Extra Chapter 50 – When a Mute Cries, a Crow Falls (19)
Merlin coughed dryly and sat up in distress after seeing the reversed future.
"Cough! Cough! Cough!"
Merlin, who was working in the ancient castle, tried to recall the changed future rather than figure out why it had suddenly changed.
"Pu! Puhahaha! Finally! Finally!"
Merlin vomited a large amount of blood and trembled in pain, but was so excited that he didn't even wipe the blood from his mouth.
"Finally, I saw a possibility!"
The future that Merlin saw ended with destruction, as had all the futures he had seen so far. But this time, there was a clear difference. This time, he felt a presence that deserved to be called an absolute ruler, a presence that wasn't there in the other timelines. This new Crow chief was so strong that Merlin figured the only being stronger than him was probably the mythical warrior from the Butterfly tribe sage's stories. That was a poor comparison, though. The new Crow chief possessed an overwhelming power, comparable to when a warrior and his party combined their strength.
"What a waste. If at least his father was still alive, or if he had a helper equivalent to one..."
The idea flashed through Merlin's mind like a bolt of lightning.
"Yes, we might be able to prevent the destruction if there's a helper!"
He began formulating a plan to change the structure of the ruins in the province below the castle that he was making for the distant future.
Booom-!
Suddenly, a great magic attack landed in Merlin's office and exploded. Merlin instinctively cast a magic barrier to protect himself and escaped the office.
"Cough! Cough! What great timing, Adeline."
Merlin could tell at once who attacked him: Adeline, the head of the witches, also known as the Witch of Anger. For the past seventeen years, they had been trying their best to kill each other, so he knew not only her magic patterns but also her trivial habits.
"This is the Alps. Using large-scale magic here means you risk offending the Butterfly tribe, yet you're still willing to attack?"
The Butterfly tribe was not interested in anything but magic. They did not care whether other factions built structures or hunted monsters in the Alps, as long as they weren't harmed or threatened. But this level of great magic was different. To the Butterfly tribe, whose entire culture revolved around magic, it could have been considered an invasion of their territory.
Adeline, who was riding on a witch's broomstick, smiled lightly. "If I get to kill you, a few precious treasures sent their way as an apology is well worth it. Don't you feel the same?"
Merlin nodded. "I agree. Such a price would be insignificant if it meant your death."
"So you understand."
Two great witches appeared from behind Adeline.
"Asanchatar, Pucharatiton."
The Witch of Sloth and the Witch of Greed came to help kill Merlin.
"Are you saying that the pride of a great madosa is also insignificant?" Merlin asked.
"Of course. If it's to kill you, the one that we fear the most."
One great madosa and two who were nearly there. Normally, Merlin would be able to hold his own against them, but not now. He was in a terrible condition, still recovering from the foresight.
"Adeline, was it you who changed the future?"
Adeline smiled. "Yes, I have known about you trying to change the future for a long time."
Without Arietta, the natural enemy of witches, by Merlin's side, now was the perfect opportunity to kill him.
Merlin burst into laughter, wiping the blood off his mouth with his sleeve, "Hahahaha!! I don't know if I should praise this as wise or call it foolish."
Changing the future required seeing it. It was impossible to fix something without knowing it.
"Of course, unlike you, the future I see is a few years away at most," said Adeline.
"Otherwise, you would have died on the first attempt," rebuked Merlin.
The magic Adeline used did not only let her see the future. If Merlin's foresight was observational, then the witch's foresight was participatory. Otherwise, it would not have been possible for her to accurately discern the timing of the changes to the future.
"Unlike you who endures it alone, there were people who shared the rebound with me." Adeline explained.This chapter was copied from novelping.com without permission.
"But it still seems to have cost you quite a lot."
To use foresight to determine the future as a means of attack, the Witch of Anger must have had to sacrifice much of her lifespan.
"Of course, I'm not as skilled as you are at foresight, so I paid a higher price than you."
"Is Virular dead?"
"Unfortunately."
Thinking about Virular, the Witch of Anger could not hold back her anger. She was angry at her enemies, who forced her into situations where she had to make these kinds of sacrifices.
"Perhaps because of their upbringing, the Witches of Pride tend to take the initiative and sacrifice themselves from generation to generation. Who is the new Witch of Pride?" asked Merlin.
"Ilua, Virular's third disciple."
"Oh, that kid. I swear she was the granddaughter of a witch from the previous generation. Time really flies. This meaningless conversation is over."
As Merlin and the Witches spoke, all the magic they had prepared to kill the enemy was completed.
"I see. One of us must die today. Let's end this."
The witches launched attack magic at the ancient castle, and the Knights of the Round Table drew swords against them. Merlin and Adeline, the two great madosas, gathered their mana and launched their prepared magic at each other.
* * *
Mordred swung his sword faster than anyone else in the banquet hall. It moved so fast that it could only be heard whizzing by after it had already been swung.
"Self-made Enlightenment, Dropping the Sun."
Mordred's blade sliced the Witch of Envy's neck.
Mordred clicked his tongue. "Tch, is this a failure, too?"
There was a light feeling on his fingertips. It was a technique he had developed to beat his eldest brother, Helios, but it was still far from completion. Unsurprisingly, the Witch of Envy, whose neck was sliced, became a blur before she reappeared with the Witch of Lust a few steps away.
The Witch of Envy clutched her neck wound in pain. "Cough! Heup!"
Mordred looked on, admiring his work. "She would certainly give that old man-nim, Merlin, some trouble. I couldn't cut through completely, but I got the carotid artery for sure."
As soon as her neck had been cut, the Witch of Envy had connected the severed blood vessels with threads of mana and covered them with a shield to stop the bleeding. This was only possible because the two witches hiding in the banquet hall had prepared for the worst. If it hadn't been for her comrades, she would have died.
"Keuk...! It's you! the monster hidden amongst the knights." she snarled, pointing at Mordred.
"Who is calling who a monster! If your artery is severed, you should die!" Mordred shouted back.
Percival and Gwalchavad attacked the three witches, raising the power of the Holy tribe. But the witches created clones, sending the knights into confusion.
The Witch of Envy smiled, even while trembling in pain, "This place is too disadvantageous for us, so let's leave now."
Having seen the demise of the Holy Kingdom through foresight, its future was fixed. Now that their mission is over, all they had to do was run away.
"How dare you! You think you can just come and go as you please?!"
The Holy King, who had been watching the situation, erased the witch's illusion with the magic of the Holy tribe, and began to run after the witches who had fled to the terrace. Mordred grabbed the Holy King's robes, holding him back.
"Ugh! What are you…?!"
Clang!
Mordred struck away a giant spear flying towards the Holy King with his sword.
"Uh, it is good to take initiative, but let's remain level-headed, Your Majesty the Holy King."
The Holy King's blood ran cold as he looked back and forth between the rolling spear and Mordred's face.
"… Thanks for saving me, Sir Mordred."
Mordred winked. "Don't mention it. Isn't it a knight's duty to protect his king?"
"Ahaha, how reliable. To lose my composure like that, it seems I was enchanted by the witches without even realizing it."This chapter was taken from novelping.com without permission.
The Holy King released a blue mana all over his body. Then, a dark red mana oozed out from his head. It was the Witch of Lust that had enchanted him and stimulated the urge to attack.
"It'll be difficult to chase them."
Just as Mordred spoke, Giant assassins targeting the Holy King launched a surprise attack.
"Die!"
Three Giant assassins swung for the Holy King's neck, but Mordred struck them away with all his might.
"Aheletle!? The Giant King seems to have made up his mind, sending the head of the great warriors!"
Percival was astonished to see Aheletle. He was the younger brother of the Giant King and the head of the great warriors. He should not have been sent to a deathtrap like this. It was said that Aheletle had no equal besides the Giant King himself. Nevertheless, the fact that he had been sent meant that the Giants were truly committed to killing the Holy King.
"Two great warriors and the head of the great warriors! The witches hid them well for them to have snuck in under Sir Merlin's magic!"
Being called a great warrior in the Giant tribe meant acknowledgement from the Giant King. Great warriors in the Giant tribe were absolute powerhouses. As such, they had a huge presence that would normally easily be spotted by Merlin's detection magic.
"Leave this guy to me! Take care of the rest!" Mordred exclaimed as he faced Aheletle.
The eleven Knights of the Round Table in the banquet hall gathered in two groups, six around Percival and five around Gwalchavad, to deal with the two great warriors. Mordred faced Aheletle alone. The reason why Mordred was fully entrusted against the head of the great warriors was because all the knights recognized Mordred's strength.
"Sir Mordred, take care of him quickly and help us out! I'm getting too old for this!" Kay joked as he readied his sword.
Urien, the oldest and longest-serving Knight with over twenty years of service, joined in. "Hahaha! I might have to retire today! If you don't want to see my retirement, hurry up and help us out, Sir Mordred!"
"Ahahaha! Being popular is tiring! Don't even think about retiring, Sir Urien!"
Mordred faced Aheletle with all his might. Although he intuitively felt that the middle-aged Giant was stronger than him, he consciously blocked the support of the power of the Holy tribe coming to him. He judged that it would be advantageous for the other knights to receive the support rather than him.
"A monster...!" Aheletle shouted, noticing this.
He was definitely stronger than the young Crow in front of him. However, he felt that the more their swords clashed, the sharper Mordred's sword became, even without Mordred receiving any support.
"You will be a disaster for the Giant King! I'll at least take you down with me!"
Originally, the two Giant great warriors had planned to stop the Knights of the Round Table, and Aheletle had planned on killing the Holy King himself. He revised the plan after seeing Mordred, though. It was so clear that if this monster, not even at his full potential, could not be killed here, he would become an uncontrollable disaster in the future. Therefore, he was willing to kill Mordred even at the cost of his own life.
"I'm sorry, but I refuse. I decided to live and die for freedom and love." said Mordred.
Mordred behaved emotionally, but ironically his mind was clear. One misstep meant certain death. However, he trusted in his body and skills and continued to move his sword. After tens or hundreds of swings, he slowly began advancing, turning his disadvantage around through sheer persistence.
All of Aheletle's actions became nourishment for Mordred. The tense battle began to lose its balance and then became out of control. Mordred's sword moved so fast that it was invisible until it found its place deep in Aheletle's heart.
"Ugh! What's the name of this technique?" Aheletle asked raspily.
"Self-made… No, Extreme Enlightenment, Dropping the Sun."
"Impressive..."
Aheletle, the head of the great warriors, died in battle admiring rather than resenting his enemy. This final action showed his respect for his opponent as a warrior rather than his worries for his country.
* * *
A knight wandered around the castle halls. He was meant to be on patrol, but he was hopelessly lost. It was a path that he had gone down hundreds or thousands of times, but he still couldn't find his way.
"Is this your doing?" the knight asked.
A witch who had been hiding herself with magic revealed herself. Then the knight drew his sword.
The witch greeted the knight with a smile, despite his killing intent. "Nice to meet you. I'm the Witch of Pride and I have come to make an offer."
"An offer?"
"Yes, it's an offer that will fulfill your ambition and true wish."
Her words were sweet and full of enchanting venom.
"Not worth it!" shouted the knight.
He swung his sword without even realizing that he had already been killed by her fangs.