Shepherd Wizard (Novel) - Chapter 60

Chapter 60

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Originally, bloodline abilities are powerful on their own, but when combined appropriately, they can become even more terrifying. Just like the magic of the Arabion family head, who summoned clouds with wind to unleash a more powerful rain of lightning.

The magic unfolding before Turan’s eyes was no different.

At first, it was a flame, but it soon refined and transformed into a beam of golden light. The light gathered in a circular formation behind the silver-haired man, forming a massive halo. The crew members screamed in terror and backed away.

“Ma-magician! Captain! Vice-captain!”

“Help us!”

In response to their cries, the two knights in the group acted in completely opposite ways. One bravely drew his sword to fight, while the other quickly turned and fled.

In truth, neither action had any real meaning. The whip of light that surged from the halo severed the sword and body of the knight who fought, as well as the head of the one who fled. The fact that no blood or brain matter flowed from the cuts indicated that the whip contained an unbearably intense heat.

“Uh, uh?”

“Both of them… are dead?”

“No way…”

Perhaps the sight of those they trusted being slaughtered so one-sidedly made them lose touch with reality. The golden whips split into dozens of strands and flew toward the crew members, who stood frozen, unable to even think of fleeing.

Turan quietly observed the surreal scene.

‘Light and fire…’

He had definitely heard of a family that wielded those two bloodline abilities before.

The great family Baraha, located east of the Enril Desert.

That man was undoubtedly a noble from that distant eastern land.

Without time to ponder why a noble from such a faraway place was here, Turan realized that few survivors remained and quickly extended his hand. A large amount of water surged from the nearby sea, enveloping the three surviving crew members.

“Ugh… huh?”

“We’re alive!”

The seawater, infused with Turan’s magic, collided with the golden whips, producing a massive amount of steam.

After a brief silence, Turan spoke politely to his opponent.

“Excuse me, I understand you’re angry, but could we talk for a moment—”

However, the Baraha noble ignored his words and immediately created another golden whip from the halo, lashing it toward Turan.

The whip was not only terrifyingly fast but also moved as if it had a life of its own, twisting and turning unpredictably.

Seeing this, Turan frowned and accelerated his thought process, drawing more seawater to intercept each incoming whip.

In the midst of this, the whips’ trajectories seemed to shift slightly, likely due to the scattering of light. Without the Imitator artifact’s ability to detect magic, he would have been completely fooled.

After barely managing to deflect all the attacks, an enormous amount of steam covered the coastline.

‘Whew…’

Though it was only a brief exchange, the intense concentration left his head throbbing.

Without the aid of accelerated thinking, he might have been hit a few times.

Given that the attacks were aimed at non-lethal areas like his hands and feet, it seemed his opponent didn’t intend to kill him.

Just then, a powerful wind blew in from somewhere, clearing the steam that had covered the coastline.

The Baraha noble was holding a magical tool of a shape Turan had never seen before, smiling triumphantly.

‘What is that?’

It looked like a wooden stick with paper attached to the end. As it unfolded, it took on a semi-circular shape, and when swung, it generated a strong wind that pushed the flames forward.

“Tsk.”

Turan clicked his tongue lightly and used wind magic to disperse the flames pouring toward him.

If the flames had been refined into spheres or spears, it might have been different, but flames carelessly fueled by wind could be scattered like this.

Seeing this, the Baraha noble asked in surprise,

“What? You’re good with wind too? Is your bloodline ability both? I’ve never heard of a family like that.”

Instead of answering, Turan summoned a massive wave to attack.

The force alone would have crushed an ordinary person, but this was merely a diversion.

As his opponent evaporated the wave with a wall of fire, a stone Turan had prepared shot through the steam toward his abdomen.

With his vision obscured, it was the perfect attack, impossible to defend against.

However, as the stone approached, it vanished with an inexplicable ripple, as if some invisible monster had devoured it.

‘What is that? A defensive artifact?’

Turan narrowed his eyes, analyzing how the defense had worked and how to break through it.

Did it only work on physical projectiles? But it didn’t block the seawater, which was also physical…

His thoughts were interrupted as the Baraha noble suddenly raised both hands and dispelled the halo behind him.

The brightly lit coastline instantly darkened.

“I surrender, I surrender! I give up. Let’s stop here.”

His casual attitude made it seem like the fight had been a mere game.

Turan stared at him for a moment before slowly putting the sling back into his pocket.

* * *

“You’re quite skilled, friend. I’m Solif. And you?”

“Turan.”

After exchanging blows, there was no need for formalities.

Despite the short answer, Solif didn’t seem offended and pointed to the steam still lingering in the air.

“I’ve never seen a mage who can control water like that. You’re not from the Kamain family, are you?”

“No.”

Bringing up a bloodline ability the other person didn’t possess was one of the highest compliments for a mage.

But Turan’s mood wasn’t particularly pleasant, as evidenced by his curt replies.

He had just noticed the three charred bodies he hadn’t been able to save during the intense battle.

“Huh? Oh, were you trying to protect them? Were they like brothers or friends…?”

“I needed to hear what they had to say. Dead men can’t talk.”

“Ah.”

Perhaps sensing the implication that Turan blamed him for ruining everything, Solif scratched his ear awkwardly.

“Well, those guys made me angry. I couldn’t help it. They were stabbing me in the back while I was trying to be nice.”

From an outsider’s perspective, it was understandable that he was angry. But if he wanted something, shouldn’t he have spared a few lives?

Especially since he was also searching for some kind of relic of the Frea god clan.

At that moment, Solif’s gaze turned to Bije, who had been quietly perched beside Turan throughout the fight.

It seemed he was trying to change the subject to ease the tension.

“Ah, right! That hawk, is it a magical beast? The one they were selling in Komad City.”

Bije, though not significantly mutated for a magical beast, had subtle differences from ordinary hawks. His gaze was unusually sharp, and his wings were slightly longer than his body size.

But these differences were only noticeable to those like Turan who interacted with him frequently. Yet Solif seemed certain of Bije’s nature from the moment he saw him.

“That’s right.”

“I knew it. My eyes don’t deceive me. I spent a whole month trying to get that guy. How did you manage to win him over?”

“Well, let’s just say it was fate…”

Turan finally confirmed the man’s identity.

The heir to the Baraha family, who had failed to win Bije’s favor.

Given the circumstances, it had to be him.

Of course, Turan didn’t let on that he had figured it out.

There must be a reason the heir of a great family was wandering alone, one he wouldn’t want others to know.

Just then, Solif spread ten fingers toward Turan.

“Ten times.”

“What?”

“I’ll pay ten times the price you bought him for. How about it?”

“Not even a hundred times. Bije wouldn’t want it anyway.”

Bije, leaning against Turan’s side, nodded vigorously. Solif sighed in disappointment.

“I figured as much. Damn it, what am I missing?”

That was something Turan was curious about as well.

Since Meisa had also been qualified, it wasn’t a condition unique to Turan. Yet Bije could only explain it as a “feeling.”

In any case, Solif didn’t press further, though his expression was filled with regret and longing.

It was a relief.

If he had tried to take Bije by force, Turan might have had to kill the Baraha heir.

‘But why is he so obsessed with Bije?’

To Turan, Bije was his most precious family, but objectively, Bije wasn’t particularly powerful as a magical beast.

Though intelligent, he couldn’t breathe fire, summon lightning, or create invisible blades.

Surely, as the heir of the Baraha family, Solif could use his power and wealth to acquire much stronger magical beasts.

As Turan pondered this, Solif suddenly pointed to the charred bodies of the crew members.

“So, what did you want to ask them? If it’s something I know, I can answer for you. I’ve been around this area for a while.”

“I’m looking for a place where niter is found.”

“Niter? That white stone?”

“Right.”

“That’s found near my hometown too. If you’re believing rumors about an elixir of immortality, it’s just a myth. It’s only used to add color to cured meats.”

“I know. I just have a personal use for it.”

Turan had no intention of telling Solif about the fire spirit.

If a noble of the sun bloodline got their hands on that, the scale of destruction they could unleash was unimaginable.

After hearing the explanation, Solif stroked his chin thoughtfully before speaking.

“So you’re looking for a place nearby where it’s found? Then… you should probably go to Parayan Island. It’s a few days’ journey northeast.”

Turan looked at Solif in surprise.

“How did you know that?”

“I’ve been searching for something, so I’ve scouted this area for a while. I was on a ship not long ago and heard someone mention that niter is found there. I haven’t been there myself, though.”

“Come to think of it, you mentioned you were looking for relics of the Frea god clan?”

Turan only mentioned it briefly and then cut off the conversation.

If Solif was searching for some kind of treasure, showing too much interest might make him suspicious.

However, contrary to expectations, Solif seemed delighted that Turan showed interest and eagerly continued the conversation.

“That’s right. It’s a story passed down on various islands in the southern sea, about a god who fought giant sea serpents in ancient times and sank into the sea, never to return. A forgotten god, not recorded in any scripture. Doesn’t that pique your interest?”

The story felt strangely familiar, and Turan almost reached for the Imitator holy relic hanging around his neck.

But the owner of this artifact had died in the northern sea, thousands of kilometers from here…

‘Ah.’

Come to think of it, there was a similar legend in the northern sea.

An ancient magical mirror connecting the northern and southern seas.

What if the original owner of the imitator holy relic had fought in the southern sea, passed through the mirror to the northern sea, and died there?

It sounded quite plausible, even though he had just thought of it.

“Are you looking for the god’s remains or relics?”

“That would be impossible. I’m not a mermaid. My goal is to find the place where he stayed before leaving for battle. Given the passage of time, any records left by the god himself would be gone, but there should still be some stories passed down. Things like his personality, which gods he got along with, and so on.”

Claiming it was purely for academic purposes, Solif chatted away happily, much like when he had been boasting to the crew members earlier.

The story began with him hearing about a drowned god at a southern port near the Enril Desert.

Over the past year, he had traveled to various ports and islands near the southern sea, gathering information.

Along the way, he sometimes befriended good sailors, and other times, like now, he had to fight his way out of traps.

He had tried local foods for the first time, fought powerful swordfish magical beasts, and even battled mermaid armies.

He usually disguised himself as a commoner, as he had done earlier, which allowed him to see aspects of people’s lives he wouldn’t have known as a noble, and he found it enjoyable.

These stories were quite similar to Turan’s own adventures, so he found himself deeply engrossed.

However, one thought kept nagging at him…

‘It seems like his main goal is more about traveling under the pretext of searching for clues about the god, doesn’t it?’

As he thought this, Solif grumbled,

“But lately, the atmosphere has been terrible. There aren’t many decent sailors left; they’re all scum like those guys earlier. I must have killed hundreds of those pirates or thugs in the past few months.”

“That must have contributed greatly to maintaining order in the southern sea.”

Even if pirates were rampant, there couldn’t be hundreds of thousands or millions of them. Even if there were ten thousand, killing hundreds meant Solif had taken out a significant portion.

“Well, it’s like doing vigilante work on the side. The Ravitas or other families probably wouldn’t like it, but… as long as I don’t get caught, it’s fine, right?”

“Does your family say anything about you wandering around like this?”

“Of course, I ran away. You probably have an idea of where I’m from, but don’t tell my family I’m here. I’ll get revenge later. Consider this a warning.”

Running away? It sounded rather childish for a man who looked to be in his forties.

Sensing Turan’s gaze, Solif smiled awkwardly.

“Don’t look at me like that. It’s not just because I was bored. This is a journey to find myself.”

“From where I’m standing, you seem to be right in front of me.”

“No, not like that… Look at me. I have a perfect face, exceptional talent, and I was born into a great family. I’ve lived a chosen life, haven’t I?”

“Well…”

While mages, influenced by magic, tend to have better physiques and clearer skin than commoners, Solif wasn’t particularly handsome.

At a loss for words, Turan hesitated, and Solif took it as agreement, continuing,

“But as I lived, I started to feel like I wasn’t truly myself. Like I was a created being.”

“Created?”

“Yeah. I was strictly educated from a young age. You must act this way, you mustn’t do that… My personality, abilities, even small habits and speech patterns were all shaped.”

“That’s—”

It sounded a bit extreme, but not particularly unusual.

Even wealthy merchants raised their children that way, grooming them to be concubines or heirs.

Perhaps sensing what Turan was thinking, Solif shook his head.

“Sure, that’s something any wealthy family might do. But my family is on a different level.”

“How so?”

“Everything, from interacting with others to challenges and achievements, even my interests and passions, felt fake. It was as if someone was meticulously sculpting me from above…”