Louise, Eldest Daughter of House Loengram
Louise clutched her necklace tightly.
"So it was real..."
For reasons she alone seemed to understand, she looked thoroughly delighted, a smile blooming across her face before she caught herself. Embarrassed by the laugh that had slipped free, she smothered it and returned to her usual blank expression.
She cleared her throat and began again.
"Anyway, now that we've come this far—"
I had been drawn here by my Master's voice. I still had no idea what was going on, but given the circumstances, Louise had to be responsible.
"What exactly are you trying to pull right now?"
"What...?"
When I snapped at her in a raised voice, she looked genuinely startled, as if she had never expected the accusation.
"I don't know what you were trying to do, but is it fun for you? Digging into someone else's pain?"
She frowned, clearly lost.
"What are you talking abou—"
"I heard my Master's voice and followed it all the way here. Why would you do something like that?"
"Your Master's voice? I have no idea what you're saying."
So it wasn't her? She didn't look like she was lying. She truly seemed not to know.
A brief silence stretched between us. Then something seemed to click for her.
"Ah... wait."
Louise offered a careful, almost guilty apology, as if she had just realized she might have done something wrong after all.
"Aaron, I'm sorry. I truly never meant anything like that."
"What are you talking about? So it wasn't you?"
"I swear on the name of Loengram that I never intended this. I'm sorry."
Intended, she said. So something had still happened, just not on purpose.
Her apology drew an irritated sigh from me, but what could I do? She was the one who had saved my life.
"Then what the hell did you do?"
"Well..."
Was it that hard to explain?
She kept trailing off, clearly struggling to find the words.
"I'm sorry, but I can't tell you the full details. Still..."
How many secrets was this girl hiding, exactly?
Just looking at her, she was the spitting image of a villainess who had five hundred and fifty-five conspiracies tucked up her sleeves.
She noticed my suspicious glare, then pinched her necklace between her fingers and held it out for me to see.
"This necklace called you here. Probably."
Honestly, I was starting to wonder if she had a few screws loose herself.
"N-No! It's true! It's not some weird superstition—it's a magic tool my father gave me!"
She must have caught the pity in my eyes, because Louise rushed to defend herself.
Looking closer, it definitely wasn't an ordinary jewel. It didn't feel like a particularly complex magic tool either, though. At best, it looked like a mana stone with a bit of power stored inside.
I asked her, still doubtful.
"What do you mean by that? I can feel a faint trace of mana from it, sure, but..."
"What...?"
She answered as if she couldn't believe her ears.
"You can feel mana from it...? Can you actually see mana with your eyes or something?"
"Yeah. I can."
"..."
"What...? You can see mana with your eyes...?"
Her face was the picture of pure disbelief.
I had thought the Empire was a nation built around magic. Apparently not entirely.
"I've been learning at my Master's side since I was little. To be precise, I don't so much see it as feel it. If I focus a little harder, I can even make out the rough structure."
She swallowed hard.
"You probably shouldn't go around saying that here... I've never met anyone who could do something like that."
"From an ordinary perspective, it's less 'impressive' and more..."
She trailed off again.
"More what?"
"It makes you wonder whether you're even human."
Not human, huh. Honestly, I wouldn't mind if I weren't. I would have been stronger that way.
Unfortunately, I was just a pure-blooded human who had grown up under a dragon.
She smiled as she spoke.
"Well, you certainly seem different from the idiotic noblemen around here."
"Where did that come from all of a sudden?"
She continued muttering to herself.
Conversation is supposed to go both ways, you know...
"Honestly, I was still on the fence..."
"About what, exactly?"
"All right. I've decided. As the eldest daughter of House Loengram, I'll trust my own judgment."
"What judgment are you even—"
"No... is this man really the right choice...?"
I gave up on picking apart every single thing she said. Fine. Talk to yourself all you want.
She murmured quietly.
"Or... if he's not, I could just quietly bury him and that would be the end of it, right...?"
That was not something I could just let slide.
She spoke as if she had made up her mind.
"All right, Aaron. Let's go."
"Go where, exactly—"
With a look of pure resolve, she began to cast.
"Ere-Forest-Retrai Loamgram."
I had never heard of a casting method like that. Was it her own unique magic?
The moment her casting finished, another door appeared on the far side of the basement entrance.
"This is...?"
"A double lock. No one is ever supposed to set foot in here."
Then why was she taking me?
She looked a little proud of herself as she said it.
"You're the first person I've ever brought here... so consider it an honor."
I sighed and answered.
"Yeah... sure..."
Thud. Thud.
After a short descent down the stairs, the basement came into view.
Unidentifiable blueprints covered the desk. Research into the design of the world...? Nothing but incomprehensible phrases filled the pages.
Strange magic tools of every kind... Honestly, at a glance, it all looked like nothing more than useless research.
"A magic research lab...?"
"..."
"Whose research is this, Louise?"
Being ignored again, was I?
"This is... because I feel like I was rude to you earlier. Think of it as my own way of apologizing."
She walked over to a corner of the basement and pulled what looked like a lever on one of the magic tools.
"Well? Isn't it incredible? Don't you think it's beautiful?"
"There's nothing here. What are you—"
"Look around you. This is the only chance you'll get. You'll regret it if you don't look now."
"What kind of nonsense is th—"
The sight that filled my vision stole the rest of the words from my mouth.
Transparent spheres of soft blue light drifted and circled around the two of us. It was as if the night sky I had seen as a child had been brought down into this room—a dreamlike landscape so beautiful that my mind went hazy without my noticing.
I couldn't help the quiet admiration that slipped out.
"It's... beautiful..."
"It's a magic tool my father invented."
So this was her father's research lab.
"Well? I take pride in this view. Search the entire world if you like—you won't find a place more beautiful than this. Heh heh..."
She rested a hand over her heart, looking thoroughly pleased with herself.
"The only people who know about this place are me and you. I'd like you to treat that as an honor."
"And of course, it has to stay that way from now on. Understood?"
She met my eyes and smiled softly.
Maybe it was the beauty of the scene, but before I realized it I was staring at her, completely entranced.
"Ahem... ahem. My father's brilliance doesn't end here, you know. Every magic tool in this room is the result of his research..."
She picked up a broken-looking magic tool from a corner of the basement and held it out to me.
"Look at this. This is one of his research results too."
"What is it?"
"The emergency escape portal I used when I saved you. Single-use, though."
"What...?"
Portals didn't exist. They couldn't.
"A portal? That's just pseudo-magicology—"
"My father is no mere pseudo-magicologist. Watch your tongue, Aaron."
I had clearly struck a nerve. She made no effort to hide her displeasure.
That was my mistake.
"That was a careless remark. I sincerely apologize."
At my honest apology, she sighed.
"It's fine..."
"My father is both an extremely capable lord and a magicologist worthy of the deepest respect."
"It all happened so suddenly... One day he simply stopped handling every single one of his duties and threw himself completely into his research."
"Research...?"
She gave a weak smile.
"You can see it, can't you? Research into the world itself."
"They say he was studying the design structure of the world. Honestly, even I don't fully understand the content..."
Her eyes looked terribly sad.
"Louise... your father is..."
She wore that sorrowful expression for a moment, then forced a smile and gripped her necklace.
"What kind of misunderstanding are you having? My father isn't here right now. He's busy."
She brushed it off, then held up the broken magic tool again.
"He's the kind of man who creates magic tools that border on the miraculous, so of course he's busy elevating the name of Loengram."
...
Louise's smile soon faded into a serious expression.
"There's something I want to ask of you."
She had saved my life, so if it was within my power, I wanted to grant her request...
She spoke with a smile.
"First of all, I'll provide your place to stay in the Empire. If possible, I'll even try to get you assigned to the same dormitory as me. Only if you want that, of course..."
Then she made a strange proposal.
"Would you stay with me at the Academy? With the power you showed back then, you'd clear the entrance cutoff by a mile. We could eat together, study together..."
She said that, then muttered under her breath.
"You might even take the top seat..."
Something seemed to occur to her, and she added in a low voice,
"No, the top seat is mine. You'll have to settle for second."
The Academy, huh.
I had attended one back in the Kingdom as well. It would probably be a little different from the Empire's, but I was a graduate of the Kingdom's Hero Academy myself.
Under normal circumstances, I would have wanted to accept.
"I'm sorry. I have to refuse."
"What...? Why? Just being by my side would be enough—"
I didn't want to lie to the person who had saved me.
"I have to take my revenge. I've already graduated from the Kingdom's Academy. And I don't think my simply being next to you would be of any real help to you..."
"It's really fine if that's all it is... And—and if it's about revenge!"
"I'll help you too!"
"I may not look it, but I'm going to become an honor student at the Academy—the absolute peak of the Empire's meritocracy..."
"'Going to become'? What year are you in right now?"
She averted her eyes.
"I'm still... preparing for the entrance exam..."
"That answers it, then."
"Th-That—Aaron, do you even have a way to take revenge on your own?!"
She had clearly expected me to agree without question. She tried desperately to persuade me.
"... Going to the Empire's Academy as a non-noble, building connections and skill, and using that for revenge..."
"..."
"I'll take my revenge my own way. You don't need to worry about me."
"But... I need you..."
Honestly, I felt an instinctive pull toward her. It would be a lie to say I didn't want to stay with her. But...
Right now, revenge had to come first. I couldn't afford to waste too much time here.
More than that—even if she could become my strength, I couldn't drag the person who had saved my life into my revenge. The ones I was going after were otherworlders who possessed strength that defied the natural order. Lingering too long in the mansion of an ordinary noble young lady would only put her in danger as well.
"I'm sorry. I'll repay your kindness one way or another."
"..."
Louise had clearly believed I would grant her request.
Whether it was hurt pride or pure disappointment, I couldn't tell.
When she finally spoke, her voice was ice-cold.
"I understand. I was a fool for even thinking of relying on someone else for a moment. You can repay the favor with money. That will be enough."
"I'm sorry..."
"Once your wounds heal, leave."
Snap—
She tore the necklace from her throat and threw it aside, muttering,
"To think I actually believed in something like this... how stupid..."
Then, face twisted with disappointment and frustration, she climbed the stairs and left.
My Master's revenge was still the absolute priority—that much was true. But honestly, this stung.
I simply felt heavy-hearted for failing to properly answer the faith she had placed in me.
Why would she pin her hopes on someone like me...
"I'll bring it back to her later, once she's calmed down..."
With that thought, I picked up the necklace she had discarded.