45: Pink haired Girl (2)

Jamie speeded up.

So did his pursuers.

By the time they got to the town’s outskirts…

“Would this much be enough?”

The pursuers quickly caught up.

Both pursuers seemed to be magicians.

Jamie wasn’t sure what their skills were, but their goal was probably to take the Perfect Cell.

‘How did I get tangled up with those insects just because I removed the invisibility?’

Jamie used the invisibility spell to hide the bracelet from the party, but when he went out for a walk, he dispelled it.

It was one of the three artefacts made with great care in the past, so if one was a magician, their eyes would naturally look at it.

‘This mustn’t happen in future.’

Jamie started casting. He was going to surprise the pursuers and then find out what they were planning.

The pursuers came close.

Jamie began counting.

‘Three, two.’

And at one.

“Uhm-!”

Something soft hit his back.

A hand covered his mouth, and another arm tightly held his body.

Instinctively, he began to release Mana and protect his body, but then pink hair fluttered in front of him.

“Sorry.”

A voice entered his ears.

And like that, Jamie disappeared into the darkness.

“What?”

“Where did he go?”

Tom and Pace looked at the place and titled their heads.

---

Bang!

Mana exploded, creating a shockwave.

“Kyak!”

A woman’s short scream.

Jamie raised his purple eyes as he felt the Mana swell around his body.

He was taken aback, but not enough to be surprised by the attack.

“I don’t know who you are.”

Jamie strode towards the woman who had fallen on the ground.

“But I’ll kill you.”

“Kuak!”

With shining eyes, he grabbed her neck.

He wasn’t sure how the person caught up to him, but he didn’t like it.

It was unacceptable.

If this opponent was a high-level assassin, Jamie would have suffered quite some damage even if he hadn’t died.

“S-spare…”

The woman pleaded.

The sound of feet scraping the ground.

With her hands, she tried to rip open Jamie’s arm.

But Jamie didn’t let go. Whatever the reason, he had no intention of saving someone who was after him.

Judging that she wouldn’t live, the woman immediately stretched out her hand.

Black Mana fluttered from her magic.

‘Black magic!’

An ominous power.

It was indeed black Mana.

It was his first time encountering a dark magician after reincarnation.

The woman reached for Jamie’s face.

Jamie grabbed her hand and subdued it.

“You.”

His cold purple stared at the distressed face of the woman. Something felt familiar.

‘Is she the one I saw earlier?’

His head cooled a little when he saw the opponent’s face.

The pink-haired woman who passed by the carriage in the morning.

It felt strange that she was a dark magician.

Jamie took his hands off her neck and bound her with magic.

“Cough-Cough, cough!!”

As she was suddenly relieved, the pink-haired woman, Venna, coughed.

Jamie lifted her into the air.

Coughing, Venna looked at Jamie with sad eyes and then cried out.

“… This is unfair.”

“Unfair?”

Jamie frowned at her words.

“It would’ve been a big deal if they caught you. So I helped you out. But this is unfair…”

Venna began to cry again.

Jamie frowned at her appearance.

As he was about to say something, Venna spoke again.

“Those two were dark magicians… and to treat someone who helped you like this, sniffle.”

“Look here.”

“I am also tied up like this now… What did I do so that everyone treats me like this? I did nothing. I just don’t want to be hated, but why does everyone hate me? Why…?”

Jamie scratched his head.

He was confused as he couldn’t tell what she was spewing.

“First. Stop. And don’t speak anymore.”

“A dirty world where good intentions aren’t recognized….”

“I get it so shut up.”

Annoyed, Jamie shouted, making Venna shut her mouth.

“You said you were helping me?”

Venna nodded her head.

“Is it because the people who were after me were dark magicians?”

She nodded again.

“But how did you know they were dark magicians?”

Recognizing dark magicians wasn’t easy.

If she was a higher-level person, she could, but it would be impossible for her to identify the opponent by just having a brief look at them.

“Same school…”

Venna answered in a weak voice.

On the other hand, Jamie’s expression was distorted.

“If you are from the same school, then why did you save me?”

“If you get caught by Tom and Pace, it doesn’t just end with death. I felt sorry that you would be pushed through a terrible experiment. You’re so small… though I doubt that you’re a kid.”

This meant that Venna belonged to the same school as the dark magicians who pursued Jamie, but she rescued him because she thought Jamie was in danger.

Jamie had only one question to ask.

“Why?”

“…?”

“You are a dark magician too.”

The modern dark magicians have been the enemy of mankind who forsook humanity and opted for different paths.

Most of them were madmen who didn’t care about the loss of lives if it was for the sake of achieving their goals.

A case like Jamie and Canon.

“Right.”

Venna seemed to get gloomy.

“But I didn’t want to be a dark magician.”

“What kind of bullshit…”

“I just. I don’t want to ruin my life.”

Jamie didn’t know how to handle the girl that, despite being a dark magician, didn’t look like one.

He didn’t know much about the girl, but her feelings were communicated to Jamie.

It was because he used ‘Mind Check’ magic to grasp the opponent’s emotions at the same time as using bondage.

‘I was going to use interrogation or…’

At first, he was planning on making her a doll. But the reason he didn’t do it was because he wanted to have a direct conversation.

And it felt good.

‘If I just needed to make a doll, I could have caught Amon, a dark magician.’

Kik!

Black also fluttered in agreement.

Making dolls was comfortable, but even Jamie doesn’t do anything reckless and inhumane.

Anyway, everything Venna said was sincere.

Looking at her, Jamie asked.

“Name.”

“…?”

“Don’t I need to know your name to call you?”

“Venna.”

“Okay. Venna. Now let me tell you some mistakes you made.”

Venna’s eyes widened at Jamie’s words.

“First. There was no need to save me. In the first place, I was trapping them.”

“Ah.”

Venna thought that it was odd too. She didn’t understand why Jamie had suddenly stopped instead of moving away.

“Second. You came from behind.”

For whatever the reason was, the woman appeared from behind and dragged him away.

From Jamie’s point of view, he had no choice but to think of her as an enemy. If she was the pursuers’ companion, then it would be a new turn of situation.

“And that act alone made me doubt you.”

“But in my eyes you were a young kid.”

Every time anything happened, it was always because of Jamie’s young-looking body.

The misunderstanding was inevitable.

Jamie didn’t think she was wrong. It was true that he almost killed Venna, but he was glad he didn’t.

“Well.There is no need to kill you.”

“Ugh!”

When Jamie dispelled the magic, Venna floated in the air and then fell to the ground.

“Let’s move on now.”

Venna looked at Jamie. From her point of view, the kid she saved had tried to kill her, too shamelessly as well.

However, she was the timid kind, so she just pouted.

‘And he is strong.’

He was a child, right?

It was as if a great magician was walking in the form of a child.

“I have more questions.”

“Questions?”

“How did you suddenly appear from behind?”

Jamie couldn’t understand it.

At her level, the girl couldn’t warp or teleport.

But she managed to deceive him. She jumped from behind and pulled him away.

“Ah. There are warp paths all over the city that are only used by dark magicians belonging to the school, but I have linked some of the coordinates without the knowledge of others.”

“Without the knowledge of others?”

“Huh… I just wanted to have my own space.”

Jamie was a bit disappointed at that. He was expecting something like a special ability for the girl.

‘Right. It wouldn’t make sense.’

No matter how he looked, Venna was just a 3rd class.

Venna asked.

“… What is your name?”

“You don’t have to know that.”

“M-mean! You asked for my name.”

Jamie looked at her with a frown.

“I am leaving.”

Venna stuttered as she dusted herself.

But Jamie had no intention of letting her go.

Tang!

“Euk!”

Venna, who was walking, suddenly screamed and grabbed her forehead,

“Invisible Wall!”

Invisible Wall.

Jamie walked over and squatted in front of Venna, who was rubbing her forehead.

“I still have a few questions. Where do you think you are going?”

She was the first dark magician he encountered.

And she said something about a school. If so, that meant that there was a dark magicians school in Nessman.

“Answer very carefully. Please.”

Seeing Jamie smile, Venna’s complexion turned white.

---

“Damn it. where the hell did he disappear? This is like a non-existent devil’s song!”

“You want to listen to the song of the Devil?”

“…”

Tom looked at Pace with pitiful eyes and shook his head.

“That bracelet. It was definitely something huge. If only we could take it, our lives would have been so bright!”

”Bright, I doubt it?”

“You know that my eyes are special when it comes to artefacts. That was amazing. I don’t know why a little boy like him had it.”

Pace nodded.

Tom’s eyes were indeed special. In other words, they were modified. To find artefacts.

“Anyway, be careful of what you say. Because I don’t want to have another competitor for it.”

“Okay. By the way, did you imitate me?”

“Shut up already!”

The two of them walked into a dark alley.

And the space changed like a lie, making a while hallway appear. A man with shocked eyes was standing in front of the two.

“Where have you been?”

“A small walk.”

“Yes. Walk.”

“That so?”

The man didn’t seem much interested, he just opened the door and then disappeared.

“Aris that jerk. He did something again.”

“These days, he is researching some addiction magic.”

“No wonder.”

Tom shook his head.

Only crazy things happened there.

Annoying as hell, but couldn’t help it.

Because it was a lab of Gav School, one of the many schools of dark magicians set up in Nessman.

“You aren’t that right minded either, don’t act annoyed.”

Pace whispered to him.

Tom looked at Pace with an annoyed look and responded.

“Being crazy and annoying are two different things!”

“Is that so?”

The two went into the lab with their nonsensical words.

And an old man appeared in front of them.

“Tom and Pace.”

At the appearance of the old man, the two went stiff.

The old man kindly smiled at them.

“Did you see Venna?”

“Uh… I didn’t see her.”

“Me too.”

The two smiled as brightly as they could and answered him.

The old man nodded his head at their answer.

“I see. I wanted to know where she went.”

And then he walked away.

Tom and Pace swallowed and then rolled their eyes. Once the old man was nowhere to be seen, they frowned.

‘I’ve known him for years, yet it makes my skin creep.’

The white hallway was rotten and crumbled.

Every time the air bubbles burst, a terrible stench spread out.

Strong acids corroded the surroundings.

The old man turned his head and then looked at the two.

“See you later.”

“Ah, yes. Next time, I’ll bring something good. Headmaster.”

At Tom’s words, Gav Helfis, the owner and headmaster of the Gav School, smiled and nodded.

They didn’t move until the man disappeared this time, and once he left, they took a deep breath.

“Woah! Just looking at him makes me stop breathing.”

“I-I mean it is so cool.”

“If only we can reach that level someday.”

“Doesn’t that mean that we have to destroy a large city and sacrifice lives?”

“Just the thought is thrilling me.”

“But he is looking for Venna again. Seriously, why does he show favoritism towards her?”

“Don’t know.”

The two looked at the place where the headmaster disappeared.

---

“I-I won’t say”

In the air, Venna, with her hands and feet tied, shouted.

Jamie asked where the school was, but she refused to tell him since that would be betraying her comrades.

Despite hating them, she couldn’t just sell her comrades she lived with for 10 years!

“There’s a thing called loyalty.”

Jamie asked in an annoyed face.

“If you can’t talk, there is nothing I can do.”

He didn’t want to hurt the girl.

Black Mana formed on his fingertips.

Venna, who was struggling, yelled.

“B-black… magic…?”

However, it was different from the one she knew.

There was evil in the black Mana.

As she pondered, Jamie said.

“Uh. I am a dark magician too.”

“EH?!”

“I am different from you people though.”

Jamie grinned and tried to place his hand on Venna, who yelled out.

“W-Wait!”

Jamie’s hand stopped right above her head.

“Do you have some last words?”

“H-how did you make that black mana…?”

“You don’t need to know.”

Jamie was about to put his hand on her head-

Venna closed her eyes and said.

“Please accept me as your disciple!”

“Ah?!”

Jamie’s face distorted at Venna’s unexpected request.