Chapter 115: The Gathering of Puppet Masters Part 2

I quickly scanned the young man standing in front of me.

The first thing that caught my eye was his plump physique.

Even the loose robe he was wearing couldn’t completely hide his body, making him stand out even more.

It was inevitable.

Ordinary magicians always maintained their bodies in the best possible condition.

Cases of someone getting that large were rare.

He was likely keeping that physique on purpose.

My gaze moved to the clothes covering his body, which shimmered under the light.

They gleamed golden, just like his hair.

At a glance, it was obvious they were made of luxurious materials.

His accessories were just as extravagant.

The multiple rings on his fingers sparkled, and the gemstones embedded in them pulsed with intense magical energy.

They were clearly enchanted.

But even those enchantments paled in comparison to the sheer magical pressure emanating directly from the young man himself.

His aura was so overwhelming that, among the people here, he stood out immediately.

I still couldn’t fully grasp who this young man was.

But I could at least infer a few things.

First, he was an incredibly powerful magician.

Second, unlike the other puppet masters gathered here, he appeared to be very wealthy.

He moved the hand that had tapped my shoulder and extended it before me.

Then, he let out a refreshing laugh, his face radiating with an innocent glow.

“So? Interested? I’m giving you a great deal here. The others usually start at a 7-to-3 split. But you… you show some promise, so I’m giving you a better cut.”

“Could you tell me what kind of business this is first? This is a bit sudden.”

I said, giving him an awkward smile.

The young man blinked a couple of times before nodding lightly.

“Ah, you’re new, huh? Been so long since I’ve seen a rookie that I forgot. I just assumed everyone already knew.”

His blue eyes sparkled as he glanced at Mira.

Receiving his gaze, Mira smiled softly in return.

He approached her and gave her a once-over.

“Hmm, just as I thought. Absolutely stunning. The professor’s elixirs alone wouldn’t be enough to create something like this.”

“Hehe, thank you. You’re quite interesting yourself.”

Mira said to him.

At her words, the young man’s eyes rolled slightly before he turned to me, flashing a thumbs-up.

Then, he placed his hand back on my shoulder and grinned widely.

“With this, you could be the ace of our establishment in no time. If you’ve stayed in Rift City for a while, you must’ve heard of it at least once. Dream Theater! That magical experience!”

Dream Theater…

I blinked at the name.

‘Dream Theater, huh?’

‘I had never heard of it before.’

I shook my head slightly.

Seeing my reaction, the young man clicked his tongue.

“Hmm… I guess you wouldn’t know if you just got to the academy. Well, it’s simple. We provide puppets to customers, and in return, they get to experience a day like nothing they’ve ever dreamed of. So? Interested?”

I let out a small, bitter chuckle.

I hadn’t understood much from the name alone, but after hearing his explanation, it became clear what kind of business he was referring to.

It was undoubtedly a type of entertainment establishment.

Mira must have realized it too because she let out a small chuckle and leaned against me.

I supported her gently before shaking my head and giving the young man a slight bow.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t let Mira participate in something like that. She and I… well, we’re inseparable.”

“Wait, think again—”

Just as he tightened his grip on my shoulder and was about to continue speaking, Mauro subtly placed his hand over the young man’s.

The young man locked eyes with Mauro and visibly flinched.

“Now, now, let’s end the conversation here. Since you’re already here, why not enjoy today’s gathering with us? We can talk about this later. Everyone’s waiting for you to take a seat.”

Mauro said, gently smiling as he patted the young man’s hand.

Then, without resistance, he guided him toward an empty seat at the table.

The young man glanced around.

Just as Mauro had said, the puppet masters seated at the table were all staring at him.

Clicking his tongue lightly, he followed Mauro’s lead and sat down.

“Tch, I was in a hurry, but since Mauro insists, I guess I can stick around for a bit.”

With that, he signaled to the people who had accompanied him into the underground chamber.

Following his gesture, they quickly took their seats as well—about ten of them in total.

The young man crossed his arms and propped his feet onto the table.

He looked as though he wanted to leave immediately, yet he remained seated, showing his respect for Mauro.

With that, nearly all the empty seats at the table had been filled.

Mauro stroked his beard with a satisfied smile.

“Quite a turnout today. Only about ten people are absent. That saves me the trouble of relaying too many messages later.”

He nodded before stepping closer to the young man and patting his shoulder.

The young man clicked his tongue again before lowering his feet from the table and adjusting his posture.

Mauro gave him a faint smile, then handed him the letter he had read aloud earlier.

The young man infused it with magic, causing the letters to rise from the page and form in the air for all the newcomers to see.

After skimming through the contents, he let out a small chuckle.

As he withdrew his magic, the letters folded back into the parchment.

He handed the letter back to Mauro.

“Looks like we’ll need a few more puppets prepared.”

The young man smirked.

Mauro patted his shoulder briefly before glancing around at the others seated at the table.

“Anyone have any questions about the assembly? Ah, Evron, I’ll explain things to you in detail later.”

Mauro said, looking at me.

I nodded.

Mauro waited for a moment, but no one spoke up.

It seemed they were already well-informed about the assembly.

“Then, that’s all the announcements I have. Now, we can properly start the gathering. Last time, we had too few participants. Everyone, go ahead and discuss freely in the order you arrived.”

With Mauro’s words, the people at the table started shifting in their seats.

Mira tapped my chest with her finger.

I looked down to see her smiling at me in amusement.

“That guy is really interesting. He has a completely different feel from the others here.”

She said, gesturing toward the young man, who was yawning widely.

‘You’re not wrong,’ I whispered, smiling wryly.

She was right.

Starting a business that used puppets for entertainment…

No puppet master I had ever met would have even considered such a thing.

The older they got, the more they tended to cherish their puppets.

Mira smirked and leaned her head against my shoulder.

A faint rose scent drifted from her hair.

“How touching. Evron, you cherish me so much. I thought you had completely forgotten about me with how obsessed you’ve been with the professor lately.”

“Mira, you’re my puppet. And you misunderstand—I’m not obsessed with the professor. I simply trust him completely.”

I shook my head.

Mira sighed slightly and nestled closer.

“Well, if you insist. So, what exactly happens at these gatherings? I’ve never been to a human meeting before.”

“It’s mostly about exchanging information and items.”

I glanced around.

Now that things had settled, the chaotic atmosphere had begun to calm.

This was typical for gatherings like this.

People exchanged knowledge, traded what they had…

And judging from the way things were going, this meeting wouldn’t be much different.

I did get a chance, but all I could do was pass my turn.

After all, I had nothing to offer them.

I looked at them again, taking in the intense flow of magic between them.

Every one of them was a mage of at least the fourth level.

That meant what I had was of little significance to them.

It was quite remarkable.

Most members of this small organization were pursuing advanced university courses.

It was a stark contrast to other groups, which were mostly composed of lower-level mages.

That was one of the reasons I had wanted to join this association.

It was the most accessible group for me, and it also possessed sufficient power.

Of course, I hadn’t expected them to be so poor that they held meetings in a cave.

‘But… were they really poor?’ I glanced at the expensive materials being exchanged and made a dissatisfied expression.

Then, I turned to Mauro, who had been explaining something about someone else but paused to blink at me.

“Um, are you sure these people are actually poor? Just selling one of those items could bring in tens of thousands of points.”

I gestured toward the materials being exchanged and asked Mauro.

He let out a small, wry smile and scratched his head.

“Well, they don’t have points, that much is true. Most of them can’t even pay their membership fees properly. But as you can see, whenever they do get points, they pour them all into their dolls.”

At his words, I stared at the dollmakers.

They were all using the items they had exchanged to decorate the dolls beside them.

They looked absolutely delighted.

“Everything being exchanged here is likely something they’ve been hoarding for their dolls. They probably never even considered selling them. Instead of earning points, they’d rather make another doll.”

I supposed that mindset was why they were able to create such excellent dolls.

Mauro chuckled as he spoke.

“That’s also why this gathering continues. It’s simply more convenient to trade goods like this. Since everyone here is a dollmaker, they have a similar sense of value for materials.”

I nodded.

‘It was a typical trait of dollmakers.’

With that thought in mind, I continued observing them, using Mauro’s words as background knowledge.

***

Eventually, I got a general idea of how this association and its meetings functioned.

As for that unnamed young man, Mauro only gave a brief explanation before moving on.

He simply mentioned that the man was at the sixth level—one of the highest present, except for Dagon.

That young man and his group also blended into the exchange process.

They, too, were dollmakers, after all.

The exchange didn’t end after a single round.

Those who still needed things spoke up again, and after two or three more rounds, the trade finally came to an end.

I didn’t manage to obtain anything.

But even so, I felt quite satisfied.

Just watching them and listening to their conversations had taught me a great deal.

Once things settled down, Mauro stood up.

He scanned the room before stroking his beard and bursting into laughter.

“Everyone looks satisfied. Alright, then. Let’s conclude this year’s meeting here. Now, feel free to chat among yourselves. And if anyone has questions for this friend here, take your time approaching him.”

As he spoke, he placed a light hand on my shoulder.

His words immediately drew the attention of the others toward me.

I responded with a small bow.

People began talking among themselves, and the first to approach me was the young man from earlier.

He strode over confidently, patting his thick belly, and let out a hearty laugh.

He scrutinized Mira once more, but this time, there was magic in his gaze.

In response, Mira, who had been leaning against me, stirred slightly and released a thin mist, effortlessly deflecting his probing magic.

Seeing that, the young man nodded.

“As I thought. Something felt off the more I looked. My eyes weren’t wrong. The one inside this doll is quite the distinguished figure, huh? Probably impossible to put a price on. Am I right?”

He winked at me.

I glanced around.

The others no longer seemed interested in Mira.

Her true power was supposed to be thoroughly concealed—’so how had he noticed?’

He tapped the corner of his eye and chuckled.

His blue eyes shimmered with a sharp light.

“My eyesight is pretty damn good. If there’s one thing I’m an expert at, it’s spotting valuable things. In that sense, I feel a little sorry for you. It’s a shame to see a doll like this stuck at a six-to-four ratio.”

He rummaged through his coat and pulled out a small card.

It seemed to be modeled after Professor On’s, with the name “Coit” written on it in shimmering magical script.

Handing it to me, he flashed a friendly smile.

“My name’s Coit. Drop by my shop sometime. I’ll give you a proper welcome. We can talk business then—right now, time’s a bit short.”

The business card fell into my hand.

Without waiting for a response, he turned and walked away, his steps light and cheerful.

His companions quickly followed.

I didn’t even have time to call out to him.

I just stood there, staring blankly at his retreating figure.

With Coit gone, those who had been hesitating to approach me began inching closer.

“Um, excuse me… Are you Mr. Evron? I, I’m actually your senior.”

The first to step up was a woman with thick glasses and curly hair.

I quickly recalled her details—Amelia, fourth level, doll type: werewolf.

I smiled warmly.

“Yes, Amelia, senior. I look forward to your guidance.”

“S-Senior… Oh my, I’ve never been called that before.”

Amelia’s face turned slightly red as she buried herself into her doll’s arms.

Then, she peeked out shyly to look at me.

I gave her a small bow and smiled again.

Each of these people could become my connections in the future.

They could be my lifelines or bridges to greater opportunities.

That meant I had to do my best to win them over.

And so, I spent time exchanging introductions with everyone who approached me.

After a while, as the stream of people finally died down, I slumped into a chair, letting out a small, exhausted chuckle.

They were more interested in my doll than they were in me.

I glanced at Mira, who was slowly moving in front of me.

Many people had looked at her with fascination, commenting on how her construction was far too impressive for someone at my level.

The same went for Turtle.

Given that he housed Professor On’s experimental core, it was only natural.

Apparently, that core was well-known among the group—some had even asked me to bring them one if I ever got my hands on another.

Mauro approached, having finished his conversations.

He chuckled at my tired expression.

“Was it overwhelming? Well, do your best with them. A new recruit hasn’t joined in nearly seventy years.”

I nodded.

As he said, dealing with these unpredictable dollmakers had been exhausting.

But I had gained a lot.

They had examined my dolls and given me valuable advice—on structure, magical efficiency, and the enchantments needed for optimal performance.

They hadn’t hesitated to share their knowledge with me.

And on top of that, I had received some unexpected gifts.

I gazed at Mira blankly.

“Oh my, I like this one too.”

She stood by the table, delicately sorting through a pile of magical materials.

Powerful energy radiated from them.

Those were things Mira had subtly extracted from the others as a “welcome gift.”

Various enchanted materials and tools for doll-making.

She had skillfully coerced them into offering their best items.

Sensing my gaze, she smiled and gestured toward a group of people.

They were ones I hadn’t spoken to yet—perhaps too intimidated by Mira to approach.

Her gesture was clear: I should make the first move.

“I’ll rest a little, then head over.”

“Fufu, just a little more effort.”

I looked at them again.

They were starting to look like points to me.

Mauro laughed.

“So, how was the gathering? A little different from what you expected, wasn’t it?”

I nodded.

“They… don’t seem much like mages.”

There was a unique bond between them.

A trust.

It reminded me more of swordsmen than spellcasters.

Mauro smiled.

“That’s what happens when all you do is work on dolls. They were influenced by Professor On and his wife’s teachings.”

I placed a hand over my chest, feeling the connection to my doll.

So they all understood this connection too.

That explained everything.

‘Then, what about him?’

I glanced down at the card in my hand.

The name “Coit” shimmered with a steady magical glow.

Mauro followed my gaze and let out a small sigh.

Stroking his beard, he spoke.

“That kid is my adopted son. I raised him outside the university.”

He grinned.

“What do you think? Do we look alike?”