Chapter 42
Chapter 42
Translator: XZY
Chapter 42: Magic (4)
***
‘It’s been quite a while since Derek became the teacher for the lady of the Beltus family.’
As she was idly listening to a research presentation on magical theory at the academy, Lady Elente of the Belmeade family, regarded as the rose of the Rosea Salon, couldn't help but lose her focus.
A thought had come to her about a certain mercenary master who loved to talk about magic so much that he could go on all night.
Elente let her red hair hang down and let out a soft sigh.
The Belmeade family had been miserably pushed aside in the recruitment battle for that Derek, and in the end, they had lost him to the Beltus family.
In truth, competitions for talent among nobles were always unpredictable in how they would conclude, but losing Derek was bound to be a particularly painful blow. Even the Margrave of Belmeade had apologized to Elente for it.
In fact, it was the first time Elente had ever so actively requested a master, so the Margrave of Belmeade had likely rolled up his sleeves and stepped forward himself.
‘I might have placed an unnecessary burden on Father... Still, I wonder what kind of conditions the Beltus family offered to be able to take Derek?’
Regardless, Derek was an excellent magic master, even in Elente’s own opinion.
It was an era where a magic master of outstanding skill could name their own price, but she couldn't help but wonder just how much the Beltus family had offered.
The reality of the situation was that Derek's intention to create a connection with the Beltus family was the most important variable... but there was no way for Elente to know that.
From the moment he had kicked Aiseline to the curb, the only thing that had been made clear was the fact that he did not take just anyone as a disciple.
‘Hmm... Should I ask Lady Denise for a cup of tea and subtly probe her...?’
Elente was not fond of the unique mind games of high society. Calling out the young lady of a rival family separately just to dig into their internal affairs and act insidiously was not like her.
However, it was also true that she was curious about how Lady Denise was learning magic from Derek.
‘Yes, just arranging a meeting should be fine. I’ll ask my head butler to send a message.’
Lady Denise, as she had seen her at the Ebelstein social gatherings and the Rosea Salon meetings, always had a mysterious air about her.
She was affable like the other young ladies, and she had dignity, but... it seemed as though a certain disposition she did not openly reveal was hidden in a corner of her deep interior. Among the trio of the Rosea Salon, she was the most mysterious figure.
‘Lady Denise... is by no means an easy person to deal with...’
Teaching such an enigmatic person would not be easy either. After all, didn't teaching a person mean one had to be able to get a firm grip on them?
Just how in the world was Derek teaching that Denise, a young lady full of mystique?
Elente wanted to see for herself, at least once.
As the magic academy’s presentation session concluded, Elente rose from her seat and straightened the hem of her dress.
She felt a surge of motivation for the first time in a while.
<><><>
“I don’t know what scheme you’re plotting... but in the end, the servants have no choice but to be on my side. Structurally, they all belong to the Beltus family, you see.”
The next morning, after finishing breakfast, Lady Denise stood in the hallway and spoke to Derek.
Derek stood with his hands clasped behind his back, tilting his head as he faced her.
“Pardon?”
“It seems you’ve been making an effort to get close to the servants recently... but trying to do things behind my back like that isn’t very good. We should just be purely teaching and learning magic, shouldn’t we? Hmm?”
“I believe there has been some misunderstanding... It is true that I am trying to get along well with the servants, but it is not because I have some grand ulterior motive.”
Lady Denise swallowed a dry gulp of saliva.
She was the one who had blatantly tried to use Derek, and he was likely well aware of the fact that the Beltus family considered him a chess piece to be used in the war of nerves between the nobles.
Even with empty words, he would be a person who would find it difficult to harbor any goodwill towards Denise or the Beltus family, yet Derek wore an unconcerned expression. Denise found it difficult to grasp his inner thoughts.
“It is true, just as you say, Young Lady, that I must become closer with the servants. It is also true that I am acting this way for a purpose. But the reason for it is not anything terribly suspicious, nor is it something I cannot tell you if you ask.”
“W-What is it...?”
“What else could it be? It is because the servants who have assisted you for so long are the very people who know the most about you, Young Lady, is it not?”
Denise had spoken as if interrogating him, but Derek spoke while looking her straight in the eye as if it were nothing special.
“I need to know more about you, Young Lady. I have come as your master, so isn't it only natural that I would want to know even the most trivial details about the person I intend to teach?”
“You could tell me all that without going through such a troublesome process..! In the first place, if it’s about the young lady of the Beltus family, you must have heard all the rumors at the Rosea Salon.”
“That may be so, but the information from such rumors has a very clear limit.”
Derek was a person whose eyes became endlessly serious whenever he spoke of magic.
His immersion and passion were enough to make anyone who saw him shake their head in amazement.
“Magic is a profoundly deep subject, and the way each person handles mana is also subtly different. One must comprehensively consider that person’s disposition, thoughts, habits, values, and their way of seeing the world. While the classification of schools is important, what is just as important is discerning the disposition of the mage themself.”
“...Th-That’s what I was saying...”
“How could I possibly know a person like you, Young Lady, just from the superficial information circulating at the Rosea Salon? What I wish to know is not the superficial achievements of the person known as the young lady of the Beltus family... but the person Denise herself. Only by knowing that can I teach magic better.”
Derek’s firm tone was filled with conviction.
Having grown from the very bottom, he held his own considerations on the process of a person becoming proficient in magic.
What he had felt while being taught by the old man, Katia, and Drest. What he had felt while teaching Diella and Elente. And what he had felt while exploring and self-studying magic itself.
All those lifetime experiences had blended into one, allowing him to hold his own philosophy on what must be considered most important when teaching magic to a person.
“Th-Then... you asked the servants about me?”
“As they are the people who assist you right by your side, there were plenty of things that could not be known through rumors alone. Of course, I simply did not voice them because I thought they would be embarrassing things for you to hear, Young Lady.”
“Wh-What did they say...?”
“It seems you are widely respected by the servants. They said that although you always have the words ‘it’s a bother’ and ‘I don’t want to’ on your lips, you know how to roll up your sleeves when it comes to important matters.”
Derek laid out the words he had heard from the servants without adding or subtracting anything.
Hearing the words directly from his mouth, Denise couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed.
“I also heard that you are someone who could achieve great things if you put your mind to it, whether in magic or studies, but that you are simply not showing the motivation... and I heard many stories about how you take good care of the servants, though you act indifferent and as if it’s not the case. I also heard things like you have a good eye for things... and that you write well.”
“Th-The servants said that. Ah... ahaha... euh heu heu...”
“...”
“Did they happen to say that I’m pretty? Like, prettier than Aiseline or Elente...”
“...”
Derek was not a person who would offer empty words.
In truth, Denise’s looks were outstanding, but no matter what, if one were to compare her to Aiseline and Elente, anyone would have no choice but to tilt their head and fall into deep contemplation.
“You really never say empty words, do you.”
“Only by doing so will my words have credibility when I speak about something with conviction, would they not?”
“Having conviction is good, but I’m worried you might get harmed somewhere.”
“I have already been harmed a lot.”
“I thought so.”
Denise let out a deep sigh, and finally, the tension left her shoulders.
She certainly felt that she had come to know this boy a little better. The reason Derek had spent his time, which he didn't even have for himself, mingling with servants he had no need to please, was entirely for the sake of teaching Denise magic well.
Unlike Denise, a flower in a greenhouse, he must have gone through all sorts of hellscapes while traversing various labyrinths.
Despite that, unless it was necessary, he did not treat others abrasively, and there were many times he would considerately treat the other person in a gentlemanly manner.
It was a completely different picture from when he was hidden away in a cave, looking grimy and buried only in magic.
He seemed to have a thousand faces, just like this city of Ebelstein. That was why he was a person whose inner thoughts were difficult to grasp at a glance.
“Still... it does feel gratifying to hear that the servants see me in such a good light. It’s not like I show them any great consideration, though... and the part about having a good eye for things is whatever... and writing well... hmm?”
“...”
“H-How did you know that I write?”
“I heard it from the head maid.”
“N-No, how does the head maid know?”
Suddenly, the color drained from Denise’s face. Derek had expected this would happen, but as he had said, he did not speak empty words recklessly, so he had simply relayed it without adding or subtracting.
“I suppose she thought there must be a reason why you always wear a sleepy expression. There are many maids who have seen you sitting at your desk before bed, moving a quill pen. If there is a scratching sound coming from inside the room, from the perspective of an attendant, would they not have to look inside?”
“N-No... I was always carefully watching my surroundings?”
“It would be troublesome if you were to underestimate the maids. They are individuals who always follow the Young Lady like a shadow to assist her; do you think they would lack that much sense? If you oil the hinges well, the door makes no sound even if you open it a crack. You should have carefully watched the door to see if there were any watching eyes.”
Having spoken this far, there was nothing more Derek could do.
He told her what he had been told, without adding or subtracting. In fact, the servants had probably been wondering when and how they should relay this.
“The story about the light pink book that comes out when you lift the bottom of the third drawer next to the bed... I have heard about it as well.”
“Th-The servants knew about that?”
“Yes. Weren’t you writing it every night? The title was... was it ...?”
“.......”
Suddenly, Denise’s breath caught in her throat.
“I heard that the psychological descriptions that emerge from the elegant and beautiful prose and the firm brushstrokes are, without a doubt, a masterpiece.”
“.............”
“It’s not that I wanted to see it... but the maids were so insistent... I saw it a few times when you were out at the salon meetings... It was certainly... hmm... there were many parts where the descriptions and narrative touched the heart. There were quite a few avid readers among the maids... I could understand why.”
“........Hic.”
Denise was hiccupping, something that did not suit her at all.
Come to think of it, at some point, a reply had stopped coming from Denise.
Derek briefly studied Denise’s expression. He felt he should choose his words carefully, so he added weight to his voice. In truth, it was not so strange for a girl of Denise's age to harbor such girlish fantasies.
“I don’t think you need to be so flustered. Creation is originally something to be embarrassed about... and even to my eyes, an outsider in that field, your writing skills were certainly admirable.”
“...”
“Reading the description of the protagonist Tracy’s unfortunate circumstances made my own heart ache. Especially as someone who came from the slums, I couldn't help but be surprised by the detail. However, I’m not so sure if a person like Lord Rovein exists in reality... Certainly, the poignant emotion of a man who is venomous yet, on the other hand, harbors a faint love for Tracy was impressive.”
“...”
“The misunderstandings and obsession, the possessiveness towards Tracy as well... I did think that dedicating seven pages to the description of Lord Rovein’s wild beauty was a bit excessive... but well, if you search the world, there might be one man like that somewhere. There’s no law that says there isn’t, is there? I respect it.”
“Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!”
Denise could no longer listen to Derek’s story and ran into her room, tearing at her hair.
Derek stroked his chin and thought.
The sensibilities of a girl this age were certainly hard to keep up with.
He had laid out all sorts of words, but in any case, Derek had not told a lie.
The reason Derek had interacted with the servants was, in fact, to know more about Denise.
To be more precise... it was to find out if she had any weaknesses.
<><><>
“Good morning, Lady Denise.”
The next morning, Denise was having her disheveled hair arranged by a maid.
Her eyes were sunken as if she had barely slept all night. The servants, who had the duty to always keep the young lady’s appearance beautiful, were having a difficult time.
“Did you do some writing last night as well? You look very tired. Wouldn’t it be better to do it in a way that doesn’t interfere with your daily life?”
“Heok...”
As Derek said so nonchalantly, the surrounding servants gasped.
In fact, the maid who reacted that way was one of the avid readers of Denise’s work among the mansion’s staff.
“Wh-What are you talking about, Derek? Wr-Writing...?”
It seemed Denise was adopting the strategy of treating the previous day’s conversation as ‘something that never happened.’
Of course, Derek was not the type of person to play along with such a hollow act.
“I am talking about ... It ended with the scene where Lord Rovein, seeing the protagonist Tracy having a difficult nightmare about her unfortunate childhood, covers her with a blanket...”
“........”
“Perhaps because it was the last scene, I still remember it well. The poignant heart of Lord Rovein, who regards the precarious Tracy as a piece of glasswork that would shatter at the slightest wrong touch...”
“Derek!! We have to train hard in magic today too! Why are you talking about such useless things!”
Denise shot up from her seat, breaking out in a cold sweat. It was the first time she had taken the initiative to do magic training.
Her usual relaxed demeanor and slow movements were gone, and she was stomping her feet, drenched in sweat as if it were water.
“...”
The servants who were watching the situation all held their breath.
They had thought Denise was a tough one, but Derek was an even tougher character.