Chapter 134

Chapter 134

TL/Editor: raei

Schedule: 5/week

Illustrations: None

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"That's enough for today."

Ian clapped his hands, and Kira collapsed onto the bed as if she had fainted.

The Maronius language is a language of magic.

Even without directly communicating with mysteries, it had the power to tense one's nerves and consume concentration.

Kira, who had just begun learning Maronius, was already feeling mentally exhausted and dizzy from the power in even the basic words.

"Are you okay?"

"Uh-huh..."

Though she said she was fine, her face told a different story.

Ian clicked his tongue.

Seriously?

When I was learning, I used to learn 100 characters a day and still had time for extra lessons from my master.

If Kira heard this, she would feel wronged.

Ian, you are a genius!

Ian would never admit it, but he indeed had an extraordinary magical talent.

He always insisted he survived because of his status window, but the truth was, it was more because of his innate talent.

"It's difficult... but it's fun." for new novels

Kira muttered with a weary face.

Ian smiled.

Finding study fun was a very positive sign. Interest was a powerful source of motivation.

"I'm glad you find it fun."

Ian said, looking at the messy piece of wood.

Kira had been studying writing on a piece of wood, erasing and rewriting multiple times because they had no paper.

Ian felt anew the greatness of stationery.

Not the kind of stationery where you buy colored paper and glue, but the kind that included writing tools and paper.

Without writing tools, you can't even study properly!

It was truly a primitive world that could bring tears to one's eyes...

"Let's stop the lessons for now."

The ship had already arrived in the empire.

Ian planned to get a magic book when they reached the big city.

Magic books weren't something you could buy just with money. But Ian was a wizard. If he used his master's name well, he might be able to get at least a basic magic book.

"Sure!"

Kira replied so brightly.

Ian looked at Kira with suspicion.

Hmm. Why does she seem too happy that we're pausing the studies?

Maybe she's not really interested in studying?

Ian had already forgotten his own student days, even though it hadn't been that long since he graduated.

How happy had he been when Eredith had canceled a class?

"Should I assign some homework then?"

When Ian said that, Kira immediately looked sullen.

"Hiii..."

The professor said there would be no class today, but instead gave us homework...

If Kira were a university student, she would have started angrily typing on her school's community forum by now.

Ian felt a slight pleasure seeing Kira's disappointed expression.

What is this? Is this how professors feel when they give students assignments?!

Indeed, Ian had become corrupted.

"Well, it's all for your benefit!"

"That's true..."

Ian chuckled as he thought about an assignment for Kira.

A cool breeze blew.

The weather in the empire was as clear as ever.

---

---

When Ian arrived at the Blue Key Monastery,

he heard a noisy sound from afar.

"Hmm?"

As he got closer, he could easily tell they were warriors.

The combination of a monastery and warriors might seem strange, but it was a common sight in this era.

Monasteries were places where people refined the teachings of Heaven's Faith, and it was a perfect place for warriors, whose main job was fighting, to study Heaven's Faith as a hobby.

Regardless of the noise,

the servants following Ian ran quickly and shouted,

"The distinguished guest has returned!"

"Distinguished guest?"

"Who is that?"

Ian thought the news would have already spread, but surprisingly, the monastery was astonished at Ian's return.

Given the undoubtedly medieval, crappy road conditions, it's no wonder the information got delayed.

"Ian! Takarion!"

The abbot of the monastery, Renis, came running out in a hurry.

With a desperate expression, as if he was about to burst into tears, Renis grabbed Ian's pant leg.

"Oh dear! Why have you only just returned now!"

"...? Why? Did something happen?"

"Not really! But I was so anxious I felt like I was going to die!"

The monk, Isilla, shouted.

"Yes, I did."

Takarion replied in a quiet and resolute voice.

---

---

Ian asked Renis about the warriors.

So what are those warriors doing here?

They... were simply vagrants.

"... Vagrants?"

"To be precise, vagrants with swords."

Renis said indifferently.

Ian, who knew the medieval average all too well, was no longer surprised that vagrants with swords were hanging around the monastery.

Ah... the average warrior is like that.

They were righteous men who had heard the news of Takarion's kidnapping and had gathered from all over the country to rescue him.

At least, that was their claim.

But as Renis revealed, they were just vagrants gathered to get free meals.

They rushed to the monastery claiming to rescue Takarion.

But it was common sense that the monastery wouldn't send them all north.

There were diplomatic issues and safety concerns.

So naturally, the vagrants stayed at the monastery...

They ate the free meals the monks provided and occasionally shouted [Rescue Takarion!] for entertainment.

"Ah. So they're like civic groups?"

"Civic... what?"

"There are people who advertise their usefulness whenever they need funding."

Renis did not drive away these righteous vagrants.

If bad news came from the north, he planned to send them as support.

"I'm so glad you returned safely!"

Renis's smile was 100% genuine.

Ian couldn't tell if he was happy for the safe return of a fellow monk, or if he was happy that the golden goose, Takarion, would resume writing the gospel.

It seemed more like the latter...

Since it was a happy day, he decided not to pry.

"This is no time to be standing around!"

Renis shouted excitedly.

"Open the food storeroom! Today, we're eating beer and sausages to our heart's content!"

"Woohoo!"

Ian, overjoyed, raised both hands.

Beer! Sausages!

Usually, he mocked it as the meal of medieval barbarians, but after eating in the land of real barbarians, this menu looked divine.

At least it wasn't rock-hard jerky!

That evening,

as Renis had said, the monastery held a group feast.

The monks, as well as the sword-wielding vagrants, received their share and ate wherever they pleased.

Ian shook his head as he watched the vagrants scattered everywhere.

The monastery sure has a lot of money.

But it's still a monastery. They even feed those guys.

It was a useless thought.

Takarion, having so much to talk about with Monk Isilla, didn't show his face until dinner was almost over.

Belenka and Kira were engrossed in girl talk in the dining hall.

Left alone, Ian wandered the monastery for a while, holding a plate of sausages and a beer.

Ian thought about grabbing someone to chat with, but quickly realized it would be pointless.

As an introvert, Ian was comfortable being alone.

He found a secluded spot.

He planned to enjoy his meal leisurely...

"You were here."

Someone spoke to Ian.

When Ian saw who it was, he was immediately taken aback.

"Gerard?"

The person who had called him was none other than Gerard, the space-time wizard.

Gerard stood there with a gloomy expression, holding a beer and sausages...

"It took longer than expected."

Took longer?

Ian reflexively asked,

"Have you been waiting for me?"

"Yes."

What kind of foresight is it this time...

Ian wondered, then paused.

Gerard's expression lacked the usual enigmatic look he had when dealing with future predictions.

So he asked,

"Is it because of a future prediction?"

"... No."

Gerard sighed as he replied,

"I've been waiting because of an errand from the council."

Ian's guess was correct.

Gerard had come to Ian, not because of future foresight, but to run an errand for the Space-Time Wizards Council.