Chapter 206 : Chspter 206
Chapter 206 - Rescue
The answer was this little fellow.
Poof!
A Blue Flame Spirit appeared in the air and flew a circle around the Youngest Son. It was a creature even more active than its own firepower.
The Youngest Son placed the Blue Flame Spirit on his hand and spoke.
"There is something you need to do."
The creature tilted its head to the side. It was a simple expression asking what the task was.
"I know a few secret passages to get in and out of the Imperial Palace. But there is no way around this mist. So, I need your help just until we get through the mist zone."
The Blue Flame Spirit let out a sigh of sparks. Even such a tiny creature easily predicted the hardships ahead. Of course, the standard for hardship was for the Blue Flame Spirit itself. It had to maintain high firepower for ten minutes with a body only slightly larger than a fist.
The Blue Flame Spirit stayed on the Youngest Son’s hand for a moment before slowly floating up. Its arms, barely hanging over its plump sides, seemed to say, "Leave it to me."
The Youngest Son gave a short laugh.
"Right. I am counting on you."
He ran into the mist zone with the Blue Flame Spirit.
"Burn away the mist that touches me."
Whirrrrr—
The blue flame, burning as if unfolding an umbrella, carried out its master’s command. The thick mist, which made it difficult to see even an inch ahead, vanished without a trace the moment it touched the flames.
The empty space created was quickly replaced by new mist, but at the very least, it did not touch his body.
"Keep going just like this."
Inside this mist, sorcery or magic that caused large mana waves was also unusable. Therefore, all he could do was run as fast as possible using the physical abilities of a blood noble.
He continued to run under the moonlight. After running for the ten minutes he had told the Blue Flame Spirit, the flames gradually weakened, and the end of the mist came into view.
"We are here."
As he emerged from the mist from head to toe, the Blue Flame Spirit sank down in the air. He held out his hand underneath so it would not hit the ground.
"Good job. I will take it from here."
Poof—
The Blue Flame Spirit, showing a thumb the size of a grain of rice, made its exit like a magician’s pigeon.
The Youngest Son looked forward with the gate he had seen when he first entered at his back.
The Imperial Palace was terribly vast, so it could not be protected or defended by simple guards alone.
Therefore, it was a place where countless mechanical traps and barriers were intertwined like vines. Consequently, not even a single strand of hair from another person could be seen.
However, such a place was a stage for a veteran.
"The Imperial Palace. I know the basic patterns of this place by heart."
A barrier surrounds a specific area and takes effect only within it.
However, the Imperial Palace was very wide, and it was impossible to set up numerous barriers to cover the entire palace's area.
"Since large and small barriers are attached to each other, there are definitely gaps."
For example, the place where he was currently standing was one such gap. It was, so to speak, a 'Safe Zone.' It was a green zone and a gap where no barriers existed.
However, if he took even five steps forward from here, he could smoothly move his execution date forward.
To avoid that, he had to step on another Safe Zone or fly over it. Between the two, the latter was a much faster method.
"It is a relief that there are no dome-shaped barriers among the palace barriers."
When one had to cram in a hundred types of barriers, it was difficult to place them close together if they had curves like a dome. From the perspective of someone who had to fly between barriers, it was a lucky thing.
He transformed into a blood demon and spread his wings. What he would do from now on was to exit the palace through a path that was not sealed—a secret gap.
"I can find the way by looking at the buildings below."
The place where Kang Yu was said to have gone was a library near the south gate. Even as he thought about it, a laugh escaped him. A library. It was exactly the kind of place Wisdom would be.
BOOM—
The blood demon soared toward the mages.
***
...He had not expected this.
He didn't know Wisdom would set a trap first, or rather, that they would set it so quickly. Setting aside that they had anticipated Tolan’s loose mouth and waited, what stood out was the countermeasure against spirit sorcery.
"How is it, Millesdusk? This is the method of dismantling your ghosts that the Magic Tower devised."
"......"
Kang Yu, whose arms were bound by chains and spread wide, was on his knees but showed no reaction. However, he was definitely surprised inside. The gray chains that Wisdom called the dismantling method for spirit sorcery... once they touched his body, he could not use spirit form.
He could not even take out other spirit-type undead.
'It's not that I don't have private soldiers of other types... but it's impossible to take these guys down with those. The strength of the chains is also extraordinary.'
When he was first bound, he had strengthened his physical abilities with mana and pulled with all his might, but it was useless.
The robed man in blue, as cool as the sea under the sunlight, laughed gloomily, unlike his color.
"The sound of your brain working and the sound of your eyes turning are irritating my ears. Are you waiting for someone to help you?"
The robed man leaned over to meet his gaze.
"Regrettably, even the rats coming to rescue you will kneel beside you. You can't even deny it, can you? Since you've experienced this power yourself."
"......"
The comrade Wisdom referred to as a rat. If it was a rat coming to rescue a Grade 1 Agent, that rat also had to be Grade 1. Kang Yu bit his lip.
'Lara. You must never come.'
He thought that instinctively but soon realized it was a useless worry.
'...Right. You wouldn't even care. What does a dead agent during a mission matter to you? You'll just submit a report instead.'
Mirea Rara was that kind of person. She was a person who was as cold as a carved ice statue but from whom one could not take their eyes off. Although they fought and growled whenever they met, at those moments, the ice broke.
That was why he kept breaking it. He kept fighting because he liked the warm skin behind the ice. In the end, he had gone too far and was firmly disliked.
Kang Yu slowly nodded his head and accepted his end.
'Ten minutes. I will die after thinking of you for just ten minutes.'
He slowly closed his eyes. However, for the remaining ten minutes, the person who came to mind was not her, but the man she had chosen.
To be honest, he was a boy of an age that was hard to even call a man. His appearance was sufficiently grown, but setting that aside... Since it had been such a short time, he didn't know what kind of person he was, but he could guess.
'Mirea, if you chose him, he must be a great person. I don't know much, but I hope he becomes the Family Head. That way, you will live a long life too.'
He let out a sigh that no one would hear. Why was time so fast? Ten minutes had already passed. He moved the tip of his tongue to his molar. Once he pushed and pulled it out, the poison hidden underneath would turn into foam as it touched his saliva. If he just swallowed it, he could go without pain along with anesthesia. Naturally, no corpse would remain either.
'I'm going first. You come later than me.'
Crack—
When he pushed once with his tongue, the molar half broke. Then, as he pushed a second time...
BOOM!!
...There should be no reason for the ceiling to break.
Dust mixed with small fragments spread instantly, tormenting his eyes and ears. Except for the one who had been kneeling from the start, it was difficult to even see ahead properly.
Therefore, the Grade 1 Agent saw a blurred figure above the pierced ceiling. He had a good enough build to know instantly that it was not Mirea.
'Who... is it?'
The Wisdom members, who most wanted to know that identity, quickly regained their senses and raised both hands.
"You crazy bastard...! Do you realize this is the middle of the capital when you're doing this?"
Do they think they are sensible intellectuals? The magic circles covering their palms were not large. At most, they were a bit larger than a head, and they were obviously not large-scale spells. Although it was embarrassing to have been defeated by such things.
Whirrrrr—!!
The gray chains he had seen earlier flowed out of the magic circles like snakes. At the same time, he shouted.
"Those are chains that block spirit sorcery! Never let them touch you!"
"Shut up!"
"Urgh..."
His body was lifted high by a mana bullet that struck his stomach. Since his hands were tied and he couldn't even defend himself properly, saliva hung from his mouth. It was a pathetic sight, but it was better than having two people in this state.
Did he take the advice? The person who appeared from the ceiling did not unleash spirit sorcery. To add a bit more, it seemed he didn't even know how to use spirit sorcery in the first place. Far from a precursor to spirit sorcery, he naturally blended in among the chains.
"Stupid bastard!"
"You are now a rat in a trap as well!"
The smart-fools couldn't even distinguish whether he had been caught or had allowed himself to be caught.
Clang clang clang—
They simply bound the intruder tightly with the chains meant to suppress spirit sorcery. He tried twisting his body this way and that while bound in the chains. The firm binding could be felt even from here.
"Is this what it feels like? You've used your brains quite a bit."
Kang Yu's eyes widened. It was a familiar voice. It was even a voice he had heard until recently.
"Spirit is what a sorcerer calls into reality using their own soul as a medium. These chains are specialized in cutting that connection."
The voice, bound in chains amidst the dust, evaluated this and that.
"Well, I'll have to dig deeper to know the details. But a mouse is a mouse, and poison is poison."
CRASH—!!
A sharp shattering sound scraped his eardrums. The blood demon's body, which had violently broken the chains, quickly hid its stone skin. It was not the blood demon that would face these people.
Crack—
Red blood vessels sprouted from his heart. As the Youngest Son entered the Dracul state, the blood-light in his bloodshot eyes deepened. It was a red light that was not covered by mere dust.
"F-Fifth Son!"
"Everyone, run...!!"
Although they were an elite group of Wisdom, they chose to flee. It was common sense that only a blood relative could face a blood relative. No matter how much the Fifth Son had been ignored, that was a past perception.
The martial power that had crushed the New Magic was not to be underestimated.
"There is no escape."
As the blood noble muttered, a blood wave surged. The blood wave in the Dracul state drew a vortex faster, redder, and more threateningly than usual. It was more than a vortex; it was worthy of being called a whirlpool, and it was a whirlpool always ready to pierce.
Thud thud thud thud—
Long spears made of blood pierced the mages simultaneously. Like a fisherman piercing a fish with a harpoon, they struck down in a straight line without hesitation. They didn't die easily from one hit. However, he didn't allow for a second strike either.
"The durability is not great! Block it or turn the direction!"
Earth and water attributes are excellent for defense. Just as the common sense the Youngest Son knew, they unleashed the two attributes to block the blood spears. Even if the attacks were light and simple, he changed the space with the vortex and even shook their gaze.
Usually, one would be pierced properly once, but he did not allow even a single clean hit.
"You certainly fight well. To have this much mana reaction despite not even being blood relatives of the collateral branch. Your judgment is also decent."
Just as an excellent swordsman keeps his breathing even even when mixing blades with a multitude of underlings, the Youngest Son was composed. Instead, he naturally evaluated them.
"But it's too identical."
The magic design of NPCs that haven't gone through a player's hands. It was certainly the royal road, and it was something a player had experienced countless times.
"You don't necessarily have to defend with water or earth attributes. It's a bother to explain why, so I'll skip it. Just know that's how it is."
"...?"
The mages were momentarily stunned. They wondered what on earth this guy was talking about. There were many who even covered their own ears, wondering if they had been struck by a curse. It wasn't a curse or anything like that, just a simple tip.
"Water attribute, earth attribute. I know how to break through those too."
Shhhhh—
The vortex instantly turned into blood mist. It was a conversion so fast that one inhaled it unconsciously. The elites witnessed the magic circle that had slipped into that fast conversion.
"T-Triple Body...?"
"How did he use pure water-attribute magic...!!"
"W-wait! Everyone, don't talk! Stop your breathing!"
"It's already too late."
The sensitivity to blood, sharpened by the Dracul state, even caught the blood that had entered the bodies of others. Then, something like this becomes possible.
Splat—
The mages became honeycombs from the blood that sprouted from within their bodies like sea urchin spines. Only one person. Except for the guy who had been loudly commanding since earlier.
"Y-Young Son..."
The guy who had a crush on the head maid was added to the mix.