Chapter 52

The greatest genius in history and a corner of the honorable heroes, Werner Altan, someone most nobles wouldn’t dare to mess with, was currently kneeling and serving his punishment. Werner scratched the back of his head and spoke in an awkward voice.

“Uh, I’m busy though…”

But Werner soon stopped moving his mouth as he felt a murderous aura and angry gazes. Werner was in a posture of reflection, but he didn’t feel the slightest bit of remorse. It might have been wrong to charge into the laboratory wall with a boulder, but he thought it wasn’t his fault that his friend happened to be changing clothes at that moment. He seriously analyzed that his friend, who was changing clothes without knowing when he might show up, should blame their own foolishness.

“Fix your posture.”

But what could he do? The one at a disadvantage was Werner, and his friend held the information he needed. It was an unwritten rule of the human world that the one at a disadvantage had to bow down. Werner thought he was following that rule well as he stood up.

The girl in front of Werner had sky-blue hair and emerald-green eyes. She gave Werner a sharp, uncomfortable look and sighed.

“So, why did you crash into my laboratory with a boulder?”

“Because going through the main gate of your magic tower involves procedures, visitor logs, waiting times… It’s just too complicated.”

The girl, frustrated by Werner’s insane response that he crashed into the wall because the procedures were too bothersome, messed up her own hair in exasperation.

“Hey! I gave you a pass to skip all that! I told you to always carry it with you!”

“But it’s too cumbersome to carry around, so I left it at home.”

“You can just wear it on your waist! Why do you keep blowing up my lab walls!!! This is the 48th time!!! My lab is under repair 365 days a year because of you!!!”

“That might be my fault…”

“It IS your fault!!! Please just carry the pass with you!!!”

“But…”

Werner covered his mouth with his long robe sleeve, turned his head slightly, and spoke shyly.

“It’s a gift from you, Lorcha. I’d be in big trouble if I lost it.”

“Wha… what?”

The girl named Lorcha blushed. She thought it was unfair for such a handsome friend to say something like that in such a posture. Unable to stay angry, she sighed. Werner, completely unaware of how his words sounded, brushed off the dust on his clothes.

“So, what’s this clue you found?”

“Ah… that clue…”

Lorcha took out a key from her pocket and began rummaging through a safe. Soon, she pulled out a gray cloth and placed it on the table.

On the gray cloth, twelve small black circles were connected to form a large circle. Werner, who knew that symbol better than anyone, had a grim expression for a moment, making Lorcha flinch. It wasn’t the usual annoyed or carefree expression he usually wore.

“Werner…”

“…Sorry, I startled you.”

“Are you going alone? Maybe I should come with you…”

“No, I’ll go alone. These guys are no ordinary scum, so it might be dangerous.”

“Then at least ask Zick or the others for help.”

Werner’s heart sank. If he explained the symbol, they’d ask how he knew about it… and he’d have to explain.

Explain his upbringing? He didn’t want to talk about those memories, even to his older brothers and sisters. Only one trusted friend knew the truth.

“Lorcha… you’re my only friend among the sorcerers.”

“Why are you being like this? It’s so cringy.”

“I really like you.”

“What…?”

Lorcha’s face turned red again. Today, she blushed from anger, then from Werner’s shy face, and now from his embarrassing words. Werner spoke to her overworked face.

“You’re the only one who understands me, the only one who wouldn’t hate me after hearing my story… But not everyone is like you.”

“But Zick and the other heroes would understand…”

“I don’t want understanding or pity. I just… want to be with you.”

“Sigh… fine. You’ll handle whoever it is, right?”

“I’m glad you understand.”

Werner walked toward the wall destroyed by the boulder. With a wave of his hand, the boulder he rode floated back into the air.

Lorcha chuckled and said.

“Be careful and don’t get hurt.”

“Thanks for the clue. You must have spent a lot to find it, but you just let it go.”

“I was planning to bill you properly, what are you talking about?”

“…It wasn’t free?”

“Free? Nothing in this world is free, my friend.”

Werner sighed at the thought of paying. He wasn’t short on money, but the thought of going through all the procedures was exhausting. As he pondered a better solution, he remembered the time Thief Squar stole a national treasure robe from another kingdom and gifted it to him, and the repayment she demanded.

Thinking that the repayment for a national treasure-level robe would surely cover the bill, Werner approached Lorcha.

“What? Do you still have something to do?”

Suddenly, Werner kissed Lorcha on the cheek. Her face turned red, and her legs almost gave out, but she managed to lean on the table to avoid falling.

“What… what are you doing?”

“Repayment.”

“You crazy…”

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Werner rubbed his sore back, feeling a bit wronged. He thought he had repaid her properly, but now his back was paying the price.

“When Squar got me that national treasure robe, she said, ‘If you’re grateful, just kiss my cheek once.’ So I did and that was it…”

He thought the repayment for a national treasure-level robe should cover the bill and leave some change, but instead, he got a beating. It didn’t sit well with him.

“Such a violent girl. I wonder if she’ll ever get married…”

Unaware that Lorcha was stomping around her lab, saying she’d never get married, Werner was actually worried about his friend’s marriage prospects. He had no idea what he had done, but it was probably because the heroes were too shy to teach their youngest about such embarrassing topics.

“Anyway, it’s about time to see…”

Werner stood up and focused his vision into the distance. Soon, he spotted his target.

He had been wandering around, not knowing who the culprit was, but now that he knew, tracking them down was a piece of cake.

The entrance, which looked like a giant cave, was blocked by a reinforced iron door. Werner placed his hand on the cold iron door. He thought it was laughable that they were still using such childish tricks to seal the door. He began chanting a spell.

“Frost of the bitter cold, freeze all creation.”

After freezing the iron door with its various protective spells, Werner chanted another spell.

“Steel, shatter all that blocks my path.”

His fist, now as hard as steel, struck the frozen door. Weakened by the frost, the door shattered like a cookie.

Werner stepped over the debris and entered. A few people, alerted by the commotion, greeted him. As expected, they were wearing cloaks with that wretched symbol. A symbol he remembered clearly from his childhood.

One of them, wearing a hood with the symbol, spoke.

“Who are you! How dare you intrude here!”

Werner, thinking the dialogue was quite cliché, began gathering freezing cold energy around him. He decided to answer politely before killing them.

“Ah, of course, I know. This is one of the hideouts of that scum organization, the Black Round Table, right?”

The person, shocked that their secret organization’s identity was known, stammered.

“Just who are you to know that much…”

Remembering he was also asked about his identity, Werner kindly answered.

“Me? I’m the family of the kid you kidnapped… and the one who teaches them magic… It’s complicated…”

Werner waved his hand, and the freezing cold energy froze the legs of the grunts who had greeted him.

“Anyway, I’m a really strong sorcerer.”