Chapter 53
TL/Editor: Raei
Proofreader: Pickhead7
Schedule: 5/week
Illustrations: None.
Join the discord! Here
Baron Talian''s tomb was shrouded in darkness.
In movies or dramas, with bright lights flooding the scene, one can hardly grasp the true extent of darkness in a ce devoid of light.
However, the darkness Ian experienced in the cave was beyond imagination.
A perfect darkness, as if one had lost their sight.
Pure darkness, where one couldn''t notice anything passing by, was the true darkness of nature.
[Ian, let''s y together again!]
[Yes, let''s y, Ian!]
The mysteries of darkness were excited, bouncing around.
Ian recalled the time he followed Eredith into a cave.
Eredith had been fascinated that Ian could hear the voices of darkness.
Darkness, being shy and reserved, seldom showed itself in front of others.
''What? Shy? Reserved?''
Ian scoffed at the darkness swirling around him.
Then what about these cheeky bastards?
The darkness was strangely fond of Ian, moring to y with him.
Ian couldn''t understand.
We''ve never yed before, so why?
[Lie down on the ground like you usually do!]
[Yeah, and make snoring sounds!]
[We''ll do whatever you do, Ian!]
Baffled, Ian wondered if their idea of ying was... sleeping at night?
But listening further, it seemed to be the case.
The darkness enjoyed mimicking Ian''s sounds while he slept, rolling around beside him, and had fun(?) ying with Ian.
It''s not a Hongcheol team without Hongcheol[1].
ying with Ian without Ian?
The darkness, which had been joyfully circling Ian, fled the moment Belenka lit a torch.
[Aaah! Light!]
[No!!!]
As the darkness screamed, Ian found himself irrationally annoyed.
"Hey, Belenka, can''t you light the torch more gently? The darkness is running away."
Belenka was dumbfounded.
"Speak in a way that makes sense. How does one gently light a torch?"
"Well..."
As Ian hesitated, Belenka shook her head.
It seemed wizards would be wizards, always spouting such nonsense.
Who knows what''s going on in his head.
"Ian, do you not need the torch?"
"Actually, I prefer it without the torch."
Despite being surrounded by darkness, Ian felt no difort, thanks to his dark vision skill.
Belenka found Ian''s ability fascinating.
"Considering stealth, it might be better to move without light..."
Lucy hastily interjected, fearing Belenka might suggest extinguishing all torches.
"That''s absolutely not okay!"
"Why? Ian can guide us."
"Well, it''s scary!"
Fear was fear, regardless of stealth considerations.
It was scary!
It''s scary! It''s scary! It''s scary...!
Lucy''s voice echoed lengthily through the space.
Then, with a startle, she plopped down on the spot.
"Eek! Ian!"
"...?"
Ian looked at Lucy, who had suddenly started freaking out, with a confused expression.
What''s with her now?
"I think there''s something down there!"
"Yeah, probably tomb robbers."
"Not the robbers!"
Lucy screamed with a pale face.
"Monsters!"
"???"
Monsters!
Monsters! Monsters...!
As the echo resounded again, Lucy, terrified, mped her own mouth shut.
Then, she began whispering as if to share a secret.
"You all heard that sound, right?"
"Hmm. Yes, I did."
"I heard it too, my Lord."
The medieval folks started murmuring among themselves, presumably about the cave''s echoes.
Ian couldn''t help but wonder...
Really?
Are they seriously having a serious conversation about echoes?
"It''s a monster! It has to be!"
Lucy was acting like Lucy, which meant she was being stupid.
"I think... it might be a demon."
"A demon?!"
A priest nearby also dramatically joined in with Lucy''s reaction.
Wasn''t he supposed to be a schr, diligently studying the scriptures?
Why?
"This is clearly the underworld. It wouldn''t be strange for demons from beneath to appear here."
The priest quickly made the sign of the cross, adding, "Since the eyes of heaven do not reach here, everyone, be cautious."
...It was because of scripture.
Priests have a habit of interpreting everything rted to the scripture as per its writings.
Since this is the underworld, they construed it as the work of demonsa sort of curse of knowledge.
Ian couldn''t grasp why the medieval folks were making a fuss over a mere echo.
s, there were no true intellectuals with an Enlightenment mindset[2], armed with reason and rationality, instead of superstitious interpretations of monsters and demons!
Then, Belenka stepped forward.
Unlike these ignorant imperial folks, perhaps a knight from the eastern Baekguk might offer a different perspective...!
"It seems everyone is panicking because it''s their first time in a cave."
"Be, Belenka? Do you know what it is?"
"I''ve heard about this before. It''s not a monster or a demon."
"Then...?"
Belenka confidently dered, "It''s a fairy."
"A fairy?"
"Yes. A fairy that lives in caves and enjoys tricking people, capable of mimicking others'' voices."
Hearing this, the medieval folks broke into heartyughter, nodding vigorously.
"Ah! So it''s a fairy~"
"I knew it! It didn''t seem too malicious!"
"A fairy... Better than a demon, right? It won''t harm us, will it?"
Hahahaha! The mysterious voice is a fairy~
"..."
It''s not a fairy, you idiots.
Ian didn''t even have a chance to exin.
The medieval folks had already concluded that the mysterious voices echoing through the cave were the doings of a fairy.
Ah, it was neither a terrible monster nor an evil demon.
It was a cute fairy.
A world where no one gets hurt wasplete...
Except for Ian, who knew the truth.
Ian thought to himself,
What''s the point of saying, "Actually, there''s no such thing as fairies! It''s just a scientific phenomenon where sound waves bounce off the uneven cave walls!"?
Would they just give him a look that says, "What are you talking about, Ian?"
Traits of a social butterfly: Understanding the flow of conversation.
Traits of a loner: Obsessing over facts.
If Ian had been a social butterfly with smooth social skills, he might haveughed along, saying, "Haha! Such a mischievous fairy~".
But Ian was a former engineering student in his past life.
He was serious about science.
A fairy responsible for echoes?
Ah, I can''t stand it!
If only he could elevate the medieval folks'' ignorance to modern standards, Ian was prepared to bebeled a loner if it meant enlightening them.
"Actually..."
As Ian began to speak, everyone''s attention turned to him.
It was at that moment.
[Hehehehehe]
[This is fun!]
"?"
A giggling voice in Maronius echoed in Ian''s ears, a voice he had heard before.
The voice of the wind.
[Who else will scream for us?]
[We can spread it around!]
Ian''s mouth dropped open.
A quick refresher: Sound is a wave that travels through the air, a fact known to anyone who has looked at a middle school science textbook.
''If this is the voice of the wind?''
The very source spreading the sound as echoes... iming it was the mystery of the wind wasn''t entirely wrong!
Ian was struck with a profound shock, a sensation as if his modern knowledge was shattering into pieces.
Right.
This isn''t modern South Korea; it''s a fantasy world.
He shouldn''t cling to modern scientific knowledge.
"Ian? What''s gotten into you?"
"Do you know something about that strange echo?"
Ian realized.
While sound is merely a vibration traveling through air, in this medieval fantasy world, it could also be seen as the [Mystery of the Wind] spreading the sound!
"The voice is not a fairy, but..."
Ian murmured,
"It''s a phenomenon caused by the mysteries of the wind."
"Oh..."
"Mysteries of the wind?"
[New Skill Acquired!]
[Air Magic Sound Maniption]
[A skill to control the vibrations of air to manipte sound.]
Ian immediately spoke to the wind.
"[Wind. Voice, transmit, none!]"
[You don''t want us to spread your voice?]
[Why should we?]
"[For fun!]"
[Ah! You want to y a prank with us?]
[Don''t know what it is, but it sounds fun! Let''s do it!]
Ian, having controlled the mysteries to prevent the sound from spreading, then shouted loudly.
"Woo-hoo!"
"..."
"..."
Lucy and the other medieval folks were taken aback. The echo that had been reverberating just moments before... waspletely absent!
"Wow... it''s real?"
"So it was due to the mysteries of the wind?"
The mysterious voice was indeed just that~
An exnation much easier to understand than something about waves and air being the medium.
"The fairy exnation wasn''t entirely wrong either. Wind is often depicted as a mischievous fairy."
As Ian exined with a refreshing smile, the medieval folks nodded with profound satisfaction.
Indeed.
This was more fitting for the medieval folks.
Before he knew it, Ian had learned how to exin things at their level.
---
---
Although he had been told to wait outside, one bird stubbornly followed Ian inside.
It was Oberon.
"Caw! Master!"
[I caught a strange bug!]
Oberon proudly presented a bug, amon grass insect found outside.
However, its presence in the middle of an underground cemetery was highly unnatural.
Grass without insects?
"It looks like a wizard''s doing."
Ian immediately sensed that the bug''s presence was linked to a wizard.
"Everyone, be careful. The enemy is nearby."
Ian preemptively warned hispanions.
The effect was immediate.
Someone cast a spell in thenguage of magic towards Ian''s group!
"[Earth! Tremble!]"
''Maroniusnguage?''
Anguage of magic Ian had be all too familiar with, spoken aloud by only one type of being.
A wizard.
Hearing the enemy''s spell, Ian counteracted immediately.
"[Earth! Do not tremble!]"
As Ian shouted, the ground that was about to shake stilled once more.
"[Earth! Tremble!]"
"[Earth! Do not tremble!]"
As the wizard shouted, Ian immediately nullified the magic''s activation.
After a few rounds, the earth itself became annoyed.
[Enough! What are you doing? Pathetic humans! Should I move or not?!]
Ian apologized gracefully with augh.
"[I apologize for the inconvenience.]"
[Get lost! If you want to fight, do it among yourselves! I''m out of here!]
The connection with the earth waspletely severed.
It would be impossible to invoke the Earth in this ce for a while.
In another sense, it also meant that Ian had sessfully blocked the enemy''s earth magic.
Soon, the wizard and the tomb robbers revealed themselves.
The wizard was an elderly man.
He looked at Ian with a sour expression and said, "You handle magic very skillfully. Are you an earth wizard?"
"I''ve learned earth magic, but... who might you be?"
The old man frowned and replied, "Inn Kate. A wizard residing in Dranheim."
Inn?
Ian, of course, had no idea who Inn was.
"And you are?"
"Ian Eredith. Some call me Raven."
"Eredith?"
Inn was startled.
"You don''t mean the me Wizard Eredith, do you?"
"If you''re asking whether me magic was my master''s specialty, then yes, that''s correct."
Inn looked at Ian seriously.
He knew Eredith had taken a disciple, but he never expected to meet them here...!
At that moment, Baron Mud poked Inn in the back.
"Old man, you''re not thinking of backing out now, are you?"
"..."
Truthfully, Inn was considering it.
For Inn, just seeing the magic sword was enough.
But now that he was confronting someone who turned out to be the disciple of an acquaintance, it seemed like an option to just turn traitor.
However, Baron Mud was in a different situation.
Unlike Inn, whom Ian would spare, Baron Mud would be as good as dead if caught.
Turning traitor in front of Baron Mud, who was watching closely, would have been foolish.
Inn shouted,
"Ian, disciple of Eredith! Sorry, but we''ll be taking Baron Talian''s treasure!"
Ian nced at Lucy and said,
"What do you say, Lucy?"
Lucy replied with a determined expression,
"Absolutely not."
Inn realized that this girl was Baron Talian.
There was no room for negotiation.
Reluctantly, Inn began to chant in thenguage of magic to overpower Ian''s group.
"[Wind! Answer my call...]."
This time, he nned to persuade the wind with a more sophisticatednguage, hoping Ian couldn''t interfere.
But Ian was not someone who could be easily outmaneuvered.
"Belenka!"
At Ian''s call, the knight in ck armor charged at Inn like an arrow.
"Attack!"
Traditionally, wizards taste best(?) when bitten by a closebat warrior.
Tomb robbers rushed out to protect Inn, but they were no match for Belenka, who easily broke through their front lines.
"Aaaah!"
Watching Belenka break through the enemy lines in the blink of an eye, Ian smirked.
It seemed the old man was a decent wizard, but... No matter how skilled a wizard, if they''re not given time to cast their spells, that''s the end of it, right?
Being a wizard himself, Ian knew a wizard''s weaknesses all too well.
---
[1. raei: ''a Hongcheol team without Hongcheol'' is a figurative expression. You can rece Hongcheol with anything here.]
[2. raei: ''Enlightenment mindset'' refers to a perspective or way of thinking that is inspired by the Enlightenment, a philosophical movement that emerged in the 17th and 18th centuries, primarily in Europe]Toggle New Ads
3/5 Enjoy the chappy!
Please give the book a rating and a review on NovelUpdates.
It helps the website and helps people find this novel!
If you''d like to make a one-time donation to support our trantions or subscribe to read up to 15 chapters or more (depending on the novel) ahead, you can do so via Ko-fi.
Click here!