Episode 165
Chapter 55: The Remnants of the Dark Magic Council (6)
Enya bowed deeply, bending at the waist to a perfect 90 degrees. She was the only witness who had seen Jin Runkandel awaken once again and fight through this historic battle from beginning to end.
Even without knowing that Jin had deliberately fought inefficiently, it was an overwhelming victory by any measure.
“I respect you, hyung-nim!”
“Respect? You must have been pretty shocked, Austin. Ever since we started wiping those guys out earlier.”
Jin gestured toward the fallen Dark Magic Council mages. When the Reversal Sky spell was unleashed, over eighty percent of the nearly fifty mages died, and the remaining twenty percent were gravely wounded and unconscious.
But even that twenty percent wouldn’t last long—excluding the fake Otern—unless they received help from healing specialists. Low-level mages simply couldn’t withstand the backlash caused by the Reversal Sky.
“Yeah… I was surprised. In many ways…”
Though she tried to keep a composed expression, Enya was just a sixteen-year-old girl with no real combat experience. Unlike Jin or Syris, who had grown up accustomed to the scent of blood, she wasn’t used to fighting or death.
“This is the first time you’ve seen so many people die, right?”
“Yes. It’s a bit nauseating. But I’ve realized who I’m with—and what I need to do to not be a burden to them.”
Enya recalled what Quicantel had said.
“If you don’t want to, it’s okay to stay non-combatant. I think it’s fine for at least one of us to have a peaceful life.”
Jin stepped among the fallen Dark Magic Council mages.
One by one, he checked their necks and wrists for a pulse, then injected more mana into those still faintly alive to accelerate the backlash.
He was making sure no one survived to report back to Kinzello’s higher-ups. Instead of stabbing them with a dagger, he chose to hasten the backlash to sow confusion during any future investigations by Bimant.
Watching Jin’s expressionless face as he carried out these mercy killings, Enya clenched her teeth.
“I don’t want to force this bloody life on you. It’s definitely not normal. You could live a cheerful, warm life if you wanted.”
Jin gave a bitter smile after finishing the mercy killings, and Enya shook her head.
“You’re right—it’s not normal. Most people would hate killing others. Anyone would choose a comfortable, stable life if they could.”
Enya slowly approached Jin, her voice trembling as she took his hand.
“But I hate the idea of leaving the unpleasant work to you and the others alone. I want to fight alongside you.”
To fulfill her role as Jin’s comrade meant committing countless murders in the future. Jin would seize Runkandel, wage war against Ziphl, and eventually surpass Siron.
How many lives would be lost along the way?
Jin and his comrades were already trapped by an unavoidable fate.
Even protecting their small sanctuary, the Free City of Tikan, was a story that couldn’t exist without murder and war. Powerful forces loomed, constantly eyeing Tikan.
More and more factions would come after Tikan as time passed. So far, only Kashmir and the Seven-Colored Bird were known, but if the Black Dragon, Silver Dragon, and the sole Runkandel magic swordsman were revealed…
Tikan could become the eye of the storm at any moment.
“It’ll be tough at first, but I’ll do my part. I don’t want to just be someone you protect like today. So please don’t tell me it’s okay to just stay safe.”
“Austin.”
Enya stepped back and looked at Jin.
Then, placing one hand over her chest, she drew a deep breath and bowed respectfully.
“I am Enya, the Contract Holder of Olta. One day, I will become the greatest archmage you trust.”
When she returned to Tikan, her days would be different from before.
Jin hesitated at Enya’s sudden formality but soon returned her bow.
“Thank you. I, too, will resolve to always be someone you can trust and rely on.”
After the greeting, an awkward silence fell. It was only natural—such a solemn vow had just been exchanged out of nowhere.
“Ahem, ahem! So, should we head back now? Or is there more to do here…?”
“We need to take care of the fake Otern. I left him alive on purpose.”
“Oh! There’ll be plenty to ask about the Dark Magic Council and Kinzello. Um… I guess some torture might be necessary… Haha, I just swore I’d do my part, but thinking about torture makes me feel a bit…”
Jin chuckled softly.
“Usually, you’d have to torture someone to make them talk—unless they spill everything willingly. But we don’t need to do that. We have Lady Latri.”
“Oh! The Dragon of Truth!”
“Yuria can’t interrogate personally, so it’s not perfect, but Latri can use resonance to borrow some of Yuria’s Absolute Eye abilities to detect lies.”
Throughout history, many powerful rulers coveted the Contract Holders of Az Mil not just for their foresight.
The ‘Absolute Eye’ could read the expressions of liars. Unless someone had an extraordinary mental discipline honed by years of lying, they could never fool the Absolute Eye.
“Well, if all else fails, we might have to consider torture.”
Jin wrapped the fallen fake Otern tightly in his robe. From a distance, it looked more like a sack of potatoes than a person.
Still, up close, it was obvious. He might regain consciousness and start struggling at any moment.
‘It’ll be a hassle sneaking him past the gate guards unnoticed.’
Suddenly, a low groan echoed from somewhere. Jin spun around to find the sound coming from among the fallen cadets.
Unlike the Dark Magic Council mages, all the cadets were still alive. Jin had taken measures to keep the Reversal Sky’s mana from fully affecting them.
Though they might become enemies someday, killing them all here would cause bigger problems. Besides, as Enya said, maybe one of them was a decent person.
The groaning came from Chip.
‘Did he have more mana than expected? Or stronger willpower? Or did the Reversal Sky’s mana just miss him?’
Jin strode over, and Chip barely lifted his head.
“Sp-special…”
“Do you still see me as part of the special forces? And if you do, you shouldn’t say that word.”
“I wasn’t… part of the special forces…”
Chip trembled.
In truth, the moment the Reversal Sky was unleashed, Chip had sensed that Jin wasn’t special forces. The spell contained all the characteristics of the Reversal magic he’d learned at the academy.
He didn’t know it was called Reversal Sky, but he recognized it as a ‘great magic’ no one could casually wield. Now, Jin looked like a hidden archmage in Chip’s eyes.
And if not for this archmage, they would all be dead.
“Wh-who are you…? Why did you… save us…?”
His voice was slurred. Though conscious, the backlash hadn’t fully subsided. Chip was dazed, as if drugged.
“Why did I save you? Because my little sister wanted me to. Consider yourself lucky, cadet.”
“My sister… Austin, Gray…?”
Enya and Jin’s eyes met. Without a word, Jin nodded as if to say he understood.
Snap!
Enya pulled off her hood, removed her fake mustache, and let down her tied-up short hair. She spat out the cotton wad she’d been holding in her mouth to shape her sharp jawline, revealing her true face.
“Pascal Chip. Remember me?”
“En… ya.”
Chip’s eyes widened as if they might pop out. He gasped for breath, unable to tell if this was a dream or reality.
“I’m sorry…”
“You know you should be. Why did you do that to me?”
“I’m sorry, I was wrong…”
Chip’s slurred apology was accompanied by tears streaming down his face. Whether they were tears of genuine remorse or just a ploy to escape the situation, no one could tell.
Either way, Enya didn’t care.
“Back at the academy, you and your gang bullied me relentlessly. But I saved you when you were about to die.”
“I was… wrong.”
“If I wanted, I could take revenge on you all, but I’m different from people like you. That’s why I took off my disguise.”
Chip choked back sobs, making strange noises, and Enya spoke firmly.
“Don’t avoid my eyes, no matter how shameful or scary it is. Just like I did when you bullied me.”
“I’m sorry, really sorry.”
“Remember one thing: Jin Gray and I saved you. One day, we’ll come back to collect this debt. Got it?”
Chip barely nodded, and this time Jin spoke.
“If an investigation starts about this incident, feel free to talk about us. If you want to see the Chip family wiped out.”
Whether Chip stays silent or speaks up, Bimant’s investigation is inevitable. After all, all the cadets and mages outside the cave are dead, and inside, it’s chaos.
“The Academy will do whatever it takes to cover this up and protect its reputation. But the investigation team and the special unit will dig deep—they’ll find out from the cadets’ testimonies that the Reverse Sky unfolded. We’ll have to use the Seven-Colored Bird to tamper with the information.”
Jin quietly shifted his gaze to Enya.
She had just confronted and overcome the past that had long bound her. Yet, unexpectedly, Chip gave an answer neither Jin nor Enya had anticipated.
“I… Jenga… I will… definitely… repay this kindness…”
Chip squeezed out the words with all his strength before losing consciousness again. Jin and Enya exchanged a glance and shrugged.
“Well, that’s something.”
“Yeah. I thought he’d say something more pathetic.”
Jin searched Chip’s clothes and pulled out the name tag symbolizing the Chip family.
Using the name tag to control Chip’s carriage and slip past the gate seemed like the best way to avoid unnecessary trouble.
“Let’s head back and see what the fake Otern has to say.”
Bubar Gaston.
They’d probably hear something about him from the imposter Otern. Only that chubby guy could pull off such a flawless disguise, fooling every cadet who knew the real Otern.