◆ ◆
Right at the moment when Kurt and the others were cornering the Headmaster of Disaria, there was one person in the dark night having her magic devoured by bats.
Bats relentlessly clung to her fallen body. And then—a single boy approached her.
“You look pathetic, Blythe.”
Blythe slowly turned her face toward the boy.
“Y-You came at a good time—hurry and save me!”
“Of course. After all, you are one of the ‘Four Great Sages’ like me, and a precious comrade.”
“Thank y—”
It happened just as Blythe was about to speak.
The boy held his hand out toward Blythe and made a crushing motion—and a sound like a fruit exploding from the inside was heard.
“Salvation from that pain—there.”
Though the boy had just killed a person with his magic, a faint smile played on his lips.
“On a night when the moon is this beautiful, her screams are far too ugly. She should have just died on her own… making me go to the trouble.”
The boy looked up at the night sky.
A half-moon floated in the empty sky.
According to one theory, the moon shines so brightly because the sun illuminates it.
“I have turned sixteen, and the vessel is full.”
The boy continued, as if singing.
“All that remains is the day the sun illuminates the entire moon. Two incomplete powers will become one, and I will be complete.”
The boy turned his back on the motionless Blythe and began to walk again.
“It won’t be long now. Wait for me, my cute little sister—Cynthia.”
◆ ◆
—After that, as a matter of course, the scheduled meeting with Disaria was cancelled.
Since that Headmaster named Howard spilled the beans so thoroughly. Naturally, Rosanlila Magic Academy’s claims were accepted in full.
And so, after waiting for Headmaster Diana to finish the paperwork, we departed the Neutral City.
It seems Diana has a lot to do even after returning to the Royal Capital, but… I’ll leave those matters to the adults.
“Come to think of it… I felt something was off when I heard Lara’s story last night. Why did you come from the direction of Kurt’s room, Lara?”
Inside the carriage returning to the Royal Capital, Lara and I were questioned by Marise.
“That is—”
I was at a loss for words.
At Marise’s words, Lara also averted her gaze awkwardly.
“It really is strange, isn’t it? Lara, don’t tell me you were doing something naughty with Kurt—”
“T-That’s not true!”
Before Marise could finish, Lara turned red and waved her hands frantically, trying to cover it up.
She had been quite loud yesterday, after all. It was a good thing I cast soundproofing magic on the room. Without it, Lara’s voice would likely have been heard by Marise and the others next door.
“It really is suspicious. Kurt, I’m going to have you explain. Just what happened yesterday—”
Just as Marise stood up and reached out to me.
“Kya!”
A cute scream escaped her.
The carriage shook, and she lost her balance. Marise fell right onto me.
“Ouch…”
Marise rubbed her head with her right hand. However, my attention was drawn to something else entirely.
“——!”
I couldn’t move my mouth. Because Marise’s chest had plunged right before my eyes.
Perhaps due to the impact of the fall, the front of Marise’s top had fallen open. Thanks to that, her purple underwear and cleavage entered my vision clearly.
“Kurt? Where on earth are you looking—!”
Marise noticed immediately, pulled away from me, and covered her chest.
“D-Did you see?”
“S-See what?”
Of course I saw it, but I couldn’t say that.
Even so—Marise wears quite mature underwear. It had a different charm from Lara’s last night.
“I-I will have you tell me everything about yesterday once we return to the Royal Capital. Both of you, be prepared!”
Saying that, Marise turned her back on us. Her earlobes were bright red, and she was trembling slightly.
…In any case, it seems I managed to gloss over yesterday’s events.
“Kurt.”
As I sighed in relief, Lara brought her face close to mine,
“If you want, Kurt, I’ll show you mine again… so…”
“Wha—”
Perhaps out of rivalry with Marise, Lara whispered something outrageous. But no further words came from Lara. Because Lara, too, blushed and turned her face away from me.
Good grief… these two always manage to fluster me.
“Ah, that’s right! Headmaster, Headmaster.”
Perhaps to change the mood, Lara called out to Diana.
“What’s going to happen to the Headmaster of Disaria?”
“Well…”
Diana crossed her arms and spoke in an exhausted voice.
It’s no wonder she’s tired. The situation moved so rapidly to get here. She hadn’t joined the earlier conversation, simply staring silently out the window.
“Since it has become an issue between two nations, essentially the Neutral City of Shifrea will judge the Empire. First, Headmaster Howard will likely face execution. He did all of this, after all. But that’s not all. The teachers involved will also face execution… or at the very least be thrown in prison and never allowed to return to a magic academy.”
“Then… isn’t Disaria Magic Academy going to be in big trouble?”
“The academy itself might even cease to exist.”
Hm, a reasonable analysis.
“However—I believe we can pursue Disaria’s responsibility, but I doubt it will escalate into a national issue.”
Suddenly, Diana’s face twisted in frustration.
“Why? From what Kurt said, the ‘Four Great Sages’ were involved, right? It feels like it’s no longer just a problem with the academy…”
This time, Marise spoke in an accusatory tone.
“I find it frustrating too. But—”
“The Kingdom doesn’t want to go to war with the Empire right now… is probably the gist of it. The Empire likely figured as much, so they intend to push all responsibility onto the magic academy and end the discussion there. By framing it as the ‘Four Great Sages’ acting out of control on their own.”
When I said that in Diana’s stead, she nodded. However, Marise’s anger showed no signs of subsiding.
“What is that?! Kurt went through such a terrible experience, yet for political reasons…”
“Marise, I don’t really mind.”
“Eh?”
Marise’s eyes widened.
“The ‘Four Great Sages’ showed up, and I got a fight that could kill some time. If anything, I’m grateful. I don’t feel like I went through a ‘terrible experience’ as you say…”
“But…”
“Besides, I’m also against having a war right now. I want to clash with the Empire after I’ve gained more power.”
“Y-You intend to become even stronger than now?!”
What is she saying? Even now, I haven’t completely regained the power of my previous life. But I have gotten largely used to this body. My magic power has probably caught up to about sixty percent of my previous life. I think I could defeat the Empire even as I am now, but… if I’m going to do it, I want to rampage with my full power.
“Now then… what to do from here.”
I muttered to myself.
Anyway, I know that the Focind family holds the key to the decline of this world. In that case, I might as well investigate them once we get back.
“Headmaster Diana.”
“What is it?”
“Do you know of the Focind family?”
“Mm. Of course.”
Diana answered immediately.
“What kind of people are they?”
“They are Imperial nobles. Their rank is Duke. Politics, commerce… I hear members of the Focind family lurk even among adventurers, controlling the Empire from the shadows.”
This matches what Blythe of the ‘Four Great Sages’ said. For a single noble family, they seem to hold quite a bit of power.
“What about the name Maynard Focind?”
“Maynard… Ah, he is one of the Empire’s ‘Four Great Sages,’ I believe. However, I’ve heard he rarely appears in public and is shrouded in mystery. Furthermore, Maynard is active in the field of magic research. Many innovative magic tools were developed by him. The surveillance magic tools Disaria was using are likely of that sort.”
Diana continued.
“Kurt. Are you interested in that person?”
Lara peered into my face.
“Yeah.”
“Hmm, it’s just a hunch, but I feel like you and that person are going to meet soon, Kurt. Ah, sorry for saying something weird!”
Lara stuck out her tongue slightly.
Her intuition is not to be underestimated. Then perhaps I should prepare to confront Maynard.
“Is there anything else you know about the Focind family?”
“Hmm, the rest is minor details. If you’re interested, you should go to the library after we return to the magic academy. There are many books written about the Focind family.”
I see. Let’s leave thinking about the Focind family at that for now—
“If anything—there is one member of the Focind family among our students, you know?”
“There’s one at Rosanlila Magic Academy too?”
I didn’t know that, so I let out a voice of surprise.
A blunder, for someone like me. I hadn’t been paying attention to other students since I wasn’t very interested.
“Mm-hm.”
“Why is an Imperial noble attending the Royal Capital’s magic academy? If they went to Disaria…”
It’s unlikely that they didn’t pass the entrance exam.
Rosanlila Magic Academy had lost nine times in a row in the exhibition game, and Disaria is generally recognized as superior.
Even if they didn’t pass the exam, they are a powerful noble family. They could probably force a single student in.
“It’s a case of complicated family circumstances.”
“Complicated?”
“I cannot say any more than that. If you want to know, you should ask the person herself.”
Interesting. I had considered storming into the Empire… but if she is in the Royal Capital, that makes things faster. Maybe I’ll try meeting this Focind family student.
“So… what is that student’s name?”
“Mm…”
Diana turned her jade-colored eyes toward me and continued,
“Cynthia—Cynthia Focind.”
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