It's been a while. Thank you for your time. Ars is a sorcerer who cannot be lost to our country or to humanity.

　Even though he was rambling on, Beric's face was a little twitchy. Even pouring the tea out of his hand was dangerous.
　'I know it's a bit of a snake pit, but Letty, who had sent Nexolis over, went right over to Ars.

''I didn't expect you to come right after I finished healing, I'm sorry, Lady Nexolis.
You don't have to worry about that. It makes me angry when you treat me like an old man.

　It's a good thing that you're not the only one," said Beric with a hollow smile.
　It's not because she's a healing magician that she's called a saint - mainly for personal reasons, but many people still call the retired Nexolis a semblance of a saint.

'That's not the point, believer Rick, I'm here to make sure I don't regret saving you.
Yes, and I do not intend to make you regret it. I'm just using the lives you saved to help humanity.

　Yes, Beric's life was saved by Nexolis when he was just becoming a wizard. The training exercises with Iberis also served as training for actual combat. Beric, who wasn't an accomplished mage of any admirable ability, went out into the outside world as a rookie in the squad at the time.
　There, he was fatally wounded by a demon he encountered. At the time, his relationship with Iberis was not good and they were keeping each other in check, but it was a training exercise to get a step closer to each other. This is because, despite the inhumanity of their research after the SS-Rate catastrophe, Alpha and Iberis stood out among the seven nations in the world in terms of their condemnation of each other. To put it bluntly, the two countries shamefully exchanged accusations in order to mitigate the backlash from the city.

　It was so much so that they had to sneak in an agent.
　So mutual feelings were on the verge of being ignited. At the time, Nexolis, who was heralded as a saint, took overall command of the entire exercise training.
　The exercise resulted in a lot of injuries against the unexpectedly high rate of demons, but she treated them without dividing them. At the time, she inflicted similar damage on the Alpha and Iberis forces, but she made the Alpha a priority for healing.
　This was not something that Iberis would do with the dead. It had the potential to lead to Nexolis being questioned about its animosity, but she saved no one from dying.
　This forced the enmity between the two countries to die down, and the research was outlawed as anathema between the seven nations.
　Bellick and the wizards present will remember vividly the achievements of a saint there.

'And how are you using it?　You're not going to do it all over again, are you?

　Sitting shallowly in his chair, Nexolis looked at Beric with a Buddha's face.

　'Same thing,' it was obvious that he was referring to his past outrageous research.

'Of course.'
But what about those two?　Have you found a loophole in the military code?
'No problem. First of all, may I clear up any misunderstandings? Both Arus and Loki are considered orphans. As for Loki, his parents were killed in the line of duty and the military took him in. It is true that he is in the military's mage training program, but he has been temporarily frozen after the fifth phase.

　Ars is the second term and Loki is the third, and the reason it lasted until the fifth term was because of the achievement of being able to eject excellent mages, not to mention the damage. But after that, it goes without saying.

'She volunteered because of her feelings for her parents. I'm not a research subject by mistake.
Huh, but that doesn't mean you have to go through the motions, does it?
Yeah, that's what I'm thinking.

　What an unworthy statement from the head of the military, but considering the factions of nobles and other noblemen nesting inside, there is a limit to their discretion at their own discretion.
　At first glance, it may appear that they are forced to do so for the convenience of adults, but the reality is that the environment is not so harsh.
　Those who fail can live a normal life under military protection, and since most of the children gathered there have had their parents killed by demons, they are presented with a path to be a magician.
　That's why there was a lot of criticism within the military - as an appeal to vengeance.

'It's not a matter of not breaking the law, is it?
You're right. However, it is true that the situation is slowly improving. In fact, in less than 20 years since you retired from the army, we have yet to find a better healer than you.
I know what you're going to say. The only thing you can't do with pretty words is what you've always done. The only thing that matters is that the single wizards are all in their twenties, and the number one choice is teenagers. A child is still a child.

　Beric cowered his shoulders, though it wasn't such a simple concept.
　Nexolis stared squarely at the margin.

'That monk ... you don't think he's going to say some nonsense about being an orphan whose parents were killed, do you?　Every single one of the singles I've seen, even with his natural ability to fight, I could still be convinced. But that little boy is exceptional, there's no way he could have that much magic in his human body.
That being said there's a lot about him that we don't know either.

　Sitting face to face, Berrick clears his throat and looks back at the past as if he has no intention of hiding it in the slightest.

'I certainly don't have any blood relatives in Ars. Or rather, we don't know.

　It is the duty of the residents to register the basic wards of the magic information body in their blood. As soon as they are born, they are supposed to be registered in the national database as residents. Of course, this system was only established after humanity became seven countries.
　There is no magical power information available from Ars's blood. Roughly 90% of the information will not be able to be reproduced by the current stage of Lost Spells.

'He was discovered when he was an estimated three years old ... and that was in the outside world.
"---!　Does that mean there were humans alive, or even settlements?

　Beric shook his head from side to side, as he should.
　Nexolis waited for an answer, uncomprehendingly. His expression is not flattering, but he does not maintain his composure.

''No, it's about a hundred kilometers to the northeast. It was thirteen years ago that I sent in a unit for the purpose of traversing uncharted territory. I was not yet the governor at that time, but I was the one who proposed this operation. The original purpose was just to get the terrain consistent. I returned from the outside world only 20 days after my departure, which was to be for a period of two months.

　I still remember that moment vividly.

''I chose a mage in my squad who was good at concealment, and I just went straight ahead while avoiding fighting with the demons as much as possible. At first, I was able to carry out perfectly as expected, no, even faster than expected. However, after a certain point, things changed........I did. The landscape hadn't changed at all, yet there was an obvious death that was prevalent. There were fifty thousand and demons spreading out there.

　By the time I stepped into the area that had become a den of many different kinds of demons, it was already too late.
　Nexolis also swallowed raw spit with his withered throat and closed his mouth.

''We couldn't even escape. But the A and B rate demon didn't move even slightly. It's as if it's watching us, as if it's scared of something.

　Once he let out a huff, Beric propped his elbows up on both knees and crossed his hands.

'I suppose I should have retreated there. I didn't think I could have done it. I proceeded to the center of the demon's consciousness so as not to irritate it... nah, what can I say? I found a small lake that could be considered a source of magical power. On the shore of the lake, there was a huge old tree that had broken off in the middle of the lake, and there was a cave open in the trunk that could hold one person. It was as if the giant tree was drawing nutrients from the lake to heal its wounds.

　And Beric foresaw death in the strange magical power flowing from the cave of that ancient tree. But strangely enough, the hostility did not seem to be directed at him.
　He had a hunch that this very old tree was the cause of the demon's alarm.

'If I couldn't save myself in any case, I went into the lake, approached it and looked at the old tree. That's where I saw Ars. There was no sign of anyone around, or even a trace of him. I don't even know why he was able to live...I don't know how he was able to live...but it's not something I can call evidence, but at the time, it seemed to me that this old tree was raising and protecting his young child. When I picked him up and brought him out of the cave, the old tree broke in half from the center and split in half.
I find that hard to believe.
Of course. Only a few of the troops at the time would have known about it. I made a false report to the top brass.
It's a big deal. It's a bold move, but if it's true, it's a subject for study, but can't it still be a humane investigation instead of the outrageous research you did before?

　There are already various restrictions on the use of specimens against research, so Ars would not have been treated outrageously at the time - probably.

I would have kept it to myself if that was all there was to it. But the problem was the return. A demon might attack at any moment, and that's something that can't be reversed whether or not you have a child with you. I had to walk slowly, praying to God not to provoke it. I didn't feel like I was alive.
Then why are you here? You're lucky you're not throwing away the life I saved you from.

　He jokingly interjected a small comment, but his doubts were not resolved and he was still waiting for Beric.

　Taking the joke as a joke, Beric cowered his shoulders and continued with a wry smile.

''I suppose so. I was mistaken. I thought that those old trees were probably keeping the demons away, but........it was different. All the demons that were there were looking at me. No, to be precise, in my arms........

　I'll never forget how horrified I was at that moment.

Ars was staring into the distance, as if he were looking into the distance.
"--!　So that means....
'Yes, the demons, which included the A-rate, were terrified of a three-year-old. So that's why I didn't die twice.
As far as I'm concerned, he wasn't an geezer before me.

　Scrutinizing the firstborn as if he were crazy, Nexolis exhaled heavily to relax the tense air.

　Of course, these stories were unknowable, even to Ars.
　The pause was probably just a time to sort things out. So Beric opened his mouth first, summing up.

'To back it up, his potential overwhelmed any mage who had spent decades in magic. It was I who made him a magician. As you said, Master Nexolis, it would have been dirty in the way it was done but we narrowed it down to one thing, though he had many different futures.
Hm!　You've grown in stature. I was just worried you were going to do something wrong again.

　As Beric looks up, Nexolis' face softens in relief, though he is mortified.

'Then....'
You haven't disappointed me for the time being. I'll put it on hold.
Oh, thank you.

　As the saint in front of me sipped her tea, one of her thin eyebrows, which I couldn't tell if it was there or not, rose to one side.

You know you don't want to lick the boy's head off as a test subject. But you've got a lot of use for someone you don't even know.
'No, not entirely. At the first stage, I had him undergo as much testing as possible, but the only thing I found out was the physical information and the total amount of magic power. The rest is up to him.
What? I don't remember you being a bit more discreet, don't you?
'I'll take that as a compliment. I'm sure I wanted to bring Ars in right away, but now there's no one better suited to the job than him. And there's no one else who can match him as an alpha in terms of knowledge about magic.
You're pathetic.

　That said, Nexolis also knows that Alpha has put a lot of effort into magical research, Rusarka in terms of AWR manufacturing technology, but the magical formulas carved into it are surpassed by Alpha.

　Beric could only respond with a wry smile.

I'm sure you understand the kid is great. I'm sure you wanted to keep the boy away from the public eye, don't you?
You may be retired, but you have a lot of experience. I guess that's just not possible. But timing is of the essence.
And now?

　He cowered his shoulders and shook his head lightly from side to side.

'No, as you've heard, there's no stopping him this time. The rest is up to him?
I think there's more to it. Well, that's good, because it's none of the business of a mere town healer.

　Nexolis stood up, gaining momentum, and slapped his hip a few times.
　Beric saw it.

'Will you not heal yourself?'
You don't learn enough, boy. You know that you can't cure aging. Throwing sarcastic remarks at an old man won't do you any good.
I'm glad to see you're all right and I'm not going to tell you anything else.
I'm just a doctor who got out of the military.

　Gladly, Beric saw his back waddling around with a teardrop of age and opened the door ahead of him. Outside the door, Iberis' mage was waiting for him.

　Nexolis stopped and smiled wickedly.

'I still resent being treated like an old man by you with one foot in a coffin, don't I?

　Still, he seemed somewhat happy about it.
　Beric lowered his eyes.

'And Beric....'

　Beric felt unexpected, as if Nexolis had called him by name for the first time.

'I know you said earlier that no one has ever surpassed me as a healer, but you were wrong. New talents are sprouting up.

　He corrected Beric's words as he gloated on that and left the room.