Chapter 40: Adding Insult to Injury

Late at Night.

Yohan traveled for two full days by carriage, escorted by knights, until he arrived in a village within the Eckarsi Count’s territory.

Perhaps due to the widespread rumors about a possible demon lair, the village’s atmosphere was uneasy.

Or maybe it was simply the dark night, coupled with the imminent rain.

“Are you from the Bureau?”

As the carriage approached the village entrance, a guard standing at the gate asked respectfully.

“Yes.”

The leading knight nodded, and the guard promptly moved aside the barricade blocking the road.

“Please take care of us.”

There was a hint of desperation in the guard’s voice, suggesting he had grown fond of this village.

Accompanied by the Bureau knights, Yohan entered the village.

The inner atmosphere was just as foreboding.

It was likely because all activity had come to a halt following the emergence of the demon lair.

Yohan slowly observed his surroundings as he entered the village.

The reservoir was dry, the wells were empty, and the fields revealed nothing but cracked, barren land.

An old man sat at the village entrance, silently.

His deeply lined face exuded a dry, withered air.

‘Something’s wrong.’

Thinking this odd, Yohan furrowed his brows.

The air was unreasonably dry, as though even the breeze was parched.

It felt less like a living village and more like a place where life was slowly fading.

“High Mage Harssen, I’m not the only one who feels this strange, right?”

The first-rank knight assigned to guard Yohan spoke.

He too seemed to sense the odd atmosphere.

“Yes. It seems certain that there’s a demon lair here.”

All demon lairs share common characteristics: the land becomes desolate, life decays, and the air is thick.

A landscape ravaged by hunger.

This village looked exactly like that.

“We’ve arrived. The chief’s house is just ahead.”

Yohan disembarked from the carriage.

The chief’s house, visible atop a hill, was not large but appeared well-kept compared to other houses.

As he walked up the slope, he saw a small figure.

An old man with a thick beard and striking white hair stood out.

“You’ve arrived. I am Haden, the village chief of Luden Village in Eckarsi County.”

The chief, Haden, bowed deeply.

He appeared intimidated by the presence of the Empire’s nobility and the Bureau officials.

“Where is the demon lair?”

Yohan asked.

The chief straightened with difficulty and pointed in a direction.

“It’s not far. If you head straight out the northern gate, you’ll come to a mountain path. Even from there, you’ll sense the ominous energy.”

Yohan, observing the chief carefully, nodded.

“Let’s check it out immediately. Can someone guide us?”

“Yes, of course. Hadu?”

The chief called out, and a young man emerged, his face resembling the chief’s, indicating he was likely his son.

“This is my son, Hadu. He will guide you along the path.”

“I’m Hadu. I’m familiar with the mountain trails.”

“Good.”

Yohan nodded and turned around.

Hadu hesitated briefly, confused, before realizing he was meant to lead the way and hurriedly stepped forward.

“What about the carriage?”

A knight asked.

“With a demon lair ahead, we can’t proceed by carriage. Leave it behind.”

Yohan turned his gaze toward the direction of the demon lair.

“Hadu, can you ride a horse?”

“Yes. I’ve often traveled to the city, so I can ride.”

“Good. Then, let’s set off right away.”

As they climbed the northern mountain path, the foreboding atmosphere grew thicker.

They remained vigilant, as beasts could appear at any moment.

“It’s over there.”

Hadu pointed toward a dense patch of black fog.

The air was filled with a dark energy—typical of an unsealed demon lair.

“Hadu, return to the village. We’ll handle things from here.”

“Yes.”

After sending the chief’s son back, Yohan turned to the knight beside him.

“It seems this may take some time.”

The knight nodded with a troubled expression.

“Indeed. With a disturbance of that level, we don’t know when it might overflow. We can’t leave it unchecked.”

If they merely assessed it and left, an overflow could devastate the village.

That would only complicate matters later.

“Let’s go further in.”

Together with the knights, Yohan stepped onto the mountain path shrouded in black fog.

The malevolent energy crept up his spine.

As Yohan and the knights advanced, they soon spotted lurking beasts.

Their claws scratched against the rocks, emitting a chilling sound, while their green eyes gleamed in the darkness.

“Indeed. There are beasts here.”

Schling.

The knights dismounted cautiously, unsheathing their swords and preparing for battle.

Their armor clinked with each movement.

“Krrrk?”

The beasts turned toward them, alerted by the sound.

Yohan slowly gathered his mana.

“High Mage Harssen, save your mana. We’ll handle it ourselves.”

Though Yohan didn’t necessarily need to conserve his mana, he agreed with the knight’s suggestion.

There was no need to draw extra attention by using magic here.

“Keeaaah!”

“Maintain formation!”

As the beasts charged, the knights swung their swords in formation.

Mana-infused blades flashed through the thick fog.

Swick!

The beasts’ throats were swiftly slashed.

The mana blades, each glowing with different hues, moved relentlessly.

Though the number of beasts was considerable, the low-ranked monsters stood no chance against the five first-rank knights.

“It’s all clear.”

“Let’s move in closer.”

Yohan and the knights ventured deeper into the black fog, heading toward the source of the ominous energy.

“This is…”

“Just as expected.”

“It’s not ordinary.”

A rift from which black fog emanated stretched before them, filled with utter darkness.

It was impossible to see anything with the naked eye.

But even though they couldn’t see, they could feel it.

A presence. Something was writhing within.

“It’s on the verge of overflowing.”

“We can’t handle this alone.”

“We should evacuate the villagers.”

The knights offered their opinions, which was a wise call.

The rift in the demon lair was unusually large.

Yohan would have to apologize to the Count of Eckarsi, but part of his territory would have to be declared a restricted zone.

“Then let’s go.”

As Yohan mounted his horse again, he suddenly sensed a sharp presence.

Instinctively, he maximized his spiritual shield.

Stop!

A finely honed dagger halted right in front of Yohan’s eyes.

But the knights weren’t so fortunate.

“Gah!”

“What…what’s this?!”

“Aaagh…!”

Through the black fog, he heard their cries.

“It’s poison!”

“My arm…! Argh!!”

“I can’t feel my legs…!”

The knights’ bodies stiffened, rendered unable to fight as a mysterious poison coated the daggers.

“An ambush!”

Yohan turned quickly, but he saw nothing through the dense fog.

“Anyone who can move, respond!”

He called out in the direction of the knights, but no answer came.

Not even a minute had passed, yet it seemed this poison was exceedingly potent.

‘I anticipated this, but to think someone would strike while we were surveying the lair.’

Who would order such a reckless action? Whether it was Cassis or Fedelian, both were outrageous fools, so it wouldn’t be surprising if either were responsible.

“Are they shadows? Or hyenas? Judging by their fighting style, they’re not from the Black Knights.”

Yohan soon realized that his opponents were hyenas.

He recognized the type of daggers they wielded.

“Hyenas, huh? Come out.”

Yohan scanned his surroundings sharply, waiting for the hyenas.

The murderous aura lingering in the air was heavy.

These weren’t just ordinary hyenas.

“You’re quick-witted. How did you know it was us?”

The hyenas emerged from the darkness, activating their mana blades as they slowly approached.

There were ten of them in total.

“There were others who used daggers like these.”

Yohan intentionally engaged them in conversation as he gradually gathered his mana.

This was the edge of the demon lair; escaping was the priority.

The lead hyena smirked.

“If you’re thinking of escaping, give it up. The odds are near zero.”

He aimed his sword at Yohan.

The likelihood of Yohan escaping here was indeed close to zero, as the limited visibility near the demon lair was one problem, and all of the opponents were at least first-rank.

It would be either complete annihilation or his own death.

‘Capturing them would be ideal, but it’s impossible.’

These hyenas were notorious for their escape skills and possessed formidable strength.

Even though Yohan was a high-ranking mage, it was beyond his abilities.

“Begin!”

Before the hyena’s command was even finished, daggers flew toward Yohan.

Dozens of blades rushed at him.

Mana from Yohan’s spiritual shield spread out like threads.

The daggers stopped mid-air, twisted out of trajectory, and snapped.

But there was no time to relax.

The hyenas’ mana blades immediately followed, pressing in on him.

With a cold expression, Yohan pushed off the ground.

Schwack!

As he dodged through an opening, three mana blades slashed through the air.

The next wave of attacks approached right after, once again with mana blades.

Gritting his teeth, Yohan twisted his body.

Swoosh!

A blade rushing at terrifying speed grazed just past him.

Another dagger flew at him.

He paid it no mind.

As expected, the dagger couldn’t penetrate his spiritual shield.

Yohan used mana-enhanced strength to boost his physical capabilities.

As he quickly widened the gap, the hyenas’ eyes widened.

“A mage with such physical ability?”

“Focus! He’s a high-ranking mage!”

Their shock only lasted a moment.

The hyenas quickly regained composure and regrouped.

“Attack!”

Not wanting to give Yohan time to cast any spells, they charged at him.

The hyenas shot forward like arrows.

Close at hand, their attacks poured in with no gaps.

Every blade was wrapped in mana.

If there were fewer attackers, he might have been able to fend them off, but it was impossible to intercept all ten attackers with his spiritual threads.

He poured as much mana as possible into reinforcing the spiritual shield.

Mana blades cut through the threads surrounding him, closing in.

But he had bought enough time.

“Distortion Sphere.”

Yohan moved his hand.

A fiercely rotating sphere of mana vibrated within his grasp.

He directed it forward, and the distortion sphere followed his arm’s motion, pulling nearby hyenas into its core.

Kaboom!

“Gah…!”

“Ah, aaah!”

The mana of the violently spinning distortion sphere shredded the hyenas and swept through the ground, leaving no trace except red blood.

“He’s a high-ranking mage! Stay alert!”

In an instant, two hyenas were killed, prompting the others to hide in the black fog.

They realized from this encounter that they couldn’t kill Yohan using conventional methods.

As Yohan’s gaze moved through the black fog, he spoke.

“It seems Cassis is quite upset?”

There was no response, but Yohan continued speaking.

“That fool can’t even separate business from personal grudges.”

His voice was filled with annoyance.

It was understandable, given that he was on a crucial mission to scout the demon lair, yet hyenas had been sent after him.

“Following a stupid master is a crime in itself. Since interrogation won’t work due to the oath, I’ll kill you all.”

Yohan drew his mana to the extreme.

A black sphere appeared at his fingertips.

The power of the erupting mana created a whirlwind, sweeping the surroundings.

At that moment—

“Kiyaaak!”

“Krrraaa!”

“Kyaaaak!”

With bizarre screeches, creatures began pouring out from the rift in the demon lair.

Monstrous beings, filled with malice and hostility, flooded out like a tide.

These beasts sought flesh to devour and blood to drink.

It was an overflow.