Chapter 33 – Making a Name (1)

Although I felt like I had been caught up in a dangerous matter, I had just secured Thomas and Willas Wayne, who were assets beyond my expectations.

At that, I intended to pleasantly accept their barrage of questions.

How I had survived to come here, why I had wanted to take the exam, and what was the deal with my eloquence at the debate…

‘They probably have a mountain of things they are curious about.’

Although it was annoying since it was a story I had already told once during the conversation with Herman Melville, I could do it as much as needed if it could make the Wayne brothers my definitive support force.

The ill fate at the tavern was long forgotten.

“Aren’t we friends? Us?”

So when asked why I had helped them, that was how I replied. Because help without a reason was bound to become the greatest debt.

Above all, eight days later, they, who would become magic engineers, would become the greatest pillars of the leadership that would be my enemies in a way.

If such Wayne brothers returned to the Ember in glory, but had become my henchmen, the son of the Head of the Magic Engineering Department?

‘It would be like stabbing the leadership and Yan Casselos in the back.’

The golem was the same.

Once they returned, the Wayne brothers would also share the responsibility for the failure of the golem development as part of the Magic Engineering Department, so the leadership would not be able to just denounce the Magic Engineering Department.

Of course, the Wayne brothers had joined at the very end, but there was no reason I could not use them to sway public opinion.

If the parties involved said so, who would object?

“So, the reason I came here is…”

It was at that very moment when I was about to unfold the long story from the first day I left the Ember and entered the snowfields until today.

“*Ugh*…!”

“*Ugh*, *sob*…!”

Suddenly, without asking any questions, the Wayne brothers began to shed tears.

‘What is this, what is wrong with them? Are they sick?’

I was flustered for once.

It was only natural since two fully grown adult men were crying out loud in the middle of the street.

Everyone passing by was looking this way and whispering, acting as if they would report it to the police at any moment.

“Stop crying, and let’s move to another spot first.”

Since all three of us were yellow-hairs and the police station was right in front of us, I felt uneasy for no reason and coaxed the two to move.

However, the Wayne brothers cried for a long time even after moving, and it was only after ten minutes had passed that they finally stopped crying.

“What is it? Why on earth did you cry?”

“It is… nothing.”

When I asked out of absurdity, an even more absurd answer returned.

However, since I did not want to watch the unsightly scene of two men whimpering any longer, I did not press any further.

Soon, the Wayne brothers, who had composed their emotions, snuffled and asked.

“What happened, Ailen?”

“Yeah, we thought you were dead. What happened? Lord Heimdall was also asking about you.”

It was the obvious question I had expected, but their tone was completely different from when we were at the tavern.

‘To think that leaving them with a debt just once would have such an effect.’

They were being excessively kind and dripping with affection, making me wonder if saving them at the debate had been that touching.

I almost let my guard down at that, but I pulled myself together.

‘There is no need to tell the truth.’

I had to hide the fact that I was intermediate-advanced and that I had met Herman Melville, and I had to fill in the discrepancy of how a scoundrel had become a highly competent magic engineer.

Having finished organizing my thoughts in that way, I told them the story simply, leaving out what needed to be left out and adding what needed to be added.

The response of the two brothers was subtle.

“…So you were actually hiding your talent?”

“Well… if he says so himself. I guess that’s how it is, Thomas.”

Honestly, even I would find it hard to believe.

Since the twin Wayne brothers were the same age as me, they had likely grown up watching Ailen Vail’s disastrous talent.

However, due to the unknown sense of debt felt through the eyes of the two looking at me, they passed over it without much suspicion.

“So… you took the qualification exam, right?”

However, what they truly wanted to know was that.

Did I take the magic engineer qualification exam?

They had no choice but to be curious.

Even if they had not understood my words at the debate earlier, they would have seen the reactions of the other examinees and the hands of those called scouters rustling as they scribbled with their pens.

That meant the Wayne brothers could deduce my level to some extent.

“Yeah. Otherwise, why would I risk my life to come all the way here?”

“Then… that means you got first place, Ailen?”

It led to the result that I was indeed the one who took first place in this qualification exam.

“We don’t know yet.”

However, I spoke humbly.

Since Herman Melville had asserted to me, ‘You will place first in this exam,’ I would obviously be first, but…

“Because this is a world where there is a talented person above a talented person, and an even more talented person above that one.”

Having seen the monstrous boy who was intermediate at fifteen, I could not show off, even if only out of a guilty conscience.

“Humble words carry deception if they go too far, Ailen.”

“That’s right, getting first place is as good as secured, so you can be honest. At least in front of us who are ‘friends.’”

However, to the Wayne brothers, it seemed to sound like extreme humility.

“There is someone I will introduce to you later; let’s see if you can still say that then.”

When I shook my head, feeling embarrassed to hear it, Thomas clapped his hands and asked.

“Come to think of it, where does a guy with not a single penny sleep? Don’t tell me it’s the library?”

While I was scratching my head, Willas took over the conversation this time.

“Are you even eating?”

“…I have jerky.”

“Stop acting so pitiful and come to our lodging. We have the money Yan gave us, and the money your father gave us is also quite generous.”

‘Our father? Demian Vail gave them money?’

While the Wayne brothers’ father, Merel Wayne, was clinging to the leadership, Demian, who was in an adversarial relationship, had given them money.

And quite generously at that.

It did not make sense common-sense-wise.

“How much did my father give you guys?”

“He gave us a gold coin. It’s really a lot of money.”

“…!”

A gold coin.

Was that not money equivalent to a laborer’s annual salary?

As I opened my eyes wide, Thomas spoke with a bitter voice.

“Lord Demian thinks you are dead. That you collapsed somewhere in the boundless snow and returned to the embrace of the Sun God.”

“…Did he.”

“Yeah. This gold coin was not given for us to use. He gave it to us to put in your mouth if we discovered you lying in the snowfields.”

“…”

Only then did I realize.

That Demian Vail handing them the gold coin was his way of wishing for his son Ailen Vail’s peaceful rest.

You could call it a sort of passage money.

“Anyway, whether you are dead or alive, this is your money. And although it’s not my place to interfere… I hope you use it where it’s absolutely necessary. In other words, this is the price of your life.”

Thomas handed me a bright yellow gold coin.

‘The price of my life…’

I felt strange. Because although I was alive like this, the ‘real’ Ailen Vail was not in this world.

Perhaps Demian ended up mourning the death of his real son without even knowing it himself.

However, after staring at the gold coin in his hand with sunken eyes for a long time, I…

“Thank you for delivering it. Thomas, Willas Wayne.”

I quickly took the gold coin and shoved it into my pocket.

‘I didn’t possess this body because I wanted to, so there is no need to have useless guilt. If I live well with a grateful heart, that is enough.’

There was no need to think deeply.

Even if the personality changed, I was still Ailen Vail to them, and I would also live on as Ailen Vail.

I did not intend to use it for the remaining payment of the whiskey. Because I planned to settle that with the gold coins I would receive from Ian Draco.

In that sense, this gold coin was already a slush fund.

“Then, see you again on the day we return.”

The moment I, having finished my business, was about to return to the library to take a nap, the Wayne brothers held me back as if to ask how I could say such disappointing words.

“I told you, you can come to our lodging. We ended up booking a large room, so there is one bed left.”

“Is it free? I have a use for this money.”

“Would I really take money from you? Between friends.”

“Right, friends. So where is your lodging?”

“It’s Room 1103, 355, 405th Street.”

“What…? Where?”

“Ah, you wouldn’t know. It means the 11th floor of the building at the 355th rim in the 4 o’clock direction.”

Not know…? I, who had run back and forth between Namiya’s house and the library like a dog in training, knew—knew all too well.

Just how long it would take from here to your lodging, which was even farther than Namiya’s house!

“I’m not going. You guys go by yourselves.”

“What? Why! Why are you saying you won’t go!”

“I haven’t slept properly, so I have no energy to move, so go away. If I need to, I’ll visit you later.”

From the boundless snow to this moment.

Since I had done all the walking I would ever do in my life this time, I did not want to walk anymore.

“Ailen, Ailen!”

“Yeah, yeah. Go on. Take care. See you next time.”

In that way, leaving the Wayne brothers’ shouts behind, I entered the library.

However, the reason I did not go to their lodging was not just because I hated walking.

‘I do not have foundational knowledge about this world. I know nothing properly.’

From the lifestyle and culture of the citizens in a small scale, to the continental situation and the confrontation between Embers on a large scale.

I had not yet fully assimilated into this place.

In order to survive as a leader in the future, it was necessary to study the knowledge, culture, history, and future of this world.

In that sense, the library was an extremely kind guide that did not doubt my ignorance.

An outstanding guide that had mastered records and information across all sorts of fields, not to mention magic engineering books, and even a vast range of information such as novels.

However, no matter how important it was to become a person of this world, there was one grave problem that could not be compared to it…

“Let’s please get some sleep this time. Please.”

It was the matter of successfully falling asleep.

* * *

Chief Mechanical Magic Engineer Herman Melville returned to his office.

Leaning back in his soft leather chair and thinking deeply about something, he muttered.

“To forget what I aimed for… has there ever been a time like this?”

Since he had just left the interrogation room and headed straight to his office, he was talking about Ailen Vail.

Originally, Herman Melville had intended to silence Ailen Vail to protect the secrecy of the top-secret research.

To tell him that since his answer sheet pierced through the core of their research, they would give him first place in exchange for changing the content, so do not disclose the existing answer sheet anywhere.

However, Herman Melville could not bring up the words he had prepared in the first place.

However, rather than because he was negligent…

“It smells similar. A smell similar to Odin…”

Because the size of the talent named Ailen Vail whom he faced in person had exceeded his predictions.

He had almost cast aside all his pride and ‘begged’ him to become his person.

However, if that was the case, he could have met him in his office; there was a reason he had gone out of his way to call him to the interrogation room.

“Odin’s children have already caught the scent… it must be because of Heimdall.”

The five siblings of the Arcadius family, born with the fate of having no choice but to walk the path of fratricide as the successors of the Immortal Ember.

Despite being the youngest and born as an illegitimate child alone, Heimdall had demonstrated extraordinary leadership since childhood and expanded his supporting forces.

Naturally, his brothers and sisters did not stay still, and by the year Heimdall turned twenty-five, all of his supporting forces had their heads severed.

Because the greed and vigilance for power of those brothers and sisters were so great, the check on Heimdall, whose limbs were all cut off except for a loyal sword named Carlyle, was continuing even until now.

In the midst of that, the yellow-hair who pulled out Heimdall’s compass happened to be the son of Demian Vail and a prospective magic engineer with tremendous talent.

There was no way that news had not entered the ears of the brothers and sisters.

And.

“Heimdall, what will you do about this situation in the future? Your only card is uncontrollable, and it seems your enemies already know what you are holding…”

It was Herman Melville who secretly supported Heimdall.

If it were to be known that someone like him met Heimdall’s person in his office, Ailen would surely be upgraded to a first-class dangerous person and assassinated without anyone knowing.

The great name of Herman Melville was extremely cumbersome at times like this.

That was the reason why Herman Melville had no choice but to meet Ailen in the interrogation room while hiding his identity and movements by using the chief of police.

“I should have said three months. Half a year is also too late.”

Herman Melville sighed.

He, who rarely regretted, had made a misjudgment after a long time.

However.

“He has the ‘quality.’ It won’t be long before we find out.”

Even if there was regret, Herman Melville’s choices had never been wrong.

As always, in the end, he would be right.