Chapter 75
“My lord.”
“My lord!”
“...”
“My lord!”
“Huh? What?”
Stephan jolted in surprise.
His attendant had turned around and was shaking him by the shoulder.
“Are you all right, my lord? You have not said a word the entire time we have been in the carriage.”
“Ah, I am fine.”
Of course he was fine.
Stephan turned his head and looked out the window.
The carriage was already moving away from Herman Pascal’s mansion.
“When did the carriage start moving?”
“Thirty minutes ago, my lord.”
“Thirty minutes...”
He had no memory of those thirty minutes.
He did not even remember the dinner ending.
It felt as though Stephan’s mind were shrouded in a thick fog.
No sooner did that fog begin to clear than it tried to engulf him again.
That fog was composed of Herman Pascal’s words.
It was obvious that Herman had openly attempted to interfere.
Herman Pascal, the great merchant and widely respected businessman, would never have done such a thing under ordinary circumstances.
Had any of them ever shown the slightest interest in the east before?
Stephan thought and thought.
But this was not a problem he could solve merely by thinking about it.
“Where is the carriage going?”
“Where else would it be going but home?”
“Ah, yes. Of course...”
It had been an absurdly obvious question.
Why had he asked it?
Stephan questioned himself.
Deep down, he believed that he must not return home.
Then where should he go?
The destination was obvious.
“How are the horses?”
“They are in good condition.”
“Then do not go home. Let us head somewhere else.”
“Where, my lord?”
“To Valdrova Castle.”
“That will take several days. Are we going without making any preparations? We should pack clothes and send a letter ahead. Would it not be better to return home first?”
“Stop arguing and go.”
Seeing Stephan’s dazed expression, the attendant could not bring himself to protest further and instructed the coachman to change course.
The fog once again filled Stephan’s head.
For the moment, he simply walked through it.
The Far East.
What kind of place was the Far East?
From time to time, people dreaming of a gold rush had attempted to pioneer that undeveloped wasteland.
Every attempt had ended in failure.
It was only natural.
Demonic energy was a disaster that even immortals could not overcome.
How could ordinary humans possibly conquer it?
Like moths throwing themselves into a furnace, the outcome had always been obvious.
If that was the inevitable conclusion, then what exactly did Stephan believe in?
Is it because of the mana stones?
Stephan had caught the scent of opportunity in those mana stones and become obsessed with them.
But his father Herman had not.
Neither Tilda nor Merchant appeared particularly interested in them.
Had they sensed the same opportunity, they would have been desperate either to obstruct him or seize the stones for themselves.
Stephan asked himself,
Then am I the one who is wrong?
He wanted to believe in himself, but that was precisely how people were.
They became arrogant while believing themselves objective, only to fall.
Herman Pascal had always forced Stephan to witness the miserable ends of merchants who had done exactly that.
As a merchant who had seized immense wealth, and as a father, Herman had been giving Stephan advice.
Was he being arrogant?
Had he become so infatuated that Ferda merely appeared to be a savior?
Could Ferda be nothing more than another common swindler?
The thought that he might end up like all those who had died after arrogantly trusting themselves would not leave his mind.
Was he truly prepared to devote his entire life to Ferda?
He was afraid.
He was afraid that tolls would prevent him from ever leaving the Empire and that he would slowly wither away within its borders.
He needed something capable of making him forget that fear.
Alcohol?
Women?
Or perhaps...
“My lord!”
“Gah! You startled me! What? Why? What is it?!”
“We have arrived, my lord! Please come to your senses!”
“What? We have already reached Valdrova Castle? It has only been a few minutes.”
“What are you talking about? It took us four days.”
He had remained in a daze for four entire days.
He had been unable to wash properly, so his body reeked, and even his finest tunic was marred by yellow stains from sweat and grime.
Why did I come here?
He immediately realized that the question itself was wrong.
Had he not come here precisely to find the answer?
Stephan entered the inner castle and searched for Ferda.
He found him with Burnell, the senior researcher.
They appeared to have just finished a conversation.
“What is it?”
Ferda asked.
“Well, the thing is...”
What had he intended to say after coming all this way?
Only one sentence circled through Stephan’s mind.
I am withdrawing from this venture.
He could not trust himself.
He was afraid of becoming a penniless beggar, so he intended to cut his losses and walk away.
He was about to say exactly that, but Ferda spoke first.
“The timing is fortunate. I have some good news. Chancellor Bernard made Burnell a significant offer.”
Different words rose from Stephan’s throat.
“W-what kind of offer?”
“He offered Burnell the main stage at the exhibition in Halim two weeks from now.”
Stephan felt as though something had struck him hard across the head.
The fog dispersed, and a single beam of light poured through.
“Congratulations! The main stage at the Escholeia Exhibition is an enormous honor, is it not? At least, that is what I have heard!”
“Yes. It is the position every scholar considers an honor.”
Being recognized among those notoriously exacting scholars held tremendous significance.
Even merchants would take notice, and nine times out of ten, anything presented there could be turned into profit.
“We cannot simply let this pass without celebration! How about we eat and drink tonight?”
“Ha ha. I fear we may be celebrating before anything has even happened...”
“What does that matter? I will pay out of my own pocket and hold a grand banquet for you! Ha ha!”
Stephan laughed loudly.
His gestures were unusually exaggerated, but everyone assumed he was merely overwhelmed by the joyous news.
“Stephan.”
“Yes?”
“Were you not about to tell me something?”
At Ferda’s question, Stephan scratched his head and answered,
“Ah, that... I merely came to say that we should continue doing our best together! Ha ha!”
The fog that had filled Stephan’s mind was gone.
I will trust myself.
Even if I end up penniless.
I will move forward without regret.
***
One week later, Iorga and Valdrova officially proclaimed their alliance.
The entire Cerdes Continent was thrown into turmoil.
A guardian dragon and an evil dragon were as incompatible as water and oil.
They had exchanged opinions several times through the common ground provided by the Grand Council, but every discussion had ended without resolving their conflict.
Yet now the evil dragon and the guardian dragon had formed an alliance.
Suspicion spread that Iorga’s side must have misunderstood something.
Her official position was as follows:
—Although Valdrova caused the Second Calamity, her regent has demonstrated his intention to atone for the past and conquer the Demonic Lands. Therefore, I support his cause and have decided to join him.
On the surface, it was the most presentable justification possible.
Her support lent strength to the bold declaration of the young regent.
Even so, the prevailing opinion was that the conquest would fail.
—Blue Eyes may have declared its support, but...
—How could a mere human accomplish what everyone else failed to achieve through purification?
No one had approached the Demonic Lands since Godwin’s death.
Every person who had attempted to do so had died.
Nevertheless, a small number of people placed their hopes in Ferda’s ambition.
—Could the conquest of the Far East truly be possible?
—Reclaiming the beautiful lands of the Far East, which now exist only in historical records, would be a tremendous achievement.
Whatever the outcome, the wind had begun to blow.
For a lone sailboat drifting at sea, a wind from either direction was still a favorable wind.
Halim
Halim was known as a city of gambling and entertainment. Ferda had once stopped there to recruit Zed.
Now he was visiting again for the exhibition.
The difference was that Luri was not accompanying him this time.
There were already enough people around Ferda, and another Dragon Spawn had taken up residence in the inner castle.
Luri still held a small suspicion that Isabella had come to sabotage them.
There was no harm in having someone keep an eye on her, so Ferda left Luri behind.
As she saw him off, Luri gave him only one brief warning.
“Do not gamble.”
“Were we not short on funds? Gambling is perfect for drawing in money—”
“Do. Not. Gamble.”
Her silver eyes glared at him with murderous intent.
It looked as though a Magic Blast might erupt from them at any moment.
Seeing that made him feel rebellious.
What kind of expression would she make if he gambled away his entire fortune?
Unfortunately, he did not have two lives to spare, so he engraved her warning into his heart and departed for Halim.
Stephan had returned ahead of them, saying that he needed to prepare props for the main presentation. They had agreed to reunite in Halim.
Burnell spent the carriage journey organizing the contents of his presentation, unable to relax for even a moment.
Since it was such an important occasion, Ferda spared no support and created an environment where Burnell would not need to worry about anything else.
The others accompanying him were the knights Zed and Malcolm.
“Aaaah! I really am going to be all right, aren’t I? I am going to be fine, right?”
And Penelope.
She was crying out like a marmot standing in the middle of a field.
They had reached the entrance to Halim and were about to begin the entry procedures.
Only a single step remained before they entered the magic formation protecting the city.
“I told you it is fine, so let go of my arm, woman.”
Zed shoved Penelope’s head away, forcibly trying to peel her off him.
She clung to him tenaciously and refused to stop whining.
“I heard about this when I was in Hell! They said demons cannot enter Halim! They said your body melts if you try! My half-brother actually died that way!”
“No, I am telling you that you will be fine. That was just some bullshit they told you to scare you. Trust me and step inside.”
“I really will be fine, right? I am not going to die?”
Zed grew tired of answering and fell silent.
Instead, he seized Penelope, who had both arms wrapped tightly around him, and dragged her forward.
Penelope began wailing like a cat being pulled toward the water.
“Aaaah! What are you doing?! No, I do not want to die! I do not want to dieee! Ugh, my insides are turning—huh? Nothing happened?”
The moment she entered the magic formation, Penelope realized that there was nothing wrong with her.
Her tearful, sniveling expression disappeared, and she sprang upright as though the entire matter had been beneath her.
“Human magic formations are nothing special.”
Zed stared at her pathetically.
Everyone else did the same.
Was bringing her along a mistake?
Penelope possessed Sitri’s Life Vessel.
Ferda had brought her because he wanted to keep her somewhere visible, just in case.
Moreover, he did not yet fully trust her.
He had worried that traveling with a demon might cause a commotion, but that concern had been unfounded.
After absorbing Sitri’s Life Vessel, Penelope had gained a special ability.
Ordinary demon-detection magic could no longer identify her.
As long as she maintained human skin, she was practically indistinguishable from a human.
And she was the only one causing a commotion anyway.
Ferda had expected her to be frivolous and loud, but she had exceeded even those expectations.
She was like a storm.
The sort of person who caused incidents merely by standing still.
How had Sitri managed to lose his Life Vessel to someone like her?
Still, there must be something to her.
Everything happened for a reason.
Not wanting to overlook anything, Ferda asked Penelope,
“Tell me about your abilities. Since you are a descendant of Sitri, do you specialize in illusions?”
“Yes. I can use a few basic illusions and spells for deception.”
“An Arken Trickster, then.”
“Oh, that sounds impressive. Yes, that is exactly what I am.”
She nodded proudly, prompting Zed to snort.
“Arken Trickster, my ass. She is a troublemaker.”
“What did you say?!”
Her pale-pink eyes shot toward him.
Zed refused to back down and thrust his face closer to hers.
“Did I say anything wrong? Not a single day is peaceful when you are around.”
“That is not my fault! Who told you to catch that witch’s attention? This only happened because you go around picking up every woman you see!”
“You think I wanted that? I know perfectly well there are women you should never touch!”
The two shouted at each other.
Ferda left them to it and considered their respective abilities.
Penelope, the Arken Trickster, and Zed, the master thief.
“Whatever else may be said, the two of you seem well suited to each other.”
“Excuse me?”
“I do not want to be involved with a violent man like him, either. I prefer women. Beautiful women only! I want to suck the life force out of beautiful women until I lose all restraint!”
“You sucked my life force yesterday, so what are you talking about?”
“I have to eat too! Eat! I only consume the bare minimum required to remain in the mortal realm! That is also why I can stay in human form!”
They were unbearably loud.
Ferda decided to retract what he had said.
“Should you wish, I can find each of you a new partner.”
“Huh?”
Zed stared at Ferda in disbelief.
“With all due respect, please do not pair me with this brainless crybaby.”
“Is she not exactly the kind of woman you like?”
“You make me sound like I pick up anything lying around. I would rather not travel with a disaster whose very existence causes trouble.”
The two of them, who had been acting as though they wanted to tear each other apart only moments ago, suddenly wore strange expressions.
What was wrong with them?
“Ahem... I would prefer to maintain the current arrangement for now.”
“Why?”
“It is difficult to find another ruggedly handsome man this good at talking women into things...”
Penelope’s reason was understandable enough.
Ferda could not guess Zed’s.
“She drains my life force, and in exchange, she erases the memories of the women I seduce...”
Hearing that, Ferda realized that he had misunderstood them.
They are both equally awful.
They were a match made in heaven.
Neither should ever be released into the wild.
***
The Escholeia Exhibition was being held in a casino that had been rented out in its entirety.
It was one of the largest casinos even in the City of Entertainment and was suitable for accommodating the many nobles, merchants, and scholars attending.
When Ferda arrived, it was the first day of the exhibition, just as preparations for the opening were nearing completion.
“Oh, Regent! Did you arrive safely?”
Stephan, who had been wandering nearby, approached Ferda and greeted him respectfully.
“I did. And you?”
“I have been well enough. We also completed the exhibition booth according to plan. Would you like to see it?”
“That is why I came, is it not?”
Stephan guided Ferda onward.
As they walked, Ferda took a general look at how the exhibition operated.
The scholars displayed their creations in booths, allowing merchants and nobles to pass through and examine each one.
Every scholar participating in the exhibition burned with determination.
What researchers always lacked was money.
This exhibition was a crucial opportunity for them to continue their research careers.
The merchants and nobles attending the exhibition were the ones who could provide that money.
Should fortune favor them, Ferda himself might become one of their patrons.
Starting from the entrance, Ferda briefly inspected the scholars’ work.
Nothing particularly catches my interest.
Everything he saw existed only in theory or had little commercial value.
That was likely why those booths felt isolated on the outskirts.
However, as he moved toward the center of the exhibition, the booths gradually grew larger and the displayed items became more extravagant.
Some of them were even objects that would become useful in the future.
Burnell’s booth stood near the center.
Built with the support of the Pascal Trading Company, Burnell’s booth was as impressive as the large booths sponsored by other businesses.
“What do you think?”
“It is well made.”
“Is it not? We brought in our decoration specialists to build it. Ha ha.”
The conspicuous booth would attract plenty of attention.
The structure was ready, but nothing had yet been put on display.
They were waiting because Ferda’s group had agreed to bring the exhibition items themselves.
“By the way, where are the mana stones we are supposed to prepare?”
“It seems Burnell has them. Where did he go?”
“I think he went to the accommodations first.”
“Without saying anything?”
Burnell had barely slept for several days.
Perhaps he had gone to rest before appearing on the main stage.
Ferda had remained close to him throughout the preparations and knew just how hard Burnell had worked.
“I will go retrieve them.”
“No, I will go.”
Ferda had nothing else to do, so he decided to go himself.
Despite Stephan’s attempts to stop him, Ferda continued toward the accommodations.
Contrary to his expectation that Burnell would be lying unconscious in his room, Ferda found him in the corridor leading toward the lodging area.
Chancellor Bernard, the organizer of the exhibition, was there as well.
The two were in the middle of a conversation, and Ferda overheard them.
“Burnell Marquis.”
Chancellor Bernard looked at Burnell and said,
“I cannot begin to express how disappointed I am in you.”