Sword Saint's Reincarnation

Book 3 Chapter 39: The Shaded Catacombs (2)

Rylan walked through the entrance to the town head’s manor, followed by his family, Sarah and her siblings, and Mar’s Mages. Tordar walked in front of him, waving his arms as he spoke.

“And that’s why we’re so honored to have you here, Sir Rylan. I’m also glad that your family is here,” Tordar said as he looked over his shoulder. “As I said, we’ve prepared a humble feast. Many of the Mages from other places have decided to join us, as well. I’m sure you’ll meet people worth talking to.”

Rylan nodded at him, keeping a business smile.

It’s only been a couple of hours. They worked quickly.

He’d also anticipated that the foreign Mages would want to join the feast once they caught wind of his presence here, which wasn’t difficult, given the feast itself and the fact that the guards had recognized him before he even stepped into the town.

News travels quickly.

Especially because it was about him, Ceotha’s strongest, arriving Durn with his family and four mysterious Mages.

Rylan continued to follow Tordar through the hallway. The manor itself was similar to the Flameheart family’s in Cantavega when it came to its level of luxury, though the decorations and colors were different. The workers they met on the way all bowed deeply at them.

Lillia approached Rylan from behind.

“How long do you think this will take?” she asked in a whisper. “I honestly feel like going back and sleeping. Did we really need to do this?”

Beside her, Regis also leaned in.

“It’s because of the foreign Mages, right? You want to see what they’re about,” he said.

Rylan nodded as he looked over his shoulder.

“It shouldn’t take long. We’ll leave early if we have to. And yes, it’s about the foreign Mages. I want to take a look at them, since there might be some from other kingdoms, and they’ll probably join our raid on the Dungeon. I’m going to tell them not to, though.”

There was no harm in obtaining as much information about them as he could before delving into the Dungeon. If he were lucky, he would be able to find a good team that would be helpful, though the Dungeon was only at the level of the Fifth Circle. At the same time, he would talk to the foreign Mages and ask them to stay out of the Dungeon until he and his loved ones left.

It's unlikely that they’ll agree, but it doesn’t hurt to try.

The Mages would be aware that his presence would mean that most of the enemies in the Dungeon would be cleared. However, they were here to raid the Dungeon and Level up in the first place. Because of that, it was possible that multiple teams would delve into it, trying to fight as many enemies as possible before Rylan cleared it. That would hinder his own raid.

Regis and Lillia nodded at the same time with serious expressions and took a small step back. Further behind them, Elizabeth linked her arm with Gerard’s.

“I think they might agree,” she said. “If there’s anything I learned from my interactions with… my father… is how much weight your name now carries. It should still ring true for kingdoms near Ceotha. If you’re the one asking, they might stay out of it out of respect.”

Gerard shook his head slowly.

“It’s possible, but it’s also too good to be true. They might want to test him,” the man stated.

Aelfric smiled.

“Rylan would beat any of their tests. I agree with Mom. I think they’ll understand,” he said.

Rylan couldn’t help but smile.

The group continued to follow Tordar until the man faced large, wooden double doors with engravings. The sounds of loud conversation leaked through the gaps.

Here we go.

Tordar turned around, then stepped to the side and gestured toward the doors.

“I hope you’ll find our feast up to your standards,” the man said.

Rylan nodded at him with a grin and stepped forward, then pushed the doors open and entered the hall.

The moment he entered, his experience made him almost instantly expand his senses as he surveyed the surroundings. In the middle of the hall was a big table covered with a variety of food and dishes, ranging from simple to sophisticated. Around the main table were plush chairs, where groups of people sat and talked. Around them were several other tables, also surrounded by people. Rylan did a quick headcount.

Thirty-one Mages. The weakest one is in the Fourth Circle, and most are in the Fifth Circle. There are no Sixth Circle Mages.

It was a sizable force that would be able to challenge the Royal Magic Academy’s faculty, at least when it came to the number of Fifth Circle Mages. Rylan furrowed his brow. Wasn’t this too much for a border town with a single Dungeon at the level of the Fifth Circle?

Is the Dungeon more problematic than I thought?

At the same time, he took a few steps forward, followed by his group. The first few people sighted them and stopped talking, then hurriedly touched the shoulders of the others next to them, creating a chain reaction. After only a few moments, the entire hall had gone silent, with all of the Mages staring straight at Rylan.

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Tordar entered the hall, following Rylan’s group, and walked to reach the spot next to Rylan, then pointed at him.

“This is Rylan Flameheart, ladies and gentlemen. Ceotha’s hero and the kingdom’s strongest figure. The one who surpassed Damian Gassiec,” the man said with a smile.

Rylan raised an eyebrow but didn’t reply.

The Mages didn’t reply until one of them stepped forward. He was a tall man with dark hair and brown eyes. Judging from his clothing, he wasn’t from Ceotha, but Rylan couldn’t tell which kingdom he originated from.

“I didn’t think the stories were true. You really are in the Fourth Circle,” the man said with a smile, raising the cup in his hand toward Rylan. “Welcome, Ceotha’s hero. If I’m right, we might have a lot to talk about when it comes to the town’s Dungeon.”

Rylan tilted his head.

Again, they can tell which Circle I’m at with only a look.

He glanced at Mar’s Mages. Not only did they look tranquil, but nobody was even looking at them.

They can hide it.

It was something he needed to learn as soon as possible.

He looked back at the dark-haired man, who was still smiling.

“About that, I’d like to make a request of everyone here,” he replied loudly as he ran his gaze over everyone in the hall. He pointed his thumb at the people behind him. “I’ll be helping them Level up and tomorrow, so please, don’t enter the Dungeon.”

A few groups outright nodded, but others traded looks with furrowed brows. The dark-haired man lowered his cup and grinned at Rylan.

“I’m sure you know that’s a bit unreasonable, but we can work something out. How about us staying out of the Dungeon for a certain period? We need to Level up and train, too.”

More groups nodded. Rylan looked around.

That seems to be the predominant opinion.

“How long are you thinking?” he asked.

The man smiled.

“How about an hour? Maybe two hours?”

Rylan immediately shook his head.

“No. I need more time,” he replied firmly.

Mar’s Mages nodded behind him, as did Gerard. He could feel Elizabeth’s nervous gaze. Regis was frowning at the foreign Mage, while Lillia had stepped a bit closer to Aelfric.

The man tilted his head.

“How much time?”

“About five or six hours.”

The man frowned.

“That’s too long.”

Rylan narrowed his eyes at him, managing to glimpse the man’s true thoughts from the nervousness behind his eyes.

He’s scared that if he gives me too much time, I’ll wipe out almost everything in the Dungeon.

Of course, he wasn’t wrong. Rylan looked at the other Mages. They seemed to agree with the man. Was he their leader? Or simply the strongest one? He looked back at the man.

Quite deep into the Fifth Circle.

Still, not nearly enough to be a threat. As he was about to reply, Rylan noticed Philip raise his hand. He turned around to look at the man with a curious expression.

“I mean,” Philip started as he seemingly noticed everyone was looking at him. “We could negotiate, but there’s something I’d like everyone here to remember before we continue.”

“We can just forcefully keep anyone from entering the Dungeon at all,” Melvin said from beside Philip as he nodded. Philip nodded with a smile. “Even if everyone here joined up, you wouldn’t be able to take a single step into the Dungeon as long as we don’t want you to, regardless of time constraints. We’re not the ones on the back foot here.”

It was as if the temperature in the hall had dropped by a few degrees. Rylan blinked as most of the foreign Mages frowned, with the few remaining only nodding in resignation. The dark-haired man frowned at Philip and Melvin.

“And who even are you?” the man asked.

Philip raised an eyebrow.

“Someone stronger than you,” he replied. “Not that it matters. Rylan is here.”

Rylan scratched the back of his head as he sighed.

I was trying not to do things Roland’s way, but… I guess this works.

Because of Philip and Melvin, it was a bit too late to remain peaceful. The situation had already changed. He clapped once, drawing everyone’s attention, and smiled.

“To make things simple. Per my request, I’d like everyone to stay out of the Dungeon tomorrow. If a team enters the Dungeon without a good reason, we’ll force it out through the Gate before it can kill even a single monster, though it would probably mean a few injuries,” he said loudly.

Nobody replied, including the dark-haired man. The silence extended for a few seconds.

“…Do you really think you can defeat over thirty Mages, with most of us being in the Fifth Circle?” the man suddenly asked.

“Yes,” Rylan replied almost immediately. “Without trouble. But you can always find out the hard way.”

The man gritted his teeth, then looked around. Meanwhile, Tordar, who had stayed to the side, approached Rylan.

“I think it might be wise to try to defuse the situation…” he whispered.

Before Rylan could look at him and reply, one of the Mages, a blond woman, raised her hand. He looked at her.

“My team can offer you support and help you protect the children,” she said once she seemingly noticed his eyes on her. She was of average height and build, but her eyes shone brightly. “We won’t try to kill a single monster or steal any XP. We only ask for a small payment.”

Rylan smiled at her, then looked at the people behind and around her. Around eight Mages, men and women, with two in the Fourth Circle and six in the Fifth Circle, including her. Given the total number of Mages, it was a large group.

“That works for me,” he replied. “You’re hired. What’s your name?”

She smiled back at him.

“Layla. It’s a pleasure to work with Ceotha’s hero.”

Rylan nodded and looked at Tordar, then tapped the man’s shoulder. He’d already analyzed all the Mages, found a group willing to help him, and threatened the others to keep them out of the Dungeon. He’d finished everything he wanted to do in the feast.

“I hope you guys enjoy your feast, Tordar,” he said with a grin. “We’ll be heading back now.”

There was no point in staying, given that he’d followed after Philip and Melvin and soured his relationship with the other Mages. It wouldn’t be enjoyable for anyone involved. Tordar blinked at him as Rylan looked at his family. Elizabeth had furrowed her brow at him, while Gerard was grinning. Cecilia and Krysta were sighing as they looked at Philip and Melvin, as if they had already expected something like this to happen, while Rylan’s siblings were smiling at him, especially Aelfric. Sarah was staring at him, as was Elliot, with a strange glint in his eyes. Andy and Laura were simply looking around at the hall’s decorations.

Followed by his group, Rylan left the hall.

***

Rylan looked at the Gate in front of him with a grin, his hand resting on Silver Twilight’s hilt.

“Alright, let’s do this,” he said as he turned around to look at his group. Everyone, including the three children, was staring at him, all wearing leather armor, except for Andy and Laura. Mar’s Mages surrounded Sarah and the children, as Rylan had asked them to focus on protecting her and her siblings. He looked at the group next to them. In the lead, Layla was smiling at them.

“Please don’t worry, hero. We’ll guard everyone to the best of our ability,” she said.

Rylan nodded at her with a smile. Thankfully, the price she’d requested hadn’t been high, though Mar’s Mages would have likely chipped in if it were.

Without another word, Rylan beckoned his group, making them start walking toward him.

“Let’s try to enter the Gate at the same time,” he said.

It was the best way to avoid any unforeseen circumstances. The possibility that the people who entered would immediately face an enemy always existed. Because of that, he couldn’t have everyone enter before him.

The others nodded.

“On the count of three,” he continued.

He started the countdown. After it was over, everyone stepped into the Gate almost at the same time. The world around them changed.