The Song Of Sword And Magic

Chapter 50: The Great Sages

[Translator — Asuka]

[Proofreader — Karane]

The next afternoon, Rae was the first one to awaken. With sleepy eyes, she looked around and realized that her companions were still sound asleep. She had wanted to sleep for a while longer, but Stan was snoring so loudly that she could never slumber off again. Therefore, she decided to get up to put more firewood into the fireplace and boiled a pot of water.

When the minty aroma permeated the house, Niss turned over in her cloak. Unable to resist the fragrance, she opened her eyes and sat up.

“It’s afternoon now. Time to get up.” Feeling refreshed after a night’s sleep, Rae sipped the tea.

“They’re still asleep.” Rubbing her eyes, Niss got on her feet and took a seat by the table as she poured herself a cup of tea.

“Ignore them. Let’s have a chat.” Rae stood up to take a look at Fern, who was apparently still dreaming.

“Yeah? Is there something you need to tell me?” Niss was surprised, for Rae had never spoken to her in such a serious manner before.

“Yes. Don’t worry. It’s not about the Magician’s Tower.” Rae sat back on her chair and picked up the cup to cover her mouth. “What do you think about Fern?”

“What? What on earth are you talking about…” Niss blushed, not knowing what to say.

“It’s been a long time since the two of you set off on your journey. You’ve experienced a lot together, and he’s always taken good care of you. I’m sure you’ve developed feelings for him, right?” Rae asked a question which Niss could never deny.

Without responding to her, Niss took a sip of her tea.

Rae went on to say, “Have you thought about where the two of you will go after the trial?”

“I guess I’ll go back to the Magician’s Tower. After I become a magician, I still have a lot to learn. As for Fern, I don’t know about him—” Niss replied hesitantly.

“You may not see each other again.” Rae interrupted her and told her the answer.

Niss fell silent and lowered her head to look at the purple flowers floating on the tea. Her eyes welled up with tears, which then fell into the tea cup.

“I guess it’s still too early to talk about it with you.” Rae shook her head as she walked up to Fern and Stan before kicking them gently. “It’s time to wake up.”

In an instant, Stan sat up and crouched down on the floor as he clenched the hilt with alertness. “What’s wrong? Did anything happen?”

On the other hand, Fern gripped the sword in his hands and leaned against the wall as he scanned the surroundings.

“The sun is high above the sky now. It’s time to discuss what we should do next.” Rae prepared two cups of tea for them and took a seat.

***

It was then that Fern and Stan loosen up and languidly took their seats by the table. As Fern sipped his tea, he looked at the sunlight which had filtered through the gaps on the windows. “Looks like it’s the afternoon now, It’s too late to leave. Let’s stay here for one more night and leave this place tomorrow.”

Niss didn’t want Fern and Stan to realize that she was crying, so she quickly pulled herself together. “Fern, you can drink mine. I’ve had enough.”

Fern took her cup and directly gulped it down. “Niss, where’s our next destination? Have you gotten any directive from your magic cane?”

“Yes, I was about to tell you this.” Niss took back her cup and poured herself another cup of hot tea. “It’s strange because my magic cane didn’t give me any directive this time. It was Hersey who told me about it personally.”

Rae found it strange as well and asked, “Oh, really?”

“Yes.” Niss took a sip of the tea, but the high temperature of it made her frown. “According to Hersey, our next destination is protected by a magic barrier, so my magic cane can’t detect that place. However, Hersey has a rough idea about where the next sacred seal is according to his friend’s divination as well as his own reading.”

“A friend’s divination?” Fern raised his voice. “Is it… reliable?”

“There shouldn’t be a problem because I’ve heard about his friend before. It’s the great sage of the Magician’s Tower, Adeline, who told him this. One year ago, she came to Doyle and told him this secret personally.” Niss pouted and blew air at the tea.

“The great sage? Miles said that it was two great sages who passed them the Sacred Hallow. Something feels off to me.” Stan voiced his concern.

“Stan, if I didn’t hear what Miles said in the Source of Magic, I would have refuted you now, but now I’m not so sure.” Niss put down her tea cup and tucked her hair behind her ear. “The great sages are different from ordinary magicians, for they’ve received the Light Blessing. Only the most righteous magicians are qualified to be the great sages, and they’ll never partner up with the Dark Tide.”

With an impassive gaze, Rae said in an indifferent manner, “Even though they’ve received the Light Blessing, it doesn’t mean they will never be depraved. As long as the temptation is great enough, they’ll also degenerate. As for how attractive the temptation will be, it’s beyond our imagination. After all, there’s only a handful of great sages on the entire continent.”

“Rae, what do you think could be the greatest temptation for them?” Fern asked.

Rae gazed at him and replied slowly, “The great sages are like demi-gods in Wallis. The only being that can make them fall on their knees is a real god. Do you get it now?”

Before Fern could utter a word, Niss said, “You mean the Dark Lord? Have they come to an agreement with the Dark Lord?”

“Think about it. Why would the Dark Lord awaken all of a sudden? It’s been centuries since he was sealed off, and he’d never awakened before. During this period of time, the Dark Tide would only return to Wallis every one hundred years. However, everything has been so unusual this time. Don’t you think there must be a reason behind this?” Rae told them her speculation. Even though it was a piece of shocking news, she still appeared to be calm.

“You’re right.” Fern nodded. “But we have no choice. Aside from following Hersey’s instruction, there’s nothing else we can do.”

“I don’t think Hersey would lie to us, but he might not even be aware that the secret the great sage told him was actually a trap.” Niss wouldn’t believe that Hersey would frame them, for she was moved by the fact that he had sacrificed a few years off his lifespan to cast a magic on her that could protect her once at the most critical moment.

***

“Adeline… I mean the great sage that you’ve just mentioned… Can we trust her directive?” Stan looked seriously at Niss. He was most repulsive to this kind of trickery, but there was nothing he could do about it.

“To be honest, I’d rather choose to trust her.” Niss tilted her head and pursed her lips.

“Before there’s any evidence that suggests she’s a liar, I guess we don’t have to question her integrity for the time being, even though I also think that something is amiss.” Fern shook his cup to make the tea cool down faster. “Before that, we’ll just do as Hersey has said. I trust him.”

“Yes, I trust him as well. Moreover, I think even the great sage couldn’t fool a high-level magician like Hersey. He would have discovered something if he was told a lie, and he would give us the best directive he could think of. Therefore, I think we can follow what he has told us for now.” Rae gulped down her tea and gazed at her companions. “Despite that, the danger that lies ahead of our journey will be beyond our imagination.”

For that instant, all of them fell silent. The house was so quiet that only the crackling of fire and their breathing could be heard. 

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