The Return of The Mythical Archmage [EN]: Chapter 409

“…Why?”

Why is corrupted mana flowing out from inside the Green Castle?

‘The Halamanium site is structured so that no one can enter without my permission, so there shouldn’t be any intruders.’

Only black mages can corrupt mana.

The fact that corrupted mana is flowing out from inside the Green Castle means there’s a black mage inside.

In short, a black mage has infiltrated the Halamanium site.

‘How did they even get in?’

I immediately activated Umbra, concealing my mana and presence, and began to think.

‘…Let’s think this through slowly. There are only three people who have the authority to enter the Halamanium site right now: me, Adela, and Soonchan.’

Only the three of us can enter the Halamanium site.

No one else can possibly get in.

‘If there were another Vaiternic user besides me, things would be different, but…’

I am the only successor of Vaiternic [a unique magic lineage]. There are no other successors in this era.

‘There’s no way there’s another Vaiternic user besides me. There are no exceptions.’

This hypothesis doesn’t hold up.

Only the three of us can access the Halamanium site right now.

‘Then what is it?’

The reason an intruder is in a place where they shouldn’t be.

How did the intruder manage to infiltrate the Halamanium site?

‘…Could it be that Soonchan and Adela were followed?’

A plausible hypothesis suddenly flashed through my mind.

‘After Adela and Soonchan recovered, if they were followed when they returned here…’

What if they infiltrated when Adela and Soonchan returned?

‘It’s possible. If they timed their intrusion to coincide with Adela and Soonchan’s return to the Halamanium site, a third party could enter.’

The entry pass to the Halamanium site is a comprehensive pass that allows entry for the holder and their entire party.

If they timed it when Adela and Soonchan entered, they could enter together.

‘But does that even make sense?’

They infiltrate by timing it when Adela and Soonchan enter.

It’s true that they could enter the Halamanium site that way.

But that’s just a possibility in terms of method, not in reality.

In practice, doing that is close to impossible.

‘Even if we disregard Soonchan, there’s no way Adela wouldn’t have noticed if she was being followed.’

Adela’s senses are comparable to mine.

For Adela not only to fail to notice she was being followed, but also to fail to notice someone approaching to infiltrate at the last moment?

Even Elena and Aslan would have been with them.

For all three of them to miss the presence of a follower?

That’s impossible.

‘Of course, there’s a possibility that someone exists who uses a monstrous stealth magic that could even deceive my senses, but…’

What are the odds of such a person suddenly appearing?

There’s almost no chance of that.

…Probably not.

I don’t think so.

‘…Let’s check it out.’

Actually, this is a problem that doesn’t need much thought.

We can find out just by checking.

“Mimir.”

I brought my hand to the choker and quietly called Mimir’s name.

“Successor? What’s wrong all of a sudden?”

Mimir responded to my call immediately, appearing before me.

Her voice was full of fatigue. She must have been engrossed in research until just now.

Then, the sensory synchronization between me and Mimir, which had been cut off for a while, was re-established.

“This is…”

Mimir’s expression turned serious.

“A black mage? There’s a black mage inside?”

Through my senses, she detected the corrupted mana filling the inside of the Green Castle,

and quickly grasped the situation.

“Why is there a black mage in the Green Castle…?”

“I don’t know either.”

Mimir’s expression became even more serious.

Her thoughts must have become complicated due to the sudden situation.

“Mimir, can you contact Elena and Aslan right now?”

Normally, I would have waited until Mimir had finished thinking, but unfortunately, there’s no time for that now.

“…Elena and Aslan? Why them… Ah.”

Mimir’s eyes widened as if she had realized something.

“…I see. The possibility that they infiltrated by following your friends. That was there.”

Mimir looked at me and nodded.

“Just a moment. I’ll connect with them right away.”

Mimir closed her eyes and focused her mind.

A strange light flowed from my choker.

“I talked to them, and Elena and Aslan are both still in Korea.”

About 10 seconds after the light started flowing.

Mimir answered with her eyes closed.

“Of course, Jisoonchan and Adela Steart are also still in Korea.”

She was communicating with Elena using the choker’s function.

“They definitely didn’t infiltrate using your friends.”

Mimir opened her eyes and met mine.

The light flowing from the choker stopped. She had ended the communication.

“I guess that’s not it.”

My prediction was correct.

There’s no way Adela wouldn’t have noticed if she was being followed.

‘Then what is it?’

I felt the corrupted mana flowing from the deepest part of the Green Castle, the training grounds, and sank into thought again.

How did the black mage located there infiltrate the Halamanium site?

‘I don’t know.’

Not a single hypothesis came to mind.

“Successor, we won’t find an answer like this. Let’s go.”

Mimir, like me, hadn’t come up with any hypotheses, and suggested that we take action.

“It’s dangerous, but we have no choice but to go.”

Someone who infiltrated the Halamanium site in a way we couldn’t have predicted.

I don’t know who the intruder is, but they are definitely strong.

Approaching the intruder like this is dangerous.

“…Yeah. I guess we have no choice but to go.”

But we can’t back down just because it’s dangerous.

To back down and leave him like this is the same as abandoning the Halamanium site.

And abandoning the Halamanium site is like giving up on my growth to some extent.

That’s absolutely unacceptable.

“Let’s go.”

I increased the output of Umbra [a stealth magic] even further.

No matter how great they are, it would be difficult to detect me through Umbra.

‘First, I’ll go inside and confirm the intruder’s presence.’

Whether to move to eliminate them or run away is a problem for later.

I slowly moved towards the training grounds inside the Green Castle.

The black color was getting darker and darker.

The mana was so thick that my body stiffened without me realizing it.

“Successor, they don’t seem like an ordinary person.”

Mimir’s expression also hardened.

I could tell just from the mana.

The person inside is a strong one.

“This thick mana… Could it be Bale?”

Mimir said in a trembling voice.

She shook her head as if the thought alone was terrifying.

Please, let it not be Bale.

That was the expression she seemed to have.

“It’s not Bale. Bale’s mana was much darker and murkier than this.”

Bale’s mana, which I had seen in front of me three days ago, was much darker than this.

This isn’t Bale’s mana.

“Right… Thank goodness it’s not Bale.”

Mimir breathed a sigh of relief as if she was truly relieved.

“No. Am I stupid? This isn’t something to be relieved about.”

After a brief sigh of relief.

Mimir quickly corrected herself with a hardened expression.

“There’s someone at this level besides Bale. Where did this guy come from?”

Another strong person comparable to Bale exists.

The situation has become more serious, not better.

“Could it be that the leaders of the Four Nations have been resurrected in this era…?”

“…It could be.”

I slowly leaned my body against the door.

“Let’s see. We’ll know when we see them.”

The door was half-open.

I slowly brought my eyes to the other side of the door.

‘That is…’

In the center of the room, a man stood still.

A man of moderate build with black hair reminiscent of corrupted mana.

Corrupted mana was swirling around him like a whirlwind.

‘…That man. He’s strong.’

I could tell just by the quality of the mana.

That man is strong.

He’s probably stronger than Bale right now.

“S-Successor…”

Mimir said in a trembling voice.

“…I know.”

We have to retreat.

He’s not an opponent I can beat with my current skills.

I slowly took a step back.

No.

“Hmm. You made me wait a long time.”

I was about to step back.

“Come in.”

I would have done so if the man in the room hadn’t spoken to me.

“Aren’t you coming in?”

Beyond the half-open door.

The man slowly turned his body.

The man’s body slowly turned towards me.

“You’re being cautious.”

Soon, I could see the man’s face.

“N-No way…”

Mimir muttered with a look of utter shock.

“There’s no need to be cautious. I don’t have the right to harm you right now.”

I probably had a similar expression to Mimir.

“Is this our first meeting? Or our second?”

The source of blackness.

All the evils of this world.

My enemy.

“How…”

“That expression. It seems like it’s not our first meeting.”

Bale Stoll.

“Hmm. That means the magic I engraved on Ray worked properly.”

Bale Stoll, looking exactly as he did in Mimir’s book from the past.

He clicked his tongue with a frown.

“Tsk. Did I fail?”

Bale unfolded his arms and extended his right hand.

“Too bad. If I had succeeded in killing you there, I wouldn’t have been used like this.”

Mana poured out from his hand.

Black mana crawled like the demons reaching out from the depths of hell.

The mana came right up to my nose and licked my skin once.

It was as if a snake from hell was licking my cheek.

“It’s truly unfortunate.”

The mana smacked its lips as if it was disappointed, then bit down on the awkwardly open door.

Crunch!

The iron door that the mana was biting was crushed.

It was as if an alligator had swallowed the door, crushing it completely.

“How nice it would have been if I could have torn you apart like that right here.”

Bale raised one corner of his mouth.

It was an expression full of intent to tease me.

“…”

I stared blankly at Bale.

Half-opened mouth, just blankly like a person who had lost their mind.

‘…Why?’

I couldn’t understand.

Everything from beginning to end.

There wasn’t a single thing I understood.

“You don’t have to be afraid. As I said, I don’t have the authority to harm you right now.”

Bale withdrew his mana and moved towards me.

“The current me is a replica created by Ray. A fake created to show you how dangerous a black mage named Bale Stoll is.”

Bale’s words brushed past my ears like a passing wind.

“Of course, even though I’m a fake, it doesn’t mean I’m a fictional being. A fake that’s close to the real thing, made using the Phantasm Stone and Ray’s magic. A fake that’s infinitely close to the real thing, made by replicating the real thing. That’s who I am right now.”

I know that this Bale is a fake that’s infinitely close to the real thing.

As someone who knows the power of Persona [a magic that creates a copy of a person], I couldn’t not know.

‘Why…’

That’s why I couldn’t understand.

“Therefore, I have no intention of doing anything to you.”

The fact that the Bale in front of me is a fake that’s infinitely close to the real thing means that the mana I’m feeling now is the real Bale’s mana.

“I will not show you my magic. I have no intention of moving according to Ray’s will.”

The mana I’m feeling now is Bale’s original mana.

“Kill me. Ray’s successor. That’s how everything ends.”

And the mana I’m feeling now is different from the mana of the resurrected ‘Bale Stoll’ that I sensed in the East Sea three days ago.

In other words.

‘…The Bale we’ve been fighting until now… isn’t the real Bale Stoll.’

That’s what it meant.