Luke began to chastise Shirud, explaining the situation while Shirud knelt before him.
“Third is my friend, and he was only trying to unwrap the bandages to check his burn. Yet you judged solely based on appearances and fired magic without understanding the situation. Did I teach you to act that way?”
“No, but…! No matter how I look at it, it seemed like he was the one doing something wrong!”
However, Shirud had a story that seemed quite unfair to him.
Could it really not look wrong from any angle?
The man walking alongside him had a frightening and sinister appearance, constantly watching Luke with a scary gaze that seemed to threaten him.
Not to mention, the place they arrived at was an abandoned house in a secluded area!
Moreover, they had entered alone, and when Shirud had sneaked in, the man had been clothesless, and Luke lay on the sofa…!
“No matter how positively I try to view it, it just can’t look good!”
“That may be true… hmm.”
Shirud was on the verge of tears, overwhelmed by injustice.
To be honest, if he had seen his own appearance objectively from Shirud’s perspective, he could certainly understand the misunderstanding…
“Hmm, this isn’t good. I shouldn’t scold him any further.”
Shirud’s concern likely stemmed from the fact that he was in a girl’s body.
Social conventions dictate that a child, particularly a girl, must be protected.
Of course, being in his position, Luke had thought a lot about how to be perceived by others.
When he used to gather 9-circle level mana in his heart, he had no need to worry about such things, but that was no longer the case.
The sense of overflowing physical strength, vigor, the almost constantly activated “Enhance Body,” and the unique power of being a hybrid dragon.
In fact, being conscious of such things and controlling them would inevitably lead to different small actions compared to his previous self.
Currently, he was slowly gathering mana, and it was more efficient to avoid using magic, as this would help him accumulate mana. Gradually swaying others’ perceptions in his favor was also crucial.
Thus, it was true that his actions could be seen as similar to other girls.
Yerna had also adapted to a speech pattern suitable for children to the point where she didn’t feel it was odd, indicating she had acquired the necessary social skills to fit this body.
Influencing how others perceive oneself is an incredibly simple task for a mage.
It’s understandable that Shirud would worry about Luke’s “feigned” fragility.
Rather, he should be grateful for that.
Shirud was genuinely concerned about him.
Luke let out a deep sigh and asked.
“But why sneak around? You could have just talked to me if you had seen me! And aren’t elves known for their good hearing? If you had overheard our conversation, you would never have thought that.”
“That’s…”
It was certainly true that there existed such awareness.
Normal elves indeed possess better hearing than most other races.
Compared to beasts, it might be different, but compared to humans or dwarves, elves have notably superior hearing.
However, this is based on a standard for typical elves.
Unused faculties deteriorate.
Hearing is no different.
Shirud was a “new-generation” elf who had spent his entire life in the city.
Having spent most of his growth period in a relatively noisy city rather than forests, and being buried in audio devices like headsets and earphones, it’s hardly easy to maintain such keen hearing.
Thus, Shirud hadn’t heard most of the conversation between Luke and Third, and given the fear of being caught, he could only focus until he reached his limits, leaving him utterly oblivious to what they were discussing.
But would it have mattered even if he had heard?
A girl alone accompanying a rough-looking man, pulled into a desolate house, could only lead one to think of crime.
In such a situation, seeing the man without clothes naturally gave rise to thoughts of perversion.
“…I can’t help it, this is Third. If you’re fine with it, I’ll forgive you. What else can I do?”
As Luke turned to Third, Third nodded as if it were obvious.
“I forgive you, of course. You’re my master’s apprentice… Everyone makes mistakes at least once.”
Even when they were scraping by in the back alleys, that rule applied commonly.
One could make a mistake once without punishment, but after that, there was no mercy.
From then on, it was not a mistake but rather “foolishness,” and foolishness was useless.
Thus, Third didn’t need a great resolve to forgive Shirud right now.
After all, it was also the master’s words.
Third extended a hand to Shirud to help him up and smiled brightly.
“Now we can clear up our misunderstanding and reconcile.”
“…!”
Seeing Third’s smile, Shirud, whose white skin turned even paler, nodded vigorously.
Clearly, he was terrified.
That expression must have been quite chilling for eleven-year-old Shirud.
It seemed Third felt he needed to do something about that expression.
He thought his reactions in school had been okay, but there wasn’t much change at all.
“Yes.”
But soon, as if having made a resolution, Shirud nodded with a stiff expression.
To have already become so adept at controlling emotions, Shirud was indeed a remarkably talented child.
Realizing how to face fear so quickly was impressive.
After a moment of shaking hands with Shirud, Third looked at the burned sleeve of Shirud’s uniform and his slightly scorched arm.
Noticing Third’s gaze, Luke sat him down on the sofa, saying,
“Sit down; oh no, you got burned, so we should cool that arm first.”
“Don’t worry about it. This level of burn will heal quickly. You might already know this, but… my recovery ability isn’t the same as an average person’s.”
“Hmm, is that so? I suppose it is.”
Third’s recovery ability was indeed unusual.
Whether it was because Third was a “hybrid,” Luke couldn’t tell, but when he had hastily repaired his broken circle in the past, an average person would have either died or would have been in a state of incapacity for more than a week, even if they had miraculously survived.
However, he had fully recovered in just one day and due to that, they had to part ways without being able to share much.
“But the uniform…”
Luke murmured as he looked at Third’s burnt sleeve, feeling regret.
Shirud hesitated before speaking up.
“I’ll buy you a new one, at least a shirt… as an apology.”
“Alright, that would work. Would you really do that?”
It was quite a clear solution.
Luke patted Shirud’s shoulder and said,
“Shirud, although it was a misunderstanding that led to this, recognizing the mistake and trying to apologize and fix it is commendable. Plus, your magic skills have increased quite a bit. Your concealment of magic was remarkable. You’ve already become an excellent mage.”
“T-That much…?”
“No, compliments should be given where they’re due; your talent is truly excellent. The ‘Fireball’ you cast earlier, I never even taught you about it, yet you adapted and executed it well. There was nothing to fault.”
“Hehe, really?”
“Yes. However, you must always think carefully before using magic on others. That power can harm others far too easily.”
Shirud averted his gaze, as if he still had more to say, and murmured,
“Yeah… but… I have something to say.”
“Hmm? What is it?”
“Actually, I called the police earlier. What should we do? How should we respond when they arrive?”
“It can’t be helped. We’ll just have to explain the situation thoroughly and ask for their understanding.”
But Third jumped up from the sofa, horrified, and shouted.
“…What?! You called the police?”
Luke, puzzled by this reaction, asked Third.
“Huh? Why’re you reacting like that all of a sudden?”
“Master, may I borrow your ears for a moment?”
“Why? Just say it, after all, it’s only us here.”
Third glanced at Shirud then back at Luke with a solemn expression.
“…It’s a bit of a dark story, so I’m not sure if that child should hear it.”
“Uh… well, if that’s the case… Shirud, just wait here for a moment.”
Shirud held Luke’s hand to stop him from entering with Third, saying,
“Wait! Where are you two going with that strange guy?”
“Didn’t we clear up that misunderstanding already?”
“You’re making me doubt it again! I still don’t understand why you’re close to someone like him! Meeting for the first time in the back alley is already strange! How could someone like you become friends with that scary-looking guy?”
“Ah, well that’s…”
Luke was about to provide an explanation but, seeing Third’s urging expression, reluctantly twisted his wrist free and said,
“It seems the matter is urgent, so I’ll explain later. We’re just going to talk right here for a moment.”
“…Fine. But just for a moment!”
As soon as Luke separated Shirud from him and entered the room, Third spoke with a serious tone.
“This house is not actually one I purchased. I merely entered an abandoned and neglected house and started living here. That’s why it’s in such a mess. If I had cleaned up, people might have thought someone lived here and would have reported it.”
“W-What? Why would you do that…?”
“Because I have no money. When Dylan died, all the facilities and funds were reclaimed and distributed as compensation to the victims, but I had no identity at that time, so I couldn’t receive any official support…”
“I-Is that true?”
Luke was shocked to find out that the house he had been living in comfortably was not actually owned by Third.
“Moreover, there are many illegal traces as well. The mana traces used to practice the magic you taught me, and the spells I crafted using the recipes you provided…”
“…”
Luke felt a pang in his heart at Third’s words about ‘the magic my master taught me.’
Yes, in this world, ‘using unlicensed magic’ is illegal.
Regardless of what kind of magic it is, if it exhibits magical properties that cannot be manifested as general magic, it automatically becomes illegal.
“If magic is used in the city without a proper wand and without a license, one could be punished under the ‘Magic Safety Management Law’ and depending on the type, it can lead to a prison sentence of 2 years or more, up to 20 years, or a fine of 20,000 Gil to 100,000 Gil…”
Luke murmured as if reciting a passage he had read in a legal text long ago.
Living strictly within the rules, getting licenses for every spell, is naturally the best route.
Thus, Luke seldom used magic unless he was in the forest.
But sometimes a situation arises where one cannot help but resort to illegal measures.
He himself had to use magic in his home for ‘research,’ and, frankly, even casting enchantments on the sofa to avoid the sweltering heat of midsummer could also be deemed ‘unlicensed’ if looked at it closely.
Rules keep people civilized and make society safer, but honestly, they can also become shackles that restrict beings like mages.
While often overlooked, as long as it doesn’t harm others and remains unnoticed, it exists.
“So…”
“We shouldn’t let the police inside the house. We’ll talk outside and send them back.”
“Yeah, we should do that.”
Now it was time to discuss how to safely send the police back ‘without lying.’
