Embracing Magic - E.M Chapter 149 (Part 1)

(Bronaïr third Pov)

In the past, when the kingdom of Bolas still existed, his status was that of the third prince. As the third son of a wealthy royal family, he grew up without lacking anything.

However, his talent for black magic was, unfortunately, not particularly outstanding. His father, the king, had once lamented that no matter how hard he tried, reaching the 7th Circle would be impossible.

But Bronaïr didn’t care. He had no dream of becoming the greatest black magician. Nor did he covet the throne.

The next king should rightfully be his elder brother, Crown Prince Aicosiel. As for himself, he was content with simply living a pleasant life, backed by a solid lineage and ample support.

> I didn’t expect things to turn out like this.

A crisis befell Bronaïr, who had only dreamed of a carefree life. The neighboring countries discovered that the royal family of Bolas was a lineage of black magicians.

After several diplomatic envoys were sent to verify the truth, a declaration of war followed immediately. They proclaimed that unless every member of the royal bloodline was executed, they would attack.

Naturally, the king of Bolas had no intention of offering up his own neck.

War broke out, and the kingdom was continuously pushed back. Despite Bolas’ desperate resistance, the combined might of eleven nations was too overwhelming.

In response, the king gathered the black magicians and decided to seal their souls.

The seals were divided into two types: one group would be publicly displayed as the Twelve Guardian Statues, while the other would be stored in a special location.

Bronaïr, the third prince, belonged to the former group. Simply because he was the king’s son, his soul had to be sealed in one of the twelve statues.

He was not particularly fond of the idea. The notion of being sealed away, only to awaken someday in another body, was too much of a gamble.

He thought it would be better to escape and survive. He even suggested it, but his words were completely ignored.

> Still, thanks to my brother, I managed to wake up somehow. But to be ordered around like this… Haah.

It was pure luck. There was no other way to explain it.

His elder brother, Crown Prince Aicosiel, was the first to awaken. And not just in any body—he had taken over the body of a noble with the fairly high title of Marquis.

Moreover, by some extraordinary stroke of fortune, Aicosiel’s soul was astonishingly compatible with his new body. Even during the soul-sealing process, no one had expected such a perfect synchronization.

Thanks to his brother’s efforts, Bronaïr also found a compatible body. Aicosiel had deliberately sought out a suitable vessel for him in advance.

—

“Would you call this a failure? What do you think?”

“Since he was suddenly taken away by the knights, doesn’t that mean it was a failure?”

“But Segan the Healer is the best in the Richmond Marquisate, isn’t he? If a patient appears out of nowhere, it wouldn’t be strange for knights to escort him.”

Bronaïr was scheduled to meet Husrégus today, who was currently impersonating Segan the Healer.

They hadn’t set an official appointment, but that didn’t matter. He already knew where Segan lived, and they had shared a meeting location in advance.

“How did his expression look?”

“He seemed a bit flustered, but he didn’t look like he was in danger.”

“Then… should we wait?”

Currently, he had taken on the identity of Raven, the territorial mage of the Marquisate of Roten. From his vantage point, he gazed toward the Richmond Marquisate.

> Poor uncle.

Husrégus was unlucky. He had merged with a body whose soul wave was almost completely incompatible with his own.

Because of that, Segan’s body was rapidly deteriorating. Even if Aicosiel, a 7th Circle black magician, used his power right now, the body wouldn’t last more than a few months.

Perhaps sensing his impending death, Husrégus showed no interest in restoring his black magic. All he wished for was to do something—anything—for his nephew and crown prince, Aicosiel, even if it meant sacrificing himself.

—

“Do we know anyone inside the lord’s castle?”

“There are a few, but it would be difficult for them to move right now. The castle’s security has suddenly become much stricter.”

“Hm. I don’t like this feeling.”

Bronaïr lacked talent in black magic, but his intuition was remarkable.

Whenever he had a bad feeling, trouble inevitably followed. Conversely, on days when he thought, Today feels lucky, something good always happened.

And now, his intuition was speaking to him.

Telling him that this place was dangerous. That he needed to leave.

—

“Raven, sir?”

“Be quiet and wait. Let me think.”

Crown Prince Aicosiel had originally been a 7th Circle black magician. Even after acquiring a new body, he had regained his former strength in just ten years.

Bronaïr had also restored his abilities. Before his soul was sealed, he had only been a 5th Circle black magician, but he had managed to return to that level within just six years.

> I’m a 5th Circle black magician. What could possibly be dangerous?

Even in his original era, 8th Circle and 9th Circle magicians didn’t exist. It was similar to how things were now.

However, during the time of the Bolas Kingdom, there had been far more 7th Circle magicians. Within the kingdom alone, there were four—his father, his brother, and two others.

Now, there were only three 7th Circle magicians across the entire continent. No, if the recent rumors were true, a mercenary had just reached the 7th Circle, bringing the total to four.

Given how much the overall level had declined, being a 5th Circle black magician was by no means weak. He could handle most dangers on his own.

> Is it my subordinates who might slow me down?

He had brought several people to use as pawns. Two knights from the Marquisate of Roten and eight mercenary soldiers for various tasks.

The knights were fine. Both were 4th-rank knights, so they wouldn’t be a liability in battle.

But the eight mercenary soldiers? They would be utterly useless in combat. Worse, if they started begging for their lives, they would only become a nuisance.

> Better to leave now.

He suppressed his overconfidence and decided to trust his intuition—the very thing that had saved his life more than once.

“Let’s move.”

“We’re not meeting Segan?”

“No. We’re leaving.”

Bronaïr hastily erased his traces and departed.

—

Two hours later, Rodin and his party arrived at the place where they had stayed.

Rodin sensed a slightly different type of black magic but soon lost interest.

Getting too involved in other people’s affairs didn’t appeal to him.

—

Hyung_Otaku2

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