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Chapter 14 – Secret of the Eyes
“I’m not an adventurer, I’m here to sell medicine.”
“I thought you were a guide for adventurers.”
While drinking tea after dinner, Clare explains the reason for her visit to the capital. Selena nods as she touches the wooden cup.
“So… I know a little about the Great Sea of Trees because of the ingredients for making medicine, but it’s really dangerous there. If you don’t take proper knowledge and precautions, even in shallow areas, you can get hurt.”
“If someone who can use magic like Clare says so… it must be true.”
Selena put her hand on her chin and thought deeply. Her expression was serious… or maybe it was more serious.
(Is it a choice that you know is dangerous…?)
Clare doesn’t know Selena’s situation. But even if she gives up, if she has a problem, she has to find another way to solve it. Whether it’s money or something else.
In fact, the resources obtained from the Great Sea of Trees are worth money. Even if you don’t go for the riches, you can get from ruins, if you have the ability, confidence, knowledge and experience to make money, then entering the Great Sea of Trees is a viable option, and it’s more common. Clare also thinks that Selena is a talented person, even though she is young.
However, she is young, and in terms of achievements and connections, it’s questionable. So it’s not difficult to understand why she would become an adventurer in Toland, where meritocracy is the norm. It’s a shortcut to make up for both.
“–Yeah. I’m glad I invited you to dinner after all. If you give me permission, I think I can help you a little bit about the Great Sea of Trees and magic…”
“I-Is that true…!?”
Selena stood up from her chair as if she hadn’t realized what Clare said.
“Yes. But I am also in training. I cannot just tell others what my master taught me.”
“Oh. So you asked if I had time after this.”
“That’s right.”
Clare nodded. Selena seemed to have regained some composure and sat down quietly in her chair.
“That’s a very kind offer. But… why would you go to such lengths for me when we just met?”
When Selena asked, the doll folded its arms and tilted its head.
“Hmm… Maybe it’s because we got to know each other… Besides, explaining what I know to others helps me organize my knowledge and thoughts and helps me train, so it’s not like it’s a story that doesn’t benefit me, right?”
“I see…”
Selena gave a wry smile at Clare’s words.
Of course, Clare’s basic premise was that Selena didn’t seem like a bad person. The idea that teaching others is also a way to learn for oneself is based on her experience in her previous life. And… I also had the same thought because I had been helped by someone else.
“Thank you for your offer, Clare. It’s not decided yet, but I’m pleased that you offered to help me.”
Selena straightened up and bowed to Clare. Clare nodded in response.
“Yes. Whatever the master’s answer, I promised to be back at the inn in time for dinner, so let’s move in a little while.”
“…Hmm.”
When Rona returned to the inn after finishing her business, Clare returned shortly after. She returned early, so it was still a while before dinner.
Clare was accompanied by… a brunette girl who Rona didn’t know. Rona was drinking tea leisurely in the dining room on the first floor, but when she saw the two of them, she let out a voice and tilted her cup.
“Well, this is Selena, whom I met in town. Selena, this is my master, Rona.”
“N-nice to meet you. My name is Selena. Sorry to bother you while you’re relaxing.”
“Well, I don’t really mind. I’m guessing you brought me here to talk about something?”
After saying this to Selena, who looks embarrassed, he turns his gaze to Clare.
“Yes. I’d like to explain step by step how we met, is that okay?”
“Please do. Selena, I see. You seem nervous too. Sit down and make yourself comfortable.”
“Excuse me.”
Clare and Selena sit down around the table, and then Clare begins to talk.
I was followed, so I disappeared, and when I checked who it was, it was the men I met at the gate. Then Selena came to help me after hearing some disturbing stories about the men in town. Selena was able to visually perceive magic that is normally invisible to the naked eye, and was able to see through the concealment barrier and the disguise of the hair color. The conversation that followed in the dining hall. She explained each of these things one by one.
Rona listened to Clare’s story, nodding occasionally, but after hearing the whole story, she let out a voice of understanding.
“–I see. I can see why you brought her here. You’ve found something interesting.”
Saying this, she turned her gaze to Selena. Selena straightened up a little as Rona looked at her.
“First, your eyes. They’re just as Clare saw them. Even when you use your power, your appearance doesn’t change. In other words, it’s not a kind of magic eye, so it’s a constant-activation type unique magic.”
“Unique… magic”
“You don’t seem to have had any contact with magic before, so you don’t seem to be aware of it or have any knowledge, but it’s a rare talent. However, that kind of constant type tends to have a big influence on the type of magic you can use.”
Selena puts her hand on her eye upon hearing those words.
“So, Clare’s disguise being exposed this time is like an exception among exceptions. Aside from unique magic, there are usually several steps or methods to break it, and that’s the focus of whether you can see through it or not. Let’s check it out. I’ll flip a coin, so guess whether it’s heads or tails.”
As she says this, Rona takes out a coin and flicks it into the air. She grabs the coin, which is spinning unnaturally at high speed, in the air and looks at Selena.
“When you open your palm, the tails will be on top… I think. It looked like there was some kind of magic on it, so that’s if it doesn’t affect the results.”
“Hmm. I see. So that’s how it looks.”
Rona said with amusement, and opened her fist. In her palm was a coin showing its backside.
“Clare, what spell did you just use?”
“Two things. One to speed up the coin’s rotation and… an illusion. The illusion spell makes it impossible to tell the heads or tails of the coin itself.”
Clare, who was suddenly asked, answered through the doll. It was different from the question to Selena.
“That’s right. Since both sides were shown as heads, there’s no way to be sure which was the heads or tails. The power to see things and the power to see through things without being influenced by magic. I think you have both.”
Clare and Selena nodded in agreement to Rona’s analysis. And that analysis was precisely what Clare had predicted.
“It’s true, even when people around me say the movement is fast… I’ve seen it in the past when I concentrate and it feels slow. And magic… the way it shines is different depending on the magic used, so I thought that was just how magic was…”
“Once you get used to it, you’ll be able to distinguish magic that you normally can’t see with your eyes. I can understand why you might not be aware of it. If you’re born with a permanent type, it’s a normal sight that you’ve seen since birth.”
It’s probably a different story if you later discover your unique magic. Or, like Clare, it’s easier to notice if there’s a clear difference from your previous life, but that’s an even more unusual case.
“It all makes sense now… The people who taught me magic up to now have acknowledged that I have plenty of magical power, but I was unable to respond well to their instruction because I was prone to show strengths and weaknesses… that’s what it comes down to.”
“Well, if you can’t analyze and learn about unique magic that you’re not even aware of, it’s probably impossible to teach you magic well. It might be a bit harsh to blame them.”
Although unique magic is useful, it appears that you’ve had a lot of trouble with it, Selena said with a sincere tone, and Rona shrugged her shoulders in response.
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