Chapter 40
Chapter 40
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Red Desert
-----------------------------------------------------------------
There was one thing we absolutely had to do first upon arriving in a foreign land: exchange our money. The coins we carried, called gelruts, were currency used only in the Ber Kingdom.
The moneychanger took one look at our attire and immediately guessed where we were from.
"Today's rate is three pers per gelrut. That's generous of me. Don't go making me feel bad by doubting it."
Contrary to my expectation that Durel would haggle fiercely with the moneychanger, he exchanged our money at the exact rate the man quoted. As I watched him curiously, Durel flinched, as if he had a guilty conscience.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"No reason. You just exchanged it so readily. Normally, I figured you'd be pulling out your sword by now."
"Well... this place displays the merchant caravan's emblem."
Durel said this while pointing to a scale subtly engraved in a corner of the moneychanger's counter.
"'Prioritize fair trade over your own life.' That's the principle upheld by the merchant caravans."
"And if they don't uphold it?"
"...We just have to trust them. Trust built up over long years."
Trust that makes you believe in the other party, built over long years. That was my thought upon hearing Durel's explanation. It sounded almost like magic.
Durel and I headed straight for a suitable inn. We had no energy left to take in the sights of the first city we'd reached in the Red Desert. We'd fought an intense battle and pressed on without rest, casting spells nonstop along the way, leaving us mentally exhausted.
Without any haggling, we paid the innkeeper whatever he asked and retreated to our separate rooms, collapsing onto the beds. A groan escaped my lips naturally.
"Ughhh..."
As I lay there staring up at the ceiling, a sudden question popped into my head. We'd crossed the border into unfamiliar foreign soil. The Red Desert used different writing and currency.
So why did their language feel so perfectly understandable?
'I'll ask Durel about it later.'
Right now, the overwhelming sleepiness was more pressing than my curiosity. I kicked off the tightly laced leather boots and closed my eyes. Sand poured out of them as they tumbled to the floor.
The next morning, I woke to a muggy sensation and thought to myself that today felt unbearably hot.
'So hot...'
The moment my consciousness fully surfaced from sleep, two spells that had been dormant reactivated naturally. The world I saw took on a blue tint, and a faint wind stirred within a certain radius around my body.
The one difference from usual was the chill carried in the swirling breeze of Gentle Wind.
Saaah—
The wind laden with cold swept through every corner of the room, rapidly dropping the temperature. Watching it, I thought it was just like an air conditioner.
As I changed clothes, I glanced toward the next room. The starlight etched in my eyes was a gaze that pierced the world's mysteries. No matter how thick a wall blocked the view, as long as Durel harbored a mana circle in his heart, I could sense his presence.
'He's still sleeping...'
Was it the toll of our long desert journey? Even though it was later than usual, he showed no signs of stirring from the bed. He was still just a young boy. Letting him rest more would be good for his growth.
I donned my cloak and hat before stepping out of the inn.
The name of the first city we visited in the Red Desert was Boiling Oasis. There wasn't actually an oasis, of course. It was just in the name.
The city's landscape was predominantly red overall. The local soil was reddish, so the buildings molded from mud shared the same hue. The red, softly shimmering in the sunlight, wasn't garish but hazy, giving the impression that the entire city was bathed in sunset glow.
It was a sight worth seeing. I thought as I strolled down the long street.
-Come check this out! I'll give you a good price!
-Aren't you charging too much? I swear I saw something similar earlier for...
-It's the Shamshir folk making things uneasy... If only the mages would summon some rain...
The streets were lined with countless stalls, resembling a bustling marketplace. As I walked through, silence suddenly fell over the area.
All eyes naturally turned my way. It couldn't be helped. To fend off the heat, I'd infused my Gentle Wind with chill, and the breeze swirled outward from me. It was only natural that people entering its range would notice the wind.
"Hey, kid, wasting mana like that will wear you out fast."
"You must not be from around here, traveler. That's not how you beat this heat. Why not rest in the shade instead?"
I turned at the nearby voices. From between narrow alleyways, in front of a stall where a girl and an old man were browsing goods, they called out to me. Their clothes didn't stand out from the locals', but I could tell.
From the traces of mana lingering on their bodies. They were both mages.
As I hesitated to reply, they set down their items and approached me. The short girl in particular showed keen interest. She bounced over and circled me, chattering away with her small mouth.
"Wow... your wind... it's so cool! Which school are you from? Affiliated with the academy? What's brought you here?"
"Miss, that's rude."
"What's the harm? He doesn't seem to mind. But isn't this tiring? Maintaining it constantly—you'll collapse soon... Why not rest in the shade over there? Wait, your eyes... Gramps, look at his eyes!"
"Miss..."
This was a new experience. None of the mages I'd met before had shown interest or kindness quite like this.
"Hey, why so quiet?"
"Just a moment..."
"A moment?"
"Just caught off guard. First time meeting mages from here."
My answer seemed to please her, as she let out a light laugh. She glanced at the old man, then naturally fell into step beside me.
"I'm Renila. If you're okay with it, I'd love to show you around. What do you say?"
"Miss... you know the situation isn't great right now."
"Ah, Gramps, stay out of it. I wanna make a friend."
It was bewildering, but not a bad situation for me. What was the purpose of this journey, after all? To witness all sorts of magic with my own eyes, experience it firsthand, and claim the world's mages' accumulated knowledge as my own.
"I'm Lumia. Not with the academy."
"How old?"
Age. How old was I exactly? Back in Lumia's home village, there was no tradition of celebrating birthdays. I couldn't pinpoint it precisely.
'Around eleven, I guess...'
Doing the math on the time passed, that felt about right. Frowning slightly, I answered.
"Around eleven?"
"Same as me! So, where to first? Anywhere you wanna go? Need anything?"
Renila's company proved a huge help for shopping. Tell her what I needed, and she'd guide me to the cheapest, best spots. Ask a question, and she'd explain freely without hesitation.
Of course, the benefits didn't end there. As we toured the city, I could read all sorts of magical traces from her the whole time.
Mana was a mystery brimming with potential. To wield it, mages built vast inner worlds within themselves.
Arcana let me see it all.
Soft sand. The world unfolding in the girl's mind was an endless expanse of dunes with a towering spire at its center. It flowed without cease. Gentle swirls of sand continuously sank beneath the base of the tower.
'Compared to that...'
The world of the old man she called Gramps felt entirely different. Jagged rocks piled layer upon layer like a tower defying gravity—an impossible form in reality. The sharp, precarious balance spoke of the years he'd weathered.
They weren't from the same school. So why did this old man defer to Renila as his superior?
I was pondering their odd relationship when the old man, carrying our bags ahead, suddenly halted.
"Miss."
"Yeah?"
"How about a short break? Our young friend here seems to be tiring..."
"Oh? Come to think of it, Lumia, you okay? You've kept this cool breeze going the whole time."
"Not tiring, but..."
I trailed off, looking up at the old man. Tension had sharpened the once-relaxed lines around his eyes. Natural mana was also gathering toward him.
Sudden combat readiness.
Had he spotted something? A quick scan around revealed nothing unusual.
"That shop looks good. You two go on in. I'll grab what we need and catch up..."
Before the old man could finish, a familiar round object sailed in from between the alleys.
Tssst—
The instant the hissing fuse grew louder, the old man whirled around in alarm. The mana swirling around him surged, on the verge of manifesting a spell in this world.
But Gentle Wind's barrier moved faster.
Whoooosh—!
The gale intensified, and everything within its radius around me froze solid.
Crackcraaack—
The icy chill descended, plunging the area into silence.