“You look tired, Velles.”
“Ah… I’m sorry, Master.”
“No need to apologize. It’s completely understandable. Go get some rest.”
“Thank you for your consideration.”
In a way, it was a polite dismissal, but Velles quietly returned to his room.
Part of it was because he’d just received a series of shocking revelations and was still processing them.
But more than that, he felt that he shouldn’t interrupt the conversation between the two.
Once Velles stepped out of the room, Laness continued speaking.
“Jun. You said the Imperial family is making a move, correct?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“You even said they were preparing for war. I suppose the reason is that organization called the Heavenly Church.”
“As expected, you knew.”
“I didn’t realize things had escalated this much.”
Of course, given her position, it wasn’t difficult for Laness to gather information if she wanted to.
It’s just that she usually didn’t bother. But she too had imperial blood.
“I’ll have to make my own preparations as well. But the bigger issue is how seriously the mages will take this news.”
“I’ve already laid some groundwork on that front.”
“Hm. During your thesis presentation, right?”
“Yes. You sensed it too, Lady Laness?”
“It was so faint I thought I imagined it. But by the end of the duel, I was nearly certain.”
“Yes. Among the gazes directed at me, there was a clear intent to kill.”
To some, that might sound absurd.
Killing intent?
You mean you sensed that just from someone’s eyes?
Of course, Jun didn’t possess any special ability to read thoughts through eye contact.
But when it came to mana, it was a different story.
Having reached the sixth circle, and with Laness’s help becoming more adept at handling his [Mana Body], Jun could sense the flow of mana that moved unconsciously in response to murderous intent.
In my case, it was thanks to the [Mana Body], and the fact that the killing intent was directed at me that I was able to notice it…
In contrast, Laness had sensed the killing intent directed at Jun during the presentation. Despite having no such abilities.
“You think that person might be a pawn of the Heavenly Church?”
“At this point, it’s just suspicion. And considering my position, it wouldn’t be strange for more than a few people to harbor murderous thoughts toward me.”
“Just because you’re exceptionally talented?”
“No. Ah…Lady Laness, you probably wouldn’t know this. But there are people behind me who serve as both partners and patrons.”
“Golden Hands… no, the Gillen Merchant Guild?”
“Yes. And recently, the Gillen Merchant Guild has been heavily expanding its potion business in Blackout, in collaboration with the Ariklotus Church.”
“Ah.”
Laness, who had little interest in business and left all related information in the hands of her disciples, was a bit slow to respond.
“In that case, it all makes sense.”
“Yes.”
After all, the mages took the most pride in and earned the most profit from was none other than the potion business.
Backed by the massive financial resources of the Gillen Merchant Guild and the healing powers of the Ariklotus Church, they entered the market in earnest and began seizing territory at a rate that made the word “overwhelming” seem inadequate.
Not to mention, because of my role, the Gillen Merchant Guild has also begun multiple cooperative ventures with the Imperial family.
With visible losses already affecting them, and Jun showing up here to present a seemingly outrageous thesis on top of it all…
It would be stranger not to feel a desire to kill him.
“That’s why… it’s hard to say whether that killing intent stemmed purely from financial loss or if it had something to do with the Heavenly Church.”
“Even so, we should still look into it.”
“Are you thinking of handling it yourself?”
“I can’t just sit back and watch some parasite stir up trouble in the mage society.”
“In that case… I’ll move as well.”
“You will? But shouldn’t you be careful? This place is…”
“I know. This isn’t a place where an outsider can act carelessly.”
But that didn’t mean he could just sit back and do nothing after coming this far.
“If something does happen, shouldn’t we at least try to find a way to turn this side into allies?”
“Hmm.”
From Laness’s perspective, it was hard to believe the mages would move so easily.
But if it’s this young man I’ve come to know… it might just be possible.
Just last season, how many remarkable achievements had he made?
And this season was no different.
With this kind of mage, perhaps he really could bring about a great wind of change.
That thought made her heart race.
And it was a pleasant feeling.
“All right. Is there anything else I can help with?”
“Yes. I need information.”
“Information?”
“A thesis. Could you bring me a copy?”
“……?”
“It’s from about thirty years ago. The title is…”
<Where Did Modern Magic Begin?>
“That paper…”
“Yes. I read a summary of it before coming here.”
“I see what you’re thinking. So that’s the kind of person you are.”
Having finished a brief exchange that most others wouldn’t understand, the two smiled at each other gently, as if reading each other’s thoughts.
***
“You’re a mess, Heger.”
It was a voice that came while he was resting in his room.
Since he’d somewhat expected it, Heger just furrowed his brow and ignored the speaker.
“Losing to some upstart who just reached the sixth circle this year…are you not even going to offer an excuse?”
“Shut up, Ran. And you? What exactly have you done right to talk like that?”
“Why so hostile? As you know, our roles in the Conventional Society are clearly divided. I’m responsible for external matters, and you for internal ones. The other masters were quite upset, you know.”
“How laughable. So you’re saying that you’re doing such a great job with your external duties?”
“……”
At Heger’s counterattack, the mage called Ran this time frowned.
“Isn’t it common knowledge that over 30% of the existing market has already been taken by the Gillen Merchant Guild?”
“That’s…”
“And now you’re trying to pin the blame on me? Really? Don’t you dare try to dump your responsibility on me.”
“……”
Ran raised both hands in response to the razor-sharp words.
“Looks like I tried and got burned instead. My bad.”
“Hmph.”
“Anyway, are you just going to let this go?”
“Let what go?”
“You saw it too, didn’t you? The changes we observed among the young mages.”
At that, Heger clicked his tongue.
What the mage named Jun had prepared wasn’t even something one could properly call a thesis.
It was just a polished presentation of the magic he’d learned, wrapped in clever words.
But its impact was far stronger than they had anticipated.
“But for now, there’s not much we can do. At the very least, we’ll need to come up with a proper rebuttal paper.”
“Hmmm.”
“What? You have another idea?”
“I just think your response might be a little too soft.”
“Soft?”
“Yes.”
“You’re not seriously suggesting…”
“Oh, it’s just a thought, nothing more. But really now, didn’t you get beaten this badly? It got my blood boiling a bit too, that’s all.”
“Don’t talk nonsense. You and I both know we’re not the kind of people to look out for each other.”
It wasn’t wrong, and Ran just shrugged.
In truth, he was feeling quite anxious.
Thanks to the moves made by the Gillen Merchant Guild and the Ariklotus Church, the potion business was suffering massive losses.
They were moving so swiftly that it was hard to keep up, and that only made it worse.
Now that Gillen had started pouring money into the game, they had become a truly formidable threat.
If only the Ariklotus Church were out of the picture, we might have a way forward.
The problem was how deeply connected the Gillen Merchant Guild and the Ariklotus Church were.
It’s probably because of the White Whale Mercenary Corps.
At the moment, the White Whale Mercenary Corps had the Gillen Merchant Guild as their sponsor… and wasn’t there a high-ranking priestess from the Ariklotus Church within that mercenary group?
So then, what would happen if something went wrong with the White Whale Mercenary Corps?
For example… the death of their leader.
That single death could resolve several problems at once.
And surely, Ran wasn’t the only one entertaining such thoughts.
Heger… I tried sounding him out, but he didn’t bite at all. I even considered pulling the Order into this, but…
Heger closed his eyes with a displeased look, as if to say it was time for Ran to leave.
Because of that, he didn’t notice the chilling look in Ran’s eyes.
Looks like I’ll have to leave Heger out of this.
Of course, Ran had no plans to act immediately.
The White Whale Mercenary Corps had recently formed connections with the imperial family.
If Jun were assassinated here, suspicion would obviously fall on them.
If nothing else, I definitely don’t need to attract the attention of the imperial family.
With that, Ran quietly left Heger’s room.
And a short while later—
Someone else came to visit that same room.
Though it was late into the night, Heger who hadn’t yet fallen asleep opened his eyes wide when he saw who it was.
“You…?”
“Good evening, sir.”
The person at the center of all the current commotion.
It was Jun.
***
“…Did you come to mock me?”
“Huh?”
Well, he hadn’t expected a warm welcome.
But coming just to mock him?
Jun wasn’t someone with that much time to waste.
As he looked at Heger in bafflement, Heger awkwardly shook his head, feeling a bit embarrassed himself.
Ran had just been there, spewing his usual nonsense. Maybe that’s why he was feeling extra on edge.
“I have nothing to say to the likes of you. What do you want?”
“As your junior, I simply came to have a word with you, sir.”
“Hah.”
Did he coat his face with adamantium or something?
Where does he get off calling himself a junior when we’ve barely even seen each other’s faces?
At this point, it was so absurd it almost made him laugh.
“Right, you’d have to be at least this thick-skinned to present something that pathetic and call it a thesis.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
With that, Jun casually stepped into Heger’s room and sat down on the sofa.
Clicking his tongue at the sight, Heger sat across from him.
“I came because I was curious how you received my presentation.”
“Now, of all times?”
“Yes. Believe it or not, it was my first time in a setting like that, so I was a little nervous.”
“Spare me the false humility. I can’t stand that kind of thing.”
“My apologies. It wasn’t fear, more like… a bit of excitement. Haha… You know how it is. The kind of disdain we outsiders face.”
“Hmph. They get what they deserve. Do you have any idea how much damage those people have done to the reputation of mages by going out into the world?”
Truth be told, it wasn’t entirely wrong.
If Jun were to put himself in Heger’s shoes, even generously, he could probably understand why he felt that way.
According to Lady Lannes, the early Conventional Mage Society worked really hard to change how the world viewed mages.
And the truth was, to some extent, those efforts had been undermined by mages who were cast out due to a lack of talent.
“And let’s be honest, it wasn’t even much of a thesis. Just a few graphs slapped on with a note saying you’ll try harder next time.”
“You’re not wrong. But I didn’t stop at words.”
What he meant was: “Didn’t I prove it to you?”
Just as Heger was wondering if he should throw the insolent brat out—
“But as you’ve experienced yourself, my magic isn’t the kind that others can easily learn.”
“……”
“That said, it’s not impossible either. The performance might drop a bit, but there’s definitely room for improvement.”
“So what are you trying to say? That I should work with you? Don’t make me laugh. I still firmly believe modern magic is superior.”
“Do you really believe that?”
“I do.”
“In that case… why haven’t you thrown this thesis away?”
“What…? You little—!”
Jun placed a thick stack of papers in front of Heger.
<Where Did Modern Magic Begin?>
It was the thesis left behind by Heger’s late master before he passed away.
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