Danao frowned at the inspector Blasphemia, who had requested another private meeting.
“Gorgopf is one of those dispatched to Argos. I honestly found it hard to believe when you guaranteed that the most likely traitor among them was ‘innocent.'”
He had just seen Gorgopf passionately casting a deadly curse on Argyrion while hurling heartfelt insults. An attack that could only be executed without hesitation if he considered Argyrion’s fools as enemies.
“Certainly. If he were a disguised spy, it would be difficult to launch such a fierce attack on his own forces.”
Orthes shrugged. There was no need to divulge the backstage story that “Gorgopf is indeed an Argyrion spy, but he genuinely thinks the Argyrion crew is a spy for the Ten Towers.”
“The inquisitor’s keen eye has indeed caught something. It wasn’t just an empty rumor. But, then, what brings you here to me when you need to interrogate Argyrion?”
“Isn’t it that Argyrion came to us directly?”
“Weren’t they forced to retreat from Gorgopf’s attack? If they had to hastily rearrange themselves, there wouldn’t be much to worry about.”
Danao’s demeanor reflected his pride in the defensive magic placed around the Amimone Tower. The defensive magic installed in a Mage Tower usually correlates directly with its history, including its financial status.
A siege against the Amimone Tower, which boasts a deep history and tremendous resources as an Apex Tower, would impose overwhelming disadvantages on the attackers. This was Danao’s judgment.
“And I need to shake that judgment.”
Setting a basic strategy.
Lure the whole into a single sample, exaggerate the few cases, and focus on the unlikely possibilities.
In an instant, Orthes concluded his judgment, and his first words were, “No.”
“No?”
“The military strength Argyrion possesses is not merely that.”
“Hah. Even so, could they crush the Mage Tower’s defenses? Even if your Blasphemia leadership came directly, they wouldn’t be able to face an Apex Tower head-on.”
“Of course. Despite the overwhelming might of the extra-dimensional burst, only a few areas in Algoth City were distorted; the entire city remains intact, which is evidence of your capabilities. But.”
Orthes paused for dramatic effect, intentionally provoking Danao’s discomfort.
“Will Argyrion fight us head-on?”
“What?”
“Let’s think. How did Argyrion, having retreated from Gorgopf, enter Algoth City?”
“Surely, some mage with the ability to invoke such a powerful extra-dimensional storm must already be within Algoth City. They wouldn’t have come alone, right?”
“That’s not likely.”
Orthes began whispering pieces of truth, referencing top-secret information that emerged from the analysis of the ‘Elder Talo assassination case.’
“…It seems they already possess long-range space movement artifacts. Many assassins appeared simultaneously while Elder Talo was dispatched for an external mission.”
“What!?”
“Blasphemia thinks it’s an ability provided by the Followers of Superstition. There are records of a similar capacity from a cult that serves the ‘Gatekeeper’s God’.”
“So, you think Argyrion is preparing for invasion with that artifact?”
“You’ve seen the silver soldiers that seem to be evolved Silver Thread Worms, right? Our Blasphemia has been doing its utmost to establish methods to catch them.”
Algoth City had been thoroughly searched for days by Blasphemia, trying to find any traces of Silver Thread hosts or their variants.
Orthes, who had laid out this explanation, lowered his voice almost to a whisper.
“We found no incriminating evidence in Algoth City. But what does it mean if a variant of the Silver Thread appears?”
In fact, Orthes’ description was far from reality. Argyrion had already prepared countermeasures against Blasphemia’s Silver Thread detection magic. They had methodically made both the Silver Threads and their hosts go into a state of dormancy, minimizing both extraordinary ability fields and life signals.
This allowed them to consume the Silver Thread hosts burrowed throughout Algoth City and invoke the extra-dimensional storm.
But such ‘facts’ weren’t important. What mattered to Orthes now was not reality, but the appearance of reality. A convincing deception.
“Are you claiming that the Argyrion magicians who have just appeared argued they arrived outside my city after space-jumping?”
“Yes. The involvement of the artifacts from the Followers of Superstition is evident.”
“Kuh….”
“Of course, unlimited space movement wouldn’t be possible without a medium. Hence, wouldn’t they choose a transition somewhat away from Algoth City rather than within the Amimone Tower?”
Danao grasped the underlying meaning of Orthes’ words. That lesser constraints on space movement would imply elimination of those constraints if a medium exists.
And inside the Amimone Tower, mages existed who could burn their own bodies to serve as magical mediums whenever needed.
“Indeed, even when including myself and the Tower Master, confirmed identities amount to only three, including Gorgopf. Three cannot monitor all mages.”
‘If a traitor used magic to connect with that relic, taking advantage of the surveillance gaps…’
A dual-pronged attack from both internal and external enemies. Danao gritted his teeth.
“So what do you propose?”
“It’s simple. We must commence a tracking elimination of the retreated Argyrion.”
“What are you saying…?”
“If everyone, including the spies, goes into battle, then even if the spy creates a medium for space movement, it won’t matter much, will it?”
A spy is dangerous only when he can betray from within to support Argyrion’s invasion. Conversely, outside the tower, creating several mediums for space movement becomes meaningless for the spy’s actions.
Argyrion has the capability to breach Algoth City’s defenses, but they could not penetrate the most important Amimone Tower’s barriers.
“Moreover, in urgent situations, concentrating on advanced magic like space magic becomes difficult. During a battle, rather than using overwhelming and potent great magic, a single precise and rapid spell capable of ending lives, or a defensive magic that could save lives from such attacks, is far more urgent.”
“What if they abandon space magic and betray from behind to attack our forces?”
“You should ensure that multiple trackers form a unit. If betrayal is suspected, other mages should be able to respond instantly.”
Finally, as Danao sensed that his trust had surpassed a certain threshold, Orthes finally spoke with his true purpose.
“If we exclude the Silver Thread variants from Argyrion’s forces, all that remains is just Gorgopf and one more mage who faced him. If we can find and eliminate just that mage, our chances of survival will increase exponentially.”
However, that mage was a powerful magician dispatched by Argyrion. He would undoubtedly possess suitable skills.
“To take down such a magician, we would also need a powerful mage.”
“Are you suggesting to use me as a shield?”
“Let’s call it a temporary protective measure. If the Tower Master directly defeats Argyrion’s mage, it would also prove the fidelity of Amimone Tower, wouldn’t it?”
After much deliberation, Danao posed a rational counter-question regarding Orthes’ plan.
This was the final piece Orthes needed to complete the picture he desired.
*
The Argyrion mage Sprigo was immersed in deep thought.
“To have an adversary or not, that is the question.”
If the adversary had appeared directly before him, Sprigo would have made a hasty escape without a second thought. This individual carried a wickedness and madness that was fearsome to comprehend.
The adversary didn’t set traps.
He was the very trap.
Sprigo believed that the terrible existence could turn even the air he breathed into a trap.
Yet, he too was one of Argyrion who had battled against this adversary. Unless the foe himself descended to this place, he believed he could navigate through whatever traces were left behind.
Could that monster be lurking within Amimone Tower? Or was it simply the remnants of darkness left in his faint memories, laying merely a trap?
Briefly having withdrawn his forces from the tower, Sprigo began a short but intense period of contemplation.
His thoughts were abruptly interrupted by simultaneous warnings from the Drakmas he had hidden throughout Algoth City as scouts.
“What?”
An attack?
Not a defense?
The forces remaining in the Amimone Tower were minimal. If the Ten Towers genuinely intended to purge the Amimone Tower, Danao had earlier dispatched inspectors to oversee the factions he had absorbed and merged to preserve a portion of their strength.
Even so, it was an Apex Tower. Given the ability of Amimone Tower, which had turned all personnel except for those necessary for maintaining the barrier into offensive positions, the situation exceeded expectations.
“There you are.”
The ground where Sprigo stood was transformed entirely into a caustic acid. Feeling his shoes melting away, he swiftly extended his wooden arm to climb up the walls of the structure.
In the next moment, an entire wall of a multi-story building turned into a highly toxic substance and poured down onto Sprigo.
At the sharp and fierce tip of the assault, was none other than Tower Master Danao.
*
The last question Danao had thrown at me was about who would maintain the barrier through the Tower Core if the most skilled mage, the Tower Master, ventured outside.
As an outsider, that was obviously impossible for me.
But wasn’t there a highly capable mage who had been validated as innocent by Blasphemia and dispatched to Argos?
Gorgopf.
“Oh… oh! I never thought I’d breach the Tower Master’s chamber without bloodshed!”
The ‘flawless’ individuals that Gorgopf had validated remained as the minimum personnel for the tower’s defense, and naturally, all of them were traitors.
“Honor the leader of Argyrion! Worship the wise one who obtained victory without bloodshed!”
I stood before the legion of traitors and the Mage Tower Core of Amimone.
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