A spectacular banquet hall lay before them. Silver and gold accented every surface as a jeweled chandelier presided over marble statues. The wooden dining table was made from the trees of the Northern Great Forest, and was filled with luxurious, expensive dishes. Yet, the opulence stopped just shy of vulgarity, which was a rare thing in noble houses.
Earl Bergen, sitting at the head of the table, greeted Vince and Theodore with open arms. “Ohh, the heroes of Bergen have arrived!”
The earl was a handsome man. His clothing, while luxurious, also looked comfortable. Above all, his bright smile contained true sincerity. He was truly happy that they had taken care of matters. Slave trading was a national felony in Meltor. If the two magicians hadn’t come, Earl Bergen would’ve had to take responsibility for allowing slavery to exist in his territory. Since he had been in the dark about Shackler, it would’ve been like a lightning bolt of misfortune.
The two magicians bowed politely.
“I’m the Red Tower’s Superior magician, Vince Haidel.”
“I’m the Red Tower’s Average magician, Theodore Miller.”
Earl Bergen received their greetings with a smile and gestured for them to sit down. He may have outranked them socially, but the two magicians weren’t people he could easily trifle with. Thankfully, he already had a relationship with Vince.
“Hahaha! It has been a long time, Professor Vince. I didn’t know that I would see you again.”
Vince replied, “Yes, I thought the same. I quit my position as a professor, only to come back here in a few months. I didn’t know I would deal with such a big event like elf slave trading.”
The earl grew solemn. “This was a really big incident. Why in my territory…”
Vince had kept a few things from the earl in his debriefing. For example, the earl was unaware that a high elf had been one of the victims, and that Shackler had been a front for Austen. Either of these two facts had the potential to blow up into a huge political issue.
I don’t know if news has reached the capital yet, but it is still early at the moment.
Vince was experienced enough to calmly distinguish between what information could and couldn’t be told. Even disregarding Earl Bergen’s personality, the hidden facts of this case were too big. They couldn’t be allowed to rise to the surface. If another kingdom learned that a high elf was present in Bergen, they would immediately start covert operations. However, there were only two magicians in Bergen right now, and Vince was still injured.
He adroitly changed the topic to something that had been bothering him.
“Earl.”
“Oh, feel free to speak! I will help you with anything you need.”
“Your generosity has been more than appreciated. I just wanted to ask something.”
Both Theodore and his teacher turned their attention to the beautiful girl sitting beside Earl Bergen. She had long blonde hair, the distinctive unblemished fairness of a noble and seemed to be around the same age as Theo.
Earl Bergen introduced her like he had been waiting for this cue. “She is a dear child whom I gained in my later years. Sweetie, what are you doing? Come and say hello.”
The girl bowed in her seat. “… I-I am Fiona Bergen.”
The earl chuckled. “Huhu, isn’t she cute? She hasn’t made her debut yet, so she is still unsure about how to treat people!”
It was too obvious! The two magicians immediately caught on to what Earl Bergen was thinking and exchanged glances. Theo was only nineteen years old, but he was already a talented Average of the Red Tower. Any noble would love to bring in such talent into their family. The earl was obviously angling to make Theo his son-in-law.
Unsurprisingly, he started to talk more shamelessly. “Isn’t being greeted by a young lady instead of an old man better for the young Baron Miller? I’m not just saying this because she is my daughter, but she is a pretty cute kid.”
“… Thank you for your consideration.”
Fiona was swiftly moved to the seat next to Theo. She wasn’t wearing perfume or cosmetics, but a sweet scent seemed to tickle his nose out of nowhere. Theo felt a little stiff thanks to his uninvited dinner mate. He glanced at Fiona and inwardly sighed.
Hoo, she is pretty though…
Who wouldn’t dream of a star crossed romance with a noble lady when they were young? Fiona was the epitome of such a story, with her blonde hair, big breasts, and immaculate skin. If Theo was a common youth, he wouldn’t be able to keep his eyes off her.
The problem was that he had met girls who were far prettier than her.
– Theo, this is how to finish the spell.
Sylvia was a silver-haired genius overflowing with innocence. The mysterious atmosphere around her wasn’t something a sheltered noblewoman could compete with.
– What, kid,are you tired already?
The next one to pop up was Veronica. Not only was she beautiful and mature, every hug and touch left Theodore’s head blank.
Theo had met incomparably beautiful women, so he had become strangely resistant to beauty, let alone a young noblewoman like Fiona who didn’t know how to tempt men. Theo ignored her fidgeting and ate his food quietly. He was similar to an iron wall.
Well, it seems I don’t have anything to worry about.
Vince laughed inwardly at the stoic Theo before turning to Earl Bergen to continue his conversation. “Someone from the Magic Society will probably come in three, maybe four days. Until then, I would appreciate your hospitality, Earl.”
The earl smiled. “Of course. It is for the kingdom. It is okay even if you stay for three or four years.”
Vince chuckled. “Hahaha, that is too much.”
Two hours passed slowly. Vince glossed over a few things in their conversation, but the atmosphere of the dinner remained good. Theo made some small talk with Fiona, since outright ignoring her wouldn’t help his relationship with Earl Bergen. Leaving a good impression was one way to make a connection.
As the food on the table gradually disappeared, the earl spoke, “Ah, that reminds me of something, Baron Miller.”
Theo looked up. “Yes?”
Earl Bergen said,“Baron Miller is from our academy right?”
Theo nodded politely. “Yes, that’s right.”
The earl gestured for a servant to come over. “I heard that you won a tournament in the capital and graduated. So, I prepared something for you.”
The earl received a scroll from a servant and passed it to Theo, who pulled at the red string to unroll it. He had an idea what it was, and indeed, it was what he had expected.
The earl continued, “I wanted to invite the dean of the academy, but unfortunately, he had no time to spare. Still, he gladly gave me the certificate of graduation.” 𝙚𝙙𝙤𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝒎
Theo silently read the scroll. “……”
The earl sensed something amiss. “Ah, I don’t know if I did something bad or not.”
Theo’s eyes flicked over the dean’s stamp in the corner of the document. It was a graduation diploma from Bergen Academy. The item he had once thought was impossible to obtain was now marked with his name. When he saw his name at the top, it didn’t feel real. He hadn’t even met the dean before.
Even if it was something he had wanted desperately a few months ago, he just felt strange now that he had it in his hands.
“No. Thank you for your care, Earl.” Theo hid his emotions and smiled.
He realized that the academy wasn’t worth anything as he put down his knife.
***
The dinner party soon came to a conclusion. Theo and Vince bid farewell to a reluctant Fiona and Earl Bergen. As the doors closed behind them, it cut off the sounds of the lively dinner party, leaving a deafening silence.
They declined a guide to their rooms. Theo and Vince walked down the hallways soundlessly before Theo broke the silence quietly.
“Master.”
Vince glanced at him. “Hmm?”
Theo pulled out the scroll. “What does this diploma mean to me now?”
Vince pondered for a moment before replying seriously, “… Frankly, it isn’t a valuable item. Your graduation is irrelevant because you have already reached a level where that doesn’t matter.”
As Vince said, the academy diploma was usually just used to prove the identity of an amateur magician. It was useless for Theo who had already crossed the wall of the 5th Circle. His Circles were more proof than a diploma when it came to his prowess as a magician.
Theo knew this. He just couldn’t accept that the five poisonous years he’d endured had ended with a single piece of paper.
“But Theodore…” Vince wasn’t done yet. “Your five years aren’t in that scroll. Just like magic isn’t ink written in books, Theodore Miller’s worth is contained in here.”
Vince’s finger tapped Theo’s chest.
… Ah.
The words were prosaic, but it still felt like a weight had been lifted from his heart. Vince Haidel, who had ruminated over his identity as a war magicians for years, cut off the bud of uncertainty growing inside Theodore in one fell swoop.
“Certificates are given because they exist, but the certificate itself isn’t a qualification. Theo, you only need yourself to prove that you aren’t a stamp on a piece of paper.”
“… Yes, Master.”
“So, what will you do with the diploma?”
Theo playfully smiled at the question.
The discomfort, confusion, and dizziness he just felt had disappeared somewhere. The diploma in his hand wasn’t as heavy as before. It was just a common piece of paper, and everyone knew what paper was good for.
Hwaruruk~
Theo cast the 1st Circle spell, Ignite. Sparks shimmered in the air, and the diploma fell away from his fingers as gray ash. Theo invoked a quick wind spell to sweep away any traces. As the breeze toyed with his hair, it felt like the worry eating at Theo’s heart and five years of pain and struggle was also blown away.
[Theodore.]
At that moment, Theo heard someone whispering in his ear. At first, he thought it was Gluttony, but then he realized that it wasn’t. It was a voice he had heard just yesterday.
It was the voice of high elf Ellenoa.
[I’m sorry, but can you come to my room? I would like to continue the conversation from last time.]
The day’s second invitation had arrived.