Chapter 60

Although Yutia had repeatedly made similar statements, Rine had long been aware that the Great Moon was fundamentally different from them. He was a friend of the Great Palaon, who existed during the forgotten age of gods. He freely used phrases and sentences from that forgotten era, which could only be used through understanding. When he realized she possessed a “library,” he bestowed upon her the “Eye of the Tracker.”

But more than anything else, what made Rine feel the Great Moon was different was the eye on his back. That eye, which distorted perception just by being seen, was not even recorded in the library. It was this that made Rine clearly realize that the Great Moon was an entirely different being.

For that reason, Rine had faith in the Great Moon, and she didn’t think it was strange. After all, it wasn’t strange at all to offer faith to someone so fundamentally different.

Because of that belief, Rine never doubted for a moment that the Great Moon would win this battle. In her heart, he was merely wearing the guise of a human, a being who would fulfill her one and only wish.

Rine gazed out toward the lord’s castle of the Labyrinth City from beyond her office, continuing her thoughts.

“Family, huh?”

In truth, the moment the Outer God used magic on her, she had sensed her own death. There was no avoiding it at that moment—the Outer God’s magic was inescapable. She had survived thanks to the Great Moon, who had saved her by creating the conditions for the Outer God’s defeat, even in the face of death. However, she couldn’t quite understand the Great Moon’s actions.

She didn’t believe her life was worth risking a scenario where the Great Moon could lose. At least, her own perception of herself was that she was nothing more or less than a useful tool raised by the Great Moon to deal with the black ones. So, she didn’t understand it. Even though she hadn’t yet completed the Eye of the Tracker and still had some usefulness, the Great Moon’s actions seemed endlessly irrational to her.

So, after much contemplation on her own, Rine finally asked him the question. And that’s when she heard the word “family.”

“Family…”

Rine muttered bluntly. To her, the word “family” didn’t carry much meaning. From the beginning, she was born into this world with a library and had never had a family.

“Family… huh.”

But even so, at least right now, things were different. Not that she attached great significance to the idea of “family” itself, as she still didn’t feel anything philosophically or emotionally from the mere word. However, the definition of “family” had changed for Rine simply because the Great Moon was the one who had said it.

To her, who admired and revered the Great Moon so much that she kept a respectful distance, the word “family” uttered by him sounded incredibly sweet.

Was it because the Great Moon had called her family? No. Was it because she was now tied to the Great Moon by the title of family? That wasn’t it either.

The sweetness Rine felt from the word “family” came from the fact that the Great Moon had acknowledged a rational path for her to grow closer to him.

“A little closer, or rather… as close as possible, closer than anyone else,” she thought.

Thus, if the Great Moon—no, her “godfather”—needed her more than anyone else, even more than Red Moon…

At some point, as she reflected on this new personal goal, Rine shifted her gaze from the lord’s estate of the Labyrinth City and looked toward something else. There, a full-length mirror reflected Rine’s image.

The reflection of herself was smiling. It wasn’t a shallow smile. She was smiling brightly, showing her fangs clearly, with a slight blush on her cheeks. It was a smile she had never shown even in front of the members of the Blue Moon.

It was a smile even Rine herself found unfamiliar.

As she stared at it absentmindedly, Rine grinned even wider and murmured, “Godfather…”

At first, it was just a hastily made-up word to address the Great Moon with reverence. But now, that hastily crafted word had become the most precious word to Rine.

That word had already become the very embodiment of her relationship with the Great Moon.

Thus, after murmuring that word several times, she muttered, “I like it.” Then, she closed her eyes and opened them again. When Rine’s eyes opened once more, they were filled with fanatical faith. Anyone who saw her would recognize a distinct and intense fanaticism.

***

In the forest path that must be crossed when traveling from the Kingdom of Asteria to the desert city of Colony, there was a man. On his back, he carried a pair of large kama, and he was looking down at the corpse of a man. The dead man held a quill in his right hand and had died without fully understanding what had killed him. His neck had been twisted twice, leaving behind a gruesome corpse.

Despite having been dead for a month, the body showed no signs of decay, perhaps due to a preservation spell.

“Heh,” the man who was watching this scene—no, the ‘Agent’ who was like the corpse itself—let out a dry laugh as he crouched down and touched the dead body.

As soon as he did, he sensed the residual traces of magic. The agent realized that the body had indeed been enchanted with preservation magic, and he unconsciously licked his lips.

There was only one real reason to cast a decay-prevention spell on a corpse that had already been dead for some time: intimidation.

“To send a warning,” he thought. It was practically a threat, saying, ‘Don’t come looking for us, or this will be your fate.’

“Was he trying to deal with Count Palatio and ended up like this?”

The man recalled the request the dead man had received about two months ago and began to ponder for a while about when and how he would exact revenge. Agents didn’t have much camaraderie among themselves, but the man was driven to avenge this death for the sake of the ‘Agent’ name. Their identity, the 100% mission success rate, had to be maintained at all costs.

However, the agent wasn’t planning to immediately attack Count Palatio.

“…He must be strong, then.”

The agent thought of the rumors surrounding Count Palatio. Over the past few years, Palatio had been wandering outside the Kingdom of Asteria, building a reputation that, while sounding far-fetched, was nonetheless impressive.

At first, there were rumors that he had contributed greatly to dealing with the northern Outer God. Then came rumors that he had helped deal with two Baba Yagas in Colony. Finally, there were rumors that he had handled an Outer God in the Labyrinth City.

“So, it wasn’t just idle talk after all.”

To be honest, the agent had thought that Count Palatio’s fame was somewhat exaggerated. After all, nobles often inflated their reputations with trivial tricks. But now, seeing that one of the agents had been killed without even putting up a fight, it seemed that Palatio’s strength wasn’t just based on rumor.

“A man who can easily kill a Master Knight and handle an Outer God from the texts…”

The agent considered what it would take to defeat him. “At least five people, I’d say… but I only have three right now, and we don’t even know his exact abilities.”

As he continued to weigh his options regarding Count Palatio’s strength, the agent made a decision. “Since I can’t gather my full forces right now, I’ll just find someone who knows Palatio’s abilities in detail and ask them.”

With a wicked grin, the agent looked toward Caliban. His target was Deus Macallian, one of the Master Knights and someone who maintained a connection with Count Palatio.

“Besides, it’ll give me a chance to show Palatio just who he’s crossed.”

If someone had been able to read the agent’s thoughts, they might have wondered if he was simply insane. But the agent smiled confidently. After all, every agent was as strong as a Master Knight.

“Killing one Master Knight won’t be difficult.”

With that, the man disappeared from the scene.

***

Just over a week later, Alon leisurely returned to the count’s manor and took an extended rest there for more than three months. In truth, he had wanted to resume his activities immediately after dealing with the Outer God, but unfortunately, his body had yet to recover from the magic poisoning.

Although he had recovered to a certain extent, enough that he could use magic, it still took him three months to fully regain his ability to harness magic properly. By the time the sweltering summer had passed and the chilly winds of winter had arrived, he could finally say that his body had somewhat recovered.

During those long yet brief three months, Alon focused on three things. One was handling the internal affairs of the estate that had been delayed. Another was exchanging letters with Yutia, who had sent a backlog of correspondence. And the last was delving into magic.

For about three months, he hadn’t been able to use magic properly, so his approach had been mostly academic. However, for him, exploring magic wasn’t so much about studying as it was about enjoyment. Especially the brief moment of “self-manifestation” he had achieved while dealing with the Outer God had piqued his interest even more.

“…Since I’ve recovered, I should probably head back to Colony soon… But maybe I should activate the ring Heinkel gave me first… Or should I rest a bit longer?”

The truth was that Alon’s body hadn’t fully recovered. While his magic poisoning had been significantly treated, he still wasn’t completely healed.

That’s why he thought to himself, “I need to figure out a way to increase my magic power somehow.”

Just as Alon was contemplating this, someone called out to him.

“Count, sir.”

“What is it?”

“A letter arrived—from Duke Altia.”

“Ah.”

Alon took the letter from Evan, who had snow piled high on his head.

Now that he thought about it, he hadn’t considered this because of his poor health, but upon receiving the letter, Alon was reminded that he was the leader of the faction ‘Kalpha,’ created by those in the shadows.

When he opened the letter, he found a small crystal orb inside.

The moment he picked it up, *buzz~!* magic power vibrated slightly.

This allowed him to quickly realize that the crystal orb was for communication.

Shortly after, the face of Duke Altia appeared through the crystal orb.

[It’s been a while, Count.]

Despite being a duke, Altia bowed his head with great politeness, which left Alon briefly pondering how to respond.

“It’s been a while,” he said, nodding slightly.

[I’m contacting you because it’s time for a report.]

“A report?”

Before Alon could ask what it was about, Duke Altia started giving an earnest and literal “report” right in front of him.

[Ah, I’ve heard the news. The word is that you played a significant role in handling the Outer God in Labyrinth City Lartania.]

Before getting to the actual report, Duke Altia spent about 20 minutes praising Alon’s achievements in Lartania.

[Ah.]

Realizing her mistake, Altia cleared her throat and got to the main point. There weren’t any major issues in the Kalpha’s current situation—except for the last report.

[Ah, and as you requested, all matters have been handled.]

“…Handled?”

[Yes, the underworld of Asteria is now under the complete control of our Kalpha as of yesterday.]

“?”

[No one in Asteria’s underworld can stop us now. Congratulations, Count.]

“…???”

For a moment, Alon stared blankly in confusion at Altia’s words.

He had barely done anything, yet he had become the king of the underworld.