Chapter 182
In his previous life, Christian had led the hero party to explosive growth.
If he now began to teach in earnest, the dormant power of the Dark Maga demons would be greatly strengthened.
Though currently scorned by other noble houses, soon enough, he would astonish them all.
“…”
The retainers’ gazes turned toward Nordian.
The decision now rested with him.
Nordian let out a low sigh.
‘What is this guy thinking?’
To be honest, he worried whether Christian could pull this off.
This wasn’t something that could be solved by wit and strength alone, as before.
They had to counter the poison with the expertise of the Venomous Maga—using both toxicology and medical arts.
Still.
When he met Christian’s eyes, sparkling with a confident grin, Nordian couldn’t help but let out a bitter chuckle.
There was no hint of failure in that gaze.
“Very well. I will proceed as the Marquis and the Grand Duke have instructed.”
Nordian said.
“I will give the Grand Duke one week to uncover the truth.”
Beyond the western border of the Dark Maga territory, deep within a dense forest, stood a vast manor.
It was hard to imagine such a grand estate in such a remote place, far from human footsteps.
This was Jinrok Castle, the main seat of the Venomous Maga.
The manor consisted of lavish gardens and buildings where the affiliated demons lived, with a massive mansion towering at its center.
Among the grand estate, one building stood out for its size and splendor.
Hosimwon—the Lake Heart Garden.
This was where the head of the Venomous Maga resided.
But surprisingly, the current occupant of Hosimwon was not the head of the Venomous Maga, Duke Huam.
It was the deputy head, Marquis Goras.
A tyrant who had turned Duke Huam into a mere figurehead and seized real power over the Venomous Maga.
“Deputy Marquis, the Dark Maga matter is proceeding as you instructed.”
At his subordinate’s words, Marquis Goras shifted his gaze.
His eyes, cold and snake-like, made the subordinate swallow nervously.
This wasn’t just tension from facing an absolute demon of the eighth rank.
Goras’s eyes lacked any trace of humanity.
A terrifying nature that cared nothing for sacrifice if it served his greed.
‘So this is why he stirred up this incident.’
The subordinate clenched his fist tightly.
Indeed, Goras was behind the events in the Dark Maga territory.
Just as Christian had suspected, it was to utterly ruin Duke Huam.
‘Still, to massacre civilians…’
Even though demons shedding blood was commonplace, there was a line that could never be crossed.
That line was slaughtering powerless civilians.
And it wasn’t just that.
If things continued as they were, both the Dark Maga and Venomous Maga, caught in this scheme, would bleed heavily.
No one knew how many would die, yet Marquis Goras coldly committed these horrors for his own greed.
The subordinate hesitated before speaking.
“Are you sure this is wise? If the Dark Maga uncover the truth, it could lead to serious trouble.”
Since civilians had been massacred, if the truth came out, no matter how powerful Goras was, he wouldn’t escape lightly.
“There’s no chance of that.”
Goras answered sharply, his voice dry and cracked.
“I just received word from Marquis Langham. The Dark Maga have assigned Grand Duke Christian to handle this matter.”
“Grand Duke Christian? That rookie?”
The subordinate said in surprise.
Christian’s talent was well known even within the Venomous Maga.
A genius with incredible skill in both magic and dark arts.
He was destined to become a formidable monster.
But this case wasn’t something a genius alone could solve.
‘The Dark Maga must be crazy. They should be scrambling to find someone from the Medical Lineage to investigate.’
Only disciples of the Medical Lineage had the ability to uncover the truth here.
Even then, ordinary disciples wouldn’t suffice—it had to be a ‘medical scholar’ who fully understood the Medical Lineage’s academic knowledge.
“Don’t worry about the Dark Maga uncovering the truth. Prepare to pin the blame on Princess Marisa and Duke Huam as planned.”
“Yes, sir.”
The subordinate bowed and left.
Left alone, Goras’s communication device buzzed.
It was a message from the Azure Flow Demon Lord.
“How is the matter progressing?”
An astonishing revelation.
The Azure Flow Demon Lord was behind this incident.
Goras had committed these atrocities with the Demon Lord’s consent.
“Rest assured.”
Goras replied calmly.
“Your Majesty will get what he desires.”
Satisfied, the communication ended.
Goras looked out the window.
The vast manor stretched out before him.
Once this was over, the estate would be completely his.
“It won’t be long now.”
Meanwhile, Christian immediately prepared to resolve the incident.
Time was critical.
‘The one-week deadline isn’t the real problem. The number of patients is still rising.’
Fortunately, ‘so far’ there weren’t many deaths.
But Christian knew from his previous life how this incident had unfolded.
‘Over a thousand victims. That’s what nearly pushed the two houses to all-out war.’
The problem was that solving this wasn’t easy.
‘Identifying the poison itself is the first challenge.’
The Venomous Maga had countless poisons.
Poison development was their hobby.
There were as many poisons as there were demons in the Venomous Maga.
So if a poison showed unusual symptoms, there were countless others with similar effects.
Distinguishing each one was impossible for anyone.
‘But it’s okay. With my knowledge, I can do it. My medical expertise surpasses even the Medical Lineage’s scholars.’
In his previous life, Christian hadn’t mastered the Medical Lineage’s martial arts.
Yet he had earned a reputation akin to a god, thanks to his unparalleled medical knowledge.
No one in the Medical Lineage could surpass him in medical skill.
‘The real problem is catching Marquis Goras red-handed.’
They needed proof that Goras had spread the poison.
But knowing Goras’s meticulous nature, he wouldn’t leave careless evidence.
Even for Christian, uncovering the poison’s identity and finding traces within a week was no easy task.
‘It’s fine. I have a plan for that too.’
Christian thought confidently.
‘I don’t have to solve this head-on. Dirty tactics are my specialty.’
Goras would never suspect what Christian was plotting.
He had no idea what kind of blow was coming his way.
‘Let’s get started.’
But then, an unexpected visitor arrived.
Melin said,
“Grand Duke, a guest has come.”
“Who?”
“Grand Duke Hubert of the Venomous Maga.”
Soon, a figure entered.
“Grand Duke Christian, it’s good to see you again since the investiture ceremony.”
It was none other than Hubert, the Venomous Maga’s black sheep!
‘He’s still here?’
The envoys who attended the investiture had long since returned to their houses.
In any case, this was unexpected.
“What brings you here? You must know the Dark Maga situation isn’t favorable for a Venomous Maga Grand Duke to linger.”
Christian crossed his arms.
“I could detain you if I wished.”
“Ha ha, frightening words. I trust you wouldn’t do that to me. After all, I’m just a worthless hostage.”
Hubert grinned slyly.
“As you know, I’m just a puppet Grand Duke.”
Christian raised an eyebrow.
Hubert’s attitude rubbed him the wrong way.
‘He’s far too relaxed given the situation.’
Hubert was Duke Huam’s son.
Yet despite his faction’s crisis, he showed no sign of worry.
It was hard to understand.
Christian studied Hubert’s expression carefully and asked,
“Why have you come?”
“I came to tell you something about this incident.”
Hubert lowered his voice.
“The incident in the Dark Maga territory was caused by my sister Marisa’s poison.”
“…”
“Marisa’s latest creation, the ‘Blood of Evil’ poison, was released into the Tenne River due to negligence by the Venomous Maga’s poison management.”
For reference, Marisa was the head of the poison management.
This meant all blame fell on Marisa.
If this were true, even if the truth was uncovered, they couldn’t hold Marquis Goras accountable.
“Why tell me this? As Marisa’s brother, you’d want to keep this quiet.”
If it was proven that Marisa was at fault—whether intentional or accidental—it couldn’t be overlooked.
Marisa herself would face the harshest punishment.
Her brother Hubert and Duke Huam would also suffer great damage.
‘In my previous life, Marisa took the blame for this incident and died.’
Looking back, Marisa’s life had been tragic.
During the ‘Devil’s Emulet’ incident, she was falsely accused, had her eyes and tongue removed, and her limbs severed as punishment.
Yet she never gave up and became head of poison management despite her disabilities.
But she was sacrificed again in Goras’s scheme.
She bore all the blame unjustly and met a horrific death.
“I’m telling you this for the sake of my sister, Marisa.”
“…What do you mean?”
“Right now, Marisa refuses to admit any wrongdoing. It’s true that some poison leaked due to negligence, but she took prompt neutralizing measures early on and insists that this whole mess wasn’t caused by her poison.”
Hubert spoke gravely.
“Before it’s too late, I hope Your Highness can uncover the truth behind Marisa’s fault. At the very least, to save her life.”
Christian fell silent for a moment.
He knew the general outline of the incident.
But he wasn’t sure exactly how Marisa was going to be framed.
Hearing Hubert just now, a sudden realization clicked into place.
‘Wait a minute… I’ve seen this guy before.’
Christian narrowed his eyes, studying Hubert closely.
Though the face was unfamiliar, there was an odd sense of déjà vu.
Suddenly, a voice echoed in his mind.
—Once this is settled, you won’t have to see that damn Marisa’s face again.
It was from the “Devil’s Emulet” incident, where the extreme poison mage faction and the dark mage faction clashed over an artifact.
Back then, a prince from the extreme poison mages tried to pin the blame on Marisa.
He wore a mask, so Christian never saw his face clearly, but his build was strikingly similar to Hubert’s.
Christian asked directly.
“Are you really concerned about Marisa?”
For a moment, Hubert’s expression stiffened.
Though it softened again quickly, Christian caught the subtle shift.
‘Of course, just because their builds are alike doesn’t prove they’re the same person.’
But what made Christian suspicious was the look in Hubert’s eyes.
“What are you saying? I care deeply for Marisa.”
“I know you and Marisa are close.”
Marisa often sent Christian pointless letters, and Hubert was mentioned in them.
They seemed to have a rare, warm sibling relationship for a noble mage family.
“Then why do I see no worry for Marisa in your eyes?”
“!!”
“Instead, all I see is something dark and sinister. I’m an expert at reading hidden intentions.”
At first glance, it sounded like concern for Marisa.
But that wasn’t the real meaning.
Christian was being warned that Marisa was the true culprit behind this disaster.
Hubert’s face darkened.
“How dare you speak so disrespectfully?! I trusted you enough to speak frankly, and this is the thanks I get? I have nothing more to say. I’m leaving.”
“Wait.”
Flash!
Christian’s sword was suddenly pressed against Hubert’s throat.
‘When did I draw this?’
Hubert swallowed hard, and Christian smiled coldly.
“You may come and go as you please, but not when you leave.”