Chapter 53
Chapter 53
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: Resti Eleanor (4)
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Tracker, Kalt.
He was a knight who had experienced the battlefield.
It might be inaccurate to simply say he had experience. Kalt had fought alongside top-tier knights on the front lines.
He had assisted Knight Commander Heinkel.
He had assisted first-rate mages from former Mage Tower Lords.
Though his main role was support, no one questioned Kalt's necessity. No one looked down on him for being a commoner.
Kalt stood by their side solely through his own abilities. On the front lines, there was no time to worry about status. Soldiers were handled based on their utility.
And Kalt was a good soldier.
He was sharp-minded.
Quick on his feet and decisive in judgment. He possessed all the virtues needed on the battlefield. His talent as a tracker was exceptional too.
Talented individuals stand out anywhere. Especially on a battlefield where life and death hung in the balance.
—Kalt, how about I make you a proposal?
Such an opportunity coming to Kalt was only natural.
—It's not an order. You can refuse without any repercussions. It's just a proposal, after all.
It was an opportunity personally offered by Knight Commander Heinkel himself. There was no reason to refuse. Kalt accepted.
—Very well, then. I'll explain right away.
—The unit you'll be assisting this time is a bit special. Honestly, it's hardly even a unit. There are only two members.
And then.
—The Sage Raniel and the Hero Kyle.
—Your job from now on will be to assist those two.
That was where Kalt met that mage.
"Come in."
Heinkel gestured, and someone entered the tent. The man's hair was ash-gray. Beyond his sharp eyes gleamed blue irises.
"Oh."
The mage smiled.
"You're the knights' sniffer dog, right? Looking forward to working with you."
Without warning, he approached and extended his hand.
"Just call me Raniel."
That was the first meeting between the ash-gray mage, Raniel van Trias, and Kalt.
"...Sniffer dog?"
"That's what the knights called you."
"Hmm."
And at the time, Kalt was quite bold.
"So you're that virgin mage?"
"What the fuck?"
That day.
Kalt was beaten until not a speck of dust remained on his grimy leather armor.
It was the story of a certain stormy night.
2.
"Ugh..."
Kalt rubbed his side. For some reason, his flank and lower back ached more than usual today.
'...I learned that day for the first time that getting the dust beaten out of you on a rainy day really means it literally.'
It was the day he gained that new realization.
"Sniff, ahem."
Kalt rubbed the tip of his nose with the back of his hand.
Was it because he'd kept his senses on high alert for so long? His nose felt tingly.
"Hoo..."
He let out a short breath.
The exhaled air spread low across the bottom of the dim underground waterway. Kalt slowly rose to his feet.
"Urk, ugh."
The mage he'd been sitting on groaned.
Tough vitality, as expected of a traitor. Kalt stabbed his hooked dagger into the nape of the traitor's neck.
'Don't want any chanting trouble.'
He twisted the dagger's handle briefly.
Pulled out the embedded chain and wrapped it around his hand. Then yanked it like a leash.
"Mmph, urgh!"
The chain rattled with a faint clink-clink.
The spells engraved on it activated.
Silence.
Lightweight.
As expected of hound-issue gear, it performed reliably. Not even the sound of dragging across the floor. Kalt tugged the chain and moved forward.
'This is the last location.'
Kalt pulled a sealing magic tool from his pocket.
He placed the altar he'd just taken from the traitor into it. He now had four altars in total.
Two from his former superior, two he'd gathered on foot. He linked them together.
Exactly one piece remained empty.
The position of the final one was unknown.
That was by design from the start.
Besides, even with four, Kalt could recognize the pattern. It was one he could never forget.
'Thank goodness he's in the capital.'
The thought crossed his mind anew.
If the ash-gray mage weren't in the capital.
If he'd let all this slide.
If the altar had been completed that way.
Kalt imagined the scenario.
It wasn't hard. Any knight who'd seen the front lines had likely considered it at least once.
What if.
It opened in the heart of the capital, fully assembled.
"......"
Kalt gripped the chain a little tighter.
"...I should send word."
Even in the worst case, as long as the ash-gray mage was in the capital, a response would be possible. Kalt had no doubts about his skills.
Still, preparation never hurt.
Kalt took a sheet of letter paper from his pocket.
Every knight who'd served under Knight Commander Heinkel carried at least one.
Scratch.
He engraved letters with mana.
Once the sentence was complete, the letters began vanishing from the first one. A sign the recipient had read it.
Scratch, scratch.
He engraved for a while.
After a brief pause, all the letters melted away like snow.
—Confirmed.
The reply on the now-blank paper was curt.
—Sending support.
Soon, a name appeared.
Kalt confirmed it.
—Hero, Kyle Toben.
That was the only name on the paper.
Yet it felt sufficient.
"That should do it."
Kalt muttered.
2.
The facilities of the central academy were impeccably maintained.
The bed linens were always fresh as if sun-dried, and with custodians cleaning every morning, dust never accumulated.
Among such rooms, one was excessively pristine. Its owner aired it out obsessively, leaving not a trace of scent.
A room devoid of any lived-in feel.
An excessively clean room.
The girl who owned it stared at the clock.
Tick, tock.
Only the second hand made a sound.
In the silent room, it echoed loudly. Yet Resti didn't hear it.
—I will watch and judge for myself.
Another voice echoed in her ears.
—Whether you're a mage suited for that position or not.
Someone's voice kept resounding in her ears.
A firm voice echoed relentlessly.
'...This feels weird.'
Something was off.
Those words weren't particularly praising her. She'd stated flatly that she would watch and judge.
Depending on that judgment, Resti could lose everything. If that person decided she wasn't suitable...
'So, if he accepts that recommendation.'
Resti imagined what would follow.
No one would doubt that person's qualifications. Unlike her, he had the credentials.
He resembled the ash-gray mage.
His achievements over the past month alone proved his prowess.
If he wanted it.
He could take the next Mage Tower Lord position, the saintly title of Eleanor, everything that made up Resti Eleanor.
Therefore.
She should feel threatened by his words of "I'll watch and judge."
"Yet, why."
Why did those words feel so good to her?
She couldn't figure it out.
Only a pleasant flutter remained.
No, she had a vague idea.
Admitting it was just a bit embarrassing.
"......"
Resti gazed at the pen on the edge of her desk. It was the one she always carried.
—You can do it, right?
The voice of the person who had picked up her dropped pen and handed it back echoed in her ears.
She recalled that gaze full of expectation.
That gaze.
To Resti, it was utterly unfamiliar.
...Over the past three years, she'd faced countless gazes. Since ascending to next Mage Tower Lord, many had sought her out.
Each time, Resti had demonstrated her magic.
She'd shown the summoning she'd prepared for the elders and looked at them with expectant faces.
But they looked down at her with disappointment. Resti's summoning wasn't lacking. Her magic wasn't subpar.
It was just.
—Compared to him, it's nothing much.
—I thought there'd be some talent if you were to succeed him, but...
They were searching for traces of someone else in her. No one truly saw Resti.
They expected arbitrarily and despaired arbitrarily.
Each time, Resti lost a bit of her expression.
She gradually lost interest in magic.
Whatever she did, it was only compared.
"......"
No one truly saw her.
Everyone sought the ash-gray mage in her. Tormented by those gazes, now even seeing them made her nauseous.
However.
'That person.'
That one was different.
—Looks like you can handle this much.
Resti recalled the blue eyes looking at her.
—You can solve it, right?
Different.
—Impressive.
That person always saw only her.
Didn't seek the ash-gray mage in her. Smiled with interest, praised with genuine surprise.
Unfamiliar.
Because it was so unfamiliar, unfamiliar yet longed for.
Before she knew it, she was smiling.
"......"
Resti touched her mouth.
Her lips were relaxed.
...Thinking about it, it was ridiculous.
Over the past three years, she'd endured cold stares. Heard insults. Been told the position wasn't hers.
'And now.'
Motivation surged from just one sentence.
Even she thought it strange.
Moreover, that sentence was far from encouragement. It was merely "I'll judge from now on."
Not encouragement.
Not praise.
Not acknowledgment.
Just an intent to observe.
"......"
However.
"That's enough."
For Resti, it was enough.
She'd endured the past three years for just one elder who watched over her.
Now, one more gaze joined.
That was enough.
Squeeze.
Resti reached out and gripped the pen.
She got up from bed and sat at her desk.
Lit the mana lamp. Looked at the research report on the desk. Brushed off the light dirt.
She glanced at the clock.
Late night.
Sleep wouldn't come.
Scratch.
The sound of the pen nib gliding over paper swallowed the ticking clock hands.
Scratch, scratch.
The sound continued until sunrise.