I Became the Narrow-Eyed Henchman of the Evil Boss – Chapter 67

Chapter 67 – Negotiation (3)

Lampades managed to get Orthes to leave, but it had taken all his effort. He had to wrap his request for time in a variety of carefully chosen words before he finally got the space he needed.

The Thunder Orb was incredibly dangerous. But with that danger came immense power.

“A gift for Astrafe, huh…”

When a powerful artifact is given to a magic tower, it’s typically the most skilled mage—the tower master—who is chosen to wield it.

But Orthes had declared it was “for Astrafe.”

‘…There’s a reason behind this.’

It couldn’t be as simple as a benevolent gift meant to boost Astrafe’s magical abilities. That would be ridiculous.

But no matter how hard Lampades tried, he couldn’t figure out Orthes’s true intentions. He analyzed the Thunder Orb, even suspecting it might contain some mind-control magic or another form of trap, but he found nothing of the sort.

“Now that I think about it, didn’t Astrafe say something strange?”

Lampades decided he needed to hear it directly from Astrafe. He called her in.

***

The reception room where Orthes waited had been courteously stocked with coffee and biscuits.

As he munched on the snacks, he heard footsteps approaching from afar. The distinct sound of heels—the weight behind the steps—indicated it was undoubtedly Lampades.

He appeared unusually weary.

“I know this sounds strange, but I have to ask.”

“Yes. I’ll answer anything I can.”

“Are you really not acquainted with Astrafe’s mother?”

I nearly dropped my coffee cup.

Why was that topic coming up again?

Lampades spoke slowly.

“Astrafe lived with her mother in Etna City. At least, that’s what she remembers from her earliest memories.”

Her mother was a skilled mage and had taught Astrafe the basics of magic but had always stressed the need to keep her abilities hidden. She also mentioned…

“She said that even though times are tough now, one day, either her father or his friends would come to help her.”

“That’s right.”

I shook my head. The timing was coincidental, but I wasn’t some benefactor who had swooped in like a long-lost father.

Astrafe’s escape from the Torres Tower was the result of chance and calculation, not some act of goodwill. It was unfortunate for a child who longed for her family, but I had no connection to Astrafe’s past.

“I’ve seen the pendant Astrafe’s mother left her. It’s engraved with a symbol that anyone who studies lightning magic and its history would recognize.”

“Oh. With such a mark, maybe she’ll be able to find her father. That’s good news.”

I nodded along with my words, but my mind was racing. Damn it, if Astrafe gets taken away like this, I’ll lose my leverage to convince Lampades.

“No. She won’t be able to find him. The tower that used that symbol no longer exists.”

“Doesn’t exist?”

There was no reason to remember a tower that had fallen long ago. I tried to recall any notable towers that specialized in lightning magic and had also earned a reputation or invented something special.

Among the towers that dealt with lightning magic…

“Manubia. Those who once challenged the Yellow Thunder.”

I recalled how, in the original story, the Talisman of Thunder was described as being most compatible with young Astrafe, even though she hadn’t undergone any proper modification or training, surpassing even the tower master of the Torres Tower in terms of magical ability.

Wait a minute…

***

Lampades observed Orthes’s reaction closely. The moment he brought up the topic, his hand wavered as he held the coffee cup.

It was a reaction that the usually composed Orthes would never have shown. Lampades was now certain that Orthes knew something about Astrafe’s past and the Manubia Tower.

Orthes stroked his chin and replied.

“The fall of the Manubia Tower was ages ago. The last tower master must have been from over a thousand years ago.”

“That’s right. The last tower master of the Manubia Tower… Thunderbolt Lord Keranos. His final whereabouts remain unclear. After relocating their stronghold several times with the tower’s magic core, they ultimately disappeared, and the name Manubia faded into history. I suspect Astrafe’s father might be a distant descendant of a mage who fled during the fall of Manubia Tower.”

Orthes chuckled dryly. The events on Crete Island had already hammered home that the original story didn’t cover the full truth of this world.

But the idea that there was such a hidden backstory to Astrafe’s compatibility with the Talisman of Thunder… That was unexpected, even for Orthes.

‘I thought she was just naturally talented because she’s the protagonist.’

“So, Astrafe would be the last mage inheriting the tradition of the Manubia Tower. Not only will she carry on your magical teachings, Lampades, but she will also elevate them to new heights.”

“Yes… That’s true…”

Lampades turned his head briefly, taking a deep breath. ‘Thunderbolt Lord’ and ‘Thunder Orb.’ Hearing those names together, there was no way he could miss the connection.

It was obvious that Orthes’s nonchalant attitude was a poker face hiding his own surprise. His peculiar reaction when the topic of Astrafe’s mother came up…

In fact, Lampades hadn’t shared everything Astrafe had told him with Orthes.

He’d left out the part about Astrafe being captured by the slave traders of the Torres Tower. And the unbelievable story Astrafe told about Orthes searching for her.

Lampades couldn’t picture Orthes going out of his way to rescue anyone.

‘Why would Orthes do such a thing?’

Two possible reasons came to Lampades’s mind. One was ominous, the other uncertain.

The ominous reason was that Orthes wanted to use Astrafe. If that were the case, Orthes must have had a very close connection to the cause of Astrafe’s father’s disappearance…

Or perhaps, Orthes was the cause.

Was it just a coincidence that Hydra Corporation was established in Etna City, where Astrafe and her mother lived?

And was it really a coincidence that Orthes was waiting on the day Astrafe arrived in Elysion?

There were too many suspicious clues.

On the other hand, the uncertain reason…

‘Could Orthes be Astrafe’s father?’

Lampades recalled the Orthes he’d seen in Elysion. He had shown a surprisingly human closeness to Carisia, making it hard to believe he was the “faceless Orthes.”

It seemed like Orthes had a strict, almost ruthless standard for who he trusted, but once someone was within that circle, he trusted them implicitly.

‘I heard he didn’t threaten Astrafe while waiting in the lobby. If Astrafe is someone within Orthes’s inner circle…’

It would change the reason for giving the Thunder Orb. It wouldn’t be about holding the tower hostage by revealing the orb’s origin from the Torres Tower, but rather a safeguard to prevent Lampades from exploiting Astrafe.

Lampades had always thought Orthes was someone incapable of forming a family, but in this strange situation, he couldn’t help but question that assumption.

After all, here was Orthes, presenting the last magical artifact of the Manubia Tower to the last mage carrying on its tradition.

How could an outsider know Astrafe was the inheritor of the Manubia legacy? Lampades could only come up with one answer: Orthes had known about Astrafe for a long time.

The Thunder Orb was far too valuable an artifact to be used as mere leverage.

But it was difficult to believe it was given out of pure goodwill, especially considering the man who had given it was Orthes.

Lampades struggled to organize his thoughts in the midst of his confusion. No matter what angle he considered, it was clear that Orthes intended to leave that incredibly precious gift in Lampades Tower.

So at the very least, he needed to secure some control over the situation.

“Astrafe really likes the Thunder Orb. As you predicted, her compatibility with the artifact is exceptional. We’ll gladly accept your gift.”

“That’s wonderful news. My boss will be pleased.”

“The prototype of the extra-dimensional radar is almost complete. Once it’s finished, I’ll visit Hydra Corporation myself.”

He would go directly to Etna City and follow the clues about Astrafe.

He would find out then if Orthes’s unease about “Astrafe’s mother” stemmed from the sorrow of a man who couldn’t protect his family, or if it was the slip-up of a villain trying to cover up a crime.

***

I chatted about how I hoped Kine and Astrafe would become good friends when they met at the Musaeion, playing the role of an unexpected parent.

In reality, Kine was expected to stand out at Musaeion, get scouted by the Black Dark Tower, and join as an apprentice mage, so there wouldn’t be much time for the two to hang out.

‘Well, it’s always good to have a peer or two around. It can’t hurt.’

With Lampades now saying he would personally come to Etna City with the extra-dimensional radar, this job was almost wrapped up.

‘Now…’

I read the holographic message projected from my gauntlet.

『The Divine Cult wishes to meet you.』

Time to prepare for a business meeting with the cult.

______________

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