Chapter 22
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 022
Chapter Title: Bandits and the Relief Holy Knight Order (6)
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"Buddy, is there no other way around this?"
I looked down at the book and asked.
Grimoires sometimes changed their requests, after all.
But this one was adamant.
"There is no other way! Stick your hand into the fire!"
Hmm... This won't be easy.
Suddenly, the black mage leader came to mind.
His face had been covered in burn scars.
Maybe he'd received a similar request while learning a fire magic grimoire.
"Heros, what's wrong?"
As I groaned while clutching the grimoire, Master, who had been watching me, asked.
"The grimoire's demand is pretty extreme. It wants me to build a roaring fire and stick my hand in it."
"That's definitely no simple request."
Master didn't seem surprised by the outrageous demand.
He must have experienced this sort of thing plenty of times before.
Which meant he surely knew how to handle it!
Full of anticipation, I asked him,
"What do you do when they make unreasonable demands like this?"
"You either comply... or you don't. One or the other."
"Ah."
"Grimoires often make requests that are incomprehensible to humans or just plain impossible to fulfill. That's a big reason why so many mages end up as eccentrics."
"Do their personalities get twisted from granting those requests?"
"Exactly. They're forced to do things no sane human mind could endure, all to learn magic. Eventually, it breaks their spirit."
It was horrifying.
The idea that trying to satisfy a grimoire's request could lead to psychological trauma and mental breakdowns.
And unlike me, other mages couldn't even hear the grimoire's voice clearly.
Without knowing exactly what the book wanted, they had no choice but to stumble through trial and error.
"Hmm..."
"You'll run into this eventually. You've had it easy so far, learning from good grimoires without much hassle. Time to suffer a bit. Think it over carefully and decide."
With that, Master lay down on his blanket, using a suitably sized pack as a pillow.
He planned to rest until dinner.
Watching him, I felt fatigue wash over me too.
Yeah, I'll figure it out later.
That was the plan as I headed to my spot and lay down.
"Time is money! Hurry up! If you'd lit the fire the moment you heard me, your hand would already be charred by now!"
Did it not like me ignoring it?
The grimoire shrieked angrily.
So I blocked it out.
Just as focusing on the grimoire let me hear its voice, deliberately ignoring it shut the noise out completely.
'There, quiet now.'
With the grimoire's voice silenced, I tucked it against my chest.
I liked the warmth radiating from the book itself.
It felt like a heated hand warmer.
'I'll nap a bit and think it over.'
As soon as I closed my eyes, sleepiness hit.
And I drifted off quickly.
After my nap, I resolved to fulfill the grimoire's request.
Our destination was Horace's tomb.
Who knew what awaited us there?
I needed to learn as much magic as possible to handle any crisis proactively.
Oh, not that I planned to just shove my hand in blindly.
A good idea had occurred to me.
'Hope this works.'
The Little Flame Grimoire's request was straightforward: light a strong fire and plunge my hand into it.
No other instructions.
So maybe if I protected my hand and stuck it in, it'd count as complying?
God, I hoped so.
Whoosh!
I built up the fire first, piling in plenty of fuel.
Was the heat enough?
To check, I focused on the grimoire's voice.
"Hand! Shove your hand in!"
From its reaction, the firepower seemed sufficient.
'Time to prepare.'
Moisture and Tree Bark.
I cast both spells.
A proven combo.
It had successfully blocked that black mage's fire magic in our fight.
'This is tense.'
With my defenses up, I stared into the bonfire.
Then plunged my right hand in.
Sizzle!
Immediately, the sound of moisture vaporizing rose with white steam.
Fortunately, my hand didn't feel hot.
But if I stayed like this, the water would evaporate quickly, heating the bark and conducting inward.
So my task was clear.
'Moisture, Moisture, Moisture...'
I kept casting Moisture nonstop.
As a 1-mana spell, I could spam it without restraint.
Of course, even this wouldn't last forever.
All I wanted was for the grimoire to be satisfied before the scorching pain hit.
'Time's dragging.'
It hadn't even been ten seconds yet.
No real sensation so far, thank goodness, but the anxiety of potential burns made me want to yank it out.
Still, I endured and waited.
Twenty seconds passed in that state.
'How long do I have to wait?'
The moment I thought that, the moment I'd been waiting for arrived.
"That's enough!"
The words had barely finished when I yanked my hand out.
The bark was charred black.
I quickly canceled the spell, revealing the smooth skin beneath.
Just a bit red on the surface—no other issues.
'It worked.'
Who knew the Moisture and Tree Bark cheat would fly?
This drove home the lesson once more: the more magic you learn, the better.
You could always find a way to use it.
Flip!
As I marveled at magic's utility, the grimoire's cover suddenly flipped on its own.
The pages rapidly turned, flooding my mind with magical knowledge.
'Oh? A passive skill.'
Burning Hand (Passive)
Slightly boosts the power of fire magic. No mana cost on its own; adds minor mana to fire spells (e.g., Ignition: 5 → 6 mana).
The new spell I'd learned was Burning Hand.
A passive that slightly amplified fire magic power.
It cost no mana by itself; it just tacked on a bit extra when casting fire spells.
For example, Ignition originally took 5 mana; now it was 6.
Not bad.
No, actually great.
And that wasn't the only appealing part.
'The grimoire still has more spells inside.'
The rapidly turning pages halted at about the one-third mark.
Meaning two more spells to learn from this grimoire.
The catch? Two more requests to fulfill.
"One who touches fire only with hands can merely borrow its power. But one who harbors fire in their heart can claim it as their own!"
Why the long preamble? What now?
The moment I wondered, the grimoire demanded:
"Thrust your upper body into the fire! Feel the flames' heat with your heart! Kuhahaha!"
Psycho.
That was my immediate thought upon hearing the demand.
'No way I can do that right now.'
Reading one-third of the grimoire had only boosted my mana by 10.
That brought my available mana to 170.
Not nearly enough to cover my upper body in Tree Bark.
And even if I managed that, I doubted I could spam Moisture enough to hold it.
'Beyond my current abilities.'
I humbly admitted my limits.
Blocked out the raspy voice, closed the grimoire, and stowed it in my bag.
I'd leave it alone until I figured out a way to protect my upper body.
The next day, Master and I finished preparing to leave the village.
Bernard saw us off.
"Feels like you're leaving too soon."
"The sooner we move, the better our chances."
"Fair point."
Bernard regretted our parting but didn't try to stop us.
Instead, he shared useful info.
"The rebellion's only growing by the day. Word is several lords have already fallen."
"Villagers' doing?"
"Aye. Most of the dead were tyrants who'd squeezed their people dry. Just desserts."
"Makes no sense to distinguish peasants from bandits anymore."
"Chaotic times, eh?"
The massive eastern uprising wasn't dying down—in fact, it was worsening.
Not great for us.
Our journey would only get rougher.
But Bernard's advice didn't end there.
"Anyway, the revolt's spawning all sorts of problems. That black mage you handled was one. Naturally, the church orders have taken notice and are dispatching forces across the east to aid the people."
"Good news."
"Sure. But whether it's good for you and Heros... that's another question."
Bernard glanced between us.
Master's expression hardened.
"The Silent Compliance Order?"
"You catch on quick. The Sky Church has sent a large contingent of them east. Official reason's purging black mages, but you think they'll stop there?"
"They'll kill any mage they see. In these troubled times, who's going to question a few extra bodies?"
Master didn't know exactly why the Silent Compliance Order hated mages.
He cautiously guessed the Sky Church viewed magic itself as blasphemy.
Either way, it felt unfair to me.
"Digori, powerful mages like you will be their top priority."
"I know. I've met them before."
"Ho... what happened?"
"They're still underground, I'd wager."
"I see."
Silence hung briefly.
Bernard broke it first.
"That's all I wanted to say. Just... be careful out there."
"Thanks. We will."
With that, Master turned away.
I gave Bernard a silent bow and followed.
The golem set off last, pulling the cart behind us.
"Master."
Once Bernard was out of sight, I spoke up.
He looked at me.
"How strong are the Silent Compliance Order warriors?"
I was genuinely curious.
Both Master and Bernard had warned about them.
"They're all knights. Small elite force—operate in teams of three. Each one's skill far surpasses Bernard's."
Bernard, who'd taken down three black mages while injured.
Far stronger than that?
Short explanation, but it painted a clear picture.
How terrifying they were.
"Small numbers means low odds of running into them, right?"
"Bernard said the Sky Church sent a 'large' contingent. At least ten teams, so maybe thirty total. Still, in this vast east... yeah, odds are slim."
Even fewer than I'd imagined.
This might be fine.
The east was huge—fat chance of crossing paths.
I relaxed a bit, but unease soon crept back.
'Damn, it's nagging at me.'
Fate was drawing me somewhere.
Master's words from yesterday.
That was the root of my anxiety.
'Whatever. If we meet, we meet.'
I steeled myself with that thought.