Chapter 160. Lucky Me
I crossed through the Blando estate at Henji’s summons.
Of course, that was something I could never have dared to do under normal circumstances. It’s said that infiltrating from within is easier than breaching from the outside, but the Blando family’s security was as solid as one would expect from a noble house.
The only reason this was even possible was partly thanks to my experience as a Troubleshooter, but mostly due to the capable guidance of “Dinner No.1.”
Beep-beep! Beep-beep!
Following Dinner No.1’s fluttering wings, I quietly approached the Magic Tower through the less-traveled paths.
When it flapped its left wing, I turned left. When it flapped its right wing, I turned right.
‘What is this…? I feel like some kind of mount.’
I’d basically become a bird’s mount, but perhaps because I already had experience with “Breakfast No.1,” it didn’t feel that awkward.
As I walked through the Blando estate cloaked in darkness, I sorted through the thoughts I needed to organize before meeting Henji.
‘Meeting Henji is fine and all, but still…’
There were some issues that bothered me.
Let’s think this through.
How does Henji define the person known as “Aster”?
First and foremost, he probably still sees me as a “vagrant from the Grey Zone.”
Even if I boarded the same ship as them by chance, through my connection with Demian and the new Thousand Principles, deep down he must still perceive me as that same vagrant.
And that’s where my concerns began.
‘How the hell am I supposed to explain everything that’s happened?’
To be honest, there hadn’t been that many incidents involving the New Thousand Principles so far.
The raid on Parun’s mansion was inevitable, but even the ordeal at the Trial Tower wasn’t something Parun himself knew about. So really, the only recent matter that stood out was the Infinite Chain incident.
And those two events were the problem.
‘Henji could easily link me with that masked man who appeared during the raid on Parun’s mansion.’
There might have been communication between him and Parun that I didn’t know about, and even if there wasn’t, the circumstances lined up far too neatly.
Between “a masked man suddenly appeared and helped Parun” and “that vagrant from the Grey Zone seems to be connected to the masked man,” the latter is the far more convincing deduction.
Normally, people would shake their heads and dismiss that as nonsense.
But Henji wasn’t “normal.”
Most people believe in coincidence over a sliver of possibility, but Henji would focus precisely on that tiny sliver.
Now, think about it.
“By pure chance, the vagrant he brought in from the Grey Zone turns out to be a remarkably skilled person?”
Ah, there’s no way he wouldn’t get suspicious.
Then, what would a normal person do?
‘Say, “Oh, lucky me,” and just move on?’
Like hell.
If it were me, I’d cut him open to see what’s inside.
Even the smallest doubt would erupt like a volcano, and I’d lock him up, grilling him until he confessed even what he didn’t know.
‘…if he’s obtained information about the incident in Lorutel as well?’
My head spun.
If I were Henji, I’d probably drag me into that so-called “private space” he once joked about, and we’d have a terrifyingly intimate time together.
Well, maybe that part was a bit of an exaggeration.
“Tch, having too many secrets really is a problem.”
It wasn’t even that I was trying to hide anything.
It’s just that I’m a mysterious man, like an onion, peel one layer and another always appears beneath it.
Anyway, that ambiguous relationship made my steps a bit slower, though it wasn’t out of nervousness.
It was just that figuring out how much to explain, and where to start, was a headache.
‘At the very least, I should share what happened in Lorutel…’
Expecting that tonight’s conversation would be a long one, I quickened my pace under Dinner No.1’s guidance.
And so, I arrived behind the Magic Research Building.
Despite the late hour, the building was brightly lit.
As I looked up at it, Dinner No.1 flapped its wings again.
Flutter, flap-flap!
It landed on a window at the top floor, and its gaze seemed to say, “Come up.”
Beep!
Without a second thought, I leaped upward, stepping off the window frames until I reached the window where Dinner No.1 perched.
Before knocking, I took a deep breath.
‘I am upright. And I am righteous.’
Back then, when I last came here, I was nothing but a vagrant from the Grey Zone. But now I had returned as a just Troubleshooter.
Then what is justice? Power.
The stronger my power, the more righteous I become. So then…
‘Henji’s private space?’
I’m not afraid.
I just hoped that Henji wouldn’t make a rash judgment and awaken my sense of justice. Or rather, that violent streak I tend to wrap in the name of “justice.”
With that thought, I knocked on the window.
The curtains parted, and that familiar face appeared.
Henji looked at me with the same good-natured expression as ever, showing no sign of surprise as he opened the window to greet me.
“Haha, Aster. Long time no see. Have you been well?”
“I’ve been… well enough.”
What’s this pounding in my chest?
My hands were itching.
Maybe I’d… become addicted to justice.
* * *
Henji smiled and poured tea, naturally steering the conversation and it began, of all things, with Parun’s letter.
“Actually, I received a letter from Parun not long ago. Though perhaps I should be calling you ‘Tower Master’ now?”
“A letter?”
I frowned slightly at the mention.
I’d expected there would be some correspondence between them, but that word, ‘Tower Master’, was the problem.
If he knew that title, then the letter must have contained all the details about what happened in Lorutel.
Perhaps noticing my expression, Henji clarified.
“Ah, it’s the first letter I’ve received from him in months. Thanks to the One Sword, Dekulan’s surveillance has loosened somewhat.”
Ah, so that’s how.
Still, it was surprising that Parun had sent a letter at all.
He clearly knew I’d be visiting Lorutel during the break, so why bother sending one?
Just as I was puzzling over that, Henji added, “For the record, it’s not that he distrusted you, Sir Aster. He said he just wanted to provide a more objective and precise explanation of the situation.”
…Yeah, right.
He might not think I’d run off with the Thousand Principles thesis, but clearly he didn’t trust me completely if he went as far as to send a letter.
Anyway, that detail wasn’t the important part.
‘Now then, how will he react?’
My heart thumped with anticipation.
If Henji had been tainted by evil, I was ready to purify him with justice, to guide him back onto the right path.
But as it turned out, Henji wasn’t tainted at all.
He simply said, “You hid your identity from Parun. A wise choice. It’s better that way if you want to avoid trouble.”
He supported my decision.
“And I must say, I’m surprised. Did you come across some great opportunity in the meantime? You weren’t quite like this when we first met.”
He spoke with a tone of intrigued admiration.
From that point, our conversation was mostly him asking questions and me answering, and those questions were purely out of curiosity.
How was Kalahan? What exactly happened in Lorutel? How did I get on Parun’s good side?
That last one made me blink.
“Parun… likes me? You’re serious?”
“Yes. Hard to believe, isn’t it? Haha, I understand. He’s quite the cold fellow.”
Now I was really curious about the contents of that letter.
From what I knew of Parun, half of it should’ve been filled with words like “brainless” and “unfit to be a mage.”
Anyway, after a few more exchanges about minor details and curiosities,
we both fell silent and took a sip from our teacups.
At that point, I couldn’t hold back my question any longer.
“…Why?”
“Why what?”
“Well…”
Now that I was saying it aloud, I wasn’t sure how to phrase it.
I couldn’t exactly ask, “Why aren’t you questioning my true identity?”
But, as if reading my mind, Henji spoke.
“To be honest, I am curious. Sir Aster is a vagrant from the Grey Zone, and when we first met, you were… exceptional, but not this exceptional. Yet from Parun’s letter, well, haha…”
He trailed off with a laugh, recalling the surprise he must’ve felt reading it.
But his tone wasn’t dramatic, it was calm, reflective.
After a brief pause, he posed a question instead.
“But… does it matter?”
“It… doesn’t?”
“Think of it this way: suppose Sir Aster is a chess player. On the board sit your pieces and your opponent’s. But from the start, the game is unfair.”
As he spoke, he manipulated mana, forming a floating chessboard in midair. It was astonishingly precise and detailed, and soon, black and white pieces were clearly arranged upon it.
But the arrangement, was strange.
The white side was overflowing with pieces, pawns, rooks, bishops, knights, king, queen, all crammed together, ignoring the board’s limits.
As if the very rules had been discarded.
And the black side?
Only a king and a queen.
Just two pieces holding their ground.
“An unfair game, wouldn’t you say? Now, let’s say you are the black player. Then one day, a pawn suddenly joins your side. A completely insignificant pawn. What do you do? Do you discard it? Or do you hold on to it and keep playing?”
“I’d… keep playing.”
“I chose Sir Aster for that very reason. Ah, but I didn’t see you as just a pawn. I thought, perhaps this pawn might someday reach the enemy’s final rank and change roles. A faint hope, you could say.”
By now, I understood exactly what he meant.
In this game, the white player was Dekulan.
The black players, Henji and Parun. And they were the king and queen of that side.
Then one day, I appeared.
A pawn, perhaps, that might become a queen.
But then…
“When we actually saw it in play, it turned out not to be a pawn at all. Somehow, it was a bishop… or a knight. Maybe even something beyond that. Whatever it was, it far exceeded expectations. In that case, does the reason really matter?”
“…”
I silently watched as the black pawn on the board shimmered, transforming, first into a bishop, then a knight.
Right, it didn’t matter how the pawn became a knight. What mattered was that, in this perilous game, they had found a useful piece.
And another thing, I understood why Henji had chosen chess for his metaphor.
Because, in the end…
‘Chess pieces don’t need a backstory.’
A pawn doesn’t need to explain why it’s a pawn. A bishop doesn’t need to justify why it’s a bishop.
Few players ever care about that. Even if they did, those origins have no bearing on the match itself.
What matters is how each piece is used.
A clear, simple answer.
I nodded.
“Lucky me.”
“…Pardon?”
“Oh, nothing.”
Regrettably, or rather, fortunately, there was no need to enforce justice tonight.
As I sighed in disappointment, or perhaps relief, Henji smiled softly.
“By the way, I heard you have something to give me? And also something you wanted to ask?”
