Chapter 109

109.

Wade asked in a trembling voice.

“What relation are you to Sir Carlos? Surely not.”

“He is my father.”

“…Indeed.”

He nodded and gestured to the two knights.

“Sir Rahim. Sir Pelbir. Would you please inform our esteemed guest has arrived?”

“Understood.”

As the knights left the Audience Chamber, Wade approached with a trembling body.

“Memories of old come flooding back. He often boasted about the remarkable child that was born to him, and it seems his words were true.”

A coarse hand wrapped around his.

The calloused palm of a swordsman, etched with hardened skin. Wade slowly shook the hand up and down before speaking.

“Welcome to the North, son of my old friend.”

*

I calmly lifted the teacup before me.

This was supposedly a high-quality tea, specially preserved for receiving guests.

Hm.

“…Bitter.”

It suited my taste perfectly. I faintly smiled at the bitter taste lingering on my tongue.

After taking a sip of the steaming tea and placing it down, Wade began his story with a wistful look.

“Miss… Through the courtesy of Duke Devalleta, I currently oversee Solorun. However, I used to be the commander of Unt拉, one of the frontlines.”

“So that’s where you met my father.”

“That’s right. His black hair and eyes were quite rare and impressive, with a notable amount of power. In the North, outside the Devalleta family, no one else had black hair.”

His weary eyes softened.

“The guards in Unt拉 rarely show respect unless necessary. However, when Sir Carlos arrived at the gate, the guards saluted him loudly. He casually patted their shoulders and gave words of encouragement, even though it was his first visit.”

Wade chuckled softly, perhaps reminiscing about that moment.

“Who would have thought he’d suddenly appear at the gate claiming to be from the Devalleta family? His brazen face is still vivid in my memory. For a moment, even I believed he was genuine. Heh… ugh.”

Suddenly, Wade began coughing violently as he tried to continue speaking.

He looks worse than he appears.

I silently signaled Charles, who took out compresses and medicine from her robes to check on Wade’s condition.

“You have a good understanding of medicine. Perhaps this will help somewhat.”

The confused Wade nodded as he stared at Charles.

His rough breathing, filled with phlegm, gradually calmed, and his sallow complexion brightened somewhat as the treatment progressed.

This was only a temporary measure, but it should suffice for our conversation. Charles, having received thanks, stepped back.

“At that time, your father also came with a small contingent.”

Wade, observing Charles and I, smirked.

“The same for now, I see. Only this time, the son has become a Duke, and his companions have impressive backgrounds.”

The holy maiden Myna. Mage Nia.

While Charles’s identity remained undisclosed, it’s clear she’s no ordinary woman.

“However, what brings the husband of the Empress to the North?”

It has been quite some time since the North and the Central regions had any contact.

“Since the exchange between North and Central ended…”

“What does someone from Central, not North-East’s Macbilian, expect to achieve in the North?” asked Wade.

“The timing was indeed quite precise, wasn’t it?”

Despite there being no formal request for support due to the severed ties, we showed up in the middle of a perilous blizzard.

“Lord Trios, do you have information on the situation in the North, excluding Solorun?”

Wade shook his head in response to my question.

“The blizzard covering the lands around Solorun extends across all of the North.”

“I suspected as much. It seems even more astonishing now, hearing it directly.”

“To put it simply, the North, including Altain, is severed off by the blizzards. Hasn’t the flow of visitors to Solorun completely stopped?”

“That’s correct. It’s an impossible task for anyone but a superhuman to traverse such a place.”

He massaged the corners of his eyes with trembling hands.

He appears extremely exhausted. His now hazy eyes peeked through his fingers.

As Wade gathered his thoughts, I spoke.

“The phenomenon has been noticed even outside as being strange. Likely, it is due to the loosening of the seal.”

“…Seal? Are you saying the beast has awakened again?”

“Though speculative… when we consider the circumstances, it’s clear.”

When I mentioned the collapse of the Free City Union, his eyes flickered.

“Regarding the strange behavior of the monsters attacking Solorun…”

At the defense lines, mana wielders were usually placed in priority.

The complete collapse of those lines meant that the power of the monsters had grown to a level even a superhuman could not withstand. There’s only one existence that can enhance the monsters to this level.

“So, the Northern Front… No, it’s more than that.”

Wade, rubbing his chin with a grave expression, spoke.

“The ultimate goal is Devalleta, and the dragon’s seal, correct?”

When I confirmed, Wade continued.

“Then, it’s safe to continue our journey north. Devalleta, Vulkon, and Unt拉 — the conditions in these three places should be better than in Solorun.”

“Do you mean the frontline is more stable than the rear posts?”

“It can’t be helped. These three areas block the enemy’s forces, and the majority of troops are concentrated there. The same goes for mana wielders.”

There had been no tactical movements that bypassed our frontlines, only relentless attacks aiming to crush these three cities. Hence, the North seems to have opted for a strategy concentrating all forces on the frontlines.

“We also sent large-scale reinforcements to Devalleta under orders before we became isolated by the blizzards.”

“Orders from whom?”

Upon my question, Wade looked uneasy.

“Ah… Old habits die hard. The current master of Devalleta is Pesua Devalleta, the eldest daughter of the former Duke. I have known her since she was young, so it feels strange to switch titles.”

“If she inherited the dukedom, then Duke Reios is…?”

“Correct. He passed away half a year ago. Being someone from the North, it was not widely known. Since we couldn’t even find his body…”

As Wade trailed off, I nodded.

The death of Duke Reios, who guarded the North. Even the black crows might not have known this information, judging by Charles’s subtle reaction as she had silently listened to the conversation.

I remember Duke Reios being a mana wielder.

Moreover, given the Devalleta lineage…

“The Devalletas are also a hybrid family, aren’t they?”

While the Southern Ferantel family is known for being Beast-Human hybrids,

the Devalletas from the North are Half-Elves, renowned for their longevity and abilities, even if only half-human.

For such a peculiar existence to have perished without a body being found…

As I sorted out the sudden information, Wade asked.

“By the way, Duke, how did you manage to brave the blizzards to get here? An ordinary person would have frozen to death in less than a day.”

“News might have reached you, but the holy maiden is with me. And… I’m not exactly an ordinary person.”

With a crackling sound, mana started to radiate around me.

As the faint bluish glow started to permeate the room, Wade gasped.

“A mana wielder!”

Our eyes met, and he nodded deeply.

“I had only heard of a remarkable sword artist appearing, but you’re a mana wielder. For a superhuman, such conditions would pose no problem. I understand now.”

The ability to directly control mana has made things quite convenient.

In this world, no matter the absurd phenomenon, if it’s backed by the label of a mana wielder with proof, people tend to overlook it.

For commoners, mana wielders are akin to beings of mystery; thus, they let it slide without much questioning.

Although a bit ridiculous, even among mana wielders, mutual understanding is scarce.

‘Thinking about it, the concept lacks clarity.’

It felt like an underdeveloped technology, given that the conditions of awakening and methods of utilizing power varied greatly from person to person.

‘It’s time to depart.’

I’ve obtained the information necessary from Solorun.

There’s no need to delay further; after tidying up, heading to Yelkin should suffice. We’ve secured our wolf mounts, so it’s smooth sailing from here.

Just to be sure, I asked Wade one last question.

“Lord Trios, about the blizzard outside… it seems odd that it doesn’t affect Solorun at all.”

Inside Solorun, snow fell quite normally.

The winds were calm, the temperature no worse than an ordinary winter.

I had an idea of the cause already.

When I visited the church with Myna, I noticed the blessed artifact there, gently glowing.

Wade sighed.

“At the Solorun Church, there is an artifact placed by the church authorities. The priests say its power shields us from the blizzard. It must be the grace of the Goddess. Without the artifact, I wonder what might have become of Solorun.”

His answer matched my expectations. I nodded.

The empire-wide distribution of artifacts was fairly common.

The North wouldn’t be an exception. The gateway city Yelkin and the three frontlines surely have artifacts. Thus, the remaining cities are likely safe as well.

“It took some time for us to be fully isolated by the blizzard. Was there anything unusual around that time?”

“Unusual…”

Wade stroked his chin and shook his head.

“Other than the appearance of monsters and beasts… Ah.”

He suddenly perked up, his eyes widening.

“Come to think of it, the border guards watching the wall mentioned seeing a strange light. It didn’t seem significant at the time, but if I were to pick one peculiar occurrence, that would be it.”

“Suspicious.”

“Indeed suspicious. However, given the constant blizzards throughout the year, hallucinations aren’t uncommon, so it wasn’t given much importance.”

The tapping sound of Wade’s fingers against the desk paused.

“Tsk… The timing coincides with the start of the severe blizzard.”

“Do you remember the location?”

“Only a rough direction. There was an attack shortly after receiving the report, so the details were lost.”

“Direction alone is enough. Charles, bring the map.”

Charles unfurled the map on the desk. Wade, murmuring, pointed somewhere after recalling.

“Somewhere around here.”

Northwest, relative to Solorun.

About halfway between the straight line towards Yelkin.

So, between Solorun and Yelkin.

“Conveniently, it’s along the northward route.”

“Master. On a wolf, this distance isn’t far.”

I gestured for Charles to gather the map and stood up from the sofa.

“Charles. Inform the two about our upcoming departure. Ask them to head towards the wolf pack.”

“Yes, Master.”

With a soft swish, Charles disappeared into thin air.

“What?”

Seeing someone vanish so suddenly, Wade’s eyes widened significantly.

“Lord Trios, may I borrow a messenger? We need it to be conveyed.”

“Of course… Shall I have someone deliver it? To the location of the wolf pack?”

“I would appreciate that.”

Leaving the bewildered Wade behind, I walked out of the Audience Chamber.

The rough situation of the frontlines.

The death of Reios and Pesua Devalleta.

The power of the artifact protecting against the blizzard.

The mysterious light spotted by the guards…

Though the precise details need verification, the fact that we moved from 0 to 1 is crucial. Just like we’ve done before.