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chapter 125




“You’re right.”
Heinz staggered up from the floor.
His head was lowered, and there was a strange expression on his face.
“If Frey is dead, as you say, then I really don’t have the right to mourn his death. Huhu.”
He laughed blankly as if he had lost a piece of his soul.
“I just wanted to get Frey out of this hell.”
“Hell?”
“Right.”
Shuk.
Heinz took off his shirt.
Upon seeing this, Frey’s eyebrows furrowed.
Terrible scars covered Heinz’s well-trained body.
Cuts, tears and stitches could be found on almost every inch of his skin.
“A body which can contain and utilise both divine power and mana at the same time is, in itself, a rare sample. For the Blake family, I’ve always been just another test subject. Nothing more, nothing less.”
After staying silent for a while, Heinz continued.
“It was the same for Mischael. He was also different before the experiments began. I wouldn’t say he was a good person, but he certainly could have become one with the right education. But the intensity of the experiments became stronger and stronger with each passing day, and Mischael, who wasn’t strong-willed, had no choice but to go in such a crooked direction just so he wouldn’t break… as the ‘chosen ones’, we all had to go through these ordeals.”
“…”
“When Frey was born… his smile was like that of an angel. I hoped that such a beautiful smile would never go away. I didn’t want my precious brother to suffer in this cursed family. So… I purposely blocked his mana veins.”
Frey frowned.
He clearly remembered the feeling of discomfort he’d felt when he first inhabited Frey’s body.
He was certain that a third party had blocked the mana flow, and now, Heinz was admitting he was the cause.
“I thought it would be better for him if he wasn’t in the Blake family. If he could go somewhere else. Like the academy, where he could stay with his peers… I believed they would get along.”
“The Westroad Academy was just another hell for Frey Blake.”
When Frey said these words calmly, Heinz bowed his head once again.
“…I didn’t hear about any bullying in the school.”
Of course, he wouldn’t know.
All the students in the Westroad Academy were nobles.
Almost from the moment they could talk, they were taught the basics of politics.
Therefore, they were able to carry out their bullying in secret, without alarming the professors.
And because of Frey’s timid nature, there was no way he’d tell someone about it.
That was why Heinz had never heard about his brother’s treatment in the academy.
“…but given that child’s personality, I suppose something like that was natural.”
He was in a hurry, and he hadn’t thought it through.
But such excuses were meaningless now.
Heinz bit his lip.
“And it was us who made him so weak. There’s no excuse for it.”
“So what will you do now?”
“…I don’t know.”
Heinz sighed.
“I really don’t know. To be honest, I didn’t expect Frey’s death to have such a big impact on me.”
“What’s done is done. Don’t think about it too much.”
Heinz’s expression became strange at that moment.
If someone else had said those words to him, he definitely would’ve gotten angry, but Frey’s voice seemed to be filled with experience.
Like the voice of someone who had overcome a situation even greater than the one he was going through.
“First of all, help me.”
“…help you?”
“There are still remnants of ‘Frey’ inside of me. Originally, I didn’t care about your story, and I didn’t intend to listen. I only did so because ‘Frey’ wanted to.”
“…Frey.”
“He wants to believe that there was a reason for what you’d done.”
Those words made Heinz’s expression clear up a little.
“Can you tell me more?”
“That depends on your choice.”
That reminded Heinz of what Frey had just told him.
In other words, he was forcing him.
“So… you’re asking me to cooperate with a mysterious being that took over the dead body of my little brother?”
“It doesn’t sound good when you put it that way, but yes.”
“…”
“I want to ask something first. Why did you join the Circle?”
When he heard that, a vicious light seemed to shine within Heinz’s eyes.
“To erase the Demigods from the face of the continent.”
They had left irrevocable scars on his body.
And because of them, he was constantly suffering from pain and anguish.
Why him? Why did he have to suffer like that?
Anger and resentment blossomed within his heart, and as time passed, they only grew stronger.
And then he’d realised.
The Demigods were the reason for everything.
Frey could clearly see the rage in Heinz’s eyes, and for him, that was more convincing than any oath or promise.
This was proof that he could trust Heinz.
“Apocalypses. They are considered the strongest among the Demigods. We now have the opportunity to slay one of them.”
“…by killing my mother?”
“Do you still consider them your parents?”
Frey’s words caused Heinz to pause.
No positive or negative thoughts came to mind immediately. However, he was certain that he had no attachment to them as his family members.
But that didn’t mean he was willing to kill them just because of that.
After all, weren’t they the ones who gave birth to him and raised him?
“…I’m not sure.”
“That’s understandable.”
That was a natural response that anyone with a moral compass would give.
This meant he couldn’t ask for Heinz’s help to kill Leita.
“Then I’d like to ask you for something else.”
“What is it?”
“There is a metal called Illuminium.”
“Illuminium?”
“Right. Its features…”
Frey gave him a rough overview of the characteristics of Illuminium, and after hearing everything, Heinz nodded and asked.
“It’s stored somewhere in the mansion?”
“There’s a high probability that it’s stored in the basement.”
Heinz shook his head.
“There are many basements other than the one below the mansion.”
“There are?”
“Besides this one, there are numerous labs scattered throughout Pillat. I know a few of them, but I don’t know all of them.”
“Hmm.”
Frey pondered for a while before saying.
“Then focus on finding these hidden laboratories as quickly as possible. It would be better if we could find clues about the Illuminium.”
“Understood… then what about you?”
“…first, I’ll watch how the situation develops. If possible, I”d like to wait until Sheryl gets here before making a move.”
Frey thought for a moment before adding.
“And I think we need to call in for more reinforcements.”
Two days was not a short time. Especially in an urgent situation like this one.
Nevertheless, there was a reason why Frey had remained silent for two days.
One was that he was in the heart of the enemy’s territory.
No matter how powerful he was, Frey couldn’t completely ignore the strength of the Blake family.
The fighting strength of the Blake family wasn’t a threat if Leita was excluded, but there was one variable that remained unknown.
“I don’t know how strong Isaka’s divine power is.”
Even Heinz didn’t know.
Isaka, the 7 star Archmage, was of no threat to Frey, but Isaka, who wielded divine power, was a different story.
He was someone Frey had to be mindful of.
The other reason, and in fact the decisive reason, was that Leita had disappeared ever since she had taken Frey to the basement.
Frey had scoured the entire mansion, but he was unable to find any traces of her.
At least, it was clear to him that she was no longer in the mansion.
‘She evacuated her immediately after talking to me.’
Leita was her weakness.
At the same time, it was ironic because Leita was the main fighting force, but Leyrin had still chosen to evacuate her rather than use her as a deterrent force against him.
Heinz didn’t return to the mansion either.
At Frey’s request, he began searching the entirety of Pillat.
Thanks to that, meals in the house were only attended by Frey and Isaka.
Isaka simply moved his spoon with a robotic expression on his face.
And even after the meals, there were no conversations between the two of them.
After dinner, Frey returned to his room, and in the dark room lit only by the moonlight streaming in from the window, he found a blonde-haired girl.
“Sheryl”
“Did you call for me, Master?”
Master?
Frey tilted his head slightly at the unfamiliar title but decided not to say anything about it.
“I called you because I need your help.”
“Please give me your orders. Your wish is my command.”
It was said calmly, but her word filled him with confidence.
After all, Sheryl Roland was second in command of the Phisfounder Armlets and also the Contractor of Lilith, one of the Five Demon Archdukes.
She also had her abilities as a vampire and hundreds of years of experience, so she was sure to be a great help to him.
“I want you to track down Leita.”
“…do you mean the Lady of the Blake family, Leita Blake?”
“Right.”
“Understood.”
Sheryl nodded without asking any more questions.
It seemed she was also preparing to go look for her immediately.
Seeing this, Frey warned her so that she would take the proper precautions.
“She’s an Apostle.”
Sheryl’s expression changed to one of shock.
“An Apocalypse’s Apostle at that, so you have to be careful.”
“Don’t worry, I’m used to being discreet.”
Sheryl smiled and disappeared into the shadows.
His basic preparations had all been completed.
Heinz and Sheryl were both trusted allies. And the reinforcements…
He, or they, would only arrive before dawn.
‘Then.’
The time to lay low had finally come to an end.
Frey left his room and walked down the dimly lit corridor.
Alexandro, who was patrolling the halls, spotted him, and when he saw Frey, he flinched slightly and bowed his head politely.
He then tried to pass by Frey quickly without greeting him.
Frey knew that the servants in the mansion were usually busy dealing with various things, and Alexandro was no different from them, but this time was different.
He blocked Alexandro’s path.
Seeing this, Alexandro displayed a frightened expression and quickly lowered his head even further.
Frey shook his hand, his powerful mana erupting.
Alexander quickly raised his head, realising that his body was now floating in the air.
“W-, what is…”
Alexandro squirmed and writhed in the air.
Frey then made dozens of Flame Arrows, all of which were pointing at him.
Fwoosh
“H-, huk…”
Alexandro’s face became pale when he saw the many arrows aimed at him.
He turned to Frey with fearful eyes.
“Yo-, Young Master Frey, t-, this…”
“I will only ask you once butler. Where is Leita?”
A look of horror overtook Alexandro’s expression.
Frey was the third son of the Blake family, but in truth, he was like the son who had been abandoned by the family.
However, after his return, all of his actions had been shocking.
He had defeated the eldest son, Mischael, in a duel and won the recognition of his parents, and even the Third Princess of the empire, who visited the family on occasion, seemed to admire him.
In this short time, Frey’s status in the family, which had been below even that of the servants, had shot up at an astounding rate.
Since then, Alexandro had made sure to pay particular attention to his behaviour in front of Frey.
But he couldn’t help but think right then.
Wasn’t this too much?
Even if he might have wronged Frey before, he was still a butler who had served the Blake family for decades.
But threatening his life like this?
In the Blake family mansion, no less?
If he was in a calm state, then his anger would have soared at that moment, but he wasn’t even able to think.
“If you would like to expose your guts to the world, you don’t need to answer.”
“That…”
The moment he saw Frey’s eyes, his hair turned white.
Frey’s eyes were so cold that for a moment, he could not even feel the heat from the Flame Arrows.
Alexandro realised immediately.
If he didn’t give the right answer, he would die there.
“M-, Miss Leita said she was going to the capital!”
“The capital? What for?”
“I don’t know…”
“…”
“I’m telling you. Please believe me…”
Alexander had a desperate expression on his face as he said those words.
Frey looked at him closely. Then.
Thump.
“Huk…”
Alexander’s body fell to the floor.
He was sweating profusely, and his body was shaking, but Frey simply ignored him and left the mansion.
Then he flew into the air.
He flew up to a height where he’d be able to see every detail of the property with a glance, then he looked down.
The information that Leita was going to the capital was almost certainly false. She had probably spread the false information, hoping he would chase after her.
However, it was true that she wasn’t in the family home at that moment. Frey believed that she was monitoring the situation from nearby.
‘Sheryl is tracking her.’
His role was to affect Leita’s composure as much as he could.
And in order to do that, he would need to take some drastic measures.
He needed to do something large enough for Leita, who was monitoring the mansion from afar, to notice.
“Hyper Bolt.”
Chichichik.
Hyper Bolt, a 6 star spell.
A powerful sphere of energy shot from Frey’s hand to the annex to the west of the main building.
Boom!
In an instant, the 5 story building was smashed to pieces.
There were no people there as the annex had just been a decoy to hide the underground lab, so Frey didn’t hesitate.
Next, he aimed at the eastern annex.
Just as the energy sphere formed in Frey’s hands once again, the figure of a person soared into the sky from the main building of the mansion.
This figure, which exuded a fierce aura, rushed up towards Frey before stopping.
“You bastard… what are you doing?”
It was Isaka Blake.
He was glaring at Frey with a grim expression on his face.
“I am rebuilding the Blake family.”
“Nonsense! Can destroying a building be called rebuilding…?!”
“Of course.”
Boom!
Once again, a Hyper Bolt was fired.
The eastern annex was destroyed, and smoke began rising.
Looking at this sight, Frey spoke simply.
“Before we start over, we should clean up first.”
(TL: This is the end of book 5)