My Strange Savior - Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Time passed that way, and ten years later, the son returned one day with his grandson. 

He asked about the whereabouts of his daughter-in-law, whose illness had worsened, but his face only held sorrow. Did she pass away from the same illness? 

He mentioned that due to an overdose of the elixir, her organs were deteriorating. Along with a request for his grandson, his son returned to the earth like that. 

Was it after experiencing parting once, or was it after realizing that everything was futile? There’s no escaping being a child to your parents. He realized this too late. If only he had realized a little sooner, could anything have changed? 

Now aged Oscar looked down at his grandson, resembling his son, with a wrinkled face and white, thick hair. 

When Gregory said he would walk a path similar to his father’s, Oscar had no choice but to agree. He couldn’t repeat the same mistakes he made with his son. After losing something significant, Oscar gained enlightenment. 

He realized that his grandson’s stubbornness was an unstoppable trait. Not long after receiving a letter from Gregory stating that he had become a disciple of the great philosopher Myers, the power dynamics changed. 

Since the current emperor ascended to power, conflicts with Myers became frequent.

While the former emperor was a saintly leader contributing to the prosperity of all things with advice from the great philosopher Myers, the current emperor was more concerned with securing his throne. In the end, Myers turned his back on him first, and the criticism from the public intensified. 

The emperor, who was uncomfortable with Myers, the object of admiration, riding on the wave of public opinion, resorted to underhanded tactics first.

Myers intentionally marred the items created through alchemy and released them to the market. As people using those items began to fall victim to inexplicable ailments one by one, the emperor spread rumors as if waiting for them, pushing Myers into a corner.

The downfall of Myers, once admired and revered by people, was truly in an instant. The ignorant citizens of the empire were easily swayed by the emperor’s words.

Using the pretext of protecting the citizens, the emperor began to suppress and apprehend all alchemists. The current emperor was indeed a clumsy individual.

Gregory, weary of the deeply ingrained mistrust of the emperor and the behavior of flipping people’s attitudes like turning over the palm of a hand, naturally expressed his frustration.

“This is a matter that determines the downfall of this world, Gregory… You, due to your selfishness, distrust, and desire for revenge, can’t see things.”

As his usually gentle grandfather scolded in frustration, Gregory pursed his lips.

Looking at Gregory sitting crookedly, Gia bowed her head quietly, as if her posture was saying, ‘Straighten up.’

Gregory’s temper flared up again, as if the look was a scolding, ‘Get a grip.’

“You don’t even know.”

With his observing grandfather present, Gregory suppressed his burning anger inwardly.

“Gregory.”

Oscar, with the same green eyes as Gregory, looked at his grandson solemnly.

“This is no joke.”

He recalled the charred body and the burned village. A disaster. How else could this be described? 

Unlike natural disasters where one could only endure silently, this was a calamity where there was a chance to remedy it through human power.

“Didn’t I tell you about the tragedy in the village?”

“I know.”

Gregory hadn’t intended for things to escalate like this. He had thought of some resistance but ultimately didn’t plan to go this far. He was overly angry due to the woman’s interference.

“But processing the mana bullet again is not as easy as it seems. I’m unsure if my abilities can accomplish it.”

At the age of thirteen, he was a genius in Myers’ eyes. 

His grandson, for the first time, adjusted the string of the monocle hanging over his nose with a face devoid of confidence.

“Is it that difficult?”

“Yes… To pierce through that thick dragonhide, I not only need to modify the weapon accordingly but also activate the dormant mana.”

“Still, you, being Myers’ last disciple, should be capable, shouldn’t you?”

Seeing the hopeful eyes of his grandfather, Gregory clenched his lips. As an alchemist, Gregory had his pride, but this wasn’t an area where shortcuts would work.

Yet, he couldn’t just sit idle. Gregory’s green eyes darkened.

“For now… I’ll give it a try.”

“Thank you.”

Oscar’s wrinkled face seemed to slightly relax, finding satisfaction in his grandson’s response.

“We need a workshop and laboratory for alchemy.”

“I’ve already prepared that.”

Following Gregory’s suggestion, Oscar nodded. It was clear that a workshop specializing in alchemy would be necessary to handle the magic-infused ore.

“The types of weapons to equip with mana bullets are limited.”

This time, Gregory looked at Kalion. Beside him, Gia, apparently not involved in the discussion, didn’t offer her gaze, indicating that she was not the subject.

“Do you handle bows well?”

“To a certain extent.”

“To a certain extent…?”

Gregory was not pleased with the vague response. He couldn’t entrust the precious mana bullets to archery skills described as ‘to a certain extent.’

Gregory, who had planned to modify the arrowheads using mana bullets instead of arrowheads, furrowed his brow deeply.

“What do you mean by ‘to a certain extent’ exactly?”

Gregory, who preferred precise measurements, data, and information, was not content with Kalion’s answer.

“I assure you, there’s no one as skilled in both swordsmanship and archery as Kalion.”

Oscar, excited by his apprentice’s boast, spoke up on behalf of Kalion, who was not shy about showing off his skills.

“I’ll have to see for myself.”

Oscar, looking critically at his meticulous grandson, got up from his seat.

“Come.”

To showcase Kalion, the disciple he had nurtured and who was the empire’s top swordsman, Oscar stepped forward.

Following Oscar, who walked confidently towards the training ground, Kalion and then Gregory, and Gia followed, denying each other’s existence.

Though they had met not long ago, it was evident that there was a deep-seated tension between the two.

Kalion, who watched the undeniable tension between the two, clenched and unclenched his fist.

Though he had never neglected his training for a day, he couldn’t help but feel the tension.

After all, the fate of having the precious mana bullet rested in his hands.

Approaching the massive dragon was practically impossible. Even inserting a knife into its thick hide was equally futile. The only way to aim for a hit from a distance was with a bow equipped with mana bullets.

Four people appeared in the desolate training ground.

The wind blew chillingly, causing the earth and dust to stir.

Kalion, holding the provided bow, examined it and then pulled and released the bowstring.

For a standard issue, it was decent.

“Go for it.”

As if encouraging her, Gia approached behind Kalion and patted his shoulder. Gregory, who was standing there to check the skills of Oscar’s disciple, had his eyes widened in an almost triangular shape at the disciple’s skills, which had been praised to the point of being speechless.

Gia, not wanting to see him lose, squeezed his shoulder.

“Just suppress the target with confidence.”

Gia, who had her teeth clenched and was close to his ear, whispered. It wasn’t even a fight, so he didn’t understand what it meant to suppress the target. 

For some reason, Kalion, who glanced at Gia, whose fighting spirit was burning, looked at Gregory standing behind him.

Seeing him staring with a face that seemed to say ‘Why don’t you give it a try,’ Gia’s grip on Kalion’s shoulder tightened.

“Try hitting the target farthest away.”

Looking at Gregory, whose very presence was irritating, Gia, who was giving a stare, looked at the target farthest away. It was easily 100 meters away.

It didn’t seem easy to hit the bullseye at a glance.

Calmly standing, Kalion, who pulled the bowstring taut, let go of the arrow.

Thud.

Gia, who saw the target hit accurately, clapped vigorously.

“Bullseye!”

Indeed, the rumors about his exceptional skills were not unfounded. He hit the target with precision in a snap, without any specific warm-up exercises.

“However….”

Gregory had something to say and adjusted his round glasses.

“The distance to the dragon is too close. Even before shooting the arrow, you might get hit by its tail or get engulfed in its breath.”

The tone seemed to suggest that, making Gia uncomfortable.

“Then how far should the distance be?”

Gia asked, looking frail as if she couldn’t even hold the bow.

“At least it should be over Seven hundred meters away.”

“Seven hundred meters?”

Gia asked, and Kalion, looking puzzled, furrowed his eyebrows and pointed at a distant stone tower, barely visible.

“That distance is about Seven hundred meters.”

Insane. Gia looked at Gregory talking about an impossible distance from the start. She realized he had uttered something absurd, yet Gregory remained calm. 

Gia’s face reddened in bewilderment.

“Do you think hitting a target that far with an arrow is possible?”

He never intended to in the first place! Gia tilted her head in frustration.

“I guess……. It’s impossible with a bow?”

Kalion asked cautiously, and Gregory absentmindedly fiddled with his glasses frame.

“If you’re confident in staying close and surviving, then who knows… But unless that’s the case, it’s impossible at this distance.”

“Probably… That’s true.”

Seeing Kalion casually stretch his shoulders, a spark ignited in Gia’s eyes.

‘Seven hundred meters? That’s easier said than done.’

The effective range of the modified sniper rifle she had used to save Kalion was a maximum of one kilometer. Even at the maximum range, hitting the target was difficult, even for Gia, who had a good accuracy rate. 

On that day, with rain and unfavorable weather, Gia could barely snipe within six hundred meters.

That was possible because it was designed for sniping… for sniping…

Gia, muttering the same words, suddenly widened her eyes at the word flashing through her mind.

‘A sniper rifle!’