The magician’s incident was quietly resolved.
The bandit gang was completely disbanded and disappeared.
It seemed the remaining ones were eliminated by the magician to prevent information from leaking.
The support troops that arrived afterward were relieved to find Evelyn alive and moved the injured soldiers to the territory.
Since most of the residents were killed, the destroyed village was not planned to be restored.
The survivors decided to live in a neighboring village instead.
In the meantime, the Rose Duchy planned to support them until they adjusted to their new home.
That evening, Evelyn hosted a banquet after completing her work.
It was to commemorate the safe eradication of the bandit gang and to honor those who provided great help to the Rose Duchy.
I entered the banquet hall with Lumia.
Expensive decorations were on display, music played by an orchestra filled the air, and luxurious food that could almost break the tables stood out.
I had heard from Evelyn that it was just a “modest banquet,” but this scale was something my family could hardly afford to hold even once every two or three years.
Lumia opened her mouth in awe.
“Wow… Didn’t they say this was supposed to be frugal?”
“This is frugal. For the Rose family, they could do this daily without any problem.”
“Daily?”
“That’s the life of the rich… I should pack some food to take home later. This will keep me full for a while.”
“Would that be okay? If so, I’ll…”
“I was just joking!”
“I-I was joking too…!”
She flailed her hands nervously.
Maybe I should’ve just let her pack some.
Judging by what’s displayed here, taking a month’s worth of food probably wouldn’t even make a dent.
In the banquet hall were soldiers who participated in the eradication of the bandits and people associated with the Rose family.
It was a small group compared to the scale of the banquet.
While Lumia and I were casually chatting, Evelyn and Kalian ascended the platform.
“Attention, everyone.”
Evelyn said.
She had no microphone, but her voice, amplified by mana, was loud enough to echo through the hall.
“There was a bandit gang terrorizing people around the territory. After relentless efforts to capture them, we have finally reaped the rewards today.”
Evelyn pointed to Kalian, who stood beside her.
“This man played a decisive role in eradicating the bandits. Some of you may not know him, so introduce yourself briefly.”
“Hello, my name is Kalian Bright, and I enrolled in Arcana this year.”
“Yes, Kalian. He saved me and all of you from danger and defeated the leader of the bandits, the mad magician. Raise your glasses for him.”
The attendees followed Evelyn’s words and raised their glasses.
She recounted my actions as though Kalian had done them, but that was something we had agreed upon in advance.
I gave all the credit to Kalian.
I wasn’t fond of standing out, and it was advantageous for Kalian to have more accomplishments for his future endeavors.
Evelyn and I briefly exchanged glances.
“Now, let’s hear the story of Kalian, the savior of the Rose family. How do you find the banquet, Kalian? It’s modestly prepared, but I hope you enjoy it.”
“I love it. It’s far more abundant and splendid than the banquets in my own territory. Hahaha…”
“Since you’re already here, why not share your heroic tale with everyone?”
“Uh, um… Well, that is… So… You see, what happened was…”
At her request, Kalian stammered.
I had told him to act as if he had done what I did.
He had agreed, but it seemed lying wasn’t his strong suit.
The soldiers listening assumed he was just nervous and laughed, finding it amusing to see such a celebrated hero stumbling over his words.
Sorry, my friend… Hang in there just a bit longer.
After Kalian’s heroic story concluded, the main part of the banquet began.
Naturally, Kalian was the star.
He was surrounded by soldiers asking questions about mana accumulation or swordsmanship.
I turned to Lumia and said,
“It was him who saved you earlier, you know. You’ve heard the story, right? He fought off the bandits charging at you and got you to safety.”
“Yeah. But were you okay?”
“I almost got killed by those guys too, but Kalian helped me out.”
“Sorry. I feel like I was no help at all.”
“Don’t say that. Just go thank Kalian or peel some shrimp for him.”
Although she hesitated because of the crowd, I kept pushing her forward until she got close enough to Kalian for their shoulders to touch.
Both of them shuddered as if creeped out.
“You’re amazing, Kalian!”
As I watched with amusement, an uninvited guest appeared—Elia.
She naturally made her way through the soldiers and, like Lumia, leaned her body against Kalian’s shoulder as though by accident.
Although I had been wary of her, it seemed she wasn’t causing any trouble—perhaps she really did come just to see Kalian.
Kalian shivered again.
When he was talking to the soldiers, he seemed fine, but now he looked at me with resentful eyes.
Leaving the sound of laughter behind, I stepped out of the banquet hall.
Outside the mansion, a well-maintained garden greeted me.
The bluish moonlight illuminated the flowers and trees.
“Where are you off to alone?”
As I was thinking of taking a quiet walk, Evelyn followed me from behind.
“What happens if the host leaves the banquet? You should stay with the main guest.”
“I can go wherever I want. And since you don’t like me getting close to Kalian, isn’t this better for you?”
“That’s true.”
“Is this really okay with you? Now, no one will know about your achievements or efforts.”
“That’s what I wanted.”
“I see…”
Evelyn and I gradually moved further away from the mansion.
The garden was so vast that the noise of the banquet faded away before long.
“What about the magician you said you would chase?”
“Dead.”
“Did you take care of him yourself?”
“No, I didn’t.”
Earlier, I had left a trace of my mana in the magician.
My plan was to track him down and eliminate not just him, but also whoever was behind him.
However, when I finally found him, he had already been killed by someone else.
It was probably the apostle cutting ties to prevent any information about themselves from leaking.
I wasn’t too disappointed; even if I had interrogated him, I doubt I’d have gotten anything useful.
“Killed to prevent information from leaking… That’s no small matter. For someone that powerful to be nothing more than someone’s pawn…”
“Be careful for the time being. The one who controlled the magician might be lurking near you.”
“I’ll stay vigilant.”
After a brief pause, Evelyn spoke again.
“Aren’t you curious?”
“About what?”
“Why I acted so recklessly today. Why I faced the magician myself without waiting for reinforcements.”
“I suppose I am curious.”
As I looked at her, she continued.
“It’s because of you.”
“Me?”
“Didn’t you say I lacked character when we first met? So I wanted to change, and that’s why I acted the way I did today.”
Evelyn said she had been reflecting deeply since I talked to her about character.
She even asked people around her what it meant to have “better character,” but they all said she was already perfect.
Somewhere along the way, she must have heard the clichéd ideas of “a strong person fighting for the weak” or “a ruler stepping forward for their people.”
“So you actually carried it out because of something I said?”
“You can’t truly know until you try it yourself.”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
The whole talk about character had just been something I made up on the spot because I couldn’t think of anything else to say.
“Haha, so did you learn anything about better character?”
“No. To be honest, I still don’t get it. I can’t understand why the superior must sacrifice themselves for the inferior. What do you think? Do you think I’ve become a better person?”
“Didn’t you say all your actions today were just an act? If they weren’t sincere, it’s all the same.”
“You’re quite demanding.”
As we walked, a large lake came into view.
It was enormous for something owned by a single family, and there was even a boat prepared for crossing it.
The dark water reflected the moon and stars, making it seem as if the night sky had descended to the earth.
“Do you want to ride the boat?”
“Just looking at it is enough for me.”
We gazed at the moon together.
While looking at the sky, Evelyn suddenly said,
“An academic once told me that the moon shines by stealing the sun’s light. That’s why it’s less bright and less noticed than the sun.”
“That’s a convincing argument.”
“But I think that might not be true.”
“Why not?”
“Because it could be the opposite. Maybe the moon didn’t steal the sun’s light but instead gave all its light to the sun.”
The moon giving its light to the sun, huh.
Modern science has already clarified the nature of moonlight, but in this world with different rules, such a thing might not be impossible.
“People thank the sun and see it as a symbol of hope. But the moon, unnoticed by anyone, silently lights up the world in the darkness.”
“That’s true.”
Come to think of it, I had always liked the moon since I was young.
I was always taught to be the sun, but at the end of the day, I would think of the moon and gaze at it from the garden.
I turned to look at her.
Evelyn was not looking at the moon but at me.
“Wade, when the chance arises, I’d like to invite you again.”
“By then, Kalian will probably be too busy to come.”
“You know that’s not what I mean. I will invite only you. The favor you’ve done for me today cannot be repaid with just one banquet.”
I answered with a faint smile.
“I’ll decline.”
“In moments like this, you’re supposed to just say ‘Alright.’ At the very least, you should pretend to think about it.”
“Hmm… Give me a moment… I’ll decline.”
“You rude person.”
Evelyn puffed up her cheeks in frustration.