The Teddy Bear Sends the Insomniac Villain to Dreamland - Chapter 81

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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 81
Cuckoo Palace.
The Magic Tower trembled violently.
At the very pinnacle of the Magic Tower, thick clouds drifted lazily beyond the windows.
Alfredo, the Grand Mage stationed on the 99th Floor, snapped his eyes open at the powerful tremor he’d felt mere seconds ago.
He had been in the midst of meditation, seeking stability in mana and peace of mind.
Most mages in the Magic Tower refrained from causing disturbances during this hour.
But what was that tremor just now?
Alfredo leaned his previously rigid spine against the back of the sofa.
Then he snapped his fingers lightly.
A crystalline chime rang out, and magic unfurled around him.
“Show me where the sound came from.”
A crackling noise echoed through the air, and the floor where the disturbance originated materialized before his eyes like a massive screen.
‘The 85th Floor?’
That was the floor where Mage Ren resided.
Alfredo’s eyes widened slightly as he peered closer, wondering what commotion could be happening on Ren’s floor—the one he’d vacated to perform his duties with the Diplomatic Corps in the Capital.
“That is….”
Standing prominently amid the hazy smoke was a bear doll he recognized.
No, more than recognized—it was a silhouette deeply familiar to him.
It was the Magic Tower’s treasure, a doll gifted by a dragon, imbued with his cherished memories.
“Ren and Mystic said they’d found it, but I have no idea why it’s on Ren’s floor.”
Mysterious smoke blanketed the surroundings, making it difficult to discern the actual situation.
Had Ren caused another accident?
It hardly surprised him. Ren was a walking disaster wherever he went.
“I wonder if he’s completed the task I assigned him….”
Alfredo exhaled a deep sigh, his wrinkled face etched with concern.
Though Ren was willful and reckless, prone to stirring up trouble without forethought, his talent for magic was undeniably worthy of recognition.
Alfredo believed in Ren.
He possessed the makings of a mage who would reach the 6th Circle or beyond. With just a bit more social refinement, he would become truly exceptional.
That’s why Alfredo had assigned him diplomatic work as a form of punishment—ostensibly for raiding his personal vault.
And yet he’s already back and causing this?
“I just hope he didn’t steal that doll.”
Watching the silhouette of the bear doll—the Magic Tower’s treasure—through the screen, Alfredo grunted and rose to his feet.
He waved his hand to cut the transmission spell, then moved slowly out of the room.
Even as he pressed the button for the 85th Floor and descended, he attempted to maintain the most positive thoughts possible.
He was already 150 years old.
How many trials had he endured to reach this height?
‘Even if Ren did steal that doll from the Leblanc Duchy, I have the capacity to handle it gracefully.’
He had no idea why his bear doll, lost over fifty years ago, had somehow ended up at the Leblanc Duchy, but regardless, Alfredo possessed the power to manage such matters.
Though it troubled him that it was the Leblanc Duchy—not the Imperial Court, which was favorable to the Magic Tower, but the Leblanc Duchy, with whom the Magic Tower had ‘almost’ no dealings—there was little he could do about it now.
A chime sounded, and the magical teleportation circle announced our arrival at the 85th Floor.
Alfredo decided to understand the circumstances before reproaching Ren, and calmly opened the door.
However, he found himself unable to utter a single word he had prepared.
“Ah, so a Grand Mage has come. You must be the Master of the Magic Tower?”
The bear doll standing where Ren should have been greeted Alfredo familiarly, as though they were old acquaintances.
“….”
Alfredo blinked his eyes repeatedly.
After living for 150 years, I thought I had witnessed everything imaginable.
Yet this talking bear doll before my eyes was something I had never encountered in all my life.
Alfredo’s sharp gaze swept across the bear doll rapidly.
‘…It’s not being moved by magic.’
The Grand Mage’s eyes were keen.
Having instantly detected this peculiar existence—neither magical construct nor Demon Beast—Alfredo spoke in a solemn voice.
“Who are you?”
“Ah, really. I didn’t intend to use this much magic. Why did you have to attack me in the first place?”
Unfortunately, Vivian found it difficult to focus on Alfredo’s words.
She glanced at the Mages writhing on the ground, then turned her gaze toward Alfredo, who was observing her carefully.
“Grand Mage, do you train your Mages so carelessly these days? They’re all rather weak.”
“Did you… defeat all of these children by yourself?”
Seeing his disciples collapsed in a tangled heap, he asked quietly.
At that, Vivian frantically waved her hands in denial.
“I’m not responsible! That crazy spiky-haired Mage suddenly tried to cut my belly open with a blade, and when I said I wouldn’t do it, he just summoned Mages everywhere.”
Self-defense, you could call it that, right?
Vivian, hurriedly offering excuses lest I be held accountable, sheepishly perked up my crescent-shaped ears.
Alfredo was busy organizing his suddenly blank thoughts.
Yet he was, after all, a Grand Mage.
Having skillfully grasped the situation, he stroked his long beard.
Vivian stared blankly at the peculiar beard braided into a single strand with ribbons woven throughout.
So fascinated was she by the sight that even when Alfredo withdrew his hand, her gaze did not leave it.
‘Heh, so that cute bear doll defeated the Magic Tower’s Mages.’
Most were Circle 5 or below, but there were also high-ranking Mages of Circle 6 and above, like Ren and Clinky.
With this level of force, it would not have been amiss to dispatch them as an elite Mage army.
‘To have subdued them all at once….’
The gears grinding discordantly in his mind began to turn slowly, forming a sharp deduction.
Alfredo spoke with certainty.
“You are not my bear doll.”
“…You’re quick to catch on. Age isn’t wasted on you, I see.”
Vivian nodded, laughing with a “hehe.”
“That’s right. I’m not your doll. I belong to Blake Leblanc.”
Alfredo fell silent for a moment, then offered a gentle smile as though he understood.
“And you’re not a being of the Human World either.”
Oh, I didn’t expect that.
Vivian blinked, caught off guard by how quickly he’d guessed correctly. Meeting her gaze—eyes that resembled a verdant forest—he spoke with absolute certainty.
“It’s my first time meeting a Witch. To encounter a being I’ve only heard whispers of… perhaps my fortune hasn’t run its course just yet.”
As his speech shifted in an instant to the most formal register, Vivian felt a peculiar twinge of guilt.
The kindly smiling face of Alfredo overlapped in her mind with Ronald’s visage—the white-mustached butler who served at the Leblanc Duchy.
It seemed that humans who had reached a certain pinnacle all bore a similar countenance.
Ronald, who oversaw countless affairs at the Leblanc Mansion with remarkable intuition and magnanimous breadth, and Alfredo, who managed the eccentric Mages of the Magic Tower—both possessed a charisma that was gentle yet formidable.
Vivian’s demeanor settled, and she smiled with an adorable curl of her lips.
“Would you believe me if I said no?”
“After living this long, one develops eyes to discern truth from falsehood.”
“Right, right?”
She didn’t bother denying it. It was obvious that Alfredo, brimming with conviction, wouldn’t believe a lie.
Alfredo bowed deeply.
“What brings such an esteemed guest to this humble place?”
“I was kidnapped. By the rainbow-haired one here.”
“…I offer my sincerest apologies on behalf of Ren. Rather, I apologize twice over—once for my inadequate disciples.”
“No, no. Don’t do that. There’s nothing for you to apologize for.”
Vivian approached the Grand Mage as he began to bow again, grasping the hem of his cloak to stop him.
Alfredo offered a grateful nod of acknowledgment.
“Then, if you’re truly sorry, would you do me a favor?”
“Anything at all. I shall assist with whatever you ask.”
“As expected of the Grand Mage. I knew I could count on you.”
Vivian bounced on her feet with anticipation, finally able to fulfill the purpose of her visit to the Magic Tower.
Witnessing that charming scene juxtaposed against the devastated landscape visible behind her, Alfredo swallowed a silent chuckle.
‘Such a vast disparity.’
He knew she was a Witch, though she hadn’t revealed her true identity.
Even how she’d come to the Human World remained shrouded in mystery.
The Grand Mage had countless questions, but he chose to hold his tongue for now.
The unbelievable reality of meeting an actual Witch, combined with the thrill of it, made even the Grand Mage Alfredo tremble.
‘So this day comes, even after living so long without perishing.’
A powerful and mysterious being dwelling in the Demon Realm—a Witch.
Vivian pressed repeatedly on the hem of his cloak.
Alfredo, understanding from her subtle gestures that she wanted to be lifted onto his shoulder, carefully hoisted her and set her there.
Vivian settled onto his shoulder with remarkable stability, as though he’d done this many times before, and finally revealed what she sought.
“I want to see the Magic Tower’s historical records. There’s someone I’m looking for there.”
“Of course. I shall show you at once.”
At his simple answer—as though nothing could be difficult—Vivian let out a triumphant cry.
Alfredo headed toward the 99th Floor.
The door to the Grand Mage’s chamber opened with a majestic sound, and he immediately recited a brief incantation to dispel the wards.
It was an incantation composed of a rather intricate spell formula.
Soon, transparent steps materialized in the empty air.
“Please, this way.”
The Magic Tower, said to contain floors from the 1st to the 99th.
The hidden topmost floor beyond it.
A passage leading to the 100th Floor.

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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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