Chapter 72
“Miss Lunaris Evermoon is coming to the Magic Tower, I hear.”
Let's rewind time a bit, to a few days earlier.
The vice tower master, Wilhelm, who was in charge of the Magic Tower's day-to-day affairs in place of the tower master, who had gone into seclusion for an intensive research period, casually dropped a remark that sent the grand conference room into an uproar for the first time in ages.
“Ooooh...!”
“I-Is that true?!”
“Elder Raymond personally contacted us. He said she'd be visiting within the week for her archmage certification.”
At that, the spines of the hunchbacked, turtle-necked magicians snapped straight.
It was hardly a new thing, but the name ‘Lunaris Evermoon’ had long been a hot topic in the Magic Tower.
Youngest archmage candidate? Of course, that was impressive.
But more important than that was the fact that she was the one and only mage who handled nature's mana in its raw form.
Some admired that overwhelming talent; others ground their teeth in envy.
In the end, everyone wanted the same thing.
‘Please, just once.’
They wanted to sit across from her and talk about magic for twenty-four hours straight...
They wanted to know what kind of sense she used to feel mana, to dissect... no, investigate that brain structure...
They wanted to know how she used nature's mana... they wanted to know so badly...!
The problem was that this once-in-a-century genius didn't do public appearances at all.
Normally, if someone achieved that much at such a young age, their arrogance would be through the roof and they'd be bragging everywhere.
Was she modest, or just shy?
Even her own teacher was like that, wasn't he?
The notorious braggart Raymond Cloud, who at that age still boasted that even breathing was worth bragging about.
So why was his disciple, Lunaris, so taciturn?
There was no one more mysterious.
If the teacher and disciple could just mix their personalities half and half, they'd be perfect.
On top of that, there was another factor fueling the Magic Tower's curiosity.
The mages sent to Elterion Academy under the pretense of observing Lunaris.
At some point, they cut off contact entirely, signed on as adjunct lecturers, and settled at the academy for good.
[I’m not going back to the Magic Tower.]
[Truth... is here...!!]
Judging by the last message they sent, you'd think they'd fallen under a hypnosis spell.
They seemed to have seen something incredible.
But not knowing what it was made it even more maddening.
And now the subject of all that buzz, Lunaris, was finally, at long last, coming to the Magic Tower on her own two feet.
“We should schedule a seminar right away. Our Elemental School will be using this grand conference room for now.”
“Nonsense! Miss Lunaris's magic is rooted in nature's mana, isn't it? This time, I think our Purist School should take the lead.”
“I heard Miss Lunaris's specialty is telekinesis magic. Then naturally, it should be us in the Telekinesis School greeting her.”
“Be quiet! There are procedures for everything. That girl's schedule will be handled by the Council of Elders, so remember that!”
“Wait! Our Free School is the one that...”
It was no wonder the mages were all fired up and spitting as they argued.
This was the chance.
They had to somehow create a connection with her and catch even a glimpse of that genius in action.
“Everyone, calm down.”
At that moment, Wilhelm, seated in the seat of honor, spoke in a solemn voice.
“If you look this desperate, won't it put too much pressure on such a young student?”
“Well...”
“Come to think of it, Miss Lunaris is only in her mid-teens, right? Haha.”
The magicians, a little embarrassed, sat back down.
Wilhelm fiddled with his monocle and smiled a smile whose ulterior motives were obvious at a glance.
“She said she was coming here to receive official archmage certification, didn't she?”
Sweeping his gaze across the now somewhat calmer conference room, Wilhelm continued with a smile that made his motives plain.
“Let's make the most of this procedure. Under the guise of the evaluation, we'll keep her at the Magic Tower for as long as possible.”
There were more than enough justifications.
Lunaris's magic took a path different from the magic that currently dominated the magical world, which borrowed spirits' power to imitate nature.
In other words, it was the perfect excuse to say she couldn't be evaluated by existing standards.
“Using her magical insight as an excuse, we can debate through the night, have her demonstrate magic... and even suggest joint research with the other mages.”
Wilhelm's eyes glinted.
In truth, his motives were a little more complicated.
‘A mere first-year academy student?’
He had spent nearly a century devoting his whole life to research and communion with spirits before finally rising to the rank of archmage.
And now some brat who had never even shown her face before the elders of the magical world, some kid no one even knew where she came from, was going to sit in the same seat as him?
‘I can't hand over the archmage title so easily...’
Of course, being a mage himself, he had no intention of forcibly belittling Lunaris's achievements.
But even if he acknowledged them, the process had to be ruthless.
He wanted to teach this young, arrogant genius that the tradition and authority of the Magic Tower—and of the magical world beyond it—were not things to be taken lightly.
Honestly, though... he also wanted to make her sweat a little.
“At the very least, she'll be made to stay for more than a week, so each school's elders had better prepare more thoroughly to verify Miss Lunaris.”
“Ooooh...!”
“We'll be counting on you, Vice Tower Master!”
Exclamations burst out from all around the conference room.
As expected of people who had devoted their whole lives to magic, the atmosphere heated up in an instant, like the eve of a festival.
“We need to draw up a question list right away! Let's see, I'll pry into every last secret of hers. Kheh-heh-heh!”
“Hey, you there! Put in access requests for every paper with 'nature's mana' and 'ancient magic' as keywords!”
“Let's prepare a gift first. I heard she's interested in magitech, so a top-grade mana stone should be enough, right?”
“Instant-cast magic without chanting... how strong is it, I wonder? I want to get hit by it once... haah, haah...!”
And so, the many mages of the Magic Tower eagerly awaited their meeting with Lunaris.
But they were overlooking one fatal fact.
That Lunaris hated inconvenience more than anything in the world.
*
“I said I'm not becoming an archmage.”
I turned around without a trace of hesitation.
If I'd known it would be this much of a hassle, I wouldn't have come to the Magic Tower in the first place.
Forget subspace and all that—I would've been better off lazing around in my sweet Linea Hall, just soaking up the air-conditioning and sleeping like a log.
“W-wait just a moment! Miss Lunaris!”
Dean Raymond came after me in a panic.
“You're saying you're going to give up the archmage title? After coming all the way to the Magic Tower, no less! The honor of having the name Lunaris live forever in imperial history...”
“I don't really need that honor, though.”
I answered with a long, languid yawn.
“The reason I was even going after the archmage title in the first place was to clear away all sorts of annoying chores at once and live comfortably.”
Like skipping Thursday class entirely for the next seven semesters.
Or making it so the professors couldn't say a thing even if I openly slept through my magic lecture.
To me, that's all the archmage title is worth.
It's nothing more than a pass for a comfortable nap.
“But if the verification process is this annoying and exhausting, then... well, that's putting the cart before the horse.”
I only came because they said all I'd have to do was show my face at the Magic Tower. I got completely baited.
“Looks like there are a lot of obligations I'd have to shoulder too... If that's how it is, I'll pass.”
At my firm stance, Dean Raymond was left speechless, like he'd swallowed honey.
Then Vice Tower Master Wilhelm, standing on the dais, said with a cold expression,
“Hey. Do you have no pride as a mage? Do you think the title of archmage is something so light?!”
“It does seem a bit too heavy for me to bear.”
I shrugged it off casually and was just about to head for the door when—
“W-wait, please!!”
A mage sitting in a corner of the conference room sprang to his feet and shouted at me.
Ah... what now?
“Our Free School fully supports Miss Lunaris Evermoon's promotion to archmage!”
“...?”
What on earth is that guy on about now.
“Miss Lunaris, could you spare us a moment? We've prepared the finest tea leaves and refreshments!”
“...”
“A-and also... oh! I heard you're very interested in magitech! We've also prepared a top-grade mana conductor as a gift, so...”
“Hey, where do you think you're sneakily cutting in?!”
Just as I was about to turn my head, intrigued, a shout burst from the opposite side.
“Lady Lunaris is, after all, an elder of our Telekinesis School!”
“What, what did you say? Who on earth gave you permission to sneak Miss Lunaris into your school?!”
“Can't you tell from the fact that she crushed a whole flock of wyverns with pure telekinetic magic? That's our specialty!”
At that, the solemn conference room instantly turned into a bazaar.
“Could you perhaps give our school mages a lesson, even briefly? Anytime is fine. We'll fit the time to you!”
“Wait! Our Elemental School will also acknowledge Lunaris Evermoon's promotion to archmage.”
“W-we will too!”
Everyone else got to their feet too and began flattering me, naturally.
“Vice Tower Master! Since when has archmage certification been this picky?”
“What century are we in, and you're still this narrow-minded... tsk tsk!”
“If you lose a talent like this because you're acting like an old fogey, who's going to take responsibility?!”
They even went so far as to point accusing fingers at Vice Tower Master Wilhelm.
“Y-you bastards, how dare you...!”
Ah, he's really angry.
His face was turning red and blue, looking like it might explode at any moment—and sure enough.
“Will you all... shut up!!”
A voice infused with mana forcibly buried every bit of noise in the conference room.
An instant later, silence fell as if cold water had been poured over us.
“How dare you... how dare you make a disturbance in this sacred conference room... ”
With trembling hands, the vice tower master began inscribing a magic circle in the air.
“I can no longer stand by and watch you treat the Magic Tower's highest honor like a pair of cast-off shoes!”
At the same time, he raised the staff in his other hand high and slammed it down onto the floor.
-Rumble-rumble-rumble!
The wooden floor seemed to scream, then the roots of a pitch-black giant tree surged up in front of the door.
Its branches grew with such force they seemed ready to punch through the ceiling, twisting together to seal off the entrance with no gap left.
“Lerad's bark...!”
“The branches of the World Tree, huh... it's been a long time since I've seen those.”
“No matter when you see it, the craftsmanship is top-notch.”
The surrounding mages began murmuring, swallowing hard.
I didn't know much about it, but I guess this was the vice tower master's signature spell or something?
I tapped the bark with my finger, tap, tap.
It's hard. And the mana density is packed tight.
For something made in a fit of anger, it sure looks carefully crafted.
“The Academy may have indulged your tantrums, but... this is the Magic Tower.”
The vice tower master crossed his arms, lifted his chin, and looked down at me with a haughty gaze.
“It may have been your choice to come in, but when you leave—”
“Excuse me, Vice Tower Master.”
Boring, pedantic lecture, cut.
“Don't go making this needlessly annoying.”
I pointed my chin at the wooden wall in front of me and added,
“How about we just clear this thing away and call that the archmage certification exam?”
“...What?”
At my deadpan proposal, the vice tower master let out a dry laugh.
“Heh, is that so. Then go ahead and give it a try.”
The fact that he thought I was insolent was written all over his face.
“Even top-grade spirit-powered fire magic would take dozens of minutes to burn this tree—”
Before the vice tower master could continue, I pressed my palm against the door.
Five circles of varying sizes rose vertically over the trunk at regular intervals.
Soon, the uppermost circle began to turn snow-white.
[Starlight Summoning.]
No sooner had I murmured the spell in a low voice than—
A pillar of pure white light swallowed the entire tree.
“...!”
“W-what is this?!”
The blindingly white light slowly faded, then went out.
“...”
The tree trunk blocking the doorway had vanished cleanly, as if it had never been there.
Turning back, I saw Vice Tower Master Wilhelm, Dean Raymond, and the other mages frozen like statues, their mouths hanging open.
I shrugged and tossed the vice tower master a remark.
“Looks like it doesn't burn in fire, but it does in starlight.”