Chapter 108: Resistance Begins

Evan had returned to Valles and was taking a rest at his family home.

After settling all matters, he decided to take a little time for himself. For now, he intended to organize the information and events that had occurred so far.

Evan recalled what had happened the previous day.

Adman, Rozi, Reveshu—all the discussions with them had ended smoothly.

None of the three had any major objections, and they had agreed to divide up the roles and act accordingly.

They also promised to operate under Evan’s leadership.

Now, all that was left was to deal with the time and expenses required to build a resistance force to oppose the king and external factions.

On that matter, Rozi volunteered, saying he had a solution.

‘Well, they’ll manage just fine if I leave it to them. The three of them are more experienced than I am, anyway.’

Those three were trustworthy.

While checking their memories, Evan also took the measure of their sincerity and personalities.

Though their personalities were all different, they only possessed traits that anyone could have.

There didn’t seem to be anything particularly unusual, so he let it pass.

Of course, as a precaution, they had also drawn up a magic contract that put their lives on the line, so there was nothing to worry about.

‘Adman seemed like he’d be greedy, but he’s surprisingly neat about things. The most rational out of them all.’

The biggest concern, Reveshu’s ties with the Church, seemed difficult to resolve for now, but even so, he said he’d cooperate for the kingdom’s sake.

He had chosen the Goddess Eris’s faith after losing his wife and struggling.

He’d spent a long time being comforted there, so it was understandable that he couldn’t let go of it so quickly.

Instead, he expressed his intent to gradually move on.

And he promised to actively cooperate in matters related to the Church.

‘I don’t know if the gods they believe in really exist, or what power they have.’

Evan, too, was convinced that gods existed.

He had already gone to the Celestial Realm in person, met the Mediator, and witnessed the vast castle of the Celestial Realm with his own eyes.

It was clear that the kind of transcendent beings people called gods did exist there.

After all, the Hunters’ system simply couldn’t be explained unless the power had been granted to humans by a god.

‘In any case, I’ll leave things to the three of them from here on out.’

His own tasks were separately decided.

Ultimately, all this was just a means to block the forces targeting Elresel and the kingdom.

The fundamental part had to be handled by Evan himself.

‘I need to find a way to deal with that Elresel fellow first.’

He was lacking in power to face an opponent with a Chaos rating over 7,000.

Evan felt the need for even greater growth.

‘At the very least, I need to raise myself to a level where I can use Mythic Power and maintain Conqueror’s Scorn for a long time, as a kind of insurance.’

Besides that, there was still too little information.

The way he used Soul Power, and how he collected souls.

Gathering concrete clues about that would have to come first.

‘Baron Rahel’s Mansion.’

That was Evan’s only key to finding clues.

It was the body Elresel had used before possessing the king.

‘Baron Rahel’s Mansion—it’s an abandoned ruin now.’

There was no telling if any traces would remain there.

‘He may have erased all signs before leaving,’

But Evan thought it was better to search and salvage what he could, rather than do nothing.

‘It’s not far from here anyway.’

It would take three days by carriage from Valles, but using a Magic Transmission Device would be much faster.

‘Aiden, the port city of Kerthen County.’

Evan slowly rose from his chair.

Alan spotted him and hurried over to check on him.

“Young master! Are you all right? I heard there was quite an uproar.”

“The story’s spread already?”

“Yes. Right now, even within Kerthen County, rumors about the kingdom are spreading and things are tense.”

Reynold, standing next to Alan, spoke up as well.

“Back in my hometown, those bastards caused quite a bit of trouble too.”

“They attacked not just the royal capital, but other places as well?”

Evan clicked his tongue anew at the scale of Estia.

“More importantly, how did you two do during that time?”

Evan had ordered them to raise their levels to a certain degree before he left.

Reynold, a bit embarrassed, scratched his cheek as he answered.

“Well… I’m still stuck at Rank 6.”

Alan also replied, looking apologetic.

“I’m still at Rank 4 myself.”

Evan grinned.

“You both fell quite a bit short, but that just means you’ll need to work harder from now on. I’ll help you actively from now on.”

“Yes! Understood!”

The two reacted in opposite ways.

Alan looked at Evan anxiously, while Reynold beamed, baring his teeth.

“But today’s not for training. There’s somewhere we need to go together.”

“An outing?”

“Yeah, I’ll need your help with something.”

Evan decided to bring Alan and Reynold along to search Baron Rahel’s Mansion.

The more people, the better.

After that, he’d also visit Darwen.

He wanted to get his help and also check on the Lamakria People’s situation.

***

Evan’s group arrived at the site of the Magic Tower.

A massive Magic Tower stood tall, greeting them.

The building appeared completed, with finishing work underway.

Not only that, but the whole area had changed a lot.

The trees around the Magic Tower had been completely cleared, and crowds of people could be seen erecting new buildings.

Most seemed to be Lamakria People.

Evan could hardly believe his eyes at the sight of such a large-scale construction project.

“Wh-when did it change so much here?”

Reynold, flustered, turned to Evan.

Alan also looked on with curious eyes.

“I didn’t hear it had changed this much…”

Evan started searching for Darwen first.

The temporary hut near the Magic Tower, which had served as an office.

But the hut had been torn down, replaced by a rather large building.

‘When did this go up?’

Evan tilted his head and went inside.

He saw a spacious and neat hall.

Rows of chairs filled the space, and a woman who looked to be a receptionist stood by.

“You’re outsiders. What brings you here?”

Noticing Evan’s group, the receptionist approached, a little wary.

“I’ve come to see Marquess Darwen. Please tell him Evan is here.”

The moment she heard his name, the receptionist’s attitude changed completely.

“Oh! You’re Lord Evan. Understood.”

She hurriedly went up the stairs.

Soon after, Elisa came down in Darwen’s stead.

“Young lady? It’s been a while. But where’s the Marquess?”

Elisa greeted Evan lightly as she spoke.

“Father is very busy with several matters at the moment. Is there something urgent?”

“No. I just needed some help for a bit. I think I’ll need an Archaeologist.”

Elisa stared intently at Evan.

Evan gazed silently back into her crimson eyes.

“Young lady? Is something wrong?”

“If it’s archaeology, I’m as good as Father. I’ve assisted in research while following him to many ruins.”

At those words, Evan’s eyes shone.

“Young lady, would you accompany me for a while?”

It would be best to increase the chances of finding clues.

He thought bringing Elisa along wouldn’t be a bad idea.

As Evan glanced around the building, he added,

“Besides, there are a few things I’d like to ask you.”

Elisa nodded.

“Yes, let’s do that. There are plenty here who can take over my work now, anyway.”

***

Evan, too, was convinced that gods existed.

He had already gone to the Celestial Realm in person, met the Mediator, and witnessed the vast castle of the Celestial Realm with his own eyes.

It was clear that the kind of transcendent beings people called gods did exist there.

After all, the Hunters’ system simply couldn’t be explained unless the power had been granted to humans by a god.

‘In any case, I’ll leave things to the three of them from here on out.’

His own tasks were separately decided.

Ultimately, all this was just a means to block the forces targeting Elresel and the kingdom.

The fundamental part had to be handled by Evan himself.

‘I need to find a way to deal with that Elresel fellow first.’

He was lacking in power to face an opponent with a Chaos rating over 7,000.

Evan felt the need for even greater growth.

‘At the very least, I need to raise myself to a level where I can use Mythic Power and maintain Conqueror’s Scorn for a long time, as a kind of insurance.’

Aside from that, there was still far too little information.

In the process, not only Lamakria People but also the Mikhael tribe, Alt tribe, and others had poured in.

With the influx of the Alt tribe, renowned for their building skills, the scale of the place grew enormously.

A solid foundation was established, and buildings were going up at a rapid pace.

Thanks to that, the area had stabilized, and with the ability to accommodate many people, it was expanding steadily.

“And for payment, we promised to solve their housing issues. It cut costs considerably.”

But it wasn’t all good news.

With the increase in scale, there was that much more to manage.

Evan pointed out something he was concerned about.

“Hiding it is one thing, but isn’t it still a problem if the Magic Tower becomes known to outsiders?”

Elisa shook her head.

“That’s been handled. Once the Magic Tower was completed, Father cast a barrier so that no one could perceive it. Unless you’re at least a 7th Circle archmage, you won’t notice it at all.”

Evan immediately understood when he heard that.

It would take someone with magic skills surpassing Darwen’s just to sense the Magic Tower here.

There were only a handful of such mages in the entire kingdom.

“I see. Now that the Magic Tower is done, does that mean we can use the Magic Transmission Device from now on?”

Evan recalled his previous use of the Magic Transmission Device and asked.

He hadn’t forgotten how convenient it was.

If the Magic Tower got its own Magic Transmission Device, movement would be much easier.

‘I’ll need to use the Archive soon, but to do that, I have to go all the way to Talyn. The distance is just too much.’

It was a device Evan desperately needed.

Elisa considered for a moment, then spoke.

“Yes. There are some cost issues, but we plan to install the Magic Transmission Device right away. And the power from the Mana Spring that constitutes the Magic Tower is far superior to other towers, so its range will be wider.”

“That’s a relief. Things are moving along smoothly.”

News about the Magic Tower was like wings for Evan.

“Young master, we’ve arrived.”

At that moment, Alan spoke to Evan and Elisa.

“We’re here already?”

Evan looked over and saw the Mage Guild.

It was a mansion with an impressively pointed roof.

A Magic Transmission Device was visible in the garden.

Even in Valles, there were a few Mage Guilds that offered use of the Magic Tower’s Magic Transmission Device.

However, the usage fee was much higher than in the kingdom, so people used it less often.

Thus, Evan paid the fee at the Mage Guild, and the whole group moved to Aiden.