Chapter 282: How to Protect What Is Precious (6)

The circle system of magic was so easy that if the instructions were followed, even a monkey could use magic. This was possible because the circle system defined what magic was and expressed it through formulas and numbers.

On the other hand, the embodiment system of magic was different. It was often called the primordial magic, as it was cast from only three things: belief, imagination, and mana. As such, it was entirely possible for a spell to electrocute someone when they opened the note.

The lightning Keter embedded in the note was strong enough to kill a human instantly and even knock out an ogre, but that only mattered if it actually hit. When the lightning struck Nila, it scattered in all directions and naturally dissipated. Around Nila’s body was a telekinetic shield composed of an external force, which was what deflected the lightning.

She wasn’t wearing it because she distrusted Keter; it was simply a barrier she kept active at all times.

Nila glanced at Katherine’s expression. If Katherine had knowingly handed her something so dangerous, she planned to reprimand her severely, but it was clear she had no idea. Even so, Katherine neither apologized nor made excuses.

Quite the loyal subordinate he has.

If Keter truly intended to kill Nila, he wouldn’t have used something this roundabout. As such, embedding lightning in the note likely served two purposes.

If I fainted, he would bring me for a talk, and if I blocked it, he would see how powerful I was.

All the risk fell on Katherine, the one delivering the note. She could have died on the spot, and she certainly understood that. However, her expression didn’t change, showing that she didn’t mind even if that happened.

“Annoying as it is, it seems I have no choice but to yield.”

Nila checked the contents of the note. According to her foresight, her life would hinge upon this decision.

Katherine had been tense earlier, but now she watched Nila with pure curiosity, wondering what the note said. Nila’s eyes moved only twice as she read it, so all Katherine could tell was that the note wasn’t long.

Maybe something like: “If you don’t want to die, surrender! That does sound like something he would do...

Katherine quietly stepped behind Nila, hoping to sneak a look, but...

“Ha.”

Nila folded the note with a small laugh. Katherine let out a sigh of disappointment, unable to read it.

“What did it say?” Katherine asked casually.

Nila’s answer was completely different from what Katherine expected.

“Tell Keter... I accept.”

Before Katherine could respond, Nila vanished in a swirl of light, just as silently as her appearance.

Katherine was left perplexed. “What was written on there...?”

𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

She pondered a moment, then hurried back to the surface, realizing she was still in the middle of a war deep in enemy territory.

* * *

In a secluded area behind the Bydent rear encampment, Nether sat on the ground, pulling something from his pocket. It was a single hand-rolled cigarette, worn from handling.

“I quit smoking...”

Yet, he still put it to his nose. The smell was harsh but strangely addictive.

“Cheap on the outside, but the leaf inside is top-grade.”

As a former heavy smoker, Nether could judge the quality from scent alone. This was unquestionably premium tobacco, the kind used in cigars in the Samael Empire. And it was a cigarette Keter had given him when Nether had stabbed his sword into Keter’s chest.

“If your body is dull, your mind has to work twice as hard...” Nether muttered weakly as he held the cigarette in his mouth and searched his pockets.

“Great. He gives me the cigarette but not the fire...”

Right then, his communication bracelet vibrated. It was a call from one of his subordinates.

—Boss, just as you predicted, Sefira has crushed Bydent’s vanguard and is heading north. Should we deploy the Tiger Unit?

The Tiger Unit was the elite force trained and equipped solely to counter Sefira’s archers that was created by the late Volus.

“No need.”

—...Sir?

Nether put the cigarette back into his pocket and said something unbelievable. “It’s a bit early, but I’m retiring.”

—...What? Are you getting senile in your old age? Or is it guilt?

“Are you clueless or mocking me? It’s because of Keter, obviously.”

—But he’s gravely injured from falling for your perfect trap and is being chased by five Grandmasters. What about him?

“That’s all fake. An act! Damn it, you should have seen it.”

—Don’t joke with me. You stabbed him through the heart and injected basilisk venom. Either one should kill a human, but you did both. There’s no way he survived. No way that was acting.

“See? You don’t believe me, but it actually happened.”

Just thinking about it made Nether shiver. He had watched Keter withstand a combined assault from Grandmasters, take two six-circle spells, and even an explosion, before Nether’s sneak attack finally struck. But the moment the sword pierced...

Something’s wrong.

It was his instinct as a swordsman. He had definitely stabbed into flesh, but it didn’t feel like stabbing a human. And the heart, something every seasoned killer could recognize from the distinct resistance, did not catch on the blade. Instead, it felt like piercing fibres made of steel.

Nether tried twisting the blade to inflict fatal damage, but that was when Keter said, “The time is now.”

“...!”

Nether and Keter had once met together with the family heads for a brief conversation. During that meeting, they secretly made a pact with a signal understood only by Solvers.

—A Solver never abandons a contract until death.

Hidden within that phrase was another meaning: if two Solvers ever fight and one overwhelmingly defeats the other, the victor must show mercy to the loser. And in that fight, the overwhelming victor was, of course, Keter—Nether admitted that himself.

“Keter... that bastard is a monster.”

Nether stabbed him, only to find no heart, and the basilisk venom also failed. How could that be called human? In addition, Keter was unharmed by two six-circle spells even while being assaulted by three Grandmasters.

As such, Nether had betrayed Bydent—the story of Keter being gravely wounded was a lie. Thanks to that deception, Rajis and Jordic joined the Grandmasters in chasing the “injured” Keter. Of course, this was not something Nether coordinated with them.

He could have put up this act after killing me if he wanted to.

Keter could have killed him eight times over in the time it took to slip that cigarette into his pocket. Instead, Keter spared him. And in return, Nether willingly played along with Keter’s grand performance. That was the truth behind everything.

—Fine, Keter may be a monster. But we can still crush Sefira, can’t we?

His subordinate wasn’t wrong. Even if Keter was monstrous, Sefira was not. They could lose the battle but win the war.

But Nether shook his head.

“Sefira can be crushed easily. We don’t even need to get involved for that. The problem is Keter. If we crush Sefira, do you think he’ll stay quiet? Do you think he’ll accept defeat and leave? He’ll fight to the end. That’s who he is.”

—With all due respect, Boss... you sound terrified of him.

“You can talk all you want about breathtaking sights, but unless you see it yourself, you’ll never understand. That’s Keter’s strength. I’m a Solver, not a battle-crazed maniac. I know when to walk away.”

—But what about the men who were excited to fight?

“If they want to fight, let them. I won’t have to pay them severance then, so fine by me.”

—You’re actually serious about retiring... Then what about all the strategies we prepared?

Nether had prepared moves all the way up to the final trump card for this war. Even if Bydent were to lose, he had secondary plans in place to ensure that Sefira could never claim victory either.

“I told you. If I leave too messily, Keter will chase me to the end of this world.”

—What about the activated wyvern lure device?

“Throw it somewhere random.”

The wyvern lure device, created by some shady alchemist, emitted pheromones mimicking a female wyvern. Wyverns could smell it from thousands of meters away. Activating it could draw hundreds or thousands of wyverns, destroying an entire city in minutes.

The Samael Empire had purged all such prototypes, but Nether had secretly kept one, having once taken a job for the alchemist and learned of his hidden storeroom. He had planned to use it in the Family War between Bydent and Sefira, but now he had abandoned the idea.

“Keter, you spared me, so I’ll make a clean exit.”

Nether didn’t care about rumors that he, a Solver, had abandoned a request. He could simply get cosmetic surgery and live with a new face. And if the Bydent family—the only ones who might cause trouble over it—ceased to exist, then no one would ever know.

“I’ll live easy from now on. Travel the world a bit.”

But one thing was certain: Nether vowed he would never, under any circumstances, even urinate in the direction of the Lillian Kingdom or Sefira again.

* * *

Five Grandmasters were pursuing Keter, who was supposedly gravely wounded and poisoned.

“Something’s wrong,” murmured Rajis, who had become the de facto leader by circumstance.

Jordic, as if waiting for the cue, quickly added, “It’s been at least ten minutes. How is Keter still alive?”

“And the distance... It feels like we’re closing in, but we never actually do.”

Keter had bled profusely right before fleeing. His face had gone pale, and his running speed had slowed significantly, so much so that they thought they could catch him with just a bit more effort.

Yet Keter remained just barely out of reach, always staying at a distance where their attacks couldn’t land. As they continued the chase, they unknowingly left the southern region entirely and entered an unfamiliar forest.

A chill ran down Jordic’s spine.

“It’s an act. We’ve been lured!”

Jordic abruptly halted, and the other Grandmasters followed. At that instant, Keter, who had been running unsteadily, also stopped. Then, with suddenly steady steps, he approached them first.

“Figured it out?”

Keter flashed a sly smile. Rajis groaned.

“Your wound... healed?”

Keter had suffered an injury that pierced through his chest. Even with proper treatment, surviving such an injury was unlikely, yet he had healed while running. The recovery was so absurd that Rajis and the other Grandmasters broke into a cold sweat despite the deep winter air.

Keter conjured arrows above both hands: it was the Milky Way at its full power. Meanwhile, unlike Keter, who had recovered stamina while fleeing, the Grandmasters were exhausted.

“So, are you going to fight? Or run? You seem split about half and half.”

At Keter’s words, Zion and Tesla trembled. They were the half that wanted to run. But Rajis and Jordic gripped their sword and spear tightly and stepped forward.

“Looks like you’re done running.”

“Yeah. I figured this was a good spot. No spectators, after all,” Keter replied.

“What you just said... it sounds almost like you could have beaten all of us earlier, but didn’t because too many people were watching.”

“That’s right. If I beat you all too easily, my next opponent would probably be one of the Four Lords, and I’d rather postpone fighting them for a while.”

“...”

Not one of them could accuse Keter of arrogance. Only now did they finally realize that Keter never said he would kill them—he said he would win. This meant that he intended to subdue all five Grandmasters.

“...!”

As they all froze in shock, Keter said nothing more; he simply proved it with his actions.