Chapter 189. Learning (1)
The black-market merchant, and the mute Maltead who escorted him.
Now that the secret social hall had ended, there was no need to maintain that identity. On the road, Verden and Cland changed appearances as they passed through cities, towns, and small villages.
An ordinary horse, into a large packhorse.
A shabby cart, into a wagon for transporting supplies.
The barrel that held an Elf, into a crate of goods.
And Cland, as a member of the Marquisate of Esperanza, while Verden, as the Mage Asher, pulled his robe deep over his head and concealed his identity.
Thus, the black-market merchant vanished without a trace.
No one would think it strange. Considering the work they did, hiding their trail was only natural.
Especially Cland, who was an expert in this field.
The deaths of Jarolf and the mercenaries.
Even if Geul belatedly realized the truth, he would not be able to touch the trail of their movements.
The road to the safe house was smooth.
They did not forget to send word to the Marquis through the secret communication network.
However, since the distance was long, camping was unavoidable.
A deep night under bright moonlight.
A magic circle was deployed to secure concealment and safety, and the magical campfire blazed warmly. Wrapped in a tattered robe, Cland had long since fallen asleep.
Verden, however, remained awake all night.
His thirst for knowledge outweighed his need for sleep. For several days, he had spent his free time reading through Drevus's experimental journal in its entirety.
He muttered his impression.
'This is… far too low in standard.'
Human experimentation was repulsive and grotesque.
That was a truth that would never change within Verden's heart.
But Doctor of Gluttony—
Setting aside ethics and subjectivity, his ideas had been innovative, and his experiments had been astonishing. Even Verden could not deny that.
So dangerous that he had incinerated the doctor's journal on the spot.
'By comparison, Drevus's experiments are pathetic.'
The reuse of corpses of Elves and peculiar trait Magicians… written as such, but in reality, all he had done was poke around corpses.
Dozens of experiments, all failures, then more failures.
Not just the results, but the concepts behind them were trite and utterly worthless. Verden could not comprehend why such thoughts had even been considered, much less attempted.
Of course, in the most negative sense.
It was a level so shameful, it could hardly be presented as results to the Marquis of Esperanza.
And yet—
'There was not no harvest at all.'
His subjective thoughts were miserable, but the objective information had value.
Elves.
He had only known them as beautiful, dangerous, and close to spirits, but thanks to this journal, he learned far more in detail.
The characteristics of Elves.
The society of Elves.
The way of life of Elves.
Even the concept of the "Guardian Elf ", which had been used to describe that blonde Elf.
It could be wrong information.
Naturally, Verden sought to verify the accuracy.
'For example…'
[Elves can survive half a year without consuming food or water.]
A line extracted from the journal.
The reason given was that, thanks to their independent mana circuits, they could sustain life through natural magic power, and this was something easy to confirm directly.
Verden's gaze shifted to the side.
The unconscious blonde Elf lay stretched out.
Since leaving him in the crate forever was not an option, he was occasionally exposed to fresh air while his condition was checked.
Of course, being unconscious, he could not consume food.
Even when Verden tried to feed him water, the Elf reflexively rejected it. For several days, the Elf had eaten nothing.
And yet, he still breathed.
His complexion remained unchanged, his body had not grown thin.
And most decisively—
'Magic power is seeping into his skin.'
So faint that even Verden had to focus to feel it. Yet it was endlessly pure.
Exactly as written in Drevus's journal, he was clearly using natural mana as nourishment. The fact that they could last half a year meant there was, of course, a limit.
'Truly a fascinating race.'
Humans could not handle natural mana directly.
That was why they used the convenient medium of mana stones.
And yet Elves were born with such a bodily structure.
As a Mage and a researcher, he could not help but be astonished.
'Come to think of it, spirits were similar.'
Spirits, from their state as spirit stones, absorbed natural mana and revived.
It was through that process that Blue had been resurrected. Proof that Verden's magic power was purer even than natural mana.
'Perhaps an Elf could be restored in the same way.'
Of course, he would not recklessly attempt it without basis.
Even if they were another race, that would be no different from human experimentation. Whatever the case, he needed a method that could absolutely guarantee the Elf's safety.
The children of nature, the Elves.
Verden gazed upon him, sinking into quiet thought.
***
North of Rines.
In a small town about two days' distance, Verden and Cland arrived. They guided the wagon toward a building on the outskirts.
A three-story house. Next to it, a shabby warehouse with tightly closed doors.
'So this is the safe house the Marquisate kept hidden.'
Cland opened the warehouse doors manually.
Creak, creak, screech. The hinges had not seen oil for some time, the noise was loud. Slowly, they led the wagon inside.
After a while, a person emerged from the door connecting to the house.
"Hohoho, my friends have returned."
The Magician Edmon.
Wearing light clothes, he approached, chuckling heartily.
Cland lifted his robe and immediately paid respect.
"My, I did not expect Lord Edmon himself to come."
"I heard you brought something quite remarkable, so of course I had to come in person. Isn't that right, Asher?"
Verden shrugged his shoulders.
Then he spread his magic, unloading the supply crate from the wagon. When the lid opened, the blonde Elf lay there in plain view.
"Hoho… truly an Elf. It has been a long time since I've seen one of another race."
"You have seen them before, sir?"
"I have not lived my years in vain, you see. I've lived a most interesting life. Even had the pleasure of being bested by a much younger junior, hohoho!"
Edmon glanced at Verden with a smile.
Apparently, losing the bet and being stripped of his stake had been a most memorable experience.
Verden handed over Drevus's experimental journal.
"This was taken from the Mage who had been in the laboratory. It's nothing important, but better than having nothing at all."
"Ooh, I see. Let's take a look…"
Edmon quickly skimmed through the journal.
His eyes darted left and right, grasping the general content.
"Hmm, indeed, it is mostly just descriptions of the processes and results of experiments. A considerable portion of it concerns information about the Elf as a demi-human. Which means, this Elf must be the key."
All three pairs of eyes settled on the Elf.
"In any case, both of you have done well. To secretly spirit away an Elf from the old royal castle… even His Excellency was rather taken aback. It has been a long time since I saw such a reaction."
"It is thanks to Asher."
"And thanks to you as well. It must not have been easy enduring the danger among enemies… ah, hrm. I seem to have talked too much. You must be tired, so go ahead and rest upstairs."
A dismissal, asking him to leave.
Cland immediately accepted.
"Understood. Asher, it was an honor to carry out this commission together. Let us meet again if the chance arises."
"Until next time."
Nodding, Cland entered the building.
With the unconscious Elf between them, Edmon and Verden met each other's gaze.
"Is there something you wish to say?"
"There is, yes. But it seems you are the same, judging from the complicated look in your eyes as you stare at the Elf."
So he noticed.
As expected of a Magus's insight.
"I have a request."
"Oh, a request. Now that makes me curious. Speak freely, I shall consider it as favorably as I can."
"I wish to extend the commission."
The commission Verden had received was to 'infiltrate the 1st Prince's castle and discover what dealings were taking place'. The Elf had been an unforeseen variable, but he had even brought him back in plain sight.
In effect, the commission was completed.
Edmon guessed at Verden's intention.
"So you mean… you have business with this Elf."
"As I mentioned beforehand, the Elf's condition is poor."
His internal organs were partly destroyed, leaving him with almost no chance of natural recovery.
His body could not endure the rebound of a potion, and divine power was ineffective.
The miracles of the Church of Luas applied only to humans.
In other words—
"There is no telling when the Elf might awaken. At worst, he may never regain consciousness, and simply die as he is."
"That is why I am considering countermeasures. I have only just heard the report, so I cannot say much yet, but surely given time…"
"I already have a countermeasure."
"What?"
Edmon's eyebrows twitched.
"How… no, I shall not ask. You would not tell me anyway. What matters more is your purpose. Yes, what do you intend once you awaken the Elf?"
"I want to have a conversation with him."
"A conversation…? That is all?"
"Yes."
Of course, he did not say what kind of conversation.
He had much to ask—about spirits, the Court Mage Division Commander, and the royal family's experiments. It was too complicated to explain.
Edmon closed his eyes in thought.
After a while, stroking his beard, he nodded.
"Very well. Then, under my authority, I will extend the commission. I shall inform His Excellency later."
"Is that acceptable?"
"You are the one who brought the Elf, are you not. That is reason enough to claim such a right. Having already infiltrated the 1st Prince's castle under His Excellency's orders, there is no reason to conceal the information you brought. Still, perhaps you can tell me when this countermeasure of yours will be ready?"
"At least two weeks."
On the way to the safe house, he had formed the general plan.
But the details could not be completed by thought alone. It required trial and error.
"Hmm, then until you are ready, I shall see to it the Elf is kept safe."
"Thank you."
Verden bowed his head slightly.
"Then, what was it you wanted to tell me…"
"Ah, right. In truth, I wished to give some advice. Do you still have the ancient coin His Excellency gave you as payment for this commission?"
"It is stored in my spatial bag."
"Good. Keep it safe, as you have. That coin is itself the price of direct support from the kingdom's foremost Marquisate. Use it only when it is truly indispensable. That is what I wished to say."
'…I thought of it as a kind of blank check, but it seems it holds even greater meaning.'
Verden kept Edmon's advice in mind.
"I shall do so."
"Hoho, well, in truth, I expected as much from you. Then it seems we have finished our business."
Edmon lifted the crate with the Elf into the air.
"I shall await your word."
Carrying the Elf, Edmon disappeared into the building.
Having successfully delivered the Elf, Verden immediately left the town. There was nothing more for him here.
Verden sped through the sky, heading toward Asern.
***
The life of an Elf was directly tied to natural mana.
And Verden's mana was purer even than nature's. In some way, it was certain to cause a reaction.
'But that does not mean I can force mana into him like with a spirit stone.'
The Elf's body was already weakened to its limits.
At the slightest strain, it could collapse and explode. That would be a catastrophe.
He needed more delicate control.
He needed a way to transmit mana indirectly. And the answer he considered was the existence of the spirit, Blue.
'Since Blue is composed of my mana.'
Based on that, he would design a dedicated magic circle to transfer mana gradually.
If he could steadily, evenly transmit mana while monitoring the Elf's condition, he was certain there would be improvement.
Verden hastened his pace and arrived at Perne's tavern.
The tavern was closed.
Meaning, Perne was working as an informant.
Creak.
He opened the door without hesitation.
And there, he saw the back of a man.
It was not Perne.
But his clothes were familiar.
Verden immediately knew who it was.
"…Geltone?"
"Ah! O-oh, it has been a while, Asher-nim."
The Mage Geltone, ever hungry for theory.
The adventurer who had gone on the Undead subjugation had returned.