Count Ludwig Everglow headed straight for the capital. He wasn't angry. He trusted there was a reason his daughter, Gwendolyn, had raided the wine cellar without a word. ...
Still, he was a little displeased.
‘She’s not the type to drink alone…’
The drinking itself wasn't the problem. The real issue was who she had been drinking with. The well-paved stone road absorbed the carriage’s vibrations almost perfectly.
But the count’s mood was not nearly as smooth as the road.
"Halt!"
At the shout of the knight commander leading the way, the comfortable carriage came to a stop.
"What is it?"
"My lord! There is an orc a hundred meters ahead. We will deal with it immediately and proceed."
"An orc?"
An orc, this close to the capital. Ludwig clicked his tongue.
"Those capital guard fools are neglecting their duties."
Normally, he would have let the knights handle it. But that would cause a delay. Ludwig wanted to see his daughter as soon as possible.
"Have the knights stand down. I will handle this myself."
"Yes, sir!"
At Ludwig’s command, the knights moved aside. As Ludwig stepped out of the carriage, the air vibrated faintly at his gesture.
Gulp.
The surrounding knights tensed up. Count Ludwig was a former corps commander of the northern front. His military moniker was 'the Crematorium'.
Ludwig pointed his staff, inlaid with a top-grade mana stone, at the orc. His lips moved.
"Flame."
His incantation was on a different level from the prayer-like chants of ordinary mages.
"Form—Spear."
It was a kind of 'shortcut command'.
"Fivefold Division."
The most efficient 'high-level macro formula,' established by the Everglow family over hundreds of years and optimized by Ludwig himself over a lifetime.
"Detonate, Swift."
Each word was a switch that called upon a massive bundle of concepts.
"Lock, Project."
The moment the incantation finished, five scorching spears of flame materialized in the air and flew toward the orc like a storm.
Crack. Sizzle.
Two of the spears struck the orc squarely in the shoulder and knee. The rest missed.
Kuaaaargh!
The beast roared in agony and staggered. Engulfed in flames, the orc charged toward the count. Thump, thump, thump!
The ground trembled with the orc’s steps, and the knights braced for impact, reforming their ranks. But the orc never reached the knights.
Thump, thump… Thump!
Not even ten paces. The orc died within ten steps, long before reaching the knights.
Crackle, crackle.
The spears of flame blazed, feeding on the fallen orc’s body. In a few hours, only ashes would remain, and this place would become a crematorium. Ludwig muttered, displeased.
"I failed to kill it instantly."
The farther the distance, the more the margin of error for projecting firepower increased exponentially. Despite throwing five spears of flame, only two had hit. As he boarded the carriage again, the count thought to himself.
'It would be nice if there was a more efficient way to kill...' Come to think of it, he had heard that 'Calculus' was in vogue at the Magic Tower these days. Perhaps using it could improve accuracy?
This was my second time visiting Gwendolyn’s villa. I arrived at the appointed time, but for some reason, the etiquette teacher I expected to see was not in the hall. I asked Gwendolyn.
"Where is the teacher?"
"Right here."
Gwendolyn pointed to herself.
"You're the etiquette teacher, Gwendolyn?"
"Yes."
"You tricked me."
"Fufufu."
Gwendolyn let out a laugh. To think she would set a trap just to steal my weekend.
"What's the reason?"
If she wanted to know about calculus, she could have just asked at the Magic Tower.
"As much as I'd love to tease you, Isaac, I didn't trick you."
"Pardon?"
"There's no one in my age group who has mastered imperial etiquette more perfectly than I have. So that makes me the best etiquette teacher."
That made sense. Gwendolyn had remained composed even while being berated by Valerius. She was certainly suited for this kind of thing.
And so, my bizarre etiquette lesson began.
"Relax your shoulders and straighten your back."
Her finger poked my hunched back.
"Like this?"
"Don't straighten it so much!"
"Like this...?"
"No... sigh..."
I awkwardly straightened my back. She held my wrist and turned my shoulders to correct my posture. But my body still felt stiff and clumsy.
"Phew... I've never seen anyone so clumsy in my life."
"Haha."
All I could manage was an awkward laugh.
She said.
"I wonder if you received your magical talent in exchange for a curse that makes you unable to move your body properly, Isaac."
Just then, the guard captain rushed into the hall in a flurry.
"My lady!"
Gwendolyn, startled, jumped away from me.
She said.
"Ahem. What is it?"
"My apologies for interrupting at such an important moment. The Count... is on his way to the villa right now."
Gwendolyn's face turned white as a sheet.
"My father? Why all of a sudden?"
"I don't know either... We didn't even receive a messenger."
It seemed even Gwendolyn didn't know why he was here. What kind of thunderbolt was this? Should I hide in a closet?
I subtly started to take a step toward the exit of the hall.
"It's already too late."
Grab.
Gwendolyn's hand seized my shoulder. Unfortunately, my escape attempt failed. She said to me.
"Let's face my father using the etiquette we just learned."
"... Can't I just hide?"
"You have to face the princess next week anyway, so what's the big deal about meeting the lord of a count’s family?"
Somehow, running away still seemed like a better option… I spread my mana field, scanning a one-kilometer radius.
'Damn...
It really is too late to run.' I could feel a lump of what was clearly immense mana through the mana field. That must be the count.
He had already reached the vicinity of the villa.
"Think of it as a test. It’s okay to make mistakes in front of my father. I'll protect you."
"Father, this is my colleague from the Magic Tower, Isaac Upperhills. Isaac, this is my father, Count Ludwig Everglow."
Bow.
I mobilized all the etiquette I had just learned to bow as naturally as possible.
"A pleasure to meet you, Count Everglow. I am Upperhills."
Hearing the name 'Upperhills,' Ludwig silently nodded.
"Upperhills... Your life must have had many ups and downs."
"Not at all, sir."
It seemed my background had done the trick again. Hooray for Upperhills, the surname reserved for war orphans. Ludwig looked me straight in the eye and said.
"Before I became the head of the family, I served as a corps commander in the north. I bear some fault for the reason you have that surname."
"... No, that's not true, my lord."
For a moment, a cold sweat broke out. I always react this way at the mention of the military, even in my sleep. Just then, Gwendolyn spoke to the count.
"You've heard the news about Sir Valerius's new theory, haven't you, Father?"
"Of course. 'Calculus,' was it?"
"The 'Wave Theory,' which contributed greatly to that calculus, came from Mr. Upperhills's own hands."
"Oho."
A different light appeared in Ludwig’s eyes.
"So you were the recipient of that medal."
"Though my abilities are lacking, I was fortunate to receive the Imperial Court’s favor."
Nod, nod.
Ludwig nodded his head. Afterward, Gwendolyn explained our situation—how she was personally giving me etiquette lessons because I was a commoner. At the end of her explanation, she added.
"It's nothing strange, so please don't misunderstand, Father."
That just made it seem stranger. Fortunately, Ludwig’s expression didn't look too bad. He smiled comfortably and asked me.
"How do you think 'Calculus' will change battles between mages?"
It was an unexpected question. I thought he'd be concerned about me being with Gwendolyn, but maybe not? He might be more open-minded than I thought.
In any case, this was a topic I was more than happy to discuss. I answered immediately.
"'Calculus' will change the face of warfare, but it won't be able to change the dynamics of a chaotic melee."
"Is that so? Could you perhaps tell me why?"
"With calculus, even a small mistake can cause the result to fluctuate wildly. Therefore, it is difficult to use in the middle of a chaotic battle."
"So you're saying it's better to rely on instinct like before, rather than making a calculation error and getting hit by a rebound."
"That is correct."
"I like it. All but one thing."
"Pardon?"
Ludwig's smile vanished. A moment later, his voice echoed directly inside my head. It was Telepathic magic. -'So, was the wine my daughter offered you any good?'
For a moment, I was speechless. So this was his plan all along, setting the mood like this. The buildup, starting with calculus, was all to find out what kind of guy his daughter's drinking partner was.
To be fair, if I heard my daughter was drinking wine with some loafer, I would have rushed over immediately too. This was a problem where I had to start with an apology, even if I hadn't done anything wrong. Since he asked via telepathy, I should answer via telepathy.
I accessed the 'mana field.' I would use this field to insert information directly into his mind. Using a Fourier transformation, I split my will into multiple waves and sent them flowing through the mana field.
These waves would be meaningless until they were combined, so Gwendolyn wouldn't hear them. Now, all I had to do was reassemble these dismantled mana waves in front of Count Ludwig.
Fourier transformation.
Law construction complete.
Transmit.
'My apologies, Your Excellency, Count Everglow.' Did it go through properly? The next moment, Count Ludwig furrowed his brow.
He staggered as if struck by a headache. Gwendolyn rushed to her father's side.
"Father, are you all right?"
"I'm fine. Just a moment of dizziness."
Drip.
A cold sweat ran down my back. Ludwig looked at me and said.
"Damn... This is the first time since I took a telepathic hit from the Dean."
Did I fail to control my power? I had no excuse. Gwendolyn was aghast.
"Telepathic magic? No way! That's a top-tier mental spell that only a handful of senior doctoral students can use...!"
At Gwendolyn's words, Ludwig nodded.
"Indeed, he is a remarkable talent."
He continued.
"Young Upperhills, how about leaving the Magic Tower and coming under my command?"
What was this about?
"I promise you all the support your talent deserves. Lend your strength to suppressing the Empire's rebels and securing peace in the south."
This was a completely unexpected development. Shouldn't he be saying something like, 'I can't give my daughter to a scoundrel like you'? 'Don't tell me he wants to keep me close so he can beat me up?'
A chill ran down my spine. I slowly opened my mouth.
"My apologies, my lord, but I... am not very good at physical work. And I have even less talent for killing people."
"Is that so..."
Count Ludwig seemed genuinely disappointed.
"Then how about another offer?"
He smiled and continued.
"How about marrying my daughter, Gwendolyn?"
At Ludwig's words, both Gwendolyn and I were left speechless. I asked him.
"... Are you serious?"
"No. I wouldn't give my daughter away even if a prince came asking."
Ludwig laughed cheerfully and rose from his seat.
"Still, I quite like you. If you ever need the power of our family, I will help you."