The Opportunity in the Game Becomes Reality, Chapter 33
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The Opportunity in the Game Becomes Reality, Chapter 33
11. The Archmage Adrian (2)
The Marquis of Ereiven was a great lord who possessed one major city, three ordinary cities, and three border fortresses.
Militarily, he owned as many as six Sky Fortresses and had 300 Vanguards, making him a hegemon with no rival in his region, a title he more than deserved.
Considering that the maximum military strength an ordinary county could possess was capped at three Sky Fortresses and 100 Vanguards, the Marquis of Ereiven's military strength was 2.5 to 3 times that of an ordinary county.
No, in reality, counties that maintained troops up to that cap were few and far between, so the Marquis of Ereiven's military power could be considered more than three times that of an ordinary county.
That was why calling him a regional hegemon was by no means an exaggeration.
"How much longer until the troops deploy?"
"At the very least, another hour will be needed."
Even for the Marquis of Ereiven, the number of troops that could be mobilized immediately without prior notice was inevitably limited.
200 Vanguards, and one Sky Fortress.
That was about 40 percent of his total forces.
But even with just this much, he was confident he wouldn't lose to an ordinary county.
Since 50 Vanguards were considered roughly equivalent to one Sky Fortress, this was effectively the same as deploying five Sky Fortresses.
"Can't we go a bit faster?"
"We'll do our best to cut down the time."
But war wasn't something you could rush into the moment your troops were ready.
The distance from the Ereiven territory to the Lawrence territory was over 400km, so preparations accordingly were necessary.
After all, wasn't the key to this operation the element of surprise?
But moving on the ground using transport vehicles carrying the massive Sky Fortresses and troops would be nothing short of announcing "we're coming to attack now."
For the operation to succeed, all troops had to be moved via "spatial transportation."
Therefore, immediately deploying forces that included the Sky Fortresses was inevitably difficult.
"These bastards aren't hiding out somewhere, are they?"
"If that were the case, they wouldn't have provoked us in the first place."
"That's true."
The Marquis of Ereiven recalled the video Adrian had uploaded.
That bold provocation.
"As an elder, I must teach this reckless brat a lesson."
He wouldn't be satisfied until he had carved into the very bones of that person just who exactly he had dared to touch, and just how foolish his actions were.
For him, thoroughly educating Adrian was the primary objective, while rescuing his daughter Anna and grandson Cedric had become the secondary objective.
-Clack. Clack.
Thus, the Marquis stood atop the 80-story lord's castle building, gazing at the 200 Vanguards lined up in formation and the Sky Fortresses beyond them, stroking his lion-like, thick brown-furred chin.
"Your Excellency! Your Excellency!"
But that was when it happened.
One of the Marquis of Ereiven's secretaries came rushing over urgently, drawing the attention of the Vanguards and workers.
The Marquis of Ereiven clicked his tongue at the sight of him flustered.
"P-please look at this video."
"Another video, what now?"
And once again, the secretary abruptly brought up a holographic window, insisting he watch the video, and the moment the Marquis, who had been giving him a displeased look, checked its contents, his expression changed.
[I am announcing this today, through this occasion.]
It was footage of a press conference.
However, the background didn't appear to be the Kingdom of Rhinehearts, because behind the woman in her early twenties conducting the press conference hung a flag with a red moon on a deep blue background, along with a familiar hexagram crest.
"The Riverdale Ducal House?"
That was indeed the symbol of the Riverdale Ducal House, which was as famous as the royal family itself in the Kingdom of Rusias.
Furthermore, as if to prove that the Marquis of Ereiven's eye for detail was correct, a helpful subtitle appeared beside the woman's face.
-Duchess Olivia Riverdale.
It was a very helpful subtitle informing everyone who the star of the press conference was.
But the problem here was...
"Why is that brat Adrian here?"
For some reason, Adrian was standing right beside such a celebrity.
And as Duchess Riverdale's announcement continued, the Marquis of Ereiven had to press a hand to his forehead.
[I am officially announcing that Viscount's son Adrian Lawrence, the disciple of my father and former Duke Riverdale, has become a 7-circle Archmage at the age of 20.] ## New Terms 루시아스 왕국 = Kingdom of Rusias 리버데일 공작가 = Riverdale Ducal House 올리비아 리버데일 = Olivia Riverdale ```
At Duchess Olivia Riverdale's announcement, the reporters at the press conference, who had no idea why they'd been summoned, gasped in shock, and questions poured out from all directions.
But Duchess Riverdale completely ignored the reporters' questions and continued speaking.
[He is a once-in-a-generation magical genius, and a talent we believe is certain to achieve the 8th circle. Our Riverdale School will do everything in our power to support him and will spare no effort in aiding his growth.]
It was a move one step ahead, as if she had read the Marquis of Ereiven's mind.
With this, removing Adrian without consequences had become difficult.
Trying to eliminate Adrian and then claim he had never been an Archmage in the first place was no longer viable, because the figure who had vouched for him on the other side was simply too significant.
"Of all people, Riverdale. If this happens, the royal family will surely step in."
"...."
Their opponent was none other than the Riverdale family, who had produced no fewer than seven Archmages.
This announcement was more than enough to wash away all doubts about Adrian in one stroke.
From the mouth of Duchess Olivia Riverdale herself—who had been hailed as a once-in-a-generation genius for achieving the 7th circle at the age of 22—the word "genius" had come out without hesitation.
Naturally, the royal family would not want Adrian's talent to be snuffed out.
In this situation, striking at Adrian would likely bring accountability not just from public opinion, but from the royal family as well.
Moreover, the royal family wasn't the only problem...
[Should anyone attempt to harm him, please bear in mind that you will be making an enemy of our Riverdale School.]
There was no way he could fail to realize that Duchess Riverdale's threat was directed straight at him.
Looking at Adrian's flustered expression in the footage, one could tell that this line hadn't been arranged beforehand.
After the short press conference ended, the comments beneath the video caught the eye.
-If he's a disciple of the former Duke Riverdale, then even such an absurd level of attainment makes sense.
-That man could probably turn any disciple, no matter what circumstances they're in, into an Archmage.
-Lol, what's the Marquis of Ereiven going to do now?
-Right, he can't just recklessly make a move anymore.
-Surely he wouldn't want to make an enemy of Riverdale.
Had there ever been a moment recently as infuriating as this one?
Adrian's provocation had already made him angry, but now, with the frustration surging up from deep in his chest, the Marquis of Ereiven had no choice but to let out a furious roar.
"Damn it!"
Thanks to that, the subordinates preparing for deployment on the rooftop of the lord's castle all flinched, shoulders hunching in unison.
Most of them were knights, but even so, nothing frightened them more than the Marquis of Ereiven's wrath.
"The deployment must be halted."
The advisors feared the Marquis of Ereiven just as much, but even in this situation, making the right call was their role.
At that, the marquis, seething with rage, turned his murderous glare toward them.
"No. We deploy as planned."
"What?"
But what followed was an order that made the advisors doubt their own ears.
"Didn't you hear me? We're moving as planned."
"But surely, the royal family will..."
"What about the royal family? Did they somehow find out about our deployment and issue an order not to attack the Lawrence territory?"
"That's not it, but the risk afterward is far too great."
"It's fine. As long as we achieve our goal, we can smooth it over one way or another."
Of course, smoothing things over without any damage would be difficult.
No matter how powerful the marquis's authority was, he couldn't simply brush off the royal family's wrath as if it were nothing.
But he judged that even if the immediate damage was severe, if he could seize the Lawrence territory through Anna, in the long run he could reap gains far exceeding the losses suffered today.
"Your Excellency, behind Adrian Lawrence stands the Riverdale School as well."
"They're foreigners anyway. It doesn't matter."
The advisors realized it.
That the marquis's words right now were nothing more than excuses.
He was merely attaching reasons after the fact to justify the goal he had already set: eliminating Adrian.
It was a kind of self-rationalization.
"When did this press conference take place?"
"About an hour ago."
"And Adrian has returned to his territory?"
"Yes, that's correct."
"Good. Adrian is probably feeling relieved, thinking we won't be able to touch him now—so the element of surprise should work brilliantly."
They knew in their hearts that they should stop him, but not a single one of them could bring themselves to hold the marquis back.
Now that he had said this much, they realized there was nothing more they could do.
"We must finish preparations and deploy as quickly as possible. Understood?"
"Yes, we'll pick up the pace on the preparations even further." ## New Terms 로렌스 영지 = Lawrence territory 리버데일 학파 = Riverdale School 세드릭 = Cedric
The staff officers meekly bowed their heads.
All they could do was hope that the royal family would move quickly to protect both Adrian and Arcia.
-Whooosh!
As if mocking these people's worries, in the orange sky where the sun had begun to set, a single 'black eagle' soared leisurely, surveying Marquis Raven's lord's castle.
* * *
At the moment Adrian had just returned to his territory after finishing a press conference in the Kingdom of Lucias.
"The, the criminals have escaped!"
The Lawrence territory was thrown into chaos.
The reason was that Anna and Cedric, who should have been rotting in the castle's underground prison, had vanished just three hours after being detained.
"Damn it! Even in this situation, is there some fool still loyal to those two wretches!?"
"Those two might still be hiding here somewhere. You all search this area. I'll go up and request search forces."
"Understood."
If those two disappeared for good, a troublesome situation was bound to occur.
Then Adrian's wrath would pour down upon the knights and soldiers responsible for the castle's security.
In the past, they would have scoffed at Adrian's wrath and brushed it off, but now they couldn't do that.
Because he was the disciple of the famous Duke Riverdale, and the fifth Archmage of this nation.
Thanks to that, the faces of the knights and soldiers in the security detail had gone pale.
"Did you inform the young lord and Lady Arcia?"
Originally, "young lord" referred to Cedric, but they used the title for Adrian without any hesitation.
"It seems he stepped out for a moment. He's nowhere to be seen."
"Should I call this fortunate or not."
But no matter how sharply they searched, Anna and Cedric could not be found.
While the guards were stamping their feet in frustration, at that very moment.
"Huff. Huff."
Anna and Cedric, having successfully escaped the prison, had reached the tower at the very top of the lord's castle, accompanied by three knights.
Directly above the tower floated an artificial island with a massive body...
Its true identity was none other than Rondel's finest strategic weapon, the 'Sky Fortress.'
"At this rate, even if I live, it won't really be living. Father surely won't let this slide."
"Mother, are you really going to do this?"
"Then are you saying we should just sit here and take it!?"
"N-no. I don't want that either."
"Then stop talking back and follow me."
In Anna's hand was a small key—the administrator seal that controlled the Lawrence territory's Sky Fortress.
The Lawrence territory's Sky Fortress was an old model, purchased secondhand from the Raven territory, Anna's family home, as a unit scheduled for decommissioning.
When Marquis Raven had all but forced the Sky Fortress onto the Lawrence territory, he attached one condition.
That condition was that Anna be registered as the final administrator of the Sky Fortress.
Since this was a one-sided demand made under coercion, Viscount Lawrence hadn't dared to refuse.
Thanks to this, the Lawrence territory had a Sky Fortress guarding its skies—a rare sight for a viscounty—but it could hardly be considered the lord's own possession.
-Click.
Anna raised the seal high and pressed her thumb against the gem at the center of the key.
A message appeared before her eyes asking if she wished to board the Sky Fortress, and Anna immediately selected the boarding option.
-Fwip!
Following that, like a UFO abducting a human, a blue light poured down from the Sky Fortress, enveloping the mother and son along with the three knights who had helped them escape.
Their surroundings changed in an instant.
The dizzying view of the tower had transformed into the interior of the Sky Fortress, filled with all kinds of equipment.
"I will absolutely kill that lowborn wretch."
Anna and Cedric had stormed the Sky Fortress for one single goal.
It wasn't for a siege or an escape, but to blow up the lord's castle below.
More precisely, they intended to eliminate everyone inside the castle in one strike.
Once Viscount Lawrence, Adrian, and Adrian's mother Sylvia were gone, the reason for their own confinement would vanish as well.
That was why they had made this extreme choice, aiming for a single decisive reversal.
"Fools, you should have checked where the Sky Fortress's key was hidden first."
Anna smirked and inserted the authentication key into the top of the captain's seat.
[Verifying seal.]
[Verification complete.]
[Confirming administrator biometric data.]
[Confirmation complete.]
[Voice verification.]
"Anna Lawrence."
[Verification complete.]
[The current administrator's biorhythm is unstable. Are you perhaps attempting to activate the Sky Fortress under threat from an enemy?]
"No."
[Verifying truthfulness. Confirmation complete.]
[Sky Fortress 'Janette' is switching to normal mode. Welcome back, Administrator.]
And Anna shouted, filled with venom.
"Prepare the main cannon Firestorm! Target: Lord Lawrence's castle! As soon as preparations are complete, fi—"
"Stop, right there!"
But her shout was cut off just before the command could be completed.
It was because a man's hand, appearing as if color had bled into an empty space that had been nothing before, clamped over her mouth.
Anna was startled as if she'd seen a ghost.
"That was exactly as expected, without the slightest deviation. Thank you for releasing the Sky Fortress's security."
The one who had clamped Anna's mouth shut was none other than Adrian.
"Kheuk...."
"Gah!"
At the same time, Cedric and the three knights were sent flying and slammed into the inner wall of the Sky Fortress.
Adrian wasn't the only one who had been hiding inside the Sky Fortress.
Arcia appeared right after him, having subdued Cedric and the knights.
"Attempting to bomb the lord's castle with the Sky Fortress—your crimes just keep piling up."
The grip of Adrian's hand over her mouth was unnaturally strong for a mage, and pain surged through her as if her jaw would be torn off.
Because of that, Anna couldn't help but shed a few tears.
But at Adrian's next words, she opened her eyes wide and struggled desperately.
"It seems the Marquis of Ereiven's soldiers will storm in within the hour. I believe Aunt and Brother should sacrifice yourselves to protect the territory."
Adrian had already grasped the entire situation regarding the Marquis of Ereiven and had even set countermeasures in place.
And though she couldn't know exactly what those countermeasures entailed, if she had any sense at all, Anna couldn't help but realize she herself would be used for it.