WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Inept Mage’s Infinite Regression

Chapter 51

Right after Arca left for her winter vacation, several messenger birds flew into Yurmus Magic Academy carrying news.

The dispatches announced that the Empire had invaded the Kingdom of Kardien. Ethan wasn’t surprised, as he’d already heard about it directly from Jimonail. Because Ethan had passed along the information via Aincher, it had reached the Mage Council quickly, allowing them to prepare. The King and the nobles, however, were not so fortunate.

Regardless of the Mage Council’s warning, the Kingdom of Kardien had already been keeping close watch on the Empire’s movements. Even if Ethan hadn’t warned them, launching a war required mobilizing troops, and once troop numbers exceeded a certain threshold, they couldn’t be concealed. The Empire had mustered an army numbering over ten thousand.

Over the past half year, the Empire had steadily deployed troops to the border under various pretexts, such as border disputes between imperial nobles and small skirmishes. But even once these conflicts were resolved, the Empire refused to withdraw its forces. Ignoring the complaints of local nobles, they kept their armies in place without reducing numbers.

Many nobles remained skeptical until imperial forces actually crossed the border. After all, it was almost winter. Starting a war in winter meant handing out the grain set aside for winter provisions as military rations. Furthermore, to soldiers, war meant endless marches and nights spent sleeping outdoors, which was brutal in winter. The border lords reasoned that, since there was no immediate hurry, the Empire wouldn’t launch a war in such harsh conditions.

Above all, there was no plausible justification. Certainly, the Empire and the Kingdom of Kardien had had many minor disputes. Before the Empire’s founding, Kardien had lost about half its territory during its war against the Undying King. Although Hero Cario had eventually defeated the Undying King, Kardien’s internal politics were so turbulent that, by the time the Empire had been established, they had reclaimed only about half of the lost lands. Then, when Cario founded the Empire, he annexed territory that had once been Kardien’s to the new Empire.

For the locals in those annexed lands, the Empire was a benefactor, but from Kardien’s point of view, it was like having its territory snatched away in broad daylight. Worse, since Kardien had greatly aided the Hero Cario in defeating the Undying King’s nation, the former Kingdom of Ysoren, many regarded the Emperor’s actions toward Kardien as dishonorable.

At the time of the Empire’s founding, other kingdoms had also been wary of it, so most had sided with the King of Kardien. The Empire had handed over a portion of Ysoren’s territory to placate them, and although the area returned was larger in raw acreage, the farmland Kardien lost was far more fertile, so the Empire’s move was widely seen as a diplomatic maneuver that let them preen while still benefiting. In short, it was a sly tactic.

Even so, that piece of Ysoren territory did include Cora—the former capital of Ysoren and the Undying King’s fortress—thus giving Kardien some nominal prestige. Moreover, some nobles claimed the Empire had resolved Kardien’s internal turmoil on Kardien’s behalf. As time passed, many neighboring kingdoms bowed to the Empire’s growing power, and fewer nobles were willing to back the King of Kardien.

Following this, the kings of Kardien repeatedly demanded the return of their lands, and the Emperor repeatedly refused. This led to several minor wars where local nobles, backed by either the King or the Emperor, clashed over those disputed territories.

Officially, however, these were feuds between nobles, they were never full-scale conflicts between the two nations. The Emperor would not dispatch his own army just because he disliked the lord governing Cora. In fact, the first force to cross the border wasn’t even the Emperor’s army.

It was the Undying King’s.

Right before the Undying King and his troops crossed the border, the Empire publicly proclaimed that the Undying King was pardoned for his past deeds, effectively resurrecting him. The Undying King announced that he would wage war on Kardien to recover the territory he had lost 162 years ago, demanding the return of Cora. At this point, such a demand was impossible to grant.

Thanks to continuous support meant to keep the Empire in check, Cora had become Kardien’s second capital. Already fortified against invasion, it successfully withstood two sieges by the Undying King’s skeletal army of a thousand. Fortunately, Cora emerged victorious both times.

However, after the Undying King’s defeat, he appealed to the Emperor, requesting reinforcements. The Emperor transferred the ten thousand troops already stationed on the border under the command of Margrave Yumuran and ordered them to aid the Undying King in capturing Cora. Cora itself had only two thousand troops. This time, the Undying King did not hide his full might, implying his two earlier defeats had been intentional, and stormed the fortress, capturing Cora in just two days. Count Saikal, Cora’s lord, managed to preserve half his troops and retreat.

Relinquishing Cora did not end the matter. The Undying King did not merely intend to reclaim Ysoren’s lands; he wanted all the territories he had once conquered at the height of his power, which encompassed not only Kardien but also Yekatan and beyond. Even more worrisome was that the Undying King himself seemed to be just another pawn dancing to the Emperor’s tune.

Many kings and nobles across Damarth wondered: If the Undying King truly seized all the land he wanted, would the Empire’s ambitions end there? The King of Kardien began forging an alliance centered on Kardien, sending letters far and wide to the rulers of Damarth, calling for their support. His letters began:

Brothers, and all who suffer under this land’s travails, do you still remember our oath? A shadow looms once again over our last refuge, and so I beseech your aid…

Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried

A month into vacation, Yurmus Magic Academy was in chaos. Many professors had left for various reasons. Some went to check on their estates with war looming, while others took leaves of absence to join the conflict.

Students were no different. Rumors were flying that Yurmus Magic Academy would shut down next year. Even considering the bleakness of late autumn, the place felt more deserted than it had the previous summer break.

Ethan received a raven-delivered letter from Arca, urging him to return to House Charasen. Delaying his reply, he went to see Boen, whom he found in an uncharacteristically haughty pose.

Boen was in his dorm room, legs propped up on his desk.

“What’s going on, Boen?”

“…Boen?” Boen adjusted his glasses and crossed his legs atop the desk. “From now on, address me as Lord Palmize.”

“…Huh?”

He took a letter from his jacket and handed it to Ethan. Ethan recognized the format immediately.

“Wait a second. This is an official edict?”

“Take your time reading it.”

“All right, let’s see… ‘The first heir to Baron Palmize… has relinquished… relinquished the right of succession…?’”

Focusing, Ethan read more carefully.

The letter explained that Baron Palmize had died of old age, that his eldest heir had renounced the title, and that the next in line, Boen Palmize, was thus to inherit it. The reason for the heir’s renunciation was obvious.

“Palmize is near Cora, right? In wartime, becoming a noble means you have to take the field.”

Ethan’s guess was correct. The letter came from the court official who had notarized it, none other than the King of Kardien himself. It was effectively an order: become a noble if you wish, but then be ready to fight immediately.

“They’re telling you to go to war?”

“That’s exactly it.”

“This was Bain’s doing, wasn’t it? He arranged for you to become the Palmize family’s adopted son.”

“Yes.”

Ethan began to see Bain’s intentions. “Bain must have known war was coming. He also knew Baron Palmize’s actual heir was a coward, so he was certain you’d end up inheriting.”

“And then he could pretend loyalty to the King of Kardien only to betray him and bring merit to the Empire in the end.”

“As expected from a professor.”

“He’s dead now, though.”

With a sigh, Ethan dropped the royal edict onto Boen’s desk. “Just ignore this. Come with me to Charasen. The King of Kardien will be far too busy to remember which letters he has stamped. Even if he does, by the time we reach Charasen, Kardien might already be conquered.”

Boen uncrossed his legs and sat up properly. “Will that really be all right, Ethan?”

“What do you mean?”

“I want to tell you something I find frightening,” Boen replied.

“What’s that?”

“You may already sense it or even know it, in which case none of this will surprise you.”

“Go on.”

Boen adjusted his glasses again. “The Emperor might have started this war just to kill you.”

“Oh, come on… That’s ridiculous…”

Ethan trailed off, lapsing into thought. The Emperor wanted to kill the dark mage from Terra, and he knew exactly where that dark mage was. But to launch a direct attack on the magic academy with only a few demons from the Mage Court? That would be impossible. It would require an entire army. By waging a full-scale war, the Emperor could sweep aside every obstacle between the Empire and the Academy. It was an easy solution.

“…No way.”

“I was trained by the Imperial Inquisition, so it doesn’t sound so far-fetched to me.”

“So you’re saying I shouldn’t leave the academy?”

“Yurmus Magic Academy is safe for now, but will it remain so if Kardien falls? Once that happens, the Academy will share a direct border with the Empire.”

Ethan nodded. “Charasen should still be safe.”

“But it’s far away. The Imperial Inquisition could be waiting for a chance like that.”

“I can use dark magic.”

“Will it protect everyone around you as well? Including those in Charasen?”

Charasen meant his father and his sister. Yet even so, it did not have ancient wards like Yurmus Academy, and any attempt to strike at Ethan would almost certainly harm those close to him too.

“What’s your suggestion, then?”

Boen answered, “I’m not saying heading to Charasen is a terrible choice, but the Inquisition will predict that. The alternative is ‘somewhere safe that isn’t Charasen.’ ”

“And where is that exactly?”

“I have no idea. We could run from the Inquisition indefinitely, but what good would that do? How long would we flee? And to what end? That’s why I don’t recommend it. The option I do recommend is the third one.” Boen held up three fingers. “Come with me and join the war.”

∞

Boen’s argument was convincing.

If Ethan joined the army and took command at the front lines, he’d be far from the Imperial Inquisition’s spies. In a large-scale war, infiltrators capable of eliminating a single target behind an entire army’s lines would be unstoppable anyway. If they could do that, they could assassinate any king or commander and end the war immediately. Moreover, armies always maneuvered in secrecy. Without an inside agent, it would be impossible for the Inquisition to track Ethan’s movements.

There was another reason, one Boen didn’t know: Ethan had a quest to prevent the war’s spread by any means. Surviving simply by waiting for the war to end was one option, but he could also end it himself—and remain alive at the conclusion. That seemed far preferable to watching passively, especially given that Ethan, as a dark mage, believed he might not be able to win the war outright, but he could at least alter its course in some way.

“Maybe I’m being overconfident,” Ethan murmured, half to himself. Boen, gazing at the ceiling as though recalling the past, slowly shook his head.

“No, I don’t think so. To be honest, I want you in this war because I believe that with you around, we might be able to pull it off.”

“You’re shameless, Lord Palmize.”

“So what? You should be shameless too. If we’re going to shape the outcome of this war, we might as well be on the winning side, right?”

“You want me to be a hero?”

“ ‘Ethan the Hero’ sounds a lot better than ‘Ethan the Inept Mage,’ don’t you think?”

Ethan gave a wry grin. “All right. I’ll do my best.”

Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried