Chapter 26: Patience on Fire

“Violent, aren’t you?”

That was the brief impression the Count had upon first meeting him.

The lord who governs the city of Sauer.

A face with sharp, clear features paired with a disproportionately large frame.

The arrogance of stuffing meat greedily into his mouth while roughly gesturing towards the Count and Hio.

All those actions summed up neatly with the word ‘violent.’

“This is the self-proclaimed mage I mentioned before. I hoped he might bring some small enjoyment to your meal, my lord…”

“Enough.”

The Count cut off the introduction, then pointed at Hio with his greasy hand.

“You’re that so-called magic user, huh?”

Hio lightly tipped his hat and greeted politely.

Even a violent brute like that was, after all, a noble.

“Yes. I am Hio Pavlenko of the Pavlenko Family.”

“Pavlenko… a family I’ve never heard of.”

He slammed down the bone of the meat he was eating, then reached out his hand.

A maid quickly came forward to wipe off his greasy hand.

“Show me some of that magic of yours.”

Despite the Count’s arrogant order, Hio didn’t frown once.

He immediately began rotating his magic circle.

‘Should I take a little time to build this up?’

The spells he had were all lower-grade, mastered to perfection, so he could unleash them instantly without delay.

But that wouldn’t be any fun.

What the Count wanted was entertainment.

And what Hio wanted was the patience needed to evolve his highest-level skills.

So Hio decided to put on a little show.

“Hup!”

He made a face as if concentrating hard and gathered their attention.

“Haah!”

Exaggerating his movements, he slammed his staff down with a loud thud.

He could feel all eyes in the room focused on him.

‘Were they about to witness something amazing?’

A mix of expectation and doubt filled their gazes.

“Oh, flames that burn everything…”

Without needing to impress, he recited a simple spell.

“Appear before me! Fire!”

He slammed the staff down once more and shouted the magic with all his might.

Despite the grand display, he poured in only a tiny fraction of his magic power. The result was…

“…Hmm?”

A small, cute flame popped up, like a matchstick’s tiny spark.

After a brief silence, “Wahaha!”

The Count’s laughter boomed through the room.

“What kind of pathetic trick is that! Hahaha! It’s so pitiful, I can’t even find words!”

Hio had expected this to some degree, so he remained relatively calm.

But…

“Wahaha! Now that I look at you, isn’t your expression just as stupid? Instead of just standing there, why don’t you shake your butt or something! Haha!”

The Count laughed so hard he banged his fists on the table, nearly gasping for breath.

“You’re so dumb… so pathetic I can’t stop laughing! Hahaha!”

‘Heh.’

At that moment, the Count’s companion, the Count, sneered slyly and joined in.

“When I first saw it, I thought it was so pitiful. But since the lord likes it, I’m truly relieved. Hehe.”

“Oh, right, right. Wasn’t it the adjutant who brought that dumb mage here?”

“Yes! Hehe, I recognized him at first glance. I thought this stupid-looking self-proclaimed mage would amuse the Count, you see.”

‘Click.’

Hio blankly stared into space, listening to their conversation.

‘These bastards… There’s nothing they won’t say to someone’s face.’

Well, he did act with the intention of provoking such a conversation… so he had no right to complain.

[Hidden Trait: Violence is Not Allowed! (Patience: 892 / 1000)]

Thanks to that, his patience was steadily increasing.

The patience attached to the Hidden Trait didn’t have to be about restraining violence specifically.

All that mattered was enduring.

Whatever it was, whatever emotion.

Ah, but right now, he was enduring violence-related patience.

He wanted to rush over and give that thick-headed brute a good knock on the head more than anything.

“This is fun, self-proclaimed mage. Show me a few more of those magic tricks.”

“Yes.”

From then on, Hio’s magic show disguised as a comedy performance unfolded.

As he smoothly cast spells, the Count and the Count burst into laughter, clutching their sides.

[Hidden Trait: Violence is Not Allowed! (Patience: 911 / 1000)]

His patience was rising at a decent rate, meaning he was enduring well.

It was hard not to get annoyed when such chaos was happening right before his eyes.

“Hahaha! Not this again. We’re expecting some important guests in a few days. Perform again for them.”

Hio’s magic show had, before he realized it, become a performance.

‘You want me to do this again in a few days?’

He didn’t really see a reason to stay several more days just to repeat this. He was about to refuse when—

“Oh, here, give this to our amusing mage.”

When the butler handed over a wooden box and Hio opened it, he could only nod quickly.

The box was filled with shining gold.

“I will work hard, my Count!”

It was far too much money to turn down.

“No mage here… what should I do for fun?”

Hio was summoned by the Count and taken away.

***

Rolling around on the large bed, Irina was busy thinking about how to pass the day.

A few days ago, when she was first guided into this spacious room, she had been so surprised.

A large room and neat bedding.

A warm bath she had never taken before and soft clothes that weren’t rough.

“Am I really allowed to stay here…?”

Delicious food and a warm bed.

She wondered if she truly deserved to enjoy such things.

The first thought that came to her mind was of the children wandering the streets today.

She wished all the other children could enjoy these things too…

“Thanks to Irina, we caught those bad thieves, right? This is a proper reward for that.”

Unlike Irina, who awkwardly paced around the flashy and large room, Hio lay on the bed with a carefree nod.

If we caught them, this level of reward is only natural. So just enjoy it without any worries.

“Got it!”

Whether she understood that fully or not, since that day, Irina had started to truly enjoy herself.

She ate delicious food in abundance, rolled around on the large bed all day, and happily ran through the hallways wider than any back alley.

“Her adaptability is insane.”

She was unusually approachable from the start, but her sociability was exceptional.

She even greeted the maids and guards she often saw.

***

After running around for a long time, she would return to her room chattering.

“I have friends named Tom, Hardy, Jadin, and more.”

She never seemed to tire of talking, even while eating or resting.

Mostly, they chatted about friends they had grown up with on the streets.

“Tom’s been hanging out with some bad adults lately, but he’s still a good friend!”

“I see.”

“Wow! This is delicious! Mage, you should try some too!”

“…”

Several days passed like that.

“Hio Pavlenko, the Count wishes to see you.”

When Hio was summoned and left, Irina suddenly found herself very bored.

Even opening the books Hio read daily, she couldn’t understand a word.

She decided to go out and find something to do.

“Sophie said she can’t play today. Maybe I’ll visit Jeff?”

During her stay at the lord’s castle, Irina had become friends with some maids, servants, and guards.

“Hmm! Yeah, I’ll definitely go see Jeff!”

With that resolution, she left her room energetically.

The hallway was as wide as always, and since the annex was beside the main castle, Irina could run around freely.

She heard it was built specifically to receive guests.

“Where could Jeff be?”

Irina wandered around the annex.

The staff were so used to seeing her that they didn’t even pay attention anymore.

“Huh? Not here either?”

Even at the entrance where Jeff usually guarded, he wasn’t there.

Maybe it was shift change time; only unfamiliar guards gathered chatting quietly.

“Hmm… maybe I’ll try over there.”

Irina left the annex and began wandering around the castle grounds.

Hio hadn’t returned after being summoned by the Count.

Even the people she had grown close to weren’t in sight today, so she intended to look for a new friend.

***

After wandering for a while, as unfamiliar scenery began to appear—

“Oh?”

She noticed a familiar figure from behind.

“…Tom?”

She hadn’t expected to see him here, but it was definitely him.

A precious friend she had grown up with on the streets since childhood.

There was no way she could mistake him.

“Tom! It’s you, right!”

Irina smiled brightly and ran toward him.

“Tom! How did you get here?”

“W-what? Irina?”

Tom was equally surprised to see Irina here, almost to an exaggerated degree.

“Yeah! It’s me, Irina!”

“Shh! Don’t acknowledge me here, idiot!”

“Huh? What do you mean…”

“I don’t know! Go away, stupid Irina.”

Without giving her a chance to reply, Tom shoved her aside and ran off into a dark corner.

“Tom!”

Irina tried to chase after him, but he disappeared in an instant.

***

[Hidden Trait: Violence is Not Allowed! (Patience: 913 / 1000)]

“Not bad.”

The patience was increasing at a pretty decent pace.

Of course, having to do that nonsense again was annoying, but what could he do?

The completion of the patience bar was just ahead, so he’d endure this level of humiliation for a little longer.

‘Which magic should I evolve…?’

If he had any worries, that would be it.

He actually had something in mind.

‘Evolving that would be the right choice, wouldn’t it?’

He had to decide carefully, considering his future path.

“Hmm.”

While Hio was deep in thought, strange noises kept interrupting his concentration.

“Hmmmmm…”

Irina, already troubled with her own worries, sighed deeply with a serious expression as if Hio’s concerns were nothing.

She was picking at her dinner more out of habit than appetite.

So Hio finally had no choice but to ask,

“Irina, did something happen today?”

“No, it’s just that, Mage…”

As if she’d been waiting for that question, Irina jumped up.

After Hio left, she’d been so bored…

Her detailed explanation began with how bored she was.

She had flipped through Hio’s books and was fascinated by the strange letters she’d never seen before.

“What kind of writing is that?”

“It’s an ancient language,” Hio answered.

“Wow, amazing! You’re truly a mage, and so on.”

She talked about trying to play with Sophie, but today was her day off.

And then about Jeff—what kind of person he was and what they used to do together…

After chattering for a long time, she finally reached the main point.

“I met Tom!”

“Tom? The Tom you call your friend?”

“Yes!”

Her expression fell, recalling the situation.

She’d gone looking for Jeff but—

“But Tom pushed me away and ran off. He said I shouldn’t acknowledge him here…”

“Hmm…”

Seeing her serious face, Hio listened carefully, but it sounded like a small quarrel between childhood friends during adolescence.

“But Tom’s face looked strange.”

See, she even habitually put herself down about appearances.

They must be pretty close.

“When you haven’t seen a friend in a long time, their face sometimes looks weird or uglier than you remember.”

“…Really? But it didn’t feel like that… His skin looked darker and rougher.”

“Darker and rougher?”

“Yes! I couldn’t have been mistaken. Tom looked like he was trying to hide that and ran away.”

Darkened, rough skin.

One assumption immediately came to mind.

‘…Mine?’

It was somewhat random but not impossible.

The timing was ridiculously early, but if a possessed person had thrown themselves into the Black Crow, they would have created something for their own infamous reputation.

However…

“Even if Tom pretends not to be himself, he usually cares a lot about his looks. He must be under immense stress now…!!”

‘How could Hio say such things to Irina?’

‘For now… I’ll watch carefully.’

It was just a somewhat worrying hypothesis at this point.