Chapter 176 - Returning with a Prisoner on My Back

When the Youngest Son saw the middle-aged man who had survived the flame thunder from the distant sky, he was half-convinced.

Sorcerers were famous for their quick situational judgment and numerical calculations, but the Wisdom bloodkin were on another level.

This was true even for the collateral branches.

As the flame thunder fell, he spread a torrent of half-water, half-ice beneath his feet and quickly pulled himself away.

Those who panicked before they could evade did not survive and were turned to ash.

Furthermore, his top-tier ice attribute, fitting for his name ‘Ice Chain,’ protected him from the heat.

The Youngest Son, who landed on the ground while holding Walter, uttered his first words to the battered Wisdom.

“You. It's been a while.”

“……”

Sein of the Ice Chain propped himself up on his knees and somehow managed to stand.

Even while doing so, the sorcerer's mind was racing. He was trying to comprehend what he had just heard.

But no matter how hard he tried, it was impossible.

“…This is our first meeting, Fifth Son of Millesdusk.”

“Take the tension out of your voice. You probably have no idea why I'm here or how I knew.”

“One cannot attain ultimate wisdom by fearing ignorance. However, it will not be too late to explore this matter later.”

Jjeojeojeojeojeojeok─

Face-sized ice crystals bloomed around Sein.

The snowflakes were transparent and sparkling, and they even smelled as clean as the first snow of the year.

It was a quality distinctly different from the sorceries that primarily smelled of corpses and sourness.

So much so that it was hard to believe they originated from the same magic.

“I shall look forward to next time. The time is not yet ripe today.”

The bloomed snowflakes each opened their pristine white eyes. They were covered in a glowing light, but it was clear that they were eyes.

The Youngest Son knew their identity.

“Ice-type spirits.”

“……”

The brow of the Wisdom, who possessed an excellent talent for suppressing emotions as well as magic, furrowed slightly.

“The ice attribute, one of the attributes taught by the dragons. Your power was knowing how to spiritualize it.”

“…You. How did you…”

During the brief but seemingly eternal standoff, Walter, who had been captured, was finally released and could only swallow his saliva.

A Wisdom sorcerer he had never seen before in his life. Dozens of crystals created by such a sorcerer.

The first word that came to mind was ‘beautiful,’ followed by a bone-chilling cold that gave him goosebumps.

Even in the cold, comparable to that coming from the north, the Youngest Son smiled.

“You said not to fear ignorance. Let's get to know each other gradually.”

As it happened, this side also had a decent knowledge of spirits.

“I'll play with you using your specialty.”

Cheok─

He opened his palm.

Walter's expectation that he would summon another Skeleton Soldier was shattered.

It cracked with a popping sound and was completely broken by the blue ball of fire that shot out along with it.

It was something that most Easterners would find difficult to identify no matter how hard they stared.

However, the collateral branch bloodkin sorcerer of Wisdom recognized its identity at once.

“A-a blue flame spirit…!”

“So you recognize it. Then this is a little embarrassing.”

The blue flame spirit in their remembered history was a giant of fire the size of a castle, brandishing huge arms.

But the one this side had taken out was a fist-sized ball of fire. And it was a ball of fire that was quite proud of itself.

The spirit, wiggling its tiny limbs, floated in the air and hovered around the Youngest Son.

Even during that time, the Wisdom only slowly shook his head.

“Impossible…. Why would a pure spirit like the blue flame give its heart to the turbid Millesdusk…”

“I haven't done anything so warm. We have a more rigid contractual relationship.”

The blue flame spirit stood in front of the Youngest Son and opened its mouth wide.

Its direction was towards the intruder who had trespassed into the eastern lands.

“Th-this is…!”

The intruder finally snapped to his senses and activated his magic.

Shwaaaaaaaaaaa─

The ice attribute, one of the dragon's attributes.

It, which had been improved by the geniuses of Wisdom in the past so that humans could also use it, had distinct characteristics.

It could bind the opponent's movements with cold, harden sharply to attack, and even shape specific objects.

However, if there was a clear difference in skill or firepower, its weakness was quickly revealed.

“Ice is weak to heat, and it's an attribute specialized in area-of-effect attacks, so it's particularly weak to focused, single-point attacks.”

Shuuuuuuuuuk─!!

A blue flame shot out in a straight line like a single ray of light.

He must have been thinking of binding this side's feet with a gale packed with cold air and making a run for it, but that was a pipe dream.

“…!”

The flame pierced through the gale and through the sorcerer's stomach.

Nevertheless, there was no smell of burning flesh.

“You can rest assured. The only thing I burned was the magic within your body.”

The Forest Witch, who had several things pricking her conscience after embezzling public funds, sent reports more frequently than usual.

Among them were experiments on the power of the blue flame spirit.

It was a power that could burn only what it wanted, but of course, it was difficult to handle without proficiency and talent.

The Forest Witch supplemented that with a series of trial and error and experiments.

The Youngest Son, who had read the completed report with interest, had burned the sorcerer's magic nicely.

“Ugh…”

Having lost his magic, the sorcerer, who had become a middle-aged man out of shape, knelt on one knee.

‘Wisdom, for sure. You have to give them credit for not putting any points in stamina.’

The Youngest Son approached with a smirk.

It was a surprise attack that was possible because Wisdom did not know about the blue flame spirit.

The fact that the opponent had the ice attribute was also lucky.

Furthermore, Sein of the Ice Chain. He was a guy with a deep-seated grudge not as the Youngest Son, but as a player.

“People will be coming here soon. Do push-ups until then.”

“…Kill me if you're going to.”

“I won't kill you. If you cooperate well, I'll put you next to the Wisdom messenger coming to the East and send you home.”

“……”

Sein silently got into a push-up position.

***

“…Young Lord-nim.”

“Oh, you're here.”

Emma and the Gatekeeper, who had arrived on Kelly, swallowed a groan at the ongoing punishment.

Millesdusk wasn't a family that particularly cared about the treatment of prisoners, but it wasn't wartime right now.

Emma realized that her thoughts had been wrong.

“Young Lord-nim, you have no intention of avoiding war.”

He had already laid a collateral branch member of the rival family, Wisdom, on the ground and put a fire under his stomach.

It was definitely not the action of someone who was thinking of peace.

“Do you know that war is a last resort?”

“The war has already begun.”

The Youngest Son answered calmly and snapped his fingers.

The blue fire under his stomach disappeared, and Sein finally collapsed.

The sight of him gasping for breath was truly that of an adult who had gotten on the wrong side of a mischievous child, but something else was more important.

Scrape─ Scrape─

The Youngest Son's soles scraped the ground.

It was full of wood chips and dirt from the traces of the flame thunder, but it hadn't disappeared.

It had been carved by sorcerers, and something like that wouldn't even fade it.

“Do you see?”

“This is…”

Emma's eyes widened, and the Gatekeeper stated its identity.

“A teleportation magic circle. It looks small, but it seems they were trying to quickly create a large-scale teleportation magic circle by linking them together.”

“It's a typical Wisdom tactic.”

A high-firepower guerrilla tactic using teleportation magic circles.

It was Wisdom's basic strategy, so it wasn't surprising, but it was happening in my own front yard.

However, a voice came from an unexpected place.

“…Mesher?”

Sein, who had barely raised his upper body due to his aching body, muttered towards the Gatekeeper.

The man who had been called Mesher didn't answer and didn't even look at him.

His stance was ‘who is that?’, but it was Emma who reacted to the name Sein had said.

“Legion Commander…nim?”

“I didn't expect things to turn out this way.”

The Gatekeeper silently agreed with the Youngest Son's words. However, this was not a matter to be discussed here.

Clap─

The Youngest Son, who had drawn their attention with a clap, took Walter again and mounted the Magic Dragon.

Since that ill-tempered bird wouldn't let anyone but its master and former master ride it, the Magic Dragon was better.

He held the prisoner in one hand and spoke to the legion commander.

“We're going to Gate 30.”

With only those words, the Magic Dragon spread its wings and soared into the air.

Thus, the current legion commander and the former legion commander had to spend an awkward time on the monster bird.

***

They returned to Gate 30 with the prisoner.

Walter, the legion commander, the Fifth Son, and the Gatekeeper gathered in the same room.

The prisoner was locked in an underground prison, and a long needle was inserted close to his core to prevent him from using magic.

The method Halsin had used on Josephine in the past was useful in a pinch.

The blood of a blood noble was on that long needle, and it would be used later.

Anyway, there were two problems that needed to be dealt with now.

“…Legion Commander Mesher. I understand everything now. Even if you continue to remain silent, I already know.”

“……”

The Gatekeeper remained silent, and Walter cautiously approached and asked.

“Legion Commander-nim. If it's Legion Commander Mesher, could he be the previous legion commander?”

Walter wasn't on the wall when the Gatekeeper was the legion commander, but Emma was different.

“He was my senior and the one who volunteered to be my mentor and taught me. I thought he had died while on an extermination mission outside the wall…”

He blinked and began to grasp the situation.

“Th-then, you faked your death at that time.”

Walter, as well as Emma, looked to the Youngest Son for an answer, but he just shrugged.

“Let him speak for himself. He'll just get angry if I say it.”

“…Don't you know you've already answered with that?”

The Gatekeeper, who had been silent, finally opened his mouth, and with a sigh, brought his hand to his helmet.

Swoosh─

He took off the helmet that resembled a demon and revealed a human face.

It was graying with age, but the face Emma remembered was still there.

“Legion Commander-nim…”

“…I'm sorry. I thought it would be better for everyone if the dead remained dead.”

Grab─

His subordinate rushed to him and hugged him like the wind.

The man who had been like a brother among siblings, and at times like a father, was once again in her grasp.

“All this time, all this time, where have you been…”

“I was at the family. I can't say more than that, as it's classified.”

“You came to cut off my head as a member of the Execution Department. You failed and are now working as my gatekeeper. You were punished.”

There were no such things as secrets in front of the Youngest Son.

The Gatekeeper, who let out a deeper sigh, was lamenting the fact that he could not deny any of those words.

Not a single thing was wrong, and it was all reality. So, he could do nothing but nod.

“…You have had a rough time even outside the wall.”

The time spent facing the Fifth Son was less than a few days, but he was already tired.

But wasn't he doing this all day long under the pretext of being a gatekeeper? It was almost torture.

Walter and Emma both looked fed up, but the Youngest Son lightly ignored them and continued.

“My purpose here is fulfilled. And you, Gatekeeper, go on vacation.”

“…Suddenly?”

“Vacations and trips are more enjoyable when they're sudden. For your information, the vacation spot is here, the frontline. Wait here on vacation.”

He wanted to ask if that meant it wasn't a vacation after all, but the Gatekeeper was more or less satisfied.

As long as that annoying bloodkin wasn't in front of him, it was good enough.

“I will return to Eclipse with the prisoner. It seems a guest will be arriving soon, so I should get ready.”

“Understood.”

“And Emma.”

“…Yes, Young Lord-nim.”

The Youngest Son didn't say much.

“I believe this is a sufficient answer regarding the war. And I will keep my promise.”

The promise to create an opportunity to cross swords with the First Son.

Emma, who was lost in thought with her head slightly lowered, soon nodded slowly.

“Until the promise is fulfilled, and after the promise is fulfilled, I will entrust my life to you, Young Lord-nim.”

“An excellent choice.”

The Youngest Son stepped on the anchor of the ghost ship with a smile.

It was time to go to Eclipse. It was time to heal the Magic Dragon and face Wisdom head-on.