Chapter 19

A familiar carriage ceiling.

The ceiling of that military carriage I’ve been staring at for the past week.

On the military carriage ceiling, cloth draped over dry wood, the faint sound of rain echoed.

Moisture rose, and a creaking sound came from every corner of the wood.

“You’re awake?”

Looking at me waking up with a groan unbecoming of my age, Alter Heindel gave a gentle smile.

The elf, Lir, sitting across from him, also spoke to me in a small voice, but my head was still foggy, and I couldn’t properly hear what she was saying.

Well, probably just a greeting… it didn’t seem that important, so I didn’t bother asking again.

“If you can unleash Bloom to that level, surely your Bolt’s completion must also be considerable, so why use Bloom on the young dragon? Using Bolt would have been enough to capture it…”

“…Even if it’s young, a dragon is still a dragon. I believed it was much more efficient to pour everything I had into it from the start.”

I massaged my throbbing temple with my thumb as I replied.

It was a pretty decent excuse, considering I had just woken up.

“Dragons are certainly dangerous creatures… but with your abilities, Master Bean, you could have subdued that dragon without resorting to such a risky spell as Bloom.”

Alter looked at me as if to say, why use a flamethrower to swat a mosquito when a fly swatter would have sufficed?

“…I wanted to show you the magic I’m most confident in. You seemed keen to test me, after all.”

I racked my groggy brain as hard as I could to convince Alter, who was staring at me with a strange expression.

And this excuse, even I thought, was quite a good one.

“…Indeed, your talent has been verified. All the rumors were not exaggerated, it seems.”

Only then did Alter seem to accept my actions, stroking his snow-white beard as he offered a smile.

“I apologize for attempting to test your abilities, Master Bean. The rumors were so outlandish that I, too, needed at least some proof.”

Alter lightly bowed his head, his white hair abundant, as he offered me an apology. I quickly lowered my head, saying, “There’s no need for that. If I were you, I would have been suspicious first and foremost.”

“I’m relieved to hear you say so. Thank you.”

“The honor is all mine. The famed Archmage Alter Heindel himself came running to teach the likes of me!”

“The honor of teaching a genius that appears once in thousands of years awaits me. What is the Magic Tower in comparison? It seems you still don’t realize just how amazing you are, Master Bean.”

“Yes, well. Thank you. Yes, well. Haha…”

…Amazing? What a load of bull.

I barely managed to suppress a sigh that rose from the depths of my chest, masking my expression with an awkward smile.

* * *

Expedition, Day 11. Around 2 PM.

I focused on diligently imprinting the various magical theories Alter taught me into my mind, concentrating on maximizing my skills.

Though the creaking and rattling of the carriage scratched at my nerves, I couldn’t bring myself to waste this precious time, refraining from study.

“It isn’t merely speaking the magic’s name that makes the magical calculation more precise and swift. It’s called spell incantation. By uttering words that aid the calculation, you make it easier for the brain to concretize the magic.”

Even as my head throbbed and my limbs screamed in protest, Alter’s words, strangely enough, rang clear in my ears.

It was a peculiar sensation. Though one might be distracted by the rain and the carriage’s creaks, I was able to etch every single word he spoke completely into my mind.

“Even when using the same magic, the incantation can differ from person to person. Because every human brain is different, even if they go through the same calculation process, there will invariably be expressions that are particularly emphasized or omitted… For example…”

Alter, having grown somewhat accustomed to my cursed stamina, delivered his lecture for precisely two hours, then brought it to a close with the words, ‘It is time.’

Leer was reviewing, rereading the notes he’d transcribed of Alter’s words, and I, with all my strength drained, leaned back as if collapsing, quietly closing my eyes.

The blanket covering the rattling carriage shook wildly as it greeted the heavy rain.

Despite the considerable distraction, my brain, unbidden, began to organize the content Alter had taught me today.

To briefly summarize the key points of the two-hour lecture:

1. An incantation is not merely uttered for show, but to strengthen the magic.

2. The words composing the incantation vary widely from mage to mage, even when dealing with the same magic.

3. The incantation must be created by the mage themselves.

The key points Alter had emphasized repeatedly during the lecture were etched deep within my mind, like tattoos.

A curious feeling.

Is this what it felt like for those with a talent for study when they learned subjects like language or mathematics?

Enviable b*stards.

“Start scouting for a campsite! It’ll be dark soon today because of the rain!”

The squad leader, uncharacteristically, ordered his subordinates to find a campsite early on.

Some time later, the advance team dispatched to locate a campsite returned to the unit and led us to a suitable flatland.

As we pushed through the dense forest, an unexpected clearing unfolded before us. It seemed countless adventurers and soldiers had camped here before, judging by the rusted swords and cracked plate armor discarded around the perimeter.

“…It’s unfortunate the forest obscures the surrounding view, but if we delay any longer, night will fall quickly. No matter. We’ll make camp here for the night.”

As the squad leader’s decision echoed out, the soldiers busied themselves, retrieving blankets, tarpaulins, and iron stakes to construct makeshift shelters.

The seasoned veterans completed the construction of their simple tents in less than thirty minutes.

Lir, Alter, and I followed the squad leader’s direction, shuffling into a newly built tent.

The makeshift shelter had a low ceiling that didn’t allow one to stand fully upright, but thanks to its nearly perfect waterproofing, no water pooled on the ground nor seeped in.

On a day when heavy rain lashed down like this, to be able to sleep on a dry floor was a considerable fortune.

I offered a light word of thanks to the squad leader and was the first to enter the shelter.

“Go on in and wait. I’ll fetch some supper.”

Alter spoke to the elf, Lir, who stood behind him, exposed to the rain. Lir alternated her gaze between her master and me, sitting inside the tent.

“You’re going to fetch supper?”

“Huh? No, no. No, absolutely not.”

Lir vehemently shook her head, the large hat she wore wobbling back and forth.

…What on earth are those two talking about?

“Then wait inside.”

“……”

Lir, as if resigned, drooped her head and cautiously crawled into the shelter.

Soon after, Alter closed the tent flap and strode off in some direction.

‘We probably can’t get a fire going properly because of the rain… if that’s the case, then we’ll get bread instead of stew tonight, I suppose.’

My thoughts drifted, aimlessly, to the evening ahead.

If only the issued bread wasn’t so rock hard. This cursed body of mine has jaw strength barely half that of a normal person.

“…”

A slightly uneasy silence began to settle within the barrack.

Come to think of it, for the past week, I’d barely exchanged a proper conversation with this elf, Lir.

Seeing as she’s Alter’s prized pupil, and far more advanced in her magical studies than I, there must be something I could learn from her…

“This is the first time it’s just us two, isn’t it? A little awkward, yeah?”

I smiled and spoke to Lir first.

Alter vouched for her skills as a mage, so… if I could become friendly, maybe I could glean some knowledge about magic?

“…you.”

Lir, unsure where to place her large eyes, darted them around the barrack before dropping her head, burying her gaze downwards, and quietly mumbling.

“Pardon?”

Her voice was lost in the downpour drumming against the tarpaulin.

“…”

Head bowed low, face nearly buried in her chest, she cautiously covered her ears with trembling fingers.

Her ears were burning a fiery red, like someone stricken with fever.

“Why, what’s wro–?”

“Th-thank you, I said!”

Lir shouted in a cracking voice before my question could even finish.

“…Okay?”

I couldn’t help but stare at her, a bewildered look on my face, as her voice suddenly rose.

Thank you? For what? Out of the blue like this?

“Huh, excuse me?”

I could only ask again, assuming I’d misheard.

“For, you know, telling me that taking off my hat is polite! And for encouraging me to apologize…I meant to thank you sooner, but we never seemed to have a moment alone…”

“…Couldn’t you just say thank you anytime?”

Anyone would think we were sharing some deep, dark secret. Just a light thank you for a little bit of advice, wasn’t it? She could have brought it up anytime after Alter’s class ended…

“Alter would be embarrassed to hear!”

Lyr shouted, burying her face in her chest.

…So *that* isn’t embarrassing, but thanking me in front of other people is?

Is she just shy, or is she fiercely proud?

Pick a lane, already. It’s giving me a headache.

“…Is everything alright?”

“Hngh…!”

Alter, returning from the quartermaster with our rations, looked startled by the sudden shriek, pushing aside the tent flap with a concerned expression.

Lyr, upon Alter’s arrival, held her breath and pulled her hat down, completely obscuring her face.

…I almost asked if holding her breath was really necessary, but stopped myself. I had a feeling I wouldn’t understand anything that elf said anyway.

“No, it’s…nothing much.”

Alter glanced back and forth between Lyr and me for a moment, then, sighing as if he understood the situation well enough, ducked into the tent.

He pulled large loaves of bread, received from the quartermaster, out from under his robes and handed one to each of us.

It was at that precise moment.

“All troops, asseeeeemble!”

The platoon leader’s urgent assembly order ripped through the air.