Chapter 37: The Attack
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 37: The Attack
Thwack. My fist slammed into his unprotected jaw. The blow, so precise it surprised even me, rattled his brain.
A fist enhanced with magic power was strong enough to shatter boulders, so I knew a mere human couldn't possibly be fine after taking a hit like that.
But still, even so…
‘Why did he go down in one punch?’
I let out a hollow laugh as I looked down at the homeless man, knocked out by a single blow. I never expected him to be taken down so easily. I’d sensed magic power from him, and he was built like a tank.
He had been completely off guard, and my attack had been so perfect it startled even me.
It was a miracle born from a combination of various factors.
“…Should we bolt?”
“Might as well.”
People around us were starting to sneak glances our way. Beating up a begging homeless man might not be unheard of, but anyone who resorts to violence on the street in broad daylight is bound to be seen as a thug or a punk.
The citizens must have thought the same, as they cautiously began to slip away, keeping an eye on me. They probably didn't want to get caught up in any trouble. Someone might have even gone to call the guards.
A few guards showing up wouldn't be enough to catch me, but just in case—I left the scene.
It was late afternoon, the sun slowly setting, when the man finally opened his eyes and realized he'd been knocked unconscious by a punch.
It was unbelievable. Not because he possessed magic power, or because he was tall enough to be considered a giant by this world's standards.
The man immediately got up and headed for a nearby back alley. As dusk fell—the hour of the dog and the wolf.
A group of delinquents, looking for prey, spotted the man and slowly approached. Some might be intimidated by his massive frame, but no one would be scared if its owner was just a shabby homeless man.
“What's this now? You here to beg? Piss off. There's nothing for you back here.”
“Stab me.”
“What? What’d you say? This bastard's lost his…”
Just as Yohan had done to him earlier, the man threw a punch and knocked one of them out cold. Seeing this, the other delinquents quickly drew their weapons.
They had learned through countless experiences that you couldn't survive in these rough back alleys just by being good with your fists. Their bodies, trained by experience, swung their weapons at the man instinctively.
The weapons, swung without a moment's thought, were difficult to dodge, but the man didn't even try. There was no need.
Thud.
“Huh? Wh-what? Why is it…”
“What are you doing?”
The weapons the delinquents swung stopped in mid-air, just before they could touch the man's body. Just as he thought, his curse was still active.
Having confirmed this, the man, as if he had no more business with them, took down all the delinquents with his bare hands.
Then, he recalled the earlier situation.
‘How did he get through my curse? Was it because he only hit me hard enough not to kill me, so the curse didn't activate?’
This was a curse that could even stop an insect bite. He knew that couldn't be the reason. Then could it be the power of the witch who was with that guy?
That was a very high possibility. After all, weren't witches known for being born with unpredictable powers that could manifest in countless ways depending on their application?
As someone who had lived by a witch's side for over a decade, he knew this fact all too well.
“In that case… I can finally go and meet her.”
The man, Ludwig, said this as he picked up one of the delinquents' weapons. Then, he began to cut his long beard and hair, as if tearing them off.
After he was done grooming himself, a warrior with handsome features—though still messy—was revealed.
“Wait for me. I'm coming for you.”
With those words, Ludwig began to wander the city in search of the man who had knocked him out.
My Teacher, who had promised never to use hypnosis or mind control on me again, would still cling to me and sniff all over my body whenever I returned from the city, as if inspecting me to see if I'd been fooling around with other women.
She couldn't do anything to me anyway, but the way she'd look up at me with relief when she didn't smell another woman's scent was just so cute.
‘My erection won't go down…’
I awkwardly adjusted my trousers, sat down, and started cooking with the ingredients I'd bought. Now that I was going to the city regularly, we could have eaten out, but for some reason, my Teacher never touched food made by other people.
When I saw this and asked her why…
“Well, because food made by other people doesn't taste good, obviously?”
“Ah…”
“Besides… I want to eat the food you make, Yohan. I don't care what other people make or what they offer me.”
Hearing that, I nodded in agreement. As long as we had the magical, homemade seasonings the witch made, the difference between our food and food made by others was as vast as the difference between medieval and modern cuisine.
Once you get used to that taste, you'd probably find any other food too bland to eat. Even the king of this country probably eats food that tastes worse than my Teacher's.
“Oh, right. Teacher, earlier in the city…”
As we ate, I continued with some trivial talk. Things like how the weather was nice today, how a bug had eaten some of the fruit, or how I saw a man with magic power on the street.
As expected of a witch, my Teacher showed interest in the fact that there was another man besides me with magic power.
“—Really? Who was it?”
“A tall man. He was living like a homeless person… For someone with magic power, he went down way too easily…”
“Hmm. What did Ritz say?”
“She said it's possible to have magic power if you've received magic from another witch.”
“Ah, so it's that type.”
But after a few more questions, my Teacher seemed to lose interest and turned her gaze back to her food. Stabbing at a buttered potato with her fork, she casually offered her opinion.
“That's not a man who has magic power. It's just a witch's magic power residing in him. Our Yohan, who can generate his own magic, is much more amazing.”
“Ah, yes… Thank you.”
“Still, it's strange. It's rare for a witch to continuously cast magic on a man.”
“Is that so?”
“Yep. As you can see from me… the race of witches has no need to rely on men, and in many cases, they can't even if they want to.”
“Huh… really? That's weird. If other witches are even a fraction as pretty as you, Teacher, it'd be normal for men to be all over them.”
“Ehehe, you think so? Anyway—it's very rare for a witch to continuously cast magic on a man like that.”
“What are they?”
“Either she really hates the man and put a curse on him, or if not that…”
…she cast a spell on him because she loves him too much.
My Teacher said, looking at me.
I tilted my head and looked back at her.
“…Haaah, yeah. Never mind. You just keep living like that forever, Yohan.”
“Huh? What's that all of a sudden…?”
“Aah, I'm full. Thanks for the meal, Yohan. Can you handle the cleanup?”
“Ah, yes.”
My Teacher, seemingly displeased about something, stomped back to her room. Margaret, who had been watching silently from the side, let out a deep, pathetic sigh.
Not understanding why she was sighing, I looked at Margaret, and she stared back at me as if asking, ‘Are you for real?’
“Sigh. Disciple. You really don't get it?”
“…What was the problem?”
“Fine, just live in ignorance. It's better that way. If you ever figured it out, I wonder if you'd even be able to lift your head from the embarrassment.”
With that, Margaret also went into her room. Watching the two witches disappear in an instant, I could only tilt my head, completely clueless.
After that, I continued to travel to and from the city, enjoying civilized life. I stopped by a gambling den and used Margaret to cheat, and I also saw more witch followers being brutally executed.
I got pickpocketed, chased the thief down and wiped out their gang, got spotted by the guards and had to run for it, and even had the whole thing smoothed over by a lucky encounter with Elesis.
I ran into nobles on the street, saw the knights that accompanied them, and even visited the kind of dessert shops such nobles would frequent.
The frequency of monsters rampaging in the forest was starting to decrease, so I figured today would be my last day of city life.
Just as I was thinking that.
“Finally, I found you.”
A huge man I'd never seen before blocked my path. Seeing his towering height and handsome features, I flinched in spite of myself. There probably wasn't a single person who wouldn't be intimidated by his looks.
His looks were so striking they made every other man nearby seem utterly hideous by comparison.
I took a careful step back, trying to avoid getting too close to his face, but the man closed the distance I'd made and stood before me.
“I've been looking for you.”
“…Who are you?”
“Have you forgotten me?”
As he spoke, the man shot his fist out as fast as a flash of light. Only then did I realize that the man standing before me was the same homeless man I had punched a few weeks ago.
Recalling his previous shabby appearance, he looked so different it was hard to believe they were the same person.
I slipped back to dodge the punch and asked the man,
“What is this all of a sudden…?”
“I've come to ask a favor.”
“A favor? What kind of—”
“There's a witch by your side, isn't there?”
“…Yeah, well.”
I glanced around, checking to see if anyone else could hear our conversation. Fortunately, perhaps because it was late, there wasn't a single person on the street.
Hearing my answer, the man drew a sharp sword from behind his back.
“Ask your witch. To kill me.”
“What are you talking…?”
“No, you said she's by your side, right? Then there's no need to ask. Witch—are you watching? If you don't kill me right now—I'll kill this one.”
With that, the man charged at me. A slash as fast as a beam of light. A speed so immense I couldn't even react, let alone dodge.
Certain I was about to be cut, I squeezed my eyes shut, only to feel my body being pulled backward.
When I opened my eyes, I realized I had been moved back along with Margaret.
Seeing me teleported back in an instant, the man smiled as if pleased.
“Try and kill me. Quickly.”
Finishing his words, the man charged again.