Legia and the Two Bodies She Drags

Legia fell silent, deep in thought, after delivering the news she had gathered about the events in the city of Moontear. She could be considered relieved upon hearing that the number of casualties among the citizens of Moontear was relatively low.

Signa's arrival had saved the lives of thousands of people. As the messenger from Cien, Legia felt a sense of tranquility in her heart at that moment.

However, that tranquility was short-lived as she learned that thousands of people had lost their homes. The sweetness she had felt earlier was tainted with bitterness. Legia frowned.

"Why didn't Signa use his magic directly against the enemy forces during the war? Why did it have to be when the enemy was already inside the city?"

Cien shrugged. "I don't know. But I'm sure there were other factors at play that prevented him from doing so. In the first place, we didn't know if that magic is Signa doing. It's just a rumor, right? Is Signa a magician?

"We don't know the details of the war. As we know, war is not as simple as it seems. Signa must have considered various options before ultimately sacrificing Moontear."

Upon hearing Cien's explanation, Legia understood that it was probably what had happened. And, like Cien said, Legia did not remember Signa as a magician. As Champion, Signa is famous as a powerful knight.

"Hmm... besides, I think the residents can still find shelter," Cien added, deep in thought with a finger on his chin.

"?"

Cien smiled. "Blackwinter would be very empty right now. If the Princess wants to revive the city, the people of Moontear would be a great help."

"Ahh..."

Legia realized the truth in what Cien said, a small smile appearing on her face as she imagined the reconstruction of the city.

"I hope Princess Sravati does it..."

"Well, that's if they still want to stay at the border. Isn't it traumatic? After all, Blackwinter is closer to the Abyss than Moontear."

"..."

Legia frowned. Cien had just said a nice word to these poor residents, but seconds later it felt like it was being crushed.

"Want more?"

Cien offered. Since Legia had finished her story, Cien invited the woman to fill her stomach once again. It was nearing midnight, and although rare, Cien often craved a midnight snack before going to bed.

Legia shook her head. "Thank you, but I must decline. I'd better return to my room. I apologize for bothering you this late at night."

"Don't worry. I don't get to hear stories from the outside every day. For me, things like this are fascinating," replied Cien, waving his hand. He then stood up from his chair and refilled Legia's glass.

Legia drank the water given by the Shop Owner and then got up from the dining table. She bowed to bid farewell.

"Well, then, Good night, Lord Millard. Thank you for the dinner."

"Relax. No need to be too formal. You know your own way out, right?"

Legia nodded and finally walked away. What Legia didn't know was that as she turned to leave, Cien took out his phone and took a picture of the woman.

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[Status]

Legia (30)

Female

Ethyria Garrison, Westya Kingdom

Rank 4, Low Class

Skills: Water Magic (Proficient), Wind Magic (Novice), Mana Manipulation (Proficient), Rostgard Spear Art (Expert), Ethyria Sword Art (Proficient), Westya Basic Martial Arts (Proficient), Physical Amplification (Novice), Speed Amplification (Expert), Parallel Thinking (Novice)

__________

Cien was quite amazed to see Legia's status.

Although in terms of power level, the woman was still below Jamie. However, in terms of technique and magic mastery, she was far above Jamie.

'No wonder she could become a Lieutenant.'

Cien thought, then focused on one skill possessed by Legia: Parallel Thinking.

It was a rare skill and highly valuable for a mage. With this skill, one could cast several magic spells simultaneously.

Cien never expected Legia to have this skill. As far as he knew, Legia was a spear-wielding warrior.

Parallel Thinking, on the other hand, was a skill commonly learned by those aspiring to become great mages. Not all mages could even learn it.

Cien immediately recalled again a rarely heard profession, one that combined sword art with magic: the Magic Swordsman. This profession existed, but it was so rare that it was deemed merely a pipe dream.

One might wonder, aren't all fighters capable of using magic? Just look at Jamie, who could use wind magic.

Yup, everyone can use magic and swords. But to be called a Magic Swordsman, one must master their magic and sword skills to the Master level. Where they are not only called a swordsman but also a magician.

When Cien was still a noble in Westya, he only knew one person from Westya who could be called a Magic Swordsman. The Champion of Westya at that time, Damien Poston.

From the status that Cien saw, Legia had the potential to combine the professions of a spearman and a magician.

Maybe if she succeeds later, and becomes a master in both professions, Legia could be called a Magic Spearman.

Whether Legia will reach that point or not, Cien finds it intriguing to wait and see.

Cien then added Legia as a friend on the status screen, making her part of his friends list. This way, he could monitor information about her anytime.

Cien furrowed his brow slightly and said, "Somehow, this feels like stalking... Well, as long as she doesn't know, it's harmless. Maybe."

Cien put his phone back in his pocket. He then cleaned up the leftover dinner utensils before finally going to his room to sleep and end the day.

The next morning, when the sunlight gently touched Cien's face, he was awakened by various sounds of clashing metal.

Rubbing his eyes, Cien grabbed his phone from the nightstand and slowly walked to the front of the shop. He found that the sounds were coming from the forest in front of the shop.

Cien picked up his phone. He looked at the map in his shop and saw two dots labeled as Legia and Jamie at the border of shop protective formation.

What are they doing there?

Sigh, Cien didn't feel like thinking about it. So, he went back to the kitchen and boiled some water to make the tea he bought in Wynteria.

When the morning atmosphere grew warmer, Cien sat on the front porch of the shop, sipping tea and studying recipes on his phone.

About half an hour later, he heard rustling sounds coming from the direction of the forest.

Cien glanced towards the source of the sound but didn't lift his head from his phone.

'They're back.'

About three minutes later. Legia emerged from the woods, dragging the tail of a giant rat's corpse.

Cien put down his phone and examined the monstrous rat carefully. However, his eyes twitched when he noticed an unconscious man bound on the top of the creature's body.

"Jamie..."

The man's face was bruised and blue. There were slash marks on his clothes and skin.

From those wounds, Cien immediately realized that Jamie might not have passed out while fighting the monster, but while fighting the woman who was dragging him.

"Ah! Lord Millard, you awake? Did our hunting noises wake you up? If so, I apologize," Legia hurriedly approached Cien upon seeing the Shop Owner sitting on the porch.

"No need to apologize. I'm used to waking up at this hour. But... were you hunting?" Cien inquired.

"Oh, about that..."

Legia then explained how she woke up and saw Jamie training earlier this morning.

She asked about Cien's usual waking time, and from Jamie's response, she learned that Cien usually woke up early and went straight to hunt within his protected territory.

After learning that, Legia was not surprised, whether it was with the presence of the protective formation or with Cien's ability to easily hunt monsters every day.

Legia was actually angry at Jamie because the man didn't help Cien in hunting. Instead, he was busy training on his own, even though he knew there were monsters there.

In the end, Legia dragged Jamie to the border, searching for the roaming monsters there. Then, she killed the rat monster.

During the hunt, Legia realized that the sword Jamie was using was different from what she usually saw. The sword appeared much stronger than Jamie's previous sword.

The sword could even shatter the rat monster's spine with just one slash.

It was only then that Legia learned that the sword was a gift from Cien to Jamie. A sword with the ability to manipulate its own weight.

Feeling amazed, after the hunt, Legia invited Jamie to engage in a training battle.

The result...

Jamie was soundly defeated. Although Jamie's level of strength and the quality of his weapon were superior to Legia's, the woman was still more experienced and skilled in battle.

Seeing Jamie unconscious on the ground, Legia snorted.

"Aish, the sword from Lord Millard feels useless in your hands! How could you lose so easily?!"

Afterward, Legia reluctantly dragged both bodies (Jamie was still alive) alone. She tied Jamie's body to the rat's body using protruding roots found in the forest.

"That's what happened..."

Explain Legia, there's a little smile on her face. Cien glanced over at Jamie.

'I knew it, he really is stupid.'

Cien then looked back at Legia, and said that next time let the monsters be hunted by himself.

As the owner of the place, Cien didn't want to risk the lives of his guests in hunting the monsters.

Luckily, the monsters they were currently facing were just rats. Although Cien didn't know their rank, if Jamie could defeat them with a single strike, the likelihood was that they were below Rank 5.

But what if the monsters they faced tomorrow were above Rank 5?

They could die.

With the new feature of the Call (read: eavesdropping), Cien couldn't let his source of information die foolishly within his shop.

"But we feel like we're causing you too much trouble, Lord Millard. Not only are we given free accommodation, but we're also protected by your protection while we're here. We have the ability, so consider hunting the monsters as our way of showing gratitude," Legia said.

"I've already told you it's not necessary. Besides, if you feel guilty, just pay the price for your stay here. Hmm... maybe five Tia for a night will suffice. What do you think?" Cien replied.

"Oh, I'm ready to pay. But at the moment... I don't have any money. Oh! How about this rat! Lord Millard, if you don't want me to hunt it as a favor, how about considering it as hunting for food? Since I hunted this monster, if I sell it to you, wouldn't I be able to help you and also get food and funds to pay for my accommodation?" Legia asked, her eyes sparkling.

'Damn! She's cunning! Not only did she take my prey, but she also wants to sell it! Somehow, something is wrong with this situation!'