Overpowered Archmage Doesn’t Hide His Talent

Chapter 37 ㅡ Merhen-level Magician ‘Kaplan’ ㅡ

“Trixie, my lady… What brings you back to the mansion?”

The day after the pop quiz, Trixie returned to the mansion.

Five maids rushed about frantically. One prepared clothes, another brought a warm towel, another fetched cosmetics…

All of this was done solely to assist Trixie, who had just finished ballet at the mansion.

“Hurry up. Don’t start crying again just because you got scolded.”

“Not crying would be strange. Ugh, just thinking about it…”

The maids exchanged various comments as they swiftly headed to the ballet room. The moment the door to the room containing Trixie opened,

All the maids held their breath.

Trixie von Fritz.

A body sculpted with flawless curves and piercing eyes. The atmosphere created by the combination of these two traits would leave anyone speechless.

“……”

The maids quietly observed Trixie without making a sound.

They wiped off her sweat-drenched body, helped her change clothes, and applied cosmetics to her skin…

It didn’t even take a minute to complete all these tasks, thanks to the well-trained maids of the Fritz family.

As the maids finished their work and were about to leave,

“Stay.”

Trixie uttered a single word.

The maids quickly turned around. They ran directly to Trixie and lined up in a row.

Hmm, Trixie folded her arms and took her time.

The maids found it torturous. They exchanged glances with trembling bodies.

Did they mess up the cosmetics? Was the towel’s temperature not right? Did they fail to check the outfit properly…?

“Listen carefully.”

At that, the maids, without exception, dropped to their knees. They would surely be scolded until someone burst into tears today…

Hmm.

Trixie stroked her chin, deep in thought. At the same time, the maids began to tremble.

Hmm.

Her deliberation continued. The youngest maid was already on the verge of tears. In the midst of all this, Trixie finally opened her mouth.

“Who here has contacted a man?”

Trixie’s gaze slowly drifted to the corner of the ballet room.

“…Raise your hand.”

A heavy silence fell. The maids froze as if time had stopped.

“…?”

Then, in the next moment, all the maids tilted their heads in unison.

◈

“Phew.”

Late at night when everyone was asleep, I sat at my desk and ran a hand over my face.

I had just finished writing everything I needed for the proclamation.

I wasn’t in a position to be idle. Balancing the responsibilities of a student and preparing the proclamation at the same time was a bit exhausting.

[ To the Professors of Merhen Academy’s Magic Department ]

That was the title of the proclamation.

At first glance, it seemed like it was only criticizing the professors, but the content was essentially directed at all magicians.

I was confident that any magician with a conscience would agree with the opinions written in the proclamation. After all, it only contained the absolute truth.

However, persuasion exists to sway those who don’t easily agree.

So, I also prepared a means to convince those who might object.

“They won’t be able to resist.”

I ran my hand over the spell formula I had just completed.

Originally, this problem was supposed to be posted on the Agora Board…

But I reduced the difficulty so that anyone could solve it. After all, everyone should be able to see it.

This problem, when included in the proclamation, would add weight to my words.

Those who solve this formula would be able to witness the illusion I designed with their own eyes.

The scene they’ll witness isn’t particularly complex.

It’s a spell that vividly captures a landscape from my previous world as I remember it. Surely, those who see it will be inspired.

Although it’s just an illusion now, one day this world will see it become reality. I hope many magicians will be moved by this scene.

With this, it seemed I had finished everything I needed to do today. I closed my eyes to double-check if I had forgotten anything.

I had trained, read, and attended lectures today.

…Well, to be honest, I only showed up for the lectures. The content was trivial, so I didn’t bother to listen closely.

The results of the pop quiz would be announced tomorrow. In other words, I didn’t need to worry about evaluations just yet.

I judged it was time to get some sleep.

Just as I was heading to bed, Hera suddenly called out to me.

[ Master! Master! ]

“What?”

I answered while lying down.

[ Well, isn’t it about time we made a contract? ]

“Not at all.”

I refused flatly. There was no benefit for me in rushing the contract.

A contract with a spirit artifact is permanent. Once established, it continues even if one party dies.

To put it in a more endearing way, it’s like becoming “partners,” but the relationship between a magician and a spirit artifact isn’t quite that equal.

In reality, this relationship varies greatly depending on the magician and the artifact.

If a mediocre magician forms a contract with a spirit, they’ll have to serve it for life, borrowing its power. If they’re more or less equals, they might get along like friends.

But in my case, I have no intention of considering Hera as a friend or partner.

However, if she were to become something akin to a servant… I might consider it.

That’s why I’ve decided to leave her to beg for the chance to serve me until she clings to me, pleading.

Everything should be tamed in advance to ensure there are no issues later.

[ Master! Please, use me! I promise to work really hard! ]

Judging by her tone, it seems the taming process is almost complete.

Yet, even after lying down, I found I couldn’t sleep.

I idly opened Trivia into the air. First, I issued an order to Sephia.

[ ▷ The proclamation will be posted tomorrow morning. ]

[ ▷ Merhen Daily, distribute it as a special edition. ]

Then I used telekinesis to flip through the pages. During this, I noticed a flood of notifications.

[ ▶ Please, just read my message ㅠㅅㅠ ]

[ ▶ Please reply! Ahh…. ]

[ ▶ Reply reply reply ]

[ ▶ Why aren’t you responding ]

Amazingly, all of these were messages from Trixie. The fact that each of the four messages had a different tone slightly irked me.

I had only recently learned more about the Fritz family.

They are a prestigious family known for their unique ‘Blue Flame,’ which is both their symbol and pride.

After some thought, I decided to reply.

[ ▷ I have something to teach you. Are you willing to learn? ]

[ ▶ Gasp! Yes! ]

[ ▶ Teach me! ㅎㅅㅎ ]

It’s easier to change the minds of others if a prominent family changes theirs first.

I don’t intend to force my views. However, if this person feels something, they’ll naturally follow suit.

[ ▷ Good. ]

[ ▷ What I will teach today is mindset. ]

I began to type.

◈

The next day.

Violet visited the Merhen Daily editorial department early in the morning. She couldn’t resist the persistent urging of Sephia to come.

With a tired face, Violet asked Sephia,

“So, what’s going on this early in the morning?”

“There’s something I wanted to look at with you. Sis, take a look at this.”

Sephia calmly unfolded a large sheet of paper.

[ To the Professors of Merhen Academy’s Magic Department ]

Violet frowned as she read the title.

“What is this, a proclamation?”

“This proclamation was posted this morning, and we’re thinking of distributing it as a special edition. You should read it too, Sis.”

With sharp eyes, Violet scanned the proclamation.

[ The disregard for magicians continues unabated.

However, due to the oppression of knights and the meager efforts of the magicians themselves, no solutions were found in the past.

If we do not change the mindset of magicians, if we do not alter the structure that inevitably leads to the disregard of magicians, then a fundamental solution is impossible… ]

“A student wrote this?”

Violet muttered unconsciously.

[ All magicians in the Merhen Academy’s Magic Department must do their utmost to achieve a fundamental solution.

Set strict standards to select a representative, and establish a proper curriculum to cultivate magicians.

I strongly urge you to make constant efforts and practice tirelessly.

A magician does not bow to anyone.

Resist, create, and hope. Reject what is unacceptable.

Deny the current state of the world entirely.

Those who seek to change the current state of magicians are in the right.

So don’t worry and just move forward.

ㅡ Merhen-level Magician ‘Kaplan’ ㅡ ]

“…No, it wasn’t a student.”

Violet shook her head.

The title and content were provocative, but there was nothing outright wrong with them.

Moreover, the level of insight into magic and magicians was impressive. It was hard to believe this was written by students.

Next to her, Sephia cautiously asked,

“Sis, what do you think?”

“Quiet. Just be quiet for a moment.”

Though her response was blunt, Sephia was pleased. It was gratifying to see her sister show interest in the proclamation.

‘As expected!’

Sephia silently cheered.

Meanwhile, Violet’s attention shifted to the problem at the bottom of the proclamation. She immediately recognized it as an illusion formula.

However, the circuit was intricately intertwined, and it seemed a lot of effort was put into the auxiliary formulas to enhance the illusion.

“…There’s not even a trace of the formula being revised.”

Violet muttered, as if in disbelief.

“Exactly

. This means it was created without any revisions. Isn’t that impressive?”

“Whoever did this put in a tremendous amount of work. Both the content of the text and the attached formula.”

At this, Sephia burst into laughter.

“You know what? Your face looks fully awake now.”

“Does sleep matter right now? Who could have written this? It’s similar to what I’ve been striving for.”

“Yeah. I thought it resembled your ideas a bit.”

Violet quickly turned to look at Sephia.

“What’s this ‘Merhen-level’ title at the bottom? Magic levels are usually classified by numbers.”

“That’s right. They’re classified by numbers.”

“Who wrote this? Tell me immediately. Is Kaplan an individual student’s name? Or a group?”

“Well, there’s no group or individual with that name as far as we know. We just discovered the proclamation this morning and are rushing to prepare it as a special edition?”

Sephia feigned ignorance, and Violet sighed deeply and turned away.

‘Kaplan… Kaplan…’

Violet repeated the name in her mind, and suddenly, a student with a similar name naturally came to mind.

‘Flan?’

She quickly shook her head. That connection was absurd.

Nonetheless, it was clear that Violet’s attitude had shifted.

Originally planning to hastily listen to Sephia’s request before preparing for her lecture, Violet was now genuinely intrigued by the proclamation.

Violet pointed at the top of the illusion formula with her index finger and said,

“Let’s verify this illusion formula immediately. I’ll calculate the upper part, and you handle the lower part.”

“Sounds good. I was curious to check it out too.”

Without hesitation, they both began working on their assigned parts simultaneously.

The calculation didn’t take long.

Rather than “easy,” the formula was more accurately described as “thoughtful.” It was designed to be accessible to anyone capable of using magic.

As soon as the two women infused mana into the formula, the illusion gradually unfolded.

At first glance, it was an ordinary world. There were buildings, and people were passing by.

As they stared blankly at the scene, Violet and Sephia suddenly tilted their heads in confusion. There was a sense of incongruity they couldn’t quite place.

And it didn’t take long to figure out the reason.

Although the world appeared normal on the surface, it was a world that Violet and Sephia had never experienced.

The first thing that caught their eyes was an impossibly enormous tower. And it didn’t take long to realize it was a magic tower.

Their mouths fell open involuntarily.

How could a magic tower be so gigantic? It made the real-world magic towers look like toothpicks.

But that wasn’t all. As magicians in formal suits passed by, knights nodded to them. The magicians responded with a slight nod.

There wasn’t a hint of fear in the magicians’ eyes as they looked at the knights. Their faces were filled with confidence.

Yet, there wasn’t the slightest hint of disdain for the knights. Everything seemed naturally accepted, like an easy truth.

Even though they were watching an illusion, the two women murmured simultaneously.

“…It’s vivid.”

That was the only way to describe it. The scene was so vivid that it felt like it truly existed.

Usually, the world inside an illusion only appears plausible on the surface.

The dog doesn’t bark, or a passerby won’t react even if a drink is spilled on their clothes…

Such details are often lacking. It’s only an illusion, after all.

But.

“…It’s too, too vivid.”

This was far too vivid.

How desperately must the creator of this formula have yearned for such a world?

How intensely did they desire it to the point that no flaws could be found within this illusion?

It didn’t feel like an illusion at all.

Magicians sighing as they perused magic theses, knights curiously observing them, a magician warmly greeting a knight couple’s child as they passed by…

Everything was so natural, as if showing a real world.

Without realizing it, Violet raised her hand. As she was about to tap the shoulder of one of the passing magicians…

The illusion ended. The scenery of the Merhen Daily editorial department returned before Sephia and Violet’s eyes.

Sephia rolled her eyes to look at her sister.

Violet was still touching the formula she had just experienced. Could it be an illusion? The dark circles under her eyes seemed to be fading.

“We’re going to distribute this as a special edition. I wonder what the reaction will be?”

Sephia asked casually, probing for her sister’s opinion.

There was no immediate response. Sephia grabbed Violet’s shoulder and shook her.

“Hey~ Sis! I want to know what you think!”

Violet, who was being shaken, finally opened her mouth with difficulty.

“What do you think?”

Violet muttered.

Sephia looked at her sister.

Something was beginning to ignite within the once-exhausted face of Violet. It wasn’t something negative but rather something that brought life back to her.

“Why are you asking such an obvious question?”

Violet spoke again.

Not only Sephia, but Violet herself stared blankly into Sephia’s eyes.

Violet saw her own reflection in Sephia’s clear eyes.

The image of herself wasn’t one of exhaustion, with lifeless eyes. It was just herself, engulfed in an inexplicable emotion.

Violet whispered, as if squeezing it out from deep within her heart.

“…It’s going to cause an uproar.”

She finally realized that the mysterious emotion she was feeling was ‘passion.’