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Chapter 103

The carriage advanced along the road. It was a truly everyday atmosphere. Everyone in the party was so used to the sound of hooves that they hardly noticed it unless they listened intently. Ian, sitting in his chair, did not respond to Thesaya\'s words and instead brought a bottle of alcohol to his lips.

It wasn\'t as strong as the liquor from the North, but it had a very good scent. It was perfect for alleviating the boredom of the journey. Since leaving the barrier fortress two days ago, all Ian had done was sit back loosely in his chair and sip his drink.

"You look somewhat empty, Ian. No talk. Maybe because of the overcast weather?" Thesaya said, lying on the floor of the carriage.

Ian glanced down at her. "Can you even see my expression?"

"I can feel it. Do you know why I keep staying like this? It\'s because my other senses have become sharper."

Thesaya paused for a moment. Her ash-colored hair fluttered faintly in the breeze as the sun had not yet completely set.

"It feels like I\'ve opened new eyes. I can even see a cat yawning right now."

Ian chuckled and nodded his head. "If something odd catches in that sense, let me know right away."

"I will. But why are you so listless?"

What do you mean why, it\'s because several side quests had flown by.

Ian felt a strange relief and, instead of replying, took another sip of his drink.

The Northern barrier fortress came to mind, a truly impregnable place. Likely, the other barrier fortresses would be similar. If there were sufficient troops and supplies, even with phantoms and giants mixed in, they would be able to hold them off.

He promised to contact the church, so maybe they\'ll dispatch paladins and combat priests.

That meant there would be no main quests in the North for a while. Come to think of it, he had cleared not just one or two significant quests recently. And now that border wars had erupted, there was ample room for a gap. In the past, he might have passed the time by handling trivial requests while passing through villages...

Looking at Thesaya, who was waiting for his response, Ian spoke up. "When we reach Travelga, I\'ll immediately have the artifact appraised."

"Okay, and?"

"Until the villagers from the Black Forest Hill arrive at the settlement, I\'ll stay there and gather information."

Thesaya tilted her head in confusion as if she didn\'t understand his abrupt statement.

Charlotte, perking up her ears, chimed in. "What kind of information are you gathering?"

"A war has broken out on the frontier."

Charlotte quickly turned around. "A war, you say?"

"Yes. Considering how quickly it\'s spreading, it won\'t end in a day or two."

"...It’s really happening, then. Javier mentioned it. The kingdoms on the frontier are all gathering war materials."

Charlotte flicked her tongue.

"We’ve also sold several armaments. Not just to Agel Lan, but to neighboring kingdoms too. To keep the power from tipping too much one way."

"That\'s probably what they thought. They must have expected to maximize benefits even during the war."

Charlotte licked her lips at Ian’s statement. "That\'s probably right. They were actually looking forward to the war starting. However, it’s pointless to say now. So, is it Agel Lan’s situation you want to hear about?"

Ian took another sip of his drink and shook his head.

"No. I\'m looking to find out about Lu Sard\'s situation."

"...!"

Thesaya\'s mouth dropped open. She quickly removed the eye patch she was wearing and frowned slightly as she looked up at Ian. The sun was setting, and her eyes seemed to glow like the sunset. Anyway, she didn\'t seem as scared as before.

"Are we going directly to Lu Sard?"

"After finding out what the situation is there. I need to know if the war has spread that far."

"So what changes?"

Ian shrugged. "If it\'s wartime, we\'ll move stealthily, without horses or carriages. Many will find us suspicious, and there will likely be clashes."

"That\'s no big deal... Oh, I see."

Thesaya, who had been slowly realizing, looked up at him.

"So you\'re worried we might end up killing them all."

Ian did not deny it.

Charlotte also snorted softly. "Most of the soldiers on the frontier are those who have been dragged out from scrounging the earth for food due to poverty. Killing such people is just one-sided slaughter and means nothing. Anyway..."

Charlotte\'s gaze turned toward Thesaya.

"Do you even properly know where your kin\'s homeland is, you pointy ears?"

"Don\'t call them my kin. I have no such thing."

Thesaya frowned and then pursed her lips.

"But honestly, I don\'t know. I wasn\'t in my right mind when I fled. I just ran straight ahead for days."

"Tell us what you remember," said Ian.

In fact, he already knew where the homeland of the vampire clan was. But speaking without any clue could lead to strange misunderstandings. As always, he had to pretend to deduce it through clues.

"I don\'t remember well. It was a very big house, with a wide garden. It was a big city with walls. So I thought the place must be rich. Houses like that are rare."

"If it\'s a dominion in Lu Sard with such a city..."

"It could only be Sadryn and Glumir." Charlotte picked up on Ian\'s words.

Charlotte shrugged under Ian\'s gaze. "I\'ve been there before. It\'s close to the Empire and among the richest in the frontier kingdoms. It\'s a country that the Empire\'s merchants favor."

"Then we just need to visit both dominions. If it\'s a large house with a garden, it might not be that hard to find."

"It\'s incomprehensible that the demons are living so richly. I thought it was a lie when this ear-flicker said it before. Ear-flickers are always like that."

"Vampires can easily make servants and followers."

Ian\'s gaze scanned Thesaya\'s silver hair and dark red eyes.

"Maybe they have a much larger force than we expect. But as such, it will also be easier to find their servants."

Ian subtly drew a dagger from his waist. "A few pleasant conversations, and we\'ll soon find out where their homeland is."

"I look forward to it. I hope to join in on that conversation here and then." Charlotte said, baring her fangs.

Thesaya, who had been quietly observing the two, suddenly spoke out.

"And then?"

"...?" Ian turned to her.

Thesaya looked intently at Ian and added. "What will you do then, Ian? Will you leave me after the quest is over, as you\'ve always done? Or...?"

"...Well."

Ian turned away and eventually returned the dagger to its sheath.

"It seems that answer will have to wait for another time."

"Eh? Suddenly what\'s that...." Thesaya\'s head turned blankly toward the front of the carriage.

"...!" She belatedly sensed an unusual concentration of magic far ahead.

By then, Ian had stepped toward the coachman\'s seat with his eyes shimmering with bluish magic.

"Stop the carriage, Charlotte."

Even without his words, Charlotte was already pulling on the reins.

Crack!

A giant ice crystal bristling with icicles was rising across the road ahead. Ian\'s hand reached out almost simultaneously.

Crackling—

The Glacier Wall rose like a circular sector in front of the stopped carriage.

Bang, a short loud noise followed immediately after as the ice crystal exploded.

Ting, ting, ting—

Countless giant ice spikes stuck into the barrier. The translucent ice barrier turned stark white.

"It\'s not just one...!" Thesaya\'s exclamation continued.

Ian, having cast the Wind Blade, finally straightened up to look beyond the barrier, frowning.

"Yeah. Two... no...." As he muttered,

Beyond the sagging ice crystals, two dark figures emerged cloaked in shadow.

"That\'s strange. I heard he was red. Was he a schoolmate of mine? That spell looks like a Glacier Wall... Hmm."

The speaking man was a mage, clad in a thick robe and holding a long staff. His pale complexion and gaunt face made it hard to guess his age.

"...If he’s your schoolmate, are you thinking of sparing him?" The lifeless, chilling voice came from a knight standing next to him, clad in full plate armor.

His face was not visible due to a face guard, but it wasn\'t hard to guess that he was in a similar state to the mage.

The mage responded calmly, "It\'s a pity I can\'t press down the noses of those red nobodies. Giving lessons to a junior isn\'t bad either."

Ian loosened the straps of his ax and looked over Charlotte and Thesaya in turn before turning his attention back to them. Normally, he would have charged in immediately, but now he had questions he wanted to ask.

"Are you from Lu Sard?"

"You guessed it right. Indeed, the intelligence of a blue mage." The mage spoke up, his gaze fixed on the blue magic in Ian\'s eyes, and then he added, "Call me senior. As for me—"

"I wasn\'t asking you. Servant."

"Um...?"

"Are you from Lu Sard?"

As the mage\'s gaunt brow narrowed, Ian repeated his question. Soon after, the shadows of the mage and knight began to wriggle and started to merge into one. A long, white hand emerged from behind the mage\'s robe. A woman with red eyes peered over the mage\'s shoulder.

"You have good instincts. I didn\'t think you\'d sense my presence."

The heads of the mage and knight turned toward her as if entranced.

Ian added, "I have questions."

"Bold. I like that. Call me Freya."

"I’ll think about it if you answer my questions."

Freya stepped forward, her shadow-like black dress enveloping her entire body. To Ian, it truly seemed like a shadow.

She covered her mouth with her long fingers and said, "What do you want to know?"

"How did you find our location? The last one followed us by scent. We\'ve been in places that are hard to track by smell."

Freya smiled gently. "The Empress can sense whenever the blood seeds she has planted exert their power. No matter how much that cute hybrid hides, it will eventually be found. There are also other means of tracking."

She casually spread her hand and a black crow was perched on her palm.

"In this case, I\'ve been watching since you crossed the barrier. And I was just waiting in the most secluded place."

At the same time, waves of magical energy silently spread from her eyes.

Ian\'s face gradually lost its expression. "...I see. But it seems you don\'t really know about me. You don\'t even know what magic I use."

"Unfortunately, not much. I thought you were a red mage. I guess that surging flame wasn\'t magic, then? Do you have an artifact?" Freya\'s voice grew increasingly silky.

The secretly spreading waves enveloped the surroundings. Her eyes curved into an arc as she stared at Ian\'s expressionless face.

"There\'s no need to answer right now. Actually, we didn\'t come to kill you. We came to make a proposal that would benefit us both much more."

"A proposal...?" Ian asked blankly.

As he felt the magical energy seeping into his body, Freya whispered, "Hand over that hybrid to us. In exchange, we\'ll compensate you appropriately. The Empress has even offered to accept you as a member of our clan, not as a hybrid but as a true member. If you can kill Ascold, you are certainly qualified."

"Not a bad offer."

"Right?"

"But I refuse."

"Good thinking, what...?" Freya\'s smile froze momentarily.

The Glacier Wall evaporated as if melting away immediately afterward. In one hand, Ian gripped a throwing dagger, and in the other, the Sword of Judgment, while Charlotte, crouching with a longsword in hand, was revealed.

"You, you are not under the spell—?"

Swoosh!

Before Freya could finish her question, Ian and Charlotte lunged forward.

Thump!

The mage, reflexively raising his staff, had his head snapped back as if thrown. A dagger handle protruded awkwardly from the middle of his face.