12
Even though I had nothing, I offered the magic skill book as a bribe… Yes, in common parlance, I did collect the money.
But even so, it was only a 1-star magic skill book.
For someone who had some sort of conversation with Zion Grace, received something directly from her, and then eventually disappeared into the Manri Library through the branch office door, a 1-star magic skill book would be a bribe that would be worthless.
After the excitement died down and her head cooled down a bit, Sisala realized this fact and gave up even the expectation that they would pretend to know each other if they ran into each other by chance, let alone a second meeting.
What are you expecting?
She used to kick the blankets off whenever she remembered the embarrassed expression he had on his face when he suddenly lost his temper and clung to her.
But in less than a month, that person came to me in person?
“Why are you looking for me?”
Sisala couldn’t even guess why Dojin had suddenly come to visit.
Surely it wouldn’t be for magical help or some kind of favor.
It is even more unlikely that she came to you because she was attracted to her beauty.
Then why on earth… … .
“ah……!”
While I was racking my brain trying to figure out the reason, the branch office building was already right in front of me.
Gulp. Sisala swallowed dry saliva.
The extreme fatigue and drowsiness I felt just a moment ago have long since disappeared.
There’s someone on the other side of the door who might have some kind of connection to the Black Widow of Eltomagia. Thinking about it makes my mind go blank.
Sisala opened the door with a creaking sound like a broken doll and entered the branch with an equally creaking gait.
“Hic.”
Then he let out a breathing sound that was hard to tell if he was spitting or swallowing.
It was because Dojin’s eyes met mine, as he was leaning against the wall and looking toward the entrance.
Maybe it was because of Zion Grace’s halo effect, but when we first met, she looked dirty and extraordinary.
All that awkward leaning posture and sharp eyes.
At that time, I was surprised at myself for being so proactive.
While Sisala was frozen in thought, Dojin exchanged a few words with the innocent-looking wizard sitting at the counter and then slowly approached her.
“I think it would be best to move for now. It doesn’t seem like a place where we can have a calm conversation.”
“Huh? Oh, yes. That’s right.”
Sisala, who answered half a beat late, followed Dojin.
Dojin walked through the complex alleys with a very familiar gait.
The place we arrived at was a quiet curtain.
This is a place that Dojin occasionally visited in his previous life as well. As the name suggests, each table is separated by partitions and curtains, and it even has soundproofing magic, making it the perfect cafe for quiet conversations.
Dojin even ordered a drink for Sisala without asking.
Of course, it was the cheapest.
But Sisalah didn’t care whether the liquid in front of him was plain water or rag water.
All she cared about and was curious about was what would come out of Dojin’s mouth.
But Dojin, who should have been speaking, had nothing to say.
I just stirred my drink, tasted it, and nodded peacefully.
Eventually, Sisala, whose patience had reached its limit, spoke first.
“Excuse me… What brings you here today? No matter how much I think about it, I don’t think there’s any reason for you to come to me… … .”
Only after the silence was broken did Dojin see Sisala.
* * *
Dojin knew very well that Sisala Omen had great interest in him.
Most of that attention is going to Zion Grace, but that’s not what’s important right now.
The important thing is that using her interest to get help isn’t a problem.
This could be said to be a very easy situation where all you have to do is say, ‘Help me.’
But Dojin had no intention of bringing that up first.
It was because he knew very well that the moment he brought that up, he would become the one who was responsible, even if only formally.
‘This is a deal where I don’t necessarily need to claim to be the party involved.’
Oh, it’s different. Well, it’s different. Negotiation is done through words.
If you speak well, you can switch A and B in the same situation.
The silence that was maintained from the beginning was also a ‘word’ chosen for the best negotiation.
‘I think I’m reaching my limit now.’
Dojin pretended to taste the drink and examined Shisala.
He can’t even touch the drink, and he’s just ripping off the hem of the robe for no reason.
As expected, it wasn’t long before she spoke first.
“Excuse me… What brings you here today? No matter how much I think about it, I don’t think there’s any reason for you to come to me… … .”
Dojin smiled as the situation went as planned and recited the first line of the script he had written.
“What is magic to you?”
“… … ?”
Sisala made an expression that said she had never imagined it, let alone expected it.
Dojin asked her again.
“Let me ask you again: What is magic to you?”
When asked the same question twice, Sisalah appeared to be in deep thought for a long time, remaining silent.
And after finishing her worries, she answered with an extremely serious face.
“It’s all I have left. Magic.”
The answer of a person who had no family, no friends, no lover, and whose only possession was magic.
Dojin was satisfied with the sincerity that was heavier than he had expected.
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The fact that the truth was revealed was evidence that the psychological lock was being released.
Dojin adjusted his tone and the vocabulary he used to be a little softer so that the padlock that was about to be released would not close again due to tension.
“The day we first met, you advised me that I should go to the Academy rather than El Tomagia.”
At Dojin’s words, Shisala lowered her head as if she was looking for a mouse hole.
Perhaps because she hasn’t seen the sunlight, her overly white skin appears to have a slight redness.
“I’m sorry about that. You’re not the kind of person I should be giving advice to. I was just meddlesomely… … .”
“No, I was grateful.”
“yes?”
“I know you didn’t mean it out of spite. You were giving me advice because you genuinely thought the Academy would be a good fit for me. In fact, if it were anyone else, it would have been better for me to go to the Academy.”
“That’s true… right… … ?”
Sisala, who spoke in a crawling voice with uncertainty, brought the glass of drink to her lips as if her throat was burning.
“So I didn’t feel bad when he gave me the skill book that was obviously a bribe. I just thought that this person was really serious about magic.”
But I couldn’t drink it properly.
The word bribe made me gasp in surprise, causing the drink to run down my mouth and nose.
Thanks to my single-minded determination not to spray anything, I managed to avoid being sprayed with a water cannon, but the painful coughing was unavoidable.
Even after the cough subsided, the sight of Shisala burying her head on the table and not moving at all was pitiful enough, but Dojin continued to shake Shisala with his words.
“There’s nothing to be ashamed of. Any wizard would have rolled their eyes in that situation. Did you see a guy who just got his wizard badge talking to an archmage and even receiving a ring from him? More than half of them would probably torture or kill me and try to take my ring.”
Compared to that, the innocence of giving a 1-star skill book as a bribe is cute. In addition, Sisala almost begged.
“Please… I have committed a mortal sin, so please stop.”
“Seesala.”
“… … .”
“What I’m saying now is not to embarrass you, and it’s certainly not to be sarcastic. You are the kind person who gave me advice the moment I took my first steps as a wizard, and you also have a passion for magic that I respect as a fellow wizard.”
Stop, stop. Shisala shuddered as if the praise was more painful.
But Dojin didn’t stop.
“So it’s no wonder that when I had the opportunity to help another wizard, you were the first one that came to mind. At least you’re the best wizard I know.”
The struggling movements of Sisala stopped.
It was a response to the word help.
He raises his head slightly, and a hint of earnestness appears in his eyes.
Dojin pretended not to see her eyes and spoke as if he was just letting it go.
“It’s nothing special. I just obtained the will and research journal of a certain wizard, and I learned the location of his workshop. According to what’s written in the research journal, it seems like he was researching magic that connects the demon world to this place… … .”
Just because Dojin said it nonchalantly, it didn’t mean it was nothing.
Sisala, startled by the weight of the content, asked in surprise.
“Now, wait a minute. You just said that it was a magic that connected the other world to Rostania?”
“Yes. It didn’t seem to be successful, but it seems like it was an attempt.”
Shisala looked at Dojin, who answered coolly, as if she couldn’t understand.
It is not simply a study log and workshop left behind by a high-ranking magician who attempts to connect with the dimensions of demons.
It was the kind of information that would make any wizard drool and run towards it.
But how dare you say something like this as if it were nothing.
‘There’s definitely something about this guy.’
The thoughts that had been in my mind since Zion Grace appeared in person were gradually solidifying into certainty.
And as my confidence grew, my curiosity grew.
I knew I shouldn’t ask, and that even if I did, it would be hard to get a proper answer, but I was so curious that I couldn’t help but ask.
In the end, like any wizard, Sisala gave in to her curiosity.
“Um, um, Zion Grace appeared in person back then… Can I ask what your relationship is with her?”
Not knowing that Dojin was waiting for this question.
In fact, as with the intended silence, Dojin’s complete refusal to mention Zion Grace was also an intentional omission.
To exploit the human psychology of being more curious and suspicious when you give the impression that you are deliberately avoiding something.
As soon as the long-awaited question came up, Dojin gave back the prepared answer.
“There’s no particular relationship. At that time, it was a stroke of luck that came about by chance. I’m just an ordinary stranger.”
Of course, Sisalah will not believe this unvarnished truth.
The famous great wizard who was known for his arrogance and recklessness appeared by chance and gave a ring to a person he met for the first time, and as if that wasn’t enough, he opened the door to the Great Library to someone who wasn’t even a wizard of Eltomagia?
Even a complete fool wouldn’t believe such a thing.
‘After hearing an answer that is difficult to accept, you will probably grumble on your own and speculate about what kind of relationship there is between me and Zion Grace. And in the end, you will believe the one that seems most probable among the hypotheses you have created.’
The conditions are set so that you can continue to enjoy the halo effect of Zion Grace without telling any lies at all.
‘It seems like you don’t believe me at all.’
When I looked closely just in case, it seemed that Sisala did not believe Dojin’s words at all.
He is quietly looking down and nodding his head, but his expression is filled with suspicion that ‘he has something he wants to hide.’
“I see. You came by chance.”
He says things like that, but his eyes say, ‘I’ll fool you.’
At this point, it seemed like he was certain rather than doubting.
‘What’s up with this kid?’
‘Because it’s human to believe what you want to believe, even if it means creating it.’
Anyway, through a series of build-ups, Dojin succeeded in creating an illusion of himself within Sisala.
I don’t know for sure, but the Dojin that resides in Sisala’s mind must have become at least 100 times more amazing.
Then it was time to finish it off with the power of illusion behind him.
“If you have no more questions, let’s get back to what we were talking about. If it’s okay with you, Sisala, I’d like to share this opportunity with you.”
“Can I ask why? The opportunity to observe the workshop built by a wizard of a higher level than oneself is priceless… Why would you give it to a wizard like me who has no talent and is nothing… ?”
Because I don’t want to share the rewards with other users.
You won’t be able to hit me in the back of the head because you’re afraid of Zion.
There are other reasons, but they are not the kind that Sisalah wants to hear.
People are attracted to those who tell them what they want to hear.
So, Dojin chose the truth that Sisala most wanted to hear and said it.
Things I can say to her in the future, knowing her.
“I think you are quite talented. You may have just wandered off for a while, but if you find the path you need to walk, you will become a really good wizard someday. At least that’s what I think.”
It’s definitely ridiculous for a 1-star wizard to talk about talent.
However, Dojin was not just a simple 1-star magician to Sisala.
Dojin, who was an illusion created by Sisala herself, was a much greater person than she was.
Again, humans believe what they want to believe.
And Dojin’s words were what a wizard who had lost confidence and self-esteem ‘wanted to believe’.
“…thank you.”
[Building Relationships!]
[The wizard Sisala Omen of Eltomagia shows affection for you.]
[Sisala Omen’s favorability rating has increased by 10 points to 10.]
In this way, A and B were decided.
