Chapter 16
“Owner of the Black Fox Workshop—Vash. That’s you, right? If not, say so.”
“Y-Yes! That’s me!”
Vash nodded frantically under Shion’s interrogation.
‘H-How does he know?’
Realizing that Shion had seen through the deception against the Azure Tower’s master was one thing.
But how did he know that Vash had once run a workshop called Black Fox?
‘I heard that after I was expelled, all records were completely erased?’
That had been over twenty years ago.
Naturally, almost no one even remembered the Black Fox Workshop anymore.
It dated back to when Altair was still alive.
So how could he possibly know his true identity?
And then Shion spoke again—forcing Vash into shock.
“You were expelled after getting caught trying to steal confidential information from the Workshop Union. If things had gone as planned, you would’ve sold those secrets to the Mage Council.”
“H-How do you even know that…?”
Vash muttered in a trembling voice.
That he had once belonged to the Union could be known.
Back then, the incident had been a major scandal within the Union.
But the Mage Council had wanted to keep it from becoming a public disgrace and completely buried the affair.
So a remote mage tower like this shouldn’t have known about it at all…
“I was curious. What kind of life a rat who betrayed the Union would live afterward. But… it’s obvious. You moved exactly as expected.”
Shion let out a hollow laugh, looking down at Vash with contempt.
In hindsight, it almost felt like a waste.
‘Should I have killed him back then?’
But it couldn’t be helped.
At the time, he hadn’t had the luxury to worry about things like this.
“Tower Master, I explained roughly what these people were doing on my way here, didn’t I?”
“Yes, y-you said they were stealing high-quality mana produced by our tower.”
“Yes. More precisely, they used that mana to create mana crystals—the essential power source for crafting magical devices.”
Cold sweat streamed down Vash’s face.
The more Shion spoke, the more horrifying it became.
“He planned to sell the crystals, make a fortune, and then disappear. If nothing had happened, he probably would’ve done so very soon.”
“…Ah.”
“And that’s not even the worst of it. Once you abandon morality, there are countless ways to make money.”
As he spoke, Shion grabbed Vash by the hair and dragged him away.
Only after arriving at a certain spot did Shion release him.
“Start digging.”
“W-What…?”
“Dig. Don’t pretend you don’t know. It’s irritating—I can feel it down there.”
Shion silently prepared magic as he spoke, clearly signaling that he would kill him without hesitation.
Trembling, Vash began digging with his bare hands.
“Shion, what exactly is down there…?”
“You’ll see.”
Shion watched coldly as Vash dug.
Vash clawed at the earth desperately, his hands soon covered in blood.
Because he knew—if he stopped, he was dead.
And soon enough—
“Ah…”
“Th-This is…!”
Lumia and Serentia both frowned.
What emerged was a pile of bleached bones.
Some corpses weren’t fully decomposed, flesh still clinging to them.
It was utterly horrific.
“Materials for magical research come in many forms. Blood and life are among them.”
“…Don’t tell me.”
“Yes. There are plenty of mages who want materials but don’t want to dirty their own hands. He supplied them with what they needed.”
Lumia and Serentia’s expressions hardened.
That something like this had happened near their own tower was deeply shocking.
“B-But how could something this serious happen without me knowing? Surely news like this—”
“Indeed.”
Shion walked up to Vash, grabbed him by the collar, and lifted him slowly.
“How exactly did you manage to fool even the Azure Tower? Even if our Tower Master is a pushover—”
“A-A pushover?!”
Lumia tried to protest timidly, but Shion ignored her.
He brought his face close to Vash’s.
“Who’s behind you?”
“G-Ghk…!”
Vash shook his head violently.
Shion stared at him for a moment, then frowned.
‘This is…’
[It’s suggestion magic.]
Akasha identified it immediately.
[Not a simple one either. It’s deeply engraved into his soul.]
‘…’
[It seems a high-ranking mage cast it. Even with my abilities, it won’t be easy.]
‘What if we don’t care whether he survives?’
Akasha paused, as if calculating.
[Then you might be able to extract a few words. The spell you theorized about before.]
‘Ah, that one? Yeah…’
Shion nodded in satisfaction.
Respect for life was something reserved for those who deserved it.
Why should he respect the life of trash that sacrificed hundreds of innocent people to make magical materials?
‘There’s no reason.’
Having decided, Shion seized Vash’s head.
“If you won’t talk, it can’t be helped. Don’t take it too personally.”
“Y-Yes…?”
Before Vash could finish speaking, overwhelming mana enveloped his head.
“Aaaaaaagh!”
Shion’s mana flooded Vash’s brain instantly.
Vash screamed and thrashed, but it was meaningless.
‘So this is how it works. Using it directly makes it clearer.’
Shion observed Vash’s convulsions, refining his control.
Back when he was Altair, he had developed theories the Council never approved.
Among them were spells designed to forcibly break curses or mental bindings.
They didn’t guarantee survival—but Vash wasn’t someone worth worrying about.
The core principle was using mana to punch holes in the soul-engraved suggestion.
Not enough to fully remove it—but enough to extract fragments of information.
And soon—
“Kh… uh…”
Bloody tears streamed from Vash’s eyes.
It was grotesque, but Shion didn’t care.
“Who’s behind you?”
“I-I don’t know… A high-ranking mage wearing a mask gave the orders…”
“…”
“He said… even if the Azure Tower was involved… everything would be taken care of…”
Shion nodded.
Naturally, the mastermind wouldn’t reveal himself openly.
But if he could say that with confidence…
‘Could it be the Council?’
Or one of the Four Great Towers aligned with it.
Shion frowned and asked again.
“Describe him. His magic style. The materials he demanded.”
“Th-That’s… kuh!”
Vash suddenly coughed up blood.
It was as if he wasn’t permitted to say any more.
Moments later, his head slumped lifelessly.
“…Tch.”
Looks like that was all he could get.
Shion burned the body on the spot and stood up.
“Not as much useful information as I hoped. All we know is that the mastermind is a high-ranking mage.”
“….”
“…Hmm?”
Not hearing a response, Shion turned to Lumia and Serentia.
They were looking at him with complicated expressions.
“Why are you staring like that?”
“Ah, well… um…”
Lumia glanced at where Vash had been, then spoke carefully.
“You’re… remarkably merciless. Honestly, it’s shocking.”
“Ah.”
Only then did Shion understand.
“If we hadn’t dealt with them here, it would’ve grown into a bigger problem.”
“Y-Yes, that’s true.”
“We could’ve handed them over to the local guards, but in my experience, they would’ve walked free.”
With enough money, bribery would’ve been easy.
But that wasn’t what Lumia meant.
She looked at Shion and said:
“You’re very clear about right and wrong, aren’t you?”
“Well, yes.”
“And you show absolutely no mercy toward what you consider wrong?”
“Not exactly.”
Shion shrugged.
“If I wanted to play hero, I’d have hanged myself long ago. You know I was a delinquent when I was in the tower.”
“Ah… r-right…”
“I just have my own line that can’t be crossed.”
For example—trash that stains the honor of workshops.
Altair had pride.
He loved the Workshop Union that gathered around him.
Even if he was mana-disabled and longed for magic, that didn’t mean he lacked affection for workshops.
“You heard my lecture, didn’t you? I seek the path of magical engineering.”
“Y-Yes.”
“And people like this pollute that path. They don’t just destroy themselves—they soil a road someone else might one day walk, turning it into a pool of blood.”
It was utterly repulsive.
Shion smiled lightly.
“As long as it doesn’t cross that line, I have no intention of opposing the Tower Master or Vice-Master.”
“…!”
“That’s what you wanted to know, right?”
Neither could answer immediately.
They had been overwhelmed—if only briefly.
And yes, frightened.
After a moment, Lumia nodded slowly.
“O-Okay.”
And inwardly vowed—
‘…Don’t mess with him.’
She even wondered if the three-month probation should be shortened to one.
Shion glanced around and spoke calmly.
“Then the problem’s solved. Well—except for one important thing.”
“…Important thing?”
“Yes.”
Shion smiled.
“We need to collect the spoils of war.”
“Spoils…?”
Seeing Lumia’s confusion, Shion explained.
“They’ve been gathering and stockpiling large quantities of mana crystals. And naturally, some of their accumulated wealth should be stored here as well.”
“Ah.”
Lumia’s gaze shifted toward the workshop.
‘Right… they were a band of thieves.’
Which meant—
“Let’s take everything!”
Lumia’s eyes sparkled as she declared with fierce determination.
