Episode 484
Yellin’s shock didn’t end with meeting Ignis.
【My name is Silion. I have come in response to your summons.】
A high-ranking spirit of the wind appeared.
【I am Noestra. Who has called upon me?】
Then, a high-ranking spirit of the earth followed.
【Who is it that has summoned me?】
Even a high-ranking spirit of water made its presence known.
‘This is unbelievable.’
Even Yellin, who had inherited the abilities of a high elf through ancestral regression, could only manage to contract with spirits of two elements.
Yet, Zeke had summoned and contracted with high-ranking spirits of four different elements.
Yellin was in awe of Zeke’s extraordinary affinity with spirits.
After completing the contracts with the spirits, Zeke released his polymorph and returned to his human form.
‘As a human, my affinity with spirits is noticeably weaker.’
In his human form, he could only summon lower-ranking spirits. Still, with the power of the ancient dragon’s heart and his titles, he managed to contract with all four high-ranking spirits.
Reflecting on his successful contracts, Zeke was struck by a thought.
‘Come to think of it, the shadow spirit I wield is also a spirit.’
Zeke had been using a spirit all along, but its summoning method was so different from typical spirits that he hadn’t realized it.
Approaching Yellin, who was still in a daze, Zeke asked, “Yellin, have you ever heard of a shadow spirit?”
Yellin, snapping back to reality, tilted her head in confusion. “Shadow spirit? That’s a new one for me.”
Zeke was surprised that even Yellin, a high elf, was unaware of the existence of shadow spirits.
‘Does this mean that the shadow summons I use, including the dragon warriors, are fundamentally different from ordinary spirits?’
Most spirits, including the four great spirits, were manifestations of natural energy. However, shadow spirits were formed from wraiths or corrupted souls bound to the power of shadows.
Though they bore the name ‘spirit,’ their creation process was entirely different from that of ordinary spirits.
‘Now that I think about it, the power of shadows is linked to the chaos god sealed under the name of the goddess Theia. Perhaps shadow spirits were created by the chaos god.’
The chaos god, the Shadow Dragon Bahamut, the Sovereign of Shadows, the Dark Blade Levatein—Zeke’s shadow powers were all interconnected.
He wondered if this power was part of a mechanism set by the sealed chaos god to fracture the world.
As Zeke’s thoughts deepened, Himmel arrived in the garden.
“Sir Zeke, someone has come with a message from the Four Seasons Castle.”
A small figure, hiding behind Himmel, approached Zeke and threw off a cloak.
To Zeke’s surprise, beneath the cloak was Helen Draker, clad in steel armor.
Zeke had lent Helen a shape-shifting cloak to discreetly deliver a message from the Kali faction.
Helen looked at Zeke and said, “Zeke, Howard has taken the bait.”
Zeke’s eyes gleamed at Helen’s words. He nodded and spoke, “It’s time to start the hunt.”
A few days later, Howard received a message from Kali and discreetly moved to the location she had provided.
He drove a carriage to a mansion on the outskirts of Atlas.
As he stepped out of the carriage, he was greeted by individuals whose presence was anything but ordinary.
Howard instinctively realized they were practitioners of Ishtar’s arcane arts.
Following their lead, he entered the mansion.
In the reception room, he found Kali already waiting.
“Lady Kali.”
Kali nodded in acknowledgment and gestured to the person seated across from her.
“This is Yellin Ishtar, heir to the Ishtar family. Lord Howard, as I mentioned before.”
The person, dressed in Ishtar’s traditional garb and wearing a mask, slowly turned to look at Howard.
Through the mask, Howard could sense the power of the Ishtar heir, a member of a transcendent family.
At Kali’s gesture, Howard approached the heir and introduced himself.
“I greet the heir of Ishtar. I am Howard Draker, a member of the Draker Cross Council.”
Despite Howard’s introduction, the heir remained silent.
Kali then spoke to Howard, “The heir is not fluent in the central continent’s language, so please understand. Listening and understanding is not an issue, so feel free to speak. Please, have a seat.”
Howard took a seat, feeling the weight of the atmosphere despite his earlier insistence on meeting someone from Ishtar in person.
The heir whispered something to Kali, who nodded and relayed the message to Howard.
“The heir wishes to remind you that if you mention this meeting elsewhere, Ishtar’s ravens may come for you.”
The mention of Ishtar’s ravens made Howard’s face turn pale.
Even as a Draker, he had no desire to become a target of Ishtar’s practitioners.
Howard nodded, trying to maintain a calm demeanor.
The heir then removed the mask, revealing a face with brown skin and a long scar across the eyes.
It was none other than Himmel, the captain of the Raven Squad.
Howard had only heard the name and gender of Ishtar’s heir through the Black Stage’s intelligence.
‘It seems Kali Draker’s claim of an alliance with Ishtar is true.’
Thus, Howard had no choice but to believe that Himmel was indeed Ishtar’s heir.
Himmel then spoke in the central continent’s language, albeit with difficulty.
“Kill. Zeke Draker. Help. Kali Draker. We.”
Understanding Himmel’s words, Howard’s expression changed.
“Do you mean you’ll help kill Zeke Draker?”
Himmel nodded.
Kali’s words were once again proven true.
Himmel spoke again.
“Price. Venus. Needed.”
Venus, one of the empire’s major cities, was adjacent to Ishtar’s territory near the border.
Howard’s face hardened at the audacity of Ishtar demanding an entire city as payment for an assassination.
But then Kali spoke to Howard.
“To eliminate Zeke Draker, the price of Venus is not too high. If he escapes and prepares to strike us from the shadows, the consequences will be dire.”
Kali’s words made Howard reconsider, and he nodded.
Zeke Draker was not an opponent to be underestimated.
Howard, having made up his mind, spoke decisively.
“Very well. Let’s proceed.”
Himmel seemed satisfied with Howard’s response.
Kali then addressed Howard.
“Now we just need to set the trap for Zeke Draker. Do you have any plans in mind?”
Howard nodded at Kali’s question.
“With the help of Ishtar’s practitioners, I have a good plan.”
He lowered his voice and continued.
“Soon, there will be a brief ceremony for the former lord’s funeral. The lord’s direct descendants will have a moment of mourning in front of the coffin in the underground chamber. That would be the perfect time to strike.”
Kali nodded in understanding.
“Indeed, at that time, Zeke’s guards would be waiting outside.”
“Yes, the poison used by Ishtar’s practitioners is known to affect even the Black Knights. We can subdue Zeke Draker with poison, quietly eliminate him, and then blame it on an attack by the remnants of Siemens.”
Kali was pleased with Howard’s plan.
“Excellent. Is there anything else I can assist with?”
“Lady Kali, please ensure that Zeke Draker’s knights do not enter the underground chamber. After the deed is done, lead the Silver Knights to declare that Zeke Draker was ambushed, setting the narrative. I will handle the rest.”
“Understood. I will make the necessary preparations.”
With the plan set, Howard stood up, satisfied.
“We will execute the plan three days after the funeral proceedings.”
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The funeral procession for Arthur Draker passed through the main street of Atlas.
A priest led the procession, ringing a bell, followed by a line of Draker knights in black uniforms.
At the very front were the direct descendants of the lord: Kali, Zeke, and Helen.
Under normal circumstances, the funeral would have been grander, but due to the issues with Siemens and the current political climate, it was significantly scaled down.
After the procession, Arthur Draker’s coffin was moved to the underground of Winter Keep, the innermost part of the Four Seasons Castle.
In the deepest underground of Winter Keep lay the mausoleum where the former lords of the Draker family were interred.
Arthur Draker was to be laid to rest in that sacred space.
Before the coffin was moved to the mausoleum, it was placed in a mourning chamber, allowing family members to spend their final moments with the deceased, a tradition of the Draker family.
Kali and Helen each took their turn in the mourning chamber to pay their respects to Arthur Draker.
Then it was Zeke’s turn.
Zeke instructed Duke and the Black Knights to wait outside.
Just as he was about to enter, Liam spoke to him.
“My lord, given the tense atmosphere in the Four Seasons Castle, it might be wise to have at least one guard accompany you.”
As Liam attempted to follow Zeke into the underground, the Silver Knights guarding the entrance drew their swords to block him.
“Mourning is allowed only one at a time, and only for direct blood relatives.”
The members of the Black Shadow unit, standing behind, gripped their swords and stepped forward in response to the White Knights’ somewhat disrespectful actions.
Though they had once fought side by side as comrades, they now found themselves rivals for the position of the next family head, leaving them on edge and quick to react.
At that moment, Zeke raised his hand.
“Enough. Don’t stir up trouble over nothing.”
At his words, the Black Shadow members reluctantly released their grips on their sword hilts.
With an impassive expression, Zeke walked past Kali and the White Knights, descending into the underground.
The Black Shadow unit, along with the Black Sword Knights, glared at the White Knights, ready to spring into action at the slightest provocation.
While the two factions engaged in a silent battle of wills, Zeke made his way down to the underground memorial chamber where Arthur Draker’s coffin lay.
The coffin, placed in the center of the chamber, was extravagantly adorned, almost excessively so, causing Zeke to frown slightly.
However, he showed no further reaction, instead picking up incense, lighting it, and placing it in the censer before the coffin.
Zeke stood there, watching the incense burn down to ash.
As the last of the incense crumbled, he slowly turned to leave.
But then, he staggered.
“This is…”
He glanced back at the censer.
“Poison…?”
As dizziness overtook him and he reached for the wall, the door to the memorial chamber slammed shut.
A low hum filled the air.
Zeke pounded on the closed door, shouting urgently.
“Ambush! Is anyone out there? It’s an ambush…”
Suddenly, a magic circle illuminated the walls of the chamber, unleashing a gravitational field that hurled him backward.
“Ugh!”
Desperately, Zeke tried to dispel the magic with his gloves, but the circle’s power was overwhelming.
With a heavy thud, the coffin lid flew open, and figures clad in black emerged from within.
With a swift motion, they used their bloodline abilities to immobilize Zeke.
The hum intensified.
“Ugh!”
With poison, the gravitational field, and now bloodline users against him, even Zeke, a Black Knight, couldn’t hold out.
As if things weren’t dire enough, practitioners of Ishtar’s dark arts, wielding twisted blades, sprang from the floor, encircling him in an instant.
They pressed their attack, and before he knew it, Zeke felt the sharp sting of blades piercing his back and side as he leaned against the door.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The attack happened so quickly that Zeke had no chance to defend himself.
“Ugh!”
Bloodied, Zeke slumped against the door.
Himmel looked down at him and drove a sword into his heart without hesitation.
Thud!
Zeke died with his eyes open, unable to utter a final word.
As the situation concluded, a door at the back of the memorial chamber opened, revealing Howard, who had been hiding there.
Howard approached Zeke’s lifeless body, confirmed his death, and turned to his subordinates.
“Take Zeke Draker’s body to the lab. And signal Kali—let her know the plan succeeded.”