Meanwhile, the merchants were discussing what to do.
"All the mercenaries who were with us are dead," one of them exclaimed. "I saw it with my own eyes." And he was still afraid, because if those bandits were still hanging around somewhere, they would all die.
The other merchant said that he knew that, but they should at least try to handle this properly. Besides, if the bandits had any brains they would have run off long ago. Did he really think bandits would go wandering through a forest where a drake had appeared?
He exclaimed in response that the bandits did not have an ounce of common sense. They were definitely coming for them.
They both turned to the guild leader to settle their dispute, and he closed his eyes. After some thought he flung them open again.
"We will wait for the magician."
The man who was afraid of the bandits objected, and the one who had argued with him was very happy.
Leek smiled. The man who had defeated the drake could not have died. He was sure they were only having some difficulty, which was why they were delayed. He believed this himself.
Ten minutes later, the bandits attacked them.
After all, they should have left without waiting for the magician.
Their leader swung at them, telling them not to cry, and then drew his sword and threatened to finish them off in one fell swoop.
Leek burst into tears and promised to give him everything they wanted.
The bandit put his sword away and told them to hand over the woman. At first they did not understand who he was talking about, and the old bandit, already losing patience, told them not to play dumb. He had heard they had a beauty with dark blue hair with them.
Then they remembered who he was talking about. It was Cassie.
Leek told his subordinates to find her quickly, and when they turned towards the place where she was supposed to be, it was empty.
The bandit's eyes sparkled with anticipation. He reached for his sword, and the three of them hugged one another, tearfully begging him for mercy.
A crash came from the side. The bandits immediately turned to see what was going on, and the merchants were delighted to see the mage and the drake.
The old bandit narrowed his eyes and saw a dragon coming out of the forest with the girl riding on it. He pointed at her in shock and asked whether that was not the woman.
The other bandit agreed that it was — but what she was sitting on was the drake.
At the sight of this ferocious monster the old man was frightened, and he ran away with the rest of them.
The danger had passed. Leek came up to Cassie and said, "Thank God you're all right. It's good you were with the mage. Otherwise those people could have done something terrible to you."
One of the men was perplexed as to how those people even knew about Cassie, and his comrade agreed with him. They had started looking for her as soon as they arrived. How could they be so cruel, when they were followers of the same Church of the Sky God?
Ian thought that he had not heard that name in ages. The great religion of this world, the Church of the Sky God. Its teachings forbid the enslavement of fellow believers. But human traffickers and slave traders had long since spat on those commandments.
And what was more important — even after seeing the mage and the drake, they still did not want to give up on Lucy. What a stubborn pack. Did they really need the money that badly? This was bad. At this rate they would definitely find their trail.
He turned to Longtail with a favour to ask. Could he deal with the ones who had been here just now? If necessary, he could kill them.
The drake was happy to fulfil his friend's request, and immediately ran off to look for them.
Ian watched him go. Of course, he was not saying that killing was all right. But this was a medieval fantasy world, where killing was commonplace. If he was going to survive here, he would have to change too.
He felt a sharp pain in his head. Had he overdone it with Moronius again?
Lucy noticed that he was unwell and came over worriedly, telling him to be careful, and he told her he was fine. She held his hand, realising that he was lying — and the old man came running up to them with his eyes sparkling. He looked the two of them over and mysteriously stroked his beard.
"You two are so close," he remarked. "Are you dating?"
Lucy was immediately embarrassed, and Ian did not even have the strength to say anything.
At last their journey continued, with Ian resting the whole way.
A system window appeared before his eyes with a notification. His drake had destroyed a man. There had been ten such notifications in all this time. This made eleven. It was convenient, of course, that summoning magic reported the situation automatically, but it was a shame he could not summon him directly out here.
Longtail contacted him by telepathy. He had chased away everyone he could find.
Ian thanked him for his help, and he laughed contentedly. If it made his friend happy, then for him it was a mere trifle. Was he leaving already?
He confirmed it. He hated saying goodbye, but it was time.
Longtail could not leave the mountain range, so it was a shame that he would not be able to see him one last time. They thanked each other for everything — and then Longtail remembered something and asked whether he was interested in the secrets of the phoenix.
Soon they arrived in Riverville. While the merchants unloaded the carts, Ian thought about what the drake had told him. There were rumours that an ice phoenix lived in the northern mountains. Why not go and check it out for himself?
The phoenix is a bird that does not disappear even after death. It is known not only as a firebird, but as a creature that changes its shape depending on the element, be it ice, wind or stone. This creature has an exceptional ability to adapt to its environment. And he wondered whether he could make one of them his shadow.
Having finished with the luggage, the merchants ran happily up to Ian, and Leek suggested that the two of them come with them to meet the Lord.
Ian glanced at Lucy. For her to escape safely, it would probably be better for her to stay well away from high-ranking officials like the Lord.
The man offered Cassie a place with them if she had nowhere else to go, and she began to mumble, unsure what to say. Then Ian threw an arm over her shoulder and said that they would rest at the inn and then move on.
The men were shocked. "The two of you? Together?"
Lucy's face flushed. She decided to play along and snuggled closer to him, saying that she was a little tired.
They were very upset, and Leek laughed and said that he had known they were dating.
That was how they parted.
Lucy smiled and said that pretending to date him saved her from having to deal with all sorts of idiots. Then she wondered aloud why he was so polite to commoners.
He replied that he was a commoner himself. A farmer's son.
She pointed out that he had become a magician, and he said that he saw no reason to treat them any differently. He was only imitating his teacher.
In his mind he added: he wanted to be as approachable and polite as she was.