Chapters 156 – 155. An Ant Is a Group of Ants (2)
“Anyway, I am against it. There is no reason why.”
Eranya waved his hands, saying he didn’t need to hear more.
To be honest, she was shocked by Emily’s words that she would need to prepare for witchcraft in an instant.
But if you think about it carefully, the loss outweighs the benefit.
It made sense to say that since witchcraft is frankly unknown, it would be necessary to prepare for it.
However, it is not clear whether magic can really counter magic.
In addition, there is a problem in that the number of people doubles.
Mobility is the same, and as the number of people increases, stealth rapidly decreases.
There are eight people who move to catch and take down only one person, Astain.
At that point, wouldn’t it be much more likely for Astain to notice this side than to notice Astain from this side?
Anyway, that was the idea.
“What do you think?”
“That one is more persuasive. I like it better when there are more people, but what… After all, it’s not okay to miss work just for fun.”
Vera Shien also nodded her head kindly.
At least, there was nothing wrong with Erania’s words.
After all, Leopold and the others were enough to deal with Astain.
“Therefore, I regret to decline the offer to join. I believe that you will understand because it is an extremely logical and reasonable judgment based on reason.”
“Well, that’s for sure.”
Violet and Ashley seemed reluctant to accept,
It was also a statement that Emily, who valued coolness and rationality, could not refute.
“Is it so. So, let’s say you don’t join. We will move separately on our own. Doesn’t that matter?”
“I can’t even say Harama to that.”
No matter how much the prince was chasing him, it was unavoidable unless it was written on Astain’s forehead that I must die to the prince.
“Is it so. So let’s say the agreement ends here. Good luck, both of you.”
“Yeah, good luck to you too.”
The goal is Astain, only one.
There were two people in the party aiming for it, a total of eight people.
The curtain rises for a somewhat bloody hide and seek game of who gets the target’s head first.
*
Moving without even knowing that such a crow was attached to him — he would have thought he was moving while maintaining his prayer cover, but Astein finally arrived at the movement formation he was aiming for.
He did not intend to head north on foot alone.
His homeland, which was expected to invade with the rise of the empire, had already installed Lee Dong-jin in various places, and he intended to use him for blitzkrieg.
However, even that was useless, and the military power of the empire was far beyond imagination, so it was a blitzkrieg, a brash battle, and the reality was that they were pushed helplessly and pushed back without being able to respond to anything.
Anyway, the move remains.
If it was, moving quickly to the north wasn’t such a big deal.
The place Astain headed was the deepest part of the valley surrounded by strangely shaped rocks.
Surrounded by cliffs, it was a place where people could not reach.
As expected, before Astain entered, people had never been in and out, and thick trees grew wild and blocked their way.
“As it is said here, the spirit dwelling in heaven and earth welcomes its owner and opens the way.”
As the low voice of the incantation resounded, the lush trees began to blur.
As if it was an illusion from the beginning, the tree right in front of Astain became blurred,
Toward that tree, Astain moved his feet without hesitation.
Like a lie, trees and other landmarks could not block Astain.
Every time his footsteps touched, the lush trees became blurred, and the large rocks and the sloppy swamp disappeared like an illusion as if they knew Astain.
After Astain passes, he returns to his original form as if he had finally found his true self.
And just like that, the ravens lost Astain.
– Gone!
– Captain, target lost!
– Suddenly disappeared!
Communication between the ravens became frantic.
The crows who followed Astain were in a state of confusion over the whereabouts of Astain, who had suddenly disappeared near the northern entrance where the ice caps were slowly starting to appear.
– Stay calm. Any signs of magic?
– Doesn’t exist! I can’t even feel the waves!
– … I get it.
The leader of the ravens was troubled.
Whether to continue the chase as it is, or to pass to the next area, and if so, which area to pass to.
In any case, the rooks’ network is spread throughout the empire.
Although there was overwhelming force, the true power of the Empire lies in this information warfare.
These night crows, who can closely follow the Empire’s movements in detail, are all greatly blessed by the Empire, so their loyalty is astounding, and they have continued to pursue Astein’s pursuit for several days.
Those who followed Astain like that.
– Stop tracking. Hand over to the next area
– Can we take it over to the northern region?
– Yes, pick up a list of prospective areas and hand them over at once.
– All right.
Without hesitation, they contacted the ravens in the next area and stopped pursuing them.
The handover list for the next area also included an item called teleportation without leaving any magic waves along with sudden disappearance.
*
“Hmm. It seems to have disappeared from here.”
Leopold put down the paper he was holding.
It had already been three days since he had stayed at this hotel.
In the meantime, it was a time to receive reports every day and review the contents.
Leopold was like that, and Asti was like that too.
“Are you okay?”
Leopold reading the document, and Asti listening to it.
Asti looked worried inside.
Right now people were looking at Astain too funny.
Leopold, Erranhado, Veracien, and also Astrid.
It doesn’t seem like that to Asti.
No matter how weak it may seem, it has enough power to cover the entire academy.
Astrid was worried inside that it would be okay to look at a guy with such power so funny.
“What does Astrid say?”
“It’s still… As soon as I decide where to go, I’ll run right there and twist my neck… Oh no! You said so! Stop screaming!”
“I like it because it’s like Astrid, but what? Enmity towards enemies of the empire is not allowed. Asti, you should do that too.”
“Whew… It’s really noisy.”
Leopold laughed at Astrid, who was screaming in his head and screaming.
Even Leopold did not know where Astain was headed.
Even so, Astain’s destination was clear anyway.
Astein suddenly headed deep into the valley.
And in the forest where Astain has disappeared.
No matter how much I searched the forest, I couldn’t find Astain, and I couldn’t find any traces of him hiding somewhere…
If you think about it based on the contents of the report, Astain must have disappeared using something similar to teleportation in terms of magic.
If that’s the case, that distance has no choice but to be limited.
If there is no limit, there is no need to go there and move.
I just wish I could have moved roughly from here to that unknown spell.
If so, it can only be seen that there is a limit to the distance traveled.
What was the reason for going to the north even then?
Come to think of it, the self-sustaining tower was also in the north, and Astein had been particularly obsessed with the north.
“It’s north… “
Astain is definitely a survivor of the kingdom that was destroyed during the continental unification of the Empire.
I didn’t know which country it was, but now I can guess which country it was.
A kingdom that used to be located in what is now Myterien Territory.
In that kingdom, I used to use a thing called Lee Dong-jin.
Leopold took out the knowledge in his head one by one and began to put them together.
‘Gald kingdom. A country that was slightly larger than the Mitterien estate. Interactions with barbarians were frequent, so it was no wonder that their descendants had ties with barbarians. Then, is Astain’s purpose to contact the barbarians?’
“Astrid.”
Leopold, lost in thought for a moment, called Astrid.
Apparently, in this respect, Astrid is more dependable than Asti when it comes to anticipating and moving the enemy.
“Yes, Your Highness. Did you call?”
“Yes, because I need your opinion.”
“You mean the destination of Astein, right?”
“You were expecting it too.”
I felt it again, but Astrid’s sixth sense was innate.
Not in the least short of her prestige as the daughter of Wolfgang von Mitterien, Astrid excelled in this respect—
“Well, it must be near the Grand Duchy of Mitterien in the north, right?”
Astrid continued his words with a new look on her face.
The slenderly opened eyes and the long, trembling eyelashes while continuing to speak clearly.
Mint-colored eyes underneath.
Leopold let out a long sigh.
Seriously, her beauty is overwhelming.
I have to admit that
“Okay. It must be near the Grand Duchy of Myterien. I don’t know what kind of trick he used to disappear in an instant, but there must be a limit to the distance he can move. If he dared to move to the north and disappear nearby, the destination would surely be the north, and if the destination was the north, it would mean that his helpers were also nearby.”
Leopold slowly cleared his mind.
The scattered pieces of information are collected one by one and put together into a single picture.
“Astrid.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Mint-colored eyes turned to Leopold.
“If we unite the barbarians in the north and invade the north… How do you think it will turn out?”
Astrid didn’t answer for a while.
Seeing Astrid thinking about something with her eyes still open, Leopold felt a little bit of anxiety.
No matter how much it was, didn’t the grand duchess of Myterien completely block the barbarians?
Even holding hands with them is a threat, does Astrid think so?
“The savages obviously grew up fighting against barren nature, so their temperament is violent and strong. If they unite as one, they might be able to devour quite a few countries.”
Is it that much?
Leopold shook his head. It might be more difficult than he thought.
“… Still, in front of Mitterien, it must feel as if swarms of ants are swarming by dozens or even hundreds of people and holding a sit-in.”
However, to Astrid, it seemed that the ants only saw them as a threat.
