NOVEL WEB Chapter 207
King Frost’s Ambush.
As the caravan assessed the situation and prepared for battle, they instinctively turned their heads at the overwhelming presence felt behind them.
And they froze on the spot.
The Grand Wizard.
He was even chanting a spell.
As a result, a blizzard so fierce it was hard to keep my eyes open swept through.
“Whoa, what’s with this sudden wind? Huh? What’s going on over there?”
“…Huh? Did you just freeze King Frost to death?”
“Eh? Isn’t that the Winter Fairy?”
As a result, King Frost met his icy demise. Not just any common death either; he completely froze solid and plummeted to the ground.
…Wasn’t he basically just an ice chunk called a fairy?
Karem asked Mary about the unexpected news that a monster known as the leader of the Winter Fairies had frozen to death, but even Mary, the one declaring the death sentence, was baffled.
However, those words echoed quietly.
Suddenly, the case was resolved.
Everyone’s gaze focused on the wagon.
He froze the Winter Fairy to death?
Those who had been in a flurry were left speechless, as the issue was squashed with a simplicity that was almost absurd.
The perpetrator wore a refreshing expression. With a light flick of her hand, she swept back the hair tousled by the effects of her magic.
“Why is everyone standing around? It’s getting late. Why are you just staring blankly when we should be setting off?”
Amidst the swirling blizzard, Catherine declared this to the members of the caravan who seemed hesitant. Still holding her staff aloft, she turned towards the wagon.
Karem followed Mary closely, but when he entered the wagon, he suddenly turned back, leaving him no choice but to step aside.
“Oh dear. Did you forget something?”
“Yes. That King Frost who just got frozen.”
Karem turned his head following Catherine’s finger pointing at her staff.
The frozen body of King Frost shimmered like a scarlet ice sculpture against the dull sky.
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The next morning.
Under the bright sky, seeing King Frost again was nothing short of breathtaking.
Estimated to be slightly smaller than an ogre, the frozen body of King Frost stood before the Wizard’s Tower, resembling a fluffy mascot.
A snowman adorned with a conical hat topped with a crown.
However, as mentioned before, it was just a tad smaller than an ogre.
“AAAH! What the heck is that!?”
With a loud thud, a wizard came out of the tower, yawning, only to see King Frost and leap back in shock.
Honestly, Karem could understand it.
Just yesterday, the only thing standing in front of the tower had been the majestic snow walls erected by Mary; who wouldn’t be surprised to find a (cute) ice statue the size of an ogre?
Of course, it was also amusing to see the wizards come out in various ways, shocked each time.
‘Huh, but looking at it like this, it’s definitely a sight to behold.’
Winterhome wasn’t exactly devoid of attractions either.
Unlike the structures of the outer wall, inner wall, and main castle, the Duke’s castle in Winterhome made a strong impression with its grandeur.
Tall gray pillars and spires, nearly white in color, intertwined with intricate bridges and castle walls that extended out like a gnarled old tree.
The greenhouse was equally splendid.
The result of the late Alfred Felwinter’s first and last extravagance displayed varied seasonal environments within its sections.
Even since Flora appeared, the vibrancy and abundance of plants increased day by day, clearly visible from the outside.
Additionally, warehouses, barracks, training grounds, butcheries, stables, and more.
Each building, made of gray and black stone to suit its purpose, served to accentuate the prominence of the main castle and greenhouse in Winterhome.
‘Anyway, seeing it every time gets a bit boring.’
It couldn’t be helped.
No matter how delicious or beloved a dish is, consuming it at every meal without fail would dull the appetite.
Humans are fundamentally designed to experience fatigue from overly stimulating food, which explains why bland staples like bread and rice are so common.
Of course, in a past life, Karem had eaten nothing but vegetable bibimbap for three months, and after his parents’ relentless pleading to try something else, he was forced to stop, but if it had lasted a year, he would likely have grown tired of it.
Creak—
“AHHH! You scared me!”
“Hm? King Frost? Even in its original shape? Why on earth is this here…”
As the door opened, a peculiar reaction echoed, and heads turned. It was Olivier and Narque.
“Good morning, everyone.”
“Hey, Karem. What on earth is this King Frost? Why is it so well-preserved?”
“Uh, I suppose it’s the result of Sir Atanitas’ anger.”
Olivier, stroking his beard with one hand, raised an eyebrow, his gaze filled with curiosity, silently urging Karem to speak.
“He recited a chant to smash it to pieces.”
“What? A chant?”
“Yes. It’s the first time I’ve seen Sir Atanitas casting a spell.”
Living in the Mage Tower, one tends to hear a wizard’s incantations as often as the noise from the kitchen or the explosive failures.
Catherine was different.
Karem had never seen her cast a spell, not once.
Usually, she would perform magic with just a gentle gesture, and even when facing the monster Grand Wizard at Afterglow Fortress, she had not recited a single incantation.
For Catherine to cast a spell meant she exerted all her magical strength. Karem could easily deduce the reason.
‘Anger; she said it was the first time she had touched something since reaching sage status.’
This meant that the first thing she had touched in hundreds of years was the Alraune custard fish-shaped pastry she made.
That fish-shaped pastry had just fallen to the ground.
Especially due to external factors.
‘It’s no wonder she chanted a spell.’
The first time is significant for anyone.
Moreover, Catherine couldn’t even touch food due to her curse.
A curse that would have caused anyone else to age and die long ago.
What if she were to be burdened with such a curse?
Karem could hardly imagine what would happen.
It was too horrifying.
“You mean she lost her composure and started chanting a spell?”
“Lost her composure?”
“Of course. What need would a Grand Wizard have to cast a spell against a measly wild fairy? The power is excessive.”
Olivier frowned slightly as he looked up at King Frost.
“By the way, why was Kitty so angry?”
“She dropped the salmon pastry she was holding because of King Frost.”
“Huh? That’s all? Wait, what was she holding?”
Ah, did it start from there? The sight was surely something only Karem and Mary would know about.
Karem explained to Olivier about the stir-fried Alraune, the drought curse, and the murky water theory.
“Huh, the drought curse… Although it has been weakened, you circumstantially bypassed it? Alraune byproducts are indeed highly toxic. Even if you’ve processed that highly toxic byproduct, there’s no way anyone would eat it.”
“So I tried it, and it worked out nicely.”
“Hmmm. I suppose I was too focused on the curse itself.”
No matter how much he disliked it, it seemed his master had left an impression on him.
Olivier’s reaction mirrored Catherine’s.
“By the way, to lose one’s composure over something trivial like this… No, considering the objective, her anger is understandable.”
“Objective?”
“Yes. The goal of lifting the curse.”
While watching Narque examining King Frost’s body here and there, Olivier stopped stroking his beard, sitting next to Karem on the snow pile.
“Although it was never spoken out loud, who could hide from the master’s gaze? If it were spoken, it would not disappoint more than a few.”
“Disappoint, you say?”
“Yes. How did Kitty seem to you? Did she like cooking?”
“Yes. She was curious about new dishes and liked delicious food. Especially desserts. Not as much as Mary, though.”
“Hm. Originally, Kitty wasn’t too interested in cooking.”
Karem stopped nodding in contemplation.
Who said they weren’t interested in anything?
“Wizards are all similar. They derive more satisfaction from mental gratification than physical. Especially with her level of talent, it would have heightened her interests.”
“That’s hard to imagine.”
“Indeed.”
Olivier nodded while resuming the stroking of his beard.
“As you know, my student has a strong sense of pride. Also quite possessive. That’s likely why she became so fixated on cooking after experiencing this.”
“Was that drought curse, you said? How did she come to be afflicted by it?”
“Well, wizards generally have adversarial relationships, big or small.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. Moreover, with abundant talents usually accompanied by overflowing pride, jealousies can easily brew—though I don’t know how it happened.”
“It seems you show respect to Duke Alfred and Lady Elizabeth.”
“Lessons learned after a close call, I suppose.”
“Lessons.”
Thinking about it, Karem had never seen her speak respectfully with anyone but Duke Alfred, his wife Elizabeth, or the former Duke Richard.
She did not address even Karem and the other Felwinter siblings with honorifics.
Even Iona, an elder of a particular religion, was spoken to in casual terms.
‘Of course, her anger didn’t stem from this alone.’
Olivier chuckled inwardly. This type of storytelling was just the right kind of entertainment for an old man’s reminiscences.
‘Whether it’s this one or that one, they’re both fools.’
Hearing this, it was clear why Catherine had become angry.
Had she to throw away something made by someone she held dear, even he would have used all his magic out of rage.
Of course, that item was just a snack with fried Alraune in it, far from a token of love.
Yet even with a curse, a pastry specially made by an exceptional person would have carried the weight of a special meaning, so it was only somewhat forgivable.
Bull. These fools are tortoises!
Olivier stifled a cough from the sheer absurdity.
Cough! Cough, cough!
“Are you catching a cold, Olivier?”
It’s all because of my incompetent disciple and the rather stagnant progress you’ve made.
But he couldn’t say that.
That would relieve his frustration, but it wouldn’t be entertaining.
‘Just in time, I hear a major noble is visiting. Supposedly, it’s even the king’s brother, right?’
This meant a grand banquet was about to be held in Winterhome. That was the perfect opportunity for his imprudent disciple and the exasperating chef to unload their build-up anxiety.
Elizabeth, the cooperative Duke’s wife, would surely agree willingly.
“-Perhaps a kind of poetry, since it is a corpse? But Jack Frost dissipates into elemental ice when he dies, and King Frost does too. But if we think back to the case of Fungusbee—”
As Karem was concluding that in his mind, Narque’s muttering while observing the frozen King Frost stirred the nerves of the two men.
“Narque. Are you hoping this stuck research of yours will break free after seeing that?”
“Not really. I was wondering if I could use my magic on it.”
For Narque, being a Necromancer naturally meant Necromancy.
However, even if it were fairies, it wasn’t a living being, was it?
“Olivier, is it possible to speak with that?”
“Hmm.”
“Even without knowledge of magic, it seems impossible to me.”
“Not at all. It might just be possible.”
Olivier gazed back and forth between Narque and the frozen King Frost with a glimmer of interest.
“Why don’t you propose your assumption?”
“Y-Yes! Generally speaking, it would be impossible, but right now, the original form is still intact, right? In the Fungusbee of summer—”
As this jargon began to flow from an outsider’s mouth, they couldn’t comprehend.
“That’s it—!!!”
Zigmeser burst onto the scene, running like a dwarf with a ban on drinking.
“That! It looks like a statue, but it can’t fool my eyes! It’s definitely King Frost!”
“Oh no! No! This is my research first…!”
“What? Your research? What the heck is this shabby fairy blabbering about? It’s just right out there in front of the tower!”
“Yet you seem to have shaved your head and beard, doesn’t that seem a bit unhinged…?”
Hmm. Amidst the strange yet somehow familiar stereotypical cliche all too well known.
As Karem cherished the moment, Olivier rapped his staff on the ground.
“Alright! Then there’s only one person left to conclude this!”
Karem agreed with that statement.
After all, the ownership of that item was established.
*
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*
“Well, if it’s for the banquet, I suppose there’s no helping it.”
“So, Sir Atanitas. Don’t tell me…?”
“Indeed. King Frost will be handed over to Zigmeser.”
“Oh, no! My research…!!!”
Narque silently sank.