By Zephyria “I will return tomorrow morning.”
―Okay, you’ve worked hard to handle a big deal. Get some rest and see you tomorrow.
“Yes, goodbye.”
The communication was cut off, and Hugo felt more tired and washed his face with his hands.
He came all the way to catch the guy and got caught up in a big incident, and he managed to solve it somehow, but it wasn’t a perfect ending. But since he didn’t even meet the guy who was the original purpose, there was no reason to spend any more time here.
He was still bothered by the suspicion that the man named Terzio might be related to the escaped head of the merchant group, but that investigation was something that the Northern Branch had to take care of.
When Hugo came out, Flynn was waiting for him.
“Squad Leader, what did the Marshal contact you for?”
“He says it’s time to return.”
“Ah…. We’ve been away from our seats for a while.”
“Yes. I’m returning tomorrow morning.”
“Pardon? Tomorrow morning?”
As Flynn asked back as if he hadn’t expected such a quick return, Hugo said.
“Is there a problem?”
“But, the suspicious circumstances haven’t been sorted out yet….”
“This is the work of the Northern Branch. It’s their job to solve it. It’s almost all sorted out, and we have to go back and do our work.”
At Hugo’s words, Flynn seemed to want to say something more, but nodded and answered.
“Yes, I understand.”
“You must be tired too, so go and rest. I’ll listen to a brief report and hand over the investigation details early tomorrow morning before leaving.”
“Yes!”
Hugo and Flynn moved their rooms to the best lodgings in the frost territory, not the lodgings they had stayed in while wandering around for questioning.
Flynn felt sorry that there were still things that had not been resolved, but he certainly had work to do when he returned, and the Council of the Northern Branch also had work to do. Flynn decided to trust his colleagues in the Northern Branch and decided to let go and return.
* * *
Hugo, who arrived at the lodgings, immediately took off his cumbersome uniform and went into the bathroom. He turned on the shower and washed away the fatigue that had accumulated from wandering around for almost two days without getting proper sleep.
The stream of water flowed down the body, which was firmly built with angry muscles, and fell to the floor. As the warm stream of water soaked his whole body, he felt his stiff body relax languidly.
He roughly put on a gown, shook off his wet hair, came out of the bathroom, and plopped down on the sofa in the room. Hugo’s eyes lingered on the lukewarm liquor on the table, and he picked up the bottle and made it so cold that moisture formed on the surface in an instant.
After opening the stopper and pouring about half a glass of liquor, he drank it as if he was drinking water to quench his thirst. However, like the one he drank at the tavern before, the liquor here didn’t suit his taste.
Hugo didn’t pour any more and put the glass down. Then, he leaned his head back and closed his eyes.
“Leonardo Blaine….”
He came all the way here chasing him and got caught up in a big deal. But in the end, there was only a terrible guy impersonating him, and he couldn’t catch any circumstances that Leonardo Blaine was here.
Hugo thought that if he had a sense, he could easily recognize the aura of such a guy. But that was a big miscalculation. His traces were not found at all, so it was reasonable to think that he was not here in the first place.
But for a moment, Hugo felt a strong, unknown aura that made him expect.
‘What was that back then?’
That aura that was felt momentarily when the Count and his servants were arrested at the Count’s family, and confidential documents and related ledgers were being searched.
But because it was so fleeting, he himself couldn’t even properly describe what that feeling was. Besides, the others didn’t even feel it, so they acted as if nothing had happened.
It was a new aura that he had never felt since arriving in the frost territory, and at the same time, it was a little stimulating and even explosive.
Hugo had a slight expectation that the fire mage who impersonated Leonardo might be the owner of that aura, but as soon as he actually saw the guy, that thought completely disappeared.
It was more credible to say that it was Leonardo Blaine himself who emitted it, and there was nothing special about the impersonator.
‘The fact that he chased the guy itself, Squad Leader 8 was really amazing.’
Squad Leader 8, who was chasing Leonardo and suddenly lost him because he disappeared, had actually achieved a great achievement. At least he had witnessed Leonardo Blaine directly in front of him.
Hugo thought that he should give her a reward vacation when he returned and mocked himself. He was very ridiculous that he, who had not even met the golden color of Leonardo’s blonde hair, had come all the way to catch the guy as the Squad Leader of the Council Central Branch, but this was a mess.
‘Was he not here from the beginning?’
Leaning his head on the head of the sofa, Hugo fell into thought while looking out the window at the darkened night. Then, he suddenly recalled what Squad Leader 8 had said to him while reporting.
‘I used all the equipment to track the guy’s mana wave, but by then there were no clues left to chase. It was as if he had disappeared from the spot without a trace.’
“Without a trace….”
Mana suddenly disappears, huh. Is that possible? To do that, there were only two ways: to move to a very far place where mana could not be detected at once, or to hide mana really perfectly.
It might be possible to get out of that position at once by teleporting, but in this Laina Rogia Empire, the section that can be moved at once was limited.
When moving from a territory, which means an administrative district, to another territory, you must pass through the gate at the border of the territory and use the teleport zone at that gate.
This was a method devised to minimize travel time in Laina Rogia, which has such a vast territory, and at the same time, it was a means to prevent criminals with mana from completely escaping the scene by teleporting.
In addition, a solid barrier was created by embedding magic stones in the sky above the gate at the border to transparently cover the entire territory, so even if the caster tried to escape by using teleportation with the coordinates of another external territory, he could only move to the front of the gate.
That is, Leonardo Blaine, who had vanished without a trace whenever the Council pursued him, hadn’t managed to escape to a completely different region. In other words, he must have been hiding somewhere within that area even when he disappeared while being chased.
If so, that meant he had concealed his magic with incredible control.
But the question didn’t end there. How on earth did he hide his extraordinary appearance?
He had striking physical features—blond hair and golden eyes—and a face that was impossible to forget once seen.
Even Hugo, who had seen countless individuals described as beautiful, couldn’t help but admit that Leonardo Blaine was remarkably beautiful when he saw him in person from a distance.
No matter how much he concealed himself with robes and disguises, the Council’s investigation wasn’t so lax. The Council would have investigated the identities of everyone passing through the gates in the region where Leonardo was reported to have appeared, stripped off all robes and cloaks, and scrutinized whether there were any traces of disguise on their faces.
Having thought that far, Hugo soon arrived at one hypothesis.
‘What if he could change his appearance?’
However, Hugo immediately shook his head.
In the past, magic to change one’s appearance did exist, but it had long been forbidden. If magic to change appearances were used habitually, it would cause social chaos and be highly susceptible to abuse. For the sake of individual identification and control, it was common knowledge that the spells and methods had already been discarded hundreds of years ago.
Furthermore, unless one possessed extreme control, it was theoretically almost impossible to use what was essentially illusion magic to evenly coat the entire body with magic for an extended period. Even a slight stimulus would distort the face, and it would consume a great deal of magic.
Then how on earth? Hugo tried hard to come up with a different hypothesis to the recurring question, but once the thought had surfaced, it wouldn’t easily leave his mind.
He immediately found a magic communication tool and contacted his adjutant, Gabe Landon, again. Hugo was surprised by how quickly the connection was made, considering the late hour.
―What is it, Commander?
“You answered quite quickly for this late.”
―Ah, there’s a slight time difference between where you are and the Imperial Capital, so it’s not that late.
Hugo, who had momentarily forgotten about the time difference, then understood why Abraham had contacted him so late at night. At that time, it would have been early evening in the Imperial Capital, where the central branch was located.
“Ah, right. Sorry to bother you when you were probably resting, but there’s something I’d like you to look into.”
―I’m working overtime, covering Flynn’s duties as well. Please, tell me.
“…You’re working hard. Is there any remaining record of what kinds of magic can change appearances?”
―Magic to change appearances… you mean?
“Yes.”
―Please wait a moment.
Gabe sounded tired, so Hugo expected it would take some time for him to return. After waiting for a while, Gabe’s voice was heard again.
―There are quite a few types.
At his words, Hugo frowned and asked.
“What kinds are there? Is there magic to change eye color?”
―Not just eye color, but basically, if it’s a part of the body, there exists magic to change the color of any part. In addition, you can change your voice, skin texture, and even gender.
“……”
―However, the contents are written in ancient texts, and all of the magic has been forbidden for a long time, so only the fact that they existed is known. The methods and spells are currently unknown.
“I see. That’s what I thought. Then… there probably isn’t anyone who can use that forbidden magic now.”
Hugo concluded that his thoughts were just a groundless fear. However, Gabe, on the other side of the communication device, thought that the Commander was asking him this in relation to the pursuit of Leonardo Blaine, and after hesitating whether to mention what he had heard, he opened his mouth.
―Ah, no. There probably is someone.
“What?”
Hugo reflexively asked, sounding puzzled. Gabe replied in an uncertain voice.
―Um… I’ve heard that the Imperial Army’s special elite unit, Dark Silver, is tacitly allowed to use forbidden magic. Of course, it’s not a confirmed fact, but I don’t think we can completely rule out the possibility.
At Gabe’s words, Hugo was momentarily speechless. His mind was blank as if someone had struck him in the back of the head, but only one fact stood out clearly.
Leonardo Blaine was, without a doubt, from Dark Silver.
If that guy could perfectly conceal his magic and even change his appearance? He couldn’t help but laugh.
How could anyone catch someone like that?
“Ha, Dark Silver. Dark Silver, huh…”
―…Have you found any clues to track Leonardo Blaine?
“No, it’s the opposite. I don’t even have a clue how to find him anymore.”
Hugo said in a self-deprecating voice. It was true. Could anyone catch someone like that? He should be grateful that the guy was living relatively quietly even with such abilities.
Gabe listened quietly to the laughter mixed with self-mockery before opening his mouth.
―Still, I think you’ll find him, Commander.
“…Yeah. Thanks for the thought.”
―It’s not just empty words. You have a good sense, Commander, don’t you? And you are ice and water, and he is known to be fire and electricity. I know that opposites feel each other better than those of the same kind.
Gabe’s words made sense. In fact, research on the attributes of magic stated that while one feels familiarity and stability with magic of the same attribute, one feels tension and sensitivity towards opposing attributes.
In other words, the opposing attribute itself puts a person in a tense state, so they can react much more quickly and sensitively than to the same attribute, which provides comfort.
This was consistent with the fact that Hugo had immediately sensed the aura of fire when he went to the Count’s mansion, even though he hadn’t seen the fire mage’s true form inside.
But what good were any of those things? He had to return early tomorrow morning. Unless Leonardo Blaine appeared right in front of him, the probability of finding him was infinitely close to zero.
“Yeah. But if I sense him, he’ll sense me too. I wonder if I can catch such a quick-witted guy who’s running away.”
―Um… But, Commander, you even catch dragons running at full speed, don’t you?
At Gabe’s words, Hugo chuckled and said.
“Unfortunately, Gabe, I’m returning tomorrow.”
―Are you coming back already?
“Yeah. Did you enjoy your freedom?”
―There was no freedom. I was doing Flynn’s work all by myself, wasn’t I? Please bring that guy back with you soon.
“Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Hugo hung up and looked out the window before lying down on the bed.
He would be leaving this place tomorrow morning. He felt a lingering regret about Leonardo Blaine, but as Abraham had said, he would hear news about him again someday. It was time to return to where he was needed again.
Hugo, promising himself for the next time, closed his eyes, having continued a rather tiring investigation recently. Before long, he quickly fell asleep.