Chapter 47 - The Magic Otaku Confesses
On this morning, a single carriage was making its way down the main thoroughfare of the academy city, heading toward the Talgum Magic Academy. It was a modest four-seater drawn by two horses, neither particularly large nor extravagant. However, a discerning eye would notice the tasteful details—the door handles and window frames were fashioned from high-quality wood akin to ebony, and studs of black iron were artfully placed throughout. It was a carriage that lacked the opulence of a noble's, yet possessed a refined elegance not found in a merchant's.
Four riders served as its escort, flanking the carriage at its front and rear. Three were lightly armored, while one wore a mage's robe. This procession alone was enough to draw attention, but there was another reason why the people on the street (especially those clad in magic robes) watched it so intently, whispering to one another after it passed. It was because of the crest emblazoned on the carriage: a pair of crossed staves and an owl. This emblem signified that the carriage belonged to the house of Viscount Arcalai, the Royal Magic Advisor to the Hanoku Kingdom.
The party proceeded straight down the main road and came to a stop before the grand gates of the Talgum Magic Academy. One of the riders dismounted and spoke to the gatekeeper. Immediately, the large gates swung open, and the entire party entered the academy grounds without dismounting. A quiet murmur of astonishment arose from the crowd that had been watching from a distance in the plaza before the academy. To be invited in without even stepping down from one's carriage was a courtesy they had never seen extended to any noble, no matter how influential.
"It must be Lord Arcalai himself, or perhaps the former head, Lady Ester."
A middle-aged man in a robe, who was part of the crowd, muttered with the air of one in the know. Those around him murmured their agreement.
The current head of the Arcalai family, Levi Adoni Arcalai, was a brilliant prodigy who had ascended to the rare Fourth Tier at a young age. He currently served as both the Royal Magic Advisor and an instructor for the Kingdom's Magic Corps. He was not only a powerful magic user but also a key figure in the kingdom with significant influence on national politics.
And then there was his mother, Ester, the previous head of the Arcalai family. Having just recently reached the Seventh Tier, she was the strongest magic user in the kingdom—no, quite possibly the strongest in the world. After all, she was such a monumental figure that a decision had been made to hang her portrait in the most honored spot in the academy's entrance hall while she was still alive and only in her thirties. Either of them was certainly important enough for the academy to grant such special consideration.
"Although, mind you, while the space has been reserved in the hall and Lady Ester's nameplate is up, her portrait has yet to be displayed. There must be some reason for it…"
The robed man, who had been speaking so proudly about the Arcalai family, crossed his arms and trailed off. A towns person standing nearby called out to him.
"So, Master, what business brings such esteemed mages to the academy?"
"Master" was the common term of address used by commoners when speaking to magic users. In any other city (even the royal capital), a commoner would never speak so casually to a magic user. The magic user, in turn, would likely fly into a rage at being addressed in such a manner. They might even cast a spell.
But this was the academy city, the town with the highest concentration of magic users in the kingdom. The citizens did not fear magic users more than necessary, and the magic users themselves didn't immediately take offense at a bit of familiarity from the populace. After all, this was a city where magic users haggled with shop apprentices and drank arm-in-arm with traveling performers they'd just met in taverns. The distance between magic users and the general public was simply different here.
"Well now, if it truly is Lord Arcalai or Lady Ester who has come, I doubt it's for anything trivial."
"I heard there was a tremendous roar and shaking at the academy after sunset yesterday. Could it be related to that?"
A young male magic user who had appeared from somewhere joined the conversation, and before long, a discussion had broken out among magic users and townsfolk alike. One claimed a magic experiment had failed, while another insisted a terrifying monster had been summoned. There was even someone who suggested an entirely new form of magic had been created. This impromptu street-corner debate, where everyone aired their own wild speculations, continued long after the carriage had disappeared into the academy and the great gates had been shut completely.
Not a single participant in this accidental discussion, however, ever imagined that every one of their theories was, in its own way, not so far from the truth.
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The day after I indirectly destroyed a part of the academy, I was having breakfast in a vacant professor's room when Professor Hazza arrived. He informed Ruria and me that we were excused from classes for the day. Apparently, my parents and Maria-kaasan had just arrived from the capital, and we were to head to the Guest Hall for a debriefing on last night's events.
For a moment, I had the illusion that what I was eating wasn't breakfast, but my last meal. I quickly resolved myself to stoically accept whatever consequences came my way. I tried to hurry through my breakfast so as not to keep my parents waiting, but someone tugged on my sleeve. I looked over to see Ruria, her well-formed mouth open and waiting like a baby bird expecting a worm from its mother. With a sigh of resignation, I spooned some soup from her bowl and brought it to her lips.
Since Hanna wasn't with us last night, Ruria's coddled behavior had reached new heights. I'm well aware that I'm the one who always drags her into my messes, so I can't bring myself to be too firm with her. And so, I indulge her as she prompts… but perhaps this was a bit much in front of the still-unmarried Professor Hazza.
"…You can take your time eating. Just leave the dishes when you're done and come to the Guest Hall."
It seemed Professor Hazza had decided to simply ignore it. Or perhaps he just saw it as a charming meal between two children. I replied that I understood and continued to help Ruria, who showed no intention of eating on her own.
I walked with Ruria through the halls of the academy, which were silent with everyone in class. We announced our summons to the gatekeeper of the Guest Hall and made our way to the reception room, where a familiar face was waiting for us in the entrance hall.
"Saki-sama, Ruria-sama, it's been a while. Though I suppose it's only been about three months since we parted ways during the entrance exams."
Rising from the sofa to greet us was a man with closely cropped hair, a rugged face, and a rank insignia on the collar of his robe. He was, of course, Nathan-san, a soldier in the Royal Magic Corps and a junior disciple to both my parents and Maria-kaasan.
"It's good to see you, Nathan-san. I'm sorry to always trouble you."
"Not at all. Thanks to this, I was able to see you both again."
Nathan-san said with a cheerful laugh. He explained that he had escorted my parents along with Laz-san and the other male servants from the manor. Since non-magic users are generally not permitted on academy grounds, Laz-san and the others had dropped off my parents and Maria-kaasan in front of the main building before returning to the city to find lodging.
"I'm sure there's much to catch up on, but everyone is waiting. Please, head to the reception room."
"Understood. Let's talk later when we have more time."
With that, Ruria and I headed for the reception room. I knocked and opened the door to find the entire family contingent assembled inside.
"Well hello, Saki. I saw the site before coming here. It was quite something. What in the world did you do?"
"Saki, are you all right? You're not hurt? Oh, thank goodness. I was so worried!"
"Ruria, you look well. I was worried you might not be adjusting to the academy, but I'm relieved to see you're fine."
"Honestly, all of you. If you all talk at once, how are they supposed to answer? Have some consideration."
Ugh, it's utter chaos. As I stood there, bewildered by the adults of my family all talking at once and saying whatever they pleased, a voice cut in from the side. It was Professor Azadh, standing with his arms crossed and a grim look on his face.
"Alright, Saki, Ruria. First, have a seat. And the rest of you, quiet down a bit, will you? We can't start the discussion like this. That includes you, Master."
As expected from the head disciple, the moral compass of the Arcalai faction. Even Grandma reluctantly fell silent, a testament to his authority. I gave the professor a slight bow and led Ruria to an empty sofa.
Once he confirmed everyone was seated, Professor Azadh began to speak.
"First, let me make one thing clear. I am here today as a representative of the academy. Therefore, if the interests of the Arcalai family and the academy should conflict, I must state my opinions from the academy's standpoint. I hope you can accept that."
Professor Azadh said this with a serious expression, but I didn't take it at face value. The purpose of this meeting was to hear my and Ruria's account of the destruction of the spell experiment room. In a venue meant to uncover the facts, having every single participant be connected to my family went beyond one-sided. You could call it a farce.
The fact that Professor Azadh was the only one from the academy present also felt like some kind of special consideration on their part. True, his participation had been directly requested by the Academy Head, but surely at least one staff member unrelated to our family should have been present. I had a feeling that, as far as magic was concerned, similar situations were happening in various places across the kingdom. It seemed a bit problematic, but what did I know?
"That's fine. So, what exactly happened?"
Seeing my family's adults all nod in agreement with Grandma's words, Professor Azadh cleared his throat once and resumed.
"That said, we currently know very little. Yesterday evening, Saki and Ruria were staying late in a spell experiment room to practice their magic. Then, just before dinnertime, a tremendous roar and vibration shook the entire academy. When we rushed to investigate, we found Saki unconscious in a horrifically damaged spell experiment room, with Ruria tending to him. To state only the facts, that's the gist of it."
Professor Azadh paused and turned to face us.
"Only the two of you know what happened in the time before we arrived at the spell experiment room. What in the world transpired to create such a scene?"
"Professor, forgive me for interrupting. May I ask a question?"
Just as Professor Azadh posed the question to us, my father spoke up. The professor looked at him, and Father began speaking, holding up his index finger.
"We are proceeding under the assumption that the destruction of that spell experiment room was a direct result of an action taken by Saki and Ruria, or an event triggered by it. But is such a thing even possible? As you know, spell experiment rooms are, by their nature, built to be extremely durable. The walls and ceiling are thick, designed to prevent the effects of dangerous spells from reaching the outside."
Father paused and glanced around. Seeing no objections, he continued.
"We also inspected the room in question. There were large holes in both the walls and the ceiling. No matter what kind of magic, it would be impossible to cause that level of destruction with a First Tier spell, or even a Second Tier one. To think that Saki or Ruria did this seems unreasonable, don't you think?"
Both Sarah-kaasan and Maria-kaasan nodded emphatically at Father's words. Grandma had her arms crossed, a thoughtful expression on her face. Professor Azadh also voiced his agreement with a "Hmm," but then he added more.
"I also do not believe that Saki or Ruria could have caused such a thing. However, we must investigate why the spell experiment room was so damaged, and these two are the only ones who might have seen or heard something that could be a cause. That is why we have arranged this opportunity to hear their story."
Father nodded as if his point had been made. I see, so that's the direction he wanted to steer this conversation. I felt a surge of gratitude for my parents, but the reality was, I pretty much had destroyed it. All I could say was, I'm sorry.
"Well now, I wonder about that."
Grandma murmured, interrupting the flow as she lit her long pipe. In an instant, everyone's gaze was fixed on her.
"Mother, do you have an opinion?"
"These two, especially Saki, are children who have overturned the conventional wisdom of magic time and time again. It would be a grave mistake to assume that just because ordinary students couldn't do it, the same applies to them."
Grandma took a puff from her pipe and glanced around. Her words made the other adults frown, look to the heavens, or react in various other ways. Hey, hey, what's with that reaction? It's like you're all thinking, 'Come to think of it, those two just might.' Why is it that the trust in our ability to cause trouble is completely maxed out?
"Speaking of which, Master, I heard that when you were a student at the academy, you once chanted the [Fireball] spell so many times you nearly roasted the other students who were practicing with you in the experiment room."
"Azadh, we're talking about Saki and Ruria right now. This has nothing to do with me. Just forget about things from so long ago!"
"You too, Auntie? My daughter nearly destroyed a practice target by over-chanting the [Magic Missile] spell. I guess it runs in the family, doesn't it?"
Maria-kaasan chimed in, as if she had nothing to do with it. This is strange. This was supposed to be a meeting to hear our side of the story, but it feels like we've been doing nothing but idle chatter.
"Well, even you, Mother, never went so far as to destroy the walls of a spell experiment room. And I hear you were in your second year and had advanced to the Second Tier at the time. Saki and Ruria, while their progress is remarkable, are still at the First Tier. It's still hard to believe they did it, isn't it?"
"If it were ordinary magic, yes."
Father tried to bring the conversation back on track, but Grandma cut him off with a suggestive tone. She exhaled a puff of smoke, paused for a beat, and then, looking around at everyone, fixed her gaze on me and spoke quietly.
"This is getting tedious, so I'll just ask. Saki, you used the secret art from the scroll, didn't you?"
At those words, the professor looked puzzled, but my parents and Maria-kaasan had expressions that might as well have had the sound effect "GASP!" written over them. Professor Azadh, reflecting the question on his face, turned to Grandma and asked.
"Master, what is this 'secret art from the scroll'?"
"It's something that's been passed down in our family for ages, written on a scroll. Of course, the contents were so cleverly hidden that no one could understand it until Saki deciphered it recently. Using the secret art written there, Saki performed an [Evocation of the Fire Elemental]."
"[Evocation of the Fire Elemental]?!"
Professor Azadh's shout echoed through the reception room. His face was not so much contorted in shock as it was pale.
"Professor, what is this [Evocation of the Fire Elemental]...?"
At Sarah-kaasan's question, Professor Azadh answered in a trembling voice.
"…Long ago… I saw it just once… In that war, a terrifying spell that Master invoked…"
"A spell that Mother could cast, and that I do not know. That would mean…"
"[Evocation of the Fire Elemental] is a Fifth Tier spell. It summons a giant made of flame and commands it for a certain period. However, judging by the state of that room, it seems you summoned a different kind of elemental this time, not a Fire Elemental. Am I wrong, Saki?"
While the other adults stood there with pale faces, Grandma, the only one who remained composed, turned the question to me. Ah, so she knew. She knew that I had summoned a Fire Elemental in the middle of the night back in Arcalai village.
There was no helping it. To explain the destruction of the spell experiment room, I couldn't avoid talking about the spirit evocation anyway. It was probably time to reveal at least a part of what Ruria and I had been up to to this group.
"That's correct. I was experimenting with a technique to summon a spirit in that room. The damage you see is the result of me failing to control the spirit I summoned."
Facing the speechless adults, I calmly explained the facts.