A funeral was held.

People stared blankly at the smoke rising to the sky as the corpse was cremated.

The priest’s prayer penetrated his ears, but he couldn’t properly hear it.

Rael also stared blankly.

Something splattered on his face. Raindrops were falling from the sky. It was a sun shower, briefly falling on a clear day.

When he reached out his hand, the raindrops turned into small ice pellets and fell.

Rael had entered the Domain of Ice. It was clearly the domain of an intermediate mage.

But his face was full of regret. It wasn’t like that time. He couldn’t make snow fall from the sky.

The magic from that time, which froze at least fifty orcs, decided the outcome of the battlefield with a single manifestation.

Rael recalled that moment once again.

A moment of crisis, as if he was about to be trampled by the orcs.

The fighting spirit vanished from the faces of those brave orcs like an ebbing tide, and screams erupted. Even that was swallowed by the snow, and the dazed expressions of the many people who looked at the protagonist spoke volumes.

It was a miracle.

A miracle even greater than the Ice Spear seen during Bruno’s time. Rael wasn’t sure if he could perform such a miracle again.

Rael thought. The day he returned to Langs Castle and met the Alchemist, he casually mentioned that the Ice Spear was advanced magic.

The snow he showed this time was far more incredible than that.

It’s war.

It was a battle on a grander scale than any Rael had ever fought. Yet, it decided such a battle. What he felt at that moment was a desire to possess that power.

Rael tried to recall that experience once more. But he couldn’t even imitate it.

He could freeze water to make ice, but that was all.

The snow that fell at that moment was truly the essence of magic.

An incredible magic that the current protagonist could never achieve.

But he wasn’t disappointed.

The protagonist had managed it, somehow.

Such magic.

He made small snowflakes, which could freeze an entire orc just by touching it, fall enough to fill his vision.

He could do it again. Thinking that made him feel good.

He had become much stronger through this fight. His mana had increased fivefold, and he could now freeze his surroundings.

Rael began to practice freezing his surroundings.

It was Freeze, a basic intermediate magic.

It was magic that the Old Man had demonstrated in passing. He wasn’t sure if it was right. He only guessed that it probably was.

It had been quite a while since the Old Man in his dream taught him new magic.

It hadn’t even been two years since the protagonist learned magic.

At first, when he was learning magic, he couldn’t even keep up with the pace the Old Man in his dream was teaching.

But now it was different.

Through battles that made him ready to die, Rael grew stronger. Now he was far ahead of his Dream Self.

To be precise, he was about half a year ahead now.

It was impressive, but in a way, it was absurd.

Despite having a less advantageous environment than his Dream Self in many ways, Rael trained with all his might. Yet, there wasn’t a big difference.

Amelin’s words came to mind.

The difference between having a teacher and not having one was truly significant.

Even though he saw what the Old Man taught him in his dreams, it was still insufficient compared to his Dream Self, who had constant instruction.

Rael’s face brightened.

Anyway, the protagonist was doing well.

He had to wait for the Old Man to teach him new magic.

At this rate, it seemed like it would take another half a year for him to teach proper intermediate magic.

That was too late.

He decided to get magic books when he visited a big city.

He thought he could learn in advance from books and then supplement it with the Old Man’s teachings. He was worried about how expensive intermediate magic books would be.

No, even if they existed, he didn’t know if they would be for sale. It was a plausible guess, considering Amelin’s master didn’t even properly teach basic magic.

Just in case, he thought he should acquire more money. That’s because even items not for sale could be bought if he offered a premium.

Among intermediate magic, the Ice Golem was the most urgent.

The necklace had many restrictions. There was also a limit to the number of uses.

Amelin told me.

Magic items became worthless once the power contained in the Magic Stone that powered them was depleted.

The very act of using mana was proof that the Magic Stone was of poor quality.

Even so, it was incredibly rare.

But Rael wanted to summon a Golem to protect the Protagonist in every battle. It would be possible if he properly learned the magic to create Golems.

It was also possible to summon for a longer time using less mana. If he reached that level, Rael would gain a reliable companion to protect the Protagonist.

The goal was to create an Ice Golem slightly larger than a person.

Lost in thought, he didn’t hear the voice piercing his ears.

The Priest’s prayer had ended.

Nevertheless, people mourned the dead in their own ways.

The sobs of women could be heard. Women holding their children’s hands were visible.

Ultimately, those left behind suffered the most.

As he watched them, someone appeared in the area.

It was Bairo and his gang.

The villagers’ expressions soured. If he had sent help sooner, they might not have suffered so much damage.

Perhaps because of that, some even revealed murderous intent.

No one spoke. It was uncomfortable.

The first to step forward was the East Village Chief. He stood before Bairo.

“Why have you come?”

“Is there any other reason to come to a funeral?”

“How shameless.”

“Is there a reason I shouldn’t?”

“I know that you deliberately delayed sending aid.”

“…”

“That’s an act of neglecting people’s deaths.”

“I did not neglect them.”

Bairo shook his head.

He showed no expression. It seemed he was determined to push through shamelessly.

The Village Chief remained silent for a long time after Bairo’s answer, then finally spoke.

“Power is good. Even in a village like this, there are hundreds of households. I know the fun of being king. But listen.”

The Village Chief’s voice became mournful.

“Shouldn’t we save the young ones?”

“…”

“It doesn’t matter if old people like us die… but shouldn’t we look after the children?”

The Village Chief’s gaze was directed at the children.

They were children who had lost their fathers and become orphans.

It was surprisingly common for families to lack a mother. This was due to women dying from the strain of multiple childbirths. Childbirth was an act that risked one’s life.

Rael looked at them with pity.

Words couldn’t express how difficult it was to live without the protection of parents. The protagonist had to figure out everything from beginning to end and do it all.

Bairo replied.

“I know.”

“What do you know? You’re perfectly fine.”

Bairo didn’t even lead directly.

He only pretended to from behind. He was saving his own life.

His son would be no different.

But that wasn’t it.

The mask he had forced himself to maintain crumbled.

He looked as if his world had collapsed.

His bare face was no different from anyone else’s.

“The Orcs took my son.”

“Boil?”

“I… I know too.”

“…”

“I’m sorry.”

Bairo bowed his head.

He wasn’t being shameless.

He was simply suppressing his grief.

He was speechless for a moment.

The East Village Chief hadn’t lost his son. There was no way he could absorb Bairo.

Just then, armed men stepped forward.

They were the gang Bairo had brought.

“He said if I let that guy go, he’d return my son.”

His pointing finger was aimed at one spot.

It was Rael.

“You wouldn’t sell out a Mage for your son, would you!”

At those words, it was the Village Chief who flinched more than Rael.

“I cannot allow it. The Mage is an important asset. Without him, our side would have been breached.”

“The Orcs came for peace! They said they would leave the Village alone if we handed over the Mage!”

Bairo shouted frantically.

Still, he didn’t get much of a response.

The reaction of the East Village people was cold.

They knew how that small boy had fought.

Rael felt an indescribable emotion as many people stood behind the Protagonist.

Bairo also brought up the topic of peace.

It meant there was a capital city where they might not have to fight.

They were risking danger for the Protagonist, leaving aside a potentially safe option.

It wasn’t just one person.

Just as their sincerity had reached him, Rael’s sincerity had also reached them.

He felt like he was going to cry.

Rael had seen people who would break their promises as easily as flipping their hand for a slight advantage.

Most people did.

These villagers would do the same.

But this time was different.

Someone even stepped forward. It was Bill.

“Bill.”

“Don’t worry.”

He grinned. Then he drew his sword.

“Because I don’t know how to run away.”

Battle unites people.

In the face of protecting the Village, people became one.

Rael was among them.

Because of this, the villagers did not abandon Rael.

The recent battle had brought them closer. So much so that they defied Bairo, the most powerful figure.

Bairo was flustered.

It was beyond his expectations. At least for Bairo, it was.

Bairo couldn’t back down either.

His son’s life was at stake.

Perhaps it could end by making peace with the Capital City. He could save the villagers’ lives and his son’s too.

All he had to do was hand over the Mage in front of him. He couldn’t choose anything else.

But he couldn’t act rashly.

The problem was that he brought too few of his gang. He never imagined that they would all rise up to help one outsider child.

That was his losing move.

If he fought now, he would lose.

Realizing this, Bairo knelt.

“Please, I beg you! You wouldn’t be sacrificing yourself. They merely made it a condition that you be brought to the negotiations for peace!”

His cry contained sincerity. Even the villagers who had looked down on him had their expressions change.

“Who?”

“It was the Shaman. He seems to really want to meet you. If you don’t believe me, I can even make an Oath.”

Rael didn’t answer. But Bairo just mumbled to himself, actually making an Oath.

He was tempted.

If it wasn’t too dangerous, this battle could end.

He couldn’t help but be drawn in.

As he shouted like that, the expressions on people’s faces changed.

Rael asked,

“Why are those guys suddenly asking for Peace?”

“Because it’s harder than they thought.”

“Hard?”

“Orcs aren’t fools. The fact that they attacked means they thought it was a manageable battle. But once they got into it, it became overwhelming. They’re planning to back off, thinking that if they continue like this, the Protagonists will also suffer too many casualties.”

“Can’t we win?”

“That’s impossible. We’re on the defensive, which is why we’re barely even. If we actually fought head-on, we’d be crushed. Even now, it’s not good. The Village might not be overrun, but most of the people would die. It would be a mutual destruction with the Orcs tribe.”

As Bairo continued to speak, the atmosphere changed. There was no flaw in his words.

Rael hesitated.

If things continued like this, more people would die.

It was questionable whether people would still support the Protagonist then. They were grateful now, but as people died, that gratitude would turn into resentment.

If the Protagonist stepped forward, people wouldn’t have to die.

But if he didn’t, there was plenty of room for resentment. Someone might think their relative died because of Rael.

It wasn’t Rael’s fault, but that’s how people were.

His head ached.

He wanted to grab anyone by the collar and wail about why such a choice was given only to the Protagonist.

He took a deep breath.

He looked at the people. There was the Village Chief, Bill and Hansen, and Amelin. There were also children who hadn’t lost their parents yet.

My head cleared a bit.

The decision was already made.

“Bairo will go because of his son, right?”

“That’s right.”

“But I have no reason to go.”

“So if I give you a reason, you’ll go?”

“Yes.”

Rael nodded.

Bairo’s face turned cold.

There was nothing he could do.

This was the most favor the protagonist could offer.

Even for the protagonist, going to a place where he might die was out of the question.

If Bairo wanted to save his son,

if he truly yearned for it, he had to offer Rael a price.

Saving the son should be done by Bairo, the parent, not Rael, an outsider.

At least, that’s what Rael thought.

Bairo turned his back and left. Rael didn’t know if he went straight back. Perhaps he was thinking about how much of a price he should offer.

Whatever it was, Rael had no intention of moving unless it was enough to satisfy the protagonist.

If he showed a disappointing side, Rael planned to pack his bags and leave the village.

He hoped he was desperate.

For that protagonist. And for the villagers.

Bairo appeared quite late.

In his hand was a small wooden box.

Rael took it.

Rael opened the small box to see what was inside.

It was a gold coin.

Gold coins were piled up. My hands trembled.

I remembered when I took Lorina there. After all that hardship, I only got 10 gold. So, the amount of gold coins was immense.

But Bairo was paying more than that. It was more than double the amount. I couldn’t help but be amazed.

Suddenly, I understood why people were so desperate for power.

It was almost his entire fortune, but a powerful person from a village that wasn’t even a city could offer this much money.

Bairo said,

“23 gold.”

“23 gold…”

“This is the best I can offer.”

He stared at me, as if asking if this was enough.

Rael nodded. At the same time, he couldn’t help but ask,

“Is Boil worth this much to you?”

Most people have many children.

Many parents thought that if a child died, they could just have another.

Bairo’s actions were hard to understand.

“I do have several children.”

“…”

“But he’s my only son.”

Bairo asked if that answered my question.

I nodded.

As I finished talking to him, someone grabbed my shoulder. It was Hansen.

“Are you really going?”

“Why?”

“It’s dangerous. It’s obviously a trap. Don’t go.”

“I already promised.”

Hansen frowned.

“Is it because they offered a much bigger reward than you expected?”

“That too. But…”

“But?”

“We have to save the children.”

“Rael.”

Hansen’s voice was tinged with regret.

“That’s not a profit.”

“It is a profit.”

Rael held up the wooden box.

Hansen was silent. It was strange.

The old Hansen would have changed his expression at the sight of even one gold coin.

Hansen looked at Rael and blurted out,

“I’m going too.”

“What?”

“Just give me one gold coin.”

Rael was flustered. He couldn’t adapt to the fact that the person who had just been stopping the protagonist was suddenly volunteering to go.

On second thought, it seemed to be because of the gold coin. He was a mercenary who pursued profit. One gold coin was enough to change his attitude.

“Here you go.”

Thinking so, Rael took out a gold coin from the box and offered it. It was an advance payment.

But Hansen did something strange.

He offered the gold coin back.

“Give it to me later.”

“Are you sure?”

“It doesn’t matter. I’ll get it anyway.”