Academy’s Genius Mage

“Starting next week, we’re going to have an immense number of guests visiting. Ah! It’s genuinely such a bother!”

Milo grumbled.

He was somewhat envious of Ian as well, but it truly seemed like there would be many bothersome things happening.

Even now, seniors from the third year, including Gaus and a few others, often come by.

At this rate, he was worried even professors might visit the dormitory.

“Still, isn’t it amazing? The title ‘All Master’ is really impressive. Even I, who has nothing to do with practical magic, found my heart racing!”

Edel spoke, his face blushing.

He tried to suppress his rising excitement.

Being a healer, he felt this way, so he could imagine how other students might feel without needing to hear their thoughts.

Ian laughed and asked, “Why do you think it has nothing to do with you?”

“Hmm? Because I’m aspiring to be in the healing school for now. There are hardly any spells I can use… And when we explored the dungeon before, I was just a nuisance, wasn’t I?”

“What nuisance? You even treated the person who sprained their ankle while fighting those insignificant low-level monsters.”

“… Why are you bringing that up all of a sudden?”

Milo’s face flushed with embarrassment.

He knew Ian was referring to him as the one who sprained his ankle.

It wasn’t even an injury from a direct monster attack.

He got careless after the battle was over, tripped over a rock, and hurt himself.

In one word, it was embarrassing.

If it got out that the heir of the Vinettia Family, famous for their swordsmanship, tripped over a rock and sprained his ankle, he wouldn’t be able to show his face.

So Milo avoided talking about that dungeon expedition as much as possible.

“Professor Frost and I both said, didn’t we? All magic ultimately comes from the same root. Whether a mage, a spirit mage, or a healer, it’s all the same when you trace it back to its origins.”

“Your goal is to become an All Master too, right, Ian?”

“For now, at least!”

Ian replied calmly.

Edel couldn’t hide the admiration in his eyes.

“Somehow, I feel Ian will become an All Master. I don’t know when, but I’m sure you will.”

“Aren’t you praising me too much?”

“No. Ian, you’re strong in both theory and practice, right? Plus, you’ve started to feel the spirits. It’s not entirely impossible, right, Milo?”

“An All Master? No way!!”

Milo couldn’t accept that.

He looked at Ian with a mocking expression.

“How can you be an All Master when you can’t even win Isera’s heart? Solve your pity first!”

“That sounds like your story.”

“Me? No way! I’m not pitiful at all!”

“Seeing you like this, it seems you do.”

“Hahaha.”

Ian and his friends entered the dorm room.

The waiting cat leaped into Ian’s arms, meowing.

『I don’t know what kind of mess this is, having lost a good contractor. It’s been such boring hours.』

“Well, that’s just your fate, isn’t it?”

『Damn! In that case, I’ll hope the contractor is killed so our contract will be nullified.』

Ian gently stroked the cat.

“What if you end up with a strange name if you do that?”

『Are you threatening me?』

“It’s not a threat but information. You seem to not know your partner well. The rule is to return what you receive or even more. That’s my principle.”

Recently, when Isera heard the cat’s name, she had told Ian to give it a proper name.

Since it was the word of a senior as respectable as the sky, he had no choice but to comply.

However, a good name was hard to come by, so he continued to ponder.

『I am a magnificent spirit. You should present me with a magnificent name fitting for a great spirit.』

“What about ‘Lord Cat’?”

—

『Lord Cat’? Oh, does that mean Cat Lord? Very well!”

“Stray cat.”

『Damn contractor!』

Despite the ominous exchange, the interaction between the two seemed like a caring owner and a cute cat to an outsider.

Milo and Edel couldn’t hear this peculiar conversation.

『That pretty lady came by earlier. She came as far as the dorm entrance but then left.』

“Ophelia?”

『No, a very beautiful woman who doesn’t suit you at all.』

So it must have been Isera.

She hadn’t been seen much lately, so Ian Oracle thought it surprising she had come this far.

He concluded that he should head to the library.

Although there was a chance she might be in the lounge, given the standard exam period, it was more likely she would be studying in the library.

『I didn’t expect you to come all the way here.』

He had a lot to do with her.

After the standard exams, they needed to write a thesis and begin their activities in the Ancient Literature Reading Club.

There was also work outside the academy.

They had been invited to the Magic Society, so preparations to attend needed to be made.

『And enjoy a meal together at a nice place.』

Ian always felt a little guilty for only receiving so much from her. He wanted to take this opportunity to give something back.

He lightly patted the cat’s head.

“Anyway, keep a keen eye. You never know who might snoop around. We have to be wary of the remnants of Hamel. There’s certainly a traitor within the academy.”

The cat grimaced and bared its fangs.

『Monitoring and reconnaissance are my specialties, so don’t worry. Just come up with a decent name!』

“Got it. Relax.”

While they exchanged these thoughts, Milo and Edel settled at a table.

Edel prepared tea and cookies.

Ian joined them there.

“Now, how about sharing some stories? I almost died from curiosity. Zickhardt is acting up in classes he never cared about. Doesn’t this all seem strange?”

“Right. It felt like something was pursuing him.” Edel added.

He was a person with extremely sensitive intuition. If he sensed it, then there was definitely something to it.

“You all saw it correctly. It seems like Zickhardt is connected to Hamel.”

“What?”

“Is that really true?”

Ian nodded.

It was a troublesome matter if it involved anyone, let alone the second son of Count Telomian. As a first-year in the Department of Magic, he had the highest mana levels.

Moreover, even before this incident, Zickhardt had harbored ill feelings toward Ian.

Milo sighed.

“If he’s involved, it’s likely in a negative sense, isn’t it? If the downfall of Hamel were a good thing, he wouldn’t have bothered with you.”

“Exactly. He mentioned there was something important to repay Hamel for.”

Ian shared the story about how Zickhardt referred to the Hamel Trading Guild as a “component!”

Their expressions turned grim as they absorbed the information.

“The Empire, you say…”

“This seems like it’s becoming a huge matter, doesn’t it?”

“Nothing is certain yet. There’s no objective evidence that the Hamel Trading Guild and the Empire are entangled.”

“Just because it hasn’t been revealed doesn’t mean it isn’t true, does it?”

Milo remarked meaningfully.

“What do you mean?”

“You weren’t the one investigating. It would have been the Intelligence Bureau and the court. Both are institutions serving the kingdom. If things seem to be getting big, it’s possible they might conceal the truth.”

“Concealment?”

It was indeed a plausible scenario.

Even if Ian was directly involved in the incident, investigators had no reason to care for him beyond their obligations.

“I think I need to meet Judge Lumière again.”

“That judge from before, right? Hmm, wouldn’t it be better to meet someone from the Intelligence Bureau instead?”

“I don’t have connections with anyone in the Intelligence Bureau.”

“Connections can be made if needed!”

Milo had stated with assurance.

In the current situation, making connections seemed not to be a difficult task.

However, in all matters, there was a proper order.

If this order was disrupted, things might appear well-handled at first, but eventually, everything could fall apart and lead to disaster.

Ian Oracle rested his chin in his hand, sinking into thought.

‘Still, first meeting with Lumière would be the right move. Even if I don’t know the facts precisely, I can at least gauge the atmosphere.’

He decided that meeting with Lumière to gather more information should take precedence.

During this process, if connections formed, new relationships could be established.

“But why on earth did Zickhardt say such things?!”

Ian pondered aloud.

“Do you know anything about the Telomian Family?!”

Milo asked.

“Not much. It’s a notoriously secretive place. To the extent that there’s a part underground in their mansion only accessible to the head of the family, and it’s rumored that countless bodies are piled up there.”

“Bodies? Why?!”

Edel asked, surprised.

“There have been rumors that black magic is being studied there. Since long ago!”

Milo explained.

Edel was shocked, but Ian took it in stride.

“Rumors about forbidden magic being researched in secret places of mages’ mansions are pretty common!”

Ian remarked.

“Even in your family, Ian?!”

Edel questioned.

“Our family supposedly has a sophisticated salon in the basement always filled with beautiful women!”

Ian replied with a smirk.

Milo, realizing the irony in his own question, clicked his tongue.

Ian continued, “Black magic is merely a rumor that intrigues gossip lovers. Moreover, it’s illogical for a count’s family lacking in nothing to be researching black magic right in the middle of the capital.”

“Yeah, I agree. The Telomian family does pursue secrecy, but it’s an old family with a well-earned reputation!”

Milo conceded.

“But there’s an old saying, ‘Where there’s smoke, there’s fire,’!”

Ian said.

“What?”

“Such rumors don’t just emerge out of nowhere.”

A faint smile formed on Ian’s lips as his expression softened.

“In any case, there’s something about the Telomian family. Zickhardt as well. We have to investigate how they relate to Hamel, Hamel’s Trading Company, and the Empire.”

“Shall I arrange for someone?!”

Milo offered.

Ian shook his head.

“I appreciate it, but I’ll pass this time. It’s top-tier information, so I aim to look into it myself.”

“I see.”

On the continent, there were countless information dealers.

Some operated openly, while others hid in very secretive places dealing in high-level information.

‘To obtain such information, I might need to contact an underworld dealer.’

“Underworld dealer” is a term referring to those conducting business in shadows. Their items could be merchandise, information, and sometimes even people or other races. There were no limits to what they dealt with.

Ian had sufficient funds.

More than 50 billion shillings rested dormant in the bank.

‘I need to discover every fork and knife in Zickhardt’s mansion’s inventory.’

This time, Ian decided he wouldn’t hold back on expenditures.

Finding a trustworthy information broker was of utmost importance before spending the money.

“If you have to face the Empire, what will you do?!”

Milo asked.

To ease his friend’s concern, Ian revealed a fragment of his plan.

“It’s not like there aren’t any strategies. We can use the Bahamut Trading Company, which has now become the first company in the kingdom.”

“Use Bahamut?”

“Is that wording slightly off? Cooperation might be a better term. Naturally, we need confidence in the Bahamut Trading Company first. This potion business will be the foundation.”

“I get the gist of it, but it won’t yield quick results. It will take some time!”

Milo assessed.

“Right. So, let’s put that aside for now and focus on studying for our exams.”

“Aw, why’d you have to bring up exams when everything was going well? That’s really annoying!!”

Milo vented, pulling at his hair in an attempt to escape reality.

Leaving a frustrated Milo behind, Ian stepped out of the dorm room with the cat, Goyang.