Chapter 32
“You insolent fool!”
With a piercing shout, objects hurtled toward Mikael’s head.
Books, pens, laboratory glassware, and various odds and ends.
They weren’t items that would cause serious injury if they hit.
Still, they could’ve struck him if he wasn’t careful, but Eddie, informed about Joan’s temperament, kept Mikael still.
Thud! Crack!
Crash!
The objects narrowly missed Mikael, colliding with the door, walls, and floor, scattering everywhere.
“…”
Under Eddie’s control, Mikael stared straight ahead, unshaken.
Facing him, Joan Basilisa, the current master of Pasquier, threw the last remaining object with a furious expression.
Crash!
A glass cup flew from her hand, smashing against the door beside Mikael’s head.
Shards scattered close to his face, but Joan paid no mind.
‘As expected. This kind of tantrum must be routine,’ Eddie thought.
The objects Joan threw had all precisely avoided hitting Mikael.
She wanted to vent her anger but drew a line at harming her own people.
It was a scene that vividly showcased her volatile yet oddly rational nature.
The laboratory was a mess.
But as if accustomed to it, Joan pressed a spot on her desk to resolve it.
Vrrr—Vrrr—
With a faint vibration, the laboratory began to tidy itself in an instant.
As if time were reversing, broken items restored themselves, and scattered objects returned to their places.
‘She’s using restoration magic through an item without a wand,’ Eddie noted.
He recalled the information Leodimir had shared about Joan.
“She’s no pushover as a mage, but her talent for direct magic is supposedly abysmal.”
“Abysmal at direct magic… so her strength lies in crafting and using items.”
“Yes. And she’s an extremist who doesn’t shy away from cruel experiments. That’s what caught Ivan’s eye.”
It was just as Leodimir had described.
Among the various items and equipment filling her laboratory, one thing was conspicuously absent: a wand, the most fundamental magical tool.
She didn’t bother using one since her magic’s power was negligible anyway.
‘Inferiority about her magical ability, coupled with ambition and a competitive streak,’ Eddie mused.
As if to prove his assessment, Joan spoke in an agitated voice.
“What? ‘Make sure the laboratory doesn’t interfere with Shainborough’s affairs’?! Such arrogance from a mere butler who only knows petty tricks…!”
Her words carried a faint but distinct Candia accent.
An accent an outsider like a tail candidate would never pick up on.
Mikael Sarzio must be close enough to her to hear it.
Keeping Mikael expressionless, Eddie mulled over her words.
Unexpectedly, significant information had just fallen into his lap.
‘Ronan, a mage? His gaze was unusual, but I didn’t sense any mana…’
As Eddie recalled his memories of Ronan, a remarkably calm middle-aged woman’s voice interrupted.
“What are you standing there for? Aren’t you here to report on the First Synthesis Chamber’s mana synthesis progress?”
The Candia accent was gone.
Her demeanor was now rational and composed, as if she were a different person.
Joan picked up a pair of glasses and extended her hand toward Mikael.
Eddie had Mikael hand over the report and calmly observed Joan as she read it.
‘She’s fundamentally cold, but her temperament swings wildly depending on her mood.’
After reading the report, Joan furrowed her brow in dissatisfaction and lit a pipe.
Exhaling white smoke, she said, “Hmph, eleven failed attempts? Utterly useless.”
“They also conveyed that the experiment deadline you set is rather tight,” Mikael added, under Eddie’s control.
“What a fine excuse. The Second Synthesis Chamber is already producing meaningful results on experiments of the same difficulty. Those First Chamber folks got promoted and immediately grew lazy, whining about ‘tight’ deadlines.”
Joan tossed the report into the fireplace.
Watching it burn, she said firmly, “Tell them to clear out if they can’t deliver results. I don’t need slackers who get complacent after a promotion.”
“Understood,” Mikael replied.
Eddie gauged Joan’s mood, choosing his moment.
Then, through Mikael, he asked in a dry tone, “By the way, what are your plans for the items in the underground storage?”
“The underground storage?” Joan echoed.
“Yes. Reports indicate the storage is nearly full, making it difficult to accommodate new refining equipment.”
Eddie guided the conversation based on the reports Mikael had received.
The reports stated that Pasquier’s underground storage was nearing capacity, awaiting Joan’s orders for disposal or rearrangement.
Eddie intended to extract information through this.
Unaware of his intentions, Joan pondered briefly, then pressed her temples as if annoyed.
“Tch… Now that you mention it, the storage is about due to fill up. Next month, we need to bring in pods for specimen cultivation and large tanks, too.”
Frowning, she exhaled smoke irritably.
From what Eddie gleaned through Mikael, simply removing a few items wouldn’t free up enough space.
Except for one place.
A secretive location tied to why Eddie was here.
He had Mikael voice it.
“How about clearing Area A-1 to make space?”
As soon as Mikael spoke, Joan’s expression subtly hardened.
She slowly exhaled her pipe smoke, turned, and stared directly at Mikael.
“…Mikael. Don’t you know what’s stored in Area A-1?”
“I do,” Mikael replied.
“And yet you casually suggest clearing it?”
Joan’s voice lowered, her demeanor shifting.
But Eddie’s Mikael didn’t back down, meeting her gaze and continuing, “But those items have been sitting there for thirteen years. There’s an order not to dispose of them carelessly, but with a proper report, there shouldn’t be an issue.”
Area A-1 of Pasquier’s underground storage.
Stored there were items suited for long-range tracking, covert attacks, and stealth.
The very items used in the ambush on Noah and Jasper.
To eliminate loose ends, they were high-quality items, too valuable to discard, and kept for potential reuse.
In case Noah reappeared, to track and kill him again.
Recalling this from Mikael’s memories, Eddie suppressed his anger.
Joan, meanwhile, showed discomfort at her secret being touched.
After a pause, she muttered, “…That’s true.”
Eddie sighed in relief; his gamble had paid off.
As someone highly self-preserving, Joan was sensitive to her vulnerabilities being exposed.
But posing as the cold, rational Mikael, who had survived by her side, had successfully broached the topic.
And finally, Joan began to reveal the information Eddie needed to hear.
“But it’s tricky since the family head might want to track them down again. Noah Kirhausen is likely beyond recovery, but that lawyer—he’s tenacious. It wouldn’t be surprising if he’s still alive.”
Thump.
The information Eddie ‘needed’ wasn’t necessarily what he ‘wanted’ to hear.
His control over Mikael faltered briefly, a crack in his expressionless facade.
His heart sank, and the hand gripping his wand paled.
But he quickly steadied himself, refocusing on controlling Mikael.
Mikael spoke in a flat tone, as if never shaken, “Even so, the lack of any trace suggests they’re either dead or living in hiding with no intent to return.”
“…Hmph.”
Joan snorted lightly, taking another drag from her pipe.
Recalling the past, her expression grew complex before she spoke in a heavy tone.
“You’re saying that because you don’t know how cunning that lawyer is, Mikael.”
“Pardon?”
“That sly bastard could see two steps ahead. Escaping with the family head’s secret technique in that chaos proves it.”
“The family head’s secret technique…” Mikael prompted.
“Edmund von Kirhausen’s secret technique, Opsigno.”
Flinch.
“When we took over Shainborough, that was the only thing that vanished without a trace.”
Eddie nearly let Mikael gasp.
The name of the missing technique brought immense relief.
Opsigno.
A secret technique from his past life that sealed its target, protecting it from any interference or the passage of time.
When Eddie infiltrated the pocket dimension to retrieve his techniques, Opsigno was nowhere to be found.
He’d assumed it was being studied elsewhere or sold off, but to learn Jasper had taken it…
When Eddie learned Jasper had taken Noah, he’d considered various possibilities.
Among them was the slim chance that Jasper had taken Opsigno.
Jasper was the only one besides Edmund who could use his secret techniques.
It was truly fortunate.
For the first time since his reincarnation, Eddie felt like thanking a deity.
‘Jasper must’ve considered the worst-case scenario for Noah. He took it as a last resort to protect him. He really did it.’
“Of course, even if they used it on Noah Kirhausen, they couldn’t undo it. The unsealing ritual requires the mana wavelength of a direct Kirhausen descendant. But with all direct descendants dead, he’s as good as eternally asleep.”
“…I see. Besides, that man must be an old, frail invalid by now. Even if he could unseal it, he’d struggle to fight the current Kirhausen…”
“…‘Frail invalid’?”
Joan’s sharp gaze slowly turned to Mikael.
Her eyes seemed to ask, ‘How do you know that?’
Eddie realized his mistake but had Mikael respond calmly, “Considering the injuries Noah Kirhausen sustained, the lawyer protecting him would likely have been even more gravely wounded.”
“…”
Joan stared at Mikael without blinking, her intentions unreadable.
After a moment, she said in a softened tone, “You’ve gotten quite thoughtful, Mikael,” and took another drag from her pipe.