Events progressed quickly after the meeting. The Blue Tower Master bulldozed his way through the Magic Society’s red tape, and Theo was speedily granted the status of a Magic Society investigator and paid a hundred gold.
Although he was distracted, Vince still arranged transportation to the Miller Barony through the merchant company he had become acquainted with.
Vince inclined his head. “Thank you for your help in acquiring it so quickly.”
Gordon hastily bowed. “Ah, I should be thanking you. If it wasn’t for Professor and your disciple, my company may never have reached the capital. I can certainly fulfill a simple request like this!”
Vince smiled slightly. “You are truly worthy of becoming the boss of the company.”
The carriage Gordon had prepared for Theo wasn’t something that could have been arranged in a day. The body of the carriage had been expanded to seat six people and magically lightened. A temporary rental of this quality would run a few gold, yet Gordon was using it to repay a favor.
However, Gordon was smiling widely.
The professor’s robe has the symbol of a 6th?Circle magician! This is my chance to form a relationship with a senior member of the Magic Society!
Gordon was a seasoned merchant and had been informed of Vince’s advancement well before Vince had asked him for a favor. However, he pretended not to know. Oftentimes, one needed to maintain a certain familiarity in order to form a relationship with a magician who was gradually disconnecting from the world.
Gordon had taken a chance and obtained a luxurious carriage just in case.
A thorough merchant. Well, it isn’t bad.
Vince saw through Gordon’s ulterior motives easily, but accepted the small favor anyway. It would help his disciple, and there was no need to push away something that was already given to him. When Vince finished his conversation with Gordon, he made his way over to Theo, who was waiting beside the carriage.
He wanted to say goodbye to his disciple.
Vince smiled. “Rest well. When the contest ends, most of the annoying people will leave to concentrate on their magic again.”
Theo nodded. “Yes, Master.”
Vince’s smile grew wider. “Also, keep that dimension pocket safe. Investigators can track it, so any damage to it will be charged to your name.”
Theo gulped. “… I will take care of it.”
He felt nervous as he glanced down at the dimension pocket at his waist. Gluttony needed to consume two or three books a day, so he had needed a means of carrying all of them. Vince had rented a dimension pocket and given it to Theo. Theo had heard many bloody stories about the Magic Society’s investigators and how strict they were. Understandably, he was a little nervous about Gluttony swallowing the dimension pocket by accident.
I might be dragged to a hearing and…?
He could feel the blood draining from his face at the thought. He even considered never handling the dimension pocket with his left hand. Gluttony had never popped out without being called or being hungry, but Theo wasn’t about to risk it. There was nothing wrong with extra precautions.
As Theo and his master talked casually, the coachman climbed onto his seat on top of the carriage.
Theo bowed. “Then, I’ll be going now, Master.”
Vince patted his shoulder. “Yes, please take care of yourself.”
Theo climbed into the colorful carriage, and it slowly started moving. It made relatively little sound thanks to the lightening spell cast on it. When it faded from view, Vince turned around to walk back into Manavil with a simple wish in his heart. He hoped that his disciple would stay safe on his journey.
***
Dakadak!Dakadak!
The limited express carriage provided by the Pullonet Company shifted to a higher gear as soon as they were clear of Manavil’s gates. The horses ran easily with their magically lightened burden. Theo watched the scenery speed past them at a dizzying pace.
Yes… If we continue traveling at this pace, we will arrive at the Miller Barony in five days.
A normal carriage would have taken a fortnight. However, Gordon had been confident when he said that the trip would take a week, and Theo could see where his certainty had come from. In any case, Theo appreciated it, since there was no need to waste time traveling between the capital and his home.
The biggest problem Theo faced now was inside the carriage.
Why is it SO awkward?!
Theo glanced at Sylvia, meeting her dazzling eyes for a moment. The natural light passing through the windows only accentuated her silver hair. He had no idea what she was thinking. Suddenly, she looked away from his eyes and pulled something out of her pocket.
“Theo, let’s play cards.”
Theo blinked. “Huh? Cards?”
She pulled out a pack of cards.
The cards didn’t have anything on their backs, so he couldn’t guess what was on the front. Common sense told him that they were regular playing cards, but he couldn’t imagine Sylvia playing poker. He took the pack of cards she was holding and turned them around.
Theo’s eyes widened as he saw what was written on the cards. “Uh, these characters are…?”
Are these runes?
Runes were an essential element to configuring magic formulas. Every magician was intimately familiar with them. As Theo flicked through the deck, he saw that the cards were inscribed with sentences made of runes.
As he deconstructed the runes on a card, he recognized the configuration. As he examined another card, it was the same. These cards contained parts of a magic formula. Obviously, the goal was to complete the formula.
Theo’s eyebrow twitched as he understood what she meant by ‘play cards.’
He asked, “You want to play with these cards?”
.
Sylvia nodded brightly. “Yes. I always played cards with my grandfather when I was a child. Theo will have a lot of fun.”
Theo nodded. “Ah.” 𝒃𝒆𝒐𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝙘𝙤𝒎
Theo turned the cards over a few times and understood how difficult this game was. This little game was difficult enough to stump several of his academy professors. It seemed Blundell had taught her magic like this. No wonder she had such a polished grasp of it.
Sylvia looked hopeful, but Theo wasn’t so sure.
She had probably never had someone play cards with her. In fact, Theo doubted anyone other than him could even begin to play this game at all. So even if other children wanted to play with her, they couldn’t, so she had unknowingly distanced herself from them. Becoming someone’s friend was far more difficult than most people thought, and it was even harder when they were so overwhelmingly superior. Sylvia’s beauty, genius, and nature had pushed her away from people.
Maybe she can play with me… No, I can’t change Sylvia this way.
Blundell had wanted her to learn to be social. If Theo played cards with her, he would always be an exception in her eyes. Other people would remain far away, and she would end up relying on the entity known as Theodore Miller. Her nature wouldn’t change, and her magic would grow stagnant once again. Therefore, she needed a non-magical stimulus.
Theo changed tacks. “Instead of a game, tell me a story.”
Sylvia looked at him, puzzled. “Story?”
Theo nodded. “I don’t care if it’s something trivial. It can be about your favorite food or place. Or even something that was fun recently…”
Oh!
Theodore suddenly had a great idea. “Are you interested in elementals?”
“Elementals?” Sylvia’s eyes brightened at the sudden word.
Theo called out, “Mitra.”
[Huing?]
A lump of dirt flew in through the window and took the form of a little girl. Mitra had become slightly bigger since Theo reached the 4th Circle, but she was still just slightly bigger than his palm.
“… Cute.” Sylvia’s face brightened as she looked at the little elemental who jumped into the carriage.
[Hoing?!]
Mitra made a cute sound as Sylvia cupped her in her hands. Sylvia carefully stroked the head of the little elemental like she was scared Mitra would break down. Mitra was initially apprehensive, but soon she was cooing and leaning into Sylvia’s finger.
It was like a page from a children’s book. Theo felt more relieved now.
The trick still works. There’s no way a magician won’t be intrigued by Mitra.
As she continued to play with Mitra, Sylvia started to laugh and smile more like a girl her age. It was an expression Theo may not have been able to see if they had just played cards. The normally impassive girl was nowhere to be seen.
Their journey continued in a much gentler atmosphere than he had expected.
***
The luxury carriage traveled like the wind. The horses were from an excellent lineage, so they galloped through the hard mountain trail with impeccably sure feet. Once they left the mountain ranges, Theo didn’t expect any further delays.
On the fourth day, the carriage entered the territory of Viscount Teheran, whose territory neighbored the Miller Barony. Five years ago, Theo had taken a month to make his way to Bergen Academy. However, this time it only took four days.
“What is Theo’s hometown like?” Sylvia’s awkward phrasing had gotten a lot better over the last four days.
She had veered away from only talking about magic. She had spent time talking about the color of her favorite dresses or the interesting things she had seen from the carriage window. She was now growing more curious about Theo’s past.
He thought it was a good sign and replied, “Well, it’s just a countryside barony. We’re surrounded by mountains and lush forests, and people farm to eat and live. If a wild animal comes down from the mountain, we hunt it and hold a feast. Life isn’t always abundant, but our people don’t hesitate to give what they have to their neighbors. It’s truly a foolish place.”
Memories of his childhood rose to the fore as he talked. He remembered watching people sowing seeds busily in spring, playing in fields in the summer, harvesting crops in the autumn, and gathering around a warm fire with their neighbors in winter.
There had always been more years of poverty than abundance in his youth. His father had always opened the warehouses to feed his people. When there wasn’t enough food, he starved with his people, so Theo had often gone to bed hungry. But the taste of the rough bread kneaded by an old knuckled hand was far more memorable than the soft white bread he had eaten at Bergen. Theo’s voice unconsciously thrummed as he relived his memories.
Sylvia felt a flutter in her chest and muttered, “A good place.”
“… A good place,” Theo agreed.
As Sylvia said, Theo’s hometown was indeed a good place. They had never been rich, but they were happy. The fourteen years he’d lived there were more precious than the countless beautiful sights he’d seen in Bergen and Manavil.
Mother, Father…
Theo’s eyes grew red at the thought of greeting his parents and neighbors after so long. The atmosphere in the carriage grew wistful.
Suddenly, Sylvia’s head flicked to the side. “Eh?!”
At the same time, Theo felt a chill run down his neck. “Ah.”
Theo’s perception gave him a warning while Sylvia noticed the sudden depletion of mana around the carriage. They leaped to open a window on either side of the carriage to see what was outside. However, the setting sun was quickly reducing their visibility.
It’s too dark… The sun doesn’t set this early. That means…
Theodore’s eyes shone gold as he cast Hawkeye. If Theo concentrated, he could find a coin a few hundred meters through pitch darkness. So while the setting sun had cast long shadows through the forest, he had no problem piercing through the gloom. Theo stiffened as he recognized the outlines stumbling through the shadows.
He gasped involuntarily, “Undead?! Here?!”
As if they were responding to his words, the silhouettes of the undead shambled out of the shadows. Twisted, broken bodies slowly dragged themselves in front of the carriage. Theo could feel revulsion growing inside him at the sight of the undead procession.
Undead were moving natural disasters. They were byproducts of a warlock’s necromantic magic, but they could increase their number by eating living creatures. The two magicians watched the undead slowly emerge from the forest until they were surrounded.
Woong, woong, woong, woong…!
The owner of a grimoire and the Blue Tower’s top genius released their magic power, forcing the undead to stop in their tracks. But the mana storm’s momentum would only keep them away for a moment.
A hard and firm voice emerged from Theo’s mouth, “I’ll take the left, you take the right.”
“Yes,” Sylvia affirmed.
The two magicians sprang from the carriage to greet the crowd of corpses.