NOVEL WEB Chapter 7 - Into the Abyss
Chapter 7
Into the Abyss
『 Translator – Divinity 』
The regular academic conference commenced.
The Magic Tower in the capital city of Mars was filled with a variety of people from all over the country.
Representatives from giant trading companies that could influence the entire Empire, high priests from major religious sects within the Empire, journalists, engineers, and so on.
Most of the upper-class figures curious about the advancements in magic had flocked to the Magic Tower.
“High Priest! It’s been a while! Haha!”
“It’s been a while, Master of the Baikal Trading Company! Haha!”
People were leisurely exchanging greetings while enjoying the various snacks, tea, and alcohol provided in the presentation hall.
And everyone gathered there was focused on the presenters of the representative papers from each branch of the Magic Tower, gathered from all corners of the Empire.
While it was ostensibly a place for exchanging greetings, it could also be said to be an event to identify the next Tower Master or the leader who would spearhead the advancement of magic.
“I heard you’re the author of the representative paper from the Mars branch Magic Tower. Haha! Congratulations. It’s always a pleasure to witness the emergence of a brilliant mind.”
“Lady Erpa! It’s been a while! I’m looking forward to your new representative paper.”
Countless people, most of whom could be considered high-ranking individuals in the Empire, endlessly approached Erpa and requested to shake her hand.
Even with her four arms, it was difficult for Erpa to accept all the handshakes.
But she wasn’t in a bad mood.
Not at all.
‘I’m being acknowledged.’
Everyone was looking at her.
They were reaching out to her, showing interest in her.
Everyone was acknowledging and accepting her, the very person her own parents had abandoned, vomiting in disgust.
Erpa felt tears welling up.
And every time she felt this way, she strengthened the adhesion magic on the silver mask that covered her left face.
Never.
She must never be found out.
Erpa vowed to herself over and over again.
The moment the hideous face hidden beneath the mask was revealed…
Just imagining the consequences made her feel like her soul was crumbling.
She wanted to continue being acknowledged.
She didn’t want much.
She just wanted normal human relationships.
She wanted to live amongst people, to be part of society.
She didn’t want to be abandoned and hurt again, to live alone in loneliness.
—I just thought you were hiding it because the inside of that left face was severely distorted and disfigured.
Just yesterday.
The words that Thüdel had suddenly thrown at her, sharp as a knife, kept replaying in her mind.
Thüdel.
The witch who had loathed and envied her from the moment Erpa arrived at the Magic Tower.
What that woman might do…
She couldn’t even begin to imagine.
Please let this day pass without incident.
Erpa wished and wished again.
“We will now begin the 213th regular academic conference! All attendees, please take your seats!”
Finally, the conference began.
Countless people settled into their respective seats.
And the authors of the representative papers from each branch of the Magic Tower, including Erpa, moved to the back of the stage.
They would prepare for their presentations there.
Erpa, like everyone else, went to her designated seat and began to organize the contents of her paper one last time and refine what she would present.
Fortunately, Thüdel was nowhere to be seen.
Although her anxiety hadn’t completely subsided, Erpa managed to push it aside.
The adhesion magic on her mask was something she had devised herself.
It couldn’t be easily undone.
Moreover, just in case, today she had attached a small thread to the mask, physically securing it to her face.
Even if Thüdel had ill intentions, she wouldn’t be able to easily remove her mask.
‘Let go of those distracting thoughts, Erpa.’
She wouldn’t be found out.
No matter what happened, she wouldn’t be found out.
Erpa continued to prepare for her presentation, making this vow to herself.
***
The regular academic conference was filled with remarkable research befitting its status.
A paper on a new magic engine.
A paper on a new healing potion.
A paper on a method to increase the flight speed of airships.
The applause in the conference hall grew louder and louder, and the mages and witches who presented their representative papers finished their presentations with proud faces and left the stage.
And finally…
“The representative paper from the Mars branch Magic Tower: The Three Primary Colors Research!”
It was Erpa’s turn.
Erpa slowly ascended the stage.
She could feel the thunderous applause and countless eyes focused on her.
Erpa took a deep breath.
She bowed politely, then slowly used a video stone to project the contents of her research into the air as a phantom and began her presentation.
The Three Primary Colors Research was about optimizing magic.
Research on how to activate larger-scale magic with less mana.
The more she explained, the more the eyes of the audience listening to the presentation changed.
This was revolutionary.
It was a practical research that could be applied to various fields, and at the same time, it was academically perfect in its form.
Creativity, innovation, potential for development.
It was a perfect research that didn’t lack in any aspect.
“This concludes the presentation on the Three Primary Colors Research.”
The moment Erpa’s words echoed through the conference hall, everyone stood up and began to applaud.
“Amazing! This is amazing!!”
“This is the most incredible research I’ve seen in recent years! Perfect! Erpa!”
Erpa looked at the faces of the people clapping for her.
Overwhelmed with emotion, Erpa had to quickly avert her gaze.
She had been acknowledged.
She had finally turned the scene she had always dreamed of into reality.
She would no longer be rejected.
She would no longer be persecuted or abused.
People would love her.
With that thought, Erpa tightly clasped her trembling four hands and quietly bowed her head.
“Thank you.”
She wished this moment could last forever.
As Erpa bowed her head, the applause grew even louder.
Thüdel was nowhere to be seen.
“It seems the next Tower Master has been decided.”
Even from the stage, she could faintly hear Tower Master Oergen saying so with a smile.
Could she be any happier?
It was at that moment, as Erpa smiled and straightened up, that it happened.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
Someone stood up from the audience, clapping loudly as if intentionally trying to be heard, and began walking towards Erpa.
Thüdel.
Seeing her, the smile vanished from Erpa’s face.
As Thüdel stepped forward, openly separating herself from the crowd, many people who had been applauding stopped and looked at her.
“What a wonderful paper! An outstanding achievement! Truly remarkable.”
Thüdel said with a smile, raising her voice.
“If it weren’t for the ugly truth you’ve been hiding.”
A commotion began to spread along with murmurs.
Confusion.
Bewilderment.
Displeasure.
Anger.
Tower Master Oergen rose from his seat, filled with displeasure.
“Thüdel, what is the meaning of this?”
“I know I’ve done something that goes against protocol. But there’s something I must reveal.”
“Whatever it is you’re trying to say, this behavior is unacceptable. Return to your seat immediately…”
“Abomination!”
Thüdel interrupted Tower Master Oergen and shouted.
At that word, everyone froze.
In particular, the expressions of the priests from the White Church, who were present, turned grim.
“The witch Erpa is an Abomination! Everyone! She has been deceiving us! A being that brings misfortune and disaster has been hiding among us!!”
Thüdel pointed at Erpa’s silver mask with a triumphant smile.
“Behind that face! A hideous and disgusting face is hidden! She has been hiding it from us for at least ten years!”
“Is that true?”
The priests of the White Church couldn’t stand it any longer and rose from their seats.
“You must be certain! Have you seen it yourself?”
“Of course. A repulsive face that seems to taint the soul is hidden beneath that mask.”
She hadn’t actually seen it.
Naturally.
Erpa never revealed her left face.
She was obsessive about wearing a mask when meeting people, and she was even known to wear it while sleeping.
Objectively speaking, Thüdel had essentially made a gamble.
If Erpa nonchalantly took off her silver mask and revealed a normal face, she would suffer a significant blow to her reputation.
Even if a hideous appearance was revealed, if it wasn’t horrifying or repulsive enough to make people vomit, just an ordinary burn or something, she would still be ruined.
When that mask was removed…
Only if a shockingly grotesque sight was hidden underneath would she succeed.
And Thüdel believed that her chances of success were quite high.
Because she knew Erpa as well as she hated her.
Because she had been constantly observing and studying Erpa, wanting to win.
That’s why she could be sure.
“I swear on my honor and my position as a witch of the Magic Tower.”
At her confident declaration, the priests of the White Church pushed through the crowd and stepped forward.
Tower Master Oergen and several elders of the Magic Tower who favored Erpa blocked them.
“This is unacceptable! There must be proper authorization to investigate a witch or mage belonging to the Magic Tower! You cannot act like this based on a mere accusation!”
At Tower Master Oergen’s fierce opposition, a priest of the White Church raised his voice.
“Then we formally request an investigation! If more than 70% of the mages and witches belonging to the Mars branch Magic Tower, which constitutes a majority, agree, then an investigation can proceed! Summon the mages and witches immediately!”
“Must you really go this far?”
“We must! Abomination is not something to be taken lightly!”
“Historically, most of those reported as Abominations were simply suffering from rare diseases! Nine out of ten cases were like that!”
“And one out of ten truly brought about large-scale disaster!! Especially if the Abomination is a witch, not just any other being, it’s even more serious!! It could bring about a calamity that could destroy the entire Empire!! Begin the vote immediately!!”
At his forceful voice, Tower Master Oergen realized there was no way to stop this.
“To gather the mages and witches of the Magic Tower…”
“There’s no need for that, Tower Master. I’ve already summoned them.”
Thüdel said, clapping her hands as if she had been waiting for this. At her signal, several mages and witches who had been waiting outside the conference hall entered the room in a line.
“There are 75 mages from the Mars branch Magic Tower. This is more than 70% of the total number, so we can proceed with the vote, correct?”
At Thüdel’s bright smile, Oergen looked at her with a complicated expression.
But in the end, Oergen had no choice but to back down.
“One of the witches belonging to our Magic Tower is suspected of being an Abomination. As you all know, it’s a term used in the past to describe people with rare diseases, back when understanding of magic was lacking. The White Church has formally requested the right to investigate the witch Erpa.”
Oergen slowly looked around at the mages and witches.
“Erpa is an excellent witch. She has never harmed anyone and has always walked the path of magic with excellence and sincerity. Her talent should continue to be used for the benefit of humanity. That is my belief.”
Oergen looked at Erpa, who was frozen on stage, trembling.
“The White Church’s request is absurd. Erpa is not an Abomination. I believe that. I hope you all feel the same.”
After finishing his speech, Oergen took out his wand from his pocket and waved it in the air.
A giant scale appeared.
“Whether to accept the White Church’s request or not, we will now put it to a vote.”
Numerous mages and witches took out their wands and held them in their hands.
The light bursting from the tips of the wands slowly gathered towards the scale.
Erpa watched the scene with a tense expression.
Please.
She had tried to be kind to everyone.
No matter how much she thought about it, she hadn’t done anything to antagonize the mages of the Magic Tower.
Not everyone would be like Thüdel.
Not everyone would be consumed by jealousy and try to abandon her.
Erpa wanted to believe that.
“The voting has ended. We will now count the votes.”
The scale slowly began to tilt.
Erpa simply stared at the tilting scale.
A tear unknowingly escaped her eye.
“Out of a total of 77 votes… with 56 votes cast in favor, the Mars branch of the Magic Tower accepts the White Church’s request for an investigation.”
Tower Master Oergen declared weakly.
It was the moment Erpa, who had been tasting the feeling of ascending to heaven, plummeted into hell.