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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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Chapter 223: Who Are You?
"You mean spies?"
"Figuratively speaking, yes."
There was one point in the conversation I'd had with the Seven Demons that stood out.
When Thousand-Faced Fox said she'd infiltrated number six.
It certainly didn't mean he'd openly marched in, which meant it was highly likely she'd infiltrated with a spy.
Bravo Khan hesitated for a moment before answering.
"We haven't noticed anyone acting suspiciously recently. If there were such a person, I would have already informed you."
"So, they haven't been detected in Khaoto at least."
Bravo Khan's lack of knowledge meant that "Number Six" wasn't active within Khaoto, at least.
It was likely they had already entered the main estate.
I nodded and instructed Bravo Khan to report on what had happened.
"Very well, I'll begin."
There was a reason Bravo Khan was so confident.
It seemed the Brotherhood had been quite active while I was in Keplan.
The report was so impressive it occasionally elicited gasps of surprise.
They had completely restructured the hierarchy of mercenaries active in the southern and eastern continents.
No wonder Chano knew the Brotherhood's name.
Among their feats, the one that stood out was the destruction of a notorious top-ten mercenary group's base in just three days.
"You guys really haven't been idle. And Khaoto's defenses are excellent."
Daisy smiled and said.
"We've cleared everything out, Brother. Now, everyone runs away at the mere mention of our name."
It felt like we were building a reputation for infamy, but I didn't say anything. A mercenary group needed infamy.
"That's right. Wolf has been a great help. There was a bit of chaos at first, but now there's no one in Khaoto causing trouble."
"You flatter me, Officer Bravo Khan. Everyone just did their jobs well."
Wolf smiled and looked at me.
"I've been hearing good things. Dark Light. You didn't make empty promises."
I remembered the words I spoke to Wolf when I left Khaoto.
It was the first time I'd shared my intentions with someone.
Wolf's eyes had changed.
He no longer had the look of a retired man.
I looked around and said.
"Did I underestimate Uncle Wolf's abilities? Everyone's gotten much stronger."
One-Eye, who had been listening quietly, laughed heartily, his remaining eye shining.
"Hahahaha! I knew even the Commander would be surprised."
"Shut up."
This was why you couldn't give out compliments carelessly.
But honestly, they had far exceeded my expectations.
I already knew Wolf was hiding his skills, but I didn't expect Daisy and the others to get this strong so quickly.
When I activated the Opposing Extremes Hand technique, I sensed that Daisy was already at the sixth star level.
If she could emit such refined and concentrated sword energy, she was close to mastering the pinnacle of the sixth star.
One-Eye and others had reached the fifth star.
"It's not that I taught them well."
"I know better than anyone that they were just average before Daisy. What tricks did you use, Uncle Wolf?"
"Mana Cultivation Manual."
"Mana Cultivation Manual?"
Wolf nodded.
"They have a very good mana cultivation manual."
"Atark's mana cultivation manual?"
"Yes."
"A known clan?"
"Unknown."
"So, why the manual?"
I knew Atark's cultivation manual was good, but I hadn't thought about it deeply.
Since it was a manual for creating mana cores, it was in a field I was unfamiliar with.
"During my mercenary days, I had the chance to encounter many high-level cultivation manuals. There were many in the mercenary groups I was a part of. But this one is unmatched."
For a moment, I felt a strange sensation.
Come to think of it, I remembered seeing Atark's mana cultivation manual in the White Horse Tower's library.
If Wolf praised it this much, it must be better than the cultivation manuals of most prestigious clans.
I had no idea the manual I bought at the Leon auction had such value.
"All I did was interpret the manual. The rest they did on their own."
"Still, Uncle Wolf's role was significant."
Having resolved my curiosity, I turned to Bravo Khan and changed the subject.
"Do you have any plans to go outside soon?"
"We were planning to advance into the North. Recently, there have been a series of attacks on merchants traveling from Khaoto to the North through Shan Kris."
Daisy interrupted.
"We were going to sort out the rankings of the Northern bastards, Brother."
I shook my head and replied.
"Refrain from all outside activities for the time being."
Bravo Khan and Daisy looked at me, their eyes sparkling.
"Commander?"
"Brother?"
"Especially at times like this, we need to focus on defense. One of the most foolish things in the world is getting your empty house robbed."
Bravo Khan replied cautiously, as if he had a hunch.
"Perhaps?"
"Gather close."
I began to inform my men of several situations I was anticipating.
***
Late evening.
After finishing the meeting with my men, I quietly left the headquarters and headed to the main clan estate.
The fact that I had returned would have reached the main estate by now.
I sent the Crazy Mage Squad in through the main gate first, while I deliberately lingered at a distant outer wall.
After that, I secretly jumped over the seemingly weakest part.
'Hmm.'
I entered the Samael estate at its edge, passing a wall with the Blue Sea Flag.
Looking around, I saw several guards patrolling in groups, but they didn't seem very tense.
'Are they being careless?'
That couldn't be.
It was too lax.
Far below expectations.
I began to stealthily move deeper into the Samael estate, using the Crazy Mage Footwork.
They see new mages training in the training grounds, the Crazy Mage Squad exchanging greetings at the main gate, and Kazen standing in front of the Clan Head Hall.
A scene overflowing with vitality, incomparable to the past.
But I still couldn't hide my bewildered feelings.
They still haven't noticed I've entered? Even though I wasn't hiding with all my might?
'Hmm.'
The guards' movements were incredibly lax, and the clan mages were busy only with training.
…Sometimes, this happens.
When a clan grows too rapidly, they fail to solidify their internal structure.
The current scene of the Samael clan in my eyes was exactly that.
'Has Kazen overlooked this?'
On a whim, I began to climb deeper into the Samael estate, over the mountain ridge and into its depths.
The artificially scattered leaves, stones, and branches forming a barrier were easily bypassed. Not much different from last time.
After using the Crazy Mage Footwork for a while, I came across a large cave.
As expected, I sensed the faint voices and presences of the elders, including Elder Norman and Elder Isaac, from within.
As people get older, they naturally seek familiar places.
'Our elders are living the good life.'
My temper started to flare.
Why is it that whenever I see our elders at the main estate, my temper flares?
Kazen must be incredibly busy already.
Taylor and Blair are nowhere to be seen, busy teaching the White Horse Knights…
Even if the mana stones are good, couldn't our elders do some research while playing?
What's the point of being elders if they just loaf around while intruders come right up to their noses?
Suppressing my presence completely, I slowly stepped into the cave.
Sensing the faint light seeping from within, I slowly rotated my heart's circle.
Whoosh—!
Right, no one would have said anything.
Who would dare say anything to our old elders?
In situations like this, words naturally have their limits.
I was planning to blow up our old elders' resting place immediately.
In fancy terms, it's called creative destruction.
Whoosh—!
Just as I opened six heart circles, Elder Norman's voice came from inside.
"Who's there? Is that Falcon?"
Now's the time.
Just as Elder Norman was approaching, I stretched out both arms towards the cave's ceiling and recited a simplified incantation.
Sixth-Circle Wind Pressure, Cycling Wind.
First, I'll blow away the cave ceiling…
"What the hell!"
As I was reciting the incantation and extending my arms, an alarm rang out, piercing my neural pathways.
With my arms still stretched towards the sky, just before deploying the Wind Pressure incantation.
Faster than that, the cave ceiling collapsed, and a pile of rocks came pouring down.
Kwakwakwang—!
Instinctively, I widened the distance with Blink and used Spatial Acceleration to leap into the sky.
Opening all circles, I deployed a barrier downwards.
Instantly, the rocks swept in all directions, creating a massive dust cloud.
An absurd amount of shockwave, bursting from below, collided with the barrier…
The dust cloud slowly cleared, revealing the obscured view.
Without any time to figure out what was happening, the first thing I saw was the elders' faces, gazing up at the sky from inside the cave with the blown-off ceiling, their hands clasped behind their backs.
"Hehehehe! Our Ruin has arrived!"
I'd never seen Norman smile with such unadulterated joy.
***
"When did you know?"
"Southeast direction. Three hundred meters from the main gate."
"..."
"Didn't you notice the Blue Sea Flag planted on the wall?"
"..."
"Hehehehehe!"
Elder Norman kept chuckling, while the other elders smiled contentedly.
"So… you knew from the very beginning."
"Of course! You crossed the estate, stopped by the training grounds, and lingered in front of the Clan Head Hall. Hehehehe!"
Whoosh—
Only after opening all my heart circles did I detect the faint traces of the barrier. A subtle, artificial mana-tracing scent was left on my body.
I was the one who'd been tricked.
The seemingly lax security was, in fact, intentional.
"How did you even think of this?"
"Hehe, we can't just sit still when precious reagents and materials are coming in from all over the country. We researched a blend and created a colorless, odorless scent. We put it in finely divided mana stones and scattered them throughout the estate. It's quite effective. Ruin, we knew the moment you climbed over the wall."
"..."
I had underestimated the elders. I had vastly underestimated them.
Norman was laughing like a child, so pleased that he had finally gotten one over on me, but this time, I couldn't feel any resentment.
It was a complete defeat.
"You're amazing."
Elder Isaac asked,
"How was it?"
"This?"
I pointed to the blown-off cave ceiling, and Elder Isaac started to explain, as if filled with anticipation.
"We detonated two A-rank mana stones. Each contained ten layers of shockwaves."
"Twenty layers of shockwaves..."
That was also astonishing.
It was enough to shake a simplified barrier deployed with 7 circles, so it would have easily broken through most 6-circle wind pressure defense incantations.
I shook my head, then noticed that Elder Isaac's smile had widened a little more.
"How many more of these mana stones do you have?"
"Hehe."
"Hehe."
"Hehehehe!"
Seeing all the elders laughing together gave me the chills.
When did they start hiding such devilish smiles?
"Ruin, don't be alarmed."
Elder Isaac held up one finger.
"We have over a hundred A-rank mana stones that are already perfectly processed."
"..."
"That's not all. Remember the S-rank mana stones you gave us from Keplan?"
"Yes, I do."
"After analyzing them, we believe each mana stone can hold at least ten 6-circle spells. And that's just the minimum estimate."
"Hehehe."
"Hehehe."
"With a little more research, a successful demonstration will be possible! Hehehehehe!"
The craziness in the elders' eyes.
I couldn't help but think once again.
'Samael is Samael.'
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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