Limit Breaking Genius Mage Chapter 436

Episode 436 progress (1)

Since the disputed areas of ownerless land are decided as 'wars of a certain scale or greater' through agreement between the relevant forces, there is a separate place where official talks are held, which is unusual.

The so-called arbitration zone───the city, Medillon.

It is run by neutral people who do not belong to any power and are mainly in charge of the 'negotiation society' and 'war judgment'.

Unspoken rules.

If you ignore those things and run wild, I can guarantee you that you won't live long. At least that's been the case so far.

Knock knock, knock knock, knock knock.

A luxurious carriage races down the street, following the powerful trots of fierce horses.

Citizens nearby were startled by the threatening atmosphere and ran away, and some even bumped into store stalls.

The fruit poured out.

“What the heck… huff!”

The merchant instinctively tried to swear, but quickly closed his mouth.

A familiar flag was fluttering in the wind on the carriage that was moving away in an instant.

The great lords of the East.

Normally, the two-horse carriage would only have one of the great lords attending the meeting and his escort… … but this time, there was one more person riding.

“The smell of blood.”

The Northern Grand Master, who had been muttering while looking out the window, smiled sinisterly.

A double-edged sword placed in the corner of the carriage.

The cracked, striated muscles visible through the hide of a mighty demon.

Beneath the bushy hair are strong eyes.

This savage man was like a wild beast, and being in such a cramped space was extremely uncomfortable in many ways.

It's a kind of instinct.

The grand lord sitting on one side of the carriage, Count Ceolf, leaned his elbow on the window frame, rested his chin on the back of his hand, and narrowed his eyes.

'You ate, slept, embraced, and killed in the East… … What on earth made you follow me? Did you want to get some fresh air?'

The great warriors who came to the northernmost part of the central continent rarely left the east.

All they did was escort the great lords or act as executioners at the orders of the great lords, enjoying a life of luxury and debauchery.

It was quite unusual for such a man to follow the meeting.

"hmm."

He's a beast, but he's not difficult to handle.

If you just satisfy their needs, they will generally follow orders without question. As the saying goes, a beast that can be controlled is like a knife in your hand.

But, in that he was not a completely obedient dog… … Cheolph was always wary of the great warrior of the North.

The carriage gradually slows down.

The wheels came to a complete stop in front of the entrance to the hill north of Medillon.

“We have arrived, Your Majesty.”

The large escort got off first to look around, and then Cheolph, with his thick muscles and fat, got off next.

The great warrior of the north did not move at all.

Since the role he was given was to be a temporary escort, separate from the fact that he had come along on his own, he was not needed for the immediate meeting.

Then someone spoke up.

“Why are you here early?”

A man in his fifties who had arrived first waved while sitting on a rock.

He wears a plain armor and carries a dark sword at his waist. His face, with its long scars, shows traces of time and fierce battles.

The ruler's closest confidant, the mercenary king.

Seeing him, Ceolf frowned and snorted.

“Huh, the ruler sent a snake.”

“Haha, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you, but you speak harshly. Your temper has gotten worse as the muscles and fat you’ve gained.”

The mercenary king laughed heartily.

On the outside he appears to be a good-natured middle-aged man, but on the inside he is cruel and extremely dark.

How many people have died because of that bastard's mercenary tactics?

'What is the West up to again?'

Cheolph was very concerned about the ruler's intentions.

Not long after, another carriage arrived.

Confederate. Gideon.

He is practically the leader of the South. The big shot has arrived.

The Mercenary King and Cheolph each exchanged a word.

“Gideon. I have heard of the misfortune at Diamun Matap, your ally. I am very sorry.”

“You must have been in quite a hurry. I didn’t expect you to come in person.”

The meeting was held because of the death of Diamun Matapju, and to exploit the flesh of the South that was exposed because of it.

Gideon, today's prey, smiled softly.

“The beasts that came after smelling it have gathered, so we can’t just sit back and watch. We have to chase them away somehow.”

The two forces were likened to beasts.

The mercenary king nodded, saying that was correct, and Cheolph sneered.

It was at that time.

A fourth carriage has appeared that did not exist until just a few months ago.

Rattling.

Liam Arlane, ruler of the North.

A young lord, still looking young, set foot on Medillon, accompanied by a 'woman with dark green hair' as his escort.

“……A guy who doesn’t even know the subject.”

Cheolph's eyes grew cold at the appearance of the new power that was the talk of the town.

* * *

At the top of the hill in Medillon is a tall artificial structure, a total of 47 steps leading up to a 'one-story building'.

A place created solely for talks.

Only two people per faction can enter it. Only the person representing the faction and his escort are recognized.

Mediation between the forces is handled by a mediator dispatched from Medillon.

East, west, south, north.

The host, seeing that each room was filled, spoke up clearly.

“I have confirmed that the Mercenary King from the West, Count Ceolf from the East, Lord Gideon from the South, and… Lord Arlene from the North attended the meeting as their respective representatives.”

It is not easy to be recognized as a power through the arbitration zone, but this time it was handled exceptionally quickly.

Asher, the deity of the Eastern Continent.

The status of a powerful magician was valid even in the land of no master, so it was said that Liam Arlane, who carried him on his back, was qualified.

Anyway, the purpose of the meeting was clear.

war.

The subject is a large mine that the Confederacy had hidden along with the Diamun Tower.

“This time───”

“Don’t waste time with useless greetings, host. They all came here because they wanted the Confederate mines anyway. What we want is a conclusion.”

Cheolph bared his fangs, cutting off the host's words.

“Tell me, Gideon. Who will the Confederacy fight against?”

A force that is targeted by the majority is given the right to choose its opponents.

War is business.

Rather than waging indiscriminate slaughter and wars of conquest to expand land mass as in the distant past, data shows that it is more profitable to govern warfare under a certain degree of control.

On a global level, that is.

As we all know, the ownerless land was created according to the needs of the world.

Their gazes gathered together.

“…….”

Gideon nodded lightly.

The announcer, who received the signal, took out a rolled up piece of parchment and unfolded it.

“I will now convey the opinions of the South.”

A text written in ink.

The content was somewhat shocking.

“The Confederacy decided to give up ownership of the large mines.”

"……what?"

“Instead, you demanded competitive fighting in the disputed area as a condition.”

* * *

The existence of large-scale mines has already become an open secret.

This alone was a huge blow, as the Southern Alliance had yet to fill the power vacuum left by the Diamun Tower.

It is impossible to cover the East and the West.

This is especially true now that a new power called the North has been added.

But that doesn't mean we can refuse war.

What matters is mutual agreement.

In other words, it means that the refusal of war must also be agreed upon. If one chooses to flee, he or she must give up enormous rights and property.

Ultimately, whether we go to war or not, massive losses are unavoidable.

So the South made a decision.

Since it's come to this, let's give up a couple of limbs and raise the stakes and have a mud fight.

The host said.

“Competitive battles are fought in the form of occupation battles where each side takes territory within the disputed area. There are two conditions for victory. If you secure the most territory within the time limit or if all other factions are eliminated, you will ultimately gain ownership of a large mine.”

And the victorious power will be able to refuse any war demands from the other three powers for five years.

The story goes that once you acquire a large mine, it will never be taken away.

The mercenary king asked.

“Rather than being eaten up here and there, would you rather offer a large mine as a war prize? That’s a tough choice to make. So what does the Confederacy want?”

No matter what you say, in the end it's a fight of profit and loss.

It makes no sense to give up mine ownership for free in order to avoid war.

“The demands of the Confederacy are these.”

First, after the development of the large-scale mines is completed, 23% of the annual production must be paid to the Confederacy for the next five years.

Second, 30% of the taxes on the disputed territories that changed hands in the competition must be paid to the Confederacy for the next three years.

Third, the above two requirements are fulfilled even if the ownership changes during the process.

In short, the South, as the host power of the competition, is trying to avoid war while at the same time reducing its own losses.

“Ha! You’re on the verge of a tantrum.”

Cheolp put a thick stick of homemade tobacco in his mouth and lit it.

“If everyone doesn’t agree, isn’t the competition worthless? What do you plan on doing if one person refuses?”

“What can we do? We have to go to war. Ten years, twenty years… until someone dies.”

Gideon declared that he would fight with all his might if the competition was denied.

Cheolph inhaled the smoke and sat lost in thought.

'Honestly, it's not bad.'

It is appealing in many ways.

In the event of victory, there is the right to refuse war for five years, and if done well, there is the possibility of gaining huge profits by taking control of not only large mines but also vast territories in conflict zones.

Of course, I didn't like having to share profits with the South for years… …but the pros far outweighed the cons.

“Okay, fine. Accept it…….”

“The North will accept the South’s proposal.”

Liam, who had been listening quietly, was the first to express his intention to agree.

“I agree. Haha, it’s a competitive battle. It’s been a while since we’ve had a large-scale war. It’ll be fun.”

The same goes for the King of Mercenaries.

Now only the Great Lords of the East remain.

Cheolph glared at Liam, who had cut him off, and then stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray.

“I accept it.”

“The North, West, and East have agreed to the South’s proposal in turn. I would like to ask you to sign the consent form that I am now handing you.”

It leaves a lasting mark by drawing blood from the tip of the finger with a prepared blade.

The mercenary king acted as the ruler, and Ceolf acted as the great lord of Gerdom. There was no hesitation, as he had been instructed to somehow obtain the right to wage war.

Liam Arlane and Gideon left their fingerprints and names behind, as they were the main authority in the force.

At that moment, Cheolph spoke to the host.

“But there’s one thing I’m curious about.”

“Please speak.”

“I understand that the ruler of the North has no territory in the disputed area. What happens in this case? Do they just take other people’s territory here and there?”

“As a rule, yes.”

“That would be great. We don’t have to defend, we just attack, so we don’t have to divide our forces. Well, what can we do with such a small force that doesn’t even have siege equipment?”

Cheolph openly mocked Liam.

He didn't like the little brat who suddenly became ruler of the North.

To be honest, it wasn't very similar.

It's not even the divine himself, but a puppy like that that dares to sit in the same position as him.

“Originally, he should have been beheaded by now, but he has risen to fame by carrying the divine power on his back. Could there be another lord who is as lucky as him?”

“…….”

“By the way, you brought a woman as an escort… Judging by her appearance, is she a wizard? It’s my first time seeing her, but she looks really great.”

“What do you want to say?”

Cheolph's lips twisted at Liam's displeased tone.

“I was wondering if you had seduced the divine with that woman. If not, even if you were a scarecrow, there’s no way you’d be taken in, right? In that sense, it’s interesting.”

He licked his lips.

“If you intend to use that woman as bait when the time comes, I recommend offering her to the East. If you do that, I’ll be willing to give you some convenience in the competition. Oh, is that why the Holy Spirit sent that woman? This, this. She must be smart, considering she’s not a magician.”

Cheolph looked at the woman escorting Liam with sticky eyes, insulting and belittling Liam.

Subtly disparaging the divine was a bonus.

Thud, thud.

Then the woman moved.

As I walked towards Cheolph, the host stopped me.

“Physical conflict occurs by mutual consent.”

“I agree.”

Liam gave his permission.

It's a very emotional voice.

To take a step back here would be a complete disgrace. Naturally, Count Ceolf did not refuse.

“You’re being swayed by emotions. You really don’t deserve to sit here.”

Cheolph gestured.

Permission has been granted.

As the large escort grinned and showed his threatening air, the woman stretched one arm forward with a blank expression.

The tips of her slender fingers touched the escort's right abdomen.

“Haha, what are you talking about now…….”

The magical power flowing underwater activated the magical power circuits throughout the body.

Magic <Erosion>

Lady Isabella's magical power penetrated straight into the body of the escort. The body's resistance was instantly eroded and rendered powerless.

Isabella flicked her index and middle fingers up and down.

puck.

A sound of something bursting was heard inside the body of the favor.

Rupture of the organ.

The stiff escort fell to one knee as a finger-sized hole suddenly appeared where most of the nerves were connected.

"go away."

Immediately afterwards, Isabella slapped the escort's face with the back of her hand.

Kwaaaaaaaang!

The guard, who was hit by the abnormal muscle strength, fell through the wall and down. Every single gaze that looked at him was filled with shock.

Isabella, who had stepped forward without notice, grabbed the back of Ceolf's neck without hesitation.

It was a slender arm.

With a physique like that of Cheolph, it would have been easy to shake it off or even break it.

If the opponent was an ordinary wizard.

“Ugh……?! ……Ugh, ugh……!!”

A pure white hand slowly dug into Cheolph's neck. He struggled with all his might, but he could not escape.

Kwaaaaang.

Isabella tilted her head, pressing the High Lord's head against the table.

“Who dares to mention you?”

Crackle, crackle.

A dangerous sound began to come from Cheolph's throat.

* * *

The axis of the black volcano shook.

The deep blue lifeless land was destroyed everywhere, and the powerful alien species that had been chasing their prey all met their deaths.

Huge craters appeared here and there.

Linus let out a voice as he witnessed the power of the Transcendent for the first time.

“Wouldn’t it have been faster to just take control of the Red Volcano instead of going to the Black Volcano?”

“Are you telling me to rebel, you one-armed disciple?”

Even if he was a true dwarf, that was out of the question.

anyway.

After casting a spell, Verden felt relieved.

Because it is no longer possible to use the Adventurer's Guild's training grounds or to show off your power in secluded places like before.

In that sense, exploring the Black Volcano was quite a refreshing experience.

[Long live your Majesty.]

It was in the midst of listening to Alpha's praise and loud applause.

“……?”

Something was detected in Verden's magic.

He immediately dived in and dug into the black rock using <Terrain Manipulation>.

Gharun looked down at the bottom of the pit, went down immediately, and picked something up.

“This is…….”

A very old pickaxe.

Although it was heavily rusted, the original shape did not collapse, which was a characteristic of some alloys that the dwarves often handled.

And there, the symbol of the Red Volcano Clan remained faintly.

“I found the trace.”

About 6 days after the expedition began.

Approximately 250 years ago, we discovered the tools of a dwarven search party heading to the lost Black Volcano Fortress.