Chapter 134
“What the hell do you think you’re doing, Captain Hale?!”
“There’s a limit to how reckless you can be!”
“Ahhh! Hurry, hurry, do something!”
Chaos erupted. Ian was inwardly shocked, but those directly involved must have been even more so. The man who had been burned by the cigarette was clutching his scorched hand, collapsed on the ground, groaning in pain. His comrades rushed over to check on him, and soon a figure who appeared to be his superior grabbed Hale by the collar.
Though the size difference was so great it looked more like he was hanging on than grabbing.
“Are you crazy? You wanna fight over this?”
“Captain Sailor, please calm down!”
“Let go of me!”
Among the captains, there wasn’t much difference in magical power, but Hale was an exception. Just look at his build. Unlike the Magic Support Department, which handled administrative tasks inside the palace, these guys were frontline operatives, constantly out hunting monsters. Their combat instincts and ability to kill and clean up enemies were on a whole different level from ordinary mages.
“Sailor, anyone who tries to kill others should be prepared to face death themselves.”
“What nonsense is that?”
“Your subordinate tried to burn my kid’s palm with a cigarette, so I got him first. Got a problem with that?”
Sailor slowly released Hale’s collar and checked on his fallen subordinate. A fiery dragon magic circle was etched onto his right hand. Had Ian grabbed that hand, his entire palm would have been burned.
“Still, your behavior was excessive!”
“Excessive? Then I apologize. Next time, I’ll summon the flames myself.”
“…”
Hale lit another cigarette and muttered. His combat magic had been famous even before the recent Roxanne battle boosted his reputation. The weight and depth of his power left a strong impression, regardless of his political standing.
If he were to use magic here…
“Just your bad luck! Remember, the Magic Department is a community! Take care of the rookies, and if this happens again, I won’t stand for it. I’ll report this to Lord Wesley!”
Sailor stormed off loudly, gathering his men without waiting for a response. The other departments watching the scene did the same.
“Well then, good work.”
“Welcome aboard, rookie. You’re in for some hard work.”
“Don’t talk to me, idiot.”
“Alright, alright. Let’s go. Time to get to work.”
“Excuse me, coming through.”
Despite their curiosity, everyone made it clear they didn’t want to get involved. The large conference room quickly emptied, leaving only silence.
“Sigh.”
Tommy broke the silence with a heavy sigh, glaring at Hale. Ian wondered what he was about to say.
“I told you I hate being burned with cigarettes. It’s bad luck.”
He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and started cleaning the floor. Nakina chuckled and, like Hale, pulled out a cigarette.
“Tommy’s got a weird obsession with cleanliness. Anyway, be careful from now on. You should work on your magic detection skills. How are you supposed to be the youngest if you’re this clueless?”
Ian thought they might have mistaken his handshake attempt for some kind of trick. But whatever—it was handled smoothly without him stepping in, so all he could do was smile.
“Thanks.”
“Yeah, yeah. Now that you’re in the Magic Operations Department, let’s do our best. Feel free to relax.”
These were people who could have each other’s backs in battle.
From what Ian remembered, that was exactly the image of the Magic Operations Department. The field was urgent and dangerous, so it made sense. Back then, their goal seemed to be training highly skilled operatives…
“What about the others?”
“Oh, they’re all off today. Everyone’s on leave after the Roxanne battle. They don’t come in unless there’s something urgent. We’ll meet them in time.”
A department’s atmosphere always followed its leader. When Ian glanced at Hale, he grinned and extended his hand.
“Nice to meet you, rookie.”
“Nice to meet you too, Captain.”
Even if he’d lived as a warrior instead of a mage, he would have succeeded with that physique. Hale patted Ian’s shoulder and stretched, as if to say, “Let’s skip the boring initiation ceremony.”
“So, how about we grab a drink?”
“Drinking this early? Just beer, please.”
“Ian, you drink beer, right? I don’t know much about noble tastes.”
“Of course. But I have company.”
“Company? Who?”
Clang!
Before Ian could finish, the conference room door swung open. Beric, his face swollen and bruised, burst in, shouting.
“Iaaaan! Everyone else is out—why aren’t you? I thought we got separated!”
He was supposed to wait at the entrance, but seeing the mages leaving, he couldn’t hold back and came inside. The Magic Operations team gawked at his battered appearance.
“…What on earth happened to him?”
“He looks terrible. It’s a miracle he’s even walking.”
“This is Beric, the magic swordsman I’m with. He just finished sparring in the training grounds.”
“Wait, is he the one who fought Captain Jarrett?”
“That’s right.”
Tommy and Nakina exchanged looks. The Magic Operations Department was already short-staffed. Ian’s arrival was welcome, but the fact that he had a magic swordsman under his command—especially one as notorious as Beric—was a bonus.
“This is a total win.”
“Definitely a win!”
Their eyes sparkled as they approached Beric, slinging arms around his shoulders. Beric grimaced at the sudden contact.
“Hey now, we’re going to be working with Ian from now on. You’ll be seeing a lot of each other. Nice to meet you. I’m Nakina.”
“I’m Tommy! We’re going out for drinks—wanna come?”
“…Drinks? Is there food too?”
“Of course! Since the rookie’s here, the captain’s buying!”
“I’m running a deficit this month.”
“Who cares? Let’s go! Eat, drink, party!”
“Let’s really bust the captain’s wallet!”
“Yeah! But who’s the captain anyway?”
“Are you an idiot? Doesn’t that guy over there look like the captain? The mountain man? Whatever, I like idiots. They’re the best at taking hits.”
The three instantly bonded, united in spirit. Ian and Hale watched with amused smiles. Hale nodded and suggested,
“I’ll fill you in on the details over drinks. Let’s go.”
Click.
“Oh my.”
Mini opened the door and felt like she’d stepped back to the day of the New Year’s party. There was Beric, barely able to stand, a stable hand sweating as he helped him, and Ian letting out a weary sigh. That night had been late, but now it was broad daylight—what on earth was going on?
“What happened? Beric! Are you okay? How badly did you get beaten to look like this?”
“Beric’s here? Yeah, that’s him! He got totally wrecked!”
“We need a doctor. Bring him over here!”
“Tsk, tsk. I told you to be more careful!”
“Hmm? But why do you smell like alcohol…?”
Mini sniffed and frowned. Romandro paused, noticing soup stains on Beric’s clothes.
“He got pretty drunk at the Magic Operations welcome party.”
“But Ian just joined the Magic Department—how come?”
“Heh heh… I can’t drink anymore. Stop it!”
“Stop it, you fool! Yeah, stop already!”
Slap!
“Ahhh!”
“Sorry, I hit a bruise.”
Beric screamed as Romandro awkwardly tended to his wounds. Ian collapsed onto the sofa and gave a rough rundown of recent events.
Beric had sparred with Jarrett in training, then gone through the initiation and welcome party. So much had happened before the sun even set—he was exhausted.
“Thank you for your hard work, Ian. Would you like some warm tea?”
“Please, Mini.”
“Well, it’s a relief you’re still in one piece after sparring with Captain Jarrett.”
Romandro clicked his tongue and handed Ian a letter from the table.
“A letter came while I was out.”
“Oh, it’s from Karenna.”
“The mayor interrogated some bandits and sent a report. Take a look. Hasha! Where did that guy go?”
“Where’s Hasha?”
Ian tore the sealing wax and looked around. Now that he thought about it, he hadn’t seen Hasha sitting in the corner of the sofa lately. Maybe not since morning.
“He’s been wandering outside a lot lately. No idea what he’s up to.”
“Be careful. Wesley’s keeping an eye on him.”
Hasha was usually serious, so Ian wasn’t too worried, but better safe than sorry. Romandro nodded and covered Beric with a blanket, carefully removing the black sword at his waist and setting it on the floor.
Rustle.
Ian rubbed his eyes and opened the letter. The tiny, neat handwriting filled the page.
—Greetings, Ian. This is Onyx, the mayor of Karenna. I hope you arrived safely at the capital. Thanks to your help, life here has returned to normal.
Now, I bring you the news you’ve been waiting for: the answer to your question about how the blue-haired child ended up following the bandits.
The question of why Hasha’s corpse, which had been sealed by a magic ritual, followed the thieves when they encountered it still lingered unresolved. Ian frowned as he flipped to the next page and read the words.
“The bandit leader isn’t entirely certain, but he testified that it seems to be a phenomenon caused by the black sword of the Atan tribe.”
The Atan tribe—a fiercely aggressive people primarily active north of Bariel, often called the Blood Tribe. Though they were later decimated by a monstrous assault that shook the empire, ultimately crushed by the imperial palace guard commander, they were once a formidable force.
‘Right. I had a feeling it was something like that.’
“Regardless of the truth, please understand that I am merely relaying what was reported. The Atan are said to sustain themselves by drinking the blood of monsters, so whether they are truly human is questionable. The black sword they use to summon monsters is likely the reason the blue-haired boy followed them, according to the testimony.”
At that time, Hasha’s corpse was undead—not human.
If it reacted to the black sword, that would make sense.
“I have a question. Is the blue-haired boy Ian mentioned not human?”
As the interrogation continued, the bandits babbled incoherently about slave traders and corpses, making it clear this was beyond the scope of a local town’s investigation.
Ian realized the narrative was growing stranger by the minute. On the very last page, he unconsciously pressed his palm to his forehead.
“Why would they do something they weren’t even ordered to…?”
“That mayor? He looked utterly incompetent at a glance! But why? What exactly did he say?”
“Therefore, a formal request for detailed information has been submitted to the palace. Please wait a little longer. I humbly ask for forgiveness for my previous negligence. Also, please convey this to Advisor Romandro, who was with you. I will relay any further updates. Thank you.”
If things went awry, it meant the palace—specifically Wesley—might come to know about Karenna’s affairs after all.