Episode 11: Maneuvering
The basis for thinking he remembered the past when he disappeared was rather weak, but it was worth considering.
After all, it was quite sudden for him to warn her about Cassis Lenokhonen?
“Judging by his attitude, it seems like he doesn’t remember in detail. Is it his soul that remembers?”
No, that doesn’t make sense. If his soul remembered the past when it disappeared, he wouldn’t have failed to recognize her on their first night.
The soul is the most vivid essence engraved into a person. If memories were imprinted there, Yohan should have remembered Francia the moment he saw her.
‘I don’t know.’
Of course, the rumors about Cassis Lenokhohnen being dangerous were true. They called him the demon of the battlefield, one who even took the heads of surrendered enemies.
Additionally, he was someone who exuded murderous intent even toward his own allies in the First Division, making it difficult for other generals to deal with him.
‘Was the warning just because of such rumors?’
Francia stared at Yohan’s back, her lips moving slightly. She wanted to ask. Did he remember?
But she couldn’t say it aloud. Revealing that she had returned was the greatest taboo of that forbidden magic.
The exact reason was unknown. It was simply written that way by the Transcendence mage from the myth who created the spell.
‘What could it possibly be?’
The magic that defied causality offered no further explanations beyond its description, leaving Francia frustrated.
“Troops, ready!”
While Francia was lost in thought, the soldiers had finished preparing for departure, one by one mounting their horses.
“Francia?”
Yohan tilted his head. Francia was clutching his arm tightly, refusing to let go.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I was just lost in thought for a moment.”
Francia awkwardly smiled and released Yohan’s arm.
“…Please be careful, Okay?”
“I understand.”
“And also, watch out for the rampaging beasts.”
“The rampaging beasts?”
Yohan’s eyebrows knit slightly. Only those who walked the path of Dark magic could make beasts go berserk.
‘Well, she would know some things. It’s common during reconnaissance missions near the demon lairs.’
DarkMages of the Dark magical path often settled near lairs teeming with beasts.
This connection with the beasts allowed them to delve deeper into the Dark magical path.
Those mages could control or enrage beasts, making them the most dangerous foes for officials on reconnaissance missions near the lairs.
“I’ll be careful.”
Yohan gave a soft smile and patted Francia on the head. Only then did she smile faintly and turn away.
“Yohan! Hurry over here!”
At that moment, the Deputy commander, Tersis, leading his horse, called out to him.
“Yes, I’m coming!”
Yohan adjusted his robe and ran over to grab the reins near Tersis.
“How are you with horses?”
“I’m not very good. I learned when I was very young.”
“Haha! Even so, if you passed the test, you must be at least decent!”
Tersis laughed heartily and gave Yohan’s shoulder a few strong pats with his large hand.
“Don’t be too nervous. The unit you’re in is directly under my command.”
“That’s reassuring. I’m glad to be with you, Deputy Commander.”
Yohan chuckled lightly, stepped on the stirrup, and climbed onto the horse. This was the final step to officially becoming an elite magician.
***
The march, which began in the morning, continued until nightfall.
They paused occasionally for meals, and by the time the night came, they finally reached the eastern demon lair of the Empire.
The atmosphere instantly changed, making it clear why the place was called a demon lair.
“We’ll set up an outpost here. Going further would attract too much attention from the beasts.”
“Yes, sir!”
At Fedelian’s command, a knight planted a flag into the ground.
“Set up the outpost!”
Following that signal, soldiers and knights began moving to pitch tents.
“Further in!”
“Stretch it all the way out!”
While they were busy with the tents, Yohan looked around for Francia. Their units were completely separate, so he couldn’t see her.
‘Well, I didn’t expect to stay by her side here anyway.’
This was his first mission as an official, a reconnaissance mission into the demon lair that marked the beginning of everything.
Walking and chatting with her in such a setting would be inappropriate and break military discipline.
“Oh my, who are you looking for so intently?”
A woman’s voice called out from behind him. Yohan turned toward the sound.
“Ratalen, First-Class—no, Violet.”
“I’m pleased you’re using my name.”
Violet chuckled and placed a hand on Yohan’s shoulder, her crimson lips curving into a seductive smile.
“So, how are you feeling? It’s your first reconnaissance mission into a demon lair. Nervous?”
“With reliable people around, I don’t feel too nervous.”
“Oh my, really? Most people are so nervous they can’t even sleep properly.”
Violet’s smooth hand slid up his shoulder, brushing his cheek.
“You have such nice skin. Do you take special care of it?”
“I don’t do anything special.”
“Is that so? I’m jealous. Haha.”
Yohan’s gaze grew cold, unsure what she found so amusing.
‘I really wish she’d stop with this.’
His expression hardened. Encounters like this were something he was used to when dealing with women, but Violet’s touch was unnecessarily sticky, stirring up discomfort.
“Violet. I apologize for saying this, but—”
“Oh, you’re about to tell me not to touch you, aren’t you?”
Reading his expression, she withdrew her hand and offered a subtle smile.
“I just can’t help wanting to touch you whenever I see you.”
“……”
“If it made you uncomfortable, I’m sorry.”
Violet tilted her head slightly.
“You have such firm boundaries, Yohan. Almost like you have a lover.”
“……”
Yohan remained silent, avoiding the topic.
He wasn’t particularly trying to hide the fact that he and Francia were lovers, but it was better not to give Violet any information.
“No answer? How dull.”
With no response, Violet quickly grew bored, shrugging her shoulders.
“I just thought you seemed tense and wanted to help you relax. Though clearly, you weren’t tense at all.”
“I prefer to give my all rather than waste energy on unnecessary emotions over inevitable events.”
“Haha, that’s another thing I like about you.”
She took a step back and gave Yohan a slight nod.
“Well then, I’ll take my leave.”
“Please do. I’m sure you’re busy.”
“Hmm.”
Leaving behind a meaningful smile, Violet walked away.
‘I can’t figure her out.’
At first, he thought she might be trying to provoke jealousy, but that didn’t seem to be the case. There was no reason for her to act that way when Cassis wasn’t around.
‘She must want something.’
But he couldn’t tell what it was. He felt like he was missing something, but nothing came to mind.
“Ah, Yohan! There you are!”
As Yohan mulled over Violet’s absence, Tersis called out to him from behind.
“What is it?”
“Oh, it’s nothing serious. I just thought I should explain the schedule.”
Tersis grinned and began explaining.
“For now, we’ll rest for the night. The reconnaissance mission officially begins tomorrow morning. Each unit will split up and scout different areas to assess the state of the demon lairs.”
Yohan nodded, listening carefully.
“As you know, the reason we monitor the demon lairs is simple. If their numbers grow too large, it could lead to a ‘beast overflow,’ which would be disastrous for the Empire.”
A beast overflow. It was exactly as it sounded—the beasts multiplying and spilling out beyond the lair’s boundaries.
“Having vast lands isn’t always an advantage, is it?”
“Exactly.”
The Rozino Empire was the largest nation on the continent, so it naturally had numerous demon lairs whose origins were shrouded in mystery.
But they couldn’t simply eradicate the lairs. Tampering with the Abyssal Gates connected to them could result in irreversible consequences.
Thus, the best course of action was for officials or knights to occasionally go out and manage the beast population.
“Anyway, get some good rest tonight. We’ll be heading south.”
“Understood.”
Tersis gave Yohan a few hearty pats on the back, laughed in satisfaction, and headed toward his tent.
Yohan narrowed his eyes, looking toward the direction of the crown prince’s tent. Being at the center of the outpost made it easy to spot, but…
‘There’s no telling what he’s scheming. I’ll need to stay vigilant.’
The downside was that he couldn’t see what was going on inside.
‘He may be the crown prince, but he’s unlikely to move directly…’
The number of shadows under his command numbered in the thousands. After all, the crown prince was the Empire’s center of power.
The only option was to heighten his guard to the fullest extent.
‘Still, I’m not too worried. If it comes down to it, I can always use the Book of calamity.’
The Book of calamity contained magic capable of unleashing disasters. Yohan wasn’t sure of its full power, but judging by its symbols and the amount of magic it required, it was undoubtedly extraordinary.
‘If worst comes to worst, I’ll just turn everything upside down.’
There was one day left before the reconnaissance mission into the demon lair would begin.
***
Crunch. Crunch.
Late at night, when most of the troops were asleep and only the minimum number of soldiers were awake, standing watch.
Crunch. Crunch.
The crown prince, Fedelian Rozino, was strolling through the dense forest.
Normally, having guards accompany him would be standard, but he was a top-class knight and the Empire’s second sword. Walking through the forest of a demon lair posed no significant threat to him.
Not to mention, dozens of shadows were following him, making it far from dangerous.
Crunch. Crunch.
Brushing aside twigs that clung to his legs, he walked through the forest for quite some time before reaching a clearing.
There, he was met by men cloaked in robes.
“You’ve arrived.”
“Yes.”
The man at the forefront of the group stepped forward to greet Fedelian.
“Getting an audience with you isn’t easy. Couldn’t you have just communicated through a shadow? I don’t see why you needed to meet me in person.”
Fedelian frowned, expressing his displeasure.
The robed man bowed his head.
“I deeply apologize for that. However, I wanted to show you this in person…”
The man reached into his robe and pulled out a bright red orb. It resembled a glass bead, with blood-colored magic swirling violently within it.
“Oh? What’s this?”
Fedelian’s interest was piqued as he asked.
“It was created by gathering the life force of demonic beasts. Using this as a foundation for a spell, even a high-tier demon beast would be incapable of disobeying commands.”
Hearing this, a smile spread across Fedelian’s lips.
If they could control high-tier demon beasts, they would become an excellent war weapon, and it would also greatly aid in the operation he had in mind.
“Have you tested it?”
“Of course.”
The robed man returned the red orb to his robe as he continued.
“However, the spell required is extremely complex. As such, it must be cast directly by me, which is its drawback.”
“Hm.”
Fedelian stroked his chin. With the shadows at his disposal, communication wouldn’t be an issue.
The only concern was that they needed to rely on the power of Dark Mages. It meant he couldn’t use the power whenever or wherever he wished.
“Is there potential for further development?”
“At this point, the possibilities are endless.”
“Good enough.”
Satisfied with the answer, Fedelian grinned.
“Have you decided on the orb’s first use?”
“Not yet.”
“Then we’ll use it for this.”
Fedelian placed a hand on the robed man’s shoulder, a sly smirk twisting his lips.
“There’s a unit heading south to scout a demon lair. Have a high-tier demon beast move there and kill Yohan Harsen, a Special-Class mage.”
He paused briefly, as if remembering something.
“Oh, and feel free to kill the rest of the unit too. Just make sure the job gets done.”
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