Chapter 376
Chapter 376
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 376
>Chapter Title: Inevitably Ridiculous
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A few days later.
Parun, who had been holed up in the lab setting up the Infinite Chain, finally finished his preparations and stepped outside. That was when he witnessed a rather bizarre sight.
“This is…….”
Megarium was a city of mages.
Of course, that didn’t mean its ruler was a mage. Like the city of Hazen, Megarium was a directly governed territory under the Emperor’s rule, not a lord’s.
Well…… even as a directly governed territory, a mayor appointed by the Emperor handled the role in his stead.
In any case, the key point was that Megarium was nominally under the Emperor’s direct control.
Being land ruled directly by the Emperor, no noble could enter the city leading armed soldiers. Even the highest-ranking knights had to show respect by entering with minimal armament.
And yet, this……
Clank, clank—!
Knights clad in full armor roamed through Megarium. Surrounding them, soldiers gripped spears and swords, warily scanning the area.
‘…….’
Parun stood blankly by the window, cigar clenched in his teeth, silently taking in the street scene.
Having pulled all-nighters for days on end, he wondered if he was hallucinating—or if he wasn’t, just who could possibly send fully armed knights and soldiers into the Emperor’s direct territory.
Chiiik—
After lighting the cigar and taking a couple of drags, Parun finally pieced together their affiliation.
“……Grand Duke Muspelrun.”
No, to be precise, they were soldiers of the Muspelrun Dukedom.
The emblem etched on the knights’ armor had been unfamiliar at first, making it hard to recall, but once it clicked, he remembered it clearly.
‘Certain.’
It was the newly adopted emblem of the Muspelrun Dukedom.
And yet……
‘Why are the Grand Duke’s soldiers here?’
Could it be rebellion?
He knew it was impossible, but it was the only thought that came to mind.
And then, at that moment.
Clank, clank—!
A group of knights approaching from the distance. Their emblem was one Parun knew all too well.
‘……Lortel?’
Why Lortel?
And also……
‘Blandoga?’
It was unmistakable.
The mages in that corner, conversing with Megarium’s own mages, were from Blandoga.
A spark flashed through Parun’s mind.
“You bastard, don’t tell me?”
Rebellion.
This could only be rebellion.
His brain wasn’t firing on all cylinders after days of extreme focus and sleep deprivation, but connecting the Muspelrun Dukedom, Lortel, and Blandoga made the conclusion obvious.
That ‘madman’ had botched something and turned everything upside down.
Parun had no idea how he’d sweet-talked Grand Duke Muspelrun, Lortel’s patriarch, or Blandoga’s patriarch, but there was only one reason those three factions would gather in the Emperor’s direct territory.
……Naturally, Parun knew full well how absurd that story was.
But the ‘madman’ he’d observed all this time was a force of chaos that fit plausibly into any scenario—
“No, no…… Hoo. No way. That couldn’t happen.”
Parun let out a deep sigh and pulled himself together.
He then grabbed a fatigue recovery potion from a corner shelf and downed it in one go.
Sure enough, bought with someone else’s money…… no, the Magic Tower’s money, it was an expensive one. The effect kicked in fast.
His head soon cleared, and his cognitive faculties returned to normal.
His head still throbbed, and his vision remained blurry, but his mind was sharp as ever.
With his renewed clarity, Parun turned back to the street.
Now he saw what he’d missed before.
“……They’re not the only ones.”
It wasn’t just the forces from the Muspelrun Dukedom, Lortel, and Blandoga who had entered Megarium.
There were a handful of knights from other noble houses, and troops from still more prestigious families beyond Lortel and Blandoga.
Parun breathed a sigh of relief.
But what on earth had happened?
Parun’s knowledge only extended up to right after the Monster Wave.
So……
- The culprit is Tdun, Salvatium Tdun……
That madman blathering his ridiculous song, bewitching Megarium’s mages.
- Hey, you know about this?
- I learned a huge secret……
Up to the point where mages were gossiping about Salvatium everywhere.
That was all Parun had seen before holing up in the lab to work on the Infinite Chain.
Which meant.
‘Did he succeed in bringing it to public attention? Are they here to investigate Salvatium?’
That was as far as Parun’s thoughts had gotten when.
Kkiiik.
“Still on about that? Professor Pellina, hear me out. What if the guys I roughed up aren’t followers? What if I beat up some innocent schmucks? No, that’s not it.”
A familiar voice drifted in from outside the door.
“Look, look. Salvatium are the bad guys. But who were the ones I beat? Oh yeah, the rumor-control goons making sure those bad guys’ dirt didn’t spread, right? But did I beat every last one? Nah? The ones who said they ‘suppressed uncertain rumors’ got the polite treatment. Yeah, exactly.”
“One.”
“Huh?”
“One.”
“……Numbers don’t matter. It’s about whether I treated ’em right or not, right? Anyway, look. And in the end? Everyone in Megarium’s all open-minded and decided to cooperate with us. Yeah?”
That blabbering mouth.
His first thought was ‘Informal speech……?’, but he was more curious about what came next, so he shelved it.
Parun stood there blankly, ears perked.
“If I hadn’t done that, when would Salvatium ever go public? Right? Sure…… my ‘friend’ the Third Princess helped out plenty, and my ‘senior’ Grand Duke Muspelrun pitched in too, but still.”
“……Hmm.”
“Professor Pellina, after all my hard work…… Huh? What? ‘Fight poison with poison, but don’t fight evil with evil’? So you’re saying I’m evil……? Huh? What?”
The blabbering stopped, followed by footsteps approaching the door.
“Oh, Parun. You’re out?”
Parun silently took in the sight of the Tower Lord, who was now blatantly, shamelessly, disgustingly bandying about informal speech.
Pressing his throbbing temples, he let out a deep sigh.
“You……”
“One guy.”
“……Never mind.”
Parun shook his head.
Just…… let’s keep things like this for a while.
He’d graduated from the Academy anyway. He wasn’t a professor anymore, and that madman wasn’t a student either.
That aside.
“……Looks like there’s a lot I need to hear.”
Parun changed the subject.
He felt like he’d lose it if he didn’t focus on something.
* * *
Parun pressed his throbbing temples as he listened intently to Aster’s account.
And when the story wrapped up.
“……You got lucky.”
“Well, you could sum it up that way.”
“Honestly, all you did was swing violence around.”
“No idea when ‘violence’ and ‘justice’ started meaning the same thing, but sure.”
“They’ve never meant the same…… Hoo, forget it.”
Parun gave up on the conversation and calmly pieced together the situation.
So…… this was how it had gone down.
After he’d gone into seclusion.
The Tower Lord had sat back and watched the rumors spread through Megarium.
That period lasted about a week……
‘……There were guys trying to stamp it out?’
That was when the Third Princess stepped in to help.
One of her faction’s nobles happened to be in Megarium, giving her insight into the movements of the city’s upper crust, merchants included.
Armed with that intel, the Tower Lord had gone around roughing up the rumor-blockers one by one.
All to weed out any potential Salvatium followers—about a dozen in total.
Their reasons for suppressing the rumors varied.
……Some didn’t want it hurting their upcoming business ventures, others wanted to keep their subordinate mages in line.
And……
‘Three of them were suspicious.’
Of course, even those three weren’t confirmed.
They had their own excuses, just like the rest.
But what set them apart…… They’d blocked the rumors on orders from higher-ups, been briefed on follow-up measures, and stood to gain something in return.
The suspicion was strong, but he couldn’t act on vibes alone.
‘If it’d been the black mage hunts centuries ago, maybe.’
Parun figured he could’ve just offed them since it was all done covertly, but the Tower Lord was the real pro at this shady stuff. No choice but to trust his call.
In any case, after clearing those hurdles.
The Tower Lord had dragged one of the dozen he’d roughed up—the chairman of the ‘Megarium Mages’ Association’—up onto a podium.
Handing him evidence Professor Pellina had acquired long ago.
And what was that evidence?
……The handwritten memoirs of Jenion Academy’s founding principal.
Page 213, torn out.
It was proof Pellina had obtained back during her Academy days, a testament to how long she’d been chasing Salvatium.
‘But…… why did she pursue Salvatium?’
No clue.
Professor Pellina had clammed up tight on that point.
In any case, back on track.
The memoirs of that empire-shaping historical figure plainly recorded the group name ‘Salvatium’ along with details that identified them.
From there, it was smooth sailing.
Once the Mages’ Association chairman made his official statement holding the evidence, Megarium’s mayor reported the unprecedented incident straight to the Emperor, with the Third Princess backing him up.
And naturally……
- The mysterious mage is the fourth seat of the 72-member council, Sir Wyvar.
The credit went to the Third Princess.
Though it wasn’t just credit she’d claimed.
She’d shouldered the risk of becoming a Salvatium target too.
‘Not some greed-blinded fool…… The risk’s too massive for that.’
She’d taken the gains, but it was an action she wouldn’t have taken without the intent to aid the Magic Tower’s cause.
In any event, with the mayor’s forthright report and the princess’s support, the Emperor rendered a swift judgment. An imperial decree followed.
- The extermination of black mages is hereby rescinded.
In its place……
- Hear ye, all subjects, officials, and souls who tread this land. From this day forth, the Adrian Empire declares the ‘Extermination of Salvatium.’ Let none spare their efforts in service to the Empire’s peace and stability.
What the Emperor proclaimed was the ‘Extermination of Salvatium.’
Compared to how he’d swept the gold horse society and black mages under the rug at Jenion Academy’s new principal inauguration, it was a startlingly bold move.
‘……Well, back then the Second Prince was tangled up in it.’
Even mentioning imperial blood alongside black mages was blasphemous.
In a way, it was a golden opportunity for the Emperor too.
This was the perfect chance to keep that thorn in his side, Salvatium, in check without deploying imperial forces.
Think about it.
Salvatium had attacked Megarium, and now it was public knowledge. What house would dare defy the Emperor’s order to exterminate them!
And if they did……
‘……A prime excuse to brand them followers and wipe them out.’
That was why the continent’s nobles were jumping on the bandwagon so eagerly.
In any case.
“……Ridiculous.”
Parun didn’t bother stifling the hollow laugh bubbling up as he stared ahead.
His gaze fell on the boy slouched indolently…… the youth turning into a man, face hidden behind a mask.
The boy receiving his stare tilted his head.
“What’s so funny?”
“No, it’s nothing.”
He said as much, but Parun’s laughter didn’t stop.
And why would it?
‘……A cabal of thousands of years.’
That cabal might crumble because of some green kid.
How could it not be ridiculous?
Inevitable.