CH 31.2

In the bedroom of a house which was spared from Brandenburg’s destruction, Alexia is recuperating. After that hard-fought battle, she was so seriously wounded that she was unconscious for three days due to injury and fatigue, but she was given priority for treatment by clerics and medicines, so her injuries have completely recovered. She has recovered to the point that she would have no difficulties returning to school in a few days.

“Lady Alexia, I’ve brought you water,” Irene says, entering the room with a pitcher of water. Since she doesn’t have her usual chamberlain outfit with her, she has a more casual appearance after removing her armor.

“Thanks, Irene. I was getting a bit thirsty. But, are you alright? You were a part of that battle as well, after all.”

“There is no need for concern, I have no serious injuries. Please take care of your own body instead,” Irene says, smiling as she pours the water into a glass. After losing sight of Alexia, she got caught in the herd of rhinoses and struggled desperately to make it back to Alexia somehow. However, there was a limit to what she was capable of on her own. The endless monster herd nearly depleted her stamina entirely. It was that second lightning storm that put an end to it. All the monsters outside the walls were defeated, with only the monsters that invaded the city left alive. The soldiers that were fighting on the city walls also came down, turning the tables of the battle all at once and leading to their victory.

After the battle, she also had to rest for a day, but the next day, she began enthusiastically taking care of Alexia and assisting in reconstruction. After all, few came out of the fight uninjured, and they couldn’t just neglect all the houses destroyed by monsters and the immense number of corpses of both humans and monsters. Though, after the advance team arrived and the injured got back on their feet, she had to devote all her attention to caring for Alexia.

“Hey, Irene,” Alexia asks after quenching her thirst and becoming more alert. “Um… Have you found Teacher?”

“Unfortunately, no. However, there’s no one else aside from Chaos who can control lightning like that, so he surely participated in the battle,” Irene says, shaking her head in response to Alexia’s query. Alexia is visibly discouraged. During the battle, Irene never saw Chaos, and Alexia told her that she was saved by Chaos after regaining consciousness. Irene fully believes this to be the truth. She had no intention of doubting her master to begin with, but more than that, the evidence indicates that it’s true that he was there.

The lightning that wiped out all the monsters on the city walls. That wasn’t the first time she witnessed that sight which seemed unlike anything a human should be capable of. Irene is convinced that it couldn’t have been a coincidence. That would mean that it was man-made. There’s only one person capable of wielding such absurd power. However, considering that the range was wider than the one she saw previously, he must have been restraining himself back then, in his own way.

When she heard about this from her master, she began searching for Chaos indirectly while taking care of her master. However, she couldn’t obtain any reliable information, and he himself was nowhere to be found. And so, she continued this difficult investigation day after day.

The greatest contributor in the Battle for Brandenburg, her master Alexia, is being revered almost like a god by all those who participated in the battle, to the point that even her servant, Irene, has been receiving similar treatment, finding herself surrounded by people and unable to move whenever she reveals herself in public. That’s also why she’s fully focused on caring for Alexia even though help is still needed.

“I see… Sorry, Irene, could I have some time alone?”

“Of course. Now then, please rest for a bit,” Irene says as she leaves. Alexia sighs, her heart burning with the desire to see Chaos as soon as possible.

The two of them are still unaware that the rumors have escalated so uncontrollably that they’re being worshipped.

“Alexia, I’m coming in!” says a man with purple hair and a handlebar mustache, a man in his prime who has yet to reach his 40’s, as he opens the door with great force shortly after Irene left, bringing several servants into the room with him.

“Father!” Alexia says in astonishment at the sudden arrival of a visitor she never anticipated. This man is Alexia’s father, Count Zavarish.

“Ah, Alexia, it’s been too long! I was sure that you were at the academy, I never expected you to be in Brandenburg!”

“Yes, I came here using Warp Portal, a teleportation spell.”

“What? You had such trouble with magic, and now you’re able to use high level magic like teleportation spells?! I see, now it makes sense. I’ve heard about your great efforts! Well done!”

As he hugs her tightly, Alexia wonders how long it’s been since she felt her father’s warmth like this. As far as she can remember, at least, it may have been back when she held a staff for the first time. It’s so sudden that it doesn’t feel real to her, and she feels more baffled than joyful.

“To think that you improved your magical ability so much that you eradicated the monsters threatening the city! I’m proud to be your father.”

“…Thank you.”

Just then, she starts to truly realize that she’s being praised. She used to practice magic desperately to make her family acknowledge her. All she wanted was for her family to praise her, and when she realized that her childhood wish is now being fulfilled, she’s filled with such joy that she feels herself tearing up. It’s all thanks to her teacher. She has to meet her teacher and thank him. Then, she can tell him how she feels about him. Maybe he’s already in Commune, how will she find him? Alexia listens to her father while immersed in these daydreams.

“With these achievements, the Zavarish house may be granted a higher title. Ah, this truly is an auspicious moment.”

“Congratulations, Father.”

“Yes, it’s all thanks to you, Alexia. With this, you’ll have no shortage of options for families to marry into.”

‘…What?’ Alexia’s train of thought grinds to a halt.

“A ducal house, no, even becoming His Majesty’s empress could be in your future. The Zavarish house will grow more and more powerful!”

“U- um, Father, I…”

She already has someone she likes who she’s set her heart on. Though, that’s all he is at the moment. Alexia isn’t able to say these words.

“Oh yes, do excuse me. It’s only natural that this would be too sudden for you. However, marriage proposals will soon come flooding in. You’ve even been praised as the Saint of Weichsel, so you may even receive some from other countries. You must choose carefully.”

“…’The Saint of Weichsel’?”

“What, you haven’t heard? You’re being called the saint who received the blessing of the gods, defeated the monsters, and defended Brandenburg.”

She didn’t win the battle through her power alone. Alexia truly believes that this victory was only possible because of Irene, the soldiers she fought alongside, and her teacher, Chaos. She doesn’t truly understand what she did.

“Father, that’s not true. This battle was won by all the soldiers who participated.”

“Hahaha, Alexia, you really are modest. But being overly modest is not a virtue. You are a daughter of the honorable Zavarish house. Your glory is our family’s glory. Take pride in it.”

The warmth in Alexia’s heart quickly grows cold. Something is wrong. She feels a sense of incongruity regarding the ideal she imagined as a child and the reality thrust before her. When her magic was inferior and she was treated coldly, she persisted in her efforts to be acknowledged and praised by her parents all this time, the root of it being her desire for her parents to treat her as family.

However, what’s being communicated to her by her father right now isn’t what she desired. It’s true that he’s acknowledging her. But the root of it is completely different. All he’s focused on is the fact that Alexia has gained value, increasing their family’s influence, thinking only about how Alexia can be of benefit to the house of Zavarish – to himself. In fact, he hasn’t expressed even a word of concern for Alexia herself. His own daughter faced a life-threatening ordeal. If he was a normal parent, shouldn’t he have scolded Alexia at least once and been worried about her? Rather than growing closer to her father, she feels that she’s only becoming more distant.

“But to think that lightning would strike at such a convenient moment. It truly is a miracle.”

“No, Father, that was not a coincidence.”

“Not a coincidence? What in the world do you mean?” Count Zavarish says as his eyes widen in shock.

“That was a spell cast by the teacher I am studying under,” Alexia says. For a moment, Count Zavarish stares in bafflement, but soon after, he bursts into laughter.

“Hahaha, you’re taking this joke too far. No one could possibly cause lightning to strike over such a large area. I’m a mage, even I know that much.”

Among the spells that are currently known, there is no lightning spell. No, not just lightning, there’s no spell of any sort which is capable of eradicating that many monsters. Based on the common sense that he’s familiar with, it would be more convincing if he was told that those lightning bolts were sent by the gods.

“It’s true that it may seem like fantasy. However, that was a spell.”

“Hm. You can’t use it, can you?”

“No. Only Teacher can use it.”

“Hmm. Mages have their strong and weak points, so there’s a limit to which spells they’re capable of using, but… Even so, I can’t believe it. Not unless I see it with my own eyes.”

If only she could use the same spells as Chaos, she would be able to show him proof immediately. The Sage spells that Alexia uses and the Wizard spells that Chaos uses are fundamentally different. There are some similar spells, but as a Sage, Alexia is unable to learn Thunder Storm, at least. Why couldn’t she have the same talent as Chaos? Alexia bites her lip in frustration at her lack of talent.

“But is there really such a professor at the magic academy? I’ve heard that you used some strange spells as well…”

Count Zavarish has never been interested in Alexia, so he knows absolutely nothing of her life at the academy or her circumstances. If he knew even the slightest bit, it wouldn’t even cross his mind that Alexia may be studying under a professor at the academy. And it’s also unpleasant for Alexia to hear the person she looks up to spoken of as if he’s no different from the professors from the academy.

“No, Teacher is not a professor from the academy. He’s an adventurer.”

“An adventurer?! Why would you be studying under such a person? What exactly are those professors at the academy doing?” Count Zavarish expresses his rage. Considering the status of the house of Count Zavarish, he can’t stand the thought of his own daughter begging a commoner adventurer to teach her.

Alexia looks at her father with a cold gaze.

“Hm. However, if what you say is true, that would make him a powerful mage. In that case, perhaps we should bring this adventurer into our house… Even if he is of humble birth, he’s a powerful mage. That alone makes him valuable.”

A mage’s skill is greatly influenced by bloodlines. It is generally understood that if one is closely related to a powerful mage, they will be born a mage of corresponding power. ‘Oh no,’ Alexia thinks with dread. At this rate, even her teacher will be dragged into her father’s obsession with power.