Chapter 50 - Someone who works behind the scenes
Translator: Black Lotus
Editor: imsara
The north side of the Royal Capital faced the Great Road, an area where merchants were active. In this area, which is crowded with many travelers, various large and small inns have set up shop.
In such a situation, a gorgeous and luxurious inn that stood out from the rest – and a man whose name I’ve never heard of is staying in the suite. The name on the guest list was an aRius.
His real name was Baron Val Agos.
Baronetcy in the kingdom is given to individuals who do not have the assets to be able to casually use luxury accommodations.
Queen Giselotte was right to wonder.
”You’ve taken a room that’s not worthy of it.”
She said as she entered the parlor. She removed her deep hood, revealing a slightly crude collar.
”Considering the disrespect with which I have summoned the queen, it is such a small price to pay, ma’am.”
A man who hangs his head deeply in a condescending manner is Baron Val Agos.
He has a fearless face, but his beard is trimmed, and he has the appearance of a clean-cut gentleman. He is lean and muscular, with a sweet, low-pitched voice. It’s no wonder that his young age, just before his thirtieth birthday, has made him incessantly available for business meetings. However, he has many mysteries.
Three years ago, he received a baronetcy after taking an active role in suppressing the conflict in the southern region, but his background before that is puzzling.
His magic level is 【34】/【38】. If it was the era when the Demon King was around, he would have been named as a member of the defeating team.
Nevertheless, he suddenly joined the army about five years ago while almost unknown, and he quickly rose to prominence. It seems that if you trace the bloodline, you’ll end up with a wilted nobleman, but it stinks.
Giselotte sat down on the sofa with her robe on. The maidservant quickly came over and poured a glass of wine. She’s an odd woman, Giselotte thought. She has brown skin and white hair trimmed at the shoulders. Her eyes are as red as a crimson ball. She doesn’t look like a woman of the kingdom.
She was seventeen or eighteen of age. She was poorly built and beautiful, but she was not the kind of person to enjoy the night. The maid moved away and went to the corner of the room and stood upright like a doll.
“Well? What do you want, calling to me, the queen?”
He doesn’t touch his glass, but thrusts a sharp look at Agos.
“I know that it’s a bit of a moonshot, but which shall we have first, the good news or the bad news?”
“Bad news is to be expected. Because Rias is still alive…”
It was none other than Giselotte who proposed the murder of Rias. She initially intended to make Rias the next king, with the intention of practically taking over the kingdom as her backer. However, since joining forces with the ‘Lucifer Order’, he has become more of an obstacle.
Giselotte was proceeding with her own plans to become the queen.
“This is a tough one. It was a blunder on my part to leave it to the students. I didn’t mean to make excuses. It’s just … that’s rather part of the good news.”
Agos told Giselotte, who has a dubious look on her face, expressionlessly.
“The prince’s assassination was originally intended to throw the royal palace into chaos and blame the King’s faction for the crime in order to weaken it. As a result, the Queen’s faction and our aristocracy…were only trying to build a united front.”
“But,” continues Agos, “it’s a means to an end, not an end in itself.”
“It is a means to an end, not our original goal. This level of deviation will not derail our plans.”
“That’s quite a confidence booster. So, the good news is…”
“Yes. Everything is ready for the revolution.”
Thrumming. Giselotte shuddered at the sensation of pleasure coursing through her core. The King of Fools has been put to death and the next king, after much deliberation, will be the Queen. Of course, Prince Rias, Princess Marianne and any other noblemen who may have an objection will be asked to leave in the confusion of the revolution.
Hmmm….. Looking at the results alone, the Queen’s faction won. The leading figures of the aristocracy do not expect to be betrayed by their own people.
“A commoner like me can only be the last in line. It’s not possible to hope for success even if the aristocrats lead the way in putting the king to death, even if they increase the territory by a small amount. To put it bluntly, they are more concerned about their families than their achievements. The aristocrats, of course, have no loyalty.”
Agos smiled thinly to himself and shook his head from side to side in self-mockery.
“I know. I’ll make sure you have a place in the Order. Yes, even though you are only a candidate for the leadership, you will be become an aide to me.”
Giselotte financially supported the nascent religious group, the Lucifer Order, and had a lot of say in the matter.
And, Agos was also a follower of the cult. The revolution was carried out through the collusion of the Queen’s faction and the nobility. However, at the center of it all was the Lucifer Order.
“I am extremely pleased. Let my allegiance be to the Order and the Queen.”
Satisfied with Agos, who put his hand on his chest and hung his head reverently, Giselotte finally reached for her glass.
“So, what’s the bad news?”
“Right, and not only is it bad, but we have completed our analysis of the collar and the magic on your body.”
Gulping down the wine with a gulp, Giselotte stabs at him with a sharp look.
“You wouldn’t say no, would you?”
“The analysis itself was a success. The results were surprising.”
“Don’t waste my time, please!”
After bowing to Giselotte, who let out her frustration, Agos stood at the window.
”In case you’re misunderstood, I’ll tell you that the magic that was applied to you is–barrier magic.”
“What do you mean…?”
“Yes, it’s understandable that people would be suspicious. However, it’s not just the ancillary magic we know as barrier magic, it’s the most sophisticated form of magic we’ve ever seen.”
Agos put his hand on the window.
“Its main function is to ‘connect spaces’. Let’s say, for example, that this window and that door are connected by the same function. Whoever opens the door and enters, however, will not be in the room, but out of the window…”
Giselotte nearly dropped her glass and set it down on the low table, trembling.
”Transition magic, isn’t it…?”
”I don’t need to explain in detail, but they are not similar. Unlike transition magic, which is activated by consuming a huge amount of magic power the moment you transfer, that magic is always connected…”
This adds to Giselotte’s confusion. Not only is she skilled in the practical techniques of magic, she’s also at the level of a leading researcher in magic theory. But, she was limited to the field of modern magic, which was necessary for actual combat.
”But, wait. If that’s the case, are you saying that man is still consuming transfer magic level magic power right now?”
”No. In some cases, ancient magic doesn’t require magical power to maintain its magical effect. Or a very small amount of magic may be sufficient. Either way, that magic that deviates from the norm can only be explained by ancient magic.”
“That man is a user of ancient magic.”
“Perhaps.”
“Is there such a person in this day and age? I couldn’t believe it. No, it’s more than that.”
“I’m not going to let you go.”
“There is no such thing as an ancient magic user to be found by looking for one. No one but the black warrior is a wizard.”
“Okay, this is indeed a bad report.”
Despair weighs on her shoulders. Emptiness burn a hole in my heart. But—
“Is it too early for such pessimism, my Queen?”
Before I knew it, Agos was approaching me. He bent his knees and pulled his face closer.
“It’s not like I don’t have a guess.”
“To the wielder of ancient magic?”
Agos nodded his head.
“However, I can’t guarantee that it’s a certainty. It’s extremely dangerous, but I have another—”
“Mmm-hmm!”
In the middle of her words, the maidservant standing in the corner of the room cleared her throat. ‘I beg your pardon,’ she announced blankly, holding her throat.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cause you anxiety.”
The strange exchange made me suspicious, but right now I had more important things to do than anything else.
“Fine. More importantly, who is it?”
“One is a professor at the GrandFelt School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, specializing in the study of ancient magic. She is the most prodigious woman in the field of magic research since the beginning of the school. Her name is Tiarietta Lucianell.”
To Giselotte, it’s another name she heard of. But, being a researcher in a field of little interest, all she knew was her name.
“The way you put it, are there others?”
Agos told her quietly.
‘–Weiss Owl. The unidentified research genius.’
Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om