HBTSS 63

Chapter 63…………….

– I Hope for the Tyrant’s Secret Sponsor

In the middle of the academy square, Albrecht dragged Elihu over after hearing that he had signed a contract with Clemens.

And right there, he immediately summoned their fellow professors.

“Clemens joining hands with you? What sort of wicked trick did you pull?”

“Yeah, out with it already. What scheme are you running?”

Surrounded by four professors, Elihu snorted in disbelief.

“You professors really have nothing better to do, huh.”

“You must have lured Clemens with that snake’s tongue of yours.”

At those words, Elihu’s face turned lethal.

“Who just called me a snake?”

“Kyle.”

Boom!

No sooner had the word left his mouth than a blinding flash erupted, and a deafening blast cracked open the ground right next to Kylerus. Both Delano and Albrecht, who had been grumbling, fell silent at once.

Barely dodging the magic, Kylerus paled at the hole blown open where he had just been standing.

“Are you insane? Did you actually call down lightning?”

“Hmph.”

Smoke curled from Elihu’s staff, proof that he truly had. His body language screamed he had no intention of continuing the conversation.

Watching him, Harry tilted his head.

“What’s the story between you two?”

“What’s it to you?”

Elihu’s curt reply didn’t faze Harry in the least.

“So Clemens needed your power for his business?”

Elihu said nothing, but the other professors immediately realized that must be the answer.

“What? Poor Clemens. Duped by a fraud like this…”

At Kylerus’s words, Elihu silently raised his staff studded with magic stones. Another deafening boom, followed by a scream. Harry ignored it and went on calmly.

“But El, you don’t look too pleased.”

“Tch… That brat’s a real player. A real pro.”

Elihu frowned, recalling his earlier conversation with Clemens.

Oh, just the talent I was looking for.

But who would have thought “that talent” meant her.

She was just an apprentice mage for now, but her extraordinary gift made Elihu quietly consider her as the future master of the Magic Tower.

…How on earth did Clemens know about her?

Elihu hadn’t expected to lose her like this. It felt like suddenly losing a perfectly healthy tooth, leaving him aching inside.

That was the price of carelessly signing a contract without reading the clauses.

The next day.

As promised, Elihu sent his prized pupil to Professor Rogan’s laboratory.

“Hello! I was told this is the lab where I’ll be working from now on!”

A bright-eyed girl with short dark-brown hair tied into two pigtails introduced herself cheerfully.

“I’m apprentice mage Deborah Fancy!”

Her clear, ringing voice filled the lab.

Ho, so that’s the future master of the Tower.

In the novel, she didn’t appear until much later—Deborah Fancy, the Tower Master.

He had expected her to be older, so seeing her as such a young girl was a surprise.

But what’s Alfeo doing here?

He was slouched in the corner of the lab with a book titled The Rose of Passion in hand. Glancing up from it, he looked at Deborah.

“Did the professor call you?”

“Yeah. I plan to put this to use now.”

I opened a locked box and took out a sacred relic.

Inside the red stone, black and crimson light swirled in a dark glow.

“Oh my, isn’t that the sacred relic Ignis?”

At Deborah’s words, Alfeo’s eyes bulged wide, though his posture didn’t change from reading.

“What? That’s the Ignis, the volcanic essence?”

“Right. You said we needed immense energy, and this was the only thing I could think of, so I bought it.”

He leapt to his feet.

It was the first time I’d ever seen Alfeo truly shocked.

I shrugged proudly.

“So, want to join in now?”

“…Hmph. I’ll admit, it’s a clever idea. With this, my machine could actually run.”

As expected.

“But it won’t work as-is.”

At his words, Deborah clapped her hands in surprise.

“Oh my, you’re right! Are you a mage too?”

“No, he’s a technician. But what else do we need to activate it?”

I prayed it wouldn’t be anything too costly.

“The latent energy inside is tremendous, but it needs a catalyst to awaken it.”

“And that is?”

“A dragon heart.”

Pffft—

The tea I was drinking sprayed out of my mouth.

What? A dragon heart?

The one from legend? The heart said to appear only when a dragon is slain? A national treasure–level artifact?

“Oh dear!”

Deborah gasped, covering her mouth.

Following her gaze, I realized with horror what I’d done.

“…Ah, sorry.”

Alfeo, sitting across from me, had been drenched by the tea. Staring blankly, he muttered,

“Wow… In my fifteen years of life, never have I suffered such a filthy humiliation.”

“So, where do we even get a dragon heart?”

Surely it wasn’t that legendary artifact. It had to be a different material with the same name.

But her next words made me wish it were something money could buy instead.

“Well, since it’s a dragon’s heart, wouldn’t it come out if you killed a dragon?”

Deborah tilted her head innocently. Her sweet face made the words sound anything but sweet.

“Oh, not just killing—it’d have to be surgically extracted from the heart chamber. Ugh, that would be a little gruesome.”

Gruesome wasn’t the issue. The problem was the impossible starting point: defeating a dragon.

Seeing my despair, Alfeo smirked.

“Well, if you manage to bring me a dragon heart, I’ll join.”

I froze.

If I get a dragon heart, you’ll join Tara Transport?

For the first time, Alfeo gave a firm answer.

At last, the chance to recruit him as my employee had arrived.

But is this even possible?

That mischievous grin on his face made it clear—he was confident it wasn’t. My temper flared.

But then I noticed the droplets of tea still dripping from his hair, and my anger fizzled out.

…Crime of insulting royalty.

The moment I spilled tea on him, I suddenly recalled: he was a prince. A chill ran down my spine.

I had no desire to find out just how terrifying noble privilege could be. Especially when I was the one in the weaker position.

So I quickly changed the subject.

“Deborah, doesn’t the Magic Tower keep something like a dragon heart as research material?”

Deborah’s brown eyes rolled as she thought.

“If the Tower had one, rumors would be all over the place… Since I’ve never heard any, probably not. Oh, but there might be some leftover fragments from three hundred years ago. Should I bring them?”

“Well… better than nothing.”

In truth, fragments wouldn’t work as proper material, but I was desperate enough to cling to straws.

Deborah nodded and left the lab, and I slumped into a chair, muttering,

“There’s no way to actually get a dragon heart… Hm, but I thought I heard one was stored somewhere…”

“That’d be in the imperial palace.”

Alfeo replied offhandedly.

“Hm. So how does one slay a dragon?”

I quickly shifted my plans and glanced at him.

“Alfeo, are you… good at fighting?”

“Professor, do you want to be arrested for insulting royalty? Forcing an imperial prince to go dragon hunting?”

“When did I? I just asked if you were good at fighting.”

“I lose even when I fight girls.”