The World's Strongest Wizard Becomes Manaless Page 4

  “Let’s eat!” Zephyr happily said as he started gobbling down the food.

  Taking Isabelle’s earlier advice, Irene and Wilson dropped their formalities and started eating as well.

  “Oh yeah! We should introduce ourselves again!” Zephyr suggested in the middle of the meal.

  Isabelle nodded. “This is my master Zephyr Chronis. As you already know, he is the Grand Wizard.” “My name is Isabelle Newmere. I am my master’s servant,” she added.

  “So you two aren’t together?” Wilson asked.

  Zephyr and Isabelle both blushed and shook their head. “No!”, they answered in unison.

  Both Irene and Wilson laughed.

  Zephyr and Isabelle seemed fun to tease. No one would think that the man was known as one of the strongest in the world. After they had their fill of laughter, Isabelle and Wilson cleared their throat.

  “My name is Wilson Bellridge. I am the leader of the Bellridge Trading Company.” He said with a look of pride on his face. “This here is my daughter, Irene Bellridge.” Wilson added as he pointed towards Irene. Irene bowed her head.

  “Bellridge Trading Company is a company that is based on Newmere in the far south right? What brings you to Stalta?” Isabelle asked.

  “Well… we are trying to expand our business. A noble offered to invest on us if we opened a shop in Stalta, and so we did. We were on our way to restock the shop.” Irene answered her.

  “But how come the leader of a big company and his daughter would restock a shop by themselves?” Zephyr curiously asked while stuffing his face with food.

  “Well… the noble who invested on us wanted to meet me. He also told me to bring my daughter, since he wanted to meet the heir of the business.” Wilson answered.

  “That’s strange…” Zephyr mumbled.

  “The noble must have invested quite a lot for you to agree to his wishes, no?” Isabelle commented.

  “He did… also, his court rank is quite high, so we found it hard to refuse.” Irene meekly replied.

  “Oh? Ish he an er or some ing?” Zephyr mumbled with his mouth full. No one understood what he meant. Isabelle glanced at him, as if to tell him to mind his manners. He immediately swallowed the food and asked again.

  “Is he an Earl or something?” He repeated.

  “No, he’s a Duke.”, Wilson answered.

  “Which one?” Zephyr continued asking.

  “Duke Seymour.” Irene answered.

  A loud bang came from the table.

  Zephyr slammed his hand on the table.

  Irene and Wilson became afraid. They didn’t know what was going on. They looked at Isabelle to ask for help, but she seemed to look off. Her face looked as if she was sorrowful. “You shouldn’t make deals with that man. He’s dangerous.” Zephyr calmly said as he picked up his utensils and started eating again.

  The air around them lightened up, so Irene and Wilson calmed down a bit.

  “Do you know the Duke?” Irene asked them.

  Zephyr nodded.

  “He’s the guy that enslaved both Isabelle and I when we were children.”

  Chapter Four

  Both Irene and Wilson were shocked at what they heard.

  The Grand Wizard was enslaved when he was a child? And it was done by their investor?

  Zephyr could see that they were both uncomfortable in their current positions. “Don’t worry about it!” Zephyr told them with a smile. “What happened in the past stays in the past.” He continued as he stuffed his face with food once more.

  Irene and Wilson both let out a sigh of relief. They thought they angered the world’s strongest wizard. If they did that, they doubt they would get out of there alive. “Still, you should be careful. He’s a scheming man. There’s always some motive behind his actions.” Zephyr warned them.

  “He’s always been doing a lot of shady stuff. Back when we were children, and even when we went to Stalta to ask for forgiveness, I could still see that he’s still up to no good.” He continued.

  Irene and Wilson both nodded. What could the Duke be after?

  “We’ll be careful. Thank you very much for your warning.” Wilson gratefully said.

  He took Zephyr’s advice seriously. After all, Zephyr was someone that the world recognized. And after spending a bit of time with him, he didn’t seem like a bad person. His instincts as a merchant has always been on point.

  “Well, it is kind of obvious what the Duke is after.” Zephyr commented.

  Wilson looked at him with a look of curiosity.

  “What is it?” Wilson asked.

  Zephyr pointed towards Irene.

  “Probably her, since she’s very beautiful.” Zephyr said.

  Both Isabelle and Wilson were shocked. Irene just sat there. She couldn’t immediately process what she just heard. After a while, she caught on and started to blush. She became embarrassed.

  “T-thank you…” Irene averted her gaze out of embarrassment.

  Suddenly, there was an odd chilliness in the air. Isabelle stood up and looked at Zephyr.

  “We’re training your stamina tomorrow.” She said as she walked towards her room.

  Zephyr felt chills ran down his spine. He knew what she meant by stamina training. When Isabelle gets angry, Zephyr’s training for stamina becomes… intense.

  “W-wait! Why are you angry? You’re not really going to kill me right?” Zephyr tried to beg Isabelle, but she just shot him an annoyed look. She went in her room and slammed the door shut.

  Wilson looked at Irene and she was still fidgeting. He looked at Zephyr and he looked like he just had his soul sucked out of him. “Y-you guys could go sleep in the vacant rooms. I’ll clean up.” Zephyr said, but he still looked like he had no strength left.

  As he collected the dishes, he kept mumbling to himself.

  “I’m gonna die. I’m gonna die. I’m gonna die.” Zephyr repeatedly mumbled.

  He looked like he lost his marbles .

  Wilson sighed and stood up. “Sir Zephyr, let me handle that. You should go and rest.” Wilson offered to take over the duty.

  “I’ll leave it to you then.” Zephyr didn’t even hesitate. He just placed back what he collected and slowly went to his room, still mumbling about how “he’s gonna die,”.

  His daughter still seemed out of it as well. She was still fidgeting while sitting by the dining area.

  Her face was still flushed.

  “I’ll never understand youngsters nowadays…” Wilson sighed while he started washing the dishes.

  * * *

  The next morning, Irene and Wilson woke up to the sound of screaming outside the house.

  “What’s happening?” Irene asked her father.

  “I don’t know either…,” he responded. They both took a peek outside the window.

  Once again, they were met with a “surprise” ... A very unusual one.

  The world’s strongest wizard was tied to the ground face up. In his undergarments.

  Above him, the black sword he used was tied to a rope. The other end was tied on the ground. Beside the rope, Isabelle was holding a dagger. She seemed to be threatening to cut the rope so that the sword would fall and stab Zephyr.

  “P-please! This is the hardest one so far! I don’t think I can survive the power of that sword!” Zephyr cried out. He knew the power of the sword could easily pierce him.

  “Don’t worry… it’s all part of the training.” Isabelle showed Zephyr a scary smile.

  Zephyr became even more scared. He gathered all his strength and pulled as hard as he could. The earth below him started cracking, and a while later, he pulled the earth with him. He stood up and started running into the forest with a huge chunk of dirt tied behind his back.

  “Wait! Where are you going?!” Isabelle angrily exclaimed while chasing after him.

  Moments later, a huge explosion came from the direction where they ran.

  After that, Isabelle came out of the forest, dragging Zephyr’s body inside
the house.

  Irene and Wilson just stared out the window, trying to process what just happened.

  “That Isabelle… she’s scarier than Zephyr.” Irene commented.

  “Yeah…” Wilson replied in agreement.

  A knock came from the door of their room, which scared both Irene and Wilson. “It’s me! It’s time to eat!” It was the voice of their coachman. They felt relieved. They opened the door and saw that the meals were already prepared. Isabelle and Zephyr were already on the table eating.

  Irene and Wilson looked at each other and let out a smile. They went to the table and started eating as well. “Mister, the food you cook sure is delicious!” Zephyr told the coachman.

  “I agree.” Isabelle said while nodding.

  The coachman shyly shook his head and started scratching his hair. “It’s a skill I picked up with my age.”, the coachman said as he let out a small laugh.

  “By the way, Sir Zephyr.” Irene suddenly spoke.

  “Hmm? What is it?”, Zephyr looked at her with a confused look.

  “What were you doing earlier with Miss Isabelle?” She asked.

  “Oh, we’re training.” He replied while he continued eating.

  “Training…?”, both Irene and Wilson asked in confusion.

  “Well, I lost all my mana in exchange for the ability to be able to grow stronger, so I have to train.” Zephyr calmly replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

  The same thing was running inside both Irene and Wilson’s mind.

  “What?! The world’s strongest wizard lost all of his mana?! How did this happen?!” They both exclaimed. Their curiosity couldn’t be contained. If the world’s strongest wizard couldn’t use magic, then he can’t be a wizard? If he couldn’t use magic, then how did he beat those thugs yesterday?

  So many questions ran through their head.

  Isabelle sighed.

  “I told you to keep it a secret.” She scolded Zephyr.

  Zephyr laughed as if it wasn’t a big deal. “Don’t worry. I’m pretty sure these two are good people.”

  “Well, I’ll tell you both the story, but don’t tell anyone else okay?” He continued.

  The Bellridge father and daughter both nodded their heads.

  They seemed to be quite interested. After all, it’s news about one of the strongest people in Osbard. Zephyr told them everything starting from when he picked up the sword. He told them about his stats, and the fact that he could become stronger, unlike normal humans.

  “A-amazing!”, the father-daughter duo couldn’t hold back their awe.

  The story Zephyr told sounded completely unbelievable, but they both knew it was true. Wilson even checked Zephyr to see if he had any mana, but he really couldn’t feel anything. “So, when you dealt with those bandits… that was only using your physical capabilities?” Irene asked.

  “Mhmm…” Zephyr nodded while eating.

  “How do you use the magic bag then? Doesn’t it require mana?” Wilson asked.

  “That’s why I brought Isabelle with me. She pours her mana into things for me.” Zephyr responded.

  “Basically, he brought me along to make me his luggage carrier.” Isabelle said as she shot a glare towards Zephyr. Zephyr let out a small laugh and scratched his head.

  The father-daughter duo looked as if they were children who were just told of an epic story.

  “Don’t worry Sir Zephyr! We’ll help you in every way we can!”, Wilson happily exclaimed.

  “That’s right! We always pay back our debts!”, Irene added.

  She nudged at the coachman to say something as well. “O-oh! Yes! For sure!”, the coachman also added his own words. He wasn’t sure what he was supposed to say, but both Irene and Wilson shot a thumbs up towards him, as if to tell him ‘Good job!’.

  The table was filled with laughter as they continued eating.

  * * *

  “They’re here!”, Wilson announced to everyone.

  Outside the house, there were a few carriages waiting for them.

  The people who just arrived were met with surprises.

  First, the wreckage from the incident yesterday and the bodies of the bandits tied up.

  Next, one man lifts up an entire house and stuffs it in a backpack.

  “These people are our saviors! The Grand Wizard Zephyr and his companion Miss Isabelle!”, Wilson introduced Zephyr and Isabelle to the people who just arrived.

  Everyone was excited to meet the legendary wizard, known to be the strongest man on Osborn. They exchanged greetings with each other. Some even asked for Zephyr’s autograph, and he was too shy to turn them down. Isabelle looked at him. She couldn’t help but smile seeing people interact with Zephyr.

  Irene approached her.

  “He sure is a big celebrity, huh?”, Irene said with a smile.

  “For sure.”, Isabelle said while chuckling.

  The two ladies continued talking while they went into a carriage. Wilson gestured Zephyr to follow them into the carriage as well. “Is everything ready?”, Wilson asked everyone.

  “Yes, sir!”, all the people who arrived to help them responded.

  “Okay, let’s go to Stalta!”, Wilson exclaimed.

  The carriages started moving.

  Isabelle, Zephyr, and the father-daughter duo were all in one carriage. They continued to talk about random things. “Sir Zephyr, how do you think we should deal with our relationship with the Duke?”, Wilson asked.

  “I’m not sure… I haven’t tried doing business with anyone, so I can’t give any advice…”, Zephyr responded.

  “If what you said was true, I wouldn’t give my daughter to that old man… but with his court rank, I’m afraid of how he would deal with us.” Wilson said with frustration.

  “Father, don’t worry about that. I can carry my own weight!”, Irene assured her.

  “Oh yeah!”, Zephyr interrupted. “I saw you use magic yesterday. It looked like something that needed quite a bit of mana to use too.” he added.

  “Yes! It was a barrier made with my mana. It’s the only spell I could use since it’s the only one I’ve read about.” Irene replied.

  “Since you could use magic like that, your spirit should be above C-grade. What grade is it? Does Sir Wilson also have stats above C-grade?”, Zephyr asked curiously.

  “Sadly, all of my stats are C-grade.” Wilson replied,

  “My spirit is just B-grade… All of my other stats are C-grade.” Irene added.

  “Oh! You should learn some more spells then! I have some B-grade spells that I recorded. You could probably use them.” Zephyr said. As soon as he said that, Isabelle took out a few books from the magic bag and handed them to Irene.

  Irene took a look and they were all the books that had instructions on how to cast different spells. “Is it really okay if I have these?”, Irene asked.

  “Yep. It’s not like I could use any of those anyways.” Zephyr jokingly replied.

  “Thank you very much!”, Irene showed her appreciation. After that incident, she realized that she had to practice more skills in order to defend herself.

  “I’d like to thank you as well for teaching my daughter ways to protect herself.” Wilson bowed his head.

  “No problem!”, Zephyr scratched his head and let out a small laugh. He still wasn’t used to people thanking him like that.

  Isabelle took out another thing from the bag. It was a glass marble with a small light inside it. She handed it over to Wilson.

  “When you get in trouble, cover your eyes and break this marble. It will emit a very bright light that could probably blind people. I will also alert master if I sense the mana from the light. We will try to help you.” Isabelle said.

  “We’ve already received so much! We’re supposed to be the one giving you gifts since you saved us!”, Wilson said.

  “Don’t worry about it. She’s worried about you two because of the Duke. And also…”

  Zephyr looked at Isabelle and
laughed.

  “She’s worried about her friends.” Zephyr continued while laughing.

  Isabelle glared at Zephyr.

  “Do you want more stamina training?”, Isabelle threatened him.

  Zephyr immediately stopped laughing. “No, ma’am.”, he meekly responded.

  Wilson and Irene looked at each other and started laughing as well. “I never thought I’d be friends with powerful people like you two!”, Wilson said. Isabelle and Zephyr started cheerfully laughing as well. Their conversations continued throughout the trip.

  At night, Zephyr and Isabelle would bring out the house and invite everyone to eat together, including those in the other carriages. They also offered out alcohol together with the delicious food they prepare, and so every night was like having a feast.

  This went on for a week, until they arrived at the gates of Stalta.

  “Okay you two, don’t come out unless we say so, okay?”, Wilson told Isabelle and Zephyr who were hiding underneath a blanket together with some random scrap.

  “Are you sure this will work?”, Isabelle asked them. She was skeptical. All it took was taking off one blanket and they would get found out immediately.

  “Don’t worry! Just don’t move!”,Wilson told them.

  Their carriage slowly approached the entrance to the kingdom of Stalta. “Halt!”, one of the guards stopped the carriages.

  “It’s us!”, Wilson got out of the caravan and showed the guard a gold medal.

  “Oh! It’s the Bellridge group.”, the guard signaled the people in front to open the gates for them.

  “Just show the people inside all your cards, and you should be good.”, the guard gestured them to get inside.

  “Thank you for the hard work!”, Wilson bowed towards the guard.

  “Thank you as well! The Duke always looks forward to your goods being delivered.” the guard replied. When they went in, the people in the carriages simply showed their stat cards to the guards inside. As soon as the guards finished checking the stat cards, the carriage continued moving on.