Chapter 9
Chapter 9
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Prophecy and Suspicion
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Once my resolve hardened, my body relaxed.
I moved.
One step forward. He said the lower body was important. Then what about the upper body? Should it remain still? I altered my movement.
My upper body swayed gently, following my legs.
‘No, this is…’
I was being swung around by the weapon.
*Snap!*
My balance faltered, and the sword dug into the ground. Allen collapsed where he stood and began to catch his breath.
“Hahh…”
My muscles screamed in protest against the unfamiliar movements. But I couldn’t stop. This was a necessary preparation, and rationally speaking, there was no downside to improving my stamina.
“Training so hard in the morning?”
I turned to see a cascade of crimson hair swaying as she approached. How long had she been watching? My perception, limited to a single Circle of the first tier, hadn’t sensed her approach.
“Spying on someone’s training isn’t a very respectable hobby, Miss Francisca.”
My expression hardened. Even if it was just basic training…
“I wish I didn’t have to…”
She smiled, looking troubled, and pointed behind her. Looking back, I saw several soldiers gathered in the distance, holding pails.
“We need to fetch water, but since you were training, Young Master…”
“Ah.”
Seeing the soldiers, I finally understood why she had risked being rude to approach me.
Observing a noble's training without permission was an offense punishable by beheading.
But they couldn’t just wait indefinitely, not knowing when the training would end.
“…And that is why I came. Still, it was undeniably rude of me, so I should apologize.”
She bowed her head, her etiquette flawless. Stunned by her apology, Allen stood for a moment before giving an awkward nod.
“I share some of the blame, so I accept your apology.”
She wore a peculiar expression at his calm tone, then broke into a bright smile.
“Is everyone else awake? The party will be splitting up after breakfast.”
“Yes, my grandfather was up at dawn… As for that scoundrel—no, the young master—his maids are tending to his every need again today. Unlike some people…”
It was obvious who she meant, but Allen simply let it pass with a quiet smile.
“By the way, Young Master. There’s something I’m curious about. May I ask a question?”
“What is it?”
Allen sheathed his sword and turned toward the campsite. She drew close to his side. Her fingers twirled a lock of her waist-length hair.
It was obvious what she wanted to know.
“Are you curious how I achieved that much power with only a single Circle?”
“Yes! In theory, you have to increase the number of Circles to speed up the circulation of prana. Then, that rapidly flowing prana collides with other Circles, creating a resonance that increases the output…”
She recited the theory, her voice rising as if she were truly passionate about magic.
Allen listened to her without a word before cutting in.
“Is that really why you came to me?”
“Wha… Yes?”
Even now, Allen found it hard to believe that her innocent expression and wide eyes were a facade.
“Miss Francisca, you didn’t need to come here on behalf of the soldiers.”
“What do you mean? I’m part of this party…”
The campsite was bustling as soldiers woke and began packing the tents, preparing for immediate departure.
“It’s not as if my spot was the only place to fetch water. There’s no other reason you would have come to me specifically.”
Had the soldiers seen him there, they would have walked a little farther to draw water from another spot. Asking her, a mage traveling with them, would have been unthinkable.
Unless she volunteered herself.
He didn’t know why she was trying to get under his skin, but the nightmare was still fresh in his mind, and he had no desire to deal with anything else.
“Unless you were the one who offered to fetch me.”
Her footsteps began to slow.
Allen didn’t care how she reacted.
He just stated flatly.
“So… any further disrespect,”
Allen’s tone of voice changed.
From respectful to his usual manner.
“Will not be tolerated.”
*Thud.*
“….”
Her body froze.
Allen brushed past her and continued walking.
“The fact that you lied, your subtle jab at a noble, and your prying into a mage’s secrets—I will overlook it all. So do not cross the line again. Next time…”
…there won’t be one.
He let the words hang, but she would have understood his meaning well enough.
“Now, if you’ll excuse me.”
She stared at Allen’s retreating back for a moment, then asked in a tone unchanged from before.
“Young Master, may I ask just one more question?”
“You may.”
“Young Master, do you believe in prophecy?”
Prophecy… Prophecy. Ha.
Allen’s gaze fell upon the black book floating before his eyes. This book recorded the events from before his regression. Did that make it a book of prophecy?
Allen answered curtly.
“No, I do not.”
Prophecy implies a fixed future.
If that were the case, there would be no reason to act. No reason to strive when the outcome is already set. That is why I do not believe in prophecy.
“Miss Francisca, you are surprisingly naive for someone like you.”
The distance between them grew.
“Ever since the Great Collapse that brought down the church and the ancient empire, no one believes in prophecy anymore.”
If there were a god, they would not stand by and watch as I attempt to defy a predetermined future.
Her reply never came.
Leaving her far behind, Allen entered the campsite.
Did she hear my answer?
‘No, she must have heard.’
The smell of food wafted from the distance, signaling that preparations were nearly complete, and his stomach rumbled in response.
In the spot Allen had just left, Francisca stood, still smiling.
* * *
Francisca.
If one had to describe her in a single phrase, it would be simple.
‘A sinister woman.’
Her speech, actions, expressions, reactions—all were calculated and fabricated to suit the situation. The only time she was ever genuine was when she encountered a scoundrel like Julius.
It was unclear exactly why she had become this way. However, one could easily guess that a scoundrel was the cause of some past trauma.
The reason Allen knew so much about her was simple.
‘She was the granddaughter of the family’s personal mage, Prindal, but there was more…’
In the future, her bizarre antics would garner her more attention than her skills ever did. Thanks to this, the details of her past became widely known.
She had a trauma related to scoundrels.
If not for that, why would someone who had already formed four Circles at such a young age be attached to a failing county instead of heading to the Free City of Perta, the hub of the Magic Towers?
The same reason she hid her true abilities.
It was because of this that she would hone her skills and commit such bizarre acts.
She despised scoundrels. And so, she killed them.
Regardless of their circumstances, she killed every scoundrel she met without question. If she was in a good mood, she used magic. If she was in a bad mood, she beat them to death with a club.
Her bizarre crusade knew no bounds of age, gender, status, or race…
It finally culminated when she beat to death the son of the Magic Tower's Master—the very source of her trauma.
While on the run, she evaded the Master's pursuit with Julius's help, became his companion, and roamed the world.
That was all Allen knew.
He knew nothing of the events or relationships that had transpired between them.
Had this rumor not been related to Julius, he wouldn't have paid it any mind.
Allen rode his horse at a leisurely pace, glancing back.
Francisca acted as if their conversation had never happened. Only occasionally would she cast a quiet glance his way.
With her quiet, the party proceeded without incident toward Hibel, a city in the northern part of the county.
That morning, Julius and Prindal had already split off, turning northwest toward Gavia.
The one thing that had changed was that Francisca was accompanying him, not Prindal.
‘Was it to be expected?’
Before the regression, her relationship with Julius had been poor. She would openly pick fights with him, and at some point, Julius stopped holding back as well.
Naturally, the situation spiraled from one chaotic mess to another.
It was a wonder how two people who got along so poorly could later become close enough for her to help him escape the pursuit of a Magic Tower Master.
This time, Prindal had asked if Francisca could accompany him instead. Allen readily agreed, if only to place the old mage in his debt.
The party proceeded without any further interruptions. A week later, as they reached the foothills of the Mikellant Mountains…
“Is that Hibel?”
Majestic gray city walls rose into view.
Ten days after departing from the county seat.
Allen arrived in Hibel, the final city in the northern county, nestled at the border of the Mikellant Mountains.
As they drew closer to the city, a scene he had experienced once before in his past life greeted him.
“This is…”
One of the soldiers spoke without thinking. A crowd of refugees had gathered near the city walls, creating a scene of chaos.
Carts were being loaded with belongings as if in a bustling market, and the ominous, war-like atmosphere made the soldiers, who had been relaxed, tense up once more.
Francisca's expression hardened slightly. The situation was far more serious than she had been led to believe.
Allen observed them with a stoic expression.
‘I wonder if it will end without incident this time.’
When they reached the city gate, the guards waved them through without an inspection.
After stationing the soldiers at the barracks, Allen and his party were granted an immediate audience with the lord.
“Oh, you have finally arrived!”
The lord was a genial-looking, gray-haired man in his middle years. He came out to the entrance of his mansion to greet them personally, smiling as if overjoyed by their arrival.
“Thank you for the warm welcome, Baron Bellon.”
“Young Master Allen. Have your magical attainments grown even greater? You seem more remarkable than before.”
“This is nothing special.”
“And who might this be?”
After the greetings were exchanged, he began to introduce the rest of his party.