Chapter 19: The Wizard Came (4)
“Cough, cough.”
Ruel coughed furiously when the carriage was just around the corner.
My back bent down due to the pain, the cane was the only thing holding me up.
‘…Damn it.’
I can’t believe I’m like this when I have to show off my confidence.
Ruel coughed and stopped as Cassion prepared to receive vomit at any time.
“I’m not throwing up.”
“Is that so? Are you alright?”
“Yes.”
As I straightened my bowed waist, I could see everyone’s worried gaze on me.“The carriage is here.”
Feeling burdened by the gaze, Ruel decided to board the wagon quickly.
The new foothold was firm enough for me to climb on my own.
Cassion, Ganien, and Ruel were seated in Setiria’s undecorated, small carriage. Their carriage followed Drianna’s wagon.
“Aren’t you going to overdo it?”
Ganien asked bluntly. Ruel asked on the contrary.
“Why?”
There are a lot of people who can do it.
Ganien loosened his stiff face at the words.
Ruel reached out to Cassion. The amount of snacks Astell made was so large that I left it to him.
Cassion said, taking out a basket.
“They also put in the akals they got from the kids.”
‘Allergies and other things are said and it seems to work.’
Crunch.
The sound of cookies breaking filled the carriage.
‘It’s delicious.’
***
Drianna’s carriage stopped at the village on the border between Setiria and Lumina.
Cassion woke up Ruel.
“Ruel, you need to get up.”
It had been a long time since Ruel was physically exhausted and fainted.
As I struggled to open my eyes, the sky outside the window became dark.
“Have we arrived?”
Ruel’s voice was locked.
“I think you have a fever.”
Ganien sensed the heat from Ruel’s body.
“I have a fever if I overdo it, but it’s still okay. If I get some rest, I’ll fall off.”
Knock. Knock.
Ganien opened the carriage door.
Right in front of the carriage door opened, Drianna smiled broadly and said, “We’ve arrived.”
“Wait a minute, please. Ruel hasn’t come to his senses yet.”
At Ganien’s words, Drianna clasped her hands tightly with a worried expression.
“I, I’ll carry you.”
“You don’t have to.”
Ruel breathed heavily when he saw the turn.
It’s just that there was always a slight fever. But he was also busy.
I got a little dizzy, so I got off the wagon with Cassion’s support.
“Then I’ll bring you there by magic.” Drianna said in a fidgety way.
Normally, it would be ignored by Ruel, but this time, there was a special word in there.
“Magic?”
His interest was piqued. He had never seen magic.
Ruel said, “Try it.”
“Leave it to me!”
“No, you can’t.”
“No, you can’t.”
Then, Ganien and Cassion changed at the same time.
Ruel’s face frowned.
“Why?”
“Didn’t you intend to use [Hold]?”
Ganien stared at Drianna. She was intimidated and cringed.
“That’s right. It is the most suitable magic for lifting objects or people.”
“Ruel’s body won’t be able to withstand the magic and will break.”
“It’s hold.”
It seemed that the word ‘only’ was omitted before Drianna’s words.
“He’s a sick Lord. Unlike [Hold] or anything, mana flows directly to Ruel, doesn’t it? He will not be able to stand it.”
Cassion explained politely.
Drianna’s eyes glistened.
“You mean he can’t even hold on?”
“That’s right.”
At those words, she looked at Ruel as if she had decided something.
“I’ll make a new one for him. Please look forward to it.”
‘…What?’
Ruel wondered what was left out sharply.
“This way, my Lord.”
When he saw the glaring eyes of Drianna, Ruel decided to relax and wait.
‘I’m giving you a present, so you have to wait.’
***
Drianna led us to an ordinary house in town.
As soon as he entered, Ruel was stunned.
Unlike the narrow buildings seen from the outside, the interior was spacious enough to be called a mansion.
“This is the magic my master has installed.”
Drianna spoke with pride.
‘It’s amazing.’
Ruel thought he wanted to install it in his mansion.
“This way.”
It was quiet enough to hear footsteps because it was only Ruel and his party walking around the building.
“Everyone is doing their own research. Time is precious.”
“Oh, Drianna.”
“Yes, My Lord?”
When called by name, Drianna replied with delight.
“Will you show me the magic of the hold?”
“No, you can’t.”
Cassion immediately stopped him. Ruel pointed to the pot.
“Not me. On that pot.”
“Anything is possible.”
Drianna stood in front of the flowerpot. At that moment, the wind rose around her.
A little twitch of light in her eyes rose, a small shimmer occured around her.
“Lend me your hand instead of mine.”
The flutter moved around the flowerpot and floated in the air.
“Wow…”
I couldn’t help but admire. It was like a superpower.
“Great.”
“Oh, no. It’s magic that everyone can do.”
“Is that swaying thing a mana?”
In response to Ruel’s question, Drianna looked at herself, as if she was embarassed.
Her eyes were shining brilliantly, as if she had found a gem.
“Can you see that?”
“The flutter from your body enveloped the pot.”
“So, is it true that you see it?”
“Yes. I see it.”
Drianna was mixed with joy and sorrow, and made a strange look.
“Do you really see it?” asked Ganien. The expression was very serious.
‘Can’t I see it?’
Ruel nodded reluctantly.
Ganien shook his head from side to side as he looked at Drianna.
“What is it? I think it’s mana.”
“Nothing.”
Ganien smiled mischievously.
I couldn’t see the slightest willingness to answer.
When I saw Cassion, he turned his head awkwardly.
“Drianna.”
“Oh, I’ll show you around.”
Seeing her running away, Ruel became irritated.
‘What is it?’
Tak.
The cane sounded unusually loud. It’s got to be loud because it’s filled with irritation.
Drianna stopped in front of a room.
She looked atr Ruel’s expression and carefully spoke her words out.
“Please, please meet my Master. He has locked himself in the room.”
“……?”
“The Master, from the day you were kicked out of the family, he was shocked and has locked himself up in the room.”
“Why don’t you take him out?”
“It’s impossible. Because there’s a magic barrier.”
“Then I’ll be worse off.”
“Only the Lord can do it. It’s a chain that only those who have Setiria’s bloodline can pass through.”
Ruel picked his ear for a moment, wondering if he heard something wrong.
“My master, that is, the former commander of the Magic Knights, is the Lord’s uncle.”
“……ha.”
Ruel automatically laughed with ridicule because he had no good memories with those named Setiria.
‘I’ll have to pray that this is a good person this time.’
I must have the Magic Knights of Setiria. There was no choice.
If it was the same character as Carbena, it might be a trap in itself.
Ruel put his hand on his chest and laughed.
‘It’s okay, I’m not dying.’
Then he took a step forward, talked to them in a bitter way, and went into the room.
“Let’s at least take a look.”
***
As soon as I stepped inside, I covered my mouth.
The smell of flowers was so strong that I felt like throwing up.
The room looked more like a forest than a room.
The whole room was full of flowers, including white flower trees, red flower trees, yellow flowers, and blue flowers.
‘Is it a fantasy or another space?’
Ruel couldn’t tell it apart.
I just wanted to meet my uncle and leave right away.
Tak.Tak
The sound of the cane echoed in the air.
It was a sound that should not be made when a cane struck the soil.
‘Is this a fantasy?’
Ruel took a step forward.
It was because he knew that he would reach the end of this room. This was fantasy magic and carelessly thinking about it wouldn’t let him find a way out of this room. It was better to move around.
Because he was sure he would get it.
About ten steps later, I heard a sound from the left.
‘A male voice?’
Ruel picked up the direction and went through the flowers.
No wonder I felt nauseous.
‘I don’t feel good.’
It was different from the throbbing that I felt because of the disease.
After walking for a while, I saw a man among the flowers.
With his neatly cut hair and beard than he had expected, he didn’t look like someone who had been stuck in a room for years.
There were two graves in front of him, and he was just about to offer flowers on them.
Ruel made a sound and proceeded, but the man did not even respond.
Looking at one of the tombs, Ruel flinched.
His own name was written on it.
‘I feel bad.’
Ruel clicked his tongue.
“I’m not dead.”
The man reacted to the voice.
He turned his head away from placing the flower. Ruel said, looking at the blue flowers that were trodden under his feet.
“…that’s my brother’s favorite flower.”
The man soon laughed, as if he didn’t see Ruel.
“I was in phantasmagoria, and it looks like I had hallucinations.”
“Ruel Setiria is not dead.”
“……!”
“Come out, Uncle.”
The man got up from his seat with his mouth open and approached Ruel with difficulty as if he had just started walking.
He reached out and put his hand on Ruel’s shoulder. I felt a tremor.
The man’s eyes quickly turned red.
“Is it Rue-… l? It’s not a hallucination, is it?”
“It’s not a hallucination. It’s not an illusion.”
“Hah, can you confirm one thing for me?”
A throbbing appeared within his body.
As soon as it spread to himself, something poured down.
It was blood, too red.
Ruel collapsed helplessly, feeling the pain of his whole body.
“…Ah.”
The man did not receive the falling Ruel. The blood splattered on his hand was hot.
The illusion disappeared at that moment.
The only thing left in the room was himself and the fallen Ruel.
Only then did Ruel’s condition become visible.
The man was screaming and hugged Ruel.
“Ahhhh!”
He stormed out of the room that had been stuck for years.
***
Whizz.
A loud noise echoed in my ears as if someone was running a vacuum cleaner.
Ruel couldn’t resist the sound and opened his eyes.
‘I’ve never seen this ceiling before’
I blinked and my whole body throbbed and frowned.
Doesn’t it seem like I’ve got a flu?
When I opened my mouth to find Cassion, it was not the sound but the black blood.
“Whew.”
It was not until it poured out twice as much as usual that the buzzing sound stopped.
Ruel was exhausted and fell back on the pillow.
“…are you all right?”
Only then did I hear it clearly.
Cassion’s voice was full of worries as usual.
Ruel turned his eyes and looked at Cassion.
Behind him, even Ganien spoke with an anxious look on his face.
“How are you feeling?”
“Why…”
I couldn’t speak well because my voice was hoarse.
I wanted to ask you why you’re here.
“That idiot blew a lot of mana into you.”
Ganien looked at someone.
When Ruel turned his head around, there was a man with swollen eyes.
‘Is that Ruel’s uncle?’
“I’m glad Cassion was holding the finest potion just in time. Otherwise…”
While talking, Ganien looked at the man furiously.
How angry he must have forgotten to be polite.
‘A potion?’
Potion was the only wound recovery medicine in the ‘SSS-class Knight.’
It works well depending on the grade, but it was ineffective on diseases and only worked on external wounds.
When Ruel saw Cassion, he lifted his index finger and put it around his mouth.
I realized that he said so because he did not want to say anything about the power of recovery.
Instead of words, Ruel blinked his eyes and replied that he knew.
“It’s been about two days.”
‘The power of recovery, of course.’
“Maybe it’s better to say that your whole body, uh, collapsed because of Mana, or split up.
I don’t know. Anyway, it was the worst because you had blood all over your body.”
‘… Also the power of recovery.’
Gulp.
Ruel swallowed his saliva for no reason.
‘Wait a minute…’
Isn’t this what happened because of the swaying thing that the man sent to him?
In other words, the swaying thing was Mana and he could see Mana himself.
Ruel couldn’t stop his frown.
“Are you sick?”
“…uh.”
I closed my eyes answering Cassion’s question.
It hurts.
I was heartbroken because my chance to become an archmage just flew away.