Chapter 137: Magic 2
TL: Etude
As Paul watched in amazement, the grey stone hanging on his chest slowly turned black. This stone was a gift from Abbot Leonard of the monastery, claimed to protect against the evil spells of witches. Paul had initially been skeptical but kept it as a talisman, thinking of it as a kind of charm.
When theres a magical disturbance nearby, its color will turn black, the abbot had said.
At this moment, Pauls entire worldview began to crumble. Could magic really exist in this world?
Having regained memories of his past life, he had heard of magic from his old butler, Philip. However, as he grew accustomed to this world, there seemed no direct evidence of such phenomena. His sense of superiority from a scientifically advanced world and disdain for this medieval-like society led him to dismiss magic as a naive explanation by the ignorant.
No It cant be! Its just a chemical reaction, right? He was still reluctant to believe.
The cloaked man blocking the road was Barnett. He had heard in Port Fran about the defeat of the Gadan pirate gang by the local lord and was infuriated.
After arriving in the northwest of the Kingdom of Ordo, his plans had been progressing smoothly: subduing the Kent family on land, controlling Duke Ferdinand, and uniting various pirate gangs at sea.
His next plan involved large-scale pirate landings to raid territories. With his aid, the foolish lords would be defenseless. Marltz Kent, under his direction, would then subdue the pirates, gaining immense prestige and securing his succession as the duke.
Gadan was an important part of his plan, raised to lead the pirates and be a significant naval asset. Barnett had chosen Gadan after observing various gangs, supplying them with the Arcane Societys berserk drugs.
The disruption of this key element in his plan due to Paul Grayman caused Barnett deep frustration.
Barnett decided to eliminate Paul, who had brought him this defeat. Being active in the northwest for so long, he knew every power there.
The Grayman family was a minor lordship, an exiled family under the guise of a count, ruling over a poor area without even a vassal.
Paul, having defeated a small pirate group, seemed to have overestimated himself.
Against a powerful family like Ferdinand or Kent, Barnett would have to be cunning, using covert means.
But against a poor lord like Grayman, without even a knight, employing intricate plots would be laughable among his peers in the Arcane Society.
Barnett planned to assassinate Paul in Lakeheart Town quietly, causing him excruciating pain before death. He was confident in his ability to carry out such a mission easily.
Unexpectedly, on his way to Lakeheart Town, he encountered the lord himself.
Fate seemed to favor him. In a crowded town, any commotion could attract the churchs inquisitors, causing trouble.
But here, in this remote area, killing the lord would likely go unnoticed, as long as he handled the body well.
As for the guards surrounding Paul Grayman, Barnett thought with a sneer, if they had been a group of regular knights, he would have needed to prepare more thoroughly. However, Graymans guards seemed to lack any armor-piercing weapons. They were all dressed in cloth, armed only with swords, and lacked even long-range weapons like crossbows.
The only exception was a girl carrying a bow, but to Barnett, a single bow, especially a weak short bow wielded by a girl, was hardly a threat.
With his mastery of the Stone Skin spell, combined with the Giant Strength spell, he felt invincible before these people. His defense, thanks to his expertise in Stone Skin, was comparable to dwarven-made plate armor, impervious to their weapons.
Confidently, he moved forward to confront them.
When three soldiers were ordered to arrest him, Barnett, bolstered by the Giant Strength spell, easily killed two of them. Ignoring the third soldier paralyzed by fear, he continued his approach.
Seeing a military officer leading more soldiers towards him, Barnett smiled disdainfully.
Come then! You mortals are fortunate today to witness the power of arcane magic.
However, just as Barnett was about to unleash carnage, a sense of danger surged within him, and he instinctively grabbed something from the air an arrow.
Sweat trickled down his back; had he not reacted in time, the arrow would have struck him right in the eye the greatest weakness of the Stone Skin spell.
Fortunately, he had cast Danger Sense in advance, out of tactical caution.
Tsk!
The female advisor, Ladi, quickly drew a second arrow. Under the effect of Full Concentration, she aimed again for the enemys eyes.
The second arrow was swiftly launched but, regrettably, was again caught by Barnett.
He turned towards the girl, frowning, Seems like theres an annoying little bug on the other side.
Even with Danger Sense, dodging precise arrow shots was challenging. Although he could easily catch the incoming arrows, it was not pleasant to have them constantly aimed at his face.
Meanwhile, Victor, the captain of the guard, approached Barnett with his soldiers. He didnt have time to marvel at Ladis archery skills. Seizing the moment Barnett was distracted by the arrows, Victor thrust his sword with all his might towards Barnetts chest.
Incredibly, the sword struck something as hard as steel with a loud clang. Victor realized that, apart from tearing Barnetts clothes, the sword had not penetrated his chest at all.
In Victors shocked gaze, Barnett grasped the sharp sword blade and smiled, Why the hurry to embrace death?
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