"Young lady, this matter is important. How should you call the Tower Master?"
Rosaria replied energetically.
"Dad!"
"Right. You shouldn't call him 'Papa', okay?"
Unlike simply playing and eating at the demonstration, this matter concerned Rosaria's future and Reed's reputation, so Phoebe stepped in to correct some of Rosaria's habits.
"Phoebe won't be with you, so always dress neatly, listen well to the Tower Master's words, and stay close to him, okay?"
"I'll stick close!"
Phoebe clenched her fists and narrowed her eyebrows, speaking with a determined voice.
"Great! Now, it's time for you to chew up and spit out those ordinary people with your abilities!"
"Chew them up? Won't that hurt?"
"Then just lightly bite them like this, 'ang!'"
"Okay!"
Phoebe playfully bit Rosaria's cheek with her lips, and Rosaria burst into giggles.
Phoebe stood up and looked up at Reed.
She, who had been treating Rosaria like a playful younger sister, looked at him with a somewhat worried atmosphere.
"Master..."
"Don't worry."
"Yes, you must take care."
Receiving her farewell, Reed got on the sky carriage with Rosaria.
Reed knew why Phoebe was worried.
Escolleia was a nightmarish place for Reed.
During his time at Escolleia, he lost his parents, and only Reed was left in the Adeleheights family.
The death and its aftermath tormented Reed when he should have been focusing on his studies.
'Talent.'
Perhaps he had been longing for it since then.
In a good way, that is.
He had tried to extend his abilities in various fields and find his aptitude.
'If the real Reed had gone there, he might have been in pain.'
However, he graduated as the runner-up without discovering his talent, so it might have been a curse.
'Now that I don't remember, it might be better.'
The past is the past, and the present is the present.
The competition to secure magicians was a serious matter.
In detail, it was not a simple fight between towers and workshops.
'Towers and workshops... and the alliance of churches and merchants?'
In the case of churches, they had their own priests to nurture, so they merely looked around to see if there were any talents. The merchants' alliance was not influential enough to be considered an enemy.
It was always called a fight between towers and workshops because they were major players.
Whether major or minor, the skills of magicians come first.
'So, I have to proceed with a 1 vs. 3 mindset.'
As Reed thought so, Rosaria pulled on his clothes and caught his attention.
"Dad, Dad! Look at that! There's an island!"
She pointed beyond the window.
Escolleia Magic Academy.
A place where schools and buildings were built on an island floating in the middle of the largest artificial lake in the entire continent.
The essence of education, boasting ironclad security using various magic barriers and geographical features.
To enter Escolleia Magic Academy, one must cross a long bridge without exception.
It was a long-standing tradition that could not be ignored, even for the most prestigious families or Tower Masters.
So, they parked the sky carriage in front of the bridge and Reed and Rosaria got off.
"Watch your step."
"It's cold!"
"It's still winter, so it's quite cold. Let's put on earmuffs and masks tightly."
"Okay."
As it was the day before graduation, workers were cleaning and doing maintenance work.
"It's been a long time since I've been here."
It wasn't a stretch to say that it had been a long time since he had visited while playing the game.
As Reed was about to walk along the bridge, he saw something flying towards them from the sky.
'It's the Empire's sky carriage.'
There was no mistaking it when looking at the emblem proudly placed in the center.
He wanted to avoid them and go with just Rosaria, but they had already caught his eye, so he couldn't pretend not to notice.
The Empire's sky carriage landed, and the magician inside revealed himself.
Zekeheil Frenda.
The red-haired middle-aged man, the chief magician of the Empire's workshop, came out.
But it wasn't just him, as someone's grumbling voice echoed from inside.
"Dad, I told you to change the carriage! The seat is hard and it hurts my butt."
"Was the seat hard? Oh dear, I'm sorry, my daughter."
"I don't like it, really! Humph!"
Yuria frowned and turned her head sharply.
Although it was a situation where he could scold her, Ziegheil gently smiled and appeased her.
'She's the same whether she's young or old.'
No, has she evolved as she got older?
When she was a child, it was easy to overlook since she wasn't his child, but when a grown lady does such a thing, it appears annoying.
As Reed was thinking that, Ziegheil noticed him standing on the bridge and greeted him.
"Oh, isn't it the Silence Tower Master?"
"Eh? That's the Silence Tower Master?"
Following Ziegheil's gaze, Yuria's eyes saw a young man with gray hair and golden eyes.
Yuria quickly brushed her red hair with her hand, turning her head sharply.
When she turned her head again, her face had become softer and more mature.
Walking beside Ziegheil, she gracefully greeted him.
"Ah, hello, Silence Tower Master. I'm Yuria Frenda, pleased to meet you."
A 180-degree change in attitude.
Thinking he hadn't heard the conversation just a moment ago, Reed went along with her pretentious demeanor.
"It's been a while since the demonstration, Chief Magician."
"That's right. You're becoming more and more impressive."
"You seem to be getting younger, Chief Magician."
"Ha ha! That's because I've been applying a cream made from snails lately. Silence Tower Master, you should try it too. They say it improves your skin."
"Thank you for the good information."
While the adults had a trivial conversation, the children continued theirs.
Rosaria waved her hand and said.
"Yuria, hi!"
"Hmm! Lady Roton, as I always tell you, it's rude to call someone by their name without permission."
"Rag? Why is it a rag?"
"No, it's rude! 'Rude!'"
"I don't get it!"
"Ugh!"
With a smile on her face, Rosaria contrasted with Yuria's blushing face.
Worried that a fight might break out, Reed cautiously spoke to Yuria.
"I apologize, Miss Frenda. My daughter is still ignorant of many things, so please be understanding."
"Ah! I'm not, not angry! How could a lady be angry at such trivial things? Ho ho!"
Yuria laughed like a well-mannered woman.
Either way, Reed looked up at Ziegheil.
"I didn't expect you to come with your daughter."
"She's 9 years old and has learned some magic, so shouldn't we show her to the headmaster in advance?"
Ziegheil stroked Yuria's head and smiled.
Listening to his words, Reed guessed one thing.
'This isn't just a simple talent competition.'
Yuria and Rosaria.
He was sure that a match between the two would also take place.
