Banshee, if you mess with me, you'll die.
As I waited for the line in front to shorten, I noticed people cutting in line.
Were they being brazen because of their rough appearance?
Despite their blatant line-cutting, no one dared to challenge them.
Even I had to admit, they looked quite intimidating.
I even wondered, "How can people look like that?"
But they weren't as intimidating as the one-eyed bandit I met last time.
That was just...
"...Not even human, really."
His face made me shake my head.
If I had a face like that, I think I would've given up on life.
As I waited, I pushed those useless thoughts aside.
I had no desire to get into a pointless argument with those people.
It would be too much of a hassle.
Besides, getting into squabbles with others was never my style.
As I waited, lost in thought—
"Move aside, let us through."
"B-But... there's a line here..."
"Tsk."
The intimidating-looking people continued to cut in line.
I would've let it slide if it were just a few people, but seeing those who looked like adventurers blatantly disregard the line was starting to get on my nerves.
So, I stood up.
"Follow me."
I told the coachman to follow me with the carriage.
Staying in line would take far too long.
As I said that—
"A-Are you sure about this..?"
The coachman looked worried.
Why was he worried when I was right here?
With that thought, I waved my hand, and the coachman, with a yelp, steered the carriage out of the line and followed me.
My destination was—
"I'll go ahead. It's urgent."
The spot where I could quickly undergo the Gate inspection.
If everyone else was cutting in line, there was no reason for me to play by the rules.
I could cut in line too.
As I cut into the line—
"What the hell do you think you're doing?"
The adventurers who had cut in earlier bared their teeth at me.
It seemed like cutting in line themselves was fine, but being on the receiving end of it was unacceptable.
I simply waved my hand dismissively.
It wasn't worth wasting my breath on these people.
With a flick of my wrist—
"This bastard's insane. Cutting in line and waving his hand like that. You asking for a beating?"
At his words, the surrounding adventurers who had also cut in line stepped forward.
It was like poking a cockroach nest and having roaches swarm out.
Seriously?
Sigh.
Heaving a deep sigh, I cast a spell.
[Weakness]
While it would be excessive to seriously harm them for this, I could at least give them a taste of discomfort.
With that—
"...What the...? My body suddenly feels heavy."
"What's going on? Did someone cast magic?"
Right now, they would only feel heavy, but as time passed, the pain would set in.
They'd have trouble even eating properly.
Of course, the spell's effect wasn't that strong, so it would wear off in a week.
With that thought, I returned to my spot in line.
The adventurers followed behind.
"Get out of the way, you crazy bastard."
"Looks like words won't work. Hey, drag him out."
I seriously questioned the intelligence of medieval adventurers.
They should've been able to deduce who cast the spell.
'...Don't tell me they didn't even notice that.'
However, there was a possibility, so I decided to speak up.
"Did you... by any chance, feel a slight weakening in your bodies just now?"
"So what if we did?"
"What's going to change if you're a mage?"
"Heh, heh, this guy's really clueless about the world."
My common sense was crumbling.
Normally, adventurers would cower in fear at the sight of a mage, but these guys weren't even fazed.
These weren't the kind of people I should waste my time on.
Feeling a headache coming on, I cast another spell.
[Sleep]
It was a simple spell, but it should be effective in silencing those adventurers.
Thud.
Leaving the collapsed adventurers behind, we passed through the gate.
Who knows when they'd wake up.
Maybe they'd be out here for a whole day.
Well, someone would probably wake them up eventually.
With that thought, I entered Ehrenburg.
And—
"Wow..."
Magnificent buildings surrounded me.
Blacksmiths dotted every corner.
It was a place that would drive anyone even remotely interested in weapons wild with excitement.
'...But not Cthulhu.'
That guy preferred to punch corpses with his bare hands.
It was absurd, even thinking about it now.
Humans were superior to other animals because of their ability to use tools, and yet, he refused to use them.
Unbelievable.
Pushing those pointless thoughts aside, I got off the carriage.
"You can head back now."
After dismissing the coachman, I started to leisurely explore Ehrenburg.
Of course, "leisurely" was only in terms of my pace; my steps were quite brisk.
I didn't have all the time in the world.
As I walked, I checked the letter Amelia had given me.
'It should be this way.'
If I kept going, I should come across the blacksmith Amelia mentioned.
Step by step.
After walking for a while, I finally arrived.
"...Is this it?"
A very shabby-looking blacksmith came into view.
It practically screamed, "I'm going bankrupt!"
But it had a certain charm, like a hidden gem.
Wasn't it common for the best restaurants to be housed in rundown shacks?
With that thought, I opened the door and stepped inside—
"Huh."
Contrary to its outward appearance, the interior was incredibly modern.
It was also bustling with people.
I was a bit taken aback.
I had pictured an old man quietly hammering away at metal, greeting me with a warm welcome.
As I looked around in slight confusion—
"How can I help you?"
A young-looking man approached me.
"I'm here for a forging request. Could you tell me where I should deliver this letter?"
I held up the letter in my hand. The man examined it closely, then—
"Ah, it's from Lady Amelia. Please follow me."
He seemed to know Amelia, and he gestured for me to follow.
'Well, it can't be anything dangerous.'
I slowly trailed behind the man.
He led me to a room.
"The owner of this blacksmith is inside. He has quite a fiery temper, so it's best to deliver the letter first."
"Understood."
I cautiously knocked on the door.
A gruff voice boomed from inside.
"—Come in."
I was already feeling a bit apprehensive.
Just from the voice alone, I could tell this person had a temper.
With a deep breath, I opened the door and entered—
Clang! Clang!
A muscular woman was hammering away at metal.
Her skin was tanned and healthy-looking.
But—
'...Her hair is pink?'
Her hair was bright pink.
This could only mean one thing.
She was related to Amelia.
Putting that aside for now, the priority was delivering the letter.
"Here's a letter for you."
Snatch!
Amelia’s relative snatched the letter from my hand and quickly scanned its contents.
"Damn it, she dumped such a troublesome task on me."
She then held out her hand towards me.
'Is she asking for my hand in marriage?'
As I extended my hand—
"What are you doing? I need your heart."
"Ah, right."
I felt my cheeks flush with embarrassment.
Briefly wishing I had the ability to rewind time, I reached into my subspace pouch and retrieved the heart.
The last time I tried, the heart wouldn't go into the pouch, but Amelia had explained that she used some magical phenomenon to temporarily render it inanimate.
I hadn't bothered asking for details.
Handing the heart over—
"...Where did you get this?"
Her expression shifted dramatically.
But I had no intention of revealing my source.
"I found it lying on the road."
"Do you live in hell by any chance? ...Well, whatever. If you don't want to tell me, fine. Just because that woman asked me to, doesn't mean I'll do it for free."
She had a point.
Amelia's role was only to guide me to this blacksmith.
There was no guarantee that the forging would be free.
So, I retrieved a gold coin from my subspace pouch and offered it to her.
But—
"Not that. I need you to complete a quest for me."
Damn.
Personally, I wasn't fond of these kinds of arrangements.
However, I had no choice. I needed that wand.
With a slight nod—
"At the Cliffs of Illusion, outside Ehrenburg, I need you to gather some Banshee Dust."
That sounded difficult, to say the least.
I couldn't couldn't help but let out a sigh.
However—
"Alright."
Right now, crafting the wand was my top priority.
So, I accepted.
How strong could a Banshee be, anyway?
Banshees, try to mess with me and you're dead.
With that thought, I listened carefully to the details of the quest before leaving the blacksmith.
"Hmm..."
To be greeted with a quest as soon as I arrived...
It was a bit of a nuisance, but I had to see it through.
For the sake of my wand.
This was no ordinary heart; it belonged to someone who had formed a contract with a demon.
It was a rare and valuable ingredient.
"Let's go."
Steeling my resolve, I set off towards the Cliffs of Illusion.
I wasn't particularly afraid of ghosts, so there was no need for fear.
Upon arriving, I found the Cliffs of Illusion to be—
"Huh..."
Littered with strange objects.
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l would blush too if a muscle mommy did that to me 🥺
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