STGB Episode 497

Quest 2

Sometimes, there are people who can overwhelm others just with their gaze and presence.

The Tower Master, Teshlun Lengman Kealunus, was exactly that kind of person.

“T-Tower Master…!”

He stood just over 170 centimetres tall, with the typical frail build of a mage, and his skin was deeply wrinkled with age.

Frankly, if it weren’t for the staff that reached up to his shoulders, he could easily pass for an ordinary old man walking down the street.

Thud.

But as he descended the stairs and stood on the lobby floor, no one, not even the warriors, dared to speak carelessly.

His eyes were sharp and lively, defying his age, but that wasn’t the reason. The warriors instinctively felt it.

Mages and warriors.

Though their domains were different, they could sense that the one standing in the position of power was him.

“Baron Bjorn Jandel.”

After descending the final stairs, the Tower Master looked at me before speaking.

“You are indeed as my brother described you. Nice to meet you.”

The greeting was somewhat unexpected.

Considering that he was the master of a tower that had been invaded by barbarians, it seemed more natural to expect him to curse me or call me a lunatic.

Thud.

As I took large steps to close the distance, he stepped back just as much.

This confirmed my suspicions.

‘He’s deliberately staying out of range.’

The Tower Master was consciously avoiding entering the radius of “Misaligned Trust.”

But I pretended not to notice and spoke up.

“Well, I can’t say the feeling is mutual. I’m in the middle of interrogating some traitors.”

I let my hostility show clearly, and the Tower Master chuckled.

“Let’s set aside our emotions and have an honest conversation. How about it?”

There was an ease to his voice, as if he had the upper hand.

‘Honest, my foot.’

Does this old man know?

Acting like this only makes a Barbarian more stubborn.

“I refuse! As I said, I’m busy interrogating a traitor!”

“But, now that I am here, you know that they won’t say a word, don’t you?”

That was indeed true.

From the moment this old man arrived, the eyes of the three captured mages filled with hopeful resolution.

‘I was going to use force to threaten them, but with this old man here, that won’t work either.’

“Take your time, but the royal army will soon arrive.”

I then made a decision.

“Fine, say what you want to say.”

“Shall we start by removing these people?”

“Only the warriors. Marco stays.”

“Are you referring to that young man, Marco?”

The master glanced at Marco, who flinched upon being noticed.

Well, being stared at by someone of his stature would make anyone nervous.

“The royal family has the right to know everything that happened here.”

“Hmm, is that so?”

“Are you denying that?”

“Of course not. As a resident of this city, I have no intention of obstructing the royal family’s affairs. But…”

The Tower Master trailed off and glanced at Marco again.

And at that moment.

Pop!

“Ugh, ah!”

The crystal sphere shattered, and Marco fell on his backside.

“Oh dear, it seems to be broken.”

So, this is how it’s going to be, huh?

“It’s from the tower, but I guess it was defective.”

“Magical devices can be unstable no matter how much effort is put into them. But as a representative of the tower, I apologize. If you mention my name at the store later, they’ll give you a few new ones.”

Wow, this old man is something.

“Aynar, take Marco and the others downstairs.”

I nodded slightly, and Aynar led the warriors downstairs.

And then…

“Why don’t you three take a little nap.”

The three mages, kneeling with their hands bound, collapsed to the floor at once.

A very basic sleeping spell.

That left just the two of us in the hall.

“Alright, go ahead. What did you want to tell me after you sent everyone away?”

“I’ll be brief as we don’t have much time.”

The Tower Master took three steps forward, entering the radius of “Misaligned Trust.”

Then he looked at me and spoke.

“As of today, the Tower will forbid any research using the ‘Barbarian Heart’. Anyone caught violating this will be punished for using forbidden magic.”

“And?”

“Those who tried to obtain the heart on the black market will also be disciplined.”

“What kind of discipline?”

“They will no longer be able to claim affiliation with the Tower.”

In other words, they’ll be fired.

“You may consider this a lenient punishment, but this is the limit for their crimes.”

The Tower Master spoke persuasively, but honestly, I was satisfied with this much.

I had exaggerated their crimes by calling them traitors, but I knew that wouldn’t hold up.

“Of course, if anyone attempts to obtain the Barbarian Heart through the black market again, the weight of their crime will change. It will be considered an attempt to obtain a forbidden item.”

Okay, the follow-up measures are clear.

“And?”

“I will also overlook the illegal intrusion and occupation of the tower today. You, Baron, merely visited to reprimand us severely, and the tower has acknowledged its mistakes and corrected them. That’s how it will be known to the public.”

I was momentarily speechless.

Even though I knew he couldn’t lie because of the “Misaligned Trust”, I couldn’t help but ask.

“…Are you serious?”

What this old man just said was essentially an official acknowledgment that the tower had been defeated by the barbarians.

But…

“I am serious.”

I felt more uneasy than happy.

After all, nothing in this world is free.

“So, what do you want from me in return?

Being a barbarian, I came straight to the point, and the Tower Master named a person.

“Master Lurendel Galinberet of the Triten School.”

The very mage who had placed the order for my heart on the black market.

“Clear her of all charges.”

Ha, so that’s why her name didn’t come up earlier.

After a moment of thought, I asked, “Is she worth that much?”

“She is an exceptional mage. Though she was blinded by greed and acted recklessly, I have no doubt that her research will one day bring great change to this world.”

No doubt, huh?

There’s definitely more to it than that.

Lurendel Galinberet… I may have caught a bigger fish than I thought…’.

Anyway, I can have Amelia investigate her later.

“So, what do you say? I’d like to hear your answer.”

“Fine. I’ll accept your proposal.”

I ended the negotiation there.

It’s a shame to let go of the woman who targeted my heart, but considering what I’ve gained, there’s no reason to be greedy.

But he still seemed uneasy.

“So we have no hard feelings now?”

The Tower Master began to subtly probe me.

He probably wanted to gauge my true feelings while “Misaligned Trust” was active.

“And you? Do you have no ill feelings toward me?”

I avoided answering and turned the question back to him. Surprisingly, the Tower Master answered readily.

“I have no ill feelings towards you, Baron. I never have. You are simply doing what a leader of a race should do.”

He has a business mindset, huh.

Anyway, it’s hard to refuse when he’s being this accommodating.

It wouldn’t do me any good either.

“Then, may I hear your honest feelings now?”

Honest feelings, huh…

“If you’re asking if I have no ill feelings, that would be a lie. Many have died in the labyrinth because of the heart. Of course, I resent you. But…!”

I trailed off, turning my wrist so that the compass part of ‘Misaligned Trust’ wasn’t visible.

“Don’t worry. As long as you don’t touch us, we won’t attack the tower!”

It was a trick that only worked when I was the one using ‘Broken Trust.’

“Besides, you seem like a better guy than I thought!”

When I lie, this thing doesn’t work.

***

What happened afterward wasn’t much.

The Royal Army soon arrived on the floor we were on, and were shocked to see the Baron of a country and the Tower Master in a standoff.

However, the Tower Master stepped forward first and defended me, stating that the responsibility lay with them, and the situation was resolved.

“So… Lord Kealunus sought forgiveness, and Baron Jandel accepted it. Is that correct?”

“That’s right.”

The military commander seemed skeptical but didn’t press further.

Whatever deal we had made was none of his concern.

From the royal family’s perspective, it was a relief that the situation hadn’t escalated into a larger conflict.

“Get moving! Clean this up!”

The military disbanded everyone, including the Barbarians, and the Tower Master handed over the 36 mages suspected of contacting the black market.

“But it seems the mage who wanted your heart isn’t among them?”

While contacting the black market was a minor offense, but conspiring to assassinate nobility was a capital crime.

However, clearing her charges was easy.

“Ah, that? On second thought, I’m not sure if I remember the name correctly. I might have confused her with someone else. I can’t have an innocent person arrested. I’ll let you know if I remember correctly later.”

“…Understood.”

Master Lurendel Galinberet of the Triten School.

The royal investigator seemed to realize she was the key to this deal, but once again, he didn’t press further.

As I said, they weren’t interested in such things.

“Anyway… I’m relieved that everything has been wrapped up well. Oh, and Baron Jandel—there’s the matter that you caused a clash of over a thousand people in the city without the royal family’s permission. I’m afraid you’ll have to pay a fine, however small. Please… please be sure to do that.”

Afterwards, the military practically begged as they led the mages away from the tower.

So, it was time for me to leave as well.

“Once their crimes are confirmed, they will be punished as promised, so you need not worry, Baron.”

“Alright, I’ll be going then. I’m hungry.”

After that, I was about to head straight home, but Aynar, who’d been waiting for me outside, dragged me off to the sanctuary.

Thud—! Thud—! Thud—!

The sanctuary was already in full swing with a victory celebration. Even though the tribe hadn’t prepared anything special, the warriors were drinking alcohol like water, dancing, and singing.

In terms of scale, it was bigger than any festival I’d ever seen.

It seemed like all the barbarians scattered across the city had gathered at the holy site.

“Bjorn!”

“It’s the chief.”

“Chief! Say something! Everyone’s waiting!”

At the right moment, Aynar pushed me forward, and I had to give a speech.

Of course, it was short, in true barbarian style.

“We—!!”

“Woooah!!”

“Have won—!!”

“Beth-hel-raaaaaaa!!”

With just that brief declaration, the already raucous atmosphere grew even wilder.

‘No way I’m missing out on this advertising opportunity.’

I told Caron to have the “Comrades’ Association” spread word about my real estate plans among the tribe members, and they carried out their mission admirably throughout the festival.

“Listen up, everyone! This victory’s only the beginning!”

“Our tribe’s going to grow more prosperous, and so will house prices!”

“Only a fool of a warrior wouldn’t buy now!”

“What? You’re saving your mana stones to buy a new weapon? Do you realize what era we’re living in? When are you going to buy that new weapon anyway?”

That level of propaganda would be a big help for my real estate plans.

After enjoying the festival for a while, I quietly slipped away from the sanctuary and returned home.

When I arrived, Amelia was sitting on the living room sofa in the dark.

“Jandel.”

“…Yeah?”

“Are you under some curse that prevents you from going even a single day without causing trouble?”

For some reason, Amelia was irritated.

This was the same person who hadn’t voiced any particular objections even when I mentioned destroying the black market, so why was she annoyed now?

After some thought, the answer came quickly.

“Sorry. I went ahead and did things without consulting you.”

Judging by Amelia’s softened expression, I guessed right.

“…You do know, huh.”

“Huh? You just smiled, didn’t you?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You smiled! I saw it just now!”

“…Don’t slander me.”

Slander, my foot.

I chuckled and sat down on the sofa. Amelia then spoke up.

“So, do you feel better now?”

Wow, she really knows how to hit the mark.

It felt a bit strange, but I answered honestly.

“Yeah. A lot.”

Amelia nodded.

“That’s good then.”

“……”

After a brief silence, we started talking about what had happened that day. Erwin, who must have heard the noise, came down rubbing his eyes and joined the conversation.

And the next morning.

“It’s me… Bjorn…”

The guest I had been waiting for finally arrived.

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