Chapter 27
Lumen let out an involuntary snort and belatedly covered his mouth. Struggling to control his expression, he glanced at Cadel, who seemed completely unfazed despite hearing such an insult.
Yeah, that’s how a mage should act. Seeing him spout insults right off the bat, his skills must be pretty decent. Was the Captain looking for this mage?
If Van had been here, he would have stepped up the moment the mage finished speaking, but Lumen was different. He didn’t feel any particular loyalty to defend Cadel, and he figured he had done his job just by clearing a path through the crowd. Honestly, he was curious to see how Cadel would fire back. His temporary captain always defied expectations. He was looking forward to that unpredictability.
And right then, a smile as bright and warm as sunshine spread across Cadel’s previously impassive face.
“This is an incredible coincidence! The highlight of my day is finding you right now, Sir Mamil!”
At a glance, he looked like a pretty-faced idiot who hadn’t grasped Mamil’s insult. But Lumen could tell Cadel knew exactly what he was doing and was just playing dumb.
Cadel was incredibly sharp. He was the kind of guy who would come up with two solutions from a single clue so there was no way he’d miss such blatant hostility. This had to be an act.
The wrinkles between Mamil’s brows deepened. Regardless, Cadel just chuckled and eagerly glued himself to Mamil’s side.
“Aren’t you curious how I recognized you at once, Sir Mamil?”
“Do you think young men like you are few and far between?”
“Ah, I suppose so… An 8-star Archmage like yourself, Sir Mamil, exudes the aura of a supreme master from six miles away. Unless someone was completely oblivious, they couldn’t possibly miss you. Wow, that must be so exhausting for you.”
“It is, thanks to you.”
Mamil looked ready to hurl Cadel into the distance right then and there, but unfortunately, the concert was still ongoing. Without an escort knight, fleeing through this dense crowd was nearly impossible, and tossing Cadel away was equally unfeasible.
Cadel took full advantage of the situation. He pressed himself as close to Mamil as physically possible and began to chatter.
“Sir Mamil, you’re a master of fire magic, aren’t you? I happen to be a fire-attribute mage myself. But lately, I’ve been really worried because the power of my basic skills feels lacking. Spells like Fireball, you know? As a great senior and the foremost Archmage of the Mainyu Kingdom, could you perhaps give me a little advice?”
“No.”
“Ah, of course. Naturally, you can’t just share the secret to becoming the strongest with anyone. I understand. Then how about a word of encouragement? A warm message for your junior! I feel like that would really give me strength!”
“…I already thought my luck couldn’t get any worse today. I never imagined it would hit rock bottom.”
Even to Lumen, who was standing right there, Cadel was being excessively talkative. He was far more animated than usual, and his voice was booming.
What exactly was his angle? Watching Cadel’s erratic blabbering and Mamil’s increasingly rigid expression, Lumen’s eyes sparkled with amusement.
* * *
Just because Mamil despised interacting with others didn’t mean Cadel had any intention of approaching him cautiously. In fact, a bold approach was much more effective for wringing things out of him. If he presented himself as a sickeningly annoying nuisance right from their first meeting, the extremely introverted Mamil would readily cough up the desired information just to make him go away. It was essentially exploiting the man’s survival instincts.
Of course, he couldn’t just push him relentlessly. It would be a problem if Mamil ran away for good.
For that reason, Cadel decided it was time to pivot to the appeasement phase of his plan.
“Sir Mamil, Sir Mamil. You’ve faced demons plenty of times, right? You’ve even participated in official subjugation campaigns at the kingdom’s behest.”
“This is a living hell…”
“Ah, so the subjugation was grueling enough to be compared to hell. I wouldn’t have even dared to try. Absolutely. Anyway, since you’ve fought in so many battles, you must have collected some loot from dead demons, right?”
“Your voice is louder than a trumpet!”
“So I was wondering. Do you happen to know what this is used for?”
“My eardrums are bursting…”
Mamil, who had been ignoring whatever Cadel said as nothing more than a dreadful cacophony, suddenly froze.
Right in front of his eyes was a small glass bottle that Cadel had thrust forward. The transparent vial was filled to the brim with a matte purple powder. At the sight of it, Mamil’s eyes went wide.
“This is…!”
“I came across it by chance, but I have absolutely no idea what it’s used for. You’d know, wouldn’t you, Sir Mamil?”
Demon’s bone dust! How had such a precious material fallen into the hands of this walking disaster?
A sudden gleam sparked in Mamil’s previously lifeless eyes. He reflexively reached out to snatch the vial, but Cadel was faster.
Grasping at empty air, Mamil finally shifted his gaze to Cadel. Cadel offered a bright smile as he met the archmage’s unsteadily trembling eyes.
“You’re finally looking at me again, Sir Mamil.”
“…It’s just some insignificant powder. Nothing special.”
“Hmm, is that so.”
“At best, it could be used as a catalyst for brewing common potions. And even then, only if a mage of my caliber were the one brewing it.”
“Ooh.”
Mamil was blatantly trying to play him. Pretending not to notice the man’s transparent greed, Cadel gave a slight shrug.
“Then I suppose it’s of no use to me.”
“Exactly. You’d be better off handing it over to—”
“Shall I give it to you?”
“Ahem. No matter how shoddy the material, it’s better than nothing. Hand it here.”
Cadel’s expression grew subtle as he looked down at the old man’s deeply lined palm. Staring at Mamil’s empty hand for a moment, he bypassed the vial and instead pulled out a grimoire he had brought along just in case, dropping it onto the outstretched hand. At the unexpected weight, Mamil’s arm dipped. As the flustered archmage instinctively gripped the book, Cadel flashed a wide grin.
“In exchange, please decipher this grimoire for me.”
“What is the meaning of…”
“And teach me everything about mana manipulation, mana management, and the principles of casting magic.”
“Wh-what?”
“I said, teach me everything. Every bit of knowledge you have, Sir Mamil.”
It was an incredibly brazen demand. Overwhelmed by Cadel’s aggressive approach, Mamil could only blink blankly for a moment. Then, anger slowly began to flush his wrinkled face.
This brat played me!
This arrogant mage had known the value of the demon’s bone dust from the very beginning. Mamil couldn’t be sure if the boy knew he was actively searching for the bone dust, but he clearly recognized that the item held enough value to broker a deal with an archmage.
And yet, he had deliberately played innocent and dangled it as bait. How dare he try this on Mamil Kipa! What a truly sly and sinister brat.
His face turning as red as a tomato, Mamil huffed and glared at Cadel. But Cadel didn’t bat an eye, merely offering a blatant, smiling gaze in return.
“I’m perfectly fine starting tomorrow, by the way.”
* * *
“I think this every time, but your silver tongue is truly amazing, Captain.”
It was on their way back to the inn after the concert. Lumen spoke as he leisurely trailed behind Cadel. Cadel shot him a sideways glance and shook his head in exasperation.
“I swear, the longer I know you, the less appealing you are as a subordinate.”
“Are you talking about me?”
“Who else would I be talking about? Mamil got pissed off and left because you burst out laughing right in his face. He even went out of his way to use teleportation magic in that crowded place, which drains a ridiculous amount of mana.”
“But he still left you a meeting place, didn’t he? I laugh a lot more easily than you’d think. I was actually trying my best to hold it in.”
Whatever. Forget it. Cadel shuddered as he recalled that dizzying moment.
Mamil had been caught in his trap, his pride wounded to the absolute limit, and Lumen had laughed so hard tears streamed down his face right in front of him. Unable to endure the humiliation, Mamil had ultimately chosen to flee. For a split second, Cadel had almost grabbed Lumen by the collar, thinking he had just lost his completely cornered prey.
Fortunately, he left a meeting place scribbled on the ground where he was standing, but… Ugh, that bastard Lumen. Just wait until I max out his loyalty. I’m going to smack him in the mouth a hundred times.
He was nothing but a handsome slacker. Sure, once a battle started, he would be a more reliable damage dealer than anyone else, but that was a completely separate matter.
As he grumbled internally, the two of them drew closer to the inn.
As soon as we arrive, I’m going to wash up and dive straight into bed. Just the thought of washing away his accumulated fatigue made his body feel pleasantly heavy. Cadel quickened his pace, forcing a bit of vitality into his drained limbs. Then, his tired gaze drifted toward the inn’s entrance, and he spotted a familiar figure standing there all alone. Cadel raised his voice before he even realized it.
“Van?”
Startled out of his wits, Cadel sprinted toward the front of the inn without hesitation. And there, he came face-to-face with Van, who was wearing a pitiful expression, the tip of his nose flushed red from the cold.
