Chapter 309
Afterward, the banquet proceeded peacefully.
Ruina flitted about like a fish in water, making connections, while Evan drank beside Chris.
“…Is that any good?”
“Not really. I don't know why people drink this stuff. It's just bitter and ruins my palate.”
‘…This guy doesn't know how good he has it.’
For some of us, having even a single sip is a lifelong dream!
But there was something strange about Evan.
While saying it tasted bad, he kept downing his drink.
“You're drinking too much. Is it because of that person from the swordsmanship family who's in the imperial capital?”
“…Yes.”
Evan hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
‘The current young master of the swordsmanship family, was it?’
Chris crossed his arms.
He was the one who had usurped Evan's position.
‘A man called the Little Sword King. One of the famous powerhouses of the Alliance.’
“What should I do? Just say the word, and I'll crush him for you.”
Chris grinned.
“Since you're my slave, this master shall grant your wish.”
Evan stared at Chris for a moment, then faintly raised the corners of his mouth.
It was a rare smile.
“Thank you. But it's alright. Can you just leave him to me?”
Chris thought for a moment.
‘This seems dangerous.’
The guy's level was a High 7-Star.
A difficult opponent for Evan, who had just recently reached Low 7-Star.
‘Evan is my best sucker; it would be a huge loss if he got hurt because of some punk like that.’
Meanwhile, Evan, once again crudely reading Chris's thoughts with his Mind's Eye, shook his head.
‘That's Christian for you. Is he worrying about me again? He's a guy who only ever thinks of others.’
“Thank you, but please trust me. This isn't just because of a grudge against my family.”
Evan sent him a direct gaze.
“This time, I truly want to be of help to you.”
The swordsmanship family was the greatest renowned family in the Alliance.
They possessed deadly secret techniques, so no matter how great Chris was, Evan intended to step in, not knowing what dangers he might face.
Because Evan was someone who understood the secret techniques of the swordsmanship family better than anyone.
“Chris, would you like a drink?”
“…No, I can't drink.”
“As expected, are you abstinently restraining yourself for the sake of the world? I should learn from you.”
‘…It's not that, you punk. I just can't drink. Are you messing with me?’
I don't know how a guy with the Mind's Eye can be so dense.
‘Damn it, I can't even drink, and I just want to go home.’
But since he was the man of the hour, he couldn't, so he had just stepped out into the garden to get some air.
Chris's face hardened.
‘This energy is?’
Gooooo.
Suddenly, an energy began to swirl around Chris.
Someone was trying to attack him!
‘7-Star Miracle Magic? Is this a formula from the Celestial Magic Tower? Why would a Miracle Magic-user from the Celestial Magic Tower suddenly attack me?’
It was the moment he was about to draw his sword and cut down the magic's core in one strike.
Chris paused for a moment.
Something about the magic formula was familiar.
‘Well, look at this?’
Chris sheathed his sword and waited quietly for the magic to complete, as if to observe it.
And then.
Paaaat!
The magic activated, and suddenly, the surroundings were enveloped in silence.
As if they had been enclosed in a glass dome.
It was Barrier Magic.
And at an incredible level.
Unless the master of the magic permitted it, no one would be able to escape.
It was a crisis, but Chris's face was calm.
“Come out.”
Raising the corner of his mouth, he spoke a familiar name.
“Ranya.”
The next Master of the Celestial Magic Tower.
The woman who would one day reach the level of a 9-Star Archmage, and who was his former comrade, revealed herself.
With a murderous look in her eyes.
***
‘It's been a while.’
Purple hair swaying at her shoulders, deep ultramarine eyes.
He saw the beautiful, haughty face that he had seen countless times in his previous life.
Noticeably, she was not in the robe typical of mages, but in a dress worn by the ladies of noble families.
Ranya.
The lofty princess of the Magic Tower.
The Magic Tower's greatest genius, who would one day lead the world of white magic.
And.
‘A clumsy fool.’
A grin appeared on his face out of fondness.
Was Chris's smile grating on her nerves?
Ranya's eyebrow twitched.
“Do you know who I am?”
“Of course, I do. Aren't you the Magic Tower's fake genius? A princess in a cage, mistaken about her own greatness.”
“!!”
Ranya's expression turned fierce.
For reference, Ranya's pride was incredibly strong.
“I am not a fake. I am a real genius. Since the founding of the Magic Tower, there has never been a genius more outstanding than me.”
“Oh, is that so? Anyway, what's the princess of the Celestial Magic Tower doing here?”
“I thought you'd be engrossed in your studies right about now. Did you solve the problem I gave you?”
He had previously given Ranya a magical problem through Evan.
“I came because of that problem.”
“Why? To thank me?”
“…Thank you? You gave me a problem from a magically impossible domain; how dare you give such an insult to a genius like me.”
At the time, Chris had written this in the letter.
If you can't even solve something like this, you should just quit being a mage.
“Do you know how many days and nights I stayed up trying to solve that problem?”
“If the Master of the Tower hadn't confirmed that it was an impossible domain, I might have lost my mind to the obsession while trying to solve it.”
Looking closely, he could see deep dark circles under Ranya's eyes, hidden by makeup.
It seemed she had clung to it like a wreck, thinking that a genius like herself couldn't possibly fail to solve it.
Ranya raised her chin loftily and spoke.
“Apologize for mocking and insulting me, the greatest genius of the Magic Tower, by giving me an impossible problem.”
“It wasn't an impossible problem, though?”
“Don't be ridiculous. Otherwise, there's no way that I, a genius among geniuses, would have failed to solve it.”
“The Master of the Tower also said that the problem you gave was so absurd it wasn't even worth discussing….”
“The Master of the Tower? Are his words the truth of magic?”
“!!”
Chris twisted the corner of his mouth.
“You call yourself a genius, yet you unconditionally believe and accept the words of a half-baked 9-Star Archmage?”
“All the geniuses must have frozen to death.”
“……”
“The essence of a mage is the spirit of inquiry and doubt toward everything in the world.”
“It seems you're not only not a genius, but you don't even have the qualities of a mage.”
“Wouldn't it be better for your future to quit magic right now?”
Ranya's face flushed crimson with anger.
“You… shut your mouth.”
“I only spoke the truth, so I don't know why you're angry. Ah, is it because I hit the mark?”
“Your name is tacky, too; how about you take this chance to switch to being a physical-type martial artist?”
“Wouldn't that suit your aptitude better?”
“W-what did you say? You son of a shoe. Didn't I tell you to shut up?!”
For reference, the tacky name 'Ranya', which contrasted with her lofty impression, was her complex.
Unable to hold it in, she burst out with a curse.
‘Now this is more like the old days.’
Unlike her impression as the haughty princess of the Magic Tower, Ranya was surprisingly hot-tempered and had a rather foul mouth.
‘…Why are all the women in the Hero's party like this?’
Come to think of it, he remembered that the Chatterbox of Darkness also had a bit of a temper.
In any case, he found it amusing and let out a chuckle, but Ranya, misunderstanding his laugh as a sign of mockery, grew even more furious.
“Are you laughing? Do you find me funny? Huh?”
“Of course, it's funny. The sight of you, so mistaken about your own greatness without even realizing your shortcomings, is almost cute.”
“You… you… son of a dog…! Do you really need to be taught a harsh lesson to come to your senses?”
Ranya seethed, clenching her fists tightly.
“This is your last warning. Apologize at once.”
“Why all this talk? Stop chattering and come at me.”
“…What did you say?”
Chris crooked his finger.
“This master will personally show you that the problem I gave you is indeed achievable.”
“Ha! Stop with the nonsense. There's no way such a thing is possible just by manipulating the Phase System.”
“And if it's not nonsense?”
Chris stared intently at Ranya.
“If you're so confident, how about a bet?”
“On whether the 'reality interference through rearrangement of the Phase System' that I spoke of is truly impossible?”
Sensing that Chris was serious, Ranya snapped her mouth shut.
“If I win, you will offer your soul to me.”
“!!”
The color drained from Ranya's face.
“Stop with that ridiculous talk.”
“Instead, if I lose, I will tell you the 'truth' of the Celestial Magic Tower that you want to know.”
“!!”
Ranya's face turned white as a sheet.
“How do you know about that?”
“Don't you know I'm the Hero who receives the protection of a Constellation?”
“There is nothing in this world I don't know. I also know what happened back then in 'Argos'.”
“……”
“Anyway, if you don't want to, then forget it. It's no loss to me.”
Ranya bit her lip hard.
“What do you mean by offer my soul? It's not like you're some devil bastard.”
“Ah, it's nothing much. I am the Hero. I'm looking for a suck… comrade to fight alongside for the sake of the world.”
“However, the world is a dangerous place, and I can't just trust anyone, so I'm looking for a comrade who is willing to bet their soul.”
“For your information, the Evan you know is a comrade who has entrusted his soul to me. He is the comrade I trust the most.”
Well, it wasn't a lie.
In a way, it was all true.
“…You must keep your promise to tell me the truth of Argos.”
“If it turns out to be a lie, I will make you pay dearly.”
“Alright, let's begin.”
When Chris didn't draw his sword, Ranya had a puzzled look on her face.
“I'll face you with only magic.”
“Aren't you a knight?”
“I know how to use some magic, too.”
Currently, Chris's proficiency in White Magic was at about the 4-Star level.
Among all his powers, his proficiency in this was the lowest.
A level that couldn't even be compared to Ranya, who had reached 7-Star.
“Then I won't hold back. I'll make you crawl on the floor!!”
“I might let you go if you beg, so if you're scared, raise your hand and plead for your life!”
Ranya unfolded a fan, the kind carried by the young ladies of noble families.
Fwooooosh!!!
Particles rearranged themselves, and a giant water vortex was created in the empty air.
A 5-Star Aqua Storm.
It was a True-Form Magic imbued with will, a spell that could not be countered by ordinary magic below the 4-Star level.
However.
A streak of lightning rose from Chris's hand.
It was a 3-Star Lightning Spear.
Ranya's eyebrow twitched.
‘He intends to face my True-Form Magic with such a low-level spell? Has he lost his mind?’
The moment she was contemplating whether she should withdraw her magic.
Bzzzt!
It was the moment Chris's lightning spear flew through the air.
An unbelievable miracle occurred.
Crack.
The Aqua Storm split apart and then vanished completely!
“!!”
Ranya's eyes widened as if they would tear.
‘H-how?’
No, she could vaguely guess what had happened.
But she couldn't accept it.
Because it was something impossible.
“So much for being the genius of the Magic Tower. It seems the rumors were all nonsense. This isn't all you've got, is it?”
“!!”
“I'll be disappointed if this is all you can do. Try a little harder.”
Ranya's face turned serious.
Paaaat!
A magic circle spread out with Ranya at its center, and a powerful surge of mana swirled.
Along with a chilling energy, one's vision began to distort.
It was Ranya's specialty, a magic that strikes the opponent by interfering with space itself.
Ranya raised her chin with a confident face.
“This is my 7-Star Miracle Magic, 'The Abstract Parade of Distorted Shaking'. It is an original spell that I, the greatest genius of the Magic Tower, personally designed and created….”
“Isn't that naming sense a bit childish? The Distorted what?”
“!!”
“More importantly, it doesn't look all that impressive.”
Chris let out a snort of derision.