Chapter 1 Part 4: I, Who Was a Top in Reality

At the top floor of the Wizard Tower.

A large man knelt on one knee upon the dark purple rug.

With dark brown hair and deep green eyes, he stood nearly two meters tall, his build as massive as a mountain.

Though his disheveled hair partially covered his eyes, his stern impression remained intact.

The silver-white armor of the paladin order suited his mature face, which bore the weariness of life.

If one had to point out a single oddity, it was that his appearance did not suit this place at all—a paladin with the most humane face imaginable, standing in a tower where only wizards could enter.

“Gideon.”

At someone’s call, the man raised his head.

“You know, don’t you?

Where Rudan is.”

From a shadowed area, a small figure walked out and drew closer to the paladin.

The boy in shorts appeared to be only slightly over 160 centimeters tall, looking around fifteen years of age.

With violet hair, red eyes, and a cat-like face, he gave off a peculiar impression, yet he didn’t seem like someone a knight before him would need to flinch from.

But Gideon lowered his gaze and was breaking out in a cold sweat.

The boy let out a soft chuckle and walked over lightly.

Then he placed the tip of the black rod he was holding onto Gideon’s right shoulder.

“I asked you a question.

You should answer.”

Gideon bit his lower lip.

“I…… have nothing I can tell you.”

The boy twisted his lips.

The fact that he couldn’t flatly say he didn’t know was as good as admitting he did.

The man’s integrity, which prevented him from lying even in this situation, struck the boy as rather amusing.

Crack!

The boy swung the rod down onto Gideon’s shoulder.

Having put force into it and aimed for the bone, it must have hurt considerably, but the man endured the beating without so much as a flinch.

Crack!

Crack!

Crack!

After several sharp sounds, the boy finally stopped his movements.

“Don’t forget that I’m watching.”

“……Yes.”

As if his business was concluded, the boy turned his back without hesitation.

It was only after a long while, once the figure had disappeared from sight, that Gideon rose from his spot.

His face, etched with frustration, was wretched.

The fact that the boy had found a lead meant that Rudan’s location would soon be discovered by him.

A being who merely looked like a boy but had lived over two thousand years.

The Tower Lord, Killian, was one of the most powerful wizards among all those currently in existence.

Hot.

Suffocating.

It felt like enduring a tropical night without air conditioning.

My body wasn’t just heating up—it felt like even my brain was boiling.

Who the hell was boiling me alive?

The temperature had been perfectly comfortable until right before I fell asleep last night.

“Ugh…….”

My head throbbed from the fever.

Thinking I should at least drink some cold water, I tried to get up.

No, to be precise, I tried to get up.

“……What?”

Until I realized my body was wrapped up like a cocoon in a thick blanket.

“Rudan!”

A face right in front of me as soon as I opened my eyes.

The golden eyes, glistening with tears, told me one thing—that I still hadn’t returned to reality.

But why did he look like he was at a funeral?

“I was so worried.

You kept shaking, and you had a fever, and you wouldn’t wake up no matter how I called you…… are you okay?”

“I’m fine.

Although if you kept me like that, I probably would have been steamed to death.”

Gasp.

The boy let out a startled breath and frantically pulled me out of the blanket.

Because the sofa I’d been lying on was narrow, there was a brief commotion where I nearly rolled off, but once the air touched my skin directly, I finally felt like I might survive.

“I’m fine now—”

“Go fetch some water.”

“Yes!”

He listens well.

After downing a cup of cold water, I roughly figured out what had happened.

For reasons unknown, Rudan’s body naturally seemed to run a bit hot.

There were so many other bothersome things that I hadn’t thought this far into it, but his breath itself felt warm.

So even though the temperature was comfortable, he must have felt cold in his sleep.

El, seeing him shiver and thinking something was wrong, had tried to take care of him by wrapping him in a blanket like a steamed dumpling.

I was the only one who suffered, having been in such a deep sleep that I didn’t even dream.

“Um…… Rudan, would you come down to the first floor with me?”

Rudan’s frail body apparently also came equipped with low blood pressure, and my vision had been spinning ever since I got up.

I was just focusing my eyes to see straight, but El seemed to think I was angry.

I gave a careless nod to the boy who was speaking cautiously while gauging my reaction, and took the lead down the stairs.

The boy followed with a silly laugh.

And then.

“……”

Upon reaching the first floor, I clamped my mouth shut.

Was I moved?

No, I was nauseated.

“I prepared it so we could have breakfast together.”

On the first floor sat a crude table and two wooden chairs that hadn’t been there yesterday.

On the table were a few of the loaves from the basement, two bowls of soup, two glasses of strawberry milk, and some unidentified vegetables.

I wondered where he’d gotten the ingredients at such an early hour, but that wasn’t the important thing right now.

“……You’ll have to eat all of this.

My stomach’s not feeling well.”

“Oh……”

The savory smell, probably coming from the soup, was triggering my gag reflex.

I felt so nauseous I could have grabbed the wall and started retching right then.

The boy, smacking his lips regretfully, seemed like he’d try to persuade me if I left him be.

“Just bring me the milk.

I think I can manage that much.”

“Yes!”

I hadn’t meant to keep him around by catering to his whims…….

Carrying the cup El had brought me, I climbed the stairs until the smell no longer bothered me, which turned out to be the seventh floor.

Though the stairs were generously sized, my stiff legs screamed from just that short climb.

Incredibly frail.

This was all because he had no muscle.

If Rudan had even a little muscle, his self-esteem wouldn’t have sunk to such depths.

“Hoo…….”

After letting out a long sigh, I looked out the window and brought the cup to my lips.

The milk, sweet as if honey had been added, with strawberry bits that crunched as I chewed—

“Tastes disgusting.”

It was awful.

Objectively, it might have been delicious, but I hated sweet things to begin with.

Even the strawberries I’d enjoyed just yesterday now gave off a strange, unripe smell.

On top of that, the texture felt overly mushy.

An unpleasant sensation like swallowing something slimy and viscous.

The smell was fragrant, and the color didn’t look spoiled, but surely not everything I ate would be like this.

A chill ran down my spine, but I ignored it for now.

Negative predictions that dig a hole all the way to the earth’s core wouldn’t improve anything anyway.

Dealing with things as they came was better for mental health.

Small blessings—Rudan’s tiny, insignificant stomach seemed to feel somewhat full from just one glass of milk.

I wasn’t sure if that counted as fortunate, but the weather was nice, so today would be another day of exploration as planned.

After carefully wrapping the bandages I’d bought yesterday around my neck, I went down to the first floor.

El, having cleaned up the food neatly, came running as if he’d been waiting.

He was also wearing a robe, apparently planning to go out as well.

“Do you know the area around here?”

The boy shook his head.

“I’ve lived in that village my whole life, so…… but I’ve heard things, so if we go there ourselves, we might figure out a little.

What are you looking for?”

“I was thinking of going to a bookstore.”

“A bookstore……”

El thought for a moment, then opened his mouth as if something had occurred to him.

“If we go straight past the village where we met yesterday, there’s a street where merchants often pass through.

They might have a bookstore there too.

It’s a bit of a distance, but if we leave now, we should be able to finish our business and get back while it’s still light.”

You said you didn’t know.

That’s pretty good information.

“Then let’s head that way.”

“Yes!”

……So, how did this come about?

If it hadn’t been for the hellish combination of a scarecrow-like human with no energy and a child whose stride was maybe half that of an adult man, things would have been much better.

But it took roughly two hours to reach the Remington Street that El had mentioned.

Even though the road was almost flat, my stamina drained as if I’d climbed a mountain.

The words “Let’s just give up and go back” rose to my throat, but the kid beside me looked energetic, so I couldn’t bring myself to say let’s rest.

I pushed through with sheer spite, and somehow we made it.

Remington Street was bustling in a way that couldn’t compare to the village we’d visited yesterday.

Even walking with my eyes fixed only on my destination, quite a few distinctive shops caught my eye—if I’d had the stamina and time, looking around wouldn’t have been a bad idea.

‘As if I have the energy to walk.’

To rest briefly and find something that wouldn’t upset my stomach, I stopped by about four restaurants before finally sitting down to eat some unidentified dish with raspberries.

Then, seeing El unable to take his eyes off a staff about my height as we passed by, I just bought him one.

I had enough money to afford that much anyway, and it was payment for using him so far.

Since he was a child, no one really suspected he was a wizard.

After that, we were heading toward the old bookstore, which was expensive enough to warrant haggling but supposedly had the most diverse selection of books in the area, when—

“Hey there, pretty thing!”

I encountered a sleazy man who grabbed my attention with a line that wouldn’t even appear in a 2000s drama.

Wow, I thought I’d never experience this again after high school.

Almost ten years later, and I felt a flicker of nostalgia.

“……Yes?”

“I think I could let you handle some decent money if you work under me.”

“Ah, yes……”

As if that would be anything legitimate.

Probably the entertainment business.

I tried to ignore him and walk past, but he kept sidling up and blocking my way, so there was no escaping through peaceful means.

Glancing down to the side, El was trembling with a pale face.

“El.”

“Y-Yes?”

“Lend me your staff for a bit.”

I couldn’t show a pathetic side in front of a kid.

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