I Became the Patron of Villains

17. The Blue Tower (3)

It could be said that Alon had already achieved all his goals in the Blue Tower.

His purpose was to obtain the relics that came out of the rift in the basement of this tower, and there was nothing else, so he decided to leave the Blue Tower immediately.

There was no reason to stay any longer, and he felt that Fenia, who was already annoyed, might pick a fight for no reason.

Of course, he knew she wasn’t that irrational, but there could always be an unexpected situation.

He certainly thought so when he secretly sighed right after dealing with the rift.

…He thought so.

“This is…?”

“It’s a potion I made.”

After glancing at her, who was forcing a smile with sharp eyes, Alon picked up the potion bottle on the desk.

A deep blue liquid that glowed white with just a slight shake.

‘…It’s a mana recovery potion, and quite an expensive one at that…’

In this world, magic potions do not take effect immediately like in other games, but rather gradually.

In other words, it would be more accurate to call them ‘magic recovery enhancement potions’ rather than ‘magic recovery potions.’

However, among those magic potions, the five bottles that Fenia placed in front of Alon were the only ones here that truly deserved the name ‘magic recovery potion.’

The top-grade potion he held in his hand was one that could replenish a bit of magic instantly just by drinking it.

In other words, in this place where magic recovery enhancement potions are called magic recovery potions, they are extremely expensive.

Alon once tried to obtain a magic potion because it was inconvenient to use magic once a day, but it was so expensive that he grabbed the back of his neck.

‘I’m sure these two bottles were worth a small villa…’

As he stared at the potion for a long time, he turned his gaze to Fenia.

She, with an awkward and anxious smile, spoke as soon as Alon looked back.

“Do you like it?”

“…I understand it’s a high-grade potion, but why are you showing it to me?”

“I’m giving it to you.”

“You’re giving me this potion?”

“Yes.”

“…?”

A question mark popped up in Alon’s mind.

In fact, it was somewhat understandable that her attitude changed as soon as the door was closed, considering she had been eager to devour him before the door was closed.

At least at this point, when the method to close the door was not known, he could feel some gratitude or slight reverence for her closing the door.

However, at least in his view, the expression and gestures Fenia was showing were not at all those of ‘gratitude’ or ‘reverence.’

‘Did she misunderstand like the wizard who came with Lady Zenonia last time?’

With that thought, Alon opened his mouth.

“…Just to let you know, I’m a second-rank wizard.”

“Yes, I know. Of course, you’re a second-rank wizard.”

As soon as he opened his mouth, thinking she might have misunderstood, Fenia nodded as if she had been waiting, and this time, he had a confused expression.

Seeing her nodding as if it were the most natural thing, he wondered if she was playing a trick on him.

However, Fenia’s expression did not seem to be joking at all.

In short, it meant that Fenia was not particularly mistaken, which made Alon even more confused.

“I’ll definitely keep what I saw earlier a secret. Absolutely.”

In response to Fenia’s continued words, Alon replied.

“There’s no need to promise that-“

“No, please! Promise me. I want to make a promise. Should I swear by my magic? I’ll do it right here and now!”

“Wait, no-“

Before Alon could even speak, Fenia swiftly drew upon her magic.

In an instant, a powerful magic filled the office, so intense it made his heart drop. Before Alon could say anything, Fenia had already made her magical vow.

‘Is she really going this far just to keep the method of closing the gate a secret? Sure, it’s a mystery to them at this point, but…’

Outwardly, Alon maintained a blank expression, but inwardly, he was utterly dumbfounded. He realized she must have misunderstood something.

“You see? I keep my promises well. I’ll keep it a secret, unconditionally. Truly…!”

“…Alright.”

Seeing Fenia speak with such a desperate expression right after making her vow, Alon could only nod calmly.

…There was no sign that she would understand the misunderstanding.

Thus, Alon was able to obtain five bottles of magic recovery potions and the artifact he desired from the Blue Tower.

In the carriage returning to the Count’s estate from the Blue Tower, Alon naturally glanced at the bracelet on his wrist.

The item he had obtained with Fenia’s permission upon closing the gate was what he had sought from this trip to the Blue Tower.

‘The Bracelet of the Unclean.’

The bracelet’s design was not particularly sophisticated.

To put it bluntly, it resembled a cheap bracelet one could buy for less than ten thousand won in the market.

The only unusual feature was the black gems embedded intermittently, which seemed to absorb all light. Other than that, it had no distinctive appearance.

However, despite its crude and unremarkable appearance, the bracelet’s ability was enough to compensate for his small mana hole.

“……”

Alon subtly turned his wrist to look at the black gem.

Though not visible at first glance, a faint blue aura shimmered between the gems upon closer inspection.

‘It works well.’

The ability of the Bracelet of the Unclean was to absorb and store ambient magic, allowing it to be used when needed.

Of course, the amount of magic the bracelet could store was limited, and even that limited amount was not very large. Ironically, though, that limited amount was greater than the mana hole Alon possessed.

“……”

For a moment, he felt a strange sense of enlightenment, realizing that his body could store less magic than an item meant to assist wizards in Psychedelia.

“Sigh.”

He calmed his mind and thought.

‘This is enough. It’s not like I’m going to fight.’

The reason for seeking the mark of the unholy one was purely for more efficient magical research and self-preservation in case of unforeseen crises.

In that sense, the amount of magic power provided by the mark of the unholy one was neither excessive nor insufficient.

Of course, having more is always better than having less.

‘There were some spells that forcibly adjusted their power to reduce magic consumption, so I should research that.’

With that thought, Alon lightened his heart and looked out of the carriage.

As he looked out of the carriage, he suddenly remembered Fenia, who had bowed politely in front of him just before he got into the carriage.

‘What on earth is she?’

Alon, recalling Fenia’s peculiar behavior that started right after he closed the door, shrugged his shoulders.

After all, he had no more business with her.

Alon gazed for a moment at the forest, bathed in the loose sunlight, swaying with a subtle green hue.

It was a warm spring.

While Alon was returning to the Count of Palatio’s estate.

In the office of the Duke of Altia, two women were sitting facing each other.

One was Loria, the master of this ducal house, who had now perfectly absorbed the power of the Altia family and inherited the power of the previous duke.

The girl sitting opposite her was Kalia, the young lady of the Count of Zenonia, or more precisely, the de facto ruler of the Count of Zenonia.

“It’s been a while.”

“Yes, it has.”

The two greeted each other casually.

Normally, this would have been unthinkable.

Loria had already inherited the noble title of duke, while Kalia was still a countess and had not yet inherited her title, remaining a young lady.

However, despite this, Loria, who should have been displeased by the lack of respect, wore a calm expression.

The reason was that Loria knew that Kalia effectively held full authority over the Count of Zenonia.

At the same time, in the underworld, the name of the Count of Zenonia was slightly more prominent than that of the Duke of Altia.

But above all, the reason Loria tolerated Kalia’s informal speech was that they both served the same person, the Count of Palatio.

In other words, they had no need to fight for hierarchy.

Whether they wanted to or not, they had to form an alliance under the orders of the Count of Palatio, not knowing why they had to do so.

Of course, they only realized that the command to ‘meet the Duke of Altia’ meant forming an alliance after meeting and talking, and realizing they were both under the Count of Palatio.

Anyway, they knew how meaningless it was to determine the hierarchy below the absolute number one they couldn’t defy.

“What brings you here today? The meeting is next month.”

At Loria’s question, Kalia carefully took the letter from her bosom and placed it on the desk.

“He sent a letter.”

“…This?”

“Yes.”

At Kalia’s nod, Loria gently picked up the letter and checked its contents.

“……”

The contents reflected in Kalia’s eyes as she silently read the letter were not secretive documents, but rather an excessively ordinary letter.

The letter contained a brief greeting and a story about noble families.

It mentioned a few noble families as examples, ending with the statement, “Some nobles have grumbled to me,” and concluding with, “There aren’t many nobles who suit me well.”

It was certainly sent by Alon about a month ago, as a somewhat reasonable excuse for his slightly rude behavior towards Kalia.

Summarizing Alon’s intention, it could be interpreted as, “I don’t just act this way towards you; I also speak a bit curtly to other nobles. You’re not the only one I grumble to.”

If an ordinary noble had received such treatment from Alon and then received this letter, they could have inferred Alon’s true intentions quite closely.

However, there were three things Alon had not considered.

One was that the people receiving and checking this letter were influential figures in the underworld.

Another was that they believed Count Palatio was unbeatable.

The last was that, due to the second reason, they naturally thought there was some kind of command in this ordinary letter.

And.

As befits the sharp minds of the underworld’s prominent figures, Kalia quickly began to piece together an impossible puzzle.

“Baron Kenya belongs to the noble faction… and Marquis Malantino is a key figure in the royalist faction.”

“Viscount Bilanda is part of the royalist faction. Similarly, Duke Paldion is a key figure in the noble faction.”

Recalling the noble families Alon had mentioned at the ball, they began to categorize them, and soon started to piece together the puzzle.

“In summary, neither the noble faction nor the royalist faction pleases him.”

Kill them all? The two shook their heads as if they had made a promise.

It was beyond common sense.

Therefore, the natural alternative that came to mind was.

“Push out the existing nobles and create a new regime?”

With those words, the two fell silent.

Originally, it would have been an impossible story.

Changing the already established system was not something that could be achieved by just a few nobles gathering.

But if it was the two of them, who were weighing things on the political stage of the nobles as if it were second nature, the story was entirely different.

Various preparations were needed and it would take time, but in short, the answer that could come out was ‘possible’.

“Ah-“

Loria let out a low exclamation.

To be honest, she had not yet guessed what Alon was aiming for, and therefore did not understand why he had made her a duke.

But if this was truly what he was aiming for, the reason was certainly explained.

What he was trying to do now, as she thought, was that the ‘prestige’ of the Duke of Altia was absolutely necessary.

Moreover, if they allied with the Count of Zenonia, who could be called the ruler of the west, the scales of success and failure would definitely tilt towards success rather than failure.

“……It seems, that’s right.”

Loria shuddered as she realized the hidden meaning of the Count’s words.

Thus, in the late afternoon.

When the sun had set and the twilight was fading, they began to plan in that place where even the magic lamps were not lit.

……A strange puzzle began to fit together and spin out of control.

And at that moment, Alon.

“Hmm……”

He was eating a sweet potato in the forest where the sun had set early and the temperature had dropped.

“……Delicious.”

His small appreciation, as he took a bite of the sweet potato, seeped into the forest, knowing nothing of the world.