Chapter 12 – In which NO ONE panics

Knock knock.

“Please, come in.”

Though Vern said that, no one came in.

Instead Sangria’s voice was heard behind the closed door.

“Young Master, you don’t look like a ghost today, do you?”

“I don't.”

Only then the door slowly opened and Sangria peeked in.

He looked at Vern up and down and when he confirmed Vern didn’t change into a ghost, he entered.

“Young Master, if you’re alright with that… I think we need to talk about yesterday.”

Sangria started slowly after closing the door.

Yesterday’s night, after they escaped from the Magic Exchange’s venue, he seemed to have a lot to say, but after taking one glance at Vern’s face, he closed his mouth.

He led Vern straight to the room and then left after wishing him goodnight.

Now was the time he got some explanation. He deserved it.

“Ask.”

Vern decided to answer all of Sangria’s questions as far as he could.

He felt a bit guilty about dragging Sangria into this without explaining his entire plan properly.

But if he didn’t do that, Sangria would never let him do this, so it was necessary.

Sangria frowned as he fell into thoughts.

He clearly had many questions. Too many questions.

It was difficult to decide which he should start with.

Finally, the one he settled on was:

“Young Master, do you truly plan to sell that spell to anyone on next week's Magic Exchange?”

“Yes.”

That question was easy to answer.

But Sangria’s reaction wasn’t so good.

“Young Master… Setting aside the consequence of what will happen if knowledge of such a spell spreads, your personal safety, which should be our first concern, is severely at risk. People will want to hunt you down, whether you sell them that spell or not. And they will be prepared to do it on the next week’s Magic Exchange. Yesterday they were caught off guard and unprepared, but it won’t happen again. Young Master, you need to consider–”

“Master Sangria.”

Vern cut him off.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

“To address your first concern. There won’t be any bad consequences of this spell spreading, at least for innocent parties.”

“What does it mean?”

Vern didn’t answer immediately, he first took out a sheet of paper and started to draw a magic circle.

Sangria recognized the circle which Vern presented yesterday at the Exchange.

But this one was much more full. It seemed like a complete spell.

“Take a look.”

Vern reached out with the complete magic circle towards him.

But Sangria didn’t take it immediately. He hesitated.

“Can I…?”

“Why not? Should I charge you?” Vern laughed and then shook his head. “Take it, Master Sangria. I want to see if you notice it.”

“It…?”

Sangria mumbled as he took the paper and examined it eagerly.

His eyes lit up like a child who was given a jar of his favorite cookies.

‘A mage will be a mage…’

Vern thought to himself as he waited until Sangria stopped drooling over his magic circle.

After a few minutes, Sangria mused:

“I’m not sure what ‘it’ is, but… This spell looks very different from the ones I know, so I may be wrong… Hm, it doesn’t feel like a battle spell.”

‘As expected from a genius. He noticed.’

Sangria might not be sure now, but he would figure it out after experimenting a bit.

“That’s correct. This spell has no offensive capabilities. No, rather than not having them, it would be more correct to say that it’s impossible to be used in an offensive.”

Long time ago, as Vermillian, he saw the terrible consequences of the destruction magic.

Most of that magic was created with an idea of protection, but the sword doesn’t become less sharp just because the goal of the person using it changed from protection to attack.

Vermillian didn’t want to see anything like that ever again.

Therefore, whenever he created a new spell he made sure that it was impossible to use as an offensive on its very foundation.

This spell, which was the culmination of his decade long research, but which never saw the light of the day because he died before he could share it, was made with such a thought in mind.

“Master Sangria may try to use it to attack, but I wouldn’t try it. The consequences can be rather nasty for the user.”

The name of the spell was ‘Isolated-system Self-fuel Void Fire’.

But Vern didn’t share its name.

One reason was because it wasn’t cool enough, and the second was because it gave the hint where the hook was.

“The main component of that spell is complete isolation of mana or other energy source from the outside world.”

“Ah…!”

Sangria, who heard ‘complete isolation’, exclaimed and looked at the paper with newly found fanaticism.

Complete isolation meant that no energy escapes the spell, therefore the spell didn’t need more energy, because it didn’t lose it in the first place.

But complete isolation also meant that ‘no interaction with the outside’.

‘Offensive spells are basically spells that have to come into contact and interact with outside. It’s impossible for them not to.’

But if you try to do that with the spell created with isolated system in mind, it would be no different from poking a balloon with a needle.

It will probably end up exploding in your face.

“Fascinating… Can I study it?”

“Of course. It’s yours. Do whatever you want with it.”

Sangria happily stashed the spell.

But the smile on his lips gradually subsided, as he looked at Vern.

“But Young Master, how do you plan to safely sell that fraud?”

His masterpiece suddenly changed into fraud.

“I have something in mind, but I’ll know the specifics soon.”

“Is that so? Will Young Master share those specifics with me soon? Preferably, before the Exchange?”

“Yes, I’ll share everything with Master Sangria.”

“Okay, I’ll wait until then.”

Surprisingly, Sangria didn’t press further.

Maybe it was a miraculous effect of giving him something to toy with.

“Then the last question, how do you feel, Young Master?”

That was a harder question.

But before Vern could gather his thoughts the door opened with the ‘BANG!’.

“Vern! Are you okay?!”

A thin and extremely pale man stood in the doorway.

The moment he saw Vern in the center of the room, he ran towards him and seized him up.

Those actions were so quickly he may as well have teleported.

“Are you okay!? Are you hurt anywhere?! No one caught you, right?! No one saw you, no one recognized you, no one knows, right? For the crows, what were you thinking? Just as you recovered… You were wearing proper clothing, right? You didn’t catch a cold? Vern, are you okay? Not sick?”

Vern blinked, too stunned to answer.

“Ehem, My Lord, you may want to calm down.”

Sangria, who closed the door first, coughed and said that.

Hearing that, the man slowly turned his head to look at Sangria.

His eyes were completely bloodshot and wide open.

“Master Sangria…” The current Archmage and the ruler of Rubrun, Crimo, spoke very slowly. “I was calming down for the last three hours.”

It didn’t seem to help.

*-*-*

“Your Excellency!”

Amara, who was currently sipping salted gunpowder tea with lemon zest in a tea room, waiting until his bedroom was cleaned from ‘filth of heretics’, looked up.

He met with the shaking eyes of Phlox.

“I’m perfectly fine, please don’t panic, Miss Phlox.”

“Your Excellency.”

Phlox’s eyes were shaking even more.

“I’m not panicking.”

She raised something in her hands.

“I’m prepared to clean the filth that found its way into His Excellency’s room.”

In her hands was a morning star.

But Amara wasn’t exactly sure how it would help with blood cleaning.

*This child understands it.*

*As expected, this one is an enlightened one.*

*Let’s go!*

But apparently gods did.