Ch.261Episode 12 – The Strongest Mage in History
by fnovelpia
Among the wizards of the Magic Tower Secretariat, four have a history of working in the same continent.
The Mauritani Continent.
“The Mauritani Continent holds significant historical importance in magical society. It’s the birthplace of curses and sorcery, represented by voodoo.”
“The birthplace of curses and sorcery?”
“To be precise, it’s where primitive forms of curses and sorcery originated.”
Francesca continues her explanation.
“The Mauritani Continent is where most artifacts in that field have been excavated. Politically, many sorcerers connected to indigenous religions have entered politics, giving the Sorcery School and Astrology School tremendous influence there.”
“You mean the priests.”
“Yes. Priestesses and priests are deeply involved in Mauritani politics. They also sponsor the Magic Tower’s Astrology School through their political connections.”
Francesca explained that it wasn’t unusual for Magic Tower wizards to visit the Mauritani Continent. It’s the birthplace of curse magic and sorcery, home to generous sponsors of the Astrology School, and houses the Ivory Tower that competes with the Magic Tower.
At first glance, Francesca’s explanation sounds reasonable.
However, I can’t simply accept it at face value, since Leoni was the one who ordered the investigation into the Secretariat wizards.
At that moment, I suddenly recalled something Clavins had mentioned.
‘This has been Leoni’s job for a while. I can’t tell you much due to circumstances, but do you remember what I told you before? Before you went north.’
I briefly recalled the positions Leoni had held.
Former Chief of Military Intelligence Bureau’s Kiyen Empire Branch.
Former Director of Military Intelligence Bureau’s Lushan Federal Kingdom Branch.
Former Director of National Operations Bureau 2, Royal Intelligence Service.
Current Director of Overseas Intelligence Operations, Military Intelligence Bureau.
Lushan Federal Kingdom.
A nation located at the southernmost part of the continent. A federation of local states. A traditional maritime power that, along with Fatalia, divides and rules over a vast sea comparable to the Mediterranean.
And across that sea lies…
“…Mauritani.”
The Mauritani Continent.
Episode 12 – The Strongest Magician in History
After giving Francesca appropriate instructions, I wandered along the street to catch my breath.
Heavily armed military police and internal troops patrol the downtown area, monitoring citizens. A soldier with a rifle slung over his back smokes a cigarette while surveying the street, and in one corner, an internal troop officer motions for a passing citizen to stop and open their garbage bag for inspection.
When a citizen wearing an awkward-looking coat that seems randomly picked up coughs, people around frown and hurriedly move away, fearing contagion. The long lines for rations, exposed to the biting cold wind, show no signs of disappearing.
Scenes that feel somehow familiar yet foreign flow by like a panorama.
“…Superior Lyudmila.”
-“Ah, yes, Officer.”
“I’d like to return to the hotel. Which direction should I go?”
Following Superior Lyudmila’s guidance, I arrived at the hotel.
Four years have passed since this once five-star hotel, which used to welcome citizens from all over the Empire on vacation, was requisitioned by the military government headquarters. The pride of Novo Nikolayevsk, the administrative capital of the North, has been left largely as is.
It’s clearly being maintained, but poorly so.
The exterior looks fine, but the unopened toothpaste is nearly expired, and there’s mold in the corner of the closet.
Despite the many shortcomings of the accommodation, it’s still livable enough that I use it without complaint. It’s certainly more comfortable than sleeping on the streets in rebel-controlled areas.
-Slide.
I quietly opened the balcony door and stepped onto the terrace.
December winter. The chilly sky is filled with gloomy dark clouds.
I took out a cigarette pack from my pocket, opened it, and let out a deep sigh.
“Ah… already running out.”
Only five or six cigarettes remained rolling around in the rectangular pack. I definitely bought them around lunchtime today, but they’re almost gone after just half a day.
I should have quit when my military academy classmates told me to. In the end, I never managed to quit smoking.
Tsssk-. With the sound of flint striking, a flame rises.
The familiar oily smell mixed with tobacco smoke tickles my nose briefly before the harsh smoke disappears down my throat.
“……”
I leaned against the terrace railing and silently looked down at the scenery of Novo Nikolayevsk.
The sunset-tinged snowfield stretches beyond the towering buildings, with the Grand Duke’s fortress and military government headquarters building visible alongside the downtown area.
The sun hanging on the horizon distorts the night sky. Setting in the western mountains as if fleeing from the night, it dyes the sky crimson, seemingly foretelling the long darkness to come.
“…Huff.”
Gray clouds mix into the crimson sky.
The deeply inhaled smoke fills my lungs before disappearing into the night sky, following the setting sun.
As darkness deepens, so does the worry in the corner of my mind. Against the backdrop of Novo Nikolayevsk’s twilight, I exhale smoke mixed with sighs repeatedly.
“Haah….”
The company gave me two orders.
One, to help intelligence officers conducting what appears to be assassination operations enter the North.
Two, to investigate Magic Tower Secretariat wizards operating in the North and report back to headquarters.
While they seem unrelated at first glance, I instinctively sensed that these two orders were not separate matters.
“…I thought things were going too smoothly lately.”
Both orders came from the overseas department. Specifically, from the Director of Overseas Intelligence Operations—Leoni.
I don’t know exactly why Leoni wants to assassinate the Secretariat wizards, but considering their work locations and Leoni’s past positions, I can guess it’s related to the Mauritani Continent.
This makes sense, as Leoni once served as branch director in the Lushan Federal Kingdom.
Typically, intelligence agencies’ overseas branches are assigned specific countries or regions. The Washington branch handles the US, the London branch handles the UK, and the Tokyo branch commands information networks and operations in Japan.
However, when circumstances don’t allow, one branch might handle multiple countries simultaneously. This usually happens when conducting operations in countries without diplomatic relations, where an adjacent branch builds information networks and supports operation teams.
I don’t need to look far—just think about my time working in Syria.
Since South Korea and Syria don’t have diplomatic relations, a branch adjacent to Syria backed up our team’s operations. The branch provided us with everything from funding to intelligence and supplies.
In that context, Leoni, who commanded the Lushan Federal Kingdom branch adjacent to the Mauritani Continent, might be trying to assassinate wizards operating in the Mauritani Continent for some reason.
However, the situation in the North is too intricate to dismiss so simply.
“……”
The swarm of corpse spiders and the giant spider that attacked the rift were determined to have come from the Mauritani Continent.
Romain Cheire, presumed to have killed four inquisitors and vaporized residents of four villages, was a combat priest who assisted an exorcist priest in the Mauritani Continent before disappearing 20 years ago.
And Hormoz, who provided intelligence about the investigation, was also a dark elf from the Mauritani Continent. More precisely, his tribe roams the Mauritani Continent.
Additionally, the sorcery that Romain Cheire taught the kid—Francesca explained that the roots of all existing curses and sorcery are in the Mauritani Continent.
Then there’s Leoni, who served as a branch director in a country adjacent to the Mauritani Continent, where the wizards had worked.
Monsters, clergy, dark elves, sorcery, wizards, intelligence officers—all these seemingly independent elements share the Mauritani Continent as a connection.
What meaning does this speculation hold in the current situation?
It’s a question I can’t easily answer. I know I should avoid hasty speculation, but I couldn’t prevent my thoughts from leaning in one direction.
Amid unfounded suspicions and brain-generated theories cluttering my mind, one question emerged last, and therefore most clearly.
In a situation where nothing can be certain, can I guarantee the safety of Camilla and her companions?
“……”
I gazed at the northern city, lost in thought.
The sun had already disappeared beyond the horizon, and complete darkness had fallen. The weight of my concerns grows heavier with the deepening darkness.
Suddenly, I noticed my hand resting on the railing. The final cigarette, burned down to the filter. The nearly finished cigarette had long since revealed its bottom, and now even the mast must be let go.
With the cigarette burned down to the filter in my mouth, I drew the smoke deep into my chest. And I pondered when I had first started smoking.
“……”
When I lived alone with my mother after my father died?
No. When I held the urn containing my father’s ashes, I keenly felt the burden on my mother who had to raise a child alone.
In those days when we couldn’t afford to send me to academies that others attended despite my mother working late, what face would I have had to buy cigarettes?
Then was it when I first worked part-time after entering university?
That’s not it either. I struggled to raise tuition fees and joined the ROTC, and I was too busy saving the money they gave me rather than spending it.
It was the same when I was commissioned as a lieutenant.
Every night when I returned to my quarters and sat at my desk, I looked at the photos of France sent by a college classmate and put all my money into savings. Back then, my head was filled with thoughts of traveling to France after discharge.
In the end, I neither completed my service nor visited France.
There was a time when I refused the cigarette my uncle offered when inviting me to join the company, and I persevered by looking at the photos on the wall. But I’ve changed so much now.
Sharing expensive Cuban cigars with colleagues, pretending to quit smoking, yet habitually smoking a pack a day like an addict.
Only now do I realize, but thinking carefully, that was probably when it started.
Around the time my long-term review was approved. When I first entered the company in Seocho-gu, following my uncle.
Yes, that’s when it began.
“……”
As I ground out my last cigarette in the ashtray on the railing, I sniffled. The night air is cold.
It seems I caught a cold without realizing it while smoking in the wind. I emptied the ashtray into the trash can and was about to leave the room with my wallet to buy more cigarettes.
That’s when it happened.
-Knock. Knock.
Someone knocked on the door.
Since the hotel had no peephole, I opened the door directly to see who had come. After confirming the visitor’s face through the crack, I opened the door wide without hesitation.
“Camilla.”
“You were in? What’s that smell?”
“Ah… it’s nothing. What brings you here?”
“Just because.”
The person who came to the hotel room was none other than Camilla.
Appearing suddenly without warning, she answered with a bright smile.
“I wanted to see your face.”
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