Alpoie and the mages arrived with leisurely smiles on their faces.

They too had heard the rumors spreading across the estate.

The word was that Ghislain had made a bet he had no chance of winning.

The mages were confident that Claude would win the bet.

'Heh, finally, that demon will be humiliated. Good job, Claude, I knew I could count on you!'

Alpoie didn’t even try to hide his smile.

How could he not be thrilled that Ghislain was about to make a fool of himself?

If he had known it would come to this, he might’ve treated Claude better. The thought made Alpoie snicker to himself.

The other mages also wore bright expressions, except for Vanessa, who remained quiet with a gloomy face.

After clearing his throat a few times, Alpoie looked at Ghislain with a smug air.

“So, my lord, what is the reason you summoned us?”

Now that Ghislain was a lord, Alpoie could no longer speak as casually as before. Even though Alpoie was the heir to the Magic Tower, he wasn’t afforded the same noble status as the tower lord or elders.

Ghislain replied casually.

“Why else would I summon you? I need magic. It’s a crucial task, so make sure you do it properly.”

“I’ve heard the rumors. You’re not thinking of using magic to enhance the fertility of the land, are you?”

“What?”

Ghislain frowned, and Alpoie hurriedly explained.

“We can’t handle such a large amount of land on our own! Forcing the land to become fertile using magic will only make it more barren later on, as you know.”

Powerful magic or divine power could temporarily increase a land’s fertility.

However, no lord would actually use such a method.

Once used, it would render the soil nearly useless afterward. It was a method that drained the land of its life force.

To mitigate the side effects, one would need high-level mages or priests to continuously replenish the mana, but hiring such people would cost more than simply importing food.

Of course, Alpoie didn’t care if Ghislain’s land became a barren wasteland.

Even without such consequences, he had no intention of exerting any effort.

“Besides, we never learned such magic. And using tricks like that would be against the rules of a fair bet.”

“What are you talking about? We’re going to inscribe a magic circle in the clearing behind the castle.”

“A magic circle?”

Alpoie inwardly clicked his tongue.

It wasn’t about farming, then. Ghislain must have some other nonsense in mind.

“Yes, we’ll create a mana condensation circle using the runestones. We’ll also overlap it with a restoration circle and add a few more... Actually, never mind. You wouldn’t understand. I’ll spare you the details.”

The mages exchanged puzzled glances.

Not only was the explanation half-hearted, but it was also a magic formation they had never heard of before.

Feigning superiority, Alpoie asked, “What kind of magic circle is this, anyway? Do you even know magic?”

“It’s very important. Just set it up. I don’t have time to explain everything. I’ll inspect it thoroughly, so do it quickly and precisely. Got it?”

“Tch, it’s just a mana condensation circle. Did you really think I wouldn’t know that much?”

A mana condensation circle, created using runestones, could gather mana in one place.

Those who practiced mana cultivation within the circle could increase their mana more quickly than usual.

It was a dream formation for any knight or mage who relied on mana.

But it wasn’t something just anyone could use.

Creating such a circle required an enormous number of runestones, and even then, the circle only lasted for about a week.

In just a few days, the runestones would lose their power and shatter.

While wealthy estates might support talented knights with such formations, most knights could go their entire lives without experiencing one.

Of course, Ghislain, with his own stash of runestones, was an exception.

‘Even Count Balzak, the sword master from the Delphine duchy, only got to use one for a month when he was young.’

Even the famously wealthy Delphine duchy only offered such formations to their most promising talents, and only for short periods.

“Are you going to use it yourself, my lord?” Alpoie asked.

“Why would I use it?”

Ghislain responded, looking bewildered. Alpoie raised his chin and asked further.

“If you’re not using it yourself... are you planning to make several?”

“Oh, you’re starting to catch on. How many do you think I need?”

“Hmm... how about 200?”

“Excuse me?”

The mages gasped in shock at Ghislain’s response.

Creating 200 mana condensation circles would require an enormous number of runestones—likely the amount Ghislain had sold to the Magic Tower in the past.

But Alpoie quickly nodded in understanding.

“Well, that makes sense...”

There were nearly 300 mercenaries in the estate.

To train them all using mana cultivation, that many circles would indeed be necessary.

“Pouring money into speeding up their growth is smart, but... won’t you run out of funds if you spend so much?”

Ghislain looked mildly surprised.

“Once is enough. Still, I underestimated you. You’ve figured it out already—guess I shouldn’t have taken you so lightly.”

Alpoie shrugged, as if inviting more praise.

“Given your track record, it would be strange if I didn’t notice. You’ve always been in a hurry.”

“You know me well. Anyway, hurry up and prepare everything. If you need help, ask Vanessa. She’s the most knowledgeable about magic circles around here.”

“Why are you overlapping the other magic circles? I’ve never seen something like this before. Where did you learn this? Unverified magic circles are extremely dangerous. Are you confident? Besides, this is such a complex setup... it’s going to take a lot of time.”

“Ah, there’s that mage chatter again. Stop questioning me and just get it done.”

Alpoie, full of curiosity, was about to protest further, but Ghislain’s sharp look made him back down.

He might have been eager to argue, but Ghislain looked ready to throw a punch.

“Well, if you insist, I’ll do my best.”

“I’ll be inspecting everything, so make sure it’s done right. Still, you’re sharper than I thought. I’ll give you that much.”

With that, Ghislain walked away, leaving behind a cryptic compliment.

Alpoie felt oddly proud and puffed out his chest.

“Vanessa, did you hear that? Get ready to inscribe the magic circle. Make sure it lasts for several days.”

“Y-Yes! Understood!”

Vanessa couldn’t hide her surprise.

She had no idea what these magic circles were for, yet Alpoie had immediately grasped Ghislain’s intentions. It reminded her of his status as heir to the Magic Tower.

Alpoie led the mages to the clearing and began instructing them on how to inscribe the magic circles.

Though they started with confidence, their enthusiasm soon waned.

“Uh, how do we do this again?”

“The circuits won’t connect like this.”

“This isn’t my specialty...”

Magic circles require careful study to inscribe properly.

Even the slightest error can cause the circle to fail, or worse, explode.

And now they had to draw 200 unfamiliar, overlapping magic circles.

Alpoie and the other mages were completely lost.

“Damn it, what are we supposed to do? If this goes wrong, we’re dead. The lord’s got a nasty temper, too,” Alpoie muttered, chewing on his nails.

Seeing the mages struggle, Vanessa stepped in.

“L-Let me try fixing this part.”

“Oh, sure. Go ahead, I’ll give you a shot.”

Vanessa meticulously inscribed the magic circle with no room for error. Though it took time, given her lack of mana, she didn’t miss a single line.

She even corrected mistakes that the others had overlooked, quickly earning authority among the mages.

Before long, Vanessa was leading the process.

Alpoie, feeling sidelined, awkwardly cleared his throat.

“Wow, she really studied. When did she manage to learn all this?”

The other mages nodded in admiration.

Even though Vanessa lacked mana, her knowledge was more than “adequate,” something they had already noticed during the last war.

But now it seemed she wasn’t just competent—her understanding of magic circles rivaled that of the Magic Tower elders.

Relieved that Vanessa had taken charge, Alpoie muttered as he helped.

“What kind of magic circle is this? I’ve never seen it before. Is it even a proper magic circle? Where did Ghislain get this from? Just throwing everything good together doesn’t always work.”

“I’m not sure, but the lord said to do it like this, so that’s what we’re doing...”

“Maybe it’s some secret passed down in the Ferdium family? Though I’ve never heard of any mages in that line.”

Alpoie continued to speculate, but eventually shook his head.

“Ah, whatever. Let’s just do as we’re told. If something goes wrong, it’s on the lord. I swear, he’s pulling out all the stops because he knows he’s going to lose this bet. Trying to win over the mercenaries with this... it’s pathetic.”

Vanessa, overhearing his grumbles, shot him a disapproving look, but Alpoie didn’t notice.

“Okay, now rework the circuit over there... Wait, what are you doing? Not there, here! Don’t you know anything?”

“Huh? Sorry, is it here?”

Though Vanessa’s remarks were growing more cutting, no one seemed to realize.

Rumors that 200 mana condensation circles were being set up spread quickly.

There was no way the mercenaries, always hungry for gossip, wouldn’t catch wind of it.

Before long, talk of gambling and drinking had vanished, replaced by excited discussions about the mana circles.

“Do you think the boss will teach us mana cultivation? Most of us don’t know how to do it.”

“He’s been saying he’ll make us elite for a while now. I bet he will.”

“Looks like we’ll have to sign long-term contracts.”

The mercenaries were coming to understand that they couldn’t keep renewing one-year contracts forever.

Soon enough, they’d have to decide whether to accept a long-term deal, likely with the promise of mana cultivation and the circles as incentives.

Amid the mercenaries’ growing anticipation, several days passed, and the mana circles were finally complete.

“This is the mana condensation circle I made... I mean, the one I made with Vanessa! None of you have ever seen anything like it, have you?” Alpoie boasted.

But the mercenaries ignored him and rushed over to Ghislain.

Ghislain, who had been inspecting the magic circles, was slightly taken aback by the sudden rush of mercenaries.

“What’s with the crowd? I didn’t call for you. What’s going on?”

Gillian stepped forward to explain.

“The men are eager about the mana condensation circle, my lord.”

Seeing the curiosity and excitement in their eyes, Ghislain chuckled.

“Don’t worry. You’ll all get your turn, so don’t get too greedy.”

With that, the mercenaries became certain.

The mana circles were indeed meant for them!

Unable to contain his excitement, Gordon blurted out.

“So who goes in first? And how about the mana cultivation?”

“Who goes first? These go in first.”

Ghislain answered nonchalantly, gesturing to the side.

Claude, looking utterly exhausted, plopped a sack into Ghislain’s outstretched hand.

Ghislain reached into the sack and pulled out a handful of shiny, plump wheat grains.

The mercenaries blinked in confusion, while Gordon asked again.

“Wait, are you saying... that goes in first?”

“Yup.”

“But... that’s wheat.”

“Right.”

“Have they... learned mana cultivation?”

“What kind of nonsense is that?”

Gordon swallowed nervously and asked his final question.

“So you’re saying that after all that money was spent... the first thing to go into those mana circles is wheat? Not me?”

“Exactly! How many times do I have to say it? And why would you go first?”

Ghislain snapped, his irritation growing.

Only then did everyone realize it wasn’t a joke. Their faces twisted in disbelief.

Was Ghislain really going to burn through those expensive runestones on wheat instead of people?