Court Mage
Court Mage
"Please show your ID."
"Ah, yes."
As I took out my adventurer ID, the soldier's gaze slowly dropped.
It was obvious where the soldier was looking, but I was no longer someone who would flinch at 'just' a gaze.
I could easily overlook something like this with broad-mindedness.
Even soldiers like that need something to feast their eyes on, hmm.
"I-it's been confirmed, you may enter!"
Look at that.
He just saw a woman's chest and now he's stammering.
"Hehe, keep up the good work~"
"Y-yes...!"
This might be a little fun to tease.
Anyway.
Passing through the city gates, which looked almost twice as large as Riverrun's, I entered Trion, The Capital of the Trionne Empire—
"Wow....."
This is what a true capital is like.
As soon as I entered the heart and center of The Empire, exclamations of awe naturally spilled out.
Honestly, I thought it would just be bigger than Riverrun, with more buildings.
But as if to shatter my prejudice, the sight of The Capital was different.
It felt like it would be easier to understand if Riverrun were called a countryside village instead.
After seeing The Capital once, the thought that came to mind was:
'Riverrun was a big city?'
To be precise, it was only one of the three major cities of the Trionne Empire.
'Did I only focus on adventuring too much?'
In fact, Riverrun surprisingly had many facilities, but perhaps it was just because I had only focused on adventurer activities.
Perhaps I had been running forward, only looking ahead, for too long.
Just as I was thinking it might be good to refresh myself and enjoy some leisure activities around me—
"Hello?"
A woman much taller than me spoke to me.
But my gaze didn't stop at her height.
Rather than her height, it was what was below.
-Jiggle
'Wow, her breasts are insane.....'
Isn't that what it is, an Alpha Female?
A woman with an even more insane figure than the one I had personally customized appeared.
"Excuse me?"
"Ah, ah. Yes!"
Her wavy purple hair was particularly striking.
Her hair, which would be called a "goddess hairstyle" in modern terms, truly exuded an aura as if I were looking at a goddess.
Moreover, I'd never seen purple hair before; could she be someone out of the ordinary?
Unconsciously, my actions became more cautious.
This is the Middle Ages. If I treated someone carelessly and they turned out to be a high-ranking person, I might be dragged to the execution grounds.
"You're 'Lunia', right?"
"Uh, uh? How do you know my name.....?"
-Snap!
As the woman in front of me snapped her fingers,
"Oh, oh! My letter!"
The letter telling me to come to The Capital, which I had tucked inside my clothes, flew into her hand.
"Hehe, this letter. I sent it, you know?"
".....Eh?"
The image I had in my mind began to shatter.
How to put it, I naturally thought it would be a man.
Because I hadn't expected such a beautiful person, I was a little flustered, and the woman in front of me began to lead me.
"This isn't something to discuss outside, so let's go somewhere we can be alone first."
"Uh, uh. W-wait.....!"
I haven't even found lodging yet.....!
##
Mineba, who had come from the Imperial Palace, immediately headed towards the city gates.
Just as the Emperor had said, a certain person had been caught by her senses, which had been surveying the entire Trion region.
Was she truly a person with talent comparable to her own, as the merchant had said?
Or perhaps she was a descendant of a Witch, born from other Witches?
If it was the former, she would have to draw her in, even if it meant being greedy, but if it was the latter, her interest would quickly wane.
Trying hard to hide her anxious feelings, she reached the city gates,
"Is that, the child.....?"
Still mixed in with the crowd, her face wasn't clearly visible, but Mineba knew who it was.
As the crowds slowly began to disperse for her purpose, and the child caught by her senses finally came into view—
"It's unbelievable....."
So, so beautiful.
To the point where even another woman would feel jealous.
Honestly, she had only half-believed the merchant's words.
Merchants always tend to exaggerate stories for their own image.
But this time, she had to admit it.
The merchant's words were true.
Her breasts were slightly smaller than Mineba's, but large enough to compare with the Emperor's.
Usually, if one has large breasts, they would inevitably have a lot of flesh, but the girl in front of her was not like that.
On the contrary, her abdomen was so slender it made one wonder if her organs even fit inside.
Yet, she had wide hips, perfect for bearing children.
"Truly, truly not a descendant of a Witch.....?"
Races that possess such figures are usually Witches or Elves.
But her senses confirmed that the child was not a Witch.
Her ears and hair color also indicated she wasn't an Elf.
Even the current Emperor possessed such a figure, the qualities of a Tyrant, and the potential of an Emperor because she was Royal Blood, chosen by the gods.
It was natural for men with Royal Blood to automatically become Alpha Males, and women to become Alpha Females.
However, the girl in front of her was neither Royal Blood, nor a descendant of a Witch, nor a child of Elves.
The Witch's instinct spoke.
That child was 'human'.
"That one, I must never let her go....."
For the liberation of the Witch race, which was her lifelong destiny.
And the descendant of a Witch born between her and that child would certainly not be ordinary.
Perhaps, if that child didn't cooperate until the very last resort,
she would have no choice but to carry out her plan, even if it meant 'imprisoning' her.
But if that happened, it wouldn't be good for 'their' child's emotional well-being.
Praying that she wouldn't refuse her offer, Mineba slowly approached.
"Hello?"
.....
...
And now.
Lunia had entered Mineba's house.
##
"Wow, wow....."
This is the Court Mage's house?
I was admiring the magnificent mansion, no less grand than a noble's.
Only the exterior, of course.
I hadn't even entered the house yet.
As I walked to the mansion, I had many conversations with the woman in front of me.
Her name was Mineba.
For now, she was the Court Mage responsible for magic in the Imperial Palace.
And she was the most senior among the Court Mages.
In other words, the top dog.
Mineba's self-introduction ended there, and she said she had heard about me from an eastern merchant.
Mineba said that she herself was the one who created and sold the water Magic Book to Kalle.
'Magic Books could be created.....?'
I naturally thought they could only be obtained from dungeons or reward chests.
To think that someone could directly create and sell Magic Books.
'Ah, that's why she told me to come if I wanted to learn magic.....'
Then there's a very high probability that Mineba is a character related to the game's story progression.
And while I was thinking that, Mineba led me inside the mansion and seated me at a reception table.
If there was anything strange about it,
"Do you live alone.....?"
it would be the fact that there were no servants in this vast mansion.
"Ah, yes. I don't like anyone entering my space."
Oh, then isn't it rude for me to be here too?
Just as I was thinking that, Mineba seemed to have read my thoughts,
"Lunia is fine."
"Ah, yes."
I felt a slight chill.
Somehow, I felt that I should be careful even with my thoughts in front of this person.
"Would black tea be alright?"
"Ah, I'd be grateful if you served it."
-Snap!
Mineba snapped her fingers, and teacups and a teapot flew in from somewhere, setting themselves up.
Magic.....?
It seemed right that she was doing something using Mana.
No, was something like that even possible in the first place?
"Hehe, do you want to learn?"
"Huh? Ah, yes....."
Certainly.
Mineba, who was in front of me, had a completely different 'level' of magic compared to me.
Not only was her knowledge of Mana and magic different, but it felt like a different 'class' altogether.
I thought there were only skill-based types of magic, but I didn't know it was possible to manipulate Mana itself like this.
-Slurp.
"So, Lunia?"
"Yes?"
Suddenly, Mineba's atmosphere changed.
At the same time, the air around them grew heavy.
As if Mineba was 'overwhelming' me.
"To learn magic from me, there are three conditions."
Conditions, huh.
Perhaps it was only natural.
To suddenly be given the opportunity to learn magic from a Court Mage without any compensation.
Even a game with terrible plot consistency wouldn't just take a complete stranger and teach them magic.
If any unreasonable conditions were to come up, I would unfortunately have to refuse her offer.
What kind of conditions could they possibly be?
Feeling a little nervous, I focused on Mineba's words.
"First of all....."
-Gulp.....
"You become my disciple."
".....Disciple?"
As I pondered if there was any difference from just learning magic, Mineba chimed in.
"It will be different from the disciple you're thinking of, Lunia."
"Hmm.... How is it different?"
"First, for the month you're learning the basics of magic, you'll have to accompany me every day."
Afterward, I heard many explanations from Mineba.
Eating together, being woken up when I got up, the title being fixed as Master-nim, and so on. After hearing all the explanations,
'Isn't this just the master-disciple relationship from a wuxia novel?'
It's almost as if I'd have to perform the kowtow ceremony.
Still, Mineba is a woman, and...
She doesn't seem like a bad person.... so honestly, I was a little swayed.
Of course, I still need to hear the remaining two conditions.