Stem of Eternity (1)
If high society had been ablaze these past few days over the duel between Roy and James, now the talk everywhere was of its outcome.
There was no shortage of topics.
"Have you heard about that spirit? Its eyes shine just like gold, and supposedly it multiplies the casting speed of magic spells several times over. Can you believe it?"
"Never mind that—he was carrying three of those amulets. The boy made them himself, they say."
"And to think he's Geren's only disciple, the one who forges Geren's weapons?"
"I knew we should have brought that Geren fellow in as a private tutor for our children back then."
"He wouldn't take just anyone. I always wondered why he clung to some backwater baronial house—turns out he found a jewel of talent. That boy Roy is the real thing, isn't he?"
"A mutant?"
"No, not that... I mean the child who has the makings of a Hero."
"Hush! You mustn't say such things so carelessly. Calling him a Hero when the Demon King hasn't even appeared yet..."
The gossip did not stop there. Naturally, people had already begun jockeying to claim the boy at the center of the rumors for themselves.
"Ah, my child's age is just right."
"Haha, planning to marry into a baronial house from a count's family, are we?"
"Why not? It's not as if I'm sending the heir who will inherit the house. If I can marry off one daughter, what's the harm? If that boy truly is a Hero, wouldn't he make the finest son-in-law imaginable? Wealth and honor, and his name written into history itself."
"Is that all? He might even earn new lands and titles for great deeds."
"Come now, people. Don't get ahead of yourselves. He's only just entered the Knight Academy—still a child."
"Oh, please. Four years pass in a blink. As if we haven't raised children before."
Everywhere one went, someone was talking about Roy.
Meanwhile the Knight Academy finished its term and entered the summer holidays. Before anyone quite noticed, it was the end of July, and sweltering heat had settled in.
Roy's weapons deliveries had also come to an end. Every piece he had supplied had been sent in secret to the border. There was no way for him to know it, but open war would break out soon enough. It would still take some time, however, before news of victory or defeat reached the capital.
Having breezed through the professors' assignments, Roy intended to use the summer break to visit Bacon Castle. He had been planning it ever since the day three months earlier when he had checked Count Bacon's mana capacity.
Deliveries finished, vacation begun—no reason to hesitate. Plenty of dungeons out that way, so the mana veins should be rich too.
Roy prepared for the journey with methodical care. Above all, if he did not leave the capital quickly, he was certain his head would explode from writing refusal notes to the flood of invitations pouring in from every direction.
"Want to come, Anna? Nothing much to do in summer anyway, right?"
"Yeah. I want to go. Is that okay?"
"Of course. It's more fun when you're around."
"Tch. Smooth talker. I figured you'd turn me down because you wanted to be alone with Chloe."
"...Please drop that nonsense. Shouldn't you be thinking about meeting a boy one of these days?"
"Nope. Not interested in that sort of thing."
"Then what are you interested in?"
"Hmm... Beats me. I don't really know yet."
"Take your time figuring it out. You'll find it someday. Whatever you decide you want to do, I'll help you with it."
In the end Roy set out for Bacon Castle with his three assistants. They traveled light, on horseback rather than by carriage. He had given leave to most of the servants, including Marek and Misha, and sealed the research institute so tightly that no one could enter.
"Lord Roy, someone like me tagging along..."
"What? You and I both come from baronial houses. Jack, how about growing a spine? Keep acting like that and I'll kick you out of the institute."
"...I'm sorry. It won't happen again."
"Good. Relax. Our family isn't that stuffy. Just watch out for the drunken older brother and you'll be fine."
Chloe's remark brought the events of last spring rushing back to Roy. There was definitely one wastrel living in Bacon Castle.
Well, he got thoroughly thrashed last time, so he should keep quiet. Besides, I'm a completely different person from the boy I was then.
Would he obtain a third dose of Dragon's Breath on this journey? Holding that quiet hope close, Roy set foot in Bacon territory. Inside the bag he had packed was still one unused bottle of Elven Liquor.
If it comes to it, I'll offer a trade for that.
Preparations were complete. All that remained was to charge straight at the goal.
Enough time had passed that Count Bacon was already well informed about the rumors surrounding Roy's duel.
"Roy. You've been causing quite the stir everywhere lately."
"Haha. I'm embarrassed, my lord."
"You asked me so earnestly to keep your secret, yet now the whole world is buzzing that you make amulets."
"It couldn't be helped. Without those amulets I wouldn't be standing here now."
"I understand. But more to the point—what exactly are you?"
"Pardon?"
"Your opponent was the grandson of House Visvalt, was he not?"
"So it turned out. They picked the fight first."
"I hate to say this, but you come from a baronial house. And yet you defeated a boy who—though still young—possesses more mana than I do? And you are two years younger than him besides."
Roy knew exactly what the count was fishing for. He had anticipated a barrage of such questions and had already calculated how to steer the conversation where he wanted it.
"I've made meaningful progress."
"Progress?"
"Yes. I learned a great deal at the Knight Academy. And I gained some new insights into the teachings Master Geren always emphasized."
The count was no fool. A baronial house could never defeat a margraviate with nothing more than that. There had to be something else. Yet from the way the boy spoke, any further probing here would only yield the same sort of answers. Too many ears were listening. The count knew perfectly well that Roy was not green enough to open his mouth carelessly in a situation like this.
"Fascinating. Let us speak of it quietly tonight, just the two of us."
"As you wish."
Watching the count pour questions only at Roy while barely glancing at his own daughter made the other children regard Roy in a new light. Their status as assistants at his magic research institute played a part, of course, but more and more they had come to see him as their leader. Even the way he introduced Anna and Jack in turn and explained why they had come felt entirely natural. Anna, a year older, accepted the situation as a matter of course. To the children, Roy was practically an adult.
"In truth, there is one favor I would like to ask."
Once the conversation had warmed, Roy cut straight to the point. It was not about Dragon's Breath. This journey had another objective.
That objective was—
"You want to go into the dungeons?"
"Yes. I would like to explore several dungeons over the summer. I know we are still young, but after the duel I have a little more confidence in my abilities. The others who came with me can each hold their own as well."
"Hmm... Having heard about that duel, I do not doubt your skill. But skill and entering a dungeon are two different matters. Experience cannot be ignored."
"Which is why I prepared a variety of amulets for each of us in advance. The moment any amulet activates, we will withdraw at once."
The count seemed to weigh the matter. Among those Roy proposed to take was his own daughter.
"Chloe. Do you feel the same?"
"Of course, Father. I'm Roy's assistant too."
"Assistant?"
Before Chloe could say anything strange, Roy hastily cut in.
"Chloe serves as a research assistant at the magic institute I founded. She is working hard to become a full researcher. Anna and Jack are the same."
"Ho, a magic institute?"
"Yes. We research ways to further improve amulets and magic weapons. The purpose of heading into the dungeons this time is similar. If we can find even a single book or relic of ancient magic, it will have been more than worthwhile."
That his daughter was serving as an assistant in an institute founded by a baron's son did not trouble the count in the slightest. He had been the one who had urged her to go, after all—and to steal the amulet-crafting techniques while she was at it.
"Mm. Just the four of you?"
"Not at all. I intend to hire porters, monster butchers, guides or adventurers as needed. And for any relics we obtain, I plan to pay the proper taxes due to this territory."
Roy watched the count's expression carefully. Permission would not come easily. Before arriving at the castle he had heard rumors in town that outsiders from other territories setting foot in the ancient ruins of this land without leave was a serious crime. Those caught sneaking in faced severe punishment. Permission made entry possible, of course, but still.
A natural enough policy.
The vast ancient legacies buried underground—gold and every variety of relic—belonged first and foremost to the Bacon family as lords of the land.
No territory on earth forgives tomb raiding.
Roy had offered to pay taxes, yet if they found something truly extraordinary, assessing its value would be extremely difficult. One needed to know the worth before one could pay the matching tax, and that process could breed all sorts of trouble. They might even have to hand the item itself over as the tax.
So I have to negotiate the terms clearly here and now.
"Haha. From the look on your face, you mean to bring home a proper haul."
"Of course. But we have no need of gold. So I dare to propose this: any gold we find, we will turn over entirely to Your Lordship. In return, please allow us to keep the magic-bearing relics, books, or monster by-products such as mana stones that we discover. If we take them back to the institute and achieve good results, we will repay you first of all. Chloe is with us, so I hope you can trust us."
Gold? He was already drowning in it. Only a third of the payment for the weapons supplied to the army had arrived, yet even that mountain of gold coins was becoming a storage problem. He was spending freely and the pile was still growing.
At Roy's words, the count's eyes narrowed and deepened.