The Son-In-Law of the Magician Is a Transcendent Sword Master - Chapter 135

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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 135
“…Are you really Sheril?”
I asked the long-haired woman before me. She lifted her chin in response.
“That’s quite a casual way to address the Archmage of the Seven Great Towers.”
“…Sheril?”
“Not only do you fail to show proper respect, but you dare speak my name so freely. How presumptuous.”
….
I exchanged a glance with Renia.
The Sheril we knew was sharp-tongued and mischievous, yes, but she always maintained impeccable courtesy.
But now, as an Archmage, what had become of her?
Arrogant. Her demeanor reminded me of Kashar, the Head of Maelrn, whom we’d encountered in the Southern Forest not long ago.
“…Sheril’s… intoxicated by the taste of power…”
Renia murmured with a hollow expression.
Indeed.
They say if you want to see a person’s true nature, give them power. Had Sheril finally revealed her dark and ugly essence now that she’d become the queen of the Shadow Tower…?
“That can’t be right.”
People don’t change in just a few months.
I laughed softly and crossed my arms, watching Sheril. Renia seemed oblivious, but I noticed Sheril’s lips had been trembling slightly from the start.
“So, how much longer are you planning to keep up this ‘Archmage’ act?”
At my jab, Sheril lowered the chin she’d been holding high. Then she cleared her throat and carefully opened her mouth.
“…Is it that obvious?”
“Very.”
“I practiced a lot before coming here.”
“Clearly not enough.”
Tsk.
Finally, Sheril relaxed the tension in her face and returned to her familiar, composed expression.
“It’s been a long time, Reagan. And you too, Miss Renia.”
As Sheril spoke as Benheim’s attendant, Renia bounced with joy.
“Sheril! It’s been forever! Did you grow your hair out? It’s beautiful!”
“…I simply haven’t had the time to manage it with how busy things have been.”
Sheril twisted her lengthened hair around her index finger as she trailed off. But Renia didn’t stop there—she trotted over to Sheril and examined the long robe draped across her body from every angle.
“Is this yours? It’s amazing. You really do look like an Archmage.”
“Renia, Sheril is an Archmage.”
Regardless, it had been nearly half a year since we’d last seen Sheril.
In fact, she’d attended our wedding ceremony a few months ago, but Renia and I had fled before the ceremony even ended, so we’d had no chance to speak with her directly.
“How have you been?”
“Well, thank you. The Shadow Tower is experiencing unprecedented prosperity.”
According to Sheril, the Shadow Tower still belonged to the Seven Great Towers.
There were considerable political reasons for this, apparently—having the composition of the Seven Great Towers change twice in a single year would undermine the authority of the Great Mage Alliance.
In any case, thanks to such circumstances, the Shadow Tower wielded the considerable authority of being counted among the Seven Great Towers, despite not having a single proper Dark Mage in its ranks.
Yet Sheril herself seemed to regard the position as a rotten crown.
“By the way, Sheril, your rank is… quite impressive.”
I examined Sheril’s aura. I’d heard long ago that she’d reached the 6th Rank, but now she stood at a remarkably high level within that tier.
Not quite my level, but comparable to Renia’s.
“You noticed? I suppose I am something of a prodigy.”
Sheril spun around with a proud flourish, her long robe billowing in response. She looked like an excited child.
“Act your age, would you? You’re nearly thirty.”
At the mention of thirty, Sheril’s brow furrowed.
“I’m simply doing things now that I couldn’t do when I was young. Is there a problem with that?”
“Of course there’s a problem.”
The Archmage of one of the Seven Great Towers was throwing a tantrum in the middle of Benheim Estate.
The gazes of nearby mages were piercing. Especially for me, who’d been receiving increasingly wary looks of late.
Sheril seemed to sense the atmosphere and spoke carefully.
“…Then, shall we go inside?”
“Yes.”
* * *
Sheril’s visit to Benheim appeared to be related to Tower business. Upon entering the Office of Steren, the Estate Head, she laid down several documents and began discussing something.
Sheril’s demeanor was surprisingly professional, carrying the atmosphere befitting an Archmage, so even Renia let out a small gasp.
“…Sheril feels like she’s gone far away somehow.”
Renia spoke with a hint of melancholy. It was understandable—from her perspective, a maid who’d been with her since childhood had suddenly become independent, leaving her with bittersweet emotions.
“The business is concluded.”
“What was it about?”
“A letter of protest from the Dark Mage Guilds.”
“Dark Mage Guilds?”
“Yes. They were once under Arania’s command. However, once I became Archmage, there was no longer any need to maintain Dark Mage Guild branches throughout the nation.”
Now that I think about it, I believe I heard such news in Harfen.
The Shadow Tower, being the Tower of Dark Mages, had maintained Dark Mage Guild branches across the country. But it seemed Sheril had cut them all off upon becoming Archmage.
“…Why? There’s no tool as useful as Dark Mage Guilds.”
“The Tower headquarters has no Dark Mages of note besides myself. And ultimately, control stems from power.”
Certainly, the previous Archmage Arania’s strength had played a major role in making those guilds obey.
“Currently, a mage dispatched from Benheim Mage Tower assists with Tower operations, but I cannot rely on their goodwill indefinitely.”
“Is that why you came to Benheim this time?”
“Precisely. I’m now prepared to stand alone. I intend to seriously begin teaching the children.”
“Children?”
“My younger sisters. Or should I say, my daughters now? It’s lamentable—a virgin with dozens of daughters under her care.”
I was struggling with how to respond to Sheril’s self-deprecating remark.
“That was a joke, so don’t look at me like that. I’m satisfied with my current life. I didn’t realize it myself, but I seem to have considerable talent for raising children.”
Sheril then began speaking about the children of the Shadow Tower. Seeing how she remembered every single girl’s name without omission, I could tell she was genuinely content with her role as their mother.
“That’s good.”
Renia murmured softly, and I nodded in agreement.
But separate from that, there was one thing I needed to ask.
“Sheril, let’s set aside the matter of the children for now.”
I hardened my expression and continued.
“What happened to your sister?”
“You mean Elisia, my older sister?”
Sheril’s expression grew complicated. Seeing this, I instinctively sensed the situation was far from favorable.
“Elisia’s body is… alive, at least. But without her soul, I’m uncertain whether recovery is even possible.”
“…That’s unfortunate.”
“Still, it hasn’t been decided that there’s no hope. I’ve heard that among the Covert Mages, there exist secret arts to absorb souls. So I intend to find Elisia’s soul by any means necessary.”
Sheril offered a bitter smile. But the moment I heard the words “Covert Mages,” a sudden realization struck me.
If my suspicion was correct, Kaiden Rucen was also using Covert Mages.
And specifically on his daughter, who shared his blood.
“Sheril, I understand the Shadow Tower is close to Rucen.”
“Yes. The Tower itself is actually closer to Rucen than to Benheim. Perhaps that’s why mages from Rucen visited my tower recently as a courtesy call.”
“Did you sense anything unusual about those mages? Any strange atmosphere?”
“Nothing particularly unusual, but…”
Sheril’s eyes narrowed. It seemed she had detected something suspicious in my words.
“Reagan, is there some problem with the Rucen County?”
“…Hmm.”
Sheril was a Covert Mage. And the Shadow Tower was close to Rucen County.
In other words, if I used Sheril as an information source, I could obtain valuable intelligence.
But I hesitated. The reason was simple—Renia stood beside me.
‘…This is troublesome.’
If Renia heard my suspicions, wouldn’t she charge into Rucen to rescue Petra?
That would be a serious problem.
When I turned to look at Renia, she was staring at me with a pouty expression. It seemed she had already read my thoughts.
“Reagan, you were about to ask me to leave, weren’t you?”
“Well…”
“It doesn’t matter. If you feel that way, there must be good reason. But I need you to tell me one thing clearly.”
“…What is it?”
“What you said back then… in the Southern Forest. Tell me again.”
“Renia, are you serious?”
“I am.”
“Really? Right now? With Sheril watching?”
“Yes.”
“…”
Looking at Renia’s face, I exhaled a deep sigh. By this point, I already knew there was no stopping her.
“…Fine. Renia. I treasure you far more than you could possibly imagine.”
“Good. That’s all I needed to hear.”
Renia grinned and turned her body, revealing Sheril, who had been hidden behind her. She was now witnessing this entire farce. Sheril pursed her lips as if trying to suppress her laughter, but ultimately spoke.
“Don’t overdo the sarcasm.”
“Shut up.”
* * *
“I see. So the Head of Rucen is using Forbidden Artifacts…”
“It’s only suspicion at this point.”
“Then you’re asking the Shadow Tower to find physical evidence.”
The conversation moved swiftly. Sheril was sharp enough to grasp my intent immediately.
“Understood. I’ll look into it. I won’t accept any fee.”
Sheril agreed without hesitation. I’d expected her to be reluctant about investigating a Great Magic Family like Rucen, but her quick acceptance caught me off guard.
“I’ve already received tremendous kindness from Reagan. How could I refuse a benefactor’s request?”
“Thank you. Then I’m counting on you.”
“Yes. I’ll visit the Rucen County directly under the pretext of deepening relations and conduct an investigation. Since I also use Forbidden Artifacts, I should be able to detect any traces of them on the young lady’s body.”
It would take time, but once I had solid evidence, I could confront Kaiden at the Hunting Festival in half a year.
A weight lifted from my shoulders.
As I leaned back against the chair with that thought, Sheril brought up another matter.
“Reagan, there’s something else you should know.”
“Tell me.”
“Do you remember Vera and Sierra, my twin sisters?”
“Yes. They were taken to Grave, weren’t they?”
“That’s right. However, reports of Dark Mages resembling Vera and Sierra have been caught in our intelligence network. And not just once or twice—several times near Orelion.”
“….”
Grave.
A detention facility for Black Mages from which none supposedly escaped alive.
But that was merely public perception. In reality, Grave had likely become the barracks of Archmage King Damian Carius. And the fact that Vera and Sierra, supposedly imprisoned there, were openly moving about outside meant….
‘Have they become the Archmage King’s tools?’
The Archmage King might be using the two Dark Mages as his personal soldiers. Dark Mages did make excellent intelligence operatives, after all.
But there was another possibility. I recalled Calus, who had become a corpse golem when I encountered him in the Archmage Domain. They could have been modified in that manner as well.
Regardless, the Archmage King was scheming something.
‘…I should inform Gideon about this.’
The moment I finished my thoughts and reached into my pocket for the Crystal Sphere and button—
Bzzzzt—.
A short, sharp vibration.
The Crystal Sphere I was about to retrieve was already ringing.
It was the one I’d received from Gideon Midian, an investigator of the Imperial Mage Association. The surface bore only a brief note with a time and place to meet.
In other words, Gideon had found a clue based on the information I’d provided.
“…Sheril.”
“Yes.”
“We have somewhere to go.”
* * *
“Hahaha. This is fun. Don’t you think so, sister?”
Vera gazed at Sierra with a troubled expression as she rummaged through the blood-soaked scene.
The two women now stood within a branch of the Dark Mage Guild situated on the outskirts of Orelion.
The floor was stacked high with the corpses of Dark Mages, and a thick stench of blood assaulted the nostrils.
All of it was the work of Vera and Sierra.
How had it come to this?
Vera stared at her own fingertips, where blood dripped steadily, and pondered.
Yet her thoughts scattered like mist, as though a thick fog clouded her mind.
But one thing remained clear.
She must avenge those who had taken her mother’s life.
It was her rightful duty as one of the Daughters of the Shadow.
Someone had told her this.
“…Someone?”
Who was it?
“It doesn’t matter.”
No, it didn’t matter.
Vengeance was necessary. Driven by that singular obsession, the two had sought out a Dark Mage Guild branch that could lend them strength.
But the branch master had flatly refused their demands, claiming he could not align himself with the will of traitors.
So they killed him.
…
Vera looked down at the branch master’s corpse lying on the floor.
Did this slaughter hold any meaning?
She didn’t know that either.
“Oh, sister! Look here! This one still has breath in him!”
At that moment, Sierra cried out with delight as she rummaged through the pile of corpses. At her feet lay a middle-aged Dark Mage, his abdomen split open halfway, gasping for breath.
“P-please… save me…”
“My, what luck. Cut so beautifully, yet still clinging to life. What remarkable vitality!”
Sierra giggled and pressed her heel down upon the man’s wound.
Overwhelmed by agony, the man writhed without even the strength to scream.
Witnessing this cruel spectacle, Vera blinked once.
“…Yes.”
Even her younger sister Sierra acted without the slightest hesitation.
Thinking was exhausting.
So she decided to stop thinking.
“That’s right, Sierra. We must have our revenge.”
From Vera’s fingertips, a shadow of deep indigo stretched forth, taking the sharp form of a blade.
The man’s pupils contracted at the sight.
“P-please! Spare me…”
Before the man could finish speaking, Vera’s shadow blade pierced through his back and emerged on the other side.
“Ahahahaha!”
Sierra’s crystalline laughter echoed throughout the branch.
Vera laughed as well.
Without understanding why, I simply laughed along with her.

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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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