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HELHEIM SCANS
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Chapter 81
The head of the family, Catsey Mielephon.
She had a conflict with the Kraken for some reason and was subjected to the Kraken’s mental attack.
In the process, I ended up teasing Isna due to a misunderstanding.
“And we investigated the cultist hideout you mentioned…”
The cultists wouldn’t have been hiding only in the Kraken’s habitat.
Since they were using fragments of the Demon Tree, there had to be others managing it elsewhere.
“Was there a problem?”
“Well…”
After a brief moment of hesitation, she carefully responded.
“When we found them, they had already been massacred.”
“A massacre? Who killed them?”
“Yes. Judging by the traces left behind, it seems to be the work of the Moon Watchers, a well-known secret organization in the Empire.”
The Moon Watchers.
I’ve heard of them.
The most infamous criminal organization on the continent.
No one knows where they originated, their internal structure, or even their base of operations.
There are plenty of secret organizations on this continent, but among them, the Moon Watchers—despite being the most recently formed—had quickly gained the greatest influence.
The cultists must have been up to all sorts of schemes everywhere, so it wouldn’t be surprising if they had crossed paths with the Moon Watchers.
Both were criminal groups, but in this case, it seemed the Moon Watchers had done part of my job for me.
“Did you find the tree there?”
This time, the one who answered wasn’t Misha, the head maid, but someone else.
“No. There wasn’t a single trace of a tree.”
A girl wearing a doll mask.
I knew her true identity.
“Lady Isna, why do you look like that again?”
“Ah, it’s nothing~ I just thought it would be fun?”
Yeah, understanding this woman is impossible.
When I silently stared at her, she tilted her head in confusion.
“What’s wrong?”
The full-body doll mask she wore was similar to the one I had seen before.
It was likely using the same technique to erase her presence.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
“Of course not~.”
“The smell of blood is so strong that I thought you were injured.”
At my calm remark, she let out an ambiguous laugh.
“Hehehe. Are you perhaps… worried about me?”
“…Yes.”
When I didn’t deny it, she seemed momentarily flustered and fell silent.
“Anyway, we have a guest.”
“A guest?”
As soon as she said that, footsteps echoed from beyond, and someone walked in.
Seeing the figure, my expression twisted.
Why the hell are you here?
“Hey, what about your territory? Why are you all the way here?”
“Lady Isna, excuse me, but may I speak with my brother for a moment?”
“Of course~ I’ll leave right away.”
With a playful grin, Isna immediately left the room.
Then the intruder, Melissa Cascadia, strode towards me with purpose.
I raised a hand to stop her and quickly assessed the situation.
Something felt off.
“You alone?”
“Yeah, I’m single.”
No, I don’t care about your love life, little sister.
With a composed face, she asked me,
“This is Imperial territory. Are you planning to start a war by bringing an army here? More importantly, are you injured?”
“I’m fine.”
“The Kraken?”
“It’s dead. I’m planning to place its core on our parents’ and Arsha’s graves.”
“…Do you have any idea how worried I was? Can I hit you just once?”
“No, absolutely not.”
I understood how much Melissa must have worried.
Her older brother suddenly left for the Pascalia Empire, claiming he had found information on a Kraken—the Sea King species, known as a living disaster—and then set off to hunt it.
If the situation had been reversed, I would have tracked her down and smacked her until sparks flew.
Thinking about the emotional turmoil she must have gone through, one hit might be…
Not a chance.
Why should I get hit?
The moment I instinctively tried to leap out the window—
“Luna, if you catch that bastard, I’ll buy you a fridge to store your snacks.”
Luna had more money than Melissa, but since she found the purchasing process troublesome, she only used what Melissa bought for her.
Smack!!
Instantly bribed, Luna grabbed onto me without hesitation.
I could easily shake her off with my physical strength, but I didn’t.
Despite her curvaceous figure, she was petite, so it felt like a cicada clinging to an ancient tree.
“Hey, Luna Basilin, think carefully. Who’s the one actually filling that snack stash?”
“I’ll think about that after I get the fridge.”
“Melissa, you’ve been practicing the Heavenly Demon Sword Technique I taught you, right? If I test you and you’re lacking…”
“Actually, I was about to show you.”
Boom!!!
“Because of you, I’m going to die young! Just die already!!”
Melissa’s flying kick landed squarely on me.
One thing was certain.
Melissa Cascadia—the Margrave of Cascadia and my little sister—was nothing like the refined, demure noblewomen.
She was a complete wildcat.
* * *
A completely destroyed cave.
Due to Leon’s scheme, all of the Kraken’s eggs had been caught in an explosion and were obliterated.
No signs of life could be felt in the cave, which had mostly collapsed.
Yet, within the rubble, something began to pulse.
It slowly throbbed, emitting a violet glow that spread outward, causing the fallen rocks to tremble.
— Bur…n…
A voice, or something like it, resonated through the cave.
The language was too bizarre to be called a language—it was incomprehensible, yet its meaning was clear to all.
—…Rela…
The pulsating waves of violet light continued to utter unknown words.
—Call it…
At last, a word that could be fully understood.
What was it asking to be called?
In the midst of this darkness, the voice accelerated.
Then, with a massive surge of energy, something emerged from the shattered rocks and floated into the air.
It was none other than the Book of the Lion, which Leon had burned.
The Necronomicon, a tome that summoned ancient gods.
But had Leon been present, he would have instinctively known—
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Night]
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That was no ancient god.
It was something darker, something far more monstrous.
—Speak my name.
The Book of the Lion, hovering in the empty void of the cave, continued to repeat the same command.
This went on for about ten minutes.
[Yo… gu.]
Then, impossibly, a voice rang out in a place where no answer should exist.
It came from the completely shattered, liquefied remains of a Kraken egg.
A Kraken could not speak.
It was an intelligent creature, but one driven more by instinct than intellect.
And a Kraken hatchling?
It was a being ruled solely by instinct.
Yet here was a dead, liquefied Kraken—speaking.
This was no ordinary sight.
FWOOOOSH!!!
At that moment, a violent surge of violet light exploded from the Necronomicon, scattering massive chunks of flesh.
The cave began to transform—its walls pulsating like the insides of a living creature, tentacles sprouting in all directions.
Those tentacles stretched outward, piercing into both the Necronomicon and the ruined egg.
Thump… thump…
A sound echoed, as if a heartbeat had begun.
—Speak… my name.
Once again, the command was issued.
The lifeless egg, now covered in grotesque flesh, pulsated.
Then—
With a squelching tear, the flesh split open, revealing an enormous eye.
[Yo… gu.]
With that single utterance, the heartbeat grew louder.
It was as if something was being born.
At the same time.
A mysterious presence standing beside Leon—[The Librarian]—detected something.
[Premonition of the Blood Moon detected. However, anomaly vanished within a fraction of a second. Assuming temporary error. Requesting log review. Report withheld.]
For just a brief instant, the anomaly was caught in the Librarian’s perception.
* * *
The Pascalia Empire housed numerous magic towers.
From small-scale towers to those rivaling the greatest noble houses.
Mages belonged to these towers, forming a unique society of their own.
Among them, the Gaifen Tower was an upper-ranked institution.
A 5th-circle mage, Berhem, was currently reporting to his superior.
His priority was to report on a young, reckless mage who had attacked a Corpse Golem—a fragment of the Demon Tree—during the Kraken subjugation.
“This is the full account of the Kraken subjugation.”
-So that brat caused an incident…
“The Sword Saint is furious. He’s not showing it outwardly, but…”
-I know. People of my generation all understand. Hmph, that kid’s magic career is over.
He probably hadn’t meant for things to turn out this way.
It was simply a mistake born of fear.
Perhaps, under different circumstances, it wouldn’t have been such a catastrophe.
But this was a mission where many had staked their lives.
There was no room for failure from an unqualified recruit.
However, that was not the main issue.
“As I reported, this concerns Leon Cascadia, the eldest son of the Margrave of Cascadia.”
-Yes, I’ve heard the story. To be honest, I can’t believe it. Even within the towers, 6th-circle mages are extremely rare.
Even among the continent’s most powerful magic towers, Master-level 6th-circle mages were few and far between.
Yet this one was unaffiliated?
The fact that he was a necromancer was irrelevant—towers specialized in different types of magic, but they did not discriminate.
More astonishing was his age.
-A mere teenager reaching the 6th circle… Hah. Unbelievable. We might have to rewrite the list of the continent’s greatest prodigies.
“To be frank, his magic is impressive, but what I value the most is his magitech skills.”
-I was going to ask about that. You mentioned five devices. What’s the analysis?
“Shall I be honest?”
Berhem let out a dry chuckle.
“To put it simply, we couldn’t understand a single one of them.”
-What?
“To be blunt, they are leagues beyond our current technological level. From their structure to their composition, I’m no expert in magitech, but… Elder Repal said the technology feels centuries ahead of our own.”
-Hah… If even Elder Repal says that… we must secure him at all costs. If word gets out, every magic tower will be desperate to recruit him.
This was no exaggeration.
Magic towers, starving for talent, would never let a prodigy like Leon slip through their fingers.
“How much support can we offer?”
-A 6th-circle Grand Mage, on top of overwhelming magitech capabilities. Frankly, I don’t understand how such a boy has reached this level… but we can’t ignore the results. We’ll offer him first-class treatment. If he joins another tower, the loss would be catastrophic.
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HELHEIM SCANS
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