When will my seed finally bloom?
It was frustrating that I was still stuck with the title of apprentice holy mage.
Unless this damn seed cracks open, I won’t be able to unleash the true power of holy magic. But there was no sign of it breaking anytime soon.
Clunk—
Just then, I felt a small jolt from the carriage.
But the movement wasn’t like that of an ordinary carriage.
It was so smooth, it made me think every carriage I’d ridden before had been a lie.
It reminded me of the feeling I had when I first rode an electric car.
This carriage had been prepared personally by Raphael.
Right now, Raphael was my guardian.
So, naturally, I had to inform her that I’d be going to the Star Cluster Society.
That’s why I went to ask for her permission.
“So Aransel and Sohan are going with you? Perfect. Have a good trip!”
Raphael, rather than being indifferent, was openly delighted.
“Does our dear master just not like having her disciple hanging around the mansion?”
“Don’t say such nonsense.”
When I showed a hint of sadness, Raphael gave me a look of disbelief.
Of course, I knew exactly why she was happy.
Raphael had brought Aransel and Sohan to me out of concern over the loss I’d felt after Shishiroka’s death.
She probably figured I could become close with them since we were around the same age.
Now that I was actually becoming friends with the two and going with them to the Star Cluster Society,
It was only natural that Raphael, who had orchestrated the whole thing, would be pleased.
She beamed brightly.
Seeing her smile, especially when she was always drowning in work, made me feel like it was all worth it.
“If you’re going anyway, let people know you’re my disciple.”
“Should I go around shouting that Master Raphael is the best?”
“If you do that, be prepared for the consequences.”
Hmm… then why go at all?
“I’ll even prepare a carriage for you, so have a safe trip, okay?”
If your master says go, then you go.
As her disciple, it’s not like I could refuse.
Just like she said, the next day, Raphael had the carriage ready for me.
On top of that, Raphael even prepared clothes that looked quite luxurious, so I wouldn’t be underestimated.
From the outfit to the carriage, it honestly felt like I was being treated like a kid heading off to school for the first time.
In that case… does that make Raphael the mom?
Well, at least her son won’t be going hungry.
“I’ll be back.”
“Alright, travel safely.”
With Raphael seeing me off, the carriage began to move.
Come to think of it, this was my first time actually riding in a carriage.
Not that I expected much. After all, it was a carriage made by the uncivilized people of this other world.
I figured my butt would be in pieces and I’d end up whining before long.
But just a short while later, I completely took back that thought.
This carriage—
It’s absolutely nothing like a normal carriage.
The wheels rolled smoothly even over unpaved roads, the interior remained stable, and the seats were unbelievably plush.
It was better than any vehicle I’d ever ridden in my life.
I used to be the type who got horrible motion sickness from just about anything.
The fact that I wasn’t even a little sick now proved just how comfortable this carriage was.
“This has definitely been enhanced with magic.”
“You say that like you just discovered something amazing.”
Aransel who was seated beside me responded with a look of disbelief.
Uncivilized otherworlders just don’t understand modern sensibilities.
Meanwhile, Sohan was already dozing off inside the carriage, snoring loudly.
Judging by the smell of perfume, he’d spent the night with a woman again.
And the scent was different this time.
Which meant the person had changed too.
Impressive guy.
Though by now, nothing he does is surprising anymore.
Still, I was more amazed by the fact that they could use magic to create a carriage like this.
I really should’ve studied magic.
Not this garbage holy magic that can’t even save a life.
Having the talent of a first-class holy mage just felt tragic.
Before I knew it, the carriage had started to pass through the capital region.
It was a city a bit removed from Valterion. It was kind of like the outskirts of Seoul, maybe Gyeonggi Province.
Since it was a fancy noble-style carriage, we drew stares all along the way.
The otherworlders stared blankly at it as we passed.
You uncivilized people. Behold the difference between your world and mine.
Bow before my overwhelming superiority.
At that, Aransel nudged my arm with her shoulder.
“Haru, your eyes look weird.”
“Ah yes, dear otherworlder, this is what we call a superiority complex.”
“There you go again, talking nonsense.”
“Look out the window. Everyone’s staring up at me like slack-jawed fools.”
“…Aren’t they staring at the carriage, not you?”
“That’s a difference in status.”
“Haru, you’re not even a noble.”
“I am a Trans! Por! Ter!”
Aransel looked at me like I was completely pathetic.
“For the record, there are some Transporters among those gawking at you too. Transporters or not, they’re all the same.”
She was trying to mess with me by lying.
But to my eyes, they were all just uncivilized otherworlders.
“Look properly, especially at that guy. Anyone can see he’s a Transporter.”
A ragged-looking man was shouting at a shop owner.
The shopkeeper glared back at him with pure disgust.
That store was infamous for discriminating against Transporters.
“Refusing to compromise with injustice. A truly admirable stance for a Transporter.”
“Pretty sure he just stole some bread and ran off. The Transporter crime rate just ticked up again.”
“A courageous act of defiance in the face of discrimination. A fine example of what a Transporter should be.”
“…When did you become such a Transporter supremacist?”
I wasn’t really a Transporter supremacist.
I was just trying to one-up Aransel, this damn racist.
Aransel looked at me with even more disappointment.
Had I finally lowered my score in her eyes?
But then she burst out laughing, unable to hold it in.
“Haru, you say such strange and ridiculous things that I end up talking nonsense too.”
Even so, she looked genuinely refreshed.
“But thanks to that, at least I don’t have to hide how I really feel.”
Aransel still hated Transporters.
But expressing that hatred openly wasn’t exactly the right thing to do.
Still, she acted differently around me.
After all, I hated Otherworlders.
So when she showed her disdain for Transporters in front of me, I didn’t really care.
It was just another case of an Otherworlder doing what they always did. That is discriminating against Transporters.
Maybe that’s why.
Aransel looked at ease, not feeling the need to hide her hatred for them.
Ironically, I felt the same.
This world was overwhelmingly populated by Otherworlders, not Transporters.
Say something even slightly anti-Otherworlder out loud, and you’d get mobbed by the Black Dawn in no time.
So everything stayed bottled up inside…always.
My eyes met Aransel’s.
It struck me again just how messy our relationship really was.
While Sohan’s snoring played like background music, Aransel and I exchanged sharp words and then, the carriage arrived.
It was a high-class building, clearly out of place among the surrounding structures.
Just a few months ago, even looking at it too long would’ve earned me a beating from the guards.
In front of it, in a huge carriage lot, stood rows of the same kind of luxurious carriage I’d ridden in.
Here, those carriages were the equivalent of Ferraris.
It really hit me. This “Star Cluster” gathering was an elite event.
Looking at it again, I realized I’d ended up connected to something huge.
I really ought to thank that old man Bulldog for setting this up.
It’s been a while since I last visited him.
I’ve been too busy lately to even say hello.
He did say he’d invite me to his son’s wedding, so maybe I’ll be hearing from Raphiel’s side soon.
“Nguh… mm… so we’ve arrived.”
Right then, Sohan sat up with a yawn.
He looked at Aransel and me and grinned.
“Good morning.”
“It’s night.”
“Details, details.”
To him, morning or night didn’t matter much.
“Sir Haru, Sur Sohan, Lady Aransel. We have arrived.”
The coachman knocked and opened the door.
Thanking him for his effort, I stepped out of the carriage.
And saw the building’s grand exterior in full detail.
I wonder who the owner is.
It couldn’t be easy managing a place like this.
On top of that, the building’s lavish exterior kept bringing out my small-minded, humble side.
Honestly, just walking in felt overwhelming.
I suddenly felt like going home.
At that moment, Aransel suddenly wrapped her arm tightly around mine and pulled.
A soft sensation enveloped my arm, sending confusing signals to my brain.
Was this some kind of mind-control magic?
I looked up to see Aransel’s face.
Her lips curled into a devilish grin.
“You were just talking about how superior Transporters are, remember?”
She’d clearly picked up on my shrinking attitude.
“Let’s walk in with confidence.”
You damn racist.
“Haru, what the hell is this?”
Right then, Sohan’s eyes lit up with fire.
He was glancing back and forth between me and Aransel.
That hypersexual idiot.
Aransel didn’t like him, but feelings were a separate matter altogether.
If he thought Aransel and I were getting close and got jealous, things would get annoying.
“Sohan.”
Before I could even say anything, Sohan grabbed my other arm.
“You’re coming with me. Immediately.”
These damn lunatics.
With Aransel and Sohan latched onto me, I was dragged inside.
There was no way I could overpower those two muscleheads.
Since it’s come to this, I might as well go in and sing endless praises about how amazing Raphael is.
Raphael didn’t want to lose face either, so that should take care of things.
The interior of the building was just as luxurious as the outside.
Everything looked like it would cost a fortune just to touch.
My body instinctively tensed up.
Calm down, Haru.
You’re not some born small-timer.
You can’t keep living like you’re beneath everyone.
I straightened my back confidently.
So what if it’s expensive?
If I broke anything, Raphael’s mom could just cover the cost.
Passing the burden onto someone else made me feel wonderfully at ease.
“Welcome to the Star Cluster Society.”
As we reached the entrance, still flanked by Aransel and Sohan, a guide bowed and welcomed us.
I slipped free from their grasp and adjusted my clothes.
“Mm, thank you.”
The guide looked a bit puzzled for a moment but didn’t say anything and opened the door.
Aransel and Sohan looked disappointed that I wasn’t flustered, but I ignored them and walked in confidently.
The party hall of the Star Cluster Society had a glass ceiling.
The ceiling looked like it was designed to open up, allowing people to look up at the sky.
Inside, most of the attendees were either around my age or even younger.
Well, it was supposed to be a gathering of disciples from all over.
The average age was probably people who had just become adults or weren’t even there yet, rather than full-grown adults.
“Oh, Aransel!”
“Aransel, long time no see!”
As soon as Aransel entered, many disciples lit up at the sight of her.
She smiled at them naturally.
That smile….it was the same businesslike smile she always wore around Raphael and Sohan.
“Yeah, it’s been a while. Good to see you all.”
Aransel responded to their greetings with practiced ease.
Sohan quietly scanned the room with his eyes.
“Well, well.”
His face immediately lit up.
Must’ve spotted a pretty girl.
Typical.
No wonder Aransel can’t stand him.
More than that, I could feel that the looks coming our way weren’t exactly friendly.
The kids were clearly happy to see Aransel, but the same couldn’t be said for Sohan.
I soon figured out why.
“A new Transporter?”
“Looks like someone has a strange new hobby.”
I could feel the whispers aimed at me.
Most of the people here were uncivilized otherworlders.
So it was no surprise that Sohan and I, as Transporters, stood out.
I guess it’s rare for people from this world to take Transporters as disciples.
Well, this is a world full of Transporter hate.
Everyone here was probably the child of some noble family.
It made sense that few would ever take a Transporter as a direct disciple.
Raphael and So-woon just happened to have very unusual tastes.
I had thought maybe I could build some connections here.
But… that might have been a little too optimistic.
“Not seeing many familiar faces.”
Just then, Sohan spoke up casually.
“Sohan, you mean people you already knew?”
“There are other Transporters like us, though not many. I thought some of them would show up today, but looks like they didn’t.”
So that was it.
It seemed Aransel had wanted me to dig up information specifically on other Transporters.
And clearly, she was already working hard to gather information.
I figured I could just leave the information-gathering to her.
As for mingling with the other disciples…I gave up on that entirely.
You can build goodwill from zero.
But trying to build it from negative territory? That’s almost impossible.
Especially in a closed-off place like this, where a wall definitely exists between Transporters and natives of this world.
And I didn’t have the power to break down that wall.
Aransel must’ve understood that, because during the conversation, she glanced over at me with an apologetic look.
I waved it off, telling her not to worry.
It wasn’t like I hadn’t seen this coming.
“Haru, did you notice that girl who was serving food earlier?”
Just then, Sohan leaned over and spoke to me.
His face was absolutely beaming.
That familiar look. The walking embodiment of libido.
Guess there was a server more attractive than the disciples.
“Go on.”
“Good luck.”
He flashed me a thumbs-up and walked off.
In the meantime, I quietly slipped off to the side, away from people’s eyes.
Fortunately, the food table wasn’t far, so I managed to grab a plate and serve myself a modest portion.
I let the noisy chatter of the other kids wash over me.
“Hello.”
As I was happily picking out some gourmet food, someone suddenly spoke to me.
When I turned to look, there was a pretty girl standing there.
She wasn’t quite on Aransel’s level, but she seemed to be among the more attractive disciples.
With red hair tied up using a pin decorated with a bird, she looked to be human.
She gave me a gentle smile as she looked at me.
“You’re Lady Raphael’s disciple, right?”
I hadn’t expected anyone from this world to come up and talk to me first.
“Ah, yes.”
“I heard about it the other day, how you saved Lady Aransel and the people on the airship. That story has everyone at the Star Cluster Gathering buzzing today.”
No wonder there were so many people around Aransel.
Looks like everyone had rushed over to talk about that incident.
“So I came over to chat with another hero. People are a bit hesitant since everyone here is meeting each other for the first time.”
She smiled softly, covering her mouth with her hand.
Anyone could tell the real reason they were not approaching was because they didn’t like Transporters, but she framed it as people being shy.
Her head must be full of flowers.
“Ah, and your name is…?”
“I’m Harua.”
“So you’re Sir Harua. I’m Babienne Asteria.”
She had a family name.
A noble.
“I heard you’ve just become Lady Raphael’s new disciple. What an incredible achievement.”
“It wasn’t a big deal.”
“No, really. There were even rumors that a great sinner caused the airship crash!”
So it spread that far, huh?
Rumors sure are powerful.
“That’s amazing. I heard Lady Raphael’s previous disciple left a lot to be desired. She must finally feel at ease now!”
Babienne beamed brightly.
What the hell did this bitch just say?
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