BEM: Chapter 12 – Dealings with a Black Market Trader #4

Dealings with a Black Market Trader #4

The city of Bergen was famous for its beauty .  As the sun set over the Nadun Mountain Ranges which spread widely throughout the west, the people living there realized the day had come to an end .

The same was true for the guards at the academy’s main gate . Jason, who was waiting for the shift change with his colleagues, watched the glow of the sunset as always .

‘I don’t like winter vacation… It is comfortable because there is no work, but I am bored without any people . ’

Only a few students stayed in the dormitory during summer vacation and even they went home during winter vacation . If he included the professors who remained in their offices, there was a total of approximately 10 people who came and went in one day .

It would be worse if someone heard him say this, but Jason’s boredom was severe .

At that moment, someone was approaching in the distance .

“Pant, pant . Not, pant, not late?!”

The panting and sweat on the person’s forehead showed that he had been running without any rest .

Jason nodded, and Theo sat down with a sigh of relief . The business with the black market trader had taken longer than he’d thought it would, so he’d almost broken curfew . No, if he hadn’t run hard, he would’ve been late .

‘It is okay because it was a good trip . ’

He had signed a contract with the black market trader and completed his first work .  The things he received in return were enough to cause the backpack on his shoulder to swell . Thanks to that, sweat flowed down but the weight added to his sense of accomplishment .

Additionally, the weight of this backpack would soon lead to an increase in the amount of magic power! It was pleasant, so there was no reason for him to feel displeased .

Jason checked the permit and gave it back .

“Third grade, Theodore Miller… Yes, I have confirmed it . You can go inside now . ”

“Hah, yes, thank you . ”

Theo was still panting as he crossed the threshold . He had a staggering gait but managed to somehow cross the grounds without falling over .

Jason watched the scene from the entrance and muttered to himself, “What the **** did he do?”

From behind, he couldn’t even see Theo’s hair .  It was because Theo kept on wobbling from the weight of the backpack .  Jason thought about it for a while, but then he met his colleagues who would replace him and soon forgot about it .

‘Well, who cares?’

In the end, it had nothing to do with him .

 

*     *     *

Theo skipped dinner and headed straight to his dorm .  Normally, he would’ve gone to the library, but today, there was something more important .

It was an opportunity to increase his lacking magic power! He couldn’t buy magic reagents due to his thin wallet, so he couldn’t miss this chance . The reason he’d skipped dinner was to raise his concentration .

Theo first opened his bulging backpack .

Chwarararak!

The objects in the backpack poured out onto the ground . Gloves, necklace, broken cooker, worn out staff… objects of various weights and length filled the room .  Although their appearances were humble, they were artifacts which contained magic power . If he found the right item, then it could be worth at least a few gold .

Unfortunately, Theo only had one such item .

‘Still, there were five winners out of 20, so it is pretty good . Not every day will be like today . ’

Today, Theo had appraised a total of 20 items for the black market trader .  It was a quantity which matched the limits of an ‘average’ level appraiser . It would be dangerous to show the black market trader an ability to appraise over 20 items .

Although he did appraise curse items, it didn’t raise any doubts in Canis .  As a result, today’s income was fifteen defects and one common artifact .

“Then… shall I feed it one first?”

According to the previous explanation, the ‘simple eating’ function was different from feeding it magic books . Thus, he needed to look at what the difference was .

Theo sat down and picked up one of the defective products .  It was the magic gloves enchanted with ‘Grease’ magic .

“Eat, Gluttony . ”

The tongue responded to Theo’s call and swallowed up the gloves .

 

[’Clumsy Hands of a Fool’ has been consumed . The amount of magic power it possesses is very marginal . ]

[It will take 3 minutes and 12 seconds to digest it fully . ]

 

3 minutes and 12 seconds passed by .  The moment the clock hands spun exactly three laps and moved 12 spaces, a voice was heard .

 

[Your magic power has increased slightly . ]

[Proficiency with the 1st Circle magic ‘Grease’ has increased . ]

 

At the same time, changes took place within Theo’s body .

“Uh…!”

An unidentified magic power was boiling up .  The amount wasn’t large, but it moved through Theo’s body like it was his magic power . The two circles on his heart turned like cogs which had just been oiled .  Additionally, a narrow area of the application of ‘Grease’ magic entered his mind .

‘This… It is different from magic spells . It is more like pouring knowledge into my head rather than it being engraved . If that is the case, I don’t need to worry about a headache like last time . ’

This wasn’t like when he fed Gluttony magic books .  When a book was eaten, he felt like the magic was being burned forcefully into his body . However, with the artifact, it felt like he was being taught how to handle the magic .  Above all, learning was Theo’s specialty . Even if he fed Gluttony a few at a time, he could accept it without any problems .

Theo found some confidence and swallowed the artifacts in succession .

 

[’The Tightening Necklace’ has been consumed . The amount of magic power it possesses is very marginal . ]

[Proficiency with the 2nd Circle magic ‘Hold’ has increased . ]

[’Angry Pot’ has been consumed . The amount of magic power it possesses is very marginal . ]

[Proficiency with the 1st Circle magic ‘Freeze’ has increased . ]

[’High-speed Hourglass’ has been consumed . The amount of magic power it possesses is very marginal . ]

[Proficiency with the 2nd Circle magic…]

[……]

[It will take 45 minutes and 12 seconds to digest fully . ]

 

Despite swallowing 14 items, Gluttony’s tongue moved as always .  There was so much food that the voice was heard continuously . Theo paused as he listened to the last sentence .

‘The digestion time is determined by the sum total of the food . ’

The digestion time had increased until it was up to 45 minutes . If he added the digestion time of all the items eaten before that, he would get a similar number .  It was hard to think of this as a coincidence . Ultimately, it seemed like it was necessary to have a lot of free time when eating the artifacts .

“45 minutes… It is an ambiguous length . ”

He could focus on other things, but he was unsure if he should leave this place or not . Thus, Theo waited in his spot silently .  After 45 minutes, his magic power boiled again .

‘Ohh, this is…!’

The magic power in his body was raging differently from when he ate one artifact . The two circles creaked as they accepted the magic power, since it was close to the limit that the two circles could accommodate .

Theo sensed it intuitively and immediately concentrated on it .  There was a response to his call .

Wuuuong-

The voice of magic which could only be heard by Theodore Miller started resonating .  It was the sound of magic power flowing through his blood vessels .  This was the sweetest sound to a magician, and it proved that Theodore wasn’t wrong .

As Theo’s consciousness sank to the bottom of a lake…

‘—Now . ’

He started spinning the magic power gathered in his heart .  In a space which contained nothing, he had to draw a perfect circle .

He would add a third circle to the current two circles .  The magic power moved around according to his will .  If this image collapsed, then everything would be in vain .

His lack of sensitivity meant he had to use all of his concentration power . As usual, Theo’s mental prowess was already beyond that of a 2nd Circle magician .  A senior magician would be no match for him when it came to concentration power . Theo’s spirit had unintentionally been tempered by his extremely low sensitivity .

Soon, the third circle started to take shape .  Unfortunately, it was up to there .

“Huuuu…”

Theo breathed out and opened his eyes .  The result was that it was a half-success .  The magic power gained from the artifacts was amazing, but it was a bit short to complete the third circle . Despite his fierce concentration, his limit was just forming the shape .

He would need to consume artifacts one or two more times to achieve a perfect third circle .

“…Was it originally that easy to reach the 3rd Circle?”

There was still more than a month left of winter vacation .  If he increased his magic power regularly, even if it was difficult for him to reach the 4th Circle, Theo could reach the 3rd Circle safely .  He didn’t need to worry about the academy’s diploma anymore now .

Theo wondered just how far he could go with this help .  The owner of this ridiculous monster would never be able to live as an ordinary magician .  If so, Theo would go as far as possible .

‘Well, shall I start by cleaning up the knowledge inside my head?’

The story of the future would be postponed until later .  Theodore Miller once again made his way to the library .