Chapter 43

The Dotun Mountains ran along the southern outskirts of the empire.

In the uphill road of its dense forest, Charlotte traveled with Maho.

"… Anyone can have mana, but its quality and amount accumulated vary from person to person. That's why the 'mana quality' can theoretically be divided into ten different classes.

The princess from the royal palace had many things she was curious about. Fortunately, her knight happily answered her questions with sincerity.

"An average person's mana falls under class 9 or 10. A little better than that, and they'd be in class 8. People belonging to class 7 and above can try to be a knight or a wizard. Those who fall within class 6 can become a Professor of Magic or even a Guardian Knight, depending on their background and personality."

"Aha~ I see! Interesting~ How do you measure class, then? Can I also have the quality of my mana identified?"

They had been walking for two days and nights without a break. Maho's unwavering vigor made Charlotte smile a little.

"There's still no definite method to identify one's class. It's just a gut feeling among masters. That being said, it's rare for people to reach class 5 and above due to their high requirements. In fact, those belonging to class 4 and 3 are already so powerful… most of them have important positions in the continent."

"Woah. If class 4 and class 3 are that good, what about class 1?"

"I'm not even sure if anyone's strong enough to belong to that class, but if there are, then they're probably gods. As far as I know, class 2's members are…"

Bercht's Great Elder Dzekdan.

The empire's Guardian Knight Gefrid.

The Great Wizard Demakan.

And the Imperial University Tower Chairman Adrienne.

"Those four are the only ones in class 2."

"Wow… Even I know those people's names. What about Professor Deculein?!"

"I'm not sure. That guy might be class 4 or 5."

Deculein's mana quality, in the beginning, was class 6, but now it had gone up to class 5, just as the knight said.

"Anyway, hang in there a little longer."

"Don't worry!" The princess diligently followed the rugged mountain path.

Charlotte was worried since she was small and beautiful, like a doll, but her perseverance made her wonder if she secretly underwent extreme workouts.

Nevertheless, she smiled proudly.

"We're almost at our first destination."

"Got it. You hang in there too, Charlotte!"

The two moved forward without problems. However, compared to them, their subordinates, Ron and Gedo, looked somewhat unreliable.

Ron whispered low enough to make sure the princess wouldn't hear their conversation.

"Captain. Trusting Deculein and choosing Crebas is a bit…"

"It's already been decided, and we can't back out from this now. Even if we could, our enemies clearly didn't even consider we'd take a route as dangerous as this. We haven't been attacked even once on our way here, have we?"

"That's true, but…" Ron bit his lips tightly.

Whiiiiing—!

A dagger flew in from an unknown direction. Charlotte immediately hugged the princess and released strong energy.

Ron and Gedo pulled out their swords swiftly.

"Captain! Go ahead! We'll follow you!"

"We'll handle this!"

Daggers thundered quickly from seemingly random places, but several arrows flooded in from the mountaintop and intercepted them.

It was the support of the adventurers they hired using their entire fortune. They escorted the Princess from a long distance.

"I trust you! Come back alive! That's an order!"

"Got it!"

Leaving their back to them, Charlotte sprinted with Miho.

*****

Hadekain, a city where affluent minds and colorful cultures coexisted.

With its mild climate all year round, the Yukline capital was known for being an entertainment spot and a food hub. Recently, the Magic Department had chosen it as the location of the debutantes' MT.

"Why in the world did they make the station so complicated…"

They were to go there by train, but Epherene wandered from the station.

She had only ever been on a train once, which was during her one-way trip from Juhalle to Iliade.

"Ifi, here!"

"… Whew. I almost got lost."

Fortunately, her fellow club members managed to find her. They got on the train together.

Everyone riding it was robed, almost as if they rented the entirety of it.

"Wow, we're all really going to Hadekain on an MT."

"I know. I was going to go there for vacation."

Julia and the others looked very excited. Epherene, who wasn't a native of the continent, couldn't relate to them.

"You all seem to like Hadekain that much."

"Naturally. You've never been there, have you, Ifi? Not only the tower but almost every department of the university requested for it yearly, but the thesis arsonist kept rejecting them."

She referred to Deculein, who gained many other nicknames like burning executor, fiery wraith, and many more. Due to Drent's thesis defense incident, he gained many horrifying titles, ultimately turning him into a symbol of terror for the wizards at the tower even though the student involved in it had been going around, saying he was actually rather grateful to the Head Professor.

"Why?"

"I don't know much about that, but there are lots to do in Hadekain. It's really amazing."

"… Oh. So that's why the others were saying they were going to go shopping and try out new things."

"That's not all. That city's filled with good-looking men and women as well."

Well, nobody at the tower could compete against Deculein in terms of appearance. The same went for the entire university, the only exception being from Lawayne of the Knight Department.

Epherene asked. "Is Professor Deculein coming with us, then?"

"Yeah. I thought he wasn't, but that thesis arsonist is apparently on this train too."

Deculein sat in the VIP carriage with professors from each department.

Relin from the Assistive Studies Department, Letran from the Spirit Department, Ciare from the Destruction Department, Kamel from the Medical Department, etc.

Normally, this many professors didn't attend a debutante MT, but its location made them come.

They all avoided Deculein's eyes.

"Everyone."

Deculein, who had been silent, finally spoke. The professors listened carefully. "I heard you attended Madoho the other day."

"..."

Silence permeated the carriage.

"Are you not going to answer?"

"Oh, yes. Hahahaha… We did. But, well, it was uneventful."

"I doubt it."

Relin waved it off with his hands and shook his head while the other professors just smiled at him.

"It is. Only the discussion about Head Professor Deculein's mindblowing midterm exam was noteworthy."

"… Haha. That's right."

"Right, right."

Relin, Letran, and Ciare took turns answering.

Despite their flattery, however, Deculein was as brutal as ever. "You can just laugh now and move on, huh."

His tone was as dreary as the winter wind that stung one's skin. "The day you'll be able to choose between us will come."

Louina was softer compared to Deculein and also had excellent skills.

Her family and her supporters could also blend in, but not as much as the Yukline.

Therefore, the professors naturally preferred Louina, but…

"… But the truth is, I find it hilarious you think you even have a choice."

Deculein looked at the other professors. His sharp gaze alone already stabbed several professors to death.

"Let me be clear. You guys won't even be given the opportunity to choose."

His words proved the most terrifying for the professors, who felt like they were endlessly getting smaller.

Choo choo—

The train departed. Deculein, who stunned and shocked the other professors, read a book in silence.

*****

Hadekain was breathtaking.

It wasn't hot even in the summer, and its wind's scent was therapeutic.

Its streets were full of life, and there were people who busily came and went with smiles on their faces.

It was certainly a city that offered a high-quality lifestyle.

The specific location of the MT was the luxury hotel [Hadekain Romance], which was on the outskirts of Hadekain. It had a riverbank and a forest nearby, making it suitable to hold the MT in.

"… Four debutantes will share one room. If you prefer to be alone, you are allowed to rent a cabin at your own expense. Student representative?"

After I explained the matters at the hotel lobby, I called the student representative. The two representatives of the Magic Department hurriedly came.

"After this, I'll leave everything to your discretion. There's a forest in the back, but whenever you do anything, make sure you use support magic first."

"Noted!"

I didn't care if they drank alcohol or not. I didn't even have to care if they died. That was the charm of the MT. However, there shouldn't be any casualties.

"Unpack first."

I came out of the hotel as the debutantes went up to their rooms while whispering among each other.

I found Yeriel waiting in a car after I had gone out.

"At least try to save our face in the tower. You're being recognized more these days." Yeriel spoke as soon as I got into the car.

"How did you set it up?"

"…"

"…. How did you set it up?"

"What are you talking about?" Yeriel shrugged.

"There's a rumor going around that 'Marik' will be open."

"It was a prediction based on the current emperor's nature and a whole."

"… What? You know that Marik would be a loss for us, right?"

"No."

Marik's opening provided a consequential benefit. However, we needed absolute defense for it.

"You should have written down how to handle it."

"I meant to, but it costs too much money~ and someone spent 200 million~" Yeriel sighed sarcastically.

"We will soon sell the items I bought one by one, which will bring us huge profits. I'll be able to return the 200 million Elnes within this year."

In fact, if one were to look at this world like a TRPG, it was my magic's turn. That was why I didn't even bother using [Midas's Hand] when working.

If I used up 4 thousand mana on [Midas's Hand], I wouldn't be able to train my magic or use Understanding. Things would be a little different from here on out, though.

I genuinely needed money right now.

"By the way, why didn't you give me 10 million?" Yeriel murmured as she pouted. "You're welcome to give it to me right now."

"… Do you remember what you felt when we went for the relic last time?"

"Where you sold the vase?"

"I intend to take over those emotions soon."

"No, what? Oh…" Yeriel trembled almost loathingly. "You have no dignity."

"That's enough. We're here."

We arrived at the tower while we were talking.

I naturally looked up as soon as I got out of the car.

"… Its scale has grown considerably."

There were only nine university towers on the entire continent. After all, for a building to be considered as one, it had to at least have 70 floors.

Measuring Hadekain's 'Yukline Tower' by eye, it was likely taller than that minimum qualification.

"It's because they've been continuously developing."

I went into the tower with Yeriel, finding wizards waiting for us in the lobby. "It's an honor to meet you. I'm the tower's head, Digerik."

Digerik was a young man.

I looked at him with [Man of Great Wealth], and he, fortunately, passed with flying colors.

"Nice to meet you." I shook hands with him, then looked around the tower.

It wasn't as good as the Imperial University Tower, but its facilities were amazing enough to say they definitely were keeping up with the times.

"We also support specialized magic development research. Among all the local towers, we're probably the only ones to provide that aside from Iliade?" Yeriel bragged.

Separate from the other eight affiliations, the 9th affiliation, specialized magic, was also known as 'signature magic.'

Magic under the 9th affiliation adopted its creator's name. If a wizard invented it alone, it would be named after them. If an entire tower developed it together, then it was given the name of the tower. However, that was simply because specialized magic research consumed enormous resources.

Magic only required a wizard's brain to be conceptualized, but experimenting and perfecting it required a lot of mana stones, considering one would need to determine which series would suit it the most, all the faults it had, and all the effects it might apply to both the user and the target.

"Yeriel."

"Yeah?"

"Let's go to the stables now that it's done. I need a horse."

"Already? No, it doesn't matter, but before that… Can't you donate the midterm exam papers from the tower… Sir? On a free loan basis."

Yeriel looked at me with eyes that reminded me of puppies, but I shook my head coldly.

"I don't have time. However, if there is a wizard conducting a thesis or research in this tower, I'll correct their paper. Consider it a gift."

"How can that be a gift?" Yeriel asked innocently, looking genuinely clueless.

"…"

I looked back at the wizards who had been following us, but they also looked like they were avoiding the topic.

The sight made my anger momentarily rise.

Using my [Man of Great Wealth], I chose a person who stood out from the rest of the wizards. He was a cute little kid that reminded me of Allen.

"You. What's your name?"

"M-me? I'm Panien, a rank 2 wizard."

"Is there a magic thesis you're working on?"

"What? Ah, yes, there is-"

"I'll look over your paper. Think of it as an honor."

"No, no, I…"

Panien declined audaciously.

He was about to cry, so I let him off the hook.

*****

I came to the horse stables in the meadow behind the Yukline estate, finding a lot of excellent horses stomping on the grass. They seemed to be grazing.

"In the past, fostering horses was a big business, but cars have developed a lot these days… Still, I really like our stallions."

Yeriel stroked one of the horses' manes and smiled.

"Keep trying. Horses have different advantages than cars."

Horses, which could be used in dungeons and mines as long as they were equipped, would soon become highly sought after again.

"I know. I'm having fun raising these guys. It's not as much as before, but it's still fairly beneficial for us."

Tap tap—

Yeriel patted the horse's back a few times and looked at her watch.

"It's time for me to go to work now. You can take any of these guys with you~"

"Yeriel."

I grabbed her as she was about to leave. I took out a luxurious box and handed it to her.

"It's a gift."

"…?"

It contained high-end gloves.

Yeriel, blinking vacantly, received the gift with a weirdly distorted expression.

"What kind of trade is this…? Ah, a trade? Yeah, this is definitely a trade… Well, horses are a lot more expensive, but it's fine. I accept this deal."

Yeriel was muttering to herself and went straight to the residence. For some reason, she seemed to be in a hurry.

"…"

I soon strolled through the meadow and searched for a horse that wasn't too old and not too young.

According to my [Man of Great Wealth], the red horse with a soft mane and glossy skin stood out among the herd.

I approached him right away and hopped on his back.

I had never ridden a horse before, but I felt strangely used to it. This was the effect of Deculein's [Personality].

Clack clack clack clack—

After riding him for a few moments, I thought he was perfect. I prepared [Midas's Hand].

Of course, horses weren't items. They were alive.

However, [Midas's Hand] had a characteristic that used the user's mana to unlock the potential of the 'target, which could be alive or an inanimate object.

Of course, it didn't apply to humans, but horses were treated as items in the game system, so maybe….

I used [Midas's Hand]. The blue energy from my fingertips enveloped the horse.

Whiiiing—!

He burbled for a moment as he raised his front hooves, forcing me to hold on to him to prevent myself from falling off his back.

——— [Yukline's Red Horse] ———

◆ Description:

– A high-class horse who grew up eating only good things.

– [Midas's Hand] upgraded its overall physical ability and unlocked its potential.

◆ Category: Pet ⊃ Ride

◆ Pet Characteristics

– Dash

– Breathing

*Name setting is possible. [Midas's Hand 4]

—————

"… As expected."

Honestly, this much was only natural. It would be weirder if it weren't.

Nodding satisfactorily, I named the horse 'Red Horse.' It just so happened that his skin was red, which made the name suit him even more.

That aside…

I was ready now.

I would move tomorrow at 3 AM.

There was still a lot of time left until then, so I steered him to practice horseback riding.

"Giddy up!"

I shouted and pulled on his reins just as I had seen in historical dramas, and the horse ran with great speed and momentum. For a moment, my body leaned back and almost fell off.

Hiiiiing—!