Chapter 80

“That person…”

A handsome young man with faded gray hair and dark green eyes. It was the scholar of the ivory tower whom Adelia met in Zephyros.

“Do you know him?”

“…No, I just ran into him once.”

“Where?”

“At Zephyros.”

Ivan’s brow frowned for a moment. He let out a sigh and told Adelia who the man was.

“He is Yohan Kerban, the sage of the ivory tower.”

Adelia’s eyes were filled with surprise at the man’s identity.

He wasn’t an ordinary ivory tower scholar; he was a sage?

– Oh, I’m glad to see you again like this.

Yohan’s strange smile was seen over the communication tool. That smile made her somehow feel cheated.

“The sage of the ivory tower. I need your knowledge.”

Yohan replied with a happy face to Ivan

– Hmm. You need my knowledge. Well, that would be fine. So, what are you curious about?

“The mermaid.”

Yohan’s eyes twinkled. 

“I want to get information about the habits of mermaids.”

– Whoo…

Yohan patted his chin a few times and was soon lost in thought.

– If it’s a mermaid, they live in huge groups.

“I know that far. What I want to know is about pearls.”

– Hmm. Pearl…. You’re curious about the location of the beast’s core, right?

Adelia nodded and affirmed.

– For mermaids, pearls are the source of life and power. I don’t know the exact location, but there must be a large number of mermaids near the pearl.

“To protect the pearl.”

– That’s right. If a pearl is destroyed, all the mermaids in that colony will die.

Yeah. Why didn’t I think of this?

They have their heart outside so they couldn’t help but protect it.

– Maybe the place where there are many mermaids is where the pearl is.

“I see.”

A faint smile came to Adelia’s mouth when she found the answer.

– Maybe it will be easier to find with navigation magic.

At Yohan’s advice, Adelia looked at Ivan.

“We need to get a wizard.”

“If possible, tight lip wizard.”

Ivan’s eyes were troubled.

Wizards are rare. Even if you look all over the continent, there will be less than a hundred people. It was hard to find a person who is tight lip and could use search magic among such people.

Yohan, who was listening to the conversation between the two, asked a question.

– Is it related to a disaster?

For a moment Adelia’s hand flinched. Adelia looked at the communication area with a calm look on her face.

Yohan Kerban, the sage. 

He is a sage, so he might have seen through her identity before.

I don’t know what he is thinking. 

Is he an ally or an enemy?

Or just a bystander?

Adelia replied, hiding her innermost thoughts with a pretentious smile.

“Well, I can’t say it’s completely unrelated.”

– Haha. You don’t have to be so wary. As I said before, I’m just a recorder.

Adelia stared into the eyes of the wise man. And instinctively she felt it. He already knows who she is. He has seen through her even though she changed her appearance using magic.

– If you don’t mind, may my humble disciple help you?

“Your disciple?”

– Yes, he’s my best student. We came to the Duchy together. I think you’ve already met him.

Hearing Yohan’s words, Adelia remembered the middle-aged man who gave her a stinging look at the main gate of the duchy.

“Oh… him.”

– He’s still lacking a lot, but he already mastered simple magic.

Adelia’s eyes opened wide. That means he can use navigation magic.

An ivory tower scholar and wizard. It was an awkward combination. 

– Of course, it goes without saying that he has a tight lip.

Adelia struggled. Is it the right decision to hold the hand of the sage?

But the answer was set.

Less than a month is left until the fourth disaster. Before that, it may be difficult to find a wizard who meets the requirements. Adelia, who swallowed a sigh, looked up and looked at Yohan beyond the communication tool.

“All right. I’ll trust you.”

When Yohan heard Adelia’s decision, a soft smile hung around his mouth.

– You’ve done a good job. Then I’ll send Benko over there within a week.

***

Today, Benko wandered around a huge mountain range called the cradle of dragons.

“Whoa… The mountain is very wide.”

The mountain range itself is so vast but he hasn’t found much yet. 

“But I did find a stone tomb that looked like an altar, so should I say that I have found something?”

Benko sighed and hurried down the mountain before sunset. After returning to the east tower, Benko had to receive unexpected notifications from his teacher.

“Go to the capital.”

“What…? No, why did you suddenly…. I still have a lot to do”

“Oh, how dare you lose your temper at the words of your sage master?”

Yohan pressed Benko with his eyes wide open.

Benko asked with a sigh.

“How long do I have to stay?”

“Not much. About a month?

“…what am I supposed to do when I go to the capital?”

As Benko took a step back, Yohan asked with a satisfied smile.

“Do you still know how to use navigation magic?”

“…yes. My navigation magic is now at a master’s level.”

“Really?”

Yohan ‘s eyes bent with satisfaction. Beko had a somewhat ominous premonition. He never felt good about himself when his master laughed like that.

“Well, why don’t we go see the disaster?”

“What? D, disaster? No, it’s not something to watch in the first place?”

“Well, it’s not exactly sightseeing. Yes, you will join the expedition to defeat disaster.”

As if he couldn’t hear anything, Benko’s face was mercilessly distorted.

“What are you saying…”

“Yes.”

“What nonsense is that?”

“Think it over. Defeat the disaster with your own hands. And didn’t you say you wanted to see the mermaid in person someday?”

Mermaid.

The only beast that lives in the sea. There were numerous rumors about mermaids, but few of them were certain.

They are a mysterious existence, believed to be a witch. And none of the people in the ivory tower could solve the “mystery.”

Benko’s eyes twinkled.

At this time, Yohan seduced Benko with a gentle voice.

“It won’t be too dangerous. All you have to do is search for a place where mermaids are gathered.”

“Well…”

“You can see the mermaid in person.”

Benko ended up falling for it. He was, after all, an ivory tower scholar.

“Well, t, that’s good. I’ll go and come back.”

“Oh, that’s too bad. If I were a year younger, I would have followed you.”

Benko’s eyes turned sharp at Yohan’s words, which contained no sincerity. He belatedly realized that he had fallen for his teacher’s enticement, but it was too late to change his words.

It was the moment when Benko’s wrinkles started to increase. 

***

The mansion, which is embroidered with blue decorations in places based on white marble, gave off a sense of intimidation just by its existence.

Benko sighed at the high bars.

“Excuse me, sir. My name is Benko, a scholar of the ivory tower.”

Benko spoke to the soldiers who stood guard over the mansion, feeling very intimidated. The rugged-looking soldier answered the stranger’s approach in a stiff voice.

“Show us the plaque of the ivory tower.”

“Well, hold on a second.”

Benko hurriedly took out the plaque of the ivory tower engraved with the moon and Libra from his backpack and handed them out to the soldiers. When Benko’s status became clear, the soldier’s expression softened.

“It’s confirmed. Please go inside.”

The soldier spoke in a soft voice, contrasting with earlier. Benko followed the soldier with heavy steps. The soldier guided Benko to a room deep in the mansion.

“You can go inside.”

“Thank you…”

A navy door that looks thick to the eye. Benko took a deep breath and carefully turned the doorknob.

“Welcome.”

As Benko stepped into the room, Adelia smiled and welcomed him. Benko froze in the room. She looked around.

Notorious ex-Sorne, Grand Duke Ivan Hamilton and some unknown man.

“Oh, hello….”

“You’re Benko, right? I look forward to your kind cooperation.”

Adelia reached out to Benko without hesitation and asked for a handshake. Benko shook hands quickly with an awkward smile and moved to his spot. His choice of seat was right next to Baron Silicans. Benko felt an unknown sense of homogeneity in Baron Silicans. 

“Shall we briefly introduce it? This is Baron Silicans and this is Benko, who will help us.”

At Adelia’s introduction, the two men shook hands with awkward smiles on each other’s faces.

“You came just in time. I was going to start explaining the strategy.”

“Haha… I’m glad I arrived on time.”

“Then let’s get started.”

Adelia put a map on the wall and pointed to one place.

“Do you see this coastline?”

“That’s where the majority of the people live. The territory’s castle is also near there.”

“Yes, and it’s also the closest place to the sea. Maybe the mermaids are after this place.”

Mermaids have long been recorded as cannibals. So naturally, mermaids will flock to the coast, where the smell of humans is the strongest. Baron Silicans’ face darkened as he listened to Adelia. He asked Adelia a question in a tense voice.

“Are you going to use the residents as bait?”