The World's Strongest and Most Evil Noble Strives Humbly and Diligently ~ Using Knowledge of the Original Story and Unique Magic to Avoid a Destruction End ~ - Chapter 4: Judge Fiona's Diary

Chapter 4: Fiona’s Diary

Holy Calendar 1010, March 10

While I was working in the research building as usual, my demon boss suddenly called me.

Could it be… did they find out I stole money from the Ministry of Magic?

Feeling gloomy, I headed to her research room.

It turned out Lord Heisenberg requested me for the “Baptism Ceremony.”

What? Why me…?

I have no connection to that “evil noble” Heisenberg family…

Honestly, I really, really, really don’t want to go.

I don’t want to go.

I don’t want to go, don’t want to go, don’t want to go… I absolutely don’t want to go.

I begged my demon boss.

It didn’t work.

The Heisenberg family is one of the four great noble families.

They have huge influence in the Ministry of Magic, and refusing their request could lead to who-knows-what kind of harassment—that’s what she said.

Those evil monsters.

That boss is truly a demon.

That’s why she missed her chance to get married.

I tried throwing a tantrum to get my way, but she threatened, “If you disobey orders, I’ll report you for embezzlement.”

Sweating buckets, I played dumb and said, “What are you talking about?” She replied, “The research budget.”

…Good thing they haven’t found out about the safe deposit box yet.

So, that’s how I got shipped off to the evil noble’s place.

Ugh, no, no, no, no, no.

To begin with, I hate nobles.

They’re always so arrogant, acting unnecessarily superior.

Especially this Hollow von Heisenberg guy—he’s the worst.

Rumor has it he’s like laziness and arrogance personified, a total brat…

Sigh… I don’t want to go.

I want to lock myself in the research room and study my beloved magic.

While drinking some alcohol and messing with magic crystals.

Some great person once said, “If you work, you lose.”

Holy Calendar 1010, March 20

Today, I went to the Heisenberg estate.

When I arrived at the ridiculously huge mansion, a refined old gentleman guided me to the private room of the next head, Hollow von Heisenberg.

And wow, what a cocky kid.

I’m older than him, but he didn’t use a single polite word.

I thought about smacking that unnecessarily perfect face with an “Big Sis Chop”…

But if I did that, the Heisenberg family would probably make me disappear, so I just gritted my teeth and held back.

Then I checked Hollow-kun’s magical power and aptitude, and… I was totally shocked.

Hollow von Heisenberg is a genius.

Overwhelming magical power + aptitude for all attributes!

And above all, his unique magic <Void>!

I heard this later, but according to a colleague at the Ministry of Magic—

Hollow-kun is apparently an incredible prodigy.

His father, Dafnes von Heisenberg, has unique magic <Falsehood>.

His mother, Layla Toa Heisenberg, is the kingdom’s greatest genius swordsman.

And Hollow von Heisenberg was born from those two.

Like… what kind of combination is this? It’s literally “the strongest human I could imagine.”

Oh, by the way.

Just in case, I won’t write too much detail in this diary, but I made a “certain contract” with Hollow-kun.

The Ministry of Magic’s management is pretty lax, so it probably won’t get found out.

Even if it does, I can just say it was an appraisal mistake and apologize.

Anyway, today was the best day of my life!

Because I got the right to study the Void!

I’d better hurry and finish my piled-up work!

Holy Calendar 1010, April 20

I got held up by some annoying work, and a whole month passed.

I’m a bit late to start, but… it’s fine!

I took a year-long vacation, so I can focus on Void research from now on!

I went to the Heisenberg mansion first thing in the morning, dealing with that arrogant jerk.

I wanted to start researching right away, but unique magic—especially the Void—is dangerous.

Without basic magical skills, it could go out of control.

I didn’t want to waste the Void factor I found, so I asked Hollow-kun to let me check if he had the minimum level of magical ability… and I was shocked again.

In just one month, Hollow-kun mastered super high-level magical skills.

His spell construction speed is insanely fast, and his mana control is unbelievably precise.

Like, what kind of learning ability is this? Even absorbent cotton would be shocked.

But one thing bothers me.

Why did Hollow-kun only learn defensive magic?

Normally, mages—especially talented ones—focus on attack magic.

Defensive magic is kind of plain, and flashy attack magic is more fun to learn.

But Hollow-kun was different.

He didn’t care about attack magic and only studied defensive magic.

Given his arrogant personality, you’d think he’d aim to master attack magic…

Well, everyone has their favorite magic, I guess.

After some basic theory, I had him start training in the Void—and I was speechless.

Unique magic <Void>… that thing is crazy.

It was 100 times crazier than I imagined.

Its attack power is astonishing.

—The Void’s magical power destroys everything.

Just as the ancient texts said.

In front of that magic, no material is allowed to exist.

Water, earth, air, living or non-living—it swallows everything in creation.

A thousand years ago, “Disaster” Zeno used this power and threw the world into chaos, they say.

To research the strongest, most dangerous magic up close… I’m truly a lucky person!

Holy Calendar 1010, May 20

It’s been a month since I started Void research.

Hollow-kun’s training is, frankly, very plain.

It’s all repetition and review, three steps forward, two steps back.

But he does it at super speed, so he’s progressing insanely fast.

It’s… totally different from what I heard.

According to my colleagues at the Ministry of Magic, Hollow-kun, despite his natural talent, lives a lazy, arrogant life.

Sure, he’s arrogant.

He’s unbelievably cocky and has a super foul mouth.

But when it comes to magic—to getting stronger—he’s serious.

He’s not conceited.

If I had to describe his attitude in one phrase, it’d be “humble and steady.”

Hollow-kun keeps polishing the defensive side of the Void.

I want to shout it out loud.

Like, come on, focus on the attack side already!

You have overwhelming destructive power, so play to your strengths!

I’ve been frustrated about this for the past month…

But today, I finally understood why he’s so focused on defense.

[Fiona, you can use unique magic, right?]

[Yes.]

[Then, we’ll conduct a Void defense experiment. Attack me with your magic.]

[…Huh…?]

[No holding back. Come at me like you’re trying to kill me.]

[Th-that’s ridiculous…!]

My <Hydra’s Ancient Poison> is a Legendary Class unique magic.

Its attack range, deployment speed, and killing power are all top-notch.

Honestly, it’s ridiculously strong.

Even if Hollow-kun is a genius mage, even if the Void is an Origin Class unique magic, blocking my attack would be extremely difficult.

To begin with, defending against magic with magic is actually pretty hard.

It requires the ability to read the opponent’s attack magic, time it perfectly, and deploy defensive magic instantly. For someone who’s only studied magic for a month, it’s basically impossible.

I refused with all my might.

If I injured Hollow-kun, I’d be dragged through the streets and crucified.

I poured out my honest feelings, and he laughed, shaking his shoulders.

[You think your pathetic magic could hurt me? That’s beyond arrogant—know your place.]

That got even me fired up.

My long, sturdy patience snapped.

Fine, if you’re going to say that, I’ll do it!

I puffed out my chest and declared.

[I have my pride as a mage. If you insist, I’ll hit you with my full-power attack magic. —But since I’m still scared of the Heisenberg family, guarantee my safety with a <Contract>!]

The contract was made.

Even if something went wrong, I wouldn’t be erased by dark forces.

But thinking about it, this was a rare chance.

Hollow-kun had been so cocky this whole time.

I couldn’t land that “Big Sis Chop” on the first day, but now I’d let him have it!

With that energy, I unleashed my top-tier magic.

But—it was perfectly blocked.

No, it was erased.

[H-Hollow-kun… what was that…!?]

[<Void Possession>, not bad for a first try, huh?]

<Void Possession>, an all-around defensive magic that creates a thin Void membrane around oneself, sending all attacks to the Void Realm.

It still requires conscious activation for now…

But he plans to refine the harmful/harmless filter and eventually achieve perfect automatic defense.

That kind of usage would drain mana.

But according to Hollow-kun, “By mastering mana control and optimizing the Void, it’ll eventually be sustainable permanently.”

Like, whoa, this kid is way too crazy…

Hollow-kun hasn’t even studied magic for a year.

What is this?

How is he so good at using unique magic?

The strength of unique magic is that there’s no spellbook.

The weakness of unique magic is that there’s no spellbook.

No spellbook means its countermeasures are unknown.

No spellbook means it takes an enormous amount of time to master.

The pros and cons are two sides of the same coin… or so it should be…

But somehow, Hollow-kun moves forward like he’s reading a manual, taking the shortest path.

He ignores the drawbacks and masters <Void> with maximum efficiency.

It’s like he already knew this magic from the start.

Is this talent?

Holy Calendar 1011, April 20

Time flies like an arrow.

A year has passed since I started Void research.

Hollow-kun kept refining the defensive use of the Void.

It’s already rock-solid, so what drives him?

Oh, maybe it’s that?

Does he enjoy building an ironclad defense to make his enemies feel helpless?

Hollow-kun smirking down at enemies despairing as their attacks are blocked… yeah, he’d totally love that…

Sadly, I couldn’t get “Void attack data.”

But I got tons of ultra-rare “Void defense data.”

This is something magic researchers worldwide would cry bl00d to have.

Something I could never have obtained in my lifetime.

I’m truly grateful to Hollow-kun.

Oh, and through this research, I learned something new.

He’s cocky, but he seems to draw a line somewhere.

He never crosses the line of what’s unacceptable as a person.

Sometimes, I even notice him saying or doing things that consider me.

“Maybe he’s actually kind of nice?” I’m starting to think.

I’d never say that to his face, though, or I’d probably get strung up.

Anyway, today’s the last day of my long vacation.

Void research ends here, huh.

Back to work at the Ministry of Magic tomorrow, huh.

Feeling depressed about it, Hollow-kun said, “I’ll show you something interesting,” and dragged me out.

We rode a carriage to a place with endless blue mountains.

Apparently, this entire area is Heisenberg family territory.

The wealth of the four great noble families is insane…

Standing at the foot of the mountain, Hollow-kun slowly extended his right hand—and used a certain magic.

In that instant, the mountain vanished.

I doubted my eyes.

I collapsed in shock.

What… what was that…?

It disappeared.

The entire mountain.

As if nothing was ever there.

A kid who studied magic for a year changed the landscape with one spell.

This… is the “pinnacle.”

The state that those who dedicate their lives to magic weep upon reaching.

Yet Hollow-kun wasn’t satisfied.

He mumbled, “The structure was sloppy,” and “The range was off.”

No, no, that’s more than enough…

What’s he planning to do by getting even stronger? Destroy the world?

Speaking of… a thousand years ago, the great mage “Disaster” Zeno tried to destroy the world with Void power.

Maybe these two are similar psychos.

Anyway, I was moved.

I saw the Void’s destructive power in action.

Even after parting with Hollow-kun, that scene is burned into my eyes.

Beautiful, grand—and terrifying magic.

I want to study it more.

I want to touch the Void more and more.

Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void

Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void Void

My mind is completely filled with the Void.

Is there a way to stay by Hollow-kun’s side?

Could I ask Lord Heisenberg to make me a tutor or something?

While thinking about this and heading home, I saw men in black standing in front of my apartment.

They were officials from the Klein Kingdom.

Apparently, my embezzlement—the safe deposit box—got found out.

I was dragged to the Ministry of Magic and chewed out by my demon boss.

The total amount I secretly “borrowed” was—get this—50 million gold.

I was shocked.

I didn’t realize I’d taken that much.

Over three years, skimming little by little added up to an insane amount.

Truly, “dust piles up to make a mountain,” huh?

Haha… not funny.

The big shots at the Ministry of Magic demanded I repay it within a week.

There’s no way I can pay 50 million gold.

I thought.

I thought like crazy.

Then, a lightning bolt struck my genius Fiona brain.

If it’s come to this… I’ll borrow a ton from loan sharks and bet it all on horses!

By some twist of fate, the “Klein Kingdom Cup” is in a week.

The gods are saying, “If you don’t bet now, when will you?”

Holy Calendar 1011, April 30

…It’s over.

Over, over, over, over, over, over.

Done, done, done, done, done.

My entire fortune vanished like a bubble, leaving only a betting slip.

Drowning in despair and cheap booze, someone knocked on my door—knock, knock, knock.

With tears streaming down my face, I opened it—and there stood Hollow-kun.

He was completely different from usual.

He listened to me quietly.

He comforted me in a gentle voice.

And—get this—he offered to lend me the same amount as my debt, “interest-free, pay when you can.”

Plus, he said he’d hire me as a tutor and magic researcher for the Heisenberg family.

What? Is Hollow-kun a god?

Oh, God, Buddha, Hollow-sama… thank you so much.

I’m so sorry for writing in my diary that you’re a cocky kid or a super arrogant jerk.

I, the unworthy Fiona, pledge eternal loyalty to Hollow-sama.

I swear I won’t touch horse betting for at least a week.

I thanked him a ton and saw him off.

For a split second, less than a blink, I thought I saw a wicked look on his face… but it was probably my imagination, right?

…But how did my embezzlement get found out?

They said it was an “anonymous tip,” but… no way, right?