Chapter 232

#232 “The Tin Knight and the Witch of the Riverbank” (Part 2)

“The Master of the Tower of Guardian. The rest of the trash are with me. If you want them back, come to the Tower of Control by the designated time.”

The message left by the Witch Mombi was relayed to the Tin Knight’s group through the survivors of the Tower of Guardian.

After reading its contents, Dorothea commented,

“This doesn’t even look like they’re trying to conceal a trap.”

She grumbled, thinking things never seem to go smoothly.

“Well, whether we like it or not, we have to go. From the enemy’s perspective, there’s no real need to hide it,” Sophía said, a hint of unease hanging over the group.

Dorothea and her companions weren’t just fighting on par with the Tower of Control using their own strength.

They were able to engage in guerrilla warfare, sneaking in and out, thanks to the aid from the Tower of Guardian, which had deployed forces to limit the movements of the Tower of Control.

The problem was that there were not many active participants in the Tower of Guardian for this war in the first place.

And the leadership, including Hermina, who was supposed to back them up, had recently taken a heavy hit.

The mages from the Tower of Guardian were terrified of the Northern Witch’s ability to single-handedly breach their tower, and the only reason the front lines were still holding was that Hermina had dedicated herself to evacuating the other mages until the last moment, and they still had their leadership thanks to the Tin Knight’s group blowing up the enemy’s core city.

In contrast, it could be said,

“—From the viewpoint of the Tower of Guardian’s survivors, we might be the only group capable of fighting the Northern Witch on equal terms. If we reject this invitation and turn our backs on the Master of the Tower of Guardian, the Tower of Control will likely spread propaganda, stating we were too scared of the Northern Witch to save the Master. That would be the end. The morale of the survivors would be shattered completely, and without the backing of the Tower of Guardian, we’d be left to fight our lonely battles or be forced to run away.”

At Sophía’s conclusion, just as the group wore somber expressions, suddenly—

[‘The Tin Knight insists that we just go where the opponent called us and win!’]

[‘The Tin Knight expresses a positive view, suggesting that it feels far more comfortable to engage head-on rather than deal with the enemy avoiding a fight and picking at our rear!’]

With a “Did I say something smart?” attitude, the Tin Knight raised his right hand.

Watching him, Dorothea sighed deeply.

“Yeah, let’s pretend that’s how it is. Marching into the enemy’s main base, which the Northern Witch has probably messed with, and taking their head is a real comfortable plan, huh?”

While her words were laced with irony, she had no intention of dismissing the Tin Knight’s suggestion.

Though more cautious than the Tin Knight, Dorothea also disliked complicated entanglements.

Now that the policy was set, all that remained was to implement it.

“Fortunately, the deadline is fairly generous.”

“That’s likely to leave us no room for excuses. The more time we have, the harder it becomes to come up with other excuses.”

“Thanks to that, this time, the Tower of Guardian will join us in the fight.”

“They’re terrified of Mombi, though. Will they be helpful?”

“It’s true that many are frightened, but there are also quite a few who are fired up. If someone breaks into Dorothea’s place, destroys the house, and kills those inside, wouldn’t they naturally be burning with a desire for revenge? Plus, we’ve blasted away Balaskal, so when it comes to high-level mages, we actually outnumber them.”

“It seems we might also need to split our forces depending on the situation. The arrangement should—”

***

The Tower of Guardian began to gather all its troops, which were originally guarding their territory, to advance deeper into the territory of the Tower of Control where the tower is located.

Similarly, the Tower of Control seemed to be desperately gathering strength in preparation for the upcoming visitors.

The Tower of Prophecy and the Tower of Annihilation remained silent while not siding with either side, yet were prepared to mobilize their soldiers at any moment, and other nations were also anxiously attentive to how this civil war would unfold.

And up high in the mountains, there was a group looking down at these worldly matters as if indulging in a celestial game.

Their clothes were immaculately clean, their skin unblemished, and their faces serene.

Anyone on the ground who caught a glimpse of their appearance would be struck with astonishment.

High priests of the Holy Kingdom.

It was rare to find even a single person of their status born not from high nobility or royal blood, and yet there were nearly five of them gathered in one place.

“I’ve prodded a few times, but it seems the Tower of Prophecy has no intention of getting involved in this matter.”

“The same goes for the Tower of Annihilation. It’s nice to be aggressive, but it’s such a hassle with the unnecessary sharpness.”

“Such a shame. If things had gone as initially planned by the Tower of Control, we could have seen a grand spectacle of the Empire facing the Magical Kingdom.”

“I don’t see anything wrong with this. Rotbart Lognir is such a cautious individual that if things unfolded according to his wishes, his power might become uncontrollable for us as well.”

“That’s right. If he hadn’t been cornered like this, that crafty old man wouldn’t have resorted to such extreme measures as unsealing the witch Mombi. But he released the witch, and now he has to fight other towers through physical warfare instead of the political offensive that was originally planned.”

“But didn’t we gain the powerful ally that is Mombi? Isn’t she far more dangerous than the recluse Olin?”

“Mombi is a pleasure-seeking individual. She might align with Rotbart for a time, but there’s no way she’ll obediently follow his intentions forever.”

“The old man may gain control over the Magical Kingdom with Mombi’s strength, but the process will be brutally destructive. The Magical Kingdom will undoubtedly suffer greatly. Moreover, the old man has already borrowed our strength, so controlling him with a contract will be quite straightforward.”

“But… isn’t there a chance Mombi and Rotbart could lose? In that case, the Magical Kingdom might suffer far less damage, and it would then be harder to control their movements afterward.”

At one priest’s question, the others who had been eloquently speaking suddenly fell silent.

Someone among them quietly shook their head.

“That must not happen.”

Another priest nodded in agreement.

“If the Tower of Control were to completely collapse, the great structure would be greatly thrown off balance. To prevent that, it might be necessary to lend the old man some strength.”

“But will that be alright? Those currently clashing with the witch have collected the most remains. If they’re all wiped out, won’t our other plans be derailed?”

“It will be fine. At that time, we can spread the value of the remains across the entire continent. If we advertise it as a power that can crush one of the major cities in the Magical Kingdom, many will salivate at the chance.”

“It’s better to intervene covertly than to get involved while the war is ongoing. I will assist the Gray Old Man.”

“—Wait a minute.”

At the sudden interruption, the priests stiffened in unison.

Given that they were discussing matters that could turn the entire continent upside down, their location was severed from the world through holy power.

Even if someone made it up to the mountaintop they occupied, they would only see a desolate natural landscape.

Yet someone boldly intruded through those defenses, it was understandable for the priests to be on edge.

“As for killing the others, I don’t mind. But not Dorothy.”

A beautiful girl with black hair and black eyes adorned with flowers spoke.

Just as the priests were about to summon their divine power, the eldest-looking priest hurriedly knelt and said,

“I humbly greet one of your great weapons…!”

At his words, the other priests were taken aback and hastily bowed as well.

Every expression and action they displayed radiated intense reverence towards the girl.

Receiving treatment even more distinguished than an ordinary king, the girl casually dismissed it and spoke.

“I won’t say you can’t do your business, but Dorothy is an exception. Hmm, or maybe not?”

The girl suddenly tilted her head, appearing to ponder before murmuring to herself.

“Dorothy has that wildflower vibe, so if I unnecessarily go to great lengths to treat her like a planted flower in a greenhouse, her beauty might actually diminish. I want to see her overcome challenges, but it seems boring to manipulate her to ‘overcome’ things. Hmm, what to do?”

Wandering back and forth in the same spot while talking to herself, the girl’s demeanor looked quite unstable, but the priests’ attitude remained unchanged.

At that moment, she clapped her hands suddenly.

“Thinking about it, you should just do what you want. If Dorothy overcomes it, we get to see a magnificent sight, and if she doesn’t and dies… at that point, we can just plant seeds and keep her close.”

With those words and a cheerful smile, the girl’s face was innocent and beautiful, but the content was distinctly twisted.

Nonetheless, the priests had no objections to this.

The girl was an angel.

One of the four swords that existed in the Holy Kingdom, a representative of the great will.

For such a being to assert her authority over the life of a mere mortal meant there was no need to debate the matter.

If the heavens decreed it so, the earth had to obey.

“—What an absurd display of arrogance.”

And on earth, there existed a witch who detested such heavenly hubris immensely.

Kwah-aaaaaam!

The shock of the air compressed to the extreme being released was akin to a massive explosion.

One of the towering peaks was harshly eroded, and the barrier there was instantly destroyed.

The priests attempted to summon emerald light to protect themselves, but the overwhelming classification of magical power crushed all their defenses like bugs.

Their deaths, while weaving plots from high above and looking down on the ground, were far too dismal.

Seemingly pleased with that, a look of satisfaction graced the face of the witch, Alingd Goodwitch.

Her expression remained as expressionless as a doll’s, as if her facial muscles had permanently frozen.

Calmly, she spat out her venom.

“The earth is not your plaything. It’s disgusting to hear you talk as if you’re managing some game board.”

On the ruined mountaintop, her words muttered almost like a soliloquy were met with a solid reply.

“Isn’t that just the same for you?”

It was the Black Girl.

Despite having been hit by a blow that sent the priests to the afterlife, she appeared relatively unharmed save for a few wrinkles in her clothing.

“You’re no different for using Dorothy and her party like pawns, so what gives you the right to tell us what to do?”

In response to the girl’s sharp retort, Alingd cleared her throat and then said thoughtfully.

“Yes. This isn’t a matter of qualification; it’s a matter of preference.”

—What do I care about logic? I simply dislike you all, so what are you going to do about it?

With that violent rejection, the Black Girl’s expression twisted in displeasure.

“I don’t like your type. I’d prefer to get rid of you and go observe Dorothy.”

“That’s very useful information. Filthy celestial dog. Until this is all over, I’ll make sure you won’t even come near them.”

“Like you’d come here in one piece? You’re only half of what you used to be…!”

Around the Black Girl, countless seeds were scattered, rapidly growing into soldiers with pumpkin heads.

From beside Alingd appeared a masked creature, as water and wind mana surged to create a colossal vortex.

On Bifrost, the highest peak in the Magical Kingdom, located several dozen kilometers away from the Tower of Control.

There, an unrecorded battle unfolded behind the pages of history.