Chapter 13

Chapter 13

‘What? Mana?’

The achievement level of the Mana Absorption skill was currently 9-Star.

Originally, it could detect mana within a radius of 10m, but thanks to the passive skill Master of Mana, it could now read up to 60m.

‘But I can feel mana 60m away? And not from the communication orb?’

Zeke turned his head toward the 3 o’clock direction.

It was far away, but when he focused on the bushes, he saw someone hiding there and watching them.

“What is this? An ambush?”

“Fourth Young Master, what did you just say?”

At Raker’s question, Zeke raised his hand.

“Stop the vehicle for a moment.”

“What are you saying? Why stop?”

Peter looked at him as though he found it absurd, but Zeke was serious.

Perhaps sensing that seriousness, Raker immediately stopped the mana-powered vehicle.

“Stop!”

“Do not stop! Who told you to—”

It was then that Peter shouted.

BOOOOM!

“Guh!”

“Aaagh!”

A sudden explosion erupted, sending the three guard knights protecting the front of the mana-powered vehicle flying.

When he looked at the ground, a magic circle appeared and then vanished.

It seemed a spell that had been prepared in advance had exploded.

“It is a surprise attack! Protect the young masters!”

At Raker’s command, the guard knights moved in perfect order.

It seemed the claim that only elites had been selected was not a lie.

Some surrounded Zeke’s mana-powered vehicle, while others charged toward the bushes.

Then a hidden mage fled, his robe fluttering.

“The enemy is a mage. Do not give him time to respond!”

They approached swiftly, but the mage’s body vanished even faster.

Like smoke.

“Invisibility?”

“He is using Invisibility! He is at least a 5th-Circle mage!”

Tension filled the guard knight’s eyes.

It seemed that even they had no way to distinguish invisibility, for they looked around in every direction.

However, there was not only one mage targeting them.

“Hm? Over there! There is another mage in the 9 o’clock direction!”

“There is one in the 7 o’clock direction too!”

Information was exchanged instantly, and their response was equally swift.

The knights who had scattered had already reached the mages’ vicinity.

“Young Master! It is dangerous, so please close the window and stay inside!”

“What is happening?”

“It seems three mages were lying in ambush. Please stay inside for now. The mana-powered vehicle has protective magic cast on it, so it is safer inside!”

Raker spoke urgently, but to be honest, Zeke was not nervous.

Compared to the majesty of the Dragon Legion he had faced in his previous life, mages were nothing much.

In the end, were they not humans, not monsters?

‘And on top of that, I can detect their locations like this.’

The Mana Absorption skill could detect mana within a radius of 60m.

Thanks to that, Zeke could determine the locations of all the mages.

After all, every mage had rings of mana around their heart.

‘Judging by the number of rings, are they all 6th-Circle mages?’

Moreover, Raker had said there were three mages lying in ambush, but in truth, there were four.

Two of them were using Invisibility.

Fwoosh!

BOOM!

“Urgh!”

Explosions and screams rang out one after another.

Through the window of the mana-powered vehicle, a scene unfolded that was hard to watch with open eyes.

‘The knights are being defeated.’

The knights had closed the distance and attacked first, but even they could not pierce the mages’ thick shields.

As a result, they had no choice but to suffer counterattacks from fire magic.

‘Hm?’

At that moment, Zeke detected mana behind him.

A mage who had released Invisibility fired the fire spell he had prepared.

BOOM!

“Kyaaak!”

The interior of the mana-powered vehicle shook violently.

The servants inside screamed, but Zeke remained calm.

Though he was slightly surprised.

‘Wow. The explosive power is no joke.’

It shook violently, but fortunately, shield magic had been cast on the mana-powered vehicle, so it was not destroyed.

However, judging by the mana he could feel from the vehicle, Zeke had a premonition that even this would not last much longer.

‘If it takes one more attack, it will shatter.’

Just as he thought that, another mage released Invisibility.

When the second fire spell finished casting, Zeke finally felt a sense of danger.

“We cannot stay here. Everyone, get out quickly!”

Zeke hurriedly opened the door and sent the servants out.

Meanwhile, Peter also scrambled out in a panic.

Raker, who had just been cutting down one mage, shouted in surprise when the people suddenly came out.

“Why are you coming out? It is dangerous, so go back inside!”

“No, we have to get out!”

Just as Zeke shouted while leaving the mana-powered vehicle...

The second burst of fire struck the mana-powered vehicle directly.

BOOOM!

“Kyaaa!”

The shield magic shattered, and the mana-powered vehicle was engulfed in flames.

Had they remained inside, they might have been roasted alive.

“Take care of the mages quickly!”

However, contrary to the spirited shout, the knights had no way to catch the mages.

Whenever they tried to seize them, the mages vanished before their eyes with Invisibility, as though teasing them.

It felt as though they were fighting ghosts.

Realizing how unfavorable the situation was, Raker turned back as though there was no other choice.

“Young Master! This will not do. While we hold them back, you must—where is the First Young Master?”

At those words, Zeke turned his head.

The First Young Master, who had been beside him moments ago, had disappeared.

“Hm? Where did he go?”

-He used Invisibility and fled earlier. I saw it.

At Karbol’s answer, a laugh escaped him.

To think he had fled alone using Invisibility to save himself.

‘So he does not care if everyone here dies?’

This would not do.

Just as Zeke thought it was time for him to step forward, Raker wrapped an arm around his waist like he was carrying luggage.

“I apologize, but please excuse me, Fourth Young Master!”

“No, wait...!”

“Everyone, cover the young master and follow me!”

The knights hoisted the other servants over their shoulders just as Raker had done, then fled while keeping the mages in check.

They had chosen to run rather than fight.

“If we take refuge in that forest, they will not follow us!”

Zeke raised his head and looked in the direction Raker was running.

There was indeed a forest, but it looked strangely eerie, like the maw of a monster.

Tap, tap, tap.

The mages were following them using Haste, but they could not easily close the distance.

In terms of mobility, their knights had the advantage.

When the mages saw them trying to enter the forest, they slowed their steps and chanted spells.

It seemed they had given up on pursuit and were trying to launch one final attack.

‘I cannot allow that.’

Zeke absorbed the mana around the mages.

Tssssss.

“Hm?”

“……!”

The mages preparing their spells flinched in surprise.

They were confused because their magic had suddenly stopped working.

[You have absorbed 17 mana.]

[You have absorbed 22 mana.]

[You have absorbed 15 mana.]

………………

…………

Due to the continuous Mana Absorption, the mages could not use any magic.

Because Zeke was continuously absorbing their mana.

‘Ohh, this is good. Mana Absorption is blocking them from using magic.’

It was not an absurdly powerful skill merely because it could raise his stats.

It also had the effect of blocking an opponent’s magic.

‘This skill completely counters mages, does it not?’

The natural enemy of mages had been born into a family of mages.

It was truly ironic.

It certainly seemed that the system had chosen a background suitable for his growth.

Thanks to the opening Zeke created, the knights and servants were able to safely enter the forest.

They had finally shaken off the mages’ pursuit.

“This should be enough. Stop here.”

At Raker’s command, the knights, who had been running continuously, stopped.

All of them set down the servants with breathless faces, and only then was Zeke able to place his feet on the ground.

“Young Master Zeke, are you injured anywhere?”

“I am fine. More importantly, about those people earlier. They were professional assassins, right? They were targeting the mana-powered vehicle too deliberately to be simple bandits...”

“You have excellent insight. As you said, Young Master, those men are not ordinary bandits. They are trained assassins.”

They were not the sort of common bandits one might encounter on the road.

They were professional assassins composed of four 6th-Circle mages.

“Damn it. Where did such people come from...?”

Because of the sudden attack by the mages, the guard knights had been injured.

The mana-powered vehicle was half-destroyed and unusable, and the servants had also suffered minor wounds.

In this state, they could not properly perform their escort duties.

As the Captain of the Guard Knights, Raker felt responsible for failing to prevent the attack.

“I apologize, Young Master. I should have been more attentive...”

“No, it is all right. More importantly, those people seem to have been waiting for us.”

“For us?”

“They had drawn explosive magic circles in advance and were lying in ambush, right? Does that not mean they received information from someone and knew our route?”

“Mmm, that is a reasonable point, but there is no obvious place from which the information could have leaked...”

“Someone commissioned them to kill my eldest brother and me. And it was someone on the inside who knew our route.”

“Pardon? Someone on the inside?”

Did that not mean there was a traitor among the members of the family?

‘Someone who has a grudge against me...’

Zeke’s eyes flashed once.

One person came to mind.

***

“Damn it. We lost them.”

The assassins stopped walking and stared blankly at Zeke’s group as they entered the forest.

With the mages’ footwork, it was not enough to keep up with the movements of the guard knights.

That was why they had stopped walking and decided to snipe them with magic, but...

“Why did the magic fail to activate?”

“I do not know. The mana that had gathered suddenly scattered.”

For some unknown reason, the magic had vanished on its own.

“Could it be because of the forest’s influence?”

“That seems to be the case.”

“It is an infamous forest, after all.”

The place the mages were looking at was the forest into which the targets had entered.

“Even so, to think they went in there.”

“What should we do? Should we follow them inside?”

“Are you insane? You want to enter the Forest of Magical Beasts?”

Even for them, as 6th-Circle mages, the Forest of Magical Beasts was dangerous all the same.

“Leave them. The mission failed, but since they entered the Forest of Magical Beasts, they will not come out alive.”

“Still, should we not confirm it?”

“Entering ourselves is too risky. They may come back out soon, so we will simply watch from here for a while.”

That was what he said, but this could only be called a painful failure.

For assassins like them, mission failure was directly tied to death.

“We tried to kill both targets, but we failed. One of ours died too.”

“That is not certain yet. Since they entered the Forest of Magical Beasts, we cannot call it a failure.”

“If only the magic circles we laid had activated properly, it would have been perfect.”

“How did they know we were there and stop right before the explosion?”

“How would I know? More importantly, be quiet.”

The mage placed a finger to his lips.

“The escaped rat may be listening.”

“Ah...”

The rat they spoke of meant Peter.

They knew full well that he had used Invisibility and disappeared midway.

“One person will watch the forest from here, and the rest will search the vicinity. We have to find the rat.”

The mages nodded and quickly scattered.

***

‘What are those bastards doing? Are they trying to find me?’

Peter bit his lower lip as he watched the assassins.

From the looks of it, they intended to search for him.

He could not remain invisible forever.

Once his mana ran out, even this would soon end.

‘I do not have time for this. I need to get away from here quickly.’

Fortunately, their search range was quite far from him.

He had to distance himself from the assassins as much as possible if he wanted to live.

Tap, tap, tap.

He ran without rest, but perhaps because he did not usually train his body, he soon became exhausted.

‘Huff, huff. Still, if I have gotten this far, they should not be able to follow me.’

Just as he thought he had put a considerable distance between them, the set mana was exhausted, and Invisibility was released.

Thud.

Peter collapsed to the ground as though exhausted and caught his breath while thinking.

How on earth had things come to this?

“To think I, who will inherit the position of the next family head, am being chased by assassins. Hah. This is truly absurd.”

He had a guess as to who had tried to kill him.

That was why it felt even more absurd.

“I worked like a dog for eight years, seeing every filthy thing there was to see, and this is my reward? Was this why you said you would accept Zeke? Hah. Damn it.”

Perhaps because he felt betrayed by someone he had trusted, Peter could not think normally.

Otherwise, he would not have taken out the communication orb like this and contacted the person in question directly.

Tap, tap, tap.

When he took out the communication orb hidden in his robes and tapped it three times, it connected to the target.

-Who is it?

At the voice that asked abruptly, Peter spoke coldly.

“Lord Tower Master. It is me, Peter.”

-Peter, is it? Good. Are you bringing your youngest brother?

“This is too much, Lord Tower Master.”

-Hm?

“I believe I have silently shown loyalty to you all this time without falling short of your expectations. And yet you repay me like this?”

-What are you talking about out of nowhere?

“You sent assassins to kill me.”

-What?

“When you said you needed a test subject for your research on Mana Backlash and wanted me to bring Zeke, I did not object at all. Rather, I actively supported and cooperated with your opinion. And yet you tried to dispose of Zeke and me in this manner... This is truly too much.”

-Assassins? What on earth are you talking about? Were you attacked by assassins on the way?

“...Did you not send assassins to kill us?”

-I do not know what you are thinking, but I absolutely did not order any assassination. Why would I try to kill you?

“Ah...”

For a while, Peter could only wear a foolish expression.

He had thought the Tower Master sent assassins to murder him and silence him, but he had been completely mistaken.

“Was this truly not under your orders, Lord Tower Master?”

-I said it was not. What reason would I have to kill you when you swore loyalty to me with a Mana Oath? If I meant to kill you, I would not have told you to bring me the test subject.

“Ah, I apologize. It seems I misunderstood.”

-Are you unharmed?

“Yes. I shook off the assassins’ pursuit.”

-What about the test subject?

Peter thought briefly of Zeke, who had entered the Forest of Magical Beasts.

“Zeke will not come out alive.”

-That is unfortunate. Since he was said to have no Mana Affinity, I wanted to examine him personally under the pretext of training him in the magical arts.

“I apologize. I did not expect the sudden attack either...”

-There is no need to apologize. It was unavoidable. For now, keep yourself safe. Assassins are persistent.

“Understood. Then I will end the communication.”

After cutting off the communication orb, Peter wore a much more relieved expression.

“They were not assassins hired by the Tower Master.”

If he had not contacted the Tower Master and untangled the knot, he would have been deeply mistaken.

‘Then who on earth ordered the assassination?’

He was left with doubts, but for now, he had to hide himself.

‘And of all times, the communication orb had to stop working...’

He wanted to inform someone of his situation, but the communication orb his father had given him was broken, so he had no means of contact.

“I have no choice but to go directly and tell him.”

His destination was decided.

Once his breathing stabilized, Peter checked his surroundings and hastened his steps.

Unaware that someone had overheard the conversation just now.