Chapter 119:
Chapter 119:
Just as Ethan was about to talk to Sarah, the Second Elder, who took his eyes off him and stared at the crystal ball, called Sarah.
"Great Elder-nim?"
"......Yes?"
"I think I know a little bit from looking closely."
"About what?"
Sarah's gaze quickly turned to the video crystal ball pointed to by the Second Elder. Ethan sighed in regret and moved his gaze to follow her.
"Yess, so...... I think we can see a part of the magic circle that Oliven was researching here."
"Let me see."
Sarah picked up the video crystal ball and blew in the mana. Then, the screen reflected in the ball became a little clearer.
"......Hmm."
Between the disastrous bodies, the patterns of the magic circle, which remained like burns on their arms, seemed to be faint.
"You found something like this in Oliven's lab, right? I mean, there seems to be some connection."
The Second Elder took some papers from his arms and handed them to Sarah. She also saw the magic formula she had given Oliven some advice. As she turned through several pages, Sarah found something strange and tilted her head to the side and said.
"He did a lot of research on magic related to memory. Each one of them is like different magic, but it continues."
"Yess, you're right. It seems like he has a lot of interest in this area, right?"
"......What the hell was he thinking?"
Sarah narrowed her brows and was lost in thought.
* * *
"You don't need this either. This and that. All of them."
Elexa's small body twitched and trembled at the cool flowing voice. Penelois was unloading her busy pack at Benjamin's beck and call.
"Why did you bring this? Throw it out."
"Ah......!"
Benjamin, finding the little rabbit doll in the pile, narrowed his forehead and grabbed the doll with two fingers, and shook it gently. When his attached doll was in Benjamin's hands, Elexa groaned softly with a pale face. When Elexa looked desperately at Benjamin with anxious eyes, he clicked his tongue and threw the doll into the luggage bag.
"......!"
Then, Elexa, whose face brightened noticeably, breathed a sigh of relief. Claude, who had been watching the scene, looked at Benjamin with sharp eyes as if displeased.
"Uncle."
"What, brat."
"Who does Uncle think you are to keep telling them to throw it away?"
At Claude's words, Benjamin squinted and said.
"What are you complaining about?"
Claude said, pointing to a bag of luggage, in which a child would fit if he crouched albeit a little cramped, with his fingertips.
"That bag is too small."
Benjamin declared that he would take only one bag of the luggage that Elexa and Penelois had packed. Penelois and Elexa, who had no choice but to follow his instructions, were eventually forced to rearrange their many belongings. In Claude's eyes, Benjamin seemed to be being mean for no reason, and his mouth was sticking out.
"Ha."
Benjamin swallowed a smirk and said as he saw Claude's face full of clear dissatisfaction.
"Even if they don't pack all that stuff, it's all in the Duke Ambrosia's family. Why do they have to take everything they have?"
"But!"
"And we're not on an outing right now, but we're on a mission to take those two secretly to the Duke's house. If they were to carry that much baggage into Ambrosia, I'm sure there would be rumors. Are you going to handle it?"
"......"
Claude kept his mouth shut as he listened to Benjamin's pouring words. Elexa was restless and looked at Claude and Benjamin staring at each other in silence.
"It's all right, Young Lord Ambrosia. We just need to pack a few precious things with us."
Penelois gently stroked Elexa's hair to mediate between Claude and Benjamin.
"Hmph."
Benjamin quickly turned his head, and so did Claude. Between the two, who seemed to be on a very bad relationship, Elexa felt his heart pounding and pressed his chest hard.
"If you're done packing, let's go now. Mercenaries are gathering in the capital right now, so we'll have to pass through the middle of the pub if we're late."
Benjamin urged, looking displeased at the thought.
"Ah, yes!"
Penelois hurriedly grabbed the only bag Benjamin had given her. Except for the last Elexa's attachment doll she put in, she didn't have much to bring. She had only gathered the gifts Eleon gave her, the dagger, and a few poisons that she made herself. Penelois said solemnly, looking very nervous.
"Let's go."
Penelois had never been out of the mansion since she gave birth to Elexa. For her, it was like an adventure into an unknown world. Penelois clasped Elexa's hand, making her resolve.
"Haa......"
Seeing this, Benjamin sighed a little, and then enlarged the hole he passed through when he entered the mansion with mana. Enough for Penelois and Elexa to walk out. He murmured a little from behind as he watched the two bravely walk through the hole.
"If you keep being so stiff, everyone will be able to tell."
"......!"
The noise flinched Penelois, trembling, and moved again. With a much softer walk than before, Benjamin looked down at Claude, feeling tired.
"We're going, too."
"Don't say us."
"What?"
"Hmph!"
Claude snorted and strode ahead. Benjamin frowned and swung his magical hand.
"Argh!"
Then, the vine that had been covering the hole suddenly covered Claude's face. Seeing Claude screaming in surprise, Benjamin smirked, raising one corner of his lips wryly.
"Whoops."
Benjamin, who passed Claude with his eyes wide open in surprise, looked refreshed as he passed by the child. Following Benjamin's flickering fingers, the hole in the mansion disappeared. The entrance was completely blocked.
"I really hate Uncle so much!"
"The same goes for me."
"I hate you more!"
"The feeling it's the same."
The two walked forward, not stopping bickering.
"Mother, are those two all right?"
"I think it's all right. They look like they're on good terms?"
"Even though they're fighting now?"
"Well."
Penelois held her son, who could not hide his anxious face, and smiled quietly.
"It seems to me that they get along well."
"Everything Mother says is right but......"
Elexa mumbled as he saw Claude and Benjamin once again leading the way.
"Idiot Uncle."
"Foul-tempered brat."
"I'm going to tell Nanny."
"I'm going to tell Master everything."
"Nanny's on my side?"
"Master was my master even before you were born. You stupid little brat."
"I'm not stupid!"
"I think that's right."
Looking at the two people who continue their childish verbal quarrel without a break, his mother seemed to be mistaken this time.
"If you keep looking, you'll see it."
"Yess......"
At Penelois's words, Elexa nodded slightly and looked around. Unlike the daytime, the market near the mansion was less crowded at night. Elexa, feeling a little eerie, asked Penelois, hugging her tightly.
"How long will it take to get to Ambrosia's mansion, Mother?"
"I don't know. I've never been outside the mansion......"
Penelois looked around and tilted her head. Then Benjamin, who was walking ahead, turned around and said to Elexa and Penelois.
"If we pass through the market, we will get a carriage, so we won't have to walk then."
If you went straight from there and passed through the commercial district, you would soon be able to reach Ambrosia's dukedom. However, as the commercial district was the capital of the empire, it was very large and it was difficult to move on foot because it was a place where nobles passed by.
"Yes, thank you for your consideration."
"What consideration."
Benjamin shrugged and looked forward again. And he unconsciously looked for Claude, then narrowed his brow.
"Brat?"
He walked a little further away, but the figure of Claude, who was still relatively next to him, disappeared for a while. Benjamin quickly scoured the surroundings at once. Then he saw Claude snooping in the side alley. Benjamin, who thought he had lost his child for a moment, exhaled loudly and approached Claude.
"What are you gonna do if you're alone on the road, brat?"
"I hear a strange sound here."
"What are you talking abo......"
A faint sound could be heard in Benjamin's ears as he narrowed his brow at Claude's words.
"......help, ......I was wrong, argh,......"
Along with a very young voice, there was also a dull sound of something breaking.
"......just do as you're told......, mess with our mercenaries."
And after that, Benjamin's face hardened at once when he heard the voice of a husky adult man. He drew a long mana thread from his hand at once and sent it to a place where he could hear the sound. Benjamin's face, as he looked at the sights there through his mana, became increasingly chilly.
"Who's getting hit over ther......, Uncle?"
Claude's eyes widened as he saw Benjamin striding into the alleyway past him. Claude thought 'What's wrong with that Uncle?' and for a moment, Sarah's voice came to his mind.
'Benjamin hates mercenaries terribly. That child was a boy soldier, serving his mercenaries. There are a lot of mercenaries in the capital right now, so I'm a little worried. If he goes crazy, he can't see anything else......'
Claude's face quickly turned pale when he heard something about the mercenary in a faint voice a while ago.
"Ah, I'm doomed."
"Huh?"
As Claude murmured a little, Elexa tilted his head as if puzzled.
"We have to catch that Uncle!"