Carseain : " You remember you said that there were some magic stones that do not have presence but hold immense power. How do you recognize them again?"
Rovenin : " When the moonlight falls on them they change their appearance into a normal magic stone but with a greater amount of magic."
" Hmm.... they're hard to find, right? I remember you made us collect rocks from dusk till dawn for some special attribute stone."
Rovenin : " Well, that's because finding them is like looking for a needle in a haystack. Why do you ask?"
Carseain : "No particular reason. Do you want one?"
Rovenin titled his head.
" Of course, I do."
" Hey Rovenin, open the windows."
" Umm... Alright."
' There's no way he has any...right?' he thought as he opened the curtain.
Carseain appeared in front of the window before Rovenin could even turn back.
He showed him a stone that he took out from his drawer.
Rovenin was still in denial.
" There's no way you're serious."
Carseain simply moved it under the moonlight as he smiled.
The stone undeniably was the magic stone in the talk. It turned blue and so did Rovenin's face.
" Wow , that seems like a water attribute but it's much more stronger than the ones I have!"
Rovenin wanted to take a closer look at the stone but Carseain didn't let him even touch it.
" Hey, what will you even do with that ? I will make much better use of it than most people."
" Whoa! Look at that confidence! Maybe I'll just sell it."
"Fine. I'll buy it. "
" Then I'll break it. I wonder how would it feel to break a precious stone~~ "
Rovenin was exasperated.
"Agh... What the hell do you want now?"
"Spill it." He said staunchly. Carseain was determined to make him spill the beans even though he had a faint idea of what was going on.
"What?!"
" Oh my , it's not really fun seeing a genius play dumb. It doesn't seem like the magic tower must be our Lil' Ducal Prince..."
" He's older than you though..."
" So, it was him?"
Rovenin sighed. He took out a letter that was held under the table by him and gave it to Carseain.
" Whoa, you always had stupid hiding places where one would least expect..."
" At Least I am better than a person who keeps magic stones and cookies together in his drawer which is not even locked...."
"Grrr ..." Carseain growled. Rovenin averted his eyes.
Carseain opened the letter to read it. As his eyes moved down the letter his expression less face started wearing and absurd expression with each passing line.
"Is he courting you right now? It feels like I am reading a Serenade for his lover..."
Carseain checked the address back-and-forth.
"Are... are you sure this was for you?! Didn't The postman get the wrong address...."
Rovenin pointed towards the opening of the letter.
" Can't you see the 'My Dear friend Rovenin' here?"
" I didn't know he was interested in men."
He said, pretending to be surprised.
" Enough of your jokes...."
Rovenin sighed.
" The problem is that he is not just making offers like he did before. He just keeps sending me these letters as fellow magicians and 'friends'."
Carseain was still glancing through the letter.
"So, what's the problem ? You don't have to go through all the trouble and dealing with the aftermath of rejecting a noble. "
Rovenin shook his head with a frown.
" The issue is the public opinion. He is using an informal way of pressuring me and I heard that you also went around advertising that we exchange letters on a regular basis."
Carseain tilted his head.
"You do? I am surprised you had that much time after dealing with all my troublesome cleanups... hahaha"
Carseain laughed while Rovenin narrowed his eyes.
"Well, I use that as an excuse and reply to him after every three letters he sends..."
Carseain raised his brow in surprise.
" You keep complaining about mm being a troublemaker but here you are using it as a shield to deal with annoying things."
Rovenin kept quiet while Carseain shook his head.
He tossed the letter on to the table and said with a light scoff,
"Well, if you're worried about the public opinion then I'm sure it'll be on your side for being loyal. Given the fact that the majority of nobles look down on commoners , they'll just say something like...."
Carseain took a deep breath and made an ugly face.
" It is only right that the commoner stay loyal to the nobility that were gracious enough to take him in, no matter how excellent he may become...Ahem Ahem..."
He faked a supposedly 'elegant' fake cough of the nobility with his eyes closed longer than usual.
Rovenin started laughing.
" What the hell?! Did Lynn's lil' act made you do it? "
" Somewhat... "
Carseain opened one of his eyes and saw him laughing. Rovenin's relaxed expression made him sigh in relief.
" I can't do this in front of anyone..."
" Oh so, your interest in opera actors was real after all?!!"
Rovenin said in a teasing voice.
" Shut it!"
" Okay."
Carseain scratched his head.
" Anyways, what I meant was you don't have to worry about public opinion and what- not. You are free to do whatever you want."
Carseain sat back on his desk while saying,
" Also, you have the Esselgardes on your side. You know that father has everything at his disposal for you , THAT IS IF YOU WISH FOR IT."
He said as his red eyes gleamed. It was as if he was telling him that,
' Just say it, I'll get that head with white hair for you.'
Rovenin smiled silently at his reassurance.
" You wouldn't have faced this problem if you had accepted the Noble title in the first place."
Carseain mumbled silently.
With a short break ending, he had Carsein prepare for the exam the next day.
Even though he smiled, his worries were not assuaged.
Rovenin knew that the public opinion will stay in his favour regardless of the situation or to say more precisely Miguel's supporters will not let it go against him as there was no merit in talking crap about a Genius Magician.
However, Miguel is a shrewd man. He would use this opportunity to aggravate the nobles against the 'Mad Hound' whose name has already hit rock bottom in the high society. He would put all the blame on 'Lunatic Carseain Esselgarde' who was holding back the growth of a genius magician. Well, even if it's not a big deal they would make it seem like one to destabilize the household even a bit.
Carseain had not thought this far but Rovenin was thankful for that. Carseain getting hurt because of him would be the last thing that he would let happen. In order to shut the mouths of people saying 'Carseain was holding him back' he strived day and night to make breakthroughs in the world of magic.
Carseain didn't know the real reason he worked hard but he knew that Rovenin had a habit of locking himself up in his Lab when working on magic. During that time Carseain would not step out of the Mansion. He would only sleep or train with minimum contact with anyone so as to lessen the chances of getting into trouble which would eventually lead to disturb Rovenin. It was the minimum amount of consideration he, who was bad with expressing himself, could show for someone he calls Big Brother.
There were a few professors of Zerous Academy and other higher institutions that he was affiliated with who were genuinely worried if that was the case.
Rovenin would always respond with a smile.
" If it wasn't for him, I would have never even bothered testing my limits. So, rest assured. He is also always the first to test out everything I suggest even if it ends in a disaster. "
He made everyone laugh at the struggles every researcher faces. He made Carseain seem like his comrade. The Professors felt a little assured.
" It must be true if you say so. I've seen that Esselgarde brat listen to you a little obediently."
" It would be nice if he took his other classes just as seriously as he does for his sword."
Rovenin : " He's just a shy kid who's bad with words. Even if he doesn't take exams I do see him secretly trying to get at least the basics right."
' Shy, huh?! ' One of the professors looked a little skeptical.
" Does he get them?"
" No."
Rovenin replied in an instant.
Rovenin : " When I found out about it, I would leave my notes with explanations from an elementary level."
" I wonder if it helped."
" We would only know that if he ever took a test regardless, if he is going to continue his ' secret studies', I'll keep at it."
Professors looked at Rovenin with a warm expression and a hint of forgo.
" I had a chance to get a drink with the Marquis, he told me that Rovenin had completely turned into a babysitter and it seems like it was true."
" You surely jest, Professor."
He shrugged.
" Now that I think about it, that young lad sure did know how to use the techniques you introduced efficiently. Did you teach him?"
Rovenin : " Of course not, I don't . He just pesters me everyday from dusk till dawn until I don't help him. It's quite fun having him stay quiet like a cute kid until he gets a hang of it. Hahaha.."
' Cute?'
" I'm sure he gets back at you when it's over."
" All the more reason to have another breakthrough."
He said with a sigh.
" Rovenin, you look like a dad searching for new toys for his overly energetic son."
One of them remarked.