Memoirs of a Wicked Magician - Chapter 96

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 96
“Your sister’s back! Hurry and get out before she sees you.”
In truth, Liriope had no real reason to hide Belkiers so desperately. But it was an automatic, almost instinctive reaction that had tumbled out before she could think.
If she needed to cool things down, she could have used Cold Magic, but letting Belkiers press his hand to his forehead was the same sort of thing—explained more by impulse than logic.
It was simply something difficult to put into words.
When Belkiers saw Liriope’s flustered expression, he too locked the door the next instant without conscious thought.
Click!
“Hm? Did I lock the door when I came out…? No, I didn’t, did I?”
Caliona’s bewildered voice drifted from outside the door.
Liriope turned on Belkiers reproachfully.
“What are you doing? Your sister’s out there—why did you lock it?”
“I… I don’t know. I just did.”
Knock, knock.
“Liri, it’s me. Did you lock it? Can I come in?”
“Yeah, yes! I’m just changing my clothes. One moment!”
Liriope called urgently through the door to Caliona, then turned back to Belkiers with a sharp gesture.
His gaze turned discontented as it settled on her.
At this moment, being chased out of Liriope’s room like a common thief struck Belkiers as deeply unreasonable.
Had there ever been a place in the Magic Tower that he could not freely go?
Save for the topmost floor, which only the Tower’s master could ascend, every level lay beneath his feet like a front yard and a back garden combined.
And yet, to be driven out like a sneak thief of all things?
Given his nature, Belkiers could simply have cast Perception Distortion Magic on Caliona or put her to sleep and been done with it.
But if he did that, Liriope would certainly be angry with him.
“…Fine. I’ll come back later.”
So Belkiers swallowed his displeasure and, reluctantly, did as Liriope wished.
After Belkiers vanished, Liriope hastily pulled out some random clothes and changed into them to make her excuse real, then quickly opened the door for Caliona.
“Sister! I’m sorry to have kept you waiting.”
“Don’t be silly. I should have been more thoughtful about your clothes before going to fetch breakfast.”
Fortunately, it seemed Caliona had not noticed Belkiers’ presence.
Liriope felt oddly self-conscious and embarrassed in hindsight.
They weren’t in any particular relationship, yet she had fussed about concealment as though they’d been caught doing something scandalous.
“Oh, by the way—Milena came by looking for you this morning to have breakfast together, but I turned her away just now in the hallway. I wanted to spend some time with you alone for once. Is that all right?”
“Of course, sister. That’s wonderful with me.”
Of course, Milena, who wanted to follow Liriope’s every move, would likely be disappointed.
Liriope happily began eating the food Caliona had brought directly from the dining hall.
Soft white bread, soup with a balanced mix of vegetables and meat, fresh milk, and fruit salad.
The menu was simple, but she could taste the quality of the ingredients, and it was delicious.
“Eat slowly. If your digestion goes well, we can have something more delicious for dinner.”
“Something more delicious? What kind of thing?”
“Well, I’ve heard the roasted duck glazed with wild berries is wonderful, and the steamed freshwater fish and pumpkin tart seem to be popular menu items at the dining hall. If you’re interested, we can try them all tonight. The truth is, I’ve been fortunate lately and managed to save some money, so I can buy whatever you want to eat.”
Caliona rattled off several more menu items with a delighted expression.
From the upper levels of the Magic Tower onward, meals of decent taste and nutrition were available.
There was also the option of paying extra to enjoy more lavish meals.
As Cameron had once declared to the new mages, the Magic Tower afforded the possibility of accumulating wealth according to one’s individual ability.
First, since the Basic Living Stipend distributed at each floor varied, one could amass a considerable sum simply by ascending the Tower.
Byproducts and Magical Artifacts obtained from desecrated holy sites were valued separately, making diligent searching the easiest method.
Beyond that, there were diverse ways to earn: receiving Performance Bonuses for good scores on examinations, assisting research of high-level mages, taking private commissions using specialty magic, and so forth.
“Truth be told, I wasn’t much interested before, so I only knew they were famous—never actually tried them myself. But I think if I eat them with you today, they’ll taste even better. I’m looking forward to it.”
Liriope felt slightly puzzled by Caliona’s casual remark.
These were dishes that pre-Regression Caliona had also enjoyed, yet she claimed not to have eaten them once in the past year?
“And while we have time, let’s decorate your room a bit too. Buy you some new clothes as well. What do you think?”
As Liriope observed Caliona more carefully after hearing these words, she noticed just how plain her sister’s attire was.
Of course, Caliona was so striking in her features that even simple clothing made her beautiful. But it was also true that she paled compared to Stella, who adorned herself with Lace and Jewels.
“Liri, bright colors suit you wonderfully. A pink or soft cream-colored dress would look truly lovely on you. Remember that Ribbon-decorated Dress you used to love? The one you got as a birthday gift from our parents when you were eight? We could have something made like that for you.”
Caliona, meanwhile, was bubbling over with plans for all the things she wanted to do for Liriope alone.
A sudden realization swept through Liriope’s mind.
She seemed to understand her sister’s heart, and a small sigh escaped her.
For Liriope, every morsel of food she ate sitting across from Caliona like this was like a feast of delicacies. Even a single muddy potato would taste good if her sister was beside her.
Conversely, during the past year without Caliona, nothing had tasted good, and nothing had brought her joy.
Perhaps Caliona felt exactly the same way.
“Oh, by the way—Liri, are you quite close with the Magic Tower Master’s son?”
“Cough…”
And just as her heart was swelling with tenderness, such a question came out of nowhere.
Liriope looked up at Caliona in alarm.
“W-Why are you asking that so suddenly, sister?”
Had she noticed Belkiers visiting just now?
Or did she know that the Magic Tower Master’s summons the other day was actually because of Belkiers?
Or perhaps she had only now remembered seeing Belkiers at the Outer Estate last year?
Whichever it was, Caliona’s question had caught Liriope completely off-guard.
“Have some water first, Liri.”
“Oh… thank you, sister.”
Liriope found herself unconsciously watching Caliona’s expression.
Thankfully, Caliona’s face across from her looked calm, and she didn’t seem to be angry in particular.
“It just seems to me, from various circumstances, that whoever’s been telling me about your whereabouts all this time has probably been the Magic Tower Master’s son. And looking at your reaction now, it seems you already knew… Is that right?”
Liriope felt a little caught.
She felt a pang of guilt, as though she’d been the first to break their promise not to keep secrets from each other.
But in her defense, she couldn’t figure out where to begin explaining Belkiers or where to end.
After her cough subsided, Liriope chose her words carefully.
“Well, it’s… I never had the chance to tell you, but yes, we do know each other somewhat. He helped me quite a bit at the Outer Estate.”
Hearing Liriope’s explanation, a faint ripple of emotion crossed Caliona’s eyes. She had confirmed that what she’d guessed was true.
“I see. For helping you, I could never thank him enough. But how did he come to meet you and help you?”
“From what I understand, last year he came as an Examiner managing the new recruits at the Outer Estate, and that’s when we met.”
At this, Caliona raised her eyebrows slightly.
“I heard the Examiner last year was Evangellin?”
“What?”
“Oh, Evangellin is that silver-haired young man with glasses that you saw two days ago. You remember him, don’t you?”
Hearing this for the first time, Liriope’s brow furrowed.
The Examiner from last year is known to be Evangellin?
Then a belated understanding struck her.
‘Could it be that Belkiers was disguising himself with silver hair and red eyes all that time? Pretending to be Evangellin to enter the Outer Estate?’
“So I’ve been thinking all this time that Evangellin was helping you and sending me news about you.”
“What did you just say?”
Moreover, she could now understand the unexpected reason Caliona had become entangled with Evangellin.
That a venomous creature like Evangellin would do something so altruistic was absurd—a misunderstanding too grave and too ridiculous.
“Wait—you’ve been under such a massive misunderstanding all this time? And you never thought to confirm it directly with Evangellin himself?”
“That’s what I wonder too. I think I’ve been foolish, but I never once asked him directly. I was just jumping to conclusions on my own. Pathetic.”
“That’s not true! Evangellin must have cleverly deceived you on purpose, sister.”
Caliona cast a peculiar look at the indignant Liriope, who didn’t catch it and went on huffily.
“Anyway, I’m relieved you know it’s a misunderstanding now. I really hope you’ll keep your distance from that Evangellin person. There’s something insincere about him, and he seems like the type who stabs people in the back as casually as eating and tells lies without hesitation.”
“That’s quite a harsh judgment… Honestly, we were never that close to begin with, and I was already planning to keep my distance going forward. So don’t worry.”
In truth, the relationship between the two was not as simple as Liriope believed, but Caliona nonetheless nodded without showing it.
After hearing Caliona’s firm reply, Liriope felt somewhat reassured.
Caliona, for her part, was also carefully observing Liriope’s reaction. Yet when her younger sister spoke of Belkiers, there was no trace of hesitation or wariness in her expression.
In Caliona’s downcast eyes, complex emotions flickered.
Her mind grew heavy. Looking at Liriope’s face, it seemed her feelings toward Belkiers were more favorable than Caliona had thought.
Caliona opened her mouth to tell Liriope to be more cautious about the Magic Tower Master’s son, then closed it again.
She sensed this matter required more careful handling. She decided she would need to learn more about Belkiers separately first.
“Liri, going forward, Stella will be busy with the 21st Floor Examination, so I’ll make sure you two don’t cross paths. Don’t worry about someone like her.”
So rather than say more about that, Caliona changed the subject, and Liriope readily nodded in agreement.
Since Caliona had her own way of wanting to repay Stella, Liriope decided not to interfere for now.
“Sister, are you going to take the 21st Floor Examination this time?”
“For now, I’m thinking of taking it for the experience.”
Seeing Caliona’s resolute manner, Liriope paused to consider.
Her sister’s magical prowess seemed to have improved markedly compared to the same period before Regression.
So there would be no need to worry at all about taking the 21st Floor Examination now.
Liriope, having only just arrived at the Inner Tower, naturally could not take the same examination as Caliona, but she had her own work to do at the lowest level.
Truth be told, having so many things to accomplish in this second life made her anxious, but she resolved not to rush and to advance one careful step at a time.
‘The Magic Tower Master as an unexpected variable makes me uneasy… but for now there’s no special movement, so let me quietly observe the situation.’
Everything had its priority, and she would handle what she could manage now, one task at a time.
After breakfast, fortunately Liriope’s physical condition had improved to nearly normal.
She headed to the Education Room to attend Cameron’s class for the first time in a long while.

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