[V8C8] (No-mi-nal) Mas-ter
Translated by Jodas 8: The Witch of the BoundaryHeading for the Lange manor, Oliver took the lead at walking pace as Wren followed behind in a light jog and spoke to him.
The topic being that Romy girl they just ran across.
“Hey, hey, what kind of relationship do you have with that Romy girl back there, Oliver?”
“She lives in the same town.”
“Come on, give me more than that! Are you childhood friends? Do you play together often?”
“No. I often seclude myself in the mountains to train, so I rarely ever play with the kids of the village.”
“Then how did you get to know Romy?”
Oliver placed his hand on his chin in an attempt to recall old memories.
“It was back when I was still a kid. Romy was attacked by a boar in the mountains and…”
“And you went to save her?”
“I tried to save her and nearly died in the process. Then my father came to save both of us.”
Wren’s eyes narrowed and he groaned.
“…Right, of course. I keep forgetting you look stronger than you actually are.”
Judging from Oliver’s well-toned body, sharp gaze, and masculine expression, one would assume that he was quite powerful from looks alone. However, his skill with a spear is only marginally better than a completely untrained civilian. His flight magic, too, is only useful for flying in a straight line.
Tia knew so many wonderful things about Oliver.
He was studious and a hard worker. He always devoted himself to a proper lifestyle, and excelled at cooking, sewing, and cleaning. He was the best among the Apprentices at folding his laundry and knew a great wealth of tips and tricks to improve your lifestyle.
…But disastrously, he had no talent for the spear or for magecraft.
Oliver didn’t seem dismayed at all with Wren’s rude remarks, and spoke conclusively.
“After that, Romy often came to watch me train.”
“Oh? … Did Romy bring you any snacks? Did she say things like ‘Do your best~!’ and whatnot?”
“Yes. I’m sure she must have been fascinated with spear arts.”
“Pretty boy punch!”
Wren swiftly threw a little jab at Oliver’s back.
Oliver looked down at Wren and spoke with a serious expression.
“I see. You also have an interest in strength training.”
“You dumbass~! That was my pretty boy retort to you being so stupid!”
Tia, Sevil, and Rukiye watched Oliver and Wren’s exchange from a few steps behind. Further behind them walked the two adults: Hütter and Otto.
Rukiye looked on with cold eyes as Wren picked a fight with Oliver.
“…I’m sure if Sophie was here, she’d join in with him.”
“Piyo? Why?”
“She loves that kind of stuff.”
‘I see, I see.’ Tia thought as she looked back towards Wren and Oliver.
But she had a feeling that the ‘kind of stuff’ Rukiye was talking about was more than just Wren being noisier than usual.
“I suppose he would be happy to meet Oliver again after not seeing him for a while. He had been quite nervous over the past few days.”
To Sevil’s words, Tia nodded with a “Pefun!”
Regardless of the kind of situation they were in, it was a happy thing to meet up with their fellow Apprentices again.
Especially Wren, who had been cared for a lot by Oliver and rose.
Of course he’d get a little excited to meet someone who was like an older brother to him.
The Lange manor had the appearance of a small fortress. On the side facing the mountains, there was a trench and a large stone wall. They most likely anticipated to see Monster attacks coming from the mountains.
On the side facing the village, there was a residential mansion. While it was large and stately, it wasn’t elaborately decorated. This mansion, placing heavy emphasis on practicality with signs of continuous repair and expansion, reminded them a little bit of the Wedge Tower.
When Oliver returned, one of the servants gave him a surprised look. “Oh, sir Oliver!”
Tia recalled that Oliver had only just left the Lange Hamlet on a messenger mission.
(Oh right. He came back faster than expected… And bringing us with him, too, that has to be a surprise to them.)
“Ah, how sad… I’m so sad…”
Upon hearing a familiar voice from the corner of the hall, Tia’s eyes went wide and she chirped “Piyo?”
There was a silver-haired woman with her staff against her chest and holding her face in both hands — Helena, from the Extermination Office.
“Now that they’ve found traces of Monsters, I have to go into the mountains… Exterminating Monsters in the mountains in Winter… Even though I hate the cold… It’s so sad… Oh? What’s this?”
It seemed like, amidst her ceaseless grumbling, Helena finally took notice of Tia and the others behind Oliver’s back.
Her eyelashes, wet with teardrops, blinked up and down a few times as she tilted her head in confusion.
“Is that not Sir Otto of the Protection Office, Sir Hütter of the Guidance Office, and all the Apprentices standing over there? …Why would you who were sent along with the Darwock Operation be here…?”
As expected, the information about Darwock hadn’t made its way here.
It was a hard situation to explain, but Hütter wasted no time in opening his mouth.
“The King of Darwock has passed. The operation to retake Darwock has been cancelled. For the time being, I’d like you to gather the other mages, please.”
“The King has passed… You don’t mean…”
“He was likely killed by Monsters.”
To Hütter’s response, Helena’s lips trembled. “How could this be…”
Hütter spoke with a grave expression.
“I’ve heard from Oliver that Monster tracks have been spotted in this area. That said, Monsters have already appeared not only around the Lange Hamlet but as far out as Merwen and the Western Wall.”
At last, what color remained in Helena’s face drained away.
That Monsters had begun to act with impunity outside of the Crystal Territory — That was the Wedge Tower’s greatest fear.
Helena’s ‘I’m so sad’ catchphrase disappeared and she spoke clearly and unambiguously.
“I understand. I’ll get everyone together. You should all head to the great hall in the back… We’re using that as our meeting room.”
People must have been going in and out of the great hall a lot. The doors were left wide open, and meeting tables and chairs had been brought in.
Helena promptly went to go summon the others. Tia and co. didn’t have to wait long at all before the combat specialists of the Lange Hamlet were assembed.
Including Oliver’s brother, Frederik Lange.
Frederik, who always approached them with a gentle smile, could not have been expected to smile under these circumstances. He had a tense expression, with faint bags under his eyes.
Nevertheless, the moment he noticed the presence of the Apprentices, he gave Tia a concerned smile.
“Hello, my rival. It sounds like you’re in a tough spot.”
“Pyofu… Yeah.”
Excluding Tia and the others, there were six mages of the Extermination Office (counting Frederik and Helena) and three mages of the Investigation Office.
Beside them, there were about a dozen or so fierce-looking men with leather chest armor. Those guys seemed to be the fighters of the Lange Family.
Struck by curiosity, Tia asked Frederik:
“Is Rikard not here?”
“Rikard is over in the Oks Hamlet. He’s also part of a Monster-Hunting Family, after all.”
The Oks Hamlet was apparently to the Southeast of the Lange Hamlet.
Frederik said that other Wedge Tower mages had been deployed there, but since the Oks family had relatively greater numbers, depending on the situation, Rikard might head over in this direction if things were under control over there.
As they had that discussion, someone from the Lange Hamlet called out to Frederik.
“Master, this is everyone we could gather.”
“Piyo?” Tia raised a voice.
“Frederik, you’re a ‘mas-ter’? Is a mas-ter an important person?”
“It’s like the representative of this family. You can add a (nominal) on to that if you want.”
“(No-mi-nal) Mas-ter?”
“Since I’m usually at the Wedge Tower, I usually push all my responsibilities on my uncle, the Acting Master.”
“Really?”
“Really. I only do ‘master-like’ things in emergencies like this.”
“I see… Yeah, I get it. Frederik is the (Nominal) Mas-ter!”
Hearing their exchange, Wren nudged Tia in the side.
‘What’s up?’ She tilted her head as Wren whispered to her.
“Hey, Tia. Have you and Frederik always had these kinds of conversations?”
“Yep. It’s always like this.”
“It’s like you’ve got this really distinctive tempo… Or, y’know, it’s just so… fluffy.”
“Perhaps Brother and Tia are just on the same wavelength.”
Overhearing Tia and Wren’s exchange, Oliver spoke softly.
“Alright, enough chit-chat. Let’s start our situational report.”
Once Hütter quieted down the Apprentices, the information exchange began.
First, Hütter explained the events on their end in simple terms.
He explained that the operation to retake Darwock was cancelled, that Headmaster Möbius was with Prince Axel, and that Tia had encountered a Greater Monster on her way South.
The moment Hütter mentioned that the Investigation Office mages stationed in Merwen were likely dead, everyone’s faces went pale. The mages of the Investigation Office showed particularly painful expressions.
“That said, we decided to return to the Wedge Tower via the Lange Hamlet, and along our way, we linked up with Oliver.”
After Hütter concluded his speech with that line, Frederik responded “Thank you for your report” with a grim face.
His voice was quiet, but deep within his eyes burned a silent rage and hostility.
“In that case, we shall provide you with an escort and send you on your way to the Wedge Tower. This place is not safe, so we suggest you hurry.”
Frederik seemed about to discuss who he would select to serve that role.
However, before he could say his next word, someone ran through the doorway. It was a member of the Lange Family with leather chest armor and a spear in hand.
“Monster attack! Multiple insect Monsters spotted! Spider webs have been sighted at the scene as well…!”
Spider webs. Those words caused Frederik’s eyes to shoot open.