The Book Eating Magician
chapter-51

Uh, This is Eating? #3

‘Dimension pocket… It is an item I borrowed from Master, but I don’t have the means to spare it in this situation.’

If it entered Gluttony’s mouth, then it wouldn’t be considered as lost or sold. Just like the magic books, the devoured dimension pocket would leave no traces. He could use the excuse that it was destroyed during the battle with the elder lich.

However, if he missed eating the grimoire here, it was clear that a second or third Giovanni would appear.

In barely two months, a 5th Circle magician had been transformed into a 6th Circle elder lich. If given half a year or a year, a legendary undead like an arch lich might be born. At the scale, it was a disaster which would need to be dealt with by the continent, not one single kingdom.

More than anything else, Theo couldn’t feel assured that the grimoire wouldn’t have a grudge against his existence. He thought for a moment before making a firm decision. “…Gluttony.”

–What?

“What will happen to the contents of the dimension pocket if it is eaten?”

Gluttony then replied with a pleased voice,

–There is no need to worry. They won’t disappear.

“It is an ambiguous answer… but, hoo… it can’t be helped.”

Theo put the dimension pocket on the ground. It was still hard to believe that the pocket made of ragged cloth and tattered strings was worth hundreds of gold. It was a tremendous luxury which would be the target of any thieves.

Theodore hesitated once more before letting the artifact worth hundreds of gold be eaten. “Now, eat.”

The tongue swallowed the dimension pocket before Theo even finished speaking.

[The ‘dimension pocket’ has been eaten. Error! An unknown phenomenon has occurred due to eating a dimension magic essence!]

[A hidden function of Gluttony has been discovered. The user should check the information about the function. This function will work normally regardless of the rank.]

[Grimoire “Gluttony”/ E Rank]

[One of the hidden functions of Gluttony has been opened after eating the dimension pocket. The grimoire Gluttony has a storage space to store the prey that it can’t digest. The previous owners kept their possessions in it and called it ‘Inventory.’ If the owner wants, the name can be changed.

* Incomplete state. Most of the functions are sealed.

* Once a day, it will wake up to relieve its hunger.

* Immediately after relieving its hunger, it will answer one question.

* The abilities it feeds on will be given to its owner.

* Extracts an essence from eaten books or items. The higher the owner’s understanding, the greater the efficiency.

* Absorbs some magic power from an item that contains magic power.

* The Memorize function has been activated.

* The Inventory function has been activated.]

Theo looked at the information quietly before opening his mouth to say, “Inventory… a type of space storage. If it has the same function as the dimension pocket, then it wouldn’t have been necessary to eat it. You don’t mean to push me to open one more function do you?”

–I don’t do that type of thing, User.

It was a reasonable question, but Gluttony spoke in a low voice like it was scowling. It seemed like Gluttony was dissatisfied about being compared to a mere artifact. Then that meant the dimension pocket must lag behind the ‘inventory’ and couldn’t be compared to Gluttony.

–You can’t hold a grimoire with a dimension pocket. Well, you might keep it for a while but as soon as it regains consciousness, it will flee through the space.

“That won’t happen with the inventory?”

-That’s right. The inventory is a dimensional entity that exists within me and differs from other spaces. Without a power to travel beyond dimensions, the grimoire can’t escape by any means.

Indeed, the story was different if that was the case. It was a dimensional space which could even block the grimoire’s space jump! If he gained that ability, then it was worth sacrificing the dimension pocket. Furthermore, the storage space of the inventory was larger than the dimension pocket, so Theodore had nothing else to say.

Theo finished the conversation and looked down at the book on the ground.

Wuooooong!

The book was covered in a faint darkness, and an ominous vibration was coming from it. This was the legacy of a legendary warlock, but he probably hadn’t expected to meet a predator like Gluttony. Theodore had never imagined a grimoire which ate other grimoires until he met Gluttony.

“Well, I always considered myself unlucky.”

Shortly afterwards, Theo’s left handed extended toward the ground.

Gulp!

Thus, the grimoire, ‘Death’s Worship’, immediately entered the inventory where it couldn’t escape.

There were no more items left in the room, and he didn’t know when the cave, which had been greatly altered, would collapse. He also needed to join the group which he had inadvertently been separated from; Theo didn’t know what might have changed during his disappearance.

However, the two people found Theodore first.

“…Theo!” There was a high pitched voice accompanied by fluttering, torn robes. Sylvia ran over to Theo on wobbly legs and hugged him.

“Uh? Sylvia?” Theo uttered.

“You’re safe, Employer! You seem to look much better than us?”

“…Captain Randolph.”

Randolph, who came a beat later, hit Theo’s shoulders as they celebrated each other’s safety. They didn’t think he would look this well after the lich had caused him to disappear. Come to think of it, it was a wonder that both sides were safe.

The two people had survived the battle with the elder lich, while Theodore had destroyed it. In the meantime, Theo noticed that something had changed about the swords hanging from Randolph’s waist.

“It seems like you got your hands on them.”

“Oh, you noticed?”

Despite the blood pouring from his body, Randolph laughed like a child and touched his swords. For swordsmen, swords were like another limb, and it seemed to be the case with him. Randolph wanted to show off the swords, but there was no more time remaining.

Kukukung!

There was a loud noise and the shaking began as a blazing sound echoed through the cave. Thanks to the dungeon conversion being removed, the cave had started to collapse.

The three people stared at each other before they started running without a word more. The victory over the elder lich took a backseat to escaping.

***

As a result, the Miller Barony was rescued.

Once the elder lich had been destroyed, all the undead had turned into ashes. The things based on the existence of the grimoire couldn’t stay in this world anymore. Those which hadn’t been made directly, like the specters, were forcibly returned to the negative dimension. The undead made of corpses weren’t removed in this way. Thanks to that, the residents were forced to get rid of the rotten flesh and blood personally.

Once peace was finally found, a small festival was held to celebrate the defeat of the disaster. The wife of the miller, Becky, opened her warehouse. Albert of the pastry shop lit up his hearths. The pub owner, Stephen, poured the wine.

Only a short time in a mercenary’s life was filled with wine, leisure, and money, so they didn’t let their fatigue keep them from celebrating. However, there was one person who couldn’t fit in easily with this raucous atmosphere.

“Huuuu…” A deep sigh emerged from Theodore’s mouth as he looked at the rubble stacked up. It was a fortunate victory they had gained with luck. If he had made the wrong decision, then it would’ve been impossible to protect his own life as well as his hometown.

He wouldn’t have been able to look at the full moon in the sky like right now.

‘I don’t have enough strength. No, I am lacking time.’

There was a number of means he could use to become stronger. With Alfred’s Magic Bullet, the Memorize Function, and fusion magic, he could become several times stronger. Theo couldn’t expect another situation to occur like how he had found a solution to the Life Vessel. He really shouldn’t expect it. Relying on luck would get him killed one day.

Rather than basking in the victory, Theo looked back on what he was lacking.

“Hey, Young Master! Why are you looking so grouchy?”

At that time, he heard a voice from behind.

‘This voice…’

As he looked back, he saw Randolph holding a glass of beer, and his face was red. Theo didn’t know how many glasses Randolph had drunk, but his red nose was a sight. Maybe it was because Randolph had just left the festival, but he didn’t seem to have any of the dignity of a first rate swordsman.

Theo smiled at the funny sight and asked, “Are you calling me Young Master now?”

“Kuhuhu, it is natural. After giving you 200 gold, didn’t you try to get overtime? I need to get rid of you quickly.”

“I gave you the heirlooms you were looking for.”

“What, do you want me to show them to you just once? Men have been crazy about swords since ancient times.” Randolph was delighted by Theo’s reaction and drew the two swords the skeleton knight had dropped.

Kakiing! There was a sharp sound as the swords were drawn.

Even Theodore, who knew nothing about swords, felt like the sound was sharp enough to cut the skin. These were excellent swords and were similar to some of the best swords, despite not going through a magical process.

“…Wow.” Theo’s attention was captured by the image of the wolves.

They almost seemed alive. Every time Randolph raised his sword, a bunch of wolves seemed to charge through the air. The pattern which was reflected in the moonlight seemed like a work of art. Even now, the howling of the wolves seemed to come from the sword.

Randolph turned the blades a few times and said with an elated expression, “As Young Master said, I wouldn’t exchange this for 200 gold. Even if they weren’t heirlooms, I like these guys. In conclusion, their value is one that I won’t give up until death.”

“Should I make you give me more money?”

“…Young Master, how about becoming a merchant instead of a magician? I’ve never seen a noble as shameful as Young Master.”

The two men faced each other and laughed. Maybe it was because Randolph’s light mood moved him, but Theodore’s gloomy face brightened. The two men talked for a while before Randolph turned around, saying that his subordinates were waiting.

“Ah, and Young Master.” He pointed his finger in a direction and said mischievously, “You shouldn’t let your girl wait too long.”

“What?” Theo looked in the direction Randolph was pointing and stiffened as his gaze met a pair of blue puppy dog eyes.

‘…This… I knew it would be like this.’ Theo scratched his head as he realized his lack of consideration for Sylvia. Sylvia wasn’t cold towards people, she just didn’t know how to interact with them. She might seem indifferent, but she was actually awkward toward anyone who approached her.

It was a new experience for her to have people introducing themselves to her and saying she was their future mistress.

“Ah, it isn’t like that.” He let out a sigh which was much lighter than before as he walked toward Sylvia, who was surrounded. Theo stopped the miller’s wife from talking and thought about how to send Grandfather Albert back home to rest.

He had now finally stepped back into the comfort of his hometown.