Chapter 86 — "Arisols"
Night had fallen deep over the hunting grounds camp.
Inside the frigid dungeon, the only source of heat came from the branding irons glowing red atop the furnace, spitting sparks into the air.
Thomas's eyes were wide, bloodshot.
Even his breathing carried a heavy, suppressed rage.
"Let me give you one last chance," he said coldly.
"Speak. Who sent you?"
"Why did you attempt to assassinate Lady Leiya?!"
"And the out-of-control meteor iron bird in the hunting grounds—was that your doing as well?!"
The youth bound to the interrogation frame wore a red headscarf.
His upper body was covered in wounds, old and new alike.
Yet despite this, he sneered.
"Meteor iron bird?"
"I don't know what the hell you're talking about."
"—Still playing tough, huh?"
Thomas narrowed his eyes.
"You've got plenty of blade and axe scars on you. A warrior? Or a mercenary?"
The short-haired youth chose silence.
Thomas's fury finally boiled over.
With Levitation Magic, he lifted a red-hot branding iron from the furnace.
"I don't usually interrogate prisoners myself," he growled.
"But Erwin's already useless."
—SIZZLE!
The branding iron pressed against the youth's waist, releasing a sound like meat searing over an open flame.
"…nnngh!!"
The youth clenched his teeth.
Veins bulged, his body trembling violently from the pain—
yet he didn't utter a single scream.
"Heh… tough bastard."
"If you were one of my men, I might've admired you."
"But unfortunately, you're nothing more than a scheming assassin!"
Thomas cast another spell.
This time, ten red-hot branding irons burst out of the furnace at once.
"I'll say it one last time."
"You'd better treasure this chance."
"Hehehe…"
"Hahahahahahahaha!"
The youth suddenly threw his head back and laughed hysterically.
Lowering his gaze, his narrow eyes locked onto Thomas, brimming with contempt.
"Just another dog of the Cole family, barking loud behind iron bars."
"Even if you burn me alive today—"
"I won't say a single damn word."
"—You bastard!!"
Thomas roared.
All ten branding irons shot forward mercilessly—
Yet just as the blazing metal was about to touch the youth's body—
—CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
All ten branding irons dropped to the ground at once.
The dungeon fell abruptly silent.
Thomas cursed aloud, his face twisting in shock.
"Who did that?!"
"Who's interfering with my interrogation?!"
At that moment, he heard footsteps behind him and spun around—
Elias descended the steps slowly, expressionless, his pace unhurried as he approached.
"—What are you doing here?" Thomas snapped.
"Aren't you supposed to be guarding the lady in the camp? Why are you in the interrogation chamber?!"
Elias replied calmly,
"The lady is protected by my barrier. Nothing can happen to her."
"Your side, however…"
He lifted his gaze toward the youth whose waist was scorched and bleeding.
The moment the boy met Elias's eyes, he abruptly turned his head aside and let out a cold chuckle.
"Heh… damn it…"
"I heard Theodore hired a bodyguard for his daughter. Thought he'd be useless."
"Didn't expect you to be this capable—cost me my chance."
Elias didn't argue.
Instead, he turned back to Thomas.
"General Thomas. This boy attempted to assassinate the lady."
"He must be executed immediately."
"—Executed?!"
Thomas hesitated, his expression stiff.
"But… I haven't gotten anything useful out of him yet!"
"That's your problem," Elias replied flatly.
"If you can't extract information, keeping him alive only increases the risk."
The boy lowered his head and laughed quietly.
It was unclear whether he was mocking Thomas's incompetence—or his own failure.
In a low voice, as if sighing at the end of his life, he muttered,
"One more generation and it would've been a hundred…"
"Should've married. Had a kid…"
"—Wait!"
Thomas suddenly reacted.
"This is still my jurisdiction—who do you think you are, giving orders—"
—BOOM!!
A thunderous explosion erupted without warning.
Thomas watched in horror as the short-haired youth vanished in a blinding flash!
When the light faded, even the stone wall behind him had been blown clean through.
Elias withdrew his hand, turned indifferently, and walked back up the steps.
Before leaving, he coldly tossed out a single line:
"General Thomas, forgive the overstep."
"Everything I do is for the lady's safety."
Thomas stood frozen, murmuring to himself:
"No wonder he crippled Erwin…"
"…What a terrifying existence."
---
"—Ugh!!"
The short-haired youth reappeared on the surface.
He immediately doubled over, vomiting violently.
Raising his head, he scanned his surroundings under the moonlight.
A wild forest.
"…Didn't I die?"
"Why does my stomach feel like this…?"
"That strange space just now—"
"Teleportation Magic: Phantom Manifestation."
Elias emerged from the darkness.
"For a first-time transfer, you didn't throw up that much."
Startled, the youth instinctively reached for a weapon—then realized his hands were empty.
"Wait…"
His mind raced.
He had heard the explosion.
Seen the blinding light.
And yet—he was alive.
"…So that blast… you saved me?"
Elias curled his lips slightly.
"I merely mixed something else into the Explosion Magic."
"You can do that?!"
The youth stared at him in disbelief.
"So you're not just powerful—you have absurdly precise control over magic!"
Elias bowed faintly.
"Thank you for the compliment."
The youth scratched his bristly hair.
"But… why save me?"
"—Arisols."
Elias went straight to the point.
"I heard your muttering inside the carriage."
Realization struck the youth like lightning.
"So that's it!"
"You became the Cole family's bodyguard… for Arisols too?!"
"More or less," Elias replied.
He stepped closer, his deep gaze locking onto the boy.
"Then tell me—why did you try to assassinate Leiya?"
"And what does Arisols have to do with her?"
"…Fine."
The youth lifted his head toward the moon, as if gazing upon a distant homeland.
He exhaled slowly.
"Arisols."
"A miraculous magic that alters biological form."
"For a thousand years, everyone believed Arisols was a Cole family heirloom."
"But it isn't."
"It was stolen, a thousand years ago, from my ancestors by theirs."
His eyes sharpened suddenly.
"Yes."
"My ancestors were the true creators of Arisols."
"The Cole family stole it, passed it down as their own."
"They even altered its name."
Elias couldn't help but laugh.
Stealing a magic to protect one's reputation—and even renaming it.
Such conduct would be considered despicable even among demons.
Curious, Elias asked,
"So… what was its original name?"
The youth raised his eyes, smiling faintly.
"Elias."
"…What did you say?"
The youth repeated calmly,
"I said—the spell's original name was Elias."