Chapter 17: Shadows Beneath the Rift

No matter how you looked at it, he had to be a dragon.

Gaon was surely a dragon out on a playful excursion.

That explained everything—Rotes’s reaction, the overwhelming magical power, all of it.

Taylor immediately lowered his gaze.

Now that he knew, he couldn’t look at Gaon the same way.

What if he accidentally offended a dragon by staring?

The mere thought was horrifying.

As Taylor grappled with his mistaken assumptions, Gaon spoke up.

“Let’s get straight to the point.”

He continued, “The treatment’s done, so that’s settled.”

Rotes and Taylor had come to the Alion estate for two reasons.

First, to treat Gron.

Second, to find the true culprit who attacked Gron and framed Gardion Tower.

The treatment was complete.

That left the second matter.

“Any guesses about the culprit?” Gaon asked Rotes and Oris.

Gardion Tower had been framed, and the Alion family’s heir had nearly died.

The culprit likely held a grudge against either Gardion Tower, the Alion family, or both.

It was also possible that multiple parties were involved.

“Hmm…”

Rotes and Oris let out thoughtful murmurs at Gaon’s question.

“There are too many possibilities,” Rotes answered first.

“There’s Rud Tower and Fire Tower nearby, and our relationship with the Glaco Kingdom’s royal family isn’t exactly friendly.”

At Rotes’s words, Gaon furrowed his brow and muttered,

“Come to think of it, those guys need to be crushed soon…”

When he’d heard about the tower, he’d also learned about the war.

The war hadn’t been started by Gardion Tower.

The other two towers had unilaterally provoked and declared it.

Gaon had no intention of letting them off.

Not that he planned to deal with them immediately—it was too difficult for now.

The Tower Masters of both towers were 7th Circle Archmages.

He was confident he could win in combat, but it wasn’t a sure thing.

Besides, Tower Masters rarely left their towers, which were filled with countless mages.

Even when they did venture out, they were accompanied by numerous escort mages.

I need to reach the 6th Circle as soon as possible.

But once he did?

He was certain he could force their surrender anywhere.

Gaon turned to Oris, who had gone pale.

“Oh, I’m not talking about the kingdom, so don’t worry.”

“Haha, I see.”

Oris let out a relieved, awkward laugh before continuing.

“For us, there’s only one likely suspect: the Sailer family. We don’t have any other enemies.”

Didn’t they say the Sailer family and Rud Tower are closely tied?

“That’s right,” Oris confirmed. “But I don’t think Rud Tower is involved in this incident.”

“Why not?”

“Well…”

Oris hesitated, glancing at Gaon and Rotes before continuing.

“A project we were pushing indirectly benefited Rud Tower. If it’s not Rud Tower, then it’s unlikely to be the Sailer family either.”

Gaon looked at Rotes, who nodded.

“I agree.”

“Hmm…”

Gaon let out a low hum, thinking,

Could the Abyss be acting alone?

Seventy years ago, Gaon had destroyed an organization called the Abyss.

The curse that had plagued Gron’s body was unmistakably one of their creations.

That can’t be right.

The Abyss had caused countless incidents in the past, but they never acted alone.

They always set up a scapegoat to take the fall.

So, Gaon had assumed there’d be a front this time too.

Maybe it’s not the Abyss?

It was possible the Abyss hadn’t resurfaced.

Another group could have stolen their techniques.

If so, a lone operation wouldn’t be surprising.

Or they could have changed.

Even if it was the Abyss, seventy years was enough time for them to evolve.

As Gaon fell silent, Rotes turned to Oris.

“What happened to the mage who attacked your son?”

“I heard he took his own life.”

“Did you confirm it yourself?”

“No, it was just a report. Wait, are you suggesting…”

“It’s said one of the culprits posed as your son’s maid. If the investigator was also one of them…”

“I’ll look into it.”

Oris raised his hand, and Blanc, who had been waiting in the back, approached.

“Find out what Gerten’s been up to.”

“Yes, I’ll investigate immediately.”

Blanc bowed and left the study.

Oris glanced at Gaon before asking Rotes,

“Once this is over, will you both return to your original posts?”

“No, I plan to return to the tower with Gaon-nim.”

“What? Master, what about the mission…?”

Taylor, startled by Rotes’s words, protested.

“If we return like this, the Vice Tower Master won’t let it slide. He’s already looking for an excuse…”

“Enough.”

Rotes cut Taylor off with a smile.

“It doesn’t matter anymore.”

Taylor was baffled by Rotes’s reaction.

Rotes had stressed the urgency of their mission, planning to wrap this up quickly and resume it.

Yet now he was abandoning it with such a relaxed expression?

“What mission?” Gaon asked, intrigued.

Rotes answered promptly.

“There’s a report of mutated ogres in the Gelita Plains. They’re moving in a pack, and our task is to deal with them.”

“The Gelita Plains? That’s just a slight detour, isn’t it? Let’s stop by then. It’s not a big deal, and I have something to check anyway.”

Ogres had strong resistance to mana, making them tough opponents unless you were above a certain level.

But Gaon didn’t rely on mana—he used Pacheongi to form his Circles.

He was curious about how magic based on Pacheongi would fare.

“Yes, understood!”

Rotes, who moments ago had dismissed the mission, nodded eagerly as if he’d never wavered.

At that moment, a knock came at the door.

“It’s Blanc.”

“Come in,” Oris replied.

The door creaked open, and Blanc entered, his expression grim.

Something had clearly gone wrong.

“Gerten was found dead.”

“…!”

“…!”

Gaon was the only one not shocked by Blanc’s words.

The reason was simple.

It’s exactly how the Abyss operates.

He had already suspected as much.

The cleanup was too similar to the Abyss’s methods.

Suddenly, Gaon’s expression darkened, and he whipped his head around.

“What’s wrong—”

Rotes began to ask but stopped, his face filled with shock as he followed Gaon’s gaze.

“…?”

“…?”

Oris and Taylor looked at the two, confused.

Gaon turned to Oris, his eyes cold.

Oris flinched under his gaze.

“Count Oris.”

“Yes?”

Oris swallowed hard and answered.

“There’s a demonic rift forming. In the south of the city.”

“…What?”

Oris could only blink in disbelief at Gaon’s words.

The term was completely unexpected.

“I’m sorry, I must have misheard…”

“You didn’t. It’s small, but it’s there.”

“A rift… how…?”

“We’ll figure that out later. For now, monsters will start emerging soon. They won’t be high-level. Send knights and soldiers to block them immediately.”

“Yes! I’ll excuse myself then.”

Oris left the study with Blanc.

Gaon turned to Rotes and Taylor.

“Go help. Nothing coming through will be a threat to your level.”

The rift was small.

At most, it would spawn low-tier demons.

In a mana-rich area, it might be different, but in Rabes, even a 4th Circle mage like Taylor could handle low-tier demons with ease.

Rotes would dispatch them in moments.

“Yes, understood!”

“Yes!”

Rotes and Taylor hurried out of the study.

Gaon extended his senses to survey the surroundings.

If it’s the Abyss, they’ll definitely show up.

From what Gaon knew, the Abyss wouldn’t stop at opening a demonic rift.

They’d use the chaos to achieve another goal.

As he scanned, he thought,

Should I have searched the city?

He had assumed they’d fled and focused on training to regain his strength quickly.

But now, he regretted not taking the time to thoroughly investigate Rabes.

Then, he smirked.

As expected.

High-level presences appeared in all directions except the south, where the rift was.

In the north, the presence had mana concentrated in their heart—a mage, likely.

In the east, the mana was evenly distributed throughout the body—a warrior, probably.

In the west, the presence wielded sorcery.

A sorcerer, no doubt.

And Gaon recognized this one—it was the same sorcerer he’d seen in the library, disguised as a librarian.

What are they after?

The three presences were stationary, not moving.

To Gaon, it seemed they were waiting for the knights and soldiers to be drawn out.

So they’re targeting either someone or something left in the estate.

Or possibly both.

Whatever they’re after…

Gaon left the study and headed west.

Of the three—magic, martial arts, and sorcery—sorcery was the trickiest to deal with.

It was the least commonly encountered.

Of course, that was true for most people.

Gaon was anything but ordinary.

Having faced countless sorcerers, including the Grand Sorcerer Slei, he was confident he could crush any sorcery this western figure might wield.

Soon, Gaon scaled the western wall and approached the building where the sorcerer was.

They prepared in advance?

Despite the building being three stories tall, the sorcerer was the only one inside.

That wasn’t all.

Various forms of sorcery emanated from within.

The building was clearly rigged with numerous spells.

Step.

Gaon stopped in front of the building.

He had no intention of entering.

Why walk into a place filled with sorcery?

Unless there was something to gain inside, which there wasn’t.

Looking up at the second floor where the sorcerer was, Gaon activated all his Circles.

In an instant, they spun furiously at maximum speed.

He opened his mouth.

“Earthquake.”

Rumble!

The ground began to shake.