Chapter 27 Translator: XZY
Chapter 27: Elente (2) ***
"As it is a standard magic duel, there are more restrictions than you might think. Above all, since it is a duel observed by numerous nobles, you must maintain a minimum level of dignity."
Derek always wore a serious expression.
Calmness was contagious. Elente felt ashamed of herself for having responded so emotionally just a moment ago. No matter how cornered she was, physically or mentally, it was the duty of a noble young lady to always maintain her composure and dignity in any situation.
However, Derek showed no signs of caring.
"Still... I hate to admit it, but Lady Aiseline is a step above me."
"She won't be a step above in every aspect. We just need to find the areas where you, Lady Elente, are a step above."
Derek's manner of speaking, stating everything as if it were a declaration, felt completely devoid of hesitation or anxiety.
It seemed that even Elente lashing out at him like this was something he had fully anticipated. To Elente, Derek, who was nothing more than a mere commoner, felt like an experienced old general.
"Do you think the magic training we've done, pushing you to the brink, was meaningless? It was all the necessary groundwork to defeat Lady Aiseline. Now, only the truly core process remains."
"Did-did you have something else prepared?"
"...I told you that I absolutely had to confirm your will, Lady Elente, didn't I?"
As Derek looked at Elente with even more serious eyes, Elente swallowed a dry gulp of saliva.
As if to mock Lady Elente's reaction, Derek spoke out coolly.
"From now on, it will be real hell. You must follow well."
If it was real hell from now on, then what on earth had it been until now?
Elente began to see the boy before her as a reaper holding a scythe.
But having made such a fuss, she was now in a position where she could not back down.
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As one rode a horse across the vast grasslands of the Belmeade County, it was not difficult to see serfs tilling the fields from early in the morning. The wheat fields, having just reached harvest season, stretched out across the great plains.
After crossing the Boleron Plains, the largest granary in the western part of the continent, for a long time, a large fortress came into view beyond the horizon. As it was a territory that managed the entire southwestern coastal border, the magnificent military fortress was well-maintained.
—Clatter, clatter.
Felmier rode his horse for a long time.
Since that mercenary brat would be in charge of teaching magic for the time being anyway, he had no role.
It was just a brief deviation anyway. Since things had turned out this way, he had stopped by the Belmeade territory to take care of some overdue work and to meet the Count to report on the recent situation.
Unlike when he was riding through the farmlands, the atmosphere began to turn grim once he got near the fortress.
Along the ridge that followed the southern coastline, there were watchtowers, and once the large mountains began to appear in earnest, one could see flagpoles lined up along the roadside, and soldiers patrolling with long weapons in their hands and bored expressions on their faces.
As he rode his horse into the entrance of the fortress, the soldiers in formation were about to stop him, but then they didn't.
—Neigh! Neigh!
—Tap
As he headed towards the spire in the deepest part of the fortress, he saw a man looking down at the soldiers who were engrossed in a parade drill for the festival.
He looked quite young for his position. The fine wrinkles told that the years he had spent were not short, but compared to the nobles of other territories, his eyes were still full of life. His broad shoulders and sturdy physique proved that he was still on active duty.
He was the master of this territory, Count Tristan Anelt Belmeade.
He was a man whose name was so renowned in the western part of the empire that even the heads of the county houses in the capital would bow their heads and show respect to this margrave.
"Oh, Felmier! You've returned from Ebelstein!"
"Have you been well, Your Excellency the Count? I thought you were at the county estate, but you are out here at the fortress."
"Am I a man to be cooped up in a corner of a room playing with a quill pen? I have to move my body sometimes too."
Count Belmeade was a man of generous character who cared for his subordinates, but he was also a man born with charisma, as befitting a former soldier. He was a typical figure who took good care of his own people while thoroughly punishing those who were hostile to him.
"It has been too long since I have seen my daughter Elente's face. When I lived with that treasure by my side, laughter never ceased. Is she doing well in Ebelstein?"
"Yes, of course. She has been taking on many challenges lately, saying she wants to focus more on her magic training."
Felmier hesitated for a moment, then decided to hold off on reporting about the mercenary named Derek for now. He just explained it vaguely.
He couldn't tell how the Count would react to the fact that Lady Elente was learning magic from a mere mercenary. Felmier considered Elente's eccentric behavior of learning magic from Derek to be nothing more than a temporary deviation.
In the first place, the main reason Lady Elente had hired such a mercenary was because of her competitive spirit towards Lady Aiseline, and it was also a shame for him that he was taking a break from magic lessons after being pushed aside by such a commoner.
"That is a relief. I have a matter to visit Ebelstein for regarding the tariff issue of the southwestern trade route. I was thinking of sending a letter in advance through the high-ranking vassals of the county estate, but since Felmier has come in person, there is no need for that."
"I-is that so?"
However, as if to mock Felmier's discretion, Count Belmeade was preparing to visit Ebelstein soon.
It was not so strange for a high-ranking noble of the southwest to visit Ebelstein from time to time, but it was rare for them to visit so suddenly.
"No, maybe I don't need to tell her at all. It wouldn't be bad to give my treasure, Elente, a surprise gift sometimes. There's no need to inform her separately. However, just help me think about what gift to bring."
"Still, I think it would be better to tell her in advance... I think Lady Elente would be very happy."
"I also want to check if Elente is adapting well to the mansion life in a foreign land. That's what a father's worry is all about, isn't it?"
Count Belmeade had visited the noble district of Ebelstein a few times.
On the surface, it looked like a splendid and aristocratic paradise on earth, but if you went one layer deeper, you could easily feel how much of a war of nerves was exchanged between them.
It was hard not to worry after sending his daughter to such a place. He would send various gifts, support items, and competent vassals to help his daughter's life whenever he had time, but a parent's heart did not feel like it had fulfilled its duty with just that.
Elente, who would come to the county estate with a bright face and tell him about what had happened in Ebelstein, seemed to have no worries.
But Count Belmeade already knew well that his daughter was mature. It was not impossible that she was putting on a bright face with difficulty so that Count Belmeade would not worry about her living in a foreign land.
From Count Belmeade's point of view, he could not help but worry. It was because he knew that although she had long been an adult in terms of reason, there were still too many parts of her that were like a child in terms of emotion.
If the Grand Duke of Duplein was a solemn and weighty head of the family, Count Belmeade was a generous and straightforward person. He was a man who became a fool when it came to his daughter, thinking nothing of adjusting his schedule a little if it was to check on his daughter's condition.
"Since it has come to this, let's move up the schedule. You, Felmier, will accompany me on the day I head to Ebelstein."
"...W-would that be alright?"
Felmier could not help but make a troubled expression.
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『Time is like a shot arrow, Derek.』
The first line of the letter sent by his master, Katia, began like that.
Derek quite liked the expression that time was like a shot arrow.
Just as an arrow that has left the bowstring goes straight forward, time goes straight forward without ever turning back. And when he came to his senses and saw that a day, a season, a year had passed, that expression seemed to summarize his life.
The feeling he had while teaching Lady Elente was quite similar. By the time he came to his senses, a little over a fortnight had already passed.
Derek had said he would make her able to beat Lady Aiseline, but in the end, the most important thing was her own will. And as for whether she had handled Derek's lessons well, that was something to be seen.
—Clatter, clatter.
As he sat leaning the back of his head against the wall of the shaking carriage and quietly read the letter, the sight of Lady Elente lying sprawled in the corner of his vision came into view.
It was not the noble carriage she usually rode in, but this shabby carriage that mercenaries rode in, and it was full of dirt and dust.
Inside this old and shabby carriage, a place a person of the rank of a count's young lady would have no connection with in her entire life.
Wearing a robe over light and comfortable clothes, not the frilled dress she always wore.
In a state so broken that passersby would wonder if this girl was really a noble, the girl was lying down, letting out exhausted, empty breaths. In fact, the fact that she was a noble was being kept strictly secret.
Derek glanced at that Lady Elente, then turned his eyes back to the letter.
『It feels like it's been almost two years since I left Ebelstein, my contact was too late. After coming to this Elbester territory, I had a pile of work to do, so I feel like I finally have some leisure. The young lady of the County of Freya, whom I am personally in charge of, has a higher passion for learning than I thought, so I think I've been living with my mind focused only on teaching magic for a while.』
『Lately, after getting some leisure and thinking about it, it seems that the days when I wandered the tavern street of Ebelstein and taught you magic were a bit more free. At that time, I couldn't live as affluently as I do now, but I could go wherever I wanted.』
"Your expression looks like you're reading a love letter or something."
"Are you awake?"
"Wh-what are you talking about? I've been awake the whole time."
Elente was trying to maintain her pride, but she could not get up. It was understandable.
For the past fortnight, Derek had been taking Lady Elente around and exploring the labyrinths on the outskirts of Ebelstein. It was not an experience that could be recommended to a noble young lady, even in jest.
The labyrinth, which was the source of the magical beasts, was a place where even veteran adventurers had to be fully prepared to enter the deepest parts.
Although the place Derek had taken her was only a little deeper than the entrance, Elente had to feel a fear similar to death just from the experience there alone.
Of course, since he could not handle the aftermath if there was a real casualty, Derek had brought along Jayden, a much more veteran mercenary than himself, and just in case, Felinne also had to enter and exit the labyrinth with them. Derek alone could have explored the entrance of the labyrinth without any major accidents, but he had taken precautions just in case of any possibilities.
Nevertheless, what Elente saw during that fortnight was hell itself.
'...'
In fact, the method to make Elente a master of real combat was simple. All he had to do was give her real combat experience.
What Derek wanted to instill in Elente was the raw scenery of that grim battlefield that young ladies in their chambers would never experience in their lifetime.
Simply killing a few magical beasts that appeared on the outskirts of Ebelstein was completely different from jumping into the labyrinth, which was the source of those magical beasts, and slaughtering them.
A grim scene where blood was splattered, and axes and swords flew.
No matter how many layers of protective magic she had wrapped around herself before leaving the mansion, a person's eyes were bound to tremble when they witnessed the desperation of that nauseating scene firsthand. That was a different matter from whether Elente's own safety was guaranteed.
In the end, what Derek was trying to develop was Elente's 'eyes.'
To be precise, the breadth of her vision.
The vast difference she had felt in the duel between Elente and Derek stemmed from that vision.
To Derek's eyes, which had stood firm in all sorts of desperate battles, this dueling ground, where everything was perfectly equipped and where one had to mind things like dignity, was nothing more than a sandbox where children played.
When a person experienced a world of a larger scale, they often accomplished the achievements of the realm below it in an instant.
A person who could run 1000 meters could naturally run about 100 meters. Of course, the things to be aware of when running 100 meters might be subtly different, but the fundamentals would have been automatically acquired long ago. That was the difference between Derek and Elente.
However, naturally acquiring the fundamentals that looked easy on the surface was never an easy task.
The process of acquiring it was not something that elegant noble young ladies could handle.
That was why he had asked Elente several times, and checked again. If she was prepared.
On the first day, Elente had vomited after seeing the blood-splattered scenery inside the labyrinth. She had touched the wall with her trembling fingertips, but she had been aghast after seeing the pus stuck there.
It was the same on the second day, and the same on the third day. She could not do anything for a full three days.
For a noble young lady who had lived her entire life in a mansion full of elegant works of art, walking through that blood-drenched scene would have been nothing more and nothing less than hell. In fact, it was close to shock therapy.
Nevertheless, Elente did not give up. In fact, it was closer to the fact that she could not give up now.
By the fourth day, she was able to attack the magical beasts by gritting her teeth and using magic, and on the fifth day, she killed a magical beast for the first time.
The sight of Elente looking at the dark blue blood with her trembling hands was impressive. She was a noble young lady, but she had become a person who finally understood how a mercenary at the very bottom killed a magical beast.
Five days, six days passed... she gradually showed signs of adapting, but on the seventh day, she had to swallow back her welling tears again after seeing a huge minotaur that appeared in the labyrinth.
Felinne, seeing her, a noble, break down like this, laughed her head off in the tavern for a long time after the job was over. She acted like a mature mercenary in front of Elente, but inwardly, she seemed truly happy to see the nobles break down.
Even in the midst of that, Elente steadily did not give up, and every morning, she would wait for Derek, then put on her robe and leave the mansion. She did not even allow her servants to accompany her, and so she mixed in with the tavern street and learned what a real bottom-of-the-barrel battlefield was.
And so, by now, Elente had become a person who could overcome the entrance of the labyrinth, more or less.
Of course, if she fought all day, she would be exhausted and worn out.
"Lady Elente. Here's some water."
"Th-thank you... you are very kind..."
When Felinne, who was in a corner of the carriage, smiled with the most gentle expression in the world and handed her cold water, Elente quickly took the water and drank it.
Perhaps it was fun to see Elente looking so exhausted, as Felinne laughed with a "uhut." To someone who didn't know, she might look like a kind girl, but since Derek knew her inner self well, he was just clicking his tongue.
Derek turned his gaze back to the letter.
『How far has your magical achievement come? Perhaps because I am a master, such thoughts come to me from time to time. No matter what anyone says, you were the most talented mage among those I have seen in my entire life. As a master who teaches magic, there would be many who would covet a disciple like you.』
『It's unlikely, but have you learned a higher star-rank of magic? That might be too much of a guess, but I felt that you might be able to do it. The young lady of the County of Freya has recently become able to handle 1-Star magic completely maturely. Seeing her happy, I was reminded of your childhood, and my heart felt warm.』
『If we have a chance to meet again, please show me your magic then. I will contact you if I have a chance to visit the western part of the empire in the future. Your old master, Katia Flameheart.』
Master. I, too, am spending my life teaching someone, just like you.
Derek, with that monologue, quietly put away the letter and was lost in thought.
Teaching and leading someone was, of course, a rewarding job in its own way, and surprisingly, it was also having a positive effect on Derek's own magical achievements.
Simply ruminating on what he already knew was a great help, and sometimes, when he tried to make his disciple handle magic more maturely, his own magic would also become mature.
He felt that he was devising more sophisticated ways to use the 1-Star spells, Ice Spear and Fire Arrow, while teaching Elente.
Was teaching someone also an act of teaching oneself?
At that unexpected realization, Derek felt like he knew why those who were magic masters were so obsessed with good disciples.
"Lady Elente."
Of course, it was not a situation where he could be having such a warm monologue.
"The duel is now two days away."
"..."
"How do you feel?"
Elente, who was lying sprawled on the carriage, was staring blankly at the swaying ceiling, then answered with difficulty.
"Certainly, as you said, Derek, I feel like I've gained a lot of unbelievable experience these past few days. I feel like my magic level has become more mature than before through endless training."
"..."
"Still... I don't know if I can win."
Lady Elente could not help but show a sign of anxiety.
Certainly, Derek was increasing Elente's magic proficiency at a rapid pace, but she could not be sure if she had become skilled enough to beat Aiseline.
At least, no one among the young ladies of the noble district would be able to be sure.
Still, the only thing Elente could do right now was to trust Derek completely. The duel was already close, and at least, the only master who understood Elente's inner self the best was Derek.
Elente lay sprawled and gasped for breath. Now it was the duel with Lady Aiseline.
Derek, who had started to close his eyes while leaning against the carriage wall, seemed to have no worries at all.
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"Lady Aiseline. It is time for your watercolor class."
A maid politely knocked on the door of Aiseline's private practice room.
However, no answer came from inside. She could feel a presence, but the fact that she did not answer meant she was concentrating.
The maid hesitated for a moment, but she could not make Aiseline late for her next schedule, so she decided to commit a discourtesy.
"Excuse me, I will open the door and come in."
As she opened the elegant wooden door, the inside was revealed with a creaking sound.
Inside, Lady Aiseline was blankly looking at the sky and chanting magic. There was a strange, eerie aura about her.
The maid, who had been serving Aiseline since she was a child, was about to raise her voice, but she was at a loss for words.
The bluish mana that filled the room, the jet-black hair that contrasted with it, swaying as if floating. The traces of that mana gathered in her brilliant eyes seemed to be a personification of the great sea.
Inside the room, several Scholastic School magic books were scattered about. For the room of Lady Aiseline, who usually kept her surroundings neat and tidy, it was rather messy. That was how much the girl was concentrating on the mana spread out in the room.
Her eyes seemed to be looking at something far beyond the ceiling.
It was the sky. The feast of sparkling mana spread out in the room seemed to be a personification of the starry sky.
The girl was a model student among model students who had read the Scholastic School magic books until she was sick of them.
The numerous sayings and theoretical insights of Adelbert, the great mage in history who was the godfather of the Scholastic School and who first defined the star-rank system of magic, were alive and breathing in her head.
It was a sight where the countless insights she had read over and over again were accepted as her own knowledge and finally manifested at her fingertips.
Adelbert, the first Scholastic School mage, was said to have devised the star-rank of magic by looking at the Big Dipper in the sky. It was the introduction of the biography of Adelbert that the girl had read when she was young.
The system of magic, regulated by the stars, had been wary of disorder and had emphasized the consistency of ordered theories. The magic he had systemized became the basis not only for the Scholastic School but for all magic.
Within that well-established rule, the flow of mana that appeared in the girl's eyes gathered and then expanded.
The mana of the girl, who was born of a good bloodline, had outstanding talent, and had steadily accumulated effort, finally manifested as the milky way of that starry sky.
—Fwoooosh!
Soon, the mana gathered in the girl's hand spread out into the room again, and the sound of a large orchestra's performance began to fill the room. It was Lady Aiseline's favorite symphony.
The sight of a large ensemble performance being heard inside a small training room was enough to make one doubt their eyes.
However, the magnificent sound seemed to continue for a little while... then it died down again with a sound that felt like it was withering away.
The girl seemed to feel a burden in utilizing mana of this scale yet. It was a magic she could not yet use completely.
"Hah... hah... I failed again."
Only the monologue of Lady Aiseline, who muttered so in a neat voice, remained in the quieted room.
The maid who was watching the scene could not help but have her eyes wide open.
What the girl had just implemented was the 2-Star Confusion-type magic 'Auditory Hallucination.' It was the 2-Star magic that a fourteen-year-old Derek had first taught himself.
"Oh my, the time has already come to this. I was distracted for a moment. It's not polite to be late, so I should go out quickly."
Only then did Lady Aiseline, who had noticed the maid had entered, get startled.
The maid could only stare at the sight of Lady Aiseline quickly tidying the hem of her dress and leaving the room.
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