Resting when others rest is a constant. In other words, it provides a sense of happiness so trivial that it would disappear if you were to differentiate it with respect to time. Then what about resting when others are working?
The happiness from that would be comparable to an exponential function. In the sense that it remains the same even after differentiation. I was lying on my dorm bed, basking in the midday sun on a weekday.
I'm not going to the lab today. In professional terms, I'm skipping. With neither Sir Valerius nor Senior Giuseppe in the Magic Tower right now, no one can stop me.
"I'm bored, should I go to the orphanage?"
I should drop by, to teach Anna as well. Of course, I don't plan on going empty-handed. First, I left the Magic Tower and headed for the market.
There, I made a declaration to the owner of a butcher shop.
"Give me some cow."
"Which cut and how much?"
"One whole cow, all parts."
"... Pardon?"
Is there a law that says whole-roast barbecue can only be done with pork? The new trend is beef.
"Hero! Hero!"
"Waaaaah!"
"It's meat!"
"Party!"
Is this what a triumphant general feels like? The cheers were deafening. The moment I opened the gate, children swarmed over like bees and clung to my legs.
They're quite heavy. I levitated a half-butchered cow in the middle of the orphanage yard.
Meat! Meat!
As if possessed by something, the children chanted the single word, 'meat'. The nuns of the orphanage stared, half out of their minds, at the cow floating in mid-air. It must look a bit grotesque to them.
But not to the children. Having seen many harsh things while living as orphans, they seemed unfazed by something like this.
How valiant.
Even I had a bit of a hard time looking at the cow. I stood before the children and spoke.
"Other than lamb, pork, and chicken, what other meat do you know?"
"Don't tell me... cow...?"
"That's right. It's a cow."
Crazy! Kyaaaaah!
What a great reaction. This makes barbecuing for them worthwhile. Q = mcΔT q = hA(T_s - T_∞) I evenly distributed heat around the levitating cow.
They say the Maillard reaction determines the taste of meat... but I'm not a chemistry major, so I don't know the details. I just focused on transferring the heat evenly. I bought an expensive cow, so it should be delicious.
Chiiiiik~!
Along with the sound of dripping fat, a sweet, meaty aroma spread through the air.
"Wow! Crazy! Look at that smell!"
"You can't see a smell, though?"
"... Hyung, are you really going to be like this?"
"Ahem."
I placed the fully cooked barbecue in front of the children.
"Wow!"
"Everyone, move!"
Dozens of children began to carve the cooked cow. Of course, I didn't put knives in their hands.
"Hyung, cut this part for me!"
"You got it."
Slice.
I cut it with magic. After feeding the children until they were full...
"There is no brother in this world other than Isaac, and Anna is his sister!"
"His sister!"
A strange chant had even formed among them. Anna Upperhills was massaging her temples amidst the children. It seemed this wasn't the first time she had endured this.
After the meal, I sat across from Anna and started our tutoring session.
Anna spoke.
"That strange chant... can't you do something to stop it?"
Probably not.
I had a feeling it would only get louder if I tried to stop it.
New Researcher Jonathan of the Bureau of Magical Investigation was in a foul mood again today.
"Seriously. Is it a new thing for people to get hurt during a thesis defense?"
It seemed someone from the Winterheart family had gotten thoroughly beaten by 'Isaac Upperhills'. So they filed a request for an investigation. Since it was a request from a noble, he had to at least pretend to do something...
Why would they request an investigation for something like this? It is said that mages grow by fighting... Jonathan himself had his nose broken a few times when he was getting his bachelor's. On top of that, a suspicious directive came down from the higher-ups.
And it was an order directly from the Princess’s private secretary’s office. 'Do not touch Isaac Upperhills under any circumstances.' Is this telling me to investigate or not?
"Damn it..."
Seeing Jonathan clutching his head, his senior chuckled.
"You think this is funny, Senior?"
"Don't tell me this is your first time dealing with something like this?"
"Yes! What should I do in this situation? It seems obvious I should side with the princess, but..."
Then he would be making an enemy of the Winterheart family. That was a bit scary. His senior replied.
"That's just how the world works. Come to think of it, it's about time for you to pick a side too."
"Sigh. Just my luck... Anyway, thank you for the advice, Senior."
Jonathan grumbled as he headed to the Magic Tower's affiliated hospital.
"I should just do the bare minimum."
However, the moment he opened the door to the hospital room, Jonathan instinctively knew his thinking was wrong.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Cayenne Winterheart, lying on the bed, was not just 'a little hurt'. He was in a state of near-total paralysis.
"... Excuse me. I am Investigator Jonathan from the Bureau of Magical Investigation. Would you be able to cooperate with the investigation?"
"..."
"..."
Cayenne gave no response.
Gurgle, grate.
Instead, the sound of phlegm rattling came from Cayenne's throat. It seemed he wanted to say something. But his muscles, except for those around his cardiopulmonary system, weren't responding, so no proper words came out.
A gruesome sight. What in the world happened? This case... it seemed like it might be worth digging into properly.
The only things on Cayenne's entire body that could move were his eyelids. One might wonder how to investigate this, but Jonathan knew a way. He had often experienced such situations while interrogating criminals caught in the act.
"Now, Mr. Cayenne Winterheart. If you can hear me, blink once."
He held up a board with the alphabet written on it, pointing to each letter one by one to induce blinks. The investigation continued for a long six hours after that. Returning to the Bureau, Jonathan let out a deep sigh.
Hoo...
"You'll dig a hole in the ground with all that sighing. What's wrong?"
At his senior's question, Jonathan replied.
"This case... I thought there might be something to it, so I dug into it."
"Don't tell me you're trying to cross the princess? You crazy...! I'm out!"
"Let a person finish speaking!"
"..."
His senior scratched his head, looking embarrassed.
"Anyway, I thought there might be something, so I looked into it..."
Jonathan handed the report to his senior. He continued speaking.
"The moron apparently challenged him with a top-grade catalyst first, got shattered, and self-destructed."
"Oh."
"The cause of his injuries was also rebound. He's completely cleared of all charges."
"Still, it seems like there's more to look into."
At his senior's words, Jonathan tilted his head.
"Hm? Like what?"
"Do you think you would lose a direct confrontation even after using a catalyst that could buy several houses in the capital?"
"Ah."
"Keep a close eye on 'Isaac Upperhills'. There's something about him."
The castle of the northern Winterheart family.
"Kraaaaargh!"
Arcard Winterheart, the head of the baronial Winterheart family, tore the letter from the capital to shreds.
"No charges?! They say no charges?!"
The result of the Bureau of Magical Investigation's inquiry was no charges. Not even innocent. There were no charges to begin with against Isaac Upperhills.
"Then what am I supposed to do about my son! You sons of bitches from the Bureau of Investigation!"
Normally, in a situation like this, he would have brought the opponent to their knees by targeting their family. But that method was also impossible this time.
"What kind of orphan bastard! Did this to my son!!"
The opponent was an orphan. So he had no family to target.
"Doesn't that bastard have a single person who can be taken hostage?!!"
"We... found about three people."
"Who are they."
"Lady Gwendolyn of the Everglow family, Giuseppe, who is a subordinate of Doloren, and the Great Mage Valerius... those are the ones."
"Son of a..."
He was speechless. The names that came from his vassals' mouths were all bombs that shouldn't be touched.
"Anyone else?"
"... There is an orphan named 'Anna' registered as a test subject in Sir Giuseppe's research."
"That's just buying some pushover orphan for experiments! Do you think I don't know that?!"
"..."
"..."
"My son... my son..."
He was on the verge of collapsing from rage.
Grit.
The family head ground his teeth.
"... Contact the underworld and find a capable man."
"Y-Your Lordship! I beseech you, reconsider! Sending an assassin to the Magic Tower is the worst possible move!"
One of the vassals knelt and pleaded. But the Winterheart family head's mind was made up.
"Reconsider? After that young whelp half-killed my son?"
"The cause of Sir Cayenne's injury was rebound..."
"Shut that mouth!"
"..."
Arcard roared.
But he knew it too. That everything his vassal said was correct. This incident was clearly Cayenne's fault.
Sending an assassin to the Magic Tower in a fit of anger in this situation would bring great disaster upon the entire family. If the princess found out first, his title would be revoked. If the Dean found out first, his family would be annihilated.
The risk of revenge was too great. A moment later, he spoke.
"... Don't kill him. This is just a warning, to make an example of him. If you cut off one of his fingers, that orphan brat will come to his senses."
"But, my lord...!"
"Do as I say! You think the Empire will cast me out over a single finger of some commoner?!"
Besides, there was no other opportunity than now. While Valerius, known as Isaac's master, was away from the Magic Tower, everything had to be taken care of.
The tutoring session with Anna was fulfilling again today. By the time I returned to the Magic Tower, it was already late in the evening. As expected, Liam was in the dorm room.
But his face looked extremely anxious.
What's wrong?
"Mr. Isaac! Where have you been! We're running out of time!"
Liam was on the verge of a panic.
"What's the matter?"
"The Winterheart family! The rumor has spread all over the Magic Tower!"
"Oh, that?"
It seems the story about me teaching Cayenne Winterheart 'a little' lesson has spread. The effect is killer. If he submits a thesis next year, I'll have to crush him again.
Hehehe.
I nonchalantly took off my coat and spoke.
"Just leave it be."
"... Aren't you afraid of the Winterheart family? They're a pretty big family, you know."
I know that much. I already heard it from Gwendolyn. The Winterheart family is a baronial family with a high reputation in the north.
But there's no need to be scared. I replied to Liam.
"I have the princess behind me."
This is why I've been working so hard until now. In this society with a class system, the blood of the Imperial Court is the measure of all things. All shall kneel before the noble blood.
"Oh... it seems you were closer to the princess than I thought."
"Hehe."
"So you were relaxed because you had a plan."
"Hehehe."
All political attacks directed at me are meaningless before the princess. But then a thought occurred to me. What if the Winterhearts don't launch a political attack?
What if they go crazy and resort to physical assault...? 'I should probably prepare for that.' Of course, sending an assassin after me, a member of the Magic Tower, is an act of madness.
If something like that happens, the Dean won't just stand by. Nevertheless, I was a little anxious. Call me a coward, I don't care.
There are times when I hate this part of my personality too... 'Still, should I give the guards and Hans a heads-up?' It would be a good chance to see their faces too.