Chapter 6 – The Scoundrel is No More (3)

His close friend Karen, the tavern keeper couple, the brothers Thomas and Willus Wayne, and the countless mysterious ladies that the real Aylen Vale had been with…

“Oh my, are you leaving already? You said you’d stay with me tonight.”

“Stay with you? He agreed to spend this holiday with me, you know?”

“Ha! Then let’s all three of us stay together. I won’t back down!”

“Do you think I’ll back down? Let’s do that! You can do it, right, Aylen?”

“…….”

Just what on earth were they asking if he could do…

Having grasped the general atmosphere and situation through the shocking, even dizzying information about Aylen and the minor and major news of Ember that I heard from them…

“Sorry, let’s meet next time.”

Despite their pitiful hands holding onto me, I left the tavern without any lingering regret.

There was no more information to be obtained. To be precise, because my reputation was crawling at the very bottom, it was impossible to acquire high-quality information.

Because those who possessed useful information refused to associate with me.

The Wayne brothers were like that.

No matter how much of a troublemaker of Ember I was, they also had their pride, and they had only ‘deigned’ to converse with me for a moment after being overwhelmed by the brief spirit I had shown.

Although I had looked down on them, asking if they were just unemployed bums who couldn’t even become novice magic engineers, I knew better than anyone that they were clearly a group of elites, as I had memorized the game’s lore and setting book in its entirety.

And the residents living in such a world probably knew it even better than I did.

‘That is why a mere foreman has connections with the leader and confidently commits embezzlement and breach of trust regarding glacier stones.’

Of course, besides them, there were over a hundred people in the tavern, so there were some who possessed useful information.

Such as propaganda officers at the forefront of Ember’s information, or statisticians who managed all resources necessary for the city’s operation… those who proudly wore uniforms bearing the name of their departments.

But the reality was that even the low-level employees of such institutions looked at me as if I were a bug. This meant that sharing a table with the leader Yan Casselos, the most desirable prey and today’s main guest of the tavern, or the leadership was out of the question.

In that case, who was the closest figure in power who held high-quality information and whom I could contact?

“Head of the Magic Engineering Department, Demian Vale. My father…”

That was this body’s biological father.

He had neglected me because I had no talent for magic engineering, and that heartless man, who did not even view me as human after I strayed and became a scoundrel, was indeed that figure in power.

However, according to Daisy, my nth girlfriend—whether she was my ex, ex-ex, or ex-ex-ex—whom I met at the tavern:

“The relationship between you and the head? Has it been about ten years since you two cut ties…? But why ask that? Are you trying to get along with him now?”

Although Demian and I were bound by the bond of parent and child, we were worse than strangers, not having exchanged a single word for over ten long years.

As for me, I could not easily imagine the depth of the misunderstanding and resentment accumulated between the two.

But since I was not the real Aylen, I was fully willing to try and get along with Demian, even now. No, if possible, I had to.

The problem was that Demian would not feel the same as me.

But.

“They said the lights in the lab are still on… If I go there, he will at least meet me.”

No matter what, blood was thicker than water, and kin was kin.

Judging from what I had heard, the emotional gulf between the two was a mutual fault, but wouldn’t he generously accept me if I was the first to pretend to sincerely regret and reflect?

Pretending to yield reluctantly, as parents usually did.

“Sigh… to think I have to act like a good son. What did I even do wrong?”

A sense of injustice rushed over me at the thought that I had to clean up someone else’s mess. However, to achieve the goal of becoming the leader as soon as possible and making Ember prosperous and strong, the reality was that I had to improve even these minor relationships.

That was how desperate my situation had become.

Yet, looking at the bigger picture, improving this seemingly insignificant relationship was the first step in city operations, such as politics and business. For if the Eternal Embers ran on magic stones as fuel, Ember ran on people as fuel.

Therefore, relationships were parts, and improvement was lubrication.

Above all, in this narrow world, connections and relationships were almost everything. It could be said to be even more intense than the blood ties, regionalism, and school ties in Korea.

I had to restore the relationship with Demian, the Head of the Magic Engineering Department, to a normal state by any means necessary.

Knock, knock—creak—

“A-Aylen? What on earth brings you here…?”

When I knocked on the laboratory door, a man in his thirties appeared, his expression contorted as if he were looking at something he shouldn’t have seen.

Having memorized all the faces and names from the list of Magic Engineering Department members in my father’s study, I knew who he was.

“Hello, Uncle Caleb. I would like to see my father.”

“…What business do you have? If it is not important, come back later. Do not waste our time uselessly.”

Caleb’s attitude was extremely defensive and sharp. This must also mean he was treating me like trash.

But I could not turn back without even seeing my father’s face.

While improving the relationship was one thing, the only authoritative recommender who could write a recommendation letter for me to take the novice magic engineer qualification exam was Demian Vale.

Honestly, I doubted he would write it for me, but…

‘I will have to make him write it. Somehow.’

Therefore, from now on, I had to speak every single word carefully, and do it well.

“A son wants to see his father’s face, and is that useless? And I said I came to see my father, not the Head of the Magic Engineering Department, Demian Vale. Why do I need your permission, Uncle?”

“…What?”

“I came on mother’s errand, so stop talking and let me in. If you don’t want to, then call him out here.”

“…….”

Caleb stood with a dazed expression.

Yes, this was a world where you could obtain nothing by bowing down, but would rather have things taken away.

This was exactly what a ‘careful’ and ‘good’ way of speaking was.

Becoming a dutiful son was out of the question.

* * *

“What? Who is coming?”

Demian Vale had been steadily building up his anger as he repeatedly reconstructed and reconstructed the blueprint of a golem that showed no signs of improvement.

Having become the incarnation of anger at some point, he glared with wide eyes and asked irritably.

“Aylen Vale… your son is here, Department Head.”

Caleb replied in a crawling voice.

‘Why are the sparks flying to me as well…’

Caleb lamented being caught in the fight between father and son, but on the other hand, he fully understood Demian’s anger.

Just how much damage had the Magic Engineering Department and Demian Vale suffered because of that scoundrel, Aylen Vale?

The Magic Engineering Department, comprised of talents that did not fit the small scale of Ember’s population of a thousand, had built up tremendous approval ratings and reputation through consecutive victories in magic engineering progress and technology development.

That a nameless place like Ember, which was not even the size of a small town, could win the monumental opportunity to explore the First Ember Research Institute was likely due more to the brilliance of Demian Vale’s name than Yan Casselos’s diplomacy.

However, while climbing was difficult, falling was easy. That scoundrel Aylen had single-handedly brought down all the effort, reputation, and approval ratings they had built up.

Relying on his father’s authority, he had indulged in alcohol, gambling, and women, spreading numerous scandals and exerting a terribly negative influence on the public image of Demian and, by extension, the Magic Engineering Department.

“Tell him to get lost. That scoundrel cannot set a single foot inside the laboratory.”

“He said he came on an errand for Mrs. Renata, do we just send him back?”

“What could there be to deliver? Her meal was brought earlier, so at most, it’s clothes. Tell him to get lost, and convey it exactly, word for word.”

So, turning him away at the door now was also justifiable. Even if they were of the same blood, that guy was closer to an enemy.

At one time, everyone in the Magic Engineering Department had seriously suspected whether Aylen was a spy for the leadership or was acting on their orders. Otherwise, there was no way he would choose only the worst options to tarnish Demian’s reputation.

But if that had been the case, it would have been easier to understand; that guy Aylen Vale was just a pure idiot and a scoundrel.

“Yes… I will convey that.”

Caleb turned around with a grim face to deliver the eviction order.

“Ho… Is this the blueprint in question? The one from the report ?”

A familiar yet unfamiliar voice was heard.

There was no mistake. This voice belonged to the scoundrel Aylen Vale.

‘We are doomed…’

In that moment, a chill ran down his spine, and he was certain.

Since disaster had entered because of Caleb’s failure to lock the door properly, a bloodbath would soon rage.

The other magic engineers also felt the thick killing intent emanating from Demian.

Yet, Aylen calmly examined the blueprint in the middle of this suffocating silence and spoke.

“When first developing a golem, the key doesn’t seem to be looking at which side it leans toward between magic and engineering… but rather where to place more weight between magic and engineering. Isn’t that so, Department Head?”

Aylen was carefully examining the blueprint and report page by page, as if evaluating them.

Flying into a rage, Demian shouted.

“You, did you dare rummage through my study? And what does a fellow like you know to talk so recklessly about magic engineering—!”

“Yes, yes. Exactly. It’s just so frustrating to see learned gentlemen struggling like this with a problem that even a guy like me knows.”

“What?”

Toward Demian, who was growling as if he would pounce at any second, Aylen waved the bundle of blueprints and spoke.

“’Magic engineering has no limits or boundaries, and is infinite. Therefore, a true magic engineer must not be trapped in a mold, but must create the mold.’ This is a quote from Icing Techwind, the archmage and great engineer who created Eternal Magic. If you still feel nothing even after I have said this much, then I have nothing more to say.”

“……!”

All ten magic engineers swallowed their shock inwardly.

The archmage’s last words quoted by Aylen were accurate to the letter. It was a mystery when that scoundrel had read magic engineering books.

But the meaning was even more exquisite than the content.

Though it was unclear if Aylen truly spoke with understanding, it was a statement that instantly woke them up to the cause of the stagnant development and its direction.

Since all creation and invention stem from a moment of realization, Aylen’s words, even if only a single sentence, held value far beyond that.

Though he had gained realization from a son he regarded as less than a bug, Demian regained his composure with surprising speed.

At this moment, he existed not as a father with a scoundrel son, but as a magic engineer.

“What is it? What you have to say.”

“What I have to say? What do you mean…”

“Whatever it is, I know you did not come because of Renata’s errand. Say what you want.”

“Hmm…”

Aylen, who thought he had seized the momentum, wore a troubled yet satisfied smile.

He seemed to find interest in Demian’s attitude, as the man instantly regained his composure and began to lead the conversation.

But the trouble was only a momentary feeling, and with a look in his eyes as if he had found something more interesting than expected, he demanded confidently.

“Write me a recommendation letter. I am going to take the novice magic engineer qualification exam.”

“Impossible. I cannot write you a recommendation letter just because you are my son.”

“Who said you should?”

“Then…?”

“I am telling you to write the recommendation letter in your capacity as the Head of the Magic Engineering Department, not as my father. That should make it work, right?”

“……!”

At Aylen’s appearance of catching him off guard and reclaiming the initiative once again like that,

‘Just since when did that guy become so good at speaking…!’

Demian could not suppress his astonishment.