Embracing Magic - E.M Chapter 152 (Part 2)

The carriage had maintained a high speed until they left the city gates. After passing through the gates, however, it slowed down considerably, moving at a pace similar to a walking person.

Because of Rodin’s instructions to reduce speed, the carriage didn’t travel far and had to prepare for camping.

“Big Brother Rodin, is this right?”

“What is?”

“We’ve been traveling all day, but I can still see the walls of Richmond Marquisate over there.”

“There’s no need to rush. We can take our time.”

They were indeed moving quite slowly. With just a turn of the head, the upper parts of Richmond Marquisate’s walls were visible in the distance.

If they rode at full gallop, they could return to their home within an hour.

“Like I said, there’s nothing urgent. I’ll do my training, and Bianca, you can study.”

“Let’s eat dinner.”

Once again, they took out food from the subspace for their meal.

They had already consumed nearly half of the food stored in the subspace. It was time to start thinking about where to restock.

“Big Brother Rodin, have you thought of a place?”

“I plan to speed up tomorrow. If we buy a lot of food in Baten, we should be able to make it to Aramia without a problem.”

“Baten? Is the food there good?”

“I wouldn’t know. I’ve never been there. But since it’s classified as a city, there should be a few decent restaurants.”

Baten was indeed a city, though a small one. With a population of roughly 80,000 to 100,000, it couldn’t compare to Richmond.

Still, as a place known as a retreat for nobles, it was likely to have a few good restaurants.

After having dinner together, they each went about their own tasks.

Rodin began working on a mithril device for producing Magic Stones.

It wasn’t particularly difficult. He had created a prototype long ago; now, he just needed to increase its size.

“Big Brother Rodin, I’m going to sleep.”

“Brother, I’m heading to bed too.”

Around midnight, Larry and Bianca retired for the night. Rodin waited briefly until both of them had fallen asleep.

“Sleep.”

He cast the spell once more on the two who were already sleeping. This way, they wouldn’t wake up until morning, no matter what.

“Young Master, where are you going?”

“Mm, I’m thinking of paying a visit to Richmond Lord’s Castle.”

“Ah! So that’s why you told us to slow down the carriage.”

“Yeah. If we got too far, returning would be difficult.”

When Rodin stood up, Karis and Jena also began preparing. As escorts, they naturally assumed they had to accompany him.

“Is there something you need to retrieve?”

“Saying I’m retrieving something… would be a bit shameless. I’m planning to steal an item.”

“Wouldn’t it have been easier to act while you were inside the castle?”

“To avoid suspicion, it’s better to leave the castle first and then return. Others would think the same as you, Jena.”

Whether he started inside or outside the estate, Rodin was confident he wouldn’t get caught. Even if a group of 6th Circle mages gathered to guard the place, the outcome would be the same.

However, even if he wasn’t caught, suspicion could still arise. After all, aside from a Grand Mage, there shouldn’t be anyone capable of slipping in and out of a castle guarded by a 6th-class knight as if it were their own home.

“I’ll accompany you.”

“There’s no need. Both of you should stay here.”

“But we’re your escorts. At least one of us should stay by your side.”

“That’ll just increase the risk of getting caught. I’ll be back within two hours.”

Rodin changed into a robe. Jito, tilting his head in confusion, reverted to his true form.

— “Kkueng?”

“Let’s go.”

With Jito perched on his shoulder, Rodin cast Invisibility. Then, using Fly magic, he lifted off the ground and soared toward Richmond Marquisate.

—

The walls of Richmond Marquisate were not heavily guarded. In fact, the security level was lower than usual.

However, the number of patrol units within the territory had significantly increased. With volcanic activity and the resulting curse causing chaos, the region’s security had worsened drastically.

Flying at a high altitude where no one could see him, Rodin descended near the lord’s castle while maintaining Invisibility.

‘Jito, keep watch for me.’

— “Kkueng.”

Jito took off into the sky, having pushed off from Rodin’s shoulder. Soon, the little creature was perched high above, nearly out of sight.

‘There are a few knights here.’

Rodin scanned the area with his eyes and senses, using sensory sharing with Jito to check the entire perimeter of the lord’s castle.

‘Still, with this level of security, it shouldn’t be too difficult. I just need to be cautious of the knights.’

Compared to the patrol units composed of regular soldiers, the knights who wielded Aura had sharper senses. To avoid detection, it was best not to get too close to them.

Just as mages were insensitive to Aura, knights were relatively insensitive to magic. Even if a spell was cast from a distance, they often couldn’t notice it.

However, if he got too close, his presence might be detected even if he suppressed his magic power. The sound of his breathing, footsteps, or the faint disturbance of air when moving—knights could perceive even those imperceptible changes.

‘The lord’s castle seems quiet.’

Unlike the heightened security within the territory, the castle’s defenses were rather lax, perhaps because they believed the curse problem had been resolved.

‘It was this way.’

Rodin moved while keeping as much distance from the knights as possible.

The outer walls of the lord’s castle were crossed in an instant. Passing through several internal checkpoints, he quickly reached his destination.

‘Harrison seems to be asleep.’

Rodin quietly slipped into the room where Harrison, the young lord, was sleeping. Without even opening the door, he used Blink to bypass space itself.

A faint smell of alcohol lingered in the air inside Harrison’s room. His face was slightly flushed as if he had been drinking.

“Sleep.”

Hyung_Otaku2

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