Chapter 175
After abruptly ending the conversation with Birman, Sion immediately tried to locate Do-Jin. Since the emblem she had given him was carved from her own mana, tracking him was a simple matter. However, there was no response when she tried.
“Honestly...”
Under normal circumstances, she would have started worrying from the moment the signal was cut, but this situation was different.
He headed north and disappeared, almost like he walked into some sort of fog...
Birman’s report had been ridiculous, yet she knew the core of it was true. She had already seen the nonsense Do-Jin had been up to, including the absurd Magic Eye that screamed “made by that crusty old vampire.”
She knew he had been involved with something up there. She simply hadn’t expected him to still be inside that place even now. Sion clicked her tongue and shook her head with real irritation. He was definitely inside that old fossil’s domain. That fog-covered blank spot felt exactly like that familiar aura.
There is absolutely nothing good that comes from hanging around that relic.
Mages were all missing a few screws, but the old one in the north was on a different level. Compared to him, she felt practically normal.
At the very least, I am better than that walking antique. With that deeply self-satisfied thought, Sion lifted her hand and drew a spell circle into the air.
The glowing pattern unraveled into strands of white mana and twisted together into the shape of a bird. The woven creature spread its wings, tore open a small seam in space, and flew out of the tower.
He probably still has no idea anything is happening, so someone should tell him.
Maybe he was even panicking, worrying about getting dragged off by some religious lunatics. She should reassure him. That seemed like the responsible, adult thing to do. Sion nodded, convinced of her own maturity.
A soft laugh slipped out of her without thinking. It wasn’t dignified, just the bright, pleased sound a child makes when they finally get a part in a school play. Unaware of it, Sion Grace looked pleased with herself in the most childish way imaginable.
***
Do-Jin dragged himself up to the surface of the Floating Continent even though he felt like ripping his hair out. He wanted a break, but if he took one now, what was he supposed to tell the party members who had hauled themselves all the way out here at his beck and call?
He looked out over the wide-open landscape and let out a long sigh. God, this world is disgustingly beautiful.
The world sparkled, clean and bright, yet his life was in the gutter. He couldn’t help resenting how everything around him kept working perfectly while he was drowning in disaster.
At least the Celestial See will not slap a wanted poster on me right away.
Regenians were far more politically sensitive than ordinary adventurers. The world was in chaos with monsters running rampant, Bella silent, and Laves shining like a lighthouse.
To the Celestial See, this was a crisis that could shake their already fragile religious authority. Regenians were the giant band-aid they depended on to stabilize the continent. If that system collapsed, the Church would lose what little credibility it still had.
And now, one of the Regenians was running around with vampires, the monsters the Celestial See had spent centuries branding as humanity’s mortal enemies. If the Church let that get out and posted a wanted notice, it would be like smearing sewage across its own face.
The Empire would not be thrilled either.
There had to be some way to use the situation, do a little political tightrope-walking, and buy some room to maneuver. The problem was simple. Do-Jin had no idea what state the Celestial See was in this moment. His knowledge of them only began far later in the original timeline.
When the Cult of Ruin really started making noise, the Celestial See had clawed its way back onto the stage. It could even be said that the Cult of Ruin only surfaced after the Celestial See had already crumbled.
I should at least check with NPCs I remember. If they are still around, I can—
He never finished the thought, however, as something shot toward him from a distance. It jumped through space in a single breath and arrived right in front of him. Do-Jin and the rest of the party didn’t even have time to react.
Only one person moved. Karin had tagged along to watch him hunt, and she threw herself forward, baring her fangs and swatting the incoming light aside with enough force to leave the air shaking.
“Ah?” Karin faltered.
Before she could overpower it, the glowing bird flickered. Karin vanished in a blink and reappeared far away, trapped inside a cage made of shimmering threads. She slammed her fists against the glowing walls again and again, but nothing happened. The bird that had flicked Karin out of the way split apart and reformed into a communication sigil.
“It has been a while.”
The party froze at the sight of a magical bird exploding into a spell circle that began speaking. Do-Jin raised a hand to calm them. The voice was unexpected, but very familiar.
“Lady Sion,” Do-Jin called out. She didn’t normally call like this for no reason, so he felt a sinking suspicion that those Celestial See idiots were screeching.
Of course, his suspicion was right. She went straight for the jugular. Do-Jin lifted his gaze to the sky. It was painfully clear and blue, but his life was absolutely fucked. Shouldn’t there be rain or thunder or something? Although if there was, he probably would have stared at the clouds and thought, Great, the weather is as shitty as my mood.
“Good lord.” He let out a long exhale.
Sion’s tone held a hint of amusement. “You already know, I see.”
“Yes. I never imagined the fire would spread all the way to you.”
When he thought about it afterward, it wasn’t even a complicated chain of events. His mind had simply been too cluttered to connect the dots earlier. A narrowed field of view always caused trouble.
While he was busy blaming himself, Sion spoke, “It is not even worth calling a crisis. The Celestial See idiots are just throwing a tantrum. There are plenty of ways to fix this, so you do not need to worry.”
She sounded far too pleased with herself. To be fair, she had every right. The Celestial See might have lost most of its influence, but it was still the Celestial See. The fact that she could speak of them like this said everything about her weight in the world.
Do-Jin had never had someone this reliable in his corner. He felt a warm, unfamiliar sense of reassurance. However, what bothered him was Sion’s definition of a solution. When it came to social skills, she wasn’t exactly a role model.
“May I ask what kind of solution you have in mind?”
“There are two. The first is to simply ignore them. Even if they open an investigation, they will not find anything if I decide to hide it.”
Yes, they wouldn’t find it, but they would know she was hiding it. And if they tore apart box after box only to find every one still sealed, their suspicion would deepen. It was like watching someone yell, “Do you have proof? Do you have proof?!” while already deciding he was guilty.
“What about the second option?”
“Just ignore them. If Elthomagia declares that we will not hand him over, the Celestial See has no power to force anything. They are in no position to demand my disciple’s head as if they have any leverage. They will try to cover it up instead.”
That made sense. The current Celestial See couldn’t win a power struggle against Elthomagia or Sion Grace. Furthermore, the humiliation would be enormous, and the grudge it would create even larger. That kind of resentment would fester and create new problems later. When the coming disasters struck, everyone would need to work together just to survive.
There was no benefit in pushing the Celestial See and the sorcerers into open hostility. They would cooperate eventually, but only after both sides were too battered to keep posturing. Do-Jin didn’t want to waste anything on pointless conflicts. He already had more than enough dangerous sparks to stomp out. He refused to create fresh ones with his own hands.
“I appreciate what you’re offering, but I do not intend to bulldoze the issue or sweep it under the rug. I want to resolve this myself.”
Do-Jin was the Apostle of the Star. That meant the divine being they worshiped had chosen him. His Status Window only showed text with no skills or power attached yet, but if he looked hard enough, there had to be a way to prove it.
“You want to handle it personally? That will not be easy.”
“That is why I would like your help in a different direction, if possible.”
Sion sounded intrigued. “You refused my hand and now want a different kind of help. I am curious to hear what you mean.”
“I need someone inside the Celestial See who will actually talk. To do that, I need to understand their internal situation and who the key figures are. I was hoping you could look into that.”
Sion fell silent for a moment. She looked like her brain had stalled because he’d asked for help with something that wasn’t magic.
Do-Jin kindly pointed her in the right direction. “If you give the order to someone below you, I am sure they will take care of it.”
The communication sigil flickered in a way that looked uncannily like an “Oh, I get it now.”
“Do not worry. Something like that will be handled quickly.”
“I am sorry for dragging you into this mess. And thank you for helping me.”
As Do-Jin spoke, he realized something. For some reason, Sion had been acting unusually serious today. It showed in the way she talked and even in the words she chose. Then, one particular word he had glossed over earlier suddenly caught his attention.
Sion had referred to him as her disciple. Strictly speaking, every sorcerer under Elthomagia could technically be considered her disciple. However, even Do-Jin wasn’t dense enough to miss the difference in tone. The way she said it carried weight. And the fact that she had gone as far as sending a spell across the entire Floating Continent just to say this made it even clearer.
Sion Grace rarely cared about anything happening in the mortal world, so this level of involvement was extremely unusual.
“Thank you,” Do-Jin said.
He kept it simple. There was no point dragging out the topic or dissecting what she meant by calling him her disciple, especially not with someone like Sion. He knew he had to pretend he didn’t notice.
Sion probably didn’t understand her own feelings yet, so she was better off unaware. If he made her conscious of it, she might retreat like a startled turtle or bolt in some bizarre direction instead.
“There is no need for thanks. I am simply glad something interesting happened during my very boring days. There is only one thing I am concerned about.”
Her tone made it sound like she was about to say something important. Do-Jin listened closely. Sion lowered her voice as if she were revealing a matter of great importance.
“Stay away from the old man.”
“Sorry? Which old man?” he asked, completely oblivious to who she meant.
“The old man in the north.”
“You mean His Grace the Grand Duke...”
“Yes. That gloomy bastard. I am old enough myself, yet that fossil thinks being older gives him the right to treat me like a child.” Sion started grumbling, sounding like she was throwing a fit rather than speaking as the legendary Archmage she was supposed to be.
Do-Jin felt a small wave of dizziness wash over him. It was one thing for Archmages to know each other. It was another thing entirely for them to be this childish about it. He couldn’t help thinking a very uncharitable thought.
It’s not that the Grand Duke is an old man, but you’re just being a child...