Chapter 233
Chapter 233
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 233
Chapter Title: How to Survive as the Second Son of a Magical Noble Family
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“Are you talking about the entire French team?”
“Ah, the university and research divisions have separate schedules, so just the high school division is fine.”
At those words, Elias let out a whistle.
“Hmm… Luca’s popular.”
“You take him.”
“Should I?”
“No.”
It was just a throwaway line.
Someone as tightly wound as that guy from earlier absolutely could not be paired with Elias. There was a high chance Elias would try to crack his skull open within an hour of meeting him.
“Anyway, I had a proposal for you. You’ll have to listen to me, so no time for sightseeing tours?”
Elias looked up at me with a grin. I had no idea why he was jumping to that conclusion on his own, but I had no intention of refusing their request.
‘They came as VIPs.’
We were in charge of their reception. Limited to the welcome ceremony protocol and lodging security, but considering they’d officially requested me as their guide, it was better to accept than refuse and cause hassle.
Besides, there was no particular reason not to go. The whining from these mentally immature kids barely registered with me anyway.
‘…Though if I get a chance to shut them up quietly, I won’t let it pass.’
The moment I decided to accept their request despite Elias’s intentions, Leo’s voice rang out.
“I’ll go.”
The conversation among my friends came to a complete halt. The staffer looked troubled as he glanced at Leo.
“Ah, they said they wanted to see Mr. Ascanien.”
“Then I’ll go with you.”
Silence fell.
Everyone on the team stared at him.
Narke and Elias were probably worried about whether we should show how close we already were, while the others were shocked that Leo was actually trying to do something with me. The staffer scratched his chin for a moment before replying.
“Shall we? But if both Vice Captain Eschet and the Captain step away, that could be a problem, so could one of the other squad members come instead?”
“Me! I’ll go!”
As Elias stepped forward, the staffer’s face darkened. Elias looked puzzled by the expression.
Just as Cheringen, who had been smiling silently, opened his mouth to speak, Haike raised his hand.
“I’ll go.”
Leo’s expression flickered with slight surprise before returning to neutral.
I share most information with my friends right away, unless it’s something that might make them angry. So I’d already told them yesterday around lunchtime that Haike and I had gotten closer.
They’d heard the gist from me, but seeing the usually taciturn guy step up must have seemed novel.
The staffer nodded to Haike and asked me.
“Is that okay?”
“Yes.”
I smiled at Haike and followed the staffer out. Haike fumbled to put his robe back on and hurried after us.
I cast a soundproofing spell and said.
“We get to hang out again.”
“It’s work.”
Haike replied in a strangely excited tone. On the surface, sure. It wouldn’t feel much like playtime.
But I knew he’d come along just because I was going. I chuckled lightly and said.
“Anyway.”
If we found another Baekrin matchstick, it’d be best to share it with him right away, so having him along was good.
Following the staffer’s guidance, we warped to the top floor of the Academy Pruisance banquet hall building. We knocked twice on the open door and entered to see the top high schooler from earlier.
I greeted the Frenchman who raised an eyebrow at the sight of me.
“We meet again. Antoine Gramont.”
“Ah, you came. Nice to see you again so soon after last time.”
He beamed and gestured to his friends at the table.
“These are our team’s high schoolers.”
“I see. Pleased to meet you. Lucas Ascanien.”
“Haike Ainsidel.”
The three high schoolers he introduced stared at me with wide eyes despite our greetings. Seeing their odd smirks at my face, they seemed to share Gramont’s mindset.
A tall Newtype stood and extended his hand.
“Maelys Lafayette.”
Fortunately, the other two also greeted me and Haike without issue.
After the brief introductions, I pulled out my notebook and said.
“Any places you wanted to see? There are many I’d like to show you, but time is short, so tell me your preferences and we’ll start there.”
No one spoke.
They just stared at me blankly.
‘They do want to sightsee, right?’
Of course, that Gramont guy probably called me here alone to pick a fight. What did he expect? It was decided the moment he named me.
If that’s what he wanted, I wasn’t going to give it to him easily.
I smiled mildly and said.
“No particular places? In that case… let’s start with Unter den Linden.”
* * *
Unter den Linden is Berlin’s street starting from the Brandenburg Gate.
I shaded my eyes with my hand and looked up at the sky.
Linden trees preserved in their July state by magic lined up under the clear blue sky. Gramont said to me.
“Nice weather.”
“Indeed. Even the weather seems to be welcoming you all.”
“…!”
Haike nearly laughed but coughed instead. I’d just used a casual greeting common in this era, but it must have sounded awkward to Haike, who knew my personality.
Gramont kept chuckling as he looked around.
“Berlin really is impressive. What’s ahead if we keep going?”
“The end of this street leads to Museum Island on the Spree River. Lustgarten and the Berlin Cathedral are there too. A bit further down is the old Imperial Palace. Like museums?”
“We love them! What do they exhibit mainly?”
“The Neues Museum features Egyptian artifacts prominently. For Greek and Roman plaster casts, I recommend the Altes, but if time’s short, the Neues alone is fine—it has a whole wing. You can see prehistoric artifacts there too.”
From the perspective of someone not from an imperial power, I didn’t feel great doing these introductions. Egyptian artifacts? How do you think they got those?
‘How? Dug up someone else’s land and stole them.’
I recalled how their grave-robbing habits had caused major scandals even in Joseon.
After that, we walked on in silence.
Passing from the Brandenburg Gate to the Spree, Haike and I introduced Humboldt University and the National Opera. They listened with moderate interest.
Then, Gramont asked with a polite smile.
“Paris has bustling streets like this too. Anything more unique?”
“Well, places where people live are all similar. We’re heading to a museum soon anyway.”
“Where’s Wittenberg University? I’d like to see the birthplace of the Reformation. We’re not Lutherans, but as Protestants, we’ve always wanted to visit.”
“That’s in Saxony. We can’t take you outside Brandenburg jurisdiction.”
“Too bad.”
Gramont replied and chatted with his peers.
I wasn’t paying close attention to their conversation, but as their voices grew louder, I couldn’t ignore it.
“Their biblical interpretations are so weird. Cults really are different. What pastor preaches like that?”
“You’re not seriously dissecting how different they are from our church, are you? That’s why they’re a cult~ They’re already way off from what we know.”
‘Talking about Pleroma, huh.’
I agreed. Interpreting the same texts differently was suspicious from the start. A classic cult tactic.
And like I’d sensed from Ludovica, they cherry-picked verses from everywhere to stitch together justifications. At this point, it was basically rewriting the Bible.
“But still.”
Haike murmured lowly beside me. A one-way soundproofing spell went up.
“Why does it feel like they’re dissing us while dissing Pleroma? The content is clearly about Pleroma.”
Because they’re talking while looking at us.
They glance at me while discussing Pleroma—how could that not be aimed at me?
‘Little punks.’
Being mistaken for Pleroma—or not—made life hard.
Instead of heading to the Neues Museum, we continued along Unter den Linden.
Passing the vast Lustgarten park in front of the Altes brought us to the Berliner Dom. The building had a grayish body with three blue domes, extravagantly decorated in neo-baroque style outside. I pointed to it and said.
“This is the largest Protestant church in our country. As believers, you should check it out.”
“Oh… a Protestant church? It looks just like a Catholic one.”
“It started as a Catholic chapel. Now it’s also the Hohenzollern imperial mausoleum. You have permission to tour, so feel free.”
While the other three high schoolers approached the building, Antoine Gramont stayed by our side. He chuckled from behind.
“Didn’t think about it, but Lustgarten’s right next to it.”
“Yes.”
“I learned Napoleon used it as a parade ground when he occupied Berlin. Right?”
“…….”
Why bring up desecrating someone else’s park like it’s a brag?
As the air nearly froze, he waved it off.
“No special intent. Fact is, we lost to Prussia after that. It’s a sore spot for us.”
“You know your history.”
“Sorry if I upset you. Just confirming the military use. Heard the Imperial Academy used it for magic training recently.”
I knew what was coming.
He tapped his wand holster at his waist and asked.
“Didn’t catch your answer earlier. Mind if I ask once more?”
I burst out laughing, then composed myself.
“I should have been clearer.”
I stepped closer and pressed the button on his open wand holster to close it.
“…….”
“I’m here to protect Your Excellency, not duel him. I know how passionate and talented Academy Pruisance folks are, so I understand why you want a duel. If I weren’t imperial, I’d oblige, but not now.”
Surprisingly, Gramont took it cleanly. He smiled regretfully and nodded.
“Understood. Sorry for the rudeness.”
“No need.”
We wandered the park silently, waiting for the three inside the church.
I knew how vicious top kids in a field could be.
Not all, but some extremely competitive ones, raised in cutthroat logic from childhood, enjoyed crushing others and were hypersensitive to threats to their status.
Here, “threat” didn’t mean direct attacks, but superior rivals drawing attention away.
Not by choice, but I’d been in such groups at work and school, so I knew. His top high school spot and attitude screamed that type. That childish urge to test skills against me stemmed from anxiety.
‘Is he really as great as they say? To me, he’s just a Pleroma the German court impulsively promoted. Why’s this Pleroma worship spreading even in France?’
That’s probably what he was thinking.
Plus, with Academy adults mocking the German court, beating me would prove their folly and fuel anti-imperial sentiment.
Even if not true Pleroma, the title of defeating an enemy nation’s top young wizard was sweet.
That’s why Philip and he were similar. Both obsessed with rank.
‘Eh, I’m past that phase, so they just seem cute….’
Not really cute, just funny. Every group has a few twisted ones.
Anyway, if Luca faced this, it’d be a huge hassle. After dealing with school bullies, now foreigners acting up.
My “if not Eschet” line wasn’t empty. But now, I had to be cautious. As national guests, they held the upper hand.
After, we met the three from the church and headed to the museum.
Impossible to see all Berlin sights quickly, so we stuck to Unter den Linden area before returning.
6 PM, an hour before return, we grabbed our things from the top-floor guest room in the banquet hall, then warped to Brandenburg’s VIP lodging.
Tice Hotel in Brandenburg had barriers, so we warped 1km away and walked.
With Haike’s help, I warped to the point first to meet them, laying thin barriers and space spells so they wouldn’t be seen.
Not skilled in space magic, but just concealment, no issue.
After about 10 minutes.
Halfway, Gramont, chatting with friends, drew me in.
“How many rampages occur here daily on average?”
“Hmm, lately down a bit—around thirty in Berlin.”
“Must be huge including Brandenburg.”
“Land’s vast, but low population and density mean damage isn’t catastrophic.”
“So total?”
Gramont was persistent. Knowing it’d annoy, I replied flatly.
“Curious, huh? Combined, nearly sixty a day.”
“Wow, impressive….”
“…….”
I nearly laughed but schooled my face.
‘Doing it on purpose.’
Probing my nerves by highlighting the Empire’s Pleroma control failures. Not pushing duel, but I was clearly their symbol of imperial incompetence.
He glanced at me, hunting for sore spots.
Chatting me up to find inferiority triggers or disliked topics. Since no duel, mental victory instead. Obvious.
Even Haike sensed the weirdness, his expression subtly off.
“Must be tiring handling every rampage report.”
“Eh, manageable.”
“Impressive. Our high school division isn’t deployed yet, and France has no rampages, so I can’t imagine your feelings, Mr. Ascanien.”
“Lucky you. Hope it lasts.”
At that, the high schoolers smirked and exchanged looks.
Gramont smiled.
“Can it last? Soon we’ll hunt Pleroma infiltrators in your Empire. Ah, I lack your experience now, Mr. Ascanien, but then we’ll speak the same language!”
“Hm, congrats. Big responsibility ahead.”
“Right? Deputy Minister Adrian Ascanien does similar work.”
‘Oh god….’
I held back laughter, running my tongue inside my lip.
His intentions were so transparent it was pitiful. Someone shut him up.
He clearly ranked rampage handling below Pleroma hunts. Positioning himself as Adrian’s peer.
Adrian Ascanien was respected abroad too. As his brother, I’d inevitably be seen as his admirer.
‘But we went ham on those hunts last year.’
Nikolaus didn’t know it was me, oh well.
Still, better stop making black history. Not mine, but watching the flailing was sad.
If he kept it up, I’d tell him to get HQ duel approval—then I’d fight.
Instead of replying, I just smiled—then the edge of my space spell vision rippled.
“…….”
I gripped my wand.
Not just me—Haike met my eyes immediately.