Given Merlin’s status as the monstrous super-rookie, it didn’t surprise them that he wasn’t severely punished by the guild, because it would be counter-productive to lose such a good seedling over a measly dispute, even more so when it was the other party that was at fault.

However, the respectful attitude the guildmaster was showing to Merlin was something reserved only for S Rank adventurers and above, which puzzled them and made them wonder what background Merlin had and what his actual strength was.

Merlin didn’t mind them, but he was a little mad at the guildmaster for all the unwanted attention he was bringing on him. In Merlin’s opinion, it would had an adverse effect on his plan of keeping a low profile in the guild.

What Merlin failed to notice at the time, was that his plan had already failed the very moment he destroyed the B Rank adventurer group. The news of that happening had long since spread among the higher-ups of the Adventurers Guild, at a global level!

Wanting to keep a low-profile after that was just Merlin’s wishful thinking. The guildmaster was aware of that, but decided to keep Merlin in the dark about it, for fear that he might abandon the mission if he learned the news had spread.

It would be better if he learned about that fact from others, and not from him, that way, their relationship wouldn’t be strained and the mission he had entrusted to Merlin would have a higher probability of being accomplished.

Seemingly unaware of everyone’s thoughts, Merlin and the siblings went to buy supplies around the city. The siblings were surprised to see that, unlike other adventurers, Merlin didn’t buy any potions of any type, nor any poisons that were specially prepared to deal with some troublesome monsters.

In spite of their surprise, they didn’t say a word. They believed in Merlin, and they were sure that if he acted that way, it meant he had a reason to do so, they had no idea whatsoever of which reason that could be, though.

Merlin was aware that his actions were unlike any other adventurer’s, but seeing his two companions didn’t ask, he didn’t bother explaining himself. They were going to learn about his reasons eventually, so he didn’t see any need to. After buying some goods he deemed necessary, Merlin bought two horses for the siblings, and led them back to the inn.

The real reason why he hadn’t bothered buying any potions, was that he had already brewed and stockpiled his own, and their quality far surpassed that of the potions sold in the city. As for poisons, he also had some in his ring, and he could prepare more at any given time, so the thought of buying some didn’t even cross his mind.

Leaving the siblings in the inn with instructions of not leaving their rooms until he got back, Merlin left the inn and went to Viscount Monyme’s manor, to attend the cremation of the deceased siblings and take back his horse Tempest. The cremation should have taken place the following day, however, it would seem that a servant of the viscount’s had seen Merlin buying supplies and horses, and she had informed her employer.

Upon learning of Merlin’s imminent departure, Viscount Monyme decided to hold the cremation that same day, and he had sent a servant to inform Merlin of the change of plans. Merlin had met the servant just as he was about to leave the inn, and accompanied him back to the manor. Two hours later, Merlin returned to the inn with his horse Tempest, and told the siblings to take their belongings with them because they were leaving.

Will: “Wow!”

Camille: “Now I understand why you didn’t buy a horse for yourself before… Were did you get it? It looks rather familiar, but I can’t remember where I have seen it before…”

Merlin: “It’s Tempest, the horse that belonged to the captain of the guards who were protecting you the first time we met.”

Camille: “Oh! That certainly explains why it looked familiar.”

Merlin: “Ok, if you have all your things with you, we’ll go now.”

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Camille’s POV:

There is no mistake about it, it is happening again. It has been only a few hours since we left the city, but that strange sensation is back, I don’t understand why I feel this way whenever I enter a forest. It’s not a bad thing, though, I feel brimming with energy, and so is Will. I asked him if he felt the same as I did when entering a forest and he did.

However, it would seem that it’s just the two of us, the rest of the people around us wouldn’t feel anything strange in the forest, and they would look at us as if we were nuts whenever we would bring it up. It doesn’t seem like an illusion, though.

Merlin seems to know a lot about a lot of things, so I wanted to ask him if he had any idea of why Will and I would feel that way in the forest, but I didn’t dare to ask him in the end. I was scared of how he might have reacted, I’m not sure I could deal with the situation if he were to think I’m nuts and stop talking to me…

After setting up the camp for the night, Merlin did the strangest of things, he beckoned us to go in front of him, and he handed me a beautiful decorated bow, and two decorated daggers to my bro-… to Will. I still have a hard time not thinking of him as my brother, but I can’t call him that way anymore. Will and I couldn’t understand why Merlin was handing us ornamental weapons.

Will: “Are you trying to make fun of us? We may be unable to wield any weapons, but you don’t have to give us wooden decorations to make us feel even worse about it!”

Camille: “Will…”

I understand Will’s point, nevertheless, this is Merlin we are talking about… He wouldn’t act that way with us. If he has given these decorations to us to use as weapons, then I’m sure these so called decorations aren’t that simple. They must be hiding some kind of secret…

It might even happen that we could wield them like those passed down in our family!

Well, I kind of got ahead of myself with that thought, but, then again, with Merlin anything is possible. We should have made sure not to lose our family heirlooms, it was just our carelessness that made that happen. Anyway, what’s lost is lost, dwelling on it won’t change that fact.

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While Camille was thinking about it in a positive light, Will continued his rant. Merlin, who was smiling at first, ended up fed up with Will’s attitude, and decided to explain to them what those seemingly ornamental weapons really were.

Merlin: “Will, could you please just shut up? You are starting to give me a headache! What would be the point of making fun of you two just because you can’t wield any weapons? Do you really think that I have the time or the will to do such a foolish thing?”

Will: “…”

Merlin: “Use your head before going around slandering people!”

Camille: “That’s enough, Merlin. I think he has gotten your point!”

Merlin: “Sorry, Camille. You shouldn’t underestimate those weapons. They look like ornamental goods because some good-for-nothing idiot didn’t understand their true value, and decorated them in such a flashy way to use them as decorations.”

Will: “You mean they are real weapons?”

Merlin: “Yes, they are exactly the same kind of weapons as the family heirlooms you lost on your way to Daferma. These are low-grade, though, but they should do the trick until we find something better for you. Now, infuse your mana into the weapons and try them out!”

Will reluctantly did as he was told, and a surprised expression took form on his face. Camille tried it out too, and discovered why Will was making that face. She couldn’t believe their luck, and made her wonder, once more, what exactly Merlin’s background was.

From what their mother had told them, Camille knew their family heirlooms were very ancient, and their crafting method had long been lost. Their mother had repeatedly warned them not to lose them, because they wouldn’t be able to replace them if they did.

However, Merlin had casually taken those weapons out and handed them like they grew on the trees and he could get more at any given time! If Merlin had known what was going through Camille’s head at that time, he wouldn’t have known whether to laugh or to cry.

The only reason he had to hand those witch weapons out, was that they were useless to him, and those two would have become a hindrance to him without them. He wasn’t so kind as to give something away without obtaining some kind of benefit from it.

It was an investment for the future, if it would pay out in the end, he didn’t know, but having the siblings defend themselves instead of asking for his protection, was a benefit on itself. He didn’t explain anything to them about the weapons, and let them figure them out by themselves.

Nevertheless, when he deemed they had spent enough time analyzing them, he decided to ask them to give the weapons back.

Merlin: “Ok, that’s enough time. Give them back to me.”

Camille: “…”

Will: “So you really were teasing us! You brought our hopes up, giving us weapons we can use despite our curse, and now you take our joy away by asking us to give the weapons back! Don’t you think that is just too much for a joke?”

Merlin: “Camille, could you please tell me something? Has he always been this moronic, or did he become like that after hitting his head when you were escaping from the capital of the Dollan Empire?”

Will: “Oy! What is that supposed to mean?”

Camille: “Please, guys, don’t fight!”

Merlin: “I’ll tell you what that’s supposed to mean! Yours is an inherited curse that runs in your family, and if people knew you have that curse, they would probably hunt you down and try to either kill you or enslave you. That is exactly the reason behind your mother’s disappearance, and why you had a price on your heads!” *What’s wrong with me today? Why am I lowering myself to this child’s level?*

Camille: “The weapons!”

Will: “That’s right, even if what you just said was the truth, that doesn’t have anything to do with the weapons, nor with why you are teasing us!”

Merlin: “A moron, indeed. Camille has figured it out already, but since you are such a moron, I guess I’ll have to spell it for you. It’s common knowledge among the people who know about the curse in your bloodline, that the ones with the curse can only wield that type of weapons. In other words, wielding those weapons in public will be tantamount to tell everyone who you really are!”

Will: “If that really is the case, then, why did you let us know you had these weapons? If you had just stayed silent about it, nobody would have criticized you for not giving the weapons to us, but you are taking your teasing too far!”

Hearing Will say that, Camille facepalmed and thought, *How can that idiot be my brother? It is very simple, if Merlin showed us those weapons and even had us try them out, then it means he intends to give them to us! As for taking them back after explaining how dangerous is to show them in public, it is highly probable that he either has a way to conceal their nature, or he wants to keep them in safekeeping until the time for using them comes…*

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