Chapter 103
Chapter 103
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 103
Chapter Title: Leo's Memory
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To my question, the friend sitting next to me opened his mouth.
“He ate a rat over the weekend.”
“What?”
“Philip saw it.”
At those words, my mood soured in an instant, and my face twisted.
It wasn’t the emotion I was feeling now. To begin with, I couldn’t even intervene in this situation.
“You believe him? You’ve gotta listen to what’s worth hearing—what are you even doing?”
Perhaps because the reaction he wanted didn’t come from my mouth, another friend glanced at me and spoke up.
“Yeah. He’s trying to build up his record now too. Why would he spread rumors and risk a disciplinary committee by lying?”
“Is that so…?”
I let my friends’ words go in one ear and out the other as I gazed toward the back of the training ground.
Lucas stood there silently, his head bowed low.
His long hair, which made me wonder just when he’d cut it, hid his face completely.
At that moment, Philip sauntered over with his friends and asked the students surrounding Lucas.
“What’s going on?”
“We were asking him. We’re curious if he really ate a rat or not.”
“If a corpse came out of his bag, doesn’t that say it all? You think he kindly put it in there to bury it somewhere?”
“…….”
Philip shoved his face close to Lucas’s profile and sneered.
“Why don’t you say something? True or not?”
“…….”
“Hey, he doesn’t wanna talk.”
“Fuck… if you hate this and hate that and hate everything, just drop out already—why are you even here?”
“Hahaha, dropout’s just your wishful thinking, right?”
“Isn’t it yours too? It’s the whole school’s hope. Because of him, we’re just throwing money away, and now any dog or pig can get in.”
As the loudmouth pressed on, the noisy training ground fell quiet.
The other students started glancing their way.
“Say something.”
“…….”
Philip’s persistent gaze continued.
Lucas didn’t answer.
Instead, he just worked his mouth silently for a long time, as if thinking of what to say.
Philip sighed and straightened his back.
“Ah, this frustrating bastard….”
Kwang—
“…!”
Philip kicked Lucas’s leg.
Lucas lost his balance in an instant and fell. As he reflexively propped up his upper body, Philip feigned surprise and said.
“Ah, really sorry. You know I didn’t mean to, right?”
“He doesn’t look sorry at all. Grow up a little.”
“I mean it, why are you taking it out on Lucas? You apologize too.”
“You kicked him, why should I apologize?”
My heartbeat started speeding up.
Why isn’t he using magic? Is it okay to just take this? …That’s what I thought.
Seeing the mage I admired being treated like this hurt, and now I was even getting angry.
Of course, it was a pathetic thought.
I now knew I’d arbitrarily imagined an ideal person and wanted Lucas to fit that mold.
The guys chuckled to each other in contrived voices as they looked down at Lucas.
“You okay?”
“…….”
“Hey, are you okay?!”
“…Fi…ne….”
Philip grinned in satisfaction at the faint, squeezed-out voice and bellowed.
“Hey, he says he’s fine! If any bastard nitpicks a mistake like that, just try it.”
“Hey.”
It wasn’t Philip who spoke.
At my words, Lucas raised his head and looked at me.
My face started twisting on its own. Irritation welled up, and I didn’t even want to keep looking at Lucas’s face.
‘…Damn it.’
It felt so vivid, just like what I was feeling right now.
My heart pounded faster and faster. I wanted to somehow shut my mouth, but I couldn’t.
“If you’re gonna keep being noisy, take it outside.”
At my cold tone, the classroom went quiet in an instant, like cold water had been poured over it.
Of course it would.
I’d never mediated a one-sided beating like this before.
What kind of irresponsible intervention was this?
Shock began to seep into Lucas’s wide, startled eyes.
“Uh? Ah….”
Philip stammered, unable to continue.
Then he scowled and whispered something to Lucas.
Lucas nodded slightly at Philip’s menacing expression.
‘Damn it….’
Lucas staggered down the steps and stood in front of the training ground’s front door.
I wanted to turn my head away.
But I was looking at Lucas with the same contemptuous eyes as back then. That’s surely how it had been at the time.
‘…He’s watching this right now….’
I should’ve insisted on reading Lucas’s memories instead. Somehow.
This memory would end without even a chance to apologize.
No, far from apologizing, I’d only gotten angry.
That day, I prepared for the disciplinary committee with the professor, but Lucas ended the incident by saying nothing had happened.
After that, I snapped at Lucas, asking how long he planned to keep this up.
Seeing it start from here, he probably intended to show up to that point.
My stomach churned.
My vision narrowed, growing darker. The mana flowing with my blood felt somehow twisted and changing.
Kwang—!
At that moment, a loud crash from behind made my head snap around reflexively.
Philip, who had been standing arrogantly, was sprawled on the floor. The students around him recoiled in surprise.
“What, wait, what the hell?!”
“Argh, ugh…!”
Philip thrashed, firing off spells at the mana pressing down on his torso.
‘…What the….’
Only now did I realize my body, which hadn’t moved as I wished until then, was free.
“The drug’s kicking in way too late.”
At the familiar voice, I whipped my head around.
Lucas, standing at the door, brushed back his long hair and snatched the wand from a front-row student without warning.
Then he strode up the steps, aiming the wand at Philip’s friends.
“Huh?! W-Wait…!”
Kwaaang—! Bang—!
Lucas fired mana wildly without proper aim.
The students who had been with Philip stumbled back, screaming.
“Ah, uh…! Argh!”
“Aaah! Wait!”
“I only saw him diligently taking lecture notes to avoid getting beat again, so this is new. Not sure if I should step in actively here….”
Lucas’s eyes flashed as he spoke clearly.
“…….”
Even without the words, I knew instinctively.
The one in front of me now wasn’t Lucas from our first year.
I rose slowly from my seat, unable to close my mouth.
I couldn’t comprehend what was happening, or if I’d gone mad.
Lucas let out a long breath and looked down at Philip at his feet.
Thud—
“Gah…!”
Even though he’d just said it was tricky to intervene, Lucas kicked Philip and walked down.
He glanced around, spotted me, and raised an eyebrow.
Lucas walked right up to me. Before I could say anything, he grabbed my collar.
“Not turning back?”
“…!”
A pure white light emanated from Lucas’s hand.
In that instant, the darkness at the edge of my vision lifted.
* * *
Read it well.
One unexpected thing was that I thought I’d be reading from Leo’s perspective, but it unfolded from Lucas’s viewpoint.
That left two possibilities.
First, this wasn’t a real memory but a space created by spatial magic.
Second, I succeeded.
“Both.”
Considering I couldn’t move as I wished at first, it’s hard to call it pure spatial magic. It was inside Leo’s memory.
So… the lemon was worth it.
I consecrated it with divine power, but the taste didn’t change, so I struggled to keep a straight face.
‘The problem from the first 64-strong experiment before.’
A drug that intervenes in someone else’s mind.
A drug that ordinary people without divine power use with government permission. With alcohol on hand, the ingredients were roughly similar.
I could’ve just touched Leo’s mind with divine power, but that would be too obvious, so using available materials was better.
‘Plus, that’s the way to make Richthofen’s plan succeed.’
Anyway… I’d felt it since earlier, but implementing a memory as a space shareable with others was impressive.
‘Their skills are top-notch, as expected.’
I like it.
Even with billions poured in by the Empire, they couldn’t do it.
Right now, it’s replaying this ridiculous memory because of Leo’s excessive guilt, but if you pick the right target—or if you can select memories to show from outside—you could incite internal strife even more reliably.
‘I want to scatter it nationwide with my brother as the target.’
Maybe snag some of his hair.
Thinking that, I checked Leo’s condition.
His mana had looked like it was vitriolizing until just now, but no black mana came from him anymore.
He tried to pry my hand away with a panicked face.
“Wh-What, Lucas….”
“I thought it was another shitty memory. With this….”
I chuckled lightly and continued.
“Where exactly is the upsetting part?”
“…….”
“Yeah, your standards are always high. Your mind’s uneasy, so your guilt amplified. That’s it. Happy?”
“…You’re not… upset….”
“Again, I don’t get where I’m supposed to be upset….”
It wasn’t just my impression.
If Lucas had been hurt, I wouldn’t have said this.
Lucas had only thought the class rep wouldn’t help him.
Leo seemed hung up on “If you’re gonna be noisy, take it outside,” but who interprets that as “Go outside and beat him”?
Obviously, it meant to stop.
He’d said it meaning that, but overthought it a hundred times uselessly, and combined with Lucas’s expression, the misunderstanding grew.
‘Perfectionists are such a hassle.’
To others, it’s no big deal, but he’s tormenting himself for not responding perfectly.
“No, the day before this, and even after, I… to you….”
“What else. Just shut up.”
“…….”
Leo kept his head bowed for a long time.
The mana fluctuations from him gradually stabilized.
“Sorry.”
I knew right away it wasn’t an apology for the memory.
His eyes held their usual sharpness now.
Leo was apologizing for not regaining composure quickly. It wasn’t something to really be sorry for.
“No big deal.”
“Lucas.”
“Yeah?”
“Let’s go. Unless there’s another plan.”
I nodded.
Philip clutched his stomach as he got up and shouted.
“Y-You, just now, magic—no, divine power…!”
“Was the Philip in your head the type to say that?”
“He’d probably say that in this situation.”
Close enough.
Thinking that, I slammed my staff down onto the floor with all my strength.
Kwaaaang—
As the pure white divine power touched it, everything, including our bodies, shook violently.
But no rift appeared.
‘…Usually, this breaks you out?’
Since it’s ‘space’ magic.
To escape here and return to where we were, a rift had to form.
Was there something my mana couldn’t do?
Then Leo stood and drew his wand.
My mana output would be better, but he wanted to do it himself.
“What’re you doing?”
“Getting out.”
“How.”
Leo smirked as if I’d fallen for it perfectly and answered simply.
“Dunno.”
“…….”
It was like getting back exactly what I usually brushed off vaguely.
As I watched curiously, Leo pressed his wand to his heart.
The moment I gaped in shock, the world turned pitch black.
* * *
“…Hah…!”
It was the room we’d been in before.
As I bolted upright, I saw Leo, already awake.
‘This… this bastard….’
He’d just shot mana into his own core.
I glared at him with curses in my eyes, and he shrugged.
“If the field’s source is my memory, I just need to wake up, right?”
“…….”
Logical, but pulling a stunt like that left me speechless.
Now I got why Leo kept opposing from the start.
I’d presented most demands head-on, so of course.
‘Mirror therapy really is the best.’
No need to treat him, though.
Whatever, as long as it succeeds.
I stood up.
“Now let’s go find Elias.”
“You have a way?”
“Same as before.”
“Wait, hold on. If it breaks with something that ordinary….”
I extended my wand into a staff and grasped the core’s flow.
Then I slammed the floor like before.
In that instant, white light spread from the floor to the walls, and four people in black robes appeared.
No, ‘appeared’ wasn’t quite right—they were all in a panicked state.
“Huh?!”
“What?!”
‘Can’t be helped.’
They’d been guarding the original spot. They never imagined the spatial magic overlaying it would release.
Since it was a surprise attack, we had the advantage. Without hesitation, I turned my wand into a dagger and stabbed the shoulder of the guy right next to me.
Stab—
“Arghhh!”
It was a mana blade, so no major damage to the real body. It just blocked mana from going to his arm.
Even as he screamed, he fired mana wildly with his other hand.
No time for defense here. I wrapped myself in a physical barrier, took the mana hit, and stabbed his heart.
At that moment, Leo’s mana pulled me aside. As I steadied myself and turned, I saw a black-robed figure collapsing from Leo’s attack.
“Watch your back.”
I nodded roughly and scanned around. Thanks to Leo handling the other three alone quickly, we were done here.
‘Still top-class skill, even on second look.’
Would’ve been a shame not to bring him.
No matter it was just for show, it was funny having me as bodyguard for scum like that.
Thinking that, I placed my hand on the wall.
No mana felt from outside, but the vigilantes would send reinforcements soon.
But I couldn’t let that happen.
‘Now I’m sure where Mueller is—I can’t let Richthofen go like this.’
And I had another good idea.
To outwardly benefit the Emperor while actually siding with the Catacombs, he needed to be my long-term pawn.
Leo looked around calmly and said.
“Something’s off. No reason for the Catacombs to make spatial magic this sloppy.”
“So it’s a trap?”
“Can’t rule it out. No info on who Richthofen is, so we shouldn’t move rashly.”
Of course, this sloppy spatial magic was intentional.
Probably Richthofen’s work.
“No. It’s fine. He’s on our side.”
“What?”
Before Leo could scold me, I grabbed him and spoke quickly.
“Get ready while I explain. You saw the black blood from those vigilantes earlier. What’s it look like?”
“Immature vitriol, no matter how I look.”
“Good. Earlier, I asked Richthofen, ‘What’s the exact order?’ Bringing Nikolaus was their goal. He said killing you all was fine for that.”
“Yeah. From that order… if Robert Mueller’s really in the Catacombs, he’d be in the vigilantes. As leader even.”
You get it.
I nodded and said.
“Robert Mueller definitely had anti-Pleroma leanings. So why is the entire vigilante group under him steeped in vitriol?”
“…….”
Leo stroked his chin and replied.
“They were attacked by Pleroma. Promised release of the vitriol in their bodies if they brought you.”
“Nah. Vitriol’s a premium material even for Pleroma—only higher-ups get it. With it, you can transcend humanity and grow stronger.”
At ‘grow stronger,’ Leo’s expression hardened.
He’d realized the hypothesis I’d formed.
“…They made a pact with the Catacombs.”
Exactly.
With constant persecution, they must’ve thought they needed to grow stronger faster than now.
Of course, the crazy idea of procuring vitriol was probably just the vigilantes’ plan, not the Catacombs’ overall.
“Good. Next. Richthofen was stalling earlier.”
“Yeah.”
“And he knew our names. ‘Lucas Ascanien and Narke Farnese.’ But why was the drug you got Leo Wittelsbach’s memory?”
“…….”
“No idea how, but once he knew you were Wittelsbach, he figured out who Nikolaus is too. Obviously, that leaves only me.”
Leo’s face stiffened. He’d realized the judgment I’d made.
“One more thing. He knew our names, so why weren’t they in the alarm we saw earlier?”
Leo answered calmly.
“…Had to hide which of Lucas Ascanien or Narke Farnese is Nikolaus.”
“Yeah, to stop Robert Mueller from using Nikolaus as a propaganda tool again.”
Leo nodded.
“Right. So now, shake hands with Richthofen?”
“No.”
Leo gave me a puzzled look.
After all this trouble, who’d think of joining hands right away?
I curled my lip and said to Leo.
“Let’s beat him up a bit first.”