Chapter 98
Chapter 98
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 98
Chapter Title: It Seems I've Hooked the Wrong One (3)
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Having lived for many long years, the old man and the girl who had only just turned twenty-something stared at each other.
"......"
The old man's gaze carried the weight of ages. His eyes, probing for the other's true intentions, were heavy.
And what of the girl's eyes, by comparison?
They were light. Light because they held nothing within them.
Her expression suggested that there couldn't possibly be any deep meaning behind her casually spat words. Even trying to read that meaning through her eyes was thwarted by the sparkling halo of platinum light.
"Hoo......"
In the end, it was the old man who looked away first.
Zilleon let out a sigh and tapped the floor with his staff. With a rumble, a chair slid forward on its own to his side.
"Very well."
Zilleon sat in the chair and crossed his arms.
"Let us hear the details."
Inwardly, he revised his assessment of Resti.
The fragile, shrinking girl was gone. The one seated before him now was the next Mage Tower Lord.
'The gray master who will lead the Ashen Mage Tower.'
Whether the girl was qualified or not, he didn't know.
But if she intended to sit in that seat and bear its weight...
'It must be confirmed.'
Zilleon had glimpsed the girl's hand. It was undoubtedly a powerful card—one that, if played well, could shake the Ashen Mage Tower to its roots.
And he himself would not be free from the chaos it brought. Which was all the more reason he had to verify it.
'How will she use it?'
To sow mere confusion?
Or to bring winds of reform?
"I shall listen attentively."
He would know once he heard her out.
"...as the next Mage Tower Lord's words."
Resti Eleanor.
What thoughts did this girl before him hold?
2.
-I'm glad to hear it was helpful.
-Contact me anytime if you need anything.
I checked the letter from Princess Leruel. I'd already passed the recommendation letter to Rak, so this was just a personal note.
-Also, Professor.
-Aila's letters have been coming less frequently lately. Could you remind her to write more often... well, not too often, but regularly and consistently?
I couldn't help but chuckle at the reply. Come to think of it, even back at the palace, Princess Leruel had often asked about Aila.
How's that child doing?
Has she gotten tangled up with any boys at the academy?
Those were the updates she sought whenever she was bored. I chuckled inwardly.
'She's quite something.'
For all her protests, she clearly cherished Aila dearly.
'Though she'd deny it vehemently.'
Are you worried about her?
After sending that teasing line as a joke, a lengthy response came back soon enough.
-......Your tone feels awfully sarcastic, Professor.
-It's only natural for me to worry about Aila. It's necessary. In fact, you could call it an extension of my duties. You should understand that...
I gave a wry smile at the page filled to the brim. It boiled down to two words: strong denial and excuses.
"That's what she says."
I flicked the letter and turned my head. There was someone sitting beside me. She shared the same platinum hair and golden eyes as the princess who sent it.
"Uh, ugh......"
The Fourth Princess, Aila.
She was covering her face with both palms. A closer look revealed her ears flushed bright red.
"She says to write more often."
"...S-sorry."
"What do you have to be sorry for? You've got a great big sister."
Her ears reddened even more.
Finally reaching the limit of her patience, Aila whipped her head around to face me.
"P-professor. My sister, she's really, um..."
Unable to say it outright, she pointed at the letter on the desk. More precisely, at the unnecessarily detailed lines scribbled across it.
-I need detailed accounts of her academy life. Overprotective? Not at all. This is purely a necessary, strictly professional requirement, and...
What might have seemed earnestly resolute to Princess Leruel was simply embarrassing from a third party's view... or from the subject's perspective.
"......Like that."
Aila asked with difficulty.
"She went that far?"
"Yes."
"...For real?"
I nodded lightly.
"Even more so, actually. She didn't hold back."
"That's weird. She was always so cool..."
Aila sighed, utterly baffled. It seemed her image of Princess Leruel was a bit different.
"Well, she probably has her reasons."
I murmured as I folded the letter.
I hadn't planned to show it to Aila from the start. She'd just happened to visit, asking about things from the capital...
'And right then, Princess Leruel's letter arrived.'
When the folded paper in my pocket started glowing, Aila asked, 'What's that, Professor?' So I showed her the answer.
'She asked, so I showed her. What's the big deal?'
Aila, munching on snacks from the guest seat, let out a long sigh.
"...Still, I'm glad nothing bad happened."
"It wasn't a big deal."
I chimed in appropriately.
In truth, I hadn't told Aila everything about the annex incident. I'd mixed in some white lies.
'No need to tell her everything.'
Princess Leruel wouldn't want that either.
She wanted Aila to graduate from Aphria 'normally' and return to the palace.
I had no intention of dismissing her efforts to rummage through the palace to protect Aila's daily life.
'Even so......'
My eyes turned to Aila.
Her complexion was bright. Different from when we'd met at the palace before.
A bright, worry-free face.
The very face Princess Leruel longed to see.
Seeing it naturally brought a smile to my lips. Her efforts hadn't been in vain.
'So, this much is fine.'
I shook the letter at Aila.
"In any case, you should write to Her Highness the First Princess more often."
"...Yeah, I guess."
I sent one just the other day, though.
Leaving Aila murmuring that behind, I pulled a document envelope from the bookshelf.
"What's that, Professor?"
"Field trip rationale report."
"Are we going on a field trip?"
I shook my head.
"I sent a student for on-site training recently. Dean Aron asked for a rationale report on it."
It asked things like why I approved the field trip or what the purpose of designing such training was.
'He nearly flipped at first.'
Approval came only because Rak was a key Combat Magic student and it was more like a 'squire training camp' than a battlefield.
'Even that was hard-won.'
As I picked up my quill to write the report, Aila, who had been glaring at me, spoke up.
"By any chance, is the student who went for field training Rak?"
My quill froze in midair.
The report was still blank. I slowly turned to look at Aila.
"If it's Young Lord Rak..."
Her golden eyes were shining.
Starlight shimmered within the gold.
"When he returns, Combat Magic's top spot might change hands."
"...What do you mean?"
"Who knows? Just a feeling."
She tilted her head with a smile.
She looked less like a mere student and more like a prophet reciting a starry omen.
3.
Squire Training Camp.
Rak had spent the night there and now faced the second morning. Though he'd slept on a hard bunk in the barracks, his back didn't ache.
"Nngh."
Stretching, he stepped out of the barracks.
It was still before dawn, so the camp was quiet. Patrolling instructors didn't bother early riser Rak.
In fact, most instructors gave him no orders at all. They seemed to view his presence as mere whimsy.
'They won't take it seriously.'
'He'll leave in a few days anyway.'
No point getting involved.
Tangling with a noble heir's caprice would only get the instructors hurt.
They neither enforced discipline nor demanded training.
They simply left Rak to do as he pleased. Of course, Rak didn't slack off. He trained alongside the squires, ran the training grounds with them.
"Hm."
No one forced him, but Rak lived like the squires. He figured that's how he'd gain something.
'Group life isn't bad.'
Rak exhaled shortly and adjusted his grip on his axe. He headed to the training ground early and swung it.
'They said we'll follow the instructors to the field tomorrow morning.'
Tomorrow morning, they'd face the Demon King's army.
Under strict supervision, of course, but a battlefield was a battlefield.
'A bit tense.'
Rak swung silently.
When the sun rose and instructors began rousing knights, Rak stopped.
The next day began.
Rak tied his axe to his waist and headed to the training grounds where squires gathered.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Squire training was systematic.
This camp was the final stop for knights heading to the front lines. Instructors taught only practical, battle-honed skills.
"Follow my lead. To halt a charge, fix your spear shaft to the ground. Remember this motion."
Battlefield essentials.
Necessary techniques. Instructors drilled them relentlessly, especially for tomorrow's drill.
Running laps, weapon handling checks, knightly mindset repeated endlessly.
Squires spent their days in finely segmented routines. Not a moment wasted. With little time before the front lines, they absorbed all they could.
As the second day's sun set...
"Does the food suit your taste, young lord?"
"Mm, reminds me of chewing orc meat in the snowy mountains as a kid. The meat's awfully tough..."
"Haha, that's some joke."
"Not a joke..."
"Still, meat's a good thing. Probably to fill us up before heading to the field tomorrow."
Rak chatted with a squire over dinner. Midway, the squire asked a question.
"By the way, young lord Rak, why are you working so hard?"
"Hard?"
"Come on. You're incredibly strong, right? Stronger than us squires, even matching most instructors, from what I hear."
The squire, who introduced himself as Drmac, continued.
"You're that strong, and a famed Aphria student to boot. Did you really need to come all the way to a training camp?"
"Mm."
Rak chewed his meat and replied.
"Professor recommended it. Said to get field experience."
"What a crazy professor."
"She's a bit unique."
"No, seriously—who throws a student straight into a camp? If I were you, I'd have cursed her out."
Rak gave a wry smile at Drmac thumping his chest.
"You'd get your head ripped off."
"Pardon?"
"She's scary."
"Oh, really...?"
Drmac and Rak rose with their trays, chatting. They were on night watch duty. Originally Drmac's alone, but Rak volunteered to join.
After dinner, strolling to their post, the talk circled back.
Rak spoke first.
"...Truth be told, beyond the professor's words, I came here because I wanted to."
"You wanted to?"
"Needed to."
They took position.
The dark forest was silent. In the quiet woods, Rak's low voice echoed.
"There's someone I want to beat. But I can't win. Something has to change... I thought coming here might do it."
"Hm, it does toughen you up, personality-wise."
"I meant my body."
"Well, no idea."
Drmac smiled.
A refreshingly bold grin.
"Hope you get what you want befo—?!"
The words didn't finish.
Rak yanked Drmac's collar, who'd been leading. Drmac toppled backward.
"Ack! Why sudde—"
Drmac shut his mouth mid-sentence.
An arrow was embedded where he'd stood. It had flown silently from the dark.
"Drmac."
Rak reached for his waist.
"Call the instructors."
Rak smoothly drew the axe from his belt. He extended the blade forward.
"Enemy raid."
The blade pointed deep into the forest. Red eyes glinted in the darkness.