Ch.365Episode 14 – One Religion, One Faith, Two Saints

There’s a saying that when something goes wrong in the world, Britain is usually the cause.

The land where the sun never sets.

Britain, the country that owns the world’s largest self-acknowledged repository of stolen goods, widely known as the “British Museum,” which makes Egypt wail, India weep, and African nations gasp in horror.

From food to history, politics, philosophy, novels, films, and dramas—the public perception of Britain is so dismal that people say if something is absurdly preposterous, it probably came from Britain.

Though it’s an internet meme, it makes a certain kind of sense.

Having traveled through Afghanistan, Syria, India, Pakistan, Iran, Russia, and countless African nations too exhausting to even mention, I personally think Britain is a bigger bastard than most major powers.

I can’t deny that Britain is a developed country with excellent intelligence agencies.

But in my heart, Britain ranks among the most blockheaded nations alongside the United States, Russia, China, France, and Israel.

For reference, the undisputed champion of blockheads is our northern neighbor above the DMZ.

Anyway.

When something goes wrong in world history, you can generally blame Britain first, and if something bizarre emerges, Britain should be your first suspect.

The same applies now.

Whatever proposal the Grand Duchess makes, it doesn’t hold much meaning for Camilla.

Whether Alexandra Petrova is the Grand Duchess of the Kiyen Empire or the Grand Magician of the Magic Tower, Camilla was born and raised in a world without magic.

In other words, Camilla is someone to whom the common sense of this neighborhood doesn’t apply.

And she was a blockhead from a country that would be offended to be ranked second in global blockheadedness.

The Grand Duchess didn’t know that.

“Oh, child. What are you saying…?”

“I don’t care about anything else. If I can’t learn transformation magic, there’s no reason for me to learn magic at all.”

Episode 14 – One Religion, One Faith, Two Saints

Camilla’s response to the Grand Duchess’s extraordinary offer was beyond imagination.

“Thanks for the offer, but I have no intention of learning magic. No reason to, either.”

A clear rejection.

Francesca was the first to be shocked by Camilla’s outright refusal to learn.

“No, what is this…?”

For a magician, being taught by a Grand Magician is an incredible opportunity.

Just as entrepreneurs pay hefty sums to have lunch with billionaires, magicians might stake their lives for a chance to exchange words with a Grand Magician.

Francesca knew this better than anyone. How many magicians had tried to curry favor with her just to satisfy their thirst for knowledge?

Some wanted access to the founder’s books preserved in the Ranieri family archives, while others coveted artifacts excavated by Ranieri family scholars. Among them were those who wished to conduct research alongside Francesca.

The title of Grand Magician carries immense weight in magical society.

Even mere descendants of Grand Magicians wield influence thanks to their ancestors’ legacies, and all magicians struggle to obtain fragments of those legacies.

But to refuse when it wasn’t just some legacy, but the Grand Magician herself offering to teach—

Francesca simply couldn’t comprehend the situation.

However, right now, there was someone else who was even more shocked.

“What…?”

Alexandra Petrova stared blankly into space.

With dilated pupils and half-parted lips, she looked as if she might drool at any moment—a far cry from the dignity of nobility or the composure of a Grand Magician.

The shock must have been considerable.

Barely collecting herself, the Grand Duchess began to stammer.

“W-what do you mean? You don’t want to learn magic…?”

“You said you couldn’t teach me transformation magic, didn’t you?”

“Y-yes, but, child. There are so many types of magic in the world that you don’t know about.”

“But transformation magic is what I want to learn.”

Camilla replied with a pouty expression.

“That’s what I wanted to learn, but since you say I can’t, there’s no need for me to waste time learning other magic.”

The Grand Duchess was at a loss for words.

A sulky girl, a dumbfounded old woman, and a startled girl watching from the sidelines.

As the parallel conversation continued without progress, I observed Camilla and the Grand Duchess’s expressions with interest.

I couldn’t tell what the Grand Duchess saw in Camilla, but the current situation was fascinating.

A dispute between a sage respected by all magicians and a girl from another world—this was a spectacle you couldn’t pay to see elsewhere.

Setting aside the fact that I was an Avas intelligence officer, personally, I didn’t care whether Camilla became the Grand Duchess’s disciple or not, but this was a very interesting situation.

So I grabbed some refreshments from the corner of the table and claimed a spot on the sofa.

That’s when the Grand Duchess spoke.

“You’re refusing to learn magic just because of transformation magic…?”

She muttered in an agonized voice as her expression clouded over. Speechless, the Grand Duchess looked at Camilla with incomprehension.

But Camilla’s attitude remained stubbornly inflexible.

“Yes!”

“…”

At that short, firm answer, the Grand Duchess reacted as if she were about to lose her mind.

“Oh my…”

Her eyes darted back and forth, her lips quivered, and she seemed about to burst with emotion before sighing deeply and averting her gaze—like a childcare worker reprimanding a troublesome child who never listens.

In other words, she looked ready to explode.

“Child, why would you say such a thing? You have the potential to bloom with talent. Aren’t you wasting that talent?”

“I don’t know about talent, but I do want to learn magic. Especially transformation magic!”

“Everyone has talents they wish for, but not everyone can fulfill their dreams. Besides, aren’t you a magician who handles flames?”

Every magician has fields they wish to study, but not all can fulfill those wishes. Each person excels in different areas.

Like a fisherman who heads to sea despite wanting to study literature, most magicians work in fields different from their original desires.

A student dreaming of elemental magic practices sorcery instead, while someone studying astrology at the academy ends up joining the necromancy school.

That’s why countless academy teachers struggle during career counseling sessions with magic students whose aptitudes and interests differ. Of course, other ordinary departments aren’t much different.

But among those many students, there are stubborn blockheads who won’t yield despite earnest persuasion.

And Camilla was the most outstanding blockhead I knew.

“But I’m a magician. And transformation magic is still magic.”

Camilla absolutely refused to back down.

She’d rather not learn magic at all than waste time studying a discipline she had no interest in.

After all, who could persuade someone who had insisted on attending Cambridge and even interned at an intelligence agency despite her parents’ attempts to convince her to graduate from the London School of Economics and become ordinary like her siblings?

It was absurd to think an old woman she’d just met today could break the stubbornness that even her parents couldn’t.

“Child, please reconsider. There are thousands of types of magic in the world. Have you ever been to the Imperial Archives? The Imperial Magic Department? Or perhaps the Great Library of the Ivory Tower?”

“No, I haven’t.”

“A friend of mine oversees the Great Library of the Ivory Tower. With its collection of mysterious primitive sorcery and Eastern magic, you would surely find something that interests you…”

“No, I won’t learn it.”

Camilla pushed the Grand Duchess away as if shooing away a street vendor.

Watching Camilla close her ears and remain stubborn, while the Grand Duchess clung to her in an almost unseemly manner, Francesca turned her head in disbelief.

“Is she always like this?”

“Somewhat? She’s always been interested in young children.”

“Why? Does she have unusual tastes?”

“Nothing like that. She just genuinely likes children.”

Francesca shrugged and added:

“You know the grandmother has no blood relatives, right?”

The Grand Duchess had no blood relatives. More precisely, she had relatives but no children.

Alexandra Petrova was unmarried.

From the beginning, as a member of the imperial bloodline, there were few nobles worthy of her, but after she reached the rank of Grand Magician, no one except the Emperor dared to court her.

Having never married, she naturally had no children.

“What do magicians usually do with their legacy? I mean, not property, but knowledge and research materials.”

“Typically, they pass it to their children or spouse. If they have no family, or if their family lacks magical talent, then the magic goes to their disciples.”

“And if there are no disciples?”

“Well, in that case, one of three things happens. It’s donated to their affiliated academy, goes to distant relatives, or reverts to the state. Since grandmother is the Grand Duchess of the Empire, I suppose the imperial family or the Imperial Magic Department would inherit it. Though that’s essentially the same thing.”

That’s right.

I stroked my chin thoughtfully.

If Alexandra Petrova were to die as things stand, her legacy would go to the imperial family or the Magic Department. She’s the Grand Duchess and a member of the Smirnov imperial family.

Considering that virtually everything in the Empire is essentially the Emperor’s property, saying the Grand Duchess’s legacy would go to the Magic Department is practically the same as saying it would be inherited by the imperial family. So if the Grand Duchess dies without an heir or disciple, it only benefits the imperial family.

What choice should a true intelligence officer make here?

The second-best option would be to prevent the Grand Duchess’s legacy from going to the imperial family. The best option would be to arrange for Avas to swallow that legacy.

A business opportunity of this magnitude would likely involve not just military intelligence but also the Royal Intelligence Service, the Foreign Ministry, and the Defense Ministry. The Avas government would benefit from acquiring a Grand Magician’s legacy. I would benefit from the achievement. A win-win situation.

But is this really the best option?

“…Hmm.”

At this point, I whispered something to Francesca. After she nodded, I called Camilla aside.

She was still stubbornly insisting that she wouldn’t learn magic unless she could learn transformation magic. I left the Grand Duchess with Francesca and quietly pulled Camilla aside.

“Camilla, can I talk to you for a moment?”

“Why? I told you I don’t want to learn magic.”

“No, just calm down for a second.”

I glanced at Francesca calming the Grand Duchess in the distance, then whispered quietly into Camilla’s ear.

“I’ve had a good idea.”

Camilla asked:

“What kind of idea?”

“Camilla, do you know what British people are best at?”

“I don’t know. Creating world masterpieces or plays?”

I shook my head.

“No.”

“Then what? Has Britain developed some new specialty I don’t know about?”

“Plundering.”

Britain’s secret weapon: plundering.

Whether cultural artifacts, property, or resources—everything disappears in the blink of an eye when it passes through British hands.

Magic is no exception.

Looking back at the Grand Duchess, I made a proposal to the British woman.

“Camilla, let’s do something together.”