A Returner’s Magic Should Be Special - Chapter 223

“What was that noise?”

Back in the conference hall .

The atmosphere had quickly morphed into one of chaos .

“It was small… but it was definitely an explosion . ”

“Oh dear… again?”

The kings were busy discussing the blasts they had heard .

The Great Council had come to a standstill .

It wasn’t just a single blast . There were a few more in quick succession .

Although they weren’t very large or noisy, the effect it had on the conference was not small .

“It might be another terrorist attack . Let’s gather all of the reserve forces and take precautions… ”

“We cannot move that many forces based on such an unknown . We need to investigate properly first . ”

The people in the Western Kingdom Union were already extremely sensitive due to the terrorist attack last year .

They all strongly reacted to the sound, albeit each king had strong opinions on what should be done next .

Soldiers from each country started to move, and people prepared themselves to escape as the confusion grew .

To say there was a disturbance would be underselling it greatly . The council that was in full swing was abruptly cut off .

“Everyone please calm down . ”

The facilitator of the Great Council, the King of Divide, spoke up .

While every public figure and king that made up the Western Kingdom Union was feeling uneasy, the King of Divide, Clora Valdersch looked unusually calm .

“I understand your concern, but it’s certainly not an act of terrorism . I’ve already received word that the blast was just a normal accident . ”

At his announcement, the air in the Great Council calmed down .

They had at least stopped talking about it frantically .

“What do you mean by a normal accident?”

Clora answered the question raised .

“There seems to be trouble at our magical armaments factory . We’re trying to figure out what happened too, and will let you know as this investigation is underway . But I can assure you that there is nothing to be concerned about . ”

The King’s unphased tone made people dubious, but they had no choice but to believe him .

He was the facilitator of this meeting afterall .

Moreover, the blasts had stopped .

One extra-paranoid and skeptical member of the council spoke up .

“Just in case, let’s confirm it for ourselves . Zod Exarion, could you check if there is any active magic near us?”

Zod took a moment to confirm this before speaking .

“… Except for defensive magic, there is no other magic inside the palace . ”

“Well, does everyone feel relieved now?”

The stir finally died down .

The safety of the palace, and more importantly the Great Council inside it, which would be the first target of any terrorist, had been confirmed . Zod Exarion, who held the highest authority as far as magic was concerned, had verified it himself .

“Okay then, let’s continue the Great Council . ”

However, Desir did not naively trust what Clora had said .

‘It cannot be a mere accident . ’

As Desir reached that conclusion, he requested his Side Guard investigate the cause .

It didn’t take long before they reported back on what they found .

[-Sir Desir, we managed to track down the source of the noise as you requested . It came from the tower . Lady Swan is currently locked in combat with an enemy force inside . ]

It was the tower that he had sent his forces into to collect information .

The noises they heard all the way over in the palace were the aftermath from the battle underway inside the tower .

“Even if they had reserve forces, they would be no match for Lady Swan . ”

Honestly speaking, this was an unexpected turn of events . He didn’t expect there to be a battle in the first place .

[-B-But, there was an ambush hidden inside . Lady Swan is unable to escape, even now . She appears to be struggling . ]

‘An enemy that Swan struggles with… ?’

He thought no matter how strong the enemy was, it shouldn’t have been a difficult task for Swan to control them, if not flee from them .

That was why he sent Swan, even though there was a high degree of danger involved .

‘Was there someone protecting the tower who could face Swan on equal terms?’

As far as Desir knew, there were only a few people with such abilities in Divide, no, across the entire continent .

“How are things progressing right now?”

[-I can’t say it’s going well . ]

The member of the Side Guard proceeded to communicate what information they had gathered and what was unfolding in front of him . Although he had limited information, and he couldn’t see what was happening inside the tower, he still flawlessly communicated every detail he could observe .

As Desir predicted, the tower was a facility for the mass manufacturing of chimeras .

Swan had even succeeded in gathering substantial evidence of chimera production while infiltrating .

But that wasn’t what caught Desir’s attention .

Swan had caused so much destruction on her own . Despite how intensely she had fought, there wasn’t much damage to the tower’s structure itself . Even if it was a facility for mass manufacturing chimeras, such a structure should not have been able to endure her aura .

That was more than substantial proof enough that there was more to this tower than met the eye . The tower was not simply made for manufacturing chimeras, but must also be hiding something else .

This was a pretty important piece of information on its own .

‘If it wasn’t built to manufacture chimera, those Outsiders must be preparing something else… ’

At the moment, he wasn’t entirely sure what that could be .

Unfortunately, that train of thought had to be relegated to the backburner . Trumping all other concerns now was Swan’s safety, not the information that the Outsiders had gone to such great lengths to hide .

‘They are hiding something else . ’

Swan saw through their efforts to conceal it, realizing that there was another purpose for the building beyond just the manufacturing of chimeras . It was only after she attempted to figure out what it was that she got locked into a clash with an unknown enemy .

“The information we have is enough for now, we must retreat before it gets any more dangerous . All of the Side Guard… ”

[-Sir Desir, all direct and indirect interference with those inside the tower is being hampered . Not to mention any form of communication we have tried has been cut off . The information I gave you was delivered to me before the communication was disconnected . ]

“Then not even a single Side Guard has come out so far?”

[-That’s right . It’s impossible for us to know what’s happening inside . ]

It had been a while since the communication embargo had been set up . But one thing was clear .

‘Until now… the battle has been under way . ’

Although there was no longer any noise, it was odd that nobody came out . Desir hoped that the Outsiders had invoked soundproofing magic to calm the Great Council attendees, or to try and cover up what was happening . Because if not…

‘If not… Then Swan has been defeated . ’

That was the worst case possible .

As much as he hated it, it was a possibility that Desir couldn’t ignore .

‘If… the Outsiders fully mobilized… ’

* * *

Today, the mice will not survive, not even one .

* * *

Desir could not help recalling the words that the King of Divide so maliciously spat at him .

Though he had relied heavily on Swan, it was still an extremely dangerous operation . He was naive for putting the full weight of it on her shoulders, forcing her to cope alone .

‘I need to help Swan . ’

Meanwhile, the Great Council was drawing to an end . All attendees were satisfied that they had been able to express their opinions on the topics that mattered most to them . As all of the critical items on the agenda had been discussed near the beginning of the council, there was no longer any need to stay .

Desir spoke quietly to Zod .

“Sir Zod, I have an urgent matter I need to deal with quickly regarding the tower . If the King of Divide or his soldiers seem to move strangely… ”

“Don’t worry . I’ll watch them thoroughly . Leave this place to me . ”

Reading Desir’s tense face, Zod somewhat guessed the circumstances and let Desir go without asking him why .

“Yes, I will also do my best . ”

If anything were to happen to those gathered in the council room, powerful individuals like Priscilla and Zod were already present . In addition, there were plenty of troops ready to defend each king, so they could surely handle any situation that cropped up without Desir .

All he had left to do was to go to the tower and help Swan .

Desir wasn’t going there alone obviously .

It was guaranteed that the Outsiders would be waiting for them, fully prepared .

“If I could, I would bring all of our forces . ”

It was clear that a considerable number of people had been stationed at the tower by the Outsiders .

However, even if he wanted to move the troops they brought from the Magic Tower, he couldn’t . He couldn’t afford to draw the Western Kingdom Union’s attention quite yet . If he was caught investigating Divide illegally, it would damage not only Desir’s reputation but also the Empire’s . Though Swan had found overwhelming proof of illegal activity within Divide, it wasn’t clearly connected to the Outsiders, and Desir had nothing physical to sway them with . .

So he could only move a small number of elite personnel .

And there was only one group of people meeting that criteria .

The Starling Party .

He tried his best to avoid putting them in danger, but he had no other choice in a situation like this .

“So… ”

“What’s happened now?”

Romantica lay into Desir, while invading his personal space .

She took a step forward, her accusatory glare cleanly penetrating his conscience .

Desir lowered his head .

“… I’m sorry to drag you all into this . ”

“It happens all the time . We can help you if it’s something you need, Sir Desir . ”

They were rather happy to have Desir’s trust .

‘… I have often been too harsh on them . ’

They seemed to have already forgotten those things .

Desir was left with a warm feeling, after hearing and seeing their reactions .

“It’s going to be a tough battle, so pull yourselves together . ”

As Desir solemnly spoke, he looked back in the room that the Great Council was being held in . He had felt a pair of eyes on him .

The King of Divide, who was busy leading the council as facilitator, looked his way .

It was a very brief moment .

Desir felt like the King was grinning .

It was an incredibly unpleasant smile .