Chapter 122

Archmage (2)

Archmage Lumina needed the Thirteenth Apostle of the End to ascend into a higher existence.

The moment she entered into a contract with Mapheltan, she would draw closer to an unfathomably elevated realm.

That was because one of the conditions for advancement was “meaningful contact with a transcendent being.”

Apostles were transcendent beings from birth, and contracting with one was the quickest and most reliable way to fulfill that condition.

Soon, her long-cherished wish would come true.

Anticipation filled Lumina’s eyes.

Ilea smiled at her.

“In other words, Lady Lumina, you orchestrated all of this so that you could meet an Apostle.”

Lumina answered immediately.

“That’s right. If I follow Lord Muel’s prophecies, I always obtain the result I desire in the end.”

Muel was the Great Demon Lumina served.

He was a fallen angel who possessed extraordinarily accurate powers of foresight.

“Was your attempt to pressure the Watcher of Narak also entirely due to Muel’s prophecy?”

Ilea had already heard a rough account of everything from Mapheltan.

—King Roderick used several schemes to lure Johan into a trap. The king isn’t capable of devising such elaborate plots on his own, so someone must be operating behind him.

Now she knew that the mastermind had been Archmage Lumina.

Lumina replied with a composed expression.

“Precisely. ‘Establish yourself in the royal capital and drive the Watcher of Narak into a corner. If you do so, you will eventually encounter an Apostle of the End.’ I merely followed that prophecy. Judging by your behavior, you seem rather close to the Watcher of Narak... so let me make my position clear. I harbor no particular hostility toward either him or you.”

Lumina had merely followed Muel’s prophecy so that she could advance.

She had applied political pressure to Johan for the sole purpose of meeting an Apostle.

She had no other objective.

Ilea looked puzzled.

“Didn’t you ever wonder how the premise ‘Torment the Watcher of Narak, and you will meet an Apostle of the End’ would come to pass?”

Lumina frowned slightly.

“Why would I wonder about that? As long as I follow the prophecy, I’ll ultimately obtain what I want.”

Disappointment appeared on Ilea’s face.

“...You call yourself an Archmage, yet all you do is blindly obey a prophecy. You feel no doubt, no desire to investigate, not even the slightest curiosity. In the end, you’re nothing more than another human bewitched by a demon.”

Lumina’s expression darkened as well.

Ilea’s words brought unpleasant memories flooding back.

Around seventy years ago, the Great Witch Rahel had said something similar to Lumina.

—Lumina, how long are you going to let Muel play with you in the palm of his hand? At this rate, he’ll use you and discard you in the end. Mark my words.

Lumina’s eyes turned fierce.

“What could a mere witch like you possibly know about me to spout such nonsense? I achieved a supreme realm in the body of an ordinary human. Just you wait. I, Lumina, will be the first to inscribe my name upon a rank beyond heaven—one that no Archmage, not even a witch, has ever reached.”

Ilea sighed as though she had given up on her.

“Very well. Show me how you advance to the stage beyond Archmage. Though I doubt it will be easy.”

Lumina snorted.

“My advancement is already assured, so what is there to show? The Apostle will come to me before long.”

Ilea gave her a gentle smile.

“You’ll probably meet him today. Right this instant, if you wish.”

Lumina frowned.

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

Ilea lightly snapped her fingers.

Ripples of mana spread in every direction.

Lumina’s necklace began reacting violently.

King Roderick’s screams came through the communication artifact.

Ilea spoke calmly.

“Until a moment ago, I had temporarily severed this space from the outside world. I’ve just reopened it, so you may speak comfortably with your human king.”

Lumina had failed to notice Ilea’s spell entirely.

Her pride as an Archmage crumbled.

A vein bulged faintly on her forehead.

“...You detestable little brat.”

Ilea was still smiling.

“Don’t frown like that. At your age, you’ll only give yourself more wrinkles.”

She had touched a nerve.

Lumina erupted with pure-white mana.

“I’ll correct those atrocious manners of yours this instant!”

Ilea’s expression turned cold.

She spoke in a subdued voice.

“Stop. It would be sad if you died before you could meet the Apostle.”

Blue mana burst forth and began consuming the interior of the space.

A horrifying pressure bore down upon the Archmage.

Roderick’s groans continued to emerge from the communication artifact.

Lumina ground her teeth.

“...You little wretch. Wait right there.”

She placed a hand against her necklace.

The royal palace’s great hall unfolded before her eyes.

At the same time, Lumina’s expression brightened dramatically.

A pitch-black demon was there.

It was the Thirteenth Apostle of the End.

Ilea smiled.

“I told you. You would meet him today—right away.”

Lumina uttered an activation word.

Mapheltan vanished from the great hall.

Like Ilea, he was abducted into the separate dimension.

Mapheltan had employed countless methods to force King Roderick to speak.

He had instilled terror in him, strangled him, and even employed the authority known as Words of Command.

Despite all his painstaking efforts, he had obtained no meaningful information.

Roderick knew nothing. He was merely a puppet being controlled by someone else.

Even after demonic energy restored his faculties, the king remained as dull-witted as ever.

Mapheltan suppressed a groan.

‘What did I expect from a fool like this?’

It seemed he had no choice but to wait for Ilea.

She would undoubtedly return with some kind of result.

Leaving Roderick where he lay, Mapheltan sat upon the throne.

The pitch-black demon leaned back in the seat of honor within the great hall.

At the sight, Roderick lowered his head deeply.

As king, he no longer had any grounds to face his ancestors.

He had allowed someone else to seize the solemn royal throne—and a demon, at that.

Roderick clutched the red carpet tightly.

Anger erupted within him.

Just as he was wallowing in self-reproach, his necklace began reacting violently.

Roderick’s expression brightened faintly.

Surely that Archmage—surely the Great Demon Muel—would teach this young Apostle a bitter lesson.

The king’s mind was consumed by hope he had desperately forced himself to believe in.

Roderick looked directly at the throne and shouted,

“You wicked spawn of evil! Return to your homeland—to Hell!”

Mapheltan let out an incredulous laugh.

“What did you say?”

At that moment, Roderick’s necklace released a brilliant light.

The radiance enveloped Mapheltan.

He vanished in an instant.

Left alone, Roderick crawled toward the throne on all fours.

He climbed into the seat of honor and shouted,

“This is my seat! No one shall dare covet it!”

His hollow laughter echoed throughout the empty great hall.

Mapheltan looked around the peculiar space.

Enormous bookcases and experimental equipment filled his surroundings.

‘Ilea would lose her mind over a place like this.’

All manner of books lined the shelves.

There were as many forbidden tomes here as in the baronial family’s underground study.

Mapheltan absentmindedly pulled out one of the books.

The pitch-black book was tightly wrapped in iron chains.

Just as he was about to tear away the seal, an unfamiliar voice reached him.

“As expected of the Lord of Ten Thousand Demons. You immediately recognized that book’s value.”

Mapheltan stared straight ahead.

A woman dressed entirely in white was slowly approaching him. Ilea was beside her.

Ilea spoke playfully.

“You told me not to lay a finger on it, yet you treat him completely differently. Isn’t that a little unfair?”

Lumina gave her a dismissive look.

“Do you think you’re equal to the great Apostle of the End? Stop complaining and watch my ascension carefully.”

Mapheltan’s expression twisted.

“What exactly is all this?”

Ilea briefly summarized everything that had happened.

After hearing the full explanation, Mapheltan sank into thought.

‘Lumina.’

Archmage Lumina was not a particularly important character.

She had appeared only very briefly in the original story.

In truth, he could barely remember the episode involving her.

‘Was she the Archmage whom Muel used and then discarded?’

She was not an important character in the slightest.

Mapheltan was far more interested in Muel than in Lumina.

He stared intently at her.

The moment his gaze fell upon Lumina, she bowed her head.

“O Lord of Ten Thousand Demons, everything the witch told you is true. I arranged all of this because I wished to meet you.”

Mapheltan replied calmly,

“Muel wishes to establish a connection with me? Where is Muel now?”

Lumina immediately shook her head.

“No. I, Lumina, am the one who wishes to enter into a contract with you. Lord Muel merely showed me the path that would allow me to meet you.”

Mapheltan scoffed.

“Are you saying Muel dared to commit the sacrilege of dragging me into this for the sake of advancing someone as insignificant as you?”

Lumina was visibly shaken.

“S-Someone as insignificant as me? What do you mean by...?”

Ilea looked at Lumina with pity.

“Lady Lumina, I told you, didn’t I? Your advancement would probably be difficult.”

Lumina had employed several schemes to arrange a meeting with Mapheltan.

From Mapheltan’s perspective, it felt as though he had been ensnared by her design.

It greatly displeased him.

Mapheltan spoke.

“Mortal, I have no intention of associating with you. Summon Muel. I shall speak with him.”

Lumina cried out desperately,

“If you enter into a contract with me, every forbidden tome and treasure in this space—all the cursed objects and holy relics—will become yours. In addition, I will give you all the knowledge I have accumulated throughout the ages...”

Mapheltan chuckled.

Then he abruptly burst into roaring laughter.

“You foolish wench. Do you still not understand? Now that I have entered this place, everything within it already belongs to me. I have no need whatsoever to contract with you.”

Lumina’s pupils trembled violently.

She had never imagined that Mapheltan would react in such a manner.

Lumina muttered,

“N-No. The prophecy couldn’t have been wrong. Why would the Apostle of the End treat me... Why...? Did something go wrong? Where? How?”

Mapheltan’s lips curled into a long smile.

“I shall personally enlighten you. You and this space are nothing more than tribute Muel has presented to me—a sacrifice offered for the privilege of an audience with me. Archmage Lumina, Muel used you. That is all.”

Mapheltan’s conjecture was probably correct.

Demons were beings who bewitched and exploited humans by nature.

Muel was no different.

He had likely used Lumina to establish a point of contact with Mapheltan.

There was no possibility that a Great Demon would directly interfere in the mortal realm merely to facilitate Lumina’s advancement.

Lumina shook her head frantically.

“No! That can’t be true! Lord Muel would never abandon me!”

Long ago, Lumina had been able to hear Muel’s voice from early childhood.

The two of them had been together for an extraordinarily long time.

To Lumina, Muel was a parent, a sibling, and a friend.

They would never betray one another.

That conviction had taken firm root in Lumina’s heart.

Mapheltan frowned irritably.

“Muel, if you are listening to me, show yourself at once. Your servant’s tantrum is becoming exceedingly tiresome.”

Lumina shouted with a venomous expression,

“Lord Muel would never abandon me!”

At that moment, a clear and beautiful voice reverberated throughout the space.

『You have worked hard, my child. It is time for you to rest.』