“Ugh, Nameless… I didn’t raise you like this…”
“Master…! That’s not true!”
Thanks to Nameless’s excessively wronged expression, laughter bloomed in the somewhat gloomy atmosphere.
One by one, as laughter piled up to create harmony, Nameless finally looked around and sighed lightly, realizing it was all just a joke.
“My heart can’t take it…”
“Come on, it’s all in good fun, right?”
I patted Nameless on the shoulder affectionately, smiling playfully.
Pouting, Nameless muttered quietly, still feeling wronged.
“Besides, I’ve only been by Master’s side except for when I went to the bathroom…”
“Well, that’s true.”
I’ve never doubted Nameless, and since leaving the hut, Nameless has been glued to my side except for bathroom breaks, so there’s no room for distractions.
Hmm, I feel like Nameless can’t meet any girls because of me.
As my thoughts wandered elsewhere, Lucius slightly lifted the corners of his mouth and spoke.
“Yes, Cheon Mu-myeong is not.”
While fiddling with his sword, Lucius continued.
“That person uses magic, not swordsmanship.”
“Magic?”
When Camilla asked for confirmation, Lucius nodded.
Then, asking for Camilla’s permission, he took out a notepad and started drawing something.
He drew what seemed to be a person, adding black wings to it.
Though it was a somewhat clumsy drawing, the message was clearly conveyed.
“…Is that a crow?”
“It’s not a crow; I drew that person… but it could be seen as a crow.”
Camilla, with a sulky expression while looking at Lucius’s drawing, muttered quietly, “That’s supposed to be a person…?”
How Lucius interpreted Camilla’s expression, he nodded with a confident look on his face.
“It would be easier to track them using this drawing.”
“Uh, yeah….”
With a sigh, Camilla scratched her head while taking Lucius’s drawing.
“Don’t draw anymore, you amateur.”
“Yes…”
“Nah, it’s okay! Wow! You drew well!”
Elia immediately comforted Lucius, who had turned gloomy.
Indeed, what a match made in heaven.
Holding back the laughter bubbling up from the ridiculous situation, I shifted my gaze to Camilla, who was tapping the table.
Camilla seemed to be thinking for a moment, closing her eyes, then opened them slightly to look at Lucius.
“Hey, amateur. Is there nothing else to explain? Like what kind of magic they use.”
“Basically, they seem to use magic from all categories…”
Rummaging through his memories, Lucius tilted his head.
Meanwhile, Camilla’s expression turned bizarre upon hearing this.
“Are they a dragon who’s lived for 300 years or something?”
A 300-year-old dragon? That’s a description that makes me want to run away immediately upon meeting one…
Shivering, Camilla sent me a look that seemed to say “You?”
“Uhhm…”
Aren’t I at least human? I subtly avoided Camilla’s gaze.
“That’s… probably not the case.”
In response to Camilla’s question, Lucius shook his head lightly.
“The magic they primarily use is limited to black magic, so just preparing for that should be enough.”
“Black magic, huh… got it.”
Camilla nodded and continued to take notes.
“What about the clothes?”
“They’ll likely be wearing a large black robe.”
The explanations about the Nameless one continued for a solid half hour.
*
As the tea kettle was about to run dry, Camilla slumped her body and sighed heavily.
“Is it finally over…?”
With dark circles forming under her eyes, Camilla asked in a surprisingly small voice, and Lucius, looking at her, licked his lips.
“There’s still something I haven’t mentioned, but… isn’t this enough?”
“Yeah, yeah, that’s plenty….”
Now completely collapsed, Camilla called for her butler.
“Did you call for me?”
“Take this and show it to the kids.”
“Yes, My Lady.”
The butler, who received the paper summarizing everything Lucius had explained, bowed deeply and left.
By the way, that butler seems quite capable, coming right away when called…
As I thought it would be nice to have people like that around, Nameless started gazing at me intently.
“…What’s up?”
Even though he’s my disciple, being stared at like that is a bit much…
Just as Nameless and I were sharing a strange gaze, Lucius turned to the now completely slouched Camilla.
“Um, would you be willing to help in the tracking?”
“What?”
Camilla’s brows twitched.
“What have you been watching until now? Of course, we need to track them down.”
“…but you all are busy.”
Camilla clicked her tongue at Lucius’s apologetic expression.
“Tch, it’s tight, but we’ve got some leeway.”
She added quickly, “Well, let’s just say it’s still manageable,” sighed and waved her hand.
“Now that the business is over, you guys can leave.”
A clear dismissal.
Just when I was about to stand up with a big smile, tired of being here, Lucius suddenly sprang up and approached Camilla.
“Camilla.”
“What?”
Camilla responded with an annoyed tone, but Lucius didn’t seem to care and continued talking.
“May we also stay in the north to assist with the tracking?”
“You guys?”
Camilla tilted her head in confusion.
Then, she glanced at me subtly, which felt uneasy.
“Your old lady doesn’t seem to be interested in that.”
Of course not, why would I help with that?
There’s no benefit for me in this… I certainly didn’t expect our descent into the travel grounds to escalate to this scale.
As cold sweat started to form, Lucius shook his head lightly.
“If at least I and the Saint help, wouldn’t it be better than nothing?”
“Hmmm… I have no reason to refuse.”
Camilla rested her chin on her hand, then grinned playfully and continued.
“It’d be even better if your old lady was here too-”
“Take care! I’ll be heading out first! Nameless, you come too!”
“Yes? Yes, Master.”
Overwhelmed by my sudden actions, I hastily dragged Nameless out the door.
“Cheon Ha-rang, wait a moment.”
“…”
Lucius called out to me.
Turning my head awkwardly, I saw his serious expression that always appeared whenever he was about to ask for a favor.
I shook my head in distaste.
“No! I’m going back now, so don’t hold me!”
He would probably ask me for assistance in tracking or getting Jackal or something. With how busy I’ve been lately, I absolutely didn’t want to agree.
… I really just want to relax.
And just as I expected, Lucius nodded with a somewhat conflicted expression.
“Well, then there’s nothing we can do…”
“That’s right! There’s nothing you can do.”
Still, I was thankful that I wasn’t showing an ugly sight hanging around like some hero.
Of course, I’d love to help them if I could, but what can I do when I’m in this state?
Feeling lightened, I stepped out of the building at a brisk pace.
However, as if the world was hellbent on making me suffer, Camilla stopped me this time.
And she did so with a rather tempting phrase.
“Old lady.”
“…What now?”
Camilla’s lips curled up, her eyes forming a pretty crescent.
It was definitely supposed to be a lovely smile, but it felt oddly spiteful.
“You seem like you could use a break, and I have something good in mind.”
“…What is it?”
Camilla chuckled lightly.
“In about a month, we’re holding a festival in our place, Ellen, sort of a ritual and celebration. How about you stay until then?”
A festival…
I’m curious, but it’s not enough to keep me here.
I’ve always hated crowded places, and a noisy festival atmosphere is even less to my liking.
There’s no way that can keep me here! Of course, Nameless must feel the same.
Snorting in disdain, I looked at Nameless.
“…”
This guy seems strangely hopeful, unlike me.
I pursed my lips tightly.
At this rate, it’s hard to refuse…
Well, it’s possible that she’s just mentioning the festival for the sake of me taking a break, not expecting me to help…
But would that spiteful smile on Camilla be the result of such a noble thought?
I narrowed my eyes and glared at Camilla.
Seeing my gaze, Camilla chuckled and slowly approached me.
“Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention…”
I felt her breath near my ear.
It sent shivers down my spine as I frowned.
“The specialty of Ellen is strawberries… they look different from other regions.”
“What…”
My eyes widened.
As Camilla slowly distanced herself, she smiled like an angel and continued speaking.
“Oh! We also have homemade liquor?”
“…Is that true?”
“Of course~”
Thus, I decided to stay in the north for about a month longer.
Well, Nameless was also eager to see the festival, so I couldn’t help it.
Hmm, that’s right.
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