossible.

“Captain, isn’t that a tower?”

Amidst the snowstorm, a seemingly incongruous building appeared.

“Hmm.”

If it were the usual Leo, he would have dismissed it as nonsense without even looking at it properly.

“It seems to be a magic tower.”

But when I saw the black tower standing tall on the pure white snowfield, I couldn’t deny it.

“There’s really a crazy guy building a base here?”

“Could this be a mirage?”

The Howard siblings were equally surprised.

It wasn’t even built by adventurers.

Isn’t that the magic tower used by wizards?

“I think it would be better to go and ask for help.”

Whether it’s a rooftop or something else.

It would be nice to be able to use that building as a base for investigations that are making slow progress.

All members of the secret task force wore masks and knocked on the tower’s door.

Given the circumstances, I was thinking of subduing it and borrowing it for a while.

“Here we meet the secret task force members.”

“… … ??”

Luke walked out from inside.

Why is the guy who should be with Elin in a place like this?

Before I could open my mouth, Luke started pouring out words.

“That’s great, gentlemen. If I’m right, our objectives seem to overlap. Are you investigating the northern marker?”

Leo nodded absentmindedly.

Luke raised the corners of his mouth.

“Then can I join the secret task force now?”

“… … What?”

“I’m quitting my job as a tutor. Oh, by the way, I’m saying I’m going to sign up temporarily. I’m going to die in 3 months anyway.”

I have no idea where to start with this statement.

“… Can I come in and talk?”

Leo frowned for a rare moment.