Chapter 4 (1/2)

Chapter 4: ”What will you do next?”

“Get the f.u.c.k out here already.”

“Hurry up, you r.e.t.a.r.d.”

On the other side of the iron bars, three dirty-looking men are raising a fuss.

Blond and brown hair, Caucasian-looking facial structure and body builds. Leather armor. Axes hanging from their back or swords sheathed at their waist.

Hmm, how else to put it? Yep, they’re definitely mountain bandits.

“......”

I’m feigning coolness, but the reality is that my body has become petrified.

Ever since my coming-of-age ceremony, I’ve been in exactly zero fights. I haven’t even had any run-ins with delinquents.

(T/N: Coming-of-age ceremony = 20 years old)

In contrast, the att.i.tudes of the 3 before me make it abundantly clear that they are familiar with acts of violence.

“Dammit, giving me all this trouble.”

As if he’s only just realized that I can’t open the jail cell by myself, one of the men opens the iron lock and comes inside.

“Excuse me……?! Gehah.”

I didn’t even have time to brace myself before the man lands a full-power punch in my stomach.

[Invincible] is a spell that grants me resistance against weapons and magic. In other words, it does nothing at all for bare fists.

Extreme pain shoots throughout my abdomen, paralyzing my breathing.

“Make a f.u.c.king move on.”

All three of them come to me, who can’t even utter a peep, and drag me out of the cell and along the pa.s.sageway.

While being dragged along the short pa.s.sageway, I was able to, in the brief moment when I could look into the cell next to mine, see the figure of a young woman.

“...... Ah.”

Our eyes met for a split second, which was not enough to exchange any words.

“After we’ve dealt with this guy, we’ll give you plenty of love and attention.”

“Hiii!”

(T/N: In j.a.panese, ‘hii’ is a way of screaming (read like the p.r.o.noun ‘he,’ but stretched out as loud as the number of ‘i’s in there). It’s actually more like a very sharp intake of air then an actual scream, to be exact.)

Instead, one of the men call out to her vulgarly. The woman lets out a scream, but I am unable to do anything due to being in a panic from the fear and pain. Tears well up, not just from the pain, but also from a sense of powerlessness.

After pa.s.sing through the door at the end of the pa.s.sageway, I find myself in a courtyard surrounded by st.u.r.dy-looking stone walls. Standing alongside the front wall is a large tower also made of stone.

There are rough men all over the place, showering me with scorn and jeers.

“It’s the fake magician!”

“Show us how you can escape with your magic!”

“Hope you get buried already!”

I muse over what they mean by ‘fake magician,’ but no answer comes to me. I’m hustled to the center of the courtyard and made to kneel there.

With that, their rough handling finally ceases, so I’m able to at least survey my surroundings with my eyes. I’m not completely clueless about this kind of scenery. Most likely, this place is the inside of a fort or a castle. Additionally, it should be these bandits’ hideout. This is exactly like a setting in a game, but now that I’m present in the flesh, it’s very hard for me to enjoy myself.

After pressing pressed down in place for several minutes, a man wearing a robe comes out of the building in front of me. He is holding a staff in each of his hands.

He looks very neurotic, and has sunken cheeks, a moustache, and a sharp nose.

Apparently this place is not a bandit’s hideout, but rather an evil magician’s stronghold.

“You b.a.s.t.a.r.d, who the h.e.l.l are you?”

The robed man suddenly begins questioning me in a shrill voice.

“Where did you get your hands on this staff? You b.a.s.t.a.r.d, are you related to Afalusal?”

Before I can answer, he showers me with more questions. Now that I’m taking a better look, one of the staves that he’s holding is actually mine.

Wizardry Staff. As commemoration for Gio reaching level 36, I had splurged half of my entire fortune at the time on making that powerful item.

“I, I am…… ah…… I am a wizard called Gio Margils. The staff is my personal property, and I know nothing at all about this Afalu-something of yours.”

I was almost about to say my j.a.panese name, as I have for so many years as a salaryman, but I was able to catch myself in time. Oh right, I’m in a parallel world. The laws and police and ethics of the safe and clean j.a.pan can no longer protect me.

“Don’t you lie to me! You have no magical power! How could you use any magic?”

“Hah?”

No magical power?

“Give me a proper answer, you b.a.s.t.a.r.d!”

“Gofu!?”

After I unconsciously let slip a stupified exclamation, one of the bandits next to me plants his foot square in my gut.

“Gafu…… oh……!? Gohhhhh……”

“Hyahyahya! You look miserable!”

“If you’re going to play dumb, you’re gonna have to put more willpower into it!”

The pain is so great that my mind goes pure white. This is the first time in all 42 years of my life to receive so much punishment. But what frightens me most, even more than the violence, is the coa.r.s.e laughter of these men, in which not even a twinge of conscience can be heard.

“I also don’t feel any magical power in this staff. However, this is definitely magic!”

The robed man brandishes my staff, and lightning crashes into the ground between the two of us. Bluish-white light sears into everyone’s eyes, then a thunderous roar follows after a short delay.

“Uwah!?”

“Hii!?”

The lightning only lasted a moment, but the light and sound has caused the 3 men group and me to fall on our b.u.t.ts. It was due to the shockwave from from the lightning striking the ground. The surrounding bandits are all frozen with surprise.

“Awesome…… What was that……?”

“I’ve never seen magic like that in my life……”

d.a.m.n it. Looks like I had charged my Wizardry Staff with [Lightning]. Magical items in D&B are relatively simple, so it appears that he’s figured out how to use it, but…… What did he mean by the staff not having magical power? My brain is not working well from all the pain and fear.

“What on earth is this magical tool that has no magical power?! If you’re not a sorcerer from Afalusal, then is this something developed by those fools in the magi faction?! Spit it out!”

“I don’t really have anything to spit ou-...... gefu!”

The robed man signals, and the three men group resume kicking and hitting me.

“Fun…… I get it now. You’re making light of me, eh? This great magician Jyagul-sama, eh?”

“Goho. I’m not mak-...... gah.”

I curl up in the fetus position and try to endure the violence. Seeing that, the robed man—Jyagul—snaps.

He orders the three men to pull up the ragged me. Both of my arms are being held, so I can’t move my body at all.