Reborn as the Head of the Stolen Mage Family

Chapter 68

The passage was not long.

Instead, as he had already grasped, a powerful magic detection device was installed.

‘A Pasquier-made item.’

The security item 'Inhaler' installed along the ceiling of the passage.

It was an installation-type item that created a powerful mana barrier that detected magic at regular intervals, and trapped intruders between the barriers if external magic was detected.

Eddie already knew as much as he needed to about the Inhaler's abilities through the materials of the vice director, Mikael, which he had seen when he infiltrated Pasquier.

‘The report stated that only the experiment to add a self-power supply function remained.’

At that time, due to time constraints, he couldn't figure out what that meant.

Therefore, Eddie had to be on high alert even with several layers of strong defenses.

And the moment he passed through the second barrier of the Inhaler.

‘……!’

Eddie realized what the self-power supply function was.

‘Mana absorption. They applied the principle of the elixir…!’

The moment he passed through the Inhaler's barrier, a considerable amount of mana was drained from Eddie's body.

But it wasn't absorbed to detect and neutralize Eddie's presence.

It was simply absorbing the mana of all mana supply sources except the elixir.

Vrooooom-

Eddie's mana circle reacted even more actively, converting the accumulated mana in his body into magic.

Thanks to this, the invisibility magic and perception hindrance spells remained firm, but the burden on the circle increased even more.

‘If the circle overloads, the spells will eventually break.’

Eddie stabilized his energy as much as possible and controlled the flow of mana in his body.

Unlike him, who was on high alert, there was not a single stir from the homunculus moving the tank.

But it was the same for him in that his mana was being absorbed.

If he passed under the Inhaler like this several times, his lifespan would soon be over.

He wondered if there was a reason to promote the shortening of a consumable's lifespan, but from Eddie's perspective, it was an excellent structure.

Cruelly so.

‘They can just make another homunculus. And most importantly, the Inhaler would be a fatal trap for an intruder disguised as a homunculus.’

He didn't know whose idea it was, but it was quite sophisticated.

Drrrrrrr-

Thump!

As they exited the passage, a huge central space finally revealed itself.

Eddie's mouth opened slightly as he took in the magnificent interior.

He felt as if his stuffy heart had been cleared.

It seemed to be several times larger than the ridiculously large homunculus disposal site.

Moreover, unlike other parts of the facility, this place was not an artificially created space.

Eddie slowly walked and looked around the interior.

The stone pillars erected here and there.

The mysteriously shaped drawings and characters engraved on the walls and ceiling.

And the huge altar located in the center.

This space, which exuded an overwhelming sense of mystery, was by no means a product of human creation.

It was the space of the magical beast king, Rakan.

"...Ha."

Eddie let out a hollow laugh without realizing it.

‘I expected that they would have confronted the magical beasts… but this is on a whole other level of insanity.’

The sacred space where Rakan and his clan would have stayed had already become one huge synthesis chamber.

Nine passages, including the one Eddie had come out of, encroached upon this place.

And the homunculi that came out of each passage moved the tanks to the front of the huge altar located in the center.

On the altar, which was originally the magical beast king's throne, a structure shaped like a huge bowl sat instead of Rakan.

The elixir was poured into it.

The homunculi would bring the tanks filled with the elixir to the front of the stairs below the altar, and the tanks would float up into the air, pour the elixir into the bowl, and then be placed back in their original positions.

The homunculi would then take the empty tanks back to each laboratory.

A perfect system was in place for the process of making and collecting the elixir.

Eddie's sharp gaze stared at the huge bowl, or rather, the tank, in the center.

‘They wouldn't just be collecting the elixir. There's a real purpose for absorbing magic in there.’

Around the tank where the elixir was collected, various mana gems were densely installed.

It must be a barrier to prevent the elixir from absorbing the magic of the facility's mages and items.

That was also why the homunculi didn't go up to the altar and pour the elixir directly.

But to find out what was inside, Eddie had to enter the barrier.

"Whoo……."

Eddie regulated his breathing and gauged the state of his mana circle.

Fortunately, the overload caused by the Inhaler's mana absorption had calmed down a lot.

But he couldn't consume too much magic here.

Because there were plans he had to carry out even after leaving the facility.

‘I'll focus my magic on the perception hindrance spells and get in and out as quickly as possible.’

Strengthening the power of Mana Vanish, Eddie quickly approached the center.

As expected, as he got closer, he could feel the energy of the dozens of layers of mana barriers surrounding the altar.

Eddie passed through the barriers without hesitation.

The thoroughly concealed magic did not cause any reaction from the barriers, and his steps up the stairs to the altar were swift.

The amount of magic absorbed in that short moment of reaching the front of the tank was enormous.

A normal mage would have lost all their magic and suffered permanent damage to their mana circle before they could even climb the stairs.

But the amount of magic Eddie's circle could generate was on a different level.

Eddie craned his neck and checked the inside of the tank.

What was inside was the elixir, filling about a tenth of the tank and sloshing, and a wooden coffin placed in the center.

It was just an ordinary brown coffin, with no special features to be found.

That must be the purpose of filling the elixir.

But unfortunately, there was no more information to be gained with the naked eye.

Judging that any more was impossible, Eddie quickly turned around.

He got out like a flash and came out of the barrier, but his body temperature soon rose and his heartbeat went crazy.

It was an overload of the mana circle.

Eddie moved to the edge of the space and leaned against the wall.

Then he closed his eyes and focused his mind.

"Heeeeeup… haaaaa…."

As the circle's overload led to a physical reaction, his breathing became rough.

Eddie inhaled and exhaled deeply, calming the fluctuating reaction of the circle.

‘I've used up most of the mana I had accumulated earlier. It's taking a while to calm down.’

The Inhaler was indeed a formidable obstacle.

The consumption to even slightly block its mana absorption was great.

Because he had converted the mana accumulated in the circle until now into magic, he had not yet returned from the overreacted state.

Thanks to that, the invisibility magic and spells did not break even after he had been to the front of the tank, so was it a blessing in disguise?

It seemed that it would take some time for the circle to return to its normal orbit.

Eddie rested for a moment, watching the homunculi carrying the elixir.

Looking at it like this, he felt the seriousness of the situation again.

What kind of force did they have to join hands with to be able to do something like this?

Not only did they occupy the base of the Rakan beasts, but they also used the magical beast king's throne as an experimental table to absorb magic.

Magical beasts are not beings that can be easily defeated.

No matter how powerful that elixir was, it couldn't surpass the magic of the magical beasts that had been refined for thousands of years.

If so, it meant that they had some means to drive out even the magical beast king hidden away.

‘What on earth have you done, and what are you doing… Ivan, Furas, you crazy bastards….’

Eddie stared intently at the tank where the elixir was being collected.

He was becoming more and more convinced that the secret contained within would not end as just a matter of the magical world.

It was then, as Eddie was trying to compose his worried heart.

Swish-!

Swish-!

‘Damn.’

Two men in green capes appeared in front of Eddie through teleportation.

Eddie was surprised and quickly took out his wand.

But the two men, without recognizing Eddie right in front of them, turned towards the tank.

The two of them, with their backs to Eddie, began to talk.

"The work seems to be going smoothly. At this rate, the coffin will be submerged by the end of summer, so if we're lucky, we'll be the first to succeed in the synthesis."

"We don't know that yet. Labs 4 and 7 still haven't been reactivated. I hear the magical beasts have completely wrecked the place. Sasha and Gavner are on the verge of death."

"Ha… you damned beasts. Your persistence is truly tenacious. After losing so many of your clan, you still can't give up?"

"What can we do when their king won't give up? A magical beast has to obey the king's command, even if it means death."

Memorizing the contents of their conversation, Eddie slowly lowered his wand.

Additional information that the wooden coffin was also for synthesizing something.

The two men continued their conversation, not imagining that someone was listening right behind them.

Soon, an even more surprising content reached Eddie's ears.

"Even after living for thousands of years, beasts are beasts. They're so foolish. Since a Mana Bloodstone is stuck in his heart, Rakan is now nothing more than a toothless tiger."

"Still, as long as the king is alive, the attacks will continue. Joan Basilisa said she would develop an anti-magical beast item, so let's wait and see."

"Well, that woman may be crazy, but her skills are certain."

As expected.

So they had attacked Rakan to test the performance of the Mana Bloodstone.

Finally, many things were explained.

For magical beasts, the king's power is the power of the entire clan.

If Rakan's power weakens due to the Mana Bloodstone, the magical beasts will also weaken.

They had gauged the performance of the Mana Bloodstone through that.

It wasn't ‘despite Rakan being there,’ but ‘because Rakan was there’ that they chose this place.

With the Mana Bloodstone involved, this absurd situation became plausible.

‘Still, Rakan, fortunately, seems to be continuing his resistance without giving up.’

The magical beast king, who must be growling with revenge in his hiding place right now.

It was unfortunate for him, but this situation was not so bad for Eddie.

Because a ‘common enemy’ is always the best opportunity to make allies.

It was a good thing he had thought of ‘that plan’ just in case, even at the risk of danger.

‘Of course, it won't be easy to make Rakan find me first.’

Recalling the thought he had prepared just in case, Eddie straightened his body that had been leaning against the wall.

He had rested enough, so it was time to go back.

Swish-

Eddie swung his wand at a homunculus that was moving a tank to the center.

His Launching accurately hit the back of the homunculus' head, and the homunculus overturned the tank and fell to the floor.

Chwaaaaaa-!

"You crazy bastard!"

"Hey!"

The two men in green capes shouted at the fallen homunculus at the same time.

They looked at the elixir spilled on the floor and contorted their faces as if they were dying of regret.

"This is several weeks' worth, and you spilled it, you idiot!"

"I'm sorry. I was hit on the back of the head by something……."

"What nonsense are you talking about? We were watching the whole time, what back of the head…."

"Tsk, forget it. What's the use of getting angry at an ant. Its lifespan must be about to run out."

The man on the left clicked his tongue and gestured for the homunculus to come closer.

Then he placed his hand on the forehead of the approaching homunculus and removed its abilities.

"It's a knight ant again. How many times has this been an early disposal."

"Tell me about it. They made such a big deal about getting me Rosch's aura."

"It's not even funny to think about it now. They gave me a cripple with a lame leg and a blind eye, who only belonged to Rosch in name, right? For the head of a prestigious magic family to be so stingy. Tsk, tsk-."

Rosch.

At the name of a family he hadn't expected at all, Eddie's eyes widened at once.

‘They captured a knight from Rosch and are using him as material for a homunculus?’

While he was surprised, another homunculus, who had received an order, shouldered the sprawling body and entered the passage leading to the disposal site.

Eddie came to his senses and followed the homunculus.

On the shoulder of the homunculus walking ahead, the body, slung like a piece of luggage, swayed powerlessly.

Looking at that powerless figure, Eddie's sharp eyes shone.

‘What an unexpected windfall.’