Chapter 31

I wasn't sure I was good enough yet.

In fact, history recorded plenty of ordinary neutral mages breaking the law. And it wasn't just mages, knights, warriors, or archers. Even the druid sects, which were close to nature, had their share of fanatics and those who had gone astray. A famous example was the Destroyers among the druids. They firmly believed that all things must come to an end, so they might as well start destroying them now...

What kind of logic was that?!

So the kind of power someone used really had nothing to do with whether they were a good person. I'd wager the vast majority of people locked up in the capital's prison were ordinary people with no class at all. Hmm, come to think of it, I'd never actually seen a prison.

Dealing with politicians and reporters was such a pain, much worse than spending a whole day packed into an airship. One fat guy kept talking to me, while another man, who looked like a fairly high-ranking official, seemed to be his rival. Whenever he got the chance, he would jump in, pick at what the fat guy said, and make mocking remarks he apparently thought were cutting. The problem was, he kept looking at me afterward. Why was he looking at me?

Uh... among that bunch of ugly politicians, he was fairly decent-looking, but the contrast made him look like a peacock displaying its feathers and giving off pheromones.

Run, run... Ah, I'd send my shadow running that way to throw the enemy off!

Phew... I'd finally made it to the library. That was more exhausting than holding Anna while fleeing from pursuing orcs. When orcs attacked me, I could fight back, but when politicians crowded around me, I couldn't exactly blast them with a forbidden spell, could I? I really wasn't that "cold, arrogant dark mage" the media made me out to be.

I looked around. There were plenty of books here, and I liked the design of the bookshelves, but the classification was clearly inadequate. It looked like the library was managed by ordinary staff. Sometimes only mages could properly organize books on such advanced magic. I'd never had to work this hard to find a book in my teacher's library.

Oh! "Space Magic"!

I flew up and reached for it-

Huh?

I froze. There was another mage beside me, reaching out at almost the same time as I did, and then... I grabbed his hand.

...His, his... his fingers were so long!!!

Chapter 31

I'd only taken two steps before the crowded stream of people shoved me from side to side.

Those cyborgs were still moving in that strange way, and worse, this wasn't a prison where I could just attack as I pleased. The place was packed and noisy, and I couldn't very well stand here throwing spells around. But the villains had it easy: under cover of the noisy crowd, they were even harder to spot. If I hadn't fought them before and memorized the pattern of their mental power fluctuations, I might not have noticed them either.

The peacekeepers maintaining order on the ground had no thought of looking up at all. They watched the crowd alertly, without glancing aside. Unfortunately, right above their heads, the cyborgs were clambering with incredible agility up the building's outer wall, taking care to avoid the sunlit areas. They were obviously criminals well practiced in petty theft.

The capital's peacekeepers were seriously lacking in combat awareness. Maybe it was because the Federation placed particularly strict restrictions on military enterprises. I supposed they hadn't expected villains bolder than dragons and more thick-skinned than goblins to cause trouble in Holy Light City.

"Peacekeeper-over there..."

I stopped halfway through my shout because the crowd erupted in a thunderous cheer.

Everyone in the packed crowd was looking toward the main entrance. The central square over there was crammed as tight as a tin can, and a giant electronic screen was replaying the meetings from the past two days-because today's meeting wasn't open to the public.

Wow, there was even a holographic projection showing Mel writing!

No wonder I'd heard so many excited screams.

Mel really was popular. Especially since everyone in our Federation, from the government to ordinary citizens, loved magic. Who wouldn't like such an outstanding mage?

...Wait, what was I doing?!

I immediately tore my gaze away from the holographic projection. The cyborgs had already climbed more than twenty floors, and they'd taken out the strange device I'd seen that night.

I reached into my pocket, only to find it empty...

Oh no, going out without a phone really could cause trouble. I had no idea where Lusien was, I thought with a headache. I was more worried about that piece of technology I couldn't identify. Moli had told me that many magitech explosives were extremely powerful and would go off from the slightest outside impact. If that was some kind of time bomb and it blew up as soon as I hit it with a spell, I'd become an accomplice.

There was no helping it... I closed my eyes and concentrated on sensing with my mental power, temporarily ignoring the cyborgs scrambling around in the distance. Everyone had their own distinct mental power fluctuations. Although those of the same race or class were very similar, I could still distinguish people I knew-especially since Lusien was a very powerful knight. He should stand out, and he shouldn't be too far away.

Found him!

I concentrated my mental power into a single point and aimed it at Lusien, trying to contact him as if knocking on a door. Who would have thought there'd be no response even after quite a while? How could he be so insensitive? I was wondering whether to use a little more force when another stream of mental power cautiously approached mine.

It was extremely powerful and steady mental power. This was a spellcaster!

I sensed a holy attribute in his mental power. Those with a holy attribute were most likely priests of the God of Light, so I opened my defenses and accepted his contact. He did the same, and the connection between two spellcasters' mental powers was much more stable. This kind of contact was convenient, no more trouble than making a phone call, and it saved on phone bills too... Oh, except we couldn't see or hear each other. It was the spellcasters' minds communicating.

"Mage Xipei?"

"Hm?" I was startled. "Who are you?"

How did he know my name was Xipei?!

"I'm Luolan Heiye, a priest of the Temple of Light. You're the person His Excellency Mephistopheles wrote about on the ceiling, aren't you?"

"!!!" I remembered him—the elven priest of light!

Oh heavens!

He really did understand ancient Elvish. I wanted to raise a hand to cover my face, only to find that I was too hemmed in to move... So... he hadn't reported Mel?

Luolan sent a mournful message: "Do you know how many healing spells I used on my eyes that day?"

Hm? What Mel had written was just ordinary writing. It couldn't hurt anyone's eyes, could it? I was a little puzzled, and then another helpless message came from the other end. "Your Excellency, don't you know that knights are creatures with well-developed limbs and simple minds? Most knights' mental power is no different from a slime's, even our holy knights'... You poked Lusien with your archmage-level mental power, and the poor knight is lying at my feet foaming at the mouth."

Ah... I'm sorry... I hadn't realized knights' mental power was so weak...

"But don't worry, knights are also good meat shields with thick skin who can take a beating. Their endurance is incredibly high, and their recovery is first-rate. He's already sitting up with his eyes rolled back!"

...That just made me feel even sorrier for Lusien!

Priest Luolan soon helped me ask Lusien. I felt terribly sorry, because I'd never before had anyone I needed to contact urgently in this way, so I might have done Lusien some harm. He'd probably have a headache for a few days.

Lusien was every bit the responsible, dedicated knight. He quickly replied that it could indeed be some kind of detonator. He immediately told me to leave the scene and said he would dispatch the Magitech Corps.

"Don't listen to this flea... I mean, this knight's nonsense." After relaying his words, Luolan changed tack and told me, "Let him stay unconscious. He hasn't even considered it: if an internationally watched magic summit is interrupted by a few military enterprises' hired thugs, the reputation of the Federation and our Temple will be used as a rag to wipe the floor."

Huh? Had Lusien passed out again? I sighed and reflected seriously.

Hmm... But Priest Luolan was right. If the Magitech Corps were dispatched, they'd have to impose a lockdown and evacuate the public. Never mind the enormous panic that would cause—it would take so much time. By the time they were done, the cyborgs would have blown the building sky-high!