I Became the Narrow-Eyed Henchman of the Evil Boss

Carisia, pressing her temples, finally spoke up.

“What kind of artifact is it? Antiquity? Relic?”

We may call it an artifact for convenience, but strictly speaking, there are two types. One is antiquity, made by human hands.

A general term for magically imbued items is artifact. Among them, some of exceptional quality that have been passed down over a long time are referred to as such.

The second type is those that cannot be replicated by magic. For example, items created by gods or dragons are called relics. Most of the sacred items stored by the cults of the vanished gods fall under the category of relics.

“It’s antiquity.”

The artifact suitable for Astraphe wasn’t some godly relic. In fact, according to information stolen from the Blasphemia branch, several ancient ruins where relics might be hidden remained.

However, it wasn’t a good time to use Blasphemia’s information right now. If we were spotted in the process of looting, they might confuse us for Argyrion and start tracking us down.

The information about the artifact we were seeking was actually recorded in the original work.

Since it was an artifact used by Astraphe in the original work, it naturally suited her well.

“There are a few ancient ruins from the Mage King era that the Torres Faction is excavating. Among them lies an artifact called the Talisman of Thunder.”

In the original novel, Astraphe was sold to the Torres Faction and underwent all sorts of modification surgeries, part of the Torres Faction’s long-standing project to create a backdoor that secretly accesses the Ten Commandments.

The Torres Faction used all available artifacts for Astraphe’s modifications, viewing it as a necessary sacrifice to create the perfect ether hacker.

Among all the artifacts they owned, the Talisman of Thunder was so powerful that it was the core of their modifications.

Originally, a mage’s body requires periodic mana replenishment. A truly powerful mage can manage some self-replenishment, but it’s only natural that their combat endurance suffers.

The artifact that overcame such limitations was the Talisman of Thunder. An ancient artifact that endlessly supplies lightning attribute mana conditionally.

Carisia tilted her head at my explanation.

“Then why has no one found it until now? An artifact that steadily releases mana should be easy to track down.”

“The performance of the Talisman of Thunder depends on the wielder’s mana control.”

Mana is essentially a consumable.

A mage’s soul can produce mana independently, but this natural recovery ability varies greatly depending on the individual’s condition and constitution.

Supplementing through mana potions or magical stones is possible, but consumables have carrying limits.

Therefore, combat mages train to harness the abundant mana in nature, converting it into usable mana to recover quickly.

The recovery process through mana absorption has three main steps.

1. The mage grasps the mana within their influence.
2. They convert the grasped mana to match the mana attribute.
3. They absorb the converted mana.

Due to inevitable losses during steps two and three, the processes of mana-to-magic conversion and magic absorption are generally considered to have limits.

The Talisman of Thunder was an artifact that optimized the loss during the conversion and absorption processes to nearly zero.

In other words, if the wielder’s mana control is sufficient, it can supply more mana than consumed at every moment, effectively achieving infinite power.

It was fortunate that due to the limits on the total amount of personal mana and the recovery time of converted ambient mana, truly infinite mana accumulation wasn’t possible.

If that were the case, Carisia would have immediately said, “Let’s make this a bomb, shall we?”

“Indeed. Since it’s currently buried without a wielder, its conversion and absorption abilities must be inactive. It makes sense for them to be struggling in their search at the Torres Tower.”

“Yes. The various mage towers are likely preoccupied with Argyrion’s Elysion Terror. We plan to take advantage of this to get the artifact before the Torres Faction.”

*

Carisia called for Arabella.

Arabella found herself slowly getting used to being summoned by her boss in the middle of the night, and it filled her with despair.

“I shouldn’t be getting used to this; damn it.”

However, what brought Arabella even greater despair was the moment she entered the president’s office.

“Oh, you arrived quickly. Thank you for coming at such a late hour.”

Both Carisia and Orthes were in the president’s office. The alarm bells shouted that this was definitely going to be overtime.

“If it’s late, you shouldn’t be calling me…!”

Still, regardless of her warnings, Arabella had no choice. What could she do when called by the boss?

In a typical job, she might have tossed in her resignation, but unfortunately, Hydra Corporation was a lifelong employment place that did not allow resignations.

“Do you have any information about the Torres Tower, Director Arabella?”

“Oh. The guys dealing with Cretone? Didn’t you wipe that faction out yourself?”

“Since then, there hasn’t been a connection between Etna City and the Torres Tower, but it seems that will change soon.”

Orthes’s sly smile made Arabella’s head spin. The Argyrion terror was spreading across the entire Ether Network.

In such circumstances, a mage tower that was supposed to welcome Blasphemia’s Secret Inspectors was making her uneasy.

“Could it be the Torres Tower is collaborating with Argyrion? No, that choice sounds too risky…”

“What information do you need about the Torres Tower?” Arabella asked.

“The ruins they’re excavating.”

“Oh, that’s easy.”

Even if you try to excavate ruins secretly, that type of operation is hard to keep under wraps. First off, the manpower involved in the excavation is already a problem.

Unless it’s in some backwater like an extra-dimensional danger zone, they’re bound to stand out when dragging a large cohort along.

If they were to hire troubleshooters or mercenaries due to concerns over manpower depletion among internal mages, hiding everything would become even harder.

With a flick of her hand, Arabella brought up a hologram list. The Torres Tower was currently excavating three ruins.

“One is presumed to be a temple from the mythic era. The other two seem to be ruins from the Mage era.”

The mythic era, when only the Holy Power existed before the coming of the Mage King. The subsequent era, when the Mage King’s ten disciples revived the Mage era.

Arabella believed that Orthes was likely to be interested in the mythic era ruins. Given Blasphemia’s secret inspector would be more likely to show interest in mythic era sites rather than Mage era ones.

Yet Orthes was focused only on information about the two Mage era ruins.

*

Which is the right answer?

My head was a chaotic mess. Damn it. Since it’s an item related to mana, it definitely can’t be from the mythic era.

“Should I just take a guess?”

“Orthes, Head of the Divine Investigation Office.”

As I was deliberating over the two candidates, I heard Arabella’s voice.

“Yes?”

“Why are you looking for information about these ruins?”

“Ah…”

First, I looked at Carisia’s expression. Given that the alliance with Lampades hadn’t been confirmed yet, the reason for heading to Elysion was publicly stated as Carisia’s enrollment preparation for Kine’s Musaeum.

I couldn’t leak the ongoing contract without the boss’s approval.

Carisia nodded. It was a sign she trusted my discretion.

I carefully chose my words.

*

“There’s a high likelihood that one of these ruins hides an artifact particularly beneficial for the Divine Investigation.”

I thought it was a rather sudden excuse. If it’s a holy artifact, wouldn’t it more likely be from the mythic era?

“More accurately, the side effect it provides would benefit the Divine Investigation, but let me just explain it like this for now. It’s not a confirmed matter yet.”

Arabella’s mind raced. Side effect rather than an artifact.

Not yet a confirmed matter.

And Blasphemia’s secret inspector…

“Does this mean the Torres Faction is making a deal with Argyrion?”

“Yes?”

It was an unmistakable look of shock. Arabella found unexpected confidence in that reaction. Was this the first human-like reaction she had seen from him, rather than that smug squint?

Feeling exhilarated by Orthes’s surprise, Arabella instinctively started piecing together the puzzle of validation she had arrived at.

Being able to put her boss, who had continually forced overwork on her, in an awkward position for even a second was a thrilling instinctive reaction.

“Not mentioning the artifact, merely the side effect being important insinuates that the excavation itself matters. Excavating ruins tends to make it easy for outsiders to infiltrate. Even if unfamiliar mages flood in, discomfort won’t arise.”

Thus, the Torres Tower would be a suitable place for Argyrion’s forces to hide.

“But, Director Arabella, aren’t Argyrion known to be merely an Eroder group? They wouldn’t negotiate in their right mind, would they?”

Arabella snorted.

“Of course that’s what they’re known for. But you know their true nature is a gathering of Blasphemia’s traitors, right?”

Orthes remembered that Carisia had given a brief explanation about the traitors of Blasphemia before departing for Elysion.

The explanation she provided was adequate, but merely spoke of them being traitors without mentioning they were also Eroders!

“If I go into detail, I’d have to mention my past with Carisia, which I can’t.”

“Ordinary Eroders are generally deemed uncompromising. However, if it’s known that they are negotiable, the response from the towers would change.”

The Torres Tower had long sought the position of the Thunder Tower, which was public knowledge. Although it was weak in the rankings among the second-rate lightning factions, they still remained largely ignored by the Thunder Tower.

“Arguably, Argyrion may have revealed their identity first and proposed negotiations. They might offer useful information for the succession battle with the Ten Towers in exchange for cooperation on the Silver Thread Host’s distribution. It’s common knowledge that the Torres Tower buys slaves from all over the world. Using that distribution network would greatly assist in deploying the Silver Thread Hosts.”

Blasphemia would likely be keeping a close eye on any excavated sites related to superstitions, so they would be excluded as a potential trading venue with Argyrion.

Arabella made a final conclusion.

“Understanding that the Torres Faction and Argyrion have made a secret pact and planning to catch them in the act, correct? The matter being unconfirmed likely means we haven’t verified their relationship yet.”

If it were a Blasphemia inspector, they certainly wouldn’t be able to stand idly by with such treasonous activity. Arabella confidently declared.

Orthes covered his mouth with his hand.

“How on earth did you reach such a conclusion…?”

“No, it’s entirely different reasoning.”

“Then what’s your purpose exactly?”

“I can’t answer that at this moment.”

Arabella heard the infamous deflective line and nodded satisfactorily. It was the first time she felt like she had won.

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