Chapter 32
“Lian Qi is the transmigrator from another dimension, isn’t she? This matter… I haven’t told the Demon King.”
…
When Professor Einstein appeared in front of me and said those words, first, I was surprised that such a highly respected man actually had ties to the Demon King. Second, I guessed he was preparing to use this to threaten me.
Lian Qi is the person prophesied to defeat the Demon King. She is a thorn in the Demon King’s side. If the Demon King discovered her existence at this time, her life would be in danger.
So, no matter what, I have to protect her.
That night at seven o’clock, I arrived at the appointed time and pushed open the doors to the Mana Furnace’s core control room. This was my first time entering this place. The atmosphere was a bit dim. Only the patterns on the surface of the central cylinder emitted a faint blue light.
“Child, you really did come alone.”
Professor Einstein stood next to the cylinder, giving me a kindly smile.
“It’s no big deal. It’s not like I’m afraid of you,” I muttered.
No matter what, I’m a boy, after all.
“How did you find out Lian Qi is a transmigrator from another dimension?” I asked.
I had already thought it through. Even if I denied it, it would be useless. As long as he told the Demon King… with that person’s personality… she would rather kill by mistake than let her go.
“Because I admire her very much, I investigated her background. I found that all her records before she enrolled in the Magic Academy are blank. Why would Aijieliya accept such a student out of the blue? Of course, I didn’t expect the transmigrator to be a girl.”
“…Based on just that?”
“Of course, I also added some of my own conjectures. What would you like to drink? Tea? Coffee? Or wine?”
I ignored him. My mind was racing… Was it because Lian Qi interacted with him too many times that she aroused his suspicion?
“Tea, then. I’ve heard the tea you brew is delicious. Hoho, unfortunately, I won’t get to drink it.”
As he spoke, he used magic to make a teacup and teapot fly to him, automatically pouring a cup.
The teacup, filled to the brim, floated over to me. Of course I wasn’t going to drink it. I just sniffed it warily, and with my years of experience, I immediately noticed the tea’s aroma wasn’t right!? I swatted the teacup, sending it spilling all over the floor.
“You tampered with the tea!?”
I backed up a few steps to put distance between us, simultaneously summoning my long-handled hammer and gripping it.
“You should be very familiar with this aroma, right?” Professor Einstein said, his hands behind his back.
“Familiar…!?” In an instant, I felt my vision start to blur.
“Back at the Magic Academy, my student used this poison to knock you out, didn’t she?”
“Your… student?”
“That’s right. I’m talking about ‘Flower-Filled Collection’ Miramini. She is my student,” Professor Einstein said.
“Considering you’re not stupid, I knew you wouldn’t drink it. But… for someone like you, who is used to drinking tea, when a cup is placed in front of you, you’ll habitually sniff it, right? Therefore, a sniff is all it takes.”
“Alright, you got me,” I said with a wry smile, leaning my body against the wall.
Why am I not fighting back?
Because… I can’t muster any strength. It’s already my limit just to stay conscious.
“No… You should have passed out immediately.”
Professor Einstein studied me.
“Could it be… your body has developed a resistance to this poison? The Saintess’s body really is extraordinary.”
So my body has poison resistance? I never would have known if I hadn’t been tested.
I stared at him, my back braced against the wall. My numb fingers lightly touched the handle of my hammer. If only he would get a little closer… but I wasn’t even sure if I had the strength to swing it.
“I never would have thought… Professor Einstein. I never thought that someone so highly respected… would have ties to the Demon King.”
I tried to stall for time, to see if I could recover.
Professor Einstein smiled.
“Then let me reintroduce myself. I am also one of the members of the ‘Holy Twelve.’ And I am the Demon King’s confidant.”
“You… you’re that person’s confidant? What is your plan?” I asked.
“Child, don’t you already know the Demon Lord’s plan is to stagnate the entire power structure of magic? And our Environmental Protection Side’s mission… is to use and create environmental problems to incite the people’s disgust for magic.”
“Dumping poison in the Lucerne River to frame the mana crystal factory upstream, and injecting poison into the magic potatoes… that was all part of it?”
Professor Einstein smiled and nodded. “That’s right. Those things were handled by the ‘Great Apothecary’ Mistrecui’s subordinates. I approved it. I’ll let you in on a little more: the first time the Mana Furnace leaked, no one knew what went wrong. The truth is, I tampered with it.”
“Then the smog… turning into a cloud and flying away… how…”
“The smog is the magic of the ‘Rain-Caller,’ the leader of the animal protection side, in its low-density expanded form. When expanded, its range is vast, but it’s also very fragile. That’s why it was hurt by a Tier 4 mage, right? Hoho. Although our Environmental Protection Side and the Animal Protection Side don’t quite get along, our ultimate goal is the same. It’s only natural that we cooperate.”
“The ultimate goal…?” I asked.
“That, of course, I cannot tell you,” Professor Einstein said.
“…Then… your Environmental Protection Side… using and creating environmental problems to incite disgust for magic… all this… does Loroshe, and the volunteers at Nature’s Home… do they know?”
“No, no. Silly child, they don’t know. They are really protecting the environment. Hoho. Being with these children… I feel like I’m really protecting the environment, too.”
“They genuinely look up to you. You… you’re even deceiving them?”
“They are a group of silly children. I am not worthy of their admiration,” Professor Einstein said faintly.
I glared at him in disgust. I had always seen him as a respectable elder. Now, it seems I was blind.
“I, however, have a question for you, Kefei’er.”
When he said my name, his smile vanished, and he became serious.
“Isn’t it good enough to just honestly be the Saintess? Why must you be so meddlesome?”
“But, as it happens, I want to stop you.” Leaning against the wall, I lifted my head, my gaze meeting his, firm and unwavering.
“A good gaze. You’re aware of your current predicament, yet you’re not afraid at all?”
“Of course I won’t give up so easily.”
Although I said that, my vision of him was already splitting into three, and my body… slid a little further down the wall.
“Your relationship with the transmigrator seems very close.”
“That’s none of your business, is it?”
“I can see you care about her a lot. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have come alone tonight. She must care a lot about you, too.”
“…What are you planning to do?”
The moment my voice fell, countless cables shot out from the central cylinder, wrapping around all parts of my body and dragging me toward it.
Completely powerless, I was bound to the cylinder. My consciousness grew blurrier. I vaguely heard Professor Einstein say to me:
“My target isn’t you. To complete my plan, I need you to be the bait right now.”
“…You won’t get away with this!”
“Don’t say such silly things, child. Hurry up and sleep. When you wake up… everything will be over. The thing I created with my own hands… let it be destroyed by my own hands.”