79. Emil von Aufstieg (1)
The Shaiskeil mansion is located further away than the Cascata mansion.
It’s not exactly in the opposite direction from the Cascata mansion, but it’s out of the way if one plans to stop by. Even if it were on the way, Karla probably wouldn’t have visited the mansion anyway.
Without even the slightest creak of movement, the carriage she was in—a carriage that blatantly displayed its high quality—carried Karla as she rested her chin on her arm against the window frame, blankly gazing out the window.
— I will be hosting a banquet. I earnestly hope you will attend, Ivan.
‘That old man… He definitely showed an expression of dissatisfaction when I agreed to accompany him,’ Karla thought.
Just for a brief moment, an instant, Karla had clearly seen it — a flicker in Dreemalo’s eyes. A look of annoyance, almost as if he were regarding an unwanted interruption.
‘There’s no doubt he’s up to something.’
To appear so proper as Karla did was rare among nobles who were deeply steeped in pride over their own nobility. Vanity was a given, and they treated commoners as if they weren’t even human. And when it came to the greater nobility, they were even worse.
Karla was slightly better only because she had grown up with Ivan from a young age. Even so, this was the extent of improvement.
Still, for Dreemalo von Aufstieg, a noble renowned for his powerful magical abilities, to personally invite Ivan, a commoner, to a banquet was certainly fishy.
“Karla.”
Immersed in her thoughts, Karla was abruptly brought back to reality by Ivan’s voice.
“What is it?”
“That… They’re making a fuss asking to switch places with me.”
At first, Karla couldn’t understand what Ivan was talking about, but she soon grasped the meaning and shook her head with a furrowed brow.
“No.”
“Alright.”
Ivan’s face lit up with relief.
“Karla, what were you thinking about?”
“About that old man.”
“If by ‘old man’ you mean…”
“Dreemalo von Aufstieg. The head of the Aufstieg house.”
“Ah. The one who invited us to the banquet. What about him?”
“I have a strong feeling he’s up to something.”
“That seems likely.”
“Yeah. He looked really pleased. He usually laughs a lot, but he seemed unusually joyful today. He also seemed overly interested in you.”
Karla’s words made Ivan slowly nod. Even Ivan had to admit that it was difficult to accept fully. After all, regardless of the circumstances, it wasn’t normal for a great noble to personally invite a commoner like Ivan to a banquet. It felt off.
“Why do you look so pleased? Was it that great?”
“It’s not bad to receive praise for talent, is it?”
Karla pursed her lips. As he said, there’s nothing wrong with feeling good about being praised. Even if Ivan was aware that the praise was slightly exaggerated, it wasn’t unreasonable to feel good about it.
“He said you were a genius descended from the heavens. That man seems like he wants to collect you or something. Though, even if he tries, he’ll be unable to put you to proper use.”
“Why?”
Well, Ivan probably wouldn’t understand that. Karla knew about the four pillars of magic, but Ivan hadn’t had the opportunity to learn such things.
“Aufstieg practices Descent Magic. Think of it as the far superior version of summoning magic that our old instructor, Aunt Albina, used to do. Unlike the shoddy stuff like Dimensional Dragons or slimes, it can summon something akin to actual gods. It’s called descent rather than summoning because it involves gods manifesting.”
“…Summoning gods? Is that even possible?”
“It’s possible, which is why it’s one of the four pillars of magic now. The problem is that it takes a very long time to cast, and the offerings required are astronomical. But if it succeeds…”
A battlefield where humans fight other humans.
A battlefield where humans fight gods.
The atmosphere of the two would be completely different.
“I haven’t seen it personally, but I only heard that it has been successful twice, or maybe three times.”
Manifesting gods isn’t something that would come easily. However, the fact that it has succeeded and even turned around an unfavorable battle situation makes Aufstieg one of the four pillars.
“That man doesn’t look like the head of such a prestigious family.”
As Ivan reflected, he felt the man didn’t quite fit the description of someone leading such a prominent household.
“He might not look like it, but he’s quite devious. Anyway, you should be cautious.”
“Alright. He likely sees me as naive and wants to take advantage of it.”
Ivan’s statement left Karla silent. She merely stared at him without responding.
Does he look naive?
Not really.
“…Karla? Your face is red. Are you feeling unwell?”
“No, it’s nothing. Either way, you’re right. If you went alone, he’d probably have devoured you without a sound. It’s better I’m coming along.”
“Is that so…?”
“That’s right.”
Ivan was a prodigy but inexperienced with worldly matters.
“Anyway, just stay quiet. I’ll handle things.”
“I won’t worry.”
“Why don’t you?”
“I trust that Karla will take care of this. Why should I worry when you’re here?”
While watching Ivan beam at her, Karla didn’t reply.
It was becoming clear why Regina had fallen for him.
Without much response, Karla turned her gaze back out the window, deep in thought.
When did Ivan become so familiar?
Previously, Ivan had been someone she merely recognized as a prodigy in magic, someone whose talent surpassed her own, and someone she always wanted to compete against.
But now, after their repeated close interactions, seeing his smile made her feel strange.
It wasn’t something she wanted to admit, but reality didn’t care. The fact that they had grown closer meant that their connection had changed significantly.
‘There’s nothing I can do…’
Though she appeared calm as she looked out the window, inside, she rationalized that there was nothing she could do.
*
‘What exactly is Father planning?’
Emil couldn’t fall asleep. After the funeral, when Karla and Ivan had left, Emil returned to the dormitory.
Classes at the Academy were starting tomorrow, so he should have rested, but Emil tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
Father was a crafty individual.
— Emilia, listen carefully. From now on, you must live as a boy named Emil. Do you understand?
— Why…?
— When your father tells you to do something, you simply say yes.
On that day, Emilia, the girl, died. Emil, the boy, began to live, and it had been over ten years since.
This was made possible only because the Aufstieg family rarely engaged in public activities. Following Father’s orders, Emil enrolled in the academy, befriended Ivan, and adhered to his instructions.
‘If I could live like Karla, how happy would I be?’
Although she’s a girl, Karla was bold and assertive. After losing her arm in a grave accident, she put in immense effort to maintain her position. And after regaining her arm — though she didn’t go into detail — she became even more confident.
‘If I could live like Karla…’
When it was revealed that the man everyone knew as Carlo was actually Karla in disguise, she didn’t falter. Instead, she walked her path with confidence, heedless of others’ gazes.
‘If I could walk my path as confidently, how wonderful it would be.’
Emil finally got out of bed.
His throat was dry. The night was deep, and silence enveloped the world outside the window. The only sound was someone running outside, their footsteps echoing faintly.
“Looks like I’m out of water…” Emil sighed, looking at the teapot.
Nothing was going right for him tonight.
“Just lying here feels odd too,” Emil muttered.
Most of all, his throat was parched, and the awareness only made it worse.
“I’ll fetch some water…”
With a heavy sigh, Emil picked up the teapot. The water fountain was at the end of the hall, so he’d have to leave the room.
“I need to stop talking to myself.”
It was annoying how he tended to mutter to himself when he thought no one was around.
He needed to fix that… As Emil thought about it, his eyes fell on the neatly folded breast bindings on the table next to the coat rack. He clicked his tongue and simply wrapped himself in a robe.
He’d just be going to fetch water for a short while, and it was unlikely he’d encounter anyone at this hour.
Moreover, adjusting his bindings and then rewrapping them was a hassle.
But there was a slight feeling of unease gnawing at him. He hadn’t heard the running sounds from outside for a while. Worse, he felt something vaguely unsettling, urging him not to step out or, at least, to bind his prominent chest area.
Still, the inconvenience outweighed his unease.
‘I’ll be back quickly. I’ll just bring some water.’
With that thought in mind, Emil stepped out of his room with the teapot in hand. And as he opened the door—
“Ah, danger…!”
—Clang!
A strong impact came from the side, and Emil tumbled down the corridor. The sound of the teapot rolling away echoed, and amidst the hurried calls of his name—Emil had just one thought in his mind.
‘This is bad…!’
The voice belonged to Liam.
