The Mage’s Nemesis Has Reincarnated - Chapter 146

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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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The Natural Enemy of Mages Has Been Reincarnated – Episode 146
In the Demon Realm, there exists hellfire.
A flame unique to the Demon Realm—it annihilates the souls of other beings, yet it heals the souls of demons.
Dantalian was immersed within that inferno.
‘The wounds to his soul run quite deep. He won’t be emerging for some time.’
Not merely some time.
The damage was severe enough to require at least a year of recovery.
‘How could a mere being from the Human Realm inflict such direct trauma upon a soul?’
Seire pondered this question, yet his expression hardened as he considered Dantalian’s resolve.
‘When he returns, his rank will have plummeted to seventy-second. He will never reclaim his legion.’
Knowing this, Dantalian had entrusted his legion to me.
A judgment made because there was no hope of recovery.
‘In exchange, he sought vengeance.’
Vengeance I could aid with.
My curiosity was piqued by this human who had reduced a legion commander of the Demon Realm to such a state.
Yet the intelligence available was woefully sparse.
‘I know neither his name nor his face. All I possess is that he is a descendant of the divine, and a human capable of severing both magical power and demonic energy.’
Based on this meager information, I would have to track him down.
Of course, there was no need for me to act directly.
With his location still unknown, why risk a descent into the Human Realm without proper intelligence?
‘First, I must establish contact. With my subordinates in the Human Realm.’
Seire moved to issue his commands.
[I wish to contact the Human Realm. Prepare a human soul!]
[Yes!]

* * *
The Incarnation of Unbreakable Will.
The Sovereign of Flame.
The Eternal Inferno.
There existed a being known by many such epithets.
Pyreo McLafflin, ranked eighth in the hierarchy, was that very entity.
But as a merchant, he could not possibly have known such titles.
For now, survival mattered far more than anything else—pleading with both hands outstretched.
“P-please, spare me. You may take everything in the carriage, I beg you….”
“I have no need for goods.”
“I… beg your pardon…?”
The merchant’s gaze questioned why the man had blocked his trade route at all.
Why he had incinerated dozens of guards with magic, reducing them to ash.
The answer came from Pyreo’s lips.
“I cannot afford to leave witnesses behind.”
“Wh-what… Aaaaahhhhh!”
Flames engulfed the merchant’s body in an instant.
His screams ceased only after he was charred beyond recognition.
As if it mattered little to him.
“Is this sufficient?”
Pyreo turned away with indifference, swept away the carriage’s remains with wind magic, then abruptly began digging into the ground.
Was something buried here?
The answer revealed itself shortly.
“There it is.”
What emerged from the excavation was a jewel of black radiance.
More precisely, an object known as a Demonic Core Stone.
Pyreo stared at it for a moment, then swallowed it whole.
A gulp.
Feeling the jewel descend past his throat, he drew forth his demonic power.
A remarkable sight unfolded at that moment.
Whoooosh!
Flames erupted across Pyreo’s entire body.
Anyone witnessing it would mistake him for attempting self-immolation.
Yet Pyreo remained serene even amid the inferno, utterly unaffected.
Moments later, as the flames subsided, a smile graced his features.
“Ahh. My demonic power has grown considerably stronger.”
Grinning wickedly, he was about to depart toward his next destination.
[Pyreo McLafflin.]
A magnificent voice resonated within his mind.
Pyreo hastily accessed the Luminous Portalsphere.
An unfolded imaginary space.
There stood a tall nobleman who appeared to be at least three meters in height.
Thud!
Pyreo immediately prostrated himself before him.
“This humble servant greets Seire, the great Legion Commander of the Demon Realm and the Primordial Nobleman.”
[Good. Have you been doing well?]
“Of course! Thanks to you revealing the locations of the Demonic Stones hidden throughout the continent, I grow stronger with each passing day. All of this is thanks to your grace, Seire. I am truly grateful!”
[Is that so? Seeing you so pleased makes me feel good as well.]
Seire’s grin, baring his teeth, was only momentary—far removed from the image of a nobleman.
[As I’ve said before, your body was made to absorb demonic energy exceptionally well. You are a perfect vessel for gathering the Demonic Stones—fragments of demonic energy buried throughout the Human Realm. That’s precisely why I don’t command the Lich Dragon as other demons do.]
“I am truly grateful for your kindness.”
[If you continue absorbing demonic energy, you may one day become a being who fears not even the Lich Dragon. Perhaps you could even aspire to the very pinnacle of the Forerunners.]
“If that were to come to pass, I could ask for nothing more.”
[However, it seems you must cease your search and absorption of Demonic Stones for now. A more pressing matter has arisen.]
At those words, Pyreo asked with concern.
“What is the matter?”
[There exists a human in the Human Realm who stands against the Demon Faction. One of the Legion Commanders who manifested was defeated by this human.]
“Pardon?”
Defeated? A Legion Commander?
For a moment, I thought I had misheard, but Seire’s expression was utterly serious.
[I would have you find this audacious human and eliminate him. Actually, there’s no need to kill him. Simply locate him, and I shall handle the rest.]
“Who could this inhuman human possibly be?”
[I possess limited information. Only that he appears to be a male around sixteen or seventeen years old and wields Aura.]
“Sixteen or seventeen years old and an Aura user… that’s far too broad a range.”
Across the entire continent, there must be hundreds of thousands fitting that description.
[His power is considerable—apparently reaching the level of an Aura Master.]
“At that level, the range does narrow considerably, but still…”
[Furthermore, I’ve heard he is a Child of the Divine. To defeat a Legion Commander, such a title would be fitting.]
“Forgive my presumption, but what exactly is meant by a Child of the Divine…?”
[It’s a rumor that has spread throughout both the Human Realm and the Demon Realm. In the Demon Realm, the consensus is that humans fabricated it to bolster their own pride, but…]
“What do you mean?”
Curious, Seire proceeded to elaborate.
With each word, Pyreo’s pupils gradually dilated.
[…Such a mad existence, and yet humans revere him as a Child of the Divine.]
“Is… is such a thing even possible?”
[Of course, it’s merely rumor. No one has ever witnessed it, and there is no proof. However, a human who validates these rumors appeared mere days ago. He possesses the ability to absorb magic and reflect it back, or to sever both magical and demonic energy entirely, or so it is said.]
“That… that cannot be!”
Pyreo had now transcended mere surprise and entered a state of shock.
Such a broken ability existing in a human form?
“It’s impossible for someone of sixteen or seventeen to possess such power. Could he not have simply altered his appearance?”
[I agree. The boy is probably not showing his true form. But his abilities are so distinctive that he’ll stand out wherever he goes. If we search, we can find him.]
“Suppose we do find this so-called descendant of a god. Then what? How are we supposed to defeat someone who blocks magical power?”
Seire smiled reassuringly, as if he had a countermeasure in mind.
[Don’t worry about that part. All you need to do is find the descendant of the god and report their location to me. I’ll handle eliminating them myself. Understood?]
“I accept your orders.”

* * *
After disconnecting, Pyreo remained in a daze.
‘A human who can suppress a legion commander of the Demon Realm… I never could have imagined such a thing.’
Above all, the story he’d heard about the descendant of a god was utterly absurd.
Yet he couldn’t bring himself to disbelieve it.
‘Someone who can disable magical power and demonic energy? No one would be able to use their strength in front of that person.’
He couldn’t help but worry about what to do, but racking his brain alone wouldn’t yield any answers.
‘I should report this to my superiors first.’
Unlike the other Forerunners who answered to the Lich Dragon, Pyreo received direct orders from a Demon Legion commander.
But that didn’t mean he could disregard the other Forerunners.
There was a hierarchy here as well.
‘I need to contact him.’
To request assistance, Pyreo logged back into the Luminous Portalsphere.
And he sent a signal to his superior.
Soon, a figure materialized in mental form.
“Pyreo?”
The person he’d called was Baluduk, the Second Forerunner.
“It’s been a while, Baluduk.”
“You bastard!”
Baluduk shouted with an angry expression.
It was a natural reaction.
Pyreo, along with Terion, hadn’t shown up to meetings all this time.
“Did you think I’d welcome you with open arms just because you suddenly appeared? You haven’t attended a single meeting, and what have you been doing all this time?”
“My apologies. I’ve been acting under the orders of my patron, Seire, a legion commander ranked 70th. I’m sorry for missing the meetings.”
Pyreo displayed an attitude of sincere remorse without complaint.
He had to appear that way.
If it were discovered that he was secretly receiving Seire’s support and growing stronger by absorbing demonic energy?
All the Forerunners would try to kill him.
‘There’s nothing more to say. I just need to apologize unconditionally.’
To hide his ambition of one day gaining enough power to claim the position of First Forerunner, he needed to appear obedient.
Even so, Baluduk wasn’t quick to calm his anger.
“Regardless, you should at least respond when contacted! Terion was the same way, but if you’re going to act independently like that, why did you even join the group?”
“My apologies. I have no excuse, but… Terion is dead. That’s why I’m contacting you now.”
“What? Who’s dead?”
It was Terion, who had asked not long ago whether he could get in contact with Carrocksina, the Lich Dragon.
That man was dead?
“Have you confirmed the corpse?”
“Not personally, but I heard the report.”
“From whom?”
“From Seire.”
Baluduk fell silent.
If a legion commander of the Demon Realm had spoken, there was nothing more to question.
“Tell me the details of what happened.”
“Yes.”
Pyreo recounted everything he had heard without embellishment or omission.
There was no need to weave falsehoods into the narrative.
To secure Baluduk’s cooperation, I had to share as much information as possible.
‘Whether he believes it or not remains to be seen.’
Yet my concerns proved unfounded—Baluduk listened intently to Pyreo’s account, his eyes wide.
“…And that is how it came to pass.”
“Extraordinary. Terion slain by a descendant of the divine… and Commander Dantalian as well….”
Baluduk, who had been muttering to himself, suddenly flinched in alarm.
“Surely… Zakar Patrick hasn’t fallen as well?”
“Zakar Patrick—you mean that immortal Forerunner?”
“Yes. He’s a wanderer who refuses to attend meetings under the guise of rescuing sentient undead, and lately he doesn’t even respond to my communications. I have no way of knowing whether he’s even carrying out the assassination missions I’ve assigned.”
“Surely not. How could anyone overcome Zakar Patrick, who commands immortality itself?”
“Did Commander Dantalian not fall? If one severs mana and demonic power, it is more than sufficient to bring down anyone. We are no exception to that rule.”
Nox, Azrahil, Zakar Patrick, Rita Rose, Terion.
It felt as though the Forerunners, who had posed no problems for years, were dying off one after another.
“If Zakar Patrick has fallen as well, only seven Forerunners remain.”
“S-so few? How did things come to this….”
“Tch, we’ve paid them no mind all this time, so how would I know how the situation has unfolded?”
Baluduk clicked his tongue dismissively at Pyreo, but his expression hardened as a thought suddenly occurred to him.
“Pyreo.”
“Yes?”
“What is the appearance of this so-called descendant of the divine?”
“A boy of around sixteen or seventeen years old who uses aura, according to the reports. While it’s possible his appearance is fabricated based on his abilities, Commander Dantalian saw him in that form….”
“A boy… surely not.”
“Pardon? Do you have someone in mind?”
“I do. A boy named Zeke McLafflin—the age matches. He’s interfered with our operations before, so I ordered Zakar Patrick to assassinate him. Though I never received confirmation that the task was completed.”
“McLafflin? That’s from the Decan Kingdom. Isn’t that a mage family? But the person we’re looking for is an aura user.”
“True. But I received intelligence recently. The Hormos Merchant Alliance, which contracted to guard key figures of the Holy Empire, hired a swordmage named Zeke.”
Pyreo’s eyes widened.
“Could it be… the same person?”
“It’s not impossible. If he can reflect magic and wield aura, wouldn’t that be enough to pass himself off as a Sword Mage?”
“That’s a fair point. Since we have no other leads, it seems worth investigating.”
“Then it’s decided.”
Baluduk’s eyes gleamed with fierce intensity as he smiled.
“Pyreo, go and verify it yourself. Whether this Zeke McLafflin is a descendant of the divine or not.”

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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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