Chapter 50 – What Magic Is.
Morning came again. People started their day in a messy atmosphere. I remember that the trial was all over, but it was because there was talk of a trial being held again today.
“What? Wasn’t the trial over yesterday?”
“But you think you’re doing it again?”
The voices of the gathered people were buzzing with anxiety, dissatisfaction, and questions. Usher could guess why the trial was reopened, but he just kept his mouth shut with the girl. Because there was nothing he could do now. Perhaps because of the news that the trial will be held again, people eating breakfast looked uncomfortable. To the extent that Usher noticed while eating. But what happened next was enough to surprise him.
“Good morning.”
“Oh, huh?! Did you talk to me?”
Belka just nodded at his question.
“So, good morning…?”
The girl, no one else, said hello to Donnar, who had approached them first. Even when she came here, she had never taken off her mask or talked to anyone first unless it was a special occasion. It was so unexpected that the person who received the greeting was also dumbfounded. In an unbelievable situation, Usher stared blankly at the two of them. The other coachmen nearby were also surprised to see this.
“You didn’t look at me like that, did you touch me?”
Donard was even more perplexed when the coachman, who was about to dine with him, looked suspiciously at him.
“You just said hello! I didn’t touch you more than that!”
He denied it as if it was unfair, but his suspicious gaze was not removed.
“The ability is also good. When did you seduce that picky-looking lady?”
“Sif was also twisted!”
“When did I ever flirt with you!?”
On the contrary, other coachmen who were watching the situation intervened and even made fun of him, which made it even more difficult.
“I was just saying hello. Isn’t everyone overreacting?”
Donard excused himself by saying that he was only saying hello, and that once he got acquainted with the face, he might be able to say hello. It was a story that was nothing too strange, so the coachmen seemed to understand it roughly, but Usher, who had been quiet until now, made it even more difficult.
“…Belka is very shy. He usually avoids showing himself to people.”
As evidence of that, even now the girl had not taken off the mask I was wearing. She knew that she covered her face, even if she didn’t see her for long. Even in the woods, Belka tended to do almost all of Usher’s requests, but most of the things she absolutely refused to do were dangerous things or things with the possibility of meeting people. Before she met him, she had no idea how she had ever lived alone. When she asks Belka if she wasn’t lonely.
“I’m lonely. Maybe? I’m not sure, but I don’t think I’m not lonely. I’m just used to it, and people are scary.”
Donnar was horrified to see Usher’s eyes burning with jealousy.
“So it’s not like that!?”
The coachman also began to look suspiciously at him again.
“Thinking about it. Looking at the time we’ve known each other, we’re not much different from Donnar, are we?”
“So you should have said hello to us as well, right?”
And I screamed in Donnar at the renewed suspicion. Fortunately, the mischievous suspicions were dispelled as Belka greeted Odur, who arrived later. After a little bit of free time like that. In the reopened trial, when a plate, not the truth that everyone thought was brought out as the subject of the trial, the people’s murmurs began to grow louder. They were gagged so they couldn’t open their mouths, their waists and hands were intertwined so that they couldn’t move, even their fingers tied meticulously as if they weren’t going to allow even a single finger to squirm.
It was so much restraint that I thought maybe it was too much if I didn’t know the details. Soon the old man opened his mouth.
“I’m going to start the trial for the guilty plate from now on.”
When everyone was shocked and speechless at the trial that started without any explanation. Sif was the first to raise his hand.
“Sif, let’s talk.”
“May I ask what crime he committed?”
She asks questions when the old man allows her to speak. That’s also what most people here are curious about. Then she said the old man answered.
“The crime of raping a sleeping girl and trying again last night, the crime of misusing medical drugs, the crime of trying to put the blame on an innocent person, it’s all over.”
Usher’s hands tightened on their own as they gripped Belka’s. Then, thinking that the girl might be in pain, she relaxed and looked ahead.
“Now, wait a minute! Then, is it true that Truth is innocent?!”
Sif said with a more confused face. It was as if he couldn’t believe the story that Truth was innocent. The old man thought her appearance was strange, but she said somewhere.
“Shalby, bring Truss out.”
Then, although she was still tied, the ropes were noticeably shortened, and Truss, looking relatively free, walked out with Shalby.
“Truth, why didn’t you say anything at yesterday’s trial?”
Looking at the tied board, he couldn’t answer as if he was frightened.
“Now, take a closer look. Didn’t you tie your fingers tightly so that you couldn’t lift a single finger?”
People thought it was strange that the old man emphasized his fingers, but what was even more strange was Truss, who was relieved by his words.
“I’ll ask you again. Why didn’t you say anything at the previous trial?”
“That, that’s it.”
With everyone looking at him, his mouth opened for the first time here.
“It was because, when Pan was threatening me, me.”
“Nonsense!”
As soon as he finished speaking, Sif’s high-pitched voice cut through the air and Truss shrank. As the people’s murmur grew louder, the old man frowned and quieted the crowd.
“Quiet! And Sif, I didn’t give you a say.”
“But…! Ha, yes.”
She opened her mouth a few more times to see if she had a lot to say, but she shut her mouth at the old man’s stern expression and the crowd of people staring at her.
“I’m going to listen to Sif’s words later, so let’s finish talking. Truth.”
Truth glanced at Sif as if he was bothered by what he said, then opened his mouth again. His usual babbling voice was very annoying to hear, but the words that came out of his mouth were shocking. A fact that Usher, Belka, and some knights knew about last night, but a fact that people didn’t know.
“Pa, Papa, Pan is the one chosen by magic.”
Astonishment spread among the people at the word magic, which no one expected. Because that meant Pan was a wizard. I was so shocked that I couldn’t even make a sound. Some were even shaking. But someone raised their hand as if it were strange. The old man allowed his remarks.
“A sorcerer… Then how on earth is he being held?”
Certainly, that was a valid question. Are wizards in awe just for the fact that they use magic and want to be recruited from any country? That was because of the magic itself, which could be called invincible, as it wielded power equivalent to that of an army by itself, depending on how it was used.
“That we can explain.”
It was Donar who answered the question. At his side was Odur.
“We heard about that from Truss and went to check with Pan.”
When asked how they found out that Pan was a wizard and suppressed it, it was difficult because he had to tell people that Belka was a witch, but he solved it by matching words with Truth. It might be a bit risky, but they had already heard everything from the conversation between the girl and Pan last night, so they weren’t worried. He explained to Truce last night that such a ruling was made to check Pan’s reaction. If it wasn’t for that, Truss would have been abandoned in the wilderness as the verdict.
“But Pan tried to pounce on the child again last night, and we found it and attacked and subdued him while we were not paying attention.”
Truth told them that Pan was a wizard, and based on that, he subdued Pan with Odur breaking his fingers. I tried to make it as strange as possible so that it was not known, but it was fortunate that this time it could be passed even if it was a little lax as it was a trial of the upper tier that was so simple. If possible, I wanted to judge Pan’s sins by telling only the truth, but then I would have to tell her that Belka is a witch. It was something she couldn’t help but protect her.
Witches, unlike wizards and saints, have been recognized as being very unpleasant, and people think of them as good targets to sell to people like nobles. Who knows, among the many, many people at the top, someone might be offended by the fact that the girl is a witch? Therefore, the truth had to be partially hidden. And the reason why you can make such an excuse for defeating a wizard is that people only vaguely know that wizards are great. It was because I had never had a chance to meet him in person or see its power.
Truth was not originally scheduled to join the top. He worked as a medic and his hometown was flooded with wounded. In such a situation, he thought that he could not leave his hometown, so the intention to join the top was going to be someone else. But something unexpected happened. An intruder appeared in the barracks where he was tending to his patients, struck Truce in the head and took him hostage.
“Trues! Wake up! Truss!”
Fortunately, the intruder was subdued, but in the process he broke his leg and suffered serious aftereffects as he missed time to heal. His speech was prone to stuttering, and his legs became lame. However, since it did not interfere with his activities as a medic, he tried to remain. If it hadn’t happened one day overhearing the gossip of his colleagues.
“Have you seen that guy, Truss, stutter?”
“What about your legs? Now they look completely frozen, don’t they?”
Through one of the thin tents of the tent, the voices of the comrades could be heard. What was even more shocking was that the same medics who sympathized with them and considered them best friends were together. When he realized that the aftereffects on his leg were a deliberate mistake and not simply because he missed the right time to treat them, he felt betrayed and his teeth trembled.
“That kid was a bit unlucky.”
“So! They said they were going to rest. They said they had to take care of patients and stayed.”
It was natural. Someone had to stay by the side of the patients, and it was annoying to argue over who would stay, so he did it himself. Because they didn’t think of anyone else. As this happened over and over again, it became natural for him to take care of the patients by himself whenever he had time to play. Then one day.
“Medicine!”
Soldiers brought in wounded soldiers. It wasn’t anything special. Soldiers were often wounded and many died. It’s far better than dying and not being able to come here. Without thinking, he treated the soldier as usual and got over the hump. I thought that I had come back with wounds that would normally have killed me long ago, but it was the story behind it that I found out that they and the wounded soldier were elite soldiers for the purpose of special operations. It wasn’t uncommon for him to become friendly with the soldier who healed him.
“So I left it, and in the meantime I became close with him!”
The problem must have been getting close with the soldier.
“I should have stayed that day!”
He never forced them to go to rest. Even on the day he wanted to rest, they left him with work as if it were natural, and that day was just the same. Their gossip seldom ceased, and Truce was among the first to leave his hometown, citing his injuries and aftereffects. For what seemed to be good reasons, he was allowed to join the ranks. It was unexpected that Donar, a soldier he had become close with at the time, joined the upper ranks.
The guild, which started like that, at first thought it would be a decent life. Children often bullied him for his stuttering and poor mobility, but he did not cross the line of mischief and the injured patients were treated smoothly. Because he is going a long way, he was a bit hard, but for about a month he lived a pleasant and comfortable life, and he thought it would continue. That day was not a special day either.
“Now, wait a minute, that book!”
“Is this a magic book?”
A new friend he met at the top came to the carriage he was staying in to talk and found a magic book that he had put in among the medical books he had collected as a personal hobby, and said playfully.
“Hey, don’t you usually give up after looking around and trying things like this when you were young?”
“Because it’s done. That, stop putting it back in its place!”
He shouted in shame at being caught. Yes, because reading and trying magic books was something that children usually did and admired. Most people of Truce’s age give up, realizing that admiration is only admiration, and how absurd it is to use magic. Unless you were chosen by magic. The friend, who had been skimming through his spellbook for a moment, suddenly stared at a page and said,
“Can I borrow this book?”
“Yes, it doesn’t matter, but it’s not very useful. It won’t be useful, right?”
“No, just thinking about the old days.”
Truth readily lent the book to his friend, thinking that he might develop the same hobby. He could only memorize it anyway, and he wasn’t even able to use magic. He returned the book shortly after, but he came back every once in a while to open it and talk about magic. I really enjoyed that time. Except for Donard, he thought he had a friend who, in a real sense, shared the same hobbies. Then, it was a day when I was especially tired.
“If you’re that tired, why don’t you get some sleep?”
“But wow, the patients.”
“Because I’ve seen what you’re doing from the side, too. Unless it’s a dangerous disease or injury, taking care of it is easy.”
“Well, just a little bit.”
Hearing his friend’s advice to get some sleep, Truss was relieved and lay down on the small bed he had set aside for personal use, and fell asleep faster than ever. How long had he been asleep? He realized that something was ringing in his ears.
-Splash!
It was a strange sound, like something wet and dripping. At first he didn’t know what it sounded like.
“Huh!”
However, the next woman’s voice made him fall asleep. He had just woken up and was unconscious. He felt ashamed and envious at the thought of some couple daring to have a relationship in the infirmary while he was asleep.
“Ha.”
Perhaps they thought he was still asleep, so the moans grew louder. The first sound I heard was the sound of our flesh colliding while having a relationship with nothing else. As he kept hearing the squishy sounds and women’s moans, he felt his stuff swell unbearably. It was natural because he was a man too. He sighed in nervousness and slowly opened his eyes.
It was because I wondered what bold couples were making connections in the wagons where the patients were sleeping. I felt guilty for peeping, but it was the fault of the careless couple, and he wanted to at least watch. And the next moment he witnessed a sight he couldn’t believe. It was because he was there and no one else.
“What, what…!”
He forgot that he was even peeping and covered his mouth when he almost screamed. To think that it was a mistake, the person who is still in a relationship with a woman was the one who washed her eyes and looked at Ruth, himself. What do you mean? But he was able to discover even more incredible sights. Beneath the figure in his own form was a sleeping woman.
“Ugh.”
As if laughing at the Russ who thought they were a simple couple at the sound of her relationship, she was being raped without even knowing what she was doing. He was enraged, knowing that there was no reason why a woman would not wake up after doing such a violent act, unless she was very drunk or on drugs. That is, it was a story that the author misused the drug to be used on the patient. Among his patients, there were a considerable number of such women.
At that time, it wasn’t that his sexual desire wasn’t boiling, but to him, the sense of duty as a doctor came first. His sense of duty was not light enough to do such a thing to a patient. Even if he didn’t know who the Chinese character was, he couldn’t forgive him. Even if he was a medic, the sword he used as a soldier was not worth using because of his uncomfortable body, and the only thing he could handle now was the dagger he used to cut bandages. It was never meant to be used to stab people, but he had to protect his patients.
As it was a dagger, even with his uncomfortable body, he was able to wield it with his old senses. After that, Thruss approached slowly and swung his dagger with all his might, aiming for the guy’s side. When I felt the dagger pierce my flesh.
“Keuk?!”
Truss was horrified at the pain he felt in his side. Thinking that there was a team, he looked back and could only stare blankly at the spot. There was nothing behind him. And looking at his own waist, where he felt his pain, he could see his clothes slowly stained with blood. Then he could finally hear his voice.
Hehe, how is it not fun?”
“This voice… Pan?”
The voice that came out of that person’s mouth was definitely the voice of a friend who said he would take care of patients on behalf of Truth. In an incomprehensible situation, the dagger in his hand fell to the floor as he grabbed his side and staggered back. The dagger that fell like that was clearly stained with blood. However, there is not a single wound visible on his body. Only Truss was wounded. Exactly where he stabbed him.
“Is this magic?”
