How to Survive as a Mage Inside a Game

Chapter 46: Fluren Acid (2)

For a moment, it felt like my mind just went completely blank.

Karl barely managed to open his mouth and force out words.

"...What did you just say?"

But Fluren’s gaze had already drifted forward again.

Barrett tilted her head slightly, looking a bit surprised.

"Master hasn’t spoken since... well, since that happened to him... Huh?"

Karl quickly stepped over to Fluren.

He grabbed his shoulders tightly and forced him to face him.

"What did you just say? You definitely said 'Earth', didn’t you?"

"H-Hey!"

"Don’t just sit there in a daze—answer me! How the hell do you even know about Earth? Huh?!"

Whack!

Barrett rushed in, finally trying to pull Karl away from Fluren.

"Calm down, will you?! What the hell are you doing all of a sudden!"

"..."

Only then could Karl barely suppress the excitement surging through him.

He took a slow breath, staring hard at Fluren.

No matter the commotion around him, the man just kept staring blankly into space.

He’d flipped Karl’s entire world upside down with a single sentence, and now he looked like he couldn’t care less.

"...Haa..."

Karl frowned and rubbed his forehead.

'What the hell is wrong with this guy?'

The fact that the word ‘Earth’ even came out told him he’d come to the right place.

But at this rate, there was no way he was getting any answers, much less having a proper conversation.

Then suddenly, something clicked in his mind.

'...Wait, no way, is this...?'

Karl stepped closer to Fluren again.

He gave Barrett a little gesture to reassure her as she flinched.

"Sorry about earlier. I just want to check his condition, that’s all. Don’t worry."

He grabbed Fluren’s head, brushing aside the patchy, thinning hair.

That’s when he saw it—blue spots hidden beneath the strands.

They were faint enough that you’d never notice unless you were looking for them.

Karl knew right away he’d been right.

"Uh, um..."

Barrett fidgeted nervously behind him, looking increasingly uneasy with Karl’s strange behavior.

First, he barges in demanding to see her master’s face, then starts yelling, and now he’s rifling through his hair like a lunatic. She was seriously starting to wonder if bringing him in here had been a mistake.

Just as she was beginning to regret it...

"Does Fluren have any magical tools he’s been re

This was the first step toward going home.

Karl’s heart pounded with excitement.

* * *

In the meantime, Karl stayed at an inn near the shop, waiting anxiously.

Exactly ten days later.

Scarlett showed up with the news he’d been dying to hear.

"I found it."

"...!!"

Karl let out a breath of pure relief.

Thank God—he wouldn’t have to drag himself all the way to the Northern Continent.

"Can I get it without much trouble?"

"Yes, but..."

But what she said next turned Karl’s relief into pure frustration.

"...It’s in a secret auction?"