Chapter 479
Ian managed to swallow a few spoonfuls of warm water, but he still couldn’t move his body. The fatigue and injuries he’d sustained in the Abyssal Sea seemed far worse than he’d thought.
The man just stared blankly at Ian, then greedily devoured the rest of the porridge himself, licking every last drop as if he were a starving beast.
Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, he fixed his gaze on Ian.
“Even after eating, you still can’t move?”
After hesitating several times, the man suddenly grabbed Ian’s wrist roughly and yanked him forward. Ian frowned and tried to resist.
Screeeech!
Bang!
“What took you so long?”
“Oh, master!”
“You’re awake?”
“Yes, yes. I’ve come to my senses. I finished the porridge, too. But this guy here can’t speak or understand anything, it seems.”
The master of the man had just barged in. Short and stocky, bald, and about the same age as the man, he wore clothes that looked oddly familiar.
Ian quickly realized they were his own clothes—worn and stained with blood, hastily washed and dried, then stuffed onto a body that clearly didn’t fit. The buttons weren’t even fastened; the shoulders looked like they might burst at any moment.
“Deaf and mute, you say?”
“He doesn’t speak, and he doesn’t seem to understand either.”
“How did someone like that end up wearing clothes like these?”
It was the outer garment Ian usually wore in the office. Though tattered from all the hardships, the delicate embroidery in gold thread made its value unmistakable.
“What should we do with him?”
“Not only do we owe him for saving his life, but we should get payment for the porridge too… Hmm. At this rate, he can’t even do chores. Better to sell him off. The market’s this weekend; we’ll take him then. His face is decent enough, so he should sell well. Yeah. Keep him locked up here for now.”
“I—”
As the master sniffled and tried to leave the storage room, Ian spoke up. Judging by how much the man valued money, it seemed better to reveal his identity and negotiate a fair price.
“…I am Ian Hielo.”
“Huh? He’s talking?”
The master spun around in surprise, and the man went pale.
“He’s talking!”
“Ah, sorry, sorry, master!”
“Trying to trick me, are you?”
“No, no! That’s not it at all!”
Slap! Slap!
The man’s indiscriminate slaps left the man helpless, begging desperately, while Ian summoned what little strength he had to stop the master.
“Enough, enough. He couldn’t speak earlier because of the circumstances. It’s not his fault.”
“Hah, hah. Enough? Who do you think you are?”
The master’s forehead was slick with sweat just because Ian had moved a little. What a stubborn fool. Ian slowly sat up and straightened his posture.
“I am the lord of Hielo and the Minister of Magic at the Imperial Palace.”
The master’s eyes went wide with shock, and then he fell silent. The man who had been beaten held his swollen cheek, frozen as if his mind had stopped working.
A brief silence. Then the master clutched his belly and chuckled.
“You’re crazy!”
“Ma-master, I think it’s better if he stays mute. Should I knock him out again?”
He clearly didn’t believe him. Ian calmly continued.
“Contact the Imperial Palace or Hielo—any nearby place—and inform them that I am here. I will ensure you are well compensated.”
“Honestly, the more I look at you, the more unbelievable you seem.”
“Oh, master! If you hit him again, he’ll really die.”
“Then do you want to take the hit instead?”
“I have to sell him at the market. It’d be a waste if he died. Yes, yes. So please bear with it a little longer.”
He had a point. The master struggled to compose his ample frame and crouched before Ian. The sound of his jacket tearing was audible, but no one acknowledged it.
“You say you’re the Minister of Magic?”
“Yes.”
“Show me some magic.”
“…I don’t even have the strength to stand, let alone cast magic.”
“See? Scammers always have a silver tongue.”
The master poked Ian’s forehead with his finger and muttered.
“You. The Minister of Magic who disappeared ten years ago—why are you here? Who said you looked like the minister?”
…Ten years?
Had it really been that long since Ian entered the Abyss? Time must not flow normally in that chaotic space.
While Ian pondered this, the man approached the master and asked, “Was the minister really that handsome?”
“I don’t know. That’s what they said. He was young but held the minister’s post, so rumors were rampant.”
No one probably remembered him now.
The master gave Ian’s forehead one last hard shove and stood up. His back looked like it had been torn apart by the ill-fitting clothes. He nodded to the man and ordered,
“He’s not normal if he’s talking. Keep a close watch so he doesn’t escape.”
“Yes, understood.”
Ian slowly got up and walked toward the storage door. His steps were weak, and neither the master nor the man seemed inclined to stop him.
“This place…”
The scene outside was so unfamiliar it unsettled him.
A dull wall made of earth and stone, a roof piled with hay, and the people who looked like household members sat half-naked on the ground, doing menial tasks. It was the epitome of a backwater village, and Ian had no idea where he was.
“What do you expect me to do if I know where this is?”
Screeeech!
Bang!
The master pushed Ian’s chest, signaling him to go back inside, then shut and locked the door tightly.
Ian stood there for a moment, then moved to peer through a gap on the other side. Judging by the number of household members, this place seemed to have some standing in the area…
‘Looks like I’ve fallen into the sticks.’
Still, the one comfort was that this place was called Bariel.
Though the magic power here was completely drained, if he rested, he might recover a little. How long that would take, especially with such meager food, he couldn’t say.
‘And ten years…’
A long time. This place, where Jin was, was both Ian’s past and a future ten years ahead. How strange. Questions swirled in his mind.
Had His Majesty grown up well? How were Beric, Romandro, and the Magic Department? What had become of the political situation? And what about Rutherford?
Thunk.
At that moment, a lump of dried flour fell through the gap. The man had given it to him as a meal. Ian wasn’t sure if it was generosity or just a sign of how scarce food was.
“Rest quietly. Nothing bad will happen.”
“Where is this place? Is it far from the Imperial Palace or Hielo?”
“Again with that? I don’t know where Hielo is, but it’s a bit far from the center, I guess.”
Having never left his hometown, the man had no sense of distance. Ian patiently asked again.
“So, where exactly is this?”
“Landreau.”
“Landreau?”
Never heard of it.
“That’s the master’s name—Landreau.”
“A noble?”
“To us, he’s higher than the king.”
This was maddening. Judging by the finances and general atmosphere, he was probably a low-ranking noble at best.
Ian pressed his forehead briefly, then changed the subject.
“How far is the market?”
“About a full day’s walk. No time for that now. I have to work. Save that for later. The next meal’s tomorrow, got it?”
All slave trading outside the central market was illegal. Selling someone who wasn’t a slave there bordered on human trafficking.
Sigh.
Ian had no idea why he’d woken up here. It must be the will of the gods, but he couldn’t even guess why.
Looking for clues, Ian kept watching outside through the wooden slats, overhearing the household’s chatter.
“Going to the mountain again today?”
“Yeah. Gotta pick up whatever we can find.”
“I should’ve gone last time! That blonde was pretty. If we sold her at the market, we’d get some money. The master might even give us a scrap of meat. Lucky!”
Ian easily recognized they were talking about him. He must have been found somewhere in the mountains, not near any settlement.
“Then why don’t you go together today?”
“Haha! Just saying.”
“No need to worry about moles coming out. Haven’t seen any in a while.”
“But if you’re unlucky, you might run into one.”
“If you’re lucky, you’d be picking up stuff like me.”
“Enough. Go cut up some dead dryads.”
…Moles. And dryads.
The familiar words sparked a memory.
Mountains. Where were the mountains?
Was there a mountain visible from here?
“Oh.”
There it was. Far off in the distance, faint but unmistakable. The dark green trees created an illusion of storm clouds hanging low over the land. It was Raja Mountain.
‘The place where Lady Lien Mereloff grew up as a child. Home to spirits bound to the trees and the stronghold of the Dera tribe.’
The Dera tribe, mole-like in appearance, was a reclusive people who devoted their entire lives to inventing things. In Bariel, where monsters were scarce, perhaps their fate was inevitably shaped by their unusual looks, setting them apart from humans.
“Now that I think about it, I remember Mrs. Lien. After she killed her dryad mother and left the forest, she immediately ran into a slave caravan and was sold off.”
Could this be the work of these guys? Judging by their behavior, it didn’t seem like a one-time thing. Even if not them, there must be some small trading group operating in the market.
Ian pondered briefly. Would it be better to be sold at the slave market, or to flee to Rajasan? If he went to the market, he might still find a way to contact the central authorities, but judging by these people’s level, it wouldn’t be easy.
“For now—”
Swish.
Rest. Recovering his magic power was the priority.
Ian stared blankly at the shriveled lump of flour before turning away and closing his eyes. His hunger was intense, but eating that would only make him sick.
Regaining his magic was just a matter of time, so he told himself to stay calm. Hopefully, he’d recover at just the right moment.
Meanwhile, deep in the heart of Rajasan.
The forest was thick with dark blue leaves and white-barked trees.
So quiet it was almost eerie. Was that rustling the wind? Or a wild animal? Or something else entirely? A young Dera crouched hidden in the underbrush, sniffing the air. The scent of a stranger.
“Looks like they’re here to steal again.”
Probably humans living down the mountain. Clutching a hammer tightly in both fists, he lowered his body. Rustling aside some leaves to clear his view, he confirmed the unmistakable figure of a human.
Red hair and a face that looked downright nasty. What a peculiar-looking one! The Dera bared his teeth and readied to attack, but the human muttered under his breath.
“…Ah, damn it. Got lost again.”