How to Survive as the Second Son of a Mage Family - Chapter 427

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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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“Senior.”

Having arrived at the checkpoint located between the river and railway, I knocked on the back door with the back of my hand before entering. Vice-Captain Erich Reichenau opened the door first and came out. I smiled properly and greeted him.

“Good day, Senior. I’ve come to see Lord Mecklenburg.”

“…He said to turn you away.”

Yes, he would have said that. I maintained a faint smile without concern and answered.

“How cold of him. This isn’t a personal visit, so please let me in. It’ll only take a moment.”

“…”

The Vice-Captain looked confused, then gestured to me that he would go ask, and tried to go inside. I blocked the closing door with my foot, and when the Vice-Captain’s attention was diverted to the floor, I pushed the door open wide and went inside. The Vice-Captain looked at me with an incredulous expression, but that wasn’t my concern.

After grabbing and releasing his hand that was holding the door handle, I nodded roughly and went inside. I could see a familiar silhouette. Mecklenburg, who seemed to have just returned from going outside, was holding his hat in his hand and looking at me with the exact same expression the Vice-Captain had just shown. He opened his mouth as if dumbfounded.

“Well, how dare you…”

“Didn’t I say I would come earlier?”

“I clearly told you not to come. You have mages who use divine power, but we’re busy because we have no support from now on and have to search through everything manually.”

“So it seems. But I have something to check.”

“What are you trying to do.”

“Your team takes shifts too, right? How did you divide them?”

“Three each, with me and the Vice-Captain as representatives.”

Mecklenburg pointed to a chart with an expression that said I was asking about trivial things. I memorized the names written on the paper placed on the desk and nodded.

“Do you know why you’re taking shifts?”

“Orders from above, so what can we do? Aren’t you people taking shifts too?”

“What a universal answer. Do you think I asked that because I didn’t know, when we’re also taking shifts?”

At those words, Mecklenburg smiled with an expression that suggested he might grab my collar soon, then pushed my back and came outside. He cast a sound-blocking spell and deliberately answered in a small but sharp voice.

“…Don’t speak carelessly when my juniors are present.”

“I’ll try my best.”

“I don’t know why you’re asking when you probably know, but isn’t it to minimize damage by dividing as much as possible in case of contamination? We need to know which time and where the contamination occurred.”

“You do know. I understand well. Then, has anyone left this place during the shift changes?”

“Would there be? Even though we changed shifts, it’s no different from working while changing positions.”

Mecklenburg answered curtly.

I understood why he was acting this way. From the moment we sent the letter from Austria-Hungary at dawn, Germany had controlled all ships, trains, and people entering from overseas. At 12:30 PM, until the mages sent by the government arrived at the border, everyone was detained around the border area, and it was decided to begin the process of letting them through starting at 1 o’clock. The 98th A, who had been at the checkpoint from 1 o’clock until now at 4 o’clock, would have worked without rest.

“What about before 1 o’clock?”

“There might have been then. I don’t know well. Is that enough? Please go back now.”

“Come to think of it, you were away before 1 o’clock, Senior.”

“Wasn’t I going to see you!”

“Isn’t that leaving your post?”

“Since the mission started at 1 o’clock, strictly speaking, it’s not. Are you trying to play word games with me?”

Would I do that? My ears are getting tired. I looked at my watch and asked.

“I told you I have something to check. Did you go to the bathroom today?”

Mecklenburg seriously pondered what he had just heard, then looked at me with an incredulous expression.

“…Did you come here just to ask such useless things? Of course I went, what do you think?”

“When, how many times?”

“What…”

“Why do you go? This time to wash your hands too? What time did the others go?”

Mecklenburg began looking at me like I was crazy. I wanted to explain my purpose, but at the same time I didn’t really want to, so I just looked at Mecklenburg without saying anything. In any case, I needed to collect data. Mecklenburg looked somewhat pitying, as if I really seemed crazy, and said.

“Shouldn’t you be resting instead of doing this?”

“This is the first time I’ve heard such words from you, Senior. So what’s your answer?”

“Who remembers such things in detail? I don’t know.”

“You went yourself, so why don’t you know? It’s not even difficult, please try to remember.”

Mecklenburg grabbed the back of his neck and closed his eyes. I quietly waited, prepared to accept whether I’d get grabbed by the collar or punched.

“I have no idea why you’re investigating this, but first… I washed my hands a bit after you grabbed me.”

“Hmm.”

“It, it wasn’t because you’re dirty, so don’t feel bad…”

“It’s fine. I’m not offended at all. I’d also go wash if you grabbed my hand, Senior.”

“What?!”

‘Huh?’

I thought he wouldn’t get angry, but why? Don’t people usually wash after others touch their hands? Maybe not immediately, but. I was rather flustered by his outburst, then understood the situation. This guy… had genuinely found it dirty when I grabbed his wrist. So when I said I’d do the same in reverse, he’s showing such an intense reaction. What did he mean it wasn’t because I was dirty? I almost let out a deep sigh but barely held back, deciding to focus on what he was saying on the surface.

“That would have been around 1 o’clock. When did you go after that?”

“…Well… Let me think. I need to remember.”

“You need to think about it… Just how many times did you go to wash? You’re even wearing gloves, stop washing so much.”

“Don’t you know how uncomfortable it feels?!”

What’s so dirty about it? I was about to shake my head but held back, thinking it would be better not to say too much. When I remained silent, Mecklenburg tried to recall on his own.

“…I think I went about every hour. It might not be exact, but between 2 and 3 o’clock I went to wash once more in the middle. I just came back from there too. I have no idea why I’m telling you this when you’re not even a doctor…”

“Thank you. What about Vice-Captain Erich Reichenau?”

“How would I know that? Since we divided our six people into groups of three, I just met him for the first time.”

“I see. The others must have gone too, right? Was there anyone acting differently than usual?”

“Of course they went, and at least among my two, there wasn’t anyone. As you can see, everyone’s normal. Now if that’s enough, I’m going inside.”

“Senior.”

I called Mecklenburg quietly, and when he just stood there looking at me, I opened my mouth again.

“Don’t you have anything to say to me?”

“…What should I have to say?”

“Well, fine. Ah, I’ll come back at 6:20 later. Let’s warp to headquarters together then.”

“…”

“Tell the others too. That they’ll be returning with me.”

Mecklenburg glanced back at me silently and went inside. I stood there quietly for a moment, then warped to the previous coordinates since I had plenty of mana to spare. When I faced Elias again, it was 4:20.

* * *

“Kitties~ Where are the kitties? I want to play with a yellow cat.”

Elias whistled and walked almost skipping. Actually, it was our turn to do inspections, but Leo turned a blind eye and sent us off. I’m also glad to be able to find cats a bit earlier. Elias walked continuously toward Baden, that is, southwest if Austria was to the south. To the east was the checkpoint I had just visited. I followed behind Elias and said.

“Narke kept purifying the train station ground, right?”

“Yeah. Just in case.”

“Hmm, right.”

After that, we kept walking. It was close to rural areas. There were no forests, just wide grasslands spread out. In the distance, I could hear the sound of river water flowing south from Germany to Austria. Someday it might be developed with buildings packed tightly together, but for now it was quiet. Boundary stones were also placed sporadically between grasslands and farmhouses, making it difficult to tell where Germany ended and Austria began. The border was divided by the river as a boundary, but there were places where this wasn’t the case. At least for us, we could faintly sense barrier mana, so we didn’t need to worry about crossing the border. I could see a black rabbit moving around in the distance. Knowing that I was absorbed in other thoughts, Elias suddenly turned around.

“You’re not looking for cats!”

“Right. How about that rabbit over there?”

“Oh.”

Elias ran recklessly and pounced on the rabbit. Naturally, the rabbit was startled and ran away from him. I wondered what kind of behavior this was. If he had come right after chasing a dog it would be one thing, but some time had passed, so I thought Elias would approach stealthily, common sense-wise. I felt a bit sorry for that rabbit too. As I followed sluggishly with half-closed eyes, at some point Elias appeared holding something, his clothes covered with dirt and grass.

“…What?!”

“A rabbit!”

I doubted my eyes. A black rabbit was being held in Elias’s arms, caught by its ears.

“Won’t you put it down?!”

“Why?!”

“Let it go!”

“Why?!”

“What are you going to do holding a rabbit? Eat it? Raise it?”

“Rabbit meat doesn’t taste good. I just caught it. I’m faster than the rabbit.”

I couldn’t understand what he planned to do with being faster. I lightly pressed my eyelids, took a deep breath, and answered.

“…The rabbit will be stressed. And you too, what if you catch ticks or something?”

“Hey~ Animals that build homes and live in grasslands are clean if you just brush off the dust! Rather, the cows and chickens raised at that farmhouse over there would be dirtier!”

“Why? What’s the mechanism?”

“It just is. I’ve observed it, and the condition of livestock raised by humans is worse. They’re always sickly. Look directly, bison have fewer ticks than cows raised by humans.”

“Hmm…”

“Really! The species are different too, but animals domesticated by humans have become weaker in immunity and other things, you know? And they only let them out for two or three hours in the sunny midday. It seems like they’re treating them well, but from the cow’s perspective, that’s completely problematic. Living 22 hours out of 24 in a stable smaller than our bathroom, how stressed would they be?! Rabbits are different.”

While Elias was giving his passionate speech, I looked into the black eyes of the rabbit. Even though it wasn’t cold weather, its fur was trembling slightly. I felt sorry for the rabbit… Its fur was fluffy, but its paws had mud on them from wherever it had been. Elias spoke to me with a confident tone.

“Don’t worry, Luca. I’ve never gotten sick from playing with wild animals. Actually, I once played with someone’s pony and got bitten by a tick, which gave me a fever for a whole week. And the rabbit likes playing with me too.”

“Who says it likes it? This one doesn’t seem to. Let the rabbit go.”

“Can’t I take it to show the kids?”

“No! Are you going to bring the rabbit all the way back here? No, even if you say you’ll bring it back, you can’t. Let it go!”

I hit Elias’s forearm and snatched the rabbit away, setting it down. The rabbit shook its head to clean its fur and quickly hopped away. Elias drooped his shoulders and brushed off the fur from his gloves and clothes.

Since Elias was looking around for something else to play with, I shook my head firmly and gestured for him to follow me. Elias followed me without complaint, muttering.

“Haven’t they set up the barrier yet?”

“It’s partially set up. Setting it up along the entire border isn’t realistically feasible.”

“What about here?”

“It’s set up. You just can’t see it.”

This guy definitely came out here without thinking about where we were going. Now that I realize I was being careful not to cross into Austria alone, I can only laugh bitterly.

Only then did Elias shoot some magic into the air and grimace.

“Ah~ this is too weak? Anyone with a core could just walk right through.”

“They might be able to pass through if they’re skilled, but it would still trigger an alert. That’s the point.”

Even if they pass through, the barrier would be damaged in the process, so it couldn’t go unnoticed.

Still, seeing that they didn’t install a high-grade barrier—though the German Empire is so vast that installing a solid barrier across the enormous range of the entire border would be technically difficult—the authorities probably don’t consider the possibility of illegal entry very high. Even when the fake Aqua Panna was imported into Austria-Hungary, it took the form of legal trade.

“But you know.”

On the way back, Elias started to speak. I glanced at him and waited for him to continue. Elias muttered while looking straight ahead.

“Shouldn’t we increase the guard at the Treasury’s magic warehouse?”

“….”

He’s talking about artificial magic.

We already know that magic is a valuable commodity that can be exchanged for other goods. Magic is used in social infrastructure like water and sewage systems and streetlights—magic lights, of course—and public works projects, and it’s also used in newspapers, magazines, and postal systems, as well as railways and automobiles—already third-generation magic-powered cars. We live in a society that doesn’t function without magic. This is an undeniable truth and an obvious fact for our era and for me.

Familiarly, what sustains a country is its economy. The centralized system here cannot help but be affected by the nation’s prosperity. Everyone knows that Anhalt doesn’t remain a simple small state but exerts great influence in politics and gradually absorbs neighboring principalities’ lands thanks to the many powerful mages born to the Ascanien family for generations, and I’ve known this since I first came to this world through books. The Empire is the same. The Empire also accumulates magic and stores the magic collected from nobles so it can be used as an energy source. Magic is stored and circulated in a way similar to currency—though much more closed off than money. Most notably, there’s something like a central bank for magic too. It might be closer to the Federal Reserve.

So, Elias is worried about that magic central bank’s warehouse being robbed. He’s actually right. If Atropos is to be used as a true killing tool, robbing each country’s magic warehouses would be the fastest method. The government has naturally strengthened security, but Elias seems to find it unreliable. I shrugged and answered.

“You’re right about that. But… right now Pleroma isn’t thinking of killing people en masse.”

Just looking at how they made raw magic—the magic in our bodies—combine with that liquid to create a mind control drug effect, it’s clear what those bastards prioritize. If they wanted to kill someone, they could just make it so you die immediately after drinking it.

“They’re more focused on brainwashing.”

“….”

Elias nodded and answered briefly.

“Luca. I’ll be able to recognize you no matter what happens, right?”

“Of course. Why are you thinking such things?”

“You’re thinking the same thing.”

Hit right on target, I could only smile.

‘Hmm…’

On our way back, we encountered the same farmhouse we’d passed earlier. Now I noticed it stood out more than other farmhouses, probably because it was right at the border. I greeted the grandmother sitting in the shade of a distant tree, waving reeds at a stray cat—at the same time, Elias finally spotted the cat and made a strange sound, so I had to cover his mouth—.

“Hello, ma’am.”

“You came again!”

“Yes, I have something to ask. What were the clothes like of the people who came here earlier?”

The grandmother looked a bit puzzled but seemed willing to answer, coming close to me and frowning thoughtfully.

“From what I remember, they were similar to yours, young man. Except the tie wasn’t red but blue, I think.”

Our seniors… 98th Unit. I nodded and immediately asked.

“Do you remember what color their hair or eyes were?”

“Hehe, I’m not sure about that… Both were blue, I think, well anyway they were mages so not black. Since they weren’t very bright, probably green or blue. Or brown? I couldn’t see their hair color well because of their hats.”

Two people. Since they weren’t bright, it’s not Mecklenburg. His irises were relatively bright. The problem is that blue eyes are everywhere… Most notably, Vice-Captain Erich Reichenau also had blue eyes, and there were about three others.

‘That’s enough.’

This much is fine. I stored the information piece by piece and asked.

“What time did they come and what did they do?”

“I don’t know exactly. I was outside feeding the cows grass at that time. So it was probably… around 1 o’clock, I think. Those people had a dog from the church over there. They asked whose dog it was.”

The church over there.

There’s a small white church in the distance. It’s a church on Austrian soil, and it was also right at the border.

“They must have thought it was a lost dog.”

“That’s right. Hehe, that dog does wander around here and there.”

“What color is it?”

“It’s spotted. Yellowish-brown, but also looks brownish.”

“I see. Is it big?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Is it healthy?”

“Of course. Hehe, I went to feed it just the day before yesterday. It was quite lively.”

Elias found it strange that I was asking all these questions and peered around my shoulder. I pushed him away and asked one last question.

“Then where do your cows graze?”

“Over there—”

The old woman pointed beyond where I stood to the far end of the opposite field. I chuckled and spoke gently.

“Ma’am, border crossing is currently prohibited, so please keep your grazing on Austrian soil from now on.”

“Even though I didn’t cross on purpose?”

“Of course, it’s the same regardless.”

“Hehehe! I’ve lived here for 70 years, but this is the first time I’ve been told Austrian cows can’t eat German grass. But I suppose I’ll have to do that. I understand.”

“Yes, thank you.”

I smiled and said goodbye, then returned to the train station. 5:20. It took an hour. My friends were waiting for me and Elias. Having finished what I needed to do by 6 o’clock, I told my friends our destination and warped to the checkpoint.

Crash—

Before falling, I quickly changed my wand to a staff and struck the ground to use it as a walking stick. This time I managed to keep my balance and warp while standing.

“Phew.”

“…That startled me.”

A Senior A of Class 98 had pointed his wand at me but slowly lowered it while patting his chest. It was a bit awkward, but what could I do. I asked him casually.

“Hello, Senior. Are you finished now?”

“…Yes. I heard you wanted to return with our captain?”

“Yes. This time I have something personal to discuss.”

“Really? Before that…”

“You’re here.”

Before the senior could finish speaking, the back door opened wide. Mecklenburg was coming out with his belongings. He looked somewhat refreshed for some reason. Was it because he could go eat? He didn’t seem like the type to get happy about food, which was strange. I smiled and said.

“Senior. I warped all the way here.”

“I see. Well done.”

“….”

I stared quietly at Mecklenburg with the same smiling face. I could feel other 98th Unit seniors who overheard our conversation looking at me, wondering what was so special about warping here. When I just stood there quietly, Mecklenburg looked at me with eyes asking why.

“What.”

“Nothing. Shall we go now?”

“Didn’t you have something to say? I have a place to stop by anyway, so let’s talk on the way.”

“Where?”

“The government requested an inspection of Veste Oberhaus.”

Veste Oberhaus… There’s a small cliff surrounded by a river not far from here, with an old fortress on top of it.

I nodded and followed him. The world was red as the sun was setting. Since we walked, we didn’t arrive at Veste Oberhaus until 6:20. Since fortresses are rarely used these days, this place now looked like a well-maintained house, but no one lived there. I stood behind Mecklenburg as he detected magic and looked down at the surrounding scenery, saying.

“Senior, you don’t like dogs, do you.”

“I’m not particularly fond of them.”

“Did you touch one earlier?”

“I chased it away immediately. Somehow the Vice-Captain…”

“Ah, so a dog did come? And the Vice-Captain?”

“…Hmm…”

Mecklenburg narrowed his eyes and moved his lips. I watched his flustered profile and clicked my tongue. Then I stuck close to his side.

“Senior.”

“Mm?”

“….”

Mecklenburg raised an eyebrow and looked in my direction. I stiffened once more at that sight, then let out a hollow laugh and said.

“Nothing.”

“How bland.”

“Do you understand now? Anyway, let’s finish this quickly and go.”

“If you want to finish quickly, then help out.”

“Yes.”

I answered halfheartedly, tucked my wand into my waistband, and followed him up to the upper floor. After completing a simple check all the way up to the 3rd floor, I looked at Mecklenburg and gestured with my eyes, asking what we should do now. Standing in front of the balcony, he smiled lightly with a face that seemed to ask what I was asking about and answered.

“That’s enough now. Let’s go down.”

“Before that, Senior.”

The time had already passed 6:30. I muttered while looking at my watch.

“At this rate, will we even be able to eat?”

“You’re telling me. So then…”

“Senior.”

“…”

I smiled and took a step closer to him. For some reason, Mecklenburg didn’t furrow his brow or snap at me angrily even as I approached. I looked into his eyes and took another step forward. Only then did Mecklenburg step back expressionlessly. I snorted at his unfamiliar reaction and said.

“I suppose I had to come this far.”

“Mm, speak so I can understand…”

Thud—

I quickly pressed my hand against his forehead as if aiming a wand. At that split second when I was about to channel divine power, a hollow laugh crossed Mecklenburg’s face. As if someone was pulling him from above, his legs touched the low fence of the balcony.

“…!”

The scenery below the cliff entered my vision in slow motion. How could he go this far? All kinds of curses rose to my throat in an instant. What I had to do was clear. I twisted down the corners of my mouth and grabbed him. The fierce sound of wind rushing upward filled my ears.

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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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