Chapter 64
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 64
Chapter Title: Ambush 3 (2)
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“Ahaha!”
Helena burst into raucous laughter.
“What’s this, Master? You’ve been thinking of Madam as a squirrel this whole time?”
“……”
Instead of making excuses, I opted to keep my mouth shut. Helena snickered at the sight of me.
“You’re right, she is a squirrel. Cute and fluffy—just like Madam!”
“Squirrel……”
Rose began fiddling with her hair upon hearing that. Her already voluminous locks, reminiscent of a squirrel’s tail, started puffing up even more.
“Then what am I, Master?”
I answered Helena’s question without a moment’s hesitation.
“A marten.”
“What?”
Helena’s eyes shot wide open.
“Not a mischievous cat?”
“A marten.”
“No way! Why am I the only fierce one—”
Clack.
I quickly shut the coachman’s window. No more animal talk.
“Ha.”
Rose tilted her head at me.
“Do I... really look like a squirrel?”
What a tricky question.
Rather than answer, I gazed out the window.
“Nice weather.”
I feigned ignorance with a broad grin, turning away from Rose’s beaming smile.
It was a pleasant ride home.
The days that followed passed in a whirlwind of busyness.
Dane would head out with Rose in a carriage, only to switch to another midway and vanish.
Some days, they rode together all the way to the shopping district or a nearby village.
‘To throw off their tracking.’
That was his answer when Rose asked.
Whenever he moved irregularly, an unfamiliar scent clung to him. At first, she hadn’t noticed, but as it repeated, she realized it was the smell of blood.
‘Ha, are you off doing something dangerous?’
She asked him from the bed one night, but he didn’t respond.
Squeeze.
He simply pulled her close from behind. It was as good as an admission.
Rose had her own share of duties.
She diligently attended tea parties to show her face, sorting noble houses into those aligned with the Schmichaels and those that weren’t.
She even applied subtle pressure to families on the fence.
And today, she had summoned Anersen to the laboratory. Just as Dane had advised—not going to his lab, but making him come to the castle.
“Good day, Madam.”
“I trust you’ve been well?”
“Of course. You’re positively glowing yourself, Madam.”
Conveniently, Anersen arrived right when Dane was away.
“Ahem.”
Anersen noticed and smacked his lips. Dane had warned him, but the moment a gap appeared, greed took over.
“I see you’ve been making good use of the lab.”
“Thank you again. I can feel your wisdom infused in every corner.”
Rose smiled faintly, gesturing around the room.
“Like separating flammables, or the workbench orientation. Oh, and this shelf for failed experiments.”
“That’s just basic stuff.”
Anersen waved it off, then shot her a sly glance.
“Speaking of which, I’ve improved my own lab setup too.”
“Oh? How so?”
“My apprentices were struggling, so I added some welfare perks, you could say.”
Anersen ticked them off on his fingers, boasting about his lab’s “welfare.”
“Three meals a day to start. Midnight snacks too.”
Rose had already heard Albert’s sweet talk at the Academy, so she easily saw through what Anersen’s words implied.
‘Meaning they pull all-nighters often.’
One less reason to go home. They’d be tethered to the lab.
“I see.”
She nodded calmly, giving nothing away.
“Oh, and plush sofas in the corner, plus a cot for naps. Rest whenever you need.”
In other words, sleep in the lab, not at home.
“Flexible commute hours too. Some of those... er, fellows sleep in late.”
Meaning work never ends. And Anersen could call on them anytime.
“……”
Rather than share her thoughts, Rose offered a polite smile. The kind used in society—showing she was listening but utterly indifferent.
“...Well, anyway. Ahem.”
Anersen smacked his lips again at her reaction, unsure if his bait had worked.
“You’ve been busy lately, I hear?”
Rose smoothly changed the subject.
“Ah, His Excellency’s been commissioning all sorts of things.”
Anersen scratched his tousled hair carelessly.
“He usually leaves me to my research, but lately, the demands are endless. Finally acting like a proper investor.”
“What are you making?”
“Defensive magic tools, mostly. Last time, he suddenly wanted one on the bed—kept me up all night.”
“Ah.”
“This time, the carriage. Wrapping that beast was murder, but the deadline was generous enough.”
Anersen glanced at her for agreement.
“As you know, magic tools vary in size by purpose. Circuit design has to match.”
“Yes, exactly. Too small, and you cram the circuits; too big, and it gets cluttered and complex.”
“Would His Excellency care? He probably thinks they just pop out on command.”
Anersen’s lips pursed in complaint.
“Investor or not, I’m no vending machine... Ahem, forget I said that.”
Suddenly mindful of Rose’s position, Anersen cut himself short.
Even as a top researcher and academic leader, he occasionally showed this petty side—one of his endearing quirks.
“You’ve worked hard.”
Knowing both Dane’s goals and Anersen’s woes, Rose comforted him matter-of-factly.
Then she pulled a magic tool from her pocket.
“Perfect timing—I have something to show you.”
“New research? Let’s see.”
Anersen took it eagerly. She’d deliberately left the back panel open, exposing the circuits.
“...Ah, resonance via specific wavelengths. Clever.”
“You saw right through it. The goal is mutual position detection between two tools.”
“Using mana stone wavelengths—fascinating. Who knew they could be used this way?”
Anersen peered so intently, his nose nearly touched it.
“In your view, what’s the detection range here?”
“This setup? Maybe... 100 cubits.”
“Any way to extend it?”
“Hm. Boost the resonance coefficient or frequency... Got a pencil?”
Anersen didn’t stop at ideas—he sketched improvements on the blueprint himself.
Collaborating with him beat solo work by miles.
Rose now understood why Dane exploited him so.
His academic curiosity made him charge ahead blindly—perfectly exploitable.
“Intriguing. You—or rather, your research—is refreshingly original.”
Anersen muttered, face slightly flushed.
“Unique ideas others shy from. No wonder Albert coveted you.”
“Thank you, Anersen.”
Anersen chuckled at her plain response. He’d realized flattery wouldn’t sway her.
“That all, then?”
“Actually, now comes the main point.”
Rose handed him a sheet of paper, tense, with a graph of Dane’s mana levels transcribed.
“First, what does this mana graph look like to you?”
“Hm……”
She hadn’t revealed it was Dane’s. She wanted his unbiased analysis, no hints.
“Madam, don’t tell me.”
Anersen, scrutinizing it closely, looked grave.
“You made a mana reversal magic tool?”
“Pardon?”
“Look at this curve. That’s the singularity right before mana backflow.”
“Mana... reversal.”
Rose blankly echoed him.
Thud.
Her heart sank heavily.
A vague hypothesis solidified into certainty with his words.
“Sharp drop, mana dips negative briefly. Past that threshold, it flows backward.”
“...How do you cross that threshold?”
“Explosive injection beyond a certain mana value.”
Clack.
Anersen folded the paper and met her eyes squarely.
“All mana reverses at once. That triggers mana reversal.”
“……”
It felt like emerging from thick fog into light after endless wandering.
‘...So this was it.’
On his birthday, Dane had collapsed like he’d been struck by lightning, motionless.
The method to fell such a sturdy man in an instant. Its secret hid in mana itself.
What had always been his ally and weapon had turned into a blade turned against him.
“Madam. Are you listening?”
“...Yes, Anersen.”
He eyed her suspiciously.
Rose steadied her rattled mind. Grasping the clue made her impatient, but she forced calm.
“It’s not what you’re thinking. His Excellency gave me your blueprints, but I scrapped them.”
“Hm, really?”
“Me, who’s suffered something similar—how could I?”
“Then what’s this?”
Rose hesitated.
‘How much to reveal?’
Could she fully trust Anersen? How tight-lipped was he?
She led him to the magic tool chair instead.
“No... surely not.”
Anersen gaped at the complex machinery linked to the chair.
“You did live experiments?”