episode_0247

Episode 247: The Black Wizard (5)

“Kyle, is this your first time at our house? I’ll give you a tour.”

Rana said with a bright smile as she led me into the mansion. She held my hand tightly, as if she would never let go, and her voice was full of eagerness, as if excited by the thought of showing me her house.

“Haa…”

That sight makes me sigh. How can that cuteness remain unchanged even after time has passed? I just feel sorry that she is still bound by the shackles of being a student.

I smiled and followed her. Of course, Estella was with us too.

“As you can see, this is the dining hall.”

“But the structure is different from a typical dining hall?”

“That’s right. This is the first time I’ve seen a dining hall connected to the outside.”

The dining hall of the Heytalde family was similar to the structure of a normal mansion. However, one difference was that one wall of the dining hall was made up of a huge door that could be opened to the outside.

“Our family is a summoner family, right? So, we made it so that summoned beasts can eat together. Of course, the really big ones can’t come in. Like Dad’s Garuda. And only a few of the children eat together. Most of them like to eat freely outside.”

“How fascinating!”

Certainly, there are not many summoners who go this far. The relationship between a summoner and a summoned beast is that of companions and family who respect and cherish each other, but there is no doubt that they are different species. Most of them distinguish what needs to be distinguished.

Perhaps that’s how much the Heytalde family values summoned beasts as more than just family. Just like how Rana usually treats her summoned beasts.

“If you come out of the dining hall through this door… Ta-da! This is our family’s backyard! It’s where the summoned beasts live!”

Rana spread her arms wide and showed off the view outside the mansion. All sorts of natural environments, like vast forests and plains, existed in what could be called the backyard. Of course, it was too vast to simply call it a backyard.

“Do all the summoned beasts live here?”

“Not really. Even though this place is big, the really big ones can’t live here. Dad’s Garuda has a separate area.”

Just then, a bird flew over. It was Nene, Rana’s summoned beast. The one who came from the backyard landed on Rana’s shoulder.

“Nene, you’re here?”

-Chirp!

Estella’s eyes sparkled when she saw Nene.

“Sister, sister. Is that bird really a phoenix?”

“Yeah, it’s a phoenix. Didn’t you know?”

“I didn’t know! Wow… A real phoenix. Sister, can I see its true form just once?”

“Of course!”

The two ran to the wide space in the backyard. And then, feeling the will of its owner, Rana, it showed its true form to the world. Estella opened her mouth wide as she looked at the feathers made of flames. She opened it so wide that saliva dripped down.

It was truly a peaceful sight. Then suddenly, I had this thought. That Ariel and I were too worried about the Heytalde family.

The reason I volunteered to come here was to help her family. But I heard that they had dealt with more than 80% of the black wizards, and there was nothing particularly dangerous.

At first, I thought I should do something since I came all the way here, but when I saw the number of black wizards imprisoned, that thought disappeared completely.

Perhaps we were overly worried. Or perhaps it means that the Heytalde family is stronger than we thought.

Well, either way, it was a good thing that Rana’s family wasn’t harmed.

After that, Estella and I were given a tour of the mansion by Rana. Along the way, Rana’s father, Lyenel Heytalde, glared at me from afar a few times. Then, unable to bear it any longer, Rana went to her dad and said.

“Dad.”

“What is it, Rana?”

“Why do you keep bothering Kyle?”

“Cough, cough… I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Dad…”

Rana looked at her dad with a blank face, all smiles gone. And Lyenel, feeling his daughter’s anger from her low voice, disappeared with a dejected look. The place he arrived at was a woman presumed to be Rana’s mother. She was also watching us from afar.

“Honey… Rana, Rana…”

“Please stop babying Rana. How long are you going to keep coddling her?”

“But I can’t give my daughter to a guy like that…”

As you can see from the conversation, he didn’t have many allies. Rather, there were more people like Latral who were helping Rana. Still, the atmosphere was incomparably harmonious compared to Arden. Such a scene could not have come about if they did not love each other.

After spending some time, it was almost lunchtime. It was about time to eat.

This was not Tianis, but the Heytalde family’s mansion. There was no need to prepare anything like in the dorm. Moreover, as guests of a saint and a saintess, a rather grand meal was being prepared.

However, it took some time to prepare the meal as they also had to take care of the summoned beasts. So, during the remaining time, Rana and I walked around the backyard.

“Kyle, what do you think of our house?”

“What is there to think? It looks good.”

“Hehe, I’m glad.”

What is she so glad about? Of course, I think it’s understandable since it’s my first time at Rana’s house.

“Kyle. What are you going to do after lunch? Are you busy today? Do you have to go back…?”

“No, I don’t really have to go back…”

I came here to help this place. So, if there’s anything else I can help with, I can stay and support. Besides, Ariel didn’t really tell me what to do after the work was done. If anything, it was just reporting or conveying the situation.

“Then, you know…”

Rana fidgeted with her hands and asked.

“Today… Do you want to sleep over at our house?”

“Uh…”

I was momentarily speechless. When there was no response for a while, Rana asked again.

“Is it… not okay?”

“It is. It’s unconditionally okay.”

I unconsciously reacted to the words.

Yeah, why wouldn’t it be okay? The person I love wants it. I have to stay over, no matter what it takes.

I held her hand tightly and conveyed my feelings once more. Rana’s face relaxed, and a smile bloomed.

“Hehe…”

“Sister, cutting in line is cheating!”

Then Estella’s voice broke in. She was clearly far away. She’s so fast. She squeezed between us and said.

“I won’t forgive you for trying to monopolize Brother all by yourself! And what man wouldn’t fall for those words!”

“Really…? I didn’t say it with that intention?”

“Aah, Sister!”

With a playful voice, Estella clung to Rana. Of course, it only seemed like she was trying to tease Estella.

“Then, Estella, do you want to sleep over at our house too?”

“Of course!”

At the enthusiastic shout, Rana hugged Estella. She seemed to find every word and action of hers cute.

“Okay. Then Estella too…”

While Rana was talking, an alert was transmitted to my mind. This alert was coming from the magic installed in Tianis Academy, and even installed on Senior Ruina.

I gritted my teeth. I hoped that this magic would not be activated.

A deep conflict arises in my heart. I agonized over the two choices. The decision my heart leans towards is always the same, but I knew well that it could not be a fundamental solution. It was just a temporary delay.

Still, still….

“I’ll be back in a little bit.”

“Huh? Is something wrong, Kyle?”

“Brother, you don’t look good. Should I go with you?”

“No, it’s okay. I’ll go alone. I’ll be right back.”

Leaving their worries behind, I used teleportation. The view changed in an instant. It was the familiar sight of Tianis Academy. However, it was a little different from the morning.

Buildings were broken here and there, with rubble all around. Among them, there were students who were injured and collapsed, and students who were standing still. Seeing the black aura emanating from them, it was clear that they were black wizards possessing the students.

The number of black wizards was roughly hundreds. And on the dividing line between the two, a woman was kneeling.

Ruina Lindel. One of the villains in this world. The senior was trying to protect the students, so she was covered in wounds. Her clothes were tattered, making it difficult to find their original form.

“Why, why…”

“Don’t be too upset. Your sacrifice will be remembered forever. More than that, we found something amazing here.”

A man in the form of a student took something out of his pocket. It was a coin-sized stone that glowed mysteriously.

“This stone is amazing. It contains a purer energy than natural mana, and at the same time, it possesses a powerful force. This is the first time I’ve seen such a thing. Then suddenly, I had this thought. Could this be the legendary ‘Philosopher’s Stone’?”

“…Give it back.”

“Judging by the reaction, it seems like it’s correct. Haha, a real Philosopher’s Stone. If we only had this…”

“Give back my thing!”

Senior Ruina releases mana. An energy that would twist space was spreading throughout the space. However, it was immediately suppressed by the black wizards. It is true that the senior is a strong person, but she could not face this number of black wizards alone. Moreover, there were many restrictions as she was protecting the students.

“Then we will use this well.”

The man gestured. Then, the black wizards next to him approached Senior Ruina. At that moment, I heard the senior muttering.

“Attacked the academy… Injured the students… Took, took my Philosopher’s Stone… Kill, I’ll kill them… Kill all the black wizards, kill them all…”

A black aura rose from the senior’s body. It was a sign of rampage. If left as it was, it was obvious what would happen to the senior. I immediately took action.

A magic circle floated in the air. A streak of light from it connected to the black wizards possessing the students. I gathered what was connected to the magic circle into one. And I struck down on what was gathered in Karsa.

“Kuek-!”

“Cough…”

“What…!”

The black wizards writhed in pain. Since I cut their souls, the pain would be indescribable. Moreover, since I cut off even the connection with their original body, all that remained was to wander in this world.

Ignoring the black wizards’ reaction, I ran to the senior. She was still exuding a black aura. It would be good to cut off the black magic that was rampaging as it was, but there was only one way to stop it without any side effects.

Swish-

Black magic was sucked into my fingertips. Unless you can use black magic, this kind of action was no different from poison. But I was fine. Because I could use black magic too.

“Haa, haa…”

The sound of breathing gradually decreased. The senior’s breathing, which had been panting with anger, calmed down. The eyes that had been taken over by energy also returned to normal.

The black magic was erased like that. The senior carefully raised her head at the disappeared energy. And when she saw me in front of her, she muttered.

“Why, why…”

Senior Ruina had a shocked look on her face, and

“Why, are you using black magic…?”

She looked at me as if betrayed.