Chapter 63
Chapter 63
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: How to Survive as the Second Son of a Magical Noble Family
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“…?”
“What kind of question is that?”
“Oh, uh… Esther asked me to ask you earlier.”
Esther was one of the three students who’d come looking for Leo a bit ago.
She’d glanced back at the end, so I’d wondered what that was about.
Turns out, she wanted to ask if I’d made it into the top ten in the department with my short-term memory.
And if so, they’d have me play Faust.
“No.”
I’d answer the question straightforwardly, but it was a solid idea.
Even if I hadn’t crammed, my good memory had let me climb into the school rankings easily enough.
Still, it was surprising they’d even think of handing the role to me. They must really want to put on a proper show no matter what.
‘They’re seriously desperate.’
“Got it. Thanks for the answer. And… Elias!”
The vice class rep rubbed his hands together, signaling for Elias to memorize it somehow, and Elias flopped onto the lounge sofa, flipping open the script’s cover.
“Fine, whatever. Read this, Luca.”
“I am reading. I’m gonna go look for Narke.”
“Oh, didn’t the others say earlier they were going to find Narke Oswald?”
“Yeah?”
Come to think of it, he hadn’t been in Class 1-B’s practice room when I’d peeked in earlier.
“If he was around, he would’ve hopped over like a rabbit, right? You’ve been looking for him a ton.”
True enough.
Pie could tell where everyone was without even looking.
He’d usually warp into my pocket at least once or hop onto the windowsill somewhere, but since he hadn’t, Narke must really be out.
*Zzt—*
[Calling for Amalia Castel of Magic Department Year 1 Class 1-B. Calling once more…]
Just then, the announcement blared.
Since it specified Magic Department Year 1, it seemed to be looking for that student from earlier.
‘At least word got to the school.’
Handling it from here was up to them.
Personally, the fact that similar incidents happened on the same day around the same time nagged at me, but I had no idea how the school would take two disappearances.
‘No matter how I look at it, something feels off. Should I say something?’
I headed out and found a school guard.
After asking him to pass it along to the investigation bureau, I returned to the student center and sat on the sofa next to Elias.
“Where’d you go?”
“To report the missing students. All done now.”
Luckily, the guard hadn’t brushed me off and readily agreed.
The school might’ve already classified them as missing and reported it, but even if it meant duplicates, reporting was better than doing nothing.
“Yeah? Then use that special class-cramming memory of yours to save Class 1-B.”
I didn’t cram…
I answered Elias’s teasing with a laugh and opened the script.
He’d been quietly reading for once, but just as I started yawning, Elias bolted upright and whispered in my ear.
“…Are you saying this is the first time you’ve given false testimony? Look into your own heart. Do you truly know yourself more than you know of Schwertlein’s death?”
“…….”
Out of nowhere?
He probably wanted me to play along.
I responded with the first line that came to mind.
“…You’re an incorrigible sophist with no hope of salvation.”
“Ooh, so you did cram for midterms~?”
“No.”
I hadn’t meant to memorize it, but given the situation, I’d ended up studying the script without realizing.
Elias muttered even softer.
“Luca, you’re perfect for this. At this point, with an hour and thirty left, no one else could memorize a full 40-minute script. I knew it when you jumped from 98th to 10th in one go.”
Before I could reply, Elias kept going.
“Something’s holding you back, right? Your brother wouldn’t like you playing Faust.”
“Less ‘wouldn’t like’ and more ‘wouldn’t expect it.’”
“What about you? Wanna do it?”
“No real thoughts on it. Still, seeing them like this is kinda sad.”
They had worked really hard for two weeks.
It stuck in my memory because their noise kept interrupting my divine power studies.
Narke had seemed pretty excited too when I’d left after our chat earlier, so this whole mess didn’t sit right. Not that anyone would be thrilled in a situation like this.
“You’re too nice. If your brother’s the issue, I won’t push.”
“Well… I won’t volunteer, but I’m not saying I couldn’t be pushed into it.”
“Hmm?”
Elias’s eyes went wide as he stared at me.
‘…Saying it out loud makes it sound kinda weird.’
I hadn’t brought it up because I wanted to act; I just needed to share my plans soon.
I gave him a look, and Elias cast a soundproofing spell.
“Thanks. Elly, you heard the Strauch recording?”
“Yeah. Was dying to know what the hell he said.”
“Then you’ll catch on quick. We need to change impressions here too, not just Nikolaus.”
Elias furrowed his brow briefly, then nodded.
“Switching strategies? Yeah, sticking with this image forever would be tough.”
“Exactly. Figured I should let you and the others know.”
“So, you’re not actually going on stage~?”
Elias raised one eyebrow at me.
“Only if I’m pushed into it. Nothing else.”
Solving this would definitely be the first step in reshaping Luca’s image.
‘But it’d cost me something too.’
My brother would pay more attention to my situation for the next few days once word spread.
Of course, that also meant I wouldn’t have to refuse outright when the stage was set.
With the premise that students avoided me, if it got back that I’d been pushed into it, the situation would shift in complex ways.
‘…This could even look like bullying.’
Anyway, the key wasn’t just that I’d ‘participated in the event,’ but all the factors leading to that decision. Depending on the process, the level of threat my brother sensed would vary.
“Getting pushed into it is fine… Guess we’ll have to push you then? It’d be fun seeing you as Faust.”
“No need to push first.”
“It’d pack the house for sure! Hey, the whole school might show up.”
No need to go that far.
I just chuckled and brushed it off.
At 9 PM, Leo returned.
Now it was Class 1-A’s performance time, so their students had all moved to the auditorium, leaving the student center quiet.
The script I’d been reading had just a few pages left.
Elias sighed and asked.
“Why’d you come?”
“That’s harsh.”
Leo plopped exhaustedly into a chair.
Elias relayed what the professor had said.
“The prof said the other schools couldn’t find him either.”
“Figured as much. I even went there, and they were announcing for Oswald too. If he’s not showing after all that…”
“He’s either chickening out now or something happened. I vote the latter.”
Leo replied with a grim face.
“Yeah, same here. That’s why I requested an investigation right away.”
“Class 1-B, please move to the auditorium waiting room by 9:30!”
Someone shouted down the hall then.
Even though Class 1-B students were scattered everywhere, the corridor was dead silent.
Leo glanced down the hall with a troubled look and stood.
“We should head over too. They’ll have people there.”
* * *
“Did you find the lead?”
As we entered through the auditorium’s back door, a few Class 1-A students spotted Leo and Elias and asked. They had smug grins that rubbed me the wrong way. Acting all buddy-buddy like this, they must’ve known each other since the third training academy.
Leo shook his head and walked past.
A Class 1-A student yelled after him.
“Leo, we’ve got 113 people now!”
“…So?”
Leo muttered with an uncharacteristically drained look.
‘113’s a solid number.’
Considering the school had around 1,000 students total, that was impressive.
“Oh, you can say stuff like that too.”
“I have no idea what you take me for.”
Elias’s words drew a hollow laugh from Leo, just like earlier that day, and he opened the waiting room door.
Inside Class 1-B’s waiting room, the mood was oppressively low compared to the lively students rushing past outside.
The moment Leo entered, one student blurted out.
“…Leo, what do we do? Only 40 minutes left.”
“…….”
Leo just bit his lip, unable to give a real answer.
Narke, catching my eye, gave a quick nod.
Then another student piped up.
“How about making an audience member Faust? What do you think?”
“Mephistopheles solo act?”
“Yeah.”
“Without the supporting cast, we won’t hit the runtime.”
A brief exchange of ideas fell into silence.
The gloom settled back in.
‘Hmm….’
They were really down.
They’d prepped hard, only to have it fall apart before starting—no wonder everyone felt crappy.
‘Maybe I’ll lend a hand.’
I had one idea.
To even suggest it, though, I’d need to test something first.
I nudged Elias’s arm and slipped out of the waiting room.
About five minutes later, Elias came looking for me.
I beckoned him over, then activated divine power without opening my mouth.
—*Can you hear me?*
“…?”
Elias’s eyes widened as he stared.
—*Guess you can.*
“Wha…!”
Elias’s jaw practically dropped.
It was the spell Narke had used on me back when we were investigating that Dasrote interview photo.
I’d thought it might come in handy and memorized it then.
Glad I hadn’t tuned out the theater talk to study divine power for nothing.
‘Never thought I’d use it to help with their play, though….’
—*It works, so good enough. You up for improv? You’ve read the script, so you know the flow better than before, right?*
Elias nodded, still looking dazed, then whispered softly.
“Runtime.”
—*Ending around 35 minutes shouldn’t be a big deal. I’ll help time it.*
“…Ah, so this is your help.”
Elias’s lips curled up slyly.
He snapped his fingers to cast a spell, probably masking my magic so others wouldn’t detect it.
—*Yeah, listen up. I’ll tell you how much to say and what about to stretch things out. Should be enough to hit the mark with improv.*
“Makes sense. Timing? Gotta account for the delay while you check the script and relay to me.”
—*It’ll feel a bit off, but we’ll deal. I’ve got all the key lines memorized, so my side’s delay is minimal.*
“You memorized it all?! Then… yeah, that’ll work.”
Elias stroked his chin and whistled.
“Tell the others yourself. Say you’re giving me a crash course in your memorization trick.”
He remembered my earlier plan and waited for my answer.
I hadn’t planned to bow out completely anyway.
If it was a chance to soften my negative image even a little, might as well make use of it while helping.
“Yeah, I will.”
“But hold on.”
As I turned to leave, Elias blocked me and cast soundproofing.
“Wait. Doesn’t something feel off?”
“Hm?”
“Your brother’s spy is that Trout or whatever magic swordsmanship prof. And Narke reports to that prof.”
“Yeah.”
“Sure, you like being thorough, so you’re probably accounting for other spies too. Right?”
Spot on.
I nodded.
“But for you to get credit, we need to advertise that I helped you. Like that memorization coaching thing I mentioned.”
Elias emphasized “advertise,” tilting his head with a eyebrow waggle.
“Ah! Wait. Don’t say it’s just pure kindness. It’d be a waste to pass up becoming Class 1-B’s hero.”
That’s so Elias.
Anyway, I hadn’t planned to phrase it that way either.
I smiled, signaling him to go on, and listened.
Coming from the protagonist, it was worth hearing.
“So, won’t your brother hear that you actively helped with the play?”
“…….”
He would.
I shook my head slightly.
“No issue there. They’ve linked it to my midterm memory jump, so that’s how it’ll reach him too. It’s a reasonable inference.”
Truth be told, I wondered if my brother even knew his little brother’s traits, but there’d been no chance for him to learn about Luca’s memory before.
He’d been at school the whole time, while Luca holed up at home.
Luca had been sharp as a kid anyway.
Memory and intelligence didn’t perfectly align, but most didn’t distinguish much, so it was fine.
“Alright, yeah, I don’t see that as a big problem either. Listen up.”
Elias grinned, barely hiding his mischief.
“Whether I go on with your help or you get pushed onstage yourself, the word to your brother boils down to you saving sinking Class 1-B. This is your shot, Luca. Showing your face directly will shift your image way more than propping me up.”
He had a point.
Elias waved his hand then.
“Wait, correction. It won’t flip your image overnight. But it’s a foundation, right? Lay it now. Chances like this don’t come often.”
‘Is this guy a mind reader…?’
I’d been about to say it wouldn’t change everything at once, and he nailed it.
“Hmm…”
It wasn’t in my plans, so I hadn’t wanted to scale up, but Elias wasn’t wrong.
If I could keep things safe, it was an unmatched opportunity.
Having dipped into this world in real life, participating in events like this wasn’t totally alien.
As I started to respond, Elias leaned in close and whispered.
“And if you go on, we’ll have 500 people in one minute flat.”
“…….”
He’d been thinking about audience numbers too…
Now that he was in Class 1-B, he seemed to care about them.
I nodded.
“Alright, then.”
“Awesome, this’ll be fun. Can’t wait to watch~! Saw you poker-facing earlier—you’re a natural actor.”
Poker and theater weren’t the same, but it wasn’t unrelated to me, so I let it slide.
More importantly, if I was going onstage, I’d need to start acting now.
“Guess I need your help now, Elly.”
At that, Elias didn’t even ask—just flashed a thumbs-up confidently.
“You got it. Trust me. I’ll shut down anyone who tries to interrupt.”
“…Shut them down?”
His casual gesture bugged me for some reason, no explanation needed.
And why he was so confident became clear the second we entered the waiting room.
Elias, magic-propped crutches and all, grabbed my shoulder tight and bellowed.
“Hey, everyone! I found your lead!”