How to Survive as the Second Son of a Mage Family - Chapter 303
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
How to Survive as the Second Son of a Magic Family (303)
“Strange….”
While I was inwardly shocked by those words, Maria opened her eyes wide with seriousness.
“Strange, you say? Which part exactly?”
“Hmm, for example, you’re incredibly tall….”
He tried to say more but closed his mouth. He seemed unable to choose his words. Right, it would be awkward to point out. Maria answered seriously as if she had expected this.
“This is exactly what people from the future look like. It’s not strange but perfectly natural. Humanity has always progressed, after all.”
“I don’t think humanity always progresses. Anyway, setting that aside, does everyone in the future grow this tall? The tallest among us is 5.1 Pied de Roi?”
I was momentarily flustered. Right, this was before the metric system. If I remember correctly, 5.1 would be just over 165cm, which considering average height would be accepted as around 170-175cm in modern times.
Archduchess Maria nodded without any hesitation.
“Yes. Everyone becomes like this in the future.”
“Huh…. Why? How did this happen in just 200 years? People from 200 years ago weren’t much different from us.”
“That’s because we humans developed new bodies. In a direction closer to Christ.”
The Elderly Nobleman shook his head and stroked his chin.
“Getting closer to Christ by growing taller? This doesn’t seem coherent to me at all. You claim to be from the future, but you look like someone who only attends churches with spires?”
‘Ancestor’s sarcasm skills are impressive.’
“Of course height has nothing to do with Christ. It lies in other factors.”
The other Nobles just had expressions filled with questions. The Elderly Nobleman, perhaps having already witnessed crazy scenes, pointed out as if deciding to just listen for now.
“This question might be a bit unpleasant, but then is the fact that you all look exactly like men also related to that?”
“I expected this question, so I’m not offended. It’s easy to misunderstand, but if you look closely, we’re very different from your male bodies. We just appear that way because we’re tall.”
‘…That’s quite a stretch….’
These days Humans have grown much taller too, so in the case of tall Humans, even New Humans can’t distinguish well. It’s the same from the Human perspective. As expected, the Elderly Nobleman shook his head.
“Different, you say. Hmm, no matter how I look at you….”
“No? It’s just a misunderstanding. We have the qualifications to set foot in this Club.”
‘Nobody brought that up yet.’
She must be afraid of being kicked out. Honestly, if it were me, I would have kicked out these nonsense-spouting people the moment they arrived, but seeing the patience they’ve shown listening this far, I don’t think they’ll kick us out now for being male ghosts—though isn’t ‘ghost’ the main problem anyway? That said, if we had come in New Human attire, we would have been kicked out or they would have disbanded the meeting before we could make our full argument.
“Fine. Let’s say that’s the case for now. But you walk rather peculiarly.”
Surprising that they caught that already. It must mean everything about us looked strange to their eyes.
“Peculiar… exactly how do we walk?”
“When wearing dresses, it’s important not to walk too quickly. We are nobles, aren’t we? We must naturally entrust our bodies to the movement of our legs, so we relax our shoulders. Isn’t that common sense?”
“No? We walk quickly.”
“Why?”
“Because that’s what people from the future do.”
“….”
We did adopt the future person concept for this reason, but she’s really making full use of it. The Elderly Nobleman either thought it would be pointless to argue or truly had nothing to say, just watching with disapproving eyes before asking.
“Don’t you have maids? Don’t you need Servants to remove and organize your hats and gloves?”
“We can’t bring maids to a secret occult meeting.”
“Mm.”
The Elderly Nobleman nodded with an expression that said that made sense too.
“And we can do it ourselves. If someone were nearby we’d ask for help, but is it really necessary to bring them everywhere?”
“That’s also because you’re future people?”
“That’s right. Future people don’t dress as complicatedly as you do in the first place, so we can handle it ourselves.”
The Duke spoke as if proud.
It was true. Noble clothing had been simplified continuously from the late 18th century through the 19th century. This was related to the rise of the citizen class—to roughly summarize this long history, after going through an era where nobles criticized royal vanity and the bourgeoisie criticized noble vanity, frugality and restraint became virtues. 18th-century people might faint seeing late 19th-century clothing.
They exchanged glances and made serious eye contact.
‘Could it actually be working?’
The future person concept? ‘Since they’re from the future, that could be possible’? Or rather, are these subtle differences making us look more like future people, just as the Duke said?
‘Are they all crazy….’
After a while, they said they needed to have a meeting and kicked us out.
Maria made a trustworthy expression and went outside. Then she tapped her earring artifact to amplify the sound reaching me. I tried following suit.
‘They’re having another meeting about this.’
Shouldn’t this obviously be grounds for kicking us out?
I can’t keep up with old-fashioned people’s sensibilities. No, what should I expect from people who believe they can use magic in a world without magic and research it?
After a little while, the sound of conversation from inside became clearly audible.
[Looking at how they appear, it does seem to be true.]
“How they appear?!”
Archduchess Maria cast a sound barrier spell and grabbed her neck. From her perspective, Humans looked stranger—since people usually think they’re the most normal—so hearing criticism must have been absurd. I patted her shoulder and said.
“Don’t deny it, just accept it now.”
[I’ve never seen people that tall in my life. Whether what they say is true or not, they did suddenly appear before us like ghosts, and those historically unprecedented clothes they’re wearing are also deeply concerning.]
[So they’re really people from the future? Really?! How is that possible?]
[The occult we study is also impossible in the first place. Who knows. They might really be… from the future.]
‘No… it’s true but you believe that?’
It is true that souls were sent from the future. It’s also something theoretically possible in occult studies. But they believe this? Of course, since occult teaches it’s possible, it’s believable. All occult believers seriously hope that such spiritual phenomena will happen to them at least once, so while it sounds crazy to an occult outsider like me, it’s not entirely impossible in their minds. Thinking in 21st-century terms, this organization is like one claiming ‘We’re certain that intelligent life like us lives on Mars, and we’re sending signals to communicate with them.’ They’re incomprehensible by common sense standards. But even so, they believe this? Of course…!
‘…Ah, I don’t know anymore.’
At this point, I seriously wonder if other people are normal and I’m the crazy one.
[So that’s what you think. Their clothing is quite peculiar indeed. Looking at their possessions and accessories, they’re clearly wealthy Nobles, but why are their clothes….]
[…If they’re really mages from the future, they’d be of great help to our research. Could it be that our research succeeds and magic becomes usable in the future?]
[That might be so. They’re definitely female, right? Though they look like teenage boys….]
“….”
One is right and one is definitely not. Now the only problem is me. Suddenly my conscience is stabbing me like crazy.
[Since they’re tall, their frames are larger, so they might look that way. Wasn’t there a story about a mage whose height reached the ceiling in the prophecy book we decoded a few days ago? And no matter how you look at it, where did they come up with such clothing? If they’re not really from the future, there’s no explanation. The Nobles of our world might really dress like that later.]
[Their aesthetic sense is rather poor.]
“….”
Don’t react realistically in strange places. I don’t want to hear this from people who were talking about prophecy books.
‘I want to go home.’
The psychological damage is severe in many ways. I want to stop being in ghost state now. Noticing that I was becoming haggard in real time, Maria patted my shoulder as if telling me to pull myself together and nodded seriously.
“That’s not comforting at all.”
“Why not? Our calculations were accurate. Look at that. Though they’re more skeptical than expected, their suspicions are gradually dissolving just as I calculated. Not forcing ourselves to act like Humans of this era and adopting the future person concept was indeed the right choice.”
‘I should never get involved in occult fields again.’
That’s them not believing? Just how easily did you think they’d fall for it? Maria is a good person, but I’m not equipped to handle her.
Then, finally, the door opened. It was a long meeting for the Duke but extremely short for me. They gestured to me.
“Please come in. We’ve decided to hear your story for now. Well, I’m Charlotte de France. I’m the president of Eclat Littéraire here.”
The Elderly Nobleman clasped both hands and spoke. Seeing de France, this person is a member of House of Bourbon.
“So, what have you come here to tell us?”
Good.
Regardless of the process, we’ve completed entry. Time to move toward our goal. While Archduchess Maria answered them, I checked names through the status window.
[Josephine d’Orleans]
[Marie Louise de la Tour d’Auvergne]
[Therese de Rohan]
[Victoire de Collingcourt]
‘The houses are…?’
I opened the information for the remaining four and suppressed a hollow laugh. Every old high-ranking house of France was here.
Even the imperial family of France’s Third Empire as of 1898 was included. Currently not the imperial family, but a house that would become imperial in the future.
‘The most crucial problem here is that the number of descendants will be enormous.’
Now there are only eight, but later the Humans inheriting their blood will number in the hundreds. Those who heard Osterreicheste Perueo’s story could also number in the hundreds. There’s no guarantee that all eight of these ancestors told their families about what happened at Eclat Littéraire, but there’s also no certainty that they all kept their mouths shut, so currently we must investigate considering everyone.
“Can all future people use magic like you?”
“Not at all. The absolute majority are complete non-mages. Even among the minority of mages, most only have an organ called a core but can’t fully use magic, so they’re culturally called non-mages.”
The conversation between Maria and the Nobles continued. We thus successfully completed our first meeting quite smoothly.
We left the Royal Palace and entered a narrow Alley in Paris. Archduchess Maria, who had turned off her material plane projection artifact, leaned against the Wall and closed her eyes. She probably didn’t actually close her eyes, but her intention to concentrate was clearly felt. Immediately, as if receiving a signal, Emmanuel’s voice was heard.
[…returning. 3, 2, 1.]
“…!”
I stood there dumbfounded when someone grabbed my hand and threw me toward the sky.
“How was it?”
‘…Coming back is quite different from going. Is entering the body more taxing than leaving it….’
As soon as I opened my eyes, I saw Emmanuel’s face. Archduchess Maria was already frantically recording what she had observed today in her notebook.
I gathered my thoughts, cast a sound barrier spell, and answered.
“I never want to experience that again.”
“Haha. Good. Please continue preventing Maria’s astral projection like this.”
“That won’t do.”
“Why?”
I became certain. I threw off the jacket that was choking me tight and said.
“Something’s bothering me.”
“What?”
“Astral projection. I learned it first with strange terms like astral plane and astral projection, so I’m clearly not grasping it properly….”
I looked into midair, stroking my chin, then asked him.
“Emanuel. What is the ‘world of magic alone’?”
“Isn’t that the astral plane? Why do you suddenly ask?”
“I’ve heard the term ‘world of magic alone’ from someone else before. From someone completely unrelated to astral projection.”
“Who?”
“Someone. A school senior.”
“You said you went to Princeton.”
“Yes.”
I answered roughly and stroked my chin.
World of magic alone. Astral plane…. It’s just the astral plane in theosophical terms. A term whose precise meaning has faded due to my squeamishness about occult enthusiasts and past notions clinging to it.
The important characteristics of the astral plane I learned while being dragged by the Archduchess to study theosophy are ‘a world transcending past, present, and future’, and ’emotion’. Maria Osterreicheste’s personal assessment of the astral plane’s essence is ‘world of magic alone’. There’s a familiar scent somewhere.
Right, doesn’t Pleroma touch people’s emotions and convert them into new magic, Vitriol? But what’s bothering me isn’t just this.
‘…Ah, I think I might catch it.’
It hovers vaguely before my eyes. Is there causation, or is it just coincidental overlap? The possibility that the thief is Pleroma, or the possibility that it’s not Pleroma, holy relics, gems, spiritual rituals, world of magic alone, ability replication…. There are clues but they’re all fragmented, making it hard to connect them.
What needs to be noted here is that such a world of magic alone isn’t a concept exclusive to the occult. The magical academic world also claims that a ‘world of magic alone’ exists, and the name they call this world of magic alone is ‘B World’.
Isn’t that a name we’ve heard often? When Richthofen explained his transformation ability, he described the world of magic alone as B World. From this, another Pleroma member with similar abilities to Richthofen flashes through my mind. The fact that the magical academic world assumes B World exists but has no understanding of it, and therefore I must find out about B World by any means, also came to mind together.
‘…Hmm.’
Good. I understand well.
As I suspected before, Maria Osterreicheste did not die in an accident.
Then where did all the records and objects Maria Osterreicheste left behind go? Where did all the records in that field go, which the magical academic world dismissed as wicked learning and ignored, showing no interest? Where did all of Maria’s efforts go, breathing life into formulas and aphorisms that were mere piles of letters in ancient texts? Though he himself didn’t know the principles well, he was capable of overlaying magical academic systems onto numerous occult spells that were merely futile dreams of humans and actually implementing them. But why didn’t his techniques remain at all in the world 12 years later? Simply because he died young?
Such a hypothesis has low probability.
“Emanuel.”
“What, you don’t want to do astral projection again?”
“No, I’ll have to do it for several more days even if I hate it. That’s not it.”
“Then?”
“Suppose you face the worst situation of your life, and someone you don’t want to meet comes looking for you.”
“Yes.”
“The premise of this statement is that Maria and I face some great misfortune and you can never see Emanuel again.”
Emmanuel frowned with an absurd expression.
“Why such an ominous….”
“But suppose someone came to investigate us. You wouldn’t want to meet that person and would refuse.”
“….”
“What would it take for you to meet that person?”
“If they told me to receive them as befits a Bavarian, I would meet them.”
He smiled while sliding open his cigarette case lid. I stared at him intently then let out the same laugh.
“Ha…. There’s no answer.”
“Why are you saying this?”
“….”
“Tell me. There must be a reason you suddenly got up and said this. If it’s a field I know, I’ll give you advice.”
I looked at Emmanuel placing a handkerchief on my forehead, which was sweating from the B World movement activity disguised as astral projection. He just raised his eyebrows as if telling me to speak quickly. I opened my mouth without expectation.
“Honestly, I firmly believed this was the most unrelated work I’d ever done….”
“….”
“But my judgment seems wrong. I feel like no matter which door I enter through, everything converges to one point.”
To be honest, watching the crazy antics of occult enthusiasts wasn’t difficult. It was comfortable compared to what I’d been doing, and since I met someone completely different from me, it was absurd and in some sense refreshing. But is this really such a light matter? Am I not seeing the essence?
Emmanuel, who had been staring intently into my pupils while tense, smiled when the expected eerie story didn’t come.
“Do you know why? Everything in this world is made of one thing.”
I raised my eyes to look at him. Though I hadn’t revealed what work I was thinking about, an answer came. The shadow cast on his face under the electric light made his playful smile no longer seem so visible.
“Nothing happens without reason.”
“….”
There was nothing more I could think about in the current situation. For now, I had no choice but to move forward.
After that, we went to 18th-century France the next day and the day after that as well.
The French nobles kept asking about 19th-century international affairs until the second day, then from the third day began asking about the occult and magical studies.
‘Still, international affairs take priority over the occult, I suppose.’
Of course. When people who know the fate of their families have come, what does the occult matter now? Still, from my position of needing to catch clues to the case, I welcome their interest returning to the occult.
“Archduchess Maria. It’s good to see you again.”
“We saw each other yesterday.”
“Still.”
The youngest human in this gathering smiled and embraced me lightly. Since we’re similar in age, he seems to want to become friends. I felt somewhat guilty and quickly greeted the others before sitting down.
It’s not just that noble who became favorable toward us. At first they said we looked strange and cursed right to our faces, but now everyone has adapted. I’m grateful they accepted these tall poles over 180cm, hard to find even among human males of this era, without much suspicion—though I still think these nobles were very suspicious of what world Archduchess Maria lives in—but I feel guilty.
‘I need to leave quickly….’
Why is Archduchess Maria only quick-witted at times like this? This time too, she grabbed my shoulder with a stern expression. I asked the fundamental culprit of this work with an expressionless face.
“What.”
The Archduchess shook her head. It meant not to think about conscience. Being a new human, she wouldn’t understand my discomfort.
“Now, let’s start today’s research well. It was time to talk about the Lion Duke in earnest.”
I sighed deeply at the Archduchess and half-listened to the club president’s words.
Now, how can I meaningfully narrow down suspects from those hundreds, maybe over a thousand descendants? That’s what I need to worry about. These are all nobles among nobles, more than half their descendants hold similar positions in later generations, and crucially, they’re French people beyond the reach of the German Investigation Bureau’s influence.
In other words, since it’s impossible to go back to 1898 and investigate all those hundreds of people thoroughly, I must narrow down the culprit here. Then how should I do it? What can I attempt?
Fortunately, it’s not a difficult problem.
I sent a hand signal to Maria and opened my mouth.
“Wait, before we start today’s research, there’s something I want to ask first.”
Everyone’s gaze turned to me. Since I’d already gotten permission from Archduchess Maria, it was fine to change the subject.
“Your descendants will become mages like us.”
“….”
The members’ faces hardened a bit more. They seemed to already feel some responsibility.
“Your magical research will be passed down through your families for generations if you don’t hide it. Magic as occultism may seem absurd, but I’ve often seen through this person how it’s actually implemented in our world.”
“Calling your sister ‘this person’—do future people really observe such serious formalities?”
When I pointed to Archduchess Maria while speaking, someone asked questioningly. I roughly ignored that comment and continued.
“Anyway, so I want to ask this. If you were to become mages, what kind of magical formulas would you want to develop?”
They seemed unprepared for such a topic. They just looked at me silently.
How disappointing to react like that. This question is the tool that will help me achieve my real purpose for coming here.
“What is the magic you most desire for? Personal desires are fine, or for your family’s glory is fine too.”
“If we tell you that?”
“I will help you. This occasion today will remain forever secret, and you will have magical formulas that will be passed down to future generations. Even if you can’t use them right now, if an opportunity comes for you to have magic power like us someday, you can utilize them then.”
The president nodded. The initial wariness was no longer in his eyes, but there was a look of curiosity about why I was saying this.
“Why are you showing us such kindness? We’re interested in magical studies, but we’re not people who can use magic like you—we’re just people researching the occult.”
“Please think of it as kindness from descendants. I cannot say more due to causality.”
What causality? I had spoken carelessly, but perhaps they sensed sincerity in my expression and tone, as they didn’t argue further and simply watched me with bright, gleaming eyes. Seeing those eyes, they seemed to have much to say but were waiting for me for now.
“So if you become honest, I will help you as much as I can. Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
The once-in-a-lifetime opportunity had come to me, but what did it matter. I looked at them and gave a trustworthy smile.
And so, they said they wanted to think it over and meet again the next day. They needed time to organize their individual research goals and the fields they wanted to study. It was strangely systematic, making me chuckle, but the more genuine they were, the closer it would be to the original history, so it was a good sign for me.
The next day came, and I sat alone in the room. It felt awkward sitting by myself at a table where ten people used to sit. Just as I was thinking this, one nobleman entered and sat across from me.
“It seems the Countess of Rohan is already prepared.”
“That’s right.”
He answered seriously, then spoke with intense eyes even though I hadn’t spoken first.
“What if you wanted to become the King of France?”
“…”
“Why no answer?”
“…No… Please wait a moment.”
Such ambition from the start…
My brain was buffering. Someone with similar goals at a time when Catherine the Great and Maria Theresa hadn’t yet ascended to the throne? Fortunately or unfortunately, I had no memory whatsoever of the Rohan family staging a coup to overthrow the Bourbon dynasty.
Anyway, realizing I was the only commoner made my mind feel distant. I grasped my scattered thoughts and asked.
“…What do you think needs to be done to become King of France?”
“For that, our family must gain power, and for that, we must first suppress the minds of other nobles. We must ensure no one knows that they and we were originally in those positions.”
“Exactly right. I understand well.”
At least it was correct. But how could he do something even I couldn’t?
If he tried such a thing, he would become the worst mage recorded in history books forever. Why? Because unless he cast magic on billions of people across this continent and America, there was no way it wouldn’t be discovered. However, there was no reason to consider feasibility now. I briefly wrote down the divine power formula I remembered.
The next person’s request was relatively ordinary. Josephine Orleans, that nobleman in his twenties who had first greeted me earlier. As soon as Orleans saw me, his face relaxed with relief and he smiled, then asked somewhat shyly.
“Is there a way to be united with someone you love?”
After hearing from someone who was 200% prepared for a coup, hearing this completely deflated me. Yes, this was what I had expected.
“So you’re asking if emotions can be manipulated. While it might succeed temporarily, emotions cannot be permanently changed. Also, even for temporary success, you’d need to use magic potions rather than spells, and I cannot provide you with drugs.”
“I see. Then…”
Orleans smiled wistfully and paused, then spoke words he had clearly thought of beforehand. His expression wasn’t that of someone speaking off the cuff.
“What about magic to stay by someone you love without anyone knowing? Since they won’t accept me, I wonder if I should become invisible… haha. Is it possible?”
“…Well…”
It was a comment that reminded me of someone. Listening to humans’ inner thoughts was quite entertaining. I felt my head growing heavy and suppressed a bitter laugh.
“Exactly how do you want to be by their side? Are you planning to break into their home? Or follow them everywhere they go?”
“Not exactly that, but…”
‘It’s exactly that, what do you mean not…’
When my questioning continued, he eventually admitted that was exactly it. I had successfully heard his insane desire to observe someone’s every move.
The next person to enter was a nobleman I hadn’t interacted much with in this group, but like the previous two, he was from an influential family that would still exist in 1898.
“You’re Countess Victoire de Collingcourt. First, what kind of magic did you want to research that brought you to this group?”
“I came here to revive my dead younger brother. I don’t think it’s possible, but… I’m trying. Do you know such magic, Archduchess Maria?”
“I’m sorry, but that is not within the realm of ordinary magic even in our time.”
“I see. But couldn’t the future be changed? If I devoted myself to magical studies, would it become possible?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m asking whether research on resurrection wouldn’t be accelerated if the overall development of magical studies were advanced.”
She asked while fixing her gaze on my artifact Peruer. It was eerie how she didn’t blink even once.
The words that followed were varied. There were two families that wanted to become the King of France. One said they wanted to become king themselves, while the other said they would make their husband king. Whatever the case, these nobles seemed like they would soon experience a civil revolution. I could only hope the people from the two families didn’t know each other’s ambitions.
“What are you investigating all this for?”
After today’s meeting ended, the real Archduchess Maria asked, placing a hand on my shoulder. I tapped the Duke’s Peruer hanging on my ear to change my appearance and answered.
“Aren’t you curious what everyone is so devoted to magical studies for? I’m curious. I’m also curious whether we can advance the magical studies of our history through this process.”
“Hmm, yes. Surprisingly, people’s goals aren’t very clean, are they?”
“I didn’t expect them to be.”
Maria Osterreicheste’s goal belonged to the very righteous side. Despite possessing countless techniques unknown to the magical academic world, he didn’t use them for personal profit. I had been thinking that not everyone would be like him. Now the key was finding out who here, which family’s descendant, was connected to the jewel theft case.
And I found the answer.
* * *
“Chirp!”
As soon as I came out of the extra chapter, I heard an animal sound. Something was stuck between my neck and the bed. Before my vestibular system could function properly, I hurriedly got up and picked up Fai.
“When did you get here? You startled me.”
“Just now!”
Fai continued speaking while shooting sentences into my head like when the Archduchess Maria and I had conversed in soul form earlier.
“I told you Narke would come soon and he really came now~”
“…Can that be done through insight too?”
It felt like being in Buddha’s palm. Though I wasn’t sure if it was appropriate to use such a comparison with him.
Amazingly, as soon as those words ended, the door burst open.
“Ah, Lucas.”
“…”
As if he had been running, Narke smiled while catching his breath. He took off his hat and sat on the edge of the bed. His hair was yellow, as if he had come from the Hermitische Gesellschaft. Something came to mind that I wanted to tell him, so I opened my mouth.
“You came at perfect timing.”
“Huh?”
“I found a clue.”
Narke raised his eyebrows and looked flustered, as if he hadn’t come to hear about my clue. He burst into laughter.
“Why.”
“No, we took a detour but you found a direct route. Hmm, I was going to suggest we take the detour together…”
Narke shrugged his shoulders. Then he smiled leisurely and said.
“If you found a clue, that’s good enough. Tell me.”
Even though he had already read it with his ability.
Since I always told him to stop reading my thoughts, he wanted me to say it with my own mouth. I smiled lightly at Narke’s relaxed expression and spoke directly so he could hear.
“We need to investigate the descendants of the Orleans family. Focus on the direct descendants of the Human named Josephine Orleans.”
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
