15 – Episode 15
# 15
Meeting Drake again, Ian felt a sudden wave of fatigue.
He’d been running around all evening, constantly tense, and had consumed a few drinks as well. The fatigue he’d forgotten in the brief moment of parting from Drake had come rushing back.
“[Seems like you’re tired.]”
Drake quickly noticed Ian’s condition.
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“[Ah. A little…]”
Ian was unaware, but the act of using Maronian language was a mentally exhausting one. It was only natural to feel more tired than normal when a mystery beyond human comprehension flowed between the cortex and the neurons hidden behind the skull.
If one becomes tired after speaking a foreign language for a few hours, one could only imagine the exhaustion from the language of mystery.
This was a fact Ian would realize within a few days. Speaking in Maronian was an incredibly fatiguing act.
“[Mount on my back.]”
“[Is that okay?]”
Ian hesitated for a moment, but then nodded, understanding Drake’s intention.
When Drake let Ian ride at his back, it felt similar to a person lifting a dog or a cat with their hands.
From a dog’s perspective, the question might be ‘Can I carry this comfortably? Would it bother the humans?’ But from a human’s perspective, there was no problem with carrying a cute creature like this.
“Then,” Ian sat behind Drake’s neck. As Drake lifted his head and took a step forward, it felt like riding a moving building. “Hmm. Next time, I’ll have to get a saddle.” It was amazing that Drake was considering finding a saddle for Ian, and even more amazing that Drake knew what a saddle was. It seemed Drake lucidly learned this concept from watching humans ride horses.
As Ian nodded off on his back, Drake quickly arrived at the nest. “Is this it?” “Can you fix it?” Drake waited nervously for Ian’s response. Upon inspecting the nest, Ian quickly estimated what he would need.
‘There are no bugs or moisture, so it’s warm.’
Bugs and moisture were pesky threats to a reptile’s nest, potentially spoiling the eggs, so reptiles had to be careful in selecting their nesting spot. ‘But as the female Drake mentioned, it’s a bit small for two.’
The problem was the protruding rock inside the cave. Without the rock, the nest would be much bigger. ‘If we remove that… and smooth the walls, it should be fine.’
Ian didn’t know much about Drake’s aesthetics, but from what he had sensed thus far, Drake seemed to prefer something smooth. Drake had complained about the bumpy walls of the nest, so he was probably right.
“Drake, I need to concentrate. Can you step back a bit?” “Ah, sure!”
As Drake stepped back, Ian was able to fully focus on the mystery of the earth. Closing his eyes, he concentrated as hard as he could. “Earth…”
Because it was inside a cave, the Earth responded easily to Ian’s call.
[What is it? Young human.]
‘…’
Ian’s eyebrows slightly narrowed.
The voice of the earth was not quite right. It answers when talked to in Moronius’ language, but seemingly reluctantly.
‘This is not good.’
One can tell a person’s mood just by their voice.
Depending on whether the voice is bright or dark, you can roughly guess whether today’s mood is good or bad.
According to the accumulated big data so far, the mood of the earth is seemingly going underground today.
“[I, request, favor.]”
[Don’t feel like it. Is that all you have to say?]
‘As expected.’
Ian opened his eyes at the sharp rejection.
If Ian were a capable geomancer, he would have had a deep conversation with the earth to solve the problem, but the level of Ian’s earth magic is only 1.
If there were any points left, he would have leveled up. Unfortunately, all the skill points he had were invested in boosting his summoning level.
His master, Eredis said.
If the mystery refuses even after hearing the will of the human, never force it.
If you annoy the mystery wrongly, you not only become unable to use magic for life, but you might even lose your life due to a rampaging mystery.
“[I apologize.]”
Ignoring Ian’s apology, the earth disappeared quickly.
“Sigh.”
Ian’s shoulders felt heavy as he was to deliver the unfortunate news.
“[Oh! Wizard! What happened?]”
In front of Drake, who had rushed over, Ian could not help but bow his head.
“[The earth refuses to converse. When the earth’s mood improves, I’ll try to ask for its help again.]”
Drake was silent for a moment.
Then, with a somewhat discouraged voice, he said,
“[There’s no choice if the earth refuses. I guess I must accept that she is not my destiny.]”
“[Drake sir…]”
“[Thanks for worrying about a guy like me. Wizard. You’re a good guy.]”
Drake grinned and made a playful gesture with his tongue.
“[I’ve never had conversations as comfortable as ours with any other Drake. Who would’ve thought that a creature whose heart aligns with mine would be a human. Truly fascinating.]”
Ian felt genuinely sorry that he couldn’t assist Drake.
He felt a genuine connection with this mysterious life form that exceeded human understanding.
The status window flashed before his eyes.
“[New skill acquired!]”
“[Summoning – Drake Summon]”
“[Request help from your friend, Drake. If it’s a friend’s request, he will gladly respond.]”
Ian acquired his first summoning skill.
‘Drake Summon.’ A skill fitting for a wizard. By nature, a wizard should be able to summon at least one formidable monster.
Even though he had obtained a new skill, Ian didn’t feel particularly happy.
He felt regretful that he couldn’t offer any gift to his new friend, Drake.
“[Wizard. What’s your name?]”
“[Ian. Ian Eredis Raven.]”
“[Ian Eredis Raven. I am Drake Longtail. I look forward to sharing a friendship with you.]”
“Longtail.”
Ian pronounced Drake’s name not in Maronius language, but in Empire tongue.
Astoundingly, Drake growled back lowly as if he understood the Empire language.
Quietly, Ian smirked.
“Let me give you a gift as a token of our new friendship.”
“But I… have nothing to give in return.”
At Ian’s mumble, Drake Longtail broke into a hearty laugh.
“If you expect something in return for a gift, then what kind of friendship is that!”
He was right, after all.
Ian decided he’d quietly accept Drake’s gift. It was not polite to refuse when they intended to give.
“Go on! Choose as much as you want!”
Drake took Ian to a corner of the nest, where a heap of treasures lay.
Drake had many similarities with dragons, enough to be called their cousins. Both had a hobby of collecting gems.
The difference was that dragons flew directly to human villages and took their gems by force, whereas Drake might just steal what he could see.
The gems piled up in Drake’s nest were quite plentiful.
Among the countless jewels, there was one gem that particularly caught Ian’s eye.
It was a huge opal.
The opal, shaped like a snow-white egg, rolling on the ground while beautifully carved.
‘Hmm… wait a moment.’
Ian recalled the contents of Eredis’s magic lecture.
Mystics were capricious beings, their moods continuously shifted. When they were in a bad mood, like Ian’s mood now, they usually couldn’t even hold a proper conversation without getting dismissed.
An excellent magician would be able to appease a grumpy mystic and achieve the desired results. But not all magicians were on good terms with the mystic, were they?
Novice magicians who’d yet to explore the mystics efficiently would rely on the power of a magical circle in such situations.
A magical circle!
Drawing a magical circle was simple.
Draw a circle and then write Maronius language around it. Then a Mystic would discover the magical circle and grant what you desired.
The difference between magic circles and incantations is similar to the difference between letters and conversations. A magic circle is a form of written communication with the mystical, expressing one’s will. It is more unilateral, with restrictions on non-verbal message delivery. Above all, it has the advantage of being able to express one’s intentions in a blatant, one-sided manner when offering a gift. If someone asks you, ‘I’ll buy you a meal. What would you like?’ it might be awkward to express your real desires for various reasons (e.g., fear of appearing gluttonous, not wanting to confess a love for unhealthy food…)
But what if the other party shoots you a gift certificate for your favorite food? How grateful you would be for their thoughtfulness!
If this example doesn’t clarify the difference, and you’re thinking, ‘What’s the significant difference? Aren’t both the equivalent of buying a meal?’ sadly, you don’t possess a wizard’s disposition.
Anyway.
The mystical would much prefer a gift offered by a magic circle than one handed over directly.
If you place a gift that the mystical likes on a formal magic circle?
Kyah. Bring me some rice. This is a food thief.
When given an onslaught of gifts, even a slightly upset mystical soothed in no time.
‘The gift that Mother Earth likes… is gemstones.’
Gemstones are items close to the earth, they can be called the bones of the earth.
Particularly, gemstones well crafted by human hands are gifts that the earth truly appreciates.
Ian thought while looking at a large opal.
If I offer this to the earth… and incite magic?
With such an offering, surely the desired result can be achieved.
“[Longtail. Can you give me this opal?]”
As Ian pointed to the white opal, Longtail snorted.
“Of course. Now it’s yours.”
“Thank you, Longtail.”
As he watched Longtail hand over the gemstone without a single word of complaint, Ian felt a quiet sense of gratitude. He had received a great gift from a friend. Now it was his turn to reciprocate.
Searching for a pebble, Ian began to draw a magic circle on the ground.
He drew a circle, then wrote down various words that the mystical being liked.
“To the beloved Earth, it’s the heated month of May. The blue sky and cool breeze make the flow of time quite perceptible…”
This and that.
As he wrote, it became a bit similar to the header of a family newsletter, but they say that honoring such ‘courtesy’ is much appreciated by the mystical being.
‘Done.’
Ian proudly looked at his creation.
He had completed a magic circle, just like the ones he had seen in comic books, with magical words penned around the circle.
To the untrained eye, it would certainly resemble the mythical magic circle they’ve heard of.
However, should a fellow wizard see it, they would likely laugh at this crude and amateurish circle, and comment,’This guy’s writing skills are definitely not up to par.’
But Ian couldn’t be bothered. He was a scientist in his previous life. There was no way he could have known about the despised writing skills of the Humanities majors.
Such trivial matters were not important to Ian.
What are writing skills for anyway?
After all, he had a skill tree that was off the charts.
“Friend, what are you doing?”
Longtail showed curiosity at Ian’s magic circle. As a drake, he just saw the circle as nothing more than scribbles by an excited teenager.
“Magic.”
“Huh? What kind of magic…”
Ian refocused his concentration.
“O Earth!”
With that, the unexpected happened. The opal at the center of the magic circle sparkled for a moment and then shattered to pieces seemingly absorbed into the earth.
The earth had accepted Ian’s gift.
“What’s happening, young human?”
The voice of the now softer Earth greeted Ian. Ian smiled with satisfaction and shouted, “[Let the rocks move! Let the walls be smooth!]”
“Ho Ho. If you wish that much…”
Krrr…
When the ground vibrated, Drake lifted his startled head. But it wasn’t enough to surprise him too much.
“No…!”
Drake stared at his nest with widened eyes. The grotesque rock in the middle of his nest… transformed like a liquid, then disappeared into the ground!
And that wasn’t all. The wall too, transformed beautifully, as if in a trance!
“My God! How is this possible!”
This place is now wide and beautiful. His home has been transformed as if he’d splurged on an interior decorator. Astonished, Longtail didn’t know how to close his mouth at the sight of his transformed nest.
Ian, having finished his magic, laughed and said, “[That’s the value of the gemstone. How’s my gift? Friend?]”