Nathan


    Year 2851 | Month 3 | Day 23


    It takes quite a while, but we finally get the perfect chance to start the plan. One in the form of the Chairman finally stopping attacking the ice in the base. So we start out the plan by letting me walk inside of the base on my own with a few tricks up my sleeves. And in my mouth, in the form of a storage device connected to the mana planes.


    Our plan is rather simple. Distract the hell out of him, let him believe I’ve lost all of my weapons, then attack. With the others coming and joining in after I get a hit in through this surprise. Assuming I don’t just kill him right away with said hit.


    I have two Arcadian Metal swords – both of which are courtesy of the Republic – sheathed at my waist as usual with my own swords in the storage device in my mouth. And on top of that, the ring in my mouth is wrapped around my tongue with invisibility magic cast on it and more magic to make sure my speech is perfectly clear.


    Lastly, the ice magicians freeze the entrance that I enter through behind me.


    So with all of this, I make it inside of the base. And immediately begin to set off traps along the way. Traps that begin blasting me to smithereens except for anything I have made out of Arcadian Metal. Which includes my weapons and storage devices.


    I just continue walking through the traps without even bothering with dodging them. Because I both know I probably can’t and because I want the Chairman to know about my presence here.


    As for the base itself? It’s rather expensive-looking, if I’m being honest. There is a very expensive luxury red carpet running down the hallway I’m passing through, with black walls and a black ceiling. All of which match the Chairman’s magical affinity perfectly.


    On top of that, the traps aren’t even damaging the carpet. Which makes me wonder just what the carpet is made of and how expensive it was.


    Aside from that, the rooms I pass by are all filled with quite a few things. Both riches, laboratory rooms, storage rooms for random junk, and even some document rooms meant for storing documents.


    None of which I really care about.


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    And when I reach the center of the base, I finally find the Chairman. With the man himself just sitting inside of some sort of circle on the ground in the center of the massive domed room.


    It doesn’t take me long to realize the circle is something to help someone regenerate their mana. Which must be why he stopped attacking the dome.


    To recharge his mana.


    As for the question of whether or not he is fully drained of mana right now? That is answered when I get within a dozen meters of him and enter a smaller circle further from the outer wall. When I sense the mana in him flaring and see his eyes opening to stare at me rather blankly.


    The man himself looks exactly like he did when I last saw him at the battle over the laboratory. He has pitch black eyes with some small glowing red pupils at the center of them, and is wearing pitch black armor with the occasional red crystal on it as he sits there cross-legged on the ground. Meanwhile both of his swords are sitting next to him on the ground.


    But as he stares at me, I can’t help but notice the black and red mana being let off by his body. Just emanating from his skin.


    I guess that’s the spell he used to make himself immune to magic.


    “They sent you in to fight?” the Chairman eventually asks, seemingly rhetorically and without any expectations of being given a response. “Ridiculous.”


    The man doesn’t even bother climbing to his feet as he narrows his eyes on me and asks, “Since we might be here for a while, why don’t we have a little… chat?”


    That surprises me a little, but I eventually just shrug and answer, “Sure.”


    He looks just as surprised as I am. Although it’s slightly hard to tell when his eyes are widening considering the fact that he has no white in his eyes. The white that is normally around the iris and pupil is just pitch black.


    “Wasn’t expecting that, but maybe this will be more fun than I thought,” the Chairman states while still sitting down and without making any moves towards his blades. Although I can sense anti-magic mana around the blades that is connected to him. So he can probably pull them to himself at any moment. “How about we start with a little story of mine that I’m sure you’ll enjoy.”


    Why do I feel like I’m not going to enjoy this?


    “I was born into the Hunter family with a particularly rare magic, as you well know,” Artorius continues without missing a beat, surprising me by how chatty he’s turning out to be. “And it was beat into me over and over again throughout my life to serve the Republic with everything I have in me. To do everything I can to the Republic’s benefit.”


    Yeah, I know about how obsessive he is towards ‘helping the Republic’. So obsessive that he only cares about what he believes helps it. Not what others believe may help it.


    “So to make up for all that shit, I decided to become the leader of the Republic so that whatever I want is what the Republic wants,” Artorius suddenly declares, shocking the hell out of me as I blink at him, barely managing to keep myself from gaping at him. “Don’t be so surprised, I’m not so stupid as to believe that everything I’ve done is only for the Republic.”


    The fuck…?


    That’s… not what I was expecting coming here.


    Not what I was expecting at all.