Became a Medieval Fantasy Wizard

TL/Editor: raei

Status: 5/week mon-fri

Illustrations: none

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Ian and his party boarded the merchant ship and sailed upstream.

The ship's captain was a pitiful man who had come to sell goods, only to end up trapped in the village. When Ian offered him a "chance to escape," he eagerly joined.

'Nice weather.'

The wind was cool and the waters calm. If not for the monsters, it would've been perfect for travel.

With some time to spare, Ian went on deck with chalk and a jewel. He'd obtained the jewel by trading amber with Count Gremlin.

Ian's task was to draw a magic circle. He chose a pearl, favored by the mystery of water, to inscribe with Maronius language. Since they'd be facing aquatic monsters in the river, the mystery of water would be helpful.

"Oh. Is that a magic circle?" Salvador asked, trying to sound knowledgeable.

Surprisingly, he was as familiar with magic as any wizard, having seen countless spells on the battlefield.

"You're correct," Ian replied.

"Looks like you'll be using water magic..."

In the past, Salvador had witnessed Ian's water magic in Riverville. It was a spell that reversed the river flow, flipping the direction of the ship.

"It's reassuring to have a wizard with us," Salvador said with a grin.

Monsters that dwelled in hard-to-reach places, like those in rivers, were generally tricky to hunt. Without a wizard's help, there was a chance of failing even after struggling.

But this hunt had Ian the wizard with them. Knowing Ian's water magic skills were top-notch, Salvador had high expectations for Ian's magic.

"I'm the one relying on you knights," Ian replied with a smile.

While the knights charged ahead with gusto, the wizard's job was done with a few gestures from a safe spot. While others sweat buckets, he just needed to use his brain.

Ian thought once again that becoming a wizard was the right choice.

"The Knights of Santiago seem to trust and follow you," Ian observed.

"Heh. I'm just relying on my flimsy reputation," Salvador shrugged.

For someone just relying on reputation, his speeches were pretty impressive. Salvador's speeches had the power to boost his subordinates' morale.

"I noticed before, but you're quite good at speeches."

"Heh. I don't do anything special. I just imitate the ancient saints."

"...Saints?" Ian stared blankly at Salvador for a moment.

No, which saint gave such heart-stirring speeches...

"Yes. As you know, 'Saint Marcus' was truly remarkable..."

The moment Marcus' name popped up, Ian figured out the source of Salvador's eloquence. A well-known Marcus fanboy. It was the work of that bastard Takarion, the Golden Finger!

"...Salvador. Are you talking about Marcus from Takarion's gospel..."

"Ah! Yes! I see you know it well too!" Salvador grabbed Ian's shoulder with eyes full of excitement.

From that madness-like gaze, Ian sensed that something had gone terribly wrong...

"There's something, how should I put it... righteous about Monk Takarion's gospel!"

"..."

"The way Marcus ruthlessly crushes evil-doers is the perfect embodiment of martial prowess! And as he practices righteousness according to heaven's will, it's the epitome of chivalry! Therefore, the Gospel of Marcus is truly the..."

...A martial arts novel! That gospel!

Ian felt dizzy.

This old man Salvador. It was suspicious from the start that his hobby was reading Takarion's gospel.

Why! Do old men who love martial arts novels exist in both that world and this one?!

Ian cursed his past self for not having devoured the masterpieces of Jin Yong's school.

Damn... If only I had memorized something like The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber and published it, I could've made a killing...!

"Salvador. Instead of such strange gospels, wouldn't it be better to read novels..." Ian suggested.

"What? Novels? Those lowbrow things aren't worth reading."

"..."

Takarion's gospel or light novels, they're pretty much the same to me, Ian thought.

But Salvador had a separate reason for disliking novels. It was... a difference in worldviews.

First, most gospels were set in the ancient empire. Because the spatial setting wasn't reality, it had higher immersion.

Also, concepts familiar to readers like the Sky God, angels, and demons appeared. These were concepts that anyone familiar with Heaven's Faith could understand, lowering the entry barrier for readers.

In short, the gospel was... like a martial arts novel.

Even if countless novels featured the same Nine Yin Manual or Plum Blossom Sword Technique, everyone could enjoy them with a smile!

Because this was a story set in a [martial arts world]!

On the other hand, novels of this era were terribly difficult to establish a worldview from the start.

This wasn't an era of advanced publishing technology, nor one where information spread quickly.

No matter how awesome an original worldview story you created, from the reader's perspective, it was a "What the f*ck?" moment.

So inevitably, almost all novels had to use this reality as a background... that is, this medieval fantasy world.

This created another side effect.

Readers started believing the novel's content was true!

If I create a fictional [Story of So-and-so Family's Such-and-such Domain], people will think Such-and-such Domain actually exists and try to find it.

But when they actually go there? Of course, there's nothing!

The reader immediately... feels betrayed.

'Hey, this book says this place is Such-and-such Domain?'

'Ah! That's a novel. It's not real.'

'You dare... deceive me?!'

'I didn't deceive you! Originally, novels realistically imitate...'

'Die!'

Because this kind of incident happened too frequently, the perception of novels eventually plummeted.

'Novels? A bunch of lies and trash!'

It was a mishap that occurred because they used reality as a background, but the essence was fake.

But gospels were OK no matter how ridiculous they were (of course, blasphemy was not OK).

Everyone knew it was set in the Heaven's Faith universe anyway!

The only ones suffering from such nonsensical gospels were the priests.

'Wow! Marcus! He shoots a saint-death beam with his finger!'

'Please...! Stop reading such weird books!!!'

Salvador was a devout believer of Heaven's Faith. But on the other hand, he seemed like a grandfather who enjoyed reading martial arts novels.

"I like the Gospel of Marcus, but there's just one thing I don't like about it," Salvador admitted.

"What's that?" Ian asked.

"Why are there so many wenches in it... I know Marcus is a generous saint, but it focuses too much on him fooling around with women."

"..."

That's because Takarion is a f*cking pervert... Ian thought. He says he can't write without inserting heroines.

"I'll try to tell him to reduce the heroines' presence next time," Ian said.

"...? What's a heroine?"

At that moment, someone called Ian's name.

"Brother Ian!" It was Maria.

"Yeah. I'm here," Ian responded.

"Just now, I saw water ghosts flying over the river. There were many, and they seemed to have died recently."

Ian and Salvador looked at each other simultaneously.

The appearance of water ghosts meant people had drowned nearby recently.

There was only one recent incident where people might have drowned.

"It's nearby," Salvador said.

"Yes. It seems so," Ian agreed.

The river monster had drawn closer.

Ian and Salvador immediately began preparing for battle.

---

---

"Sir Salvador! I see it!" The voice of a Knight of Santiago echoed over the river.

Beyond the damp river mist, the body of a massive beast appeared.

"Wow. f*ck," Ian marveled anew at the enormity of the fantasy monster.

Hunter Stingray.

The beast that killed its prey with the stinger on its tail was as large as the transport ship.

"Is that a whale?" Salvador asked.

"Well. A whale that looks like a stingray," Ian replied.

Just the fact that a whale-sized beast, and a carnivorous monster at that, popped out of a river showed how hellish the survival difficulty of this era was.

It was a wonder they managed to trade and make a living in such a world.

"It's coming! It's coming!!!" a sailor yelled.

"Ah-huh-huh...! Knights! Wizard!" the captain cried out.

As the Hunter Stingray approached, not only the merchant ship's captain but also the sailors collectively showed symptoms of a breakdown.

Ian couldn't possibly call the sailors cowards.

Now I get why those knight bastards ran away, he thought.

Monsters are called monsters because they look monstrous.

Beings that inspire terror and make you lose your will to fight just by looking at them.

That's what monsters are.

Ian ran to the bow and shouted towards the mist.

"[Master of the river! stop!]"

"...!"

As the wizard's loud and clear pronunciation echoed, not only the sailors but even the Knights of Santiago focused on Ian.

"Wh-what's the wizard saying?" a sailor asked.

"How the f*ck should I know if I'm not a wizard?" another replied.

The sailors didn't know what Ian was doing.

But while they didn't know the cause, the result was clear...

Kuuuu...!

"I-it stopped!"

"The monster... it stopped!"

Surprisingly, the monster charging towards the ship stopped at Ian's words!

The sailors couldn't close their mouths, amazed at Ian's mysterious skill.

Come on, the monster isn't some neighborhood mutt... How does it make sense that it stops when you shout something?!

"So that's why they call him a wizard! f*ck!" a sailor exclaimed.

It was truly magic. A feat that even the most skilled knight couldn't imitate.

I hope persuasion works... Ian thought as he looked at the Hunter Stingray without much expectation.

The beast seemed confused, as if surprised after receiving Ian's will.

[Meat... voice? Voice... meat...]

The Hunter Stingray's will was heard in broken fragments.

Even considering Ian's summoning level, this monster's will was too low.

The typical appearance of a beast-type monster, with instinct overwhelming will.

"[If you hear me, stop!]" Ian commanded.

[Meat... meat...!]

"[Stop! Stop the violence!]"

[Meat!!!!]

"You f*cking bastard!" Ian irritably raised his middle finger. It wasn't a creature that could communicate.

Even those who didn't understand Maronius language fully understood the conversation between Ian and the monster.

"Ian my boy! Is that monster a f*cking bastard?" Salvador asked.

"That's right! Sir Salvador!" Ian confirmed.

"Then there's no need to wait! Knights! Prepare the crossbows!"

"Ooh!" the knights responded.

The Knights of Santiago clung to the ship's side and fired their crossbows.

But the Hunter Stingray stubbornly swam closer, unfazed by the rain of arrows.

"Prepare the oil!" Salvador ordered.

Next, the knights brought sticky oil. They planned to detach the monster with burning oil the moment it clung to the ship.

But the oil barrels weren't opened.

Because Ian activated the magic circle he had prepared in advance.

"[River! Answer my call!]" Ian shouted.

Magic circles greatly enhanced the power of magic. Having offered a pearl, the river would surely respond to Ian's call!

[Ohoho! Did you call me! Child!] The mystery of water answered in a cheerful voice.

Ian recalled Anton's water magic and projected his will.

[Lv UP!]

[Skill: Water Magic – Lv 3]

[You are quite a decent water wizard]

As a result of communicating with the mystery of water, Ian's water magic level increased by one.

Ian spoke to the mystery of water with more skillful technique.

"[Rotate!]"

[Good! It's a joyous day, let's dance together!]

The mystery of water joyfully shook its body according to Ian's will.

And that became a disaster for all river creatures.

Shwaaaaaa...!

[New skill acquired!]

[Water Magic - Whirlpool]

[A magic that creates a swirling whirlpool of water. Be careful not to get seasick!]

"Wi-wizard?!" a sailor stammered.

"Good heavens... Lord have mercy!" another exclaimed.

As if a hole had opened at the bottom of the river, a massive whirlpool appeared in the middle of the river, violently churning.

The sailors clung to the ship's railing, trembling as they watched the whirlpool.

If they get sucked in there once, the entire ship will be plunged into the river!

"Ian my boy!" Salvador called out.

"It's alright! Old man!" Ian reassured him.

Even Salvador was terrified seeing the magic Ian had summoned.

That massive whirlpool looked deadly to anyone.

If the ship gets sucked in...!

Everyone was terrified, but Ian remained calm.

The mystery of water would never harm Ian.

In fact, the ship wasn't being sucked into the vortex.

Only the Hunter Stingray suffered in the churning waters.

[Blub... blub...!]

The monster tried hard to maintain balance, but it was futile.

To begin with, the Hunter Stingray wasn't a monster that inhabited areas with fast currents.

Ian smirked watching the flailing monster.

"Belenka. Look at that bastard. Calls itself a man-eating monster."

Belenka also smirked. "It looks just like a foal that fell in the water."

"For an aquatic monster, it sure sucks at swimming," Ian added.

If the Hunter Stingray had heard, it might have sued Ian for defamation.

"Ian my boy! Excellent!" Salvador, who had been firing the crossbow, shouted.

Ian waved his hand in response.

The Knights of Santiago, more excited than anyone, turned the Hunter Stingray into a pincushion.