The Northern Grand Duke’s Crazy Son-in-Law

32. Capable

“······Where are you going?”

“You’ve become curt, Sir Gilbert,”

Ahem, Gilbert coughed lightly.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“To the Demon Realm.”

“Are you crazy? Do you even know what kind of place that is?”

“Do you think I’m you? Since it’s the Demon Realm, it must be a place where demons live.”

Gilbert swallowed his anger.

The Demon Realm was a place that was lacking in explanations of its dangers.

Even in the First Legion, only Adrianna’s direct subordinates were permitted to go to the Demon Realm.

As soon as you entered the Demon Realm, your breath would catch in your throat.

It was the first time a magician had ever gone to such a dangerous place.

Even though Galahad had caught demons twice before.

‘Come to think of it, he is good at catching demons?’

Galahad caught demons better than most knights.

“I guess it’ll be fine.”

Gilbert nodded.

“I think so too.”

“Did Lady Adrianna give you permission? She’s like a sword when it comes to the Demon Realm.”

“She said it’s fine. It’s our first date.”

Gilbert chuckled at Galahad’s joke.

A date to the Demon Realm. Even for Galahad, that was ridiculous.

“······Did she really say that?”

“She was embarrassed and kept denying it. She asked me to buy some food from Tom.”

Gilbert, who had opened his mouth to say something, quickly shut it. He wasn’t going to talk to someone who wouldn’t listen anyway.

“You won’t be able to eat there anyway. It’s full of ash.”

“Ash? But I saw Adrianna cleaning it up yesterday.”

“That may be true, but… Captain, what do you think of Lady Adrianna? No, don’t answer that.”

Gilbert shook his head in a panic. It would only hurt him to hear something blasphemous.

“Then let’s get going.”

Gilbert silently grabbed his sword. Galahad picked up the bundle that Tom had made for him.

It was before sunrise, the darkest time of day.

When they arrived, everything was already prepared. They had arrived on time, expecting to leave at sunrise, but they felt like they were late.

“Sir Gilbert, you’re late.”

“What the-.”

“It’s fine. We just finished preparing a little early.”

Adrianna said nonchalantly. The atmosphere of the men behind her remained the same.

“What’s that?”

Adrianna asked, pointing to the bundle in Galahad’s hand.

“Lunch.”

“It’ll be difficult to eat anything inside. There’s a lot of ash.”

“I’ll stick to you and eat, so it’ll be fine.”

“······Yes, I understand.”

Adriana gestured, and the preparations were quickly completed.

The others retreated to the sides.

“It looks like Lady Adriana put together a team of less aggressive individuals, keeping you in mind.”

Gilbert said, indicating the remaining men.

‘That so?’

Certainly, their gazes were softer than that woman, Mardian. However, an ominous aura still permeated the air.

Including the men on Galahad’s side, there were ten in total.

Although the sun had yet to rise, soldiers and knights had come out to align themselves in formation.

Boooom—! The sound of a horn pierced through the darkness. Boom, boom, the sound of a drum shook the earth. The soldiers raised their hands in a powerful salute.

“We shall depart.”

Adriana took the lead. Galahad followed right behind Adriana. The other knights formed a circle around him as if escorting him. Gilbert blended into their midst with ease.

Boooom—!! The sound of the horn echoed deeply once more. The darkness that had settled in began to recede gradually. Boom, boom. The sound of the drum echoed like a heartbeat.

“Heave!”

A knight shouted. The soldiers cracked their whips, and the oxen let out a long cry. The pulleys screeched as they turned. The iron bars rose one by one.

Soon, the city gate came into view. It creaked as it slowly opened.

From between the open gates, smoke made of ash stretched out like a grasping hand.

Confronting it head-on, the feeling was different.

“You’re trembling.”

“You may turn back now if you wish.”

Adriana said, looking back at Galahad. The surrounding knights chuckled.

Judging from the ridicule etched on their faces, it seemed they thought Galahad was afraid.

‘Afraid—’

It was something only someone ignorant of mages could say.

The blood of the mazoku contained concentrated mana. The strange powers wielded by the mazoku seemed to be the origin of magic.

It wasn’t for nothing that magic was called the filth of the mazoku.

Therefore, for a mage to enter the mazoku’s domain was like a priest visiting a holy land.

This trembling was not out of fear.

“I’m trembling with anticipation.”

At Galahad’s reply, Adriana’s eyebrows raised slightly.

“Isn’t this our first date?”

“······I believe I said no.”

Adriana’s eyes widened slightly. At his cold refusal, Galahad let out a chuckle.

As expected, she was a woman who didn’t understand jokes.

Boom—! The sound of the drum echoed once more.

The city gate swung wide open. Smoke billowed out, revealing a jet-black, rotten land—it was like the gates to hell.

“Please, go ahead.”

“I shall trust in you alone.”

Adriana nodded and moved forward.

The thickly laid ash parted as if in fear of Adriana. The jet-black, rotten land clung to his feet. The stench of rotten eggs filled the air.

They had officially entered the mazoku’s domain.

The knights who had been glaring at Galahad until just now focused on the boundary. Tension was palpable. Gilbert’s expression was also grave.

“This is the territory of the demons.”

Instead of tension, Galahad felt a deep curiosity.

After all, what he was most curious about was the mana concentration here. The mana concentration had been high in the north, but what about this place where the demons resided?

Galahad snapped his fingers, but no mana arrow was created. It was because the mana had been dispersed in the middle.

“The mana concentration here is ridiculous.”

Galahad exclaimed in a small voice.

He had only crossed one wall, but the concentration had increased sharply.

“This is the territory of the demons.”

In order to manifest magic, the concentration of the caster’s mana had to be higher than the surrounding mana.

This was because mana flowed from low to high places. If the mana concentration was lower than the surroundings, the mana would become unstable and the magic itself would be nullified. Just like before.

With this level of mana concentration, it was impossible to cast magic with ordinary mana compression.

It was clear that even a decent magician wouldn’t dare try to cast magic here.

The mana concentration was that thick.

However, Galahad was no ordinary magician.

Moreover, he had the highly concentrated mana from the Seed of Agony.

He adjusted the concentration and flicked his finger, and a mana arrow appeared. Thanks to the dense concentration, it had a considerable presence even though it was a mana arrow.

“Good. I’m glad I came.”

Galahad smiled with satisfaction.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m very good.”

Galahad smiled brightly at Adrianna.

Adrianna squinted for a moment before nodding.

“Bravado.”

One of the knights muttered, but Galahad was in such a good mood that he didn’t mind.

Just then, a thunderous roar was heard from somewhere.

“It’s coming.”

Adrianna drew her sword.

A white, dazzling aura filled the air, instantly sweeping away the surrounding ash. It was an overwhelming pressure.

“Whoa.”

That thing would melt away the moment it touched me.

Feeling an instinctive revulsion, Galahad found himself taking a step back.

As the smoke parted, a giant claw emerged. It was so large and sharp that each individual claw looked like a sharp dagger.

The momentum of the claws was incredible. Such a threatening attack had come from out of nowhere, but Adrianna nonchalantly received it with her sword.

The beast’s foot was cleanly severed. Adrianna’s sword, imbued with a white aura, had sliced through the giant foot as easily as if it were a block of tofu.

The giant foot, which was as large as the upper body of an average man, floated into the air. No blood spurted from the severed area.

It crumbled into ash in an instant, as if it had touched a high-temperature flame.

Adrianna’s sword, which had lightly cut off the giant foot, continued smoothly.

The form of the beast was revealed. It was a hideous creature with the face of an insect and the body of a bear. Adrianna’s sword sliced deeply into its chest.

Just once.

Adriana shook the sword as if that was enough.

The monster’s movement stopped. A clean line was drawn on its chest. The scar opened rapidly as if dry grass was set on fire.

The monster let out a terrible scream. It was a scream so painful that it made one’s hair stand on end for no reason.

The monster twisted its body violently. Ashes were constantly scattered from the opened scar. It felt as if its very existence was disappearing as its soul burned.

‘The monster is in pain?’

Galahad muttered softly.

Soon, the monster collapsed. Its form crumbled into ashes.

“Are you okay?”

Adriana looked after Galahad instead. Galahad nodded with effort to Adriana, who was unruffled.

‘If this goes wrong, it will be a real disaster.’

Galahad touched his neck for no reason.

Then, he suddenly found a problem.

‘There’s no blood left.’

Adriana’s sword burned the monster to ashes. Not a single drop of blood remained.

There were various curiosities about following the demons’ territory, but the main goal was the demons’ blood.

Since there was an egg of pain, he planned to drink as much of the demons’ blood as possible during this opportunity.

He had even borrowed water bottles from Tom for that purpose, but it seemed like Adriana had turned everything into ashes.

A major goal was disappearing.

In a state of emptiness, Galahad’s head spun quickly.

‘The mana concentration is high, so it’s a little difficult, but if I use it—.’

He came up with a way to find the demons.

‘I have to catch it.’

Galahad nodded.

****

From noble mtl dot com

‘You’re scared, aren’t you?’

Robert, Adriana’s personal guard, lightly teased Galahad, whose expression was serious.

The demons and monsters in the demons’ territory were different from the monsters and demons below. It wasn’t called the demons’ territory for nothing.

Demons and monsters became monstrously strong in their own territory.

It was obvious that he had been bragging about catching some monsters and demons below, but he was scared after meeting a monster in the territory.

‘So that’s how it is—.’

It was obvious that he was bluffing. Robert exchanged glances with the knights. They all had smirks on their faces.

Then, he looked at Adriana and asked.

“Are you walking around like this on purpose?”

“What do you mean?”

“Aren’t you uncomfortable because of the ashes? Can I get rid of them?”

The monster, who had been quiet for a while, started to bluff again.

The ashes were much lighter thanks to Adriana. He wondered if he was uncomfortable with this much—. Robert clicked his tongue softly.

“Yes, we would appreciate it if you could get rid of them.”

Adriana nodded.

“Gently swaying grass, soft breeze, strong wind, typhoon.”

He mumbled something strange. Robert focused on him without realizing, feeling a strange sense of pressure from him.

He waved his hand. Unlike the grand gesture, it was just a small breeze.

‘As expected…’

When Robert was muttering softly.

“Wow.”

Adrianna exclaimed. Adrianna, who rarely expressed her emotions, was making a great expression with her exclamation.

‘What the?’

Robert turned his head and opened his mouth wide.

The smoke around him was being pushed away as if a strong typhoon had hit.

His vision cleared.

‘Is… Is this magic?’

The smoke caused by the ashes was the greatest danger in the Demon Realm.

The pungent smoke irritated the nerves just by inhaling it. Moreover, it was impossible not to be tense because you never knew when or where the demons would attack. Because of that, fatigue quickly accumulated.

He swept away the smoke, which was the biggest obstacle in the Demon Realm, with a wave of his hand.

“Can other wizards do this?”

Adrianna asked, looking at him.

“No, only I can. Oh, the Archmage might be able to do it.”

“I see. That’s amazing.”

“I’m an amazing wizard.”

Robert frowned at Galahad’s arrogant words.

To think that magic could be used this way. It was a method he had never thought of before.

No, he had never brought a wizard in the first place.

“The monsters are coming.”

Adrianna said, adjusting her sword.

The approaching monsters were clearly visible. Their hideous forms were clearly revealed. Rather, the tension eased.

What you can see, you can block. The scary thing was the invisible claws.

Robert adjusted his sword. His aura burned fiercely.

The battle began, led by Adrianna.

Although they couldn’t compare to Adrianna, they were also elites. In Robert’s case, he was a talent who had even refused the position of deputy commander of another battalion.

The battle was going surprisingly smoothly.

There was only one reason.

‘It’s because he secured my vision.’

He had no choice but to admit it.

With his vision secured, the battle was much easier than before.

The monsters were sinister bastards who attacked from the fog, but with the fog cleared away, it was bound to be easier than before.

Adrianna’s movements were particularly free.

It was almost too flashy.

It was absurd, even though it was still early.

‘This is…’

Robert gulped and looked around.

Everyone had similar expressions.

What is this… What is this… This is strange.

It was surprising that he had dispelled the smokescreen, but Galahad didn’t stop there.

“I think there is something over there.”

Galahad said, suddenly pointing in one direction.

“How did you know?”

“I scattered mana while applying the Mana Arrow, but there was no reaction from over there. It is a possible method for the mana concentration to be high for a demon beast.”

He indicated the direction with a strange sound.

Everyone nodded because they could see what he was showing them.

And when they arrived at the location-.

“Finally, it’s a demon beast.”

There were real demon beasts.

Unlike monsters that rushed in recklessly, demon beasts were insidious beings that waited for an opportunity.

Because of that, finding demon beasts was quite a difficult task.

To find such demon beasts-.

“You’re amazing.”

Robert nodded at Adrianna’s exclamation.

To catch a demon beast, you had to go around quite a bit. But he had found the demon beast exactly and even dispelled the fog.

This was just-.

‘A free meal.’

The expression was extreme, but there was no expression that was as appropriate.

Robert pressed his lips together.

At that moment, he put a cigarette in his mouth and smiled.

“Just like you are beautiful, I am also amazing.”

It was an unfortunate answer, but he couldn’t deny it.

He was amazing.

“Prepare yourselves.”

Although they were lower-level demon beasts, there were quite a few of them.

Demon beasts were opponents you couldn’t let your guard down against, regardless of their level.

Led by Adrianna, the battle began.

Before, they had been in the position of being attacked, but now they were in the position of attacking.

The first strike was quite important in a battle.

Even more so if the opponent was a demon beast-.

The battle didn’t last long.

The knights looked at each other as they cooled down from the heat of the battle.

Their expressions were all subtly complex.

Galahad was a magician from the Empire. He was a guy who hadn’t been in the North for long.

When he said he would follow them into the demon beast’s territory, everyone had similar thoughts.

They thought, ‘He must be desperate to die. This guy is going to make today difficult for us.’

It was natural. He was a magician from the Empire, after all.

He had to be nothing but a hindrance.

But why—.

‘·····He’s competent?’

Robert gulped.

No, the word competent was insufficient.

The very composition changed as he joined.

If they had been going around blocking the attacks of the demons and monsters, then catching them, now they were actually going around looking for them.

As if they were hunting—.

‘So why?’

Why?

He couldn’t understand.

At that moment, Adrianna’s voice was heard.

“Why are you collecting the demons’ blood?”

Robert turned his head at that and froze in place.

The guy was holding a water container to the neck of a beheaded demon and was squeezing the demon’s corpse. As if he was squeezing the juice out of fruit—.

‘What the hell······.’

Why was he collecting the demons’ blood? And with a smile on his face, at that?

He couldn’t understand what the situation was at all.

“Ah, it’s for magic. This is a great help.”

“Ah- I see. Can I help?”

“Oh- will you?”

“Yes.”

Adrianna, who had received the water container, collected the flowing blood from another demon’s corpse.

Robert gulped at the harmony that didn’t fit with the grotesque scene.

A moment later, he moved again.

Gulp, gulp-.

Robert turned his head at the sound of refreshing drinking and froze in place.

Galahad was holding the water container to his mouth.

Robert turned his head away at the red flowing down the corner of his mouth.

That’s when he saw it.

Everyone’s heads were strangely facing outside—.

“Mm, this is good.”

The head turned a bit more.