Turning-Chapter 835

‘This... this is Gakein’s shadow.’

It was the first time Yuder had seen it spread out like this, so at first, it was hard to be certain, but he was sure now. It was the same shadow he had seen many times during training with Gakein.

‘He could do something like this...?’

Gakein had spent years training to be able to use his shadow clones in various forms, but this was something completely new.

Yuder circled around the shadow curtain, inspecting it closely. In the process, he found a few awakened members of the Star of Nagran who had been knocked out. However, Naham and Hosanra were not among them.

‘Instead... I found this bastard.’

Yuder looked down indifferently at the unconscious Diemon.

His face, now aged and middle-aged, overlapped faintly with the image of the fake Sage he had been in his past life. It seemed absurd that someone so insignificant could become the nightmare that ate away at the entire Empire after the downfall of the Star of Nagran.

Maybe the evil he had feared wasn’t something grand after all. Mold is easy to remove when it’s just starting, but once it spreads throughout the house, it consumes everything uncontrollably. Maybe that’s exactly what this bastard was like.

In truth, that applied not only to Diemon but also to the real Sage Kal Enphile. Both of them were driven only by their selfish desires, with no great beliefs or purposes.

The very people he had feared so much turned out to be so pitiful.

Yuder genuinely thought it was fortunate that he had caught these two before they could grow any bigger, and he buried Diemon in the ground.

‘If I leave it like this, the ones coming after will probably find and take care of him.’

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Turning his gaze from the buried Diemon, Yuder refocused on Gakein’s shadow curtain. At first, he thought it was a completely new technique, but after a closer look, he realized it wasn’t.

‘I remember the shadow concealment technique Gakein used to hide something in the shadows. Of course, this is on a much larger scale.’

As Yuder remembered, Gakein’s shadow concealment technique was similar to Emon Philang’s ability, who had become the branch head of the Western Division, but there were differences.

While Emon’s invisibility made him undetectable by external sources as he blended into the darkness, Gakein’s method involved covering a target with shadows, making it possible to detect it from the outside.

Just like this curtain before him.

‘And... there’s one more thing.’

Gakein’s technique had a particular characteristic: only Gakein, the owner of the shadow, could remove the concealment from both the outside and the inside. The shadow clones were nearly invulnerable to external attacks, and the technique could be maintained as long as Gakein himself wasn’t defeated.

But what if he made something this large and visible, like what he had now?

There was a common misconception that concealment abilities were more effective on a smaller scale, but when you turned that around, the weaknesses could become strengths.

With that thought, Yuder reached his conclusion.

‘I see. This is a temporary prison made using Gakein’s unique abilities.’

He still didn’t know how Gakein had created such a large barrier, but the fact that it was here meant he had succeeded.

Considering that Hosanra, who had movement abilities, was involved, this was likely the Cavalry’s best move here.

Yuder was almost certain Kishiar was involved in this plan.

The moment the battle on Kishiar’s side had quieted down, it probably happened after this barrier was formed.

‘Now that I’ve identified it, I need to enter. How should I do this?’

The standard method would be to contact Gakein and have him open a gap. However, Gakein himself was likely inside the curtain, so normal communication was impossible. It was also too risky to use any ability to shake the curtain, as it might harm allies who could be in the midst of combat.

Waiting for Gakein to come out wasn’t an option either.

‘Then there’s only one method left.’

Thanks to his past experience with Gakein, Yuder knew the weaknesses and limitations of shadow clones well. Shadows were weak to light, and intense light could weaken the affected areas.

Although the weather was bad today, with no sun and no materials around to produce light, that didn’t matter. If there was no light, he could just create some.

In an instant, flames spiraled and gathered into a ball around Yuder. The flames grew denser and more compressed as they began to turn a bright red, ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) white, and blue, emitting intense light.

-Whrrr...

The blinding flames caused the surrounding snow to instantly melt away, disappearing without a trace. Yet, Yuder seemed unaffected by the heat as he calmly watched the flames.

His gaze was fixed solely on the shadow curtain that was being illuminated by the flames.

Soon, after a brief moment, the shadow curtain began to waver and fade in some areas that had been touched by the light.

‘Now!’

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It was a quick reaction, but Yuder didn’t miss the opportunity. He immediately kicked through the weakened part, and though he felt a slight resistance, his body was sucked in toward the inside.

He felt as though he was falling into a dark pit, and the world around him blinked black.

When he opened his eyes again, he was in complete darkness. There was no one to be seen, and the silence was deafening.

Yuder felt the tension in his body and carefully spoke.

“-Commander.”

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His voice was soft and muffled, almost as if it was submerged in water.

“Gakein. Kurga. Respond.”

There was no answer from his comrades.

‘...The golden thread that had been leading me here is now gone.’

All of his senses seemed dull, as if half-paralyzed. It seemed like the space he was in belonged to Gakein’s shadow ability, and his foresight wasn’t working as effectively here.

After waiting a moment to sense any presence, Yuder exhaled and took a step forward, prepared to strike at anything that appeared.

Suddenly, someone lying on the ground caught his eye. When he got closer, he realized the person had familiar golden hair.

Thud.

The heavy sound that echoed in his ears might have been the heartbeat inside his chest.

Without looking back, Yuder quickly kneeled and lifted the person’s upper body, his mind blank as he checked the face.

The disheveled golden hair shifted, revealing smooth cheeks, a forehead, and tightly closed eyes. The man’s face, looking as if he were asleep, was unmistakably Kishiar la Orr.

“...”

Yuder’s hand, which had been supporting the man, froze without a movement. His eyes, too, stopped, staring blankly at the face.

Time seemed to stop.

The space itself seemed to shrink.

Everything that made up Yuder Aile felt like it was sinking into the blackness like some horrible residue.

Then, the golden light from his left eye flickered, as if responding to something.

‘...Ah.’

Instinctively blinking his eyes, Yuder suddenly noticed something he hadn’t realized about the man he was holding.

‘The clothes... they’re different.’

When Kishiar had attended the funeral earlier today, he was wearing a smooth, subtly shimmering black ceremonial robe. But the man in Yuder’s arms wasn’t wearing that.

Instead, the clothes were familiar—though not the usual Cavalry commander’s uniform or his casual clothes. In some ways, they were more familiar than anything.

It was the outfit Kishiar had worn when he had died in the last moments at Peleta Castle in his past life.

The realization hit Yuder like a punch.

At that moment, the man in his arms opened his eyes.

The red eyes looked up at Yuder with a soft, almost seductive gaze.

‘-That’s right, Yuder.’

The voice was sweet, hypnotic, almost like it was luring him in.

‘It’s the first life you’ve taken with your own hands. If you don’t recognize me, even I... would be a little disappointed.’

With those words, the man reached out a hand.

Before his hand could touch Yuder’s cheek, Yuder sprang up, startled.

The man’s body fell like a broken doll, and a laugh erupted from him. Yuder’s voice, though it seemed muffled as if underwater, was now clear in his mind as the man’s voice was etched into his thoughts.

‘So you throw me away the moment you realize who I am? How disappointing.’

“...”

‘But I think we had some fun together, don’t you?’

The laughter grew, shrank, and repeated. The man’s body gradually turned to ash as the laughter continued.

In the end, there was only one thing left.

Two hands, gloved in white, completely concealed.

And Yuder, staring down at them, finally understood.

This was Naham’s illusion.