Shepherd Wizard (Novel) - Chapter 61
Chapter 61
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Discord
Born into a noble family of a prestigious clan, Solif.
He awakened immense magical power at a younger age than most, walking a path paved with success.
Though there were occasional conflicts and setbacks, his life was largely as he desired, allowing him to grow into a noble youth armed with a healthy sense of self-esteem and arrogance.
However, ten years ago, when he turned forty-eight, Solif first realized that something was amiss in his life.
The trigger was discovering a scar on the hand of a distant relative he met at a clan event, a scar identical to that of a childhood friend who had died.
“A friend?”
“Yes, a friend who died because of me.”
In his mid-teens, Solif, full of adventurous spirit, secretly left the clan with a friend he had grown up with like a brother.
They sought to seize magical power, gain real-world experience, and see the world.
However, while hunting a magical beast threatening a village, young Solif realized the opponent was far too strong.
In the critical moment, the friend who had run away with him sacrificed himself to save Solif, leaving a deep scar on his heart.
Somehow returning to the clan, Solif vowed never to leave the clan recklessly again and buried his adventurous spirit deep within.
But then…
“Just in case, I dug up the grave of the friend who was supposedly buried by the clan, and there was nothing there. That relative had been away on a special mission from when I was eight until I was fifteen, unknown to anyone.”
It was clear that the relative had disguised himself as a child and played the role of the sacrificing friend.
He likely used a magical tool suitable for disguise.
The shocking fact that the major event that had shaken his personality in his childhood was entirely fabricated left Solif deeply traumatized.
“The magical beast that threatened me later turned out to have the same characteristics as one raised and released by the clan. The timing of its release coincided exactly with when I experienced that incident.”
Upon closer examination of his past, he found that such incidents were not one or two.
A relative of similar age, whose magical skills Solif had always envied and admired, and whom he had desperately trained to surpass, was sent to the countryside and disappeared, forgotten.
A maid he had passionately loved but left due to the burden of their status difference turned out to have a completely fabricated background.
Even a few friends who shared his interest in history had no prior interest in the subject before interacting with him.
“Do you understand now? What it means for the entire clan to be shaping me. That’s why I escaped. Here, whatever I encounter or choose won’t be manipulated.”
Since escaping the clan, he has been changing his trained personality and speech patterns, searching for his true self.
Finishing his explanation, Solif poured an entire bottle of alcohol into his mouth, a bottle he had somehow produced.
“I couldn’t even dream of drinking like this inside the clan.”
“Have you ever thought about who or why someone would do such a thing?”
“I don’t know. Given the scale of the operation, the clan head must have been involved.”
The lack of honorifics indicated Solif’s resentment towards the clan head.
While listening to the story, Turan recalled the tales of the Frea god tribe, who survived by transferring bodies.
If they had survived to the present and were still transferring bodies, they would naturally desire the bodies of talented and powerful mages.
And the heir of a great clan would undoubtedly meet such conditions.
‘One of the laws of magic, the more plausible the event, the less magical energy it consumes…’
If soul transfer magic was used, that law might not necessarily apply, but from a magical principle standpoint, it would be more efficient to switch souls with someone of similar personality and interests.
A sudden change in personality would be inherently unnatural.
Perhaps Meisa is in a similar situation.
A talent and status befitting a god’s vessel, lacking nothing.
Though she never mentioned any manipulation, perhaps she just hasn’t realized it yet.
Her refusal to eat or her hatred for the clan might be related…
Deep in thought, Solif suddenly threw the bottle he was drinking from at Turan.
“What’s this?”
“Well, the conversation was getting too dull, so I thought we should have a drink. You can drink, right?”
Turan looked at the dark brown liquor and took a sip.
A burning sensation flowed down his throat.
“It’s strong.”
“It’s a fermented and distilled sugarcane liquor. A specialty of the southern seas.”
With that, Solif shifted the conversation back to his adventurous tales to lighten the mood.
Turan clinked glasses and joined in, subtly bringing up a question.
“Do you ever think of returning to the clan?”
“Hmm? Probably not. Unless I become as strong as the clan head, then I might go back to overthrow everything.”
“Don’t go back. Or if you must, stay as far away from the clan’s sight as possible. Somewhere far to the west.”
Solif blinked, puzzled by the meaning behind the words, but it was difficult to provide more clues.
To present evidence for his hypothesis would require revealing too many secrets.
Moreover, if Solif were captured and tortured or subjected to soul transfer magic, and the conversations he had with Turan were revealed to someone behind the scenes?
They would never let it slide if they knew someone was aware of their existence.
* * *
After talking all night, Solif left for the south, saying they should meet again if the opportunity arose.
Turan wished that Solif could stay out of the clan’s sight for as long as possible.
Though they had only met for a day, sparred, and had a few drinks, it would still be unpleasant if someone he knew suddenly faced a fate akin to death through body theft.
At dawn, after a light breakfast of a few fish, Turan flew northeast with Bije.
Originally, he planned to take a leisurely boat trip, but the new information he had learned prompted a change in plans.
‘First, secure the Soul Fire quickly, then visit Arabion. Even if confirming the existence of gods is difficult, I should be able to find out if there’s a force manipulating Meisa’s life…’
Given Rida’s request, it seemed unlikely that the Ravitas clan was under the shadow of the Frea god tribe.
If the living god still existed, they would have already saved the white elves or no longer needed them.
Other great clans like Zahar were hard to approach due to lack of connections, but Arabion, with its ties to the Berk clan and Meisa, would be relatively easier to investigate.
Having used the imitator holy relic to pose as a barrier master, he would be less scrutinized…
If luck turned bad and a dangerous situation arose, he could use the soul fire to unleash massive firepower to escape.
For that, he needed to gather a large amount of neter this time.
While planning, Turan suddenly had an idea and touched his face.
‘It would be convenient to have a magical tool to change appearances, but I wonder if there’s any way to get one.’
Given that the existence of someone who can disguise multiple bloodline abilities is almost unknown, combining them could allow one to impersonate dozens of people.
It wouldn’t be a bad idea to look for such a treasure before heading to Arabion.
Of course, such items aren’t easily obtained just because one wants them.
Lost in thought, Turan flew for several hours.
After landing on a few islands to ask for directions, he finally arrived at Parayan Island.
Known as a source of neter, the island was a few kilometers long, with a village visible from above.
Descending to a suitable height and focusing on his sense of smell, Turan detected the peculiar odor of neter emanating from somewhere in the center of the island.
After asking Bije to land in a suitable spot, Turan walked towards the source of the smell.
Pushing through dense trees for a few minutes, he saw a cave supported by wooden beams at the base of a massive cliff.
From inside came the sound of something being struck.
‘Is this it?’
With no one guarding the mine entrance, Turan went straight in.
Soon, he saw miners extracting white ore from the walls by the light of flickering torches, their complexions and attire looking quite poor.
‘Being a miner isn’t a clean job, but this seems a bit extreme…’
Their pale faces, clothes reeking of sweat, and bruises all over their bodies.
They even had shackles on their legs.
Clearly resembling slaves, they bowed their heads in fear upon seeing Turan appear suddenly among them.
“We were working hard, overseer!”
“…Overseer?”
Turan’s puzzled expression made the miners’ faces change.
The young man before them looked quite different from the overseers they were used to.
“Are you here to supervise our work…?”
“I’m just here to buy neter. Is there someone in charge of sales here?”
“Did you come with anyone?”
“No, I came alone.”
At Turan’s answer, the miners exclaimed in fear.
“Run away! No, I don’t know how you got here, but please take me with you. Please!”
“Were you all brought here against your will?”
“We were all brought here! Those b*st*rds…”
As one miner shouted in anger, a sharp whip crack sounded from behind.
Hearing this, the miners all cowered in fear.
“Shut up! What’s with all the noise? Can’t even take a break to take a dump… huh?”
The overseer with the whip frowned in confusion upon seeing Turan.
Parayan Island was difficult to reach due to the surrounding currents, so only regular visitors usually came.
He had heard no ships arrived today, so there should be no guests. Who was this stranger?
“Who are you?”
“I’m here to buy neter.”
“I didn’t receive any notice… No, if you’re here to buy neter, why not discuss it in the village? Which pirate crew are you from?”
“I’m not from any pirate crew. But did that Cobinus guy kidnap these miners to extract neter?”
At Turan’s question, the miners looked at the overseer in shock.
The overseer, who had been glaring at the miners, forced a smile as if something had just occurred to him.
“First, where are you from…?”
“Don’t make me repeat myself.”
Turan’s sudden shift to a high-pressure attitude made the overseer tremble and nod quickly.
“Y-yes, that’s right.”
“Which clan rules this area?”
“It’s not a clan, it’s the Cobinus pirate crew!”
“Pirate crew?”
“Yes. Led by the great pirate Cobinus…”
According to the overseer’s explanation, Cobinus was the illegitimate child of a noble, a pirate mage who had terrorized the southern seas for years.
His skills were formidable, having even defeated armies sent by other clans to subdue him.
He commanded dozens of knights and warships, ruling over several islands, including Parayan.
Listening quietly, Turan pointed to the miners.
“So, that Cobinus guy kidnapped people to extract neter here?”
“Yes… Well, not just neter.”
Looking around, the carts contained a few other shiny minerals besides neter.
After all, there was no need to operate a mine just to extract a substance with little use beyond being sold as an elixir of immortality.
They likely extracted other minerals and sold neter as a side business.
Turan muttered as he looked at the poorly dressed miners.
“I don’t like this.”
It might be overstepping to interfere with how shepherds manage their sheep, but stealing someone else’s sheep was a different matter.
If they had at least treated the kidnapped miners well, it might have been different, but that wasn’t the case.
The overseer’s face turned pale upon hearing this.
“There’s a knight under his command here! Let me talk to him…”
“Thanks, but that won’t be necessary.”
Originally, Turan planned to extract neter if it was lying around, or negotiate a fair price if there was an owner, as he had done with neter before.
But seeing this situation, that thought vanished.
Paying money to kidnappers for goods? That made no sense.
Turan quietly commanded the miners.
“Everyone, come here.”
Without using any animal control magic, the miners all walked towards Turan as if entranced.
There were thirty-five in total.
Unlocking the shackles on their ankles with a lock-picking spell was not difficult.
“They’re off…”
“Thank you, thank you!”
“Please send me home, mage!”
Some marveled at the unlocked shackles, some wept in gratitude, and others clung to Turan’s pants, begging to be sent home.
Turan gently removed the hands clinging to his pants and said.
“I’ll deal with the village first, so I’ll leave this area to you.”
“Deal with…?”
“That guy.”
Pointing to the overseer, who tried to run but was easily knocked down with a simple telekinetic spell, Turan took his only weapon, the whip, and threw it aside before leaving the mine.
A desperate scream echoed from behind.
* * *
The village by the shore was an hour’s walk from the mine, but for Turan on Bije, it was right in front.
In broad daylight, the shadows of the eagle and Turan fell to the ground, and the pirates quickly noticed, pointing at the sky.
“A man on a bird! No, a man hanging from a bird…?”
“Is he a mage? Someone report to the chief!”
As the pirates panicked at the sudden appearance of a mysterious figure, Turan looked down at them and reached into his pocket.
In his hand was a handful of black powder.
“It’s my first time using this in real combat. Remember, Bije? Don’t be startled.”
Hearing Bije’s chirp of acknowledgment, Turan scattered the soul fire over the village.
Along with an ignition spell, an explosion erupted on the ground.