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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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Chapter 207: The Red Mountains (4)
“Humans?”
Oran spread his mana wide and shook his head.
“I don’t sense anything. Are you sure they’re actually humans?”
“I’m certain. And it’s not just one or two.”
“What? What’s going on?”
“Is something happening?”
Kaya and Sasha, who arrived late, each offered their thoughts after hearing the situation.
“Humans in a place like this? Maybe there’s an undisclosed imperial outpost nearby?”
“If we think logically, that does seem like the most likely explanation.”
“Hm…”
Oscar fell into thought at the two women's reactions.
‘A new imperial outpost, huh?’
Like Sasha said, that does seem like the most plausible option if you’re thinking logically.
The chance of running into non-imperial humans in the Red Mountain Range is virtually zero.
Purely in terms of probability, it’d be faster to find a founding-era coin on Barbara’s beach.
‘But Uncle Emperor doesn’t like provoking the demons.’
Even when Oscar requested the White Tower’s records as his reward for winning the Night of Mages, the emperor had refused to send troops for that very reason.
Put politely, he’s cautious.
Bluntly, he fears the outbreak of a second war with the demons.
‘In that situation, would the Imperial family establish an outpost even deeper than before? It doesn’t add up.’
Having sorted out his thoughts, Oscar spoke.
“There’s not much point in speculating among ourselves. Let’s check it out with our own eyes.”
“Our own eyes? You mean go to the source of the magic?”
“Of course not.”
In this world, there’s a convenient tool called magic that saves you from such trouble.
And Oscar happens to be a skilled craftsman with that tool.
With a hum, his gentle mana flowed outward and completed a complex magic circle.
“Eye of the Sky.”
Shoom!
A sphere of magic shot into the sky, piercing the clouds and heading toward a certain direction.
Seeing this, Sasha gaped in awe.
“The Eye of the Sky! I can’t believe it’s usable even in this place with such unstable magic flow… Amazing.”
Oscar gave a faint smile.
If this little trick was enough to earn praise, that was a problem.
The mage known as Magiro Wilson, the Keeper of the White Tower, had once used this spell to spy all the way from the holy capital to the tower’s outskirts.
“What does that magic even do? Is it really that impressive?”
Kaya, who had never seen the Eye of the Sky before, asked.
Sasha smiled brightly and replied.
“You’ll understand better by seeing it for yourself than by my explanation.”
“He’s right.”
Oscar agreed and snapped his fingers.
“Let’s take a look together.”
At that moment, a vivid image appeared before the four of them.
* * *
A clearing on the first peak of the Red Mountain Range.
With the sea visible to the west, more than twenty people dressed in black combat uniforms had gathered there.
Most of them were vigilantly keeping watch of their surroundings, while only three stood in the center of the clearing, deep in conversation.
“Um… aren’t they seven hours late? There’s not even a shadow of them yet.”
“We’re the ones who want something from them. What can you do?”
The man smacked his lips and grinned as if an amusing thought crossed his mind.
“Come to think of it, is this your first time climbing the Red Mountains?”
“Yes, it is.”
“How does it feel? Entering a forbidden zone designated by the Empire?”
“Uh…”
The youngest one glanced around before swallowing nervously.
“To be honest, I’m kind of scared. I think I finally understand why the Red Mountains are synonymous with fear…”
“See? He gets it.”
The man turned to look at the silent middle-aged man beside him.
A long diagonal scar across the man’s face gave off a threatening aura.
“Enough chit-chat. We don’t know when they might arrive.”
“Okay~”
“But still…”
The middle-aged man gave a piece of advice while glancing at the youngest one.
“If you carry demonic energy within you, you can’t afford to be frightened by something like this.”
“Y-yes, sir!”
Hearing such a disciplined reply, the man chuckled to himself.
Then he asked the middle-aged man another question.
“But really, a nest left behind by the last dragon? You think that kind of thing really exists?”
“I don’t know. But since the First Finger gave the order himself, we follow it.”
“Hmm, I hope it does exist. Would be nice if there’s a bunch of artifacts too.”
Not even the strongest three in the group — nor any of the twenty black-clad members — noticed it.
That someone was watching them from over 7 kilometers away.
“…Those bastards, just look at them — you can tell they’re demons. And they mentioned the First Finger.”
Oran clicked his tongue as he stared at the vivid image.
“But how the hell do those guys know about the nest?”
“Wouldn’t it be stranger if they didn’t?”
Kaya chimed in.
“We stole that map from Neil Brion’s vault. Since he was part of the Black Fingers, it makes sense that they’d know.”
“Ah, she’s right. Just because it was in his private vault doesn’t mean only he knew about it.”
“…”
While the two quickly came to a consensus, Oscar furrowed his brow slightly.
‘That doesn’t make sense.’
According to his theory, Uncle Emperor was using the Violet Brigade to retrieve the White Tower’s records.
Which means that the map in Neil Brion’s vault was placed there by the Imperial family.
‘So the Black Fingers shouldn’t know about Edna’s location.’
But the fact that they do suggests two possibilities.
First, that they had always known.
But if that were the case, the timing would be way too perfect.
‘Of all times, they’re heading to the nest now? That’s way too convenient.’
Which is why the weight shifts toward the second possibility.
‘……An insider hiding within the imperial family. Their position is much higher than I expected.’
No matter how powerful the Emperor is, he couldn’t have orchestrated all this alone.
There must have been people under him executing the plan.
‘In other words, the insider is someone in a position to oversee even the Emperor’s personal affairs.’
Thinking of it that way actually narrows down the suspects considerably.
They can start by investigating those with the highest authority and rank.
‘That’s something to look into once we return.’
For now, deciding what to do about those demons is the priority.
Oscar opened his mouth.
“What should we do? That middle-aged one seems to be Level 7, and the rest are all probably Level 6.”
“Hmm, yeah. They’re much weaker than expected. Honestly, I’d like to ask what gave them the confidence to enter the Red Mountains in the first place.”
With a gentle smile, Oran asked:
“Senior, should we just take them out? With our strength, it wouldn’t even take ten minutes.”
“Hmm. No harm in it. Unless they’re aiming for a completely different location, there’s no need to keep them alive if they're heading to the same place as us.”
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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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Just like they said, their side currently has three Level 7s.
If they wanted to, wiping those enemies out wouldn’t take even five minutes, let alone ten.
‘But something feels……’
Unsettling.
Like a tiny thorn stuck in his throat—just enough to keep tickling and irritating him.
Oscar had always trusted his instincts over logic in dangerous situations.
“We wait.”
“Huh? You’re serious, little bro?”
Oran asked, eyes wide.
“Why would we?”
“……I’ve got a bad feeling. Like you said, Oran, I think it’s worth confirming what gave them the confidence to come all the way here before making a move.”
“Hm.”
Oran thought it over, then surprisingly nodded without resistance.
“They say you can beat hard workers and geniuses, but never someone with good instincts. Do as you like.”
“Thank you.”
“What’s there to thank me for? That was the rule from the start. Until we pass through the Red Mountains, we follow your decisions absolutely.”
Oscar looked at him with a rather surprised expression.
True, they had agreed on that rule, but he hadn’t expected Oran to follow it so obediently.
That reaction seemed to irk Oran a little.
He spoke, looking slightly indignant:
“What’s with that look? Did you think I was some kind of rogue who doesn’t care about rules or anything?”
“Well… I mean, you are, aren’t you?”
“That’s a misunderstanding, brother. The only rules I break are the Empire’s unjust laws.”
Most people would call that kind of person a rogue.
Oscar gave a half-hearted response to Oran’s protests.
“You did understand that, right? Honestly, when you think about it, I’m a pretty decent citizen……”
Oran’s voice trailed off like a warped tape.
And in that odd moment, a question mark appeared in Oscar’s mind.
“……!”
A suffocating pressure suddenly descended, and a chilling cold crept up his spine.
Goosebumps instantly rose on his arms.
‘The others?’
Oscar quickly looked at the three of them.
But their expressions remained the same as usual—they were all just going about their business.
Which meant… he was the only one sensing this presence.
‘Where is it coming from?’
Trying to locate the source, Oscar’s eyes turned to the area shown in the screen—through the “Eye of the Sky.”
* * *
In the clearing where the black-fingered ones were gathered, a figure appeared.
A man with a wolf’s face, his body covered in dark blue fur.
Oscar almost mistook him for an ordinary beastkin—until he noticed the pair of horns jutting from his head.
That alone made the identity clear.
‘A demon.’
A high-ranking demon with that characteristic blank face and emotionless gaze began scanning the area.
Even the Level 7 middle-aged man, who had carried an air of intimidation, and the laughing man who had been chuckling constantly—both now bowed their heads deeply.
The wolf-like demon asked,
-Are you the humans I was supposed to meet?
-Y-Yes. We are followers of the First Finger, and under Lord Yuribe’s guidance, we have come to cross into the Grey Zone.
-Are all of you here?
-Yes. There are 27 of us in total.
-Hmm, in that case……
The one called Yuribe suddenly lifted his head.
Shiver!
And in the same instant Oscar felt their eyes meet—though it was probably just his imagination—
-Those must be the rats.
The demon vanished from the screen.
Oscar didn’t hesitate another second.
He shouted aloud:
“Damn it! Retreat!”
If his hunch was correct, the demon was at least of Count rank.
‘If we fight now……’
Victory wasn’t certain.
But just as the demon turned and veered off their original path—
BOOOOOM!
A deafening explosion tore through the air, and red sand scattered forward like shrapnel.
Oscar’s eyes trembled as he stared at the red dust falling like rain.
“How amusing. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a meeting like this……”
Still an emotionless voice, yet laced with undeniable excitement.
“I’m not sure if you’re enemies…… but this is going to be fun.”
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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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