Ghislain, who had been staring blankly for quite a while, asked with a bewildered expression.
"How did Alpoi catch so many?"
It wasn't just anyone; it was Alpoi who had achieved such an incredible accomplishment. He had captured more than Ghislain, the master of pursuit.
— Only a slave knows the heart of a slave, and only a fugitive understands the heart of a runaway.
"...."
Come to think of it, Ghislain had never been a slave nor had ever truly fled out of fear. In both this life and his past ones, strategic retreats were the closest he had come to running away.
Even in dire situations, when he was forced to retreat, his mind was consumed with how to turn the tables and kill his enemies, rather than simply running for its own sake.
Unlike Alpoi and his friends, Ghislain had never experienced the pure act of "escape" as a goal in itself.
"Th-then, what method did he use?"
Ghislain, who rarely showed surprise, was so taken aback by Alpoi's achievement that he stuttered.
Dark spoke in a tone that suggested he was equally dumbfounded.
— At first, they spread rumors while fooling around.
"What kind of rumors?"
— That Vanessa, the 7th-circle mage of Fenris Duchy, had also fled. That they were forming their own magic tower under Vanessa's leadership to resist the tyranny of Duke Fenris.
"...."
— Then, they spread the word everywhere, saying that anyone who wanted to resist should come join them. It was all under the guise of uniting their strength.
"... And mages actually believed that and came?"
— Alpoi and Vanessa gave speeches in the square. They even performed some magic. Whatever the case, the rumors spread like wildfire, and people believed it was true.
"They didn't suspect it was a lie?"
— Vanessa did it at Alpoi's urging, but Alpoi himself was dead serious. Aahhh!
"What? What happened? What's going on?"
Suddenly, Dark started urgently reporting the current situation in real-time.
— Just now, Alpoi led the mages and started a real rebellion!
"...."
— Vanessa and the knights managed to suppress the rebellion successfully! Alpoi is now tied up along with the mages!
"...."
— But there are so many mages now that it's hard for Vanessa and the knights to keep them all under control. They've called in city guards and additional knights to monitor them.
"..."
— Alpoi is still inciting them! A second rebellion has just broken out!
"....."
— They've suppressed it again, but a third rebellion seems inevitable! Vanessa has gagged Alpoi for now!
"… Who's the nearest pursuit team?"
— It's Yulian.
"Relay a message to head there immediately."
Two hundred 5th-circle mages would be tough for even Vanessa to handle alone. Such a group had the power equivalent to a national force.
Of course, not all of them were 5th-circle mages. Some of them were likely disciples of the senior mages.
Still, it was a tremendous force. Yulian and the knights needed to get there and assist quickly.
— Ah! More mages just arrived. They've caught them, bringing the total to 229.
"...."
— Word has spread that this place is a holy land for mages. More are arriving every day."
"....."
It seemed more manpower would need to be sent. Even Yulian would find it impossible to subdue such a large number of mages without injuries.
Ghislain pressed his fingers against his temples, wearing a tired expression. While capturing so many was a good thing, the situation had taken a strange turn.
"This doesn't feel right. How did Alpoi come up with such a plan?"
Alpoi wasn't inherently stupid. If he had been, he wouldn't have become a successor to a magic tower in the first place.
In fact, he was quite cunning, which caused problems when he dealt with people who weren't fooled by such tricks.
However, spending so much time in Fenris doing labor had dulled his sharpness, making him somewhat simpler-minded. It was hard to believe that someone like him could come up with a scheme to bait mages like this.
Dark, who had been there, knew the reason.
— Vanessa pressured him, so he confessed. Apparently, Claude gave him a little hint before heading to Norvagen.
"......"
— Claude said only Alpoi could carry out this plan sincerely. He claimed others would seem insincere and give themselves away.
"...."
— It's strange, but it worked. Another of Claude's plans succeeded.
"....."
It was hard to argue with the results. Claude's schemes always seemed to work out.
Perhaps he had casually thrown out the idea with an "if it works, great; if not, oh well" attitude. The fact that he only told Alpoi hinted at that.
And Alpoi had brilliantly executed the plan.
"… Well, at least we caught a lot. That's all that matters."
Despite feeling both frustrated and humiliated, Ghislain couldn't deny the positive outcome.
He allocated more people to Alpoi's group since it seemed more mages would continue flocking there.
Yulian and Gillian, who were relatively nearby, were sent to reinforce Alpoi's team.
"Oh, if only they'd just calmly captured them."
That would have brought in even more captives. Alpoi was truly a troublesome individual.
In the end, thanks to Alpoi(?)'s efforts, they had managed to capture a significant number of fugitive mages.
While other pursuit teams had only caught those fleeing to neighboring kingdoms, Alpoi's "rumors" had drawn mages to him, leading to far more captures.
After another month and a half of relentless pursuit, nearly two months without rest, Ghislain and his team were utterly exhausted.
"It's time to return."
Though he wasn't fully satisfied, they no longer had the luxury of dragging things out.
The scattered pursuit teams regrouped in the Kingdom of Sardinia. By then, the mages captured by the kingdoms had also been brought in.
As expected, the other kingdoms had been slow to respond and caught very few. Some kingdoms had captured only two mages.
There were still mages who had been caught late and hadn't arrived yet.
Upon returning, Ghislain immediately checked the situation in the Kingdom of Turian.
"What's the situation?"
"Monsters have started appearing sporadically."
"I see. Not much time left."
The monster wave hadn't started yet, but the monsters were behaving oddly.
The monsters from the Shadow Mountains had been wiped out during the last wave while fighting the rift.
Now, after lying dormant for so long, they were starting to reappear.
"Let's organize the mages first. We must head to the Kingdom of Turian immediately."
They had captured around 800 mages, 300 of whom were at the 5th-circle or higher. The rest were their disciples.
The pursuit team led by Alpoi had captured the most.
Alpoi, wearing a tattered white robe and with disheveled hair, was dragged in.
"Let me go! Let me go! This was all part of the plan! Don't you understand the strategy? Are you all idiots?"
"......"
"This was all Claude's idea! It wasn't my fault! The rebellion was just an act!"
"...."
"I swear it's true! The operation is over now, so let me go! I incited them on purpose to lure more mages!"
Alpoi continued spewing absurd excuses.
It was said that if Yulian hadn't appeared during the third rebellion, they might not have been able to suppress it. Just before being subdued, Alpoi had proudly declared:
— I am free now, you bastards!
"Lord! You must believe me! I'm Alpoi! I kept my promise and brought back the most captives!"
The problem was that he had been caught along with the targets.
Watching Alpoi tearfully plead, Ghislain shook his head in disbelief.
"Let him go for now. We'll need every 5th-circle mage we can get. We'll deal with his punishment after the battle with the dragon."
Hearing this, Alpoi was released and grinned from ear to ear.
The others gave him looks of utter contempt. Vanessa's disappointed expression was especially heart-wrenching to witness.
But Alpoi stood firm among them, looking as if he had done absolutely nothing wrong and had only accomplished great things.
Perhaps it was that shamelessness that had kept him alive thus far.
The captured mages weren't the only ones who had arrived. Many others had already gathered.
"Your Grace, have you been well?"
The one who appeared with an awkward smile was Hubert.
He glanced at Alpoi and frowned, having already heard the rumors.
'Ugh, what's wrong with that guy? It's so embarrassing I could die.'
When Hubert had last seen him, he thought Alpoi was doing quite well. Now, it was clear something was off. Hubert was more determined than ever to strip him of his status as the heir.
Regardless, Hubert had come at Ghislain's request for reinforcements, bringing the elders and disciples of the Scarlet Flame Magic Tower.
They weren't the only ones. Other magic towers in Lutania had sent their tower masters and disciples as well.
No one could refuse an order from Ghislain, who wielded absolute authority.
Ghislain greeted them with a welcoming smile.
"Welcome. As expected, there's nothing like the support of your homeland. You've all been briefed on what we're fighting, right?"
"Ah, yes..."
Hubert and the other tower masters smiled awkwardly. To be honest, they really didn't want to be here.
'There's nowhere else to go... nowhere at all…'
'Who could have guessed he'd control the entire continent…'
'Of course, there's no way he'd just stay quiet…'
Through the Lutania Civil War, they had come to understand what kind of man Ghislain was.
They knew resisting him was pointless. He would only hound them relentlessly until they submitted to his will. It was better to comply from the start.
Unlike mages from other kingdoms, the mages of the Lutania Kingdom all bowed before Ghislain, making them easier to handle.
"Let's see... This should be enough to put up a decent fight."
They had failed to gather a thousand mages at the 5th-circle or higher, but by capturing and recruiting disciples, they had amassed a considerable number of lower-tier mages.
Additionally, hundreds of mages from the allied forces had joined, and some mages who hadn't fled had arrived ahead of time.
Altogether, their collective magic power seemed close to the target.
Of course, it still wasn't ideal. If every mage on the continent had gathered, it would have been easier to face the dragon.
"We'll just have to deal with the ones who escaped after this is all over."
Some mages from distant kingdoms had successfully fled.
To think they had eaten their fill and run away without lifting a finger? That was unforgivable.
Eventually, when they felt safe, they'd inevitably crawl back, flaunting their importance. Mages like that wouldn't be able to endure a life of poverty for long.
At that point, Ghislain would round them up and make them pay.
For now, they could only hope the mages captured in distant kingdoms would arrive before the dragon appeared.
"Well, let's get moving. We've taken too long."
Ghislain felt a growing sense of urgency.
In the forts scattered across the Kingdom of Turian, battles with monsters had already begun. A massive wave was imminent.
Although the army had been sent ahead to prepare, too much time had been spent capturing the mages. They needed to move quickly.
Those from the pursuit team had no time to rest as they mobilized immediately.
Countless mages followed behind them, keeping an eye on one another to prevent anyone from escaping.
***
Deep within the caves of the Shadow Mountains, Artherion sat with his eyes closed.
This place was trapped in a temporal distortion. Unless Artherion personally allowed it, no one could find or approach it.
In some ways, it was the safest and most comfortable place in the world. Here, Artherion replayed old dreams over and over again.
"... The Adversary."
Despite all the sacrifices made, they had failed to stop the resurrection of the Adversary.
Instead, the curse of the Adversary had wiped out his race.
The goddesses had not protected them from the curse. No, they had deliberately let it happen.
Even though they had risked their lives to protect humanity, all they had received in return was a cruel death.
Artherion's heart burned with rage he could no longer contain.
Revenge.
It was the only word that filled his mind and soul.
"I will... I will find you... and annihilate you..."
Though his power was a shadow of what it had been in his prime, Artherion had no intention of waiting to regain his full strength.
The longer he delayed, the stronger the Adversary would become. The fact that it hadn't revealed itself yet was proof of this.
It was better to settle things now while both sides were weak. Once the Adversary regained its full power, even Artherion at his peak wouldn't stand a chance.
Artherion slowly opened his eyes. The brilliant blue glow they once held was gone, replaced by a burning, dark red light.
Grrr...
His low growl reverberated through the mountains, carrying with it a strange magic power.
The monsters in the mountains began to go berserk upon hearing it.
Kraaaak!
Graaaagh!
Snarl...
All the monsters turned their eyes in the same direction: the Kingdom of Turian.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
With red eyes and drooling mouths, the monsters began marching toward the same destination.
Goblins, orcs, ogres, trolls, and countless other creatures moved as if they were one.
They no longer showed hostility toward each other. Differences in species were no longer a concern.
All their aggression was now directed at the Kingdom of Turian.
Artherion closed his eyes once more. He had expended a tremendous amount of energy to control the monsters and needed to rest again.
But it was fine. There wasn't much time left now.
Until then, he planned to send as many monsters as possible to weaken the humans' forces.
Ssshhh...
One of the black chains binding his body dissolved into dust.
Soon, another chain began to crack and fray, looking increasingly fragile.
In the silence of the cave, Artherion's murmured words echoed softly.
"How sorrowful... our fate..."
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