Chapter 30 : The Magic Stones and the Hidden Threat

A shapeless mineral that the earth spews out.

That was the grandiose explanation attached to magic stones. But now that I’ve seen its appearance in person, I realized that the explanation was not an exaggeration.

‘The earth and trees seem to be screaming.’

Magic stones, which spewed out dark red energy, were scattered in the middle of the forest. The ground and plants near them were all dyed the same color as the magic stones.

It was a sight that made me instantly understand how inhaling a little dust could make you sick for two years.

Swoosh.

Suddenly, a strong wind stirred through the forest, making a sound like leaves breaking.

The wind that came to my side lifted a magic stone into the air. The fist-sized magic stone, floating in the air, was shaped like a dark red amethyst.

I wondered if there were any features visible in its appearance, so I stared at it for a long time, but I couldn’t find anything in particular.

Except for the dark red energy that soared upwards like a candle flame, it was no different from an ordinary mineral.

When I lifted another magic stone for further investigation, I noticed one strange thing.

‘The shapes are all different.’

If the magic stone floating in the air was in the shape of an amethyst, the one I was holding now looked like an ordinary stone.

No, to be exact, it wasn’t a stone. I couldn’t see it clearly because of the overflowing energy, but it looked like two different colors were painted here and there.

It resembled iron ore.

The other magic stones were the same.

There were at least five different types of magic stones scattered throughout the forest.

Minerals defined by one name may differ in size and shape, but their structure and composition are usually the same.

And if the structure and composition are the same, the appearance is also similar.

But the fact that all these different minerals are called “magic stones” means there is only one thing to expect.

That is, the cause that binds the magic stones as a whole is not the stone, but the dark red energy.

‘There’s a possibility that it’s a different mineral until it receives the energy.’

Just as rocks affected by magma during the formation process are classified as igneous rocks, these are affected by energy and have a large classification called magic stones.

If that’s the case, finding the cause of that energy might be a great help in Aria’s recovery.

‘But it’s a familiar energy.’

Yes, it was similar to the energy that emanated from the red demons. But the difference was that the energy contained in this magic stone was stickier and dirtier.

I floated my body and headed for the ridge. It was similar to the forest in that there was no energy of living things, but it felt even more desolate because there were no plants surrounding it.

And magic stones were popping out here and there, making me doubt whether it was truly human land.

‘It’s no different from the underworld I’ve only seen in novels.’

If the weather were also bad and it were night, that feeling would have doubled.

I landed in the middle of the ridge and tried to draw water from nearby.

‘······?’

But the only thing I could feel was the moisture near the trees in the forest below. I couldn’t sense any large amounts of water, like groundwater.

There was no water in this vicinity.

Could this even be the influence of the magic stone?

I expanded my senses further and brought some water from the nearest stream.

I began to gather the magic stones nearby, one by one, through the water that floated in the air.

Since Jonan said he got sick from dust, I had no choice but to seal the wind.

When I brought all the magic stones in the forest—without exception—quite a lot were gathered.

Enough to fill a dump truck. There may be some that aren’t visible on the surface, so there are probably several times more buried beneath the ground.

‘I’ve collected them, but how do I deal with this?’

If I dig a hole and store them, the nearby land will be contaminated by the magic stones. I didn’t want to increase the polluted area.

Then, I’ll just send them back to where they came from.

‘Judging from the collapsed shape, it started from the top, unlike a landslide that sweeps down the side.’

I lifted the lump of magic stones wrapped in water and flew to the top. This place, too, was a mess like the others.

The collapsed shape looked like a volcanic crater.

‘It came out of here, as expected.’

All the dirt on the top was black. Compared to the sparsely embedded magic stones, the area was very large. I could guess this was the home of the magic stones I had gathered.

In order to contaminate it as little as possible, I wrapped the whole magic stone with contaminated soil and then wet it with water to make a huge mud tomb.

‘Now what should I do? To find the cause······ do I have to dig up the mountain?’

I was making the next plan while looking at the tomb.

Then, suddenly, I felt a faint killing intent from behind and quickly turned my body to look at the source.

When I checked the entity that emitted the killing intent, I couldn’t help but be puzzled.

The creature looked like a giant mole. It was staring at me with only its head sticking out, as if it had just dug up the ground.

And dark red energy was swirling around it.

[······Why is a red demon here?]

A red demon that should have disappeared when the red moon ended was appearing before me now.

“Daughter, are you not tired?”

“Yep! I’m fine!”

“I guess so······ you’ve been carried by Daddy since a while ago.”

“Hehe.”

Jonan, who was happily watching Rachel sing in his arms, was walking along the road leading to the city, looking around.

‘······So, our village was the only one that had a good harvest.’

I had heard the news, but when I saw it with my own eyes, the difference was stark.

The golden fields that filled my eyes until I left the village completely disappeared a few minutes later.

Exactly, only the area where the Dragon God had given the blessing of rain had ripe grains.

The land that did not receive His blessing could not hold the roots of the plants and was suffering from thirst.

‘If it weren’t for Him, we would have been in the same situation···.’

No, before that, the village would have been destroyed, and the residents would have lost their lives.

Jonan once again expressed his gratitude in his heart and glanced at his daughter.

“Hmph······.”

Rachel, who was tired, was dozing off in his arms. She was the Miko of the Dragon God.

And she was a colleague who suddenly joined the journey.

Although the colleague was just walking around happily, saying she was hungry when she was hungry, and asking to be carried when she was tired, Jonan felt happy with that.

‘But why did the Dragon God choose our daughter?’

It is absolutely forbidden to doubt His choice, but there was still a question.

So far, there was nothing particularly special about his daughter that would explain why the Dragon God had chosen her.

Except for the fact that she was several times cuter, more lovely, and more charming than other children.

‘It’s special to think that she said “Daddy” instead of “Mommy” as her first word.’

How happy I was then. I was so excited that I carefully held Rachel, who was 1 year old, and danced. I didn’t even notice Sophie’s expression.

Perhaps she hadn’t expected Rachel to call out “Daddy” first, and her shocked face was a masterpiece.

“······Could it be that He chose her because of her cuteness? That sounds plausible?”

Jonan, who was making an implausible suggestion, suddenly noticed the city was getting closer.

The gray ramparts, which seemed to be attached below the western mountain range, were gradually coming into view.

The proud gray castle of the barony. This castle, which was built around the time the Runan Kingdom was first established, was famous for its strong defense even within the kingdom.

‘That’s in the past though···.’

As the Count’s family fell into sorrow, the barony and the castle naturally weakened in status.

In two years, many people left the territory and headed for other regions.

Additionally, a huge amount of money had been spent to treat Lady Aria’s disease, and the support provided by the Count’s family disappeared.

If it weren’t for the administrative processing of the 2nd and 3rd-class knights in the Count’s family and the help of the residents, a riot could have occurred.

‘If we solve Lady Aria’s case this time······.’

It was clear that many things would change. Of course, for the better.

As the city gradually got closer, people trying to enter the city began to appear one by one.

Some people’s clothes and luggage seemed to be selling prey, just like Jonan in the past.

The difference from last year was that there was no wagon full of grain.

“Rachel. We’re almost there.”

“Ugh···?”

“You said you wanted to go into the castle yourself. Shall I put you down?”

“Yes! Put me down!”

Rachel, who had been dozing off in an uncomfortable position but seemed to have regained her energy, ran around excitedly.

Jonan followed Rachel, who was heading to the city first, and approached the gate.

“Is that Jonan?”

“Hello.”

The soldier guarding the gate approached Jonan, recognizing him as familiar. But unlike usual, he was puzzled when he saw Jonan with a light body. He tilted his head when he saw the little girl holding Jonan’s hand.

“You brought a different load today?”

“······? I’m not a load!”

“Haha, is that so? Then, who is this little lady who is not a load?”

“My daughter, her name is Rachel. I came to see her today.”

“Yes, I heard Estel Village had a good harvest this time?”

“······That’s right.”

“The village must have been in a festive mood.”

“······.”

“You don’t need to be careful with me. I’m not a farmer, I’m a soldier. But don’t let other people know that you’re from Estel Village.”

“Thank you for your concern.”

“Well, I’m sure you’ll do well. Let them in!”

“Thank you.”

“Just tell Gaiser-nim. Tell him I’ll visit him again when I have time.”

“Yes.”

With a simple conversation with the soldier, Jonan and his daughter passed through the gate. Rachel’s head turned from front to top, from top to back along the arched rampart.

“Rachel, this is the city.”

“······Wow!!”

With Rachel’s exclamation, Jonan’s footsteps finally stopped.

He had arrived in the city. Now it was time to follow His orders.