My Uncle is the Strongest Dark Mage

Chapter 55

"This way, huh."

Compartment 1.

As Mikhail Raymond entered the compartment right behind the engine room, he looked around.

Empty seats with no people in sight.

Although Compartment 1 was considered first class with relatively spacious seating compared to other compartments, it was strange that there was not a single person here, even considering that.

It was a stark contrast to the other compartments where every seat was packed with people, but Mikhail was not perturbed by this fact.

This compartment was empty because Mikhail had rented it out entirely for use by himself and his guards.

"......."

The Magician Corps that had come to protect the Crown Prince entered first, scanning the surroundings.

They were on high alert, checking for anything suspicious.

"I really don't matter at all, do I?"

Amidst them, as the Crown Prince entered, a middle-aged man who had been sitting alone in the spacious Compartment 1 without receiving a single greeting shook his head in disbelief.

A middle-aged man with a short sports haircut, showing signs of age on his face, and an otherwise ordinary appearance.

Even facing the stern Magician Corps on guard, he showed no signs of tension and raised his hand to Mikhail, meeting his gaze.

"Hey, welcome."

His attitude was outrageously disrespectful, as if he were greeting a close friend rather than the Crown Prince.

Considering this was the first time the two had met in person, the man's behavior was clearly rude.

"Oh, do you need me to use honorifics? I usually don't use them with anyone except the Master, but if you want, I can. After all, you're the one who got me a seat on this expensive magic train."

"No need. It's not an official setting, and I've never expected manners from someone from the Dark District."

Taking a seat across from him with an impassive face, Mikhail thought the man's nickname suited him well, as he seemed more focused on the benefactor who provided the funds than on the Crown Prince's position.

"If you wanted, you could afford to travel like this anytime."

"I prefer earning money to spending it. Isn't it more fun to spend other people's money in this world anyway?"

Following Mikhail as he took his seat was a man with an icy demeanor and silver hair that faintly reflected blue in the sunlight.

Lucian Philoden, the person in charge of the Crown Prince's overall protection.

Under the sharp gaze that seemed to pierce him, the man flashed a careless smile and leaned back against the plush headrest.

"Come on, give me a break. It's such a nice seat; you can't enjoy it if you keep glaring at me like that."

"......."

"I get that you're tense, but don't spread that tension to others and cause harm, okay? We're on the same side right now."

"......."

"What's the point of being tense anyway? If I were an enemy, I could wipe out everyone here, including the Crown Prince, in an instant."

Arrogant.

It was a cocky attitude to take in front of a 7th Class Magician, but the man in front of them had every right to say such things.

One of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Dark District, 'Greed'.

He was one of the few 8th Class Transcendents on the continent.

"Our mission is the same. To protect all the passengers on this train, including the Crown Prince. I'm not asking us to be best friends, but let's at least not be at each other's throats."

Taking a sip from a cider he pulled out from somewhere, Greed leaned over to the adjacent seat.

Stretching out on a seat meant for three all by himself, he flicked his legs that extended into the aisle and closed his eyes.

"Ah, I want to smoke. Can't even do that in first class, huh?"

Smacking his lips in disappointment, his demeanor was the epitome of a degenerate adult.

To think such a good-for-nothing, unemployed uncle was one of the current leaders of the Dark District.

He was the last person Mikhail wanted to introduce to Maril, for entirely different reasons.

It wouldn't be good for her education.

"You're sure about the safety of the civilians, right?"

Perhaps because of his appearance, Mikhail didn't quite trust him.

With doubt filling his eyes, Mikhail spoke up.

"It's fine."

Greed rolled to his side.

Propping his head up with his right arm and scratching his stomach with his left, he answered.

"The Dark District has been authorized for large-scale activities. But I won't tolerate indiscriminate harm to civilians."

"......."

"We don't want war with the Elemental Kingdom either. I remember the terms of our deal well. I don't want to end up paying compensation for damages."

I'll keep my promise, if only to avoid losing my own money.

It was a reason befitting Greed, and it was far more convincing than any excuse about doing it for the greater good.

"And yet, you had no qualms about using me as bait."

The reason Lucian Philoden had been glaring at Greed since he entered Compartment 1.

And the reason the Crown Prince canceled his airship reservation and opted to travel by magic train, passing through other territories to return to the capital.

"It couldn't be helped. I originally planned to catch them before crossing the border, but they moved faster than expected."

He never imagined an 8th Class Transcendent would use himself as bait and send his subordinates ahead.

The nagging from Oman about how he could be so careless and disappoint the Master again still rang in his ears.

If that was the case, he should have led the operation himself.

"Besides, it's not like it's a dangerous bait. I just asked to switch the transportation from an airship to a train to reach the capital."

That was all the Dark District had asked of the Crown Prince.

An airship offered limited space for combat and was difficult to protect passengers in.

In the worst case, destroying the core would force everyone on the airship to do a bungee jump without a rope.

Considering the altitude at which airships fly, it would be tough for anyone but a professional ability user to survive.

"And I'm here on the train as a precaution, just in case. Isn't it hard to get an escort from a transcendent, even for a Crown Prince?"

Like Earl Kaien, who guards the border region with the Hwan Empire, or Hounds Mendelstone, the president of Benedict Academy, the highest educational institution in the Elemental Kingdom.

Usually, superhuman-level forces were assigned to pivotal roles in their countries.

"Just sit back and enjoy the ride. Look out the window at the scenery. By the time we reach our destination, all the trouble will be resolved without you even noticing."

Everything according to the deal.

The Twin Ghosts Guardians' affairs will be entirely handled by the Dark District.

There's no reason for them to intervene.

With a force like Greed assigned to the Crown Prince, the other side had deployed forces overkill for dealing with the underlings.

"I certainly hope so."

The train began to move.

As the scenery outside the window changed, Mikhail let out a deep sigh, looking at it anxiously.

Despite Greed's confident words, he did nothing to instill confidence and continued to lounge leisurely in his seat, sipping cider, which Mikhail found frustrating.

'It seems I won't be able to relax as easily as he suggested.'

He couldn't fully relax until they reached their destination safely without any incidents.

* * *

It was a sudden attack.

It began with the train gradually slowing down.

As soon as the man noticed the train slowing down, suspecting something was amiss, a violent tremor shook the cargo hold as if a powerful earthquake had struck.

Then came a brief moment of zero gravity.

As the floor tilted and they floated into the air along with the heavy cargo, they finally realized what was happening.

They were falling somewhere.

Boom!

As the cargo hold fell from the sky, the thin layer of water at the bottom of the valley splashed high in every direction.

Crashing into the rocks and pebbles beneath the water, the cargo hold was half-destroyed.

"Damn it."

Emerging from the crumpled cargo hold by breaking through its door, the man grimaced and cursed.

Looking up, he saw a high cliff and a waterfall.

Above it, he assessed the situation by looking at what appeared to be a wide bridge.

Someone had cut the cargo hold from the train.

And dropped it under the bridge.

This was clearly a deliberate act.

The fact that they had dropped only the cargo hold and not the entire train suggested they knew of their presence and targeted them specifically.

"One, two, three, four, five, six......."

As if to confirm this suspicion, the voice of someone suspected to be the perpetrator was heard.

Perched on a protruding rock on the cliff, the assailant pointed at each of the survivors with his fingers.

"Seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen."

And with a smirk, he confirmed their numbers.

"Lastly, fourteen. That's just right."

Something thrown by the assailant who attacked the cargo hold shattered and fell in front of the wrecked cargo hold.

With a light splash, what appeared was a man's corpse with all its joints twisted in the opposite direction.

No, it was a half-corpse that barely proved it was still alive with its slight twitching.

He was a subordinate of the man who had just reported seeing the Crown Prince board the train from outside.

The man's expression turned grim at the sight of his subordinate's wretched state.

"Who are you?"

"......."

Without answering Do-Cheol's question, the assailant leaped off the rock below.

Despite his large build, he landed silently on the valley water without causing even a splash.

Then, as he slowly walked up to Do-Cheol, he opened his mouth.

"Your posture is awkward. It's quite rare for me to meet someone bigger than myself."

Although the assailant was large, Do-Cheol was a head taller.

Moreover, his body was marked with scars that were like medals.

For a 5th Class Realm martial artist to be in such a state meant that his life had not been easy.

He must have crossed the threshold of death several times.

'Or, has he already died once?'

As he pondered such idle thoughts, the assailant had already reached Do-Cheol.

Looking up at him, the assailant suddenly grabbed his hair.

"You're looking down on me."

Bang!

The assailant, Wrath from the Dark District's Seven Deadly Sins, slammed Do-Cheol's head into the valley floor.

The sound that echoed was louder than when the cargo hold fell earlier.

"Only the Master can look down on me like that."

Perhaps, except when Oman nags him for his mistakes.

His eyes, twisted with madness towards the Master, were terrifying enough to suppress even his own wrath.

"Attack!"

In response to the preemptive attack on their leader, the Twin Ghosts Guardians quickly drew their weapons.

As they used their martial arts, magic power enveloped their bodies like a tangible force.

It seeped deep into their muscles, granting them physical capabilities beyond human limits, accelerating their movements.

"This is troublesome."

All of them had survived being crushed by heavy cargo after falling from such a high place.

Originally, they had planned to terrorize the airship.

All were expert martial artists who had reached at least the 5th Class Realm, surrounding and attacking him.

"I'm not good at controlling my strength."

He took a True Step.

A ripple rapidly expanded from the step he took.

The raging valley water, due to the waterfall, suddenly became calm.

The silence spread from Wrath.

In that silence, an irresistible destructive smile appeared on Wrath's lips.

"Don't die just yet. I don't want to hear Oman's nagging because of you."

The silence transformed into action.

The atmosphere was pushed back in an instant.

Everyone approaching Wrath was pushed back by the intense waves of magic power radiating in all directions.

Some bounced off the valley water and collided with the cliff.

"......!"

Something pierced through the pushed-back atmosphere, flying towards Wrath's forehead.

It was literally a swift strike.

Like a flash of light, it pierced through the waves of magic power Wrath had unleashed, striking his forehead.