Chapter 113 : Chapter 113
Chapter 113
Merdin brought the cart to a stop in front of a magic tool shop.
The rattling cart halted, but Aquila could not bring himself to move.
The goods had been secured tightly and were not pressing down on him, but the problem was the shaking.
Who would have thought the cart would rattle this violently?
Even the sturdy and stable carriage of House Reschenhardt had not been entirely free of jolts, yet this cart had shaken at an absurd intensity.
At first, he was fine.
Perhaps it was because he had eaten the Fruit of the Guardian Tree—his internal mana flow was still gentle, and the vitality of the forest made his body feel light.
However……
“Are you…… all right……?”
Porzelin and Heinen were sweating profusely.
Even if they had ten mouths, they would have had nothing to say.
After eating the Fruit of the Guardian Tree, their bodies had felt unusually light, and the two swordsmen had been searching for an opportunity to stretch themselves.
And had that opportunity not presented itself?
At first, that had not been their intention, of course—but as they ran side by side, their competitive spirits had flared.
They ran as if competing with one another.
And so Merdin, caught up in their enthusiasm, had urged the horse onward.
Because he had engraved magical formulas into the cart, he knew it would not break even at that speed.
It had been nothing short of reckless acceleration.
And thus…… Aquila Reschenhardt had ended up in this state.
“I…… I will go purchase some medicine immediately.”
Heinen spoke quickly.
Divine Power could not cure motion sickness, so he intended to rely on medicine instead.
“Ahem. Who would have thought he would suffer from motion sickness? Never mind. I know someone directly. Just bring him in properly. Do not let him vomit in the street.”
Merdin shook his head and hopped down from the horse.
He then slipped through the back door of the magic tool shop.
Porzelin and Heinen exchanged awkward glances before nodding.
“……Excuse me.”
Heinen carefully lifted Aquila’s limp body into his arms.
“I-If only…… I had a Red Mane Root of Belmaian in my mouth…….”
Aquila muttered weakly.
At least he had eaten the Fruit of the Guardian Tree, which was why he was still conscious. Otherwise, he would have already collapsed completely.
‘No…… perhaps that would have been better…….’
As Heinen carried him into the shop, Aquila shut his eyes tightly, enduring the pounding dizziness with stubborn resolve.
The Great Spirit circled above his head before landing lightly on his forehead with both tiny feet.
Ding!
[Note from Joreumi: Weak..]
Aquila did not even have the energy to be angry, so he remained silent.
After tapping his forehead a few more times, the Great Spirit finally infused a cool, refreshing energy into his body.
It felt as though his entire body had been submerged in cold spring water……
The rising nausea subsided somewhat, and he felt slightly better than before.
It was the energy of a spirit.
“Hah. Thank you…….”
Aquila whispered faintly, his brow furrowed.
He was annoyed by the absurd message, but honestly, he felt much more alive than before.
Heinen sensed that the invisible Great Spirit had done something for him and relaxed his shoulders slightly.
The Great Spirit bobbed up and down before settling atop Porzelin’s head.
“Lay him down here. Now then, let me see. The motion sickness medicine should be around here somewhere…….”
Merdin gestured across a glass display case and bustled about.
Beneath the glass lay several jeweled accessories. After hesitating over whether it was truly acceptable to place him there, Heinen carefully set Aquila down.
Though the surface was not long enough and Aquila’s legs stuck out slightly, there was nowhere else suitable to lay him inside the shop.
Aquila hastily turned the bag hidden at his lower back aside.
“……Oh! Here it is! This one. Drink it and regain your senses quickly.”
Merdin returned with a small, slender bottle.
Inside it was a green liquid.
“An Eastern-style motion sickness remedy. Drink it all at once.”
After Merdin removed the cap and handed it over, Porzelin and Heinen supported Aquila so he could sit up.
Aquila immediately poured the medicine into his mouth.
“Ghk……!”
He nearly spat it out at once.
It was so bitter that it felt as though his tongue were burning.
But Aquila covered his mouth and forced himself to swallow it.
The moment the words “Eastern-style” had been attached to the medicine, he had already known what it would taste like.
“……Khh! You handle it better than you look. Wait about thirty minutes, and the dizziness will subside quickly.”
Merdin adjusted the bridge of his spectacles and turned away.
He needed to organize the magic tools he had brought and let the horse rest.
Humming cheerfully, as though nothing could delight him more, Merdin headed toward the door before stopping.
“Ah, right. Do not touch anything. There are anti-intruder spells in place. You will not like what happens otherwise!”
After issuing the warning, he opened the door and left.
The unlit magic tool shop was left with only the three of them.
“Are you all right, Young Master? Is the medicine effective?”
“……Much better than before.”
Aquila pressed his cheek against the cool glass display case and took a deep breath.
Along with the spirit’s energy, the medicine was already taking effect, and the pounding headache that had nearly driven him mad had eased somewhat.
Porzelin’s lips parted before she lowered her head.
“I-It is my fault. I knew you were unwell, and that you suffer from motion sickness, yet I completely forgot…….”
“The same applies to me. I will be more careful from now on.”
With their brows drooping, Porzelin and Heinen looked like scolded puppies.
Still, Aquila had forgotten about his motion sickness as well after wandering the forest, so he ultimately shook his head.
‘The quiet ones are always worse…….’
Recalling the two of them behaving no differently than reckless riders, he sighed and added only this:
“Let us keep the speed within reason…….”
“……Yes. Understood.”
“We will remember.”
***
The effectiveness of the “Eastern-style” remedy was remarkable.
Though there was a slight sting in his stomach as a side effect of the potent medicine, the headache and nausea vanished completely.
‘I never paid attention to motion sickness remedies in my previous cycles…… I should stock up on some before returning.’
As soon as he felt better, Aquila climbed down from the display case and sat in a chair, resolving firmly not to forget his motion sickness again.
“Your complexion looks better. Good, good. In that case, come this way!”
Satisfied with Aquila’s appearance, Merdin led them further inside.
Only after extracting several promises that they would not touch anything did he open the door to his workshop.
Various gemstones, enchantment scrolls, rings, and bracelets lay scattered about, and on one side of the desk were magic tool repair instruments.
“This is…….”
The moment he saw them, Aquila could not help but be surprised.
“Ahem! I do not spare any expense when it comes to magic tool equipment.”
Merdin puffed out his chest proudly—and rightfully so.
All the repair tools laid out on the desk were state-of-the-art.
There was a mana infusion machine, gemstone lenses capable of observing the minute flow of mana, gloves enchanted to prevent trembling hands, and a flat plate engraved with wave-like patterns.
‘……Impressive. I did not expect him to be this well-equipped.’
Aquila clicked his tongue inwardly.
He had not expected to encounter someone this devoted to magic tools.
“Normally, I would never lend these to just anyone. But I cannot allow Beirets Hurbel’s numbered magic tool to be repaired with inferior equipment!”
Merdin declared proudly.
“……May I truly use these?”
“Well, anyone carrying a Two-Way Mana Communicator must be the child of a wealthy household. And judging by appearances……”
Merdin examined Aquila and Heinen.
“And that Two-Way Mana Communicator with Beirets Hurbel’s numbering is more expensive than all these tools combined.”
It was Heinen who flinched at that.
He had known it was expensive, but not to that extent.
He instinctively touched the bracelet tucked inside his clothing more carefully than before.
“I will watch closely to see whether you truly know how to handle magic tools. If anything seems suspicious, I will throw you out immediately. Now!”
Merdin pulled out a chair, his eyes gleaming.
It was an exceedingly burdensome gaze.
Aquila deliberately ignored him, sat down, removed the bracelet, and put on the gloves for handling magic tools.
He took a short breath.
It had been a long time since he had handled a magic tool.
But his knowledge remained flawless, as always. He simply had to follow it precisely.
Porzelin watched him anxiously.
She could not dispel the doubt of whether he could truly repair it.
Heinen’s expression, however, was calmer. Considering Aquila’s past actions, he held a strange certainty that he would succeed.
Aquila placed the Two-Way Mana Communicator onto the stabilizing stand and lightly rolled his neck.
“Ah. If you put on the gemstone spectacles—”
“It will not be necessary. This is not a particularly difficult task.”
With that, Aquila placed both fingertips upon the bluish, wave-patterned plate.
Golden mana gathered at his fingertips.
The plate connected to the mana infusion machine glowed gold, and shimmering light flowed into the bracelet fixed on the stand.
And then—
Flaaash!
The bracelet burst with light, and the formulas contained within it shattered instantly, scattering through the room like a galaxy.
“……Gasp!”
Large and small fragments floated throughout the room.
Merdin gasped as he beheld the countless trembling shards of broken characters with his own eyes.
“I-It is this vast……!”
How many formulas had been contained within such a small and slender bracelet?
Aquila swept his gaze across the countless fragments drifting like stars in the night sky.
‘……Beirets Hurbel is an extraordinary formula researcher, but not a creative mage.’
His black eyes found the scattered and fractured clumps of mana.
When he made a minute movement with his fingertips upon the plate, the formulas that had seemed to drift without order began to move slowly.
Srrrk.
They gradually formed structured lines like a spider’s web, and when he curled his fingers, they gathered before his eyes.
‘He fits everything together like puzzle pieces. Do not let it flow loosely—write each character precisely, and it will function correctly.’
When Aquila pulled the lever adorned with a gemstone beside him, the arranged formulas stabilized without the slightest tremor.
Noticing that the entire right corner of the web-like structure was blurred and broken, Aquila picked up the pen lying nearby.
After that, everything was simple.
He only needed to bring the pen tip to the formulas and redraw the characters that had once been embedded there like beads.
Neither too thick nor too thin—each stroke of uniform size and strength.
“Th-This is impossible…….”
Even with the aid of the latest tools, maintaining mana with not a single deviation was no easy feat, even for a seasoned magic tool artisan.
Apply even slightly more force, and the line would thicken. Even a single breath could disturb mana.
Merdin himself doubted whether he could accomplish it properly.
No—at this moment, he believed he absolutely could not.
How much time had passed?
Five minutes? Or thirty?
When Aquila set down the pen and placed his hand upon the plate, the spread-out formulas began to be drawn back into the Communication Bracelet.
With that, the golden light that had filled the room extinguished, and the air became still in an instant.
“It should be finished.”
Aquila removed the bracelet from the stand.
No one spoke.
Even to Porzelin, who did not understand magic tools well, the process had clearly been different.
“W-What in the world, Young Master, are you……?”
She was about to voice her disbelief—
Hummmm!
A blue light began to swirl within the bracelet’s mana stone.