Chapter 144: Draupnir (4)

The sight that evening was quite special.

There was a luxurious banquet and expensive liquor. The wizards holding key positions in the Royal Palace were present, along with Pyran.

“They aren’t exactly VIPs, but we have guests in our country.”

At Alisa’s words, they offered their greetings to Vallach. Their gazes were dripping with wariness, yet there was a tiny, grain-sized hint of welcome in their eyes.

Watching this, Vallach stroked his chin and muttered.

“Hmm, I didn’t expect to receive such hospitality in the Southern Continent.”

After all, to the wizards, wasn’t Vallach the second greatest enemy after the Bartenbergs? Receiving this level of treatment was an exceptional occurrence.

“We intend to treat you as Richard’s swordsmanship master.”

“Hoo, and why is that?”

Alisa swirled her wine glass. The wine inside sloshed as if it were about to spill.

“The situation of our country is precarious. To be honest, we are in a state where we must borrow even the help of a tiger.”

At those words, the complexions of several wizards turned dark. They seemed to want to stop Alisa from venting her difficulties to Vallach, but they couldn’t step forward given the nature of the occasion.

“We have fallen out of favor with a powerful enemy and have been isolated as if our hands and feet were tied. As it stands, there is no answer to this situation.”

“Do you mean a conflict has broken out within the Southern Continent?”

“That is the plan.”

“With Markus still standing, what country would possibly…”

Could it be?

Vallach’s expression hardened.

“You are right. The enemy of this country is Markus.”

Alisa followed up with a brief summary of everything that had happened so far. After hearing the whole situation, Vallach suddenly looked at me.

“…Incidents follow you wherever you go.”

“Where the needle goes, does the thread not follow?”

“This situation is not something to be taken lightly.”

His voice, scolding me, was incredibly stiff.

‘Hmm. I’ve never taken it lightly.’

After that, Vallach did nothing but gulp down alcohol throughout the meal. Judging by his determined attitude, it seemed he meant for there to be no more talk of the Laplace Kingdom’s situation at this table.

***

“First, I want to apologize for arriving late as your master.”

After the meal ended, I had some private time with Vallach. I shook my head as he expressed his apologies in a serious tone.

“I am well aware that you were busy, Master. The note I left at Riot Castle was half a joke. Please do not take it to heart.”

“I am glad you understand.”

Vallach’s composed manner was somewhat strange. Normally, he would have reacted stubbornly, saying something like, ‘It’s because you grew up too fast,’ or ‘A man shouldn’t sulk over such things.’

My eyes narrowed at his unexpected response.

“Master, no matter how much you try to dissuade me, I intend to learn Magic. I will work hard to ensure there is no hindrance to my swordsmanship training, so please trust and watch over me.”

“I understand.”

What?

Why was he acting like this?

The greatest hurdle I had anticipated was resolved so easily. Vallach’s face held a mixture of resignation and a small amount of expectation.

I had seen that expression exactly once before.

‘Ludwig Bartenberg…’

When I had talked to the Lord about the Church of Hor. It was very similar to the expression the Lord had shown back then.

“Richard, I will respect your choice. I realized that even as a master, measuring the limits of a disciple is a presumptuous act.”

He continued.

“But setting that aside, it is premature to wage war against Markus.”

Why have you boarded a sinking ship? That was what he was asking.

“If Markus prepares for war, Bartenberg will not stay still either. This is not the place where you should fight Markus. Laplace will be erased by them without leaving so much as a trace.”

“Is it not best to extinguish the fire before the Pyromancy burns all the vegetation?”

“The owner of the mountain is burning his own mountain, so why does an outsider try to stop it? It is right to step forward when the sparks he created invade your territory.”

No.

There was one thing Vallach was overlooking. Just how vicious those sparks were, and just how much they would swell in size.

Was he planning to watch as if it were someone else’s business, only to regret it once the entire world was swallowed by Pyromancy?

“It is not too late. Let us take even just your Magic teacher and go to the Baren Kingdom. If they want war, we can simply prepare for war as well.”

“Just how much deeper must the rift between the continents become?”

“Your very presence here is inciting conflict. Are you not of the Bartenberg bloodline? If something happens to you while you are helping Laplace, do you think Bartenberg will stay quiet? When that happens, the war will only end when one of the two falls!”

I swallowed a sigh and closed my eyes.

“If I were to die… and if Bartenberg tried to move because of that.”

When I opened my eyes again, a brilliantly shining star had risen. The form resembled the symbol of the Church of Hor.

“Please stop them, Master. Tell them that Richard von Bartenberg, the Saint of the Church of Hor, died fighting against heresy. Tell them he was not buried in the history of blood written by knights and wizards.”

He remained silent.

“Bartenberg, which does not serve Hor, has no right to declare revenge for me. My enemy was only ever heresy.”

A war for such a ridiculous reason as competing for superiority between knights and wizards must not happen again.

The Northern Continent and the Southern Continent needed to know who the real enemy was and which force they truly had to be wary of.

I intended to use the fight between Laplace and Markus as the starting point for enlightenment.

“My…”

Vallach kept twitching his mouth. His frustration toward his stubborn disciple was truly beyond words.

A sigh that he couldn’t quite swallow escaped his wrinkled mouth. Richard reached out his hand toward Vallach.

“There is something this foolish Richard would like to ask of you, Master.”

“What is it?”

“You called Laplace a sinking ship, didn’t you?”

His eyes were wavering with Divine Grace.

“Please board it with me. This ship.”

Richard’s gaze moved toward Vallach’s chest. For some reason, Vallach had no choice but to take a step back.

Having lived his entire life unaligned, no symbol was engraved on his chest. As if wanting to fill that void, greed flickered in his disciple’s eyes.

“I believe I refused you before. I live my own way regardless of whether a God exists or not.”

“Even if you believe in God, it doesn’t mean your existence changes, does it?”

Vallach refused stubbornly.

Unaligned.

That was the very path Vallach had walked until now. There was absolutely no reason to belong to another group now.

“Hmm, is that so? Please let me know if you change your mind.”

Richard smacked his lips and stepped back. Nevertheless, his face was full of conviction. He believed that one day, his master would believe too.

“Pfft. The conversation has gone on too long.”

Vallach changed the subject and looked out the window. The Demonic Energy covering the night sky was busy hiding the stars, not showing even one.

Expressing a brief moment of regret, Vallach fumbled through his coat.

“Here. It’s a gift.”

What he pulled out was a bracelet. It was an accessory with a golden frame wrapped tightly in chains.

“What is this?”

“Do you remember the Dwarf I mentioned before?”

Richard nodded. He was likely referring to Vallach’s few close friends who could craft the Core of a Star.

“It is his work. He said it’s an Artifact inspired by the Sword Saint.”

The name was ‘Draupnir’.

At Vallach’s urging to try it on quickly, Richard put on the bracelet. He felt a heavy weight.

“Since it’s an Artifact, does it activate if I pour Mana into it?”

Holy Power circulated through his body. Then, it raced toward the Draupnir fastened to his wrist.

Clang—!

The chains wrapped around the golden frame surged violently. Like a thread unraveling, the ends of the chains broke free from the bracelet.

Soon, four strands of iron chains, which had become as thick as snowballs, wriggled around Richard.

‘If the Sword Saint were made of iron chains instead of stars, would it look like this?’

Ching—

The chains, moving freely, almost looked like snakes.

“Hmm. It looks quite impressive.”

Vallach said with his eyes sparkling. Seeing Richard, who had even drawn the Four Stars for good measure, was quite satisfying.

And the one feeling more satisfied than anyone else was none other than Richard.

‘This is an unexpected gain.’

He had never seen an Artifact like this. In other words, it was an item that originally shouldn’t have existed. Every change has a cause.

Richard’s gaze naturally turned toward Vallach.

“Thank you for preparing such a gift for me.”

“Hmph, that dwarf fellow just made it on a whim. I have no use for it, so I gave it to you.”

The disciple chuckled at the sight of his master turning his head away sharply. There was clearly an engraving that said ‘Richard’ on the bracelet.

***

Three days passed.

Richard’s daily routine remained unchanged.

“I don’t like it, but first, get a passing grade from your Magic teacher. I will teach you the secret techniques of the Sword Saint after that.”

Since Richard had already started Magic training, there was no time to start other training. For now, the goal was the 2nd Circle.

It was during a time when he was pouring out magic hundreds of times a day.

Numerous birds appeared in the sky above the Royal Castle.

Screeeech—!

Every single one of them was a ‘Crying Bird’. And sitting atop them were wizards wearing familiar decorations.

“It’s Markus!”

“Do not let them approach!”

The air changed in an instant. All the wizards of the Royal Castle raised their Spirit Staffs and deployed a Barrier. The Magic Power boiling fiercely from all directions was enough to take one’s breath away.

While everyone glared at the enemy in the sky, two young men walked forward.

They were Richard and Alan.

“Stop! It’s dangerous!”

Despite the wizards’ attempts to stop them, the two did not halt. They even went as far as to request that the Barrier be deactivated.

The one who actually nodded at that absurd request was the King of Laplace.

“They have come to ask for help.”

Bzzt—

Eventually, the Barrier was lifted, and about fifty wizards landed in front of the Royal Castle. Every one of them was a wizard with their robe hood pulled down low.

Those who looked closely at them gasped.

“Roan…”

Alan’s voice, muttering his deputy’s name, sank deeply. Roan, who had been standing at the front, fell to his knees. His body was a gruesome sight, with black spots having swallowed half of his flesh.

“Yo—Young Master Alan… have you been well?”