Chapter 411
Episode 411 – The Fourth Black Star
A short while later, Lochter dusted himself off and stood up.
“The Voice of the Sword… thank you. That’s good information.”
“It seems to refer to Belin and Reyna’s new ability, the power to read an opponent’s energy within a certain range.”
Lochter nodded, then handed Arthur a note.
Accepting it, Arthur quietly examined Lochter’s list of divine names again.
[Voice of the Sword].
While the newly added entry caught his attention, there was something else in the note that bothered him even more — Lochter’s divine name.
The Knight of Betrayal.
The divine name he had been given as the hero destined to kill Kamel Blazer, the Mad Butcher.
Arthur found it strange that The Knight of Betrayal was still Lochter’s divine name.
Kamel should be dead, shouldn’t he…?
With Kamel gone, The Knight of Betrayal seemed like a meaningless title.
If his prediction was correct, Lochter’s divine name should have changed.
A shift in fate.
“Like in my case, right?”
Arthur had experienced his divine name changing from The Recluse in the Rift to The Divine Hunter.
Since he had proven that a change in fate could alter a divine name, it felt unsettling that Lochter’s had remained the same.
“Lochter.”
“What’s got you looking so serious?”
“Have you heard anything about Kamel?”
“Kamel? Wasn’t he dead?”
“Well, yes, but…”
Arthur had personally witnessed Kamel’s heart being pierced by Gram’s surprise attack.
Kamel was undoubtedly dead.
Arthur thought Lochter, as someone with a divine name, might sense something different, but he seemed unaware.
Arthur glanced back at the note.
“Could it mean something else?”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s nothing.”
Arthur smiled bitterly and tucked the note away. This was why, he thought, divine revelations were so hard to interpret.
When he looked back, Lochter’s hand was resting on his sword hilt, watching him expectantly.
Knowing exactly what that look meant, Arthur sighed.
“It’s not time yet.”
“I know.”
Then don’t give me that look.
After learning his new ability was The Voice of the Sword, Lochter seemed eager to fully wield Belin and Reyna.
His expression said he wanted to spar right this instant.
The silent pressure continued until Arthur finally surrendered and stood up.
Just as they were about to head to the training grounds—
KWAANG!!!
A loud explosion sounded, followed by a commotion outside the window.
“A… a thief!”
“Some ragged-looking guy came out of the lord’s quarters! Catch him, now!”
“Pursue him! Don’t let him get away!”
Shouts rang out from all directions.
Opening the window, Arthur saw soldiers rushing somewhere with spears in hand.
They were swarming toward the grain storage behind the castle — where Lily Base was flying on a broomstick and Keros was sprinting across rooftops.
Both looked suspiciously pleased.
Woof! Woof! Woof!
At Keros’s signal, Lily winked and then dropped straight down under the storage building. Moments later, a shrill scream erupted.
Already caught?
“An intruder…?”
Arthur scratched his head.
The lord’s quarters meant someone had come out of his own room, and the only possible culprit from that empty room was the person Arthur had been waiting to hear from for quite some time.
“I’d better hurry.”
He gave a wry smile and leapt out the window.
Lochter quickly followed after him.
As they sprinted across rooftops, Lochter ran alongside and asked,
“What’s going on?”
“Looks like he kept his promise on time. But of all the people to run into when leaving… he ran into the wrong one. And she already looked bored, probably looking for something to do with Keros.”
Landing on the storage roof, Arthur quickly scanned the area.
Below, a crowd was gathering.
In the middle of the throng, three figures were tangled together.
Arthur shook his head and moved toward them.
Keros had his teeth sunk into a man’s trouser leg.
The man looked utterly ragged — clothes covered in grime, skin rough and cracked, beard thick around his mouth and nose.
He looked like someone who had suffered outside for quite some time.
Grrrrr—
“Argh! Let go of me!”
Woof! Woof!
“You damned mutt!”
It seemed Samuel Barber had managed to open the spatial portal from Prime Root on time, but why he looked like this was a mystery.
That could be asked later.
As Arthur closed in, Samuel — pinned by Keros — felt Lily’s threatening hands on him.
With eyes curved like crescent moons, Lily grabbed his thick beard with both hands.
Samuel’s face turned pale as he clutched at his beard in panic.
“You wicked witch…! Are you breaking our deal? I was told this would be protected!”
“Hm? Protected? What are you talking about?”
“Ah—Arthur!”
Spotting Arthur approaching behind her, Samuel cried out, eyes wide. Arthur sighed and hurried to stop Lily before Samuel’s beard was lost — which could very well make him snap.
Fortunately, Samuel didn’t explode.
Lily left with Keros, disappointed, and Samuel followed Arthur back to the lord’s chambers.
After the attendants cleaned him up, Samuel was soon transformed into a well-groomed gentleman sitting at the dining table.
Arthur had prepared a feast for him, and Samuel, clearly hungry, tore into it with gusto.
A little later—
“Now I feel human again.”
With a deep sigh of satisfaction, Samuel leaned back in his chair.
His expression was relaxed, as if savoring leisure for the first time in a while, and he enjoyed the Twilight Leaf tea Arthur had served.
Arthur quietly waited for him to settle down.
Once the tea was gone, Arthur asked,
“What happened to you?”
Samuel chuckled bitterly and glared at him.
“That’s what I want to ask. What were you thinking, telling me to open a portal near that accursed city, Reruze? If you knew the trouble it caused me, you’d be bowing in apology.”
“I’ll hear the story first and then decide whether to bow… or give you a bonus.”
At the word “bonus,” Samuel cleared his throat and began his tale.
He explained that after traveling comfortably in a VIP carriage to the edge of Prime Root, he crossed the frozen desert alone.
There was little danger until he reached Reruze.
But while scouting for a place to open the portal, he suffered greatly — because of one shaman puppeteer.
“Rengua?”
What was that puppet master up to?
Samuel ground his teeth.
“That crazy old man set loose not only black shamans but also his puppets all around Reruze, hunting down people indiscriminately.”
“Hunting? You mean he took them alive?”
“Yes. Dragged them away alive.”
From vagrants cast out by Reruze’s intrigues, to slave hunters, to merchant caravans from Aintrier, he hunted them all and took them to the lake.
“Why?”
“I barely stayed hidden because that old man was moving around personally. How should I know? You told me my identity must never be revealed.”
“That’s true.”
“So I stayed buried in that frozen ground until things quieted down. Do you know the pain of your hands and feet freezing while starving for days in a snowstorm?”
“You had a rough time.”
“You say that like it’s nothing. I’m starting to feel offended.”
“Not at all. So, has Rengua left?”
“After about a week of hunting like mad, he returned. Hasn’t left the lake since. Caused that much chaos, and even the Sword Demon stayed quiet — clearly this was done with his approval.”
“I’ll have to check on that quickly.”
“You should.”
“Then, shall we go?”
“Wait—what? We?”
Samuel blinked, then pointed to himself in disbelief.
“You mean I’m going too? The portal works without me going.”
“It’s not for the portal. I need your help.”
“Help? With what?”
Arthur smiled and took out his subspace pouch, explaining about the Ivory Tower’s magic bombs inside.
The plan was simple — secretly plant the bombs around Reruze and detonate them simultaneously.
But Samuel’s face went pale.
“You’re insane!”
“As long as we’re not caught, it’s fine.”
“If that were possible, I wouldn’t have suffered so much! The Sword Demon has taken roost there. Do you think you can plant bombs without alerting him?”
“I’ve thought about that, and I believe I can.”
“Then you go alone!”
“I need someone to assist me in case of danger. Only you can do it, Samuel.”
“I just escaped hell, and you want me to go back? You’re cruel.”
Samuel shook his head, clearly unwilling to return to Prime Root.
Arthur then began playing his trump card — the one person who had left Samuel traumatized: Lily Base.
“If you help with this, I’ll make sure Lily never bothers you again.”
“I was going to bring that up! Didn’t we already settle this after helping in the Ordor Forest? Today she almost tore out my precious beard!”
“That was the elder’s promise, not Lily’s. If she doesn’t agree, even the elder can’t stop her.”
“That’s absurd… this is fraud!”
“That’s why I’ll persuade Lily myself and bring her to swear it in front of you.”
“Don’t you remember the pain just now? Want to feel it again?”
Hearing Lily’s laughter in his head, Samuel shuddered.
After a moment’s thought, he sighed and nodded.
Whatever Prime Root was like, whatever Lily’s promise meant, refusing a request from his organization’s leader felt wrong to him.
After all, he was a member of Hunt.
“How did I end up joining Hunt…”
“And that’s why you’re living so well now.”
“Your standard of ‘living well’ is too strict.”
Shaking his head, Samuel stood.
When they came out to the living room after the meal, a red glow filled the center.
A red spatial portal.
Samuel hesitated, then clapped his hands and quickly said,
“I’ll need food. There’s not a blade of grass there. Let’s rest and—”
“I’ve already prepared it.”
Arthur tapped his subspace pouch — it was full of special sandwiches prepared before Samuel arrived.
There’d be no starving in Prime Root.
“Damn it.”
“What?”
“Nothing.”
Less than half a day after returning from Prime Root, Samuel leapt into the portal again.
After he disappeared, Arthur exhaled briefly and followed.
A floating sensation as he crossed the passage—
When he opened his eyes again, a white snowfield spread before him.
The land known in stories as an unassailable wasteland—
Prime Root.