Episode 142
Mage Certification Test
『If you don’t want to believe it, don’t believe it.』
He says he has nothing to lose.
Elric didn’t think that was a lie.
Unless he was trying to pick on himself, there was absolutely no reason to do that.
Although he sometimes showed a foolish side, Mephisto was a being who only acted to benefit himself.
‘Sagara cleverly hidden in an area full of ghosts… . In its own way, it is understandable if we say that it is Otto Hahn’s skill.’
Elric even thought that the numerous ghosts said to exist in the Red Ghost Forest were some kind of guardians created to protect Saga.
“But why isn’t your sister coming?”
I need to get out of here quickly to confirm that guess… Strangely, Hayes did not come back.
Hayes is currently away for a while, saying he has personal business to attend to.
When I heard that Elric got perfect scores on all the tests, I was very happy, so I thought he would come back soon, but the person who came on behalf of my sister last night was someone sent by my sister.
[Because a problem suddenly arose where I was. I’ll go back as soon as it’s over. I think it will be there by tomorrow at the latest, so don’t worry too much.]
I wasn’t too worried because a letter that was obviously written by my sister came with me.
Because I knew very well that no matter how bloody the world was, where corruption was rampant, there were not many people who could do anything about Hayes.
More than anything. Elric seemed to know why Hayes was late.
‘Red Phantom… I think it might be because of that place.’
Like Augustine, Hayes did not provide much explanation about them.
However, considering that the man in the tree mask also seemed to recognize Hayes, it was clear that there was some kind of relationship between the organization Hayes worked for and Red Phantom.
‘Now that I think about it, I haven’t been able to ask my sister in detail about the Black Skull or anything else. hmm!’
In the meantime, Hayes seemed reluctant to talk about what he was doing, so I didn’t bother to ask him about it.
Elric was so sorry that Hayes was studying with the money he earned from all the hard work he had to do outside, that he couldn’t even think of doing it.
But now that I felt like I could be somewhat more confident, I thought about asking.
* * *
It was already late at night when Hayes returned.
He must have not been able to eat properly for a while, so he could barely open his mouth after eating the bread he had brought for a long time at a separate request from his wife.
“No, what on earth have you been doing so far that you haven’t even fed someone?”
“I have quite a lot of work to do.”
“Day?”
“uh. “I didn’t know until now, but a lot of work piled up while I followed you to the north.”
“also. “So you went to a mercenary group?”
“uh.”
Hayes nodded and asked Elric.
“You said you were going to Winds Frontier Province, right?”
“yes. A royal edict has been issued, so what should I do? “He said not only me but also Sean was going.”
Elric nodded to the question posed by Hayes.
Mervinger was not the only one to whom the imperial court issued a summons.
An official document had been issued ordering that a certain amount of military power be mobilized from the six castles of the magic tower, including Neresta, the Lion House, the entire Eight Lion Gates that support it, and the three dukes and local nobles.
For that reason, a special unit named ‘White Mamba’, including Sean, was scheduled to be dispatched from the Neresta family.
From what I heard, the Blue Lion is planning to bring in troops from the Byle family as well?
However, he said that it will take a little more time to make a decision because the internal situation there is currently very complicated.
anyway.
Elric believed that this was a ploy by the imperial family to establish political supremacy.
If he were to gather together the nobles’ private armies and lead them, the crown prince’s position would be that much stronger.
As a bonus, it could exhaust the power of the private soldiers, so there was absolutely no loss for the imperial family.
“But why is that?”
“I think I should go there too.”
“what?”
Elric narrowed his eyes.
Mervinger, who was left with nothing but Elric, thought that Hayes would not step forward because Elric was the only one who had the power to show to the outside world.
Hayes seemed to have read Elric’s thoughts, too, and calmly shook his head.
“To be exact, a conscription order was issued to the organization I am in.”
The Black Skulls are a group of mercenaries belonging to the Empire.
Of course, there was no one as specialized in combat as they were, so there was no way the imperial family would leave them alone.
“But there’s no need for your sister to respond, right? “They say I’m not even an official member.”
“Still, I think we should go.”
“so why… !”
“It was decided that all members would participate. All up to associate members. “If I declare that I will not participate, I will be permanently expelled.”
Elric was filled with the thought, ‘Then why don’t you just stop being a dangerous mercenary?’
Now, many places have decided to sponsor him. An agreement was also signed with the Neresta family. It meant that I no longer had to be concerned about money like I used to.
In particular, if you become an official magician, you will receive a large amount of support from the government. Elric was even thinking of reviving the family based on this.
So, he wanted to put his sister, who had suffered all her life because of him, to rest.
I couldn’t say anything to Hayes’s next words.
“Just because you’re acting like a human now doesn’t mean you’re going to tell me to rest, right?”
“… .”
“That’s what I thought. Sorry, Elric. I have no intention of quitting my job. Although it’s nice to be free from the constraints of money, I like and love my job. I am proud of what I have achieved. But are you telling me to put down my weapon and take a break? “If you spew out nonsense like poetry books, I’ll break your head first.”
“… Don’t say that. “It’s my sister’s life, why do I say such things?”
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Elric sighed lightly.
Mephisto grinned next to him.
『Your sister is a wife.』
[If you weren’t that strong, how would you have grabbed me by the collar and dragged me up here? Perhaps, even if my sister had a little interest in or talent for magic, the position of head of the family would have been hers, not mine?]
No matter how gentle and quiet Hayes was, he was ultimately a Mervinger like Elric.
No, in some ways, he was much more Mervinger-like than Elric.
Isn’t it a great thing that he was able to awaken his Auror skills without anyone’s help, jump into the battlefield himself, and feed his younger brother this much?
“okay. If that’s what my sister means, there’s nothing I can do. But let’s ask more than that. What on earth are Black Skull and Red Phantom doing? “No matter how much I look into them, they both seem to be a mystery.”
“That’s an illusion. Unlike Red Phantom, we have never really hidden our identities. “It’s just that the members are not well known to the outside world.”
“So what’s the relationship… !”
“Places that started from the same roots, but have now become enemies. And the leader of our mercenary group, you’ve probably heard of it at least once, right?”
“huh? who?”
Hayes had a faint smile on his lips.
“Company person (灰獅子).”
“… !”
This was something I had never thought of, so even as Elric, I couldn’t help but be very surprised.
The company leader was known to be the least active among the eight lions, excluding the golden lion.
Perhaps his nickname was ‘the reclusive lion’?
It was known that they did not have any special forces.
But the company owner had power?
“Has the company’s power been growing?”
“He’s a person who doesn’t like noise, so he’s just not well-known to the outside world. And rather than saying that he created it, it’s closer to something that came down from above.”
Hayes’ explanation was very simple.
There was an organization called ‘Anonymous’ that was much higher than the company.
They were originally just a small group formed solely out of personal friendship, without any particular cause or purpose.
However, as time passed and discipline emerged and discipline within the organization was established, the ‘nameless’ became a name.
The individual members of the organization were quite talented and were active as a secret society, but at some point they experienced internal strife over the purpose of the organization.
One side was the side that wanted to continue to carry out undercover activities while hiding their names.
The other side pursued the direction of revealing its name to the public and allowing it to now operate freely.
“Of course, the former became Red Phantom, and the latter became Black Skull.”
A wry smile appeared on Hayes’ lips.
“They say there was some conflict at first over the purpose, but it wasn’t to the point of splitting up. “The organization called Anonymous itself was so small that it was not known to the public, and most of the members claimed to be neutral.”
“Then when did they split up?”
“After the squadron leader died.”
“… “There were two successors.”
“that’s right.”
Hayes quietly nodded and continued speaking.
“The company manager and the tree mask you dealt with a while ago. “If I remember correctly, the two of you were originally on death row.”
“The two organizations, which could be considered successors, split up as the paths pursued by the death penalty system were completely different… “It’s a common occurrence.”
In any organization, lines are bound to diverge when it comes to goals and interests. If you can resolve the internal strife and keep the name alive, you will become a famous gate, but if you fail, you will end up as an ordinary place.
It meant that Anonymous failed at that.
Unless it is.
‘They still have one identity, so they think they are in conflict.’
In this case, when one side wins, the losing side is naturally absorbed into the winning side.
Black Skull and Red Phantom. Elric didn’t know what the situation was in the two places. But I could clearly tell that she wouldn’t be a very good relationship.
Considering that Hayes reported the news of the Red Phantom’s appearance to the Black Skull headquarters and continued the discussion until now… That probably means that they are thinking about this matter very seriously.
“Anyway, because of that, I think Black Skull is planning to move on his own. The reason is a conscription order… .”
“Actually, it’s to deal with Red Phantom?”
Hayes nodded heavily.
Here, Elric could not help but be lost in deep thought.
“So, are you planning to join the war through that?”
“uh. Of course, I will be careful not to reveal my identity as much as possible. “Because I don’t want to get caught up in something noisy.”
Elric could tell that even though Hayes said so, he was actually worried about harm to himself and his family.
“okay. Take care and see you on the other side.”
“okay. “I hope what you set out to do goes well.”
“You were the one who protected the family until now, right? “I will do it now, so don’t worry.”
“You’ve grown a lot?”
Hayes’ smile seemed truly filled with joy.
* * *
The next morning, morning.
Elric was preparing to leave. Hayes had decided to move with Black Skull, and Sean had decided to meet at the Winds Frontier with his family’s troops, so it could be said that they were going out alone for the first time in a long time.
On the way, Augustine and Giliti insisted on following along, but this time Guy himself took the initiative to dissuade them.
Going to the Black Snowfield could have been considered a simple outing, but the two people going to the battlefield with Elric could easily be seen as a political move by the Neresta family.
Because of that, just like the two men, all the wizards in the Senate and the Guest House who tried to follow Elric had to wash their hands.
Elric was able to enjoy his leisure time for the first time in a while and board a carriage moving to the Red Ghost Forest.
Wizard who swallowed talent
