Chapter 167 – The Road Home (2)
It had been a week since then.
The news about Theodore’s group leaving was immediately relayed to Marquis and the crown prince, making for an easy farewell. After all, they didn’t like the fact that two strong people were hiding in their country.
The only people who felt regretful about Theodore and Randolph leaving were the Baek Family staying at the mansion.
“A week has already passed,” Baek Jongmyung, the expert of the Baek Family, said to them with a dark expression.
One was a nice man who guided his son, while the other was a friend he had dueled and drank with a few times. There might be a large age difference between them, but Baek Jongmyung socialized with them like they were friends. He mourned that Theodore’s scheduled departure was this soon.
Looking back and forth between Theodore and Randolph, Baek Jongmyung said, “…As Sir Ted requested, I will manage the annex where the two of you stayed. Can I ask for the reason?”
“A guest shouldn’t bring bad luck to the owner,” Theodore responded with an answer that was difficult to understand. However, Baek Jongmyung was accustomed to this way of speaking, and he soon realized Theodore’s meaning.
“Hrmm, you have opponents that are that strong?”
“I don’t think Master Baek and the Baek Family should go against them.”
Baek Jongmyung would have hit anyone else who said it, but he smiled at Theodore’s words. When they first met, Baek Jongmyung hadn’t known Theodore’s depths. Now, it would be even harder for Baek Jongmyung to gauge if he could win against Theodore. However, the seldom rude Theodore was currently advising him not to dig into this issue? This was enough to prove that it was dangerous.
Baek Jongmyung nodded with a heavy expression. “Haha… There is a saying in the East about a frog in a well. I am sorry that I can’t return your favor, despite being an expert.”
“It is nothing. Thank you for the help,” Theodore said.
“You’re thanking me? Please don’t be so humble. I owe you a great deal for putting up with my son.”
Baek Jongmyung called to Baek Dongil, who was standing silently behind him. Theodore was curious about why Baek Dongil wasn’t speaking, but he soon figured out why. It was because the boy’s eyes were completely wet, glimmering like the light from a chandelier.
“B-Brother.” Baek Dongil choked up. He turned red like a tomato and coughed a few times before barely managing to face Theodore. “Thank you for listening to my shameless request!”
Then he bowed down with his hands clasped together. Baek Dongil was giving thanks for their relationship, rather than grumbling about the short teaching period or sudden parting.
He had received a foundation of basic knowledge over the past week, but he didn’t completely understand it yet. A period of intense self-learning was necessary when a teacher had to leave. As the loser of a warrior family for many years, it was natural for Baek Dongil to feel regretful. However, Baek Dongil’s pure heart meant he didn’t hesitate to express his sincere gratitude.
It was why Theodore had decided to teach him. Theodore saw his past despairing state in Baek Dongil’s endless efforts, but his mind wasn’t twisted by it.
“Dongil.”
“Yes, Brother.”
“The foundation that I’ve taught so far is a prerequisite for becoming an apprentice magician in the Meltor Kingdom, the most developed kingdom of magic in the continent. A more efficient learning system doesn’t yet exist on this continent.”
It was as Theo said. Meltor’s Magic Society, unlike other organizations, shared their research achievements and knowledge.
Their curriculum, which had been developed through history, boasted the best efficiency and rationality on the continent. Anyone who graduated from an academy in Meltor with just a diploma could teach at an academy in any other kingdom.
However, Theodore didn’t dwell on his past diploma anymore. He told Baek Dongil, “If you keep following my teachings, you will be able to reach the required level within the next year.”
Fortunately, Baek Dongil’s mana sensitivity was several times better than that of the old Theodore. If Baek Dongil built up the right knowledge and repeated the training, it would be easy for him to reach the 3rd Circle. The 4th Circle might be possible if his family provided adequate support.
Perhaps by that time, the level of magicians who could teach Baek Dongil in the central continent would be hard to meet. As Theodore thought about that day, he said, “I am ashamed to reveal it only now, but my name is Theodore, not Ted. And my surname is Miller.”
“Theodore Miller?”
“Yes.”
If Baek Jongmyung or Baek Dongil had any knowledge about the north, they might feel surprised or even angry.
However, they just blinked at him, and Theodore stood up. Now everything in the Soldun Kingdom was resolved. He had used duplication magic on original books about shamanism, regained 1,000 gold, and formed a close tie with a budding magician.
“One day, if you encounter a ‘wall’ that can’t be broken down by your own strength, come to Meltor’s Magic Society and find me.”
Baek Dongil didn’t know that this relationship would be the Baek Family’s most valuable treasure after coming to the Western continent. After Theodore and Randolph said a simple farewell and left the room, Baek Jongmyung and Baek Dongil stared at each other with confusion for a while.
Baek Jongmyung opened his mouth first and said, “…Huhu, this is truly entertaining.”
“I-Is that so?”
“I reprimanded you for something that seemed frivolous at the time, but it seems you were right.”
Baek Dongil didn’t understand and replied eagerly, “Yes! I think so as well!”
This caused Baek Jongmyung to hit his head while saying, “This brat! You cheeky fellow!”
Baek Dongil was a fool who had only grown up slightly under Theodore, so he uttered, “Ah! What are you saying, Father?”
Despite the argument, smiles spread across the faces of the two men, and the story spread through the Baek Family.
* * *
“You must think a lot of that kid.”
“He is polite and bright. If he grows up without becoming twisted, he will definitely be a good magician.”
After stepping out of the mansion they had been living in for over a year, Theodore and Randolph took the time to pause for a moment. The two of them were intending to travel a long distance, so Theodore kept most of the goods, including food, in the ‘Inventory.’
As the export of artifacts was the major economic base of Meltor, this meant the management of logistics and distribution of goods was strict. So, Theodore used his power to avoid his goods from being noticed.
“…Okay, there doesn’t seem to be any problems,” Theodore commented. Then he used an extremely convenient magic which he had been preparing for the past week.
‘Mass Teleport.’
It was space magic which allowed a large number of people to leap a long distance, and it wasn’t impossible now that Theodore had reached the 7th Circle. Randolph had been informed about the magic in advance, but he couldn’t help admiring the convenience.
“I thought we would go through the sky instead of the land or sea, but I hadn’t expected space magic. Magicians really are capable of anything.”
“Well, it isn’t easy.”
It was just as Theodore said. He was able to compose this magic after gaining enlightenment, but it was just like he’d already guessed before. His aptitude for space magic wasn’t good. Theodore calculated the formula and flow of mana perfectly, but ‘Mass Teleport’ was unsteady, and it took three attempts to calm the instability.
This magic was now simple and stable, but traveling as far as the White Tower Master was just a distant dream. Theodore stared at the magic circle and sighed. ‘Hah, there is no attribute as convenient as space magic…’
Unfortunately, it was a magic which Theo didn’t suit. Apart from the space magic abilities gained from ‘original books predation,’ it wasn’t compatible with Theodore Miller. While Theodore was grumbling inwardly, Randolph came up to the magic circle and asked, “Where is our destination?”
“Sipoto in the Kargas Kingdom. At my level, I can’t move much further than that.”
The White Tower Master could fly from Piris to beyond Meltor’s border, but it wasn’t something which could be imitated with ordinary space magic. Thus, Theodore created a ‘Mass Teleport’ with the best results.
Moreover, although it wasn’t a match for the White Tower Master, Theodore’s magic circle was huge for his level. He could move from Piris to Sipoto in the South-Eastern continent, which meant he could arrive at the border of central continent immediately. Even if he moved by the shortest path by land or sea, the minimum time required to cross that distance was a fortnight.
Theodore finished the final checks, stood in the center of the magic circle, and infused magic power to the power source.
Then he cried out, “Mass Teleport!”
Simultaneously, there was a flash of light as the magic activated, and the forms of the two men dissolved like ice in heat.
There was a wave of dizziness which he couldn’t get accustomed to, even though he had already experienced it a few times! Theodore endured the uncomfortable sensation and transmitted the coordinates of the destination.
He felt a headache pierce his temples during the process, but space fatigue boasted the worst difficulty. The discomfort disappeared just as suddenly it had appeared.
“Phew!”
“Huooh…!”
Theodore exhaled, while Randolph grabbed his head because of the dizziness. Theodore was familiar with this, so he looked around.
They were in a wilderness area, with sand and wind tickling Theodore’s nose. This wasn’t the first time he had seen this landscape, so Theodore was convinced of the success of his space magic. This was the outskirts of Sipoto, which he had set as the destination for Mass Teleport.
Dding-
At that moment, Theodore experienced a sharp pain in his mind.
“Ack!”
It wasn’t the unpleasant feeling of space magic, but a pain which came from a warning. Theodore grasped the reason with his logic, not intuition, and smiled bitterly.
In a sense, it was like growing pains. Using space magic, which he had never used before, led to an unexpected side effect because Theodore’s vessel had disappeared when he reached transcendence.
The vessel was a restraining device which limited the contents, but it was also a safety device. Being capable of infinite possibilities was a double-edged sword.
‘That is why I have to fix it with Sorcery.’
While Theodore worried about the unexpected enlightenment, Randolph shook off the dizziness and approached him.
“Theo, will you prepare to move again in Sipoto?”
“…I think so, but not now.”
Theodore hadn’t chosen Sipoto as the destination for Mass Teleport just because it was within range.
He wanted to talk to Gibra again, who had found out where they’d been staying and sent a letter to them. Theodore didn’t know whether Gibra offered information on the Orcus Company for a favor, or if there was some hidden trap. He wanted it to be due to personal feelings, but it was foolish to want a favor from the information world.
Theodore recovered his consumed magic power to a certain extent and opened his mouth to say, “I will go and see Gibra.”
Even if Gibra was plotting something, he wouldn’t be expecting their arrival with space magic.
The presence of the White Tower was openly revealed in Meltor, but space magic was difficult to see in real life, and there were those who doubted its existence. Theodore had used ‘Mass Teleport’ and cut down their expected arrival time by nearly a dozen days.
It was the best way Theodore envisioned that would overwhelm Gibra’s expectations.