A Genius Boy Who Was Exiled From His Family Home for “Not Being Able To Use Magic” Becomes a Witch’s Apprentice and Masters All Magic in the Right Way. This Is How You Use Your Magic, You Know?

Chapter 195. Drastic Change

“………………Huh?”

In the central part of the royal capital of the Eustia Kingdom.

In a corner of the royal castle, the building that is the true center of the country both in name and reality.

The voice of Laplace, the close aide of the first prince, Helk, who currently holds the reins of power after a usurpation, echoed in an unusually flustered manner.

Gray hair, blue eyes. Known for his wild demeanor and carefree attitude, the reason he was so clearly shocked was… the information just brought to him by his subordinate.

That information was—

“…You’re kidding, right? That old man lost?”

—The failure of the northern rebellion.

In other words, the downfall of Archbishop Johann.

“Wait, seriously? What the hell was that nasty old geezer doing? He’s not the type to just let his guard down… What the hell happened… Ah, never mind, no point asking you. My bad, my bad. You can go now.”

Just as he was about to start pondering, he noticed his subordinate was still standing there, left behind. Realizing that the details would be in the submitted documents, he dismissed his subordinate, took a breath, sat down in his chair, and began reading through the documents.

…Honestly, he couldn’t believe it.

Johann von Canterbel. A notorious bishop, a monster of ill repute even before they had begun their activities as an ‘organization’.

Regardless of his methods… his strength and his relentless, unforgiving nature were the real deal. That much was clear from the fact that he had indirectly defeated the Sky Witch.

That man. A monster who, in some ways, surpassed even them. The thought of him losing was unimaginable, and as he read through the documents to figure out what had happened—

—He immediately retracted that thought.

“—Hah.”

Unintentionally.

A fierce, understanding smile crept onto his lips. Because,

“Ah, I see… So it was you, huh?”

The most crucial piece of information in the documents—the identity of the one who had defeated the Archbishop.

The moment he saw the name of the third princess and, listed among her subordinates, the name of a certain man, Laplace felt an overwhelming sense of understanding and hostility rise within him.

“To pull this off at this timing… Does that mean you’ve been aiming for this since the moment you fled the capital? …Hah, you’re insane. Even for a gamble, this is too much.”

And then, Laplace’s mind began to race at an extraordinary pace.

From just this information, he pieced together the background leading up to this point.—Right after Hermes and his group were attacked and left the capital, they had sought out the missing pieces of their group’s combat strength and a base, deliberately heading to the chaotic northern region where rebellion was brewing.

Objectively, it seemed like a reckless move… but honestly, he had thought they might do something like that, and now that they had actually pulled it off, he couldn’t complain.

Moreover, he was certain that the central figure behind this success was none other than… Hermes, the boy Laplace was most wary of.

This single piece of information changed everything. The future course of action had to be altered, whether they liked it or not, and Laplace was already thinking at an incredible speed about how to maneuver through this when—another knock came at the door.

He paused his thoughts.

He didn’t feel particularly annoyed at being interrupted. Because… he already knew who had arrived.

Thus, when the person who entered through the door appeared, Laplace greeted them in his usual casual manner.

“Hey, Boss. You’re not hiding in the shadows today, huh?”

A hint of a wry smile. After a brief greeting, Laplace held up the documents in his hand and continued.

“You’ve already heard, right? Archbishop Johann has fallen. It was the third princess’s faction that did it. I wonder what they’re up to.”

As his boss nodded in response, Laplace spread his hands in a troubled manner.

“…This is an unexpected turn of events. I never thought that monster born of the church, Johann von Canterbel, would lose. I expected the northern rebellion to get a lot messier, but now all our plans are up in smoke. We’ll have to redo all our calculations and strategies. Ah, seriously—”

Then.

Laplace’s well-formed lips twisted into a fearless grin.

“—This is a huge help…”

Without a hint of lies or bravado.

He said it plainly.

“Honestly, that nasty Archbishop was the biggest pain in the ass for us. In our original plan, he was supposed to be the final boss we’d have to take down… but now, the other side has done it for us.”

It’s really a huge help—he continued, then looked straight at his one and only boss.

“You get it, Boss… The situation has changed. Drastically. Fatally.”

He was. The brain of the organization, one of the three key executives, and with his wisdom, he wove his words.

“The twisted balance has now collapsed. With the fall of the north, the forces that the Archbishop had been suppressing, the ones who had been kept in check because of him, will start to move. At the same time… the third princess’s faction, which has suddenly gained power, will undoubtedly make some kind of move. The situation is being rewritten everywhere.”

We can’t afford to fall behind.

Because with Archbishop Johann gone, if we play our cards right, we can move our plans forward.

—Just one more move, and we can checkmate this entire country. We can bring it to that point.

“We’re moving too… Yeah, we can move now. Because—”

The reason being, as he pulled out another report, separate from the one he was holding.

Laplace revealed another piece of critical information.

“We’ve found it…”

For the first time.

His boss showed a reaction of genuine surprise.

“The magic you lost… the magic that was taken from you. The one and only final piece that could allow you to destroy this country on your own. If we can get our hands on this and crush the troublesome factions… it’s finally time.”

Decades of planning.

Everything that began on that day, in that place. The culmination of it all is right within reach.

Even Laplace, as composed as he was, felt a surge of excitement at this fact.

But he suppressed it with his usual rationality and wisdom. That was his role in this organization.

And so, Laplace stood up.

“Alright, let’s go… Not that we can do anything immediately. But there are things we can do. —Don’t worry. Because—”

Once again, he repeated the words he had said before.

A truth that was self-evident to him, and to the organization. A certainty that, even in this drastically changed situation, remained unchanged. With that, he delivered his usual line.

“No matter what, in the end, we’re set up to win. Right?”

With those confident words, his boss nodded.

The two men, possessing terrifying power, began to walk.

…And then.

“Hm? —Ah, right. The first prince?”

As if suddenly remembering something, the boss asked.

The question, related to his original duties, prompted Laplace to respond.

“—Oh, him.”

…In a voice that was chillingly indifferent, devoid of any interest, as if he were speaking of someone he no longer cared about.

“Yeah, he doesn’t matter anymore. I’ll admit he’s been working hard in his own way… but he’s still a royal of this country. He’s utterly lacking in both ability and character. The second prince, who at least had some ability, was slightly better. The fact that he accepts everything I say without question just proves how useless he is.”

In a flat, mechanical tone, as if he had completely written him off.

“He’ll self-destruct on his own… No, no, I’m not underestimating him. In fact, I’d like to see him show even a hint of something worth being wary of.”

Yeah, he had no interest in that prince anymore. When he decided something was irrelevant, he truly felt nothing about it. That was just how he was.

Thus—the one Laplace was interested in now, the one he was concerned about, was someone else.

“…Well. I don’t think our reunion is too far off.”

That someone… a certain boy.

From the moment they first faced each other, Laplace had known he would be a threat. During their second encounter in the capital, the boy had kicked him square in the face. There was no doubt that he had grown into an even greater threat now, having defeated the Archbishop.

(I’ll pay you back for that. And after that…)

Even as he felt an unusual sense of anticipation rising within himself, Laplace continued to think about how to deal with that silver-haired boy as he and his boss disappeared into the shadows.

◆

“—Well, everyone’s here.”

Meanwhile, in the north. In the meeting room of the fortress where the former Northern Union had been stationed.

After surveying the assembled key members of the third princess’s faction… Jurgen von Torakia began to speak.

“Of course… while we were dealing with the northern rebellion, there have been movements elsewhere as well.”

In the days following the end of the northern rebellion, while reorganizing the expanded third princess faction, they had also sent people to gather information from various regions. Jurgen now shared the results of that with everyone present.

“First, the first prince’s faction in the capital. They’ve been making quite a spectacle of themselves.”

“Brother Helk… making a spectacle, how?”

Whether out of worry or unease.

Liliana, who was sitting next to her teacher, Hermes, clutching his sleeve, asked Jurgen with a look of concern on her lovely face.

Understanding her feelings, Jurgen continued without sugarcoating.

“…They’ve been forcing the surrounding nobles into submission, using quite heavy-handed methods. Specifically, they’re not hesitating to use force even at the slightest sign of resistance.”

“That’s…”

“Fortunately, the military strength of the ‘organization’ backing him is formidable. Many nobles have submitted… but it’s undoubtedly creating significant friction. The risk of collapse is growing by the day, so it’s best to assume things will get worse.”

Or perhaps—that’s exactly what Laplace, who stands behind him, is aiming for, Jurgen continued.

Given that this was a forceful usurpation to begin with, it’s no surprise that they’re resorting to such methods… but with Laplace, who’s completely unscrupulous, holding the fuse, it’s like they’re steadily increasing the amount of gunpowder.

“……”

There isn’t much time left.

Realizing this, Liliana tightened her grip on Hermes’s hand, drawing courage from it, and faced forward again.

At the very least… this wasn’t the time to be disheartened. She seemed to understand that.

That, without a doubt, was the strength she had gained through her journey so far. Hermes felt pleased by this, and Jurgen smiled as well before continuing.

“Now, moving on… the nobles who are not aligned with either us or the first prince’s faction… the so-called neutral nobles…”

Neutral nobles.

Of course, it hadn’t even been a month since the usurpation. Including those who were originally part of the first prince’s faction but were forced into submission, there were a significant number of nobles who still hadn’t decided on their stance.

“Those nobles… there’s been no clear movement to decide their stance. Instead—there are signs that they’re gathering around ‘a certain noble.'”

“A certain noble?”

This was unfamiliar information.

Hermes couldn’t help but ask for clarification. The others seemed to have the same question, as they all turned their eyes to Jurgen, who nodded in response.

“Yes. I hadn’t mentioned it before… or rather, I didn’t have the chance to. But such a house exists. You could call it the ‘representative of the neutral nobles.'”

“I see…”

“We’ll need to make contact with them eventually. But… for now, since they’re not taking sides, we can afford to put them on the back burner.”

“Right, Father. For now—”

Nodding at Jurgen’s suggestion, Katia moved the conversation forward.

Her words… made everyone tense. Without a doubt, this was the core of the discussion. The main reason they had been summoned here for this emergency meeting.

“…Yes, as Katia said. That’s right.”

Understanding the question, Jurgen continued.

“Now—about the ‘church’ that has summoned us this time.

What kind of organization they are, their structure, and what their goals might be. Let’s go over the details once more.”

They were about to step into its headquarters. …And depending on the situation, they might have to fight.

With a firm tone, he began to explain.