How to Survive as the Second Son of a Mage Family - Chapter 220

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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How to Survive as the Second Son of a Magic Family (220)

“Shouldn’t you rest?”

It was an unexpected answer.

I raised my eyebrows and looked at the person who said that.

It was Narke.

‘…Now that Leo doesn’t do that anymore, Narke is doing it instead.’

I can feel how much my friends have changed compared to when I first met them.

Leo, who was skeptical and stability-oriented, now supports me because he completely trusts me, and because he believes in the promise I made with him. Just as I trust him more than before, it’s probably not just because of the artifact for him either.

Narke, who doesn’t seem like it on the surface but is indifferent to others and would smile and watch whatever anyone does, is now trying to stop me.

Seeing different sides of people I knew as time passed and relationships changed was more interesting than I thought.

When I smiled thinking that way, Narke narrowed his eyebrows with a troubled expression and smiled.

“You pushed yourself too hard today. You need to clean off the eggs too. There’s a lot on your head and face.”

“Ah, of course. But not right now.”

I said while brushing off the egg white stuck to Narke’s gloves.

“I want to finish this as quickly as possible. Will you help me?”

“…”

Narke smiled faintly and took my hand.

When I opened my eyes, the place I arrived at was the Military Student Corps dormitory.

I entered the white building and went up to the floor where the 3rd year rooms were.

I knocked on a random room.

“Who… Ah.”

A 3rd year student stepped back when he saw me.

His gaze naturally moved down to my crooked hat, eyes, and shoulders.

I felt nauseous at this observation that would have been nothing to me normally, and said:

“Hello, Senior.”

I tried to speak gently, but my voice must have been soulless, as he looked at me with surprised eyes once again.

“Ah, yes… What is it?”

“Could you lend me some paper and a pen?”

“Paper…?”

The 3rd year student was flustered by my sudden request. However, when I just stared at him intently, he quickly brought a palm-sized memo pad and fountain pen from inside.

I scribbled something down and handed it to him.

“Please.”

The 3rd year student looked at the writing on the outside of the note and nodded.

I headed straight to the side toward the 3rd year lounge. Other 3rd year students passing by in the hallway looked flustered and stepped aside when they saw my expression and clothes.

I know the reason they avoided me was because my expression was strange, and also because, like most students and citizens, they weren’t used to the uniform symbolizing Imperial affiliation. I know it’s not the look of seeing that hopeless Pleroma from the beginning of the first semester of my second year, but rather, movingly, the complete opposite meaning.

Still, it was enough to get on my nerves.

It’s probably because of that culprit who has no intention of being caught by me. The reason I haven’t been able to focus on everything since earlier while still recognizing and processing everything one by one is, probably.

I opened the lounge door.

Fortunately, there was no one there.

Feeling liberated from my senses, I sat on the sofa and looked out the window. I could see a crow spreading its wings and gliding.

The bird sounds coming from outside got on my nerves.

How much time had passed?

As I waited with my eyes closed, now I couldn’t hear any sounds at all.

I could feel that the seat I was sitting in was not the same as before.

Creak—

Someone wearing an all-black robe with their face covered entered the room.

“Egg smell.”

“You know?”

“It has a fishy smell, how could I not know?”

I came to meet this person.

The only mage I know with transformation abilities, and a mage from an organization that possesses spatial magic techniques surpassing Pleroma.

Riechthofen pulled down the cloth covering his face below his chin, took off his robe hood, and sat down.

The note I gave to the 3rd year earlier was asking Riechthofen to set up spatial magic and come to the lounge.

Since the culprit keeps being cautious because they don’t want to go to prison, I should make full use of the resources I have too.

“Those clothes aren’t yours either, junior. At first I was surprised thinking someone came in by mistake.”

“You really have a dog’s nose.”

“Because I’m a dog.”

What do you mean dog…

This person is making self-deprecating jokes. Wondering if all Catacombs people are this unfunny, I looked at him seriously.

“Hahaha, that look is a bit hurtful.”

“Just get hurt.”

When I answered like that, Riechthofen smiled.

“Now it feels like you’re back to normal. What happened to make your expression like that?”

“I got hit with eggs.”

“Ah, really? I should have watched from the side.”

“…”

When I lost my words and just smiled, the guy laughed.

Unlike before, I confirmed once again the subtly changed magical energy in the air. Riechthofen’s spatial magic was laid over this place. No matter how much the culprit tries to see me or eavesdrop on my conversation, they can’t do it here.

Time was too precious to chat more, so I got straight to the point.

“The eggs don’t really matter, actually there’s a problem.”

“A problem. It seems like it. There probably aren’t many people in this country who have enough ill feelings toward you to throw eggs.”

“You think so? That’s surprising.”

“Being slightly uncomfortable is different from hating enough to act on malice.”

The image I have of myself and the image others have of me seem to be different.

My status window’s impression score has been rising anyway, and my survival probability has gone up by 15 percentage points in just one month, so it has to be different from before.

I’m hoping for a 30 percentage point increase in next month’s survival probability. Thinking that I’m working this hard to get those 30 percentage points makes my fists clench a little less.

“I got a stalker.”

“What?”

Riechthofen stayed still with a face wondering what he heard, then made an ambiguous expression, unsure whether he was trying to laugh or couldn’t believe my words, and said:

“A stalker for New Humanity…”

“I’m surprised too.”

“I think it might be an assassin rather than a stalker. Assassination risks often follow mages affiliated with the Imperial Court.”

I knew he’d say that.

I took out the note that used to be an egg from my pocket and placed it on the table.

Riechthofen frowned, probably because of the fishy smell.

“Ugh…”

“Don’t dogs like the smell of food?”

“I’m human.”

“I don’t know where to match the beat. Just read it for now.”

Riechthofen nodded and picked up a piece of paper. It was a note I hadn’t opened yet.

“…I’ve been thinking, and I think it would be good if those pink eyes were inherited. Since your magic power is pink, wouldn’t it be possible? If my eye color is inherited, I’ll have to discard it and keep synthesizing until pink eyes come out.”

“…”

Riechthofen froze in place, then threw the note on the table like someone who touched something they shouldn’t have.

“You’re right. What is this?”

“How many times do I have to say it’s a stalker?”

Riechthofen unusually studied my expression. He spoke with his usual languid smile.

“The color is quite unique. People want to become unique and special beings. Separately from that, you’d better be careful not to have your magic power stolen.”

“You comfort people in a unique way. That’s fine, but I have a request. Could you transform into a dog?”

Silence flowed once again.

Since I didn’t have the energy to be polite and build up to it, I just blurted it out in a dry tone, which seems to have come across as quite flustering.

“…Turn into a dog?”

“I know it’s rude, but I’d like to ask you once.”

“Hmm…”

Richthofen laughed as if he’d listen to any ridiculous request and looked me over.

“Why?”

“Well, I should do it for you. How would I know if you’d blow up my core if I didn’t?”

“I have no intention of doing that.”

“…”

Since he was just giving me an ambiguous smile, I snapped my fingers.

Only then did Richthofen reflexively frown.

He let out a hollow laugh and stood up from his seat.

“Something feels unpleasant.”

“What can I do about Senior being that kind of person?”

He’s someone who only acts when forced to.

Even in the Catacombs, despite being able to break the Vigilante Captain’s vision-sharing magic that was close to a curse, he complied with the Vigilante Captain’s will. Though he did lead an uprising when he felt things were going increasingly wrong, he basically had a tendency to act while using others’ coercion as an excuse.

‘He probably can’t bear the gap between his true feelings and what’s right.’

In this case, the self he knows should rightfully hate his animal transformation ability, but his current true feelings don’t particularly reject it, creating a gap. So he brought up my core, and when I said I had no intention of attacking, he was momentarily held back.

No matter how much he dislikes the ability, it’s part of him. He must know that he’s trapped by the self he created, that he can’t live hating it every moment, yet he seems unable to break free.

Then what should I do?

‘I’ll just do what he wants.’

“Why suddenly? Does that stalker have the same ability as me?”

“Something like that. He’s a New Human who transformed into an Old Human. There’s also a possibility he has other special abilities. I can’t tell you everything right now though.”

Richthofen’s eyes widened.

“…Transformation ability?”

“Yes.”

“It wasn’t just me.”

Richthofen, who had been silent for a while, muttered.

“That person is lucky. A human-form transformation ability user.”

He would accept it that way.

I didn’t say much to him and waited.

Richthofen, lost in thought, spoke to me.

“Human form will be a bit different from me. Will that still be okay?”

“It’s fine. It probably won’t be that different.”

He stomped his foot once. In the time it took to close and open his eyes, standing before me was not a person but a wolf-sized black dog.

A dog that looked like nothing but a wolf approached me. Without realizing it, I pulled my body back, and the dog jumped up as if to tease me.

Crash—! Thud—

I knocked over the wooden side table next to me as I stood up.

For some reason, the dog in front of me seemed to be mocking me.

I asked the dog spinning around in front of me in bewilderment.

“Senior, what are you doing?”

At those words, the dog turned back into a person and plopped down in front of me.

“I didn’t know you were afraid of dogs.”

“I’m not afraid of them.”

How could I not be startled when the visual is a wolf?

It was an otherworldly moment. Human instinct was commanding me to run away quickly.

Richthofen picked up black dog fur that had fallen on the floor, blew it away, and asked.

“So, is this enough?”

“I have some questions. When you transformed, your magic power didn’t feel particularly strong.”

“I can control it. Just like we can control it when we’re in human form. I can lower my magic power until I’m indistinguishable from a real animal.”

“I see.”

I answered roughly and asked again.

“What about magic power consumption?”

“Not particularly. It varies by person, but if it’s an ability user that the Investigation Bureau still can’t catch, they probably don’t consume much magic power for transformation like me.”

“That would be the case. That’s impressive. Try going to Elias like that often.”

“Haha, are you telling me to get on his bad side?”

At least you know?

Elias, who had earnestly petted and played with him thinking he was a dog, went to the point of almost vomiting that day, so if he appeared like that just once more, their relationship could really fall apart. Though you never know.

“Is it hereditary?”

“No. If it were hereditary, I would have either taken pride in it long ago or found a solution.”

“…”

I nodded and fell into thought.

Then I snapped my fingers and asked.

“But how is transformation possible when the organ arrangements of the two bodies aren’t the same? Why does the uniform disappear and then reappear?”

“How would I know? But… I once heard a possible explanation from a professor of magic studies in the Catacombs. He said beings with cores of the same composition that synchronize in real-time are exchanged in this world. So, let’s call this world A World, and the world of pure magic power that we can neither know nor reach B World. These two coexist, but we only perceive A World.”

“Yes.”

It’s similar logic to not being able to perceive fourth-dimensional or higher worlds from a three-dimensional world.

After the theological interpretation that God gave us His power, this is a theory that’s quite plausibly accepted.

“When I turn into a dog, my body moves to B World and becomes invisible to our eyes, while the dog in B World moves to A World. So strictly speaking, the dog’s body doesn’t have Max Richthofen’s genes. Of course, the core and consciousness remain. Because of that, I’m bound to the dog, so while the subject experiencing sensations in this world in dog form is me. Now the uniform story is resolved too, right?”

“Ah… Then if the core is key, isn’t it possible to bring over just a part from the dog? Looking at your sense of smell, Senior, it seems possible.”

“Why would I need to bring over just a part?”

“Because there are abilities you can use as a dog. For example, if you need to identify people by smell while in human form, can’t you just bring over the dog’s olfactory cells instead of having to transform into a dog?”

Richthofen shook his head.

“If you train well, it’s possible to bring over just the ability. Of course, that’s predicated on really incredibly grueling training.”

“…Well, okay. Anyway, the ability is amazing. And in some sense, it’s invincible. According to what you said, Senior, if you suffer fatal injuries in dog form and immediately return to human form, no wounds would remain on the human body, right?”

“That’s right. The dog and I are separate entities. Your stalker is a human-form ability user, so they can use two human bodies. Maybe even more is possible.”

Being able to use two bodies.

It would be close to bringing over another body from B World and possessing it.

What a great ability this is. Attacks would be meaningless.

For me, having that ability user as an enemy, it’s an ability that only makes me laugh.

“Then, what are the weaknesses?”

“The dog’s weaknesses…? They’d be the same as other dogs. No, are there really big differences from humans to begin with?”

“Cases where you can’t use the ability, or when you transform but can’t return?”

When I asked precisely once more, his expression changed.

“…Ah~”

Richthofen laughed as if it were interesting, while asking with wary eyes.

“What happens to me if I tell you that?”

“Report to the Imperial Newspaper that I’m Nicolaus.”

Richthofen looked at me in silence with a smile.

After organizing his thoughts, he spoke.

“I’ll understand that as meaning that won’t happen. If you transform and your magic power is depleted, you can’t return. You have to wait until your magic power is replenished. You can figure out why if you think about the principle I mentioned earlier.”

“From experience?”

“Yes.”

How did that happen? Magic power rarely gets naturally depleted, but what a spectacular life.

Anyway, it was a valuable answer. Information that couldn’t be heard anywhere else, and from which various possibilities could be extracted with just a word.

This is why you should accumulate as many resources as possible. Though he was our ally, if we had sent Richthofen to the afterlife in retaliation when he first made us drink alcohol, we wouldn’t have obtained this information now. Sending someone away recklessly is something only amateurs would do.

I smiled with relief and said.

“Thank you. It was helpful.”

“Good. Nothing more to ask, I suppose?”

“Yes. Nothing.”

“When you meet that person, could you let me meet them too?”

“….”

It was a sudden question, but I understood the intention.

He was probably hoping to find out if there was a way to remove abilities.

Certainly, for someone who had lived in the Catacombs for over 10 years with his noble status just to eliminate his ability, I would be worth interrogating once.

“I’ll try my best.”

“Yes, thank you. I’ll be going now.”

Richthofen stood up from his seat, then clapped his hands as if remembering something.

“Oh, do you know your mission has changed?”

“Excuse me?”

“Eschete, I mean. Starting tomorrow, they’ll be handling 9th-grade Rampage processing just like us.”

This was the first I’d heard of it.

When I raised my eyebrows, Richthofen let out a hollow laugh.

* * *

“They set a new record as soon as they took on Rampage processing.”

“Did these guys really handle ten cases just today? Not since yesterday?”

“That’s insane….”

The next day.

At the Student Corps General Command Headquarters, Ulrike and I walked in completely drenched in sweat, dragging our feet. Students from other teams who had been chattering while holding papers they’d gotten from somewhere fell silent when they saw us.

‘We really were insane.’

9th-grade Rampages aren’t particularly difficult level Victims.

So we formed three teams of two or three people each, and rushed out first whenever reports came in.

Even so, handling three or four cases each in a single day was definitely crazy.

Today I teamed up with Ulrike for favorability points. Antagonist tried to pair me with Leo, but I refused just for today.

And fortunately, in that process, Ulrike gave me 2 more favorability points.

‘As expected, staying together for a long time is the best.’

It’s easier to become closer in crisis situations. Since we both like using magic, our mood gets better when doing something we enjoy. Ulrike’s excellent combat sense, which allowed us to finish work without major friction, also played a part.

The problem is it’s still only 7 points.

There are still 5 more points left.

It would be nice to raise more from Haike, but Antagonist didn’t give me any favorability.

I definitely need to meet and hang out with Antagonist separately.

Before opening the door to the Meeting Room where our team Friends would be, I extended my hand to Ulrike as we passed through the Hallway.

“Good work today.”

“You too. Ah, we really did proper work today.”

Odd jobs are work too… does this mean she didn’t want to do what we’d been doing until now?

I smiled slightly at her characteristic remark. Meanwhile, Ulrike briefly slapped my hand.

“But isn’t this something Julia used to do with you often?”

“Ah, it rubbed off on me.”

“Hahaha! Right, it’s good when we all become close.”

Ulrike laughed and opened the door.

Since we finished last, all our team members were gathered here.

Unlike yesterday when Leo had said something about Baden to me, he quickly regained his composure like a professional politician. That is to say, he was looking at us with a cold expression without even greeting us.

Elias jumped up and rushed toward me.

“Why are you so late!”

“Because we were dispatched last. Good evening, Professor.”

I greeted the homeroom Professor who had come here after finishing the closing ceremony.

The Professor chuckled and accepted my greeting, then began explaining our schedule for tomorrow.

We would be deployed for 8th-9th grade Rampage processing for the next month, and would be in charge of all of Brandenburg beyond Berlin.

And we would move to Penthalon Main Arena again just for the upcoming opening ceremony day.

The plan to use us for advertising seemed to remain unchanged. There were no other special plans.

Now only my new plan remained.

Unlike yesterday when I had overlooked that Antagonist had a brain attached to his head, a processing plan that learned from failure, made improvements, and applied information obtained from Richthofen.

If Antagonist uses his head because he doesn’t want to go to Prison Cell, I have no choice but to use mine anew as well.

Now all that remained was the timing of execution.

To minimize damage, should I buy time until just before Penthalon, or execute immediately after the materials are prepared?

But that was just useless worry I had because I underestimated Antagonist’s madness.

That dawn at 4 AM.

[The plan has changed. We have to go back to the Main Arena starting today. No, to be precise, to Grand Hotel and Imperial Central Hospital.]

“….”

I listened to Leo’s voice through the artifact while looking down at the pink note.

The faces of Elias and Narke, who had been awake with me at the Manor, hardened stiffly.

[I’m sorry. Because of me, you ended up just handling Rampage processing…. I chose this as a method to get you reinstated. Now you’ll be able to do comfortable work again.]

[Let me say once more that I’m really sorry. I mean it. I never intended to make you do unpleasant work. I’d like to meet and apologize in person if I could, but that wouldn’t be possible, would it.]

That method of reinstatement was something one would never normally think of doing.

I pushed the note aside and read the article underneath.

[Alexanderplatz Grand Hotel, 18 foreign national team athletes die from rampage – 9 transferred to intensive care]

‘I’d like to meet and apologize in person if I could, but that wouldn’t be possible, would it’?

Who decided it wouldn’t be possible? Now that it’s come to this, I have no choice but to meet and hear that apology.

The connection with Leo was cut, so Elias and Narke completely shut down the artifact.

Leo now contacted me through a personal line. His voice reached my ears.

[Lucas.]

“Yeah.”

Why he contacted only me again was obvious. Even though it would become a time that no one except the two of us would remember anyway, he was thorough.

“I’ll buy you time, so go get that one medicine I used in early December right now. You’ll find it if you search through the Ledger.”

[Got it.]

Yes, good.

I could feel Elias and Narke looking at me with puzzled eyes, knowing that only I was still connected to Leo.

I said while opening the retry window.

“See you later.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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