Early morning. Director Theobold Rain always arrived at work before the morning bell rang. But I was waiting in front of his desk already since I had spent the night at the workshop.
"Good morning."
I greeted him and his secretary as they paused briefly at the entrance. This time, I hadn't done anything like plastering proposals all over his desk. I waited for the Director to take his seat, then placed a new proposal on his desk.
"Please have a look."
The Director touched the cover with his fingers. He didn't toss it aside straight away, instead he spoke quietly.
"Most mages have no interest in letting others use magic. They believe that honing their own abilities is their contribution to the nation. That is also the way they establish their own standing."
"Yes. That's precisely why I believe you, Director, would understand the value of magic tools. Because you are not a mage."
Aptitude doesn't necessarily pass down even if one shares the same bloodline with a genius mage.
Before looking at the contents of the proposal, the Director stared at his subordinate sternly.
"Have you worked out a plan?"
"As much as I could."
"Just using unused magic stones won't be enough to make this work. There are major issues beyond cost involved in getting them into circulation."
"I believe I've addressed those issues. Please take a look inside, and there's this too."
I then held out a sealed envelope.
"This is..."
I bowed deeply to my superior, who was at a loss for words.
"I'd appreciate it if you could take a look."
That day, I handed in my resignation.
One day, Clifford Reevis heard something unbelievable.
As he was leaving work, he happened to overhear his colleagues gossiping. He wasn't usually rude but he couldn't help but interrupt their conversation.
...What did you just say?
As he rushed towards the mage technician's workshop, his mind was filled with questions and anger.
Infuriatingly, the person he'd acknowledged as a worthy rival had apparently handed in her resignation letter. Setting aside whether such a thing would even be accepted, the very idea of voluntarily leaving was simply unthinkable.
...And right after achieving something before me!
To Clifford, it was equivalent to a personal insult. Furious enough that a simple outburst wouldn't suffice, he flung open the workshop door.
"Aime!!! You, what on earth do you think you're..."
His angry words quickly lost their force when he saw what was before him. Inside the workshop were the old mage technician and a young man, along with his friends Matthias and Marylee, all frantically writing on the floor and desks.
"Welcome, Cliff! You're just in time!"
The red-haired girl rushed over to Clifford as if she'd been waiting for him, and shoved a stack of papers into his hands.
"Copy these documents, ten copies!"
"Wh-what are you all doing?!"
"There's no time! Please, I promise I'll repay you later!"
Before he knew what was happening, a pen was forced into his hand. Of course, he tried to protest, but...
"Clifford, running away all by yourself is cowardly."
"U-um, if possible, could you give us a hand. Our hands... are already aching..."
For some reason, Marylee was glaring at him and Matthias was pleading with him, and Clifford was rendered speechless.
Honestly, my friends are just too kind for words.
I can't thank them enough for rushing over here to help right before tomorrow's big event.
"What exactly is all this?"
Cliff asked grumpily, though his hands kept moving.
"These are the handouts I'll be distributing tomorrow when I present everyday magic tools to His Majesty and the relevant officials. You're really saving us. Oh, and try to write as neatly as you can, okay?"
He grimaced at that last remark. Well, Cliff would never cut corners on anything. His meticulous personality showed in his exceptionally neat handwriting.
"Everyday magic tools? You mean distributing magic stones? Another foolish stunt."
"But apparently the Director approved her request for an audience," Merry interjected. I'd prefer she concentrate, since she tends to make mistakes when distracted.
"I was already scheduled to be summoned by His Majesty regarding the magic tools I made in El Alley."
I had submitted a detailed report, but apparently he wanted to hear about it directly from me. He probably wanted to properly understand this new way of using magic stones. While I'm there, I'll also present our ideas for other potential uses. I've obtained the Director's approval.
Now that the use of magic stones for purposes other than weapons had been temporarily permitted, the winds were in our favour.
"Was the resignation letter in case your pitch failed? You planned to quit if it didn't go your way?"
It seemed Cliff, like Merry and Matti, had heard the rumour and come because of it. The information must have leaked from one of the early-rising researchers.
"No, I submitted the resignation in case it succeeded."
"What do you mean?"
"To distribute magic tools, you need a place to sell them, right? I'm going to open a magic tool shop in the castle town!"
A general store just wouldn't cut it for selling specialised tools. It would need someone with expert knowledge who could give proper explanations and even handle repairs when something went wrong. If I was going to run a shop, I figured I'd need to leave royal service, so I went ahead and submitted my resignation.
"But they said that even if I do open one, it would be a government-run shop. Kind of like a branch of this workshop. So apparently I don't need to resign after all. So don't worry. Sorry for making you worry."
"I wasn't worried in the slightest."
Cliff wasn't honest about these things. He continued in a tone that sounded partly exasperated and partly angry.
"You must be desperate to kneel before me."
"Hardly."
"You'll be demoting yourself from court mage to mere shopkeeper."
"I may not be moving up but I'm still moving forward. I've been a commoner mage from the start. I'm not being demoted."
When I replied cheerfully, Cliff snorted.
"If you're that determined, why didn't you prepare more thoroughly beforehand?"
"The summons came sooner than I expected! It hasn't even been seven days since I got back, you know? I've actually done my best to get ready."
"You're short on time because you wasted time in El Alley," Merry said rather sharply. No, but it wasn't a waste, you know?
"The investigation itself doesn't take that long. I finished mine in a month," she added.
"You were sent on an investigation too, Merry? What about you, Cliff?"
"Naturally."
The Director had said he would dispatch the mages to mines where magic stones were excavated, starting with the youngest, and it seemed he'd meant it. Everyone's been through a lot.
And yet here they were, helping me after finishing their own work for the day. I was truly grateful.
"...U-um, Aime. I-if you don't mind, could you explain this to me?"
Matti, who had been resting his tired hands and reading through the materials, held up a page and asked.
"The coating spell? I guess it's hard to understand if you're not a mage technician, huh?"
"B-but, do you have time?"
"I really want you to hear about it and I want to practise my presentation too."
If I could explain it to someone from a different specialty and have them understand, I'd feel confident that tomorrow would go well too. Nothing is more pointless than an explanation nobody can follow.
"Cliff, Merry, once you're done with the documents, help me practise too."
"...You don't intend to let us go home, do you?"
"Since you came all this way, I figured I'd take full advantage of our friendship."
"You..."
"Despicable."
Cliff and Merry's faces twitched, while Matti said nothing and just smiled vaguely.
"Well then, I'll be heading ho—"
"Konrad-san, absolutely not."
I stepped on the hem of his robe to block his escape. Master immediately glared at his apprentice.
"I'm doing this without a drop of alcohol. It's about time you started pulling your weight too."
"I told you not to drag me into thiiiiis!"
While encouraging my senior apprentice as he broke into pitiful tears, our strategy meeting, now with my friends roped in, continued late into the night.