Mugae turned back to the spirit and said.

“But if he was alienated from the guild, he couldn’t have been a master, could he? According to Kristrad, he had a disciple.”

The spirit unrolled its scroll again.

“Hmm, Ernes left the city 70 years ago. Since he was excluded from the guild, as young lady Olga said, he has no official disciple. However, there’s another magician who disappeared from the city at that time. On the exact same date as Ernes!”

“Who is it?”

“Hmm, the name isn’t written. It’s recorded as ‘Nameless’, so they must have deliberately hidden their name.”

While Eustar and Laila didn’t understand the significance, a sneer appeared on Mugae’s lips. When magicians hid their names, it was usually only when they were about to do something against the rules.

That disciple was probably much younger than Ernes, and likely a timid person who couldn’t actively interact with others.

Perhaps they didn’t want to follow their master. They might not have had the confidence to ignore the label of learning magic from someone excluded from the guild and blend back into the city.

“Are there no other records of that nameless person? Nothing else?”

“No, there isn’t! Ah, there’s a record that they were 54 years old at that time.”

Laila interjected.

“Fifty-four? He didn’t look that old.”

Mugae turned to her.

“Slowing aging is child’s play using magic. Of course, you need to delve into and master that field… That Ernes fellow, if he was excluded from the guild, he probably learned only things that could entice people. Immortality, eternal life, and dominating, controlling things.”

Laila suddenly remembered the group called ‘Jaokunst’ that she had heard about from Eustar. The man she saw in the ghost’s memory might have had similar ideas to them.

Mugae, who had been wearing a thoughtful expression for a moment, continued.

“He might have used magic that stops aging… to lure in a naive fellow as his disciple. Someone excluded from the guild couldn’t take on a disciple through proper means. A cowardly and timid person, someone afraid of the flow of nature and time… There are always such fools even among magicians.”

The spirit spoke again in a squeaky voice.

“There are no more records of Ernes and that ‘Nameless’ person after they left the city, young lady Olga! But what did these people do? Why are you looking for them?”

“That’s none of your business.”

The cowed spirit made a squeaking sound. Mugae lightly touched the spirit’s head with her finger—seemingly a gesture of affection—and turned to Laila.

“Kristrad, about the place you saw. What was it like?”

“You mean the place I saw through the overlay?”

“Yes, if there are any characteristics, we might be able to use them as clues to find it.”

It was a difficult question. Trying to recall, all Laila could remember seeing were old-looking stone walls, a table, and a few sheets of paper with barely legible writing.

“Well, the walls were… stone walls. And they looked very old. Since the overlay shows memories based on the subject’s view, that’s all I could see from within the ‘city’. Sometimes intense memories can be different, but… The memory from the ‘city’ is only what the subject saw. There were papers stuck to the walls, and, um, it seemed like a place where light didn’t enter well.”

Mugae clicked her tongue and slightly furrowed her brow.

“It would be harder to find a place in the city that isn’t like that. They all like to hole up in dark rooms. We won’t be able to find it like this… But if the sink really started there, if it’s certain that at least something like a ‘seed’ was created there, we need to check it out.”

The spirit, who had been looking around, let out a small squeak.

“Young lady Olga! Did this Ernes person create the black hole? Was it made in the magicians’ city?”

“It’s not certain. But we need to check. If it’s certain that it was made in the city, if it’s really certain… This isn’t something we can resolve on our own. It’s a matter for the Council of Elders.”

The spirit covered its mouth with its strangely shaped small hands. Its eyes grew wide, and its head part seemed to puff up slightly.

‘So that’s what it looks like when it’s scared.’

Laila thought. It wasn’t an appropriate thought at the moment, but as the situation grew serious, she found herself thinking of other things.

Mugae said.

“Blue one, keep your mouth shut about this. Me opening the door today never happened.”

The spirit whimpered pitifully.

“But, but young lady Olga. Sir Sigrid asks Blue one about your well-being every day. It’s almost time for him to come, and Blue one turns red when lying!”

“Then cover yourself in blue paint or something. Don’t say anything, understand?”

“Nnng… I’ll try…”

Mugae nodded and closed the door. With a click, the space that had opened disappeared.

Mugae, with her hands on her hips, frowned with an irritated expression.

“We need to go to the city.”

Then, with a rare look of uncertainty, she looked alternately at Eustar and Laila.

“To find that place, Kristrad, you must come along… Eustar, you wouldn’t think of letting Kristrad go alone, would you?”

“Is that even a question?”

“Right, I’m the fool for asking.”

Laila said.

“Wait a moment, Mugae. Are you saying that we… we have to go to the ‘magicians’ city’? There, directly?”

“How else would we find it?”

Laila blinked with a dazed expression and asked again.

“Can just anyone enter?”

Mugae gave a bitter smile.

“It’s not a tourist spot, but it’s a real place that exists. If you know the method, you can enter. Whether you’ll like the method or not, that I’m not sure about.”

At that time, when the two had left the royal palace and moved to Branch 2, Marchioness Himierd secretly summoned the main officials of Sierou.

“Marchioness Himierd, for what reason have you called us?”

The elderly Count Tommen said, stroking the tip of his beard. His tone was calm, but touching his beard was a habit that only appeared when he was quite nervous.

Everyone gathered there naturally couldn’t help but be tense, knowing full well that Himierd wouldn’t unofficially summon officials just to say, “Shall we have some tea?”

Himierd didn’t immediately answer the question, covering her mouth with her interlocked hands. Her face, which seemed to have almost no makeup, looked pale.

“Marchioness, if you’ve called people, say something.”

Another official of similar age to Count Tommen urged again. No one dared to even breathe loudly.

“I hear that His Royal Highness the Prince has slept with the witch.”

The words finally fell from Himierd’s lips. A cold silence passed. Himierd stared at each of their faces as if shooting daggers.

Wide-open eyes, mouths gaping like fools, wrinkles furrowing on foreheads. Suddenly, all of it felt unbearably stuffy to her. Directionless killing intent radiated from her entire body in all directions.

A wave of anxious murmuring passed. Count Tommen spoke.

“A witch… Hasn’t His Royal Highness already married Lady Kristrad? That he slept… No, rather, that he hadn’t slept with her even once until now?”

“The witch had no intention of marrying His Royal Highness.”

The murmuring grew louder. Himierd’s gaze intensified as well.

Marquis Poet, one of the younger ones among them, interjected.

“Marchioness Himierd, what do you mean? The witch, no… Lady Kristrad had no intention of marrying His Royal Highness? This is the first we’re hearing of this. We don’t understand the situation at all.”

Himierd said.

“Not long after His Royal Highness married the witch, I went to him directly and said. Anyone would be fine as His Royal Highness’s companion, even a swineherd’s daughter without a surname if His Highness wished, I could gladly accept, but never the witch.”

Count Tommen’s face turned red. He was one who viewed Kristrad favorably as His Royal Highness’s companion and a member of Tentinella.

“Are you in your right mind! To say such an outrageous thing to someone who officially married His Royal Highness with His Majesty’s approval!”

“Then, Count, are you saying it’s alright for an ominous witch to remain as His Royal Highness’s companion forever?”

Himierd’s eyes flashed. It wasn’t that he had nothing to say, but because of that fierce gaze, Count Tommen could only keep his mouth shut for a moment. Her expression looked as if she might draw a sword if he answered affirmatively.

Baron Iena, with red hair reminiscent of autumn leaves hanging down, stepped forward. Though the youngest among the officials, he was an influential figure known for his insight and sharp judgment.

“Marchioness, you call Lady Kristrad an ‘ominous witch’, but what’s important is His Royal Highness’s thoughts and feelings. As everyone gathered here knows, His Royal Highness never tolerates disrespect towards Lady Kristrad. You know that, don’t you?”

“I know. I know it better than anyone. However, on this issue alone, I cannot back down. No matter how much His Royal Highness cherishes that witch, whether that feeling is compassion or… love, what’s not allowed is not allowed.”

No one noticed the faint pain in Himierd’s voice when she said ‘or love’.

However, she herself could feel it acutely. It felt as if somewhere in her heart was being torn and ripped apart.

The place that had been torn on the day Eustar had gone to find Laila despite her restraints continued to bleed without healing.

Ord had once again ripped open the already wounded spot, and now she herself had reopened it once more.

Count Tommen said.

“It’s true that we were all surprised that Lady Kristrad was a witch. But now she’s fulfilling her role better than anyone in helping His Royal Highness, so what’s the problem?”

“You ask what the problem is? The fact that she’s a witch, that itself is the problem. I assume none of you here are unaware of what the previous king and queen went through. Isn’t that right?”

The mouths of the murmuring officials closed tightly as if sealed with glue. When the matter related to the previous king and queen, that tragedy, was mentioned, there was no one in the Sierou royal palace who could remain unaffected.

Especially for those of advanced age like Count Tommen, who were already working as officials at the time, they couldn’t recall that nightmare without fear.

Himierd continued.

“Witches are ominous beings. Their very birth originates from the devil. If such a person stays by His Royal Highness’s side and the tragedy of the previous generation repeats, then what will you do? Will you still defend the witch then?”