Chapter 122: Chapter 122: The Sea of Ashes (1)

“Do you believe in the downfall of the Empire?”

Shahri’s eyes narrowed. The unexpected words were not what she had hoped for.

She scrutinized Carlyn.

“Who are you to suddenly show up and spout nonsense?”

After speaking, Shahri recalled something upon looking at Carlyn’s face. She had seen it in the news and on wanted posters.

Carl Schurtafen, the princess’s guard who killed the Empress.

“The Empress’ Slayer?”

“Yes. I am Carl Schurtafen.”

A look of delight filled Shahri’s eyes. He was the human who had actually achieved her long-held dream.

How much had she longed to attack the Empire?

It was the goal she had etched in her heart since reuniting with her mother, who had been enslaved by humans, when she became a living corpse.

She did not forget the moment she found peace for her withered mother with her own hands. At that moment, she vowed to destroy the Empire.

The incident of the Empress’s assassination was the happiest news for Shahri since that day.

Although he failed to kill the Princess, just killing the Empress was a tremendous achievement.

Regardless of strength, Carlyn, who struck at the heart of the enemy she hated, could be seen as an idol to her.

Of course, separate from that, her inner self was cold. There was no reason for Carl Schurtafen to seek her out.

“Please do not be too guarded. I am not an enemy.”

Receiving her cold gaze, Carlyn lightly raised both hands, signaling no intention to attack.

Shahri silently stared at Carlyn. The surrounding mana quietly followed the elf’s will.

Preparations for an attack.

Carlyn could also vaguely sense it. If not for his Winds, he would not have detected the stealthy movements at all.

‘Her caution is natural.’

Carlyn understood this as well. Even if Shahri herself harbored goodwill towards Carlyn.

This situation was not normal.

“I have simply come to share in a future of destroying the Empire that has oppressed the elves.”

Shahri’s eyes widened. The surrounding mana began to fluctuate. Carlyn clenched his teeth imperceptibly.

An Archmage’s magical field exerted a pressure almost akin to that of a Sword Master.

The elf’s mana swirled menacingly around Carlyn. It could attack him at any moment.

Shahri asked in a stern tone.

“How do you know that?”

It was clear he had come after finding out. Denying it would be useless.

“That is confidential, I’m afraid. Please understand.”

Shahri frowned. A devil worshipper. She judged them to be more capable than she had thought.

It was possible for them to have infiltrated the imperial palace. It would have been feasible if they had just recruited the princess’s guard.

But for them to know her identity and location to seek her out was something she had never imagined.

She had never revealed her elven nature to any human before.

‘Did they track me from Ghurka?’

The only recent incident she could recall was this:

Near the border between the Empire and the west, she had massacred over a hundred Imperial soldiers.

The probability was high that it happened then. Had she been too careless? Shahri sighed inwardly.

She had been tracked. The fact that they had pursued her beyond her senses meant the other side was formidable as well.

Shahri looked at Carlyn. He was better-looking than most elves, but that was not important.

His expressionless face, his impassive eyes were resolute. It didn’t seem like further questioning would elicit any answers.

There was no need to continue a meaningless conversation. It would only make the other side underestimate her.

Moreover, he was not her enemy. Shahri decided to focus on the main topic.

“What do you want?”

“Future cooperation.”

“Future cooperation?”

“We know you hate the Empire. In fact, all non-humans do, but your hatred is a bit more special.”

Shahri was slightly surprised. How much did they know about her? Had they been watching her from before?

It was incomprehensible.

Not many people could secretly observe her, an Archmage.

Even if her senses weren’t as sharp as a Sword Master’s, she was still one of the strongest on the continent. Only Carlyn, who knew Shahri’s past, could speak of such things.

Separate from those doubts, Shahri found Carlyn’s words quite appealing. She disliked even her mild-mannered kinsmen.

She didn’t like how they viewed her as an oddity either. And here was the one who had assassinated the Empress, acknowledging her hatred.

“I’m not suggesting we do something right away. I just wanted to explore the possibility of long-term cooperation.”

“Not a bad idea.”

Shahri’s expression did not change, but Carlyn felt the flow of surrounding mana become slightly more subdued.

Of course, she could still attack at any moment.

Shahri organized her thoughts. While the sudden visit was disconcerting, upon reflection, it was not a bad thing.

Of course, being tracked was quite unpleasant.

But ultimately, the message was what mattered.

What Carlyn proposed was something she had hoped for. That level of unpleasantness was offset.

“In fact, I was in awe of what you did. Should I call myself a fan?”

“I’m embarrassed. In truth, due to being tracked and having to act hastily, I can’t really call it a success.”

“No, it’s a success. You’ve shat all over the prestige of the mighty Imperial household.”

“Thank you.”

“But I have no intention of worshipping the devil. Is that still okay?”

Carlyn smiled.

“We have no plans to force that. The downfall of the Empire – the fact that our primary goal aligns with your goal is what matters.”

“That’s quite appealing. Quite liberal?”

“The Empire is powerful, after all. In fact, it was a policy we established from the beginning when considering cooperation with non-humans. Since it’s still not easy for us to approach, we came to you after detecting your presence.”

“Right. My kinsmen are quite exclusive too. The dwarves living underground would be even more so.”

Carlyn confirmed that Shahri’s reaction was quite favorable. His goal, after all, was merely securing a future contingency.

Even if he couldn’t use Shahri as intended, it didn’t matter.

She was an enemy, after all.

He was satisfied with simply having an opportunity to either utilize or entrap this troublesome enemy.

“To return to the main point, today’s visit was to lay the groundwork. Would you be willing to cooperate in the future?”

“Do you have any plans in place?”

“It doesn’t seem to be at the stage where I can share those details yet.”

“You don’t trust me?”

“Don’t you feel the same way?”

The goals of the devil worshippers and non-humans differ. The non-human goal is simply part of the devil worshippers’ grand scheme.

For now, it was normal for them to be wary of each other. More detailed cooperation would come later. Carlyn continued:

“But perhaps I can share a bit of information. We are targeting the First Prince.”

“Striking at the symbolic eldest son?”

“Yes. After this failure, we judged it would be difficult to target the Princess again.”

“In that case, I’m willing to cooperate. It’s no trivial matter.”

“Very well.”

After observing Shahri’s reaction, Carlyn abruptly changed the subject.

“By the way, have you had any success here?”

“……”

“I heard you were searching for something.”

“You’ve grasped that much?”

“Yes. Though I don’t know what you’re searching for.”

Shahri sighed.

“You guys are more impressive than I thought, honestly? I’m kind of surprised. I don’t know if I should like this or not.”

“To attack the Empire, we have to do at least this much, don’t we?”

Shahri let out a dry laugh at Carlyn’s sassiness.

“But there were no results.”

“I can help you a little as a gesture of goodwill. My senses are quite sharp, so it should be fine.”

“It’s alright. I was about to give up anyway.”

Carlyn swallowed his disappointment without showing it. He was a little curious about what Shahri was searching for.

But he had no intention of telling even if he found it.

“After meeting you, I’ve completely given up on it.”

“Is that so?”

“If you can’t associate it with my location, it means there’s a high probability that what I’m looking for is futile.”

Couldn’t associate it? Carlyn quickly racked his brain. Was there anything related between the devil worshippers and the archipelago?

Then, he suddenly recalled the conversation he had with Perion at the harbor.

The Sea of Ashes and the Sky Whale.

That was the only thing that came to mind right away. There might be more, but he’d have to look into it when he got back.

If the elf Archmage Shahri was searching for it, there was a possibility something existed.

For Carlyn, who possessed the Winds, it would be easier. Even if he couldn’t find it, it wouldn’t be a pity.

“So you’ll be leaving soon, then.”

“Yes. As you know, the reason I came to this shabby sea was because of that.”

Shahri nodded his head.

“But how will we contact each other?”

“We’ll contact you, but is that okay?”

Carlyn observed the elf’s reaction. The sense of threat from the mana that had enveloped the surroundings had now significantly diminished.

It wasn’t negative.

“Isn’t that too one-sided?”

“For us, the matter with you is considered quite important information. Not many people know about it.”

“Then I can’t help it. Does that mean you’ll keep chasing after me? I’ll be constantly on the move.”

“No. We’ll use the postal service.”

Usually, there are postal services in every city. They don’t just deliver letters.

They also provide a service where recipients can receive mail from anywhere, even if they’re wandering.

Of course, the contents of the letters are naturally exposed. In fact, the authorities of the Empire or Kingdom monitor the contents.

But that wasn’t a problem if they used a code.

“Isn’t that too risky?”

“It’ll be fine if we use a code. We’ll only specify the location and date for our next meeting.”

“A code? I don’t know anything like that.”

“It’s not difficult. It’s just a sequence of numbers. The sequence of numbers is then linked to a book.”

For example, [41, 3, 3] would mean the 3rd word on the 3rd line of page 41 in a designated book.

And it’s not just a simple sequence of numbers being sent.

– It’s been 41 days since we met. As you advised, I’m making sure to eat three meals a day. After the 3rd day, I started to feel better.

By hiding the numbers within a normal letter like this, the chances of arousing suspicion are greatly reduced.

Considering the number of letters managed by the postal service, they can’t check each one individually. Unless something seems blatantly suspicious, they’ll overlook it.

It’s better for them to monitor the correspondence of nobles instead of wasting time on that.

Carlyn explained in detail, and Shahri understood that it wasn’t difficult. The part where the specific book couldn’t be identified made decoding impossible from the start.

“What book will we use?”

“The Founding Emperor’s autobiography.”

“You have poor taste.”

Even as she said that, Shahri grinned wryly. Inwardly, she was quite satisfied with the choice.

“Although I couldn’t find what I was looking for, it was a quite constructive meeting, so I’m satisfied.”

“I feel the same way.”

“Will we be working together next time? I’d like to collaborate with the one who killed the Empress.”

Shahri’s words about being a fan were sincere. Even if it was only a partial success, Carlyn was someone who had fulfilled her wishes.

“I’ll do my best. But since it’s a plan, it might take some time before I can contact you.”

“I understand. It’s about plunging a short sword into the heart of the Empire, so that’s understandable.”

“Thank you for understanding. Well then, I’ll be……”

“Yeah. It was enjoyable meeting you.”

“I’ll see you again.”

After quietly withdrawing, Carlyn let out a deep sigh under the sea. He felt like he had aged a few years in that brief moment.

Whenever the mana surged around him, it was truly threatening.

The overwhelming aura was palpable, even without Death Avoidance’s warning.

Still, it went better than expected.

Thanks to posing as a devil worshipper, Shahri would be leaving the archipelago early, and they had found a way to make contact.

However, he shouldn’t drag out this trap for too long.

‘If the “devil worshippers” start moving in earnest, Shahri might become suspicious of my identity.’

Of course, since Carlyn had made contact first, Shahri might even attack the devil worshippers instead. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

But it was certain that suspicion toward Carlyn would deepen.

Shahri’s reaction earlier was fine, but Carlyn didn’t fully trust it. Reactions in such situations couldn’t be trusted.

It was clear that they were both wary of each other.

‘To completely trap Shahri, I’ll probably have to attack the Empire once.’

Then it would really be okay to target the Crown Prince. That would create the perfect alibi.

While he had come to the archipelago to meet Casmak, Carlyn felt quite satisfied with the unexpected results.

Shahri left the archipelago on the morning of the day we met. The news was delivered before noon.

That Shahri’s forces had fallen into chaos.

Casmak, who had been preparing at my word, set sail without looking back.

It wasn’t difficult to devour a force that had lost its center.

What happened after was Casmak’s problem. I wasn’t particularly worried. I already knew the future.

With his charisma, Casmak would seize control of the archipelago.

“It’s thanks to you. I never thought you’d resolve it in a day. You told me not to expect much when you’re going to meet her.”

“Well, I got lucky.”

“It seems like I only get help from you. If we’re friends, that shouldn’t be the case. If you need anything, tell me anytime.”

“Don’t worry. I’m just paying off debts early for the difficult path ahead. There will be times when you’ll need to repay me later.”

It was a sincere remark, but Casmak just chuckled mischievously, taking it as a joke.

“Since you said you came to help me, does that mean you’ll be leaving soon? That’s too bad.”

“Not yet. I think I’ll stay for a few more days. I want to find what Shahri missed.”

“Is there really something there?”

“I don’t know. But I’m curious about what the elf was searching for. The possibility is low, but I have the Winds, so.”

“Shall I help you out a bit?”

“Nah. Focus on seizing control of the archipelago for now. That’s more important.”

And four days passed after my conversation with Casmak. It was the last day I had anticipated.

I would be leaving this place tomorrow. From the afternoon, I wandered around the sea.

Osten was making something alone, Aron was training, and Mary was reading a book.

Aron liked it the most. On this island of raiders, there were plenty of people to fight with. It seemed he had earned quite a bit of recognition.

‘Hmm. Should I just drop it?’

Actually, I didn’t have high expectations. Even if I inquired, there were no legends other than the Sea of Ashes.

Perhaps Shahri had been trying to reverse the Sea of Ashes.

Because she said she couldn’t associate it with me. If that had been possible, the devil worshippers would have made a move.

That’s when it happened.

At some point over the sea, I realized a strange power gripping my wrist.

It was where the bracelet found in the ruins of Leocran had permeated.

Author's Thoughts

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