Chapter 40. Fate (3)
A sage who had reached the way of magic, a 5th-tier Mage, and who also possessed outstanding knowledge in various fields of magic such as alchemy, magic circles, and astrology — Harkan Dazest.
Decades ago, he was the idol of surrounding Mages, and a steadfast pillar to his colleagues. Moreover, he had a kind nature and liked helping people, so even the citizens respected Harkan.
Then, one day, at a friend's suggestion, he created a gathering.
A group whose purpose was to explore the mysteries imbued in magic and to pursue the unknown, a thoroughly Mage-like association. The first members, including Harkan, named it "Black Hour."
"It was a pure motive, you see. We were just Mages who gathered because we wanted to research magic more deeply. But then, as more and more Mages began to join, it became impossible to control."
The small group of eight, within a few years, came to draw the attention of countless nations and power blocs.
Led by the 6th-tier Mage, Harkan's friend and the leader of Black Hour, the hundreds-strong order of Mages itself became a symbol of fear.
Even in a full-scale war against a small nation, they could easily overwhelm.
Yet the leader never let Black Hour stray down a wrong path.
They simply had more to do than before, but they never once lost their original purpose.
At least, not until he took in one disciple, Dahit Wethroel.
"Dahit… the fellow was clever. He hid his claws thoroughly, acted the part of an innocent Mage. We raised him with the utmost care, never realizing we had taken in the offspring of a snake."
Dahit's growth limit was a staggering 7th tier. The Magi, including the leader and Harkan, poured everything they had accumulated into him without hesitation.
And so, when the first members had passed from middle age into old age, Dahit had already reached the 6th tier, becoming a strong candidate for the next leader.
But.
"He never intended to inherit Black Hour as it was. His goal was to seize not the current Black Hour, but a Black Hour of his own."
On the day before the leader was to step down,
Dahit staged a rebellion with the subordinates he had gathered in secret. Several Mages who had come to attend the retirement ceremony were slaughtered before they could even put up resistance.
The first members belatedly realized and tried to suppress it, but there was something they had overlooked.
Dahit had already reached the 7th tier, becoming a transcendent, and among the first members themselves were those who sided with him.
"…It was a massacre. In the end, the leader of Black Hour fell to Dahit, leaving not even a corpse behind. I myself had my mana circuits ravaged by him, while the other comrades were killed or gravely wounded."
But thanks to an escape route secretly prepared by the leader, Harkan was able to save what remained of his life on the verge of being cut short.
Thus, Harkan and the surviving first members scattered, evading the pursuit of Black Hour.
And so it went, for decades until now.
"After that, Dahit completely seized Black Hour. To build power, he turned it into a den crawling with all manner of wicked Mages. A gathering that once studied magic had been twisted into a means of ruling over the world."
"Could you not foresee fate, and avoid it?"
"All I can glimpse are fragments of fate, those which can never be changed. That is why I chose to wait. The final shift in fate that I saw… was you."
Cough, cough!
Harkan hastily covered his mouth, but the bleeding was too severe. Blood spilled between his fingers and dripped onto the floor.
Now, he truly did not have much time. Change had come, and soon he would die. It would be difficult to last even this day.
Harkan desperately continued.
"That ring is something I lost long ago. It was a pair. Now it is broken beyond repair, no longer able to fulfill its function… yet it came into your hand, and thus we have met. That, surely, can only be called destiny. So I beg of you, stop Dahit, and those first members who sided with him…! Do not let them trample the world with the Black Hour we created…!"
His voice carried countless emotions, soaked with desperation.
Verden asked quietly.
"…What is the price?"
At that, Harkan burst into laughter.
"Cold-blooded. No better time to leave my last will. Yes, of course, a price must be paid. If you only promise me you will stop them, if you only say that one word… then I will give you everything I have built."
Things no Mage could ever refuse.
***
"Not for revenge, but for the world…"
It was a conviction difficult to understand.
For what Verden desired was personal revenge, nothing more.
Verden gazed indifferently at Harkan.
He felt no sympathy. He was not the kind to feel such affection for a man he had only just met.
But Harkan's proposal, that was interesting.
What kind of reward would a Mage who had reached the way of magic dare to speak of with such confidence?
Verden was not the type to dismiss something suspicious without checking. Having come this far, he had to gain something.
At least find out what it was… so he thought, just as he opened his mouth, the cave began to shake.
Seeing Harkan's alarm, it didn't seem to be his doing.
Verden immediately spread his mana detection.
"Magic?"
Spells of considerable power were ripping through the forest.
The area burned and collapsed, even affecting the concealment magic circle. Soon, much of the forest was shattered, the magic circle ceasing to function.
"Is there anyone who would come here?"
"Not at all. I never even told the surviving friends. They would have no reason to come in this way. Which means…"
Black Hour.
At that moment, three figures in black robes, whom Verden had glimpsed in the village, flashed through his mind.
It was only intuition, but close to certainty.
"Of all times, why now."
Why Black Hour had found Harkan after decades of pursuit, he did not know. But if they met, they would surely seek to kill not only Harkan, but Verden as well.
"…Do you mean to fight?"
Verden nodded.
With staff in hand, he drew up his magic power, ready to meet the enemy.
Footsteps echoed from the cave entrance.
Soon, three humans draped in black robes appeared.
***
The Black Hour silently regarded Verden and Harkan.
Cardin pulled out a parchment, checked Harkan's face, and nodded.
"He's aged a lot, but looks like it's him. Didn't hear about there being another one though."
"Oh my? Isn't that the handsome man I saw in the village? Kyaa! What do I do, isn't this really fate? No, could it be destiny?"
"Silence, Ferris. You can indulge your whims after all business is finished."
Cardin, who had snapped at Ferris, stepped forward.
Pale skin, a neat bearing. Yet from his gaze emanated a vile malice that could not be hidden.
"Let's confirm. You are the traitor of Black Hour, Harkan Dazest, are you not?"
"Traitor? Is that what Dahit calls me?"
"Use honorifics."
Cardin's magic power sank heavily into the surroundings.
A pressure under which ordinary people could not even breathe, but it could not threaten a dying Harkan. He had expected as much.
'But why is that man unharmed?'
Verden, standing expressionless. He looked to be a Mage, but seemed at least ten years younger than Cardin.
Surely he couldn't be resisting 4th-tier magical oppression so easily, could he? Did he possess some special magical artifact?
Such doubts lasted only a moment, before Harkan spoke.
"Honorifics, you say. I was one of those who raised that wretch. I never imagined it would become my lifelong regret… But how did you even find this place? The magic circle was not made so carelessly that the likes of you could detect it."
"Before Lord Dahit, all such things are mere tricks."
At Cardin's gesture, Chen took a small compass from his pocket. From within it, he drew out a small mana stone.
"Mana tracking. An 'artificial artifact' under production in Black Hour. Insert a mana stone here, and the needle points to the owner of the mana within. It is still incomplete, with limitations over distance, but as you see, the performance is real."
It contained the mana taken when Dahit had shattered Harkan's mana circuits. The fact that it could still be tracked after so long was proof of its formidable function.
Verden's eyes gleamed secretly.
'I want that.'
So he thought, as he observed the situation.
Though outnumbered, a preemptive strike would have been advantageous. Yet the information the enemies spoke of seemed both intriguing and important.
Verden stepped back a pace, watching the conversation.
"Harkan Dazest. As such, Lord Dahit could have found you and killed you at any time. But he did not. For he is one who has no fear of the thrashings of a defeated man."
"And why seek me now? Has he suddenly grown afraid of nightmares?"
"…Enough. To the point."
Cardin returned the compass to Chen.
He cleared his throat, and continued.
"Some time ago, a magic tower fell."
"…What?"
"Just as I say. The power source of Bohemirn magic tower went berserk, and the entire tower ceased to function. The Mages in its vicinity were exposed to high-density magic power, leaving not even a trace behind."
The collapse of one of the ten magic towers was not mere shock, but terror itself to all.
Though the news could not help but spread to nearby nations and towers, the upper echelons of each country deliberately kept it secret, fearing global upheaval.
No doubt it would be some time before the news reached the Duchy of Riviant, at least until Bohemirn magic tower restored some of its power.
"But then."
Cardin clenched his fist.
His face brimmed with rage.
"Some bastard, pinned the blame for all of it on Black Hour…!"
Because of that, they became the targets of the towers. Especially, the strike forces led by the tower master of Bohemirn had already destroyed more than six branches.
Assaulted out of nowhere, Black Hour had no choice but to retreat without mounting a proper defense.
It was humiliation. And injustice.
However many wicked Mages they housed, there was no reason to be slain for something they had not done.
"Lord Dahit was convinced this was a scheme, devised by those who opposed Black Hour. Thus we gathered information, and tracked the likely culprits. You are one of them, Harkan Dazest."
In truth, one on Harkan's level, a 5th-tier Mage, should have come. But with that accursed Bohemirn tower master rampaging, they could not divert their forces.
Luckily, just as Lord Dahit said, Harkan was dying, and so could be dealt with easily.
"I ask you, traitor. Are you connected to the collapse of Bohemirn magic tower?"
"I am not. If I had such power, I would have used it on you long ago."
Cardin nodded as though satisfied. He had not expected much anyway.
Harkan's condition was clearly too poor to have wrought such destruction, and his shock at the tower's fall seemed genuine.
Whether he was the culprit or not, they intended to kill him regardless, so it hardly mattered.
…And as he listened beside them, Verden blinked.
'Isn't that about me?'