Chapter 947

The silence hung heavy in the air.

Ian tried to hide the trembling at his fingertips by gripping the hem of his coat tightly. Though these were seasoned mages who had just downed beers, the sharp, chilling reality had long since snapped them fully awake.

“Minister Arena, what happened?” Ian asked.

She glanced briefly at the bodies of Jack and Ragnod, then let out a deep sigh.

“…They didn’t return when expected, so we were about to send someone from our side.”

Waiting. What was supposed to be a simple, routine mission had stretched on, and Arena’s anxiety grew with every passing moment, gnawing at her confidence. Just as she was about to order the duty mage to open a portal and investigate—

“W-we found the mages’ bodies and brought them back. The ladder was just tall enough, so the villagers worked together to get them down…”

The mages’ gazes shifted toward the voice. A group of unfamiliar faces had gathered—obviously outsiders who had come to the palace, or so they thought. But no, these were villagers from a nearby settlement where Jack and Ragnod had been dispatched.

“Jack and Ragnod entered the Red Forest a week ago. They started their work immediately after arriving.”

They must have thought it was nothing serious. No matter what kind of monster it was, with two mages on the job, it would be over quickly.

Honestly, the entire Magic Department had thought so. Over the past decade of monster wars, they had already gauged the general threat level of these creatures. Even if the monsters were regaining strength, Jack and Ragnod were elite among elites—mages who had fought more battles on the outskirts of Bariel than anyone else.

“So, what happened?”

Ian asked again, staring at the gruesome bodies. Holes pierced their necks, chests, and abdomens—the same kind of wounds described in previous reports.

Instead of Arena, the villagers answered.

“We knew when the mages were supposed to return, so we just went about our daily lives, thinking they’d handle things and come back safely…”

“But by last night, there was still no word. They were supposed to finish early and drink with us at the tavern. Something felt off, so the villagers formed a search party and entered the Red Forest.”

Armed with torches, weapons of the Dera tribe, and even the village hunting dogs, they scoured the forest. Thanks to their efforts, they found the bodies before dawn and brought them back.

“…Anything suspicious?”

Arena’s voice cracked, dry and hollow in the silence.

“Like the last time with the hunters, and now with the mages, we found no unusual signs in the Red Forest itself. The village doctor said they’d been dead for over three days…”

Despite the desperate fight the two mages had put up, the nearby villagers hadn’t noticed a thing.

There were only two possibilities.

“An ambush, or the opponent was overwhelmingly powerful.”

Hale spoke, recalling his mercenary days as he lit a cigarette. He approached the bodies, eyes heavy with mixed emotions as he examined them.

“Even if it was an ambush, there were two mages. Whoever did this is no ordinary foe.”

“Right. Even a surprise attack wouldn’t easily take down both at once—unless their guard was completely down.”

“What do you mean?”

The mages frowned at the cryptic remark, but Ian muttered quietly.

“Could it be… ‘humanoid’?”

“Exactly. Like a young girl, a lost old man, or an injured person attacked by a monster they were searching for. If it looked like that, the two wouldn’t have suspected a thing.”

A humanoid monster. If true, this was a serious problem. The more human-like a monster appeared, the smarter and stronger it tended to be.

As recorded in the monster wars a century ago, the King of Toorun was a prime example of a humanoid monster—acting and perceiving like a human, but ultimately a source of evil.

“It’s not certain, but we should keep that possibility open. Have you called the palace coroner?”

“Yes. They should be here soon.”

Arena’s voice was small, weighed down by shock.

She was a woman who hadn’t lost a single subordinate in the past ten years of war. While the palace guard lost their magic swordsman, the Magic Department had never lost a mage. The media had boasted about their strength, and she had taken pride in that.

“Damn it.”

But now she had lost them. To an unknown monster, at the very moment when Gaia’s peace was just within reach, without any warning or sign.

Death was always like that, but Arena couldn’t accept it. If she had known losing a subordinate felt like this, all the glory and pride meant nothing.

“I’m going crazy, seriously.”

“Minister.”

As Arena bit her lip in self-reproach, the mages stepped forward to comfort her. But inside, they were just as tormented.

What would they say to Jack and Ragnod’s families? How could they explain to the empire’s people that such precious children of the gods had died so pointlessly?

“First, make sure this doesn’t leak.”

Arena rose and gave a low command. In the distance, the palace coroner was rushing toward them.

“If rumors spread that a monster strong enough to take down two mages has appeared, chaos will follow. We know nothing about it yet. Fortunately, the Red Forest has few passersby and is on the northern outskirts. We’ll investigate with Astana’s help.”

“Understood.”

“Meanwhile, issue a curfew around the northern Red Forest for other reasons. What was the village name again?”

“Toboro Village.”

“Right. Toboro Village. Evacuate all residents to Astana’s side. Once the village is empty, we’ll use it as a base for the investigation.”

“Ah…”

The village chief looked troubled. It was harvest season, and emptying the village wasn’t easy.

More importantly, they hadn’t suffered any damage. The monster might have already moved on through the Red Forest.

“Do you want compensation?”

After thinking for a long moment, the chief’s eyes brightened at Arena’s offer but then he shook his head firmly.

“No, no. We’ll cooperate fully with the mages’ investigation.”

Arena’s gaze was cold, almost fierce. It was clear she was determined to uncover the monster’s identity and crush it, even if it meant burning the entire Red Forest to the ground.

“We’ll reopen the portal. You go back first and inform the villagers to prepare. I can’t say exactly when we’ll contact you again.”

“Yes, understood.”

“Ian.”

Arena ordered Ian to reopen the portal.

The formulas inscribed on the ground were half-erased from the earlier commotion, but Ian rewrote them smoothly, adjusting the altitude to be as close to the ground as possible for civilian use.

A low hum filled the air.

The villagers flinched at the sudden portal behind them, then bowed respectfully to Arena and the mages before cautiously stepping through.

“We’ll be ready.”

“Good.”

They glanced once more at the fallen Jack and Ragnod before disappearing into the portal.

Once the outsiders were gone, the coroner arrived to examine the bodies.

“Ah, this is…”

“Handle them carefully. And analyze thoroughly.”

“Yes, Minister.”

“Send the report directly to me, and you, assistant.”

“Yes.”

The assistant clutched a notepad, busily jotting down the villagers’ statements taken before the mages’ emergency call.

“I’ll organize and share it soon.”

As the coroner moved the bodies and the assistant hurried to the office, Arena stood rooted to the spot, unmoving.

The mages looked at the bloodstained grass where Jack and Ragnod had fallen.

“I’ll go this time.”

“Me too.”

“I think we should form a team of about five for the investigation. And prepare properly. Jack and Ragnod went in too lightly.”

They had been overconfident, thinking the monster that killed the hunters was nothing compared to their magic. Ten years of victories had bred arrogance and poor judgment.

“I’ll go and avenge Jack and Ragnod. Damn bastard, whoever you are, I’ll grind you to bits for them—”

“Enough.”

Arena cut him off. After releasing a burst of anger, her expression settled into calm. Ian felt a sudden tension from her gaze—one he had never seen before.

“Did you forget the upcoming imperial joint recruitment period? We need to set up shields and scout for magic swordsmen. It’s better to have more people.”

She sighed and pulled out a cigarette. Hale lit it for her, already sensing what decision she had made.

“I’m going. And the team will be limited to three, including me. We’ll deliver the results by tomorrow. That’s final.”

“The minister is going herself?”

“Why?”

During recruitment, the Magic Department’s policy was to minimize mana consumption. The standard was to increase personnel to share the load. But only three? And after what happened to Jack and Ragnod, it was clear that ordinary mages wouldn’t be enough to catch or track this monster.

“If we keep sending people and just end up with more corpses, it’s better if I go and handle it myself.”

The wizards were left speechless by Arena’s decision. They wanted to object, but no valid reason came to mind. They glanced at Ian, hoping the clever one would say something to talk Arena out of it.

“If the Minister goes in person, it’ll be hard to keep it under wraps.”

That’s right! The Minister’s movements can’t be kept secret. People will start asking questions, and eventually rumors will spread throughout the entire capital! It might sound far-fetched, but it was a plausible concern.

“It’s the Empire’s joint recruitment period, so things are noisy and chaotic. No one’s going to care if the Minister of Magic steps out for a bit. At least not here in the palace.”

Thousands of talented individuals from all over Gaia gather to compete and test their potential. While the small number of wizards might seem odd, the absence of a few key people, including the Minister, wouldn’t even be noticed.

“And besides, Ian, you’re here.”

“Please don’t say that.”

“I’m not just saying it to be polite.”

If things went south, there was Ian—capable of wielding magic as powerful as Arena’s. With Ian and a few other skilled individuals like Hale holding the line, the event would run smoothly.

“This time, I’m the one going.”

Arena’s tone was firm, as if to say no arguments were welcome.

“I’ll go and take care of it, once and for all.”