Chapter 619: Druid’s Request

Randa City announced that they had productive discussions with members of the Central Council who participated as Royal escorts, which led to…

Oliver’s house. A radio broadcast filled the room.

The story about the prince or the discussions with the escorts was the same, differing only in the minor details that emerged over the last few days.

The prince and the Royal Family intended to maintain better relations with Randa. The idea was that by doing so, the United Kingdom and Randa would share benefits—a very predictable story.

However, teachers, economic commentators, and political theorists didn’t share that perspective. Each time that predictable narrative popped up, they discussed their opinions, predictions, and outlooks.

Well, maybe Oliver just didn’t understand. He wasn’t particularly well-versed in such matters.

It was also unusual for a member of the Royal Family, especially a prince, to visit.

In any case, since the prince’s arrival, Randa’s newspapers, radios, and other media outlets have been churning out numerous reports as if a wellspring had sprung up.

And while listening to those reports, Oliver prepared to go out.

He used a ‘Fake Face’ bought at the Black Market to alter his appearance, and not stopping there, he employed makeup techniques learned at the House of Angels to give himself a completely different look.

At the very least, he ensured that he wouldn’t resemble Dave the problem-solver or Xenon from the Tower of Magic.

“Hmm…”

Oliver let out a hum as he examined his reflection in the mirror.

It had been a while since he used a disguise. Nonetheless, it wasn’t bad; he looked like a stranger in the mirror.

Interpreting this as a sign of a good disguise, Oliver changed his clothes.

He dressed in rough clothing suited for his destination. Worn-out brown pants with a matching brown overcoat, and a stained flat cap pulled low over his head.

He then reduced the conspicuous Quarterstaff using Minimization Magic, tucking it inside his clothes, and cast Dark Magic on the Zombie Puppet he had left in a corner.

For reference, the Zombie Puppet resembled problem-solver Dave, because Oliver made it that way.

[Memory Of Blood]

Dark Magic in the creative line, utilizing data accumulated in blood.

When the spell activated, the blood in the Zombie Puppet’s artificial veins moved as if alive, controlling the puppet.

Originally, the blood would shoot out externally to control the puppet, but through improvements, it could now be controlled internally, which was far more aesthetically pleasing.

It seemed Oliver’s thoughts were on point; the Zombie Puppet appeared quite ordinary on the outside.

Oliver handed a stick he had found nearby to the blood puppet inside the Zombie Puppet and made a request.

“I need to step out for a bit. Can you please guard this place in my absence so no one notices I’m gone?”

As he spoke, Oliver activated the Warlock’s Eye, looking at the distant Druid.

Since taking up the request, one to three Druids had been monitoring Oliver.

That’s why Oliver created the Zombie Puppet, making it resemble Dave in both appearance and lifeforce.

The blood puppet understood the command and nodded. Receiving the answer, Oliver expressed his gratitude and descended to the underground.

There, a secret laboratory was hidden beneath his residence.

As expected of a secret laboratory, security magic and Dark Magic were installed all over the walls.

The level of protection was such that most sorcerers would find it hard to see through.

In this place, Oliver tossed a piece of Paper into the air, which unfolded into a spatial magic formation and created a violet portal. He stepped inside.

With the buzzing sound of insects’ wings, the scenery changed.

It was one of Forest’s safe houses. After closing the portal, Oliver composed himself, adjusted his breathing and steps, and left the safe house.

He ensured that even if someone who knew Oliver saw him, they wouldn’t recognize him.

Step. Step. Step.

In a manner that implied he wasn’t Oliver, Dave, or Xenon, he headed to a tavern.

Despite being daytime, the tavern interior was reasonably populated.

The patrons were soldiers and superhumans disguised as workers.

At the sight of the newcomer, they all fixed their gazes on Oliver, but he paid no mind and approached the bartender wiping cups at the bar.

The bald man with a red nose and a protruding belly spoke without even glancing at Oliver.

“What’ll you have?”

Instead of answering, Oliver drew a Dagger from his waist and offered it.

The blade was red as blood, with a distinct checkered pattern upon close inspection.

It served as a sort of calling card or introduction.

The bartender, who hadn’t spared Oliver a glance, now focused intently on the blade as his gaze wavered, examining it in disbelief.

“Be careful not to cut yourself.”

Oliver advised, concerned that the bartender might nick himself on the blade, which carried a multitude of diseases.

The bartender asked suspiciously.

“This isn’t a pawnshop… But I do know someone who might buy a blade like this. Mind if I take it for a moment?”

When Oliver nodded, the bartender stepped away for a moment. Some of the tavern’s patrons pretended to drink or sleep while they grasped the guns and daggers hidden within their clothes.

Given their position, such actions were understandable.

A short while later, the bartender returned.

“They want to buy it. Follow me.”

With his softened tone, the tension within the tavern eased.

Oliver rose from his seat as requested and followed the bartender, where he met one of the commanders of the Kel Independent Free Army, Wallace.

Wallace was examining the Dagger that Oliver had handed over earlier.

“What did you do to the knife I gave you?”

The bartender exited as soon as the conversation began.

Left alone with Wallace, Oliver responded.

“It just happened that way… It’s dangerous, so be careful.”

Wallace, a wizard of considerable standing, immediately understood from Oliver’s words.

“Right, I need to watch out. Even a slight cut might be fatal.”

Wallace placed the Dagger back on the desk, pushing it toward Oliver. He was returning it. Oliver retrieved the Dagger from the desk.

“How did you know I was here?”

“I heard it from Mr. Guile.”

Guile, a Warlock leader of the gang Sewer Serpents. He had once harbored fugitives hiding out in Randa.

Incidentally, it’s referred to as ‘once’ because Guile no longer engaged in that business, though he still retained the know-how. Thanks to that, he discovered Wallace’s hiding spot.

“The potential hideouts for Kel people are few, and it’s easy to notice someone procuring a ship.”

“I see… But how did you find out I was here?”

Wallace repeated the same question. He wasn’t asking how Oliver knew about the pub but how he knew about Wallace’s presence in Randa.

Understanding his meaning, Oliver answered honestly.

“The Druids who followed Prince Albert told me. To be precise, they made a request.”

“Let me guess. They claimed we kidnapped them and asked you to help track down the Druids?”

Perhaps Wallace had an inkling of what happened as he guessed right away.

It wasn’t bad that the conversation progressed so quickly.

“Yes.”

“Did you accept it?”

“Yes.”

“Surprising.”

“They made an offer that was hard to refuse.”

“What did they offer?”

“They promised not to object if I used powers like natural forces and Druid rituals.”

“Just for that? Given Randa’s characteristics, you could’ve ignored it.”

“I wanted to proceed without any clashes if possible. It’s necessary for what I intend to do.”

“Makes me curious about what you’re planning.”

“I need it to clean up the Contaminated Zone and for other business ventures. I also plan to teach it to others.”

“… Druidic powers?”

“To be precise, the forces of nature. If there are people who can learn it, I want to teach them. After all, good things are meant to be shared.”

Indeed, Oliver’s reason for accepting the Druids’ offer wasn’t just about avoiding clashes.

The moment the Druids granted him permission, Oliver planned to share and teach the Druid training methods, rituals, and botany he learned from Child-Third to those around him.

He didn’t have any particular reason. He just wanted to show that the forces of nature, claimed to be exclusively Druidic, could be practiced by others.

The word ‘use’ could be interpreted in various ways, so it probably wouldn’t be a problem.

Even if it did become an issue, Oliver could plead ignorance by claiming misunderstanding, which would likely work.

As mentioned earlier, the word ‘use’ was open to interpretation.

Upon hearing this, Wallace burst into laughter.

“You seem to have changed a bit. It’s been so long that I can’t be sure, but you didn’t seem like you had this personality… Or maybe you did? Either way, you seem to have changed a little.”

“…”

Oliver couldn’t reply to Wallace’s observation. Could he really have changed?

While Oliver pondered, Wallace, who had laughed until a moment ago, sobered up and asked seriously.

He was touching the sword fastened at his waist.

“So, are you here to capture me?”

Oliver observed the hand on Wallace’s sword and his emotional state.

Wallace was prepared to fight Oliver if it came to that. However, he didn’t underestimate Oliver.

In fact, Wallace saw Oliver as a potential threat, a formidable adversary, even stronger than himself.

Well, Wallace must have heard of Oliver’s recent reputation. Despite this, Wallace’s demeanor was driven by a sense of responsibility.

It was his duty to fight, regardless of the odds.

Some might call it foolishness, but Oliver didn’t think that way.

If he were the type to avoid confrontation based on the size of his strength, Wallace wouldn’t have joined the Kel Independent Free Army against the United Kingdom.

Instead, he would have used his considerable magic to defeat the Kel Independent Free Army and fight for his own advancement.

That would have been safer, more likely to succeed, and more rewarding.

Nevertheless, Wallace chose the dangerous, low-probability, unstable path to join the Kel Independent Free Army and has fought on ever since.

Respecting that part of Wallace, Oliver answered honestly.

“No, I’m here to talk.”

“About what?”

“I wanted to know if you really kidnapped the Druids.”

“No, we didn’t.”

A third voice cut in and answered Oliver’s question.

The sudden interruption didn’t catch Oliver off guard.

They had used a spell to hide themselves, but Oliver’s enhanced vision had already detected their presence.

He had pretended not to notice out of courtesy.

When Oliver turned his head toward the source of the voice, he saw a woman with disheveled hair entering through a secret door.

Judging by her twisted life force and closed eyes, she seemed to be blind.

Without a word, Oliver stared at the woman, and she stared back at him, even with her closed eyes.

“… You must be the Druid whom Pierce is looking for.”

Breaking the silence, Oliver spoke, and the female Druid introduced herself.

“Greetings. My name is Fadhelm.”

“Greetings. I am Dave, the problem-solver from 30th Street, T-District in Randa.”

“I’m aware. I heard about you through the World Tree.”

“The World Tree?”

“Yes, it’s my specialty. Using and applying the World Tree.”

“Hmm… Is that related to your escape?”

“Oh, how did you know?”

“You mentioned earlier that you weren’t kidnapped. So if you’re here anyway, there’s only one reason: you escaped on your own. Am I wrong?”

It was an obvious conclusion for anyone who thought it through, but Wallace frowned as if it were strange coming from Oliver.

“I’ll correct myself. You have changed, definitely.”

“Really?”

“Yes, you’ve become a lot more calculating.”

“I’ve always been a bit dull, but after spending a few years in Randa—”

“—You’ve misunderstood. I wasn’t calling you stupid.”

Wallace corrected himself. It wasn’t mere lip service; he meant it.

“I never thought you were stupid. Your intelligence was always there; you just didn’t bother to use it. You weren’t interested in trivial gains and losses.”

He hit the nail on the head. Oliver’s lack of aptitude in bargaining, calculating gains and losses, and uncovering the deeper motives behind things wasn’t due to a lack of intelligence but because he just wasn’t interested.

In the past, Oliver would only care about things that aligned with his interests, like beautiful light or Dark Magic, disregarding everything else.

But now, Oliver began to care about such things. In other words, rather than saying his intelligence had increased, it was more accurate to say his disposition had changed.

Evidence of this was Oliver’s reaction, which he wouldn’t have shown in the past.

“Fadhelm escaped with us because she uncovered a secret related to the Royal Family. You probably have an inkling of what it is… Are you interested?”

“Hmm… No.”

The word ‘no’ slipped from Oliver’s lips, despite knowing the secret was tied to demons.

Wallace realized from Oliver’s response that there was indeed a significant difference between the Oliver he knew in the past and the Oliver standing before him now.

“Let me correct myself again. You’ve changed quite a lot.”

“People always change, don’t they?”

“And you’ve become bolder too.”

After the brief dialogue, a silence settled in. Fadhelm, the female Druid, broke it by speaking to Oliver.

“Mr. Dave.”

“Please, just call me Dave. I’m not someone who deserves to be called ‘Mr.’”

“Dave, may I offer you some advice?”

“Advice?”

“Actually, I mean persuasion. The Dave I know through the World Tree is someone who, even if not immediately, will likely come after us eventually. That’s because he’s never failed a request or betrayed his trust until now.”

“Fadhelm isn’t just a Druid who collects information through the World Tree. She can also process that information to predict the future.”

Predicting the future using the World Tree. Oliver had read about it in books.

It wasn’t really a prophecy, more like combining vast amounts of data to predict the most likely future.

Of course, only a very few people were capable of using it. Very few could handle the World Tree, and even among them, only a handful could predict the future with it.

In other words, Fadhelm had quite a rare ability even among Druids.

“What sort of persuasion are you suggesting?”

“It would be better for you not to capture us, considering it’s Randa.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because the Royal Family is going to pull something soon.”

Wallace interjected. He wasn’t bluffing to persuade Oliver; he was sincere.

“Do you have any evidence?”

“No, but I’m certain. The Royal Family always operates this way—smiling on the outside while scheming behind the scenes.”

Oliver remained silent, not because he didn’t believe Wallace, but because he somewhat agreed.

The sudden visit of Prince Albert, the amicable relationship-building between Randa and the Royal Family enabled by the concessions from the prince’s escort, everything was going too smoothly, almost unnaturally so.

Even Oliver felt something was off.

Above all, what baffled him the most was why Prince Albert, the second prince, had come if the intention was to show a friendly gesture.

Improving relations between the Royal Family and Randa was significant work. Even someone like Oliver, who hadn’t studied political science, knew that having Edward X, the first prince, would have made more sense.

Whether on a national level or a personal one. However, the one who came was Albert. It made sense to think there was a reason behind it.

For instance, perhaps some kind of incident was about to happen.

“If the Royal Family is scheming, what sort of scheme could it be?”

Oliver asked the Druid Fadhelm, who could predict the future using the World Tree.

“I’m sorry, I don’t know that. But it’s best to consider the worst-case scenario.”

“Worst-case scenario?”

“The worst possible outcome.”

The worst possible outcome… Oliver thought about Prince Albert, whom he had met a few days ago, and the Royal escorts he had encountered through newspapers.

What’s the worst possible outcome for this combination? Then, Joe’s words suddenly came to mind.

He had mentioned that the New Gentleman, the new class alliance, had accepted an invitation to attend a party to mingle with the Royal escorts.

The strange combination of Royal escorts and superhumans naturally led to the worst possible outcome.

The collapse of the friendly relations being built between the Royal Family and Randa in one stroke. It seemed absurd and unbelievable, but that was the worst-case scenario Oliver could imagine.

Worst-case scenarios are always beyond common sense.

“Mr. Wallace, you originally planned to leave Randa, didn’t you?”

Oliver wasn’t entirely certain, but he had a rough estimate and asked Wallace.

Wallace didn’t deny it.

“Yes, that’s why I was arranging for a ship. If we stayed in Seland, it’d only be a matter of time before we got caught. So, the plan was to leave the country.”

“But you couldn’t do it because of surveillance, right?”

Wallace nodded.

Currently, all sea routes, both in the dark and light, were being monitored by the Pinkman and Druids, making it hard to use.

The moment they attempted to secure a ship, they’d likely get caught.

Oliver pulled out a Paper Boat from his pocket.

“What’s that?”

“It’s a sort of ship. I had wondered if there would be a time to use it; seems now is that time.”

Wallace, using his magic detection abilities, immediately realized that the Paper Boat was a magical item and understood Oliver’s words.

“What are your conditions?”

“Could you escape on the day I specify? And make sure everyone knows you’ve fled?”

“While being chased by the Druids?”

“Yes.”

“Are you out of your mind?”

Wallace asked back. He had every reason to, as over twenty Druids had accompanied Albert, and escaping from them would be nearly impossible if they caught up.

In response, Oliver released magic into the ground, spreading it around. A ripple formed, and a spirit began to emerge.

The spirit had glowing green hair, a gray glowing body, and limbs tinted with brown.

“This spirit will assist us.”

Wallace didn’t understand what he meant by the sudden appearance of the spirit.

Fadhelm was just as surprised, seemingly not understanding either, and asked.

“How did you form a pact with the spirit?”

“It’s not a pact. I simply made a promise to help each other once.”

Indeed, the spirit had been absorbed by a former Gaia Faction mage and was in a critical, near-death state, but Oliver used magic to save it.

He performed emergency treatment by using magic power and life force on the wounded areas.

In fact, Oliver wanted to form a pact with the spirit at that time, but the spirit was in such an emotionally fragile state that he couldn’t demand it. Instead, he made a promise.

He asked the spirit to lend its power once, in exchange for saving its life.

Fortunately, after much consideration, the spirit accepted.

“With the spirit’s power, doesn’t our chance of escape increase?”

Oliver said, and Wallace couldn’t disagree.

They were likely to encounter the Druids even if they tried to flee in their current state, so it was more logical to strengthen their forces.

“This should be…”

“No, there’s still more.”

Oliver cut off Wallace and stood up.

He rolled up his sleeves and took out a paper imbued with spatial magic.

“Wallace, would you allow me to assist with your magic training for a moment?”

***

“Unbelievable! You hid such power?”

“I can feel intense rage!”

On the day Wallace decided to execute the escape, the Druid he was fighting against was shocked by the intense flames, far more powerful than before, and shouted in astonishment.