Chapter 78

“Ugh… Ghhk, hngh… I-I’ll answer! The client is the Baronet Aduhn of West District 3!”

“To avenge the grudge of his second son…”

“Don’t pretend well-known facts are new information. Absolute Command. Suffocation. Four minutes.”

Even a well-trained body can hold its breath for over ten minutes. But that’s only if the body is prepared. In a state like this, where both body and mind are collapsing, it’s difficult to endure even half that time.

“Oh my. Four minutes have passed and it’s still not over? I’ve tried this a few times, and adding a little bluff like this works much better. Come on, hang in there. You’re assassins, right? You can handle this, can’t you? Come on. Come on.”

“Ghk!”

“Guhk!”

“Guuuuhk…!”

As expected, when the suffocation finally ended—well past the eagerly awaited four minutes and hitting six—they started collapsing rapidly.

“Kuh-hahahaak!! Hngh! Hngh!! We… we’re from the Jörmungandr Guild…”

“Hngh! Hngh! Hnghh!! O-our guild is… hngh… along the right path from the West Gate….”

“The guild members…!”

“Still not enough… but since you seem willing to answer, I’ll give you a brief moment to catch your breath. Think about the information that will make me most pleased. Absolute Command. Suffocation. Three minutes.”

“Aaaahhh!”

“Kyaaaahhh!!”

“Kuh-hahahaak!!”

And so, an hour later.

The assassins, desperately wracking their brains in pain, spilled everything—from what they ate last night to how they cried when they were born—before finally being allowed a peaceful death.

“Ah, right. You two shouldn’t die yet. You need to live to testify. Electric Shock to your hearts~”

Crack!

“Ughk!”

“Hngh!”

Of course, the two selected as witnesses weren’t even allowed death and were dragged back out of hell once more.

“Well, most of it was information we already knew.”

At my calm assessment, Sodin asked,

“Well, our main purpose wasn’t information gathering but filming their testimonies. Your side went a bit too far, so leaving it on recording would’ve been a problem. So, now? What do we do?”

I answered her plainly.

“Finish them off.”

“Just the Baronet? Or the entire estate?”

“Just Baronet Aduhn. What crime did the villagers commit?”

And thus, the fate of the lord of the great(?) Ferom Estate, Baronet Aduhn, was sealed.

“Shall the Magic Tower handle it, or will we do it together?”

“The Magic Tower? Why are they getting involved?”

“Why? Even though the target was you, two professor-level mages had their lives threatened by assassins. Did you really think the Magic Tower would remain silent after that?”

I tilted my head, looking at the battered assassins.

“…Threatened?”

“Anyway. What’s the plan?”

“Well, then let’s do it together.”

“Then no need to request additional personnel. When should we do it?”

“Tonight. No need to delay. Oh, do we need to coordinate with the Magic Tower? If so, we can wait a bit longer.”

“No. It’s not like we’re attempting anything monumental… just flipping over a rural estate. Coordination isn’t needed. Post-action report is enough. Right, Senior?”

“You’ve already handled all the preparation yourselves. Why ask my opinion now? Do as you like.”

“This is practically a castle. What kind of village chief builds a proper castle to live in? Sure, it lacks the outer bailey (most Northern Continent castles have outer, inner, and main baileys), but it has everything else.”

“It’s quite large for an estate. Anyway, start.”

“Senior. They said to start.”

“I’m the oldest here… so why am I treated like the lowest underling?”

“You’re much better at this side of things, Senior.”

“…Tsk. Seriously, only at times like this. Reinforced Blaze Wall (5th rank).”

Kwaaaaaaaaah!!

And that night, crimson flames surged skyward over the village of Ferom, ruled by Baronet Aduhn.

“With this, the village and the castle are completely cut off. No one gets in, and no one gets out.”

I gave Talos a small nod, then pulled the heavy staff out of my Hero’s Backpack.

“Much appreciated, old man.”

At that moment, a familiar voice came from behind us.

“That’s enough for the preliminaries. Hurry and begin.”

I let out a dry chuckle when I saw Shia, perched atop Scala.

“I brought Scala along as a guide, sure—but did you really have to come too?”

“What nonsense are you spouting? How could I stay holed up in the estate when something this entertaining is happening?”

“Oh, really. If you’d lived in Korea, you’d have been obsessed with trashy soap operas.”

“Ah, you mean that thing Yuribel promised to show me once she gives me her so‑called ‘phone’?”

“Yeah. One good kimchi slap scene and your mind would go completely blank.”

“Are you not starting? Maintaining the wall of flame is no easy task.”

“Ah—sorry about that. Then… shall we?”

The guards stared in panic at the wall of fire encircling the castle. A few knights rushed out after opening the gate, only to gape at the flames in disbelief.

“What the hell is this!?”

“Put the fire out!!”

“Who set this?!”

“Is this a rebellion!?”

“Summon all the soldiers—no, everyone! Anyone who can carry water or sand, get out here!”

“S‑Sir! The fire won’t go out! Water, sand—nothing works!”

“Don’t tell me… is that magic!?”

“If it’s magic, the mage will handle it! Report to the lord and summon Sir Dump!”

We waited until enough of the castle’s people had gathered outside, then lightly vaulted over the towering wall.

And then—

Shik! Chakang!!

A throwing dagger flashed through the air, severing the pulley chain supporting the gate.

Kwarrrrrumble! KABOOM!!

The people trapped between the flames and the walls slammed desperately on the gate in shock, but for a backwater rural town, the gate was absurdly sturdy—endlessly shrugging off the blows of knights and soldiers alike.

“Alright, then. Let’s go beat some sense into that idiot Baronet who doesn’t know his place. Scala.”

“Yes, Sword God. The Rose Palace where the lord’s family resides is that way.”

“…Palace?”

“It’s just a somewhat large mansion. They call it a ‘palace’ themselves for fun.”

Inside the walls, chaos reigned. Despite nearly a hundred people already stranded outside, many others still ran about aimlessly, trying—and failing—to grasp the situation.

We strode openly through the confusion and arrived at the mansion Scala had called the Rose Palace. Of course, a few people noticed unfamiliar figures boldly roaming the grounds…

“Who goes there!?”

“Veil of Oblivion.”

“Invisibility.”

“Absolute Command. Stun.”

Erase presence. Erase form. Then incapacitate.

The seamless combination of two mages flowed like water, and the person who had spoken vanished without a trace.

“Huh…? Did someone just disappear…?”

“Quiet! Is now the time to be seeing things and spouting nonsense!? Get to the gate, now!”

Honestly, at that point I wondered why they didn’t just cast that Veil of Oblivion on our entire party instead…

“But then there’d be no style. Why should we skulk around?”

“Ah. Yes, sir.”

In any case, we reached the Rose Palace—where Baronet Aduhn awaited—without a single interruption, and without hesitation, we blew the mansion doors clean off their hinges.

KABOOM!!

I addressed the people of the estate, who were frozen in shock, in a polite tone—though the words themselves were anything but.

“Excuse me. Is Village Chief Aduhn here? I’m here to crack his skull.”

…

“Enemies! A‑attack them!”

Naturally, the guards and escort knights didn’t just stand there.

Sensing that we were no easy opponents (mostly thanks to the hulking beastman old man), the knights and guards charged at us at full strength right from the start.

But really—how elite could the knights and guards of some three‑thousand‑population backwater village possibly be?

“Silence. Reinforced Sound Vortex.”

Sodin chained together a series of chantless spells as smoothly as flowing water. A deafening roar shredded the enemies’ eardrums, while Silence created a soundless zone to protect our side.

KWA–AAAAAAAAANG!!

Every fragile object in the estate, glass included, exploded like a bomb. Cracks split across the stone walls and ceiling as debris rained down.

Two aura knights who had managed to protect their ears with mana staggered forward, raising their swords—

BAM!!

Talos swung his pot‑lid‑sized hand and smashed both of them straight into the wall.

“Oof….”

I shrugged as I looked at the opening they’d carved, then stepped into the estate as casually as if it were my own home.

…

“Deep in the estate, there’s a hall decorated like a royal audience chamber. It’s where he shows off his authority. Given Baronet Aduhn’s personality, he’s probably there right now.”

Sure enough, following Scala’s guidance, we found him—Baronet Aduhn seated arrogantly upon a throne on a raised platform, with a guard knight on either side.

“Wow… this place is done up nicely.”

“Look at all the money he dumped into this.”

“This is ridiculous. It’s not even a royal palace—what kind of petty lord puts on airs like this? Isn’t that embarrassing?”

At that, the Baronet shouted at us, his face twisting with rage.

“You filthy, lawless wretches! Who are you? How dare you track mud into my estate!”

Talos and Sodin exchanged looks before letting out dry laughs.

“…Filthy and lawless?”

“What the hell is this idiot going on about?”

“You ignorant rabble who know nothing of noble blue blood! If you quietly withdraw now, I’ll graciously refrain from punishing you—”

As the Baronet continued his rant, Talos shook his head and shrugged off his robe.

With a series of wet, grinding cracks, his bones snapped and reshaped as he transformed into a giant nearly seven meters tall.

“Wh‑what…?”

The Baronet and his two escort knights gaped in horror.

To be honest, I was pretty surprised too.

This wasn’t just his body swelling up like a balloon—his massive frame was packed solid with writhing muscle.

So the old man could do more than just… cross‑dress—no, transform into a maid, huh? Guess he had other forms too.

“Baronet Aduhn. I can’t stomach listening to you anymore.”

His voice dropped into a deep, booming rumble as he crossed the distance to the Baronet in a single step. He reached out, crushed the two aura knights—armor and all—then grabbed the Baronet and slammed him into the floor.

CRASH!

“Ghk!!”

Licking the blood from his palm where it had been cut by aura, Talos spoke to me.

“Go on. Sit there. That seat suits you best.”

…

As I leaned back on the throne with a bored expression, Sodin and Scala stood flanking me. Shia? She was, as always, sitting on my lap.

Kneeling on the floor like a condemned criminal, Baronet Aduhn screamed:

“You bastard! That’s my seat! It’s no place for a filthy commoner like you!!”

“Do you even know who I am?”

“…What?”

“Who do you think you’re talking to.”

“Well, th‑that is….”

“Then why the hell did you send assassins after some random guy and make my life difficult?”

“W‑wait. Then don’t tell me…!?”

“Yeah. I’m the adventurer who entered the labyrinth with your fucked‑up son.”

“Why you—!!”

“Who’re you calling you? You’re the piece of trash who sent assassins after an innocent man. What—you get to go crazy, but I don’t?”

“Even if I did not particularly cherish my second son, avenging him is both the right and duty of a father!”

“Your idiot son set the trap. He was the one who said he’d ‘check it’ and crawled back into the labyrinth with just two people. I’m the victim here—so why the hell are you taking revenge on me?”

“Silence! How could filthy red blood ever be equal to noble blue blood! If you are even remotely involved, you deserve to die!”

Ah… now I could see exactly why that little shit turned out the way he did. With a father like this, what else could you expect?

Unable to listen anymore, Talos gently(?) stomped the Baronet down with his foot.

Press.

“Gkgh…!”

“Baronet Aduhn. Shut up—and bow your head.”