Chapter 71
The Count’s Domain (1)
Johan left the bedroom and headed straight for the underground study.
Before going to the count’s estate, there was something he needed to check first.
When he appeared in the dim study, Raguel greeted him with a radiant smile.
“Johan!”
Zalkarin also raised both arms in welcome.
“O Great End! This humble one rejoices to see that you have recovered!”
They couldn’t help but worry about Johan.
What had happened the previous night had been incredibly shocking.
Mapheltan had suddenly collapsed, after which countless changes had swept through his body.
His body had expanded and swollen, blood had poured from every orifice, and demonic energy had churned around him. It had looked as though something was going terribly wrong.
Had Myra not explained the situation, the two of them would undoubtedly have caused quite a commotion.
Ilea smiled and spoke.
“I told you, didn’t I? I said he would be perfectly fine.”
Raguel sighed in relief.
“Thank goodness. I thought something terrible had happened.”
Johan said,
“I’m fine. More importantly, Raguel, there’s something I want to check.”
Raguel deliberately opened his eyes wide.
“I’m fine too. I can see clearly, and my whole body is overflowing with strength.”
Johan chuckled.
“Congratulations, but that isn’t what I meant.”
Raguel scratched his head awkwardly.
“Ha-ha. Then what is it?”
Johan pointed toward the round table in the center of the study.
“Activate the Golden Mirror Stone.”
The Golden Mirror Stone was a fragment of the moon, a mineral that recognized those of the Myatro bloodline.
Only when the Golden Mirror Stone reacted would the door to the forbidden library open.
Raguel immediately rushed over to the round table.
“I’ll open it right away.”
He assumed Johan simply had business in the forbidden library, as usual.
After making a small cut on his hand, he touched the Golden Mirror Stone.
Nothing happened.
Raguel appeared extremely flustered.
“W-Why isn’t it...?”
No matter how many times he placed his palm against it, the result remained the same.
Ilea said,
“It must be a consequence of becoming a High Elf.”
Raguel was no longer a member of the Myatro bloodline.
Johan nodded as though he had expected this.
“It was a good thing I spared Grian.”
Even without Raguel, Johan could use the baron to open the forbidden library whenever he pleased.
Ilea stared silently at Johan before speaking.
“The decision you made back then really did end up serving a practical purpose.”
She had thought Johan had spared Baron Grian because of his affection for Raguel.
Although Johan had not denied it at the time, he had said that his decision might also prove useful in practical terms.
His words had now become reality.
If he had killed Grian that day, accessing the forbidden library would have become difficult from now on.
Johan playfully raised the corner of his mouth.
“Do you see now? If you just listen to me, good fortune will fall into your lap.”
Ilea’s eyes curved into a gentle smile.
“I’ll obey you, so please accept me as your believer.”
Johan cleared his throat.
“You’re persistent. Go and fetch Gaf.”
Ilea puffed out her cheeks slightly, pretending to sulk.
“How cruel. You only ever order me around.”
The moment she finished speaking, heavy footsteps echoed through the study.
A familiar voice followed.
“There’s no need. I’m already here.”
It was Gaf.
He descended into the study and stopped in front of Johan.
Johan said,
“Good timing. It was urgent. There’s something I need to tell you.”
An inexplicable sense of foreboding flashed across Gaf’s face.
“What is it this time?”
“I intend to leave the castle again for a few days. I’m sorry, but I’ll have to ask you to continue looking after the territory.”
Gaf was effectively managing all the territory’s internal affairs by himself.
“That’s unlike you. Since when have you ever asked me so politely?”
“There’s one more thing. Starting today, begin training to open your energy channels.”
The energy channels were the pathways through which aura flowed.
Gaf’s expression twisted slightly.
“You already know, don’t you? My dantian has been destroyed.”
His body was no longer capable of wielding aura. In the past, a demon in the eastern region had taken his dantian from him.
Johan said,
“I’m going to retrieve it.”
Gaf was powerful even now, but when he had been able to use aura, he had truly been a monster.
He had possessed enough strength to face dozens of knights alone. Johan desperately needed a comrade with that kind of power.
Johan and Mapheltan were gradually moving onto the main stage of this world. Inevitably, the enemies they would face would only grow stronger. Johan needed to build a force capable of standing against them.
Gaf was trustworthy enough to become his comrade.
They had built up a certain degree of mutual trust, and Gaf possessed considerable potential.
Gaf asked with a puzzled expression,
“...How are you going to restore my dantian?”
“There’s a way. You only need to concentrate on your training.”
Only by opening his energy channels in advance could Gaf achieve maximum efficiency once his dantian was restored.
Gaf silently studied Johan’s face.
Johan remained expressionless. He didn’t appear to be making an empty boast. Besides, he had always kept his word.
He would probably retrieve the dantian exactly as he claimed.
At some point, Gaf had developed a strange sense of faith in Johan.
Gaf let out a quiet laugh.
“Should I be thanking you?”
Johan shook his head.
“I’m only doing it because I need you. Just make sure you fulfill your role.”
Raguel cautiously chimed in.
“Th-That’s right. You should repay Johan’s help through your actions.”
Gaf’s gaze shifted toward Raguel.
He visibly flinched.
“Y-Young Master...?”
Raguel’s eyes were shining with a natural jade-colored light.
The blind boy was nowhere to be found.
He met Gaf’s gaze with clear, focused eyes.
Raguel spoke with an awkward expression.
“That’s how things turned out. It’s all thanks to Johan.”
Johan chuckled.
“Gaf, aren’t you a little slow on the uptake?”
Gaf couldn’t hide his shock.
“How in the world did this happen?!”
Raguel scratched his head.
“W-Well, if I explain from the beginning...”
Johan interrupted him.
“I’ll be going now. You two can finish the conversation yourselves.”
He turned and walked away.
Ilea immediately followed after him.
Zalkarin hurried over and shouted,
“O-O Great End! This humble one shall accompany you!”
Johan shook his head.
“Stay with Raguel. If you follow me, you won’t survive.”
A count’s castle was not a place where a lowly evil spirit could wander freely.
Zalkarin’s shoulders drooped.
“...As you command.”
***
Johan immediately spurred his horse onward.
His destination was the Staviana family’s direct domain in the central region of the kingdom.
It was quite far away.
Although they rode throughout the day, they did not even make it halfway to the count’s domain.
They would have to devote several days solely to traveling.
Having to stop whenever the sun set made their journey extremely inefficient.
He couldn’t roam through the central region in his demonic form.
The central region was different from the south.
Anti-demon surveillance systems could be found everywhere. There were also countless churches, dioceses, and monasteries.
If he openly flew through the sky, he would inevitably find a subjugation force chasing after him.
That would be extremely troublesome.
Though he didn’t like it, they had no choice but to settle down on a nearby mountain for the night.
Sitting on a rock at the foot of a wooded mountain, Johan spoke.
“I’d like to travel at night starting tomorrow. Is there no way to make that possible?”
Ilea sat opposite him.
“There is magic that can conceal our presence, but it would carry some risk. Particularly sensitive priests can detect even that.”
He had no desire to assume such risks simply to travel more quickly.
Johan clicked his tongue.
“I suppose we’ll simply have to travel harder during the day.”
A mysterious smile appeared on Ilea’s face.
“You never know. Perhaps ‘Mapheltan’ has acquired an Authority related to that.”
“What do you mean?”
Ilea pointed toward the sky.
“Why don’t you see for yourself?”
The sun had completely disappeared below the horizon.
Darkness descended upon the mountain.
Black mist enveloped Johan’s figure.
At the same time, a pair of red eyes flashed.
Mapheltan immediately sensed that something was strange.
“...What is this?”
His body was nowhere to be seen.
Only his red eyes floated in the air.
Ilea said,
“I was a little surprised yesterday too.”
It was as though he had merged with the night. Nothing below his head possessed any discernible form.
Mapheltan immediately closed his eyes.
When even the red glow disappeared, his presence vanished completely.
There was nothing there.
Countless lines of text appeared before Mapheltan’s eyes.
One newly acquired Authority captured his attention.
Sinking Night.
It was the power to submerge himself within the night.
Sinking Night was different from mere invisibility. His very existence sank into the darkness.
No one could perceive Mapheltan.
Not even the witch could find him.
Mapheltan deactivated Sinking Night and spoke.
“You must have had a difficult time.”
“Yes. You suddenly disappeared, after all. In the end, I had to wait until morning.”
It was an extremely satisfying Authority with a great deal of potential.
“You did well. Nothing else seems to have changed.”
“Would you like to touch your forehead?”
Mapheltan raised a hand to his forehead.
There were now two horns.
That meant the very rank of his existence had risen.
All of his Authorities must have advanced by one stage.
In particular, the efficiency of his Commandments had likely improved tremendously.
Mapheltan raised the corner of his mouth.
“Ilea, I truly believe I made the right choice by bringing you with me. I’ll find some way to reward you.”
Ilea’s contribution to his latest growth had been considerable.
Her eyes curved into a smile.
“Then will you accept me as your believer?”
Mapheltan rose to his feet.
“Let’s go. There’s no need to delay any longer.”
“You can be rather infuriating.”
Mapheltan’s figure disappeared in an instant.
His voice came from the empty air.
“Hurry up before I leave you behind.”
Ilea released a long sigh.
“I suppose I have no choice but to follow.”
She, too, soared into the night sky.
***
The Staviana family’s direct domain boasted a size and grandeur comparable to the royal capital.
A massive river cut through the city, branching into dozens of canals that spread across the entire domain.
Merchant vessels from all over the continent poured in along those waterways. The wealth accumulated through trade and taxation towered as high as the walls surrounding the domain.
Instead of the scent of earth, the air here was filled with the smells of iron, spices, and metal.
At night, the lights of hundreds of ships lined up along the river glittered like constellations. During the day, endless crowds and carriages made the earth tremble.
Money and power flowed like water here, but the direction of that current was always determined by the count’s hand.
The eagle-emblazoned banners fluttering throughout the city were proof of that.
Gazing upon such dazzling prosperity, Ilea smiled.
“Johan, you’ve brought me somewhere quite fascinating.”
“I knew you would like it.”
They were looking down at the domain from a hill on the opposite side.
Ilea said,
“I think the count and I would get along rather well. I wonder what price he paid for all of this.”
Beneath the scent of wealth and power lingered a faint stench.
Among the laughing, chattering crowds, figures bearing predatory smiles could be seen.
Malice that could not be concealed flowed through the canals alongside the gold.
It was impossible to deceive a witch’s eyes.
Johan said,
“Let’s find out.”
“Before that, may I ask you for one favor?”
“Go ahead.”
Considering how much he had received from her, he intended to grant any reasonable request.
“If I find one I like, I want to keep it.”
He could happily give her that much.
“Do as you please.”
“Thank you.”
They headed directly toward the drawbridge.
Even now, countless processions were entering the domain.