Turning
chapter-317

The moment Yuder saw Kishiar's clothes dyed red and the scattered blood on the ground, he felt a dizzying sensation for the first time.

"Commander, whose blood is that...?"

"Ah. This isn't my blood."

Kishiar calmly looked down at the blood stained on him and responded.

"I thought I almost had him... but he managed to escape."

Hearing that, Yuder finally took a deep breath and the chill in his stomach somewhat subsided. Had even a single drop of that blood belonged to Kishiar, Yuder would've undoubtedly gone to find Nahan and his companions, no matter what anyone else said. Yuder maintained his silence for a moment, then muttered, "I'm glad."

Kishiar, who had been staring at the blood staining the ground, finally lifted his gaze.

"When I only heard about his illusion ability, it didn't feel real... But having experienced it directly, I understand why my assistant gave it such a high evaluation."

"Did he use his ability?"

At Yuder's sharp question, Kishiar widened his eyes a bit, then soon smiled faintly.

"Just for a brief moment."

Kishiar explained that for a fleeting moment, when his eyes met with Nahan's who was trying to escape, he was briefly stunned due to the illusions that rapidly confused his senses. It was a very short moment, but enough for the enemy to hide.

"It felt strange. Despite knowing it was an illusion, it was so elaborate that I had to react."

"That's how his ability works."

Mental abilities might seem incredibly weak at a glance. If one has a decent amount of mental strength, they can distinguish between reality and the illusion, and the caster's combat ability itself is usually not at a significant level. However, the real power of the illusion Nahan presented was that even if one knew it was fake, it was still hard to break free from it. His illusions were not only created by Nahan himself but were formed within the mind of the one affected, making them more persistent and vicious. Coupled with his unendingly fanatical commitment to his own beliefs and his ruthlessness in not exploiting his companions as weaknesses, it was hard to find a better mental ability user in all his past lives.

However, the illusion was so powerful that even Kishiar, who would not lose to anyone in this world in terms of mental strength, had to stop even knowing it was fake. What on earth had he seen?

"But... what illusion did you see?"

At Yuder's question, Kishiar lifted the corners of his lips.

"Do you want to know?"

"If it's uncomfortable, you don't have to tell me."

"It was you."

Yuder was momentarily taken aback at the immediate response. Kishiar, who had been observing Yuder's reaction, then gently laughed, as if to lighten the mood.

"You can call me a fool. I brought you all the way here to show you something impressive, but I've accomplished nothing. I deserve to be reprimanded."

"..."

How could he say such a thing? Something in his chest felt like it was being sharply pricked by a long needle. After a prolonged silence, Yuder finally managed to speak.

"No. I... would have done the same. So, you shouldn't blame yourself."

Yuder knew very well the dirty feeling after being subjected to Nahan's illusions. Although he didn't know precisely what aspect of himself Kishiar had seen, the chilling sensation he had felt when he saw Kishiar from his previous life in the illusion was still vivid in his memory.

But that wasn't real. Recalling his past experiences of breaking free from the illusions, Yuder spoke slowly.

"His illusions are formidable but not absolute. Now that you've seen his ability, it won't be difficult to recognize and counter it next time. I was also deceived several times at first."

Having encountered his illusion three times, Yuder began to grasp a certain unique feeling, hard as it was to describe. Kishiar would undoubtedly have been able to understand much more quickly than Yuder.

"Yes. That must be the case."

The words he finally managed to utter seemed to offer him some comfort as the dark shadow in his eyes faded.

"Come to think of it, I've never properly heard what kind of illusion he used on you. The report was too brief."

"..."

This time, Yuder truly felt as if he had jumped from the frying pan into the fire. He tried to keep his face as unchanged as possible as he responded.

"That's pretty much it. I don't remember it well anymore..."

Deceiving Kishiar was as difficult as deceiving Kanna, who could read information. The scrutiny from his gaze made his hands sweat, but Yuder maintained his poker face, emptying his mind. His unfathomable crimson gaze lingered on Yuder's unseen left eye for a while.

"I see... I see."

"Commander! Yuder!"

Fortunately, as Kishiar nodded, Emun appeared from behind.

"There you are. I thought something happened because you didn't show up even as time passed... oh, but is that blood...?"

"It's not my blood."

Kishiar calmly gave the same response he had given to Yuder.

"Oh... That's a relief. The priest has just woken up."

They carried the awakened Lusan back to the base of the Western Mage Union. Those who had left to search for the Star of Nagran had not arrived yet. After waking up, Lusan was so shocked that he couldn't have a proper conversation for a while, but after taking a rejuvenating potion, he slowly began to regain his usual self.

Kishiar called Micalin and provided information about Nahan to the mages of the Western Mage Union. He didn't elaborate on the part related to the Star of Nagran, but just the information that he and his companions had killed three Knights of Tainu today, and had committed several murders before, was enough to make Micalin's face pale instantly.

"We already had many injured mages, and were planning to extensively replace personnel and facilities before starting serious research. We might have to advance those plans and consider closing down the base for a while."

While Micalin was contemplating preventive measures, Emun called Kishiar from outside the door.

"Commander. You need to come out for a moment."

"What's up?"

"Kanna has returned. She says there's something she needs to report first..."

Yuder left his seat with Kishiar to greet Kanna. Seeing Kishiar, Kanna, who had returned alone ahead of others thanks to the power of the Eldore siblings, quickly started her report with a serious face.

"When I read the area around where the village used to be, I discovered information about an unexpected person who had been there."

"Who was that?"

Yuder waited for Kanna's response, feeling like he already knew the answer.

"It's Nahan. He's the illusionist who led those who appeared at the Apeto estate before..."

It was as he had suspected.

"Even so, we have just had an encounter with the man."

"Could it be... that man... right?"

Kanna, who was about to continue explaining about Nahan, gasped in surprise. Yuder sighed and briefly told her about their encounter with Nahan and his ally. As he explained how they had killed the Knights from Tainu, attacked Lusan, and vanished with a bag that could contain evidence related to illegal trade, Kanna's face transformed through a range of emotions.

"...Good heavens."

"So, when was he there?"

"I'm not exactly sure. Since he had hidden the entire village using his ability and only revealed it after everyone had moved, I couldn't ascertain every detail..."

But the information Kanna read about Nahan was concise and crucial. He had arrived there due to a conflict related to what happened in the village of the Star of Nagran and afterward had moved everyone to one place. That was all.

"A conflict... Likely related to the migration."

"That seems highly probable. I read numerous memories of people being anxious about whether they could migrate."

'The consideration of whether they could migrate... Was there a dispute about whether to take only the Awakeners?'

"Nahan appears to have more authority than anticipated. If a man who is only concerned about the Awakeners decided to move everyone, there must be a reason."

Seeming to align with Yuder's thoughts, Kishiar paused drumming his fingers on the table and looked up.

"Did you read anything more about that?"

"No. No matter how much I tried, I couldn't definitively find out. I apologize."

As Kanna apologized, she closed her mouth tightly and retreated into thought before speaking again.

"However... based on the information I've read from the Gayle and Doyle brothers over time, there are areas that seem plausible. Although, I cannot guarantee that my thoughts are correct..."

"I'll listen carefully and make adjustments, so go ahead and share anything you have."

The soft tone of Kishiar's voice seemed to give Kanna some strength; the tension in her face slightly eased.

"As I reported before, it seems certain that the interior of the Star of Nagran is divided into two factions. Regardless of Nahan's substantial authority, if the opposition faction had strong opinions... I believe he wouldn't have been able to completely reject them."