Shepherd Wizard (Novel) - Chapter 68
Chapter 68
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Unlike mages who learn multiple types of magic, magical beasts could only use the innate powers they awakened with initially.
Like the shadow leopard or killer rabbit Turan had encountered in the past.
There were various hypotheses about why this was the case.
Some said it was because magical beasts’ intellectual abilities and imagination were too poor, or that bloodlines specialized in physical combat couldn’t easily project magic outside their bodies, following similar principles.
Therefore, Turan had consistently taught Bije the techniques and sensations of using magic.
He believed that if magical beasts’ inability to use magic was an issue of intellectual capacity, Bije could certainly overcome this.
Even being able to use simple telekinesis or ignition magic would be incredibly convenient.
However, despite considerable time passing with little progress, he had half given up – which made this sudden display of terrifying wind magic all the more surprising.
‘How?’
After the initial shock, Turan noticed something happening within himself and focused his consciousness.
Through the soul thread connecting him to Bije, he could feel something being transmitted from his inner self to Bije.
It wasn’t something consumable like magical power or mental energy, but closer to pure ‘information.’
‘Could it be that my Storm bloodline ability is being transferred?’
As if confirming this, when Bije stopped the whirlwind, the fluctuations felt in the soul thread disappeared.
Turan stroked Bije as it landed and analyzed the new ability his bird had gained.
“You could suddenly do it after getting stronger?”
[Yes!]
“What about what I taught you before?”
[Can’t do those! Can’t make fire or move things!]
“Then can you try becoming invisible?”
After attempting for a moment, Bije tilted its head as if it couldn’t.
This meant that of Turan’s powers, it could only borrow the Storm bloodline ability, and specifically only the wind aspect that had been developed so far.
‘Was this why she said only Meisa and I were perfect matches?’
Perhaps Bije had latent talent for wind, or wind and lightning powers, which is why it only responded to nobles with compatible bloodlines.
If so, it wasn’t surprising at all that no ‘perfect match’ had appeared for it until now.
Logically, an Arabion bloodline noble would have no reason to go to the Enril Desert to buy a magical beast.
After some more experimentation, he found that Bije’s wind magic was closer to the typical innate magic unique to magical beasts.
While its precise control was inferior to human mages, its raw output and efficiency were far superior.
Watching this from the side, Solif clicked his tongue and said:
“Never release it into the wild later. If that creature develops a taste for human flesh, nothing short of a great family’s subjugation unit could catch it.”
Indeed, a black eagle with high noble-level magical power that could also control wind was literally a disaster waiting to happen.
How could anyone chase and attack something that could fly at incredible speeds while generating winds strong enough to blow away log cabins from far away?
At Solif’s words, Bije jumped up to sit on his head and started pecking him with its beak.
“Ow! What’s wrong with you, that hurts! Hey, tell it to stop!”
[I don’t eat humans! Because Turan said not to!]
After pecking several times, Bije landed and wrote those words before huffing and climbing onto the rod at Turan’s side.
While laughing at that childish display, Turan asked Solif while stroking his head:
“Have you ever heard of cases like this? Of magical beasts learning magic after birth?”
“Hmm, I have no idea…”
If even Solif, who had received specialized education as a great family’s heir, didn’t know about it, it certainly wasn’t a common occurrence.
Well, there hadn’t been anything about it in the magical beast guide either.
It might be worth asking someone knowledgeable about magical beasts in detail someday.
Or perhaps a librarian.
After analyzing this unexpected situation, they began cleaning up the battlefield.
First, Solif lit flames to burn all the corpses while Bije used wind to spread this around the fortress where the battle had taken place.
In a sense, it was a cremation of enormous scale.
Meanwhile, Turan used tracking magic to search for useful treasures in the burned fortress.
Unfortunately, the flames that had swept through the entire fortress had reached the treasure vault, melting and fusing together all the gold coins, silver coins, and various jeweled ornaments.
Since Turan’s large-capacity pocket was running low on remaining space, these went into Solif’s large-capacity backpack.
While it was much bigger than Turan’s pocket, it had a lower multiplication factor, making the total capacity similar. The Baraha nobles had thrown out all the miscellaneous items inside, leaving plenty of space.
Solif lamented that all his precious sugarcane liquor was gone.
After finishing the collection, they used tracking magic to find and remove any hair, blood, feathers, or other traces from their bodies.
This was essential since skilled Zahar nobles or those with tracking magical devices could use these as clues to pursue them.
As they finished all the cleanup, the sun rose, signaling the end of the long night.
Solif raised his hand to block the sunlight and asked:
“Stayed up all night and I’m dying of fatigue… So what’s the plan now, boss?”
Boss – that was a title he had never heard before.
It felt even more bizarre coming from a high noble who was about forty years older than him.
Without showing his feelings about this, Turan pointed to Solif’s left arm.
“First we need to fix that.”
“Ah.”
Solif looked down at his left arm, severed from the elbow, as if he had forgotten about it.
While the recovery potion called ‘Spring of Life’ couldn’t reattach the severed arm, a noble with Healer bloodline could create even missing limbs.
Though he could manage daily life using telekinesis magic, having an arm was still better than not having one.
“I know a place where we can get anonymous treatment. Don’t worry about the cost, we’ve earned plenty.”
“Where is it?”
“Arabion.”
Initially, he had considered asking Rida of Ravitas for treatment, but there was the problem of not knowing where she normally resided.
Surely she wouldn’t always stay by the hot springs, and if she was at the Ravitas main house, they would have to reveal their identities and draw attention to call her out… Considering that the southern seas near the Siraf Marsh might be within Baraha family’s search range, rather than exposing their movements that way, it would be better to quietly recruit a noble with Healer bloodline through Berk family connections in the distant Dakein Plains.
“Ah, the one in the northwest? No wonder you could fly – you’re an Arabion noble? And you stole the stealth magic by killing a Zahar noble?”
“No, that’s an innate ability… I’m mixed-blood, if I have to say.”
Solif’s face hardened at the words “mixed-blood.”
Usually just meaning born between two houses, but hadn’t Turan already shown abilities from both houses?
“You mean bloodline fusion?”
“That’s right.”
Solif was briefly speechless before quietly asking if it was three.
Guessing he meant the number of bloodline abilities, Turan nodded and answered.
“For now.”
“What does that mean?”
“With four bloodlines, they seem to unlock one by one as magical power increases. I’m on the third now. Still can’t use lightning.”
At Turan’s explanation, Solif’s jaw dropped before he looked at the sky and lamented.
Four bloodline abilities – this was a monster that couldn’t be found even searching through historical records.
“What an unfairly messed up world.”
“Being born as a great family’s heir would already seem like a blessed life to others.”
Though not wrong, hearing those words from a monster born with four bloodline abilities was quite irritating.
Turan ignored Solif’s expression of dying from anger and focused on his task.
Specifically, making tools for riding Bije.
“Will this be okay?”
“Well, it looks a bit precarious, but it’s not like we’ll die if it breaks…”
What they made was a kind of swing using ropes and wooden planks, too simple in design to guarantee rider safety.
While anyone without considerable guts would find it difficult to ride, neither of them would be hurt from falling from the sky anyway, so it didn’t matter.
Shortly after, when the two awkwardly sat on the swing, Bije took off with ropes tied to its legs.
The swing lifted off with creaking sounds.
“Whoa…”
Solif, experiencing flight for the first time, exclaimed at the sight of the ground becoming tiny below.
Come to think of it, Turan had felt similar when he first flew in the Enril Desert, so there was no reason to mock him.
While flying in the sky on the swing, Turan looked back.
Binatu Island, where countless people had died the previous night, looked peaceful as if nothing had happened.
Thanks to absorbing such massive magical power, Bije could now fly faster than before even while carrying an extra person and the riding swing.
It could even increase speed further by using wind magic to create air currents, but this made the swing creak and groan in protest against the wind resistance, requiring some speed moderation.
The cumbersome swing did have one advantage – it left both hands free for various tasks.
Like eating dried bread and fish jerky for meals.
While dining in the sky, Turan told Solif about the god’s end as promised.
“The North Sea…”
“Yes. The mirror that supposedly connects the two seas might be around there. Since they were divine beings, they may have fought for a while after emerging from the mirror before meeting their end.”
When Turan additionally revealed that the god had left behind the Imitator holy relic, Solif showed a very complex expression.
It definitely didn’t look like someone happy to discover the truth they’d been seeking.
“I thought you’d be pleased to know this?”
“Ah… how should I put it, maybe that the mystery was solved too easily? I am happy, but…”
Turan could somewhat understand what he meant.
Originally, Solif had been searching not because he had some grand goal, but because he enjoyed the adventure itself.
In that context, being handed the answer so directly probably felt more empty than joyful.
“Not everything has been revealed yet. We still don’t know why that god had to fight alone there instead of cooperating with other Freya divine tribe members, or why they didn’t leave proper historical traces. Above all, we should at least learn their name.”
“True, that would be worth investigating. I’d like to visit where the remains are someday too, could you guide me there?”
“When time allows.”
Afterwards, they chatted about various adventures Turan had experienced, though Solif never asked about Turan’s birth.
Though he was from distant eastern Baraha, knowing how hostile Arabion and Zahar were, he guessed that process hadn’t been particularly peaceful.
Turan also somewhat guessed at this misunderstanding but didn’t bother correcting it.
After all, even he wasn’t entirely certain about things like his father’s identity.
There would be chances to discuss it later while investigating further anyway.
Still, feeling he should explain his current situation and position, Turan clarified that he didn’t have particularly deep ties with House Arabion.
Just that he was friends with the next head Meisa and a benefactor to their vassal House Berk.
After chatting thus while flying northwest for several hours, land finally came into view.
Judging by the dense forests inland from the beach, this was clearly the Western Forest region where Dark Elves once rampaged.
“Good, looks like we’ve bypassed the Enril Desert.”
Based on conversations during the recent battle, there was likely some agreement between Houses Zahar and Baraha regarding Solif’s capture.
It was better to avoid contact with the Enril Desert region if possible.
While dismounting from the swing for rest, Solif remarked with a sigh:
“You really travel easily, don’t you?”
Such words were inevitable since they’d instantly covered a distance that would have taken at least one to two weeks by ship.
While stroking Bije’s head, Turan replied:
“Until recently, I also walked and took ships everywhere. You could just get a companion like Bije yourself.”
“That’s not so easy. If only it hadn’t been stolen…”
“I don’t think I was the one who had first choice in that matter.”
“Ugh.”
While flying magical beasts were common, ones like Bije that were small enough to conveniently carry around, well-trained, and powerful were rare… Even when Turan had bought it cheaply before, it was because of its pickiness about owners, not its original price which was much higher.
After having dinner on the beach and sleeping, they traveled north the next day riding the swing like before.
They passed the road where he had once traveled west from Kalamaf, and the path he had taken with Asiz.
“We’re getting close.”
“Really? Thank goodness, this swing was feeling a bit precarious- AHHH!”
There was a small accident where the swing broke under wind pressure and Solif fell, but fortunately he only slightly sprained his ankle.
Learning from past mistakes, they made a slightly better swing and flew for half a day more until finally seeing the Dakein Plains.
“Now we’ve really arrived.”
“Please land gently this time.”
Unlike the past when golden wheat swayed, the plains were now green with spring barley growing.
Turan and Solif landed in a relatively unpopulated area, stored the swing, and proceeded on foot.
“This is so different from the Enril Desert!”
“Well, that place is quite barren.”
“True. I heard Arabion’s crops used to be traded through there in the old days…”
While land trade usually couldn’t match sea trade in volume, for mage families, land routes were actually far more advantageous.
This was because they could use tamed large magical beasts to operate enormous wagons.
Such merchant caravans would travel between Arabion and Zahar along the old imperial roads every few years.
Now after the bloodshed between the two houses, that seemed like a dream.
Thanks to remembering the route Asiz had guided him on before, Turan smoothly reached Zabilin City, House Berk’s territory, after walking for half a day.
He recognized a familiar face among the knights at the city walls.
“Oh, Lord Turan?”
“Long time no see, Bin. Is Asiz well?”
“Of course! The young master will be delighted. And this person with you is…?”
“A friend I made while traveling.”
After hearing this, Knight Bin of House Berk didn’t inquire further about Solif’s identity and let them in.
After all, this was the benefactor and friend of young master Asiz who had been treated as an honored guest for the past month.
The black eagle at his side must just be some pet.
Entering Zabilin City smoothly, Turan felt a strange sense of comfort seeing the familiar cityscape.
Memories of those good times came flooding back, seeing restaurants where he’d eaten delicious food with Asiz and theaters they’d visited.
When they reached House Berk’s palace in the inner city, Asiz came running out upon hearing the news and welcomed him with open arms.
“Turan, my friend! Living outside wasn’t easy, right? I knew you’d be back soon!”
“Yes, it really wasn’t easy at all.”
Imagining what expression Asiz would make if he knew all the adventures he’d been through, Turan embraced his friend he hadn’t seen in so long.
Though he’d only stayed here for a month and wandered outside for just a few months, it felt like returning home after a long journey.