Chapter 116

Face-to-Face

“What is the final stage?”

The man in the refined linen shirt and vest spoke more gently than before.
The way he had addressed Isaac in the common tongue—once dismissive—had shifted to something polite.
It was a sign that he now acknowledged Isaac as a scholar.

“I think it’s better to show you the final stage rather than explain it.”

Isaac glanced at Enette.
She nodded.

Fwoosh.

Flames quickly rose from her fingertips.

It was so natural that the audience couldn’t immediately grasp what was special about it.

“She lit a fire without an incantation?”

A few people realized it belatedly.
To cast magic without an incantation meant one could think in the ancient language.

The five stages of magical development Isaac had proposed—
for something he had said would demonstrate the final stage, it seemed rather modest.
At the very least, all the professors gathered here could perform basic magic without incantations.
They knew Enette was a talented mage, but this alone didn’t seem enough.

Under their puzzled gazes, Isaac smiled.

“You remember. This girl’s name is Enette. She hasn’t even been studying magic for half a year—and she doesn’t know the ancient language.”

The interior of the Hall of Magic stirred with noise.

“Did I hear that right?”
“She doesn’t know the ancient language? Then how—”
“What kind of nonsense is that? That’s not something you can learn in half a year.”

The claim was unbelievable.

“Let’s conclude the lecture here.”

Leaving their questions unanswered, Isaac exited the hall with Enette.
Countless eyes followed them—
wariness, admiration, hatred, jealousy, ridicule, confusion—all mixed together.

Yet no one spoke to Isaac.
Or rather, they couldn’t.

The students watched the professors.
The professors watched each other and the students.

Isaac’s theory shook the very foundation of traditional magic studies.
A careless question might invite hostility—or worse, undermine one’s authority or standing.

Thanks to that, Isaac left the hall without a single interruption.

Though one particular gaze lingered in his mind.

***

“C-can I sit down? My legs won’t hold me up…”

“Sit. You did well.”

Isaac patted Enette’s shoulder, her entire body drenched in cold sweat.

“I don’t think I can ever do that again…”

Staggering, she barely managed to sit in a chair.

Her face had turned pale.
Performing magic under the scrutiny of so many nobles was not something one could endure with ordinary mental strength.
Especially for a commoner who had never stood in such a place before.

These were people who might even hold power over her life and death.
The only reason she had managed to see it through was because she trusted Isaac.

“You’ll get used to it.”

“…Yes. Wait—there’ll be more of this?”
“Probably. Someday, you’ll have to do it on your own.”
“W-what do you mean by that?”
“Don’t worry. You’ll do fine.”

At Isaac’s ambiguous smile, Enette looked on the verge of tears.

***

“That was an excellent lecture!”

Marcel Reich burst into the dean’s office, visibly excited.

“Did you see their faces? Those arrogant fellows were gasping like farmed carp out of water. How did you come up with such a brilliant idea? That orthodox magic and imperial magic share the same foundation! I never imagined such a sophisticated joke!”

“It’s not a joke.”

“…Hmm?”

“Why do you think I requested communication devices, Dean?”

Isaac took a communication device from Enette and handed another from his own pocket to Reich.
It was a palm-sized metal pendant.
Despite its small size, dozens of rune characters, fragments of mana stones, and various minerals that enhanced or disrupted mana flow were intricately embedded within it.

“Well, to avoid mistakes during the lecture, I assumed?”

Reich accepted it.
While long-distance communication was still impossible with current magitech, short-range communication had been achieved—
even miniaturized enough to be portable.

“No. Enette truly cannot read or write either the ancient language or the common tongue. Of course, she’s learning.”

“You don’t have to keep that up in front of me.”

“Enette received my instructions through the communication device and simply repeated the ancient words I pronounced.”

“There’s no need to pretend. Others might believe it, but I’ve already seen Miss Enette’s performance at Goethe’s competition. Do you think I’d fall for that?”

“The final stage of magical development means an era where magic can be used without knowing the ancient language.”

“That’s going too far.”

Reich let out a faint laugh.

Then he looked at Enette.

She looked utterly uncomfortable.

“…Is that true?”

“…Yes.”

Enette barely managed to nod.

“Really…?”

Reich blinked.
Instead of answering, Enette nodded again.

He looked back at Isaac.
Then at Enette again.

“No, no—wait a moment… I heard something similar at Goethe before, but… is that even possible? It can’t be. There’s no way. That’s impossible. This joke is going too far, Baron Vinfelt.”

Reich muttered to himself.

Just moments ago, he had found it amusing watching the professors in the Hall of Magic fall into shock.
But now, that same shock was hitting him directly.

It felt as though the very world he had believed in his entire life was being shaken.

“You’re saying she performed that magic without knowing the ancient language?”

“Whether you accept it or not is up to you, Dean. In a world where magic swords exist, is using magic without the ancient language really that surprising?”

Isaac shrugged lightly.

“Don’t be ridiculous. Knights and mages… they are fundamentally different. Knights train their bodies and senses endlessly without the ancient language… train and train… to manifest aura…”

“If knights can manifest aura by refining their senses, why can’t mages do the same? In primitive magic, originally—”

“Wait, wait. That’s enough.”

Reich frowned deeply, clutching his throbbing head.
After several deep breaths, he spoke again.

“I… didn’t come here to discuss that. I asked you to give a lecture… because someone wished to see you.”

Reich’s gaze shifted past Isaac.

“…Pardon?”

“That’s enough, Marcel. You’ve done well.”

A man was standing at the entrance of the dean’s office.

Reich gave him a slight bow.

“Would you mind stepping out for a moment?”
“As you wish. Miss Enette, I’ll show you around.”

At Reich’s words, Enette looked at Isaac.

“Go with him.”

With Isaac’s permission, Enette followed Reich out of the office.

Click—

The heavy door shut, and silence settled in.

The man was the same one who had asked about the final stage of magical development.
Wearing a linen shirt, vest, and leather coat, his appearance gave no clue to his rank or age.

His face was ordinary—
no, more than that, it was indistinct.

The kind of face you’d forget after just a few steps if you passed him on the street.

“Were you satisfied with the lecture, Isaac von Vinfelt Goethe?”

“It received a better response than I deserved.”

Isaac scratched his cheek.

“So you’ve dropped the formal speech now?”
“That was only because, during the lecture, I acknowledged you as an instructor. But the lecture is over. I’m no longer a student, and you’re no longer a lecturer.”

“That’s reasonable.”

“Not as much as you. The five stages of magical development…”

The man brushed back his hair.

“Shall we sit and talk?”
“If you permit it.”
“Gladly.”

With a faint smile, the man took the seat of honor in the dean’s office.
Isaac sat opposite him.

“You seem to have some idea who I am.”
“I don’t. I can only guess. I do know, however, that your current appearance isn’t your true one.”

The man had black hair and dark brown eyes.
His jaw was blunt, his nose low, yet the lines of his face were oddly long and narrow.
At a glance, he was forgettable—but the more one looked, the more subtly unnatural he seemed.

“Understand this. I’m not exactly a free man. So even if you figure out who I am, pretend you don’t.”
“Then what should I call you?”
“Call me Johan.”
“A common name. Very well, Johan—why did you wish to see me?”
“Marcel made such a fuss that I became curious. It’s embarrassing to admit, but I’m no less knowledgeable in magical studies than the great scholars. But an artificial ring? Even if Marcel is eccentric, he’s not the type to lie and request astronomical research funds over something like that.”

“So you were the one who funded the artificial ring research.”
“It ended up that way. I had a bit of a dispute with the Blue Magic Tower Master. I wasn’t entirely convinced myself. If Marcel hadn’t sworn on his life, it wouldn’t have happened.”

Johan stared intently at Isaac.
Behind his relaxed demeanor lurked a sharpness, as if dissecting Isaac piece by piece.

“And recently, I heard you completed the design of the artificial ring. I still find it hard to believe, but with even the Tower Master and the elders acknowledging it, I couldn’t ignore it. So I asked Marcel—who was the one who first proposed that insane idea.”

“So you came to verify it.”
“Exactly. How could I believe it? Marcel praised some delinquent from the northern frontier as a heaven-sent genius. I thought my old mentor had finally lost his mind.”

“And after seeing me?”
“My impression… well, I found myself wondering—should I let you live, or should I kill you?”

Johan’s face hardened.

“Marcel’s evaluation of you was mostly correct. However, one thing—heaven-sent genius? No. Your talent is demonic. Magic without the ancient language… if my father had heard of this, you wouldn’t have lived. Even if today’s lecture ends up changing the Academy’s system, the result would be the same.”

“Fortunately, your father is gravely ill and has no capacity to hear such news. And the Academy won’t change from a single lecture. No one is willing to give up the privileges they already have.”

“You should study history. During the Reformation, the new faith claimed magic was not the exclusive power of chosen clergy, but a blessing granted to all. Do you know how many believers died for that one claim?”

“Do you know how bored I am right now, Johan?”

Isaac yawned as he replied.

“Hahaha!”

Johan burst into hearty laughter.
But the smile vanished just as quickly.

“The point is, everything you’re doing threatens the very foundation of the kingdom.”

“Do you really think a few words from a delinquent like me could shake the foundation of a kingdom?”

“The previous generation burned the royal capital, and now the next seeks to overturn the kingdom. Quite the family.”

“Isn’t that why you came personally?”
“…Yes.”

Johan sighed, frustration and lament mixed within it.

“I must be getting old. If I were younger, I wouldn’t have let you live.”
“That’s fortunate.”
“No matter how I look at you, you’re an unpleasant man.”
“I feel the same.”
“Still, what can we do? It seems neither of us has much of a choice. Baron—swear your loyalty to me.”

There was an innate authority in his voice.

Isaac smirked.

“I refuse.”

“Have you lost your mind!? Do you even know who you’re being insolent to!?”
“The First Prince, aren’t you?”

“And you still speak like that?”

“You’re truly insane. The things you said today, that insolent attitude—”

“If you’re going to keep calling me insane, I’ll be leaving now.”

Isaac turned his back on Reich and walked out of the Academy.

***

“What’s that?”
“It’s pretty.”

Carlson and Enette looked curiously at the ring Isaac was fiddling with.
It bore the emblem of a golden laurel crown.

It had been given to Isaac by the First Prince—
a symbol of royal protection, and also a mark that he had been chosen as the prince’s man.

Reich jumped in agitation.

“Then what are we supposed to do? Do you think His Highness can stop Botmer right now? Or mobilize troops to protect Goethe? The north is surrounded by the council faction, and you want to make yourself their target!?”

“Then what would you have me do?”
“…Even so…”
“Just pay me for the lecture. I have a long road ahead.”

“…Unbelievable lunatic.”

Reich handed over a pouch full of silver coins, sighing repeatedly.

“….”

“This? A pass.”

Thanks to the ring, Isaac’s journey back to the inn was smooth.
Whether it was a checkpoint of the council faction or the royalists, they immediately cleared the way for his group.