Chapter 348

347. The Immortal and the Mortal (16)

It was late dawn, but Fernandez crossed the city limits of Bülrang without much thought. In a normal city, the gates would have been closed at this hour, but Bülrang was the capital of this territory. The gates of the capital had to remain open at all times, regardless of the hour.

However, Fernandez had to stop in front of Bülrang’s firmly closed gate. He looked up at the guard standing on the gallery above the gate with a bewildered expression.

The guard looked down at him with an extremely annoyed expression.

“Who goes there?”

“A traveler.”

“Come back tomorrow morning. Do you know what time it is?”

“Since when do Bülrang’s gates close according to the hour? Has a war broken out?”

“You seem to be from the wilderness. Have you been hiding in the mountains? It’s been like this ever since the Chieftain returned.”

“…What?”

Fernandez narrowed his eyes and looked at the guard. He was human. The fact that a human guard was stationed there, and that the guard had referred to Kirhas as “Chieftain,” spoke volumes.

For a human to use an honorific for Kirhas meant that the sovereignty of Bülrang had now passed to the beastmen.

And the fact that humans were stationed as guards in such a city suggested that Kirhas was reluctant to openly confirm the beastmen’s rule.

‘What a mess.’

Fernandez let out a short sigh. It was all too mild, too ambiguous. If she wanted to suppress, she should have done so decisively and established a reign of terror. If she wanted to remain a bystander, she should have kept her identity secret and stayed in the background as a shadow power.

Now, the city of Bülrang was undergoing a forced union of two completely different cultures. In such a situation, implementing such a half-hearted policy was bound to breed discontent, whether among humans or beastmen.

‘I need to find Partak.’

If Piel was strategizing with Robert, then at this point, the beastman nobility’s share would be divided between Kirhas and Partak. Given that it had been half a year since his death was made public, it was surprising that he hadn’t taken any action by now, considering his personality.

If even humans were still calling Kirhas “Chieftain,” it seemed that the worst-case scenario hadn’t yet come to pass.

Fernandez thought briefly and then reached into his pocket. With a rustle, a rosary wrapped around his hand and emerged. He stretched the rosary above his head and calmly shouted.

“Make way, little lambs. I come from the Inquisition Office.”

The threat wouldn’t have worked on beastmen, but his opponent was human. For once, Kirhas’s ambiguous policy had worked in his favor. He smiled as he watched the gate hastily open.

Partak Blackfang. The greatest dark mage among the beastmen. If he hadn’t taken any action yet, there was still room for consideration.

In this late dawn, the hour when heretics, cultists, and dark mages roamed—the hour of the owl—was also the hour of the Inquisition Officer.

* * *

“How exactly do you plan to kill the Chieftain? Poisoning or assassination won’t win the support of the nobility.”

The man stammered, his face filled with fear. The Chieftain wasn’t taking any action now. The reason these dogs still bowed their heads despite the absence of their leader was that the Chieftain’s authority wasn’t built solely on achievements.

The nickname “The Undefeated” was no joke. Half a year ago, when she last wielded her sword, she stood alone amidst a tide of demons, securing the beastmen’s escape route. No one else could have done that. Especially not after surviving in the midst of that chaos.

None of the beastmen who had faced Kirhas’s fierce, blood-soaked eyes upon her return dared to question her strength. She was, without a doubt, the strongest among all the beastmen.

If they were to poison her, or attempt to assassinate her by sneaking in? In the past, perhaps, but now she had a successor. Pigeon-faction nobles like Goldentooth would immediately install that child as the next Chieftain and begin a regency.

Those involved in the assassination would be executed on the spot. While the hawkish elders currently held power, politics was a matter of legitimacy. If Kirhas, who had received the regency from the Empire’s Elector, were assassinated, the Imperial Palace would immediately label the hawkish elders and rebels as enemies of the Empire.

The Empire hadn’t abandoned Bülrang. They were simply respecting Kirhas.

And historically, the only person who had managed to resolve all conflicts after being branded an enemy of the Empire and enduring a civil war was Kirhas Hearttaker.

“With so many men wielding swords, you’re all scared of just one woman. Tsk tsk.”

“Stop talking nonsense. If you want to legally remove the Chieftain, you’ll have to challenge her to a duel. Or go through the Elder Council. Can you even stand against her in the Elder Council?”

“It’s been half a year since the Chieftain attended the Elder Council. How hard could it be?”

“I’m not talking about a council dominated by hawkish elders. I mean a gathering of all the beastman clans. Can you stand against her there?”

Unlike the hawkish faction, which sought to expand into the Empire by occupying Bülrang, the traditionalist pigeon-faction clans were now wandering the vast plains of the wilderness. They weren’t as tightly knit as the hawkish clans, but if they united, they would be a force to be reckoned with.

Was there any way to politically impeach the Chieftain while risking such a gathering? No matter how he thought about it, it seemed impossible. Partak shook his head with a smile.

“That process can happen after her funeral. It’s not too late. How many will blindly remain loyal to her after she’s dead?”

“How exactly do you plan to kill her?”

“You said it yourself. It has to be through a duel.”

“Are you going to take up the sword yourself? Against Kirhas Hearttaker?”

“I don’t need to get my hands dirty. You’ll go. No, you’ll be the one to do it.”





“It doesn’t matter who.”

At Partak’s words, the atmosphere in the room grew tense. Was he telling them to die now? The suspicions quietly circulating among the Beastman Warriors were becoming more and more real.

The suspicion that those who opposed Kirhas were being purged by Partak.

“So, you were planning to gather us and eliminate us all at once!”

“What? Hahaha! Naive and foolish creatures.”

But Partak just laughed heartily and waved his hand. As the man flinched, Partak smiled warmly and patted his shoulder.

“If I had such intentions, would I have come here alone? Even without you, there are plenty of people in Bülrang who could do this job. You’re not giving me an opportunity, fools. I’m giving you an opportunity.”

Soon, green flames crackled and sparked from the hand on his shoulder. Before the man could react, the magic flowing from Partak’s grip began to surge through his veins like a torrent.

“Ugh…?! Aaaah!!!”

The man’s screams echoed through the tavern. The flames grew larger, more intense, distorting the man. Partak, with his hand in the flames, gripped the man’s shoulder tightly and laughed, baring his gums.

“Yes, accept it! Accept this power. Shout your desires, reveal your greed. You will gain, you will achieve! Little one. The price is only one—your everything!”

The mad laughter echoed. The man’s screams had now turned into weak gurgles. The magic, burning even his soul, cast an eerie light over the room.

This power, his silence, was all for this. The trace of the Great Demon, who had remained in the Material World until the moment of his banishment. The last fragment of power left by the Great Demon, who had summoned his true power for manifestation in the Material World, only to be sealed away with the fall of his minions.

Kirhas, exhausted from battle, the vanished Fernandez, the Empire and Beastmen chasing the fleeing demons, and the Elf fleet. None of them noticed or guarded against this power.

Fools. Idiots. The fact that there was no Dark Mage among them was an enormous opportunity for him. Thanks to those fools who knew nothing about demons.

Partak was genuinely grateful to Fernandez. He even felt like swearing loyalty to him. Wasn’t this power a reward for all his efforts? Wasn’t it Fernandez who had elevated him to the position to obtain this power?

In return, his child would survive. He wouldn’t kill the offspring. A girl, was it? If she carried on the Blackfang bloodline, his lineage would remain as the eternal Chieftain, inheriting the golden bloodline of the Hearttaker.

Now, the Great Wilderness is mine. From this moment on, this era is mine. Partak chuckled as he withdrew his hand.

“Gurgle…”

As the flames subsided, the half-burned Beastman made a bubbling sound. Partak looked down at him coldly and bent his finger. A short incantation formed, and a black chain appeared, wrapping around the man’s neck.

“Stand up.”

“Gurgle…”

The Beastman staggered to his feet like a puppet. His eyes burned red, and his charred ears protruded like horns. His fangs grew several inches, and beneath the singed fur, the muscles of a beast began to form.

The power of the Great Demon. A ‘baptism’ using his true form. The Inquisition Officers in that distant land were said to undergo such baptisms. A radical baptism where divine power is directly infused into their veins. This was an imitation of that. Naturally, no mere mortal could hope to stop it.

“Elder!!”

-Bang! Bang! Bang!

Then, someone roughly knocked on the tavern door. Partak frowned and gestured. The Beastmen, overwhelmed by his presence, opened the door as if entranced. A Beastman in a robe rushed in, panting.

“What is it?”

“Trouble… Big trouble!”

“I won’t ask twice.”

“It’s the Inquisition Officers!!”

The Beastman shouted, frothing at the mouth.

“Our spy at the outpost just brought this intel! The Inquisition Officers have crossed the west gate and are heading to Castle Sephor!”

“…What?”

Huh… what?

Inquisition Officers?

Partak stared blankly at the Beastman for a moment. Why? What did I do? Well, I did something. I wielded demonic power. But that just happened.

The Inquisition Officers aren’t psychics, so why are they here now? Partak, confused, quickly regained his composure. Thinking coldly, they couldn’t have come for that, right?

“They’re heading to Castle Sephor?”

“Yes, Elder! Three robed priests are heading straight for Castle Sephor!”

“Who’s at the castle now?”

“The Heartseekers are guarding it!”

Kirhas’ personal guard. Fools bound by fanatical loyalty. Partak’s spies couldn’t infiltrate them.

Partak clicked his tongue and stood up. This might be for the best. The Inquisition Officers from civilized society could never interfere with Beastman traditions.

If I defeat the Chieftain in front of them, neither the Empire nor the Beastman Elders would dare to oppose me. Partak quickly regained his composure and smirked.

“Lucky.”

“Lucky… Elder?”

“If I kill that girl in front of them, it’s no longer an assassination. It’s a traditional resolution, isn’t it?”

Even if I used the Great Demon’s power for the baptism, there’s no way to detect it without proper examination. Dark Mages are experts at hiding their identities.

Partak clapped his hands and said, “Everyone, head to Castle Sephor. Let’s begin the operation.”

Today, the Beastmen’s master will change. Now, the Blackfang bloodline will remain as the golden lineage. Feeling that even fortune was on his side, Partak bared his teeth and laughed heartily.

* * *

“Why are you stopping?”

In the middle of heading to the castle, Fernandez stopped and looked up at the sky. Abel approached him cautiously and placed a hand on his shoulder.

Soon, Fernandez let out a small laugh.

“Quite a clever move.”

“Who is it…?”

“I smell the demon.”

Many treat it as mere rumor, but Diemonica can instinctively sense the smell of demons.

And in this city of Bülrang, there aren’t many who can wield demonic power.

This smell was one he knew. A smell he could never forget—

The stench of terror he smelled just before death. The stench of a beast.

“It’ll be fun to tame it again.”

Fernandez chuckled and led the way. Castle Sephor wasn’t far now.