Sorcerers’ Association.
Almost all, or rather, nearly every sorcerer belonged to this organization, and to act as a proper sorcerer, one had to join the Sorcerers’ Association.
The purpose of the Sorcerers’ Association is varied, but the biggest one is managing ‘spells’ and ‘spirit stones.’
They procure and manage the countless spells that sorcerers learn, teach new sorcerers, and work on developing advanced spells.
Additionally, they convert the gemstones they acquire into spirit stones or provide ‘jewels’ that can imbue spiritual power.
“Beyond that, they also work to enhance sorcerers’ rights and strengthen cooperative relationships with criminals, you know.”
“Are there no sorcerers who operate independently?”
“There might be some, but if that happens, they won’t receive protection. If they suffer unjust treatment or severe damage, they won’t be protected, and if their opponent belongs to the Sorcerers’ Association, they could be punished instead.”
“Even if the opponent is at fault?”
“Exactly.”
Yena entered through the grand entrance of the manor, speaking as if it were obvious.
At the entrance of the manor, there was a big nameplate that read ‘Sorcerers’ Association’, with the words ‘Circle Division’ written next to it.
“Being unaffiliated with the Sorcerers’ Association is itself a wrongdoing. It can’t be helped.”
[What a corrupt group]
[Lolololololol]
[Lily should just overthrow them once]
[Seems like they’re just hoarding it all themselves]
[Sounds good lol]
[Let’s smash them]
[There are a lot of people, huh?]
[It’s huge]
A quite large manor.
In the center of the manor, there was a wide path leading to a red-tiled building visible in the distance.
The path was neatly paved with gray stones, and several sorcerers were wandering around.
Aside from all wearing the same sorcerer outfit, each had their unique appearance.
The races varied widely, and there were quite a few beastmen like Yena.
If you think about it, that trio of level 4 sorcerers also had different races.
“Such a unique combination.”
“Huh? What combination?”
“Everyone looks completely different. There are a lot of beastmen too.”
It’s hard to imagine that it all started from a single group or nation.
Some of the beastmen even had their entire heads resembling animals, not just ears or tails like Yena.
Thud! Thud!
[Wow]
[Panda panda]
[So cute]
[Oh]
[This is hilarious lol]
A man just passed by with a panda head and hands.
He was holding bamboo in both hands, and judging by the spiritual power emanating from it, it was probably a jewel.
The sound of the jewel was heard, and given the presence of spiritual power, it must be a jewel.
Yena tilted her head and replied.
“Anyone can become a sorcerer, so it makes sense. The Sorcerers’ Association allows anyone with excellent spiritual power and spell skills to join.”
“I see?”
“That’s right. The Sorcerers’ Association was formed by gathering sorcerers from all over who thought they were something special. Of course, there are some guys who dislike small races or beastmen…”
Hmm.
“Let’s not talk about that. It’s not a very pleasant topic.”
“Okay.”
Cough! “Alright! Let’s hurry and go check the currency exchange first!”
Yena bounced around as if to change the subject and quickly headed toward the central building.
Here, we couldn’t use spiritual power recklessly, so we were walking slowly, but judging by how long it took us to get there, the Sorcerers’ Association was indeed large.
If the branch was this big, the headquarters must be even larger.
After another ten minutes or so,
“We have arrived!”
We finally reached the building of the Sorcerers’ Association’s Wonsul branch.
Despite being made of tiles and wood, it was easily ten stories tall.
Next to it was a vast open space that had neither stones nor grass, with various magical devices hanging on the outside.
It didn’t seem to be an ordinary space at all, as it was filled with spells without any particular decoration.
“What’s that over there?”
“Oh, that’s the duel area. It’s a space created for sorcerers to fight when disputes arise.”
“Ah, but aren’t sorcerers supposed to avoid fighting among themselves?”
“As long as you have permission from the Sorcerers’ Association, it’s possible. It’s sometimes much faster to resolve petty disputes by just having a match rather than following regulations. By the way, if you get seriously hurt over there, you can recover immediately.”
“Hurry up now!”
After finishing her explanation, Yena quickly guided me inside the building.
She seemed eager to dispose of the gemstones she had taken from that trio earlier.
Once inside, I saw more people and beastmen. With various counters around, it reminded me of a local government office.
Sorcerers were stationed at each counter.
I wondered where to go, but Yena, looking familiar, naturally headed to the end and sat in front of an empty counter.
Inside the counter was a beastman woman like Yena, with thick ears perked up and a generally gentle expression.
It looked like…
a face reminiscent of a ‘dog.’
On the chest, there were six colorful circular symbols representing the Sorcerers’ Association.
[Oh]
[So cute]
[Pretty, right?]
[This one is a beastman too]
[Looks like a puppy lol]
[Adorable]
“Welcome… Yena?”
“Meow. Aru? I brought reports from the village of Below and brought gemstones.”
“What? You came already? Hello, Lily.”
“Ah. Hello.”
“Hmm? What’s this? Why are you acting like we’ve never met before? We’ve seen each other a few times, right?”
Aru, the girl who was naturally scribbling on a paper enchanted with a spell, tilted her head.
Her hands kept moving, but she looked back and forth at Yena and me.
Yena casually reached into the counter and took the drink that Aru was having.
“Hey! That’s mine!”
“Sluuurp…! Ahhh!”
“Ugh… I can’t work properly without that!”
“Anyway, no one else is coming, right? Just consider it a service.”
“…Isn’t that too much?”
“Better than being hungry, right? What other sorcerers would drop food crumbs like us?”
“…Hmph! So why is Lily acting like that?”
“I don’t know. I forgot my memory.”
“…What?”
Aru abruptly stopped writing and looked up at me.
Instead of words, I placed a bracelet on the counter.
A bracelet that gathered the gemstones I had collected so far and the ones I took from the other three.
“Please take care of this, Aru. Make half into spirit stones, and process the remaining half as public goods.”
“?????”
“Should I wait? Then I’ll just go take a look upstairs…”
“W-wait a minute! Lily?! Is it true that you lost your memory?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Yeah, I wonder? It just happened suddenly.”
“Right. But it seems your skills have improved.”
“What do you mean…”
Still filled with confusion, Aru suddenly lifted the rosary bracelet I had set down.
She placed the bracelet on a long, round ceremonial tool on the table with a startled expression.
Crash!
“…!”
She tipped back, the sound so loud that it caught the attention of people nearby.
– What’s that?
– There’s a sound coming from over there?
– Did a fight break out?
– But wasn’t there a counter there too?
– Hey you. Don’t you know? That’s where only low-ranking beastmen go…
“…W-where on earth is this…”
“Are you okay?”
“Ah. Um. Uh… I was just a bit surprised.”
“Doesn’t look like you were just a bit surprised.”
“You almost toppled over with the chair!”
“If it had made a louder sound, that sorcerer guard over there would have rushed in.”
Some of the guards were already staring over here after the big commotion.
[LOL]
[Cute beastwoman sis]
[Barking LOL]
[That fall is hilarious LOL]
[What a scene LOL]
[Let’s kill them]
[Must’ve hurt like hell]
Aru kept bowing her head and assuring the guards looking over here that she was fine before setting the chair upright and sitting down.
Her ears were drooping.
“…B-but, where did you really get this?”
“I just got it somewhere. Can it be disposed of?”
“Uh… it is possible, but to handle something like this, the justification is…”
“Justification?”
“Ugh… Well, Lily is a Level 6, right…? And Yena too. Saying that just two Level 6 sorcerers gathered a bunch of spirit stones could be problematic.”
“Meow? That’s not good enough? You accepted a Level 4 spirit stone last time.”
“That was just a couple…! Now, there are eight. Over a hundred Level 5-6 spirit stones.”
This wasn’t a small number to brush aside.
Aru didn’t have a high enough position to cover this up.
Next to her chest emblem was a name tag, and her level was the same as ours, Level 6.
“If this wasn’t obtained normally, it could be a huge problem. Remember those sorcerers who got punished for stealing spirit stones to level up?”
“Meow.”
“Right. If that happens, both you and I could be in trouble. Let me ask again. Where did you really get this?”
“I received it as a reward.”
“Reward? What kind of reward?”
“They started it, so we had a duel. With three sorcerers. I got this as the reward.”
“With who?”
“With three Level 4 sorcerers.”
Silence.
Aru, who seemed frozen for a moment, trembled and asked again.
“With who…?”
“With three Level 4 sorcerers—Geonseon, Saheon, and Woohui. Do you happen to know them?”
“…Huh?”
Aru’s expression turned pale.
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