Hem.
Receiving Reika’s signal, I let out two deliberate coughs from behind.
This was my signal to Airen.
Everything had been arranged in advance between the three of us.
She would have picked up on it without any difficulty.
"What do you want?"
"We’ve received multiple reports of theft in this area. The incidents happened right in front of this house."
"I don’t know anything about that."
"The witnesses we’ve spoken to suggest otherwise. We need to ask you a few questions."
"I don’t care what you heard. I’ve got nothing to say."
The man waved his hand dismissively, but Airen remained firm, stepping into the house.
"It would be best for you to cooperate. Otherwise, I’ll have you detained imdiately."
"What?!"
The man glared at her, but—
Perhaps realizing that making an enemy of the patrol was not in his best interest, he eventually backed down and gave a reluctant nod.
"Fine. I don’t know what you’re expecting to hear, but don’t co complaining when you’ve wasted your ti."
With that, he turned around and started walking deeper into the house—
"......!!"
"It won’t be a waste, so you needn’t worry about that."
Airen’s hand moved in a flash, drawing the sword at her waist and pointing it at his neck.
"What the hell are you doing?!"
"Answer my questions properly, and I’ll let you live."
It was a bold move, but we were dealing with suspected kidnappers.
Given how tangled this situation already was, neutralizing the threat quickly was the safest course of action.
"...Who the hell do you think you are?"
"You must not have heard properly. Answer my questions, and you’ll live."
"......."
He remained silent.
Airen took her ti before speaking again.
"Where is Janis?"
At the ntion of the na, the man flinched ever so slightly.
Then, after a brief sigh—
"...Hah."
He let out a mocking chuckle and suddenly shouted,
"I’LL GIVE YOU YOUR ANSWER IN HELL!"
"......!!"
At that mont—
From the shadows, a figure lunged toward Airen in an ambush.
And at the sa ti—
CRACK—!
Sharp ice spikes burst up from the floor.
"W-What the?!"
"Haah!"
Clang!
The ambusher, his footing thrown off by the ice, fumbled his strike.
His sword flew from his grasp, landing several feet away.
Without hesitation, I seized the opportunity.
Snatching the fallen weapon, I stepped forward and pressed the blade against the man's throat.
"Move any more, and you’ll lose your life."
"Kh... Kgh...! What the hell is this?! What’s going on?!"
It was only natural to be shocked.
After all, ice had just suddenly erupted from the ground.
Because—
This was magic.
The second instruction I had given Reika—
She was to have an ice-based spell prepared in advance, ready to be unleashed at my signal.
***
After sending Ioline back and before beginning the full search,
We had conducted a few preliminary tests in a secluded clearing.
This area was land that Airen had received from Serpina—
The site of the estate where we would soon reside.
"Haah!"
First, I tested how well I could control Reika’s magic with my rapier.
Sending Ioline back to the estate wasn’t just to avoid any issues with her resemblance to Janis—
It also allowed to prepare for the possibility of using magic, and to coordinate with Reika without any interruptions.
Explaining magic to Ioline would have taken up unnecessary ti, not to ntion exposing one of our key tactics.
Ever since the mont I had blasted a hole in the fortress wall,
I had been considering the possibility that this ability—
Could turn the title others had arbitrarily given , "The White-Haired Mage,"
Into sothing close to reality.
Reika had apparently been training diligently while we were apart.
For so reason, this area seed to have a higher concentration of mana than Valharat Castle, where she had previously stayed.
And comndably, she had continued practicing the training routines I had assigned her, even though they held little actual significance.
Whether or not that had truly helped,
One thing was certain—
Reika’s magic skills had improved significantly.
"Alright. We’ll conduct a few tests now. Understood?"
"Y-Y-Yes...!"
First, we experinted with basic fireball magic.
Reika conjured a fireball, which I caught with my rapier and launched toward a distant boulder.
Whoosh!
Boom!
The mont it struck and exploded, I was able to confirm my theory.
‘If I don’t hold onto the magic for too long and release it quickly, I can control its destructive power.’
Back when I had destroyed the fortress wall,
It had happened too suddenly, and I had unknowingly stored the fireball in my rapier for an extended period.
As a result, an excessive amount of power had built up before I launched it.
Next, we tested the ice magic that Reika had been practicing lately.
Like with the fireball,
The longer I held onto the spell, the stronger it beca.
And more importantly—
CRACK—!
By driving my rapier into the ground,
Jagged ice spikes erupted before , forming a sharp, impassable barrier.
"Whoa...!"
‘So this kind of application is possible too.’
The inspiration for this test had co from an in-ga spell—
One where the caster would slam a staff against the ground, summoning ice spikes.
By replicating that motion, I had been able to trigger the sa effect.
"This... This is the power of magic..."
"If this ability can be properly applied in battle, # Nоvеlight # the entire dynamic of war could change," Airen murmured in awe.
But—
"It’s not feasible yet."
"...Huff... Huff..."
Reika was already out of breath, kneeling on one knee.
"In order for magic to be truly viable on the battlefield, it requires endurance. Right now, it’s just not sustainable.
Sure, it might make an impact the first ti it’s used—
But rumors about ‘The White-Haired Mage’ have already begun spreading.
Once the enemy adapts, it’ll just turn into another numbers ga."
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
"I see. So stamina is the key... But if this power can be properly refined, then it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say it could shape the fate of the continent.
Even an ordinary general like can already think of several ways to use it."
...From what I had heard, Airen was anything but ordinary.
But that was beside the point.
"What do you think, Lady Reika?"
"I... I think I can still go for a few more rounds...!"
"Alright. But let’s stop here."
Magic would be critical in securing victory.
I couldn’t afford to let Reika exhaust herself before we even began.
Moreover, from what she had explained—
It wasn’t just her that expended mana when casting magic.
My rapier was consuming it as well.
‘It would be ideal if we could resolve this without having to use it at all...’
We had tested it just in case,
But the best outco would still be avoiding the need for magic altogether.
That was what I had been hoping for—
But—
***
Life, as always, refused to go as planned.
The mont I sensed the man springing into action, I grabbed the magic Reika had prepared with my rapier and drove it straight into the floor.
Just as we had tested, jagged ice spikes erupted from the ground, effectively blocking his strike.
Reika had told before that Janis hadn’t been alone—he had been surrounded by multiple n when he was taken.
That ant it was only logical to expect more than just this one opponent.
And this ti, that expectation had been spot on.
‘Good. If we keep working together like this, I might be able to use magic freely whenever necessary.’
Through my rapier, Reika’s magic was amplified.
As long as she was by my side, I essentially had access to magic myself.
For soone like —who could predict the future but had no ans of protecting himself—this realization was a massive relief.
If Reika ever fully awakened her potential, I might even stand alongside Airen on the battlefield.
And since I was already known for calling down a teor from the sky, no one would question my abilities anymore.
"D-Damn it...!"
"So, what now?"
Airen’s voice dropped as she pressed her sword even closer to his throat.
"...What do you want?"
I wanted nothing more than to run them both through, considering they had tried to kill us—
But there was sothing we needed to hear from them first.
"You know about Janis al Kasky. Don’t even try to pretend otherwise."
"......."
"Just tell us where he is."
Silence.
I hadn’t wanted to take it this far, but if they refused to talk, we had no other choice.
"W-Wait...!"
I ran the stolen blade lightly across the man’s neck.
A thin trickle of blood dripped from the edge of the blade—
"I-I’ll talk! I’ll talk, just—just don’t kill !"
The information ca easier than expected.
*
Now tied up and bound to chairs, the two n finally explained the situation.
"So, you’re just errand boys?"
"Yes! We were hired to bring Janis al Kasky in for a conversation—nothing more!"
"Who hired you?"
"......."
"What exactly did they want from him? What were they trying to convince him of?"
"......."
Still refusing to talk.
I sighed and walked over to the one I had knocked down earlier.
"Hey."
"...W-What?"
"You saw the ice spikes rise from the floor, right?"
I placed my hand on his chest, my voice cold.
"What do you think will happen if that magic bursts from inside you instead?"
"H-Hiiiek...!!"
I didn’t enjoy threats—
But if they were this afraid to speak, it ant they were under so kind of serious coercion themselves.
If their lives were at stake, then I had to convince them they were at even greater risk by keeping their mouths shut.
They didn’t understand magic.
To them, what they had seen was impossible—
And that made it believable.
"I-I can’t say...! If we talk, we’re as good as dead!"
"You’ll die right now if you don’t."
"F-Fuck...!"
Airen, who had been quietly listening, finally spoke, her tone firm.
"We already know the general situation. Cooperate, and I will personally ensure your lives are spared."
"What could a re guard like you possibly—?!"
"......."
Airen wordlessly pulled back her hood.
The royal emblem on her chest plate glead under the dim light.
"......!!!"
"I am one of my liege’s appointed commanders. If you confess, I swear on my honor that your lives will be spared.
You may be punished, you may be imprisoned.
But you will not be executed.
Frankly, you don’t have many choices, do you?"
Giving a man his life in exchange for his silence was pointless.
But promising to spare it in exchange for his words...
That was the classic "bad cop, good cop" tactic in action.
I couldn’t help but smirk.
Before coming here, I had already told Airen and Reika my theory—
That this entire situation was tied to treason, and that Janis al Kasky had been caught in the middle of it.
It was a far-fetched guess, but both of them had trusted my instincts.
Airen believing wasn’t surprising, but even Reika had put her faith in my judgnt.
That made happy.
Even so, making her go through sothing this dangerous didn’t sit well with .
"Now. Speak the truth."
"...You’ll really... let us live...?"
"Of course."
I t his eyes and gave him my warst smile.
As I wondered just how much of my guess had been correct—
"...Open that door over there."
Following his gaze, I walked over and pushed it open.
And there—
"...!!"
Janis was bound and gagged, cramd inside a tiny wardrobe.
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