Saikyou Mahoushi no Inton Keikaku (LN) - Volume 12 - Chapter 69

Sixty-Ninth Chapter

Midnight Blood Feast

After a short rest, it was dinner time at the Fable estate.

In the dining room was a long table with an elaborate array of dishes lined up. Surprisingly, dinner wasn’t as silent of an event as Alus had expected, as even the servants joined in for a buffet-style dinner.

There was a rather tedious explanation of the dishes by the chef, but it wasn’t as formal as he’d imagined based on what Tesfia had told him. It was probably part of the host being considerate, not that Alus could display the perfect table manners of a noble even if asked to.

It was a grand feast with everything from meat and vegetables to fruits. There was also a variety of beverages ranging from high-quality spring water to juices, wine, and tea.

Light conversations were held and the dinner ended in a harmonious atmosphere. Alus was guided afterwards to the large bathhouse where he could wash away the rest of his fatigue. He was able to view the large garden from his bath. As he exhaled and relaxed in the water, he lost track of time, and night was soon upon him.

As for Loki, she’d entered the baths ahead of Alus to lie in wait for him, but Tesfia came and took her away.

Tesfia wore a bright smile as she said, “The night is still young...”

Loki pleaded for Alus’s help with a desperate scream, but he saw her off in silence, pretending not to hear her.

Tesfia’s bedroom was sure to be blooming with girl talk tonight, and filled with a sickeningly sweet smell. Of course, that would be if things went according to Alus’s selfish ideals. This is part of what it takes to learn what is normal for girls. So do your best, Loki. He could at least cheer for her in his mind. Besides, it would help to distract Tesfia from what was happening.

“She has a tendency to worry too much.” When it came to that redhead, her expressions and emotions changed every five minutes, making it impossible to tell if she was being positive or negative. She was practically both extremes at once. At any rate, she’s almost completely unlike her mother. Perhaps she got it from her father? Alus wondered, as he got out of the bath and returned to his room.

That said, he didn’t have anything to do there. The only things he had to kill time with were the book he’d slipped into his pocket and the AWR he’d brought with him just in case. And he’d already finished doing maintenance on Night Mist. An AWR really hadn’t been necessary for visiting the Fable family, but his fight with Selva the last time and Womruina’s creepy side had made him cautious. He didn’t think it was likely, but didn’t want to be unprepared for a sneak attack in case Aile had changed his mind.

After checking behind the curtains and around the room, Alus eventually lay down on the bed to relax and think about the Fable family. “Among nobles, their obsession with katanas stands out a little. Do all noble families have a talent like that? No, I can’t say I’ve heard anything like that from Lord Vizaist.”

Vizaist Socalent was the Magicmaster in charge of the intelligence unit. He wasn’t too fixated on the noble status he’d built up in a single generation, even boasting how he wouldn’t hesitate to let it go if necessary. In that sense, Alus couldn’t use Vizaist as a standard to measure other nobles by.

At any rate, it was clear that the Fable family valued not just magic but swordsmanship as well. There were combatants among the servants too. He’d been convinced of that during the dinner. Although it was concealed, there were unmistakable hints of their training in their mannerisms and gestures. They’d also had eyes that were too sharp for mere servants.

However, most of Tesfia’s maids didn’t know how to fight. In fact, Tesfia seemed to treat them like friends or older sisters.

The combatants on the other hand look very well trained...and not to fight Fiends, but people. Selva was probably the one who’d trained them.

There was also the inherited magic and secret heir. Alus was beginning to understand the Fable family. He’d been hating nobles all this time, but up close he could see that they were people too. They could cooperate and exchange information, so they could be useful. That alone made the visit here worthwhile.

That was especially true in terms of information, particularly as to the identity of the snow man. The details were still unknown, but he had an idea of what was going on. When Alus had explained the man’s appearance and the unique impression he’d gotten about the man’s mana, he hadn’t overlooked Frose’s reaction. The head of one of the three great noble families couldn’t fully hide her disturbance, so it must have been quite shocking for her.

Frose had caught herself and returned to a normal expression, which made Alus realize how serious it really was. That was why he hadn’t delved too deeply into it, and had left upon receiving the overview on inherited magic.

Still, that reaction... My sense was that she wasn’t so much surprised as that it was something she already knew, and that my report had maybe contradicted some knowledge that she’d had. However, he didn’t think he’d see any more development from prying into it at the moment. The fact that he’d learned about the Fable family’s inherited magic was actually more significant.

So far, Alus had created all kinds of spells upon deciphering a multitude of Lost Spells. He’d reported many of the creations to the right organizations and had them listed in the Magic Compendium, but he’d also kept some secret for his own use.

The Fable family’s inherited magic, as well as Frose’s attitude, made him feel challenged. His curiosity as a researcher was being stirred, and if possible, he wanted to reach out to that tall peak. Just imagining creating a new spell to bestow to Tesfia that would be on par with—or even surpass—the family’s inherited magic was making his heart leap.

As far as Alus could tell, the group of inherited spells might be an extension of the same spell. In other words, Icicle Sword was just the entry point, and a hint of what lay beyond was probably hidden within its composition.

Just thinking of what points would be key was fun. If he had a pen and paper, he could probably theorize until morning. In fact, in Alus’s mind he’d just been thinking about it for a while, but when he looked at the big clock on the wall it was already a new day.

“I guess too much quiet isn’t all good.” He was in another family’s house and thinking about magic research. It was practically a disease for Alus. He decided that he should sleep, so he stopped thinking and closed his eyes.

Some time had passed, when Alus’s eyes suddenly shot open. When he glanced at the clock, it hadn’t even been an hour. In the Outer World sleep was always being interrupted by sudden events or Fiends appearing, but having the same thing happen in the Inner World was depressing.

He looked out the window and confirmed that the reason wasn’t all that far away. I don’t know who they are, but they’re not even trying to hide their mana. What a strange visitor this late at night... 

Alus pondered what to do. He couldn’t just do as he pleased in someone else’s house. He expanded his field of view and tried to get a sense of his surroundings. Since it was Alus’s own power and not a detection spell they shouldn’t be able to sense it, but that wasn’t guaranteed against someone exceptionally skilled at mana manipulation. Taking that into account, he kept his range as limited as possible, to just within the Fable estate.

! I see that their response to sudden visitors is nothing to scoff at. Alus viewed the three-dimensional map in his brain, and picked up that several people in the house had already noticed and had run outside.

Leaving it to the Fable family’s people would be best, but now that he’d woken up, he couldn’t fall back asleep. So he decided to get some fresh air and have a look at things while he was at it.

Since he was just going to take a look, he left his AWR behind and put on his coat. Then he jumped out the window.

***

Inside the mansion, the household quietly shifted to a state of alert. The servants of the house, still dressed in maid’s clothes, followed the instructions of the chamberlain in responding to the suspicious intruder.

That said, it wasn’t guaranteed to be an enemy, so only two maids equipped with antipersonnel equipment under their clothing went out to ostensibly greet their guest.

The visitor had appeared near the estate’s massive front gate. When the two maids arrived, their surroundings were lit up by the lights on the side of the road. “What business do you have here this late at night?”

The figure stood beside the shadows cast by the iron gate. The words that had been spoken by one of the maids were somewhat calm and soft, the bare minimum of politeness for a guest.

However, in the next moment...both maids were left speechless. The lights only illuminated the immediate area so they hadn’t noticed at first, but of all things, the ten-meter-tall giant gate had been destroyed. It was as if a massive beast had run rampant.

They didn’t need to show any courtesy to this guest anymore. Moreover, the visitor wasn’t dressed in a fashion that was fit to cross into the Fable family estate. They wore a rag over their head that covered their face completely.

The maids exchanged looks. “It is already late at night. The head of the family has turned in for the night, so we ask you to return another day,” one said. Both reached for the weapons concealed under their clothing at the same moment.

Perhaps sensing some killing intent from the maids, the intruder reacted for a second, giving away a glimpse of their face. What the maids saw was that the intruder was a man in his fifties. His hair was a tangled mess and his gray skin was dried and cracked in places, which gave off a suspicious atmosphere.

“If you won’t listen, we will be forced to take action,” one of the maids warned. Her eyes were full of suspicion and irritation at how the other party wasn’t perturbed in the slightest.

In the next moment, the man flipped the rag off and crouched low. His thin arms reached out and a dull light glinted from his hands. “My business will be concluded quickly, and that will be the end of it.” His hoarse voice was filled with resentment as he looked at the two maids with dry eyes.

Immediately, the maids drew short swords from their waists. The magic formula on them blinked. They were ready to fight back.

However, the man leaning forward didn’t give them a chance to attack, as he quickly dove in between them.

The man’s dead-looking eyes shot a glance at one of the maids. Despite the maids being ready to fight, the man had moved so fast and without warning that he’d thrown off their preemptive attack.

Their defensive instincts then kicked in, and they swung their short swords. There’d been a slight delay, but they swung at the man who’d appeared to be within their range...and at the same time they realized their blunder. He made us swing...! 

In a fight to the death, their bodies had moved by reflex, creating a fatal failure. They had moved as their opponent had wanted them to. It was the fastest path of attack that they could take. Yet...

“Ack.” “Ugh.” Their faces twitched as they felt sharp pains run through their arms. They’d swung at him, yet all of the strength in their wrists had disappeared as blood spurted out of them.

The maids dropped their short swords at practically the same time and unleashed kicks as a counterattack. Although they’d only been serving the family for a few years, they attacked as one thanks to their training.

Unfortunately, their kicks aimed at the man’s head from each side swung through nothing but air, and in return their other legs were swept out from under them, leaving them in midair.

Their necks were grabbed by the man, who easily held them aloft. They weren’t even able to breathe as he strangled them.

“Agh!” The maids grabbed the man’s arms to try and pull free, but at best they could only scratch at the back of his hands. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t free themselves.

As their vision blurred, they could see a silver clawlike weapon between his fingers. That was probably what had cut their wrists before.

Young women or not, the man had easily lifted both of them up. He spoke in a casual tone. “It seems my skills have dulled. I should have cut a few millimeters deeper. I suppose I need to warm up a little more.” A twisted smile appeared on the man’s face as he reflected on his performance. “Speaking of which, it’s been a while since I was with a woman, and these two look just the right age. Not quite my type, but... Ah, it seems I’ve gotten quite old with time. I’ll have to enjoy myself enough to make up for the time I’ve lost.”

However, the gasping maids couldn’t even hear the man’s vulgar voice. If he squeezed a little harder or if more time passed, they would either lose consciousness or die.

The man smiled, as if things had gone as planned.

A figure then appeared, without making a sound, behind the man. “Sorry, but I’m going to have to ask you to let those two go,” Selva Greenus said in a soft voice.

Standing under the lights, he wore a well-made tailcoat. His white gloves, polished shoes, and pressed shirt made him the perfect image of a butler.

“I’ve been waiting for you, Greenus. Oh, how long I’ve waited. I almost gave up so many times, but now here you are...” The man threw the maids away, and an almost childlike innocent smile appeared on his face. “...Right in front of me!”

Selva answered him in a low voice. “You’ve gotten old, Vector.”

“Indeed. But so have you.”

As they spoke, Selva signaled the coughing maids with his eyes, and they fell back while holding their throats.

The man called Vector paid them no heed, his full attention on Selva. He wore a bright smile. “I’ve spent decades in a dark cell...but when I imagined getting a chance to kill you, it wasn’t so bad.”

“I believed you to be dead. You had a tendency to screw up.”

“Then why did you betray us back then?! If you had done your job... Do you know what happened to Aferka?!” Vector exploded with rage.

But Selva was unfazed. “Of course. Aferka was unable to replenish its personnel after the defections, and that, combined with internal conflicts, caused the organization to collapse. Through some twists and turns the organization itself survived, but it was completely changed in substance, and ended up under a certain family’s control. Well, it was a good way of getting rid of them.”

“And all of that is because of your betrayal, Greenus! Because you left...” As Vector recalled what had happened, his expression twisted with anger. To him it had been a tragic fall from grace. “All I know is killing, and Aferka was the only place I belonged! Because of that my life went wrong!”

Selva stood quietly as Vector fluttered his fingers with all his strength, as if trying to rip something apart with his claws. That was a habit of his that Selva was familiar with. It was a gesture he made when he was truly angry. He hadn’t changed at all from the past.

“Back then...why didn’t you just kill me?!” Vector paused, but when Selva said nothing, he closed in on the other man with a glimmer of sorrow behind his anger.

Quite a while back in the past, the conflict between nobles had been more intense, like a bloody civil war. The political center had become practically lawless, and a storm not even the ruler could control had hit the nation.

At that time Selva had managed the executive unit, Aferka, or rather he had controlled it together with a woman. However, he had ultimately betrayed Aferka.

“What happened to you...? Why would you hesitate to kill a single brat with those bloodied hands? You never even had anything to do with the Fable family. Tell me, how could you kill your own parents, but leave that child alive?!” Vector raised his voice, as if emphasizing how that was far more cruel.

Selva took the abuse in silence, not responding to any of it. “So you were captured, Vector.”

“Yeah, after I killed my seventieth. Ironically, it was Aferka that arrested me. And that woman looked down on me with pity the entire time,” Vector muttered with distant eyes, his gaze unfocused. “That’s enough! Everything went wrong since the moment you let me live, Selva!”

Who knew where Vector’s memories were wandering off to? His dry eyes looked like they did decades ago when he was a new member of Selva’s unit.

Selva let out a deep breath. He’d assumed that Vector was dead, but here he was, a shadow from his past standing before him. He’d probably broken out of some prison somewhere. Moreover, if his words were true, then he had killed seventy more people before being arrested. Former Aferka member or not, the punishment for such crimes would surely be longer than a lifetime. “I understand,” he said quietly. “Then let us continue from where we left off. Not that I have as much leeway as I used to.”

Vector, whose mind seemed to have returned to the present, promptly answered him. “You’re damn right! That’s why I came here. Neither of us is fully prepared. I’m a mess, as you can see.”

Hearing the grief in Vector’s voice, Selva felt some pity and a hint of regret. He really should have killed him back then, before his life could fully derail in the way that it had.

Looking back, all of his memories were covered in mud and blood. But there was one thing that he didn’t regret in the slightest, and that was the decision that led to where he stood now. His decision to abandon Aferka and serve the Fable family with everything he had.

“Even your way of speaking has changed, Selva,” Vector spat out. He hated him for living such a carefree life while he’d been locked up experiencing hell.

“Of course. I am a butler. It is expected of someone who serves the Fable family,” Selva calmly said, in spite of Vector’s pent-up frustration.

Aferka did not allow betrayal. That was an ironclad rule. Traitors were always purged by the other members...yet the leader himself had broken that rule.

But thanks to that, he’d protected a young girl. Even though he would have to stain his hands with the blood of his companions, the salvation that he’d seen for just a moment became the light of his life. That little girl was now the head of a noble family, and a mother. And the daughter was just like the girl he’d met, strong and noble.

“Look at me, Greenus. I will kill you, and then I will kill everyone in the Fable family. Then I... We can return to how it used to be.”

“Sadly, that won’t be possible, Vector. That is not to say that you are powerless, but there are just some things in this world that the dead cannot do.” With his back ramrod straight, Selva held his hands behind his back, concealing any trace of killing intent.

It was the assassination squad’s style to take lives quietly and solemnly. There was no room for honor or flashiness. The essence of an assassin wasn’t in the hunting of their prey, but in the art of concealing even their soul, and in the silence of their will. They couldn’t allow their opponent to so much as sense the tempo of their breathing.

“Is that so? But I know the weapon you use. And while my skills have dulled, you’ve gotten old,” Vector retorted. He threw away the cloth that was around his head and leaped at Selva.

Selva remained unmoving as his former companion charged at him. But he was skillfully manipulating the thin threads with his hands behind his back. He deployed the threads between himself and the approaching man. Once touched, the steel threads would cut into flesh as easily as water soaked into skin.

However, Vector swung an open palm at the steel net as if he’d expected it. Using his claws, he pulled at the net. It would be difficult to tear it apart with just his claws, but through the instantaneous impact of the AWR the magical tension reached its limit, and the steel threads were unable to maintain their structure.

“A fine AWR,” Selva said.

Having torn through all the threads, Vector finally came into range. But in the next moment, he hit the brakes.

He had run simulations of this feint over and over in his head while in prison. Once Selva’s attempt at intercepting him failed, he would aim for the legs next. Killing his mobility was a textbook move.

The steel threads headed straight for Vector’s legs. The sharpness of the threads might appear to be the biggest threat, but the tips were sharpened as well. That was possible because the threads themselves were made up of mana.

While the threads were sharp, they didn’t really shoot out that powerfully. As power was poured into them from the base, the inevitable bends and turns the threads took robbed them of some of their force. Knowing that, Vector raised his foot and kicked the tips of the threads. The soles of his shoes were equipped with plates that were good mana conductors. Depending on the mana that was poured into them, they could easily smash steel threads.

He knew all the possibilities that could happen in a battle against Selva because he’d had a long time to think about it in prison. However...

“Argh!” The impact felt like an iron ball had slammed into his leg. Vector’s face contorted from the unexpected hardness of the threads.

Selva’s thread rippled and its center twisted like a whip. It formed a loop to catch Vector’s wrist. Vector immediately pulled his hand back and used his claw to cut the thread.

“Hah...hah...” If he’d been a little slower, his hand would be flying through the air. He’d avoided a fatal situation but had still touched the thread, and blood spiraled down his arm. As expected from Aferka’s former leader, Selva hadn’t allowed time to wilt his skills.

Vector felt an odd combination of happiness and sadness. His face twisted into a complicated expression, almost like a crying smile. His body had aged considerably and any youthful vigor had long since faded. Through the decades in prison, the only thing left to him had been despair as he’d felt himself age. The pain in his heart had been far harder to bear than the provisional punishment.

Even though Vector knew his limits, he released his remaining mana. But he wasn’t going to cast a spell. In Aferka, spells were considered flashy and unnecessary. Instead, what had been required of them was a high level of mana control to kill their targets swiftly and quietly. It wasn’t like he couldn’t handle casting spells, but he’d decided that when he finally confronted Selva that he wouldn’t use such moves.

Soon the mana he expelled gathered around his shoulders, and took on some kind of shape. It flowed like a liquid, moving towards his hands with a pale glow. Before long his hands were covered in a thin, wet layer of mana. The mana with unique properties dripped from his fingers.

“This reminds me of the past, Vector. You used to be arrogant and neglected being diligent, but I can tell the results of your tireless training from that mana transformation technique.”

“Of course. But you won’t get the chance to see it again!”

“It’s truly unfortunate, Vector... I really am sorry.”

A steel thread came from out of nowhere and wrapped around Vector’s right arm. This time his arm fell to the ground without giving him a chance to react. “AAAAGGHHH... Impossible!!!” He tightened the muscles of his arm to stop the bleeding, as he stared at his cut arm with shock. “Why?! H-How did you... Where did that thread come from?!”

He desperately backed away from Selva, leaving bloodstains on the paved stone ground. Defeat and death were approaching. Sensing that, Vector started running in an attempt to escape for the time being. But then—

He fell forward and landed face-first onto the ground. He thought his feet had gotten entangled and tried to step on the ground to support himself, but couldn’t feel his foot at all.

When Vector looked, he saw bloodstains splattered all over the ground. With bloodshot eyes, he viewed the trail of blood that led to a black and red clump of something a few meters away. He immediately realized that it was his leg. His right calf and everything below it had been cut off.

“GREEEENUUUUS!!!” Vector screamed. His face was contorted, but it wasn’t from pain. His scream was born out of rage and despair. “WHAT DID YOU DO?! WH-WHAT DID YOU DOOOOO!”

With his remaining left arm and leg, he crawled and squirmed like an unsightly bug, as Selva calmly looked on. There was no longer pity or any other emotion in his eyes. This was his former face as an assassin. “Vector, you could never do anything to begin with. The moment you stepped inside this estate, your life was forfeit.”

“A-A trap...?”

The Fable family had its own combatants, like the maids. However, their strength was inferior to that of the protectors of other noble families. To make up for that, Selva had spread his magical threads all over the entirety of the estate.

“S-So the threads I could see were just decoys...”

The cold expression on Selva’s face didn’t change, and he didn’t respond. But Vector was already convinced. The thickness of the threads could be changed so that some could be seen while others remained hidden. Something like that was easy for Selva who’d been creating threads for so long.

In reality, Vector’s conjecture was pretty much correct. But it was a feat that was only possible with Selva’s skill and his complete understanding of the estate grounds. However, if traps like these remained spread out all the time, no one would be able to walk around the grounds. That was why Selva had implanted the same gimmick as was contained in his gloves in the street lights and trees of the garden. If called for, he could pass mana through them to create threads from all directions without a sound, transforming the garden into a spider web.

Under the dim light of a street lamp, Selva gazed down at the crawling Vector with an icy look.

“It’s not over, not yet...!” Vector leaned on his left arm like a strut and forcibly pushed himself up on his folded left leg. Using his leg like a spring, even as his body threatened to collapse, he swung his remaining arm.

The distance was too far for him to reach Selva. But he couldn’t give up. He couldn’t resign himself. He also had the last trump card of an assassin...pride.

Mustering his willpower, Vector tried to shoot out with his claw, but this time his left arm flew through the air and landed before Selva.

He was out of options. With only his left leg remaining, Vector sat down as if to rest. “Tell that nagging old hag I said hi.”

“Yes.” After a short pause, Selva’s fingers strummed a thread that stretched out like a bow at eye level. As soon as the thread vibrated, countless more threads were released and sped towards Vector.

“Sel...va...” In his last moments, Vector’s wrinkled face smiled. It wasn’t red blood on his cheeks, but...

Selva turned his back on what was once the body of a man, as blood splattered and bones and flesh crumbled. The sounds of the body being destroyed reached his back.

For some reason, he couldn’t shake the feeling that Vector must have wanted to die as an assassin. His voice in those dying moments had held the same nostalgic tone as in the past. Selva wondered if there was even a shred of salvation for his soul. But ultimately, those who killed people would face the same end. It was a cursed fate...what they deserved.

“In the end...nothing can be overturned.” Selva’s resigned words disappeared into the void of the moonlight. “Thinking about it, I’ve been alive for a long time. I’m sure it’s been enough. All I can do now is watch over the young miss as she grows up.”

There were only two ladies in Selva’s world. The daughter was the spitting image of the mother when she was younger, and he hoped that she would grow up to be the same. But it seemed she was choosing a slightly different path from her mother.

That was a future to look forward to as well. Having been able to devote himself to the Fable family, Selva was willing to accept any ending. He’d never expected that he would get to die a peaceful death.

“Now then, I must report this...” he muttered to himself. But he sensed a presence outside of the destroyed gate that prevented him from doing so.

***

What to do... Alus had watched Selva’s battle from the shadows, and missed his chance to make a move. He’d seen glimpses of Selva’s abilities when they’d fought before, but it seemed his eyes hadn’t been quick enough to see everything.

However, I sensed that killer’s atmosphere before. That was why Selva had been able to tell that Alus was cut from the same cloth as him.

On the surface that was correct; but in reality they weren’t the same. Alus had been shown the difference that age made from observing Selva’s perfect work. The effective area is from three to thirty meters. Inside that range, no ordinary foe would stand a chance. 

In addition, there had been almost no adjustments to the advance preparations for the battle. Moreover, the opponent seemed to know of Selva’s abilities. Even so, the difference in power was clear. He had also secured the tactical victory with his traps.

Even though they were just decoys, the threads were thin enough that an amateur would struggle to see them and get lured into the trap instead. Not to mention that Selva hadn’t shown Alus during their fight that he was able to freely adjust the sharpness and thickness of the thread. He never showed me his hand. 

Alus was learning that a haphazard analysis of an opponent’s abilities was dangerous when the opponent was highly skilled at mana control. In his fight with Selva he had been able to deal with the situation by using his keen sense of mana, but to decide that he was superior when his opponent hadn’t even gone all out was pointless.

Also, Selva hadn’t even used anything aside from the steel threads. The Fable family’s butler had extraordinary strength. If we fought seriously in this estate...would I be able to win? Perhaps because he’d now witnessed Selva’s way of killing, this disturbing thought popped up in his mind.

In the past, Alus had accomplished missions that involved killing dangerous criminals, though lately he hadn’t had such opportunities. When he did, he abandoned all emotion and moved in a mechanical fashion to take out his opponent. Killing was the only thing on his mind. He blocked out any other choices, and used whatever means possible to achieve his mission.

Am I like that too? His former self was cold, emotionless, and expressionless.

The old butler was a complete human being. He combined killing with an everyday life. There was no longer a gap between the two for Selva, no room for doubt to enter. His mind had been focused on one absolute thing, taking nothing else into consideration. With no hesitation, there was no middle ground. He didn’t allow those who needed to be killed to survive.

“Oh.” Alus felt a strange excitement in the air. His entire body trembled from it. He could feel his mana swell in response, which he hurriedly restrained. It was like he was no different from Tesfia, who was ruled by her emotions.

That aside, it seemed that Selva and the other man had known each other. It wasn’t like Alus had no interest in that, but he was an outsider, and wouldn’t ask any boorish questions.

Seeing how the man had easily taken out the two trained maids, he must’ve been quite skilled. Yet he couldn’t even lay a finger on Selva. Womruina’s two servants were pretty skilled too, so maybe all noble families are like this. 

Maintaining a personal army was a privilege of nobility. Alus wondered why that was so when Alpha had a regular army, but perhaps it was necessary. Considering how people with no qualms about killing just showed up in the middle of the night, maybe it wasn’t only necessary but essential. It must be rough being a butler for this family. You have to be that skilled at combat to even be up for the job. 

But those impressions aside, Selva would’ve noticed Alus’s presence by now, so he should show himself before he was mistaken for being someone who was working with the intruder. I guess I should have offered a helping hand if I was going to be discovered anyways. But it would have been careless to appear when the traps were still out... Hm? There’s still more. 

With his field of view, Alus had noticed them quicker than Selva. It was the presence of those who lived in darkness, the same as the intruder. Were they additional enemies?

Figures soon appeared from between the trees, visible under the dim light of the street lamps. One man stepped forward as if representing them. He had swept-back short blond hair. Normally that would make him stand out, but for some reason he blended in with his surroundings.

The man was tall with ferocious slanted eyes. Alus could tell he was aggressive from how his center of gravity was leaned forward slightly. He also noticed his vigilant gaze.

In a spur of the moment decision, Alus leaped from his hiding place and landed next to Selva. “Excuse me for coming from the shadows. I saw the whole thing.”

As expected, Selva seemed to have sensed him coming, as he gave a light bow. “Pardon me. It appears that I have awakened you from your rest.”

“Not at all. I was able to learn a lot, so let me help you a little as thanks.” Seeing a good opportunity to move his body, Alus relaxed the reins on his mana. He didn’t have his AWR with him, but he wasn’t planning on using any flashy spells. He was inspired by the fight to the death that he’d witnessed and unleashed dense mana, more motivated than usual.

However, the blond man spoke up as if to beat him to the punch. “Oh, so there was a Single around. But don’t get so worked up. We ain’t here to kill you. Our business is with that...lump of flesh.”

His speech was as rough as his appearance. As loose-lipped as the man was, Alus was calmed by the fact that he seemed to understand his position. It also appeared that he wasn’t here to help the first man, but had chased him here to stop him.

“I was going to kill him if he wasn’t listening, but there’s not even a head to bring back. You sure got in the way this time, Selva Greenus.” The man clicked his tongue and stepped out into the light proper. His tone was still rough, but there was a degree of class to his clothing. It was formal, like a uniform of sorts. However, he still seemed like a street thug from his atmosphere and manner of speaking.

Alus and Selva both observed the man. “I have done nothing but deal with a ruffian that invaded the estate. Or should I perhaps have waited for you to arrive and capture him?” Selva quietly asked, as he eyed the broken iron gate.

The blond man’s lips twitched, but Selva had the advantage. “Nah, in the end you saved me the time and effort. His death was convenient, actually.”

Selva narrowed his eyes at the violent tone of the man’s voice. It seemed that the man was on the side of justice, chasing down an escaped Vector, but he didn’t speak like a member of a security force. “I apologize for not living up to your expectations. After all, this is a prestigious family that doesn’t allow outsiders entry without permission. And you...don’t appear to be a worthy guest.”

“Hmph, you just don’t get it, Selva Greenus. Or should I call you Aferka’s former bloodstained blade? You’re only allowed to draw breath because of the mercy of the Advisor. Make what remaining time you have left count and don’t forget the code. Before long I’ll get the order, and when I do, I’ll come to kill you.” The man pulled his hand out of his pocket and pointed to himself with his thumb as if to boast. “Or so I’d like to say, but there’s a protocol to these things. Tsk. No matter, we’ll meet again soon.”

Did he come here just to make a death threat? In which case, it wouldn’t be strange for the man to be killed himself.

However, Selva held his hand out before Alus. It was clear that he didn’t intend to let Alus get involved any further.

“I’ll just have to be patient. See you then!” The man disappeared from sight. It was like his shape had melted into the shadows of the trees, and before long even his presence disappeared.

It was quite anticlimactic for Alus who’d been raring for a fight, but Selva remained silent and appeared to be deep in thought. “Selva, I guess I got too involved there.”

“Not at all. I’m the one who should apologize for allowing an esteemed guest to see such an unsightly thing.” Selva bowed so deeply that it made Alus hesitate.

In the next moment, three maids appeared behind Selva and Alus, and lined themselves up in a row. The situation had been made known throughout the mansion, and they’d come to reinforce him after some preparations.

The maid in the center bowed to Alus before speaking. “Mr. Selva, we have arrived. Where are... Ah, I apologize for disturbing you,” she said, after a glimpse at the horrific scene where the problem had been dealt with.

“It is quite all right, Chamberlain Sithaima.”

The other two maids gave off an eerie impression. Their eyes were clouded over like they were drug addicts in the slums. And while they were dressed like the other maids, their expressions remained unchanged, showing no friendliness.

“Hest, Eight, clean that up.”

“Understood, Chamberlain,” the two maids replied in perfect harmony.

From what Alus could tell, the first two maids that Vector had handled were equivalent to Triple Digit Magicmasters. But these eerie two appeared to be as skilled as Doubles... Actually, he realized that he couldn’t compare them, as he didn’t get the impression that they were Magicmasters. They were much more trained in the art of killing. Simply put, they were specially trained to kill people.

As for the chamberlain, Sithaima, she wouldn’t even let Alus sense her latent potential. She didn’t give off the impression of being strong like Hest and Eight. But based on how she hadn’t even raised an eyebrow at the lumps of flesh and splattered blood, she was no doubt used to such things.

Noticing Alus’s unreserved gaze, Sithaima looked at him again. “Sir Alus, I apologize for not being able to greet you at dinner. I hear you are Lady Fia’s friend.” She looked to be in her forties, wore a friendly expression, and spoke in a mild tone. Her hairstyle was simple, with her bangs parted to the sides and the rest tied up in a bun at the back of her head. Her bonnet also blended in perfectly with her overall image, although the plainness gave her a cold impression. She looked less like a maid and more like a housekeeper.

Actually, she looks strong too. Magic fights are one thing, but her subordinates wouldn’t lose to your average Magicmaster in a fight to the death. I doubt that the Fable family is looking to start a war...so what exactly is the purpose of gathering so many strong people? 

The truth was that it had been Selva’s decision. Compared to other noble families, the Fables had a small number of personnel, but Alus had no way of knowing that.

While Alus pondered these things, Selva ordered the chamberlain to take care of the rest of the cleanup. He looked at Alus. “You must be wondering why,” he said, omitting the subject, but Alus could tell what he was referring to. It was exactly what he’d been thinking. “Even the noblest of blood cannot stay pure in this world. It is hard to say it is a world where those who value justice will always rise to the top. Also, one cannot say that being righteous is always the right thing to do. The Fable family does have its own share of enemies.”

“I know what you mean. But I’m impressed that Fia...” Turned out the way she did , Alus wanted to say.

He’d left it vague, but Selva understood what he meant. “The young miss has been kept unaware. That is why I have instructed them to avoid any unnecessary contact with her.”

That’s why they hadn’t appeared during the dinner. Thinking back on it, there had only been normal maids around Tesfia. That was to be expected, as Sithaima aside, the other two maids had a darkness that even an amateur could sense. It was the dark side of the Fable family.

“So I would like you to keep what you have seen and heard from the young miss. While they are maids now, in the past they lived lives that they couldn’t tell anyone about. I took advantage of Master Frose’s kindness to bring them in,” Selva told him with a smile, as if he pitied the two maids.

“If that’s what’s necessary, then it was a wise decision.”

“Indeed. They do try their best, always watching over the Fable family from the shadows. Oh, I believe you wanted to know about something else?”

Alus nodded, so Selva began to speak. “It’s not something you can tell others, but that man was a former ‘colleague’ of mine. This was a punishment for my past deeds, in a way.”

In other words, he was a fellow assassin from back in the day. Alus understood. There was something between him and Selva that allowed them to understand each other without words...perhaps as people who lived in the darkness, people who wore a different mask. “What did he come here for?”

“For me. For what happened in the past. I believe I’ll need to talk about that first. If you were watching from the beginning, you’ll know that he was Vector who was once a member of Aferka.”

“Aferka...” Alus muttered, digging through his memories. It was a term that Aile had mentioned during their negotiations the other day. Back then, he’d suggested that Lilisha had a connection to them.

“Aferka is a private army that was used when the conflict between nobles was at its fiercest. Its primary purpose was the assassination of important people and doing work behind the scenes. It began as a combat group that was trained by a certain noble family.”

Alus could sense Selva’s hesitation. The past was a bitter memory for him, something he’d rather keep locked up. That’s why he didn’t want Tesfia to know.

“In any case, it was only natural that the authorities would take notice as powerful families were crushed by force. And so Aferka was reorganized as an executive unit under the ruler.”

The conflict had been settled by the ruler’s intervention, but that was just the superficial reason. Those who didn’t fit in were purged by the ruler’s new blade...Aferka. As such, almost all noble families that were still around today were those that had survived the period of oppression by the ruler.

However, the criteria for the purges were still unclear. Aferka had been put into action against more than just hostile factions.

“Of course, destroying a powerful noble family completely was difficult. So instead, their resolve would be undermined by a flash of the blade during negotiations. The families that were wiped out were used as an example in those negotiations.”

Alus didn’t have much interest in politics, but now that he’d gotten caught up in a problem between nobles, he listened intently to what Selva had to say.

“And as a result, the nobility became more cunning and clever. They targeted each other’s weaknesses. On the surface the conflicts died down, but every family took measures to protect itself, and the Fable family was no exception. Aferka still remains, but the organization has undergone a major transformation, so the current ruler no longer has the power to intervene through force.”

In reality, however, Cicelnia had a royal guard. But as far as Alus knew there was no one of note in the group, aside from Rinne. But Rinne’s specialty was in detecting, which was a result of Alpha concentrating its forces in the military.

So perhaps Cicelnia was trying to get more involved with Alus because of her weak position. She didn’t want a soldier, but a reliable guard like Rinne. It seems I’m pretty popular. While muttering this nonsense to himself, Alus continued to listen to Selva.

According to Selva, it seemed that Aferka was responsible for capturing or eliminating unstable elements within the nation. But he appeared to have become convinced of that only a few moments ago. “It’s not just Aferka either. Vector looked like he’d been in prison until recently. His emaciated appearance further backs that up. Yet the fact that he showed up here suggests...”

“That he escaped.”

“Yes. I am all but convinced of it.”

“Which raises the question of where did he escape from?” There were plenty of prisons in Alpha that Alus could think of. There’d also been a lot of major incidents occurring lately. The Inner World was only peaceful compared to the Outer World. Normal criminals aside, there had been cases of magical criminals causing hundreds of deaths. “At the very least...I haven’t heard of anything like that happening in Alpha.”

“Neither have I,” Selva said. “I believe I will look into it later.”

He and Alus exchanged looks. They had a lot in common, and could more or less understand what the other was thinking.

If it didn’t happen within the Inner World... There was a rumored Pandora’s box of sorts, secret and hidden by a veil, containing the dark side of all seven nations. I thought it might be possible, but...a special prison that exists in the Outer World? I don’t know though. 

When heinous magical criminals such as Kurama executives were captured, there was a problem with where to keep them. There was danger involved in holding them within the nation. There might be breakouts or they could get freed by allies. In the unlikely event they were freed, they could start going wild with magic.

Alus rubbed the back of his neck, as he spoke to Selva with a serious expression. “Things are starting to look ominous.”

“I do apologize for getting you involved in this, Sir Alus.”

“It’s fine. Like the Tenbram, I decided to observe the fight on my own. Speaking of which, who was that blond man?”

“At the very least, he wasn’t with the military.”

“Yeah, if he was with the military, he wouldn’t be that lacking in discipline.”

Selva laughed a little at Alus’s remark. “Ha ha, indeed. However, that man was strong. He knew when to withdraw...and his eyes told more than his mouth.”

“I see.” Alus wanted to ask about the blond man’s relationship to Selva. He’d known both Selva’s name and a past alias of sorts. And then there was the “Advisor” that he’d mentioned.

But Selva was tight-lipped when it came to that. Alus only received vague statements from him, as if to evade the question. “I cannot cause you any further troubles, Sir Alus. Besides, this is something that happened on the Fable estate, so please leave the rest of it to us.” He spoke politely, but in reality, he meant that he couldn’t tell him any more.

“I understand. Then it’s not my place to crash the party.” Alus left it up to Selva, as he had some degree of trust in him. And it wasn’t just because they’d talked through their fists. They’d both lived in the underbelly of society and respected each other.

Most of all, Selva supported the difficult path that Tesfia had chosen. Their interests were aligned, and in that sense, he was more trustworthy than Frose.

Selva was quietly walking back to the mansion with his arms behind his back, as Alus walked behind him. Suddenly Selva’s metronome-like precision walking was disturbed, and he muttered in a low voice that even Alus might have a problem hearing. “Sir Alus, perhaps you would listen to this old man ramble to himself.”

He slowed down a bit. His atmosphere was gentle, as if telling a story to a grandchild. “It’s about the inherited magic of the Fable family that was discussed yesterday.”

“—!” Alus was startled that the Fable family butler would start talking about the family’s secrets. It was no doubt a topic that would go against the will of the head of the family. Knowing that, he’d called it “rambling to himself.”

With his measured pace, Selva looked up at the mansion before them. “I will say this because it’s you.”

“I thought you were talking to yourself?”

“Ha ha, so I was. But before I do, please know that Master Frose told no lies.”

As Frose was the head of a major noble family, Alus hadn’t been able to get valuable information from her without making deals, but he did feel respect for her. But now Selva was stepping over her intentions to tell Alus something that would surely be for Tesfia’s sake. Understanding that, Alus kept quiet and waited for him to continue.

“It is true that the Fable family has several privately developed spells that are passed down in the family. The future looks bright, I am told. But because the blood has been diluted, or for some other reason, only two people of the previous generation had the qualities required to handle the more advanced inherited spells.”

Selva stated the facts, as a shadow crossed his face. It was as if he wished to share the knowledge of the family’s history with someone who might carry it on. “Master Frose put in a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, of course. However, the inherited magic is not allowed to be passed down through instructions, or even through showing the initial stages. It is all to be self-taught. But no matter how long she worked on it, she could not achieve it, and so Master Frose finally gave up on the path of a Magicmaster and decided to serve as a commander.”

He took a deep breath before continuing. “Ever since she lost her husband, Master Frose has protected the family first and foremost. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that she became obsessed over it. And after wearing herself down with her training, she ultimately gave up on learning the inherited spells. I’m sure her pain was unimaginable. At least, it was far more than anything I could imagine.”

Selva smiled. “However, the young miss’s existence helped to support Master Frose. Back then she was so small, she would cling to my leg whenever something happened. She was proud of her mother, and even at a young age she wished to help in whatever way she could. Even now, I can vividly remember her earnest eyes.”

“I don’t think she’s very different now. Maybe she hasn’t actually grown up.”

“Ha ha, perhaps not. But that is one of the young miss’s virtues.” Selva wasn’t quite a coddling parent, but he wasn’t far from it. “With her eyes finally awakened to a new presence to protect in the young miss, Master Frose retired from the army. But she was involved with so many squads and projects that there were a lot of obstacles to overcome. However, Master Frose is someone who doesn’t bend once she has decided on something. After dealing with all of the obstacles, she gave her resignation letter to the Governor-General.”

The Governor-General at the time was probably Berwick’s predecessor. It might have been Berwick himself, but Alus didn’t want to interrupt Selva.

“And so...she made a deal. In order to get the military to grant her retirement, Master Frose presented them with the magic formula for an inherited spell that she had a general grasp of.”

“I see where this is going. That spell was Garb Sheep.”

“Yes. But I heard that not even the spell’s name remained in the Magic Compendium, and that only the Governor-General has access to the details.”

“Now I understand how Garb Sheep came to be recorded in the Compendium,” Alus said. “It’s just a guess, but it was probably the Governor-General’s scheme that ensured the name was there for me to see. Mrs. Fable seemed to be aware of it too. That leaves the connection to the snow man we encountered in Vanalis.”

“I am afraid that I don’t know about that. But of all the inherited spells that the Fable family possesses, Garb Sheep is indeed one of them. The line of spells, however, differs from Icicle Sword.”

“If I see the magic formula, I might be able to find a clue.”

“I cannot say any further. Only those with the right to inherit the final form of the spell may know.”

Alus fell silent for a moment. The snow man had used a spell that was incredibly similar to Garb Sheep, an inherited spell of the Fable family. Doubts and vague guesses swirled around in his head and formed complex patterns. “Let me confirm something, Selva.”

“What might that be?”

“What does Mrs. Fable know about the snow man?”

“I am afraid only she knows. There is nothing I can say. But from your description, I can think of one who fits. However, they have already passed away.”

“—! Is he related to Mrs. Fable? Is there any chance that he is actually alive?”

“That is not possible. It has been a long time since the head of the family of two generations ago passed away. I hear that he lost his life in the Outer World.”

“So he was Mrs. Fable’s grandfather.” Anyone capable of powerful magic, noble or not, would sometimes be sent out to the Outer World. In fact, it was expected of nobles. Frose and Sisty would likely be sent to the Outer World if an emergency happened.

Alus glanced at the elderly butler, but couldn’t read anything further from his expression. But for the time being, he should thank him. “Thank you very much. That’s enough for me. It’s vague, but I have an image of the person now, or rather, their ability.”

However, it was still too soon to reach a conclusion, so he held off on that for now. Thanks to Selva, he’d learned a lot. Now I really want to know what Garb Sheep’s magic formula looks like. Since the Governor-General is involved with the name appearing in the Compendium, I’ll need to negotiate with Berwick to get another step closer. 

As Alus played with that thought, Selva spoke up. “And one more thing. This concerns the young miss as well.”

Hm? Perhaps this is what he’s really after. Considering Selva’s position, it was only natural that Tesfia was precious to him. In other words, the valuable information from before might have been a prelude to this. Alus braced himself, wondering where this was going...

“Only Master Frose knows what I am about to tell you. Please keep this to yourself.”

Alus silently nodded, but he had a bad feeling about it.

“Aside from Garb Sheep, Icicle Sword is part of another line of spells that has a final form. However, Master Frose does not know what the final form looks like.”

“That’s because Mrs. Fable gave up on the pursuit, isn’t it?”

“No. She has determined the magic formula.”

“What do you mean? If she knows the formula, then she should have a grasp of its final form.”

“It means that she is unable to decipher a portion of it. More specifically, a Lost Spell is involved. But there is no doubt that the Eltrade, the secret heir, once mastered the spell. That is why Master Frose assumes that it can be learned by following the necessary steps.”

“Interesting. If you ask me, the thing about Lost Spells is that they might require a completely different approach.” Selva’s words were stirring Alus’s curiosity. If possible, he wanted to dig deep and ask questions until the sun rose. Curiosity aside, there were some strange things when it came to inherited magic. “If that’s the case, I don’t understand why she’s holding back so much with Fia.”

“As the head of the family, she has her dignity to maintain. And then there’s the mother and daughter relationship to take into account. It can be more difficult than the hardest of problems. Moreover, Master Frose has placed her hope in the young miss again, hoping that she will be able to master the complete form of Icicle Sword.”

That was probably because Tesfia had learned Zepel. In fact, that spell was the reason why the distance between mother and daughter had shortened. Alus felt he understood that as well, since he’d been involved in that. But there were still questions that were left unanswered. “Even if a Lost Spell is involved, she might be expecting too much of Fia.”

“That is what I wish to ask of you, Sir Alus,” Selva said with a serious expression. “I admit that my personal feelings are involved, but I ask that you help to prove that the young miss is the rightful heir through the spells that you devise.”

“Hmm? I thought that there were proper inherited spells in the Fable family, and that the rightful heir was determined by mastering those spells.”

“Indeed. That is what both the young miss and Master Frose desire. But...something doesn’t feel right. The spell can’t have been created more than several decades ago at its oldest. While there is no doubt that it was completed and had a practitioner at one time, it is strange that it can’t be deciphered, since it was created during a time when magic was much less developed.”

“I see. I would agree with that.”

“Master Frose said before that you would be unable to replicate the spells, much less surpass them. Of course, the highest inherited spell in the line of spells for Icicle Sword is one of them, and the reason why Master Frose said that is because they are close to true magic.”

Selva’s unexpected use of the term made Alus fall silent. True magic... In other words, magic close to what the Fiends used. It was supposedly a realm beyond human reach. But since the Fable family member who accomplished it was human, the contradiction could perhaps be resolved.

However—even with Alus’s knowledge and intelligence—he couldn’t let his guard down, which was why he needed to choose his next words carefully. “I can’t say that I fully understand, but I’ll do what I can to make the new spell that I teach Fia rival...no, surpass the Fable family’s inherited spell.”

“Thank you very much. In my opinion, it would be best for the young miss to abandon the path of wearing herself out to obtain such a questionable spell. With your help, there will be a new page added to the Fable family’s inherited magic. Moreover, I hope that she can discard the social rules and show a new path for the family, even if she doesn’t become the secret heir. I am sure that such a path remains for the young miss. I am really sorry for all the troubles that she has caused you, Sir Alus.”

“I don’t mind. It might have been pushed onto me, but I do understand the value of the information I’ve received.” Alus had gotten even more information than he’d asked for. If anything, that extra information was worth more.

“I am glad to have been of assistance,” Selva said. He bowed to Alus for the umpteenth time today.

When Alus returned to his room it was almost morning. The night sky outside the window was beginning to lighten, as he collapsed into bed.

He’d absorbed so much information that he would need to rest his brain before he could sort it all out. Yet his feverish mind kept analyzing it. He tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep. When he looked up at the ceiling, he was reminded that he was in someone else’s house. At times like these, he could use the skill to sleep anywhere that he’d developed in the military. As sleepiness finally started to set in and he curled up in bed, he suddenly realized something. Now that I think about it, Loki didn’t show up. 

The next time he opened his eyes, it was already noon. It was well past his normal waking time. He’d truly had a good rest.

After confirming that Loki hadn’t returned from the other room, Alus smoothly prepared for his day. As he stepped out of his room, one of the maids was walking towards him, and Tesfia appeared at the other end of the hallway.

“It’s already noon. You look like you slept well.”

“Well, it was a really comfortable bed,” Alus said sarcastically. He couldn’t tell Tesfia about last night’s events. He didn’t know for sure, but he felt like the maids would’ve been able to clean up the bloody scene without leaving a trace of what had happened.

“Good morning.” A young maid bowed to Tesfia and smiled at Alus. She was carrying a basket with neatly folded clothes in it. “Please accept this change of clothes,” she said cheerfully, and put the contents of the basket in Alus’s hands.

“Y-Yeah...” That’s when he realized that he was still wearing the clothes he wore yesterday, rather than the pajamas that had been prepared for him. And since he’d gone to bed right after last night’s events, they were now wrinkled.

“Thank you, Minasha,” Tesfia smiled.

“Then I will take my leave. Ah yes, regarding the schedule for today...” The maid called Minasha raised a finger with a refreshing smile.

Alus could tell she had a friendly and positive disposition. Her voice was full of energy, a far cry from Hest and Eight from last night.

She fluently explained the day’s schedule. “...So please get dressed as soon as possible. I will prepare a warm meal, so please come to the dining room when you are ready. Why not have lunch together?”

Once Minasha finished speaking, she spun around, leaving Alus dumbfounded. “If you will excuse me,” she said, and left while humming to herself.

Alus sighed. “Are all the servants here this strange?”

“Hey, I can’t overlook that.” Tesfia looked ready to protest, but the chamberlain aside, the combat maids didn’t have much contact with her, so he wouldn’t get anywhere by trying to explain it.

“Ignorance is bliss.”

“What’s that supposed to mean? Whatever, just hurry up and change.”

“Since we’re at it, why don’t you come in?”

“If your hobby is showing yourself while you change your clothes, I’ll take you on.”

“Oh?”

In the past, Tesfia probably would’ve blushed and pushed him back into his room, but maybe she had more composure in her own home, as she snapped back at him in a way she hadn’t before. Perhaps she’d developed a level of tolerance and was no longer fazed by the thought of watching Alus change.

Alus guessed that she thought she had defied his expectations. “Well, there was something I wanted to talk with you about anyways, so how about you come with me then?” As he started to walk back into his room, he pretended to unbutton his shirt.

“W-Wait, you’re serious?!”

“You should be used to it.”

“Of course I’m not!” This time, Tesfia’s ears turned red from embarrassment. She blatantly puffed up her cheeks and crossed her arms to hide her disturbance.

That was when Loki finally appeared. “She might act pure, but please be careful, Al. She’s really perverted on the inside.”

“Ah, Loki. You’re pretty slow to wake up today,” Tesfia said.

“That’s none of your business.” Loki had come from Tesfia’s room. Her hair was a disheveled mess and her eyes were bloodshot. It was pretty clear she hadn’t slept well and was in a foul mood. “You look like you had a good night’s sleep, Ms. Tesfia. I bet you must have had a wonderful dream...” She appeared to be holding a huge grudge. Her tilted head and tired eyes gave her the look of a character in a horror movie.

“Guess I’ll go get changed.” As if driven by a light sense of dread, Alus decided to return to his room.

Minasha had prepared a silk shirt and trousers. Seeing how it was all black, she must’ve taken Alus’s preferences into account. It went without saying that the material was of high quality.

Once he stepped out of the room again, Tesfia took the lead and began walking ahead, while Loki came next to him and whispered, “What happened last night?”

“I thought you’d notice.” She hadn’t appeared, so Alus had figured she’d been fast asleep, but it seemed she was aware of the situation.

“Of course! But...” Loki puffed up her chest, but soon directed an annoyed look at the redhead in front of them.

***

Loki had been stuck in a one-sided girl’s talk with Tesfia last night, which had mentally exhausted her.

Shortly after falling asleep, she sensed a strange presence outside just after Alus had, which woke her up. However...

“—! What?!” Someone was holding her tightly in their arms.

When she came to, she saw Tesfia’s slovenly, sleepy face next to hers. “You little...!” Loki struggled to break free, but Tesfia then wrapped her legs around Loki’s thighs to lock her down. While Loki was stuck, she sensed that Alus had jumped out the window. The more she panicked, the more strength Tesfia used in her arms and legs to hold her. “Ms. Tesfia!”

“Mmmm...”

Loki was unable to move as Tesfia’s face drew closer. “—!”

When the two girls’ lips were so close they were almost touching, Loki turned her face away so hard that she hurt her neck, but fortunately she dodged the attack. “Hah...hah... If you go any further, I’m seriously going to hit you.”

Tesfia mumbled something, and turned around in bed while still holding Loki.

I should be able to free myself now... Wait. She suddenly noticed that her pajama top had shifted and was rolled up near her chest. The same went for Tesfia, whose stomach was now exposed. “Ah...!”

When Loki let her guard down, Tesfia rubbed her cheek against her. At the same time, their bodies pressed closer together...and she could feel Tesfia’s body heat directly.

Tesfia’s cheeks were turning red, but judging from her slack jaw, she must’ve been having a pleasant dream. Or perhaps it was an improper dream.

Loki was relieved when she felt Tesfia’s hold loosen, but it was only for a moment. Just as she thought she was being let go, Tesfia’s slender arms swiftly and fluidly moved again. Loki felt a hand being inserted under her pajamas. “Ahh?!”

Her body was still locked down by Tesfia’s legs. She tried to push her off by using her arms, but Tesfia wrapped her free arm around Loki, ensuring a firm hold of her small body.

Fortunately, Tesfia’s hand was just touching her back, but Loki’s relief only lasted for a moment. The hand started caressing her skin, like Tesfia was petting a kitten. “...!”

“Huh? Hee hee, it’s so warm...”

Next, the legs around Loki’s thighs started to wriggle up and down. Then Tesfia’s toes caught onto some cloth...and Loki’s pajama bottoms started sliding down. “I won’t let you do that!!! Ah, hey...!”

Loki noticed that her underwear was starting to be exposed, and struggled even harder. When she did, Tesfia finally stopped. While Loki hadn’t fully escaped her predicament, she had a chance to breathe. Still...the fact that Ms. Fia’s breasts are surprisingly big is infuriating. She wasn’t being held down as tightly anymore, but because they were so close, Loki could feel Tesfia’s twin hills directly. Perhaps she was the type that looked slender in clothing?

A sidelong glance revealed to Loki some cleavage worth envying. Tesfia was a little sweaty, but it was strangely charming even though they were the same sex. Her white skin had a healthy reddish-pink glow, making it stand out in the dim light from the moon.

Loki’s cheeks twitched. She glanced at Tesfia. With her small face and good figure, anyone would see her as a beautiful noble lady, as long as she didn’t open her mouth.

She looked down at her own breasts to see if they were getting any bigger. “There’s just no letting down my guard! This means that Ms. Alice and Ms. Felinella are even bigger!” Ms. Tesfia is turning into a bombshell... 

Some wicked thoughts entered Loki’s mind for a moment, but she decided that now wasn’t the time for that. Now’s my chance... 

Loki got ready to slip out of Tesfia’s grasp, but Tesfia quickly reacted like she was fully awake. Perhaps because she’d sensed Loki’s movement, she tightened her hold on Loki.

“—!” As a result, their bodies were pressed even closer together...and in the next instant...

Loki felt a strange sensation on her ear. When she realized what was happening, her face turned red.

“Nom♪” Still asleep, Tesfia made a cute sound and playfully bit Loki’s earlobe.

“Uhhh...” The more Loki struggled, the more Tesfia’s arms and legs squeezed down on her. In the end, her struggle continued.

In the morning, Tesfia let out a sweet “Al...” This made Loki strike her by reflex, which finally freed her.

Incidentally, despite the heavy strike from Loki, Tesfia let go of her but remained asleep.

***

“So because of that lustful beast, I was unable to come to your side, Sir Alus,” Loki said with a snort.

Tesfia overheard her. “Who’s a lustful beast! I was fast asleep so I don’t know, but you better not have done anything strange to me!”

“If you’re going to listen to people badmouthing you, at least listen to all of it! You’re the one who was doing something strange!”

The sound of the two girls arguing became unbearable as it echoed in Alus’s head. “I’m going on ahead.” He gave up on watching over the pointless fight, and walked in the direction of the dining room to get a late breakfast or snack.

Seeing Alus leave, Loki chased after him, saying to Tesfia over her shoulder, “Say whatever you want, but I’m never sleeping with you again!”

Loki quickly caught up with Alus and walked by his side. “So about last night... What happened?”

“There was a commotion in the garden, but I can’t say more right now.”

Loki understood, after seeing how he glanced at Tesfia when he said that.

Then the person in question walked up in a carefree manner and asked what was going on. It wasn’t as though Alus had been told to keep quiet about the entire incident itself, but since Selva hadn’t told Tesfia, he wasn’t going to either. If he recalled, Selva wanted to keep Tesfia away from the dark underbelly of the world. How naive. Just hiding it will be much more difficult. 

The future head of the Fable family couldn’t stay ignorant of the ways of the world forever. Tesfia should’ve learned a thing or two from the extracurricular lesson and the Godma Barhong incident, but she would eventually learn about the world’s darkness whether she wanted to or not. But if he was going to go that far, then Alus might really have to prepare himself to marry into the Fable family.

He sighed. “I see Selva has a hard time.”

“What does Selva have to do with it?”

“I mean that you need to keep it together.”

“I-I know that...!” Tesfia pouted at Alus’s remark.

Alus planted his hand on her head. “Just being strong isn’t good enough to reach the true heights.”

However, Tesfia unexpectedly put her hand on his, and stared back at him. “You mean that I don’t just need to get stronger, but learn about a wider range of things, right?”

Alus looked a little surprised. Then he smiled at her. “That’s right,” he muttered, and cast his eyes down. Perhaps what he’d told Tesfia was actually meant for himself as well. “At any rate, the Tenbram against Womruina is just a point on the road. We’re going to shoot right past it.”

“Understood!” Tesfia laughed, and playfully saluted.

Alus heard a sigh from the one on his other side, but he chose to ignore it, deciding that it was better that Tesfia was full of spirit than not. At the very least, it was far better than another pointless argument.

The group reached the dining room and had something to eat before receiving a lecture on Tenbram from Selva. Later, they somehow ended up being guided around the estate on a tour. It felt to Alus like they were just trying to keep him here, but he chose to go with the flow and not complain about it.

Alus and Loki were guided around by Tesfia and a few maids. They were all normal maids, but after last night’s incident, it was inevitable that there’d be several combatants dressed as maids in the vicinity as well.

When they were taken to the AWR vault and workshop, Alus spent quite a bit of time with the family’s technicians. They discussed magic formulas engraved in AWRs and exchanged all kinds of valuable information about them.

Alus had the sense that he was being used by both the Fable family and its technicians, but he couldn’t complain since their discussions had been meaningful.

In the end, the group returned to the Fable mansion for dinner. And so night fell once again, to the point that it was so dark that they couldn’t see where they were going without street lights. But since they’d already contacted the girls’ dorm, there was no need to rush even if they arrived back after the curfew.

As Tesfia would need to train for the Tenbram, it had looked like she would stay behind, but she was told to stay at the Institute until Frose called for her. As such, the three of them returned together.

“It’s pretty late... Sorry.” Tesfia apologized because her family had dragged them around until it was after dark.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ve been ready for it since your mother learned about my rank.”

“That might be true, but the principal told me not to speak about it.” Tesfia looked discouraged, and even her side ponytail drooped low as if in sync with her.

“It’s a little late for that,” Loki said. “If Mrs. Fable seriously looked into Sir Alus’s rank, she would’ve found out about it soon enough. With her connections to the military and position as the head of a grand noble family, it would be easy. It might even be a good idea to talk with the Governor-General about spreading it far and wide, so that even fewer people would dare mess with Sir Alus.”

“Loki, I don’t think that would help,” Tesfia said.

The group chatted as they passed through the Circle Port and traveled to the middle area of the Inner World. They would arrive back at the Institute at a late hour.

As they hurried to the next Circle Port, Alus suddenly turned around and stared into the darkness. He saw nothing...but the strange presence he’d been sensing had disappeared. It’s finally gone. 

He’d felt as though he’d been watched from the shadows ever since they’d left the Fable estate. The presence disappeared when they transferred between Circle Ports, but once they stepped out of the port, another presence would appear.

Alus thought that the observers changed, but they’d kept their distance so he couldn’t tell if there was one or more of them. But from what he could vaguely pick up, there were two of them. If so, they were putting in a lot of effort for mere surveillance. He couldn’t be sure, and he’d thought that it was just his imagination at first, but now that the presence was fully gone he knew he’d been right.

“Is something the matter, Sir Alus?”

“Did you notice it, Loki?”

“Notice what?”

“No, never mind,” Alus said. He kept walking. But who was it? Considering the situation, someone from the Womruinas? Or someone from Kurama, or someone else with a grudge against me. No...it feels like I’m overlooking something. The unease made his thoughts run faster.

Unaware of Alus’s thoughts, Tesfia set the Institute as the destination on the Circle Port. In the next moment, they were surrounded by mana light.

Even after they reached the Institute, Alus’s steps were heavy.

“Sir Alus, what is the matter? Does it have something to do with what you asked before?”

“It’s hard to say. I’ve had this feeling that I’ve been watched since we left the Fable estate.”

“—! You mean even now?!”

Alus stopped Loki from panicking and activating her mana sonar. “No, it’s fine now. They took their eyes off me partway through, and it’s better that we don’t let them know that we noticed them. But I don’t know who’s behind it.”

“Perhaps it has something to do with what happened yesterday.”

During their tour of the estate, when Tesfia had stepped away on some business, he’d told Loki what had happened. “I don’t know. It’s also possible that the Womruina family is trying to pull something.”

“I wouldn’t put it past that family.”

The two spoke quietly until Tesfia questioned them. “What are you two whispering about?”

Loki looked at Alus. “Maybe they’re not watching you, Sir Alus, but rather, the key figure in the Tenbram...”

“Hmm, you mean her? It doesn’t feel very likely.”

“But it is possible.”

As they gazed at each other, Tesfia tilted her head.

***

“What! No way! Something like that happened yesterday?!”

Seeing as it was already past curfew and there wouldn’t be any harm in delaying Tesfia’s return a bit longer, Alus explained what had happened the night before. He also told her that someone had been watching them just now.

He did feel bad since Selva had chosen not to tell Tesfia, but if she got dragged into something, Alus figured she deserved to know. He kept quiet about the inherited spells, though.

“And you were there, Al...?”

“Of course. There’s no way I wouldn’t notice it.”

“And I couldn’t go because of you,” Loki told Tesfia.

“Ugh, a-anyways...!” Tesfia pushed down her guilt and awkwardly tried to change the topic. “I still find it hard to believe that somebody would hold a grudge against Selva... I knew he was skilled, though.”

Loki leaned close to Tesfia and peered into her face. “Perhaps Mr. Selva is different from the image you have of him in your mind?”

“Y-Yeah. Selva has always served our family, and he’s loyal and reliable. He’s always been nice to me. He’s more family than a butler.”

“Fia, how much do you know about Aferka?”

“I’ve only heard that Selva used to be a part of it. He didn’t tell me directly, and because it seems like he doesn’t want to talk about it, I haven’t really pushed the matter. But I didn’t know that it was such an amazing group before. That explains his skills.”

Tesfia had been surprised at first, but she was still a noble. She’d heard about the conflict of the past. She could be sharp at times, so she’d vaguely sensed that some of the servants were actually combatants, and also that Selva was hiding something.

“Sir Alus, that attacker was an Aferka member, wasn’t he?”

“Yeah, Selva seemed to recognize him. Apparently they used to work together. But the blond man who came afterwards talked about some ‘Advisor’ and how he’d be back...”

“But we don’t know if that has anything to do with the mysterious observer or not,” Loki noted.

“Maybe they’re under the Womruinas’ orders to come after me? Like, when I’m alone?” Tesfia asked. “Maybe I shouldn’t go back to the dorms tonight.”

“I doubt the Womruinas are that stupid. They suggested this match because they were sure they could win, so there’d be no point in trying to cheat like this. Without the leader, the Tenbram can’t be held in the first place. And if it’s a serious match, I doubt you could win by default,” Alus said.

As the three stood and talked, they felt the presence of someone behind them. Loki and Tesfia turned around, surprised, and Alus glanced at the person in question.

“Oh dear, when did you return? I can’t say that I appreciate a group of students gathered after curfew having a secret talk.”

“What’s this, the principal herself on patrol? How zealous,” Alus said dryly.

Witch Sisty, the principal of the Second Magical Institute, only smiled. Not many could bear the shadows of night as gracefully as she did. “Yes, well, I am both principal and educator. It’s part of my responsibility to keep my eye on delinquent students and give them guidance.”

From her words, Alus wondered if Sisty had been the observer from before. Keep your eye on them, is it? It certainly feels like she appeared with perfect timing... No, maybe I’m overthinking it. 

“Now, why are you looking at me like that, Alus? Did you miss me when you were away from the Institute? It’s okay, I can spoil you a little,” Sisty said. She closed one eye in an alluring fashion and folded her arms, before raising them to push up her breasts.

Alus would normally give her a cold stare for pulling such a prank at her age, but this time he just looked at her.

“Wait, what? What’s going on?” Of course, Sisty had meant it as a joke. Alus seemed more serious than she’d expected, so she awkwardly laughed and scratched her cheek.

Judging from her reaction, it was unlikely that she had been their observer. Alus sighed. “I understand. Then let me ask just one thing. Were you watching us just now?”

“Huh? Yes, well, I happened to see you all gathered here.”

“So it wasn’t you...”

“Indeed,” Loki said. And Tesfia nodded, and added, “So it seems.”

Sisty frowned, feeling left out of the group. “What are you talking about? How rude! Don’t you know that you should be a little more considerate of your elders, Alus? I’m only patrolling at night like this for the safety of the students because it’s been dangerous lately!”

“Good work, then.” Alus’s blunt words were hardly consoling. Instead, they had the opposite effect.

“Besides, haven’t I been very cooperative with you this time, meaning ignoring your sudden absence? I have to consider my own position. If you don’t understand that, then I wouldn’t mind explaining everything very slowly to you, Ms. Loki, and Ms. Tesfia in my office!”

Hearing that, Tesfia immediately apologized to Sisty. “I-I’m sorry. I just got back from my home, s-so I have to hurry back to the dorm!” She wanted to avoid getting a good scolding by a former Single Digit Magicmaster that she respected.

That’s when a dumbfounded Loki intervened. “Ms. Tesfia, I don’t think that’s what she’s talking about. Isn’t that right, Principal? Well, please calm down, I will explain it properly later.”

A frowning, pouting Sisty finally backed down. “You will? Then that’s fine. But what happened to make you take me for some Peeping Tom?”

“Apparently, Sir Alus was watched by someone the entire way back from the Fable estate. We were talking about who it could have been when you happened to appear.”

“I see. But couldn’t you sense it as well, Ms. Loki?”

Loki sadly shook her head. “No. I never noticed it until Sir Alus brought it up.”

“I told her not to use detection magic to prevent them from realizing that we’d sensed them. Well, something violent happened at the Fable family estate, so I was on guard.”

Sisty seemed to understand. “All right. But I don’t like the idea of something so dangerous. I’m glad nobody’s hurt, but I think I need to hear the details. I also have something else I’d like to talk with you about, Alus.”

She apologized to Loki and Tesfia, but wouldn’t take no for an answer. The two girls looked to Alus, who nodded, and then they left for the laboratory, leaving Alus and Sisty alone in the dark night.

“So, to what do I owe this honor?”

“Why don’t we take a walk.” Without another word, Sisty began to walk in the opposite direction from the laboratory.

After a few minutes, she sat down on a bench and offered Alus the seat next to her. “Say, Alus. I treat all of the students in this institute as my children. They are all young fledglings that will eventually leave the nest. But no matter how precious they are, if they are harmful to this institute, that’s a different story.” She wore a thin smile and her words were chilling.

Alus wasn’t so insensitive as to make fun of Sisty here. He listened carefully in order to understand her intentions. “I don’t think I’m following, but...are you talking about me?”

Sisty didn’t answer directly. Instead, she smiled. “Well, you are certainly a problem child. But Lettie was quite the problem child herself in the past. She had no problem with giving me a hard time.” She looked almost nostalgic as she said this.

So who was she referring to as harmful? 

“From now on, I won’t think of you as a student, but as the Institute’s—as my—ally.”

“You just rephrased that like it was nothing. So I’m your ally. Then who’s the enemy?”

Sisty paused for effect, then said, “If I were to say... The Governor-General.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes, of course.” Sisty’s expression was calm. “You might not know, but you are in the center of this commotion. Even now, you’re getting embroiled in Berwick’s gamble and scheming.”

“Is that so? Sure, the Governor-General does a lot of work behind the scenes, but I’m not seeing where this is going. I doubt he can control what the Womruinas do.”

“Who said anything about the Womruinas? They’re a problem in their own right, but they’re not the main problem I’m talking about. I’ve been doing a lot of research into this. The really bad situation might already be in motion.”

“This doesn’t sound like the kind of conversation to have outdoors. But what exactly are you wary of?”

“Aferka. I’m sure I don’t need to say anything more.”

Alus stared at Sisty, acting calm by reflex. He’d heard that name quite a bit in the past few days. From what Selva had told him, it had been reborn as a different organization. But that also meant that the former assassination squad still existed.

He also recalled the relationship between Aferka and the ruler. While it wasn’t as tight as before, they were still connected by a thread that couldn’t be cut. So the principal might be getting pressured as well. Not only did the Institute have a deep connection to the military, since it was a place for training Magicmasters, but it also had strong ties to Alpha as a nation.

Then Sisty asked an unexpected question. “Alus, about Ms. Lilisha... This might sound like a strange question, but is Lilisha Ron de Rimfuge Frusevan a useful person to you? Like I said before, as the principal I have a responsibility to keep my students safe. But if she crosses a certain line, no matter who she is, I won’t show any mercy to someone who threatens this Institute.”

“She was only sent to keep an eye on me. With Loki becoming my partner, she’s pretty much her replacement, or rather, an attempt to keep up appearances.”

“On the surface, at least,” Sisty said vaguely.

Her intentions were still unclear. Alus wondered why she would bring up Lilisha now, but he was starting to get the picture. The truth might be just what he imagined. In order to confirm it, he threw a frank question Sisty’s way. “And under the surface?”

“Ms. Lilisha is a member of Aferka. She was brought in by the military in the hopes that she would become the reins to keep the Frusevans—who control Aferka—in check.”

Alus had more or less understood that Lilisha was connected to Aferka based on her reaction during their negotiations with Aile. That she was an Aferka member was well within expectations.

“But it’s not working very well. I don’t know how much you know, but Aferka is practically an independent organization at this point. However, they still have the fangs of an executive unit, so right now they’re like a bloodthirsty beast on the loose, and their targets are arbitrarily decided by the current leader.”

“And the military and nobles won’t tolerate it.” Alus’s slight surprise was immediately calmed as he recalled his memories.

Lilisha had once told Tesfia that the Rimfuge family was a little different from other nobles, and the Frusevans in particular. Not to mention that the man who had appeared at the Fable estate was probably an Aferka member, and not from the past organization, but the present one. His goal had been to capture or eliminate the attacker, but that alone wasn’t enough to see them as being out of control.

“I’m not so sure,” Sisty said. “Aferka is quite an influential force now, and is considered a risk to Alpha. If Ms. Lilisha were to put the wishes of her family above Berwick’s expectation for her to keep the organization under control in the future...”

I see. Alus raised an eyebrow, and Sisty’s eyes narrowed as she stared at him, as if she was urgently seeking his answer. If the principal determines that Lilisha is dangerous...then what’s going to change? The answer wouldn’t just affect Alus but Tesfia as well. If Lilisha was removed from the Institute, it might affect the balance of power between the Fables and the Womruinas in the upcoming Tenbram, meaning that cutting the connection with her now wouldn’t be very beneficial.

But even if she was thrown out of the Institute, her promise would still be alive. Her decision to be the judge for the Tenbram would likely carry a lot of weight in the noble world, so she wouldn’t be able to step down due to her personal feelings. And with Alus’s power, he could pressure her to keep her promise, even if he didn’t want to go that far.

His brain ran at full speed trying to figure out the right solution. He pondered how to answer the question of whether Lilisha was valuable to him. In total, it took him less than a split second to reach his conclusion. “I suppose it’s neither.”

“...?” Sisty looked taken aback.

“To be honest, it doesn’t matter,” Alus continued. “If she wants to observe me, she can do it as much as she pleases. And if not, that would be fine too.”

“A logical decision. I know it’s not becoming of a principal to say this, but I’m glad that you’re not being swayed by emotions.” Sisty’s own face was expressionless and had a coldness to it that blended in with the darkness.

“So what are you going to do?”

“I won’t do anything. That’s a decision in itself. Aferka was involved in the Fable family incident, right?”

“Where did you hear that?” Alus found it hard to believe that the Fables would give out information that easily, so how did she find out about it? Considering that and her well-timed appearance just now, Sisty was again a prime suspect for being the mysterious observer that had watched him on the way back from the Fable estate.

“You need to become better at covering your reactions. You’re very easy to read right now. I don’t even have to go out of my way to observe you, as it takes one to know one. At any rate, you’re not planning on lending Ms. Lilisha a hand, are you? I’d think that would be the right decision.”

Alus was a little shaken, as he’d been taken in by Sisty’s coaxing. He used his military training to ignore it. Just as always, making use of Sisty was one thing...but even if he didn’t, nothing would change, so he kept a cool head. “I don’t want to waste any effort, regardless of what happens to her. What about you?”

“I feel like I’m being brushed off, though,” Sisty complained, feigning ignorance. But she understood that it was the bare minimum of effort that was required.

During the campus festival, she’d helped to cover up information on Elise when she’d barged in. If Elise’s past were to be revealed, it would shake the foundation of Berwick’s position. Having been in the military, Sisty could easily guess what would happen next.

“But why did you ask what I thought? Were you thinking of lending a hand, depending on my answer?”

“That’s not possible,” Sisty replied firmly. “It’s not that I won’t help, but I can’t. However, I can choose what information to give you.”

“There’s still more then... Well, even if you don’t tell me, I could just ask the Governor-General or someone else.” Alus saw a sly, satisfied smile appear on Sisty’s face. “You mean that’s just what he wants?”

Sisty didn’t say anything, but held up two fingers and then bent them down. “Do you perhaps want to save both of them? If you contact the Governor-General, that possibility will disappear. Like I said, this is the Governor-General’s gamble. It’s a gamble because it’s unlikely that everything will work out perfectly. Which is why, regardless of what the outcome is, it will be within his expectations and hurt him as little as possible. But that might not be the case for you.”

The way Berwick was being made to look like the sole bad guy was so that the other person involved—who was coming from a different perspective—wouldn’t be noticed if something went wrong. If Berwick was the only one who got on his bad side, Alus would just have to call in his old debts. Sisty’s self-interest, while overly naive, had led her to take this action. “It sounds like you’re pressing the point. So let me ask. Are you telling me to lend Lilisha a hand?”

“I won’t go that far. I can’t be responsible for what she does outside of the Institute. I’m sure you can tell since Berwick’s already gotten you involved, but we’re at a crossroads.”

In other words...a point of choice. Alus felt that Sisty was giving Berwick too much credit, but then again, it did sound like something he could do. “And you’re saying that he considered all of that when he gave Lilisha the mission to keep watch over me?”

Sisty’s lips curled up, and Alus took that as affirmation. It appeared that Lilisha hadn’t been Berwick’s choice because she and Alus were around the same age. Their similar ages were only a coincidence. However, Berwick had taken advantage of that coincidence to plan everything out.

Even if that was the case, and everything was proceeding as Berwick had planned, Alus wouldn’t go back on his word. He had his hands full and had just gotten into it with the Womruina family. Any more was too much to bear, even for him.

If he was on his own, he could just brush off the falling embers and ignore anything trivial. That was the rule he’d lived by...up until now, anyways. But that line he’d drawn was starting to break down.

It’s a gradual erosion... Alus clicked his tongue in his mind. It had started coming undone when he chose to help Tesfia. He could come up with excuses and the like, but in the end they all contradicted each other. With enough leaks, the dam would eventually burst. There must have been a structural weakness from the start.

“So what are you going to do? Stick your neck out before it’s too late? He’ll have expected that too.”

Alus sighed. “Like I said, I don’t care. But I’ll ask you anyway. What do you mean by too late?” He stared at Sisty’s face, trying to get a read on her.

“It might already be too late to choose, so maybe I’ll tell you,” Sisty said, putting on a few airs as she gazed into the distance. There was no longer any need for considerate and deliberate leading of the conversation. Now that the prey had stepped into the trigger zone, all that was left was the final push, so she wouldn’t need to use evasive words. Greatest Magicmaster or not, the boy before her had only recently come to the Institute, and he was anguishing over such a trivial matter...and all because he had little experience in dealing with other people. So Sisty would need to guide him.

Above all, there was only one choice she wanted him to make. She decided to tell him everything she’d just learned from her caring old teacher. “Ms. Lilisha is not in her dorm room now, due to circumstances concerning her family’s job for her. She’s probably headed for the Fable family estate as a member of Aferka. I’m sure that’s all you need to know. Now, I want you to think about this. It’s something only you can do. You understand what will happen if Ms. Lilisha clashes with the Fable family...don’t you?”

Hearing that, the light of emotion disappeared from Alus’s eyes.

Sisty simply stared at him, ready to accept whatever decision he made. She also had a general idea of what his answer would be. But if possible, she hoped that he would betray her expectations.

“What benefit would be in it for me? Nobody can really put me at a disadvantage. Even with the Womruinas, I can just eliminate everyone in the end.”

Sisty’s shoulders slumped at his monotone voice. Indeed, nobody could violate Alus’s freedom. He didn’t need anyone’s patronage to walk freely anywhere in the world.

Right now, he was just tagging along with ordinary people trapped in the mundane world. She’d hoped that his life here had provoked some kind of change...but that hope had been for nothing. While there’d been some change, she’d misjudged the root of the problem. Neither she nor Berwick had truly understood the darkness deep down inside of him.

“I see.” That was all that Sisty could manage. Her disappointment ran deep. Even though Alus hadn’t made the decision she’d hoped he would make, no one could say that it was wrong. She couldn’t blame him for her hope that his answer would’ve been different.

“Is that all?”

“Yes, but can I ask one last thing?”

Alus said nothing, so Sisty continued. “I was hoping that you would help Ms. Lilisha. Of course, I’d like to repay the Fable family, but only you can do that. There is something, however, that is even more important. Are you all right with this? I thought you swore to never let anything important be taken away from you. Will you let the tragedy of the massive invasion repeat itself?” Sisty faced the overly powerful student without fear, just as she used to when she would put her hand on his head when he was a boy. He’d grown a lot since then, but his body was still not quite that of an adult. She could still manage to put her hand on his head.

“Are you telling me to save everything?”

“No, but at least what you can reach. Your hands should still be able to reach her. You’re also the teacher of those girls. Wouldn’t showing your cool side to them be worth it?”

“Not really. I’ve never once called myself a teacher,” Alus replied. His eyes were cold.

Sisty stared back at him.

In the midst of the dark veil of night...their eyes silently clashed.