Translator: Pai_

In the distant ancient times, the Preah God Tribe descended to the mortal world and liberated humanity, which had been the livestock and slaves of other races, establishing the old empire.

Although the empire eventually collapsed for unknown reasons, leading to a world dominated by various wizard families, all humans still worshipped them as gods.

The first teachings written in the scriptures dedicated to these gods discussed the relationship between wizards and humans.

Humans were to serve wizards, while wizards would rule over and also care for humans.

While the emphasis between ruling and caring varied depending on the houses and individuals, this framework was largely adhered to.

If the ramblings of the Pyro Executioner turned out to be true, many wizard families would likely find themselves in conflict between divine teachings and reality.

On the way back to the burned village, Visen and his group debated this topic.

“No matter how you think about it, it doesn’t make sense. Honestly, if something like that were possible, someone would have already tried it by now.”

“Exactly. There’s no shortage of crazy bastards in the world.”

“But the divine bloodline has been spread throughout the world for thousands of years. Unless they’re from another race, it’s not like people have no magic power at all, right? It’s just at a level where they can’t use it properly.”

“Well, if you trace it back far enough, everyone would have at least one wizard in their ancestry…”

If killing ordinary people to extract magic power became possible, the world would become several times more brutal than it already was.

Every time a war broke out, enemy houses’ commoners would be rounded up and massacred, or those driven into a corner would kill their own subjects to gain power and mount a desperate counterattack.

Of course, if such a method truly existed, it would likely have become widely known long ago.

Even the mere superstition that ordinary humans could become wizards by hunting magical beasts had already produced countless beast hunters.

Eventually, Visen’s group became divided over two opinions.

Two of them argued that there was no need to investigate something that was obviously bullshit and suggested killing the suspect immediately.

The other two thought it wouldn’t hurt to find out more and proposed subduing the person and interrogating them first.

In the midst of their heated debate, someone turned to Turan and asked,

“What do you think, Turan?”

“Let’s attack with the intent to kill first. If we can subdue them, we’ll try to do that then.”

While he had no intention of using a method as horrifying as gaining power through killing people, Turan thought it would still be better to know such a thing if it existed.

After all, just ignoring uncomfortable truths wouldn’t make them disappear.

As their discussion wrapped up, the ruins of the burned village came into view.

“Ah, we’re here.”

“Then, shall we start the pursuit? Aisha?”

“Yes!”

“Take the lead in the search. I’ll take the rear, with Gill and Kebak in the middle. Turan, please cover the back.”

“Understood.”

Responding to Visen’s request, Turan briefly glanced at Gill, the man who had earlier misfired the flame spear.

Gill, who possessed the Beast Tamer Bloodline that allowed him to tame magical beasts, didn’t even have enough magic power to keep useful magical beasts at his side.

Moreover, as evidenced by his mistake in firing the spear, he was the youngest and most inexperienced among the four.

“I’ll… start looking now.”

Aisha widened her eyes and scanned the area.

The most immediate search conditions that came to mind were likely “footprints of a human male” or “red fabric.”

Turan thought the former would have too many traces within the village, while the latter wouldn’t leave many clues unless the clothes had been snagged and torn somewhere.

“How is it?”

“I think I need to look around a bit more.”

“Alright, let’s move. Which way should we go?”

Turan didn’t take the lead but quietly followed behind them.

He was curious about how effective the half-blood Zahar’s tracking skills would be and also wanted to conserve his own magic power just in case.

Fortunately, Aisha, who had begun the pursuit, displayed the cautious and seasoned demeanor of a skilled hunter, which contrasted with her small and youthful appearance.

She first guided the group along a path, but upon noticing that it led to a main road, she shook her head and returned to the village.

By the time this process was repeated three times, Turan posed a question.

"How exactly are you conducting your search right now?"

"I first track the footprints of a human male, and when it leads to a main road, I search for the scent of ash. If he didn’t change clothes or anything, there should still be traces of ash on his clothing..."

Her method of tracking was quite professional.

Why hadn’t they been able to find the culprit like this before?

Thinking about it, it was likely because they couldn’t determine the gender of the target at the time, which posed a significant problem.

While men tend to wander around outside more than women, doubling the potential targets to search for would have been quite the challenge.

Moreover, this was also the first time they had managed to find the scene of the crime so quickly.

How many times did they repeat the cycle of tracking, resting after their magic power ran out, and then resuming the search?

As the day began to darken, on their thirteenth attempt to follow a trail, Aisha suddenly exclaimed.

"I found it!"

"Wait, Aisha! Slow down a bit!"

The group chased after her as she dashed ahead, only to arrive at the entrance of a natural cave.

The cave was far too small for a person to live in, barely large enough for small animals to pass through.

"Here?"

"It doesn’t look like anything bigger than a cat could fit in here."

"Wait."

Turan passed through the murmuring group and pushed aside a boulder that was set to one side of the natural cave.

With the aid of magic power, the boulder, large enough to accommodate two people, toppled over with a thud, revealing a sizeable entrance.

"This is likely how he is been coming and going."

"Wow…"

"The sound of the boulder rolling was too loud. It must have echoed inside as well."

"But we couldn’t just leave the entrance closed. Let’s head in."

With a battle imminent and their target’s location confirmed, the group adjusted their formation. Turan and Visen took the lead, while the other three followed behind.

Creating a small glowing orb of light with magic to illuminate the surroundings, Visen asked Aisha,

"Is there someone inside?"

"There is. One person..."

"Must be the culprit. There’s no reason for anyone to be alone in a place like this unless they’re a criminal."

Using the night vision unique to the Zahar Bloodline, Turan carefully observed the interior of the cave that remained untouched by the light.

The interior was barren, devoid of any signs of human construction…

Even for a noble, staying in such a place for more than a few days would be extraordinarily uncomfortable.

Could the murder committed here have been so important that it justified enduring such conditions?

Soon after, they discovered an open space deep within the cave.

The ceiling had a small hole, presumably for ventilation. In one corner, there was a primitive bedding arrangement made from blankets and wooden pieces, along with a few pots filled with some unknown liquid.

On the walls, a few torches burned, dimly lighting the surroundings.

At the center of this makeshift shelter, a man was sitting and staring at the group, as though waiting for them.

“What brings you to such a remote place, guests?”

He wore a red robe with a hood, Aisha must have mistaken it for a cape, and had a rugged face adorned with a beard, exactly matching the description the girl had given.

A faint scent of ash, not entirely washed off, wafted from his body.

Aisha whispered softly to confirm.

"He smells of ash. It’s him."

At that moment, Turan felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity in the man’s gaze as he looked at them.

Those strangely clear eyes...

They bore an uncanny resemblance to the gaze of Midan, the beast hunter, which had crossed Turan’s mind not long ago.

If it weren’t for the different facial features, he might have thought it was the same person.

While Turan was pondering this oddity, Visen, who seemed to have lost some confidence after his earlier mistake, notched an arrow on his ice bow and asked,

"He's likely the culprit, but just to be sure, let me ask. Are you the murderer who’s been abducting and burning the residents of nearby villages?"

At Visen’s question, the Pyro Executioner tilted his head, as if he didn’t understand.

"I don’t quite know what you’re talking about-"

Seeing his opponent’s hand stretch forward, Turan immediately activated Accelerated Thinking and his Guardian Magic Artifact.

At the same time, boom! explosions erupted on both sides of the spot where they were standing.

“Ahhh!”

“What the-!?”

The source of the explosion was in the corners of the cave, sacks filled with an unknown black powder.

Thanks to Turan’s use of the Guardian Magic Artifact, and the fact that he unintentionally acted as a shield for Visen, the two of them were unharmed. However, the three in the back took the full brunt of the explosion’s pressure and heat, leaving them sprawled on the ground.

It was an absurdly powerful trap, capable of instantly incapacitating three nobles, inexperienced as they might have been.

‘What is this?’

As Turan reeled from surprise, he spun his slingshot, loaded with stones, in preparation to counterattack. But before he could act, Visen fired an ice arrow at the Pyro Executioner.

The arrow flew faster than sound, piercing the Executioner’s thigh and freezing his leg.

“Argh!”

Even as he collapsed with his pierced thigh, the Pyro Executioner didn’t give up on retaliating.

He slammed his palm into the ground, causing the surrounding rocks to distort and rise, forming massive hands that reached out to crush Visen and Turan.

Earth manipulation, at this range, with such speed and scale, was clearly advanced magic.

‘This…?’

Turan had assumed, given the murders by fire, that the man must belong to the Pyromaniac Bloodline.

But with skills like this, it seemed more likely he belonged to the Earthmover Bloodline, which specialized in controlling the earth.

“Kyaaah!”

Caught off guard, Visen was seized by one of the stone hands. Turan, however, was able to narrowly avoid being caught, thanks to his Accelerated Thinking, which allowed him to react quickly and dodge out of the way.

Immediately, Turan released the prepared shot from his slingshot. With a sharp cracking sound, the stone struck the Pyro Executioner’s right hand, which had been targeting Turan. His hand was shattered on impact.

“Gaaahhhhhh!”

As the Pyro Executioner screamed in pain from the loss of his hand, Turan advanced, rubbing his left hand together twice.

He was using static electricity amplification to generate an electric spell.

While precise targeting was still difficult for him, hitting someone at this close range wasn’t a problem.

When the bolt of lightning crackled to life and struck the Pyro Executioner’s chest, his entire body convulsed violently before collapsing to the ground.

Indeed, lightning-based magic was one of the most effective ways to subdue a foe.

Of course, if the power was too strong, it could easily turn into a lethal attack instead.

“Did we… did we take him down?”

“Most likely.”

Turan answered Visen briefly while checking whether the Pyro Executioner was still breathing. Once he confirmed the man was alive, he moved to fully secure him.

Turan scattered a few vine seeds on the ground, causing them to grow rapidly and bind the man’s arms behind his back. He even used another vine to wrap around his eyes, rendering him unable to see.

With his vision taken away and his arms restrained, it was impossible for the Pyro Executioner to offer meaningful resistance.

If he tried to concentrate his magic to break free, Turan, who was controlling the plants, would immediately sense it and kill him.

The only drawback to this method was that it consumed Turan’s magic power to sustain the vines, making it difficult to maintain for an extended period.

“Now that he’s secured, please take care of the three injured ones.”

“…Thank you.”

As expected, if Turan hadn’t been with them, the four of them would have undoubtedly found themselves on a one-way trip to the Celestial Palace by now.

It was clear the Pyro Executioner had thoroughly prepared to face intruders.

While Visen woke Kebak, the healer, to treat the injured three, Turan tapped the Pyro Executioner’s cheek with the flat side of his dagger.

“Hey, wake up.”

“Ugh…”

“If you try to channel more magic, I’ll kill you immediately.”

The Pyro Executioner groaned and instinctively tried to summon magic to remove the vines binding his wrists, but Turan pressed his blade to the man’s neck and glared at him.

The Executioner seemed to understand the situation and reluctantly stopped resisting.

“Who are you people? How did you even find this place…?”

“There are ways to do that. Anyway, you’re the Pyro Executioner, right?”

“That is-”

Seeing the hesitation in his opponent, Turan immediately drove his dagger deep into the man’s thigh.

A rough scream echoed throughout the cave.

“Answer me. Quickly.”

What reason could there be to show mercy to a mass murderer who had burned hundreds of ordinary people alive?

At Turan’s growling voice, the Pyro Executioner began to cry, tears spilling from his eyes despite them being bound by vines, as he nodded his head.

At that moment, Visen and the others, having finished their healing, approached from behind Turan.

“You subdued him with vines?”

“I didn’t know a noble with the Guardian Bloodline could do something like this...”

“For now, let’s focus on asking him what we need to know.”

Turan purposely refrained from mentioning that it was difficult to maintain the suppression for a long time.

If the Pyro Executioner overheard that, he might simply try to stall for time.

Fortunately, the man didn’t seem particularly strong-willed, so the interrogation proceeded quickly.

His name was Ovil Kraf, 78 years old, and he claimed to be a noble from the House Kraf, which was located far to the south of this area.

He said he had been wandering around after severing ties with his older brother, the head of his family.

“So, why exactly is this wandering noble burning the villagers here alive?”

“The god... the god told me. If I burn the souls and flesh of these sinful people, I’ll be able to draw closer to the gods….”

“What?”

“You shouldn’t treat me like this! I am destined to become the founder of a great noble house!”

According to Ovil, who was now rambling incoherently, one day a god had revealed to him various secret methods for obtaining the powers of different bloodlines.

He even claimed that he had seen other nobles acquire new Bloodline Abilities using these methods.

The specific ritual Ovil was performing was one to acquire the Pyromaniac Bloodline. It required burning a large number of humans at once and then covering himself with their ashes.

He insisted that he only needed to perform the ritual a few more times and begged to be released, writhing pathetically.

“…This guy’s just a crazy bastard, isn’t he?”

“Exactly.”

Ovil’s absurd and ridiculous story earned nothing but mockery from Visen and the others.

But Turan couldn’t bring himself to laugh.

‘Even ordinary people can gain power if they kill a magical beast! I’ve already seen wizards like that myself!’

A suspicious superstition, paired with claims that there were already several similar cases…

It wasn’t just the eerily familiar gaze. Ovil’s claims were strikingly similar in form to those made by Midan, the beast hunter, in the past.