As soon as he had returned to the Red Tower of Magic, he received a summons from Lovellian. Since he intended to ask about Eward, this worked out perfectly for Eugene.
‘Now that I think about it, this will be my first time visiting the Head Wizard’s room.’
As befitting his position as the Tower Master, Lovellian was allowed to occupy the entire top floor of the tower. Without an invitation from the Tower Master, no matter how much mana you poured into the elevator, it would be impossible to rise to the top floor.
‘I can probably guess why he’s calling me,’ Eugene thought.
It should be because of the spell that he had cast in front of Hera. At that time, Hera had been about to faint in astonishment at the sight of the golem that she’d been so proud of collapsing onto its back.
Although it wasn’t as much as her, Eugene had also been alarmed. Even though he’d never heard of a metal like carbium in his previous life, in any case, he knew that he’d managed to knock over a golem that had been constructed from such a sturdy material with the first spell that he had ever cast.
This meant that the power of his spell was stronger than Eugene had expected. Truthfully speaking, he hadn’t held high expectations for it, as it was his first time trying it out, but with a power like that, it felt like his spells were ready to be used in actual combat. As long as he became more accustomed to casting magic and the number of spells he could cast increased, Eugene felt like he’d be able to do a lot of fun things.
‘But it’s not like he’ll call me up just to compliment me,’ Eugene continued his guesswork.
It felt like he was about to receive some sort of present. Eugene trusted his gut instinct, and such a foreshadowing left him grinning widely.
Eugene stepped out of the elevator and took a few steps down a corridor. Through the wide-open doorway at the end of the corridor, he could see Lovellian getting up from his desk. The man greeted Eugene with a friendly smile.
“Did you have any difficulties getting here?” Lovellian asked politely.
“If I had known that you were looking for me, I wouldn’t have gone out in the first place. My apologies,” Eugene returned the pleasantries.
“There’s no need to say something like that. After all, I’m the one who called for you so suddenly. To start with, please feel free to take a seat.”
Now it wasn’t just a feeling; Eugene was confident in his hunch. Lovellian’s voice was overflowing with appreciation.
‘Let’s ask about Eward after receiving whatever the gift is,’ Eugene decided.
Although it wasn’t Eugene’s intention to do so, Lovellian might feel like he was being interrogated upon listening to such questions. He might be a member of the Lionheart clan’s main family, but it was still disrespectful of Eugene, who was many years younger than Lovellian, to question the man about this and that.
‘...How old was he again?’ Eugene tried to recall. ‘I think I’ve heard that he’s close to a hundred….’
Even after adding the years from his previous life to his current age, Eugene was still younger than Lovellian. Just thinking about it that way gave Eugene a strange feeling. Of all the people that Eugene had met so far, Lovellian was the only one who was truly older than him.
“Um…. By the way, may I ask why I was summoned?” Eugene decided to stick to this question for now.
He believed that there was no need for him to pointlessly report on how he was adapting to life in the tower. Since, in any case, everything that happened within the tower was already reported to Lovellian.
“First of all, please take a look at this,” with a flick of Lovellian’s finger, the letter of recommendation popped out of the drawer and flew over to Eugene.
“...A letter of recommendation?” Eugene’s eyes widened into circles as his gaze fell to the letter.
‘It’s for Akron? No way,’ Eugene struggled to contain his surprise.
Even Eugene was familiar with that name. The prestigious Royal Library had already been famous three hundred years ago. It was the place where the essence of Aroth’s prided magic was stored. No matter how vast the array of magical books possessed by the Towers of Magic was, in terms of quality, it couldn’t compare to the collection in Akron.
“...I think this is too much of an honor for me to accept at the moment,” although Eugene wanted to jump into the air and cheer in joy, for now, he decided to hold back and check the situation.
And these words weren’t completely insincere. Even three hundred years ago, Akron had enjoyed a high status, so it wasn’t a place that anyone could just enter.
“I don’t share your thoughts.” Lovellian continued speaking with a shake of his head, “Instead, I believe that now is exactly the right time for you to enter Akron, Eugene.”
“Why do you believe that?” Eugene asked.
“Because you have yet to venture deeply into learning magic, young Eugene,” Lovellian explained.
“Isn’t that more reason why entry into Akron should be out of my reach?”
“Not at all. Since you haven’t ventured deeply into learning magic, you still have a lot of possibilities lying ahead of you. Replacing a Circle with a Core; although it’s easy to put into words, it should still be impossible for someone your age. However, you, Eugene, managed to accomplish it.”
Eugene was worried about what kind of expression he should show. Should he smile and show confidence? Or should he be humble instead?
“...Thank you very much,” Eugene said, eventually deciding on both.
Eugene bowed his head respectfully but still revealed his excitement through his twitching fingers and made a show of hiding his proud smile.
Lovellian gave Eugene some advice, “There are many exceptional magical books in Akron. Although it might be impossible for you to benefit from them immediately, as long as you keep reading them and storing their contents in your head, you will be able to broaden your knowledge base. That knowledge will one day become the foundation that will allow your magic to truly shine, Eugene.”
Calling Akron’s collection of magical books exceptional was actually downplaying it. In the halls of Akron and ancient magic passed down from the mythical era were stored the writings of the sages whose names had received the highest of acclaims throughout Aroth’s long history.
“...There is something I’m curious about.” After some hesitation, Eugene continued speaking, “Does Akron also have books written by Lady Sienna?”
“Of course it does,” Lovellian confirmed with a proud smile. “Although there are books authored by Sienna in both the Red Tower of Magic and the Green Tower of Magic, one of the original three volumes of ‘Witch Craft,’ which Sienna wrote in her later years, is stored in Akron.”
‘Witch Craft’ was considered one of the most significant series of books in all of Aroth’s history. The wise Sienna had summed up all of her magical knowledge and divided the essence of her wisdom into these three volumes. As a result, ‘Witch Craft’ was considered a national treasure of Aroth, and no other copies were allowed to exist.
Lovellian reflected on the books, “Although the only volume available for public viewing is the first book in the trilogy, that volume alone will impart knowledge that you won’t be able to find in any other magical text. In my case…. Haha. When I first read the first volume of ‘Witch Craft,’ I realized that all the magic that I had learned in my life up until that moment was all just child’s play.”
“...Ah…!” Eugene breathed in surprise.
“Although I can’t guarantee that this letter of recommendation can be exchanged for an entry pass into Akron, I first wanted to hear your opinion, Eugene. Are you alright with me submitting a letter of recommendation on your behalf?”
“Of course, that’s fine with me. However, I’m still a bit concerned that my own inadequacies will cause trouble for the Tower Master.”
‘Of course, it’s fine with me, you bastard. Why ask such an obvious question?’ Eugene kept bowing his head deeply without allowing his true thoughts to escape his lips.
“‘Cause trouble’ you say…. Haha! Don’t worry about that. Something like this won’t cause me any trouble at all,” Lovellian said with a wry smile.
There were some unidentified emotions lingering behind Lovellian’s voice, and he seemed to be holding back a sigh. Eugene lifted his head slightly to glance up at Lovellian’s expression.
“...Master Lovellian,” Eugene called out hesitantly.
“Yes, what is it?” Lovellian responded.
“That’s… um… I have something that I need to talk to you about concerning my older brother, Eward.”
Eugene had checked the letter of recommendation and received Lovellian’s promise that he would submit it for Eugene. At this point, it didn’t seem like Lovellian would go back on his words just because he got a little offended. The man sitting in the Tower Master's seat wouldn’t be that petty.
Eugene continued speaking, “From the first day I came to Aroth… I happened to hear a certain story. It was about how Eward hasn’t been focussing on practicing magic and is instead going into some shady street to partake in the nightlife.”
“Ah…,” Lovellian sighed.
As expected, Lovellian was already aware of Eward’s misdeeds.
“Although I might not be a true sibling of Eward, as a relative who shares the same last name as him, I am worried about Eward. Even those back at the main estate… the Patriarch and his wife, are also extremely concerned about Eward,” persuaded Eugene.
“This is… I’m not sure how to put it into words,” Lovellian wasn’t able to continue speaking immediately and instead scratched his head in frustration. “Eugene. How much do you know about Eward’s affairs?”
“...I’ve heard that he’s become acquainted with the succubi who work in Bolero Street.”
“First of all, that is the truth,” Lovellian admitted with a short sigh. “I’ve also known about it, and I’ve even warned him a few times. But I’ve been unable to prevent Eward from indulging in that debauchery.”
“...,” Eugene waited for an explanation.
“Succubi… are a famous breed of Night Demons. In the past, before Helmuth was opened up, many people had died because the succubi drained all their lifeforce.”
Eugene was already very familiar with these facts.
“However, with the opening up of Helmuth, the attitudes of the Demon Kings and their demonfolk subjects underwent a lot of changes. The same goes for the succubi. While they still absorb lifeforce, they don’t kill people like they used to. It has been strictly forbidden by the Queen of the Night Demons who resides in Helmuth.”
“That still doesn’t make my brother’s lustful affairs appropriate,” argued Eugene.
“Yes, you’re right, of course,” Lovellian halted his words for a moment. He stared at Eugene with a bitter expression before continuing, “Please have a little sympathy for Eward.”
Stunned, Eugene responded, “...Huh?”
Lovellian reminisced, “Four years ago, Eward left the main estate to arrive in Aroth. He came to Aroth with a lot of expectations, but…. Unfortunately, Eward’s talent failed to live up to his own hopes and expectations.”
“...,” Eugene listened patiently.
“Eward experienced a lot of setbacks. Samuel and I—ah, Samuel is the wizard who taught Eward—in any case, Samuel and I did our best to help Eward overcome the frustration from these setbacks but… unfortunately, it didn’t go so well.”
Even though he lacked the necessary talent, they made it possible for Eward to stay in the tower. Moreover, they didn’t spare him any advice on magic, and he had even received their personal instruction, along with recommendations to several useful magical texts.
“Discipline is something that needs to be cultivated on one’s own. Relying on the urgings of those around you is not enough to keep you focused on what you should be doing. Moreover, with his status, Eward couldn’t help but be weighed down by many expectations.”
“...,” Eugene continued to hold his tongue.
“‘Wouldn’t it be better to give him some time to catch his breath….’ That’s what we thought at the time. We were trying to be careful not to overdo his instruction. Without such care, Eward may have already collapsed.”
It wasn’t like he couldn’t comprehend what Lovellian was saying. Eugene had also lived in the main estate for the past four years. So he knew just how high-strung Tanis was and was also well aware of how sly Ancilla could be.
Cyan and Ciel had been born with both talent and ambition. Those two wished to become the next Patriarch or Matriarch because they wanted to meet the expectations of those around them and also fulfill their own desires.
But what about Eward? He had heard that Eward had lacked initiative from a young age, and he was more interested in magic than he was in training his martial arts. Ever since the birth of Cyan and Ciel, Tanis had constantly been reminding her son of his position as the eldest heir. Upon having his hopes for Aroth betrayed, Eward had decided not to return to the main estate, probably because he felt it was still better to live in Aroth than to return to that suffocating main estate.
Eugene still couldn’t accept Eward’s actions, ‘No matter what, a succubus is still a bit too much.’
Although he understood that Eward’s situation was pitiful, getting involved with a succubus was going too far. Demonfolk, who had changed their attitudes and put smiles on their faces, were still demonfolk. They would never be able to peacefully coexist with humans. Eugene—no, Hamel was all too aware of this fact.
“I understand,” Eugene said, nodding his head. ‘For now, I’ll need to take a look personally.”
Despite understanding that Eward’s situation was pitiful, Eugene still couldn’t turn a blind eye to the means he used to release his tension.
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