Chapter 87

Casual talk.

I, Ar Knowles, am a permanent staff member of the Education Research Committee of the Mage Guild. One day, I received an order.

August 5th.

On that day, Counselor Miles Isherwood called me in.

I was not fond of that demon-like Counselor Isherwood. Despite his well-groomed appearance, which made him look much younger than his thirty-six years, his snake-like eyes gave me goosebumps.

He sent a message for me to come to his office immediately. With a heavy heart, I ran to the Counselor's office, knowing this could not be a good omen.

When I entered his room, there was already a visitor.

I did not know him well, but he was a young male staff member from the Personnel Committee, a year junior to me at Tilia Magic Academy.

Counselor Isherwood, as usual, looked at me with those goosebump-inducing eyes and said with a smile, "Knowles, I'm glad you came."

To me, his smile looked like that of a reptile that had spotted its prey, and I had to struggle to suppress a shiver as I managed to return his greeting.

"This is Reston from the Personnel Committee. He will temporarily be your subordinate."

He looked as confused as I was, and his voice trembled slightly as he said, "I'm Jamie Reston."

Counselor Isherwood, ignoring our confusion, began to speak.

"Now, I've called you here to conduct an investigation."

Reston and I exchanged glances but quickly turned back to the Counselor.

"The investigation is about a frontier village called Rasmora. Specifically, we want you to investigate the Lockhart family, who are the lords of the village."

I had never heard of Rasmora Village until then.

"Could you tell us the purpose of the investigation? What exactly should we investigate?"

Counselor Isherwood smiled slyly. I felt a chill down my spine but braced myself and listened to him.

"Let me tell you the purpose of the investigation. It all started with the practical exam of the entrance test two days ago. Two geniuses appeared, so interesting that even Professor Laspade took notice..."

According to the Counselor, a boy named Lockhart who possessed all eight attributes and a girl named Jakes who could control fire and wind with genius-level magic had both come from Rasmora Village.

Moreover, the two were the second son of the lord and the daughter of a vassal, and they were also milk siblings. This led the academy to suspect that there might be something special about the Lockhart family.

The academy reported this to the Education Research Committee, and the Mage Guild decided to conduct an official investigation. Thus, I and Reston were appointed as the investigators.

The specific investigation points included whether the Lockhart family had a lineage of magical talent, if they had received special education, and detailed investigations into their living environment, the surrounding natural environment, and food supply.

"Rasmora Village is about 370 km from here. You will be given a two-month investigation period, including travel time. You will depart on August 10th, five days from now. The official reason is that you will start the investigation after confirming the admission results. All exams have ended today, but it is certain that Lockhart will be the top student and Jakes the second. In fact, the difference in their levels is so great that it's almost ridiculous to compare them."

Upon further inquiry, it was revealed that if Lockhart and Jakes were to join the graduating class of this year, they would likely be the top and second students. In particular, Lockhart was said to have the skills of a young practical instructor, and he was at a level where he could become a faculty member rather than a student.

We immediately returned to our posts and began the handover process.

The Education Research Committee, where I worked, and the Personnel Committee, where Reston worked, were the busiest during this period.

There was a regular transfer in September, and the academy had plenty of work with admissions and promotions.

I resented Counselor Isherwood for assigning us a business trip during this busy period, but since he had also been in both committees, he must have known the situation well. This must have been a significant matter.

After a hectic handover and preparation, the night before our departure, we held a farewell party at a tavern near the Mage Guild, ostensibly to wish us success in our mission.

After eating some food and having a few drinks,

"Reston, what do you think about this investigation?"

He hesitated, saying, "I don't know what to think..."

I realized I had asked the wrong way, bowed slightly, and said, "Sorry, I should have spoken first." Then I began to share my thoughts.

"I can understand why the upper echelons of the Guild are concerned. I also did some research on those two during the handover. They are indeed geniuses. Or rather, they are precocious."

Reston tilted his head and asked, "Precocious?"

"Yes, precocious. Especially the boy Lockhart, who seems much more mature than a ten-year-old..."

I had spoken to the receptionist, the attribute checker, and the exam explainer, and they all described Lockhart as unusually calm and composed, with a smile that seemed more adult and formal than a child's.

"Apparently, he is the son of a knight, so he might have been trained that way, but it was more like a natural demeanor, not a formal one. The academy staff, who often interact with noble children, said this about him."

Reston nodded, and then began to share what he had found.

"I also did some preliminary research on Rasmora Village and the Lockhart family. There's an interesting story about Rasmora Village..."

He had used his connections in the Personnel Committee to find someone who knew about Rasmora Village, a frontier village. He asked a weapons merchant who frequently traveled to Ars, the capital of the southern Kingdom of Caum, if anyone knew about the village.

"Apparently, there isn't a dwarf in Ars who doesn't know about Rasmora Village."

I interrupted, surprised, "Dwarven craftsmen?"

Reston nodded and smiled.

"Yes, dwarves. I was also surprised when I first heard it. The reason they know is that Rasmora Village produces a strong alcohol that has become very popular among dwarves in Ars..."

According to his explanation, a few years ago, Rasmora Village started producing a drink called "Scotch," which has become so popular among dwarves that being able to drink it is a mark of a top craftsman.

"Also, have you noticed that soap has become cheaper recently?"

I was taken aback by the sudden change in topic, but indeed, the price of soap had dropped sharply in recent years. What used to be a luxury item for us commoners is now available for about 2C (2,000 yen).

"Moreover, the soap from Rasmora Village is considered the highest quality in Aurela, the largest commercial city in the west. It's not widely available, but it is sought after by noblewomen for its smoothness and pleasant scent."

I muttered, "Alcohol and soap," and said, "This might be related to our investigation."

Reston asked skeptically, "Do you think Lockhart and Jakes are involved?"

"No, no, that's not what I mean. For example, imagine a sage appeared in Rasmora Village and taught the villagers how to make new alcohol and soap. The sage would likely stay at the lord's manor and teach the children on the side. It's not an impossible scenario."

Reston nodded repeatedly, saying, "Yes, that's true."

Of course, we did not intend to conduct the investigation with preconceived notions. However, with only a month for the actual investigation, it would be more efficient to have a clear focus, especially if we had to travel to Ars as well.

On August 10th, the next day, Reston and I, along with five mercenary guards, totaling seven people, set out from the academic city of Doctus.

I am from Doctus, and Reston is from a village near Armaswait, a fortress city 100 km east of Doctus. Neither of us was experienced travelers, so we planned to travel about 15 days to Rasmora Village, covering a limited distance each day.

We traveled east along the Aurela Road, the main artery connecting the western city of Aurela and Periclitur, and arrived at the adventurer's town of Periclitur after seven days.

The guards suggested taking a rest here before continuing on the Ars Road, which is known for its dangerous sections. Although Reston and I were excited and did not feel tired, we accepted the professional advice of the mercenaries.

We began gathering information about Rasmora Village, combining it with sightseeing.

Most of the information we gathered was about the Lockhart family, especially the previous lord, Gowan Lockhart. His reputation was excellent, and the merchants and mercenaries who traveled the Ars Road spoke highly of him. Thanks to him, the area near the town of Kyrnareck was safe, making it the only secure part of the dangerous Ars Road.

The Lockhart family was known for their knightly and martial image, which seemed to contradict the fact that they had produced genius mages, causing us some confusion.

After a day of rest, we continued south along the Ars Road.

As the guards had warned, the Ars Road was indeed dangerous, and I felt my life was in danger for the first time.

We were traveling with a caravan, but it was attacked by a group of monsters at the southern end of the Kalsch Pass, the most dangerous section of the northern Ars Road.

We had just passed through the dangerous area and let our guard down when we were attacked by a group of orcs.

Reston and I, having worked in the Mage Guild headquarters after graduating from the academy, had almost no combat experience. We had only killed weak goblins during a fifth-year practical exam.

Fortunately, there were few orcs, and the guards were skilled, so we managed to escape unharmed, but the caravan members mocked us for being useless mages.

Indeed, at the moment the orcs appeared, Reston and I panicked and hid behind the wagons. While mages are generally known for their magical abilities, the staff of the Mage Guild are not well-trained in combat.

At that moment, we accidentally heard about our investigation subject, Zacharias Lockhart.

One of the caravan guards said, "A month ago, a ten-year-old boy killed several harpies, yet the direct mages from the Mage Guild are in such a state."

I asked the guard, a swordsman, for more details.

He did not remember the names, but the combination of two ten-year-old children and an elf female mage could only be Lockhart and Jakes.

He said that until recently, the rumor of a young mage who had single-handedly shot down four harpies to protect a caravan in the dangerous Kalsch Pass was the talk of the mercenaries in Periclitur.

I was initially skeptical.

While it was not impossible for someone with the skills of a practical instructor, which is my level, to do so, it was hard to believe that a mere ten-year-old could face such dangerous monsters. At the very least, it meant they had accumulated combat experience equivalent to a level 7 monster.

After that, we arrived without incident at Kyrnareck, the town at the entrance to Rasmora Village.

We planned to enter Rasmora Village on August 26th, but we decided to gather more information about the village in this town.

We easily found information about Rasmora Village, as people from the village occasionally came to buy supplies. We heard about the Lockhart family, the alcohol, and the soap, and also investigated the existence of a "sage" we were considering.

While information about the Lockhart family and the products was easy to gather, information about the sage was scarce.

The only person who might fit the description was Nicholas Garland, a vassal.

He was a native vassal who had come to the village with the previous lord, Gowan Lockhart, and had studied at a private school in Doctus. He was said to have overseen the production of alcohol and soap, but he did not fit the image of a sage.

He was also a skilled swordsman and was often seen hunting monsters in the area. Those who knew him from that time remembered him as a pure swordsman, covered in the blood of monsters.

I decided to focus my investigation on this vassal, Garland.

This chapter is quite long, so I will split it into two parts.

The next part will be posted tomorrow.