How a Reincarnated Warlock Lives – Chapter 172

Chapter 172: Black Magic Tower (1)

The waiting room of the underground passage, where numerous mercenaries blocked the way. After hearing my calm reply, the man frowned and said,

“……If you confess everything obediently now, I will spare your life.”

Pfft. I chuckled softly at his words.

To offer to spare my life in this place filled with forcibly captured slaves. Even those who came to this place for the first time would be able to figure out what would happen next.

Even if they spared my life, it would mean becoming a slave.

At the man’s unbelievably arrogant suggestion, I continued, looking at him.

“You seem quite confident. Do you have a Magic Tower backing you up?”

“……!”

A tone closer to confirmation than a question. The man’s face hardened as he read the intention in my words, which were spoken without any attempt to hide anything.

There was no further conversation. As if he had thought that I would not obediently reveal my purpose, the man immediately stepped back, muttering softly.

“……Subdue the woman in the back without injury, and kill the other two.”

Hearing his firm order, the mercenaries drew their weapons with a sharp glint and stepped forward. Judging by the lack of hesitation, it seemed they had quite a lot of experience dealing with similar situations.

Shing. The sound came from behind.

“Jerit, Sophia.”

I spoke quietly to Jerit, who was preparing for battle, and the Saintess, who was not hiding her deeply suppressed anger.

“Close your eyes.”

And right at that moment. With a gap that the mercenaries in front couldn’t even react to.

Whoosh!

A dazzling light filled the underground passage.

🔹🔹🔹

Silence returned once again. Suppressed groans leaked out from among the bodies scattered here and there.

Groan. The man, unable to even let out a proper moan, looked up at me with difficulty, his eyes filled with pain.

The mercenaries who had pointed their weapons at me, Jerit, and the Saintess at his command were already all lying on the floor.

The scene after the intense light, which had surged without any warning, blindingly bright for a moment, subsided. The face of the man lying face down in front was filled with questions and shock.

It would be highly inefficient in the current situation to draw the Holy Sword and swing it, shedding blood and subduing them one by one.

Because even with magic using Holy Power, which is not as good as Demonic Energy, it was possible to deal with these small fries.

Of course, even more so now, with a Holy Power charger like the Saintess by my side, who has almost infinite Holy Power.

“……”

I glanced at Saintess Sophia, who had a serious expression on her face. I should ask for a little Holy Power replenishment after we leave this place.

Groan. At the sound of the groan again, I glanced at the man lying face down on the floor.

Rising smoke and a pained sound. I tried to control it, but he didn’t seem to like it very much.

Perhaps because some parts of his body were crushed, the Saintess’ s low prayer could be heard over the man’s pained, unintelligible murmuring.

I turned my gaze away from the Saintess, who was offering a holy prayer for the sins they had committed and for those who had died here.

“Groan. D-Damn it……”

Naturally, the man in front of me showed no signs of remorse at the Saintess’ s merciful appearance.

On the contrary, he glared at me with malicious eyes, as if he wouldn’t reveal even a bit of information. Of course, it didn’t matter.

The reason I came here wasn’t to hear a few obvious pieces of information from him.

“……W-Why did you come here!”

I calmly replied to the man, who screamed out his question as if squeezing out his last breath.

“I told you, I came to buy slaves.”

I moved forward and lightly pushed open the door that had been half-destroyed by magic. I could see countless people trapped inside the iron bars that lined both sides of the long corridor.

“……Oh my.”

Jerit and the Saintess rushed forward to free them.

I watched them and rummaged through my pockets.

“I’ll pay the price.”

Clink. The metal I flicked lightly landed in front of the man.

A single copper coin to be placed in the mouth of the deceased. The man’s face was stained with fear, anger, and frustration as he realized the meaning behind it.

“Ask him yourself. It should be enough for travel expenses to take to hell.”

There were no more words. The next moment, a small ball of light that left my hand cleanly pierced the man’s heart.

🔹🔹🔹

Now that I had found evidence that I couldn’t make excuses for or pretend not to know, there was no need to hide my identity any longer.

After freeing all the slaves trapped underground, we headed straight for the city’s main castle. Schwarzcolm was essentially a free city, but since it was barely within the jurisdiction of the Holy See, there was an administrator appointed by the Church.

Of course, as you could see from the fact that slave trading was openly taking place in the underground of the city center, he had been corrupt for a long time.

With no reason to hide our identities any longer, we headed straight inside the main castle.

The soldiers did not dare to block our way.

With the Saintess emanating a soft light around her body and me holding the dazzlingly blazing Holy Sword, we looked like people who had come directly from the Cathedral.

On the contrary, the quick-witted ones quickly attached themselves to us, trying to lessen their sins.

The soldiers who were quietly following us before we knew it. It didn’t take long to take control of the interior of the main castle.

“How dare you! This is…! Who are you to be so insolent…”

The administrator, who had rushed out shouting as if he was enraged by the commotion outside, trailed off as he saw the Holy Sword in my hand.

“Ah.”

I looked him up and down. He was half-naked, as if he had been doing something in his room, and his thick fingers were adorned with several expensive rings that didn’t even fit properly. It seemed he had accumulated considerable wealth while avoiding the eyes of the Church.

“I am an Inquisitor.”

At the calmly spoken answer, the administrator, sensing his demise, closed his eyes tightly and muttered softly.

“……Damn it.”

🔹🔹🔹

Of course, it didn’t end there.

Because the last opponents in this incident, and perhaps the biggest cause of this situation, were still remaining.

The Black Magic Tower of Schwarzcolm. On the outskirts of the city. A structure that stood tall, isolated from other buildings.

After leaving the administrative matters of the city to Jerit and Sophia, I headed straight there.

The most important thing in carrying out a mission is speed.

The key to my actions was to not give the guys at the Magic Tower time to react while simultaneously stirring up the main castle.

Of course, Jerit and Sophia showed some concern, but after seeing my confident face, they agreed to stay at the main castle and deal with the city’s affairs first.

“……”

Quickly reaching the entrance of the Magic Tower, I quietly looked up at the uniquely shaped structure.

As if to prove that it hadn’t been built long ago and didn’t have much history, it wasn’t as tall as ordinary Magic Towers.

Unlike the other Magic Towers on the continent, which had been expanded upwards and downwards, or sideways, over the long years. Those famous places like the Red, Blue, or White Magic Towers were clearly different.

For a wizard who pursues truth, the experience that time gives is power.

I approached the entrance of the Magic Tower, which was so small it was almost pathetic and didn’t seem to possess much power. But that’s why it was even more fitting for this incident.

Excessive fame was rather an obstacle to committing evil deeds.

“……”

It seemed they were already aware of my approach from inside. Well, it was a building built alone on a vast site in a remote part of the city.

Whirr. A translucent barrier with a bit of physical force blocked my steps.

And an unfamiliar voice came from the air.

“……We do not receive visitors.”

I easily noticed the slight anxiety in the voice of the novice wizard who was probably using magic to look at me from inside the Magic Tower. Perhaps the commotion in the city had already reached here to some extent.

Visitors. I twisted my lips into a smile and slowly raised my hand.

This was a place where those suspected of being remnants of the Catacombs, those who had committed the heinous crime of slave trading, were gathered.

That meant.

“I don’t need your permission.”

That there was no need to forcibly use Holy Power.

Soon, a faint energy that rose from around me shattered the barrier that surrounded the entrance of the Magic Tower in an instant.

“……!”

The shock felt in the air.

Soon, the entrance of the Magic Tower, made of solid black metal, began to twist violently and slowly open.

Creak. The thick iron door, made of solidly refined Black Iron and enchanted with protective magic, being forcibly crumpled and opened was probably not in the plans of those belonging to the Black Magic Tower.

Crash!

Soon, the thick iron door, unable to withstand the twisting, burst open, scattering its fragments inward.

“W-What is this…!”

“……Oh my.”

As I slowly stepped inside, I felt astonished presences around me.

“I’d like to have a little chat.”

“……”

But the response to my words was various kinds of attack magic.

It was clear that the person who broke down the door and entered did not have good intentions towards them. Attacks from the wizards belonging to the Black Magic Tower flew at me from all directions.

Whirr. At the same time, a force field emanating from the Bloody Crown that appeared above my head unfolded.

Flames, ice, lightning, and more. Magic of various attributes fiercely headed towards me, but.

Thud.

They were all blocked futilely and scattered into the mana of the air.

A result that was too different from the simple gesture that shattered the Magic Tower’s barrier a moment ago.

“M-Monster!”

“……This is crazy!”

The wizards, who had lost their will to fight due to the overwhelmingly different level of power, faltered and stepped back.

I looked at them and lightly flicked my hand. I wasn’t going to collapse the entire Magic Tower. If I had, I wouldn’t have entered in the first place.

The eerie energy emanating from the Bloody Crown passed through the red force field and stretched out in all directions. At the same time, a ghostly wail echoed.

Ehehehe. A bone-chilling scream emanated from the wraiths swimming through the air.

“W-What is this…!”

Crash. The wraiths, swimming like eels through the magic that was being fired frantically into the air in fear, plunged straight into the bodies of the wizards.

“Cough!”

The wizards coughed up blood and collapsed here and there from the soul-shaking impact.

It wasn’t a blow that would instantly take their lives, but it was a highly effective way to subdue a large number of them.

“C-Call the Tower Master, quickly!”

A desperate voice could be heard.

“But we were told not to disturb him no matter what during the experiment…”

“You crazy bastard! Is that the problem now!”

I didn’t deliberately stop those who were running off somewhere in a hurry. I was blocking the entrance anyway.

If it saved me the trouble of searching around for the Tower Master of this place, who would be holed up somewhere deep inside, continuing some kind of experiment, it would be more than welcome.

Whoosh. The red wraiths, which had gradually increased in number, were circling in the air inside the Magic Tower.

“Stop!”

A loud shout came from somewhere. It seemed to be the Tower Master who had rushed over.

I slowly walked inside and looked at him, who had shown himself from the railing upstairs.

……Look at this.

As a smile crept onto my lips at the unexpected appearance,

“How dare you try to take on the entire Magic Tower alone…”

The Tower Master’s confident shout trailed off as he confirmed my face.

“Ah.”

Surprisingly, the Holy See’s speculation that the perpetrators of this incident might be remnants of the Catacombs was true. Was it Modesta, the first Catacomb that was closed?

“It’s been a while, Harzan.”

At my words filled with welcome,

“……Damn it.”

A sigh escaped the Tower Master’s lips.

Translator’s Blog

Blog

• Who’s Your Waifu? Why Choosing Your Anime Spirit Animal Is Deeper Than You Think (And Who I’d Pick)
• The Truth About Oppa’s BO: Does the ABCC11 Gene Hold the Key?
• Anime With Good Plot, But One Thing Makes It Unwatchable: My ‘Black Clover’ Criticism
• Chaoyang Masses: The Spy Games Your Aunts and Uncles Play
• Cursed Hands: When Anime Fandom Goes Too Far