Chapter 118

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Translator: MadScientist

Chapter: 118

Chapter Title: The Student Council President's Wish (Twist)

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After the sparring match ended, Harisha led me to the student council room.

The student council room was empty.

Just as Harisha had said, it seemed to be one of those rare times when the student council had nothing to do.

"Even when there's no work, I think people should still show up at the student council room. We don't have talents like you yet, Junior Ian."

Harisha said this while lightly tidying up the room.

I recalled the vice president and cleaning club manager I'd seen at the subjugation festival.

Even they probably don't want to come if the president's here.

I had a pretty good idea why the other student council members weren't showing up, but I kept it to myself.

"Wait just a moment, okay? I'll bring something out. Normally the secretary would make tea, but as you can see, no one's here."

"Ah, yes. Thank you."

The secretary even makes tea when the president asks.

They were delivering food last time, too.

I offered a silent prayer for the secretary's seat, then opened the gallery while I waited.

Indeed, Harisha's skills were on another level, just as I'd thought.

The gallery users were saying beating 4th circle internalization was a huge deal.

More than that, what was Harisha's real goal?

I still didn't know why Lee Soo-ah approached me, or why Harisha took me away back then.

At that moment, Harisha came out with some tea.

"Drink this, and your mana will recover a little over the next few minutes. It's tea from my hometown."

"Ah, thank you."

The tea Harisha brought had a scent I'd never smelled before.

Of course, I'd barely drunk any tea in my life.

Amid the warm steam, the tea's icy hue, like snowflakes settling on cold water, felt utterly alien.

But my mana was already more than half regenerated thanks to my regeneration.

Normal humans don't have mana regeneration.

I didn't mention it, not wanting to raise suspicions.

"Your hometown is the Whitepost Archmage Duke Family, right?"

"Hehe, yes. It's a famous tea variety from the northern regions. Hard to get, but I'm sharing it specially with you, Junior Ian."

It seemed to be a specialty from some northern area where the Whitepost Archmage Duke Family ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was located.

She said it grew similarly to 'Echo of the Earth.'

A variety that only grew in lands briefly covered by mana-infused snow in a region frozen year-round.

The Whitepost Archmage Duke was the Northern Grand Duke.

"So, what's the wish?"

"Ah, right, the wish. It's nothing big..."

Harisha took a sip of her tea.

Her relaxed expression hardened slightly.

"The wish is just an excuse, you could say. Or maybe advice is more accurate."

"Advice?"

"I'll be direct, Junior Ian. From now on, ignore ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠any Archmage Duke who approaches you. No, anyone connected to an Archmage Duke Family."

"...Uh, yes?"

It was a topic I hadn't expected at all.

I ended up blurting out something stupid without thinking.

"Did you just say Archmage Duke?"

"Yes."

Harisha's expression was more serious than ever.

She had just told me to ignore everyone from the Archmage Duke Families who approached me.

And she herself was direct lineage.

Just recently, she'd taken me to the Illimost Archmage Duke.

"I don't understand. Why say that all of a sudden..."

Harisha wasn't showing any hostility toward me right now.

My gut feeling was that her emotions toward me had always been close to favorable.

"It's normal not to understand, Junior Ian. Humans can't think beyond their experiences."

"That's true."

"I think telling you everything I know would be dangerous. But it's also for your sake, so please listen. Of course, I don't want to lie. This serves my goals too."

"What goal? Why is avoiding Archmage Dukes for my sake? And why are they approaching me in the first place? The Illimost Archmage Duke too..."

Harisha fell silent for a moment.

She took a sip of tea, closed her eyes briefly, then opened them.

Suddenly, I felt a vast distance between us.

It was like I had no idea what she was thinking.

She was already dozens, no, hundreds of steps ahead, pondering something.

But seriously, what was it?

"...The Archmage Dukes are trying to overthrow this world."

"Overthrow...?"

It didn't seem to refer to that shellfish etiquette.

"Overthrow is my term. I'm still figuring out exactly what they're plotting."

"How do you know that, President?"

"Before coming to the academy, while living in the family. I was a curious kid."

The source seemed reliable.

Harisha had no reason to tell me this.

But what did it have to do with me?

"Let's say that's true. What does the world being overthrown have to do with me? We're all dead anyway, right?"

"I'm still investigating their exact plan. But one thing is certain. They were looking for 'candidates.'"

"Candidates?"

"When I was so young I couldn't even use 3rd circle magic. A young male mage visited the family. Guests often visit the patriarch's residence where the family head stays, so I thought he was just one of them."

Harisha began her childhood story.

She'd overheard a conversation between a guest and an Archmage Duke by chance at the patriarch's residence.

It was an ordinary conversation.

Like trying to bring a promising mage into the family as an affiliate.

"The family has non-direct lineage mages too. I thought it was that. But the patriarch scolded me harshly and chased me out."

Just for overhearing an ordinary conversation, she got severely reprimanded.

A normal kid would have cried there.

But Harisha was extraordinary even as a child.

"Something was up. That's what I thought. So I stole an artifact from the family vault and used it. Probably the highest-grade stealth artifact in the world."

That young Harisha, driven by curiosity,

even stole and used an artifact to sneak back into the patriarch's residence.

And she saw it.

"The patriarch cast some magic on the guest and killed him. Then muttered, 'Not this candidate either...' I ran after that. Jumped straight out an open corridor window. Felt like the patriarch noticed something. If I'd fled down the stairs normally, I'd have been caught that day."

"Whoa..."

"After that, I cautiously investigated. I haven't figured everything out, but it's clear the Archmage Dukes are plotting something together."

Harisha was only a third-year at the academy now.

Yet in her short life, she'd done all this. It was astonishing.

This is what they mean by born different.

Judging to jump out a window in that situation.

It was the 8th floor, too.

"A plan to overthrow the world. To execute it, they need 'candidates.' They're periodically summoning talented mages. And they all vanish from the world."

"Am I a potential one of them?"

"You're only a first-year, so they might not pay much attention yet. But if you keep growing this fast, you'll end up on the 'candidate' list eventually. They'll come for you."

"..."

If Harisha was right, standing out at the subjugation festival wasn't good.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, I didn't seem to meet the 'candidate' criteria yet.

"Hard to believe... Are you planning to fight the Archmage Dukes, President?"

"If I can get that strong. I think a world where capable talents are respected is better."

"What's that suddenly?"

"Talking about their plan to overthrow the world. I don't know exactly how, but their goal seems clear."

"What goal?"

"Ensuring no one rises above them. Creating a world where nothing stronger than them emerges... That's my guess."

"So they kill all talented mages?"

"Part of it, yes. But I think getting that 'candidate' lets them rule the world. Whether it's magic, forbidden magic, or an ancient artifact. I don't know the method yet. But the goal is certain."

"You hate that talented people can't shine because of the Archmage Dukes."

"Yes. The world needs to progress, not have its ceiling blocked."

After that, Harisha shared a bit more of her investigations. Only within what she could reveal.

It was too detailed to be fabricated.

Her life was woven into the information.

Is this genius thinking?

Fighting alone for her beliefs since childhood.

"Then why'd you take me to the Illimost Archmage Duke back then?"

"I couldn't refuse his order then. Telling you this now is preventive. Most mages marked and killed as 'candidates' were at 7th or early 8th circle."

I wasn't at candidate level yet.

But seeing my growth, Harisha warned me to be careful in advance.

Most candidates stood out too much and caught the Archmage Dukes' eyes, leading to death.

Hide growth early, and you might avoid becoming a candidate.

But then why did Lee Soo-ah pounce on me?

I told Harisha about it.

"...Really? Unexpected."

She looked surprised hearing the story.

"What did you think the Illimost Archmage Duke wanted with me? Even if not to kill, you figured some goal."

"I thought it was about a 'retainer.'"

"Retainer?"

"Illimost Archmage Duke Family retainers are special. But if she suddenly jumped you... Hmm..."

Harisha pondered again.

I didn't know what retainers were, but it seemed like Illimost culture.

After deep thought, Harisha clapped her hands.

She smiled with her reliable student council president face again.

"Be careful anyway, Junior Ian. That's all I can tell you."

"Got it."

"Don't forget, Junior Ian. You lost the bet and promised to grant my wish. Okay?"

"...Yes."

I nodded and left the student council room.

It was hard to take in.

Was it all true?

I posted our conversation on the gallery.

The gallery opinions varied.

Well, Harisha said it was just preventive advice.

Follow it, stay low-key from now on, and I might avoid the fate of previous candidates.

What to do from now on?

Such a massive issue suddenly loomed, making my head heavy.

But such foolish worries vanished quickly.

My goal remained the same.

Getting stronger as a mage was all that mattered.

Just added caution to avoid Archmage Duke eyes.

Nothing happening immediately.

No need to overthink yet.

Maybe Harisha scared me too much.

If I get strong, no worries.

Saving the world or whatever gave me a headache right now.

Can't even protect myself yet.

I forcefully acted tough in gallery replies to quell my anxiety.

The next day after class.

I headed alone to the training room for the 5th circle training I couldn't finish yesterday.

Today was annoyingly busy.

Interest spiked from yesterday's spar with Harisha.

Especially the dozen cadets in the training room saw the internalization.

Some asked if it was real.

I said no to avoid hassle.

Considering Harisha's talk, too much attention was bad.

My class trio naturally didn't buy it.

Elrim hounded me on how.

The other two stuck around too.

They were just here until moments ago.

But I insisted on training alone today.

Nothing to teach about internalization.

Couldn't teach it anyway.

Honestly, couldn't explain how myself.

Just good imagery, that's all.

They finally left together.

Elrim grumbled something like 'Even trash makes a fuss alone, hmph!'

Chayuri and Hisenna looked sulky too.

What's the problem with a cadet training magic?

Though few train right after class.

Anyway, I wanted to raise circles ASAP.

To surpass others, train when they don't.

I opened the saved post from the gallery.

CantDoThisEither's summaries, helpful every circle-up.

Reviewing for 5th circle practice, a magic flashed in mind.

"Magic that boosts thinking ability..."

SubsidyRiceEater's now-fluid 6th circle magic.

Boosts thinking, so learning it might speed circle-ups.

Practicing 5th after trying 6th should be easier too.

Normally learn sequential circles.

Can't compute 5th, so can't 6th, common sense.

But I could invest time.

Didn't seem impossible.

Couldn't use FlapFlap's 6th due to imagery issue.

Hard to image non-human sense.

But SubsidyRiceEater's is human magic.

Imagery feasible.

Gallery would say basics first.

Not skipping; boost thinking to build basics faster.

"Let's try. 6th circle."