Chapter 11

The Duke's Magical Genius - Chapter 11 (11/324)

11

Adolph Seltarion.

The eyes of the one who spoke were extremely sinister.

It seemed he was trying to scrutinize my every reaction, and the fact that he was staring intently was just a bonus.

I thought it would be best to give a smooth answer.

"Magicians are in demand everywhere, so it's natural that our family can benefit from it."

"True."

We were in a situation where we were testing each other's intentions with every word.

Indeed.

As expected of a sinister guy.

"By the way, have you seen your brother Abel recently?"

"Not yet."

"I see. Your brother must be very busy with the succession ceremony. Don't be too disappointed. There's a lot to prepare to take over as the head of the family. Clearly... your brother is the one who best fits the role of the next head."

If he really thought that, he wouldn't have split the duke's family into two.

If I were to smile and say, "Yes, that's true," I would probably end up on his blacklist.

"I'm not sure. The successor hasn't been officially decided yet."

After saying that, I glanced at him.

And added one more sentence.

"Besides... isn't life unpredictable?"

At those words, a smile appeared at the corners of Adolph's eyes.

He would interpret it in his own way, I'm sure.

That wasn't what I meant, though.

But as misunderstandings pile up, the situation becomes more favorable for me.

There's nothing bad about it.

"Do you really think that?"

"For now, yes."

For now.

It was a hint that things might change later. Given his meticulous nature, he would understand my meaning perfectly.

The villain in front of me is currently coveting me.

With Abel, his competitor, also in the picture, the best way to increase my value is to create competition. I have no intention of just sitting around and building my strength over time.

That's why I can't stop them.

I need to step forward and actively build my own power to see any possibility.

Adolph.

If I can ignite a fire in his heart, I might be able to get some sweet support. If I show some talent, he'll start drooling.

Then, the guy who met my eyes spoke.

"Right. Since you've overcome Hermes, you should be able to use proper magic now."

"Yes. I've created one circle."

At those words, curiosity appeared on his face.

"Can you show me once?"

"Of course."

Since I need to get some benefits from this guy, I have to show him my skills to some extent.

Without hesitation.

Whoosh!

Magic began to flow from my right hand. The guy's eyes lit up with interest at the sight of the magic.

"That's... Fire, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"It has quite a powerful effect for that."

"I created it myself."

At the end of my answer.

Surprise appeared on Adolph's face.

"Did you create it yourself?"

"Yes. The methods written in existing magic books seemed inefficient, so I experimented a bit, and it worked."

"So, the magic you're using now is something you created... Can you tell me how many experiments were successful?"

"Not many yet. About five."

Actually, it's more than twenty, but I have no intention of telling him the truth.

Five.

That's enough to shock Adolph.

"I know you've only been focusing for a little over a month..."

This is not stalking.

Then, the guy seemed to fall into deep thought, as if he was doing some quick calculations in his head. Finding three new ways to cast magic in just a month...

That alone explains my potential.

Magical genius.

Perhaps that word flashed through his mind. Even though I'm just a 1st Circle magician now, if my circle rises in the future?

Looking at the future, he probably thinks I have enough potential to be worth cultivating.

If he can persuade me, he can strategically use these magic formulas, making me look like a goose that lays golden eggs.

He'll have to give a lot to persuade me.

Of course, no matter what I receive, I have no intention of joining this guy.

Joining the forces of evil.

That would ultimately mean becoming a puppet.

It's not that the bad guys are trying to corrupt humans for no reason.

In the meantime.

The guy who was deep in thought spoke.

"Kai."

"Yes."

"This Friday, the extermination force is scheduled to set out."

Extermination force.

The Trasden territory.

If you go south from here, you'll find a forest where monsters gather.

From goblins and orcs to trolls deeper in, various monsters live in this forest.

If left alone, they would quickly multiply and invade the territory, so it's customary to send an extermination force several times a year.

It seems this Friday is one of those times.

"Is that so?"

"Yes. Preparations are in full swing. Under the command of Baron Jerome, a thousand troops from the 5th Legion, which I personally trained, will be mobilized."

Hmm.

Baron Jerome.

He was one of this guy's loyal lackeys.

'A high-level expert knight.'

Of course, even among high-level experts, there are different levels. Compared to Leonhardt, he was quite inferior.

"Would you like to join this extermination force? Practical experience is always the most important."

Pretending to think for a moment, I bowed my head.

Since the commander is one of this guy's loyal lackeys, it's obvious that his subordinates will be swarming in the extermination force.

An extermination mission doesn't end in a day.

Naturally, we'll be eating and sleeping together, spending a lot of time together.

He probably intends to gradually lure me into his camp by having us interact closely.

It's hard to win someone's heart by force.

"I'm just a 1st Circle magician."

"Your potential is limitless. You will definitely be a great help. With a thousand troops, you won't be in any danger."

A thousand troops is quite a small force for a formed unit.

They conduct large-scale extermination operations and also send small-scale forces from time to time. This time, it seems to be the latter.

"I would like to join, but it's a bit difficult right now. I'm currently under house arrest..."

"I'll persuade your father. It's a good opportunity to gain experience safely, so he will surely agree."

If that's possible, it wouldn't be bad to participate. Although my reputation has improved a bit, I still have a long way to go.

If I can perform well in this extermination force, my reputation will naturally rise.

My standing within the family will also improve, making it easier to move around.

With Adolph wanting me quite a bit, he will undoubtedly instruct his lackeys to protect me.

It means I can perform safely.

And he'll take care of the persuasion himself, so it's a big thank you.

'By the way, the 5th Legion.'

Adolph.

The guy who accepted the power of evil has a unique ability. He can imbue his words with a sinister brainwashing power.

'He could even brainwash high-level expert knights.'

Up to that level, it's a technique that can slowly turn them to his color with time.

He must have used this power to gradually bewitch soldiers and knights.

From high-level knights and above, where his power doesn't work, he would have carefully explored and understood their inclinations.

Then, he would have directly offered them the power of darkness and received their loyalty.

It's not that rebellions happen for no reason.

Of course, the brainwashing power in his words is not infinite.

'It doesn't work on neutral or good-aligned normal people.'

For the brainwashing power to work properly, the target's nature itself must be close to evil.

It was a power given to select bad guys.

The closer the target's nature is to evil, the more effective the brainwashing becomes.

To the point of transforming them into fanatics who are loyal only to Adolph.

The 5th Legion is a unit composed of such fanatics who are extremely close to evil.

It's like saying there are a lot of bad guys in the world. He gathered such guys and created a legion of 15,000.

'Ten years.'

After accepting the power of darkness.

It took about that long to gather brainwashed fanatics from the people, soldiers, and various criminals and knights in the Trasden territory and to create the 5th Legion, a massive army.

Adolph is now controlling these fanatics.

To prevent them from revealing their true nature.

It would be troublesome for him if they caused problems, but the most decisive reason is...

The moment the suppressed nature bursts out all at once.

'They will go mad with rage.'

At Adolph's word, they would kill even children without hesitation, driven by madness.

One of the five legions in the duke's family is composed of such madmen.

It's not surprising that blood would flow like a river if a rebellion broke out.

'These guys are hopeless.'

Humans themselves have a nature that is extremely close to evil, so there's no room for redemption.

It's not that he forcibly turned good guys into bad guys, but rather that he gathered guys who were already close to villains.

There's nothing that can be done.

The best thing would be to clean them up all at once.

But that's a very difficult task.

How can you deal with guys who look normal on the surface thanks to Adolph's control?

If I made such a suggestion, my standing would plummet to the bottom.

The duke's family alone has such a crazy difficulty level, which is why I couldn't clear this game.

At that moment.

A pretty good plan came to mind.

'Can it work?'

Fantasy Defense.

Players of this game can craft items. From weapons to magic items and various elixirs.

NPCs can also craft items using alchemy and magic, but as a game, there are many crafting items that are only open to players, like hidden features.

Secret techniques that NPCs can't know unless players tell them.

Among them, the one I thought of is...

'Ogre Perfume.'

This item.

It can be crafted using a few monster byproducts and a special solvent. The effect is simple.

If an ogre exists within a 10km radius, it can be lured with a high probability.

Ogre.

A powerful monster that even a seasoned high-level expert knight would find difficult to face alone.

'If I do it well...'

I might be able to easily eliminate one of Adolph's major lackeys, along with the troops and knights he has trained.

Ogres are monsters that move around a lot.

They can appear anywhere without being strange. If an ogre suddenly appears and the extermination force suffers heavy casualties or is almost wiped out?

They would think it was just bad luck.

Moreover, since no one knows about the Ogre Perfume, they wouldn't be able to figure out anything even if they were suspicious.

This would be a tragic, no, a beautiful accident.

'I should try making it.'

"If you think so, I will contribute my small strength to the extermination force."

At my words, Adolph began to smile.

Smile all you want, villain.

You'll soon have a sour face.

"Right. Thank you. By the way, how about going alone this time? You're not a child anymore. A man must also know how to stand on his own."

Leonhardt.

With him around, it would be difficult for the lackeys to approach me, so he probably wants to separate us in advance. It's not a bad suggestion for me either.

I can receive protection from the baron and the knights, and if the worst-case scenario happens...

'I can escape using the Hide spell.'

Hide, one of the 1st Circle spells.

Normally, it can simply hide the body, but with my complete magic formula, its power is vastly different.

It can have a power similar to the 4th Circle spell, Invisible.

Even Leonhardt.

It took him a considerable amount of time to find me when I hid.

It's enough to deceive the senses of an ogre. If he's nearby, it would make it difficult to execute the plan.

My bodyguard doesn't know the true nature of this guy yet. Even if I luckily summon two ogres, if Leonhardt starts helping, the plan could go awry.

But he's giving me a natural reason to separate us.

It's a nice move.

"I will do that. I'm not a child anymore."

"Right, Kai. You've really grown up."

Adolph and I.

We were smiling at each other.

"I'll talk to Baron Jerome well."

"Thank you."

Yes, talk a lot.

Our days of seeing each other are numbered.

Then, the guy who quickly drank the cold tea got up.

"I should go. Maybe it's because we haven't talked in a while, but time flew by."

"You're busy. Go ahead."

"Right. See you later. I'll persuade your father, so don't worry."

Then, the guy left the room.

'In three days.'

That's enough time to gather the materials.

Since I've also obtained plenty of gold from the duke, it's time to craft the item that will play the lead role in this plan.