Chapter 33
Chapter 33
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: Devil's Cradle (2)
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No matter how frantically they dashed about smashing evil spawn, breaks were bound to happen now and then. During travel, meals, camp setup, and the like.
Lilia was anything but quiet, chattering nonstop during those moments, and he'd overheard the Burtain family name drop in one of those conversations.
"Weren't you the one who took on Lady Lilia's commission before? I recall hearing there was a guy named Kane or Carne or something."
"You just said Carne! Wait, you remember hearing about it?"
"Yes."
"From who?"
"From Lady Lilia, naturally. It was her commission."
"W-what did she say?"
Kane, who'd been bristling, suddenly shifted tone at Lilia's name.
What was it Myra had said earlier? Plenty of guys had approached Lilia using combat experience as an excuse.
One of them was clearly here. Galen chuckled softly.
"Among the mages she'd worked with, she said your family and skills stood out the most."
"And?"
"That's it."
"That's it? That's all?"
In truth, Galen had omitted a bit on purpose.
The context when Lilia mentioned Kane was something like, 'His family and skills were the best, but no different from the others.' Note that this comparison excluded Galen himself.
It wasn't meant positively, so Galen had filtered it out of kindness, but Kane's twisted glare suggested it was pointless.
"We were talking before you showed up."
"So it seemed."
"But when I asked about recent events, it was all about you?"
"Isn't that obvious? We spent two months together. What else would we talk about without me?"
"You little shit! Get cocky just because you stuck around longer?!"
"I'm just stating facts."
Galen ignored Kane's barking.
Sure, it might sting if the girl you're into ignores you to talk about another guy.
But who threatened to quit the commission with a sword at their throat? If he approached her to score points, he should've toughed it out with grit till the end.
And Galen couldn't fathom why Kane treated him like the guy who stole his girlfriend while he was away.
She wasn't his girlfriend, and there was no stealing—just delusions turning a fantasy love triangle into reality for a pointless jab.
That aside, though.
Kane's aggression was honestly a blessing.
So Galen felt quietly pleased instead of annoyed.
"By the way, since we're here, mind if I ask something? I just remembered another thing Lady Lilia said about you."
"...What?"
"She mentioned you shout your spell names when casting."
That was it.
The 'family mage' Lilia described—who shouted technique names not just in training but in real combat—was Kane.
"From Silver rank, you get Thought Acceleration, right? Doesn't shouting spell names in battle get tough?"
Priests had fixed miracles, so seeing a healing one marked at least priest-level.
But warrior or mage ranks weren't as obvious, leaving some ambiguity.
Still, there were clear walls demanding 'enlightenment' to pass—explaining why training time didn't always match achievement.
Galen had leveled up first, enlightenment following naturally for easy walls. Status window for the win.
Anyway, for mages, Thought Acceleration was the wall between Bronze and Silver.
It sped up brain rotation during mana use, making time feel slower relatively.
Without it, mages couldn't even fight Silver warriors, let alone faster-than-human evil spawn.
Galen had used it naturally since Water Flow Manipulation hit level 30. The exhaustion after heavy casting stemmed from that.
But Thought Acceleration only quickened thoughts, not the tongue.
For instance, by the time he thought 'Water Spirit Bullet,' moved mana, and readied it, his mouth might've barely pronounced a syllable.
At least for Galen—so he saw shouting in combat as pure flash, fine for practice but pointless otherwise.
Conveniently, the man himself was here. Galen asked seriously, wondering if there was a real reason.
Of course, Kane—who'd been glaring daggers—wouldn't play nice.
"What business of yours is how I cast?"
"None, obviously. Just curious."
"Curious? Want me to tell you?"
"As long as it's not to look cool."
"I infuse my magic with emotion, fool!"
Kane finally snapped.
"Triple Flame Blossom!"
In that instant, Galen felt an unpleasant dissonance, and time stretched for him.
Midpoint between right neck and shoulder. Above the collarbone, just over the collar.
Temperature swelled, repelling atmospheric moisture. Unnatural. Magic, obviously.
Galen raised his left hand. In slowed time, it moved slow too—but enough.
A spirit released from his wrist. Bracelet shifted to glove. Water moved far faster than Galen. Natural, really.
Whoosh!
By then, flames erupted from the spot he'd noted. One, two, three. Born in empty air, they devoured surrounding oxygen.
Galen snatched the candle-sized blaze barehanded—left, of course. The spirit pummeled it within his grip.
Sizzle!
That ended it. Suppressed before blooming. Palm stung like a spicy pepper, but whatever.
"Hm."
Galens eyes narrowed slightly. A faint smile tugged his lips.
No wonder he owed Kane one.
Galens reason for the eastern frontier: farm evil spawn endlessly for levels, priority one.
Bonus: meet other mages. He'd heard mercenaries meant mage mercenaries aplenty.
But reality? Fewer than expected, and mostly Bronze.
Silver mages—rarer than Silver warriors—shunned tough gigs like pioneering.
Terti was spot-on: no stronger mages than Galen.
'But I couldn't just grind Bronze like rats.'
Status unlock conditions: two.
Contact a secret manual, or duel another mage.
Self-taught mercenary mages wouldn't have noble secret manuals, so duels it was.
But rumors of the 'monster-strong mage with church folk' scared challengers off.
No provocateurs, and Galen wouldn't bully innocents—looked like a thug picking on weaker mages.
Plus, Lilia's hustle left no time to hunt mages.
So new magic went on hold.
Water Flow Manipulation was his mainstay anyway. Max it first, then branch out.
Here Kane was, charging in and tossing spells. How grateful?
Burtain: reputable eastern mage family. Proven quality.
Lilia's credit? Her sketchy commission rolling this far—pure luck charm.
"H-how...?"
Kane's shaky voice pierced Galens status-gazing bliss.
Looking up, Kane wore deep shock—even eclipsing jealousy and rage.
"Triple Flame Blossom didn't even activate fully. How did you know...?"
"Lady Lilia told me."
Galen said calmly.
"Burtain magic ignites and explodes flames in empty air. Doesn't seem to control the fire itself, though."
"That's not what I—! Playing dumb?!"
Kane trembled.
"You didn't overpower it with raw power! You blocked it before completion!"
"Too close to skin to ignore. Can't avoid burns otherwise."
"Don't change the subject! You... Gold rank?!"
"Silver."
"Liar! What you did was clearly—"
"Does it matter?"
Galen cut in with a smirk.
"Gold untouchable, Silver fair game?"
"Th-that's not—!"
"You'd have guessed from Lilia's stories. Or rumors. Or didn't want to believe?"
Kane fell silent. Galen snorted and pivoted.
"Anyway, back to earlier. I still don't get it."
"W-what?"
"You said shouting infuses emotion into magic. No clue what that means. Care to explain properly?"
"W-wait—"
"Water Spirit Bullet."
Galen didn't wait for the stammering Kane. Left hand extended index and middle, pointing.
A spirit-launched water blob—what Lilia wanted to call Water Flow Bullet—shot at Kane's solar plexus.
"One Shield!"
Kane yelled desperately. Flames bloomed in air, blocking the path.
Boom!
Small explosion. Water vaporized, fire snuffed—steam remained.
Kane's brief composure shattered; he bellowed.
"You mad bastard! What the hell?!"
"You started with fire out of nowhere, so I figured you liked practical demos."
"What nonsense—"
"Water Spirit Bullet."
"One Shield! You damn—"
"Water Spirit Bullet."
"One Shield! Let me—"
"Water Spirit Bullet. Water Spirit Bullet. Water Spirit Bullet."
Kane seemed to have breath, so Galen upped pace. Mouth couldn't match thoughts anyway—mere ritual.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Water and fire clashed repeatedly, steam filling the space between. Reception room grew messy from the fallout.
Finger-bullets tuned to Bronze-subduing power: one hit hurts enough to surrender.
Mages, physically average, would break bones. Barrage left Kane frantic, no mental bandwidth.
Galen? Relaxed. Spirit handled firing. Spirit Creation level alone outranked Kane. Obvious scrub—room for stray thoughts.
"Hm, still don't get it."
He'd shouted seriously to test. No difference.
Just an angry guy venting rage, shaking aim—dressing it as 'emotion infusion'?
Not like praising plants makes them grow. If voice boosted power, all'd use megaphones. Pure delusion.
Excuse anyway—irrelevant. Galen grinned.
"So try harder."
"One Shield... One Shield... One Shie...ld..."
Kane blocked Galens lazily fired shots with dying gasps.
Progress climbed steadily.