Chapter 93 - Dad

'Their spirits are broken.'

Number Eight gave a low hum as he surveyed the thirty-odd Mages.

Mages were proud by nature. Now, though, they were silent, their faces deeply furrowed. They had attacked together and still failed to so much as touch Galahad's clothes. The shock was bound to be immense.

Inflict an utter defeat, then invite them to join a Mage Tower. It was a chillingly meticulous plan. Driven into the North, these Mages had no choice but to follow Galahad.

The trouble was that their spirit had been completely crushed. Galahad seemed to regard them as little more than miners for his mana stones, so it hardly mattered, but...

'Still, it's a shame.'

Galahad was not a man who lied. If he said he would build a Mage Tower, he would build one. These were the Mages who would join it, and breaking their resolve was not a good thing. It was a question of efficiency. That resolve would be needed to make the tower flourish.

Just then, Corton shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Those rotten Academy professors! They taught me nothing but useless magic!"

Number Eight narrowed his eyes at this sudden attempt to shift the blame. Why blame the Academy professors for his own defeat?

"It's those professors' fault for teaching us useless magic! All they wanted were laborers to make magical devices! I knew something was wrong when they doted on Galahad! They must have taught the real magic to him alone! They're the reason we lost!"

Corton devoted himself to blaming others, veins bulging in his neck. Number Eight was quietly appalled. The man had graduated ages ago, and he was still blaming his professors.

"But things are different now! Not even the professors can blind me anymore! My eyes have been opened anew! Away with empty shells! Nothing can stop me now!"

Corton truly seemed to believe that the Academy professors were responsible for his defeat. His heartfelt fury at the establishment struck a chord.

Blaming others was sweet. In such a hopeless situation, it was sweeter still.

"Trading your teachings for mere mana stones? How arrogant, Galahad! I will make you regret this day!"

Corton shouted as he raised his pickaxe high. Moved by his impassioned blame-shifting, the Mages took up their own pickaxes, one after another.

"Away with empty shells! Ahahahaha!"

Number Eight was genuinely impressed.

'I should make Corton the Society's president.'

That way, if anyone from Dawn showed up, they could take Corton away.

* * *

'Someone's very angry.'

Fox Mask clicked their tongue as they glanced around. The Sixth Battalion's grounds were filled with pointed buildings. Soldiers lay prostrate everywhere, rigid as stone and utterly motionless.

'The ruler... '

The ruler's authority exerted absolute influence over those beneath it. Without its commander, the Sixth Battalion had no way to resist. Numbers meant nothing before that power.

Fox Mask narrowed their eyes and headed farther into the fortress.

Several corpses bore fatal sword wounds. Knights. They seemed to have summoned their aura and resisted, to disastrous results. All around them lay soldiers cut in half.

'Sent their comrades against them.'

A sordid method, perfectly characteristic of the ruler. Fox Mask clicked their tongue softly.

In the end, the entire Sixth Battalion had fallen into the ruler's hands.

'What am I to do about this?'

The ruler's actions gave Fox Mask a headache. This was not a piece they could easily discard. Under the right circumstances, the ruler's authority was immensely useful. The present situation proved that well enough. Nothing matched the ruler when it came to dealing with large numbers.

Handing Galahad over would resolve the situation.

Except...

'A man who uses Inferno.'

Strictly speaking, it had not been Inferno. Had it been the real thing, space itself would have melted the moment he brought it forth. It was magic that imitated Inferno. Not genuine, but hardly something to dismiss.

That made it all the more troubling. He was a Mage, but not a Demon. Yet he had imitated Inferno. That was no small matter.

It contradicted what the first human Mage had called a failure.

'Just what is he?'

Fox Mask narrowed their eyes at the most sharply pointed tower. The ruler liked high places. Sure enough, the ruler was in the tallest tower.

The ruler sat on a chair made of people piled together. Demons stood in orderly ranks behind it—the collection it was so proud of. It looked as though it had established a kingdom, but its face was full of anger.

"You still haven't caught him?"

At the ruler's irritable question, Fox Mask nodded.

"He's with the Grand Duke."

"Isn't the Grand Duke bound anyway?"

"Sometimes his leash comes off."

"I do not fear him."

Ridiculous bravado. The ruler's authority only worked on those beneath it. Against someone of higher standing, it was powerless.

The Grand Duke was unquestionably above the ruler. No, he was a monster beyond any such scale. Fox Mask had good reason to tread carefully.

Still, there was no need to provoke the ruler. In its child's form, it was childish in temperament as well. A needless jab could make matters worse. Better to soothe it as much as possible.

"I've tempted him, though, so he'll come out soon. Be patient just a little longer. I'll bring him here shortly."

"Be patient? Ha!"

The ruler sprang to its feet.

"Do you know what that baton he took is?"

The ruler's voice dropped low. Fox Mask narrowed their eyes.

"I do. It's a key, isn't it?"

"Indeed. And you tell me to be patient?"

The ruler's oppressive presence bore down on Fox Mask, who gave a quiet sigh.

One nuisance after another...

Fox Mask turned their gaze on the ruler. Its movements stopped dead.

"Yes, I understand you're angry about losing the key."

Fox Mask intensified their gaze. A distortion appeared at the ruler's shoulder, and its eyes narrowed slightly.

"But am I the one who lost it? You're the one who got robbed. Like an idiot."

The ruler scowled. The Demons behind it advanced one step.

THUD!

A heavy sound reverberated.

Fox Mask shook their head.

"Let's keep this reasonable. Reasonable. Did I say I wouldn't bring him?"

"You will bring him here without fail."

Fox Mask nodded at the ruler's grave declaration.

"And everyone who was with him. I shall add them all to my collection."

The ruler turned its head. Demons and demon-beasts stood in great numbers, expressionless as taxidermied specimens. A tasteless hobby. Or was it clever? Fox Mask sighed.

"Yes, but not Adrianna. You know why, don't you?"

The ruler nodded.

"She is a sacrifice."

"Yes. She is a sacrifice."

"I do not wait. I reign."

With that, the ruler sat down again. One of the people beneath it pulled their own tongue out to an unnatural length.

POP!

With a crisp sound, the person burst. A pointless venting of anger.

"To take my baton... Well, he does have a discerning eye."

The ruler murmured under its breath.

["A souvenir."]

Fox Mask fought back a laugh.

He really was entertaining. Their interest kept growing.

It was Fox Mask's chronic weakness.

* * *

'Hmm.'

Galahad narrowed his eyes as he held out the golden rod, judging the distance by its tip.

'About this far?'

Holding one end of the rod and extending it to its full reach marked the range of his spatial magic. He had been practicing it continuously, but neither its power nor its range was increasing.

'The higher the mana concentration, the longer the range.'

That was the conclusion he had reached after several attempts. For now, the length of the fully extended golden rod was his limit.

'Just how concentrated is Fox Mask's mana?'

No, it was not merely a matter of concentration. Galahad could only crumple space, whereas Fox Mask could use it to move about freely. The reason that was possible...

'Demons have highly concentrated mana flowing in their blood.'

It was likely an application of that trait.

'That one used to be a Mage. An exceptionally skilled one, at that.'

Galahad was certain of it once again. Even an upper-echelon Demon could not reasonably move with such freedom. There was a strong chance Fox Mask was using mana compression.

'Is spatial movement impossible for me?'

Even with his concentrated mana, it was not embedded in his blood as it was for Demons. Human mana resided around the heart.

'If Demons can do it because their blood contains highly concentrated mana...'

He pondered the premise for a while. Sweat ran from his forehead down the bridge of his nose.

Before long, he reached a suitable conclusion.

'Then I simply need highly concentrated mana in my blood as well.'

A neat conclusion. Whether it was possible could be settled by trying it.

'Come to think of it, I left some research with the Black Magic Society's Fifth Battalion branch.'

He recalled the people he had met when Corton took him there.

'Shern and Farntal, was it?'

Since they had not appeared during the last incident, they were very likely still researching. They would have been drinking Demon blood as they worked, so they ought to have results by now.

'I should pay them a visit.'

THUMP! THUMP!

The Egg of agony trembled violently.

"It says human blood and Demon blood are different! It says it's terribly dangerous!"

"We won't know until we try."

"It says you're a mad human! Oh! Was that a secret? You should have told me beforehand! Sorry."

Human blood and Demon blood were indeed different.

However...

'Quite a strong reaction you're having.'

THUMP!

The Egg of agony gave a small tremor. Its reason for reacting so violently was obvious. If Galahad imbued his blood with highly concentrated mana...

'I won't need you anymore.'

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

The Egg of agony frantically squeezed his heart.

"It says that hurts its feelings!"

'It's all right. You can't stay in here forever.'

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

"It says it likes it here! It'll work hard at the massages, and it won't skim anything off—"

'You were still helping yourself?'

THUMP!

The Egg of agony shook hard, radiating urgency.

"It's asking you to let it stay at least until it hatches. Oh my, you hatch?"

Hatch? Galahad's brow furrowed at the peculiar word.

Hatching... Suddenly, he remembered the little Adrianna he had seen in his dream.

"If you give birth to it, does that make you its dad, Master Galahad? Or its mom, since you gave birth?"

"Gwen, what are you talking about?"

Just then, weakness flooded him. A terrible, burning pain spread through his body. Mana exhaustion.

Spatial magic consumed a considerable amount of mana. Not as much as Hellfire, but four uses were enough to leave him exhausted.

"Gwen!"

"Yes!"

Gwen immediately drove her head into his chest. Mana surged through her forehead into him. Her mana was pure, clean as spring water deep in the mountains. His depleted reserves filled in an instant.

Normally, replenishing mana took a fair amount of time. For some, it took a week. Even Galahad, who had emptied his reserves daily since childhood, needed five hours.

Now he refilled them by drinking Demon blood, so it did not take long, but that method had side effects. Trivial problems such as mental instability, the Egg of agony growing insolent, or his mana pathways swelling.

Gwen's method was different. It resembled his natural mana recovery, only incomparably faster. It even healed mana exhaustion. Demon blood supplied highly concentrated mana; Gwen provided mana recovery.

If he used both at once...

'I can keep practicing magic indefinitely.'

His lips curled into a broad smile. What wonderful conditions.

"Um... It looks painful. Couldn't you recover before it happens?"

"You mean the mana exhaustion?"

"Yes, that. Your whole body shakes. If you asked me for mana before that happened—"

She had a point. If he received mana before exhaustion set in, he would not have to experience it.

However, that would mean...

"That would be less efficient."

"... What?"

"To make efficient use of you, I should exhaust my mana completely before receiving recovery."

"B-but it hurts!"

"I'm accustomed to pain."

Gwen looked appalled. Galahad blithely ignored her and focused.

As his concentration became absolute, the surrounding noise faded. His field of vision expanded dramatically. He did not even blink. He compressed his mana as much as possible, until the area around his heart ached.

THUMP! THUMP!

The Egg of agony kept releasing mana, working harder than usual. It even squeezed his heart after releasing each burst.

Of course, that did nothing to help with compression.

His gaze fixed on one spot. Slowly, he extended the golden rod.

The easier an incantation was to visualize, the better. Especially for spatial magic, which required moving highly concentrated mana all at once.

"Box, cat, rift."

Space rippled a short distance away. The range was the same as before, but...

"A little larger this time."

Brushing back his disheveled bangs, Galahad grinned brightly.

He immediately concentrated again. How many times had he cast? Terrible pain forced him to stop. Mana exhaustion.

"Gwen."

He called her while sipping from his canteen. Gwen hurriedly pressed her head against him.

The pain vanished. His mana filled to the brim. He nodded in satisfaction and took another sip.

As he prepared to focus again, Gwen blocked his way.

"Your nose is bleeding!"

"I'm fine. Step aside."

"You're not well! At least take a rest—"

"Gwen."

Gwen looked at him. His already fair skin was deathly pale. Blood ran from his nose, and burst capillaries had turned his eyes red. Anyone could see he was in a precarious state.

He wanted to keep practicing. She had to stop him, but...

"I'm fine. This much won't kill me."

That wasn't the point!

Absurd as it was, Gwen could only nod.

Because Galahad was beaming, looking genuinely happy.

* * *

'Things are taking a strange turn.'

Bart of the Black Magic Society's Fifth Battalion branch bit his lip hard.

The Black Magic Society had always revered ascension. It would stop at nothing to achieve it.

Lately, however, things in the Society had grown strange.

"Let's put in another productive day's work."

"Did you pack lunch? A hearty meal helps you mine better."

Black Mages passed by, chatting quietly. Their hands held pickaxes where spellbooks should have been.

"What are you doing? Why are you mining mana stones instead of studying magic?"

"Bart, haven't you heard? Whoever mines the most mana stones becomes the Society's president. You should mine too. You could be president."

Whoever mined the most became president? How did that make any sense? Bart bit down hard on his lip.

They had all gone mad. They were delighted that mining mana stones earned them money and could make them president.

Not everyone had left to mine. Some were quietly continuing their research in the laboratory farther inside.

"Aaaaaaargh!"

Bart rushed in at the terrible scream. Farntal, one of the researchers, was rolling on the floor. Something seemed gravely wrong, but Shern stood calmly beside him.

"How is it? Does it hurt much? Was an intermediate-ranking Demon too much? He drank it like wine..."

"The coefficient! Five times that of a low-ranking one—"

Only when Bart cleared his throat did the two look at him. Their gazes were peculiar, hollow and somehow out of joint.

"Do you have a moment?"

"We're busy. We're conducting research ordered directly by the central body."

"... The central body?"

The central body was practically a legend within the Black Magic Society. However...

"The president changed ages ago. That's when the Society started going strange."

"No, you don't understand. That's a fake. The real central body hasn't revealed itself. To him, Demon blood is wine."

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

"You're better off not knowing."

Farntal swirled a clear glass as he spoke. Demon blood sloshed inside it. A lightning-shaped scar showed on his wrist.

'What's wrong with these two...?'

Bart's eyes narrowed. As he edged backward, both men suddenly strode toward him.

"Perfect timing."

"That's right. We've just finished our research into Demon blood."

"And human blood too..."

"Bart, do you know the difference between Demon blood and human blood?"

"... The difference?"

"Human blood has no mana. Demon blood, on the other hand, contains highly concentrated mana."

"What are you talking about? Human blood contains mana."

"No, let's be precise. Not human blood..."

Shern raised his head. His eyes were red. Not from burst capillaries. Simply red. Bart's jaw dropped. How hideous...

Then Shern opened his mouth.

"Mage blood contains mana."

"Now, here's a question."

"Are Mages human, or are they Demons?"