***


    “Ah-choo!”


    Leo, who was in Ruel’s arms, was startled by Ruel’s sneeze.


    —Have you caught a cold?


    “No,” Ruel replied softly, rubbing his nose.


    Having journeyedfortably by carriage through the fourth and third defense lines, they now alighted and were en route from the third to the second line.


    Despite the group of adventurers forming a loose formation as they proceeded, the biting wind still managed to nip at their cheeks from both sides.


    Thankfully, Ruel’s mask shielded his face from the chill, and the wind naturally muffled noises from the front, which was a relief.


    “It’s starting to look worrying,” Ganien said, looking at Ruel like a parent sending off their child on their first errand.“You don’t have to worry too much; I’ve been getting healthiertely.”


    Ganien responded as if reluctantly, a beat behind, “True. I suppose your coughing has decreased quite a lot. Still, I don’t think you’re fit enough to climb that mountain.”


    Ganien pointed to a section where the incline began to rise.


    He had been unable to believe Ruel when he heard that he had climbed a mountain before, and had to ask Cassion for confirmation.


    “Actually, I was just about to call for you.”


    As Ruel noticed they were slowly getting farther from the front row, he thought he needed to hurry. He then looked up at the quite distant mountain.


    Unlike the mountain he had climbed at the mansion, this one had many steep sections, making it impossible to challenge.


    <i>‘Maybeter.’</i>


    The fierce wind was exhausting just by walking through it.


    “Aren’t you cold?” Cassion asked.


    Due to the strong wind, Ruel’s body temperature had slightly dropped.


    “I’m fine for now. Hikars.”


    At Ruel’s call, Hikars appeared from behind.


    He bowed politely to Ruel.


    “Thank you for calling me, Ruel-nim.”


    “Hmmm.”


    Ganien stared intently at Hikars.


    He was different from a regr wizard.


    The smell of death spread widely around him.


    At Hikars’ gaze, Ganien hastily lowered his head slightly.


    “I apologize. This is my first time seeing a warlock, so I was rude.”


    “No, there are many who find us fascinating.”


    Hikars smiled as if nothing was wrong, as if he had experienced this reaction more than once.


    “Do you know Hold?” When Ruel asked, Hikars answered sharply.


    “Yes. I know some simple magic.”


    “Good. Just take me to my destination. Simple, right?”


    Hikars hesitated, his gaze shifting between Ganien and Cassion, “Um, are you bothfortable with me?”


    <i>‘Comfortable?’</i>


    Ruel was puzzled, sensing that it wasn’t just a simple question about the difort of having a stranger join them.


    —This body is fine.


    Leo smiled brightly.


    “Oh, it’s not an unfamiliar feeling, so it’s okay,” Ganien waved his hand.


    Then, as Hikars’ gaze turned to Cassion, he pulled a nket from his magic pocket and replied, “I’m used to it, so don’t worry.”


    “What do you mean by that?”


    Ruel felt a twinge of difort at being the only one left in the dark.


    “Unlike you, the Devotee of Darkness, ordinary people instinctively feel difort from the smell of death that we emit.”


    Only then did Ruel understand why he had struggled to find a warlock.


    It was because they had deliberately hidden themselves from people and their unique smell had prevented the shadows from finding them.


    <i>‘Anyway, since I’ve found a warlock, I should ask Jan to tell me about ces where spirits cannot go.’</i>


    In those ces, corruption and Red Ash were likely to be present.


    “Then, I will cast it.”


    At Hikars’ words, Ruel nodded.


    He felt a slight tightness from the Hold enveloping his entire body, but it was bearable.


    <i>‘My magic resistance has improved a lot.’</i>


    He smiled slightly at himself, who was still standing strong in a situation where he would have already copsed before.


    ***


    —A fox!


    Leo looked to the left and then to the right, chattering non-stop.


    His tail twitched with interest, particrly at the sight of a fox resembling him.


    To Leo, it seemed as though the fox was equally captivated by its doppelganger.


    Ruel inhaled Breath and looked at the pure white mountain scenery.


    Before he knew it, a nket had been draped over him, and a heat patch was also stuck to his forehead.


    “It looks like they are really dead. Especially with the smell.”


    As they crossed the mountain, Ganien pinched his nose and frowned.


    “Not just over there, but I can feel a lot of death here too.”


    Hikars looked down, bing engulfed in sadness.


    “Ruel-nim, could you help me for a moment? There is death umting from here.”


    “Death umting? What do you mean by that?”


    When Ruel asked, Hikars reached out his hand, “Please hold my hand. You should be able to perceive the death.”


    “Is it really okay?” Ganien asked worriedly.


    He thought the act of seeing death was not very pleasant.


    “It’s alright. It’s merely observation. Oh, I was being selfish. Ruel-nim, feel free to decline if you’d rather not witness this,” Hikars reassured.


    “No.”


    After all, it was a rare opportunity to see the death that was said to be spreading in this area, so it would be a shame to refuse.


    —This body wants to see too.


    Leo stretched out his front paw, but it was too short to reach Hikars’ hand.


    Ruel chuckled and took Hikars’ hand.


    In an instant, it felt as if darkness had suddenly descended upon the once-white world, shrouding it in ck fog.


    The deep, profound sadness surged, enough to make his nose tingle just from looking at it.


    <i>‘…!’</i>


    He felt as if the ck fog was watching him.


    A hand that hadn’t existed in the fog suddenly appeared and reached out toward him.


    -I don’t know where to go. Please help me.


    -It’s too cold here.


    -You saw me, right? Right?


    Voices began to emerge one by one, apanied by desperate eyes pleading for help.


    Ruel could see the light they needed to go toward.


    Slowly, he raised his finger and pointed in that direction.


    <i>‘Over there…’</i>


    —Wake up, Ruel!


    Leo scratched at Ruel’s chest, and then Cassion immediately separated their hands.


    “Are you alright?” Cassion caught Ruel, who staggered.


    “Huh!”


    Hikars, who had sat down on the spot, swallowed hard as he looked at his own hand.


    He had seen their outstretched hands before, but this was the first time he had heard their voices. He had met many Devotees of Darkness, but this was a first.


    <i>‘Is it because death is… so close?’</i>


    Devotees of Darkness, by their nature, were close to death but had escaped its shackles.


    But Ruel was different.


    As a Devotee of Darkness, he was still bound by the shackles of death.


    “Is that death?”


    Ruel asked Hikars with a slightly dazed expression.


    “Yes, that’s death. When it umtes like that, new life can’t emerge,” Hikars replied solemnly.


    Ruel tightly closed his lips, gazing wistfully at the ce that had returned to a white world.


    —Are you okay? You look so sad.


    “I’m fine,” Ruel replied to Leo, though he felt a lingering nausea from the emotions that clung to him.


    It was a sight he didn’t want to see again.


    “Please help me, Ruel-nim.”


    “What do you need help with?”


    At Ruel’s words, Hikars stood up quickly and pulled out an old pouch.


    “Please infuse some mana into this.”


    “Hey, you guys! Hurry up ande!”


    Ruel, who was about to grab the pouch, was startled by the sudden shout.


    Before he knew it, there was quite a distance between them and the front row.


    “We’reing soon! There was a little problem!” Ganien shouted loudly.


    Even when the adventurers urged them from the front, Ruel did not feel anxious.


    Wasn’t there a butler who was good at tracking traces?


    Hikars held the pouch with both hands and Ruel slowly infused mana into it.


    Since his body was like ss, he handled it carefully and cautiously.


    He didn’t know what this pouch was, but as he infused mana, he felt a simr sensation to when his shadow was writhing inside.


    Sensing it was enough, Ruel withdrew his hand.


    <i>Huff.</i>


    Ruel let out a sigh of relief.


    “Looking at you now, you seem like a decent wizard.”


    Ganien said with a chuckle.


    It was hard to tell if he was teasing or being sincere, so it was quite ambiguous.


    “Thank you.”


    Hikars bowed his head to Ruel and then reached into the pouch to pull something out.


    It was powder.


    It resembled the powder that Noah had used when he first met him, which he had shot with arrows.


    —Huh?


    Leo eagerly stuck out his tongue as Hikars released the powder. Ruel tried to grab Leo’s tail btedly, but Leo had already swallowed it.


    —It’s delicious!


    “Delicious?”


    —It’s delicious! Give this body more!


    Leo scratched Ruel’s chest.


    “We can resume moving now,” Hikars dered, looking away from the powder mixing with the snow as they closed the distance with the front row.


    “What’s that pouch?” Ruel asked, noticing Leo’s keen interest in Hikars.


    Leo was licking his lips.


    “This is our magic tool, the ‘ck Wayfinder,''” Hikars exined, summoning a pouch from thin air. “We utilize the mana infused by Ruel-nim to cover the magical powder in the ck Wayfinder, guiding lost souls to their destination.”


    In short, it meant that the powder was tainted by darkness.


    <i>‘That powder is the same.’</i>


    It was indeed the same powder that Noah had used during the Cyronian incident.


    At that moment, wasn’t the ck water inside the ck-blooded man’s body clearly visible?


    Ruel raised the corners of his mouth, “Do you happen to know about the ck water?”


    “Are you referring to the corrupted death?”


    It seemed they were talking about the same thing, but for uracy, it felt necessary to show the ck water.


    “Cassion, show it.”


    At Ruel’s words, Cassion took out the ck water from his magic pouch.


    As soon as Hikars saw the ck water, he pulled out the ck Wayfinder, ready to sprinkle the powder immediately.


    “Stop.”


    “That is corrupted death. Just sprinkling it here will cause it to spread in an instant.”


    Even though Hikars’ voice was filled with strength, Ruel spoke his mind first.


    “Do you know how to get rid of it? I’m trying to find a way.”


    “Only you, Ruel-nim, and the Great Purifier have the power to eliminate it,” Hikars exined.


    “Alright. Let me rephrase. What happens if I sprinkle the powder from the ck Wayfinder onto the ck water?”


    “Thanks to the Devotee of Darkness’s power, it will react… Ah, the hidden corrupted death will reveal itself, but that action alone won’t change the situation,” Hikars rified.


    Ruel raised the corners of his mouth again.


    That was enough.


    It must be true since the warlock himself said it.


    There was no time to conduct further experiments.


    “Tell your friends.”


    Ruel inhaled Breath.


    After sniffing, he opened his mouth again.


    “Just send a few people to Setiria in the Leponia Kingdom to help with the research.”


    Tyson would be delighted if the warlock visited Setiria.


    “Understood. I will inform them right away.”


    After responding, Hikars immediately muttered something.


    “If there’s anything we can assist with, don’t hesitate to ask,” Ganien added casually, slowing down to match Ruel’s pace.


    “Shouldn’t you prioritize your own nation’s interests first?” Ruel questioned Ganien’s willingness to assist, surprised by his offer.


    While Leo continued to nce at Hikars, Ruel noticed Leo still licking his lips and discreetly pulled out a shadow. However, Leo remained fixated on Hikars.


    <i>‘Does it have to be the powder?’</i>


    “Well, I still owe you a debt, and this is both my and his opinion.”


    “…?” Ruel paused.


    <i>‘Huswen?’</i>


    It was surprising to consider that Huswen, who held his country dear, had such thoughts. Despite Ganien stating he had no ulterior motives, focusing on the warlock they had encountered by chance seemed more crucial due to the unsettling ck water.


    Having seen him report to Huswen, Ruel couldn’t help but be even more surprised.


    “He’s not so naive as to only seek personal gain from a crisis. Someone who was constantly criticizing him said something very simr to what you just said back then.”


    “Does that mean he will take care of the benefits afterward?”


    “That’s right. And if necessary, he also mentioned capturing you.”


    Ganien’s words, meant as a joke, were surprisingly intense.


    Ruel chuckled softly, “Your humor has improved.”


    “I’m not joking. The value of your existence is more significant than I thought…”


    As he spoke, Ganien shed a grin at Cassion.


    He hadn’t drawn his sword, but the energy emanating from Cassion was already reaching Ganien’s nape.


    “Are you itching for a duel now?” Ganien actually wanted to spar with Cassion the moment he saw him.


    However, they were currently infiltrating as adventurers.


    They couldn’t risk ruining their ns over a moment ofpetitive spirit.


    “How about we think about that after you surpass me?”


    At Cassion’s provocation, Ganien instinctively tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword.


    His hand trembled slightly as he suppressed his instincts with reason.


    —You must surpass this body too!


    Leo dered confidently.


    “…Pfft.”


    Ruelughed a bit louder.


    With Leo’s interruption, the tense atmosphere seemed to transform into a flower garden.


    Cassion and Ganien stopped their standoff and looked at Ruel.


    “Ah, my apologies. Leo wanted to join in,” Ruel said, gently patting Leo’s head.


    —Ahem.


    Leo raised his nose high in response to everyone’s gaze.


    “Well, anyway. Depending on the situation, I can be a hostage or whatever.”


    Ruel wiped the smile off his face.


    “But you won’t be able to force me, my butler’s a bit strong. Oh, and my knight is no pushover either.”Author''s Thoughts


    Kindly read only at . You can get the advance chapter at Ko-Fi Shop.