How a Wizard Survives (21)
How a Wizard Survives (21)
Once outside the palace, Reinhardt let his anger show freely.
His displeasure with the King's decision was plain. Glaring at the crowds in the street, he muttered irritably.
"Reshutal has too many people."
"I-is that so? It's certainly so crowded that inspections are difficult."
When I tried to go along with him, Katrina shook her head as if that wasn't what he meant.
Reinhardt murmured in a deeply somber voice.
"When there are too many people, the value of a single life drops accordingly. If this had happened in the North, the festival would have been postponed without question."
"Ah..."
Seeing this man grumble like that was enough to make me uneasy too.
There was no proof an incident would happen during the festival, but...
He held his conviction with unshakable certainty.
"Then what should..."
"We do what we can. Katrina, try to salvage whatever you can from the scene. I'll request reinforcements from the other branches."
"Understood, Commander."
We parted ways with Reinhardt and returned to the scene.
The Inquisitors had already questioned the mage's servants with practiced efficiency, but they hadn't turned up anything useful.
No matter how stupid the man was, he wouldn't have revealed his secrets to his employees.
"We'll proceed by focusing the investigation on his known contacts first..."
"Start by rechecking anyone who was reported dead or missing. Mages often handle things that way."
"Yes, Captain."
We kept searching the mansion straight through the evening without eating...
Then a swarm of soldiers poured in and lined up in rows across the mansion's courtyard.
I checked their uniforms: Reshutal City Guard.
I assumed the King had sent them to assist the investigation, but Katrina and the Holy Knights took it entirely differently.
"So he's telling us not to stir up trouble right before the festival? Carefree bastards."
"Are you serious? Not only can't they help..."
"No need to concern ourselves with their sort. Everyone, step it up."
The all-night investigation continued into the next day.
The festival was now only two days away.
Time was running dangerously short.
While pushing the investigation as hard as we could within the limited window, Katrina murmured anxiously.
"My uncle's words have merit. We did turn up several suspicious Magic Catalysts..."
"And the mage killed himself without any hesitation."
According to my teacher's explanation, dying and becoming a demon's slave is never a pleasant prospect for a contractor.
It makes sense. If it were otherwise, the world would be overflowing with mages.
In other words, most mages fear their own deaths above all else.
There are even cases of Permanent Sealing Targets who surrendered themselves to the Inquisition before they died!
"It means this bastard knew a secret we aren't supposed to learn."
With his link to his 'teacher' severed, the investigation had reached a dead end.
Just as Katrina found herself trapped in a deadlock, someone arrived from the Inquisition branch.
"Captain. The Commander is ordering you to stand down and rest..."
"...Right, we have escort duty on the day of the festival. Everyone, withdraw!"
As soon as the withdrawal order came down, the Inquisitors gathered the evidence and streamed out of the mansion.
I was dismissed on the spot rather than sent back to the branch, and could only hope my teacher had returned by now.
Ulysses, the Wizard of Change, might know something about this.
But suddenly, Katrina caught me as I was leaving.
"Jaeger, are you free tomorrow? I know you're exhausted... but if possible, I'd like to sweep the streets the day before the festival."
"Will there at least be snacks?"
"Of course."
In other words, she was suggesting we hang out.
I grinned and nodded.
Tomorrow and the day after were holidays anyway.
"Then I'll come pick you up in the morning."
"Yes. Don't be late."
She gave her usual awkward reply and returned to the Inquisition branch.
After seeing her off, I hurried back to the smithy.
I opened the door with a mix of hope and worry, but to my disappointment, my teacher was not there.
Instead, Ash was waiting for me with a worried expression.
"It sounded a bit noisy outside... what happened?"
"Something went down. Is my teacher back?"
"Not yet."
"That's a problem. It seems other mages are plotting something unusual."
Unfortunately, Ash couldn't offer much help in this area.
If I sent her puppets out to gather information, it would risk exposing us as well, so that was not an option.
Nursing a drink alone, Ash let out a small complaint.
"That Ulysses... when is he even coming back..."
Ash seemed restless from her voluntary confinement.
Not that she was exactly idle.
Her workshop was almost always running except when she was eating, sleeping, or resting.
From what I could see, she was making more and more puppets... though I didn't know what she planned to use them all for.
I knew it was a bad idea, but I asked before I could think better of it.
"Um... Miss Ash, won't you go out during the festival too?"
"What?"
Ash flinched in surprise, as if she'd never expected me to make that suggestion.
In truth, I'd surprised myself, so her reaction was only natural.
But now that I'd started, I might as well see it through.
"You can just change your face with magic. That's what my teacher always does..."
"W-well, that's true."
"My teacher never outright forbade you from going out, did he?"
"Would Ulysses be that kind of person?"
Ash looked tempted. She let out a quiet hum of consideration...
But then she shook her head, apparently deciding against it.
"It's too dangerous. My greatest advantage is that there's no witness information on me at all. Even the Inquisition can't catch a mage they don't even know exists."
I was about to tell her I'd just come back from catching exactly that sort of mage today.
Ash looked at me and chuckled.
"Besides, I'm guessing you already have a prior engagement?"
"Ah..."
"Jaeger, you mustn't disappoint a lady. Let's go out together next time."
I was momentarily at a loss for words at such a mature response.
It felt a little late to realize it.
How wonderful it was to have respectable adults around.
Ulysses, Ash, even Reinhardt.
They were nothing like the village chief and his wife, who shaved down my already meager pay on any pretext and acted as if even the barn was too good for me.
I nodded sheepishly and decided to prepare some simple snacks for her.
Even this modest cooking was something Ulysses had taught me.
The next morning.
I arrived about an hour before our meeting time and ended up drawing a lot of glares that I hadn't earned.
As if using their day off as an excuse, the Holy Knights had dressed up unusually gentlemanly to chase women, and they were glaring daggers at me as they passed.
"I can't even begin to guess what that kid did..."
"I've been posted here three years, and I've never seen the lady act like that."
"Huh? Like what?"
I was protesting that I had done nothing wrong, but when Katrina appeared from inside, I froze as if I had spotted a mage.
There probably wasn't a single Inquisitor in the Reshutal Inquisition Branch who hadn't imagined Katrina Wizardvein, the branch's pride and the flower of the Holy Knight Order, in plain clothes.
But...
None of them could have ever imagined her in a dress.
Still, it wasn't the sort of dress people commonly think of, with wire threaded inside the skirt.
Her clothes were of a type far more suited for movement.
But it was true she looked much more feminine than usual.
As I stood there dumbfounded, Katrina approached in stiff, awkward little steps.
"I've kept you waiting."
"Not at all! I just got here too. Um... you look really lovely!"
"I-is that so? It's rather old; the style might have gone out of fashion ages ago..."
"If anyone says a word, I'll cut them down immediately."
"Stop talking nonsense and let's go, quickly."
Katrina pushed at my back, as if the stares of her colleagues were too much to bear.
Far off, I could see Reinhardt shaking his fist at me.
I pretended not to notice and guided her to the busier streets.
It was the day before the festival, but most of the visitors had already arrived, and the shops and stalls had set up early.
Katrina eyed a stall selling chicken skewers and quietly licked her lips.
It looked like she'd already reserved a restaurant, but both Katrina and I tend to eat well above average.
That was inevitable, given how active we were.
"Shall I buy a couple?"
When I asked with a grin, Katrina just nodded silently.
Her clothes might have changed, but her appetite clearly hadn't.
I had a vague memory of seeing the merchant grilling chicken at this stall a few times in the market.
He'd probably switched businesses temporarily, aiming to cash in on the festival.
"Two chicken skewers."
"Here you are."
The merchant was apparently so busy he handed over the skewers without even glancing at my face properly.
That was understandable; the marketplace was utter chaos.
I was about to leave with Katrina in a hurry...
But the skewers were a lot smaller.
Same price, but they couldn't even compare to what I usually ate.
I pondered on the spot for a moment, then resolved to handle the problem in a manner befitting an Inquisitor.
"Why is the meat so small? Are you perhaps a heretic?"
"What—hey! What kind of terrible thing are you—gasp! Sir!"
The merchant recognized me a beat too late and handed over two more skewers with a terrified look.
The other customers also hurriedly backed away without a word.
I returned to Katrina quite pleased with myself, only to get an earful from her.
"You've become a very fine Heretic Inquisitor indeed."
"I suppose it's a true calling. Ow!"
"That wasn't a compliment."
Katrina grumbled quietly, but she quickly devoured her two skewers.
The light-colored dress looked so good on her.
If it were up to me, I'd rush straight to a painter and ask them to preserve this moment in a portrait.
"Miss Katrina, would a portrait be possible, by any chance?"
"Not a chance."
She shot me down the moment I carefully broached the subject, but her expression wasn't entirely displeased.
Still, asking twice was probably out of the question.
As I was thinking that, she added quietly a moment later.
"If you join me in it, I might at least consider the idea..."
"That's easily done! Then let's take our time looking around and go at a relaxed pace."
We made our way through the packed streets into the Noble Quarter and soon spotted a familiar face.
The annoying little brat I'd run into previously at the opera house.
Angelica, a member of the Einhold Family, was planted firmly in the middle of the road.
"The Einhold Family... so they're already here."
"...Her entourage has grown quite a bit since the last time we saw her, hasn't it?"
Behind her stretched a long line of carriages engraved with the Einhold crest.
Not just the family head and Hector Einhold, but relatives I'd never even seen before were there too...
Katrina explained in a low voice.
"What we saw last time was only a small fraction. Few Great Families on the continent can match Einhold in scale. Since they are legally permitted to use magic, they probably see every child they fail to have as a lost opportunity."
She spoke as if from personal experience.
The Wizardvein family's circumstances were probably similar.
As I stifled a quiet hum, Angelica recognized us from a distance.
She was wearing a vivid, splendid dress, but her figure was still lacking, so she came off more cute than beautiful.
'She's a beauty if she stays still... but there's no way she'll keep her mouth shut.'
"Oh? Wizardvein?"
"Hello, Lady Angelica."
"M-Miss Katrina, hello to you too. Your style has changed quite a bit, I see?"
She belatedly remembered her manners and then immediately spoke her mind.
Still, she seemed much more polite than the last time we'd met.
It had not been long since we caught that mage for her in the Einhold Duchy. She could hardly have forgotten already.
From the carriage, not only Angelica's father Hector, but even the Einhold family head approached and offered greetings.
He even remembered my name.
"It is a pleasure to see you again, Lady Katrina. You look especially beautiful today. Young Jaeger, I trust you've been well..."
"I'm deeply honored, Family Head. Ah, but Lord Hector. Have you perhaps not heard the news from your uncle?"
"News? What news do you mean?"
Katrina, who had been closely observing the Einhold carriages, asked him, and Hector tilted his head in confusion.
She briskly reported everything that had happened recently.
At that, the expressions of the Einhold family members grew very grave.
Being mages themselves, they were quick to grasp the implications.
"A mage from the capital's nobility... This is certainly no ordinary matter."
"That Reinhardt... was the pigeon too slow? Had I known, I would have brought all Eight Swords of Einhold. Brother. Even now..."
"Don't. How can we call back everyone who is manning the Front Lines? Still, nothing will happen before the festival day itself."
The family head offered the same view as Reinhardt and turned toward the Royal Palace.
He showed us a genial smile and said, "I will have a word with His Majesty the King. Please do not worry too much, Lady Katrina and Young Jaeger..."
"Thank you, Family Head."
"Ah, and Angelica. Come here a moment."
The family head called Angelica over and whispered to her, as if giving her some important mission.
In the next instant, Angelica barely managed to smooth over an expression that had started to twist.
When the family head departed, Angelica walked over to us.
She herself didn't seem particularly enthusiastic either.
"Um... you two, if it's all right with you, would you mind if I joined you?"
"Pardon? Ah, Lady Angelica, don't you have plenty of acquaintances in the capital... shouldn't you be greeting them?"
Katrina retorted, her voice oddly repulsed.
Angelica reacted with genuine disgust.
"They're not exactly people I want to see. Either way, I'm going to see them starting tomorrow whether I like it or not."
"We'll be seeing them the day after whether we like it or not too, you know? We have royal-escort duty starting then..."
I'd said that to avoid having my time with Katrina interrupted, but Hector chuckled from behind.
Still, constantly refusing wouldn't look good either.
Katrina reluctantly decided to put up with Angelica's company.
Her tone carried a lingering grudge, which was unusual for her.
"If Inquisitors who don't even have the refinement to appreciate opera are acceptable to you..."
"I-I said I was sorry about that. That was an act, totally an act!"
"Angelica. Didn't you used to say you hated things like opera because they bored you?"
"Father, shouldn't you be hurrying after the family head?"
After pushing Hector on his way, Angelica positioned herself beside me instead of Katrina.
I felt a peculiar sense of dissonance, but I kept walking to enjoy the festival atmosphere.