Chapter 105

A bear.

A carnivorous animal that walks on four legs.

Sometimes stands on two legs.

When they say 'a bear will rip a person apart', it's that very bear.

"Huh?"

I thought I might have seen it wrong, so I rubbed my eyes, but it was unmistakably a bear. A bear was sitting on the sofa in the reception room.

The only peculiar thing was that it was wearing a laurel wreath on its head, but it was definitely a bear.

No. Wait.

Among the savage elves, the most skilled warriors sometimes wear a bear's hide on their heads.

The branch chief is a mage, not a warrior, but maybe they're doing that under the cultural influence of the savage elves.

But no matter how I looked, the bear hide was seamlessly connected without a single seam.

It meant it wasn't just a costume.

Then this must be a real bear.

"Uh..."

Why is a bear roaming in the middle of the city?

But would people really just let a bear roam in the middle of the city?

If that were the case, there should have been a big commotion outside by now, but I haven't heard anything, have I?

As I stood there blankly, unable to accept the reality before my eyes.

Suddenly, I felt a tingling sensation like electricity from the ring on my left hand.

I looked down and saw an ominous purple flame rising along the rim of the ring.

「Trait Activated: Heart of Iron and Blood The best way to awaken from confusion is to accept the truth.」

「Trait Activated: Heart of Iron and Blood Do not be deceived by the illusion before your eyes; accept the truth.」

「Trait Activated: Heart of Iron and Blood Just accept the truth.」

I snapped back to my senses as if cold water had been poured over my head.

My mind cleared as if a hazy fog that had been covering my vision had disappeared, and I realized the truth.

Just then, Theo, who had been dazed after encountering the bear inside the house, hurriedly pulled out his handaxe.

I raised my hand to stop Theo.

"Stop, Theo."

"Young master? Why all of a sudden, isn't there a bear over there?"

"I said stop."

"I'll buy some time. I don't know if I can win against a bear..."

"That's enough. I'm saying this for your own good."

"But I can't die such an absurd death here. I didn't go through all that hardship until now just to meet this end. Young master, don't give up either."

"No."

"Stop talking and run! Go!"

Theo's voice was so resolute, as if he was really ready to lay down his life for me.

No matter how powerful a Snow Elf warrior is, it's not an easy task to defeat a bear one-on-one. Theo must have known that too.

I should have been moved by the loyalty Theo showed me.

So at the same time, I couldn't help but feel ashamed with every word Theo spoke.

It was truly,

a regrettable incident.

"Oh?"

Just then, the bear sitting in the reception room noticed us.

As the bear turned its head, I could also see Esil sitting over its shoulder. Theo made a foolish sound like a broken doll.

"Huh?"

***

Having created a dark history in real-time, Theo's face turned beet red, and he didn't know what to do.

He was crouching down, covering his face with both hands, looking like he was about to kick his blankets all night.

I didn't miss the opportunity to tease Theo.

"Hahaha. There's no way a bear would be roaming in the middle of the city. Did you forget who we were going to meet? What on earth were you thinking?"

"But it happens sometimes in Selan!"

"So that's why you said that earlier. What did Theo say earlier? Don't give up? Stop talking and go first?"

"Shtop..."

"'I'll buy some time. I don't know if I can win against a bear...' You could have won against a bear for my sake?"

"Jus', shtop teasin' me..."

"Wow, I've really seen Theo in a new light. I never knew you were so loyal to me. I'm touched."

"Should I really kill ya?"

Theo, his jaw clenched tight, glared at me. Through the fingers covering his face, a menacing murderous intent glittered in his eyes like fireworks.

Oops, did I tease him too much?

He looks really angry.

Just then, Esil stepped in from the side.

"But it was cool! Really warrior-like."

"Keok."

Esil is a mage, but she's still a child.

Her sensibilities are bound to be different.

So the praise of an innocent child became an even sharper dagger, delivering a critical blow to Theo's spirit.

Theo went limp like someone who had survived a fierce battle.

I left Theo in his groggy state and turned to the mage in the form of a bear.

Yes. A mage.

It was something one could easily realize by putting the situation together.

I had momentarily forgotten because of the absurd experience of meeting a bear inside a house, but we were definitely on our way to meet the branch chief of the Apennia Mage Guild.

Thanks to the activation of the 'Heart of Iron and Blood' trait, I quickly regained my composure and even saw through the opponent's identity.

But Theo, warrior-like, put action before thought, and as a result, he ended up revealing his dark history to the entire world.

This was the difference between me and Theo.

A difference in skill.

With this, I can probably tease Theo for the next 10 years.

Hmm. To be honest, I'm not sure if I can live that long.

Anyway, now is the time to do what needs to be done.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. I am Leon Gryph. I am the captain of the Black Company."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Petrarch, the branch chief of the Apennia Mage Guild."

The bear answered cheerfully. The voice was androgynous, making it hard to tell the gender, yet it was surprisingly a beautiful voice.

The name Petrarch was correct. It appears as a recruitable mage in the Warlord Saga guide. But this was the first time they appeared as a bear or served as the Mage Guild's branch chief.

Did that dynamic whatever system activate again?

"May I ask just one thing?"

"Ask anything."

"Lord Petrarch, did you learn transformation magic? Or were you cursed and transformed into your current form?"

"No? I was originally a bear."

"Huh."

"I'm a 100% pure-blooded Asiatic black bear. I even have a family tree."

"I see."

No wonder the appearance was familiar; it was because they were an Asiatic black bear.

They even have a family tree?

This is confusing. Truly.

I looked around to find people who might feel the same.

But Esil was fidgeting with her feet while sitting on the chair, looking bored, and Theo still hadn't come to his senses.

Right. Well. It's not that strange.

It's not like there are no beastmen in this world. It wouldn't be strange for a bear to just be walking around. Mm-hm. Indeed.

While I was accepting reality, a servant brought coffee to serve the guest. One in a large bowl, and several in small cups.

It seems they astutely brought out a bowl since there were no teacups that would fit Petrarch's large hands. Petrarch's eyes lit up at the sight of the coffee.

"Oh, is this Fasa's coffee?"

"Yes, it is. Please drink it before it gets cold."

"I'll enjoy it."

I watched the rare sight of a bear drinking coffee.

Petrarch lifted the bowl of coffee with a bear paw and poured it into their snout.

But is it a bear hand or a bear paw?

Do I have to define whether a bear is bipedal or quadrupedal first?

While I was lost in zoological questions, Petrarch, who had taken a sip of coffee, said with sparkling eyes.

"Hah. This coffee is really good. The aroma is so nice. I heard you were the one who popularized this in Apennia."

"I'm glad you like it."

"I like it very much. The one you made is much better than what I used to drink in Florence. Is there a difference in the brewing method?"

"Has coffee spread to that side as well?"

"Yeah. It's the latest trend. I like it."

It hasn't been long since I brought in coffee, but it has already spread to Florence?

The speed of propagation is much faster than I thought.

I'll have to discuss business expansion with Randolfo later.

"Adding sugar or milk to the coffee makes the taste smoother and better."

"Wouldn't it be too sweet?"

"Please give it a try."

"Oh."

Petrarch half-emptied the cup with sugar and milk and smacked their lips in satisfaction.

"Excellent. I'll have to introduce this to people when I go back. There are many who dislike coffee because it's bitter."

"Thank you. Please spread the word."

Coffee promoted by a mage. Sales will definitely increase.

"Anyway, you must be curious why I came to see you."

"Yes, I am."

I was just about to ask about the purpose of their visit. They couldn't have come all this way just to get a cup of coffee, being a mage and all.

"I heard someone was trying to entice my disciple. I figured I should see their face once."

"Our company is always recruiting new talent. We are diligently tempting them with candy."

Petrarch chuckled.

"Right. You said you run a mercenary company. So I understand why you'd covet a mage. But Esil is still a child, so please be patient for now. There's no need for her to see harsh sights so early on."

"Understood. Then is Lord Petrarch not interested in the mercenary company?"

"Nope. Thanks to a top customer who frequently uses our mage mail these days, I have no shortage of research funds."

"I suppose that's true."

Mage mail is expensive, so not just anyone can use it.

Since I alone am using that expensive service for various purposes, it's only natural that Petrarch's pockets would be getting fatter.

"So, I came to Fasa to check on the person enticing my disciple, and also to check on the guild's top customer. Thanks to that, I learned a new way to drink coffee. Yep. It was a good idea to come."

"I'm glad you're satisfied."

I felt a sense of disappointment. It would have been great if I could have brought Petrarch to our side.

Petrarch stared at me blankly.

"You seem very interested in magic."

"To be precise, I need a mage. Mages are useful in many ways."

"Then why don't you just learn magic yourself?"

"Me? I don't think I have the talent for it. Would that even be possible?"

"Really? I don't think so. I can feel magical power from you."

Huh?

***

Since the beginning of domestication, dogs have shared history with humans. That's why dogs are animals friendly to humans.

But bears are not.

There are stories of people raising bears, but there are no stories of bears being domesticated by humans.

If you encountered a bear at a distance close enough to see its face, it usually meant you were being attacked by a wild bear.

In that case, what would happen next is obvious. A bear really does rip a person apart.

Fortunately, I never had to meet a bear. So I didn't know a bear's expression either. Just by looking at the face, it was hard to tell whether Petrarch was joking or not.

In fact, that face looking at me could be a look of whetting its appetite, or it could just be a blank expression.

Fortunately, Petrarch knew how to read human expressions.

"You have a look of disbelief."

"It's hard to believe when you suddenly hear something like that. I've never heard that I have a talent for magic."

"Really? Then have you ever had something like this happen?"

"Like what?"

"Finding a coin by chance while walking down the street. Or moving from a spot because you had a bad feeling, and then lightning striking that very spot."

"The first one could be called luck, but isn't the second one a miracle at that point?"

"Well, if you were unlucky enough to be struck by lightning, you wouldn't have survived until now. Then let's say a rain shower instead of lightning."

"Even if you say that."

"Think carefully. Has something like that never happened to you before?"

I fell into deep thought.

Was I that lucky?

No, I wasn't.

Rather, couldn't entering this world in the body of a royal who was scheduled for a super-fast death be called misfortune?

On the other hand, it could also be called a miracle that I've come this far.

If I had to say, I was closer to eliminating variables through thorough preparation rather than relying on luck.

Although my traits sometimes took effect in the process...

I said only what I could, cutting and adding parts. Revealing things like being a gamer or a Descendant of a Demon would only cause misunderstandings.

Petrarch summarized it simply.

"That's magical enough."

"Is that so?"

"If you want, you can call it a miracle."

Maybe because they were a mage. Petrarch said things without hesitation that would anger church people if they heard them. And they didn't allow for any rebuttal.

"Then can you explain the causality?"

"Not really."

"So that means you have a talent for magic."

I was confused by Petrarch's explanation.

Do I really have a talent for magic?