Chapter 132
Wearing the robes of one of the Seven Sages and holding an ornate staff as tall as she was, Monica Everett, the 〈Silent Witch〉, slumped onto the deck, her pale face drained of color.
Her hands clinging to the staff trembled, and a strained breath escaped her small lips.
“I said I’d protect Aike... I said I would...”
Monica muttered in agony, then groaned, “Ugh,” and covered her mouth.
Isaac gently rubbed her back.
Wearing glasses as a disguise and a thin scarf to cover his mouth, Isaac lowered his brows apologetically.
“I’m sorry. I had no idea you’d never been on a ship before...”
“Don’t apologize, Aike... I was naive. Ugh, I had no idea ships rocked this much...”
The ship Monica and the others had boarded for the water dragon hunt was a relatively large merchant vessel. Apparently, there hadn’t been enough time to arrange a military ship.
Of course, even a merchant ship was armed to some extent, with cannons and the like, but they probably wouldn’t be very effective against a water dragon.
In the end, Monica’s magic was their only means of attacking the water dragon.
But their 〈Silent Witch〉, the one they were counting on, was a tiny girl—and she was groaning miserably from seasickness—so the crew kept glancing their way with worried looks.
Monica had surely noticed the attention. That only made her shrink further into herself and worsened her seasickness. It was a vicious cycle.
Even as they spoke, Monica’s body tilted to one side.
At this rate, she might roll right across the deck, so Isaac lifted her into his arms from the front.
Though she’d grown since they first met, she was still worryingly light.
“Would you like to lie down in the cabin?”
“...No. We don’t know when the water dragon will appear...”
Monica was limp, her cheek pressed against Isaac’s shoulder. She’d been picked up without warning and didn’t seem to have the energy to resist.
As he held Monica, Isaac deftly adjusted her scarf with one hand so the sea breeze wouldn’t blow it away.
“When you’re seasick, it’s best to look into the distance or close your eyes. You can also try distracting yourself.”
“Distracting myself...”
“Shall I sing you a song, my master?”
Isaac said jokingly, and Monica muttered in a blank voice, as though every last bit of emotion had drained from her.
“...Understood. To distract myself, I’ll think about an unsolved problem in mathematics... Call me when the dragon comes.”
Having said that, Monica closed her eyes and went completely still. She looked as if she’d passed out, but apparently she was still conscious. Just as she’d said, she was distracting herself by thinking about an unsolved problem in mathematics.
Still holding Monica, Isaac murmured an incantation and activated a detection spell.
The spells most often used to sense magical energy are detection spells and search spells. As for the difference between the two... honestly, there’s hardly any.
Among spells that detect magical energy, search spells are specialized for finding targets. Their range is narrower, but they’re more precise.
However, search spells consume somewhat more magic, so detection spells are more useful when you want a general overview of magical energy over a wide area.
Of course, detection spells also consume a fair amount of magic, so they can’t be used for too long. That was why Isaac used one at regular intervals to keep watch over their surroundings.
(So far, there are no major magical reactions nearby.)
It was peaceful, but given Monica’s seasickness, he hoped the water dragon would show up soon.
If they didn’t encounter it before nightfall, they would have to go through the same thing all over again tomorrow.
When Isaac deactivated the detection spell, a dark-skinned man approached. He looked to be in his thirties. His jacket was fairly fine, so he was probably more than just an ordinary sailor.
The man glared at Monica in Isaac’s arms and grumbled in a low voice.
“Hey, is the witch herself going to be okay in that condition?”
“Don’t worry. When the water dragon appears, my master will take it down at once.”
Isaac replied calmly, and the man wrinkled his nose as if he’d seen something suspicious.
He made no effort to hide his displeasure, but irritation and impatience were visible beneath it. He had probably suffered some kind of loss because of the water dragon incident.
“There’ve been sightings of this water dragon near Southdoll’s Second Harbor, too. You know what I mean? It’s abnormal for a large water dragon to show up near a harbor, not just out at sea.”
The man was right. Water dragons generally stayed away from harbors. At most, the occasional small or medium-sized one might wander into a harbor or near the shore.
Isaac recalled the sighting reports attached to the request.
(There was a report that someone had seen the shadow of a large water dragon with prominent fins underwater near Southdoll’s Second Harbor.)
There were several large species with prominent fins, but they generally stayed away from harbors. They tended to be timid, and even approaching a ship was rare for them.
“Are you frustrated because this is unprecedented? Then you’re taking it out on the wrong person.”
“Wha—?!”
Perhaps Isaac had hit a nerve; the man’s dark skin flushed red with anger.
Isaac gave him a cool smile.
“If you want to formally request the Seven Sages’ assistance with this matter, shouldn’t you go through the Mages’ Guild headquarters?”
The man was at a loss for words. His reaction suggested Isaac had touched on something he’d rather not discuss.
The request had come from the Southdoll branch of the Mages’ Guild, but normally, to enlist the Seven Sages—unless by direct order of the king—the Mages’ Guild headquarters had to submit a proposal and obtain the council’s approval.
Only after all that could a formal request be made to the Seven Sages.
Even with all those steps, it was still only a request. The Seven Sages had the right to refuse. Only the king could give them orders.
But this time, the matter had come in the form of a request from the Southdoll branch of the Mages’ Guild. That was an act likely to draw the ire of the Guild’s headquarters.
Despite that, the Southdoll branch had no choice but to ask the 〈Silent Witch〉 for help. Isaac suspected the Merchants’ Guild had put pressure on them.
(It hasn’t been made public that the 〈Silent Witch〉 lives in Southdoll, but some people know. There must be people in the Merchants’ Guild who have gotten hold of that information, too.)
The merchants of Southdoll had suffered heavy losses because of this water dragon incident.
They wanted the trouble resolved as soon as possible, so they’d probably used their money to pressure the Southdoll branch of the Mages’ Guild into bringing in the 〈Silent Witch〉, who lived in Southdoll.
And the kindhearted Monica had accepted the request, thinking Lana was probably in trouble.
“Please don’t forget that my master accepted the request to slay the water dragon as a favor.”
Isaac spoke coldly, and the man turned away with a bitter look before walking off.
Watching him go, Isaac mused to himself.
(...This may call for a little punishment and a warning.)
As someone who wanted to live quietly, Isaac couldn’t have troublesome requests casually brought to his beloved master.
The lord was likely turning a blind eye to the collusion between the Southdoll Merchants’ Guild and the Mages’ Guild—or even involved in it.
The Merchants’ Guild held great power in this region. Even the lord had been softened up by their money and couldn’t afford to stand up to them.
(In that case, it would be faster to get the Mages’ Guild headquarters involved than to interfere with the lord. One of the officials at the Baloa headquarters is a former Seven Sage, so I should pass the information along to them.)
As he considered how to arrange things, an older man leaning on a cane approached Isaac. Isaac remembered him from the greeting before they boarded. He was the captain of this ship. His right leg seemed injured; he dragged it slightly as he walked.
The captain stopped in front of Isaac and Monica, took off his hat, and bowed his head.
“I apologize for my vice-captain—my son—being rude earlier.”
“He’s your son?”
They seemed a little too close in age to be father and son.
Perhaps noticing Isaac’s confusion, the captain added, “He’s adopted.”
“He’s diligent and does his job well. I’m blessed with such a dutiful son. You could say I’m a fortunate Simeon.”
The name the captain mentioned belonged to a man in a work of classical literature.
Turns of phrase drawn from classical literature were mostly used among nobles—which meant the captain had realized Isaac belonged to the nobility.
Isaac showed no sign of surprise and replied as calmly as if they were making small talk.
“Are you fond of the classics?”
“It’s a modest hobby for an old sailor.”
For now, Isaac decided to set aside his anger and irritation toward the man from earlier.
In the Kingdom of Ridill, the captain and the shipowner were usually different people. The ship belonged to a merchant, while the captain was merely an employee. In other words, the captain couldn’t afford to get on the Merchants’ Guild’s bad side.
They were on the Merchants’ Guild’s side, but they were also at the Guild’s mercy. It wouldn’t be wise to quarrel with them here.
Isaac casually glanced around, following the movements of the sailors as they bustled about.
“This is a fine ship. Your sailors move well, too.”
“Do you like ships?”
“Yes.”
He didn’t mention that he had some in his own territory; he simply smiled gently.
His compliment about the ship wasn’t just flattery. It was undoubtedly one of the finest merchant vessels, and more than anything, the sailors weren’t showing any fear despite heading out to hunt a water dragon.
That was proof that they trusted the captain and his son—the man from earlier.
It seemed the Merchants’ Guild had at least taken the trouble to provide a good ship and crew.
“I’m grateful you’ve prepared such a fine ship for my master.”
“No, we’re the ones who are truly grateful to have one of the great Seven Sages aboard.”
They smiled at each other, concealing their true thoughts. He felt that this kind of troublesome probing was exactly what a disciple like him was meant to handle.
He wanted to ease Monica’s burden, even a little. He wanted to protect her from whatever trouble might come her way.
And if there were people stirring up trouble, he wouldn’t hesitate to quietly remove them.
“The waves are picking up a little. The ship will rock even more from here on. Shall I prepare some medicine for seasickness for the 〈Silent Witch〉?”
“Yes, please.”
Once the captain had left, Isaac looked down at Monica in his arms.
Monica was still limp with her eyes closed. She was awake, but her mind was probably in a world of numbers.
(...This time, I’ll protect her.)
Thinking it was about time to keep watch again, Isaac activated his detection magic.
Behind his closed eyelids, he could see stars shining like lights. They were concentrations of magical energy. The reaction right beside him was Monica. The small stars around her were the crew.
And then—far from the ship, he saw a huge cluster of stars.
Isaac opened his eyes and raised his voice. He usually spoke gently, but when he wanted to, he could shout far louder than Glenn.
“Everyone, stay alert! There’s a dragon in our path!”
After shouting, Isaac looked at Monica in his arms.
Even after he’d shouted that loudly right beside her, Monica still had her eyes closed.
“Monica? Monica? My master?”
Had she gotten completely absorbed in the world of mathematics?
That would be a serious problem. When Monica was like this, she shut out everything around her and didn’t come back to her senses until someone kneaded her cheeks with their paw pads.
“Monica, please wake up... There are no paw pads here.”
“As for whether every even number greater than two can be expressed as the sum of two primes, based on statistical observations about the distribution of primes... Oh, Aike. Good morning.”
“...Good morning, my master. It’s time to get to work.”
Isaac secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He was glad she’d come back to her senses sooner than he’d expected.
At the moment, his feelings were a little too complicated for him to serve as a substitute for a cat’s paw pads.