Nikolaus did not doubt that the emperor would officially appoint his eldest son as the next successor, even though he knew that he was the son of the vizier.
Because he was desperate after losing his beloved Eleonora, he did not care who would be the successor.
That's why, now.
I couldn't hide my surprise when I heard Carla say that.
She wondered what his intention was in telling Carla now.
"Are you saying... that Alexandra-sama will be your successor?"
Alexandra was the emperor's only biological child.
She had been kept in the temple for a long time, but I heard that she had recently moved to Eleonora's apartment by order of the Emperor.
I've also heard that she dotes on him as if he had turned his hand to her.
"That's not it! I have not been assured that he will be my successor! He just said that Alexandra is the first in line to the throne!"
"I see..."
The Vizier's son was a good man, but he was too much in the public eye to be the heir.
I wonder why the vizier does not admonish his son's debauchery.
On the other hand, Alexandra's reputation is terribly high.
Her reputation among the upper echelons is low due to the Emperor's long period of neglect, but her reputation among the people is enormous.
This is probably because of the strong tradition that the prayers of the priestesses are essential for the stability of the country.
Her reputation among the knights and mages is also one of the best.
She is excellent as a healer, a priestess, and even as a mage.
I have not been able to appraise her at all, perhaps due to divine protection, but I believe she possesses at least extraordinary healing and divine magic.
Nikolaus cannot tell how much of it is due to divine blessings.
According to the head of the temple, there is no way that such a small girl can be blessed by the gods. She's probably just unconsciously using the special magic of royal succession! He said.
In that case, Nikolaus had to verify it and tried various things.
Even now, he tries it whenever he sees a chance.
I used a lethal poison spell on him when we passed each other, but he only stayed down for a night, so I used an antidote spell.
I used a brainwashing spell to turn a hexenbiest against me, but the hexenbiest disappeared without a hair on its head, so I cast an annihilation spell.
I cast a spell from my house, but it was returned, so I cast a spell of royal succession.
All day long, for a week straight, over a long period of time without any regularity.
By himself, by his students, by some dark cabal.
Despite all the spells Alexandra had cast, she had managed to prevent all of them, albeit not perfectly, by using spells that Nikolaus, the country's greatest mage, had never seen outside of literature.
I still wish that I had wanted him in the academy rather than treating him so coldly, but it seems that that will never happen.
"...I'm going to ask His Majesty's will."
"! Oh! That's Nicolaus! Hurry, I want to hear His Majesty's will!"
He looks up at me with his shining eyes.
The lower half of my body is a little tense, but there's not a trace of love in it.
Nevertheless, I pressed my forehead against the back of her hand reverently and sashayed to the royal palace.
I went to the emperor's office, where he was always supposed to be, but there was no sign of him.
When I asked the gatekeeper, he said he was somewhere else with Alexandra.
But he won't tell me where.
"It's urgent!"
You shout, but the gatekeeper keeps his mouth shut.
I tried to think of a brainwashing spell without chanting, but it was rejected.
"You should be ashamed of yourself!"
"...Annemarie, sama."
The one who stood in defense of the gatekeeper was said to be the eldest daughter of the emperor and his entourage, but was actually the daughter of Nikolaus and Carla.
"I'll take her with me. You've caused me a lot of trouble."
I'm sorry, Annemarie-sama, but I'm afraid I must insist.
"Mm."
Annemarie grabbed Nikolaus by the collar in a dignified manner befitting an imperial princess, casually greeted each of the people hanging their heads, and stopped in front of one of the countless rooms.
Quickly opening one of the rooms where she keeps unannounced guests temporarily waiting, Annemarie kicks Nikolaus in the back and quietly locks the door behind his back.
"Anne, Marie, sir?"
"You bastard!"
"!"
Nikolaus curled up with his head in his hands, his voice so angry that it rattled around the room as if he had used some kind of loud voice magic.
"You, you, prick, are my father!"
"Who told you that?"
You never know where a secret will leak out.
The fewer people who know, the better.
Carla, who had foolishly revealed the secret to Edeltraut, was well guided to keep her mouth shut.
Therefore, Annemarie must not have known that Nikolaus was her father.
"...I had a hunch that you didn't have his blood in your veins...but...how could you have inherited the blood of such an evil man as you? It's horrible..."
Instead of answering Nikolaus' question, Annemarie just continued to curse.
"Instead of envying and humiliating Alexandra-sama, instead of hating and humiliating Lord Edeltraut! I had to hate you-sama and erase you!"
Annemarie had inherited Carla's flamboyant good looks, and her magic was also flamboyant.
She was the only one in the country who could control the highest level of offensive fire magic at will.
Even Nikolaus would find it difficult to stop her.
We can't make enemies of him.
That was why he was proud of Annemarie, who had inherited his talent as a mage, and continued to treat her as a vassal on the surface.
Leaving aside the few exceptions like Alexandra, who was completely isolated, those who excelled in magic had to stay at the academy for a certain period of time, even if they were members of the royal family.
It wasn't a long time, but I thought that I had taught him and guided him so that he could be my pawn when the time came.
"...The years of disrespect I've shown Alexandra-sama cannot be forgiven. Unlike Lord Edeltraut, who has a father who is extremely loyal to him, my father, my father!"
His eyes are crimson as he stares hatefully at Nikolaus.
Tears of blood are seeping into her eyes, and even the whites of her eyes are stained red.
"Her mother was a whore who never bore any of His Majesty's children. Her father is an outlaw who would do any evil for the cause of witchcraft. That! The only thing I have to do now is to die with this country!"
What are you talking about? !
"What? Outcast. You're a fool, so let me tell you. All the evil you've unleashed on Alexandra-sama has been mitigated and repelled by the blessings of God."
"...Huh?"
Something cold runs through me from my toes to the top of my head.
"The more religious you are, the heavier the sanction of God's protection. It does not lead to death, but there are even some that call death kinder. The only reason why the noble sama did not receive an obvious retribution until now is because his wife and children took his place."
Daniela was not a very religious person, but she still made sure to visit the temple at a certain time to have Bettina blessed.
Daniela's transference spell stopped working after she gave birth, and she became strangely sickly.
Bettina didn't inherit the transference spell, and she didn't grow up well.
If she was being rewarded for taking Nikolaus' place, it would make sense.
"But now. "But now you understand the blessings of the gods. They've felt it. The repercussions are nothing compared to what's been thrust upon them."
"No malice! I never meant Alexandra-sama any harm!"
"Then it's worse. If you used Alexandra-sama as a test subject, then you will also be used as a test subject of some sort."
That's ridiculous!
It's impossible to mistake magic for blessing.
It was definitely magic.
That's not a mistake.
But Nikolaus can't tell a blessing from a spell.
He just believed what the high priest told him to believe.
If the High Priestess was lying to him.
If there are blessings that are closer to magic than anything else.
What I've been doing!
I'm not sure what to do.
A cold sweat broke out all over my body.
My teeth are chattering noisily.
My knees seemed to be laughing as if they were about to shatter.
"There's no point in apologizing or making amends now. But! You'd better not show any more disrespect or disrespect. For your crimes and punishments will only grow heavier!"
"An, huh! You're not Marie!
"I will protect Alexandra-sama from the shadows until she leaves this country, and after she leaves, I will watch the country die before I die."
His anger is subdued, but there is a chill running down his spine.
Despite the fact that he did not have a drop of the Emperor's blood in his veins, his propensity to say and do things and his absolute intimidation were exactly like the Emperor.
"Your Majesty and Alexandra-sama will not want to see the face of a traitor of the highest disrespect. Get out of my sight!"
But, sir!
"Disappear!"
Boom! A thick pillar of fire blazes up.
The flames of the mask, which were not supposed to burn the surroundings, burned Nikolaus' face.
"Hiiiiiiii!"
Screaming in pain, he turns his back on Annemarie.
"...Your position as the head of the Mage Training Academy has been revoked. You will not be allowed to enter the academy. When Alexandra-sama leaves the country, she will be formally dealt with for her past disrespect. Until then, keep your affairs in order at all costs!"
The words directed at Nikolaus, who was about to step into despair, pushed him further into the abyss as he ran away while reducing the pain with sedative magic.
No matter how many times Nikolaus tried to cast healing spells, he could not get rid of the feeling of his flesh twitching from the burns, and the gates of the school were closed in front of him in frustration.
The gate, which would normally open automatically at his approach, shows no sign of opening.
"It's me! I'm back! Open the gate! I'm Nikolaus Bot, Court Mage! I'm the headmaster!"
I even used loud voice magic, but the gates didn't open and there was no reply.
"It's urgent! Send me one of your transference magicians!"
I don't care if the gates don't open, as long as I get what I need.
The transference spellcaster was next to him in the blink of an eye, but no matter how long he waited, none of them showed up.
"Damn it!"
It seems that the position of Dean has been completely revoked.
The head of the court mage's position was higher in authority, but considering that he hadn't shown up, it was highly likely that his position was also revoked or frozen.
If I keep screaming like this, I may even be in danger of being locked up as a criminal.
"I guess we have no choice."
In the back pocket of his robe, he pulled out one of the several pockets he kept.
The transfer stone, which would allow him to travel to a specific location only once, was very expensive, but he could not afford to pay for it.
He wondered where he should go first and decided to go to the villa where Daniela and Bettina were living.
The villa, located in a very inconvenient place, was given to me by a nobleman.
She thought it would be a good place to keep them isolated, but it would be a different story if she couldn't use her transference magic.
"If the blessing retaliates against me, the retaliation against Daniela and the others should be diminished."
It's also possible that Bettina is awake.
Wherever she's running to, the transference spell will make it much easier for her to get around.
We have to see if it's activated.
"Daniela! Go back to the villa! Hurry up and get ready!"
I unlocked the door and stepped into the villa, shouting.
"Hey! Where are you, Daniela! Bettina! Get down!"
I'm sorry to keep you waiting, sir.
Daniela, who was no longer able to use her transference magic, still quickly appeared in front of Nikolaus with Bettina and bowed to him, but he didn't even respond.
"Daniela! Bettina!"
When he is not feeling well, he sometimes uses hypnotic magic to fall into a deep sleep.
Nikolaus walked upstairs to the bedroom.
"...He's not here, either, huh?"
But in the open bedroom, there was no sign of sleep, only a large bed that could sleep a father and son together, neatly made up.
Desperately fighting off the sense of discomfort that was slowly invading my body, I opened the door to the room.
In Nikolaus' study, which had been carefully locked to prevent the two of them from entering, there was a small box.
A small box.
Inside is probably a ring.
The old -sama-ko looks familiar.
Underneath the box were papers and two letters in envelopes.
The bare document is a letter of divorce.
It was signed by Daniela and Bettina.
"Letters, when did you learn to write?"
In faltering handwriting, I cut the seal of a letter that read, "Dear Nikolaus Botto.
On a sheet of letterhead, there is one word.
Goodbye.
"Where did you go? Where else can you go but here! A place to live!"
How can there be! he shouted as he cut the seal on the other letter.
Nikolaus Bot-sama.
By the time the bot-sama reads this letter, we will have left the Empire of Mysia.
Annemarie-sama went all the way to the backwoods and told us all about the sins of the bots.
She told us to run away because if we didn't, there was a high possibility that we would be accused and even Bettina would be punished.
He made all the preparations for my escape.
When I asked him why he was going to such lengths, he said that he was the only one who took pity on me among the children of Bot-sama's blood.
I didn't know that you still have other children besides Annemarie-sama.
Bot-sama had many secrets from me.
The reason I didn't ask is because I had secrets too.
I'm not a stone woman.
There's no problem with transference magic.
Bettina can cast transference spells too.
Although bot-sama refuses to admit it, Bettina and I are far better mages than bot-sama ever was.
That's why we disguised the results of our evaluation so that you wouldn't be interested in us.
I'm glad I didn't tell you the truth.
I had no idea you were a devil who wanted to rape and impregnate his own daughter.
I doubt we'll ever meet again.
I am only grateful to bot-sama for giving me Bettina.
Daniela.
It is the prerogative of the gifted to leave good children.
Everyone does it.
What's wrong with giving the seed to those who want it?
There were many who wanted Nikolaus' seed.
Many had children.
But Bettina was the only child Nikolaus approved of.
No one else could have inherited Nikolaus's gift to his satisfaction.
Annemarie's power is something to be proud of but not something to be admired.
"Are you saying that Bettina's talent was not mine, but Daniela's? And if so, what about me?"
You're saying she had no talent.
"No. That's not true. Annemarie-sama inherited my power. It's impossible for someone without talent to have risen to the position of headmistress and court mage, even if she lost it. Yes. I'm a genius. I'm still good. We can do whatever we have to do. If we can't make it here we'll go to another country like Daniela and the others. We still have the transference stones. That's right! There are many countries that favor mages. We have many acquaintances. Good! Let's get on with it!"
Shaking his head as if to shake off his despair, Nikolaus clenched his fists and transferred to the mansion, and immediately began to prepare to flee.
Nikolaus, who had so easily made the decision to abandon his country, found that his escape destinations were being sealed one by one, without much time passing.
With an unstoppable shudder, he could not help but be aware of the slow and steady increase in retribution from the gods.
Because he was desperate after losing his beloved Eleonora, he did not care who would be the successor.
That's why, now.
I couldn't hide my surprise when I heard Carla say that.
She wondered what his intention was in telling Carla now.
"Are you saying... that Alexandra-sama will be your successor?"
Alexandra was the emperor's only biological child.
She had been kept in the temple for a long time, but I heard that she had recently moved to Eleonora's apartment by order of the Emperor.
I've also heard that she dotes on him as if he had turned his hand to her.
"That's not it! I have not been assured that he will be my successor! He just said that Alexandra is the first in line to the throne!"
"I see..."
The Vizier's son was a good man, but he was too much in the public eye to be the heir.
I wonder why the vizier does not admonish his son's debauchery.
On the other hand, Alexandra's reputation is terribly high.
Her reputation among the upper echelons is low due to the Emperor's long period of neglect, but her reputation among the people is enormous.
This is probably because of the strong tradition that the prayers of the priestesses are essential for the stability of the country.
Her reputation among the knights and mages is also one of the best.
She is excellent as a healer, a priestess, and even as a mage.
I have not been able to appraise her at all, perhaps due to divine protection, but I believe she possesses at least extraordinary healing and divine magic.
Nikolaus cannot tell how much of it is due to divine blessings.
According to the head of the temple, there is no way that such a small girl can be blessed by the gods. She's probably just unconsciously using the special magic of royal succession! He said.
In that case, Nikolaus had to verify it and tried various things.
Even now, he tries it whenever he sees a chance.
I used a lethal poison spell on him when we passed each other, but he only stayed down for a night, so I used an antidote spell.
I used a brainwashing spell to turn a hexenbiest against me, but the hexenbiest disappeared without a hair on its head, so I cast an annihilation spell.
I cast a spell from my house, but it was returned, so I cast a spell of royal succession.
All day long, for a week straight, over a long period of time without any regularity.
By himself, by his students, by some dark cabal.
Despite all the spells Alexandra had cast, she had managed to prevent all of them, albeit not perfectly, by using spells that Nikolaus, the country's greatest mage, had never seen outside of literature.
I still wish that I had wanted him in the academy rather than treating him so coldly, but it seems that that will never happen.
"...I'm going to ask His Majesty's will."
"! Oh! That's Nicolaus! Hurry, I want to hear His Majesty's will!"
He looks up at me with his shining eyes.
The lower half of my body is a little tense, but there's not a trace of love in it.
Nevertheless, I pressed my forehead against the back of her hand reverently and sashayed to the royal palace.
I went to the emperor's office, where he was always supposed to be, but there was no sign of him.
When I asked the gatekeeper, he said he was somewhere else with Alexandra.
But he won't tell me where.
"It's urgent!"
You shout, but the gatekeeper keeps his mouth shut.
I tried to think of a brainwashing spell without chanting, but it was rejected.
"You should be ashamed of yourself!"
"...Annemarie, sama."
The one who stood in defense of the gatekeeper was said to be the eldest daughter of the emperor and his entourage, but was actually the daughter of Nikolaus and Carla.
"I'll take her with me. You've caused me a lot of trouble."
I'm sorry, Annemarie-sama, but I'm afraid I must insist.
"Mm."
Annemarie grabbed Nikolaus by the collar in a dignified manner befitting an imperial princess, casually greeted each of the people hanging their heads, and stopped in front of one of the countless rooms.
Quickly opening one of the rooms where she keeps unannounced guests temporarily waiting, Annemarie kicks Nikolaus in the back and quietly locks the door behind his back.
"Anne, Marie, sir?"
"You bastard!"
"!"
Nikolaus curled up with his head in his hands, his voice so angry that it rattled around the room as if he had used some kind of loud voice magic.
"You, you, prick, are my father!"
"Who told you that?"
You never know where a secret will leak out.
The fewer people who know, the better.
Carla, who had foolishly revealed the secret to Edeltraut, was well guided to keep her mouth shut.
Therefore, Annemarie must not have known that Nikolaus was her father.
"...I had a hunch that you didn't have his blood in your veins...but...how could you have inherited the blood of such an evil man as you? It's horrible..."
Instead of answering Nikolaus' question, Annemarie just continued to curse.
"Instead of envying and humiliating Alexandra-sama, instead of hating and humiliating Lord Edeltraut! I had to hate you-sama and erase you!"
Annemarie had inherited Carla's flamboyant good looks, and her magic was also flamboyant.
She was the only one in the country who could control the highest level of offensive fire magic at will.
Even Nikolaus would find it difficult to stop her.
We can't make enemies of him.
That was why he was proud of Annemarie, who had inherited his talent as a mage, and continued to treat her as a vassal on the surface.
Leaving aside the few exceptions like Alexandra, who was completely isolated, those who excelled in magic had to stay at the academy for a certain period of time, even if they were members of the royal family.
It wasn't a long time, but I thought that I had taught him and guided him so that he could be my pawn when the time came.
"...The years of disrespect I've shown Alexandra-sama cannot be forgiven. Unlike Lord Edeltraut, who has a father who is extremely loyal to him, my father, my father!"
His eyes are crimson as he stares hatefully at Nikolaus.
Tears of blood are seeping into her eyes, and even the whites of her eyes are stained red.
"Her mother was a whore who never bore any of His Majesty's children. Her father is an outlaw who would do any evil for the cause of witchcraft. That! The only thing I have to do now is to die with this country!"
What are you talking about? !
"What? Outcast. You're a fool, so let me tell you. All the evil you've unleashed on Alexandra-sama has been mitigated and repelled by the blessings of God."
"...Huh?"
Something cold runs through me from my toes to the top of my head.
"The more religious you are, the heavier the sanction of God's protection. It does not lead to death, but there are even some that call death kinder. The only reason why the noble sama did not receive an obvious retribution until now is because his wife and children took his place."
Daniela was not a very religious person, but she still made sure to visit the temple at a certain time to have Bettina blessed.
Daniela's transference spell stopped working after she gave birth, and she became strangely sickly.
Bettina didn't inherit the transference spell, and she didn't grow up well.
If she was being rewarded for taking Nikolaus' place, it would make sense.
"But now. "But now you understand the blessings of the gods. They've felt it. The repercussions are nothing compared to what's been thrust upon them."
"No malice! I never meant Alexandra-sama any harm!"
"Then it's worse. If you used Alexandra-sama as a test subject, then you will also be used as a test subject of some sort."
That's ridiculous!
It's impossible to mistake magic for blessing.
It was definitely magic.
That's not a mistake.
But Nikolaus can't tell a blessing from a spell.
He just believed what the high priest told him to believe.
If the High Priestess was lying to him.
If there are blessings that are closer to magic than anything else.
What I've been doing!
I'm not sure what to do.
A cold sweat broke out all over my body.
My teeth are chattering noisily.
My knees seemed to be laughing as if they were about to shatter.
"There's no point in apologizing or making amends now. But! You'd better not show any more disrespect or disrespect. For your crimes and punishments will only grow heavier!"
"An, huh! You're not Marie!
"I will protect Alexandra-sama from the shadows until she leaves this country, and after she leaves, I will watch the country die before I die."
His anger is subdued, but there is a chill running down his spine.
Despite the fact that he did not have a drop of the Emperor's blood in his veins, his propensity to say and do things and his absolute intimidation were exactly like the Emperor.
"Your Majesty and Alexandra-sama will not want to see the face of a traitor of the highest disrespect. Get out of my sight!"
But, sir!
"Disappear!"
Boom! A thick pillar of fire blazes up.
The flames of the mask, which were not supposed to burn the surroundings, burned Nikolaus' face.
"Hiiiiiiii!"
Screaming in pain, he turns his back on Annemarie.
"...Your position as the head of the Mage Training Academy has been revoked. You will not be allowed to enter the academy. When Alexandra-sama leaves the country, she will be formally dealt with for her past disrespect. Until then, keep your affairs in order at all costs!"
The words directed at Nikolaus, who was about to step into despair, pushed him further into the abyss as he ran away while reducing the pain with sedative magic.
No matter how many times Nikolaus tried to cast healing spells, he could not get rid of the feeling of his flesh twitching from the burns, and the gates of the school were closed in front of him in frustration.
The gate, which would normally open automatically at his approach, shows no sign of opening.
"It's me! I'm back! Open the gate! I'm Nikolaus Bot, Court Mage! I'm the headmaster!"
I even used loud voice magic, but the gates didn't open and there was no reply.
"It's urgent! Send me one of your transference magicians!"
I don't care if the gates don't open, as long as I get what I need.
The transference spellcaster was next to him in the blink of an eye, but no matter how long he waited, none of them showed up.
"Damn it!"
It seems that the position of Dean has been completely revoked.
The head of the court mage's position was higher in authority, but considering that he hadn't shown up, it was highly likely that his position was also revoked or frozen.
If I keep screaming like this, I may even be in danger of being locked up as a criminal.
"I guess we have no choice."
In the back pocket of his robe, he pulled out one of the several pockets he kept.
The transfer stone, which would allow him to travel to a specific location only once, was very expensive, but he could not afford to pay for it.
He wondered where he should go first and decided to go to the villa where Daniela and Bettina were living.
The villa, located in a very inconvenient place, was given to me by a nobleman.
She thought it would be a good place to keep them isolated, but it would be a different story if she couldn't use her transference magic.
"If the blessing retaliates against me, the retaliation against Daniela and the others should be diminished."
It's also possible that Bettina is awake.
Wherever she's running to, the transference spell will make it much easier for her to get around.
We have to see if it's activated.
"Daniela! Go back to the villa! Hurry up and get ready!"
I unlocked the door and stepped into the villa, shouting.
"Hey! Where are you, Daniela! Bettina! Get down!"
I'm sorry to keep you waiting, sir.
Daniela, who was no longer able to use her transference magic, still quickly appeared in front of Nikolaus with Bettina and bowed to him, but he didn't even respond.
"Daniela! Bettina!"
When he is not feeling well, he sometimes uses hypnotic magic to fall into a deep sleep.
Nikolaus walked upstairs to the bedroom.
"...He's not here, either, huh?"
But in the open bedroom, there was no sign of sleep, only a large bed that could sleep a father and son together, neatly made up.
Desperately fighting off the sense of discomfort that was slowly invading my body, I opened the door to the room.
In Nikolaus' study, which had been carefully locked to prevent the two of them from entering, there was a small box.
A small box.
Inside is probably a ring.
The old -sama-ko looks familiar.
Underneath the box were papers and two letters in envelopes.
The bare document is a letter of divorce.
It was signed by Daniela and Bettina.
"Letters, when did you learn to write?"
In faltering handwriting, I cut the seal of a letter that read, "Dear Nikolaus Botto.
On a sheet of letterhead, there is one word.
Goodbye.
"Where did you go? Where else can you go but here! A place to live!"
How can there be! he shouted as he cut the seal on the other letter.
Nikolaus Bot-sama.
By the time the bot-sama reads this letter, we will have left the Empire of Mysia.
Annemarie-sama went all the way to the backwoods and told us all about the sins of the bots.
She told us to run away because if we didn't, there was a high possibility that we would be accused and even Bettina would be punished.
He made all the preparations for my escape.
When I asked him why he was going to such lengths, he said that he was the only one who took pity on me among the children of Bot-sama's blood.
I didn't know that you still have other children besides Annemarie-sama.
Bot-sama had many secrets from me.
The reason I didn't ask is because I had secrets too.
I'm not a stone woman.
There's no problem with transference magic.
Bettina can cast transference spells too.
Although bot-sama refuses to admit it, Bettina and I are far better mages than bot-sama ever was.
That's why we disguised the results of our evaluation so that you wouldn't be interested in us.
I'm glad I didn't tell you the truth.
I had no idea you were a devil who wanted to rape and impregnate his own daughter.
I doubt we'll ever meet again.
I am only grateful to bot-sama for giving me Bettina.
Daniela.
It is the prerogative of the gifted to leave good children.
Everyone does it.
What's wrong with giving the seed to those who want it?
There were many who wanted Nikolaus' seed.
Many had children.
But Bettina was the only child Nikolaus approved of.
No one else could have inherited Nikolaus's gift to his satisfaction.
Annemarie's power is something to be proud of but not something to be admired.
"Are you saying that Bettina's talent was not mine, but Daniela's? And if so, what about me?"
You're saying she had no talent.
"No. That's not true. Annemarie-sama inherited my power. It's impossible for someone without talent to have risen to the position of headmistress and court mage, even if she lost it. Yes. I'm a genius. I'm still good. We can do whatever we have to do. If we can't make it here we'll go to another country like Daniela and the others. We still have the transference stones. That's right! There are many countries that favor mages. We have many acquaintances. Good! Let's get on with it!"
Shaking his head as if to shake off his despair, Nikolaus clenched his fists and transferred to the mansion, and immediately began to prepare to flee.
Nikolaus, who had so easily made the decision to abandon his country, found that his escape destinations were being sealed one by one, without much time passing.
With an unstoppable shudder, he could not help but be aware of the slow and steady increase in retribution from the gods.