Episode 152
“I can’t believe I finally get to learn magic from you, brother! I’m so happy!”
Seven-year-old Lize beamed, unable to hide her excitement.
“Just remember, it’s not something that happens overnight.”
Dale couldn’t help but smile at his adorable little sister.
Dale had formed his first mana fragment at the age of four and constructed his first mana circle by eight. He could have started even earlier, but he chose to wait, adhering to the ‘norms of this world.’
In contrast, young Lize became aware of her first mana fragment at five, a testament to the talent inherited from the Black Tower lineage.
By the time she turned six, Lize was begging to become a great magician like her brother, tears and all.
But learning magic is no easy feat. For anyone other than exceptional cases like Dale, it can be a path fraught with peril.
Yet, as the fragment of a mana circle within Lize’s heart continued to grow, both the Duke of Black and Dale realized they couldn’t stand by any longer.
Unlike Dale, who had mastered self-control, Lize’s pure, untamed talent was a potential danger.
That’s why they decided to teach her magic earlier than Dale had started.
‘I wonder what Teacher Sepia would have said in this situation.’
Watching Lize’s innocent joy, Dale’s heart was a mix of emotions. He couldn’t help but recall the wisdom of Sepia, who had guided him in his youth.
“Brother, can you show me that again?”
Lize asked, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. Dale chuckled and nodded.
He spun his mana circle, conjuring a blue energy, and snapped his fingers.
“Wow!”
Ice crystals began to scatter from Dale’s fingertips, surrounding Lize like twinkling stars in a planetarium.
Whenever Lize couldn’t sleep, Dale would show her this magical display, a cherished memory between them.
To Lize, Dale’s magic was like something out of a fairy tale, not the dark, destructive spells associated with their family’s black magic.
If Lize ever expressed a desire to learn the dark arts of the Black Duke, the Saxon family would be thrown into chaos. Not just their father or Elena, but even Dale would be caught in the turmoil.
“I want to become a wonderful magician like you, brother!”
“And what would you do as a magician like me?”
“I’ll be as amazing as you!”
“Like me?”
“Yes!”
Dale asked, and Lize answered without hesitation. Dale held his breath for a moment.
“I want to use amazing and mysterious magic like you to surprise everyone in the world!”
”…”
Her innocent words pierced Dale’s heart like a dagger. It was the kind of dream fitting for a seven-year-old, one she couldn’t possibly understand fully.
“I’m not the great magician you think I am, Lize.”
“That’s not true! Everyone says you’re the greatest and most amazing magician in the empire!”
What path would Lize choose when she grew up and made decisions with her ‘true will’? Dale couldn’t know. But she was a Saxon, inheriting the blood of the Black Tower.
“Yes, I’m looking forward to the day you become an even greater magician than I am.”
“I’ll do my best!”
Dale ruffled Lize’s dark hair, a bittersweet smile on his face.
He hoped she wouldn’t follow the dark path of the Saxons, that she would escape the shadows of their black magic.
It’s like the saying goes: a frog doesn’t remember its tadpole days.
“Let’s start by sensing and absorbing the mana in the air.”
Leaving the constellation of ice crystals behind, Dale spoke.
“Then, you’ll practice rotating the mana around your heart.”
“Yes, brother!”
He repeated the teachings of Sepia, the wise elf who had once been his mentor.
The student of the wise elf had grown to stand shoulder to shoulder with the strongest in the empire. Now, he was passing on that legacy to a new student.
Even as he moved on from the absence of his old mentor.
Despite starting her magic lessons with Dale, Lize did not awaken her mana circle immediately.
It was a relief.
“Today, brother taught me so much magic!”
Lize ran to her mother Elena in the grand hall of the Saxon estate, chattering happily.
“What magic did Dale teach you?”
“Well, I’m not ready to use magic yet. So, I’m starting with the basics to prepare for it!”
Lize reported her day with joy, and Elena smiled quietly, a complex expression on her face.
“There’s nothing to worry about, Mother.”
Seeing this, Dale spoke up.
“Lize will become a wonderful magician who brings joy to the world, unlike me.”
Elena took a deep breath, understanding the weight of his words.
“Dale.”
But Dale was also her son. So Elena embraced him silently.
“Dale, you are already the proud eldest son of the Saxon family. What you’ve built for us, and the burdens you bear as a Saxon, make you my son who never falters.”
“Mother…”
“Your path is not wrong, so be proud of it.”
Elena’s unwavering belief in her son left no room for doubt or hesitation. Dale, too, reached out to embrace her.
That night, in the study of the Saxon estate.
”…This is the list of troops heading to the Demon Realm for the Crusade.”
“A holy war, is it?”
The Duke of Black smiled wryly at Dale’s report.
“It reminds me of when the hero and the empire’s forces came for our Saxon family.”
“It won’t be the same this time.”
Dale shook his head firmly.
“The Northern Demon Realm is now a hub of imperial trade, with too many eyes watching for the empire to act unilaterally.”
Instead of hiding behind high walls, they had broken them down to reveal everything.
“Is that why you pursued an open policy for the Northern Demon Realm?”
“Yes.”
Dale nodded, and the Duke of Black smiled silently.
“I have a few questions.”
After a pause, Dale spoke again.
“How much do you know about the ‘high demons’ of the Demon Realm?”
“Are you referring to the shadow sorcerers?”
”…While our main forces were secretly gathering information in the Northern Demon Realm, we uncovered some secrets.”
“Go on.”
“Why do the high demons speak the ‘language of the empire’?”
It was a lie. This was information Dale had obtained as a hero from another world. He had ventured deep into the Demon Realm, facing the Demon King and his high demons as the empire’s strongest warrior.
“Their intelligence allows them to understand human language, which isn’t surprising. But isn’t it strange that demons from the Demon Realm use the empire’s language?”
The high demons had taunted the hero in the empire’s tongue, mocking the leash around his neck. It was knowledge they shouldn’t have had unless they were deeply embedded in the empire’s secrets.
But how did beings from the dark lands of the Demon Realm know this and speak the empire’s language?
“How did you come by this information?”
The Duke of Black asked coldly, the air around them chilling.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
“That’s for me to decide.”
”…A high demon appeared before me, speaking the empire’s language fluently.”
Dale lied again.
“What did it say?”
“It called me the ‘golden hound.’”
“Was that all?”
“──It warned me that this place is nothing but the ruins of a fallen shadow empire, and advised me to turn back.”
The high demons had said this to the hero from another world.
The clash of gold and shadow, an ancient conflict and secret of the continent that Dale hadn’t understood back then. But now he did.
“Now it’s your turn to tell me, Father.”
So Dale asked, piecing together the knowledge and memories he had gained as a member of the Saxon family.
“What exactly is a ShadowCaster? Was there any connection between the high-ranking demons and our Saxon’s Black Tower?”
Dale knew the answer wouldn’t be simple. That’s precisely why he asked.
“If the Second Crusade is to march against the darkness of the Demon Realm, I need to know the truth beforehand. Please, tell me.”
”…”
“You must know the answer, Father.”
Dale’s question hung in the air, silence settling like a feather.
“Do you remember that in ancient times, the Black and White were once a single tower?”
At the Black Duke’s question, Dale nodded. He recalled how the Black and White Tower had split, with the Black faction, led by the immortal Frederick of Saxon, rising in rebellion only to be defeated and exiled to the northern wilderness.
“When the Black faction was driven to this northern land of Saxon, there were those who extended a hand to the immortal and his kin.”
“Who were they?”
“There are no records of their identity or what they called themselves. Only a few lines in Saxon’s ancient texts hint at their existence. What is certain is that they were the ‘first outsiders’ from the dark lands beyond the Demon Realm.”
“From the Demon Realm…”
Dale swallowed hard.
“But the son of the immortal, who chose not to follow them and remained here, along with the Black faction loyal to him, laid the foundation for the Saxon and the Black Tower we know today.”
“Then who followed them?”
“Frederick the Undying and his kin.”
”…!”
Dale finally caught his breath at those words.
The secret of the high-ranking demons, the ShadowCasters, the Tower of Shadows, and the true nature of the Demon Realm beyond the northern lands—all of it began to make sense.
“It can’t be.”
“It is as you suspect.”
The Black Duke nodded slowly.
“The high-ranking demons, the beings known as ShadowCasters beyond the Demon Realm…”
He continued, his voice steady.
“There’s another Saxon over there.”
A true Saxon clan that doesn’t hesitate to become monsters of truth.
“And Lord Undead still slumbers in the deepest darkness of that land.”
Transformed into something no longer human, much like the clan of Eurys.