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nChapter 61: Solution (2)

nThe main building of the Imperial Knights, the ones who claimed to be the best on the continent.

n“… After three days of tracking…”

nAmong them was the ‘Round Table of Myths,’ a gathering of their most powerful knights that tackled only the highest-ranking agendas.

n“It is presumed that Rohakan has already escaped the continent.”

nThe atmosphere at the round table today was heavily subdued.

nIt was because the operation to arrest Rohakan, which they had painstakingly devoted themselves to, had officially failed.

n“Of course, we have requested cooperation from the local knights and the police. Hence, we can rest assured that the investigation will be carried out steadily.”

nLawaine, Knight of the Sacred Heart, was the one reporting.

nThirteen high-ranking knights, including Deputy Commander Isaac, listened to him at the round table, while the rest of the members listened to him from the surrounding seats.

n“Write a report to Her Majesty—”

nAt that moment…

nKieeeek—

nThe door to the conference room swung open, and a firm voice came in.

n“I don’t need a report or anything of the sort.”

nEveryone’s eyes widened.

nA number of knights entered from the other side of the conference room. They lined up side by side to make a path as a blazing aura flashed between them.

n“The shadow of the Intelligence Agency is more accurate than your information, after all…”

nThe current emperor of the empire, Sophien Ekater von Jaegus Gifrein.

nHer kingly brilliance made her truly appear like the sun.

n───Your Majesty the Emperor!

nThe entire knights fell to their knees, regardless of rank.

nTheir ruler frowned as if their shouts were rather too loud.

nTap— tap—

nShe walked majestically and sat down on the perimeter.

n“I will watch your meetings in person. Rohakan is the enemy of the late emperor, so I can do this, right?”

nHer words came as an electrifying shock to them.

nLawaine looked at Isaac nervously, but he motioned with his chin to continue anyway.

n“… Yes. Rohakan left no trace while escaping, but before he could, he got caught up in a magical battle with Deculein.”

nLawaine presented the record. It was a crystal ball that contained Deculein and Rohakan’s magic battle.

nWhoooosh…

nWhen he injected magic into the crystal ball, a harsh landscape appeared.

n“What’s that?”

n“Isn’t there a misunderstanding?”

n“How can this be Deculein’s…”

nThe people in the room were buzzing.

nThe land they saw had been turned upside down. All vegetation in the area had been destroyed, and the ground itself had been torn apart so much it left no steady footing.

n“Did Deculein and Rohakan cause this?” Even Sophien was surprised by what she saw.

nLawayne replied with his head bowed. “Yes.”

n“Are you sure?”

n“Yes. The Magic Tower has already completed the analysis and verification. They detected blood from Deculein and Rohakan.”

n… It was useless, but Deculein’s Aesthetic Sense also played a role in its ‘terraforming.’

nThat made it possible for him to completely manipulate his environment not only to enhance its beauty but also to make it look like a battlefield.

n“Then, the only one who gained an achievement relevant to this issue was Deculein?”

nIsaac didn’t answer quickly.

nIf Rohakan only excelled in magic, there would’ve been no plausible reason for the empire not to catch him. However, Rohakan was a person with the spirit of a wizard and the body of a knight.

nRohakan was too strong even for Isaac, making it even more difficult to accept Deculein’s achievements.

nJudging from the aftermath of their battle alone, they could easily deduce they were well-matched.

n“Hey. If you have a mouth, speak. How will I understand your position if you don’t explain yourselves after you let the enemy of the empire escape?”

nSophien’s tone was more of disdain than of anger.

nThe knights bowed their heads in silence. Isaac took the initiative to reply.

n“… Deculein was defeated, so I can’t really say he achieved anything. The only reason he didn’t die is probably purely because of Rohakan’s mercy. They had a master-disciple relationship in the past—”

n“I see you only talk to make excuses.”

nSophien twisted her lips.

n“A man who killed his close friend’s wife showed mercy on Deculein only because of his memories as his teacher? Rohakan only taught Deculein for three months. I even heard that he immediately ran away the moment he was given a half year’s worth of payment.”

n“…”

n“Enough. From now on, it would be more efficient to leave Rohakan’s death to Deculein than you. I don’t think there’s more information worth listening to here.”

nThe emperor stood up and left without looking back. The knights of the Imperial Palace followed her.

n“…”

nThe round table, hit by a storm of typhoons, became a desolate wasteland.

nIsaac fell silently in thought, and Lawaine recalled Deculein’s arrogant voice.

n‘You’ll all just be a burden. I’m telling you to piss off nicely.’

n“… At first, I thought he ran away out of sheer fear of Rohakan.” Lawaine frowned, causing Isaac to look at him.

n“But… often, when you think you know someone, it turns out you don’t.”

nThe great man named Deculein was also famous among the Knights Templar. When Julie was still a member of it, it was Deculein who tormented its innocent newcomers.

n“… It may have been that Deculein was hiding his skills, or maybe he’s always been like that, but we underestimated him. However…” Isaac clenched his fists. “A more certain fact is that we weren’t strong enough.”

nToday, he promised again.

nRohakan.

nSomeday, he would definitely hunt that dark beast down.

n“Anyway, this report seems to need revision.”

nAt that moment, a shrill voice rang out. It was the empire’s genius knight ‘Rose.’ A document fell gently on the round table, titled Personnel File ─ Deculein.

nIsaac laughed when he saw a specific passage.

nCombat Power Expectations: Level 5

n“If this guy is level 5…”

nEven Adrienne said that Deculein was a tier below her. Of course, at the time, he dismissed it as bull**, but now, he could agree with her.

n“Damn Intelligence bastards.”

nThe Imperial Intelligence Agency was the one that distributed documents like this, but this happened sometimes.

nThey senselessly triggered the Imperial Knights’ competitive spirit and provided clearly wrong information with the intent to screw with them.

nIsaac immediately picked up his pen and corrected it.

nCombat Power Expectations: Level 1

nConsidering the likes of Adrienne, Rohakan, Zeit, and Demakan were ranked 0 in terms of combat power since they were impossible to measure, Deculein should be at least this level.

n“Send this report to the Intelligence Agency directly. Those dirty bastards have been playing their shallow tricks too often lately…”

n* * *

nThere were no clouds in the Isle of Wizard’s Wealth sky, a floating island, and the weather was often clear due to how close it was to the sun. Thanks to that, open-air views became beautiful and colorful, but the people passing by weren’t as colorful or diverse.

nThey were all just wizards in robes.

n“Are you talking about the Symposium problem number six?”

n“Yes.”

nI arrived at the Atomic Wizard headquarters near Megiseon.

n“Monarch rank Deculein. I checked your thesis.”

nI submitted my thesis with confidence, but the response from the person in charge was lukewarm, probably because dozens of fanatics challenged the problem every day.

n“Since you’re ranked Monarch, the inspection should be quick.”

nThat was it.

nThe manager just kept typing without saying anything, and I went out right away.

nI wasn’t expecting a reaction like ”Huuuuh?! Question Six?!’ anyway.

n“…?”

nAs I was about to return to the mansion, I noticed a familiar figure in one of the magic stores here.

nI went in and put my hand on her small head.

n“Aaah! What the **!”

nFor a moment, Yeriel’s body shook like a tornado, then looked back as if she was about to punch me. Her reaction surprised even me.

n“What kind of pervert…?”

nShe looked up at me and abruptly stopped talking.

nSoon, Yeriel’s face distorted as I shook my head.

n“You have such a beautiful vocabulary.”

n“… What?! You suddenly touched my hair! Don’t touch my hair… please.”

nYeriel fixed her messy hair with both hands.

nI smiled and asked. “What are you doing here?”

n“I’m a wizard too. If I want to come here, I can.”

nYeriel muttered and glanced at me. I checked the item she had just seen.

nIt was an advanced magic book.

n“Why don’t you buy it?”

n“… I can’t buy it.”

n“Why?”

n“Because of my rank.”

nThere were purchase restrictions on the Isle of Wizard’s Wealth. Yeriel, a Solda-ranked wizard that didn’t even graduate from the Tower, couldn’t buy an item as advanced as the book she was holding.

n“… Right.”

nI bought the magic book myself, which was quite expensive at 50,000 Elnes, but I just gave it to Yeriel.

n“Take it.”

n“… Really?”

n“Yes.”

n“… Can I learn magic?” Yeriel asked for affirmation. I thought I knew why.

nThe former Deculein was probably afraid that Yeriel might overtake him, which made him prevent her from studying it.

n“Yes. You should learn how to protect yourself now.”

nI wasn’t as narrow-minded as he was, and, above all, Deculein had a lot of enemies.

nThey might take her hostage.

n“O-Okay. Well, My self-defense skill level is also….”

n“Oh, right. Yeriel. I have something for you.”

nI handed Yeriel a thick bundle of documents. It was the edited thesis.

n“This is the thesis gift I promised you the other day.”

n“Huh? Oh~ that?”

nA wizard who resembled Allen, Panien.

n“What is that wizard doing these days?”

n“… He must be dejected.”

nYeriel shrugged.

n“Dejected?”

n“You took his thesis, so he’s near giving up.”

n“What do you mean?”

n“Weren’t you trying to steal his thesis? I didn’t hear anything about it since.”

nI frowned. “I just corrected some things. Give it back after you’re done with it.”

n“… Huh? really?”

n“Yes.”

nYeriel looked at me with surprise, almost as if thinking if she should believe me or not. Nevertheless, she nodded and put it in her bag.

n“Where are you going now?”

n“I’m going to the Tower to prepare the class.”

n“Prepare the class?”

n“Yes.”

nThe Ashes’ Baron would soon arrive.

nI planned to hold as many practical classes as possible to ensure the students would be able to defend against him.

n* * *

nLouina was aware of her plight of being abandoned in an instant.

nIn the past, the tenured professors of the Imperial University Tower treated her nicely, saying that she was Deculein’s rival, but now she was here with her head down.

nThey ignored her as if nothing had happened.

nShe could understand that.

nDeculein defeated her.

nHowever…

n“This is too much.”

nShe was assigned to an office on the 23rd floor.

nIt wasn’t too far from the ground floor, and she could still run into regular wizards in the elevator.

nIt was a room more suitable for a newcomer who had just been hired as a full-time professor.

n“Sigh…”

nShe knew, though.

nThis wasn’t the only humiliation Deculein prepared.

nHowever, no matter what he did or what shame awaited her, he wouldn’t be able to break her any further.

nShe was ready to overcome it all.

nFive years wasn’t that long of a time.

nAbove all, in the contract, there was a clause stipulating that If Deculein became the chairman, he would do his best to make Louina the head professor.

n“There’s… no toilet in the office.”

nLouina laughed.

nThere was no toilet in the office. There was no toilet in the office…

nShe went outside to wash her face.

n“Oh?”

nShe ran into a professor.

nIt was Ciare.

nUnlike her, who rebelled against Deculein until the end, Ciare sucked up to Deculein in the beginning but later tried to stick to her like a bat when she rose to prominence.

n“Professor Louina. Your office is on the 23rd floor?”

nShe already started saying things that got to her nerves.

n“…Yes. This kind of experience is also very important. It’s fun.” Louina smiled brightly.

nCiare nodded, looking like she was holding her laughter back.

n“Yes~ Then, good luck~ Enjoy your experience. Climbing up from the bottom will be fun, as you said.”

nAs she left, Louina heard a chuckle. As soon as she entered the bathroom, she washed her face with cold water.

n“So annoying… It feels like it was just yesterday when she came to me asking for help.”

nSighing, she wiped her face and returned to her office, where her narrow desk, too small to put even just three magic books on, awaited her.

nHowever, before she could start working…

nKnock. knock—

nThe door opened without her permission.

n“Professor Louina. A parcel has arrived for you.”

n“…”

nShe didn’t even tell him to leave it, but he put it on her desk and left anyway.

nSuch inhospitality was unimaginable in the kingdom. Louina forcefully suppressed the tears that were about to burst out.

n“Get used to it. Get used to it…”

nShe opened the package with the words Question Six Answer written on it.

n“Oh~ is this from Deculein?” Louina laughed.

nQuestion Six of the Symposium. Runic magic in ancient inscriptions.

nShe was almost worried about why he took the challenge.

nFirst, to solve problem six, the interpretation of its runes needed to be preceded. Although nothing is known about them, I inferred their meanings and formed combinations using my own interpretation system.

nThe first page was filled with an introduction.

nAmong the runes of the inscription, there were only three that could serve as a circuit. As a result of combining the runes based on it, the following formula could be implemented.

nFrom then on, its formula started.

nIt was like an alien script that couldn’t be described with letters or by type.

nLouina put on her glasses and read the answer sheet.

nThe judge’s job was to find out what was wrong. It was quite enjoyable, so a smile was already on Louina’s lips.

n“… Let’s see.”

nAt first, it was for fun and curiosity.

nBut one line.

nTwo lines.

nThree.

nFour…

nAs she read through it slowly, her expression hardened.

nInterpretation of runes.

nChange of thinking.

nFormula description.

nConnection of logic.

nComposition of the answer.

nDeculein’s solution seemingly collected and intertwined scattered pieces through a process that was as orderly and clear as his personality.

nIt was abnormally organized.

nIt had no theoretical loopholes at all.

nDeculein started inductive reasoning based on the idea that only three runes functioned as a circuit, but in the end, he came to the perfect conclusion for it deductively.

nHe even showed precision in verifying his answer in the form of a magic circle.

n“This…”

nLouina felt a headache pierce her temple.

nBefore examining the contents of the answer, certain nausea arose.

n‘I am not the Deculein you once knew.’

nDeculein’s abominable voice came to mind.

nIt couldn’t be.

nThis couldn’t be his answer.

nThere was no way he did this himself.

nHe couldn’t have written this thesis.

n“Wait, wait…”

nLouina took a deep breath and ruffled her hair. Something hot was boiling inside her.

nShe felt dizzy.

nThe world around her seemed to spin.

n“Deculein, this idea was not yours…”

nThis was not Deculein’s achievement.

nIf so, whose achievement was it?

nWho the hell gave this achievement to Deculein?

nIt was a lie that would be revealed in the ‘place of proof’ anyway, so why?

nAt that question, Deculein’s voice came to her mind again.

nAs if telling her that this was the answer.

n‘I am not the Deculein you once knew.’

n“Shut up!” Louina grabbed the answer sheet tightly. When it came to theoretical matters, Deculein had never surpassed her. Even with ‘his’ help, he was still far behind her.

n“… This doesn’t make sense. How can you think of this… You? You?! How…!”

nThe fire within her raged even stronger.

nIt was the first time she had ever felt this way, and she never thought she would feel it because of Deculein.

n“This is a lie that will be revealed sooner or later anyway, but why the hell…!”

nDenying her feelings of inferiority and jealousy, Louina only thought about Deculein’s intentions. She thought about the place of proof because this wasn’t his answer. She thought of a way to verify him thoroughly.

n“Wait for it. This time, it won’t go your way.”

nLouina’s day has reached its worst.

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