The Sword Genius of the Magic Empire - Chapter 105



Only Noblemtl

Shhh!

A sharp bang cut through the air.

But Enoch had already realized the attack coming from the side in a split second.

Because he caught a glimpse of a line of mana drawn in the air in an instant. Enoch only moved his eyes and glanced to the side.

“… … .”

It was heavy magic for a spell intended to gauge an opponent’s capabilities, but it was too slow and blatant to be an attack spell.

A small wedge-shaped projectile that contains concentrated mana.

‘Then what should we do?’

It’s not difficult to just dodge and counterattack.

If I had tried to subdue the opponent who had cast such a strange spell in the first place, I would have had time to launch a counterattack.

But these tricks were only superficial. I had to figure out the other person’s hidden intentions.

I had no intention of drawing my sword in a place like this, and there was one thing that was most important.

“Combat within the sanctuary is strictly prohibited.”

Enoch made a quick decision and decided to take action. The answer was already decided.

Enoch stood still and did nothing, looking back at the magic flying towards him with cold eyes.

Wedge!

A wedge-shaped projectile constructed from mana slammed into his dark blue eyes. Light rushed in every moment, spreading out across his expressionless eyes.

However, the bullet that had been cutting through the air with a heavy cracking sound soon stopped right before Enoch’s eyes.

And then the bullets silently transformed into small particles of light from the tip and gradually dispersed into the air.

widely.

Enoch reached out and grabbed the bullet as it disappeared. Its smooth surface touched his hand.

A magic that condenses mana to create a physical entity.

It’s a magic I’ve seen a few times before, but it’s quite new to be able to catch it with your hand before it naturally disappears.

“This is amazing.”

At that moment, a familiar man’s voice rang out from the other side of the hallway. The sound of footsteps and voices approached from beyond the passageway covered in thin shadows.

Then, a man with sharp eyes and a nervous expression, Antenor, walked out from across the hallway.

“You just attacked. Did you judge in that short time that they wouldn’t really attack? You clearly sensed it and reacted.”

He shook out the uniform symbolizing the saint’s escort, straightening the collar, and dispersed the faint halo of mana wrapped around his bare hand.

“I am surprised in many ways. I am very sorry for my rudeness, Enoch Elseid.”

Of course, it wasn’t a sincere apology. His tone was still sarcastic.

Enoch tossed the vanishing mana projectile he was holding in his hand a couple of times, as if to gauge its weight.

“Your eyes don’t look that sorry.”

“Ah. Please don’t worry about this. Since my eyes are like this, I tend to get misunderstood a lot.”

He smiled, squinting his eyes.

“But to be honest, I needed to test my skills even if it meant risking being rude. That’s all.”

Enoch looked at him calmly.

“That would be the case, Enoch, have you never been on an escort mission before?”

Antenor shrugged.

“Well. If I have to explain further, it’s this. If Lord Enoch fails the escort mission… .”

For a moment his voice lowered.

“…because it all becomes our responsibility.”

As he spoke, Enoch felt a presence and glanced around.

In the shadow of the white pillars lining the hallway of the sanctuary, his escorts silently appeared. It seemed that they were all already here.

“You guys. Didn’t you say you were dispatched from the higher-ups in the church?”

“It’s late, but let me reveal my proper affiliation. We are the guards protecting the “Cult Leader,” the highest leader of the religious order. We simply follow the will of the Goddess and faithfully follow her orders.”

Antenor added, spreading his arms low.

“And the cult leader has designated our guards’ mission as the escort of the saintess. As such, even though you are a direct descendant of the Elseid clan, you cannot just blindly entrust us with this responsibility.”

Enoch glanced at the projectile of mana still half-broken and disintegrating in his hand.

“So that’s why you did this?”

“I’m sorry.”

Enoch immediately came to a clear conclusion.

“This is a dead end.”

However, the saint’s escorts seemed far from being diligent, conscientious, or exemplary in their conduct, despite their affiliation.

“First of all, stop talking nonsense.”

The statement that he was testing his skills was an obvious lie. There was no need to go far. The current Enoch was a person invited to the sanctuary and a direct descendant of Elseid.

And he was also the one who requested the mission of the saint.

If you really wanted to try it, there are probably many other ways.

“Let me get to the point.”

“Of course I will do that.”

As if he had been waiting, Antenor raised his head and spoke in a low voice.

“Lord Enoch, it is not too late. If this is a mission you cannot handle, how about giving up escorting the saintess? To be honest, we are also in a position where we should be taking on this escort.”

He took a document out of his hand and held it up.

“This is a document to renounce the mission. Just say the word and we will take care of it. The same goes for the Saintess’s escort.”

Mission abandonment. It was a direct demand, so obvious that it was obvious. At this point, the situation itself was considered quite ridiculous.

What if Enoch had tried to block or counter the attack just now?

It is also possible that they were trying to frame him for starting a fight within the castle.

At least this is a deserted corridor. The only thing the people who have flocked in since the noise of battle has been able to believe is the consistent testimony of the guards.

It may be that Enoch was questioning his qualifications for the escort mission.

“You pretend to be sincere in the escort of the saint.”

Enoch said with a faint sneer.

“Actually, it seems like you don’t have much trust with such an important escort target.”

The fact that the saintess summoned Enoch for this mission ultimately means that, for whatever reason, she finds the current guards unsatisfactory.

As expected, the guy finally narrowed his eyes, which had been smiling, for a moment.

“Sir, the saint is still a young girl in her prime!”

“What does it matter?”

“Perhaps, when you have an outside schedule, we are always by your side as your escort due to the recent policy of the church. I’m sure you found that burdensome… … .”

Enoch cut off his ramblings calmly.

“You’re determined to make a fool of the saint.”

It wasn’t an empty remark. Saint Amelia wasn’t stupid enough to change her own escort for such a reason.

Since we haven’t had any real contact with each other yet, even if we don’t know everything about her, we know Amelia’s ‘personality’ pretty well.

We still don’t know what causes Amelia to distrust her escorts, but at least it’s not the childish reasons they gave.

Of course, it would have been okay to ignore this kind of farce.

However, at least I got a clue that could solve the unresolved questions about their affiliation and their assigned mission. It was a more satisfying conversation than I expected.

Enoch opened his mouth with indifferent eyes.

“Then, I will give you the answer too.”

And then, in the next moment, he quickly threw the fragment of mana he was holding in his hand.

Phew!

“─!”

Anterno flinched at the sensation of something brushing his cheek.

And a little too late, he realized that the shard of mana that had grazed his cheek had pierced the mission waiver he was holding up next to his eye.

A shard of nearly-dissolved mana shattered into the sky, piercing through the mission abandonment document with precision.

“Ugh.”

Antenor looked back at it with a look of mixed humiliation and hatred.

“I will take charge of the escort mission as scheduled.”

Enoch passed by him and repeated the same words he had said earlier.

“I apologize for being rude.”

Enoch’s dark blue eyes, passing by, glanced at Antenor and narrowed slightly.

“Then I hope we can have a good cooperation.”

Captain Antenor’s eyes opened slightly. Then, with his small, agitated eyes, he glanced at Enoch, who was passing by.

For a moment, he was overwhelmed by the boy’s mood. As soon as he realized that fact, he felt a surge of humiliation and anger.

At that moment, when their eyes crossed and they were about to drift apart, Enoch suddenly stopped.

Then he turned his head for a moment.

“Oh, right.”

“What, what is it?”

When Antenor unconsciously stuttered his voice at Enoch’s actions, the next words the black-haired boy spoke echoed hollowly through the hallway.

“I still haven’t found the exit. Can you give me some directions?”

“… … .”

***

When Enoch returned to his room after returning from the temple, the sun was already setting.

The sunset had cooled down before we knew it. Outside the window, where the blue light was pouring down, the lights of the facilities in various parts of the huge castle and the streetlights in the downtown area surrounded by the castle walls were turning on one by one.

A scenery that has become familiar now.

Strangely enough, a sense of relief came over me from the scenery in the room.

‘Maybe it’s become a daily routine.’

Perhaps because there were many things that made my nerves tense in the temple, I felt tired again.

Thinking about it, it hasn’t been that long, but I’ve completely gotten used to it. I shook my head to shake off the strange feeling that was about to cross my mind.

And Enoch sat down on the bed with his arms crossed.

But somehow, he felt a strangely squishy sensation on the mattress he was sitting on. Enoch looked at it for a moment and then lifted the blanket without saying a word.

Then, Sirocco, who had been lying inside, appeared. She rubbed her sleepy eyes and glanced at me with her fresh eyes.

“Huh. What’s wrong with you? If you’re here, at least say something.”

“Didn’t you go to your room because there was only one bed?”

“huh?”

Shiroko tilted her head in this direction for a moment, then pricked up her ears as if it were natural.

“Ah. That? I went to check out my room during the day. This time, the door was locked again.”

For a moment, I thought I could guess what he would say next.

Enoch asked just in case.

“You didn’t kick it open because it wouldn’t open, and then you got kicked out because it needed repairs, did you?”

“… … .”

Instead of answering, Shiroko turned her head away. Only her lustrous, glossy tail, which had her back turned, swung from side to side as if something was poking her.

Enoch let out a small sigh and shook his head.

“So I just came back here.”

“Yeah. And I like this bed better.”

“Why that?”

“Your bed smells nice here.”

Shiroko glanced this way, hugged her pillow, and smiled, showing her small fangs.

I don’t know what it is, but I guess I like this bed.

In the original, she has a personality that goes beyond free-spirited and is out of control, so it’s more reassuring for her to be here.

“Okay. Just get some rest for now.”

“why?”

“Because tomorrow is a mission. It’s time for you to go out.”

At those words, Shiroko’s ears perked up.

“Huh, good. I was looking forward to it. I was already bored.”

Enoch stood up from his seat, leaning his satchel against the wall. Then the door to the room opened quietly, and he felt a presence there.

“I heard about the mission.”

In the pale darkness of the room at dusk, the silver-haired maid was looking this way.

Enoch held his breath for a moment at her appearance. Her blue eyes, reflecting the cold sunset, shone alluringly.

“It seems like the mission is to escort the saint.”

“that’s right.”

“Okay. As I said last time, I’ll go with you.”

Lien quietly approached me.

And then he whispered in my ear.

“I can’t let you get hurt any more like this.”

Her cold blue eyes glowed faintly in the darkness.

“I wish you would do that.”

Enoch nodded quietly.

There is no element that would prohibit her from accompanying him on this mission anyway. And there is no way to know what might happen.

Escorting someone was definitely something I had never experienced before. It’s not a bad thing to be fully prepared for emergencies.

Especially if it’s just Enoch and Sirocco, the means and methods to respond if something happens during this mission to escort the Saint will be even more limited.

‘I’ve been rolling around here and there for a while.’

In the end, the most important thing was this.

In addition to investigating the events that will occur in the original work, we will recruit enough talented people into the Chae clan to prepare for them.

Enoch slowly smiled faintly.

It’s been quite a while,

This is the start of a mission to recruit the next tier character after Sirocco.