Chapter 248
Chapter 248
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 248
Chapter Title: Return from Business Trip (2)
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Kevin's first request was for the fictional version.
It was because he needed to report to the Magic Tower right away.
Following Kevin's suggestion, Oliver began with the story he'd fabricated with Willes.
How he'd met "Fixer Will" before heading to their destination, Mountain Phase; how they'd climbed Mountain Phase; what they'd investigated along the way; and most importantly, everything that had happened at the Chimera Lab.
Since it was mostly grounded in facts, it flowed naturally without any awkward moments. Kevin nodded calmly, signaling no issues as he listened.
"Batori?"
Kevin interrupted midway through the explanation.
"Yes. Do you know her?"
"I've never met her, but I've heard the name. Back during my days as a military mage."
"I see?"
Oliver echoed in surprise.
A military mage was, as the title suggested, a mage attached to the military. He'd assumed they only handled war and combat matters.
As if reading his thoughts, Kevin elaborated.
"Military mages get deployed sometimes to capture criminals too dangerous for regular police forces. High-risk grade criminals, for instance."
High-risk grade criminals meant the worst offenders branded as evil across the world.
Immortal Puppet, Human Flesh Chef, Eternal Child Fan, Pied Piper Man—these were prime examples.
Thinking of them, Oliver nodded in understanding. They were far beyond what ordinary police could handle, so military mages made perfect sense.
"Then, was Lady Batori a high-risk grade criminal too?"
"By my standards, she was risk-grade, a step below."
"Risk-grade... Could I ask what the criteria are?"
"Well, that's not my department, so I wouldn't know. Besides, Batori and her family operate in the central continent, so I didn't look too closely. But saying it out loud now, it's odd. Why would a black mage from the continent cross the sea to Mountain Phase?"
Kevin eyed Oliver, demanding an answer.
"Shall I explain it as fiction? Or nonfiction?"
Sensing the tense atmosphere, Kevin replied.
"Nonfiction, please."
At Kevin's request, Oliver recounted exactly what he'd heard at the Chimera Lab.
The secret pact between the Life School and Batori's Family—and the reason for the raid.
Kevin listened to it all, surprised yet convinced.
"Now I get why the Life School kicked up such a fuss. It's more than just their pride taking a hit from a black mage ransacking their lab."
Oliver recalled the Life School mage who'd come hunting for him the moment he returned to the Magic Tower, and the students murmuring as they stared. He asked,
"Professor. Mind if I ask something? While I was out on the job, did anything happen? The Life School mage aside, the students seem all riled up."
Kevin's expression turned faintly incredulous at the question.
"Well... You sent word to your schools about what went down at each lab while wrapping up and heading back. That's how I heard."
"I see. And?"
"...It was all verbal, so details varied a bit. But the core story was the same. Some black mage attacked the Life School's lab, hid in disguise for nearly a month, and you plus your hired fixer took them down alone."
"Yes, that's the facts... So?"
"So what? That's plenty impressive on its own."
Kevin said gravely.
"No matter their notoriety, the Magic Tower fundamentally looks down on black mages. Yet one not only stormed and seized a Life School outpost but disguised herself there for nearly a month. And neither the Life School nor the Magic Tower noticed for almost that entire time."
"If she wore living skin complete with fingerprints and read memories from blood, it seems feasible enough."
"So you're saying it isn't impressive?"
"No, not at all. Lady Batori was plenty impressive."
"Exactly. And you handled that impressive black mage with just a fixer—no Magic Tower backup. That's major merit. Things could've spiraled into far worse damage. Maybe even damaged the Tower's reputation."
"Ah, yes. Got it... Thanks for the praise."
Kevin stared at the nonchalant Oliver, studying him intently.
What an odd fellow.
Somehow, he paid keen attention to others and judged them generously—yet was bizarrely detached from himself.
His obliviousness to his own talents and achievements was a perfect case in point.
He'd seen plenty trying to stand out in the Magic Tower by crafting personas, but Oliver was the real deal. Utterly genuine, no artifice or agenda.
Had he not mentioned the merits, Oliver probably never would've acknowledged them.
Kevin wondered if "weird personality" fully explained it.
"...Could this cause trouble?"
"Huh?"
"Standing out in the Magic Tower doesn't seem ideal for me. Especially not."
"Fair point."
"If I lay low or take a short vacation, will it blow over?"
"Honestly, no clue."
"Pardon?"
"If your story's true, the Life School will keep watching you. You might know their dirty laundry. And you do."
"Then what should I do?"
"We'll figure it out step by step. Expect a cooperation writ to drag you in for questioning. Prep based on your report. With me."
"Ah, thank you. That's kind of you."
"It's my job anyway... So what happened to Batori?"
Kevin asked about the missing piece.
"The report will say the fixer wounded her and she fled. Evidence via the blood pool."
"......And the nonfiction version?"
"I killed her."
"...Killed?"
"Yes."
"The risk-grade criminal feuding with the Human Flesh Chef?"
"Yes... Her severed limbs and head are in my magic bag right now. Want to see?"
Suspecting disbelief, Oliver offered politely. Kevin waved him off.
"No need... But how? Her regeneration was supposed to be insane."
"Made a sword from emotions? Slashed her, and she died."
Kevin's brow furrowed deeper at Oliver's clipped answer.
The explanations grew ever more surreal, harder to grasp.
To clear his head, Kevin switched topics.
"Different question. Not huge, but key: exactly who was your fixer? The Life School might grill you on it. He could know their secrets too."
"A fixer from the Kell Community. Goes by Will."
"Got it... Real identity?"
"Leader of the Kell Free Independence Army, Mr. Willes."
"...What?"
"Leader of the Kell Free Independence Army, Willes. Didn't I mention? ...Ah, no."
In the staff room across from Kevin's professor's lab.
Oliver was there writing his report.
Normally he'd rest a day before drafting it the next, but given the incident's gravity and more to tell Kevin, he stayed late to pen the Mountain Phase disappearance report.
Kindly, before class, Kevin had provided the template and key points to watch, making it straightforward.
Just time-intensive from the word count; otherwise easy.
All he had to do was copy the prepped story with Willes into the form.
"...There. Done."
Oliver finished with neat, dignified handwriting.
Two reports in total.
A summary condensing the essentials, and a detailed one with full accounts.
The starkest difference lay in the Chimera Lab under Life School—i.e., the Batori Family encounter—which accounted for most of the thickness gap.
The detailed version chronicled suspected motives for Batori Family's Life School raid, how they'd fooled the school and Tower, their conversations, battle details—all meticulously.
Before handing it to Kevin, Oliver double-checked for issues. None.
Once Kevin returned from class to review it, he'd just continue the rest. Urgent business done.
Like how he'd teamed up with Willes, a Kell Free Independence Army leader—and why he trusted him.
'Well, if Willes leaks this, the Magic Tower's rep tanks. I'd be in hot water, and Professor Kevin, who sent me as proxy, too...'
If it happened, catastrophe. But Oliver somehow wasn't worried.
Willes had vowed silence to the end.
Human nature shifts with time, sure—but Willes didn't strike him as the type to break it lightly.
"Though it'd be amusing if he did."
Oliver muttered, sliding the finished reports aside carefully and pulling out his notebook.
He'd kept it since starting at the Magic Tower: professor's assistant duties, Kevin's schedule, etc.
Personal to-dos sometimes went in the back. Like now.
"Hmm... So much to tackle."
Oliver scribbled tasks, murmuring as he went.
[Identify notebook seized from Batori]
[Research Life School's improved human experiments]
[Meat hammer that absorbed massive Batori blood. Show original creator Ivan Bremner]
[Puppet-craft Batori and female black mage corpses]—and more.
"And dig into the Tick-Tock Apocalypse too..."
Oliver jotted [Tick-Tock Apocalypse] at the bottom.
The ancient doomsday theory from Ivan Bremner.
He'd ended his vacation early to ask about it. In hindsight, he'd taken an epic detour from his goal. Not that he minded.
"Learned tons of fun stuff thanks to it... After wrapping with Professor Kevin, ask if there's a way to reach the elder."
Oliver muttered to himself, then neatly closed the notebook.
Tasks listed, he truly had nothing left.
Normally he'd assist Kevin or audit a lecture, but Kevin had urged minimal contact with others—so even that was off-limits.
Thus, Oliver opted for the rational choice: clean the staff room.
Dust had piled up after days away.
He fetched corpse-cleaning tools from the Black Market in his magic bag. Right then—
Knock-knock.
Oliver peered through the door with a black mage's sight. Someone he knew.
"Yareli?"
He opened up, greeting the woman there.
Silver curls, thick glasses—Yareli stood with a faintly uncomfortable air.
"...Hello, Xenon."
"Yes, hello."
"........."
"........."
Silence stretched. Oliver broke it.
"...If you're after the professor, he's out. Need to leave a message? I'll pass it on."
He pulled notebook and pen from his pocket. Yareli hesitated, then shook her head.
"No, it's you I came to see. Not the professor."
"Me?"
"Yes. To apologize."
"Apologize for what?"
"I think I was rude last time, speaking out of turn."
Oliver cocked his head.
"Uh... Sorry, what did I say wrong?"
"...At the library. Told you to do your job right. Said if you slack off young, you won't even have a bed in old age."
Ah... It clicked.
"No, you were spot on. Gotta do the work properly."
"No. I'm sorry. I misjudged you, Xenon. Heard the Mountain Phase case was bad—and you handled it solo?"
"Precisely, my fixer did it all alone."
"And the train thing too."
"Train?"
"Yes. Took down the bandits raiding the train and helped folks. Right?"
Oliver paused, recalling.
"Hmm... Ah, yeah. Kinda happened."
"Impressive. Magic Tower's rep soared thanks to you. As a fellow student, thank you."
Yareli apologized and thanked—that was it. Purely that.
Catching Oliver off guard, he fumbled for words.
"Uh... No thanks needed. Just sorta happened... That's all?"
"Yes. All of it."
"Right, got it... Wasn't apology-worthy anyway, but thanks. I didn't take it to heart—don't sweat it."
Done and dusted.
Oliver bid farewell, shut the door softly. Yareli nodded awkwardly.
"That was the cringiest man-woman chat I've witnessed."
The door clicked shut. A voice echoed from the supposedly empty staff room—familiar one.
Oliver turned. There sat Merlin at the desk, reading the report.