Chapter 118 - The Third Imperial Princess (2)

The Great Mage Returns after 4000 Years – Chapter 118 – The Third Imperial Princess (2)

Translator: Seven

Editors: Ana_Banana, Yahiko

“If you have contacted us beforehand, we would have prepared to receive you.”

“It’s fine. I didn’t come for any serious business.”

Fiore smiled gently as she took a sip of tea.

Dak.

“By the way, where’s Mischael?”

Leita answered with a calm expression.

“He has returned to the tower for a while. I heard that there’s a meeting for the Floor Masters. If he knew you were coming, he definitely would have postponed his departure.”

“Ah, now that you mention it, I just remembered Mischael is a Floor Master.”

Fiore, who was smiling, suddenly furrowed her brows slightly.

“Huh? But that’s strange.”

“What is?”

“Mischael is a member of the 9th Magic Tower, isn’t he? I thought the Floor Master meeting was held four days ago.”

“…”

The atmosphere cooled down a little.

Leita’s fingertips paused a bit as she reached to pick up her cup, but her expression didn’t change.

“…maybe there was an unexpected situation which forced them to call for another Floor Master meeting.”

“I see. The 9th Magic Tower is to the east, isn’t it? I’ll stop by later to find out what kind of trouble has arisen.” 

“I don’t think it would be something the princess would need to worry about.”

“Thank you for your consideration. But I’m a very meticulous person, so I can’t just let this go.”

As she said that, Fiore let out a soft laugh.

Leita smiled.

Both of them were smiling, but Frey couldn’t see the subtle trace of emotion on Leita’s face.

‘She’s pushing her.’

Princess Fiore was pressing Leita. 

And there was no way for Leita, who had been making excuses without thinking about it too deeply, to fool her, someone who had memorised the schedules for all ten magic towers, without the correct details.

The atmosphere had been completely upturned by Fiore.

Then, with a relaxed expression, she turned towards Frey.

“Yesterday, you left so quickly that we did not get the chance to have a proper conversation. So I’ll introduce myself again. I am Fiore Diak Kastkau, Third Princess of the Kastkau Empire.”

“I am Frey Blake, third son of the Blake family. It is an honour to meet you again.”

Fiore slowly rose up from her seat.

“Frey, would it be okay for me to request a tour of the mansion?”

She was formally asking him to escort her.

As it was impolite to reject a lady’s request, Frey nodded.

“It would be my honour.”

Isaka, Fiore and Heinz also began rising from their seats, but Fiore shook her head gently.

“I would like to talk to Frey alone.”

“Will you be okay?”

“Of course.”

“…”

There was some suspicion in Leita’s eyes.

She and her husband were already thinking about making Frey her husband, but when she saw Fiore being so interested in him, she felt suspicious instead.

Maybe these two already knew each other or had some kind of secret conversation that she didn’t know about.

“I heard you were a student at the Westroad Academy?”

“I dropped out of school…”

To be precise, he had been expelled from the school.

“Then do you know Peran?”

Peran?

Was Fiore an acquaintance of Peran?

…if not.

“He’s one of my few friends.”

“Wow.”

Fiore gave a wide smile.

“I used to play with Peran when we were younger. I haven’t been able to meet him these past few years since I’ve been so busy, but we still exchange letters on occasion.”

“I see.”

“I’d like you to tell me about Peran. Is that okay?”

Frey rose from his seat and offered the approaching Fiore his arm.

“…”

Leita had no choice but to watch this without saying anything.

She had already made a mistake by mentioning the Floor Master meeting. Fiore didn’t say anything else about it now, but if she kept pushing, there was a high chance that she would bring it up once more.

* * *

They went to the garden.

She had formally requested a tour of the mansion, but it was obvious she just wanted a chance for the two of them to be alone.

“Peran has always been interested in magical science since we were children. He especially liked the Great Mage, Lukas Trowman…”

“He’s become a fanatic.”

“Ahaha.”

It looked like they were just having a pleasant conversation, but that wasn’t entirely the case.

Fiore would occasionally look around, and Frey noticed that she wasn’t just admiring the scenery.

‘There are people tailing us.’

Instead, she was looking at the people that Leita had sent to follow them.

They weren’t hiding. Instead, they disguised themselves as servants, and they were scattered everywhere.

This made it annoying because they couldn’t question them.

At first glance, they were only servants who were preoccupied with the management of the mansion, so they couldn’t make them leave.

The servants didn’t get too close, but they still pressured Frey and Fiore.

This was Leita’s intention.

They weren’t enough to be obvious, but they were enough to be annoying.

“…ah!”

It was then.

Fiore tripped over something and stumbled, and Frey hurriedly caught her.

“Ah… thank you.”

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“I’m fine.”

Fiore smiled shyly as she stood up straight once again.

There was some disturbance for a while, but that was all.

Afterwards, they continued their friendly conversation.

The two of them circled the garden about two times before returning to the mansion as the sun began to set.

Fiore greeted Isaka and left the mansion.

And when Frey returned to his room, he took a note out of his pocket.

The note that Fiore had placed there after her ‘fall’.

[2 am, Millakid Inn 3-B]

* * *

The reason she chose that time was in consideration of Frey. 

After all, it would be very suspicious if he decided to go out right after being alone with the princess.

Of course, he still had to move stealthily when he left just after midnight, but it wouldn’t be that difficult.

A map of the Millakid Inn, which was located not far from the Blake family residence, was also included on the note, so he could arrive there with Warp.

There would also be no trace left because it was only a short distance Warp.

‘The only problem is if someone comes to my room.’

It was possible that Isaka or Leita would suddenly visit him during the night.

If they found out that he was away, he would definitely be interrogated upon his return.

Frey didn’t want them to even have the slightest bit of suspicion. Not yet at least.

He wanted them to act as they would normally so he could make use of their lack of caution.

After all, it was only because their guards were lowered that Frey was able to eavesdrop on Leita and Isaka’s conversation the night before.

If they knew Frey was an 8 star Wizard, then even if they were in a secure area, they would never discuss sensitive topics like Fiore or Illuminium.

After thinking for a moment, Frey went to find Heinz.

“I’m going to be away just after midnight.”

“Are you going to meet the princess?”

“Right.”

When Frey nodded, Heinz pondered for a moment before saying.

“Go and come back quickly. If you get caught, I will cover for you.”

Frey didn’t completely trust Heinz, but they shared a secret.

Moreover, Heinz wasn’t the type to lie needlessly, so he didn’t have anything to worry about.

Frey waited in his room and then left the mansion at 1 am.

Just in case something happened, he changed his appearance with an illusion once again.

His appearance had once again become that of Kain Rixton.

Shuk.

Frey’s figure suddenly appeared in the air above a street before gently floating to a back alley.

Taht.

He was immediately hit by a foul smell.

Some of the streets of Pillat might not have been very clean, but the back alleys were much worse.

Frey brushed some dust from his robe and walked into the street.

1 am.

This was usually the time when people would be asleep, but Pillat’s nightlife seemed to have only just begun.

Mercenaries gathered in groups of three to five and slammed their pints of beer against each other loudly.

It wasn’t hard for him to cross the lively street.

Frey looked around a bit before heading to the Millakid Inn.

From the outside, it was a larger and more luxurious inn than he’d initially expected.

It was not a place where Mercenaries, who lived from paycheck to paycheck, would be able to enjoy.

Creak.

“Welcome.”

When he opened the door and entered, the clerk bowed and greeted him.

His attitude was calm and reserved.

“We provide meals and lodging. Which would you like to have?”

“Lodging.”

“Are you alone?”

“My party has already booked a room. 3-B”

“…I see.”

The clerk paused for a moment before nodding and saying.

“Here’s the key.”

Frey took the key and headed to the third floor.

Then, he turned the doorknob to the room with the nameplate B.

There was no need for him to use the key as the door was already open.

The room was spacious and quiet. 

Fiore was sitting calmly on a chair. When she heard the door, she turned her head and gave a gentle smile.

“You’re early.”

Even though he was using the face of Kain Rixton, she didn’t show any surprise.

She couldn’t have seen through the illusion because she hadn’t learned magic.

Frey sat in front of her without responding.

Fiore raised an eyebrow when she saw the attitude that was completely different from the one she had seen earlier.

“I’ve heard of your prestige.”

“Prestige?”

“The Trowman Rings’ new Circle Rounder.”

Frey was still unresponsive.

“Oh my. You’re not surprised.”

“Why would I be surprised?”

“I know your hidden identity.”

She was testing his reaction.

Frey shook his head. 

He didn’t want to deal with such a troublesome process.

“Let’s skip the nonsense, Princess Fiore. If you didn’t know that in the first place, you wouldn’t have had a reason to contact me.”

The most important factor when maintaining neutrality was to have good sources of information.

You needed to have a good understanding of the situation on both sides so you could take care of yourself.

Fiore had a good understanding of some of the inner workings of the Demigods as well as the Circle.

And Frey had learned from Heinz that he had become somewhat famous in the Circle.

He was called the young Archmage who had revived the Trowman Rings. 

Fiore would only have tried to contact him after learning that fact.

“…well. You’re right.”

After being silent for a moment, Fiore shrugged.

“In any case, I wanted to meet you. The young talent who brilliantly revived the fallen Trowman Rings. Well, these days… it looks a bit precarious.”

When Fiore suddenly brought up the Trowman Rings, she especially emphasized the last part. 

It seemed she intended to break Frey’s composure by mentioning the circle he was a part of. 

But Frey’s expressionless face didn’t even twitch, and he clicked his tongue inwardly.

She still had yet to bring up the main point.

Instead, it seemed that she wanted to understand Frey’s disposition and, if possible, take the initiative and direct the conversation.

This was one of the bad habits of people who had been rolling in the muddy pit known as politics for too long.

‘The conversation won’t progress until this little reconnaissance skirmish has ended.’

The look in Frey’s eyes changed a little.

If she wanted to have a battle, then so be it.

“Is that so?”

“Haven’t you been in contact with them?”

“I’ve been busy.”

“…”

Fiore was momentarily perplexed by Frey’s indifference. 

She was confident that when it came to psychological warfare, she would not lose to anyone.

No one could disagree when she was easily handling Leita, who could be said to be quite proficient at politics.

But the man in front of her was different.

‘I can’t tell.’

She couldn’t tell what he was thinking because he remained expressionless, regardless of how much she poked and prodded.

Even when she mentioned his hidden identity or the situation of his circle, he remained indifferent.

Or was he just pretending to be calm?

‘He’s only around twenty. He never stepped foot in the political arena…’

No, her plan had been wrong from the start.

Fiore understood that now.

The man in front of her was a 7 star Archmage. Honestly, when she had heard it before, she had only half believed it. 

After all, Frey Blake was only a little over the age of adulthood.

No genius ever recorded in the history of the continent had ever been able to become an Archmage at that age.

But if it was true. 

If Frey Blake really was 7 stars, then he would have had the ability to maintain his composure regardless of the situation.

‘…if so.’

She had to choose another tactic.

Just as Fiore was about to open her mouth after a brief calculation.

“By the way.”

Frey finally spoke.

As his voice sounded out, Fiore almost jumped out of her seat.

The timing was so exquisite that it made her speechless of a moment.

‘…He was aiming for that.’

Impossible.

There was no way.

It had to be a coincidence.

Thinking this, Fiore gave him a smile.

“What is it?”

“I also wanted to meet the princess alone.”

“…you’re doing it now, aren’t you?”

“Is that so?”

Frey’s gaze met Fiore’s.

“Then the one hiding in the ceiling is an enemy.”

Kuoh.

Mana raged around him.

Even she, someone who couldn’t use magic, was able to tell the sheer power of the mana he was releasing.

It was not a joke. He was serious.

Fiore spoke up hurriedly.

“Wa-, wait!”

“What is it?”

“…he’s my bodyguard.”

Shuk.

The mana disappeared.

Frey then muttered in a careless tone.

“I see. I hope you’d tell me earlier next time. I almost killed him.”

It was intentionally direct, an intentional threat.

This man knew.

He must have noticed from the moment he entered the room that there was someone hiding in the ceiling and that the person hiding was most likely her subordinate.

Nevertheless, he purposely unleashed his mana before adding that he almost killed them.

The reason was obvious.

He had taken the initiative.

‘That was an act?’

Fiore was dumbfounded.

In her eyes, Frey was no longer a young man who had just entered his twenties.

Instead, he was like an old noble who had been rolling around in the political arena for decades.

‘Now, then.’

Frey adjusted himself slightly and looked at Fiore.

‘I think we can have a proper conversation now.’

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