—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: selkie
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Elphis.
In the original novel, she was a ‘villain’ whom the protagonist, Richard, encountered in the Eternal Snow Mountains during his journey to obtain the Soul Sword.
I knew she was in the Black Mountains at this time, but I never expected to run into her like this.
‘I really didn’t want to meet her here…’
Despite her playful expression and youthful appearance, she was the most ruthless among the villains in the latter half of Volume 1.
Her special magic allowed her to exert limited control over monsters. That’s why I had hoped not to encounter her, at least not in the Black Mountains.
Even though her control was limited, in a place overflowing with monsters, the Black Mountains were practically an armory for Elphis.
As long as she had enough mana, she had an entire mountain range full of weapons at her disposal.
‘Wait, but that’s not the case right now, is it?’
Raymond’s eyes sharpened as he scanned the surroundings. There were no monsters in the cave.
That meant this could be a rare chance to eliminate a villain who was bound to be a future obstacle.
Besides, Elphis had already blocked the exit. If they wanted to escape the cave, they had to defeat her. Raymond signaled to Cassias and Cron.
The two knights closed the distance to Elphis in an instant. Just in case, Desia stuck close by, preparing defensive magic. Raymond gathered his mana to support Cassias and Cron.
“Fire Arrow!”
A flaming arrow cut through the darkness, shooting straight at Elphis.
It struck a defensive spell, and the scream he had expected never came. But Cassias and Cron were still there. The two knights lunged at Elphis.
Yet, her expression remained relaxed. In fact, she let out an amused chuckle, as if watching foolish moths rush toward a flame.
‘There shouldn’t be any monsters here, right?’
No matter how hard he looked, there were no signs of orcs, the creatures she was most likely controlling.
‘She has no shield to protect her, so why is she so calm?’
Just as Cassias’ mana-infused sword was about to strike Elphis’ mana shield—
Boom!
With a deafening roar, something burst through the cave wall and slammed into Cassias.
“Argh!”
Cassias let out a pained scream as he was sent flying, crashing into the cave wall. Through the settling dust, Raymond could see his body twitching slightly.
Fortunately, he was still breathing. Cassias would later become an important pillar of support within the Imperial Army. Losing him here wasn’t an option.
Though he was a minor character, he had a detailed background.
He was skilled in swordsmanship and, in the novel, played a role in rebuilding the Philios Empire after the Bloody Funeral.
“Damn it! Of all things, a Rock Devourer?!”
Cron cursed as he backed away. The Rock Devourer was notoriously difficult to deal with among the cave-dwelling monsters.
As an ordinary knight without a mana sword, Cron had no chance against it.
Retreating was the smart move. He was someone who knew when to hold back his reckless bravery.
“Gestain.”
Raymond called Gestain’s name calmly. The one-armed elite guard hesitated. He worried that his lord, who had taught him how to wield a sword again, might be in danger.
“I have an impenetrable shield. You will be my sword and cut down that mage.”
“Lady Desia. I leave our lord in your hands.”
“Don’t worry, Commander. My shield isn’t weak enough for you to be concerned.”
Desia replied brightly. She was a high-rank magician, and she had once mastered Absolute Shield. A defensive specialist.
Gestain knew that well.
Did that ease his mind a little? The one-armed high-ranking knight slowly took a step forward.
Just when it seemed like he was gradually picking up speed, he kicked off the ground, diving under the Rock Devourer like a lightning bolt and slashing with his sword.
“Kieeeek!”
The Rock Devourer’s carapace, tough as iron, split open, spraying crimson blood. The sticky liquid splattered across the cave walls and onto Gestain.
“Oh wow, we have a high-ranking knight here?”
Elphis mused with interest. As a top-tier mage, it was easy for her to gauge Gestain’s level from his mana sword.
“But if you step forward… what happens to the one behind you?”
As she aimed her staff, a falcon wreathed in electricity materialized and spread its wings.
The mana radiating from it was thick, fitting for top-tier magic. For a split second, Gestain realized his mistake. But Raymond remained unfazed. He had a reliable ‘shield.’
“Desia.”
“Don’t worry. I’m standing right here, Your Highness.”
Stepping forward, Desia waved her staff. A massive magic circle appeared.
The intricate blue pattern rotated once, then a colossal mana shield unfolded.
The thunder falcon crashed into the shield and fell, its energy dissipating.
“Huh? That shouldn’t be possible…”
Elphis had used top-tier magic. And yet, it failed to pierce a mere high-rank magician’s mana shield?
Her usual playful expression wavered for a moment.
‘As expected of the lineage of a Grand Mage. The protagonist’s judgment wasn’t wrong.’
A smile crept onto Raymond’s lips. Desia was a descendant of the Helly family, a bloodline of guardian Grand Mages.
Raymond had helped her grow efficiently, but she had also inherited the family’s secret techniques and forbidden magic.
‘A shield must remain unshaken by any storm.’
A creed passed down through the Helly family.
Raymond shifted his gaze from Elphis to Desia.
She stood at around 160 cm, with a slender frame. But at this moment, she felt more reassuring than any knight before him.
Sensing his gaze, Desia turned slightly to look back at him.
Her blue eyes shimmered, and a fresh smile graced her lips.
It was a confident declaration: The shield protecting you will never waver.
Raymond began chanting a spell, keeping Elphis in check.
“Fire Arrow.”
The flaming arrow cut through the darkness but failed to penetrate Elphis’ mana shield.
Watching the flames disperse powerlessly against the blue mana barrier, Elphis’ smile deepened. But so did Raymond’s.
He had never expected a mid-tier spell to break through a top-tier mage’s defense anyway.
It was merely a diversion to hold Elphis’s attention while Gestain advanced.
“Oh my? You’ve already made it this far?”
On the ground soaked with mud, a Rock Devourer lay motionless, its body growing cold.
And Gestain, drenched in blood from head to toe, charged toward Elphis with eyes gleaming in a chilling, eerie light.
Despite wearing heavy plate armor, his movements were swift as he dashed forward in an instant.
“Oh? It’s already dead.”
Elphis muttered, her voice devoid of any hint of surprise. Even with the one-armed high-ranking knight closing in on her, her characteristic expression remained unchanged.
“Then this time, there are two.”
With a light wave of her staff, two Rock Devourers burst through the walls and ceiling of the cave. Gestain, who had been just three meters away from reaching Elphis, was forced to hastily retreat due to the sudden interference.
As the two Rock Devourers opened their massive jaws, lined with razor-sharp teeth that could chew through stone, Gestain’s expression hardened slightly.
Both Gestain and Cron tensed at the sight of two additional Rock Devourers appearing, but the one most shocked was Raymond.
‘Was Elphis ever this powerful?’
According to the novel’s descriptions and settings, Elphis’s control over monsters wasn’t supposed to be this strong.
She wielded vision magic of domination, but her understanding of it was lacking. At most, she could control a single Rock Devourer, and even then, the commands she could give were severely limited.
‘But this… This is wrong. Something is definitely wrong.’
Raymond’s gaze turned cold. He was certain he hadn’t misremembered the settings and descriptions from the novel. He remembered them perfectly.
And there was no way the settings themselves had changed. In the novel, the ‘settings’ were absolute. So how could this situation be explained?
‘The progression has changed.’
Based on his experiences so far, major events had remained unchanged.
In other words, the main storyline hadn’t shifted, but since he had triggered various incidents while inhabiting the body of the villainous extra, the Fifth Prince, certain variables must have emerged.
Those variables had influenced the course of events. That was the only explanation.
He had lost some of the advantages of knowing the future developments, but he wasn’t worried.
The novel’s absolute ‘settings’ would never change, and Raymond had memorized all of them.
“Sir Cron! Protect His Highness, the Fifth Prince!”
“Understood!”
Gestain shouted, assuming that there might be more Rock Devourers lurking nearby.
With Cassias unconscious, Cron rushed to Raymond’s side. Even with Desia present, more guards were always better.
“Gestain! You must kill that woman!”
If a single cog in the machine malfunctioned, the entire mechanism would come to a halt. Variables had to be eliminated.
Gestain responded with a firm nod instead of words and launched himself at Elphis.
His mana sword gleamed, splitting open the carapaces of the Rock Devourers. Blood spurted like a fountain.
Elphis had exhausted most of her mana controlling the two Rock Devourers, leaving her no room to hinder Gestain with magic.
“Well, I suppose I’ll have to retreat for today.”
Her voice remained composed, but she bit her lip slightly, frustration evident in her tone.
She had thought she had grown stronger, but she still wasn’t capable of handling a high-ranking knight. Moreover, she sensed another presence approaching from behind.
“I have to attend a ‘meeting’ at the association today, so this will be it for now. Let’s have more fun next time.”
As she took a step back, her body melted into the darkness. At the same time, Gestain’s sword cleaved the last remaining Rock Devourer in two.
“I sense a powerful mana presence near the passage.”
Desia spoke. Though her words were a warning, her tone carried a hint of relief. Seeing that, Raymond also felt reassured.
If she recognized the powerful mana presence, it had to be either the Red Tower Master or the Blue Tower Master.
Sure enough, moments later, bathed in the glow of a bright light spell, the Red Tower Master appeared.
His complexion was still pale from having recently expanded a raging wildfire, but the presence of a high-ranking mage was reassuring.
“Sir Berenus. You arrived faster than expected.”
“I was concerned about His Highness, the Fifth Prince. That old man, the Blue Tower Master, can handle himself just fine, so I thought it was more urgent to come here first.”
“I’m glad you came. Having the Red Tower Master with us is truly reassuring.”
Raymond spoke honestly. Cassias and Marquis Crayer were both gravely injured, and this was the Ghost Unit’s hideout.
At any moment, more enemies could appear, so the presence of the Red Tower Master was a great relief.
However, he couldn’t help but feel a bit regretful. If only he had arrived five minutes earlier, they could have killed Elphis.
‘There won’t be a second chance, Elphis.’
Raymond’s gaze fixed on the spot where Elphis had vanished. The next time they crossed paths, he would make sure to kill her. He wouldn’t leave any loose ends. He would eliminate her completely.
She hadn’t played a significant role beyond the latter half of the first volume, so missing this chance wasn’t too concerning.
But one thing bothered him—the ‘association’ she had mentioned just before disappearing.
‘It’s suspicious.’
In the setting notes written by the author of “Empire of the Dead”, there was only one group that went by the name ‘association.’
The Apocalypse Association.
Among all the detailed settings meticulously crafted by the author, the only mention of this organization was a single line:
‘They exist, yet they do not.’
A cryptic description. That was all.
The author of “Empire of the Dead” was known for their extensive and detailed world-building, yet the ‘Apocalypse Association’ was an exception.
With no information available, Raymond had no immediate way to counter them.
‘If I don’t know about the Apocalypse Association, I’ll just have to use other information.’
Raymond’s eyes gleamed coldly. Though he lacked knowledge about the Apocalypse Association, he had memorized the author’s setting notes.
By leveraging the other information he possessed, he could find a way to counter them.
‘Come if you dare. I’ll meet you with everything I have.’
A chilling smile spread across his lips.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
