It was safe to say that Alon had already achieved every goal he had set for the Blue Magic Tower.
His sole purpose had been to obtain the relic emerging from the Exam Question in the tower's basement. Having accomplished that, he decided to leave the Blue Magic Tower immediately.
There was no reason to linger, and he suspected that Penia, who clearly found him unpleasant, might try to pick a fight for no reason.
Of course, he knew she wasn't an entirely irrational person, but there was always the possibility of an unforeseen situation.
That was certainly what he thought as he let out a private sigh of relief right after dealing with the Exam Question.
...Or so he thought.
"This is...?"
"It's a potion I made."
Alon glanced at her—she was forcing a smile that didn't quite reach her sharp eyes—and then picked up the potion bottle sitting on the desk.
It was a deep blue liquid that emitted a white glow with even a slight shake.
'...It's a mana recovery potion. A very expensive one at that.'
In this world, mana potions didn't have an instantaneous effect like in a video game; their effects manifested gradually.
To be precise, it was more accurate to call them 'Mana Recovery Enhancement Potions' rather than 'Mana Recovery Potions.'
However, among such potions, the five bottles Penia had placed before Alon were the only ones here truly worthy of the name 'Mana Recovery Potion.'
The highest-grade potion he held in his hand was one that could actually replenish a bit of mana instantly just by drinking it.
In a place where enhancement potions were commonly called recovery potions, these were incredibly high-priced items.
Alon had once looked into buying mana potions because using magic only once a day was inconvenient, but the price had been so staggering it made his head spin.
'I'm pretty sure two bottles of this cost as much as a small villa...'
After staring at the potion for a long time, he turned his gaze toward Penia.
She was wearing an awkward, anxious smile, and as soon as Alon looked at her, she spoke.
"Do you... like them?"
"...I can tell it's a high-grade potion, but why are you showing this to me?"
"I'm giving them to you."
"You're giving me these potions?"
"Yes."
"...?"
A question mark popped up in Alon's mind.
He could understand her change in attitude to some extent. Before he closed the Exam Question, she had been itching to tear him apart, but now that it was closed, it made sense for her to feel gratitude or a bit of awe, especially since no one else knew how to close one.
However, to Alon's eyes, Penia's gestures and expressions didn't look like 'gratitude' or 'awe' at all.
'Did she misunderstand something, like that mage who came with the Zenonia Young Lady last time?'
With that thought, Alon spoke.
"...I should tell you in advance, I am a 2nd Tier mage."
"Yes, I know. Of course. A 2nd Tier mage, indeed."
Thinking she might have mistaken his level, he spoke up, only for Penia to nod as if she had been waiting for him to say it. Now, it was his turn to look confused.
Seeing her nod so emphatically, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, the thought crossed his mind: Is she mocking me?
But Penia's expression didn't look like she was joking at all.
In short, it meant she wasn't under any particular delusion about his rank, which made Alon even more bewildered.
"What I saw earlier... I will absolutely keep it a secret. I must, and I will."
At Penia's following words, Alon replied.
"There's no need to make such a prom—"
"No, please! Let me promise. It's because I want to. If you want, shall I make a Mana Oath? I'll do it right here, right now!"
"No, wait—"
Before Alon could even finish his sentence, Penia instantly drew up her mana.
For a moment, a mana so intense it made his heart drop flooded the office. Before Alon could say another word, Penia performed the Mana Oath.
'She's going that far just to keep the method of closing an Exam Question a secret? I mean, I guess it's a mystery to them right now, but still...'
Though his face remained an expressionless mask, Alon was internally dumbfounded. He realized she was definitely misunderstanding something, but...
"You saw, right? I keep my promises. I will keep it a secret, no matter what. Truly...!"
"...I understand."
Seeing Penia speak with such a desperate expression the moment she finished the oath, Alon had no choice but to nod calmly.
...There seemed to be no chance of clearing up the misunderstanding.
And so, Alon obtained five bottles of mana recovery potion and the relic he desired from the Blue Magic Tower.
####
Sitting in the carriage heading back to the Count's estate from the Blue Magic Tower, Alon naturally looked down at the bracelet on his wrist.
This was the item he had come to the Blue Magic Tower for, taken with Penia's permission after closing the Exam Question.
'The Bracelet of the Unrighteous.'
The design of the bracelet wasn't particularly sophisticated.
To put it bluntly, it looked like a cheap accessory one could buy for less than ten dollars at a market.
The only unique feature was the black gems embedded at intervals, which looked as if they would absorb all light. Other than that, it appeared unremarkable.
However, contrary to its crude and plain appearance, the bracelet possessed an ability that could sufficiently compensate for his small mana hole.
"..."
Alon slightly turned his wrist to look at the black gems.
Though not visible at a glance, a closer look revealed a very faint blue energy swirling within the stones.
'It's working well.'
The ability of the Bracelet of the Unrighteous was to absorb mana from the atmosphere, store it, and allow the user to draw upon it when needed.
Of course, the amount of mana the bracelet could store was limited, and even that limit wasn't particularly high. Yet, ironically, that limited amount was still larger than Alon's own mana hole.
"..."
For a moment, he felt a strange sense of existential weariness, realizing his body could store less mana than an item from Psychedelia that was meant only to assist a mage.
"Whew."
He calmed his mind and thought.
'This is enough. It's not like I'm going into battle.'
The reason he had sought out this Mark of the Unrighteous was for more efficient magic research and for self-preservation in case of an emergency.
In that sense, the amount of mana provided by the Mark of the Unrighteous was more than sufficient, even if it wasn't overflowing.
Of course, more is always better than less.
'I think there were some phrases that could forcibly adjust the power of a spell to reduce mana consumption. I should look into that.'
Ending his monologue there, Alon lightened his mood and looked out the carriage window.
As he watched the scenery pass, he suddenly remembered Penia bowing politely in front of him just before he boarded the carriage.
'What was that all about?'
Recalling Penia's bizarre behavior that had started right after he closed the Exam Question, Alon soon shrugged his shoulders.
He wouldn't have any more business with her anyway.
Alon watched for a while as the forest, bathed in the gentle sunlight, swayed with a soft green hue.
It was a warm spring.
####
Around the time Alon was returning to the Palatio estate.
In the office of the Duke of Altia, two women sat facing each other.
One was Loria, the master of this ducal house, who had now perfectly absorbed the power of the Altia family and succeeded the former Duke in both name and reality.
The girl sitting across from her was Calia, the Young Lady of the Zenonia family—or more accurately, the de facto ruler of the Zenonia estate.
"It's been a while."
"It has."
The two greeted each other casually, dropping formalities.
Normally, this would be unthinkable.
Loria Altia had already inherited her title and held the rank of Duke, whereas Calia was from a Count's family and hadn't even officially succeeded the title yet, remaining a Young Lady.
Yet, Loria, who should have been offended by the lack of honorifics, remained perfectly calm.
This was because Loria knew that Calia held total authority over her family.
At the same time, in the underworld, the name of Count Zenonia carried slightly more weight than that of Duke Altia.
But above all, the reason Loria accepted Calia's casual speech was that they both served the same person: Count Palatio.
In other words, there was no need for them to fight over hierarchy.
Whether they liked it or not, they had to establish an alliance on Count Palatio's orders, even if they didn't initially know why.
Of course, they only realized that the command to "Go meet Duke Altia" meant "Form an alliance" after they met, talked, and discovered they were both under Count Palatio.
Regardless, once an absolute Number One was established, they both knew how pointless it was to squabble over the ranks beneath him.
"What brings you here today? Our meeting isn't until next month."
At Loria's question, Calia carefully took a letter from her robe and placed it on the desk.
"I came because he sent a letter."
"...This?"
"Yes."
At Calia's nod, Loria picked up the letter and checked its contents.
"..."
As she read the letter in silence, the contents reflected in Calia's eyes were far from a secret document; it took the form of an excessively ordinary letter.
The letter contained a brief greeting followed by talk of noble families.
It listed several noble houses as examples, mentioning that "some nobles have complained to me," and concluded with the remark, "There aren't many nobles who get along well with me."
This was indeed the letter Alon had sent about a month ago. Having felt bad about being a bit harsh to Calia, he had written it as a sort of rational excuse.
If one were to summarize Alon's intent, it was something like: 'I don't just act this way toward you; I'm a bit prickly with other nobles too. I wasn't just complaining to you.'
In fact, if an ordinary noble had been treated that way by Alon and then received this letter, they would have deduced his intent almost perfectly.
However, there were three things Alon hadn't considered.
First, the people receiving and analyzing this letter were major players in the underworld.
Second, they viewed Count Palatio as an untouchable Number One.
And third, because of the second reason, they naturally assumed this mundane letter contained some sort of hidden command.
And so.
True to her reputation as a brilliant mind in the underworld, Calia began to piece together a puzzle that didn't actually exist.
"Baron Kenya is part of the Noble Faction... and Marquis Malantino is a key figure in the Royal Faction."
"Viscount Vilanda belongs to the Royal Faction. Similarly, Duke Paldion is a major figure in the Noble Faction."
Recalling the nobles Alon had met and spoken with at the ball, they began to categorize the families he had mentioned. Before long, they began to assemble the puzzle—
"...To summarize, since he finds both the Noble Faction and the Royal Faction distasteful..."
Kill them all? The thought flashed through both their minds, but they shook their heads in unison. That would be beyond the realm of common sense.
Therefore, the alternative they naturally arrived at was...
"He intends to push out the existing nobility and establish a new regime?"
The two fell silent after that statement.
Normally, such a thing would be impossible.
Changing an established system isn't something that can be done just by gathering one or two nobles.
However, if the ones doing it were these two, who breathed and manipulated the scales of the noble political world, the story was entirely different.
It would require various preparations and take time, but in short, the answer they reached was: "It is possible."
"Ah—"
Loria let out a low exclamation.
To be honest, she hadn't been able to guess what Alon was aiming for until now, and thus hadn't understood why he had made her a Duke.
But if this was truly what he aimed for, the reason was finally explained.
What he was trying to do now absolutely required the 'prestige' of the Duke of Altia, just as she had thought.
Furthermore, if they allied with the Zenonia family, the masters of the West, the scales of success would surely tip in their favor.
"...It seems that must be it."
Loria trembled with a thrill as she "realized" the Count's hidden intent.
Thus, in the late afternoon.
As the sun dipped and the twilight faded, they began to draft their plan in that room, without even turning on the magic lamps.
...A strange puzzle had been completed and began to turn of its own accord.
And at that moment, Alon...
"Hmm..."
In the forest, where the temperature was dropping as the sun set early, he was eating a sweet potato.
"...Delicious."
Completely unaware of the world's developments, his small appreciation as he took a bite of the sweet potato drifted into the forest air.