The Song Of Sword And Magic

Chapter 41: Rae’s Troubles 

[Translator — Asuka]

[Proofreader — Karane]

With her eyes closed, Rae let out a long breath. Following that, she walked up to the river and shouted at Hol, who was still standing across the river. “Are these the sacrifices you mentioned earlier? Can it really save Wallis? Is this the value of the Magician’s Tower?”

Since the beginning, Hol had stayed out of the battle as an onlooker. Now, he was still standing quietly on the other side of the river without replying to Rae. 

After Diaz pulled himself together, he realized that he and his two other subordinates could never kill their opponents who were still alive. When he heard Rae yelling at Hol, he turned to the old magician for help. “Hol, help me kill all of them now. We’re just one step away from success!”

Without looking at the nobleman, Hol heaved a sigh, whereupon he raised his right hand and formed a fireball on his palm. 

Niss struggled to her feet and raised both her hands to cast a magic shield with Rae. However, they soon collapsed to the ground as they had no more energy left.

***

All of a sudden, an old voice was heard questioning, “Hol, do you really have the heart to kill your juniors?” 

Hol, who hadn’t shown any emotion on his face since the beginning, widened his eyes suddenly and looked around. After he was distracted, the fireball on his palm also vanished.

“Stop hiding. Come out!” He found the source of the voice and shouted in Rae’s direction.

Just then, a vague figure appeared behind Rae, who sensed something and whirled around, only to meet her mentor, Moses.

“Master? Are you really my master?” Rae couldn’t believe her eyes and spoke in an agitated tone. 

Gradually, Moses’s figure became clear. His long gray eyebrows hung loose beside his eyes, and his gray beard even reached his stomach. “Yes, Rae. It’s been a long time since we last met. You’ve grown more mature than I expected.”

“Master, why did you leave me? There’s a lot I need to tell you, and there are many questions I have to ask you. Master…” Rae trotted and crashed into the old magician’s embrace. She started tearing up as though she was trying to vent out all her sorrow for the past few years. At this instant, she was no longer the calm and collected magician; she was just a young girl, after all.

“I’m sorry, Rae. I had no choice. I couldn’t bear to see you turning from an innocent girl into someone else.” Moses stroked her head gently. 

With teary eyes, Rae stared at the old magician. “Master, a doubt has been troubling me for almost ten years. I thought I’d hate you for this, but now I know that I can never be resentful of you.”

Moses moved away from her a little and looked at her in a cherishable manner. “I know, Rae. I had wanted to clear your doubt, but I still couldn’t find a chance to tell you about this right before I left. Now, I’ll tell you all you need to know.”

He then heaved a sigh and talked about the past. “Rae, do you remember that you came down with a serious illness when you were fifteen? You were getting weaker by the day until you couldn’t breathe smoothly. I’d asked for many people’s help and tried all sorts of methods, but you were still getting closer to death.”

“Yes. But didn’t you manage to cure me in the end?” Rae wiped away her tears and nodded.

“I didn’t cure you. It’s you who cured yourself.” Moses shook his head helplessly.

“What? I cured myself? How was that possible?” Rae looked at him in disbelief.

“Just when I was in despair, I recalled a piece of information I had read in a book that dark magic could transfer anything in the world to the Shadow Plane, so an idea came to my mind.” Moses continued.

Rae had figured out what happened next. “So you told me to learn dark magic and transfer my illness to the Shadow Plane?”

“Yes. I went to the library to borrow a book on dark magic. As you know, no one is allowed to learn dark magic in the Magician’s Tower, so they refused to lend me the book.” Moses stepped forward. “Therefore, I lied to them that I had discovered that dark magic was useful in the fight against the Dark Tide, so I wanted to learn more about it. Eventually, they gave me the book because I was an archmage.”

***

Rae remained silent, and Moses went on to say, “Initially, I tried to use dark magic to seal the illness in the shadow within your own body temporarily. Seeing that you were getting better by the day, I was elated.”

Rae pressed her lips together and recalled the incident in the past. 

“When you had recovered and were able to use magic on your own, I passed you the book and asked you to learn it. It took a long time to move the illness. During this period of time, you had to rely on yourself to seal the illness. By now, I suppose you’ve completely transferred the illness to the Shadow Plane.” Moses turned around and asked caringly.

“Yes. I don’t need to use dark magic to seal it anymore. I’m now as good as before I fell ill.” Rae nodded and replied. With a frown, she mustered enough courage and asked, “But Master, why did everyone say that you told me to learn dark magic because you were trying to come up with a way to deal with the Dark Tide? This has been troubling me for a long time. I know you’ve been protective of me, so it’s really hard for me to believe it. But everyone kept telling me the same thing…” Rae said in a choking voice.

Moses heaved a sigh and replied in a hoarse voice, “Just when you were as healthy as before your illness, the other high-level magicians discovered that you were learning dark magic, so they came to question me. Left with no choice, I lied to them that I was just making you learn dark magic to destroy the Dark Tide.”

Rae nodded repeatedly, for this was the truth she had been wanting to know. Now, all her troubles vanished. 

“Now that you’ve recovered, I feel happier than if I could live for a few more years.” The old magician smiled, but his expression soon turned solemn. “However, at that time, I also discovered the side effects of learning dark magic. I couldn’t bear to see you crying every day, so I decided to leave.”

Rae shook her head and started tearing up again. “No, Master. If you told me the truth, I wouldn’t have blamed you. But after you left, I grew resentful of you for the following ten years.”

With a smile, Moses placed his hand on her head. “There are two sides to the same coin. If I didn’t leave at that time, you would have remained a willful lady. Look how mature you are now.”

Rae cried harder as she brushed away her tears. “I’d rather still be the willful lady!” 

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