Episode 73
Chapter 24: Twisting Two Fates (Part 5)

“Uooooah—!”

Enya pounded her chest like an excited primate, letting out a wild scream. Jin flinched and instinctively took a step back, while Quikantel sighed, clearly troubled.

Suddenly, Enya grabbed both of Jin’s hands and bowed deeply—so low her head nearly touched the ground. It was almost like a formal bow of respect.

“Nice to meet you! Lord Jin! I’m Enya!”

“Uh, um… nice to meet you, Enya.”

“Kyaaaah!”

Honestly.

Jin had never seen anything like this in his life. Not even Veradin Ziphl, who was once the envy of all, had ever had such an intense, over-the-top follower.

‘So this is what it means to truly admire someone?’

It was almost like witnessing a devout believer greeting their god. Enya had already sat down and was muttering some kind of prayer under her breath.

For Jin, it was overwhelming to the point of suffocation.

The heart of a young girl who idolizes her “hero” was a completely foreign territory to him. After all, Jin had never had an idol himself.

“…Even when I became Olta’s contractor, it wasn’t this extreme.”

Quikantel felt a twinge of disappointment.

When the god himself chose her, Enya’s only reaction was a simple “Wow.” But now, she was bouncing around like an excited puppy, and Quikantel couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of defeat.

‘This is exactly why Olta insisted so much on the importance of bloodlines!’

This was the very image lacking any dignity or decorum!

This was why Olta and the Silver Dragons valued bloodlines so highly. At the very least, a god’s contractor should have some semblance of grace.

But what could they do?

In this era, no human was more compatible than Enya, so Quikantel had no choice but to accept the contract, tears and all. He couldn’t refuse, and now that the contract was sealed, he had to love Enya.

That was the fate of a guardian dragon.

“Ahem, ahem, Enya. That’s enough now.”

Quikantel gently scolded the still-bouncing Enya. When he pressed his finger lightly against his forehead, she finally quieted down.

Of course, she didn’t stop staring at Jin with those sparkling, wide eyes.

‘I wonder what Murakan would say if he were awake right now.’

Jin chuckled softly.

“Oh dear, I got a little too excited. Seeing Lord Jin in person after only reading about you in the news… I must have lost my mind for a moment. Sorry about that!”

Enya bowed deeply once again.

Her personality was seriously outgoing and friendly. That was Jin’s first impression of her.

“No need to apologize, Enya. I’m truly honored by such a passionate welcome.”

“Kyaaa! Should I welcome you even more?”

“That’s enough.”

“Quikantel, Quikantel! Please explain how Lord Jin ended up here. Could it be that Olta answered my prayers?”

“What have you been praying for every night?”

“Of course, I prayed to meet Lord Jin. Hehe, anyway, today’s been wonderful! I had such a hard time at the academy all day.”

Quikantel’s expression darkened.

He knew better than anyone how the academy students treated Enya.

‘I can’t just kill those brats…’

Thinking of the sly noble students who subtly tormented Enya made his teeth grind. If they had physically attacked her, Quikantel could have intervened easily, but since they treated her like an invisible nobody, he had no room to step in.

Jin nodded knowingly as he recalled Quikantel’s expression and the typical behavior of academy nobles.

‘They must be humiliating her because she’s a commoner scholarship student. That’s why I never associated with academy mages in my past life.’

Jin had dealt with plenty of academy mages under his own master and had never met a more detestable group.

Anyway.

It was time to pull Enya out from between those discriminatory vultures. As a Runcandel, Jin couldn’t offer direct support, but just recently, he had formed a new, independent faction.

‘If I can persuade Enya well enough to move her entire family to Tikan, that’ll work. I can find a good teacher for her magic training.’

The free city of Tikan was generally more relaxed and accepting than Bimant. Plus, Kashimir would personally look after her, so she’d enjoy a better quality of life than most nobles.

If Enya could just give up her hometown of Bimant, this was a golden opportunity.

“Enya, I came here to ensure your safety first, then take you away.”

It was the truth, so Jin said it plainly.

But it didn’t take long for him to realize it was a mistake. The moment Enya heard those words, she acted like the heroine of a novel.

“You’re… taking me away. Taking me, away—!”

Chaos erupted again. Enya, half-crazed, punched the air with bloodshot eyes.

“Let’s go! Anywhere! Long live Olta!”

Thunk.

Unable to stand it any longer, Quikantel lightly smacked the back of Enya’s neck. She shuddered and fainted, leaving Jin feeling like he’d just witnessed a bizarre one-act play.

“Ah, my head. How did someone like her become Olta’s contractor?”

“She’s supposed to be bright.”

“You’re a child too. Hah, no need to persuade her. If you say go, she’d probably chase you all the way to the Runcandel underground prison.”

“We don’t have an underground prison in our family, Quikantel.”

“Gone? That can’t be. It should still be there, with a few dragons locked up.”

“…What?”

“Never mind, it’s not important. Listen carefully. Enya will wake up exactly ten seconds from now. When she does, please choose your words carefully and explain the current situation to her.”

“Didn’t you hit her pretty hard just now? Even a trained martial artist wouldn’t get up from that.”

Before ten seconds had even passed, Enya staggered and sat up. Jin felt a chill run down his spine—this was beyond modern medicine or martial arts.

It was like the stubbornness of a fanatic.

Still, she seemed a bit subdued, as if the shock had some effect.

Her tongue was a little loose too.

“Acquaintance, Lord Jin.”

“Enya, I’ll explain the situation slowly.”

Enya nodded, and Jin began telling her everything—from Yuria to the suspicions surrounding Buretta and Ziphl.

He couldn’t reveal information only a time traveler would know, but thankfully, Enya accepted his story without question.

“Hmm, since it’s Lord Jin speaking, I’ll believe everything. It sounds so romantic! Dragons, conspiracies, adventures, a boy and a girl! Even Lord Jin himself.”

“You can see it that way, huh?”

“It’s better to think positively. So, basically, I just need to leave Bimant with my family and live in Tikan?”

“Exactly.”

“When should we leave?”

“The sooner, the better. Quikantel and I have business to attend to in Bimant, so it’s best if you leave first.”

Officially withdrawing from the academy and taking time to settle things wasn’t a good idea.

Bimant wouldn’t let go of Olta’s contractor easily. The moment she showed any sign of leaving, they’d use every means to chain her down.

They might hold her family hostage or use drugs to brainwash her. Plus, the notorious Bimant Special Task Force would keep her under strict surveillance.

Sneaking away before any of that happened was the easiest option. There would be some pursuit, but investigations would likely focus on the Lutero Magic Federation rather than the free city of Tikan.

Of course, there was still some risk.

‘It all depends on how much Bimant values Olta’s contractor.’

Jin didn’t think they valued her much. If they did, Enya wouldn’t be wearing such tattered, worn-out clothes.

‘Maybe they’re watching Ziphl’s orders or haven’t made her status public yet, so they can’t give her special treatment… but even the Special Task Force isn’t assigned to her.’

If the latter were true, the Special Task Force should be constantly near Enya.

The reason she wasn’t properly treated despite being a contractor was her social status. The noble students at the academy always outscored their own children, and Enya, despite her contract with a god, was a thorn in their side.

The nobles whispered into the ears of Bimant’s royal officials, making sure no one looked out for that commoner girl.

“The sooner, the better, right? Got it, Lord Jin. I’ll get my family ready by tomorrow.”

Enya’s family consisted only of her seven-year-old younger brother and an old dog named Poopy.

“But Jin, how are you going to sneak Enya out? Passing through the checkpoints is impossible, and I can’t personally fly her out either. Everything’s recorded, and the risk of being tracked is too high.”

The same went for riding Murakan out.

Jin already had a plan.

“Regular trade ships from Tikan dock at Bimant’s capital harbor. We just need to secretly board one of those.”

All the Chilsakjo informants in Bimant operated that way. Bimant authorities knew but turned a blind eye because Chilsakjo held compromising information on Bimant’s leadership.

Lower-level informants, unrelated to critical secrets, had especially free rein to smuggle people in and out.

And that was their best chance.

“Now that Enya’s gone, I’ll stay here in the Empire as usual and look for a chance to meet Buretta. I’ll tell the Academy that Enya’s sick and can’t come.”

The nobles didn’t care that Enya—the thorn in their side—wasn’t showing up at the Academy. If anything, they probably hoped she’d never come back.

“Yes, and once we finish our business with Buretta, we can head back. Hopefully, it’ll all be resolved without a fight… but I doubt we can avoid one.”

“I already said, the fighting’s my responsibility. That guy over there sleeping? He’s off-limits.”

Just as the conversation reached that point, Jin and Quikantel both turned toward the front entrance.

A faint sound of movement came from the lawn outside. Then, a soft knock—someone was tapping on the main gate.

“Is anyone inside? I’ve come to get some firewood.”

No one would come all the way out here just to gather firewood.

It had to be the Special Forces or the Royal Guard.

“Who in their right mind comes all this way just to ask for firewood? Hold on a moment.”

Surprisingly, Quikantel showed no suspicion toward the unexpected visitor.