Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 921

It was a truly magnificent sight—a hill of amber jewels. They were as transparent as glass, capturing the sunlight and shimmering like a galaxy.

Ian cautiously looked around. They had arrived first, so the surroundings were quiet. Even if they were a tribe of sorcerers, they couldn’t possibly keep up with a dragon.

Relieved, Ian turned around and-

“Ako?”

He found Ako still on the ground, panting heavily.

What was wrong? Had she been attacked? Ian rushed over in alarm to check on her. Ako wiped away the blood streaming from her nose with the back of her hand, her eyes flashing with a wild intensity.

“Ha, ha ha, haaa-”

“Ako?”

“It was there! It really was there! Uwaaa! Grandma! I’m sorry for doubting you!”

“Ako, it’s dangerous!”

Idgal, a magic stone that absorbs magic power. Yet, Ako didn’t care and threw herself onto the hill.

She was intoxicated with joy, touching and caressing the stones, sliding down as if on a slide, rubbing her face against them, and then raising her hand to the sky, letting out an ecstatic cry.

-Kkyu.

Kkyu covered Ian’s eyes with his wing, as if telling him not to look at such a display. Ian smiled and rubbed his forehead against the dragon’s neck.

“Thank you, Kkyu. You knew about the Idgal burial site?”

-Kkyu!

At Ian’s praise, Kkyu puffed out a breath and proudly spread his wings wide. The gesture cast a terrifying shadow across the hill.

Ian tapped his side and then approached the Idgal hill.

‘There are traces of mining in between.’

Those who had visited before must have taken small pieces.

Ian was suddenly curious. There was so much, enough to form a hill, so why did they only take such small amounts of Idgal?

Gooooooo-

“……!”

The question was answered as soon as he took a step. Beneath the Idgal, there was a darkness as deep as an abyss. It was like a distant night sky, or like the black sea he had seen in books. It was an unknown darkness.

But one thing was certain: it could never coexist with Gaia [the world]. It was a darkness that should not, and could not, exist in a place where sunlight existed.

‘So that’s why.’

Everyone who discovered the Idgal burial site had seen this hole. It wasn’t because it was a forbidden magic stone throughout Gaia, but because they had tasted the fear that suppressed their greed and only took a small piece, the very edge. If they were careless, they could fall into that abyss-like chasm.

“Ako, be careful.”

Ian pointed to the hole and warned Ako. Ako, who had repeatedly climbed to the edge of the hill and slipped, rolled down and then cocked an eyebrow with an ‘aha’ expression.

“It’s a rift.”

“A rift?”

“The source of all evil, the bottom of the world. People call it hell, and we magicians call it the abyss.”

“What happens if you go in?”

“Scary thought.”

Ako pressed her face to the ground and examined the rift closely. There didn’t seem to be anything unusual. No distortions, swirls, or shaking. Since it was a hole that spewed out monsters, there were always warning signs before danger erupted. It was safe for now.

“Ako, you were scared of something too.”

“Of course. They say it’s a space of nothingness inside. Imagine rolling around in a place with no magic stones, no laboratory, nothing. Isn’t that scary?”

“Rolling…?”

“Ah, not that kind of rolling-”

Ako stopped trying to explain the word to Ian. She sensed movement from the direction they had come from.

There was only one force that could be arriving here now. The small tribes that were pretending to retreat to inform Crony about the Idgal burial site.

Whoosh!

The Megetu tribe, who had pushed through the bushes, stopped in surprise when they saw Ian, Ako, and the dragon who were already there. The Enjargal tribe arrived right after.

In an instant, a confrontation arose, and Ako hid Ian behind her.

“Hey, if you’re running away from Bariel, shouldn’t you take another path?”

The tribes easily recognized them as magicians. It was because of the red dragon. The dragon opened its mouth threateningly, revealing hundreds of teeth and drooling. The hot air from its breath was an added bonus.

The Megetu chief and the Enjargal chief exchanged glances.

‘Damn, how did this happen?’

‘I know. Crony needs to come.’

Ako, who was watching them exchange glances, pointed her finger and warned them.

“No exchanging glances!”

Even though they were a woman and a child, they were magicians. And there was even a dragon. They were clearly formidable opponents, but the tribes’ gazes were fixed on the Idgal hill behind them.

‘If we have Idgal, can’t we take on the magicians?’

Idgal was everywhere. They didn’t know how strong it was, but the Enjargal tribe, who were confident in their strength, were standing firm. Their giant axes, as big as their bodies, could cut through anything.

“What are you doing? Get lost!”

“Who are you telling to get lost?”

“What?”

“This isn’t Bariel. This is the North. This is our North Alliance’s territory, so who are you to tell us to go away?”

“…Oh, so that’s how it’s going to be?”

It was the same as saying they would take the Idgal.

Perhaps those guys thought that now, before Crony arrived, was their chance. A chance to steal some Idgal from Bariel, or Crony. If they did, they could gain the power to oppose Bariel.

Swoosh.

As Ako clenched her fist and took a fighting stance, Ian peeked his head out from her side.

They were hidden by the bushes, but there were about a hundred of them. And more would continue to arrive as they retreated.

“Ako. Should I put up a shield?”

“Good idea, but can you do it alone?”

She had to deal with those guys who were attacking in droves. Since the size of the Astana army was almost the same, Ian felt like he could handle it. Professor Hale did it, so why not him?

“Yeah. I’ll try.”

“Okay. Then keep the shield up. Kkyu!”

-Kkyuuuuuu!

Kkyu breathed out fire. However, the breath only created a wall of fire to prevent them from approaching. He understood that there was a possibility of causing a diplomatic problem.

“Good job!”

-Kkyu!

It was much safer now. Now, to get to the Idgal, they had to break through Kkyu’s fire barrier and Ian’s shield.

“Hmm.”

The Megetu tribe took a fighting stance and pondered.

‘Ignore the dragon.’

They made it clear that the dragon was an obstacle, not a target to defeat. If they could just deal with the pink-haired woman in front of them, they could easily subdue the child.

At that moment, the Megetu tribe whistled.

Whistle!

It was a prearranged signal.

The Enjargal tribe also understood the meaning, lowered their stance, and waited for a moment. They raised their momentum as if they were about to charge, but there was no movement. It was at this moment that Ako frowned.

“……?!”

She felt something grab her ankle tightly. Looking down, she saw a human head emerging from her shadow.

The ones wearing skull masks and tattered clothes were…

“Natan! Hold the woman and the dragon tight! Especially their hands!”

At the Megetu tribe’s shout, the Natan tribe silently submerged into the shadows and disappeared.

Ako and Kkyu tried hard to twist their bodies, but they couldn’t move.

“Magicians draw magic circles to cast spells, right? What can you do if your hands are tied?”

“Damn it-! What is this! Let me go right now?!”

“Hmph. It’ll be hard unless you get rid of the shadows.”

The Megetu tribe rushed forward with swift movements, and the Enjargal tribe joined in with their axes.

On the other hand, the Natan tribe was reluctant to attack the magicians. They didn’t know why. Even they didn’t know the reason. Was it an old fear of magicians? Or a sense of unease that they shouldn’t antagonize Bariel? Something like that…

Whoosh!

Who cares? As long as they did their part in the battle, it didn’t matter! As the Enjargal warriors swung their axes at Ako, a look of panic appeared in her eyes.

‘Damn it, I really can’t move. What should I do?’

If only she could use one hand…

Boom!

At that moment, explosions erupted around Ako. The Enjargal tribe was thrown back, and the impact was enough to shake the trees.

The Enjargal warrior, who had rolled back once, regained his senses and checked the cause of the explosion.

Zzzing! Zzzing!

A child was creating a shield with one hand and detonating magic orbs with the other. His blue eyes were glowing gold like the Idgal.

Ian warned with his lips tightly shut.

“No one, no one come closer.”

If they did, he would really attack this time.

The Enjargal tribe dusted themselves off and chuckled. So, they were saying that they had been knocked down by a single attack from that kid?

“Damn it!”

Whoosh!

A giant axe struck Ian’s shield with tremendous speed.

Thud!

“……!”

Ian was startled by the unexpected heavy force and paused. It was a monstrous power that was on a different level from ordinary soldiers. They were all specialized in combat and were beings that slightly exceeded the limits of humans.

How long could he hold out against them? Wait until Hale arrived? He would face Crony. It was the worst situation with Ako and Kkyu in that state. Ian bit his lip tightly.

‘Think. Think. Think quickly!’

A way to overcome the difficulty!

‘Shadows.’

Right. The Natan tribe were said to be hiding in the shadows, so all he had to do was get rid of the shadows. And the way to erase shadows was…

‘Strong light!’

“Ako, close your eyes!”

I’ll gather the light and explode it! It was the moment Ian raised his hand.

-Ian.

A chilling voice called out to Ian.

There was a power that stopped the world. Suddenly, the wind died down, and the people around them stopped as if their hearts had stopped.

Ian couldn’t tell where the voice was coming from. As his head slowly turned, it eventually lowered-

-Greetings. My child.

The darkness was leaning its face out of the rift towards the ground. It had no form, but it was clear that it was smiling.

Those who heard his voice looked at Ian in confusion. What was he saying? More importantly, what was that?

-I am the god of the underground. The king of monsters. The ruler of the rift. The master of the abyss. Ian, I have been waiting for you. I have something to repay you.

“Wh, what…”

Ian didn’t understand a single word of what it was saying. Repay him? While Ian was bewildered, he felt a vibration at his feet.

Thump thump thump.

It was an earthquake. Birds flew out of the forest, and the subsided bushes began to shake again.

Ian knew instinctively. This thing was trying to destroy all the Idgal in front of the rift.

“Ian! Get back!”

Ako shouted. It would be dangerous if the Idgal that was blocking the rift were to break.

Ian cautiously stepped back, but to step on the Idgal, he had to stand on top of the rift hole.

“N, now’s the time!”

The tribesmen shouted. That monster just called the child his child, right? He said he had something to repay him and spoke kindly?

They didn’t know the details, but one thing was certain.

“Grab him!”

Idgal was important, but they had to capture Ian first.

They had not forgotten the great monster outbreak 100 years ago. If that thing was a seed of a monster, then the top priority of the Northern Alliance was to deal with it no matter what. No matter what Crony said, this was the North’s business.

“Ako, Kkyu! Close your eyes!”

Ian calmly raised his hand while still looking at the darkness that was smiling at him.

Zzzing! Zzzing!

A strong light, like the sun, burst into fragments from the child’s fingertips. A light so intense that it seemed to erase everything.

As the world turned white, the shadows were also erased in an instant. Ako closed her eyes tightly and put her hand into her inner pocket.

“You bastards! Can’t you tell what’s going on-!”

There was a possibility that they would be tied up again when the light disappeared. So.

Boom!

“Open your mouths. The medicine’s going in.”