One Flap Of A Butterfly’s Wings (2)

‘That kid? My goodness, over a hundred people have died because of them.’

‘Really? I heard they’re some ominous child who devours people.’

‘Come here, my disciple. Oh ho, the master is calling… That’s right. Hurry, hurry.’

‘Heh heh heh. How lovely, so beautiful.’

Mae Young-ryeong was having a deeply unsettling dream.

But the dream felt familiar, as if she’d had it not long ago.

She tossed and turned to wake up, but as if pinned by sleep paralysis, she couldn’t wake.

It’s a dream! It’s a dream!!

‘Uhuhuhuhu.’

‘Oh hohohohoho.’

‘Gasp, gasp…’

No! This is a dream! If I wake up it’ll be fine. Wake up, please…

‘My disciple… come here.’

‘Uhuhu, my disciple…’

‘How beautiful! My disciple!’

『‘Probabilistic Absolute Recovery’ activated.』

Please, someone wake me up! Please…

‘My disciple… come here.’

‘Uhuhu, my disciple…’

‘How lovely! My disciple.’

‘Uhuhuhuhu.’

‘Oh hohohohoho.’

‘Gasp gasp…’

『‘Probabilistic Absolute Recovery’ activated.』

Please……

…

…

『‘Probabilistic Absolute Recovery’ activated.』

Please… please… just kill me…

…

…

Mae Young-ryeong was repeatedly trapped in nightmares full of crushingly negative emotions.

If she hadn’t had ‘Probabilistic Absolute Recovery’, she would likely have gone insane.

Her mind and body would recover, then the nightmare would storm back. Recover again. Nightmare again.

Even though her kidnappers hadn’t harmed her, the moment she watched a patient she’d barely saved die before her eyes, her psychological defenses collapsed.

She was enduring a torture more vicious than any physical torment, one no one had expected or intended.

The archbishop’s study, located at the very heart of the largest temple in Exorsus that worships Amor, the love deity also called a Heavenly God.

Through the crack of the door, chilling screams and moans were continuously spilling out.

The moment I opened the main gate and entered, five tower masters began close protection.

Perhaps my order to raise the alert to the highest level had been conveyed well, because the five tower masters surrounded me without a gap, front, back, sides, and above.

It wasn’t just the five tower masters. As we moved along the white marble avenue from the gate to the mansion, the presence felt immense.

Along the walls and throughout the garden, around the mansion and on the roofs.

I stopped and looked around; a large number of mages stood out, cloaked in robes of five colors.

They even held the wands mages readying for battle would carry.

Some had their eyes closed, others checked spells; each one spread mana from their assigned positions.

Finally, a net of divine power stretched from the mansion’s high, sturdy walls up over the air above it.

The hemispherical net of divine power enveloped the entire mansion, including the garden.

“Did you activate that?”

“Yes. No one can approach right now.”

“Lower the alert one level for now, and deactivate that, embarrassingly named ‘Anti-Dragon Defensive Array’ magic circle. Keep defenses tight inside but don’t make it obvious outside.”

“Understood.”

Only the two tower masters in white and blue robes remained; the other three vanished from the spot.

By the time we passed the wide garden and reached the mansion, the mages outside the mansion’s immediate vicinity had also disappeared.

When I entered, perhaps having been notified of my arrival, Tess and the legion members waited with tense faces, like soldiers receiving their commander for inspection.

Even Naruan didn’t rush to me.

“Let’s go to the reception room. Tess, bring Miku too. All tower masters must attend. Where are the masters?”

“They’re at the training ground.”

“Good. Tell them I’ll visit them separately.”

“Yes.”

While Tess fetched Miku, the reception room filled with suffocating silence. Naruan and Arun kept clearing their throats, as if stifled.

But my mind was busy planning ahead; I paid no heed to their discomfort or curiosity.

‘They kidnapped Mae Young-ryeong because they knew she was a representative who could cure the plague? No, wait. If Genesis was right, they attacked as soon as she finished treatment and lifted the wards. That would mean they wanted to hide the plague information. But the problem is…’

After the abduction, it would appear the representative had indeed treated plague patients.

For Benialis, it’s clearly a situation that makes him sweat blood.

This is where the trouble begins.

With Mae Young-ryeong’s involvement, the future I knew and all of Benialis’s plans were disrupted.

As soon as we left the Garden of Gods and checked on Beniaris, he paced the room muttering incessantly.

Now the situation would run away like a runaway locomotive in a direction even Beniaris hadn’t expected, like a butterfly’s small flap altering the climate.

“Damn it!”

“Hic!”

Thoughts stacked on thoughts until my head burned; frustrated, I spat an exasperated word. Naruan hiccuped in response.

Only then did I realize I was in the reception room with all the representatives.

“You must all be curious, but wait a moment. I’ll tell everything at once when Miku arrives.”

I had just said that and was about to continue thinking when Tess entered the reception room with Miku.

Steward Tess and his son Miku, the five magic tower masters, and representatives Lee Hyo-ju, Hazel, Naruan, and Arun.

Once all these extraordinary people gathered, I began explaining the situation.

“There are two problems. First: Mae Young-ryeong has been kidnapped.”

“Whaat?”

“…Is that even possible?”

“…?”

The representatives were more shocked than anyone; Arun and Lee Hyo-ju even asked if it was possible.

“It’s possible. The kidnapper is a representative. We’ve located where she’s being held.”

“Let’s go rescue her!”

“Sit down, Arun. I’m talking.”

“…Yes.”

I glared at Arun as he sulked back into his seat, then continued.

“The problem is the location. Mae Young-ryeong is being held in the archbishop’s study of the Amor temple, a Heavenly God’s temple, in Exorsus.”

“Hmm…”

Murmurs.

“Quiet. Listen until I finish. Second: a plague the continent has never seen before is spreading across the Battlefield of the Gods. Anyone on the continent who isn’t a representative will die if infected. Those as strong as tower masters might hold out a bit longer, but they’ll die eventually; it’s only a matter of time.”

Plague.

Even the tower masters’ eyes widened at that terrifying word.

To those living on the continent, a plague is practically another name for the devil.

“When we first entered the Battlefield of the Gods, we spotted signs of the plague in many places and prepared medicines. But now, for some reason, it’s spreading faster than expected. So I’ll have to stay at the workshop for the next week. Focus from now on. If we’re to overcome this and rescue Mae Young-ryeong safely, we must all mesh like gears. Understood?”

“Yes!”

Arun and Naruan, usually playful, and even the five tower masters answered in unison like privates, faces set.

“I’ll explain the plan. If you have anything to add, raise your hand and speak clearly. The operation date is in ten days. Until then, all mages belonging to the five magic towers must return to Exorsus without exception. Close not just the towers but also branch gates and have everyone come to the mansion. If space is short, pitch tents or build temporary barracks on the training ground behind. Understand? If you don’t want to watch mages die, hurry. If anyone’s already infected, bring them here by any means; keep them alive and we’ll try to save them.”

“Th-thank you!”

“But one caution: come discreetly, and don’t spread rumors. If word leaks, our plan could be ruined by people begging to be saved before we’re ready.”

“Yes!”

“Good. Tower masters, leave now. Hurry. Keep the mansion’s guards as they are. Ah! Select twenty mages skilled in potion-making, preferably those with good stamina. They’ll assist in two shifts for a week.”

I watched the five tower masters teleport away, then turned to the remaining representatives.

Naruan and Arun clicked their heels and swallowed, as if eager for some great adventure.

“Miku, the supplies you were told to prepare?”

“I prepared 20% more than you requested.”

Miku politely handed me a magic pouch.

He’d probably barely managed the original amount, but his resourcefulness was clear. I praised Miku, feeling a rare satisfaction among the representatives.

“Good. Well done. As a reward, include him in this round of medicine-making. I’ll head to the workshop shortly. Go and wait there. Tess, what about that order I gave earlier to prepare?”

I waved Miku off, telling him to go ahead, and immediately asked Tess about the earlier command.

“Yes. We’ve purchased all the houses adjacent to Kim Han’s mansion.”

“Good. Relocate everyone except the mages from the magic towers, their families, immediately. Damn it! This wasn’t how this was supposed to go… Anyway, Tess, start the move now. Moving families is different from moving mages. Make the relocation noisy. Advertise that the Church is buying nearby houses and land to personally care for the slaves’ families. Hurry.”

“Leave it to me.”

Tess answered with resolve, bowed deeply, and left. Without waiting to watch him leave, I called the next person’s name.

“And Naruan.”

“Yes! No, sir!”

Though standing up wouldn’t make much difference, I gave Naruan a few orders, handed her a book, and gave a final warning.

“Never follow anyone who promises treats or says I’ve called you. Got it?”

I repeated the warning until Naruan could recite it by heart. She nodded as if completely confident.

Watching Naruan leave made me uneasy, but there was nothing to be done; she’s in her second year now and must do her part.

“Lee Hyo-ju, here’s what you need to do while I’m at the workshop. Most importantly, you must handle internal affairs in my absence. Read it carefully, memorize it, then burn it.”

Lee Hyo-ju read the note I handed her several times, nodded, and used divine power to burn it.

I stood, tapped Lee Hyo-ju’s shoulder twice as she passed, and looked at the remaining Arun and Hazel.

“Arun, you’re the most important.”

“Of course! Leave it to me.”

“Right. Take this letter and go to the only library in Exorsus, located between the mansion and the square. Find the librarian named Shio, tell them I sent you, hand over the letter, and bring back the reply.”

Lowering my voice for emphasis, I made the request; Arun listened seriously but his expression gradually became odd.

Then he stammered as he spoke.

“Um… Mr. Kim Han? No, Captain. This sounds like just an errand, doesn’t it?”

Sharp mind in a useless place.

But giving up here wouldn’t solve the problem of this troublemaker. The quietest solution is to keep him busy running errands, and maybe have him learn a spell Shio recommends.

“No. This is very important; you mustn’t lose it en route. Go and return as quickly as possible. Also, that librarian is very picky; you’ll have to do a few things to get a reply. You’re the only one who can do it. I trust you.”

“Ah! Yes! Trust only me! Hahaha.”

Arun leapt up, squared his shoulders, puffed out his chest, and left the reception room.

Only Hazel and I remained in the room.

“Hazel.”

“I’m listening, mate.”

“Inspect around the Amor temple. It won’t be a problem when we go to rescue Mae Young-ryeong, but I’ll need your help when exiting. Go and finish the spatial design now.”

“Do not worry.”

He answered calmly, and as he passed, I took Hazel’s wrist.

Seeing Hazel standing tall and tense, I hesitated a long while before finally speaking.

“When this is over, let’s talk seriously. For now, be careful. Don’t overdo it.”

“…Huh?! Mate!”

“Now go.”

“…Alright. Meeting such a shy mate is giving me heartache. Hohoho.”

When Hazel left the reception room smiling as brightly as forest sunlight, I finally exhaled deeply.

Time was short. The plan had been derailed from the start. I had to flip the board entirely.

The scheme to blindside them based on the old situation was scrapped. I had to take charge in a newly made scenario.

And for that, time was still lacking.

“Damn!”

Even on the way to the workshop, scenarios formed and were discarded repeatedly in my head.