“Did you two know anything about this?” asked Satori.
She had no idea what was going on. It seemed she hadn’t noticed. She’d only vaguely thought, We sure are getting a lot of gifts this time.
“No, not really.”
“Me neither…”
That morning, when the professor arrived at their humble research facility, she’d asked her assistants a question: Did you know what was going on?
Neither of them had any idea.
“Well, I did find a few things kind of strange,” said Zaricks.
He’d noticed some changes in their surroundings over the last couple weeks, but like Satori and Saiha, he hadn’t paid them any mind.
It seemed a problem had arisen, and Satori had received an official complaint from the village chief and ten other men. The very reasonable criticism went like this: One of your sorcerers is causing trouble by hitting on the village women.
“I don’t have the foggiest idea what you could be talking about” was what Satori wanted to say, but unfortunately, that wasn’t true. In fact, she had a good guess as to who the culprit was. It couldn’t have been more obvious.
After accepting the complaint, she returned to the research facility.
She had an idea of what must have happened, as did her two older assistants.
They had been receiving uncharacteristically frequent deliveries of sweets, fruits, jams, and more, which they had eaten as they worked. But now that they thought about it, all that food had been fairly lavish.
Sorcerers were welcome in Keym Village. The villagers prepared food for them, provided daily necessities, and would perform any favor if asked. All for a fee, of course. Otherwise, the villagers mostly left them alone.
There was never any exchange of information between the two groups. At most, they made small talk when they happened to run into each other.
As guests of the village, the sorcerers were careful not to cross certain lines. That was how Satori, Zaricks, and Saiha had completely missed what was happening.
When sorcerers began an experiment, they tended to devote themselves to it so completely they neglected all else. Many sorcerers struggled to pay attention to their surroundings at the best of times, and that only intensified during an experiment.
“I’m not surprised,” said Saiha. “Kunon is cute, and with no warning about his personality…I can see how naive village girls would fall for him.”
The other two knew what she meant.
Kunon’s behavior was frivolous. He was well-known at the magic school, so all the teachers and students were aware of his quirks. Everyone kept his reputation in mind as they interacted with him, and many simply found him funny as a result.
But what if one wasn’t prepared for his advances? What if a village girl unaccustomed to nobles took his words seriously?
That was the cause of the grievance.
Kunon was probably behaving the same way he did at magic school. He hadn’t restrained himself at all in front of the villagers. Satori, who was used to his personality, hadn’t even considered the issue.
“What should we do about this, Professor Satori?” asked Zaricks.
“We don’t have to do anything,” she replied.
She’d listened to the villager’s complaints, but to be honest, she didn’t really think there was a problem.
“We’re about to leave anyway.”
That was right—the experiment was already over. All they had left to do was to gather their things and return to Dirashik.
They’d remained until that day to clean up, but Kunon, who had been commuting from home, wasn’t there. The previous day had been his last in the village.
“I asked them to drop the matter because the sorcerer who caused the problem has already left.”
The village men had been relieved to hear that. Judging from what Satori had heard, it sounded like Kunon had become very popular among girls and women of all ages in the village, and men were returning from a long day at work to find their daughters, wives, and grandmothers had fallen for him. That seemed to be the gist anyway.
The village chief was also relieved to hear Kunon was gone and grumbled that his granddaughter had been one of his victims.
At least it sounded like Kunon was kind to boys as well as girls when it came to children, so Satori had to give him credit for that. If he treated even children differently based on their gender, she might have had to reevaluate her opinion of him.
“All right, let’s prepare to depart.”
A problem might have arisen at the end of their stay, but fortunately, because they learned of it right before they were due to leave, they didn’t have to deal with it.
Kunon’s behavior may have been…problematic. But at the end of the day, he was a sorcerer who cared for nothing but magic—just like the rest of them. Satori knew that well.
Kunon had no reason to come back. He wouldn’t cause any more trouble. Still, she planned to give him a stern reprimand when she returned.
…Later, a dark cloud fell over Keym Village as news spread that Kunon had left.
The women were depressed, while the men were indignant about being compared to a supposed gentleman named “Kunon” they had never even met.
Old women gained a new lease on life, saying things like “Maybe there’s use for these old bones yet,” and the village chief’s granddaughter began treating him coldly after learning he’d complained to the sorcerers.
Those bizarre two weeks—which ended as abruptly as they’d begun—left a lasting mark on the village, introducing the confusing idea that “gentlemen are all lady-killers.”
✦ ✦ ✦
“E-excuse me! Young sir! Please wait!”
While Satori and her assistants were preparing to leave Keym Village, Kunon was approaching the magic school. The experiment in Keym was over, so he was attending school for the first time in a while.
But just before he reached campus, an elderly man called out to him.
“Hmm?”
At first, Kunon didn’t think the man was talking to him, but the fellow’s rapid footsteps were clearly headed his way.
“Are you Mister Kunon Gurion? Or do I have the wrong person?”
“Y-yes, I’m Kunon.”
The old man approached him and even used his name. This was clearly no mistake.
He looked around sixty or seventy years old. His nice clothes clearly marked him as a gentleman. He was tall and thin and projected a dangerous aura, sharp as a blade.
“Excuse my rudeness. I am a butler of the Quartz family.”
“…Quartz…?”
That name sounds familiar, Kunon thought. It only took a moment for him to place it.
“Oh, that’s Miss Serraphila’s…”
Not many people used their family name at the magic school, and that went double for those in the Advanced class. These days, Kunon barely ever used his.
“Mr. Kunon.” The old man stepped quickly toward him at the sound of his charge’s name. The air had been tense to begin with, but now it was thick enough to cut with a knife. “I have something to speak with you about regarding Miss Serraphila. Could I please have a moment of your time?”
The old man had phrased his words as a question, but the intense pressure behind them made it clear he wouldn’t take no for an answer.