Chapter 246
Fraser and his subordinates left as if fleeing. I stayed still, but Haley stepped forward to block their way. Then, with her hands on her hips, she boldly shouted, "What about the thousand crowns?"
"..."
Fraser, with a grim face, took out a piece of paper from his pocket.
He scribbled something on it, then brought a nearby candle and dropped some wax on it.
He stamped his seal on it and handed it to Haley. Only after receiving it did she step aside.
Haley came to me and patted my shoulder, saying, "Sorry, but I wanted to try that once. He might change his mind later."
"Thank you."
This artifact I received from the bet seemed to be better than I thought, so I didn't even notice the money. Putting aside its characteristics as an artifact, just considering the level of craftsmanship, it was undoubtedly top-grade. It was an unexpectedly big gain.
Lady Bastian was breathing heavily, clutching her chest as if she had just sprinted. She must have been greatly shocked by the magic creature.
"Fighting a magic creature with just a dagger. I thought Fraser had made an absurd proposal. And that single strike, if it had missed, you would have died. I've never seen such a dangerously reckless man like you before."
"That's my way."
She closed her eyes, took a moment to calm her breathing, and then said, "For someone who downplayed himself as a rookie, you're quite experienced and skilled. Look over there. Do you see those sticky gazes? Your performance seems to have ignited the hearts of those women who were feeling jaded about men."
"...Perhaps they're just easily excited."
"It's not an exaggeration. Wealthy women may outwardly value dignity and refinement, but inwardly they yearn for barbaric and dangerous men. You resemble the ideal male image they envision. If you want, you could obtain substantial patronage from them."
"But there would be a price, wouldn't there?"
"Are you refusing a small effort despite the massive reward that would follow?"
"I already have the most beautiful lady by my side. There's no reason to look elsewhere."
I said this because I didn't want to waste time trying to please other noble ladies.
"Ah."
Lady Bastian let out a sound close to a sigh and nodded as if realizing something. Then she gazed intently at Haley.
Haley slightly blushed, turned her gaze away, and was twirling her hair.
"Seeing your steadfast inner nature makes me trust you more. Please don't forget my request."
Lady Bastian slightly lifted her skirt in a curtsy and left.
Left alone, Haley cleared her throat for a moment.
"You're bold, First-year."
"...Pardon?"
Haley slapped my back with her palm.
"You jerk, why are you pretending not to know when you do!"
"..."
"Be careful, you'll block my marriage prospects if you keep this up. I'm just kindly accepting it because I find the admiration of a junior for their senior touching."
***
We waited in a corner of the banquet hall for the mayor's appearance.
From a distance, middle-aged men glance at us while chattering enthusiastically.
"It would have been more interesting if he had been eaten!"
"Guardian Saint Snio is more excellent. What he has shown is more disciplined and stable."
"The dagger might have been a trick to hide his subpar actual skills."
"Is that so? It seemed like an amazing technique I've never seen before."
"No. A true expert doesn't fight like that. I personally know a knight who trained for fifteen years in the Empire, and he says..."
Haley, who was observing the banquet from the corner, said to me, "Aren't you angry?"
"Why?"
"Those saggy-skinned old men are desperately trying to belittle you in any way they can because the women's attention is focused on you."
"If they had done that to someone I care about, I would have taken action, but since they didn't, it's fine. I've already gained what I wanted."
It was also ridiculous to get angry because vulgar words were exchanged at a vulgar party.
"Still, the more I hear, the more infuriated I get. How can they be so unsightly and disgusting? They'd wet themselves if they stood in front of a magic creature, yet they spout nonsense about others as if they're above everyone else."
"This isn't exactly a social gathering of intellectuals and cultured individuals, is it?"
From the start, this banquet itself was created not for intellectual discourse or cultured social activities, but for irresponsible pursuit of pleasure. We shouldn't expect sincere and fair behavior from nobles met in such a place.
Hearing this, Haley nodded as if giving up.
"Yeah, I'm afraid there might be gatherings like this in the Empire too."
"I think there probably are. It's a big country, so there might be even worse places, right?"
"Not to that extent. You're full of negative preconceptions about the Empire. If you ever visit the Empire later, call me. I'll show you a real noble's party."
Just then, the bustling atmosphere of the banquet hall suddenly quieted down.
Soon after, people's gazes began to shift towards the entrance.
Armored soldiers entered in a rush and lined up in formation.
"The Mayor is entering!"
With a servant's shout, the banquet hall fell silent.
***
"I extend my gratitude to all the distinguished guests who have attended this gathering."
The mayor, with a benevolent smile on his face, exchanged greetings one by one.
Priscilla trembled again. I gripped it tightly. I understood it wanted to express something, but there was no benefit in drawing attention here.
After light conversations with the nobles, the mayor looked in my direction and acknowledged me.
"Damian, is it not the famous Damian? Welcome."
He approached me and offered a handshake.
As I accepted it, he gripped my hand tightly and said, "Finally, we've got a hostage. We now have a means to counter Archmage Silveryn. Haha!"
His aides who followed behind also laugh as if something is funny.
"It's a pleasure to meet you."
"But, did I invite you to this party?"
"If the invitation wasn't fake, then yes, you did invite me here."
"Oh my, there seems to have been some mistake. I invited you to a different party."
"Thanks to you, I had an interesting time."
"Well, I've shown you something unsightly. How is your master doing?"
"Unfortunately, I haven't been in touch with her for quite some time. She seems to be very busy."
"An archmage is a being that transcends humanity. That's why I've always admired archmages. The same goes for Silveryn. Do you know about the poem that northerners dedicated to Professor Silveryn?"
"What legend are you talking about?"
"When you meet the eye of the sun, you will become a mirage."
"I don't know about it."
"I really... You don't know?"
"I don't."
"How can you not know this? How did you come to know Professor Silveryn? What did you show her to become her disciple?"
At this, the nobles pricked up their ears and looked at me. It seemed quite a few were secretly curious.
"It's a secret."
"Oh ho, my curiosity got the better of me. It's because that Archmage Silveryn is such a rare type of being. Even I, with my excellent people skills, have always been perplexed about how to deal with her due to lack of information. But you didn't just fall from the sky, so I'm curious how someone like that came to have a disciple."
"..."
"Then how do you get along with Professor Silveryn?"
"Actually, I hardly ever interacted with her. She was aloof even with me and treated me coldly even when we occasionally met. And she left for a mission even before I entered Eternia. I had so little interaction with her that I'm ashamed to call myself her disciple."
"That sounds like the Silveryn I knew. Being cold-blooded even to her only disciple. Now the picture becomes clearer."
"..."
"Does she ignore all your letters too?"
"She's so busy that not receiving replies is the same for everyone."
"Ruthlessly cold to everyone without discrimination. Sometimes she warmly extends a helping hand when asked for help, but then coldly demands compensation when she turns away."
"I heard that my teacher had stayed here before."
"Yes, she accepted a request from the city and drove out the rats."
"..."
"Ah, I mean the rats from the entire city. This is a great feat that no other mage could accomplish. You can't imagine how much more comfortable the lives of the citizens have become. It was truly the best gift we received."
"I see."
The mayor's expression becomes serious.
"However... your teacher demanded a great reward from us. Thirty royal-grade spirit stones and a necklace made from the eyes of a returned beast. It was a price-is-no-object item, but we thought it wasn't a loss if we considered it an investment. But a few years ago, rats started coming back and slowly settling in. The magic circle that Professor Silveryn said wouldn't be a problem for ten years, unless someone tampered with it, developed issues in just a few years."
"..."
The mayor continued speaking while pacing with his hands behind his back, "The city urgently sent letters. We said it seemed to need some maintenance. There was no answer. We sent urgent letters every month, but no reply came. Does she even look at the letters?"
"My teacher receives dozens of letters asking for help every week."
The mayor's face started to flush.
"That's not all. What's more outrageous is that she suddenly sent us a notification. She abruptly demanded we send 1,500 low-grade magic stones for her magic engineering classes. It was just like a messenger demanding tribute. Do you know what we did? We gritted our teeth and sent them. If a woman who could turn an entire city into a sea of flames if she wanted to says send them, what choice do we have but to send them!"
Now his voice was raised considerably.
"..."
The atmosphere in the banquet hall sank.
"But still, that mage still! Not even once to Claridium..."
When an aide came to stop him, he finally regained his senses.
"Mr. Mayor."
"Ah, aah, oh my, I got excited."
Belatedly conscious of the gazes, he took out a handkerchief and wiped his forehead.
I didn't know if I was observing too closely, but it gave me a strange sense of discomfort that he was pretending to wipe sweat when he wasn’t even sweating.
Is he acting now?
The audience's hearts were inclined towards the mayor. Silveryn had become the villain based on this statement of questionable veracity.
It was unpleasant. Not only did he invite me and then pretend it wasn't him, but he even openly criticized my teacher in front of me.
I wanted to grab the mayor's collar, but I shouldn't do that now. Even if I couldn't tie up everything, I shouldn't stand by and let this public opinion worsen.
"...Would you give me a chance to clear the stain left on my teacher’s name?"
"Clear? What are you going to do? Are you saying you'll fix the magic circle?"
"I could solve other troublesome issues."
"Hmm, I like your boldness, but is there anything you can do? The problems of Claridium are sufficient for us to handle."
"For example, hunting down troublesome magic creatures that escaped in an accident but weren't caught. How about that?"
The mayor's eyes pierced through me coldly.
"I can't allow it for two reasons. First, there are no magic creatures with loose leashes in Claridium. Second, if a figure like the mayor forces young students who came to enjoy culture to hunt magic creatures, it would cause a scandal. I want to call the archmage, not an angry archmage."
"There was a ruffian who just demanded that I catch a magic creature with just a dagger. Fraser, I heard he's a friend you care about."
I was referring to that guy who was said to be backed by the mayor. He pretended not to hear my sarcasm.
"Hmm... Dangerous missions like magic creature hunting won't do, but I could give you some homework."
The mayor gestured to call his aide. Then he conferred in a low voice.
"...How about the assembly hall side?"
"No, there's too much work there."
"Then... the transportation department..."
"No, it's complicated. Something easier and safer."
After whispering a few times like that, he sent the aide away.
"I understand your intention. I'd like you to take on a few chronic problems that are troubling the city. I'll leave request forms at the Guardian assembly hall, so go there when you have time."
"Understood."
He didn't seem to intend to give a proper mission.
But that was fine. I didn't intend to complete this mission responsibly either. What I wanted was one request certificate from the mayor. If I presented this, it would facilitate access anywhere, making the investigation of missing persons easier.
***
When we arrived in front of our lodgings, the crescent moon was already high in the sky.
After Haley got out of the carriage and confirmed that the coachman had left, she asked me, "First-year, about the mission the mayor is giving..."
"Yes."
"Is there really a need to do it? That man, he just seemed to want to insult Professor Silveryn and her disciple."
"I didn't intend to do it properly either. If I present the mayor's request certificate, it will facilitate access anywhere. I was thinking of using that to investigate the missing persons."
"...First-year. We didn't come here to work. You don't have an obligation to fulfill Lady Bastian's request too."
"I'm curious about it. There's one thing I strongly suspect."
"...Is that so? Whatever you do, finish it by the day after tomorrow."
"Are we returning early?"
Haley nodded.
"It might be better to just enjoy ourselves moderately and leave. Right, what are you going to do with that money?"
"Honestly, I don't know."
I stood there blankly for a moment, holding the box containing a thousand crowns under my arm. Even if I bought some souvenirs for Luna and Trisha, there would be a lot left over. I could buy paintings, or purchase rare artifacts that could only be obtained here. But none of it appealed to me.
When I was young, there was only one thing I wanted with money. Just to eat until I was full. Sadly, I haven't changed much from back then.
"Well, let's think about it after we go inside."
"..."
I didn't move a step. One thought stuck to my head like a leech held my ankle.
"First-year?"
"May I go somewhere?"
"What? At this hour? First-year, you know it's dangerous here."
"I know."
"Where are you going?"
"To a place to ease my guilty conscience."
Haley narrowed her brows and said, "Are you saying you're going to make a confession at the temple? Do you have to speak so indirectly?"