Black Mages.
Those who betrayed the gods and joined hands with demons.
People who therefore had to be eradicated.
Anyone who lived on this continent had heard those words at least once.
BA-BANG!
A basic Holy Art that used divine power to create a loud noise went off.
“Kano, happy thirteenth birthday!”
“Happy birthday.”
Prel’s exuberant shout rang across the dining table.
“…….”
Roat merely stood beside her, prompting Prel to jab him repeatedly in the side with her elbow.
“Dear, dear! Put some more feeling into it!”
“Happy birthday.”
Roat spoke without so much as changing his expression.
‘His words and his face couldn’t be more different.’
If an actual thirteen-year-old had been looking at him instead of me, that icy expression might have frightened the poor child.
“My little Kano was so tiny, and now he’s already grown this much....”
Prel dabbed at the corners of her eyes.
Roat took a handkerchief from his breast pocket and gently wiped away her tears.
“You’re still as quick to cry as ever.”
“Thank you.”
Prel took the handkerchief and wiped her eyes.
“Anyway, Kano, do you still dream of becoming a mage? You’re still reading all those books too.”
Having calmed down somewhat, Prel looked at me and asked.
“Yes.”
I answered brightly with an innocent expression.
‘As if that would ever change.’
I had been waiting for this.
This was the reason I had been particularly looking forward to this birthday.
“Hehe.”
Prel gently stroked my hair.
“All right. When you grow up, make sure you become someone wonderful like your father, okay?”
“Of course! I’m going to become a hero just like Father!”
At my cheerful answer, Prel smiled proudly.
Then she held out a long box to me.
“This is a present from your mother and father.”
I cheered inwardly, but pretended not to know what it was as I widened my eyes.
“Wow, what is it?”
In the Porlin Kingdom, there was a tradition of giving children a gift related to their future aspirations on their thirteenth birthday.
I had spent years declaring that I wanted to become a mage, so there was no need to even see the present to know what it was.
‘There’s only one obvious thing you’d give a thirteen-year-old who wants to become a mage.’
“Can I open it now?”
“Of course.”
Roat stroked my head and gave me a faint smile.
“Go ahead and open it.”
I curled my lips into the innocent smile of a child and tore away the wrapping.
At the same time, I smiled bitterly to myself.
‘I’ve been doing this for thirteen years. I suppose I’ve gotten used to it.’
When I opened the wooden case, its natural grain still visible, I saw a wand resting atop soft velvet.
The moment I saw it, I cried out.
“Thank you! I really wanted one of these!”
I picked up the wand and examined it from every angle.
It looked impressive enough, decorated with two dragons coiling around its body.
‘It’s still a little crude. I suppose that’s because it’s meant for children.’
Magic could be used without a wand, but the range of magic one could cast varied enormously depending on whether one possessed one.
That was why I desperately needed a wand to assist with magical formulas.
Even one made for children was better than having nothing.
‘I’ll probably have to use it before I know exactly how good it is....’
Still, it was probably a high-end beginner’s wand.
My family was hardly poor, and there was no reason they would buy a cheap birthday present for their son.
Sure enough, there was even a Control Stone attached to the tip to assist with magical calculations.
Granted, it was barely the size of a fingernail, but the wand had everything it needed.
“Then show us some magic! You’ve been studying so hard.”
“Here?”
I answered in surprise.
It was not that I could not do it if she insisted.
I simply wondered whether it was really wise to show them.
I had no desire to attract too much attention.
‘A basic spell should be fine....’
At that moment, Roat calmed the excited Prel.
“Dear, magic isn’t that simple. Even novice mages have spent a considerable amount of time learning it.”
“Oh, really?”
Prel’s eyes widened.
He was right.
Those who awakened to magic through books alone, without a teacher, were generally called prodigies.
After all, it meant they had created a Circle through sheer innate instinct.
‘Still, showing them a little should be fine.’
I would need their continued support if I wanted to pursue magic.
And nothing secured support more reliably than showing tangible results.
“Then... I’ll show you Fire.”
I extended the wand.
“Hmm? Kano, Fire is—”
The instant Roat began to speak, I rotated the Circle inside my body.
It was not as though I had spent the last thirteen years idling around.
From the very moment I was born, I had begun gathering mana within my body.
The mana I had accumulated over thirteen years was more than enough to form a Circle.
I already possessed the knowledge and understanding.
I had spent decades as a scribe transcribing magic, after all.
‘Of course, the Circle in my previous body was destroyed.’
But that was then.
Not now.
With that thought, I skillfully controlled the flow of mana.
Then, with the wand assisting me, I calculated the fire element.
“...Fire.”
TICK.
Everyone’s gaze immediately turned toward the tip of my wand.
“...Huh?”
Contrary to my expectations, there was neither fire nor even smoke.
Instead, a large crack had appeared across the Control Stone attached to the wand’s tip.
‘It couldn’t even withstand that much?’
I was dumbfounded.
‘Has it simply been so long since I used a wand that I failed to control my output?’
Even so, what kind of toy could not withstand something this minor?
While I stood there bewildered, Prel approached me with a bright smile.
“It’s all right. I’m sure you’ll be able to use magic soon, Kano.”
She hugged me and patted me reassuringly on the back.
“It seems the wand was defective.”
Roat took the wand from my hand.
“To think someone would sell something like this....”
He lightly tapped the tip.
The cracked Control Stone lost its glow completely.
It had lost all of its power.
“I’ll get you another wand tomorrow.”
“Yes, Dad.”
Roat placed the wand back inside its case.
I watched with a regretful expression before answering with an innocent smile.
‘Damn it. I finally got the wand I needed, and it broke the moment I received it.’
It had to have been one of those cheap objects that only looked impressive on the outside.
Either that, or the overall standard of the world had somehow declined during the decades I had spent imprisoned.
“Kano, you have to grow up to become an admirable person like your father someday.”
Prel clenched her fist encouragingly.
“Y-yes, of course.”
Become someone like Roat?
‘I’ll be lucky if I don’t end up dying by that sword of his.’
The Black Mages Roat had killed by now could probably be piled into a mountain.
I found myself staring silently at him.
Roat noticed and looked back at me.
“Hmm? Is there something you want to say?”
“Oh, I was just curious about those Black Mages you caught last time.”
I made up an excuse, and Roat nodded.
“Well, they were weak. So weak they were hardly worth mentioning.”
“How weak?”
“They were half-baked fools who had failed to form contracts with even a Devil, let alone a Demon.”
There were three ranks of demons that Black Mages could form contracts with.
High-ranking demons were called Demons.
Middle-ranking demons were called Devils.
And lastly came Evils—familiars so lowly that they could barely even be called demons, nothing more than the wretched inhabitants of Hell.
If those Black Mages had been unable to contract with even a Devil, which was the minimum required to be considered a proper Black Mage, then they truly were half-baked.
Of course, they would still have been stronger than ordinary mages of the same level.
They used forbidden magic, after all.
“Black Mages have been appearing more frequently lately.”
Roat gazed steadily at me.
“Always be careful when you go outside. Never go out at night. And especially, do not go anywhere near northern Aeria.”
His face remained expressionless, but I could easily tell that he was worried about me.
“Yes, I’ll remember. But Dad?”
“What is it?”
“Have you ever met a Black Mage who was strong enough to give even you trouble?”
I widened my eyes like an inquisitive child.
“A Black Mage strong enough to trouble me....”
Roat thought for a moment before answering.
“There was one.”
‘There was?’
This was the first time I had ever asked him about Black Mages.
I had had plenty of opportunities, but I had deliberately avoided the subject.
‘I can’t have him thinking I’m interested in Black Magic.’
I had transcribed nearly every form of Black Magic in Maurva’s Library.
Because of that, I possessed an extensive understanding of Black Magic itself.
But I knew very little about Black Mages.
“He commanded countless Evils, had contracts with twenty Devils, and even two Demons.”
Roat continued speaking as he cut a loaf of bread into small pieces and placed them on a plate.
“He was someone who could have been called a demon himself without exaggeration. He had already transformed his body into that of a Lich and obtained immortality. So....”
At last, Roat placed the final piece of bread onto the plate.
“……?”
Eight pieces of bread sat on the plate.
“His body was cut into eight pieces and sealed away. Long before I... no, before even my grandfather was born.”
“Really! Must you say things like that in front of a child?!”
SMACK!
Prel slapped Roat sharply on the arm.
“Prel....”
Roat clutched the arm she had struck and looked at her.
“Kano, don’t listen to your father. Come on, why don’t you have some of the meat pie Mommy made?”
“Yes, Mom.”
I obediently turned my attention to the plate of meat pie.
The bread torn into eight pieces on the other plate somehow felt like a warning meant specifically for me.
“It’s wonderful that Kano is interested in magic, but I’m still a little disappointed.”
Prel let out a deep sigh.
“Your father is a Holy Knight, and my son would be a Priest. My dream was to prepare dinner for both of you when you came home after finishing your work.”
“You wouldn’t have to prepare it yourself. We have maids.”
“...That isn’t what I meant.”
After glaring at Roat for a moment, Prel seemed to remember something and took a silver coin from her pocket.
“Oh, right, Kano. Here’s your allowance for this month.”
“Wow, thank you!”
I immediately held out both hands and accepted the silver coin.
“Honestly, I don’t know who you take after, liking money so much. Sometimes I wonder whether you’re really my son, but then I see you smile and think there’s no mistaking it....”
Prel gave me a wry smile.
I smiled back innocently.
Then, beneath the table, I repeatedly rubbed the coin against the hem of my shirt.
‘Perfect.’
With this coin, every preparation was finally complete.
I glanced down at the gleaming coin and barely managed to suppress the smile that kept threatening to escape.
After dinner, I returned to my room.
A mountain of magic books filled my vision.
Introduction to Magic, A Study of the Nature and Properties of Mana, Mana Cultivation Theory....
Every last one of them concerned magic.
I moved the books aside and pulled a box from the corner.
Candles.
Chalk.
And a copper knife.
Everything was ready.
Until now, I had been unable to use Black Magic.
There were two main reasons.
First, to use Black Magic, one needed a Circle powerful enough to establish a connection with Hell, where demons lived beyond the human realm.
One had to reach at least the 3rd Circle before it became possible to summon something from Hell.
Second, even a contract with an Evil, which was merely a familiar, required materials for the ritual.
‘Saving my allowance for all this was a real pain....’
But today, at last, every preparation had been completed.
I had already reached the 3rd Circle with ease.
After all, I had already been a mage even before I began transcribing parchment in Maurva’s Library.
And spending countless years copying magic had itself been an enormous help.
‘How damned grateful I am.’
In truth, being born into a family like this all but guaranteed me a peaceful future.
If I were an ordinary child, I could have lived the rest of my life in perfect comfort.
“Silence. Hidden Will.”
I cast both a Silence spell and a barrier over the entire room.
‘But I wasn’t reborn with my memories intact just so I could live comfortably.’
I picked up the chalk and crouched on the floor.
SCRITCH. SCRITCH.
With practiced ease, I drew a complex summoning circle I had seen countless times before.
Then I arranged candles all around it.
“Done.”
I stood before the intricate summoning circle.
Then I rotated my Circles and gathered mana into my finger.
SNAP!
I snapped my fingers.
Every candle ignited at once.
Finally, I took out the copper knife and gripped the blade tightly.
A sharp pain bit into my palm.
Drip.
Drip.
Drops of blood fell heavily toward the floor.
I held my palm over the summoning circle.
The moment the falling blood touched it, the entire formation began turning red as though it were drinking the blood.
‘...There.’
I quietly spoke its name.
“Lerajio, Invoking.”
The moment the words left my mouth, I heard the sound of water splashing on the floor.
SPLASH.
Black water began endlessly welling up from the center of the summoning circle.
It bubbled as it rose, producing filthy foam before spreading outward around the formation.
SPLASH.
Once again, I heard the sound of something stepping into shallow water.
At the same time, a chill swept across the back of my neck.
“Reveal yourself before me.”
At my command, black smoke gathered in front of me and slowly took shape.
A pale man stood there with a black leather sack pulled over his head.
His bare upper body was so gaunt that every rib stood out sharply.
He wore the loose trousers of a Black Priest, and iron chains were wound around his left arm.
SSSSSS—
Beneath the leather sack covering his head, I caught sight of a raw red face stripped entirely of skin.
‘Finally...!’
The demonic energy emanating from that otherworldly being wrapped around my entire body.
I could no longer suppress my smile.
It felt as though I could do anything.
It was the distinctive exhilaration that came from forming a contract with a demon.
‘This much power from nothing more than an Evil.’
I could understand why Black Mages broke taboos just to form contracts with demons.
“Follow your master’s will and serve me.”
I took the coin from inside my clothes and flicked it toward the otherworldly being.
The coin flew through the air in a smooth arc.
Then, at some point, it simply vanished.
“With this, the contract between you and me is established.”
The creature, continuously emitting black smoke, slowly dropped to one knee.
“I’ll give you your first order. Investigate the Black Mages who have established themselves in northern Aeria.”
SSSSSS—
Lerajio bowed his head.
Then his body dissolved back into smoke and disappeared.
In an instant, the room became bright again, as though nothing had ever happened.
‘I need to investigate how Black Mages live and operate.’
Until now, I had never actually used Black Magic, so there was much I did not know.
But if I failed to understand the habits and characteristics of Black Mages, Roat might discover my true identity someday.
And if that happened, I might never achieve my goal.
‘Just wait a little longer.’
Selveus.
“With the power I gained because of you... I’ll make sure you never draw another breath.”