“Welcome. You may all relax.”
As I raised my head,
we found ourselves in a large, intimidating hall, built of stone walls and columns. In the center was a long red carpet, where Strauss, Eliza, and I knelt. Behind us stood Court, representing the students.
The hall was dimly lit, with lamps set up to compensate for the lack of natural light, creating a heavy atmosphere.
In front of us, ten steps led up to a throne, where a thin, middle-aged man in golden robes sat. His hair was thinning, and dark circles under his eyes, combined with his sunken cheeks, gave him a gaunt appearance. He wore a gold crown, but it looked out of place on him.
Wearing his clothes, rather than the other way around,
came to mind as I gazed up at the Emperor of the Mapleleaf Holy Empire, who was looking down at us from his grand throne.
When he saw me raise my head, Alabaster, who was kneeling slightly in front of us, cleared his throat and spoke.
“Ahem. Your Majesty Diagio, allow me to introduce Aoi Konominato, Senior Instructor from Winter Valley’s Fidic Academy. Along with her are fellow instructors Strauss Clyde and Eliza Woodford. Finally, we have Court Hedge-Butler, one of Fidic Academy’s top students. Some additional students have also accompanied them and are waiting in another room.”
Alabaster bowed as he finished his introduction. The Emperor nodded solemnly.
“Hmm. You all seem quite young. To be at the prestigious Fidic Academy at such an age, and even be entrusted with teaching, is remarkable. I recognize Court, but we’ll leave that aside for now.”
He nodded in satisfaction, then fixed his gaze on me.
“And so, Aoi Konominato, you must be the mage who was invited as a senior instructor out of nowhere. I confess, I’m confused, as you’re not what I expected. Nonetheless, I’m grateful you’ve come to my country.”
I tilted my head slightly as I responded.
“Thank you.”
Diagio shook his shoulders in laughter.
“Curious about what I expected? Well, given that I heard you were a mage surpassing our country’s foremost magician, I envisioned an older, mysterious woman or perhaps someone who even appeared older than myself. No offense.”
Diagio chuckled to himself, but despite his laughter, I couldn’t quite grasp his true feelings. As I watched, Alabaster cleared his throat again and spoke.
“Your Majesty, let us move on to the main matter at hand.”
“Hmm? Oh, yes, of course. I have a request for you, Aoi Konominato. As you may have heard from Alabaster, I wish for you to contribute to the advancement of magic in our country. The compensation will be as much as you achieve. Oh, and you will be granted the rank equivalent to a minister in foreign nations, along with a ring to prove it. Is that acceptable?”
Diagio listed out the terms, then turned to me for confirmation, though it was clear he didn’t expect me to refuse. The offer was far more generous than I could have imagined.
Diageo was just following the formalities and did not seem to think that I would be rejected from the start. I have no problem with that, and in contrast to my earlier impression, I think he is a rather easy king to deal with.
Yet, there was something else I wanted to clarify first.
“If I may, Your Majesty.”
Both Diagio and Alabaster looked at me as I spoke. I could feel eyes on me from behind as well, but I chose to ignore them.
“Your Majesty Diagio, I understand your request and the terms. However, I have a small favor to ask regarding the reward.”
Alabaster frowned at my words, while Diagio tilted his head, puzzled.
“What is it? A rare magical artifact?”
I shook my head lightly.
“No, that’s not it.”
“Then what is it?”
Diagio asked again, growing slightly impatient. This was a rare opportunity—one that wouldn’t come often. I nodded, then expressed my deepest desire.
“I would like all of Mapleleaf Holy Empire’s magic to be made available to me, and for some of it to be shared with the world.”
At my request, the two men widened their eyes in shock, freezing in place.
Alabaster was at a loss for words, while I could hear someone coughing repeatedly behind me, but I ignored it.
! Image
A few seconds passed before Diagio blinked and spoke.
“…A-Aoi Konominato, while you may be a great mage, it seems you’re unfamiliar with the intricacies of global politics. While our country is considered a great nation, the balance of power between nations is delicate. The release of such exclusive magic would shatter that balance.”
Diagio indirectly denied my request, and though I could understand his point, I disagreed.
“I understand your concerns, but I believe this mindset is hindering the development of magic. Certainly, it might not be possible to put ourselves at a disadvantage by being the only country to disclose our unique magic when others don’t.”
Diagio nodded deeply as if to say, “That’s right.” But before hearing his response, I continued speaking.
“However, that won’t be the case.”
Upon hearing this, not only Diagio but also Alabaster tilted their heads.
“Why is that?”
Being asked again, I opened my mouth with a reassuring smile.
“Because I will make all countries disclose their magic. If there’s any difference, it will only be a matter of sooner or later.”
As I said this, the atmosphere in the hall became as silent as if it had frozen.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.PAGES.DEV
In the end, Diagio didn’t grant permission to disclose magic, but in exchange for teaching my magic, I was allowed access to the Maple Leaf Holy Empire’s magic research institute. I was told repeatedly that this was special, as even ministers from other countries wouldn’t be granted such approval.
Although it was hard to accept, the discussion had reached a conclusion for now, and the audience with Diagio came to an end. It seems difficult to get them to release research results on magic that falls under military secrets.
Led to what appeared to be another guest room, I quietly opened my mouth.
“…I suppose I’ll have to learn all the magic from every country and research it myself after all.”
As I was murmuring such things with disappointment, Strauss and Eliza came over with exhausted faces.
“Please, don’t make such careless statements.”
“Aoi-san!? We were about to faint! Really, geez!”
As the two voiced their complaints simultaneously, I nodded in response.
“I understand. Don’t worry. I carefully chose my words to express my opinion without angering them. However, I was too reserved and couldn’t get them to concede on the crucial points. Next time, I’ll make sure to get their approval.”
Upon hearing this declaration, both of them held their heads and looked up to the heavens. Quite an exaggerated reaction.
While thinking this, Shenley raised her hand modestly with a wry smile.
“Um, what should we do now?”
As Shenley asked no one in particular, Court folded his arms and groaned.
“Well, since our visit was so sudden, they said both the magic academy and the research institute still need time for preparation and notifications…”
As Court muttered in a troubled manner, Aile raised both hands with such force that she almost jumped up and shouted.
“Sightseeing! Let’s go sightseeing!”
At those words, everyone looked at Aile.
“We got permission to look around the royal castle, but we can probably do that again! But I think today is the only day we can freely look around the city!”
“Why’s that? I thought we could tour the city anytime,” Court voiced his doubt.
Aile immediately answered while looking at me.
“Because tomorrow or the day after, we might already be famous, right?”
Everyone nodded deeply at Aile’s strange statement.
“…Indeed.”
“Sh-sharp observation.”
“…She’s always had good intuition.”
Voices of agreement could be heard, and Liz and Belle were praising Aile, saying, “As expected of you!”
Although I didn’t quite understand, if everyone wanted it, there was no reason to object.
“Then, let’s go sightseeing in the city. Shall we ask Shenley to guide us?”
I looked at Shenley while adopting the suggestion, but for some reason, she hastily declined.
“N-no. I’m not very familiar with the holy city, and something might happen, so let’s ask someone from the castle to guide us.”
As Shenley said this, Strauss and the others immediately agreed.
“That’s good.”
“That’s a good idea.”
“If possible, it would be better to ask Alabaster-sama…”
“We don’t want anything bad to happen!”
As everyone was discussing their concerns about the holy city’s security or something, suddenly the door opened from outside.
The one who appeared was Crown-Windsor, the court magician of Maple Leaf.
“I’ve heard the story. I’ll be your guide.”
To my surprise, Crown himself offered to be our guide, so I straightforwardly expressed my gratitude.
“Thank you. That’s helpful.”
As I said this and turned back to everyone, for some reason, they were all looking down with very ambiguous expressions.
White walls, as if coated with lacquer and plaster, lined both sides of the road, with beautiful flowers and lush green trees adorning the path. Colorful clothes were displayed in the shops neatly arranged on both sides of the street, creating a vibrant scenery.
“…It’s like a cityscape where paint has been sprinkled on a pure white canvas. I wonder if those white buildings are what create this atmosphere.”
As I muttered this impression, Aile, Liz, and Belle responded one after another.
“Yes! It’s beautiful, isn’t it? There are delicious smells too. It’s wonderful!”
“The Holy City is called the Pure White City, after all. By the way, our Highland is known as the City of Water. I’d love for Sensei Aoi to come to Our Highland someday…”
“Oh, there’s the famous Fondue over there. It’s fried chicken sandwiched in bread, but the seasoning varies from shop to shop, which is interesting.”
“Hold on a moment, Liz. Don’t wander off too far.”
“Ah, sorry, Sensei Strauss.”
The students had completely fallen into a school trip mood. Strauss and Eliza were keeping an eye on Aile and the others’ movements, while Court and Shenley were quietly observing the townscape and having some conversation.
At the front, Crown was guiding us while providing information about the town.
“Can you see those pointed roofs? There are three buildings with pointed roofs in a row. Those are shops run by the Magicians’ Association, and sometimes they have surprisingly rare magic books and magical tools. Even the people from the country’s top magic research institute occasionally come to check them out because they also deal with merchants from other countries.”
While nine-tenths of the guide’s content was about magic, there was some useful information as well. Well, the students seemed to have lost interest in Crown’s guidance early on, but they appeared to be enjoying the townscape plenty.
“Oh, can we buy that?”
“Sure, but do you have enough money?”
“It’s just baked bread, so it should be fine.”
Seeing Liz and Belle captivated by the aromatic bread at a street stall, I suddenly had a question.
“Is there no problem with currency? Do you have Maple Leaf Holy Empire’s coins?”
As I asked this, everyone turned to look at me. Even Crown stopped walking and looked in my direction.
“Did I say something strange?”
I asked back, feeling puzzled. Then, Eliza answered on behalf of everyone.
“Um, nearly two hundred years ago, the five major countries started issuing a common currency. Most small countries aligned their currencies with the major countries to avoid disadvantages in circulation, so the common currency can be used in almost any country now.”
“Oh, I see. I didn’t know that since I’ve never left the mountains.”
I nodded in understanding at Eliza’s explanation. It’s probably something like the common currency in Europe.
“Well, it can’t be helped if you’ve never been to other countries… but still, your lack of common knowledge is inversely proportional to your knowledge of magic.”
Strauss said with an exasperated look on his face.
“Is that so?”
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