1:58. 1:58. 1:58.
1:58. 1:58. 1:58.
A space that humans called the 'Void.'
The vampire executives gathered around the Princess's grand throne. As usual, the meeting was still in progress.
"Having observed him, the 'target's' capabilities exceed expectations."
The 'target' was merely one human mage. Plan.
The Secretary spoke calmly. The Princess, as always, was fast asleep, breathing softly.
The 'Girl's' gaze shifted to Maeve, who was standing in the corner. Maeve had been reading the room from the start.
"Shouldn't we hold Maeve responsible~? She failed to retrieve the item. That makes it a failed mission!"
"That is something to be carefully considered."
'Mask' cut in immediately.
"But thanks to that, haven't we found another interesting human?"
"Interesting? Ah.... Well, I admit he exceeded expectations."
"It would have been a shame if she'd only retrieved the gloves. His performance practically dimmed the blue flame's distinctiveness."
Listening to their exchange, the Secretary recalled the scene he'd witnessed in the arena.
Magic that wasn't flashy but faithful to the fundamentals—yet those fundamentals were so deeply rooted and robust.
Fundamentals.
That was the word that could sum it up. The opinions of the other vampire executives weren't much different on this point.
'Girl' scoffed.
"So, what are we doing with the target from now on? If we can't pull him to our side, we kill him. Right?"
"They say he is entering the Subjugation Festival."
"...Ha? A mage in the Subjugation Festival? Now I'm curious about what goes on in his head~"
But right then.
"Yaaaawwn~ That guy does unpredictable things.... That's what makes him interesting...."
"!"
The Princess's muttering reached them. All the executives immediately straightened their postures and bowed their heads in respect.
"Princess. Please give your next order."
The Secretary asked on behalf of the executives.
Yawning, the Princess barely managed to open her mouth. Tears still clung to the corners of her eyes.
"I'm changing the scope of the item...."
"The scope?"
"Yeah. That guy wearing the gloves, in his entirety. From now on, that is the item. Yaaawn...."
The executives nodded.
Once upon a time, they might have questioned this order. Now, they had no intention of doing so.
"Understood. Then we will send Mask to...."
"No."
The Princess raised a hand high. But her frail arm soon flopped down weakly.
"Let's use him a bit and then bring him in.... The Subjugation Festival, after all...."
"The Subjugation Festival.... There are certainly many angles to exploit, given its sheer scale. Which direction shall we take?"
"First, we must seize the commercial rights...."
The Subjugation Festival.
A festival where competitors subdue demon beasts by force: naturally, it wasn't a schedule that ended in a day or two.
All manner of supplies—food, equipment, elixirs—would be poured in. Simply put, it was a venue where a tremendous amount of capital circulated.
'Girl' nodded.
"Indeed, there's nothing quite as lucrative as selling equipment to knights~ They fight like crazed beasts."
"No."
Again, the Princess raised a hand high. The frail arm flopped down weakly this time as well.
"We.... unconditionally invest on the mage side...."
"...!"
The executives' eyes widened. 'Mask' asked back, looking deeply rattled.
"Princess? The Magic Department is only fielding one team, including the target. Wouldn't that be a far cry from controlling the commercial rights?"
"The target will manage something.... We are preempting it.... So that we can monopolize the Magic Department's supplies...."
"I believe a monopoly is meaningless unless they win or something...."
Mask shrugged as he spoke. Considering who he was addressing, he couldn't strongly oppose.
"He has to achieve at least that much to be the item.... So make sure everyone knows that.... Understood...."
In the end, it was decided. By the very nature of being born a vampire, they simply could not disobey the Princess.
But right then. A vampire woman who had remained silent until now raised her hand. She was the executive called 'Silence'.
"Why...."
The moment her eyes met the Princess's, Silence began to sign.
[ This Subjugation Festival is being watched by the Imperial Household too. ]
"It won't be the whole Imperial Household.... Who...."
[ The Second Imperial Princess. ]
[ Is it because her body is soon to die? ]
[ She seems to be very interested in magic lately. ]
"The Imperial Household.... The Imperial Household, you say...."
The Princess smacked her lips.
"That will be a bit bothersome.... Everyone, pay attention to your disguises...."
The Princess raised her hand high yet again.
"Lastly, I will just pass one thing on to Maeve.... and end the meeting...."
Her hand slowly dropped to the ground.
Soft, steady breathing—
"...."
Soon, the breathing of the sleeping Princess filled the Void. The executives, without exception, let out deep sighs.
"...."
A heavy sense of burden rose upon Maeve's face.
Until Maeve received that last piece, the executives could not leave this place.
◈
"Dormitory.... dormitory...."
After welcoming Trixie as the final member of the Subjugation Festival team that morning and finishing lunch, Becky headed to Plan's room.
The reason was the rather unusual instruction that the next training session would take place in Plan's own room.
As she walked, Becky instinctively unfolded Trivia.
Lately, quite a lot of eyes had been glancing her way, and in avoiding them, it seemed to have become a habit.
"...Ugh, this is a bad habit too."
Becky let out a deep sigh.
[ What the hell is up with this Becky chick ]
[ If they're only picking first-years, shouldn't the normal judgment be to select them carefully? Why the hell pick a plain one? ]
[ There's a rumor she was picked because she's his girlfriend. ]
[ Isn't nepotism a pretty serious problem? In an official event. ]
[ Well, I mean... It's an official event, but we haven't even properly participated recently anyway. ]
The free board on Trivia was completely filled with talk about the Subjugation Festival. Half of it was aimed directly at her.
Because of that, every moment felt like sitting on a bed of thorns.
She understood the hearts of those who left such posts perfectly well. Even in her own eyes, she was ordinary.
"I'm telling you, I didn't apply for it...."
But Becky knew her place well. She had absolutely no intention of becoming a Subjugation Festival representative... She just couldn't fathom what Plan was thinking when he did this.
Reading that sort of thing only upset her.
"Hmm... But, do I really look like a girlfriend...?"
And yet, the feeling of being mistaken for Plan's girlfriend wasn't entirely bad; it was a peculiar, subtle feeling.
That was why it was hard not to look at Trivia. What was she supposed to do when her eyes kept darting to it?
As she walked while staring at Trivia.
THUD—!
She bumped hard into someone.
"Ah!"
Becky fell flat on her backside. The other person must not have been empty-handed either—a cold liquid spilled over her body.
"C-Cold!"
"Ah.... seriously. What kind of crazy bitch...."
She wanted to hurry on her way, but the atmosphere wouldn't let it end there. She realized why when she saw the nameplates.
The color was different. A yellow nameplate meant... second-years. They also looked to be nobles. The upperclassmen spoke to the fallen Becky.
"Don't you watch where you're going? Ah... I just bought this...."
"I-I'm sorry."
Becky scrambled to her feet and bowed her head. When faced with this kind of situation, all she could think of was fleeing.
After she'd muttered her apologies a few times, Becky fled the scene.
Even as she put as much distance as possible between them, the seniors' voices from behind her were unusually clear.
"Isn't that her? The one picked as a Subjugation Festival representative."
"Really? Her clothes really are shabby. No one buys her any, huh."
"Then you buy her one."
"Are you crazy? It's just an expression. Who'd waste money on a bitch like that...."
Becky slowly stopped walking.
She wanted to march back right now and calmly explain that she didn't become a Subjugation Festival representative because she wanted to.
"The girlfriend rumor is probably a lie too."
"Right. Who'd like a girl like that...."
"Did she stop?"
"Leave her. Maybe she's drying her wet clothes."
But Becky, more than anyone, knew that mere explanations wouldn't change their gazes.
They just simply didn't like her.
Because she is a commoner, because her clothes are shabby, because her perfume isn't luxurious, because she doesn't stand out.... Becky knew to an excessive degree that they disliked her for just such trivial reasons.
"Ewh, let's just go...."
Becky shook her head and started walking again. In her life, this was always the quickest solution.
Walking like that, she eventually arrived at Plan's room. The door was already open, and everyone was gathered.
"Everyone's here."
Plan opened his mouth with his usual attitude. Then his gaze landed on Becky.
"What in the world...."
He snapped his fingers, and Becky's skin and clothes instantly became clean. It was a subtle trick applying purification magic.
SNAP—!
The next moment, he snapped his fingers once more. At the same time, the painting hanging on the wall swallowed them whole.
The students looked at the scenery around them. Painted-like landscapes and buildings... Things they had never seen before stretched out before their eyes.
"Don't be alarmed. It's just an illusion."
The students were shocked to hear it. To think a world that was merely an illusion could be this elaborate.
Plan's gaze turned towards Trixie this time.
Trixie was standing awkwardly off to one side, separated from them. She was visibly still self-conscious, so to speak.
"You're not late."
"Because my name is on the list. That's why I came."
"Glad you came, mage."
A single word spat out by the brusque man.
Although it was just one word with a comprehensive meaning, the deep resonance in his tone gave Trixie a strange sensation.
"...Right."
The girl's eyes were especially deep blue today. That tranquil lake held a great determination.
A faint smile crossed Plan's lips, and then with a serious face he continued.
"From now on, there is not a single second to waste. Today's training will be on 'Element Maximization.'"
Maximization.
One of the core competencies that any mage handling a specific type of element must endlessly refine.
But as with most things that carry the word 'must,' its difficulty is formidable. This is because there is no such thing as a state of perfection.
"Even if the element changes, the essence of maximization is the same. I'll demonstrate with rock."
As Plan stretched out his hand, a corner of the marble pillar was torn away whole and settled into his grasp.
Yet it wasn't roughly ripped off. The marble was shaped into a sphere that perfectly matched the golden ratio.
"On the surface, it looks like a flawless sphere. However."
Plan tossed it to Trixie. The blue-haired girl caught it and held it without thinking.
"How does it feel?"
Trixie fondled it for a moment.
"...Surprisingly rough. And there's a lot of dust."
"Exactly that."
Plan suspended the sphere in mid-air.
And a moment later, the marble sphere began to spit out impurities as if it were a living creature. The three students were left speechless.
"This is Element Maximization. An element handled without thought contains a great deal of impurities. When it spits all of them out, only then can it be called a 'Pure Element.'"
Just as it is possible to heighten the purity of mana, it is likewise possible to heighten the purity of an element.
Mana efficiency, output, manifestation speed... it goes without saying that the effects improve in every aspect.
Trixie quietly fell into thought.
Until now, she had only thought about increasing output, never attempting to refine the element itself into something pure.
She glanced to her sides and saw similar expressions on Louis and Becky. They were in the same boat.
"Ice, fire, light... you all handle different elements, but as mentioned earlier, the essence is the same. It's not difficult."
Plan brought his finger to the air. Blue mana began to spread along his moving fingertip.
It was the formula for an Ice Barrier.
"Take Becky's ice as an example. I will erase all overlapping parts of the circuit's composition."
As soon as the overlapping parts of the composition were all erased, the ice became twice as transparent, visible to the naked eye. It was thanks to the elimination of clashing mana.
Bright light penetrated the ice and split into a hexagon. The students' mouths dropped open at the beautiful sight.
"Erase the circuits that clash with each other. It's simple, isn't it?"
Silence fell.
They understood the principle, but if they actually had to attempt it, they had no confidence they would succeed.
"If it is not easy, you do it until it becomes easy. Becky."
"Y-yes? No, I—?"
Becky flinched in surprise and raised her head. She had been diligently taking notes on Plan's explanation, and the formal speech slipped out without her realizing.
"Start the ice element maximization."
Plan highly valued Becky as an assistant. He also acknowledged her potential.
She will certainly be the one to master maximization first today.
"Me...?"
Becky pointed at her own chin with her index finger, and Plan nodded.
"Today's training will only last until 2 o'clock. Begin."
"Until 2...."
Becky's eyes darted to the side. She checked the clock, and the current time was 1:58.
Two minutes would pass quickly even if she just made a few ice picks. Her mental burden lessened somewhat.
But right then. Trixie cut in.
"What do you mean by that."
"Exactly what I said. Training until two o'clock."
"...The Subjugation Festival is only three days away, and you're saying we're training for just two minutes?"
Plan didn't bother to reply to Trixie. He just turned his head and stared at Becky.
Eventually, Becky created an ice pick in the air. Now all she had to do was reduce its impurities.
The moment she thought that.
CRASH—!
Another ice pick flew in and collided with it. Becky's was shattered into pieces.
Of course, the one who made it was Plan.
"?"
"If this were real combat, you would have already lost. Are you playing games with me?"
"Ah, sorry."
Becky nodded sheepishly. She had to think of it as real combat. Much faster....
She created another ice pick.
CRASH—!
"...?"
"Slow, and impure."
This time, it was smashed almost at the exact moment she created it.
Becky prayed for the two minutes to pass quickly as she created another ice pick.
CRASH—!
CRASH—!
CRASH—!
.
.
.
Later, after her ice pick had been smashed eight more times, a deep sense of incongruity washed over Becky as she looked at the clock.
"Huh...?"
A dumbfounded sound escaped her mouth involuntarily.
Trixie and Louis's gazes naturally followed it. And simultaneously, their expressions turned just as dumbfounded.
"...?"
Right now, even at this moment.
The clock was pointing at 1:58.