妻子的秘密

I still couldn’t help but frown. I really did not wish for people to know about what I was capable of, but I guess at the time, I did not have time to really think about how to deal with the situation. “Miss Runa, you could still have pretended not to have known.” I said with pursed lips.

But I guess Runa found my words funny because she chuckled. “That Is true, but I still have to say that your feats truly amaze me. I had to run all the way here just to meet you. It was hard to escape my guards, you know.”

Runa’s words made me feel as if maybe this Runa girl was far from being a normal everyday elf. Not that I know what a normal everyday elf is but still. Only idiots like Prince Lance, The hero idiot, and every other person I consider to be an idiot would not realize what Runa was implying. “I see. So you ran all the way here. Well…. I guess with how you were casting magic, it would be quite safe for you to travel alone. But there are many strong people in the world, so you shouldn’t run off like that.”

“This is true…. Well, I did send a message to my father telling him I would be in this kingdom for a while. He only has himself to blame, after all, he was the one who told me about you.” Runa said with a wide smile. Like an elf princess running away to the neighboring kingdom was no big deal at all.

“You do know that a member of any kind of royalty coming to a neighboring kingdom unannounced looks bad, right? You should have at least announced your visit to the King of Gravos.”  This was something I read about Gravos law. Royal members of other countries are supposed to announce their visits. Otherwise, it could mean they were here to spy or form ties with nobles for one reason or another.

“Don’t worry. I did stop in and see Uncle Gravos. He then told me stories about you. Although, I did only visit him in secret. I know better than to not show proper etiquette. But I will say from what I heard, he holds you in very high regard. Also, it seems you were able to tell just from a few lines I spoke who I am. Very observant!” Runa said with a smile._-.

I could only shake my head at this. Just thinking back to the drunken King when he let himself free speaking with proper etiquette seemed kind of strange to me. Since I now knew Runa was not a threat, I drew a small magic circle with my finger causing a stone chair to suddenly rise up from the stone of the aisle. “Since you wish to talk, it would be best to sit.”

“Thank you.” Runa did not stand on ceremony as she took a seat, crossed her legs, and looked me up and down. “How did you do it? Two grand falls one after the other while shooting out so much magic on top of it all. Just how in the world did you do such a thing? How much mana does your small body hold?”

“Enough, I guess…?”  I really did not know how to answer that. Of course, it was not like I could tell the truth either. “At that time, I was not even thinking I could have killed myself if I was not careful.”

“This is true. If you did not have enough mana to be able to continue, you would have died. But I am more interested in how you did it so quickly. It was said the spells were almost instantaneous.” Runa’s eyes glowed with excitement which reminded me of someone I knew very well… who was it again…. I tapped my chin for a second before it finally came to me…. Yes, to me…. I  was thinking about my crazy self!

“Is she okay?” I heard Runa ask Thurul.

“Ah, don’t mind her. She does this a lot.” Thurul replied while waving the whole question off. But I, for one, wanted to know what I was doing to make such a question even pop up!

“Ummm… Why did you ask if I was okay?” I asked while pursing my lips.

“Well…. You blanked out and began tapping your chin while nodding and giggling.”

“What!? Was I really!?” This was news to me. No one had ever mentioned anything like that to me before. I never knew I did such things!

“You’re doing it again!” Runa said while laughing. But I could only furrow my brow.

“Leave me alone….” I said while pouting. I can’t help it, okay! I get lost in thought, and my mind begins to wander. Clearing my throat, I continued: “Ahem…. Anyway…. All spells have to be cast within five seconds, so it is just a matter of practicing, is it not?”

“Even if that is the case, even our best mages can not cast it as quickly as my father said you can. Can you show me the magic circle?”  Runa asked. I could see her excitement about to explode out of her body. I wonder if she realizes that when she is excited, her ears twitch.

“Sure.” I nodded with a smile before extending my hand and twirling my finger once. This was all it took for the magic circle to suddenly appear. The oppressive aura this one magic circle gave showed that it was a true high tier magic spell.

“Amazing! I am so glad I came. To think I could meet someone who could cast grand fall in such a short amount of time. If you wanted to, you could destroy an entire kingdom by yourself, and yet you are still so young.” Runa clapped as she gazed at the magic circle.

“It is only a matter of concentration and continuous practice. You see.” I drew six more in a row, all of which hovered in the air in between Runa and I. I could see the shocked expression on her face. And with a wave of my hand, all of them disappeared. “I am a bit of a magic nut. I like creating spells of my own when I have time.”

“Really!?” Runa shouted, causing Sophie to groan but did not make her wake up. Runa covered her mouth as she whispered an apology.

“It’s fine.”  I stroked Sophie’s hair, causing her to shift slightly, but she continued to sleep peacefully.

“You really make your own spells? I mean…. Just the thought of creating a spell takes a lot of time and practice.”

“That is true, which is why I only work with lower level spells. Like the catapult spell, I used earlier was one of my own creations using earth wall as a base.”  I explained. Runa seemed to be hooked onto every one of my words. Just knowing she was a magic nut like myself put her into my good people book, which is where she will stay until she does something that makes me lose trust in her.

“I see! To think that you were able to alter the spell so easily. I have tried many times, but for some reason, my magic circles always feel incomplete.” Runa explained as she lifted her hand and began drawing a magic circle in the air. “This here is flame axe. I wanted to try to use flame spear as a base to shift and transform it into an actual weapon that only the caster could use.”

My eyes opened wide when I saw the magic circle. It was very intricate. She was definitely on to something, though. I gazed at the magic equation, trying to pick it apart. “Hmmm… This part here and over here….. “

“Hey, Runa, why did you inject this into the equation here? Shouldn’t it be this rune, like this?”

“Huh? Wait, yes, if it is like this…..”

Four hours later, the two of us were sitting there with bright smiles on our faces. I have to say Runa is quite amazing at runes. The process of turning magic into a weapon was not easy at all. Especially if it was one that you can hold in your hand and still get it to act like the weapon you are trying to make.  But these four hours were not wasted. Runa stood in front of me with a two handed axe in her hands. The flame arched off of it here and there as the tips of the flames rolled around its body.

“Faith, thank you so so much. I have been wanting to complete this spell for many years now. And now….. I really owe you!” Runa’s eyes never left the flame axe.

I thought for a moment before drawing another magic circle: “Flame sword!”

“What!? You already altered it!?”  Runa cried out in surprise. This was definitely truly amazing. The flame sword in my hand really did not feel like anything, but I was able to wave it around as if it was a normal sword without it losing too much shape.