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Chapter 33: Tower Master (1)
The decision-making was swift.
He was a man of quick calculation.
The mere fact that the crown prince had properly grasped the situation meant that progress was now on an entirely different level than before.
"First, let's keep Rebecca’s death… as concealed as possible."
"Yes, if they find out that woman is dead, who knows how those three will react."
"If they believe she's merely missing, things might stay quiet for a while. They'll be too focused on finding her to think of anything else."
Rebecca's death was top secret.
The ideal situation was that only the crown prince, Beatrice, and I knew.
And now that things had come to this, there was a need to speak frankly about Beatrice.
I revealed who had actually summoned the demon, and the crown prince accepted it.
"That's rather fortunate. Now we have a means to rein her in."
There was no need to speak of the nature of her crime.
At this point, Beatrice was already functioning as a strategic piece in the defense against foreign threats.
Next agenda.
"The fact that a group summoned demons targeting the empire must also remain a secret for now. We can't incite chaos with so little revealed."
"Yes, if the internal order is shaken, we become more vulnerable to outside attacks."
"Whether war breaks out tomorrow or in ten years, even if we organize a military force now, we can't keep it on indefinite standby. That would ruin productivity. An enemy who has schemed this meticulously surely knows how to wear us down slowly."
"And there's gain in secrecy as well."
"We need to draw them out."
The more aggressive our reaction, the more stealthy the enemy would become.
In a situation where we didn't even know who the enemy was, it was better to lure them into the open.
Of course, the enemy must know by now that their demon summoning has been exposed.
But if we remain outwardly silent—won’t that provoke them to snoop around, trying to uncover what we know?
Information warfare is the most crucial aspect of battle.
"We'll move behind the scenes. Only the most trusted few must know of this."
"What about Sir Drenor...?"
"No good. That man's mouth is too loose."
Of course.
After discussing that much, the crown prince exhaled deeply and asked,
"Who do you think is behind this?"
"I don’t know."
I had to shake my head.
The most likely suspects had been the barbarians who invaded the empire in my previous life.
But while they were terrifyingly strong individually, they didn’t have the numbers to make light of an army of ten thousand.
Not to mention their culture.
They cherished kinship above all else—unity and internal bonds were paramount to them.
Of course, I didn’t know everything.
But the credibility of them as suspects was undermined by several factors.
Then who else could it be?
If I thought beyond humans, the alien races of the outer realms came to mind.
Especially those with a history of demon-related activities—those seemed far more plausible.
‘The ones once called the Night Races…’
They were evil.
Skilled in dark arts.
They had a history of inciting chaos through demons, and their bases were in uncharted territory.
Still, even with all that, it was difficult to draw a definitive conclusion.
So above all, investigation was needed.
"We must send out intelligence agents. To neighboring kingdoms, allied races, even the outer realms and forbidden zones if possible."
"You’re saying we need to find another case where ten thousand disappeared."
"Even if not that, we should investigate massacres and disappearances in the past few decades. Revisit cases labeled as natural disasters. We must also look into missing knights."
"My head aches just thinking about it."
But there was no other way.
If we know nothing, we must put in the legwork.
We roughly figured out the immediate necessities.
Though the most important matter lay elsewhere.
"We must consider the possibility of a spy within."
An internal enemy is more terrifying than one outside.
The danger of leaked information—it's hard to grasp without experiencing war.
So how could we root them out?
In response, the crown prince said,
"Attend the Founding Festival."
"All of a sudden?"
"There’s a ball, isn’t there? You can sense demons."
Ah, that’s what he meant.
I’d nearly forgotten about that unfamiliar ability.
I nodded immediately.
Indeed, if any demon-influenced parties were to appear, they wouldn’t miss a gathering of major leaders.
"I’ll do as you ask."
"The second day. Rest and recover until then. Do you need anything?"
"Uh, some mana potions would be great."
"I’ll send some your way. Then, let’s end it here..."
Before we knew it, we were near the city walls.
The crown prince said one last thing as we walked.
"...The summoning incident itself—I won't keep it secret. Too many people witnessed the sky break."
"Yes, naturally."
"I'll make sure your role in subjugating the demon is known."
I understood his intention.
If it can't be hidden, use it to the fullest.
"You mean I should talk with the dignitaries?"
"Not just that. See as many people as possible. Someone might approach you."
"Understood, for now."
I'd like to rest, but what can I do?
These are chaotic times.
At the gate, guards recognized the crown prince and snapped to attention.
He smiled and said,
"It’s been a long night. Well done."
But the shadows hadn't fully lifted from his face.
Even as a crown prince, it must’ve been a bewildering ordeal.
Though he seemed to have come to his senses, we’d still need to keep an eye on him for a while.
"Your Highness should rest as well."
"Rest? Founding Festival starts today."
"Then rest afterward."
"You wound me. Anyway, I’ll be off."
We parted ways.
I wandered through the streets, now bustling with festival energy.
Avoiding the noise, I headed back to my estate.
What greeted me was—
"Young Master… your appearance…"
It was my sister, wandering in the hall.
Ah, right.
I’d ended up staying out overnight.
My clothes were torn, and I was a mess.
How was I supposed to explain this…?
"I drank too much… and fell over."
"Ah, thank goodness."
A poor excuse, but thankfully, my sister accepted it.
Oddly enough, that made me sad.
"You don’t seem to have slept much. Go and rest. Sleep deprivation ruins a person."
"Yes… Have a good day, Sister."
I slipped into my room and fell asleep after a wash.
Didn’t sleep long, though.
Around noon, I heard the news.
"The young lady has collapsed…"
Apparently, word of my fight with the demon had already spread.
* * *
I got a stern lecture about avoiding dangerous situations.
I couldn’t even raise my head and kept repeating apologies.
I had to try quite hard to convince her I was truly fine.
Thanks to the crown prince’s mana activating the pendant, it seemed I didn’t look too injured in her eyes.
After settling the incident quickly, I used the mana potion the crown prince sent to further recover.
Its efficiency was still terrible, but it was enough to get by.
Now came time for personal reflection.
About the girl’s identity and what had happened.
A demon had been involved.
And the enemy was organized.
With this confirmed, I had to rethink something.
‘That orc… was likely their doing.’
The orcs in the subjugation mission moved far too strategically.
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It made more sense to see it as a trap targeting the crown prince, one set beyond the girl’s influence.
Meaning the enemy could coordinate effectively.
What does that imply?
‘The girl was just Scenario 1.’
Even if they failed to cause internal chaos through her, would they stop?
Unlikely.
Still, now that an investigation was underway, they wouldn’t be sacrificing another ten thousand lives to summon more demons any time soon.
That kind of sacrifice wasn’t easy to clean up afterward either.
What we’d gained was merely a postponement.
Just enough breathing room to reinforce our defenses.
‘I’ll leave internal affairs to the crown prince.’
He’s far more meticulous and strategic than I am.
Which means I need to focus on what only I can do.
‘The rod… What exactly is this?’
A black, solid rod.
I once regarded it with little more than mild interest.
But after facing the demon, I realized its potential—and that realization was horrifying.
The artifact left behind by Pharos’ progenitor was meant to counter demons.
Which led me to one troubling thought.
‘The ones who targeted Pharos before regression…’
…might be the same group.
No, considering they deal with demons, it's almost certain.
My insides boiled with rage.
Emotions surged.
I slowly closed my eyes.
And calmed myself.
‘Now it's in my hands.’
If they target anything, they’ll target me.
And that’s something I welcome.
If they reach out for this item…
‘…I won’t let them die easily.’
Smack!
I struck the dough with a spatula.
At that moment, Aria spoke up.
“Hurry up! Get on with it already! Gosh! Why are you so slow today?!”
Hmph, what an exasperating voice.
She got cocky and started slapping my back—smack! smack!—and I was tempted to flick her forehead, but I held back.
“Aria is a princess who should be praised for saving the Kingdom of Cheeseburgers! Pharos must present a cheeseburger immediately!”
A justified request, no doubt, which made her all the more insufferable.
Fine, I admit it.
The previous evening, thanks to Aria not forgetting my words and relaying them to the prince, the demon mess was dealt with, and I could even go take care of that woman right after.
So I was making a cheeseburger for Aria, who had come to visit.
Today, it was something a bit special.
—There are lots of kinds of cheese, right? We couldn't get much back then because we were at war, so I only ever imagined it.
Once, Hanna had spoken earnestly in front of the squad.
—You have to use mozzarella! So when you bite into the burger, the cheese pulls out like—reeeeally long!
—Whoa…!
—If we hide mozzarella inside the patty, we can totally do it! And then! We go double! Add cheddar on top of the patty—
—Yuren! Quickly, we must find cheese!
—Calm down, you idiot. We’re literally in the middle of a war.
I remember sweating bullets trying to stop the prince from running off in search of mozzarella that day.
It was a frustrating memory, but looking back… it might’ve been worth trying.
Cheese was easy to find now.
Unlike back then, the capital’s markets were thriving, and noble demand for fine food was high.
I could get most things just by sending someone to fetch them.
I already had the recipe.
So I was following it.
I stuffed the minced meat with cheese, wrapped it carefully, and grilled the patty.
Then came the vegetables…
“T-Tomato must be left out…! Aria doesn’t like red veggies…!”
…So today, I left out the tomatoes.
I topped and bottomed it with buns and handed it over—
A double mozzarella cheeseburger.
It looked dangerously delicious.
I felt proud.
‘Are you watching, Hanna?’
Today was a day I missed Hanna especially.
Was she out running right now?
She was about Aria’s age, so maybe she’d grown into a troublemaker who stirred up the village.
‘Another ten years to find her.’
It was saddening that the only clue I had was waiting for her to one day get arrested for running an illegal street stall in the capital.
There were just too many people named Hanna with similar traits in this world.
While I was deep in thought, Aria began bouncing on her feet and reached out.
“I-It’s amazing! Are you sure it has two kinds of cheese?!”
“Yes, please try it.”
Setting my longing aside, I handed the cheeseburger to Aria.
She gulped down her drool and closed her eyes tight before taking a huge bite.
As she pulled the burger away from her mouth—
Streeetch—!
The mozzarella from inside the patty stretched out long.
Eyes wide open, Aria gasped with excitement and gave a loud, muffled cheer: “Wmph! Wmph!”
She then slurped up the dripping cheese and declared:
“A-Amazing…! This is magic!!!”
“Is it good?”
“You’re a Cheese Wizard! No! This is a Grand Mage Cheeseburger!!!”
That so?
Well, if she enjoyed it, I was happy.
And now that the job was done, it was time to send her off.
“Okay, eat up and go home now.”
“Wuuung?”
“I have plans today.”
“T-That’s a lie! Big Brother Prince said Pharos is off duty today!”
What is that guy teaching this kid?
“I have somewhere to go.”
“Where?! Aria will go too!”
Aria declared boldly, but not today.
“It’s somewhere with a lot of sick people. You might end up having to get examined by a healer too—will that be okay, Your Highness?”
Like many children, Aria was terrified at the mention of a healer.
I didn’t know why.
Maybe the healers’ public image was more like torturers than caregivers.
“All they do is cut a little and stitch it up…”
…Actually, maybe that’s exactly why.
Soon, Aria went pale.
She averted her gaze.
“A-Aria just remembered something urgent. She’ll be studying today…!”
She slowly backed away, chewing her burger.
“S-See you next time!”
Leech extermination: complete.
* * *
It was late afternoon.
On top of the Founding Festival commotion, news had spread that someone had attempted to summon a demon the day before, adding to the chaos.
But public sentiment could be changed depending on how the incident was announced.
“A demon summoning in the capital?!”
“Did they catch the criminal?”
“No, but the summoning failed. They'll catch him soon! Even if he tries something, the army will find him in no time!”
Officially, the summoning failed, and the ones who stopped it were me and Beatrice.
Though some embellishment was involved, it effectively eased the public’s fear.
It was necessary, so I let it slide.
More importantly, considering how I planned to use that woman, a bit of good PR was useful.
To avoid drawing attention, I wore a robe and headed for the outer district’s healing center.
An entire building had been reserved solely for Beatrice’s treatment.
The guards recognized me and stepped aside.
I entered and went to find her.
There were words left unsaid from yesterday amidst all the chaos.
But the moment I stepped into the treatment ward’s hallway—
“…Ah, a guest has arrived.”
I stopped in my tracks.
I had run into someone unexpected.
“You’re Lord Pharos, correct?”
An old woman stood in the hall with a basket of fruit.
Her smiling wrinkles gave off the image of a kind grandmother you could find anywhere.
But the towering wizard hat, the robe, and the overwhelming aura that erased that warm image completely made me tense up.
Above all, I could see the flow of mana around her with my eyes.
There was no mistaking her.
‘Didn’t expect to meet her like this…’
I bowed my head.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Tower Master.”
Lorna Woodwitch.
Beatrice’s teacher.
And—
‘…a witch.’
Not a fake like Rebecca.
A real witch.
The only non-human Tower Master in the empire’s history.
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