66 – Episode 66
# 66
At first, Viscount Damon felt a little bewildered when he heard Ian’s self-introduction.
It was also suspicious that a young friend in a bright blue outfit stood up as the representative of the group.
What kind of magician is he?
“A magician?”
If he had introduced himself as a noble son from some prestigious family, Viscount Damon thought he would calmly negotiate the price.
But a magician?
There are seven lies in the world, and there are lies that cannot be told.
The title of magician belonged to the latter.
Of course, it goes without saying that a magician must be able to use magic.
The wise and intelligent nobles of the ancient Golden Empire, astonishingly, created a nasty custom called “Calling the Magician,” which succeeded in inducing magicians to reveal their skills from the first encounter.
In other words, fake magicians have to show their magic to their opponents from the beginning…
From there, 99% of fake magicians get caught.
The remaining 1% of fake magicians were authors who had prepared a genuine scam in advance.
They would prepare an accomplice in advance and deceive with sleight of hand, or show off the tricks learned by the followers of the “Magician” of the heretics…
If they were prepared enough to create a scam close to magic, there was no way to expose their methods on the spot.
They could only be deceived.
When the situation arises where they have no choice but to show magic later, they will be caught then.
“…Is he fake or not?”
Damon, the Viscount, found Ian to be repulsive.
With his jet-black hair and a crow perched on his shoulder, there was an unusual aura about him…
But if you’re going to deceive as a magician, that kind of setup is essential, right?
It could be fake, or it could be real.
Honestly, Damon couldn’t tell them apart.
If this had been a few days ago, he would have been at a loss.
But fortunately, Damon had a magician underling.
None other than Kira Laventa!
In a way, this was an opportunity.
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An opportunity to witness the power of magic firsthand and evaluate the worth of Kira and Ian!
For Damon, a nobleman and a client, this was a very valuable opportunity.
Real nobles often had the chance to meet traveling magicians, but for a pseudo viscount like Damon, the chance to see a magician was rare.
Until now, Damon had tried to manipulate Kira into using magic, but the stubborn and foul-tempered Kira only displayed simple spells, annoying him every time.
At that time, he had no choice but to let it go.
But he wouldn’t back down even in this situation, Damon thought to himself.
“Now, magician Kira! What kind of amazing magic will you show us!”
“Kira! Kira! Kira!”
“Go on and show us what you’ve got!”
Cheers that shook the ground.
Magician Kira.
No…
Kira was going crazy with anger.
“Don’t get your hopes up! You guys have such high expectations, you bastards!”
At first, when Ian stepped forward, Kira felt a little relieved.
Because…
Ian was around the same age as Kira!
At best, Ian looked like he was twenty years old, clearly the same age as Kira.
Now, how smart could someone who had just turned twenty be, even if they were incredibly smart?
But then, Ian started speaking the language of magic.
Kira was dumbfounded.
“What, what is that?! Him!”
When Ian shouted incomprehensible words, a whirlwind swirled around Ian.
The thieves were surprised, and even the Duke Damon was surprised.
Kira was also taken aback.
“He’s, he’s a real magician!!!”
I’ve cosplayed as a magician for a long time, but this was the first time I saw a real magician up close.
The reason, of course, was because I was afraid my identity would be revealed.
But seeing real magic up close… it was enough to make my whole body tingle.
The power of human will moving nature itself was the mystery of magic in its true form.
If there were no eyes around, I would have rushed forward and shouted right away.
Sir! How did you do that? Did you use a bug?!
Despite the astonishment that made my bizarre delusion burst out on its own…
Kira maintained a perfect composure.
That’s right. She was a first-class [Jester].
Controlling her expression was nothing.
So even when an ignorant rogue shouted nearby, Kira still maintained her haughty expression.
“hahahaha, you’re joking! Are you calling that magic?!”
“What the hell! This is so surprising! These bastards!”
“Well, yeah! That’s not even magic!”
“What the hell could it be if it’s not magic?!”
“Look closely! Lady Kira will show you real magic!”
Seeing all the rogues making a fuss, Kira wanted to sew their mouths shut.
“I-I’m scared! It’s terrifying!”
Kira (mentally) trembled all over, but there was nowhere to retreat now.
If her true identity were to be exposed here…
The only thing left would be a terrible bad ending!
Kira closed her eyes and prayed to the great soul above.
“Oh, great soul in the heavens! Please protect me!”
She fluttered her cloak and waved her hands gracefully.
Swish~ Swish~
In her extraordinary performance, not only the thieves but also Ian and his companions held their breath and focused their attention.
“Something…”
“Something is happening!”
Kira’s movements were grand and splendid.
Even to someone who didn’t know her, her actions were instantly recognizable as “Ah! She’s doing something!”
Everyone felt a sense of awe at Kira’s peculiar movements.
Except for one person.
Ian Eredis Raven.
“… What is this?”
Ian didn’t feel awe in Kira’s movements, but rather a sense of strangeness…
There was no sense of mystery in Kira’s movements!
Even when he received all sorts of magical knowledge from Eredis, Ian had never heard of using magic with such acrobatic movements like those of Chinese gymnastics.
But Ian couldn’t shout, “What are you doing right now?”
Because he felt that he needed to watch until the end to see what Kira was doing.
After all, Ian was not a master of all magic in the world.
“Huaaah~”
That’s why, even when Kira emitted a strange aura.
“…”
Ian just stayed still, pretending to be asleep.
“Oh! Lady Kira is absorbing the energy of nature!”
“Absorb their strength!”
Ian was dumbfounded as he watched the thieves babbling strange sounds.
I can’t see anything, so why are you acting so high and mighty?
Then, Kira shouted with a thunderous voice.
“[Fire]!”
“…!”
Surprisingly, the words Kira spat out were indeed in true magical language.
Of course, Kira didn’t learn the entire Maronius language like Ian did…
She only knew that one word, [Fire].
But it was indeed Maronius.
As Kira recited the spell, she ignited all the hidden fire starters.
Boom!
Quickly, the exploding fire starters transformed into a grand fountain of flames.
Kira was engulfed in waves of fire.
“Wowww!”
The thieves cheered in unison.
Ian and his companions were so overwhelmed that they clenched their mouths shut.
“Oh ho.”
Ian was just as astonished by Kira’s performance.
“For a moment, it felt like I saw the mystery of fire…”
The moment Kira ignited the ignition tube, Ian saw the mysterious flames enveloping Kira, as if responding to her Maronius aura.
Perhaps it looked like a mystical presence that had come in response to Kira’s Maronius aura.
Ian sincerely admired the pyromancy that Kira displayed.
It is quite difficult to avoid burns within the flames.
If it weren’t for Eredis’ help, Ian would have been left with quite a scar, as pyromancy is a magic of high difficulty.
But…
To protect her body with the mystery of fire and perform an explosion of flames!
It’s incredibly delicate and daring!
“Wow.”
That sorceress Kira…
She’s really amazing!
Clap, clap.
Ian clapped as if possessed.
One by one, the thieves followed Ian and applauded.
“Woohoo!”
“Kira! The flame of Damon! Kira!”
“She’s a goddess!”
Kira! Kira! Kira!
Cheers calling out her name echoed loudly.
Kira Laventa smiled with a soulless grin.
“Please… tell me it’s all over…”
#
As exhausted Kira stood there, Viscount Damon approached.
“Our wizard friend. Is your body alright?”
“…I’m fine, no big deal.”
Although she said she was fine, Kira pretended to be tired.
Just in case he asked her to use magic again, which would really ruin everything.
But Viscount Damon had no intention of pushing Kira further.
“What do you think? This magician named Ian. Can we handle him?”
He approached seeking the wise advice of the magician.
But Kira, afraid that he might ask her to do something, answered in a panic.
“Wouldn’t it be disastrous if we got greedy? That magician. She hasn’t shown us all her power yet.”
“Hmm…”
Kira was just trying to prevent herself from taking action.
Her guess was close to the truth, and Viscount Damon respected the advice of the magician.
“Alright.”
He gave up on overpowering Ian and politely started negotiating.
Since the excellent magician (or not) Kira made a statement, he decided to abandon the risky gamble.
“Come on! Friends. If you just pay the toll, we will safely escort you until the end of the road.”
“Hmm.”
“Can they provide a soft bed and hot food in the village? This kind of opportunity doesn’t come often, right?”
To Ian and his companions, it was not a bad proposal.
No, it was close to an excellent proposal.
If thieves were to suddenly draw their swords and threaten, “Hand over everything you have!” there would be no way to defend themselves…
But to provide a bed and food with just the payment of a toll.
This was…like a medieval version of a highway!
“Like a toll road.”
Ian briefly discussed with his companions.
Everyone had a positive reaction.
“It’s appealing because it avoids homelessness.”
“The road seems well-maintained. I think I’ll be fine.”
They paid the appropriate toll and took a rest in the village.
It was a very good situation for travelers.
“We’ve made a decision.”
Ian informed Viscount Damon of the negotiation result.
“We will pay the toll.”
“Excellent decision!”
As soon as Ian and his companions paid the toll, Viscount Damon offered to escort them.
Seeing the person who had just threatened them with a bow walking side by side, Ian found it difficult to shake off the strange feeling.
The medieval-style where enemies and allies switched so quickly was still hard to adapt to.
“We made a good choice using this road, my friends. Wouldn’t we have regretted it if we had gone in a different direction?”
“I don’t really have any regrets even now…?”
Ian felt curious and asked.
“What are you talking about? That.”
Viscount Damon lowered his voice slightly.
“It’s something I say as a courtesy to our guests… Lately, a troublesome creature has been popping up in the forest.”
“A troublesome creature?”
What is this? An introduction?
Ian glanced at Viscount Damon discreetly, but he seemed to have no sense of guilt whatsoever.
Well, I guess you have to be that shameless to be a thief.
Viscount Damon spoke as if he were intoxicated by his own story.
“Have you ever heard of vampires?”
“…Vampires!”
The priest exclaimed urgently.
Although he had never seen them in person, Ian already knew about the existence of vampires.
Once from a modern creation and once again from Eredith’s mysterious class.
“A blood-sucking monster, right?”
“Indeed, a mage after all. Yes, a blood-sucking monster.”
Viscount Damon spoke in a gloomy voice.
“Vampires have been active recently. So, never wander alone after sunset.”
The vampire was a cursed and corrupt monster, twisted in its ways.
They were inherently evil, cunning, and malevolent.
With the intelligence of humans and the power of monsters, even one vampire could destroy an entire village.
It was like a curse of bad luck.
Paying the toll and joining Lord Damon turned out to be fortunate for Ian and his party.
If they had camped alone, they might have fallen victim to the vampire’s attack.
“Well, don’t worry too much.”
As the atmosphere grew gloomy, Lord Damon whistled playfully.
He pointed at someone jokingly.
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It was Kira, the mage who had been quietly walking behind them.
“From now on, it’s Kira and me! We’ll hunt down that monster!”
“…”
Kira only tilted her head slightly with an indifferent expression.
In the face of her arrogant and self-assured demeanor, Ian was amazed.
I know how tough it is to hunt monsters, it’s really tough!
To be so nonchalant about it!
She must be an exceptional mage!
However, Kira’s inner thoughts were completely different from Ian’s…
“What? Me? You want me to fight the vampire this time?”