Chapter 28
"…And so, I was nearly killed by Mazok."
I met Rebilton. In my memory, Rebilton Fabierre was someone who turned a blind eye even after seeing me use Black Magic against Mazok and helped me escape from school. So, I explained my story with some embellishment. It was a simpler version than what I told Bien, but the context was the same. Madowon was relentlessly searching for the Black Magic user who killed Vine, using any means necessary. A clash between Yurmus Magic School and Madowon was not the direction I wanted.
As expected, Rebilton believed me this time as well.
"If you only tell me this now, what can we do, Ethan? If you had told me from the start, I could have helped prevent this."
"I’m sorry."
"I’ll discuss it with Dean Aincheler. There should be a diplomatic way to handle this."
I shook my head.
"I have a slightly different idea."
"What do you mean?"
"Madowon won’t give up. They’ll keep targeting me at every turn."
"No, they won’t. You’d be surprised if you knew how many Black Magic users there are in the Western world. Or how many the Council of Mages tolerates. Even the Empire can’t interfere with every Black Magic user."
I almost said that Terra’s Black Magic users were different but thought I could persuade Rebilton more simply.
"Even if Madowon doesn’t directly target me, if I feel that way, it’ll be hard for me to attend school normally, right?"
"…Hmm."
Rebilton said.
"Do you think there’s a way to resolve this?"
I said.
"What if I defeated all of Madowon’s Mazok?"
Rebilton let out a dry laugh.
"Madowon is composed of Mazok elders. You wouldn’t face the entire Madowon. Typically, when Madowon moves, it’s one elder and…"
"One heir from a prominent family, plus about a dozen or so private soldiers from both families. Each soldier is at the level of an apprentice mage, the heir is at the level of a mid-tier mage, and the elder has the abilities of a high-tier mage or greater. But when judged by Combat Magic, they’re considered a step above human mages, aren’t they? Regular mages don’t hone Combat Magic like Mazok do."
"…You know a lot."
"Even in the vast Arnesia Empire, Mazok elders are valuable assets and forces. If I alone could defeat Madowon’s forces, the Empire would have no choice but to find a compromise. They wouldn’t immediately throw overwhelming forces at me."
"You’re right. The Empire is particularly sensitive about Black Magic users, but it’s hard for them to interfere that much with other countries. However, if Madowon’s forces were all killed, the Empire might think the magic school was involved, which could escalate into a diplomatic crisis. Even if, as you predict, they illegally attacked the magic school. Small nations have no choice but to bow to larger ones. It’s not fair."
"That’s why I said ‘I alone.’ As long as I can prove the magic school wasn’t involved, it doesn’t matter."
Rebilton crossed his thick arms.
"If that’s possible, your proposal isn’t wrong. But is it feasible? Truly?"
As I was about to answer immediately, Rebilton raised his palm to stop me.
"I’m not just asking if you’re capable of such a thing. I’m not deeply versed in Black Magic, but some Black Magic can wield truly fearsome power. Fighting, and killing someone, should always be the last resort. I’m asking if you’re truly prepared for that."
"…Before, Professor Rebilton, you saw my sword and asked if I had a talent for cutting people or if I had experience. I answered back then that it must be talent."
I replied.
"But what if it was all experience?"
∞
The western part of Yurmus Magic School is a lush forest area called Yurmus Forest, cultivated on gentle hills and flatlands. Once inside, the trees are so dense that even with the sun overhead, it’s hard to find your own shadow. After walking for two full days, you’d find a small village of six households living off hunting and gathering. Another two days of walking would bring you to the Omon River, the arbitrary border between Yurmus and Muhati. If you take a wrong turn heading into the forest from the magic school, even going straight, you might wander for days before finding a settlement. Reaching the Omon River’s downstream to the southwest would be fortunate, but heading northwest leads to the vast sea of forests connected to the Dolton Mountains, where many perish floundering. The only salvation comes from Yurmus’s forest keepers.
Employed by the Yurmus family, the forest keepers know the paths of Yurmus Forest, drive out unauthorized hunters, and rescue the lost. But with their numbers being few, not every lost soul is lucky enough to be saved.
In a small cabin used by these forest keepers, I attached a suppressor and flashlight to my Glock 45, mounted an RMR, and swapped the first magazine for an extended one with a 17-round capacity. I wasn’t lost. After speaking with Dean Aincheler, Rebilton told me the location of this cabin. It was about half a day’s distance from the magic school.
Dean Aincheler decided to say that I left the school to avoid harming Yurmus Magic School and to escape from Madowon’s Mazok pursuing me. However, to protect a student, the school’s policy was not to disclose where I had fled. In such a case, Rebilton thought it impossible to predict how the Mazok would act, but based on my study of Mazok, I was certain they would track me down.
‘And I alone will annihilate Madowon’s Mazok.’
For an ordinary magic school student, this would be unimaginable. But I believed I could do it.
The door burst open. Three Mazok soldiers. Seeing me sitting still, doing nothing, they raised their swords, cautiously surrounding me. The one in the lead shouted toward the door.
"There’s a Black Magic user here!"
I said.
"I’m not a Black Magic user, I’m Ethan. What’s your name?"
The Mazok seemed taken aback but answered my question.
"Xenof."
"…Xenof. I’ll remember it."
I shot Xenof in the head, and at the same time, the Mazok behind me attacked.
∞
I woke up in my bedroom in Limbo. Demi was right beside me.
I said to Demi.
"I want to load."
“There’s only one saved slot. Would you like to load ‘Cabin’?”
"Yeah."
“You can exit through this mirror.”
Demi pointed to a full-length mirror beside the bed. I brushed off some dust and walked through.
Then, I woke up in the cabin, having just finished assembling my firearm, sitting in a chair waiting for the Mazok to arrive.
‘This is Save/Load.’
It records a specific moment in life. And after I die, or even if I don’t, I can return to that recorded moment from Limbo whenever I want. Anticipating countless deaths in the fight against the Mazok, I saved the moment after preparing in the cabin.
In truth, if I could endure the exhaustion and pain, the Save/Load ability wasn’t strictly necessary. But I felt a slight fatigue from the countless lies I’d have to tell after dying and returning to this point, and from the repeated unnecessary killings, so this Save/Load was welcome.
‘Still, they only arrive four hours from now? I could probably save a bit later.’
I shook my head. The Mazok arrived faster than expected. If I had been lazy, I’d have had to reselect a save point. Having extra time meant more time to prepare, so it should be used valuably. Moreover, with only one Save/Load slot currently, carelessly adjusting it could cause issues, forcing me to return to this point. With Save/Load, starting over from the beginning felt incredibly daunting.
‘Now that I know when the Mazok arrive, let’s see how many I can kill from this position.’
I did as I planned.
When I opened the door and immediately shot Xenof and his two subordinates, the Mazok didn’t react for a moment. Then, three more Mazok rushed in, this time charging with magic shields upfront. But I knew how to counter this. Shoot their feet. As the front Mazok with the shield fell, the other two’s vulnerabilities were exposed, and I dealt with the second group this way. But the next part was the problem.
‘I hear chanting…?’
It was a spell that felt vaguely familiar, but seeing the gaping maw of a giant boar charging from the front, I belatedly realized what spell it was.
∞
"I want to load."
“Is everything alright?”
“…Defending the cabin doesn’t seem like a good idea.”