章節 70: CHAPTER 229
Quikantel gave up on Murakan's condition for the moment.
Misha's careless reaction convinced her that Murakan wasn't in too much trouble.
"Miss Misha, it's been too long for a little 'catching up'. We last saw each other hundreds of years ago."
"Didn't we see each other in the Milla Kingdom about two hundred years ago?"
"I believe so. Either way, it's been a while. As you can see, I'm doing well. Thanks to him, Olta's contractor and I now reside here."
Quikantel nodded her head toward Jin. Misha's eyes flicked to him.
"Such a clever and strong child. I watched him go through his trials at the Great Mythra Desert. Mustering up the strength to swing your sword against Temar was especially impressive."
Misha smiled as she reminiscenced about that moment. But in her eyes, a hint of sadness glimmered.
Temar Runcandel.
'It felt like I was in his presence.'
Runcandel's first patriarch, and her first love.
After Temar passed, her life became endless missions and chores.
As Solderet's representative, she had to deal with all of his business, which meant repaying debts to others.
"I didn't know you were watching. Those weren't my best moments, so I'm a little embarrassed."
"It's fine. You were pretty cool back there. Watching you eat up that scorpion was funny, though."
"On that note, I'd like to ask a question."
"About how I got here?"
"Yes."
"Murakan. That runt can't escape the palm of my hand. I placed a tracking spell on him when he was young, and he still hasn't realized. What an idiot…"
"A tracking… spell?"
"Yeah, so I didn't even need to search for you, since I knew your location all along."
Which meant that the spell had been active for thousands of years.
Quikantel giggled.
"You haven't changed, Miss Misha. It's been a while since I've seen someone trick Jin."
"Humans are all the same. They believe any word I say."
"Haha, of course. Such a spell would never exist."
Jin awkwardly smiled and shrugged.
"Murakan can only use his spirit energy for fighting, but I can wield it in more special ways. Observe."
Misha raised her left hand over the table to cast a shadow. Then with her right hand, she brought the shadow into existence. Jin looked astonished, like a six-year-old watching a magic trick.
'How in the world?'
She pulled the left arm's shadow off the table and into reality as if she were scooping pudding.
The shadow didn't disappear. She crumpled the shadow into a ball in her right palm.
Quikantel looked like she had seen this before.
"Wowie!"
Euria shouted and extended her arms toward the shadow ball. Misha grinned at the entertained child before giving out a small exhale.
The shadow exploded into thousands of dust particles that flew toward Jin.
'Like a galaxy in the palm of her hand.'
Jin didn't try to evade the dust. Upon reaching JIn, they disappeared.
"Indeed, just as you said, such magic doesn't exist. However, it's possible as a god-given ability. Any entity with my shadow marked upon them, I can always track their location. I did so to Murakan when he was young, which led me all the way here."
Misha lifted Euria off her lap and set her onto the floor. She then dispersed herself into spirit energy and flew around the ceiling.
[and I came into the mansion like this, so no one noticed.]
The particles gathered and scattered around the room. When they weren't concentrated in one location, he could only notice black specks around him.
Woooom…
The spirit energy gathered and solidified between Jin and Quikantel. The black figure dyed with color, and Misha appeared right before their eyes.
"So, is that enough for a demonstration?"
Jin nodded.
"Oh my, a warrior shouldn't be vulnerable this easily."
Jin heard Misha's voice from behind him. He turned and another Misha was standing there. In addition, there was another one at the original seat of the table, holding Euria in her arms.
Quikantel seemed pretty used to this, but the others were not.
In fact, Lathry looked as if he was about to pass out since his childhood nightmare was standing before him.
"Your guardian dragon is a coward, Euria."
"But he's nice and cute."
"So it seems. Makes good cookies, too."
Crunch crunch…
All three Mishas bit into a cookie. None of them were illusions.
'Her ways of using spirit energy are completely different from Murakan. Can I do that too?'
However, she wasn't finished.
"Huh!?"
"My goodness! Lord Jin?!"
"Young Master?!"
Julien, Kashimir, and Gilly gasped. Jin turned around once again, and for a moment, his breath halted.
Jin Runcandel stood behind him.
The same face and outfit. It seemed even Quikantel hadn't seen this one before.
This new Jin took a plate and approached Jin.
"Why don't you try one?"
Even the tone and accent of speech were identical. No one knew which one was which.
"Such an uncommon experience. To see yourself without a mirror."
Misha bragged as if it were nothing.
'That's crazy… This doesn't feel like a contractor's dragon, but more like the gods themselves.'
And if Misha were an enemy…
From that hypothetical scenario, Jin began to sweat.
The Misha at the table remained and the others disappeared.
'Does Joshua have… someone like this?'
He remembered Joshua's replica that he killed.
"I'm sure he didn't tell you that this is even possible."
"Indeed."
Misha sighed.
"Thank goodness. If he did, then I'd bash his head in and torture you until you forgot."
"I beg your pardon?"
"What did you think of what I just did?"
Jin eyed Misha for a bit before answering.
"…Alarming. If that Jin Runcandel appeared somewhere, my existence could become nothing. And to convince people that I'm the real one, it's a very frightening thought."
No one wanted to have a doppelganger.
Jin didn't particularly calculate his answer, but answered with raw emotion.
Misha smiled, seemingly satisfied with the answer.
She intentionally displayed her abilities to shock Jin. She wanted him to understand the power of the shadows and darkness.
In her opinion, Jin wielded a dangerous ability that could not only harm people and beasts, but gods as well.
The thousand-year contractor, and the last hope for the shadows.
'I will never let you face the same fate as Temar. Thankfully, Murakan led you in the right direction…'
'Do not be tempted by such power. I will always be watching you…'
Misha wanted to project this thought, but Euria tugged at her sleeve.
"That old man's not like that."
No one understood why she said that.
Jin burst into laughter at Euria's serious face.
"It's been a while since you called me that. What are you even talking about?"
"He would never do that."
Misha looked rather surprised.
'Old man…? And she read my mind. I knew this would happen, but… it seems that she isn't with Jin by coincidence.'
All sorts of questions zipped through her head.
Solderet, the god neglecting his children. Not a single message or signal.
'Jin could be Temar's reincarnation! Euria could've seen Temar… no, or maybe…'
She saw Solderet within Jin.
Az Mil, the god of sight. It could be possible with such a talented contractor like Euria.
Misha, of course, didn't know the emotions of the little girl. She patted Euria on the head.
"Anyway, talking with real humans isn't too bad. So, you… Gilly, right?"
"Yes, Miss Misha."
"I need a few days to fix my brother, so get me a room to use."
"I shall select the best one. Please let me know of any supplies you need."
"Thanks. I'd like to have a drink with Quikantel, so some drinks would be nice. It'd be nice if they're from Mount Milla and fermented for around a hundred years."
"Understood."
"Jin, we'll speak more tomorrow."
Remembering something, Misha turned to Gilly once again.
"And… you should be careful."
"Huh?"
"You perfectly match his type. If he goes too far, cut him off."
Gilly let out a cough.
章節 71: CHAPTER 230
Misha and Quikantel were escorted to their room, and Kuzan and Beris returned to the emergency room. They look very shocked.
"Are you alright?"
"... I apologize. After hearing about what happened to Beris, I got worked up. I keep looking weak in front of you."
Kuzan lowered his head while Jin shook his.
"No worries, it's very human of you. If Gilly or I got struck, the situation would've been the same."
"I… just asked if she was a thief… It was completely reasonable… Whew. What a bitch."
Beris rubbed her chin. It still felt a little numb.
She clearly felt misunderstood.
It had been a month since they arrived in Tikan.
After realizing that they had been obeying and serving their number one enemy, and that Beris lost all her magic, she grew depressed. The aftereffects of the mana overload were too much.
However, from the second week on, she decided to entrust herself to the place she lived.
Although she didn't recover her mana, she did everything from supporting the maids to working with the intelligence agents. Everyone told her that she didn't need to, but she insisted.
She never wanted to be useless.
While preparing cookies with Lathry, a terrible fate befell her. A random woman appeared from thin air, so Beris merely questioned her.
"Master, would you like some ice?"
Enya suggested to Beris.
"Calling me master again? You crazy? Who's the master here?"
"You taught me the theory and usage of wind spells. You also taught me 5-star spells, so you must be my master."
"Then all your Vermont Academy professors must also be your masters. Shut up and pisss off…"
Just because her magic was gone didn't mean her personality had faded.
"I never learned such things from them."
"You think I don't know how their classes are taught? I know it's in your introductory classes."
"But I really never learned anything there. Just a bit, I got discriminated against. Anyway, I'll get you some ice, so teach me something else."
Enya saw herself in Beris.
Although they didn't have a single point in common, Enya had similar feelings as Beris. The feeling of uselessness.
After returning from the Dark Magician Association, Enya trained and studied whenever she could.
She also helped Beris fit in and picked up some of her battle skills.
Pitter patter.
Enya sprinted away to get some ice, and Beris shook her head.
"All that happens is I lose my mana, and this runt thinks we're equals."
Despite her comment, Beris did not hesitate to take the ice pack that Enya brought.
"Alright, so keep your side of the promise. Teach me something."
"What promise?"
"I'll be waiting at the underground training room! Alright, Lord Jin, I'll see you later!"
Before Beris had the chance to shout at her, she pitter-pattered away.
"Kuzan, what's up with this kid? Pretty damn annoying."
Jin smirked.
"Beris, I'll offer a piece of advice. You should watch your mouth toward Enya when in the presence of Miss Quikantel. Whatever your true feelings, she will indiscriminately beat you up, and I can't stop her. Plus, if you get beat, Kuzan would face the same fate. What a familiar scenario."
She merely acted according to her psychopathic persona. Her demeanor toward other people did not truly reflect the gratitude she felt.
At the end of the day, she gave Enya what she wanted. Jin didn't want her to be misunderstood again.
"Hmph!"
Beris started walking away, and Kuzan apologized for her.
"I'll make sure to get the message across to her."
"Let her be. It's just how she socializes, but otherwise, she's doing great. Gilly thinks that Beris is adjusting well."
Comparatively, Tikan was a very foreign environment for them.
From their youth, they grew up in the Lunar Sacrifice orphanage as hunting dogs. Used, tricked, tortured. They lost Taimyun and served Joshua.
Their entire lives had been depressing. They were just slowly learning what it meant to be human.
The same applied to Julien.
"Do you need anything, Julien?"
"... No."
"I see."
Jin didn't push further. He still wrestled with the trauma that he had faced recently.
Well, his introverted personality also trapped him in his own head. No one knew how he got along with Joshua's active personality.
'God of Storms, Graham. If there is some way to channel that through Sigmund, then I'll take this kid back to the island.'
It wasn't a bad idea to amplify his divine abilities, just as Joshua had. Only if Julien decides to dedicate himself to Jin, though.
At this point, Jin didn't really consider Julien as part of his group, but more so a guest. Kuzan and Beris felt more like his soldiers.
"Sir Kashimir."
"Yes, milord."
"Was there some news on the Holy Kingdom while I was gone?"
"After you left, Bran and I met up with some priests, but they didn't want to speak. They just constantly said that it would mess with our trades, so they suggested we don't interfere with their trade ships. Thankfully, we did see ships going toward Santel."
"Good work. You think there's something fishy, right?"
"Indeed, I think that the Holy Kingdom of Vankella is no longer neutral. This is clearly in support of Zipfel. In fact, not a single press release on this event has been published."
"The Protectors of the Doctrine sealed up Santel. In fact, they used some hypnosis-type spells to gain support."
"It seems that they even disobeyed the holy king. Or, maybe he's been on Zipfel's side the entire time…"
That would be the worst-case scenario.
If the Holy Kingdom already belonged to Zipfel, then it would be very problematic for Jin's endeavors.
The guardian knights of Runcandel would fight without the support of first-class healers. Or, they'd have to pay an insane price for everything they needed. Their healing and medicine remained unmatched in the world.
"It's a possibility, but I pray that's not the case. Oh, we also met the holy king's daughter, Rani Salome."
"McLan is known to love his daughter. I have heard multiple stories about her. If he sent his daughter to do chores for Zipfel, then that must mean…"
"No, unlike the others, Rani acted on her own volition. If it weren't for her, Murakan would've been captured, or even died."
Jin summarized what happened.
"Rani mentioned that the corruption of the holy kingdom censors information from the public, so she chose to help us. Because the citizens know that the destruction was caused by Kadun rather than Murakan."
"My goodness… she did us a big favor, milord."
"Indeed. I've thought about it, and maybe the holy king placed Rani in the Protectors of the Doctrine so she could keep an eye on them."
"So Zipfel has the Protectors of the Doctrine and other parts of the Holy Kingdom, but not the kingdom as a whole?"
"Exactly."
"That seems a little more realistic. Recalling some of the legislation from recent times, most were pretty bad for those in positions of power."
McLan had banned all forms of hypnosis twenty years ago. Jin wasn't at the age to receive such news, but Kashimir had been part of a royal family. He never forgot the mountains of papers regarding the situation.
It was the most efficient but most unethical way to conduct their missionary work, so it made sense to ban it.
"However, do you think these wielders of power gave their everything to Zipfel just because of the unfair laws? I find it hard to believe, especially because by teaming up with Zipfel, they lose even more power. Ultimately, they'd be doing their dirty work!"
"This is true, milord. In that case, the holy king siding with Zipfel is more likely. Hm, this definitely requires some more digging. I'm afraid this will be quite the rabbit hole."
"First, please look more into Rani Salome. The Doctrine's 5th leader decreed a punishment for her, so if McLan never heard about it, she'd be in big trouble."
"Understood. Because of her great deeds as the savior of Sir Murakan, I will make sure to arrange her pardon."
* * *
The next morning, Murakan looked significantly better.
He didn't feel like a ball of fire, and looked like a healthy cat. He wandered the halls of the residence.
Without the need of healers, his fever had dropped.
[Mya, myaaa–]
"Nyan."
Shurry tossed Murakan around.
"He could stay like that forever. He looks pretty happy right now. What do you think of that, Jin? You can save some oxygen for yourself."
"Miss Misha."
"I'm kidding. If he was even half as cute normally… Mmmm. Anyway, you're going to hear some screams, but wait patiently. Let me do my thing."
Misha's shadow loomed over Murakan.
And she smiled deviously.
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