Lady Zenonia.

Or rather, Zenonia Kalia, who had effectively been ruling the Zenonia County by making her father a puppet for several years, had come to Count Palatio’s estate for two main reasons.

One reason was to gauge the intentions of Alon, now Count Palatio. Despite holding cards that could cause substantial damage to the current Zenonia County, he hadn’t used them.

The relationship between Zenonia County and Palatio County wasn’t necessarily bad, but she knew that the essence of the Count was similar to her own—a “kindred spirit,” so to speak.

In other words, she easily understood that Alon wasn’t the type to wield such powerful cards out of some trivial sentimentality or misplaced compassion.

She had come to ascertain his true intentions.

The second reason was to assess the power of the organization that Count Palatio was rumored to control.

Of course, Kalia knew that just meeting the Count wouldn’t reveal the full extent of the shadowy organization he commanded.

However, Kalia had a way to glimpse at the fringes of that power.

There was the wizard Biankel.

He had once proposed a new theory on “forgotten era magic” within the Magic Tower, earning academic acclaim, but he was later expelled from the Tower due to his excessively inhumane magical experiments.

However, despite his expulsion, his rank was still 5th-tier.

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He was strong enough to obliterate an entire battalion of soldiers by himself. Kalia had brought him along in exchange for assisting with his experiments, forging an alliance with him.

She reasoned that if a wizard like Biankel, who specialized in detection magic and was on the cusp of the 5th-tier, was present, he could easily assess the caliber of those protecting Count Palatio.

While the nature of one’s guards didn’t reveal everything, observing the level of those guarding the Count could naturally offer insights into the organization’s inner workings.

…At least, that was why she had brought Biankel along.

In the reception room of Count Palatio’s estate, Lady Kalia subtly glanced at Biankel, who still hadn’t fully closed his mouth and wore an anxious expression.

She was inwardly surprised.

As far as she knew, he wasn’t someone who would normally show such foolish expressions in front of others.

Biankel’s face was always arrogant, and he never spoke politely to anyone—not even to her, who supported him.

Of course, Kalia understood why Biankel was like this.

Even though he was a wizard expelled from the Magic Tower, the fact that he had reached the pinnacle of the 5th-tier lent credibility and justification to his attitude.

But now, Biankel’s expression was extremely unusual.

His face was still marked by shock, just as it had been earlier, and she could even detect flickers of fear, something she had never seen in him before.

“Why…?”

Kalia felt a mix of curiosity and unease as she looked at Biankel.

She had never seen him display such blatant fear.

‘If he’s reacting like this… could it really be that the magic we saw earlier was an Origin spell…?’

Kalia’s thought was fleeting, as she quickly refocused on the present situation and met Alon’s gaze.

His eyes were the same as before.

His gaze, which seemed to find no value in the current situation, moved slowly and indifferently over Biankel and Kalia.

Silence.

“My apologies, Count Palatio. I’ve been rude.”

Kalia was the first to break the silence.

Although she was still Lady Zenonia on the surface, she respectfully addressed the Count and apologized for entering the training grounds.

Even though she tried to excuse her actions, peering into someone else’s training ground was clearly an affront, even if not a serious one.

After a moment of silence, Alon spoke.

“…No need to blame yourself.”

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“Thank you.”

“Under normal circumstances, I would ask why you visited the County, but before that, let me clarify one thing.”

“Please, go ahead.”

In response to Kalia’s answer, Alon spoke without hesitation.

“What I used wasn’t Origin. It seems the wizard you brought along misunderstood.”

“Is that so?”

“Indeed. My magic skills aren’t particularly exceptional. If I had to rank them… they would be around the 2nd-tier.”

Naturally, Kalia didn’t believe Alon’s words.

Even though she wasn’t well-versed in magic, she could easily tell that the magic Alon had displayed was anything but ordinary.

She turned her gaze subtly back to Biankel and was even more surprised.

His expression was worse than before.

However, despite his sour expression, he seemed to have understood the underlying message in Alon’s words.

It was a warning to keep quiet about what they had witnessed here.

“It seems I was mistaken.”

“…!”

Biankel forced out the words.

Kalia was once again startled, hearing him speak in polite language for the first time in five years—he usually spoke informally.

“Yes, you seem quite capable, so you’ve likely already noticed, but that magic is of no practical use. Now then, since the misunderstanding has been cleared up… what brings you to the County?”

Without hesitation, Alon moved the conversation forward, prompting Kalia to quickly collect herself and respond.

“It wasn’t anything special. I happened to be in the area for some business and thought of you, so I decided to stop by briefly.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

After pondering for a moment, Alon spoke.

“Unfortunately, I’m quite busy and won’t be able to chat for long.”

“That’s fine. I only stopped by briefly. I just wanted to pay my respects.”

“If you’re in need of conversation, it might be a good idea to visit the Duke of Altia.”

“…The Duke of Altia, you say?”

“Yes, I think the two of you would get along quite well.”

“If you say so… I’ll consider visiting the Duke.”

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Lady Zenonia smiled as she replied to Alon, who spoke with an indifferent expression.

However, her mouth was dry.

***

“Why would Lady Zenonia, from that notorious family in the west, visit you?”

Watching as Lady Zenonia’s carriage gradually disappeared into the distance, Evan asked the question, and Alon answered.

“How would I know?”

“Is that so?”

Evan looked puzzled, but Alon genuinely had nothing more to say this time. He couldn’t guess why Kalia had come either.

“It’s annoying that I showed her my magic.”

Alon thought about the wizard from Zenonia who had mistaken his magic for Origin.

‘Let’s just hope rumors about me using Origin don’t start spreading.’

In this world, rumors carried more power than one might think.

If a rumor spread that Alon could use Origin—a spell only supreme wizards in this world could cast—it might seem advantageous at first glance, but it would actually be a major headache.

In this dark fantasy world, it wasn’t hard to find madmen who couldn’t resist picking fights with anyone strong.

…If he had a solid backer, that might be another story, but without one, if strange rumors spread, it would be more than just an annoyance—dangerously powerful individuals could start picking fights with him for no reason.

In fact, Alon could already think of eight strong people who would come looking for him if they heard he could use Origin, so he wanted to nip any rumors in the bud quickly.

‘…Hopefully, she understood?’

As he recalled the wizard nodding in agreement before sending Lady Zenonia off to clear up any misunderstandings, Alon continued his thoughts with an uncomfortable expression.

‘Why on earth are they interested in me anyway?’

For Alon, Kalia was not just uninteresting—she was someone he wanted to avoid as much as possible.

If they somehow became close, the likelihood of getting involved in the underworld would increase naturally.

…He did introduce her to the Duke of Altia, though.

He knew there was no way Lady Zenonia would actually seek out the Duke.

Even so, the reason he introduced her to the Duke of Altia was more about sending a message.

A message that he had no interest in associating with her.

“Don’t come looking for me.”

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With that thought, Alon ended his musings about Kalia.

***

Meanwhile, inside the carriage,

“…Was the magic Count Palatio used really Origin?”

Kalia was asking.

Unlike his usual immediate responses, Biankel remained silent.

Just as Kalia was about to speak again,

“It wasn’t Origin.”

Biankel finally spoke.

“…It wasn’t Origin? Then what was that earlier display…?”

As Kalia questioned him, clearly not understanding, Biankel took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, and began to explain.

“Origin is the endpoint of all wizards, a canvas of sorts. It is a canvas allowed only to those who have established magic as a ‘truth,’ where they can draw their own unique laws.”

“Magic that possesses its own unique arrangements and manifestation formulas, painted onto an unchanging canvas—this is what we call Origin. However—”

He swallowed and continued,

“—Count Palatio’s magic was different.”

“…In what way…?”

“It wasn’t drawing on a canvas. To be more precise, his magic was akin to tearing the canvas apart.”

When Kalia looked at him, clearly not comprehending, Biankel explained further.

“In other words, he was twisting the ‘truth’ that should remain unchangeable. Although I only saw it for a fleeting moment, since I was using the ‘Observation Eye’ at your request, I saw it clearly.”

Biankel muttered,

“Fixing lightning that shouldn’t stop, twisting the laws to collapse the spell that had been manifested—and yet still managing to manifest it flawlessly. It was an unbelievable miracle, and behind it—”

He stopped speaking abruptly.

The image of Count Palatio from earlier flashed in his mind.

At the moment when he displayed that incredible magic.

His eyes had revealed a talent that could only be attained upon reaching the 6th-tier, even if acquired later in life.

A talent that Biankel had only barely glimpsed after reaching the peak of the 5th-tier due to his own latent talent.

Eyes that could perceive the world itself.

It was an eye.

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A pair of jet-black eyes.

With two crimson rings encircling the pupils, those eyes had appeared when the Count used his magic.

As soon as the magic disappeared, so too did those eyes, vanishing as if they had never existed.

Recalling this, Biankel could not hide the fear that filled his own eyes.

If it was what he thought it was, the Count had accessed the power of a forgotten ancient god when he used that magic—

But Biankel cut off his own thoughts, even using magic to force himself to stop thinking.

Having delved into ancient knowledge, he was well aware of how dangerous it was to try to infer the truth behind such things through further thought.

Thus,

“Let me give you one piece of advice.”

“…”

“…”

“Never make an enemy of him. Do not oppose Count Palatio.”

“What—”

“That’s all the advice I can give.”

Having said that much, Biankel fell silent.

Lady Zenonia also kept her silence.

At the same time, Kalia naturally recalled Alon’s expressionless face and his calm gaze as he had looked at her.

“Sigh…”

Without realizing it, she let out a self-deprecating smile.

Because through Biankel’s words, she had realized something.

There was no point in trying to understand Count Palatio’s intentions from the start.

At the same time,

-If you’re in need of conversation, it might be a good idea to visit the Duke of Altia.

-…The Duke of Altia?

-Yes, I think the two of you would get along quite well.

She had also realized that she had already become nothing more than a pawn on his chessboard.

The carriage remained steeped in silence for a long while.

***

And then, about five months later, by now quite accustomed to his role and proficiently handling the duties of the Count, Alon realized something.

“…Ah, Count. Did you hear about this?”

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“Hear about what?”

“I heard that the Zenonia County and the Duke of Altia have formed an alliance.”

“What?”

Alon realized that the Kingdom of Asteria was now facing a crisis.