Support me and be 30 chapters ahead of webnovel:
patreon.com/Draco_
For every 5 Patreon memberships I receive, I'll release 15 chapters all at once. Your support means a lot to me.
*****
"I wonder if Julius's hidden secondary personality is benevolent or malevolent. And what exactly is the Time Devil's goal, nesting inside his body? It feels like nothing good can come of it."
George watched as Julius, Yami, and Lumiere returned to the Royal Capital to capture Patry. He didn't follow them, choosing instead to stay behind and ponder.
"Forget it. When the time comes, I'll just use Soul Search and everything will be clear."
He decided that guessing was a waste of energy. Once the Word Soul Devil was dealt with, he'd simply have a showdown, seize the Time Devil within Julius, and rip the memories straight from its essence. Simple, crude, and efficient.
Based on his observations, while the Time Devil was a Supreme Devil—one of the three pillars of the underworld whose power far exceeded that of the Word Soul Devil—it likely wouldn't hold up against a concentrated group assault. Whether it was a friend or foe, or what schemes it harbored, everything would eventually come to light.
Strategy was for when you couldn't overpower an enemy. If you possessed overwhelming crushing force, you just bulldozed through. Thus, he didn't need to stress over whether the Time Devil was plotting something as sinister as the Word Soul Devil.
Half an hour later.
Finral opened a spatial portal, and William Vangeance—wearing his signature half-mask—stepped through, following Julius, Yami, and Lumiere into the Black Bull hideout.
"What is so urgent that we had to come to Yami's base?" William asked.
Having received Julius's emergency transmission, he had rushed from the Golden Dawn's headquarters to the Royal Palace at top speed. However, Julius hadn't explained the situation, only leading him here alongside Yami and a mage William didn't recognize, saying he'd understand once they arrived.
"William, do you recognize them?"
Julius pointed toward the members of the Third Eye and the Eye of the Midnight Sun, all sealed by light magic. William's expression froze.
He reached up and removed the mask that hid the curse on half his face. Immediately, his body began to transform. The hereditary curse from his mother's family receded, his hairstyle shifted, and his robes altered in form. Most notably, his gentle aura turned sharp and cold.
"Licht!"
Lumiere lost his composure for a moment as he looked at the transformed William. The man standing there was a dead ringer for the Elven Leader.
"Seal Release!"
Patry, having forcibly taken control of the body, surged into the air. His mana flared, skyrocketing to a level nearly rivaling Julius's own.
"Light Magic: Sword of Judgment!"
Countless blades of light filled the sky, raining down toward Julius and the Black Bulls. Seeing Vetto and the others captured and himself lured into a trap, Patry knew his identity was blown. He dared not hold back against the current Wizard King. He launched his most powerful attack immediately—even if it didn't kill Julius or Yami, it would provide enough cover to rescue his comrades and escape.
"How is this possible?!"
However, something happened that defied Patry's expectations. The stranger who had arrived with Yami suddenly transformed into a colossal dragon. The dragon opened its maw and swallowed every single blade of his city-destroying light magic, gulping it down like a snack.
"Dragon Slayers are the natural counters to mages of the same element," George said from the sidelines, shaking his head with a smile.
Unless there was a massive disparity in raw power, a mage of a certain element was essentially walking into a slaughter when facing a Dragon Slayer of that same element. Patry used Light Magic, and so did Lumiere—except Lumiere was naturally much stronger. Patry's Wizard King-level outburst was nothing more than an energy supplement for Lumiere's dragon form.
"Time Restraining Magic: Chrono Stasis!"
Julius, though marvelling at Lumiere's transformation, didn't miss a beat. Before Patry could even react to his failed attack, Julius encased him in a sphere of frozen time.
Then, it was George's turn. He stepped forward and, with a literal slap of magical force, knocked Patry's soul right out of William Vangeance's body.
Lumiere reverted to human form and approached the floating elven soul. "Patry, this is actually all a misunderstanding..."
Lumiere tried to explain the sequence of events, but was met with a barrage of verbal abuse:
"You! You damned... [BEEP] [BEEP] [BEEP]!"
"Good thing he's a soul right now," George muttered, watching the flabbergasted Lumiere. If Patry had a physical body, Lumiere would probably be covered in spit. The elf's hatred for the First Wizard King ran deep.
Once Patry had exhausted his rage, Lumiere patiently recounted the truth once more. Naturally, Patry—just like Vetto and the others—didn't believe a word of it.
Meanwhile, Julius was interrogating William Vangeance. Looking at Patry's soul separated from his body, William sighed and revealed everything without reservation.
"I am a sinner of this kingdom. I will accept any punishment, even death."
William explained his past: the illegitimate son of a noble, ostracized and abused because of the curse on his face, until Patry's soul woke within him. Patry had been his only true friend. At fifteen, after receiving his four-leaf grimoire, he met Julius, who gave him a mask and a place in the Magic Knights. He had sworn to build the greatest squad to repay Julius, but found himself torn between his dearest friend and the mentor he respected. He had chosen to do nothing, letting nature take its course.
"Whatever your reasons, you betrayed the kingdom. Fortunately, Yami and his squad resolved the issue before irreparable damage was done," Julius said, his expression stern but his eyes softening into a smile. "Therefore, you must atone. You will help Yami and the others handle the aftermath and work harder than ever to protect this kingdom."
"Boss, you're being way too soft on this guy," Yami grumbled, throwing an arm around his old teammate while looking at Julius. "He committed a huge crime and doesn't even get a slap on the wrist?"
William's eyes reddened with emotion as he made a solemn vow of loyalty to Julius.
"Oh, there's a punishment," Julius said, rubbing his chin. "William's salary for the next six months is forfeited. It will be given to the Black Bulls as a reward."
Yami burst into laughter. "Now that's more like it! By the way, Boss, our squad isn't the 'Black Bulls' anymore. We're the 'Black Dragons' now."
To a squad like the Golden Dawn, where almost everyone was a wealthy noble, a few months' salary meant nothing. But to the Black Bulls, where many members came from humble backgrounds, it was their lifeblood—especially for Yami, whose vices of drinking, smoking, and gambling usually emptied his pockets before the month was out. William's six-month salary was a literal godsend.
"No need to keep explaining. He'll understand once Licht is revived," George said, stepping toward Lumiere. He reached out and grabbed Patry's soul.
"If we were lying, we wouldn't bother explaining. We'd just seal your soul and be done with it. Stop doubting. We're going to revive Licht and kill the Word Soul Devil. You can watch and see the truth for yourself."
Patry fell silent. George was right. If they only wanted to save the humans possessed by elves, they could have just evicted the souls by force. There was no tactical reason to lie to him now.
Julius watched George handle the soul with such ease, a flash of wonder in his eyes. As a magic geek, he could see the exquisite control George possessed—control that surpassed even his own. He knew such power was impossible for a normal fifteen-year-old, but Julius was wise enough not to pry. George was clearly an ally to the kingdom, and Julius trusted Yami's judgment.
"Yami," Julius said, a bright smile returning to his face. "Keep this quiet for now. Take your members to the Underwater Temple and the Witches' Forest to secure those two Magic Stones. I'll go borrow the stone from Fuegoleon, and William will get the final one from Yuno."
The Clover Kingdom was not a monolith. The current King was a fool who resented the Wizard King's power and would likely cause a political disaster if he found out the Golden Dawn's captain was the leader of the Midnight Sun. It was better to resolve this in the shadows.
"No problem!" Yami and William agreed.
While the others went stone-hunting, George took the six stones they already had—one from Saussy Village and five from the Midnight Sun's base—to study. There were ten stones in total. With Yami and Lumiere heading out, the final four were within reach.
A week later, Yami and Lumiere returned successfully with the stones from the Underwater Temple and the Witches' Forest. Thanks to the squad's increased strength, the captains didn't even have to lift a finger; the members handled everything. Julius and William had already secured the remaining two.
All ten Magic Stones were assembled.
That afternoon, Julius summoned all nine Magic Knight Captains.
"I have gathered you today for a mission that involves the safety of the entire kingdom—and indeed, all of humanity."
The room erupted into chaos. To the captains, "humanity-level threats" were the stuff of legends, like the Demon God crisis five hundred years ago.
"Quiet. The truth is this..." Julius recounted the events of five centuries ago, the betrayal of the elves, and the Word Soul Devil's plot. The revelation hit like a thunderbolt. The news that their bodies were potential vessels for elven souls sent cold shivers down their spines.
"Fortunately," Julius continued, pointing to George, who stood calmly beside Yami, "this was all uncovered by a brave and resourceful young man. He rescued the First Wizard King, found the truth for the elves, and created the magic necessary to separate the souls safely. He is a new recruit of the Black Dragons, a boy from the Forsaken region of Saussy Village—George. He will now assist in separating the elven souls from your bodies."
Julius made sure to emphasize George's humble origins. He wanted the nobles to see that a "peasant" had saved them all—a perfect step toward his dream of a world without class discrimination.
(End of Chapter)