STM 188

Lu’s voice was firm and low. However, it was not because of that that Enya could not respond. It was because such instructions and words came from him as if they were familiar to him. And as soon as he finished speaking, he turned around without hesitation.

“Let’s go.”

The two mages followed him as if they were entranced, and even Enya could not object to his commands. The only reason she did not follow blindly like the other was that she still had doubts. After all, the Adeye Lu she knew was a fool who cared only about men.

He had only changed briefly in the crisis situation, but wouldn’t he eventually reveal his true self? However, the sight of him leading the way through the hallway defied expectations. Enya thought it might be impossible to reach the end of the hallway without being caught by the guards.

However, Lu moved as if avoiding the enemy’s gaze was second nature to him. He repeatedly crouched slightly, quickly hid behind cover to survey his surroundings, and then advanced forward again.

At the same time, he did not forget to give commands to those following behind using hand signals: wait, move, run fast, and so on. This breathtaking movement was successful because he had perfectly pinpointed the guards’ locations thanks to the spirit.

However, there were many obstacles to overcome from the start. Next was the locked office door. She thought he might have Haas use magic, but Lu stepped in himself for this as well. He took out two squiggly wires, which he must have found in the warehouse, inserted them into the keyhole, and moved them a few times.

Click.

The door opened very easily. As everyone looked at him in surprise, Lu paused for a moment, then made an excuse with a stiff expression.

“……I often went into other people’s houses.”

Ah, right. Everyone nodded in agreement. After all, it was a well-known fact that Adeye Lu would trespass into the homes of men he liked at the slightest provocation. It was a dirty past, but this time, they wanted to praise him.

The person in question, however, frowned. Using the same method, they were able to reach the final destination, the lounge. The remaining problem was finding the portal.

“There’s a painting, but…”

Haas stared at the wall in a perplexed manner. Although it was called a lounge, the room was as spacious as a reception room, and on one side of it stood a truly huge painting. Enya glanced inside from the entrance, prepared for any unforeseen circumstances.

Although the picture indicated the entrance to the portal, that alone was not enough. Picking a lock and activating the hidden portal mechanism were completely different things. Therefore, Enya had intended from the start to suggest giving up and returning if they were to waste time here.

She came all the way here because she was under orders, but staying at Montaine Castle for this long was dangerous. It didn’t matter if Lu was Salvation, there couldn’t possibly be a way…

“Here it is.”

“What?” Startled by Lu’s voice, Enya turned to look inside. Lu pointed to a spot in the painting.

“The energy of black magic flows throughout the entire painting, but this one spot is empty, as if there were a hole. Just like a keyhole that only needs to be filled in.”

“But whether it works is another story.”

Haas pointed it out in embarrassment, but Lu thought for a moment and offered an alternative.

“If it were a route she used frequently, she wouldn’t have used a difficult method. To get in quickly, pressing with a finger might have been all she did.”

“Are you going to try pressing it with your finger?”

“That’s impossible. Then anyone could enter? Grand Duke Montaine must have infused it with her own power.”

Power? Enya had doubts again. How did he intend to manifest that power? But once again, Lu easily found the answer. He reached out his hand to Haas.

“If you have a black magic stone, lend me one.”

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There are times when luck just keeps on your side. It’s like when you’re driving and the traffic light keeps turning green only in front of you. This time was like that.

It was exactly that feeling when the portal leading to Grand Duke Montaine’s secret place opened. However, once I actually crossed the portal, I had no time to rejoice in my good fortune.

A somewhat familiar landscape unfolded before my eyes. A cave. In its center, a black energy covered the ground in a hemispherical shape. The net-like shield was just like the one that had imprisoned the Borhumi divine beast.

However, it was twice as big and the grid spacing was much tighter, so I almost swore the moment I saw it. But I am the only one who can see this. Normally, they shouldn’t have been able to see it.

And yet, they were frozen in shock. Why? I followed their gaze as I surveyed the cave, only to be just as speechless. What is this…

“Good heavens, black magic stones.”

Haas’s astonishment echoed throughout the interior. Now, fear rose in the eyes of those looking around the cave. For the entire surface of this vast cave was filled with black magic stones. There were many of them.

“This, this is unbelievable. To think there are this many black magic stones.”

As Nuchir barely managed to say, Haas groaned.

“If Grand Duke Montaine had accepted all of this power, she must have become stronger…….”

“How strong? Strong enough to surpass the power of a divine beast?”

Haas’s pupils shook at my question.

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What are these bastards? Tairok’s question was simple, but his gaze, staring at the splitting ground, was dark.

Unless the monsters died and the black magics stone were extracted, he must never let jis guard down. Not even if they remained frozen like a doll.

At the place where he arrived in search of the rift, Tairok witnessed a shocking scene. The creatures that had crawled out of the split ground were frozen in place.

They had desperately burrowed through the ground as if they were starving for human blood, but then stopped moving and stayed nearby. At first, he easily eliminated the resistanceless ones, but he stopped when he felt something strange

Why is this happening? Why are the most primal beings, who know nothing but survival, suppressing their instincts and standing still? Weren’t they the ones who used to charge in like moths to a flame, no matter how powerful the divine beast’s power? So why?

Then, he noticed something strange. The monsters who hadn’t moved an inch were slowly turning in one direction, one by one. Only then did he realize their purpose. They’re waiting for something. But what?

“That’s really strange, isn’t it?”

Tairok slowly turned his head at the sudden sound of a voice. A person was approaching from behind. It was a familiar face to Tairok. It was Grand Duke Montaine.

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“No human could survive receiving this much power from black magic stones.”

Haas tried hard to deny reality.

“You said humans can’t accept the power of divine beasts either.”

Despair spread across Haas’s face at my reply. When I turned around, Nuchir and Enya had the same expression.

After all, anyone would feel betrayed if a hero who was supposed to protect humanity suddenly turned into an anti-hero. However, I couldn’t give them time to recover from the shock. There was work to be done immediately.

“Watch closely.”

I picked up a small stone from the ground and threw it at the shield so that everyone could see for themselves.

Crack!

As the stone that touched the shield turned to dust in mid-air, they let out startled gasps

“There is a shield in the center of the cave. You won’t be able to see, so move while checking the boundary by throwing stones.”

Of course, I was an exception. With a clear view of the shield, I stepped forward without hesitation and searched the interior. The cave was dark, but a brazier burning inside was barely illuminating the single person lying in the center of the shield.

However, the foot that had stepped forward to take a closer look stopped before it had gone even a single step. The person trapped in the shield, it was an obvious fact that he was Bilge, but…

It was only certainty; I could not confirm it with his face. The one lying there was withered like a mummy, his bones exposed. Then what about the divine beast? Could it be too late?

Negative hypotheses are usually accompanied by despair. Moreover, having come this far with such difficulty, it was even easier to be consumed by anxiety.

But now, even though anxiety and despair crashed like waves, my body remained dry. I had forgotten, but back when I led my team before coming here, I didn’t pay much attention to bad signs. And I used to say it all the time.

‘I’m not scared.’

What I initially said to reassure my teammates eventually became the truth. And whenever I carried out operations without worry or fear about the future, I always survived.

If you endure the misfortunes that strike moment by moment, it eventually proves helpful and can even lead you to unexpected good fortune. It is the same now.

The countless coincidences that occurred on my way here ultimately allowed me to arrive safely, whether it was misfortune or good fortune. Therefore, even if the divine beast had perished because I was a step too late, I should not have despaired.

Because everything happening now is just another stepping stone toward a greater destination in the future. Strangely enough, I became convinced that this destination would ultimately be the outcome I had been hoping for.

I don’t know why, of all places, such peace has come to me like an epiphany right now, right in the middle of enemy territory.