Ch.87Chapter 87 – Meeting (2)

Thanks to Lucian’s sudden outburst of anger, the meeting atmosphere became awkward.

Soon, Lucian cleared his throat and apologized.

“I apologize. I’ve had a lot building up.”

“Did something happen?”

“No. It’s a personal matter.”

Lucian avoided answering my question.

The actual answer came from Beatrice instead.

“Well, it’s nothing much. There was a time when the Magic Tower was in chaos because of Somnus.”

“Beatrice!”

Though her tone seemed calm, Beatrice’s pronunciation became stronger only when mentioning Somnus’s name.

Lucian called out Beatrice’s name loudly as if he wanted to hide something, but Beatrice simply shrugged her shoulders slightly, receiving his gaze as if it were nothing.

“It doesn’t matter anyway since most people here don’t have good feelings toward the Church of Emiris.”

“You brat, are you trying to turn this place into a venue for gossiping about other religions?”

“Now that I think about it, that doesn’t sound bad. Making it a gossip venue.”

Beatrice responded as if nothing had happened.

Soon she looked at Aria and said:

“You won’t tell anyone else anyway, right?”

“…I can’t afford to pick unnecessary fights with the continent’s largest religion.”

Beatrice brushed off Aria’s response lightly.

‘Come to think of it, she’s right.’

As Beatrice said, truly none of the people gathered here had good feelings toward the Church of Emiris.

It’s amazing how we all ended up gathering like this.

I suppose that says a lot about how much trouble that church has caused.

Beatrice looked around once before speaking.

“There was a time when pro-Church of Emiris factions formed a power bloc within the Magic Tower, interfering everywhere and hindering research progress.”

“How was that possible?”

“That church has a lot of money. The factions receiving their support interfered tremendously as sponsors.”

I see.

They controlled the money and created allies to exert their influence.

“Additionally, Somnus was once one of the Tower Masters, so during that period, about half of the Masters were pro-church faction.”

Beatrice spoke calmly, but the Masters’ expressions were not pleasant.

Perhaps they were embarrassed that the Magic Tower, which appears to have tremendous power from the outside, was almost controlled at the whim of one faction bound by money.

“Well, I bit them all and drove them out.”

Beatrice’s title is ‘Mad Dog.’

Considering what I’ve read in newspapers before—about her holding records for most duels and highest victory count—she must have been challenging people to fights like crazy during that period.

No wonder Masters like Lucian and Violet treat her with caution.

“…Still, our purpose here isn’t to criticize that church. My mistake. I apologize.”

Lucian apologized to us.

Meanwhile, the purple gem was floating in the air again.

Looking back, it seemed Beatrice had made it float.

“I was wondering why they were moving secretly whenever there was a major extermination site. So it was because of this.”

“Come to think of it, I met you in the mining village too.”

“I went there because I noticed they had sent some assassins to that village. I wanted to see what was going on, but someone had already killed them all.”

Beatrice said this while shrugging her shoulders.

The mining village assassins must have been the ones who attacked me, Sera, and Haven’s party.

Thinking about it now, they probably discovered Sera’s existence during their mission and attacked us.

The church people seemed to have been targeting Sera all along.

“What’s important is this one thing.”

Beatrice said, narrowing her eyes.

“What exactly are they trying to do?”

The most important question came from Beatrice’s lips.

+

The meeting continued a bit longer after that.

Since the Green Tower had already accepted the analysis request, the remaining discussion was just the light procedure of setting the duration and compensation amount.

It seemed these details had already been discussed to some extent beforehand, as they were merely confirmed.

Ludger stood up from his seat.

He still looked tired.

“Well, I’ll be going now. This old man hates these kinds of gatherings.”

“Gramps, are you getting tired too quickly?”

“You brat, try reaching my age first.”

Ludger got up from his seat while exchanging insults with Aria.

Watching them, Lucian nodded.

“Then, would the rest of you please step outside for a moment.”

He looked at me and said:

“As I mentioned before, our Magic Tower owes you a debt, so it would be good to discuss it now.”

It was about the compensation issue he mentioned before.

He seemed to be speaking indirectly because of the presence of others.

“K, um…”

“It’s fine. Everyone, please wait outside.”

When Sera approached with concern, I nodded and spoke.

Nothing serious would happen anyway.

Soon, everyone except Beatrice left the room.

“…Beatrice, why aren’t you leaving?”

“Oh, didn’t you hear from Asam? I’m under a strange contract magic that prevents me from going far from this helmet.”

“…Come to think of it, she did mention that.”

Lucian held his head as if it hurt.

After groaning for a moment, Lucian looked at me again.

“As I said before, our promise was to provide compensation that would satisfy you.”

“That’s right.”

“Then, I’ll get straight to the point.”

Lucian rested his chin on his hands and looked at me.

“Money or magic—name what you want.”

“Excuse me?”

Money is one thing, but magic?

As I stood there dumbfounded, Beatrice giggled and said:

“You’re being too brief, Master.”

“I suppose so.”

Lucian readily admitted it and looked at me.

“It’s exactly as I said. If you want money, I’m willing to pay you compensation.”

“How much?”

“This much.”

Lucian gestured, and numbers appeared in the air.

“…Would this be enough to buy a house?”

“You could buy a house in a decent location even within the capital.”

I finally could achieve my dream of owning a home… That’s what I wanted to shout. The amount was substantial.

And considering this was the capital of the Mikea Kingdom, it meant prime real estate.

Given that I had no home and was living in inns, the prospect of owning my own place was incredibly appealing.

‘But they’re offering this much?’

I became a bit suspicious that there might be a trap.

What if they were giving me counterfeit money…

“Rest assured. It’s all real. I can promise on the Tower’s name.”

“Is that so.”

I looked at Lucian with slightly suspicious eyes.

Since I was wearing the helmet, he probably couldn’t tell I was looking at him suspiciously.

“You think the amount is more than expected?”

“Honestly, yes.”

“In fact, just the attempted human experimentation alone is really troublesome for the Tower. If you think of it as hush money, this amount is actually getting off cheap.”

Though he said that, his voice grew quieter toward the end, suggesting he might be internally pained about the money.

I slightly suspect he might have financial troubles here too.

Speaking of hush money…

“Human experimentation is one of the taboos in the Magic Tower.”

Lucian said seriously.

“This taboo has a very long history. If broken, even if the person is a Tower Master, they would be treated as a heretic and eliminated without mercy.”

“A long-standing taboo, you say.”

“Yes.”

Lucian smiled weakly and said:

“It’s one of the taboos established by the first Tower Master.”

“And there was actually a case where one of the Masters violated that taboo.”

Violet added supplementary information.

Judging by the expressions of the two Masters, they must have had quite a hard time then.

It was clearly visible that they didn’t want to talk about it anymore.

“Asam wasn’t directly involved, but the situation could easily be misunderstood, which is the problem.”

“So that’s why you’re offering this much.”

“Because there are allies who are like enemies.”

Lucian spoke bitterly.

I could guess what he meant.

“Politics are unpleasant.”

“…I’m glad you understand.”

Lucian sighed.

“If I had known it would be like this, I would have just remained a researcher instead of sitting in the Master’s seat for some glory…”

“Lucian, enough.”

For some reason, Lucian started complaining.

Violet stopped him with a tired face, but somehow she seemed to sympathize.

“What’s the other compensation option?”

At my question, Lucian immediately regained his composure.

“The other option is that if there’s a magic you desire, we’ll research it and create a magical tool for you.”

“Pardon?”

Money is one thing, but magic?

As I narrowed my eyes in surprise, Beatrice giggled and spoke:

“Is that acceptable?”

“Yes.”

Lucian smiled and said:

“The Green Tower researches various spells.”

Lucian smiled as he spoke.

“I can guarantee that most things are possible. Like a farming tool that plows fields every day…”

The scale seems small, but for me, this was the best situation.

Just to be careful, I decided to proceed cautiously.

“But wouldn’t research alone be quite difficult?”

At my words, Lucian smiled brightly.

“If what comes out of your mouth is truly difficult research, we would have one or two headaches.”

Lucian said with a smile.

His eyes were actually sparkling slightly.

“But wouldn’t such things be worth researching? It would make for good achievements.”

“Achievements, you say.”

“However, please understand that the more difficult it is, the harder it becomes to deliver results. Things like immortality, for instance, might not yield results even if we dedicate a lifetime to research.”

That’s only natural.

Still, these were good terms.

“How can I trust that the promise will be kept?”

At my words, Lucian took something out from his chest.

It was something I had seen before.

“A contract bound to our souls. It cannot be broken carelessly.”

I checked the contents of the contract.

“There’s no time period specified.”

“As I said earlier, things like immortality might not be achieved even in a lifetime.”

Still, the content itself had no issues.

Including clauses that allowed me to terminate the contract and claim compensation if it took too long, there were no disadvantageous terms for me.

‘The downside is not knowing how long it will take.’

After reading the contract carefully again, I nodded.

“Which compensation will you choose?”

“The second one.”

The answer came without any hesitation.

Lucian showed a slightly surprised expression but opened his mouth.

“So you have a magic you desire.”

“Yes.”

Looking straight into his eyes, I spoke clearly.

“I want magic that will return me to where I originally came from.”

Looking at Lucian, whose eyes widened slightly, I spoke directly.

“Dimensional travel, that is.”

After a moment of silence, Lucian spoke again.

“…I made a mistake by glossing over it when Asam reported.”

Lucian had a serious expression.

“So, you really are from another world.”

“Does such information come up in investigations?”

“It does.”

Lucian sighed slightly and said:

“There were reports about body tissues and many other aspects that differ from ordinary people.”

“…The fact that I was modified?”

“Even considering that, if there are still many differences from the people of this place, one naturally comes to such a conclusion.”

Lucian touched his face slightly as he spoke.

It’s a bit infuriating when someone speaks as if they’ll grant anything and then shows this attitude.

Still, I held back and asked:

“Is dimensional travel itself close to being taboo?”

Lucian nodded.

“It is related to a taboo.”

I looked at Lucian.

“Specifically, it’s related to the taboo of ‘not provoking a certain existence.'”

I remembered what the lich had said.

“…Dragons.”

Lucian looked at me with surprise.

“I didn’t expect you to know. That’s correct.”

Lucian and Violet looked at each other.

Soon, Lucian spoke again.

“There’s a common saying among magicians…”

Lucian paused for a moment.

“Magic was originally taught to humans by dragons during the ancient Demon War.”

Lucian began speaking with a slightly enthusiastic tone.

Perhaps he enjoys old stories?

“During that war, gods and demons were entangled in battle, and as the world became devastated, the dragon race, which didn’t cooperate with either side, checked both forces, leading to a temporary lull.”

“I know the outline to some extent.”

“Is that so?”

Lucian’s eyes sparkled.

This seems to be quite an enjoyable topic for him.

How should I put it—he reminds me a bit of Christina when she becomes animated while talking about her god’s doctrines.

“The Demon War was ended by the hero and his companions, and the demons were trapped beyond the dimension.”

“And I’ve heard that dragons came to manage the boundaries of dimensions.”

At my words, Lucian nodded.

“If mishandled, the sealed demons from beyond could return to this world again. For dragons who remember that war, even just tampering with dimensions would be sufficient provocation.”

By that logic, it was already too late.

The boundary had become very unstable due to the summoning of me and the other test subjects.

The lich had even made the ominous prediction that dragons would target me and the other test subjects.

Still, finding a way back was a non-negotiable point for me.

My need to maintain a relationship with the Magic Tower was solely for that purpose.

“Isn’t it fine as long as we don’t mishandle it?”

“That’s not wrong.”

Surprisingly, Lucian lightly affirmed.

“As an aside, there’s a theory that the Magic Tower’s taboos exist because the first Tower Master was one of those who learned magic from dragons during the Demon War.”

“So it’s about not disturbing the race that was his teacher?”

“And also because no one knows what might happen if they’re disturbed. If he learned from them up close, he might know how terrifying they can be when they set their minds to it.”

Lucian finished his explanation and briefly clasped his hands.

“That’s why there’s been talk since ancient times that researching dimensional travel could provoke the dragons.”

“It’s not that no progress has been made, but it’s been very slow and sluggish. Even the few studies, like organizing regions where the dimensional boundary is particularly thin, were halted during the period when Beatrice was stirring up the entire Magic Tower.”

Violet and Lucian each gave an answer, while Beatrice was grinning.

So I understood why they were a bit troubled.

Still, this wasn’t something I could compromise on.

“Master, are you saying you can’t fulfill my request?”

Lucian closed his eyes at my words.

Various thoughts seemed to be passing through his mind.

But soon, as if he had reached a conclusion, he opened his mouth.

“I promised on my name as a Master, so I will accommodate your research request.”

“Thank you.”

“But I think it will take quite a long time with just us.”

I nodded at Lucian’s words.

It was unreasonable to expect it to happen overnight.

“Since it’s related to the Tower’s taboo, it’s difficult to conduct the research very openly.”

“Just do your best.”

Since it’s related to a taboo, it would be hard to proceed openly.

That’s something I should understand.

Lucian extended his hand, and I shook it.

Soon, the contract was drawn up, and the deal was concluded.

‘Now it’s one step forward.’

Finally, I’ve entered the initial stage of returning to where I originally was.

Thinking that, I suddenly felt a gaze and looked in that direction to find Beatrice staring at me with an ambiguous expression.

It seemed like she had something she wanted to say but was holding back.

+

Asam was in her research lab.

Finally, the access restriction was lifted, and she was continuing the research she had seen before.

Honestly, she had rested well during her disciplinary period.

“Maybe I should have gone to the meeting too.”

She was in the middle of researching how to break the master-servant magic binding Beatrice and K.

She thought she should have begged the Master to attend the meeting for a change of pace.

‘Oh, come to think of it.’

Thinking of K reminded her that she had captured a test subject similar to him.

The test subject who should still be asleep due to the reagent.

“Now that I remember, I should check on its condition.”

It would be troublesome if it suffered from malnutrition.

So Asam approached the container where she had been keeping the test subject.

She had only been regularly adding reagents without proper management, so dust had accumulated on the container.

‘Should I clean up a bit?’

Asam thought as she looked at the container.

A black-haired woman was sleeping inside.

“…While I’m at it, I should change the reagent too.”

She connected a hose to drain the alchemical solution and replace it.

The water level lowered, and new liquid dripped in from above.

Then Asam turned her gaze away.

“Where should I start cleaning?”

Perhaps she should organize the documents first.

Just as Asam took three steps forward, something felt strange.

“…What?”

The test subject opened her eyes.

Just as Asam tried to react quickly, a fist emitting smoke smashed through the container.