“Neomium!? Is that it? Is that the material? The fuel? Whatever it is, it must be something related to black magic, right?”
“…!”
Neomium.
It’s a substance that appears in many books.
Did it appear in the book I gave to Julia?
“Neomium? Let me have a look.”
“Ah…!”
Julia sighed with a despairing look in her eyes.
She hesitated for a moment, hugging the book tightly, shaking her head.
But when I reached out my hand, she reluctantly handed the book over.
Julia gave Charlotte a resentful look.
‘So, they’re seeing Neomium as a key component of black magic in this book too.’
With so many books mentioning this substance, suspicion turns into certainty.
To begin any experiments or anything else, I need to get my hands on Neomium first.
But the problem is, Neomium is an extremely rare mineral.
Even if you gathered all the pure Neomium in the world, it would barely amount to the size of a fist.
90% of that was made into a single lump.
That lump disappeared into the black market decades ago and hasn’t been seen since.
‘I guess I need to find that Neomium lump first.’
It’s just a rare, insignificant mineral.
It’s too soft and weak to be used as a tool.
It doesn’t have any luster or beautiful shape, so it has no value as a gemstone either.
So, the purchase cost shouldn’t be too high… but the real challenge is finding this Neomium.
I can’t exactly put an ad in the paper saying, “Buying Neomium”.
That would immediately get me branded as a black magician and stoned to death.
I need to find it as quietly as possible.
This is going to be quite difficult, I think.
“Good job, Julia. You found it well.”
“I was the one who found it…”
Charlotte looked at me with a slightly unfair expression.
And Julia’s face hardened in response.
Did she really think I wouldn’t notice she tried to hide it after finding it?
“T-That…! It might be dangerous! Everyone who researched Neomium met a terrible end!”
“A terrible end?”
“They all went mad, turned corrupt, committed crimes, and died… y-yes.”
“…”
As my gaze turned to her, Julia began to sweat nervously and dragged out her words.
Surprisingly, it seems Julia was genuinely worried about me.
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ sheds tears, touched by our necromancer’s filial piety.]
I was a little moved too.
But that’s separate from the fact that Julia doesn’t need to worry.
Because I already know firsthand why the previous researchers died.
‘What else could it be? It’s obviously because of the mischievous evil gods.’
Black magic research inevitably attracts evil gods.
It’s already been proven by the fact that Kali led me down the path of black magic research.
And evil gods have a strong tendency to meddle with the humans they latch onto.
They constantly cause chaos, telling you to do this or not to do that.
The previous researchers probably had no idea what the evil gods wanted, or that they were even possessed by them.
They likely piled up the evil gods’ disfavor bit by bit, until the gods’ anger exploded, leading to their deaths.
‘But that won’t happen to me.’
However, that doesn’t apply to me.
I have a special ability that allows me to understand the evil gods’ moods in real-time.
Plus, I have a passive ability that makes all evil gods love me.
Because of that, I could always refuse Kali’s demands and still be forgiven.
Even if more evil gods attach themselves to me as I continue my black magic research, I can handle it.
Kali, who is already here, won’t likely allow other evil gods to approach.
The threats Julia worries about won’t apply to me.
“Thank you for your concern. But it’s okay, so you don’t need to worry too much.”
“…!”
I muttered as I gently placed my hand on Julia’s head.
I’ve noticed before, but she has really soft hair. It makes me want to put it in my mouth without thinking.
“Huh? Huh!? W-When did I ever worry about you, Aslan…!?”
“…”
Julia hurriedly brushed off my hand and played innocent.
But you just said it.
You were worried that I’d meet a terrible end.
“T-That was just a passing remark! I was just trying to stop you from destroying the world with black magic, so I made it up!”
“Beep Beep! Lie detected!”
“…!?”
Charlotte spoke up, suddenly donning a pair of glasses she must have picked up from somewhere.
Looking closely, I noticed one of Charlotte’s pupils had turned green.
What is she up to now?
“The Spirit’s Eye says it’s a lie! There was no sincerity in what Julia just said!”
“W-What!? W-What Spirit’s Eye…”
“I borrowed it from Dirt-Dirt! So, what you said was actually false! Lie detection successful! Ahem!”
“…!”
It was a fact that both you and I and everyone else already knew.
But Charlotte still drove the point home by using the Spirit’s Eye.
Julia’s face turned bright red.
“Waaah! Charlotte, you’re the worst!!!”
“Kyaaah!?”
Julia couldn’t hold back any longer and lunged at Charlotte.
What are you planning to do if you catch her? It seems like she’s just rushing in without thinking.
But Charlotte, who’s always active, isn’t someone Julia, who spends all her time indoors, can easily catch.
Charlotte easily jumped over the desk and climbed up the bookshelf, mocking Julia. Meanwhile…
[Kraaaah! Give me back my eye, you little brat!!!]
A desperate scream from Dirt-Dirt echoed from afar.
…I thought you said you borrowed it.
***
The small commotion that occurred during the black magic research ended.
“Charlotte, come down here. I’ll help you escape.”
“Really!? Okay!”
“Alright. Take back your eye, Dirt-Dirt.”
“Mister!? I trusted you!!!”
I ended it by capturing Charlotte.
Dirt-Dirt trudged over with a sulky face.
As soon as it reached Charlotte, it extended its stubby arm in front of her eyes.
A beam of light started to emerge from Charlotte’s eye.
[I lent it to her because she said she wanted to try it out, but then she just ran off. What a wicked little brat.]
“Ewwww, this feels so weird…!”
The light was reabsorbed into Dirt-Dirt’s eye, a bizarre sight.
So, that’s the Spirit’s Eye.
The one that can see through people’s emotions.
“Is this the Spirit’s Eye that’s been passed down through the emperors of the empire?”
[It is indeed a Spirit’s Eye, but it is far inferior to the one you speak of. This eye can only discern emotions by their colors, but the emperor’s eye can see through much more. It’s only natural since the original owner of that eye was the Spirit King.]
True.
When Dirt-Dirt stares at me, it doesn’t feel like much.
But when the Empress stares at me, it chills me to the bone, as if my eyes are about to be pierced.
It seems there are different levels of power even among Spirit’s Eyes.
‘If it comes to it, maybe I’ll steal Dirt-Dirt’s eye.’
The Empress has a Spirit’s Eye, Irene has Laura’s Eye, but I have nothing.
If I ever need it, maybe I’ll borrow Dirt-Dirt’s eye by force.
Well, borrowing by force might be a more accurate term than stealing.
Reading my intentions somehow, Dirt-Dirt backed away, hiccuping in fear.
“Let’s wrap up the research for today. The study has become a mess.”
“Oh…”
Julia and Charlotte sighed as they looked around.
Thanks to their antics, chairs were overturned, and piles of books were scattered everywhere.
Of course, it’s partly my fault for not organizing the books properly in the first place, so I couldn’t entirely blame them.
After sending the children and Dirt-Dirt away, I was tidying up the study alone when…
“What the… Mister, why are you cleaning up by yourself?”
“…”
Creeeak.
The door opened slightly, revealing Charlotte’s mischievous face.
“You said it was fine because you’d ask the maids to do it.”
“If the maids start touching things, I won’t know where anything is anymore. That’s why I’m organizing it myself.”
“You should’ve said so earlier! I’ll help too!”
“There’s no need. It’s already done.”
“Aww…”
Charlotte pouted, disappointed, and drooped her shoulders.
I had hastily shoved the remaining disorganized piles of books behind the bookshelf.
Pretending to be done, I dusted off my hands and stood up.
This is exactly why I wanted to clean up by myself.
If Charlotte starts messing with things, there’s a high chance she’ll make an even bigger mess.
“Oh, right! Mister! Could you help me put on my armor? It arrived today, but I have no idea how to wear it! Hehe.”
“Ask Sylvia to help you with that.”
“The Knight Sister is super busy! She hasn’t left the training grounds at all. I wanted to train with her too…”
Charlotte stomped her feet in frustration.
Charlotte and Julia were temporarily banned from entering the training grounds.
The official reason was that they might disrupt the training program, and it could be dangerous for outsiders.
But in truth, it was to avoid running into Yuri.
I had no desire to face the wrath of Yuri, who was already full of pent-up frustration from being scolded by Sylvia.
“So, you help me get dressed, Mister!”
“…”
Charlotte said with a bright, innocent smile.
She’s talking about armor, right?
When you say things like that, people get the wrong idea.
…Like the maids whispering behind the door right now.
