Chapter 177
Chapter 177
Attachment Doll (1)
The old man made an intriguing proposal. There had been no sincerity in the conversation we'd had. We'd merely spouted whatever came to mind.
Just what had the old man seen in me to say something like that? I stared at the old man with sunken eyes.
“Why not join me, young man.”
That character had never once been shown fighting. Depending on how you looked at it, you could say he died an anticlimactic death.
Because he died due to betrayal from within. That was why I didn't let my guard down. I had no idea what kind of skills he possessed.
“I refuse.”
“Why?”
“You're suspicious.”
“That is true.”
The old man readily admitted that he was suspicious. I let out a hollow laugh. Was he messing with me right now?
“What are you trying to do here? It feels like you're making fun of me.”
“If that is how you felt, then I apologize.”
How should I put it? Meeting him face-to-face, he didn't feel like a villain. He was courteous and dignified. His appearance also showed clear signs of careful grooming.
A resolute nature could be glimpsed in his expression, while his straight posture showed the confidence unique to nobility. As a first impression, it was difficult to see him as an ordinary villain.
“Why did you come here?”
“Because there is a child I'm interested in.”
I narrowed my eyes. Magus was interested in Canis? It was possible, but not something I could readily believe.
Canis was an exceptional magician who wouldn't hesitate to use any means necessary to achieve her goals. She was certainly the type who could end up joining Magus.
“That's unexpected.”
“What is?”
“Your taste.”
I took out the Holy Scripture. I could understand the Canis of the present. But I couldn't understand the young Canis of the past.
She was someone who knew how to cry when her first love left her and would even go apologize to civilians who had died because of her mistake.
An enormous amount of heat poured from the Holy Scripture. And what emerged along with it was the skill I could always trust and rely on, the Lightning Spike of Anaye.
“……Beautiful.”
A sword brimming with sacred lightning surged upward. The old man's gaze also shifted toward it.
Just like the Vice-Commander, he stared at it as though entranced.
“Lose interest in that child.”
“That is quite a sacred power for a young Duhein to possess.”
The old man already knew my identity. Well, there was no way he wouldn't. I had an appearance that suited the name Duhein better than anything else.
I drove the Lightning Spike of Anaye downward. The massive bolt of lightning that had towered high above came crashing toward the old man.
The lightning explosion that followed briefly illuminated the world.
“Fast, too.”
There was no trace of the old man. The heat of the Lightning Spike of Anaye was tremendous, incinerating anything caught in it down to the cellular level.
Naturally, there were no traces like blood, but I realized that the old man had escaped unharmed. Disgusting magicians.
I hadn't expected to catch him in the first place. This was a world of illusion anyway, so it had no effect on reality.
‘I can't tell how strong he is.’
Still, the reason I'd picked a fight with him was because there might be a chance we'd fight later. I'd wanted to gauge the enemy's strength.
Too bad. I clicked my tongue and turned my gaze elsewhere.
‘Fast, too.’
Only then did Ulbushis, having sensed something strange, begin to move. I felt the presence of people rapidly approaching me.
They were quite literally running over in a frantic rush. Powerful waves of magic from all around enveloped me.
Countless magicians were staring at me. Perhaps I could guess why the old man had come here.
“……Duhein? I've never seen you before.”
The Head of the Ulbushis Family, who arrived last, frowned as he looked at me.
Although Ulbushis had cooperated with Duhein, their relationship wasn't good. They were the kind of families that constantly picked fights with and kept each other in check.
“I see.”
“What are you talking about?”
The Head of the Ulbushis Family took out the weapon he favored. The object known as a staff appeared in midair and became saturated with dense magic.
“Did Magus ask you to join them?”
“……You bastard. Who are you?”
It seemed I'd hit the nail on the head. The youthful-looking Head of the Ulbushis Family scowled fiercely. I smirked.
So that was what happened. Magus had invited Ulbushis to join their group, and Ulbushis had refused. That was roughly the story.
“Did Magus have a hand in creating Canis?”
“Everyone! Kill him!”
The Head of the Ulbushis Family swung his staff without answering. Instead, he ordered the surrounding magicians to kill me.
But that attitude served as an answer in itself. I immediately clad myself in lightning armor and headed toward the forest. A magician's reflexes weren't enough to catch me.
“Keugh!”
I closed in on the nearest magician and swung my gauntlet. The force behind it was tremendous, and the magician's jaw shattered as he went limp.
I immediately spread Blood Mist in every direction. The Head of the Ulbushis Family hurriedly tried to cast magic, but the Blood Mist activated first.
“……Our magic?”
I could feel the magicians' agitation. I gave a ferocious smile. A sword made with Blood Magic was already in my right hand.
Magicians without magic. There was no easier prey than this. Rather than approaching me, they should have used wide-area magic from a distance.
“…….”
“That took a while.”
Just five minutes. That was how long it took me to kill every magician except the Head of the Ulbushis Family. Their physical abilities were excellent, but they had no magic to reinforce them.
My own physical abilities weren't exactly lacking either, so it was easy. The Head of the Ulbushis Family, who had escaped the red mist, activated his magic.
A massive rain of crystals poured down upon me. I awakened the fragment of a star sleeping within the gauntlet.
‘Better performance than expected.’
The cold that spread in an instant froze the moisture in the surroundings solid. Crystal fragments rained down against the wall of ice.
This was my first time using Blood Mist against magicians. Even so, the results exceeded my expectations. I hadn't expected magicians to become this powerless.
Of course, a large part of that was because they didn't know about Blood Mist and had come too close.
“You bastard. Just who are you?”
“Would you know if I told you?”
Covered from head to toe in blood, I cackled. I'd gotten hooked on saying that lately, so it kept slipping out regardless of the occasion.
Seeing the Head of the Ulbushis Family grit his teeth, I moved. At a speed far greater than anything I'd shown so far, I raced toward the gravestone.
The Head of the Ulbushis Family had been preparing a large-scale spell in apparent panic, but when he saw where I was heading, he hurriedly followed.
“Uh. Huh?”
Because if things went wrong, that stupid-looking Canis would get caught up in it. I leaped high and landed right where Canis was.
Even in her confusion, Canis calmly tried to activate her magic. But Canis's magic was shattered by the blood sword I swung.
“Kyaaaah!”
“Here it comes.”
Facing a threat to her life for the first time ever, Canis let out an undignified scream. Then I spotted black energy billowing softly from her body.
I hurriedly pulled the crystal from my clothes. The crystal made by the Head of the Ulbushis Family emitted light, then extracted Anger straight from Canis's body.
After confirming that no more black energy was being drawn out, I turned around and faced the Head of the Ulbushis Family.
“……What did you do?”
“I sealed Anger.”
“You bastard. Just how much do you know?”
“F-Father.”
The Head of the Ulbushis Family stared at me with his guard fully raised. He probably misunderstood and thought I intended to take Canis hostage.
There was no need to clear up the misunderstanding. The world had already begun to break apart. Watching the world shatter inward from beyond the edges of my vision, I closed my eyes.
***
“Is it all over?”
Inside Anger's familiar body, I slowly opened my eyes. I'd cleared all six memories.
Now, only a single blue sphere remained. That was the core serving as Anger's heart. I stared at it for a moment before turning away.
“Good work.”
“Yes.”
The wounds inflicted by the Crystal Storm had gradually become fewer. Each time I cleared one of the memories, the Crystal Storm's power had steadily diminished.
I didn't know why, but it was good news for me, since I'd been going in and out of here constantly. Though that was over now as well.
“What time is it now?”
“It is about time for dinner.”
Looking up through the ceiling that Anger had punched through, I saw that the sky had grown dark. The Head of the Ulbushis Family smirked and guided me away.
We were heading to the dining room for a meal. I followed behind him without complaint. The moment we arrived at the dining room, food began coming out as though they'd been waiting for us.
“Hmm.”
“Is something wrong?”
“No.”
Oddly enough, there was nothing but seafood. Crustaceans, shellfish, fish. Most of it was marine life. I glanced at the Head of the Ulbushis Family.
The family head asked me with his usual expression, but I shook my head. If anything, I liked it. I bit straight into a snow crab leg.
You weren't supposed to eat crustacean shells, but I wondered how they'd cooked it to make even the shell this tender.
“This is the item I prepared.”
As we ate, the Head of the Ulbushis Family summoned an attendant. The attendant brought a small wooden box beside me.
I opened the wooden box with a puzzled look. Inside was a cute doll.
It was a stuffed doll with blue hair and a blue dress. I tilted my head. I'd thought the Head of the Ulbushis Family would make a Bibi doll.
“Do you like it?”
“I don't care about its appearance.”
I gave a perfunctory answer to the Head of the Ulbushis Family's question. Its appearance didn't matter anyway. This was meant to store Anger efficiently.
But its appearance really was just like something the Head of the Ulbushis Family would make. It contained every feature that could make one think of Canis.
“Tomorrow, everything will be completely finished.”
“You've worked hard. Truly.”
“Not at all. I'm being compensated for all this work.”
“Speaking of which. What do you intend to ask for?”
After finishing our meal, we continued the remaining conversation over dessert. I thought for a moment at the Head of the Ulbushis Family's question.
“I intend to spread the Anaye Order throughout Ulbushis Territory.”
“…….”
At my blatant demand, the Head of the Ulbushis Family fell silent. He was probably giving it a great deal of thought. That was what it meant to allow a religion into one's territory.
“Canis is already a member anyway.”
“That is true.”
“Don't worry. Canis will rise to quite an impressive position.”
“Ahem.”
Apparently pleased by my words, the Head of the Ulbushis Family cleared his throat. A doting-father smile appeared on that otherwise composed face.
“Let's talk about it again once everything is finished.”
“Very well.”
“Ah. May I look around the mansion?”
“Of course.”
I rose from my seat, bowed, and left the dining room. There was something I absolutely wanted to ask the Head of the Ulbushis Family.
The reason Canis's quest had become a Main Quest was clearly connected to Magus. I didn't bother dismissing the attendant who followed me.
“It's beautiful.”
The Ulbushis estate was beautiful. It had a different atmosphere from Lofty Cathedral, yet inspired a similar sense of awe.
“Duhein's buildings are also renowned for their beauty.”
The attendant following behind me offered that compliment. Of course, I'd never actually seen Duhein's buildings myself, so it meant nothing to me.
“Please show me around.”
“I shall attend to you with the utmost care.”
A voice filled with goodwill answered. I slowly followed behind the attendant as he led the way.