Don't suddenly say something so incomprehensible. I'm not a wizard like you—how would I know about those things? I've never heard of them, and Luke never mentioned them either...
"Just get to the point," Sean said.
He glanced over and saw that Bachler seemed to still be chatting with Kerry, not paying attention to him and Lucille.
Both were wizards of comparable power, so they should have some ability to keep each other in check, right? No risk of being overheard...
"Among wizards, there are many different organizations. Wizards from various regions also have numerous factions based on the different directions of their magical studies. The Wizards' Association is a famous organization in the north," Lucille said.
"Is it powerful?"
"It depends on how you define it, but their members are spread across the entire Zambutar region. It's a large organization."
Zambutar covers the entire northern area extending to the sea and down to the southern seas. Taylemian is also within this region. Since Sean had never seen a complete world map or a larger-scale map, it was hard for him to gauge how big Zambutar actually was.
According to Luke, the Zambutar region contained three major countries, and the Basharan Empire, where he lived, was one of them. That meant the area was vast—somewhat like the continents in his previous life. Being spread across the entire region indicated that the Wizards' Association had a huge number of members.
"Are you a member too?" Sean asked.
Otherwise, why would she suddenly bring this up?
"No, I belong to another place... I just think that person's attire looks very much like a member of the Wizards' Association."
Sean glanced at the man. He still didn't understand the differences in what wizards from various factions wore. And no matter which organization the man belonged to, he wouldn't leave the town alive. He had destroyed one of Sean's villages and killed so many townspeople. Regardless of his faction, this grudge was set.
"So what? Are you suggesting I let him go?" Sean said coldly.
"Of course not. You're a noble of this country, so you'll have protection. Just make sure to build good relationships with other nobles in the future, and even the Wizards' Association won't dare touch you!"
Hearing Lucille say this, Sean suddenly remembered—he had an organization too.
His identity as a noble of the Basharan Empire meant he had the army and people of an entire nation behind him. The other side was just an organization; how could it dare to oppose that?
He looked at Lucille's profile. Was she trying to help him come up with a plan?!?
……………………
They had been walking north from the town for about a kilometer or two.
The sun was about to set!
A path had been cleared through the snow here. The heavy snow only existed near the town; once they walked a few kilometers out, the road became flat. And they hadn't encountered any danger along the way.
Sean was still looking at the map... because this area was one he hadn't unlocked yet. It was his first time leaving Taylemian Town, and the map still showed it as a shadow.
Several times, the archaeological team members didn't understand why he kept staring at a map.
Even Bachler hadn't figured it out and asked once, but Sean just smiled and brushed it off with a few words.
Looking at the map, he only stopped when they reached an empty stretch of road with no one around.
"It seems we haven't run into any danger along the way. There probably won't be any more snow giants," said one of the archaeological team members. Sean remembered his name was Manus, an acquaintance of Kerry's, who mostly helped Kerry with tasks in the team.
"That would be best. Otherwise, I couldn't face the dead townspeople. And I won't let those who caused this trouble off easy!"
He suddenly turned to look at everyone. When his eyes landed on Bachler, the status 【Nervous!】 instantly appeared above the man's head.
"Am I right, Lord Bachler?"
Hiss~
He could hear the man take a deep breath, his face turning pale. Sean's own heart was pounding wildly too.
The main issue was that the other party had a high level. The only combat power on Sean's side was Lucille, and he wasn't very confident.
"Lord Viger is right. Such people indeed cannot be forgiven."
Probably not understanding Sean's meaning yet, Bachler still put on a smiling face and agreed.
"I'm talking about you, Lord Bachler. You can fool others, but not me. I've known from the start. No need to keep up the pretense," Sean said with a smile, moving a little closer to Lucille.
"Bachler?"
Among the archaeological team, only Kerry and Lucille knew Sean's plan. Originally, the three of them had agreed that once back at camp, Kerry would blame the whole incident on the snow giant, praise Sean thoroughly, and then Sean would identify the target and lure him outside the town to fight.
Everything had gone according to plan, except they probably couldn't figure out how Sean was so sure the man in front of him was the target.
Kerry drew his longsword and assumed a combat stance behind the man, forming a pincer with Lucille. The other three, though confused, also took up fighting stances.
Five against one!
And with not much difference in power, Sean felt they had the advantage.
"Oh? How did you figure it out?"
Finally, all the man's other statuses disappeared, replaced by 【Shocked!】 above his head, though his face still wore a cold smile.
That statement was already an admission!
"You can only say you underestimated Taylemian, and you underestimated me," Sean replied with a cold smile of his own.
"What a surprise. I didn't expect to meet such an interesting lord in such a remote mountain area. If possible, we might be able to get along in a different way."
"Do you think that's possible?!" Sean shot back.
"Heh~ This avalanche was actually an accident. I was only targeting a certain villager, but my pets were too playful and disobedient. While I was disciplining them, I accidentally stirred up the mountain. See? Just an accident."
"But your accident cost me so many townspeople."
Sean stared at the man...
Suddenly, a progress bar appeared above the man's head!
He was already silently casting a spell.
It was fast—Sean couldn't even read the text...
"They're just ordinary villagers... Why... take it so seriously."
"He's casting a spell—interrupt him!"
They spoke almost simultaneously.
Perhaps Sean's shout caught the man off guard. Instead of attacking, he turned into a black wind, trying to break out of the encirclement.
"Barry!" Lucille shouted.
A black shadow flashed across the sky. The raven appeared from some angle, suddenly spreading its wings to block the way.
The raven spread its wings.
The shadow instantly expanded to about the size of a house's wall, completely blocking the black wind.
Blocked, the black wind had to return to the ground, and Bachler's figure reappeared elsewhere.
Meanwhile, Kerry and the others counterattacked quickly...
Kerry swung his greatsword and attacked alongside Manus, while Guda once again pulled out his prized firearm and fired.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
All the attacks hit the same spot, but Sean noticed they all stopped a few centimeters from the man's body.
Bachler extended his palm, as if a barrier had blocked all the attacks!