novelraw Chapter 12
Chapter 12
Ch.12 Please, Keep Your Promise
With the pure white light, the scorching wind gradually subsided.
“Master… it didn’t break, right?”
Hearing Leah’s anxious voice, I looked into the pit.
Seemed like nothing unusual happened.
To see the red egg, I moved toward the sand melted by the high temperature.
The hot sand had melted into an indescribable shape, emitting a strange smell—my face involuntarily scrunched up.
First, I need to take the egg out.
‘If I just grab it, I’ll get burned, right?’
Thinking that, I took off my shirt.
“Kyaaak?! Ma… Master, what are you doing?!”
Ignoring my disciple screaming like a girl behind me, I carefully rolled up my shirt and lifted the egg.
Up close, I saw faint cracks on the surface.
Feeling a faint vibration at my fingertips, I said,
“It’ll hatch soon, right?”
“Really?”
I felt movement from the egg. I hurriedly stepped out of the artificial crater created by the Flare spell and carefully placed the Phoenix Egg on the ground.
Leah and I lay on the sandy beach, intently watching the Phoenix Egg.
—Twitch… twitch.
We held our breath, watching the Phoenix Egg tremble faintly.
“Is… is it really going to hatch after being hit by Flare?”
Half-believing… no, Leah seemed to not believe it at all.
“I told you, didn’t I? When have I ever lied to you?”
—Crackle…!
The cracks widened, and the egg began to break.
Ah…
To witness the hatching of a Phoenix—something I’d only seen in the game—with my own eyes.
As a veteran Destiny player, I’m overwhelmed with emotion.
—Crack.
The Phoenix’s beak pierced the eggshell, creating a small hole.
“M… Master, it’s really alive!”
Leah, wearing an expression as moved as mine.
Soon…
—Crash!
The chick Phoenix’s head emerged, breaking through the pointed part of the egg.
You… you’re too cute!
“Kyaaa! How?! It looks just like a chick!”
A cute baby bird covered in tiny blue feathers.
It lifted its palm-sized face and tilted its head, curiously looking at Leah and me. Ah, so adorable.
—Pip?! Pip!?
Tilting its head…
—Thud.
The egg toppled over, and the baby Phoenix fell with it.
Cu… cute!
“Kyaaa! Master, what should we name it?”
Leah shouted excitedly, watching the blue chick wobble out of its broken shell.
Hmm… honestly, because it’s so cute.
Should I say it looks like a blue chick?
As Leah reached her hand toward the baby Phoenix, its tiny feet stepped onto her palm…
—Puff.
It climbed up.
Leah gazed carefully at the baby Phoenix.
“It’s so cute. Master, what does it eat?”
To that, I recalled past memories.
“Hmm… I think it’s not much different from humans? Probably doesn’t have any particular preferences.”
Actually, I don’t know what to feed a Phoenix.
In the Destiny game, food automatically disappears from the inventory.
Though some pets have preferred foods and would grow thin if fed only disliked foods, the Phoenix didn’t seem picky.
So, probably, we can feed it what we eat.
I don’t know its favorite food, but I do know one thing about it—it loves fire.
Not small fires like torches, but large, scorching flames.
“Master, how about naming it ‘Pipi’?”
—Chirp chirp?
The baby Phoenix tilted its head on Leah’s hand and stared intently at her.
“Pipi is a chick’s name! Even if it looks like that, it’s still a Phoenix.”
To my words, Leah frowned, looking thoughtful.
“Then… ‘Sunshine’?”
The Phoenix symbolizes the blazing sun.
But calling it ‘Sunshine’ feels a bit…
“Let’s think slowly and decide starting tomorrow morning.”
With that, Leah and I went out hunting together.
***
Several days later.
“Master… when will a ship pass by?”
I stared intently at Leah.
Leah, with the baby Phoenix curled up on her chest, really did look like a blue chick.
Ah, right. In the end, the baby Phoenix’s name was decided as Pipi.
Leah insisted on it—what could powerless me do? I had to go along.
Resting in a tent woven from tree branches and large banana leaves, enjoying the cool breeze, I replied indifferently,
“It should be coming soon.”
Was I too relaxed?
“Ugh! I can’t take it anymore!”
Leah jumped up from her seat and shouted,
“No! Why do I have to stay like this?!”
Saying that, she drew her wand toward the sky.
“Fire Storm! Hell Fire! Final Judgment!”
She began wildly firing large-scale spells into the air.
—Kwaaang!
Explosions violently shook heaven and earth.
Looking up, I saw massive flames swirling continuously amid dark smoke.
Colorful flames exploded like fireworks, brightly engulfing my vision.
—Chirp chirp?!
The baby Phoenix, delighted by the sight.
A mad mage and a mystical creature enjoying her magic…
It felt like the worst possible combination.
But… the flames decorating the sky were beautiful.
While I was thinking that, I saw a small dot beyond the horizon.
“Huh? Leah! A ship! A ship has come!”
Hearing my urgent shout, Leah stopped chanting and stared intently where I pointed.
“Huh? Really?!”
“Fly! Fly spell! You can easily reach that distance, right?”
I didn’t know the exact distance, but it seemed about 150m~250m.
To my words, Leah nodded excitedly.
“I was going to use it even without you saying so!”
Leah hastily tucked Pipi into her pocket and shouted urgently,
“Fly!”
Slowly, Leah and I rose into the air, flying toward the small dot.
“I want to shower! I want to shower!”
True… on the beach, she couldn’t properly wash herself, so it must feel gross.
Of course, there was a spring on the island… but after seeing a snake in the water the first time she bathed, Leah absolutely refused to bathe again.
Ugh… look at how greasy her hair is.
Her short red hair seemed unusually shiny today.
Must be my imagination.
While I was thinking that, as we drew closer to the small dot…
“Huh? There are two ships?”
One ship had black sails with a large white skull emblem, while the other seemed to belong to the Abas Trading Company.
Were pirates attacking the trading company’s ship?
Abas Trading Company is a fairly large company in the Old Continent.
They probably heard rumors of the Demon King’s death and decided to restart trade.
Tobacco, precious metals, spices, and plants from the New Continent are popular in the Old Continent.
Leah seemed determined to land on the pirate ship—she suddenly landed with a thud in the middle of the chaotic battlefield.
Neatly dressed sailors and raggedly clothed pirates fought fiercely.
Complete chaos, utter chaos.
At that moment, a pirate reloading his crossbow made eye contact with me.
I swiftly drew Equality…
—Bang!
“Let’s clean up here first, then think.”
To my words, Leah nodded and raised her wand toward the sky.
“Magic Arrow!”
At her spell incantation, hundreds of Magic Arrows materialized in the sky.
The overwhelming presence worthy of being called a Grand Sorcerer halted the surrounding fighting.
—Wha… what is this?!
—A mage?! So many Magic Arrows?!
—What? I never heard Abas Trading Company had a mage?!
—Do… do the pirates have a mage?!
As the scene turned chaotic, Leah said with a bright smile,
“Pirates, drop your weapons and surrender while you still can. Otherwise… you’re all dead.”
Her face looked vicious, as if ready to unleash a torrent of violent curses.
Her murderous aura gave me goosebumps.
She’s gotten terrifyingly scary while I wasn’t looking.
Watching Leah with that ferocious expression, I thought to myself—
Maybe ‘blackmailer’ suits Leah better?
“D… damn it! Don’t underestimate us!”
One pirate boldly charged at Leah.
Leah fired several Magic Arrows at the pirate.
“Ugh!”
The pirate’s body lifted into the air and fell backward.
That must hurt…
Though Magic Arrows lack killing power, they have considerable impact force.
Fundamentally a suppression spell, it carries power similar to swinging a steel pipe with full force.
“Hah… you really don’t understand unless I spell it out, do you?!”
As Leah began showing irritation, the blue Magic Arrows started burning.
Oh? Did she convert Magic Arrows into Fire Arrows?
In the game, there was no function to change the nature of a cast spell, so I was simply astonished.
Did the Destiny world receive an update after I arrived?
“Alright, next one who moves dies for real?”
At her menacing words, the pirates began laying down their weapons.
***
“Sa…Saint, what do you mean? You’re going to the New Continent for missionary work?”
Cardinal Walter exclaimed in shock at Cecilia’s words.
“I have already made up my mind.”
For Walter, the current situation was extremely awkward.
It had been only a short time since the duel with the Demon King ended.
Sea routes to the New Continent were gradually becoming active again.
Though they planned to resume full-scale missionary activities in the New Continent, they couldn’t possibly send the Saint to that dangerous, uncivilized place.
The Saint, bestowed by God.
Unless she relinquished her position as Saint to fulfill the sacred duty of forming a family with her beloved as a woman, she couldn’t leave the Papal See.
As a being granted by God for humanity, even the Emperor couldn’t treat her lightly.
That she, who had been a great support against the Emperor during political confrontations, was now heading to the New Continent—
The Cardinal’s mind began racing in complex circles.
‘What should I do? If the Saint goes to the New Continent for missionary work, it will yield tremendous results. Much of the New Continent remains unexplored, and indigenous beliefs are still entrenched there.’
But separately, the Papal See, which had been subtly vying for power with the Emperor, would now face pressure from the Emperor since the Demon King was dead.
Having sold holy water at high prices under the pretext of hunting the Demon King and received vast sums of money and lands for supposedly training holy knights…
It was obvious they’d be forced to give it all back.
And in such a situation, the Saint was going to the New Continent…
“W… well, I’ll bring it up at the next Cardinal Council.”
Seeing Cecilia’s eyes, the Cardinal already knew her mind was set and withdrew for now.
‘I can already predict how everyone will react.’
At the Cardinal Council, Cardinal Walter would surely face harsh criticism.
He’d be blamed for failing to prevent the noble Saint from traveling to the perilous New Continent…
Then, they’d resort to all sorts of tricks to change the Saint’s mind.
But even so, they had no way to stop her.
How could the Cardinals possibly prevent the Saint, established by God, from going to preach in the New Continent?
Watching the Cardinal retreat with his complicated thoughts, Cecilia silently resolved within herself.
‘If you’re going to the New Continent for the hungry and the naked, I can’t possibly stay here comfortably alone.’
Perhaps Hans even anticipated she’d follow him to the New Continent.
‘That’s why you didn’t feel the need to tell me.’
Because his heart and hers are one.
Of course, Hans never expected she’d chase him all the way to the New Continent.
At the very moment Cecilia resolved to go to the New Continent…
Hans was…
“Ugh… I’m dying.”
After drinking all the liquor the sailors gave him, he was now on the deck, letting the night breeze sober him up.
“Is it because I’m a sailor? This liquor is way too strong.”
The low-quality rum felt like 40 degrees per sip—my head felt like it was splitting open.
Leaning against the railing, I gazed at the night sky.
To them, Leah and I were life-saving benefactors who rescued them and even gifted them a pirate ship—no wonder they were in high spirits.
Moreover, if they handed the pirates over to the New Continent’s administrative authorities, they could receive additional bounties.
In the New Continent, pirates are hated enough to make people shudder.
“Master, does your head hurt a lot?”
I spoke to Leah, who drank almost as much but looked perfectly fine.
“Yeah, why do you look perfectly fine?”
“Well, I’ve… just had a lot of experience with strong liquor.”
To that, I gave a bitter smile.
On battlefields, alcohol serves various purposes.
Used as a painkiller, as a disinfectant.
And after fierce battles, soldiers use liquor to forget the horrors of war.
“Right…”
“Uuugh! That’s why I don’t get drunk from stuff like this anymore.”
Stretching, Leah said as if it were nothing.
Pretending it’s nothing, but how hard must it have been?
No matter how noble the cause of saving the world, sending a girl younger than me to the battlefield leaves me uneasy.
While I was thinking, ‘She’s a bit pitiful…’
“So, Master.”
Leah approached me, startling me.
“Uh, yeah?”
With a flushed face and a slightly coy expression, Leah.
Her small lips parted…
“Please, keep your promise.”
The moment I heard those words… I truly felt I was screwed.
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