Became a Medieval Fantasy Wizard-Chapter 204

TL/Editor: raei

Status: 5/week mon-fri

Illustrations: none

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Ian gestured to Lucy, who was sitting in a daze.

"Lucy?"

"Huh... yeah?"

Lately, Lucy seemed to be spending a lot of time deep in thought, as if troubled by something.

Ian found this new side of Lucy fresh and surprising.

So even Lucy... had things to worry about!

"What are you thinking about now?"

Ian had asked Lucy several times, but each time she gave an answer that skirted the core issue.

"Just... worrying about the future."

Every time he asked, she said she was worried about what's to come.

But whether it was concern about the dragon, the domain, or something else, she never said till the end.

"It's nothing, don't worry about it!"

Lucy smiled brightly as if nothing was wrong.

When she was so reluctant to talk about it, Ian couldn't force her to spill the beans.

Salvador and Belenka rode their horses up beside Ian.

"The situation's turning out to be quite amusing."

"Amusing, you say?"

The Knights of Santiago were busily gathering information.

Thanks to them, Ian could also obtain well-organized, up-to-date information.

"It seems Duke Araz has handled this matter quite roughly."

"..."

Well, that was.

You could tell just by looking at how he eagerly set off dragon hunting while ignoring the barons suffering from the dragon.

"Ian, my boy. Who do you think has the right to hunt the dragon?"

"???"

Taken aback by Salvador's sudden question, Ian was momentarily flustered.

Then he answered honestly.

"I'd like to ask who's hunting who."

"Haha. You really are an odd one."

Salvador laughed, thinking Ian was joking, and moved on.

Ian felt slightly wronged.

No, he was serious...

No matter how injured the dragon might be, a dragon was still a dragon.

Without thorough preparation, it was obvious that humans would be swept away in droves.

They didn't even know how badly the dragon was injured yet.

Here they were, squabbling among themselves about who had what share~ Would the dragon really fall to such a ragtag bunch?

"The Margrave of Haltramm claimed he had the right."

"... Because he inflicted a fatal wound?"

"Exactly right."

That was the Margrave of Haltramm's logic.

Since I was the first to wound the dragon, the dragon's head is mine! That was his argument.

"But Count Edward thought differently."

"Count Edward?"

That name sounded familiar...

Ian easily recalled who Count Edward was.

Count Edward was the noble who had a vassal contract with the nobles of Ian's homeland.

"The Golden Mountains are Count Edward's territory."

Count Edward's logic went like this:

Since the dragon is staying in the Golden Mountains, it's my prey, like the wild boars or deer in my land!

"... So?"

Ian felt such deep exasperation at the nobles' squabble that he didn't know how to react.

It was indeed an important issue among the power players.

Who gets to keep the dragon's corpse was a major matter directly related to the development of their domains.

But Ian was a wizard.

He wasn't without desire for spoils, but he didn't want to argue about a dragon they hadn't even killed yet.

"Count Edward took his knights to find the Duke. He intends to lodge a formal protest with the Duke."

"Wait, if he thought the dragon was his prey, shouldn't he at least pretend to be hunting it?"

"Before, he would have been scared stiff, I'd wager. How many would be brave enough to enter treacherous mountains to hunt a perfectly healthy dragon?"

So, Count Edward had also slunk out after hearing rumors that the dragon was badly hurt.

"The noble lords are truly wise beyond measure."

"Haha. When I do it, it's wisdom; when others do it, it's cunning, isn't it?"

Salvador made a good point.

This was the medieval era where everyone fended for themselves, and lords only needed to focus on developing their own domains.

You could tell by how the Knights of Santiago, who served others and didn't shy away from threats, were treated as admirable lunatics.

'The quarrel itself doesn't matter.'

Whether Count Edward won or the Margrave of Haltramm won.

As long as they took down the dragon, it would benefit Ian.

All he needed was to get his hands on the Mountain King's treasure that the black dragon had supposedly stolen.

Lucy also had a good chance of getting what she wanted.

For those participating in the dragon raid, it was more advantageous to have fewer nobles involved when it came to dividing the spoils.

The Duke would probably promise food aid to send Lucy home before she could become a nuisance.

The Knights of Santiago would add another achievement to their record by defeating the dragon, so it was all good for them too.

Everything seemed more or less fine.

'... But why do I feel so uneasy?'

Yet Ian couldn't shake off his anxiety.

Mani's testimony kept ringing in his ears.

'The wound in the dragon's jaw was not inflicted by Haltramm!'

If the dragon wasn't actually injured...

... This squabble among humans might turn into poison.

"Whatever the situation, the expedition has already departed, hasn't it?"

Ian nodded at Salvador's words.

The expedition had set out anyway.

Ian's group rode their horses quickly to join them.

---

---

It was hundreds of years ago from now.

The once-glorious [Golden Empire] had fallen, scattering lost technology across the continent as it died.

Barbarians from the north gradually conquered the empty lands!

'This is truly a great land to live in!'

The northern barbarians much preferred the mild, fertile lands of the (former) Golden Empire to the cold, harsh northern continent.

Barbarians kept pouring in across the empty borders non-stop.

The era of great migration had begun.

'Aaaaah! Monsters!'

'Hey! We're northerners, black-haired friend?'

'Aaaaah! Northern monsters!'

The barbarians massacred the native Golden Empire people and built their own villages in their place.

After slaughtering the imperial people, the barbarians started bloody fights among themselves.

'This is our land!'

'No, it's not? Our tribe came first?!'

The imperial lands were vast, but prime spots were limited.

Befitting a post-apocalyptic era, the fights among barbarians continued endlessly.

Until a man named 'Brifford' appeared, that is.

'Stop! Cease this fighting!'

'? Why should I? More importantly, who are you?'

'Are we not all brothers who came down from the north! Yet we fight day after day! If external enemies invade like this, we'll all perish together!'

'No, really, who are you...'

Brifford was a born warrior and a barbarian gifted with superhuman strength.

With his tremendous might rivaling Xiang Yu from the Chronicles of the Han, he conquered other tribes one by one.

Soon, he succeeded in occupying most of the northwestern region of the (former) Golden Empire.

Brifford, who had united the tribes, was about to declare the establishment of a [Tribal Confederation State]... when he was interrupted.

Out of the blue, some religious folk from the south showed up.

'Please protect us~'

'?'

They were priests of the Heaven's Faith.

The Heaven's Faith had suffered such a blow from the flood of barbarian hordes that its very foundations were shaken.

Until then, the Golden Empire had been protecting them, but the empire had fallen!

'If this continues, the world will be plunged into darkness!'

'? We were just about to start enjoying the good life, you know?'

'How can you talk about the good life when the world is ending!'

'?!'

The Pope of Heaven's Faith met with Chief Brifford.

And explained.

According to the doctrine of Heaven's Faith, when the Golden Empire falls, the world will soon end...

To prevent this doom, a new Golden Empire must be created!

'Is that really true?!'

'... To be honest, we're not sure either. It's our first apocalypse, you see. But if you don't protect us, we'll certainly perish!'

Brifford did some cost-benefit analysis.

Should he embrace these religious folk and become the rightful successor to the Golden Empire...

Or execute them all and create a paradise for barbarians.

Brifford chose the former.

They were going to settle down and live here anyway. There was no need to provoke the Heaven's Faith and make enemies unnecessarily.

'Oh! Excellent! Devout Brifford! You are now the Emperor of the [Holy Empire]!'

The Pope smiled broadly and was about to place a crown on Brifford's head... but couldn't.

Brifford refused the crown.

'No! That's not for me to decide!'

'??? What nonsense-'

'We must hear the opinions of the other tribal chiefs! We'll have a vote, and whoever gets the most votes will become this 'Emperor' thing!'

The Pope's jaw dropped.

No way, had he seen it all with these super-ignorant bastards!

You guys, do you even know what an Emperor is?! (They don't)

The ruler of this world! The defender of faith!

You dare to elect the emperor of an empire succeeding the glorious Golden Empire by vote?!

What is this, electing a neighborhood watch captain? What's with electing an emper-

'This is my way, Pope.'

'Ignorant bastards... I mean. Ahem. I'll respect your tradition.'

The Pope felt intense culture shock but couldn't really complain.

Well... because those ignorant bastards were the ones holding the sword!

Brifford held a tribal council according to barbarian procedures.

As a result of the vote, Brifford was naturally elected emperor.

The tribal chiefs swore allegiance to Brifford and became vassals with voting rights, namely [Prince-electors].

Emperor Brifford I gave each tribal chief a piece of land and ordered them to guard and live on that land.

They changed their names from tribal chiefs to [Imperial Dukes].

The dukes gave land to their retainers, and those retainers gave land to their knights...

That's how the feudal system of the Holy Empire began.

As a result, the empire's feudal system tended to be much more independent than that of other countries.

In a country where even the emperor was elected, respect for individual nobles was exceptional.

That's why Lucy, coming from the rural Talian barony, wasn't turned away at the door.

Duke Araz didn't spout nonsense like "What? A baron? Just a low-ranking noble! Hmph!"

"Welcome, Baron of Talian."

"Uh..."

"Baron? Who is this? Your husband?"

Ian's brain short-circuited for a moment when he saw Duke Araz in person.

Duke Araz was... a stunningly beautiful woman...!

She appeared to be in her mid to late 30s.

She wore the 'cone hat' that Lucy was crazy about on her head, but her dress was a design that clung tightly to her body.

A beautiful mature woman who could be described as a MILF.

"This is Ian, disciple of the wizard Eredith."

"A wizard?"

Duke Araz narrowed her eyes as she looked at Ian.

She thought there was something suspicious about him, but to think he was a wizard?

Duke Araz naturally offered Ian a seat.

"Please, sit down."

"?"

Ian felt a slight novelty.

Good heavens. To see a strange wizard and not perform [Calling a Wizard]!

Is this the composure of a duke!

"You look surprised that I'm not performing the Calling of a Wizard."

"Was it that obvious?"

Duke Araz took a sip of tea with a gentle smile.

"Don't take offense, wizard Ian. First of all, my court has many wizards."

That made sense.

As one of the five prince-electors and imperial dukes, Duke Araz surely knew at least one wizard.

"Even without inviting you specifically, we have no trouble with magic."

"I see."

In short, the duke had no intention of drawing Ian to her side, so she skipped the process of Calling a Wizard.

"Also, this isn't an appropriate place for Calling a Wizard."

This was outdoors, in Duke Araz's tent quarters.

It meant she was skipping the formalities since it was difficult to properly observe etiquette here.

"Of course, that doesn't mean you're not welcome."

Duke Araz said this while her eyes flashed slightly.

The duke calmly waited for Ian's reaction.

Soon, Ian opened his mouth.

"This is truly... the first time I've received such treatment in my life."

"Hm. Even if you're disappointed, there's nothing-"

"You are truly a wise person, Your Grace!"

"???"

Duke Araz looked at Ian in shock.

She had openly said she was skipping the Calling of a Wizard... and he was happy about this?!

A young and talented wizard like Ian would naturally have high pride.

It wouldn't have been strange at all if he had been offended when a noble arbitrarily skipped the Calling of a Wizard!

'... He doesn't seem to be an ordinary person.'

Duke Araz scrutinized Ian up and down calmly.

It was one of two things.

Either he was a wizard so insignificant as to be pathetic...

Or a young man wise enough to deserve the name of wizard!

"Why do you think I'm wise?"

To the duke's question, Ian answered nonchalantly.

"Well, because you're someone who isn't bound by empty formalities. What's the big deal about Calling a Wizard? It just makes wizards act like clowns. Tsk tsk."

"..."

Ian calmly criticized the old custom while simultaneously praising Duke Araz's wisdom.

Duke Araz judged that all of Ian's actions were calculated results.

She thought there was no way this could be his honest opinion!

'Skipping the clown act is awesome~'

But contrary to the duke's expectations, Ian was genuinely pleased with her decision.

Ian had always loathed emotional labor.

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