Chapter 80 : Chapter 80

Chapter 80

Leodimir quietly rolled the letter, stamped with the Wester family's seal, in his hand.

This, which had kept him up all night, had been brought by the Wester family head's messenger bird last night.

The fact that it was sent through a messenger bird instead of a butler, despite being a personal letter from the head, meant that this letter was a 'secret letter.'

And as expected, the content of the letter was quite heavy.

'Lieferden Academy first-year student, Eddie Summerson, I see...'

Leodimir's eyes once again took in the sentence written at the end of the letter.

The head of the Wester family had referred to Eddie as an 'academy first-year student' when requesting exclusive interview rights for him.

This was different from how other newspapers had referred to him as the 'Kirhausen family's admission attendant.'

It meant that they saw Eddie's affiliation as Lieferden Academy, not Kirhausen.

In other words, the Wester family had noticed that Eddie would no longer be under the Kirhausen family.

'As expected of the empire's best information broker.'

Leodimir chuckled, feeling a sense of futility at how he had been hit right on the mark.

With this level of intuition and information, it was safe to say that he had no cards to bring to the negotiating table.

'They probably have a better grasp of Rob Dixon's corruption than we do.'

He had grasped the corruption Rob had committed with the finance minister as his backing through Mercury, who had infiltrated the imperial family.

And Leodimir had planned to pay with information about Rob as a price if the other newspapers did not grant his request.

But fortunately, all the other newspapers had granted his request at once.

Unfortunately, the only newspaper that had set a condition was an opponent that this card would not work on.

"Eum..."

Just as Leodimir’s troubles deepened.

Knock, knock, knock-

His secretary, Parita, entered with a knock.

"Dean. His Excellency is looking for you."

"Ah, he must have woken up. That's good."

"Yes, but he said he doesn't like the drowsy feeling when he wakes up, so he won't be taking any more sleeping aids."

Parita reported Eddie's message with an awkward expression.

Leodimir nodded and replied as if he had expected it.

"It was a method he wouldn't have liked in the first place. His immediate recovery has been achieved to some extent, so he no longer needs to be forced to sleep."

"But his circle is still unstable due to Rakan's claws. It would be best for him to rest as much as possible until his original mana is fully restored..."

"He has already endured enough. I will speak to him. I need to discuss the Westin Post matter with him anyway."

"I understand."

After finishing his words, Leodimir headed to Corkis with Parita.

The two arrived in front of a bookshelf located at the innermost part of Corkis.

When Parita waved her wand, the books on the shelf disappeared below it.

And a hidden door was revealed.

As he opened the door and entered, he could hear Eddie's voice chatting with someone.

"...To have five babies at once, Lucia must have gone through a lot. Even if they are eggs, the pain of childbirth would be the same, wouldn't it?"

"..."

"I'm not blaming you... well, I'm the same. I wasn't there when Meredith gave birth to Damian."

"..."

"What do you mean you're better? You weren't there when your five children were born, and I was at least there for one... ayaya- this old bird brain is so strong!"

Eddie's conversation partner was not a person, but Leodimir's Mystic, Bex.

Since Mystics only let their voices be heard by their masters and those they designate, it seemed to Parita and the healer next to Eddie that Eddie was talking to himself.

Anyway, it seemed something had upset him during the conversation.

Bex mischievously bit Eddie's finger and let go.

The content was long enough to reminisce about old times, but since they were originally close, their attitudes were as light as children.

Pudeodeok-

Then, as Leodimir entered, Bex flew up and sat on his shoulder.

Bex held its head high as if it had done nothing.

Eddie let out a hollow laugh as if he were dumbfounded and healed his swollen finger with recovery magic.

Then, Gayle, who was standing beside him, sighed.

She was the most skilled healing mage among the Mercury and had been staying here for two days.

But this stubborn master's master was still not listening to her.

'I've told him thirteen times to refrain from using magic as much as possible...'

Gayle shook her head and then looked at Leodimir for help.

Leodimir smiled wryly and said to Eddie.

"Master, it's good that you're catching up with Bex, but now is the time to focus on your recovery."

"My circle won't recover until I can control the power Rakan shared with me anyway. It's better to maintain a good mood and emotions than to just rest."

Leodimir finally raised his hands to his master, who had responded to his nagging with a short lecture.

He gave Gayle a look that said, "Good luck."

Eddie was right.

His mana circle was currently unstable.

The reason was the uninvited guest that had suddenly entered his body.

The mana of the magical beast king, Rakan.

Eddie turned his gaze to his swollen left side.

In his body now, in place of six ribs, were six pieces of the magical beast king Rakan's claws, which had been split into six.

It was a token of gratitude and a symbol of alliance from Rakan for removing the mana bloodstone that had been embedded in his heart.

It was a gift, but a very burdensome one.

He was in a similar situation to Marcel, who had been toyed with after receiving his mana.

To not lose control to the powerful mana, Eddie's circle had become extremely sensitive.

Of course, Eddie was skilled unlike Marcel, so he could control it, but it was impossible for him to use high-level magic right now.

"In my current state, I can control the power of 4th and 5th-star magic without any problems. But for magic beyond that, there is a risk of losing control to Rakan's mana."

Eddie created a Nux on his hand and assessed his condition.

There were no shortcuts or tricks to stabilizing his circle in this situation.

He just had to repeat his mana manipulation training to digest Rakan's mana.

Taking a new step based on the results he had obtained would be after that.

"It's nice that I've gained something, but the process is arduous. It's also difficult to recall your memories with Rakan with Illusion Veil."

"It can't be helped. But fortunately, the last memory Rakan left seems to be engraved on the claw he embedded, not in my mind. No matter how many times I recall it, every sentence is vividly replayed in my head."

Thump-

As if it had been waiting, the memory was replayed in Eddie's head again.

It was the last conversation Eddie's soul had with Rakan before he lost consciousness.

[To achieve your will, you must first destroy the impure thing they are creating with the mana they have absorbed.]

[Do you know the identity of that impure thing?]

[It was something that was neither alive nor dead. Its substance was unclear and its soul was torn to shreds, so even with these eyes, I could only see it dimly.]

[Then there must be other materials needed besides mana. When all the materials are gathered, you will be able to see through its identity with the eyes of the magical beast king.]

[Wouldn't it be better for you to destroy it before then?]

[Anything that contains mana will bring disaster if destroyed when its form is not certain. Well, if I risk my life, I can destroy it even if I die, but in that case...]

['In that case', what?]

[The Rakan tribe will also not be able to obtain the promised land.]

[...You cunning bastard. No matter how I look at you, you are not the slightest bit similar to Phoenix.]

[Now that I have the claws of the magical beast king, how can I treat my power like a stone? It is rather a relief that we are not similar.]

[Even with your side torn, that mouth of yours is still alive.]

That was the end of the conversation.

Eddie frowned as he mulled over the conversation once again.

'Something that is neither alive nor dead...'

Numerous profane techniques and arts.

With that, the current Kirhausen was creating something in a wooden coffin.

But for now, he couldn't easily guess its identity.

"Ugh...!"

Eddie groaned as a pain in his side flared up, perhaps because his mind was shaken by his deep thoughts.

Gayle hurriedly injected a painkiller into Eddie's arm.

After a while, when the pain subsided, Eddie took a deep breath and grumbled.

"Huuu... no matter how much it's a gift, to just shove claw pieces into a 14-year-old kid's body."

"Magical beasts highly value growth through pain. It's a kind of test, I suppose. It would be best for you not to overdo it for a while. Please postpone the Palamedes meeting as well."

"No... if it's a test, I can't show any weakness. I won't overdo it, so let's continue with our work."

Eddie sat up straight with the help of Leodimir and Gayle.

Even if his body rested and trained, his mind could not.

The difficult task of managing his work while calming his mind was given to Eddie.

Eddie received the secret letter from the head of the Wester family from Leodimir.

"Hmm."

Although the content was not very long, he read it over and over again.

After a long time, when he opened his mouth again, a smile tinged with amusement was on his lips.

"...Ha."

"As expected, they are a difficult negotiation partner. I was surprised when I saw it."

"To have predicted that I would be leaving Kirhausen soon. His wit is the same as it was 30 years ago. Frighteningly so."

The Westin Post was a deep-rooted newspaper in Luxorin that even Edmund had paid considerable attention to in his past life.

Since it was owned by the prestigious Wester family, it was not influenced by any power, and therefore, it had the deep trust of the empire's citizens with its unbiased reporting.

In particular, its bold reporting style, unlike other major newspapers, was its characteristic and strength.

There was even an incident where a rookie reporter had knocked on the door of Shainborough alone, asking to interview Edmund, who had become a great archmage.

'It's because of such reporters with a strong sense of professional ethics that they have maintained their position as the empire's top newspaper until now.'

Eddie chuckled as he recalled the situation back then.

"We can buy some time by using your recovery as an excuse... but what will you do?"

"The longer we drag it out, the more debt we will owe them. They haven't published a single article for this exclusive interview, even while other places are reporting."

"Yes. And they would have predicted that your recovery would be quite fast, unlike what has been reported. I also think we should respond as quickly as possible."

"Yes. With their insight to see through our situation like this, it would be better to meet them once, if only to not make an enemy of them."

Eddie, as if he had made a decision, returned the letter to Leodimir.

Then, he instructed him on what to say in his reply.

"A week from now, at 10 p.m., at the Westin Post headquarters. However, the entire building must be empty, and only one reporter with the head's seal is to be present. The interview time will be within two hours."

"...The head of the Wester family will be dumbfounded."

"As a high-ranking noble, he would be. But as the president of a newspaper, his mouth will water."

Parita, who had written down Eddie's words, put the completed letter in an envelope stamped with the academy's seal.

The envelope was soon put in a leather bag, and Bex took it and headed to the Wester family mansion.

"This is appropriate. We can't drag it out for too long, and it's better to make an appointment with some leeway."

"Even if this interview is a trap, you, master, will be able to handle it since you've recovered to some extent."

"The possibility is low since Wester is free from the influence of the magical world, but it's better to be prepared."

"Then, while we wait for the reply, I will finish up the field trip matter at the investigation committee."

"Yes. Let's have the next Palamedes meeting after I've been to the Westin Post. We still have a lot of things to resolve inside and outside the academy."

Thus, another round of brainstorming came to an end.

The last topic was about the homunculus secured from the ruins research institute.

Leodimir was about to instruct Parita to collect it, but Eddie stopped him and said.

"No, I will bring it myself. I have two guys I need to see anyway."

"Two, you say... are you talking about Joy and Marcel?"

"Not Marcel. That guy will be caught in the flow on his own without me having to touch him anymore."

"Then who... ah."

Leodimir, who had been curious, let out a low exclamation of admiration.

Come to think of it, among the achievements from the ruins, there was one more interesting thing.

Hendricks.

"Yes. I'm already half-convinced... but I'll have to talk to him to confirm if it's really 'that.'"

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