Chapter 375: Seed of Calamity (2)
Crackle—crack-crackle—
In front of the quietly burning campfire, the Sword Ghost and Arcane took their seats.
Clutched in the Sword Ghost’s hand was a note, crumpled and creased, as if reflecting the tangled emotions within him.
“I want to hear about Demtor’s situation.”
After gazing into the flickering flas for a while, the Sword Ghost shifted the subject. He seed to need ti to contemplate the aning held within the note.
The topic of Demtor had also been sothing he and Arcane had spoken about with interest before parting ways.
Arcane nodded, paused for a mont in thought, and then opened his mouth.
“I ntioned that the civil war likely won’t end peacefully...”
“And said that if it continues like this, it’ll favor Gram.”
“Frankly, it depends on the Grand Duke Clarke’s decision. If he acts directly, the Modin faction won’t be able to withstand him and will collapse.”
“Then why isn’t he acting directly?”
“Because doing so would incur massive damage. What he wants is for the civil war to end without heavy losses.”
‘That greedy bastard having such thoughts... unexpected.’
“He just doesn’t want to see his possessions damaged.”
“His possessions?”
“He’s convinced that Demtor will eventually beco his. That’s why.”
At Arcane’s reply, the Sword Ghost nodded as if finding it amusing.
Demtor’s sole 6-star.
Clarke seed to trust in the confidence that ca with his power.
“Soon, I expect the civil war to end with Modin surrendering. There’s no need for him to move.”
“So the war ends, huh... What if we helped Modin?”
“I can’t imagine the Ivory Tower aligning with Pri Root. Modin would likely reject it first.”
The longer the war dragged on, the weaker Demtor’s power would grow.
That would be a good thing for Pri Root, making the Sword Ghost want to help Modin, but even if he offered a hand, Modin would surely refuse it.
At that mont, one faction crossed the Sword Ghost’s mind.
“What if it were the Allied Forces?”
“Allied Forces? You an the World Tree Union?”
“What kind of choice would they make in this situation? They made an interesting offer.”
“An offer, you say? What kind?”
“A ceasefire.”
The duration: one year.
Upon hearing this, Arcane stroked his chin, his expression turning enigmatic.
“If the Allied Forces proposed a ceasefire with Pri Root, then it’s likely a decision made with Demtor in mind.”
“It’s an interesting situation.”
He hadn’t expected to be cheering on soone he’d just been fighting to the death.
Because the thought crossed his mind that the Allied Forces might support Modin.
“Did you accept the ceasefire?”
“I did.”
“I see.”
Arcane’s easy acceptance made the Sword Ghost smirk.
“You didn’t even ask why I accepted.”
“Because the Allied Forces are strong.”
“Strong, huh...”
Seeing Arcane reply without hesitation confird sothing the Sword Ghost had been warned about by Rengua.
That the World Tree Union would beco a major threat in the future.
“How strong are they?”
“Pri Root alone won’t be enough.”
“You say that to my face so easily.”
“I don’t lie.”
“Then who is the strongest among the Allied Forces?”
One reason the Sword Ghost accepted the ceasefire was to save Azolett, but another was that he didn’t yet know the full extent of the World Tree Union’s capabilities.
He planned to investigate their forces during the ceasefire.
In that regard, Arcane’s intel was a major asset in his plan.
“In terms of sheer strength, as of now, Lochter Felice is probably the strongest.”
“Lochter Felice?”
“The swordsman who killed Special Investigator Rachard. He stirred up quite the storm in Aintrier.”
“A swordsman, huh...”
The Sword Ghost smiled at the ntion of a swordsman.
He’d heard about the Special Investigator’s death, but hadn’t expected the killer to be another swordsman.
He lightly flexed his fingers.
It almost felt like he’d found an intriguing new opponent.
“But if it were , I’d be more wary of soone nad Arthur.”
“Arthur?”
“He’s the head of the Hunt organization. Lochter ca from Hunt as well. And…”
Arcane gave a strange smile and looked at Karvas.
“Everyone who’s beco Arthur’s enemy has collapsed. Crisis followed them, and so were completely ruined.”
“You an Azonne?”
“Azonne is one of them, yes.”
“One of them, huh.”
That ant there were others on par with Azonne who’d also fallen at Arthur’s hand.
It seed there was more information he didn’t know.
Suddenly, this Arthur intrigued him.
“Can I see Arthur’s Divine Na list?”
At the Sword Ghost’s question, Arcane fiddled with his earring. Then, from within his robe, he pulled out a small note.
A note listing Arthur’s Divine Nas.
He didn’t hand it over, but waved it in front of the Sword Ghost’s eyes.
“Every trade needs compensation.”
“What do you want?”
“Arthur’s Divine Na is highly valuable. I want Divine Na information of equivalent worth.”
“I refuse.”
The Sword Ghost rejected the deal without hesitation.
“Aren’t you curious about Arthur’s Divine Na?”
“Of course I am. But among the Black Stars, at least one must remain a mystery, so you stay cautious.”
What Arcane wanted was the Sword Ghost’s Divine Na list.
But the Sword Ghost had no intention of revealing it.
“You don’t trust .”
“I know you collect Divine Nas, but not your purpose. So I have no choice but to be cautious.”
“After the ceasefire ends, Arthur may attack Pri Root.”
“You an I should prepare by checking Arthur’s Divine Na?”
“Information is part of preparation.”
The Sword Ghost chuckled softly. But his eyes didn’t smile. Those dry pupils stared hard at Arcane.
“You’re looking down on us.”
He tipped his teacup.
Steam rose gently from the snow scent tea.
“Like the petals of this tea, the black city Leruze is the heart of Pri Root, born from a frozen and harsh environnt. Do you know why we made our nest here?”
“Because it’s hostile to mages.”
“Exactly. This isn’t a place where humans can live. Yet we survived—and grew strong.”
Setting down his empty teacup, the Sword Ghost continued.
“The stars of Demtor once tried to destroy Leruze, but all of them ran away, swearing never to return. Do you know why?”
“Guerrilla warfare.”
“You know well.”
“But Demtor and the Allied Forces are different.”
“No, they’re the sa.”
Surrounding Leruze were three types of terrain:
The frozen desert.
The frozen hills.
And the frozen lake.
The Black Stars' guerrilla tactics, freely shifting among these like a backyard, were terrifying to their enemies.
“Leruze is battered by endless blizzards, and the nights are long. You can’t even see. We’ve lived here our whole lives.”
“Harsh environnts don’t matter to strong opponents.”
“I will face them myself.”
“All of them?”
The Sword Ghost grabbed a sword hanging on the wall. Slowly drawing it, he pointed the blade at Arcane.
“Didn’t I tell you? Leruze is my backyard. Don’t be under the illusion that I only fight head-on.”
He looked as if he could lunge and rip Arcane apart at any mont, but no killing intent could be felt from him.
If the Sword Ghost launched a sudden guerrilla assault in the blizzarding backyard, who could stop him?
“Too bad.”
Clicking his tongue, Arcane rose to his feet. He’d thought this would be a good chance to get the Sword Ghost’s Divine Na, but as expected, this wasn’t a man who wavered easily.
“I’d like to stay in Pri Root a little longer.”
“Caught stealing, huh?”
The Sword Ghost glanced at the ancient tos scattered around and asked. Surprisingly, Arcane nodded readily.
“They must’ve been rare books for Demtor. They’re scouring the place with burning eyes looking for .”
“What’s the price?”
“Information.”
Arcane spoke softly, staring in the direction the two had left.
“It seems the fourth star is going to find you soon.”
“The fourth star? How do you know?”
“Didn’t you read the note?”
The Sword Ghost sheathed his sword and took another look at the note.
[Seed of Calamity]
The weight behind the word “calamity” was significant.
Even if it referred to just one person, it was already concerning.
‘To think both are showing signs of calamity. Absurd.’
At this point, he was starting to wonder if the ones piquing his curiosity were all bearers of the seed of calamity.
The Sword Ghost silently tossed the note into the fire. As he watched it burn black, he asked:
“What does this 'calamity' have to do with the fourth star?”
“Great changes co with great currents.”
“You an the fourth star will be born from calamity?”
“Who knows? I’m not sure. Whether the fourth star is born from calamity, or...”
Arcane muttered quietly, staring at the now-blackened ash of the note.
“Or the fourth star might be the calamity itself.”
“We’ll find out if your words are true.”
If a fourth Black Star truly was born as Arcane said, it would an the prophecy had co to pass.
When there are four Black Stars, a great miracle will co to Pri Root.
That made the fourth star all the more special to the Sword Ghost.
***
Azolett’s quarters resembled a gloomy cave. As she entered, shaa-shaa-shaa—a creepy rustling filled the air as countless spiders sward toward her.
“Did you wait for , babies?”
Azolett greeted the hundreds, thousands of spiders with a peaceful smile.
Their sizes, colors, and number of legs all varied.
The spiders quivered at her touch, expressing joy.
Smiling briefly, she brushed her hair back and let out a long sigh.
“What a sha. I could’ve saved one…”
Cricket, the Mana-Flare Spider.
Cricket was large, had an exceptionally hard shell, and high resistance to magic—an ideal spider, and in a way, a natural enemy of mages.
It was a rare spider she had desperately wanted.
But to survive the recent escape, she had sacrificed them all.
“Still, I’m glad.”
Yet her face showed only a mont’s regret before changing to relief.
She soon pulled out a small pouch from her chest.
When she checked its contents, a faint smile spread across her lips.
Soon after, a knock sounded, and a voice ca from beyond the door.
“Lady Azolett, we’ve brought the corpses.”
“Bring them in.”
The door opened, and a cart carrying corpses was wheeled into her space.
It seed she’d had her subordinates gather the pile of bodies she had spotted earlier in the plaza.
She ordered them to place the corpses into a pre-dug pit.
Once the soldiers left, Azolett stood before the hole.
Inside the deep pit, the corpses were piled like a grave.
Opening the pouch, she carefully began placing fingernail-sized eggs into the bodies.
“Eat well and co out soon.”
Cricket’s eggs.
Before Cricket was sacrificed, she had extracted spare eggs from its belly.
[Knight of the Spider Queen (Mother Cricket) – Seed of Calamity]
“Grow up fast… and take to your mother.”
Azolett’s face was full of excitent as she placed the eggs into the corpses.
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