Volume 3 Chapter 184 Quest： Black Ice Sudden Rain 1️⃣
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Change a land, five kilometers wide, into a lifeless area full of wild stone pillars.
At the center, place a stone slab carved with a magic pattern that shakes the human mind and ruins their sense of direction.
Last, cover the place with mist that reaches the sky. That finishes the setup.
This is how Linca made the Stone Soldier Formation.
Anyone who steps inside will lose their sense of direction. The mist shows false images, trapping them in an endless path of stone.
Each evening, water fills the area. The lost ones drown in the swirling flood.
”Okay, I’ll place all the stone pillars I can see first,” Sarah said, standing on the rocky shore of the Nordende River, her light armor glinting in the weak sun.
”Go ahead,” Linca replied with a short nod.
”…Ha!” Sarah let out a sharp breath as she pressed her hand to the ground, magic flowing through her staff.
It was a top-grade staff, once used by the Wolfmen. Her strong magic spread fast into the ground.
With one big pulse of energy, fifty-two stone pillars burst up from the riverbank.
”The one to the front-left isn’t needed,” Linca said, pointing with her chalk. “There aren’t enough on the left side… here. Add some more. The two up front are too thick. The closer one is twenty centimeters thicker, and the far one is sixty thicker. That might show the way out, so we’ll need to fix them. Also, the cracks on their sides don’t line up. Match them with this line here. Next…”
Linca had already burned the blueprint into her memory.
She followed the 3D image of the Stone Soldier Formation that lived inside Kian’s mind. From that, he gave her step-by-step instructions for all the tiny changes.
”That pillar there,” Kian said, his voice calm, “will probably take a heavy hit if a flood comes. It’ll fall if we leave it, so the base should be fifty centimeters wider. Let’s update the design.”
”Wait,” Sarah muttered, wiping sweat off her brow. “You’re saying all this too fast.”
”Hm? Oh, sorry,” Kian said, tilting his head. “I’ll say it slow. You can work slow too. Where should I start again?”
”Can’t you see?” she asked, frowning.
”…Alright, I’ll go from the top.”
Linca’s face was tense as she moved to adjust each stone, while Sarah kept summoning more, without much care for shape or spacing.
Even though the blueprint came from her, Linca struggled to picture the whole thing.
She kept saying she needed tools to check the sizes and spots of the pillars.
In the end, Kian took over, guiding everything, stopping her from wasting time.
”Is this really following the design?” Sarah asked, watching the strange shapes rise.
”…??? Of course it is,” Linca said, blinking fast. “You drew it, didn’t you?”
”I don’t get it!” Sarah yelled, waving her arms at the rough land now packed full of pillars. Her eyes were wide, confused. “I look at all this, and nothing makes sense! Anyone who can understand it is the weird one!”
”Then how did you make battle camps before now?” Kian asked, puzzled.
”Uh… I just measured the land, drew rough lines on the dirt, and tied ropes between points…” she said, trailing off.
”Hmm.”
”It’s kind of annoying, you know?” she muttered, lips tightening.
”Jibril and Umar probably could’ve done it without much fuss,” Kian said with a shrug. “Guess it’s just a skill thing.”
”That so…?”
Linca glanced up at one of the older stone pillars, her eyes a bit cloudy, her mouth drawn tight. She didn’t look convinced.
”Keep your hands moving. We have five more spots to finish before sunset,” Kian said.
”Yes,” she replied quickly, pushing herself to keep going.
Linca kept working, adding more pillars under Kian’s steady voice.
Nearby, one of her Shikigami, a tanuki made of sand, was tossing gravel from a little pot, spreading it to rough up the ground.
(Oh… the gravel’s gone.)
The tanuki stuck a soft paw into the pot, felt nothing, and suddenly hopped into the river.
It came back with a full bucket of fine gravel from the riverbed.
But the gravel was soaked. It would clump if thrown now.
Just as Linca thought that—
Grrrrr!
The brown tanuki spun wildly in place, a fast blur kicking up sprays of water with a sloppy, wet whoosh!
(So that’s how it dries off… spinning like that.)
Linca stared, surprised that it wasn’t falling over. But there was no time to waste. She gave her next instruction.
”Next—”
”Wait, give me a break,” Sarah said, stepping back into view after about ten minutes.
She had finished her part first—setting up the mist totem and the direction-changing tablet.
The tablet looked kind of awkward and uneven, but it worked fine, so Linca allowed it.
Once the pillars were all placed, the three of them gathered at the center and buried the slab beneath the dirt.
A strange feeling touched Linca’s mind. Her vision narrowed, and shadows crept in from the corners.
She swayed slightly, eyes blinking fast.
”It’s active now,” Sarah said, her voice soft as she looked up at the sky now hidden by pale fog.
Even though they were less than fifty centimeters apart, all Linca could see was her outline.
”Yes, it’s working as planned,” Linca said with a pleased tone. “As expected, Ms. Sarah. This mist really does touch the nerves. The confusion effect is strong too.”
”So…” Sarah asked, tilting her head, “how do we leave now? Nue?”
”Ah… I can’t summon Nue anymore. My senses are too messed up. Even if I did, my power would drop fast, and the Shikigami would vanish. We can’t escape by air either. That’s why the Eight Stone Soldiers Formation is for one big finishing move.”
”Hmm. So how do we leave?”
”────────────”
”Ms. Linca?” Sarah asked, noticing her silence.
Standing on his right, Linca slowly placed her hands against her temples, her eyes shifting nervously.
”I-It wasn’t supposed to go like this…”
”…No way,” Sarah muttered, her face turning pale as he stared ahead. “You didn’t really…”
”I’m sorry,” Linca said in a small voice, fidgeting slightly. “I forgot to tie you to a tree outside with a rope…”
Sarah let out a heavy sigh.
”I guess there’s no choice then,” she said, folding her arms. “Fixing the fog totem takes too long, and it uses up too many materials. Let’s just break the stone slab and see what happens.”
”There’s no need for that,” Kian said as he stepped forward. “I can lead you all out.”
”Huh!?” Sarah raised an eyebrow. “Oh, really? If you can do that, then… good. That’s a relief.”
”This much poison won’t hurt you,” Kian said calmly, pointing ahead. “And with my strong memory and sense of space, even if your sense of direction gets all messed up, I can keep us on track.”
Even with a powerful spell, no one could get lost on a straight path with nothing in the way. Kian’s terrain might be tricky, but even so, he wouldn’t lose his way.
It was thanks to this mapping skill that he made it back faster than anyone else during the test for Lower-rank Adventurers.
Leaving Linca—who still looked confused—and Sarah—who was happily humming a tune—outside the formation, Kian led the group through the dense fog.
When they reached the tall forest beyond the mist, Linca turned around slowly and stared in disbelief.
”No way… We really made it out…”
”Nice job, Kian,” Sarah said with a smile, then turned to Linca. “Ms. Linca, I’ll help your body clear the poison. Once you’re okay, you can release Nue.”
”Ah, yes…” Linca nodded, blinking slowly. “By the way… is the formation still working fine?”
”It is,” Kian replied as he handed her a flask of water. “You couldn’t have gotten out from the inside, right?”
”So then… I guess that’s true…”
”Just a simple question,” Kian said, his brows lowering. “You said earlier that you were planning to chase Arminus inside the Stone Soldier Eight Formation too, right?”
”Yes. What about it?” Linca asked, tilting her head.
”You were affected by the formation too,” Kian said, voice low. “How do you plan to beat him like that?”
”I’ll just chase him,” Linca said plainly, narrowing her eyes. “He’ll get tired. And once I catch him, I win.”
”…For Arminus, that sounds like a nightmare,” Kian murmured, glancing away.
To keep running from Linca, someone who couldn’t be stopped even by attacks, without ever finding a way out… that would crush anyone. At some point, the Nordende River would flood the fogged area. Linca could escape using Mizuchi’s body or by slipping through gaps, but Arminus would only drown in fear.
Kian shivered. Just imagining it made his stomach feel cold.
”So to escape, we’d need to detect the stone slab and the totem using magic,” Kian said, thinking aloud. “Then break them. After that, Ms. Linca could escape too.”
”Yes,” Linca said with a nod. “That’s the plan.”
”This formation’s really something…” Kian muttered.
”Letting water monsters out might be fun,” Sarah said as she hit Linca’s back lightly. “But if anything swims out when the water’s high, it could hurt the locals. Best would be to make golems that don’t break even in a strong river, but I can’t make that many with my skill level now. So for now… I guess we give up.”
After Linca finished clearing the poison from her body, she turned to Sarah and helped her in return.
Sarah let out a strange sound—”Hnn…”—as she worked through the discomfort, her body still feeling a little off.
Later on, both Linca and Sarah started making strange comments about wanting their “penises dropped.”
”It’s starting to sound like a weird novel…” Sarah whispered as she leaned over to peek at the words written on the board, a sly smile forming.
”Getting hugged by Sir Kian! Penises dropping! Ah, such sweet words…”
”Girls don’t talk about ‘penises’ like that,” Kian said sharply.
Sarah tapped Linca’s head lightly, and Linca pressed the spot with a small “Ow.”
”I never thought I’d let Sarah read my whole diary full of embarrassing fantasies,” Linca said, cheeks flushed. “But now I kind of feel excited.”
”Please don’t!” Sarah said with a grin.
Even though Linca was clearly enjoying herself, Sarah let out a soft groan and rubbed her forehead.
’These people are seriously perverts…’ Talia muttered.
Kian looked away and sighed. You don’t say.
* * *
After that, they checked all the places planned for setting up Stone Soldier formations.
Each spot was deep in the Nordende river region where almost no one passed by.
It took about forty minutes to set up one formation.
Thanks to Nue’s speed, each location only took fifteen minutes to reach.
Even though they started in the afternoon, they finished placing all five by sunset.
They could’ve added more, but too many might hurt the nearby people, and with their next target being Pesta, it was smarter to leave time for surprises.
Once the fifth formation was done, the three of them flew far, heading to the swamp where Pesta was last seen.
During the flight, Linca kept casting walls around them, so they didn’t need to worry about wind, bugs, or falling.
Kian and the others ate simple food on Nue’s back, chatting quietly as they relaxed.
”It sounds like some borderlords will come to watch the final fight,” Sarah said as she leaned in close. “They won’t step in, and they’ll leave right away if things look bad. Some names I heard were Lord Guy of Châtillon, Ms. Priscilla, and Aisha. Ms. Priscilla might bring some familiar spirits for support, and Aisha’s bow has been taken, so maybe she’ll help from middle range.”
”This is turning into a real story…”
Sarah whispered in his ear from behind, voice soft and teasing.
He couldn’t tell if she was doing it on purpose, but her warm breath and the feeling of her chest against his back made his body tense. If he weren’t wearing Silver Ice, he might have pressed himself against Linca by accident.
”Did Princess Maribel call the borderlords here?”
”I don’t know all the details,” Sarah said. “But probably. Or maybe the council did.”
”It’s not just for show…” Kian murmured. “Still, right now, all we can do is try to save Ramsey.”
”What I want to know,” Linca said with a serious look, “is what Princess Maribel really wants.”
She paused, then continued.
”She gave the order to reveal your real self when the time’s right. Isn’t she aiming to claim not just the victory, but Sir Kian too?”
”What are you talking about?” Kian asked, blinking.
”Like, right before the battle, Princess Maribel shows up and shouts something like ‘For my life, destroy the enemy!’ and gives you a push,” Linca said, folding her arms. “Wouldn’t that kind of mean Sir Kian is working for her now?”
”Even if it looks that way, I only made a formal deal with Princess Maribel,” Kian said.
”Still,” Sarah said softly, lowering her voice, “saying something like ‘I’m not under Princess Maribel’ out loud… that’s not smart. People will hear that and think you’re strong enough to beat the Beastmen Alliance, with no one pulling your strings. It’ll draw spies from all over like moths to flame.”
”Yeah… that sounds like a huge pain,” Kian muttered, rubbing his temple.
”In the end,” Sarah said with a shrug, “it’s up to you. If you just want a peaceful life as an Adventurer, you could ask Princess Maribel to give you some quiet place.”
”But if I don’t speak up,” Kian said with a frown, “won’t she just start saying I belong to her?”
”As royalty, she might feel the need to do that,” Sarah replied with a sigh.
”In that case, since we haven’t made any real contract, I’ll just use her name to deal with any trouble that comes.”
”Then staying quiet might really be the smartest choice,” Sarah said, nodding. “As for your plans…?”
”During the Adventurer Guild’s triple point period,” Kian said calmly, “I’ll just earn as many points as I can. I want to reach Rank 4, at least among the advanced Adventurers.”
”As for me, I’m not chasing Nakash’s companions anymore. If they come to me for help, that’s different. But for now, I want to pay back those who’ve stood beside me. That means you, Natra, Rufna, and Ms. Linca. And I want to keep supporting Ms. Serena’s education too.”
”You’re really the one most serious about teaching Ms. Serena,” Kian said, his eyes softening.
”I was moved by the way she looked that day. I just felt like I had to help. And when I look back, I think it reminded me… I still want to protect people.”
Sarah said that quietly, like she was thinking of something far away.
Kian felt a smile stretch naturally across his lips.
Linca, standing nearby, also smiled gently.
After a short silence, Kian spoke again.
”Sarah, about Umar… I’ll kill him. It’s too risky to let him live, and more than that, I can’t forgive what he’s done.”
”I don’t plan on sparing him either,” Sarah said without hesitation. “He’s after your life, and Ms. Linca’s. If we want to protect everyone, we’ll have to end it with him.”
”If that’s how you feel, then I won’t stop you,” Kian said, his voice steady. “But… if the time comes when Umar has lost everything—his comrades, his wealth, even his will—when he’s no longer a threat… then you might be the only one who can see if he’s still human.”
”What are you saying?” Sarah asked, confused.
Kian waited a moment, then answered with calm eyes.
”Umar might’ve really loved you, like a father.”
”…I see…” Sarah whispered.
”If he truly cared for you to the very end… If he could show you that kind of love… then I want you to decide what’s right. I’ll accept that.”
”What do you mean by that?” Linca asked sharply, her eyebrows furrowed. “Does she see Kian as Umar’s sworn enemy?”
”Yes. That hasn’t changed,” Kian said, his tone firm. “But even so, I want Sarah to make her own choice.”
”……!”
”────!”
”I want you, the ‘Azrael Death Sword User’ with the license to kill, to judge him yourself. Unless your judgment feels completely off… I’ll respect your decision.”
’Kian, you…’ Talia’s eyes widened as she stood beside them, watching.
”I can’t judge fairly on my own,” Kian admitted. “That’s why I need you both—Sarah and Linca. Your eyes may not see everything, but they’re still better than mine for this.”
”To say something like that in your position… that’s incredible,” Linca said quietly.
”It’s not how normal people think,” Sarah said with a faint smile. “But thank you. I’ll take time to think about Umar. Once I’ve made up my mind, I’ll talk with everyone. I want you all to hear it and weigh it. Of course, you too, Kian. ──But if Umar still has the power to harm, then no question. I’ll take him down to protect everyone.”
”Well,” Kian said, sighing, “to be honest, knowing Umar Vahid, I don’t think we need to confirm anything at all.”
”Yeah… that’s true,” Sarah said.
”Indeed. He won’t change,” Linca added. “…Not till the end.”
Kian was quiet for a moment, then said,
”Still, it has to be checked. You’re his adopted daughter, Sarah.”
Sarah and Linca both fell silent.
Each seemed to be asking themselves what it meant to be who they were.
It was the kind of moment only an Azrael cleric would understand.
After a while, Kian changed the mood and spoke again.
”Anyway, if we don’t win this war and beat Umar, none of it matters.”
”Right. Isn’t he already wanted by the Izerland government? Can’t they just arrest him?” Sarah asked.
”Umar still has Ms. Katyusha, Yelmar, and Yelmar’s Head Magician,” Kian said, his eyes narrowing. “He can still move at night. I don’t think local troops will be enough.”
”Even in ruin, he was one of the Twelve Divine Generals,” Sarah said quietly.
”Yeah. He probably still has money saved too. When I saw him last, it looked like he knew he couldn’t keep wasting it anymore. So… it’s hard to guess. The guards I saw a month ago in Izerland… well, you remember their equipment. I probably shouldn’t say it out loud.”
”I guess they’ve been strengthening ever since that new tax came in,” Linca said.
”Even then, I’ve had a bad feeling,” Kian said, looking away. “If Renaud steps in, it’ll be okay. But honestly, Gao and Lucretia might not be enough. And Christy… I really hope she stays out of this. If she shows up, she might mess up worse than anyone can fix.”
”If Ms. Christy falls,” Sarah said softly, “then not just Umar, but Katyusha and Yelmar will all be killed.”
”That tax is for fighting Beastmen, right? If they spend it on my personal guards—who I won’t even move from Izerland—it’ll be a problem,” Kian muttered. “I don’t know the details about their salon, so I can’t say much.”
His expression tensed.
”I’m getting more anxious by the second,” Linca said under her breath. “──Oh, look. The marshlands are in view now.”
Linca pointed toward the far edge of the land, where the sunset turned everything purple.
The open plains ended, giving way to dried trees and a soggy field under the twilight sky. The breeze carried the sour smell of wet rot.
Kian glanced toward Linca and asked, “Could you get down for a bit? I’ll send Wing Cain ahead to scout.”
”The sun’s setting in an hour,” she said, stepping down. “Are we hunting tonight?”
”We have to,” Kian answered, staring at the swamp. The shadow of the Bloodsucking Kind was thinner than before.
They called it ‘Pesta’—a monster born from Knight Wraiths. Unlike the regular kind, it only moved at night. Natra and Rufna had fought one in the Great Forest under moonlight.
”We should be careful of sickness,” Kian warned. “Even if we don’t get hurt, I’ll clean everyone up before we leave.”
”Got it. Got it,” Sarah replied with a nod.
Nue began to descend. Kian felt his weight shift.
His view filled with the black, ooze-covered ground. The scent of swamp decay grew stronger.
* * *
While Wing Cain flew out to scout, Kian decided to show his blood-forged weapons to the others.
Sarah’s magic beetle hovered quietly with its stone.
Kian stretched out his right hand.
He had only taken three drops of Talia’s blood so far.
Even that tiny amount let the illusionary sword flicker into sight.
’Let’s go. Is that okay?’ Talia asked silently.
(Yes. I want them to know. I already showed them during the Juji fight, after all.)
The hand of the blonde girl appeared beside his, glowing faintly.
The sword’s shape sharpened in the shadows.
Kian pulled the seventh legendary demon sword free.
”……!?”
”This…! That sword from back then!”
”Magic Sword: Water Moon (Mizuki),” Kian said, drawing the red blade in one smooth motion.
When sheathed, it dissolved into a mist the color of dried blood.
”This one nullifies all long-range attacks and turns them into magic. It fires back at the target with multiple times the power. Even meteors won’t get through. If you want proof, just look at what happened during the Juji fight. I have six more swords, but tonight, I’ll use this one.”
Kian said that and reached for his third magic sword, ‘Heavenbreaker (Tenkaibaraki).’
At a glance, it looked too small to be called a sword—closer to a carving knife, flashy with big red gems set in gold. The blade shone silver with no hint of cloudiness.
”Dance, magic sword,” he whispered.
He waved it like a conductor leading an orchestra.
Blades burst into the sky, spinning silently.
Over a hundred deadly swords, each one made only to kill, floated in the twilight above him, their hilts gone.
They hung above him like stars, waiting for the signal.
”This…!” Linca said, her voice shaking.
Sarah stared at the blades in silence.
”────” Kian swung the sword once.
All at once, the swords dropped like thunder. They hammered the swamp with impossible force, twisting the land like a heavenly blow.
”I think I can control a thousand,” Kian said, eyes serious. “But I’ve only tested up to a hundred.”
”Sir Kian, what even is that weapon?” Sarah asked, stunned.
”Yes, it’s not something normal,” Linca said, her brows furrowed. “I meant to check during the Juji battle… Is that made from spirit material?”
After Heavenbreaker vanished, Kian turned to the two.
At the edge of his vision, Talia nodded with a small, ‘Good.’
But now wasn’t the time to talk about visions or emotions. They were too close to a fight. If Kian slipped, if he let himself get distracted, someone like Linca might end up needing rescue.
”I’ll explain more after we get back,” Kian said plainly. “But for now, I want to show you what I can, without causing problems.”
He pulled a pair of glasses from his pocket—the ones he hadn’t used in a while.
He handed them to Linca. She had the skill ‘Penetration,’ allowing her to see through objects.
As the two childhood friends looked on, Kian kept his words simple.
”It all started three months ago,” he said, “at a food stall in the East End slums. That’s when I bought these glasses… from a spirit of Black Onyx.”
Notes:
• Linca – Jibril’s favorite girl. High-ranking warrior monk woman from Shin, with strong abilities like ignoring attacks and poisons.
• Nue – A Shikigami summoned by Linca. It has the appearance of a monster with a tiger’s limbs and a monkey’s head. Nue is a powerful but dangerous creature that requires a skilled magician to control.
• Arminus – Male. Leader of the Black Panther Tribe. Possesses extraordinary physical abilities, enhanced by the tribe’s unique technique that repels energy and magic attacks. His speed and strength surpass those of High Warlord Isthbaran. Wields the magic sword Balmung, capable of cleaving through an ice dragon with a single strike. His black fur provides camouflage in low visibility, making him nearly undetectable. Relationship: Leader of the Beastmen Alliance’s delegation.
• Serena – Wolfmen Girl
• Katyusha – A female warrior monk of the black panther race and a follower of Abbas Hashmalik Shakerdoust.
• Mag – The wolfwoman under Yelmar—the one who was caught by Kian’s group earlier.
• Juji – Male. Leader of the Wolfmen’s ‘Jinsou’. A skilled warrior with sharp senses and combat abilities. Relationship: Part of the Beastmen Alliance’s delegation.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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