Chapter 123: Departure to the South (2)

Chapter 123: Departure to the South (2)

As someone with a public position, Heint’s attitude was perfect.

‘You’re here too fast.’

Lucion gripped his brow, which was about to crumple.

The estimated duration of the trip was about three weeks.

Of course, there were variables, so he had about four weeks to spare.

He was already sighing at the thought of having to stay with Heint for a short time and for a long time.

“Yes. Please take care of me in the meantime.”

But Lucion smiled broadly at Heint.

“Are your injuries okay? Your complexion... you don’t look fine.”

Heint took a step closer and whispered quietly.

Even if he covered it with makeup, anyone could see that Lucion didn’t look fine.

“Yes, thank you. It’s because of the fever that soared until yesterday.”

Lucion said, conscious of the bandages wrapped thickly around his stomach.

It was fine as long as he didn’t move sharply enough to burst out the fabrics.

“I will escort you with caution.”

Heint stepped back, fixed his expression, and bowed to Lucion again.

“Well, then, I’ll go down first and stand by.”

“Thank you.”

Lucion sat down, looking at Heint going back first.

“You’ve worked hard since dawn.”

He smiled at the maids and waited for them to leave his room. He dozed off with the tension in his body released and a heavy weight pressing on his eyelids.

Beep!

Lucion was startled by the sound of Ratta’s ball and looked around.

He made eye contact with the maid who was the last to leave.

She hurriedly bowed her head and walked out cautiously without making the sound of footsteps.

After confirming that everyone had left, Lucion let out a long yawn and asked.

“...Teacher. Is Broson still missing?”

[I can’t even see the slightest hint of his presence. Either a warlock has appeared again, or he’s avoiding me.]

Russell lightly clicked his tongue.

[If Lord Lucion wants to, I will catch him. As Lord Lucion’s darkness increased, I also become stronger.]

As if her hands were itchy, Bethel fiddled with the handle of her sword.

“No, I can ask him next time. Leave it alone for now.”

Broson also had a black orb.

Lucion wanted to ask if he could have the orb now, but it couldn’t be helped if he was being avoided.

Lucion tried to hold back from squiggling his eyes, but he ended up closing his eyes again.

* * *

“...Lucion.”

With a heavy expression on his face, Carson called Lucion, who had come to ride the carriage.

He hadn’t seen Carson for almost three days.

Perhaps he had just returned from the end of the border, his clothes were uncharacteristically messy.

“Did you just come back?”

“I had to see you off, so I came here in a hurry.”

Carson’s eyes briefly turned to Heint.

Even with the untrusting gaze, Heint didn’t change his expression at all.

“What about the injury? I think you should have a cane.”

“As long as I don’t move too much, it’s fine. Why would I move around?”

[You never know.]

Russell slipped in.

Lucion’s official schedule in the South was only in one auction house, but his unofficial schedule was full.

“To you... I wonder if the end of the border will remain a bad memory.”

Carson spoke through parched lips.

He should have killed the warlock somehow.

If he had done that, Lucion wouldn’t have gotten the black magic that the warlock spread.

“Not quite, brother.”

Lucion’s eyes arched.

“It was fun to see with my own eyes how big the world is. I hope I can go again next time.”

“Next time... You said?”

Carson stammered, flustered.

Why does the word ‘next’ sound so new?

“Yes. Can I?”

“Of course. Come whenever you want to go, no, except on dangerous days.”

Puha.

Lucion laughed.

“Yes. I’ll keep that in mind. I’ll go except on dangerous days.”

The corners of Carson’s mouth slowly rose.

“Because he hasn’t attacked yet, it’s unclear who he is.”

Hainte fiddled with the back of his hand.

How could he tell Lucion that there were other groups besides Luminos that were after him?

“In any case, Lucion, it’s not a big problem for you to worry about.”

Heint spoke gently and took care of the situation.

If the information on the enemy was accurate, Heint would have told Lucion, but he didn’t want Lucion to fall into a panic after knowing the truth in such an unclear situation.

“That’s good.”

It was a bit disappointing that Heint wouldn’t tell him the person he was chasing, but Lucion smiled.

“What do you mean good?”

“Father and Brother didn’t tell me, so I assumed that a big problem have occurred. But thank you for telling me so clearly.”

Lucion swept down his chest and put on a relieved expression.

[Wow. Lucion, you...]

Russell now noticed what Lucion was trying to do.

He was trying to use all of Heint’s words.

“No, it’s not like that...”

“When I attended the Divine Beast’s birth banquet, it was my first trip to the Central.”

As Lucion spoke up, Haint struggled to hide his flustered expression.

His first trip.

“As I am going on my second trip like this, on one hand, I was anxious, but on the other hand, I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to have my own time since I am surrounded by escorts, but now thanks to Brother, my worries are gone.”

Lucion has a voice overflowing with happiness and an expression of deep gratitude.

And he decorated the end of his speech by returning the words Heint had uttered.

What Lucion himself was most worried about was Heint’s close safeguarding, since he was different from Carson.

Hadn’t he felt it once when coming to the border before?

However, when Haint said that it was fine, Lucion didn’t let it slip unnoticed.

[...I’ll help you, Lord Lucion. I didn’t know Lord Lucion was looking forward to the trip so much.]

Bethel clasped the hands she hid behind her back to hide her pity.

“I’ll serve you better.”

Hume moved his heavy lips and looked at Lucion with eyes filled with determination.

―Ratta will help you, too!

Only Russell covered his itchy mouth with his hands and stuck his face out of the carriage.

Puhahaha.

But he couldn’t stop the sound of laughter.

‘Ha...’

Heint was at a loss for words at Lucion’s indirect request to have alone time.

He felt like he had dug his own grave.

‘It’s true, but it feels strange.’

In addition to Luminos, which was a group of wizards, another group appeared, but the level of alert was not higher than expected because they hadn’t done anything to Lucion yet.

-Lucion has good intuition. More than you think. If you put unnecessary surveillance on him, he will catch onto it right away, so it would be better to say it to him outright.

Suddenly, he remembered what Carson had said through a contact item yesterday.

“Lucion.”

“Speak, please.”

“If you move quietly, Hume will accompany you, right?”

Heint threw these words for now.

But it didn’t sound like that to Lucion.

He could feel a hole in Heint’s tightly woven safeguarding.

[Successful.]

Russell grinned, and Lucion opened his mouth, pleased.

“Yes, of course. Even in the Central, I’ve never been separated from Hume.”

“This is true.”

Hume strained his neck and add strength to Lucion’s words.

“All right. Then, on the condition that you will be accompanied by Hume, I’ll put up with it for a half-hour radius. Is that okay?”

“Why half an hour?”

“Because if I move, I can get there in five minutes.”

‘...That quickly?’

He had heard from Russell that light was the fastest between mana and darkness.

[5 minutes? Even if you’re blessed with light, isn’t that too fast?]

Lucion took notice of Bethel’s reaction.

Heint’s remark was more of a cheat.

Lucion felt that it was unfair and soon realized that Heint was the main character.

Even though he hadn’t gotten anything close to a holy relic yet, he was filled with light.

“Honestly, I was going to make it a 20-minutes radius, but I held back. So I’m sorry if you ask for more, I can’t listen to it.”

Heint drew a clear line, and Lucion didn’t have any intention to ask for more.

To be honest, being able to get this much was a great harvest.

For now, he got the time to shake Heint off, so he let it be.

He patted Ratta leisurely, pressing the corners of his mouth that were about to twitch.