The Game of the Greatest Black Mage
Chapter 178

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]

Chapter 178

From the moment the intelligence war began, the greater war was inevitable.

And thanks to Seonghyun's contribution, they had grasped the enemy's plans.

Now that they had obtained information that Basilica's invasion would begin in 10 days, Ninyaru's course of action was set.

They would strike first, before Basilica could attack them.

However, mobilizing troops was not a task that could be finished in such a short time.

Even if they hurried to prepare before the enemy finished their own preparations, ten days was too short a time to summon the soldiers and march out to war.

Another plan was needed.

Thus, the special detachment was formed.

To buy Ninyaru time to prepare its army, they had to shake Basilica to its core.

The enemy also had only ten days.

What if they could disrupt Basilica's main base during that time?

Their military force would have no choice but to weaken. And if Ninyaru's prepared army took advantage of that opening and joined with the special detachment, it was certain that they would gain the upper hand in the war.

Up to this point, everyone could understand.

However.

“Krrrrrr, why is the captain of that special detachment some mere outsider and not me?”

A knight with white fur and the spots of a cheetah voiced her discontent, harboring dissatisfaction even at the command of Ninyaru's great Absolute Ruler.

As Silberion, the commander of the White Knights, expressed her frustration, the majority of the White Knights following behind her echoed her sentiment.

“The commander’s right! Even if we're a young knight order, this is too much!”

“Exactly! An outsider of all people is the captain of the special detachment!? Isn't that just going too far!?”

“His Majesty is being too unreasonable!”

Although they voiced such complaints, none among them had the resolve to go before the great king and defy his order.

It was the same for their commander, Silberion.

Also, perhaps due to a bit of an inferiority complex, she couldn't help but think along those lines.

The White Knights were a knight order with a distinctly younger age range than the others.

They were all proper knights who had earned their titles, but they had been unknowingly excluded from important missions time and again simply because they were young.

This time, they were thrilled to finally be entrusted with an important mission, only to have a mere outsider appointed as the captain of that very mission.

Frankly, they couldn't help but be disappointed.

‘Damn it.’

Silberion ground her teeth in frustration.

It felt as if all her efforts had been negated.

It was all the more frustrating because she hadn't properly heard what great deeds Seonghyun had accomplished. In their eyes, he was nothing more than an outsider who had wandered in from the labyrinth.

Naturally, they looked down on him.

But still, it was the great king's command. They had no choice but to follow it.

However.

“Hmph, if an outsider intends to command us, he will have to prove he is qualified.”

It was a thought that could perhaps be seen as treason, but the members of the White Knights actually thought it was right.

Was it because this was a nation of feline beastkin?

They saw this kind of behavior as natural.

The king, Nyao, had also expected as much.

It wasn't the first time they had been so willful.

The reason he didn't say anything about it was simple.

Although they were a knight order, they were young and still weak compared to the Golden Knights or the Black Knights.

He had actually assigned them to Seonghyun, thinking he might be able to handle them well.

And he was also curious to see how it would turn out.

And so, the special detachment was formed, and the White Knights were gathered there when Seonghyun arrived belatedly.

“Sorry for being late.”

“Hmph.”

Even just by looking at him…

‘He does look… somewhat… strong.’

Even to Silberion's eyes, Seonghyun definitely looked strong, so she inwardly acknowledged it a little.

But she still didn't like it. Even if he was a little strong, he was surely weaker than her.

So, Silberion thought to herself.

‘I'll beat him with my speed on the way to Basilica.’

The young and still weak knight order, the White Knights.

However, they had one point of superiority over the Golden Knights and the Black Knights.

And that was speed.

They boasted a swiftness greater than any other knight order.

This was the most decisive reason the White Knights were chosen for the special detachment.

With their speed, they could traverse the distance to Basilica, which normally took a full day, in just half a day.

Because they boasted such high speed, they could be called the most suitable knight order for the special detachment.

In any case, Seonghyun had also heard this information, so he scanned the White Knights and said.

“It seems you are all ready. Let's head out immediately.”

“…Already?”

‘This fast?’

They were all prepared, but wondering if it wasn't too soon, she asked back.

Seonghyun replied in kind, as if to ask what the problem was.

“Yes?”

Her pride seemed a little hurt by his reaction.

Silberion spoke as if that wasn't the case.

“Ahem, it's nothing! We are already fully prepared, so let's depart at once.”

“Understood. If everyone is ready, I will see you at the west gate.”

“Understood.”

As Seonghyun delivered his message and left, the members of the White Knights approached their commander, Silberion, and asked.

“C-Can we really depart right away?”

“I-Isn't this too sudden?”

“A-Are you sure this is okay, Commander?”

At their worried voices, Silberion herself was also a little concerned.

Since it was their first official dispatch, her nervousness was quite apparent.

Instead, she scolded them.

“Get a grip! Are you planning to ruin our very first mission?!”

“Y-Yes, ma'am?!”

“Ah!”

“Even the outsider is that prepared, and you think you can act in such a pathetic way?!”

At Silberion's shout, everyone came to their senses.

The outsider was ready to leave immediately.

How could they, the White Knights of Ninyaru, show such a disgraceful side!

At Silberion's words, everyone shouted with renewed spirit.

“Hyaaah!”

“NO, MA’AM!”

“WE WILL CORRECT OURSELVES!”

As their mental state completely changed, Silberion finally nodded as if satisfied.

They couldn't show an unsightly side to the outsider.

Just because it was their first important mission didn't mean they were weak.

They might be weaker than the other two knight orders, but they were still knights.

As such, they were overwhelmingly stronger than most users of the same level.

They had reason to be proud.

‘He's strong for an outsider, but at the end of the day, he's still an outsider.’

He wasn't even a resident of this world.

It was only because of the affinity-boosting effects of Seonghyun's Knight title and other titles that things were this civil.

If not for that, Silberion and the other White Knights would have shown open hostility.

In any case, as they finished their preparations, Silberion spoke.

“He may be strong for an outsider, but it's still hard to accept him as the captain of a special detachment that includes us. Let's go and show him what we're made of.”

“YES!!!”

“FOR THE WHITE KNIGHTS!!!”

“FOR NINYARU!!!”

“FOR OUR GREAT MAJESTY!!!”

As they shouted their slogans and headed for the west gate, Seonghyun, who was already waiting, saw them.

They were armed to the teeth, both in spirit and in appearance.

However, as their order was focused on speed, their armor was somewhat on the lighter side.

But Seonghyun looked at them, scratched his cheek quizzically, and asked.

“Are there no horses?”

He realized then that he hadn't seen any horses in Ninyaru and was curious.

At Seonghyun's question, Silberion replied with a clear sneer.

“We, the White Knights, boast the fastest legs of the three knight orders.”

“Oho? Is that so.”

“How about you ride a horse? Even then, you probably won't be faster than our knight order. But if you fall behind, it could cause problems for the special detachment.”

It was a statement laced more with concern than with condescension.

However, upon hearing her words, Seonghyun just smiled as if to say it was fine.

Feeling as if she were being ignored, Silberion was about to flare up in anger.

But then, Seonghyun snapped his fingers and opened the entrance to the Underworld.

As a teal portal appeared, Silberion's eyes narrowed, immediately sensing that this was no ordinary phenomenon.

‘What is he trying to do?’

As Silberion watched Seonghyun with that thought…

Pzzzzzzzzzt—!!!

A divine bird appeared, radiating powerful plasma in all directions.

Anemor had arrived.

PYAAAAAAAAAAA—!!!

As if happy to be out after a long time, it let out a roar, and a powerful wave of plasma shot up, piercing the sky of the space called the Crevice of the Labyrinth.

At the powerful shockwave, Silberion stared blankly at Anemor, then swallowed hard.

‘Just what in the world is that divine bird?’

Behind the tense Silberion, who was looking at a creature that seemed to have come straight out of myth, the pupils of the other White Knights also shook violently.

‘An outsider has a summoned creature of that caliber?’

As they all stared at Anemor with expressions of disbelief, Seonghyun spoke.

“It's a relief that you're so confident in your speed. We'll be heading off first, then.”

“We’ll go on ahead and wait for you.”

PIIIIIIIIIYAAAAK—!!!

With their farewells, Seonghyun and Helena climbed onto Anemor's back.

As they did, Helena gave a little wave, a strange, playful smile on her face.

Anemor, excited to be flying after so long, carried Seonghyun and Helena into the sky.

It flapped its wings once in mid-air, and for an instant, a defensive barrier of lightning formed around it.

Like a flash, it vanished from the spot, twinkling for a moment like a distant star.

Silberion, who had been staring blankly at the sight, snapped back to her senses and shouted to her knight order.

“E-Everyone, depart!!! W-We can't be late!!!”

““Y-Yes, MA'AAAAAM!!!””

They all answered with a roar, but honestly, they were all thinking the same thing.

‘How are we supposed to keep up with that?’

They had to traverse the distance with all their might. Only then would their pride as a special detachment—no, the honor of the White Knights—avoid being completely shattered.

‘Damn it!!!’

Silberion felt wronged, thinking,

‘What kind of outsider possesses such a powerful familiar?’

4.

Anemor accelerated through the air at an incredible speed, with Seonghyun and Helena riding comfortably on its back.

Of the two, Helena looked truly excited.

It wasn't just because she was happy about the flight.

Or maybe it was related?

“Ahahaha! Seonghyun, you did well.”

“Hm? With what?”

“Mmm, it's nothing. Anyway, that was fun.”

For Helena, who knew that Silberion was subtly looking down on Seonghyun, it had been a satisfying turn of events.

But for Seonghyun, who was oblivious, it was no big deal.

He just let it pass.

But Helena also knew that wasn't what was important right now.

While they were traveling, Seonghyun asked Anemor to slow down.

It was still a considerable speed, but compared to before, it had slowed down significantly.

Was it out of consideration for the White Knights?

It wasn't for some paltry reason like that.

“Oho? You're preparing in advance?”

“Yeah, the more materials I have, the stronger it gets.”

At Seonghyun's words, Helena nodded as if in agreement.

As he spoke, he surveyed the ground below where Anemor was flying. He could see entrances to the Underworld appearing here and there.

They were gathering up all the corpses of labyrinth monsters, users, and NPCs that had drifted into this Crevice of the Labyrinth.

And so, Seonghyun headed toward Basilica, all the while gathering a vast number of corpses in the Underworld.

It was called a special detachment, but…

‘This will definitely be necessary for a large-scale war, right?’

He was building up his strength to raise the curtain on the war, gathering the hundreds, no, thousands of piled-up corpses.

As Seonghyun steadily prepared for the Overlord's battle, he simultaneously had another thought.

‘I should try using the Explosion Build after a long time.’

He wondered what would happen with an Explosion Build of this scale. Growing a little curious, Seonghyun steadily made his preparations as he headed for Basilica.

5.

The walls of Basilica were different from Ninyaru's.

Ninyaru, which could be called a natural fortress without exaggeration, was surrounded on all sides by the labyrinth, so it was safe to say it had virtually no openings.

Even the small crevice that Sibren had discovered this time was the first to be found in several hundred years.

Basilica's walls, on the other hand, were like those of any other city.

Three of its four sides were surrounded by the labyrinth, but its eastern wall was completely exposed, and the sky above it was wide open.

However, the exposed eastern wall was high, sturdy, and thick.

It gave the soldiers of Basilica a sense of security.

It even gave them a sense of complacency, making them wonder if they even needed to guard it at all.

It was the same today.

The soldiers guarding the east gate were lazily napping while voicing their complaints.

“I mean, who's going to invade that we have to guard a place like this?”

“Hey, it's still better than patrolling the city.”

“Kukuk, that's true.”

“We can just slack off for a bit and then head back in.”

So the soldiers spoke.

There was no sign of military discipline, not even a shred of loyalty.

Even so, one of them lay down and glanced at the ground below the wall.

It was a patch of land quite far from the ramparts.

But then.

“Huh?”

“What is it?”

“Doesn't it look like the ground over there just moved?”

“What kind of nonsense are you talking about? Huh? Whoa?”

At those words, another soldier also lifted his head.

The ground really was moving.

No, rather than moving, should he say it was… undulating?

With that thought, the soldier rubbed his eyes and looked closer.

That wasn't the ground.

It was a legion, with bodies like black shadows, slowly emitting a teal aura.

An undead legion was beckoning toward the city walls.

“E-EMERGEEEENCY!!!”

An alarm bell rang out urgently.

The curtain was rising on the prelude to war in Basilica.

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]