Chapter 19
That evening, a welcoming banquet for the Lucen mages was held in the main building of the Benheim estate.
Formally, branch family mages were also invited. Our seats were at a table in the far-left corner of the banquet hall.
I took a seat with Brock Benheim and sipped my water.
“Looks like only the direct heirs from Lucen came,” Brock muttered.
The Lucen mages were easy to distinguish by their dark crimson robes. There were seven in total.
A lot, or perhaps not many—depending on perspective.
“Hey, Reygan. Do you think Lucen’s head is strong?” Brock asked.
“Probably,” I replied.
“Yeah, I guess so. Their family head is probably 7th circle like ours, right?”
Brock chewed his food while looking toward the head seat where Kaiden Lucen sat.
I focused my senses and tried to gauge his level. Now that I had reached the 3rd circle, perceiving mana flow was much easier.
Roughly… early 7th circle.
He had only just taken the position, so he was slightly below Stern Benheim, but still undeniably a great mage.
At that moment, Kaiden smiled warmly and presented a gift to Stern. His lips smiled, but his red eyes were completely devoid of warmth.
Stern, on the other hand, simply folded his arms and gave occasional nods with a blank expression.
A probing exchange.
According to Lrenia Benheim, Lucen and Benheim frequently interacted due to proximity, but their relationship was not friendly.
In the early days of the Empire, they had even engaged in territorial conflict.
Because of that, Lrenia always became unusually sharp when speaking about Lucen.
“Hello, Lrenia.”
A sharp voice cut through my thoughts.
Before I noticed, a red-haired girl in a dark crimson robe had approached Lrenia at her table.
The girl sat beside her without hesitation.
Petra Lucen.
The same person Lrenia had once spoken of with deep irritation.
“It’s been a while. You’re still as small as ever,” Petra said casually.
Lrenia frowned and pulled her chair slightly away.
“I heard you reached 3rd circle. So did I. I hit 3rd circle recently too.”
“Congratulations,” Lrenia replied flatly.
“We should have a proper match sometime.”
“I’m not really obsessed with ranks like you.”
Petra frowned.
“I’m not talking about obsession. I just want to reach a higher level as a mage.”
“Good for you.”
Lrenia responded lazily, sipping her drink.
The conversation should have ended there.
“I can already create seven swords at once. How many runes can you cast, Lrenia?”
“Not sure. I’ve never tried.”
“Then why don’t you try now?”
“I’m tired today.”
Lrenia looked like she was ready to throw Petra out of her sight.
I now understood why Lrenia had such a strong reaction whenever Petra Lucen was mentioned. They were too similar in personality—both the type who annoyed others without realizing it.
Still, Lrenia didn’t truly hate her. Not really.
“In any case, she was a decent mage compared to our family head. She fought until the end,” Lrenia had once said.
After Lucen was destroyed by the Demon King of Magic, Petra Lucen had continued resisting with the remnants of her faction.
She had once even fought alongside Lrenia.
And ultimately, she was executed after defeat.
A bitter ending.
Because of that, I held no hostility toward Petra.
“By the way, Lrenia, how is your older brother? Has he reached the 4th circle yet?” Petra asked.
“Not yet,” Lrenia replied.
“So I might surpass him first.”
At that moment, Lrenia stood up abruptly, unable to endure Petra any longer.
Her violet eyes turned toward our corner table.
Brock stiffened.
“Hey, Reygan. Did Lady Lrenia just look at me?”
Of course, that was an illusion.
Lrenia pointed directly at me.
“Petra, your level isn’t anything special. The guy over there—Reygan—reached the 3rd circle just one month after learning magic.”
“…What?”
Petra turned to me in shock.
“This guy… 3rd circle in a month?”
Lrenia added without hesitation:
“And he’s a commoner.”
Petra froze.
“Not only that, he also received an elixir from our family.”
The banquet hall erupted in murmurs.
“Also, he defeated my brother in a duel—twice.”
“Hey, Lrenia!” Arno, Lrenia’s brother, shouted in embarrassment.
Too late. Everyone had already heard.
All eyes turned toward me.
A heavy silence followed.
From the head seat, Kaiden Lucen stared directly at me with an unreadable gaze.
Interest… and suspicion.
I sighed internally.
I didn’t want attention.
At that moment, Stern stood up and clapped his hands.
“Silence. I will now explain the Hunting Festival.”
The room quieted as attention shifted.
A magical projection formed in the air, showing a forest.
“The Hunting Festival is a tradition honoring the founding ancestors of Benheim. It will be held tomorrow at dawn for two days.”
Participants: young mages of Benheim and Lucen.
“We will release illusionary beasts into the forest. The goal is to hunt them and earn points.”
He raised a crystal, and illusionary beasts appeared: a wolf, a bear, and a tiger.
Green, blue, and red respectively.
“Lower beasts are 1 point, intermediate are 5 points, advanced are 20 points.”
“Points are automatically recorded on your badge upon defeat.”
“Combat between participants is strictly prohibited. Cooperation is allowed, but points will be divided based on contribution.”
With that, Stern ended the briefing.
The banquet resumed, but now everyone talked only about the festival.
Brock approached me.
“Reygan, you heard that, right?”
“What?”
“We must hunt at least one beast. That’s the rule.”
“And if we don’t?”
“Then we get expelled next year. It means we have no talent.”
I nodded.
For direct heirs, it was a festival of honor.
For branch families, it was a test of survival.
“I got 5 points last year,” Brock said proudly. “Just follow me.”
But I wasn’t really interested in ranking high.
My experience with real monsters far exceeded this.
Soon, Lrenia and Petra approached us.
“Are we going together tomorrow? This will be fun,” Lrenia said.
Petra frowned.
“You’re really going to play around with a commoner? The Hunting Festival isn’t a child’s game.”
Lrenia sighed.
“Reygan will score higher than you, I guarantee it.”
Petra snapped.
“Don’t be ridiculous! A commoner like him—!”
I interrupted, speaking to Brock:
“Hey, Brock.”
“Y-yeah?”
“You said you got 5 points last year?”
“Yes…?”
I smiled slightly.
“Then I guess I should aim for 21 points. One advanced beast… and that noisy one over there.”
The atmosphere froze.
Petra’s face went pale with rage.
Before she could explode, footsteps echoed.
Tap. Tap.
Stern walked down from the head seat and approached me directly.
Everyone fell silent.
“Reygan.”
He placed a hand on my shoulder.
Then he leaned in and whispered:
“Do you see them?”
His gaze shifted toward the elders.
“Tomorrow… we begin the hunt.”
I understood immediately.
This entire festival was a trap.
A setup designed by Stern to lure out and eliminate hidden dark mages.
A real hunt disguised as a festival.
