Chapter 75
Chapter 75
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 75
Chapter Title: Thorough Meritocracy: Lua Polaris (4)
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The mage of the Crimson Tower, Robert, had always yearned for a life burning like flames.
He wanted to become the center of the world himself, reborn in the heat that consumed everything.
With that burning desire, he had devoted himself to studying magic.
Even in moments of failure, defeat, and despair, the fire within Robert never went out.
But today, the embers in his chest were completely extinguished.
The reason was the cold reality he faced at the Magitech Expo.
“…….”
The Magitech Expo had ended.
The demonstration of non-combat magitech devices had concluded successfully after all.
The rising star, Lua Polaris—
The birth of an outstanding genius had filled the entire venue with joy and cheers.
In that moment, Robert’s role had been that of a supporting character, one who made her shine.
A foolish mage making idiotic mistakes, allowing the genius mage to become the hero of the day.
That was Robert himself.
“That’s the guy?”
“I heard there was a mage from the Crimson Tower who nearly caused an accident… Robert, was it?”
Thud, thud—
As Robert walked through the now-deserted expo grounds, the voices of strangers rang in his ears.
He had heard such talk countless times already, and each one viciously tore at his heart.
‘This makes the fifth time, huh.’
With a bitter expression, Robert bowed his head as he faced the criticism directed at him.
The Blue Tower’s genius mage had dismantled the incomplete spell he had created.
The magic stone, on the verge of exploding due to his excessive greed and loss of control, had been overwhelmingly suppressed by Lua’s magic.
The promising talent, who had everyone’s attention, had successfully saved the people at the expo.
‘Because of this, it won’t be easy to show my face outside for a while.’
In stark contrast, Robert had become a dangerous mage receiving everyone’s scorn.
An arrogant mage who had nearly injured countless people due to his own greed—
Even if he returned to the tower like this, disciplinary action was surely waiting for him.
“Hoo…….”
A heavy sigh escaped Robert’s lips.
Complete failure.
He no longer even had the passion left to resent Lua Polaris.
The gap in their combat magic was evident from the start.
His flame magic could never surpass her ice magic.
The difference between them was simply overwhelming.
‘I got cocky and spouted nonsense.’
The world of mages revolved strictly around skill.
The excuses of the loser only sounded ugly.
Since he was inferior to her in every way, all he could do now was give up and accept it.
Thud, thud—
As Robert trudged on, berating himself amid the hellish crowd,
“Phew, I’m exhausted…….”
“…….”
A familiar voice pierced his ears.
Robert’s gaze turned to the owner of the witch hat walking toward him from the opposite direction.
He lifted his head.
In his view appeared a mage clutching a bundle of papers.
The Blue Tower mage, Lua Polaris.
The familiar-faced mage was walking with her head down, her expression weary with fatigue.
“Huh……?”
“……Lua Polaris.”
But soon enough, she spotted him too and looked up in surprise.
“…….”
“…….”
A brief silence settled between them.
Victor and loser.
Hero and villain.
In this stark contrast of light and shadow, just as Robert bowed his head to pass by,
Rustle—
Lua extended a single sheet of paper toward him.
“This is……?”
Robert’s hand took the paper she offered.
Scribbled on the fluttering sheet were the humiliating numbers he had heard at the expo.
“Order one too, Mr. Robert.”
“What?”
Robert stared at Lua in bewilderment.
But Lua calmly pointed to the text in the catalog and spoke.
“I saved you, so order one as thanks.”
“…….”
“Of course, it won’t be cheap.”
He wondered what she was getting at, but it turned out she was just trying to sell a magitech device.
Robert looked at Lua’s face with a hollow expression.
“What the hell is this…….”
Leaving behind the catalog for the expensive magitech device, the large witch hat moved forward again.
Clack, clack—
Lua’s footsteps, having said her piece, began to pass Robert—
Rustle.
As if remembering something important, she turned her head back to look at him.
“I think not everyone can be born perfect.”
“……What are you trying to say?”
“That’s pretty talented in its own way, isn’t it?”
That was the end of Lua’s words.
A curt declaration.
Her footsteps carried her away from the expo grounds after ending the conversation.
Robert’s gaze quietly followed the back of the genius mage.
“Talent, huh—”
A bitter smile tugged at Robert’s lips as he mulled over her arrogant words.
To receive advice from a mage younger than himself.
He felt a little pathetic.
Still, it felt like something tangible had been grasped.
What talent did a Crimson Tower mage need?
A brilliant mind.
Exceptional intuition.
Powerful mana circuits.
All were crucially important, but somehow, his greatest strength didn’t seem to be any of those.
“……I can’t live with losing.”
He lifted his head.
Robert’s gaze looked up at the sky where the brilliant sun blazed.
Whoosh—
Scorching flames wrapped around Robert’s robe, reigniting the embers in his chest.
“Next time we meet, it’ll be different, genius mage.”
Unyielding passion.
Fiercely burning will.
An unquenchable flame—that was the greatest talent befitting the Crimson Tower, he believed—
Robert Aintail reached toward the sky.
“Um… Mr. Mage, excuse me, but your body is on fire right now.”
“Ah, hot—!”
Pffft—
At the voice from behind, Robert hurriedly extinguished the flames with his hand.
It was autumn.
* * * * * *
After the Magitech Expo hosted by the Empire’s six towers in the capital came to an end—
A trend for a certain magitech device swept through all the nobles of the Empire.
—Polaris No. 1.
A revolutionary magitech device enabling ultra-long-distance visual communication.
The birth of an orb that allowed face-to-face conversations anytime, anywhere, set the entire Empire abuzz.
Especially among trend-sensitive nobles, inquiries flooded the Blue Tower as they clamored to get their hands on a ‘Polaris No. 1’ as soon as possible.
“Hey, do you know when the Polaris No. 1 will be restocked?”
“I’m Viscount Linehead! I asked you to set one aside in my name—where is it?”
“I’m sorry, but all units of that magitech device have been sold out! However, you can purchase other magitech devices normally!”
It was an unwritten rule of the capital: fail to obtain the trending item, and you’d be seen as a provincial bumpkin out of touch with fashion.
Conversely, nobles who secured the hot item naturally drew envy at social gatherings.
As a result, the Blue Tower was swarmed by nobles and their servants, turning into a sea of people.
A battleground where nobles vied desperately to obtain the latest magitech devices.
In that intense scene, all sorts of absurd shouts erupted.
“What am I supposed to do with other magitech devices, you idiot apprentice mage!”
“I apologize, but every magitech device produced by our Blue Tower is a top-quality masterpiece…….”
“Shut up! Do you know who my father is? Tell Polaris to show her face right now!”
“Even if you say that to me, I can’t arrange for you to meet the other mages… Ack, let go of my arm—!”
In the Blue Tower’s lobby.
The apprentice mages selling magitech devices were being grabbed and harassed by nobles and their servants.
Unable to treat them roughly given their status, the apprentices were in a bind.
Watching that awkward spectacle, the formal mage Repel Krait gave a hollow smile as he lifted his teacup.
“…….”
Even veteran mages long in the tower’s service were witnessing such a sight for the first time in their lives.
The culprit behind this chaos was none other than Repel’s disciple, Lua Polaris.
Hoo—
Letting out a deep sigh, Repel watched the scene with mixed feelings for a moment.
Soon after, a friendly noble sitting beside him spoke up.
“What a ridiculous sight. I never imagined the Blue Tower would see a day like this.”
“Indeed. No one could have predicted it.”
Repel nodded quietly in agreement with the noble’s words.
How many times in a lifetime does one witness such a scene?
That all this uproar stemmed from a single magitech device left Repel astonished.
“By the way, Lord Repel.”
As Repel’s gaze scanned the chaotic lobby,
Rustle—
The noble leaned close to his ear and posed a question.
“I heard the mage who made this magitech device is your disciple.”
“Ahem, ahem—”
Goosebumps prickled Repel’s skin as he listened.
The noble’s questions continued toward him.
“I also heard it’s the disciple you kept in the lab for quite a while, the one you favored especially.”
“…….”
“Perhaps, for your esteemed master, the genius mage has set aside a special magitech device—?”
“Nothing like that.”
“Pardon?”
“I said nothing like that.”
The bewildered noble stared at Repel.
Rustle—
Repel turned his head slightly, deliberately avoiding the noble’s gaze.
“But if you just put in a word, maybe you could get one…….”
“Can’t.”
“You never know…….”
“No.”
“…….”
“No.”
Repel Krait’s gaze turned to the tower lobby.
A question he had heard more than ten times in the past week.
His response was always firm.
“I haven’t even touched one myself yet.”
“…….”
Silence descended in one corner of the Blue Tower.
The student surpasses the master—
The master suffered under his disciple’s fame.
* * * * * *
At the massive desk in the heart of the Illusory Archive Celesthia.
There, the Secret Society member Lua Polaris moved her hands with a haggard face.
Sizzle, sizzle—
Using a magic quill, she repeatedly inscribed spell formulas onto the crystal orbs.
She was continuing the finishing process for completing the magitech devices right up until she could drop from exhaustion.
Lua Polaris’s ambitious project, ‘Polaris No. 1.’
Orders for the new magitech device had piled up like a mountain.
“I’m sure I didn’t make any mistakes… I thought I handled everything perfectly without a hitch…….”
Currently, inquiries about ‘Polaris No. 1’ flooded the Blue Tower daily.
Having done it too perfectly, she had ended up busier than ever as a result.
A voice thick with agony escaped Lua’s lips as she continued the repetitive task.
“Why do I have to get even busier just for doing my job well……!”
Her indignant cry echoed through Celesthia.
Her efforts to avoid being a nuisance had backfired, saddling her with an even more murderous schedule.
“I worked hard precisely so I could have less work!”
Of course, even as she complained, Lua’s hands never stopped.
Scribble, scribble, scribble—
Her busy hands inscribed formulas onto the crystal orbs at near-miraculous speed.
Watching her, Johan spread a translucent screen and spoke.
“It’s spreading faster than expected. The amount of information gathered so far isn’t insignificant either.”
“Well… I’ve been working through the night even now…….”
“Looks like you handled it better than I thought. Good work, Lua.”
Praise flowed from Johan’s lips as he viewed the densely packed footage.
Sincere praise.
Rare words from the Archmage.
But Lua’s face, hearing it, wasn’t particularly bright.
She had done her job too well, and in proportion, the workload kept growing.
“Johan, I feel like I’m dying…….”
Lua quietly appealed to Johan about her limits.
It was a veiled threat that her precious talent might break if he kept piling on work every day.
Hmm—
After pondering her words briefly, Johan spoke.
“If you’re worried about your health, I can arrange a checkup with the Doctor.”
Her reaction was immediate.
“……Suddenly, I feel perfectly healthy.”
“Good to hear there’s nothing wrong.”
Lua’s gaze flicked to the Doctor standing far away.
Heh heh heh—
The eccentric laughter echoing from afar sent chills down her spine.
“Just in case, it might be worth getting a checkup—.”
“No. I think I’m fine without seeing the Doctor.”
Blink, blink—
Lua’s gaze quietly drifted away from the Doctor.
She’d rather stay sick than face a checkup from him.
Perhaps because he was the kind who could ruin even a healthy body.
Before she knew it, her hand had grabbed the Archmage’s sleeve.
“Lua Polaris—”
Rustle—
Over her witch hat, Johan slowly moved his opposite hand.
A gentle stroking of the hat.
Facing the familiar touch, Lua looked up.
“Working hard is good, but take care not to strain your health.”
Black eyes gazed down at her.
Eyes that seemed somewhat devoid of humanity.
Yet, faint traces of emotion leaked from their depths.
A voice laced with feeling rang in her ears.
“You’re doing more than enough.”
“……Johan.”
“Endure just until the end of this week. After that, you’ll get simpler tasks.”
Lua’s gaze met the Archmage looking down at her blankly.
It was because completely unexpected words had filled the air.
Perhaps she had misunderstood the Archmage’s warm heart all this time.
Just as fuzzy emotions began to well up in her chest—
“Starting next week, we’ll install the devices at several key points in the Empire. Long-term, the goal will be to build a comprehensive surveillance network across the entire continent.”
Rustle—
Lua lowered her head again.
It seemed the Archmage’s definition of ‘simple tasks’ differed greatly from hers.
‘When I get to make a wish later, I’ll ask to enslave every dessert artisan in the world.’
For now, that absurdly trivial wish was the only thing motivating her.