Chapter 115 - What's Wrong with You...? (2)

"... I believe you have the wrong idea."

"Pardon? About what...?"

Milan's bewildered question made Alon's head spin. To be honest, he had no idea where to begin picking apart that absurd, baseless rumor.

The claim that Penia was in love with Marquis Pallatio? Or that Tower Master Selaim Micardo had approved a relationship between his deputy, Penia, and Alon?

'No, isn't it strange in the first place for a tower master to... approve or disapprove of a relationship?'

The thought crossed his mind, but he soon found himself accepting the logic. Though they shared no blood, Selaim Micardo was practically a parent to Penia and her brother Pelin. He was the one who had taught the two orphans magic.

In other words, Selaim had reason to meddle in Penia's relationships... No, that wasn't important right now. Alon opened his mouth to set the record straight.

"First of all... this is all a misunderstanding."

"A misunderstanding?"

"Yes. Penia Kraisinne has no feelings for me, and I have never received the Blue Magic Tower master's permission to pursue a relationship with her."

"Uh... Is that so?"

"Yes."

Despite Alon's firm nod, Milan voiced his doubts.

"But I heard that the Blue Magic Tower master specifically said so...?"

Wasn't it the Blue Magic Tower master himself who had supposedly given his approval?

"Some misunderstanding must have led to the story spreading."

"Is... that so?"

"Yes. I did see the Blue Magic Tower master recently, but we never discussed anything of the sort."

There had clearly been some misunderstanding.

"Hmm... All right, then."

At his repeated denials, Milan finally backed down.

"I'll be on my way, then. I have something to attend to."

"Oh, of course. I'll see you another time."

"Indeed."

They exchanged brief farewells and parted.

"... What? I'm sure that's what I heard—"

The words drifted to Alon on the breeze, but he paid them no mind.

"It seems that rumor is still going around in magical circles."

Evan, too, sounded curious as he brought it up.

"Apparently... Don't baseless rumors usually die out fairly quickly?"

"Usually, yes."

"... I don't understand why this one is spreading again in such a strange way."

"Still, now that you've explained it's a misunderstanding, my lord, shouldn't it start dying down?"

"If that were the case, it would have died down long ago. I already explained to the other nobles that it was a misunderstanding."

'Has Penia not been setting people straight?'

Alon was puzzled. Given Penia Kraisinne's temperament, she would surely have flown into a rage the moment such a rumor surfaced and tried to beat its originator to death.

After pondering it briefly, he dismissed the matter. It was a little uncomfortable, but a rumor was only a rumor in the end. There was no way Penia wouldn't deny it, so he would soon be free of the gossip. ... It was simply a nuisance to go around diligently clearing up everyone's misunderstandings.

'It's not as though I can gather all the mages and make an announcement just to refute one silly rumor.'

As Alon was thinking this, Evan spoke.

"... Then couldn't the Blue Magic Tower master really have done something?"

"The Blue Magic Tower master?"

"Yes. That rumor first appeared quite a while ago, so it's strange for it to flare up again now."

Evan offered his theory.

Alon recalled his meeting with Selaim Micardo.

'I don't think we ever discussed anything related to that... Though I did get the odd feeling he was plotting something.'

He certainly had been smiling suspiciously brightly.

'... I'll have to ask him when I see him this time.'

After carefully recalling their conversation piece by piece, Alon gave a slight shrug. Frankly, meeting Heinkel was far more important to him right now.

"Let's look into this later and head upstairs first."

He promptly made his way to his assigned room.

####

The library on the Central Tower's thirty-eighth floor had never attracted many visitors. More precisely, it was somewhere mages almost never came.

There was only one reason they stayed away, despite it being a library—a place that ought to appeal to mages who loved inquiry and research. They had an alternative. Every book here was available in the reading room on the twentieth floor as a clean copy rather than an aged original.

In other words, the Central Tower's library chiefly owed its continued existence to its historical significance: it had been established when the tower was first built.

One woman had dwelled here for so long that she could no longer remember how many years it had been. Heinkel, whom mages called the Chalice of the Beginning and regarded as their idol, rather liked this state of affairs. Before becoming a spirit and afterward alike, she had never cared much for noise.

Of course, that didn't mean she disliked people themselves. She was still a person with a perfectly sound mind, and there were days when she wanted to see someone else. On those occasions, she amused herself by roaming the magic tower and watching the mages.

If she found a mage she rather liked, she would subtly lure them into the library, talk with them about various things, and offer some help. ... Though it wasn't so much the satisfaction of helping that she wanted as the sense of superiority she felt when, after receiving her knowledge, they gazed at her with worship in their eyes.

At any rate, all things considered, a leisurely life of reading alone in an empty library wasn't bad at all.

"I pay my respects to Heinkel, the Chalice of the Beginning."

["... Yes."]

... At least, it hadn't been until a moment ago.

['Why the hell is this guy here again?!']

Looking at the man with his head deeply bowed, Heinkel barely managed to swallow the scream that almost escaped her. He was someone she truly did not want to see.

["... What brings you to see me?"]

Heinkel gave an awkward smile.

Anyone familiar with her eccentric temperament would have fallen over in shock or burst out laughing at the sight. Yet there was a reason she had no choice but to treat the man before her kindly.

['What on earth is this guy, to have something like that...!']

It was because “that thing” stood behind Marquis Pallatio. Something profoundly unnerving that she must never acknowledge—and yet must never ignore.

Granted, at this second meeting—or, more precisely, now that she had calmly assessed the situation—Heinkel had realized that the thing behind him wasn't attached to him by his own intent. Even so, the fact that she had to be kind to Alon remained unchanged.

The being behind him could casually erase Heinkel's very existence, even at this moment. And she was aware that, in some way, it took an interest in the man before her.

"... Forgive my presumption, but I've come to ask a favor."

["... A favor?"]

"Yes. I'm having difficulty using the item you gave me, Lady Heinkel."

She wanted to retort that he hadn't received it—he'd taken it from her! But she kept smiling and answered kindly.

["Could you show me?"]

"Certainly."

["Is there anything else you want to ask?"]

"Well, if at all possible, I would like to receive some instruction in magic. Would that be possible? I would, of course, compensate you."

Even though Heinkel intended to be as accommodating as possible, this was one request she couldn't grant. Whatever anyone might say, she valued her life above all else, and remaining in the same place as a being capable of taking it was deeply uncomfortable. And so she replied:

["I'm afraid that might be difficult."]

"... May I ask why?"

["That's because—"]

Heinkel had been about to explain without hesitation, but abruptly stopped mid-sentence. The eye that had been staring only at Alon until a moment ago, hidden in a space on the other side of reality that only someone of Heinkel's caliber could properly perceive, suddenly swiveled to look at her. As though it intended to inspect the answer she was about to give.

["—"]

"?"

Alon tilted his head slightly as he watched Heinkel freeze with her mouth open. Heinkel, however, broke into a cold sweat as she perceived the eye staring fixedly at her from that hidden space without doing anything else.

["... Actually, I might be able to."]

"Is... that so?"

["Yes, I can. Yes, of course I can."]

"Thank you."

["N-no, don't mention it. Now that I think about it, it isn't difficult at all."]

She hastily changed her answer.

Only then did she feel the eye within the hidden space conceal its oppressive presence once more.

['Aaaaaaah!!!! Why—! Why—!! Why is this happening to meeee—!']

She wanted to cry.

Meanwhile, Alon watched her awkward smile, unaware of the inner howl it concealed.

'Huh, she's different from how she was in the game—much nicer than I expected...? What's going on?'

He was puzzled by how much more readily she had accepted his request than he'd expected.

'Did something happen to make her that way in the game? Was she originally supposed to be nice?'

Indeed, judging by her appearance alone, she could practically pass for a young girl, aside from the enormous mage's hat on her head.

'Right. She looks so young and delicate. Being that vicious really doesn't suit her.'

Utterly ignorant of Heinkel's true feelings, he was coming to the conclusion that something must happen to her after this point to change her personality—the game simply hadn't explained it.

['I wanna run awaaay. I really do...']

Heinkel quietly whined to herself, struggling to hide her urge to cry.

####

Meanwhile, on the Central Tower's top floor:

"So you want me to decipher this?"

"That's right."

Two men were there. One was Parkline Agulus, the red-haired, red-eyed master of the Red Magic Tower and an eighth-tier mage. The other was Selaim Micardo, who likewise held the position of tower master.

"Why should I?"

Parkline frowned at Selaim's relaxed grin.

"Because you're the only one who can decipher an ancient language like this."

"And why should I do you a favor?"

"Because we're friends?"

Parkline's face twisted into a fierce scowl.

"Friends, my ass! I don't recall anything of the sort!"

"But you're here with me right now."

"I came because you said you'd pay for the artifact you borrowed last time!!!"

"Did I?"

"I want to strangle you."

Parkline clenched his fist as though his hands were positively itching to do it. Regardless, Selaim remained as relaxed as ever.

"Anyway, come on. Do me this favor. It isn't particularly difficult for you, is it? You have an artifact for it, too."

"Tsk."

"And this time, I'll make sure to give you the payment I promised."

Parkline eyed him with clear displeasure.

"You'd better keep that promise."

Then he turned his attention to the parchment.

HUM!

As traces of mana began scattering around Parkline, a round artifact resembling an eyeball floated out of his pocket and into the air.

It began reading the characters on the parchment as though scanning them. After remaining silent for a while, Parkline slowly spoke.

"... I've finished deciphering it."

"What does it say?"

There was a slight urgency in Selaim's voice.

Parkline answered,

"It says, 'I leave my possessions to the half-formed Magus who never compromised to the end, who has not forgotten the phrases...?' It doesn't seem to contain any great magical secret, as you were secretly hoping."

Knowing that Selaim had recently been combing through ruins in search of a clue to reaching the ninth tier, Parkline turned to him with a faintly mocking smile. But he immediately faltered. Selaim, who had been grinning until a moment ago, was now deep in thought about something.

"...?"

Parkline was bewildered.

All the while, the events in the cavern were flashing through Selaim's mind. Marquis Pallatio opening the Hermit's Hideout with effortless ease. The eyes behind him that had inspired both fear and a desire to investigate. And the marquis taking the item as soon as he entered the hideout, then gazing at the letter beneath it for about a minute.

And then:

'I leave my possessions to the half-formed Magus who never compromised to the end, who has not forgotten the phrases...?'

Recalling Parkline's interpretation of the parchment as well, Selaim reached a conclusion in his mind.

'... Marquis Pallatio is—a Magus?'