Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The atmosphere in the room changed after Baiyi’s explanation. The tea merchant’s expression had darkened, as pangs of shock struck him like tidal waves.
His son looked even worse. Far from his previous jolliness, the son turned to his father, his face paled with regret that seemed to say: What have we done?!
However, by this point, no amount of regret or second thoughts could change anything. The deal was sealed, and the deed was done. The tea merchant let out a heavy sigh, gave a respectful bow to Baiyi as a sign of ratification and left the party with his son.
As the young man trailed behind his weary-looking father, he began in a quiet voice, “F-father? That set of armor… Is it really the Divine Regalia Mystique?”
The tea merchant shook his head. “I don’t know. How should I? Not even Principal Hope knows for sure.”
“But—!” The young man’s expression fell. It was clear that he was agonizing over his father’s decision.
The tea merchant understood his son’s sentiments without needing him to say it out loud. Gently, he patted the young man’s shoulders and said reassuringly, “The point is it just doesn’t matter. Legendary relic or not, it has always been nothing more than an extravagant but useless keepsake for this family. It was no different from a pile of scrap metal junk. It’s our luck to be able to trade that old rusty thing for a brighter future for you and the family, Son… That’s what truly matters. Turn your face forward and don’t look back anymore.”
The young man lowered his head as he mused about his father’s words. Then, with an even quieter voice, he said, “Understood, Father. I won’t let you down… Nor will I let your sacrifice be in vain.”
Hearing the sincerity in his voice, the tea merchant’s lips curved into a happy, relief smile. Seeing his unambitious son finally decided to take charge of his and the family’s newly-bartered future, he felt as though even if he had handed a priceless, one-in-a-million legendary armor away to the Voidwalkers, he was still the one who had ultimately earned the most.
The pair had left the hall for some time, yet the hubbub surrounding the reappearance of the mysterious and — if the legends were true — powerful armor persisted so passionately that Baiyi felt the need to clarify, “Ladies, gentlemen! Please bear in mind that even I’m uncertain of how genuine this set of armor is . We clearly don’t have concrete evidence that it does possess the superfluous powers the legends had claimed it does! All will only come to light after I conduct some studies on it, alright?”
He was merely trying to display some intellectual honesty. Mystique, unlike relics with known descriptions of powers such as the Book of Servitude or the Great Sage’s Staff, had always been a legendary object that zigzagged between myths and truth. True to its name, it had stubbornly remained as a mystery in history, made even more so by the fact that not even all thirty-three Voidwalkers had ever seen it in their lives — not even the First Walker himself. The armor may bore Ancient Rohlserlian formations that described its name, yet it did not seem to have originated from the Ancient Rohlserlian Empire itself. Even if it did, Emperor Rohlserl XIX clearly had no memory of it.
Even if one took that old man’s wayward and unreliable attitude into account, Baiyi would still not believe that his master could have possibly forgotten about ever encountering such important regalia. It would be even less possible that the Archmage had concealed that information from Baiyi during Memory Exchanging, too. After all, the old man had passed down virtually everything to his protégé, be it knowledge, his prized possession, or even the throne. Baiyi had even wondered if that old geezer had been this generous to his own flesh and blood while he was alive.
What did Baiyi do to repay that kindness? He banned a retired old man from playing his favorite game and incinerated his treasured collection of pulled cards. Now that he thought about it, Baiyi had to admit that he was quite a monster…
Anyway, back to the subject of Mystique. Baiyi admitted that there was a reason other than the armor’s name that had hooked him into accepting it. He could sense a faint but sure aura of familiarity pulsing from the armor.
To be more precise, he could sense a faint trace of the Laws.
The experts the tea merchant had hired to appraise this object did not detect this hidden anomaly because they had never met the Laws before, so naturally, its faint trace had eluded them.
Baiyi was different, though. He had gotten his hands on quite a few Law-related relics enough to have his senses honed acutely for it. Up to now, he had encountered (and used) the Book of Servitude, the kinky bodysuit — also known as “The Divine Burial” — that had now turned into his three women’s (perpetual) Outfit of The Day, as well as his five hundred years old grandniece’s Caudillo Butterfly. All of these objects were connected to the Laws, yet they were not exactly the tools to channel the Laws such as the Grandruler’s oft-abused Law Fragment.
‘Just who made these things? How and why were they made?’
It was true that technically, all things and phenomena in this universe were manifestations of the Laws; This also entailed that everything, ultimately, was a component of the Laws…
The entire concept was always too darned metaphysical for Baiyi’s taste. In contrast, the auction he was currently hosting would be far easier to mind…
Since the first two guests’ pompous offers had managed to set the auction to a bombastic start, the rest of the guests were starting to doubt their own chances. When the first competitor offered the Grand Principal with a long-term five-percent share (lost the bid anyway) while the second offered a mysterious, lost-to-legends-until-recently armor (which was accepted), how could anyone believe they could top those off with their relatively more mundane offerings?
Dispirited as they might be, the rest of the crowd still had to bid for the remaining fourteen seats against the other forty-odd families, or their reason to be present here today would be moot. Besides, maybe those two were the highest bidders anyone would see today. Maybe the rest of them was all going to offer something less bombastic!
With that thought in mind, one of the nobles mustered enough courage and put his hand up to attract Baiyi’s attention. He turned to his partner — a girl who seemed to be twelve-years-old — and took a long, rod-shaped object shrouded by a piece of gorgeous silk from her lap.
Baiyi turned his eyes towards them. Truthfully, he sensed nothing special from this rod-shaped object, which may be why his attention almost immediately shifted to the twelve-years-old loli herself.
To him, the girl was seriously cute. She had a cute and gorgeous air about her look — which rivaled Little Mia’s when she was that age — and was dressed up so perfectly that she had become an exemplar of the unique charm little girls at her age should possess. With that golden twin horsetails, that slightly gothic dress, and a pair of snowy-white thigh-high socks, this girl could make any otaku’s tongue slither out of their mouth uncontrollably… [1]
Of course, being the paragon of morality and self-control, Grand Principal Bai could not possibly deign to the thought of licking a little girl like his “religion-representing” gentlemen colleagues. Regardless, he had to hand these nobles credit when it as due. Being able to work out Baiyi’s exact likes and interests, then utilized it by selecting the perfect partner for the night, really showed how much effort these nobles went through just to ingratiate themselves on him. Still, Baiyi felt the need to lament, what a shame that this little girl was too young to join Da Xue!
The noble lifted a side of the shroud a little and peeked into it, making sure that everything was as he had planned, then wrapped it back nicely before returning it to the little girl.
He beckoned her to hand the rod-shaped object to Baiyi herself. The little loli nodded obediently, wrapped her hands around the shrouded object, and gingerly approached Baiyi. After that, she stood on her toes, lifted the gift in her both hands, and said with that standard whispery, sickly loli voice, “Our family had prepared this gift with utmost care and dedication. We hope you would accept it, Grandpa Hope!”
Baiyi nodded his head wordlessly and took the object from her hands, yet the expression on his mask indicated that he was less delighted and more… forlorn?
Apparently, this noble house managed to get everything — from the girl’s age, the procedure of passing that gift, and even the girl’s lines — right, except the part where she addressed him as “Grandpa”—
‘Grandpa?! How did it occur to you people that calling me Grandpa is kawaii and endearing?! I mean, fine, I might be a few thousand years old, but I’m young at heart. Hell, I feel young as f***! I’m open-minded and filled with sunshine, bold and free-spirited, passionate and hot-blooded, and I seek the warmth of youth and the embrace of love! Baiyi fired away in his head. My heart would always be hip and young, so nobody should even try calling me Grandpa!’
Of course, none of his tirades spilled out from his mind, and outwardly he maintained a façade of calmness as he slowly unwrapped the object in his hand.
It was a strange-looking sorcerer’s staff with a gigantic diamond-shaped blue crystal stuck on its head. It made the staff looked more like a long spear with an extremely large tip than something a sorcerer would use to perform spells with.
One of the more knowledgeable nobles exclaimed from the crowd, “No way! Could this be the Aldhelm?!”
“No. This is merely a forgery,” Baiyi replied with certainty and spun the tip with his fingers. Swiftly, the tip dislodged from its place and revealed a chain locking it with the body of the staff, instantly rendering what was supposedly a mage’s staff into a warrior’s flail. 1
Baiyi brandished the flail for a while, swinging the heavy head around to create powerful, whooshing winds. One could easily imagine how painful it would be to be hit by the business end of this staff-flail-hybrid!
The nouveau riches burst into laughter and started mocking the gift:
“Seriously, that’s the best you can do? Here I thought the Harriott family, renowned ‘The House of Staffs’, could do much more than offering a counterfeit of a legendary weapon. But no, even the forgery doesn’t act like an actual mage’s weapon! What did you imagine the legendary staff, Aldhelm, is? Some sort of farmer’s bullwhip?!”
“Hahaha! I guess this extra feature is for the moment when that sorcerer lost all of their mana and just wanted something hard to smack their enemy!”
“Even if you’re so desperate that you created a bootlegged legendary weapon, you should at least put in some effort! For a renowned family of staff-making artisans, you guys sure looked more like a family of stooges! I heard that this family is into inbreeding, too… So maybe this idiocy is just a symptom of that practice?” [2]
These scathing remarks permeated the hall, but upon close inspection, one could notice that they were all uttered only by the nouveau riches who were joining the auction for the first time. Remarkably, those who had been part of the old elites long enough — Undine, the Southern Duke, and others — were studying Baiyi silently instead.
The old-timers knew that the “House of Staffs” had once earned a spot in Da Xue before; They did so by gifting Baiyi a regal, masterfully-crafted staff five years ago. It had been one of the most spectacular sorcerer staffs these rich elites had ever seen, boasting a manufacturing cost that was even more shocking than its beauty.
The ward whom the Harriotts had sent into Da Xue by trading that beautiful staff back then had just graduated last year, and now the same family was already rushing to send their second kin into the school.
Obviously, their target faculty was the Smithy Faculty led by the prodigious Blacksmith Walker.
Anyway, that beautiful staff from back then ended up in Tisdale’s possession. Unfortunately, since the girl rarely needed to fight personally, the staff had never made any appearance and was currently sitting somewhere in the dark gathering dust.
One may easily harbor a misconception that being a family of artisans meant that the Harriotts were probably just some average middle-income family whose fortune depended on how frequently they received a commission. However, the truth painted a different story…
In Isythre, sorcerers’ staffs were considered as high-end weapons, so the price of one staff could rival that of a luxury item. Coupled with the long history of the Harriotts in making staffs, one could estimate just how wealthy the family — who not only designed, but also specifically manufactured, polished, and finished any commission themselves — actually was. In fact, the family’s name itself was a brand of quality that was so trusted by magic-users worldwide that they became the sole supplier for the Sorcerers Association.
The Harriotts were not just excellent staff makers. They were also trendsetters of that entire business field.
In the past, the Harriott Family even aimed to be Da Xue’s supplier, only to have the plan scrapped because both sides could not settle down on a price, causing Baiyi to wind up choosing a cheaper supplier.
This was why these shallow remarks barely got under that noble’s skin. Truthfully, this was hardly the first time he had heard of such censures.
Baiyi inspected the staff very carefully. It was as though he was holding onto the legendary Aldhelm. He scrutinized every part of the staff, assembling and dislocating the spear-like tip repetitively and played around its mechanism for a good few minutes before finally reattaching the head back to the staff and brandishing it as if it was a lance.
He stopped, seemingly ready to make an announcement.
A look of anxiety crossed the erstwhile-unfazed noble’s face. He seemed both eager and worried about the things Baiyi was about to say, like a student waiting for his teacher to give his grades.
“This is almost perfect, but I still found little flaws here and there,” Baiyi said earnestly. Spying a fine carving at the end of the staff writing “Jason Harriott”, which was probably the name of the staff-maker. He continued, “Regrettably, a certain degree of imbalance of weight distribution has impaired the momentum of the staff when used as a flail. It struck me as an error only a less-experienced artisan may make, which made me wonder… Could this be the work of a young craftsman?”
“Correct, Master Hope. This is made by one of the graduates of your sixth cohort, Jason Harriott. He had designed and overlooked the production of this particular staff,” The noble replied with a satisfactory smile as if he was relieved by Baiyi’s comment. “In fact, he had long taken the position as the managing director of our family business, and is now regarded as our family’s pillar and brightest hope.”
“Huh, and he had only just graduated last year,” Baiyi remarked.
“Indeed. He is the pride of the Harriott family… and mine. It is all thanks to Da Xue that a child who was previously lost had managed to find his sense of purpose and motivation to cultivate his best talent! I’ve never thought I would see the day when he could saddle the entire business alone,” The noble said gratefully. “I’m sure your comment will delight and motivate him greatly, Principal Hope. Of course, I’ll be sure to inform him of his shortcomings so that he improves from here.”
“Yes, very good.” Baiyi nodded satisfactorily. Seeing a young man who used to be self-entitled and unambitious turning up a new leaf never failed to warm a teacher’s heart.
“Grand Principal Hope, do you… do you like this gift?” The noble asked in a low voice. Bracing for the possible rejection, the man had already formulated his back-up plan: if Hope were to refuse this gift, he would tell him that the cute little loli was also part of the gift…
Before he could say that out loud, however, Baiyi nodded once more and gave another metallic placard to the little girl who had been eyeing him with anticipation. “It’s excellent enough, but more importantly… It’s a present from one of my graduates. I’m indeed satisfied.”
The little loli held onto the placard as her face blossomed into a sunny grin. Imitating the demeanor of grown women, she gingerly lifted the edge of her skirt and gave a curtsy. “Thank you so much, Grandpa Hope!”
‘…While we’re at it, may I suggest a change of address? Call me Principal, Sensei, or even Onii-chan; Just don’t—call—me—Grandpa again!’
The little girl returned to the noble’s side and left the hall happily.
As soon as they were gone, one of the nouveau riches — unable to contain his emotion — bolted up from his seat and cried, “Master Hope, you said so yourself, that Aldhelm is nothing but a counterfeit! It’s not the real deal! It even features that laughable gimmick… I don’t understand why someone of your prestige and taste would accept such a substandard offering!”
Baiyi looked at him with an amused expression and asked, “Well then, good sir. Would you like to tell me what kind of weapon was the real Aldhelm supposed to be?”
“W-well! I mean…” The noble stammered, realizing that all he knew about the Aldhelm was that it was rumored to be some sort of magical staff…
