Chapter 426 – Chapter 426 Magic School Shutra (3-37)
The story Anna told me had already spread throughout the castle.
It was difficult to cover up because it was an emergency situation.
Why was Viscount Robero, known for his skills, kidnapped?
The reason, ironically, was because of us.
“Leave his troops behind and hurriedly return to the castle….”
Even though he was a nobleman who didn’t even know his face when he was alive, he didn’t feel particularly guilty.
‘What… He probably ran like crazy to see the dean’s face, but….’
Even in such a tumultuous situation inside the castle, Anna began to devise a plan to save the viscount.
She planned to find out her location based on the testimony of a soldier who managed to escape while returning with the viscount, and send her troops there.
What you need to decide here is the number of troops and the commander.
As Atler had the title of a commercial city, the quantity and quality of its troops were above average.
However, the state has already sent troops far away to defeat the bandits.
There were troops left in Atler, but there was a risk that the troops would be annihilated if sent poorly.
Fortunately, I was able to roughly guess the number from the testimony of the escaped soldier.
That’s how the number of troops was decided, and the final decision was left.
Commander.
No matter how much it was to defeat the street bandits, it was impossible to send soldiers without a commander when the viscount was kidnapped.
Of course, he had to pick someone who had experience in operating troops.
Fortunately, there were other generals in Atler who could command troops in addition to the Viscount.
However, since the Viscount was kidnapped, he had to choose a competent person, so he had to make a careful decision.
And fortunately, there were applicants.
A man in his 30s raised his hand up confidently with a smile.
“May I go?”
“….”
All eyes, including me, began to focus on the man with his hand raised as if doubting his ears.
The white-haired man smiled shyly and opened his mouth as the others stared at him in silence.
“If you feel anxious because of my lack of ability, I should apologize.”
Embarrassed by the man’s words, Anna hurriedly opened her mouth and began to apologize.
“Oh no! No one here will doubt the dean’s skills.”
“Heh heh heh, I’m glad.”
“But why did you make that decision all of a sudden….”
The dean laughed and explained the reason.
“I heard that you suffered because of me. Of course I should help.”
Sonya, who had the most worried expression on the dean’s face, spoke to him.
“Dean, even so, going to such a dangerous place….”
“Professor Sonya.”
“Yes?”
Looking at Sonya’s questioning expression, the dean slightly hardened her expression and opened her mouth.
“I don’t think it’s right to be treated like this and just ignore their difficulties. In my era, that was important, but now I think that has changed.”
“… No.”
“Then it’s decided.”
The dean rose from his chair and looked around.
“When it comes to rescue, the sooner the better. Hurry up.”
..
..
Preparations proceeded swiftly.
The attacking place was about two days away from the castle, and since there were not many bandits at the time of the attack, the troops were summoned quickly.
Nevertheless, with the mindset of fighting humanity’s last war, Anna made a trustworthy request to the soldiers she had summoned.
“Remember. Nothing should ever happen to the dean!”
“Yes!”
She hinted to the dean that if something happened to her, she would have a much happier future if she was annihilated by the bandits.
“If the dean returns safely, I will give a year’s salary to the soldiers who were put into the rescue mission.”
“!?”
The soldiers’ eyes began to shine brightly.
Also, money is the best.
So while Anna was begging her soldiers, Luna rushed to her and started nagging at her.
“Why on earth did you make that decision!?”
The reason Luna was so angry with me was simple.
“But you can’t send the dean alone.”
“It is, but….”
It was because I was also participating in the self-rescue mission.
In fact, I had no reason to join the mission at all.
Since I was a guest of the Brandtrup family, it would have been rude to come forward.
But the reason why I came along like this was because the dean strongly refused to accompany Sonya.
(Professor Sonya thinks I’m not trustworthy?)
(Huh… Then at least Levin’s court mage should accompany you…)
(…Then what about this?)
(…?)
(It looks like you want to attach someone to me, so I’ll take Seong Soo-ho.)
(….)
Although Sonya put on a puzzled expression, she eventually had no choice but to raise the white flag at the dean’s words.
Sonya called me after that and we talked at length enough to put a scab on her ear.
I began to calm Luna down by shrugging her shoulders.
“And I go with the dean, what will happen? Rather, the thief seems pitiful?”
“… Then, I will go with you.”
I shook my head firmly and opened my mouth.
“No.”
“The dean said it was okay because the dean was there, so why is it that I can’t?”
A number of reasons could be given.
No matter how good Luna is, compared to me, she is just an ordinary Shutra student.
I have several means to protect myself, but all of her magic was learned at school, which was difficult to apply in real life.
And the biggest reason….
“The fort isn’t in good shape. Not even for that.”
“… It’s fine now. So….”
“No.”
I firmly stopped her and never let her go.
“I barely asked for one and put it in. If I ask Luna to go with you, the dean will object?”
“… Ha.”
Luna finally gave up and opened her mouth as she brushed off the collar of my conquest.
“Never get hurt. If you hurt even one of her fingertips… I really won’t let you go.”
Haha… You have to be careful not to be swept by the branches.”
“Really… You speak well.”
I hugged Luna and whispered softly in her ear.
“I’ll do the favor you said in the last bet when you come back.”
“… I’m going to ask you a big favor. Don’t run away, come.”
Haha, okay.”
As I hugged Luna like that, I looked at the woman who was carefully looking at us.
Karin….
She was staring at Luna and me in light armor, not her usual dress.
Our eyes met.
“….”
Karin and I had a strange snowball fight with her, and then she started to head towards Anna with an expressionless expression.
I couldn’t accurately measure the length of her legs because I always saw her in a dress, but thanks to her light armor, I could see her beautiful, if not bare skin.
I looked at Karin’s beautiful back and hummed into her.
“Karin Brandrup… This time, I’ll find a gap and squeeze in.’
..
..
No matter how great the dean was, it was impossible to send him alone to a dangerous place.
So, I decided on a person to accompany the dean, and one of them was me, and the other was….
“….”
It was Karin riding a horse side by side next to the dean.
At first, she didn’t think she would come along.
Because she’s a woman, and she wasn’t even a character specialized in combat.
Nevertheless, it was because she was a member of the Brandtrup family that she was entrusted with her throne by the dean’s side.
The problem of Viscount Robero and the problem of the thieves who appeared on the Atler Passage were entirely the responsibility of the Brandrup family.
If there were Duke Brandtrup and Louis, it would have been a matter for the two men of the family to solve, but now the two were busy in Levin’s kingdom.
A few days passed between the communication coming and going, and no matter how quickly the two came with their troops, it would take four or four days.
In the end, Karin was chosen to fill the void.
She threw off her usual red dress and donned light armor suitable for leading her men.
The upper body was covered with shiny silver armor, and the parts necessary for the rest of the activity were armed with refined leather in places.
However….
‘I never thought I would say that I want to come to a place like this myself….’
According to Anna’s story, she said that Karin herself had stepped forward to assume the position of assistant dean.
Karin gave Anna a good reason.
Karin is familiar with the geography here, and she has a pretty good idea of her information about the bandits that have recently appeared.
Above all, the dean took the lead, saying that it would be a disgrace to the country if the Brandrup family were just sucking their fingers.
In the end, the Duchess had no choice but to send her because she couldn’t go there herself.
Karin, who was riding in front of her, slowed her horse down, and after building up her forces, she spoke cautiously to the dean.
“I think we should camp here. Beyond this area, most of the valleys are rocky, so camping will be difficult.”
“Good. Then, we will camp here.”
“Yes.”
Karin explained everything to the dean and then seemed to glance at me….
“Okay, let’s all set up our campsites.”
Ignoring me, he started giving orders to his soldiers.
So, the soldiers set up the barracks tent, and the dean and I entered the barracks tent and started listening to Karin about the general situation.
“The place we are currently in is a plain of dirt, but if we go forward we will enter the Thorim Valley of rocks.”
“Thorim Valley…. Long time no see.”
“Is this a place you know?”
“It was a long time ago, but I do remember.”
The dean smiled as he recalled the old memories leisurely.
“It was such a scary valley that people say that when they enter it, they come out as charcoal.”
“Charcoal?”
“Yes, there were frequent explosions in Thorim Valley for some reason.”
And the explosion naturally made people stop walking.
However, at the time of the war, he said that there were frequent cases where he had to move through the place even in such a situation.
“I think that curse still exists.”
“You don’t have to worry about that anymore.”
“Hoo?”
It was an old story that the dean was worried about.
“The explosions that occur in Torim Valley are caused by a mineral called Torimseok.”
“Torim stone?”
Karin began to explain about the Thorim Stone.
There is an orange-bright ore roaming in Thorim Valley, which, she said, causes an explosion when heated.
However, Torim Valley was a place where the water in the valley was so cold that it often froze, so there was no problem as long as the complaint was handled carefully.
“Heh heh, when we fought here before, not only the soldiers but also the wizards trembled in fear, saying that the valley was cursed…. It was for that reason.”
The dean is a wizard, not a scientist.
Even if the flow of mana was easily caught, the cause was not found until the explosion of an unknown being.
Above all, there would have been no reason to pay attention to the stone where such an explosion occurred in a place where magic flourished.
The fact that it is now known is probably because war ended and magic evolved into an academic property rather than a tool of war.
People who do not have frequent access to magic will seek various ways to survive in the barren land.
Then I came to know the existence of Torimseok….
“But there are so many problems. This is what the thieves around here like to use.”
The bandits had made the misty valley of Thorim their stronghold, and had begun robbing the passageways around it.
Torim Valley was too cold and barren for people to live in, but it was perfect for stealing.
Using the torim stones scattered around….
But I had my doubts.
‘Even if the level of thieves is good… I don’t think it will be easy to use such a dangerous stone in battle.’
You won’t be able to set the stone on fire, and the thieves will be the ones who will get angry the moment they make a mistake.
Because once it explodes, it will be out of control.
However, the fact that Atler was so active that a thief subjugation team had to be formed is to say that the thieves are making good use of the stone.
My doubts were quickly cleared by Karin’s words.
“There are rumors that there is a mage among the bandits.”
Haha… Then you understand.”
You don’t need to have outstanding magic skills.
It’s enough to sprinkle earth stones and lose with fire magic.
Or, if you bury it shallowly in the ground and use fire magic there, you will be able to inflict enough damage.
“Even the most skilled soldiers are helpless against sudden explosions.”
From the soldiers’ point of view, it must have felt like dealing with several wizards.
Even if you know the existence of Torimseok, dealing with it is another matter.
The dean nodded and seemed to understand the whole situation.
“You seem to be a friend who uses nature well.”
First of all, magic skills didn’t matter. From the dean’s point of view, all wizard skills will be there.
Besides, a mage who was active in the thieves probably wouldn’t be from Stra, so there was no reason for the dean to provide convenience.
Karin opened the map and started talking about her plan.
“First of all, the plan is to enter the Thorim Valley from the place where it was attacked. However, since the valley is wide in two directions, it seems that we will have to divide our forces in half. And….”
Karin showed the map and began to explain the plan step by step.
Like the dean, I watched Karin’s face closely as I fell in love with her words.
‘That’s right, he doesn’t even look at me.’
When explaining, it’s still worth talking about looking at me once, but I went beyond refusing to look at myself and treating myself as an invisible person.
Even the woman who was usually very expensive about the act of opening her mouth was constantly moving her lips and tongue in front of the dean, like a fallen leaf enduring a typhoon.
Seeing that kind of look made me even more nervous.
Karin looked at the dean to the end and explained, whether or not she knew what I was thinking, and the dean, who had listened to her, nodded her head and started asking questions.
“Then, where is the most rugged terrain?”
“The valley on the left is rugged. It is steep and foggy. There’s even a waterfall, so you’ll need to minimize your forces. On the other hand, the valley on the right is easier to move troops, and depending on the situation, it is judged that it will be possible to camp.”
The dean heard that, and opened her mouth with a nod of her head.
“Then, I will go to the valley on the left.”
“All right. Then the distribution of troops….”
“No.”
“… ?”
Karin began to tilt her head as if she were questioning her, although she remained expressionless.
The dean opened her mouth while looking at Karin and me.
“I will go alone. I want you two to lead the rest of the troops and head to the valley on the right.”
