How to Survive as the Second Son of a Mage Family - Chapter 300

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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 (300)

 

“Why should I do that?”

 

“Isn’t that what Count Everett wants? Have you ever lost anything by listening to me?”

 

“This isn’t…!”

 

“Ehehe~”

 

Emmanuel covered my mouth with his hand. I could see Maria looking surprised. Regardless, Emmanuel cast a soundproofing spell and said.

 

“It’s advice. Do I sound like I’m talking nonsense?”

 

“…”

 

“You’ve been saying for days that you want to become friends with us.”

 

So.

 

Is astral projection now a tool to soften Archduchess Maria’s heart? What a maniacal taste. Actually, I want to give an even harsher critique than that.

 

Then I heard unexpected words from Emmanuel.

 

“We want to become friends with Count Everett too.”

 

* * *

 

“…”

 

[Stop.]

 

Someone took away the cigarette that had been in my mouth, and only then did I slowly open my eyes. I was about to spit it out anyway.

 

[How was it?]

 

Emmanuel asked, pressing a handkerchief to the corner of my mouth.

 

How was what, I just want to sleep. The chandelier light spreads across my vision. I slid my body down from leaning against the headboard, pulled the blanket over me and closed my eyes. I wanted to let my mind go along with my physical fatigue, but the sound of the Duke frantically scribbling something on paper as if he would tear it grated on my nerves. The noise from the fountain pen nib was more irritating than the clip that had come loose from my shirt during the process of lying down. Emmanuel tried to pull down the blanket I had drawn up and laughed.

 

[You asked why bedding should be prepared for occult rituals. That’s why I told you not to argue with someone experienced.]

 

“…”

 

Since it didn’t seem normal to attempt astral projection with pillows and blankets fully prepared—wasn’t this just planning to sleep soundly—I was a bit flustered when I was guided to Emmanuel’s guest room to use sleeping bedding. The occult ritual bed in my imagination was something like an operating table covered with white cloth over a pentagram or hexagram with strange candles, not this kind of normal bed. Perhaps I had been viewing these people as too crazy.

 

‘More than that… I was prepared but nothing much happened.’

 

First, I wondered if Luca’s body would return to normal once I left it, but I haven’t achieved astral projection yet. Second, I expected bad reactions like during Primrose Pass or with Andrea Friedmann, and while it happened this time too, it was much better. It wasn’t a drug that made me lose consciousness, and whenever I was about to show abnormal reactions, the Duke kept casting spell-like things on me from the side, which was so absurd it made me laugh. Naturally it was accompanied by strange incantations.

 

And suggesting astral projection was, in other words, suggesting drugs. Of course, it wasn’t human narcotics. If they had told me to do drugs, I would have abandoned everything and run away. What I had just been holding in my mouth wasn’t tobacco either. Though I thought I could move more freely in the extra chapters, I hadn’t forgotten my initial resolve. It was a ‘spiritual ritual’ magic drug for heading to the astral plane, stored in thick paper like cigarette paper and lit, a non-addictive drug that’s immediately expelled.

 

Nevertheless, perhaps because of the strange purpose of entering the spiritual world, there was the problem of seeing things that shouldn’t be visible. Something was floating before my eyes, whether it was my hallucination or if I had really stepped into the spiritual world.

 

‘No matter how I look at it, it should logically be a hallucination.’

 

Given the purpose, I’m curious whether I really stepped one foot into the spiritual world.

 

Still, fortunately the misfortune of my soul leaving my body didn’t occur. I did my best following Emmanuel’s advice. Having finished that thought, drowsiness crept over me.

 

[You can’t sleep yet.]

 

Emmanuel finally took away the blanket. Perhaps because the drug’s effect hadn’t worn off, the air felt chilly. Then, Maria, whose eyes had glazed over, turned around and snatched the cigarette from Emmanuel’s hand and inhaled the magic drug.

 

Emmanuel looked down at his empty hand, then looked at me who had mentioned oral microbiomes, shrugged his shoulders and asked.

 

[Do you still want to become friends?]

 

“…”

 

I looked at Maria Osterreicheste. He was still writing something on paper with his back turned to me. Whether because of the magic drug or what, he was nodding his head as if keeping rhythm. Even from my perspective, having attempted astral projection together, I couldn’t shake the thought that the sight looked somewhat crazy.

 

[Maria is busy organizing poetic inspiration. It’s fine, so tell me.]

 

I don’t know where he got poetic inspiration from, but he’s saying the drug’s effect still hasn’t worn off over there. Whether I still want to become friends. Even after having this strange experience, even after seeing him satisfyingly nod his head while organizing ‘poetic inspiration’—do I still want to become friends? Did he think that simply attending occult lessons wouldn’t show how deeply Maria was immersed in the occult? It’s certainly beyond my expectations.

 

Nevertheless, my answer is decided.

 

“Yes. I want to become even closer friends.”

 

[…]

 

Emmanuel looked at me with incredulous eyes and snickered.

 

[Count Everett is quite a strange person too.]

 

Emmanuel offered me a magic drug. It was a drug to clear the mind.

 

* * *

 

I continued visiting Emmanuel’s manor for another three days after that.

 

Emmanuel’s advice that ‘astral projection would be helpful’ was correct.

 

[When studying the occult.]

 

“…”

 

[You can encounter countless techniques and objects that the magical academic world hasn’t yet discovered.]

 

I put down the magic drug cigarette on the silver tray and drank the elixir Emmanuel had prepared.

 

This makes the fourth attempt at astral projection.

 

Maria had already regained consciousness and changed into clean clothes. He spoke while tightening his necktie so no part was loose. Now his voice could be heard more clearly.

 

“The magical academic world rejects ‘traditional magic’ for religious reasons. But that’s not good for the development of magic. We must find abandoned techniques and our own sacred objects to contribute to everyone’s happiness.”

 

Perhaps because we weren’t sitting stiffly at a desk studying, Maria began sharing more of his own stories after attempting astral projection. Isn’t he talking about his philosophy right now? I felt heat gradually returning to my body thanks to the elixir and threw off the blanket.

 

“The Lion Duke’s treasure chest probably isn’t much related to everyone’s happiness.”

 

“It might seem that way.”

 

Maria sat on the sofa in front of the desk and began smoking a real cigarette.

 

“That’s Count Everett’s magnum opus, not my magnum opus. I’m looking for the Lion Duke’s treasure chest like Count Everett, but that’s just a means—what I’m precisely seeking as my magnum opus is supreme knowledge. I will elevate our era’s magical studies by one level with what I discover.”

 

“Hmm.”

 

“The Lion Duke’s treasure chest isn’t a box containing money or jewels. Of course, since the owner was a nobleman, the box is made of gold… hahaha. It’s just a box containing records of people who discovered magic before us. Can you imagine how much we could learn from there?”

 

I thought so. It was obvious from how he developed technology to replicate unique abilities but had no ambition for advancement. I asked while rolling down my sleeves that had been folded up.

 

“What exactly are the records contained there?”

 

“The method for everyone to use magic is in there.”

 

“…”

 

My spine grew cold, and I raised my head to look directly at Maria. When I began looking properly, he glanced around nervously and swept back his hair that had fallen forward from sleeping. Wrong. Now isn’t the time to worry about appearance.

 

“I think it would be better not to find it.”

 

Everyone using magic?

 

It sounds like a dream. It’s also what most non-mages desire. At the same time, it’s what those who monopolize power in this world most guard against. Why are the Catacombs so persecuted? The Catacombs did nothing wrong. All of this happened because the noble mages feared a commoner revolution.

 

I too think of his goal as an ideal, but I know. The world remains the same even 12 years later. It’s neither pessimism nor skepticism. That was actually part of the time I was living through.

 

He’s someone who dies in two years, and according to my investigation, he was known to have died in an accident, but perhaps this kind of radical goal killed him.

 

The Duke nodded with an expression of understanding my words, but his words were the opposite.

 

“How many people suffer because they can’t use magic? Why do only nobles monopolize magical power?”

 

“…”

 

“Why can’t the bodies of those who have been commoners for generations accept magical power? Whose scheme is this? Is this Christ’s will? Is this the achievement of the supreme Elohim? Is this truly what that Malak wanted? Did Yahweh send prophets to accomplish this? Haven’t you ever thought it strange? What do you think Augustine and Aquinas would say if they were reincarnated and saw this? I wonder if those two could hold their heads up after seeing today’s state.”

 

He’s calling essentially the same being by four different names. Why magical power became concentrated among nobles. Exceptionally, there are commoners born with magical power without inheritance, but their numbers aren’t many. Magic was clearly a privilege of the noble class from the beginning. He was asking about the reason for this.

 

At his rebellious tone, I calmly waited for his words. Maria spoke as if trying to persuade me, with slight sorrow melted into his face.

 

“What is the reason God permitted such evil?”

 

“Why did God allow murder to exist on earth?”

 

“…”

 

Maria, who interpreted my meaning alone, smiled with a regretful expression and answered.

 

“You don’t agree with my opinion.”

 

“How could that be? I know the strange points of this world better than anyone. Why wouldn’t I have felt nauseous? I can’t find any essential difference between the irrationality there and the irrationality here, so I just endure the continuing nausea. I’ll keep doing so as I always have.”

 

“…”

 

I said words Maria couldn’t understand, but Maria silently listened to my words.

 

“I’m not claiming I was right and Your Grace’s thoughts were wrong. I’m not trying to break Your Grace’s will either. But if Augustine and Aquinas returned to life, what would change? Contrary to Your Grace’s expectations, they would never bow their heads to the reality that only nobles can use magic. Still, all humanity would have to accept that this world was made through our faults.”

 

Maria immediately understood my words. He raised his eyebrows and let out a sigh.

 

“…Yes. Please forget what I said earlier. I only understood Lord Everett’s words superficially. Now I see you’re someone with similar intentions to mine. You’re quite tired, but… your heart that thinks of the world seems the same as mine. Isn’t that right?”

 

“…”

 

“I am the same. Nevertheless, I’m still a Christian, and I believe in the love Christ spoke of. That’s why I must find my magnum opus right now. Because Christ taught me love, I must repay the sins I committed against my brothers. If everyone could use magic, wouldn’t the inequality that became extreme after magic be reduced even a little? Wouldn’t we be able to check those who wield power through magic?”

 

“You don’t say sins committed against God.”

 

“God wanted us to love each other, but we humans didn’t, so that might also be a sin against God.”

 

That’s just like him. Since I had nothing particular to say other than showing respect, I smiled instead of answering. The Duke grinned and clapped his hands.

 

“Well, in that spirit, since we’ve brought up the chest, let’s try harder again.”

 

“What?”

 

“Let’s try going into astral body state once more! Since there’s been no progress in investigating the Lion Duke’s treasure chest so far.”

 

“…”

 

Now he wants to find the treasure chest even by going to the astral plane… Is that even possible in an out-of-body state?

 

The Duke, having bothered to change clothes, took off his jacket and plopped down on the bed again.

 

“Now we’ll try a slightly different method. Count Everett, would you cast mind manipulation magic on me?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“This time, I will transfer my astral body to the Old Humanity era through hypnosis. There are limits to the information we can obtain in the post-magic era.”

 

“…And so?”

 

There was no need to ask.

 

I’m now sitting next to the Duke with Emmanuel, waving my wand around. Emmanuel asked me if I was confident about getting close to the Duke, but instead he’s the one sighing at the Duke. I brought my wand to the Duke’s forehead and said what he told me to say.

 

“Yes… you are 100 years before Ion Forso. It is now the 18th century by A.A. standards. Let’s slowly go back in time.”

 

“You’re actually doing this.”

 

Emmanuel said with a hollow laugh.

 

“Actually doing what?”

 

“He said before that he needed to get close to his family’s Arcane Mage. Actually, he was scared of doing it with his own family’s mage, so he asked to borrow our family’s mage.”

 

“To do this?”

 

“That must have been it. Why do you think I brought up astral projection a few days ago? I mentioned it because this guy keeps talking about going back in time through astral projection and such.”

 

Ah…

 

He’s truly an occult fanatic beyond expectations. There are too many different types of fanatics around me.

 

I don’t expect the Duke to accomplish anything here—is astral projection even possible?—but by helping him, I probably won’t completely change his future. If it was something he was going to do anyway, that makes sense.

 

I tried my best to forget that I was participating in this absurd affair and asked.

 

“But how do you turn all of France upside down through astral projection? Are you going to travel by selecting locations from that treasure chest map?”

 

Actually, the map is just coordinates that need to be decoded, not drawn pictures or proper clues.

 

“What did he say again. A purified spirit guides itself to the right place. An astral body is fundamentally an existence that can move anywhere at will. That’s why he’s trying so hard to succeed at astral projection.”

 

“…”

 

“I can tell what you’re thinking. Hahaha!”

 

“Yes…”

 

At this point, I’m getting increasingly frightened. I’m the one who actually experienced a disconnect between soul and body, but in a situation where they should be afraid of what happened to me, I’m more afraid of them.

 

Actually, I should trace this problem back to the question of whether spirits really exist. No matter how related it is to what I experienced, in some dimension it’s truly unbelievable.

 

And so, it became the second day of executing astral projection to move to the 18th century. We did the same thing the next day. I held my wand to his forehead, soul removed, and said.

 

“Now, please return. You are coming back to 1886. To Emmanuel’s Residence.”

 

“Your voice is gradually losing sincerity.”

 

Emmanuel snickered beside me. Just as I was about to quietly ask how sincerity could possibly develop, the Duke suddenly sat up.

 

“…!”

 

Emmanuel looked flustered as the person who had been sleeping peacefully until just now suddenly sat up. I was equally startled by the sudden reaction. The Duke grabbed my shoulder as if he hadn’t been sleeping at all and shouted loudly.

 

“Count Everett! In the 18th, 18th century too…!”

 

“Yes, please speak.”

 

“There’s an Occult Club!”

 

“…Of course there would be.”

 

“That’s not it!”

 

Emmanuel shook his head. It meant not to talk to him anymore. However, the Duke poured out words on his own.

 

“There was talk of magic in the House of Bourbon. It’s one of the Aristocratic Social Clubs overseen by the Queen, and what this place actually does is it’s a literature club for noble women. But as time passed, occult elements like magic research got attached…”

 

“So. Just tell me the main point.”

 

Emmanuel cut off his words.

 

“That Sorcerer’s treasure chest is being studied there. When the research is finished, they’ll soon burn it or hide it using another cipher. That’s the characteristic of occult enthusiasts like us.”

 

“…Yes, and so…?”

 

“Count Everett should come along too. If I tell them what I’ve discovered and learn what they know through mutual exchange, there will be much more progress. We need to find a way to use magic even with Human bodies.”

 

Emmanuel let out a hollow laugh. I felt the same way. Suddenly drag me along? How would I get there? Not just following as a spirit to watch, but actually participating together?

 

I wanted to grab him by the scruff of his neck, but I couldn’t, so I calmly persuaded him.

 

“…We’re New Humanity so we can’t join… We look different from the start. In the first place, doesn’t Your Grace not know much about how society women behave? Come to think of it, we don’t have clothing from that era either.”

 

Could clothes also be handled spiritually…

 

I tried not to voice such ridiculous doubts.

 

Actually, more than that, I wanted to ask if astral projection was really possible, but he probably wouldn’t be spouting complete nonsense with nothing to back it up, and since conversation didn’t seem likely to work on a spiritual dimension, I brought up more realistic aspects.

 

Fortunately, Emmanuel had been looking serious but then laughed as if it was absurd and began to voice my thoughts instead.

 

“First of all, I suspect Your Grace might have seen an illusion.”

 

The Duke seemed surprised that Emmanuel was using formal language seriously again, but looking at his expression, he didn’t seem to have any intention of breaking his will. Emmanuel quickly noticed this and began using the same strategy as me.

 

“Even if you really discovered such a place. You seem to think simply putting on a dress would be enough, but Your Grace is New Humanity so it shows from your bone structure. And there are no shoes, no hat, no jewelry, just nothing prepared at all. Your speech isn’t prepared either, nor is your way of walking. What about understanding the culture? Helping is fine to a degree, but don’t make such unreasonable moves.”

 

That’s right. Since I provided tailored persuasion, he should come around soon. However, the Duke shook his head and refuted.

 

“Such trivial things can just be brought along as artifacts. Is there anything my skills can’t handle?”

 

“How are you going to transport clothes? Is it enough to just transport clothes? What about speech and walking? It really shows, you know.”

 

“…”

 

Emmanuel made a valid point this time too. But that wasn’t what was important right now.

 

‘…Wait.’

 

A crazy possibility that could have happened in the original past flashed through my mind.

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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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