Episode 358
One of the heads of the Round Table and a comrade from his past life, William, stepped forward and spoke.
“We’re not the only ones. All the trainees are grateful to you. They were about to rush out in the middle of the night, but I stopped them.”
“…Seems like they still have energy left. Should’ve pushed them harder.”
Chris clicked his tongue.
‘…Still, not bad.’
He shifted his gaze to look at everyone.
It wasn’t exactly a relationship you’d call close, but—
“I’ll see you next time. Until then, no one dies. If you do, I’ll make sure to torment you even as a corpse.”
Their next meeting would probably be after the apocalypse had begun.
He didn’t know how many of them would be sacrificed.
Still, he hoped as many as possible would survive.
“You really have a terrible way with words.”
“Didn’t Lord Evan say? He’s just embarrassed, that’s why he talks like that.”
“…No, that’s not it.”
“Seeing him act all obnoxious on purpose, that monster of a warrior does have his own kind of charm.”
“…No, really.”
Chris scowled deeply.
Evan’s antics had completely ruined his image.
For a moment, the heads of the Round Table burst out laughing, then composed themselves.
“Truly, we are grateful. Our Round Table will never forget your kindness.”
Chris nodded.
And with that, the Round Table visit came to an end.
The next target was the Four Kings’ Castle.
It was time to destroy the Four Kings’ Castle.
Establishing a Branch at the Four Kings’ Castle!
Both the Dark Alliance and the Four Kings’ Castle factions reacted with disbelief.
They called it a branch, but it was really a hostage situation.
“I understand sending hostages for a peace treaty, but the Grand Duke himself is going?”
“Absolutely not. We have to stop him!”
“How can we trust the Four Kings’ people?!”
The Dark Alliance’s mages were naturally outraged.
Christiang was now the most important figure in the Dark Alliance.
Some even believed that the true ruler of the Dark Alliance wasn’t Nordian, but Christiang himself. And that wasn’t entirely wrong.
On the other hand, some thought differently.
“The Grand Duke said he’s going himself.”
“Could he be plotting something big again?”
“Probably. The Grand Duke wouldn’t do this without a reason.”
“Still, isn’t it too dangerous? Even for the Grand Duke to enter the death trap that is the Four Kings’ Castle alone.”
No matter how strong Chris was, this was reckless.
The Dark Alliance’s mages watched with deep concern.
Meanwhile, the Four Kings’ faction reacted in the exact opposite way.
“Mahwi is coming in person?”
“What’s he scheming this time?”
Everyone at the Four Kings’ Castle assumed Chris was up to some sinister plot.
They growled in anger.
“How dare he set foot in our Four Kings’ Castle? How little does he think of us?”
“No matter what his scheme is, he’ll regret his arrogance bitterly.”
“If he steps foot here, I’ll make sure he never leaves alive.”
Chris was already the most hated figure among the Four Kings’ mages.
And now he was walking right into their lair.
Every mage at the Four Kings’ Castle waited with chilling murderous intent.
Meanwhile—
“This is the true territory of the Four Kings now. It’s been a while since I’ve traveled so leisurely. Feels like a vacation.”
Chris walked toward the Four Kings’ Castle with a casual expression.
Despite heading into enemy territory, only a handful of companions accompanied him.
There was no tension on his face. It really looked like he was just on a trip.
“Why is it always so gloomy here? It’s a rare outing, but the mood’s all wrong. Just like the Four Kings’ people—so gloomy.”
One of his companions, Alos, looked pale.
“G-Grand Duke, please be careful. The Four Kings’ people can hear you!”
“So what if they do? It’s true they’re gloomy, sneaky, and subhuman scum.”
“Ahhh! P-Please lower your voice…! This is serious!”
Alos looked like he was about to pass out from fear.
Since entering the Four Kings’ territory, they’d been receiving hostile stares nonstop.
But Chris acted as if he didn’t care at all, making arrogant remarks and behaving recklessly.
As if testing how long the Four Kings’ mages would tolerate it.
‘Ahhh! If you want to die, go alone! Why drag me into this?!’
Of course, Chris wasn’t making these remarks without thought.
‘They’re surprisingly patient. I’m blatantly exposing my weaknesses, yet no one dares to touch me.’
He was deliberately revealing his movements for all to see.
And he kept making provocative statements, daring them to react—but they didn’t.
‘They must be scared of the Archmage.’
This trip was sanctioned by the central authority.
So openly attacking Chris could be seen as rebellion.
‘Just as I expected.’
Of course, the Four Kings wouldn’t leave him alone forever.
They’d wait for the right moment to strike discreetly.
‘But they can’t attack me openly. That gives me a huge advantage.’
At that moment, someone lowered their voice cautiously and asked.
Kashmir, representing the Destruction Mages, who had accompanied Chris.
“What exactly is your plan?”
Marisa, representing the Venom Mages, cleared her throat nervously.
“Y-Yeah. What are you thinking? This is way too dangerous.”
Both Kashmir and Marisa had joined this expedition at Chris’s request.
They were with him, but couldn’t help worrying.
Chris made sure his magic was sealed so no sound escaped, then spoke.
“I plan to bring down the Four Kings’ Castle.”
“!!”
“Specifically, I intend to eliminate all the top-tier mages ranked 8 stars and above in the Four Kings’ Castle. Also, all core mages ranked 7 stars and above.”
That was Chris’s concrete goal.
‘Cut off the head, and the rest will fall in line easily.’
Hearing this, the others turned pale.
Alos looked like he might faint.
“Are you crazy? You must be joking! How many top-tier mages are in the Four Kings’ Castle? Haha, our Grand Duke sure has a sense of humor…”
“Yeah, no matter how crazy you are, that’s just ridiculous…”
Marisa stammered.
Even Kashmir, who trusted Chris deeply, looked worried.
It was a natural reaction.
There were as many as ten 8-star mages in the Four Kings’ Castle.
On top of that, the heads of the Curse Mages and the Summoning Mages—Wraith and Drenne—were ultra-powerful, on par with the former Nordian.
There was even the Four Kings’ Lord, a 9-star Soma King.
And yet Chris planned to take them all on alone?
It was madness.
But Chris said calmly,
“It’s entirely possible. The situation favors me.”
It was incomprehensible.
But it was true.
‘Going to the death trap isn’t necessarily a bad thing.’
As they could see now, the Four Kings’ Castle couldn’t openly attack him.
‘If it were a straight fight, I wouldn’t stand a chance.’
The battle in the Four Kings’ Castle would be a game of shadows.
And no one was better at that than Chris.
Did the Four Kings even realize?
Accepting Christiang was like swallowing a carnivorous worm into their own body.
The Four Kings would be torn apart and collapse from the inside out, devoured by this tiny predator.
“Time to get started.”
“Yes, yes, what now?”
“Alos, you know what to do, right?”
“What are you planning?!”
Alos, disguised as Chris through the constellation’s emblem, looked terrified.
“A self-welcoming ceremony.”
Chris, wearing a faceless mask, grinned.
“I have to let the Four Kings know I’m here.”
That night.
The Four Kings’ mages who had been watching Chris’s group were wiped out.
News of this threw the Four Kings’ Castle into chaos.
But they didn’t realize—
This was only the beginning.
Trouble was about to storm the Four Kings’ Castle.
Chris’s reckless antics continued.
He deliberately moved slowly toward the Four Kings’ main fortress, donning his mask whenever possible to annihilate the enemy’s forces.
“Ahhh! What are you doing? The Four Kings won’t just stand by!”
“Stand by? Got proof? No, you don’t.”
‘Because I left no trace of my actions.’
Not only did he hide his face, but he didn’t use any dark magic when striking.
Instead, he only used secret techniques from the Curse and Summoning Mages, leaving no evidence.
‘Of course, they all know it’s me. But what can they do with just suspicion?’
Chris smiled slyly.
If they had even a shred of proof, they’d attack him.
But unfortunately for them, they only had circumstantial evidence.
The Four Kings’ mages rushed out in a panic but only snarled with no action.
[You fool. Do you want to die?]
The lich of the Summoning Mages radiated a terrifying aura.
Chris shrugged.
“What are you talking about?”
[Are you denying it? Isn’t this your doing?!]
“I don’t understand what you’re saying. Oh, are you talking about the damage to the Four Kings’ mages I saw on the way here? Why blame me for that? I don’t know anything about it.”
Chris frowned.
“I think I’m the one who should be receiving your apology.”
[What? An apology?]
“Right, you say you’re on a long journey under His Majesty the Demon King’s orders to strengthen ties between your Four Kings Fortress and the Dark Alliance. But aren’t you exposing yourselves to danger? What if the one who attacked your fortress comes after me and I fail to carry out His Majesty’s command? Will you take responsibility before the Demon King?”
The audacity was staggering.
Yet there was nothing to argue back with.
Because there was no proof.
Especially the repeated mention of ‘the Demon King’ by Chris kept the minions of the Four Kings Fortress from making any rash moves.
[…This bastard.]
The lich of the Four Kings Fortress trembled with rage.
[If that’s how you want to play it, fine. We’ll handle this our way. Be prepared. No matter how great the Demon King’s authority is, it can’t cast light into every shadow.]
A thinly veiled threat: once inside the fortress, they would kill him in secret.
It was a threat not to be taken lightly, but Chris just let out a short, mocking laugh.
“Maybe you should worry about your own lives first.”
[…What?]
“Sending just two seven-star liches to greet me? You’re seriously underestimating me.”
Snap.
He snapped his fingers, and a transparent wave rippled outward.
A dark magic that severed all connections to the outside.
[You don’t mean—?]
“Yeah, that’s right. I’m going to kill you too.”