Lovile Kingdom's capital city has two adventurer guilds due to its vast size. We already checked the adventurer guild of the east side when we met with Guild Master Zericch-sama. I was curious to see the kind of requests the western adventurer guild had.
"So this is the west side guild, huh? And the requests...... I see."
Requests about escorting trade ships, running errands in the vicinity of the harbor, or subjugating monsters that came out of the coastal area were pretty numerous in the east side guild.
On the other hand, the west side guild was deep in the mainland so it had more requests about medicine herbs collection, subjugation requests from the surrounding villages, or dungeon-specific requests as there seemed to be a dungeon located half a day's journey away from the royal capital.
"The requests can be so different despite being in the same city, huh?"
"It's interesting!"
It was early afternoon, and there weren't that many people in the guild. I was discussing with Teto if we should check out a delivery request or two when a group, rare for this time of day, entered the guild.
"Hey, take the materials to the counter."
"Y, Yes Sir......"
A magician, dressed in an attire too tidy for an adventurer while donning a characteristic magician's hat and holding a cane, issued commands to his apparent companions.
The adventurers who accepted the orders could be seen looking at the magician's haughty attitude with discontent but, of course, they didn't speak it out and silently lined the bags filled with their spoils on the counter.
But the situation was not just limited to them, several other groups of the same type also arrived in succession under the leadership of magicians donning deep green robes and every single one of them was putting up such an arrogant attitude.
This strange situation made me feel a slight discomfort but also roused curiosity within me to see what was going on so we continued to observe them from the corner of the room.
"Leave our part, all the wind and water magic catalyst materials. Oh, and half of the rewards, too."
"That much!? I know you guys need the catalyst so I'm not saying anything, but asking for even half of the rewards is too much!"
"What, do you have any complaints against the Suzurland Clan? You know it better than us that you guys can never fight on your own without us magicians!"
"Kuh......"
The adventurer couldn't refute that and groaned in frustration. The magician wearing the title of Suzurland, on the other hand, hung a grin on his face.
"That's the attitude. Just remember that the less you bark, the more it will be good for you! Unlike you plebeians, we need an endless amount of money to research sublime magic after all!"
With those words, Magicians took their share of the money and catalyst materials and quickly made their way out.
The unusual sight slightly surprised me as I headed to the now-empty purchase counter.
"Hello."
"Hello. Is there something you need, girls?"
"We are here to sell these."
I placed the medicinal herbs I had quietly fetched from the magic bag and put them on the counter.
"Miss, what did the guys from earlier mean by 'Suzurland Clan'?"
I asked while under the guise of a local resident who has just come to earn a small sum of money without showing our guild cards.
The person at the counter gave us a warm gaze when I asked while hugging a small animal, and then spoke politely.
"You girls don't know? The Suzurland Clan is the number one place in this kingdom that produces the highest number of wind magicians."
"...... Is the magician clan such an amazing institution?"
The person behind the counter, however, didn't reply when I asked him that in a calm tone and just flashed a bitter smile.
So it was to the extent that they couldn't even express their dissatisfaction, huh?
After that, I also asked some other things as the purchase was ongoing and, when it was done, I then moved to the group of adventurers nearby that had partied up with the magicians from earlier, who were sitting in the pub and grumbling.
"It must be hard~"
"Onii-san, you did all that you can."
"Yeah, it's tough. However, they're backed by the nobles...... Dammit...... But it's not like anything will change even if I explain it to you kids."
In this way, we spent the whole afternoon learning about the unknown side of the Lovile kingdom. It was about the Suzurland Clan.
An incident took place in the ancient magic civilization era 2000 years ago that took down almost the majority of the mana in the surroundings.
This triggered a series of deaths among the populace who couldn't survive the low-mana environment and those who were able to adapt to it had their average capacity lowered, eventually even reducing their chances of becoming magicians.
To protect these rare people who could wield magic and to secure the fighting power of their own nation, they created a new system called noble magicians throughout the kingdom.
The now noble magicians began taking apprentices in order to develop and maintain their magic, and to ensure that magicians wouldn't die out.
Magician Clans are the organizations that raised talented individuals throughout history and grasped the modus operandi about magic to an extent, thus gradually increasing the number of the once rare magicians.
The Suzurland Clan was one such magician clan centered around the Count Suzurland family, a noble family exalted for their wind magicians in the Lovile kingdom.
They specifically had more research themed around wind magicians and they also produced many talented individuals who became Court Sorcerers in the kingdom down the line.
Their location in the capital city of the Lovile kingdom was also related to their value, as wind magic users could move ships without being affected by the weather and push back the wind, rain, and high waves that threatened the capital city, making them more valuable than magicians of the other attributes. Therefore, they seemed to hold the belief that "wind magic is supreme."
They wore dark green robes as a symbol, to indicate their affiliation.
As an aside, although magic schools had been established, there were not enough students to learn magic making them a poor cost-benefit choice. In addition, due to the secrecy of magicians, the apprentice system was used to cultivate magicians.
The current magicians were being cultivated through the use of the apprentice system.
"The Suzurland Clan's magicians, backed by their status as noble magicians, use adventurers to efficiently defeat monsters in the dungeon and level up."
"But their attitude is still not good."
Teto complained, holding Kuro in her arms as evening fell.
However, aside from that, there was something that made me impressed. It was their modus operandi on how to efficiently cultivate magicians over the years.
Although limited to wind attributes, research on magic catalysts and magic potions have led to the development of means to enhance one's own magic, the development of tattoos and patterns to efficiently transmit magic, and the bestowal of magical properties on tools, among other things.
Furthermore, there was also the development of magic that was specific to the region's characteristics.
There were many interesting examples.
"I know the theory behind magic catalysts, but I haven't used them."
Magic catalysts were substances that react with the magical power of materials to increase their overall firepower.
Magic potions that enhanced the power of magic temporarily boosted the magical power within the body.
"Magic catalysts or potions will just excessively increase my firepower which I don't need when I can increase my mana by eating the «Mysterious Fruit», however, I can feel the ingenuity of these people."
At any rate, auxiliary tools were just in the margin of error for me whose reserves have already exceeded 300,000 units of mana.
However, when I thought about how small improvements could lead to new inventions, it excited me.
Though analyzing, improving, and researching catalysts and magic potions may end up like a pastime for someone who has already achieved immortality.
Such information was usually kept confidential and was not necessary for me.
It wasn't important but if the Magician Clans focused on researching attributes centered around the noble magicians, the five major religious organizations could also be considered a magic faction that aimed to reproduce the miracles performed by the goddesses and one that didn't belong to any nation.
There was also the case of the Gard Beastkin Nation which has people with superior racial characteristics but fewer magicians. It was another interesting example as they were trying to raise magicians despite the high cost without the help of any organization like the magician clans.
"Things are really interesting if you think about it......."
"As long as Majou-sama is happy, that's all that matters...... Ah!?"
«Nya~»
Kuro leaped out of Teto's arms as we were walking on sunset road and entered the back alley.
"Wait, Kuro!"
"What is it I wonder?"
Kuro was wise since he was a mythical beast so he doesn't usually take any impulsive actions.
Therefore I chased after him thinking there must be some meaning behind his action. We then saw him sniffing around a black cloth-like object.
"What's wrong, Kuro?"
«Nya~»
As Kuro sniffed and tapped his front paws on the object, the black cloth started to move.
I gently lifted the edge of the black cloth and a tuft of chestnut hair fell out.
"It seems to be a person?"
"A girl-nanodesu."
She looked like a 12-year-old girl. To check if she was alive, I touched her and felt an electric shock-like sensation running through my fingertips.
It was not a theoretical, but rather an empathic connection that I felt from her.
"Are you alright, Majou-sama?"
"N, no. I'm fine."
I surveyed the surroundings, confused, not understanding what that feeling was.
This was a location near the back alleys of the capital city, so it was obviously not good to be here at night. Besides, I wouldn't be able to have a good sleep if I left a defenseless, collapsed girl here.
"It seems there's no other option, huh? Let's take her with us."
I leave it to Teto to carry the girl as we return home. However, I did recognize the robe she was wearing when Teto lifted her up.
"Ah, I see. So she's the magician from the magician clan we have seen at the guild."
However, why was a magician from the Suzurland Clan, a powerful force even in the Lovile Kingdom, collapsed in the back alley?
There were no obvious signs of injury, however, her face did seem to be tinged with slight exhaustion. I guess she must have overexerted herself.
We didn't know the circumstances that caused her to collapse, but for now, we took her home and waited for her to wake up in bed.
