Player 0.4 [You have died.] [Reset in progress.]

Is he nuts?

Glancing at my own reflection in the mirror, between the messy hair and dark eye bags, I looked like a crazy person myself. And having not slept all night, my mind was in the best condition.

However, thanks to the Cat Nap Potions, my mind was still functioning. Just a beat slower than normal.

Which was why I concluded that the impeccably groomed royal mage sitting across from me—who, until this moment, had seemed remarkably reasonable given the generous internship agreement—was in fact completely insane.

I had been enrolled at Rosel Academy for barely a week. My contract with Void wasn’t even a full day old.

Regardless of everything else I hadn’t revealed to him, Augustus knew both of these things.

Yet he still wanted to drag me to a battlefield?

He’s nuts. Completely insane.

“You don’t mean today…?” I asked cautiously, realizing that perhaps I had jumped to conclusions.

Augustus laughed brightly, the sound drawing a curious glance from a pair of nearby students passing through the administration hall.

“Oh goodness no,” he said.

Relief washed over me, and my shoulders relaxed.

I smiled and even laughed along with him. “Ah, of course not…”

“The day is already half over,” Augustus continued lightly, lifting his teacup. “And the southern front is roughly an hour away by portal.”

My smile began to wither away.

He tilted the cup and finished off the remainder of the dark tea.

“It would be terribly inefficient to go today.”

Augustus lowered the cup delicately onto its saucer and settled back comfortably in his chair.

“However,” he continued, “as you do not have classes over the weekend, the timing works out rather nicely.”

Ah. Damn it. So I had been correct.

“That region actually used to be one of the continent’s most popular tourist destinations before the war,” Augustus explained. Sunlight streamed through the tall window beside him, catching faintly in his green eyes. “Beautiful coastlines. Excellent seafood. Perfect weather this time of year.”

I merely stared at him.

“It remains quite scenic, despite the occasional military engagement,” he continued in the same reassuring tone. “The trip itself will only be overnight, and during your off-hours you’ll be free to explore the area as you please.”

A pleasant smile stretched out across his face.

“And all expenses will be paid, naturally.”

This man genuinely considered an active battlefield to be tourism-adjacent.

I sighed and glanced down at my shadow. Or rather, at Void.

I had already traumatized one newborn phoenix, though entirely unintentionally.

And I knew there would inevitably come a point where I would expose Void to bloodshed and violence. But unlike Leona, whom I had the option of keeping away, Void followed me everywhere. He was practically an extension of me.

Moreover, what Augustus was suggesting wasn’t merely something to stop at the exposure of violence, but quite possibly the infliction. I myself intended that development…. Eventually. However, as of this moment, Void was a toddler. A dangerous toddler. But a toddler nonetheless.

“What would I be expected to do…?” I asked, though my question was more in regard to what Void would be expected to do. “I hadn’t expected to be on the frontlines so soon.”

Augustus stared at me for a moment.

“The frontlines…?” he mumbled, “Aren’t you eager to show off?”

He chuckled.

“As expected of my protégé. Though throwing my first ever intern directly into open battle might reflect rather poorly on me…”

His green eyes twinkled with amusement.

“Still, I’m sure arrangements could be made.”

He winked.

A cold chill ran down my spine.

“Ah, no, that’s quite all right!” I waved my hands mid-air in protest, realizing I had accidentally brought forth a very dangerous misunderstanding. “I’m new to magic use, and my contract with Void is quite new as well, so it would be best to avoid any direct bloodshed.”

“Relax,” Augustus laughed. “You vastly overestimate the danger the southern front presents.”

“Besides, I had no intention of placing you in the middle of a battlefield,” he continued. “You’re still merely a student. At most, you would accompany me during inspections and strategic operations.”

He lifted his right hand and began listing the work, raising each finger.

“Reviewing defensive fortifications. Observing troop movements. Evaluating magical ward stability. Perhaps accompany me with a strike team if a particularly troub—ahem, interesting issue emerges.”

He paused.

“Or assisting in the interrogation of captured enemy mages, should your elemental prove useful. Given what you’ve shown me today, that was the first use that crossed my mind.”

My eyes widened.

That somehow sounded worse than what I had initially imagined he’d want to utilize Void for.

{{ Mama, I’ll be doing interrogations? }}

I screamed internally, realizing the Void was awake and aware of the conversation.

“No,” I quickly stated. “I’d prefer to handle the interrogations myself, without my elemental.”

Perhaps I could have Void extend out of the room to avoid witnessing anything? It would be better than having him exposed—or worse, engage—in something like that.

Augustus blinked.

Then one of his brows slowly rose. “Oh?”

There was a subtle shift in his expression now. It wasn’t alarm, but interest. He was evaluating me again. And by now I’ve learned to be wary of this expression.

“It’s rare for anyone to volunteer for such sort of work,” he observed, speaking slowly and massaging his chin. “Most find it distasteful—that was why I suggested utilizing your elemental.”

Ah. Damn it. I should stop speaking. I keep making it worse.

I felt the realization hit a second too late.

Most students would have likely recoiled at the mere mention of interrogations—a poorly veiled word for torture. Even if one of my peers at the academy understood what such work truly entailed, they certainly wouldn’t volunteer for it.

Meanwhile, I had instinctively attempted to redirect it to myself in a poor attempt to avoid exposing Void to such matters.

“I mean…” I said. “It sounded less dangerous than accompanying a strike team.”

Augustus studied me for another moment, green eyes sharp with amusement.

“Well, physically speaking, yes,” he admitted. “Though most interns would disagree.”

He leaned back slightly.

“Interrogations involving mages are not particularly pleasant affairs. Mental interference, memory tampering, emotional distortions… There are a number of unpleasant methods involved.”

I kept my expression neutral.

I felt as if expressing either positive or negative emotions would only get misconstrued. And I’d already dug my hole far too deep.

“And yet,” Augustus continued slowly, “you volunteered for it immediately.”

He clicked his tongue.

“Very well, I’ll have it arranged. I’m eager to see what you can do.”

Augustus smiled and stood up, adjusting his deep red robes.

“In the meantime,” Augustus continued, motioning for me to follow him, “I do still have some mundane duties to attend to.”

I stood from my seat as well, my body protesting slightly from exhaustion.

“As do you,” he added. “There are still a few productive hours left in the day. Unless, of course, you intend to spend every waking moment of your weekend working.”

I had originally intended to dedicate the entire day to training Void, but after spending hours doing nothing but that, I desperately needed a break.

“No, I’ll come with you,” I said and followed him out of the administration building.

The moment we stepped outside, the warmth of the midday sun and the sound of hundreds of students washed over us. The academy grounds were lively now, the pathways crowded with students taking advantage of the lunch hour. Some lounged across the green grassy lawns beneath the bright sun, while others occupied the shaded benches lining the walkways, trays from the cafeteria balanced on their laps as conversations drifted through the air.

My stomach grumbled inadvertently at the scent of food lingering in the breeze.

I had a very early breakfast, and with Augustus showing up, I hadn't had lunch yet.

“Lunch will be waiting for us at the palace, in my office,” Augustus said with a smile. “So try not to collapse from starvation before then.”

“I won’t,” I replied and continued walking beside him.

“Ah,” Augustus suddenly said, pausing mid-step despite the many gazes drifting toward us. “Before I forget.”

He slipped a hand into his red robes and withdrew a thick envelope stamped with an intricate seal pressed into dark crimson wax.

My eyes widened slightly in recognition.

It was the seal of the royal family of the kingdom I was in.

I accepted the envelope and carefully opened it as we resumed walking through the campus grounds.

Inside was a single pristine card. And at the center, written in elegant flowing calligraphy, was a signature.

Crown Prince Mirco Caelmont.

Ah, that’s right. The autograph.

I had originally requested it merely to justify the secrecy surrounding our true discussion—the actual reason I had entered into this internship agreement with Augustus in the first place. I knew Augustus would procure it, given that it was agreed upon in a binding contract, but I had not expected to receive it so soon.

While it was something I didn’t really need or want, I was very careful to place it back into the envelope, which I then securely placed between the pages of a book I’d borrowed from the library in my bag. It felt way too important to be careless with.

“A Parent’s Guide to Toddlers?” Augustus had apparently caught sight of the title while I was storing it away. He raised a brow as his green eyes met mine.

“It’s for training my elemental,” I explained immediately.

I did not need him to misunderstand that I was secretly parenting a human child, or intended to major in Child Development.

Though perhaps, that wouldn’t be such a ridiculous notion given my reality….

“Huh,” Augustus murmured. “Is that so?”

He glanced briefly toward the shadow at my feet.

“I never had much interest in obtaining an elemental myself,” he admitted. “They are frequently compared to pets in terms of upkeep and responsibility. But if the workload is comparable to parenthood…”

He shook his head

By the time we arrived at the palace, the normal lunch hour had long since passed. Still, the moment we teleported inside Augustus’s office, servants appeared almost immediately carrying silver platters laden with freshly prepared food, as if they had been waiting just outside the door for our return.

I gulped down my sandwich while flipping through the stacks of documents he had handed me to organize and summarize for him. Reports. Investigations. Diplomatic disputes. Mana instability incidents. Criminal activity involving rogue mages.

‘Mundane’ was not quite the word I would have used.

One document detailed the successful, quiet erasure of a minor noble family after they attempted to auction off military-grade magical artifacts to a foreign power. Another described a failed assassination attempt against a duke of this kingdom, on the orders of none other than the royal family. Yet another outlined the current status of negotiations with a notorious criminal organization.

I suddenly understood why my internship agreement included magically binding non-disclosure clauses.

I glanced toward Augustus.

The blonde royal mage flipped through classified documents while signing paperwork with a relaxed, almost bored expression. He even yawned.

Then again, perhaps with enough exposure, even assassination attempts, covert operations, and partnerships with criminal organizations eventually became dull and mundane.

I continued sorting through the reports, only half paying attention now as I ate.

But then, a familiar name caught my eye. Or rather two names.

I paused, setting down the rest of my sandwich. I glanced briefly toward Augustus to make sure he wasn't coming over anytime soon.

I sat up slightly and leaned closer toward the document in my hands, now working through it word by word.

It was a detailed intelligence report submitted by a spy embedded within a cult-like organization known as Eclipse.

And the reporting agent’s name was none other than Carmilla Aleicard.

It was the fly that had spied on me.

Moreover, the report went into alarming detail regarding Eclipse’s newest fixation: me.

I slowly lowered the document after having finished reading it in full.

~Master, you are in a deeply troublesome situation. Apophis stated the obvious.

I refrained from sighing, least that would attract Augustus' attention, and instead moved on to the next document while I worked through what to do.

Suddenly, a weekend getaway to a warzone didn’t sound like such a bad idea.

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