Chapter 114
Chapter 114
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: The Man Who Drives People Crazy
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Former master of the Blue Magic Tower.
Frozen Breath Palrag.
This great mage, who had reached the 8th Circle, held immense interest in the talent of a young mage named Moria.
It was the kind of interest an elder might have for a bold youth,
and the kind a mentor has for a promising disciple.
And also the kind a scholar has for a fascinating subject of study.
In truth, the emotion that occupied the greatest part of Palrag's feelings toward Moria was that scholarly curiosity.
That voracious curiosity, which sometimes manifested as nitpicking or suspicion, was the driving force that had brought Palrag to his current position.
And now, that curiosity was directed at Moria.
A type of talent he had never encountered before.
What was its source?
And where did it end?
That curiosity had lingered in his mind ever since he first met Moria, constantly stimulating him.
And then,
when Moria flawlessly demonstrated multiple attributes in her duel against a 6th Circle mage,
the stimulation from that curiosity grew too strong to ignore.
He hadn't expected it to be this impressive.
In Palrag's mind, the existence of Moria grew even larger.
The curiosity stemming from it grew accordingly,
and the ecstasy he anticipated from satisfying that curiosity grew massive as well.
Moria didn't stop there.
A sudden surge in mana.
The fragments of materialization she wielded with it.
Palrag's interest and curiosity reached the realm of madness.
At that moment, the former tower master, who had stepped beyond the bounds of restraint, hardened his resolve.
He would return.
He would take that mysterious being as his disciple.
And he would fully understand that existence.
It was a mad desire, a burning passion.
The withered heart of the old mage began to pound fiercely once more.
If he could have his way, he would stop the duel right then and there.
Everything except understanding Moria's existence felt utterly meaningless.
It was then, as Palrag endured with superhuman patience, holding back from halting the duel,
that a "Hoh."
escaped his lips.
An figure captured the attention of Palrag, whose mind was filled with Moria.
Rishir. He had followed Moria in manifesting fragments of materialization.
It was normally more than enough to pique Palrag's curiosity.
Handling fragments of materialization at the 6th Circle was no ordinary feat.
But the timing was poor.
Just moments before, Moria at the 5th Circle had done the exact same thing.
Talent is a relative concept.
Compared to Moria, Rishir's talent seemed utterly ordinary.
Palrag could easily grasp its source, end, and essence.
He had seen plenty of mediocre geniuses like that before—enough to be bored of them.
Thus, Rishir was far too insignificant to stimulate the former tower master's curiosity.
...That is, until he suddenly started imitating a swordsman.
It was different from Moria's imitation of a swordsman.
No, it wasn't imitation at all.
'His constitution... changed...?'
The blue breath transitioned naturally, awakening another facet without burdening his body.
The strike that followed was fearsome even to Palrag, who had witnessed the swords of countless masters.
Talent is a relative concept.
Before he knew it, Moria had vanished without a trace from Palrag's mind.
Rishir. His existence now freshly stimulated Palrag's curiosity.
"What is that..."
Palrag paid no heed to that curiosity.
How was he supposed to comprehend something like that?
The voracious curiosity of a great mage who had never once held back bowed its head.
The banquet hall heated up with the fervor of the duel.
The attendees who had watched Moria and Rishir's duel couldn't hide their excitement.
Most of them lacked the knowledge to fully understand the duel, but that wasn't a big issue.
"He won... against a mage favored by Mastien and Frozen Breath...!"
They didn't know just how exceptional Moria was as a mage, but they certainly knew she enjoyed the favor of great nobles and great mages.
That was enough.
For these city elites, titles and positions mattered more than actual ability.
In their minds now, Rishir had become a 'genius surpassing the talent recognized by great nobles and great mages.'
Even if the process was bizarre, they had arrived at the right conclusion, and their interest nailed itself to Rishir.
The crowd that had encircled the entire duel area began to close in toward Rishir.
The star of the lavish banquet had been decided.
Most of the attendees eyed him eagerly, hoping to exchange even a single word with the star.
"Lord Rishir! Congratulations on your victory!"
A woman near Rishir spoke up.
She was the young lady from an old Bondalles family who had previously tried approaching Rishir behind the mansion only to be blocked by Rona.
As she stepped forward, those of lower rank in Bondalles nobility began to back off, gauging the situation.
Conversely, those of equal or higher rank started showing overt interest in Rishir.
It was the moment when a proper crowd would form around Rishir.
"Wait!"
Rishir shouted urgently.
As if by his command, the sounds and movements filling the vast banquet hall halted all at once.
An unexpected silence descended over the hall.
"What is it, all of a sudden? Feeling omnipotent or something?"
Rona, who could claim the highest understanding of Rishir in this place, said with a serious face.
Heinya beside her and the three heavyweights looked at Rona like she was speaking nonsense, but soon nodded as if to say, 'Ah, but it's Rishir, so maybe.'
However, contrary to their expectations(?), Rishir's sudden action stemmed from a surprisingly serious reason.
"..."
Right now, Rishir's mind was busier than the banquet hall packed with people.
The insights he had gained from the duel swirled like a vortex.
Rishir wanted to focus on those insights.
Then, a surprising phenomenon occurred.
"Uh-uh-"
"L-Lord Rishir!?"
Rishir mumbled as he left the banquet hall.
The star of the banquet had ditched the event.
"He's driving me crazy..."
Rona let out a wry chuckle.
Becoming the center of attention at a banquet was something countless people desperately desired but never dared attempt.
'Just shake hands with the incoming crowd once each, and he'd be reborn as a socialite celebrity. And he throws that away to leave like that?'
Frustrated, Rona looked around.
"Huh?"
An unexpected situation greeted her.
They were people Rona knew.
The middle-aged merchants friendly with Gus, the head of the Golden Barley Company, were men who moved vast capital and were extremely selective about their acquaintances.
They had built an iron wall even against Rona, a social darling, simply because her background and intentions weren't clear.
"He's just leaving like this?"
"...It suddenly comes to mind. A true swordsman places no value in worldly gains and looks only to the sword and honor-"
"A true swordsman? But isn't that guy a mage?"
"?"
"?"
"Does it matter if he's a swordsman or a mage? What's certain is that his skill astonished Frozen Breath and Mastien. Look at those two's faces."
"Impressive. If those two are that shocked-"
"I hear he's close with Lady Heinya too?"
"If Lady Heinya acknowledges him, his background must be solid."
"For the future, I'd like to get acquainted- such a shame."
"Can't we arrange a separate meeting with him?"
"Since he attended this banquet, he must be Gus's acquaintance? Let's ask Gus separately."
"What was that man's name again?"
These finicky merchants were showing full interest in a man whose name they barely knew.
And the sharp-tongued socialites.
"Ahh... that back view... so stately..."
"That elegant appearance—he must be nobility, right?"
"How is he so different from other nobles?"
"Exactly! After dealing with all those flashy-talking, self-boasting men, seeing someone like him-"
"Ahh... no good... I've already set my heart on Leon..."
Rona recalled how she had once broken into a cold sweat cleaning up the rumors those women had spread about her after taking a disliking.
Normally, they would never tolerate someone ignoring the banquet, yet here they were, chatting animatedly about Rishir.
Thus, Rishir's exit caused no issues at all.
The banquet resumed as if nothing had happened.
Those fixated on Rishir snapped out of it and returned to their places to enjoy the event.
"Just now, Lord Rishir-"
"Oh, really? From the Gray Magic Tower? Then, we might meet again in Bondalles-"
"Ah! Come to think of it, the name of the guy who solved the northern merchants' shipment issue back then was-"
That was how they enjoyed the banquet now.
The extraordinary feat followed by extraordinary behavior had completely captivated the picky upper crust.
Rishir.
This was the moment his name, circulating only in parts of Bondalles, surfaced prominently.
I returned straight to my room and recalled the duel from moments ago.
I called out to my comrades who must have seen and felt the same things during that duel.
"Klana. You there?"
-Yes.
"Dangleon, you there?"
-Speak, my liege!
"Berbante... hot! You there?"
-I'm dozing off...
"Ah, right. Keep sleeping endlessly. You're at that age."
Excluding Berbante, who had business elsewhere, Dangleon and Klana materialized before me in spirit form.
"Did you see my duel just now?"
"Of course! Dangleon of the eye-searing flash! I engrave your every move into my soul, my liege!"
"There aren't many spectacles as fun as watching others freak out at your crazy antics."
"Then you must have seen the change that came over Moria at the end of the duel."
Klana nodded emphatically.
"What did you see?"
"Not sure exactly, but... it looked like she traded her life force for power."
Snap!
I flicked my fingers and looked at Dangleon.
The grayish-white fireball squirmed as it spoke.
"I too saw that vermin sacrificing her life force for power!"
As they said.
I had felt the same: Moria had sacrificed her life force to boost her power.
There was no other way to interpret the sudden aging of her body alongside the mana surge.
"Dangleon. Just to check, was that black magic?"
"No black magic power emanated from her!"
Of course.
If it had been black magic, it would have been normalized by my power long ago.
Thus, it was reasonable to assume the power gained at the cost of life force was Moria's unique ability.
The reason I couldn't calm down thinking about that ability now was something else.
"Klana. Dangleon. Is it possible to mimic that ability with magic or swordsmanship?"
A new sensation had bloomed within me during the duel.
That sensation told me,
'If done right-'
"Overloading the body to draw out power... I've heard some wield such abilities."
"Reinforcement magic that affects a being's essence!!! Extremely rare, but it definitely exists!"
Having glimpsed my thoughts and feelings in my inner world, their tones were as exhilarated as mine.
"You don't mean-"
The spirit-form Klana, the child murder spirit, looked at me and said,
"You're planning to steal that too?"
"..."
Yes.
A new sensation had bloomed within me during the duel.
That sensation told me.
If done right, I might be able to mimic Moria's ability.
That power called overload or reinforcement.
'That guy's state back then... it was unnatural. If left alone, how far would that power have grown?'
My heart raced at the thought that I might make that mysterious, powerful force my own.
"My liege!!! This Dangleon shall mobilize everything I have to assist you!!!"
"...This could be fun."
They too, as both mages and swordsmen, seemed to share my sentiments.
"..."
"..."
"..."
We stared at each other for a moment.
Then we put our heads together and began sharing power and ideas.
To recreate the power Moria had shown.
...How much time passed like that?
-Knock knock
"...!"
"...!"
"...!"
The knock made our three bodies tremble in unison.
Looking out the window, the sun was already rising.
Sunlight streamed in through the window, illuminating us.
We basked in that sunlight, gazing at each other.
Smiles rose simultaneously.
We succeeded.
We had grasped the key to Moria's ability, 'Reinforcement.'
All that remained was to develop it into a complete form based on that key.
My body itched to put it into practice immediately.
But we had poured too much focus and power through the night.
Not just me, but Dangleon and Klana as well.
We agreed to continue later and wrapped up the exchange for now.
Klana and Dangleon returned to my inner world, and I headed to the door to greet the visitor.
Crisp posture.
A rigid atmosphere, as if she could slice paper with her presence.
A bespectacled woman stood there.
"A message from Lord Drei."
True to her businesslike impression, she got straight to the point.
"After the duel with Lord Rishir yesterday, suspicious signs were found on Moria, and an investigation was launched immediately."
"Ah, that reinforcement ma-"
"As a result, it was revealed that Moria is a high priest of a hidden heretical cult."
"?"
According to her subsequent explanation-
Moria.
The phenomenon that occurred at the end of the duel wasn't 'reinforcement.'
It was simply the return of the power she, as a high priest, had kept hidden.
"Wait, what?"
-Hm?
-Huh.
We three fell into confusion.
Then what was this reinforcement we had recreated?