“Is that so? As expected, right? Hahaha!”

“Yes, today I came here to talk about this rather than for training.”

I spread the paper on the training ground floor so it would be easy to see.

Leo, who had been laughing as if relieved, checked the contents and then laughed for a different reason.

“…Doesn’t it seem impossible by common sense?”

“By common sense, yes. But something irrational is happening. Let me explain.”

Leo waved his hand at my words.

“Wait a minute, before you start talking. Do you know that if you walk around outside, rumors will spread for sure? The school knows you always keep your mouth shut, so there’s not much talk. But outside, people will just find out you’re behaving like a normal person now. People outside don’t run into you as often as your school friends do, so they won’t have time to notice you’re still acting like a social outcast!”

“Is this worry or what?”

“It’s concern, you bastard.”

I never really acted like a social outcast…

I just didn’t bother talking to anyone because improving my skills was urgent. From his perspective, I guess it looked like that.

Should I be pleased about this or not?

“…Yeah. Anyway, of course, I know. I wouldn’t plan something like this without any precautions. Look, you know the cases of beast attacks have surged this year, right? So the Magic Security Bureau has started granting individuals the qualification of a cleaner.”

“That’s well known. But from what I hear, there aren’t many applicants.”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

Most mages are of noble status.

The stronger the magic, the higher the rank. Magic is hereditary, and ranks are already given to the previous generation.

So the hunting reward doesn’t act as a good incentive for skilled mages.

Moreover, beasts can’t invade the places where mages live, so they’re insensitive to the danger.

Taking on such odd jobs doesn’t dramatically elevate their honor, so there’s even less reason to do this work.

As a result, only non-mages, who aren’t making much money, volunteer for this job.

And local offices composed of residents from the same area secretly let these people handle the beasts.

Although this fact is not widely known yet.

Then Leo, with a puzzled face, rustled through the papers and said.

“Since there are few people seeking the office, you’ll stand out more. First, let me ask this. Are you going alone?”

“That’s right. I brought it up to you because I wanted to ask about an artifact craftsman.”

At those words, Leo thought for a while and then spoke.

“First, let’s think about a practical problem. You can’t operate under your own name. As a student, they will thoroughly verify your identity. Everyone in the capital knows your face, so how are you going to get past that?”

Yeah. It’s natural to think this way.

But once we get there, this utterly reasonable expectation will shatter.

“I’ve already investigated. Contrary to your expectation, they’re not thorough at all. And in case of emergencies, I plan to change my identity, of course. I’ve thought it all through.”

“…Sorry to say this for the third time, but you do know you’re already famous in the Empire, right?”

“I know.”

Leo looked at me as if he was seeing a complete lunatic.

“Changing your identity, sure. But even if you cover your face, how will you hide your eyes? Everyone in the Empire knows the color of your eyes.”

At his words, I nodded.

Luca’s pink irises are almost nonexistent in the Empire.

Or more precisely, they’re exclusive to Pleroma.

The color of magic is linked to the iris color, so it’s also close to pink. This, too, represents Pleroma.

All the family members have light brown or sky-blue irises, so Luca’s iris color is exceptionally rare.

Even if I cover everything, people can identify me by the eyes and the color of the magic I use. Leo’s reaction is quite understandable.

‘Actually, since I have divine power, I’ve already solved the magic problem.’

I can simply use divine power instead of magic.

The problem is the eyes. Covering the face with a mask won’t solve it.

But I already know a method used by the protagonist in the novel.

“Yes, there’s a way. But you’ll have to help.”

“Me? Why?”

Leo asked, widening his eyes.

* * *

I swallowed the potion Leo had prepared.

Leo crossed his arms and squinted suspiciously.

“…Where did you learn about this? It has side effects, so even the elders in the family don’t use it much.”

I used the side effects to change the color of my eyes.

This potion changes the color of magic as a side effect.

Since it affects the core, it produces a power different from the original, so everyone avoids it.

I answered Leo’s question nonchalantly.

“I studied. If you know anyone in the royal family, tell them to consider regulating it to prevent criminal misuse. Maybe around next year.”

Since I preempted what the protagonist would do, mentioning it isn’t a bad idea.

Of course, only to the extent that it doesn’t raise suspicion.

“…You’re saying regulate it after you get all the use out of it, huh. Anyway, did you study abroad? It’s hard to know this much within the Empire. Or did you study magical pharmacology?”

“Something like that. Thanks for preparing the potion.”

He conveniently made up stories on his own.

Leo smiled at my attempt to change the subject.

“Thanks?”

“Yes.”

I looked away from the potion and stared at Leo.

There’s a reason he suddenly put on such an expression after being skeptical the whole time.

I gave him a look, urging him to speak up, and Leo got to the point.

“If you’re grateful, do me a favor.”

“What is it?”

“I’ll handle the artifact commission. But let me go with you. Don’t worry about the reward; you can take it all.”

‘What’s this guy saying….’

I shrugged my shoulders.

“I don’t mind, but why is this a favor? It’s a waste of time.”

“Don’t worry about my time. I just can’t trust your skills yet.”

“I’ve been dealing with beasts for the past week, and it’s not that hard. I’ll start with the lower ranks for safety.”

“For you, even mid-rank beasts wouldn’t be difficult. But I’m afraid you’ll burn everything around you.”

I silently agreed.

Surely, someone of Leo’s caliber wouldn’t be pleased with my handling. Now that I’ve learned control, I won’t completely scorch the area, though.

And having one more person isn’t a bad thing.

“Fine, I don’t mind.”

So, the next day we headed to the office I had found.

Leo frowned and stepped aside.

“…Stay away. It sounded weird when you explained it, but seeing it in person is even stranger. You look like a thief….”

“Do you think I like going around like this?”

I adjusted my mask and grumbled at Leo’s complaint. Unlike Leo, who was neatly dressed, I was wrapped head to toe in a black robe and hat.

Leo looked at me with a reluctant expression and sighed.

“At least your irises changed properly.”

The originally pink irises now shone a deep blue in the darkness.

It’s a common color, making it hard to identify anyone by it.

Leo cast a spell to prevent our voices from leaking out and spoke quietly.

“Remember, you’re just a servant I hired personally. If someone asks why you’re dressed like that, I’ll say you’re a traveler from the Papal State. So keep your mouth shut. Got it?”

“Got it. What about titles? A low-ranking person can’t just call you by your name in front of others.”

“Hmm… don’t use any unnecessary titles. Just keep it to a minimum.”

After walking for a long time, we came upon a wooden building with damaged outer walls on the outskirts of the forest.

Leo furrowed his brow and illuminated the surroundings with his wand.

“Did we come to the wrong place? We should be in the right area.”

“No, we’re in the right place.”

I remembered the protagonist harshly criticizing this as a ‘completely dilapidated building.’

This building looked more like a ruin than any other I’d seen, so it had to be the one.

I knocked on the door naturally.

When there was no response for a while, Leo tilted his head.

“No reaction. Is no one here?”

“No, someone’s here.”

I knocked on the door with more force.

Then, a small window in the middle of the door opened irritably.

Two eyes, glaring as if annoyed, looked at me.

“What do you want?”

“We’re here for the cleaning.”

Bang―!

The sound of the window slamming shut made Leo flinch.

Experiencing such a brusque dismissal for the first time, Leo gaped in disbelief.

“What the…!”

“Wait a bit.”

No need to be flustered. They did the same to the protagonist.

Then, the door swung wide open.

The fierce look from earlier had disappeared, replaced by a bright expression on the person’s face.

The person held out a worn-out notebook.

“I didn’t expect anyone to come for work at this hour. Please write your names here.”

“I also brought an identity certificate. Do you need it?”

The person shrugged, looking surprised by my question.

“Do you have one? If you do, show it. But you know, if we ask for such things, no one would catch those creatures. We’re just grateful if someone says they’ll catch them.”

Leo spoke with a sympathetic expression.

“I heard there’s a severe shortage of people here. It seems to be true.”

“It’s not just a shortage, there’s literally no one. The only people who knocked on this door all week were lost travelers. But….”

The manager looked us up and down and chuckled with a resigned expression.

“You have guts. Seems like you didn’t even bring any weapons. You can use the ones here and return them tomorrow morning.”

“Oh, we already have our own.”

“Uh?”

The manager looked puzzled as Leo pulled out a wand from his waist and showed it.

“We’re not planning to stay long, so we don’t need swords.”

“…A mage?”

The manager’s eyes widened.

Leo answered with a puzzled look.

“Yes, we are mages. Only mages are qualified to deal with beasts….”

The manager, who seemed not to hear Leo’s words, suddenly turned pale and bowed deeply.

“I’m sorry! A real mage has never come here before, so I….”

“No, it’s fine. But… do non-mages come here?”

“……”

“Please tell me what’s going on. I assure you, we understand the risk to your safety and won’t mention it anywhere.”

“Well, usually….”

Naturally, the manager couldn’t continue speaking.

I leaned in and whispered to Leo.

“Do you really think they’ll feel comfortable talking to a noble? Didn’t you notice how their tone changed?”

“…I realized after I said it, so don’t mock me.”

Leo snickered and pushed me aside.

Unless the headquarters changes, there’s no solving this issue. Reporting it anywhere would only cause trouble. We need to cut this conversation short.

I spoke up, seeing Leo was lost for words.

“I understand the situation. Let’s leave it at that for now. We came here after reading an article about the increased frequency of beast appearances. We need permission to enter.”

“Oh, yes. Are both of you mages?”

“Yes.”

The manager hurriedly checked the notebook and looked at me with confused eyes.

They wouldn’t turn us away now that we were here, but my all-black robed and masked appearance was suspicious to anyone.

“This person is…?”

“I am from the Papal State. Currently, I’m with….”

“My assistant. Hahaha! He said he wanted to travel the Empire!”

Leo hurriedly answered, pushing me back as if expecting what I would say.

“I see. It’s an honor to have you both here. Are you planning to leave right now?”

“Yes.”

“Then take this magic stone. There’s a barrier, so you can’t enter without it.”

“Thank you.”

After finishing our greetings, we left the building.

After walking for a while and entering the barrier, I snickered.

“Why did you answer so hastily? Did you think I’d say something?”

“I didn’t expect you to answer properly….”

He muttered with a darkened face.

Though we hadn’t even encountered a beast yet, he already seemed exhausted.

“Hold on.”

I stopped walking as an unusual smell mixed with the gentle breeze.

I looked around.

“The smell of blood.”

“Huh? I don’t smell anything.”

Without responding, I turned towards the scent.

Leo, sensing something, cast a thick barrier around us and followed.

The further we walked, the more we heard a creature frantically scratching something.

“…!”

Crunch— Crack—!

“Damn.”

I stopped abruptly and looked down.

Rats, tainted with a purple hue, were gnawing at each other.

No, they were so deformed they could hardly be called rats anymore.

The mixture of pus and blood emitted an indescribable stench.

“…Shit….”

Leo, looking nauseous, covered his nose and stepped back.

“They could eat a person…. There are more than a few. Could there be a nest nearby?”

“Seems like it. And most of them look like they’re about to go berserk.”

“Yeah.”

“They’ll come at us soon.”

“…Yeah, damn it….”

Leo closed his eyes tightly, let out a deep sigh, and swung his wand, transforming it into a sword of suitable length.

“Don’t complain too much. If we start with these guys, it’s a good welcome.”

I smiled and drew my wand.

Noticing our presence, red dots gleamed all around us.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep