For Wizards, there are three paths to obtain power, but by far, the most powerful one is the Elemental Wizard.
Those who can alter reality by converting their magical powers into fire, water, air, lightning, and even their soul power.
But of course, not every wizard can be that powerful.
Just like a person can be born with an aptitude for magic or not, Elemental Wizards are rare.
– Whoosh!
A small flame flared up in the Erbet Arachne's web, spreading out to its surroundings. Lighting the entire region on fire, burning the webs.
– Tap!
The spider's web, which couldn't handle the heat, burned, and the swarms of spiderling who were rushing at them jumped in haste and hid beneath the snow.
– Roar
However, their struggles were pointless as the raging flames devoured everything in their path, burning the infant spiders who hid beneath the snow alive.
Those engulfed by the flames couldn't even let out a groan, as they soon turned into ash and faded amidst the rising steam.
Watching this spectacle, the corners of my mouth turned up to form a lopsided smile, at the fact that all those mismatched patterns of those young Arachnes that have been tormenting me all this while have now disappeared.
-Thwack!
However, my moment of happiness was cut short, as the brood mother with a body around 3m tall rushed towards me, brutally trampling down the trees that were in her path.
Since it was an Erbet Arachne, she has three pairs of pupils, with a rather interesting characteristic of changing their colors depending on the emotions the monster has.
Among them, I heard that if you extract its natural blue eyes; they turn into a shade of purple representing the monster's sorrow, and they can be sold at a fairly high price to collectors and such.
"Even a monster like this has maternal instincts, huh?"
Looking at the giant spider's blue eyes that now had a tinge of red, I straightened the wrinkles of my attire.
Ferzen may have an extreme case of obsessive-compulsive disorder, but this doesn't mean he has no emotions or that he cannot empathize with the suffering of a mother who saw all of her children burn to ashes.
But, when I recalled those horribly mismatched patterns, I couldn't understand why this Brood Mother was so angry.
Because, at least from Ferzen's point of view, those creatures were just defective products, as such they were not worth existing.
– Whoosh!
The unstoppable flame raged and embraced the mother Arachne, and it spread all around, surrounding the monster as the flame danced to its mortal tune.
The raging flame was beautiful, like a flower that survived a harsh winter, and now with the spring arriving its buds are blooming with pride and glory, so when the Mother Arachne stopped moving, the flames dimmed akin to a withering flower; As a strange sense of regret filled my heart.
– Thud!
As the body of the Erbet Arachne, who was incinerated without the slightest bit of resistance, disintegrated emitting sounds similar to that of burning wood, I took my tissue, cleaned my glasses, and put them back into my pocket.
The 27th Head of the Brutein Family – Bavaria Von Grielle Brutein was an elemental wizard of Euclidian class, the same as myself, so it was necessary to consume considerable mana to control and draw his abilities with the same power from when he was alive.
As an effect of wasting too much mana, heavy fatigue surged over my body, so after paying my respects to the 27th head of the family, I placed him inside the coffin and sealed it in my subspace, and got onto the carriage.
"... "
Perhaps due to the sudden stop we made, Euphemia was now sleeping with her head turned to the right.
Seeing this, I moved with care and shifted my seat to the left, and signaled the carriage driver.
"Let's move"
Letting out those words, I closed my eyes for the moment.
* * * * *
"Brutein… No, I guess I should call you Lord of Louerg now. Are you in that much of a hurry? It's not even been 4 days since you stopped by my estate on your way to Louerg"
"I can't go against the Imperial Edict"
"Yes, I suppose so… "
As I didn't like the idea of passing the night in the wilderness, I decided to stop at Baron Roberson's estate.
'This might be a problem…'
Ferzen never has meals with more than three people.
I'm fine with starving for one night, but not Euphemia, so with this in mind I didn't turn down the baron's invitation for dinner, but honestly… I was getting worried.
"Ah… come, enjoy your meal. I may know little about the cuisine of the North, but we prepared our finest dishes, and I'm sure you will love our wine too!"
"Is that so?"
Ignoring the obvious attempt to curry my favor, I gave the Baron a curt reply and focused on Euphemia, who was sitting by my side.
'Her left hand holds the knife, and the fork is on her right hand'
Naturally, Ferzen is ambidextrous.
However, he wasn't born like this. Ferzen was initially right-handed, but because of his disorder, he learned to use both of his hands equally.
'Hm.. in this case, my right hand shall hold the knife and my left the fork. The only problem is…'
The Baron and Baroness sitting across from them.
Fortunately, the baron was sitting in a position symmetrical to me, holding the knife with his left hand and the fork with his right, just like Euphemia.
Then if the Baroness eats with the knife and fork in a similar fashion to me, I can eat in peace.
"... "
But it seems that my pleas weren't heard, as this bloke of a woman held the knife in her left hand and the fork in her right.
'Tsk… '
At this point, there's nothing I could do with my hands to create perfect symmetry.
My obsession strikes, making my head hurt, and my breathing became rough.
I tried to suppress this maddened feeling by biting my lips, but this only worsened my condition, and I had no choice but to frown.
'The wine.'
Yes, in times like this all you need to do is get drunk.
After opening the bottle, the servants poured the wine in my glass. The wine was fragrant with a mellow aroma and had a pleasant taste.
"Hum… "
The alcoholic content was quite high as well, yes… this will do.
After a few glasses, I noticed that I was indeed getting a little drunk, so I started eating.
But of course, seeing that stupid woman eating, I couldn't even savor the food.
* * * * *
Despite the fact they were together, Euphemia continued to eat silently, with her head down making no effort to participate in the conversation.
Even the servants standing around were more elegant than her, so Euphemia instinctively felt even more embarrassed and tried to shrink even more.
'Ah… '
Euphemia's dress had traces of stitching and had its color faded from being thoroughly washed
Even her hands looked callous, proving her previously harsh lifestyle and hard work.
At this, Euphemia felt ashamed of herself, of her life, and her origins.
But when she saw the man sitting by her side, she thought it would be a golden opportunity of getting back at him, even if the most she could do was damage his pride or sense of etiquette.
First and foremost, she for all intents and purposes was his … wife.
With that in mind, she turned and faced him, but Euphemia quickly realized that her little 'mischief' was all for naught.
No matter how frivolous, cruel, and wretched the man was, it seemed almost… wrong to defile this man's pride.
But to be honest, she knew that no one would ever see her as his wife.
Perhaps this was his plan all along.
She would be his Trophy, no it's probably worse. She would be like a small ring attached to his finger, with no other value than to enhance his prestige.
["Know your place"]
Remembering the words this man said to her after he defiled her, made her already low self-esteem even more fragile.
"Euphemia"
"…!"
Hearing his voice, Euphemia trembled and raised her head at Ferzen.
"Did you have your fill?"
A strong stench of liquor accompanied his words.
I wondered when this man got drunk, but at the same time I immediately noticed his unpleasant expression, as if my shoddy presence made him sick, so I tried to answer him the best I could with my trembling voice.
"Ah, not yet…"
"Is that so."
Realizing that while drunk, this man would probably make her an outlet for his frustrations, Euphemia, despite having a bloated stomach, forcibly continued to dine.
But of course, the man kept asking Euphemia the same question repeatedly.
And each time, Euphemia would give the same answer, hoping that the man would fall asleep completely drunk and leave her alone.
"Haha looks like you really enjoyed our local wine, Lord Louerg'
"Indeed…"
"I'm grateful that an esteemed person like yourself is fond of our local products… but my lord, seeing that you would leave for the capital tomorrow morning, I worry that drinking more than this would make your travels difficult."
"You don't need to worry about that."
With a face drained of all its color, Euphemia looked at Ferzen who raised his body.
The fear of what was about to come drained her of all her strength.
"Euphemia... Lend me your shoulder."
"... "
His body staggered as if he would fall at any moment, but the sound of his voice was clear and contained the same authority as before, so Euphemia came closer and supported Ferzen.
"Ah"
Naturally, the weight of a strong and adult man was too much for the frail Euphemia to support on her own even when she was accustomed to a harsh life.
"Watch out!"
– Smash–!
Ferzen, who is in his drunk state, knocked a vase placed as an ornament in front of the stairs, shattering it in the process.
"Ah... "
The Baron, who followed the couple with a tint of fear and anxiety, sighed, but soon he fixed his displeased expression knowing that Ferzen as the second son of Brutein, had a higher standing than him.
"I apologize."
"It's okay my Lord, after all, this vase is a pair with the other one, so the collection is not entirely lost."
If one piece is part of a set, it makes sense for the set to lose its value when one side is broken.
However, Baron Roberson, who would never push this matter to a higher noble such as Ferzen, called his servants and ordered them to clean up the remains of the broken vase.
"A pair you say…"
And hearing those words, Ferzen stopped his tracks and slowly approached the vase next to him.
Immediately after…
–Clank–!
He lifted the vase and threw it on the floor.
"... "
"Baron."
"... "
"If they are a set, wouldn't it be beautiful if they are shattered together? After all, one loses its value the moment the other is shattered. Isn't it possible to balance this by breaking the other one? Now the value of the set remains the same."
Maybe he is pretending to be drunk.
No matter how much I concentrated, his voice is not one you would expect from a drunk person.
But how can you do things like this without being drunk?
From the point of view of the Baron, there is nothing to be gained from persecuting Ferzen. On the contrary, doing this may only make things worse.
"Baron, why aren't you answering my question?"
"Oh, yes, you are indeed right Lord Louerg... It's an-."
"Yes Baron, I knew you would agree… now these things can be truly Symmetrical. Rest assured that the Brutains will endorse you for this splendid display of Symmetry."
While the baron did his best to accommodate Ferzen, he truly couldn't escape his misfortune, of triggering his obsession at the dinner table and souring the Lord's mood.
"... "
And Euphemia, who was watching this crazy display from Ferzen, saw him calling her. While still afraid and anxious, Euphemia approached him and supported his drunken body.
-Creak-Creak
Then, as they entered the room and were left alone in complete darkness, Euphemia had the illusion that he was staring at her like a hungry beast looks at its prey.
Some of you guys complained about how Ferzen refers to himself, so imma just say dis: Ferzen (MC) refers to himself as a Third entity created by the merge of Seojin and the OG Ferzen, so the pov gets a little whacky, but this should become better as the novel goes and the mc accepts the changes to his persona!!
thats all for me bye~~~