How to Survive as a Genius Spy in the Game

Chapter 180: Archmage (2)

before departing for karantang forest, i didn’t forget to give osten and rina one last reminder.

it was because of the companions who weren’t in chenarus due to the schedule. well, in fact, the only problem among them was denif.

i had told them before leaving, but i was worried about denif’s competitive spirit. in case he might follow.

he’s not the type to act rashly, but you never know.

the fact that i hadn’t been able to spar with him much because i was busy preventing erendil’s coming-of-age ceremony wasn’t a big problem.

however, i felt a bit uneasy about originally telling denif we’d face the archmage together.

‘though the plan changed after that.’

denif still wanted to go. he said he wanted to see the glowstone explode, even if from afar.

i told him we’d see how things went.

i wasn’t worried about denif’s skills. i trust those. and there’s no concern about getting caught if he moves with me.

it was just a scheduling issue. denif was now in charge of the mercenary work instead of me. there were still 2 days left until his return.

‘it’s awkward to wait, and meeting later is dangerous.’

there’s a possibility that denif might belatedly follow me and get entangled with the devil worshippers or shahri.

that would complicate things.

in a situation where separate communication was impossible, late joining was forbidden unless we were going together from the start.

still, i told them to let him know i’d spar with him 3 times after i return, so denif might wait patiently.

anyway, i adjusted my disguise, bought a new horse, and set out for karantang.

i didn’t bring much.

moonlight, their magic tools, glowstone, some simple food and tools. my body was light, but my heart was heavy.

‘i’m quite nervous.’

although i know there shouldn’t be any problems, i can’t predict how the situation will unfold.

hmm, thinking about it slowly, it seems i feel some aversion to facing the devil again.

i steeled myself. i believe this glowstone will somehow resolve things well.

i received shahri’s letter this afternoon and sent a reply, so shahri will check it in 3 days at the earliest.

of course, such cases are rare. usually, it takes about 5 days. still, i needed to move as quickly as possible.

although i set an agreed date, there was a possibility that shahri might arrive at the forest a bit earlier. no, the probability was high.

‘whether she’s digging a trap for me or coming early to observe due to suspicion.’

i intended to lure in the devil worshippers as well. i don’t know how quickly they’ll come.

most of them should be in the north.

in other words, to match that schedule, i too had to move as quickly as possible.

well, no matter how late, the devil worshippers will surely come to the forest within the agreed date.

‘even if shahri comes first, i can detonate it when they arrive.’

whether they’re in cooperation or attacking each other in the forest, it doesn’t matter in any situation.

what i care about is just that shahri and the devil worshippers meet in this forest.

still, the one thing i’m worried about is a situation where those two don’t encounter each other in this forest.

either the devil worshippers don’t respond to my call, or shahri comes and leaves feeling something’s off.

although the possibilities are low for both, they can’t be ruled out. reality doesn’t always go as planned.

shahri might not come at all in the end.

it might seem strange to target a prince at this time without any prior notice, unlike during the terrorist attack on erendil.

i was worried that using a bomb might not yield significant results.

‘if shahri doesn’t come at all, i’ll assess the situation. otherwise, it’s better to target shahri.’

assuming shahri comes and tries to leave first, i plan to boldly use the glowstone.

it’s better to use it than to save it when i don’t even know who will come from the devil worshippers’ side.

‘let’s see how things unfold for now.’

***

after several days of minimal rest, i arrived at karantang forest.

there were two main reasons for choosing this place to detonate the glowstone, which is incomparable to a magic bomb.

the first was the geographical aspect i considered most important, and the second was that it’s a sparsely populated area.

i know it’s impossible to completely avoid unnecessary casualties in what i’m about to do.

but there was no reason to create unnecessary victims either. karantang forest is a sparsely populated area located between two mountains.

‘which way should i go?’

it doesn’t matter which side. i didn’t decide in advance either.

but maybe because i just faced the devil, even this trivial issue suddenly felt concerning.

i checked the wind above the sky. it was blowing from the right mountain to the left.

if it doesn’t matter which side, it’s better to consider the wind’s influence. let’s go right.

if this is temporary, i can always move to the left mountain later.

***

after setting up a hideout just below the mountain peak, i observed karantang forest with a telescope.

while telescopes originally exist in this world too, osten had modified it to allow for much more detailed viewing.

there were two reasons for using a telescope.

shahri, being an archmage, can sense my winds. the same goes for if the devil worshippers sent a strong person comparable to a sword master.

also, the mountain and forest were wider than expected, making it quite draining to observe all areas with winds.

anyway, waiting without a set time was quite boring.

since i was hiding, i couldn’t just swing my sword around, and i couldn’t light a fire for meals either.

after three days passed like that, a group appeared. i couldn’t help but tilt my head at the sight of them.

unexpectedly, the devil worshippers arrived before shahri.

‘what’s this?’

they’re faster than i imagined. even if the devil gave orders after seeing me, this speed was abnormal.

a thought flashed through my mind.

could it be that they were targeting the first prince? that would make sense. they would have been in this area.

at the same time, i recalled the princes’ meeting from before. the third prince knew that the second prince had warned the first prince.

if that conversation was relayed, they might have come to threaten the first prince to exploit that conflict.

‘...still, it’s strange.’

but there’s no reason for that. i saved erendil. in this situation, is there a need to drive a wedge between the first and second princes?

it would have been better to make them unite and target the imperial princess. of course, that’s already impossible now.

ah... my thoughts lead in a different direction. i might have been heading in the wrong direction.

erendil is alive. the third prince who sided with them is essentially useless now.

and a prince who rarely left the imperial palace came out with minimal escorts.

‘could they be trying to recruit the first prince?’

that possibility was high.

with erendil still active, it’s better to approach the first prince than the disconnected third prince.

they could easily predict that war would break out soon by observing the capital’s atmosphere.

if they join hands with the first prince, they could help him achieve military success, and use information from this side to target erendil.

‘they’ve been busy brainstorming in this short time.’

of course, it’s not certain yet, but i think that’s the case. i felt a bit of self-reproach for not having thought this far.

huff, useless emotion. let’s focus on what’s happened. have they already made contact and come looking for me?

i’m not sure. the schedule would have been too tight for that.

even if they met, the first prince wouldn’t have easily fallen for those guys. still, i should check it out.

‘huh?’

they set up in the central clearing of the forest, but a new person caught my eye through the telescope.

i wondered what they were doing as they settled in and waited, but it turns out they were waiting for a superior. it was a familiar face.

‘tilivan.’

a high-ranking executor of the devil worshippers. i didn’t expect to see that face here at this time. he’s quite a high-ranking person.

unlike the half-baked pelia, he’s someone who can freely use the devil’s power.

two things became certain.

seeing him come all the way here, it’s clear they intended to make contact with the first prince.

and given that they likely haven’t met due to the schedule, the fact that he’s come to this forest now means... killing me is a higher priority than recruiting the first prince.

a laugh escaped inappropriately. if he moved immediately to this extent, it means they’re quite angry about what i’ve done.

‘this might be an even bigger fish than the archmage.’

author's thoughts

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