Chapter 71: I Have Just One Question (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 71: I Have Just One Question (1)
Alan’s complaints about being worked to the bone by Lemain were utter nonsense. The truth was, Lemain treated Alan with a level of respect that matched the mountain of work he piled on him.
After all, of everyone working in the royal palace, Alan was the only one who had a private office inside Arpia Palace, Lemain’s personal workspace.
“Wow…”
Calian, visiting the area for the first time, let out a soft exclamation. He hadn’t even stepped inside Alan’s office yet; he was simply marveling at its location.
“This is incredible,” Calian said, bursting into laughter.
He only managed to stifle the sound after realizing it was echoing down the solemn corridors of Arpia Palace.
“I see now why you’re always by His Majesty’s side, Master. And here you were, complaining about him taking such good care of you.”
With that, Calian looked at the two offices situated on the top floor of the palace. On the left side of the corridor, which was lined with portraits of Kairis’s past kings, was Lemain’s office. On the right was Alan’s.
In other words, Lemain had set up his master mage’s workspace directly opposite his own.
For Alan, who held no noble title, what greater honor could there be in all of Kairis than to have the king just a door away?
“Please, don’t say such things,” Alan grumbled beside him.
He had originally worked in Narsil Hall. When he was offered a larger, better room, he arrived only to find it was directly across from the king’s. Alan had refused, but Lemain threatened to simply place another desk for him inside his own office. And so, forced by the king's unprecedented insistence, Alan had reluctantly moved in several months ago.
“You have no idea how much I’m hounded every single day.”
Alan’s primary duties were related to the Valkan Mage Corps, work he was naturally supposed to do alongside Lemain. At some point, however, Lemain had begun dumping his own share of the work onto Alan, one task at a time.
Consequently, Alan—who had envisioned himself as a magic teacher to the prince who occasionally helped the king in his spare time—was now barely finding time to supervise his student’s lessons after finishing his actual job.
Of course, Alan’s offer to teach Calian had merely been a pretext to enter the royal palace in the first place. Furthermore, Calian was already training well on his own, drawing on the knowledge the original Calian had already thoroughly mastered.
Even so, wasn’t this a bit much?
“The workload His Majesty bestows upon me is as vast as the ocean.”
Watching Alan pour out his endless grievances, Calian burst into laughter once more. Alan quickly opened his office door and ushered his giggling disciple inside.
Stepping into the office, Calian wiped the smile from his face as he took a seat on the sofa.
He had followed Alan to Arpia Palace to request a private audience with Lemain. The moment Alan heard his request, he had brought him here without a second thought.
‘No matter how secretly you and His Majesty meet, it will eventually be discovered. It’s far better to come openly, claiming you have business in my office.’
Thanks to that advice, Calian had left Chermil Palace immediately. He had walked to Arpia Palace with his head held high, receiving greetings from numerous people along the way.
“Please wait a moment. I’ll go ‘secretly’ bring His Majesty,” Alan said playfully before slipping out.
Once Alan was gone, Calian’s heart began to pound again. Although he had been the one to request the meeting, he hadn’t expected it to happen so suddenly.
Sitting on the sofa, Calian busied himself by clearing his throat, stretching his facial muscles, and adjusting his clothes. He was nervous.
Before long, the door opened. Alan entered first, followed by Lemain. Calian stood and bowed politely.
“Your Majesty.”
Lemain acknowledged him with a brief nod and sat opposite him. As requested, Alan stepped back outside, leaving them alone.
Calian’s expression grew so serious it was hard to believe he had been laughing just moments before. “Thank you for coming on such short notice, Your Majesty,” he said, his tone stiff.
Observing Calian’s tense face, Lemain replied in a relaxed voice, “There’s no need to be so formal.”
Calian offered an awkward smile, and Lemain continued.
“I was worried you might have taken the Queen’s words at dinner to heart, but it was good to hear you laughing just now.”
It seemed Lemain had indeed heard his cheerful conversation echoing down the hall. Just as an embarrassed Calian was about to apologize, Lemain spoke first.
“I’m not scolding you, so don’t worry. Rather, I was relieved. It shows you’ve grown strong enough not to be swayed by such remarks.”
Touched by Lemain’s sincerity, Calian bowed his head with a deep sense of gratitude—a feeling he had never once felt toward King Devlan of Secritia.
“I don’t mind such things at all, Your Majesty. I am merely grateful for your concern.”
“Good. That’s a relief.” Lemain nodded, a faint smile on his lips. He stared deeply into Calian’s eyes for a moment, then hesitated before speaking.
“Sir Manasil told me you’re planning to break something again and that I should hear you out.”
His words were laced with concern. The moment Calian heard them, his eyes darted toward the door where Alan was undoubtedly waiting. From the way Lemain put it, he sounded like a troublemaker several times worse than Franz.
Calian let out a soft sigh. Perhaps understanding his feelings, Lemain didn’t comment on it.
Soon, Calian pulled his resentful gaze from the door and looked back at the king.
“Yes, Your Majesty. There is indeed something I intend to break.”
Lemain nodded. “I’ll brace myself. Go on, tell me what it is.”
“Naturally, it’s Brissen.”
Lemain’s gaze drifted toward the window. “Do you mean Viscount Lennon Brissen and Margrave Gray Brissen?”
“No. I don’t mean a specific individual, but the House of Marquis Brissen itself.”
Instead of expressing more worry, Lemain remained as calm as possible. “I see. It’s something that must be done eventually. Continue.”
“First, I plan to meet with the nobles of the knightly families. I wanted to ask if doing so would cause you any trouble, Your Majesty.”
“Are you asking if your growing influence would harm me, or if it’s something I should guard against?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
In other words, he was asking how the king would view his growing power. It was a bold question.
Understanding this, Lemain let out a soft chuckle. “They do say, like master, like disciple.”
“What do you mean?”
“When he proposed establishing a magic academy, Sir Manasil asked me the exact same thing. And now you’re doing the same, but with the knights.” With those words, Lemain gave Calian a warm, fatherly smile. “Very well. You have my permission. Do as you wish.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
After expressing his gratitude, Calian explained his request in detail. “There are a few individuals I wish to speak with, but I must avoid the eyes of the Brissens. Would it be possible to expand on the idea you mentioned to Brother Franz during dinner?”
What Lemain had said during dinner was by no means empty talk. He immediately understood what Calian was referring to.
“The hunt?”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Calian continued. “Since it was a topic that came up naturally, and you were the one who suggested it to Brother Franz, few would suspect anything if it were suddenly organized.”
Lemain nodded, listening intently.
“Furthermore, since it’s a hunting competition, no one will find it strange for the knightly families to participate. The Queen won’t attend, and with rumors about Margrave Brissen about to spread, Marquis Brissen won’t be able to come either.”
At that, Lemain’s expression darkened slightly. It wasn’t because hosting a hunt was difficult. He had realized something else in Calian’s words. “You say you must avoid the Brissens, yet you ask me to arrange an event that Franz will have to attend. Have he and the Queen turned their backs on each other?”
“Yes. At the very least, it appears Brother Franz has had a change of heart.”
Lemain’s expression was complicated. Soon, he nodded and replied, “That won’t be difficult. I’ll order the preparations to be made.”
At his ready consent, Calian expressed his gratitude once more. Then, in a voice even more cautious than before, he said, “And there is one more favor I would like to ask.”
“Speak.”
Calian’s next words were entirely unexpected.
“I wish to establish a large-scale teleportation magic circle between Kairisis and the Siegfried territory. In the future, I would like to connect it to other regions as well.”
“Siegfried, you say.”
The land of elephants. A teleportation magic circle connecting that place to Kairisis.
“In the worst-case scenario, the knights of Siegfried could overrun Kairisis in just three days.”
“That is correct, Your Majesty.”
“I heard from Sir Manasil that your attendant is the eldest son of House Siegfried. I also know the character of Duke Siegfried quite well… but what you have just proposed is not a matter that can be decided on trust alone.”
Lemain fell into deep thought. This was not an issue that could be resolved so easily.
“I will give you an answer later. You’ll have to wait.”
“I understand.”
In the end, Lemain replied that he needed time to think.
* * *
A person’s tastes could change in the blink of an eye.
Calian’s dislike for coffee, a drink Bern had once enjoyed, was proof of this. Because he had been drinking it on the day he neutralized the poison in his body in front of Silike, Calian now felt a subtle aversion to it. He wouldn’t refuse it if offered, but he never sought it out himself.
Ever since learning this, Yan had never once served coffee to Calian. Alan, who practically lived on the stuff, was also aware of Calian’s feelings and refrained from drinking it in Chermil Palace.
Thus, when Alan returned to Chermil Palace with Calian after the meeting, he replied to Yan’s offer of a drink with, “Anything is fine.”
Meanwhile, Arsen, who was sitting opposite Alan, politely answered the same question. “Could I trouble you for a cup of strong coffee?”
“Of course.”
Yan readily agreed and placed a cup of highly concentrated coffee, as dark as the abyss, in front of the hollow-eyed mage.
Taking a sip of his mint tea, Alan glanced at the coffee and said gently, “My boy, you’ll die if you drink that.”
“It won’t make much difference,” Arsen muttered. Death by overwork, or death by coffee the color of another dimension—what was the difference? He drained the cup without hesitation.
Watching this, Calian shook his head. “Is this because you haven’t been able to develop the teleportation magic circle?”
Calian had never put any pressure on Arsen, but he finally had to speak up. Since Lemain needed time to think anyway, there was no rush, and Calian was genuinely worried Arsen might die before he could even become the commander of the Valkan.
“You should rest for today. And just make it a standard magic circle. We can simply tighten security.” Since he had never intended to push Arsen this hard, Calian withdrew his original request.
“No, it’s fine,” Arsen replied, surprisingly shaking his head. “I’ve found the answer, Your Highness. I modified the principle behind the activation of the Seal of Oath. It’s now possible to establish a usage contract between multiple targets and the magic circle.”
Arsen saw the question in Calian’s eyes—if you already solved it, why drink that life-shortening coffee?—and grinned.
“You will be able to monopolize the teleportation magic circle, Your Highness.”
Those were truly delightful words.
Calian gave Arsen a smile of pure trust. “You’ve worked hard.”
Arsen had gulped down the coffee solely out of fear that he might fall asleep before hearing those words. Now that he had, he collapsed onto the sofa as if he’d passed out, immediately falling into a deep, long-overdue sleep.
Watching him, Alan turned to Calian and asked, “Does he have any more work to do?”
“No. I plan to dispatch mages from the Mage Association to handle the construction.”
“Then he’s a free mage once again.”
Realizing why Alan was asking, Calian couldn’t bring himself to answer. But Alan read the answer on his face anyway and smiled with satisfaction.
There was a mountain of Valkan work piled up in Arpia Palace. How could a future corps commander be allowed to be so idle?