Chapter 387: Because I Am Their Disciple
On the ninth day of being wanted, Frieren began to feel something was wrong.
It was evident from the intensity of the pursuit. Starting from the fourth day, the number and strength of the pursuers increased unnaturally.
It wasn't just an increase in numbers, but a leap in quality. Ordinary adventurers and mercenaries gradually disappeared, replaced by an extremely large number of mages.
This morning, while they were resting briefly in an abandoned mine, Frieren had sensed traces of detection magic—and of an extremely large range.
To cast detection magic of this level required either a mage with profound mana or the combined efforts of many mages. But either way, it was a bit overkill to use it against just one elf and one demon.
Fortunately, Frieren reacted in time, erasing their aura promptly; otherwise, they would have been exposed right then.
"Lord Frieren," Aura's voice came from the side. She was crouching not far away, her finger tracing a residue of mana, her face grim. "A mage has been here ahead of us."
Frieren didn't answer, thinking hard about the anomalies of the past few days.
She had intended to take Aura across the border of the Kingdom of Lota quickly to another country, thereby bypassing the range of the Wanted Order.
Although several nearby countries had also received her Wanted Order, since it wasn't within Lota's territory, the effect should have been minimal. It was absolutely impossible for a large number of mages to track them like this.
Moreover, the speed at which the Wanted Order was issued was abnormally fast.
Less than a day after the conflict in the mine, their appearances and characteristics had already spread to all surrounding guilds and cities.
"It is not a Wanted Order," Frieren said.
Aura turned her head. "What?"
"It is not a Wanted Order," Frieren repeated. "We might be targeted."
"Aren't we always being targeted?" Aura scratched her head in confusion, as if Frieren were stating the obvious.
"I mean, they were coming for me from the very beginning."
Aura's eyes widened. She opened her mouth, seemingly wanting to say something, but swallowed the words. She asked instead, "You mean... they were targeting you from the start?"
Frieren nodded.
This was the only possibility. Otherwise, it absolutely couldn't explain the current massive array of forces. Even if she really colluded with demons, it shouldn't attract so many mages to hunt her down.
After all, Aura beside her was too weak. If it were a mage of the Seven Sages level, it might be justifiable.
But why?
Frieren couldn't figure it out. She wasn't famously renowned like Master Flamme.
Although her teacher's legend had begun to fade gradually, and in a few hundred years might be almost unknown—far inferior to Lord Rhodes, who would be sung of by humanity forever.
Precisely because of this, Frieren didn't understand.
So she chose to take the initiative. She selected a relatively weak pursuit team. Without striking heavily, she used binding magic to isolate one of them.
It was a young mage. Judging by his robe, he had just stepped onto the path of magic not long ago. When caught by Frieren, his face was full of terror, and even his defensive magic unfolded messily.
Frieren gave him no chance to struggle and began questioning directly. "Who sent you?"
"It was a mission issued by the Mage Guild..."
"Who issued the mission?"
"I... I don't know..."
"Tell me the mission details."
The young mage was terrified, as if Frieren were the terrifying demon on the Wanted Order ready to eat him at any moment. But he still tremblingly pulled a piece of parchment from his robe.
The parchment not only had portraits of Frieren and Aura but specifically stated to capture the former alive, while the latter was dead or alive. The reward offered was abnormally generous—even precious grimoires were offered.
Seeing the grimoires listed, even Frieren couldn't help but be moved.
Unfortunately, she couldn't tie herself up and hand herself over. She didn't know what they wanted to do to her. If the target were Aura, she wouldn't need to be so conflicted.
Just then, a line of small print at the bottom caught her attention:
After capturing the target, transfer to the nearest Kingdom Mage Guild immediately for subsequent handling by the Royal Court Mages.
Frieren looked at this line, her mind even more confused.
Every country's Court Mages were top-tier. Even in the Magic Association, they were existences capable of passing the Second-Class Mage exam.
And now, because of her and Aura, these people were involved. If the reason was merely colluding with demons, Frieren absolutely didn't believe it.
She put away the parchment and released the binding spell on the young mage, who scrambled away into the forest and disappeared.
Aura poked her head out from behind her. "Lord Frieren, on that paper..."
"Someone is lying," Frieren said. "So-called collusion with demons is just an excuse. They want me. Alive."
Aura: ???
What about me? Dead or alive, is it?
She wanted to ask, but fearing she would annoy Frieren, whose mood was obviously bad, she chose to shut up decisively.
She now sincerely hoped she and Frieren could escape this clearly abnormal pursuit.
However, the answer was quite the opposite. Their tracks were thoroughly exposed after all.
Only this time, the opponent was smart. Instead of rushing up immediately, they followed far behind. By the time Frieren and Aura discovered them, the tail had already fled, leaving only a trace of residual mana.
It was some kind of communication magic. Through it, the opponent had reported Frieren and Aura's location to others.
When Frieren saw that trace of mana, her always indifferent expression changed noticeably.
"Troublesome... Nowhere to run."
The moment she saw this mana residue, Frieren understood that their tracks were completely exposed. Next, they would likely face a true frontal confrontation.
But this way, it would be convenient for her to find out the truth.
She didn't believe that among these mages participating in the hunt, not a single one knew the facts.
And the answer lay in the eighth wave of pursuers they encountered.
The leader mage fell into a semi-comatose state under Frieren's overwhelming mana suppression, thus unconsciously spilling fragmented words: "...You are... Lady Serie's... grand-disciple..."
"Why... don't you age..."
"That woman in the Magic Association... she must have used... immortality magic too..."
"As long as we catch you... Lord Rhodes will... will hand over..."
Before he could finish, he lost his life force completely.
"...Immortality magic."
Frieren suddenly understood everything.
Why the quality of pursuers was so high, why the Wanted Order spread so fast, why the Court Mages of three kingdoms could reach a consensus so quickly.
Not because of the charge of harboring a demon.
But because she was Frieren.
Because her teacher was Flamme.
Because Flamme's teacher was Serie.
Because beside Serie stood Rhodes.
—And Rhodes created the only immortality magic in this world.
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