The Book Eating Magician - Chapter 53

The Voices Calling Him #2

The power structure of the Meltor Kingdom differed from other kingdoms in many ways. The Meltor Kingdom had been founded by a great magician and prospered due to magic. In modern times, the magic towers occupied the center of its national power.

Thus, the nobles were just custodians of wealth and status. The ones who wielded power in the kingdom were the senior magicians. It went without saying that the royal family had risen to the throne due to the support by the magic towers.

In particular, the Red Tower Master and Blue Tower Master were treated as being of a higher rank than the other tower masters. Nobody could beat them in rank except for the king. In other words, Theo was called by the three people at the peak of the Meltor Kingdom.

After finishing his conversation with Elder Shugel, Theodore immediately informed his family. Thanks to his inventory, he didn’t need to bother about packing, but he needed to say goodbye to his family.

“…Something like this happened, so I have to return to the capital immediately.”

His family had blank expressions after he told them the news. His Majesty and two tower masters…? That was a far cry for a family that was just the head of a village. His father, Dennis, came back to his senses first, while his mother was busy taking care of his little brother.

“Huh… His Majesty has called you, so you can’t go slowly.” Dennis sighed deeply.

He had thought Theo would stay for a few more days, but there was a sudden decree. This was the reason for the heavy atmosphere around his family. For a rural nobleman, Dennis had done nothing except inherit his title.

Dennis approached his son, who had become much greater than him, and spoke while grabbing Theo’s hand, “Theo, live for yourself in the future.”

“…Yes?”

“I’ve felt it in the past. We were blind. I, as well as the villagers, had too many expectations of you… the expectations for you to become an important person and increase the fortune of this village.”

Theodore tried to speak, but he couldn’t.

He had never hated their expectations. Theo had believed that he could be a special and great person, just as they had said. It was because of them that he had decided to enter the Bergen Academy which was far away.

However, it had sometimes been a burden. There had been days when he didn’t want to go home looking pitiful, so he’d struck his back to move.

Now, he felt like a knot tightening his throat had been released.

“If it wasn’t for you, this village wouldn’t be around right now. No, with the money you added, the sick and poor will be able to have a warm winter. At the very least, you are a much bigger man than this small Miller Barony.”

“…Father.”

“So, I’m looking forward to it. Walk to the point that you want and then come back when you want to rest. That is enough for us.”

The body temperature transmitted through his father’s palm was hot. Instead of answering, Theo nodded with a tight neck. In his heart, he’d always thought he was alone, but his father had touched on that pain.

It was the same for his mother, who spoke belatedly, “Your father has said everything I wanted to say. And when did you start understanding this? You talk like that even though you don’t know anything about it.”

“C-Cough!” Dennis coughed at her words.

His mother looked askance at Dennis before smiling and hugging Theodore. “There is no need for you to be a big man or to go far away. Don’t get hurt and be healthy. Please remember that we’ve wished for nothing else since you were born.”

“…Yes, I’ll keep that in mind.”

“And that Sylvia, I like her.”

Finally, she kissed Theo’s cheek and hugged his little brother again. The child called Leo waved his fingers toward his much bigger brother. As Theo grabbed those small hands, he wondered what his brother wanted to be when he was older. Magician or knight… Maybe he would be a farmer.

Theo stepped out his house, filled with expectations for that day. It was time for him to go back into the world.

“What, are you going, Young Master?”

At that moment, a man leaning near the entrance spoke to him.

“…Randolph.”

“We will also be leaving this territory. I wanted to say goodbye before you left.” Randolph fidgeted with the two swords at his waist and said in a laughing voice, “It is a shame about the 200 gold, but the time I spent with Young Master was a lot of fun. If you want to hire me for something next time, I’ll do it for half price.”

“Maybe it won’t end up as just half price?”

“Ha, you are a rotten employer. But will I be tricked twice?” With those words, he walked away with his usual light footsteps.

Randolph placed his life on the edge of his swords and tried to tempt fate in unknown locations. Maybe he was more suited to life as a mercenary than the descendant of a warrior.

‘I hope I meet him again.’ Theo also turned in the opposite direction.

The two men went on their own way as they hoped for a day of reunion. So, the magician and mercenary went different ways at the intersection.

***

“Okay, are you ready?” Elder Shugel looked at both of them in turn as he finished painting a magic circle on the outskirts.

“Yes, everything has finished.”

“I’m ready.”

The two robed people nodded without hesitation. Theo had said farewell to his family, and Sylvia had quickly finished her preparations.

After confirming their answers, Shugel nodded slowly and talked to the investigator who came with him. “We will return to the capital first. Examine the residual black magic remaining here and report it to the Magic Society when you return.”

“Yes, I understand!”

“I’m sorry, but… then I’ll be going.” As he finished speaking, there was a sudden wave of magic power.

Huuuuong! Shugel’s white hair and beard were pushed up from the stirring magic power. It was different from Theodore’s heavy magic power and Sylvia’s cold power. The magic power of a Prime magician who trained in the wind attribute filled the surroundings like real wind, and the magic circle painted on the ground began to shine with a silver colour.

A haze emerged as the space around them seemed to distort.

[Hold your breath…] Shugel’s voice echoed.

Even though he was speaking clearly, the sound wave wasn’t transmitted properly. This was the aftermath of the space starting to bend inside the magic circle.

Theo and Sylvia held their breaths simultaneously. As well as its high difficulty, space magic was famous for being dangerous. They didn’t want to see the devastation which would occur if they didn’t follow the advice.

Shugel quickly finished his magic spell and slammed his staff in the center of the circle. [Mass Teleport!]

The appearance of the three people distorted and then disappeared.

‘Ugh…!’ Theo almost exhaled due to his fear. There was an instinctive rejection as the magic circle was activated.

First, colour disappeared and then shapes collapsed. As his five senses shook, he felt dizzy and nauseous. They were travelling through a gap in time and space which wasn’t allowed for living things, so it was inevitable that the magicians would suffer.

Was it for one minute or just 10 seconds?

“Huuuu!”

“Hah…!”

Theodore and Sylvia let out their breaths with surprise when they felt like their original senses returned. Theo took a moment to restore his balance before looking around.

‘This place…?’

It was a wide, clean room without any furniture. On the floor was a magic circle similar to the one Theo had just travelled through.

Shugel noticed his curiosity, and after recovering his breathing from the aftermath of the space magic, he explained, “Space movement requires an empty space like this one. If there are any objects or people on the other side, then I can’t guarantee the party’s safety.”

Theo was convinced of this as Shugel moved to the door. There weren’t many space magicians, but it was wise not to stay in the transfer room for too long. The probability of Theo and Sylvia overlapping with each other was like being hit by lightning.

“I will guide you to the reception room. First, I need to go to His Majesty and tell him about your work.”

They exited the transfer room, and Shugel led the two people down the corridor. Theo had not spent a lot of time at the Magic Society, but the structure around him seemed like the inner areas. This was because space magicians were normally dispatched for important missions.

Yet Shugel’s footsteps soon came to a stop as he encountered someone. “You…?”

The person had dark brown hair and had on a red robe symbolizing the Red Tower. Theodore looked over from behind Shugel and discovered the person’s appearance. Surprise, curiosity, and welcome entered his eyes.

Theo cried out without even knowing it, “Master!”

The person who Theo’s group were encountering was Vince Haidel.

Shugel’s eyes wrinkled as he realized who it was. “Vince… Yes, there was that name. Did they contact you as Theodore’s teacher? Otherwise, you wouldn’t have known that we would be back at this time.”

The dispatch of a space magician was always kept secret. They were valuable workers for the Meltor Kingdom, but there was also a need to conceal them. Apart from the three people who could send them places and the White Tower Master, no one else had the authority to find out the missions of a space magician.

However, Vince dismissed him without replying. He was looking at Theo with a pleasant gaze, but it was uncomfortable for him to be in this spot.

He confessed like it was embarrassing, “Huu. Elder Shugel, I would’ve stopped you properly, but I hope you consider that I didn’t have time to communicate it properly.”

“Huh? What does that mean?”

The three people were confused for a moment because of Vince’s words.

‘H-Heok!’ A violent presence appeared behind Theo and made his spine freeze forcibly.

This presence was different from that of the elder lich, and the quality of it was different from that of the Blue Tower Master. It was a pressure which pushed at him. Perhaps the other person didn’t even intend to do it. Even though the person was just standing there, the pressure coming from them crushed the surroundings.

This was the presence of an absolutely strong person which couldn’t be hidden!

“What, this little guy is our newbie?” A sweet and deep voice, similar to a well-aged wine, rang out. The voice emerged casually as the speaker appeared before Theodore and Sylvia.

They had really bright crimson hair and golden eyes which were bright like the sun. The robe which wrapped around their body was deep red. The robe covered a feminine and curvaceous body which was truly amazing, but nobody would dare stare at this woman.

‘The air… It’s hot?’ It wasn’t a hallucination.

This was a terrible magic power which caused the mana in their air to respond and raise the temperature. Despite the cool weather, the heat tickled his skin. There was only one person who was so transcendent she could change the environment and who looked so beautiful in red.

“Looking at his face for the first time, he is quite a handsome kid,” the Red Tower Master said as she held Theo’s chin. “From here onward, this Veronica will guide him.”