Became a Medieval Fantasy Wizard

TL/Editor: raei

Status: 5/week mon-fri

Illustrations: none

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Hmm. What a vivid dream.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Ian got up with that thought, accepting what he'd experienced.

Did he study fire magic too hard?

He'd dozed off for a moment and woke up in the middle of the burning Golden Empire.

And in the era of the mad Emperor Sulla, no less.

"If you've come to your senses, hurry up and move!"

"Ah. Right. Let's do that."

Ian tried to follow the old man while calming his pounding heart.

He'd panicked when he thought he was about to burn to death.

But now that he knew it was a dream, he felt incredibly relaxed.

Ah, Master Wonhyo... is this what you meant to teach?

Indeed, everything depends on your state of mind...!

Ian was just about to start running.

"Demius-!"

Somewhere, a girl's voice rang out.

And Ian completely ignored it.

If they're calling for Demius, it's not me!

"What are you doing? Old man? Aren't you going to run?"

"...No. I heard someone calling..."

"Like we can hear individual voices in this chaos."

The man looked at Ian with an expression of disbelief.

Well, he had a point but...

Why did he look so annoyed?!

The distant voice was a desperate girl's cry.

Honestly, shouldn't any man at least look back once!

But Ian was an iron wall.

"This Demius person will help them. Let's go our way."

"...You think so?"

"Demius-! I'm here! Over here-! Demius-!"

Ian and the old man both looked toward the voice.

The girl's voice was aimed directly at Ian.

The old man tentatively asked:

"Sounds like they're calling for you..."

"Nah. Can't be."

"Can't be? What's your name?"

"It's Ian."

"???"

Ian? He's saying Ian?

What kind of backwater barbarian name-

The old man scrunched up his face and shouted:

"Stop joking around! This is no time for jokes!"

"But you asked my name!"

"Talking nonsense about 'Ian'! Like anyone would have such a primitive backwoods name!"

"..."

Ian was slightly shocked.

Was the name Ian... really that provincial?!

"Not your slave name! What's your real name!"

"...What's your name, old man?"

"I am Atheros!"

Just as Atheros was about to say something to Ian.

The girl's voice rang out again.

"Demius-!"

"Damn it, let's go!"

If they could still hear her voice, it meant no one had helped the girl yet.

Atheros wanted to help her just as he'd helped Ian.

'He's a good person.'

Ian immediately ran after Atheros.

In front of a house with licking flames, Ian stopped.

"Demius...!"

The girl started crying as soon as she saw Ian.

Ian was looking at the girl without much thought when.

'...What's this?'

Suddenly, his heart started pounding wildly.

Ian knew this girl's name.

He didn't know why.

'Liria.'

Red-haired Liria.

She was a mixed-blood, with native blood from conquered territories rather than pure Imperial blood.

Because of her different trait - red hair - she hadn't mixed well with other children her age.

"Demius...! What do I do? I'm so scared...!"

The moment he saw her frightened eyes.

Ian was seized by a sense of mission that he absolutely had to save Liria.

Again, he didn't know why.

But somehow... it felt like he had to!

"Wait! Liria! I'm coming!"

"W-wait a minute! What are you doing!"

When Ian tried to run into the burning house, Atheros grabbed him in panic.

"Are you crazy?! Go in there and you'll die too!"

Ian shook off Atheros's hand and shouted:

"I won't die! I can use magic!"

"What?!"

Ian looked at the burning corridor.

He was a level 5 fire wizard.

Passing through a burning corridor should be nothing-

'...Magic?'

Ian hesitated.

He felt like if he used [magic], he could pass through the burning corridor...

But.

What was magic again?

[Warning: Memory integration rate too high. Recommend stopping memory playback and returning to material plane.]

A message appeared before his eyes, but Ian ignored it.

Must be seeing things since he was in the middle of a great fire.

"Damn it, old man! Help me out here!"

"Should've said so sooner!"

Ian gave up charging into the house and looked for another way.

He'd catch Liria with his body when she jumped.

"Jump! Liria!"

"...Okay!"

Ian caught Liria with his body as she jumped.

The height wasn't too great, so he could manage the landing easily.

Ian held Liria in both arms.

A sweet scent of flesh tickled his nose.

"Th-thank you... Demius..."

Ian.

No, Demius nodded.

"Sorry I was late. I was confused too..."

"It's... okay..."

Demius and Liria couldn't take their eyes off each other's faces for a while.

Atheros cleared his throat.

"Let's go, kids. You'll end up making babies at this rate."

"Are you insane?!"

Atheros took the lead finding a path.

The once-magnificent plaza had become a scene from hell.

The street trees burned like torches, and the fountain boiled and bubbled like sulfurous water.

Past the plaza, they started seeing other Imperials.

"Ahh..."

"Oh no, our house!"

From somewhere, endless cries rang out.

"Mad Emperor! The Mad Emperor set the fire-!"

"Drag out the Emperor! Kill the Emperor-!"

Atheros, Demius, and Liria looked down at the burning city from a hill.

Atheros muttered:

"Hell has come."

Hell indeed.

Could there be a more fitting word to describe the current situation?

Demius stared and stared at the city being swallowed by massive flames.

It looked like hell descended to the mortal world, devouring everything.

'Hellfire.'

Suddenly, Demius muttered a word.

"[Damnation]"

Then massive flames roared up like a song.

[Yes! I am your- doom-!]

In that moment.

A strange sound reached Demius's ears.

[Stop command confirmed. Ending memory playback.]

#

"...Huff!"

Ian shot up in bed, gasping for breath.

A warm, soft embrace enveloped him.

"I knew you'd wake up, brother."

"...Maria?"

Flowing long black hair.

There couldn't be many girls with black hair like that.

Sure enough, it was Maria.

"Yes~ It's Maria who reaaa-lly loves brother."

Ian let out a shaky laugh.

The creepy factor proved it was definitely Maria.

Having confirmed her identity in one line, Maria quietly stepped back.

There was another person waiting for Ian.

"Ian!"

"...Liria?!"

Ian jumped in surprise.

She was... Liria grown into an adult!

"??? Who's Liria?"

"Huh?"

"Ian... did you just... mix me up with another woman...?"

Her tone dropping lower and lower.

And her voice growing more depressed.

Ian blinked.

Looking again, the red-haired woman wasn't Liria at all.

It was Kira.

"I've... never heard the name Liria before..."

Kira spoke in a slow voice, looking down after being mistaken for Liria.

The first woman Ian called for after fainting and waking up...

Who was she? Someone he liked more than Countess Talian...?

"No, that's..."

Ian slowly explained to the flustered Kira.

"I had a dream, and there was a woman who looked like you in it."

"...She looked like me?"

Kira's expression quickly brightened.

Maria watched Kira with a small smile.

'Your expression control fails only at times like this.'

Kira let out a small sigh of relief.

If he'd confused her with a dream woman, that was fine.

...Maybe Ian's subconscious had created a woman who looked like her.

"Maria. What happened to me?"

"You were found collapsed. We were worried since you were out cold all day."

Maria checked Kira's reaction before whispering quietly to Ian.

"It was just like astral projection."

"Then did you guide me back to my body?"

"I just... tried."

Maria was a necromancer, though still a novice.

Since she dealt with souls, her intuition was probably right.

'Astral projection...?'

Ian shook his head.

He felt like he'd experienced a lot, but after waking, it all felt hazy and vague like a dream.

'It definitely wasn't just a dream.'

Ian was certain.

Though the memories were vague, the vivid feeling that remained was real.

So much so that he saw Liria's face first when he looked at Kira.

"Ian!"

Hearing Ian had woken up, wizards came to visit.

Eredith was the first to arrive.

"You're my disciple but this is too much! How could you study until you collapsed!"

"Master. That's not the important part."

"What...?"

Eredith slightly regretted suggesting joint research to Ian.

She never imagined he'd study until he passed out!

A wizard found collapsed in the library with books open?!

Anyone would think he was research-obsessed.

Ian looked straight into Eredith's eyes and said:

"I got a hint about massive flames..."

Eredith couldn't hold back and smashed Ian's back.

Like wizard like wizard, he really was research-obsessed!

"You need to be healthy! To do research!"

"Ow! Wait! That's not what I-!"

"What do you mean that's not it!"

Ian felt truly wronged.

He hadn't collapsed from studying, he'd just woken up from a weird dream!

"Ugh! I'll show you outside!"

"Really, you! Ian! Stop right there!"

The wizards coming to visit Ian stopped when they saw him running out like mad.

"Didn't they say he collapsed from researching?"

"Professor Ian! Where are you rushing off to!"

Ian answered immediately.

"Going to experiment! I just had an idea!"

"Heh. Rushing to experiment right after waking up..."

The wizards looked back and forth between Ian and Eredith before nodding.

Hmm. Indeed.

Ian really was Eredith's disciple!

He was magic-obsessed!

They'd been uncertain when he got in with Inglan and Eredith's recommendations, but his passion for magic was genuine.

"Let's go watch too."

"Yes, let's!"

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