Spring Day (5)
Spring Day (5)
If you produced outstanding results at the academy, the Magic Tower looked after you.
Since the two were long-standing allies who helped each other, this was simply the natural course of things.
Hence.
As expected, the chancellor had been waiting endlessly for my arrival.
The first thing he said was a proposal for a presentation.
"Good timing. Are you interested in presenting this problem at the Magic Tower?"
I pointedly let it go in one ear and out the other, slipping past the chancellor to casually inspect his work desk.
Amidst the massive mountain range of stacked papers, I spotted documents from the Magic Tower.
"…"
Suddenly, I had a craving for something sweet.
"I've been dying for something sweet today. Do you have anything decent?"
"Open the left drawer. There are some cookies I received as a gift. Help yourself."
This man, who usually nagged me whenever I helped myself to refreshments, was being exceptionally lenient today.
It was all but certain that the documents I had glimpsed were a recruitment offer from the Magic Tower.
Just as the chancellor said, I opened the drawer and spotted a rather fancy box of cookies.
I grabbed the one that looked the most appetizing, then.
As I ate while keeping my distance, the chancellor wore a strange expression.
Since he subtly tried to follow me, I sighed and sat on the sofa.
"I won't run away."
"Thank goodness. I'll prepare something to drink, so please wait a moment."
At this point, it only looked like the chancellor was in a better mood than usual, but unbeknownst to others, a silencing spell had been cast.
He had moved preemptively, anticipating a negotiation like last time.
As expected of someone who had risen to a high position in the Imperial Court, he was meticulous.
While I briefly assessed the situation, warm coffee was placed in front of each of us.
"So, can you spare about a day?"
"Isn't there something more important than that?"
"Let's hear it."
The chancellor, seated on the sofa, quietly sipped his coffee.
In a calmer atmosphere than before, the conversation continued.
"You're asking me this knowing full well how it happened and what the Magic Tower Master thinks of me."
"Ah, the Magic Tower Master. Right, that did happen."
The chancellor slowly nodded.
He certainly seemed to know about my situation.
Perhaps approaching it with caution, he mulled it over for quite some time before speaking.
"But, as it happens, I don't know what exactly happened."
"Why don't you know?"
An utterly unexpected and completely absurd answer had come back.
I spoke in a rather sharp tone, dumbfounded.
In response, the chancellor looked slightly wronged.
"At the time, I was training to attempt reaching Level 8. Since I was cut off from the outside world, how could I have known?"
"You could have just asked afterward."
"I wish I could have. But the Level 8 attempt failed, the atmosphere was hostile, and they said it was top secret, so I let it slip from my mind."
If even the Imperial Court was hostile, it was certain that the Magic Tower Master's rage had spread far and wide.
Well, it was inevitable, given that I had blown away an entire stretch of open land.
Even if it was top secret then, it was all water under the bridge, so revealing it wouldn't matter.
Who could complain when the person involved was the one bringing it up?
Really, the chancellor would be more likely to suffer if he went around blabbing about it to the Magic Tower Master.
I mentioned the top secret matter casually while eating a cookie.
"That day, I broke through the Magic Tower Barrier, entered the Magic Tower Master's office, left a trace, and came out."
"Wha- what did you say?"
The chancellor froze stiff, blown away by how bewildering the hidden truth was.
He stared at me as if time had stopped.
"I didn't destroy anything or kill anyone. I just looked around and left."
"Good grief. To think such a person exists."
The chancellor swept back what little hair he had left and laughed hollowly.
Then, as soon as he put down his teacup, he pointed a finger right at me.
"Are you the reason that large-scale project was completely overturned?"
"Just as you suspect."
"…"
Having understood the reason for this ill-fated relationship, the chancellor let out a deep sigh and began to explain how 'Spring Day' had spread to the Magic Tower.
"You must know that the academy and the Magic Tower maintain a close relationship."
"Of course."
"At the Magic Tower, the Academy Column has long been a popular window for peeking at future juniors."
"It has been quite useful in many ways."
The chancellor nodded.
"On top of that, the last chapter problems offered a bit of fun. They'd predict the difficulty of the next column's problem, that sort of thing."
Hearing this, I could roughly guess how things had developed.
Mages who had been looking at it lightly as usual suddenly faced a whole new world.
That talk would have spread like wildfire and eventually reached the Magic Tower Master.
My simple prediction was perfectly confirmed by the chancellor's next statement.
"I certainly knew it was a beautiful problem, but even I didn't expect the Magic Tower Master to react that way."
"So, the Magic Tower Master solved Spring Day."
"If he showed that much interest, it's practically certain."
If the Magic Tower Master had solved the problem, he would have discovered the mechanism I had hidden.
That was a spatial magic for the production.
'Did he figure out the spatial magic?'
Since it was a circuit made to work without needing to analyze the structure, no one would have noticed.
Only the Magic Tower Master would have known.
I had wanted to maintain the best possible relationship with Ayla to build goodwill with the Magic Tower Master, but it looked like the plan was going awry.
If the rumors had spread this far, an uncomfortable meeting might come together before long.
This would be a watershed moment, depending on how I handled it.
My curiosity about the Magic Tower was satisfied; next was the academy.
"Then, why is it so popular at the academy?"
"Ah, you mean that?"
The chancellor had a curious expression on his face.
"Professor Prokel has become a totally different person since that lecture. He repented for his past deeds and dedicated himself fully to his assigned lectures."
So the change I sensed when I met him again wasn't just my imagination.
He seemed to have undergone a psychological change.
"That's good news, but it's not related to this matter."
"The trigger was that he praised Spring Day highly in his lecture."
"Really?"
The chancellor just nodded instead of answering.
Judging by his past behavior, such praise for others was extremely rare for him.
He would normally find flaws and dig at any opening.
If someone who was always like that suddenly showed a different side, people would have been suspicious at first.
But after repeated occurrences, they would gradually become interested.
In the end, it was a case of the synergy between the academy and the Magic Tower—who were interlocked like gears—exploding.
"The Magic Tower is keeping a close eye on the academy. For the students' sake, can't you step forward?"
"If I run into the Magic Tower Master, it will be a headache."
"If you leave a good impression, it will positively impact your reputation as well."
Ayla, being the Magic Tower Master's apprentice, was already a hot potato, and Spring Day was shaking both the academy and the Magic Tower.
On top of that, for a top-priority wanted criminal who caused trouble at the drop of a hat to be working so diligently… wouldn't that have been surprising from his perspective?
The chancellor wasn't wrong.
But still, something was missing to wrap things up like this.
There had to be another angle to gain more advantage. I laid the bait as usual.
"Hmm, so I just have to go and give the presentation?"
"As long as you don't cause any trouble."
"Let's make a deal."
"Another deal?"
The chancellor's face had been brightening, but he seemed to recall the memory and became wary.
Even if it ended without incident, he must have been burdened by connecting me to the Cardinal.
"Let's hear it first."
There was a brief silence, but he seemed willing to hear me out, so he spoke.
I immediately proceeded with a deal for Gilbert and Camilla.
"I need information on the Magic Tower Practical Exam questions from the last three years."
"I'm not even a member of the Magic Tower. How would I know that?"
The chancellor gave a baffled look and sipped his coffee.
I thought it was possible since he was in contact with the Magic Tower Master, but it was unfortunate.
'Was it too much even for the chancellor to handle the Magic Tower?'
It couldn't be helped, and while it would take time, I decided to entrust the investigation to Alcyone.
That way, I could continue as usual, build a deep sense of trust with Ayla, and then approach the Magic Tower Master.
It was a slow but sure way to obtain a method to weaken Artifacts.
"Forget the presentation then…"
"Instead, there is a method only you can pull off."
The chancellor abruptly cut me off and sprang to his feet.
It seemed he thought it would be a waste to let the negotiation table go.
"Wait just a moment."
He rummaged through his desk and brought out some familiar documents.
It was my personal information file that I had seen on my first day at the academy.
Next to it was a document I was seeing for the first time.
"If we extend your stay from three months to the end of the semester, rumors might surface at the Magic Tower about this year's exam."
To think he was presenting this as a pressure card.
What the chancellor casually held out was an extension request form.
He must have been eyeing this opportunity since day one, because only the signature line was blank.
I had forgotten that the chancellor was more obsessed with education than anyone else.
Extending the instructor period from three months to the end of this semester…
I quickly weighed my options.
The result was simple.
Teaching the students wouldn't change anyway.
Maintaining a good relationship with the academy and the Magic Tower would help with tracking the Demons.
And since everyone was following along so diligently, it wouldn't be difficult.
Especially since Flora seemed to be enjoying academy life, I accepted the offer.
"Alright."
"A wise decision."
I quickly signed and gave the chancellor a steady look.
I exerted silent pressure, urging him to reveal the exam details.
"Don't look so menacing."
The chancellor rolled up the documents and tucked them into his coat.
"As you know, in the past, didn't the exams involve drawing Magic Circles or solving problems within a time limit?"
"They've been like that until now."
"However, the tone has changed over the last three years. Theory is good, but they've increased the focus on practical application."
At this point, I realized why the chancellor had welcomed the practical aspect.
While the academy was indeed biased towards theory, he felt the need to follow the times by adapting to the Magic Tower's changes.
The explanation that followed proceeded without a hitch.
"This year, they will measure the efficient injection of Mana into an Artifact. They'll judge based on how much you've filled it within the time limit."
"Isn't that their way of checking how far you can stretch your limited Mana?"
"Precisely."
The Demons likely had a large part in why this became the case.
It seemed the upper echelon had decided that the era of peaceful research was over.
It probably meant they were preparing for a future yet to come.
One interesting point was that the method was exactly the same as the homework I had assigned.
Just in case, I asked about the exam's difficulty.
"What's the level of the Artifact?"
"Hmm, roughly a high-purity Resistance Stone, I believe."
"There will definitely be at least two who pass the Magic Tower exam this time."
The Magic Tower Practical Exam issue was resolved in a single stroke.