Episode 5
* * *
The dusk of the evening and the darkness of the night sky mesh like gears. Beyond the snowy white horizon, darkness was falling even faster on the ground.
“Dale.”
Dale stretched out his arm at Master Sepia’s words. A zombie rabbit that had been resurrected from the dead through necromancy. And the ice armor surrounding the rabbit. Focusing his consciousness on that target was terrifying… .
Clang!
The frozen armor wrapped around the rabbit shattered into pieces, exploding like a grenade. Countless shards of ice were scattered in all directions.
Freezing explosion.
The baptism of explosions did not stop there. The frozen armor surrounding the rabbit shattered, and the frozen flesh beneath it burst forth.
Corpse explosion.
Following the ice shards, bone fragments inside the body scattered like sharp blades, and the double explosion finally brought an end to it.
An absurd skill that harmonizes the dual properties of water and darkness like flowing water.
“Good job.”
A destructive force that can send down five or six heavily armored soldiers with a single blow. At first glance, it looks like an ordinary explosion spell. However, Sepia did not miss the techniques hidden within it.
‘The killing power was maximized through fragmentation.’
Dale had deliberately fragmented his explosives, tearing the outer shell into small pieces and accentuating the shrapnel effect. Although Sepia had no way of knowing that this was the same principle as a 21st century grenade.
‘It’s so sophisticated that it’s hard to believe it was created by an 8-year-old.’
Magic is ultimately the embodiment of the user’s imagination. Therefore, magicians induce ‘the individuality and form of magic’ that suits their purpose through conscious self-suggestion called ‘modification’.
And eight-year-old Dale was using the ‘Math of Slaughter’ that rivaled the battle wizards who had spent their entire lives on the battlefield.
The battle magic doctrine of the Imperial Army, accumulated and refined through hundreds of years of warfare, is beyond that. What on earth does the world that exists in this child’s mind look like?
“Thanks to you, teacher!”
Nevertheless, this child, upon receiving praise from the teacher, smiles brightly like other children of the same age. Sepia smiled very complexly as she watched this.
“Let’s stop here for today.”
“yes!”
It was just then.
Heehee!
Beyond the dusky horizon, a group of mounted figures appeared. They were knights in black armour and surcoats bearing the coat of arms of the Duke of Saxony.
Not long ago, the Night Raven Knights, led by Sir Helmut, went on a campaign to conquer a dungeon that occurred in the Demon King’s Territory.
“Uncle Helmut!”
Dale waved his hand at the sight. Only then did the knights who were trying to pass by the two quickly turn around.
“Your Majesty, and what are Lady Sepia doing here?”
“I’m learning magic from my teacher.”
At Dale’s words, Sir Helmut blinks in surprise.
“Have you already begun to master magic?”
Sir Helmut mutters in disbelief.
“Hey, I’m just starting to learn.”
Dale smiled awkwardly, maintaining a humility that was unusual for an eight-year-old.
“By the way, Uncle Helmut, how was the dungeon raid going?”
After laughing, Dale asked again, and Helmut patted his chest plate and laughed heartily.
“This dungeon has also been conquered safely!”
“As expected, he is an old man.”
A swordsman who is counted among the top seven in the entire continent. And the ‘Black Cavalry’ led by that knight.
The power of the Duchy of Saxony was never dependent on the Black Duke’s commanding skills alone.
“Helmut! In order to safely pass this land on to your Highness the Prince in the future, I swear that I will devote my life to the Duke of Saxony!”
“Thank you, sir.”
Dale smiled and nodded at Sir Helmut’s loyal attitude. After saying that, Sir Helmut grabbed the reins of his horse again.
“I will tell you about the remaining matters after reporting to His Majesty the Duke.”
“Take care on your way in, Uncle Helmut.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
Sir Helmut pulled the reins with a cheeky smile, and his black war steed kicked the ground, its mane flying.
“This is the land I will inherit in the future.”
Sepia muttered indifferently at the sight, gazing at the endless white mountain range ridges stretching along the horizon.
“Truly, it is a very vast land.”
* * *
That night.
The Duke of Saxony’s office was lined with his vassals, including Lord Helmut, the head of the Saxon household, and the elders of the Black Tower. Sepia, the elder of the Blue Tower who was acting as Dale’s tutor, was no exception.
“How was Dale’s performance?”
The first topic the Duke brought up was, of course, a question about his son.
“I have become a 1st circle master of both necromancy and water magic.”
“Necromancy and water magic? Could it be that they have dual properties… …!”
The elder of the Black Tower gasped in surprise after hearing her story.
“However, I think it would be difficult for me to teach you the magic of the dark attribute any further than this.”
After saying that, Sepia’s gaze turned to the Duke of Saxony.
The greatest necromancer and black magician on the continent. The pitch-black magic tower lord who reigns at the top of the black magic tower.
At the same time, Dale’s father.
The idea that a mere elder of the Blue Tower would teach him dark magic was something that even a passing dog would laugh at.
“First of all, as Dale wishes, I would like to ask you to continue to guide me in the magic of the water world.”
The black ball nodded after understanding the meaning.
——————
faqwiki.us
Join our Discord for new chapter updates!
https://discord.com/invite/xr7SxG5T6V
——————
Elena still doesn’t know that her son is learning necromancy. However, if Dale continues to desire dark magic, it is not Sepia’s job to teach him.
“Let me talk to my wife again.”
After saying that, the black ball ended Dale’s conversation.
* * *
That morning, in the duke and duchess’ bedroom.
“Oh my, you’re late.”
Elena smiled quietly at her husband as he returned from the meeting.
“You worked hard today too.”
“Thank you.”
After smiling, he held out a glass of wine. The black-haired man accepted the glass with an unusually gentle smile.
“I have some very good news.”
A gentle smile that he rarely reveals to anyone except his wife Elena. Before she knew his smile, she too feared the notoriety of the Black Duke, as the people of the empire whispered.
“It’s about our son.”
“Dale?”
The moment Elena heard her son’s name, a bright color appeared on her face.
“Hyeonyo said that he has already completed the magic of the first circle.”
“Already like that!”
“That child has a brilliant talent that no one I have ever seen can compare to.”
The black ball continued speaking as if it was pleased. It showed the joy of a father that could not be hidden.
“As expected, our child is no ordinary person.”
“There are definitely some things about him that aren’t typical of his peers.”
It was to the extent that even the word genius was not enough to describe it. Even though he didn’t show it, sometimes he acted so childishly that it was almost creepy.
“Still, she is our lovely child.”
Still, Elena’s appearance had an unwavering motherly smile.
“Our child, without a doubt.”
It was no different for the black ball.
“To that child… … .”
So the black ball took a deep breath and remained silent for a moment.
“As a father, I want to teach you the power to protect our land.”
After a moment of silence, the black ball opened its mouth.
* * *
A few days later.
Dale was, as usual, absorbed in his magical practice on the plains outside the city.
Things that raise corpses and control cold air. A practice that refines the two attributes of water and dark and moves towards the 2nd circle.
And as usual, I was listening to Sepia’s guidance at that moment.
Far away, at the entrance to the city, a procession bearing the coat of arms of the Duke of Saxony began to approach.
‘Father went to the Necropolis with the Black Tower this morning. What kind of procession was it?’
Dale tilts his head for a moment as he looks at the scene. Immediately afterwards, the knights guarding Dale and Sepia quickly kneel before the shadow that got out of the carriage.
“Oh, Mother!”
It was Dale’s mother, Elena.
Elena approached, assisted by her maids. Dale swallowed a moment of confusion, and Sepia felt the same.
“Were you learning magic here?”
“yes.”
Elena walked towards Dale without paying attention. At her feet, she saw a rabbit that had just come back to life and was hopping around. Even though she had quickly released the revival, the rabbit’s corpse lying at her feet was truly suspicious.
“Oh, Lady Elena. This is… … .”
Even Sepia, the best in the world, seems to be unable to hide her embarrassment. Seeing that, Dale is about to open his mouth to say something.
“I made a promise to your father.”
Elena interrupted Dale.
But the voice was never intended to reprimand Dale. Rather, it was filled with a deeper motherly affection than usual.
“How terrifying the army of the dead he raised must have been to me as a child.”
Elena continued speaking in a gentle voice, never showing any sign of anger.
“So when he confessed to me, I was so scared that I just burst into tears.”
“mother…….”
“I was such a young and naive girl back then. I can still clearly see him embarrassed in front of me.”
After saying that, Elena remained silent for a moment.
“But our territory is exposed to the threat of too many enemies.”
After a moment of silence, Elena opened her mouth quietly. With a determination that surpassed her previous benevolence.
Although Elena was the daughter of a count who had grown up like a jewel, she was also a noblewoman of the empire. Furthermore, as the mistress of the Saxon dukedom, Dale could feel the hidden meaning of what she meant by ‘so many enemies’.
The ugly truth about a country called the Empire, stained with the strife of desires.
“I seem to have forgotten that it was your father’s strength that defended this land against those enemies.”
“… … .”
“As the eldest son of the Duke’s family, it is my immaturity that I failed to understand the burdens you would have to shoulder.”
As the eldest son of the Duke’s family, there were things he had to bear. Dale was speechless.
“This vast land and family, me and your father, and even your new brother.”
“Oh, your little brother?”
“You said you wanted a younger sister?”
Elena smiled gently and patted her belly, feeling the faint throbbing of life within it.
“It’s a little late birthday present.”
It was the moment when Dale’s wish came true at the age of eight.
