Chapter 322: The Return Journey?
“What do you think the purpose of calling Lord Haulon was?” The butler shook his head while closing his eyes and letting out a sigh.
“Magic, sure, magic is my domain, but…! I didn’t hear anything about this, nothing at all! Even if you say it’s out of the ordinary or in the wrong direction, normally you’d expect a large amount of magic power or an explosion, right!? That’s why I came all the way out here!” Haulon pressed forward, but the butler merely smiled with his eyes still shut.
“Give it up. We can’t grasp the subtleties of magic. Look, Jean is watching with eager eyes. Do your best.” Dinoss said to Haulon, giving me a thumbs-up.
I know I’m lacking in various areas, but what should I do? How can I handle this?
“You all definitely know something, right?”
“We can’t teach you anything…” The butler bowed slightly as Haulon turned back to him, visibly frustrated.
“I said I’d determine what’s lacking, but first, we need to investigate why that phenomenon occurred. Without knowing the cause, we can’t take any action. I’m sorry, but if it were an explosion or a failure, I would have been confident in identifying the cause just by looking at it.”
Haulon spoke apologetically.
“That’s fine, but I want you to tell me how to make it look like I’m using magic normally.” I have a pretty good idea of why the magic came from Haulon’s staff.
“Well, it looked pretty normal to me when Haulon used it.”
“Yes, it was you who used it both times, Lord Haulon.” The butler affirmed Dinoss’s words.
“Shut up, you bystanders! —Anyway, I want to ask, you were chanting a spell, right? If you understand the meaning of the spell, could you tell me?” Haulon glared at the two before turning to me.
“Please repeat it the same way.”
“Huh?”
“Please repeat it the same way.”
Haulon buried her hand in her hair, resting her palm against her forehead as she looked down.
“I thought you just repeated it because I wasn’t holding a staff.”
“…Um, I’m sorry. Could you wait until I understand?” She pressed her hand against her forehead, hiding her face while stopping me with her other hand.
“Um. What you’re using isn’t magic.” After a moment, Haulon raised her face and said.
“What!?”
“I’ll rephrase that. You’re not following any rules; you’re just directly asking the Spirit.”
“Yes.” That’s right. Hearing it put that way makes it sound kind of foolish.
“Spirits have compatibility, and they often twist words to suit their own interpretations. Even if you’re fluent in the spirit language, it’s rare to get the desired results. I just don’t understand why Fandor listened to your words.” Haulon sighed as she spoke.
When I first practiced magic deep in the Forest, there were no Spirits around that I had named, and the power of the magic was weaker than when I used it in the mountain House. But now, I don’t feel much of a difference; I haven’t really tried to use magic to its fullest.
Besides, it feels like the Spirits are unusually friendly toward me now. Is it because I’ve been diligently naming the Spirits that fled? Am I becoming a celebrity among the Spirits?
“Anyway, I’m going back to Kanum. There’s no point in practical training outside right now.”
“How do we get back?”
It’s quite a distance to Kanum. Are we walking? Or are we using my [Teleportation] to return? If not—
“—You don’t mean there’s a bone in Kanum…”
That’s scary.
“This is it. It’s faster than a horse.” Haulon pulled out a thick carpet.
“How nostalgic.”
“I think it’s more comfortable than a horse.” Dinoss and the butler exchanged remarks about the carpet.
“You two are walking!!! You knew this would trouble me and found it amusing, didn’t you!? You should suffer a little!” Haulon hugged me tightly with one arm and placed me on the carpet.
The carpet took off immediately.
“Ah, that’s terrible!” I heard Dinoss’s voice behind me as I was taken by surprise. It really is faster than a horse!
“A magic carpet…!”
It’s the flying kind!
“Exactly. There are larger sizes that can fit five people, but this one is for two. The larger one isn’t very maneuverable for flying through the Forest. It would be faster to walk.” Haulon chuckled, thinking it would be good medicine for those two.
It seems like we can’t fly too high? The carpet is hovering about a meter off the ground.
“Um, are you angry that the two of them got me involved in this?” Since the two of them asked Haulon because of me, I hope they don’t end up at odds over it.
“Nope. In fact, I’m grateful! It’s much more stimulating and enjoyable to have something unknown right in front of me than to sort through and build upon the information I’ve accumulated! I just find it irritating that things are going the way those two want!” When I cautiously asked, a smile returned.
“Well, those two will probably return without delay. Just enjoy the scenery.” Haulon half-lay down and began smoking from a water pipe she had pulled out from who knows where.
She inhaled the smoke that passed through the water in the glass bottle, a mix of smoke and syrup vapor, something I often saw in Es.
This glass bottle attached to the pipe looked strangely cool, and I was torn between buying it or not.
“It suits you.”
Even if I don’t look good smoking, Haulon does.
“Thank you.”
She responded with a wink.