WE TRIED TLS

Is It Bad That the Main Character’s a Roleplayer

Chapter 197 | Even If I Shout (6)

Thud!

The Archmage shrugged as she turned to watch that person’s back.

Yes. She’d been overly optimistic in thinking she could get through the Demon Knight like that.

“I thought this would be a reasonable attempt…”

She hadn’t tried to interfere in his circumstances, nor had she tried to somehow change the Demon Knight’s way of thinking.

She just wanted to give him something that would make life more convenient for him, but… Was it perhaps not the right call for her to step forward? Would it have only stood a chance of working had it been done by the Inquisitor or Deathbringer?

“Looks like I’ve been caught…”

“C-caught…?”

What was certain was that the item she’d commissioned for the Demon Knight had lost its purpose. The Demon Knight, having caught on to her true intentions, would only continue refusing to accept it.

She clicked her tongue, feeling regret.

“So what should we do about this?”

Then, the one who’d been silent all this time finally spoke up.

“Just so you know, refunds take some time.”

“…Is that so?”

“Yes. We don’t have any money right now.”

It wasn’t like they were really short on money, but… was this person actually the adopted son of Surging Azure Lake? Not his biological son?

The Archmage blinked, surprised by his unusual manner of speech that clashed with his fragile-looking face, reminiscent of a forget-me-not. Though their faces didn’t bear any resemblance, he behaved exactly like Azure Lake.

Although it was normal to pick up the habits of the person who raised you, this degree of similarity was almost scary.

“…Whether or not it takes a while, don’t we have any choice but to request one? I don’t think Mister’s going to accept this. Besides, if Mister won’t cooperate, even starting production would be impossible.”

Was it perhaps because he was a wizard? Or was there some unspoken rule that people with two-toned hair always had troublesome personalities?

While the Archmage was momentarily wondering about such things, Deathbringer spoke up, to which Meister’s eyebrows raised slightly.

“Who said it’s impossible without his cooperation?”

“…What.”

“Of course, it might be impossible for someone like you, but I’m not you.”

“…?”

“Next time, try using your brain a bit before flapping your tongue about. Just seeing your utter lack of intelligence is absolutely pitiful.”

At that moment, the Archmage, the Inquisitor, and Deathbringer became one in heart and mind, sharing a single thought.

…Was he the Demon Knight’s more talkative twin?

“Are you done wi—”

“Let it go, let it go.”

However, them finding it familiar didn’t mean they would tolerate it. Just as Deathbringer, who was usually very quiet when dealing with the Demon Knight, was about to pick up the fight this guy was throwing down, the Archmage also stepped forward.

There was no benefit in ruining their relationship with a great master, especially when he was like that.

“More than that, can you really make it without the Demon Knight’s cooperation?”

“Of course. I’ve seen him once.”

Meister responded, slightly irritated, saying that measuring him would’ve yielded more accurate results, but it wasn’t like he couldn’t craft it just because he’d done it by eye.

His pride was at least as immense as the Demon Knight’s.

“Then I’ll ask you to proceed with the request.”

Because of that, the Archmage already knew how best to deal with Meister.

Instead of asking whether he could really do it, she simply conveyed her request. To that, Meister nodded, saying he understood.

“Also, if there are any additional details to the request, send someone over today or tomorrow. Otherwise, come to the workshop in five days. It’ll be done by then.”

“Understood.”

“Ah, I’ll be here today, so send them to the Tower instead of my workshop. Starting tomorrow, I’ll be back in the workshop. Anything else?”

“Erm… We have no other requests, but I do have a question.”

The best way to deal with these types of people was to get straight to the point. After choosing her words carefully, the Archmage finally posed her question.

“How did you end up meeting the Demon Knight?”

“Client information is confidential, so don’t ask.”

It was immediately rejected.

“Then leave. I’ll go as well.”

…Azure Lake had really managed to pass on his character.

Archmage watched the retreating figure, reminded of a younger Azure Lake.

“What the hell is wrong with that guy?!”

The moment Meister entered the lab and was out of sight, she released Deathbringer. The Inquisitor didn’t say anything but also looked slightly displeased.

“He might be a great master, but he’s just so…!”

“Why are you so angry, young hunter?”

“I get that he became a great master at a fairly young age, but this is just too much! Did he eat his manners for breakfast or what?!”

“…Aren’t most craftsmen like that?”

“Not at all. The great master at our Temple didn’t act like that!”

As the Inquisitor spoke, her thoughts turned to the great master who’d made her armor. Berserk simply scratched her head.

“Then why not leave this to someone else? Sure, craftsmen like this might be rare, but there should be one or two around if you look a bit harder, right? Ah, and maybe look for someone older. Age might not be everything, but the experience that comes with it cannot be ignored.”

“Well, it’s true that experience matters, and there is another great master in Bemurchen, but…”

The Archmage wondered if it was truly necessary to go that far. However, it seemed Berserk had a fundamental misunderstanding.

“Do you know the difference between a craftsman, a master craftsman, and a great master?”

“…Is there a difference?”

Berserk tilted her head at the Archmage’s question. It was clear now that this wasn’t just a simple misunderstanding but a complete lack of understanding of the general concept.

“The title of master craftsman can only be obtained by being recognized by at least one prestigious organization, like the Adventurers’ Guild, the Temple, the Magic Tower, or the Knight’s Academy. Think of them as officially certified craftsmen.”

“Is that so? Then what about great masters?”

“They are similar to master craftsmen, except that you need the recognition of three organizations instead of just one.”

You might think it wouldn’t be too hard to get the recognition of two more organizations if you were already recognized by one, but that wasn’t the case.

Each organization demanded a different skill set.

“And that person just now… became a master craftsman at fifteen and a great master at twenty. He’s someone who completely shattered the notion that talent can’t replace experience.”

For that reason, great masters were even rarer than great sages throughout the continent, and their value was that much higher. Even if he had such a personality, no one could say anything.

“On top of that, he’s also a wizard. At this point, there’s almost no one who can compare to him.”

“Oh… So I guess it’s fine that he threw out his manners with the garbage.”

“I don’t really agree with that elitist way of thinking, but that’s how most people think.”

As for his role as a wizard, quite a few within the Magic Towers looked down on him for being a wizard without a shred of Arcane Power… but there was no need to mention that. The Archmage swallowed those words before they left her throat.

“B-but he still went too far!”

“Right, right!”

“…Well, I don’t really want to say this, but even if his personality leaves a lot to be desired, he’s a pretty good young man at heart. Don’t be too quick to despise him.”

“That guy?”

“If you’re going to judge him just by his actions, remember that the Demon Knight is far worse in that regard.”

“No, well, that’s…”

The Archmage added to her explanation, bringing out facts they couldn’t deny. Then the Inquisitor asked, “How do you know he’s good at heart?”

“That’s… because of what he’s currently researching. If his character were truly as bad as his behavior, he wouldn’t be researching for the sake of people unable to use Arcane Power.”

“…Research for people without Arcane Power?”

“Yes.”

While the personality of this great master and grandson of a great sage was relatively unknown, his research was known far and wide.

“He’s working to create something he calls a ‘Battery’ that can absorb and store the Arcane Power circulating through the air so that even people without Arcane Power can use magic as long as they have this device.”

Which meant the democratization of magic. It was a vision dreamed of by a wizard who himself lacked Arcane Power.

* * *

WE TRIED TLS

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Some friends of mine always said that workplaces sometimes felt like family, but in the worst way—entirely detached and distant. Why couldn’t this party be that kind of workplace?

Was it because I’d messed up right at the start? Because I foolishly gave in to their affection without knowing how this would end? But that’s just how I thought of it.

Those guys didn’t need to be so kind to me.

“Damn it!”

I felt comforted by how they kept steadily approaching me and the warmth from their subtle goodwill.

But my circumstances were too dire for me to return those feelings. It was just too much.

…I didn’t have the confidence I could endure if the worst-case scenario really happened.

“I was wondering why it wouldn’t work, but I engraved it all wrong!”

So I tried to distance myself, but the loneliness that filled the gap always ended up stabbing me in unbelievable ways.

Nothing ever seemed to go my way.

“Shit.”

I watched blankly as Meister, who had been inspecting some brick-shaped object, slammed his fist against his workbench before clutching his head.

Maybe he’d made some mistake, like accidentally drawing on the sketch layer while doing line art. The thought somehow lifted my mood a little.

“Cigarette… cigarette…”

“I told you to go smoke outside!”

“Screw you.”

And then what crossed my sight was Meister shoving a cigarette into his mouth and flipping off Sage Karl, who’d just come back in, grabbing the back of his neck in frustration.

…Cigarettes.

Cigarettes?

I unconsciously followed after Meister. It was an instinctive reaction, perhaps because I remembered how I once turned my whole room into a raccoon den.

“What? Why are you following me?”

However, since I’d acted without any logic, I had no idea what to say now.

“You want one too?”

I thought about coming up with some lame excuse, like needing to go to the bathroom or something.

While I was busy contemplating what kind of excuse would do the trick—one I wouldn’t regret later—Meister, instead of waiting for an answer, made a new suggestion. It was quite a tempting offer.

But wouldn’t it be a shame to break my smoke-free streak like that? It would just be too pathetic. And out of character. What if it ends up reaching the ears of the party again? But well, for now… I wasn’t exactly in a position to worry about those things.

In contrast, cigarettes were a luxury here and definitely stress relieving.

Swish.

So, instead of making up some excuse to decline, I silently accepted the cigarette. It was made from hand-rolled tobacco leaves.

“Hey, light.”

I should be thankful he didn’t hand me something like a pipe or a hookah.

I looked at the hand-rolled cigarette curiously, as I’d never seen anything like it before. Meanwhile, Meister familiarly grabbed a wizard passing by in a tone that, while calm, strangely made him seem like a thug.

I’d wondered how he planned to light these cigarettes in a world without lighters or matches, but it seemed he was just using the lighters with legs crowding this place.

Fwoosh.

Under the wizard’s touch, the cigarette was lit.

“This one too.”

“Got it.”

I was a little worried since I’d never smoked a cigarette in this body before, but… this was a world without proper alcohol, coffee, and hobbies suitable for relieving stress. Smoking a little should be fine.

While Meister had his cigarette lit, I cleverly held the smoke in my mouth.

It was a bit stronger than modern cigarettes, but it wasn’t too bad.

Maybe it’s because I was something like a “veteran rookie.” Unlike when I smoked my first cigarette, I didn’t end up coughing or have my chest hurt.

“Whooo.”

“Doesn’t look like you’ve smoked only once or twice.”

Still, I thought I might actually cough, so I held my breath. It seemed he found it quite surprising.

Meister raised his eyebrows. That was actually pretty funny.

If he knew I’d spent over seven million won on cigarettes during the time I smoked heavily—I think it was for two years?—he wouldn’t have reacted like that.

But I couldn’t exactly tell him that. I simply exhaled the smoke, which was familiar yet unfamiliar and awkward.

Meister did the same.

We crouched or leaned against the wall, gray smoke drifting up in the open air of the terrace.

“You don’t have to come to the Magic Tower tomorrow. Come to the workshop. Seeing what Sage Karl did, I doubt magic will help us uncover anything about the equipment.”

“…Yeah.”

Then, there was silence for a moment. Meister muttered something Sage Karl would surely have cried over had he heard. Pretty cold, really.

“If Grandpa gets involved, we might be able to figure something out, but…”

Taking a deep drag from my cigarette, I looked at Meister. He was tousling his hair, looking like he was suffering from a headache.

He didn’t seem frustrated just because of the matter concerning my equipment.

“Tsk. Thinking about people who can’t come here is pointless.”

But it wasn’t yet time for me to ask him about it. I couldn’t do it while still staying in character. And I shouldn’t either.

So I just focused on my cigarette. The rising smoke replaced the sigh I couldn’t openly let out, clearing my throat.

It was quite contradictory: inhaling smoke into my throat somehow managed to clear my throat.

“Come back when you’re done. I’ll head out first.”

But by the time the cigarette had burned down to just under half, Meister got up.

At the same time, something fell out of his robes. It was the object that appeared to have angered Meister earlier.

“Sigh. Just how long will it take to succeed…”

Maybe because the hallway and terrace were carpeted, the sound of it hitting the floor was quite muffled, so Mesiter didn’t seem to notice.

“Hey.”

“…?”

I picked up the object that had fallen to the floor in Meister’s stead. Huh. I could feel some weak vibrations from it. It felt similar to an electronic notebook with the notification sound set to vibrate.

“Why are you calling me… Ah.”

At a closer look, it was beginning to emit a faint light.

I handed it to Meister as I thought about what it could be.

“Thanks… Huh?”

Then, Meister’s eyes suddenly went wide as he was about to take it from me.

“What is this? Why…?”

Huh? What? Was there a problem?

Just as I was about to look away, feeling confused, the weak vibration I was feeling stopped. The light also went out.

“You…”

Mesiter’s eyes became seriously scary.

“What did you just do?”

Wait a second, I think there’s a new stack of misunderstandings starting to accumulate here.

I only picked it up and nothing else!

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