Chapter 55

‘Ghost’ was confused. For the past few days, he had sharpened all his senses to unravel the great mystery of the Aster estate. But the deeper he dug, the deeper the mystery became. A prosperous estate, ironclad information control, and the existence of ‘Shadows’ like himself. All of this far exceeded what a provincial upstart family could have achieved.

‘Something is there. Behind this family’s rapid rise lies an unknown source of great power.’

He remembered the young man named Kael he had met at the Dawn Guild’s logistics warehouse. The presence he felt from him was not that of a mere assassin. It was the presence of a trained guardian defending his domain.

Ghost revised his objective. Not merely gathering information, but uncovering the source of this unknown power. He evaded Argos’s tight surveillance network and slipped cautiously into the estate’s deepest, darkest reaches, near the abandoned quarry adjacent to the monster forest. His instincts told him. All the keys to the secret were there.

And Rian was waiting for him to arrive.

“The guest has come right up to the front of our stage.”

In the deepest part of the ‘Shadow Forge,’ Rian watched all of Ghost’s movements through a mana crystal orb and spoke. Beside him stood Kael and Hector.

“Master, shall I take care of him now?”

Hector asked, gripping the sword at his hip. There was a killing intent in his eyes toward the intruder who threatened their new lord.

“No, not yet.”

Rian shook his head.

“From now on, we’ll begin a special performance for that guest. Very flashy, and very misleading.”

A cunning light gleamed in Rian’s eyes.

“Hector, take a few knights of the ‘Shadow Blade’ and conduct test firings of the ‘mana rifle’ outside the quarry. Make it as spectacular and powerful as possible. But under no circumstances show the rifle’s detailed appearance. Let them infer its power from the light and sound alone.”

“Understood, my lord!”

“Kael, act like it’s a coincidence and converse with your men near that guest. The conversation should go like this. ‘The power of the relic unearthed from an ancient ruin is too strong and hard to control,’ ‘That weapon merely borrows part of the relic’s power.’ The true source of power sleeps deep within that mountain, called the “Dragon’s Heart.”’

Rian had fashioned the most plausible lie. He would make it seem that the Aster family’s source of power was not Rian’s knowledge but an uncontrollable ancient relic. The aim was to make the Valerian Empire regard the Aster family as an ‘incomprehensible threat’ and thus hesitate to act rashly.

The play began at once.

A distant roar reached Ghost’s ears as he hid in the darkness. He approached cautiously toward the source of the sound. He saw several knights in the quarry yard wielding strange weapons, blasting fire at a massive rock.

Kaboom!

Each time a mana round struck the rock, an explosion nearly equal to a siege Magic erupted. Ghost doubted his own eyes. Such a fearsome weapon was being used so easily by mere knights.

While he was stunned, he heard two shadows conversing in the bushes behind him. It was Kael and one of his subordinates.

“Boss, that ‘fragment of the relic’ is really too dangerous. If it goes berserk…”

“It can’t be helped. Our lord said we must borrow that power to protect ourselves until the ‘Dragon’s Heart’ awakens. If we meddle recklessly, we could all be reduced to ashes.”

The conversation was brief. The two shadows vanished in an instant, but the information they left detonated in Ghost’s mind like a bomb.

‘Ancient ruin… fragment of a relic… Dragon’s Heart…!’

All the pieces fell into place. The Aster family had accidentally discovered an ancient ruin and used the uncontrollable power obtained there to rapidly rise. That weapon was only a portion of that power; the true force slept deep within that mountain. It was a perfectly logical conclusion.

Ghost judged that further investigation would be dangerous. Convinced he had unearthed a secret that might change the empire’s fate, he quietly slipped out of the estate.

That night, on the desk of the Valerian Empire’s Shadow Chancellor, Duke Alcard, lay a report sent at the cost of the sender’s life by his best spy.

‘The Aster family has acquired the power of an ancient relic. Possesses a powerful ancient weapon at an uncontrollable level. The true source of power, called the ‘Dragon’s Heart,’ lies dormant deep within the monster forest. Do not make rash contact. Maintain the status quo and keep it under continuous surveillance.’

Alcard’s red eyes emitted a strange gleam as he read the report.

“Hoho… the Dragon’s Heart, is it? Interesting.”

At the same time, at the ‘Shadow Forge’.

Rian received a report from Kael that Ghost had left the estate.

“He carried off the gift we prepared very carefully.”

Rian flicked the words ‘Valerian Empire’ placed on the continent map with his finger.

“Now they’ll both fear us and covet us at the same time. The ‘relic’ we possess.”