Chapter 356
Chapter 356
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 356
Chapter Title: Magic Association (2)
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When Shirone finished preparing and stepped out the door, the guards were already lined up in front of Flue. Shirone hesitated for a moment before quietly slipping into the back of the line and standing at attention.
As if that were the correct thing to do, Flue glanced at Shirone before issuing the day's orders.
“This is the Magic Association, the cradle of the kingdom's magic. Many brilliant mages work here, but that also means there are many criminals and a high risk of terrorism. Today, let's once again defend the third floor with ironclad security, so tight not even an ant can get through. Remember, the Magic Association is the strength of the nation.”
Flue slowly scanned the faces of the guards, then shouted.
“Now, dismiss to your posts!”
As the guards dispersed to their assigned areas, Shirone was left alone in the hallway. Flue crooked a finger at him, then turned around.
“You, follow me. From now on, our job is to patrol and manage the facilities. If you see anyone suspicious, you question them. If they don't have an Association-approved registration card, you can arrest them on the spot.”
It sounded like a great deal of authority to Shirone, but on the other hand, it seemed unlikely that suspicious people would be wandering in and out of the world-renowned Magic Association.
As expected, Flue's words were little more than a bluff. From what he observed over the next hour, she had almost nothing to do. Her duties consisted of receiving salutes from the guards, watching quietly if a minor incident occurred, and then resuming her patrol.
‘This is a total cakewalk, isn't it?’
He thought this must be what people called a cushy, ironclad job.
Of course, he wasn't unaware that the job had become so easy because generations of outstanding mages had held this position before.
Just then, a lamp on the ceiling began to rotate, flashing a red light. A siren blared for about three seconds before the noise abruptly cut off, as if someone had shut it down.
Shirone tensed and looked around. Flue, on the other hand, stopped nonchalantly and waited for someone.
A guard came running from around the corner of the hallway. But his expression wasn't particularly urgent either.
“Excuse me, Chief.”
“What is it? The siren went off.”
“Well... the circuit board of the magic control device overheated, and the internal circuits burned out. We've already contacted the maintenance team.”
Nearly every area of the Magic Association had its magic restricted by a magic control device. It was known that due to technical limitations, it didn't work on Second-Class Archmages, but it was still effective enough to prevent most acts of terrorism and reduce damage from occasional clashes between staff members.
“Hmm, that thing is always causing trouble. Hey, you. Follow me. Let's go take a look.”
Following Flue, he arrived at the engine room to find alchemists and mages engrossed in their work, having torn open a wall.
Shirone examined the circuit board of the magic control device with interest. It was a technology also used in the academy's System 2000, but this was the first time he had seen its internal circuitry.
As expected, it was a concentration of the finest magic engineering. Even though Shirone was now at the level of a graduating student, he still couldn't properly analyze the circuits.
Flue approached the maintenance team and asked.
“How's it looking? Think you can fix it?”
“Ah, Ms. Flue. This is going to take some time. The board is completely fried. Come to think of it, this is the third time this year. It looks like there's an error in the sub-adjustment unit; we'll probably have to tear the whole thing out.”
Flue was also deeply concerned about the lack of proper magic control on the third floor, which was her responsibility.
“I've already submitted a request to the higher-ups. It will probably be replaced with a new one during this quarter's maintenance, but isn't there a temporary fix we can use in the meantime?”
No matter how robust an organization the Magic Association was, security gaps were unacceptable. A broken magic control device meant a serious hole in the third floor's security, so it wasn't a matter to be taken lightly.
“If we patch it up, it should last another month. But the Mutol has melted, and the Janes device needs to be replaced too. The problem is, those are non-standard supply items, so the Association doesn't have any in stock. We'll have to requisition them.”
“Hmm, but requisitioning them will take too long...”
Flue bit her thumbnail, lost in thought.
The magic control device was also a security matter, so it fell under her jurisdiction. Normally, they kept a stock of even non-standard items, but with eighteen floors, it was first come, first served.
Flue turned to look at Shirone. She watched his face for a long while as he stared blankly at the circuit board, then finally made a decision and spoke.
“Hey, you.”
“Yes? Me?”
Flue crooked her finger, beckoning him over. When Shirone approached, she led him to a corner of the engine room and spoke in a low voice so the maintenance team couldn't hear.
“I need you to run an errand for me.”
“An errand...?”
“Take a carriage to Gold Street. When you get to the central fountain, take a right, and you'll see the Akim Alchemy Emporium right away. It's an Association-designated supplier. Go inside and pick up a few things for me.”
Flue took a notepad from her inner pocket and scribbled down a list of items. Then, she tore the page out with a crisp rip and handed it to Shirone.
Holding the note, Shirone read through the unfamiliar item names one by one. It was a simple errand, but he was a complete novice in this area, which made him a little worried.
“Okay, I'll go. But how do I pay?”
“You don't have to. The Association pays for everything at the end of the month. Here, just show them this.”
Flue handed Shirone the employee ID card hanging around her neck. It had a serial number, and next to the name ‘Ravid Flue’, her rank, ‘Official 8th Class’, was engraved in bronze.
The photo was from two years ago when she had just joined, and she was wearing a pair of huge, nerdy glasses, making her look completely different from how she did now.
Flue's face turned red as she glared and shouted.
“Hey! Why are you staring at someone else's photo like that? Put it away, now!”
“Ah, sorry.”
Shirone quickly tucked the ID card into his inner pocket.
For some women, a bad photo is the stuff of nightmares, and Flue was hit by a wave of regret. But the milk was already spilt.
‘Ugh, seriously. I should have changed it sooner.’
She had been meaning to replace the photo for a while, but she was always so swamped with work that she would completely forget about it over time.
Embarrassed, Flue cleared her throat for no reason and adjusted Shirone's clothes.
“Anyway, be careful. Don't go wearing it around trying to look cool. Keep it in your pocket at all times. A Magic Association ID isn't something just anyone can carry.”
Shirone was well aware of the importance of a Magic Association ID card.
With just a bronze ID card, one could access over ninety percent of the kingdom's officially recognized institutions and use over sixty percent of the facilities under the Red Line for free. Furthermore, it granted the authority to arrest and prosecute anyone short of royalty within certain domains. During internal inspections, the holder could, at the request of state agencies, carry out missions involving wiretapping, infiltration, and special operations without restriction.
On the surface, it looked like a common plastic card, but internally, it was embedded with a quantum cryptographic code, making it impossible to duplicate.
Carrying a card that held such immense authority made his body feel stiff. Shirone checked for the ID in his pocket one more time before finally nodding.
“Yes. I'll be careful.”
With that, Shirone turned and left the Magic Association. It was a chance to ride the elevator he had dreamed of, but perhaps due to the tension from the unfamiliar errand, he ended up taking the familiar stairs.
After taking a carriage to Gold Street, he found countless shops arranged in concentric circles. The streets radiated out in eight directions, with each district specializing in different goods.
A sign in the center read 'Alchemy Street'. Following the arrow to the right, he came upon a building that looked like a normal one magnified five times over.
‘This must be it, the Akim Alchemy Emporium.’
He opened the door and went inside to find eight rows of shelves, each a staggering twenty meters long. No two items on the shelves were the same, and even Shirone, a student at the magic academy, didn't know the purpose of most of them.
‘Nade would have gone crazy if he were here. I should come back with him after we graduate.’
The counter was located at the far end of the entrance. There were about twenty customers, and in a corner, some alchemists were sitting on the floor, laying out dozens of items and examining them.
The person manning the counter was an intelligent-looking young man. Seeing that he was reading a book titled 'Intermediate Transmutation', Shirone figured he was either an alchemist or an aspiring one.
“Excuse me, I have a question.”
As Shirone approached, the man closed his book and stood up.
“Yes, what are you looking for?”
“I'm from the Magic Association. Do you have these items?”
Shirone placed the note Flue had written on the counter and pushed it forward. Given the variety and number of items, he figured explaining would be impossible anyway.
The man glanced over the list on the note and quickly understood.
“Looks like a magic control device overheated. I'll get the items for you. But could I see your ID card? Our transactions with the Association are settled at the end of the month.”
“Ah, yes. Here you go.”
Shirone took out Flue's ID card.
The man went under the counter and placed the card on a scanner. A beep sounded, and an approval message appeared. The man returned the ID card to Shirone and said.
“Thank you for the confirmation. Please wait a moment.”
The man picked up a thin metal box and went around the shelves, collecting the items. Some alchemical ingredients were difficult to handle, so they couldn't just be put anywhere.
While waiting, Shirone drummed his fingers on the counter, humming as he looked around. Then, as he turned toward the alchemy book section, two figures in black hoods quickly turned their heads away.
‘What was that? Why are they wearing hoods? Are they mages, too?’
Shirone watched them a little longer, but the two showed no other unusual behavior and disappeared behind the opposite shelf, pretending to look for items.
Avoiding Shirone's gaze, they slipped away to a deserted corner. The man on the right whispered in a low voice.
“Damn it, he's from the Magic Association. What do we do? I don't think we can pull it off here.”
“Risk is part of completing a revolution. Let's just do it here.”
“But if we fail, we won't be able to save our brothers. Let's not. We should move. Let's go to the Gold Tower. We prepared an infiltration route for a reason.”
“Tch, fine. I was hoping to save that place for last.”
The hooded figures quietly slipped out of the alchemy emporium.
Shirone waited at the counter for about five minutes. The man returned after collecting all the items, placed the metal box on the counter, and pushed it forward. There was a wide variety of items, but the box was surprisingly small, so it didn't look heavy.
“Here are your items. We can deliver them, but they won't arrive until after five. If you're in a hurry, you can take them now.”
“I'll just take them now, then. It doesn't look very heavy.”
“But please handle it with care. Some of the items are sensitive to impact.”
“Okay, I'll be careful.”
Shirone carefully lifted the box as if holding a newborn baby and left the emporium. Unsure of just how carefully he needed to handle it to be safe, he walked with the utmost caution.
Once he was back on the main street, he looked around for a carriage.
Just then, a loud explosion erupted from a block away. The ground shook with a slight tremor, and a tidal wave of panicked screams washed over the area.
“What was that?”
People poured out from the many alleys onto the main street. The faces of those at the front were terrified, their half-dilated pupils still reflecting the shock of moments before.
“It's a terrorist attack! Gold City exploded!”
“Terrorism?”
Shirone looked up at the smoke rising into the sky.
Terrorism in Vashka, the kingdom's capital. It was something he had never even imagined.
The citizens' reactions varied. Most were frowning as they looked toward the Gold Tower, but those with busy schedules were cursing as they hurried on their way.