"What? You're joining the Chaldea Project?" The man on the other end of the phone let out a voice brimming with astonishment. Even as a noble and the head of a magus family with some history, McRemitz was utterly taken aback.
He then frowned. "You're not just saying this because I threatened to cut off your allowance and you don't want to go to the Clock Tower, are you?"
Morpheus smiled without responding.
"Is this just a stalling tactic? Planning to mooch off me for a few more months before ditching Chaldea too?!"
It was hard to imagine the impact Morpheus's choice to ditch the Clock Tower had on this poor old man.
"No, no. I genuinely intend to go to Chaldea. I feel a call from my own spirituality, urging me to go. There's something there only I can do."
Spouting blatant lies, Morpheus felt no burden. The situation demanded he head to Chaldea first, eliminate Lev, and prevent him from using the bomb. For that purpose, a little deception was no issue at all.
After all, I'm saving the world here.jpg.
"That sounds like something a deranged astrology family would say. The McRemitz family doesn't indulge in such nonsense."
McRemitz grumbled but relented. "Fine. I'll call the current head of the Animusphere family. She's about your age... look at her, then look at you…"
"She's already 23. I'm only 16."
"Too short, I always forget her age and think she's closer to yours."
"She's 162 centimeters tall."
"How do you know so much? Got a crush on her?!"
And so, another several minutes of lecturing ensued. Morpheus maintained a cheerful grin throughout, offering no rebuttals.
Finally, when McRemitz finished his tirade, Morpheus hung up. He knew all he had to do now was wait for Chaldea's response. With the McRemitz family's status and influence, securing a spot at Chaldea would be no trouble.
…
"Why can't they send these things earlier…" The young director, Olga Marie Asmleit Animusphere, current head of the Animusphere family, rubbed her temples, exasperated by the sudden influx of work.
The girl had silver-gray hair and wore attire that, rather than emphasizing her noble status, highlighted her identity as a magus.
Beside her, a man with a messy mop of hair and a peculiar smile spoke up. "Isn't that Fujimaru Ritsuka coming in a couple of days? You can just test them together."
This man in green was Lev Lainur Flauros... the very person Morpheus desperately wanted to eliminate on sight.
If Lev were gone, the world could be saved. It was that simple.
"Alright, I'll leave it to you, Lev. I have other matters to attend to."
"Of course, Director."
Lev smiled, accepting the task, and began pulling up the necessary identity information.
"Hm, a child from the McRemitz family? An adopted son, no less. No Magic Crest inherited, yet they still go to such lengths for him. Sir McRemitz truly has a kind heart."
But when Lev saw the name, a flicker of doubt crossed his face.
"Morpheus Fraga McRemitz? Morpheus…" he muttered, glancing at the photo. The image showed a smiling, almost cherubic boy. Lev narrowed his eyes.
"Something wrong?" Hearing his murmur, Olga Marie turned to her most trusted confidant with curiosity.
"Nothing, just reminded of an old friend... a very close one," Lev said, emphasizing "very close" with a deliberate tone, as if hinting at some deeper sentiment.
Olga Marie didn't catch the oddity. She pressed on, "Similar to your friend?"
"Yes, quite similar. Almost identical, you could say." Lev chuckled. "Perhaps a descendant of that friend, who knows."
Olga Marie shrugged, uninterested in pursuing the topic. "Just handle the task properly. I need to review more of Chaldea's data."
Once she left, Lev's gaze lingered on the photo. His narrowed eyes widened slightly, his thoughts inscrutable.
"Are you truly the one I'm thinking of? Or perhaps a descendant of that person? The enigmatic magus who called themselves Veritas000." His lips curled into an eerie smile, almost alien.
"Either way, I should prepare, just in case."
…
Morpheus let his maid tidy his clothes. It was the next day, and he had received a response from Chaldea, inviting him to participate in their tests.
"Young lord, didn't you say you had no interest in Chaldea?" Lizzy remarked.
Morpheus grinned. "Would you believe me if I said I was interested in the current head of the Animusphere family?"
"If you don't want to talk about it, no need for such excuses," Lizzy replied, tightening his tie... whether intentionally or not, he couldn't tell. Morpheus only smiled.
"You're really not changing this outfit? There are far better clothes to showcase your status, and Chaldea provides their own uniforms."
"Don't worry, I won't wear their clothes. This outfit isn't as simple as it looks. It's been specially sanctified, a powerful Magic Circle imbued with magic."
"It's magecraft, not magic, young lord. No one can wield true magic anymore; we're all just Magus," Lizzy sighed. "If you said that to the lord, he'd have a word with you."
She continued, grumbling, "Besides, those things are called Mystic Code, not Magic Circle. They're incredibly difficult to craft... not something you can just whip up with ordinary clothing materials."
Morpheus smiled silently.
He wasn't lying. His clothes were indeed Magic Circle, sanctified and imbued with the power of true magic, etched with numerous formulae. In terms of defensive capability, this outfit could withstand being at the epicenter of a nuclear blast unscathed.
As the heir of the Golden Dawn and the second-in-command of Dawn-Colored Sunlight, after years of preparation, how could his creations be anything less than exceptional?
After all, the clothes themselves represented the existence known as the Temple.
***
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