Chapter 13

Magic is an advanced field of study.

So advanced that you can count the number of mages on one hand.

Just ask people to name the mages they know.

People will say, ‘The Guild Master of the Mages Guild, Captain of the Royal Guard Zeta…,’ and then look at you as if to ask who else there is.

Guild Master isn't even a name.

That's how few mages there are.

They are an endangered species.

This is because cultivating magic requires a special talent.

That special talent is the ever-ambiguously described magical aptitude.

Almost no one knows what this is exactly.

Even mages themselves.

Whether magical talent is about senses, logical ability, or mathematical calculation is always a topic of great debate in academia.

Amidst all that,

Only one fact is clear.

Becoming a mage is by no means easy.

That is why mages are not easily trained, unlike how ‘a warrior just needs to be given a sword and shield,’ (we inform you that this is merely the personal opinion of the Mages Guild Master)

And it was the reason for the high social status, monthly income, self-efficacy, and job satisfaction of mages,

And the reason why Ryuba, the former adjutant and assault captain of the Royal Guard, was astonished.

Ryuba believed that Leon had used magic.

“Leon was a mage. The troublemaker was hiding his power!”

The retired Snow Elf soldiers had only one reaction to this.

“You’re talking nonsense, man.”

***

Ryuba felt wronged.

His kinetic vision was still intact even after retirement.

To the extent that he could identify the face of a person on a running horse from hundreds of meters away.

Although he had made a minor mistake of hitting Nilion's thigh earlier, he did avoid the femoral artery, so isn't that okay?

Anyway, Ryuba, with his good eyes, had caught a faint purple flash when Leon spoke to Nilion.

And then, the sight of Nilion spilling Isak's plans was certainly reminiscent of the use of magic.

Moreover, Ryuba had often caught glimpses of magic while following Zeta around.

Because of this, his speculation soon turned into conviction.

“I saw it clearly with my own two eyes, you frustrating fools! It was definitely magic!”

“Hey, someone check if he's been drinking.”

“Ah, this is so frustrating. A person should know how to believe what someone says.”

Ryuba beat his chest at the negative comments, but the retired soldiers' reactions remained unchanged.

They distrusted Ryuba instead.

“That doesn't make sense.”

“Why!”

“If he were really a mage, would Captain Zeta have let Leon go? No. She would have done whatever it took to keep him by her side and make a man out of him. Isn't that right?”

“……”

Ryuba had no words to retort.

Because he had seen from the side how hard Zeta had tried to train mages.

Snow Elves are good at magic.

This is a widely spread common belief in the Siberia Empire.

But that was actually just a perception created by the existence of Royal Guard Captain Zeta.

In the first place, there aren't many mages in the history of the Emperor's Royal Guard.

You could count them on your hands.

Zeta also tried to train mages within the Royal Guard itself several times, but she failed every time.

It was so bad that everyone heard Zeta sigh after looking at the Royal Guard applicants, saying, ‘Are there only blockheads again this year?’

So no matter how notorious a troublemaker Leon was throughout the Imperial Capital, if he had a talent for magic, Zeta would have guided him no matter what it took.

That was the consensus among all the retired soldiers.

“It seems Ryuba has lost his mind a bit.”

“I told you he should drink less.”

“Ryuba's honorary veteran's association chairman position is mine.”

“……”

He was suddenly being treated as a has-been.

That's why Ryuba felt even more wronged.

Not only was his judgment being questioned for defending Leon, but his reputation was also at risk of falling.

But it was also true that there was no reason for Leon to hide the fact that he was a mage.

Why would he hide being a mage when it was something to be proud of?

Unlike how ‘a warrior only has rags in his head,’ a mage could live a life envied by others (also the Mages Guild Master's... details omitted).

However, humans have a strange habit; when they discover something they don't understand, they try to understand it by attaching even a nonsensical reason to it.

The more this habit intensifies, the more it develops into a conspiracy theory.

Until just a moment ago, he had not even the slightest interest in Leon, but now that he was in danger of losing credibility, Ryuba suddenly became interested in Leon.

Ryuba desperately racked his brain amidst the ridicule and barely found a reason.

“Wait!”

“What? Did you finally feel like admitting you're a has-been?”

“That's not it, there must have been some reason for Leon.”

“Hmm. A reason. A reason, you say.”

The retired Snow Elf soldiers looked at each other's faces and decided to give Ryuba one more chance.

He was, after all, a man who had risen to the position of Zeta's adjutant.

It felt wrong to just kick him out.

“Speak. But if we think it's nonsense, you're expelled from the Royal Guard Veterans' Association.”

“Damn you all.”

Ryuba gritted his teeth, but he was already at a cliff's edge from which he couldn't back down.

He spoke with passion.

“Now, listen. Leon is notorious, but if you look at it one by one, he hasn't committed any truly terrible acts.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“At least he didn't kidnap women on the street or go around killing people. Have you ever heard of such a thing?”

“No. That's never happened.”

“He didn't cause that much of a ruckus.”

The Snow Elves put their heads together and began to retrace Leon's actions.

“What was the most representative trouble Leon caused?”

“Getting drunk and falling into a pond while riding a horse?”

“What about crashing into a private house on horseback?”

“He actually got slapped by the owner and paid for the damages.”

“He's that bad at fighting?”

“You saw him riding earlier. He didn't look like he had that kind of stamina.”

“Wasn't that just him being bad at riding a horse?”

“The problem is that he caused such accidents every single day.”

The Snow Elves were surprised to realize that the trouble Leon had caused was not as serious as they thought.

Ryuba had pointed out a blind spot they hadn't considered.

As a positive opinion formed among his comrades, Ryuba let out a sigh of relief.

The honor of the veteran's association chairman had almost hit rock bottom.

At the same time, in Ryuba's mind, Leon's status was promoted one step from a troublemaker to a mischief-maker.

‘I'm saved thanks to you! Thanks for not causing any big trouble!’

However, it was too early to be relieved.

While everyone was lost in the whirlwind of conspiracy, someone always keeps their wits about them and sees through the situation.

“So what does that have to do with Leon hiding the fact that he's a mage?”

That question hit the nail on the head.

He had failed to prove the causal relationship, even if there was a correlation.

Everyone looked at Ryuba, waiting for an answer.

Under the pouring gazes, Ryuba broke into a cold sweat from the tension.

However, humans have one more bad habit: they get angry when they are at a loss for words.

“If you have a brain, think about it! Why would he hide such an ability!”

“Hey, why are you getting angry?”

“Because it's frustrating, so frustrating! Why would Leon have deliberately caused trouble! Why do you think we were summoned!”

“Gasp.”

“Could it be?”

The retired soldiers received a shock as if a blind man had opened his eyes.

Ryuba had just said whatever came to mind, but the problem was that it sounded plausible in the current situation.

Humans have a habit of assigning meaning to empty spaces.

It is a mental struggle to try to understand the uncertain world even a little.

That struggle had just manifested.

In principle, Royal Guardsmen cannot participate in politics.

But working in the Imperial Palace, they had overheard many things.

Based on that, the retired soldiers began to use their imagination.

Especially the current events were enough to stimulate the retired soldiers' imagination.

A royal with no right of succession, The central government weakened by the emperor's death, A great noble preparing a rebellion, Leon, realizing his own weak position, hiding his abilities and preparing for the future, Captain Zeta, believing in him and summoning the retired soldiers....

“It's… persuasive!”

The retired soldiers fell into confusion.

“That troublemaker had such foresight?”

“He foresaw this and prepared for it?”

“Is Leon Akardi... a god?”

***

While misunderstandings, delusions, and conspiracy theories were spreading among the retired soldiers like an epidemic, Leon himself was in front of Nilion, dumbfounded.

Because he had finally understood why Isak had mobilized Nilion.

“Belius? That Belius?”

Leon stared blankly at the sky and muttered.

“Big brother, why are you showing up here?”

***

─ Belius, a master general of commoner origin who gained fame in the past Western Defensive War. He is currently serving as the commander of Modera Fortress, which aims to defend the Imperial Capital. Modera Fortress is a strategic point that must be secured as it is a convenient place to control the roads leading to the Imperial Capital.

This was the information Nilion had confessed.

It was quite different from what I knew.

I recalled what I knew.

「Belius, a master general under Duke Isak. A virtuous general to his subordinates. The troops he commands are ever-victorious. Not easy to assassinate, but should be considered as much as possible. Persuasion and bribery are impossible. This guy doesn't betray. (What trick did the developers pull?) Honestly, he's hard to deal with. A Wailing Wall.」

All the information I knew was based on game guides, and the lines were filled with the pain and frustration of many users.

That's right.

If Isak was the final boss, Belius was a mid-boss level character.

He was a character who brought despair to many gamers of .

A Wailing Wall that blocked the path of newbie users who were just getting used to the game, and a cutter that even seasoned players should never be complacent about.

I too had a hard time with Belius in the past.

“To think such a person was right under my nose.”

“No, Your Highness. General Belius is incredibly famous, you really didn't know?”

“I'm not in the military, so how would I know that?”

“Anyone in the Imperial Capital would probably know.”

When I said I didn't know, Theo was quite surprised.

It seems I was the only one behind on the rumors.

Anyway.

Forgetting about Belius was indeed my mistake.

Because I had forgotten a major risk factor.

But to make one excuse, it was also natural that I had forgotten about Belius' existence.

I am a character outside the scenario.

At a point before the scenario begins, I don't know exactly who is where.

I had just assumed Belius would naturally be Isak's subordinate; I had no idea he would be commanding an Imperial army unit defending the Imperial Capital at this point in time.

If that's the case, then it's understandable why the Imperial Capital fell so easily.

If a betrayal occurred within the central army defending the capital, even the strongest walls would have to crumble.

Suddenly, I felt good.

Theo looked at me quizzically, so I kindly explained.

“I'm lucky.”

“Suddenly, in this situation?”

“Isak hasn't won over Belius yet. Besides, he still doesn't know that I've captured Nilion. It means I have a chance too.”

Theo quickly understood my words.

“You're thinking of bringing Belius over to our side.”

“Of course. He has a good reputation and holds military power. He's a dangerous figure who can shake the board with his influence alone. I can't just leave him be.”

It's an even bigger problem if Belius himself is not aware of that fact.

This is a serious matter.

With Isak on the move, the risk and tension are at their peak.

The moment a spark flies, the fire might spread and turn everything to ash.

There can be no neutrality on this stage.

If I can't bring him to my side, I have to at least eliminate him beforehand.

“Ryuba! Where are you?”

“Here! Why do you call?”

“I have something to say, so come over here!”

I regretted it as soon as I said it.

With Ryuba's personality, he would have growled, ‘Why should I? You come here!’

But Ryuba stopped chatting with his comrades and quickly ran over.

Would it be strange to say that his attitude towards me had somehow become more polite?

“What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?”

“What is?”

“Your attitude has changed.”

“I've always been like this. A gentle man who always respects others.”

I stared at the feigning Ryuba for a moment and then gave up.

His sudden change in attitude was a bit suspicious, but since it wasn't important right now, I ignored it and moved on.

“Pack your things. We're moving.”

“Where are we going?”

“Modera Fortress.”

I grinned and said.

“We are going to meet Belius.”

If Isak had fun by winning over Belius, there's no law saying I can't do the same.

Just you wait.

I'm going to outbid you for this item.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.