On My First Day Undercover, the Organization Collapsed - Chapter 402

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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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First Day of Infiltration, The Organization Was Destroyed — Episode 402
Mage Corps Incident (1)
The path toward the masked ball venue.
‘This must be the way to the Arcane School event space.’
Ziel had visited the Arcane School event space for the first time since the start of this Festa.
It was an event with the title “Become a Mage!”
The Arcane School had poured enormous effort into its preparation, and with Zephyros’s assistance, it was achieving tremendous success.
“Quite a crowd.”
A bidding paddle held by one student happened to catch his eye.
[From here onwards, waiting time: 1 hour]
The line stretched so far back that there seemed to be no end to it, such was the venue’s popularity.
“Teacher Ziel! Over here!”
Amidst the throng of people waiting in line, Emeric finally found Ziel and brought him along. Zephyros was there as well.
“The event is quite popular, isn’t it?”
“It’s all thanks to you, Zephyros. The popularity is incredible. Just look!”
A student who had just taken the stage was chanting a spell.
“Hellfire!”
Bang! Whoosh!
A massive fireball fell from the sky and struck a designated area below, erupting in a violent explosion.
The crowd’s jaws dropped in unison.
The sheer scale of it!
The participant couldn’t hide their excitement at the thought that such a colossal offensive spell — the kind one might see only on a battlefield — had been cast from their own fingertips.
“Following your suggestion, we designed it so that the participant’s mana drains away as if they were truly using magic power. It feels completely real!”
“Hmm. Quite realistic.”
“Yes. Thanks to you, we’ve now achieved the highest single-event attendance in Arcane School history!”
Emeric was practically beaming.
Arcane School events typically drew large crowds because they centered on magic that was ordinarily difficult for people to experience.
But this time, it had surpassed those numbers — double the average attendance for a single event.
“We’ll win this time, Teacher Ziel.”
The Festa settlement occurs after the Festa is completely finished. Though the closing ceremony was held today, the actual settlement will take place tomorrow.
“No. We’ll still win.”
“But we have this many people…….”
“Have you seen the Sword School event?”
“I haven’t been to see it, but you’re saying it has even more people……?”
“Yes. More.”
“…….”
It was true.
Labyrinth Exploration.
The Northern Region’s space.
Both were drawing enormous crowds even now.
“Magic is already rare to witness, but seeing ice sculptures is statistically even more unlikely.”
“Ah…….”
“Moreover, the Labyrinth Exploration also draws many repeat challengers.”
“…….”
Emeric’s expression fell.
“Still, the Arcane School event is splendid. Well done, Zephyros.”
“Hmm. If you entrust such things entirely to me next time, I’ll make sure to build it properly from the start.”
Emeric perked up at those words.
“Then will you come as a professor at our Arcane School?”
“I’d rather not. Too troublesome.”
“…….”
“By the way, I need to replenish my mana. Do you happen to have any powerful magic available?”
“What level of magic?”
“5th Tier mid-level or above.”
“I’m not quite at that level yet…….”
“Useless, then.”
“…….”
Emeric’s shoulders sagged once more.
“My mana’s nearly depleted anyway. I’ll have to fetch some mana stones.”
Without Zephyros’s involvement, it would have been impossible to draw such crowds to this event.
‘Zephyros is a god!’
That’s what I’d thought.
“We’re from the Imperial Mage Corps Investigation Division. We’d like to request your cooperation for a moment.”
At least, until the mages from the Imperial Palace showed up.
“What is this about?”
A dozen mages pushing through the crowd at the event venue!
All of them wore robes embroidered with the Imperial seal.
Emeric stepped forward, though tension coiled through him.
The Imperial Mage Corps.
The ultimate destination for ordinary mages, and almost never encountered outside the Imperial Palace.
Which meant something—a serious incident—had occurred.
“We received a report that high-rank magic of unknown origin has been used here.”
Zephyros’s brow furrowed.
He knew all of them.
Some were apprentices who’d once studied magic under him.
They weren’t formal disciples, but he’d taught them for a time at the Imperial Palace’s request—and exactly half of this group fit that description.
The problem was that Zephyros couldn’t reveal his true identity as Sir Malacas now!
“According to Imperial Magical Decree, high-rank magic must be used with the utmost care and caution. Yet we’ve received reports that 5th Rank Magic has been used here at least five hundred times—and in a place this densely crowded, no less. Effective immediately, this event is suspended, and you will cooperate with the Mage Corps Investigation.”
“……!”
It was absurd.
Emeric stepped forward urgently.
“We’ve prepared all safety measures thoroughly. Two professors from the Arcane School have been stationed here at all times to handle any contingency. Mana fluctuation detection, of course, and there’s been no issue whatsoever…….”
“Professor Emeric Kent. You are a 5th Rank Mage, are you not?”
“I am.”
“A 5th Rank Mage cannot perfectly control 5th Rank Magic. Since you work at the Academy, you seem to have forgotten the most basic principles of magic.”
Zephyros’s eyebrows twitched.
That was precisely why he’d turned his back on the Imperial mages and thrown himself into research.
He’d always loved research, certainly, but the real reason was that he didn’t want to become the same kind of person they were.
“Particularly, numerous spells of Early 5th Tier and above have been observed—Hellfire, Blade Wind, and even Tremor. While the detected mana signatures fell below standard values in their localized range, this too constitutes a grave danger.”
“As I said, we’ve equipped every safety device. There was no issue, and all calculations have been completed.”
“No. That’s for us to judge.”
Zephyros remembered one man’s name.
“Roton Mayer. Currently Vice Commander of the Mage Corps. He took the position recently, after the previous Vice Commander retired following the Osu Island incident.”
“Why is he acting like this?”
“Because high-rank magic being used outside the Mage Corps bothers him.”
“Why would that bother him?”
“It always has. As long as they exist, every mage in the Empire must remain under their control, and they especially resent powerful mages—those beyond Early 5th Tier—operating outside their authority.”
“I can’t understand that.”
“My point exactly. Then again, perhaps it stems from the time someone called Sir Malacas refused to join the Mage Corps and kept achieving accomplishments under a different name instead?”
Ziel tilted his head and asked.
“You’re talking about yourself?”
“My, you caught on quickly.”
Former Sir Malacas, now Zephyros, shrugged.
“I was a bit troublesome back then. Thanks to me, they created a new law: unauthorized development of high-rank magic and ‘dangerous research’ requires advance approval from the Mage Corps.”
“Why must it be so?”
“Because they’re the type who only feel satisfied when they control everything.”
And there was one more reason.
“Since he’s newly appointed, he’s hungry for results. Catching ‘unauthorized magic use’ in a place like this, where people are gathered and all eyes are focused, would be quite the achievement.”
Meanwhile, the Vice Commander of the Mage Corps, Roton, issued orders to the mages under his command.
“Effective immediately, the Mage Corps takes control of this venue. Prepare to confiscate all magical tools and devices used here.”
“Yes, Vice Commander.”
“Vice Commander Roton, I understand, but surely not while the event is still ongoing…….”
Just as Emeric began to protest.
“That won’t do.”
Ziel stepped in front of the Mage Corps.
“Step aside. You’re obstructing the official duties of the Mage Corps.”
“I’d rather not.”
“…….”
There was one unfortunate reality.
The Mage Corps rarely ventured outside the Imperial Palace.
Without being a corps commander, there was little reason to attend Imperial events at all.
In other words, they didn’t recognize Ziel.
It was rather unfortunate.
“Safety has been secured, and no accidents occurred. High-rank magic was used, certainly, but everything proceeded safely under full control. So what reason is there to investigate?”
“You’re obstructing the Mage Corps now?”
“Is there a reason I shouldn’t?”
A question that returned like a broken record!
Ziel was genuinely curious.
Why he shouldn’t step aside.
“This is a challenge to order and authority. Are you perhaps a mage?”
“I’m not.”
“Then all the more reason to stay out of this. Many eyes are watching, so I’ll speak plainly one last time. Move aside.”
“I’d rather not.”
Roton’s mana flickered.
A reaction born of anger.
“Suppress him.”
“Yes, Vice Commander.”
Roton had made a mistake.
He’d relied solely on the Imperial Mage Corps robe and never revealed his own name.
Had he done so, he would have heard the name of the man now blocking his path.
“What?”
The mages who’d stepped forward found their mana simply vanishing without understanding why.
Literally.
The mana they’d been drawing dissolved into nothing.
If the mages’ dynamic vision had been merely at the level of ordinary knights, they might have grasped what happened.
But they never noticed that Ziel had reached out and touched something on their bodies, cutting off the flow of their mana.
“What are you doing? I said suppress him!”
“Our—our mana…….”
Every last one of them was at least a 4th Tier mage.
The Vice Commander had surpassed mid-level 5th Tier, and several others were even at Early 5th Tier.
And yet none of them could draw up even a single thread of mana!
‘How pathetic.’
Zephyros let out a scornful laugh.
They grew up knowing nothing of the world’s dangers, cooped up within the Imperial Palace their entire lives.
Of course, to them this was perfectly normal. Likely there had never been any problem until now.
Mages were so few in number that merely existing as one guaranteed a lifetime of comfort!
And especially those belonging to the Imperial Family—of course they’d never encountered resistance.
The only problem was that their opponent happened to be Ziel!
“Get out of the way!”
Other mages from further back stepped forward.
This time they managed to gather their mana.
But.
Pssht.
The magic sputtered and died before it could erupt.
Once again, the pathway for emission had been sealed.
“What are they doing over there?”
“Who knows. Trying to cast magic, maybe?”
“Something seemed to come out of their wands, though…….”
“Are they actually mages?”
The Festa audience, who’d been watching with bated breath, began whispering among themselves, and within moments the murmur had spread throughout the entire crowd.
“What trick have you pulled?”
Unable to bear it any longer, Roton stepped forward.
“You still don’t understand, it seems.”
Zephyros’s observation was accurate.
Roton had no idea that the man before him was Ziel.
True, he was aware of Ziel’s existence.
But he’d paid it little mind.
This was the Arcane School, after all.
Ziel’s domain was the Sword School.
Reassured by this assumption, he’d come without concern.
Still, had he taken more interest in matters beyond his own world, he might have recognized Ziel’s face.
“I don’t care to discuss it.”
Ziel replied curtly.
In the same casual tone.
“…Did you perhaps lure us in with a trap?”
“A trap?”
Ziel paused, considering the question.
“Setting a trap like that would mean you’re dealing with someone far stronger. You and your subordinates are not.”
Around them, barely suppressed laughter rippled through the assembled mages.
As members of the Imperial Mage Corps, they couldn’t laugh outright.
But the man speaking now was someone every person here knew—Ziel himself.
“How dare you mock the Imperial Mage Corps!”
Roton finally burst out in fury, and at that moment, the name at last reached his ears.
“Ziel Steelheart. Official teacher of the Edelwein Academy Sword School.”
Roton’s mouth snapped shut in an instant, and Ziel added one more thing.
“And lord of the Steelheart Territory.”
For Ziel, it was merely a straightforward introduction.
But for Roton, the weight of those words carried an entirely different meaning.

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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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