Chapter 110: End·Beginning (Part 3)

  The setting sun bathed the city below in the golden brilliance of the plateau evening. Ethan had finally returned to Oufu.

  Ethan gazed down at the dense buildings and crisscrossing streets. This city had expanded more than tenfold since his first visit, now nearly equal in size to the empire's royal capital. The flames and smoke rising from the workshop district, the clamor audible even from the air, everywhere was vitality and energy. New buildings under construction were visible at the city's edges and along its streets. The city moved like a giant creature, constantly changing and growing.

  The orderly streets were its blood vessels, and the orcs bustling ceaselessly between them were its blood. The heart was undoubtedly the new city hall at its center. Its massive, conspicuous size was unmistakable from the air. People and orcs coming and going from all directions carried vitality and energy out from it, spreading to every corner of the city.

  Although most buildings in Oufu were still the roughly constructed stone houses, a few more exquisitely crafted and distinctive ones had begun to appear. The new city hall was one such example. Its vast volume rivaled any other structure on the continent, still built entirely of stacked stone, but the details were no longer crude. Clean, simple architectural lines, the flat exterior walls occasionally adorned with simple yet magnificent and bold patterns, combined with its immense size and rugged materials, exuded a presence that matched this city.

  Before the city hall, the three massive stone tablets engraved with laws and the gallows still stood with their unique character, declaring the city's distinctive style and authority alongside the city hall.

  Ethan knew he would have to stay here for at least a year. In a sense, this would be his temporary nation, his dwelling. Compared to the Kalendor Basin or the imperial capital, he preferred this rugged, vibrant city. It wasn't oppressive, devoid of sorrow, and free from political conspiracies. Although returning here was to fulfill his promise and could be considered a mission, it felt instead like a relief, a liberation.

  The Wyvern circled above the city hall several times, cried out three times, ensuring those below would report this to the city lord, then flew toward the outskirts. Ethan was still the continent's most wanted fugitive and naturally couldn't land brazenly.

  On the leveled mountain peak at Oufu's edge, the Wyvern landed, flapping its wings. Moments later, two swift horses galloped out from Oufu, heading straight for the peak.

  As Lord Bolgan's large head peeked over the mountaintop edge, he shouted at Ethan: "Well! It seems our risky investment wasn't wasted after all. You've finally returned."

  Ethan looked at him and smiled: "Because I never like owing others. Besides, I can't think of anywhere else to go for now."

  "Oh? Isn't it because you were escorted by General Gru that you didn't run?" The dwarf nimbly flipped himself onto the mountaintop.

  "Absolutely not," Ethan smiled wryly. If he had truly slipped away from Gru silently and alone, the happiest ones would probably have been those three Necromancers who had tracked him down somehow.

  "Good. Haha!" Lord Bolgan pointed at him and shouted. "Starting now, for the next year, your head, valued at five thousand gold coins, will be worth approximately thirteen gold coins, sixty-nine silver coins, and eighty-six copper coins per day. That's about fifty-seven silver coins per hour, counting even sleeping and shitting time. Absolutely the most expensive mercenary on the continent. Please remember your worth and ensure you work for us with commensurate quality."

  Ethan smiled. He liked the dwarf's unfiltered way of speaking. He asked with a smile: "You won't arrest me on the last day and then sell me for five thousand gold coins, will you?"

  "Don't worry," Gru spoke calmly. "That fellow named Roland would absolutely never pay that bounty. Because he knows you're not worth that price. Even if someone later took you to claim the reward, he and your Chancellor lover would surely find a way to renege and help you escape."

  City Lord Sedros walked up the mountain. He still moved with a brisk pace, his back ramrod straight, his capable and sharp demeanor no less than that of a young man. The golden sunset dyed his mustache and hair reddish-yellow, making him seem even more spirited. He looked at Ethan and Gru and smiled: "You've finally returned. I trust you bring me some good news. How are things in the Ainfast Empire?"

  Listening to Ethan's account, City Lord Sedros's expression fluctuated. Although he had imagined various possibilities, he had never expected events to unfold this way. The situation had twisted and turned so dramatically, not only changing the landscape in an instant and bringing the chief culprit to justice, but even the aftermath had been arranged so swiftly.

  "I'm getting old," Sedros smiled wryly and shook his head, though the vitality in his face remained undiminished. "If I had really stopped you back then, it would have been the first time in my life I wished for a regret medicine."

  Ethan smiled and said: "You had your considerations. Caution isn't wrong. That was your judgment after weighing all factors. My insistence on going was, frankly, just reckless disregard for the consequences."

  "Quite a reckless disregard," Lord Bolgan seemed to want to pat Ethan's shoulder, but his hand only reached his back, so he patted that hard instead. "I just wanted to help you reckless kid, which is why I strongly urged the City Lord and General Gru to assist you. Actually, I knew that in terms of risk-benefit analysis and rational judgment, this plan was very risky."

  Sedros chuckled: "Knowing it was risky yet still proposing such a suggestion – as my assistant and advisor, you've been derelict in your duty."

  Lord Bolgan nodded. Fortunately, his neck was thick and short enough to support the swinging of his large head. He said: "But fortunately, the consequences of this dereliction are quite good. The Duke is dead, the empire ultimately avoided turmoil, your lover secured the Chancellor position – everything is ideal." He looked at Ethan with a sly grin. "Except for your criminal charges and the blame you carry."

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  "It doesn't matter. I don't really care about that anyway." Ethan looked east toward the empire and sighed. Stars had already appeared in that sky. Beneath that sky, he had abandoned and given up so much. He nodded and murmured: "Yes. It's all over there now."

  "By the way," Gru said. "On our way back, we encountered three flies..."

  "Flies?" Sedros was startled.

  Ethan smiled and said: "Just a minor inconvenience. We've already driven them off."

  As he listened to Ethan and Gru's account, Sedros's originally relaxed expression completely darkened, replaced by immense gravity and concern. He slowly shook his head and said: "No, that was absolutely no minor inconvenience."

  "So it was a major inconvenience," Lord Bolgan said.

  "You mean the Necromancer Guild will seek revenge?" Ethan nodded. "A group of top-tier mages. Truly a major inconvenience."

  "I truly wish they were just mages," Sedros smiled wryly, continuing to shake his head. "What follows cannot be summarized by the word 'trouble.' It's a problem, and the biggest one at that." He gazed southward and sighed: "This problem was one we would have to face eventually. It seems it's beginning ahead of schedule."

  "Let's just hope we can be faster than they are," Gru said calmly.

  Sedros nodded, looking down at Oufu under the setting sun. The vibrant life of this golden city was so beautiful, so magnificent and grand. But the question now was whether it could continue to exist.

  In the meeting room of Diya Valley. Two Necromancers recounted the battle to the Acting Guild Master. The skull masks had been removed, revealing the faces of Bishop Adela and Master Aiden.

  Even here, in the sacred Diya Valley – the absolute paradise and home of Necromancers – Adela, as he carefully recalled the events of that day while narrating, could not erase the feeling of fear. The overwhelming disparity in power and the terror of facing death directly were, for someone who had always been confident, even arrogant, a horror branded into his soul.

  Marquis closed his eyes briefly to think, then opened them and sighed: "Too careless. If we had just maintained a distance of over a hundred meters from them, with two providing cover while one used a grand incantation with full power, they would have had absolutely no room to struggle."

  Adela and Master Aiden both nodded slightly. Indeed. No matter how powerful that person was, he was still just a man. If they had used this tactic, fully leveraging their advantage from the start, perhaps the battle would have been effortless. And what should have been easily achievable had ended in disarray. Both looked displeased.

  "I apologize. This is my responsibility. For the failure of this operation and the death of the respected Nimbus, I, as Acting Guild Master, bear undeniable blame." Marquis's expression darkened, and he lowered his head.

  The two were startled. This matter seemed in no way his fault.

  "As Acting Guild Master, before the three respected members departed, I failed to investigate the opponent's information in detail, nor did I offer appropriate advice to you. This was my dereliction." Marquis bowed to the two Necromancers, apologizing in a tone of extreme remorse and self-reproach, as if he had committed a grave error. "I am sorry."

  "Now the respected Nimbus is dead. This is a tremendous loss for the guild. Besides him, only Vedenina and Master Valthor can use the Puppet Eagle's Eye. Lady Vedenina is out of the question... and Master Valthor's health is too poor; we truly cannot burden him further by having him create Eagle's Eye puppets. Therefore, I have decided that I will study the Puppet Eagle's Eye myself from now on."

  "This... doesn't seem suitable for you," Adela hesitated. The Puppet Eagle's Eye was undoubtedly a very useful spell. But mastering it was exceptionally difficult. If one's magical attainment and talent were not at their peak, it would adversely affect the mage's own magical level. Nimbus had become the weakest combatant in the guild precisely because he practiced this spell. The guild was full of talented individuals; it seemed unnecessary for the Acting Guild Master to handle this matter.

  "No, this is something I must do," insisted the young Acting Guild Master.

  Adela nodded, his gaze toward Marquis now filled with appreciation and respect.

  Master Aiden also nodded impassively, though the light in his eyes differed significantly from Adela's.

  If only one person in the guild mastered the Puppet Eagle's Eye, that person would undoubtedly be the guild's sole eyes. There were things he could let everyone see, or prevent them from seeing. Though he had some doubts and discomfort, Master Aiden knew that no one in the guild would willingly volunteer to study this spell, and he himself was even less likely.

  Master Aiden spoke, saying coldly to Marquis: "This person has killed two members, Asri and Nimbus. This is an unprecedented shame in the history of Diya Valley. I ask you, what do you intend to do now?"

  Marquis sighed and said: "Anyone who can threaten the lives of our noble members must naturally be eliminated."

  "And how do you plan to do that?"

  "If three can't kill him, we'll send four," Adela took a deep breath. The originally kind and handsome face now contorted with a murderous aura from his agitation, and eyes once as gentle as the Virgin Mary's actually held a fierce glint. He said slowly, word by word: "I must kill this bastard myself."

  "Why?" Marquis looked at him and asked.

  "Because he is an enemy of the guild, the only one who can threaten us. Naturally, he cannot be allowed to live."

  "No, it's because you're afraid," Marquis's voice was gentle and righteous; even the most sensitive person would detect no sarcasm. "You discovered someone far more powerful than yourself. He not only destroyed your long-held confidence but also made you deeply feel the terror of death. That's why you use anger to mask your fear, wanting to kill him with your own hands to overcome that fear."

  Adela said nothing. Struck by the truth, his gaze softened slightly, but also became confused.

  Marquis continued: "Compared to beasts, humans have neither strong bodies nor sharp claws and teeth; they even tremble in fear upon seeing those beastmen. Yet it is humans who rule the world. Tell me, are humans stronger, or are beasts stronger?"

  Adela thought for a moment, then nodded, perhaps understanding Marquis's meaning.

  "No one is fearless. True strength lies not in the ignorant who fear nothing, but in those who know how to deal with their own weaknesses. Our organization is the most noble, powerful, and strongest on the continent. Every member is the most elegant, most noble, standing at the pinnacle of this world. Why should we expend needless effort and spirit, risking our lives, to compete with a beast in strength, in whose claws are sharper, in who is more savage? You must know, our strength is not manifested in direct, violent power." Marquis smiled slightly, his easy smile radiating a quiet, undeniable confidence.

  As Marquis spoke, Adela nodded, his expression completely calming. Confidence returned to his face. He smiled and nodded to Marquis: "Thank you. I understand."

  "Then how do you plan to deal with this person?" Master Aiden asked calmly.

  "In the face of our plans, he is merely a sesame seed. Eliminating him is but a trivial matter, done incidentally. No need for deliberate consideration," Marquis replied calmly. He walked to the conference table and pointed to a sand table on it for the two to see. The sand table displayed a miniature terrain of the Barbarian Highlands, with Oufu City just a small protrusion like a building block. "During this time, I have actually been studying that orc city. I discovered it is a region where our influence is difficult to reach and control. There is no religion there; power and wealth are not yet worshipped. It is filled with the vitality of development and creation, so we have no starting point. But relative to its speed and potential for development, its influence is already too great."

  "I trust none of you will forget that the leader of this place is Sedros, one of the few on the continent qualified to stand as equals with our extraordinary members. And he is a friend of old man Ronis, always rather unfriendly toward us. If we truly allow this city, under his leadership, to develop into a nation of immense scale and power, it would be enough to cause earth-shattering changes across the entire continent. A massive force completely beyond our control – that is the true threat to us. Therefore, I have a suggestion..." Marquis's hand extended, gently pressing down on the marker representing Oufu on the sand table. "...let us erase it from this continent." His finger withdrew, and the model of Oufu had crumbled to dust, scattering onto the model of the wasteland.

  "Of course, the murderer who killed two of our members will naturally be eliminated incidentally as well. His threat to us can be seen as a projection of the true threat posed by that orc city-state. But no matter how powerful an individual is, in the wars between nations, he is but a drop in the ocean, capable at most of stirring a small ripple, ultimately to be submerged in the surging waves."

  "I see. My vision was indeed too short-sighted," Adela nodded in admiration. "I wholeheartedly endorse your suggestion."

  "I will immediately send a notice to all members proposing my suggestion. If everyone agrees, I ask that you all apply some effort in your respective fields and coordinate with each other. I believe that in the face of our true power, anything is vulnerable."

  Adela nodded and smiled. His smile was once again confident and handsome, filled with the brilliance of sunlight and the softness of moonlight. "Yes. Heh. I look forward to the spectacular sight of hundreds of thousands of troops besieging that barbaric orc nest."

  Marquis looked at Master Aiden. "Master Aiden, what are your thoughts on my suggestion?"

  "Very well. Let it be so," Master Aiden said calmly, glancing at Marquis and Bishop Adela.

  "As for that young fugitive with the five-thousand-gold-coin bounty? It seems he's mixed up with that orc city-state. Should we spread the word? It would also conveniently frame old man Sedros."

  "Such unfounded rumors won't have much effect. Probably even the Ainfast Empire would help clear his name," Marquis sighed. "I am truly astonished by this young man's tenacity and good fortune. But there's no need to worry too much. Whether he hides in the orc city-state or elsewhere, he cannot escape our grasp."