Chapter 26

『The strongest in the continent?』

One of Mephisto's eyebrows twitched.

Demons are the rulers of strength.

The expression 'strongest' must have touched his pride.

『Humph! At best, it's just by human standards....』

"No. At one time, my ancestor, who was also considered a strong figure in our family's history, exchanged blows with him."

『Now that's intriguing.』

Mephisto slightly pursed his dry lips with a red tongue.

As if he was about to taste a delicious delicacy right in front of him.

『Is there no chance to see that guy?』

"Not yet. Relations with the Magic Tower are delicate."

『Then we'll have to create one.』

Elric couldn't fathom what Mephisto was thinking.

But one thing was certain.

It was the first time Mephisto had a goal since being released from his seal.

Elric considered adding that the Golden Lion had been a veteran for over a hundred years, and beneath him were eight lions that formed the 'Lion Court' to protect him, but he decided against it.

With what had been revealed so far, this demon lord was already burning fiercely enough.

"Anyway, the culprits came to chase someone, and in the process, they seem to have eliminated all passengers and even yetis. They didn't want to leave any witnesses behind."

『Who were they chasing?』

"I can't be certain, but there's a group among the passengers that hasn't been discovered yet."

Elric recalled those who had worn robes among the passengers.

They consisted of a woman and four knights. They tried to avoid exposing their faces as much as possible.

"They probably didn't get far, so we should start by finding them."

『To rescue them? Why bother?』

Mephisto asked, seeming not to understand.

To demons, the concept of 'helping' wasn't very strong. It was more of a natural notion that the weak would perish under individualistic tendencies.

"I'm not trying to rescue them."

『Then?』

"Just because."

"『Just because?』"

"Yes. Just because I feel bad. Do I need another reason?"

Elric asked with a gentle, firm gaze.

『No, of course not.』

That's a very good answer to leave it at.

Mephisto chuckled and replied like that.

* * *

Shh-shh-shh-

Already outnumbered and physically exhausted, Chen had no way to withstand the onslaught of the 6th squadron of Blue wolves at once.

His armor shattered, and he sustained deep wounds all over his body. In an instant, he was covered in blood, but they hadn't inflicted any fatal injuries.

Hanul glanced around and shouted loudly, "Miss, I know you're nearby. If we continue like this, your loyalty will end up dead. It's best for you to come out now, isn't it?"

"Miss, you can't... cough!"

Chen tried to hold on somehow, but eventually, his body collapsed under the wounds that passed through the back of his knee.

"Miss! Are you really okay with this man dying?"

Isabelle couldn't bear to see this and tried to step outside, but...

"No, you can't."

Edgar firmly held her back.

"But if we keep this up, Chen will...!"

"Not just Chen. Isaac, Jad, Kun... Do you intend to make their deaths in vain?"

"But...!"

"Miss!"

Hanul's voice rang out again.

A completely different eerie feeling from before.

Isabelle and Edgar both turned their gaze in that direction.

The Blue wolves' sword was falling towards Chen's bowed head.

"Stop!"

In the end, Isabelle had to push aside Edgar's objections and reveal herself outside the rocks.

Hanul's sword stopped as if it were a lie, and a smirk appeared on Hanul's lips. Meanwhile, Chen and Edgar's faces turned pale.

"Miss... you can't... cough!"

Chen tried to say something, but he was forced to bury his face in the snow by the kicking foot on his head.

Hanul didn't even glance towards the struggling Chen, instead, he looked at Isabelle with disdain.

"If you had just come out obediently, we wouldn't have had to suffer like this for over a month, would we?"

Isabelle clenched her lower lip tightly.

"Your purpose is me anyway, right? Just end it with me. Release them all."

But...

Snicker!

Hanul's disdain grew stronger.

"Sorry, but that doesn't seem possible."

"...What?"

"It seems that the higher-ups want all those involved in this incident, including witnesses, to be killed to erase any evidence of our involvement."

"Then you guys, are you...?"

"Throughout your escape, didn't you almost avoid encountering both wolves and people?"

"...!"

"We've already dealt with the entire Hwajeonmin village in the vicinity, so there's no one left who knows we're here. If only you hadn't run away, none of this would have happened, right?"

Isabelle's fists trembled. The thought of innocent villagers being massacred because of her filled her mind with guilt.

"But... oh! Looks like another victim has been added because of you, huh? Pitiful."

Isabelle quickly turned her head in the other direction.

There was another figure being illuminated by the light.

She wanted to urge them to flee from this place, but the owner of the shadow had already approached this far, braving the snowstorm.

And then...

"You're here."

Isabelle's eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected response.

Wouldn't an ordinary person be terrified when they encounter a scene of violence like this?

But that figure seemed as if they were looking for this place...!

Swish!

Isabelle's thoughts didn't last long.

Three Blue wolves were already moving in that direction.

"Watch out!"

Isabelle snapped back to attention and shouted in a startled voice.

"These guys don't even give a chance to speak. [Ignite]!"

The shadow, Elric, let out a wry smile as he casually waved his hand in the air.

Partially obscured by the blizzard, the cruel emblem embedded on Elric's palm was shining more intensely than ever.

And then.

Whirling!

The blizzard blowing in front of the Blue wolves suddenly intensified.

Crackle...

In an instant, they froze solid in their tracks, frozen in the same posture they had been running in.

With faces that seemed to have no idea how they died.

"...!"

"...!"

"What's...!"

Hanul's eyes widened in disbelief at the completely unexpected turn of events, while the remaining Blue wolves prepared to move towards them all at once.

But

"[Pour down]."

Elric was already moving before anyone else.

Spreading the mana field very widely above their heads, he activated a new spell.

The sight of hundreds of ice arrows forming in the sky was enough to make the Blue wolves turn pale.

"B, block it!"

Hanul managed to shout, but before the Blue wolves could react, the ice arrows rained down directly.

Crash! Crash!

"Ack!"

"Aaargh! My arm! My faaarrrm!"

"This can't be...!"

Broken ice shards and severed limbs flew into the air. The quick ones managed to dodge by rolling on the ground, but the ice arrows changed direction like guided missiles, targeting even those trying to evade.

It was truly an overwhelming force.

Isabelle, Chen, and the others could only stare blankly, wondering if they were perhaps dreaming.

The sight of someone effortlessly manipulating the blizzard while wielding mana with ease seemed so surreal.

"I don't care who you are. So why don't we quietly bury everyone here so no one knows?"

"...!"

Isabelle could tell that what Elric said was a mockery, echoing the taunts Hanul had thrown at her just moments ago.

"Wait a moment... That face...?"

Then Isabelle realized that Elric's face seemed oddly familiar.

Why was the person who disappeared when they first clashed with the yetis here?

"Miss, you need to get out of here!"

At that moment, Edgar, perhaps sensing an opportunity, grabbed Isabelle's arm and swiftly tried to lead her away.

"Just wait...!"

As Isabelle was about to say something, she noticed Hanul, with a distorted expression, rushing towards Elric amidst the multitude of ice arrows.

"I'll kill you!"

The Blue wolves leader's agile movements, characteristic of his role, indicated his intense anger at encountering an unexpected variable when he thought he had all his targets in hand.

Zzing-

The two Aura Chains generated in the Aura Hall spun fiercely.

Crash!

The sword held in his hand emitted a clear sound, infused with the overflowing mana from the Aura Chains.

Sword Howling.

With the phenomenon symbolizing the 'Advance' of the two chains, the sword shot out like an arrow.

"[Armament Release], [Surge]!"

As Elric stepped back, he utilized a double spell, rapidly erecting multiple layers of 'Ice Wall'.

The ground trembled as the walls of ice shot up in front of Hanul.

With each passing moment, Hanul's movements slowed, and from the sky, the ice arrows continued to target him, causing his wounds to multiply.

The blizzard, with only a 10% dissolution rate, was more than he could handle.

Furthermore, the mana field had narrowed considerably, focusing on Hanul.

Finally, when he reached Elric's location...

"Damn you...!"

Hanul, drenched in blood, struggled to breathe roughly before collapsing to the ground, one knee hitting the floor.

Thud!

As the remaining ice arrows shattered the back of his head, his headless body fell lifelessly onto the snowy ground.

"...!"

"...!"

"...!"

Isabelle, Edgar, and Chen couldn't believe their eyes, witnessing the reality before them firsthand.

The individuals they struggled so hard against were easily defeated by just one magician, without even inflicting a scratch.

Moreover, both Edgar and Chen had already noticed Elric's identity, just like Isabelle.

Initially, they had only thought of Elric as someone who fled from the yetis, so they didn't know what to say.

Should they thank him? Or perhaps offer some other greeting...?

On the other hand, they couldn't help but feel tense, not knowing Elric's intentions. Perhaps this was just another one of Paul Vile's tricks to deceive them.

Then, Elric, with a grim expression, looked at the corpses of the Blue wolves before becoming puzzled when he saw Isabelle and the others.

"Um, well..."

He had only thought of pursuing Hanul and the others; he hadn't thought about what to do after helping them.

Scratching the back of his head in uncertainty, Elric finally spoke up.

"Long time no see...?"

That's how he greeted them.

* * *

From the moment Isabelle saw Elric, one thought dominated her mind.

'That person... is on a completely different level from us.'

There was a term commonly used to refer to such individuals.

Magicians who gradually grasp the principles and laws, gaining access to the mana streams flowing through the natural world.

They begin to walk their own path, departing from the conventional magic system.

Thus, their magic is given a slightly different name.

Mado.

The 'way of magic.'

Countless magicians reach the threshold but eventually regress, yet here was someone standing right in front of her, who had transcended that boundary!

'Magician...!'

Isabelle's astonishment echoed silently within her mind.