Magic Crystal?

"You want to become a magician?"

With raised eyebrows, Riezel asked Isaac, who stood in front of him.

"Duh!" Isaac rolled his eyes and spoke with no trace of politeness. "Who doesn't want to become a magician?"

'Well, that's true...' Riezel admitted in his heart.

In this world, being a magician symbolized nobility, symbolized status, and without a doubt, many people aspired to it.

Like the original Riezel, dreaming of becoming a Tactical-Class Magician, gaining a noble status, and being honored as a noble, it was safe to say that there were plenty of people like him. Even noble descendants hope to become magicians themselves, especially Tactical-Class or Strategic-Class Magicians.

However, reality was obviously more cruel than they imagined.

"Your elder sister said that only she and your father in the entire family have the talent to become magicians, while you, due to insufficient magical energy, can only pursue the path of a swordsman. Don't you know about this?" Riezel asked with a puzzled tone.

Yes.

It was this matter that made him puzzled.

Logically, Isaac should know about this since he was already attending swordsmanship classes. Even if no one told him, he should have guessed that he didn't have the talent to become a magician, right?

It was truly perplexing that Isaac suddenly wanted him to teach magic.

"I'm sure my father and elder sister have mistaken me, maybe I happen to have the talent to become a magician, they just haven't noticed it yet?"

When saying that, Isaac looked resolute and unwilling to accept defeat, but Riezel keenly noticed a hint of unwillingness in his eyes.

Apparently, this nine-year-old boy refused to believe in reality.

It was understandable.

At Isaac's age, how could he understand that 'talent' was something inborn and unchangeable?

At this age, Isaac certainly wouldn't be convinced by evaluations from elders. He wouldn't believe that if someone said it was not possible, then it was not possible. Even if it was true, he must be an exception.

This was a mindset shared by people of his age.

Perhaps, he also wanted to prove to his father and elder sister that they were wrong and that he could actually become a magician.

"Ahh, I see... It's probably because of this that you keep avoiding swordsmanship classes and never seriously study swordsmanship, huh..."

Riezel seemed to understand Isaac's behavior now, and indeed, it seemed to be the case.

"I don't want to learn swordsmanship and become a swordsman." Isaac said with disdain. "I want to become a powerful magician, like my elder sister, honored by the kingdom, and make our family stronger and more stronger. Swordsmanship classes are pointless."

Sure enough, this boy avoided studying swordsmanship and attending swordsmanship classes for this reason.

But still, reality was cruel.

"Listen, to become a magician, having enough magical energy to cast magic is the bare minimum. Even if you dream of becoming a magician, if you don't have the necessary magical energy, you won't be able to cast a single magic." Riezel explained, choosing not to deceive the boy, thus revealing the harsh reality.

However, his explanation seemed to ignite Isaac's rebellious spirit.

"Are you going to say the same thing as my father and elder sister?!" Isaac shouted. "I don't care. Just teach me what you need to, whether I succeed or not is my concern, not yours!"

"That's a valid point. Whether you learn or not is up to you; I shouldn't get in your way." Riezel acknowledged his words, but shortly afterward, turned his gaze to his eyes. "But whether I teach you or not is my concern too, no?"

"You—!" Isaac became infuriated instantly.

Being a noble, if he had demands, others should comply with them, that was how things worked within his family.

Why did this guy really like to go against him? Did this man really think he was so great just because he had his elder sister to protect him?

He admitted that this guy was indeed somewhat impressive, but even after he had 'humbly' begged like this, this guy still refused.

This guy was truly a damn scoundrel!

There was no other choice; he would have to resort to a last-ditch effort.

"I can give you money!"

"I'm not short on money for now."

"I can give you my precious magic items!"

"I don't want any magic items for now."

"I-I can introduce you to women!"

"I don't need a woman for now. Also, please stop that; you're starting to sound like a wicked and nasty young master."

"What do you have to be dissatisfied about?"

"I'd like to ask you back, based on what you've said, do I have anything to be satisfied about?"

"In that case, how about I give you a magic crystal that can record images? It also contains scenes of my three elder sisters bathing!"

"...Pass."

It must be said that for the sake of learning magic, Isaac was truly willing to go all out, willing to use anything as bargaining chips.

Riezel's gaze at this boy became increasingly strange, feeling like there was something off about him, yet also seemingly normal in every way. This feeling was quite odd, but it didn't stop him from seeing Isaac as a troublemaker brat.

Luckily, Riezel didn't need to intervene; this boy was about to face consequences on his own.

"Ahh, so that's how it is... A magic crystal that can record images, is it?" 

A voice, sounding as though it emerged from hell, suddenly echoed behind Isaac.

"I've never heard of such a thing. Shouldn't you explain this to me properly, Isaac?"

As the voice resonated, Isaac, who was about to reach into his pocket to take out the so-called magic crystal, froze entirely. He showed a frightened expression, and shortly afterward, the terror on his face turned into despair.

*Pak!*

A hand forcefully slammed onto Isaac's shoulder, grabbing hold of him, and preventing his escape.

Mediste's face appeared behind Isaac, her slightly childish yet exceptionally beautiful face frosted over with coldness, darkness swirling in her eyes.

"It seems like the two of us need to have a serious talk, don't you think, Isaac?" Mediste's voice was particularly cold and terrifying.

"A-Ah... Aah..." Isaac let out a sound akin to a broken doll, a voice resembling that of a dying man.

At that moment, delicate and fair hands swiftly clasped around his neck.

*Crack!*

The next second, Isaac's neck twisted almost ninety degrees, emitting a bone-cracking sound, his eyes rolling back as he collapsed to the ground.

"My apologies, Mr. Riezel." 

Mediste appeared from behind Isaac and bowed her head to Riezel.

"My brother seems to have lost his senses, speaking nonsense. Please forget what he just said, and accept my deepest gratitude."

After uttering those undoubtedly emotionless words, she raised her head, her gaze and expression both seemed to have lost their luster.

"Then, I'll take my leave."

Seeing Mediste's eyes devoid of their usual brilliance, Riezel was somewhat taken aback.

"Uh, yeah, take care..." Riezel could only respond awkwardly.

"Then, excuse me." Mediste bowed her head once again and turned to leave.

However, she still held Isaac's nape in her hand, dragging her younger brother directly toward the other end of the corridor.

In Riezel's eyes, it seemed as if a large predatory animal was dragging its prey into a corner to devour it.

'Frenzel family's women are truly terrifying...'

Whether it was Yuri or Mediste, neither of them was to be trifled with.

Lost in thought, Riezel didn't realize that the turned-away Mediste was currently feeling somewhat devastated.

Perhaps it was because of the matter her father mentioned to her last night.

—I'm planning to marry you off to Riezel Brynhart. Be prepared at all times.

Her father's absolute words lingered in her brain, leaving her with a complex mix of emotions.

As a result, for a short while, Mediste didn't dare to meet Riezel.

As for shocks or resistance, surprisingly, she didn't show any.

Surprise?

What was there to be surprised about?

Her father was always like this, and she knew it long ago. She had mentally prepared herself for her marriage arrangement long ago, so nothing was surprising.

Resistance?

How could she resist?

Her two elder sisters had the ability to resist, but pitifully, she didn't.

After all, she wasn't like her eldest sister, skilled in swordsmanship, or like her second-eldest sister, who was a great magician.

She was just an ordinary girl.

With her abilities, what could she do to resist?

Let alone herself, even her eldest sister who was a Sword Master could only resist their father with their mother's support. Otherwise, her eldest sister alone wouldn't be able to resist their father at all.

Only her second-eldest sister, Yuri, truly possessed the ability and privilege to resist their father solely with her own power. Because of this, she admired her second-eldest sister the most and aspired to become someone like her.

Unfortunately, she could only dream, since she was the most useless daughter in this family. Obeying marriage arrangements obediently and living a somewhat happy life was the best future she could hope for.

With such complicated emotions, Mediste dragged Isaac away.

Meanwhile, Riezel, who remained oblivious to her thoughts, watched as Mediste hurriedly left with her younger brother. Just as he was about to turn and leave, he noticed an item on the ground.

"Hmm? Magic crystal?" Riezel raised his eyebrows and picked it up.

The crystal-shaped item that had fallen to the ground looked very similar to the communication magic crystal he had received from Yuri, so he immediately recognized it as some kind of magic crystal.

"Did this fall from that brat?"

Suddenly, he remembered what Isaac said earlier and realized what thing contained in this magic crystal was.

As a result, he fell into a long, long silence.

"...I'll just keep it for now."

After a long time, Riezel quietly tucked the magic crystal into his pocket and left the scene.

As for what kind of cruel interrogation and punishment Isaac would face from his elder sister for losing the magic crystal afterward, that had nothing to do with him.