206 – Host (3)
The next morning, I waited in the art department greenhouse.
Those who were confirmed to participate, including me, Lilith, Xenia, and Hayley, as well as several students who were selected as candidates, gathered together and held a meeting.
Under the direction of the executives, the meeting proceeded smoothly.
“This is the mission for the lower grades.”
Hayley unfolded the scroll and placed it on the table.
Lilith and I confirmed the mission.
[Location: Syntagma region, northwest of Eternia region]
[Mission Details: Uncover the truth about the disappearance of residents in the Syntagma area and retrieve the evidence. ]
Xenia added an explanation.
“We call this free service. The upper grades are monster-slaying missions, and the risks are much lower for you. “Eternia sometimes receives external requests like this and sends students to provide support for free.”
“Who is the leader?”
Hayley pointed to me and said.
“You are the new leader of the first and second year group.”
“That’s not possible. There are seniors with more experience than me.”
Hayley spoke clearly.
“This is what everyone in our art department agreed to. You’re skilled enough to beat even a second-year senior, right? We all saw it. You successfully completed your mission to escort the princess. In fact, the other kids also do their part. But it’s just too much. “The problem is that they are model students. They have never deviated from the given framework in their lives. That is not what we expect. I think you know roughly what I mean.”
“….”
“And the favela is also one of the important forces… Actually, I’m not sure whether to participate or not. “I rarely come to the art department these days.”
“Where is Mr. Favela now?”
“… It still hasn’t arrived. “
I checked the personnel again.
I see. Now I see that she hasn’t even attended the art department meeting.
Perhaps her sparring evaluation had some kind of influence on her.
Maybe we won’t have to meet again in the future.
Then, the greenhouse door suddenly opens.
Everyone’s eyes turned to the door due to the sudden visit.
There Fabella was standing with her hands folded.
This was the first time we met face to face since the sparring evaluation.
Xenia greeted with a nervous expression.
“It’s been a long time, Favela. “I thought she was quitting the art department.”
“It’s late… sorry.”
***
Eternia started the confrontation right away without giving us time to prepare.
Originally, the rule was to announce a week in advance, but a few years ago, cheating by having employees solve requests was discovered, so the rule was changed to announce the mission on the day the competition starts.
Because of that, we had to set off like we were being chased without even having time to do any research in advance.
The deadline given for the mission was four days. It will take half a day to travel to the Syntagma area, so excluding the round trip time, you will have about two days to properly investigate. The schedule was quite tight.
After several meetings, Metz, who specializes in alchemy and semiotics, was selected as the remaining first-year member of the art department.
For the second year, Fabella and Sierra from the Ministry of Magic and Tami from the Department of Magic took the lead. In fact, most of them only know their faces, so it wasn’t my choice. It was all decided by Hayley and Xenia.
Without even being able to test their teamwork, the art department group waited for the carriage they had called for to arrive at the main gate of Eternia.
Meanwhile, we made plans for the future.
“Does anyone know anything about the Syntegma area?”
Everyone in the group just looked at each other and said nothing.
Lilith belatedly opened the map of the Eternia region and said.
“I have no choice but to not know. Syntagma is not like a small town. “It is such a vast area that its area is equivalent to one administrative district of the empire.”
Fabella added there.
“If you investigate each item yourself… It will probably take several months. Location determination should also be treated as part of the mission.”
The notice did not specify in detail where the incident occurred.
We ran into problems right from the start.
Sierra, a second year student in the group, provided the answer to this question.
“There is one way. What I found out while touring the Magical Society is that most requests from around Eternia go to the Lidbed branch of the Magical Society. And only a select few of the numerous requests are transferred to Eternia.”
“Then, at the Magic Society….”
“Yes, of course the original request has been kept, and of course there will be a lot of records, including the location where the incident occurred.”
Carriages are arriving one after another near the main gate of Eternia. Students from other departments who were waiting like us began to leave one after another. When I saw that, my heart became anxious.
“First, let’s head to Rigbed.”
Everyone had no disagreement.
Soon after, the carriage I had summoned began to enter the front gate.
Group members and other nearby students were startled when they saw the black carriage with Eternia’s seal engraved on it.
Sierra said in a trembling voice.
“Well, isn’t that Professor Silverine’s carriage? “
“Yes, let’s get on first.”
“Wow, it was real. Rumor has it that he is a disciple….”
I helped them get into the carriage one by one. The last favela left before I boarded it.
She was standing in front of the door, looking at the carriage with listless eyes.
“Why are you doing this?”
She was lost in other thoughts and finally came to her senses and spoke.
“Ah… “Nothing, let’s go.”
***
We parked the carriage at Lidbed Square and waited for a moment to survey the situation.
In front of Rigbed’s Magic Society branch, there was a group that arrived before us. It seems that many people have already thought the same thing as us.
However, they could not get past the entrance of the Magical Society and turned away.
“It seems like you can’t enter the magic academy even if you’re an Eternian student. “Is it impossible even if I belong to the Faculty of Magic?”
Lilith said.
“Only those registered as members are free to enter. You must have a certified academy degree to become a member. “The entry requirements for outsiders are very strict.”
Meanwhile, a carriage stopped behind us.
Soon after, a group of students got off and started moving towards the main building of the Magic Society.
Sierra recognized them and said.
“They’re from the dance club.”
I see a familiar face too. Victor, a classmate in the combat club, and Ridigger, who was mocking the art club yesterday, also come into view. However, there were five people in total, and Gale was nowhere to be seen.
Riddigger took the lead and stood in front of the entrance to the Magic Society. He then handed something to the academic official guarding the gate.
I hurriedly got off the carriage and hid behind the fountain to overhear their conversation.
“I am here on behalf of Hampton Mayhem, a temporary member of the Magic Society.”
“So?”
“With this authority, I would like to view the archives of the Magic Society No. 23.”
The official sighed heavily as if he was bored.
“Several students already came and committed similar tricks before leaving. This is not a place to do homework. “Please go back.”
Riddigger repeated what he said.
“I am acting for Hampton Mayham. You are eligible for membership. Is it okay for me to come out like this without even checking it myself? What are you going to do afterward?”
“There is no such thing as acting authority for temporary members.”
“Thinking about the future….”
Then, the society official took a step forward and grabbed Riddigger by the collar.
“And I remember Hampton Mayhem clearly even if I don’t have to look it up. Because I know very well that I am an asshole with no influence whatsoever. “Get out of here.”
Riddigger’s face turns pale.
The official pushed him away and he fell down the front steps.
Victor and other colleagues supported him and retreated.
Entry is not easy.
I went straight back to the carriage. Then he opened the door and spoke to our members.
“Is there anyone who is familiar with the magic society’s paperwork or magic terminology?”
Everyone just looked at me blankly, probably surprised by the sudden question.
When I looked at Sierra, who said she had experience touring a magical society, she expressed her disapproval.
“I just stopped at the field trip level, I don’t know that much.”
There was a moment of silence, and Fabella hesitated for a moment before opening her mouth.
“It’s not perfect, but… “I can understand to some extent.”
That’s enough.
“Then, only Favela senior will follow me, and the rest will wait here.”
Lilith opened her eyes wide and spoke as if she had no idea.
“Do you have any plans other than the Magic Society?”
“No, I’m going to join the Magic Society.”
“… ?”
Everyone looked like they didn’t understand.
I confidently headed to the Magic Society building with Fabella in tow. As he was doing so, he came across a group of dancers heading towards a carriage.
The dance club gang, perhaps finally recognizing us, stopped and fixed their eyes on me.
“Hey, there….”
“Victor, be quiet.”
Victor opened his mouth to warn me, but Riddigger stopped him immediately.
I went up the front steps and stood in front of the academic official who had grabbed Riddigger by the collar.
A deep wrinkle formed between his eyebrows as he looked at me.
“Are you a student of Eternia?”
“Yes.”
“I won’t talk too much. “Please go back.”
“I’m here because of an important errand.”
“Yes, I guess so. “Either come up with a more plausible plan, or go back and beg the daycare teacher to make the homework less difficult.”
I turned my back and nodded in agreement.
“… “I will convey that to Master Silverine.”
“… ?”
Then, without hesitation, I turned around and he grabbed me.
“Wait a minute. “What did you just say?”
“I think you heard correctly.”
The person in charge just looks at me blankly with his eyes wide, probably because his mind is overloaded with calculations.
“Did you say Mr. Silverine?”
“It’s an errand for my teacher.”
I raised my palm proudly and tapped Silverine’s ring.
A look of embarrassment is evident on the faces of the officials who were late in understanding the situation. Isn’t that like referring to Sylverin as a daycare teacher?
From Noble mtl dot com
It went exactly as I wanted.
“Uh, well, Sylverin is one of the most influential wizards in the Magic Society.”
“I just took care of….”
“We will allow even our close friends who came with us to enter the conference. “If you keep one promise.”
I nodded.
“I will tell my teacher that the Magic Society welcomed me kindly.”
As if he understood what he meant, he moved to the side.
“Now… “Please come in.”
When the official tapped his palm, the thick steel door of the magic academy slid open.
The group of dancers watching from afar could not take their eyes off us. It was nice to see Riddigger turn red and red.
I motioned to the favela to come in.
***
The interior of the Magic Society was made of black-gray stone with a texture similar to marble. It looked like a magic stone that was known to trap magical power. I know it’s quite expensive, but seeing as all this was put into decorating the interior space, it was clear that the Magic Society was a group that didn’t worry about money.
The Magic Society had more than fifty archives. I felt like I wouldn’t even be able to get started if I searched through the data here without a solution.
“Let’s go to archive room 23.”
This was exactly where Ridigger wanted to go. I felt like I had found out something through prior research, but thankfully I was the one to find that information first.
While passing through the hallway of the Magic Society, Fabella hinted.
“Haley’s judgment was right…. “There was a reason why I chose you as the leader.”
“Selecting seniors was also the manager’s decision. “I hope that decision was correct.”
“I’ll do my best, too.”
“….”
An awkward air flows for a moment. Fabella opened her mouth again.
“Where I was injured before… are you okay?”
I wanted to avoid it, but in the end she opened her mouth first. If she was going to go on a mission together, she had to finish it.
“If it wasn’t okay, I wouldn’t be here.”
“… “I’m sorry about that.”
“Don’t worry about it. “If I had leftover money, I would have gone to my senior with the bill right away.”
We stopped in front of the reading room with sign number 23 in the middle of the second floor hallway.
When I opened the door, the musty smell of old parchment touched my nose.
Someone came to the center of the reading room earlier than us and was browsing the materials.
Slender shoulders. Long blonde hair. I could tell who it was just by looking at the back of the book.
She feels her presence and turns her body. And then our eyes met.
“De… sorry?”
“… Luna.”
“Damian happened to be here…… Ah, it’s because of the mission.”
“Yes, I came to check the records of the Syntagma incident. You were one step faster. So… Where are your colleagues?”
“The theater club members wait outside…”
Luna had a somewhat muffled voice in her voice.
Yes, hearing it directly like this really brings me to my senses. The theater department would be fools to leave Luna out of such an important event. Until yesterday we were friends, but now we are strictly competitors. If you encounter one in Syntagma, you may have to fight it. Although I really don’t want to accept it.
“Yes, you also participated in this mission. The identity verification process was strict. How did you get in?”
“The Raylis family can come anytime. I have been an excellent member of the Magic Society since its founding…. Damian you… “Who are you here with?”
Belatedly, Fabella walks next to me and looks at Luna quietly.
Luna checked on her and suddenly closed her mouth.
The two did not greet each other. They just exchanged glances with each other with calm faces.
It became quiet as if ice water had been poured on it.