bookpower Chapter 250 : Chapter 250
Chapter 250 : Chapter 250
“But the food here is honestly pretty good.”“Right? I cannot believe they are giving bread to prisoners.”
“After eating nothing but scorpions and desert worms, I could not believe it at first.”
“Same here. I thought the bread might be poisoned.”
Lizardman warriors walked along with a shovel in each of their hands.
They chatted cheerfully, unaware that someone was watching them.
The Kau tribe, which had lost its oasis and wandered the desert, was always hungry due to a lack of water and food.
Yet after being captured by the Horizon Knights, they were given bread and soup.
They did have to dig the ground, but for starving warriors, whether they were fed mattered far more.
On top of that, they could drink clean water as much as they wanted.
“Those mages really are something. You ask for water and water comes out.”
“That must be what magic is. Life sure is convenient if you can use it.”
The warriors of the Kau tribe had never encountered human mages before.
They had thought of them as strange monsters who stood behind human warriors and muttered bizarre incantations.
But after working together, their opinions changed.
Once they actually talked to the mages, they did not seem like bad people at all.
At first, they could not accept that warriors like themselves had to dig tunnels like moles, but eventually even that stopped bothering them.
After all, dig the ground and water came out.
Even their dreams had been pleasant today.
“Shall we go dig energetically again today?”
“Yeah, let us get going!”
That was when it happened.
The one who had been watching them finally revealed himself.
“Where do you think you are going?”
The Kau tribe warriors were startled by the Lizardman who appeared before them and dropped the shovels they were holding.
CLANG.
“L, Lord Ian Rau?”
“W, why is the Great Chieftain’s son here…?”
The warriors’ eyes widened.
It was only natural, considering that the first son of the Great Chieftain himself had appeared.
“There is no need to be surprised. I have come to rescue the warriors of your tribe.”
Ian Rau spoke as he approached them.
Though the warriors looked to be in good condition for prisoners, he did not trust appearances.
He knew all too well that the Horizon Knights had not only captured Lizardman warriors, who should have been freer than anyone, but had also crushed their pride and forced them into labor digging the ground.
“You need not worry anymore. How dare they make warriors handle such shovels…!”
THUD!
Fueled by anger, Ian Rau kicked away the shovel the warriors had dropped.
Menial labor like digging the ground did not suit great warriors.
“I will put swords back into your hands. You no longer need to do such trivial work.”
Ian Rau reassured them in a resolute tone.
This should have been enough to deeply move the warriors.
However, what caught his eye was their strange reaction.
“Oh no!”
“My shovel! My precious shovel!”
The warriors cried out oddly and rushed to pick up the shovel Ian Rau had kicked away.
They brushed off the dust and hugged it as if it were something precious.
“…What are you doing right now?”
Ian Rau’s voice sank heavily.
But the Lizardman warriors did not seem to care.
“Oh dear, you cannot treat a shovel like that! What if the head breaks? What would we do then?”
“You have no idea how valuable a single shovel is in the desert!”
Had captivity gone on so long that their minds had broken?
Ian Rau glared at the Kau tribe warriors with a stunned expression.
“Do you really think that makes any sense? You are warriors.”
Instead of responding, the warriors clutched their shovels tighter, eyeing him warily as if afraid they might be taken away.
The shaman shook his head at Ian Rau.
“It seems something is wrong with them. They do not appear to be in a normal state.”
“They must have been held by humans for too long. We need to take them away immediately. Once we leave here and head north, they will come to their senses.”
At those words, the Kau tribe warriors suddenly jumped.
“What are you talking about? Where would we go?”
“We are not going back until we finish digging.”
“We are going to succeed today for sure! I saw Lord Nava in my dream!”
“That is right! Dreams of Lord Nava are not something you have lightly.”
Ian Rau’s pupils narrowed.
No matter how he looked at them, they were not sane.
There was no trace to be found of their pride as warriors.
‘At this rate, they will really get themselves captured.’
‘That cannot be allowed.’
The Lizardmen, who had been hesitating and watching Ian’s reaction, exchanged glances.
‘Run!’
The Kau tribe warriors who exchanged that silent signal clenched their shovels and bolted forward.
Ian did not even have time to grab them.
“Stop!”
Ian Rau shouted from behind, but the two Lizardmen did not stop.
The goal was right before their eyes.
They had a feeling that before long, water would truly spring forth from the ground.
Water.
What a sweet word that was.
For the sake of that coming moment, they had to get to the pit and scoop up even one more shovelful of earth.
THUD THUD.
Watching the warriors flee at full speed, Ian Rau pressed a hand to his forehead.
“What in the world is this…?”
“It is as if they are bewitched by something.”
Even the shaman shook his head at a situation he could not understand.
“If they refuse rescue this strongly, then something must be there. We should go and see.”
Ian Rau chased after them with the shaman.
At this point, it was necessary to find out what it was that had bewitched the Lizardman warriors so completely.
***
“Want me to show you a griffin?”
At Radel’s words, the desert children were completely taken in.
There was no way children their age could resist being shown a magnificent creature with the upper body of an eagle and the lower body of a lion.
The children timidly followed Radel and approached the griffin.
“…A, a griffin.”
“Wow, it really is a griffin!”
When Radel brought a whole group of children over, the griffin turned its head sharply, looking annoyed.
Kiiiek!
“All right, do not get so angry. Want me to grill some jerky for you?”
As if he understood the griffin’s cry, Radel spoke to it, pulled jerky from his clothes, and swung his staff.
“Ignite!”
A long flame burst from the tip of the staff.
FWOOSH!
He roasted the jerky in the flame and fed it straight into the griffin’s beak.
Snorting as it caught the smell of grilled meat, the griffin eagerly snapped it up.
CHOMP, CHOMP.
The children’s eyes sparkling with awe at the sight.
‘That was magic just now, right?’
‘Maybe magic is actually kind of amazing…?’
For the desert children, magic that was useful in daily life felt far more familiar than flashy spells that exploded loudly.
On top of that, the mage even seemed to understand the griffin’s words.
Unable to contain their curiosity, the children began asking Radel questions.
“Um, can mages talk to magical beasts?”
“How good do you have to be at magic to tame a griffin?”
“How do you become a mage?”
Radel grinned as he listened to their questions.
The children who had been extremely wary just moments ago had opened their hearts after seeing the griffin.
After that, it was too easy.
“Coincidentally, there was a kid who asked the exact same things yesterday. Why not ask him? Oliver! Come over here for a moment.”
Radel called over Oliver, who had been standing far away, watching the children.
“Oliver has already become close with the griffin and is even brushing its feathers. He will tell you all about griffins.”
Even Oliver, who had clammed up and refused to say a word the night before, had been won over by the griffin.
Thanks to that, Radel had learned just how effective the griffin was.
While Oliver reunited emotionally with the children, Radel quietly slipped away.
He then approached the children’s leader, who was standing some distance away with a stiff expression.
“Do you not have anything you are curious about?”
“…W, what do you want? Do not come any closer.”
Leo, the leader of the children, bristled with suspicion as Radel approached.
‘So there is someone the griffin does not work on.’
Still, it did not feel particularly difficult.
Radel had dealt with a younger brother who constantly watched others with hostility and tried to kill at every opportunity.
After getting used to Leon, this level of wariness felt almost cute.
Radel looked Leo over, who was a head taller than the other children, and spoke.
“You mainly use your left hand for your sword. You prefer shorter blades rather than long ones.”
“What? How did you…?”
Only then did Leo realize where Radel had been looking and hurriedly hid his hand behind his back.
“Why are you looking at my hands? Do not look!”
“Assessing an opponent’s ability is basic for a swordsman.”
Radel shrugged.
“Senior Shartea told you the same thing, did she not? That you should first learn how to read your opponent.”
“Ugh…!”
Perhaps remembering being beaten senseless by Shartea’s sword, Leo shuddered.
Then he suddenly burst out.
“Do not be ridiculous! Do not talk like you know everything about swords!”
Radel asked, puzzled.
“Still, could I not tell you what you are lacking?”
“I do not need it! If you are a mage, then act like one and just use a staff!”
“Why? Is there a rule that says mages cannot use swords?”
“That is, that is…!”
Leo’s face twisted as he fumed for a while.
“…It is not fair. A mage using a sword too.”
Then Leo’s next words surprised even Radel a little.
“Swordsmen cannot use magic!”
Swordsmen could not use magic.
In this world, only mages could handle mana.
Swords were just swords.
They could never defeat magic.
So that was it.
Radel looked at Leo with renewed understanding.
***
Radel led Leo into the shade.
After shouting angrily under the blazing sun, there was no way the kid could be fine.
“Sit here for a moment.”
Just then, third-year seniors entered the shade, carrying several empty water canteens over their shoulders.
“Your Highness, the canteens are empty.”
“Ah, just a moment.”
After seating Leo on a folding chair, Radel swung his staff and cast water element magic together with the third-years.
“Rise forth!”
“O water!”
Leo sat in the chair and watched them cast magic.
“Apparently one Lizardman had an incredible dream just now.”
“Oh? What kind of dream?”
“You know the Lizardmen’s god. Lord Nava appeared, holding a shovel in his right hand.”
“Wow, if that is the case, something really is going to happen today.”
Even as they chatted, Radel and the third-years filled the canteens effortlessly.
‘That precious water just comes out if you chant a spell.’
Leo did not say anything, but inwardly he was astonished.
Fire magic had not impressed him much, but casually producing water felt incredible.
The way blue light shimmered whenever the mages cast spells also seemed mysterious.
One of the third-years, slinging a full canteen over his shoulder, noticed Leo staring blankly and spoke.
“By the way, Your Highness. That kid there. Was he not an anti-magic discriminator?”
“That is right.”
At the words of the third-year senior, Leo flinched.
Come to think of it, this place was crawling with mages.
There was no way they would be friendly toward him.
‘I even sent a threat… and said I would get revenge.’
Surely that person would curse at him or criticize him.
However, what came out of the third-year’s mouth was something Leo never expected.
“That kid looked like he was seeing mana earlier, did he not?”