Kays Translations

Interlude: Count Blaise Lamprogue in the Imperial City

　Blaise Lamprogue closed the book he had open at his writing desk.

　A room in a luxury inn in the Imperial City.

　It was a clean and quiet room, unlike the cheap ones on the second floor of a tavern, but —- now it was a little difficult to concentrate on his academic work.

　Today was the day Seika left for Rodnea.

　By now, he would have stopped at the first town and taken lodgings.

　Was my choice correct?

　That’s all I can think of.

****

　Seika is not Blaise’s own child.

　Twelve years ago.

　A mysterious woman in a black robe brought Seika, who was still a baby, to the mansion.

　She said that this child was―――― Blaise’s younger brother, Gilbert’s, son.

　Gilbert was different, even in the eyes of his older brother Blaise.

　He was free-spirited and had no trace of nobility. He even became an adventurer after graduating from the school, wanting to see the wider world. His brother is probably the only adventurer from the family of the Count of Lamprogue, a great scholar of magic.

　However, Gilbert was also an excellent student.

　He was at the top of his class at the school. As an adventurer, he was also making a name for himself and quickly became a member of the upper class.

　There were many people in the family who didn’t approve of him, but as an older brother, I was secretly proud.

　That’s why I couldn’t believe it at first.

　When one day, when I heard the news that Gilbert had disappeared in the demon territory.

　A few years later, when a mysterious woman brought Seika.

　Blaise didn’t want to send the child to an orphanage.

　Maybe it’s all a lie, but — I felt that this was also fate.

　His wife suspected that he might be the child of the demon race.

　Although he thought it was absurd, Blaise, who had decided to raise Seika, understood that her suspicion was not unreasonable. 

　But even so… that woman said Gilbert’s name with a somewhat desperate look. I couldn’t bring myself to abandon him.

　I knew there would be others who would be equally suspicious, so I told everyone around me that he was the son of my mistress. Of course, I kept the truth from my two sons.

　But over time.

　The suspicion that Seika might be of demonic blood began to grow even within Blaise.

　Seika has black hair and eyes, which are rare in this country. But that is not all.

　Around the time he turned one, Seika began to manifest magical powers.

　It wasn’t any attribute, it was just a primitive one that moved things—- but it was almost impossible.

　Magic and language are closely related.

　This is no different for a magician who has mastered the art of non-chanting.

　Therefore, it was originally impossible for a young child who could not speak a word to use magic.

　Unless they are the children of a demon tribe, who are said to be born with the ability to use magic.

　Seika’s magic gradually grew stronger.

　By the time he was two years old, he was not only moving things, but also destroying them.

　From small objects, he gradually moved on to larger ones.

　And then to living things.

　Seika was neither pleased nor amused, and simply destroyed toys, beds, insects, and birds.

　It was like he was just making sure that he could do it.

　Seika’s magic was hidden from anyone other than his wife and some of his servants.

　However, my sensitive sons must have sensed something from my frightened wife.

　Luft became afraid of Seika.

　Grey, on the contrary, became hostile.

　How much magical power does Seika have?

　That’s what I thought, and during the measurement ritual I performed when he was three years old showed that  —- contrary to expectations, he did not possess any magical power of any attribute at all.

　This is also strange.

　You can’t use magic without magic power.

　There are exceptions, of course. But those are cases where a person with only a level of magic power that cannot even be measured exercised insignificant magic.

　This does not apply to Seika.

　Strangely enough, since the night of the ritual —- Seika has become visibly more sane.

　He no longer used any destructive magic, and he also talked more and more normally.

　At times he seemed more mature than Luft.

　Will he grow up to be a normal child like this?

　Such thoughts were shattered when Seika turned seven years old.

　Fire magic that Seika showed during the magic practice.

　It was not a flaming fireball.

　Before the power and colour, those flames weren’t caused by magic.

　It was probably the combustion of some mineral.

　In other words, it is a completely different kind of magic.

　Despite carefully keeping him away from magic, Seika once again showed off his own magic.

　Furthermore, the monster disturbance the other day was also strange.

　I inspected the Eldernewt’s corpse, and it was clearly not killed by fire.

　Too few burns and too little trauma.

　As if it had been poisoned.

　To add to that, the middle level magic shown by that slave’s daughter, Ifa, is also strange.

　She was vocalising the name of the spell, but that was slightly different from the Flame Note.

　Her father was a brilliant man, but not magically gifted. The same goes for the mother, who died a few years ago.

　Ifa has been getting along well with Seika recently.

　I can’t imagine it being unrelated.

　There is something about Seika that even his father, Blaise, cannot understand.

　That’s why.

　That’s why he thought it would be convenient when Seika said he wanted to go to school.

　Sending Seika to the army is too dangerous.

　The Imperial Army is the cornerstone of national defence. We can’t afford to have anything happen to it.

　I feel bad for Grey.

　He’s a brilliant boy at that age who knows how to use medium-level magic. He could have had good results at the academy, but he can’t …… turn his back on us.

　In fact, I was going to see the true nature of that child in the duel with Grey.

　Grey would not have been a match for him. Therefore, if there was even the slightest danger, I would have intervened immediately, even killing —- Seika if necessary.

　Fortunately or unfortunately, that didn’t happen.

　But …… perhaps it was for the best.

　His wife is still frightened, but now Seika is a gentle child.

　He treats commoners calmly, and even laughs and forgives slaves who misbehave.

　He no longer kills creatures without a second thought; on the contrary, he once gently grabbed a spider in his room and threw it out of the window.

　He is good friends with Ifa.

　Lately, he has been getting along well with Luft.

　And the same goes for Grey.

　The night before the duel. Seika defeated Grey, who was not pleased with Blaise’s conditions, without inflicting a scratch on him.

　Grey never told how he did it, but the …… result alone is enough.

　The only result is that my son is still alive and well.

　If blessed with the right people around him, Seika could be a hero who protects his country.

　But on the other hand,—- if he suffers betrayal or ruin, he could be a demon king who destroys people.

　I don’t have that feeling.

　Gilbert once said that the academy was a good place.

　Hopefully — I pray that it will be so even now.

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