The Return of The Mythical Archmage [EN]: Chapter 353

After that, with Tei-nim’s help, I immersed myself in training to weave the eighth Infinity Circle. It wasn’t like the training involved any grand actions; it was just about mastering a new circulation method.

“That’s enough. Let’s stop the practical training for today,” Tei-nim announced after about eight hours had passed.

“Yes. Thank you for your hard work,” I replied, immediately collapsing onto the floor. My breathing was ragged, and sweat poured down like rain. I was near-perfectly exhausted, at my limit both mentally and physically.

*Lick.* Miho approached and licked my face, her eyes filled with worry as she looked at me.

“It’s okay,” I said, smiling and gently stroking her head. Even exhausted, moving my hand was no problem. Miho rubbed her face against my hand, acting cute, and seemed relieved by my expression, withdrawing her worried gaze.

“Don’t use mana for about eight hours from now,” Tei-nim said, approaching and looking down at me. “You know why, right? You know your body best.”

“Yes,” I replied. As he said, my body was already at its limit. My mental strength, in particular, had exceeded its limit. Using mana in this state would very likely cause aftereffects. I shouldn’t use it unless absolutely necessary.

“While you’re resting, stay here and read these,” Tei-nim said, concentrating mana on his finger and flicking it casually. Books began to fly from all over the library.

“Ten books for now. Eight hours should be enough, right?”

“Remembering them is enough in five hours.”

“Really? Then here, four more. Read them all within eight hours.”

“Yes,” I replied. Tei-nim moved his mana again, moving four more books. Thus, a total of 14 books were prepared on the desk.

“You can read them here, or you can go outside. Do as you please.” The books in Dante Roa’s library could be taken outside. Perhaps because it had more leeway in terms of occupancy than Mimir’s library, it was possible to materialize the books.

“Then, I’ll go outside to read and get some fresh air,” I said, thinking I should take a shower too. It would be better to read outside.

Mee-! Miho cried, expressing her desire to come with me.

“Miho, do you want to come with me?” I asked. “Okay, let’s go together.” It’s not like Miho would disturb me; she’d just lie on my lap while I read, so what’s the problem?

“Then, I’ll see you in eight hours,” I said, slowly getting up and putting on ‘Aeth’ [a magical artifact or clothing]. The unique, languid sensation of Aeth filled my whole body.

“What about the Princess?” I asked.

“Well, we should leave her like that for a while,” Tei-nim replied. She was concentrating, and I didn’t want to disturb her. She had also said she’d concentrate for a day earlier, so it would be right to leave her like that for a day.

“Is that so?” The corners of Tei-nim’s lips curled up ever so slightly. “If the Gumiho [a nine-tailed fox spirit] goes outside with you… then it’s just me and the Princess here?” He definitely seemed to be thinking something bad. Well, even if it was a bad thought, it would only be something like a slightly excessive prank.

“I’m not saying don’t bother her, but please leave her alone for at least a day,” I said. I’d like her to be left alone for at least a day.

“Why would I bother the Princess?” Tei-nim replied with his usual expressionless face. “Don’t worry. I’ll leave her alone for a while.” The words ‘for a while’ were strangely scary.

* * *

I went outside of Dante Roa’s library, reading the books Tei had given me.

[Incoming call: Commander Charles]

I received a call from Commander Charles.

“I’ve answered the call,” I said, answering before the first ring even finished.

“You answered right away? Isn’t it 4 AM there right now?” he asked.

“Yes. It’s 4:21 AM,” I replied. He seemed a bit surprised by my quick response.

“It’s not really something the person calling at this hour should say, but… aren’t you sleeping?” he asked. No, was he surprised that I was awake at this hour, not by my quick response?

“Didn’t I tell you before? I don’t need to sleep separately,” I said, thinking I had mentioned Aeth.

“…Did you? Hmm. I think you did,” he said, his voice full of ambiguity. “Well, honestly, I don’t remember, but anyway, you’re saying I didn’t disturb your sleep, right?”

“Yes,” I replied. I was disturbed from studying, but that didn’t matter.

“What’s the matter?” I asked. Judging by the fact that he called at this hour, there must be something serious. Compared to that, my concentration was a trivial matter.

“Well, it’s nothing much,” he said nonchalantly. “The current head of the Mafia, the leader of the moderate faction, died 20 minutes ago.”

However, the content of his words was quite serious.

“…Bolsaro is dead?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he replied. It was a much more serious matter than I had expected.

“Was it the work of the hardliners?” I asked.

“We can’t say for sure yet, but it seems like it,” he replied. The death of the current Mafia head meant that the position of the moderate faction within the Mafia had weakened.

“…This has become troublesome,” I said. As the position of the moderate faction weakened, the position of the hardliners rose.

“Doesn’t this make it harder to resolve the issue internally within the Mafia?” I asked. In other words, the scenario we had expected, where the moderate faction would purge the hardliners, was now impossible.

“It will be difficult. The second-in-command is trying his best to handle the situation, but there’s a lot of internal turmoil,” he replied.

“They’ll probably focus on strengthening their internal affairs for now,” I said.

“Probably,” he replied. The second-in-command of the moderate faction would try to strengthen the organization internally to become the sole leader. If that happened, the hardliners would inevitably be neglected to some extent. Naturally, the chimera experiments would also be postponed.

“It seems like I’ll have to step in myself,” he said. And if that investigation was postponed, the research on the chimera experiments themselves might disappear altogether. No, it was almost certain that they would disappear. The time needed for the moderate faction to strengthen its internal affairs was about two weeks. Two weeks was more than enough time to completely eliminate the lab and close all records. That would be problematic in many ways. Of course, there was a 0% chance that the data we secured this time would become useless, but it was also possible that the evidence could be manipulated and turned against us. To prevent that, Commander Charles needed to move directly.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay?” I asked.

“What?” he replied.

“You have to deal with the Anti-Magia, the Destroyer, and the hardliners within the Mafia at the same time,” I said. “Isn’t it too dangerous?”

“What is it? Are you worried about me right now?” I could hear the Commander’s laughter over the phone. “Don’t worry. Who do you think I am? Even if a dozen of those guys come at me, they’re no match for me.”

It was a confident laugh.

“And it’s not like I’m going to do something alone like an idiot. I’m planning to call for support on this side too,” he said.

“Support?” I asked. Right now, there were only two people who could support Commander Charles: my father and Kim Kang-in.

“It’s not your father… is it Kim Kang-in?” I asked.

“You’re right,” he replied. I knew it.

“With Kim Kang-in’s support, there won’t be any dangerous situations, even if it’s just a remote possibility,” I said.

“What is it? Are you rating that Kim Kang-in higher than me right now?” His voice sounded like he was saying, ‘I’m offended.’

“Of course not. I definitely rate Commander Charles higher,” I said. Actually, I thought of both of them on the same level, but this wasn’t about what was true.

“Why, isn’t there a saying, ‘wings on a tiger’? It’s that kind of feeling,” I said.

“I’m the tiger, and Kim Kang-in is the wings?” he asked.

“That’s right,” I replied.

“Hmm. Is that so?” Commander Charles’ voice was filled with laughter. “I’m a tiger, you say?” It seemed like he liked the analogy quite a bit.

“Well, yeah. Kim Kang-in is the best as backup, but he’s a bit lacking as the main,” he said.

“…Haha,” I decided to refrain from answering that. If I responded to every word like that, I didn’t know what kind of backlash I’d face later. It was better to just laugh it off vaguely.

“Ah, right. So, I was thinking that I need to share some information with Kim Kang-in?” he asked. Information. All the information I obtained while investigating Italy this time. That’s what he meant by sharing it.

“Is that okay?” he asked.

“Yes. Of course,” I replied. It’s not like it’s anyone else; it’s Kim Kang-in. What’s the problem? ‘I was planning to tell him about it soon anyway.’ Since Commander Charles was explaining it, it saved me the trouble.

“Okay. Then I’ll say it without hesitation,” Commander Charles let out a small sigh. “But, honestly, I don’t know if I can explain it well. The situation is too complicated…”

“It’ll be fine,” I said. Even if Commander Charles’ explanation was bizarre, Kim Kang-in would definitely understand it perfectly. And if there was something he really didn’t understand, he’d contact me, I guessed.

“It’s a bit burdensome to be trusted so much…” His voice was tinged with embarrassment. He seemed to have taken my words as meaning that I trusted Commander Charles.

“Anyway. Okay. I’ll do my best,” he said. I didn’t bother to correct the misunderstanding. It was better to leave it as it was.

“Then I’ll hang up. Whether you don’t need to sleep or not, get some sleep. People need to sleep,” he said.

“Yes. I will,” I replied. I really didn’t need to sleep, but it’s not like I could say ‘No, I don’t need to sleep’ to someone who was worried about me, so I just answered appropriately.

“Okay. Then really…”

“Ah, wait a moment,” I said, just before hanging up. Something came to mind.

“Why?” he asked.

“Um, could I ask you for a favor?” I asked.

“A favor?” he asked.

“Yes,” I replied.

“What is it?” he asked.

“I’d like you to investigate something,” I said.

“Investigate? What kind of investigation?” he asked. I paused for a moment and said, “You know the dragon’s soul that was used in the experiment.”

“Yeah. That. Why?” The Commander’s voice hardened.

“I’d like you to investigate where they got that soul. If there are any additional souls like that, I’d like you to investigate that,” I said. Top-secret information that didn’t even exist in the lab’s data. The source of the dragon’s soul. I had to find that out.

* * *

Italy. Milan. A secret meeting place in the basement of a mansion owned by the Mafia. Inside a bleak room, guarded by strict security, three men were looking at each other with different expressions.

“It seems a bit different from what I heard,” a slender man with a dark impression said. This was Jack, the leader of Anti-Magia. He was frowning deeply.

“…Yeah. Go ahead and say it. Let’s hear what kind of excuses you have,” next to Jack, a huge man, contrasting with Jack, was sending a murderous gaze with his arms crossed. “You better be prepared to speak. If your excuses are lame, I’ll crush your skull right here,” he said. This was the leader of the Destroyer, known as the Destroyer. His physique had grown even larger than it was two and a half years ago.

“That’s scary. Your words don’t sound like a joke at all,” a blond man chuckled, receiving the gazes of the two. His name was Marco, and he was the leader of the Mafia’s hardliners.

“Does it sound like a joke?” The Destroyer clenched his fist and lightly swung it in the air. *Whoosh!* With a tremendous sound of air being torn, the air exploded. It was as if a small bomb had gone off.

“Whether you can use mana or not, it’s nothing to break your head in this place,” he said. Marco’s expression hardened slightly.

“Your fiery temper is still the same,” he said, but that expression was only for a moment. He soon returned to his smiling face.

“Let’s stop the small talk,” Jack, the leader of Anti-Magia, clasped his hands together and rested his chin on them, frowning. “I didn’t come all the way here to listen to small talk. If you have time for that kind of small talk, start explaining the situation properly.” That was the meaning behind his words and actions.

“You’re both impatient, aren’t you?” Marco chuckled. “Well, fine. I wasn’t planning on talking for long either. I’ll get straight to the point.” Marco took out a cigar from his pocket and put it in his mouth.

“The reason you guys are so agitated is because one of our labs was destroyed this time, right?”

“To be precise, it’s because the destruction of the lab has put us in a situation where we can’t receive the items we were supposed to receive,” Jack said. Marco lit the cigar using the Zippo lighter he was holding.

“*Hoo. Hoo.* Smoke billowed between the three men.

“You don’t have to worry about that,” Marco said, opening and closing the Zippo lighter in his hand repeatedly. “That lab was a sub-lab researching prototypes. The main one is separate.”

*Click, clack! Click, clack!* The unique sound of the Zippo lighter opening and closing filled the room.

“The chimera dragon that was supposed to be handed over will be handed over on time, so don’t worry.”