The Northern Grand Duke’s Crazy Son-in-Law

49. Ashen Oracle

“Ah, I was waiting for the story to continue.”

Adrianna responded with a slightly bored tone, her eyelashes lowered.

‘Did they hear the conversation?’

She had habitually cast a soundproofing spell, but it wouldn’t work on Adrianna.

‘She’s a woman who’s difficult to understand in many ways.’

The magic didn’t work-.

Galahad, who had clicked his tongue, asked Adrianna directly.

“Did you hear it?”

“……Yes? No, it’s not something decent to eavesdrop on others’ conversations.”

Adrianna’s voice was faster than usual. Galahad’s eyes narrowed in response.

“……At first, I didn’t know you were talking, so I accidentally overheard. I apologize.”

Adrianna bowed her head slightly and confessed.

“Ah, of course, I immediately retreated.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

Adrianna’s lips quivered. Her expression clearly showed that she was hiding something.

‘She can’t tell a lie.’

Galahad quietly gazed at Adrianna, who was like that.

Then Adrianna started confessing.

“…Actually, it’s not true. I didn’t know the princess’s story would come out, so I unknowingly…”

“That’s right.”

“The princess liked Galahad a lot, and it ended with some incident, and…”

As Adrianna continued to confess, Galahad slightly clicked his tongue.

“I’ve heard a lot.”

Adrianna’s eyes wavered at Galahad’s rebuke.

“I’m sorry. It’s been a long time since I’ve heard the princess’s story, so-.”

“Do you know the princess?”

“Yes, I briefly associated with her when I was young. She was a very warm person.”

That crazy woman was warm? Galahad slightly clicked his tongue.

‘Well, it was when she was young, before she experienced that incident. She must have been sane back then.’

“How is the princess doing?”

“Why are you asking me that?”

“Ah, it seems like you’re close to her-.”

“I already said, we’re just connected through an incident.”

“Ah, I see.”

Adrianna nodded her head. Her eyebrows slightly rose.

There was a brief silence.

Galahad’s head was complicated due to the recent series of events.

The most important one was-.

‘The high-ranking demon tribe…..’

It was the high-ranking demon tribe who had told Galahad to come alone to the demon realm.

The mental interference that the demon tribe’s guy had demonstrated from a distance was an irresistible charm to Galahad.

It seemed like he could understand why the demon tribe called their power ‘authority’.

The demon tribe’s authority was like a god to wizards.

He wanted to rush to the demon realm right away, but-.

‘That’s foolish.’

No matter how attractive the demon tribe’s authority was, he wouldn’t do something foolish like trusting them and going to the demon realm alone.

Of course, the demon tribe might have something they wanted from Galahad, so it might not be dangerous-.

‘Not yet.’

Before going to the demon tribe, he needed to be able to protect himself in the demon realm.

Galahad forced himself to suppress his excited heart.

“Can I ask why it didn’t work out with the princess?”

Adrianna’s question shattered Galahad’s thoughts.

He lifted his head, and Adrianna was gazing at him.

Her eyes were filled with caution.

“She didn’t trust me.”

Galahad’s simple answer made Adrianna nod.

The atmosphere grew a bit more still.

Adrianna, with a peculiar expression, stood up from her seat.

“I’ll return to the 1st division. Although the Magic Sword training institute is worrisome, leaving the 1st division vacant for too long is also dangerous.”

Adrianna spoke with a nonchalant face, as if she was about to return to the 1st division.

It was a very Adrianna-like move.

“That’s right. Before you go, can I have your hand?”

Galahad naturally extended his hand.

Unlike usual, Adrianna quietly gazed at his hand.

“You mentioned it before.”

“What did you say?”

“You said you knew now-.”

“Ah, I did.”

Galahad nodded.

“What do you mean?”

“You become stronger as the demonic tribe grows stronger. That’s related to the property of burning mana. To you, mana is fuel. The better the quality of that fuel, the stronger you burn it. I tested that before. I lowered the concentration of mana. So, the pain was less.”

Galahad recalled the memory from before.

While there were cases where he compressed mana, there were no cases where he lowered the concentration. Mana with low concentration was useless, after all.

Galahad had lowered the concentration of mana to confirm his hypothesis.

It was a rather difficult task to lower the concentration of mana in the northern region, where the concentration of mana was high, but the pain’s egg had made it possible.

He had left most of his mana to the pain’s egg and operated with the remaining mana to the maximum, mixing in impurities and lowering the concentration of mana.

And when he held Adrianna’s hand, the pain was significantly less than before.

Perhaps he had grown accustomed to the terrible pain of burning mana-.

Galahad opened his mouth slightly, and Adrianna’s eyes sparkled.

“To put it simply, I’ve learned how to hold your hand without hurting you as much.”

“Ah, a way to hold hands without hurting?”

Galahad nodded and waved his hand, urging her to hurry up.

Adrianna’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Was the relationship with the princess also affected when the empire sent you to the north?”

Adrianna’s sudden question made Galahad hesitate for a moment before nodding.

There were many sensitive areas, so he couldn’t be certain, but that would also have an impact.

“There must be.”

“Then, it’s not just my fault that you came all the way to this distant north.”

“Is… that right?”

Adrianna presented her calm opinion, and Galahad replied with a hint of trembling.

“I promised to hold your hand because you came to the North due to me.”

“That’s right.”

“But it’s not just because of me; the influence of your reckless past has been confirmed, so there’s room for reconsideration.”

“…Reckless?”

“The contract has already been signed, but since the conditions have changed, we need to modify the contract’s format.”

Adrianna looked at Galahad with determination.

Galahad’s unexpected resistance made him narrow his eyes.

Her argument was quite reasonable.

“If we change the format-?”

“We should unconditionally accept your proposal, but now it’s better to make it a mutual agreement.”

Adrianna’s eyes were very serious.

Galahad gazed at her clear blue eyes and nodded slightly.

“If you refuse unconditionally, won’t that be a problem?”

“Instead, I’ll provide a suitable reason. For example, the Magic Tower training center is still unstable, and since I’m returning to the 1st Division, it’s not safe to hold hands.”

“That makes sense, I understand.”

Galahad nodded slightly, clicking his tongue.

“However, changing it suddenly is too abrupt, so let’s make today a probation period.”

Adrianna took off her gauntlet and extended her hand. Her bold words contrasted with her awkward hand extension.

Galahad quietly observed her. Adrianna then hid her hand, fidgeting and tucking her palm inward.

“Do you think I’ll naturally hold your hand?”

When asked, Adrianna’s eyebrows fluttered up and down.

“…You didn’t ask me to hold your hand first. This is a reasonable inference based on the circumstances. If you don’t want to-.”

“I was just asking.”

Galahad swiftly grasped Adrianna’s hand. Although his hand was rough and calloused, it was quite warm.

“This feeling-.”

It was only momentary. The low-density mana was absorbed, and the mana inside was forcefully released.

At that moment, Adrianna pulled her hand back.

Galahad stumbled and sat down in his chair, closing his eyes to recall the recent sensation.

‘It feels like I’m being caught, yet-.’

It was hard to understand.

“Ah, my return to the 1st Division is because I believe that Captain Galahad can fully manage the Magic Tower training center. Still, just in case, I’ll send a report. Please write down the progress.”

Adrianna gazed at Galahad, who was quietly sitting with his eyes closed, before leaving the room.

In the corridor, she met Gilbert, who bowed his head.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m returning to the 1st Division.”

Adrianna said and passed by.

Gilbert, who saw her, opened his eyes wide.

Just now-.

‘…Did she smile?’

Gilberton scrunched up his eyes and shook his head.

Ah, that’s impossible.

Gilberton was convinced he had seen it wrong and knocked on the door.

“What’s going on?”

“There’s that guy who was temporarily chosen, right? The one who’s ridiculously good-looking and huge-.”

“Ah, First. What’s wrong?”

At Galahad’s light question, Gilberton scrunched up his eyes again.

First or Hurst-.

“What’s with that guy?”

Galahad chuckled at Gilberton’s distorted face.

****

Galahad followed Gilberton to First, and his eyes widened at the sight before him.

In the maze, all the soldiers were lying down. The First was standing in the center.

The soldiers, who had gotten used to the maze through Gilberton’s training, were all knocked out, and First was standing up.

“He’s not breathing with his mouth but with his nose!”

First was urging the soldiers to get up.

“What the hell is that guy?”

Gilberton asked, pointing at First with a trembling voice.

“He’s a useful guy.”

Galahad answered briefly and stepped forward.

First’s face lit up with a smile when he saw Galahad.

“Galahad, you’re right. This maze is quite interesting.”

Next to him, Pumpkin was drenched in sweat, a stark contrast.

“I have no idea how thick the mana density is.”

“It’s about ten times the normal level.”

Galahad precisely answered First’s question.

First’s eyebrows slightly furrowed. However, First didn’t ask Galahad how he knew that in a foolish tone. Galahad was that kind of person.

“Even using magic is difficult.”

Galahad nodded at First’s voice, tingling with laughter.

“A mediocre magician wouldn’t dare try.”

“Galahad, if you’re a mediocre magician, you should be at the top of the magic tower.”

First asked, but Galahad didn’t respond. First then raised the corner of his mouth and snapped his fingers.

“Fi-.”

First muttered, as if he hadn’t cast a spell, very softly.

A small flame ignited on First’s finger. It wasn’t a roaring flame, but it was still magic.

Using magic in the maze-.

Galahad was slightly surprised, knowing First’s level.

“You look surprised.”

“How did you do it? You shouldn’t be able to use magic in the maze at all.”

“Huh, I’m your rival, First.”

Please let me know if you need any adjustments!

First was a capable magician, but he couldn’t use magic to the extent of storing it in the mana circuit.

But how…?

“Ah, I’ve stored the atmospheric mana for now?”

Galahad’s muttering made First’s smile stiffen.

“That’s correct.”

Compared to the capital, the mana density was ten times higher.

Mana was extremely sensitive. If you forcefully stored it without adjusting the density, the mana circuit would short-circuit and collapse.

Galahad didn’t bother to adjust the density as soon as he arrived in the north.

In reality, it was effective.

But First didn’t calculate the mana density and instead forcefully stored it.

“No, that’s closer to absorption than storage.”

Galahad raised an eyebrow at the sweat dripping down First’s forehead.

It wasn’t like a magician, who would carefully calculate and store mana through breathing; instead, he seemed to have recklessly pushed it in with his body.

It was a truly clumsy method.

“My body is sturdy, so it’s okay.”

As a knight, he was forcing the mana into storage, using his body to withstand it. Galahad couldn’t help but be impressed by the clumsy, knight-like method.

The only problem was…

“Then won’t it be hard to use magic?”

It wasn’t storing mana, but rather cramming it in. There was no way to take it out and use it at will.

“It’s a mage’s secret.”

First replied, his chin held high, his face filled with confidence.

Galahad examined First. There was dust accumulated on his shoes, telling a story of having stayed in one place for a long time. Moreover, he was gripping a sword tightly in his hand.

“Did you use the aura to forcefully move the mana?”

First’s face stiffened.

“No, it’s not that I can’t say it’s a mage’s secret.”

“But your body might burst!”

“But it didn’t! I’m a mage, after all! Of course, what you just said isn’t a mage’s secret!”

First added belatedly.

“Using a knight’s aura to forcefully move mana-.”

Galahad realized the principle behind First’s training.

“You’re using your body to forcibly expose yourself to high-density mana. In the process, the mana is unconsciously released and circulated, utilizing the overload.”

Mana existed in everyone, not just magicians. What made a magician was being able to consciously use it.

Ordinary people didn’t consciously use mana, but it moved unconsciously with their physical movements.

First seemed to have utilized this.

“That’s correct. You’re indeed my rival.”

First nodded his head in agreement.

It was certain that exposure to high-density mana would increase the quality of the physical body.

But…

“That’s still just a physical change, isn’t it?”

Galahad’s counterquestion made First chuckle.

“That’s a story from when there was no aura, but if there’s an aura that explodes potential, even a small change can have an enormous effect.”

The blue aura on Perst’s sword fluttered wildly.

It was bigger than the last time he saw it.

Aura and mana had no relation. That was already a fact confirmed by Gallard. That was why Gallard had no interest in auras.

But Perst presented a counterexample.

“Doesn’t dense mana have a connection to aura?”

Gallard’s eyes narrowed at the unexpected result.

Perst laughed thickly at Gallard’s stern face. Gallard was making that face-.

However, Perst’s laughter didn’t last long.

“Ah, then let’s try drinking this?”

“What’s this?”

“It’s the blood of a demon race.”

“…Why blood?”

“The blood of a demon race contains high-density mana.”

“Hmm-.”

Perst subtly stepped back, pretending not to hear, and turned to Pumpkin. Gallard clicked his tongue.

At that moment, a familiar boy was among the fallen soldiers.

Demian was patting his belly.

His expression looked more relaxed than usual.

No-.

‘He’s smiling.’

Gallard felt a strange sensation and put a cigarette in his mouth.

Then, Perst approached again, shaking the faint flame on his finger.

“Do you need fire?”

“Ah, it’s okay.”

Gallard flicked his finger.

Perst’s mouth shut tight as the water blazed fiercely.

At that moment, Demian stood up, using his sword as a cane.

Something fluttered in that instant.

‘Aura?’

It was a fleeting moment, but it was undoubtedly an aura.

Gallard, who had seen over a hundred auras, couldn’t mistake it.

Finding an aura was a celebratory event.

The problem was.

‘It’s ash-colored.’

That was the color of the aura.

Aura was faith.

That’s why auras were basically bright colors.

Faith couldn’t be dark.

However, the aura surrounding Demian’s sword was ash-colored.

It was a color that Galahad had never seen before.

In the aura, it was an impossible color that could never appear-.

“Fascinating.”

Galahad, who had been unable to hide his curiosity, turned to Demian with a smile.

“What’s your parents’ occupation, Demian?”

“My parents are nobles.”

Galahad’s words were blocked for the first time by Demian’s firm answer.