Reincarnation into the Barrier Master

I could not understand what was going on. Octa just looked at the darkness in front of her with a stunned expression.

It happened during a meeting between the King of Thana and Cassel in Aphrodite. For several months now, Octa had been acting as a liaison between the Kingdom of Tana and the Church of Crimiana by direct order of the Emperor. For this reason he had been given a residence in Aphrodite, the capital of the Crimiana cult. The cooperation between the two countries is a matter of great secrecy. For this reason, the original entrance to the house was sealed so that no one could enter from the outside. The entrance and exit of the mansion is done by transferring in and out using the staff of Latgis that Octa herself holds. The secret talks between the King of Thana and Cassel are also held in this place.

Several times, during these secret meetings, Cassel provided some unexpected information. He had heard that people who were supposed to have lived in Mida had moved to Agartha. It is hard to believe, but a merchant who was on his way to obtain Gryess reported that he had indeed seen people who looked much like ogres. Moreover, they were not in the capital of Agartha, but in the middle of a seemingly empty grassland on the way down the river, when suddenly a settlement appeared, and it continued into the forest.

The settlement was a front-line base that had been established when the Church of Crimiana had previously attempted to invade Agartha, and it was also a place of fate that Cassel could not forget.

Listening to Cassel's bitter words, Octa thinks. It was true that they had raided that country. And in almost an instant, they had reclaimed that country in the mountains. There was no way they would have had time to escape. Nevertheless, it is true that there are many people from the land of the Mideast in Agartha. Then, how could so many have escaped?　Or is it still just a mistake? ....... He tries to analyze with his clear mind, but still no answer is forthcoming. Then Cassel's expression softened and he opened his mouth with a smile on his face.

"However, a large amount of ores of Glyesus were brought from Agartha. Apparently, our strategy has not been conveyed to the Agartha side."

"Yes. Glyesus is a nearly useless ore. It can amplify magic a little, but only a little. No matter how much you buy, there's no danger of it being detected. And just to be sure, he mentions that the reason he collects the stones is to reclaim Lake Lewan on the continent of Casalina.

"Hmph. It is true that the tsuwan-kurudo made with gryes is not very effective. But that's a story for other countries. In the hands of the Crimiana Institute, the effect can be multiplied several times. I'm looking forward to ....... We look forward to your continued cooperation in securing the ore.

Of course. However, Master Cassel, it is a serious matter that the people of the Midei nation have come to Agartha ...... in droves. I find it hard to believe ......."

"As Octa said, I myself led the attack on the Mideast. Our strategy was flawless. I cannot believe it, even if Master Cassel says so.

"Well, it's only what the merchant saw, but I have a bad feeling about it. If possible, I would like you to look into it in your country.

Yes, sir. ...... octa"

Thank you very much.

Thus ended the day's meeting, but Octa was not satisfied. He thought about going to Agartha to explore the settlement, but his intuition told him that it would be dangerous to go there. I have been in danger many times before, but I have followed my intuition in all of them, and that has brought me to where I am today. The only time I went against my intuition and failed to escape from Meek, the daughter of the Elven King, I ended up meeting the great-grandmother and ended up half-dead, but since then, I have been more faithful to my intuition. This time, too, he decided not to go to Agartha. Just after he made this decision, there was a woman who hugged him.

"Hayes, what are you thinking?"

"How many times have I told you. I am not Hayes now. ......"

"Octa, isn't it?　I know. You know why I call him Hayes, don't you?

"Okay. Then let's try some illusionary magic. ......

"Magic again?　It's been a long time since I've been poked with one of your gems. Especially since the arrival of that Satsuki ......!"

"It can't be helped. I'm working on her now. Please be patient. In exchange, I'll take you to ...... someplace interesting."

"What?　Are you serious?　Let's go, let's go, let's go!"

This woman, her long ears wagging as she slides her body toward Octa, is Meek, the daughter of the Elven king. He stood up slowly, looking at Meek, took a staff from his pocket, pointed it at the ground, and began to chant a spell.

"......ツツ!　What is it?"

As I was about to transfer to the Mideast, I felt as if I had been repelled by some force. Normally, if a place is inaccessible to the magic circle, the magic circle does not emit light and nothing happens, but this was the first time that I received a reaction that rejected my attempt to transfer. He set up a magic circle not in Miedai, but on the border between the Kingdom of Tana and Miedai, and climbed onto it.

In an instant, his surroundings became jet-black. But Okta, being a fox, has good night vision. In the blackness, he could see that he was surrounded by rocks.

"...... perhaps this is the rock we dropped."

He muttered in a small voice as he tapped the rock. Meek cast a light spell to brighten the area around him, as if he could not see it. There was a scene of black rocks piled up in layers in front of him, even though the surroundings were ochre-colored. Octa made Meek step back and touch the black rocks, but then he stopped and began chanting again.

"...... ha!"

With Octa's voice, the black rocks crumble to dust. A thick cloud of dust and smoke comes at him, but he activates his wind magic to avoid it. A few moments later, a large cavity appears before their eyes, and inside the cavity is a pitch black darkness.

"Hey~ not Haze~, Octa~. What is this?　What's so funny?"

Meek opened his mouth in disappointment. However, Octa did not respond to his voice at all, and continued to stare into the darkness.

"Hey - Ok ......"

"...... What's this?"

"What?"

"The town is still ...... intact?　What the hell is this?"

If you look closely, you can see the octa trembling. Meek moves his light to see through the darkness. It moves up to a certain point, but cannot move beyond that point.

"Hey, ......, what's this?　I don't know what's in there!"

"...... I see, is it warding magic?　The wards are quite strong, then. The weight of the dropped rock must be quite heavy. Does it prevent ...... that?　Was there ever a warding master in the Mideast who could create such a warding system?　Impossible!　If they had such a large number of wards, they would have noticed it before it happened. When in the world did he do it?

Octa is mumbling with sweat on his forehead while his eyes are moving busily. Meek watches him with a bored look on his face.

"There is no sign of ...... anyone. It seems that it is not a lie that the people of Miedai have moved to Agartha. ...... But how?　...... Um, Posehay?　No, they can't all be there. What if ......?"

Meek jumped up and down and hugged Octa, who was still mumbling to himself.

"It's not funny, is it? You're going to pay for this, aren't you?"

"Oh, okay. Tonight I'm going to ...... ...... until I pass out."

"Yes!　Until I lose my mind, indeed.　All right, then, let's get the hell out of here!"

At Meek's urging, Octa reluctantly pulled the staff of Latgis out of her pocket and pointed it at the ground.

"We need to go to Agartha once. ......"

The moment he spoke those words, they were gone. Octa's words echoed in the cave for a while, like the spirit of a tree.