The Book Eating Magician Chapter 73:

Chapter 73 – Convoy from the Capital #3

The three gust wagons rushed down the mountains .

Transformed into the wind itself, the wagons occasionally ran into monsters obstructing the way . The wagons slammed into kobolds and goblins with huge destructive power and turned them into blood on the wheels of the wagons .

Even big monsters like trolls and ogres couldn’t escape dying .

Kwang!

It seemed like the number of those killed by the wagons had increased by one .

‘Wow, isn’t it completely shattered?’ Theodore clicked his tongue as he watched the blue blood scattering outside the window . Since the blood was blue and there were the remains of an insect, it must’ve been a giant mantis which was crushed .

A threatening monster which even first-class mercenaries were afraid of had been destroyed by the wagon . On the contrary, the wagon didn’t feel the impact at all .

‘Maybe this could be used as a weapon?’ Theo rejected it as soon as he had the thought . ‘…No, it is impossible . ’

The wagon had great power and speed, but the workforce required to get the most out of the wind power was too advanced . Rather than assigning a few 5th Circle magicians to a wagon, it was more efficient for them to fight directly .

He shook off the thought and turned to Mitra who was playing in the seat next to him .

[Hoi!]

Pororong .

She was playing with the sylph Ellenoa had summoned . The elemental, which looked like a translucent sparrow, spread its wings at Mitra’s signal .  The scene of a little girl and a bird playing together happily was like an illustration from a fairy tale book . Theo’s heart calmed down slightly at the sight .

At that moment, he felt a soft touch as fingers entwined with his .

“Eh, Ellenoa?”

Theo looked down at his hand and was shocked as he realized the identity of the other person . It was because Ellenoa, sitting across from him, was holding his hand .  The pleasant sensation of her slim, soft hand was vividly transmitted through the palm of his hand . This was despite him knowing that Ellenoa was a neutral gender .

However, her voice was as calm as always as she said, “Are you worried about your mentor?”

Those words pierced right inside of Theo .

His blushing complexion instantly turned pale . His thoughts turned grim as soon as he thought about his mentor, Vince, volunteering to stay behind in Bergen . They had talked a few times about the decision, but Theo still couldn’t fully understand it .

To Theodore Miller, Vince was his one-of-a-kind mentor, and his value was immeasurable .

“Yes, that’s right . ” Theo nodded with a bitter smile .

It was funny that he was worried about his mentor, but Vince was in an injured state . According to Shugel, Vince’s injury would worsen if he moved using space magic . Theo was reluctant to let such a person act as bait .

Then Ellenoa squeezed his hand and whispered in a small voice, “Don’t be too concerned . His fate has yet to reach the time when the knot will be tied . ”

“Huh?” Theo’s eyes widened at the words .

He would’ve ignored her if she were a fortuneteller on the streets, but Ellenoa was a mysterious high elf . Furthermore, elves were a species famous for not being able to tell lies .  Theo mulled over the meaning of Ellenoa’s words before asking in a trembling voice, “…Ellenoa, can you see the future?”

Seeing the future—or in other words, Foresight—was a type of power given to gods, demons, and ancient dragons a long time ago . The weakness of mortals was always time, as they feared the future . So, the prophets who could see the future were considered as gods .

Ellenoa was a descendant of an ancient species, but could a high elf really see the future? In response, Ellenoa shook her head with a subtle expression . “It isn’t anything so tremendous . I can just understand when the ‘end’ comes . It is a half-power that appears when I’m in danger . ”

“No, but…!” Theo tried to say something more, but he soon fell silent .

Ellenoa wouldn’t lie just to reassure him . As long as his mentor was safe, there was nothing more to ask .  Besides, there was something he should say first before questioning Ellenoa’s abilities .

“Thank you for your concern . ”

“It is nothing . ”

It was an appreciation for exposing her ability in order to comfort him . As Theo’s face brightened a little bit, Ellenoa smiled and shook her head .  Then Mitra leaned back and fell to the floor of the carriage .

[Heeeng?!]

The awkward air in the wagon broke .

“Pfff!”

“Ahaha!”

The atmosphere inside the wagon became brighter, and as the two people laughed at Mitra’s behaviour, Mitra hit Theo’s feet with a sulky expression .  Her gesture was telling them not to laugh, but it just made the duo laugh even more .

As the pleasant sound emerged from the windows, the wagons passed by the middle point of the mountain range thanks to the wind power .

How long had they been on the mountain trail? Around this time, the sun was going down, so the magicians lowered the pace and handed Theo a package . The identity of the small bag was soon revealed .

“This is your meal with Ellenoa . ”

“Ah, thank you . ”

Theo picked up the bag and placed it on a table in the center of the wagon . He hadn’t realized it, but he was really hungry . Theo opened the bag and pulled out a few fruits, baked sweets, jerky, and two bottles of water . The fruits were probably prepared for Ellenoa as the conventional wisdom was that elves didn’t enjoy eating meat .

However, Ellenoa denied it outright . “Well, it isn’t that we don’t enjoy meat . It’s just that living beings are all the same, so is there a reason to discriminate between plants and animals? Rather, our bodies will weaken if we don’t consume meat at all . ”

“Uh, then why do the Elvenheim elves only eat fruits on their missions?”

“I’m not sure . ” She ate an apple and thought about it for a while before answering the question . “Maybe there is a problem with the way the meat is cooked?”

“The way it is cooked?”

“An elf’s tastebuds is a few times more sensitive than that of humans, so it is hard to eat food with a lot of spices . I guess they only ate fruits that weren’t cooked separately . ” Ellenoa proved her words by eating the jerky . “We basically eat raw food, so there isn’t much food that is cooked using fire . It is common to eat a fresh and lean cut of meat . ”

Theodore involuntarily imagined the elves eating meat .

An elf hunter running through the forest, shooting a boar, and then cutting its flesh with a dagger and eating it…

He imagined the elf’s mouth covered in blood and felt like his fantasies about elves were being broken . It had been imagined that elves were graceful beings who enjoyed fruit and tea leaves, as well as playing with wild beasts .

However, that was just a fantasy of humans .  

 

*     *     *

It happened around the time when Theo had finished his meal and Ellenoa was putting down the last apple core .

“2nd Car, 3rd Car, stop!”The wind power stopped after a yell was heard from outside the window .

Thump .

Simultaneously, the door of their carriage opened, and a magician entered . The blue robe indicated he was a Blue Tower magician, and he was powerful enough to make Theo’s sensory perception tingle . The magician came from the third car which was attached as an **** role and explained why the carriage had stopped so suddenly .

“The 1st Car that is 250 meters ahead has started to engage with something . We will go again as soon as the ‘Clear’ signal is received, so Ellenoa shouldn’t worry . ”

“Wait a minute . You aren’t joining the fight?” Theodore asked with a strange expression .

He was questioning a senior, but the magician replied calmly, “That’s right . The formation of the Red Tower is so unique that is it different for other towers to fight with them . Elder Herman is there, so there is no reason to join . ”

“But what if—”

“If it can destroy the 1st Car in a short amount of time, there is no way to win even if we join . And the important thing isn’t winning . ”

They were escorts, not combatants . It was the duty of the convoy to deliver the high elf, Ellenoa, safely to Mana-vil Capital . Even if they could defeat the enemy, they had to first eliminate any possibilities of Ellenoa being harmed .

However, Theo had just been thinking about winning . The experiences he’d absorbed were all about ‘fighting and winning,’ not escorting someone . Theo was convinced by the difference and fell silent .  No, he was forced to shut his mouth .

Kukukung…!

It was a Heat Wave Chain .  As a pale red pillar rose in the distance, the earth started to cry out .

It shook like an earthquake . A part of the dim sky became brighter . Clouds were torn apart by the strong flames and explosions rang out . Despite the interval of a few hundred meters, the mana in the atmosphere was struggling like crazy .

It was the aftermath of a magic collision which was at least of the 6th Circle!

“Kuk…!” Even the air touching Theo’s eyelids felt hot . A wind shield was opened in a reflexive manner .

After using the cold magic, he felt the ambient temperature going down a little bit . If there was this much heat from the aftermath, the center must be as hot as lava . It was proof that Herman’s group was literally pouring out their power .

The total number of magic power detected with his senses were eight . ‘Five 5th Circle magicians and three 6th Circle magicians . ’

One of the 6th Circle magicians was half a step away from the boundary . It was without a doubt Herman, who used to be at the 7th Circle . Just him alone was a huge threat .  No matter who the opponent was, they absolutely couldn’t be safe . Even if the opponent was of the master level, this much firepower would be enough to take care of them .

However, Theodore frowned instead of feeling relieved .  Why? It wasn’t because of a chill down his spine but cold air flowing from his left hand which tickled his bones .  Was it a warning from the sleeping Gluttony? Or maybe a feature he didn’t know about had been triggered? Either way, there was no way to resolve the question immediately .

Kukung…! Kururung! Kung! The thunderous sound rang out repeatedly .

A fire pillar tore apart the clouds, and smoke which looked like a mushroom covered the sky . It was magic which would tear apart any defenses Theodore had .  Despite such fearsome attacks being launched, the battle still hadn’t finished .

Shortly after that, all sound was cut off like it had been sliced by a sword .

··············

Silence covered the night sky, and the burning flames were overwhelmed by the darkness of the night . A few burning treeS were the last remaining traces of the battle .  The silence was so clear that the sound of someone gulping could be heard .

“…Is it over?” Someone asked .

The signal indicating the end of the battle hadn’t risen yet . As the magicians of the 3rd Car waited for instructions, ‘it’ fell from the night sky .

Tok, todok, tok…

It was dark red and round .  The ungainly shape rolled forward between the two wagons . Someone used ‘Light’ magic reflexively as the shape gradually grew clearer .

White hair turned to ashes, wrinkles distorted by burns, and eyes which were filled with fear…

A name escaped from Theodore’s mouth, “…Elder Herman . ”

It was the head of Herman, who had been brutally murdered .