I spend my days secluded in the forest on the outskirts of the village, conducting magical experiments while snacking on meat. Speaking of magic, there’s a radiant aura associated with it… well, let’s call it magical power.
Regarding this magical power, it seems that its total quantity increases with training in manipulating it. For instance, my mother can perceive magical energy, but she can only use a limited variety of spells. Consequently, she lacks understanding of how to utilize magical power effectively, resulting in a smaller overall amount.
However, in my case, I’ve been using an absurdly diverse array of spells, causing my magical power to steadily grow. This approach also enhances flexibility and minimizes losses.
In fact, my magical power seems to be immensely greater than my mother’s, perhaps hundreds of times more.
Feeling a bit uneasy, I’m also practicing concealing magical power within my body.
Now, let me share an incident from one particular day.
As I was roasting meat as usual…
“Oh…”
A child from the village approached, observing me.
“You’re from the Lord’s place, right? What are you doing?”
It was a girl.
She had long, braided golden hair, resembling a hairstyle known as “English braid.” Almost like an anime character.
Her face was lovely, leaving a soft impression. Despite being a child, she possessed the beauty of someone far beyond her age.
But… now that I’ve been spotted, there’s no choice but to erase her.
If my current status as a mage were revealed, it would undoubtedly lead to complications.
It pains me to eliminate such a fine young lady…
I reached for the knife nearby.
“Oh, is that meat? Did you catch a rabbit?”
“Ah… yes, that’s right.”
I gripped the knife.
“Well, um… should I keep this a secret?”
I paused, considering my next move.
“Why do you think that?”
“Because you’re hiding, right?”
Hmm…
“Eating secretly like that, you’ll get scolded if you’re caught.”
I see.
Interesting.
She’s quite clever.
…Even if this kid were to blab about me being a mage, I can just play dumb.
Nobody would take a kid’s nonsense seriously.
In that case, if I were to turn this kid into a mage and use her for practice in forming factions later…
Yes, that’s it.
Faction formation.
I’m confident in my abilities, but I don’t think I can handle everything in the world with just myself.
It’s like programmers. While I might be top-tier among my peers, it doesn’t mean other programmers are incompetent.
We’re standing on the shoulders of giants. Alan Turing, Von Neumann, Graham Bell, Thomas Edison. We’re building upon what they’ve created.
There have been many occasions where younger programmers than me have written code that I couldn’t even think of.
The same philosophy as the internet we’re deeply connected to… In essence, “collective intelligence” is human power.
So, I need to build a team.
Create factions, gather subordinates, educate them, and share each other’s research results.
That’s the essence of “collective intelligence”…
Alright, I’ve made up my mind.
I’ll turn this kid into a “mage”!
“Ah… I see. It’s a secret, okay?”
I released my hand from the knife and put on a forced smile as I said that.
“Yeah! It’s a secret!”
The innocent smile directed at me.
She’s clever for her age, but I feel like I’m mentally older.
Handling this shouldn’t be too difficult.
“Come on, let’s eat. I’ll share some rabbit meat with you.”
“Huh, really?”
“Yeah, of course.”
For now, let’s just feed her.
Ah, as for skinning rabbits and such, I learned it from the village hunters. We never met directly, though.
I just used a makeshift telescope made with magic from up in a tree.
I processed a crystal made with magic according to the lens formula, but surprisingly, it’s quite useful.
So, while I’m not particularly skilled at skinning, the process is simple and manageable. I’ve done it many times, and I’ve gotten used to it.
There are plenty of practice subjects in the forest.
Sometimes monsters show up, but they’re instantly killed with the macro magic I recently invented.
Ah, macro magic is like… skipping incantations.
You can activate the spell instantly with specific words, but where the data is stored is still a mystery.
Now… communication.
“What’s your name?”
“I’m Ada.”
Ada… Not mentioning a surname means she’s likely a commoner. In our village, commoners often use the village name as a surname. If that’s insufficient, they add their father’s name as a middle name.
…Maybe Russian?
I found out later that following this pattern, Ada’s full name is “Ada Scott Levis,” the daughter of Scott from Levis Village.
“What do your family members do?”
“My mom runs a bakery!”
A baker, huh?
In the village, bakers hold an important role in supplying food. However, they also act as a sort of tax collector, levying taxes on ingredients villagers bring in. As a result, their reputation isn’t the best.
Come to think of it, I’m not very familiar with commoners’ lives.
Maybe I should ask more questions.
“What do you usually eat?”
“Bread! And sometimes, Kariudo-san brings meat.”
Not much different from my own situation.
Oh, not eating isn’t an option.
With such a meal, she won’t grow properly due to lack of nutrition.
If my estimation isn’t wrong, people in this world are quite short.
That short stature must be a sign of not getting enough nutrition during childhood. That stunted growth, just like a goblin.
I don’t want to be like that.
Though I managed to produce salt with magic, I’ll continue researching to get more nutrients.
At least, I regularly collect berries, strawberries, birds, rabbits, bird eggs, and river fish.
“Will other kids come here?”
“I don’t know, but normal kids don’t usually come this deep into the forest.”
I see.
Alright, that should be enough questions.
Now, let’s start the procedure right away.
