Episode 1242. Sword Master and Steel Golem
7th Circle Magus Killian Duke Hale took Elio and the others to Charleman, an exclusive tavern for nobles in Pneuma.
Elio also stuck out his tongue at the refined exterior built with marble and the interior finished with the finest materials.
The splendor of the tavern was incomparable not only to Jianghu but also to Jiuzhou.
‘The upper limit is the upper limit. If old Sim saw it, he would have liked it.’
As soon as I sat down, a heartache came to my mind.
Thinking of the guy he liked after opening a pub the size of his palm made me smile.
“Do you like it?”
Misunderstanding his laugh, Duke Cillian Hale shrugged and asked.
“Yeah, that’s great. Of course, alcohol and snacks would be fine, right?”
“That’s basic. If you knew how picky the nobles are, you wouldn’t have asked that question.”
Just in time, a female clerk approached and said politely.
“welcome. We will do our best to serve you. What would you like?”
In response to her question, Marquis Edmond Sadiam, the mage of the 6th circle, the vice-captain, stepped forward and ordered a drink and snacks.
As the clerk left, Duke Cillian Hale looked at Count Elio Lagoa with delighted eyes.
It was also because he did not want to meet Count Elio Lagoa as an enemy.
There is also a connection in Hirhera, but above all, the Grand Master was like a messenger to the wizards.
In order to kill the Grand Master, at least the Magnum Ops, known as the highest level, was almost impossible with a human body.
Above all, human life span is short.
Right now, Duke Cillian Hale also walked a single path of magic for the rest of his life, but it was only in the 7th circle.
Of course, in the eyes of others, it was difficult to even dare to look at the 7th circle, but it could not be compared to Magnum Ops or Grand Master.
“Yes, did you say you found the Celestial Star? let me tell you the story Count Lagoa knows, but do you know how hard the wizards struggled to find the perforation star? Where the hell was that damn castle?”
“I was hiding in the Sea of Demons.”
“also! It was a sea of demons. I was vaguely guessing that the wizards were also in the sea of demons. However, it must have been difficult to navigate there because of the extreme weather. I managed to find it too.”
“The help of the horse-powered sailboat was great.”
Elio was complicated to explain fortune-telling, so he just turned it into a ball from a magic sailboat.
“Did the count meet monsters in the sea of demons?”
“Oh siren? Yes I suffered very much for showing hallucinations. Even thinking about it now makes me shudder. isn’t it? Count Omar?”
Elio looked at Count Larva Omar with meaningful eyes.
He was sure that he and Count Omar of Larva had experienced similar hallucinations that day.
That day, Count Omar of Larva was sinking into the deep sea, strangling someone.
A bitter smile appeared on Count Larva Omar’s face.
“I don’t even want to think about it.”
Duke Cillian Hale couldn’t shake his curiosity like a wizard.
“What kind of hallucination is it that the two swordsmen who dominate the era are so trembling?”
Elio said as Count Larva Omar shook his head with a poopy face.
“The contents of the hallucinations are so private… I will only say that they made people fall into despair. Yes? Count Omar?”
Embarrassed for nothing, Elio hung up on Count Omar of Larva.
Count Larva Omar also knew his feelings and responded with a nod.
Duke Cillian Hale asked no more.
It seemed vaguely familiar that it was a private hallucination that would make people fall into despair.
Meanwhile, drinks and snacks were served.
As Duke Cillian Hale said, the drink was sweet and tasted as good as the restaurants in the Anjou Islands.
When he was slightly drunk, Elio suddenly asked.
“By the way, Duke Hale. How is the war in the south? When I heard about it, there were a lot of words like this and that.”
Rumors about the war situation were generally of two kinds.
Pro-Imperial people spoke of a landslide victory for the Empire, while anti-Imperial people said the Southern Kingdom prevailed.
As a result, it was difficult to know the actual situation just by hearing rumors.
“hmm. Externally, the Imperial Army is said to be victorious, but in reality it is in a hurry to maintain the front line.”
Suddenly, Elio’s eyes widened.
Because that meant that the southern kingdoms were fighting on an equal footing with the Empire.
“How could that be? Could it be because of the relics from the age of magic you mentioned last time?”
Elio expressed the steel golem as a relic of the age of magic.
It was because he thought that the Imperial Army might not want it to be revealed.
As expected, Duke Cillian Hale nodded with a meaningful face.
“That’s right. Have you ever seen a relic from the age of magic made of steel?”
“doesn’t exist.”
“There are as many as five relics from the age of sorcery with the destructive power of a sword master.”
“Aren’t sword masters also in the Imperial Army?”
Elio looked at Duke Cillian Hale with puzzled eyes.
Duke Cillian Hale right in front of him was a wizard with abilities that surpassed that of a sword master.
The number of sword masters in the Imperial Army far exceeded that of the Kingdom Army.
That’s why the Empire was able to win the war against the Northern and Southern Kingdoms.
Even the Grand Duchess of Knauf did not know how many sword masters there were.
There were countless families like that in the empire.
Still struggling with only five iron golems?
“Sword masters are human, so they can’t keep fighting. If you get injured, you have to receive treatment for a long time. But things from the Age of Magic are… really hard. Even if I lose an arm, I can’t help it.”
“ah!”
“More than that, no one knows how many there are.”
“Haven’t you even figured out the numbers yet?”
“That’s right. But it is certain that there are more than five.”
“Do you have any reason to be so sure?”
“There was an artifact with one arm missing. But the next day he was fine. Even if you send it to the Magic Tower for repairs, it won’t be able to fix it that quickly.”
“It was exported as a new one.”
“You think so.”
“Why didn’t the Southern Kingdoms put more on the battlefield? They will want to win the war too.”
“I don’t know. Of course, the Empire isn’t really dealing with the Southern Kingdom right now. What the Empire wants is the joint development of the Abyss, not a war with the southern kingdoms. So they keep sending envoys to the southern kingdoms. It’s only been 50 years since the Imperial War ended, so we can’t do that again.”
“But are the southern kingdoms refusing?”
“That’s right. They say that since they can replace the sword master with artifacts from the Dark Ages, they are not at a disadvantage.”
“How are the Empire’s swordmasters doing? Are there many wounded?”
“It’s a situation where you need to rest because you’re accumulated fatigue rather than injured. Unlike relics of the age of magic made of steel, people need to eat, sleep, and rest.”
Elio shook his head.
He seemed to know roughly what the situation was.
“Are the southern kingdoms unwilling to negotiate over the development of the Abyss?”
“It just repeats the same words like a parrot. It’s asking for permission.”
“You have absolutely no intention of getting permission from the Empire, do you?”
“The Great Forest is an unexplored area that has not yet been visited by humans. You don’t need permission from the southern kingdom to enter the Abyss in the middle of it.”
Elio nodded.
The Great Grove borders the Southern Realms, but is not part of the Southern Realms.
Even if it wasn’t so, there was no way the southern kingdom would accept the role of the master of the great forest in an empire that looked down upon the kingdom.
No, the moment you accept it, a huge territory will go into the hands of the Southern Kingdom.
It is a call to give up the Great Forest to the Empire.
Even if you think about it, the southern kingdom’s request was a ridiculous claim.
“But it’s a little strange.”
“What do you mean?”
“As the Duke said, if there are more artifacts from the Dark Ages in the Southern Kingdom, shouldn’t we invade the Empire? If you lost in the Imperial War, you would have a lot of grudge. I don’t understand why you’re just defending the front line with such an artifact in your hands.”
“Even the intelligence department is saying that. There must be a reason why they hesitate even with a stronger army. So far, there are only speculations, but there is nothing I want to do yet.”
“That’s right. By the way, is the wire close to here?”
“If it’s because of going to the southern kingdom, there’s nothing to worry about. Because they don’t block the passage of adventurers. There aren’t enough people to pioneer the Abyss yet.”
“It’s not just because of that. Seeing the Corvo magic corps in the capital, I asked what was going on.”
“Aha, Boyang, who thought our place was a frontline. It’s usually like that, but this time it’s a little different. We went to the rear for a while to rest. In the case of wizards, we have to prevent them from being exhausted by the continued battle.”
“Are you here to rest?”
“Exactly. By the way, if you found the Celestial Star, did you meet that warlock by any chance?”
“yes.”
“Did you confess that you were behind it?”
That meant causing a crack in the scutum (ice wall) of northern Hirhera.
“They said so.”
“Why did you do that?”
“He was crazy. It was only right before he died that he came to his senses and realized what he had done.”
“ah! It seems that the dark ether has invaded the brain.”
“Then can it change like that?”
Elio looked at Duke Cillian Hale with surprised eyes.
He thought he was ‘encroached on by his twisted desire’, but that’s how he interpreted it.
“Some wizards do not make contracts with demons or demons. They approach dark magic cautiously, either out of curiosity for magical knowledge or a desire to become stronger. But there’s something they overlook. The essence of black magic is the ether of darkness. The dark ether is tenacious and tenacious beyond human imagination. The closer you get to black magic, the more you become stained with the dark ether. When the brain is polluted by the dark ether, then the ego is divided. Then you either become a madman or a completely different person.”
“You mean you can do that without learning black magic?”
“That’s right. It’s literally being polluted without even knowing it. Such a person cannot be recognized even with the ‘eye of truth’. Unless you learn black magic, the essence of mana doesn’t change. It’s just that people change a little strangely. So don’t let the Count come close to black magic either.”
“Can a god be polluted by the dark ether?”
Duke Cillian Hale, thinking for a while, said.
“The dark ether is the power of the evil god Shaitin. If manaphthras is daytime, evil god Shaytin is nighttime. The power of the evil god Shaitin is said to be comparable to Mana Phras. It would be correct to assume that any god lower than Mana Phthras could be corrupted. But if you are a god, you will instinctively know the danger of the dark ether and avoid it.”
At those words, Elio sighed lightly.
Until now, it was thought that the twisted desires of the Heavenly Horse (Kama Devias) and the Golden Temple (Ushas Undra) were the cause.
But what if it happened under the influence of the power of the evil god Shaitin?
‘Oh, I don’t know. All I have to do is grab the golden thread.’