Reset Life – Chapter 55

Chapter 55: The Rumors Were True? (5)

I returned later than usual, but I was able to get at least two hours of light sleep. It was only enough to suppress the urgent need for sleep, but it was enough to keep me moving.

“It seems you haven’t told them that the ball is canceled yet.”

My father said to me abruptly during breakfast. I swallowed the food in my mouth and replied.

“I’m in the process of selecting gifts to send along with the apology letter. We need to show our sincerity.”

“Indeed. Make sure to finish it by the day after tomorrow at the latest. Just don’t tell them it’s canceled on the day of the event.”

“Yes, Father.”

Since it’s coming out of the family budget, the purchase of gifts is still ongoing. Under the pretext of buying gifts, we’re also gathering personal information about the attendees. Thanks to that, I’m always sleep-deprived.

If things go well and the Grand Ball is successfully held, the purchased gifts will be a token of appreciation for the attendees’ participation when they return.

I’ve taken quite a few gambles so far.

Most of them were successful because I started with a certain degree of odds in my favor.

But now, I’m walking a tightrope.

The chances of success are severely limited, and the path to failure is wide open.

Perhaps I’m just being stubborn because I don’t want to cancel the Grand Ball that I finally decided to start. Maybe I feel like I need to put in some effort so I won’t feel resentful.

I guess I’m not good at drawing a line. I’m such a……

It was almost the end of breakfast. While I was contemplating the first line of the apology letter with a heavy heart, a servant approached and whispered to me.

“A guest has arrived. A mage named ‘Lucy’.”

“Huh?”

“He’s been waiting in the reception room……What should we do?”

I frowned and fell into thought.

Should I point out the servants’ lax work ethic for letting a complete stranger into the reception room, or should I enlighten them about the basic reverence they should have for mages?

In the end, I decided to find out why Lucy had come all the way here to see me.

“Excuse me. I’ll be leaving first. A guest has arrived.”

“Very well.”

Breakfast was almost over anyway. My father and brother didn’t say anything, and I headed to the reception room.

Mage Lucy, with a physique that was burdensome compared to his name, looked much more haggard than he did three hours ago. Seeing the dark circles under his eyes that weren’t there before, I wondered what had happened in the past three hours?

“What brings you here? You look quite tired.”

“Ahaam! I just finished writing my statement, and the person I saved said he wanted to repay his lifesaver. He was very enthusiastic in his repayment, in bed.”

Hey, wait, are you the same kind of person as Jay?

I said with a pathetic look.

“You didn’t come here just to brag about that, did you?”

I was prepared to shout, ‘Get this guy out of here!’ if I heard a positive answer. But unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. Tsk.

“I came to ask for help.”

“Help?”

“From the looks of it, you seem to be chasing that guy too. Let’s cooperate since we have the same goal.”

He grinned, and I crossed my arms and leaned back on the sofa. Then I asked him suspiciously.

“Can you use tracking magic?”

“You might as well ask me to find Mr. Smith in the Imperial Capital. You’ll find about 30,000 of them. I need a medium to track him.”

“Then how can you help me?”

What good is a mage who can’t use magic? I looked at him with that meaning in my eyes. Lucy said with a rather dissatisfied expression.

“Hey, you don’t think mages are idiots who can only use magic, do you? The reason why mages are great is because of the amount of knowledge they have to acquire to use magic. Knowing things that others don’t is a weapon in itself for a mage.”

“That’s true. But why are you trying to catch that murderer? Is there a special reason?”

“For revenge.”

“Revenge?”

“Among the people he killed, there was someone I knew. I came to the Imperial Capital this time to see that person after three years, but that guy killed him right before I could. I owed him a lot, so I was going to repay him this time since I’ve become a proper mage, but I couldn’t do anything. Damn it.”

He put a cigarette in his mouth and snapped his fingers in front of it. The cigarette lit up. He inhaled deeply, and the white smoke scattered with his exhale, spreading the acrid and pungent smell of cigarettes into the air of the reception room.

The sudden solemn atmosphere made me lower my head for a moment. His voice spread into the air along with the cigarette smoke.

“So, I tried to find the culprit on my own……but there has to be some kind of trace. Even if I want to cooperate with the investigation, the role of civilians in security matters is limited to testimony. Even if I’m a mage, it’s difficult if I’m not affiliated with the Security Bureau. But I want to catch the culprit……with my own hands.”

He clenched his fist, which was covered in small cuts. Surely there must be a sorrow that I don’t know about.

Lucy, who had stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, lit another one. As if he had suddenly remembered something, he asked me.

“Oh, by the way, why are you trying to catch the culprit?”

“Hmm, it’s because of a personal matter……’You’? It’s a bit offensive for someone I haven’t even introduced myself to to call me that. Frankly speaking, my position isn’t so low that someone without a title can speak informally to me.”

“You’re speaking informally too.”

“Then should I use honorifics? I’m not trying to distinguish between nobles and commoners, but there are certain etiquettes in the world that must be observed. I’m just observing the etiquette that I can observe in my position.”

There are hardly any cases where nobles use honorifics with commoners, except in very special circumstances. Of course, Lucy in front of me is someone to be respected as a mage, but the second son of a Duke is not in such a low position as to use honorifics with a newcomer from the Association.

Lucy stared at me and then chuckled.

“Well, fine. Honorifics or informal speech doesn’t really matter. I’ll just use informal speech. In a way, it’s more beneficial for me to speak informally to the second son of a Duke.”

He shrugged, and somehow it made me feel like I was at a disadvantage. I made a dissatisfied expression, but decided to just finish the business at hand.

“Whatever. So, what kind of help are you asking for?”

“Don’t you need anything from me?”

“If anything, it’s catching the culprit. That’s the goal anyway. And if you’ve come to ask for my help, you must have something specific in mind. Tell me.”

“Heh, you’re quite a sharp kid. I heard you’re 16, but you seem like you’ve lived for 10 more years. You old geezer.”

“That’s not your goal, is it, muscle-head mage?”

I said, frowning. The muscle-head mage giggled and puffed out cigarette smoke.

“First of all, you’ll have various advantages. We can cooperate if we find the culprit. It’ll give me time to use magic. We won’t have to run away if we encounter the security guards at night. How about pretending to be my assistant? I think it’s a good disguise.”

“I can think of that much myself. So, what are your demands? From what I’ve heard, those advantages can be fulfilled by someone other than me, right? Why don’t you tell me why you came all the way here to find me?”

“You sharp little brat.”

“Shut up.”

He put out his cigarette and sighed softly, his expression hardening. I don’t like this sudden change in atmosphere, but I was nervous about what he was going to say with his serious demeanor.

A brief silence. He seemed to be choosing his words, and I prepared myself for what he was going to say while calming my nerves.

He must have the basic qualities to become a mage, as he’s recognized by the Mages’ Association. As he said himself, mages are originally those who accumulate knowledge.

If that’s the kind of help he’s asking for……the kind of help that a mage, who creates something from nothing and places it at his feet as a daily routine, would ask for……I can’t even imagine.

Finally, Lucy said seriously.

“I need a table and a bed.”

I tried to understand for five seconds. I failed.

“What?”

“So, I need a table and a bed, no more, no less.”

“What does that mean?”

“Oh, really……! It’s hard to say……!”

He scratched his short hair roughly, as if he had tried to explain it simply. I crossed my arms, thinking that his difficult words would be easier to understand.

Surely this guy isn’t the type to just say the main point like Aila and raise the difficulty of the conversation indiscriminately, right?

In the end, he said with an awkward expression.

“So……I need a base of operations to work from. Even mages are human, so they need to eat and sleep. It would be even better if there was a bathroom and a bathtub. I’m not even asking for dessert after meals. Yeah. That’s it.”

In other words, he’s asking for food and lodging.

I was about to point that out immediately, but decided to think about it one more time. Why is this guy asking for help that doesn’t even seem like help?

Then I suddenly remembered the situation from this morning.

I was the one who bumped into him and fell, but Lucy was the one who collapsed.

Because he was hungry.

There’s no need to think too hard.

“You’re out of money.”

Lucy’s face flinched for a moment, and he scratched the side of his head and turned his head. The bridge of his nose and cheeks seemed to have reddened.

“No, I originally planned to ask the old man for help……but I spent a little too much on drinks……”

“You’re out of money.”

“So, I didn’t mean to do that……it was unavoidable……”

“You’re out of money.”

“This……! Yes! I’m broke! All I have left is 30 copper coins! Why! You said you’d help! Do you have a problem with that?!”

“Sigh……”

I pressed my throbbing right temple.

Oh, I’m going to get a migraine.

I knew from before that mages are not ordinary people, but this guy has built a wall between himself and normalcy, hasn’t he?

Lucy must have misinterpreted my sigh. He started to passionately explain his usefulness with a flushed face.

“I, I may not look like it, but I’m quite useful! I’m strong, and I’m good at fighting! No one has ever endured my staff more than three times in the tower!”

Well, that’s quite a distance from a mage’s self-introduction……

“And you can use magic too?”

“Huh? Oh! That’s right! I was a mage? Anyway, I can do a lot of things! Honestly, food and lodging are cheap!”

“Oh, is that so? But is that how you ask a favor from someone?”

“Ugh……!”

I leaned back on the sofa and crossed my legs. Lucy groaned and lowered his head, saying.

“I need a warm meal and a soft bed……”

“Oh, okay. I’ll provide you with a clean bathtub and delicious dessert too. Oh, come to think of it, there was that woman who offered you a place to stay, right? You can stay there, can’t you?”

“No. That’s not possible.”

He shook his head firmly with a serious expression. I tilted my head, and he said.

“I realized it today, but if I stay with that woman, I’ll be nothing but skin and bones in a few days. Ugh……I felt like I was being sucked in. Her technique was so good that when she touched my finger – a part I don’t even want to mention – sparks flew in my head and……”

“Okay, that’s enough.”

I politely stopped him. If this goes on, I feel like I’m going to hear descriptions that can only be found in a red-light district guide.

By the way, that woman was quite something, wasn’t she? Was that the confidence of a skilled person? Ah, let’s stop thinking useless thoughts. What’s wrong with this mage who tells a minor such things without hesitation?

“Tsk. This is just the beginning. Looks like you don’t know the taste of life yet.”

“Forget it. You can have that taste of life for yourself. More importantly, what’s your name? We’ll be working together for a while, so I should know your name.”

I asked what I had been curious about since I heard his name.

“My name? I told you, it’s Lucy.”

“Not that. You can’t just be Lucy without a last name or a nickname, can you?”

“That’s true. But when you ask someone’s name, shouldn’t you introduce yourself first?”

“Didn’t you come here knowing who I was?”

I’m guessing he asked Permed Hendi, the 16th Patrol Unit Captain, about my identity. That’s how he was able to find me.

He shook his head and wagged his finger from side to side.

“Tsk, tsk. I know, but I should still hear it from you.”

“Oh, if that’s the case, let me introduce myself. The second son of the Herduke family, son of Duke Ecaledon Uck Herduke of Orknesia, granted the title of ‘Knight of Peace’ by the Azot Royal Family, Arisein Pen Herduke. I’m 16 years old this year.”

I rattled off the etiquette-based greeting based on my position, birth, and title. Lucy introduced himself with a grin.

“Let me introduce myself formally as well. The eldest son of Dredgon Creon, disciple of Mage Madsan Ast, recognized as a mage and member of the Continental Mages’ Association as of January this year, ‘Kersilla Creon’. I’m 26 years old this year.”

What?!

I was nodding absentmindedly after hearing his name, but I was shocked.

This guy is the one I was trying to recruit into Jay and Old Man’s organization?! And he was one of the Eight Strongest on the continent before I died?!

“Yeah, it’s quite embarrassing to introduce myself like this. Come to think of it, I was so embarrassed when I gave my acceptance speech after receiving the mage title from the Association……”

He was embarrassed, but he kept rambling on, and I was listening with one ear and letting it out the other. I never imagined we would meet like this.

But……was he always like this? The rumors before I died said that he lived a very frugal life, so I thought he was a very strict, intellectual, and humble person……

Then it suddenly dawned on me. Sometimes, ‘poverty’ can be seen as ‘frugality’.

Thinking about it that way……the rumors were true?

I said to Kersilla Creon, who was still rambling on about something I didn’t know was bragging or what, with a bewildered expression.

“Uh, yeah……Nice to meet you, Kersilla.”

“Oh, likewise. Oh, but I’d appreciate it if you could call me Lucy. My parents gave me that nickname when I was born because of my fair skin and angelic beauty that would make even angels cry. It suits me, doesn’t it?”

The mage with tanned skin, bulging muscles with visible veins, and a brave and merciless appearance that would intimidate even back alley thugs proudly said the above words.

Suppressing the urge to punch him in the face with all my might to awaken him, I nodded.

“Okay. I’m Risel……Lucy.”

The muscular mage with a scar on his face nodded with a satisfied expression.

It seems like my migraine won’t be going away anytime soon.

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