The Rebirth Of The Hero’S Party’S Archmage [EN]: Chapter 135

135

“I’ll finish all five of you off in seven seconds.”

The battle began with Rein handing Akirea, who was asleep on his back, over to Kasena.

Ganiaksa Billid, glimpsing a hint of hesitation in that action, placed his hand on his harp. But the instant Rein’s eyes flashed, time and space seemed to warp, replaced by a frantic cascade of binary code: 0101010101.

*Is this… an illusion?*

*Did you underestimate me so easily?*

“If you pluck that string, you’ll die.”

Billid, who had shaken off the initial mental disorientation and was about to pluck the harp to unleash his magic, felt a chill run down his spine. A primal warning.

*What is this…?*

He realized, with dawning horror, that the fire arrow magic he had been about to activate was now aimed directly at him. If he had plucked the string and completed calculating the coordinates, he would have been…

“Dooms!”

Thinking his comrade was under some kind of illusion, Dooms rushed forward, swinging his iron mace with brutal force… but in an instant, sparks flew, and the sound of grinding metal echoed through the air.

“Humans really have no manners at all.”

Creak, creak… Dozens of gears whirred on Eldvige’s gauntlet, the mechanism clamping down on the iron mace with such force that the metal itself began to buckle and deform.

Eldvige, the 5th ranked Gold adventurer, had also survived the previous surprise attack thanks to Rein’s intervention. He was just about to wrench the iron mace away and launch his own offensive when a voice cut through the chaos.

“Wait a minute!”

The leader, Cheongun Fren, head of the Red Ilhong Adventurer Party (a title always held by the original founder), stepped forward, his striking blue hair swaying with the movement.

“I think we made a mistake… I never dreamed it would be you, Eldvige. Truly.”

A young man with a rogue guild tattoo subtly visible under his eye, he was as handsome as the rumors suggested.

“If we can compensate for that surprise attack with money, we will compensate as much as possible within reasonable limits.”

Eldvige’s disdainful voice, filtered through his optical helmet, sounded mechanical and cold.

“You suddenly try to take our lives and then offer such a ridiculous excuse?”

“That’s certainly something we can’t deny, but shouldn’t we also consider it your fault for leading those beastmen in front of us?”

“What are you talking about?”

“What do I mean… didn’t you get the message?”

“I didn’t.”

“A traitor is leading the beastmen across here. All adventurers are supposed to gather at the Extreme West Branch to set up a defense line. The Emperor has offered a huge bounty.”

Kasena and I exchanged bewildered glances.

*The Emperor’s declared traitor….*

I had anticipated things escalating within the Empire, but I never imagined it would reach this scale.

“Ah, Aba, A-baa!”

It was exactly eleven seconds later that Aki, who had been squirming restlessly in Kasena’s arms, burst into tears.

*She’s grown a whole four seconds….*

Before she got too worked up and revealed her tail, I quickly took Aki from Kasena and gently patted her back to soothe her. She gradually calmed down.

“And you two are….”

Fren, who had been staring blankly at the scene, spoke in a hesitant voice.

“Could you be Prince Rein and Miss Kasena?”

Had our disappearance become such a significant event that even the adventurers were aware of it? Kasena seemed visibly pleased that Red Ilhong recognized her name.

“That’s right! I’m Kasena Page! And this is Rein Ludwig!”

Kasena nodded with an arrogant air and an excited expression. Fren simply exhaled, a look of realization washing over his face.

“Huh… Bart’s words were true.”

That name made me react. My heart skipped a beat.

“Bart? Bart, you said?”

“I knew him while exploring the 4th floor with the Moby Dick Adventurer Party. But he left the Moby Dick Adventurer Party during the Black Spot incident.”

“Quit? Why?”

It was incomprehensible.

They had viewed the Moby Dick Adventurer Party as a stepping stone for their own advancement.

“He said he was going to find the Prince. He said he was certain you were alive.”

For a moment, I was speechless. My heart pounded in my chest. My voice trembled slightly.

*Those foolish idiots….*

I had told them not to worry, that I could manage on my own. But why would they abandon such a promising opportunity because of me….

“But to think that it wasn’t a disappearance, but a love affair… um, congratulations on the safe delivery, though it’s a bit late.”

?

Dooms nodded in agreement.

“Dooms.”

Skael, the party’s archer, also glanced back and forth between me, Kasena, and Aki, a knowing smile playing on his lips.

“Well, people used to get married and have babies at fifteen. They say a woman’s body is best suited for having babies in her late teens, right?”

“Dooms Dooms.”

“But does black and light purple mix to make red? Billid, does it turn out like that if you mix paints?”

Kasena’s face was so flushed that she couldn’t even speak. I raised my hand, attempting to quell the rising tide of misunderstandings.

“Wait, wait, wait, wait… you guys are making a huge mistake.”

“Dooms?”

“How can you become a Gold adventurer with such a lack of discernment? How can you possibly think this is our daughter?”

Then, Red Ilhong tilted their heads, as if questioning the obvious.

“Well… she looks exactly like you two.”

*Exactly like us my ass,* I thought, about to vehemently object, when the procession of beastmen emerged from the forest. The emotion that flashed in Red Ilhong’s eyes at that moment… I stepped in front of them, blocking their path.

“Wait a minute. I can explain everything. The beastmen are not the enemy.”

“What nonsense… then does that mean you were the traitor, Prince?”

Red Ilhong took a step back from me, resuming their battle stances.

The situation had shifted drastically in an instant… I was beyond dumbfounded and speechless.

I thought we were having a relatively friendly conversation, but suddenly they had become so hostile, without even hearing an explanation.

“Eldvige, why are you with them? Don’t you know the situation?”

Lorenz, his face etched with confusion rather than hostility, asked cautiously.

“It’s the Captain’s order. I’m just following it. To guide the beastmen to the Extreme West Branch.”

“The Captain’s order? Then does that mean Frisvia is participating in this? If this gets to the Emperor’s ears, who knows what kind of conflict will arise between the Empire and the Three Kingdoms….”

“I don’t know what she’s thinking. But I do know that you guys are obstructing her will.”

In a land where the logic of power reigns supreme, was the prestige of the Platinum rank 1st place truly so overwhelming? Red Ilhong began to retreat slowly.

They didn’t even want to consider my intentions, Frisvia’s intentions, and they continued to distance themselves.

As their figures disappeared into the mist of Trident Point, Fren’s voice echoed one last time.

“You say it’s not treason, but will the Emperor really understand that?”

“…….”

“We don’t know what will happen to your families in the Empire because of this… We have no choice but to draw the line here.”

I had vaguely anticipated this, but at this moment I knew for sure.

The adventurers would not welcome us. And we had to get past those adventurers to lead the beastmen across the sea.

This is a lawless land where the sword is mightier than the law, a land where power governs everything.

* * *

A large ship entered the dock of the Alliance’s Extreme West Branch.

What unfolded next was so awe-inspiring that even the adventurers, renowned for their arrogance born from their power, couldn’t help but feel a strange thrill and kneel in deference.

The crest elegantly embroidered with silver thread on the flag fluttering heavily from the bow depicted a Black Tortoise holding a Holy Grail.

“If it’s a Black Tortoise, it’s the crest of the Eijin family….”

“And the Holy Grail is only used by the family elected as Emperor…!”

If the Emperor’s envoy was simply on this ship, they wouldn’t have shown such extreme courtesy.

What is an adventurer? They are those who follow power, pursue power, and obey power… and this is Trident Point, a place where only the strongest survive. There are no mediocre people here.

Figures possessing such immense magical power and legendary fame that they could compel even these adventurers to kneel, walked out onto the plank lowered from the ship to the dock.

“The Four Sages of Hwangha….”

“Former Platinum 2nd place, Seigan Wolf Blado, and 6th place, Leoren…!”

The majesty of Crown Prince Raida Eijin, who led them, was also remarkable, belying his sixteen years, but it paled in comparison to the presence of the two Sages.

Seigan and Leoren were beings with completely contrasting personalities.

Seigan of the Mado family was as ruthless and efficient as a northerner, while Leoren, a descendant of the Gungseong Keyes, was so relaxed that he seemed almost complacent.

“Ugh, to come to this terrible land again.”

Leoren, idly flipping his green hair, yawned repeatedly and complained.

Seigan remained expressionless. His flowing dark red hair was as unsettling as the blood that gushes from a severed artery.

The Blado count’s robe and leather boots he wore were also dark red, and all aspects of his appearance were both fascinating and ominous.

Seigan’s mood was not just bad, it was the worst it could be.

*Not only was my beloved younger brother branded as a traitor, but I have to deal with the fallout….*

This could be a test orchestrated by the imperial family, a veiled inquiry into the innocence and loyalty of the Blado family… a situation where the very survival of the family hung by a thread.

“We have been awaiting your arrival after receiving a message from the Griffin rider.”

The deputy manager of the Alliance’s Extreme West Branch bowed deeply.

“It’s still peaceful. It seems the traitor hasn’t arrived yet?”

“Reports of sightings in the Third Finger estuary are coming in steadily….”

Suddenly, Raida stopped, the corroded planks of the forecastle groaning ominously under his weight.

“There have been so many sightings, why are those guys still alive?”

The deputy manager’s eyes widened for a fraction of a second before he immediately knelt on one knee and reported.

“It appears that accurate information has not yet been disseminated to all adventurers…! For now, we have only transmitted the current situation and the order to gather at the Extreme West Branch.”

The deputy manager, accustomed to dealing with adventurers as savage in personality as they were strong (the branch manager was currently away supporting the labyrinth exploration), was quite capable, but what could he do in the face of a prince accompanied by two of the most powerful warriors of the era?

“If that’s the case, then it’s acceptable.”

The Crown Prince, narrowing his eyes as if assessing the deputy manager, turned around, his robe billowing behind him.

“The fleet will arrive in an hour or two. Five thousand imperial soldiers are on board. Prepare to welcome them.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

At that very moment, bubbles began to churn in the harbor estuary where the swamp met the sea, and in an instant, a colossal shadow loomed over the harbor.

White-hot panic surged through the adventurers’ minds.

“No, that guy is…!”

“A-class Sea King Magic Beast Gilatin…?!”

“The incompetent dock manager, did he forget to activate the barrier…?”

Amidst the chaos, the Crown Prince and the Four Sages maintained their composure. In fact, they glanced up at the ancient monster with an air of disdain.

“Seigan, take care of it.”

“Yes.”

Suddenly, a blade materialized from the steel ring Seigan wore on his left thumb. He deeply slashed his palm with the blade, drawing blood.

After flicking the blood onto the monster that was charging towards them with its terrifying maw agape, he formed a hand seal, invoking the power of his bloodline limit.

──It vanished.

The space where the blood had landed was distorted by an unknown force….

“Your Highness!”

“Please move!”

“Behind you!”

Even as Gilatin, riddled with holes, lost control of its momentum and crashed directly into the dock, Seigan remained utterly composed.

He simply resumed walking.

Following the prince.

A pillar of water erupted violently as the indescribable giant fell, and soon droplets of water, carrying a fishy stench, rained down.

“……?!”

“……?!”

“……?!”

However, unbelievably, the three were unharmed. Not only them, but also the harbor district of the Extreme West Branch and the warships docked there.

The adventurers, who had been staring blankly at the scene, soon felt their eyes widen with awe as the full implications of what they had witnessed sank in.

That was… a masterpiece. There was no other way to describe it.

*The holes in Gilatin’s body….*

*It was sliced in half with absolute precision….*

*It didn’t hit the dock or the warships….*

Blood and entrails poured from Gilatin’s body, which had been brutally torn asunder, filling the air with a nauseating odor.

Even though he had instantly subdued the A-class Sea King Magic Beast that Gold-ranked adventurers struggled against, a feat they would boast about for years if they were lucky enough to accomplish it, Seigan displayed no particular reaction.

As if this outcome was as natural as the sun rising and setting… the adventurers swallowed hard.

*This human is the Magic Star Seigan….*

*The strongest battle mage of the current generation….*

*Beastmen or traitors, they wouldn’t even be a challenge…?*