Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Complex Worldly Affairs Here Too (2)
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We scoured the entire mountain, digging up the ground everywhere.
Judging by how fierce the battle must have been, bones emerged from all over the place.
They said they'd done some cleanup after the war ended, but there were still plenty.
It couldn't be helped; they couldn't excavate every inch of the land.
We weren't allowed into the village until all the souls had been laid to rest.
"So, you're in the middle of the knight order exam, right?"
"Y-Yes!"
A young man about my age swallowed nervously.
A crowd of people had gathered around, buzzing with curiosity.
The moment I entered the village, I spread out my mat.
Since I'd started yesterday, it was already the second day.
Word had spread quite a bit, drawing a decent crowd.
Where there are many people, there are many stories.
And among them, some would surely need a shaman's help.
This young man's case was divination.
"Hmm..."
A knight order exam meant job luck.
So, I needed to check for official position fortune...
"Nope, none."
"Pardon?"
No matter how hard I looked, there was no fortune for employment.
Well, there was a faint trace, but barely.
These things usually play out like this.
"You won't pass completely."
"Th-Then?"
"You'll drop out midway."
I didn't know the exact format of the knight order exam, but making the final cut seemed unlikely.
But this boy was born diligent by nature.
He lacked exceptional luck or great fortune, but he had the fate for a decent life overall.
"Keep at it steadily, and you'll pass in a few years."
He had no employment luck, but his academic fortune was wide open.
"What you've built up so far will bear fruit. Don't chase quick results—stay persistent."
That's how his Four Pillars of Destiny read.
Everyone's probably experienced it.
Fortune-telling that sounds vague and cloudy, like grasping at air.
Except in rare cases, life flows steadily like this—that's normal.
Windfalls and disasters aren't everyday occurrences, so consistent effort is what unravels life's knots.
Suddenly, the crowd parted like the sea.
"M-Mage!"
"Knights this time too!"
"Another mage..."
A group in robes and armor pushed through the crowd.
"Ahem."
He looked like an uncle in his forties.
"You might not know me, but I'm a mage affiliated with the Tievo Barony."
The mage glared, as if demanding I hurry up and pay respects.
This uncle reeked of troublemaker from a mile away.
"They say you see the future, so let me ask a few things."
This one's probably tough to handle too...
Since I started laying out the mat for divinations, three mages had come sniffing around—besides this one.
One about an hour ago.
Another even before that.
All of them troublemakers who disrupted the readings.
The first mage had thrown a fit.
His luck was downright rotten, so I told him straight—he exploded in rage.
After that, every mage with that troublemaker vibe got summoned.
To Old Man Closel.
"If you can't answer, you'll be dragged off for insulting a mage..."
The mage's face drained of color mid-sentence.
"Gasp...! This much mana...!"
I could see mana enveloping the mage.
Pure mana incomparable to this uncle's aura.
The mage frantically scanned around, then bolted up with wide eyes.
"I-I'll come back later!"
In the direction he fled, Old Man Closel was lecturing two mages with their heads bowed low.
Should've picked his seat more carefully.
"Next customer!"
This time, a knight.
A particularly nasty-looking one.
Sly and petty.
Born lazy and authoritarian.
Lucky to have good parents, I suppose.
He'd wandered by out of curiosity, but this one wouldn't sit either.
"From the baron's direct knight order..."
He flinched.
Why do these types always boast their affiliation?
They act like it's an honor, but this knight flinched too—probably summoned.
"...Lucky peasant."
What was he planning to do to me that makes him call me lucky...
What if the old men hadn't been around?
Status wasn't as simple as I thought.
Even with mages and knights treated near-nobly acting out, commoners couldn't resist much.
That was the law here.
"Tsk tsk... Next!"
"I'm a farmer. Got some land where crops won't grow—came for that."
A large inn.
The finest in the barony, famous for it—and behind it, a ridiculous scene unfolded.
Knights and mages stood in a line, heads bowed.
They were being scolded.
And they couldn't voice a single complaint.
The two men before them were too formidable to even breathe carelessly.
They'd been stunned learning their identities.
"You're from the barony, right?"
"Yes, sir!"
A knight who seemed the group's leader answered, stealing glances.
His posture was rigid with discipline.
"Do you know who I am?"
"Yes! The hero of the Continental War, Sword Master Claus Par..."
"Enough."
Parmon cut off the knight.
"Haven't used the family name in ages—don't speak it."
"Understood, sir!"
"So, from the baron's direct knight order?"
"Yes, sir!"
"Captain's Banel now, right?"
A familiar name brightened the knight's face.
Suddenly summoned, but naming his connections should get him out unscathed.
The knight answered proudly.
"Captain Banel is my uncle."
"Oh? Your name?"
"Mavelia Calph!"
Confidence filled Calph's face.
Even the hero Parmon knew his family.
With good persuasion, he might punish that peasant for this humiliation.
"Mavelia... I remember. Railler's family."
"Y-Yes!"
Railler was Calph's grandfather.
A knight who'd made his name young in the Continental War.
Now in the imperial knight order, the man he admired most.
Calph's jaw dropped at the next words.
"That guy was such a coward—I chewed him out plenty."
"...Pardon?"
"Remember him as diligent, though."
His sky-high grandfather.
Someone who could say that to him?
Normally, it'd be grounds for a duel over insult—but impossible.
By Calph's knowledge, Parmon had been a captain when his grandfather joined the war.
"Following in his footsteps as a knight—impressive."
"Th-Thank you!"
Parmon stroked his chin, looking puzzled.
"But..."
"Yes!"
"Back in my day, we'd dive headfirst when seniors called."
"Guh...!"
"Guess knight order culture's changed?"
No room for rebuttal.
The knights' heads slammed the ground as Parmon finished.
Calph couldn't escape either.
"Heh, still the same as I remember. Any complaints?"
The knights roared in unison.
"No, sir!"
"Calph, you seem discontent."
Head to the ground, Calph felt like going mad.
Stepping up had backfired.
He bellowed till his throat tore.
"No, sir!!"
"What's no?"
"...Pardon?"
"What's no, I asked?"
Couldn't answer.
It wasn't a question expecting one.
"S-Sorry!"
"Sorry for what?"
"..."
Calph was speechless.
He cursed himself for leaning on his grandfather's name.
"No answer now?"
"S-Sorry!"
Parmon tsked, looking around.
"Think your grandfather and I defended this land so you could bully peasants?"
"No, sir!!"
A short distance away, a similar scene played out.
"4th Circle—you should still be learning."
"Yes, Lord Closel! Diligently studying without rest!"
Closel tsked at the prostrated knights.
"I don't scold so barbarically."
Sighs of relief from the mages.
They'd feared the same fate.
But Closel seemed disinclined, easing their tension.
"You say you're studying—let me quiz you on magic."
The questioned mage clenched his fist.
Nail this, and Closel's favor.
Time to prove his research.
"Ask anything—I'll answer."
"Oh?"
Closel smiled meaningfully.
"Explain the formula for the 6th Circle Explosion spell."
The mage's mouth snapped shut.
A 4th Circle explaining 6th Circle? Impossible.
Two circles apart—beyond comprehension.
"I-I'm only 4th Circle...?"
"Ah, right. Then..."
Hope flickered in the mage's eyes.
A mage like Closel would find 6th easy—must be a mistake.
Next question would match his level.
But against expectations, Closel said something else.
"Go memorize it now."
"Pardon?"
"If you can't, prepare yourself."