Royal Magician – 186

Chapter 186 – The Albarn House

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Graham Albarn’s private room was filled with expensive furniture.

While it was all high-quality, it was not beautiful.

The magic lights were designed for function over aesthetics.

There were rows of books ordered neatly on the shelves.

As the servant brought the man to the room, Graham turned to him without a change in expression.

He was a merchant of about thirty years of age.

Though plain, there was something intelligent in the man’s eyes. And he had a strange air about him.

As if there was someone else inside.

“Who are you?”
“What do you mean?”
“You are using a transformation potion.”
“Impressive.”

The man took out a beautiful pocket watch.

“I am Luke Waldstein, captain of the 7th unit of the Royal Magicians Order.”
“It’s been a long time since I last saw you, Mr. Luke.”
“Yes, it has.”

Luke bowed politely.

“I have great sympathy for your position. As capable as you are, it is difficult to put a leash on every family member who is madly driven by ambition.”
“Get to the point.”
“You may be honest and sincere, but your greedy and calculating relations are putting you in a dangerous position. Perhaps they are doing it deliberately. Perhaps they intend to increase their share by getting rid of you.”
“That happens in every noble family. You already know that.”
“Was it House Eniagram who planned to attack the Royal Magicans Order, in order to influence the kingdom’s financial state?”
“At first, yes.”
“But not now?”
“I think the power has shifted to them.”
“Them?”
“They call themselves the Order of the Dragon.”

Luke pursed his lips.

“So House Eniagram are just puppets now?”
“That is my view of it.”
“Then things will be more difficult than I thought.”

Luke let out a deep sigh.

“The Order of the Dragon wishes to weaken the Royal Magicians Order in order to strengthen their hold on this country. And so they approached the most influential houses, and used them. This is true, is it not?”
“I believe it is.”
“Then you must help me.”
“Help you?”

Graham looked at Luke with suspicion.

“What this house has done is an act of treason. If word of this should come to light, the Albarn name will fall. However, I would prefer a different outcome. If you help me, I will welcome you as a close ally.”

The corner of his mouth rose a little as he continued.

“The Albarn house was merely cooperating with the 7th unit, in order to uncover this organization. That was why they agreed to the transaction. It was not treason, but an act to save the kingdom.”
“And what do you get out of it?”
“Albarn will owe me a great debt. The Order of the Dragon will fall into a trap, and I may be able to get information about them. I could not ask for a better result.”
“You mean…that you will get your promotion to a Magus-Rank.”
“Yes.”
“How do I know you will keep your word?”
“I won’t betray you. Because there is little advantage in doing that. Regardless, you don’t have much choice but to accept my offer.”

Graham was silent for half a minute.

The air in the room seemed heavy and cold.

“Fine. I will help you.”

He said.

“Will you make the same deal with House Eniagram?”
“I intend to.”
“I’m sure they will be eager to agree.”

Luke smiled fully then.

“Yes. Without a doubt.”

◇　　◇　　◇

The infiltration and negotiations with House Eniagram proceeded in much the same way.

As Luke had prepared everything carefully in advance, he had other options, should any unexpected developments occur.

And so both houses agreed to cooperate with the 7th unit.

“While no surprise, you really are good at this.”
“It’s because I understand what kind of people they are.”

Luke answered.

The money that had been prepared was then swapped with the fake money that Luke had prepared, and was kept in the back of the carriage.

It was copper with a special magic coating. Once seventy-two hours had passed, the paint would start to come off, and ninety hours later, it would just be scraps of copper.

Furthermore, there was a magic tracking device attached, which would allow them to find out where the enemy was hiding.

The people that would participate in the trade were those of house Eniagram and Albarn that were originally planned, as well as their guards.

Among the fifteen, eleven were from the 7th unit, who had used transformation potions.

“The most important thing is to avoid any combat.”

Luke said before departure.

“Ms. Leticia’s wrote in her notebook that she fought people who had incredibly high combat and magic ability. She is the vice-captain of the 3rd unit, but had to run, and still couldn’t do that alone. And there is no one like that in either house. In other words, they were from the Order of the Dragon. Also, Ms. Leticia says that she thinks they were being careful so as not to kill her.”
“They wanted to catch her alive?”
“Probably. I suppose they wanted to get information out of her through torture or a confession drug. And they would have succeeded, if it were not for a third party.”
“They were able to push Ms. Leticia to that point…”
“This may be more dangerous than any mission we faced before.”

Said Luke.

“And so if the situation becomes desperate, you should prioritize your own safety.”

The 7th unit was still new.

And yet this mission was so severe, that some of us might die.

(Perhaps we are thinking of something impossible)

That was what my senses told me.

However, there was no hesitation.

I was selfish and greedy, and had a secret resolve.

What I remembered then, was my first job after joining the Royal Magicians Order, the Red Rose Ball.

The words that Mr. Gawain said to me.

‘We will not only be there to protect those who attend the ball. Think also of the people who are waiting for their return.’

I remember feeling such admiration for him then.

Just as my mother was waiting for my return, the others also had people that were important to them.

(No matter what, we will all return safely)

I quietly promised myself.

The transaction was to take place in an abandoned corner of the 19th district.

Paint was chipped from the cracked walls, and the ground was littered with shards of broken pots and lamps.

It was a moonless night.

There was no lightsource nearby, and everything was shrouded in darkness.

The people of Albarn and Eniagram prepared their own magic lanterns.

There was also a magic light attached to the carriage, which let off a white glow.

However, it did not feel very reliable.

It was like the flame of a candle in a strong wind.

Luke was telling me about all of the hiding places.

“So, where will you hide?”
“I won’t hide.”
“Huh?”
“They will be wary of all those places. It is when you think you are safe, that you are in the most danger. So I will do the opposite.”
“Opposite?”
“The most dangerous place.”

For a second, I was not sure what I should say.

While positioning me and the others a short distance away, he was going to go deep into where the enemy was.

It was what he always did. He had reckless methods.

But this time, I felt that he was also right.

There was no place that was truly safe.

As the Captain of the 7th unit, he was thinking of the best option to secure everyone’s safety while still having the mission succeed.

“But you tell me to prioritize myself…”

I bit my lip.

I wanted to insist that I would go with him.

Because it would be more safe.

However, I had the job of protecting the others. And so I could not go with him.

I would just have to trust that he knew what he was doing.

“You better come back alive. Or I won’t forgive you.”

Luke’s eyes widened a little.
And then he smiled gently.
It was the kind of gentle expression that you might have while looking at a sleeping cat.

“If we succeed, and learn about this threat to the kingdom, it will without a doubt help the 7th unit’s reputation. And both yours and mine.”
“I thought you didn’t care about that.”
“I don’t. But…I think it might get me a promotion to Magus-Rank.”

He paused a moment.

“And if that happens, there is something that I want to talk to you about. Something that I could not tell you before. But I will finally be able to do it.”

I could sense it.

Luke was going to tell me something very important. Something that might change everything if I heard it.

We would not be as we were before.

That scared me a little.

Part of me wanted to continue this friendship as always.

But I felt that I also must hear him. If that is what he wanted. As a friend and as a person.

I had to face whatever it was.

“Will you hear it?”
“I will.”

I answered.

“And so you must return safely. Understand?”
“You don’t know how happy those words make me.”

Said Luke.

“I will come back. No matter what. I promise.”

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