Chapter 26. Shirone royal palace, meeting Roxy

"It's a long story, but… I was passing by and decided to visit. Can you arrange a temporary stay for me and my companion?"

"Of course, Master! You can stay as long as you wish! I will arrange everything!!!" Zanoba strongly patted his chest in assurance.

"Okay. And if you could also calm down these guys, that would be nice." Mordred looked at the dumbfounded palace guards with a plain smile.

Zanoba turned to the guards with a cold look. "Men! These people are my guests! Stand down!"

"... Understood, Your Highness."

"As you wish, Prince Zanoba."

After the situation slightly calmed down, Zanoba said enthusiastically, "Master! Please come with me! For now, you can find some respite in my personal residence. I'll prepare you a welcoming banquet!"

"That would be nice... I haven't eaten anything since morning. And before that I only ate dragon meat for a full month." Mordred smiled.

"Oh, is that so? Where have you been to only have dragon meat on your menu, Master?"

"I spent some time training in the Dragon King Mountain Range," Mordred replied casually and then turned away to begin taking his equipment from the speeder, starting with his staff the Ashen Sage.

"Dragon King Mountain range… And is that a little dragon?"

"Yes, it's my contracted Magic Beast," Mordred said without looking back.

"Ah, I see." Zanoba crossed his hands behind his back and began to patiently wait.

Mordred turned to Hector and said, "Teacher, can you take the Magic Stones?"

"Understood."

Zanoba interjected, "Master! If you need help carrying your luggage, I'll have my attendants help you! I can also help you carry it myself!"

Mordred said, "Then you can take the backpack from the front."

"Yes, Master!" After untying the large backpack and lifting it up effortlessly, Zanoba asked: "Master, what about your vehicle?"

"It can stay here, if it isn't a problem."

Zanoba slightly frowned and said, "This courtyard belongs to my sister, the 4th Princess. Although there shouldn't be any problems, it is a bit reckless to leave Master's precious creation unprotected…"

"It isn't that valuable… And it's quite heavy to carry, so I doubt anyone would steal it." Mordred smiled.

"Even if it's heavy, it isn't a problem for me. I can carry it! As you should already know, I possess great inborn strength!" Zanoba was very enthusiastic to help.

Mordred forced a small smile. He knew that Zanoba could carry it, but just how much damage would he cause on the way? Mordred could also carry it, but it's too difficult for the speeder to pass through narrow doors.

Suddenly, Mordred thought of something else. "Actually, I have a better idea. I'll take you into the air instead and you'll show me where your courtyard is… You also have an open courtyard like this, right?"

"Yes, Master…" Zanoba spoke in a daze as he looked at the contraption that Mordred supposedly flew into the palace with.

Having thought of this too late, Mordred placed the box with Magic Stones and all the equipment back on the speeder.

"Teacher, I will bring the speeder to Prince Zanoba's courtyard. You can make your way on foot."

"Understood."

Zanoba then nervously sat down in the front seat of the speeder and Mordred took the driver's seat at the back.

"Your Highness, are you going to be fine?" Ginger asked worriedly.

Zanoba waved his hand dismissively. "It's going to be fine, Ginger. I have trust in Master and his inventions. And didn't he say that he flew all the way here from the Dragon King Mountain Range?"

Ginger muttered quietly, "But you don't look like you're fine…"

Contrary to what he said, Zanoba tried to sound calm but looked terrified.

In the meantime, Zanoba ignored Ginger and asked Mordred, "Was this vehicle also made by Master using Earth Magic?"

"Yes. And by the way, don't panic after we take off. I'm an experienced pilot by now. No more crashes!"

"Oh, so… there were accidents in the past?" Zanoba asked with a pale face.

Mordred chuckled. "I'm just kidding!"

Soon after, he took off, beginning with creating a zero gravity field and lightly kicking off.

"Oooh…" Zanoba let out a weird startled sound as they began to float up. In the next moment he broke off the stone handle that he was holding. "Oh, no!!! Master, I'm so sorry!"

"It's fine. I can fix it," Mordred calmed him down. He already saw that Zanoba was not a fitting person for flight travel. He told him, "Just sit down tight. Nothing wrong will happen. I can always make us simply float in the air."

Meanwhile, the people below watched the scene of the speeder floating up with amazement and awe.

Only Ginger was worried. "Prince Zanoba… Please, don't fall out."

On the speeder, Mordred used Mana Burst and used Mana propulsion to bring them higher into the sky.

After the two gained altitude, Zanoba looked out with a terrified face and soon pointed in a direction. "Master, go in that direction!"

Following Zanoba's instructions step by step, the speeder soon landed in another courtyard.

As the speeder touched the ground, Zanoba pulled out his head out of his seat and began vomiting.

Mordred forced a smile. He approached Zanoba and used Detoxification Magic on him.

"Oh, thank you, Master! I feel much better." Zanoba straightened himself.

"Do you have a fear of heights?"

"Ah, no. Nothing of the sort. But apparently, flying through the air makes me dizzy," said Zanoba. "Still, it surely was a unique experience. Is this flying vehicle one of your projects you've mentioned before, Master?"

"You could say that… But this thing here is actually only a piece of a rock." Mordred lightly kicked the speeder, saying, "At most it's just a prototype. What makes it fly is me."

After speaking, Mordred placed his hand where the handle was broken off and used Earth Magic to attach a new handle.

Seeing this, Zanoba's eyes went round as he became much more interested. "Ooooh! Is this how Master creates figurines as well?"

"Mm, yes." After fixing the speeder Mordred saw that Zanoba appeared to be very interested in seeing how he makes dolls. He turned to him.

He stretched out his hand, cast Stone Bullet and shaped it into the form of a mannequin in a T-pose.

"Oooh!"

After that, Mordred adjusted the proportion of the figurine and made it take a pose more similar to standing Zanoba.

"Ooooooh!"

As Zanoba grew more and more excited, Mordred made the figurine vaguely resemble him, before he canceled his spell, saying, "That's roughly how I make them."

"I see… That's incredible. Master, do you think… this skill could be learned by others?"

Mordred looked at him.

"Of course, I am not demanding that you tell me the secrets of your art for nothing, Master! I am only wondering… If it is possible..." Zanoba became very timid.

Mordred was silent for a while, before saying, "I'm not sure, but it might not be impossible."

"Truly?! Do you think so Master?! Is it not because you're a Magic Power Miko that you can do this? Could other people possibly also manage it?"

"Being a Miko gives me an advantage… But I don't think it's impossible for other people to also learn Silent Casting..." Mordred didn't speak any more details, but this much was enough to light up a fire of hope in Zanoba.

Following that, Mordred was led by Zanoba to a guest room.

Zanoba quickly gave orders to prepare a banquet for Mordred and his companion.

Afterwards, once the two sat down in the guest room, Zanoba looked at Mordred intently and said, "Master, I do not think that my previous letter has reached you yet. About your wish of creating a doll that could move… I am very interested, indeed!"

"Oh…"

"I only had a basic level of education on Magic Circles before, but recently I began to research them in earnest. As you have said, Master, I also believe that creating an automatic doll is not entirely impossible!"

"Automaton," said Mordred.

"Pardon?"

"Let's call it an automaton. A humanoid machine designed to move automatically," Mordred explained.

"Oooh! That's a splendid name, Master! As expected of a genius such as yourself!"

Mordred chuckled. "It's just a name. At any rate, an automaton is something that I have only thought of and have no time for researching right now. I have other fields I want to focus on, like my swordsmanship."

"Oh? Apart from being a Magician, are you perhaps also a swordsman?" Zanoba already noticed the sword attached to Mordred's lower back.

"Yes. And since I have talent for the sword, I want to realize my potential. That's just how I am."

"Ooh… I understand. Even so, this idea has given me a sense of purpose. I will still keep studying Magic Circles! Hopefully, in the future I'll be able to help Master with this marvelous project."

Mordred smiled. "Then keep at it. It's good to have a sense of purpose."

Zanoba chuckled and said, "It is indeed. At once, a person's life seems more colorful and meaningful! I don't know what else I would do in my life if not for meeting Master!"

Mordred also faintly chuckled. "I have to say, your enthusiasm is infectious, Zanoba. It really makes me want to not disappoint you in the future."

"Haha, this is how I feel myself, Master! I can only hope that you'll find a use for this little prince's humble skills."

"Well, you are quite quirky, but I can see that behind that quirky persona is a brilliant mind. That's why I mentioned this idea to you in the first place," said Master.

Zanoba waved his hand with an embarrassed expression. "Master, you flatter me too much! This poor prince is twice your age, yet hasn't accomplished anything at all in his life when compared to Master."

"... It is difficult to accomplish great things when one lives without direction," Mordred replied after thinking for a moment.

Zanoba's eyes slightly widened in surprise, before he replied, "Wise words, Master, indeed, wise words."

After speaking he picked up a cup of tea that the servants just brought, before letting out a loud yelp because the tea was still scalding hot.

Mordred faintly smiled, stretched out his hand and used Elementary healing Magic on Zanoba.

"Oh, there was no need for it, Master. But thank you! You see… I have great resistance against things like swords, but fire can still hurt me. It's something quite curious."

"It is curious…" Mordred entered a deep thought. Battle Aura primarily increased resistance against kinetic damage, but it also improved the resistance of the body as a whole, so it still gave a level of protection against heat and Magic; however, for Zanoba his Miko Powers were mysteriously more selective.

Momentarily there was a lull in the conversation.

After a while of silence, Mordred put aside pondering over the mysteries of Mikos and said, "Actually, there is something that I need your help with."

Upon hearing this, Zanoba's eyes lit up and he touched his chest. "Just say a word, Master! I'll do what I can to assist you!"

Mordred faintly smiled; this guy's devotion was a bit too much. He said, "I have nine King Dragon Magic Stones with ranks ranging from B to A. I need your help in selling them and converting them into Magic Crystals."

"Oh, so it's that kind of matter. I cannot say that my connections are deep, but I am still one of the Princes of Shirone. I will see to it that you'll get a fair price for your goods, Master!"

"Mm, thanks."

"However, for Master to be in possession of this many Magic Stones… Were these acquired by you in the Dragon King Mountain Range perhaps?..."

Mordred smiled. "Yes. I spent a good amount of time polishing my skills there, hunting dragons."

"That… is truly like a tale from a legend! I have already witnessed Master's skills, so I don't doubt it. I believe that in the future Master's adventures might go down in history as an epic tale!"

Mordred lightly chuckled. They might indeed.

Zanoba smiled back and said, "Master, I feel that our meeting was fated! I am not much for drinking alcohol, but today let us celebrate and drink merrily!!!... Oh no! I just remembered that you are still a minor! While talking with Master this fact completely slipped out of my head!"

"Haha, yes. Let's skip on the alcohol today."

While the two continued their conversation, with Zanoba beginning to enthusiastically talk about Mordred's dolls, the food was soon served.

Unfortunately, at the same time imperial guards visited the place with Hector. The guards informed Mordred that the king of Shirone wished to meet him.

Mordred momentarily hesitated. With his strength and status as a prince of Kingdragon he could totally make the king wait.

But was it that big of a deal to delay his meal a bit? There was no need to make a scene while he was still fairly young and not at the peak of his strength.

"Alright. I'll go see the king."

"I'll accompany you, Master!"

…

After Mordred was led into the throne room by the imperial guards, he was met with a 40-year old man sitting on the throne.

The King had similarly prominent cheekbones just like Zanoba and hair of the same color of the sand, also in a bowl cut.

Once Mordred entered, the King smiled amicably at him, stood up from his throne and made a small bow, "Hello, young friend. The news of your accomplishments at Magic at such a young age had also reached our Shirone Kingdom. It's a pleasure for this king to personally meet the famous 16th Prince of Kingdragon."

'Oh…' Mordred was slightly surprised by such a humble reception but not entirely. After all, the Shirone Kingdom was a vassal state of the Kingdragon Kingdom without even a single Emperor ranked combatant.

After recovering his composure, Mordred returned the gesture, touching his chest and making a small bow. "The pleasure is mine."

The king chuckled in a tone of satisfaction.

Following that, the conversation was straightforward. The King of Shirone simply welcomed Mordred in the palace and invited him to stay as long as he wished.

A while later, Mordred excused himself and returned to Zanoba's residence and his feast.

It was then decided that Mordred would simply stay in one of the room's of Zanoba's courtyard because that place was apparently quite spacious.

That's when Mordred felt slightly jealous. Although he became a high ranking prince in the Kingdragon Kingdom, he still didn't have his own courtyard that was basically like a small mansion. All he had were two cells in a tower…

He didn't care before, but he didn't want to feel inferior. One day he'll build an epic castle for himself! And if he could, one that floats in the sky.

…

On the first day Zanoba was very enthusiastic about discussing with Mordred all kinds of topics, keeping him busy. However, in the evening Mordred still made some time for himself to practice swordsmanship with Hector.

There is a saying spread out among swordsmen of this world that if one is not going to practice every single day, they might as well give up on swordsmanship entirely.

Although it seemed a bit exaggerated, Mordred still lived it. Every day of training missed in his early years would be a day wasted.

On the next day, Zanoba immediately got busy with Mordred's request to sell the Magic Stones. Mordred was left alone.

After eating a scrumptious breakfast, Mordred did his daily morning swordsmanship practice with Hector and later began to explore the Shirone royal palace with Hector as his bodyguard.

First. he simply walked along the corridors, then arrived in the royal garden with the assistance of one of Zanoba's servants.

Around noon, he visited the palace's library out of curiosity.

After passing the inspection and taking out a token that he received from the Shirone king, Mordred entered the library with Hector.

He didn't expect to find anything special there like lost tommes on ancient Magic. The Magical resources of a small country like Shirone would naturally be inferior to the Kingdragon Kingdom. He only came there to check out what the library looks like out of pure curiosity, should he try building one in the future.

Even so, he reflexively went to the Magic section.

After exploring the first floor, he then went up to the second floor where more valuable books were supposed to be held.

As Mordred entered the second floor, there was actually a peculiar person that was already there.

It was a blue-haired girl that looked to be in her early teens. She was sitting and reading at one of the desks that had a thick book strapped to it with a silver chain.

That person was Roxy.

After Roxy finished teaching Rudeus Greyrat and left the Buena village, she journeyed east and after a year ended up being hired as a tutor for one of the Princes of Shirone - the 7th Prince Pax Shirone.

'But the Prince prefers to sleep during my lessons, so I might as well make use of my position and do some research in my free time. Meeting Rudy made me feel too inadequate as a Magician…' Roxy's heart thought while reading.

While the blue-haired girl was reading the book and scrunching her thin eyebrows, Mordred felt as if he was dumbstruck when he noticed her. Naturally, he recognized her.

'At this moment, Rudeus should be 6 years old, so I guess it's about time for Roxy to reach Shirone and begin teaching Pax?…'

After hesitating for a while, Mordred approached Roxy and looked at the book she was reading. The Demon race girl was so engrossed in her reading that she didn't notice him.

At one point, Mordred said, "Are you interested in Water Magic?"

"Ah!" Roxy slightly jumped. After noticing Mordred, and seeing that he was a kid, she narrowed her eyes and replied with low enthusiasm, "Mm, yes."

"..."

After a moment, Roxy announced, "I'm a Saint ranked Water Magician!"

She did not want to be taken for a kid, again, so she made sure to make that point clear.

And so she announced this with pride… But the boy was strangely not moved at all. He was probably too young to understand just what it meant to be a Saint ranked Magician.

Mordred said, "Ah, I see. Then do you plan to reach King rank?"

"It is indeed my goal…" Roxy replied.

"Then are you Saint ranked in Wind Magic yet?"

"No…"

"Then you should start with that," said Mordred. "An important aspect of casting Cumulonimbus is manipulation of cold and warm temperatures, as well as pressure. Remember this. Warm and denser air can hold more water vapor, whereas when the temperature or pressure drops, it will release the water vapor it holds and create rain. What helps hold more water vapor in the clouds are also particles such as floating dust, but in a Magic spell the caster's Magic Power does this instead. Meanwhile, Wind Magic is also about the interactions between temperature and pressure, so practicing it should be helpful in becoming King ranked in Water Magic."

"Oooh…" Roxy was amazed after hearing all this, looking as if she had grasped something. "Is that so?…"

"At least, that's my guess. Well, good luck."

After saying his piece, Mordred turned and coolly left.

In the meantime, Roxy watched his leaving figure in a daze. 'Who was that…'

This boy had only said a few sentences casually, but when it fell onto her ears, it was akin to holy enlightenment.

***

***

***

Name: Roxy Migurdia

Titles/nicknames: Master (by Rudeus only), Goddess (by Rudeus only)

Age: 40

Strength: F*

Endurance: F*

Agility: F*

Mana: D

…

Water Magic: Saint rank

Fire, Wind and Earth Magic: Advanced rank

Healing Magic: Intermediate rank

Detoxification Magic: Elementary rank

Barrier, Summoning and Divine Strike Magic: None.

B-rank Water-attributed Magic Staff