Chapter 153: Next—Let’s Wipe Them All Out!

Translation by: Weebsread👹

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“Understand...?”

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A series of improbable incidents had so thoroughly scrambled Iresha’s thoughts that she found herself chewing her food on autopilot, slow and dazed, needing several seconds to catch up to what Lin Wei had just said.

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“So, what you’re telling me is, thanks to a handful of lucky breaks, you jumped straight from provisional Empire citizen to Holy See envoy—just like that?”

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Lin Wei sat up straighter, putting on an air of righteous indignation. “I told you, most of that was skill! Pure talent. The coincidences were just icing on the cake.”

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“For heaven’s sake, woman, can you focus on what actually matters here?”

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If he hadn’t just scared her half to death a moment ago, she might have grabbed her spoon and thwacked herself on the head.

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Noticing the genuine confusion across Iresha's earnest features—how she seemed sincerely piecing together some private theory about him—Lin Wei let the last topic drop and circled back.

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“Let’s get back to what you mentioned before. When you were mocking Duke Ous, you brought up the ‘Three Dukes and Five Marquises.’ What’s that about? Is it supposed to be the Empire’s highest tier of nobles?”

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He'd lived in the Empire for quite a while, originally just drifting along, taking on simple jobs and settling into a monotonous routine. Days slipped by, unnoticed, until suddenly his life flipped—he’d gone from commonplace anonymity to orbiting the heart of the Holy See.

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The transformation had been dizzying; even Lin Wei himself could scarcely believe the turns his fate had taken. In truth, not even his Veya could have predicted it.

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So even now, when it came to the true power structure of the Empire—the secrets and silent currents beneath the world’s most powerful households—he was still an outsider.

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Yet now, by chance, he was sitting at the fire with the self-proclaimed encyclopedia of the Empire herself—a princess no less. Judging by the utter contempt with which she’d skewered the nobles a moment ago, Lin Wei figured her intelligence network definitely outstripped Yalis’s.

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“Seriously... You didn’t know that at all?”

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Iresha’s astonishment was unmistakable. She already knew Lin Wei’s grasp of imperial matters was spotty, but to miss something this basic? Even she gave him a look of disbelief. Still, she had time and patience, and so she decided to give him a refresher.

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“The so-called ‘Three Dukes and Five Marquises’ are the eight noble houses who’ve existed since the Empire’s founding. For their service, the First Emperor granted each house their peerage and established the High Council, fulfilling his promise, back when the dynasty was born, to share power with his allies.”

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“These days, as the royal house has declined, those noble clans have basically monopolized all real power. Most royals now are intertwined with them by blood. In recent decades, the house closest by blood to the imperial family is the Leonards.”

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“And that house’s patriarch is Duke Meyer. Or, as my uncles say... he might be young, but he’s got real steel. Serious presence, too.”

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The notion that the imperial family had lost true authority, leaving it to eight preeminent noble houses—this was news to Lin Wei. Thinking back to the days when he’d commanded demonkind against the coalition armies, it explained a lot. Outside the occasional imperial signature on a treaty, every negotiation, agreement, and boundary had been handled by nobles—or, sometimes, the Pope himself.

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So the Emperor had always been little more than a puppet.

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“That arrest warrant for Duke Ous the other day? Signed by Duke Meyer himself, on behalf of the High Council.”

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“So Duke Meyer speaks for the nobles, then. What about the others—how do they fit into all this?”

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Lin Wei was genuinely intrigued now. The current troubles plaguing the Church couldn’t possibly be laid at Duke Ous’s feet alone. This web of power—and the animosity it harbored—ran far deeper.

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It wasn’t just a rogue noble or two. The truth was, it was likely the silent approval, the tacit nod, of the entire Empire.

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If he wanted to restore Veya’s name, reclaim lost prestige—sooner or later, he and his allies would have to reckon with these ancient aristocrats.

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A little reconnaissance in advance—some groundwork, some counterplanning—would only help.

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“An arrest order for Duke Ous? For a country bumpkin, you really managed to make waves in the capital,” said Iresha, barely hiding her surprise.

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A duke—no matter how fresh his title—was still a duke.

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For this man to be so entangled in all this? She gave him a frank look, as if questioning whether the Pope herself truly favored him.

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She continued, “Besides the Leonard family—Duke Meyer, who basically runs the royal clan and leads the High Council—there are two more ducal families: the house under Duke Perseus, who dominates military affairs; and the Glenfield family, led by Duchess Loni, famed for their staggering wealth. Outsiders call her the Silverglow Archduchess.”

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“The five marquisate families are tasked with guarding the Empire’s various borders. That’s a longer story—if you’re actually curious, I can dig up the archives when we get home.”

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Even by Lin Wei’s meticulous standards, her explanations were detailed and clear. He nodded thoughtfully, prompting Iresha to finish as if with a casual afterthought,

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“Of course, over the thousands of years the Empire’s been around, plenty of new noble families have risen and fallen. Even among ducal households, there are others, but only these eight truly hold the reins.”

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“It’s because their family inheritance is complete—their rights, their privileges—such that as long as their main bloodline’s intact, they’ll always be the real power in the Empire. Old money, old blood. The aristocracy above aristocracies.”

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“That’s why, to the eyes of the true old guard, Duke Ous is no different from a nouveau riche upstart... Back then, our ancestors fought alongside the first emperor to forge the Empire’s foundations. Those who climbed their way up with flattery—or through the bedroom—simply don’t count.”

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Although, I sleep with women too, but at least I put in some effort...

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Wait, weren’t we talking about Duke Ous? How did the mud end up splashing on me?

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Lin Wei coughed, making it clear he felt personally affronted. At last, he had uncovered the Empire’s true inner workings.

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“No wonder Duke Ous had to personally visit the Empire’s Magic Academy—even lay in wait for Sir Alfron. It all makes sense now. He’s got no solid backing.”

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He’d sensed it before: for someone with a ducal title, Duke Ous was far too hands-on.

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None of his schemes were that clever—at best, he was ordinary, and the ring of prestige around him stemmed only from his title.

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Even his attempt to pressure the Holy See had required his personal presence. It was blunt, lacking any subtlety.

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From this angle, everything fell cleanly into place.

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“That’s right... My family’s said as much. The Duke has a reputation for being busy in noble circles, but the only ones who flock to him are minor lords. The real landed families don’t even spare him a glance.”

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“At the year-end assembly, he gets a gilded seat—on paper, signifying the highest authority. But compared with the Eight Great Houses, his foundations are meager, his roots shallow.”

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Not that it mattered much anymore—she doubted she’d see such a gathering again in her lifetime.

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Receiving these revelations, Lin Wei silently revised the Duke of Ous’s odds of survival from zero to something far worse—a resounding negative a thousand.

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A figure like this, handpicked to serve as the Holy See’s alleged threat to the Empire... How utterly convenient.

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As for next steps, all that remained was to wait for those “soldiers” disguised as demons to attack the village.

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Tsk. He’d never thought this leg of his journey would go so smoothly.

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He wouldn’t even need to travel all the way to Brook City-State to meet Meilin.

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The only lingering threads—those adventurers who’d wandered too deep into the labyrinth—could wait until the dust settled. After everything was finished, perhaps he’d pay them a visit.

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“For now, once you’re done eating, take it easy—read, rest, whatever you like.” Lin Wei turned to her.

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“My scouting skills are covering the entire village. If anything moves out of order, I’ll know immediately.”

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“If trouble comes knocking, I’ll warn you, and we handle it together.”

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She’d seen Lin Wei’s scouting before. But she hadn’t realized that hadn’t been the limit of his perception. To think his senses extended so far, capturing every movement within such a wide range—

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“I got it...” she murmured.

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He’s even stronger than I realized.

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Still, having a teammate like this was no bad thing.

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Time slowed, the world exhaling and falling into gentle stillness.

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After their meal, Iresha built a small campfire, sighing in contentment as she settled against an old tree root, soaking in the warmth.

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Now and then the fire snapped, sparks arcing harmlessly into the night. There was no fear in it—only peace, the comfort of wilderness after dark.

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Every so often, Iresha lifted her gaze from the pages of her novel, glancing at Lin Wei as he read nearby.

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Under the flickering glow, his sharp features seemed softer, almost ordinary—trustworthy, unthreatening.

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Whenever she tossed him a question, he answered right away, calm and good-natured. He was... surprisingly easy to be around.

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And to think, when they’d met, she’d disliked him at once—all due to a misunderstanding.

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Now, sitting beside him, she felt a strange sense of reassurance.

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Maybe... this kind of life really wasn’t so bad.

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A tranquil night—elegant, quiet—the two of them reading by firelight, letting time slip by in gentle peace.

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She thought: if I grew tired, I could just lean against his shoulder, let myself drift to sleep. Surely, that would be the most comfortable thing in the world.

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What am I thinking?!

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Suddenly, Iresha snapped out of it, cheeks flaming. Hastily, she patted her face, tearing her gaze away.

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Her skin prickled hot, flushed in the fire’s light. Her gaze darted, flustered—a wild little animal in the dark.

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Even her hands, gripping the book, tensed without realizing.

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Wasteful thoughts like these... at the very least, not before I’ve avenged my homeland!

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Now is not the time to let my guard down. Pull yourself together, Iresha!

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Maybe I’m just tired.

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Heavy with exhaustion, she let herself slump sideways onto a makeshift pillow.

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The book lay open in her lap, its pages gently trembling in the firelight. But her mind wandered far from the words, drifting somewhere distant from the fire.

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And yet... Lin Wei really is—embarrassingly—kind of handsome...

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...

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“...Hey. Wake up.”

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“Don’t fall asleep here, you silly girl—the enemy’s already at the gates!”

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She had no idea how much time had slipped by.

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A sudden jolt—a sharp constriction at nose and lips—snapped Iresha back to herself. She gasped, blinking awake, to find Lin Wei had pinched her nose and mouth shut to rouse her, his mien caught between annoyance and concern. Only when her eyes really opened did he let go.

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Exasperated, he scolded, “Seriously, how can you sleep at a time like this?”

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“You’re about to set foot on a battlefield—dozing off isn’t exactly recommended.”

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“Hah, really... You’d better steer clear of wilderness at night. If someone finished you off, you wouldn’t even know it happened!”

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“Huh? Was I... actually asleep just now?”

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I was only stretching out for a moment, and maybe I glanced at those picturebooks—it felt more comfortable...

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Guess I really did nod off. Traveling with others, sleep was almost impossible to come by.

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Realizing the danger, Iresha hurriedly rubbed her face, trying to shake off her stupor.

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There was no time to wonder whether the fire had been too cozy, or something stranger was at play.

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Almost as soon as Lin Wei finished, she dropped to the ground beside him, assuming the same alert posture, eyes locked on the village below.

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Just as he’d forewarned: at the entrance to the settlement, a large force was gathering.

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Their mounts pawed at the earth, nostrils flaring. Even under heavy cloaks thrown over polished armor, their lethal intent glimmered in cold moonlight.

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In this darkness, anyone not especially vigilant would have missed it—no hint betrayed them, nothing to betray that such a dangerous squad had gathered at the edge of a remote village.

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“Exactly as I thought,” Lin Wei muttered, contempt curling in his voice.

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He scoffed at their crude attempts to mimic demonic traits—a horn stuck on askew beneath a hood, a tail poorly sewn to a belt, bad makeup or hasty posturing. But anyone with a demon’s instinct could see through it instantly: none of these were true demons.

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All of them were human. Every one, willfully flawed in their act to look like monsters—hoping to frame this as a demonic raid.

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“Sixty or so in total,” he murmured, eyes narrow. “Average level... around fifty. A handful of elites at seventy. Those two in the lead, their aura’s strong—maybe on par with Fred. Transcendent warriors, probably inheritors of some line.”

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“I think their names are Carlos and Randy, right?”

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Fred’s last act before his death had proven unexpectedly valuable.

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From the intelligence he’d extracted, those two—Carlos and Randy—were Duke Ous’s sharpest agents. There was a third, shrouded in shadow, even more dangerous: the captain of the Duke’s personal guard. This private corps, assembled in secret at the very dawn of the Duke’s rise, was fiercely loyal and—reputedly—totally reliable.

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Now, all the key hatchetmen had gathered in one place. If they could be eliminated here, it would spell the end for Duke Ous.

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“You... you can see what’s ahead?” Iresha’s voice trembled with disbelief.

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To her, the world ahead was nothing but inky black. The night had smothered the familiar—paths, fields, every landmark—leaving nothing but shadow. Even Far Sight spells failed; with no firelight, they were pointless.

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Yet some deep instinct—mage’s intuition—jingled a warning. Danger was close. She could sense it, heavy and cold, seething somewhere in the dark. But to truly see—even Lin Wei? How?

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Lin Wei gave a faintly smug sigh. “Oh, right. You don’t have anything like this, do you?”

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He reached out and tapped her on the head. “Here, let me share what I see.”

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After all, what fun was a covert op, if you couldn’t pass it around?

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A heartbeat later—impossibly—an image bloomed in Iresha’s mind. Everything unfolded at once, crisp and clear, as though her eyes had been reborn.

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It was dazzling, so minutely detailed that it felt uncanny—magic had painted a complete map, a vast warboard inscribed directly into her mind.

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The enemy’s numbers, their levels, their formation... None of it was visible to the naked eye, yet in her head, the intelligence burned bright.

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Anyone of even low supernatural skill, if shown such a mental map, could instantly grasp every vital detail.

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So this was the infamous scouting ability Lin Wei relied on?

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This guy... Rein can’t hold a candle to him.

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“What should we do now? Should we rush in and wipe them out in one go?”

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Once she’d recovered from the marvel, Iresha fixed her gaze on the far-off force, edge in her tone.

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She’d thought they’d only face some bandits—but their true foes were a disciplined, battle-ready elite.

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She longed to save the village, to mete out justice. But the difference in power was daunting—she was just Level 60.

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Her magic was formidable—most Level 70 elites would hesitate to face her in open combat. Even so, sheer numbers weighed on her like a mountain.

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“Our odds... feel a little skewed.”

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“We’ll be fine.” Lin Wei replied, utterly unfazed. “The two of us together, it’ll be child’s play.”

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She blinked, startled by his confidence. He didn’t even seem fazed by the massing troops, as if all that mattered was putting her at ease.

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“But if we’re going to punish Duke Ous and save the village, we can’t make this a private duel, can we? If we’re putting on a play, we’ll need an audience.”

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“So, here’s the real plan.”

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He turned to her, voice low, every word purposefully measured.

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“You start off with a large-scale spell—give them a taste of a meteor shower.”

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“Next, I’ll dive in, shift their attention—draw their focus from the village, lead them into the mountains.”

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“If we can hold out for three minutes, our audience will arrive, and then we can really get started: we cut loose, wipe out the whole lot, and leave none standing. Sound good?”

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The combat choreography was so familiar it sent a jolt of déjà vu through Iresha. She gave Lin Wei a measuring stare. Only, this time, they weren’t fighting goblins—these were the transcendents.

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And still, this “country boy” wanted to charge in by himself, right into the thick of it? Was he out of his mind? Didn’t he realize how perilous it was?

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Forget three minutes—if all those transcendents focused fire, he’d be lucky to last half.

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“Don’t look at me like that!” Lin Wei protested, rapping his forehead sheepishly as he caught her doubt. “I’m not about to pretend I could wipe out everyone with my skills as they are, okay?”

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His eyes slid over the battlefield below, poised, distant, calculating.

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“Anyway, just follow my lead. Don’t sweat about output—I’ll give you a buff.”

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Even as he spoke, rings of magical symbols shimmered around him, fanning outward in a one-meter sphere. Faint but powerful, tightly coiled auras pulsed under the dark, thick with potential.

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Mana Amplification!

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Range Amplification!

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Chanting Amplification!

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Flame, frost, thunder—!

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The magic in the air thickened, elemental energy gathering so quickly it seemed to shimmer and vibrate visible to the naked eye.

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A surge of power roared through her veins, heady and sweet, wild.

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This was the sensation she’d felt back in the goblin lair.

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Only now, it was so much stronger—her spells swelling, her affinity soaring, her ordinary Meteor Summon climbing toward the realm of super-tier spells like Meteorfall.

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Not the gift of some God of Magic.

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No: the source was Lin Wei himself. Did he, like Kokoxi, have the ability to infuse others with magical buffs?

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For a mortal to grant so many amplifications at once—was such a thing possible?

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It felt as if... she was no longer just a Level 60 sorceress.

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She stood now at the threshold of Level 70, a heartbeat from the title of Grand Sage.

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“You! Now’s not the time to space out, woman!”

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Lin Wei’s crisp voice snapped Iresha back. His gaze locked fiercely on the executioner below.

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“Aim your magic. Focus on him. Get ready!”

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That man below them had once been human—killing his own countrymen for mere coin, betraying his kin without hesitation.

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Even as a Demon Lord, Lin Wei would never stoop so low—he would never butcher his own just for petty personal gain.

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“Not one innocent among them—wipe them all out, Iresha!”

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A searing brilliance blazed through the darkness, torching the night with its light. It was as if a living flame descended, unwavering, setting the world alight with resolve.

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Behind her, a radiant blade of holy light took shape—the sword of a wrathful god, enormous in glory. With a celestial arc, it swept down upon the massed ranks below, meteoric and just, casting judgment cold and instant.

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“Leave none alive... Exterminate them all!”