Chapter 36: Maximilian
2023.12.06
“Are you alright?”
“Haa, hoo…”
Her stomach churned like she was about to throw up. But with barely anything in her stomach, she only managed to expel warm air.
Even with her eyes open, Cordelia couldn’t stop seeing Caron’s lifeless face. Every time the image flashed in her mind, she gripped a nearby tree and gagged again and again.
“Should I bring you some water?”
“No, I’m okay now.”
Rosenblar looked at her with concern. Cordelia managed to lift herself up, albeit shakily.
“Thanks for coming to get me. If you hadn’t…”
She was lucky.
Cordelia tightly clenched and then released the ring that had cracked and split in two.
That ring had saved her. The moment Maximilian tried to harm her, a transparent barrier appeared and repelled him.
Just then, Rosenblar had arrived at Maximilian’s lab and witnessed the scene. Seeing Cordelia’s pale face, he had quickly taken her outside.
“Looks like I arrived just in time. When I heard you’d gone with Maximilian, I had a bad feeling and came looking.”
“He killed his own disciple. Right in front of me.”
“…”
Rosenblar didn’t look particularly surprised. After a brief silence, he spoke.
“Do you know how the Mage Association is maintained?”
“No? Why?”
“Then I’ll need to start from the beginning. Only a select few are capable of becoming mages.”
“Sure, that makes sense. Without magical ability, you can’t be a mage in the first place.”
“No, it’s not just about talent. What matters more than ability… is having a teacher.”
“A teacher?”
Cordelia didn’t know why he was suddenly bringing this up, but she let him speak without interrupting.
“To become a mage, one must have a master. Magic is passed down strictly through an apprenticeship system. Which school you’re affiliated with, who your teacher is—those things are everything. They determine your entire future.”
“And that justifies murder?”
“People outside the Association can’t understand, but here, a master holds absolute authority. In extreme cases, if a master tells their student to die, the student obeys. That’s how it is.”
Only then did Cordelia understand why Leonard always said she was lucky to have been accepted as his disciple—and why Caron willingly ate the poisoned food.
“But he still killed someone. Isn’t anyone going to hold him accountable?”
“There are laws and regulations in the Association. But Maximilian is a high-ranking mage with overwhelming influence in the Rhiannon school. Only one person has the authority to hold him responsible—Seyrius Menupio, the head of Rhiannon you saw earlier.”
“That’s absurd…”
“You may not understand now, but if you stay in the Association long enough, you’ll come to accept it.”
Rosenblar spoke as if it couldn’t be helped, but Cordelia couldn’t grasp that way of thinking at all.
She wanted to run from this building immediately—but she held back. No matter how frightening it was, she couldn’t return empty-handed.
Though her time at the Lofell Mage Association had been short, she’d seen just how highly Leonard was regarded.
It wasn’t just about repaying the favor of being accepted as a disciple.
She wanted to be useful to Leonard. She hoped he’d think taking her in hadn’t been a mistake.
“Please take me to my master’s lab.”
“Are you sure? You still look pale. Since you’re here, the lab won’t be sealed off. Why not rest a little first?”
“No. I want to go now.”
Rosenblar tried a few more times to convince her, but he couldn’t change her mind.
“Alright. Follow me. It’s not far.”
“Thank you.”
“No need to thank me. Leo’s disciple is like my own. Don’t feel pressured.”
“Elfenbaum’s disciples might feel left out hearing that.”
“Haha, that’s fine. I don’t have any disciples.”
“You don’t? Why not?”
“Who knows? Maybe I just haven’t found the right person yet. I was a little relieved that Leo didn’t take on a disciple either—but turns out he did it secretly. What a betrayal.”
While they chatted about this and that, Cordelia’s nausea eased. Eventually, they reached a weathered door at the end of a long corridor.
Cordelia gaped at the sight of it.
“This is Leo’s lab.”
“Wow, it’s… really complex.”
“Huh?”
“This door. It’s wrapped in twelve layers of magical protection. No wonder people can’t get in.”
“How do you know that? I thought you were a low-tier mage.”
“Oh, I can see magic.”
Cordelia smiled and lightly tapped the corner of her eye. But Rosenblar’s face stiffened.
“You can see magic?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“I just could, ever since I can remember. At first I thought it was heat haze or illusions, but then I realized it only appeared around magical objects. That’s how I figured it out.”
Rosenblar let out a long groan.
“You should keep that ability a secret.”
“Why? Is it bad if people know?”
“No, but… Just being Leo’s disciple makes you a target of envy and jealousy. If people find out you can see magic too…”
He trailed off, but Cordelia understood what he meant. She nodded.
“Okay. I’ll keep it quiet.”
“Now I see why Leo took you in. That’s an incredible gift. Even the great mage Rahel couldn’t see magic… What a shame.”
“What is?”
“If you’d met me before Leo, I’d have taken you as my first disciple.”
He looked at her with sincere regret.
Cordelia found herself imagining it. Being the student of kind, handsome, gentle Rosenblar—not grumpy, constantly berating Leonard who always asked if her brain was just for decoration. She couldn’t help smiling. Even with daily magic homework, she felt she wouldn’t mind.
“If I could take it back, I would. Is there a way to undo it, by any chance?”
“Undo it? Leo would be heartbroken.”
Rosenblar chuckled, thinking it a joke.
It wasn’t a joke at all. But Cordelia had already learned from Baron that there was no way to undo a disciple’s bond. She sighed deeply and pulled a key from her pocket.
Unlike normal doors, the keyhole was in the center. Cordelia inserted the key. She watched as the twelve layers of magic gradually unraveled.
Just as she was about to push the door, a giant eyeball the size of her fist appeared in its center.
“Waaah!”
“Who the hell are you, and why do you have the key to Atilay’s lab?”
The grotesque eye startled her so much she screamed. The eye blinked rapidly as if it was also surprised.
“W-Who are you?”
“Who do you think? I’m Candias, the 132nd demon. Tricked by that damn Atilay into being a doorkeeper. Now answer—who are you?”
The eye spoke. A strange sentence, but somehow perfectly fitting for the situation.
Cordelia calmed her pounding heart and replied.
“I’m Leonard Atilay’s disciple.”
“Disciple? Ha! Don’t make me laugh. That guy doesn’t have disciples. Try lying better.”
“She really is his disciple, Lord Candias. She even has the Seal of Acheron.”
“Hmph?”
With Rosenblar vouching for her, Candias inspected Cordelia up and down.
“Hold out your hand.”
“My hand?”
“What, you think I meant mine? All I have is an eyeball.”
Nervously, she held her hand out like someone approaching a wild beast. When her hand brushed the lid of his eye, Candias’ pupil widened.
“It’s real. No way… That guy actually took a disciple?”
“Now that you’ve confirmed, can you open the door?”
“Just having the key isn’t enough… Hmph. You must answer my riddle to enter, foolish human!”
“The answer! A red flower!”
Candias had just started to speak in a deep, dignified tone when Cordelia interrupted with her answer.
“Hey! You didn’t even let me ask the question yet!”
“Oh? Wasn’t that the answer?”
“…Yeah, it was. Damn it, Atilay really picked someone just as impatient as himself. Ugh, fine! Go in!”
With a shout, the door creaked open.
Finally, she could enter Leonard’s lab. Cordelia felt an odd surge of pride and emotion. She had overcome so many hurdles to get here.
She stepped inside carefully—and the door slammed shut behind her.
“Oh no! Elfenbaum hasn’t come in yet!”
“That guy can’t enter here.”
Candias’s eyeball reappeared in midair.
“Only Atilay can enter this lab. Well, now you too, I suppose.”
“Should I keep calling you Lord Candias?”
“Yeah, yeah. Better than ‘one-eyed freak.’”
The lab was simpler than she expected. Books scattered everywhere, messy desks with pens and paper, and a sofa with a blanket thrown over it.
Cordelia looked around slowly. She could almost see Leonard sitting there—it was a strange, surreal feeling.
“Did Atilay send you to fetch something?”
“Yes, Lancell’s… Wait, no. My master passed away.”
She had responded thoughtlessly and quickly tried to correct herself, startled by her own words. Candias snorted.
“Died? Him? Yeah right.”
“I’m serious. He really did pass away.”
“If he were dead, this damn contract would’ve broken. But it’s still going strong—so he must be alive somewhere. Ugh, that bastard.”
“I… I don’t know. That’s what I heard.”
She feigned ignorance and quickly changed the subject.
“Do you know where Lancell’s Last Flower, the Saint’s Tear, and the Red Dragon’s Breath are?”
“Wow, raiding all the expensive stuff first, huh? Hold on, I saw him stash those somewhere…”
Candias floated away. Cordelia looked around briefly, then sat neatly on the sofa to wait.
But something poked her under her seat. Standing up, she found a thin, round bracelet decorated with gold lying on the blanket.
“Wow, it’s beautiful.”
In the center was a red gem, surrounded by intricately carved vintage patterns. She played with it for a while—then, out of curiosity, slipped it onto her wrist.
Of course, she planned to take it off immediately.
“…Huh? Huh? Why won’t this come off?”
