Chapter 108

Posted by Kuze, ? Views, Released on February 6, 2025

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Chapter 108

#108. That House Over There Is Dangerous, So… (2)

The cooldown for Renslett’s traditional festival, the Arctic Expedition, has ended.

Preventive war, pruning, and the highest defense is attack… This expedition was known by many names.

War preparations had already begun last year in High City’s military department.

Elite soldiers serving in Renslett hunted ferocious beasts and monsters across the region and answered this call.

For them, daily life was almost like actual combat, so drills on the training ground were more like a break.

But war isn’t just about mental strength and training.

Logistics, well-funded armaments, and hearty meals all come together to secure victory in war.

Thus, this Arctic expedition was unlike any other prepared in Renslett so far.

High City had never been richer, richer, RICHER!

When that wealth met with my knowledge as an interdimensional warrior, Arad, it created a cheat key that achieved legendary logistics.

“From daggers to armor! Fully equipping the entire army with Northern Cold Iron? This… can’t possibly be a dream, right?”

“Mary, I’ve never seen you this excited before.”

“Huh? Is that so? Ahem!”

“Of course, I understand completely. It’s not just any weapon but Northern Cold Iron after all.”

Before I descended upon this land, there was a technology symbolizing the North alongside reinforced concrete.

By melting steel imbued with the North’s unique cold mana and magic stones using ancient techniques passed down from the golden age, then freezing, alloying, and hammering them over a long period, a steel infused with blue energy would emerge.

That steel was called Northern Cold Iron.

It was the pride of the North, rivaling or even surpassing Imperial Steel.

However, despite its pride, production was notoriously difficult.

To craft just one suit of Northern Cold Iron armor, a master craftsman had to dedicate nearly two months solely to this task.

Because of this, only knights could fully equip themselves with Northern Cold Iron.

For regular soldiers, at best their main weapons were made of Northern Cold Iron, and among elite veterans, only a few used it for chest plates.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

But now, things are different.

CHICK! CHICK! CHICK! CHICK!

Steam engines worked tirelessly.

Smokestacks from factories belched out the smog of industry.

Inside, Northern Cold Iron flowed like water.

This is the North, where iron ore and magic stones are buried like Middle Eastern oil.

All I needed was the physical energy to process these resources.

KANG! KANG! KANG! KANG!

Thus produced, the Northern Cold Iron traveled along assembly lines to be transformed according to purpose.

Sometimes human hands touched the glowing blue steel, but mostly steam-powered machines hammered, flattened, cut, and bent it.

‘I hope the other steel mills finish soon.’

I licked my lips while gazing at the military factory in High City’s industrial zone.

Arad Steel and Arad Defense were scheduled to establish subsidiaries and factories in Remme, Cadia, and Narvik, some having already broken ground.

But until all facilities are complete and spewing steel – which won’t happen for several years – the steel mills and munitions factories existed only in High City’s outskirts and the mining-industrial city of Cadia.

‘Even so, just the steel mills and munitions factories here in High City and Cadia have fully equipped the Arctic Expedition force with Northern Cold Iron.’

Despite this regrettable situation, the military revolution before my eyes was truly miraculous.

‘If all the steel mills are completed, creating a giant knight corps might be possible.’

Thinking naturally of the fully industrialized North made my chest swell with grandeur.

“This expedition is worth looking forward to.”

After touring the steel mill and factory in High City’s industrial zone, I said with a proud smile.

“That’s right. With every soldier in the expedition force fully equipped with Northern Cold Iron like knights… Now the expedition force will fear no battle. Even the northern Orcs armed with Imperial Steel pose no problem.”

Mary enthusiastically agreed with me.

Her waist carried the pure white magical sword I had gifted her previously.

While High City should have exuded resolve and solemnity in the past, preparations for this Arctic expedition were different.

The soldiers and knights training for deployment, and the commoners supporting them from behind, were unusually confident.

“Are there any issues with producing Lian fabrics?”

“Absolutely none!”

“Boots! The most important thing for soldiers is boots! Ensure quality so no one loses toes to frostbite!”

“Of course! Corruption in defense production is absolutely impossible under Quality Management Arad!”

Their source of confidence was none other than the Arad Group.

“Still, the timing is quite peculiar.”

Mary suddenly spoke while walking with me through the industrial zone.

“I thought the Emperor wouldn’t sit idly by with the magic stone standard and the introduction of Rensha. But it’s surprising how perfectly timed this incident occurred.”

“The Mongar Orcs?”

“Yes.”

“Rumors of them gathering in the eastern wastelands have been around for years. Nothing particularly surprising.”

“Even so, the scale and timing of this large invasion are remarkably coincidental.”

Mary continued speaking with lingering excitement.

“Originally, we also planned to pretend to deploy the Arctic expedition force just in case of an Empire invasion.”

“That’s right. We stationed them two days away beyond the Great Northern Wall and planned to adjust our route based on the Empire’s response.”

Understanding history roughly, I feigned surprise and responded to Mary’s words.

“Seems like Lord Renslett is watching over us.”

“It really does seem that way.”

At my words, Mary’s eyes deepened further.

“…”

Staring blankly at her like that, I quickly averted my gaze.

‘Hmph!’

My feelings for Mary had become clear by now.

But since my resolve hasn’t fully formed between Earth and this world, my heart still wanders.

‘Work! WORK!’

Distracting myself from such wandering thoughts and restlessness by focusing on work is currently my best option.

“Anyway, I can finally visit my territory without worry.”

Thanks to the current commotion in the Empire, I don’t have to worry about the south.

I confirmed during my last business trip that Cadia’s mines, steel mills, and munitions factories are running smoothly.

Now, after successfully dispatching the Arctic expedition force…

I feel like I’m going on a real vacation visiting Viscount Jin’s territory.

“Um… Are you not joining the expedition force?”

Mary suddenly asked.

“I don’t enjoy adventuring that much.”

“I see…”

Seeing Mary’s unusually disappointed expression, I inwardly sighed.

‘She probably wants to swing the Cry of the Snowfield. Seeing this, they really do seem like sisters.’

But I couldn’t keep paying attention to her like this.

Otherwise, my heart would start racing again like earlier.

“Urgent report! Urgent report!”

Right at that moment,

Manager Te rushed over hurriedly.

“Just received an urgent message via magic communication device!”

“What is it?”

“The wall! The wall is in danger!”

“Well, that’s because of the Mongar Orcs…”

“No, no! Not that wall, our Great Northern Wall!”

“?!”

Apparently, you shouldn’t mock or exploit others’ misfortunes lightly.

Looks like it’s coming back to haunt us.

Seems our house is about to burn down just like the one below.

* * *

The Empire, the Church, and the Demon Den’s collaborative masterpiece, Haran’s plague operation, ended in failure. Miserably so.

Sigma’s northern network that was just beginning reconstruction had its roots completely uprooted.

And the Demon Den, the continent’s sole group of black wizards hiding in the Magic Realm, was annihilated.

‘How did it come to this?’

Cloudy mind. Yet crystal-clear memories.

Isaac, the leader of the Demon Den and black wizard, opened his eyes.

“Grrr…”

The eerie green glow in his eyes disappeared long ago. The sounds emanating from his mouth were closer to pitiful animal cries than proper words of an intelligent being.

‘When did it come to this?’

Right now, Isaac resided within some kind of creature.

The white snake possessed four hearts appropriate for its massive size. There used to be more.

Half-dead lich Isaac hid his life vessel in the white snake’s fourth heart.

BOOM BOOM THUMP THUMP

The sound of the giant heart beating reverberated through space.

Within the fourth heart, the life vessel and his soul were mashed together like dough.

-KOOOOO

At that moment, the thoughts of the white snake Jormungandr swept over Isaac.

A message impossible to translate into human language.

‘Yeah, you must hate Renslett too, huh?’

But Isaac, fused with the white snake, could read Jormungandr’s intentions.

-Jormungandr responded to Isaac’s thoughts.

Simultaneously, Jormungandr’s vision synchronized and unfolded within Isaac’s mind.

-The Druid barbarians despise their old kin who abandoned the blessings of nature as traitors.

On the vast left side of the vision, druids transformed into arctic beasts ran around.

-The arctic Orcs hate Renslett for banishing them beyond the north.

On the opposite side were northern Orcs armed with equipment supported by the Empire in the past.

Alongside various arctic monsters, they chaotically mixed around the white snake.

This place was truly the abyss of the Magic Realm at this moment.

-I could have become a dragon. If Rune Renslett hadn’t shattered four of my seven hearts, I’d be singing glaciers with dragon speech across the continent of dragons by now.

There was a reason why the white snake Jormungandr readily gave Isaac his half-destroyed fourth heart.

Jormungandr almost died fighting Rune Renslett, the progenitor of Renslett. Three of his seven hearts were completely shattered, and one was severely damaged.

As a result, the white snake had to abandon evolving into a white dragon completely.

‘Me too! Same here!’

At Jormungandr’s words, Isaac seemed to recall old memories and screamed convulsively.

‘Rune Renslett… No, if only that Isabel witch hadn’t!’

Cloudy will. Yet crystal-clear memories.

A panorama of grudges unfolded.

* * *

Whether 200 years ago or now,

We black wizards were always a persecuted group, just like witches.

In fact, though we formed the Demon Den far earlier than the witches’ covens or the magicians’ mage towers, we suffered harsh persecution.

Well, it’s understandable. The magic we practiced mainly consisted of necromancy, poisons, curses, human experiments, chimeras, etc.

Black magic that instinctively repels humans would never be viewed favorably, no matter how hardened humanity was in the savage era.

Rather, forming the Demon Den turned out to be our bigger mistake.

People feared magicians most among wizards, and when we tried to unite, they misunderstood us as summoning demon kings.

Hmm… Come to think of it, our actions might have influenced the establishment of mage towers the most.

Therefore, I and the Demon Den had to head north to escape persecution.

A land where savagery still lingered heavily. A land where black wizards’ power might be needed.

“Black wizards?”

“Yes. And I am Isaac. The representative of this group.”

“Can you use magic, at least?”

“Of course. I confidently claim we surpass ordinary magicians. Just…”

“Just?”

“Our magic is aggressive and cruel.”

“Accepted.”

“What?”

“Accepted. Please take care, black wizard warriors.”

That’s how I met the hero Rune Renslett in the frozen land I sought.

“Please unleash your cruel and aggressive magic. In this savage land, one must be cruel and aggressive to survive.”

“…”

In this godforsaken, divine-free frozen land,

I felt as if I had returned home for the first time.

I imagine my fellow black wizards felt the same way.

The pleasant first impression of the North continued.

DING DING DING DING DING!

The rapid tolling of battle bells marked the beginning.

ROAR ROAR ROAR!

“Damn! Frost Trolls!”

KYAAH KYAAH KYAAH!

“Snow Goblins scattered everywhere! Be careful, their daggers are poisoned!”

We engaged in battle less than half a day after joining Rune Renslett’s army.

“We’ll handle it.”

“Ahh, you guys? Sure! Let’s see what you’re made of!”

In the late Savage Era when remnants of savagery still lingered across the continent,

the North was where it remained strongest, meaning battles happened as frequently as breathing.

[Exhaustion!]

[Curse of Debilitation!]

To prove our worth, we fought gloriously in our first battle.

BOOM BOOM BOOM!

All sorts of hideous and terrifying curses and spells swept through the monster horde.

SCREECH SCREECH!

ROAR ROAR!

The lead Frost Troll’s body rapidly corroded and collapsed.

GLURP GLURP…

The surrounding Snow Goblins emitted blood-curdling sounds before choking to death.

But our magic didn’t end there.

[Rise!]

Necromancy remained.

KAH! AH AH AH!

The dead Snow Goblins and Frost Trolls rose as grotesque undead,

charging without hesitation towards those who were once their comrades and kin moments ago.

Thus, the situation ended in an instant.

THUD THUD BOOM

The undead, having fulfilled their purpose, collapsed into piles of corpses.

“…”

Silence enveloped the area.

“Uh oh!”

After the battle ended,

my fellow black wizards and I trembled with anxiety.

“We got carried away showing off our skills!”

A side effect of black magic. Though usually cold and ruthless to the point of seeming inhuman, once the situation arises, we become the most emotional.

“What if we’re rejected here too…”

The northerners’ gazes watching us weren’t ordinary.

“?”

Unlike the countless fearful, hateful, contemptuous, suspicious stares we’d received before,

these were somehow different.

“WOOOOOW!!!”

The identity of these unfamiliar stares was soon revealed.

“Wow! These wizards are intense!”

“Cheers for Renslett and the black wizards!”

“May our ancestral gods bless you!”

The northerners’ gazes towards us were filled with recognition and respect.

“!!”