Chapter 111

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Chapter 111: The Mage of Ashes (1)

“We’ve arrived, sir,”

The driver announced.

Oscar, who had been staring at the same scenery as the driver, nodded.

“Thank you for your efforts. You may take the car back to Sirin.”

“What? But then how will you return, sir?”

“I’ll take a carriage back when the time comes.”

Oscar couldn’t know when his task would be finished and couldn’t leave the driver in such a dangerous place.

After sending the driver off, Oscar turned his gaze to the castle ahead.

‘The Red Citadel.’

Its grandeur was legendary—he had heard tales of it even in his previous life to the point of exhaustion.

It was the empire’s final bulwark, standing undefeated against countless orc assaults.

Constructed entirely from the rare red clay found only in the western desert, the citadel exuded an overwhelming sense of intimidation.

‘So Lloyd is there.’

Oscar thought, swallowing nervously as he approached.

Surprisingly, the soldiers didn’t stop him, likely because the results of the inspection earlier had already been shared.

As he passed through the citadel’s gates, he found the inside emptier than expected.

‘There aren’t many buildings here.’

Instead, hundreds of orderly arranged tents, both large and small, filled the space.

At that moment, a young soldier approached him and saluted.

“Sir! Are you Professor Oscar Crucian from the White Tower?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Thank you for confirming, sir! Please allow me to escort you to the commander.”

The soldier, brimming with discipline, walked with precision as he guided Oscar.

While following him, Oscar glanced at the soldiers sitting outside their tents, observing him in return.

‘There are certainly many mages from the Red Tower here.’

Of course, it wasn’t only mages present.

After all, war couldn’t be fought with just one type of soldier.

‘…Interesting.’

From the central command tent, the left side was occupied solely by mages, while the right side was exclusively for knights—a clear indication of factions existing even within the citadel.

‘To have factions in a battlefield, of all places.’

Oscar doubted Lloyd was unaware of the situation, as even an outsider like him had noticed it within minutes of arriving.

This meant Lloyd was deliberately allowing the situation to persist.

‘For what reason, though?’

Perhaps he’d understand after meeting him.

When the soldier led him past the central command tent, Oscar raised a question.

“Aren’t we going to meet Commander Lloyd?”

“Yes, sir. That’s correct.”

The soldier blinked in realization before elaborating.

“Oh, the commander usually isn’t in the citadel.”

“…What? How come?”

“He has a favorite spot elsewhere.”

The soldier grinned and began climbing the stairs to the ramparts.

At the top of the steep staircase, Oscar saw a man standing on the wide rampart.

His long, jet-black hair, which should have reached his waist, swayed in the sandy wind.

Though his height was similar to Oscar’s, his lean frame exuded an inexplicable sense of authority.

“…”

What stood out the most, however, was the indescribable loneliness emanating from his back.

Standing there with his hands behind him, the man silently gazed at the horizon.

“Commander! I’ve brought the guest from the White Tower!”

The soldier saluted, but Lloyd didn’t respond.

Taking the hint, the soldier left, leaving an awkward silence between Oscar and Lloyd.

‘What’s going on?’

Usually, the host would greet the guest, perhaps thanking them for coming or inquiring about their journey.

But Lloyd remained silent, staring at the barren desert.

"You’re quite patient,"

Lloyd finally said, breaking the silence after 30 minutes.

Slowly turning his head, he looked at Oscar.

"And perceptive, too."

“...!”

Oscar’s eyes quivered as he momentarily found himself speechless.

It was because Lloyd’s right eye was covered by a black eyepatch.

“Your eye…”

“Oh, this?”

Lloyd rolled his remaining eye toward the eyepatch, then spoke indifferently.

“I lost it when I was young. I was lucky to survive.”

“…”

Oscar wanted to ask how, why, and when he had lost it.

The words bubbled up to the tip of his tongue, but he forced them down.

‘Damn it.’

If Lloyd had lost his eye because of him, Oscar wasn’t sure what kind of expression he’d be able to make.

“But it’s not a problem.”

Turning back to the horizon, Lloyd continued.

“I only need one eye to see my enemies.”

Oscar followed Lloyd’s gaze.

In the distance, he could barely make out orcs scurrying about like tiny dots.

An orc army.

They seemed to be preparing for something not far from the citadel.

“The demon race may be humanity’s enemy for a decade, but the orcs have been our enemy for a millennium.”

Oscar’s murmur caught Lloyd’s attention.

Turning slightly, he asked with an intrigued expression,

“Have you been to the desert before?”

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“No, I read about it in books.”

To be precise, he had heard it from a comrade who had experienced desert warfare.

‘They said wiping out the orcs is practically impossible.’

To his knowledge, there had been 153 wars between humans and orcs.

Though humanity won every time, their victories were always incomplete.

‘The defeated orcs return to the desert again.’

And one day, they would reappear at that place with a staggering number once more.

That was precisely why orcs were called the enemy of a thousand years.

The gem mentioned by the Black Finger seemed to be the very means to create such a "demon."

The question here was, why did that thing end up in Lloyd's possession?

“Why do you have that? Could it be...?”

“I don’t know what foolish ideas you’re coming up with, but I have nothing to do with the Black Finger.”

He gestured lightly toward the orcs with his chin.

“I just happened to acquire a few while fighting those guys.”

“...From the orcs, you say?”

“Yes. And because of that, I’m in a bit of a predicament right now.”

If what he said was true, there was also a possibility that the demons had joined hands with the orcs.

No, even if they hadn’t explicitly allied, there was a chance they were using the orcs as their pawns.

‘Either way, it’s a terrible situation for the Empire.’

The demons were already troublesome enough, and if they were cooperating with the orcs, the number of things to worry about would increase exponentially.

“We got hold of this seed and conducted experiments on an orc we captured from the battlefield.”

“...Are you saying you performed human experiments?”

“Yes. Is that a problem?”

Looking into Lloyd’s dry gaze, Oscar was momentarily at a loss for words.

Of course, it was a problem.

According to Imperial law, human experimentation was strictly prohibited.

“Do you realize that your actions are a violation of Imperial law?”

“I’m aware. But it was the most efficient way to uncover the nature of this stone.”

“No matter how efficient it may be...”

Oscar bit his lip hard.

He couldn’t believe this was the same Lloyd who couldn’t even bring himself to pluck a single flower in the past.

Lloyd, oblivious to his thoughts, continued.

“The results of our experiment are simple. An orc that consumes this loses its rationality but becomes abnormally powerful. In terms of levels, it could instantly jump from level 3 to around level 5 or 6.”

“...So, what do you want from me?”

“I hear you’re a genius in alchemy. They say you even survived an encounter with the Nightmare Baron.”

“...”

That information should be under Imperial control.

As if reading Oscar’s thoughts, Lloyd added,

“No need to be surprised. Information control is only a procedure to prevent leaks to civilians. It’s shared among the concerned parties anyway. Since you’re in charge of the White Tower’s Special Operations Department, you must have received related documents as well.”

“...”

The mountain of paperwork piled up in the Special Operations Office—was that it?

Since returning from the Starlight Mountain, he had been too preoccupied with Sasha to go through them all.

“I haven’t had the chance to review them yet.”

“You should read those documents. They’ll be helpful for your future work. Anyway, what I need from you is a detailed analysis of this seed’s components.”

Oscar fell silent in thought.

In short, Lloyd needed his alchemical expertise.

‘But back when he called for me, wasn’t I just a level 3 mage at best?’

Why would he seek me out instead of the renowned alchemy professors?

Oscar quickly deduced two reasons.

‘One, it must be someone who has a clear understanding of the demons and the Black Fingers.’

No matter how skilled an alchemist, entrusting such sensitive information to a stranger was not an easy decision.

‘And the second reason... is probably credit.’

In this situation, inviting a high-ranking mage from the Blue Tower would have been the logical choice.

The Blue Tower also had many skilled mages well-versed in alchemy.

But instead, Lloyd chose him.

Perhaps because the Red Tower didn’t want to share the glory with the Blue Tower, their rival.

‘From the Red Tower’s perspective, the White Tower isn’t even a real competitor, so they could call me without much hesitation.’

...Thinking about it like that made him a bit irritated.

Sighing lightly, Oscar asked,

“Let me ask you one thing. Does this experiment have the Imperial Court’s approval?”

“Hm.”

For the first time, Lloyd avoided giving a direct answer.

That reaction alone was as good as confirmation.

Narrowing his eyes, Oscar stared at him.

“...You haven’t even reported the discovery of this seed to the Imperial Court yet, have you?”

“When and how to report is up to the discretion of the field commander.”

“This amounts to a serious crime of withholding critical information.”

“If the Imperial Court finds out, it’ll be a crime.”

“...!”

Oscar’s eyes widened in shock.

Perhaps intentionally, Lloyd’s words had made his thoughts crystal clear.

“...If I refuse your request, you plan to kill me, don’t you?”

“I won’t answer that. But remember, this is a battlefield.”

As if it were nothing, Lloyd looked down at the desert and muttered.

“On a battlefield, it wouldn’t be unusual for someone to die in an unforeseen accident.”

“...”

Oscar bit his lip hard.

One thing was certain.

Lloyd had changed so much that it was impossible to see any trace of his former self.

And it was a change for the worse.

“...I don’t have a choice, do I? I’ll do it.”

“Good decision. I look forward to working with you.”

For the first time, Lloyd smiled, curling the corners of his lips upward.

However, his eyes remained as cold as ever, devoid of any emotion.

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