I Was Mistaken as a Genius Mage in a Game

A blonde strand brushes against the white dress. Lir’s golden hair flutters in the cool afternoon breeze. Pollen from somewhere drifts into the air, tickling my nose.

September here, unlike September in Korea, is cool and refreshing. The scent of dry logs wafts gently through the streets. It’s probably because many buildings are made of wood.

Lir and I spent some time asking passersby if there were any decent restaurants around.

Most of the people recommended a flour noodle shop run by dwarves. They said it was spicy and refreshing, and that it would be good to try before it gets any colder.

“...I don’t like it.”

Naturally, I didn’t want to go to a noodle shop that so many people recommended.

The reason, of course, is because so many people recommended it.

“...In the end, it’s bread and coffee.”

“It’s not my fault you don’t like well-known places.”

“Then why did you ask around?”

“You told me to.”

We ended up, as usual, going to a café for bread and coffee. To me, a Korean, bread and coffee feels more like a dessert than a full meal, but in this world, which is based on medieval Europe, it’s considered a solid meal.

“There doesn’t seem to be any instrument shops around here.”

“I’ve already found one. We have to walk down an alley, but it’s not far.”

“You didn’t look for a place to eat, but you looked up an instrument shop?”

Lir stopped drinking her coffee and glared at me with sharp eyes.

I couldn’t understand why she was looking at me like that.

“Well... Yeah.”

I quietly raised my cup, as if I had nothing else to say. Instead of coffee, my cup was filled with warm tea.

There’s caffeine in tea too, but compared to coffee, it wasn’t enough to make me worry about a shock, so I could enjoy the taste and aroma freely.

Through the café window, horses and carts pass by. Merchants with loads of goods walk past, and children run off somewhere, laughing.

Unidentified birds land on the ground and quickly flee at the sound of the children’s footsteps. The wind swirls, and a woman’s veil flutters lightly.

The tea was warm, and today felt peaceful.

It was a nice day. If I had sheet music and a pen, I might be able to come up with a good melody.

“Check, please.”

I handed the innkeeper a gold coin and tried to get up. The owner, seeing me hand over a gold coin for just two pieces of bread and a cup of coffee and tea, broke into a cold sweat.

“...I’m sorry, but I don’t have enough change.”

“Ah.”

Naturally, gold coins in this era are high-value currency. A normal piece of bread or a cup of coffee costs about one penny... 100 pennies make one silver coin, and 100 silver coins make one gold coin...

Handing a gold coin to the innkeeper for such a small purchase was equivalent to paying for a coffee at a neighborhood café with a check for ten million won.

In modern times, the innkeeper would have looked at me with a face saying, “...Is this person crazy?” But in the medieval era, the innkeeper looked slightly frightened.

It was probably because someone rich enough to carry around gold coins would likely be a noble.

“I’m sorry, miss.”

But then the innkeeper apologized, looking nervously at Lir.

“...?”

Well, thinking about it, it wasn’t that strange. I was wearing ordinary clothes, but Lir was in a dress, and her noble aura couldn’t even be hidden by her hat.

The innkeeper probably thought I was her servant.

Now that I thought about it, it made me feel uncomfortable.

“I don’t need the change.”

I stared straight into the innkeeper’s eyes, who had judged me based on my appearance, and slammed the gold coin onto the table.

...Actually, it didn’t make a “slam” sound. It was probably more like a “clink” or maybe even a “tap.”

I left the café quickly, as if not giving the innkeeper a chance to apologize.

I’ll teach this rude medieval person a lesson with money...!

“Are we just leaving?”

“Yes!”

After I kicked open the café door, Lir followed me, a little late.

“I gathered some pennies and took them out. Why didn’t you let me pay?”

“It's fine, I said I’d pay.”

“...Well, if you don’t mind. The innkeeper must be feeling pretty shocked right now.”

Next time, should I dress up properly, even if it’s a hassle? Considering the last incident with Count Gynner, living in medieval times with ordinary clothing is surprisingly difficult.

I shook off the uncomfortable feeling and walked through the alley. The sunlight was slightly blocked by the buildings towering three stories high.

As we entered a dark alley, Lir leaned slightly toward me. I couldn’t understand why she was doing this when I was already struggling to keep my balance, so I turned my head toward her.

“There are robbers behind us. Don’t show off your money in random places... Huh?!”

Lir’s face was much closer than I had expected. She probably meant to whisper, but because I turned my head at the wrong time, our eyes met from an uncomfortably close distance.

Snap!

A slender finger sharply hit my back. My spine immediately arched like a bow.

If someone slapped my back with a palm, it should’ve made a “smack” sound, but with nothing but bone and skin on my body, I heard a hard clashing sound.

“W-Why did you suddenly turn your head like that?!”

Is she a crazy elf?

She’s the one who got that close and now she’s mad at me?

I placed my hand on my aching spine and glared at Lir. She quickly realized she made a mistake and apologized with a small voice.

“Well... anyway! There are robbers following us,”

Lir explained while taking a couple of steps back.

“How do you know they’re robbers? They might just be taking the same route. Isn’t that a bit of an overreaction?”

“I can hear the sound of a dagger.”

“Ah.”

...What kind of era is this?

This isn’t some backwater village; this is the capital of the Union. Just because I showed off a gold coin, a robber immediately followed? Are there no guards in this world?

“Is it because of my clothes?”

Normally, if you take out a gold coin, you’re likely someone who has a noble family backing you.

If you are reading this translation anywhere other than Novelight.net or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.

And typical street thugs don’t even think about robbing those from noble families. They’re always accompanied by bodyguards, and even if not, there might be hidden ones nearby. Even if the person were alone, no one would dare rob them because they wouldn’t be able to handle the aftermath.

But right now, my appearance clearly looks like that of a commoner, and although Lir is wearing a dress, it doesn’t have any extravagant decorations. In fact, the places where decorations should have been are clumsily repaired.

From a medieval perspective, it’s probably my fault for shaking a gold coin around while dressed like an ordinary person.

Why would they try to rob someone who looks like they have no backing and has gold coins? They can’t resist!

...This world is crazy. Really crazy.

“Lir, can you handle it?”

“Again, me? I already worked at the pizza bread shop last time.”

“I paid for the meal.”

“Hey, that’s different.”

Lir and I quietly discussed, making sure the rats following us didn’t hear.

“This time, Bin, you handle it.”

The only magic I have is Bloom, and the only skill I have to complement my basic attack is ‘Red Crystal.’

I can’t use Bloom, and if I misfire the Red Crystal, it might pierce the chests of the robbers chasing us, go through the coffee shop’s wall, and even set fire to the chef’s hair in the kitchen.

Dajin... naturally, isn’t an option. That guy might cause a ruckus in the capital just by using the excuse of catching robbers.

And isn’t it strange to call a near-divine transcendent just to drive off robbers?

It’s better not to call Dajin unless I want to burn down the village to catch a rat.

“Ah, I don’t know. If Lir doesn’t do it, I’ll just get stabbed.”

“...You’re so stubborn.”

We continued talking as we entered the dark alley. It wasn’t to lure their attack; it was just the quickest route to the instrument shop.

“Hey.”

A clichéd medieval threat blocked our way as if waiting for us.

“Hand over the woman and the money, and get lost. If not, hand over your life.”

The silver blade the robber drew turned crimson as the sun began to set.

It’s strange to expect creativity from someone trying to rob a twenty-year-old, but isn’t this dialogue just too cliché?

“What kind of kid carries around gold coins? Are you the son of some successful merchant? Your business must be doing pretty well?”

“The woman next to you is some top-tier product. Boss, can I play with her before we sell her off?”

“Ugh...”

Is there some kind of robber academy I don’t know about? Why do all these low-class robbers have the same lines?

Lir and I both sighed at the same time, looking around at the front and back.

The expression on Lir’s face was pretty impressive. Her face was full of pure disgust and annoyance, and just looking at it gave me chills.

It must be because of the look in the robber’s eyes, treating her like some high-class merchandise.

It seems like Lir is going to handle this on her own without me even asking.

“Don’t kill them. If there’s a body, we’ll have to call the guards, and we’ll have to be investigated... it’ll just make everything more complicated. Let’s enjoy the holiday today, alright?”

“Alright.”

From her expression, it seems like she doesn’t get it...

“Boss, what are these guys saying?”

“Killing them? Ridiculous. Although I’m old now and not as strong as I used to be, I used to be a famous adventurer. Ever heard of Axe Hand...?”

Flash!

A white flash of light descended in the dark alley.

Electricity surged from Lir’s feet and went through the robbers’ shoes, climbing up their nerves, burning the senses of the robbers surrounding us.

The smell of burning spread through the air.

Where the white flash passed, faint lightning sparked.

“...Oh.”

I couldn’t help but let out a soft admiration as I looked at the flash Lir had created.

Something... was different from the usual sparks Lir emitted.

Not only had the speed at which she converted mana into lightning increased, but the lightning’s spread in the air had clearly reduced, and its purity had also heightened.

Although I’m not in a position to teach or praise anyone... I could feel with my own skin that Lir’s level had risen compared to what I saw a few days ago in the dungeon.

“Your level’s definitely gone up, hasn’t it?”

“...Can you tell?”

It felt like a general improvement in her skills. I casually mentioned that she might have reached a new circle, and she smiled and patted my back, telling me not to tease her.

Slap!

...My back arched like a bow again.

There’s definitely going to be a handprint.

“At 21, being a 5th Circle Wizard is the youngest among humans and even among Lightning Mages.”

Lir let out a pleasant laugh and half-listened to my words.

Up until that moment, neither of us had thought today would be the day the title of the youngest 5th Circle Lightning Mage would change.