Chapter 8: The Black Mage (1)

The city of Landwalk.

This city, built by merchants and craftsmen, is a wealthy place where money and people never run dry.

It always shines brightly and is unmatched in its splendor, but even this city has its light and shadow.

Those who couldn't adapt to the city and were left behind gathered on the outskirts and lived there.

This is how the slums of Landwalk were formed.

They were dirty, smelly, and dangerous, so the city dwellers tried to avoid the slums as much as possible.

Thanks to this, the slums were always quiet, as if by mutual agreement.

"Ah!"

"What, what is this nonsense!"

The usually quiet slums were unusually noisy today.

Dozens of burly men suddenly stormed in, ransacking each shack and dragging out the slum dwellers.

"What are you beggars shouting about!"

"Shut up already!"

The slum dwellers tried to resist, but it was futile.

The men punched them in the face and stomach, and they quieted down.

"Find him quickly!"

"The boss said he'll give ten gold coins to whoever finds him first!"

The men began to walk around the slum dwellers, holding a portrait.

They examined each face one by one.

"Is this the guy?"

"He doesn't have a mole on his forehead. It's not him."

Then, one of the slum dwellers suddenly stood up and punched two of the men in the jaw.

He then turned and ran.

"Hey? He's running away!"

"Stop him! If we let him go, the boss will kill us instead of him!"

The men chased after the man. He didn't get far before being caught by the men.

"You snakes, who do you think you are to lay a hand on me! Let me go right now!"

The man struggled, but he couldn't match the strength of the men.

He was pinned down firmly on the ground.

"Boss! We've caught the leader of the Rats!"

"Please come and confirm!"

The men who had subdued the man called out to someone.

A moment later, a fat man waddled over.

"Smack."

He was holding a large sugar cake in his hand.

"Smack, caught him faster than I thought."

"It's all thanks to the boss's brilliance. Talented subordinates naturally gather under a capable superior."

The subordinate rubbed his hands together, flattering the boss.

The man seemed pleased with the flattery and nodded with satisfaction.

"Smack, of all places, he hid in such a dirty spot."

The man devoured the large sugar cake in one go.

His subordinate quickly offered a new sugar cake.

"Smack, the smell ruins the taste of the food. Anyway, he's a real pain."

"That's true. He has no sense at all."

The longer the man smacked, the more the man on the ground's expression twisted.

Finally, he couldn't hold back and shouted.

"You pig! Stop eating for a moment!"

"Smack, pig? Could it be you're talking to me?"

"That seems to be the case. He has no eye for talent, calling the boss's muscular body a pig."

"Smack, with such poor judgment, he's the one who ruined the organization."

The fat man didn't get angry.

Instead, he tore into a third sugar cake.

"Hey, Rats."

The fat man licked the sugar off his fingers and said,

"I warned you. When I spoke nicely, I told you to give up your organization and join me."

Rats.

Until recently, it was the name of an organization that had a tight grip on Landwalk's underworld.

The Rats' power was so strong that other organizations had to join forces to stand against them.

But the once powerful Rats fell apart in a single day.

It wasn't just the Rats. Other organizations also collapsed.

All due to this fat man, Sedric Walker.

"See, in the end, the rats just become the snake's prey."

The organization 'Black Snake' created by Sedric Walker dominated the underworld of Landwalk City with its terrifying aggressiveness in no time.

With the Rats out of the way, there was no organization left to stand against the Black Snake.

"Smack, now that we've caught this guy, it's all over. Dispose of him roughly and bury the body somewhere."

"Yes, boss."

Sedric Walker turned as if he no longer cared.

The leader of the Rats tried to curse.

"You damn... Uh! Ugh!"

But the Black Snake members gagged his mouth, preventing him from doing so.

Sedric Walker got into his carriage and asked his subordinate,

"Are there any remaining stragglers left?"

"No, sir."

In recent days, Sedric Walker had spent his time eliminating the remnants of the shattered organizations.

"Then it's time to deal with that noble."

"The noble... Ah, you mean Damian Hassen, who attacked the tavern."

At the subordinate's words, Sedric Walker's cheek twitched slightly.

About a week ago, the tavern that Sedric Walker was protecting was attacked.

It was a massive incident where the organization members guarding the tavern and even the hired squire were massacred.

This incident greatly damaged Sedric Walker's and the Black Snake's reputation.

To the point where the stragglers who had been hiding all along raised their banners in rebellion.

"Should I send some people to take care of it?"

Sedric Walker suddenly slapped the back of his subordinate's head.

"Are you an idiot? Killing a noble in a territory, not just a city?"

A minor family like that could be dealt with in a day.

But a noble, no matter how minor, is still a noble.

If a noble staying in a territory is suddenly killed?

The royal palace wouldn't just sit by and watch such a huge incident.

"Having an idiot like you as a subordinate makes me the idiot!"

"I'm sorry, sir."

"If you're sorry, give me another cake."

The subordinate quickly offered a sugar cake.

Sedric Walker took a big bite out of the sugar cake.

"Smack, it's too troublesome to get involved directly. The best thing to do is to leave this to an expert."

"Of course, sir! But who is this expert?"

"A black mage."

"Excuse me?"

"I'm going to hire a black mage. Or rather, I already have."

A sinister smile appeared on Sedric Walker's lips.

"Even a little bit of mischief from a black mage will destroy a small territory like that in no time. There's no need to spill blood."

Despite Sedric Walker's words, the subordinate's face didn't brighten.

"Isn't a black mage dangerous? I heard that if you anger them even a little, they can brainwash their employer and turn them into a slave."

"Do you think it's easy to do that? Only a high-ranking black mage can do it. And high-ranking black mages are hard to find."

"But still..."

"Besides, the church is currently cracking down on black mages. High-ranking black mages are probably too busy avoiding the church."

The carriage stopped.

Sedric Walker entered a shabby house on the outskirts of the city with his subordinates.

"O-Oh, you've come."

Inside the house, a scruffy man was waiting for Sedric Walker.

"Are you Feikly?"

"Y-Yes."

Feikly was not only scruffy but also stuttered.

He didn't give a trustworthy impression.

"Do you already know the details of the job? I'll pay you more the more damage you inflict on the Hassen family using black magic."

"Y-Yes, I understand!"

"I'll provide the items you need for the black magic. Just let me know."

"R-Really? Thank you so much!"

Feikly bowed repeatedly.

Wizards, in general, are proud.

They use transcendent power, after all. Black mages are no exception.

In comparison, Feikly was too submissive.

"But if you get caught by the church, I don't know you."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Feikly bowed again, his head almost touching the ground.

* * *

Breakfast time.

Everyone in the Hassen family was gathered, but there was no conversation.

Only the clinking of cutlery could be heard.

Occasionally, the family members would look at one place as if by mutual agreement.

At Damian Hassen, the eldest son of the Hassen family.

Whether he noticed the gazes or not, Damian Hassen focused on his meal in silence.

As soon as he finished his food, he wiped his mouth with a napkin.

"I'll get up first."

"Y-Yes, do that."

With his father's permission, Damian Hassen got up from his seat.

Outside, he scratched his cheek.

'I must seem awkward.'

He wasn't upset.

His son, who had been a troublemaker, had changed overnight, so it was natural for them to feel strange.

'It will get better with time.'

Thinking this, Damian Hassen walked down the corridor. He needed to start his morning training now.

Then, a maid approached him.

"Is something wrong?"

"The young lady asked me to give you this."

The maid handed him a water flask and some simple snacks.

Damian Hassen looked at the items with a blank expression for a moment.

"Did my sister ask you to give me this?"

"Yes, she also asked me to tell you that she always supports you."

Damian Hassen smiled bitterly.

Despite the shame he had brought to her, she still encouraged him.

"Please tell her I'm grateful."

The maid bowed slightly and left.

* * *

Damian Hassen gathered the items he needed for training and went outside.

In addition to the water and food his sister had prepared, he also brought a towel to wipe his sweat and a slightly special item.

"I should thank my father."

It was the longsword.

The longsword that almost split his head on the first day of his regression.

He had asked his father for it last night, intending to start sword training today.

"It's not the best sword, but... it's just for training, after all."

The blacksmith's skills were poor, and the iron used was of low quality.

But considering the Hassen family's financial situation, he had to use this sword sparingly.

"Maybe I should have taken a weapon from Erwin Lyonbloom."

As the son of a marquess, Erwin Lyonbloom had an excellent sword, one that even Damian Hassen was impressed by.

"If I get the chance, I should get a good sword first."

He had already surpassed the stage of being obsessed with weapons.

But swordsmen naturally crave excellent swords.

While Damian Hassen was thinking about various things and walking out of the lord's mansion, he heard a sigh from the stables.

"What's wrong?"

Curious, he walked over.

He saw the servants gathered around the stables.

Wondering what was happening, he looked inside through the gap between the servants.

'The horse is dead.'

One of the three horses owned by the family was dead.

Its eyes were wide open, and its tongue was sticking out.

"It was fine yesterday..."

"Why would it die?"

"I don't know either. I'm just as frustrated."

The servants scratched their heads.

"The lord will be furious..."

"At least if he just gets angry. What if he orders us to pay for it?"

It was understandable for the servants to worry, given the value of the horse.

Despite it being just an animal, Damian Hassen couldn't easily look away.

He sensed a familiar aura from the dead horse.

It felt like completely burned ashes, with a complex and subtle sensation like blood.

'...Black magic?'

To investigate further, Damian Hassen pushed through the servants and approached the horse.

"Who's pushing? Oh, young master?"

"The young master is here?"

The servants looked terrified upon recognizing Damian Hassen.

Given the significant loss to the family's assets and the presence of the notorious troublemaker, their reaction was natural.

However, Damian Hassen wasn't interested in the servants.

He examined the horse's body to find traces of black magic.

'Sure enough, I was right.'

When he touched the horse's skin, black magic power clung to his fingertips.

It was a small amount, but it was definitely black magic power, not ordinary magic power.

'Someone used black magic to kill the horse.'

In fact, Damian Hassen was also proficient in black magic.

During his time as a Death Knight, Dorgo had infused him with all the black magic he knew to make him a more powerful being.

As Dorgo had wished, Damian wielded both sword and black magic, ruling as a terrifying figure.

'Who did this?'

The only ones who could have a grudge against him and hire a black mage were Erwin Lyonbloom and the Black Snake.

However, Erwin Lyonbloom had left yesterday and wouldn't have reached the marquess's estate yet.

'Then it must be the Black Snake.'

They probably thought it was too risky to kill a noble directly, so they hired a black mage to harass him.

'This is going to be a headache.'

If livestock continued to die in the poor territory of the Hassen family, it would cause significant losses.

'I need to deal with the black mage as soon as possible...'

The problem was how to find the black mage.

If he were still a Death Knight, he could expand his senses to locate the mage, but that was impossible now.

'...Should I try to track using black magic?'

To be honest, Damian Hassen found black magic repulsive.

His life had been ruined by Dorgo, so it was natural.

However, if it would help, he was willing to use it.

What mattered to Damian was the safety and happiness of his family.

'First, I need to send the servants away.'

He couldn't use black magic in front of the servants.

Damian Hassen addressed the servants.

"It seems this horse died from a contagious disease."

"Excuse me? A sudden contagious disease... Uh!"

The servant quickly covered his mouth, looking at Damian Hassen with fear.

He must have thought he would be severely punished for questioning the horse's death.

"Since it's contagious, prevent people from coming near the stables. And gather people to burn the horse's body."

"Y-Yes, sir."

The servants dispersed at Damian Hassen's command.

The area around the stables quickly became quiet.

Once the people were gone, Damian Hassen gathered all the remaining black magic power from the body.

Ordinary methods couldn't collect black magic power.

Therefore, he had to reuse the black magic power from the body.

It was a small amount, but it was enough to cast a tracking spell.

"If I do this..."

Damian Hassen cast the spell, and a black wave spread out from him.

A moment later, his lips twisted.

"It's that way."

Damian Hassen's gaze turned west.