A Dark Fantasy Spy

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After the excitement had settled, the parties involved gathered once again in one place.

Duke Alexandra Petrovna, eager to take on her first disciple, and Camila, who wanted to learn nothing but transformation magic.

There were some disagreements between the two, but surely there could be a satisfactory compromise for everyone involved.

“The Duke wishes to take Miss Camila as her disciple, and Miss Camila has her own desires. With the situation in the North to consider, the discussion should be straightforward.”

The Duke said she would reward Camila for resolving the Northern conflict.

As someone who laid the groundwork for modern magical society, the Duke must have plenty to offer. Surely there would be something besides transformation magic that could pique Camila’s interest.

Of course, I felt the same way.

I drew the two into the conversation, quickly laying the groundwork before one of them could escape.

“How much were you thinking of offering?”

It’s time to make a deal with the Duke.

—

Episode 14 – One Religion, One Faith, Two Saints

—

Looking back a little, the idea to negotiate with the Duke was indeed my brainchild.

However, the one who sparked the idea was not me.

“What reason does the Hero have for rejecting Grandmother’s proposal?”

The incident started during a conversation with Francesca.

The Magic Tower represents the magical community, and the Secretariat, which supports the Oracle at its apex, comprises senior officials. Francesca, as a senior official in the Secretariat, was the closest person to the pinnacle of the magical society.

Francesca couldn’t understand why Camila refused the Duke’s offer of a priest relationship.

“Being a disciple of an Archmage is an enviable position…”

It’s a proposal that no magician could refuse, so why was Camila rejecting it?

Francesca was puzzled about that very point. It was a product of exceedingly magical thinking.

She immediately approached me and asked if I knew why Camila had turned down the Duke’s proposal. This was based on the judgment that I was the closest to Camila among our group.

“Well…”

But I couldn’t provide a clear answer either. I was just as curious as she was about why Camila was throwing a tantrum.

So, I brainstormed with Francesca.

Watching Camila and the Duke bickering, we had a deep conversation about how we could resolve this situation.

“Colonel, do you know what the Hero likes?”

“A bit. But can the Duke offer something that would appeal to Camila?”

“Grandmother is an Archmage. As a Duke of the Empire, she can probably acquire anything.”

I began to think about what Camila liked.

“Sweet food?”

“You can enjoy delicacies from other places, not just the royal court. It’s an attractive option, but not distinctive. How about a magical book? I’ve heard that the royal library has many valuable texts.”

“But can’t one find magical books at the Magic Tower as well? Even if there is a special book solely owned by the royal family, I’m not sure it would catch Camila’s interest. If it did, she would have accepted the offer when the Duke mentioned the Great Library of the Ivory Tower.”

“You’re right; to begin with, the Hero doesn’t know which magical books exist in the library…”

But who said it? If you don’t have teeth, you work with your gums.

We finally managed to find a choice among countless options that could pique Camila’s interest.

“Oh, right….”

“Did you come up with a good idea?”

“Recently, a diplomat from the Mauritania Continent gifted a magical tool to Camila. It was a dragon figurine that moves with magic.”

“Dragon….”

“I heard they claimed they could show you a living dragon if you visited their country. Wouldn’t that be a sufficiently distinctive offer?”

Meeting a living dragon in exchange for becoming the Duke’s disciple sounds like a pretty good deal.

Of course, there’s the minor issue that dragons are endangered, so prominent scholars can only find them in encyclopedias or guides, and searching the entire continent yields no sight of a living dragon, but that’s inconsequential.

After all, finding the dragon would be the Duke’s responsibility.

Francesca pondered my words seriously.

“I’ve heard there are dead dragons in the royal family’s possession. There is a rumor that when the emperor or royal family falls ill, the Imperial Ministry of Magic grinds their bones into potions to present.”

“I know that too. And it’s not just a rumor; it’s a fact.”

“But a living dragon surely doesn’t exist in the Empire, right? Can the Duke really show a living dragon to the Hero?”

I shrugged my shoulders.

“What does it matter? It’s the Duke’s task to locate one. If she’s serious, she should have at least one dragon in her royal court.”

“What a carefree thought. But it is an enticing offer.”

“It doesn’t necessarily have to be a dragon.”

“Like what?”

“A talking cat or an intelligent monkey?”

I had no way of knowing if Cheshire Cats or Caeser-like creatures existed in this place, but to catch Camila’s interest, they had to be at least that remarkable.

What’s important is to present something that captures Camila’s attention. That’s a problem the Duke must solve herself.

“We went through a lot to slay demons; she should bring something back that’s worth it. By the way, didn’t the Duke mention she would reward us too?”

“She did say that.”

“Then let’s wish for something. Don’t you have things you desire?”

“……”

There was no answer, but the outcome was practically predetermined.

“First, let’s calm the situation. Go give the Duke a heads-up. I’ll talk to Camila.”

Francesca separated the Duke and Camila, and I subtly suggested to Camila.

Thus, the Duke extortion group was formed.

—

The negotiation concluded successfully.

Although there were minor disruptions, such as Camila firmly refusing to become a disciple and the Duke expressing difficulty with the request, ultimately, everyone involved was able to achieve their respective goals.

“Camila accepted the Duke’s proposal. The official announcement hasn’t been made yet, but she has agreed to attend the Duke’s magic lessons starting tomorrow. Of course, she will receive compensation in return for her magic education.”

I triumphantly announced our victory.

-‘You extorted that old hag?!’

“Yep.”

-‘……’

Leoni fell silent for a moment. She had been roused from her sleep at the residence at two in the morning to receive this report.

An official report will be submitted as soon as the day breaks, but I wanted to provide a rough overview of the situation first.

It was absurd to Leoni that Camila had become a disciple of an Archmage and not only received gifts but actually got compensation instead, but it was water under the bridge.

I successfully extracted a massive reward from the Duke through negotiations. It was primarily in the form of items that could be instantly converted to cash.

I had accumulated enough wealth to buy a mansion in Abas City and a plot for a vacation home, but I didn’t feel flustered at all.

I boldly confessed to Leoni that I had taken bribes and turned those goods into cash.

Surprisingly, this whole process occurred with the approval of the Military Intelligence Agency.

It was possible because the money was of clear origin.

“…Ah, wonderful.”

Having succeeded in extorting the Duke, we gathered at a hotel to raise our glasses in celebration.

The sweetness of the orange juice and the harmony of the grenadine syrup made me gasp as I took a big sip.

“Absolutely fantastic.”

“Are you that happy?”

“Of course! I received several times my retirement pay all at once.”

“Oh dear….”

Camila, who took a martini from me, shook her head disapprovingly. She was holding the vodka martini, shaken, not stirred, a cocktail that often appeared in her favorite movies.

In the bar provided by the cult, there were no guests aside from us because for security reasons, no one else was allowed to stay at the hotel.

I finished a tequila-based cocktail and ordered another.

Meanwhile, Camila leaned against the bar and sipped her half-full martini.

“Oh, by the way, where did Francesca go?”

“She said she’s turning in early and went up to her room.”

Both Camila and Francesca gained a lot from the Duke. While I received tangible goods, the two of them acquired other benefits.

“Wasn’t it all wrapped up neatly? The Duke gained an apprentice, and you could take lessons from the Duke while receiving various things. I got some crumbs along the way.”

“That’s a lot of crumbs, don’t you think?”

“Same thing either way.”

“I can’t take it anymore…. It’s utterly ridiculous.”

“Who asked for your opinion?”

Francesca, on the other hand, received rare materials and magical tools needed for alchemy.

Despite being a bureaucrat in the Secretariat, acquiring those items even through footwork was no easy feat, and if converted to money, they were worth the annual budget of a considerable city.

But among the three of us, the one who gathered the most shares was none other than Camila.

“Isn’t Camila the one who got the largest booty?”

“Don’t call it booty! It sounds like I really plundered something!”

Of the three gathered at the table, Camila had indeed gained the most rewards.

The array of gifts the Duke decided to bestow upon her was so extensive that even listing them all would be exhausting.

“Let’s see…. Access rights to the royal archive, magical tools stored in the central bank of the Magic Tower, relics from ancient magicians, potions that help enhance magical power, and access permits to the Great Library of the Ivory Tower.”

Camila had received almost everything the Duke proposed. To put it accurately, the Duke had almost forced these gifts upon her.

They were too many to merely be regarded as gifts and each held tremendous value, but that was the natural outcome.

Camila was British after all.

Isn’t pillaging foreign treasures something the British do best?

“Wow…. Just like a true Brit. At this rate, we might as well set up a British Empire museum here soon.”

Camila clutched her neck in a fit of rage. Hearing that she would become the world’s largest repository of stolen goods made her tremble with frustration.

Even in a situation where her temper could have exploded, she couldn’t scold me as usual because the gifts she received were indeed genuine plunder.

“The ‘Droplet of the Sun,’ a treasure of the Nurman family from the 7th century, ‘Arak’ harvested from the World Tree during the Great Safari Expedition by the Eastern royalty, and the ‘Oikos Code’ compiled by the sorcerers of the Kuwam dynasty…”

“…….”

“Did the Duke happen to choose objects that are merely spoils of war from other nations? Can’t quite make sense of it.”

Among the dozens of options presented by the Duke, Camila had selected only a few. However, surprising as it was, upon confirming the real items, it turned out that many of the gifts she chose were foreign relics.

Treasures that the Empire had plundered over thousands of years through conquest.

It was a mystery whether it was coincidence or fate, but that treasure ended up in the hands of a Brit.

“Camila, be honest. You knew these were spoils of war, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t know! If I had, I wouldn’t have chosen them in the first place!”

Camila pouted with a look of utter injustice. Not only that, she even collapsed on the bar.

“No way! Who gives away spoils of war as gifts?! If that was the case, they should have said so from the start!”

“Why? Were you planning to only gather the spoils?”

“Yaaagh!”

As I sipped the pink drink I’d ordered from the bar, I couldn’t help but chuckle at how Camila was falling apart.

“I know, Camila. You weren’t planning to actually receive items; you were aiming for animals, weren’t you?”

“…Yeah.”

From the very beginning, Camila was requesting animals from the Duke, not goods.

A talking cat, a flying fairy, or a living dragon—she had asked if the Duke could show her a dragon, to which Alexandra Petrovna seemed reluctant, but eventually said she would look into it.

Of course, it wasn’t all smooth sailing. The special creatures around here were often quite perilous, even for skilled magicians to handle.

But what kind of person is the Duke? One of two Archmages in the world.

Normal wizards would have refused the request, but the Duke accepted it without a second thought. She even asked if that would be enough and began to prepare various things for her.

The problem was that what she chose to prepare were the foreign artifacts she had stolen.

Regardless, with the Duke taking such an approach, Camila’s mood lightened. No, it didn’t merely lighten; she seemed genuinely pleased.

Especially the Duke’s statement about using owls as delivery carriers hit the nail on the head. Camila’s eyes lit up when she imagined an owl flying in with a letter, and she even started clamoring that she would learn anything if only she received one single owl.

In the end, she accepted the owl along with all the other gifts the Duke had offered.

“They said they would send the other animals once they could acquire them. The Duke has a few things in her possession, so she told me to come back tomorrow… Sigh… I can’t wrap my head around how to take care of so many animals.”

“Then next time, just ask for land.”

“You want me to raise them there? Not a bad idea.”

“No. I meant to suggest you grow opium there and sell it for silver. Do you think my ancestors will cover the breeding costs?”

“Stop teasing me!”

—

“Ah, Camila. Can I ask you one thing?”

“What’s up?”

“When the Duke asked you if you had any intentions of learning magic and you flat-out rejected it, why was that?”

I set down my cocktail glass and posed the question. It was something I had wanted to ask her for a while.

Camila fell silent, staring at her martini. She seemed to be choosing her words carefully.

After a while of contemplation, she lifted her glass and swallowed her martini before responding with an earnest tone.

“It’s strange.”

“What is?”

“Just… everything.”

Camila continued, her voice steady.

“It’s odd for someone you’ve just met to offer to teach you magic. And giving away so many gifts… it’s not common for someone to be so generous when first meeting someone…”

“That’s true. There’s no kindness without ulterior motives.”

There’s no such thing as unbidden goodwill in this world.

Moreover, even priests sell the blessings of God for donations; who would be willing to shower Camila, a stranger, with gifts unconditionally?

Underlying every benefit Camila received were complicated interests. She was not naive enough to be unaware of this fact.

“So I was a bit worried. I want to learn magic, but someone suddenly approaching with gifts while saying they’ll teach me seems suspicious to me.”

“Oh.”

“What does ‘oh’ mean?”

“I didn’t know you were such a cautious person.”

It was a jest. Camila, who had figured out I was from another world and delved into research about me, certainly couldn’t be accused of being uncareful.

But—

“However, it’s not your job to determine what motives the Duke has. That’s my job.”

It’s my duty to handle any problems that arise for Camila, and to prevent any issues from arising in the first place.

“So, Camila, just focus on practicing magic without any worries. If any problems emerge, I’ll handle them.”

—

Camila directed her gaze at the martini in her glass without speaking.

How much time passed.

After a prolonged silence, she smiled and raised her glass.

“Then I won’t hold back and will rely on you.”

I raised my glass too.

“But if anything goes wrong, it’s your responsibility. I don’t understand magic at all.”

“When have I not helped you?”

“That’s true.”

The two glasses clinked together, and a clear sound resonated through the bar.

It was the night a new saint was born, filling the night sky of the sacred land with fireworks.

—

I eventually finished drinking with Camila and returned to my room.

Not long after, I received news from the cult.

“Colonel, the Saint is calling for you.”

It was a summons from the Saint.