Chapter 36

Chapter : 36

I knew what had happened to Noel when she was five years old.

A swindler who pretended to be a mage had come to the village where Noel lived and put on a performance. What he used to make flames was not an Artifact, but a device powered by gunpowder.

A flame no bigger than the palm of a hand had enchanted Noel.

From that day onward, she had wished to become a mage.

And that wish had continued all the way until now.

So how could she possibly volunteer for the clinical trial of the cure?

Once she took the cure, she would never be able to use magic.

So why?

Of course, Elzenic Disease was an incurable illness that could ultimately lead the patient to death.

As long as one carried the disease, becoming a mage was impossible anyway, and in the end one was fated to die, so taking the cure meant losing nothing.

That was the rational judgment.

But if I had been Noel, I never would have volunteered for the clinical trial.

The cure had only just been completed.

Given enough time, another cure with a different mechanism might appear, and no one could know the future. Faced with that, most people would want to avoid making a choice that would definitively leave them unable to use magic forever.

“Do you understand that once you take this cure, your Mana Hole will be impaired?”

Noel nodded briskly and answered,

“Yes! I read the notice carefully, without missing a single word, before I applied! Of course I know that much!”

“If your Mana Hole is impaired, then you won’t be able to study fields that deal with mana. For example, you wouldn’t be able to use magic. Is that all right with you?”

“I know that much. I read the notice very carefully.”

“And even so, you’re still all right with it?”

As though it was regrettable, Noel slapped her knee lightly and said,

“I am interested in magic, and if I could learn it, I’d like to, and if I could use it, that would be even better. But I can’t, can I? I think people have to know how to give up too.”

“In that case, understood.”

Once I had met the volunteer, I left the remaining part to the real expert, Bishot.

She checked whether Noel was suitable for the trial, measured her vital signs, and carried out several tests.

The result, just as it had been in the Original Work, was that Noel was fit for the trial.

“Then shouldn’t I just drink the cure right away? May I take it now?”

Was it nonsense that a loud voice came from a strong belly?

Whenever I saw singers with powerful voices, they seemed to have solid builds, so I had always assumed it was true. But looking at Noel, I had no choice but to realize that information was wrong. A rather loud voice came from that body, thin as a scarecrow’s.

“Please wait a moment.”

I stopped Noel, left her in Bishot’s hands, and stepped outside.

---

That evening, I had a drinking appointment with Agares. He had said that he had found something light enough even I could drink, and told me to leave the evening free.

So over the past few days I had read a few books about the drinking culture of this world and memorized the etiquette.

I had made a few mistakes the other day, but they did not seem likely to cause any real trouble.

It wasn’t that I had done anything wrong. I had merely done things that were unnecessary, and Agares himself did not seem to find anything especially odd about it that day, so it seemed safe enough to let it pass.

We were supposed to drink at eight in the evening.

There were still about three hours left.

My plan was to train during those remaining three hours and then meet Agares. That way there would be no reason to skip training because of drinking. Since the time was short, I intended to use it as efficiently as possible.

First, I changed my method for weights. Using supersets, I shortened my rest and quickly drove my entire body into exhaustion. Then I swung my sword. And finally, just as I was about to move on to cardio—

I was dripping with sweat when I ran into Bishot on the parade ground.

She must have hurried over, because fine beads of sweat had gathered across her forehead.

She bit down lightly on her lower lip, clenched her fists, and lowered her gaze to the ground before speaking in a tone of genuine apology.

“I’m sorry.”

“Why? What’s wrong? What’s the problem?”

“There’s no problem at all.”

“Then why?”

Bishot squeezed her eyes shut. After slowly steadying the cold breath left from running, she spoke.

“May I discard the cure for Elzenic Disease that I made this time?”

“Why?”

Bishot hesitated, then forced the words out at last.

“I want to try making a cure that works in a different way.”

She waited silently for my answer.

She looked worried that I might ask why she would go through all that trouble.

I decided not to ask.

After all, I could guess without needing to hear it.

Noel must have said that her original dream was to become a mage.

“All right. Let’s do that.”

I accepted her proposal.

The reason Bishot had worried I might reject it was probably the cost that had already gone into making the cure.

But from my point of view, it was nothing more than pocket change.

It was perfectly fine to throw that away.

Bishot opened the eyes she had closed. Her gaze shone brightly.

“Thank you.”

If I kept talking about it here, it would only feel as though I were making a show of my generosity, so I moved on at once to the next matter.

“Then what do you think we should do about the trial subject? Since you’re making a new cure, should we tell her to go home and wait?”

“No. After speaking with her, it seems she intends to stay nearby for a while.”

“Nearby?”

“Yes. She says she has enough money for lodging.”

“All right. Understood.”

Perhaps because it was unexpected that I had agreed so easily, Bishot simply stared at me blankly.

Since we were both standing there in silence, the atmosphere began to feel awkward, so I spoke to break it.

“Then I’m going back to training, all right? You’ve worked hard too.”

Bishot remained standing there for a little while longer, then left for somewhere else.

---

“This is called mead. It isn’t as expensive as the thing you brought before, but it’s something of a specialty in my homeland.”

I sipped the drink Agares had poured for me.

Gulp, gulp.

Since he had said it was liquor made with honey, I had expected something sweet, but unexpectedly it was rather strong.

Judging only by the proof, it did not seem especially high, but because no additional fragrance had been added, it felt stronger than it ought to have.

“How is it?”

“It’s a little sour.”

Agares burst out laughing.

He drank along with me, then brought his cup to his nose and sniffed it. After taking in the scent, he shrugged.

“It seems I should have brought one that smelled of honey, or at least tasted sweet. My mistake.”

“No, it’s fine. It isn’t that I dislike sour things.”

Did I offend him?

I watched him carefully, wondering if, by any chance, I had hurt his mood.

For no reason, my insides grew anxious.

Just the act of drinking with Agares sitting before me was uncomfortable. He was someone I had to treat with the utmost care, watching every action, and once alcohol entered the body, it became difficult to control oneself.

I kept myself as alert as possible and slowly emptied my cup.

We drank a simple round together, and while we did, Agares opened his left hand so that the palm faced upward and tapped it lightly.

“Do you remember stabbing me here?”

“Ah, well. I’m sorry. It must have hurt a great deal. I should have stabbed more gently.”

“That isn’t what I was trying to say. What I mean is that you were stronger than I expected.”

“Me?”

“Yes. Quite a surprise, really. Because, the truth is, being Top Entrant in the Swordsmanship Department means nothing at all. It’s a trophy even mediocrities can win.”

I was about to refute him.

I had almost said that even if not me, there was someone like Jefrin who was quite decent, but in the end it seemed like pointless chatter.

Then suddenly Agares slapped my shoulder and let out a booming laugh.

“My apologies. I wasn’t trying to insult your department.”

“What? Ah, I don’t really mind. You may mock it as much as you like, honestly.”

Agares ignored my words naturally and continued,

“Do you remember what I said that day? That if you seemed more useful to my territory than the Dark Mage called Dimagen, then I would cooperate with you.”

“Yes. You did.”

“Now that the mage has already left to hunt Dimagen, it seems I won’t be able to keep that promise. So how about this instead? This summer, I’ll once again carry out a large-scale demon beast subjugation. If you help me then, I’ll let pass the matter of that mage striking me with lightning.”

If he said summer, then he likely meant the Academy vacation.

A demon beast subjugation was something carried out regularly anyway, so it probably would not take that long. There was no reason to refuse.

It was an offer I had to accept.

The one thing that caught at me was this.

“You mean you’ll forgive Ian?”

Agares had seemed to dislike Ian intensely, so it was difficult to believe he would let go of his feelings this easily. Agares answered,

“Hahaha, how could I forgive that? That lightning stung quite a bit, after all. That isn’t what I mean. The main reason I had to punish that mage was for the sake of my public standing. My personal resentment was only secondary.”

“I see.”

“I may not be able to help finding that mage disagreeable, but I’ll place my trust in you.”

“You mean you’ll trust me not to tell anyone that Ian struck you with lightning?”

“Yes. Let us bury what happened that day.”

It was a gain for me.

Even if I helped with the subjugation, my role would be obvious enough. I would likely handle a few stray demon beasts Agares missed and otherwise assist where I could.

For one thing, I was still the lord of a house, so if I visited the North, I would be treated as a guest. He wouldn’t work me like a mercenary.

Why had Agares made such an offer?

It only benefited me.

Thinking it over in light of everything before and after, it seemed that the gift I had brought last time must have worked rather well. So he liked the liquor and the stone. It was only natural to think of this offer as repayment for that.

“All right. Let’s do that.”

When I nodded readily, Agares tilted his head. In a tone of surprise, he said,

“Are you truly content to accept so easily? How do you know what sort of work I might ask of you?”

“I trust that you won’t demand anything unreasonable.”

“That’s rather unreasonable trust. Still, very well. Then the deal is made. I will remain silent, on the assumption that no one knows that the mage struck me with lightning, and you will assist in the demon beast subjugation this summer.”

“Yes. That sounds good.”

“Are you content with only a verbal promise? Shall we draw up a contract?”

“Oh, that won’t be necessary. We trust each other, don’t we?”

“I see. Then raise your cup.”

Perhaps my liver had adapted from drinking last time, because even after drinking for quite a while, I still didn’t feel drunk. Agares truly drank like it was water, and since not even his gaze changed, it seemed this had a lower proof than the Dragon-Ogre liquor from before. I poured more into Agares’s empty cup.

“But tell me, what happened?”

“What?”

“Today, you aren’t hiding the label.”

Because alcohol was in my system, even if I wasn’t drunk, my head wasn’t turning as sharply as usual.

Why was he asking that?

It could have been mere coincidence where I held the bottle.

There was some purpose behind the question.

The problem was that I had no idea what that purpose was.

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Very well. I won’t rush you. You’ll understand by summer.”

Agares took another sip of his liquor.