Chapter 158: An Orc Instead of an Ogre (2)

Kai, an agent of the Imperial Special Task Force, received an unexpected report from his collaborator.

“Keter appeared at the orchard?”

A week ago, Keter had made a one-sided promise to Kai: that he would lure Eslow to a secluded orchard. Of course, he didn’t believe Keter, but he still deployed personnel to the orchard just in case.

If Keter really brings Eslow there, it’s a win. If not, I lose nothing.

But the next day came without any news. Kai paid no attention to it and went about his duties. Two, three, then four days passed. Then, finally, his long-absent partner, Ailos, appeared.

“No trouble while I was gone?”

Ailos casually sat down next to Kai, who was sipping coffee at a cafe terrace.

Kai took a sip and replied, “With the operation so close, was it really necessary to jeopardize our mutual trust?”

He was calm, but he was surely expressing his anger.

“Ahaha! Sorry for leaving without notice. But I had good reason.”

“I cannot overlook it. You’ll need to prove it.”

“You’re so nitpicky. I borrowed something from the Godfather. Is that proof enough?”

“Too vague. It’s missing all the key details. What did you borrow, and why?”

“I couldn’t persuade Keter. So I borrowed the Dark Pages to deal with him.”

“...!”

Kai’s eyes widened. Only a select few in the world even know what the Dark Pages were. While artifacts were widely known as the most powerful tools, it wasn’t true. Artifacts could elevate a person to the pinnacle of human power, but it wasn’t sufficient to stand against divine power.

What surpassed even these were the Five Divine Relics—tools capable of slaying gods, and even surpassing them. Because of their overwhelming power, the Transcendentals who knew of their existence have long monitored and counterbalanced each other to prevent any from being fully assembled. As a result, unlike artifacts that wield power alone, the Five Divine Relics were fragmented into pieces.

What Ailos referred to as the Dark Pages was a fragment of the Dark Tome, which was one of five books required to create the Necronomicon, one of the Five Divine Relics.

The Necronomicon, a magic book that can kill even death itself. The Godfather of Liqueur had a part of it?

Kai rubbed his forehead. Merely recognizing the Necronomicon could corrupt the mind. A normal person would go insane just from knowing its name, but Kai, a specially-trained operative with mental defenses, endured.

“If you tell me the name of the Dark Page, our trust can be restored.”

Kai still didn’t trust Ailos. The surest proof would be summoning the document, but if that happened, Eslow would sense it, and that would mean full-scale war. Eslow would come in person to retrieve it. As such, Kai asked for the document’s name. Each one of the Dark Pages had a specific title. If Ailos knew it, it would prove ownership. Of course, he could choose to hide it, as every nation watched the relics’ whereabouts carefully.

“It’s called the Silent Dark Page. Will you believe me now?”

“...Hm!”

It matched one of the names Kai knew. The exact abilities were unknown, but the name alone was real.

I would love to ask what it can do... but that would be greedy.

For now, the priority was killing Eslow, not the whereabouts of the Five Divine Relics. More importantly, Ailos had said he brought it to use against Keter.

“Keter is such a threat that you need to use a Dark Page against him?”

Kai had seen Keter. He had even assessed his divinity, but he was certain that the Dark Pages weren't necessary to kill Keter.

Ailos smiled and said, “Sounds like you’ve met him.”

“Not intentionally, but yes, we spoke. He already knew about our plans. Did you tell him?”

“I did. Though I didn’t expect him to meddle this much. But anyway, what did you think of him?”

“He was impulsive.”

“Don’t be fooled by that.”

Ailos didn’t expect Kai to believe him. No one ever did, not until they experienced Keter for themselves. Even so, he gave the warning because they were partners.

“...?”

“In your opinion, what percentage of his power do you think Keter used in the tournament?”

“Judging by his attitude, I know it wasn’t his full power. Still, he was sweating and breathing hard during combat. Biologically, that suggests he used at least seventy percent of his strength.”

“Seventy percent... Haha!”

Ailos wagged his finger side to side, and Kai frowned.

In the Lillian Kingdom, all five-star Masters were called Masters, but in the Samael Empire, there were rankings to them: Low, Intermediate, Upper, and Ultimate.

Kai had classified the current tournament Masters like this: Pashian was a Low Master, Henya was an Intermediate Master, Rajis and Keter were Upper Masters, and Norman was an Ultimate Master. Though subjective, Kai’s judgment rarely failed, maybe only a handful of times out of hundreds.

“Keter always hides more than he shows. And even what I know probably isn’t all there is. He is strong, but that’s not all there is to him.”

Kai, feeling frustrated by Ailos’s evasiveness, set down his cup and laced his fingers together.

“Even if he’s a Grandmaster, it doesn’t matter.”

“It will matter.”

“...”

“But don’t worry. I know Keter better than you do. I won’t let my guard down.”

“Let’s make something clear. Do you believe Keter will interfere with our plan? Do you see him as an obstacle?”

“If you view Keter like that, you will never be able to handle him.”

Ailos’ automatically smiled at the mere mention of Keter.

He added, “Keter is the kind of person who calculates gains without calculating, who takes risks without taking them, who seems understandable yet is not... That’s the kind of person he is.”

* * *

On his way to the orchard, the meeting place promised by Keter, Kai recalled the conversation he had with Ailos.

He muttered to himself, “If he’s someone who could trouble the empire, I’d better cut him now at the bud while I still can.”

There was no one around the orchard, and only two people were inside.

Keter hadn’t actually lured Eslow here. According to Kai’s informant, Keter had come to the orchard, but he hadn’t brought Eslow with him. Keter had broken his promise, but Kai was here now for one reason only: to eliminate Keter.

Just one Homunculus should be more than enough to kill him, but...

A Homunculus equipped with level four magic tools could overwhelm even a six-star Grandmaster. Had it not been for his conversation with Ailos, Kai would’ve only brought one unit, but...

Ailos... I’ll humor your nonsense just this once.

So, instead of one, Kai had brought four Homunculi with him. It showed his resolve to eliminate all variables and ensure Keter’s death.

This is the place.

The orchard at the west gate was desolate, and two individuals stood out in stark contrast to the empty landscape.

Keter waved his hand in the air as if cheerfully greeting Kai. Beside him stood a tall man radiating a cold, sharp energy. Even without the empire’s intelligence network, there was no one who wouldn’t recognize the man standing next to Keter.

“Jeffrey Edmund. Heh,” chuckled Kai, whose emotions had long disappeared.

It was the first time in seven years he had laughed; that was how absurd this was to him.

Crunch. Crunch.

Kai walked toward Keter and glanced around briefly.

“I’ve come as you asked, but where is His Grace?”

It was a reprimand, asking why he hadn’t kept his promise. However, Keter showed no trace of guilt.

In fact, Keter was actually quite nonchalant as he replied, “He went on a trip. I’m not sure where. Didn’t really feel like finding him, so...”

Keter placed a hand on Jeffrey’s shoulder.

“...I brought this guy instead. It’s like an orc instead of an ogre, you know?”

“An orc instead of an ogre.” It was a proverb implying that, while orcs and ogres differed significantly in size and intelligence, they both had green skin and could be mistaken for one another from a distance.

Both Jeffrey and Kai spoke at nearly the same time.

“So this is the man trying to harm His grace?”

“You expect a mere division captain to stand in for His Grace himself?”

They glared at each other in silence. A conversation required at least one side to concede something, but neither of them had any intention of doing that.

“Jeffrey Edmund, thirty-two years old, the eldest son of Baron Srandy of western Lillian Kingdom, the division captain of the twenty-second division of the Order of the Immortal Knights, and a six-star Grandmaster. You will die here.”

“You did not deny my claim that you aim to harm His Grace, thus, I’ll take that as an admission of guilt and execute you.”

Their words overlapped so much that they were nearly incomprehensible. But one thing was unmistakably clear: hostility and killing intent.

Shwing!

Jeffrey drew his sword and glared at Keter.

“Lord Keter. To lure me into a trap like this... I’ll have to hold you accountable as well.”

It was a warning, and Jeffrey always followed through on his words. However, Keter remained unfazed.

“Did I lie? It’s true that there is someone trying to harm His Grace, and it’s also true that you have to face him alone, without backup.” Keter walked toward Kai, continuing, “Mr. Spy. I’m right, aren’t I? You only came because it’s just the two of us here. If there had been more people, you wouldn’t have shown up.”

Kai thought Keter was a fool. If not, there was no way he could be this oblivious.

“Lord Keter. Did you really think you could deceive me and walk away alive? You’ll die here, too.”

Snap!

Kai snapped his fingers. Without a sound, something dropped from the sky. It was the Homunculus, a biological weapon from the empire created to assassinate Eslow, one of the Four Lords.

The Homunculus looked exactly like a human boy. With sky-blue hair, bright blue eyes, and lively skin, it seemed human. Yet, it radiated an uncanny, unsettling aura that made it unmistakably inhuman.

“Kill them.”

Kai issued the command, unwilling to waste another word. As soon as he finished, a massive surge of aura erupted from the Homunculus. The air thickened as the dense aura filled the space, dominating it entirely. The sheer quantity of aura exceeded the level of a Master and reached that of a Grandmaster.

Keter and Jeffrey both fell silent.

“...”

Humans were wired to feel fear when faced with the unknown; it was both natural and an effective survival mechanism. But some people were broken, and Keter and Jeffrey were among them. Even in this situation, they remained calm.

“Do you see that smug look on the imperial agent’s face, Sir Jeffrey? Make sure he regrets it.”

“...To think a creature like that entered the city unnoticed. I’ve failed His Grace.”

Fwoosh!!!

Aura flames surged from Jeffrey. A two-meter-long Aura Sword extended from his sword. The Homunculus, meanwhile, didn’t summon a sword. It didn’t need one, as the aura surrounding its entire body was a weapon in itself.

Boom! Crack!

In the blink of an eye, Jeffrey and the Homunculus clashed, but Jeffrey was the one pushed back.

Crack!!

Jeffrey skidded backward helplessly. Wearing the form of a human, the Homunculus showed no expression as it relentlessly drove Jeffrey back.

Crash!! Whoosh!

The Homunculus simply swung its arms, but those arms held lasers of aura. This was also known as sword aura, which was capable of slicing orichalcum, the hardest metal that existed, in half.

Jeffery was a Grandmaster and could also use sword aura, but he countered with just his Aura Sword as he was still surveying the creature. He compensated for the gap in power and speed with sheer skill.

After all, no matter how overwhelming an attack, without technique, it was meaningless. That was the doctrine of martial logic. And following that logic, Jeffrey blocked every strike with relative ease, until...

Squelch!

...the Homunculus’s claw grazed him and tore a massive chunk out of his shoulder. A moment ago, it had only been using brute force, but now, the Homunculus had seamlessly woven in martial technique.

Bleeding, Jeffrey countered by summoning an Aura Sword in his left hand and swinging at the Homunculus’ wrist to sever it.

Clang clang clang!

“...!”

Unlike the Homunculus’ claws, which pierced Jeffrey’s Aura Armor with ease, his Aura Sword couldn’t do the same. Despite being able to slice through steel like butter, the sword did nothing to the Homunculus’ skin, which looked as soft as any human’s. All that came from it was a dull scraping noise.

Thud!

Jeffrey pushed the Homunculus back with a front kick. Blood dripped steadily from his shoulder. The Homunculus, meanwhile, was unscathed, except for a tiny scratch on his wrist.

Watching this, Kai smiled slightly.

As expected. Even without magic tools, the Homunculus overwhelms a Grandmaster.

And this was just one. Kai had seven more. He now felt certain: these weapons would be more than enough to kill Eslow.

He must be feeling hopeless by now.

Kai glanced at Keter. He had to admit, he was impressed Keter hadn’t tried to run.

“...What?”

However, Keter was munching on some biscuits he had somehow brought while watching the battle like it was a show.

What the hell? That composure... It’s not a bluff.

That air of calm around Keter wasn’t fake; it was genuine. From his face to his posture, everything was authentically relaxed. It was as if he truly believed Jeffrey would win.

But the tide of battle clearly favored the Homunculus, and this was only the first of four. Even if Jeffrey had a hidden trump card, there was no way he could take down two more.

Then, Keter said, “I thought long and hard about this.”

“...”

Kai didn’t reply. His attention was fixed on the fight between Jeffrey and the Homunculus. But Keter continued to monologue, as he always did.

“When I heard Eslow was gone, I figured there was no other choice. I didn’t know where he went, didn’t feel like finding him, and thought I would just have to deal with it myself.”

Keter pointed at Jeffrey and continued, “But that guy turned out to be better than expected. I figured he could show you Lord Eslow’s power well enough. If your precious living weapon can’t beat him, you’ll have to admit it—there’s no way it could kill Lord Eslow.”

Kai didn’t answer. The Homunculus was still dominating the fight. It wouldn’t be surprising if Jeffrey’s head went flying any second now.

That was when...

Splat!

Something round shot into the air. There was only one round thing on the human body—the head. Backlit by the sun, it was hard to tell whose it was, but Kai felt certain it had to be Jeffrey’s. Keter, on the other hand, still seemed relaxed, as if he believed it was the Homunculus’

Thud.

The head hit the ground and rolled. It was, indeed, Jeffrey’s.

Keter scratched the back of his head.

“...So he actually died, huh.”