Genius Prismatic Mage Chapter 337

#337. Side story 3. Colors of love (4)

Ray approached the picture frame.

A young couple holding hands and looking straight ahead.

They were dressed stylishly and had happier faces than anyone else in the world.

So much so that Ray, who has difficulty recognizing people's facial expressions, can recognize them right away.

“… … .”

Who could it be?

Could these be the people who owned this mansion?

What was clear was that, judging by the wands in their pockets, they were most likely the ones who had installed all the magic in the mansion.

Ray, who was staring at the picture frame, turned his attention elsewhere.

It is true that I am curious about the mansion and its owners.

But first, securing a way out of here was a priority.

'First, space magic.'

Woof!

The colorful mana that shot out from the tip of his finger drew an oval-shaped ring in the air.

However, it was not able to complete a solid form and disappeared into thin air.

I wasn't particularly surprised.

Because it was an expected result.

'This mansion has high purity of mana.'

The purity of the mana flowing inside the mansion was abnormally high.

As if the pure mana of the early days of the old era was still preserved.

In this environment, mana interference occurs, and there are cases where complex magic structures cannot be manifested.

'Then with attack magic.'

A sphere of wind formed in Ray's grasp.

Whioooo!

The simplicity of the structure was maintained while only increasing the magical output.

The destination is a large, locked door that won't open.

Although I wasn't particularly into vandalism, destroying obstacles was a quick and easy solution to escaping from confined spaces.

This was also the reason why Ray thought keys were a very inefficient item.

'If you can't open it.'

Destroy.

Ray threw a ball of wind with all his might towards the door.

Thwaaa …

The sphere flew furiously, but was blocked by the defense activated in front of the door and did not cause any damage.

The destructive power of the sphere.

The defensive power of the defense.

The former did not surpass the latter.

If you look at it from the perspective of a normal wizard, it would be like that.

But Ray was different.

'Another wind rose from the void, slowing down the sphere.'

It was clever and secretive.

If it weren't for his sensitivity to Mana's movements, no one would have noticed it right away.

The implications were clear.

A third party was watching this place in real time and interfering with the casting of magic.

'There's someone in this mansion.'

After closing my eyes, I concentrated on the mana in the area, but I couldn't detect any particular signs.

It meant that the opponent was a person who was very good at hiding the traces of mana.

Things were getting more and more interesting.

*

Ray walked down the hallway towards where he could feel Charon's mana.

I recalled the conversation in the hall on the first floor.

"Layya, do you want to go talk to Caron?"

"I?"

"Yeah, because─"

“Ahh… I didn’t plan on fighting like this… I planned on fighting… I planned on fighting… I planned on fighting…”

"─I think you need me by your side, Mr. Greene."

Ray tilted his head.

"What do you want to talk about when you go?"

"What are you talking about! You two fought! Of course I should help you reconcile!"

Ray tilted his head again.

"Why?"

Veronica's eyes became blank and she soon began to approach me with brisk strides.

Ray quickly turned around and headed towards where he could feel Charon's mana.

“… … .”

Thud, thud.

Absolutely not, I didn't run away because I thought my arm would be pinched if I stayed still.

It just occurred to me that it might be a good idea to get some information from Caron before exploring the mansion.

dripping.

I opened the door and went in.

Caron, who had been sitting on the bed with his head in his hands, raised his head.

"hello."

“Oh, you said Ray-kun.”

Caron's face was haggard.

The bowl was full of anger, resentment, and hatred.

I didn't have to think long to figure out who my feelings were for.

However, just like when we had our argument earlier, there was another emotion that caught my attention more than anything else.

Emotions that are firmly established in the center of the bowl and shine in a rainbow of colors.

That was love.

“Phew.”

As if trying to come to his senses, Caron shook his head vigorously and got up from his seat.

“First of all, I’m sorry again. I’m sorry for showing you a bad side of myself due to personal issues between you and me.”

No, there's no need to apologize.

In fact, from Ray's perspective, the emotional outburst was like watching a well-made play, a great spectacle.

However, there was no need to say this out loud.

“… … .”

“… … .”

There was an awkward silence for a moment.

Ray opened his mouth, recalling Veronica's instructions and his conscience as a human being.

“I opened the door.”

"yes?"

“I was warned not to come in and had ample opportunity to stop.”

“Oh, no… .”

Caron, who understood the meaning of the words, groaned and sat back down on the bed.

“… It’s a bad habit of mine. I’m the type of person who assumes the cause of something without fully understanding the situation.

"sorry."

“No. In any case, the fact remains that I was the one who pushed her away without any reason.”

Caron with a gloomy face.

What should I say?

Ray, who had been thinking, said.

“Settlement.”

“… … .”

“So, what Greene said earlier about the settlement is true.”

“That… I think that would be the case.”

After taking a moment to catch his breath, Caron continued speaking softly.

“A great forest, a settlement, dwarves and even giants. It’s all a story that is hard to believe, but Grine never lies. I know her character better than anyone else.”

Caron said that and nodded to Ray.

“Thank you. For your efforts for our elves.”

“It was nothing serious. Instead, how about we leave the room and find a way out of the mansion together? That way, we can return to the settlement. Also─”

“That’s fine.”

Charon cut Ray off.

His eyes were extremely serious.

“If I leave the room, won’t I have to run into Grinne again?”

“Yes.”

“I was half-true when I said I would stay at the mansion earlier. I was the one who started the fight, but it’s also true that I was hurt by her words.”

Caron said that both Greene and himself had bad habits.

Or, without listening to the story, assume the cause of the incident.

Bringing up and criticizing what could be considered the other person's complex.

That habit is even more evident when it comes to each other.

“I don’t want to see you anymore.”

“Don’t you love Greene?”

“No. I love you. Rather, it is because I love you that I made this choice.”

Ray felt his thoughts stop for a moment.

'You don't want to see me because you love me?'

I didn't quite understand.

I haven't read it, but I could tell just by looking at the covers of the romance novels Veronica carried around that the more you love someone, the more you want to be close to them.

Weren't men and women so closely aligned with the aesthetic standards of society that their facial features were almost on the same level?

Philip, who recently started a dating business, was also seen meeting Ayla whenever he had the chance.

But you say you won't see my face anymore because you love me?

“You’re saying something similar to what my friend said.”

"yes?"

“Veronica says once every quarter that the reason she eats dessert now is to help with her future weight loss efforts.”

Caron made a face as if to say, "What kind of strange thing is that?"

Ray made a face like he didn't know what to do.

“Well… I guess Miss Veronica is not an ordinary person. Anyway, I have no intention of leaving this room. However.”

"but?"

“If Greene apologizes first, I’m willing to accept it.”

"oh."

Ray felt relieved for a moment.

They say that one apology will heal all your hurt feelings.

It seemed like things would be resolved more easily than expected.

And at the same time, the first floor hall.

“Your Majesty, would you be the first to extend a hand of reconciliation…?”

“Reconciliation? Absolutely not! Unless Caron apologizes first!”

It wasn't easy.

*

Ray remembered a passage he had read in a book once.

─People who love each other resemble each other.

In the case of Philip and Ayla, that certainly seemed to be true.

“Oh… My sister likes peppermint chocolate rabbit grass candy? T, tsk! Our tastes are exactly the same! Mmm! It’s a flavor I can’t eat without! I’ve loved that candy since I was in my mother’s womb!”

Even in the case of Philip and Ayla, who had only known each other for a relatively short period of time, this is true.

What would it be like for a couple who had lived together for nearly two hundred years?

Even if you don't know for sure, almost all of the things that make up a person, such as values, tastes, and beliefs, may have been influenced by the other person.

It's just my age.

How far do you go?

So much so that it's extremely difficult to tell them apart.

“So you’re saying that Grinye just took the Elf Oath?”

"huh."

“Without even a chance for Veronica to stop him.”

"that's right."

“Just like Caron did before I could stop him.”

"yes."

Indeed, the couple resembled each other.

Because the Elven Oath was made at the same time and with the same content without any mutual agreement.

Elf's Oath.

A magic unique to the elves that uses the elements of constraint and control as its materials.

It was a kind of oath that would cause a severe headache if one did not keep their oath.

“Grine, sitting on a chair with her knees crossed and her arms folded, added her explanation.

“Usually, it is mostly used for self-improvement purposes. It is rare for it to be used because of a fight like this.”

“My lord! This is not something you can talk about so calmly as if you were talking about someone else’s business! Hurry up! Hurry up! Cancel it! You said you could cancel the vow within a day! How can you swear that you will never see your spouse’s face again for the rest of your life!”

Veronica grabbed Grinet by the shoulders and shook him, desperately trying to persuade him.

But the usual gentle and elegant goddess-like Greene was no longer there.

She spouted out sentences one after another, even as her head shook from side to side.

“Cancel? That can’t be. We both made mistakes. But if you look at the magnitude of the mistake, Caron was much, no, much, much more at fault. I have no intention of canceling until I receive an apology first.”

“And then one day passes byoooooooooooooo─!”

“Let’s split up properly. It’ll be fun to see how well that elf lives without me, Charon.”

Veronica, who had been throwing eggs at the walls of the iron fortress called Greene, returned to Ray's side, exhausted.

"veronica."

"huh…."

“I don’t know much about love, so I’m asking, but is it something to fight about like this?”

Veronica let out a sigh.

“I think the emotional rift between you two is much deeper than I thought. There must have been many fights that we don’t know about…?”

“No matter what, it’s so different from how you usually look.”

“There is a saying that everyone becomes a child in front of love.”

“Even after 200 years?”

There was no intention to attack, but it was more like asking why I couldn't pay my bills.

“Well, that’s….”

“Is love an emotion that applies equally regardless of age?”

“Euuuuum… .”

Even though it's already embarrassing, I wonder if it still bothers him.

Greene's long ears kept perking up at the conversation.

“I think it would be better to give them time to calm down rather than trying to persuade them both. Forcing reconciliation could backfire and cause a backlash, and there’s still time before the vows are confirmed.

“I understand.”

After a brief meeting, Veronica and Ray's course of action was decided.

Veronica watches over Grindel, who has turned into a gold digger, while Ray explores the mansion.

Tak─

Ray stepped onto the stairs and looked up.

A wide open second floor hallway.

There was a strange sense of alienation there.