What should I do about this?
Since she had made such a fuss telling him not to cross over, it seemed like he should return to the sofa before being caught, but whenever he moved away, she would start groaning again. Callion pondered. Should he gain his own peace of mind, or Erna's physical peace?
Naturally, his choice was the former. He had to. But...
“This is driving me crazy, really.”
He sighed and sat on the edge of the bed. Soon, the sound of relaxed breathing was heard from behind him.
This is the only time.
"Given what I did to her, shouldn't I do at least this much to lessen my guilt?" With this justification for his actions, Callion continued to sit beside Erna until he heard Orpheus's footsteps.
From the day after the two arrived, the wizards and knights were busy at work. Since the monsters were positioned in a form never encountered before, more precise tactics than usual were required. This was true not only for the knights but also for the wizards.
Erna, who had been sitting in the mansion's drawing room staring at the map for a long time, spoke firmly as if there was no need for reconsideration.
"The knights are just a hindrance to our movements."
Erna muttered as she looked at the map.
“That’s true, but...”
When Orpheus answered with a displeased look, Erna spread her two hands in front of her. Then, complex and inscrutable characters resembling drawings floated in the air above her hands, glowing blue. It was the magic formula she planned to cast tomorrow.
“Look here. Do you see the spell casting range?”
Even if you tell us to look here, it takes us a long time just to find that part!
Orpheus looked on with a tearful face as she gazed at the spot Erna had pointed to. There, complex-looking letters of light were rotating at different speeds. As Orpheus stared at it for quite a while, Erna asked, sounding a little frustrated.
"You still haven't found it?"
"I'm telling you, Grand Duke, you're looking for it too quickly!"
Orpheus wanted to pound her chest at the look of incomprehension from Erna.
Erna was what is commonly called a genius. A genius of magic, at that. Not to mention the immense size of her innate magical power, she could not only effortlessly draw up extremely complex and intricate magic formulas but also memorize them perfectly.
The letters that made up the magic formula were not of this world but of another, and each and every letter was like a living organism. Some letters determined the nature of the magical power, and some letters determined the range within which the magical power could flow.
Combining these characters constituted a magic formula, and casting a spell was the process of infusing them with magical power to make them move. At first glance, it might seem like a trivial matter. However, if the characters were written haphazardly, the magic would not work. This was because while there were characters whose powers complemented each other, there were also incompatible characters that absolutely could not be written together. Even a slight misalignment would often prevent the magic from activating.
Therefore, wizards preferred to learn at the Magic Tower. Since it was a place where information researched by wizards over thousands of years had accumulated, learning there was the most accurate way to acquire magic.
But to think she could make something this intricate when she isn't even from the Magic Tower.
Orpheus looked at the magic formula drawn by Erna. Now that Orpheus had become a skilled wizard, she could discern how intricate a magic formula was just by looking at it in motion. Wizards usually use magic formulas consisting of about five to ten characters.
She could handle up to seventeen, but...
To be honest, it wasn't a properly executed spell. She had failed to control all seventeen letters. Even though she considers herself one of the top in Hessengard, that was the limit.
But how many are there on earth?
Orpheus saw the magic formula that Erna had perfectly created.
“Totaling... are there forty-one?”
“Yeah. I tried adding one more character than in the previous design, and there weren't any issues. The direction of the magical energy ejection should be a bit more precise.”
Orpheus got goosebumps at the light voice, as if someone had just sprinkled a little more salt while grilling meat. At this rate, wasn't Erna actually stronger than the Magic Tower Administrator?
A moment later, Orpheus found the letters that determined the magic casting range that Erna had mentioned. After staring at them for a while, Orpheus answered in a serious voice.
"According to the text, the range would cover not only Haldis but the entire lake region. Furthermore, since this takes the form of constructing a wall and using magic to push monsters inside to crush them, if it activates without issues, it seems we won't need to borrow the power of the Knights, just as you mentioned."
"Yes?"
“But at this level, it will take half a day to activate.”
Orpheus placed the magic formula floating in the air onto her hand and tossed it into the sky. Instantly, letters of light grew larger and covered the heavens. The larger the range of the magic formula, the greater the amount of magical energy required to activate it. It seemed that if she finished the preparations today and began the work tomorrow morning, this monster extermination would be completed without any problems before tomorrow evening.
“Then I will go and speak with Lord Callion's lieutenant. Please rest in the meantime.”
"I'm fine. I slept soundly yesterday."
“What? Here? There were so many monsters that I had a restless night myself. Were you alright?”
"Strangely enough, I didn't feel much and slept soundly. It’s a good thing, so it doesn't really matter, but... I still don't really know what had an effect."
As Erna fell into thought, Orpheus retracted the magic spell she had spread in the air, handed it to Erna, and left the room.
“Then I’ll be off.”
"Yeah, nice to meet you."
After Orpheus left, Erna lay down on the sofa in the drawing room.
"I told you that it is good for a wizard to stay with knights to become less sensitive to the presence of monsters."
Erna learned most of what magic was from books.
The mentor Vanessa assigned to her when she first sensed her magical powers taught the basics well, but could not teach her anything beyond that. So, Erna began studying on her own by reading every single book related to magic in the Grand Duke's castle library.
The Magic Tower, famous for being extremely closed off, surprisingly published many books related to magic. Thanks to this, Erna was able to learn magic by looking at the books and drawing magic formulas on her own.
It was a matter that would have sent the Magic Tower to its knees. Magic formulas are incredibly intricate and three-dimensional. No matter how detailed the illustrations in a book were, flat drawings could never replicate the precision and three-dimensional structure of the formulas. In fact, that was likely why the Magic Tower had published the book to demonstrate their greatness, without worrying about the leakage of knowledge.
Thanks to this, Erna was able to sit in Hessengard and enjoy the knowledge of the Magic Tower. Among the books she had frantically read all day, there was a passage that read, "The stronger one's magical power, the more sensitive one becomes to the presence of monsters at night. In such cases, having knights nearby helps to alleviate that sensitivity." It was knowledge she had half-forgotten, as she had only glanced at it once and, since then, had rarely faced monsters at night or been with knights.
The book only said things would improve if knights were nearby, but it didn't explain how close they had to be.
Is it because there are many knights in the mansion?
In the morning, she saw that several knights, including Callion's lieutenant, were staying in the room next to the bedroom. Thinking it might be thanks to them, Erna floated the magic formula she had created into the air and carefully checked once again to see if there were any issues.
Yes, perfect.
There was nothing wrong with her plan. So, if she set up the magic ritual today, positioned wizards to infuse the magic in appropriate locations, and began the activation process tomorrow morning, she would be able to rescue the people of Haldis by evening.
So she wishes that guy would hurry up and take the Knights back.
"So, are you telling me to just stand back like this?"
As Cedric's voice grew louder, Orpheus let out a sigh.
"There’s no need to be so defensive. I’m just saying you don’t have to work, so why are you getting so angry?"
“That is not the point. It is simply unthinkable for the Order to march out and return without accomplishing anything. For a knight, that would be a disgrace!”
"Well, even knights lead such tiring lives. But as I said, once our Grand Duke's magic is activated, the Knights have nothing special to do. And it’s not that you do nothing; I’m asking you to help the people."
“It is easier said than done. If you tell those guys, who are currently making a fuss about beheading monsters right now, to just watch the wizards work, they will cut off their own heads.”
“That’s strange. Wizards usually like it when you tell them they don’t have to do anything.”
Just as the two were struggling to narrow their differences, the door opened, and Callion entered. Both immediately straightened their postures and bowed to him.
"I could hear both of your voices clearly, even from outside."
“...”
Orpheus broke out in a cold sweat at Callion's menacing voice. She could speak comfortably with Cedric, but not with Callion. After all, wasn't he also a Grand Duke, just like Erna, whom she served? Moreover, everyone froze like a mouse before a cat in the face of his immense size and commanding presence.
“Was it Orpheus? Erna’s lieutenant.”
"Yes, that is correct."
"Explain exactly what magic the wizards will cast, when, and where."
At the cold voice, Orpheus, feeling extremely nervous, explained to Callion the magic Erna was about to cast. Callion quietly looked at the map while listening to Orpheus's explanation.
Since she had made such a fuss telling him not to cross over, it seemed like he should return to the sofa before being caught, but whenever he moved away, she would start groaning again. Callion pondered. Should he gain his own peace of mind, or Erna's physical peace?
Naturally, his choice was the former. He had to. But...
“This is driving me crazy, really.”
He sighed and sat on the edge of the bed. Soon, the sound of relaxed breathing was heard from behind him.
This is the only time.
"Given what I did to her, shouldn't I do at least this much to lessen my guilt?" With this justification for his actions, Callion continued to sit beside Erna until he heard Orpheus's footsteps.
***
From the day after the two arrived, the wizards and knights were busy at work. Since the monsters were positioned in a form never encountered before, more precise tactics than usual were required. This was true not only for the knights but also for the wizards.
Erna, who had been sitting in the mansion's drawing room staring at the map for a long time, spoke firmly as if there was no need for reconsideration.
"The knights are just a hindrance to our movements."
Erna muttered as she looked at the map.
“That’s true, but...”
When Orpheus answered with a displeased look, Erna spread her two hands in front of her. Then, complex and inscrutable characters resembling drawings floated in the air above her hands, glowing blue. It was the magic formula she planned to cast tomorrow.
“Look here. Do you see the spell casting range?”
Even if you tell us to look here, it takes us a long time just to find that part!
Orpheus looked on with a tearful face as she gazed at the spot Erna had pointed to. There, complex-looking letters of light were rotating at different speeds. As Orpheus stared at it for quite a while, Erna asked, sounding a little frustrated.
"You still haven't found it?"
"I'm telling you, Grand Duke, you're looking for it too quickly!"
Orpheus wanted to pound her chest at the look of incomprehension from Erna.
Erna was what is commonly called a genius. A genius of magic, at that. Not to mention the immense size of her innate magical power, she could not only effortlessly draw up extremely complex and intricate magic formulas but also memorize them perfectly.
The letters that made up the magic formula were not of this world but of another, and each and every letter was like a living organism. Some letters determined the nature of the magical power, and some letters determined the range within which the magical power could flow.
Combining these characters constituted a magic formula, and casting a spell was the process of infusing them with magical power to make them move. At first glance, it might seem like a trivial matter. However, if the characters were written haphazardly, the magic would not work. This was because while there were characters whose powers complemented each other, there were also incompatible characters that absolutely could not be written together. Even a slight misalignment would often prevent the magic from activating.
Therefore, wizards preferred to learn at the Magic Tower. Since it was a place where information researched by wizards over thousands of years had accumulated, learning there was the most accurate way to acquire magic.
But to think she could make something this intricate when she isn't even from the Magic Tower.
Orpheus looked at the magic formula drawn by Erna. Now that Orpheus had become a skilled wizard, she could discern how intricate a magic formula was just by looking at it in motion. Wizards usually use magic formulas consisting of about five to ten characters.
She could handle up to seventeen, but...
To be honest, it wasn't a properly executed spell. She had failed to control all seventeen letters. Even though she considers herself one of the top in Hessengard, that was the limit.
But how many are there on earth?
Orpheus saw the magic formula that Erna had perfectly created.
“Totaling... are there forty-one?”
“Yeah. I tried adding one more character than in the previous design, and there weren't any issues. The direction of the magical energy ejection should be a bit more precise.”
Orpheus got goosebumps at the light voice, as if someone had just sprinkled a little more salt while grilling meat. At this rate, wasn't Erna actually stronger than the Magic Tower Administrator?
A moment later, Orpheus found the letters that determined the magic casting range that Erna had mentioned. After staring at them for a while, Orpheus answered in a serious voice.
"According to the text, the range would cover not only Haldis but the entire lake region. Furthermore, since this takes the form of constructing a wall and using magic to push monsters inside to crush them, if it activates without issues, it seems we won't need to borrow the power of the Knights, just as you mentioned."
"Yes?"
“But at this level, it will take half a day to activate.”
Orpheus placed the magic formula floating in the air onto her hand and tossed it into the sky. Instantly, letters of light grew larger and covered the heavens. The larger the range of the magic formula, the greater the amount of magical energy required to activate it. It seemed that if she finished the preparations today and began the work tomorrow morning, this monster extermination would be completed without any problems before tomorrow evening.
“Then I will go and speak with Lord Callion's lieutenant. Please rest in the meantime.”
"I'm fine. I slept soundly yesterday."
“What? Here? There were so many monsters that I had a restless night myself. Were you alright?”
"Strangely enough, I didn't feel much and slept soundly. It’s a good thing, so it doesn't really matter, but... I still don't really know what had an effect."
As Erna fell into thought, Orpheus retracted the magic spell she had spread in the air, handed it to Erna, and left the room.
“Then I’ll be off.”
"Yeah, nice to meet you."
After Orpheus left, Erna lay down on the sofa in the drawing room.
"I told you that it is good for a wizard to stay with knights to become less sensitive to the presence of monsters."
Erna learned most of what magic was from books.
The mentor Vanessa assigned to her when she first sensed her magical powers taught the basics well, but could not teach her anything beyond that. So, Erna began studying on her own by reading every single book related to magic in the Grand Duke's castle library.
The Magic Tower, famous for being extremely closed off, surprisingly published many books related to magic. Thanks to this, Erna was able to learn magic by looking at the books and drawing magic formulas on her own.
It was a matter that would have sent the Magic Tower to its knees. Magic formulas are incredibly intricate and three-dimensional. No matter how detailed the illustrations in a book were, flat drawings could never replicate the precision and three-dimensional structure of the formulas. In fact, that was likely why the Magic Tower had published the book to demonstrate their greatness, without worrying about the leakage of knowledge.
Thanks to this, Erna was able to sit in Hessengard and enjoy the knowledge of the Magic Tower. Among the books she had frantically read all day, there was a passage that read, "The stronger one's magical power, the more sensitive one becomes to the presence of monsters at night. In such cases, having knights nearby helps to alleviate that sensitivity." It was knowledge she had half-forgotten, as she had only glanced at it once and, since then, had rarely faced monsters at night or been with knights.
The book only said things would improve if knights were nearby, but it didn't explain how close they had to be.
Is it because there are many knights in the mansion?
In the morning, she saw that several knights, including Callion's lieutenant, were staying in the room next to the bedroom. Thinking it might be thanks to them, Erna floated the magic formula she had created into the air and carefully checked once again to see if there were any issues.
Yes, perfect.
There was nothing wrong with her plan. So, if she set up the magic ritual today, positioned wizards to infuse the magic in appropriate locations, and began the activation process tomorrow morning, she would be able to rescue the people of Haldis by evening.
So she wishes that guy would hurry up and take the Knights back.
***
"So, are you telling me to just stand back like this?"
As Cedric's voice grew louder, Orpheus let out a sigh.
"There’s no need to be so defensive. I’m just saying you don’t have to work, so why are you getting so angry?"
“That is not the point. It is simply unthinkable for the Order to march out and return without accomplishing anything. For a knight, that would be a disgrace!”
"Well, even knights lead such tiring lives. But as I said, once our Grand Duke's magic is activated, the Knights have nothing special to do. And it’s not that you do nothing; I’m asking you to help the people."
“It is easier said than done. If you tell those guys, who are currently making a fuss about beheading monsters right now, to just watch the wizards work, they will cut off their own heads.”
“That’s strange. Wizards usually like it when you tell them they don’t have to do anything.”
Just as the two were struggling to narrow their differences, the door opened, and Callion entered. Both immediately straightened their postures and bowed to him.
"I could hear both of your voices clearly, even from outside."
“...”
Orpheus broke out in a cold sweat at Callion's menacing voice. She could speak comfortably with Cedric, but not with Callion. After all, wasn't he also a Grand Duke, just like Erna, whom she served? Moreover, everyone froze like a mouse before a cat in the face of his immense size and commanding presence.
“Was it Orpheus? Erna’s lieutenant.”
"Yes, that is correct."
"Explain exactly what magic the wizards will cast, when, and where."
At the cold voice, Orpheus, feeling extremely nervous, explained to Callion the magic Erna was about to cast. Callion quietly looked at the map while listening to Orpheus's explanation.
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