Chapter 62
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: Countess Bella Soders (5)
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'That was close.'
Monitoring Bella Soders's every move meticulously had been a wise decision. It was surveillance I'd set up out of excessive caution in case she noticed the suggestions, but it ended up being a huge help.
'Good thing I came looking for her myself when I heard she'd slipped out without escorts.'
She must have thought she'd gotten away without anyone noticing, but the household servants had been watching her tirelessly in shifts, without a single gap.
It was a relief I'd been able to rescue her in time. The thought that all my efforts from the past could have gone to waste nearly made my blood boil.
'What the hell is this guy's deal...?'
These wolves weren't naturally occurring beasts. In this land where all life was blessed by mana, powerful magical beasts could emerge rarely, but it was possible.
But this case was different.
'Weaponized wolves...'
The wolves that had been chasing the deer herd shared one common trait on their hides.
Engravings that repelled mana were branded into their fur like stamps.
They were monsters artificially created by someone.
The engravings were hidden among their silver fur, so from a distance, they looked like ordinary wolves. But if they got close to a mage, they would be incredibly lethal.
It might even have been an assassination attempt targeting my mother. The purpose was still unclear, though.
'Better to eliminate any variables.'
The wolves with those engravings had brushed off my mother's will-o'-the-wisps like they were mere match flames.
'That's some high-level anti-mana engraving.'
A black mage capable of handling engravings like this could pose a threat to the territory's people.
I needed to take out this black mage as soon as possible.
'And if luck's on my side... I might snag some mana stones I've been short on.'
Using the phonograph to apply suggestions to Bella Soders was incredibly convenient, but it had one major drawback.
A power that infused mana into language to impose one's will—the pinnacle of [Word Sorcery] required an enormous amount of mana stones to replicate through the phonograph.
It was already inefficient to begin with, yet the phonograph demanded dozens of times more mana.
As with any mage's consumables, it was an expenditure that strained even the finances of a count's second son.
'Mana engravings definitely require mana stones...' I recalled the worldview knowledge I'd been injected with.
If this black mage relied heavily on mana engravings as I suspected, I could obtain the mana stones I lacked.
The black mage had to die.
"Absolutely not, Lian."
My mother looked at me with an icy expression and stated firmly in no uncertain terms.
"Why not, Mother! You saw it yourself!"
"Think about it, Lian... If what you say is true, there might be a powerful black mage involved. How could I let you go?"
"...As a member of the Soders family, I have a duty to protect the family and the territory. A sacred duty!"
"...Couldn't the Soders Knights just send some knights?" My mother said with a weary hand over her face.
"My brother dismissed it as my overactive imagination."
I poured out my grievances to her in a gloomy voice with a downcast expression.
"He said I have no idea how big a deal it is to mobilize the knights even once and humiliated me."
"But surely... those wolf hides...!"
"He said they aren't admissible as evidence."
"No way..." My mother's fingertips trembled in bewilderment.
As the second son, I had no 'official' authority to mobilize the knights.
Likewise, my mother, who wasn't the official wife, lacked the authority to do so as well.
All she could do was request an investigation.
And that request had been neatly ignored, just as I'd intended.
"I know full well that investigating this incident alone is quite reckless and dangerous..."
"But right now, even as we hesitate... something horrific might be growing beyond that forest."
Acting the part of a noble youth brimming with vigor and a sense of justice, I amplified her anxiety.
"This isn't youthful recklessness. I have to go, Mother."
Bella grabbed the hem of my clothes as I turned to leave with a resolute expression, her delicate hand trembling.
"...I can't let you go alone."
She said to me in a quivering voice.
"I'll go with you."
'Perfect...' I flashed a vile smile she couldn't see and replied.
"It could be dangerous, Mother. The investigation should be just me—"
"Enough! I won't hear any arguments, Lian."
Her blue eyes sparkled with firm resolve as she declared.
"Sending you off alone is out of the question. Besides, I can more than handle the role of one adventurer."
[Party has been formed]
"Let's take a short break."
Her claim that she could handle the role of one adventurer wasn't empty talk.
She was a versatile mage who'd honed her magic for many years.
As she gained real combat experience, she dispatched the wolves faster and more skillfully.
"How are they just... getting more numerous? Lian."
She said, flipping over a flattened wolf corpse with the tip of her boot.
The anti-mana engravings scattered mana, but they couldn't alter phenomena already triggered by mana.
The wolves were helpless against the barrage of rocks she'd hurled with telekinesis.
There were times when a strong, swift alpha wolf closed in, but none crossed my blade.
"We're getting closer to whoever's making these wolves."
The wolf attacks grew more frequent the nearer we got to what I presumed was the black mage's base.
"Still... hmm, looks like this is as far as we go today." She clicked her tongue in regret.
It had been quite some time since we'd left the territory, and dusk was already falling. Pressing on through pitch-black darkness where we couldn't see an inch ahead was too risky.
Deciding we needed rest for tomorrow, Bella and I set up a simple camp.
Two mages skilled in telekinesis could whip up a decent camp in seconds.
"Impressive."
"Hmph, basic mage etiquette. Think you could stack these stones so neatly?"
Thanks to the efforts of us two mages, a cozy campsite was ready in no time.
We sat huddled together by the crackling campfire of dry wood, silently staring into the flames.
She gazed vacantly at the dancing fire for a long while before hesitantly speaking up.
"...When I was little, I used to imagine this sort of thing."
"What kind of imagination?"
"Becoming a mage, going on adventures with a dashing hero, defeating evil villains, and becoming a grand hero..."
She continued, gazing at the flickering flames with a dreamy expression.
"I thought I'd given up all those dreams, but actually doing something adventure-like with you, Lian..."
Leaning her face on my shoulder, Bella said.
"It's making my heart race so much... hee hee."
She was utterly adorable, shyly admitting how much fun the adventure was. With her youthful mid-20s appearance despite being in her 30s, Bella was thoroughly enjoying this belated adventure.
As the warm flames thawed her body, fatigue seemed to creep in, her eyelids fluttering.
Watching her, I used [Word Sorcery] on her.
"Ngh...?" Her strong mind resisted briefly, but it soon accepted my all-too-familiar word sorcery.
And why not? She fell asleep every night to my word sorcery as background music.
"[Fall into a deeper sleep, Mother]"
Mana flowed smoothly like water, plunging her into deeper unconsciousness and lulling her into peaceful slumber.
To her deeply sleeping form, I whispered repeatedly into her ear, implanting suggestions.
"[Adventuring with my son brings me immense joy.]"
"[Granting my son's requests for a fun adventure is only natural.]"
"[Every time I grant my son's requests, satisfaction and happiness fill me up.]"
Until it was time to switch night watch, I repeated them, embedding the suggestions firmly in her mind.
"Lian.... really...!"
The adventure with Lian was fun, but goodness... I never knew he was such a spoiled brat.
Back at the castle, he'd held back, but now he kept making these unforgivable requests?
Of course, I understood that adventuring is incredibly grueling and stressful.
Chasing after who-knows-where this black mage is, fighting wolves every few hours—it's exhausting work.
Because I understood that, I couldn't refuse any of Lian's requests.
"Haa... just touch them already..."
"Only your breasts, just the breasts, I allowed...!"
Wanting to touch his mother's breasts. What kind of absurd demand is this?
...But I do feel partly responsible for why Lian's making these weird requests.
I didn't give young Lian enough love, so this strange fixation on my breasts must be a backlash from that.
It's like an unresolved childhood obsession.
Plus, during 'magic lessons,' I thought any reward was fine, but letting him touch my body freely must have been too much stimulation for the boy.
Having received such provocative rewards... it's only natural they stuck in his memory.
"I thought once we returned to the castle, this would never happen again...!" I laid down the law firmly, drawing a clear line.
I made it crystal clear this was a one-time allowance.
I couldn't let him think he could get anything by forcing me.
Lian hugged me from behind, fondling my breasts with both hands.
"Lian, gently.... You have to touch breasts carefully...♥"
"I'm sorry, Mother."
Following the utmost etiquette a cultured noble youth could show his mother, he silenced my lips with his as he apologized, so I couldn't even ask him not to torment my nipples.
I'm glad he's grown into an adult who can apologize politely while tangling tongues, but it meant I couldn't say a word while receiving his apology.
I couldn't make requests like 'stop rubbing that weird thing on my butt' or 'stop kneading my breasts like that.'
Feeling Lian's massive thing pressing against my butt... once again, I felt a desire no mother should feel surging up.
The thick rod's heat seeped through the fabric, making me feel strangely aroused.
Next time, I vowed to tell Lian about this first, but for now, I let him enjoy my breasts to his heart's content.
Only after he'd obsessively caressed me until my embarrassing place grew a little wet did Lian finally pull away, satisfied.
Seeing his satisfied expression made the bizarre, disconcerting acts from moments ago feel utterly natural.
I even overlooked Lian's rude words praising the feel of my breasts, floating on a strange wave of happiness and fulfillment.
If I think of it as a reward for my hardworking Lian, isn't it something I can give even if it pushes things a bit?
"Next time, don't expect this kind of reward for just catching a few wolves."
I declared to him in a cold voice. I felt it was morally wrong to give him such immoral rewards anymore.
...But if he catches something greater than wolves.
If we succeed in our original goal and wipe out the black mage's lair...
Then it can't be helped...♥
Really, this spoiled child has me worrying from the morning already...♥