Chapter 124
“Are you worried about the Four Kings?”
Nordian nodded.
“Yes. If we provoke an all-out war with the Gold Cross, the ones who’ll be happiest are those dark bastards from the Four Kings.”
The retainers fell silent.
“Or maybe… this outbreak of the Black Plague itself is their scheme. They want our Dark Maga and the Gold Cross to spill each other’s blood in a civil war.”
A sharp suspicion.
Though only half true.
It was true that the Four Kings’ ‘Cursed Maga’ had a hand in this.
But they merely lent assistance; the real mastermind was someone else entirely.
Someone no one could have imagined.
That was why Chris had to solve this.
“……”
The room grew quiet.
A difficult problem.
They couldn’t just sit still, but raising an army was equally problematic.
Then, an unexpected voice echoed through the chamber.
“I have a solution.”
It was Christian.
Everyone looked surprised.
“What kind of solution?”
“It’s simple. We find the true mastermind behind this Black Plague.”
Nordian and the others looked disappointed.
“Who doesn’t know that? It’s practically impossible. Those cursed magi never leave a trace. That’s why they’re called the ‘Phantom Reapers.’”
Chris nodded.
He knew well how meticulous the cursed magi were.
But—
“That doesn’t matter. This isn’t something the cursed magi did alone.”
“…What do you mean?”
“There must be a traitor inside the Gold Cross collaborating with the cursed magi. Otherwise, even they couldn’t unleash such a massive curse. We just need to catch that traitor.”
“!!”
It was a plausible theory.
But the problem remained.
“How do we find that traitor? The Gold Cross is beyond the reach of our Dark Maga.”
That was the fundamental reason the Dark Maga couldn’t investigate this incident.
Yet Chris offered a simple solution.
“I will go to the Gold Cross as an envoy representing the Dark Maga.”
“…What?”
“Before we start a full-scale war, I’ll investigate the truth behind this incident. Since the Gold Cross started making baseless claims, they won’t refuse our demand to look into the facts.”
The room fell silent.
After a moment—
“That’s absurd!”
“Impossible!”
Sending an envoy to the Union wasn’t a huge problem in itself.
They weren’t completely cut off from dialogue.
Especially before a war, envoys often came and went.
But it was extremely dangerous.
“We can’t trust those Union bastards. There’s a high chance something terrible will happen!”
There had been countless cases where envoys were killed.
Going as an envoy meant risking your life.
“Especially with Christian Gongja going personally…!”
“It’s precisely because I’m going myself that it’s safe.”
“Huh?”
Christian said calmly,
“No matter how reckless the Union is, they won’t dare harm the heir apparent to the Dark Maga. So there’s no need to worry excessively.”
The retainers fell silent.
It wasn’t an unreasonable point, but life rarely followed such neat rules.
Who knew what disaster might strike once he arrived?
Then Nordian frowned and said,
“There’s no guarantee that you going as envoy will uncover the mastermind, is there?”
Christian nodded in agreement.
“You’re right, Lord. Even if I go, there’s no guarantee this will be resolved.”
“Then why take such a reckless risk?”
“Because it’s something I must do for the Dark Maga.”
“!!”
Christian’s eyes burned with determination.
“If I don’t, our Dark Maga will be puppets to some unknown mastermind. As a descendant of the Dark Maga’s bloodline, and as someone who aims to become its rightful master, I cannot allow that.”
For a moment, the room was silent.
They were overwhelmed by Christian’s resolve.
Unbelievable.
Every one of them was a senior executive of the Dark Maga, none inferior to Christian.
Yet here they were, overwhelmed by a boy barely in his late teens.
“Indeed, Christian Gongja.”
Some murmured in admiration, and Christian continued calmly.
“Also, there’s another reason I must go personally.”
“What is it?”
“I’m the best candidate to solve this. No one else in the Dark Maga can handle it but me.”
Nordian gave a strange look.
“You have a plan?”
“Yes. I can’t explain it all here.”
Chris answered with conviction.
“I will not only expose the mastermind but also make the Law King of the Gold Cross bow his head in apology to the Dark Maga. So please, entrust this to me.”
An audacious, almost absurd claim.
Nordian chuckled lowly.
“He speaks well. The Law King bowing to the Dark Maga… If that really happens, it’ll go down in our history.”
The Dark Maga and Gold Cross had fought countless times, but no head of the family had ever made the Law King bow.
“What do you think, Marquis? It’s not a bad idea, is it?”
“……”
“Why not give the boy some time? We can raise the army afterward.”
Who would oppose that?
Marquis Langham nodded and declared,
“Christian, I appoint you as the Dark Maga’s official envoy. You have one month. Within that time, uncover the mastermind who insulted our Dark Maga. If you succeed, your first trial will be considered passed.”
Conversely, failure would mean failing the trial.
Christian simply nodded calmly.
“Yes, understood.”
And so began the first step of Christian’s journey—the one who would later be revered by all Union people as the ‘Light in the Darkness (魔輝),’ the ‘Great Darkness.’
He couldn’t depart immediately.
As the Dark Maga’s official envoy, preparations were necessary.
‘Finally, a break! I’ll rest as lazily as possible for a few days before the hard work begins!’
As he headed to his room, an unexpected voice stopped him.
“Wait.”
“Aunt?”
“You have somewhere to go with me. Follow me.”
“…Is it Lord Nordian?”
“Yes. He’s waiting.”
Christian frowned deeply.
Judging by the tone, it was probably a lesson.
‘Damn it. I just wanted to rest.’
But refusing Nordian’s guidance was unthinkable.
‘When will I ever get to rest?’
He grumbled inwardly, but it was pointless.
“Weren’t you supposed to receive instruction in the annex? Why the main mansion?”
“Today isn’t for instruction. There’s another matter.”
“??”
They headed to the mansion’s basement, where storerooms filled with treasures accumulated over generations of the Dark Maga awaited.
But Marian didn’t stop.
She stood before a massive mural depicting the battle between demons and the celestial order.
‘This isn’t just a painting. It’s an artifact.’
Faint traces of magic circles were woven throughout the image.
Even Chris had to look closely to notice the subtle concealment.
Dark magic extended from Marian’s hand, reacting with the mural’s enchantments.
A low hum filled the air.
Like ripples on a still pond, the painting shimmered, and Marian stepped through it.
“Follow me inside.”
They entered together, revealing a breathtaking sight.
A space shrouded in thick, dark mist.
Beyond the fog lay objects radiating a chilling aura.
‘These are the relics kept by the Dark Maga!!’
It was the vault!
Then, from within came a chuckle.
[You’ve come?]
A boy’s face appeared.
It was Nordian’s avatar.
“I pay my respects, Lord.”
Chris bowed his head.
[Good. Do you know why I summoned you here?]
“Could it be…?”
[Yes. To bestow upon you a relic.]
Chris looked slightly surprised.
He had expected to receive a relic reward eventually.
‘But to open the vault of such high-grade relics?’
Relics had ranks.
Some were no better than human-made artifacts, while others could disrupt the balance of the world just by existing.
Even at a glance, the relics in this vault were no ordinary items.
If even one leaked out, it would surely bring bloodshed.
The greatest treasures the Dark Maga had gathered over centuries.
“…Thank you for your generosity, Lord.”
Chris bowed sincerely.
Without Nordian’s favor, he would never have set foot in the family’s highest vault.
[Enough with the flattery. Do you know why I decided to open this vault for you?]
It wasn’t because he was the only disciple.
Nordian wasn’t the type to make such a personal decision.
“You want me to use these relics to deal a blow to the Union, don’t you?”
Nordian chuckled lowly.
[Yes. You said you’d make that damn Law King bow. Are you really confident?]
Chris nodded firmly.
“Yes. Please wait. I will bring news that will satisfy you, Lord.”
[Heh heh. What a wild, reckless guy.]
But Nordian now knew that Chris’s arrogant talk wasn’t just empty boasting.
Chris had never once failed to make good on the stories he told.
Not a single time.
‘Still, I wonder how this time will turn out.’
Nordian thought to himself.
This was different from before.
He was going to the Union.
And in the body of a demon.
Who knew what obstacles awaited?
Of course, there would be opposition, and countless enemies would be gunning for his life.
Honestly, no matter how amazing Christian was, this was a tall order.
If he didn’t come back alive, that would be the best-case scenario.
‘Actually, I almost opposed it.’
But in the end, he didn’t, because it was Christian.
Having pulled off countless miracles so far, Nordian believed he could pull off something incredible once again.
Still, since no one knew what dangers lay ahead, he wanted to provide a useful relic to help him.
[You may take only one relic from this storage. Choose carefully.]
“Thank you.”
Chris bowed once more, then looked around the storage room.