Chapter 2: Ghost Mansion
Since she was a child, Finne loved books.
After losing her parents at the age of five, books saved her from feeling alone in the vast world.
Fortunately, the ghost mansion where Finne was imprisoned had many books left behind by their owner.
She carefully brushed off the dust from the damaged old books and immersed herself in the world of books.
Among them, Finne loved the mysterious books lined up on the back shelf.
The faintly glowing books seemed invisible to the maids.
She confirmed it many times through experiments, and she was sure that only she could see those books. That’s why Finne read those glowing books with enthusiasm.
(Surely they must be special and amazing books!)
Although the books were written in a language that Finne did not know, she could somehow understand the words written there.
[That’s great, kid. You can read that book. ]
The person who spoke to her had long, fluffy hair and a beautiful face that had a dreamlike quality to it.
He wore a robe that made him look like a famous wizard and looked at her with interest.
“Who are you, Ojii-san?”
[I’m not Ojii-san. I’m your Onii-san. ]
The man’s voice, with his narrowed eyes and smile, seemed to resonate directly in her head without passing through her eardrums.
[Moreover, you can see me. That’s amazing. You’re a prodigy. ]
His body was translucent, and if you looked closely, you could see the window in the back faintly peeking through.
“Um, are you a ghost?”
[Well, isn’t this where you should be more surprised?]
“I’m busy reading now, so I’ll talk to you later.”
[Huh? Oh, okay. . .]
From then on, Finne immersed herself in reading and left the ghost alone for half a day.
“Phew, that was interesting.”
[You’re really laid-back, aren’t you. ]
“Because Mr. Ghost. . .this book is so interesting.”
[Well, as the author, I’m honored to hear that. ]
“Did you write this book?!”
Finne leaned forward and asked the Ghost many questions.
He was known as the 《Sage of Dawn》 in the past and knew everything.
Naturally, Finne began to admire Mr. Ghost and called him Master.
“Hey, Master. Let’s play hide-and-seek. You can be the demon all the time.”
[What kind of bullying rule is that?]
“Hey, Master. I ate a mushroom in the garden, and now my mouth feels tingly.”
[Spit it out!]
“Hey, Master. I can’t sleep, so can you stay with me?”
[Sure. What do you want to talk about?]
Although she was embarrassed to say it, spending time with Mr. Ghost was very comfortable for Finne.
As a teacher, friend, and surrogate parent.
When a maid heard their conversation, she wiped away her tears and said, “Imaginary friend. . .! Finne-sama, how pitiful. . .!” so they couldn’t talk too loudly.
While learning various things from her master, Finne steadily became a full-fledged wizard.
“Hey, Master. There’s a magic paper contest coming up. Can I submit something?”
[But it says in the rules that you have to be over 18 years old. ]
“It’s okay. I’ll use a fake name so my stepmother won’t find out. I’ll probably only make it through the first screening anyway.”
[That’s true. I think you have talent, but it’s tough to write something that will work for an adult-oriented paper contest at the age of 12. It’s okay as one experience. ]
Thus, Finne’s ‘Consideration of Magic Formula Collapse Constants in Eight and Twenty-Four Dimensions’ submitted under the name the《Witch of Dawn》 was welcomed with shock in the kingdom’s magical world.
The wizard with an unknown identity became known as a person with unprecedented talent in the history of the kingdom.
“Master! you said it wouldn’t work! Why?!”
[Well, because I didn’t think you would write something that good. . .Seeing you working so hard, I can’t tell you to stop releasing them. . .]
Finne stopped writing her thesis because she didn’t want any more trouble.
Instead, she started flying around and defeating demon beasts in the back mountains while hiding her identity behind a mask.
(This way, I can practice magic and relieve stress! It’s the perfect solution since it’s in the countryside and no one will see me. It’s truly a genius solution!)
However, the demon beasts in the back mountains that Finne defeated were classified as disaster-level creatures that inhabit the 《Demon’s Mountain》, one of the most dangerous areas on the continent.
As a just wizard protecting people from the threat of demon beasts, Finne’s reputation skyrocketed.
She was called various nicknames such as “the greatest genius in the history of the kingdom, ” “the pure and noble witch of salvation, ” and “the most dangerous woman in the north.”
While active as the《Witch of Dawn》, Finne, who had been living as a confined noblewoman, began to desire marriage with corrupt nobles after a conversation one day.
“Is there anything you want to do, Master?”
[Something I want to do?]
“Yeah. If you have something to do and you’re free, I can help you.”
[Finne is kind. ]
“Shut up. Just talk.”
Mr. Ghost laughed at Finne’s blunt response.
[I want to complete the research I was doing. I was so close. ]
“Well, why don’t I help you?”
[Thank you, but I can’t conduct the necessary experimental verification here. I need one of the legendary magical tools called 《Three Sacred Treasures》 in the Roston royal family, the 《Mirror of Cucumericulus》. ]
“Where is that mirror?”
“The Duke Creutzfeldt family owns it. I looked into it, but it’s currently off-limits, and even the owner doesn’t know where it is. I can understand why they would want to hide its power.”
Finne investigated the Duke Creutzfeldt family.
Bernard Creutzfeldt.
The absolute ruler of the Duke Creutzfeldt family.
He was a corrupt aristocrat with various dark rumors, such as unimaginable bribery, collusion with the Holy See, backroom deals with drug cartels, repeated suspicious deaths of his close aides, illegal drug trafficking, and illegal weapons manufacturing.
He liked young girls and committed unspeakable atrocities.
(So, a noble daughter who is estranged from her family and has no connections around her should be more interested. )
It wasn’t difficult to spread rumors about a noble daughter who was confined to a remote mansion and couldn’t go outside and create a marriage proposal.
[Why are you doing this? It’s dangerous, and there are risks. . .]
“It’s okay. I just wanted to do it. Besides, it would be fun to take down that corrupt Duke with a righteous hammer.”
[. . .I’ll definitely protect you. ]
“Thanks. Let’s pulverize that evil Duke together.”
Finne loaded as many books from the library as she could onto the carriage and set off for the Duke’s house.
“Poor Finne-sama. . .! I will always be on your side, no matter what!”
Mia, the maid, followed along forcefully.
Although she seemed to have many misunderstandings, Finne stopped thinking about it since having many allies was a good thing.
(Now! The evil and corrupt aristocrat is right in front of us! I’ll give him a running start and knock him out!)
As she was warming up and rotating her shoulders, it happened.
“Something terrible has happened! Charles-sama, Bernard-sama’s son, has rebelled! Bernard-sama has been detained by force, and Charles-sama is said to become the new lord. . .”
“. . .Eh?”
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