The Son-In-Law of the Magician Is a Transcendent Sword Master - Chapter 41

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

Chapter 41

 

“…Hmm. There was no need to bring the main force.”

 

Not long after the investigators left, Steren and Benheim’s main force arrived in Rodel.

 

The operation that had been carried out in secret was already exposed to the world when the investigators arrived. It was safe to say that Rodel was in a state of emergency. Thanks to that, I was able to have a private meeting with Steren without worrying about prying eyes.

 

“I heard the whole story. Reagan, you’ve achieved quite remarkable merit. Everyone was praising you endlessly.”

 

Steren seemed to have heard the full details in advance through magical communication.

 

“Valen said you committed quite a significant transgression.”

 

“Yes. But it couldn’t be helped. There were suspicious aspects…”

 

“Since I wasn’t at the scene as the family head, I intend to follow Valen’s wishes regarding your punishment. And Valen said he doesn’t want to punish you.”

 

“…Captain Valen… me?”

 

“It seems you’ve quite won his favor.”

 

Though his words were sharp, it seemed Valen had also pleaded with the family head to show leniency for my crimes.

 

What an dishonest character.

 

“It’s regrettable that we couldn’t capture Markel, but rescuing dozens of hostages is a great achievement. Moreover, even Airid’s direct lineage. We’ve placed a great debt on Airid.”

 

Steren grinned and massaged my shoulder.

 

“Well done, Reagan. Thanks to your quick thinking, we were able to subdue them without major casualties.”

 

“You’re too kind.”

 

“But I must say this one thing.”

 

Suddenly, the hand massaging my shoulder tightened with force.

 

“No matter what, it was too reckless. Walking into the heart of enemy territory with your own feet. Even putting the lives of the branch members at stake. It’s only because the results were good, but if anyone had been hurt or killed, I wouldn’t have let it slide.”

 

“I’m sorry.”

 

“Moreover, if Renia finds out, she’ll be furious.”

 

“…Certainly, that would be the case.”

 

I had no choice but to keep my mouth shut at those words.

 

The Renia of my previous life had a gentle personality, but once she got truly angry, she wouldn’t speak to me for a full week. Usually, there was only one case when Renia would get angry.

 

‘When I fought risking my life.’

 

I should have noticed Renia’s true feelings back then.

 

Though I deeply regret it, now that I’ve returned to the past, I have a chance to make things right.

 

“I understand. I plan to gloss over it appropriately.”

 

“How shameless of you to say you’ll lie to Renia right in front of your father-in-law.”

 

Steren gave a bitter smile, then carefully examined my face.

 

“By the way, your expression doesn’t look good.”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“Your face is full of worry.”

 

Steren was indeed perceptive. He noticed that my expression was somewhat darker than usual.

 

“I heard an investigator from the Magic Association came by this morning. Was there some problem there?”

 

“…”

 

There were problems aplenty.

 

My mortal enemy, the Archmage King, appeared before my eyes wearing the Empire’s uniform. He even spouted nonsense about wanting to scout me.

 

I was on the verge of internal turmoil from suppressing my disgust and murderous intent, but it wasn’t time to confide in Steren yet. Revealing secrets should wait until I’ve grown stronger and built influence both within and outside the family.

 

“It’s nothing serious. I was just offended by the investigator’s somewhat arrogant attitude.”

 

“Those who eat the royal court’s rice are always like that. Don’t take it to heart. The Magic Association has a cooperative relationship with the Great Mage Alliance, but they’re still a bunch with high noses.”

 

Steren dismissed it casually, but my mind was working complexly.

 

Chief Investigator of the Imperial Magic Association, Damian Carius. I had discovered the Archmage King’s true identity that I couldn’t uncover in my previous life.

 

‘There’s still plenty of time.’

 

I had already cut off Barg, who was like the Archmage King’s right arm. The situation was much better than in my previous life.

 

However, I had no intention of becoming complacent.

 

The current Archmage King belongs to the royal court. I can’t cut off his head immediately. But I also can’t just watch him carry out his underground work.

 

I had to find some clue to catch his tail somehow.

 

Suddenly, one thought crossed my mind…

 

‘Airid…’

 

This abandoned mine was nothing less than a massive workshop prepared by the Black Mages to extract Airid’s unique magical formulas.

 

Then the presence of Airid’s heir, Yusephine Airid, here was certainly no coincidence.

 

I recalled the word Valen had casually mentioned a few days ago.

 

“Family head, I have something to ask.”

 

“What is it?”

 

“Do you happen to know about the Black Disease?”

 

At my question, Steren’s eyebrows twitched. He looked around once, then lowered his voice.

 

“I don’t know where you heard about it… did Valen tell you perhaps?”

 

“I just… picked it up somewhere. Could you explain the Black Disease in detail?”

 

“…”

 

After staring at me for a moment, Steren sighed and nodded.

 

“Alright. To understand the Black Disease, you first need to know about Airid’s magic. The unique magical formula of the great magic family Airid is called Spectral Magic.”

 

“Spectral Magic… you say?”

 

“Yes. It’s a peculiar magic that separates the mana within the body like a light spectrum, then uses combinations of those colors. In that it derives desired results through combinations of various components, it shares some similarities with Benheim’s Rune Magic.”

 

Steren’s explanation continued.

 

“However… recently there are widespread rumors of a strange hereditary disease circulating in the Airid family.”

 

“What kind of hereditary disease?”

 

“Originally, mages of Airid bloodline are born with mana of various vibrant colors. But when afflicted with this disease, they lose their unique colors and the mana itself becomes murky.”

 

“They… lose their colors?”

 

“That’s why it’s called the Black Disease. Eventually, not only the mana but even the body turns colorless, and finally even the mana core hardens. It’s a terrible disease. I don’t know the details, but seeing Airid’s daughter this time, it seems the rumors are true.”

 

Only then did I realize the identity of the unease I felt when I first saw Yusephine Airid.

 

Gray hair, gray eyes, skin so pale it was almost transparent.

 

That appearance, as if all the colors of the world had been stolen, matched the symptoms of the Black Disease.

 

‘Then…’

 

It felt like all the puzzle pieces were fitting together.

 

The Black Mages had imprisoned Yusephine, but they provided her alone with a private cell, luxurious furniture, and books to read.

 

At first, I thought it was simply because her value as a hostage was high.

 

But what if that wasn’t the case?

 

‘What if Yusephine Airid didn’t come to the Black Mages as a captive… but came of her own accord for treatment?’

 

The Archmage King is a 7th-tier Black Mage. He’s probably the most accomplished Black Mage on this continent, without exaggeration.

 

And most Black Mages are masters of human modification and biological experimentation.

 

Therefore, I couldn’t rule out the possibility that Airid had joined hands with the Black Mages, and furthermore with the Archmage King, to cure the Black Disease.

 

“Family head, this is just a possibility, but… couldn’t there be some kind of cooperative relationship between the great magic family Airid and the Black Mages?”

 

“Shh. Reagan, your voice is too loud.”

 

Steren put his index finger to his lips to stop me. However, seeing that reaction, I realized that Steren was thinking the same thing as me.

 

“Your thinking has merit. But that’s speculation at best. If you carelessly speak it aloud, you’ll make enemies of all of Airid.”

 

“…”

 

“The truth will be something to investigate at next year’s Grand Mage Council. When that time comes, Airid’s family head will also attend, so we’ll be able to verify the truth of the rumors.”

 

In the end, there’s no way to confirm it right now.

 

I’d like to meet Yusephine again and interrogate her, but a mere son-in-law of Benheim has no justification to meet privately with another family’s direct heir.

 

In the end, I have no choice but to wait.

 

“I understand.”

 

I swallowed my frustration and agreed. Steren patted my shoulder and said,

 

“You must be tired from being investigated since this morning. Go inside and rest first. Renia has been waiting anxiously for you.”

 

At the mention of Renia, I had no choice but to nod obediently.

 

* * *

 

Returning to the Rodel estate, I entered my private room and locked the door.

 

There was one thing I needed to do before seeing Renia.

 

“…Barrier stone.”

 

I sat blankly on the bed and pulled out a red gem with a groove carved into it from my chest.

 

It was the core of the barrier stone I had recovered from the abandoned mine in Mist Valley.

 

Normally, I should have submitted it to Valen, but I had secretly hidden it and brought it in.

 

‘Well, Steren probably already noticed.’

 

If it was Steren, a 7th-tier mage, he would have detected the barrier stone in my chest. Since he said nothing about it, he must have tacitly agreed to let me keep it.

 

“Good.”

 

I placed the barrier stone on the bed and steadied my breathing.

 

‘Let’s give it a try.’

 

Absorbing the barrier stone.

 

Originally, I had planned to slowly attempt this after returning to the Benheim main house, but now that I had encountered the Archmage King, I no longer wanted to delay.

 

I needed to raise my realm and tier as quickly as possible, and absorbing the barrier stone was essential for that.

 

A barrier stone is a mass of corrupted mana. For ordinary mages, just accepting the mana contained in a barrier stone is dangerous enough to twist their mana circuits.

 

However, my mana core is somewhat different from that of ordinary mages. I have a dual mana core separated by barriers, created by Renia and implemented by me.

 

‘Theoretically, it’s possible.’

 

One core filters out the corruption, while the other core absorbs the purified mana.

 

Here, the barrier separating the mana cores would function like a filter.

 

If I failed, I would suffer severe internal injuries, but if I succeeded, I could obtain massive amounts of mana comparable to an elixir.

 

“…I’ll definitely have to keep this secret from Renia.”

 

I sat cross-legged on the bed.

 

Then I grasped the barrier stone in both hands and slowly circulated my mana.

 

Whooom.

 

The barrier stone vibrated and emitted a dark red aura. Along with a disgusting stench, sinister mana flow crept up my arms.

 

My entire body’s mana circuits overheated in an instant. My whole body screamed. A burning sensation overwhelmed me. I paid no heed and operated Benheim’s mana cultivation method.

 

‘Filter it out.’

 

First, I accepted the barrier stone’s mana into the first core. I rotated the core and captured the corrupted energy in the center.

 

Then, using the pure mana in my body as a primer, I pushed the barrier stone’s mana toward the barrier.

 

The mana that passed through the barrier had its impurities filtered once. However, once wasn’t enough. I repeated the same process again in the second core where the mana had reached.

 

Of course, I didn’t forget to continuously circulate the mana in my body.

 

Balance was important in everything. The moment the balance broke, the corrupted mana would spread throughout my body, destroying my mana circuits and eventually reaching my heart.

 

However, I didn’t even consider the worst-case scenario. When it came to mana manipulation, I was above most 7th-tier mages. This was a talent acknowledged by Renia. I would never make a mistake.

 

Hissss.

 

White steam rose as mana collided inside my body.

 

Like walking a tightrope, I operated my cores precariously but precisely.

 

The process wasn’t easy, but it felt like a form of training. Training that pushed my sense of mana manipulation to its limits. It wasn’t a bad sensation.

 

‘A bit faster.’

 

I increased the rotation speed of my cores.

 

The red light of the barrier stone in my hands gradually faded.

 

Conversely, my mana core heated up more intensely. The same was true for my entire body’s mana circuits.

 

Cold sweat poured down like rain.

 

Finally, when the barrier stone lost its light and became like a transparent glass bead.

 

“Phew…”

 

I exhaled a long breath and opened my eyes.

 

My entire body was soaked with foul-smelling sweat, and my whole body was exhausted, but my mind was clearer than ever.

 

My dantian felt heavy.

 

Although it wasn’t as much as an elixir, I had accumulated enough mana to solidify my realm more firmly.

 

“Did I succeed…”

 

I smiled with satisfaction and picked up the barrier stone that had become an empty shell.

 

The gem that had turned transparent.

 

The dregs left after absorbing all the corrupted mana.

 

Normally, it should be discarded, but…

 

‘It’s empty…’

 

I turned the empty barrier stone this way and that.

 

Originally, barrier stones were like vessels made to contain massive amounts of mana. However, since they weren’t designed to be emptied again, I had rarely seen empty barrier stones—they would break rather than empty.

 

But now, I held an empty vessel in my hands. I could fill this vessel with something else.

 

‘For example… storing magic in advance.’

 

Like magic scrolls, if I could store magic and activate it instantly when needed. Or if I could compress and store aura.

 

It meant I could use moves similar to when I fought Barg a few days ago multiple times.

 

The applications were endless.

 

“Not bad.”

 

For now, I had to use everything I could.

 

“Demian, Carius.”

 

In my exhausted state, I mulled over the names of my enemies.

 

That was when it happened.

 

“Demian? Who’s that?”

 

A clear voice rang out, and I hurriedly looked up.

 

In the wide-open doorway stood a girl with golden hair holding a tray.

 

“…Renia.”

 

“Hello, Reagan. By the way, what’s this smell? Are you feeling sick?”

 

“…”

 

Renia’s eyes sparkled with curiosity.

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