The Failure Marquis Is A Genius [EN]: Chapter 64

Chapter 9: Relic – The Enduring Wastrel

The day after dealing with Guild Master Haman.

Campbell, Zion, Tom, and I put up a ‘No Entry’ sign and sealed the building for two days.

Delaying would be dangerous, but today is the full moon, and if we move quickly, everything should be over in two days.

I was sitting cross-legged inside the building, deep in meditation, when I opened my eyes at the sound of someone approaching from outside.

“The door’s open.”

It was Tom who entered.

Tom had gone out briefly in the morning.

He was holding a golden branch in his hand, and I wondered where he had been.

My eyes blurred as I saw the branch emitting a dazzling golden light, and my heart pounded wildly.

Just as a vampire instinctively craves human blood, I, as a druid, intensely desired the golden branch with all my being.

“You look like you’re about to drool.”

“I’ve shown a disgraceful sight.”

“No, the World Tree’s branch is like that to a druid.”

I was embarrassed and changed the subject.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t heard why Tom is after Greed. Do you have a personal grudge?”

Tom shrugged at my question.

“It’s not a personal grudge, but because of the organization I belong to.”

“The Pilgrims, you mean?”

“Yes. Pilgrims enjoy acting individually, but that doesn’t mean they lack solidarity.”

Tom told me that the Pilgrims’ mission is to track down the traces of the ancient Aslan Empire and protect and manage the relics and artifacts originating from Aslan.

“About 30 years ago, a boy named Milo joined the Pilgrims. We were all excited because it had been a while since we had a new recruit.”

“That must have been a good thing.”

“No. That’s when the problems started. Milo was crazy. The reason he joined the Pilgrim group in the first place was because there was a relic he was after.”

“What relic is it?”

“The Blood Chalice. An ancient artifact from Aslan that was quite feared, used to strengthen curses by filling it with the blood of beings with souls.”

A relic related to curses.

I had a feeling I knew who this boy Milo was.

“Was Milo Greed?”

“That’s right. He murdered a fellow Pilgrim, stole the chalice, and ran away. And 10 years later, he appeared as the Grand Executive, Greed.”

“That’s a sad story.”

“During the final great battle 20 years ago, the power of the Demon King Baal was so strong that we couldn’t defeat him. After the Demon King died, he disappeared, and we couldn’t catch him.”

That was the story of how Greed’s tail was caught due to the demon summoning in Lloyd’s territory, and Tom came to Liang himself.

“So I’m grateful to you.”

“Because you found out about Milo’s whereabouts thanks to me?”

“That’s right. I never thought badly of you in the first place. Even when people called you a wastrel, to me, you were the son of Gordon, the brother who had my back during the final battle.”

“Thank you for your kind words. But if you felt that way, you could have just given me the golden branch and a few relics.”

“Hehehe, that’s out of the question. Pilgrims are strict about contracts and promises. It’s easier to keep public and private matters separate.”

Anyway, I have no complaints since I got the golden branch.

The branch, radiating a warm golden light like when I saw it in the Dragon Lair, came into my possession.

At the same time, a familiar system window appeared before my eyes.

“You have discovered the Golden Branch.”

“You must take a test to acquire it.”

“Will you take the World Tree’s test?”

“Y/N”

It’s the same message as last time.

I immediately selected yes.

Whoosh!

Emerald light mixed with gold filled the surroundings.

A huge illusion of the World Tree, as if piercing the sky, emerged, scattering warmth and comforting beauty in all directions.

“Ah!”

Even Tom, a Pilgrim who had traveled all over the continent and had countless experiences, knelt in reverence before the sublimity of nature.

The last thing I saw was Tom’s face, gazing at the golden galaxy with tearful eyes, before all the light in the world flickered out.

Whoosh!!!

And then I opened my eyes.

A lean body unlike Henon.

Skin so pale it was almost white.

An appearance that looked at least five years younger.

‘Merlin’s memories.’

I didn’t know the name of this frail boy I possessed during the first test, but now I do.

A druid who appeared a thousand years ago and a legendary figure who even succeeded in sealing the half-human, half-demon Heavenly Demon [a powerful demonic entity].

The very person who divided the golden branch into seven pieces, using his soul as a medium, and scattered them across the continent.

I have re-entered the memories of the druid Merlin.

Still, he was a little more grown up than the Merlin I met in the first test.

He was a little kid who hadn’t even gone through puberty when he defeated the troll, but now he was quite tall and his chin was slightly rough.

About 13-15 years old, I guess.

‘There are no particular signs.’

Even during the first test, I wasn’t immediately given a mission to do something.

I guessed that this time would be the same, as specific situations were given when I entrusted myself to the flow of memories, and overcoming them was part of the test.

‘Let’s look around first.’

I got out of bed.

The room was filled with the rich scent of ancient trees, and a small candle dimly illuminated the surroundings with a faint flame.

I realized at a glance that it was Merlin’s room.

Unlike the last time when I was dropped in the middle of the forest, the start is stable.

I was reminded of the memories of the last test.

The little devils in the guise of friends pushed Merlin into the troll’s habitat, and he would have died if he hadn’t been a druid.

Despite committing such attempted murder, the adults who came late rather protected the kids who had bullied Merlin and blamed Merlin’s carelessness for falling into the troll habitat.

‘It was a village with a lot of problems.’

Perhaps this memory is also related to the villagers.

As I was carefully speculating, I heard a knock on the door and a woman’s beautiful voice from outside.

“Merlin, may I come in?”

The woman who opened the door was beautiful enough to make my eyes widen.

Elves are inherently beautiful, but the woman in front of me was definitely among the top beauties.

She seemed to be Merlin’s mother.

“Yes, Mother.”

The biggest reason Merlin was ostracized and bullied in the village was because his mother had an affair with a human.

Half human blood, half elven blood.

He became a druid because he was a half-elf, but all the villagers hated him for being a half-elf.

As a third party, I can’t help but think it’s a truly ironic fate.

“Merlin, I love you.”

“I love you too.”

The mother and son share a warm embrace.

Currently, this space is a virtual space reconstructed based on Merlin’s old memories.

Nevertheless, I, who was possessed by Merlin, shared to some extent the sense of stability and happiness he felt when hugging his mother.

About three seconds after the hug.

The situation I had been worried about finally occurred.

Someone outside banged roughly on the door.

“Open the door!”

The gruff shouts of middle-aged men.

The complexion of Merlin’s mother, who was holding him, turned pale in an instant, and her fingertips trembled slightly.

“Merlin, wait a moment.”

I heard the sound of my mother opening the front door, and then an argument began with the men who had come.

Among the sounds coming from outside the room were cheap curses that I couldn’t bring myself to say.

Soon, the sound of a slap and my mother’s scream, the loud sound of furniture breaking, and the lewd words of the men continued.

And… a system window appears before my eyes.

“Starting the second test.”

“Revealing the first clear condition.”

“Eliminate the intruders.”

First clear condition?

In the last test, it only said ‘clear condition,’ but this time it has the word ‘first.’

Does this mean that this test requires clearing multiple situations?

Anyway, I have to solve the immediate ordeal.

I burst open the door and went outside.

The scene outside was a sight to behold.

The whole house was a mess as if a storm had hit it, and in the middle, my mother was collapsed with her hair disheveled.

The situation was very disgusting, as middle-aged men with flushed faces surrounded her, so there was no need to ask.

“What? Isn’t that the hybrid bastard?”

“Get inside if you don’t want to get hit.”

“No. It might be better to deal with that bastard first.”

One of the elves cracked his knuckles and approached me.

If it were Henon, I would have sent him flying with one punch, but with Merlin’s frail body, it’s hard to handle such a burly man.

Therefore, as in the last test, I have to deal with these thugs with pure druid abilities alone.

‘I’ve developed my druid abilities a lot through training.’

“Activating Wood Control.”

“Casting Bind.”

Now, binding with tree roots is a piece of cake. Besides, the opponent was heavily drunk, so they couldn’t resist properly and were tied up, flailing.

“Huh? Let go of this!”

“Let go, I said!”

“Activating Stone Control.”

“Casting Stone Lance.”

Whack! Whack!

The stone spears that rose from the ground pierced the hearts of the drunkards in an instant.

The guys who had been mistreating my mother until just now were silent, splattering blood on the floor.

A heavy atmosphere settled.

My mother, seeing the corpses, turned her head from side to side, not knowing what to do, and then grabbed Merlin’s hand.

“Let’s run away. We have to get out of the village. If we get caught here, we’re both dead.”

At the same time as my mother’s words ended, the system window popped up.

“Revealing the second clear condition.”

“Evade pursuit for 1 hour.”

“Time limit 1:00:00, 0:59:59···58···57”

This time, instead of defeating the enemy, the mission is to escape. First, I ran through the bushes with my mother.

“Hah! Huff! Hah!”

Neither my mother nor Merlin was in good shape. It’s only been 5 minutes since we started, but already a spectacle of torches was unfolding behind us.

“That bastard finally caused an accident.”

“Find him immediately!”

“Catch him!”

The torches are getting closer and closer.

Logically speaking, Merlin and his mother are a woman and a boy, and the pursuers are warriors, so there’s bound to be a difference in speed.

Besides, the warriors are veterans who patrol this area every day.

If we just run away like this, we’ll fail the mission in less than 15 minutes, let alone 1 hour.

‘I have to use some trick. Is there a skill I have that can create distance from them?’

There is one.

Wind Control – Shunpo [a technique to move with extreme speed].

If it’s a technique to kick off the wind and fly into the sky, it’s possible to outrun them and escape.

But Shunpo is a technique used alone, and now my mother is with me.

The system window only said to evade, but no matter how I think about it, it doesn’t seem like a success if Merlin abandons his mother and survives alone.

But if we stay like this, we’ll be caught.

I had to come up with something.

At that moment, a small idea flashed through my mind like lightning.

‘Can’t I apply it to both of us instead of reducing the effect of Shunpo?’

The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step [a Chinese proverb meaning even the most difficult tasks can be accomplished with small steps].

The Shunpo I have now is an excessively good skill.

Instead of hastily thinking about applying the skill effect 100% to multiple people, how about nerfing the skill and applying it, even if the effect is slightly reduced?

‘Let’s try it. There’s no turning back anyway.’

I closed my eyes and concentrated.

I tried to feel the wind with my senses more acute than ever.

“Merlin, you can’t just stand still.”

Even my mother’s urging, full of tension, was bounced out of my consciousness.

Wind. Wind. And more wind.

I deeply enjoy the flow of air.

I explore the microscopic world more deeply.

I get closer to the essence of the wind.

Like the wrinkles etched on my forehead.

Like the water flowing through the valley.

Like the growth rings of a cut tree.

The sensation that had been tickling my mind became clear as if I could grasp it and slowly flowed towards me. Before I knew it, my body was floating slightly.

“M, Merlin!”

I hear my surprised mother’s voice.

It’s different from Shunpo.

Rather than kicking off the air roughly, I gently embrace it and float like a balloon.

It’s only about 10cm off the ground, but there’s a crucial difference from Shunpo.

My mother, who was accompanying me, was also floating 10cm off the ground.

“Activating Wind Control.”

“Casting Haste.”

Haste.

A skill name I really like.

Thus, Merlin and his mother ran much faster with the power of the wind enveloping their ankles.

The approaching torches grew farther away.

“Merlin, what are you…”

My mother’s surprised voice.

It’s too early to rest assured.

I used Haste, but the basic speed itself is so different.

The encirclement of the elven warriors was gradually narrowing.

“Time limit 15:00···14:59···14:58···”

We’ve endured a lot, having passed a whopping 45 minutes.

The pursuers must be very angry.

Still, there are 15 minutes left.

The encirclement is as narrow as it can be.

“Just get caught and see!”

“Forget about keeping your body intact!”

“Let’s cut off his damn ankles first.”

What should I do?

I thought about how to break through the encirclement.

The answer was surprisingly simple.

‘If I can check the opponent’s movements, I can escape through the empty spaces like a rat hole.’

But how can I know where the opponent is coming from in the deep forest at night? As I was wondering if there was a way, my vision suddenly spun.

Following that, the status window appeared.

“Activating Live Control”

“Casting Vision Share.”

“Shared entity – Common broad-leaved tree”

Before my eyes, as I regained my senses, was a flickering hot energy. It was the flame burning from the torches held by the elven pursuers.

‘···This? Could it be?’

It’s unbelievable, but I can’t not believe it.

I am now possessing a tree near the elven pursuers and stealing the vision of that tree.

Of course, the opponent doesn’t know that I’m watching them so clearly.

I’m amazed that there was such a mysterious skill.

Also, hope has arisen.

The opponent’s movements are all grasped.

The meaning of this was simple.

‘Enduring for 15 minutes. It’s entirely possible.’