CHAPTER 14…………………………………………
“Elle!”
“Huh? Oh—Riphey?”
Just as I was about to relax, realizing the dark silhouette was someone I knew, he suddenly grabbed me in a tight hug.
“I finally found you!”
“Wah!”
Unable to bear his weight, I toppled backward and fell flat. For a mage, he was big-framed, and the way he enthusiastically embraced me was like a shepherd dog greeting its owner after days apart.
“What happened? Why are you here?”
He was busy as it was. He’d visited just two weeks ago, so I thought he wouldn’t come again this time.
With a choked expression, he shouted at me.
“Of course I came to find you! Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”
“Huh? I’m fine?”
He fussed over me, inspecting me as if I’d swallowed poison. Then, as if he’d discovered something, he cried out with a grimace.
“Hey! Fine, my ass! Why are you so skinny? Did that bastard starve you again? I swear I’m going to kill that son of a bitch.”
From “the count” to “that guy,” and now “that bastard.” It was a title he’d earned himself, sure, but I wasn’t thrilled about my kid’s mouth getting rougher by the day.
“Calm down, Riphey. That’s not the issue right now. Listen, I—”
I was about to explain the life-or-death game of hide-and-seek I’d been forced into.
But then, a shadow flickered behind Riphey. I felt my expression freeze instantly.
“…You. Did you bring an outsider?”
Still panting with anger, Riphey realized his mistake at my words.
“Ah, right. I was so excited to finally see you that I forgot to introduce her.”
He stepped aside slightly so the person with him could be seen. Someone wearing the same black cloak as Riphey took a step forward. Judging by the silhouette, it was a woman.
When she removed her hood, glossy black hair spilled down smoothly.
With skin as white as porcelain and delicate, doll-like features, she was quite beautiful. And yet, there was something oddly familiar about her impression.
“Nice to meet you. I’m a mage—Risha.”
“A mage?”
In an instant, I felt the blood drain from my face.
“Riphey, are you insane?”
Bringing a mage to this cabin!
I immediately shoved Riphey outside the cabin, shut the door, and stood with my back against it.
This was my only sanctuary—my sole place of refuge. I also kept many of my mother’s belongings here.
Tensing up, I watched the mage named Risha warily. But the one who’d brought the outsider was perfectly calm.
“Don’t worry. Even if it’s Lady Risha, she won’t be able to see it.”
He patted my shoulder lightly, as if telling me to relax.
“Elle, did you forget there’s a barrier here? To put it bluntly, not even a dragon could find this place. Even now, to her eyes, this probably just looks like the middle of the forest.”
“Oh.”
Now that he mentioned it, I had installed something like that. Four years had passed—I’d completely forgotten.
If the cabin itself wasn’t visible, then of course she wouldn’t have seen me opening the door and crossing over either.
Just as Riphey said, the mage named Risha looked around curiously, then smiled brightly.
“Mr. Riphey is right. To my eyes, it looked as though a young lady suddenly appeared out of the darkness. I was a little surprised to see you dressed so lightly in such a cold mountain, though.”
“Ah.”
Only then did I realize my attire and feel embarrassed. I’d crossed over wearing just my bathrobe, planning to leave a note and go. Feeling awkward, I pulled the front of it closed.
‘If she’s a mage, then she’s probably a noble, right?’
From which country, and which family?
Judging by her appearance, she looked at least in her mid-twenties and no older than forty. She could even be a noblewoman of some house. The glimpse of clothing beneath her cloak didn’t look like anything from the Cyrus Empire, at least.
Sensing my unease, she spoke gently to reassure me.
“Please don’t worry. A mercenary’s rule is not to take interest in matters outside a contract.”
“…You’re a mercenary?”
That was unexpected.
She had a pale face and calm blue-gray eyes, giving her a very serene impression—completely at odds with the word “mercenary.”
“Yes. I’ve been at it for ten years now.”
“She’s a senior,” Riphey added.
At this even more surprising answer, I reflexively looked back and forth between Riphey and her.
“Riphey, you said you’ve been at it for seven years, right?”
Riphey shrugged, wearing an expression that said, Why are you looking at me?
“That’s right. But ten years ago was a time when a mage working as a mercenary would get sued by nobles for defaming their honor. She’s one of the first pioneering mages who argued that commoners, too, should benefit from magic.”
“Then why would someone so amazing come with you?”
“Why not? I’m pretty famous too, you know?”
“But still… you’re Riphey.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means you’re Riphey?”
“…Just what kind of image do you have of me, anyway?”
At my face, which clearly said Isn’t it obvious?, Riphey clicked his tongue and fell silent.
“More importantly—are you really okay? Physically?”
He fidgeted with his gray hair, braided to the side, watching my reaction. At this point, it was suspicious.
“You already asked me earlier. Why do you keep asking? I’m not much different from usual.”
“Well, you see… I’m sorry!”
Suddenly, Riphey bent forward almost ninety degrees.
It was an extremely formal bow by the standards of this place. By my past-life standards, it was practically a full prostration. Needless to say, I was completely flustered.
“Riphey? What are you doing all of a sudden?”
“That potion…”
“Huh?”
“The blue potion I gave you. You drank it, right?”
“You said it was medicine.”
“I’m really sorry! I was mistaken!”
He bowed even deeper, as if he might slam his head straight into the ground.
“Can you explain why you’re sorry? I won’t understand otherwise.”
I’d thought it smelled kind of ominous—so there really had been some kind of mix-up.
Riphey cautiously lifted his head, but his expression was terrible. After hesitating for a long while, he finally spoke.
“It’s something that came from the back alleys.”
“The back alleys? Don’t tell me it’s connected to some crime?”
The truth was beyond my imagination.
Why was my luck so bad these days?
“Riphey.”
When I called his name to prompt an explanation, he flinched and visibly wilted, like a large dog that had made a huge mistake and gotten scolded.
“If it’s hard for you, shall I explain instead, Mr. Riphey?”
At Risha’s question, Riphey gave a small nod. But her expression as she spoke was dark as well.
“Well… where should I start? First of all, that potion is currently called a ‘Mana Enhancement Accelerator.’ Recently, magical physicians have been prescribing it in secret.”
“…So it’s not a properly approved medicine.”
“That’s exactly right.”
Risha’s explanation went like this:
In a world where mages held superiority, countless experiments and studies existed for the sake of social advancement.
Most were legitimate experiments officially approved by the Sky Ark, but because the rewards were so tempting, there were also innumerable horrific studies conducted in the shadows.
As a result, illegal, unverified drugs frequently circulated in secret.
Among them, a few rarely showed real effects, but most came with irreversible side effects.
This potion was no exception. There were already many victims, and upon learning of it, the Sky Ark had begun personally tracking down its source.
Riphey added bitterly,
“I heard it was a miracle cure for people with extremely low mana. That it strengthens the core—the heart—and changes your constitution so it’s easier to accumulate mana.”
That described me perfectly.
“The doctor who told me about it is a local noble who’s been practicing for over twenty years in Saloon, a northern city of Ruinak. He was someone I trusted. And he said he’d taken the potion himself and seen results, so… that’s why I gave it to you…”
He bit his lip and trailed off.
“You checked it over and over, didn’t you?”
Ever since the time I’d nearly died after taking a potion he’d given me not long after we first met, Riphey had been excessively careful, double- and triple-checking any medicine he gave me.
I wasn’t in a position to be picky—I probably would’ve drunk it even if he’d handed it to me without much thought. But Riphey would scold me for that attitude, getting genuinely angry. How could I not trust him after that?
“Riphey, I trust you. You didn’t do it on purpose.”
“Of course not!”
Still, it seemed to pain him that the potion he’d obtained might have harmed me. I tightly grasped my kind-hearted friend’s hand.
“You know I’m tough. Don’t worry.”
After all, in my past life, I’d been a full-fledged Korean. When it came to grit and perseverance, I lost to no one.
Watching the two of us, Risha smiled gently.
“Even so, this is a relief. That potion only shows effects after long-term use, so drinking a single bottle shouldn’t cause serious problems. You didn’t notice any obvious side effects, did you?”
“No, none.”
Well… unless that horrific smell counted as a side effect.
“Since it forcibly alters one’s constitution, the side effects are severe. Most victims couldn’t endure it and suffered seizures, or their mana failed to stabilize and went berserk.”
“Ah.”
At that moment, something clicked.
‘The connection went wrong.’
Thanks to that, I’d ended up all the way at the duke’s hunting grounds. Could that have been a mild case of mana rampage? I did have a little mana, after all.
“Young lady? Did something come to mind?”
“No. Nothing happened.”
It wasn’t something I could share with an outsider, so I smiled lightly, pretending it was nothing.
Naturally, inside, I was bawling my eyes out.
‘Because of that damn side effect, my life genre suddenly turned into a thriller! If I ever catch whoever made that stuff—!’
Risha clasped her hands together and smiled in relief.
“That’s truly fortunate. Mr. Riphey was very worried. He kept fretting about what he’d do if you were hurt because of the potion he gave you.”
“L-Lady Risha! I wasn’t crying!”
“Thanks to that, I got to see a new side of Mr. Riphey, who’s always known for being calm and composed.”
“…Please, spare me.”
“Ho ho.”
With the relaxed smile of a seasoned senior, she effortlessly knocked Riphey out cold.
“I’m also glad you’re safe, young lady. I actually have a favor to ask.”
“A favor?”
What kind of favor could someone I’d just met possibly ask of me—especially a mage, of all people?
My guard immediately shot back up.
