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Episode 64
Farewell and New Encounters (1)
Crack, crack─.
The sound of footsteps coming from the stairs leading to the second floor.
Riley quickly turned her gaze and looked down the stairs where the sound had come from.
“You’re finally back.”
“… … .”
[… … .]
Isabella was slowly coming down the stairs with a gentle smile.
“hmm……?”
Then, she saw the pattern engraved on the back of Riley’s hand and smiled and congratulated her.
“Ah, it looks like you finally entered the Irantes Tower.”
“… … .”
“My sincere congratulations, Ms. Riley.”
And when I heard Isabella say this, I couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
[under…….]
“… … .”
[… … You just have a thick skin on your face.]
Before becoming the general manager of the selection test, Isabella was one of the “Seven Elders” of the Irantes Tower.
There is no way she wouldn’t know about Jan Lantes’s plans.
Of course he knew that son of a bitch was going to threaten Riley.
And yet, he kept wearing a mask like that and pretended not to know until the end.
The sight was truly disgusting.
But Isabella could not possibly hear my thoughts.
She continued speaking in a soft voice, her characteristic eye smile creating an alluring atmosphere.
“With Ms. Riley as the last person to decide whether or not all applicants will be admitted, that’s it.”
“… … .”
“Then let’s conclude the final exam with this.”
Clap clap clap─!
Isabella claps her hands three times out of nowhere.
At the same time, various colorful lights began to illuminate the dark interior of the building.
Phew─!
Pubbububububu──!
“… … .”
[… … .]
It was firecracker magic.
Fireworks flashed as if to celebrate the end of the exam.
As beautiful fireworks covered the ceiling of the management office, colorful, splendid lights reflected everywhere.
Is this why you’ve kept the lights off?
A hollow laugh escaped my lips for no reason.
Pubbung, pubbung─!
As the fireworks burst again, the darkened vision brightened.
I took advantage of the gap and glanced to the side.
Isabella has come close to us before we knew it.
She glanced at Riley, then slowly opened her mouth.
“Isn’t it great? Originally, it was a place where other applicants could sit together.”
“… … .”
“It’s a shame that Ms. Riley’s test ended so late that everyone had to go home early without seeing this sight.”
According to Isabella, it seems that the other candidates finished their final exams a long time ago.
After all, where would you find a test taker who spent half a day playing chess like us?
Everyone probably just had a few simple Q&A sessions and that was it.
“But if you think of it as a firecracker just for the two of us, then it’s not so bad.”
Isabella smiled and turned her head towards Riley as she asked back.
“Isn’t that right, Miss Riley?”
Phew─!
The very next moment, fireworks exploded, and for a moment, Isabella’s face was bathed in a rainbow of colors.
Riley nodded silently at the sight.
The fireworks magic prepared by the management was truly beautiful. There is absolutely no denying that fact.
“Oh, right. Take this.”
It was while I was watching the fireworks in silence with Isabella for a while.
Swish.
Isabella took something out of her robe’s inside pocket and gently put it in Riley’s hand.
“……rock?”
It was a stone.
A smooth black stone that fits perfectly in one hand.
The surface of the stone had the same pattern carved into it as the one on the back of Riley’s hand.
“Yes, that’s right. It’s a stone.”
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“… … .”
“To be exact, it’s a return stone.”
Return stone.
An item that allows you to teleport to a specified coordinate by injecting magic power into the stone.
“If you infuse magic into the Return Stone, Miss Riley will be able to teleport directly to the entrance of the main tower.”
“… … .”
“For your information, items that come into contact with Ms. Riley’s body will also be teleported. So instead of going through the trouble of packing up and taking the carriage, you can just use this return stone.”
It is said that he gave me this return stone so that I would not have to suffer needlessly when I came to the Irantes Tower.
It seemed that the Irantes side was taking care of Riley’s convenience in many ways.
Well, it’s convenient for us, so there’s nothing wrong with it.
“After you have rested sufficiently for the next two weeks, you may use the Return Stone to return to the Tower of Irantes.”
“… … .”
“Then the training period will begin from then.”
Riley immediately asked a question.
“If it’s a training period… … ?”
“It is a period of simple training before becoming an official Matapwon member. It usually takes about a week.”
To summarize Isabella’s subsequent explanation, it was as follows.
A total of two appointment quests are given to wizards who have been educated in the rules and precautions of the Magic Tower during the training period.
This is the final step to confirm whether you are qualified to be a member of the Magic Tower.
Of course, since the qualifications of individual wizards have already been proven through the selection test, the difficulty of the mission itself is said to not be that high.
In most cases, they just use this as an excuse to ask the wizard to run errands for them or something.
“After completing two appointment quests, the apprentice wizard will be reborn as a full-fledged magic tower member. This will take about two to three months.”
“… … ”
“From then on, you may do whatever you want as long as it does not harm the honor of the Tower.”
It is said that, unlike other magic towers, Irantes does not have any specific policy to regulate magic tower members.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that it is a freedom that amounts to neglect.
As expected of a colorless tower, it seemed that Irantes respected the individual choices of tower members rather than forcing them to follow a specific direction.
“But, um… … .”
“… … .”
“I wonder if this policy will change a little when Ms. Riley becomes a full-time member of the Tower?”
Isabella finished her speech with a smile.
It will be exactly three months from now until Riley becomes a full-time member of the Magic Tower.
And this period coincided exactly with the time when the Round Table Conference was held in Wilhelm.
Yeah, well.
By then, not only the policy of the Irantes Tower, but the entire continent will be turned upside down.
Of course, I had no intention of letting things go the way the Irantes guys wanted.
[… … .]
After Isabella finished explaining, about three more minutes passed.
The fireworks magic has suddenly quieted down.
The interior of the administration building was quiet again.
It felt like the surroundings had become much darker than before, perhaps because the bright flames flashed and then disappeared.
It was then that Isabella, who was sitting on the stairs with Riley and enjoying the afterglow of the fireworks magic, opened her mouth.
“Congratulations again on passing your final exam, Ms. Riley.”
“……thank you.”
Riley slowly bowed her head, looking uneasy at the unexpected congratulations.
Isabella smiled faintly at the sight and turned her gaze toward the entrance of the building.
“The moment Miss Riley walks out that door, this year’s selection test will be over for good.”
That the screening test is over.
This meant that Riley, who had taken the selection test, would soon become a true wizard belonging to Irantes.
Likewise, Isabella will return from being the General Manager to being an Elder of the Tower of Irantes.
“Well, goodbye, Miss Riley. You’ve really worked hard for the past two weeks.”
Squeak─.
As soon as Isabella finished her greeting, the door to the management office opened automatically.
A night view of Wilhelm through the wide open door.
Riley, who had been looking at the scenery for a while, spoke to me in a quiet, mumbling voice.
‘… … It’s finally over.’
[huh.]
The long, 15-week screening test has come to an end.
Riley took a deep breath and stood up.
She gave a brief nod to Isabella, who waved goodbye, and slowly walked toward the door.
Jeokbuk─.
The moment Riley took a step outside the administration building.
“Little one.”
A cold voice came from behind us.
As we turned our gaze in that direction, we saw Isabella sitting on the steps, looking at us.
Now, as a proper elder of the Irantes Tower and not as the General Manager, she spoke in a deep voice.
“We sincerely welcome you to the tower.”
“… … .”
[… … .]
With those meaningful words, the door to the management office closed on its own.
Squeak─.
thud!
Riley blinked blankly.
Then, in an instant, the management building that was right before our eyes disappeared like smoke.
* * *
dump.
Back at the hotel, Riley washed up and went straight to bed.
All we had brought was what was in our backpacks, so we didn’t need to prepare anything else.
I guess we can just rest until tomorrow morning and then head to our destination.
“… … .”
[… … .]
So I was just staring blankly at the ceiling with Riley for a while.
Suddenly she whispered to me in a quiet voice.
“It has been a really long fortnight.”
[……I know.]
The half year I spent in Richie’s hideout passed by in the blink of an eye, but the fortnight in Wilhelm seemed to pass by very slowly.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that the time I spent in Wilhelm felt longer.
Well, well.
It must be because, unlike in Richie’s hideout where you repeat the same task every day, here you have a different experience every day.
[… … .]
Come to think of it, I’ve met a lot of people over the past two weeks.
Garon Theobald, Becky, Olivia. And countless other wizards whose names I can’t even name.
Through them, Riley gained a lot of experience. And based on that experience, she also achieved explosive growth.
Riley, who was an apprentice “Apprentice” until half a year ago, has now become a full-fledged middle-ranking wizard.
[ha…….]
okay.
This was clearly an unprecedented pace.
Even I, who have walked the path of magic for tens of thousands of years, was amazed, so that says it all.
But not yet.
I wasn’t satisfied yet.
As much as I would have liked to have told Riley to take a break, unfortunately, the time was not right for that.
[3 months.]
The time of the round table conference in Wilhelm.
Riley has to have some really explosive growth in there.
Only then could the plan I had set succeed.
She is not allowed even a moment of rest.
If you stop someone who has been running without hesitation, they will lose the momentum they have maintained.
So Riley has to keep running without stopping, at least for the next three months.
[… … .]
but.
There was something I was secretly worried about.
I was worried that after running nonstop, Riley would eventually collapse from exhaustion.
“are you okay.”
But Riley, with the power of bonding, read my thoughts and began to speak to me in a calm voice.
“I’m not tired at all. I can handle it.”
[… … .]
“Wasn’t it worse in the Thieves’ Guild? We worked all night long, without a single moment of rest. And we got no compensation.”
Riley continued.
“But it’s different now. I can really achieve a lot by working hard.”
[… … .]
“You can protect the Empire, or you can avenge your first companion, Becky, and Sir Theobald.”
She was smiling.
“If we continue to walk the path of magic like that… … . Won’t we eventually achieve the goal that you and I are trying to achieve?”
Riley’s goals are:
The reason she came to find me that night, despite numerous threats, while I was locked up in the library of Rethemis.
-I promise.
-… … .
-I will get your revenge.
Riley paused for a moment, then turned her gaze towards me and continued speaking.
“So, Master Magus.”
[… … .]
“I won’t stop. No, I absolutely can’t stop. It’s all in my hands. How can I stop?”
Riley finished her sentence with a faint smile. And seeing that smile gave me confidence.
okay.
At least this kid won’t collapse from exhaustion while walking the path.
[Okay. Then let’s start working hard again tomorrow.]
‘Yes. Please take good care of me… … .’
Smart─.
“… … ?”
That was when.
Riley stopped talking immediately when she heard someone knocking on the door.
Suddenly.
She got out of bed and began to analyze the magical form of the figure beyond the door.
Woof, woof─.
It was a familiar magic.
The flow of magical power that sometimes sweeps like a typhoon, but at other times timidly stirs.
There was only one wizard who possessed magical powers that displayed such completely contrasting characteristics.
Creak.
Riley, who immediately recognized the guest’s identity, opened the door without a moment’s hesitation.
And there… … .
“Ah, ah, hello, Ms. Riley! Thank goodness you’re still in your room, hehe… … .”
“… … Miss Olivia?”
Olivia stood there, welcoming Riley with a very bright expression.
