I Became the Patron of Villains

116. Why are you like this…? (3)

‘Wizard’ is a word that any magician would know.

The wizards, they were active during the era of the forgotten gods, and in a way, could be called the ancestors of magicians.

Additionally, it was said that each one of them was a powerful being capable of twisting the laws of the world at will.

However, beyond that, nothing was known.

It was due to the loss of information.

Although many relics and artifacts from the ‘era of the forgotten gods’ are still being discovered, those related to wizards were astonishingly absent.

Moreover, the so-called wizard’s magic that remains – now not even called ‘wizard’s magic’ but ‘primitive magic’ – was not very attractive.

This was because someone had already researched wizard’s magic a hundred years ago.

The 7th rank magician Silica.

He was fascinated by the wizards, who were described as having tremendous power to twist the principles of the world.

He researched the wizards with his disciples, and after a very long time, they finished exploring the phrases and seals used by the wizards, enabling them to use ancient magic.

Up to that point, it was good.

However, the problem was that the ancient magic they interpreted was far more inferior than they had thought.

The arrangement of mana was not precise, making the implementation of magic unstable.

The manifestation speed of the magic was absurdly slow, to the point of being difficult to use.

Above all, despite all these shortcomings, its power was low.

Even though they succeeded in recreating the wizard’s magic, it manifested incompletely, as if a crucial piece of the puzzle was missing.

Regarding this, the academy concluded that wizard’s magic was unusable in the current reality.

Thus, it gradually became forgotten among magicians after being named ‘primitive magic’.

In the end, only a few disciples of Salikaman, who could not let go of the illusion of the sorcerer, passed down the phrases, and it continued in the form of using only one or two phrases.

Naturally, these days, most wizards did not even know that primitive magic included phrases or seals.

But to Selaim Mikardo, that didn’t matter.

What mattered was.

‘…The Marquis of Palatio, a sorcerer…!’

The fact that the Marquis of Palatio was a sorcerer.

Moreover, a sorcerer from a forgotten era who might be able to help him reach from the 8th rank to the 9th rank…!

Of course, his speculation might have been hasty, skipping over the process, but even so, he was convinced.

Because there were a few clues.

The Marquis of Palatio easily broke through the gate that no one else could solve.

He also seemed to read phrases that even he himself could not read.

Above all, ‘that’ attached to his back.

Something he couldn’t even dare to imagine.

Because he was with an existence that could completely ignore the laws of this world.

Moreover, he had already used more than five phrases in front of Selaim.

Not in an unstable manner, but as perfectly and precisely as the magic of this era.

Something that even Silikaman, a 7th rank wizard, could not perfectly reproduce, the Marquis, barely in his twenties, had accomplished.

No matter how much of a genius he was, it was impossible.

Unless he was a sorcerer from the old era.

‘Looking at it this way, the points that didn’t make sense when investigating him now make sense.’

Selaim recalled an incident full of questions when investigating the Marquis.

In a span of a few years, the former Count, including the second and first sons, died mysteriously, and the underworld organization he had under his command was wiped out at once.

At that time, rumors were rampant that Palatio Alon was behind it, but there were also many questions about him.

Partly because of his young age, but also because the large organization he commanded, which cleaned up Avalon in a day, did not show any trace or movement at all.

Selaim had found that part strange.

But, if the Marquis of Palatio was a sorcerer?

To a sorcerer who could freely defy and overturn the laws of the world, the underworld thugs would be nothing but insignificant creatures.

Therefore.

‘Did he take over the body? Or is it possession or a relic? Or perhaps reincarnation magic that was practiced in ancient times? Why is he hiding his identity? Is there something? No- it doesn’t matter.’

Selaim Mikardo, with eyes that seemed to glimpse madness.

‘Make sure not to offend him and get close to him no matter what. Get close and learn magic. That way-’

I will reach the 9th rank-!

Hehehe- He let out a sinister laugh with no apparent meaning.

‘What’s wrong with this guy all of a sudden?’

Parkline, who was watching him, showed a slight hint of concern, though reluctantly.

####

Around the time when Selaim was immersed in his strange conclusion.

Alon was showing the Covenant Ring of Calgunias to Heinkel.

[……It looks like it’s just refusing to be summoned, doesn’t it?]

“Then what should I do in this case?”

[The method to get it out of the ring is simple. Instead of just putting in magic power, try distributing it lightly into the pattern.]

Following Heinkel’s words obediently, he put magic power only into the pattern.

Wooong-!

Soon the ring trembled,

“Oh-”

He succeeded in summoning, something he had never succeeded in before.

But, very small.

“……Huh?”

From noble mtl dot com

Alon looked at the snake on his arm, which seemed to be the ‘Receiver Basiliora,’ and was bewildered.

Its size was a fraction of its original- no, it didn’t even seem to be one ten-thousandth of its original size.

[This is a method to summon a familiar for conversation purposes when magic power is scarce. It can’t refuse such a call.]

“Ah.”

Heinkel’s explanation solved his question.

But only for a moment.

[You damn human! How dare you trap me in this ring!! Release me immediately!!]

“I don’t know how to release you.”

[Ha- Do you think I will move according to your will?! Never! Not a chance! From now on, you will never summon me, and I will never follow your orders!!!]

Seeing Basiliora, who was foaming at the mouth and convulsing in a small form on his arm, he sighed involuntarily.

‘I didn’t expect this, but the resistance is stronger than I thought.’

[Release- Release me now! Let me out of here right now!!!!!!!!]

Even amidst the chaos, Basiliora was pathetically(?) convulsing.

Anyone could see that he was expressing his determination not to listen with his entire body.

…To be honest, Alon wanted to smack him, but knowing that he couldn’t touch a spirit, he calmly thought.

‘What options should I give him?’

As much as he had anticipated this situation, he had prepared a deal that would be worth hitting Basiliora with.

At that moment.

[Can I ask you something?]

Heinkel suddenly asked.

“Yes.”

[Is the reason you came to find me because of that bird- no, the ring?]

“I wanted to receive your guidance, but the immediate reason I came despite the rudeness is because of that.”

[Then could you leave it with me for a while?]

“…Do you mean this ring?”

[Yes. I’ll fix it up for you.]

A deep laugh could be felt just from the voice.

“Would that be alright?”

[Of course. This much is not difficult.]

“Then I will leave it in your care.”

With that, Alon respectfully handed over the ring.

[Let me go-!!! Let me go, you uncivilized human scum!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

[Come back for it tomorrow.]

She smiled and waved her hand.

“Then I will see you tomorrow.”

Alon bowed his head in greeting, handed her the ring, and left.

####

Basiliora, who had been forced to admit defeat by Alon’s trickery and was trapped in the covenant ring of Calgunius, was filled with hatred.

It wasn’t just hatred towards Alon.

Trapped in the ring, he realized that the Thunder Serpent tribe had also contributed to capturing him, and he vowed to kill them all once he escaped from here.

[Release me, you soul shell! If you do, I will-]

Even now, his feelings hadn’t changed at all, so as soon as Alon left, he tried to resist the spirit in front of him-

[aaah-!!!!!!!!!!]

[!?]

– The next moment, they stopped moving at the sudden sight of Heinkel screaming at the top of his lungs.

Crash-!

[!!]

Basiliora witnessed the books that had filled the space falling in a cascade due to the waves emitted by the spirit.

And then, at some point, they saw a wooden puppet, which had appeared out of nowhere, being grabbed by Heinkel’s hand.

Where did that thing suddenly come from?

For a moment, they were puzzled, but Heinkel lifted the puppet he was holding.

[Why!!!! Do I!!!!! Have to!!!!! Suffer like this!!!!!!!!]

Smash-!

He slammed it into the ground.

The wooden puppet folded in half.

But it didn’t end there. He picked up a thick tome from the fallen books and-

[Screeeeeeech!!!]

He began to smash the wooden puppet with the book’s corner.

Bang! Bang! Crack-! Crunch!

With each swing of the book, the wooden puppet became more and more dented.

Snap-!

Soon, the puppet’s head shattered, scattering fragments, but it wasn’t enough for Heinkel. He placed the puppet on the bookshelf and swung his fist at it.

Thud!

The wooden puppet made a cracking sound.

Regardless, Heinkel, half-crazed, continued to headbutt the puppet’s neck, causing Basiliora to shrink back involuntarily.

And so.

“Huff- Huff-!”

Heinkel, who had destroyed the wooden puppet with physical strength far too great for a wizard, stood amidst the scattered books, breathing heavily.

With a sinister glint in his eyes, Basiliora cautiously spoke up.

[Um, well, first, calm-]

…down? Please? Basiliora hesitated.

Even though he was trapped in a ring, Basiliora was still a god, and his pride was immense.

So he began to wonder if it was right to speak formally to a mere spirit,

[What did you say, you b*stard?]

It was a mistake.

Crunch-!

Heinkel grabbed Basiliora with the speed of light before he could even finish his sentence.

[Who do you think is responsible for this?]

A chilling gaze.

Without even having time to be shocked by the fact that his sealed body was being held, Basiliora shrank back in the face of the ferocious killing intent.

But soon, as if his pride was hurt by his own shrinking back, he raised his voice instead-

[Responsible? I didn’t do anything!!! …sir.]

-Then, seeing Heinkel’s increasingly terrifying expression, he belatedly added a polite suffix.

Of course, he couldn’t take back what he had said.

[Heh… Heh heh, really? Is that so? You did nothing wrong? Huh?]

[W-wait-]

The archmage, who had been laughing strangely, grabbed Basiliora tightly and started moving towards the half-broken wooden puppet.

[Uh, wait a moment-]

[Yeah, right. Our snake did nothing wrong. I think so too.]

[No, that- excuse me? Excuse me?]

[Right, I was the bad one.]

Realizing he was in serious trouble, Basiliora hastily tried to speak formally.

[So let the bad me vent my anger as I please? Is that okay?]

Heinkel wrapped his fist around Basiliora’s body like a belt and then struck the wooden puppet.

[Uh, wait! Wait!!! Let’s talk this out! We’re not beasts, we’re intelligent- aaaH-!!!!]

Basiliora’s terrible scream echoed through the library.

…Until morning.

####

The next day.

Alon set out to attend the lecture of the Blue Tower Lord.

It was to attend the lectures of the tower lords that Milan had mentioned yesterday.

Since he had to move at night to meet Heinkel anyway, he had free time during the day.

However, it was regrettable.

“I’m sorry, but all reservations are already full, and all seats are taken, so entry is impossible.”

It was a situation where he couldn’t attend the lecture because all the seats were taken.

‘I didn’t expect there to be reservations.’

He sighed briefly as he watched the wizards in line hand over their papers and enter inside.

“……Is it possible to stand at the back and listen?”

“No. Even though you are a Marquis, this is a place where everyone equally explores magic, so such an unfair entry is impossible.”

Feeling a sense of regret, he asked just in case, but the firm answer came back immediately.

The voice was so cold that it was almost chilly, and he felt a slight dissatisfaction, but it was also true that there was nothing he could do about it, so he turned to leave with regret.

“Marquis Pallatio?”

“……Tower Master?”

Alon was able to meet the Blue Tower Master.

“Ah, hello! Blue Tower Master.”

“Ah, yes.”

The wizard, who had been wearing a cold expression until just a moment ago, greeted Selime with eyes full of admiration.

Selime, who lightly accepted this, said,

“Why are you here, Marquis?”

“……?”

Suddenly speaking to Alon in formal language.

Feeling puzzled for a moment, Alon decided to answer the question first.

“I had some time, so I thought I would attend a lecture.”

“My lecture?”

“Yes.”

“Gasp-“

“?”

“This is a great honor! For the Marquis to attend my lecture!”

Selime, who was beaming with a broad smile as if he was very honored by those words, left Alon bewildered.

Even though he knew that the Blue Tower Master was not a person who cared about authority, he also knew that when it came to magic, he was the most rigid person.

“Please come in. You there! Let him through quickly.”

“What? But the number of people is already-“

“Isn’t this my lecture?”

“Uh- uh, yes, that’s correct, but…”

“Then what are you doing! Let them in quickly!”

Therefore.

‘…What’s wrong with this person?’

Alon found it difficult to respond.

“????”

The wizards who were lining up to attend the Tower Master’s lecture also looked at the scene with bewildered expressions.