Oz hurried into the library, delving into the shelves he hadn’t explored yet and the books he hadn’t organized. Compared to magical manuals, there’s relatively few books on the history and events of this world, but the library isn’t empty. It’s true that I won’t find scandals worth chasing in them, since anything published or written down will be so old or well-known as to be boring, but if nothing else, it’ll give me an idea of what’s scandalous in this time period, as well as a background for who would be a good target for a scandal. ‘Gossip’ was a good start, but now isn’t the time to rest on my laurels.

What I’m looking for is a golden boy. Someone with no scandals or filth in his past. If I can reveal something horrible about someone well-trusted, I’ll be able to distract from myself far more effectively than if I find yet another scandal on someone already known to attract scandal.

“Linnea!”

Soft footsteps hurried to his side. “Yes?”

Oz nodded at her. “Find every book on history, gossip, or… well, basically anything but magic. Geography. Cartography. I need to know every little detail about the Mages’ Quarter, from the people living here, to the land, to the mortals, to the, the, uh, the leader of the Mages’ Quarter—”

“The Grand Magus?”

“Yes, that person.”

Linnea squinted at him. “Your Master just ascended. Do you think a new Grand Magus has already been decided?”

“That… oh.” Oz paused. He looked at Linnea. “Who’s in the running to be the next Grand Magus?” Whoever is, will be a prime target for scandal!

“Plenty of people you haven’t met yet—well, they wouldn’t deign to visit someone as lowly as yourself. You’ve met some of their underlings, though. Let’s see. Naomhan from the Severance Sect is under consideration, assuming he survives his secluded study. And Aoife, the Headmistress of the Sielver Academy, she’s in the running. They’re mostly sect leaders and the sort.” She paused, then added, “You’ve met one. Well, this was years ago, but…”

“But?” Oz prompted her.

“Sachairi used to be a top contender for Grand Magus. Before his injury, it seemed like you heard about him ranking up every other year, and his star was hurtling for the heavens. Mages used to bet on whether he or Madame Saoirse would hit Ascension first. But then…” Linnea fell silent.

“Then… what?” Oz asked.

Linnea took a deep breath. She shook her head. “I don’t know all the details. It’s better if you hear it from the man himself.”

Oz pursed his lips. I’ll have to ask him the next time I see him. Though he doesn’t seem too eager to talk about his wounds. What did he call it? ‘A mistake.’ What kind of mistake could he make, to ruin not only his power, but also his social standing to the extent that other mages look down on him, whereas they used to consider him Grand Magus potential?

I hate to be callous, but whatever happened to him is certainly a big enough scandal to distract from me. If I can replicate that…

Oz shook his head. I can’t do that. Sachairi’s the one who gave me this push. It would be betrayal to immediately turn it back on him. Better if I forget this, and go looking for a scandal of my own.

“Anyone else worth mentioning in the running for Grand Magus?” Oz asked.

Linnea started to shake her head, then jolted. “Wait! Cecil. Cecil Daggarty.”

“Cecil Daggarty? The guy who’s been harassing me?” Oz asked.

“One and the same. He’s not a front-runner, but he’s been slowly gathering approval among the various sects for the last few years, and his power has been skyrocketing lately. No one used to take him seriously as a candidate, but if he hits sixth rank soon, he might win the spot.”

“Is sixth rank the minimum to become Grand Magus?” Oz asked. Out of ten ranks, six is well on the way to Ascension.

“Not formally, but the sects won’t show respect to anyone under sixth rank, as most of their leaders are at least sixth rank. Any leader substantially under sixth rank is a lame duck, at best, or a puppet, at worst.”

He frowned. “Then Madame Saoirse…”

Linnea nodded. “Most mages leave the Mages’ Quarter long before they reach Ascension. Your Master was a bit of an oddball in sticking around for so long. She suppressed all the other sects with an iron fist and got a lot of work done, but…”

“But in return, she was seen as a tyrant and a bully, huh,” Oz muttered. Like a middle school brat lording it over a sandbox full of elementary schoolers. I think I understand why the library seems so little-loved, now.

The sects may have fawned over Madame Saoirse while she remained, but the second she no longer could actively suppress them, the claws came out. Not true friends, but merely a bunch of wild dogs, too afraid to bite a wolf. But now that a pitiful lamb like myself has taken her place…

He scowled. “Madame Saoirse sure didn’t make it easy for me.”

“What do you mean? Most mages would dream of owning this many manuals,” Linnea said, almost drooling.

Oz snorted. Yeah, alright. Now I’m the one who sounds like a brat. “Alright. Get me all the books on the Mages’ Quarter you can find! We’ll meet at one of the booths near the lobby in half an hour.”

Linnea saluted. Reverting to her spider form, she scurried off along the shelves, plucking books with all eight limbs. Oz turned the other direction, occasionally practicing the light body technique to snatch a book from a high shelf.

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

He stumbled back to the lobby forty-five minutes later to find Linnea, back in human form, already tucked into a booth, a small mountain of books piled next to her. She looked up from a heavy text and gave him a look. “You’re late.”

“Sorry, sorry.” Oz thumped his own stack of books down and joined her, sliding into the chair opposite hers in the nook. Soft plush cushions swallowed him up. Instinctively, he let out a sigh of relief. Damn, these chairs are nice. Why haven’t I been using them?

“So… what are we looking for?” Linnea asked, looking up.

“Scandals!” Oz declared.

“In history books?”

“I need a lay of the land. If I can absorb every scrap of information about all the powerful mages in the Mages’ Quarter, I’ll have much better footing to locate scandals from among them.”

Linnea squinted at him. “Why are you trying to pick a fight with a powerful mage?”

Oz waved his hand. “Let me worry about that. Just read!”

He snatched up a book and started reading, while Linnea did the same. For a time, the only sound was the soft flick of pages turning, interspersed with a dull thump as Oz or Linnea set a volume aside.

At last, Linnea got up. “That’s enough reading for me. I think I’ve learned everything I can. I’m going to practice. Mind if I use the World Door?”

“Be careful not to let Fflyn out. And don’t kill him,” Oz said distractedly.

“Understood,” Linnea replied.

Oz ignored her, already immersed in his books once more.

She stood there for a moment, then snorted and walked off. “Idiot.”

Time passed. Oz fetched food and water and went back to reading until he dozed off in the chair. When he woke up to the early light of dawn, he swallowed an antidote and went back to reading. The pile of books moved from beside him to the opposite side as he read through them.

At last, he sat back, stretching his legs in his seat. He rubbed his eyes and groaned. Ugh. It’s been a long time since I pulled an all-nighter. Since my college days. I’m too old… He looked at his young hands. …too reincarnated for this shit.

But I learned plenty. This world’s sense of scandal isn’t too out of line with my world’s. There’s a few exceptions on account of magic and demons and the like existing, but there’s nothing ridiculous.

Well. More ridiculous than scandal generally is, anyways.

He lifted a tax compendium and leafed through it, skimming the results. Generally, things have been going well in the Mage’s Quarter and the surrounding mortal world for a while. Some areas are doing worse than others, some are doing unusually well or poorly, but overall, it’s generally smooth sailing.

Or is it?

His finger landed on one column, deep in the data. A row of numbers marched away, static for year after year, with only a few deviations.

This region. The… Lafayne Region. The population numbers fluctuate by single digits, but never more than that. Year after year, almost the same exact population, tracing back decades. Does no one get born, no one die, and no one move in or away?

Or is someone fudging the numbers?

He tapped the page, thoughtful. There’s no guarantee that this means anything. It could simply be a coincidence. And even if someone is fudging the numbers, it might simply be that they’re skimming off the top of the taxes, or too lazy to accurately calculate the region’s residents. I don’t even know that a mage is involved in the region.

Sachairi’s voice echoed in his head. “No one does scandals better than the mortal world.”

Oz frowned, brow furrowing. Sachairi pointed me at the mortal world for a reason. Is this that reason? Is there any way to check from where I sit?

“Still reading?” Linnea asked, coming up behind him.

Oz turned. “No, I’ve finished. Linnea, have you heard of the Lafayne Region?”

Linnea frowned. “Hmm… a few times.”

“Oh? From who?”

She tapped her chin. A second later, her eyes lit up. “Oh, that’s right. It’s Cecil Daggarty’s hometown.”

Oz’s eyes lit up. One of the candidates for Grand Magus? Wonderful! If I can find anything about the region, or better yet, him himself, I can use it to either attack him, or provoke him into taking action. This must be what Sachairi was hinting about.

A moment later, his eyes dimmed. But how am I going to get there? If I step outside, I’ll get smushed, and I can’t ask anyone to go investigate for me. Sid is my best hope, and she’s basically an ordinary cat!

Oz looked up at Linnea. “Linnea, you’re a demon. Do you know dark magic? Or, er, know about dark magic?”

“Typical human, assuming all demons know dark magic,” Linnea said, rolling her eyes.

“Sorry. I’ll—”

She chuckled, waving her hand. “Of course I know dark magic. What do you want to know?”

Oz sat forward. He knitted his fingers together. “Are there dark magic cloning techniques?”

“Certainly, but not at your level,” she said, flicking her eyes up and down him.

Hmm. What would be considered basic dark magic, then?

His eyes widened. Wait. I think I have an idea. Almost every ghost and demon can do this in my world, so I think it’s a reasonable ask. True, they do it in legend, myth, and fiction, but given that magic is real here, it’s probably not ridiculous to consider. He cleared his throat. “What about possession, then?”

“Yes. There are possession spells even for a mage of your level.”

Oz brightened up. “Then—”

“But your target needs to be at your level or weaker. And before you ask, no, I don’t know a possession technique. Spider demons aren’t well suited to possession techniques. If you want to know how to use web or poison, though, I can assist.”

Oz sighed. He pushed away from the table, stretching his body out so he laid flat in the chair. “Dammit! Argh. But surely there’s dark magic in this library, right? No way Madame Saoirse ignored dark magic in her pursuit of all magical manuals.”

“I did hear tales of her stealing rare manuals from high-ranked demons,” Linnea agreed.

Oz pointed at her. “She has to have dark magic in here somewhere. But where? I’ve walked this whole damn library, and I haven’t seen any dark tomes.”

“Have you looked at every single individual tome?” Linnea asked.

Spreading his hands, Oz gestured at the multitude around them. “No. Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Now may be the time.”

“I don’t want it to be,” Oz groaned. True, she could have hid a needle in a haystack. I don’t want to believe in that world, though.

Wait. Given how horribly they treated Linnea, and how negatively the mage world regards dark magic in general, there’s no way Madame Saoirse would have openly displayed her dark magic tomes. A needle in a haystack isn’t a good strategy if a righteous mage can turn your life upside down if they find a single dark tome. True, it’s not as if Madame Saoirse had to care, but on the other hand, there’s no way she simply threw dark magic out there for any of her students to learn. She must have hidden them away somewhere.

He sat up, pinching his chin. She hid Fenrir under the floor panel. I wonder if the dark magic manuals are down there as well? Fenrir was in a big, empty room, after all. Those stone walls… I wonder if that’s all they are?

“What?” Linnea asked.

Oz stood, stretching with a big yawn. He lowered back down and cracked his neck, then nodded at Linnea. “Let’s go see Fenrir.”

“Why?”

Oz paused. “Why not? Isn’t he a demon like you?”

“Like me? He’s a jotunn! He was born two levels higher than I’ve attained in my life!”

“Oh,” Oz muttered, not understanding at all.

Linnea shook her head. “It’s a dog-eat-dog world out there for demons. Infant jotunn hunt down adult arachne. He’s terrifying to me.”

Oz’s eyes widened. He nodded. “He’s your natural predator.”

“He—yes.”

“If you don’t want to go, you can stay up here,” Oz said.

Linnea hesitated. After a moment, she shook her head. “He’s restrained. It’s fine.”

Oz clapped her on the shoulder. “Then let’s go!”