Artur was truly shocked by the strength he felt from Robert during their brief fight. They didn't use any mana at all and relied solely on their physical strength and swordsmanship skills.
In that single exchange, Artur could sense that Robert possessed far greater power than himself. If they were to fight seriously, Artur would be defeated in just a few moves. This astonished him because Artur believed he had grown much stronger than before. With the resources of House of Valya at his disposal, Artur thought his strength wouldn't be so far behind Robert's. However, Robert seemed like an insurmountable mountain, leaving Artur feeling almost hopeless after just one exchange.
Artur didn't think Robert had reached Level 3 Constellation Mage, so the power disparity he felt was purely due to Robert being physically stronger. It made him wonder what kind of food the Gaht Family provided to create a monster like him.
"Hey... why are you staring at me like that? I don't like men, and you already have a wife yourself," Robert taunted, pretending to be scared and hugging his own body.
"Pfft!" Artur spat and looked at Robert with disgust.
"Quickly say what you want to say before I completely lose my patience and challenge you to a fight to the death," Artur growled.
Robert's lips twitched upon hearing Artur's blunt words. He understood that his good friend didn't grasp the concept of good-natured banter, so if he were to say, "Let's try it if you dare," in a playful tone, Artur would take it seriously and truly fight to the death.
Because of that, Robert didn't waste any more time and began speaking with a serious expression. "It's about your previous statement, actually I agree with it."
"Oh? About fighting to the death? Let's go, who's afraid," Artur said, hastily drawing his sword, his eyes ready for a fight to the death.
Sometimes, Robert truly didn't understand when his friend was joking and when he was serious. That's why he enjoyed teasing Artur because everything he did seemed silly in Robert's eyes. Perhaps that's also why they could become such close friends.
"No, not that. It's about the fifth mana species," Robert quickly clarified before Artur could charge at him.
"Oh," Artur nodded and sheathed his sword once again. "Why bring that up? Didn't you say it was an implausible possibility? But now you're admitting to it yourself. Robert, if you're going to be wishy-washy like this, you'll never have a wife in your lifetime."
Robert could even sense the tone of arrogance in Artur's words, which irritated him. However, because what he wanted to say was crucial, Robert suppressed his anger and promised himself he would tease Artur to his heart's content after this.
"I said that because I didn't want to make others worry. And I never said it was an implausible possibility. And the reason why I'm single is not because I'm wishy-washy. I'm not wishy-washy, look, I've successfully led all of you," the more Robert spoke, the more he tried to conceal his heartache. Artur's words about him never having a wife truly stunned him.
If it weren't for his father being too strict in choosing a prospective wife for him, he would have been married by now. Marriage proposals piled up at his house every year, but he couldn't possibly boast about it to a newlywed like Artur.
"So why do you believe that these anomalies are the doings of the fifth mana species?"
"I don't believe it, but the possibility isn't something that can be ruled out. There are a few incidents that have made me doubt this," Robert sighed deeply.
"Incidents?"
"Hmm... A few days ago, there were rumors of a conflict between the elven alliance and a mana species. This conflict resulted in the death of Raiden The Necromancer. Ah, perhaps you don't know who Raiden The Necromancer is, but his name is quite famous among high-level mages. He was a student of Aquaenar, the king of Aquanorin," Robert explained.
"The Water Elf Kingdom? Wow, the elven alliance must be in turmoil over the death of such a powerful mage," Artur remarked.
"Hmm... Of course, this has made everyone curious. Since it wasn't the human alliance who did it, they accuse the Beast Kingdom of being responsible. However, the Beast Kingdom denies it. In the midst of the intense second mana species war, it's only through the cooperation of the three mana species that we can hold back the onslaught of the demon species. So, the death of Raiden The Necromancer has created tension,"
"So, what's the issue with the possibility of there being a fifth mana species?" Artur asked, not understanding.
"The issue is that the Elven Alliance remains silent about the death of Raiden The Necromancer. Even Aquaenar hasn't spoken up, as if he doesn't want to avenge his own disciple. But there's another speculation that..."
"If the one who killed Raiden The Necromancer wasn't a mage from the human alliance, Beast Kingdom, or demon species, but a foreign mage from a new mana species, is that it?" Artur continued Robert's interrupted statement.
Robert nodded, then continued, "Then there's another incident that may or may not be related, but it could be connected to this issue. Several years ago, during the Midterm Exam at the military academy, the students from Classes B and C had a different Midterm Exam from us. They were assigned to guard the supply caravans heading to the frontlines."
"What? Weren't they still in the middle of their military academy training? Why would the alliance assign them military tasks?" Artur asked, surprised.
"That's one of the policies of the military academy. Students from Classes B and C are considered less useful even if they graduate from the academy, so they usually get assigned missions even before graduation. It's also a cost-saving measure for the military academy," Robert replied, waiting for Artur's usual reaction.
"Fairness is a son of a bitch!"
After nodding and being convinced that his friend, whether he's a Valya or not, would never change, Robert continued his story, "During that time, one of the squads was assigned to guard a supply caravan that passed through the route I just showed you. And true enough, they also ended up disappearing, leaving only the wreckage of the caravan. Since there were several nobles in that squad, their families hired trained mercenaries to accompany them, including a Level 3 Constellation Mage. But strangely, they didn't leave any messages before disappearing, nowhere to be found."
Artur's expression changed, "So, you mean something happened to them, to the point that not even a Level 3 Constellation Mage had the chance to leave a message before being killed?"
Robert nodded, "Something happened so quickly that it killed them all, including the Level 3 Constellation Mage, in the blink of an eye, or there was someone or something preventing them from sending an emergency message."
"The two possibilities indicate that there is something or a group stronger than a Level 3 Constellation Mage that attacked them," Artur said, capturing the essence of Robert's story.
At this point, both of them fell silent, lost in their own thoughts. Artur pondered something while Robert gazed deeply at his friend.
"Artur, you understand why I told you all this, don't you?" Robert broke the silence.
"My sister," Artur replied briefly, a smile on his face. "You're afraid that if I find something related to Anna's disappearance, I might act recklessly during the mission, right?"
Robert nodded without saying a word. His eyes still scrutinized Artur, searching for any signs of inconsistency in his friend's expression. While Robert wanted to help Artur find his sister, he didn't want Artur to become the reason for the failure of their important first mission.
He had to be certain that Artur could be controlled; otherwise, he would have to remove Artur from this mission.
Seeing the concern on his friend's face, Artur burst into laughter and patted Robert's shoulder. "Hey, why do you look like that? I'm no longer an impulsive kid like when we first met. I am now a member of House of Valya, and I have even married a beautiful girl. Do you think I would sacrifice all of that and act recklessly just because I found news about Anna? I hope you stop treating me like a fool before I cut off your head!"
Hearing Artur's one-third offended, one-third joking, and one-third threatening remark, Robert snorted and playfully slapped Artur's shoulder. "Hmph, I don't know what a siscon like you would do. So I'd better extinguish that fire before it truly ignites," Robert retorted.
Robert had seen a photo of Anna that Artur had shown him. He had to admit that she was incredibly beautiful. Her beauty was like that of an angel with her silver hair. Her sharp eyes could make any ambitious man desire to dominate her.
Robert never knew that Artur's hand inside his pocket was clenched tightly.
"What fire? Why are you suddenly speaking so poetically? Have you been single for too long?" Artur jeered before bursting into laughter.
"FUCK YOU, ARTUR! Do you think you can act however you want just because your name is now Artur Valya? Let me show you how sharp that sword of light is!" Robert yelled, unable to bear Artur's mocking about being single.
"Come on, step forward! Let me show you the spells I've learned while being Artur Valya,"
Their postponed duel began once again, causing the section they were in to crumble, and both of them ended up being scolded by the station staff.
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