Chapter 41
Chapter 41
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 41
Chapter Title: Red Desert
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'They don't care if ordinary civilians get caught in the crossfire?'
An all-too-familiar bomb came flying from between the alleyways. Straight toward us, no less. In that instant, the identity of the bandits we'd encountered before arriving here was confirmed.
'Shamshir...'
They were the same ones who had ambushed me and Durel. Our first encounter hadn't exactly left a good impression. And now, that impression was plummeting into negative territory without end.
Disgust.
Anger was too good a word for it. What I felt toward them was pure revulsion.
"Impressive speed on that spell. The precision is top-notch too. I didn't even sense a trace of mana manipulation..."
A murmur slipped out as the old man, mana gathered in both hands, turned to look at me. A strange light flickered in his eyes. Only now did I notice his hands were anything but ordinary.
'Calluses.'
A mage's hands were supposed to be soft and smooth. They reshaped the world with mana rather than their own bodies. But this old man was different. Now that I looked closer, it wasn't just his hands.
Beneath his loose robes, his body peeked out—solid muscles from rigorous training. He felt less like a mage and more like a seasoned soldier.
I'd been careless. Distracted by the mysteries Arcana revealed, I hadn't bothered to scrutinize the rest.
"You should be fine. I'll handle those thugs. Mind watching the young lady for a bit?"
Boom—!
The old man kicked off the ground without waiting for a reply. A small outcrop of rock thrust up from where he'd stood, like a launchpad. A leap spell—he'd pulled stone from the earth to propel himself forward in an instant.
"Looks like the Shamshir are at it again... Still, you. That was some impressive magic, huh?"
Even with bombs nearly exploding around us, Lenila's demeanor hadn't changed much. Despite her own modest skills, she clearly trusted the old man who'd just dashed off.
The old man's silhouette, leaping into the air, landed amid the distant alleyways. At the same moment, red stone fragments flew toward his arms and clung to them.
'Acceleration, destruction, protection... Offense and defense in one.'
Magic wasn't his main focus. He was using it as a supplement for physical enhancement. As the stone chunks wrapped around his arms sharpened into blades, the old man thrust his hand straight forward.
Kaboom—!
One strike. A robed civilian went flying, and the old man kicked off again. All in a single breath.
His speed was blinding. He ran along walls at times, conjuring stone platforms midair to use as footholds. Flawless, unrestricted physical maneuvers. Each swing of his arms unleashed heavy mana shockwaves that shook the area.
"That old man."
"Yeah?"
"How does he tell the Shamshir apart? They all look the same to me..."
I frowned, belatedly examining the people he'd taken down. Arcana revealed mana mysteries, but for ordinary folk with no connection to it, it was no different from a normal gaze.
To my eyes, he was just beating up civilians.
"Honestly, I don't know either. But the old man said they reek of musty sand."
"Musty sand?"
"Yeah."
A distinction based on smell? There must be something I didn't know. As Lenila and I talked, the old man reappeared, weaving back through the alleys into the open.
Thud.
A perfectly casual landing. It was a brief observation, but I'd gleaned plenty. At the same time, I realized it wouldn't be easy to move like him.
'That's gonna be tough...'
Casting spells alone? No problem. I could mimic it somewhat right now. The issue was those fluid movements. Straight-line speed backed by a sturdy body.
Forcing it would probably tear my muscles apart. That was why I avoided physical enhancements with mana for now.
"Good work, old man."
"Your friend made it easy to move around."
"Right? I know how to pick 'em, huh?"
Lenila's casual question hung in the air as the old man fell silent.
That was the moment. A commotion erupted from one side of the city, and a group of armored guards came rushing over in a panic. They glanced at the fallen bodies on the ground before hurrying straight toward us.
"The guards are always so late."
The old man addressed them dismissively, as if they were subordinates, his arrogant gaze making them avert their eyes.
"S-sorry...!"
One guard in slightly distinctive armor bowed deeply as the representative. Watching him, the old man clicked his tongue.
"We came for a preliminary survey to bring rain, but if the city's security is like this, it's a problem."
"We'll raise the alert level to maximum."
"Maximum isn't enough. You should bar entry to all non-mages for the time being."
"B-but that would..."
"Disobey, and there'll be no rain. Don't mistake Hayar's mercy for an obligation."
I frowned as I listened to their exchange. I'd wondered why no oases or water sources were visible anywhere in this massive city. Turns out, they relied on magic—not groundwater—for their supply.
"Lenila."
"Yeah?"
"Are there a lot of cities like this in the Red Desert?"
"Like what?"
"Places that depend on magic for water."
"Hmm... Not that many? Maybe twenty?"
"Hayar brings rain to those cities and gets paid for it?"
"Nah. The old man said it—it's mercy. We bring the rain for free. Voluntary donations are another story."
"I don't get it."
"What?"
"The Shamshir."
I didn't have the full picture on Hayar yet, but from what I'd gathered, they were an incredibly benevolent mage group. Providing rain to cities without charge, sustaining their lives.
Which made the Shamshir's actions even harder to understand. Why antagonize such good people?
"Right? I don't get it either! We're doing all this good, and those lunatics call us the bad guys. They say twisting nature's laws like this will wake the sleeping El Karsum and turn everything into a sea of fire..."
"El Karsum?"
"Oh, you wouldn't know. El Karsum is... this ancient giant creature that supposedly lived here long ago..."
Lenila muttered softly, rummaging in her pocket. She pulled out a small storybook. What surprised me was that the writing on it was in a script I knew well.
"Ber Kingdom letters?"
"I carry a few kinds, just in case."
[El Karsum, the Heart Asleep Beneath the Sand]
I skimmed the book Lenila handed me.
At the deepest heart of the Red Desert, beneath a sea of sand so scorched even sunlight couldn't penetrate, slumbers a colossal being with the form of a horned serpent and lion, known as 'El Karsum.'
Its existence, dating back to the primordial era when all was created, symbolized terror for many. Some feared even its name, calling it 'the Heart Asleep Beneath the Sand.'
Legends say El Karsum was once the sun of this land. But when human greed pierced the heavens and split the earth, the mighty creature flew into a rage, dyeing the entire desert red.
Sanctuaries burned, rivers dried to dust, cities swallowed by sand.
The grieving priests wept: In its final breath, it inscribed a new 'law of the world.'
That law sustains the world to this day, while tales of El Karsum and the ancient myths sank into the flow of time, eternally revered.
"What do you think? Fun, right?"
A picture book for children, heavy on illustrations over text. The kind of fairy tale you'd find in any country.
"Is this a true story?"
"Of course not! El Karsum doesn't exist. It's just an old fable people made up."
"But the Shamshir believe in this El Karsum?"
"That's why they're crazy. They take an old story as truth to justify their actions. Totally insane. I hear their leader uses some weird mind-control magic... Though that's not confirmed..."
Just then, the old man finished talking with the guards and approached slowly.
"Old man. Story over?"
"Yes. It's more or less sorted."
"Good. So, can we stick around here?"
"If it's because of your friend, why not invite him to the branch nearby? This place is too dangerous."