Chapter 33
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Translator: MJK
Chapter: 033
Chapter Title: Gratitude and Respect
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Andy opened his eyes.
"...Where am I?"
The boy muttered softly in a cracked voice.
He slowly looked around.
An unfamiliar room came into view.
Furniture that felt lived-in. Clean bedsheets. A large window in good condition.
Andy had woken up in a strange room he'd never seen before—not the small, humble inn he knew.
Where on earth was this place?
As the boy scanned his surroundings,
-Click.
the door opened, and one person entered.
It was someone Andy knew.
"Ah, you're awake, Sir Andy. Thank goodness."
"Mayor?"
"I've brought some water. Please, moisten your throat first."
The newcomer was none other than Dietrich, the mayor of the city.
Dietrich approached and offered a cup of water.
Andy took it and asked,
"Where is this place?"
"This is my residence. I brought you here on short notice for now. I hope that's alright?"
"No, thank you. I must have been sleeping on the roadside... You carried me all the way here."
Andy recalled what had happened before he fell asleep.
After the battle ended, the extreme tension released, and he had passed out from exhaustion.
He'd leaned against Kurt and lost consciousness, practically fainting.
Yet when he woke, he was in the mayor's residence.
It seemed the mayor had found him asleep by the road and brought him here.
Andy asked,
"Um... did you happen to see a wolf?"
Andy looked for Kurt first.
The white wolf that had stayed by his side while he slept.
He wondered where it had gone.
Dietrich answered the boy's question.
"If you mean that large spirit beast wolf, it left."
"It left?"
"Yes. Once people gathered, the wolf got up and headed out of the city. It was almost like it had been waiting for them. It must have... been guarding you until they arrived."
"...I see."
The white wolf, Kurt, had protected the sleeping boy but left when the city's people returned.
It must have felt he was safe now and saw no need to stay.
Andy felt a pang of regret deep down.
'I ended up parting with Kurt again. It'd be nice if he just traveled with me.'
But that would be difficult.
Kurt was a spirit beast, a creature with its own domain in nature.
For such a being to live in a human city would be tough.
Kurt had only entered the city temporarily, sensing his friend Andy's crisis.
It normally avoided cities, so traveling together would be hard in many ways.
Parting again was regrettable, but unavoidable.
'Someday we'll meet again.'
Since their fates were linked, Andy believed he'd reunite with Kurt before long.
The boy swallowed his sorrow at the farewell with that thought.
Meanwhile, the mayor gazed at the boy with a solemn expression.
'Thanks to this boy, many lives were saved.'
He had heard detailed accounts from the people and grasped what had happened.
Andy had fought the Empire's army in the southern district using magic.
He'd summoned flames to battle the troops, called a spirit beast to handle the soldiers, and fought to his limits until he collapsed, ultimately driving them off.
Thanks to him, many had survived.
If this boy hadn't stepped up... a good number of fleeing civilians would have been massacred by the Empire's forces.
He himself, captured and bound by the Empire, would have been tortured for information and killed.
The mayor—and everyone else in the city—owed their lives to the boy who repelled the Empire.
He felt profound gratitude.
And so, he said,
"Better late than never, but thank you, Sir Andy. Your efforts saved countless lives."
"...Mayor?"
He bowed deeply to express his thanks to the boy.
Andy was taken aback by the mayor's sudden gesture.
Dietrich continued, head still lowered.
"I can't offer proper compensation right now given the circumstances... but I promise, here and now, to give you the best reward within my power, sooner or later."
"..."
The mayor promised Andy a reward.
He didn't know its extent, but it wouldn't be paltry—the mayor's sincere demeanor assured that much.
Meanwhile, Dietrich thought to himself,
'I really should contact Father. To prepare a fitting reward... I'll need the family's help.'
He resolved to reach out to his estranged father.
Three days had passed since the Empire's invasion.
Andy still couldn't leave the mayor's residence.
His condition wasn't normal.
"Ugh..."
He staggered.
The boy barely crawled out of bed and steadied himself against the table.
His legs trembled uncontrollably.
His body felt weak; cold sweat soaked his back.
Andy gave a wry smile.
"Mana exhaustion... It's brutal. I never thought I'd experience it myself."
The boy was in no shape to move properly due to mana exhaustion.
Mana exhaustion—the backlash and aftereffects from depleting every drop of a mage's mana.
Mana was the power of mind and soul, strengthening the body.
Squeezing it all out left severe repercussions.
A mage who exhausted all mana suffered extreme mental and physical fatigue, even fainting in bad cases.
'...It didn't seem like much from the books, but experiencing it is something else.'
When he first learned about it, he'd just thought, "I see."
Using all your mana would naturally cause fatigue—that's how he'd understood it.
But theory and reality were worlds apart.
He hadn't expected to struggle even to twitch a finger...
The exhaustion was so intense he'd passed out right there.
According to books, aftereffects could last days to over a week.
"At least I can walk slowly now."
Fortunately, he was improving bit by bit.
Andy was recovering while resting here.
He couldn't even walk at first, but now he could manage, albeit with effort.
Step, step.
Andy carefully made his way to the window.
He peered at the scenery outside.
Gazing at the city, he muttered softly,
"What a mess."
The city wasn't a pleasant sight.
Bloodstains scattered here and there. Half-burned buildings. People heading out with carts or packs on their backs.
Three days after the invasion, folks were clearing corpses and packing to evacuate.
Now, fewer than a hundred remained in the city.
Most residents had already fled south; those left had their reasons.
Mayor Dietrich was one such person.
"Sir Andy, how's your body feeling?"
"I can walk decently now. Sorry... for keeping you from evacuating because of me..."
"No need to apologize at all. It happened because you saved everyone, didn't it? If anything, we're the sorry ones. If the city's state were better, we could've given you proper care..."
Mayor Dietrich had stayed in the city for Andy.
Waiting until the weakened boy could endure the journey.
It was risky—who knew when the Empire might return—but he wouldn't abandon the city's savior and flee.
Still, they couldn't stay forever.
"Sir Andy, it's time we left. Three days have passed; the Empire could strike anytime now."
"...You're right."
Three days since repelling the Empire.
Plenty of time for them to send more troops.
They couldn't linger.
The Empire knew they'd failed to take the city and would surely send reinforcements.
Now they knew of the mage Andy too.
Next time, knights or combat mages would come.
If that happened, it was over.
They had to escape before then.
"So, though it'll be tough... we should leave today."
Even though Andy hadn't fully recovered, the mayor gently urged evacuation.
Andy nodded readily.
"I'm not at full strength, but... I can handle it. Let's evacuate today."
Impaired body, cold weather, tight timeline.
Not ideal conditions; the journey would be grueling.
But they had to go—who knew when the Empire would return.
They prepared to evacuate.
Late afternoon.
Andy and the mayor's group, preparations complete, departed the city.
"I'm Hans, a guard. It's an honor to escort you, Mage."
"Jackson here. Just call me Jack."
The evacuation party numbered around ten.
Surviving guards from the invasion, city hall staff, coachmen, and residence maids.
"Let me help you to the carriage. This way."
Guard Hans assisted the still unsteady Andy.
He supported the boy and carefully settled him inside.
Andy, being young, was light; Hans easily lifted and laid him down gently.
Gazing at Andy in the carriage, Hans thought,
'This young boy saved everyone.'
During the Empire's invasion,
Hans had fled in disgrace.
Hundreds of Empire soldiers—no way he could fight.
He'd run to save his skin, alerting others and herding them to safety.
That was all he could do.
But the boy before him was different.
Hans had witnessed Andy fighting.
'...Incredible.'
The image was still vivid.
Andy standing alone against hundreds.
Fierce, desperate, yet noble.
He'd risked everything to buy time for the people to escape.
A high-status mage, fighting for lowly commoners!
Respect shone in Hans's eyes as he looked at Andy.
Knowing his sacrifice, Hans couldn't help but gaze at the boy with admiration, despite his youth.
And Hans wasn't the only one.
'Barely made it. All thanks to him.'
'If not for the mage...'
'Such a gracious soul.'
Everyone there looked at Andy with eyes full of gratitude and respect.
A superior mage risking his life for commoners—it moved them deeply.
Meanwhile, Andy smiled faintly.
'Their stares are a bit overwhelming. But... not a bad feeling.'
Commoners usually eyed mages with tension and fear.
They couldn't approach higher classes casually, so their gazes were never relaxed.
But these people showed no fear or tension toward Andy.
All gratitude and respect.
Suddenly, the boy realized:
He preferred receiving thanks and admiration over fearful looks.
"Alright, time to head out. Hya!"
Crack!
The coachman lightly cracked the whip, and the horses began to move slowly.
Clop, clop.
The carriage rattled along, rocking Andy side to side.
He muttered softly,
"So this is my second evacuation."
Andy turned to look outside.
The scenery shifted gradually.
From city center to outskirts, then beyond.
As the carriage moved, the small city he'd stayed in faded into the distance.
The boy murmured,
"War. When will it ever end?"
He'd left his village for the city, settled in.
But weeks later, fleeing again.
War had stolen another home.
When would it end? Only then could he settle somewhere peacefully.
The boy prayed for the war's swift close.
Clop, clop...
The carriage headed slowly south.