Episode 59
For reference, the total cost of all the supplies Chris mentioned came to:
1,000,000 rupees.
An amount that could buy several mansions even in a massive castle like Baron’s.
Ruina immediately prepared all the items Chris requested.
True to her reputation as the auction house owner, she worked at lightning speed.
Grinding her teeth, Ruina said,
“If this whole disaster everyone’s been talking about doesn’t actually happen during this battle for supremacy, I’m charging you the full amount!”
Chris just shrugged his shoulders.
‘Why all the fuss? This is only the beginning.’
Ruina had no idea, but their relationship was just getting started.
From now on, she would reliably serve as the keeper of his purse—if she wanted to avoid going broke.
‘Don’t feel wronged. Think of it like a tax.’
Just as one pays taxes to the army that protects them, Chris believed that what he was about to do—protecting her trading company—was a fair exchange.
‘Still, there’s a lot to do.’
Chris thought about the events that lay ahead.
The horrific catastrophe at Gold Cross.
The conflict between the Venomous Maga and the Dark Maga.
The betrayal of Jinnok.
The death of the Lord of Noga.
The rampage of the Destruction Maga.
The conspiracy of the Blue Stream Demon King, and more.
All of these were set to happen within a few years in the Southern Mage Kingdom alone. And that was just the major ones.
Stopping all of these was the only way to prevent the outbreak of the First Great War against the Demon King’s Castle.
The worst part? This wasn’t even the end.
Ultimately, he had to reach the pinnacle of the Mage Empire.
‘Ugh, why do I have to go through all this?’
A sudden wave of despair hit him, and he let out a heavy sigh.
‘This is the kind of hardship a hero should be facing! Why did I have to be the one to reincarnate and deal with it?! Damn it.’
The more he thought about it, the angrier he got.
‘I’m not going to suffer alone. One day, I’ll find all the heroes again and make them work me to the bone.’
For now, he was only active within the Mage Empire.
But there was plenty to do on the Alliance side as well.
When the time came, he planned to find Evan and the other heroes and put them to work.
Especially Evan—the top candidate for being worked to the bone.
‘Just wait until I meet him. I’ll make him work like a ruthless boss.’
That was enough daydreaming for now.
When he returned to the mansion, a line of fierce-looking minions stood at attention.
There were thirty of them.
At the front stood a familiar girl with a cold expression—Jupien.
They were the exploration team heading toward the neutral zone.
“…”
Jupien glared at him silently.
Her eyes seemed to say, “What took you so long?”
“Oh, I was just having some fun, so I’m late.”
Chris’s casual reply made the minions beside Jupien frown.
No one was going to look kindly on Chris, who had been playing around in the castle right before an important mission.
Chris just smirked and let out a loud yawn.
“Maybe I overdid it. I’m tired. I’ll just follow along sleeping in the supply wagon. That’s fine, right?”
“!!”
The minions’ eyes widened at his outrageous words.
Jupien’s glare sharpened even more.
“No, young master. Even so, that’s…”
Jupien raised her hand to stop the protest.
“Enough.”
“But, princess?”
“Don’t bother yourself with whatever that guy does.”
Jupien said coldly.
In truth, after their brief duel earlier, Jupien had come to respect Christian a little.
He had incredible talent and skill.
Of course, if she had used her specialty, the Illusion Sword Technique, properly, she wouldn’t have lost so easily. Still, she had to admit his strength.
Though she had a complicated history with her brother, Jupien wasn’t as reckless as Loin. She could recognize strength.
But now, after spending all that time goofing off in the castle and still acting like that?
Her disgust flared up again.
‘That guy doesn’t deserve to be the heir of the main family.’
Jupien decided to leave Christian alone.
If he didn’t take the mission seriously and failed to make any achievements, it would only hurt himself.
“…Let’s move out.”
Jupien muttered, and the horses started to gallop.
The supply wagon began moving as well, and Chris lay back inside, smiling softly.
‘Lying down while traveling is nice and comfortable.’
He thought to himself.
‘Though things are going to get tough from here on out.’
He hadn’t just lain down for comfort.
There was a reason.
‘They should all be grateful to me.’
The exploration team was doomed to be wiped out.
To prevent that disaster, he had to catch everyone off guard—even deceive his own allies.
This was the start of the operation.
The Dark Maga ruled over a vast territory.
The Venomous Maga was the same.
Both were about the size of a small country.
They divided their lands like borders, but the problem was that some areas—forests, magical realms, mountainous regions—were hard to define clearly, leading to disputes over ownership.
As the damage piled up, they declared those areas neutral zones.
The relic had appeared in one such neutral zone—the Biskin Mountain Range.
A magical realm where high-level monsters frequently appeared.
As they neared their destination, Jupien issued a warning.
“No one is to act alone. Form teams of at least three.”
This was a rule put in place because powerful monsters above rank 4 often appeared.
“Yes, understood, princess!”
“But what about Christian’s team?”
Jupien frowned slightly.
Christian was still lying in the supply wagon.
“Leave that trash alone.”
While they were preparing for the exploration, a cloud of dust rose in the distance.
Minions dressed in dark blue robes with a black tint appeared!
“They’re the Venomous Maga’s minions!”
At the front was a girl with an intelligent, haughty air—Marisa, the princess of the Venomous Maga, approaching their side.
“You’re right on time. I’m Marisa.”
“I’m Jupien.”
“I assume you’ve heard the rules.”
The relic was an object imbued with the power of the constellation and demons—called the Holy Relic and the Demon Relic, respectively.
They possessed tremendous power, and every time one appeared, bloodshed followed.
The worst cases were when relics appeared along the borders between major powers.
It wasn’t just about wanting the relic—it was a matter of pride, often leading to battles resembling full-scale wars.
Normally, this time would have been no different.
But to avoid unnecessary bloodshed, they agreed to compete like a contest.
And to prevent any future disputes, they set perfectly fair rules.
“No setting traps or deliberately attacking the other side during the exploration.”
A surprisingly fair rule for minions.
But it was necessary.
Otherwise, both sides would focus more on killing each other than finding the relic.
“Alright.”
“…That was curt.”
“Aren’t we enemies? Should I be more polite?”
“No need.”
Marisa lowered her tone neatly.
“Well then, I’ll be going.”
As she turned to leave, Marisa hesitated for a moment.
She glanced over the Dark Maga minions, as if searching for someone.
At that moment, Christian sat up groggily in the supply wagon and yawned loudly.
A pitiful sight of someone just waking up.
Marisa pursed her lips.
Then,
“Hmph.”
She turned back toward her own side with the Venomous Maga minions.
The competition was about to begin.
Jupien spoke to the Dark Maga minions.
“We’re starting the exploration. Follow my orders carefully.”
She gave instructions.
Form teams, don’t stray beyond assigned areas, and call for help immediately if you encounter monsters you can’t handle.
No one knew exactly where the relic was in the magical realm.
They only ‘sensed’ that it had appeared somewhere in the mountain range.
So rushing in blindly wouldn’t work.
Acting hastily would only cause casualties.
Above all, the magical realm was too vast and dangerous to move recklessly.
The proper way was to calmly divide the area and search thoroughly, section by section.
But then Christian, yawning, got up from the supply wagon and approached Jupien.
“Can I go off on my own?”
“…What?”
“How can we search the entire mountain range moving like slowpokes?”
Jupien’s eyebrows twitched.
She already had a bad impression of Christian.
From their first meeting until now, he had constantly rubbed her the wrong way.
“…You really are something.”
“I’m just frustrated. If we follow your slowpoke orders and miss the relic, it’ll be a disaster.”
Jupien’s eyebrows trembled with anger.
But she didn’t draw her sword like before.
Causing internal conflict right before the mission wouldn’t be wise, so she held back.
“Do as you please. But,”
Jupien said coldly,
“Don’t expect rescue if you run into a powerful monster.”
Her eyes looked at him like he was trash.
Chris shrugged.
‘Looks like I’m completely hated now. Well, I was already hated, so whatever.’
That was actually better.
For his plan, he needed to move completely freely, out of everyone’s sight.
“Good. Then I won’t need this.”
Chris tossed a small crystal orb onto the ground.
It was a magical device used to track each other’s locations in emergencies—but now he discarded it.
From now on, Jupien and the exploration team wouldn’t be able to track his position.
“Good luck.”
With that, Chris dashed alone into the mountain range.
“That crazy guy…? Is that even allowed? This magical realm is so dangerous.”
“Won’t he end up as a corpse?”
The minions murmured among themselves.
Jupien was conflicted.
Was it really okay to leave Christian alone like that?
But Christian had already disappeared deeper into the mountain range.
Jupien bit his lip tightly, glaring in the direction Christian had vanished.
Yet Christian hadn’t faced any danger at all.
‘Why confront monsters? Just avoid them.’
Having traveled through countless demon-infested territories with the hero’s party, Chris knew exactly how these beasts behaved and how to steer clear of them.
Especially here—this was neutral ground between the two noble houses.
They’d thoroughly investigated which monsters appeared in the area, so avoiding them was easy.
‘I need to move quickly. If I don’t, it’ll be too late.’
The Marquis Langham’s conspiracy was already underway.
As he hurried forward, an unexpected figure appeared.
“…Christian.”
It was Marisa.
Her eyes widened as she looked at Chris.
‘Damn.’
This was bad timing—and not a welcome encounter.
‘She’s my ex-fiancée. She’s no longer my concern. Just ignore her and keep moving.’
He tried to pass without a word, but then something unexpected happened.
Whoosh!
A black poison dart flew straight toward Christian.
He stopped abruptly, and with a sizzling sound, the deadly toxin melted the ground where it landed.
“…What the hell is this?”
“I have something to discuss with you.”
Christian frowned.
This wasn’t a coincidence.
He could tell Marisa had come looking for him on purpose.
‘What’s her game?’