62 An unexpected encounter with a ''Mysterious Magician''

The sun rising from the eastern horizon greeted another day. Aren, with the Baron and his family with the knights, continued his journey in the carriages.

After leaving the villages surrounding Havrick, the road had gotten a lot narrower, and that somewhat became a problem for their travelling speed. Nonetheless, as they had reached the middle of moonlight forest, that was to be expected.

While the exterior of the carriage they stayed in looked luxurious, it was nothing compared to its interior. The interior was a very spacious room with a yellow, woollen carpet covering its floor. It's windows were neither too large nor too small, just enough to enjoy the gradually changing scenery outside.

At its center was a short table situated between the two comfortable seats in which the baron, with his family was seated. Aren as a guest, was seated in a seat opposite to Baron and Baroness along with Luther, inside the large carriage.

There were a variety of sweets and fruits on the table, carefully chosen to suit the tastes of nobles. There was also a kettle containing warm tea inside.

At this moment, the baron was talking about the place where they were heading to, Yunisse city.

"I haven't been to Yunisse city for a long time now." The baron said, sipping the tea in his porcelain cup. As no one took the indecorum to interrupt him, the baron continued.

"The last time I'd been to Yunisse was with my father about thirty years ago. I was still a young lad at that time. The city was a cradle of adventurers, young nobles and wandering merchants. It was already a famous city of our kingdom back then. Thirty years..." the baron again sipped his tea.

"...I wonder how much it has changed since then..."

Though the baron didn't look at his direction him nor did he say anything to him, Aren, who claimed that he was ''Someone from Yunisse'', had to take on the part of speaking after this.

'Sigh, talking to nobles is tiring...' Aren sighed inwardly and started saying,

"If anything, Lord Reiter, Yunisse city has become more livelier. Everyday, the city is packed full of merchants and peddlers. Oh yes, Lord Count Friedrich Werner' Bertrand has been made in charge of governing the city 5 years ago.

From what I heard, after his Majesty bestowed this position to him, Yunisse city has developed quite a bit. I could feel that the residents of Yunisse were satisfied with the way the new City Lord handled the city."

'Thank god- err... no, thank my strange hobby of gathering information that I knew about this. Otherwise, what I say might not be of interest to the baron.'

"Oh, Count Werner is the new Lord of the city? I should pay him a visit once after we reach there then!"

As expected, Baron was interested after hearing him. However, just as he was about to speak of other things related to politics, his son Luther who was bored, asked Aren.

"Is Yunisse city really as beautiful as they say?"

'Finally, he could stay put no longer huh...' Aren thought as he looked at Baron who continued to drink his tea as if nothing happened, only to find out that the cup was empty now.

He then looked at Lady Slevena who only gave a slight smile. She was a woman who didn't seem to speak much.

"Yes, it is beautiful. Although it isn't as big as Havrick, the city has its unique charm which makes many people who go there for the first time want to reside there. The scene of the Endrew river flowing by it is also breath taking. I'm sure you'll like it when we reach there." Aren then said to Luther who, hearing his answer, had his eyes wide in anticipation and excitement.

Then, as he was about to pick his tea cup from the table, the carriage suddenly jerked. Fortunately, he had already grasped the cup in his hands, so the tea inside didn't spill.

The baron frowned and was just about to go outside when a squire came and said. "Lord Reiter, there is someone on the road ahead. She said she wants a ride."

"Hmm... there was no reason for you to stop. What was Kaldier thinking?" The baron's brows knitted as he asked the squire.

"She seems to be a magician. That is why Head Knight sent me to ask you, my Lord." As the squire said the reason behind this abrupt halt of carriages, the baron seemed to have changed his mind.

"Oh! Quick, invite her in then. We must not keep a magician waiting!" The baron's voice carried a hint of agitation now. It seemed that meeting a magician was really some thing.

Aren wasn't suprised by the baron's reaction. In this world, mages who were called as magicans by common folks, enjoyed high respect from them. The reason for this was the mages' strange and mysterious powers. Some could conjure fire out of thin air while some could move earth with just a swipe of their hands.

The mages were also rarely found and didn't interact much with other people. Even in adventurers guild, most were usually non-casters. Due to these reasons, mages were feared and revered by others.

However, Aren knew that those ''magicians'' seen by others were only at the level of apprentices. The true mages were only known by rank 2 and above individuals, high rank nobles, and adventurers from rank D and above.

'What would the baron's face look like if he finds out that I'm also a mage?' While he thought of this, amusing himself in his own imaginations, the door of the carriage opened and in came a ''mysterious magician''.

The pointed hat she was wearing which half covered her brown hair, along with the grey robe of hers on her small body, affirmed her identity as a ''magician''.

"Ah, Revered magician, it is our pleasure to have to you travel with us." With this greeting of baron, Aren already understood that he held this apprentice in a very high regard.

The female apprentice just nodded and sat on the end of the seat where Aren sat. She then took out a book from her robe and started reading, paying no attention to others.

The baron knew that the magician didn't like to talk much, so he sat on his seat after the door was closed. As the carriage started moving again, Aren noticed that Luther had been looking at that apprentice with big eyes the moment she entered the carriage.

'Lady Slevena seems to be having trouble with keeping her son from speaking...'

However, her efforts were in vain as after five minutes passed, the boy couldn't help but ask.

"Miss Magician, can you really lift up something without touching it?" It seemed the boy had heard about the tale of some apprentice using mage hand to lift something.

'Here we go again...'

Aren peeked at the apprentice girl to see how she would respond and saw her still focused on her book.

After five seconds, she softly replied. "Yes."

Though this reply of hers was nothing unusual and also sounded somewhat dull, a huge change had gone on Aren's expression for a brief second which he quickly concealed.

He then closely looked at the apprentice beside him, focusing on her face. Previously, he had failed to notice the details on her face because of her pointed hat, and also due to him not being interested in some random apprentice. Now that he sized her up carefully, he recognized who she was.

'This Kim... how come she is at this place? Did she not return to the academy?' As this thought formed in his mind, he quickly diverted his gaze towards the windows, making it seem as if he was just looking at the scenery outside.