33 – Incitement

The annulment ceremony will be held in the heart of the continent, not in the North.

Which meant that the financially strapped North would continuously expend ‘immense sums’ during the ceremony.

For a territory already reeling from the economic damage of the Second Invasion, a prolonged annulment ceremony would be an excruciating burden.

Therefore, Elysia’s mission was to conclude the ceremony as quickly as possible and restore stability.

However, Damian’s resistance proved so unyielding, the initial meeting a complete and unsalvageable disaster.

The North’s leadership was exerting considerable pressure on Elysia, forcing her to drag out the ceremony far longer than anticipated.

– Return as quickly as possible with a resolution.

A message hinting they knew she’d failed, telling her to stop the waste and just come back.

Or more accurately, a message that meant: ‘Prepare to take responsibility.’

From Elysia’s perspective, whether she returned now or held out to her limit, if she couldn’t bring Damian back, she would certainly bear the full brunt of the blame.

Therefore, it made more sense to buy as much time as possible, hoping to get Damian to rescind the annulment.

… At least, that was her thinking until now.

As the days bled on, the chances of success dwindled precipitously, and seeing how his animosity only intensified, forgiveness an ever-receding shore, I was forced to consider the final measure.

‘… Stealing the ability.’

To, in the most literal sense, seize the power to conjure warmth and wield it myself.

Of course, this was the ultimate recourse, something I’d hoped to avoid if at all possible.

But should all else fail, I would be left with no other choice.

‘Success or failure, both would bring monumental complications, that’s for sure.’

Still, it was better than returning without having reclaimed the warmth. If failure came, I would resort to this as a last, desperate act. I exhaled, steeling my resolve.

As I struggled to maintain focus, Dale entered, his face devoid of all expression.

It was an unfamiliar mien that gave me pause.

Still, I pretended not to notice, offering a greeting. He returned it, seemingly as he always did.

“Good morning.”

Something felt… off, though I couldn’t quite articulate it.

Just a vague sense, really. Impossible to pinpoint the exact source of the disquiet.

There was a hint of change that I tried to call out,

“No. Nothing’s wrong.”

Dale refused to confide in me, as if unwilling to share something.

The denial sparked suspicion. I considered probing further.

‘He’s a disposable pawn anyway. No need to delve too deep.’

More pressing matters loomed. I opted to offer a shallow consolation and let it be.

“If anything *is* troubling you, please, tell me. I might not be of much help, but I can at least lend an ear.”

Dale gave a curt laugh, before saying to me.

“Yes. Thank you.”

“……”

It was different. Again.

Something felt gratingly dissonant, but meddling seemed to invite a torrent of troublesome entanglements. I forced myself to ignore it, steering the conversation towards the matter at hand.

“Archbishop Mikhail has given advance notice regarding the test. It involves destroying a minor rift that has appeared nearby. Someone such as Dale who saved the north won’t have a hard time, I assume.”

“Yes.”

“Then I will share the relevant details this evening. Please, rest in your quarters until then.”

Watching Dale depart, I hesitated for a moment. Then, I resolutely banished my misgivings and took a deep breath.

What truly mattered now was preventing Damian from reversing the engagement.

So, steeling myself, I resolved to tidy up my appearance before seeking out Damian.

‘Knock long enough, and the door will surely open.’

He spoke with me yesterday, so I hurried my steps, figuring he’d receive me again today without fail.

But upon arriving at Damian’s quarters, the tale I heard was this:

“Lord Damian is not currently in his residence.”

Damian was gone.

* * * * *

Traveling to the North proved less arduous than anticipated.

By utilizing the teleportation circle of the Information Guild, a favor from Liana, the journey took less than ten seconds.

Of course, such a sudden long-distance translocation came with its price, a wave of dizziness and a throbbing headache washing over me.

Even so, the sheer fact of having traversed such a distance in an instant filled me with a joy that outweighed the discomfort.

‘I suspect I’ll be making frequent use of this.’

Thinking I’d use it often given the convenience, I passed through the illusion magic and stepped outside, only to be greeted by…

A blizzard, so fierce it was almost miraculous people could even survive in such conditions.

Gazing upon the blizzard that consumed my entire vision, and thinking it seemed heavier than I remembered,

Suddenly, Siren latched onto me in a desperate hug, shivering and stammering.

“I-i-if, if-if I d-do th-this, I-I-I a-aren’t c-cold… R-r-right?”

Despite the layers of clothing I’d bundled her in, to prepare for the North’s harsh cold, enduring the chill seemed beyond her strength.

As I stroked Siren’s hair to calm her, Liana gestured to us, saying,

“Please, follow me.”

I nodded and began to walk forward slowly. Liana looked at us and slowly began to speak.

“Due to its uniquely harsh environment, the North is incredibly insular. Outsiders who establish residence here are usually either fugitives, or those guarding secrets that must remain hidden at all costs.”

“That’s true.”

“Because of this, the fact that black mages have built a base here isn’t inherently strange… but the scale of it changes things.”

A large scale usually implied they were conducting a ‘large-scale experiment’.

The fact that these insular individuals sought out an insular place to conduct their experiments suggested that they were involved in an experiment that could not, under any circumstances, be revealed to others.

So Liana cautioned that we must approach with utmost care. To Liana’s words, I posed a single, hesitant question.

“Do you at least know what kind of experiment they’re conducting?”

“No, I’ve tried to breach it, but the security is far too strong. I haven’t been able to discern the nature of their experiments.”

If Liana couldn’t get through, then the security must be unbelievably tight.

Liana added a few words, watching me as I nodded to signify my understanding.

“However, seeing as they continuously capture humans and monsters, carefully managing them inside, it’s highly probable that this is an experiment where the end result needs to be perfectly preserved.”

“Perfectly?”

“Yes. Like, chimeras and such. Though, raising a facility of this scale just to make chimeras is unlikely. A far more advanced experiment must be underway.”

With those words, I fell into thought, gazing at the small village Liana indicated.

It was difficult to believe it was artificially made. Too many natural signs of life were accumulated everywhere to ignore.

It wasn’t hard to surmise that this place was once a real village.

The problem was that a village of this size had been left abandoned for so long, like a scene straight out of the apocalypse. Added to that, there wasn’t a soul to be found.

Thinking that this was oddly grotesque as I stared at the scenery before me, Liana spoke, watching me as I was deep in my thoughts.

“The villagers were all taken by dark mages. Dark mages usually don’t kidnap so openly like this, but since the second breach of the Great Rift, something must have changed their minds. They swept everyone up.”

At the story of being kidnapped by dark mages, Siren’s expression darkened as she looked down at the village.

Some past trauma must be resurfacing for her.

Not knowing if it was the cold or fear, I patted Siren, who was shivering slightly, and said we should head down.

*

The village wasn’t particularly large.

Maybe a small-scale village, where 40 to 50 people lived.

If we recklessly barged in, the enemies would realize immediately, so I told Lorraine we should come up with a simple plan before going in.

“So, Miss Liana? If we’re going to make a plan, we need to know where the dark mages’ hideout is. Can you tell us the location?”

At those words, Liana nodded and pointed at the ground.

“It’s in the underground cave beneath the village chief’s house, right in the center.”

“They sure do like caves. Is it because they’re easy to hide in?”

“That too, but mana also tends to become more abundant the deeper you go underground.”

So they deliberately dig underground?

As I was thinking I had learned something interesting, Lorraine spoke, looking at us.

“So, young master, what will it be? Infiltration? Or acting like lost people as we go in?”

Liana, who was next to her, crossed her arms and added her opinion to Lorraine’s words.

“I recommend infiltration. I brought some invisibility potions, so we can use them to get inside without much difficulty.”

Both were decent options, but not the direction I wanted to take.

As I was pondering for a moment, Lorraine and Liana looked at me, asking what I wanted to do.

I hesitated for a moment under that gaze, then opened my mouth.

“Then… shall we start by setting it ablaze?”