episode_0313

Episode 313

A large pig is roasted whole. I was able to intuitively see the scene from the place arranged in a circle around it.

Not only did I see the cooking scene, but my nose was also irritated by the wild smell of grilling meat, which is difficult to smell in Lurie’s royal cuisine.

There, cut meat, pickled foods, raw vegetables, and bread are placed in generous amounts on trays and served to the table. Alcohol, presumed to be beer, was also provided. When the food was prepared in front of everyone seated, Wihart held up a large glass and gave a congratulatory speech.

“For the precious people who came from far away Lurie! There isn’t much to prepare, but eat a lot!”

Due to the circumstances, the meal began not very pleasantly. In particular, Juliana was looking puzzled at the food piled up in front of her.

“Ugh, such barbaric cuisine…”

Juliana looked at me and Carmel as if she was looking for someone who could sympathize with her dissatisfaction. But I had no particular complaints.

A whole pig roasted over an open fire is something that cannot be tasteless. Moreover, the cooking skills were good, so the meat was cooked to an exquisite level. The strong-tasting sauce spread on the surface stuck together and exploded with intense flavor every time it touched the tongue.

It seems that Nordrier’s way is to eat this with the vegetables provided, or wrap it and eat it. It was a way of eating that I was quite familiar with. It is also a great combination to put it between bread.

When Juliana saw that I was enjoying it, it seemed like she decided to give it a try. Juliana’s eyes widened as she took a bite of bread, vegetables, and meat.

“Umm…? Um…!”

It seems to have been surprisingly delicious. Julianna chewed the food in her mouth and immediately took the next bite.

It seems that Julianna was the only one who was somewhat dissatisfied with the meal. Carmel seemed familiar as well, rolling up the meat with the long-leafed vegetable and putting it into her mouth gracefully. Well, since I lived in this area, it’s natural that I’m familiar with the food.

It occurred to me that perhaps this meal, too, was prepared by Wihart to embarrass us. An ordinary royal might have been offended or protested at such an authentic northern meal. But I didn’t think like that at all.

Well, or maybe it’s just the ultimate northern treat. At least Wihart’s stomach seemed to think so. The meat piled up in front of him disappeared in an instant and then piled up again.

After an uncomfortable atmosphere and plenty of delicious meat, the dinner was almost coming to an end.

Suddenly, a person comes and stands at the spot where meat was being grilled just moments ago. It is a woman with her face covered by a veil and wearing flowing clothes that are easy to move around in.

The identity, of course, is Aila. With a neat demeanor, Aila bowed to those around her.

Wihart looked at Aila with puzzled eyes. I said to him, wiping my mouth with a napkin.

“You prepared a wonderful dinner, so we should repay you accordingly. It’ll probably be a song you’ve never heard anywhere.”

“A song?”

You’re on guard. It is natural to be cautious. Because this is a somewhat unexpected suggestion.

But there would be no real reason to refuse. Wihart looked at Aila and me alternately, then nodded and said.

“Good. It’s an after-dinner song, so it’ll be good entertainment.”

I signaled Eila to start. Ayla held her hands together and immediately began to sing.

“Ahh-, ah, ah-.”

It’s a beautiful song any time you listen to it. But it was by no means an ordinary song.

There is mana in that song. However, the effect is not that great. It’s just a magic that makes your body feel a little itchy.

Aela’s magic can be effective only on specific individuals, even though it can be heard by many people. What I found out was that they had activated the allegorical magic targeting only Carmel in the forest.

Right now, Aila’s tickling magic was aimed solely at Wihart.

There is no particular reaction right now. Wihart appeared to be an ordinary human being who could not feel or handle mana at all. However, a strong protective barrier has been built around him.

Aila’s magic, which has physical substance, is excellent at breaking barriers. This is also a fact I learned from easily piercing Leelia’s defenses.

I can see it when I have magic power. The barrier spread around Wihart was vibrating violently as it met Aila’s song. And it couldn’t hold on for long, and after shaking intensely, it was completely shattered.

“Stop!”

Wihart jumped up from his seat as if he realized something was wrong. Ian, who was standing behind him, came next to him with a stern expression and was glaring at Aila.

I naturally asked them.

“Why are you doing that? Didn’t you like the song?”

There are two things we could notice here.

First of all, Wihart’s protective barrier, possibly created by an item, can be easily broken through with Aila’s most basic magic.

The second is that both Wihart and Ian are extremely lacking in magical capabilities.

Wihart doesn’t seem to have much of a connection with Mana, but Ian is definitely a mage.

However, it seemed that he realized that Aila’s song was magic after Wihart’s barrier was broken. This means that they could not even detect mana properly.

“I told you to stop. This is a warning.”

Wihart seemed more nervous than in the office. I said, smiling like an angel.

“It seems that such light melodies were not the Margrave’s taste. But the next song is a little deeper, so I’m sure you’ll like it.”

“I told you to stop. You will regret it.”

“Let’s begin, Aila.”

Aila nodded and took a small breath. The moment Aila was about to utter her first note, Ian quietly put his hand into his arms.

And at that moment, I felt that strange sensation that I felt the moment I was about to enter Wihart’s office. No, this time it felt more than strange and ominous.

I shouted urgently at Aila.

“Stop, Aila! If you sing…”

But it was already too late.

“Ah-!”

The waves of a song filled with intense mana spread. The moment it touched Wihart, Aila fell, clutching her neck.

* * *

Magic reflection.

It may seem simple when written down in words, but it is not an easy concept. It is necessary to intervene and reverse the direction and effect of mana, its operating principle, and even the will of the initiator. You could say that it is virtually impossible.

However, Wihart’s secret weapon seemed to be the magic reflection. There was no other way to explain it.

In my magic vision, I could see the exact moment when Eila’s magical song reached Wihart.

However, the moment it touched, the mana in Aila’s song disappeared in an instant, like a lie. And using that mana as an ingredient, the exact same magic was manifested in Aila’s body.

The effectiveness of magic that acts on a specific target increases when it is activated by direct contact. If it had been activated inside the body, there was no need to say anything. Aila had to use her own body to receive the magic she had cast much more powerfully.

“Aila…”

I held Aila’s hand as she lay covered in a warm blanket. As if responding to my words, Aila mumbled like she was talking in her sleep.

“Umm, hehe, mom…”

Yes, what Aela used was the magic of drowsiness.

I didn’t know that my opponent’s trump card was magic reflection. However, from Wihart’s attitude, it was somewhat predictable that the effect would be close to a counter.

Therefore, Aila was instructed to use methods of suppression that were as minimal as possible with malicious intent. Nevertheless, I tried to stop Aila just in case.

However, it does not mean that there is nothing lost.

Aila’s magic spreads widely because it has the nature of song. If the magic power that had spread like that was gathered together and activated within the body, the effect would have been more than ten times greater.

Even if you simply calculate it, it means that Aila will be sleeping like this for more than a week. If you force something to sleep using magic to wake it up, there might be some side effects.

This means that we can no longer expect Aila’s performance.

It can be said to be a somewhat disappointing elimination since Aila has the optimal ability to deal with multiple enemies.

However, if the opponent’s magic reflection could not be destroyed anyway, Aila’s song would have to be sealed all along.

For now, just discovering that was enough of a harvest.

Yesterday, Wihart saw Ayla collapse and immediately turned around. He didn’t question us for using magic, nor did he surround us with troops.

There could only be one reason for that. There is a limit to magic reflection.

Once you use it, it may take some time to use it again, or there may be a limit to the total number of times.

There was a way to check it on the spot by using magic, but that was too risky. In particular, because Carmel’s curse was basically malicious, there was a risk of instant death if even a low-level curse was reflected into the body.

The magic reflection was probably triggered by something Ian had in his arms. I don’t know what it is. However, it is clear that it is something transcendent that goes far beyond the magical common sense we know.

An item with a transcendental effect that can’t help but think of something divine. For me, I couldn’t help but think of the name Escalade.