A dark night.

I put on my hood and left the mansion.

There was not a single person on the street, and the only light came from the moon.

Chirp chirp─

In the quiet space, only the sound of insects could be heard.

There, a small cabin with lights on was visible.

It was located on the outskirts of the capital, to the extent that one might wonder if such a place even existed there.

I opened the door to the cabin and entered.

"Have you arrived?"

Inside was Ian Astria, sitting in a chair.

I had come to meet Ian to learn spatial magic.

A few days after meeting the head wizard.

I wrote letters to everyone around me, including Rie and Astina.

The content of the letters was to cooperate with Ian Astria.

I couldn't write the details, but everyone responded to my request after I sent letters saying I would explain in detail later.

"Are my friends being of any help to you?"

"The number of people nitpicking at my side has just increased, which is annoying."

Even though he said that, work was progressing smoothly.

Rie and Astina were helping, and McDowell, who was still in the capital, was also helping him.

The empire was abuzz with talk about him these days.

It was strange that people from the Emperor's faction were helping Ian all of a sudden.

"How is it going?"

"When passing through the capital, it was decided that the Royal army would inspect the luggage. It seems that other things are also progressing well."

What Ian had planned was direct pressure on Perrian.

Perrian had no choice but to stay at the mansion by the emperor's order.

To research necromancy magic, he had to move related luggage to the capital.

Ian used the excuse of blocking the passage of the rebels to have the Royal army search the luggage.

This meant that it would be impossible to bring in items related to necromancy magic through other people.

However, inspecting the luggage wouldn't prevent everything.

If Perrian tried to bring in the luggage using spatial magic, there was no way to stop him.

That's where my role was needed.

If he tried to leave the mansion using spatial magic, I would follow him using spatial magic.

I would check what Perrian was doing and what luggage he was bringing in.

If he had created a hidden place using spatial magic, I would check that place and inform others.

But for that, I first needed to learn spatial magic...

"The blocking of passage through the empire starts in a week. I barely managed to convince your friends to delay."

"Ahaha......"

I thought it must have been Rie.

Rie had the personality to start things right away once decided.

Thanks to her willingness to follow Ian's instructions, they managed to adjust the timing appropriately.

"Then, let's end our chat here, and I'll teach you spatial magic right away."

"Understood."

Then Ian used spatial magic.

A small hole appeared next to Ian, and he put his hand into that hole.

"This is the material I've compiled about spatial magic."

What came out of the hole was a document about spatial magic, written in Ian's handwriting.

I looked at the material and widened my eyes.

"Isn't it forbidden to leave records about spatial magic?"

"Then, is it acceptable to commit an act of filial impiety towards my father? After all, it's all the same if everything here is burned."

It was somewhat peculiar when Ian spoke like that.

For now, I started to skim through the material Ian had given me.

"You're not supposed to read it now. Since I can't stay here long, study it after I've left."

"…What?"

He was giving it to me to study?

"There's only a week left. You must learn to use spatial magic within a week. And you should also be able to use some small applications of it. So, I will teach you directly."

I widened my eyes.

Ian was seriously planning to teach me.

I had received some instruction from Ian before.

When he taught me the basics of spatial magic, he made it really easy to understand.

Because Ian's understanding of magic theory was exceptional, even I, who knew nothing about spatial magic, could easily learn it.

The fact that Ian was going to teach me directly meant that he intended for me to use spatial magic properly.

"Then, I will teach you how to use spatial magic."

Ian placed a blank sheet of paper in front of me.

"Seeing how you figured out time magic usage last time, it appears you can properly perceive space."

"Yes, I can."

"But you haven't been able to use spatial magic yet."

"Yes, that's correct."

Then Ian drew a small square on the paper.

After drawing the square, he started to mark small dots in it.

"Let's start then. This is the space you are perceiving. Right?"

"Yes, that's correct."

Ian drew a small circle inside the square.

"Let's consider this circle as you. Do you properly understand the reality and spatial realms?"

"Yes, events occurring in reality cannot affect the spatial realm, but events occurring in the spatial realm can affect reality. Is that correct?"

"That's right, events in reality cannot affect the spatial realm. However, it's different when permission to enter the spatial realm is granted. We, the Astria family, have been passed down the knowledge of spatial magic. Therefore, even a person existing in reality can affect the spatial realm."

Ian continued his explanation.

"But that doesn't mean you can make significant changes to the spatial realm. You can't even scratch it. This place isn't meant to be tampered with by beings from reality. Even though we can handle the spatial realm, it means there are limits."

This raised a question for me.

"Then, what about spatial severance magic? Isn't it about tearing space? How is that done?"

Ian narrowed his eyes at my question.

"I'm not explaining it now. Save your questions for the end; just listen for now."

"…Understood."

"As you said, spatial severance or teleportation might seem to us like acts of tearing or damaging space. However, spatial magic is not like that."

Ian connected the dots drawn in the square with a line.

"Now, the square appears to be divided into two."

"Yes."

Saying that, Ian began to draw lines haphazardly.

"Imagine dividing this square into dozens of pieces. Then, move these divided spaces according to the rules of space."

"…Move them?"

"Just as the empire follows its laws, in the spatial realm, we must follow the rules of the spatial realm. The rules of space are simply about moving the divided spaces like a puzzle. So, we can't use any method other than moving the spaces divided according to the rules of the spatial realm."

"Dividing and moving space…"

"Think of it as dividing a room. We are the administrators who can move these divided rooms. We change the space we are in with the space next to it, and make adjacent spaces separate. That's what spatial magic is."

Reality is divided into rooms in the spatial realm, and those rooms are moved.

Since it happens in the spatial realm, it makes possible what is impossible in reality.

There, the spaces are clearly divided like rooms, but in reality, they are invisible, so they appear to disappear and move instantly, making reality appear to be torn.

Trying to understand a realm invisible in reality felt like I could grasp it, yet it remained elusive.

"Let's continue. If you don't understand, I'll explain again later, so keep listening."

"Understood."

And so, Ian's explanation continued.

Ian's explanation was easy to understand.

I could grasp it theoretically, but the content was so complex that I couldn't apply it practically.

It's natural to find it difficult when you're trying to go into practice after listening to theoretical lectures that others would hear over several months, all at once.

Still, I had to succeed.

After practicing alone for a few minutes,

Ian tapped the desk lightly.

"I'll have to go back now. If I stay here any longer, I might get caught."

"Ah. Understood. Please go back now."

Ian began to hastily gather his things.

"I'll have some time in about three days; I'll check on your magic then."

"Understood."

The magic I needed now was teleportation.

I didn't need any other magic at the moment.

Though he said he'd have time in three days, the fact that we were meeting at such late hours made it nonsensical to talk about having a scheduled time.

He had scheduled it that way, judging that I could learn teleportation within three days.

Even though he spoke in a dismissive tone, he was treating me quite humanely.

He was being considerate in his own way, and I felt respected.

Seeing Ian like this made me curious about something.

The current situation.

Ian is trying to push Perrian out.

But, given the relationship between Ian and Perrian, could he really do that?

Perrian actively supported Ian, and Ian followed his father.

This fact hasn't changed much even now.

If Perrian hadn't trusted Ian, he wouldn't have shown him necromancy magic.

Yet, Ian is trying to act against Perrian.

To me, that man doesn't feel like a father, so that's that, but it's not the same for Ian.

Perrian treated Ian as a father, and Ian treated Perrian as such.

Could such a relationship crumble overnight?

Just because the head wizard found fault?

I couldn't understand what he was thinking.

"Then, I should be going."

Ian picked up his belongings and headed towards the door.

I watched Ian's back as he left.

"Brother."

"…What is it?"

"What do you think about pushing father out?"

"…What kind of out-of-the-blue question is that?"

"…No, it's nothing. Just a sudden question that came to mind."

Ian opened the door to the cabin with an indifferent expression.

"It's just something that needs to be done."

Ian said that and went outside.