Wizard of the Deep Sea

TL/ED – Miso

The king of the country and Rahan’s father, Jahian… um, how should I put this.

He reacted a bit more strongly than Rahan did.

“What is that utterly ridiculous nonsense you’re saying?”

“Unfortunately, it’s true.”

Without his agreement, the plan would proceed far too slowly. With no other choice, I had to get things rolling first, even without going into detail, and explained the basic circumstances.

Since it was during a banquet, I approached him while he stood with a drink in hand and whispered quietly.

“Please don’t make it too obvious. I wanted to speak with you in private… but the situation is urgent, so I had no choice.”

“…Understood.”

Jahian immediately closed his mouth and wore a calm expression. Of course, I hadn’t told him everything, but seeing him keep a composed face even after hearing that part of his retainers had become part of Crimson Circle made me feel relieved.

It wasn’t a perfect poker face. The corners of his eyes trembled slightly as he asked in a voice laced with doubt.

“I understand for now. In fact, it’s somewhat reassuring. If it’s serious enough to mobilize a royal envoy, then surely there must be some evidence. However…”

His gaze shifted toward the end of the banquet, where Rahan was trying to talk with others, and it darkened with worry.

“…Rahan? He can tell them apart? Why? That’s… I don’t quite understand…”

Seeing that he looked as if he didn’t want to acknowledge a certain truth, I added a further explanation.

“His Highness the Prince possesses rather exceptional aptitude as a wizard.”

“Hmm, yes, that’s true.”

“It seems that by spending time with them, he’s learned to distinguish their mana. There appears to have been a bit of a communication issue in the process…”

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“If we capture all the infiltrators hiding in the palace, it should ease things for the Prince considerably.”

“…Rahan has occasionally complained of strange symptoms. We ran every test and found nothing wrong, so I thought it might be a psychological issue…”

“This must be the reason. If we successfully capture the Crimson Circle members, prince’s condition should improve greatly.”

He didn’t respond, but I could see determination rising in Jahian’s expression.

For now, this level of explanation should suffice. To be honest, even I don’t know why Rahan possesses such an ability.

Carefully scanning the surroundings, I raised my glass.

The banquet had grown dozens of times larger.

All sorts of jesters, attendants, and maids had gathered, creating a grand festival on par with a royal event. The nobles, suddenly summoned, were standing around with confused expressions, holding their glasses.

Even so, for the few attendants and maids who hadn’t shown up, Karos had agreed to investigate them.

Let’s see… ideally, the bastard would be here…

I cast current sense over the entire banquet.

[No, even if you’re a royal envoy, this treatment is a bit much…]

[This is excessive extravagance…]

[Maybe we’re just poor hosts. This is probably how it is every day in the Imperial Palace.]

[Even if it is, expecting the same treatment from a small kingdom like ours is…]

The nobles were enthusiastically complaining.

[Why do we even have to be here? We’re just standing around.]

[They said it wouldn’t feel like a proper reception if there weren’t enough people.]

[Wow, I guess the Imperial Palace is really something.]

[So much food and we can’t even touch it, this is torture…]

The attendants were no different.

I winced slightly as a headache came on. The amount of information was too overwhelming to process all at once.

I found the prince standing in a corner and used the current to write letters across his back.

[Rahan, don’t speak aloud. Just move your lips. I can hear you.]

Rahan, who had been leaning against a pillar, flinched, then looked around and opened his mouth.

“C-can you hear me?”

[Yes. I can hear you clearly.]

“Wow… what kind of magic is this? It feels like a super high-level spell… Can you do this with a 2-Star? Could I learn it too?”

[…With effort. Do you sense anything unusual?]

“Ah, no.”

Rahan shook his head and hunched his shoulders.

“There are a lot of people, so it’s a little hard… b-but I’ll do my best.”

Rahan took a few deep breaths, as if steeling himself, and soon began walking through the banquet hall.

Even spoiled, a prince was still a prince. His presence alone drew the surrounding nobles toward him.

[Oh my, isn’t this Prince Rahan? My apologies for not visiting you recently. We haven’t had the chance to meet officially…]

[I-it’s fine. I just haven’t been coming out. Haha.]

[To think you’ve grown so much already! It really is hard to catch a glimpse of Your Highness!]

[Uwaaah…]

Though it was clearly difficult for him, Rahan pushed forward and kept walking diligently.

However, even after scanning through all the noble lines, Rahan shook his head.

“Not here…”

[Hmm.]

I had assumed, naturally, that the infiltrator would be among the nobles.

After several rounds of careful checking, I confirmed that Rahan could glimpse the world of the Fallen within roughly a 5-meter range.

And over the course of about 30 minutes of scouting, I was able to ensure that all the nobles passed within Rahan’s detection range.

If he’d developed something close to social phobia from repeatedly seeing the world of the Fallen, I figured it must be someone he interacted with frequently.

But then again, he might have had more contact with attendants and maids than with nobles.

[Next, check the attendants. Focus on the ones you usually interact with.]

“Yes!”

Rahan replied energetically and this time approached them.

Unlike the nobles, the attendants received him far more warmly.

[Your Highness, is something the matter? There are a lot of people here, are you alright?]

“I’m fine…”

Even in front of the attendants, Rahan seemed a little intimidated.

But then, all of a sudden, his eyes snapped wide open.

[Ah, Your Highness. I hope you’ve been well.]

“…Y-yeah.”

Thump-thump-thump. His heart began to race rapidly, and he bowed his head deeply.

Even so, perhaps not forgetting his task, he barely moved his lips to whisper.

“Hyung, it’s now…”

[Well done.]

I confirmed the four people who had just been near Rahan.

Two were nobles. Already checked.

One was a maid. Also already checked.

One was, a middle-aged woman in the position of Head Maid.

She had tilted her head upon noticing Rahan’s unwell condition, then left, after which Rahan exhaled more comfortably again.

Found one.

While I kept observing that one with current sense, Rahan muttered suspiciously.

“H-hyung, but… was the Head Maid just now really the culprit?”

[Not certain. Why?]

“That can’t be right…? I was near her not long ago and didn’t feel anything. Is it really something that happens only when a certain person is nearby?”

[…]

Hearing that, I fell into quiet thought.

Rahan can peek into surrounding worlds.

So then, whose world had Rahan been peeking into?

Everyone is him, and he is everyone.

In other words, there is no self. No individual existence.

The fear of not being able to distinguish what something is.

Unable to distinguish, unable to know who is who, terrified by fear – if it’s such Burden.

There’s only one kind I know.

[…Most likely, it changed bodies.]

“H-huh?”

[The Head Maid you knew has already been dealt with. The one there now is just a monster that mimicked her by devouring her memories.]

“T-that’s even possible…?”

[Unfortunately.]

Yes, only one.

[It’s possible.]

*

[Hey, don’t send Decay. They’re just a bunch of morons.]

[Be specific.]

Back in the Head Maid’s room, the Lump wrote furiously as it reported.

[These royal envoy bastards aren’t even trying to investigate. It looks like someone up top caught on a little, but the guys they sent are totally clueless. They threw this massive banquet like lunatics and even asked for bribes. Now they’re out in the area stuffing themselves with local specialties under the pretense of inspection.]

From knights to the envoy.

They weren’t just negligent, they were outright obsessed with lining their own pockets.

If they knew they had made enemies of people like us, this is behavior they could never allow themselves.

[Anyway, just letting you know. I’m gonna head out to a nearby city for a bit, alright? I won’t kill too many.]

[Wait.]

[Now what.]

The next report didn’t come until a full ten minutes later.

[Lump. Grab what you can and run.]

[?]

[I’ll explain. Retrieve only the prince who can exert minimal influence on the kingdom and escape immediately. I won’t allow anything else. The meeting place is as usual.]

The Lump stared blankly at the book for a moment, then hastily scribbled in a fluster.

[Wait, what are you talking about? Did you even hear me? I’m telling you, they’re really nothing.]

[I will not repeat myself. Your situation is critical. Act immediately.]

[The hell I will. Just because you say something, I have to follow it? The one I fear isn’t you guys, it’s Void. If you can’t convince me, I’m not going.]

[…]

Even as it continued writing, the Lump assumed the appearance of a knight, just in case.

The report came back after a short delay.

[1. There’s no way a royal envoy would come here just for pleasure.]

[Why not.]

[They’re a royal envoy. If they wanted to, they could take control of several small nations no, even cities. There’s nothing of value to gain from a place like this.]

[Greed has no end, you know.]

[2. If we assume point 1 is true, then there’s a reason to mimic this appearance. The envoy is using some means to confirm your presence and is buying time.]

[Time?]

[Yes. It’s reasonable to assume that you’ve already been identified.]

[…Hold on, what kind of bullshit is that?]

The flustered Lump tilted its head and grabbed its pen.

[So it’s all just conjecture, right? You’re telling me to abandon a kingdom I’ve spent years working on just because of a guess?]

[Yes.]

[Are you all collectively insane? You think I’d agree to this?]

[To be a royal envoy means they are connected to the Princess. What would normally be mere speculation turns into certainty.]

[Oh really? Well, you failed to convince me. Now what?]

[This is the advice of Cheon-hwa. Obey.] (TL: Cheon-hwa literally translates to something like heavens rage or heavenly calamity or heavenly misfortune)

“…You should’ve said that from the beginning.”

The Lump muttered bitterly and picked up a sword, placing it in its mouth.

Its esophagus naturally swallowed the sword, down to the hilt.

Once more taking the form of the Head Maid, new text appeared before the Lump’s eyes.

[If you want, I can send Decay.]

“Hmm…”

The Lump listened carefully to the surroundings.

It was quiet. So quiet, only the sound of insects could be heard.

Even if Cheon-hwa’s suspicion was correct, the plan hadn’t yet been set in motion.

[No need.]

[I’ll call him anyway.]

[I said I don’t need him. Tsk.]

The Lump, about to jump out the window, remembered it had to take the prince and stepped out of the room instead.

As it naturally made its way toward the prince’s chamber, it encountered two guards.

The guards stopped it without any sign of suspicion.

“Ah, Head Maid. From here on is the royal family’s living quarters.”

Crunch!

The guards fell without ever realizing their necks had been twisted 180 degrees.

Even as that happened, the Lump’s steps didn’t pause for a moment. It stopped before the prince’s door, raised its hand to knock, but then recalled that if it tried to take him, the prince might scream.

Killing him was not an option. Too much effort had been put into him.

To silence him, it would need to knock him out, but since he was in a child’s body, it didn’t know how to subdue him without killing him. Even the slightest force might kill him instantly.

With no other choice, it used a different tactic. The moment it entered the prince’s room, it shouted.

“Your Highness! There’s been a breach!”

“Eh, uh. What…?”

The prince, just waking up, rubbed his eyes in confusion.

She immediately lifted the prince onto her back and whispered.

“Assassins have infiltrated the palace. We must escape at once, do not make a sound.”

“A-assassins?? Why???”

“Now is not the time for questions.”

“Ah, okay!”

Had he argued, she was prepared to strangle him, regardless of the consequences.

Fortunately, he was so weak-willed that he nodded quickly with a frightened expression.

‘…I’m sure I’ve seen him somewhere before.’

Thinking that once again, the Lump tilted its head, then jumped out the window.

“Uwaaa…”

“Please bear with it a little longer.”

Without making a sound, he escaped the palace, leapt across rooftops, and scaled the outer wall vertically.

No matter what method they had brought, the corpses of the guards would be discovered within the next patrol cycle, at most, an hour.

That much time was more than enough to escape far beyond their reach.

After just five minutes, he was already in the middle of the desert.

The prince clung to the Lump’s neck, trembling.

“W-wait! You’re too fast! Where are we even going??”

“We’ll stay here and wait.”

Crossing this desert with a single body was impossible.

The Lump roughly set the prince down and began writing the next report.

[I brought him to the meeting place. Send quickly.]

[…]

[?]

There was no reply.

The Lump wrote again, this time more irritably.

[Send quickly. I already killed two guards. If we’re discovered, I’ll have to fight that imperial means bastard you mentioned, and then I’ll just destroy that country.]

[…]

Still no reply.

The Lump’s gaze gradually turned cold.

Just moments ago, communication had been working fine, yet now it was cut off.

Something else had happened.

-Something more important than him.

“Uh, excuse me…”

“Shut your mouth and stay still.”

He no longer had the luxury to worry about this prince.

He’d have to break a leg or two and go find Decay to ask for help.

However, despite hearing such threatening words, the prince continued speaking with only a faint look of unease, as if it weren’t anything unusual.

“Maybe Decay is just fighting a strong opponent right now, and that’s why the response is delayed.”

“…”

The Lump’s eyes.

For the first time, looked at the prince.

That weak, always subservient boy with no confidence had changed a little.

His tone was the same, but his actions were different.

An unyielding aura and a quiet display of confidence.

“…You.”

“For example, hmm. Something impossible, like fighting a 9-Star wizard or something.”

“Who are you?”

“You can’t really be unable to distinguish, right. Even if you live in such a world, isn’t there some way to distinguish…”

With a small laugh, the prince swept back his hair and glared at him.

The Lump had seen many gazes filled with killing intent. He’d seen countless of them turn to fear.

But this was different. He had never seen killing intent filled with certainty.

“Don’t you think?”

“Heh…”

Only then did the Lump realize.

He was the one caught in the trap. Crimson Circle, including himself, had been deceived.

The skin disguised as the Head Maid tore open and began transforming into a grotesque lifeform.

“Yeah. I had seen you before. I just thought my world made things a bit unclear. So it really was you. What the hell are you?”

Jern slowly widened the distance between them and answered casually.

“We’re not really close enough to be talking about stuff like that, are we?”

“True. We’re not… maybe we should get a little closer.”

At the same time, the Lump felt relieved.

This kind of threat? Nothing to worry about.

It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Cheon-hwa’s judgment, and he could admit this kid was a little interesting.

But it wasn’t enough to be a real threat. He had confirmed that again and again.

After crushing this kid, he would go help Decay.

So he thought, until the moment he casually reached to snap the prince’s neck.

Jern clenched his fist with an indifferent expression.

“Really? I don’t want to though.”

-Crack!

For the first time, the Lump experienced being crushed to death.