Chapter 23

# Episode 23: New Adventurer Bern (21) – Fishing

Perhaps a person could die from sheer injustice alone.

This was a thought Phrencia’s woodsman, Malcolm, couldn’t shake off recently.

“You damn brat!! You couldn’t even hold out for an hour, just that brief stretch, and you fell asleep?! Because of you, my daughter’s gone!”

“Why didn’t you just wake someone else up if you thought you couldn’t hold on? Is it really that hard to do something so simple?”

“Die! You useless piece of trash! Just die already!”

Malcolm was aggrieved.

He was so aggrieved that he felt he could go mad.

Having lost his parents early in life, Malcolm had lived together with his younger sister, relying on each other to make their way in the world.

Thus, when the mysterious disappearance incidents occurred in Phrencia, Malcolm burned with a fiercer determination than anyone else.

No matter who or what stood in his way, he would never allow anyone to touch his sister. He was determined to protect his one and only family with his own hands.

And yet, could someone like himself really put his sister in danger just because of a momentary doze?

Throughout his watch, he moved his body incessantly to ward off drowsiness. He chewed on herbs that were bitter and sour to the point of making him want to gag, but were effective in keeping one awake.

His mind was clear, his eyes wide open.

It wasn’t just a short vigil he was keeping—it seemed he could stay up all night without issue.

So why…

“…It’s as if there’s a blank in my memory. I was wide awake, walking around my sister, everything was fine, but suddenly I felt dizzy… and when I came to, I was sprawled on the floor. Strangers started beating me, accusing me…”

Desperately, he tried to explain the circumstances, but no one believed him.

They thought he was just excusing his mistake by spiting lies about having fought the urge to sleep.

The pressure of the group was terrifying.

At first, Malcolm was defiant, arguing against and standing up against the people who were pushing him. But amidst the repeated condemnation and blame, his spirit was gradually eroded.

Now he was in a state where he couldn’t even trust his own memories.

What if his sister really disappeared because of him?

To Malcolm, suffering from guilt, Bern’s words—”I will prove your innocence”—sounded unbearably sweet.

He was willing to confide his troubles even to strangers who showed up without warning in the dead of night.

After hearing Malcolm’s story, Bern asked Blanka:

“Blankah, are you familiar with spells that cause people to fall asleep?”

“…Are you suggesting that someone used magic to put this man to sleep and committed the crime?”

“Sleep often comes without a person even realizing it. Moreover, these people had been physically and mentally drained over a long period. It would have been difficult for anyone to realize that their loss of consciousness was due to external intervention.”

Blankah nodded at Bern’s reasoning.

“True. Though I’ve never personally practiced it, I’ve learned that mid-level sleep spells can distort memory as well, making it vague regarding events prior to falling asleep.”

If the culprit had used such magic, then Malcolm’s description of feeling as though his memory had been cut out could be explained.

However, this was just speculation without proof.

“But, without any evidence, will the people really believe that?”

“We do have proof. Every spell leaves unique traces, and with the right mage, these can be investigated. Fortunately, we have such a mage here.”

“Me?!”

Blankah glanced around, confused.

“What in the world is he talking about? Is there another mage here besides me?”

At that moment, Renya locked eyes with her and dramatically exclaimed:

“Oh, honored sister! How much longer will you keep surprising this humble brother? Could it be that you possess such abilities that I didn’t even know about?”

This nonsense was infuriating.

“Impossible,” she was about to firmly deny it, but Bern interrupted by gripping her shoulder and saying:

“I trust you, Blankah. Surely you, the finest mage of the Eastern Branch, are more than capable.”

“Uhh… uhh…”

Blankah, who was fundamentally realistic and diligent, found it hard to overestimate her abilities. She usually regarded other adventurers boasting and exaggerating about their prowess disdainfully.

That’s why she ought to have firmly said ‘No’. She should have declared outright that it was impossible for her to have such skills.

But…

“…Of course. Though it’s quite a challenging task, I can manage it.”

In the end, Blankah found herself uttering the very exaggeration she despised so much.

Dang it. Dangerous it was to fall for a charming man.

***

Happily enough for Blankah, Bern didn’t actually expect her to trace the spell’s residue all by herself to find the culprit.

Even if it’s not much apparent due to his concept as a combat-oriented mage, Bern had been trained systematically in the royal palace and had far greater knowledge of magic than Blankah did.

He naturally knew that currently, Blankah lacked the ability for such a task.

However, what about those who didn’t know those specifics?

“Do you mean, people weren’t falling asleep just because they were exhausted, but it was due to some sort of magic?”

“The mage Blankah, I’ve heard that she’s considered the best in the Eastern Branch. The Guild reportedly promised lucrative terms to recruit her officially, but she refused and chose to stay an adventurer.”

“He’s going around the town, meeting victims who lost their families due to unnatural sleep. Supposedly, there’s some trace only a mage can detect, which helps in finding the culprit.”

Rumors about Bern’s party, more accurately Blankah herself, began to circulate through various parts of Phrencia, which were suffering from the disappearances.

And the more the rumors spread, the paler Blankah’s face grew, almost indistinguishable from her hair color.

“Bern, is this really okay? If it comes out that I cannot really see spell traces, what’ll happen…?”

“Relax. What matters is that the culprit believes that we have that ability.”

“Are you sure they’re human?”

“If not human, we’re still dealing with an intelligent being. And from their actions, it’s evident they have a pretty good grasp of the city. Too many unnatural coincidences suggest that they weren’t acting blindly.”

According to Bern’s prediction, when the criminal finds out that a powerful mage is walking around trying to identify her spell traces, they would definitely react in some way or another.

But if they were a highly skilled mage, wouldn’t they know how difficult it is to trace spell residue? And would they really believe that a mere 3rd-class adventurer could possess such skills?

“Yes.”

“How?”

“Well, because I, for one, am capable of easily overpowering what could otherwise be considered a representative knight of any lord’s domain. People would naturally assume my associate is of similar caliber, wouldn’t they?”

Arrogant, wasn’t he?

And yet, from the mouth of Bern, it sounded like stating an obvious fact rather than mere boasting or pride.

“Yeah, you could be too overwhelmed and they might just run or vanish, but that’s fine too since we can always resort to new methods then. After all, from what I’ve heard, the predecessors have wasted at least a month, so let’s assume we have plenty of time.”

Bern shrugged nonchalantly.

Though trying to act playful, something about his demeanor didn’t quite fit, making Blankah chuckle lightly.

“Yeah. We’ve only just begun; no need to be so nervous about the results so early.”

Blankah felt the tension in her shoulders loosen, trusting, as always, that things would get resolved when she was with Bern.

Curiously, Bern’s preparation for his so-called ‘new method’ turned out to be unnecessary.

Because on the second night after starting the investigation, the fish had taken the bait.

***

Phrencia nights were eerily quiet.

The tranquility wasn’t due to peace but due to the tension about what might happen anytime.

As proof, most large buildings in the city were lit with lamp lights. Those who couldn’t afford oil or candles still kept hearths burning to stay awake, struggling not to fall asleep.

The man observing the city from above thought it all was foolish.

Whether they kept vigil, lit lights, or locked their doors, it meant nothing to him.

If he wanted, the guards would fall asleep, the lights would go out, and the doors would open.

Magic was that formidable.

And it was foolish to presume they could resist with petty tricks.

Indeed, only magic could oppose magic.

That’s why the man approached his destination cautiously this time, unlike usual.

A small house near the Lord’s residence.

Though well-fortified with high walls and iron-barred windows, the man paid no heed.

After all, dismantling those barriers wasn’t his task.

He pulled out a black orb from his cloak and cast the spell.

The man’s magic power, drawn into the orb, rapidly inflated several folds before transforming into mist and flowing into the house.

The sounds of movement inside the house subsided, and soon the door opened from within.

A young woman, with blue hair and seemingly vacant eyes, walked out.

『The illusion-inducing sleep spell』 and 『the spell to control an unconscious body』.

The former was to put all obstacles to sleep, and the latter to move the target willingly.

These two spells were the core powers that allowed him to abduct victims without fail.

No matter how high or fortified, walls, doors, and even locks held no meaning if the occupant could willingly open them and walk out.

If the victim alone could not escape, manipulating surrounding people to create opportunities simplified the task.

Although simultaneously sleeping too many drained him and controlling multiple at once was exhausting, if he intended, even the home guarded by fifty guards could be easily infiltrated.

“Seems like I came to verify for nothing; rumors were false after all.”

He loosened his tension, having planned his escape if need be.

“Hmm, unexpected find though.”

Upon seeing the adventure before him, looking more innocent and beautiful than expected, he smiled.

Just as his fingertip touched her cheek,

“Not going to take your hand off?”

The tone—courteous but tinged with irritation.

Before he could comprehend the voice, his stomach underwent an enormous shock.

“Kheugh!”

A fierce body blow from a magically enhanced body.

The man bent into a C, and before he could recover, Blankah swiftly followed up with an elbow to his face.

Thud!

As his body hit the ground spread-eagled, Blankah quickly attempted to restrain him.

However, shadows sprouted from the orb in his other hand, and his body started being pulled into the darkness before she could grab him.

“Wha—?!”

Blankah’s reaction was not fast enough; the man vanished entirely into the shadows.

Afterward, the shadows, behaving as if animated with will, fled along the walls and floor.

The reason he had ventured here, unsure of Blankah’s abilities, was simple.

He had calculated that using this third spell could allow a safe getaway in the worst scenario.

‘Goddamn. She must have pretended to succumb to the spell to trap me. If she resisted from the onset, I would have realized something was wrong. But if she’s capable of that, she might be far more skilled than I imagined.’

Between sealing off the gate and luring the enemy then confronting them, there’s a substantial difficulty difference.

It wasn’t that Blankah’s magical power was tenfold greater than his own.

Rather, her magic skill—her ‘quality’—was clearly superior.

‘This city is best avoided. Although it’s still short of the necessary sacrifices, I’ll have to expedite the ritual—’

Just as he planned his next step,

Pusht!

Sudden pain accompanied him being forcibly pulled out of the shadow’s dimension.

“What the…!”

The red-haired youth before him seemed like an unimaginable sight.

The previous two spells he had cast were intrinsically intermediate.

Even enhanced by the ‘treasure’ from his master, any 4th-class or lower adventurer could have resisted them.

The reason he had refrained from attempting to infiltrate the Lord’s residence was the high probability that Gudrun, the renowned knight of Phrencia, could have resisted the spells.

But the last spell, the 『spell controlling the shadow monster』, was an exception.

It belonged entirely in the upper echelons, not a spell he had learned but rather a magic creature that was part of the treasure bestowed by his master.

The shadow monster was impervious to physical attacks and resisted magical attacks by 90%.

And yet, this red-haired swordsman had delivered a fatal blow with one swing, forcibly dragging him out from within the shadow beast.

How on earth was this possible? Could this adventurer be of a similar rank as his own master?

“You… exactly who—”

“—you have a lot of questions, and so do I.”

The red-haired adventurer, Bern, cut the man’s words short and whispered,

“We can have a long chat later. For now, you rest.”

Perrrhk!

The sound of the man succumbing to unconsciousness echoed in the night.