The Legendary Spearman Returns

Side Story Chapter 266

Three organizations had accumulated the bulk of Igrant’s wealth. The first was the mercenary guilds, especially those who specialized in all-out war. In fact, all of them were swimming in coin right now because even those mercenaries whose usual fare were monster hunting and guard details were heading to the battlefield right now. Hubalt was attacking every country on the continent, so the demand for manpower had skyrocketed.

For the same reason, business for the Free Knight Association was booming more than ever. Free knights weren’t affiliated with any country, so they were picky about who they worked for. Their clients had to align with the principles and beliefs of the free knights as well as offer a contract with good terms. Although that frustrated their clients, the reality was that everyone was anxious to recruit as many of the free knights as possible.

There was one organization that was even more successful than the aforementioned organizations: the Magic Tower. The importance of mages in a major war need not be said, and magic artifacts that would protect someone at a critical moment were as valuable as national treasures. It wasn’t hard to find magic artifacts whose price increased tenfold as soon as a war started.

That was why the Seven Mages were invaluable right now. Numerous people tried to woo them, and even kings personally sent the mages messages in a hope of meeting them. That was why Cain was very skeptical about being able to get in touch with them...

-I think I can take care of that for you.

“Truly?” Cain asked, surprised.

-Of course.

Cain beamed at Iceline through the communication crystal ball. In contrast, Iceline looked very grim.

“...My apologies.” Cain, knowing the reason for her dour expression, quickly bowed. “This is no time to be behaving like this...”

-No, don’t be. This isn’t something that you should be sorry for, Sir Cain. Anyway, I’m very proud of Prince Kireua for accomplishing such a difficult mission. I’m sure that Duke Tremblin will be very happy from up in heaven.

“...Kurz is the cause of all the ongoing tragedies on the continent. He should be on his knees begging Duke Tremblin for mercy in the otherworld.”

-I hope so. In any case, I’ll trust you with Kireua until the end. Someone from the Magic Tower will contact you soon.

“Thank you, Your Majesty!”

“Do you really think that pompous Magic Tower will contact us?” Anna asked as soon as the crystal ball went dark.

“They will when Queen Consort Iceline calls.”

“But even if she’s...”

“You and your mouth...” Cain frowned.

“F-Fine. Fine! Even if it’s Queen Consort Iceline, I bet the Magic Tower won’t contact us within three days! For goodness’s sake, I’m technically not a citizen of Avalon anyway,” Anna muttered to herself.

Cain’s frown only deepened. Yes, he didn’t like Anna’s answer, but he was as worried as she was.

‘I hope we get an update by today...’

Cain glanced to the side. Kireua was asleep. It seemed he hadn’t completely recovered yet.

‘The Flame Emperor’s execution is in three days, and Hubalt’s forces will reach Arcadia around the same time. I need to hear something from the Magic Tower within the next twenty-four hours.’

Cain’s prayer was answered unexpectedly quickly.

Less than three minutes since Cain had finished talking with Iceline, he sensed a subtle change in the flow of mana nearby. Given Cain’s incredibly heightened senses, he immediately determined the reason.

“The Magic Tower!” Cain cheered.

Iceline had contacted the Magic Tower practically as soon as she’d finished her conversation with Cain, and they had responded right away.

“Oh... So Queen Consort Iceline has that much influence...” Anna exclaimed.

The identity of the mage who appeared shocked them even more.

“...Queen Consort Iceline must have told him our exact coordinates for him to find us immediately,” Anna murmured.

Ordinary people would have been disappointed to see that there was only one mage, but someone with high status like Cain would think differently. Everyone in their group could recognize the man—he was the most famous mage on the continent.

“I didn’t expect to meet you here, Tower Master,” Cain chuckled.

“In the Magic Tower, I’ve been in charge of Avalon-related matters for a long time.” Thetapirion Whitesox, the Magic Tower’s leader, waved his hands at everyone.

Cain’s smile grew.

“Huh? It’s too early for you to smile like that. Just so we’re clear, you know that the Magic Tower has given you a very special privilege with me being here, right? So don’t expect any more privileges.”

“He’s really living up to his reputation. As full of himself as they say. Since he’s already here anyway, he could be more lenient...” Anna grumbled under her breath.

Cain’s head snapped to her. “Would you please watch your mouth!”

“Al-alright. Alright.” Anna stepped backward, raising her hands defensively.

Theta also turned to look at her—surprisingly, he’d heard her too. “I believe I can say this much: Miscellaneous tasks like helping people with teleportation are usually given to the most junior of the Seven Mages.”

“Don’t mind her. On all of our behalfs, I would like to express my gratitude for your generosity,” Cain interrupted.

Cain knew how favorable Theta was to Avalon in contrast to the other Seven Mages. The reason behind their hostility was Iceline zin Rebrecca, the Queen Consort and former member of the Seven Mages.

The Magic Tower was the most secretive organization on the continent. All of its members were expected to abandon all the knowledge they learned in the Magic Tower if they left, even if they were getting married to an emperor. In other words, the mages would have their Circles destroyed before leaving the Magic Tower. However, Theta, who had been the Tower Master at the time, had allowed Iceline to leave the Magic Tower without destroying her Circles using Evergrant as precedent.

His choice turned out to be a stroke of genius. Iceline was now the generation’s greatest craftswoman of magic artifacts. She could have made an unimaginable fortune if she’d put the merchant guilds in charge of selling them. Charles, one of the Five Merchants, was also a Queen Consort of Avalon, but Iceline let the Magic Tower have the exclusive right to sell her artifacts for the sake of their history.

“I’m aware that the other Seven Mages don’t view Avalon in a good light,” Cain said.

“What? Why would they be like that?” Anna asked.

Cain frowned.

“It’s simple,” Theta answered on the behalf of Cain. “Envy.”

“Ah, yes. Very concise. I can see why you’re the Tower Master.”

“Should I consider it an honor to hear such a compliment from the best wind-elemental mage out there?” Theta chuckled.

Anna’s expression changed subtly, but she just shrugged in the end.

“From the looks of it, the Prince seems to not be feeling very well,” Theta said with a glance at Kireua. “I guess we have to count him out while we discuss business.”

“I understand.” Cain nodded.

“Can you tell me your destination first? The fee differs depending on the distance and how risky your destination is. Well, I have a feeling I already know, but...” Theta looked back at Cain. “...I’ll ask just in case: you heard about Thran, yes?”

“Yes, we did.”

“Although I have nothing to say if Avalon has its own problems to take care of... what are you going to do about it?” Theta looked at Kireua again because Kireua was the Flame Emperor’s student.

“...That is why we would like you to teleport two groups to different locations.”

“Huh? Two groups?” Theta took a look around, his head tilted in confusion. “I really don’t think your group is big enough to afford that... I’d recommend focusing on one.”

Cain nodded. “I know, but we can’t give up on anyone.”

“That doesn't exactly seem wise to me, but I assume that you’ve talked it out with your Prince over there.”

“Yes, we did.”

Theta nodded. “I’ll have to install two smaller teleportation gates for that, so the price will double.”

“Of course. We should be thorough when it comes to settling our bill.”

“You’re in safe hands, my new best customer. Installing two mini teleportation gates usually requires two of the Seven Mages, but I can pull it off on my own. I’m starting to feel like coming here was the right choice,” Theta pompously declared.

Anna gave him the side eye but stayed silent because of Cain’s warning look.

“How long will it take for you to install them? As you already know, we’re in a bit of a hurry, so I would like to be gone as soon as possible...”

“An hour.”

“A-An hour?”

“Yes, give me an hour at maximum for each of the gates. It wouldn’t even take me a minute to teleport you guys myself, but there’s jamming barriers all over the continent because of the war. I have to have a teleportation gate to break through the barriers.” Theta clicked his tongue.

Cain gaped in amazement. The rest of Theta’s explanation went right over his head. Theta truly was the greatest mage alive—a worthy Tower Master.

‘He just needs two hours to install two miniaturized teleportation gates...’ Cain exclaimed.

“Explain how you’re dividing your group while I install the gates. It’d be best if you tell me which destination is your priority. We can settle the bill later.”

“Thank you.” Cain bowed slightly and then quickly moved over to Kireua. Although he wanted to let Kireua rest a little longer, they couldn’t waste any more time—nor did they have to with Theta’s help.

“Your Highness, it’s time for you to wake up.”

Kireua was silent.

“Your Highness?”

Cain realized that something was off. Kireua was too quiet. Left with no other choice, Cain put his hand on Kireua to shake him awake, but...

“Your... Highness?” Cain’s eyes widened.

“What?” Anna came running after noticing Cain’s reaction. “What is it?”

Cain’s voice quivered.

“His Highness... isn’t breathing.”

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