Chapter 270 Preparation (1)
The corridor, lit by magic stone lamps, dispelled the darkness.
After finishing his conversation with Calia, Verden returned to his chamber. In the solitude, a sense of emptiness lingered.
Standing quietly at the center, he raised his right hand.
The violet shimmer of the Kingdom of Estiria's emblem, a national treasure restored to its full form after nearly a century, welcomed its new master.
Verden closed his eyes.
Then, he focused his mind on Raindia.
He had already experienced the engraving of an artifact before.
There was no reason to be nervous or tense. At the moment when his will and senses unified, Raindia activated and radiated light.
───!
A violet haze enveloped Verden's entire body.
It was neither hot nor cold, and there was no pain. Only a hollow emptiness filled the void.
Perceiving the endless expanse, Verden clenched his fist.
Paaaht.
An unprecedented power flowed into his being.
Soul Engraving. In a moment of deepened consciousness, he saw clearly within himself the royal mark engraved upon his soul.
Srrrk.
Verden slowly opened his eyes.
The light of Raindia faded, and darkness quietly settled once more.
'So this is it.'
Unlike Ainber, it seemed this artifact did not choose its bearer.
The ownership of Raindia had now been bound to him, naturally perceived.
Unless Verden died or released the engraving himself, Raindia would remain his for eternity.
Just like the artifact of the Demon King that already covered his whole body.
'To think they would prepare something like this.'
They had told him to expect it.
Silia had made a bold choice indeed, as had Marquis Esperanza who accepted her decision.
If it had been the state treasury emptied to pay him with gold, that would have been one thing. But to hand over a relic that could be called an ancient artifact was no simple matter.
Verden stood before a full-body mirror.
Adjusting his attire, he surveyed the equipment he currently bore.
The demon core embedded within his body.
On his right hand, Raindia.
On his left, the Ring of Permafrost (replica), the Ring of Rune, and Exceed.
At his waist, the dagger gifted by Count Rodenmeyer of the principality.
Around his neck, the Center of the Three Primary Colors, with the Amulet of Thunderwing mounted upon it, while Maybel's Earrings had fully integrated and disappeared from view.
And, protecting his entire body, Ainber, along with his staff and Orient.
That was not all.
Inside his spatial bag were the Demonic Sword Cadence, the shield Floated, and the Compass of the Black Hour.
Also stored, a magic tome recording even sixth-tier earth magic.
'...I've come far.'
How starkly different things were compared to the past.
When he first set foot on the Eastern Continent through spatial teleportation, it could not even be compared. This was the choice Verden had made, and the result of it.
He quickly retraced the years. A rush of sentiments welled up.
Back then, and even now, not once had he made a decision he regretted. And surely it would be the same in the future.
'Well, at any rate.'
Now that he had obtained a new artifact, it was time to test it. The method of use had already been conveyed into his mind through the engraving.
At Verden's will, Raindia activated.
His target, the mirror before him. Its edges became clearly defined, and then, with a faint dark-violet glow, the artifact swallowed it whole.
The mirror vanished from the room.
Yet Verden could still feel its presence.
When he focused again, the vanished mirror returned to its original place.
Registering an item, storing it, and retrieving it.
A very simple mechanism. Its restrictions regarding storage were the same as a spatial bag or spatial storage function.
Verden carried out several more tests.
Once he judged himself sufficiently accustomed, he picked up Orient. As before, the staff registered within Raindia disappeared, then reappeared.
'Very convenient indeed.'
Subspace.
Quite literally, he had acquired a vault that only he could use.
Not only that, but it was free of spatial limitations... truly, it could be called the perfect superior version of a spatial bag.
With this, the problem of Grond's vault had been flawlessly resolved.
All the plans he had considered for transporting funds, he discarded without hesitation.
No matter how brilliant a method he might devise, none could possibly replace Raindia's role.
Verden took a step forward.
Emerging from the shadows, he approached the window and stretched out his right hand. The ruby's red gleam, reflected in the moonlight, flickered gently.
It naturally evoked the hues unique to the House of Esperanza.
"...Next, then."
Verden trusted in himself.
But the future was unknowable to anyone. Whether he could safely return to the Kingdom of Estiria was not something he could assert with certainty now.
But if he did return... then he would no longer hide behind the alias Asher.
Verden longed for that day, gazing at the night sky for a while.
***
The next morning, Verden set out for Roafra.
Of course, he was not yet leaving the Kingdom of Estiria. He had said from the start that he would bid his farewells before departing.
His purpose in visiting Roafra was fourfold.
Grond's vault, Vintert, Galliark, and to firmly decide his future objective.
For that, he had also brought along all the "overseas information" prepared by Perne.
'It wouldn't matter if I had someone accompany me, but...'
Mobilizing the Marquisate's airship would be troublesome.
If Verden moved at full speed, he could make a round trip between the capital Retia and Roafra in no more than four days.
In many ways, traveling alone was the most efficient choice.
Before long, he arrived at the great city Aurofl.
To prevent commotion, he landed nearby and walked toward the castle gates.
The guards, spotting Verden approaching from afar, were startled and hurriedly moved into action.
"Open the gates, quickly! At once!"
Night had already fallen.
By principle, the gates were never opened save for emergencies, but naturally, Verden was an exception. He was still the ruler of Roafra, after all.
Even if he had no such intentions, others' thoughts were different.
'This is the first time I've entered the city like this.'
Verden had grown up in an orphanage.
From society's view, he had been of insignificant birth. Yet now, he was treated on par with a high noble.
'No, I suppose I truly am a noble, since I've been granted the title of Honorary Count.'
He wondered what the orphanage director, or Rovellin, would say if they saw him now.
Safely entering Aurofl, Verden descended underground.
Taking the VIP-only, high-speed magic-powered elevator, he arrived in Roafra, where members of Vintert were lined up in formation.
At the front, the Black Hand, Robert, greeted him.
"Welcome, Sir Asher."
"No troubles, I hope?"
"Yes, the matter of the illegal slaves has been completely resolved, and the restoration work of Roafra is nearly halfway finished. Other than that, there is nothing else of note to report."
Verden swept his gaze over all of Roafra with the Mystic Eye of Magic Power.
The underworld's vitality had to some extent returned, and the criminal syndicates were hard at work in the reconstruction efforts.
"It certainly looks to be progressing smoothly."
Nodding, he headed toward the Ashen Castle.
As he walked down the wide-open streets of the underworld, Robert cautiously approached and asked,
"Um, may I ask... how it went in the capital?"
Princess Silis, the witch, the rebellion.
Robert knew nothing of those circumstances.
But he could easily infer at least this much, that the new king of the underworld stood in opposition to Leonil and the Royal Family of Estiria.
Why? Because it was those two who had issued the commission to capture the special trait holder.
The strange incident of Roafra's disappearance.
The White Crest Knights and Calia's group, who had departed when summoned.
'It's obvious all of this is related to Lord Asher.'
Robert was convinced of it.
To him, Verden spoke simply,
"Leonil is dead."
"...!"
Robert flinched.
He thought he must have misheard, but no, it wasn't a mistake. And it certainly wasn't a joke.
Hadn't he been the one who had overwhelmed Grond, that wielder of multiple artifacts?
'Then, that means....'
What stood before him was not just the new ruler. He was the one who had trampled a sixth-tier magus, one who stood at the pinnacle of the Kingdom of Estiria.
His trembling lips bit down lightly.
It wasn't merely the fear of an overwhelming gap in strength. More than anything, it was the terror of not being able to predict the future at all.
Where exactly would the underworld, led by him, be headed?
Yet Verden's answer was wholly unexpected.
"I have no intention of ruling Roafra. I'll be leaving the kingdom soon."
To reign over Roafra brought little merit.
Even if it was the greatest underworld syndicate of the Eastern Continent, in comparison to the grand stage of the world it was pitifully narrow.
"What? Th-then, we───"
"There's no need to panic. I won't be sweeping away the crimes rampant in Roafra all at once."
The shield of the underworld king had been removed.
Which meant the chances of the Marquisate of Esperanza coming to Roafra were very high. They claimed the path of justice, and they would never just stand by and watch the criminal powers.
At worst, a small war might erupt here in Roafra.
That was what worried Robert.
But on that point, Verden had already settled matters, in his capacity as the underworld king, through conversation with Marquis Esperanza.
"No matter how much of a den of criminals Roafra is, you know as well as I do, the truth is that far more civilians live here than criminals. To neatly cut away only the criminals is nothing more than an idealistic dream."
Relocating the civilians would be no different.
It had been struggle enough to free the illegal slaves of Roafra, and taking in a population many times greater was absolutely impossible in terms of capacity.
Not to mention, forcibly changing the living environment of the residents would provoke fierce resistance.
"That is why, instead of domination, the conclusion reached was that a structure of cooperation would be best. With the mediator of the Marquisate of Esperanza and the representative of Roafra joining forces, they will manage this underworld and gradually guide it toward a better direction."
"...If Lord Asher leaves, then who will be the representative?"
"Of course, it will be you, Robert."
Robert was one of Vintert's three senior executives.
But in terms of criminal discipline, he was the only one who could reasonably be granted some leniency. The main area he had been involved in was the management of Vintert's funds.
It hadn't even been ten years since he had joined Vintert.
In other words, he had no connection at all to the grudges of the past still lingering in the kingdom.
That didn't mean he would be granted an instant pardon, but as for the position of Roafra's representative, there was no one more suited.
"So you won't suddenly be arrested and executed. You may rest assured."
"Th-thank you for your consideration...!"
Robert swallowed hard and rubbed at his throat.
His pale face grew even paler. His skin tingled as though a cold blade had pressed against it.
Meanwhile, the two of them arrived at the Ashen Castle and descended deep underground.
After opening Grond's vault, they stepped inside. The vast wealth they had previously confirmed shone brilliantly.
It was far too much to store in a spatial bag.
"Shall I call in the subordinates?"
"No, that won't be necessary."
Verden stretched out his right hand.
Raindia activated. The violet aura unique to spatial attributes enveloped the banknotes, gold bars, jewels, magic gear and items.
They were all registered without issue, and vanished into subspace.
When Verden made a circuit of the room, nothing remained in the vault.
Robert gaped open-mouthed in shock. Behind his astonishment, Verden caressed Raindia in satisfaction.
'Now, the next matter.'
He turned his head sideways.
"Robert, how far does Roafra's influence extend?"
"Ah, yes. If you mean overseas, then across the whole of the Eastern Continent. Roafra is the largest underworld syndicate in the East, after all. Rumors spread quickly in this line of work, so the news of Grond's death must already be spreading in real time. And Lord Asher's description as well..."
"That's convenient."
Verden reached out his hand.
From subspace, he drew out a stack of documents and handed them to Robert.
"Inside are records of various foreign nations. Compile the information on the underworld forces operating there, and deliver it to me, as quickly as possible."
It was not a request, but an order.
Robert instantly clasped his hands behind her back.
"I will not disappoint you, Lord Asher."
"Good, I'm counting on you."
For now, his business was concluded.
Leaving the empty vault, Verden came to an abrupt stop.
"Ah, by the way, where is Galliark now?"
***
The upper floors of the ruined Ashen Castle.
A location safeguarded by a magic circle in preparation for the chance that, during Verden's absence, Vintert might betray Calia's group.
Entering the castle, the stench of alcohol and oil stung his nose.
Verden's gaze shifted.
The Butcher, Galliark, was sprawled across a sofa, asleep.
"Kuuuooooorrr!"
A vicious snore rattled the eardrums.
To see him so defenseless in a place that could well become enemy territory.
If he approached with killing intent, he would immediately try to crush the other's skull with Hwihwol, yet even so, Galliark looked utterly at ease.
"...This isn't what I installed the magic circle for."
The corner of Verden's eye twitched.
With a flick of his magic power, an empty bottle flew toward Galliark's head.
"Get up already."
Kaaang!
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