Kays Translations

Chapter 13- The Identity of the Traveler

When Ren saw the room at the very end and the item placed in front of the door, he stared at it intently.

It was a large familiar bag.

"... "

It was hard to believe, but Ren walked forward in silence.

After walking down the long corridor, the two stopped in front of the door.

"What's wrong, Ren? You've been quiet since earlier."

"Maybe I’m nervous."

"It's unusual for you, Ren. But there's no need to be nervous. That's why I'm here."

"Thanks, I appreciate it."

Before Radius could grasp the doorknob, he knocked on the door. A voice came from inside.

"You may enter."

Ren followed Radius into the room.

The wall at the far end directly in front of them was entirely made of windows, from floor to ceiling, offering a picturesque view of Eupeheim.

In front of the windows, there was a massive desk.

Someone was sitting on the desk, with their feet resting on it and the back of the chair slightly tilted back in a rude manner.

"It's been a while, Radius. And that person over there must be Ren Ashton."

Though it was the first time Ren saw him without his robe, judging from the voice and demeanor, there was no doubt.

The man who was reclining in an impolite manner was unmistakably the traveling bag person, the same person Ren had witnessed before in front of the Imperial Capital with Licia.

Ren and Radius stood in front of the desk.

"Ren, let me introduce you. This man is..."

"That's fine. I'll introduce myself."

The traveler with the bag stood up and walked around the large desk, approaching Ren. It emitted a refreshing scent, perhaps of herbs, tickling Ren's nostrils.

"I am Ragna. Biologically, I am a Shelgadian. But that's limited to races, of course."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Ren Ashton."

One should not judge Ragna solely based on his height.

He referred to himself as a Shelgadian, which meant he belonged to a race different from ordinary people. They primarily inhabited the Sky Continent.

Shegadians have extremely long lifespans, and their youthful period lasted much longer than that of ordinary people.

Therefore, Ragna was no exception to that.

"I agreed to meet this insolent Third Prince since it's about time. Otherwise, I'm short on time. I want to go wherever I want and seek romance and wisdom."

"Thank you for taking the time. I have something I want to ask you this time."

"Is it about how to find romance?"

"No, it's something different."

While that was also intriguing, Ren decided to start with something else.

He thought it might be inappropriate to ask suddenly, but when he looked at Radius standing beside him, Radius nodded as if to say, "Don't worry about it."

Unusually, Ren asked the question without hesitation.

"...I apologize for starting with a different topic from the main issue, but I had the opportunity to talk with a Shelgadian person during the summer. I heard that Shelgadians are older than their appearance suggests. I was curious about how true that is."

"So you were wondering about me. I see, it's not a bad curiosity."

The petite Shelgadian man had a confident smile on his handsome face.

"I'm about to turn thirty soon. Nice to meet you."

Ren nodded once again and repeated, "Nice to meet you."

Ragna yawned lightly.

"Sit however you like. If you want tea, make it yourself."

Ragna walked around the desk once more and arrogantly sat down in the same manner as when Ren and Radius arrived.

Ren and Radius sat on the sofa placed a little away from the table in front of them. The table was piled high with stacks of paper.

At a glance, there were various complex texts and diagrams written all over them.

They were all contents that Ren and Radius couldn't understand at all.

"And so, both of you..."

Ragna's cool sidelong glance reached them.

"The letter said you had something you wanted to ask me. I won't bother answering if it's something boring."

Ragna didn't seem interested in the greetings from earlier. It seemed like he had been bored until Ren started speaking and had already opened a book that was placed on the desk.

It appeared as if he was saying, "Just talk freely."

"I apologize, but he has always been like that."

"He's the one I requested, so I don't mind. By the way, has he been like this since the time he was teaching you, Radius?"

Radius nodded.

"But he's smart."

"Well, he's Radius' teacher, and he was also the one who helped establish the Arne Velde Trading Company. But then again, I practically have control over the management rights of the Arne Velde Trading Company. Ragna lost interest pretty quickly."

"Oh... well, let me make some tea for now."

"Are you sure? Ragna is very particular about tea... oh, never mind, I guess it's fine since it's you, Ren."

"Thanks. Since it's approved by you, Radius, I'll prepare enough for the three of us, so please wait a moment."

Ren, who stood up, looked at the magic tools placed in the corner of the room. There were items for boiling water and other familiar tea utensils that Ren was used to.

Ren operated the magic tools to boil water and prepared tea with practiced movements.

Ragna at the desk sniffed the gradually rising steam.

"Not bad."

"Do you know that even though you haven't tasted it yet?"

"When you reach my level, you'll know. Tea is good. Doesn't it remind you of books in a way? The taste changes depending on the one brewing it, similar to the differences between different writers."

"It's both understandable and incomprehensible... Anyway, please have some."

"Is it delicious?"

Ren let out a sigh of relief.

At first glance, Ragna may seem arrogant... to put it bluntly, a handsome brat, but his true nature is different, so Ren couldn't interact with him in a normal way.

Since he had the same attitude towards Radius, Ren also needed to think about it.

Ren delivered tea to Radius next and stood in front of the window with a teacup in hand.

"Let me call you Ren. What do you want to ask me?"

Ragna remained seated in his chair, his face turned towards Ren.

"Please tell me about sacred magic."

Ragna let out a sigh as if losing interest in an instant. However, he didn't become ill-tempered, perhaps because he had been served delicious tea.

"There are plenty of descriptions in textbooks about that. Why don't you just read them?"

"That may be true, but I wanted to hear from an expert."

Now Ren turned to face Ragna, and their eyes met. Finally, they reached the main topic.

After the events of summer and discussions with Radius, a valuable opportunity arose to talk with an expert about sacred magic in autumn.

"Besides strengthening the body and having a special effect against undead, can sacred magic be used for anything else?"

"Oh...? I heard you were smart from Radius, but that's an obtuse question."

"I'm sorry. In the Clausel household, where I'm being taken care of, there's a girl the same age as me."

"I've heard rumors. Is it about the White Saint?"

"Yes. I can accompany her in sword training, but I haven't had much training in sacred magic. So I want to learn and become a support for Lycia—the young lady."

As Ragna listened to Ren fluently speak the prepared false reason, he observed Ren as if seeing a rare creature.

Unlike the loss of interest from earlier, he seemed willing to listen and engage in the conversation.

"That's commendable."

"Is it strange?"

"No, it's just a thought that I could never have. If it were me, I would spend that time exploring ruins... But everyone has their own way of living. Well, it's not a bad idea."

Ragna had a faint smile on his face.

From the distant sofa, Radius’s voice reached them, saying, "Ren is that kind of person."

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