Chapter 120

Chapter 120

Investing Through the Status Window.

Episode 120: The Capital Of The Empire (4).

The Milk-Jug Mage, Elena, headed to the magic guild with the Blind Saintess, Ordnung.

…To be honest, it was called a guild, but it was practically a comprehensive magic shop. All kinds of mages were like merchants, luring customers and desperately trying to sell potions, items, or spellbooks they created using their specialties.

For Elena, who had envisioned a quaint academy, it was a somewhat disappointing sight. However, the spectacle was certainly there.

Among them, what particularly caught her interest was the overwhelming number of spellbooks!

Of course, most of them would likely be filled with useless content, but if she chose carefully, she might find some valuable old books.

With that expectation, she began meticulously examining each book one by one.

An overwhelming amount of magical tomes overflowed. There were even books on contracts with demons… Of course, having witnessed the miserable ends of countless dark mages, Elena shuddered at the thought of dark magic and never went near it.

While the Blind Saintess, tired of waiting, went to browse some trinkets, the Milk-Jug Mage, flipping through numerous magic books, happened to come across one—no, to put it more accurately, her hand strangely gravitated towards it. As if drawn by fate.

[Origin Magic]

That was the book’s title. Naturally, Elena had never heard of something called Origin Magic before. She could only think of it as a bizarre magic that some eccentric mage had dedicated their life to researching.

Still, since she had pulled the book out, she decided to read its contents.

However, the initial impression that it was a strange magic changed the more she read the content. Contrary to expectations, the book’s content was theoretically solid.

Every substance in the world had something called an origin, and mana was energy that had been filtered through that origin once. Therefore, using the origin of mana itself before it was filtered was the core of this research.

And the book clearly stated that it described the method of realizing and using that origin of mana.

It was quite an interesting book. Initially, she didn’t even know what the origin of mana was. Honestly, even a mage was almost as ignorant as a commoner about magic outside their own field… Of course, it could still be a scam, but there was nothing to lose by trying.

Of course, she couldn’t read the entire book on the spot, so she closed the magic book and held it in her arms. She had been worried earlier about whether there would be any harvest today, but she was relieved to have gained something.

The Milk-Jug Mage paid for the book and joined the Blind Saintess, who was wandering aimlessly in front of a jewelry store. The two wandered around inside the magic guild for a while longer before coming outside and sitting on a bench in front of the fountain.

The sky was a dazzling blue, and the air was warm like a cozy blanket.

A peaceful feeling that made one smile naturally… Elena imagined for a moment how much better it would be if Allen were beside her at this moment.

The aura of happiness that came from being happy was transmitted to the Blind Saintess as well.

Still, having spent a long time together, the two had become quite close. They even shared personal stories from time to time.

“You seem to be in a good mood.”

“Maybe it’s because of this peace I haven’t felt in a long time.”

The Blind Saintess also clasped her hands together devoutly and prayed. To the holy spirit that granted such peace.

Watching this, Elena’s heart softened a bit… Then suddenly, the usual worries resurfaced, and she let out a small sigh.

As the cheerful atmosphere was replaced by a creeping gloom, Ordnung asked Elena if something was bothering her.

“…No, nothing’s wrong.”

“Come on, that’s not it… Tell me. It’s okay.”

After a bit of hesitation, the Milk-Jug Mage shared her concerns.

“Just… it feels like I’m not improving. The mercenary group is growing day by day, but I feel like I’m stuck in place…”

“Stuck in place? We get so much help from you, Elena.”

“No, that’s not true. If I look at it objectively… I might even get kicked out.”

“Hey, who says you’re getting kicked out? If worse comes to worst, you can just transfer to another group with better conditions.”

But Elena shook her head vigorously.

“…I don’t want to go. I want to stay here.”

“A mercenary doesn’t have to stay in one place. You must have great dreams, too, Elena, right? Geez, even if you like Group Leader Allen so much…”

The Blind Saintess tried to lighten the mood with a joke, but Elena gasped, her face turning red and her eyes wavering in embarrassment.

She tried hard not to get caught, but she thought that it seemed she couldn’t fool Ordnung’s sharp senses after all.

“I-is it… really… obvious…?”

…Huh…?

Ordnung, who had taken it so seriously, was momentarily flustered… She didn’t expect her joke to be real.

But to dismiss it as just a joke, the situation and atmosphere were not right. Even she, who was usually oblivious, understood that much.

“Ah, um… I… just… barely… noticed. The others probably won’t know…!”

“…I see…”

“Don’t worry too much. If you try hard, it will definitely get better!”

“Thank you.”

Seeing Elena’s sad smile, Ordnung felt an odd sense of guilt.

Surely, when you think about it carefully, Group Leader Allen was an attractive man. To the extent that it was understandable why Elena fell for him.

But…!

…This is so embarrassing. Group Leader Allen is in love with me…!

The Blind Saintess couldn’t help but marvel internally at her own ant-lion-like charm, which couldn’t be overcome even with those big breasts.

Prophetess Aloa.

As the youngest daughter of the Baron family, she was a naturally gifted mage before being a prophetess. However, due to her frail body compared to her talent, she couldn’t endure the rough mercenary life for long and retired from the mercenary group before making a name for herself. So, many people didn’t even know she had been a mercenary.

Of course, as the daughter of a baronial family was often consumable for unions with other noble families, she, too, received numerous marriage proposals, but she rejected them all, claiming that her destined partner had not yet arrived… And thus, she found herself past the age of thirty.

Still, she filled her somewhat dull days by studying prophecies or magic from esteemed individuals.

She, who could see the lives of others but not her own, sometimes felt frustrated… She was also curious if a destined partner truly existed.

But then again, what’s so special about life? If she lived and died like this, that would be it!

Of course, she did have hobbies. In fact, watching other people’s lives was her greatest pleasure. When observing all sorts of human figures, she sometimes felt like a god.

In times of hardship, share the struggle together; in times of happiness, share the joy together; praise good deeds; and criticize bad deeds.

…As time went by, she was nicknamed the Prophetess.

Anyway, on one leisurely day, she had a peculiar dream.

A dream of a bright, gigantic golden sun being swallowed.

She woke up startled… It was clearly a prophetic dream.

Since people sometimes dream prophetic dreams on behalf of others, she thought perhaps someone around her was pregnant, and didn’t think much of it.

…And not long after, Big Sis Yupi came to visit.

It had been years since she last saw her, yet she hadn’t changed a bit since the first time they met.

“Just what is your secret?”

“It’s natural, I guess.”

Of course, thanks to her abundant mana, Aloa also aged slowly. She was already over thirty, but she still hung out with people in their twenties!

“…And, you, your prophecy was wrong. My disciple didn’t come back.”

Aloa slightly furrowed her brows as if wondering what she meant.

“Maybe you don’t know, but my prophecies never miss!”

“Tsk, tsk, you’re just a fortune teller selling snake oil.”

“I told you not to call me a fortune teller!”

Yupi grinned mischievously.

“…A man might come looking for you later. I told him to come once. See for yourself and judge.”

“I don’t care. I’m shutting down my business. With wrong prophecies, I should take down the sign, right?”

“Again, geez, you always have such a bad temper… Anyway, he’s an interesting man. You won’t be able to resist seeing him.”

Yupi, well aware of the Prophetess’s peculiar hobbies, seemed confident that the request wouldn’t be refused.

Curious, Aloa also began to take an interest.

“…What kind of man is he?”

“Just… A man who made your prophecy go awry.”

“No, I’m telling you, there’s no such person!”

“Just take a look. He’s stubborn as hell. Even my disciple isn’t as bad as him.”

“…He better be, seriously!”

Aloa lightly glanced at her big sis, wondering if she had suddenly lost her mind.

…And then Yupi stayed at the mansion for about two more days before leaving for the Holy Kingdom.

The Prophetess, feeling a sense of emptiness, devoted herself again to studying prophecies and magic. After all, that was the only thing she could do at the mansion.

Thus, Yupi left, and several months passed… To the point where she almost forgot about the man Yupi had mentioned.

Then one day, someone came looking for her. Of course, that wasn’t particularly special. There were so many people seeking out the Prophetess that they were practically tripping over each other. Naturally, most of them never even got to see her and were turned away at the door.

However, what set this person apart was that he mentioned Yupi’s name.

The moment she heard it, Aloa’s eyes slightly widened.

“…Who did you say came?”

“He said he is Allen, the Group Leader of the Allen-Mercenary Group.”

At the messenger’s reply, the memory of that time finally came back to her.

…Right, Big Sis did say someone would come.

Of course, she didn’t think much of it until then… However, it was a bit surprising that the man named Allen, who visited her room, was an exceptionally handsome man.

Big Sis had a bit of a bright side as well… Goodness, how cheeky!

Aloa roughly guessed that her sister Yupi had chosen this man as a husband for the Blind Saintess Ordnung, who was her disciple and like a niece to her. So, she was probably asking her to take a look at his life.

“You came here introduced by Big Sis Yupi.”

“Yes, she told me to come and see you…”

“You did well to come. Big Sis and I have a special relationship… Ah, you know who I am, right?”

“Aren’t you Prophetess Aloa?”

“That’s right.”

“I was surprised to see that you are much more beautiful than the rumors.”

Aloa laughed cheekily. It always felt good to be called pretty.

Pretending to greet him, she slyly extended her hand… For both a greeting and her peculiar hobby.

“Nice to meet you.”

Allen, knowing nothing, grabbed it eagerly for a handshake.

Let’s take a look…

…And at the same time, his distant life unfolded before her eyes…!

AAAAHHHHH.

Feeling dizzy for a moment, she clutched her head and swayed.

“Oh, are you okay?”

Allen quickly grabbed the staggering Aloa and supported her.

“…Ah…!”

After a while, she came to her senses and looked up at him with surprised eyes.

One son, one daughter.

And a harmonious family.

Aloa, the man she had been waiting for as her destined husband…

…was right in front of her.