Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 193

Gift (2)

With those words, Renok turned without hesitation and walked out of the lighthouse.

He could feel Lapis’s gaze on his back, but she didn’t try to stop him.

She knew he intended to leave the Autonomous Territory as soon as he recovered.

He casually brushed off the greetings of the Watchers pouring out of the spacious hall and stepped outside.

It had been well over a week since he had arrived, and now it was time to return to the Autonomous Territory.

Since arriving, things had been so hectic that he had lost contact with Jenny.

He also needed to check what was happening in Balkan while he was away.

That vast city was a place where something could happen every day.

If Renok were to announce his departure, countless people would come to see him off, far more than before.

He didn’t particularly want such fanfare.

He quietly slipped away and walked towards the pier where the wingboats were docked.

As he passed through the dense forest, he saw Seonmyeong leaning against a tree with his eyes closed.

“…….”

A cold expression, completely different from the slightly skewed admiration and loyalty he had shown before.

Although he had never seen him fight directly, considering his refined aura, magical power, and the way other Watchers treated him, he must have been quite skilled.

However, he hadn’t made any significant contribution in this battle, yet he hadn’t shown any sign of it.

It was proof that he was a warrior who had thoroughly trained not only his outward skills but also his inner self.

He slightly opened his eyes, glanced at Renok, and gave a slight nod.

Understanding the nod, Renok silently passed him and headed towards the pier.

“I hope we can meet again in a similar place next time.”

The low voice coming from behind didn’t need a reply.

Seonmyeong had already vanished, concealing his presence and even his appearance.

Like a ghost, he passed through the Watchers who had returned to the lighthouse, naturally picked a wingboat, and grabbed the steering wheel.

Until he soared above the clouds and broke through the celestial formation’s barrier, no one noticed his movement.

The fact that the lighthouse’s location had never been discovered, even with so many Watchers coming and going, proved how powerful the celestial formation placed on it was.

As he flew above the clouds where the sunlight reflected, reaching the tranquil sky, Davi spoke.

[It seems this is the end of seeing this scenery.]

“Did you like it that much?”

[Well, I don’t know.]

Davi, who had peeked his head out from inside his coat, replied.

[I don’t know either, but looking down at people like this from a high place… it gives me a strange feeling.]

“…….”

Perhaps Renok wasn’t a digital spirit, but someone who was destined to show the world his innate kingly qualities?

Lately, listening to what this guy was saying, Renok had been feeling absurd emotions that didn’t fit his situation.

Renok shook off those absurd feelings and turned the steering wheel in the direction Davi was looking.

As the sea level got closer, the sunlight was finely fragmented and reflected, dazzling the eyes of the mage and the spirit.

The salty smell and cool sea breeze washed over his face.

Whoosh-!!

Renok, who had taken his hand off the wingboat speeding over the sea, stared blankly at the scenery ahead and muttered.

“Yeah. Sometimes, there are days when I like this kind of thing.”

He couldn’t say that he had had many good things happen to him since he opened his eyes in this world.

At least today’s scenery would remain in Renok’s memory.

The beautiful scenery of the floating islands, which he would never have been able to encounter if not for this world, gradually receded into the distance.

His time in the Autonomous Territory was coming to an end.

* * *

The foggy cliff where he had first rented the wingboat.

The boundary where the updraft lost its power and this convenient means of transportation became useless.

Renok returned the device to the young man who had first rented him the wingboat.

While it was fine for the residents of the Autonomous Territory, outsiders had to record their wingboat rental/return when traveling to and from the floating island clusters.

Due to the recent appearance of the Heteromorphs, many of the outsiders who had visited the Autonomous Territory had left as soon as the barrier was lifted.

Of course, there seemed to be some crazy people who liked this phenomenon, saying it was the intensification of the Autonomous Territory’s unique natural phenomenon, but at least Akasha didn’t seem to have such a taste.

Renok, after confirming that her alias, Cassia, was written in the ledger recording the wingboat rentals and returns, turned his head without any lingering feelings.

He could have at least given a brief explanation about this matter, but it seemed she had returned to Balkan first due to circumstances.

All that was left was to wait for the train back to Balkan.

Fortunately, considering the time Renok had spent roughly lying around in the lighthouse, he seemed to be able to roughly match the train schedule the broker had mentioned.

As he sat at the old train station waiting, someone sat next to him.

Renok quickly turned his head and chuckled when he saw the familiar tanned skin.

“If you wanted to say hello, you could have done it in the Autonomous Territory. Why are you being so pathetic here?”

“Hey, even so, you should have some manners when talking to an elder.”

“That’s rich coming from someone who called an Ascended One an old hag.”

A beret and a trench coat. If it was an outfit chosen for disguise, it was a very anachronistic fashion sense.

Was it that a stubborn sorcerer revealed their individuality in such trivial matters?

Grisha, who was covering her face with a hat and sunglasses, sighed at Renok’s words.

“Well, it’s not like I came all the way here because of you. I was planning to leave the Autonomous Territory again right after confirming the face of the guy who received the old hag’s message.”

“You live a busy life.”

It wasn’t something Renok should say, but considering her behavior when he first met her, it was only natural.

Grisha was practically one of the most powerful forces in the Eyes of Azure.

Naturally, she would be the first to be considered in all operations conducted by the Eyes of Azure.

Moreover, Lapis seemed to define the Eyes of Azure’s area of activity regardless of location, so naturally, she, with her power, would be busy.

Their first meeting was quite unpleasant, but now he had come to acknowledge her to some extent.

“As a bonus, I also had something to give you. Take this.”

Grisha said, taking something out of her coat and throwing it to Renok.

Renok, as if it were natural, caught it and picked up the object that had fallen on the ground with a nonchalant expression.

A small doll about the size of a thumb.

Looking at the characters that were densely engraved with crooked letters, it was hard to call it a good design, even euphemistically.

“For a gift, it’s extremely… awful.”

Grisha chuckled at Renok’s honest feelings without any embellishment.

“That’s how sorcery is. Don’t complain and just take it. It’ll be helpful if you meet a kind-hearted sorcerer like me later.”

“Oh, is this an item needed to show off your connections? If so, then the story is a bit different.”

Renok, who had changed his expression as if he was lying, took the doll and put it inside his coat.

Grisha nodded, taking out a pipe from her coat.

“Yeah. Well, I don’t think there will be many who recognize this… but in that huge city, there might be one who recognizes it and takes care of you.”

“That sounds interesting.”

Renok also chuckled at Grisha’s bold assurance.

“Let’s see how great your popularity is to say that so confidently.”

“Yeah. If neither of us ends up dying somewhere.”

“…….”

Grisha continued nonchalantly.

“Neither you nor I seem like we’ll live out our natural lives and enjoy longevity.”

“You have a talent for sugarcoating bad luck.”

“It’s not wrong. To be honest, I was envious of the old hag.”

She slightly lowered her head and lit her pipe.

She stared blankly at the rusty railroad tracks, inhaling the burning smoke.

“It was a life full of ups and downs, but in the end, the old hag did everything she had to do and could do before she left. Even her insight to pass on her message to you instead of me. I always thought she was an annoying old woman… but maybe I wanted to be recognized by that old woman after all.”

“…….”

“Well, it doesn’t matter now. I’m not the type to hold onto the dead for long.”

Grisha said, shaking off her seat and getting up lightly.

“Maybe the old hag didn’t want us to stop the Demon Realm… but even so, I intend to side with Lapis Palshier until the end.”

She looked down at Renok with a firm will.

“So, I want you, who the old hag chose, to take a good look and judge. Which side chose the right path in the end.”

It was almost certain that the answer would come down in this era.

Without bending her own thoughts until the end, Grisha left.

In name, she might have given this small doll as a gift, but perhaps what she really wanted to do was closer to this.

She also pretended to be calm on the outside, but she was confused by the fact that the Ascended One had left nothing to Lapis and herself.

Even though she knew very well that such things were meaningless.

Renok silently leaned back in his chair and looked up at the sky.

It was a world where it was difficult to face anything properly.

Just as Renok kept running away from his remaining time, others also struggled to face what they had to do.

A life like a flame that was born and then faded away in vain.

Finding meaning in it was always up to oneself.

And Renok was still pondering that meaning.

While he was lost in thought, he saw faint smoke rising from beyond the horizon.

Renok stopped thinking and slowly got up from his seat.

His legs gave way for a moment, but as always, he quickly regained his balance.

It was time to return to Balkan.

* * *

The time spent in the Autonomous Territory was a little over two weeks, but it felt much longer.

The work of chasing the drug lord’s trail all over Philemon was enough to wear down Renok’s mental strength.

So, Renok felt awkward at how glad he was to see the scenery of the giant city he was returning to after a long time.

“I never thought I’d miss this kind of smog…”

The unpleasant smog of the 50th district, burning cheap fuel, felt like a distant memory in Renok’s mind.

“Hey, you ragamuffin!! Hand over all your money and get lost!”

Even the face of a thug who suddenly started a pointless fight looked friendly. Was this already the realm of mental illness?

While zapping the face of the hoodlum who had rushed at him with an old gun with a bolt, Renok was lost in thought.

In any case, it was time to shed the many layers of disguise and return to Van’s face.

‘I have a mountain of things to do.’

Research on the magic he had learned in the Autonomous Territory and analyzing the essence of alchemy.

He also had to take Malabes to the apothecary to get medicine, and he had to show his face as Evan at the university where he had taken a leave of absence.

In addition, he had to hear about the matter of taking control of the underbelly of Balkan, which Jenny had mentioned before she left.

Apart from the fatigue of his body, Renok forced himself to cheer up, even though a schedule that made him feel sluggish was waiting for him.

He hadn’t been able to contact Jenny for a long time because he hadn’t had time in the Autonomous Territory.

It seemed like the first thing to do was to change back to Van’s face and go to the bar to hear what had happened.

‘First, I need to change out of this tattered coat. Was there a clothing store near the bar?’

As he was thinking that and stepping into the 49th district, someone suddenly spoke to him from the side.

“I heard you died somewhere, but you’re alive and well?”

“…….”

“I didn’t see you show up until the bar was in that state, so there were rumors that you were assassinated without a trace… but it was just bullshit after all.”

Renok, who couldn’t ignore those words, turned his head.

A large bald man who was chain-smoking turned his head slightly at the gaze.

“…Well, I didn’t say it for you to hear. I apologize if it bothered you.”

“No, more than that, there’s something I want to ask.”

“Hmm, I don’t have much, but if you’re going to rob me like this…”

“Did something happen to Jenny’s bar?”

“What?”

The bald man widened his eyes behind his sunglasses as if he was surprised by the words.

“My god, the 49th district is in an uproar because of that, and you don’t know?”

“I had circumstances.”

“Then the rumor that you were away somewhere was true…”

“Just answer the question.”