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As a teacher and a member of the Twelve Lords, it was a trifling time for the Lord El-Melloi II, but that felt a lot more natural now than it had when Waver had first agreed to Reines' demands of him and taken up the mantle of his late teacher, the Lord El-Melloi of the time.
Since then, it had been one headache after the other. Waver was no longer certain if he could even blame anyone other than himself for them either. After all, no one had ordered him to take in the more troublesome of his students. No one had told him to guide them. No, it had just been his own earnest desire to not see their immense potential go to waste.
Or, maybe even that was just the excuse he gave his own rational mind when his body spurred into action when he saw someone in trouble.
It mattered little now.
What was done was done.
As their Professor, it was his duty to watch over those monstrous geniuses that came to his classroom one after the other. As their Professor, it was his great shame to have to ask them for help from time to time when his sole duty was to guide.
Svin rushed to his aid whenever asked. Flat, moronic as he was, was no different. Henry was more grounded than the other two in some ways, and far more troublesome in others, but he too never even questioned anything Waver requested of him.
Then, Waver too had no choice but to do the same for them.
That was why he tried to mitigate damages when Henry attacked the Clock Tower, pulled in old favours and took on debts where possible. But, of course, the matter was out of his hands. The El-Melloi name was all he had, and even that name meant less and less in the wake of the Fourth Grail War that took away his own teacher.
Simply put, he could not move anyone, no matter what method he employed.
Valuay, by extension, Trambelio, were ready to help his student… so long as their own demands were met. And those demands made Waver scoff. Then, there were those offended or damaged irreparably who wanted their own little slice of the cake.
A magus capable of reproducing any mystery at a glance.
An absurdity even among those whose very life-blood was the absurd.
He alone held the potential to tip the delicate balance that hung in the Clock Tower towards those who managed to 'snag' him. Everyone wanted him. No one wanted another to have him. If they could not have him, then it was best to pool their resources into removing him from the board entirely.
That seemed to be general consensus among his peers.
His unique affinity had been a flimsy excuse for a designation. His response to said designation became a perfect one.
Yet, despite all, Henry being the target of a great witch hunt wasn't even the real issue.
He had the skill and power to tackle his issues.
Too much skill and power.
Waver laid his head back and stared at the white glistening ceiling of the guest 'hall' he'd been received in. His gaze passed over the gold chandelier hung above them, burning with a hundred candles, then the gold that lined the edge of the walls like sprawling vines with precious jewels where there were to be flowers.
The wealth and decadence of old houses was often mind-blowing.
He was numb to it.
With a sigh, he put his cigar to his lips to take a long drag.
"Are you merely here to sit, Lord El-Melloi II?"
"No, lady." Waver smothered his cigar in the ashtray. "Thank you for receiving me on such short notice."
Luviagelita Edelfelt shook her head with a hum. Her golden locks fell over her shoulder.
"No, in fact, pardon the poor reception. The pests sniffing about leave little time for leisure or guests." She smiled neutrally. A practiced smile. He saw it often in the nobility. And, this particular noble was closer to royalty. "But I suppose it isn't all bad. I've built something of a rapport with Henry's mother."
Waver raised a brow, once again glancing at what she called 'poor reception'. That was to say, they were sat inside a hall where perhaps even the walls were likely worth more than he'd ever made his entire life. They were in an actual castle. A properly fortified one, with means both magical and mundane and no expenses spared.
"That's… Louise Smith? I hope she's well."
Maybe even the simple navy dress this princess was wearing was worth more than his life.
"She is. Though, she worries for her son, as is the right of any mother. We did miss Christmas with him because of this farce."
"Farce…" Waver repeated slowly. "He declared himself an enemy to everyone."
"No, he merely responded after the Sealing Designation was assigned. I admit, perhaps there was a better way of handling it."
By the way her eyes shimmered when she spoke, Waver doubted she took any actual issue with Henry's brute force approach. If offended, the Edelfelts were happy to directly punch you in the face… or drop a bomb on your house. It was well-known. It was also well-known that they had a habit of swooping into conflicts and taking the greatest treasures for themselves. That was what worried Waver.
Or, it would have, had he not a front-row seat to the almost comical romance between a hardy commoner and a foreign princess. The way her perfect grace crumbled away near him was entirely out of place in a place like the Clock Tower.
They'd taken to each other so well it was hard to distinguish one from the other at times.
That was precisely why he had to ask.
"Why'd you let him go to Fuyuki?"
The Edelfelt Princess closed her eyes and smiled, her hands in her lap. "Whatever could you mean, Lord El-Melloi II?"
Behind him, Gray flinched and gripped her cloak. The scrutiny of Luviagelita Edelfelt was nothing to scoff at. She could kill him at a moment's notice. She would. But, he too was a Lord.
Waver leaned on his knees, meeting her intensity, or at least, trying to, "You made sure everyone knew of your relation. You took his family under your protection. You didn't stop him from a rash decision. I find it hard to believe he wouldn't be inclined to do anything you requested."
She took a deep breath. Then, smiled properly.
"Why would I request anything against it when his very nature is what enthralls me?"
…Damn.
The Edelfelt Princess placed a hand against her heart. "As a proper lady, it is my duty to support his endeavours, protect his honour in his absence, and offer counsel where needed. That is to say, I agree with his actions wholly."
"Why?"
"A show of force is exactly what dissuades magi. Not many have approached me. Not many have followed him." She tilted her head in the same way he often did. "You noticed this, I hope. They don't want to risk him showing up on their doorstep so they do nothing except hope for opportunity."
"The threat worked." Waver nodded.
'Your desire for the Root will die with you.'
Those were the words he left, and in the light of a magecraft that had entirely eviscerated nearly a kilometer of land in the middle of London, none dared question them. Quite truly, nothing was left at all. Nothing to salvage. Nothing to gather. Nothing to argue.
Simply nothing.
Waver didn't know just what that was. No matter how hard he tried to decipher it, Waver could not make heads or tails of that spell.
"And that isn't even the true issue. Agreeing with his wish to participate in the Grail War was the only way to evade an outright conflict." Luviagelita continued calmly. "It will inevitably happen, but the terms can be influenced now… to be more, let us say, favourable. You understand what I'm saying, don't you, Lord El-Melloi II?"'
Waver sighed again.
"…What will happen?" Gray blurted out. She clamped her mouth shut a moment later, and pulled down her hood. "I'm sorry."
"If my Henry wasn't distracted, he'd actually attack the Clock Tower."
"That's…" Gray murmured.
"The Mage's Association. He does so love fighting. And, the more they use against him, the stronger he gets. Do you get it now?"
Gray paused, confusion writ over her face.
Waver spelled it out for her. "We're not sure if Henry's the one who is actually in danger in such a case."
That was the actual truth of it.
Luviagelita let out a satisfied hum.
"But that means…"
"Ohoho!" The Princess laughed with the back of her palm held against her mouth, "Yes, indeed! He might just win. No, he will. If he isn't distracted, he'll probably upend our traditions before the Sun sets."
With how decisively brutal he was, Waver wouldn't be surprised if he outright massacred most magi. He didn't want it to come to that. Not for their sake, but for his own student's.
"That's why," Waver felt another wave of pain jolt through his stomach, "That's why we need to mitigate the coming damage as much as possible."
It was no longer a matter of the Clock Tower being a massive problem.
No, the tables had long turned. Waver was annoyed by how long it took him to see that.
Henry had become THEIR collective problem.
A problem for their world.
"What a fucking pain." Waver grumbled.
"I'm quite proud of him." Luviagelita giggled. "Though, I find myself a touch unnerved by the lack of his presence by my side."
She… missed Henry.
God.
Waver wanted to cry.
Really, why did the world hate him so much?
Gray awkwardly patted his shoulder.
"I don't understand much… but I think Henry's safe, so it'll be fine. You don't need to worry so much."
Luviagelita rose to her feet and clapped her hands together once. Immediately, the double doors swung open and servants came spilling into the room, carrying only God knew what. Waver pinched the bridge of his nose, and only sighed.
"Now that we're done, I hope you'll find the food I've readied to be to your liking. I'd be a poor host otherwise. Unfortunately, I must take my leave as I made a promise to little Ellie."
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Hope you enjoyed.