episode_0242

Episode 242. The Suspicious Professor (3)

Ruina followed after hearing the single word “help,” but as soon as she entered the underground, anxiety filled her.

This underground is one of the lairs of black mages that exist on the continent. And Ruina was just on her way out after finishing work here.

Of course, her traces must remain somewhere, and there would be those who recognized her.

What would happen if it was discovered that she was involved with black magic? The result was obvious.

Ruina racked her brains. She used the concentration she used for alchemy to escape the adversity she currently faced.

Then she thought of a good way to solve the latter. Ruina placed her hand on the cloak around her neck. Then she used alchemy to transform its shape.

She made the color as dark as possible, and changed the shape from a cloak to a robe. The transformed outer garment instantly changed into the shape Ruina wanted.

However, the robe’s length was a little short due to a lack of fabric. It wasn’t a problem. Because the cloak was large, it slightly dragged on the ground.

After completely covering her whole body like that, Ruina let out a sigh of relief. At that moment, her disciple’s voice pierced through.

“Why are you covering your face? Ah, is it because you’re worried about being seen by those guys?”

“Y, yeah….”

At that word, a corner of her heart was needlessly pricked. But it couldn’t be helped. It was absolutely necessary to prevent her disciple from finding out her identity.

“Will this make me even less visible?”

A magical aura surrounding herself. Ruina realized that this was a perception weakening magic.

“Thank you….”

“This much is easy.”

“Yeah.”

Anyone who knows, knows about her disciple’s magic skills. This level of magic would be as easy for him as lying down and eating snacks.

Still, she couldn’t rest assured. Because her traces would exist somewhere. Ruina planned to deal with it directly while going around with her disciple.

“Shall we go properly now?”

At Kyle’s question, Ruina nodded.

“Then I’ll be in front. Please assist from behind.”

“Okay.”

With that, Ruina started moving, following Kyle.

Thump!

As if to confirm that she had come earlier, the underground was already a mess. The ground vibrated constantly, and explosions were heard in the distance. It was as if the city’s underground would disappear at any moment.

As if reading her thoughts, her disciple said.

“You don’t have to worry about it collapsing. I’ve calculated all of that.”

It was a reassuring statement, but Ruina was ready to move at any time. To erase her traces that might be discovered at any moment.

As expected of a base, there were many black mages waiting. Already on high alert because Kyle had rampaged once, they attacked the intruders, themselves.

Slash-!

And Kyle cut down the rushing black mage in one fell swoop. Dozens of black mages were simultaneously split vertically. The ground was filled with corpses, and red blood and intestines flowed out from between the cracks.

A scene so terrible it made one want to retch. However, the scene before Ruina’s eyes wasn’t particularly shocking. Having lived as a black mage, she had seen blood and flesh many times. Even if the process of handling it with black magic was painful, that in itself was now indifferent no matter how many times she saw it.

Besides, the death of a black mage was something to be welcomed. They were dirty black mages like herself. It was better for them to disappear from the world. Above all, although they were people she encountered often, she didn’t have a heart that considered them as colleagues.

At that time, one black mage appeared from the side passage. He raised his energy and cast black magic to eliminate the intruders. In the middle, the man tilted his head.

Although her face was covered, there was only one person with such a small height and build. Ruina Lindel, the genius of black magic.

That’s why she was very famous among black mages, and there was hardly anyone who didn’t know her.

But why was she with the intruders? That too, so closely. The man called her name without realizing it.

“Ru….”

The moment he said just one syllable, Ruina kicked off the ground. She reached the man in an instant.

Although Ruina hadn’t trained like a mage or knight, she had the special skill of alchemy. If she had self-made magic tools and potions, she could easily deal with 7-circle mages and Sword Masters.

Immediately after, the power that could be called her origin unfolded on her hand. Alchemy decomposed the black magic itself, and put the decomposed power into the man’s body to reassemble it.

“What…!”

A casting speed like a flash. With the man’s skills, he couldn’t cope with Ruina’s alchemy. And that soon appeared as a result.

Kaboom!!

The man’s body swelled up like a balloon and exploded. Although it was magic he unleashed with his own power, his skills were insufficient to handle the black magic transformed by Ruina. What was once a human being was stained everywhere.

Ruina wiped the blood and flesh from her robe, and in the meantime, Kyle approached.

“What happened?”

“A black mage appeared.”

“Are you hurt? Are you not?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

Something caught Ruina’s eye as she nodded. It was a magic tool she made with alchemy. It seemed like the man she just killed had it. It was a possible story since she had supplied magic tools to this side a few times. Moreover, the continent was overflowing with magic tools made by Ruina.

Quickly, Ruina brought it over with her foot so that Kyle wouldn’t notice. And carefully used alchemy to completely decompose it.

“Huh?”

At that time, Kyle, who felt something strange, looked to the side.

“What did you just do?”

“……Nothing.”

“Hmm, what was it….”

Saying that, he started walking forward again. Ruina grabbed her pounding heart and thought.

‘Ah, I didn’t get caught….’

How fortunate that Kyle didn’t notice. She almost provided something that would make her suspected of being a black mage. As expected, a realm is a realm, so he reacts even to small forces.

Ruina resolved to be more careful and followed Kyle. But that resolution didn’t last long.

The deeper they went, the more her traces appeared. Here, there, and even among that group of black mages, traces existed. There were dozens of them just in sight.

‘Oh, what do I do….’

No matter how much Ruina was, she couldn’t help but be embarrassed this time. If her disciple saw even one of those, it would never end with just suspicion.

“There are quite a lot this time. It looks like all the remaining members came here. What are you going to do?”

It was a question of how she would position herself. Instead of speaking, Ruina kicked off the ground. She reflected some of the light to make her appearance as invisible as possible, just in case what happened earlier happened again.

Then she unfolded alchemy under her feet. It was to block the retreat.

A wall was created behind the black mage group. The wall, which was created in an instant, was made of metal from the ground and was harder than steel, and the thickness was considerable.

“The back is blocked!”

“Damn it, there’s not even a scratch! It’s too hard!”

The black mages stirred as the passage was blocked. Of course, there were black mages among them who could easily break through a wall like this.

But the situation wasn’t favorable. This was an underground space. If they recklessly used their power, there was a high possibility that they would be buried in the ground.

Moreover, they couldn’t recklessly use their power because of the presence of an unknown enemy in front of them. Those two were definitely strong.

“Who the hell are you…!”

Crack!

Before the answer could be finished, the ground soared. Hard and sharp rocks swallowed the black mage. It was like going into the mouth of a monster.

That was also the result of Ruina creating it with alchemy. She erased her traces from the corpses that came into her possession.

“Why are you moving alone like that? It’s dangerous.”

“…Black mages must disappear.”

“It’s too dangerous. I’ll stand in front.”

“Yeah, okay.”

She nodded, but she didn’t have the slightest intention of doing so.

After that, Ruina worked hard. While doing so, she erased the traces of alchemy that existed from time to time. Fortunately, Kyle didn’t notice these movements of hers.

As she was steadily eliminating the black mages, something fell from the body of a black mage who was flung far away.

A tool in the shape of a handcuff. Looking at the patterns engraved on the outside, it was also a magic tool she made. She remembers it as a fairly powerful type of magic tool.

Ruina glanced ahead from inside her robe. A black mage who covered her whole body with a robe like herself. Judging by the curves protruding forward, she was definitely a woman.

At that moment, Ruina met the opponent’s eyes. And they silently ran to the center.

The relatively tall black mage was faster, but Ruina didn’t stand still. She unfolded alchemy to make the opponent’s footing unstable.

“Ugh…!”

Taking advantage of the black mage rolling on the floor, Ruina quickly snatched the magic tool. After confirming that the magic tool was in her possession, she reached out her hand.

“W, wait a minute…!”

The black mage stopped Ruina from approaching death. But Ruina had no intention of being lenient.

Black magic, black mages are terrible things that should not exist in this world.

“No way.”

Ruina, who spoke indifferently without any mercy, released her power as it was. The black mage’s body drooped, and soon completely disintegrated and disappeared.

“…….”

After the battle, Ruina slowly stood up. Her body was heavy from fighting after a long time. She used a lot of strength, so she really wanted something sweet. She felt like she could eat a whole chocolate cake right now.

“Are you all done?”

Her disciple’s voice reached her ear. Ruina turned her head towards the sound.

“Yeah, it’s over.”

“I just finished cleaning up too. But what’s that in your hand?”

At Kyle’s words, Ruina finally remembered what she was holding. A shock like being hit in the head with a hammer rushed in, and her mind went blank for a moment.

What should she say as an excuse? Then, thinking that she had to answer quickly, Ruina said whatever came to her mind.

“I, it’s something I use….”

“……Senior?”

“Yeah… I, I use it every day….”

Click, the handcuffs are fastened on Ruina’s wrist. At that sight, Kyle stared at her blankly.

“Why, why….”

“…It’s nothing. More than that, it seems like everything is cleaned up, so let’s go back.”

“Yeah… Let’s go.”

The two moved their steps like that.

***

After finishing cleaning up the underground with Senior Ruina, I came up to the surface. There was nothing special to do here, so I suggested to my senior.

“I’m going to the capital, do you want to go right away?”

“Yeah. Work’s over.”

“Okay then.”

I reached out my hand, and she grabbed my hand. After that, I cast teleportation. It was better to use the warp gate because it was quite a distance from here to the capital, but it was no longer beneficial to me.

When I closed my eyes and opened them, the scenery of the imperial capital came into view. It was night after work was over, so the streets were brightly lit.

“Since we met, do you want to have a meal before you go?”

At that question, my senior shook her head from side to side.

“I’m tired. I want to rest.”

“Okay. I have something to do at the Imperial Palace, so I’ll go there.”

“Yeah, goodbye.”

“Yes, Senior. I’ll visit you tomorrow.”

I sent her off, who looked tired, and moved to the Imperial Palace. I heard that she had just finished dinner and headed to her office, so I walked there as well.

Knock knock

“Can I come in?”

-Ah, Kyle. Come in.

After receiving permission, I went inside. She was working there earlier, but she’s still buried in various reports, working.

“When are you going to rest? You said you just ate. You have to digest.”

“I’ve already digested. And I still have work left to do.”

“Tsk, you better do it in moderation.”

I understand that she’s full of enthusiasm because it’s her first year of accession, but it’s good to do everything in moderation. Especially in a position like that, it’s not easy to control one’s condition, so you shouldn’t overdo it.

“Does your return mean the investigation is over?”

“Yeah, it’s over. There were swarms of black mages when I went.”

I reported what happened in the city. Ariel, who was sitting quietly and listening to my report, nodded.

“Thank you, Kyle. For doing the work that the imperial family should have done instead.”

“Well, it’s nothing. And it was just because I stood out.”

“Is there anything else besides that?”

I nodded at Ariel’s question.

“Yeah, there’s nothing else. This is the end of what I have to report. More than that….”

I carefully approached her. Then, I snatched the paper she was looking at and said.

“You said you’d grant my wish when I finished work, right? Let’s go out. Don’t be cooped up in your office.”

“Ah, I haven’t finished my work yet….”

“So what. You said you’d do whatever I wanted when I came back.”

“Ah…….”

Perhaps unable to break her promise, Ariel groaned softly and got up from her seat.

“I’ll just change my clothes and come….”

“I’ll be waiting, so take your time.”

Ariel leaves the office. Her guards also disappear one by one.

After confirming that there was no one around, I took out some items from the subspace. They were Senior Ruina’s creations that I had taken while fighting the black mages.

Over 40 creations. I looked at them quietly with a blank face.

Crack!!

I crushed them all at once, turning them into ashes. With this, the evidence that my senior was related to black mages disappeared from the world. Forever.

After that, I headed to the Imperial Palace garden.