The Strongest Brother Lost His Memory-Chapter 125: Side Story – The Diary of a Future Archmage

I’m Ethan Shavas, a healthy twenty-four-year-old man.

“Hey, Ethan Noart!”

...Goddamn it, being called by that name is never a good sign. It’s always bad news.

The bastard grabbing my collar and threatening me now is called Meton.

He’s one of the mages of the Magic Tower, and also the guy who bullies me every single day.

“You’re doing sales today. Got it?”

“What the hell are you saying? I did it yesterday.”

“Where does a punk like Noart get off talking back? Want me to slap you, huh?”

“I meant I could do it today even though I already did it yesterday.”

Sigh...

The surname Noart has never been helpful in my life.

I love magic, so I entered the Tower, but since it’s under Temple control, it’s not exactly a great place for me to be.

Because—even though they’re wiped out now—Noart was once a noble family that pushed back hard against the Temple.

I don’t even have good memories of that damn family, yet it still clings to my ankle to the bitter end.

“Third Sales Room. Got it? Show some damn service spirit and sell properly. If your numbers suck, I’ll make you pay for it.”

“In case you forgot, I’m an 8th Circle mage. I’ll probably be an Archmage soon.”

“So what?”

...What indeed.

Even if I do become an Archmage, that doesn’t make me omnipotent.

I’m not the only Archmage around, and one wrong move and I could get branded a reactionary element and have my magic sealed. That’s been happening more and more since the Temple took over the Tower.

Anyway, I had no choice but to droop my shoulders and head to the Third Sales Room.

Mages, as a rule, hate dealing with outsiders. So working the sales room and having to pitch and sell magic tools is the absolute worst job for any mage.

But since the Temple oversees the Tower’s revenue and breathes down our necks about it, we have no choice.

Before the Tower got swallowed by the Temple, all this sales crap was handled by regular folks, and mages just focused on research... Those must’ve been glorious days.

“Excuse me.”

And the moment I arrived at the Third Sales Room, customers started demanding things left and right.

“Give me an acceleration mana stone with the acceleration function removed.”

“Uh... Are you saying you just need a regular mana stone?”

“What do you mean ‘just a mana stone’? Are you not listening? I said I want an acceleration mana stone with the acceleration removed! Why make me say it twice? My throat’s sore!”

Times like this, I really want to cry. I mean it.

But if I respond poorly, I’ll get slapped with a <Rude Mage> sticker and punished by the Temple, so I have no choice.

“Hey, uh, what are kids into these days? Just give me whatever’s selling best!”

“This one’s the most popular magic toy this month.”

“What’s with the tone? You lookin’ down on me?”

“Apologies. Really sorry. I’ll correct that... This is the most popular magic toy this month, sir.”

“Hmph, that’s better. Gimme two.”

Yeah, it stings. But what can I do? I love magic, and besides... I have nowhere else to go.

And honestly, the bullying? It wasn’t much different back at the Noart Count Family either.

When my mana first awakened, I used to have hopes about my life... But maybe things like luck or good fortune just weren’t meant for me.

Anyway, another shredded day passed. If I just endure, time moves.

Now I just need to handle the final customer.

“Hm...”

Gasp.

My eyes went wide the moment I saw the last customer.

Insane. Ridiculously handsome. I mean, how is that even possible?

He was towering, solidly built. With jet-black hair and violet eyes, he looked like some black knight from a fairytale night.

“I’m looking for an appropriate gift.”

Even his voice was insane. How is it that deep and resonant?

“...Um, something for a woman...?”

He looked like a man who lacked nothing, and yet that awkward, hesitant expression was hilarious.

Looks like a predator, but maybe he’s a softie.

“Do you have any ideas, even vague ones?”

“Mm, I’m not very familiar with this sort of thing...”

I snapped back to reality. Judging by how indecisive he looked, this was going to take time.

And no matter how hot the guy is, if he delays my clock-out time, that’s a problem.

I’d better go full autopilot and rattle off the top sellers.

“This one’s the most popular right now. It’s a ring that automatically adjusts to the wearer’s finger size. And you know how rings are—always the top-tier item for couples, right?”

As expected, when I showed him the ring, his eyes lit up in satisfaction. He looked completely smitten, fiddling with it like it was already his top choice.

Just as I was getting hopeful about getting off on time and reaching for the wrapping—

“...Do you have anything else? I’m not in a position to put it on her finger right away...”

...What? Not in a position to put it on? So they’re not dating? Right, he said woman, not lover.

I glanced at the clock and started pulling out other items.

“This bouquet won’t wither for a whole year.”

“It’s too large...”

“This one’s a music box that plays a different song every time. A little pricey, though.”

“If the sound’s too loud, that won’t work either...”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

I ended up suggesting over twenty items, and still nothing worked. My hopes of clocking out and doing research were dying fast.

The most annoying kind of customer is someone who doesn’t know what they want, but is determined to buy something, and picky °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° as hell on top of that.

“...Then what do you want?”

“Something that, for example, would let the recipient secretly communicate even while trapped somewhere...”

Ugh. There’s always someone like this.

The type who thinks the Tower can just manufacture whatever’s in their head.

Though, to be fair, most of those types do end up becoming mages like me.

“No such thing.”

I finally laid it out flat.

“And let me give you some advice about relationships. I know a thing or two about that stuff.”

He looked genuinely interested.

I even put on my most serious face to deliver it—if it meant getting out faster.

“The object itself is important, sure, but what really matters in a gift is the heart behind it. Don’t overthink the situation. Just give what you want to give. Even if the item gets rejected, your feelings will come through, and you won’t regret it.”

The man slowly nodded. Then said with deep sincerity:

“...I see. I’ve had extremely limited interactions with people since childhood, so I didn’t know. Thank you.”

Ah. Now I got it. Why someone that handsome hadn’t managed to become her lover yet.

I suspected he was a bit green, but it seemed like he was just plain awkward with people overall. Poor guy.

In the end, he pointed to the very first ring set I’d shown him.

“Then I’ll go with this one.”

Yep... I knew it. He’d been eyeing it the whole time.

Isn’t that how it always goes? “Not this one, not that one, let’s go back to the first one.”

I wrapped it up like lightning and handed over the set of rings.

“Good luck.”

If they weren’t dating yet, that probably meant he was planning to confess while giving it. I genuinely hoped it worked out. I could relate, as someone who’s bad with people.

I mean, the guy was so insanely handsome that just handing over the ring should be enough to make anyone say yes.

“You must’ve been troubled. Thank you.”

He said in a low voice, paid, and walked out. Damn, even from behind, he looked amazing.

...Wait? Isn’t that five times the listed price?

Holy crap! The price tag is right there—so the rest goes to me, right?

I yelled at his retreating figure,

“I’m giving you all my luck! Good luck out there!!”

* * *

A few days later.

That damn bastard Meton sent me on an errand outside the Tower.

Mages hate leaving the Tower, so this was just another form of harassment.

I was grumbling and walking down the street when—

‘Huh?’

He was pretty far away, but I recognized him instantly. The absurdly handsome guy who bought the ring set from me the other day!

I felt weirdly happy and almost called out—but then I saw something and froze.

‘Two rings...’

The man was wearing both rings on his ring finger. The exact set I had packaged.

‘Guess he got rejected hard... The girl must really not care about looks and only value 100% pure personality...’

I clicked my tongue and quietly backed away without calling out.

“I’m giving you all my luck! Good luck out there!!”

Somehow, it felt like it was all my fault. Like my words had caused this.

I’ve never had any luck in my life, but I just had to open my big mouth...

“Let me give you some advice about relationships. I know a thing or two about that stuff.”

That was just a lie to get off work early, and now I feel guilty. But hey, what can I do... What’s done is done.

So I sent a silent, sincere prayer toward the back of that man:

‘In your next life, I hope you interact with people from a young age and become a charming fox—especially when facing a woman who only sees inner character.’

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