Chapter 41

“Hey, bro! Did you manage to book the inn?”

Riana, who had suggested the condition of convincing her master, asked with sparkling eyes.

“The inn? Of course I did. Why?”

“Hehe, good job. Convincing our master is definitely not going to be easy. It won’t be done in a day or two, right?”

“If it doesn’t take a day or two, that’s a relief. I wonder how long it will take…”

Convincing, huh?

Can I, a human, really convince Ronos, a demon with a completely different way of thinking and existence?

“Should I say, ‘We need to eliminate all demons like you, but we need to take your apprentice as a tool for that’?”

“Or, ‘To protect this world against you’…?”

“Like he’d agree to that.”

“Huh? What did you say?”

“Nothing.”

“So, where did you book the inn?”

“The biggest inn in Rostia.”

“Ah, the one run by the old man? Good choice.”

“I’m not sure if it was a good choice. I felt like there was some hidden agenda.”

“Hidden agenda? What happened?”

“Well…”

“Ugh.”

Abelin, who was standing nearby, flinched and let out a strange sound.

“What’s wrong, Abelin?”

“…Don’t mention it.”

“Don’t mention what?”

“Don’t talk about what happened when we had that scuffle with that sly old man at the inn.”

“Huh…?”

Abelin’s voice trembled but was quite firm.

“What happened?”

Hearing this, Riana, ever the curious magician, blinked her curious eyes and asked.

But.

“Sorry. It doesn’t seem right to talk about it when Abelin asked us not to.”

“Tch, how boring.”

“Haha, it’s nothing much. Just something that would make you lose interest if you heard it.”

“Hmm… Okay.”

Riana seemed to give up for a moment, but then her eyes sharpened briefly.

“Something definitely happened, right, Abelin?”

“…Ahem.”

Abelin avoided Riana’s gaze and just coughed.

“Anyway, it’s good that we booked the inn. I was thinking of offering the guest accommodations in the Magic Tower if needed.”

“Guest accommodations… Ah.”

Suddenly, something came to my mind.

“What’s wrong, bro?”

“Since we already booked the inn, there’s no need to offer the guest accommodations. But can I ask for one favor?”

“What kind of favor? If it’s something I can do, I’ll do it. But don’t expect me to go with you yet, okay?”

“Do I seem that pushy? No. The favor I want to ask is…”

And the request that came out of my mouth.

Abelin, Riana, and the Gatekeeper, who heard my request on the spot, were all shocked.

And for good reason, because…

***

“P-please reconsider!”

“You know, Gatekeeper, I’m not trying to enter with any impure intentions.”

“B-but still…”

Riana led the way, followed by me and Abelin, with the Gatekeeper trailing behind, his face pale.

Because the request I made to Riana was to let me enter the female apprentices’ living quarters.

“Lady Riana, you are indeed one of the most promising apprentices in our Magic Tower. But this is unacceptable! It will disrupt the order and decorum of the Tower!”

“Sigh… Gatekeeper, stop it.”

As the Gatekeeper kept expressing his disapproval, Riana stopped and turned to scold him.

“You know, right? The Magic Tower should be more progressive than any other place in this world. If you keep this up, I’ll start calling you grandpa instead of uncle.”

“I’m already at an age where being called grandpa wouldn’t be strange, so I’m not scared of that…”

“Anyway, my point is. Kairon isn’t trying to enter the female apprentices’ quarters with any impure intentions. You get that, right?”

“Of course, I know that Kairon isn’t that kind of person, but…”

“Besides.”

Riana grinned and added in a confident voice.

“I’m the one who invited Kairon. What’s wrong with inviting an old friend to my room?”

“Uh…”

The Gatekeeper, unable to hide his flustered and troubled expression, put his hand on his forehead.

“Well, what’s the point of me objecting? If Lady Riana, one of the most promising apprentices, has already made up her mind, there’s nothing I can do to stop her. But what if this becomes a problem later?”

“A problem for me?”

“The High Magician exam.”

“Ah…”

Riana’s excited expression faded.

The Gatekeeper’s face and voice were serious as he spoke about the High Magician exam.

“Lady Riana, it’s not far off now. The exam that will declare the most outstanding apprentice as a High Magician and grant access to all the knowledge of the Tower.”

“I know.”

“Becoming a High Magician isn’t just about magical prowess. It’s also about knowledge, conduct, reputation, and everything else. It’s decided very subjectively.”

Riana nodded silently.

“You know that all the conditions are in your favor, except for one, right?”

Just by looking at how Ronos and the Gatekeeper treated Riana, it was clear that she was a highly regarded apprentice.

In her past life, she had been chosen as a High Magician and even became a candidate for Grand Magician, so it wasn’t surprising.

But what could be the condition holding back such an outstanding Riana?

“Ugh… Ah, I don’t know!”

Riana shouted briefly, then turned around and started walking ahead again.

“Just follow me! I’ll handle everything!”

Abelin and I didn’t follow Riana immediately and instead asked the Gatekeeper.

“Can you tell us what those two things are?”

“There’s no need to hide it. It’s because Lady Riana’s master is Ronos.”

“Is it a problem to have an outstanding magician as a master?”

“It is. Ronos is too outstanding. And Lady Riana is his first acknowledged apprentice. That means she’s a genius on par with him. But geniuses are lonely. They can’t understand others, and others see them as distant, alien beings.”

“Hurry up! If you’re not coming, I’ll go ahead without you!”

The Gatekeeper clicked his tongue as he watched Riana walk ahead alone.

“Tsk tsk… Relationships, or reputation. That’s the only condition holding Lady Riana back from being chosen as a High Magician. It may seem small, but it’s not something to be ignored.”

“Such a thing…”

Thinking about it, everything is different.

Before leaving for the Magic Tower, Riana was an endlessly timid and shy girl.

Now, she’s a bold, confident, and cheerful apprentice magician.

But in her past life…

I still remember.

***

“Go back.”

“Riana, I’m begging you. Our Vanguard can’t resist without the help of magicians…”

“If you’re so weak that you can’t resist anymore, it’s better to just fade away quickly. Wouldn’t that be easier on your body and mind?”

“Riana! What are you saying?!”

“…What a waste of time. Go back.”

Riana turned away coldly and spat out.

“…How boring.”

***

Perhaps her reputation had a big impact on her becoming so cold.

The Gatekeeper said that her reputation was a small part of the problem, but I sensed a possibility.

Maybe, if we can resolve this reputation issue…

We can prevent Riana from becoming that cold, inhuman person.

With all these thoughts swirling in my head, I quickened my pace, and Riana was waiting for me.

“Why are you so slow? You’re the one who wanted to go in.”

“Not really. I was just thinking about how to convince your master.”

“We’ll think about that later. For now…”

Riana grinned and pointed to the entrance.

“Ready? To enter a space only for women.”

“…The way you say it makes it sound like I’m doing something really bad, Riana.”

“It’s not wrong. It’s not an absolute rule of the Tower, but it’s breaking an unspoken moral rule.”

“Why did you agree? Knowing that, and knowing it could damage your reputation.”

“Why did I agree? Well…”

Riana lightly tapped my shoulder with hers.

“I sensed something special in your eyes.”

“Something special?”

“Like a feeling. A premonition of something interesting? Let’s go in!”

“Whoa…!”

Riana suddenly grabbed my hand and pulled me inside.

“…You two seem close.”

“It seems so. Uh, Abelin? Are you uncomfortable?”

“…It’s nothing. Aren’t you coming in?”

“I-I’ll stay here. I know why you’re going in, so please just stick to your purpose. I’ll be waiting.”