The Inept Mage's Infinite Regression - Chapter 13

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Translator: Ryuu

Editor: Gorm

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◈ The Inept Mage’s Infinite Regression

Chapter 13

Boen was visibly flustered.

"The Mage Court?"

"Yes."

"Th-that can’t be. Yurmus isn’t under the jurisdiction of the Mage Court, is it?"

Ethan was also taken aback, but unlike Boen, he had anticipated this situation and was able to hide his surprise.

Demi said, <The Inquisition and the Mage Court seem to have similar functions but oversee different domains. What do you plan to do?>

Ethan decided to test Boen. "You must know why I’m here," he said.

Boen frowned. "Are you saying there’s a mole within Yurmus’s Inquisition?"

According to Sirund Zen, the Inquisition and the Mage Court were mutually monitoring organizations. If one organization had a problem, the other stepped in to investigate. If the Mage Court was here, that implied that the Inquisition couldn’t resolve the issue on its own—likely due to a mole or some other, similar concern. Ethan decided to rely on that assumption for now.

"That’s right."

"…I’m not sure."

"Don’t answer immediately. Think about it."

"Even if there is a mole, what does that have to do with this dark magic?"

Demi said, <As expected, the top student is sharp.>

<Quiet.>

Ethan pressed on, trying to take control of the conversation. "Boen, answer my question first: Who else in Yurmus is with the Inquisition?"

Boen stared at Ethan for a moment, then adjusted his glasses. "You’re strange."

"What?"

"You know I’m part of the Inquisition, but you don’t know who else is in it?"

"Of course I know."

"Then tell me."

"Bain Wiz Decarune," Ethan said confidently.

But then Boen asked, "And?"

"…What?"

"Name another member."

Ethan was at a loss for words. It was only a few seconds, but that was enough for Boen.

"Who are you?" Boen asked.

Ethan reached into his pocket, but the sharp crystal that shot out from behind Boen was faster. Before Ethan could act, the crystal flew straight into his chest.

∞

Ethan decided to change his strategy.

When Ethan pressed Boen about knowing a mole, Boen said, "…I’m not sure."

"Don’t answer immediately. Think about it."

"Even if there is a mole, what does that have to do with this dark magic?"

Demi said, <As expected, the top student is sharp.>

<Why are you repeating yourself?> Ethan asked Demi. Then to Boen, he said, "Boen, answer my question first: Other than Bain Wiz Charasen and Boen Palmize, who else in Yurmus is part of the Inquisition?"

"Besides the two of us, there’s no one—" Boen stopped mid-sentence. "…This is strange. You came straight to me, a member of the Inquisition, but you don’t know how many of us are in Yurmus? And… I was recruited by Bain, so there’s no way the Mage Court would know about me. Who are you?"

Ethan felt like punching Boen. There were only two Inquisition members in Yurmus, yet in his previous life, Boen had asked Ethan to name another. <Wait… This life is already ruined, so what’s the harm in throwing a punch?>

Ethan ignored Demi’s remark and punched Boen in the face.

The blow knocked Boen down, but as if Boen had been waiting for this, the crystal behind him shot straight into Ethan’s chest.

∞

Ethan realized that Boen had been on guard since the mention of a "mole." Before he left Limbo, he spoke with Demi.

"There are only two Inquisition members in Yurmus Magic Academy, so the only one who could be a mole is Bain, Boen’s superior. That’s why Boen found the situation strange. He wondered if there might be another member or someone semi-related that he didn’t know about, but when he became certain there wasn’t, he attacked immediately."

"Then I’ll have to steer the conversation differently. Maybe I can say ‘I came here chasing evidence’ after handing over the gun? No, maybe I don’t need to give him the gun? Boen seemed more focused on the fact that I’m from the Mage Court than on the evidence. Maybe, unlike Sirund Zen, Boen doesn’t recognize the gun by appearance. He might not have seen one before…" Ethan muttered as he crossed the door of Limbo to return to reality.

Demi called out to Ethan, <User.>

"What?"

"You’re saying I’m dying too quickly?"

<Yes.>

"What are the side effects of dying like this?" Ethan asked.

" ‘Indirect’? ‘Direct’?"

"Then what are the direct side effects?"

"Can you put it more simply?"

Ethan looked at Demi. "That doesn’t mean it will definitely happen, right?"

<Correct.>

"Then there’s nothing to worry about. I’ve figured out how to use this power now."

Ethan stepped through the door and met Boen again.

Since "mole" hadn’t worked, Ethan said he was from the Mage Court, chasing a dark mage, but Boen didn’t believe him outright. Boen tested Ethan by asking about the number of demons in the Mage Court and the relationships between its members.

Of course, Ethan had no idea. After dying, Ethan had to sneak into the academy library and scour books for information about the Empire’s Mage Court. Fortunately, the Mage Court was an old institution, and there were many books about it…

But Boen’s questions didn’t stop there. He asked how Ethan, a noble of the Charasen family, had come into contact with the Mage Court. Ethan responded by making up a story about meeting a demon at a Charasen family party, but for some reason, Boen had extensive knowledge about demons and quickly caught Ethan’s misinformation.

Unsurprisingly, Demi assessed Boen as <Obsessive.>

Ethan had to repeat his life several times to answer Boen’s questions. He eventually realized that he needed time to read, so he stopped going to meet Boen right away. He used a firecracker to pass Basic Magic Practice and spent a life holed up in the library, reading. This life lasted longer than Ethan expected. He barely passed Basic Magic Practice, but he failed the next semester’s Basic Magic Training, leading to him being bullied and eventually expelled. After achieving the 90-day survival quest and obtaining the C-rank coupon, Ethan went back to try to answer Boen’s questions.

Another time, Ethan lured Bain and Boen out of the academy using the same method as before. He needed to meet a demon again to confirm the family crest Sirund Zen used. Ethan also confirmed once more that the spells "Maraina" and "Lima’s Twilight" failed on him. The end was no different, unfortunately, but at least Ethan was able to practice the Ruure breathing technique Rivielton had taught him.

The story Ethan told Boen changed, from meeting a demon at a party to receiving an offer outside Yurmus, as did his reason for joining the Mage Court, from magic to expensive magical tools. Ethan’s knowledge of Boen was also explained as information provided by the Mage Court. This, finally, was the story Boen found "plausible."

After hearing Ethan’s story, Boen said, "Though it was only a short Q&A, your story is convincing. I’ll acknowledge it."

Ethan had spent over ten months of subjective time to progress the conversation to this point.

"But even if you came here chasing clues," Boen continued, "why should I cooperate with you? The Inquisition and the Mage Court are mutually monitoring organizations."

"That’s because of our roles. Our goal is the same, is it not? We both want to find dark mages."

"Hmm, I see. For now, let’s call it a day. We don’t have any special relationship, and if one person stays in another’s room too long, the other students will find it suspicious."

Ethan thought Boen’s words were reasonable.

Before leaving the room, Ethan said, "Can I ask one more thing?"

"…If it’s just one question, then fine."

"Do you enjoy this work?"

Boen flashed a bitter smile. "Of course not."

With that, Ethan parted ways with Boen.

Late that night, Bain entered Ethan’s dorm room. "Ethan Dora Charasen," the professor said.

"Professor Bain?"

"I hear you’re affiliated with the Mage Court."

As brazenly as possible, Ethan replied, "Are you Boen’s superior? That’s surprising."

"It’s not surprising that you know about Boen. The Mage Court would have that much information. The fact that you’re running errands for the Mage Court, too, is unsurprising. The Mage Court is greedy. They meddle in many things and often reach beyond their jurisdiction. But some of the information Boen told me was inaccurate and doesn’t match my own knowledge."

"…Which part was wrong?"

"Ah, there’s no need to waste time talking. I’ll figure this out myself," Bain said as he reached toward Ethan’s head.

Ethan pulled out the gun, and when Bain reflexively moved to defend himself, Ethan pressed it against his own head.

∞

In Limbo, Demi said, <Unlike Boen, Bain is not someone who can be persuaded. While Bain is human and not entirely impossible to reason with, it would take much longer to find a way to do so.>

"I know."

"No. I knew it would come to this."

"Thanks to the ‘short Q&A,’ I can ask Boen ‘one question,’ right?" As Ethan stepped out of Limbo, he said, "That’s enough."

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