“…It’s not an artifact?” Lyla blinked. Even she didn’t think the item could be fake.
The man scowled and stared at Elena. “Are you trying to scam people?”
“No! What kind of person do you think I am? I just lost my chance to speak! I was going to tell her right now!”
The mage still seemed suspicious, and Zich intervened. “This lady tried to tell us something when you intruded our conversation. Based on the situation, it seemed like she was really trying to tell us the truth.”
“Is that so? Thank goodness then.” It seemed that the man was genuinely relieved.
‘It doesn’t seem like he intervened to torment Elena or anything,’ Zich thought. It seemed like the man had really tried to give his friendly advice to Zich and his companions. ‘Still, he seems to look down on her.’
“No matter how cheaply you sell it, can’t you stop trying to sell a fake artifact, lady?” the man asked.
“It’s none of your business,” Elena responded.
“Of course, I’m in a position to tell you what to do, but as a mage who belongs to the magical tower, I want to ask you to do the right thing.” The man looked at the metal plate that Lyla was holding. “If word got out that people were selling useless goods here, the reputation of Sunewick, the magical tower, or even all the mages could fall.”
“They all work if you pour mana into them! They aren’t useless!”
“How many magicians do you think can use iron magic?”
“…”
“Even if there were mages who could do that, it would be terribly inefficient.”
“…” Elena couldn’t retort.
The mage sighed. “Although it’s true that I don’t have a favorable opinion of you, I don’t want to go out of my way to make you miserable. I just want to let you know that many other mages share the same thoughts.”
Staring at Zich and his companions, the mage said, “I apologize for showing you such an unsightly sight. By your appearance, it seems like you are all travelers. I hope you gain something from your trip here, whether it may be happiness, knowledge, or memories.”
After the mage made a deep bow, he left the area. A short silence followed, but soon afterward, Lyla took out some money from her belongings and handed it to Elena.
Looking grim, Elena blinked. “W-What is this?”
“What do you mean? It’s just money. Didn’t you say that this was the price of the item?”
“…Are you really going to buy it?”
“Didn’t you set up your cart to sell it?”
“But didn’t you hear what that man said?”
“Of course. I have ears too,” Lyla said and pushed aside her hair to show her ears. Yet, Elena hesitated to accept the money.
“What are you hesitating for?” Zich said, “We don’t know what happened between you and that man or this city, but that doesn’t concern us. You presented goods to sell and set up a price for it, and we simply decided to buy it. There’s nothing more for you to think about.”
Elena nodded. Then, she hung her head low towards Zich and Lyla and said, “Thank you for your purchase.”
A faint smile hung on her face.
* * *
After finishing their shopping, Zich and his companions booked a place for them to sleep in. As soon as they got their own rooms, Snoc grabbed Nowem and rushed to his room like he was running away from Lyla. Zich also unloaded his luggage in his room when he heard someone knock on his door.
It was Lyla. She and Zich sat down facing each other.
“You came here to talk about Elena Dwayne, right?” That was the only possible reason for her visit.
“Yeah.” Then, in a suspicious tone, she asked, “Is that person really Elena Dwayne?”
“She looks the same. Don’t you think so too?”
“That’s true. From my memories, that person really is Elena Dwayne.” However, the current Elena Dwayne was so different from what she remembered that Lyla began to suspect if the little memory she had was also warped.
“She isn’t like the Elena Dwayne we remember.”
“That’s true.” Zich thought of the last moment he saw Elena Dwayne before the regression. She was the brown-haired sorcerer standing beside Lubella, donned in a flapping robe and wielded a staff. Every time she swung her staff, fireballs so hot they looked like she had summoned them from Hell appeared. Among Glen Zenard’s party members, she had the greatest single offensive power. She had such an immense amount of mana that continuously rained down without rest.
Zich couldn’t help but wonder, ‘How could such a person not even be a mage or use magic?’
“Do you know about Elena Dwyane’s past?”
“No, I don’t know her that well. By the time I learned about her, she was already in Glen Zenard’s group, and she was an impressive magician by then.”
“Then, could it be that she doesn’t have a proper teacher? Maybe because of her family situation?” Right after she said this, Lyla shook her head and rejected her own claims. “No, that can’t be possible. If her talents are outstanding enough for her to join the Hero Party, a countless number of mages would want to train with her.”
“Also, her family isn’t incapable of giving the magic training she needs. It’s the opposite, really.”
“The opposite?” It seemed like Lyla didn’t have this information.
“When I was the Demon Lord, the owner of the magical tower’s name was Orland Dwyane.”
“…Dwyane?” He had the same last name as Elena, and that only meant one thing.
“Are they related?”
“He is her father.”
Lyla’s mouth fell open.
“It was pretty big news that the head of the magical tower’s daughter was a member of the Hero Party.”
‘Thinking about it, Glen’s Hero Party had a very high status.’
Lubella was the Karuwiman Saint, Leona was an elf princess, and Elena Dwayne was the head of the magical tower’s daughter.
‘From what I remember, wasn’t Lala Browning also the daughter of a pretty powerful noble?’
As if Glen had drawn it all out, all of his companions had high statuses.
“If that’s true, it must not be because of her family situation that she couldn’t learn magic. On the other hand, she should be much more familiar with magic than an ordinary person.”
“I asked the owner of this lodging a few questions about this city. The current head of the magical tower’s name is Walwiss Dwayne.”
The name Dwayne came up again.
“What’s his relationship with Elena Dwayne?”
“The owner also told me that the head of the magician tower has one son, and his son’s name is Orland Dwayne.”
“Then is Elena Dwayne the granddaughter of the current head and the daughter of the future head of the magical tower?”
“Probably.”
If this was true, Elena was not from just a good family; in the magician world, her family surpassed the authority of ordinary nobles and basically held the same amount of power as royals.
“It definitely doesn’t seem like her family situation prevented her from learning magic. Then is it because of a problem with her personal talent?”
“No, that is even more impossible.” As someone who had fought with Elena Dwayne before, Zich could confidently say this.
“Perhaps, is her mana so large like you that she’s unable to move it at all?” Lyla already knew the amount of Zich’s mana. Therefore, she was wondering if this was also the case for Elena.
However, Zich also disagreed with this thought. “The amount of mana that I have is comparable to a dragon’s. Even throughout history, people like me can be counted on one hand. And even then, I was able to use mana when I was around twenty years old. No matter how much mana Elena has, it can’t be compared to mine. If she just worked hard, she would have awakened her mana a while ago.”
“…”
“Why are you staring at me like that?”
“No, it’s nothing.” Lyla suddenly thought that Zich was like a monster. She recalled how Zich fought with the fire giant recently—his power was so great that he literally overturned a lake, cut down a mountain, and created scars on the earth.
‘He wasn’t called the Demon Lord for no reason.’ Lyla shivered inside her mind. Her resolve to prevent Zich from becoming a Demon Lord became even stronger.
Zich relaxed his eyes after warily looking at Lyla. “Her family situation seems complicated.”
“Elena Dwayne? Didn’t you just tell me that her family background is really up there?”
“Just look at it from a different perspective. A person like that is getting ignored and selling items on a street with barely any people.”
“…Yeah.” There definitely seemed to be a problem.
“I’m going to officially start gathering more information about her tomorrow.”
“Didn’t you tell me that you weren’t going to pay any attention to her?”
“I’ve changed my mind.” Zich licked his lips, and Lyla flinched. He looked like a predator looking for his prey.
“If Glen Zenard is really a hypocrite and he’s related to the robed figures, there’s a high chance that he’s involved with Elena Dwayne’s problem. Not to mention, Elena Dwayne’s problem doesn’t seem to be normal.”
“Yeah, that makes sense.” Zich’s words had a point. Lyla said, “Okay, I’ll help too.”
“Really?”
“Why are you so surprised? I already told you that I can even help you with your hobby. If the robed figures are involved, aren’t you planning to fully enjoy your hobby to the maximum?”
“Yep, that’s also right.” Zich chuckled without restraint.
While watching Zich chuckle irritatingly, Lyla fell into a dilemma wondering if what she was doing was the right thing. However, that was only for a moment. “Let’s do it. I’m a woman who gets things done. What should we do first?”
“Ooh, you have a strong drive. Then I should also match accordingly.” Zich rubbed his hands and straightened his body. “First, we have to gather more information. So Lyla, let’s go to the magical tower tomorrow.”
Like this, their destination for the next day was decided.
* * *
Elena went back to her home. Her house was in a luxurious estate, and her house was the biggest and most extravagant out of all the houses nearby. It was difficult to imagine that this was the house that a street vendor would live in. After receiving the greetings of the employees in her household, she went inside. The first bit of money she ever earned by herself was inside her pocket. Even though it wasn’t much, this money was for her dream. She felt one step closer to her dream, so she was elated. However, this happy mood did not last long.
“Elena, you are back?”
Elena halted. She looked in the direction of the sound. An old man was coming down the staircase from the second floor.
“Ah, Grandpa. You’ve come home early.”
“There should be days like this so that I can find pleasure in life. People are really using me too much, just because I’m the head of the magical tower. They don’t have any consideration for the elderly.” The speaker was Elena’s grandfather and the one with the highest authority in the magical tower. And in this city, he had the same authority as a king.
Elena made a bitter smile at seeing her grandpa complain. Even though Walwiss Dwayne was difficult for other people to face as the greatest magician in the magical tower, he was an easy-going grandpa to her.
“Have you eaten?”
“Not yet.”
“Then let’s eat together. It’s been a while.”
“…Yes.” Elena nodded. Even though her desire to refuse came all the way to the top of her esophagus, she couldn’t say it out loud.
The two of them gathered in the dining room. Luxurious food was prepared on the table. The two of them quietly used their forks and knives to eat their meal.
“Where have you been today?”
Elena flinched. She immediately thought about lying, but she shook her head. If Walwiss wanted to figure out where she went, she would be discovered in no time. Elena quietly explained what she did today.
“…” Walwiss had no words to say.
Elena wondered if he was just going to let this one go. However, Walwiss, who had been busily moving his utensils, no longer moved. Elena also noticed this and stole furtive glances towards his direction.
“…Dear Elena.” Walwiss let out a sigh and said, “Isn’t it time for you to stop?”
He was going to say the same thing again, and Elena wanted to block her ears. However, she couldn’t do that, and she was left helpless against her grandfather’s brutal words that were filled with concern.
“You have no talent. It’s time for you to start looking for another path.”