43 – The Birth of Stars
“Darahann de Maïous. The owner of this mansion and an old man with not many days left in the world.”
He didn’t look like someone at the end of his life. Rather, he had a strong and robust face, much like the knights seen on the battlefield.
“Darahann de Maïous… the Dark Lord, as they say. You look much younger than I heard.”
“hehehe. Young friend, when you reach my age, being called young is not much of a compliment.”
“I see.”
“By the way, is your name Luscion?”
“Yes.”
With closed eyes as if reminiscing about a distant past, Darahan raised his head.
“As far as I know, there were no outstanding knights or knowledgeable scholars in the Luga family.”
Was it Mac? Lucion pondered for a while on how to respond, but Darahan’s next words came faster.
“However, there might be someone who could leave a mark in history.”
“Compliments… is that what it is?”
“Take it as you wish. It’s still a good time to do so.”
Lucion thought about letting it go like this, but he decided to pursue the conversation further.
“Did Lord Heukju… say that?”
“Hmm… No, I had to dig for answers until I found them.”
“Then… may I ask a question?”
“hehehe. Sorry, but I am a busy man.”
Damn it. Lucion cursed with a smile on his face.
What can I do? He’s still the opponent.
Darahan is a man who even transforms his own heart into an artifact. He had to treat him not with human common sense, but with the common sense of a magician.
However, Lucion was not a magician but a holy knight. He had no knowledge of a magician’s common sense.
Darahan smiled lightly and suggested going inside the mansion.
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“Let’s talk inside. Even though it’s early winter, the sun has set and it’s cold.”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t go in right now.”
“Hmm? Why is that? Is it because of those things, perhaps?”
Darahani looks at him and asks,
The bodies of Sekaira were scattered around.
“Are you worried that they will come back to life?”
“No, it’s the opposite. I’m worried that you might burn them.”
“You’re quite clever.”
Black Rabbit and White Rabbit blocked both sides of Lucion’s mouth.
Did Darahani just… compliment?
“Good. Let me hear it. What do you want me to do?”
And he even speaks so respectfully?
Darahani, the eccentric old man who lives as he pleases. Just by listening to the words of a mere outsider, it was enough to make the rabbits and the mansion’s residents flabbergasted.
The smile on Darahani’s lips was because he had never seen the face of a butler who had lived in the mansion for decades.
The god of machinery…
It wasn’t a machine!
“When I looked at their skin, it seemed like they would rot away soon. Can you please preserve them?”
“Of course.”
“Thank you.”
“No, I should be thankful. You protected the mansion. Moreover, it seems that all the research materials have run out.”
For Darahani, Sekaira was just a research material.
A flying object that looked like a stingray.
Just studying their bodies alone was valuable.
The speed is fast, and the body can move flexibly. It would be helpful when researching aircraft.
Moreover, after killing someone like Sekae, isn’t it possible to mimic their appearance exactly?
It’s about controlling the nervous system. If one could unravel that method, it would be a valuable research.
For Dara Han, it was like obtaining a research material of historical significance.
One of the reasons Dara Han, who used to live confined to the tower, took a step all the way here.
Of course, the protection of the mansion was the first reason.
Regardless of what others said, Dara Han knew his bloodline. Even if someone questioned who would let such a person into the mansion and disregarded Dura Han, Dara Han mobilized all his connections, hoping for Dura Han’s healing.
There just wasn’t any other way.
Dara Han raised his head and looked at one of the rooms in the mansion.
Dura Han’s room.
Though the room always had its curtains drawn, now they were pulled back.
Dara Han spoke first as he entered the mansion.
“You all, come in too.”
The Black Rabbit and the White Rabbit looked at each other, pointing at themselves with their index fingers.
Despite being siblings with different mothers, they were family.
In a state of distress, they followed Dara Han into the mansion.
“Let’s go too.”
“Yeah.”
#
The servants moved about busily.
There were many missing people, but they were all specialized employees who served the Archmage Dara Han. No one could set foot in this mansion.
Even the butlers and maids were members of influential local families. Each and every one of them were powerful individuals with considerable skills and connections.
Becoming a servant in this mansion was considered an honor, just like carrying Dara Han on their shoulders.
Even if one or two of them went missing, they would carry on with their work as if nothing had happened.
That was their duty as those who served the Archmage.
Not a speck of dust could be seen in Dara Han’s office, which was only used once a year.
As soon as you entered each room, you could smell the sweet scent of cinnamon and feel the warmth.
“Please have a seat.”
Dara Han’s presence was as impressive as a black rabbit standing up.
Lucion and Lucía sat next to each other on the sofa after exchanging glances. On the opposite side, the black and white rabbits sat together.
Then, a Tranar tea infused with refreshing mint scent was served. It was a tea that wizards enjoyed, especially those with boring personalities.
According to rumors, Dara Han started the trend.
“It’s a plausible statement.”
Dara Han was 80 years old. He became an Archmage at the age of 29.
News of a young Archmage drinking tea would have spread quickly, and it would have started a trend among the wizards who followed Dara Han.
In reality, he would always serve tea to his guests.
In short, the old man sitting diagonally across from Lucion was a living witness to the history of the Oslan Kingdom.
The problem was that the hot tea had to be finished before it cooled down. There was an unspoken rule. Dara Han would always finish the tea before it cooled and then conclude the conversation.
“First, let me express my gratitude.”
“Isn’t it obvious that you’re the one who broke the warehouse?”
“Yeah, performing the mission I was assigned implies that kind of meaning.”
“And what does that meaning mean….”
“Figure it out for yourself.”
Impolite.
A rather inept black rabbit provided the translation.
“It means being the proxy of the Archmage! So, during the mission, you’re basically the Archmage!”
Aha.
In reality, Lucion understood everything.
Well, he was a lord himself.
However, with an actual age just in the late teens, it couldn’t be helped that he was considered lacking in common sense.
Even though, nowadays, being in the late teens is seen as an age when one knows everything about the world, it seemed not so in the eyes of adults.
Of course, not everyone thought that way.
Darahann asked seriously.
“Before getting into the main topic, let me ask one thing. Did you use divine power against those monsters? But you annihilated all of them not with offensive magic. How did you manage that?”
Lies would be meaningless.
Lucion didn’t think that a mage of Darahann’s caliber would fail to notice a lie. Moreover, lying in front of a living legend of the kingdom was tantamount to turning the kingdom into an enemy.
“Demons live with magic in their bodies. If you wash away the magic from their bodies, they become nothing more than empty shells.”
“You mean you expelled it.”
“Yes.”
“Hmm.”
Darahahn let out a sigh.
It was an unimaginable feat.
Indeed, considering whether Darahahn could use his mana to push away all the mana in the body of another magician.
‘Close to impossible.’
Even if the attributes were opposite, could it be impossible?
‘No, the flow of mana is akin to the heartbeat. It’s not easy even if subjected to an external primary shock. Trying to push out mana won’t make it yield.’
What Lucion did was akin to creating an area where the opponent, a magician, was no longer a magician.
With such abilities, Lucion’s firepower was likely equal to or even greater than his own.
“In truth, Cheonrian was in a suspended state.”
The Black Rabbit’s eyes widened.
“I was contemplating whether to put it in the antique warehouse since I had no use for it. Suddenly, it started operating. It’s as if it’s trying to tell me about the birth of a star.”
A miracle.
It was an event that couldn’t be explained by anything else.
Thus, Darahahn could sense that things were taking an unusual turn.
“It seems we have quite a lot to talk about.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, perhaps we should have a chat. Do you have a place to stay?”
Lucion nodded.
“I’m staying at an inn.”
“Stay in the mansion. I’ll provide everything you desire.”
Lucion glanced at Lucía’s face.
It would be more pleasant to stay in a mansion than an inn. It was not a situation where he could refuse kindness.
He was aware of the fact that the demons had spread throughout Parnachia.
Aren’t you happy to annihilate the enemy?
On the contrary, he was afraid.
Since the hero party was chosen much later in chronological order.