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Chapter 247: Lloyd Schultz (5)

“Big brotheeer!”

Dragging his tired body back into the room, a tiny creature came scurrying toward him.

Lloyd patted the head of the affectionate Sasha and asked,

“Studied?”

“All done. But little brother bullied me again.”

“How?”

“He said he wanted to test out a new spell he made, so he told me to stand still and let him hit me with it! It’s scary!”

“I’ll scold him.”

“Hehe, thanks.”

When the clingy Sasha finally let go, the view of the large room came into sight.

Though Lloyd had a tidy personality, the state of the room was little better than a mess.

No doubt, it was Gilliot’s doing again.

With practiced motions, he picked up the cushions and notebooks scattered on the floor.

“……”

Once the cleaning was finished, he looked around.

Even though the White Tower had changed in countless ways, this room remained exactly as it had been.

The three of them had shared the same room since they were children, and they still did.

Sasha aside, Gilliot was reaching the age where puberty should have set in, but he had never once said he wanted his own room.

‘It’s probably just because we’ve grown too used to it.’

Not just the others—Lloyd himself as well.

In truth, this too was the influence of their master.

That man had treated them like family and raised them to treat each other the same way.

‘In this White Tower that has changed so much, this is the one place that hasn’t.’

Even he himself felt at ease whenever he came here.

No need to even mention how much more it must mean to the other two.

After finishing up, Lloyd asked,

“Dinner?”

“We waited for big brother.”

“I told you, you could eat first…… Then go call Gilli. It’s time to eat.”

“Okay! Hey! Little brother!”

As Sasha shouted and disappeared, Lloyd opened the cupboard in the kitchen.

They usually didn’t eat at the Tower’s cafeteria, but cooked and ate in their room.

Though, in truth, only one person ever did the cooking.

‘The ingredients…’

The cupboard was practically empty except for a few cans.

Lloyd frowned.

Since last month, the Tower’s cafeteria had been shut down, and rations were handed out individually instead.

The excuse was that the cost of running a kitchen and hiring cooks had become too burdensome.

But this month’s rations were already five days late.

Lloyd couldn’t help but sink into thought.

‘The financial strain is worse than I imagined.’

Elder Fidelina herself surely wasn’t at fault.

When it came to managing money, she was more meticulous than even him.

Which meant the problem likely lay in reduced overall income.

‘I’ll have to ask her about this directly.’

Just as he pulled out one of the last remaining cans, bickering voices came from behind.

“Just one hit, I swear. It won’t hurt at all.”

“Nooo, I said I don’t want to. I know it’ll hurt.”

“It won’t hurt, I swear on everything, even on Master.”

Lloyd, watching his ever-troublesome siblings, finally spoke.

“Gilliot Dominic. How many times have I told you not to carelessly invoke Master’s name over trivial things?”

“I was just trying to make her understand more easily……”

“No excuses. Don’t drag Master’s name into things. Especially the three of us.”

“……Fine.”

After the stern rebuke, Lloyd continued.

“Gilli, set out the bowls. Sasha, get the spoons.”

“Brother, what’s for dinner? Don’t tell me it’s bean soup again?”

“……It’s good for your health.”

“But it tastes awful. And we eat it all the time……”

“I don’t want bean soup anymore either……”

Looking at his siblings whining about side dishes, Lloyd fell into thought.

Truthfully, he wanted to just yell at them to eat quietly.

‘What would Master say in this situation?’

But if he truly wanted to become like the man he respected most, then he needed to mirror his speech, behavior, even his way of thinking.

Suppressing a sigh, Lloyd spoke,

“If you eat this without complaining, I’ll buy you candy at the market tomorrow.”

“Really? You promise?”

“Candy, yay! I want strawberry flavor!”

Seeing them bouncing around with joy again, a faint smile tugged at his lips.

* * *

“You mean the donations?”

“Yes.”

Amidst mountains of paperwork, Fidelina let out a deep sigh.

She showed him the Tower’s financial statements and explained,

“As you know, the White Tower only has two real sources of income: outside commissions, and donations.”

“I know.”

And of the two, donations made up the far larger share.

Commissions required sending mages out, which inevitably created expenses.

“But lately more and more mages are leaving the Tower, so our commissions are steadily shrinking… and it seems the economy’s been bad, because starting last month, donation amounts have dropped sharply too.”

Checking the numbers, donations had fallen by 20% in just one month.

“Can the Tower even run on this budget?”

“For now, yes—for now. But in the future, we won’t be able to invest in things like research facilities anymore.”

“At most, how long can we last?”

“Uh… not years. A year at best.”

The Tower’s financial troubles were far worse than he had imagined.

What was worse was that there was no clear solution.

They couldn’t stop people from leaving, nor could they beg benefactors for more money.

“Other Towers started developing new businesses years ago. Now those ventures are taking root, and they’ll become steady sources of income.”

“Businesses……”

The White Tower’s old source of revenue, potion production, was no longer viable.

The crucial potion recipes had been lost.

And starting a new venture now was impossible without both ideas and capital.

“There’s no other way?”

“For the moment, I’ve already submitted a request for support to the Imperial Court. But who knows how long they’ll keep helping us.”

If they had to depend entirely on someone else’s aid just to scrape by—

Could that even still be called a Tower?

The continent’s greatest bastion of magic that Lloyd remembered had disappeared in just five short years.

“So from now on, we’ll have to start rationing things like water and mana stones too.”

“……”

But wouldn’t that mean there’s no future anyway?

Lloyd swallowed that question in his throat and changed the subject.

“From now on, I’ll take on every designated request that comes my way.”

“Really? You said you wanted to focus only on restoring magic for the time being.”

“It’s not like I’m in a situation where I can just do what I want.”

“……Sorry. You’re still too young to be worrying about things like this.”

“No, it’s fine. Studying in advance won’t hurt.”

Eventually, the position of Tower Master would fall to him once he came of age.

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That was something Lloyd knew, and something no one in the White Tower would deny.

“In that case, there happens to be one good job. Want to hear it?”

“Yes.”

“A high-ranking noble family in the capital is planning a grand party, and they want to invite you. They say they’ll pay you enough just for attending to fund the White Tower for a month. Interested?”

“……Just for attending? Why would they pay me money for that?”

“Well, probably because you’re Lord Oscar Sage’s disciple, don’t you think?”

It was an era where survivors became war heroes, and the dead became legends.

Just the presence of Oscar Sage’s disciple—celebrated by all—would give the party enormous prestige.

Realizing that, Lloyd let out a faint sigh.

“Life must be so easy for nobles.”

“Well, in the end, we’re the ones at a disadvantage.”

It felt like being reduced to a zoo monkey on display.

Normally, his pride would have him refuse on the spot, but this time he simply nodded.

“I’ll attend. The party.”

Because he hated the thought of his younger siblings starving more than anything.

* * *

How much must it have cost?

That was the first thought that came to mind when he saw the mansion.

Not only was the landscaping exquisite, but even the enormous fountain at the front looked like a work of art.

Everyone arriving was dressed in extravagant gowns and suits, but he stood out.

‘Their demands are so transparent it’s laughable.’

They had insisted several times that he must wear the White Tower’s robes.

The reason was obvious.

The host wanted everyone to know he had invited a White Tower mage—Oscar Sage’s disciple, no less.

Wearing a blank expression, Lloyd took a seat in the corner of the banquet hall.

‘Well, as long as I get the money, I don’t really care.’

The party turned out to be more interesting than he had expected.

He could spot figures he had only ever seen in newspapers and magazines.

“And now, we have invited a very special guest tonight.”

As the host gestured, the chandelier lights dimmed and a single beam shone down on him.

“Humanity’s hero! Lord Oscar Sage’s very first disciple—Lloyd Schultz! Please welcome him with applause.”

Some women let out startled shrieks, while men stared wide-eyed in fascination.

Lloyd was dragged around the party for nearly two hours by the host before he was finally freed.

“……Phew.”

He escaped to the terrace on the second floor to catch his breath.

A couple who had been kissing there flushed red and scurried away, but Lloyd didn’t even care.

‘Stifling.’

He wanted to go home. Back to the White Tower.

Some people longed for glittering parties like this, but he couldn’t understand why.

Researching magic in his laboratory was a hundred times more enjoyable.

‘……Do all adults live like this, enduring things they don’t want to do?’

For a moment, he thought they were pitiful.

But he couldn’t say he didn’t understand.

After all, he too endured things he disliked—for his siblings, and for the Tower.

The moonlight illuminated the garden and fountain below when suddenly Lloyd sensed something and turned sharply.

“Well, this is better than I expected. You’ve definitely got promise.”

The speaker was a bizarre old man wearing sunglasses and a shirt patterned with palm trees.

Naturally, there weren’t many old men with such eccentric taste.

“……Red Tower Master?”

“You recognize me? Well, I suppose you would. I visited the White Tower once or twice when you were little.”

The man smiled warmly, but Lloyd instinctively felt uneasy.

With a wary face, he bowed slightly.

“I’ll excuse myself. Please enjoy your rest.”

“Hm? No, no.”

Kudel Redmane stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

“I came here to see you. You can’t just leave.”

“Please let go.”

“Ke-ke-ke. Just like your master, you’ve got a rotten temper.”

“……What did you say?”

Lloyd could tolerate insults to himself, but not to his master.

Eyes blazing, he glared at Kudel.

The old man only found it amusing, smiling as he spoke.

“Kid, I’m about to make you an offer.”

“I’m not interested. No, let’s just say I refuse outright.”

“Ke-ke-ke, do as you like. But you’ll have to accept the White Tower’s downfall as the consequence of that choice.”

“……”

The White Tower collapsing?

Lloyd couldn’t ignore that.

He bit his lip and asked.

“What is this offer?”

“The White Tower’s finances haven’t been so great lately, have they?”

“There’s no such problem.”

“Ke-ke-ke. That’s impossible. Haven’t a number of mages suddenly left, and the sponsorship funds dropped significantly? By about… twenty percent?”

Lloyd said nothing, but his eyes flickered for an instant. Kudel didn’t miss it.

Patting Lloyd’s shoulder, he continued as though he already knew everything.

“Don’t bother denying it. I wasn’t asking—I was telling you. After all, it was my doing.”

“……!”

Lloyd’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“What… what are you saying?”

“Hm? Having trouble hearing? I said that the White Tower mages leaving and the drop in funding—those were all my handiwork.”

The instant he heard that, Lloyd unconsciously summoned his mana.

Shhhk!

Thorny vines of mana shot forth, stabbing toward Kudel’s neck.

“Hm, yes. You really are just like that man.”

The thorns trembled, unable to pierce the magical barrier before them.

Kudel Redmane looked at them and chuckled.

“Arrogant brat—but I’ll give you this, your talent is remarkable.”

Craack!

His heavy, oppressive mana crushed the thorns and bore down on Lloyd.

Seeing the boy grit his teeth against the fear, Kudel’s grin stretched wide.

“Become my disciple.”

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