Chapter 3

"Master. Lunch is ready."

Lucian, the adventurer hired as our guard, came to call us inside the carriage.

At first, she seemed to have arranged for us to have separate meals with different menus, but when I asked if it wasn't troublesome to prepare separate meals and different menus, she replied that I was the son of a baron. So, I said it was inefficient and that the same menu was fine, leading to the current situation.

For them, it was unexpected that a noble would say such a thing.

Apparently, there are more people like my foolish brothers in my family, so having separate meals would be normal in various ways.

"Lucian, can you please stop calling me 'Master'?"

"But, you are the son of a baron."

"It's not that grand, you know."

In fact, in that house, I am just a shadow.

Now, I am indeed dressed in a somewhat formal outfit with a waistcoat and cravat... so I might look somewhat like a noble. But my attire is just a formality. My true self is far from being a noble.

This trip's guard is officially a request from the baron's family, so I am trying to behave accordingly, but once we reach the border city, I want to quickly change into a magician's outfit. I can only get cheap magic wands and have to make various compromises.

Anyway, it's lunchtime now. The scenery visible from the gentle hills is beautiful, and we decided to have our meal here.

Led by Lucian, we had our meal under the blue sky with the guard adventurers. The weather is nice and peaceful.

Today's meal consists of vegetable soup seasoned with salt, black bread, and dried meat.

The best part is that no one is nitpicking about table manners. The air and the food are both delicious. It's a wonderful feeling of liberation.

The guard adventurers call themselves the Forest Birds and are quite well-known in the Gartner barony and its surroundings. Robin and Fitz, the two warriors, are in the front line. Monica, who is skilled with knives and bows. And Lucian, who can use both healing and attack magic, making for a well-balanced team. The ratio of men to women is exactly even.

Lucian has a somewhat gentle and relaxed atmosphere, and the others also seem like good people. They don't really give off the impression of being adventurers who excel in rough work, but they are indeed skilled.

"By the way, why is Master heading to Termwillis?"

Robin, with her brown hair and freckles, asked. You too, huh.

"Stop calling me 'Master.' It doesn't suit me."

"I'm sorry."

"Hehehe."

Everyone gives me that warm, amused smile, as if I'm a child trying to act grown-up. I wish they would stop that.

It's a matter of my inner feelings, not that kind of thing.

"... Just call me Theodor normally."

Some people call me Theo for short.

"You're going to live there, right?"

"Are you aiming for a big score or something?"

Monica and Fitz asked.

"No, because Termwillis sounds interesting. Plus, I don't like my family home."

"I see..."

"Oh."

When I answered, they nodded in understanding. After nodding, they seemed to think deeply about something.

They are adventurers, after all. Each one has their own reasons for choosing this path, and they might have various personal reasons. At least, they don't mock me as a noble's pastime, which I find very commendable.

I chose the Forest Birds as my travel companions. Several adventurer groups offered to take the job, but I chose them. I asked about their motivations for taking the job, and I liked their response.

They said it was great to get paid to go to Termwillis. It was a reason that felt very much like an adventurer's.

After being hired as guards, they plan to explore the labyrinth there.

I had anticipated that some of the guards might be assassins sent by Catherine. The Forest Birds' motivation might seem the most ridiculous, but it also felt the safest and relatable.

The feelings I have towards Termwillis might be similar to what the adventurers feel towards the border city. They have a connection to the city and harbor dreams and hopes.

I don't particularly like the life I had in Japan.

Maybe because the society was mature. It was hard to live and even harder to die... that sense of stagnation is suffocating when I think about it now.

I don't want to live my life shrugging my shoulders like I did before. I can't bear to have my life taken away unjustly and abruptly, like it was at the end of my previous life. I want to live by my own strength without hesitation.

The journey is going relatively smoothly. With the guards around, weak monsters don't come near.

I entrusted the vigilance to the Forest Birds and decided to practice and experiment with magic during the journey.

At least, if I can handle the skill of magic circulation, which is the core of a battle mage, the rest can be somewhat flexible.

"Master Theodor."

While playing with a small magic circle on my fingertips, Grace tilted her head and called out to me.

"Hmm? What is it?"

"I'm not that knowledgeable about magic, but..."

"Yeah?"

"I've heard that creating a magic circle is a very advanced technique."

Ah... Is that so? I can cast spells with normal incantations, but using them in battle has many disadvantages. The biggest problem is that if you mess up the incantation, it can result in a fumble.

On the other hand, non-incantation casting generally reduces the power of the spell, and it's only practical up to third-tier spells.

Trying to cast fourth to sixth-tier spells, which are considered intermediate, without incantations can actually make the casting slower.

To overcome these issues, the method of drawing a magic circle with magic to construct a spell was developed. Magic circles, as they are called, promise faster and more reliable spell completion than incantations.

There is a downside of increased magic consumption for spell activation, but the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. In BFO, this is a skill that can be acquired, and it's so useful that almost no one who can cast spells doesn't have it. The exceptions are players who use magic only for production or those who find romance in incantations.

"... Can't people who can use it just use it? I didn't really struggle with it."

"That's true. Master Theodor's talent for magic must be a natural gift."

I smiled and answered, and Grace seemed pleased for me.

Well, if asked if it's a natural gift, I can only answer that it is.

As I smiled ambiguously, the carriage suddenly stopped.

"Th-Theodor! It's an emergency!"

Lucian, who was sitting in the driver's seat, called out to me in a panicked voice. I looked out the carriage window in confusion.

The situation was clear at a glance. From the other side of the road, deer, monkeys, wolves, and many other animals were fleeing.

Even goblins and kobolds were running desperately, which indicated a serious threat. Indeed, it was a crisis. The horses were neighing in fear, trapped by the stampede of animals.

I immediately prepared to cast a fourth-tier intermediate light magic, Life Detection. A glowing magic circle spread at my feet, constructing the spell.

This spell makes the aura of living beings visible to the naked eye. The colors vary by broad categories such as plants, mammals, insects, reptiles, and fish. Generally, the stronger the glow, the more powerful the individual.

It's useless against the undead, but let's see what we can see.

... Purple light. It's insect-type monsters. The purple light flies onto the silhouettes of the animals, and the red glow disappears. The outlines are hard to distinguish due to the large number, but they look like ants the size of large dogs.

It's a swarm of killer ants. They sometimes appear in large numbers and cause significant damage. They are definitely heading this way. I hope the animals aren't trying to train us.

"... That's a swarm of killer ants."

"Oh, ants!? A swarm!?"

"Let's run, too!"

Lucian is panicking, and the others seem restless. Even if we try to run, we will surely be caught in this situation.

At the very least, I need to make sure Grace can protect herself.

"Grace, the ring."

"Yes, Master Theodor."

I bit my lip to draw blood and kissed the ring Grace offered.

"--- Release"