“An alliance... with dragons? With the Dragon Lord, no less?”
“I-is that even possible?”
As soon as Ember finished speaking, the black mages stirred once again.
Not that they were typically chatty—their usual role was to sit silently, cowed by the pressure of the executives and the Great Shadow. But today’s gathering had been full of unprecedented surprises.
“Haven’t the dragons remained neutral for hundreds, no—thousands—of years?”
“......”
“Would beings like that... especially the most noble, the Dragon Lord... really ally with a white mage?”
The murmuring grew louder until the Shadow Witch posed the question with a voice steeped in skepticism.
“Yes. I believe they will.”
Standing in the center of the room, Ember replied with unwavering confidence.
“And the reason?”
“Because dragons are proud and mighty beings. They wouldn’t form alliances with anyone weaker than themselves.”
“Then are you saying that white mage... is stronger than the Dragon Lord?”
But when the Shadow Witch pressed, Ember shook her head.
“No. He isn’t.”
“Then how—”
“...Because of a Pact.”
The expression on the Shadow Witch’s face twisted slightly at the ntion of that word.
“As you all know, dragon magic is so high-level that most mages can’t even begin to comprehend it. Even the Tower of Magic is still researching it.”
“......”
“But even the dragons revere sothing higher—Ancient Magic.”
And with that, the room fell ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) quiet—not only the executives but the black mages in attendance as well.
“Mana, internal force, divine power... Ancient Magic exists beyond all of them. Not even dragons can escape its rules.”
“...So, pacts are a form of this Ancient Magic?”
“Yes. Exactly.”
Ancient Magic: a set of absolute rules—stronger than any other known power. Rarely seen, barely understood, and tied to legends older than the Empire itself.
The Academy, for example, had a barrier that no threat—save a fully awakened Demon King—could breach. The Imperial Palace had a similar barrier. Nurous ancient institutions were protected by similar forces.
Even the weapons of the Hero, said to be the only tools capable of executing the Demon King, were believed by so to be imbued with Ancient Magic.
Naturally, the source of such power remained unknown.
Most assud it was a relic from an era when gods still directly influenced the world... or perhaps a lost civilization’s final gift.
...That’s just the ga’s system chanics, isn’t it?
Whitney, montarily dazed from hearing his father’s na, recognized it instantly. It was one of the in-ga system restrictions, rebranded here as lore.
“Then, are you saying Count Robert Ringaarden can freely wield Ancient Magic?”
“No. But the Ringaarden family is deeply connected to it.”
“...And your proof?”
“Well... I’d say the Great Shadow and the executives would know more about that than .”
The Shadow Witch, still trying to test Ember, found herself silenced by the response.
“It’s true... The Ringaarden estate is protected by Ancient Magic.”
The black mages had been monitoring Whitney long before he was declared the Hero. But not even the executives—nor the Great Shadow himself—had ever breached the Ringaarden estate.
Why? Because of the massive, powerful barrier of Ancient Magic surrounding it.
Outside of the Holy Theocracy, it was arguably the safest place from black magic in the entire world.
When the Shadow Witch had infiltrated it once, it had been an insane gamble under complete magical disarmant. A desperate stunt—only taken because Whitney was always secretly shadowed by Embergreen scouts whenever he left the estate.
“Well... It adds up.”
Rembering that day still sent a chill through her. The Shadow Witch sighed and let her suspicion drop.
“I suppose asking how you know all this would be aningless. And you wouldn’t lie about sothing that affects your own interests, would you?”
“Of course not. That would be suicidal.”
“Haa... Fine. I’ll trust you for now.”
With their back-and-forth finally concluded, the discussion began to move rapidly again.
“We need to organize a special unit imdiately. If this is true, ti is short.”
“There’s a chance we’ll end up at war with dragons.”
“Ugh. I’d like to avoid that. Especially the Dragon Lord... the casualties would be catastrophic.”
Until now, many attendees had rely reacted like live audience mbers to a grand show. But every person in this room was either a key operative or elder within the black mage society.
No one was foolish enough to overlook the seriousness of the matter, and they silently agreed to set aside their factional feuds—for now—and focus on the mission.
“Actually, the casualties might not be as bad as you think.”
All eyes turned again as Ember, who’d been quietly observing, spoke up.
“What matters is the artifact in the Icy Mountains.”
“...Can we just extract it and leave?”
“That would be ideal, but it’s not likely.”
“Why not?”
“There are layers of security, and the artifact itself has anti-theft enchantnts. If it vanishes, the dragons will notice imdiately.”
The specificity of Ember’s explanation made the Death Knight finally lift his head.
“You speak like soone who’s been there before.”
“Of course. Back when I—”
Her cheerful response froze halfway through. She quickly changed tone.
“Ah, sorry. That ca out wrong. I just... happened to learn about it.”
The executives’ eyes sharpened at that suspicious backtrack, but she glanced at the Great Shadow—and that alone made them hold their tongues.
“In any case, stealing it outright is not an option. And open war would cost us too dearly.”
“Then what’s your plan?”
“That’s easy.”
With an eerie calm, Ember proposed her solution.
“A small elite unit will infiltrate the Icy Mountains. We’ll use the artifact there to trigger my Demon King awakening. Simple, right?”
Her plan, while abrupt, was undeniably the most reasonable path forward.
“Too simple, if you ask .”
But as the Shadow Witch pointed out—it was too simple.
“Even if you do sneak in, the mont the artifact is used, the dragons will find you, right?”
“And even if you succeed, what cos next?”
“...What if we use necromancy or puppet magic and overwhelm them with numbers?”
Several executives voiced their own ideas, but Ember shook her head firmly.
“Mass combat doesn’t work on dragons. You’ll just make them angrier.”
“Guh.”
“And you haven’t heard the real reason I proposed sothing so basic.”
Her confidence caught their attention again.
“Once I awaken as the Demon King, everything else will fall into place.”
“......”
“After I awaken? Dragons won’t be a threat. Just big lizards.”
Her glowing eyes and fervent tone stirred murmurs of doubt.
“You don’t believe ? Tsk. How are you ever going to achieve anything grand at this rate?”
With an annoyed pout, Ember muttered to herself.
“...I’ve done this route hundreds of tis. It’s optimal, trust .”
Then, sighing, she turned her gaze back toward the throne.
“Well, your opinions aren’t what matters, anyway.”
“......”
“What say you, Great Shadow? Isn’t my plan flawless?”
Her theatrical flair made everyone instinctively turn toward the throne.
“...Everyone, listen.”
After a long silence, Whitney finally spoke.
“Starting today, we will begin assembling an elite team to infiltrate the Icy Mountains.”
“......”
“Our goal: the resurrection of the Demon King. At last, the future we’ve long awaited is at hand.”
Everyone fell silent.
“Do your utmost. For the cause.”
Whitney didn’t know this—but whenever the Great Shadow made a direct decision like this, it ant it was final. Absolute. Not to be questioned.
Only those who had long survived in this organization understood that unspoken rule. Which is why—not even the executives dared speak up.
“This may well be our final gathering. This eting is now adjourned.”
And so, a pivotal mont—one that could decide the fate of the world—was etched into the tiline.
***
...Ugh, my head...
As the gathering officially ended, all the tension drained from my body. I slumped into the chair, head pounding.
I sohow made it through... I think.
I wasn’t sure if I did well or just bluffed my way out of disaster. Either way, I just wanted to get out of here and see Lady redia.
It hadn’t even been a full day since I last saw her... but it felt like a month.
...Well, assuming I survive the final hurdle.
What unsettled was the fact that the executives hadn’t left yet. Even after the eting ended, they lingered.
And while most of them tried to hide it, the Death Knight was visibly radiating killing intent at .
Were they... planning to dispose of once the others left? Thinking the proxy’s use had run its course?
That would be a serious problem. Unless I’d fully mastered the power of domination, I couldn’t say with confidence I could defeat them.
“Excuse , Great Shadow.”
“...Hm?”
Just then, while I was nervously scanning the room for a hidden escape route—
“Would it be possible to speak with you privately?”
Ember, who had also remained behind like the executives, raised her hand and addressed .
“Who do you think you—”
“I accept.”
I agreed before anyone could argue.
Anything to escape this chilling atmosphere.
“Executives, please leave the hall.”
They all looked at with reluctant eyes, but under the gazes of the room, none dared oppose.
“...You know there’s only one exit, right?”
The Death Knight rose and muttered ominously, clearly not abandoning his plan.
“......”
Once the rest had finally left, silence fell over the hall—leaving only Ember and .
“Um, Great Shadow.”
“......”
“I-I did everything you told to, right? Right?”
Ember looked around like a nervous erkat before scurrying over and linking arms with .
“S-so, don’t you think it’s ti you gave what you promised?”
I flinched at the sudden physical contact—but her next words made tilt my head.
“...What?”
“Eh? Haven’t you figured it out by now?”
Her reply erased any lingering doubt I’d had since the mont I t her.
“W-Whitney Ringaarden, of course!”
“......”
“I’ve told you like, hundreds of tis—he’s my absolute favorite character!”
The Great Shadow’s handpicked candidate. Ember.
Her identity was now clear.
She was a player from the sa world I had co from.
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