Chapter 3

3. The Chosen Child (3)

A few hours ago.

Oliver and Joseph stood facing each other across a lavish table.

"Should we eat this food?"

Oliver thought for a moment and shook his head.

"No."

"Why not?"

"Well... it's a bit hard to explain."

"Then explain it in a complicated way."

"Um... well... the light was strange."

"Light?"

"Yes, I mean... emotions. They flicker brightly when you're angry, dim and waver when you're sad, and tremble when you're afraid."

"And?"

"That man—"

"—the innkeeper?"

"Yes, the innkeeper's light. It was faintly twisted."

"What does it mean to be twisted?"

"I'm not sure. I've only seen it a few times. Like when the principal took me to the mine, or when the supervisor showed it before assigning me to dangerous tasks."

"So, it means he's lying?"

"Um... yes, I think so."

Oliver's answer seemed to satisfy Joseph, who nodded.

"Why would a kind innkeeper lie to us?"

"I'm not sure."

"The reason is obvious. He has ulterior motives. For example, he might have mixed sleeping pills into this delicious food. Then, after we fall asleep, he could kill us and steal our belongings."

It was not a pleasant story, but Joseph seemed somewhat excited, as if recalling a childhood memory.

"So, what should we do?"

"Um... should we not eat the food?"

"That's not it. If we don't eat, the innkeeper will notice. Instead, we should pretend to be fooled and put him at ease. Remember, cunning is important to a black mage."

Oliver nodded with his usual blank expression. Joseph wasn't sure if he understood but didn't press the issue. Instead, he pulled a test tube from his pocket.

Oliver's eyes lit up slightly at the sight of the test tube.

Inside, sealed with a black stopper, was a black liquid, thick and tar-like, with a life-like movement.

"That... is black light... emotions, right?"

Oliver asked.

".... Yes, that's right. It's condensed extracted emotions."

"How did you do it?"

Oliver's eyes gleamed with greed as he asked. Joseph, seeing this, warned him.

".... Don't rush. It's not something you can learn yet. Instead, I'll show you something more interesting. Consider yourself lucky."

With that, Joseph removed the stopper from the test tube. As the stopper came off, the liquid began to churn, and Joseph placed his hand over it.

As his hand was placed, the liquid calmed and a thread was pulled out. It was like a spinning wheel, and the thread, once fully pulled, began to swirl around Joseph's hand, gradually turning into light.

From liquid to thread, and then back to light.

Oliver watched this amazing and mysterious scene in silence. No, it was more than just watching.

From the moment Joseph opened the stopper, everything seemed to slow down like a slow-motion video, and he instinctively understood everything—the principles, mechanisms, and even the techniques.

This was the moment when the theories he had built in his imagination on the way here were proven.

Black light, emotions, could be transformed for various purposes and processed into something new.

"Come out. Eater."

Joseph whispered to the black light.

The black light churned and coiled, then gathered into one and began to expand.

"What is... this?"

Oliver said, looking at the floating sphere. It was the size of a human head, and out of curiosity, he reached out to touch it, much like a child reaching out to touch fire for the first time.

Just before Oliver's hand touched the sphere, one side of it opened wide, and a large, red tongue and white teeth appeared from the gap.

Thus, a giant mouth appeared in the air.

"Eater. The cleaner I created. It wasn't originally for this purpose, but... eat all the food."

With Joseph's words, the Eater began to greedily devour the food on the table, licking the floor clean. Oliver was amazed by the sight.

Black magic... it was really interesting.

"Surprised?"

".... Yes."

"Then, stay awake tonight. You might see something even more interesting."

And it was true.

***

"One."

Joseph said as he stepped outside the door. The terrified inn servant screamed and started to run.

"EEEEEEEEK!"

"Two."

Joseph, undeterred, extracted another thread from the test tube. The thread turned into light, which quickly condensed into a bullet-like shape.

All of this happened in just 1-2 seconds. Joseph aimed at the fleeing servant and said,

"Three. Hate Bullet."

With a shout, the light projectile flew and pierced the servant's back. The force was so great that a pearl-sized hole appeared, and the servant died without even a scream.

Joseph watched this indifferently, then shrugged and walked downstairs. Oliver followed him.

Although it would have been safer to stay in the room, his curiosity and thirst for knowledge wouldn't allow it.

He had to see it through. It felt like a mission.

"Indeed, it's just as I imagined."

Joseph muttered, looking at something.

Oliver looked over Joseph's shoulder at the inn's first floor. He saw a naked guest... no, a corpse, and a middle-aged woman moving the body.

The plump innkeeper looked stunned when she saw Joseph and Oliver.

"Huh? Huh? I'm sure they had dinner...?"

"I'm a bit cautious and don't eat just anything."

Joseph answered the woman politely and extended his hand.

"Hate Bullet."

With a shout, the hate projectile instantly pierced the middle-aged woman's head and chest.

"EEEEEEK-!"

A servant who was mopping the blood stains in the corner screamed and ran into the kitchen. Joseph followed leisurely, and Oliver maintained a safe distance behind him.

It was so enjoyable. The ability to shoot emotions like bullets with black magic... it felt like a dream come true. It was incredibly fascinating.

As they approached the kitchen, the fleeing servant emerged, holding a shotgun and aiming it at Joseph.

At that moment, Oliver thought. He needed to spread the emotions like a shield. The image formed in his mind as if he had known it all along, and to his amazement, Joseph used the black light in his hand to create a shield larger than a person.

"UAAAAAH! Die!"

"Black Shield."

Bang!— A loud gunshot echoed, but the wide black shield deflected all the bullets effortlessly.

The servant looked as if he had been possessed by a ghost, seeing the bullets from such close range being so easily blocked. But this was a fatal mistake.

"Hate Bullet."

Joseph shot the hate projectile without mercy. With a *thud*, the servant fell, holes appearing in his chest and stomach.

It was beautiful! From the strange creature to the bullets and shield... everything Oliver had imagined and more came to life.

How could he describe this? Yes, it was the creative wonder of bringing clay figurines to life.

"Tsk tsk tsk. The first virtue in this business is to know your customers... but you are so foolish."

Joseph muttered as he approached the fallen corpse. Then, he suddenly remembered something.

"But didn't you say there were five in total...?"

At that, Oliver involuntarily turned his head toward the basement. His eyes met those of the last servant, who had just come up from the basement.

Drenched in sweat as if he had just moved a heavy load, the servant's expression turned from stunned to enraged upon seeing the innkeeper's corpse, and he lunged forward.

"You damn brat!"

He was more terrifying than the mine supervisor. The butcher's knife in his hand was sharp enough to cut anyone, and the light emanating from his body was more intense than anything Oliver had ever seen. If caught, death was certain.

Was Oliver afraid? No, quite the opposite.

Oliver extended his hand. No one had taught him, but he did it instinctively. He then extracted and took the enraged servant's emotions.

The movement of the black light under Oliver's touch was incredibly wondrous, though he couldn't explain how he did it.

If he had to describe it, it was like walking. Something you could do naturally at some point. It was in the realm of talent, as Joseph had said.

Thump... Thump... Thump...

His cold heart beat quietly, and all his nerves focused on his hand. The servant was only a few steps away, but he wasn't anxious or afraid.

Oliver's attention was solely on the emotions in his hand. He visualized in his mind.

He condensed the churning emotions like Joseph, but faster and more precisely.

Time slowed, and Oliver could see the emotions changing in his hand.

The passionate emotions, like fire, found stability in Oliver's hand and transformed into the shape he imagined.

Oliver shaped his hand into a gun. The hate projectile gathered at his fingertips. From then on, he relied on instinct.

Ready. Aim. Fire.

"Hate Bullet."

With a shout, the hate projectile from his fingertips flew and pierced the servant's chest. A fist-sized hole appeared, and the servant died with wide eyes. A heavy silence filled the inn.

"...."

Oliver stared at his hand, recalling the sensation of using black magic for the first time and savoring the afterglow.

Someone quietly placed a hand on Oliver's head. It was Joseph, who looked at him with great admiration and gently stroked his head.

"That's it."

***

Oliver followed Joseph down to the basement. Inside, the loot from the murdered guests was piled up.

Expensive coats, pants, and shoes. Various watches, wallets, belts, and wedding rings filled the boxes.

"Heh heh... they really collected a lot."

Joseph pulled out a pouch from his pocket. The pouch, made of dull leather, had a zipper that looked like teeth, and it was somewhat unsettling.

"Collect everything."

As soon as Joseph spoke, clumsy hands and feet sprouted from the pouch and began to greedily devour the loot.

After confirming the pouch had collected everything, Joseph approached Oliver.

"What are you looking at?"

"Just... I was wondering why they collected this."

Oliver said, looking at the packaged corpses and stacks of blood bags. He was more curious than afraid.

"To sell in the black market. There's nothing you can't buy or sell there. You might need to use it in the future."

"Me?"

"Yes, black mages inevitably use the black market. Don't you want to be a black mage?"

Oliver shook his head. He actually wanted to. It was interesting and fascinating, wasn't it?

Joseph placed his hand on Oliver's head again, a very affectionate gesture.

"Why do you think I bought you?"

Oliver couldn't answer. He had heard many interesting stories about how to use emotions and what black magic was, but he didn't know why Joseph had bought him. It was natural, as he hadn't been interested.

"My goal is to raise an excellent black mage. That's why I gather talented children."

"Really?"

"Exactly. Do you know why I want to raise an excellent black mage?"

Oliver shook his head.

"To survive. As a black mage, you naturally face the world's oppression and threats. The only way to survive is to become strong. And I raise talent to become strong."

Oliver didn't fully understand but nodded.

"But raising talent is not easy. Finding a talented child is difficult, and there's no education system like for clerics, paladins, or mages. You have to bear all the effort and cost of education... do you understand how hard that is?"

Oliver nodded mechanically.

"Needless to say, it's a huge stroke of luck to catch my eye. However, I don't raise talent for free. A fitting price is required for that luck."

".... I don't have any money."

"Money is not necessary. Something more profound is needed. To serve me as your master and owner, to obey and be loyal."

Oliver saw the light. The churning light and desire from Joseph's body. Understanding the light, Oliver immediately bowed his head.

"I will obey... Master."