Chapter 73

Ranger.

Najin didn’t know much about them. The basic knowledge was that Rangers perform dirtier and darker tasks than knights. That was all he knew about them, including their excellence in undercover operations, assassinations, setting traps, and ambushes.

「Rangers are tricky.」

And to add a bit more.

「Indeed, tricky. It’s hard to put into words, but Rangers are troublesome. You know that famous saying, right?」

「Not all battles are divided by realms.」

「That’s bullshit in most cases, but not when you’re dealing with Rangers.」

It was information he had heard from Ivan and Offen.

「They are hunters.」

Rangers are hunters.

「Does a hunter confront a beast head-on? Facing a wild boar and swinging a sword directly at it is just crazy, not hunting.」

「Hunters thoroughly ‘hunt.’」

「Knowing the target’s habits, characteristics, movements, routes, quirks, and even the slightest weaknesses…”

Ivan pointed his finger at Najin’s temple.

「Bang.」

Ivan made a gesture of firing a crossbow, chuckling.

「And finally, pulling the trigger.」

Click.

Najin turned his head at the sound of loading from behind. There stood Kapman, loading an arrow into his crossbow. Although the crossbow wasn’t aimed at him, Najin felt an eerie chill.

“What’s that?”

“…It’s a unique crossbow.”

Najin changed the subject.

“I’ve never seen such a large crossbow before.”

“Of course. It’s usually mounted on walls.”

What Kapman held was a large crossbow. It was similar in size to a ballista used for interception on walls, but Kapman moved around with the crossbow slung over his shoulder as if it wasn’t heavy at all.

‘Ordinary strength wouldn’t suffice.’

The image of someone holding such a large crossbow with both hands without a stand, shooting arrows, didn’t quite fit in Najin’s mind. The recoil would likely knock them back or cause them to fall.

‘An impossible feat for an ordinary human.’

Such acts were done with ease by superhumans, and Sword Seekers were close to superhumans. For a martial artist of their caliber, it probably wasn’t difficult.

Najin and Kapman walked silently along the sewer. They needed to go deeper into the underground sewer.

Swoosh…

The sound of water flowing in the sewer was audible, but their footsteps were not. Both of them were skilled in concealing their presence. Najin, leading the way, did not notice Kapman’s gaze closely observing his footsteps from behind.

“Were you part of the covert unit?”

Kapman, who had been observing Najin, asked curtly. Najin stopped walking at the sudden question.

“Keep walking. We can talk while walking.”

“……”

“I asked if you were part of the covert unit. Your walk resembles that of the Order’s covert unit. It’s similar… No, even better than theirs?”

Kapman muttered indifferently.

“You seem to have quite a story.”

“Why bring that up all of a sudden…”

“Unknown identity. No records. Age, name, and even realm unclear. It’s just because a noble of some significance from the Cambria Foundation vouched for you…”

Kapman murmured and then chuckled.

“Otherwise, you would have had a tough time. I’m speaking from experience. I also suffered a bit when I entered in disguise.”

Eventually, it all came to light. You know who I am, right? Saying so, Kapman exhaled a long, very long breath.

“Don’t expect a response to that question; no need to rack your brain. Just think of it as an old man’s rambling.”

“Is that so.”

“That’s how it is. When you reach my age, you’ll find yourself talking more. Even when there’s no need to share stories, you end up chatting away.”

The underground sewer stretched endlessly downward.

“Is it because it’s so quiet, or does it make people more sentimental… Sometimes I even find myself talking to the targets of my assignments?”

As there was still some distance to the deeper parts of the sewer, Kapman continued the conversation. It was more like talking to himself than seeking communication.

“You get curious, right? Ah, how did this guy live his life? What kind of life did he lead to end up in this situation? Just listening to their stories.”

Click, and Kapman aimed the crossbow at Najin.

“Like this, aiming a crossbow.”

“That is such a bad hobby.”

“A bad hobby, indeed. But if they have any last words before dying, I should listen, right? No matter how miserably they’ve lived, a person should be able to leave some last words.”

Kapman looked at Najin’s hands. Even though he playfully aimed the crossbow, Najin’s hand resting on his waist had already half-drawn his sword. If Kapman were to fire the crossbow? Najin would respond immediately.

‘He has quick reflexes.’

Kapman lowered the crossbow with a smile.

“Of course, dark mages are an exception, so don’t worry.”

“Why are dark mages an exception?”

“You’re asking the obvious. Didn’t I say it? If they’re ‘a person,’ they can leave last words.”

Najin blinked, and Kapman answered.

“Dark mages aren’t human. They’re beastly bastards, like dogs that don’t know gratitude.”

Kapman spat out as if chewing on the words. The voice carried venom, a muttering filled with deep resentment. It seemed he had had some unpleasant encounters with dark mages. That’s what Najin thought.

“It’s starting to appear.”

“That iron grate looks like the entrance.”

“Lead the way. I’ll cover the back.”

As they continued their conversation and walked, they eventually reached the deepest part of the underground sewer. Passing through a twisted iron grate, Najin thought to himself.

‘It’s damn wide.’

Was it because it spanned the entire city? The size of the sewer was terrifyingly vast. Not just that, this sewer was constructed when the city was occupied by the Circle of Dark Mages ‘Kefalon’ in the past.

From the beginning, this sewer was designed to hide dark magic research facilities and foundations and for Kefalon and his disciples to hide and hold out.

Thus, the structure of the sewer was like a maze, reminiscent of spider webs or anthills. How could one find a dark mage in such a maze? The flowing water and damp air erased all traces, rendering the usual tracking skills useless in this space.

‘Where to start…’

Najin pondered, but his contemplation didn’t last long. There was no need to search for traces.

Creak… Creeeak…

Beyond the sound of flowing water, the sound of dragging feet was heard. Najin looked towards the sound. There stood a guard. The uniform was that of the city’s guard, but the flesh was bluish and the complexion deathly pale.

It was not a living soldier. It was a moving corpse.

The magic that moves corpses. In the empire, it’s considered taboo, and naturally, the only ones who violate this taboo are dark mages. Sure enough, beyond the corpse, two dark mages in robes were seen.

Clang, the moment Najin drew his sword.

The dark mages swung their staffs. The water flowing in the sewer began to bubble, and corpses started to emerge from the water. Their movement signified one thing.

They had no intention of hiding or running away.

They chose to intercept the intruders, as if they owned this sewer. Regardless of their intention, the same thought crossed Najin and Kapman’s minds as they looked at the horde of corpses.

This just got easier. At least they saved them the trouble of searching.

The only magic Najin had ever experienced was the blood-based magic used by the alchemist of the underground city, Drugmaker Hakan. Even that, strictly speaking, was more akin to alchemy, making it a stretch to call it magic.

So, strictly speaking.

This was his first time seeing proper magic. Najin looked beyond the moving corpses. The reanimated corpses were merely a front line. Behind them were dark mages preparing their magic.

Dark mana surged.

The surging mana coalesced in the air.

What appeared as the mana came together were two rings. The rings, or circles, as mages call them. The moment the strange characters engraved on the rings sparkled, Najin’s body reflexively moved.

Swoosh!

What shot through the air was a stake made of bone. A stake resembling a human spine thudded into the spot where Najin had just stood.

-Typical of the necromancy school.

A voice echoed in Najin’s ears.

-Controlling corpses, sacrificing their bodies to cast magic, very typical of necromancers.

Listening to the voice, Najin assumed his stance. He wasn’t sure how the magic was shot, but he could see the flow of mana vibrating the air.

-The basic means of attack are bone stakes. See them pulling out bones over there? The corpses blocking your way are not only a front line but also a medium for their dark magic.

Sword aura formed on Najin’s sword.

-The next magic coming is, aha.

He bent his knees and lowered his stance. With his sword drawn back, Najin narrowed his eyes.

-Bone swamp. Jump.

The moment Najin kicked off the ground, bone stakes sprouted from the floor almost simultaneously. A spell to block a swordsman’s approach. Transforming the terrain into a trap, intercepting from a distance, a very standard tactic.

But if you know about it, it’s not hard to counter.

As he kicked off the ground, Najin began to run along the sewer wall. Physical abilities close to those of a Sword Seeker and innate balance allowed him to run on the wall almost as fast as if he were sprinting on the ground.

Ratatatatat!

Bone stakes belatedly sprang up on the sewer wall as well, but again, too late. By the time the stakes had emerged, Najin had already leaped into the midst of the corpses. The dark mages hastily swung their staves.

The corpses swelled up, and then, with a thud, exploded, scattering their bone fragments in all directions. Necromancers of the necromancy school become more troublesome the more corpses they have to use as mediums. With this many corpses, they could easily grind down a warrior.

As the corpses exploded, the dark mage thought so.

Until, that is, they saw Najin hanging upside down, having driven his sword into the ceiling.

‘When did he?’

The dark mage’s reaction speed couldn’t keep up with Najin’s movements, and by the time he cast his spell, Najin was already not there. As if he knew what was going to happen.

-It’s over.

What now echoed in Najin’s ears was Merlin’s voice. What he saw were the flows of mana.

He knew when the magic would be shot. And Merlin whispered to him the form of that magic.

In other words, it was as if he knew ‘in which direction,’ ‘what trajectory,’ and ‘at what moment’ the opponent’s sword would come. If he knew, there was no reason he couldn’t counter.

‘There’s no losing to a dark mage.’

Hanging upside down from the ceiling, Najin bent his knees.

‘Is this what you meant?’

-You shouldn’t lose to a low-level mage ‘out of ignorance.’ Well… you probably could have done without my help anyway.

And then, bang. Najin kicked off the ceiling. Diving diagonally towards the dark mage, he was like an arrow shot from a bow. The dark mage tried to shoot bone stakes, pull in corpses, but…

Najin twisted his body in mid-air, swinging his sword.

The moment the sword aura-laden blade touched them, the bone stakes turned to dust and disappeared. The moment the spinning sword swept by, the corpses blocking the way were all split apart. Sword aura, capable of slicing through stone walls and even steel, couldn’t possibly be stopped by mere corpses.

Squeak!

The view opened up in an instant. The moment Najin landed right in front of the dark mage, the dark mage’s eyes widened. The moment a swordsman is allowed to approach, the battlefield becomes disadvantageous for the mage. And the dark mage had no means to overturn this disadvantage.

Najin’s sword sliced through the dark mage’s wrist. Blowing away the wrist holding the staff, Najin reached out his hand. To cast magic, a mage needs fingers, a staff, or a mouth, as Merlin said.

-Unless they’re an archmage, they’re bound by syllables and circuits. Block all of that, and they can’t cast magic, right?

The hand and staff were blown away. What remained was the mouth. Najin slapped the dark mage’s chin with his palm, silencing that mouth. Then, gripping the dark mage’s face, Najin immobilized him.

The dark mage’s eyes fluttered as he was subdued in an instant.

Regardless, Najin glanced to the side. There were two dark mages welcoming them. One was subdued by Najin, but what about the other? The answer lay a short distance away.

“Cough, cough…”

A dark mage embedded in the wall. A giant arrow was lodged in his abdomen, piercing through and deeply embedded in the wall. The arrow, having passed through the abdomen and stuck in the wall, made the dark mage look like a pinned insect.

The scene created by a single arrow was chilling.

Following the trajectory of the arrow, countless bodies were split into upper and lower halves. It looked as if they had exploded. But upon closer inspection, it was evident they had been pierced by the arrow.

Kapman stood expressionlessly at the end of the arrow’s path. He loaded another arrow and stepped forward.

Click.

The sound of heels echoed in the sewer. Najin’s head whipped around. The sound came from a path turning to the right. The path was bent, so the figure wasn’t visible, but the shadow cast on the wall was.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

The presence of a shadow meant there was light.

Holding a lantern or something, the shadow flickered. As Najin was about to step towards the shadow, discarding the subdued dark mage.

Swoosh.

An arm stretched out from the bent path. Hiding the body, only the arm of the shadow’s owner reached out. In that hand was a lantern. A lantern burning with blue flames.

The blue flames flickered. The flickering flame imprinted on Najin’s retina.

Burning flames. A flickering lantern. And the giant shadow cast. The shadow cast on the sewer wall took the shape of flames. The shadow of fire covered the sewer.

And then, whoosh.

The shadowflame engulfed Najin.