The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - Chapter 240

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 240. The Territory Without Him (1)
Holy Kingdom of Cordelia.
The Papal Palace, where all authority and the legitimacy of governance were granted.
Deep within the eastern inner chambers of the Papal Palace existed a place called the “Hall of Sanctity.”
A sealed zone completely severed from the outside world.
Entry was permitted to only one person.
Isolde Cordelia.
It was her personal sanctuary—a place even the Pope himself could not enter without permission.
Within that Hall of Sanctity lay a single letter.
Isolde carefully lifted the letter.
Naturally, it was a letter that could not have been delivered to her so directly through normal channels.
Every letter reaching Isolde had to pass through the Papal Palace’s censorship and numerous complex procedures.
But Isolde had shared a direct line with a select few trusted individuals, and this letter had come through that route.
Isolde carefully broke the seal of the letter.
The sender was….
[From. Iliana]
A new acquaintance she had met in the Whitewolf Territory.
A small girl with an overall blue impression.
Yet she had been a tremendous force in confronting and driving back the leaders of the Dark Merchant Company that had attacked the territory.
Isolde calmly examined the contents of the letter.
====
To Isolde Cordelia.
Hello, I apologize for reaching out so suddenly.
But given the nature of the matter, I felt you should know as well.
And I am writing to ask for your help.
It’s nothing else—Adrian has gone missing.
====
“…Missing?”
Isolde’s pupils wavered.
Adrian missing.
It was a story difficult to believe.
She could not fathom what could cause Adrian to go missing.
Isolde could not imagine it.
Adrian was not the type of person to go missing.
If anyone disappeared, it would be others who vanished before him.
Therefore, she could not believe it.
But this letter had come through Isolde’s direct line.
There was no possibility it had been tampered with.
There was no reason for Iliana to lie.
Isolde suppressed her growing unease and continued reading the contents.
====
Of course, I cannot definitively say he has disappeared.
But it has been over two months now with no word of his whereabouts and no contact whatsoever, so everyone is deeply anxious.
Seraphia insists she is fine.
From what I can see beside her, she is suffering greatly.
The people of Whitewolf Territory are also very worried.
So if by any chance you have heard anything from Adrian beforehand, or if there is any message he left behind, please tell me.
====
Thus ended the letter’s contents.
Isolde folded the parchment in her hands and exhaled deeply.
“…Two months.”
It was a long time.
Isolde’s eyes darkened.
In that moment.
-Your Highness, it is nearly time to begin preparations.
A priest’s call echoed from outside.
The canonization ceremony of The Saint, soon to be held.
The ceremonial preparations for it were reaching their final stages.
Delegations and nobility from various kingdoms were already gathering throughout the Papal Palace.
As princess of the Holy Kingdom, Isolde had to receive them.
She had to elevate the kingdom’s authority and prove the blessings of holiness, being reborn as The Saint for all her subjects.
And that was the reason for Isolde’s existence.
And yet.
The letter clutched in her hand weighed heavily upon Isolde’s heart.
The voice in her mind crying that she must walk the path of The Saint.
The voice in her heart crying that she must rush to Whitewolf Territory this very moment.
“….”
Isolde stood motionless, unable to move in either direction.
* * *
The Imperial Central Intelligence Agency.
Deputy Director Elowin synthesized the compiled information.
Adrian’s disappearance.
Circumstantially, Adrian had indeed disappeared.
But judging by circumstances alone was not sound.
Thus, Elowin issued thorough investigation orders.
Mobilizing the entire information network of the Intelligence Bureau.
Gathering every scrap of information related to Adrian.
And at the end of it all, she could be certain.
Adrian.
He had disappeared.
“Hmm.”
Elowin leaned back in her chair, slowly tapping the armrest with her index finger.
“The soldier bees guarding the hive have disappeared.”
And not just any bees—the most ferocious and terrifying ones.
If that were the case, the next sequence of events was inevitable.
The honey stored so temptingly within the hive.
All manner of insects would soon swarm to seize it.
And indeed, the movements were already being detected.
“Count Hazan of Pendred Kingdom has reinforced troop deployments at the border checkpoints, ma’am.”
But it wasn’t only insects that coveted the honey.
Weasels, badgers, monkeys, and more.
“We’ve also detected movements to reorganize defensive forces along the northeastern border of Eltbach Plateau. It’s coming from Marquis Branden’s side.”
All manner of beasts were catching the scent and converging.
The honey of Whitewolf Territory was that sweet.
Setting everything else aside—the Dwarves and the Elves.
The only region on The Continent where both races voluntarily dwelled and coexisted.
Technology that even The Empire could not match.
Human resources more precious than gold.
It was a golden opportunity to obtain both.
“What should we do, ma’am?”
The Aide’s question followed.
Elowin’s gray eyes gleamed with a peculiar light.
“We step back.”
“…Pardon?”
“Our Information Bureau need not intervene.”
The losses sustained by the Information Bureau had not yet been recovered.
The intelligence networks scattered across The Continent.
Local networks, contact points, encrypted channels—all of it.
Everything was essentially annihilated.
Simply managing the time and resources required to restore it was overwhelming.
At present, the Information Bureau lacked the capacity to intervene in Whitewolf Territory.
“Then you mean to leave Whitewolf Territory as it is, ma’am?”
Yet they could not simply fold their hands and do nothing.
Since the Information Bureau had withdrawn.
Whitewolf Territory had undergone explosive growth.
Merely years ago, it had been barren land where no one could survive.
But now?
It had transformed into a colossal territory commanding the attention of The Continent.
If left unchecked, there was no telling how far it would grow.
“No.”
“…?”
“It means exactly what it says—the Information Bureau doesn’t need to get involved.”
The Aide blinked at those words.
Elowin spoke with a cold smile.
“When others stir up the hornet’s nest, we simply lend a hand from behind—only as much as we need.”
* * *
Valley of Kardun.
A place where the power of death, interpreted as circulation, dwelt—an infinite evolution ground that dispersed even biological limits to infinity itself.
Here, I could grow infinitely.
I clenched my fist and drove it through the empty air.
Boom!!
The air tore apart as a massive shockwave erupted.
The entire valley trembled violently under the sudden pressure.
“This is….”
The same overwhelming strength as the Ogre.
The formidable power I had only imagined until now.
But now it dwelt completely within my fists.
The infinite power of death, like the ability of Predation [S+], was transcending the limits of the human species.
Yet I remained human.
Simultaneously, I was evolving into something unbound by the definition of humanity.
The Ultimate Lifeform.
But merely.
Having started as human.
“Good, let’s keep going.”
I kicked off the ground again and leaped down the cliff.
At that very moment.
◆Sudden Quest, [The Shadow Swallowing the Territory], has begun.
The sudden quest materialized before my eyes.
* * *
News of Adrian’s disappearance spread like wildfire.
As the figure captivating the entire Continent, this single rumor alone sent shockwaves through the Continent’s politics, commerce, military, and public sentiment all at once.
Thus, the chief intelligence officer of the Levent Kingdom, Krvil.
“Hmm.”
Krvil calmly analyzed the current situation.
“The dragon that protected the Northern Region has vanished.”
A land without a master.
All manner of monsters were moving to claim the ownerless mountain.
“The Southern Alliance Kingdom has reportedly doubled and then quadrupled the transit tax on the Predator Merchant Company.”
“…They’re picking a fight.”
“Officially, they claim it’s a customs system reorganization, but….”
“It’s about securing justification.”
War requires a pretext.
Draw your blade without warning, and you’re branded a thief.
But with justification leading the way?
You can package it as legitimate intervention.
“The Langritd Magic Tower has also taken action, it seems.”
“…The Langritd Magic Tower as well?”
Krvil’s eyebrows twitched.
The Langritd Magic Tower—cradle of all mages across the Continent.
Its authority and military might needed no explanation.
If they so desired, they could shake a single kingdom….
No, they could easily topple two or three kingdoms.
Yet they remained neutral, belonging to no kingdom.
“On what grounds?”
“Well….”
The informant handed over a report and spoke.
“The one who developed soap is apparently a formal mage belonging to the Langritd Magic Tower.”
“What?”
Krvil seized the report and quickly scanned its contents.
“…So soap was originally proprietary technology of the Langritd Magic Tower, and this mage named Iliana stole it?”
“That’s what they claim.”
“Hmm.”
“The mage Iliana was originally assigned for two months, but it’s been over four months now without her return, they say.”
“In that time, soap became a specialty product of the Territory.”
“The Council of Elders at the Langritd Magic Tower maintains this is an official investigation into technological theft and unauthorized absence.”
“Hmmmm.”
It certainly was that way.
The justification was solid.
But Krvil’s instincts suggested a different intention lurked beneath the surface.
“They’re using this invention of soap as a pretext to interfere in the Territory.”
In any case.
…Even cunning foxes weren’t this cunning.
“How is the Territory responding?”
“There’s been nothing yet. The Predator Merchant Company hasn’t issued an official response either.”
“That’s inevitable.”
Krvil folded his arms and narrowed his eyes.
“Adrian’s disappearance, external pressure, internal unrest… The Territory must be in a complete vacuum.”
And the one bearing this weight—Countess Seraphia.
She was far too young.
Krvil was well aware that Adrian had essentially orchestrated all of the Territory’s development.
“Count Seraphia won’t be able to overcome this chaos.”
Krvil’s gaze turned toward the map of the Continent spread across the desk.
A remote territory located at the northern edge of the land.
Whitewolf Territory.
The Whitewolf Territory that had soared upward with enough force to pierce the very heavens itself.
But the sharpest stone gets struck first.
And they say no flower blooms red for ten days.
“…In the end, it comes to this.”
Within Krvil’s mind, the Whitewolf Territory was gradually crumbling.
* * *
Battenberg, the capital of the Battenberg Kingdom.
The conference room of the Royal Palace at its heart.
An emergency had been declared according to the agenda of this hastily convened meeting.
“Your Majesty! Approximately 1,500 armed forces have crossed the northern border.”
“A force of some 400 soldiers has been detected along Silan Valley….”
“We’ve also detected a force of 300 soldiers at the western border. Equipped primarily with horses and javelins….”
“Based on the intelligence gathered thus far….”
The reports continued without pause.
The numbers, organization, and affiliations of each force differed.
But their objective was identical.
“All of them are advancing toward the Whitewolf Territory.”
An armed provocation.
And it was directed squarely at the Whitewolf Territory.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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