WeTried Translations

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Hydrogen B

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◈ Sword Master of the Fallen Kingdom

Chapter 36

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Magic Tower City Kabiles (1)

Kyle stared down at the dead mage's body.

The man who had struggled to the very end had gone cold in an instant.

How many was this now?

He did not know. At some point, he had stopped counting the nobles he killed.

There were too many to count one by one. It meant nothing anyway. The men who wielded power like a weapon always did and said the same things before Kyle's sword. First persuasion, then threats, then despair.

This mage had been no different.

Come to think of it, the knights who attacked House Metis's trade convoy had said the same thing.

Was he not afraid of what would come after?

"Kyle-ssi!"

A familiar voice cut through his brief thoughts. Kyle lightly shook the blood from his sword and slid it back into its scabbard.

When he turned, Lena was running toward him. She stopped in front of him, looked around, and frowned without meaning to. Severed limbs and corpses were strewn everywhere. The ground was soaked in blood, and the sharp metallic stink filled the air.

"Are you okay?"

Lena asked with concern. Kyle answered as if it were nothing.

"I'm fine. You?"

"I'm okay too. I was always behind you, Kyle-ssi. This time too."

"Then that's good."

"Yes. More than that..."

Lena's gaze stopped on the mage who had just died. When they first met, she would have screamed or thrown up, but now she only grimaced once and showed no stronger reaction. She had probably built up a tolerance after everything they had gone through in the ruins. After seeing all kinds of bodies for a week, that made sense.

"This person really was from House Filein, right?"

"Yes."

"I thought it was just talk, but they really tried to loot us out here..."

"..."

"What do we do now? House Filein is one of the most powerful high noble houses in the noble faction."

Lena muttered in a thin voice. This was different from the Twin Fangs of Silence, the assassin guild. Unlike that shadow organization, Marquis Filein was a high noble. The deaths of knights and mages under his command would have huge consequences. If things went wrong, they could end up drawing the hatred of the entire noble faction.

"Stop worrying about useless things and gather the scattered bodies."

Kyle was as calm as ever.

"Are you going to bury them?"

"No. We'll burn them. It's cleaner."

If they left the corpses alone, crows would clean them up soon enough. Or they could bury them quickly and move on. But Kyle did neither. If he wanted no evidence left behind, burning everything was better. Once contact was lost, Marquis Filein would send an investigation team for sure.

"You can use Earth Magic, right?"

"Yes, if it's something simple..."

"Good. We don't have time, so move."

Kyle used magic to move the bodies. Lena watched for a moment, then joined in.

Her eyes were full of questions, but she asked none of them. Not about Kyle's past, and not about his long feud with Marquis Filein that went back to the Metis trade convoy attack. She buried it all and followed his orders, steadily gathering corpses. Her Earth Magic and Kyle's Wind Magic worked together, and before long, a massive mound of bodies rose in the middle of the ruined forest.

"Do we just set this on fire and cremate it?"

Lena asked, staring at the pile.

"No. Normal fire will take too long."

"Then..."

"Just watch."

Standing before the mound, he opened his left hand. A five-colored flash spilled from the ring on his middle finger.

An Unquenchable Flame.

A white fire flickered above his palm. Fueled by mana itself, it was far hotter and far greedier than ordinary flames.

It could reduce human corpses to ash in minutes, without leaving even bones behind. The old Kyle would never have dared use it, but not anymore.

Drip, drip.

Like falling droplets, pure white sparks slid down his fingers and settled onto the dead mercenaries. Soon, white flames surged high. The white fire Kyle created fed only on the mercenaries' bodies.

"Ah..."

Lena let out a small gasp at the white blaze.

"Even if Marquis Filein is one of Brendel's top nobles, he has no room left now. His house has taken enough damage to shake its foundations, and there is no evidence. Tracking us will be impossible."

Kyle spoke beside her. During the Metis convoy incident, there had been many witnesses.

Not this time. Everyone who knew Kyle was the Night Crow had died in the ruins. The forces Marquis Filein used to control the mountains would leave behind nothing, not even a handful of bone.

The same applied to tracking through mana residue. To trace lingering mana flow in the air, they would need to reach the site within half a day at most. Even if they found out the Night Crow had ruined the attack on House Metis's convoy, they could not tie that to this incident. At least no backlash would hit Lena.

"Let's go."

When the flames began to die down, Kyle turned without hesitation. Lena watched the burning corpses a little longer, then saw him leaving and hurried after him.

By then, the sun was high overhead. When the fire on the foothill died, nothing remained.

***

After leaving the forest, Kyle and Lena moved toward the Magic Tower as fast as possible. Other than brief stops to eat dry rations, they kept going without rest.

"Get on my back."

"...What?"

But on the second day, early in the morning, Kyle said that, and Lena could only stare at him. She had heard him clearly, but her mind struggled to process it. Kyle pressed her again.

"Don't make me repeat myself. Get on. At this rate, we won't make the schedule."

"B-but..."

"Or do you want me to sling you over my shoulder like luggage?"

Kyle's eyes narrowed. Lena flinched.

She was slow. More precisely, she could not keep up with Kyle's pace, because he used mana-based body reinforcement as naturally as breathing.

Yesterday, he had already confirmed her physical limit. If they wanted to cut travel time, he had to carry her.

He did not hesitate long. Running with her on his back while reinforcing his body would still tire him out, but compared to the war five years ago, this was barely hardship.

The mana in the ring he had used yesterday was already fully recovered. Lena's embarrassment was not part of his calculations.

"Hurry."

"Ugh..."

After hesitating, she squeezed her eyes shut and climbed onto his back. Kyle braced her hips firmly with both arms and took off running.

And then.

"Hwaaaah!"

"Be quiet. You're blowing out my eardrums."

Lena locked both arms around Kyle's neck. Her scream rang right by his ear, and Kyle frowned.

"Kyle-ssi! You're too fast!"

"..."

Body reinforcement with mana. The thing Kyle was best at was mana control itself. He poured mana into both legs, and Lena, who had expected a normal running pace, had to fight with everything she had just to keep herself together at a speed easily twice as fast as a horse.

"I-I'm going to die... I'm dying..."

"Think of it as a roller coaster."

"What even is a roller coaster?!"

"Ah... right. Then just breathe."

"Aaaah!"

The first day had been nonstop travel at a fast walking pace. On the second day, he ran with Lena on his back, reinforcing his legs with mana.

"Huff, huff..."

"If someone saw us, they'd think I was the one being carried."

The trip originally planned for six days was cut to four. Before Kyle and Lena, a massive wall rose into view.

The Magic Tower City, Kabiles.

Home of Lenore Magic Tower, the greatest Magic Tower in the Kingdom of Brendel. Unlike ordinary lord-ruled cities or free cities built around markets, this was a self-governing territory where the Magic Tower held autonomy. It was fully Lenore's land, granted in exchange for cooperation with the royal family. There were some limits, but mostly in name only.

"We're here... we're finally here..."

"Walk the rest. From here on, drawing attention won't help."

"Yes... I'll walk."

Kyle set Lena down. For the first time since noon, she put her feet on the ground and swayed from dizziness.

Kyle glanced at her, then looked ahead again.

A road stretched down the gentle hill. A cool wind blew. Green fields rippled like waves. Near the road entrance, people lined up for inspection.

As expected of the kingdom's top Magic Tower, traffic was heavy.

"Let's go."

"Yes. Just a little slower..."

Kyle ignored Lena's groan and headed down the hill along the road. It did not take long to reach the gate.

"Are you a mage of Lenore Magic Tower?"

One of the gate soldiers widened his eyes at Lena's robe. In this city, no one failed to recognize Lenore's crest. Most of its mages were nobles or children of wealthy families with exceptional magical talent, which made that even more obvious.

"I'm Lena, an official mage of Lenore Magic Tower."

Standing beside Kyle, Lena spoke in a proud tone, completely unlike before.

"And the person beside you?"

"Kyle."

Kyle took out his mercenary badge and handed it over.

"A silver-rank mercenary badge from the Kingdom of Kirian."

"Can I enter?"

"Yes. No problem. But you might not know this as a mercenary, so I'll explain just in case. Crimes inside are punished under Magic Tower Law, not kingdom law, so be careful. Crimes committed inside the tower itself are punished even more severely."

The soldier returned the badge with a warning.

"I'll remember that."

Kyle gave a short nod and stepped into the city.

Past the gate, the scenery changed completely. A city spread out before them, grand enough to rival the capital of Brendel. Broad, orderly avenues. Long magic stone lamps stood at even intervals along the roads. They looked like streetlights from modern Earth, but in broad daylight they were dark.

The people walking the streets were dressed far more luxuriously than in ordinary cities. Kyle saw many mages moving through the crowds. Some wore robes marked with Lenore's emblem like Lena. The main difference was the robe color.

Most of all, a cluster of towering spires rose in the center, as if they could pierce the sky. Lena glanced at a carriage passing through the middle of the road and quickened her pace across the city.

"We just go straight along the main avenue to the center."

This time, Lena took the lead.

"Do we need another procedure to enter?"

"It's fine. Normally it would be impossible, but if I use my grandfather's name, there won't be a problem."

Kyle watched Lena's back. From the moment they entered the city, she had looked rushed.

He understood. She had returned with what was practically an impossible goal: treating her grandfather, an elder of the Magic Tower suffering from magicite syndrome. In late-stage magicite syndrome, time was life, so Kyle followed without a word.

By the time they were almost at the city center.

"There!"

Lena shouted. The main gate of the Magic Tower stood ahead.

Two guards stood before it, dressed far better than the city-gate soldiers, almost like knights. They looked at Kyle and Lena, who were nearly running toward them. One guard saw Lena's blue hair and turquoise eyes, and his expression changed.

"Mage Lena?"

Lena stopped right before the gate. She bent over, breathing hard, then steadied herself and lifted her head.

"I am Lena, official Third-Rank Mage of Lenore. I have just returned."

She enunciated each word clearly. The urgency from moments before disappeared, and she looked every bit a proper Lenore mage. The guard, who seemed to know her, nodded.

"Confirmed. You've finally returned. Your outing took so long we were worried, but I'm glad you don't appear hurt."

"May I enter?"

"Yes. The Magic Tower is always open to those with qualifications. More importantly, the person next to you..."

After speaking briefly with Lena, the guard turned his head to the left. Kyle stood there in silence.

A black cloak matching his hair and eyes. The sword at his waist was plain, but the pommel and Cross-Guard shone cleanly, showing careful upkeep. At a glance, he was clearly a skilled mercenary. Still, the Magic Tower was not a place just anyone could enter.

"He's my guest."

When the guard hesitated, Lena added that.

"Your guest...?"

"Yes. More precisely, my grandfather's guest. He came from far away, and I met him recently, so we came together."

"So that was the reason for your trip. But even so, it's difficult to permit entry for an outsider..."

"Lena Hartion. I will vouch with my name."

Lena said it firmly. The guard frowned in thought.

Lena was not just an official mage. She was the granddaughter of one of the seven elders. On top of that, she was highly talented and had many achievements inside the tower. Invoking not only her status as mage but also her family name made outright refusal difficult.

"What should we do?"

"Just let them in. She's Elder Gerard's granddaughter."

"But by the rules, Third-Rank Mages can't bring outsiders..."

"If he's the elder's guest, what does it matter?"

The two guards argued briefly. The one focused on rules hesitated, and the one focused on practicality kept pushing back.

"Hm... true enough. Understood. Enter for now. But later, we'll have to report this to the Tower Master..."

Just as the guard who knew Lena moved to open the way, footsteps clicked from beyond the gate. Both guards snapped their heads back. Kyle and Lena also turned toward the sound.

"This is a problem, Mr. Has. Since when did Lenore Magic Tower start letting in random outsiders of unknown background?"

The newcomer stopped close to Kyle and Lena. A purple-haired girl about Lena's age stood there. After glaring at the guards as if scolding them, she looked forward again.

"Long time no see, Lena."

"...Veronica."

Lena bit her lip hard. Seeing that unfamiliar reaction, Kyle looked the girl over once more. Like Lena, Veronica wore a robe marked with Lenore's emblem.

But unlike ordinary mage robes, hers had far more markings, and they were much more complex.

Judging by the fabric and quality, she was clearly high nobility. From the guards' reaction, her standing inside the tower also seemed high. She spoke to Lena, an elder's granddaughter, without any deference.

"So you finally came back. Funny, considering the Tower Master tried to stop you, and you still left the tower on your own."

With a smirk, she jerked her chin toward Kyle.

"And what's with him? Your grandfather is critically ill, yet you've been wandering outside. Did you go sightsee and bring back a new friend?"

"That's none of your business."

"None of my business? Do you know how much this tower has lost because of you and your grandfather? Research funds were diverted to your grandfather's treatment. On top of that, the Tower Master has been running around trying to bring in famous mages and high priests."

"..."

"And while all that's happening, his granddaughter is out fooling around with some strange man..."

Veronica sneered. In an instant, Lena shot her a fierce glare Kyle had never seen before.

"Don't say whatever you want. One more word, and I won't stay quiet."

"You won't stay quiet? That's rich. You're the one who brought trouble after trouble to this tower, and now you're trying to drag in a lowborn mercenary bastard too?"

"Kyle-ssi is not that kind of person...!"

"Ah, enough."

Veronica cut her off.

"The important point is this: outsiders are banned from entering the Magic Tower. By rule, Third-Rank Mages cannot bring outsiders inside. Only official mages of second rank or higher can."

She turned her head back.

"Isn't that right, Mr. Has?"

"...Yes. By rule, that is correct."

The guard who first spoke to Lena answered carefully, watching the mood. The other guard did the same. They wanted to side with kind, familiar Lena, but they could not do it openly.

They had only made a temporary exception because of her status. By strict principle, outsiders could not enter the tower.

Lena could not hold back any longer and spoke in a hurried voice.

"If he's Elder Gerard's guest, then he has the right to enter."

"Maybe. But where's your proof?"

"That is..."

"Your grandfather collapsed, didn't he? I heard he's been unconscious for a full week. How is someone who can't even speak supposed to testify?"

"...What did you just say?"

Lena's mind went blank. Her grandfather had fallen completely unconscious. The sentence kept repeating in her head until thought itself stalled.

"Ah... you didn't know?"

Seeing Lena's reaction, Veronica's lips curled.

"Everyone in the tower already knows. Elder Gerard, that great master of Spatial Magic, has been unconscious for a week, and his so-called granddaughter went outside and vanished without a word."

"Move!"

"No. If you're coming in, come in alone. Only those with qualifications may set foot in Lenore Magic Tower. Not this."

Veronica shoved Lena aside and stared at Kyle with contempt.

"Not some lowborn mercenary who runs around killing people."

"..."

"Disgusting. Did Elder Gerard collapsing drag your standards into the dirt too? Not even a knight from another noble house. You chose to run around with this classless lowborn mercenary."

Veronica planted herself before the gate, blocking Lena.

Kyle roughly grasped the situation.

A power struggle inside the Magic Tower.

Wherever a group exists, power follows. The bigger the group, the uglier the internal struggle. And this was Lenore Magic Tower, Brendel's greatest magical institution and one of the most famous on the southern continent. With only seven elders, layers of interests were bound to be tangled together. Most of the tower's mages were nobles, or close enough.

From Kyle's perspective, this girl Veronica likely had status similar to Lena's. She casually referred to Elder Gerard by name, so she was probably another elder's disciple. Even without blood ties like Lena's, their houses were likely closely linked. If so, everything fit.

Elder Gerard collapsed, and conflict began over the elder seat that would soon be vacant. Factional pressure. Had they been waiting for this since Lena passed the city gate?

"Move!"

Lena snapped and tried to force her way through.

"How vulgar. Are you saying you'll ignore tower law right here?"

Veronica blocked her again.

"If you need testimony, my grandfather can give it after he wakes up!"

"Wakes up? How? No one has even identified his illness. Even those renowned priests gave up and left. How do you plan to solve what they could not?"

"Kyle-ssi can...!"

"Kyle-ssi? Ah... that lowborn mercenary?"

Veronica mocked him while glancing at Kyle, who had been quietly looking at the ground in thought.

"A mercenary who knows nothing but killing people is going to treat your grandfather? Funny joke. If you really want to bring him in, file a formal complaint to the Tower Master. Then I won't object."

Lena did not listen. She had no time. Unable to hold back, she tried to shove Veronica down by force.

"Get out of my way!"

"You crazy bitch. You want to do this with me?"

Veronica smacked away Lena's outstretched hand and drew her wand in one swift motion. Instantly, surrounding mana streamed around the purple-haired girl.

"You idiot. No wonder you have no friends. Why don't you go to a church and pray? Maybe a god will pity you and grant a miracle. Though at this point, it's probably pointless."

"You...!"

Lena's face twisted, and she drew her own wand. Mana surged around them. The two guards fidgeted anxiously, faces full of panic.

Clang!

A clear metallic note rang out through the suffocating standoff. For an instant, a silver blade flashed.

When everyone came to their senses, Kyle's sword was at Veronica's throat. Veronica's expression froze at the fluid draw of his blade.

When did he move?

"Get lost."

Kyle's voice rang low.

"There won't be a second time."

Silence had already settled over the area. The blade that pierced their blind spot gleamed coldly.

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