A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 110: Overture and Opening

Pierre Newsingen was initially annoyed. With the fundraising for the new company and the rollout of products, he was short of funds and couldn't sponsor too much for the charity performance. The fatal consequence was that he didn't get many tickets.

Fortunately, after inquiring, Pierre learned that both Master Rorschach and Master Snow were alone, which relieved him greatly.

Compared to the leading trading company, Saliana Mining, the two companies in Newsingen were mere fry, and the former naturally occupied the best position. Fortunately, Mr. Pierre achieved his goal: all the drinks during the performance were provided by Hercules Trading Company.

A charity performance was a perfect pretext; the chief professor of the Tower of Stars, the bishop of St. Miller's Cathedral, and the king's representatives would all be in attendance. Newsingan was counting on the nobles who ruled the country to taste the exquisite purple beverage, after which it would naturally appear in fine restaurants, on the most upscale shelves, and in their mansions.

The mining company's general manager, Varan, wouldn't concern himself with such trivial matters. Mr. Necker had entrusted this important occasion entirely to himself, much to the dissatisfaction of many of his subordinates. He was determined to do his best in everything to prove himself, to demonstrate how astute Mr. Necker had been in entrusting the kingdom's premier trading company to a young man from a fallen noble family.

Cough

"My lord, are you alright?" Valen's secretary quickly stepped forward and handed over a brand-new velvet handkerchief, which was already covered with herbal powder to suppress coughs.

Valen took a deep breath, instantly suppressing the impulse in his chest, which turned into an indescribable pain. Valen had contracted this ailment since falling into the water, and even the priests at the monastery performing rituals for him had not solved it; he could only rely on medication from time to time.

After getting himself ready, Valen earnestly reminded his secretary, "In front of others, call me Mr. or Manager." Valen wanted to smooth out every wrinkle before going on stage, just as the title could not be confused, even though he was about to restore and inherit the title that his father had been stripped of.

He reached into his inner pocket; the donkey hide was still there, only now it was so small he could slip it into his pocket without rolling it up.

That was his greatest unease, and compared to the fear of death, this little bit of tension seemed insignificant.

"Sure, this outfit isn't bad."

Kano sized up the young couple in front of him: the man had styled his hair and looked much more energetic than usual in his custom-made suit; the woman, on the other hand, seemed uncomfortable in her dress, clutching her rabbit fur shawl tightly to avoid being too revealing. When she let her high ponytail down, her demeanor changed completely, but at her insistence, she only applied a light touch of makeup and didn't cover her face and neck with white powder.

Kano himself was wearing a mage's robe, but unfortunately one of the three was not. To save Pascal's face, Paulina, as his companion, wore a formal dress as well.

The waiter led the three to the largest private box in the center, where Varan had been waiting for some time: "Honorable Master Lionel Cano! We meet again! And these two are..."

Because Pascal and Pauline's demeanor had changed so drastically, Varen didn't immediately recall his savior. (Part Two)

"My students, Paulina Pascal."

"The two mages are truly captivating." Varon was somewhat disappointed. In his calculations, Cano should at least have brought Roscia along, which would have drawn out the reporters who had been lying in wait, and further fueled the hype surrounding the secondary plane to boost the stagnant stock price.

A not-so-popular person asked the question directly on behalf of Valente: "Where is your most precious boy?" The seats on both sides and next to Duplessie in the box were empty, while the three owners of the seats—the priest of St. Miller's Church, the chief of the royal guard and his wife—were standing to one side drinking purple wine and chatting enthusiastically.

"Although I never show favoritism to my students, I can still guess who you're referring to, Bishop. Master Rocha has commitments tonight and unfortunately will miss the performance."

Before Kano could finish speaking, Pierre Newsingen's booming voice echoed from across the corridor: "Mage Rorschach, you've finally arrived! This is my wife, Terfina. Mage Snow is already in the private box. Please follow me."

He's very energetic, which complements the products he sells perfectly.

The cardinal's lips curled up a few millimeters: "Mr. Cano is right, now we all know that Mr. Rorschach really did have something to do and could not accompany his teacher."

Rorschach didn't want to wear any custom-made formal wear that conformed to the etiquette and fashion of the Holy Kingdom. Whether it cost money or not was secondary; he didn't currently have, and probably wouldn't in the future, hire servants or use a mage's hand to dress him in elaborate outfits. These magnificent garments, every decoration meticulously chosen, meant that wearing them was entering a hierarchical game where one was judged, evaluated, and looked down upon. For a young man, a mage's robe was sufficient.

However, Rorschach is no longer short of money. He bought a new robe. Unlike the understated black robes with purple trim he wore in the Empire, his robes were now made entirely of purple velvet, with a white double-breasted tailcoat underneath and no collar.

"You, a mage, are dressed like a priest, while those priests are becoming more and more aristocratic. Except for our Bishop." Snow joked when he saw Rorschach dressed simply.

You look like a slovenly sans-führer. Rorschach sat down as well: "Most of those clergymen come from extraordinary backgrounds."

"Too."

Each seat has a small table to the side, set with mineral water from Mount St. Cassius, pale purple sparkling water, and wine. If needed, a waiter will bring an ice bucket, even though it's still chilly in the weather. In addition to the drinks, there's a pair of binoculars for watching the show, resting lightly on a velvet cloth.

The glasses were framed with gold wire, and if viewers couldn't see clearly, they could hold the long handle on one side and place it in front of their eyes.

Just as Luo Xia was about to pick it up, Kano's voice suddenly came from inside his head: "Why are you here?"

Unexpectedly, Kano was using [Communication] nearby. Rorschach took a sip of his drink to calm himself: "Teacher? I received an invitation from Mr. Newsingen, oh, you mean the general manager of the Helicch Energy Potion Factory."

"Ha, so you're doing a better job than Pascal, huh? Pascal, Paulina, and I are in the biggest VIP box next door. We were invited by Saliana Mining. If there are any reporters, don't show your face, and steer clear of their general manager, Varan. You remember that kid, right?"

"I remember." Not only do I remember, I even saved his life!

"That's good"

"So you were convinced all along that the gold mines in the sub-planes wouldn't produce anything, otherwise why didn't you want to involve the parties involved and the company?" Another voice joined in.

Why are there two "again"s?

"That's enough, Deplecy! We were in the wrong last time, but this time it's you who's being rude!"

"It's only because your [communication skills] are lacking." Actually, Kano was already on guard, but Rorschach's [communication skills] weren't as good as Kano's, although Snow, on Rorschach's side, was completely unaware. Well, mainly because the Prime Minister's skills are superior.

"I refuse to believe it!"

呲——

The noise jolted Rorschach's brain. "What's wrong?" Snow finally realized.

"Would you believe me if I told you the Archmage and the Archbishop are having a magical duel next door?" Rorschach could sense a subtle yet intense fluctuation in the ether on his left, dominated by two opposing wills. The two seemed to be engaging in a magical and divine "arm wrestling match."

"Stop joking around, the play is about to start, haven't you heard? It's a hugely popular show right now, tickets used to be impossible to get."

Applause erupted from the boxes and the audience, followed by the overture playing in the darkness, with wind and string instruments resonating together.

As the spotlights illuminated the scene and the curtain was drawn back as the overture faded, the curtain was drawn back.

Thank you to readers "Star Traveler", "Non-Memory Strike", "jzllp", "Night Light Shines on the Butt" and "Zhang Lin" for their monthly ticket support!

Thank you to readers "天下有只熊", "封剑诀", "吹散的云", "小肥bee", "张檠" and others for their recommendation votes!

Sorry for the late update, I had something to do this afternoon ┗( T﹏T )┛

(End of this chapter)