The AI Archmage - Chapter 86

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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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AI Grand Mage, Episode 86

The current Marquis Rostery has four children in total.
Eldest Son, Treben Rostery.
Eldest Daughter, Cornelia Rostery.
Second Son, Sion Rostery.
Second Daughter, Celian Rostery.
Sion was the second son—the third child.
And Celian, the youngest born to the Marquis’s second wife, was still very young.
“As you know, Treben and Cornelia are children of considerable talent.”
“Of course. Both your eldest son and eldest daughter are leading candidates for succession, are they not?”
“That’s correct.”
The Marquis nodded with a composed expression.
“Cornelia especially held great promise in my eyes. But Treben’s talent is equally remarkable.”
“I see. Yet such a talented eldest son has thrown himself into this… trivial pursuit of becoming a magical tool craftsman?”
“I wouldn’t call it trivial.”
The Marquis shook his head.
“But that path is not permitted to Treben. He is the eldest son of the Main Family.”
“Surely one person deviating from expectation wouldn’t matter?”
“One person is already more than enough—and that one person is you, Sion.”
The Marquis looked directly at Sion as he spoke.
“Deny it all you like, but outsiders still concern themselves with the name ‘Rostery’ attached to you.”
“True enough. Should I drop the name altogether, then?”
“I’m not suggesting that far.”
The Marquis exhaled softly and continued.
“In any case, the Main Family currently maintains the most ideal balance between the Workshop Alliance and the Council. Neither excessive nor deficient.”
“And if my elder brother were to become a disciple of the Workshop Union Leader, that balance would collapse?”
“You understand correctly.”
The Marquis spoke again.
“If the eldest son were to become involved with the Workshop Alliance on top of the second son already being entangled with it, that equilibrium would be compromised.”
“Hmm…”
Sion listened to the Marquis while mentally reviewing the situation.
The Marquis wanted his eldest son to remain unentangled.
By unentangled, he meant preserving the Family’s goal of maintaining ‘neutrality.’
But if Treben became an artisan, that neutrality would be jeopardized.
‘Of course, the Marquis can’t move directly to retrieve Treben. The relationship with the Alliance matters too much.’
If the Marquis intervened directly, it could strain the Workshop Alliance’s relations with the Family.
That was hardly something the Marquis desired.
“I understand. A man of your station wouldn’t fail to notice that I maintain quite close ties with the Workshop Alliance. You’re asking me to use those connections?”
“Well understood.”
“But truly—is that all there is?”
Sion tilted his head and posed another question to the Marquis.
“There’s no particular reason it has to be me, is there?”
“I’d rather entrust such matters to my own son than to an outsider. It’s simpler to have faith that way.”
“Hmm…”
Sion regarded the Marquis quietly.
Akasha relayed the Marquis’s condition to Sion discreetly.
[His heartbeat remains normal. He doesn’t appear to be lying, per se.]
‘For now, that’s what it seems.’
Sion nodded slightly.
But truthfulness wasn’t the same as transparency—the Marquis could easily be withholding something.
Having gathered his thoughts, Sion opened his mouth.
“Very well. Your proposal is one I can accept.”
“Then…”
The Marquis began to close the matter with a satisfied, composed air.
“However.”
Sion was far from finished.
“This matter will be handled as ‘Sion’—not as someone bearing the Rostery name.”
At those words, the Marquis’s eyes grew cold and distant. Observing that reaction, Sion posed his next question.
“Why react like that? All the Marquis wants is to solve your eldest brother’s problem anyway, doesn’t he?”
“……That includes your involvement as a member of the Main Family.”
“Ah.”
In that moment, Sion understood.
Why the Marquis had come here so deliberately, laying bare the family’s shame and demanding cooperation.
“Since we’re doing this anyway, shall I get myself tangled up in it as well? I’ve been hearing quite a lot of recent chatter after all.”
“…….”
“Your calculation is to naturally rebuild a connection between myself and the Main Tower through this affair, isn’t it?”
The Marquis fell silent for a moment at those words, then opened his mouth.
“Then what will you do?”
“Well. Honestly, I have no real reason to refuse.”
Sion leaned his elbows on the table and continued.
“If the Marquis pays a ‘proper’ price for this matter, what objection could I have to playing the dutiful son?”
“Playing the dutiful son…….”
“Yes, playing the dutiful son.”
Sion spoke, watching the Marquis’s visibly irritated expression.
“Now then, shall we discuss the price for this affair in earnest, ‘Father’?”
The Marquis exhaled quietly at Sion’s words and spoke.
“……Very well then, my son.”

* * *

Some time later, the Marquis opened the door and stepped outside.
“Family Head, are you all right?”
The moment the Marquis emerged, Levin approached him immediately.
And when Levin saw the Marquis’s face, he could not help but be deeply shaken.
“F-Family Head?”
The Marquis stood there, his expression aged by what seemed like several years in just a brief moment.
“What on earth has…….”
“Nothing…… happened.”
The Marquis spoke those words and lowered his head without strength.
Levin reflexively turned to look at Sion, who was just stepping out.
By contrast, Sion’s expression appeared remarkably bright.
“A good transaction, Father.”
“……Yes.”
“Even though ours is a time-limited father-son relationship, I work diligently for what I receive, you see. If it troubles you, shall I rub your shoulders a bit?”
“……That’s enough.”
The Marquis shook his head dismissively and moved on.
Levin was bewildered.
What on earth had happened to his lord to leave him wearing such an expression.
Marquis Rostery was his lord—an iron-willed aristocrat who rarely showed disturbance at any ordinary matter, despite his rank among the great nobility.
Then Sion spoke.
“No matter, Sir Levin. Nothing occurred that would warrant concern. My relationship with Father remains as harmonious as ever.”
“F-Father?”
Until just moments ago, hadn’t he been calling him Marquis, maintaining distance?
Then why suddenly…….
“Father was generous enough to purchase even the filial son option, and I find myself in excellent spirits because of it.”
“……Pardon?”
Levin looked between Sion and the Marquis in turn. He struggled to make sense of what was unfolding before him.
The Marquis spoke with effort.
“……No need to hear more. Let us depart now, Levin.”
“My lord. Didn’t you have plans to meet with the Blue Tower Master?”
“Forget it. We’re going home now…….”
The Marquis said this and began to shuffle away.
Levin followed after him, bewildered.
“Thank you for the allowance, Father!”
From behind came Sion’s heartfelt words of gratitude.
“Stay well, and please do transfer my son allowance by month’s end!”
“……?”
Levin looked at the Marquis, wondering what in the world this nonsense was supposed to mean.
The Marquis squeezed his eyes shut and urged Levin forward.
“……Spatial Movement. Now.”
“Y-yes, of course……!”
Levin hastened to obey, whisking the Marquis away from the Blue Tower through Spatial Movement.

Once they had cleared the Blue Tower’s perimeter entirely, the Marquis quietly buried his face in his hands.
“Sigh…….”
“M-my lord, what on earth has happened…….”
Levin, utterly bewildered, ventured the question.
“Did the young master perhaps make some unreasonable demand?”
“No, no…….”
The Marquis denied Levin’s supposition.
Through the palms pressed against his face, his eyes were visibly exhausted.
Then, after a moment, the Marquis muttered under his breath.
“……Damned fool. That wasn’t supposed to go to the Blue Tower at all.”
“Sir?”
The Marquis continued, his tone tinged with distress, ignoring Levin’s confusion.
“It’s just……such a pity.”
That character of his—one who’d fleece even his own parents—should have been kept within the Rostery.
The Marquis regretted it now, too late.

* * *

Watching the Marquis and Levin vanish from the Blue Tower in an instant, Sion murmured quietly to himself.
“Is this what a father’s love is.”
[Pardon?]
Akasha was dumbfounded.
Did this human’s words actually match the situation?
[No, I mean—human. I’m not even human myself, but I’ve never heard of maintaining a father-son relationship through regular monetary transfers.]
“Akasha, there’s much you don’t understand. Nothing in this world is free.”
[That’s not the issue! What exactly are you doing to a great noble?]
The terms Sion had negotiated through this legitimate “transaction” with the Marquis were remarkably straightforward.
First and foremost, he would receive a son allowance.
Sion no longer wished to belong to the Rostery, nor did he have any desire to do the family good turns.
Therefore, if the Rostery wanted to profit through him, they would pay regularly—and that was his demand.
It sounded insane, of course, but the Marquis accepted the proposal nonetheless.
Yet that wasn’t the end of it.
What the Marquis had demanded in return was the resolution of Eldest Son Treben’s problem.
And for that, the price Sion had demanded was…….
[Is this it?]
Akasha gazed with interest at the jet-black pendant Sion held in his hand.
[The Pendant of Rights—allowing one to make a single demand of a great noble within their capabilities?]
“That’s right, exactly that.”
Sion nodded in confirmation to Akasha’s words.
“With this, just once, I can make a demand of the Marquis within what he’s capable of, and he must grant it.”
[Though presumably not asking him to step down as Family Head or demanding his life?]
“Precisely. That’s what ‘within his capabilities’ means.”
And so this pendant possessed immense value.
After all, it was an object that granted one the right to make a “demand” of the Marquis Rostery, one of the great nobles themselves.
[You certainly asked for something valuable. You can use it whenever you need it later.]
“I suppose I will.”
[That said, I doubt the Marquis wanted to part with it. He might be feeling rather regretful about now.]
At Akasha’s words, Sion laughed softly and replied.
“What does it matter? At least he got his son back because of it.”
[A son with an expiration date, you mean.]
“Nothing in this world lasts forever anyway.”
[…….]
Watching Sion spout such nonsense as easily as breathing, Akasha shook her head in resignation.
What could she do about it?
This was simply how this human conducted himself—talking drivel as naturally as drawing breath.
[Well then, as a temporary son, I suppose I’ll need to head back to the Workshop Alliance.]
“That’s the way.”
But before that, I needed to have a conversation with Casen, who was involved in this matter.

And shortly after, Sion contacted Casen and asked about his “recently acquired disciple.”
The answer that came back was…….
– My disciple……? Ah, well, that one does exist, but…….
He then added quickly.
– No, they’re not here right now.
“Where have they gone off to now?”
– Let me think…….
Casen continued.
– They said they were going to find and verify the location of their master’s workshop.
“……What?”
Sion’s eyes widened at those words. If Casen’s master meant anyone, it was Altair himself.
“A workshop?”
……But I destroyed that.

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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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