"...Hmm?"
Sensing a strange presence, the man, Bairan Osmond, tilted his head curiously.
"Is something wrong, sir?"
"I thought something snuck in..."
He felt a presence behind the potted plant. Bairan strode over to check, but found nothing.
Just a fly that had been sitting on a leaf, making a buzzing sound as it flew up.
"Just an insect."
Tsk, Bairan killed the fly with a casual flick of his hand.
"I should have some pest control enchantments installed."
"Excessive magical engravings might arouse suspicion."
"I know."
That’s why he had only inscribed a soundproofing enchantment.
After all, having various enchantments in the home of an ordinary mercenary captain would be as good as announcing that something was suspicious.
Above all, because of his profession as a mercenary, many people came and went from his house, so he had to be extra careful.
"Continue with what you were saying. The Academy brought students here?"
"Yes. And Aint Armian is among those students."
"Aint Armian...?"
His eyes widened.
"That cursed bloodline has come here?"
Bang! Bairan slammed the table. Papers, an inkwell, and a golden ashtray embossed with star patterns fell to the floor.
"This is an opportunity...!"
"An opportunity, sir?"
"To kill Aint Armian! No! A perfect opportunity to devour not just him but the entire future of the Empire!"
Bairan’s shout echoed throughout the study.
"If I eliminate him, I can receive deeper grace!"
"Would that be possible?"
"We must make it possible! Contact His Excellency immediately for support! Even if we lose everything, we’ll kill everyone from the Academy! Especially Aint Armian, that cursed one!"
"But His Excellency ordered us to remain quiet until the time is right..."
Crack-
"Guhk...!"
Rough hands gripped the butler’s neck. Suspended about 30cm off the ground, he struggled with a pale face.
"I clearly said I would send a letter to His Excellency."
Bang! The butler was thrown to the floor.
"Ku, cough...! B-but even Lord Comentas and Andromalius failed...!"
"Comentas encountered him without proper preparation! He met him in the middle of setting a trap and was defeated."
To begin with, Comentas wasn’t a particularly strong demonic creature in terms of combat power. Comparing him with Bairan was almost disrespectful.
"And Lord Andromalius wasn’t properly summoned. Because of that cursed seed, His Excellency’s plans were disrupted, and he had to summon him hastily."
The hastily summoned Andromalius was like a firefly compared to the full moon of Andromalius in hell.
"But I’m different!"
He might be lacking compared to the firefly Andromalius, but unlike Andromalius, he wasn’t alone.
"We have spirit creatures. We can summon more and kill him."
An army of spirit creatures.
Bairan had earned the right to partially open a passage to hell by offering sacrifices.
The appearance of spirit creatures that had thrown Altriark and the continent into turmoil was his doing, under His Excellency’s orders.
"Above all, they’re heading to the battlefield. Voluntarily!"
In that chaotic battle, in that pandemonium, who could guarantee what would happen?
"This is our chance. If we miss it, both I and His Excellency will regret it for the rest of our lives, beating the ground in frustration...!"
Conversely, if they succeeded in capturing him, only the bright hellfire would remain in his future.
"...Understood."
The butler ultimately had no choice but to follow his orders.
Bairan hastily began scrawling a letter.
[Great One...]
Despite his urgent gestures and movements, the handwriting and tone in the letter were exceedingly polite.
"Where are those Academy bastards now?"
"They’re having dinner with the Steward at the lord’s castle tonight, and tomorrow at dawn, they’ll leave for the barrier with the knights."
"Tomorrow, eh. How long they stay will be crucial."
"From what I’ve gathered, they’re scheduled to be at the barrier for about two weeks."
"Is that so?"
It was tight, but not impossible if he pushed himself.
After neatly folding the letter, inserting it into an envelope, and sealing it, Bairan rose from his seat.
"I’m heading to the desert immediately. You deliver this to His Excellency."
"Right now? After getting His Excellency’s permission..."
"What did you just say with your own mouth?"
"Two weeks..."
"By the time we get a reply from His Excellency, it will be too late. Does it make sense to waste such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to kill that cursed one so meaninglessly?"
"But we lack sacrifices to summon spirit creatures!"
"I’ll handle that myself!"
Growling lowly, he left the study. He would immediately gather his mercenary band and depart for the desert.
"...I must deliver this quickly."
After staring at the door where he had disappeared for a moment, the butler hurriedly left, holding the letter.
And shortly after.
’Seems like they’ve all left.’
Pop-
A golem that had been hiding behind the tree peeked out its head.
==
A golem is not a living being.
It possesses no breath, no heartbeat, no warmth of flesh and blood. If it completely stops functioning—ceases all movement and magical processes—it’s nothing more than a lifeless hunk of material. A mere rolling stone, inanimate and cold, indistinguishable from any ordinary rock formation sculpted by wind and time.
Wooden had stopped all his functions and hidden his body in the soil of the potted plant. As soon as Bairan returned to the table, he peeked his head out.
His black exterior with occasional white decorations blended well with the white and black pebbles, providing perfect camouflage.
Thus, Wooden—and by extension, Gerhard—heard everything.
"..."
In the quiet solitude of his chamber several streets away, Gerhard’s eyes slowly opened, the vivid green irises focusing as his consciousness fully returned to his body after the extended remote viewing through his golem familiar. The magical link that connected him to Wooden had allowed him to witness the entire exchange with perfect clarity, though it had left a dull ache behind his temples.
’Judging from their conversation, they can summon spirit creatures.’
So they were the culprits behind this crisis—not mere opportunists, but architects of the calamity that had befallen the region. The revelation settled heavily in his stomach like lead.