5 – The Magician
“In 1830, Jean-Pierre Ochlerme, who had devoted his entire life to the study of magic, lost his life in an accident. Henry Yoriss Russell succeeded his work and committed suicide in 1873. Now, it’s our turn to learn Type 1 magic.”
“Listen to the spell book. Imagine. And shout.”
– Introduction,《Type 1 Magic Handbook – Fundamentals / Benjamin Oslo》
Suddenly, that passage crossed my mind.
Ten pages devoted to a topic unrelated to the main content, translated into a total of 10 languages. Unlike the entire text written in Frowbiano, the introduction was also written in the imperial language.
It was the only magical text passage I could read.
So, I read it over and over again, to the point where I could recite it without looking.
But why did the author write such an introduction?
Why translate it into various languages?
“Levitation.”
Swoosh—
“Levitation.”
Swoosh—
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh.
Anyway, understanding that author’s intention was a difficult task, but I could speculate freely.
I thought like this.
Sometimes, when learning feels truly cold and lonely, and unfolding a book seems foolish.
Think of the immortals patting your back from above the sky.
“Levi―”
A chill runs down the alley. The sunlight, breaking through the cloudy weather, bathes my whole body.
December 17th. Cloudy.
“Hey.”
Silence.
“Hey, kids.”
Still silent.
The dim sky. As the basement hidden somewhere in the alley is enveloped in silence, the darkness seems even thicker.
Lemi, alone, sat in a chair, observing five men and women in a salute position.
In the stillness, you could almost hear the sound of rolling eyes if you listened carefully.
It didn’t please him.
Certainly, if they had answered, he would have been much happier. Knowing this well enough to make his temples throb, the five men and women obediently lowered their heads as a sign of submission.
It definitely satisfied the commander.
Lemi playfully flicked his fingers left and right.
“Tic-toc. Tic-toc. Tic-toc. Ding! Well, it’s time. Your dinner time for not catching a single beggar in two days.”
“…….”
“Why is that? Hurry up and go to the market.”
“…Commander.”
The youngest girl took a step forward.
The four startled individuals quickly signaled for the youngest to shut up, but the youngest defiantly took one more step forward. There was no more room for objections.
Remy responded with a gentle voice, “Hmm. Why would you say that?”
“Well, um, I can skip dinner this time.”
“No, no! There’s no need for that at all. We have plenty of money. Even if we don’t know about three meals, I promised I wouldn’t let you go hungry at least for breakfast and dinner.”
“No, it’s okay. It’s my fault for not finding it. But, can I take just one day off tomorrow?”
“Why?”
“I couldn’t sleep… I feel like I might collapse right now.”
Remy opened his mouth with a smiling face, “Well, that’s not allowed.”
“Why is that?”
“We made a promise. If you stand by our side and work together, I promised to feed you, let you sleep, and take care of everything. Since it’s a promise, we have to work. Isn’t that right?”
“…We didn’t say it like that.”
The youngest placed a trembling fist against his chest.
“We said, as young ones, let’s stick together and survive until the Federal troops retreat. Let’s help each other until then. That’s what we said while reaching out our hands.”
Moisture filled his voice.
From Noble mtl dot com
Because the youngest was still inexperienced and struggled with emotional control even after experiencing war, enduring the rising bitterness was a difficult task.
The comrades maintained an unmoving posture, silently praying in their hearts.
Please, let it be enough.
However, the youngest persistently raised his voice.
The youngest shouted,
“But this, this! It’s just thugs! The kind of family we despise, who took advantage of the exhibition to snatch away our home, money, and family!”
In front of the smiling faces, a barrage of insults poured out.
Not a single curse, just verbal abuse. That’s why it was piercing.
“This incident, they said it would be enough to snatch just one book. I thought they’d easily give up if I hit them. I thought it would end there.”
However, the boy resisted until the end.
On the escape route. Unlike himself, who couldn’t endure hunger and exchanged a doll received as a gift from a friend for three pieces of bread.
“That beggar kid is about my age.”
“…”
“To be honest, it’s funny to call me a beggar. If the boss hadn’t reached out to me, I would have been in that position. I fought for myself! Just to get two meals a day—!”
Finally, tears welled up.
Breathless and trembling all over, after taking a few deep breaths, the youngest realized that he had just spewed out emotions recklessly.
It was a farewell attempt to finish speaking while looking into Remi’s eyes for the last time.
A palm flew.
Smack!
The rest of the gang closed their eyes tightly.
The girl’s body soared through the air. Her head spun around, and if that wasn’t enough, her whole body tumbled roughly on the dirty pavement.
Thunk!
To get slapped meant just that.
When the gang opened their eyes again, Remi was still smiling.
“Hey, youngest.”
There was no response, but he must have heard.
“Where are you pretending to be good all by yourself?”
So Remy laughed with all his might. hahahahaha, his laughter filled the basement.
“Youngest. Poor youngest. You must have thought this way. That you’re as pure as me. That you haven’t lost your humanity in the midst of war, and that you’ve shown kindness to others. That you’re as innocent as me. Hmm?”
“But let me tell you.”
“You’re just a useless piece, youngest. You’ve never struggled to survive. Haven’t you already missed the time when a little brat like you, who thinks bread falls from the sky if you stay still, graduates?”
“I’m telling you this because you seem to have forgotten, the war has begun.”
“It’s better not to play the role of a pitiful heroine. No one cares how much of a noble gentleman you are. No matter how much you resist, we can’t even touch the Federation. Why? Because you have the blood of a criminal country and the barbarian lineage of the Empire!”
As he finished speaking, his sneer had turned into loud laughter.
The youngest fell to the ground and cried, while the outcast closed his eyes and bowed his head.
There was nothing more meaningless than distinguishing between good and evil among the lowest of the low. So the only thing that mattered in this situation was one thing.
That his words held no falsehood.
“Ah, you’ve laughed enough.”
A bitter expression was etched on Remy’s lips, now devoid of laughter.
“Youngest. You’re right.”
He said.
“This is as far as the search goes. That bastard must have grown wings or something, damn it, he’s not caught. Whether he’s talented or you guys are incompetent, it seems like doing more than this would be a loss… James?”
The young man named James raised his head abruptly.
“Uh, why?”
“Starting tomorrow, you’ll be in charge of the youngest one like usual. Focus more on their education.”
The young man nodded his head.
Two of them were given a mission, while the remaining three looked puzzled and glanced at their commander.
“Come with me.”
“To where…?”
“Anywhere. It’s the military camp. There’s a beggar wizard wandering around in the middle of the city, so it’s only natural for soldiers to be bothered.”
“Oh, really? Have you seen someone using magic?”
Remi chuckled.
“If you use magic, you get 200 pounds. Even if you can’t use it, you still get 50 pounds. It’s not like that money comes out of the officers’ pockets. They have achievements to show off, and who wouldn’t want that?”
December 18th. Rain.
Federation Army’s stationed base in Le Man.
It was quite peaceful there, just as usual.
The soldiers were responsible for setting up tents, carrying out drills, or going on street patrols. The officers had nothing to do. It was also because they weren’t pregnant, so their stomachs weren’t growling.
It had been about a year since the civilian-led magic suppression was more or less concluded.
Since then, the officers rarely left the camp for mission purposes.
“The imperial bastards don’t even rebel. If it were me, I would’ve learned magic diligently and knocked out the enemy officers from behind.”
They would say things like that.
After the successful imperial advance was halted, the Federation’s occupation of the empire proceeded smoothly. Narrative figures like “war heroes” and “leaders of revolution” did not emerge from either the empire or the federation.
To make matters worse, eight out of ten officers stationed in Le Man were personnel who were separately dispatched after the ceasefire. In other words, they were salaried workers, which made their boredom even more intense.
As a result of various circumstances overlapping, the “Wizard Sighting Case” received significant attention within the Dumyeong Police Station, despite the informant’s lack of credibility.
Dumyeong Police Station, at the entrance.
A naval officer with a protruding belly stood in front of a beggar in a military posture. He had officers on both sides, but he was the only one using an umbrella, while the officers’ shoulders were soaked, giving off an air of arrogance.
The officer narrowed his eyes and spoke.
“Captain Kano, right? So, you guys claim to have seen someone using magic?”
“Yes, Captain Kano. We-“
“Tsk.”
As soon as Lemmy opened his mouth, the expressions of the officers instantly turned sour.
Their eyes were glaring at him as if he were a beast.
Even the hesitation to mix words exerted dominance.
“These guys treat people so well, really….”
Although the beggar naturally took the lead, there was nothing they could do except listen quietly.
The answer came from an officer standing to the right of Captain Kano.
“That’s correct.”
“Oh? Well, well, we need to identify this right away. Prepare an investigation team.”
“Understood.”
“And you, the alley leader. What was your name?”
This question was not directed at the person in question. “Lemmy, right? No last name? Ah, I see. Got it,” Captain Kano nodded dryly, having briefly heard the answer from the officer.
Meanwhile, Lemmy silently rejoiced.
Feeling unpleasant was nothing new. After all, he was a senior officer. The resistance of a mere beggar would lose its meaning once he took the bait.
Clear victory.
While Rémy let out a mental cheer, the lieutenant calmly gave instructions to the troops.
“You will accompany this person. They are an elite, so follow them diligently.”
As soon as the lieutenant finished speaking, an officer standing to his left stepped forward.
His silky black hair cascaded over the green insignia of conquest.
“Pleased to meet you. I am Lieutenant Dorothy Oslo.”
