After Retirement, Living a Stud Life in Another World - 16
Chapter 16: The Value of Water Magic
“Water magic users cannot play a significant role in both war and territorial development. At best, they can pray for rain, dig wells, or heal mildly ill patients… Even someone as ‘excellent’ as Miss Annaliese, that’s the extent of it. I believe the country should prioritize magic attributes more, assigning fire attributes to the military, earth attributes to territorial development, and light attributes to the clergy… That way, we could have a more efficient society.”
Interrupting the words of someone in a supreme position, Constanze, with an arrogant demeanor, gave instructions from a condescending standpoint. Even though I’m not familiar with noble society, I can tell that this is a seriously bad move. Not only the attendants of Her Majesty but also the high-achieving individuals at the same table are frozen in place. Even that arrogant stud from earlier is now turning blue, probably regretting his earlier flushed face.
“Miss Constanze of the House of Oldenburg… Was it? It might be better for you to learn a bit more about noble etiquette… In short, do you mean to say that water magic is useless?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Water magic can only sense and manipulate the presence of water. It cannot create or destroy anything of value.”
Constanze’s biased argument makes even Her Majesty visibly irritated. Just as she was about to express her displeasure, my calm sister, Liese, spoke up.
“I see, Lady Constanze believes that water magic cannot create or destroy.”
“That’s because it’s the truth!”
“Then, please watch as I use water magic. Let me demonstrate that your claims are not accurate.”
Making this declaration, my sister pointed her smooth, white fingers at the glass filled with red wine that the stud had.
“Hah!”
With a low shout, the exterior of the glass began to get wet. By the time I counted to five in my mind, the upper half of the glass smoothly slid down at an angle, and the spilled red wine dirtied the stud’s expensive white suit. However, the stud did not go into a rage; instead, he stared in astonishment at his glass. The glass had been cleanly and smoothly split diagonally, with no rough edges or chips.
“Lies! Using water magic for something like this is unbelievable!”
“As you well know, you are the one who knows that I only possess the water attribute. Now that you’ve realized your mistake, apologize for your earlier disrespect towards Her Majesty!”
At that moment, the gaze of the venue gradually shifted towards our table. Half of them were amazed at my sister’s precise magic, and the other half showed a gaze of astonishment and disapproval toward the daughter of a duke who not only belittled the top graduate but also showed disrespect to Her Majesty.
“What, what is this? Everyone ganging up on me… Look at me!”
In the end, without offering any apology to my sister or Her Majesty, Constanze spouted a parting remark and ran away from the venue.
—
“That was troublesome. I will have a stern talk with Duke Oldenburg.”
“As you wish.”
Liese showed her agreement.
The queen is quite lenient, I thought. If someone committed such insolence in this medieval absolute monarchy, they might face the annihilation of their lineage without any complaints. With this queen, it seems that a mere ‘stern talk’ is sufficient. I hope her kindness doesn’t turn into weakness for the sake of the country.
“However… Annaliese, that kind of water magic, I’ve never seen it before. Did you develop it?”
“Yes, there is no mistake that I was the one who first put it into practical use. However, I did not come up with that way of using it; it was not my invention.”
“Oh? You must have studied under a highly renowned magician. Who might this person be? I would like to meet them someday.”
I thought it was getting dangerous, so I pulled on Liese’s dress sleeve, but before I could react, Liese’s mouth started moving.
“The name of that person is Ludwig von Froidenstadt. He is right next to me, my younger brother!”
Ah, it’s over.
—
“So, Lutz-kun? What kind of guidance did you give Liese?”
The party is still ongoing, but Liese and I have been abducted by Her Majesty and are currently being intensely interrogated in a separate room.
Her Majesty’s surprise is understandable. In a world where only women can handle magic, the idea of a man inventing new magic is quite unthinkable.
Moreover, as the crazy young lady mentioned, “Water Magic” is indeed unsuitable for destructive activities. While it can sense, create, and manipulate water at will, that’s pretty much all it can do. Judging by the common sense of this world, using it for warfare or settlement development would be difficult.
However, I have knowledge from Japan, and this time, I just applied a bit of that knowledge.
“Hey, don’t be scared. Go ahead and tell her.”
While saying this, Her Majesty’s pressure is quite intense. Even though I already feel plenty scared, Liese seems to be leaning towards Her Majesty. With a gentle voice and a bit of petting, she would probably spill everything easily. Well, I guess I’ll talk.
“Well, it’s…”