Chapter 37: A Party of Wizards
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 37: A Party of Wizards
How different is the Sohen I'm in now from the one I played in the game?
They're the same place.
There's just a 140-year time difference.
To be precise, this place is 140 years further into the future than the game.
The game never displayed the year, but I can still tell. That's because when I searched the library, I found records of a Labyrinth eruption 140 years ago.
The documents from that time were filled with familiar names, places, and businesses.
In the 140 years since, much has changed in Sohen. And thanks to the Labyrinth erupting again 12 years ago and tearing the whole city apart, the city I remember is now just a framework.
But still, a few things have remained the same.
For example, a place like this.
‘The Bertenga estate.’
Sohen's most prestigious family of mages, renowned for producing countless distinguished wizards.
The sheer scale of the mansion's entrance was on another level, and Yernil seemed a little intimidated.
“We’re going in there?”
“Yes.”
“Us?”
To be honest, I've never seen a house like this in my original world either.
It feels like a grand mansion belonging to some rich British tycoon from a TV drama.
For the record, we were the only ones who walked. The other guests arrived in three-wheelers powered by magic stones or in carriages.
And one more thing.
“I’m scared people will laugh at me…”
There was one more thing making Yernil nervous: her attire.
Was it because she was the only one dressed poorly for a high-society party?
No.
I'd gone to a dress shop and bought her a party dress. It was a light, airy design with ribbons and a flared skirt that fell alluringly above her knees. The price was 1,800 gold.
I also had her try on a pair of shoes worth 400 gold, and Yernil nearly fainted when she heard the price.
And now she was incredibly embarrassed.
“They'll say some clueless girl is wearing something expensive she doesn't deserve.”
I doubt it.
The people in there are probably wearing outfits with one or two more zeros on the price tag.
“Let's go.”
We approached the gate and greeted the guard, but he just waved his hand dismissively without even looking at us.
Earlier, they opened the gate for other guests on sight without a word. Tsk. I guess it's different for us.
“We were invited to the party tonight.”
Only then did he straighten his posture.
“Ah, my apologies. We get a lot of students from the magic university trying to find a sponsor.”
I see.
I'd bought Yernil a dress, but I didn't want to waste money on myself, so I was still in my magic university uniform. That must have caused the misunderstanding.
“May I have your names?”
“Caleb. This is Yernil.”
“Could I see your identification?”
Yernil confidently presented her freeman's ID. I showed him my magic university student ID.
“Confirmed.”
The guard then took out a small slip of paper, wrote ‘Caleb, Yernil’ on it, and laid it flat on a table next to the gate.
He then aimed his wand at the slip.
“Send message.”
It was the same magic I'd seen when I first met Isilof. A type of practical magic: same-day express mail.
The note vanished with a pop.
So that's how they announce which guests have arrived inside the mansion.
“You may enter now.”
*
In the mansion's first-floor lobby, servants carried food and drinks while a self-playing grand piano filled the air with music.
There were about thirty guests inside.
I could feel their eyes on us the moment we entered.
On Yernil, to be precise.
I guess the face and body really do complete the look.
Now that she was all dressed up, even I had to admit she looked like a Hollywood actress.
‘Let's see.’
I slowly scanned the guests.
I had two main objectives for visiting this place.
First, to observe the upper echelons of wizard society, collect the reward for recovering Avison's body, and have some good food and fun with Yernil.
My second objective was to investigate a certain wizard. And that wizard was…
‘Professor Enver.’
Found him.
He's the candidate for 'otherworld possessor' I singled out back when I was putting on that god-tier game bluff for Meldini in the university lobby.
The gleeful, snickering expression on his face when I hit the self-destruct button by claiming to be a possessor is still fresh in my mind.
Professor Enver is my target for today.
Last time, I used Meldini as bait for my lure fishing; today, it's Enver.
“Caleb!”
Someone called out in a cheerful voice from the direction of the kitchen, where the food was coming from.
It was Clorence.
Thanks to him, the gazes of the party guests shifted his way for a moment before turning back to me.
“Welcome!”
Clorence hurried over to greet me.
“I didn't get the note. When did you arrive?”
“They just sent it with magic. The guards at the entrance.”
“Really? Must have been a dispatch error. It happens sometimes. Come this way!”
Clorence led the two of us around, introducing us to the guests.
Most of the mages already knew who I was.
“Ah, the one who just joined Professor Isilof's club—”
“The one who got the better of Professor Meldini—”
“The one who's handling the joint project with the Temple of Nathaniel—?”
After exchanging pleasantries and some polite laughter, we moved on.
As we passed through a hallway, a noblewoman emerged from the drawing room, pushing a wheelchair. A familiar face was sitting in it.
“Avison! Mother!”
Clorence introduced us to them.
“Oh, my goodness! I've been so looking forward to meeting you. It's a pleasure, Caleb. Thank you so much for bringing our youngest back to us.”
Clorence and Avison's mother.
Her name was Marisa.
I'd expected the mistress of a house this grand to be aloof and charismatic, or perhaps fussy, but she had an easygoing personality.
“I wanted to invite you sooner to express my gratitude, but I heard you'd been assigned an important mission at the university,” Marisa said.
“I held back because I was worried that throwing a party and inviting you would be a burden while you were busy preparing.”
She covered her mouth with her hand, giggling softly as she introduced Avison.
“You're a new student at the university, aren't you, Caleb? That makes you a classmate of our Avison. I hope you two get along well.”
“I don't have a single friend at school yet, as it happens. Let's get along, Avison.”
I played along and shook Avison's hand.
At the same time, I finally got a good look at his severed leg.
Hmm.
How strange.
The part above the amputation was an adult's thigh, but the part below looked like the leg of a five-year-old child.
From the severed edge, a tiny foot, ankle, and calf had sprouted out from around the bone.
“It's strange, isn't it? I'm undergoing regeneration treatment at the temple,” Avison said.
“Doesn't it hurt?”
Oh?
For once, Yernil asked a question without her usual shyness.
She's trying, at least.
Right, we're at a social gathering, so she should try to mingle and talk to people. Connections are important in this world.
She's too scared to talk to the high-tier mages, but someone like Avison is approachable enough even for my Yernil.
“They've cast a pain relief spell, so it's fine.”
Avison definitely gave off the vibe of a spoiled youngest child. Compared to a graduating mage like Clorence, he seemed like a total rookie.
“Caleb! Thank you so much for saving me. How can you be so skilled when you're a first-year just like me!”
I was just learning this now, but apparently, after his resurrection, Avison heard the whole story and became an ardent fan (?) of mine.
“I've been dying to meet you! How did you defeat a powerful Exit Boss like Mr. Back Attack with no equipment and no consumables!”
Avison's eyes suddenly lit up as he began to recite my heroic deeds.
“And on top of that, you even managed to resurrect him! I haven't heard the details of that story yet. Could you please tell me?”
“It wasn't anything special.”
I tried to be as humble as possible, but honestly, it's good for me to have Avison hyping me up like this.
It would be great to go down there now and draw some aggro from Professor Enver and the other high-tier mages, but first, one more thing.
“Would it be alright if I had a look around the mansion? I've never been to such a magnificent place before.”
My plan was to scout the place out beforehand to see if the layout matched the Bertenga mansion I knew. It would also be a chance to teach Yernil.
“Of course! I'll give you a tour.”
Avison excitedly asked Madam Marisa.
“Mother, can I go hang out with Caleb and Yernil for a bit?”
“Yes! Of course you can.”
Madam Marisa was delighted.
“Then, Clorence, could you push the wheelchair?”
“If it's not too much trouble, would it be alright if I did it?”
I quickly interjected.
I wanted to examine every nook and cranny of the mansion as thoroughly as possible, so having a sharp guy like Clorence tagging along was the last thing I wanted.
“Oh, would you? Avison would love that.”
Madam Marisa was pleased, Clorence was happy with the arrangement, and I ended up pushing Avison's wheelchair.
With Yernil by my side.
*
“This is a guest room, and this is another guest room. This is the balcony, and here's the elevator. Yes, it's magically operated. This is the drawing room. This is where my father works. And this way is my eldest sister's study.”
Pushing Avison's wheelchair, we did a full lap of the mansion.
I've got the general layout.
Nothing's different from my memory.
“The house is really amazing.”
It seems Yernil has also gotten a rough grasp of the layout and paths.
Alright, shall we go dangle the bait?
“It's Professor Meldini.”
Just then, I spotted Meldini and Professor Enver chatting with other mages in the first-floor lobby.
I naturally drifted into their group.
“Oho! If it isn't the talents who will bring glory to our university!”
Meldini was thrilled to see us.
“Not me. Caleb, maybe,” Avison replied with an innocent smile.
“Haha. Avison, an incredible freshman may have appeared, but you're a first-year with a bright future yourself. No need to lose confidence so soon.”
Meldini offered Avison some light encouragement.
“But Caleb even resurrected Back Attack, who died after appearing as an Exit Boss.”
Avison started singing my praises again. This kid might get a little tiring if I see him too often.
“We were just talking about that,” a Tier 5 mage said.
“I heard about it from the priests, too. Setting everything else aside, how on earth did you get a ‘Resurrection Scroll’?”
I knew they'd ask about this.
No one knows about the compass yet.
Why?
Because of an unspoken rule among Labyrinth adventurers.
When someone possesses a legendary-grade artifact like that, it's common courtesy to keep it a secret.
If word got out, that person could become a target for plunder.
I don't know if Bernard reported it to the temple or not, but even if he did, the priests wouldn't have casually spread information about the compass.
Therefore, there's only one person here who knows how we found the treasure room and got the Resurrection Scroll.
Meldini.
The halfling professor wore a pleased smile as he wiped under his nose with his index finger.
He looks very proud of himself.
And I'm going to play right into it.
“I was just lucky.”
“Hoh.”
“Playing coy, are we?”
“A wizard should have a secret or two.”
As the lucky sponsor, the corners of Meldini's mouth curled up in satisfaction.
“Well, I suppose you'll tell us how you found the treasure room someday.”
“There are many other things I'm curious about.”
“Your feats are truly astonishing.”
“I heard you used a spell called Cumulonimbus. How on earth did you manage that?”
Another expected question.
Before I could even open my mouth, the cheerful Meldini answered for me.
“He said it was a combination of three Tier 1 spells.”
“A triple combination is statistically very unlikely to succeed.”
“He even threw in a practical magic spell.”
“That's a very bold attempt, isn't it?”
“Caleb, when are you going to write the paper on it?”
“Did you succeed just by attempting the combination based on logic alone?”
I glanced at Meldini and replied, “That was also thanks to good ‘luck’.”
“...!”
I emphasized the word ‘luck,’ and Meldini's eyes widened.
He'd caught the signal I sent.
That behind my spellbook combination, there was another sponsor like Meldini.
That someone with incredible knowledge had taught me the combination method.
Who could it be? If the spellbook combination wasn't a coincidence, who could have taught it to me? Who possesses knowledge that even a magic university professor like Meldini doesn't have?
Obviously, it could only be an otherworld possessor.
“...”
The silence that fell told me the other mages had caught on as well.
They might even be thinking of the Fox-spirit Possessor I supposedly killed.
And if the knowledge left to me by the Fox Spirit Maiden was that incredible—
“Caleb,” Professor Enver spoke up.
“Do you plan on continuing to be lucky when you combine spellbooks in the future?”
He took the bait.
“I plan on being lucky from now on, too.”
“...I see.”
Professor Enver smiled and excused himself.
“Pardon me for a moment.”
*
I cleared the Turn-Based Master difficulty and reached the Developer difficulty before I was possessed into this world.
What about the other possessors?
How did they get here?
There are two possibilities.
First, they were possessed through some process I'm unaware of, even on a lower difficulty.
Second, they were possessed through a route other than the game's Abyssal Labyrinth.
What about the possibility that other possessors also reached the Developer difficulty in the game?
In my opinion, that's impossible.
Because if possessors had cleared such a high difficulty, there's no way they wouldn't know about things like the Cumulonimbus combination or the Sanctuary of the Soul.
And considering this shitty game had absolutely no other content like sourcebooks, novels, or comics, the first of those two possibilities is the most likely.
If that's the case, then possessors would naturally be interested in another possessor who came from a higher difficulty.
Whether that interest is friendly or hostile.
How could they not take a bait like this?
[Your turn. Time remaining: 60 seconds]
[Action Points: ■■■■]
Right, Enver?
You didn't come to a party like this alone, did you? With so many high-ranking mages gathered, your friends must be here too. Who did you come with? You're going to meet them now, aren't you?
A non-possessor wizard who has more extensive possessor knowledge than you do.
You're going to discuss how to suck this Honey Pot Resource dry, right?
“Yernil. I bought you a pretty dress, so now it's time to work.”
There was a reason I brought Yernil along.
If not for an occasion like this, she wouldn't have many opportunities to be in a place with so many mages.
“Track Professor Enver. See where he goes, who he meets, and what they talk about.”
I gave the order and moved my body, using up my Action Points.
[End Turn.]
*
Yernil's ears twitched.
Now, let's see what happens.
Yernil. You know the mansion's layout now, right?
You have to tell me where Enver is going.