Shepherd Wizard (Novel) - Chapter 19
Chapter 19
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“I’m sorry, you were confined to the temple because of me, right?”
These were the first words Turan heard when he visited Meisa’s room.
Faced with this noble lady’s apology, he carefully chose his words before giving the most neutral response.
“It was necessary. More importantly, I’m glad you’re safe.”
If he had apologized for making her do something unreasonable here, it would seem like mocking that she couldn’t do what he could.
Whether understanding the calculation behind this answer, Meisa exclaimed as if suddenly remembering something.
“Ah! Come to think of it, that magic that makes animals rot. Could it be an unknown bloodline magic? The magic power consumption was ridiculous.”
“No. If you understand the principle, you could use it sufficiently too.”
During their conversation, Turan’s keen sense of smell caught an unfamiliar scent.
Something mixing a somewhat spoiled but rich aroma with a sour stench…
‘Did she vomit?’
A faint smell like when accidentally cutting open a stomach while butchering animals wafted from Meisa’s mouth.
He’d clearly heard she didn’t eat, so why?
Turan was about to say something but realized his comment would be inappropriate in many ways and kept his mouth shut.
Given that even his keen sense of smell barely detected it, she must have cleaned up thoroughly, and mentioning he smelled it would raise suspicions about having a bloodline specialized in that area.
While he was lost in thought, Meisa, thinking Turan had stopped speaking because he didn’t want to share the magic’s principles, smiled slightly and probed.
“So you won’t tell me for free? But without explaining the method, there’s no proof it’s not bloodline magic.”
“I don’t particularly care whether I won or not.”
The two maintained eye contact silently for a moment.
Meisa was the first to surrender.
“Since it feels unsatisfying to end like this, if you tell me that magic’s secret, I’ll teach you one of Arabion’s secret techniques. Fair?”
“Alright. Then-”
Turan explained about the existence of organisms too small to see with the eye, and how their consumption of larger life forms causes decay.
The principle of the magic was empowering these small organisms to accelerate the decay process.
Just from that explanation, Meisa seemed to grasp the magic’s principle, letting out an “Ah!” of realization.
“So… it’s fundamentally organism enhancement magic?”
“Yes.”
“No wonder. Using it without knowing that, the efficiency was terrible. Hey, could you catch me a mouse?”
The maid standing respectfully behind asked in surprise at Meisa’s request.
“A, a mouse…?”
“Yes. In a house this big, there must be some living somewhere.”
Shortly after, Meisa nodded while putting down a mouse that had rotted and collapsed while still alive.
The maid who had caught the mouse looked about to vomit at the sight, but neither Turan nor Meisa paid any attention to that.
“Then I lost this match. Though I succeeded at the end, it was by forcefully pushing through with power.”
“I considered that part of the competition too.”
“That’s not right. When talking about skill in handling magic, we don’t usually include magic power amount.”
Saying this, Meisa suddenly spoke with what seemed like an embarrassed expression.
“Um, could you tell Asiz it was a draw? I don’t want to see him getting cocky.”
“Understood.”
“Then I should pay my debt. Let’s see… this should do.”
Meisa took a comb from beside her and combed her long hair a few times, then lifted it to show how the hair stuck to and rose with the comb.
“As you can see, when objects rub together, they create an attractive force. This-”
“Static electricity.”
Meisa’s eyes went round at Turan’s response.
“…You knew?”
“Yes.”
He had encountered such knowledge when learning about the principles of lightning striking from clouds in the library.
Though he hadn’t properly understood the more difficult explanations about lightning occurring from positive and negative charge contact, he at least knew that lightning originated from electrical force and that friction could create similar phenomena on a small scale.
To demonstrate, Turan rubbed his fingers together several times to create a small spark of electricity.
By applying this, he could use lightning magic to shoot electricity directly, though not as powerful as lightning magic.
Though it was still only practice level, not refined enough for actual combat.
“Even this is quite a profound secret…”
Muttering “this is troublesome,” Meisa sighed deeply and said.
“Could I think about how to repay you a bit more?”
“Sure.”
Turan didn’t say payment wasn’t necessary.
One of the realizations he had gained since leaving the hill was that if you give knowledge, you should receive something in return.
After a moment of silence, Meisa shook her head and brought up an unexpected suggestion.
“Then until I think of sufficient payment, how about we continue together…”
“You mean magic practice?”
“Yes. I think we could learn quite a lot from each other.”
“Alright.”
Since he was planning to diligently practice magic every day anyway, competing achievements with a high-level magician wouldn’t be bad for motivation.
“Then let’s meet in the garden at sunset every day starting tomorrow.”
* * *
The day after meeting with Meisa, someone came looking for Turan early in the morning.
It was Haram, the guardian bloodline noble who had briefly practiced swordsmanship with him in the temple yesterday.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Ah… yes. But what brings you here?”
“Have you thought about what I said yesterday?”
Turan recalled what he had said yesterday.
Was it about making time to train his body if possible?
When he mentioned this, Haram nodded and declared.
“Let’s go.”
“You mean for training?”
“Don’t want to?”
After brief consideration, Turan agreed and left the room.
Though Asiz had said he’d take him to see plays today… getting something in return seemed more worthwhile than just playing.
As he was about to call a servant to send word canceling the appointment, Asiz appeared across the corridor.
“Hey, Turan! I heard there’s a really amazing play today…”
His bright voice calling out shrank instantly upon seeing Haram standing beside him.
“It’s Asiz.”
“Ah, hello. Uncle.”
“Will you come too?”
“What? No… I’m still tired from traveling outside recently so…”
Though what they would be going to hadn’t even been mentioned, Asiz stammered before slipping away back the way he came.
Shortly after, Turan could understand why he had reacted that way.
“One more time.”
“Huff…”
“Last time, one more.”
In the eastern section of the Berk mansion, inside a training ground surrounded by four buildings, there were several devices that seemed to be magical items.
From metal bars that became heavier as magic power was infused, to spaces where the body became tremendously heavy upon entering.
Haram had Turan perform various movements repeatedly in such places, overworking every muscle in his body.
Generally, nobles’ strength wouldn’t be overwhelmed by their own body weight, but here was different.
“That’s enough.”
At Haram’s words, Turan withdrew the power he had been infusing into the bar, threw it aside and collapsed.
He could feel his sweat-soaked hair sticking to his face.
“Is it hard?”
“Yes…”
It felt even more exhausting than when fighting the dark elf necromancers.
Then he had just been in poor condition from being rammed by the buffalo death spirit, but this time he had truly worked every muscle from neck to toes.
At Turan’s answer, Haram showed a grotesque smile just slightly lifting the corners of his mouth.
“Still, be thankful that as a magician, once is enough.”
“Is it different for non-magicians?”
“Originally, muscles disappear again over time even after being built up through training. You have to train constantly to maintain them. But magicians’ magic power maintains their bodies in optimal condition, so once you build your body, it won’t weaken.”
After saying this, Haram pointed to the sky and added.
“Plus, isn’t it refreshing to exercise and get some air?”
“That’s… true.”
Turan hesitated briefly before agreeing with Haram’s words.
Indeed, there was a strange elation lying collapsed after sweating throughout his body.
Similar to when reading books, a sense of achievement that he was becoming something better than before…
Haram, who had been grumbling for a while about how all magicians – especially nobles – were fools for neglecting physical training despite having such good bodies for it, soon stood up and issued another command.
“You must be rested enough now.”
“No, not yet-”
“I know. You’ve rested enough. Now I’ll teach you weapon skills and martial arts.”
After spending the morning in hellish training, Turan walked on trembling legs to a small dining room and asked the servants to bring food.
Before long, Asiz appeared from somewhere and suddenly sat down opposite him.
“How did you end up caught by Uncle Haram?”
“Well…”
When Turan explained about receiving instruction from Haram last night, Asiz burst out laughing in disbelief.
“You got baited.”
“Baited?”
“Uncle is someone who believes all nobles should have close combat ability. I got caught by similar methods when I was young too.”
Apparently his standard pattern was to show off elegant swordsmanship asking “Want to try this?” then drag people to the training ground and work them to exhaustion.
Asiz said that after suffering through Haram’s training in his youth – when he was twenty-five – he wouldn’t go near even if asked to train.
“But he said even training once has good effects?”
“It’s still too hard! Magic training is better. You’re a guest anyway, so you can just say you’re quitting.”
At Asiz’s suggestion, Turan hesitated briefly before shaking his head.
“No, I want to continue for now.”
Though Turan had never done any physical training besides walking, running and slinging stones his whole life, he could instinctively feel that Haram’s teaching method was quite systematic.
Plus, this place was full of training devices made directly by the Berk family’s enchanters.
He didn’t want to miss the chance to utilize such items.
“Why don’t you join too?”
“Me? I’m too old now…”
Asiz, who looked only in his early twenties in appearance, said with an awkward smile.
* * *
For the next three weeks, Turan’s daily routine was thoroughly fulfilling.
Early morning physical training with Haram.
After thoroughly working all his muscles, replenishing nutrients with a quality lunch, then in the afternoon going to town with Asiz to watch plays or read at the library – though of course not like the one in Orem City – for relaxation.
And at sunset, returning to the mansion to practice magic with Meisa, during which they grew quite close.
By the time three weeks had passed, they were even calling each other by name familiarly.
Considering that at their first meeting Meisa couldn’t even properly remember Turan’s name, this was remarkable.
“Not going well, Turan?”
“Well, I’m not Arabion after all.”
At Meisa’s teasing tone, Turan scratched his chin while looking down at the burn marks covering the wall before him.
These were traces of lightning bolt – magic that shoots electricity generated by finger friction at targets.
His current task was hitting targets accurately with this, but still two or three out of ten shots would hit around rather than dead center of the target.
Rather than Turan’s magic being unskilled, lightning magic itself tended not to hit accurately.
To overcome this, he would need to either perfectly understand and satisfy the principles of how lightning travels, or increase proficiency.
“I can’t really help with this. I’ve never thought about aiming lightning magic.”
Born with the storm bloodline, she could naturally handle lightning, so rather couldn’t give advice to Turan going through trial and error.
How could someone who had run since birth teach walking to someone crawling?
“I’ll just have to keep working at it.”
While heaving a deep sigh, Turan recalled that the magical device would be completed in about a week.
And that he would have to leave then.
‘…Somehow, I don’t want to leave.’
Life with the Berk family could be called the happiest time since Turan was born.
Being a great family’s stronghold, the living standard went without saying, and he had teachers and partners for training both body and magic, plus friends to enjoy hobbies with.
But he couldn’t stay here forever.
He was just a guest after all.
Though there was no worry of being discovered now, there was no guarantee he could hide his true identity forever…
“There you are, Lady Meisa!”
While deep in thought, an unfamiliar voice rang out in the garden.
For some reason, a man in his early twenties he had never seen was looking at Turan with a strangely hostile expression.
“My lady, this man is…?”
“None of your business. More importantly, what brings you here? I’m sure I said no one from the main house should approach while I’m recuperating.”
Meisa’s attitude toward the man, apparently from the Arabion family, was utterly cold.
Even hostility could be felt.
The man, briefly trembling, bowed his head deeply and spoke.
“The family head has summoned you.”
“For what?”
“Well…”
The man glanced at Turan.
As if telling him to get lost because important matters were about to be discussed.
But before Turan could react, Meisa sharply pressed.
“Answer quickly. If it’s for a useless reason, you’d better be prepared.”
At her fierce attitude suggesting she’d blast him with magic if he hesitated even slightly, the man hurriedly answered.
The content was shocking even to Turan listening quietly from the side.
“Dark elves are rampaging extensively in the south! They say three cities have already fallen, so they’re forming an expedition…”