I also heard the Nobles murmuring.

It was a voice directed at the newly moved Nobles. Listening to them, there was even a Count among those who moved.

It was astonishing.

There were truly few Dukes and Marquises. They were either families related to the Royal family or those who had to guard the border. Most of the old Noble families remained at the rank of Count.

The fact that such families defected caused murmuring among the Nobles.

It wasn’t surprising that the Nobles switched sides.

It was the time when the King would be decided.

If they chose the right side, they could last for several generations. Once they wore the crown, they would benefit until they died.

Conversely, if they failed…

They would incur the displeasure of the supreme ruler. They might even be purged from the Capital City.

It didn’t matter now. A decision hadn’t been made yet.

It didn’t matter if they changed factions multiple times.

The Protagonist couldn’t understand.

To be able to split as enemies and then return? It sounded as if the King’s children were so desperate that they had to overlook such things.

If they didn’t accept those who betrayed, those who returned would firmly resist. Because of that difference, they could lose the Capital City. I understood.

What was more astonishing was what the Protagonist had done. The Protagonist had only created and shot about eight ice Arrows.

Could such a big decision have been made just because of that? Suddenly, I remembered the saying that people only believe what they see with their own eyes. It was something the Count had told me.

This was the first time I had revealed my skills in front of the rigid Nobles. Perhaps that was why. Their reaction, despite the rumors that must have already spread, suggested as much.

When facing ordinary Chieftains, the Protagonist created hundreds of ice Arrows. If they saw that, I couldn’t imagine what kind of reaction would boil up.

No, to begin with, the Protagonist took a Golem and crushed a family.

But to have this kind of reaction now…

I wondered what the Prince would say.

Last time, he approached this side and then stopped before saying anything.

It was because the Assassin remained.

He might try to capture the Protagonist.

It seemed likely, given that he judged the Mage’s existence to be an advantage.

In the past, nothing happened, but now, defectors are appearing because of the Protagonist, so it was certain.

He thought about how he would capture the Protagonist.

Next to the Prince was a cute girl.

She was a girl who hadn’t been there before. With long blonde hair reaching her waist, she seemed to be hiding behind him, as if afraid of people.

Although he was a Prince, he was middle-aged. Of course, he had children.

‘No way…?’

Only blood connected people.

Still, it was strange.

He wasn’t just an ordinary Noble, but royalty. He wondered if he would be involved with the Protagonist, who was a mere commoner.

The memory of being rejected by the Alchemist came to mind.

At first, the Count also openly frowned.

This time, it was a Princess.

He shook his head. There was a Capital City to jump to conclusions for no reason.

If there were a Dragon who could read minds, it would probably laugh.

He wanted to eat baby food.

Amelin could produce breast milk. It had been a long time since he had drunk it.

Not drinking it after having drunk it made him feel empty.

He thought that once this was over, he would stay in the territory for a while.

He looked at the Prince.

He seemed to know the situation in detail if it were him. It wasn’t bad to find out how the Noble’s fight was unfolding.

The Protagonist was not unrelated to this fight.

He couldn’t stand by, so he had to choose a side.

He thought it wouldn’t be bad to decide after seeing the Prince.

The other party did not approach him like last time. There was no sign of him speaking first. That made it even stranger.

He had not only escaped a life-threatening situation due to their actions but had also gained an advantage. There should have been some reaction.

As he stood still, a fight broke out.

The Nobles started talking and fighting amongst themselves. They hinted at who the mastermind behind sending the Assassin was, trying to absorb the other party.

Some even insulted the deceased.

“Ha! Good riddance. His wife was already lonely and clinging to me anyway!”

“What? Are you insulting our mother now!”

The Nobles grabbed each other by the collars and started punching.

He thought only Mercenaries acted like that.

“Crazy bastard! How dare you hit your new Father!”

“Who are you calling Father!”

The words they spoke were also foul. It was enough to make his ears rot.

He left the spot, leaving them to fight.

It was not a place where the Protagonist needed to be.

As I headed to the corner, someone approached. It was the Mage Elder.

“Where are you going?”

I looked at him. I wondered why he had approached this time.

“Your expression shows you’re wondering why I’ve come again.”

“Can you read that?”

“Your thoughts are very clearly written on your face. So much so that I think you need to learn to control your expressions.”

I didn’t realize I was so bad at hiding my expressions.

This was something I needed to learn too.

I had learned the basics.

At first, I couldn’t read. But now it was different. I could read maps and I knew etiquette.

Now I needed to control my expressions. This was a skill in itself. If I asked the Elder to teach me, he might.

“Why did you come this time?”

I looked at the Elder. Behind him were Mages. They looked quite old, at least middle-aged.

The Elder brought one of them forward. It was a Middle-aged man who gave off a similar mana sensation to me.

“This fellow handles water, just like you.”

“…?”

I didn’t know what he meant.

What did it matter if the other person was a water Mage?

Surely he wasn’t asking me to teach him Magic?

That didn’t seem to be it either.

He was old enough to be my father. From his expression, it didn’t seem like he had such intentions.

The Elder cleared his throat.

“This fellow said he wanted to see the Magic you used.”

“You saw it last time, didn’t you?”

“This fellow wasn’t there at the time.”

“No.”

It was bothersome.

When I shook my head, the Elder said he would give me money.

“How much?”

“I’ll give you one coin.”

“A Silver Coin?”

“It’s a Gold Coin.”

“A Gold Coin?”

I could get a Gold Coin by demonstrating Magic.

I was willing to do it for that much.

“You want me to show you Golem Magic?”

“No.”

“Then what?”

“What we want to see is the Ice Arrow you used last time.”

He didn’t understand.

What the Protagonist used was ordinary Magic.

He couldn’t understand paying such a high price to see something like that, not even a Golem.

Even if they were Nobles, a Gold Coin was not a small amount of money.

“That friend of yours can probably use it too, right?”

“Yes. But the Magic you used is different.”

“What’s different?”

He listened carefully.

The other person said the Protagonist’s Magic was special.

It was a fact even the Protagonist didn’t know.

All he had known until now was that Golems were lost.

“First, it must be the number.”

“Number?”

“Didn’t you create eight at once last time? How did a Beggar do that?”

“I didn’t create them all at once.”

“Then?”

“I just used the Magic I had memorized.”

“Memorized? You mean you learned that too?”

The Old Man’s voice rose.

The Magic to memorize Magic was not intermediate Magic. It was advanced Magic.

To hear that an intermediate Mage used such Magic, he couldn’t help but be a Gnoll.

When he nodded, the Old Man’s expression changed strangely.

“Do you happen to have a Magic tool with stored Magic?”

“There’s no way it would contain advanced Magic.”

There was one, actually.

The Black Armor in the Ring the Protagonist had was like that.

It wouldn’t be strange to call it advanced Magic. But he didn’t think such things were common.

Mages were rare, but Magic tools were even rarer.

He told the Old Man that the Protagonist used the memorized Magic consecutively. Still, the Old Man’s face was full of questions.

“That’s true. But I still don’t understand.”

“Still?”

“Didn’t you cast the spell twice?”

“That’s right.”

“And made four at once.”

He nodded.

The Old Man’s way of speaking was frustrating.

He spoke indirectly instead of getting straight to the point.

It occurred to him that the other person was a Noble.

All Nobles spoke like that.

“An ordinary Mage cannot create that many.”

“How many can they make?”

“One or two.”

“Don’t the numbers increase if you use a Magic staff?”

The Protagonist was able to create Ice Arrows thanks to the help of a Magic staff. Others also carried Magic staffs.

“That’s only for low-level Magic. From intermediate Magic onwards, the number doesn’t increase. Only the casting time is reduced.”

He nodded. Listening to the Old Man, it seemed rare for the number to increase like it did for the Protagonist.

The Protagonist could create several intermediate and even advanced Magic spells at once. Though it was thanks to a Blessing from the gods.

He wondered what kind of expression the Old Man would make if he saw him creating and launching two Ice Spears. It was creating and launching two incredibly advanced Magic spells with just one shot.

Such powerful Magic could be used if something dangerous happened. With the opponent questioning him so much, he even wished for something dangerous to happen.

“How many Ice Arrows can you create?”

“Normally, four.”

“So you can make more if you push yourself.”

“That’s right.”

“Don’t we not know until we see it?”

At that moment, the Middle-aged man standing behind stepped forward. It was the Water Mage he had introduced as a friend. He had a potbelly, indicating he ate well.

The Middle-aged man asked him to show his Magic. He seemed curious if he could really make them. He was planning to show them anyway.

“Will it be alright here?”

“What do you mean?”

“People are over there.”

He subtly turned his head. There were Nobles on the other side. Using Magic in such a place was no different from drawing a sword.

The Old Man said it was fine. He also said that Nobles treated Magic as a strange trick anyway. He felt relieved.

He quietly chanted a spell. Then ice formed, taking the shape of Arrows. Several such Arrows floated up.

The Mages who saw it muttered among themselves.

Some even gnawed, saying he really made them.

It seemed true that an ordinary Mage could only make one or two at most.

“Step back.”

“Why?”

“If your body touches the ice, it will freeze.”

The Mages quickly moved away from the vicinity.

They stopped chanting spells.

Then, the created Ice Arrows fell to the ground.

The ice didn’t break.

Instead, the ground around it froze.

“The ice didn’t break.”

“It’s incredibly hard.”

“Why is it so hard?”

The Mages looked at the ice. It seemed very concerning.

There were even some who reached out to touch it.

I quickly stopped them.

“What are you doing!”

“Can’t you tell by looking? I was trying to touch it.”

“Do you want to cut off your arm?”

The Mage who had reached out frowned.

It seemed he thought he had been ignored.

Fire Mages were also resistant to cold.

“You’re making too much of a fuss.”

“If you think so, go ahead and touch it. Whatever happens, I won’t take responsibility.”

The Mage who was reaching out his arm hesitated.

“How strong is the Cold Energy?”

“Even a Fire Mage fell ill for a few days and then died.”

“What? Is that true?”

“It must have been a low-ranking Mage.”

“It was a mid-ranking Mage.”

One Mage snorted, calling it a bluff. It was the Mage who had been trying to touch the ice. Although he said that, he had already withdrawn his hand.

It seemed he was pretending not to believe it due to his pride.

“If you don’t want to believe it, ask later.”

Someone there had seen it. The Count knew. Now that he thought about it, he seemed to have been present every time the Protagonist fought.

The Protagonist’s confident attitude, on the contrary, stirred up the Mages. They couldn’t even touch the ice and hesitated among themselves.

At that moment, the Old Man spoke.