IVPCB 30

Chapter 30

‘Wow, I’d rather he just got angry. Smiling like that is even scarier.’

“Well, let’s do that. I’m the one who drew the line first, after all.”

Still not wiping the smile off his face, my master slowly closed and opened his eyes as he murmured.

Still, it was fortunate that my gamble paid off—at least my master had a minimum of conscience.

“Anyway, getting back to the main point, originally ‘demon beasts’ is a broad concept that encompasses both demonic plants and demonic animals.”

Aegir, who had returned to his usual expressionless face, continued his lecture on demonic plants.

“Not only you, but most ordinary people think of demonic beasts as the same as demonic animals. But demonic plants definitely exist. They’ve just been forgotten because their growing conditions are strict, and when alive, they’re invisible to ordinary people.”

At the point that they were invisible to ordinary people, I realized why I hadn’t been able to notice Juran’s demonic plants. At the same time, one question arose in my mind.

“Wait a moment. From what you’ve been saying, it sounds like you can see Juran’s demonic plants, unlike ordinary people. Is that right?”

“Yes.”

“Then what makes you different from ordinary people? I mean, what exactly are the conditions for being able to see demonic plants?”

“To think my disciple is finally showing an academic curiosity. I’m moved.”

At my question, my master gazed at me and muttered. There was even a faint smile at the corner of his mouth—this time it didn’t seem like mockery.

It wasn’t exactly academic curiosity, just simple curiosity. Since it didn’t seem like a bad kind of misunderstanding, I decided to let it slide.

“Only people with exceptional ability to detect demonic energy can see demonic plants. And the ability to detect demonic energy is generally proportional to the ability to manipulate mana.”

As I listened to Aegir’s explanation, I grew puzzled for a moment.

“Hmm? Isn’t demonic energy a force unrelated to mana—or rather, completely opposite to it?”

As is common in fantasy worlds, in Woom as well, there existed ‘mana,’ a supernatural force that drifted through the atmosphere since the beginning of time.

The humans of Woom used this ‘mana’ to exert power beyond human limits in various places.

For example, mages used mana to cast various spells and attack enemies, and swordsmen created Sword Auras to overcome the limits of physical strength.

This ‘mana’ was a gift left in the world by the Goddess Agnes when she created Woom, as a sign of her love for her creations, and it was her will.

On the other hand, the force opposite to the goddess’s gift of mana was called ‘demonic energy.’ Unlike the pure goddess, it was said to be a force left by an unholy and ominous Chaos, whose very existence was sinister.

Chaos envied and hated the perfect goddess, unlike its own imperfect self, and so its will and power—demonic energy—harmed the goddess’s creations.

As proof, the Agnes Church taught that demonic beasts derived from demonic energy unconditionally attack humans.

“In fact, the two forces are deeply connected. The goddess and Chaos are, in truth, inseparable from each other.”

In response to my question, Aegir answered with a meaningful smile. Having lived so long, he seemed to know many of Woom’s secrets.

I was curious about the detailed relationship between the goddess and Chaos, but it seemed the story would go on too long, so I summarized the conclusion.

“Anyway, to sum it up, you’re saying that strong people who handle mana well can see demonic plants?”

“Strong people. That’s quite an intuitive expression.”

At my words, Aegir let out a small laugh.

“But you’re right. For a swordsman, starting from about ‘Sword Expert Upper Grade,’ and for a mage, from about ‘Upper Mage,’ one can see demonic plants.”

After hearing the conditions for seeing demonic plants, I felt a little deflated.

Both were heights far beyond my reach. I wasn’t a swordsman, nor a mage; I’d never even felt mana before.

“Don’t be too disappointed, my disciple.”

Just then, as if reading my expression, Aegir offered me some consolation. Rather than making me feel better, it actually made me more suspicious.

‘That’s strange. There’s no way that man would offer consolation.’

“I never asserted that ordinary people can’t see demonic plants. If I deem it necessary, there’s always a way.”

Looking again, my master’s lips were curved sharply upward, and his eyes were gleaming. Like someone scheming something very sinister.

“…Why are you smiling like that? I mean, I’m getting this ominous feeling that you’re definitely trying to make me see demonic plants and put me to work.”

At the chilling sensation creeping up my spine, my shoulders trembled.

Come to think of it, my job was a gardener who handled plants. No way… right?

“It’s not an ominous feeling—it’s a fact.”

My master declared with a bright smile.

“Alright, here’s the real conclusion. First, the young master’s sleepwalking has not been resolved. Second, the primary cause of the young master’s sleepwalking is demonic plants, and if that’s resolved, he’ll mostly recover. And finally, the young master’s sleepwalking can only be resolved by my disciple, who bears the mark of the ‘Cutter.'”

My master clenched his fist and calmly explained, extending one finger at a time.

“Now the choice is yours, my disciple. If you intend to cure the young master’s sleepwalking, as your master, I will teach you how to deal with demonic plants and give you more detailed explanations. However, if you choose to let this pass, then do not get entangled with the young master any further. I don’t want to be dragged into troublesome affairs myself.”

After finishing, Aegir quietly looked at me. Now the choice was truly in my hands.

The sky was completely dyed black in the evening.

The silver crescent moon smiled carefreely without a worry, and I found that truly enviable.

Crouching among the bushes in front of my room’s window, I mindlessly opened and closed my pocket watch. I thought that hearing the clicking sound might help organize my tangled thoughts.

After breakfast, I had told my master I would try to cure Juran’s sleepwalking. Little did I know that would be a choice walking straight into hell.

The deliberation hadn’t been long, and the reason for my choice was simple.

‘If I hadn’t known I could cure him, that would be one thing. But knowing it all so clearly, how could I turn a blind eye?’

I still couldn’t erase from my mind Juran’s pale face as he asked me to keep his sleepwalking a secret. Nor the sight of him eating paper with hollow eyes that day.

I just wanted Juran to be a little more at ease.

At my answer, my master smiled as if he’d expected it and explained the demonic plant causing Juran’s sleepwalking—the ‘Black Thorn Vine.’

The Black Thorn Vine was a demonic plant that thrived in places with dense demonic energy, fog, and year-round shade.

In Heliweka Castle, the area near the northern forest fit that description. Normally, it grew like an ordinary plant, feeding on demonic energy, but occasionally, when it found a suitable host, it would immediately latch on.

And the conditions it favored for a host were a child who had not yet reached adulthood and carried deep sorrow and anxiety.

‘Of all things, it matches Juran’s conditions perfectly.’

I bit my lip in regret.

—

“‘Deep’ sorrow and anxiety—just how deep does the anxiety have to be?”

“I’m not sure. The degree seems to be judged arbitrarily by the plant itself… but it appears to prefer sorrow and anxiety derived from death, in particular.”

Only after hearing those words could I roughly surmise the circumstances under which the Black Thorn Vine had attached itself to Juran.

When Juran was seven years old, the Duchess had become a star in the sky. Young Juran had missed his late mother terribly. I suspected that the sorrow and anxiety he felt after his mother’s death must have attracted the Black Thorn Vine.

After that, I spent my day as usual—studying herbology in the glass greenhouse and tending to the garden plants.

Then, after finishing dinner, my master, who had briefly gone up to his second-floor room, came back and placed a thick hardcover book in front of me.

“What on earth is this?”

Roughly estimating it to be about 7 cm thick and the size of A3 paper, I asked, daunted.

“Can’t you tell from the title? *The Encyclopedia of Demonic Plants*. It’s the book you need to study and master by next week. For reference, the Black Thorn Vine is from page 763 to 782.”

“What? That’s not much.”

Relieved, I opened the book to find page 763—and was shocked once again.

The font size was roughly 6 points? At best, maybe 7 points. Flipping through roughly, the illustrations were about 3 cm wide and tall at most, and even those appeared only once every few dozen pages.

“…The author of this book is you, isn’t it, Master?”

“Sharp of you. I wrote every single character with care. For reference, that was when I first got my glasses.”

It was a joke I’d made in shock at the author’s cruel lack of consideration for the reader—who knew it would actually be true!

And he wrote all this tiny text himself?

‘So that’s why he has such a foul temper and poor social skills.’

I clicked my tongue inwardly.

“I have a few extra magnifying glasses. Would you like to borrow one?”

My master, quietly looking down at me, asked. The smile on his lips looked exactly like a demon’s.

Of course, I did borrow the magnifying glasses. Ahem!

“What are you thinking so deeply about?”

The voice that roused me from my recollection was as refreshing as a summer breeze.

I unconsciously lifted my head toward the sound, and a pale face came into my view.

It was Juran.

“Oh? You’re already here?”

“It’s almost 8:30.”

I opened my pocket watch with its mother-of-pearl lid and checked—the minute hand was tilted close to 6. It felt like I’d come out about ten minutes ago, but I must have been spacing out without realizing it.

“I was just thinking about you.”

Standing up and straightening my skirt, I answered softly.

“…About me?”

His amber eyes, looking up at me, showed a trace of fluster.

“Yeah. About how to wake up the sleeping young master of the forest.”

I replied with a small smile on my lips.