The Problematic Child of the Magic Tower
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Chapter 337: The Violet Brigade (8)
Since ancient times, horns have been a symbol of mystery.
Even an ordinary horse, if you attach a single horn to its head, becomes a unicorn or something of the sort and is regarded as a creature of myth.
However, even horns—little different from the crystallization of mystery itself—take on an entirely different meaning when they are attached to a human head.
“.......”
Oscar’s two eyes stared at the cross-section of the severed horn.
And the moment he recognized that it was a horn—
KWA-DANG-TANG!
In an instant, he burst forward, knocked the captain to the ground, and aimed the tip of a wind blade at his throat.
“.......”
Even with his life threatened, the captain simply stared at him in silence with hollow eyes.
Displeased by that carefree attitude, Oscar growled low.
“You, are you a demon?”
“As you can see.”
“Yeah? I see.”
With that, the conversation ended.
The wind blade rushed toward the demon’s throat without a single moment of hesitation.
“......Huh.”
But at the very instant before his throat was pierced, an intense energy burst from the captain’s body.
Shoving Oscar away and rising from his spot, he brushed the dust off himself and said,
“You’re more hot-tempered than I’d heard. Swinging a blade right off the bat.”
“There’s no reason to talk with the enemy.”
“Could it be that your memories from childhood... No, that can’t be.”
Lightly shaking his head, the captain raised an open palm as if to show he had no intention of fighting.
“First, calm down a bit. I want to talk.”
“I don’t talk with demons.”
“Aren’t you curious? Why is a demon doing this in human lands?”
“Not really.”
“.......”
At Oscar’s more stubborn-than-expected attitude, the captain let out a deep sigh.
“Even the Emperor of the Empire knows of my existence. I am monitored in my every move, and I periodically write activity reports and submit them to the Emperor.”
“.......”
Even Oscar, an advocate of exterminating demons, could not help but falter at those words.
He already knew there was some kind of connection between the Emperor and the Violet Brigade.
But a demon?
The Emperor he knew hated demons nearly as much as he did.
‘It’s not just something he’s saying to get out of danger... is it.’
Every word newly written into the Wind Archive by the captain was judged to be true.
If that was the case, had the Emperor’s attitude toward demons changed over the past several decades?
No, that couldn’t be.
That man understood better than anyone how horrific demons were and why they had to disappear.
‘But that man tolerated the existence of that demon.’
Moreover, he had even tacitly allowed him to operate openly within the lands he ruled.
After a brief moment of deliberation, Oscar slightly—just slightly—suppressed the killing intent that had seemed ready to explode.
Just as the Emperor trusted him, he too trusted the Emperor.
“Now do you feel a bit like talking?”
“......Speak. Give me a reason not to kill you right now.”
“Very well. I’m so scared I don’t think I can even make a joke.”
Nodding his head, the captain calmly confessed his identity.
“If you are a Tracker of Darkness, then you must know that the demons have begun to revere a new Great Emperor.”
“So?”
“I am biologically his twin brother.”
“.......”
To be honest, it was fairly fresh and surprising information.
But only that much.
Oscar wore an expression that said, ‘So what? Why shouldn’t I kill you?’
In response, the captain hurriedly added an explanation.
“The reason that fellow has not been able to move recklessly until now is because he is searching for me.”
“He’s already sent out a declaration of war as the Second Great Emperor—why would he be looking for you?”
“It’s because of this power.”
When the captain snapped his fingers, that peculiar gravitational force activated once more.
A mysterious power that seemed to draw in all surrounding energy.
Snap!
With another flick of his fingers, the captain stopped the absorption and continued,
“It was originally a power that should have been one. But we were born as twin brothers, and naturally, the ability was divided between the two of us.”
“......So if I kill you, the new Great Emperor’s power will be completed?”
“Yes. If I die in any form, this power will move to him.”
Oscar’s expression turned indifferent.
From his own experience, he did not consider the captain particularly strong.
Even if the new Great Emperor had a similar type of ability, it did not seem like it would make that much difference.
Sensing that impression, the captain gave a bitter smile.
“I understand. I am not that strong.”
“You know it well. Even if you die and the Great Emperor’s power is completed, it doesn’t seem like he’d be that threatening.”
“I can say with certainty that’s not the case. Do not forget that with only half of his power, he made the Four Great Counts of the Demon Realm kneel and seized the seat of Great Emperor.”
“.......”
At those words, even Oscar could not respond carelessly.
The Four Great Counts of the Demon Realm might be overshadowed by the Great Emperor, but they were by no means weak beings.
Having fought them himself, Oscar knew that fact better than anyone.
“I need a more detailed explanation. What exactly is that ability?”
“To put it simply... we are vessels.”
Chi-i-iik!
A vessel formed of mana appeared in the air.
The captain began pouring water—mana—into that vessel.
“Our bodies are like this vessel. A vessel that can contain all kinds of energy. Even emotional energy like the Mad Fiend’s rage is no exception.”
“......Continue.”
“To state the conclusion first, I am defective.”
Kkadeuk!
Suddenly, water began leaking from the vessel that had been steadily filling.
There was a slight crack along its side.
“There is a fissure in my body. So no matter how much energy I absorb, I cannot hold it for long. The energy I absorb must be used as quickly as possible, and even then, it puts tremendous strain on my body.”
“......I see.”
He recalled the scene of the captain vomiting blood each time he used his ability at the airport.
“Then is the new Great Emperor different?”
“He is.”
The cracked vessel vanished, and a whole vessel began to newly contain the water called mana.
“That one is a truly complete vessel. No matter how much he fills it, it never overflows.”
“......If that’s true, isn’t he already a monster?”
“He is. That is how he climbed to that position even without the ability to absorb all surrounding energy.”
The captain delivered a chilling warning.
“If I die and he obtains my attractive force as well, there will be no one in this world who can stand against him.”
“.......”
No matter how much mana you use and use, it never runs dry.
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
That is no different from the eternal power source every mage and knight pursues.
“So he’s kept you alive because, defective as you are, you can’t become as strong as the new Great Emperor anyway?”
“You understand correctly.”
“No, there’s still something I don’t understand.”
Oscar’s eyes narrowed.
“If it were me, I would have thrown you into the deepest cell of the imperial underground prison. That would be the cleanest solution with no variables. So why would they allow you to roam outside?”
“......I suppose I should first be grateful that you are not the Emperor of humans.”
The captain replied, genuinely appalled.
“The reason is simple. The Emperor does not trust the humans of the imperial family. No, it would be more accurate to say he cannot trust them.”
“.......”
Indeed, even when the Emperor had fallen ill, the imperial court had already been infiltrated by the noble faction.
In a situation where he could not trust them one hundred percent, imprisoning the captain within the imperial palace would carry too much risk.
“The Violet Brigade is a name personally given by the human Emperor. He called me ‘Oja Talju.’”
[TL/N: A classical allusion rejecting inferior/impure things that overshadow or replace what is proper and authentic.]
[PR/N: Allusion = expression, idk why using difficult words smh.]
“Kh.”
Oscar let out a hollow laugh at the Emperor’s biting sense.
Do not forget that you are not a true crimson but merely a purple usurping it.
In other words, it was a stern warning not to forget the life of a fake—neither human nor able to become Great Emperor.
“.......”
Oscar glanced at the Wind Archive.
Every word the captain had spoken was true.
That was why, more than ever, he was thinking deeply.
‘There is no compromise with demons. That’s the conviction and iron rule I set for myself.’
But what if killing this demon would actually help the demons more?
Such a case had never once occurred before.
‘Do I hold fast to my conviction? Or compromise to catch a greater evil?’
After agonizing for quite some time, Oscar slowly parted his lips.
“I’ll ask two things.”
“Anything.”
“Why did you surrender to humans?”
“......May I answer honestly?”
“It would be better if you do.”
Oscar replied, shaking the Wind Archive still in his grasp.
The Sentence of Truth is a spell that consumes enormous mana on its own, but for now, he still had leeway.
“Indeed, I can’t lie in front of you.”
“Stop circling around and answer.”
“......To survive.”
The captain frankly revealed his true feelings.
“As you know, beyond the Red Mountain Range, only the logic of the survival of the fittest applies. For someone defective like me, surviving there was no easy task. Especially with a brother trying to kill me.”
It was the easiest reason to understand.
The desire for survival is one of the instincts that stand above all else.
“And one more thing.”
After hesitating briefly, the captain spoke carefully.
“Do you remember that I called myself defective earlier?”
“It’s only been a few minutes. I remember.”
“......I believe that demons and humans can coexist.”
Without realizing it, Oscar looked at the Wind Archive.
And the moment he saw the result [Truth] appear above it, he let out a hollow laugh.
“Definitely defective. Listening to you talk crazy like that.”
“So you’re on the side that thinks coexistence is impossible?”
“It’s not what I think. I’m certain of it.”
“I see.”
Nodding his head a couple of times, the captain asked,
“What is the second question?”
“Are there any demons you are currently in contact with or exchanging communication with?”
“No. After surrendering to the human side, I cut off all ties with every demon.”
“.......”
The Wind Archive’s judgment was Truth.
When Oscar closed the book, the captain shrugged.
“So I can assume my head won’t fall off tonight?”
“......For now.”
“I suppose I should say thank you. I won’t give you reason to regret it.”
After finishing his words, the captain spoke with a noticeably more relaxed expression.
“With this, it seems we each owe the other our lives once.”
“I don’t recall ever owing you my life.”
“Kh, do you remember the Great Fire from your childhood?”
The Great Fire incident of the Crucian Count family.
In a single night, every member of the household except Oscar burned to death.
Naturally, the culprit had never been revealed.
And yet he suddenly brought that up?
Oscar’s eyes narrowed.
“I don’t remember. Why bring that up all of a sudden?”
“That incident was deeply connected to demons.”
At that rather shocking statement, Oscar asked back,
“What? Why would demons target the Crucian Count family?”
“They did not target the Crucian Count family. To be precise...”
The captain’s extended index finger pointed at Oscar himself.
“Not the family— you. More precisely, a child with the potential to become a mage.”
“......Back then, I wasn’t even ten years old.”
“As you know, the First Great Emperor lost his life to the White Tower Master. Perhaps because of that, my brother is extremely wary of mages. So after seizing power, the very first thing he did was kill mages. A plan to kill everyone in the nation born with magical talent.”
Killing mages.
A cruel plan to nip the bud—even infants—if they possessed outstanding talent as mages.
“You, too, had excellent talent as a mage, and naturally became a target of the Black Fingers, who act under demon orders. It was I who rescued you from that burning mansion that day.”
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]

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