Chapter 72 - To Modjankle

Rhema had picked them very carefully. They were quasi-nobles who had lost their daughter who was about Azriel’s age and had a good reputation around. He just did not notice the couple’s greed.

A strong force was put into his unintentionally clenched hands. His anger and guilt reacted with the mana in the air. Rhema left the mansion falling because of the wild mana around it.

He almost did not feel emotions. Therefore, he reacted greatly to even a small emotion.

A drop of different colored ink in an ink bottle would not show well. However, a drop of ink in a clear water would immediately dye the whole with its own color. He had not imagined the magic of cutting out emotions would result in this. He did not know because there were not many things that could shake him despite living for a long time.

A drop of affection he felt for Azriel Esthera had dyed him completely. The color that he narrowly managed to dilute by forcibly pulling her apart turned thick straight back after he met her again. Rhema was aware of his state but could not stop nonetheless.

He let out a lengthy breath and moved his feet. Before finding the guardian couple, he needed to buy a mansion in Modjankle for Azriel and entrust the interior to a dealer. He contemplated what kind of house she would like. He was slightly excited. Rhema headed to Modjankle with a faint smile on his face.

*

Modjankle, the capital of the Kingdom of Aucandor, was an old city with the Antara River to the south and the Nordic Mountains to the north.

Around the river were the lowlands and as it became higher northward where the mountains were, the royal palace lied at the highest place as if it was looking down the city. The city walls that surrounded the entire Modjankle looked antique rather than worn-out as it had naturally withstood the winds and waves of time.

At the outskirts of the walls, there was a train station. The train and tracks were new, but the engine that moved it was the legacy of the old magic civilization. The mana engine that was easily over hundreds of years still ran smoothly today. The magic and techniques of today could not mimic that engine. It was even difficult to understand its mechanism. The best people could do was to find out its use and directions for use.

At the magnificent main entrance of the city, a unicorn running on the waves, the symbol of the Modjankle royal family, was engraved. This entrance did not open except for special occasions. Instead, to the left and right of the entrance, gates were always open. A team of guards was always there for security checks. Countless people and carriages went in and out of the gates. People came out of the train also headed toward the gates.

Azriel and Rhema did not go through the gate. They came to Modjankle from the territory of Colte by teleport magic. Where they arrived was a lonesome alley where it was not seen by people. 

Beyond the shady back of buildings and roofs, the royal palace standing tall was seen. The palace with pointy roofs colored with the color of the sea shined in pearly color under the sun. At the top of the roofs was the flag embroidered with the royal arms fluttering.

“Whoa.”

Azriel quietly exclaimed. She looked out the shady alley. There were many people on the streets where well-carved stones were laid. Within a brief moment, a boy who was running with a bundle of newspapers in his hands, a gentleman with a pipe in his mouth and a cane, noble women wearing feather-decorated hats, a knight in a black uniform with a sword on his waist, and a girl carrying a flower basket passed by.

She could hear the rolling wheels of a carriage and the clatter of horses’ hoofs. Subtle chiming sounds coming from a temple were also heard in-between.

Azriel walked out the alley as if she was possessed, forgetting that she was holding Rhema’s hand for teleport magic. Rhema, who unconsciously tried to grasp her hand that was slipping out of his hand, was startled and let her go.

She headed toward the sun-drenched street full of people. Rhema watched her back from the dark alley. Then he moved his steps following her.

Azriel stood by the main road and busily looked around the city. Modjankle was the first big city she saw. What she imagined reading the book or what she saw in pictures were clearly different from what she witnessed with her own eyes. Flashy and tall buildings made her feel even sorry to compare with Colte, wide streets, people and carriages that filled those streets, and the royal palace with blue roofs that was looking down the entire scenery from a height…

“This is a wonderful city…”

“This city flourished even in ancient times, though it was not called Modjankle back then.”

Wearing the hood over his head, Rhema started walking ahead of her. Azriel followed him with short and quick steps.  

“Have you been here many times, Rhema? Even back then?”

“Yes. There were more people back then than now.”

“More than this? Wow.”

There were too many people in the streets. Afraid of losing him, she clung to him first and then held his arm. And she began chatting with a raised voice excitedly.   

“It would’ve been hard to walk properly if there were more people then. I’ve never seen so many people before…”

Rhema looked down at her blankly. When her eyes met his, Azriel was startled and pulled herself away from him.

‘What did I just do?’

She unconsciously clung to him like she used to do when she went out with Rhema in her childhood. She was close to him back then. However, her relationship with him now was not the same. The memory of being abandoned once and six years of gap flowed between them, including what happened at Hanora Village and the secrets that he was not telling her. 

Even though she was genuinely thankful for him, and she was determined to become a wizard and jump into those secrets because of that, she could no longer treat him as she used to when she was young.