Outdated Knowledge

It was the next day.

At the Maximilian Mansion.

"We seriously need manpower. I'm not even joking."

Covered in piles of documents, my desk could be hardly used to even write at all.

There was no space for me to work at and even the area around it is full of it.

"Perhaps, you are right."

I stood up, hearing the voice, but I could still fail to see through the tall piles of paper.

It was Lilith who spoke, but with her also having piles of documents on her desk, we could barely see each other.

"I'm right, my ass! I told you we needed manpower before!"

I streaked my hand through the documents, clearing them out of my sight as I shouted.

This was just getting far beyond our capabilities to handle.

"We will need more people to work on this! I couldn't believe that Hellsburg was once a central market!"

Realizing it, every resident that was able to survive were people who grew up with market occupations.

Some were blacksmiths, tavernkeepers, hunters, and even brewers.

There were fewer residents than there are any productional people.

It was a good thing as adventurers come and go for an exchange, but the amount of governing work is increasing as they all continue to expand.

I'll have to expand my power as well.

"We can put up a sign outside with an according to salary, but the training?"

Lilith took the step forward to the plan, it seems like even she is getting tired of signing these papers that could be done by a group of people.

"We'll screen them first. Assess their skills and pick the best people. It would be better if they live here."

Hiring a stranger settling down for this job might be a bit risky. I should focus on hiring the residents here first, and then expand the town's area to allow more residents.

"I'll have to report to Grace for more projects to come. For now, go and take care of the posters we'll need for the advertisement."

Grace is the maid... no, she's been promoted to a level beyond that, almost everyone was.

She became an official to my governing circle, and she is focused on taking care of building permissions and permits.

Lilith bowed down and held my shoulder before leaving.

I could only nod as she looks at me with some kind of look in her eyes.

I wouldn't know but it would be something the previous Grantt should know.

I'm more nervous if it's about 'our' relationship.

"I heard that you embraced another woman in an inn yesterday."

She asked me as her grip from behind tightens. I don't know if that was something bad, but maybe it's her being jealous.

She stressed the word 'embrace' and I wonder what kind of bullshit did Marcus just tell them.

"It's not what you think—! I was just carrying out the idiots that fell drink in Old Man Jay's tavern! I don't have time for that."

For now, that 'act' would suffice.

That'll be my normal self as Grantt that would be a bad liar, although it was true that I did nothing.

"Really?"

Her grip tightens even more. Is it me or is she managing to make me feel pain right now—

"A-Aw—Yes! Of course!"

I slightly lowered my shoulder as I tried to slip away from her. That did not just happen.

The training of mana control might have affected her too greatly that she's emanating great power from now.

I should try not to piss her off now—

"I'll have to go now! Later—"

I ran off in a rush, leaving the office.

Although, this was not so bad.

△▼△▼△▼△▼△▼

Walking through the streets of the busy streets of Hellsburg, there were still alleyways where the homeless kept dwelling.

They were immigrants from other towns where they could have been chased away.

Most of them were children, and with our eyes meeting one another, I, myself knew that those were the kind of eyes that went through hell.

Not that I care the slightest bit, caring for the poor always will not bring me benefit.

I'm not a hero nor a saint, and that will remain. I am here to profit and gain my way up to the top once again.

"H-Hey! Get that kid! He stole my purse!"

Just as I thought, after these homeless immigrants arrived, more trouble came.

There was one small boy that raced through the crowds, with a loaf of bread on his right arm, and a purse on the left.

Unfortunately for him, he was running towards my way.

With a small wave of wind magic, I cast a gush to throw him back as both the bread and the purse fly up into the air.

That should do for now. I don't want to detain this child myself.

"——?!"

However, just I thought everything was already done. The boy pulled out something from his pockets, a long paper where he began to draw using his dirty hands.

I looked closely, but it wasn't just dirt that covered his fingers, but ink.

"Rewriting Magic, Forced Gravity!"

I could hear him utter those words with wind magic, a kind of magic that I was not familiar with.

The purse and the bread that was thrown into the air suddenly changed their trajectory, reeled back to the boy's hands that magically became clean as if the ink and the paper vanished.

That was something that I'd never seen before in this world.

If that was a unique ability, I would need to take it under my control. I needed every possible benefit I can get.

"Wait!"

I chased after the boy who rushed into the alleyway, but as I continued to rush and close in, he uttered another.

"Rewriting Magic: Existence!"

Crossing a group of homeless people in the alleyway, his figure became invisible. There were no shadows, nor even the sound of footsteps.

He vanished right in front of me.

"The boy vanished!"

"Oh no! It's the Prince of Hell!"

"Please don't feed me to the demons."

The homeless noticed our chase as they all speak their dialogues accordingly.

They were hopeless people that didn't deserve help. I was disgusted at them in a certain way.

They were allowed to stand back-up once again to their own feet, but they chose to rot in the slums.

"Tsk."

I left the alleyway with thoughts lingering about that boy. He is someone that must fall into our hands.

It was my gut that told me so.

It was time for me to do what I need to do for now.

...

It later became evening.

"Marcus. Is there any other unique magic other than being connected to elements? Like perhaps, something able to modify reality itself?"

"My liege, are you finally out of your head?

"I'm not joking."

Seated in my desk in my office, the pile of documents was beginning to be drained, but it was almost 10 PM.

"Hmm. There are indeed other elements except for the four, like Light, Darkness, Metal and—"

"No, something like... Isn't bound to a certain element... but maybe reality changing... related to paper?"

I wasn't so sure. I was indeed knowledgeable in magic and how the elements work in general but I wasn't that much engrossed in the details of magic.

If I were an otaku, then I might have been the strongest magic user right here, but I am only capable of wielding them at the Saint-God level.

"Reality changing magic? If that kind of magic exists, then wouldn't it be accounted as either God Magic or, maybe EX Machina Magic?"

I wouldn't go as far to describe it as that. It was something of the sort but limited. It seems like Marcus himself wasn't so sure.

What I could be sure about was, the transmigration I did could be just told to be an EX Machina Magic.

As the Gods were the ones who wielded and used it so.

Just before we continued our conversation, I led Marcus into the terrace that faced the town center.

"Why do you ask about it, my liege?"

Asking about where we left off, Marcus tried to take the initial step to fix my worries.

"... I found a boy using weird magic at the town. He stole a purse and a loaf of bread from one of the travelers."

"Were you able to catch him?"

"Almost did but he vanished right in front of me. I was sure he was chanting something about 'Rewriting Magic'."

After mentioning the word 'Rewriting,' Marcus didn't react. He didn't know about it.

He would only utter a disappointed no while holding his chin.

It must be some kind of knowledge that our library is too outdated to know.

"The library and archives around the Kingdom should have those updated hooks regarding magic users but it would take us weeks just to buy one."

Marcus suggested going through to the kingdom archives for information about it but there was a better idea for that.

"No. We can just ask the other adventurers."

Either way, most of the adventurers that would come here would be those who had the low capability for magic.

However, even if they don't have any useful knowledge about it, a simple pocket of updated information is good enough.

"But books are much more reliable."

"Yes, but sometimes, collecting information is much better, and fun. Ain't that right, my fun guy?"

I chuckled before poking his arm with my elbow, trying to tease him.

Marcus would only chuckle once before looking into the sky, fixing his hair to gaze properly on the evening clear sky.

"I remember that time when I last gazed into the sky, like this."

Marcus extended his hand into the sky, reminiscing his past.

"I would reach my hand out just like this, but instead of the clear sky, it would be only darkness with snow slowly covering my whole body."

"My face would be covered, but the hand that I had extended would be pulled out by someone, saving me from being buried in snow."

"But they vanished as soon as I looked, only leaving the words 'follow the sun.'"

Pointing at me, Marcus seems to describe me as the sun.

It was a metaphor that such stranger could have just said to give him determination, but to rely on such thing for decisions?

"I might just as well thank that stranger for giving me a powerful comrade."

I chuckled nervously, knowing that it was God's agent who sent him to me.

"This might be a good time for me to ask about what your real magic is. You've never shown me what exactly it was, other than earth magic."

If we were going to have this kind of talk, I might as well make him open up more to me as we go.

I was curious about his magic and other than Earth Magic, I could sense that his mana was being depleted continously in battles.

"I thought you knew, that's why I didn't tell you."

He's overestimating me a bit in that latter part but I'm not quite knowledgable in that aspect yet.

"No, that's why I am asking you. Am I not?"

He looked genuinely surprised that I didn't know.

Did I really look like a man that knew everything? What a compliment.

"I suppose we can just do it here."

'I suppose? Here?'

Is his magic something massive or dangerous? I might as well take cover just in case.

"Sword Arts Magic: 25-Strikes Plum Blossom Bloom."

Unsheating his sword, there was a sudden fragrant smell that covered the terrace.

There were plum blossoms that appeared and the light reflections on his slashes became frozen in time.

"Wari."

He sheated back his blade, only to leave the slashes that was frozen in time, gush towards the sky where he aimed at.

"..."

It was unimaginably scary and awesome. I weren't able to catch on to his movements with the blade as the 25-Strikes he mentioned was done in merely five seconds.

"Wait, that was magic? You just said it was sword arts."

"Yes, embedded with magic. It was something that my father trained me with ever since I was little, but after they died, I was forced to come up with techniques on my own."

What. Is he some kind of genius as well?

That movement skill looked like it came from a manhwa or webtoon. I couldn't even believe that it's a movement paired up with magic.

"Yes... So, that's oneof the magic you are assuming that isn't reliant on any element. It's reliant on movement to be used for."

Marcus elaborated further, but as the night came deeper, there was a figure that appeared behind both of us.

"Master... Marcus, it is recommended for both of you to take your sleep now. Tomorrow will be another day of work."

Just in the right time to break the fun. Lilith approached us with a lantern.

"Agh."

I could only groan before another day skips into work once again.