Shepherd Wizard Chapter 51

Translator: Pai_

After several more tests, it was confirmed that the this Slingshot technique was not just about reducing noise, it was an incredible skill that more than doubled the speed and penetration power of a regular shot.

At this level, even a noble with exceptional reflexes would struggle to perceive and dodge it, making it practically a surefire killing move the moment it was fired correctly.

Of course, there were drawbacks as well.

First, he couldn't run around and throw stones freely like he used to with the regular slingshot technique.

Even for relatively close targets, it took about one second to establish the wind path, while distant targets required over five seconds. If he moved, the starting point would shift, forcing him to recreate the entire trajectory from scratch.

And second-

"Another failure..."

Pang! A loud boom echoed as the stone flew. Turan let out a sigh of disappointment.

In the distance, the target, a deer, was startled and bolted away in panic.

The principle behind the Silent Slingshot was to extend his magic power in advance to control the wind path, then remove air resistance in sync with the stone's flight, accelerating it.

Because of this, if the target moved mid-flight and disrupted the trajectory, he couldn't quickly correct it.

If the stone adjusted even slightly according to guidance magic, only part of it would remain in the wind stream, completely ruining its trajectory.

Of course, he could forcefully adjust it with magic power even in such situations, but that completely wrecked both efficiency and power.

He tried various methods, but there didn't seem to be a way to overcome this flaw.

‘No opponent will just stand still in a fight, so this will have to be strictly for ambushes... or for immobilized targets…’

Even with those limitations, it was still a terrifying technique.

If he attacked while concealed and infused as much magic power as possible to maximize its power, the target wouldn't even have a chance to react.

Even a top-tier wizard like Meisa would likely pass out or suffer a similar level of damage if she took this attack to a vital spot without a defensive magic artifact.

'I guess I'll end today's practice here.'

The sun was already setting, so Turan called Bije, who had been playing some distance away, and returned to Kalamaf City.

It had been three weeks since he publicly declared that the western threat had been eliminated.

As winter gradually faded, the pleasantly cool air filled the city, and he noticed the citizens' clothing had visibly lightened.

However, as he looked down from above, the southern entrance of the city appeared unusually noisy.

Had some kind of incident occurred?

Activating his senses, he detected several nobles, at least four, along with over twenty knights gathered near the entrance.

After confirming that there was no immediate threat, he landed. A nearby officer, who had been anxiously pacing with a troubled expression, hurried over and reported in a flustered tone.

"O Protector of the city! The Lord of Vigen has personally come to request an audience. How should we proceed?"

"The Lord of Vigen?"

Turan searched his memory for a moment.

Vigen was located to the southeast of Kalamaf, geographically the closest city to the Enril Desert.

He also recalled that one of the nobles who had visited before was the son of that city's lord.

"Since they traveled all the way from another city, we can't treat them poorly. Escort them to the central estate."

At his command, the officer's face visibly brightened.

The fact that a foreign city lord had arrived with a group of wizards, yet had been left standing at the city gates, must have weighed heavily on his mind.

"Understood!"

Since overcoming the recent crisis, Turan had been implementing policies to help the impoverished residents of the central estate gradually build their own small homes and gain independence.

It wasn't that he had suddenly developed a desire for estate life, it was simply because he knew that, regardless of who ruled this city in the future, they wouldn’t allow commoners to continue living in the central estate.

Of course, he hadn't indulged in luxuries like repurchasing the expensive furniture that had been lost in the past or tending to the garden, so the place still felt rather empty. But at least it was better than the City Hall.

A short while later, Turan sat across from the Lord of Vigen in the former city lord's office, which had been stripped down to just a desk and a few chairs.

"This is our first time meeting in person! Protector of Kalamaf, I am Alos, the Lord of Vigen and head of House Mebern."

"I am Turan of Kalamaf."

Alos, the Lord of Vigen, was a middle-aged man who, much like his son who had visited earlier, appeared shrewd, in other words, cunning.

After briefly assessing Turan’s magic power, he immediately adopted a submissive posture toward the young man, who looked at least a hundred and twenty years his junior.

"My foolish son came here before. I hope he wasn’t impolite."

"Not at all. Though I was a bit taken aback when he suddenly brought up marriage."

"Haha, that wasn’t just my idea. It was something all the local lords had discussed together…"

From Turan’s experience, nobles in regions like the Gray Zone, where there was no liege to serve, tended to be arrogant and overbearing.

Yet, this man seemed oddly accustomed to gauging others' reactions.

Even now, the way he skillfully deflected responsibility was proof enough.

"In any case, that is precisely why I came in person this time."

They both understood what "that" referred to without needing to say it aloud.

The condition to become the city's ruler, the investigation into Turan's mother’s past.

Given that Vigen was the closest city to the Enril Desert, the land of House Zahar, it was reasonable to assume that their search had the highest chance of success.

"Did you find any clues?"

"I can say with absolute certainty that I’ve identified who the woman was. No other lord in this region would have uncovered as much as I have. Has anyone else come to you first?"

"No. Not yet."

Turan’s heart pounded at the confidence in Alos’s voice.

Yet, strangely enough, despite his bold declaration, Alos scratched his eyebrow with an uncertain expression.

"It’s just… while I am confident about who she was, it's difficult to determine her current whereabouts based on this information. If you’re looking to find her, I must be honest, it might not be of much help."

"That doesn’t matter."

After all, Turan already knew that his mother had arrived at Hisaril Hill, given birth to him, raised him, and then passed away.

What he truly wanted to know was who she was and what she had been doing before that.

And if Alos was telling the truth, it was clear that he had brought exactly that information.

"Before we get into the details, may I ask you something first?"

"Please, go ahead."

"Protector of Kalamaf, do you perhaps have a deep connection with House Arabion?"

Turan narrowed his eyes at the question.

He had a rough idea of why this topic had come up.

His interaction with the Arabion army and his annoucement that the western threat had been eradicated had already spread far and wide.

The real question was, why bring it up now?

"The thing is… well, our House Mebern served as a base for House Zahar’s forces during the war, as you know. That was purely due to geography, but I want to make it clear that I personally have maintained neutrality."

Turan had already heard as much from the city’s influential figures.

Originally, the Lord of Vigen had been this man's older brother, who was openly pro-Arabion.

But one day, he was suddenly found dead.

There was no proof, but it was widely believed that House Zahar had assassinated him.

In other words, Alos was preemptively trying to dispel any suspicion Turan might have toward him, fearing that his alleged ties to House Zahar might put him in a bad light.

"I am not aligned with either house, so you don’t need to worry about that. I have no intention of holding House Mebern’s past against you, so set your mind at ease."

Turan gave a firm response and silently observed Alos.

A few seconds later, Alos, sweating slightly, gave a hesitant nod.

"I-I'll trust you… After all, without trust, this entire deal wouldn't be possible in the first place. That aside, do you have anything to formally guarantee your promise? The transfer of a city's rule isn’t something that can be decided by mere words. Besides, I'm a bit concerned about the descendants of the family that originally ruled this city."

The surviving members of Kalamaf’s ruling family consisted of only two nobles who were nearing their final days and five young knights.

Even if they reclaimed the city, they lacked the ability to protect it. Furthermore, when their house had collapsed, they were the first to ransack the central estate’s wealth and flee.

Not only Turan, but everyone else as well, paid no mind to any rights they claimed to have.

In other words, Alos had merely thrown in that last remark to make his argument sound more convincing.

Instead of pointing it out, Turan called for Daruk and had him bring a scroll.

It was made of the finest parchment, carefully transcribed by a skilled scribe, and contained the declaration of the city's rule transfer.

Naturally, the recipient’s name and house were left blank.

"The moment I write Lord Alos’s name and house here and sign below, this contract will be protected under the name of the great Preah God Tribe. Anyone who breaks it will become my enemy."

Since all the nobles of the seven gathered cities had personally witnessed Turan’s magic power not long ago, this was a powerful deterrent.

A city wasn’t worth making an enemy out of someone who could easily overwhelm the heads of most noble houses, even those ranked high among the great families.

The contents of the contract were exactly as previously mentioned.

Turan would grant the city’s rule to whoever provided the most specific and detailed information he sought.

However, the recipient would be obligated to sincerely protect the citizens as their ruler.

"This 'sincerely protect' condition feels a bit vague…"

"It means they must do their utmost without risking serious injury or death. At the very least, if rumors spread about people being attacked by magical beasts, they should conduct patrols or go on hunts."

"Hmm… That’s not entirely unreasonable. I already manage my own territory that way."

"Of course, if you neglect this duty, that would also be a breach of contract."

There was no need to explicitly state that this would make Turan his enemy.

Judging by Alos’s flinch, he had understood perfectly.

After discussing a few more details, the two reached a reasonable agreement.

Once all conditions were finalized, Alos excused himself for a moment and left the room. When he returned, he brought a woman with him.

"I… I am Sarina, O descendant of the great god."

She appeared to be around forty years old.

Her face, must have been quite beautiful in her youth, still carried refined features. Her precise speech and composed posture suggested she had been trained to serve nobles.

Alos placed a hand on her shoulder and spoke.

"Tell this person exactly what you told me before. If this goes well, I'll take responsibility not only for your retirement but also for your children's future."

Sarina's eyes widened in shock as she looked back and forth between Alos and Turan.

She seemed startled that such a young-looking noble was being treated as an equal, or perhaps even more, by the ruler of her own city.

As she hesitated, Alos, growing impatient, urged her in an irritated tone.

"Hurry up!"

"Y-Yes! I will speak. I have served House Mebern of Vigen for generations, and during the war, I was responsible for attending to the nobles of House Zahar… If it's about a pregnant woman who fled on a golden horse, it must be the person I'm thinking of."

"How do you know her?"

At Turan’s question, Sarina glanced cautiously at Alos before beginning her explanation.

"T-That’s because I was in charge of managing her."

"Managing her?"

"Yes. She was one of the spoils of war taken by House Zahar when they pillaged the Arabion mainland…"

Sarina abruptly stopped speaking.

Turan’s face had hardened so severely that even Alos, who had been quietly listening from behind, flinched at the sheer intensity of his presence.

"Keep talking."

"Ah, yes."

About twenty years ago, during the war, Sarina had worked under the Zahar nobles who used Vigen City as their base camp.

Her most important duty was overseeing the ordinary women among those captured when Zahar raided and plundered the Arabion mainland.

"Were there many such women?"

"Not too many… perhaps twenty at most."

Typically, the most valuable war captives were enemy wizards who had been crippled in battle and taken as prisoners.

However, even among ordinary humans, there were certain individuals considered valuable spoils of war.

Just like the ones once offered to Turan, women who had been trained solely to become concubines of nobles, cultivated in beauty and refinement.

And according to Sarina, Turan’s mother had been one of them.