An Unexpected Connection
After returning to his room, Lawrence tidied the desk.
He lit the lamp and pushed up the wooden window.
The street below had fallen into darkness, but the lamps were still twinkling.
A cool breeze. Stars glittering beautifully in the night sky.
Nights in Mistra were peaceful.
The busy streets there felt unlike any scenery he had ever seen before.
His first impression of Mistra was that it was a city where one could live well.
There was nothing like the extreme darkness of Rombamel.
Nor was the peace and order poor, nor were the people unfriendly.
The prices were a little high, which did bother him, but if he could live in a city like this, it was a risk worth taking.
If he ever settled down, wouldn’t this be the kind of place to choose?
Though, he had no idea how much money it would take to buy a house.
To be honest, it was never something he had seriously thought about.
Lawrence brushed away those stray thoughts and sat down in the chair.
The magic book resting on the desk was Wind, bought at a magic shop.
He opened the reading primer Lurizisa had given him and began to read.
Compared to Water, Wind was much easier to get through.
It wasn’t as though the two shared many overlapping words, or that their contents were especially similar.
And yet, for some reason, he understood it faster.
A few words tripped him up here and there, but even those he could infer from the surrounding context.
Perhaps the time he had spent reading Water until recently was paying off.
Whenever he came across a word he couldn’t make out, he still had to check Lurizisa’s primer, but those cases were few enough that his pace of deciphering the book could hardly be called slow.
The lamplight flickered uneasily.
Lawrence tore his eyes away from the magic book and stretched.
How much time had passed?
He glanced out the window and saw that a faint wash of light was already seeping in.
Only then did he realize how sore his eyes felt.
He had concentrated so hard that dawn had come and gone before he knew it.
He had gotten through roughly a quarter of the book.
He hadn’t expected to read this much on the very first day.
Compared to Water, which he had once been unable even to interpret, much less read, it was a remarkable result.
Of course, he had only read it.
He had no idea how much more he would need to see before he truly understood it.
As he thought about it carefully, he realized the difference might lie in the mental images behind Water and Wind.
Water had been something shapeless to him until he reached Frang Village and finally saw the sea, giving the spell a concrete image to cling to. Wind, on the other hand, had already settled into a clear shape in his mind without any effort at all.
The experience of flying freely through the sky.
The dreamscape Veles had shown him had been wind itself.
As long as that image remained so vividly carved into him, learning wind attribute magic shouldn’t be difficult.
Lawrence closed the book and headed for the bed.
For now, he should get some sleep and think later.
The body worn down by travel and fatigue was soon swallowed by sleep.
* * *
When Lawrence opened his eyes, darkness had already settled in.
After checking the time, he found he had slept for a full half day.
It didn’t feel as though all his fatigue had been shaken off.
Soaked in drowsiness, his body actually felt heavier than before.
He forced himself up, went down to the first floor, and ordered dinner.
Once again, the minstrel was singing in her usual place.
Perhaps because he had come down late, the area around her was packed so tightly there was scarcely room to stand. He had no choice but to find a spot as near as he could manage.
Fortunately, the patrons who were focused on the song were unusually quiet tonight.
The song, accompanied by the lute, was the tale of Margaret he had heard last night.
“In the monastery, there were many nuns in circumstances much like hers. Ohhh. And the poor Margaret soon realized it too: this was a prison called a monastery. A prison where all one could do was wait for the day of death.”
Surprisingly, the lyrics were different from last night’s.
Even the tone of the lute. The rhythm. The beat. Everything was different from yesterday.
Though it was a story he was hearing for the second time, there was still a freshness to it, something that reached his chest.
He thought he understood a little now why Cedric had said adaptation mattered so much when singing.
No story could ever be exactly the same.
The better the minstrel was, the more entertaining even a tale heard once before could become.
“Didn’t we have a monastery here too? I’m sure the name was….”
“Anatacio Monastery. It’s up on that hill over there.”
“Right? Then the monastery in our city might have some noble girl like Margaret who was cast out too.”
“Who knows? It’s just a song. It’s not the same as real life.”
“Nonsense, man. Songs are based on reality.”
When the song ended, the patrons began offering their thoughts one by one.
And with that, copper coins piled high into the minstrel’s hat.
Compared with last night, there were easily four or five times as many tips.
A soft smile touched her lips as she bowed her head.
“I’ve seen sisters now and then, but none of them looked like noble girls like Margaret.”
“Of course they’re different, man. There are two kinds of sisters.”
The man raised his voice, as if he wanted everyone to hear him clearly.
“The sisters we know are called Sisters. They can move freely outside, and they aren’t restricted in what they do. On the other hand, the kind of sister Margaret is, is called a Nun. They’re ladies who spend their entire lives inside the monastery. Literally until the day they die.”
“What, then there might be nuns like Margaret at Anatacio Monastery too?”
“It’d be stranger if there weren’t. How many people disappear without a trace? And if you’re talking about nobles, they’d be even worse than us, if not better. Not worse.”
“Heh… To think you could be locked away in some little monastery for your whole life. Nobles really do have a hard time living comfortably.”
In other words, they were saying there were children you couldn’t kill, but also couldn’t allow to live freely, so they were sent to a monastery.
A kind of exile.
He hadn’t visited any monastery like that himself, but from what he was hearing, Anatacio Monastery was apparently used for exactly that purpose.
So, perhaps those who had lived their lives in comfort were the most ruthless after all.
After finishing his meal, Lawrence dropped a tip into the minstrel’s hat.
* * *
The week he spent in Mistra passed in the blink of an eye.
Since he had devoted himself to recovering his body, the weariness of travel was neatly shaken off.
He had also made substantial progress in interpreting Wind.
He had not only succeeded in reading through it once from start to finish, but was now focusing on the parts he still did not understand.
One step.
Just one more step, and Wind felt like it would finally come into his grasp.
But the shape flickering in his mind had not yet fully taken form.
On the day they were to leave for the escort request, Lawrence left the inn early in the morning and headed for the mercenary guild.
Even at that hour, the streets were already full of pedestrians.
Shopkeepers greeting one another as they opened their doors one by one.
Soldiers who had patrolled the streets all night warmed themselves with hot drinks.
At this hour, it would not have been strange to see drunken stragglers sprawled in the alleys.
Yet the fact that not even that sight appeared spoke to how exceptional Mistra’s public order was.
In front of the mercenary guild, mercenaries were gathered in small groups.
Some were huddled together smoking rolled cigarettes, while clients who looked like carriage owners were deep in conversation with them.
Lawrence spotted a familiar-looking back among them and called out.
“It’s been a while, Lionel.”
Even from a distance, that imposing frame was unmistakable.
Lionel turned around.
Though several years had passed, his face had not changed in the slightest.
Only the head that had once seemed so far away now felt much closer.
It wasn’t that Lionel had gotten shorter.
Over the past few years, Lawrence had simply grown much taller.
“Hm? Do I know you?”
Seeing Lawrence, he frowned slightly.
“Of course. I’m not sure whether you’ve been traveling with that talkative mercenary since then, though. I’m not nearly as talkative as you, Lionel.”
“Ah! Could you be the one from Horos Village?”
He seemed to remember.
“I’m Lawrence. I’m glad you’ve been well.”
“Hah! Well, if it isn’t you! Yes, now I remember. You’re the mercenary who ordered milk, aren’t you?”
He draped an arm over Lawrence’s shoulder and burst into a cheerful laugh.
“Back then you were just a little sprout, but now you’ve grown a lot. No wonder I didn’t recognize you. My apologies.”
“Not at all. I never expected to run into you here either. Until I actually came, I was even worried I might just be hearing the name of some stranger who happened to have the same one.”
“Hm. My name isn’t all that common. If I’d known this would happen, I should’ve asked the guild who had taken the request.”
Lionel’s mouth curved up. “I was a bit busy, you know.”
“So, are you twenty now as well?”
“I’m sorry I lied about my age back then.”
Honestly, he had been immature at the time.
He had just taken his first steps into the world, knew almost nothing, and had been flailing around desperately, trying not to be looked down on.
“No need. That isn’t something to apologize for. By the time we’re around that age, you can tell roughly how old someone is anyway. You probably had your reasons for not wanting to be underestimated. I’d have done the same myself. If anything, it’s impressive that you were that skilled even when you were so young.”
As if to say it was no big deal, he waved a hand.
“Still, I’m glad to see you safe. How have you been all this time?”
“I’ve been traveling all over as a mercenary.”
“Oh? Where exactly have you been? I’m a peddler myself, so I’d like to think I’ve seen quite a bit of the world.”
“Let’s see. I hunted bugbears and eligators in Ulbazar Swamp. In Rombamel, I took down orcs. And until recently, I was hunting horn boars in Frang.”
Saying it aloud like that made it sound as if he had indeed been running himself ragged.
“You hunted bugbears and eligators?”
“Yes. To be honest, the eligator was more like I fought it than killed it outright. The bugbear, though—I definitely finished that one off.”
“And in Rombamel, you took down orcs?”
“Straggler orcs. If you cut off their noses, they pay one silver each. It was pretty good money.”
“And in Frang, you hunted horn boars?”
“Lately, something strange has been happening in Frang, and Sea Horn Boars have started appearing. They’re not worth much, so if you ever have to go there, I’d suggest being careful.”
“……”
Lionel made an odd face.
“Lawrence. No matter how skilled you are, don’t you think it’s a bit much to say you hunted all of those in such a short time? The horn boars, maybe. But orcs, and bugbears or eligators from the swamp… Honestly, it sounds a little boastful to me.”
Was he offended?
Watching the careful way Lionel chose his words, Lawrence laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
“No, it’s just that you don’t know how capable I am, so that’s why you’re saying that.”
“Listen here. The bugbear in Ulbazar Swamp is a monster that’s on a completely different level from goblins. When I went there, unless you were at least a Silver Plate mercenary….”
“Fire.”
A thread of flame rose into the air.
At the sight of the fire blooming before his eyes, Lionel fell silent.
“Do you believe me now?”
The flame danced freely in front of him.
Sliced into two, it formed a ring of fire, then changed again into a spear that passed through the center.
“You were a mage!?”
“I’m sorry for hiding it.”
“A mage who killed a bugbear… Wait. Don’t tell me you’re that shadow mage people have been talking about?”
It seemed Cedric’s song had become more famous than expected.
Lawrence extinguished the Fire and smiled without a word.
“Hah… Unbelievable. To think that shadow mage everyone’s been talking about was you. Wait. Then what about the fee? Is that all right?”
“The fee?”
“Exactly. I asked for an ordinary Bronze Plate mercenary, but in that case, the pay I’d give you wouldn’t be right. I don’t have the extra coin to spare for a mercenary who can slaughter bugbears.”
“It’s fine. I accepted the request after seeing the pay written in it. Besides, you and I know each other, don’t we? There’s no need for extra compensation.”
Setting aside skill.
Lawrence was still not a Silver Plate mercenary.
The pay Lionel had offered for this escort job was not generous, but it was certainly reasonable.
“I-is that so? Well, now I feel bad.”
“There is one condition, though.”
“Just say it. I’ll accommodate you as best I can.”
“I’d appreciate it if you could cut back on the talking a little on the way to the Magic Tower. On the trip to Horos Village, your spittle was flying everywhere, Lionel, and honestly, it was rough.”
That was no lie.
Lawrence knew from experience just how talkative Lionel could be, despite his appearance.
“What? Hahaha! I thought you were about to ask for something serious, and that’s what you come up with?”
Lionel laughed aloud.
“Fine, then I’ll talk less. You talk more. How about that? That would make this business trip much more enjoyable, wouldn’t it?”
“I think I may have to pretend this request never happened.”
“Hold on. Can’t you take a joke?”
“I was joking too.”
For a brief moment, both men were startled, then broke into good-natured laughter right there in the street.
“I didn’t know Lionel was with the Mistra Merchants’ Association.”
“I’ve always been with them. Though ‘with’ is a bit of a strong way to put it, really. It’s more like they lend me the name of the association. Makes it easier to do business wherever I go.”
Morris, who had come from Albrade, had said something similar.
Every artisan was supposed to belong to a guild.
Could a merchants’ association be understood as something along those lines?
“Actually, there’s one companion coming along on behalf of the association.”
“A companion? I remember the request clearly saying it was just you, Lionel….”
“I’ve got nothing to say about that part. If you don’t like it, I was planning to turn the companion down anyway. I can speak to the association about it myself, so don’t worry.”
Lionel said it lightly, but Lawrence did not take his words at face value.
The association was a large organization.
Just as Morris had suffered disadvantages for opposing his guild’s wishes.
If Lionel turned down this companion, no one could say what would happen to him.
“If it’s a request from the association, then it must be another peddler.”
“No. Not quite… Hmm. Ah, there he is now.”
Lionel raised a hand.
At the end of his gaze stood a minstrel Lawrence felt he had seen somewhere before.