Certain events led to Arlo entering into a contract with multiple parties that forbade him from guiding Roy and stopped “them” from targeting him.
But now… he was finding out that someone had targeted him even though he had kept his part of the deal.
This angered him thoroughly.
“I have a few suspects in mind. But I lack evidence to convict them. To claim that someone had done something bad without proof to verify it would be a bad move. The current court doesn’t convict vile people of crimes if there is no evidence against them. It will only give them a chance to cover up their track better and know someone’s upon them. That’s why… I’ve remained silent. And… I hope you would do the same.”
Telling them about his problems was his way of showing that he was willing to trust them.
“I won’t say a word of what I heard hear to another.” Arlo pointed his thumb at the elder mage. “I don’t know about this guy, though.”
Roy looked at the man with greying hair in silence.
“To disturb a child’s chance of winning a game of chess against his elders isn’t something I would do.”
“Really?”
“Yes. I wouldn’t like seeing the cowards who harmed you from the dark getting away. I did rather see them brought to justice. If you ever need my help in this matter, you know where I live, just hit me up. I will provide you assistance without cost.”
Vizards offered his help as he was party guilty for Roy’s current circumstances.
If he hadn’t killed “It” and instead tried to talk things out, Roy wouldn’t be in such a predicament.
His life would’ve certainly been better if “it” was there for him.
Roy glanced at Arlo. “Uncle, protect Amelia.”
“Sure.” Arlo stood before Amelia, eying Roy.
Roy drank 1-3rd of the content inside the flasks before putting it on the nearby table. He wiped the disgusting liquid at the edges of his lips with the back of his hand.
The system’s notification sounded in his mind.
『Ding! Congratulation. You’ve consumed the necessary amount of Parasite Killer to deal with the parasite in your body. The parasite elimination process will not start.』
Right then, he felt as if his body was being ripped apart by a pair of scissors. A roar was about to escape his lips, but he gnashed his teeth, his protruding eyes turning red and bleeding.
“Gah!” Although he tried his best to hold it in, a shrill roar escaped his lips.
Looking at his pitiful condition, Amelia wanted to pat his back, hold his hand, and support him, but Arlo stopped her from advancing toward Roy.
She stared at him, and he shook his head back at her.
The onlookers then saw a bump appear on his stomach. From there, it traveled all the way up to his throat. Veins popped up on his neck. It looked like it could explode at any time. Blood trickles out of his nose as something forces its way up his body. It was at this moment that he opened his mouth wide.
『Ding! Congratulation. You’ve expelled the Parasite threatening to end your life from your body!』
“Argh!” Shrilling loudly, a reddish parasite covered in bile shot out of his mouth. It was like a worm but far faster than one. Like an arrow, it aimed for the weakest one in the room. Who could it be if not Amelia? But it had made a silly choice. Someone had already expected it to do that and had made a superhuman protect her.
“Pa!”
It hadn’t reached anywhere close to her when Arlo swatted it away with a slap.
“Thud!” It dropped next to Roy’s feet.
He immediately stomped on it once, twice, and another six times, crushing it into bits.
『Ding! Congratulation. You’ve killed a level 17 parasite. You gained 170 experience points.』
“Nice,” Roy muttered under his breath.
『Ding! Congratulation. You’ve lost your intolerance to Mana. You can interact with mana without feeling pained and induce it in your body. You can now try to open your magic gate.』
Roy shot his fist in the air and happily exclaimed, “I can finally learn magic!”
“Good for you.” Arlo cheered him from the side.
“Is master born with the innate talent unique to the Baldwins?” Amelia asked, sounding quite shocked.
Roy nodded his head. “Mm-hmm.”
Amelia congratulated him for getting rid of the parasite, and then she wiped the blood on his face.
“You’re behind others by a decade in this race. It doesn’t sit well with me to see you struggle forward on the path of magic on your own. Years of hard work have allowed me to realize my ambitions. I’ve created a magic circle that ensures a continuous injection of mana in the body, making it possible for a person to open their gate of magic in a day. Feel free to use it. Consider it a payment for showing me the alchemy secrets of the Parasite Killer.” There was a bull’s head attached to a pillar in the room. Vizards pushed its horn down. Right then, Roy could feel the ground beneath his feet shaking. The wall behind him parted open, revealing a bright room that had a raised platform in the middle. Surrounding it were many flags with complex symbols drawn on them.
This must be the magic circle the elder mage was talking about.
Roy thanked him. “Don’t mind if I do.”
Arlo pointed at the flask on the table beside Roy. “What are you planning to do with this?”
Roy beamed in his direction. “I’ll, of course, put it up for auction. And before you say anything to dissuade me, hear me out. I know that the existence of this elixir threatens the stability of the Achlys. They are backed by the duke. To eradicate this from existence, they’ll take any means possible, even if it means plotting to raze the county to the ground. But they will take that action only if we “publicize” that we have the recipe of the Parasite Killer.
“The entire game changes if we say there is only this much left.”
“I still don’t think it’s a good idea to let it see the light of day.”
The county wasn’t strong enough to go against the Achlys.
Thus, Arlo wasn’t supportive of Roy’s decision.