I Became A Married Man in Another World
Chapter 47
047 Fire Magic from the Feet
The guild employee wasn’t the only one who was startled.
It seemed Juhwan’s voice had reached those standing near the reception desk. The adventurers sitting at the tables began to whisper among themselves.
“No way, a Beast Tamer?”
“Must be a lie. A kid that young being a Beast Tamer? He’s just trying to register his family.”
“Is this guy for real?”
“Tamer or whatever, I don’t even see a magical beast.”
“Does he think magical beasts are just pebbles rolling around on the ground?”
“What does he take adventurers for? Trying to register a child like that as an adventurer.”
“Does he think being an adventurer is a joke?”
Judging by the general context, the word he didn’t know seemed to mean ‘Tamer.’
Juhwan sighed inwardly. He fully understood how those adventurers felt. Honestly, he felt the same way. It really was a stretch to register a child who couldn’t do anything as an adventurer.
‘But considering what comes next, I have no choice. Even if it’s a bit much, I have to push through.’
Juhwan was fine as long as he could be protected by registering with the guild.
But what about Riji and Dorothy?
A lord was someone who wielded absolute power within their territory. He had learned that even a king couldn’t easily interfere within a lord’s domain.
That was a story from Earth, not here, but it was likely much the same. And Riji and Dorothy were subjects of this land. Moreover, they came from the very bottom—a peasant family.
It would be a relief if the lord tried to win Juhwan over with money or status.
But what if he didn’t?
What if the lord was someone who didn’t value Magicians and viewed them as insignificant?
What if he was a tyrant who believed it was only natural for others to obey his words?
He might do something to Riji and Dorothy to get to Juhwan. He might imprison them or even torture them. The mere thought was horrifying.
Even without going that far, it would be simple if the lord set his mind to it.
By simply framing Riji and Dorothy to blackmail him, Juhwan would easily be forced out of the guild’s protection.
In the end, Juhwan registering alone was meaningless. Everyone had to be protected together.
That was why he had recalled Gus’s words and claimed Dorothy could give orders to a magical beast.
Juhwan looked up at the ceiling, feeling a bit pathetic.
“….”
Maybe he had gone too far.
Because Gus mentioned some people kept magical beasts, he thought it was a fairly common occurrence.
But seeing the current reaction, it seemed humans taming magical beasts was extremely rare.
If so, giving them orders would be even rarer.
In Riji’s case, the atmosphere was such that she might slip through by passing as a leather processor.
It was true that the magical beast was tamed by Dorothy, and he had intended to say her role was to manage it.
But he worried that might not be enough since she was a child.
That was why he had claimed she had the ability to give orders. He just wanted to choose the surest way to get her registered.
Juhwan looked at the guild staff. It couldn’t be helped. He would demonstrate that he was an outstanding Magician and then semi-forcefully push for the child’s registration. If Juhwan truly possessed a rare ability, it might be possible.
Just as he was about to speak, Dorothy straightened up in Juhwan’s arms.
She seemed to be looking for the magical beast. Dorothy’s eyes went wide as she looked around behind Juhwan.
“Daddy, where’s the magical beast?”
Seeing this, the guild employee spoke with a troubled expression.
“Um, this is difficult. Magical beasts are very rare. Beast Tamers are even rarer. Magical beasts are naturally violent enough to be targets for extermination, and taming them is incredibly difficult. It’s not something that can be done easily.”
The staff member glanced briefly at the surrounding adventurers.
“Well, there are occasionally people who want to register family members as party members. Once you become an adventurer, it’s easier to move to other territories, and there are quite a few small benefits. I fully understand that feeling. I’d like to register her if possible, but when it’s such an obvious lie, even I… Besides, it’s even more difficult if there isn’t even a magical beast.”
The staff member spoke without catching his breath, then looked at Dorothy pityingly.
’No, let me get a word in first.’ The guild employee wasn’t a door-to-door salesman, so why was he talking so much and so fast?
Juhwan spoke up quickly before the staff member could open his mouth again.
“The magical beast is right here.”
Juhwan lightly tapped Dorothy’s front pocket with his finger.
Rabbit ears popped up over the pocket and then went back down. They kept twitching and moving.
Dorothy looked down at her pocket in surprise.
“Really? The magical beast is in this pocket?”
“Yes. Oz is a magical beast, Dorothy.”
“Oz is?”
Dorothy’s eyes went wide.
“Oz is Dorothy’s little brother! He’s still a baby, so he can’t be a magical beast, Daddy.”
At that point, even the guild employee seemed to think the atmosphere was strange.
He tilted his head and spoke to Dorothy.
“Little girl, could you show this mister that thing called Oz?”
Dorothy blinked, then lifted the pocket and spoke into it.
“Oz, are you going to be a good bunny? You mustn’t hit people. Understand?”
Twitch, twitch. The tips of the rabbit ears moved in the pocket. Dorothy breathed a long sigh of relief and nodded. Then she spoke to Oz once more.
“Oz is a good boy, so you have to listen. You mustn’t hit people. It’s a big problem if people bleed. Understand?”
There was no way a rabbit would answer. But in Dorothy’s heart, Oz seemed to have given the correct response. “Good, you’re a good boy,” she said as she pulled out the Horned Rabbit. Then she held it out to the guild employee.
“Mister, please tell me if Oz hits you.”
“….”
The guild employee gave an awkward smile with a peculiar look on his face.
Oz lay still like an ordinary rabbit. His ears were flat against his back. He seemed to be on guard. Unlike when he played with Dorothy, the baby rabbit’s body was tense, his limbs tucked tightly against his torso.
“It’s… a rabbit.”
“Yes, Oz is a rabbit. He’s still a baby.”
The guild employee stared down at the rabbit.
Several adventurers who had been sitting in chairs came over to peer at Oz.
“Is that a Horned Rabbit?”
“No way, it can’t be. Those are really hard to catch.”
“Right. They’re incredibly fast. It’s hard just getting close to them.”
“Horned Rabbit hides fetch a good price, don’t they? I heard they’re more expensive than most luxury furs.”
The people whispered. There was no way Oz understood them, but he seemed to sense an ominous atmosphere. Oz’s ears moved this way and that, twitching as if gathering sounds from all directions.
The guild employee reached out his hand, careful not to startle the rabbit. After lightly touching and rubbing the rabbit’s forehead, his eyes went wide.
“My goodness, there really is a horn.”
“Yes, Oz has a horn.”
It was Dorothy who answered the staff member. As if proud of something, Dorothy lifted her head triumphantly.
Come to think of it, Dorothy was the first one to discover the horn. However, being a child, she hadn’t realized that meant it was a magical beast.
Juhwan felt as though Dorothy’s nose had grown just a little bit higher with pride.
The guild employee dropped his eyebrows apologetically.
“But… I’m sorry. Simply having a magical beast and a child playing with it isn’t enough. This child is too young. Later on, there might be cases where she has to work with other adventurers, and if a child who knows nothing is in the party, others might be put in danger.”
He knew. He knew well enough that the guild wasn’t a playground for children.
However, Juhwan also had circumstances that wouldn’t allow him to just say ‘Yes, I see’ and back down. To protect his family, he had to be shameless.
Even though she probably didn’t understand the employee’s words, Dorothy’s shoulders slumped in disappointment. She muttered quietly.
“Dorothy wanted to do it too.”
She was likely saying that without even knowing what it was or what she was registering for. Juhwan patted the child’s back and spoke up.
“Is it possible if I show this child giving an order to the magical beast? I have no intention of letting her work with other adventurers until she can fully pull her own weight. She won’t be a burden to other adventurers or the guild.”
“Well, about that…”
As the guild employee spoke with a troubled expression, someone’s voice cut in.
“If that magical beast follows the child’s command even once, I’ll register her in the party.”
“Guild Master!”
The guild employee looked behind Juhwan in surprise.
Juhwan and Riji’s gazes naturally turned back as well.
Standing halfway between the entrance and the reception desk was a large man. He was as burly as Juhwan. A long scar ran down one of the man’s cheeks.
“This is difficult, Guild Master. You can’t keep ignoring the rules and doing as you please.”
It seemed the scarred man was the branch manager here. Since it was a guild, should he be called the Master?
The Guild Master wore an expression that suggested he wasn’t listening to the employee’s complaints at all as he let out a strange laugh. “Kah-kah-kah!”
“Well, it’s fine, isn’t it? If a child can command a magical beast, that’s incredible talent. We should snatch her up before the nobles get to her.”
Even his way of speaking seemed rough. Dorothy shrank back in surprise. She whispered to Juhwan in a small voice.
“Daddy, that man is scary. Don’t let him eat Dorothy.”
Children took everything literally. Dorothy looked like she was on the verge of tears, truly terrified.
Riji, who was standing nearby, came closer and patted the child’s back.
“It’s okay, Dorothy. He doesn’t really mean he’s going to eat you.”
But Riji’s words didn’t seem to reassure her either. Dorothy peeked at the Guild Master over Juhwan’s shoulder and whispered to Riji.
“Mommy, you have to be careful too. That man’s mouth is huge.”
“….”
Riji covered her mouth and laughed.
The Guild Master approached and intentionally opened his mouth wide in a grin as he spoke.
“Kah-kah-kah! What a delicious-looking child.”
“U… u… wah…”
Crying sounds finally began to escape Dorothy’s mouth. Juhwan pulled the child into a snug embrace and stared at the Master.
“Stop it. You’re making the child cry for real.”
“Haha. Sorry about that. But she’s cute. I find crying kids the cutest.”
The Master looked down at Oz sitting on the reception desk and spoke to Dorothy.
“Alright, little one. Give a command to this magical beast. Then I won’t eat you.”
Dorothy buried her face in Juhwan’s clothes and peeked out at the Master with her eyes slightly upturned. Then she whispered softly to Oz.
“Oz! That mister is a bad man. He says he’s going to eat Dorothy. Go hit him!”
“….”
Oz did nothing. He just lay there quietly. Well, that was expected.
Dorothy whispered again.
“Oz! That person is a bad mister, so it’s okay to hit him! Cha! Hit him a lot!”
“….”
Oz remained still. He only twitched his ears with an oblivious expression.
The Master hadn’t seemed to expect much either. He laughed loudly, then suddenly thrust his face in front of Dorothy and opened his mouth wide. Baring his teeth as if he were about to eat her, the Master shouted loudly.
“Rawr!”
In that instant, Juhwan’s foot moved instinctively. He pulled Riji in with his other arm, embracing them both as he delivered a lightning-fast kick.
It seemed his emotions had been shaken. The moment his foot struck the Master, flames erupted along with it.
The Master’s hair was instantly engulfed in fire. Juhwan had thought he could only produce fire with his hands, but it seemed his feet were also capable.
And in that moment, Oz, who had been on the reception desk, was suddenly clinging to the Master’s back. He bit down on the nape of his neck.
“Aaargh!”
With his head on fire and a baby rabbit clinging to the back of his neck, the Master rolled around on the floor.
The guild office instantly turned into a scene of chaos.
Guild employees screamed as they ran toward the Master, and someone shouted to pull the Horned Rabbit off.
Adventurers were yelling about a fire magician.
“Oz! Stop! Come here!”
Dorothy seemed to have been frightened by how big things had become.
When she shouted while trembling, Oz finally let go of the Master.
Then, as if flying through the air, he dashed back to Dorothy.
A moment later, someone splashed water over the Master. One of the guild employees must have run to get water. After another splash, the fire on his head was finally extinguished.
The Master groaned and let out whimpers as he lay face down on the floor.
Suddenly, the surroundings had gone quiet. Only the Master’s groans could be heard.
Juhwan handed Dorothy over to Riji’s embrace and hurried to the Master’s side.
The guild employee who had been handling Juhwan’s registration spoke from behind in a slightly trembling voice.
“W-wait. Please hold on. The Master had no ill intent at all. He might look rough, but he’s a good person.”
“I’m not trying to fight.”
After saying that, Juhwan knelt before the Master. His face itself hadn’t been injured. Only his hair and the surface had been burned.
Juhwan held his hand close to the Master’s head and sent out mana.
‘Please, let the burns disappear cleanly.’
He felt anxious.
He hadn’t intended to hurt the man. Truly, it had just happened because he was startled. His body had moved on its own.
The distorted skin began to heal little by little. He wouldn’t be able to fix it all at once. Based on his experience so far, it would gradually improve over a few days.
However, the immediate pain vanished, and it didn’t seem like there would be any major issues with movement. Because his hair was burnt, the injury looked severe at a glance, but the skin was actually only slightly scorched. It was fine. At this rate, it would fully heal in a few days.
As the pain subsided, the Master’s groaning stopped.
The Master breathed somewhat raggedly as he looked up at Juhwan and raised a hand.
Giving a big thumbs up, the Master spoke.
“Register! Let’s do the party registration right now.”
No one moved. The guild employee in charge of registration and the watching adventurers all just stood there blankly.
At any rate, it didn’t seem like the Master held a grudge. That was a relief.
