27 Advice from a Fire Wielder (1/2)
TILLY watched Captain Denver carefully put a blanket over Flint after he tucked him into bed. She was only convinced that Flint was safe when she heard him snore loudly.
Then, she heard the baby in the crib cry.
She immediately ran towards the crib and carried the baby gently to soothe him.
[Oh gosh… he's so tiny!]
According to Flint, his mother gave birth to his brother a year ago. So this little human being was only a year old.
She almost got emotional while singing lullaby to the baby. Sadly, she couldn't even remember if she had held Winter or sang him a lullaby when he was born. During her past life, she saw her son as nothing more than a tool to gain power.
[Winter, I miss you so much.]
Thankfully, the baby stopped crying. Then, he fell asleep again.
[How cute.]
When she was sure that the baby was sleeping deeply, she carefully put him down on the crib. Then, she gently tapped him on the tummy. She was rewarded by a beautiful smile from the little angel.
[He must be having a good dream.]
”Lady Prescott, pardon me for saying this but you look like you're the child's mother.”
Tilly turned to Captain Denver who was now leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. ”Really?”
If she looked like a mother just now, then maybe she could really take care of Winter this time.
Back in her second life in the modern world, she built a daycare center where she would often volunteer as a teacher. Only then would her longing for Winter lessen even just for a while. She hoped that if she was being a good ”mother” to other kids, then Lucina Morganna would treat Winter kindly, too.
”Are you preparing yourself to be a mother to your future son with Captain Kiho?”
”You can say that again, Captain Denver.”
”Then, be careful next time,” he warned her. ”If you want to live long enough to marry your fiancé and give birth to his son, then never get involved in dangerous people again.”
Her smile disappeared when she remembered that they had an issue to discuss. ”Captain Denver, may I know why exactly you're here?”
”Captain Ainsworth told me about the infamous child who keeps on spreading rumors about Fire Mages,” he said. ”Since I'm the current master of the Fire Wielder Guild, he thought I have more authority in this matter.”
She gulped when she realized how serious the situation was for Captain Denver to come here himself. ”D-Do you believe that Flint and his brother are Fire Mages?”
”It's a common occurrence for commoners to delude themselves as descendants of Fire Mages,” he told her calmly. ”They do it to make themselves feel special. But in reality, most of them just have affinity to the fire element. They could use a Fire Wielder weapon, at most. But summoning fire within their bodies is almost impossible.”
”But Flint said his parents burnt the bandits to death…”
”I heard that,” the captain said. ”And that's exactly why I had to manipulate his memories.”
She gasped when she realized what he meant. ”No…”
”I was sent her to kill the child and his brother if they turn out to be real Fire Mage descendants,” Captain Denver said coldly. ”But I decided to spare the children. First of all, the boy called Flint doesn't have the evidence to prove that his parents really burnt the bandits to death. We can't also investigate his parents' corpses because they were already cremated and the boy spread the ashes in the sea.”
Cremation was common for the commoners who didn't have enough money to buy a piece of land in the cemeteries.
”Second, Flint doesn't show any sign of being a Fire Mage,” the captain continued. ”He claims that the marbles in his possession can determine if a person has Fire Mage blood or not. But any Fire Wielder can hold those marbles without getting burnt. It's not as special as he makes it out to be. In short, his parents might just really be Fire Wielders who used a weapon to burn their assailants to death.”
She wanted to argue and say that Flint didn't look like he was lying. But what would the child gain from that? If Captain Denver determined that the boy was indeed a Fire Mage's descendant, then he would be executed along with his baby brother.
Her heart broke for the child who would be branded a liar from now on. But if it could save his life and his baby brother's, then she'd keep her mouth shut.
[I'm so sorry, Flint…]
”Don't worry too much, Lady Prescott,” Captain Denver said. ”The Fire Wielder Guild will welcome Flint and his brother warmly.”
Her eyes widened in shock. ”Really, Captain?”
”I'm the master of the guild. I won't lie to you,” he said, probably offended that she questioned his claim. ”I personally came here to see if I can recruit the brothers to join my guild. Flint is still young and that could be the reason why he doesn't exhibit any fire controlling ability yet. But I can tell from his Mana that he has the potential to be a good Fire Wielder someday.” The captained turned to the baby in the crib. She didn't know if it was just his imagination or his eyes did really glow for a moment. ”Especially his little brother. I can see the huge amount of Mana in that tiny body.”
”Then, you will take them in as apprentices?”
”Uh-huh,” he confirmed. ”In our guild, we don't discriminate based on blood. Anyone who has the ability to wield a fire weapon is welcome.”
”I just want to be clear, Captain,” she said carefully. ”Once you take Flint and his brother with you, it means you're going to give them a decent life, right? Shelter, clothes, food, and education. You'll provide them all, won't you?”
”Yes,” he answered. ”We ran a charity that funds commoners who join our guild.” Much to her surprise, the captain smiled charmingly at her. ”Lady Prescott, our guild also accepts donations.”
She laughed softly at that. ”Yes, I will donate to your guild's charity, Captain.”
”Thank you, my lady,” he said. Then, just like that, he became serious again. ”I don't think your Mana is enough for you to be a Fire Wielder. It's too weak.”
[Ouch.]
”But the boy said you didn't get burnt when you held the marbles,” the captain said. ”That means you have affinity to the fire element, no matter how weak it is.”
”I know that my Mana isn't fit for combat,” she said. ”But I want to at least learn how to protect myself from mind control.”
”And why would you need that kind of ability?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. ”I hope you don't think that learning mind control is easier than learning how to wield a weapon.”
”I apologize if my words sounded that way,” she said humbly. ”That wasn't my intention.”
He looked at her long and hard as if he was trying to read her mind. ”Tell me the reason why you want to learn resistance from mind control, then I'll decide if I'm going to take you in as my student or not.”
”I deeply apologize but I can't tell you the reason.”
”Then, why didn't you just lie to me?”
She gasped when she realized her mistake. ”Oh. Let me think.”
”Too late,” he said. ”I won't consider your request until you give me a valid reason.”
She was about to say something when he raised a finger, so she just kept her mouth shut and listened to him.
”But I'll give you a useful advice,” Captain Denver continued. ”A mind control weakens if the target is aware that they are being mind controlled. So it's important for the target to fool the user into thinking that they are being controlled.”