"Yes. I'll keep that in mind."
"No, you don't have to be so stiff, just take this."
Heint smiled sheepishly and pulled out a communications item.
It was small enough to fit in the palm of his hand.
[Let's see].
Russell immediately checked the contact item.
[It's not enchanted.]
Reassured by his words, Lucion took the communication item.
"I thought it had a location-tracking spell on it."
"If you go off on your own, let me know in advance, and if anything happens, just use this to contact me. I'll be right there."
Heint said, pointing his finger at the contact item.
"Understood."
Lucion replied, then grabbed the last seatbelt, just in case.
"Oh, and can I tell you one more thing?"
"Don't be cautious, tell me anything, I don't want you to be uncomfortable for three weeks."
"I'm a bit of a sleeper."
"I heard that from Carson, so I'll take that into consideration and have a little escort around you at night."
"Great!
Lucion sang a happy tune inside.
With that, even the harnesses were secure.
He was almost grinning from ear to ear at the thought of saving time when they'd have to get moving as soon as they reached the south.
"Thank you, brother."
But Lucion's gratitude was unaffected.
Heint smiled, pleased with how different Lucion was from Carson.
He could say "thank you" without missing a beat.
As far as he could tell, the only thing that resembled Carson was his face.
"Now get some sleep. I'm getting a little sleepy."
"Yes. If you'll excuse me, I'm a little tired after being up since dawn."
"I know. I'll wake you up when we get there."
Heint looked at Lucion's closed eyes and listened to his surroundings.
"Nothing around yet."
Heint's eyes soon turned to Hume.
"You should get some rest, too."
"I'm resting."
Despite his words, Hume immediately pulled out a blanket to make Lucion comfortable.
At the sight of him, Heint let out a small, warm laugh.
He had never seen a butler serve his master to such a degree, he thought, and he envied Hume.
* * *
The town with the gate to the south was different from the town with the gate to the center.
Before the carriage reached the town, Heint dismounted and took some of the knights to look around.
-Look, Lucion, I can see the gate in Latta's eyes! Hee hee!
Latta's tail, hanging from the window, wagged uncontrollably.
-You know, Latta, you wanted to ride the gate again? I had a dream about riding the gate yesterday, and now it's happening! I can't believe it!
Lucion was curious about the new town, too, and was very glad that he hadn't been in the carriage all the way to Heint.
Sigh.
As the carriage neared the village, a dark spark appeared in Hume's right eye.
It was a sign that the black orb was nearby.
Hume jumped, and Lucion smiled.
"Remember, Hume?"
"What?"
"You said you had a dream, that a finger came out and pointed to 'South'."
"Yes."
"It was pointing to a black bead."
What a dream for a guide.
Lucion didn't know how many black orbs there were in total, but the black figure's words bothered him.
It called him a broken vessel.
That's why he didn't recognize her.
"I don't like to think about it.
A vessel was a tool to hold something.
If you've heard this far, you must be a vessel for something.
Something that's not in the novel.
No, it was like reading a whole new novel.
'And.......'
-They were born of darkness and became its servants.
The words the black figure had spoken to him.
'Who are they, warlocks?
Lucion tried to infer the word 'they', but there was too little information.
[I don't know what black orbs are, but were they that common?]
Russell said with a puzzled expression.
[If I had known they were around, I would have taken one. What a shame].
[No power without a price, I'm personally a sucker. Is lord Lucion okay, and do you really think the black orb increases the darkness of the ball for nothing?]
Bethel reacted with reluctance to the reappearance of the black orb.
"It didn't come without a price, did it? You were sick for three days."
It hurt worse than when Eol, the High Priestess of Nevast, had tested him for warlocks by putting light into his body.
-That's right, Latta had to fight back tears, Latta hated seeing Lucion sick!
Latta's ears folded back.
[Well, I'm not sure if it's the black orb or the wound on her stomach, but it's not like it's not affecting her at all].
Russell, who had his arms crossed, also gave off a negative nuance.
There were only two things we could deduce from the black orb at this point.
One was that the black orb only responded to Lucion, as evidenced by the fact that Broson's was intact.
The other was that it had the effect of amplifying darkness.
But as Bethel had said, no power is without its side effects, and the black orb might be one of them.
"Everyone hates black orbs.
Lucion looked between Russell and Bethel and petted Latta.
"Well, I'm not about to give up on them."
Lucion looked at Hume without speaking, not wanting to pour oil on a burning house.
"I... I don't know."
Hume tensed under Lucion's gaze and parted his lips.
He couldn't judge whether the black orbs were good or bad, but they weren't dangerous, at least not in his opinion.
But Hume didn't say it out loud.
Lucion pointed to Hume's eyes.
"Right now, it looks like Hume's eyes are before the black orb. Is that how it looks to others?"
If so, that dark flame was not something Hume could control, so he would have to think of a way.
Russell's expression twisted.
[I've been thinking about it, even if it's not, it's not the way the darkness in my head signals, like a daze, so that must mean it's visible from the outside].
"I'll cover it, and I've got an eye patch ready."
Hume fumbled in his arms.
-Latta can do it. Latta can do it.
Latta, who had been crouching, stretched her legs and stood in place.
"Yes. I don't mind."
Hume smiled and lowered his hand.
-"Look at what Latta's doing. Y'all need to watch!
Latta jumped on Hume and wiggled her ass, climbing up his body.
-Whoosh.
Latta breathed out, as if blowing out a candle.
Blame.
The dark spark in Hume's eyes vanished.
"...Huh?"
Hume blinked, and Bethel's head tilted in confusion.
-Lucion, Russell, Bethel, you saw what Latta did, didn't you?
Latta hugged Hume tightly, her tail wagging restlessly.
"......?"
Lucion's eyes widened.
Somehow, Latta had canceled the darkness she was casting.
[and.......]
Russell exhaled under his breath in disbelief.
[She just stopped an active darkness so easily...?]
A ragged chuckle followed.
In order to stop an active Darkness, one had to subdue the opponent's Darkness.
'I see. I wasn't wrong.'
Lucion clenched his fist slightly.
Latta had canceled his Darkness.
Even though her own darkness had been reduced by a fifth, it was still a terrifying ability for a warlock.
-Yihihi. When Latta woke up in the morning, she realized she had new powers. She wanted to show them off, but Lucion was sick, so she held back.
Latta hopped back to Lucion, spun around in place, and sat down on his butt.
Her eyes were so full of desire for praise that Lucion smiled.
"Well done, Latta. You must have had a hard time holding it together."
Latta grinned from ear to ear at Lucion's touch.
-Yep! Latta did it!
Her voice was so full of happiness, you couldn't see her tail.
[You can only do it if you're close, you don't mean you can do it from a distance?]
Russell asked hesitantly.
-Mm. Latta hasn't tried it, so I don't know. Latta will try it and let you know.
"Hmm. So, you can't see the lines anymore?"
"No. It's faint, but I can see it."
Hume rolled his eyes in wonder.
Bethel, who had been watching everything, spoke calmly.
[So, Latta, do you think you can put it back?]
-Yes! Latta can do it.
Latta cried out, her eyes burning with determination.
"Uh-huh...?"
Lucion furrowed his brow at the strange cry.
It was said that foxes had a way of crying, but Erheung seemed to have crossed the line.
"I'll have to tell her she can't cry like that outside."
Latta stiffened her posture, stuck her tongue out slightly, and wiggled her toes as Lucion's concern deepened slightly.
Darkness gathered around Hume.
It was like iron dust being drawn to a magnet.
At the same time, Lucion could feel his own darkness slipping away.
It took more darkness to put it back than it did to cancel it.
Hrumph.
Darkness flared in Hume's eyes once more.
-Bam! Latta did it!
Latta looked at Bethel and let out an 'ahem'.
Lucion glanced over at Russell's disbelieving reaction, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
It was so satisfying to see his growth lead to Latta's growth.
* * *
The carriage stopped.
[There's a commotion around here].
Russell said, glancing at Lucion.
[There was a carriage with the sigil of the Myronist Kingdom, that must be the reason for the commotion around here].
Bethel said, returning from scanning the surroundings.
The Kingdom of Myronist was a small kingdom sandwiched between the Tesla Empire, the Kingdom of Nevast, and the Rocky Lands, and while it was sizable, it was a weak nation that relied on the Empire for support due to its location.
"What's the deal with the Kingdom of Myronist?
Lucion knew the end of the Myronist Kingdom.
[Other than that, I don't see anything special about this place other than the fact that members of Lord Lucion's organization are here].
[What a coincidence].
At Bethel's next words, Russell spoke in admiration.
"It can't be a coincidence."
Lucion found the encounter strangely unpleasant.
A blue thread or a red thread would appear in a moment.
Snap.
Heint knocked on the carriage door and opened it slightly.
Suddenly, a red thread wrapped around Lucion.
"Is something wrong?"
Lucion asked.
"No, not trouble, but an emissary from the Kingdom of Myronist has stopped in town."
"I knew it."
Lucion's eyes narrowed.
Just when he thought something was going to happen, it was a thread.
"I did. When I brought it up, as you might expect, the head of the mission wanted to see you. I know it's a lot of pressure, but the head of the mission is a prince."
"A prince?"
"What do you say? If you don't want to see him, I'll talk him into it, so you don't have to."
"You're putting him on the spot."
"I'm not in trouble, I'm just scribbling a few poems."
Heint chuckled.
"I've written so much for my father, I could write it all in an hour."
"No, I don't want to bother you, but if you'll allow me a short visit, I'll see him."
It was a small kingdom, but it was a kingdom nonetheless.
It was also a kingdom that had fallen victim to the Hand of the Void.
Ting!
The red thread tightened.
It wouldn't hurt to get his face stamped now.
"Since we're going to Mysticism, our meeting should be short and sweet.
Heint pulled his watch from his sleeve and checked the time.
"The gate is about to be activated, so we'll have to cut our meeting short, even if we don't want to."
"Yes. Please."
Lucion bowed his head slightly to Heint, then looked at Hume.
"Find me a suitable hood, Hume."
"Yes, sir."
-Latta will stay in the shadows.
Lucion slipped on the hood Hume had given him and descended to the ground with Heint's help first.
It was not yet time to draw attention to themselves, so they removed the sigil from their carriage, and were fortunate that the knights were so commonly traveling.
Lucion took Heint's lead and followed him.
[The Order].
Bethel's words and gesture caused Lucion to turn his head, and for the briefest of moments, his eyes met Krahn's.
But that was all.
Krahn stared at Lucion for a moment longer, like a passerby, and then moved his lips as if to whisper something to Miella.
Lucion glanced at Krahn, but that was all.
It was only for a moment, but he could tell that Miella, Quite, the gang, and the Reinert mercenaries were together.
It was a strange feeling.
Lucion's expression didn't change, though, as it should at an auction house.
"This carriage."
Hume called out to Lucion cautiously as Heint stopped and Lucion walked over to the carriage.
"Master."
"What?"
"Your clothes are crumpled."
For a moment, Lucion remembered that this was the code word he'd used when he was a guide.
"...The black orb is in the possession of a prince of the Myronist Kingdom?