Episode 169
They had kidnapped an ordinary girl who had been living happily in the mountains and subjected her to such a horrific fate.
And it wasn’t just that one girl.
During the Age of Ruin, Chris had witnessed countless scenes like this.
If those monsters were left unchecked, countless more people would suffer hellish torment in the future.
The reason Chris was struggling so hard right now—
It wasn’t for his own wealth and glory.
Yet still.
No matter how selfish he was, he couldn’t stand by and let the hell he had seen in his past life unfold again.
“I have to stop this. No matter what.”
Of course, that wasn’t the end of it.
Chris was selfish enough that if he thought he was only helping others, he wouldn’t be motivated.
“I’ll crush the Blood-Sucking Demon King, the Mystic Mage, and anyone else—and enjoy the greatest wealth and glory the world has ever seen!”
With that resolve,
the bonds that had shackled the girl Patera’s mind were broken, and the dream world she was trapped in collapsed.
Chris’s efforts didn’t stop at rescuing Patera.
“Patera wouldn’t have come alone. There must be a priest traveling with her.”
He assigned Melin the task of capturing the priest.
Of course, it wasn’t easy since the priest was hiding deep, but Chris gave Melin a tool to catch them.
The Demon-Chasing Jewel.
A sacred artifact of the Holy Empire that could repel demonic energy.
“Of course, it can’t detect those who usually conceal traces of demonic power, but…”
If someone used demonic power within a certain range, it would sense it.
Since Patera had borrowed demonic energy when Chris gave her orders, they caught her trail.
“A high-ranking priest of the Mystic Mage wouldn’t have gotten involved in something like this, so we should be able to catch them.”
Though ordinary priests weren’t easy opponents, the other five-star demons of the Dark Mage Army, working alongside soldiers, managed to capture the priest.
Thanks to this, they secured proof that the Mystic Mage was behind the incident, and Chris immediately made a big move.
He reported the case to the “Central” authority and spread rumors that the Mystic Mage had allied with demons!
The entire Mage Empire was thrown into chaos.
“The Mystic Mage allied with demons?”
“No way! So that’s why the Mystic Mage has shown such overwhelming power all this time?”
“Isn’t that just a rumor?”
“No, it’s true. The Dark Mage submitted evidence to His Majesty, the Demon King of Central. The Mystic Mage summoned demonic power and attacked them.”
Of course, the Mage Empire didn’t legally forbid contracts with demons.
Chris didn’t report this to Central hoping they’d punish the Mystic Mage.
Central never cared about what happened in the borderlands anyway.
Chris’s real goal was different.
By making this public, he wanted the demons of the Mage Empire to become aware of the true nature of the Mystic Mage.
To make the demons wary of the Mystic Mage.
That alone was a huge achievement.
The Mystic Mage would continue to cause trouble in the Mage Empire, but if they were watched closely, their movements would be restricted.
Besides keeping the Mystic Mage in check, there was another effect.
Chris’s name began to echo throughout the Mage Empire.
“But if the Mystic Mage summoned demonic power, how did the Dark Mage repel it without any damage?”
“They say it’s thanks to a certain Lord Christian.”
“Who’s that? I’ve never heard the name.”
“You know, the one who made a name for himself at the Gold Cross recently.”
Though Chris had done a lot lately, few really knew him.
At best, only those around the Dark Mage or the Five Kings’ Castle had heard of him.
But now, many more knew the name Christian.
Not everyone took it well, though.
“That’s ridiculous. A mere five-star noble just now becoming a lord, and he supposedly blocked demonic power?”
“Is he some kind of new five-star prodigy?”
The “Five New Stars,” or “Soma,” were heirs with power rivaling established elites.
For reference, Idline, the Grand Princess of the Blood Sword Mage, was one of the Five New Stars.
“The Dark Mage must be desperate to spread such nonsense.”
“There’s no decent heir, so they’re spreading these ridiculous rumors.”
“To claim the name of a prestigious mage family, yet their best heir is only five stars? They should be ashamed.”
In truth, other noble families had been mocking the Dark Mage for some time.
The Dark Mage’s power wasn’t weak. Their overall strength wasn’t far behind other noble houses.
But their direct bloodline was the problem.
They had too few top-tier demons.
Except for Nordian, only two demons had reached seven stars or higher.
That was far fewer than other noble families.
Even Langham, the marquis who should have inherited the family headship long ago, hadn’t reached eight stars yet and hadn’t succeeded to the position, so the ridicule was understandable.
Their heirs’ achievements were also unimpressive.
The most talented, Ashd, had only reached upper four-star rank.
In other families, that would be laughed at.
Why were they considered a prestigious family?
Because they were born with overwhelmingly superior bloodlines.
Other noble families had plenty of genuine prodigies.
Not to mention five stars and above, those aiming to be the next family head were at least six stars.
“The Dark Mage is already doomed.”
“When Demon Lord Nordian dies, they’ll fall completely.”
While the demons sneered like that,
the Dark Mage announced new news.
They declared that Christian, who had distinguished himself in this incident, would be officially appointed as the next Grand Duke.
Christian was recognized as the next head of the Dark Mage.
Christian’s appointment as Grand Duke was only natural.
He had achieved the feat of stopping the Mystic Mage’s monster without any sacrifice.
He had raised Marquis Shufen’s rank.
He had uncovered the Mystic Mage’s conspiracy.
He had devised countermeasures.
He had miraculously neutralized the monster.
All of it was thanks to Christian.
If it hadn’t been for him, the Dark Mage Army might have suffered heavy losses. In the worst case, Marquis Shufen might have died.
He had earned enough recognition from Marquis Shufen.
“Do you think you can handle it?”
Before stamping the letter that confirmed Christian’s succession exam pass, Marquis Shufen asked.
Christian smiled broadly.
“Haven’t you seen what kind of guy I am?”
Marquis Shufen sighed.
“To be honest, I was going to fail you in the succession exam. You know why, right?”
It wasn’t out of ill will.
On the contrary.
Once he became Grand Duke, Christian would face all kinds of storms head-on.
He would face hardships unlike anything before.
Marquis Shufen worried Christian might break under that pressure.
But—
“Don’t worry. No matter who stands in my way, I’ll break through them all.”
“!!”
“Especially if anyone tries to harm the Dark Mage, I’ll show them what’s what. As befits the Grand Duke of the Dark Mage.”
Marquis Shufen’s eyes flickered.
He saw the confident face of Christian.
He finally understood.
That seemingly absurd confidence was no bluff.
Just as Christian had proven to him personally.
Christian was sure to perform countless miracles in the future.
“Just promise me one thing. Never break.”
Bang!
Marquis Shufen stamped the letter to be sent to the main family.
#//Letter// [I, Marquis Shufen, hereby recognize Christian as the next head of the Dark Mage and pledge my loyalty.]
It was the declaration marking the end of the succession exam.
The demons of the Dark Mage celebrated Christian’s appointment as Grand Duke with overwhelming enthusiasm.
To them, Christian was already a small hero.
However, becoming Grand Duke didn’t mean the succession battle was over.
There were still rivals.
Yulian, backed by Marquis Langham, might cause some unexpected trouble.
Some even worried,
“Marquis Langham might take matters into his own hands against Christian.”
Langham hadn’t given up the family headship.
Now that Christian was the Grand Duke with succession rights,
Langham would have to eliminate Christian to become the head.
Of course, if Nordian remained strong, this wouldn’t be an issue.
But everyone knew.
Nordian’s time was running out.
“What will happen next?”
Thus, sharp tension began to spread through the Dark Mage.
There were also places that reacted sensitively to Christian’s appointment.
Unexpected ones.
The Destruction Mage.
The Venom Mage.
And the Azure Dragon Demon King.
In the west of the Southern Mage Kingdom,
a massive castle stood in the towering mountain range.
It was the seat of the Destruction Mage family, the House of Vesen.
As the strongest family in the Southern Mage Kingdom, their formidable presence was felt even from afar.
The discipline of the demons guarding the walls was strict, and the black mages skilled in their unique destruction magic radiated fierce energy.
Yet the atmosphere in the castle was strange.
There was a heavy tension in the air.
More precisely, every demon was on edge.
Because the lord of the castle was in a foul mood.
Louis de Vesen, the Grand Duke,
an upper eight-star demon and an absolute powerhouse comparable to Nordian, spoke in a low, heavy voice.
“Christian has become the Grand Duke of the Dark Mage?”
“…Yes, my lord.”
It was unexpected.
The head of the Destruction Mage showing interest in this matter?
The Pakhoe family was incomparably more powerful than the Amheuk family in every aspect.
From the number of top-ranking mages to the overall strength of the clan.
Among the noble houses of the entire Mage Empire, they ranked within the top five.
No matter how much Christian had recently made a name for himself, there was no way the Grand Duke Besen, who sat high above everyone else, would take an interest.
There was a reason for that.
“He killed Maysak.”
Referring to the third prince of the Amheuk family, who had been slain by Christian long ago.
Maysak’s mother, Jeokseolhwa Fresia, was the daughter of Grand Duke Besen.
In other words, Maysak was the Grand Duke’s grandson.
‘Not that I ever felt any familial affection for such an incompetent fool.’
But Maysak was an important piece for Grand Duke Besen.
A key to bringing the Amheuk family under his control someday.
From the start, Besen had married his daughter Fresia into the Amheuk family hoping that her bloodline would one day rule over them.
Of course, Maysak’s abilities were far too lacking to become the heir to the Amheuk throne.
But that didn’t matter.
Because behind Maysak stood the Pakhoe family.
‘Until now, Nordian—the stubborn old man—was still alive, making it difficult to exert influence over the Amheuk family. But that won’t last much longer.’
Once Nordian was gone, who in the Amheuk family would dare defy the might of the Pakhoe clan?