45 — 5 (5)

‘So this man is the Consul……’

Rik, Geurek’s young disciple, saw Louis for the first time. According to his master’s description he had expected a jaded middle-aged man, but to his surprise Louis was very young—so young he even seemed a year younger than Rik.

Yet when Louis entered, Rik felt his breath jam in his throat. The easy air from moments ago vanished, and tension wrapped around him.

‘W-what is this…? I can’t get a single word out.’

Rik’s vague resentment toward Louis brushed against Louis’s skill; without knowing it, Rik came under the Intimidation Effect and felt like dying.

‘Intimidation effect activated… who is it?’

Louis looked straight at Geurek, but Geurek’s expression was not one crushed beneath the Intimidation Effect.

There were only five people here including two soldiers, so it took less than a second to check every face, and Louis spotted Rik, whose expression was tight with discomfort.

‘So he’s resentful because his master dumped the burden on him.’

Finishing that quick inference, he figured he should ease the tension for the poor mage who looked about to suffocate.

“Consul.”

Geurek, along with Rik and Jerome, offered greetings at the same time.

“I called you here today to say that, along with Jerome’s magic test, the contract has been executed.”

“In that case….”

“Yes. As of today, that Forest Wurm belongs to Master Geurek. You may take it away with the laborers you brought.”

“I see.”

Geurek felt both bitter and eager—eager to finish his arcane magic as soon as possible. He wanted to get back to the lab even a little earlier, but to teach Second-Circle magic he had to remain in Proia for a month. A large sum hung on this contract; he could not cancel it.

Louis stepped up to Rik and asked,

“Your name?”

Louis asked lightly, but because of the Intimidation Effect, Rik shrank back as Louis drew near.

Just yesterday he had practiced a logical harangue thirty-six times so he could loudly call the man a fraud, but his mind had already gone blank.

Seeing his disciple like that, Geurek let out a snort.

‘See? I told you he isn’t the sort of noble you usually meet. Disciple, learn how wide the world is.’

Rik’s excessive flinching made him look like a herbivore facing a predator. In truth, even Geurek, who was smirking, had never been hit by this Intimidation skill himself, so he didn’t truly know the pain his disciple was feeling.

“R-Rik.”

Rik barely managed to speak, stammering—though he wasn’t normally a stutterer.

“You likely know who I am. In any case, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Even among mages, there were very few to whom one had to speak with honorifics. Though he held no formal title, Louis possessed money and power these men could not gain in a lifetime. The only people Louis needed to address formally were those leading schools within the Mage Tower.

Geurek looked ragged and led a weak school, but out of regard for mages’ courtesies, Louis used honorifics.

Louis knew a way to release the Intimidation Effect: a light touch to ease the other’s tension.

He didn’t know exactly why, but when Louis acted to relax someone, the Civilization System didn’t seem to regard that person as an enemy.

Louis tapped Rik’s shoulder a couple of times.

‘…Ugh….’

As Louis lightly touched his shoulder, Rik gradually caught his breath. Louis’s presence still loomed immense, but less than before, and Rik could now think properly.

‘…What tremendous charisma.’

He had heard of those loved by mana, but this was the first time Rik had seen such a person outside his textbooks.

“At any rate, take the specimen with you, and Master Geurek, please teach Jerome. Since the condition is the Second Circle, once you finish all Second-Circle instruction, we’ll consider the contract complete even if the month isn’t up.”

“Haha… you’re teasing me. As I said before, magic is not something learned so quickly. Since you’re here anyway, watch me teach Jerome once.”

Geurek delivered the lines he had prepared. He wanted to let Louis, who took magic lightly, grasp indirectly how great and difficult a discipline magic truly was.

The boy Jerome didn’t seem untalented, but even with shortcuts, in not one month but six straight months, it would be fortunate to master even half.

“Jerome.”

“Yes, Consul.”

Jerome’s face was still pale. Overwork had thinned his body and weakened his spirit.

Even so, he held no great complaint toward Louis.

Because Louis cared for Jerome’s family in proportion to Jerome’s labor. In a way, had Louis not chosen him that day as a junior administrator, he would have had a ninety-percent chance of starving to death with his younger siblings.

“As you’ve heard, this is the mage who will teach you for the next month.”

“An honor… Master.”

Geurek waved his hand. This was only a contract to him. Rik sufficed as his formal disciple, and if rumors spread that he had truly entered into a master-disciple relationship, it would be terribly troublesome.

“It’s a simple contractual relationship, so don’t call me Master. I signed a money-bound contract with the Consul. Even if you learn magic from me, you must never speak of who I am or what school I belong to.”

“Yes.”

“Since you’ve mastered the First Circle, let’s learn one thing right away.”

“Yes.”

Geurek glanced at the frozen pond nearby and spoke.

“You seem to handle Ice magic well, so I’ll teach you Ice Arrow.”

‘Ice Arrow? Why start with one of the toughest Second-Circle spells…?’

The moment Rik heard “Ice Arrow,” a question rose, but he soon understood his master’s intent. He knew Geurek meant to dent that high-and-mighty young lord’s pride, and he laughed inwardly. If Louis knew even a little magic, he’d realize how absurd it was, but like most nobles, Louis was surely ignorant of magic.

‘Maybe even a month is too generous.’

Forming several hand seals in quick succession, Geurek instantly created an Ice Arrow and shot it. The sharp blade pierced an innocent tree.

He then spent quite some time teaching Jerome how to manage mana.

Louis sat in a chair a soldier had brought and watched what they were doing.

Ten minutes passed, and after memorizing the mana-control method, Jerome began, awkwardly, to gather mana while fumbling with his fingers.

The target was, of course, the tree already pierced once, and just as the trembling hand seals neared completion, Geurek and Rik watched Jerome, full of expectation.

They wanted to see him collapse as his mana backlashed before he could finish.

But lo and behold—between Jerome’s two hands, a single blade was taking shape, and Geurek’s mouth fell open as he watched.

It was utterly beyond common sense; before he could finish thinking, the arrow flew and pierced the tree.

‘………………’

Geurek was struck speechless.

Rising from his chair, Louis clapped several times.

“Excellent, Jerome.”

“Thank you.”

“Then I’ll leave him in your care. I have business, so I’ll take my leave.”

Once Louis left, Geurek rushed madly to Jerome and felt him all over.

“W-what is this, Master? Have you taught him before?”

“No. Never.”

Staring at the pierced tree, Rik spoke.

“Then how…?”

“How long has it been since you started learning magic?”

“About… six months, Master Geurek.”

Geurek was shocked.

Six months… far, far too short.

“Don’t call me Geurek..! From now on, address me as Master.”

“Huh? You told me not to call you that earlier…”

“Ahem. From now on, Jerome, know that you are my disciple.”

“…..Understood.”

Rik cut in.

“Jerome, right? Have you ever learned the Second Circle before?”

“No. That was my first time just now.”

“Master, this fellow—”

“Yes—he’s a genius.”

A new goal sprang up for Geurek.

Back in his room, Geurek spoke to Rik.

“Disciple, starting tomorrow you’ll immediately begin the transport work, and I’ll do everything I can to persuade Jerome.”

Geurek felt happy just imagining what upheavals might occur if the genius entered his school.