Embracing Magic - E.M Chapter 64 (Part 1)
Though the teleportation artifact was indeed precious, it was a one-time-use item. It wasn’t a treasure valuable enough to kill dozens of people and mobilize over a hundred to steal it.
Moreover, if they had known about the teleportation artifact, they should have first set up an anti-magic field to prevent its activation. That would have stopped the artifact from being used.
‘So was the goal, as Bron suspected, the merchant leader’s life? Or was it the information he held?’
“Ugh… This… Please… he… ge…”
At that moment, the still dazed merchant leader pulled something out from his robe. It was a small box. Whatever it was, nothing could be sensed from inside it.
Rodin quickly tucked the box into his own robe. Investigating it would come later; right now, he needed to escape.
“Jito, scout the area.”
Nod!
Jito, who had been in the form of clothing, reverted to his true form and immediately flew up into the sky. As their vision merged, the surroundings became vividly clear to Rodin.
‘It’s still quiet for now.’
The merchant leader had fled by teleportation while gravely injured. The ambushers had yet to figure out which direction he had escaped or how far he had gone.
“Hey. Are you okay?”
Rodin briefly considered using a potion, but soon realized it would be meaningless.
The wounds were too severe for potions to heal, and the bleeding was so profuse that the merchant leader’s face had gone deathly pale.
“Val… lis Nova…”
The merchant leader managed to utter just the words “Vallis Nova” before his head slumped forward. Rodin checked for a pulse at his neck and sighed.
“He’s dead.”
Though someone had died, Rodin felt nothing.
After all, he had only seen the man’s face once in the morning, and he hadn’t even heard his name. No matter how great a person he had been in the past, to Rodin, he was just another stranger.
‘I’d better deal with the body first.’
If those who passed by earlier found the merchant leader’s corpse, they would first search for the items he had handed over. If they couldn’t find them, everyone nearby would be suspected.
‘I’m sorry.’
Rodin quickly searched the dead merchant leader’s body. He gathered gold coins, metal objects, and other valuable items.
‘Ignite.’
*Fwoosh.*
Rodin set the body ablaze. To prevent the smoke from rising, he conjured wind to press it downwards.
The smoke spread out close to the ground, gradually dissipating into the surroundings.
The body burned for quite a while. Watching through Jito’s eyes, Rodin infused more mana, increasing the intensity of the flames until the body was reduced to ashes.
‘Magic Hand.’
He carefully crushed the remains, ensuring that not even a trace of the corpse would be left, so that no one could tell a body had ever been there.
Soon, only a small pile of ash remained. Despite the merchant leader’s considerable size, all that was left fit into the palm of a hand.
Rodin conjured wind to scatter the ashes in all directions. Now, not even a handful of ash remained.
He then collected the money, dagger, identification tag, and the expensive necklace with a gemstone from the merchant leader’s body.
‘I’ve become rich overnight. He really was the merchant leader…’
Just then, through Jito’s eyes, Rodin noticed figures on the outskirts. Several people were searching the area.
Since they didn’t know the exact location, they were spreading out in different directions to search.
‘As I thought, they don’t know where he went.’
Rodin had spent too much time. It had taken almost 20 minutes to burn the body.
‘Jito, return.’
Jito, who had been circling in the air, quickly descended and returned to his clothing form.
Thanks to Undine’s help, Rodin had remained completely dry, but Jito, who had briefly returned to his original form, was soaked from flying in the rain.
‘Ignite.’
Using magic, Rodin evaporated the moisture from Jito. Then he approached Bron and Ellice, who were not far away.
“Bron, Ellice.”
“Oh? Rodin. Did you find a good spot?”
“Yes. I found a cave. Let’s head there together.”
They returned to the cave where Marlon and Baker, who had arrived earlier, had gathered firewood. Fortunately, they didn’t question why Rodin had taken so long.
“Ellice! Light the fire here.”
“Yeah, it’s getting colder because of the rain.”
Before Ellice could move, Rodin lit the fire. Using wind magic, he directed the smoke outside.
“Wow! You really use magic like it’s part of your body.”
“Yeah. If we had let Ellice do it, what would’ve happened? The smoke would have filled the cave, and it would’ve been chaos.”
“Of course. She can’t think of two things at once.”
Although they were bickering again, Rodin was used to it by now. He let their words flow in one ear and out the other as he sat by the campfire.
“When do you think the rain will stop?”
“We might have to spend the night here.”
“It won’t stop until dawn at the earliest.”
The clouds were low and dark, and the rain was heavy. It wasn’t going to stop anytime soon.
“Since we’re resting anyway, how about we make some soup for lunch?”
“Let’s do it. It’s been a while since we’ve had Baker’s cooking.”
The oldest among them, Baker, took out some jerky and started cooking. Soon, a savory aroma filled the area.
Meanwhile, Rodin stepped outside the cave and imprinted a mana condensation magic circle. Although repeated use reduced efficiency, it was better to do it regularly.
“Food’s ready. Rodin, have some.”
“Wow, Baker. Thanks for the meal.”
It was just jerky boiled in water, but the seasoning was perfectly balanced.
“Wow, this is delicious! How did you make it taste like this with so few ingredients?”
“If Baker hadn’t become a mercenary, he would’ve been a chef.”
“My brother’s good at cooking. The problem is he doesn’t do it often.”
After finishing their meal, they had nothing to do. Rodin naturally pulled out a book from his backpack and began reading.
“Huh? A book?”
“Yes. I figured I might as well, since we have time.”
“I’ve never seen a traveler or mercenary reading a book before. Is it because you’re a mage?”
“Oh, come on. Ellice is a mage too, but she doesn’t read books. She’s the kind of person who forgets the letters she knows.”
“Are you picking a fight again?”
Sensing another argument brewing, Rodin decided to focus on his book.
While he didn’t mind their banter, there were times when he just wanted to immerse himself in reading.
As he read, the afternoon passed quickly. The rain continued to pour down.
As night began to fall, Rodin cast a Light spell, summoning an orb of light. It was so he could continue reading comfortably.