I Became the Patron of Villains

114. Why are you like this……? (1)

“……We’ve lost contact with the test subjects?”

From noble mtl dot com

“……Yes.”

In the office of Duke Komalon.

He asked calmly upon hearing the dark elf’s report.

“……What was the last report before contact was lost?”

“The last report was that they had identified the location of Marquis Palatio.”

“They couldn’t even attempt the ritual.”

“My apologies.”

The dark elf bowed deeply.

Duke Komalon was well aware that this incident was not the fault of the dark elf before him.

“……Hmm-“

He suddenly recalled the words of the man in the black holy robe.

To be wary of Marquis Palatio, those words.

“……”

Duke Komalon, with the dark elf bowing before him, remained silent for a while before breaking the stillness.

“Well, it’s fine. I was only trying to gauge their strength with those who had little time left anyway.”

“……Are you alright?”

“Our goal is not to deal with Marquis Palatio. We tried to deal with him because he kept obstructing the greater cause. But-“

The belly button shouldn’t be bigger than the belly,

We must not abandon the greater cause just to deal with Marquis Palatio. Although the greater cause has been delayed because we lost the dragon egg, it doesn’t mean the plan has collapsed.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

We couldn’t delay any longer, being bothered by the thorn in our side.

“How long until the ball?”

“Two weeks left.”

“Start preparing the organizations for externalization. In time for the ball in two weeks.”

“I will follow your orders.”

The dark elf bowed deeply once again and disappeared.

Left alone in the office, Komalon muttered to himself.

“The greater cause must be achieved. By any means necessary-“

Muttering alone.

“It must be achieved. That is what I-“

As if chanting a spell, he vowed to himself.

“-the only way to save this world.”

Very quietly, as if holding his breath.

In his eyes, which he raised again, a clear madness could be seen.

####

It was about a week later that Alon returned to the Marquis Palatio’s estate.

After arriving, his most important task was to rest.

Of course, he did not neglect his research on magic even at that time, but the rest he enjoyed at the mansion after months of running around was truly sweet.

However- he couldn’t purely play for the entire week.

“……This is tougher than I thought.”

“Indeed.”

Evan, who had started helping with his work at some point.

Alon nodded at his remark.

What the two were looking at was a document on the current state of the Marquis Palatio’s territory.

“……The financial situation is not bad, but it’s not good either.”

“Isn’t that so?”

The current state of the territory’s finances was just so-so.

No, to be precise, it was closer to bad.

“Well, isn’t this to be expected? From the beginning, our territory didn’t have any real sources of income. Even when we were doing well, it was because of money from the underworld. Actually, isn’t it the same even now?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“The deficit is being covered by the money coming in from the factions.”

Evan pointed to a spot on the document with his hand.

“That’s true.”

Alon felt deeply troubled inside.

He was barely balancing the entire territory’s finances with the marquisate’s funds.

Unlike the mediocre state of the territory, the financial state of the Palatio Marquisate was actually quite affluent.

This was because of the many treasures he had received as rewards while wandering outside the territory.

However, those were not fixed incomes.

‘…It seems necessary to create some sort of stable income mechanism.’

He realized he needed to think.

Even if the marquisate’s finances were fine now, without stable income, it would eventually run out and hit rock bottom someday.

‘Should I row while the money is coming in and create something like a specialty product?’

Alon was lost in thought for a while, then closed the thick paper document and asked,

“Didn’t our territory have any specialty products?”

“Specialty products?”

“Yes.”

“…Drugs?”

Why is that coming up here…?

“…Suddenly?”

“No, because the marquisate’s specialty product used to be drugs.”

“Was it that much…?”

“There was nothing else…”

Alon nodded with a peculiar expression.

Yes, the Palatio family had been one of the shadows of Asteria, deeply involved in the underworld for a long time.

“Is there nothing else?”

“……Is that so? Actually, there’s nothing around here that could be called a specialty.”

Isn’t it a bit much to say there’s nothing at all? A moment of contemplation.

‘Shall I handle other matters first?’

Deciding to prioritize other piled-up tasks while thinking about the development of the territory.

‘Come to think of it, I should reply to the letters too.’

He began to open and read the three letters from Utia that had piled up in his absence.

The first was a light greeting letter with updates on Rine and Seolang.

The second, like the first, contained light greetings along with stories about Radan.

Thanks to Evan’s consistent reports, he was somewhat aware of Radan’s news.

‘They discovered an amazing artifact… Come to think of it, there haven’t been any rumors about Radan lately.’

Such a question suddenly arose.

‘…Well, actually, no news is good news when it comes to pirates.’

In fact, if there were updates, it would almost certainly be rumors about an increased bounty or something similar.

So Alon felt a small sense of satisfaction with Radan’s lack of rumors as he opened the last letter.

Fortunately, it was also a greeting letter, and he soon began to write a reply.

After finishing, the letter was about one page long.

However.

‘…Considering the frequency of letters lately, I’ve been sending fewer replies, so maybe I should write a bit more.’

Trying to balance things out, he began to write a bit more than usual.

He wrote about his recent trip to the jungle and trivial daily matters like deciding on a specialty for the marquisate.

“Whew-“

He felt a sense of pride as he reviewed the three-page letter.

After entrusting the letter to Evan, he turned his gaze to the window.

Unlike the jungle, which had a humid climate all year round, winter was arriving in Asteria, and the red leaves were falling one by one.

Late autumn was passing by.

As time passed, the leaves disappeared, and it became full winter.

“It’s about time to move.”

“The Magic Society?”

“Yes.”

Alon began preparing to head to the Magic Academy as soon as he was able to participate through Siyan once more.

“But, Marquis. Are we leaving already? I thought there was still quite some time before the Magic Academy starts? Even if we leave leisurely now, we should have plenty of time.”

Evan asked while preparing.

Of course, he was right.

However, Alon’s true purpose for attending this academy was to meet Heinkel.

“There’s no problem with going early, is there?”

“Well- that’s true.”

Evan agreed and naturally turned his gaze to one side and asked.

“Are you taking this black egg as well?”

The black egg placed on one side of the office wall.

There hadn’t been any significant changes, but it had grown a bit larger than before.

Alon pondered for a moment and then nodded.

“Let’s take it.”

They immediately began heading to the Magic Academy.

####

It was about two weeks after leaving the Marquis’ territory that Alon arrived at the central tower where the Magic Academy was held.

“Every time I see this place, I’m just in awe. Especially coming here in the evening, it feels even more so.”

“I think the same.”

Alon nodded in agreement as Evan marveled at the central tower.

Indeed, the sight of the tower soaring high into the sky, with the blue moon as its backdrop, looked even more magnificent than during the day.

It was truly a scene that seemed straight out of a fantasy illustration.

‘The view at night is definitely more impressive.’

Alon, unable to take his eyes off the tower for a while, finally arrived at the central tower.

They parked the carriage to one side and walked inside.

And there.

“Ah, Marquis Palatio?”

He naturally heard a voice calling his name.

Alon looked at the man with a puzzled expression, but only for a moment.

“Uh, you might not remember, but we met once at the academy before. Fenia-“

“Ah.”

As if something came to mind, he lowered his chin and searched his memory.

“…Milan, was it?”

“It’s an honor that you remember my name.”

“An honor, huh. Anyway, it’s been a while.”

“Yes, it has been a while.”

Alon accepted Milan’s greeting while looking around.

Even though the magic conference had not yet started, quite a few magicians were present.

“It seems the conference hasn’t started yet, but there are many magicians.”

Understanding Alon’s question, Milan provided the reason.

“Ah, this time the Tower Lords are participating, that’s why.”

“The Tower Lords?”

“Yes. The Blue Tower Lord and the Red Tower Lord are participating in this conference. I heard they will give a brief lecture tomorrow.”

Indeed, if the Tower Lords were participating in the conference, it made sense that so many magicians had already gathered.

For magicians, lectures from those of high rank were immensely beneficial.

‘In fact, I also came to attend the lecture.’

Alon also wanted to ask Heinkel about the ring, but he also hoped to learn something from him.

Although he was navigating crises with the phrases of Babylonia, self-manifestation, and the belt of monstrous strength, and imposing several restrictions on himself, he was still only a fourth-rank magician.

“Ah, by the way, congratulations.”

At that moment, Milan offered an unexpected congratulation.

“…Congratulations?”

“Yes.”

“What are you congratulating me for?”

When Alon asked with a puzzled expression, Milan smiled brightly as if he knew everything.

“You don’t have to pretend not to know. Almost all the magicians already know.”

“…???”

No, I really don’t know.

Alon stared at him with a blank face, but Milan continued to smile.

“I heard the Blue Tower Lord has officially approved your relationship with the Deputy Tower Lord. Congratulations, Marquis.”

He said.

“…What??”

……For a very brief moment, Alon’s eyes, which had never shown any proper change in expression until now, widened slightly as if he couldn’t understand.