Category: The Master of Language

The forty-day voyage went smoothly.

The weather was always clear, and we didn’t encounter any particularly high waves.

Speria claimed it was thanks to her.

“Being high-level means having greater influence. What I want happens more easily, and what I dislike is less likely to occur. Simply put, you could say my luck improves.”

When learning magic, there are moments when you wonder just how much you should believe.

Now was undoubtedly one of those times.

“No way, is that even possible?”

“Why not? Then is this possible?”

She waved her left hand. A small spark appeared and disappeared in the middle of the cabin.

“You’ve learned a bit about fire, so you should understand. What are the chances of a fire naturally igniting like that in this room?”

I answered in a low voice.

“Insignificantly low.”

“But it happened, didn’t it?”

“Well, that’s because you did it with magic, right?”

“So? What’s the difference?”

“……”

“Which is more likely: avoiding bad weather every day for forty days of sailing, or a spark appearing in this room?”

I understand what she means.

But I replied curtly.

“If you put it that way, the chances of encountering typhoons every day are also low. Why does it always work in your favor?”

“It’s not always like that, Ran. Have you forgotten the basics of magic?”

Magic always comes with a price.

That’s why magicians must pay it in advance or at least be prepared to pay it.

“Then why do you say you’re lucky?”

Speria just smiled enigmatically as she left the cabin.

“Looks like we’ve arrived. Let’s go, Ran.”

We went down to the dock, and Count Furst followed shortly after.

We had arrived at Sangria Port, the largest port city in Baritone, which had grown significantly due to the pioneering projects.

The overall appearance wasn’t much different from Marshal Harbor, but it seemed about ten times larger in size and area.

Count Furst was discussing work with various people, including the captain and the dock manager, while watching the cargo being moved.

As I waited for him, Speria tapped my shoulder from behind.

“Well, I’ll be going now, Ran.”

“Oh, you’re leaving already?”

Speria wore a regretful expression.

“Yeah. I think I’ll have to go right away. I sneaked out, you know. I’ve been away for nearly four or five months, so everyone’s probably wondering. It’s the first time this has happened.”

There was a hint of anxiety in her low voice.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I’m fine.”

Speria nodded, trying to look composed. But her expression was unusually gloomy.

“You don’t seem fine.”

“Huh? No. I’m really okay.”

“If you were really okay, you’d say something like, ‘Are you kidding? Hmph. Am I going to die or something?’”

“……”

She hesitated, saying nothing.

It seems like just yesterday she engulfed an entire cabin in flames, and now this is the first time I’ve seen her like this.

“What is it? Tell me.”

Speria shook her head.

“It’s nothing. You know that egg I gave you?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m not forcing you or anything, but if you ever think about getting a familiar, try talking to that egg. Got it?”

“What?”

“Anyway. Just remember that. I’ll be going now.”

“Speria. Wait, what does that…”

As I reached out my hand, her body instantly turned into a flame and disappeared.

As I looked around with a dazed expression, the civilians didn’t seem to have seen the flame, all going about their business.

“Talking like it’s her last words. Is it really something dangerous?”

But at my level, I can’t follow her, let alone help her.

“Master said I don’t have the qualifications to even talk to it. You won’t go off and die somewhere, right?”

I put my left hand inside the robe I was wearing.

The warm egg was in my hand.

But I quickly withdrew my hand.

There’s no guarantee there aren’t any mages among these many people.

And there’s no rule saying there can’t be someone of a higher level than me.

If I act carelessly…

“I’d end up like Keren.”

Keren always looked down on me, the apprentice.

On the other hand, Master was cautious even with me, her disciple.

It’s obvious which mindset is more correct.

Just then, Count approached me and said,

“Ran. It’s time to go. By the way, where did Lady Speria go?”

Huh?

Why is he suddenly looking for Speria?

I shook my head.

“She’s already left.”

“Hmm. Well, she didn’t seem like the type of woman to say goodbye.”

Woman?

She’s 14 years old.

Actually, since I won’t be meeting her again anyway, there’s no need to explain.

“Count. Where are we heading now?”

Count Furst raised his hand and patted my head.

“First, let’s go to my house.”

* * *

We rode in an incredibly luxurious carriage for about an hour. Then we arrived at a massive mansion.

Twenty minutes of that hour were spent traveling from the mansion’s gate to the mansion itself.

As I got out of the carriage, I said,

“Your house is enormous.”

Count Furst looked at his garden through the window and said,

“Originally, this Sangria region was barren land. Nothing grew well no matter what was planted, so villages of twenty or thirty people were scattered here and there. Because of this, the Furst family owned a wider territory than any other noble, but the number of people in the territory was not even 10% of what it is now.”

“Really? When did it develop like this?”

“Since it became the center of the port and industry. My grandfather planted the seeds, my father nurtured them well. I am reaping the harvest.”

Boasting is human nature.

Did Count Furst’s icy heart melt now that he’s home?

His voice was mixed with pride.

“…”

His usual cold tone now feels more like an act.

The Count soon smiled brightly and looked at me.

“So you need to protect me well. I have many soldiers, but we’re not well-prepared for magic. There are treasures passed down, but they’re no match for a living mage.”

I rested my chin on my hand and said indifferently,

“Count, you clearly said you had settled all debts with me. Now, I will protect your safety, but beyond that, I will act for my own studies and purposes.”

“I know. I don’t expect more than that. Just protect me when I need it. Frenche can send another mage.”

High-level mages don’t often involve themselves in human affairs, but there are cases like Keren, so the Count seemed concerned.

The carriage stopped in front of the massive mansion.

Master Avana, Psyche, and I arrived in front of the New Continent Company building.

Speria stayed behind in the cabin, saying she needed more time to recover. Master seemed to trust her completely.

“It will be morning soon. Psyche, before people gather, please proceed.”

Psyche nodded slightly, then summoned her staff and magic book. She began to recite a spell, concentrating.

It seems she’s trying to cast a concealment spell.

As far as I know, Psyche specializes in mental magic.

“Ran, follow me inside.”

Master went in.

Will it be okay to leave her alone like this?

“I’m on a higher level than you, Ran.”

As if reading my thoughts, she spoke while pausing her spell.

Well, it’s an unnecessary worry to the point of embarrassment.

I followed Master Avana inside.

The smell of death filled the building. There was that typical scent found in places full of death – gunpowder, blood, and other indescribable odors.

As we climbed the stairs, Master spoke.

“Actually, I lied to you.”

As if you’ve ever not lied, I thought.

“It’s not like it’s the first time. What’s new?”

“Hm hm. Is that so? Well, I appreciate it if you don’t make a big deal out of it.”

“What’s the lie this time?”

“The death magic I taught you. That’s actually only part of the original magic.”

At that moment, I remembered helping Master Avana store the death magic.

“Ah, I thought something was off. Like it didn’t quite add up? I wondered if it was just because I didn’t understand it completely, but that wasn’t it.”

“Did you notice? I must have inadvertently let out an outburst of admiration for your brilliance. I tried to gloss over it, though.”

“What? So the part about storing it for two years was a lie?”

“Ah, no. That was true. Of course, I didn’t have a master to help me, unlike you.”

It seemed Master felt no ounce of guilt about lying, given how casually she speaks.

We reached the center of the building.

There, too, a considerable number of corpses were scattered.

Master Avana looked around for a moment, then summoned her staff and swung it around.

In response, the corpses flew to the walls, clearing a wide space.

“That’s not good.”

At this sudden remark, I asked,

“What isn’t?”

“Corpses are just lumps of meat, Ran. I know human culture reveres the dead, but that attitude is not good for death magic.”

I must not have managed my expression well.

“It still feels a bit repulsive.”

“You must use the dead thoroughly as tools. Otherwise, you might be consumed by the will of the corpses. The more powerful the corpse you control, the greater the risk. So that attitude is dangerous.”

“……”

“Come here and stand. Take out your magic book. I’ll properly correct the death magic for you.”

Honestly, I don’t agree with Master’s thinking. But for now, I did as she said.

Master stood beside me and went through my magic book, modifying spells here and there.

After all the modifications, everything finally made sense.

Master Avana hadn’t fully trusted me even when she first taught me death magic.

Master’s mind is like layers upon layers.

As she often says, the magical world is cruel, so one must be cautious and then cautious again.

“Now try casting the spell. Just use this staff.”

Master Avana pulled out a staff from inside her robe and gave it to me. It was similar to the one she had given me before.

I extended the staff forward, reading the death magic contained in the magic book.

A soldier’s corpse slowly rose, making an eerie sound.

“How is it? Your first impression of performing death magic?”

I answered Master’s question.

“It’s definitely different from fire and water. There are fragments of will that the corpses had in life remaining in their bodies.”

Master Avana was delighted like a child.

“That’s what we call remnant thoughts. Use that to try more complex movements.”

I tried to listen to the remnant thoughts flowing into my mind.

“This corpse was a soldier. He was a Baritone soldier who handled a musket. Every morning, he cleaned his gun and trained to ingrain those actions into his body. So I just…”

“Just?”

“I just need to command.”

I raised my staff and cast death magic.

The corpse picked up the musket beside it, performed a series of movements, and fired the gun.

Bang-!

The bullet flew and embedded itself in the opposite wall.

The corpse immediately reloaded the bullet.

I did it.

I succeeded.

As I turned my head towards Master, filled with joy, the corpse’s face caught my eye.

The corpse was looking at me with a contorted face.

“Wh-What?”

Suddenly, the corpse aimed the musket’s muzzle at me. At that moment, I sent out psychokinesis, causing the muzzle to barely point above me.

Bang-!

The bullet grazed past above my head.

I waved the staff to cancel the death magic. The corpse then collapsed in place.

“Wh-What happened?”

As I turned to Master Avana, she shrugged her shoulders.

“What did I tell you?”

“……”

“Remnant thoughts are powerful. They stem from survival instinct. The moment you let your guard down, they break free from control.”

“So it’s because I respected the corpse as an individual.”

“And that usually flows in a direction that’s not good for you. Well, as you study death magic deeply, you’ll be able to use even that. That’s a level I haven’t reached yet. For now, start by treating them like tools.”

“……”

“You can handle it on your own now, right? Keep up the good work. I’ll see you in three days.”

With that, Master’s figure disappearing.

Left alone, I opened my magic book and looked at the corpses piled up all around.

Fear crept in, but I gripped the staff tightly and steeled myself.

If you fear corpses, death magic won’t work in the first place.

“Huh. Alright. Let’s do this. Treat them like tools…”

But, certainly.

Using the dead like tools instinctively feels repulsive.

I’m not some great person aiming to save the world. But I’m not an insensitive person without conscience either.

It’s difficult to use corpses purely as tools like Master does.

This feeling.

This thought.

It’s all me.

It’s what makes me who I am.

If I cast spells while ignoring these parts of myself, the power will only be diminished. If I recite spells while excluding what I don’t consider to be me, it only increases the chances of failure.

I need to cast magic in a way that aligns with my heart.

That’s how magic is supposed to be, after all.

“Let’s make a deal! Huh? A deal would work!”

I looked around at the corpses and said,

“You’re destined to just rot away here anyway. So I’ll personally inform your families or acquaintances in the Yura continent about your fate. How about it? In exchange, help me study death magic.”

Of course, the corpses gave no response.

But that doesn’t matter.

A mage’s heart must move, or the magic won’t activate. It would also lack completeness.

It’s a bit of a trick, but rationalizing like this is necessary for the magic to work properly.

I raised my staff and tried casting death magic.

The corpse that had risen earlier stood up again.

When I ordered it to fire the musket, it did so just like before.

Bang-!

Afterwards, the corpse stood still, as if waiting for my next order.

I looked down at my hand.

“I’m not paying any attention right now. Yet that corpse doesn’t rebel against me. As expected. Casting magic in a way that aligns with my heart is the most powerful. Now, I should keep my promise, right?”

I asked the corpse to write its name on the floor.

The corpse immediately sat down and slowly wrote its name.

“Good. Now please write the name of the region or village where you lived. I’ll send news of you there.”

The corpse complied without a word, continuing to move its finger.

I continued studying death magic like this, making deals with the corpses.

And I added my own notes to each part that differed from the spells Master Avana had taught me.

* * *

Three days later, I set sail from Marshal Harbor with Count Furst and Speria.

Oshalo decided to stay at the harbor. I wasn’t sure, but it seemed the Count had given him a task.

I stood at the bow, facing the sea breeze head-on.

After spending three days cooped up in the building, talking with corpses, my mind still feels a bit scattered.

But the results were satisfactory, given how hard I worked.

Perhaps because my deal-making method was effective, I became able to control up to ten corpses at once.

There was also a significant qualitative improvement, allowing me to recreate even the time-delayed firing they had learned in life.

However, as time passed, the corpses decayed and the remnant thoughts faded, making them increasingly difficult to control.

If there had been more deaths, I could have raised my level even higher.

“What are you thinking about? What thoughts could make you have such an intense expression?”

I turned to the side. There stood Speria, with surprised eyes.

“What kind of face was I making?”

“Well? Like you could kill about a hundred people?”

Speria chuckled.

I avoided her gaze.

“No way.”

“Still, you’ve improved a lot. When I first saw you at the harbor, you looked terrible. What on earth did you do for the past three days?”

I remained silent.

Death magic is a secret that can’t be told to anyone.

Suddenly, Master Avana’s words came to mind.

I squeezed my eyes shut.

“Few opportunities make it more tempting to cling to.”

I think I understand why Master Avana took me to the battlefield.

I tried my best to suppress the feelings stirring inside me.

“What’s with that sudden remark after being so quiet?”

Speria pouted her lips.

Ah, right, she was here.

“It’s nothing.”

Speria slightly furrowed her golden eyebrows, then suddenly reached into her robe and pulled out Keren’s robe.

“Here. I’m returning this. I burned off the original owner’s aura from this robe, so it should be fine for you to use now. It has strong resistance to fire, so it was really tough.”

I received it.

Finally, I have a robe of my own.

But something felt odd.

“I can still feel the fire energy inside?”

Speria avoided my gaze as she spoke.

“The phoenix has recovered enough. Once it revives, it can emit fire almost infinitely. So I put a treasure inside the robe.”

“Ah, didn’t you use up everything that was in this robe?”

She turned away, leaving these final words.

“I’ll give you a better robe when we reach the continent. For now, use this to study fire magic.”

She swiftly went into the cabin.

I looked at Keren’s robe that she had handed me.

It seemed to have protective magic.

“Since Speria gave it to me, it should be fine, right?”

I put my hand inside.

It felt hot, but there was no pain.

I pulled out what I grabbed.

“What’s this? An egg?”

It’s an egg slightly larger than a chicken egg.

Red lines, glowing like flowing lava, were chaotically drawn all over it.

I opened my eyes with a startle, and all I could see was the blue sky.

Splash, splash.

A small sound tickled my ears.

“Water?”

I raised my head and looked around. A shallow surface of water was covering my body.

It’s the lakeshore.

I got up from where I was lying.

“Ah, my hand.”

Looking at my left hand, it had become completely clean. Perhaps because new skin had grown, it looked even smoother than before.

I lifted my hand to touch my face and chest.

Though I should have suffered severe burns, the skin I felt was incredibly smooth.

“Ran!”

I turned my head at the sound of a voice in the distance.

Psyche was running towards me.

She came into the lake, approaching me.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I’m fine.”

“……”

As I answered properly, the worry in her eyes gradually disappeared.

Strangely, her gaze slowly shifted downwards.

And then it fixed.

I twisted my waist inward and covered my lower body.

“Hey! What are you looking at?”

Psyche bit her lip and then looked back at my face as she spoke.

“What do you mean? I was just checking if you’ve recovered well.”

What exactly was she checking to see if it had recovered well?

“Uh, c-could you bring me some clothes?”

Psyche turned her head abruptly and said,

“You can take care of that yourself.”

With that curt response, she quickly walked back to the cabin.

I was left all alone in the lake.

“Seriously. Come to think of it, I had lost my staff. What about my magic book?”

I held out my left hand and tried to summon the magic book.

I felt the transparent magic book appear in my left hand.

Fireball floating above the head.

Fireballs supporting the two legs.

Keren’s fire magic feels like it’s fading away quickly, like a dream.

“No, I can’t let that happen.”

I should record it right now.

I opened the magic book. And I turned the pages until I reached the fire magic spells.

“Keren’s fire magic. It was quite unique. On the ship, it only emitted light, and when boiling the sea, it only had heat. Is it converting fire into light and heat? Also, he flew around with it attached to his legs. How does that work? There was nothing like that in Speria’s spells.”

I noted various parts of the fire magic spells. I saved everything I could remember, recalling Keren’s application methods.

I saved everything I could remember and closed the magic book.

“After all that trouble, you’re already learning magic again?”

When I looked to the side, Master Avana was there.

Her gaze, of course, went down…

“Really. Are all elves like this?”

“Like what?”

She asked that while still maintaining her gaze.

“Stop looking already. Just give me some clothes.”

Only then did Master Avana avert her eyes and hand me some clothes.

The slightly disappointed expression on her face was oddly similar to Psyche’s.

“I was just curious. I’m sorry if it made you uncomfortable.”

“What’s there to be curious about? Don’t elves have men?”

“No.”

“……”

They don’t?

Then what about partners?

When I didn’t say anything, Master Avana continued speaking.

“Anyway, hurry and get dressed. Speria wants to greet you.”

“Alright.”

We went to the cabin through the gap in the intertwined trees.

Speria was in the yard of the cabin. I watched her through the window.

She was kneeling respectfully, holding up a fireball twice the size of her face with both hands.

But in her right hand, she was holding a staff.

“Master? You gave Speria a staff?”

Master Avana gave a faint smile.

“Last night when Count Furst came, as soon as Speria heard his words, she desperately asked me to let her go, saying there was no need to return the staff or familiar. Very earnestly.”

“……”

“So I decided to trust her and sent her out. As expected, she brought you back.”

“So you trust her now?”

Master looked at Speria.

“Go on. She’s the one who saved your life, after all.”

Hmm, it’s good that their relationship seems to have improved.

I opened the cabin door and went outside.

As soon as I did, Speria looked at me and smiled brightly.

“Ran! You’re awake!”

She had never smiled so brightly before.

Golden eyes.

White skin.

Red hair.

Snow-white teeth.

“Yeah. Thank you, Speria. It’s thanks to you.”

She met my eyes and then suddenly turned her head away.

“It’s nothing. I just, you know, felt the fire energy. I thought the robe might be there. And then I found you collapsed next to it. So I just picked you up, that’s all.”

I chuckled and sat down next to her.

“I heard from Master that she gave you back your staff and familiar.”

Speria nodded.

“Yeah. So I’m reviving my familiar. I gathered all the fire energy from inside that robe. It’s not enough, but I should barely be able to revive it.”

Its level must be unimaginably high if she says that’s not enough.

“I see.”

Speria stared at me for a while and then said in a low voice.

“I’m sorry for using your things without permission. But when we go back, I’ll give you proper compensation.”

I didn’t really think of it as mine.

No, come to think of it, I guess it is mine.

“Leave the robe. I don’t have a robe.”

She looked at me and smiled.

“Okay. For now, use this robe. I’ll give you a much better one when we get back. Deal?”

“So, are we going back to Yura continent now?”

At those words, Speria’s eyes widened as she looked at me.

“What? Didn’t you hear? You’re coming with us.”

“Huh?”

Speria’s expression became playful.

“Hmm. Then I guess you just rushed out without talking much? Were you that eager to see me?”

“No.”

I immediately got up and walked towards the cabin.

I could hear giggling laughter from behind.

Why do I feel like I lost somehow?

Master Avana was leaning against the doorframe, looking at me intently, and just as I was about to go inside, she casually said,

“Promises must be kept, Ran. That’s why I let that child live.”

“Don’t worry. Who would ever…”

I trudged over and sat down at the dining table in the cabin.

Thud.

Psyche set down a plate filled with various vegetables in front of me.

But there was meat cut up in it too. And it was blackened, charred meat.

“This? Is it grilled?”

Psyche looked at me blankly, then nodded towards the plate.

“Eat.”

Still answering in a way that doesn’t match the question.

I picked up a piece of meat.

And tasted it.

At that moment, all the salivary glands in my mouth opened up like a flood.

I can barely even chew properly.

“Is it good?”

Psyche asked, bringing her face close to mine.

Her double eyelids have grown even more.

“It’s really delicious. Did you make this, Psyche?”

“Yes.”

“How?”

“I learned fire magic. From Speria.”

If I, a human, could learn water magic, there’s no reason an elf like Psyche couldn’t learn fire magic.

“You two have gotten quite close. Even teaching magic.”

“I asked her to teach me.”

“Why?”

“Because I wanted to feed you meat.”

Psyche looked at me without blinking.

My heart is pounding.

What should I say?

“Ran.”

Master called my name as she sat down on the other side.

Thank you, Master.

I turned my head to Master.

“Yes, what is it?”

“I heard from Count Furst. All the soldiers were killed by the natives, so they have to return to their home country and get support again.”

“Ah, yes. That’s probably the case.”

“He asked me to protect him and the company building as he returns to the Yura continent. I agreed. You know my specialty magic well, right?”

Hearing the last part, I can guess why Master agreed to this.

Master Avana is a death mage.

She needs death to raise her level.

In other words, from Master’s perspective, it’s good if the pioneers from the Yura continent bring death to the new continent.

Looking at it this way, Master is quite brutal.

“So you’re sending me and Speria together?”

Master crossed her legs.

“You’ve already learned all the magic. Staying here any longer won’t raise your level. It’s safe here, but it’s difficult to develop further. If you don’t develop, you won’t be able to protect Psyche in the future.”

Master seemed determined to send me to the Yura continent.

What if I die along the way?

Or if I fall under Kalasta’s control?

Or if I try to go my own way?

Is she willing to take all those risks?

“That’s quite a bold decision, Master.”

Master Avana nodded.

“You killed a mage two levels higher than you, didn’t you? You’ve already proven yourself. If possible, I wanted to send you out after you got your staff and familiar. But your staff needs special materials, and you refuse a familiar, so in the end, I thought it would be better for you to go out and find them yourself.”

Well, if I stay here cooped up, all I can do is study psychokinesis.

Is it because of the intense fight I just had?

I had a strong desire to experience more diverse things, and it’s nice that she said exactly what I was thinking.

As expected, Master Avana is a true master.

But wait.

Two levels higher?

Can levels be counted?

Just as I was about to open my mouth, Psyche tapped me from behind.

When I turned around, she held out something small and round.

“Take it.”

“What is it?”

“A gift.”

It was a ring.

The stem of a flower was intricately woven into a circle, with a purple flower in full bloom in the middle.

However, it was overall semi-transparent.

“A ring?”

Psyche nodded.

“It has my magic power in it. If you wear this, you’ll think of me even when you can’t see me. It will protect your heart and mind because of that. Depending on the level, we might even be able to communicate over long distances.”

“……”

“If you don’t like it, you don’t have to wear it.”

Her voice was steady.

But I clearly felt a strange tremor in her last words.

I took the ring.

Examining it from various angles, I said,

“Don’t tell me this is from that flower I gave you?”

“Yes. It’s something I could only make with what you gave me.”

I wonder what that means?

“Alright. I’ll wear it.”

I opened my left hand and was about to put the ring on.

But which finger should I put it on?

When I glanced at Psyche, her eyes trembled for a moment.

Is there some meaning to this?

Psyche seemed anxious, but she didn’t open her mouth until the end.

Elves don’t have men.

But partners?

There’s probably a difference from the typical married couple I’m thinking of.

I turned my gaze to look at Psyche’s left hand.

At that moment, she covered her left hand with her right. But I didn’t miss it.

The fact that she had the same ring on the ring finger of her left hand.

Now that I look closely, I guess she split it in two with magic, making them semi-transparent.

Hmm.

The same rings on each other’s ring fingers.

“Is this something like an engagement?”

At my question, Psyche hesitated several times. But when I maintained silence and kept looking at her, she finally opened her mouth and spoke.

“It’s not an engagement. It’s marriage.”

She says such an extraordinary thing so casually.

“I’m guessing it’s not just the regular marriage I know? We’re both mages, and you said you put your magic power in it.”

A flicker of anxiety passed through Psyche’s eyes.

“That’s right.”

“Then what kind of magical meaning does it have?”

Psyche avoided my gaze and lowered her eyes.

Then, in a slightly smaller voice, she said,

“If I tell you that, the marriage won’t happen.”

“……”

“You have to do it without knowing.”

I understand what she means.

This marriage.

No, for this marriage magic to work, I need to trust her completely and wear the ring.

Such unconditional trust is the condition for the marriage magic.

Why now?

It must be because I’m leaving for the Yura continent.

Psyche raised her eyes to look at me.

Her two eyes looked even more anxious than before.

Then Master Avana whispered from behind.

“You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to. If you’re unsure about deciding now, you can think about it more when you come back and decide then. We think you’re the prophesied partner, but you might not be. Even if you’re not the prophesied partner, you’re still my disciple, Ran.”

Right.

That prophecy.

That’s what started my connection with Master Avana and Psyche.

Didn’t they say the whole clan gathered to perform foresight magic? That must be very important to the elves.

But.

I’m human.

Different from elves.

“It’s not because of the prophecy.”

“……”

“……”

“It’s to keep my promise. It’s what I decided on my own. You understand, Psyche?”

I put the ring on my ring finger.

Psyche’s double eyelids completely rolled up, her eyes widening.

The anxiety in her deep, deep eyes evaporated in an instant, replaced by pure joy.

Master Avana stood up and said,

“Count Furst said it would take about three days to arrange a ship, so it would be good to study death magic at the company building during that time, Ran. It’s a rare opportunity.”

At Master Avana’s words, Psyche also stood up.

“What? Now? But am I coming too?”

“Yes. We need to conceal the building. Do you think the people at Marshal Harbor would leave that building alone?”

With that, the two of them went outside.

Left alone, I looked at the ring on my left ring finger. It tightened on its own, completely embedding itself into my left ring finger.

It probably will never come off.

---

TL : This sht is giving me diabetes

“You fool! Did you think you could escape from me?”

Keren’s eyes, emerging from the flames, were filled with anger. However, with his hair completely wet and plastered to his face, and dark circles under his eyes, he also looked quite exhausted.

I struggled to control the flames with my staff. As I did so, the flames flickered, causing Keren’s face to appear and disappear repeatedly.

Count Furst spoke.

“It’s that mage from earlier.”

“He seems to know our location because of this fire. He’ll follow us to the end. I think we need to go to Master right away. I can’t extinguish this with my power alone.”

The Count wore a serious expression.

“I understand. Let’s depart immediately.”

We left the New Continent Company building. As we exited, we saw numerous bodies of soldiers and natives scattered haphazardly.

At this point, the five kidnapped children were no longer the main issue.

“With so many dead, why did they withdraw so easily?”

“The natives don’t quibble over deaths in battle. They make a vow before engaging in combat. They swear not to blame anyone even if they die.”

“……”

“In their lawless, barbaric society, they wouldn’t have survived if not for such a culture of vows.”

Count Furst explained in a calm voice.

I suddenly became curious.

How could he remain so composed when all the soldiers were dead and the company could no longer be maintained?

When we reached the main gate, Oshalo was waiting for us. Crom’s body was nowhere to be seen, likely handed over to Legless Monkey.

Count Furst took out a small stone from his pocket. It was a butterfly-shaped piece. As he rubbed it, a purple light emerged, and the form of a butterfly rose up and began to fly in one direction.

He must have always used this to find the cabin.

We followed the purple butterfly into the forest. However, even as we did so, flames kept shooting up, often burning trees, and I had to exert myself each time to control them.

If we were to encounter Keren in a place like this, we’d be reduced to ashes without even putting up a fight.

I gradually came to a halt.

“Ran? What’s wrong?”

There was seriousness in Count Furst’s eyes, but his overall expression was incredibly calm.

Right, I need to stay calm.

“I’ll go to the coast. You go to Master. Please go and call Master while I buy time.”

“What are you saying all of a sudden?”

“Please, Count. If we continue like this, that fire mage will definitely catch up. There’s no time to explain.”

Count Furst hesitated for a moment, looking at me with uncertain eyes, but soon slowly walked over and placed his hand on my shoulder.

“Your resolve is firm.”

“Yes.”

“With this, consider the debt for saving your life fully repaid. You no longer owe me anything, Ran.”

“……”

“Then, make sure you stay alive. I’ll bring your Master as quickly as possible.”

After saying that, Count Furst began to run, following the purple butterfly.

Oshalo, who was standing beside me, watched me for a while before turning away without saying a word.

He probably didn’t know what to say.

I took a deep breath.

I couldn’t be certain, but if Keren had been in the sea, he wouldn’t have been able to perform that fire magic that revealed his face in the flames just now.

Fire magic is incompatible with seawater, after all.

He probably arrived at Marshal Harbor by some means, which is why he could confirm my location through that fire magic.

And if he’s already arrived at Marshal Harbor at that speed, he’ll catch up even quicker in a forest like this.

Moreover, fire magic becomes even more powerful in the forest.

Encountering him in the forest would mean instant death.

I started to quickly walk towards the direction where I could smell the sea.

Keren had been sailing for over a month. He couldn’t even summon his familiar. He performed tremendous fire magic, but that’s why he’ll be even more exhausted.

So, at the coast, I might be able to hold him off somewhat.

Besides, I have his robe in my hands.

I quickly put on Keren’s robe that I had been holding.

It’s better for me to wear it than to leave it somewhere for him to reclaim.

The key question is, how long do I have to hold out before Master Avana arrives?

I already knew the answer to that.

She won’t come.

Master Avana doesn’t fully trust Speria yet. Therefore, she can’t send her away, nor can she leave the castle herself.

And sending Psyche is even more out of the question. After all, Psyche’s safety is the most important thing to Master Avana.

That’s why she took me as a disciple in the first place.

In the end, I have to overcome this.

I have to break through this situation alone.

“Alright. Let’s go.”

I began to walk quickly toward the coast. The forest ended, and a steep cliff appeared.

Standing at the edge of the cliff and looking down, there was nothing but pitch-black darkness where light couldn’t reach. It seems incredibly deep.

I looked at my left hand.

If I don’t do something about this big fire, I won’t even be able to take out my magic book.

But if I simply relinquish control and abandon it, Keren could reclaim it and gain power from it. Then I’d have no chance at all.

At that moment, a bright flame rose from far away in the forest. And at an astonishing speed, it arrived in front of me in an instant.

“So here you are, you little rat!”

Keren was enveloped by three fireballs. One was above his head, and the other two supported his body beneath his feet.

That’s how he was able to move at such an incredible speed.

I didn’t know fire magic could be applied like that.

The more you know about magic, the more mysterious it becomes.

I said,

“If you promise not to harm me anymore, I’ll return your robe and the fire, senior.”

Keren’s face contorted at those words.

“Ha! How dare you! You should be on your knees begging! The fact that you, who don’t even have a good staff, are looking me in the eye is insolent enough. You speak as if you’d attack if I don’t comply with your demands.”

“Then I’ll assume you intend to harm me.”

“Harm? Ha! I’ll capture you and make you neither dead nor alive… How about that?”

His voice cut off as my body vanished over the cliff’s edge.

My body began to fall down the thousand-foot cliff. A tingling sensation ran through my nerves from the tips of my fingers to my toes.

But I kept my mind clear and gripped my staff tightly, looking up at the receding cliff top.

As expected, Keren quickly arrived at the edge of the cliff and looked down at me.

He extended his staff, and at the same time, I also extended mine.

Ssshh!

As the psychic forces collided, blood burst from both my nostrils once again.

It might never be possible again, but it’s something that I managed to block it even once.

“Damn it! Even if I’m in terrible condition, this is ridiculous!”

His curses were understandable.

To be evenly matched in a psychic battle with a mage much weaker than oneself would warrant such an outburst.

How much further must I fall?

Splash-!

I quickly looked at my left hand.

The spark that should have been there had completely disappeared.

The spark Kalasta gave me also disappeared as soon as it entered the sea, so this was expected.

I immediately summoned my magic book. And quietly read a water magic incantation underwater.

As long as I’m in the sea, I should be safe.

But.

The water seems to be getting hotter and hotter.

I hurriedly finished reading the incantation and cast the spell.

At the same time, the seawater around me started to boil, and in an instant, it vaporized and evaporated.

I found myself floating in a suddenly created circular empty space.

“Hahaha! Did you think you could escape by entering the sea?”

Long fire tails had formed on both of Keren’s legs as he floated in the air.

The fireball that was on his head was gone.

So that’s what he used to evaporate the seawater.

He extended his staff towards me, and a powerful psychokinesis tightened my body.

“Kuhak.”

I spat out blood.

It feels like my entire insides are being sliced up.

Not only external pressure, but it seemed even my internal organs were under the pressure of the psychic force.

My body slowly rose, and soon appeared right in front of Keren’s face.

As he momentarily gave an intense look, my staff suddenly snapped in the middle and fell down.

Keren smiled wickedly.

“I’ll give you credit. It’s truly hard to believe you’re just an apprentice. However, you’ve caused me too much loss. I’ve already lost three sparks because of you. Do you know how difficult it was for me to obtain them? You’ll have to become my slave. You’ll work under me until you die to make up for the losses you’ve caused me.”

I opened my mouth to speak. But I couldn’t open my mouth at all due to his psychokinesis.

“Oh? You learned water magic, and now you’re gaping like a fish! Haha! Fine. Are you hoping for my mercy as a last resort? I’ll only free your tongue. Go ahead, beg with all your might. My heart might just change.”

As soon as he finished speaking, I realized my tongue had regained its freedom.

You’ve made a mistake.

“Gather!”

No sooner had I finished speaking than the vapors scattered around quickly turned into water.

Especially around Keren’s face, they gathered to surround his mouth and nose.

“Cough. Kuhub. Kuhuhub.”

Keren’s eyes slowly rolled upwards as his breath was suddenly cut off.

At the same time, I felt his psychokinesis significantly weaken.

Now’s the time.

I sent out psychokinesis to hold Keren’s entire body while simultaneously controlling the water blocking his nose and mouth, starting to push it into his throat.

“Cough. Kureu. Kkoreuruk.”

Keren struggled, moving his limbs. It was because my psychokinesis was crude without my staff.

But Keren didn’t just take it. He persistently dug through the gaps in my crude psychokinesis, managing to move the two fireballs that were on his two legs.

The two fireballs flew towards my chest and face.

Bang-!

Bang-!

It’s hot.

It’s too hot.

As the pain from the fire is felt throughout my body, even my mind seems to become faint.

But I absolutely can’t let go.

If I don’t kill him, I’ll die.

And so, with me engulfed in fire and Keren in water, we both fell into the sea below.

Splash-!

The flames burning my face and chest disappeared in an instant. But the power of the water blocking Keren’s airway became even stronger.

I focused my mind even more and more, blocking his nose and mouth.

If I let my guard down even a little, he will push away the water with his psychokinesis.

But I can’t breathe either.

My vision gradually blurred, and my breath became shallow.

At some point, I couldn’t hear well either.

I soon lost consciousness.

“Could someone have attacked? Oshalo!”

Oshalo entered the New Continent Company building with a grim expression, wielding an iron mace.

Inside the building, there were traces of carnage from the start.

Having rested on Oshalo’s back, my body had somewhat recovered. When I patted Oshalo’s shoulder, he let me down.

I quickly followed the two of them up.

As we climbed the stairs to the second floor, Oshalo was striking the head of a native.

Thwack!

With a sound like hitting dough, the sturdy native man crumpled sideways.

“Oshalo? Are you alright?”

Oshalo didn’t answer and just licked his lower lip.

Just what did you do to innocent Oshalo for two and a half months, Count Furst?

“Well done, Oshalo. For now, drag the corpse down to the lower floor. Ran, don’t come up. You’ll only draw attention unnecessarily.”

Oshalo picked up the body as Count Furst instructed, and I went back down to the first floor.

Then I turned back and asked the Count:

“Why did the natives suddenly attack the company?”

The Count looked around the stairway, then said:

“I’m not sure exactly. They may have joined hands with Franche. Damn it.”

Seeing Count Furst, who rarely showed emotion, express irritation, he seemed truly angry.

Well, how could he have known this would happen when he thought he’d be able to finally rest?

He moved stealthily, examining the second floor here and there, then returned to where we were.

“The building has been completely taken over. Even if they had fewer soldiers, their firepower should have been overwhelming. I don’t understand.”

He soon looked at me and said:

“Ran. Can you help me? psychokinesis would be a great help.”

“If it’s about the weight of a person, I can pick up and throw about ten to knock them unconscious.”

“What about that fire magic? Just holding a fireball would deter them from recklessly attacking.”

“I can’t do it without a spark. But I dropped it in the sea earlier. Ah, right.”

I looked down at Keren’s robe I was holding in my left hand.

Keren is a fire mage.

There’s probably a spark inside the robe.

But if I carelessly put my hand in, my hand might turn to ashes from any fire magic that might be set.

I took out my magic book. And I looked for water magic.

“Let’s try it. It should work. I ate a lot of water herbs after all.”

I held my staff and read the spell of water magic. Then a viscous, transparent liquid flowed from the tip of the staff, creating a thin membrane on my left hand.

After taking a deep breath, I put my left hand into Keren’s robe.

As expected, there was fire magic.

“Ugh!”

It burns.

It feels like it’s burning up.

It feels like all the skin on my left hand is being stripped off and even the bone is melting.

Tremendous pain washed over me, making my mind hazy.

“Urgh. T-That’s it!”

Whoosh!

Flames shot up from my left hand, illuminating the entire room as bright as day.

I desperately tried to control that spark, focusing my mind.

The pain actually helped me concentrate.

As if acknowledging my efforts, the flames gradually subsided and took the form of a sphere. However, with even a slight lapse in concentration, the flames would flare up in all directions.

This is on a completely different level from the spark Kalasta gave me.

“Ran. Your hand…”

Oshalo turned his head away as if he couldn’t bear to look.

Count Furst looked at my left hand with calm eyes and said:

“Are you alright?”

My left hand had turned black like a charred piece of firewood.

Since it was wrapped in water, only the outer skin was like that, and the inside was fine. But it hurt all the same.

Enduring the pain, I forced myself to speak.

“Let’s escape for now.”

Count Furst swallowed dryly.

For him to show concern so openly. My expression must really be terrible.

We soon headed for the corridor.

In the corridor, about five natives were glaring at us, holding hand axes in both hands.

Sure enough, their gazes were all fixed on the flames.

“This fire is way above my level, so I can’t control it properly. If you don’t get out of the way and turn to ashes, don’t blame me.”

This isn’t a lie.

If I hadn’t practiced psychokinesis by making ripples on water surfaces, this spark would have exploded long ago.

Avana Master’s words to study psychokinesis with various things became even more deeply engraved in my mind.

The five natives looked at each other, then one of them spoke as a representative:

“Are you Count Furst? It’s impossible to escape from this building. We’ve already occupied all the exits.”

The Count looked at them with cold eyes.

“Do you think I’d surrender just because of that? Before you kill me, I’ll burn down the entire building.”

The entire building?

He didn’t say anything like that earlier!

I hid my inner thoughts and narrowed my eyes even more as I looked at the natives.

The one who seemed to be the representative glanced at my flames again and said:

“The chief wants to see you. She says she has something to say.”

“Where is she?”

“In the reception hall.”

“You mean the office. Alright. I should at least hear what nonsense Legless Monkey was thinking to do such a stupid thing. Ran. And Oshalo.”

“Yes, Count.”

“Follow behind me, but you can kill anyone who approaches within 1 meter.”

After saying that, he started walking forward.

Having heard that clearly, the natives looked at each other and stepped back. But they didn’t retreat any further from a certain distance.

If we try to run away, they’ll surround us again right away.

Oshalo and I quickly followed behind the Count.

We soon arrived at the reception hall.

There were over twenty natives standing in a circle.

In the center, the chief I had seen before, Legless Monkey, was half-lying on a sofa in a relaxed posture.

In front of her was Governor Crom, his face a bloody mess, kneeling with Legless Monkey’s long legs resting on both his shoulders.

What a sight.

Legless Monkey’s arrogant gaze, as she rested her chin on her hand looking down at us, was burning like Keren’s flames.

One of the natives walked over to Legless Monkey and whispered in her ear.

She slightly raised one corner of her mouth.

“I heard from Governor Crom that you went out to face the Franche warships with the pirates? It seems that was a lie.”

Legless Monkey slowly lifted her legs.

Then she mercilessly stomped down on Governor Krom’s shoulder with one heel.

“Argh! I-It’s true. We really set sail for the sea.”

Blood gushed from the nose of the trembling Governor Crom.

A bright red mark was stained on Governor Crom’s clothes, which were already mottled with dark red stains.

Count Furst glared at him for a moment, then calmly walked over and sat down on the sofa next to Legless Monkey.

“Chief Legless Monkey. For what reason have you occupied the New Continent Trading Company?”

Legless Monkey didn’t answer. Her eyes were fixed on me.

More precisely, on the fireball in my left hand.

“That fire. It seems way above your level? What are you going to do about that blackened hand?”

I nodded.

“That’s why I don’t know when I might lose control. The moment that happens, a room this size would just become a sea of fire.”

This isn’t a lie.

If I hadn’t practiced psychokinesis by making ripples on water surfaces, this spark would have exploded long ago.

Legless Monkey cracked her neck to both sides once. Crack. Crack. With each sound, Governor Crom’s body trembled.

She turned only her eyeballs to look at Count Furst.

“Count. Is what Governor Crom said true? Did you go out to sea?”

“If I hadn’t personally boarded the pirate ship, how would the pirates have had the confidence to attack the Franche warships? I did set sail.”

Legless Monkey stared at the Count for a while, then soon laughed leisurely.

“Well. The soldiers were so confused they were shooting at each other. If you had been here, we probably wouldn’t have taken over so easily.”

The Count sighed and changed the subject.

“Chief. What is the reason for this foolish act? We are your only trading partner left in Marshal Harbor.”

Legless Monkey lifted her legs again and stomped on Governor Crom’s head.

“Guhak.”

This time he spat out a large amount of blood from his mouth. Having bitten his tongue hard, Governor Crom shed tears from the pain.

Seeing the blood trickling from the corners of his mouth, he might die from excessive bleeding if not careful.

Legless Monkey, not caring about this, spoke.

“It seems you’re looking down on us a bit.”

“Looking down? What do you mean?”

Legless Monkey’s eyes became infinitely deep.

An icy coldness was glimpsed in those fiercely burning flames.

She soon spoke abruptly.

“As expected, I knew you wouldn’t know. There’s no way you would have done such a foolish thing.”

“Tell me now. What happened?”

Legless Monkey closed her eyes.

“Some soldiers from the Yura continent came into our territory and kidnapped five children who had just started running around.”

“……”

“So I came to talk to you about it. But you attacked first? So we fought, and it was easier than expected. We just ended up occupying the place.”

Just came to talk, but when provoked, ended up occupying the place.

Indeed, the number of people she brought was significantly less than what I saw in the Manya Plains.

Her magic probably played a big role.

Count Furst’s eyes half-closed.

He glared at Governor Crom with sharp eyes.

“Governor Crom.”

Just calling his name was enough for Governor Crom to speak while blood trickled down.

“Count. Count. Listen to me. You know Duke Balkan well, don’t you? The one who sponsors our company with huge sums? You know how easily our affairs are settled because he holds our stocks.”

“……”

“It, it was his request. He said he was curious about the natives of the New Continent. He, his eldest daughter just came of age, and he said he wanted to give her a gift.”

This time Legless Monkey raised her upper body and struck Governor Crom’s head with her fist.

Because of this, Governor Crom choked and spat out a lump.

It was his severed tongue.

He could only tremble, unable to even scream.

Count Furst closed his eyes and raised both hands to rub his face dry.

After rubbing his face three or four times like that, he soon lowered his hands and said in a low voice:

“The children? Did you find them?”

Legless Monkey answered.

“They’ve already set sail, they say.”

The Count said to her.

“I’ll find them for you. Just as they were when they left. Without a single hair harmed.”

Legless Monkey glared at him, then folded her legs. Then she spun half a turn and stood up from the chair.

“Alright. I’ll trust you. Will two months be enough?”

“Give me three months.”

“Okay. Three months.”

With that, Legless Monkey left the reception hall, and the natives followed after her.

After she left, Governor Krom collapsed to the side. The Count paid no attention to this and muttered:

“Starting a war because of five kids? Hmm. This doesn’t look good.”

Count Furst stood up from his seat and grabbed Governor Crom’s hair.

“Urgh. Co-Count Furst! Count Furst!”

Count Furst threw him towards the chair and said:

“Let’s hear why on earth you did such a thing. Governor Crom.”

Governor Crom looked at him with wide eyes and said:

“Du-Duke Bal, Balkan! Duke Balkan! It was what Duke Balkan wanted!”

“Duke Balkan or whatever, how do you expect to maintain the company without suppliers?”

“Th-That…”

“I’ve long known you had a lust for power, but I didn’t know you’d go so far as to do such a stupid thing to curry favor with Duke Balkan. You’ve caused tremendous damage to the company, so I can’t just let it slide.”

Count Furst turned around.

“Oshalo.”

Oshalo slowly approached him.

“Yes, Count.”

“We need to see his face, so strike the back of his head.”

Governor Crom cried out in desperation.

“Count Furst! Count Furst!”

Is he really going to kill him?

Oshalo swung the iron mace without hesitation, and Governor Krom’s back of the head was crushed.

Thwack.

“The chief probably hasn’t gone far yet. Take this corpse and give it to her as a gift.”

“Then Count, the escort…”

“It’s fine. Take it right now. After that, come to the company’s main gate.”

Oshalo hesitated for a moment, then soon nodded and quickly went out carrying the now dead Governor Crom on his shoulder.

The Count sat on the sofa, took out a handkerchief from his pocket, and slowly wiped his face where flesh and blood had splattered.

“Ran.”

“Yes.”

“I think we need to go see Avana. Can you guide me? And that fireball is no longer needed.”

I nodded.

“Right now?”

“Right now.”

“Alright. Oh, and I can’t extinguish this fireball with my power. Since it’s night anyway, let’s just think of it as carrying a slightly large torch.”

Count Furst stared at me blankly for a moment, then soon smiled faintly.

But just then, the flames in my left hand suddenly flared up.

And a human face appeared within it.

TL : I have changed Frenche to Franche which seems more appropriate

---

A tingling sensation spread throughout my body.

Fortunately, it wasn’t as severe as what I had felt with Kalasta in the past, where I couldn’t move my body at all.

I looked down at my body.

Everything in the world except my body seemed to be already under the control of that mage.

And that control was pressing against my entire body, threatening to take over.

I instinctively knew that there was nothing I could do with my psychokinesis right now.

But I shouldn’t let that feeling dominate me.

After all, psychic power is an invisible force.

The boundary between what’s real and what’s illusion is blurry.

I gripped my staff and magic book tightly with both hands.

“Move.”

As I muttered softly, I felt the pressure ease a bit.

That’s when the mage spoke.

“My name is Keren. By the way, that staff you’re holding. Isn’t it just a whittled piece of wood? You’re still an apprentice, aren’t you!”

I nodded in response to that question.

“That’s right, Senior Keren. I’m Ran, an apprentice.”

Keren smirked.

“Don’t tell me my magic was blocked by an apprentice? Even if I’ve been trapped in water for over a month, my magic couldn’t have weakened this much! Ran, was it? Are you a mage from the New Continent?”

“I suppose so. My master is from the New Continent.”

At those words, Keren’s gaze softened a bit.

Master Avana had taught me several ways to survive in the cruel and merciless world of magic.

The first was to mention one’s master.

Just look at the case with Speria, you can see how well it works.

Even if they were about to kill you, it makes them think twice.

Keren looked back and forth between me and the Count, then said:

“Hmm, I didn’t expect to encounter a mage when I came out into the world after so long.”

He folded his arms and glanced behind him.

The screams of what might be soldiers or pirates could be heard from time to time.

At that moment, Count Furst stepped forward.

“I’ve heard you’ve been hired by Franche. I’ll offer you better terms in Baritone. What do you say?”

Keren turned his head back to the Count and growled.

“Do you think I took this job because I needed money from ordinary people?”

“Then what do you need?”

“It goes without saying. Something you ordinary people can’t even obtain. Franche Kingdom happened to get it and promised to give it to me.”

“Even so, just in case, if you could tell me, I might be able to…”

Keren swung his right hand sharply. At that moment, I extended my staff to the side, shielding the Count.

Pashht.

A collision of psychokinesis powers that could only be sensed mentally occurred in front of us. And it created a small shockwave, making Count Furst step back slightly.

I could block it.

“You blocked it again? Are you sure you’re an apprentice?”

Hostility rose again in Keren’s eyes.

I spoke politely.

“He’s my employer, so I have to protect him.”

“Ha. Is that so? What, are you trying to get paid? You’re certainly an apprentice alright. Just looking at you, I can tell you’re a failure who gave up the path of magic and returned to the ordinary world.”

Look who’s talking, employed by ordinary people himself.

“……”

When I didn’t say anything, he slightly raised his head and asked.

“I get how you blocked the first one. You probably gathered moisture. But that second one. What was that? You used water magic, right? That’s why the ship sped up?”

“Yes.”

“How did you do that? I’m not completely ignorant of water magic, but your magic seems a bit strange. It doesn’t seem to be mixed with wind magic either.”

Is this why he appeared like this?

I answered in a low voice, not relaxing my tension.

“I minimized water resistance as much as possible.”

“Wouldn’t the ship sink then?”

“I left the surface tension.”

Keren tilted his head once and said.

“Is that even possible? No, even if it were possible, it would just slip. It wouldn’t get that fast.”

“I only did that for the parts of the ship touching the water. I left resistance for the oars.”

“Really? How do you distinguish that?”

“The oars are dipped into the water once and then pulled out. That’s how you distinguish it.”

Keren opened his mouth slightly and said.

“You controlled all that?”

“Yes.”

He quietly looked at me.

It was probably possible thanks to the herb water I had been taking frequently, but there was no need to tell him that.

He soon spoke in a low voice.

“I’ll be honest. It would be a waste to kill you. So, come under me willingly. I’ll spare your life. Walk the path of magic again under me.”

“I’m sorry, but that’s difficult, senior. I already have a good master.”

“Don’t lie. Working for ordinary people just for money is a disgrace to mages. If you really had a master, they wouldn’t have allowed such a thing.”

“It’s not because of money. It’s because of a connection, just like you.”

“Your lie is clumsy. Are you just saying whatever comes to mind based on what I said? Besides, using water magic while being human. It’s obvious you awakened magic on your own. Even if it’s true that you have a master, they’re already insignificant for teaching you water magic.”

“My master is an elf.”

At those words, Keren’s face contorted as much as it could.

“Enough. There’s a limit to bragging. It’s because of that poor character that you couldn’t get past being an apprentice and gave up the path of magic. I’ve changed my mind. I’ll just kill you.”

Keren extended his staff forward. Then, a powerful psychic force shot out from his staff towards me.

I likewise extended my staff forward, countering his psychic force.

“Kuhp.”

Immediately, blood gushed from both my nostrils

It felt as if someone was furiously pressing my brain from the inside.

Keren smirked and said.

“I could just increase the psychic force and crush you to death like this, but since you’re a mage, even if an apprentice, I’ll let you die by magic. This is the price for making me use my hand troublesomely.”

As he extended his left hand forward, his magic book appeared with a poof. It was overall red, with small flames rising from its four corners.

As he looked at the book, its pages flipped back and forth rapidly. It seemed he was looking for the desired magic to kill me.

Still, the fact that I can see well means it’s a bearable level of psychic power.

When I was studying psychic power against Psyche or Speria, I often collapsed with my eyes going dark.

I also looked at my magic book.

There, fire magic was written.

I read the incantation while extending my staff further forward, and soon a fireball was summoned in front of my staff and shot towards Keren.

Keren frowned upon seeing my fireball.

“Where did that spark suddenly come from?”

As the fireball approached, Keren stopped the incantation he was reading and swung his staff.

Puk-!

That magical fireball explodes the moment it touches an object. But Keren’s staff deflected the fireball as it was, and the fireball flew far away into the sea.

With that, the spark disappeared into the sea.

Keren walked towards us and said.

“So you were hiding fire magic! Hmph. I guess you at least made a proper contract with a familiar. Come on, bring it out! I need to feed it to my hungry familiar!”

He seems to have mistaken the spark given by Kalasta for something received from a familiar.

But come to think of it, why isn’t he bringing out his familiar?

He could have crushed me more easily than now if he did.

Perhaps due to the month-long sea voyage, he can’t carelessly bring out his fire familiar?

At that moment, blood gushed from both of my nostrils again.

“Kuhp.”

Now the world is spinning a bit.

Count Furst looked at me and spoke. His hand was already on his necklace.

“Ran. Perhaps…”

I cut off his words.

“Keren won’t let us go just like that. I’ll try to buy some time.”

Alright.

Shoulders broad.

Chest out.

I paid no heed to the blood gushing from my nose. And I looked at Keren.

As he got more than halfway closer, the pressure doubled with each step he took.

Should I run away?

I gritted my teeth and forcibly suppressed the thoughts creeping up in my mind.

This is the true form of psychic power.

Psychic power is an invisible force.

Force includes not only the psychokinesis that moves objects but also the mental force that moves hearts.

Master Avana said that a mage’s confidence, dignity, initiative, and magic itself are all just different forms of psychic power.

And that psychic power stems from will.

Afraid?

Scared?

In my short but eventful life, I’ve been in countless frightening situations and scary environments.

And every time, what I chose was to move forward towards that fear and terror.

I barely parted my lips that wouldn’t open.

“Here we go.”

As if my words were a signal, my legs began to move forward.

Step.

Step.

My feet, which seemed like they’d never move, started advancing towards Keren.

Then, Keren’s eyes widened as he watched me.

“You? How on earth?”

Keren’s body stood still in that spot.

Psychic power is an invisible force.

Being invisible means it has no objectivity and exists only subjectively.

Regardless of the objective difference in level between Keren and me, as long as there was some mutual recognition between us, that becomes our difference in level.

This is a simple principle.

No matter how powerful a force one possesses, if there’s no faith in one’s own power, it can’t be used.

Originally, I should have died unable to overcome not just Keren’s magic but even his simple psychic power.

But at this moment.

As I’m walking forward, and he has stopped, just for this moment.

I have the upper hand.

Of course, Keren will soon come to his senses and send a powerful psychic force to me again.

But I won’t give him that time.

I extended my left hand forward while simultaneously swinging my staff widely.

Then Keren floated up from that spot and flew far away into the sea.

“Huh? Huuuh!”

Drawing a large arc as he flew, he fell straight into the sea.

Splash!

In the place where he was originally, only his robe, which I had fixed with my left hand, remained.

I sat down on the spot, grasping his robe in my left hand with psychokinesis.

At the same time, I turned my head towards the Count.

“Count, now… quickly!”

Although Count Furst’s expression was full of confusion, he acted quickly. Noticing that I couldn’t even walk, he came to my side with Oshalo.

Count Furst brought both hands to his necklace, inserted his fingernail into the groove inside it, and opened it wide.

Then a golden light shone brightly from inside, completely engulfing us.

What’s this, it looks like a human shape?

Whoosh-!

The sea burst open, and Keren floated up in that spot.

“You bastard!”

Three fireballs were floating above his head and both shoulders.

And with that scene as the last, we flew up to the sky with the golden light.

Everything visible suddenly changed into lines, then into dots. It felt like the world was infinitely contracting.

But in an instant, as if that contraction had gained elasticity, it quickly started to return to its original state.

At the same time, the surroundings became long lines and started flying quickly in one direction.

When the world returned to normal, we were awkwardly stuck near the coast of Marshal Harbor.

“Whoa!”

“Ugh!”

“Guh!”

The three of us rolled around on the sandy beach.

I quickly came to my senses and looked around.

“Are you alright?”

When I asked, the Count barely got up from his spot and answered.

“It seems we made it safely. Phew. An experience I never want to have again.”

Looking at his necklace, it had turned completely black as if burned.

Anyway, we seem to be safe now.

I lay flat on the sand.

And I held up Keren’s robe in my left hand.

To think I managed to grab this in the midst of all that.

I really am amazing.

“Get up, Ran. You can rest once we reach the company building.”

But my body wouldn’t move.

As I struggled to move, the Count had Oshalo carry me on his back.

Ah, this is a bit embarrassing.

Still, it’s comfortable thanks to his unnecessarily large build.

I clung to my fading consciousness while being carried on Oshalo’s back.

And only after a long while were we able to arrive at the New Continent Company building.

Now I can finally rest.

But my expectation evaporated immediately.

Because from the building, noises reminiscent of the battlefield were ceaselessly heard.

Kiririring-!

The rusty anchor chain was unraveling at a rapid pace.

It was a deafening sound of friction that made me wince involuntarily.

As it descended so quickly, there was a sound like a giant ball bursting when the anchor collided with the sea.

Soon after, a heavy vibration traveled up the anchor chain. Everyone lost their balance and stumbled, and Oshalo even fell forward.

Thud.

It was a close call. Cannonballs were falling all around the ship. Countless water columns began to rise before our eyes.

Swoosh-!

Swoosh-!

Some of them burst right in front of our ship.

If the ship had been just a little bit forward, it would have been shattered to pieces.

Naturally, the Count, myself, and Oshalo, we all ended up soaked like wet rats.

“Oh. Good thing I didn’t wear it.”

The Count was stroking his necklace.

Wasn’t that a dangerous situation just now?

If we had made the slightest mistake, we could have been sinking together to the bottom of the sea.

Suddenly, my trust in him plummets.

I looked at the captain and said,

“You’re going to accelerate again, right? I’ll raise the anchor for you.”

The captain nodded at my words, somewhat bewildered.

The device for raising the anchor is shaped like a giant millstone, with five sailors holding handles protruding in five directions and turning it.

Recalling this mechanism, I extended my staff. The device began to turn on its own, starting to pull in the iron chain connected to the anchor.

The five sailors assigned to this task wore blank expressions.

“Don’t just stand there, you turn it too!”

As the captain shouted, they quickly grabbed the handles and started turning rapidly.

The captain raised his hand again.

It was a matter of moments before the first mate recognized this and signaled to the slave overseer in the hold, and the slave overseer in turn signaled to each of the slaves.

Kirik-!

As the anchor was fully raised, the ship began to move forward quickly once more.

These slaves are strong.

The captain passed by Count Furst, myself, and Oshalo, placing one foot on the bow of the ship, and took out a telescope from his shirt.

Then he carefully examined the Franche warship.

“Won’t they fire their cannons in order?”

The captain answered the Count’s question in a low voice.

“If they had the brains for that, they wouldn’t have thought to fire randomly in the first place. As expected, the number of fired cannonballs matches the number of gun ports. We just need to get within range before they reload. It’s risky, but if your mage can block that glowing thing like before, we should be able to approach successfully.”

The captain glanced at me once and then passed by us again, heading towards the helmsman responsible for steering the ship.

The pirate ship moved in a zigzag pattern while rapidly advancing towards the Franche warship.

Definitely not a simple pirate.

“Ran. I see a red glow, it seems they’re preparing magic again on the other side.”

Hmm, it’s the same magic.

They probably dismissed the previous failure as a fluke.

Well, all I did was manipulate the moisture, so they probably didn’t sense traces of my magic.

Just like before, I held up my transparent magic book and raised my staff high, gathering moisture in the sky above the Franche warship.

As time passed, the red light rose into the sky and gathered in an instant.

Pop-!

As expected, the fire magic only produced a small light for a very brief moment before disappearing.

I lowered my staff and said,

“They must have noticed by now. That there’s a mage here too.”

“Then, what do you think they’ll do next?”

“Well… They’ll probably join the attack, won’t they?”

Whoosh.

Speak of the devil.

A small flame rose like a ball from the bow of the Franche warship, soon growing large enough to obscure everyone’s vision.

The light wasn’t strong enough to reveal our position. However, it was clear they intended to throw it at us as we approached.

It would be more accurate than cannonballs, I suppose.

I heard hurried footsteps approaching from behind, and soon the captain spoke to me.

“We’re within cannon range now. But they’ll soon discover us and that fireball will hit us.”

He means he wants me to get rid of it, I guess.

I shrugged my shoulders.

“I can’t eliminate that with my power.”

The captain’s face contorted at those words.

Just as he was about to express his anger, I stole his timing.

“If we turn tail and run now, we’re more likely to be hit by cannonballs. Our only option is to charge ahead.”

The captain looked back and forth between the Count and me several times, then growled,

“Let’s hope we don’t all end up as ashes.”

As he stomped away, Oshalo muttered,

“Up close, the Franche warship doesn’t look that big? We have almost ten ships, right?”

“That’s right. We might have helped too much.”

When I looked at the Count, he gave a slight nod.

It would be good if the pirates defeat the Franche army, but they shouldn’t win too easily.

The more pirates survive, in the short term, the more payment we’ll have to make, and in the long term, it leaves potential future problems.

“Come closer, just in case.”

Oshalo and I quickly moved next to Count Furst.

The captain stood on the high deck, shouting various orders. The pirate ships at the two ends of the V-formation gradually increased speed to form a straight line, then slowly reversed into a V-formation again.

It seemed they intended to surround the Franche warship.

“Pirate ships!”

“They’re here!”

We were close enough to hear the shouts of the Franche soldiers.

And at the same time, the fireball floating at the bow flew towards one end of the V-formation and collided with its center.

Boom-!

The fireball did more than just collide with the ship; it exploded in all directions simultaneously.

As a result, that ship completely lost its function, rapidly slowing down and beginning to sink into the sea.

Another fireball started forming on the Franche warship.

“Charge! I said charge! Ram into it!”

At that sound, the Count said to us,

“Let’s move towards the back of the ship.”

We carefully walked between the busily moving crew members towards the back of the ship.

As we were passing the center of the ship, another fully formed fireball flew towards us.

More precisely, towards the ship directly to our left.

Boom-!

With a tremendous explosion, the center of the ship burst open.

The explosion was so powerful that one of the crew members from that side, turned to black ash that flew all the way to the deck of our ship.

For a moment, everyone on the ship froze. All eyes were fixed on that corpse.

“Everyone, get it together! Keep moving!”

At the captain’s shout, everyone barely regained their senses and began to move busily again.

I muttered to the Count as we hurried our steps.

“The enemy mage seems to be at a higher level than Master Avana anticipated.”

“Yes. The advantage is not ours, but theirs. If you find it difficult to block that fire magic, you can retreat now if you want. What do you think?”

Retreat now?

What does he mean?

Is it the magic contained in the necklace?

Anyway, I can’t leave now.

I climbed onto a large box firmly attached to the deck, narrowed my eyes, and looked at the bow of the Franche warship.

More precisely, at the mage standing there.

Nothing else was particularly noteworthy, but the magnificent robe fluttering in the night wind caught my eye.

Come to think of it, I did need a good robe to hold my staff.

I jumped down with a whoosh.

“Running away with our tail between our legs will definitely have a negative impact on my magic too. I can’t do that.”

Magic is greatly influenced by things like confidence, dignity, or belief.

Even if one has exceptional talent, if these are lacking, the power of magic will inevitably be diminished.

If I run away before even facing the enemy in my first battle using magic, I will never be able to escape from such avoidance psychology in the future.

Of course, I won’t be able to overcome the difference in skill level, but the willingness to try is what’s important.

“Alright. I’ll trust you.”

He said that, but the Count’s gaze was fixed on the burning ship next to us.

Judging by the look in his eyes, it seemed he was ready to unleash the magic contained in the necklace immediately if the fireball were to fall on our ship.

At that moment, the captain rushed over from the bow. The anxiety was noticeable in his eyes, glistening in the firelight.

“Hey! I found you!”

The captain glared at me, the Count, and Oshalo in turn. Then he closed his eyes for a moment, took a deep breath, and said,

“Mage! Do something this time! If you can block it just once more, we can ram the ship!”

Turning my gaze, I could see another fireball gathering at the bow of the Franche warship.

It’s certainly at a level that my water magic can’t possibly block.

I quickly ran to the back edge. The V-shaped trail was visible behind the ship.

“Then this should do it.”

As I read the water magic, I extended my staff downward. A blue light flowed from the staff and scattered below the ship.

It gradually spread and seeped into the area where the ship met the water’s surface.

In that state, I turned my head slightly to look at the bow of the Franche warship.

At that moment, the fireball was fired towards us.

It was aimed precisely at our ship.

“Mage!”

“Ran!”

Count Furst and the captain shouted at me simultaneously.

At that moment, I infused psychokinesis power into my staff and cast water magic.

A sound like countless overlapping waves crashing resounded throughout the ship.

Swoosh-!

The ship suddenly moved more than twice as fast.

Of course, with water resistance drastically reduced, the ship’s speed had to increase.

The ship accelerated rapidly. So much so that not only the Count and Oshalo, but even the experienced captain and crew members fell over.

So how could the fireball possibly hit us?

The entire ship brightened.

Everyone who had fallen to the floor raised their heads to look at the sky in unison.

“……”

“……”

“……”

In the sky, the fireball was just grazing the tip of our ship’s anchor as it passed by.

It’s so hot that my face feels flushed even at this distance.

The fireball flew further and plunged into the sea where our ship had been just moments ago.

Hiss-!

It didn’t explode upon contact with the water.

Then a loud voice was heard from the front.

“We’re going to collide! Brace yourselves!”

No sooner had the captain’s cry fallen than our ship’s ram collided with the Franche warship.

Crash-!

A sound not of wood breaking, but like a forest collapsing.

With that thunderous noise and the impact, everyone staggered.

“Charge! Charge!”

The captain roared at the top of his lungs, and the crew members, clutching their disoriented heads, drew their swords. Then they began to rush towards the crushed part of the collision.

Due to the difference in sizes, a large hole had been torn in the middle of the Franche warship, creating a passage.

Inside, slaves with their legs chained were kneeling. Soldiers in uniforms were also visible. Around the point of impact, there were numerous crushed or dismembered individuals.

Through the gaping hole in the ship, layers of rowing slaves, cannons, soldiers, and luxury goods including silk were visible.

Did they just cram in everything they had? Why are there so many rowing slaves when the sails are so large?

Boom-!

Boom-!

The following pirate ships collided with both sides of the Franche warship. The Franche warship now looked as if it had suddenly grown eight new legs.

All the pirate ship crew members, including the captain, drew their weapons and entered the Franche warship, rummaging through it as if it were their own home.

“This way, the pirates will win significantly again.”

When I casually remarked, the Count said,

“There’s a fire mage. Franches won’t just sit back and take it. For now, stay with me. So we can escape at any time.”

“I’ve been curious for a while, what exactly is the magic contained in that necklace?”

“Flight.”

“Ah.”

“Using this, the three of us should be able to fly safely to Marshal Harbor.”

But at that moment, someone fell onto the empty deck with a thud.

Thump!

The ship shook violently as if it had hit a reef. Everyone lost their balance and staggered.

In a 2-meter radius.

The mage who had landed, crushing the deck in a circular shape, slowly raised his body and looked at me.

“Was it you? The one who interfered with my magic earlier?”

He seemed to have no interest in the battle between pirates and soldiers happening behind him.

It appeared he was focused solely on me.

After half a day of sailing, we arrived at Monta Island near Marshal Harbor.

The area was riddled with reefs, making navigation difficult, so it wasn’t an official route.

However, since it was centrally located, allowing access to various frontier areas, it had become a haven for skilled pirates.

The sun was now barely touching the horizon.

As soon as we arrived on the island, Oshalo quietly pulled out a mace.

Wait, I didn’t see that before?

Perhaps misunderstanding my gaze, Oshalo grinned.

“I tried learning swordsmanship, but it wasn’t for me. I kept cutting myself while swinging it. I just prefer this simple club. Hehe.”

Well, the past two months had been long. If I, a former slave, could become a mage, then perhaps the once-gentle Oshalo could have become a warrior.

I followed Count Furst alongside him as we disembarked.

Monta Island seemed like Marshal Harbor with all the beauty stripped away. In other words, it was nothing short of a hellhole.

The ground was covered in filth, most of the people seemed out of their minds, and the air was so polluted it made me want to vomit, as if someone had released poison into it.

“Wow. What’s that? The boy looks pretty, doesn’t he? But he’s holding a staff. Could he be a mage?”

“Hehehe. No way. Don’t you see him sticking close to that noble? It’s obvious what he is, you know? The tastes of the upper class are quite something.”

The man laughing unpleasantly showed his pinky finger covered in filth.

What’s that supposed to mean?

I should shove a fireball down his throat.

“You’ve changed a bit.”

“Pardon?”

I looked up at Count Furst. He continued walking without turning his head and said,

“As far as I knew, you were a child who didn’t react to such things. Now that you have power, is it hard to endure insults?”

“I did endure it. If I hadn’t, those two would be ashes by now.”

“I wasn’t looking at you, but I could tell you were angry. It was that obvious. Being isolated from the world and learning only magic, you’ve forgotten a bit about reality.”

I think I understand what the Count is pointing out.

In short, he’s telling me to manage my expressions.

“No, it’s not like that. It won’t happen again.”

“The more power you gain, the more self-control is required. If the remarkable patience you showed as a slave was merely due to a lack of power, then my investment in you was meaningless.”

Oshalo met my eyes and shook his head, indicating the count was nitpicking over nothing.

But this man is clearly speaking with good intentions. He’s just a bit strict.

“I understand. I’ll keep it in mind.”

“Thank you for your understanding.”

The count glanced at me briefly before looking ahead again.

He really doesn’t waste a single word.

Soon after, we arrived at what seemed to be a large square. There was something like a stage set up in the square, though calling it a stage might be generous – it was just a few rotting wooden planks placed on top of wooden barrels.

The Count climbed up there and suddenly began shouting to the pirates in a loud voice.

“Listen! I am Count Furst of Baritone. On behalf of the New Continent Company, I’m here to offer you work. First, each person will receive a basic wage of Baritone gold coins…”

His pronunciation was clear, and his voice carried power. Even mundane words seemed to have a strange charm that drew people’s attention.

Pirates who were drinking, pirates engaged in private conversations, and pirates going about their own business – all of them, without exception, began to focus on Count Furst’s words.

As a result, people started to gather in the area that was barely worthy of being called a square.

Count Furst repeated the same story, and the pirates who heard it began to ask questions one by one.

“How long is the job?”

“Is the money paid upfront?”

“Will the New Continent take responsibility for any aftermath?”

As Count Furst answered each question, some pirates left while others gathered. He maintained the same tone throughout, neither disappointed nor excited.

Just as the sun was about to set, about a hundred pirates had gathered to take on his job and signed the contracts he had prepared.

The captain who had brought him here spat on the ground as he watched the scene.

“He’s quite something. To make those scoundrels follow him.”

After finishing the contracts with all the pirates, Count Furst approached the captain again and said,

“As promised, I’ve gathered over a hundred men. Set sail.”

“It’s impressive that you actually gathered them. They don’t even listen to me anymore.”

“The captain simply lacks sufficient money.”

The captain spat again and said,

“With over a hundred men, we could definitely take on a Frenche warship. They’ll be tired from over a month of sailing, so we should win easily. The problem is the mage…”

Count Furst put his hand on my shoulder.

“I vouch for this kid’s skills.”

The captain looked at me with suspicious eyes before turning away.

Seems he’s not convinced even with the Count’s guarantee.

When we arrived at the dock away from the city, it had become so dark that we could barely see a step ahead.

Count Furst looked up at the sky and asked,

“It’s barely a crescent moon. Will this be alright?”

The captain smirked.

“We plunder relying only on the enemy ship’s torches even during a new moon. A crescent moon is no problem at all. Besides, I know these waters well.”

Count Furst fiddled with his necklace.

“I’ll be counting on you.”

Right. I had tried using psychokinesis on that necklace before.

If I had known it was valuable, I wouldn’t have done that. I feel a bit guilty now.

The Count and I boarded the ship, relying on the faint moonlight

As we stood on the deck at the bow of the ship, the sound of waves rolled in from the pitch-black distance.

Soon after, sounds of preparation for departure could be heard from various places.

The sound of footsteps on the deck. The sound of raising the anchor. The sound of checking ropes. The sound of sharpening swords.

The pirates were doing all of this without a single light.

Count Furst spoke in a low voice.

“Ran. Can you perhaps see? With a mage’s eyes?”

I shook my head.

“I’m still an apprentice, so my senses are the same as before.”

“Hmm. I see.”

Is he worried?

Well, I guess he would be worried, being alone in enemy territory.

He was still fiddling with his necklace.

“Is that necklace precious to you?”

Count Furst suddenly startled and looked down at me.

This is a first.

Such an intense reaction from the Count.

He quickly took his hand off the necklace and then looked down at his hand.

“……”

Seeing him say nothing, he’s clearly flustered. As if he made a big mistake.

Strangely, I felt a bit better. The Count is human too.

“I can just pretend I didn’t notice, right?”

The Count said nothing.

I put my hand in my pocket. And took out the remaining water herb. As I put it in my mouth to chew, the Count looked around cautiously.

Then, judging that no one was around, he opened his mouth.

“It’s a treasure.”

Is he going to tell me?

I asked back.

“A treasure?”

Count Furst nodded and muttered,

“It contains powerful magic. It will provide a way out.”

Judging by him saying it will provide a way out, it must be a defensive treasure.

“Ah. Is that why you came out personally?”

“Yes.”

The Count had said he didn’t need to win this battle.

Anyone could easily understand that if the pirates and Frenche soldiers clash and both suffer damage, it would be a great benefit to the New Continent Company.

The problem is that the pirates know this too. That’s why the Count threw himself in to gain their trust.

But if there’s a treasure with powerful magic?

The Count’s plan is simple.

He’ll pit them against each other and then slip away.

“Then what about me and Oshalo?”

“This is a family heirloom passed down through generations. Although Oshalo is quite large, it should be able to handle the three of us sufficiently.”

“Hmm.”

“That’s why I have a request. You must always stay by my side. When you’re away from me, I can’t guarantee your safety.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“And one more thing.”

“Yes.”

“The reason I told you all of this is because I want you to understand exactly that we don’t need to win this battle. In other words, you just need to prevent one side from losing overwhelmingly.”

“I understand what you mean. With my current level, I can’t do things like sink ships anyway.”

“Right. I see you understand.”

Count Furst took a deep breath of the cold night air and exhaled.

Time passed.

When the scouting boat returned, the ships set sail. Our ship took the lead, with the others following in a V formation behind us.

Soon, the lights illuminating the Frenche kingdom’s ship began to appear in the distance. There seemed to be about thirty torches.

Indeed, being a national-level army, their resources alone made such numbers possible.

At that moment, the captain approached and said,

“The fight will start soon. Please go inside, Count. The bow is dangerous.”

Count Furst shook his head.

“No. I can take care of myself, don’t worry. Start your work. I’ll retreat when necessary.”

At those words, the captain licked his lips once and said,

“As you wish.”

The captain raised his hand high. Suddenly, the ship accelerated, and I almost lost my balance.

A pirate ship this agile?

It’s beyond my understanding as someone who was once a galley slave.

“He was an officer of the now-extinct Netherite in the past. He became a pirate after losing his country to Frence twenty years ago.”

Count Furst answered my curiosity as if he had read my thoughts.

Well, no matter how much money you offer, what pirate would engage in battle against the army of the Frenche kingdom?

“Is it revenge?”

“That’s the biggest part of it.”

He must have really racked his brains to mobilize pirates and make them clash with the Frenche kingdom’s army.

But then, from one of the Franche kingdom’s ships, something like finely glowing red powder appeared and started rising into the sky.

I could clearly feel the energy of magic.

Count Furst must have seen it too, as he said to me,

“Ran. You get ready too.”

“Ah, yes.”

Alright.

I held my staff in my right hand. And summoned my magic book.

When I tapped the magic book with my staff, transparent pages flipped rapidly.

Then the page with water magic was opened.

I closed my eyes and focused on the magic book. The spells written there began to appear in my mind.

The effect of eating the water herbs is definitely there, as I can feel the energy of water much better.

That’s when it happened.

Pop pop pop-!

The red powder that had risen into the sky burst out in all directions, emitting an incredibly bright light. It was bright enough to temporarily push back the darkness of the night, comparable to the sun for that moment.

The light lasted for about 5 seconds before disappearing.

Wow. So fire magic can be used like that too. It feels like I’m stepping out of the box of common sense.

Looking at it, the principle seems quite simple. Why didn’t I think of it before?

“Damn it! We’ve been spotted from afar! Full speed ahead! If you don’t want to get hit by cannons, move it!”

As the captain shouted loudly, the ship’s speed increased even more.

The distant lights grew, illuminating the sea. Surprisingly, there was only one Frenche warship. Dozens of black shadow moved busily on its deck.

Is close combat the only answer?

As I narrowed my eyes, I could see red lights rising into the sky again.

Are they trying to gauge the distance between us with the same magic as before to illuminate the surroundings?

And then they’ll fire the cannons.

I started reading the necessary parts of the water magic spells written in the magic book.

The minimum spell needed to counter the light-emitting fire magic.

That’s it.

Just as the red light was about to gather and emit light again, I extended my staff forward.

Then, the energy of water gathered in that part of the sky, forming humid air.

Pop.

The fire magic emitted light for a moment. But literally just for a moment. And the intensity of that light was incomparably weaker than before.

“Well done, Ran.”

Count Furst muttered that and looked at the captain. Relief appeared on the captain’s face as he looked back at the Count.

You should have trusted me from the start.

But just because I blocked the fire magic doesn’t mean I can block the cannons too.

Bang-!

Bang bang-!

Intense flashes of light and noise spread out from countless gun ports in succession.

“Are they firing randomly? Unless they have an inexhaustible supply of cannonballs.”

The captain raised his hand.

The ship suddenly began to slow down.

Outside the boundary, I was holding a magic book in my left hand and a staff in my right.

“Haap.”

With a shout, I thrust the staff forward. A spark emerged from it, and flames burst out, shooting forward.

“Wow, well done! That’s it!”

Speria, who was inside the boundary, had a proud expression on her face.

Anyone watching would think she was my master.

I closed the magic book and unsummoned it. But I had no choice but to keep holding the staff.

The magic book can be freely summoned and unsummoned because it’s connected to the soul, but the staff is just hastily made from a common branch.

Master Avana said she’d get me a mage’s robe, and only then will I be able to carry the staff around.

Or I could make my own staff.

“Now I understand perfectly. Fire magic. But is there no way around this spark? It seems like it won’t work without the spark.”

Speria nodded.

“Fire was given to humans one day. Humans didn’t create it. They just learned to use it. So magic works the same way.”

“Is it the same for you?”

“I’m fine because I have a fire familiar. Having a fire familiar makes a big difference in fire magic. Why don’t you get a fire familiar too? You don’t have a familiar yet, right?”

To become a full-fledged mage and leave apprenticeship behind, one needs a magic book, a staff, and a familiar. Each of these greatly affects magical power.

In fact, with just the magic book, I became able to use magic other than psychokinesis.

If I were to get a familiar, how much stronger would I become?

I sighed.

“I don’t know.”

“What?”

I walked into the boundary, leaving the spark outside, and said:

“Ever since I made the magic book, more spirits have been talking to me. Even from the wind and trees that I couldn’t feel before.”

Speria poked my waist and said:

“That’s because your talent is that exceptional. Usually, an apprentice needs to go to highly intensified environments to hear a familiar’s voice.”

“Highly intensified environments?”

Speria nodded lightly.

“Places like an actively dividing volcano, the middle of a flood caused by heavy rain, or inside the eye of a storm. That’s where you can barely hear the spirits’ voices. Originally, you’d have to follow your master’s guidance to such places several times to even attempt a contract. It can take years.”

“…”

Come to think of it, Master Avana had taken me to a battlefield full of death so that I could meet a death familiar.

I regret refusing that now.

Speria crossed her arms and muttered more:

“But you can hear the familiar’s voice in stagnant water, a small spark, or just a random breeze. Do you know how ridiculous that is? Even I, to get Phoenix… Ah, never mind. Anyway, think carefully and get a good familiar. You can literally just pick and choose.”

As we entered the cabin after practice, Psyche was just setting food on the table.

Speria naturally walked over and sat down, starting to eat the water herbs one by one as if she owned the place.

Just then, Master Avana appeared from the lake.

“Ran.”

“Yes, Master.”

“It’s time. Come inside.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she went back inside.

I couldn’t help but look at Speria.

“What? Why are you looking at me like that all of a sudden?”

Well, because my future depends on how I act now.

“It’s nothing. Keep eating.”

After saying that, I walked to the lakeside.

Master Avana was standing by the lake, looking at me with a serious expression.

Right now, I need to show that I’m capable enough to participate. If not, Master will participate instead, and she won’t be able to leave Speria as she is now.

No, surely she won’t kill Speria. Master must be afraid of Kalasta’s retaliation too.

“To be employable by the human kingdom, you should be at least at the level of someone who’s just left apprenticeship. Considering it’s the sea, you need to be at least that level to win easily. If you’re not at that level, I’ll participate directly.”

“I know. But if you participate, what about Speria…?”

Master cut off my words.

“I’ll kill her. We can’t keep her as a hostage anymore.”

Wait, Master.

Really?

I couldn’t help but ask.

“If not, can’t we just refuse the Count’s request? Do we really have to think only about killing Speria?”

Master Avana spoke stiffly.

“What do you think I’ve been doing for over two months? I’ve prepared so that there won’t be any consequences even if we kill her.”

“M-Master.”

“Speria has eaten water herbs for a long time, so she’s in a state where her fire magic is completely gone. Even if Kalasta comes directly, he won’t be able to find her trace. So we can really kill her now.”

“…….”

Master smiled faintly.

“The only reason I’m still keeping her is that she’s having a good influence on you. But I heard you’ve learned all the fire magic now? Right?”

I admitted it honestly.

“Yes. I’ve learned it all.”

Master Avana looked at me deeply.

“Speria is beautiful. A beauty that far surpasses human standards. Well, it must be because of such specialness that she reached the same level as me, who has studied for over a hundred years. At just fourteen, it’s natural to have your heart stolen by her. Anyone would have their heart stolen by that beauty.”

“No, Master. It’s not like that.”

“Then is it okay if I kill her?”

You’re really determined, aren’t you.

I thought for a moment, trying to understand Master’s feelings, and I realized one thing.

“Master. Are you worried that I might neglect Psyche?”

“Yes.”

An immediate answer.

As expected.

When I didn’t say anything, Master added:

“You’re both humans, right? Since they’re both at an unimaginable level of beauty, you’d probably choose a fellow human, wouldn’t you?”

“It’s not like that, I’m telling you.”

“Then why are you holding off on getting a familiar? Is it because of her?”

“That’s…”

When I couldn’t give a clear answer, Master’s voice became colder.

“Is the reason you want to save Speria really just fear of Kalasta’s retaliation? Or is it because you’ve fallen in love with her?”

I can definitely say this.

“It’s absolutely not that.”

“Then perhaps it’s because you might join Kalasta later and don’t want to burn the bridges between you.”

Sigh.

I thought I hadn’t opened my heart until now. But now I see, it seems Master Abana is the one who has truly locked her heart.

Well, having learned death magic, which is life-threatening just by being known, she must have lived a harsher life than me until now.

If I have to choose between the two…

Wait.

Something’s strange.

Suddenly she says she’s been preparing to kill Speria for the past two months?

Then she could just go ahead and do it, right? Regardless of whether I participate or Master does.

Does she need my help to kill Speria?

But Master clearly said she could kill her with just a flick of her finger.

And how could I help with not being detected by Kalasta?

Then this is ultimately…

A test?

“Kill her.”

Master Avana’s eyes widened at my short answer.

“……”

When the surprised Master didn’t speak, I looked straight at her and said:

“I repay kindness with kindness. Speria has shown me kindness too. She taught me fire magic. Of course, I think she did it to gain my favour and ensure her own survival. But even if the intention wasn’t pure, kindness is kindness. That’s why I was against killing her.”

“……”

“But if your thoughts are this firm, there’s nothing more I can do here. I think I’ve done my duty, so do as you wish, Master.”

Master Avana’s eyes returned to normal. But her gaze became deeper and softer.

She slowly reached out and patted my head.

“For a mage, beliefs are very important. A belief that you’ve decided to keep in all conditions, situations, and environments becomes the root of that mage’s uniqueness and is directly linked to the magic power they possess.”

“What?”

“As your master, I don’t want to break down my disciple’s precious belief of repaying kindness with kindness. Let’s postpone killing Speria.”

I pretended not to know and asked Master:

“Master? What about water magic?”

“You don’t need to show me. I know you’re good at it.”

It was indeed a test.

After saying that, Master walked towards the cabin.

Psyche was standing near the entrance.

She was staring at me intently with an expressionless face and eyes.

“Ran. Finish your meal.”

She went inside swiftly.

Ah.

Now I understand a bit.

So that’s her happy expression.

* * *

“Ugh, how did I eat this every day?”

“What’s that sudden remark?”

Ah, I guess my thoughts came out as words.

Count Furst, who was walking ahead, was looking at me strangely.

Well, it’s understandable since I was muttering to myself while chewing on herbs.

I swallowed and said:

“It’s nothing. Just a random thought. By the way, where are we going?”

Count Furst turned his head forward again and muttered:

“We’ve found out the sea route the Frenche soldiers are taking. We’re going to meet them at the island in advance. According to Avana, it’s better to use water magic in the middle of the ocean.”

That’s true if we’re dealing with a fire mage.

In the same conditions, it’s impossible to overcome a difference in level, but it’s possible depending on the environment.

“Are you sure they have a fire mage?”

“It’s certain. Frenche hired one for a large sum.”

Speria said that Kalasta and his disciples don’t interact with the ordinary world at all. Not just at that level.

Well, crossing the sea in a day, they must be living in a different world.

Anyway, it must be a mage unrelated to them.

“Let’s make sure. If I use water magic, the opponent won’t be able to use fire magic. But that’s all. Whether we win or lose the fight depends entirely on you, Count Furst.”

Count Furst glanced at me and smiled slightly.

“Don’t worry. It’s better if we don’t win, actually.”

His smile turned meaningful.

We walked for a long time like that and arrived at a high cliff.

The salty smell unique to the sea was strong.

Looking down the cliff, the waves were rougher than I expected.

Every time the seawater hit the cliff, water droplets flew up to where I was standing.

While I was lost in that sight, Count Furst cleared his throat softly.

When I looked at him, Count Furst nodded towards somewhere below the cliff.

Something black was flickering.

Looking closely, a ship was docked in a hollow part inside the cliff. Seeing the torn black sails here and there, it was clearly a pirate ship.

Count Furst walked to one side of the cliff. There was a narrow and steep, but clearly visible path leading down.

Count Furst went down the cliff without hesitation, where one wrong step could lead to a fall.

Does he not know fear?

He’s indeed not an ordinary person.

I followed his movements, trying to match his footsteps as much as possible as I went down.

At the bottom of the cliff, there was a man with a bushy beard and dozens of rough-looking men gathered. Probably the captain and crew of the pirate ship.

And standing firmly in front of them was a man twice the size of a normal person.

“Oh? Oshalo?”

Oshalo saw me and smiled brightly, showing his teeth. His teeth, which were always yellow to the point of being black, had become quite clean.

“Ah, Ran! You came with the Count!”

He came over to me in big strides and hugged me tightly.

Wait a minute. If you bring your face this close, your deadly breath… Huh? It’s not there?

“How have you been? Are you learning magic well? Wow. You’re even holding a staff! And you’ve grown taller, haven’t you?”

Now that his circumstances have improved, he’s become quite talkative.

“Well, I’m just getting by.”

I brushed off Oshalo’s questions and looked at the captain over his shoulder.

The captain was glaring at the staff I was holding, but when our eyes met, he turned his gaze to Count Furst.

“To come to such a place personally, Count.”

The captain said to Count Furst with an evil smile.

He probably thought he was smiling politely.

“I’ll sail with you.”

The captain was greatly surprised by Count Furst’s words.

“You, Count? Really? It could be quite dangerous.”

Count Furst said:

“The mage I brought is my responsibility. And if I don’t take action myself, how can I expect you to follow my plan?”

“……”

“I’ll guarantee my credibility by participating in this matter myself. So, I’ll pay the promised fee when we return safely.”

Count Furst’s words could be interpreted as saying he would personally monitor whether they were doing the job properly or not.

The pirate captain had a bewildered expression.

“I’m sorry, but didn’t you say you’d pay in advance?”

“Things have changed. That’s why I came in person. If the company doesn’t pay, you can take me hostage, can’t you? Isn’t that right, Captain?”

The captain looked around at his crew for a moment.

Of course, the clueless crew members just looked back at the captain.

The captain soon tilted his head this way and that.

I can hear the sound of his brain working from here.

He turned back to Count Furst with an evil smile again.

“Please come aboard, Count.”

For over two months, I learned the basics of magic. Of course, I didn’t neglect my studies on psychokinesis either.

During that time, Speria surprisingly stayed quietly in the cabin. She diligently took the water herbs and sometimes even did household chores.

As trust built up, Master Avana allowed her to learn fire magic. Saying that it’s good for a mage to have various mentors.

Because of this, I learned fire magic and water magic. And occasionally, death magic, hiding from Speria’s eyes. I learned theory after theory and memorized spells, ready to cast them at any moment.

If only the magic book was completed.

“When will it be finished?”

My voice must have sounded quite dejected.

Seeing how both Speria and Psyche were looking at me.

“It’ll be done soon.”

Psyche said briefly before returning to her meal.

Speria patted my back and said,

“It’s partly because your innate magic is exceptional. And also because you met a good artificer.”

“A good artificer? It’s taking so long? They said it would take a few days, but it’s been two months already!”

Speria shrugged her shoulders once.

“Honestly, who would spend two months making someone else’s magic book? That really requires passion, you know? What should I say? Like an obsession with perfection?”

“…”

“I heard that among the artificers contracted with our school, the most extreme one takes two weeks. But two months? That’s truly a blessing for you.”

“Is it?”

Although I heard something similar to comfort, honestly, it’s a bit annoying.

I learned various magics, but I can’t use them.

Feeling disappointed, I turned my head to look at Dorma through the window.

“Take it easy, will you?”

At that moment, she collapsed sideways.

I jumped up from my seat.

“Huh?”

Psyche and Speria looked up at me.

“What’s wrong?”

“What’s the matter, Ran?”

I hope nothing’s wrong.

I rushed out of my seat and approached Dorma. Soon, Psyche and Speria followed.

Dorma was barely breathing.

She was holding a transparent book with both hands.

“Are, are you okay?”

Dorma struggled to speak one word at a time.

“In, in the middle. Su, suddenly. It, it ended. Sur, surprised. Phew. But. It. Turned out. Well. Hehe, here.”

She handed me the transparent magic book with trembling hands.

I took it.

Is this supposed to be a book?

I first laid it aside and made Dorma lie down comfortably.

“Can you step back for a moment?”

When I turned around, Psyche was holding her staff. Seeing that she had even taken out her magic book, it seems she’s planning to perform healing magic.

As I stepped back, Psyche closed her eyes and started reading a spell. Then, a bright green light gathered at the tip of her staff and scattered over Dorma’s body.

Dorma’s tired expression improved considerably.

“Thank you, Psyche. It feels like just yesterday that I made your magic book… You’ve already become a proper mage.”

She mumbled that as she drifted off to sleep.

Then Speria came close to me.

Golden eyes.

White skin.

Red hair.

“Look. What is it? What does it look like?”

I turned my head and held out the transparent magic book again.

“It’s this. Can you see it?”

Psyche and Speria looked at each other.

“No.”

“Not at all.”

Well, I can’t see it with my eyes either.

But I can see it. Through something other than eyes.

It’s strange, so strange.

“Anyway, it’s good that it’s well-made.”

Speria nodded at those words.

“Let’s check your innate magic first!”

Why is she getting so excited?

Speria kept gesturing for me to open it quickly.

Sigh, let’s see.

How do I open this?

I looked down at my magic book, then raised my hand to touch the very top.

It feels like touching glass.

I carefully opened it.

Surprisingly, golden letters appeared inside.

When I opened the transparent book cover, golden letters were written on the transparent pages inside.

No, how were the golden letters hidden in the first place when the book cover is transparent?

At that moment, feeling the pressure from the sides, I turned my head to both sides.

On the right was Psyche, and on the left was Speria, both sticking close to my shoulders, intensely reading the golden letters written in my magic book.

A sweet and refreshing mint-like scent from Psyche, and a musky scent with strong incense from Speria mixed in front of me, tickling my nose.

I can’t concentrate.

“Turn to the next page.”

“I’ve finished reading too. Go to the next page.”

I need to read it too.

But since I can read it anytime, I complied with their requests for now.

I raised my hand and turned the transparent first page, and again, new golden letters appeared.

“It’s really amazing.”

No sooner had my exclamation ended than they stretched out their fingers to read the golden letters in my magic book.

“Next! Next!”

“Hurry!”

I haven’t even finished eating.

Should I just turn the pages and go eat?

No.

It’s my magic book after all.

“Okay, just a moment.”

So I kept turning the pages for them.

One page.

Two pages.

Ten pages.

Twenty pages.

When will this end?

They read the golden letters that appeared in my magic book, and finally, it ended at around a hundred pages.

The two of them took their eyes off my magic book and looked at each other, saying,

“Language magic?”

“Language?”

They both tilted their heads at the same time.

Language?

“What’s that?”

When I asked, they both shook their heads.

“Who knows.”

“I don’t know.”

“Would Master Avana know?”

“Probably? She must have lived at least ten times longer than us fourteen-year-olds.”

What?

Us fourteen-year-olds?

I slowly turned my head towards Speria.

Speira made a peculiar expression as she slowly looked between Psyche and me.

“Why? You said before that you were only fourteen. Psyche, you also said you were fourteen, right?”

“No way, you’re fourteen?”

I couldn’t help but let my gaze drop.

Speria looks like she’s in her late teens no matter how I look at her.

At that moment, she stepped back with a reddened face, covering her chest with both hands.

“Wh-what are you both looking at?”

When I turned to Psyche, her expression was even more shocked.

Then Speria suddenly brought her face close to mine and said,

“Anyway. Now try putting in the fire magic I taught you. Now that you have a magic book, you should be able to store it.”

Magic book.

Its purpose is to write down many magic spells and use them whenever needed.

Even the simplest magic spell is so complex that it consumes your entire mind, so to use many magics, you had to store them in a magic book.

“Ah, that’s right. Okay. Once I put it in, I can forget about it, right?”

“Yeah. Yeah.”

Suddenly, Psyche grabbed my arm and pulled.

“Wait! No!”

“What? Why?”

“It’s your first magic. Do mine instead of fire magic.”

The healing magic she showed earlier?

Speria chuckled at those words.

“Ran already has an innate first magic. It doesn’t matter anyway.”

“But it’s still the first magic Ran is learning. I don’t like it.”

I asked the curiosity that naturally arose.

“Why is the first magic important?”

“Ah, it becomes the mage’s specialized magic. It influences all the magic you’ll learn for the rest of your life. Of course, it doesn’t matter for Ran since he already has one.”

Speria looked at me with a deep gaze, smiling broadly.

This happens every time I let my guard down.

“Hmm, is that so? So the first magic has meaning? Then I’ll go with Master’s. Sorry.”

At those words, Speria’s expression turned bitter, and Psyche’s expression showed disappointment.

I went to the lake through the cabin.

By the lakeside was Master Avana, half-immersed in the water with her eyes closed, meditating.

As I approached, she spoke first.

“Is Dorma alright? It seems Psyche unexpectedly used healing magic.”

Well, Psyche tends to suppress her magic as much as possible. She does everything manually with her body even for things that could be easily done with psychokinesis.

In contrast, Speria uses psychokinesis as she pleases. Sometimes when she’s just woken up, she’s too lazy to walk and floats her body around.

They’re so different.

“Yes. Senior Dorma seems to have fallen asleep.”

“Hmm. I see. So? What magic are you thinking of storing first?”

As expected, since it happened in Master’s castle, she seems to know everything.

“What magic would be good, Master?”

Master Avana took a deep breath and exhaled before speaking.

“Your first magic is your innate magic anyway.”

“Ah, I heard that my specialized magic has already been decided. But doesn’t the first magic I ‘store’ still have meaning?”

When I glanced at Master Avana, she was looking at me with half-closed eyes.

“As always, you choose. Whose magic you want to store first.”

Come to think of it, Master Avana has always respected my choices like this.

Even when Speria said she would teach me fire magic, she readily agreed.

The reason was that the stronger I become, the better I can protect Psyche, but there’s an even more profound meaning.

Magic is ultimately projecting one’s will onto the world. Therefore, if it’s forced or induced by someone else, it becomes that much inferior in quality.

“What do you think, Master?”

Master Avana smiled charmingly and continued.

“Hmm. When you see a pristine snow field, everyone wants to be the first to step on it. The more beautiful the snow field, the more so.”

Yet she still respects my thoughts first?

I’ve decided.

I slowly entered the lake. The cold water soaked my clothes, but I didn’t mind.

As I stood in front of Master Avana, she looked at me with slightly surprised eyes.

“I didn’t realize, but you’ve grown.”

“I’m in my growth phase after all.”

“Yes. That’s right.”

I looked straight at Master Avana and said,

“I’ll store death magic. Master.”

“Why?”

“We promised, didn’t we? Instead of refusing a familiar, I would definitely learn death magic. I’ll make death magic the first magic I store.”

“Hmm. When I said I’d give you the materials to complete the magic book before, you refused, but now?”

“I never promised that.”

Master Avana glanced at the path leading to the cabin.

“Psyche will secretly dislike it, you know?”

“Let her dislike it. After all, my master is you, Master Avana. Not Psyche.”

“Oh? Bold, aren’t we?”

“The condition of becoming her betrothed was forced from the beginning anyway.”

Master Avana’s expression stiffened slightly.

“That attitude is not good, Ran. Since you both agreed to become each other’s betrothed, you should treat each other better. Is it right to use that as an excuse to treat her carelessly?”

“Becoming betrothed is to protect her. I never promised anything more than that.”

“…”

“And that’s why I want to learn death magic first. You said it’s powerful, right? So please help me store it. Honestly, I don’t fully understand it yet.”

Master Avana looked me up and down. The tips of her two ears gradually lowered.

Master’s two eyes were the same eyes that evaluated me on the day we first met.

“Death magic must never be discovered by anyone. It’s always a dangerous magic. Remember this well.”

“Yes, Master.”

Master Avana held out both hands and took out her magic book.

“Just like I’m doing now. Try to recall the spell in your mind while holding your magic book in your hands. And slowly read it out loud. I’ll keep correcting any mistakes.”

I closed my eyes while holding the magic book in both hands.

And I recalled death magic.

Since I learned it while being careful of Speria, I couldn’t learn much. The content itself was more difficult to understand compared to fire magic or water magic, so my level of understanding was even lower.

I took a deep breath.

And I recalled death magic in my mind.

Suddenly, the magic book opened wide, and the part where language magic was written fluttered past, revealing a blank space.

I slowly started reading the spell, and accordingly, golden letters began to be written on that blank space.

Death magic is quite long, so I maintained maximum concentration while reading the magic.

“Whether the birth of life is coincidence or inevitability, no one can be certain. But death is inevitable. It’s a shame. Why did this reversal of disorder, which broke through all those possibilities, end at just living not even 100 years? If it’s a miracle, it should be a bit more generous…”

The spell of death magic was like a story, yet like a philosophy book, or poetic yet like a code. It’s a mishmash of genres.

Master corrected my words here and there, and I immediately made corrections while completing the storage of the magic.

“Phew.”

As I took a deep breath and looked at Master, she looked at me with eyes that seemed to say I did well.

Did it go well?

I asked Master.

“Is this all? I feel a slight sense of wrongness, like something’s a bit off.”

Master’s expression stiffened slightly, but then she spoke in a gentle voice.

“Don’t worry, it went well. You really are amazing. Even though I helped you, to succeed in storing on the first try. And not just any magic, but this incomprehensibly difficult death magic.”

I’ve heard such words quite often, but I don’t really feel it since there’s no point of comparison.

“How many times did you try, Master?”

Master Avana gave a bitter smile.

“Hmm. I couldn’t count the number of times. It took me 2 years in terms of duration.”

My goodness.

2 years?

“Don’t be so surprised. It’s embarrassing. By the way, since you learn magic so quickly, there might be no need for me to intervene.”

Come to think of it, why was Master meditating? It seems like it’s been at least five days.

I asked Master.

“What do you mean? To intervene in what?”

Master answered while shaking off her wet body.

“Because your magic book was taking too long to make. I was planning to go out myself.”

“Ah, for Count Furst’s matter? We still have a month left, don’t we?”

“I hear that the Franche soldiers will arrive earlier. They say they’ll be here in ten days. I’m not sure why it’s 20 days earlier than expected.”

“…”

Did they find a way to cross the sea faster?

No, more than that.

Master is going out herself?

Then Master looked at me intently.

“Why?”

I carefully spoke up.

“The reason you’re entrusting this task to me is to give me experience, right?”

“That’s right.”

“But isn’t there another reason besides that?”

Master nodded lightly.

“There is.”

Speria.

Even though she doesn’t have a staff, it’s too dangerous for Master Avana to leave her seat.

That’s why Master hasn’t stepped a foot outside the castle until now.

I carefully asked.

“If you step out, what about Speria? Are you going to confine her somewhere? Or maybe knock her out for the duration of the task.”

The corners of Master’s mouth lifted slightly.

“The world is wide and treasures are many, Ran.”

“…”

“Such uncertain methods always lead to bad results.”

“Th-then Master…”

Master Avana cut off my words and put her hand on my shoulder.

“If you can master water magic sufficiently enough to go out within ten days… then nothing will happen, Ran.”

Master Avana’s mouth was smiling, but her eyes were not.