"Huff… huff… Master… at this point, shouldn't you tell me why we're doing this? I'm pouring so much of my mana into this… I deserve to know the reason at least!"
Lisa was leaning heavily on her large staff, her body showing signs of extreme exhaustion. Her tongue lolled out and her body heaved, indicating her fatigue.
Despite her usual frivolous behavior, Lisa was a highly talented individual, holding a professorship at Academia.
Her mana reserves were considerable, yet here she was, looking close to collapse from overexertion.
But.
"Be quiet."
It wasn't that I didn't understand Lisa's frustration, but explaining the current situation to her could jeopardize the plan.
Thus, I couldn't tell her.
Lisa didn't like my answer. She straightened up, her eyebrows sharply furrowed.
"If you keep keeping secrets like this, I won't help you anymore! Even if I'm your tutor, this is tyranny, pure tyranny!"
"30 gold."
"Don't change the subject! I'm furious right now and you're talking about money!"
Did she not understand?
Perhaps I should explain a bit more.
"That's the amount of money you receive monthly from the Schugenhartz family."
"That's true, but…"
Lisa's anger seemed to subside as the reality of her situation sank in.
"Are you expecting a detailed explanation?"
"… ugh."
Lisa gritted her teeth, trying to resist, but eventually, she deflated like a balloon.
She understood. The amount she received was substantial.
This was true even for an Academia professor. Considering that a junior professor's salary was 10 gold a month, the weight of her current earnings was significant.
Moreover, Lisa had caused numerous problems at Academia, leading to a significant reduction in her salary. Her current income might even be less than what she earned as a junior professor.
"When you put it that way, I guess I have no choice… ugh… you're right. I'm in no position to complain when I'm receiving 30 gold a month. I should just do my job."
Lisa, who had been silent for a moment, reluctantly admitted her situation.
"… then, let me ask you one thing."
The mix of anger and mischief in her expression disappeared, replaced by worry.
"Do you plan to kill Miss Emma?"
Lisa continued to speak. I listened with half an ear as I poured the magical liquid from the bottle onto the planted object.
The blue liquid flowed out. I used a bit of mana to help it penetrate deeply.
"That's… Miss Emma's mana from the last fight with the bugs."
The liquid was highly concentrated. Its density far exceeded that of ambient mana.
I had extracted the genius Emma's mana down to the last drop, so even in its compressed form, the amount was significant. And she wasn't even fully matured yet.
"Master, I don't know what you're thinking, but the backlash from this will be severe… and the more intense the experience, the closer it gets to death."
While Lisa's specialty differed from this, she was an expert in magical formulas. She had grasped the general idea, if not all the specifics, of this operation.
Hence her persistence in trying to stop me.
Lisa wanted to prevent my actions from the start. Her earlier outburst was just a convenient pretext. She disliked heavy atmospheres and preferred to resolve matters lightly, as she usually did.
"Don't you care about Miss Emma? She has such a bright future ahead of her…!"
"Do you know the future?"
"Yes?"
Lisa looked puzzled. She seemed ready to argue why such a question was relevant.
"I asked if you know the future."
"Master, I'm serious right now!"
"Lisa."
I called her name.
Lisa stared at me with a face full of unspoken words.
"If we don't do this, it's the same as failing."
It wasn't a piece of wisdom or advice. She wouldn't understand what I was saying. But that was normal. There was no reason for her to understand.
"…."
Lisa didn't know the details, but she seemed to realize that my decision was final. She sighed deeply and bit her lip, looking dejected.
Finally, she spoke again.
"If something happens to Miss Emma, you won't even reach that
Her weak question didn't require an answer. She knew I would proceed regardless of her opposition.
Still, she asked out of a lingering sense of responsibility. Her bond with Emma had compelled her to speak.
'You had grown quite attached, Lisa. Had you developed such a strong bond already?'
Emotions were indeed frightening. They sought to consume reason, controlling us
Succumbing to emotions made us no different from animals, driven by the pursuit of pleasure.
But I would never succumb to such things.
Worried about not reaching my goal without Emma? Ridiculous.
"If that happens, I'll just find another way."
Lisa's face hardened at my cold response. Her lips trembled as if she wanted to retort but held herself back. She lowered her gaze, clutching her staff tightly.
"You always say that, Master. But… how many more times can you 'find another way' before you lose yourself completely?"
Her voice was barely audible, almost drowned by the faint hum of mana flowing through the planted object. The words, however, lingered, hanging heavily in the air.
"Losing myself isn't your concern, Lisa," I replied curtly, not sparing her a glance. My attention remained focused on the glowing lines of the spellwork etched into the soil. Each stroke of mana needed to be perfect, or everything would fall apart.
Lisa didn't respond immediately. Instead, she let out a bitter chuckle, though it lacked her usual humor.
"Of course, it's not my concern. Why should it be? You're the great heir of Schugenhartz, after all," she muttered.
I ignored her sarcasm, letting the silence stretch.
In truth, her words touched on something I tried to suppress—something I didn't want to acknowledge. Finding another way, making sacrifices, bending rules to achieve my result... How long could I maintain this balancing act before everything collapsed?
But I couldn't afford to think about that now.