Chapter 2: Oath
“Rustle……Rustle……Rustle……”
At the moment, a traveller was walking on Maple Leaf Road. This traveller was wearing black robes and had a hood over his head.From head to two, he was covered in black. He even had a piece of black cloth covering his face save for his two eyes which were vigilantly looking forward.
The only thing giving away his occupation, was the azure coloured staff in his left hand. He was a wizard. And seeing that he was alone, he was clearly a lone wandering wizard.
Supposedly, most wizards didn’t act alone. A majority of them had followers with them at all times. If you met a wizard wandering about on his own, then you had to be careful. These wizards were known to be extremely strong.
This afternoon, Maple Forest Road was extremely peaceful. From time to time, the singing of birds could be heard, adding to the serenity of this scene.
“Past that bridge is Maple Leaf Village. I can rest over there.” The black robed wizard’s eyes contained traces of joy. Rushing non-stop for several days had drained him quite badly.
Suddenly the black robed wizard stopped in his tracks and vigilantly scanned his surroundings. His expression darkened, and he said, “Who’s there? Show yourself……”
The forest was as silent as ever. The only answer he got was the rustling of leaves caused by a gust of wind。
The black robed wizard wrinkled his brows and took a step forwards. His staff was pointed in front of him, and he shouted, “Who’s here!? If you don’t show yourself, then don’t blame me for attack you…..!”
As he said that, his hand gathered mana in preparation to attack.
“Lord Wizard, please calm down……”
At that moment, a little kid who was clearly in dire straits came out of a nearby underbrush.
That kid, was Roan. He “rolled[1]” in front of the wizard and held an apologetic expression on his face. He lowered his head, bent his back and said, “Respected Lord Wizard, please calm yourself. My name is Roan and I am a resident of Maple Leaf Village. I give you my salutations……” He spoke using proper etiquette on Noah.
“Dammit, that scared me. I thought he was an enemy.” Seeing the beggar-like Roan, the black robed wizard cursed in his heart. However, he did also let his guard down after seeing that the little kid in front of him couldn’t possibly pose a threat to him.
He kept away his staff and impatiently said, “Hmph. You little devil, why were you hiding over there?” If Roan wasn’t a little kid, the wizard would be too lazy to ask nicely and just force the answers out of him.
“It’s like this, respected Mr Wizard, I have a question for you……” When Roan said this, he couldn’t help feeling a bit worried.
“I want to learn magic. Please take me in as an apprentice……”
Roan sincerely knelt on the ground, and crawled his way in front of the wandering wizard. His whole body lied prostrate beneath the man’s feet and he softly kissed the wizard’s shoes. On Noah, this was the greatest symbol of respect towards the strong.
Roan lifted up his head and worriedly glanced at the black robed wizard, his eyes holding intense anticipation. His heart was beating like crazy, and his palms were sweating like mad.
“Take you in?” The black robed wizard’s brows were creased. He silently gazed at Roan, neither accepting nor rejecting. He merely quietly stood there.
“He…… He’s considering it? He’s actually considering it? He might actually agree? Will he make me his apprentice?” Roan’s heart was in his throat, and deep down inside, he started have some traces of expectation.
“Hmph……”
After giving out a low hmph, the black robed wandering wizard acted like he had never seen Roan and walked away without saying a word. He didn’t hear Roan’s request at all. To the wizard, even looking at Roan was being too kind much less talking to him.
“Ugh……”
Watching the wizard’s silhouette fading into the distance, the hopeful spark in Roan’s eyes died out. He knew that he had failed once again and so his expression turned into one of dejection.
“Sigh…… Yet another rejection……” Roan sighed. He silently stood up then said, “How many times is it now? It was…… Um…… Seventy five I think……”
“I’ve actually been turned down seventy five times…… I really must be undesirable huh……” Roan said self-deprecatingly. He patted off the dirt on his body and headed back to where he was previously sitting.
Even though Roan was just a vagrant with nothing to his name, he still had a dream: becoming a wizard. However, to him, that was nothing more than a pipe dream.
On the Noah Continent, to learn magic wasn’t easy. Most people learned it from specialized schools. However, the school fees weren’t something commoners could afford. There was no way in hell the completely bankrupt Roan could enter.
Of course, schools weren’t the only way to learn magic. When learning things, the only requirement was that someone was willing to teach. It was the same for magic. But who would be willing to spend time and effort on a little beggar?
And so, in these past seven years, waited over here hoping against hope. He dreamt that one day, a powerful wizard would walk by and be moved by his sincerity. Then, that wizard would benevolently accept him as a apprentice and teach him magic.
After seven years, he had met quite a few wizards on Maple Forest Road. However, not a single one of them was “benevolent”.
There were also a few wizards that brought along mercenary groups. Roan didn’t dare stop them. It’d be game over if those cold-blooded killers decided to take his life.
He only dared to stop small parties or solitary wizards. But generally speaking, revered wizards wouldn’t deign to interact with this little beggar. If he ran into someone with a good temper, he’d just get kicked a couple times. But if he ran into someone with a bad temper, he’d get beaten half to death. Being ignored like today, could be considered lucky.
“Why did he refuse me? Was I not respectful enough? But I’ve already gave him Noah Continent’s most respectful salutation. Could I have said something improper? Maybe I did. I’ll have to address it next time around……”
“Hm, it could also be because I startled him just now, so he was angry. If I had come out sooner, the chances of success should’ve been higher. Ha… Why did I have to spend so long thinking?” Roan wracked his brain, constantly thinking of reasons for his failure.
Roan reflected on his interaction with that respected wizard just now. I came out too slowly, so I got rejected. But in reality, the arrogant wizards wouldn’t accept him in the first place. Not beating him was already considered very good. Even if they wanted to kill Roan, he could only sit there and obediently die.
With Roan’s identity, being able to lead a peaceful life till his death, was already a very good resolution. But even then, beggars had their dreams.
As soon as Roan’s butt hit the ground, he directly fell flat on his back. He picked up a blade of grass and lightly bit on it as he continued his long and futile wait.
“Wizard… If I could become a wizard… How great would that be… If I just had a chance, I would definitely work hard and not be lazy……”
Thinking of the word wizard, Roan’s blood started boiling. That single word was branded on his mind.
He would never forget that powerful wizard he saw on that day. That was his first time seeing a wizard. It was a female wizard. With a wave of her staff, blazing hot flames appeared before her. Then, as if those flames grey eyes, they flew straight towards her target. And the blink of an eye, that unseeing molester was turned to ashes.
The wizard’s power astonished him. And from then on, Roan swore that he would become a wizard.
“Maybe I’m not destined to become a wizard in this life…” As he thought this, Roan gazed at the azure blue sky with his black eyes. It was as if he expected the sky to give him an answer. However, failure after failure had already drained his spirit.
“No……no…… I definitely can’t……” Suddenly, Roan livened up again and he sat up straight, “Grandpa said that as long as I’m willing to work hard, anything is possible. The great founding emperor of the Holy Roman Empire came from humble beginnings. And the Mistral Sword Saint was once a humble servant. Who’s to say that I, Roan can’t become a wizard? I don’t believe that there won’t come a day when I make it big!”
He tightly clenched his fists and said, “I don’t want to waste my life like this. I want to become someone strong. It doesn’t matter if the opportunity never arises, I’m willing to wait. If one day isn’t enough, then I’ll wait a year. If a year isn’t a enough then a decade. Then a century. Then my entire life. I don’t believe that I can’t become a wizard……”
Suddenly, Roan stood up with a whoosh. He cupped his hands around his mouth, and shouted with all his might.
“I!!!!!!! RO!!!!!!!! AN!!!! WILL!!!!! DEFINITELY!!!!! BECOME!!!!!!! A!!!!!! GREAT!!!!! WIZARD!!!!!!”
Roan’s voice echoed throughout the valley, as if to mock his ridiculous ideals.
After shouting, Roan started brimming with confidence once again. He gazed up at the sky and said, “It’s still early. I’ll wait a bit longer. Maybe another wizard will walk by…… ”
He ventured back into the underbrush and found a place to sit and continue waiting.
Unfortunately, even by the time the sun set, Roan hadn’t even seen a single person, much less a wizard. And so, Roan returned home bearing only disappointment in his heart.
This went on day after day, year after year. Roan never gave up waiting at Maple Forest Road. He approached small groups of at most five people as well as lone wanderers. However, he was rejected each and every time. And even so, Roan never lost heart.
Today, another lone wizard was passing through Maple Forest Road. He was an old man that gave off the impression of someone kind and benevolent. He wore white wizard robes and his face was slightly sunburned. The horse he rode, was a fine white steed.
Naturally, Roan did not let this opportunity slip by. He immediately rushed out and intercepted the old man. Then, he got on his knees and said, “Respected Mr Wizard, I want to learn magic. Please take me in as your apprentice……”
He showed the highest form of courtesy, and his eyes let out an anticipatory light.
Unexpectedly, the white robed wizard actually stopped the horse, smiled and said kindly, “You want to learn magic?”
When Roan heard that, he went mad with joy and said, “Yes! Respected Mr Wizard, are you willing to teach me?”
The white robed wizard gave a gentle laugh, “Magic is something very difficulty. You will have to go through a lot of suffering.”
When Roan heard that, he immediately nodded his head said with joy,
“Respected Mister Wizard, I am not scared of pain. Please accept me as your apprentice……”
“Hehe……”The white robed wizard cheerfully laughed, “Since you are so resolute, I’ll make an exception and take you in……”
“Thank you…… Thank you so much Respected Lord Wizard……” Roan’s age old dream had finally become reality. He immediately acknowledged his teacher and kissed the wizard’s shoes.
“I have to go. If you want to be my apprentice, then pack your things and follow me……” The white robed wizard said with a smile as he ruffled Roan’s hair.
“Understood!” Roan excitedly rubbed his nose with his index finger.
“Ugh……” Roan softly sighed. He sat up and chased away the birds perched on his nose. In retaliation, the bird ruthlessly pecked him a few times.
“It was a dream……” Roan woke up and rubbed his nose with disappointment. Apparently, just now, he had unknowingly gone to slip. He stood up, and said with self-mockery, “I knew that something like that would never happen……”
[1] Word used for roll can also mean fuck off/get the fuck over here. And author left it in “”.
翻译者：白酒鬼
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