The Great Mage Returns after 4000 Years – Chapter 161 – Proof (1)
Translator: Seven
Editors: Ana_Banana, Yahiko
‘It’s a pity I can’t use Ghost.’
It was the most effective spell for infiltrating and moving around unnoticed, but the fatal disadvantage was that it left your body defenseless.
The Blake family residence had been a dangerous place, but this place was on a completely different level.
This was in the heart of enemy territory.
Frey decided to go in person.
There was a higher chance of being caught, but it would be much easier to deal with any emergency situations.
‘Before that.’
Frey put on the crying face mask he’d obtained from Hector that time. Not only did it hide his identity, it also had the effect of suppressing his mana and erasing his aura.
After he was fully prepared, Frey entered the castle.
And his eyes soon lit up.
‘The guard perimeter is much tighter in here than the one outside.’
Infiltrating Al-Tarha had been so easy that he could have done it in his sleep.
The guards watching over the entrance were so relaxed that anyone would be able to break into the city if one wanted to.
But this castle was different.
Those who stood on the walls were all skilled fighters, and there were even patrol teams deployed to protect the castle more efficiently.
‘There must be something here for this castle to be guarded to such an extent.’
Frey observed these guards.
Then, he realised something else. Security was much tighter at the bottom than it was at the top.
This meant that whatever was being hidden, was below the castle.
‘Why do they all like the underground so much.’
Frey inwardly clicked his tongue as he recalled his previous experiences, but that didn’t mean he didn’t understand.
The basement was a good place to hide something. It was an enclosed space, and there was only one entrance.
These two facts meant that not only was it difficult for intruders to break in, but even if they did, it would be hard for them to stay hidden.
It would also be hard to escape after being caught there.
Of course, all of these facts were irrelevant to Frey, who could cast the Warp spell in an instant.
“…”
Frey stopped just as he was about to head down the basement stairs, observing the dark entrance with narrowed eyes.
Perhaps it was because of the setting, but that place felt ominous like a Devil’s waiting mouth.
‘No.’
It wasn’t just a feeling.
Frey could sense a powerful divine power coming from below.
He hadn’t realised until he’d gotten closer. The aura of divine power covered the entirety of Silkid, including Al-Tarha and even this very castle.
However, the divine power he was sensing from this basement far exceeded the divine power in any other part of Al-Tarha.
In other words, Frey had made the right decision.
Frey lifted himself off the ground with the Fly spell, and then he disappeared using Invisibility.
The mana consumption was immense, but it was the safest method.
There was no one at the end of the basement stairs, only an old wooden door.
As if the strict security that he had seen so far was a lie, there wasn’t even a single guard deployed in this place.
But Frey was unable to go any further. He just stared at the ground in front of him. It was as though there was an invisible wall in front of him.
‘Up till here.’
If he moved even one step closer, he’d be discovered.
Frey’s eyes turned to the door.
He could hear a faint conversation coming from within.
* * *
The offices for Al-Tarha’s castle were located underground, and very few people were allowed to enter and leave this place.
The owner of this office was a frail man who was sitting behind a desk and browsing through some documents.
He slowly looked up at the man who’d come to report to him.
This man had a large, well-trained body that was covered in many scars. He also had yellow gauntlets, which wrapped around his large fists.
This was Porto, the Guardian Warrior of Al-Tarha.
“I hung the bodies in the square as you ordered.”
“Were there any who protested against that?”
“There were.”
“Capture and execute them.”
“Understood.”
The man nodded.
“Go back now.”
“Yes, Lord Milled.”
This weak man was none other than Milled, who had become the de facto leader of Al-Tarha in a month.
Moreover, if anyone were to have seen this scene, one would’ve been lost for words.
Milled couldn’t even become a lieutenant because of his status as an outsider. But the Guardian Warrior was being extremely courteous to this man.
What was even more surprising was the fact that Milled was acting like this was natural.
Porto bowed once again before leaving the room.
Milled looked at his back for a moment before lowering his head once again to the documents.
Porto slowly climbed up the steps.
The sun was setting, and the sky was becoming dark. He then stretched with a frown.
“Kuh. I’m tired.”
He was always tired, but he felt especially so at that moment.
Porto headed home without bothering to make any additional stops. He closed the door and sighed heavily.
He decided to drink a glass of beer then fall asleep while clinging to the blissful feeling that accompanied it.
There was no work to be done in the morning, so he should be able to enjoy a good night’s sleep for the first time in a long while.
But Porto wouldn’t drink enough to get drunk. He would have just enough to get a pleasant feeling so that he would be able to fall asleep quickly.
Crack.
“…ugh!”
Suddenly, a hand stretched out from the darkness and grabbed his head violently.
Right then, Porto felt as though he had been struck in the head by a thunderbolt, and his body slumped over.
“…”
Then Frey showed up.
He’d waited at the top of the stairs, and when Porto came out of the office, he followed him home.
Frey pulled a chair over and sat Porto down on it. Then, he stimulated his brain so that he would become semi-conscious.
Porto would certainly have a strong mind. Much stronger than the guard he’d dealt with earlier that day.
So he could only pick apart his mind after stunning him.
“Who are you?”
Porto responded with a blank look in his eyes.
“…I’m Porto, the Guardian Warrior of Al-Tarha.”
“Porto, was it your choice for this city to surrender?”
“…that’s right.”
“For what reason?”
“…there was nothing I could do to protect the people of this city.”
He had the same response as Sarman.
It seemed he thought fighting against the Demigods was no different from suicide.
‘He’s much worse than Sarman.’
In particular, it seemed this man had some part to play in the establishment of the subjugation team to keep Ivan in check and the execution of the rebels.
Frey thought about the bodies in the square.
He thought about just killing Porto right then, but he decided to ask him some more questions.
“What if you had partners? Would you not change your mind, even if someone who could threaten the Demigods agreed to help you?”
“…that’s right. I would not.”
Porto responded without hesitation.
It seems his thoughts were different from Sarman’s.
Frey’s expression became strange.
“Because you guys can never beat the Demigods.”
It was a clear voice that responded.
Naturally, it wasn’t Porto’s.
Frey turned around and found a weak looking man standing there.
It was Milled.
Frey immediately got up from his seat.
“…how are you here…?”
“I knew you were snooping around outside. But it didn’t seem like you were going to come attack me. Your senses are quite sharp. Did you realise I was a Demigod?”
“…”
Right.
He’d guessed that Milled was a Demigod.
Otherwise, the divine power he sensed was inexplicable.
Frey grit his teeth.
“You used Porto as bait?”
“And you fell hook, line, and sinker.”
“I can’t believe you’re pretending to be human… I never would have expected to encounter a Demigod like you…”
“You can’t believe it? Kuku. That’s a rather old way of thinking. Well, I do admit most of my kind hates mortals. And so did I. But time can change a lot of things.”
Milled let out a cold chuckle.
“As time went by, even ugly creatures like you began to look a little cute.”
“…”
“Was the annihilation of Agni’s creatures in Rnei your handiwork? You did a pretty good job, Wizard. It’s quite hard to eliminate that many creatures.”
“I don’t understand. You guys are supposed to be searching for Agni’s Apostle right now. Can you still afford to manage a city like this?”
“Hoh. It seems you’re quite aware.”
Milled shrugged.
“Because there are enough of us doing that. There are already three of my kind actively chasing after the Phoenix. The last trace was found in ‘Nempatal’, so we should be able to find her trail soon.”
Milled then raised his hand.
“Well, that’s enough small talk. Wizards are the most annoying to fight. And you’re a 9 star Wizard, the most annoying of all. If I kill you here, I’m sure Lord would be very pleased.”
“…kuk!”
Shuk.
Frey’s figure disappeared.
“Warp? Do you think you can escape?”
Paht.
Milled also disappeared.
He sensed the reverberation of mana left behind by Frey and immediately followed it.
He hadn’t run far away.
Milled couldn’t directly jump to other countries like Lord or the Apocalypses, but this much was fine.
Shuk.
There was no need for him to search. Frey was standing in the middle of the desert.
Milled let out a dirty laugh.
“Did you realise running away is futile? Right. I’ll send you off comfortably as a reward for not being a pain.”
Frey didn’t respond.
Milled, who was smiling, narrowed his eyes at him.
Then a calm voice sounded out.
“I didn’t expect it to work so well.”
“…what?”
What was he talking about all of a sudden?
The previously revealed panic was now nowhere to be found.
Instead, Frey was staring at Milled with a cold gaze.
“I knew the range of your detection ability in the basement from the start. But I stepped into it on purpose. Why do you think I did that?”
Milled’s expression changed.
“Are you saying you purposely revealed yourself to me? Ha! That’s bullshit. Why would you do something like tha-”
“To lure you out.”
It wasn’t a gamble.
Frey had been convinced that there was only one Demigod around, Milled.
There was no way that multiple Demigods would be deployed to watch over such a small, unimportant city.
It wasn’t just that.
This arrogant being had even given Frey the information that he wanted.
Nix’s location and the fact that there were at least five Demigods currently in Silkid.
“Thank you so much for moving as I intended.”
“A mortal actually dares to mock me.”
Unbearable anger was clearly visible on Milled’s face.
On the other hand, Frey appeared to be as calm as a lake.
This sight made Milled even angrier, but he forcibly and desperately calmed himself down before looking around.
“You didn’t set a trap. No one else is here. This means you intend to fight me alone.”
“That’s right.”
Milled’s expression became strange as he heard Frey’s murmur.
“…9 stars. The final step that a mortal can reach. Right, after making this step, you probably feel like you’ve reached the sky. But you should’ve been more careful.”
There had never been a time when Frey didn’t move carefully. He always searched for the most optimal solution.
He didn’t believe every choice he made was right, but he tried his best to make the best possible decision at every moment.
This time was a far cry from his match with Apep.
At that time, Frey had help from Sheryl and even borrowed Asura’s power in the end.
Only
But this time was different.
He had no partner, and he had no intentions of using Asura’s power.
Nevertheless, he felt no uncertainty or anxiety.
In fact, he was rather calm.
‘I have to prove it.’
He would defeat this Demigod on his own.
(TL: This part felt a bit prideful to me, but I suppose from a certain perspective it was understandable. We also got a brief glimpse into the power scheme of this world. It seems that although 9 star Wizards are the pinnacle, they’re not too much of a threat to the Demigods. Or at least not to the point of instilling fear. Of course, there is also the possibility that Milled is a level above common Demigods but below Apocalypses – since he could do the transfer thing to follow Frey. But a lot of things are still unclear.)