I let out a light yawn as the gentle sound of raindrops hitting the window pane slightly roused me from my sleep. A few tranquil moments passed by before I realized that I was holding something in my right hand. I didn¡¯t know what it was, but my hazy sense of touch told me that it was something soft and warm. It was a tender warmth that contrasted my cold right arm and I unconsciously tightened my grip as if I was trying to squeeze out all of the warmth. I pulled the unknown thing under the blanket and brought it close to my chest before holding it with both of my hands. After a while, the heat under the blanket finally enveloped me completely and I dozed off again.
***
The sound of the rain was still there when I woke up the second time, and I let out another yawn as I slowly got out from under the blanket. I shivered a bit after coming into contact with the cold air in the room, and one of my hands was still tightly grasping something while my other hand rubbed my eyes.
When I finally regained my visual clarity, I looked down at the blanket and saw two hands holding each other. The grogginess still hadn¡¯t disappeared and I sat there for a second before realizing what I saw was my hand holding someone else¡¯s. My line of sight moved past the hand I was holding and along the arm it was connected to before I saw a head of white hair peeking at me from over the edge of my bed. Still feeling a bit dazed, I leaned over to look down towards the floor and there I saw Ky there with his arm bent towards me. He was fast asleep while leaning on the side of my bed and I could faintly hear the sound of his soft breathing.
After returning to my original sitting position, I sat on the bed in silence for a few moments and stared at the hand I was holding as my brain finally reoriented itself from the heavy drinking I did last night.
Over the course of the next couple of minutes, I finally put together all of my previous observations and came to a conclusion. The hand that I was looking at, the hand that felt so warm earlier, the hand that I had been holding for the entire night, that hand was Ky¡¯s hand. I stared intensely at Ky¡¯s hand as a slight blush appeared on my face and a few moments passed by as my blush slowly became redder in increments before finally spreading across my entire face.
Eventually, I flung Ky¡¯s arm off my bed and back on top of his body as I held my head in my hands, feeling the blood rush to my face while I desperately racked my memories to try and remember exactly what happened last night. But no matter how hard I tried, all I could remember from yesterday was us celebrating my promotion and drinking as much as we could before everything faded to black.
After giving up on trying to remember what happened yesterday, I ran through my vague memories of this morning and the scene of me hugging Ky¡¯s hand close to my chest while sleeping popped up in my mind. I buried my burning red face in my pillow as I hugged my knees and let out a cute whimper before peeking over to look at Ky¡¯s head.
¡°...a-augh¡¡± (Aria)
I stared at his snow-white hair as I wallowed in my embarrassment for a few more minutes before finally managing to barely pull myself together. Eventually, I just decided that the best course of action was to pretend like nothing happened and completely forget about it.
I slapped myself lightly in the face with both hands before I got off my bed and started to lift Ky slowly so that he wouldn¡¯t wake up. When I finally picked him up off the floor, he grumbled for a moment, which made me freeze up, but after a few seconds there wasn¡¯t another response from him and I quietly let out a sigh of relief.
After carrying him right next door to his room, I wanted to gently put Ky down onto his bed, but as I was carrying him over, he shifted around in my arms. I instantly panicked thinking that he woke up and unconsciously let go of him so I could use my hands to muffle my yelp. Ky fell onto the floor next to his bed and laid there silently for a while before I calmed myself down and doubled checked that he was still asleep. I quietly closed the door to his room before sneaking back to mine, getting back in bed, and muttering to myself with my face still burning red while trying to fall asleep again.
¡°Nothing happened last night, absolutely nothing¡ all that happened last night was we had a party, went back to our rooms after drinking, and... Ky passed out on the floor right before he made it to his bed because he drank too much while I went back to my room to sleep BY MYSELF. I never held his hand, and in a little bit, we¡¯ll both wake up and everything will be normal...ha...ha...ha...ha...¡± (Aria)
I rolled around in bed with my pillow on top of my face, pretending to be asleep while running through every possible scenario for what could have happened in my head as the sound of my heart racing drowned out the rain hitting the window pane.
When I woke up, the sound of light rain hitting the window pane was beginning to die down and I opened my eyes to find that I was on the floor in my room. I shivered a bit from the cold and a funny sense of deja vu bubbled up inside me from sleeping on the floor again like I did for that one week after I met Aria. I slowly rolled over with a groan as I grabbed the edge of my bed frame to hoist myself up.
¡°Ugh¡ what happened?¡± (Kyle)
I rubbed my temples a bit as the slight hangover from last night made my head lightly throb, and after a moment, I ran through my memories again.
¡°Last night we had a party for Aria¡¯s promotion. We drank a lot, and I vaguely remember carrying her back to her room, but after that, there¡¯s nothing¡¡± (Kyle)
After running through my memories to no avail, I decided that I would go check up on Aria to see if she was ok. She did drink enough to pass out last night, so she probably had a huge hangover right now.
I opened the door to my room, which was unlocked for some reason, and walked over to Aria¡¯s room next door as I yawned while knocking on it.
¡°Aria, you there? I¡¯m gonna be making breakfast soon.¡± (Kyle)
When I called out for her, there was silence for a moment before I heard a loud crash and a cry of pain from inside.
¡°...Argh!¡± (Aria)
I immediately got worried and pushed against the door to get inside. I was prepared to force it open if I needed to, but for some reason, it was also unlocked and I burst into the room with an uneasy expression on my face.
My eyes scanned around the room for Aria, and I found her rolling around on the floor clutching her head with tears in her eyes. I ran over to her and stopped her from rolling to see what was wrong.
¡°Aria, are you ok? What happened?¡± (Kyle)
Aria didn¡¯t answer me, but after glancing around again and seeing the small crack on her wooden bed frame along with the bump on her head, I came to the conclusion that she just hit her head like an idiot. I sighed and lifted her up off the floor before placing her back onto her bed.
¡°Wait here, I¡¯ll go grab some ice.¡± (Kyle)
Aria gave me a whimper as I left her room and went back to mine. I rummaged through the bags on my desk and took out an alchemy stone from one. It was a monster core about the size of a bottle cap which looked like an icy blue colored crystal and it had a small magic circle carved into it. I held the alchemy stone in my hand and activated the magic circle carved into it.
¡°¡¾Ice Shard¡¿, single cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
The crystal shone with a similar colored light before being replaced with a sharp chunk of ice about the size of my palm. I snapped the sharp edges off the chunk of ice and placed it into a small bag to create a makeshift ice pack before returning to Aria¡¯s room.
When I returned with the ice pack, Aria was covering her face with her pillow and hugging her knees on the bed. I walked over and nudged her in the face with the ice pack.
¡°Alright, show me where you hit your head.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Kyaa!¡± (Aria)
Aria gave a small shriek from the sudden cold and peeked her eyes out from under the pillow for a moment. A moment passed as she made eye contact with me before immediately covering her face with the pillow again. I heard her muffled voice from beneath the pillow as she rolled over to her side to face away from me.
¡°T-thanks, Ky. Just leave the ice here, I can do it by myself.¡± (Aria)
¡°What are you talking about? It¡¯s ok, I won¡¯t make fun of you. Here, let me see how big the bump is.¡± (Kyle)
I sat down on the bed next to Aria and ran my hand through her hair as she started fidgeting around. There was a small bump on the back of her head and I gently placed the ice pack on top of it.
¡°...eek!¡± (Aria)
¡°Hey, hold still!¡± (Kyle)
Aria initially started squirming around in her bed after I placed the ice pack on her head, but after a few moments she calmed down and after about ten more minutes, the swelling had started to disappear. I softly rubbed Aria¡¯s head a bit to make sure the swelling wasn¡¯t too bad before smiling and looking at the clock. It was almost 11 AM, about time to get something to eat.
¡°Alright, looks like you¡¯re good now. It¡¯s a little late for breakfast so I¡¯ll be back in a few minutes with brunch. Today will be pancakes.¡± (Kyle)
¡°...ok...¡± (Aria)
I stared for a moment at Aria still holding the pillow over her face before shrugging and leaving the room to go prepare breakfast.
¡°Hmm, did she really hit her head that hard? It didn¡¯t look that bad. Eh, knowing her, she¡¯ll probably be fine once I give her some food.¡± (Kyle)
When I came back to Aria¡¯s room with a tray of freshly made pancakes, she was sitting on the bed with a slightly red face as she fidgeted around with her hands. I pulled out a small table from the corner of the room and set the tray of pancakes down before taking the chair from under the desk and sitting down across from Aria.
¡°Hey, Aria, you ok?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Y-yeah, I¡¯m fine.¡± (Aria)
She had a small nervous smile and an unnatural flush on her face as she picked up her utensils and started to eat the pancakes in small bites. A few moments passed as we sat there and ate brunch together, but whenever I tried to make eye contact, she immediately turned her head away to look at the wall or the window. Eventually, I started staring at her to see what was wrong. I noticed that her face was slowly getting redder and I grabbed her hand.
¡°Wha-¡± (Aria)
Aria finally faced me and made eye contact as I got a good look at her extremely red face before I immediately put my other hand to her forehead to check what her temperature was. I was starting to suspect that she was sick after seeing her behavior earlier, and right now her face was burning up.
¡°Aria, we¡¯re going to a doctor right now. I¡¯m 100% sure that you¡¯re sick. Your face is redder than a tomato, your forehead¡¯s burning up, and you¡¯ve been fidgeting around weirdly. Usually, you shove everything you can into your mouth as fast as possible, but you¡¯ve only been taking small bites of your food, and you haven¡¯t even physically or verbally abused me for something unreasonable yet.¡± (Kyle)
I stood up, moved the table out of the way, and started to drag Aria with me, but once I made it to the doorway, Aria stopped in her tracks and shook free from my grasp before muttering to herself with an angry smile.
¡°So... that¡¯s how you see me, huh?¡± (Aria)
I turned around and was about to ask her what was wrong when she kicked me into the hallway and slammed the door shut before locking it. I got up and started to try and open the door.
¡°I¡¯m glad to see you¡¯re acting more like usual now, but you should still see a doctor! Trust me, it¡¯s for your own good!¡± (Kyle)
¡°I don¡¯t need a doctor! It¡¯s your damn fault I¡¯m like this anyway!¡± (Aria)
¡°What!? How was it my fault!?¡± (Kyle)
I cried out indignantly, but that was the last I heard from Aria until she came out for dinner that night looking perfectly normal, albeit slightly depressed.
Edge of Civilization, Zolran Mountain Range, Dragon¡¯s Cave (Kyle POV)
I felt a light breeze blow across my face as I gazed at the colors in the sky and sat there, leaning against a tree. A few feet away from me, Aria was standing behind a different tree while staring intently at the entrance to the dragon¡¯s cave.
We were hiding behind the trees near the dragon¡¯s cave in the mountain range, and according to our observations, and the guild¡¯s data, this time of the year is when the dragon stays in its cave the most.
You see, a few months have passed and winter has started again, but around this area, the winters are actually pretty warm. It isn¡¯t exactly shorts and sandals weather, but there¡¯s rarely any snow, and it basically just feels like a slightly colder fall. Honestly though, I couldn¡¯t care less about that right now.
Aria and I have been observing the dragon for the past week, and two days ago, we even saw it leave for about five hours before returning, so it should be in its cave for another few days at minimum.
Today was just another normal day of observing the dragon, or well, it would¡¯ve been if it weren¡¯t for the fact that tomorrow is the day we¡¯ve chosen to finally confront it.
Despite the eerie silence of the woods around us and the slowly fading light of sunset, there was a visible tension coming from Aria as she stood there stiffly while taking long deep breaths with her eyes closed, almost like she was meditating. I watched her for a moment before walking over to her silently and whispering to her.
¡°... Aria, it¡¯s sunset, we should go back soon.¡± (Kyle)
Aria exhaled and opened her eyes, which gleamed with uncertainty, before turning around and answering me.
¡°...ok, let''s go back...¡± (Aria)
Aria glanced at the cave one last time before walking past me to lead the way back. I could sense the aura of anxiety surrounding her as we walked down the mountain in silence, and the dim illumination of twilight slowly devoured the last vestiges of sunlight as I stared at her back while we wordlessly trudged on through the mountain woods.
Eventually, we reached the main road back to Delhurst from the mountains. The sound of our footsteps was the only thing cutting through the silence, and the lonely atmosphere was slowly overwhelming me... until I finally snapped.
I couldn¡¯t take it anymore.
I hated the all too familiar sight in front of me.
I hated the emotions it brought up, I hated the things it made me remember, and what I hated the most... was the fact that it was the sight of someone I cared about that was making me feel like this.
What filled my vision was just a single person walking through the darkness by herself. It was a girl who was lost, a girl who didn¡¯t know what to do.
It was a girl who was alone...
Aria¡¯s hands were in the shape of tight fists as she made her way down the road. Her gait was stiff, almost robotic, and she was just staring downwards at the floor in front of her as she walked. I couldn¡¯t see her face, but I already knew what it looked like.
Because it was the same face I made a long, long time ago. A face full of fear and hopeless uncertainty, masked by a facade.
¡°... I don¡¯t want to see this anymore...¡± (Kyle)
My right foot stopped moving. It hit the ground and stopped all my forward momentum as I stood still. Aria stopped walking right after I did, and there was a moment of silence before she turned around to face me.
¡°What¡¯s wrong, Ky? Come on, hurry up or we won¡¯t make it back in time for dinner.¡± (Aria)
I was right.
Aria showed me a smile. It was a textbook fake smile, one that was as far from a real smile as possible. I¡¯ve seen Aria smile a lot, and whether it was an angry one because I made her mad, a satisfied one because she was eating delicious food, or a happy one because she was genuinely having fun, there was always a sense of life in her eyes. But right now... there was nothing.
I stared into her eyes for a moment before responding slowly in a soft voice.
¡°...Hey, Aria¡ tell me the truth, are you afraid?¡± (Kyle)
Aria froze as she stared back at me with that fake smile before letting out an even phonier laugh.
¡°No way, I¡¯m not scared at all. Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ve already prepared a lot for the fight. We¡¯ve got everything on lockdown. We have those two special fireproof cloaks to protect us from the dragon¡¯s breath, we¡¯re fighting in the winter when it¡¯s at its weakest, and you even bought all those ice element monster cores to set up that big alchemy formation outside, right? We¡¯ve already spent a lot of money on this... so just believe in me. We¡¯ll definitely win. And we¡¯ll go back to the capital together afterward, so-¡± (Aria)
I grit my teeth and cut her off with a low voice after hearing her spew out all this fake garbage.
¡°...Is that all you¡¯re gonna give me?... Just a fake smile, some worthless semantics, and your flimsy facade of confidence?...¡± (Kyle)
Aria stood there stiffly and we just stared at each other in silence again. For us, the faint night breeze blowing by was the only sound in the world. It flowed along and warmly caressed both our bodies as we stood there until finally, I moved.
I took a single step forward.
And then another step.
And finally, one more.
I stood in front of Aria and lifted my arms to hold her by the shoulders.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
¡°... If you don¡¯t want to tell me anything then it¡¯s fine, just let me say one thing¡¡± (Kyle)
I pulled Aria close and hugged her tightly, almost like I was trying to melt her with my warmth.
¡°...You¡¯re not alone anymore... So stop acting like you¡¯re the one holding up everything by yourself. I already told you, I¡¯ll cook for you, I¡¯ll set up camp for you, and I¡¯ll help you carry everything... even burdens, because... I¡¯m your partner¡ so please, don¡¯t lie to me...¡± (Kyle)
It felt like time had stopped, but eventually another pair of arms wrapped around my back and hugged just as tight as I did. I felt my shirt getting slightly wet, and the sound of Aria¡¯s muffled crying replaced the howling of the dry winter breeze as we stood there under a sea of stars.
The faint sound of a pen scratching on paper was the only thing that could be heard in my room before I finished writing my letter, folded the paper in half, and placed it on top of my desk.
It was a few hours past midnight right now, and I stretched a bit in my chair before turning off the lamp next to me. Darkness flooded the room as the moonlight outside peeked through the window. I stared at the ceiling and sat in silence for a bit until my eyes adjusted to the dim light and I got up.
I picked up the letter and rummaged through my desk to find the extra key to Ky¡¯s room that he gave me. And after staring at the letter in my hands for a few minutes, I made my way over to the door and left my room.
I walked over to Ky¡¯s room and unlocked it using the extra key before gently nudging the door open and peeking inside. The dim moonlight shone through the window and illuminated Ky sleeping on his bed.
I slowly walked over and sat down on the floor next to his bed while I listened to his faint breathing. Then, I leaned against the bed frame and held the letter in my hands as I hugged my knees before my soft voice rang out.
¡°...Hey, Ky¡ I think I finally figured out what I want to do¡¡± (Aria)
I turned my head toward the window and looked at the moon gently lighting up the night sky amidst a sea of stars.
¡°... I¡¯m going to fight the dragon alone¡ because I¡¯ve finally realized who the most important person in my life is... it¡¯s you... and that¡¯s why you¡¯re the one person I can¡¯t drag with me into danger¡ I¡¯m scared of the dragon, but honestly... I think I¡¯m even more scared of losing you¡ You¡¯re irreplaceable to me because you¡¯re... my one and only partner¡¡± (Aria)
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes as I leaned my head back onto the bed.
¡°... You know¡ if Max didn¡¯t exist... I definitely would¡¯ve married you¡ so if I do make it back... I think I¡¯ll turn down that knight captain position¡ I¡¯ll just settle down in the capital and take it easy¡ and if I do, I¡¯ll definitely need a personal chef¡ so get ready, because I¡¯ll be dragging you with me, whether you like it or not...¡± (Aria)
I slowly got up and turned around to look at Ky as my face eased into a small happy smile.
After a moment, I left the letter on Ky¡¯s desk and had one last look at the room before quietly leaving.
Edge of Civilization, Zolran Mountain Range, Dragon¡¯s Cave (Aria POV)
The howling of the wind masked the sound of my footsteps as I stepped through the darkness and arrived at the entrance of the cave. The dim light from the faintly glowing crystals lining the inside of the cave shone out and illuminated my silhouette. I held my greatsword in my hands and readied myself as the crisp morning air flowed through my lungs and I stared at the dragon sleeping inside.
¡°... I have to keep it in the cave. If it gets out and starts flying, I can¡¯t win...¡± (Aria)
I inhaled and chantlessly cast body strengthening magic on myself like I had done countless times before. My body instantly felt lighter and my legs broke into a sprint as I rushed at the sleeping dragon¡¯s head.
I channeled the mana in my body into my greatsword and activated three sword techniques simultaneously,¡¾Mana Edge¡¿to make my sword sharper,¡¾Reinforce¡¿to harden it, and¡¾Increase Weight¡¿to make it heavier. The hazy white light of mana thinly covered my greatsword, and then¡ the sound of metal cutting into flesh finally reached my ears. I canceled the sword techniques and channeled ice element mana into my sword before pulling it out from the dragon¡¯s right eye and jumping away as the blood spilling out from the dragon¡¯s eye began to freeze. The dragon let out a deafening roar of pain as it finally woke up and lifted its entire body up to face me.
Immediately, I followed up with a spin to control the momentum, then a hard swing to its wide open chest. My sword lit up again as I activated¡¾Mana Edge¡¿and sparks flew from the blade while it ground through the dragon¡¯s scales. I pushed against the ground with my left leg as I dashed past to the dragon¡¯s right side.
However, once I ran past its wing, I stopped in my tracks, clenched my teeth, and stacked¡¾Reinforce¡¿as I barely held up my sword in time to block the tail flying straight at me.
The tail collided with the flat part of my greatsword and I was blasted away about a dozen feet into the cave wall. Shards of crushed rock and crystal tore cuts and scrapes into me as the wind was knocked out of my lungs and my entire body rattled in my armor from the impact. My vision blurred for a split second before the image of the dragon¡¯s gaping maw filled my line of sight.
I instantly reacted and pulled the fire-proof cloak covering my armor to shield my body as a mass of flames poured out from the dragon¡¯s mouth. The flames singed the edges of my armor, but the cloak blocked most of the fire and I jumped out as fast as I could before slipping past the dragon to its right side again as it tried to claw at me.
Slamming my foot against the ground, I rolled past the swipe from the dragon as I activated¡¾Mana Edge¡¿again and stabbed my blade into the dragon¡¯s flank as hard as I could. The scales shattered from the kinetic force and my blade tore into the tough flesh. I canceled¡¾Mana Edge¡¿and began to pump in ice elemental mana again as my sword gradually glowed with an icy blue aura.
The faint crackle of ice crystals forming echoed throughout the cave as I grit my teeth and pumped more and more mana into my body strengthening magic to push my sword forward. The blade ripped through the scales and froze the dragon¡¯s flesh as it sliced a gaping wound into the dragon¡¯s right flank.
Another roar of pain echoed out as it swiped at me again with its tail. I put strength into my legs and kicked against the ground to jump over its tail, but the dragon spun around and its head shot at me to try and bite me.
I held my sword horizontally and activated¡¾Reinforce¡¿to harden my sword as I waited until the dragon¡¯s maw was right in front of me before I channeled a large amount mana into my body strengthening magic again and smashed its jaw closed from the bottom to push the dragon¡¯s head above me.
When I landed, I spun again and followed the momentum of my greatsword to slash low at the dragon¡¯s right leg.
I activated increase weight and reinforce as I strained every muscle fiber in my legs to push forward on this swing.
¡°Uwwooohhhhhhh!¡± (Aria)
My greatsword smashed against the dragon¡¯s leg and it felt like I was whacking at a steel pole as the impact from the collision shook my arms, but along with that impact was the sound of bone and scale being crushed. I let go of my sword with my right hand and held it in my left as I quickly pulled out one enchanted knife from the pair I had on my belt before activating¡¾Mana Edge¡¿and¡¾Increase Weight¡¿. The knife drove itself through the dragon¡¯s foot and impaled it to the ground as I channeled my mana into the enchanted knife to activate it.
The dragon desperately swiped at me again and I held my blade against my arm and activated¡¾Reinforce¡¿again right before it blew me back towards the entrance of the cave while the knife encased the dragon¡¯s right leg in ice, freezing it to the floor.
I bounced and rolled against the ground a few times before I smashed against the cave wall again and the dragon sent another blast of fire at me. I quickly covered myself with the cloak and strained my bruised body to get up from the floor and run towards the dragon again.
It bit at me a second time as I dashed towards it and slid under the chomp to its left side. I activated¡¾Reinforce¡¿on my sword again and held it at an angle against the ground to block the dragon¡¯s left arm smashing down at me on the floor as the impact rattled my arms before being deflected. I grabbed the second knife while rolling over before casting¡¾Mana Edge¡¿and¡¾Increase Weight¡¿to impale the dragon¡¯s left hand to the ground just like it¡¯s right leg. I activated the enchantment while getting up and kicked against the ground to lunge away before rolling to stop my momentum.
The dragon¡¯s left hand was similarly encased in ice a moment later, and it roared towards me with a mixture of pain and anger while it was stuck.
I stood there with ragged breathing as I took a moment of respite and leaned on my sword like a cane. The dragon flailed its limbs violently to try and reach me, and although it was still immobilized for now, the sounds of the ice beginning to crack told me it was going to escape soon
¡°... Still not dead?...¡± (Aria)
It was clear to me that it wouldn¡¯t die so easily, but I knew I wouldn¡¯t win in a battle of attrition, so my only choice was to kill it in one attack. I thought for a moment about what my options were before deciding that the only thing I had that could possibly kill the dragon instantly was the strongest sword technique I had, my half completed sword truth.
It¡¯s a fire dragon, so it has some natural resistance to the lightning-based sword techniques I normally use... but a sword truth is something on a completely different level.
I¡¯ve been training in swordsmanship for as long as I can remember... My entire life, I¡¯ve been living with a sword in my hand, and even though I haven¡¯t reached the peak yet, I¡¯m, at the very least, close to it.
My sword truth might not be a real one yet, but it¡¯s still the strongest attack I have. Once I do use my sword truth, I definitely won¡¯t have enough energy to move anymore, but the dragon isn¡¯t going to be stuck forever and I¡¯m running out of stamina, so it¡¯s now or never.
My eyes shone with resolve for a moment before I closed them and calmed down my breathing. I emptied any chaotic thoughts from my mind and picked up my sword with an expressionless face as I slowly put my body into a stance.
The tip of my greatsword was pointed towards the dragon as I inhaled. After completely canceling my body strengthening magic, every last drop of mana I had in me moved through my hands into my sword before rebounding back into my body. The flow of mana formed a raging cycle as the speed of the revolution started to slowly increase before I finally opened my eyes again to reveal that they were glowing with a hazy red light.
My voice resonated in the cave as I began to chant slowly.
¡°May life itself revel in the edge of my blade,¡± (Aria)
... I need to make it back...
¡°For the sword I know of is one of singularity,¡± (Aria)
... I have things I need to do...
¡°One that exists not for the end, nor the beginning,¡± (Aria)
... I have people I need to see again...
¡°One that exists only for a moment,¡± (Aria)
... I have promises that I need to keep...
¡°It is an unstoppable surge, an imperceivable flash, an instantaneous strike,¡± (Aria)
... I have a friend to return to...
¡°That will once again return to serenity.¡± (Aria)
This is everything I have. This is my resolve!
My sword shone with a solid crimson light as scarlet bolts of lightning revolved around me and my sword like vicious serpents. My body turned ethereal as the crimson light enveloped it and the sword in my hand was slowly replaced with a blade of red lightning.
I struggled to hold my sword as I took a single step forward and before I could even react myself... I was behind the dragon facing the wall, and it was over.
I had instantaneously burst forward in a single point the moment I took that step and pierced through the dragon. It tore open a gaping hole and cauterized the wound immediately afterward. The lightning even kept going after I stopped. It crushed both stone and crystal, ripping a clean hole into the wall as the area around it crumbled into broken chunks from the pure force.
I dropped to my knees as the deafening sound of thunder reverberated behind me and I realized that my sword had shattered from the strike. All I was left with was the smoldering remains of its handle... and it was then that the sense of unease that I had been suppressing finally broke out. I desperately tried to fool myself into thinking that I had actually killed the dragon, but a moment later, I was finally forced to face reality when a crazed roar sounded out behind me.
It wasn¡¯t that my sword truth wasn¡¯t strong enough, or that the dragon was able to unnaturally resist it. In fact, my sword truth cut through its flesh and bone with ease, and the dragon scales were basically akin to paper against a strike of that caliber. Even if my sword truth wasn¡¯t complete, it was still extremely powerful, and I know that better than anyone.
So why didn¡¯t it work? Well, the answer was quite simple really.
I just missed.
Yes. That¡¯s right, I missed.
You see, the reason I didn¡¯t want to use my sword truth wasn¡¯t only that it would drain me of all my energy, it was also because I couldn¡¯t control it. I can barely even aim it in the right direction and just keeping it in a straight line is my limit. Otherwise, even if it drained me of all my stamina, I would¡¯ve just used it at the start to kill the dragon instantly while it was still sleeping.
In the end, I took a gamble that I could control it, and I lost the gamble.
I forced my exhausted body to move with what little energy I had left and collapsed with my back against the wall. I looked up and what greeted me was the sight of a badly wounded dragon. There was a large hole through its right shoulder and its entire right arm and wing had been torn off. But, although it was struggling to move, it was still alive, and it was about to break free from the ice.
I stared at the dragon struggling for a moment, hoping that it would just die right there, but in the end, it just barely got up again, and the ice encasing its limbs broke. I closed my eyes and blocked out all the noise around me as my consciousness was beginning to fade.
So¡ this is it huh?...
Guess I¡¯m not gonna make it back after all¡
It looks like this is my limit¡
I¡¯m sorry, Ky¡
But as the darkness began to slowly invade my mind, I suddenly felt a familiar feeling envelop me. It was soft and warm just like Ky¡¯s hand, and the moment I felt that familiar feeling, it was like a jolt of electricity instantly cleared the fogginess in my mind. I came back to my senses and opened my eyes just in time to see a face in front of me.
It was a face that I had seen a million times before, a face that made me happy when I saw it, and it was also the one face that I didn¡¯t want to see here. It was Ky¡¯s face. He had a relieved expression on his face when he saw me open my eyes and he picked me up, but right after picking me up, he suddenly pulled my head to his chest and hugged me close to his body with his right arm. Then I heard the dragon roar followed by the sound of bones breaking as a strong impact shook me.
Ky held me tight as we bounced off the floor a couple times and flew across the cave. Once we stopped rolling, Ky loosened his grip on me and got up while still carrying me.
And it was now that I could see his left arm. It was mangled and broken with blood dripping down the side as it hung loosely off his shoulder.
No.
No!
NO!
This is the one thing that I didn¡¯t want to happen! Why are you here!?
Ky started running towards the exit while carrying me with his right arm, but the dragon swiped at us from above, and it was then that time slowed down for me.
STOP! GET OUT OF HERE! JUST LEAVE ME TO DIE!
Ky let go of me, and as my body floated freely in the air for a moment from the momentum, he sent a solid kick to my stomach. The kick knocked the air out of my lungs and launched me out of the cave. I reached out weakly towards the cave as the last thing I saw before my consciousness faded to black was Ky barely dodging the dragon¡¯s claws.
I yawned as I slowly woke up. Maybe it was because of the anxiety, but I didn¡¯t sleep for very long today, and after rubbing my eyes for a bit, I got out of bed to turn on the lights since it was still dark out. I looked over at the clock and saw that it was really early in the morning.
Well, I don¡¯t think I can go back to sleep, and I don¡¯t feel tired or anything, so I guess I¡¯ll double check all the equipment.
I walked over to my desk and sat down when I noticed something strange. On my desk was a piece of paper that was folded in half. I tried to remember if I had placed something like that on my desk yesterday, but after a moment, I unfolded it suspiciously.
I expected a list or something, but inside was a letter addressed to me, in what looked like Aria¡¯s handwriting.
Dear Ky,
If you¡¯re reading this, then that means I didn¡¯t make it back. I know you said that we¡¯re partners, that you¡¯d share the burden with me, but in the end, I just couldn¡¯t bring myself to risk losing you. So I just want to say one last thing to you. Thank you, Ky. Thank you for cooking for me all the time, thank you for traveling with me all the time, thank you for everything you¡¯ve done for me, and thank you for being my friend for so long. Just do me one last favor, forget about me and go live a happy life.
From,
Aria
After I read the letter, I stood there for a moment before ripping it into pieces, grabbing the bag of alchemy stones on my desk, and rushing out of my room as fast as I could. I jumped down the entire flight of stairs, put pressure into my legs when I landed on the first floor and boosted my body forward towards the door as fast as I could. My legs pounded against the ground as I ran through the streets and left Delhurst to run towards the mountains.
Hey, what is this garbage? Aria, you can¡¯t just give me this lousy death flag of a letter and leave so easily. I don¡¯t care if I have to drag you back kicking and screaming, I¡¯ll make damn sure that I bring you back. Even if I have to run to the end of the world to bring you back, even if it¡¯s the last goddamn thing I do! Some partner you are, huh? You can¡¯t risk losing me? Well, do you think I can risk losing you? Stop being so selfish!
I bolted past the trees as my legs propelled my body forwards and tore through any branches in my path. I ran and ran and ran until I even forgot how long I had been running for, but with every single step I took, there was a part of me that just screamed at my body to go even faster. And eventually, I made it to the dragon¡¯s nest, where I heard a crack of thunder and saw a brilliant flash of red light shine from inside.
I put strength into my legs again as I pushed against the ground hard enough to crack it and shoved myself into the cave.
The first thing I saw was a severely injured dragon with cracked ice encasing it¡¯s right leg and left arm. It was missing its right arm, right wing, and most of its right shoulder, but honestly, I couldn¡¯t care less about that for now because behind it, sitting against the wall, was Aria. I ignored the dragon and instantly dashed over to Aria before picking her up. She was injured all over and almost unconscious, but there were no severe fatal wounds, and I could still hear the faint sounds of her breathing.
She¡¯s still alive, thank goodness. I don¡¯t know what I would¡¯ve done if I lost her just like that.
Aria faintly opened her eyes to stare at me blankly as I finally came back to my senses and I just stared at her for a moment to make sure she was ok before the dragon tried to claw at me with its remaining arm.
I hugged Aria tight against my chest with my right arm as I brought up my left arm and tensed up my body to block the swing. The dragon¡¯s arm snapped the bones in my arm as it made a direct hit and we shot across the ground to the side of the cave.
When we finally stopped rolling, I got up and held Aria again as the dragon stared at me.
I have to get Aria out of here first, I can¡¯t fight while protecting her. If I¡¯m holding her, I can¡¯t even divert the impact to the ground when I get hit. Her body isn¡¯t like mine, the vibrations would rip her apart and rupture her internal organs if I tried to minimize the force of an attack like that.
I kicked my leg against the ground and sprinted towards the exit, but the dragon lunged at us and swiped again from above.
I won¡¯t make it out in time... Sorry Aria, this might hurt a bit.
I decided to get Aria out first. I let go of her then kicked her out of the cave while she was still in mid-air as I barely dodged the dragon¡¯s claw.
So now it¡¯s just the two of us, huh?
When I landed again, I took a deep breath, and my face turned emotionless as I stared at the dragon and talked to it in a low voice.
¡°Well then, you¡¯re not gonna let me just leave that easily, right? But that¡¯s fine... After all, I never was good at protecting people... ln the end, it looks like all these bloodstained hands can do is kill.¡± (Kyle)
I inhaled before closing my eyes.
And when I opened my eyes again, they were terrifyingly sharp with a glint of crazed anger as I exhaled while releasing my bloodlust.
Dragon breath from the front.
The dragon roared in fear and exhaled a breath of fire at me as I pulled out an alchemy stone from the bag and activated it with a cold voice.
¡°¡¾Frost Shield¡¿, wide cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
My right arm whipped out as I threw the stone at the burst of flames and a bright ice blue light shone from it. A large circular shield made of ice appeared in midair and covered the entire area around me. The flames slid off the surface of the ice like water, and once the fire stopped, the shield shattered. The glint in my eyes grew even sharper, and I dashed straight at the dragon through the countless broken ice fragments and residual flashes of fire. My eyes picked up on the slight initial movements from the dragon¡¯s body and I reacted accordingly as I ran.
Low swipe from the side, followed by the tail.
I pulled out a palm-sized alchemy stone and put power in my legs as I kicked against the ground and leaped over the swipe. I held the alchemy stone in my hand towards the dragon¡¯s side while midair as the bloodlust in my eyes sharpened.
¡°¡¾Ice Shard¡¿, full power cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
Another ice blue light shone and a gigantic shard of ice the size of the dragon¡¯s tail shot forwards and impaled the dragon¡¯s torso.
It blew the dragon¡¯s body away from me slightly and when I landed, I leaned back as the tail hit nothing but air inches away from me.
The dragon roared again in pain before rushing at me in complete desperation.
Pincer attack with a bite from my left followed by the swing from the right.
I put strength into my legs again as I was about to dodge it again, but then, I realized that I was standing in front of the entrance with Aria right outside.
Dodging this one isn¡¯t an option. I only have two stones left, and one of them is the unengraved monster core for the big formation outside.
I grabbed my last alchemy stone and gripped it tightly in my left hand as I thrust my broken left arm towards the dragon¡¯s mouth.
You want this arm? Fine, then you can have it!
¡°¡¾Frozen Burst¡¿, full power cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
I tensed every muscle fiber in my left arm as the dragon¡¯s mouth crunched down and I heard my bones shatter even further as my arm barely managed to stay connected. The forward momentum from the bite traveled throughout my body before I diverted it past my legs and into the ground, as the rock beneath me fractured into chunks. I grit my teeth and grimaced from the pain for a moment before countless ice shards the size of my arm shredded through the dragon¡¯s mouth from the inside, tearing open multiple holes in its snout.
The dragon immediately opened its jaw to roar out in pain as blood poured out from its wounds and I pulled my mangled arm out. I stood there breathing heavily as the dragon stumbled backward, smashing the sides of the cave while it flailed around in its death throes.
¡°Still not dead yet, huh? Fine, how about this then.¡± (Kyle)
I grit my teeth as I dipped my finger in some of the blood dripping down my left arm and began to draw a magic circle on the ground.
You see, the thing I¡¯ve found out about modern alchemy is that it has evolved with the aspects of control and versatility in mind so that it can be used in everyday life. And subsequently, the complexity of the magic circles has increased along with the need for specific enchanted ink or dust to draw the circles.
But back in my day, we didn¡¯t fret the details so much about control or versatility because just like magic or swordsmanship, alchemy was used as a weapon. The alchemy that I know wanted to find the most simple, streamlined magic circles that only had one thing going for them, they were strong enough to kill. We didn¡¯t care about control as long as it did its job, and we used anything that could leave a mark to draw the circles... even blood.
I pulled out the fist-sized monster core, dropping it on the magic circle drawn below in my blood, and finally, my cold voice rang out like a death sentence to the dragon as I activated it.
¡°¡¾Ice Nova¡¿, full power cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
A brilliant ice blue light shone through the cave and a wave of mana pulsed out in all directions from the edges of the magic circle. Anything the pulse of mana touched was instantaneously frozen as large chunks of ice covered the ground, walls, and eventually, the dragon.
It was finally quiet again as the only thing that could be heard now was the sound of ice crystals cracking. Everything in the cave except me was frozen solid, and the ice sculpture that was once the dragon crumbled into pieces from its own weight.
After a moment, I dragged my cold exhausted body over to Aria as the relatively warm air outside enveloped me. When I finally got to Aria, I checked again to see if she was ok, but luckily, she was still warm and there were only a few deep cuts on her while her breathing was steady.
I finally let out a sigh of relief as I realized she just got knocked out, and all the tension from before disappeared as I collapsed next to her in a mess of tears.
¡°...Really... thank god you¡¯re still alive...¡± (Kyle)
After a while, I ripped part of my shirt off to tie up my broken left arm and picked up Aria with my right arm before silently making my way back to town as the sun peeked over the horizon and dawn broke.
[Chapter 8] To the Capital!
I stared out the window at the clouds floating by in the sky as the quiet boredom started to overtake me. I inadvertently let out a sigh. It was about 2 PM and I was currently sitting in a hospital bed with a full arm cast on my left arm. My arm was stuck in a bent position as the cast hung on the sling attached around my neck, and a sense of clunkiness was present whenever I moved it.
About six hours ago, I finally managed to lug Aria back to town, and when the guards at the gate saw how injured we were, they immediately brought us to the hospital. Once we arrived, one of the nurses saw my mangled left arm and I was immediately taken to a doctor, who set what was left of my broken bones back in place before patching up the bigger wounds on my left arm with some light healing magic and setting it in a cast.
And so, you¡¯re probably wondering something along the lines of why didn¡¯t the doctor just use magic to fix my left arm entirely if healing magic exists? But the thing about healing magic is that, while it can miraculously heal mortal wounds, it also drains the vitality of the person being healed.
What? You thought you could just fix a hole in your stomach with no repercussions by chanting a few words? Well, unfortunately, it isn¡¯t that easy, and if you ever tried that, you would live, but it probably wouldn¡¯t be for much longer. Instead of becoming a donut, you¡¯d lose a few decades of your life span in exchange. Healing magic is akin to high-level regeneration, and the amount of life force required for something like that has to come from somewhere, doesn¡¯t it?... Well, the repercussions probably wouldn¡¯t matter for me since in my case, I¡¯m technically a god, so there¡¯s the whole immortality thing going on, but the doctor doesn¡¯t know that and completely healing my broken arm with magic would¡¯ve drained several years of vitality from a normal person.
Anyway, moving on, apparently there Aria only had light injuries and was just extremely exhausted, so the nurses just bandaged her up and let her sleep in a bed, whereas the doctor forced me to sit tight in a hospital bed for the last six hours even though my arm was already treated. There wasn¡¯t even anything else wrong with me except for some slight blood loss. Sure, I was tired from sprinting at top speed for so long, but I¡¯ve already been resting for hours and it wasn¡¯t like I was so exhausted I couldn¡¯t walk. At most, maybe my legs would be sore tomorrow.
I leaned back in my bed after I realized I was beginning to go crazy from staring at the clouds for so long and my cast blended in with the white sheets as I slowly rolled around on top of the bed. After a few minutes of rolling around, the tension left my body as I returned to my original position and stared up at the ceiling with a sigh.
¡°I should go get something to eat. They can deny me my freedom for now, but at least let me get some food!¡± (Kyle)
I was beginning to mentally plan out how I would sneak past the nurses to the cafeteria when suddenly, I heard what seemed like the nurses yelling from the hallway outside. After a moment, the door to my hospital room burst open and a woman covered in bandages fumbled through the door.
¡°-miss, you can¡¯t go in there!¡± (Nurse)
I sat up in bed and looked over at the door to see what the intruder wanted from me before we made eye contact. A pair of crimson red eyes stared back at me as the intruder, Aria, froze in place, and there was an awkward atmosphere for a moment as multiple nurses entered before trying to pull her out of the room to no avail.
A few more awkward seconds passed by before I finally waved my hand at her to get her attention.
¡°Hey, Aria, wanna grab lunc-¡± (Kyle)
Aria instantly broke free from the nurses and ran over before tackling me on the hospital bed. Her arms wrapped around me in a hug and she buried her face in my chest as she squeezed as hard as she could.
¡°Argh! Aria, stop! The doctor just set my arm and you¡¯re gonna break it again!¡± (Kyle)
Waves of pain pulsed from my left arm as Aria¡¯s bear hug started to crush my cast, but after a moment, she looked up at me as she finally loosened her death grip. I let out a sigh of relief as the pain subsided and wriggled my right arm out from her hug before pushing her head away to pry her off of me.
An awkward scenario played out after that as I explained the situation and our relationship to the nurses and the security trying to drag Aria out again. Eventually, after I apologized for the trouble Aria caused, they left us alone in the room.
Aria was seated in a chair to the right of my hospital bed, and a moment of peace finally passed by again after that whole disaster. She stared down at her hands in her lap as she sat there, and I sighed before turning to her.
¡°Ugh. Finally, they all left. I was already starting to feel claustrophobic after the nurses came in, and the whole security team afterward didn¡¯t help either... Look, Aria, I¡¯m flattered you rushed to visit me, but please just slow down and do it normally, otherwise the town guards will be here next.¡± (Kyle)
¡°...why¡¡± (Aria)
¡°What? Did you say something?¡± (Kyle)
Aria lifted her head to face me with a hurt look on her face.
¡°Why... Why did you come for me?... I told you not to come! Didn¡¯t you read the letter I left!?¡± (Aria)
¡°Letter?... Oh, you mean that piece of trash you put on my desk? I ripped it to shreds right after I read it.¡± (Kyle)
Aria suddenly moved forward and grabbed me by my shirt as tears started to well up in her eyes.
¡°Then why put yourself in danger like that!? The whole reason for this was so you would be safe, and just look at what happened! You¡¯re lucky you still have an arm! You could¡¯ve died!¡± (Aria)
I looked down at Aria¡¯s hands gripping my shirt collar, and I slowly raised my hand before grabbing hers by the wrist.
¡°... So?¡± (Kyle)
Aria¡¯s hands released their grip on my shirt as I grasped them, and I moved them away before sighing.
¡°Let me tell you something, Aria. My name is Kyle, and I¡¯m a B-rank adventurer in Delhurst. I¡¯m one of the two members in team ¡®Party,¡¯ and my partner is a muscle-brained idiot who can¡¯t do anything but fight.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wha-¡± (Aria)
¡°She¡¯s a glutton, awful at any form of social situation, has no friends except me, abuses everyone close to her, isn¡¯t good at anything but swinging her sword, and worst of all... she thinks that it¡¯s ok to just leave her partner behind so she could go die stupidly by herself.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Oi!¡± (Aria)
Aria grabbed me by my collar again with an angry look on her face as I gently smiled back at her.
¡°But even so, she¡¯s important to me. And if I had to risk my life for even the slimmest of chances to save her, I would still go in a heartbeat because she¡¯s my one and only partner.¡± (Kyle)
Aria¡¯s grip on me loosened again as I straightened up my back and put on a serious face.
¡°So what if I could¡¯ve died? Is it wrong for me to try and save my partner? This broken arm hurts, but I wouldn¡¯t mind breaking my arm hundreds of times if it meant that I could bring you back alive. You couldn¡¯t bring yourself to risk losing me? Well, I¡¯ve already lost too many people important to me, so let me ask, do you think I could bring myself to risk losing you too?¡± (Kyle)
¡°... I¡ I... I¡¯m sorry... I never took into account how you felt¡ Thanks for saving me, Ky...¡± (Aria)
I released all the tension in my back and slumped over as Aria let go of me before placing her hands on her lap again.
¡°Well, I guess I¡¯ll forgive you this time. It¡¯s all over anyway, and we¡¯re both alive, aren¡¯t we? We even managed to kill the dragon. So it¡¯s a bit late, but congratulations Aria. You¡¯ve completed your mission.¡± (Kyle)
The edges of my mouth curved upwards into a small smile. My hand moved over and I patted Aria¡¯s head as she finally let the tears flow and cried her eyes out.
Aria¡¯s voice and some bumpy shaking woke me up as the background noise from the countless people surrounding our carriage finally reached my ears.
¡°Ky, wake up. We¡¯re almost at the gates.¡± (Aria)
I let out a yawn and sat up on the carriage seat I was sleeping on before looking out the window to see the seemingly endless line of people and carriages behind us.
It¡¯s been about two weeks since we killed the dragon, and after we were released from the hospital, we still needed the dragon¡¯s monster core as proof that Aria had slain it, so Aria and I went back to its den and dug out the monster core from the pile of shattered ice chunks that used to be the dragon. Afterwards, we rested in town for another two days and celebrated before officially disbanding our party at the guild, saying goodbye to the inn owner, renting a carriage, and starting the trip to the capital.
I still remember when I saw the capital for the first time though, it had an imposing city wall, and you could see the countless buildings inside through the large gates, along with what seemed like the upper part of a huge castle in the center of the city. The roads leading into the city were large enough to fit four or five carriages side by side, and the gates had teams of well-armed guards to maintain order in the influx of people trying to get into the city.
But ironically, the thing that surprised me the most wasn¡¯t the grand castle, the solid city walls, or the seemingly well-trained guards, no, in fact, the most surprising thing was the size of the goddamn line.
The line to get into the city was massive, and the end of it was so far away that you could only barely make out the details of the castle from there. The illusion and grandeur of the capital city lasted for all of ten seconds before it was promptly snuffed out by the crushing realization that we would probably be in line for several hours at minimum, maybe even days if we were unlucky. And so, we waited in line for god knows how long, before it was finally about to be our turn to enter.
The carriage in front of us finished and the guards let them in as the morning sun warmed up the upper half of my body which was sticking out the side of the carriage. Aria brought our carriage up and a few more minutes elapsed as the guards checked our guild cards for identification before letting us in.
It was finally the end of the torturous wait, and the moment we passed the gates I was overcome by the atmosphere of the capital once again. There were hundreds of people running about in every direction, dozens of carriages rolled along the streets, and there were layers upon layers of stalls and stands obscuring the shops and buildings. The sound of incoherent chatter echoed through the carriage as I stared around with a smile at the liveliness of the capital. It was nothing like Delhurst, where it was rare if you even saw a few dozen people on the street at a time, it really felt like I was back in a capital city again. A few minutes passed as our carriage chugged along the road and we were already pretty deep into the city when I called out excitedly to Aria while she drove the carriage towards the direction of the castle.
¡°Aria, we¡¯re finally in the capital. Where are we going first? We could check out the weapon shops or should we go try some of the restaurants?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, I have to go to the castle to make a report first, so we¡¯ll be heading off to the middle district.¡± (Aria)
¡°Alright, sightseeing it is! Let¡¯s go, I wanted to check out the castle anyway!¡± (Kyle)
I gave a grin to Aria as she laughed and pointed towards the castle.
¡°Yeah, let¡¯s go. At this rate, we might even make it in by sunset.¡± (Aria)
¡°Yeah!... Wait, what!?¡± (Kyle)
I moved my line of sight over to where Aria was pointing with a foreboding sense of fear as my grin immediately turned into a distraught frown. And it was there that I saw it again, my mortal enemy, my eternal antithesis, my worst nightmare.
It was another goddamn line.
¡°What, you thought we could just waltz into the middle district so easily? Looks like you¡¯ve never been to the capital before Ky, so let me tell you, the middle district is where all the nobles live and the only thing more rotten than the nobles is the bureaucracy, who decided to put this borderline antique checking system in to appease the nobles.¡± (Aria)
Aria gave me a smug grin as she giggled at my pained face, and I slammed my head against the carriage wall a few times before my scream was drowned out by hustle and bustle around me.
¡°Goddammit!¡± (Kyle)
***
A few hours later, it was quite late in the afternoon and we had finally arrived at the castle in the middle district. I sat balled up in a corner of the carriage as I hugged my knees and sighed with tears in my eyes.
¡°...I wanna go home¡¡± (Kyle)
Some knocking on the door of the carriage reached my ears as I finally got up and saw Aria outside with a serious face. She opened the door and dragged me out as she stared straight into my eyes.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
¡°Alright, Ky, you¡¯ll have to come into the castle with me to make the report. I¡¯m going to tell you right now, we¡¯re meeting with the Emperor, so please, just stand behind me, don¡¯t say anything stupid, don¡¯t do anything stupid, and be on your best behavior.¡± (Aria)
¡°What? The Emperor!? Wait, I thought we were just coming to visit the castle so you could hand in a written report, and then we would do some sightseeing or something! When did it turn into a meeting with the Emperor!?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you before that my mission to kill the dragon was given to me by someone very important? Well, we finished the mission, so I¡¯m reporting back to the person who gave it to me, the Emperor.¡± (Aria)
¡°Yeah, but I thought it was just some high ranking noble, or maybe a member of the court, not the literal highest in command of this empire!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, now you know, so come on. You won¡¯t even need to say anything, I¡¯ll do all the talking, so just sit in the back like a good boy and agree with everything I say.¡± (Aria)
¡°Alright, alright, I got it, just be a yes-man.¡± (Kyle)
I let out a sigh as Aria brought me over to the front gate before presenting a piece of paper with what seemed like a seal stamped on it to the guards.
¡°I am Lady Irisveil. I request an audience with his majesty immediately as I have completed my mission and have returned to report my success.¡± (Aria)
¡°I see, then I¡¯ll inform the prime minister about your return.¡± (Guard)
One of the guards left and entered the castle while Aria and I stood awkwardly in front of the rest of the guards. After a few minutes, the guard returned and told us to follow him into the castle.
We entered through the gates and were promptly met by a team of maids, who led Aria and me inside the castle to separate waiting rooms. After I was escorted to the room, the maid that led me there left, saying that she would find some suitable clothes that I could wear for the meeting.
The room was basically filled with expensive items like I expected. In the middle, there was a big sofa in front of a finely crafted wooden coffee table, a small nightstand with an expensive looking vase on it, and the walls were covered by paintings in gilded picture frames. I sat down on the sofa and waited in silence as I awkwardly looked at the fine art around the room.
After a few more minutes, the maid came back and handed me some clothes before promptly telling me she would be back later when I was finished changing.
The clothes she handed me were typical nobleman¡¯s clothes, with a vest, a tailcoat, a pair of pants, and leather shoes. I was able to change into the vest, pants, and shoes, albeit with some difficulty due to my left arm, but the tailcoat was a little too small for me since my cast couldn¡¯t fit into the sleeve. I opened the door and entered the hallway with the tailcoat in my hand to look for the maid, but there was nobody outside. I wandered down the hall as I called out, but there was still no response of any kind. After walking for a while, I had already given up on calling out and was just wandering around aimlessly, but suddenly, I heard some noise and what seemed like faint voices from one of the rooms nearby. I went over and opened the door hoping that maybe someone who could help me was inside.
¡°Excuse me, have you seen any-¡± (Kyle)
I cut myself off mid-sentence as everyone in the room froze up while we stared awkwardly at each other. Inside the room was a well-built middle-aged man dressed in what looked like a high-quality military officer uniform. He had brown hair with streaks of grey running through it and a similarly colored beard which showed his age, along with a slightly imposing presence to him. However, any imposing presence he might have had was immediately thrown out the window once you saw that he was currently in the process of running his hands all over the maid that brought me to the waiting room earlier.
¡°Uh¡ Ahem. Sorry about the intrusion... Don¡¯t worry, I understand that everyone has their needs. If anyone asks, I didn¡¯t see anything.¡± (Kyle)
I slowly started closing the door and backing off into the hallway as the middle-aged man and the maid immediately snapped their bodies back into a stiff standing position and looked away with embarrassed blushes.
I returned to the waiting room, decided I just wouldn¡¯t wear the tailcoat, and waited for a few minutes before I heard knocking on the door. I opened the door to find a different maid there who informed me that the Emperor was ready to meet with me before escorting me over to the audience chamber.
When I entered the chamber, everyone in the room stared at me. I glanced around the audience chamber, which was a large room with a long red carpet and carved pillars on both sides leading up to a regal throne.
Aria had her hair done up and was wearing a long red dress that looked like what a noblewoman would wear to a party. The dress matched the color of her eyes and hair, and she was holding a small box in her hands as she stood there waiting for me.
There were a few guards standing at attention by the pillars, but sitting on top of the throne was... an awkward sight. The person sitting on the throne looked exactly like the middle-aged man from earlier, but this time he had a large navy blue cape and a golden crown on him. Smiling and standing behind the throne, was another well-built middle-aged man in a similar looking military officer uniform. He had a clean shave, short blonde hair, and a sheathed long sword hanging on his waist.
Welp, looks like my head¡¯s gonna be on the chopping block. It seems that only I could be unlucky enough to accidentally walk in on the Emperor sexually harassing one of his maids minutes before I¡¯m supposed to have an audience with him.
I locked eyes with the Emperor, and we both put on nervous smiles as we stared at each other awkwardly while I walked up and stood behind Aria. The sound of my footsteps died out and silence spread through the room as everyone turned away from me to stare at the Emperor for a moment before he finally cleared his throat and began the meeting.
Aria kneeled down on one knee, and I immediately followed after her.
¡°You may rise.¡± (Emperor)
Aria and I stood up as we waited for the Emperor to respond.
¡°So, it seems that you have returned, Lady Irisveil. I take it that you have successfully completed the test that I have assigned you.¡± (Emperor)
Aria walked up and gave a formal knight salute to the Emperor before opening the small box in her hands to reveal the dragon¡¯s monster core sitting inside.
¡°You are correct, your majesty. With the assistance of my partner, Kyle, I have slain the dragon which made its nest in the Zolran mountain range, and we have returned to the capital to submit the proof of its subjugation.¡± (Aria)
¡°Very well. I can see that you have passed my test and completed your end of our agreement, therefore, I will now complete my end. Under my authority as the current Emperor of the Radion Empire, Lady Aria of House Irisveil will be granted the title of Marchioness, and she shall be rewarded with the former mansion of House Irisveil, along with the spoils of her subjugation and a military office. We will once again meet in three days to hold the official ceremony and determine her military rank.¡± (Emperor)
¡°Thank you, your majesty. The House of Irisveil will forever remember your favor.¡± (Aria)
"Yes... Well, I will see you again in three days, Marchioness Irisveil. You are dismissed for now." (Emperor)
Aria took a deep breath before turning around and pulling me along by the hand to the exit of the chamber.
Whew! I¡¯m safe for now. Looks like the Emperor doesn¡¯t want my head today, he even let me off scot-free. He might be a little perverted, but looks like he¡¯s still a pretty nice guy. I guess I misjudged him.
I let out a sigh of relief in my mind as I let Aria lead me towards the exit, but just as we were halfway there, the Emperor cleared his throat again to get our attention. Aria and I turned around as I put on another nervous smile.
¡°Ah. Actually, please wait a moment, Marchioness Irisveil! Ahem. It seems that I almost forgot about your companion. Now, Sir Kyle was it? You have done a great service for not only Marchioness Irisveil, but also this empire and its citizens, which I believe should not go unrewarded. You may let me know of any desire you have, and if it is within both reason and my power, I shall reward you with it.¡± (Emperor)
Hey, you perverted old man, just let it go already! I¡¯m sorry I walked in on your sexual escapades with the maids, but it¡¯s your damn fault in the first place for doing it, and even if you¡¯re gonna do it, at least have the decency to lock the door! If you want my head just say it, no need to make some elaborate scheme to bait me onto the guillotine! I¡¯m already happy with what I¡¯ve got, I¡¯m not gonna live the high life with your dirty money just to get put on death row a week later for a crime I didn¡¯t commit!
I gave a bow and tried to put on my best fake smile as my brain raced to push out a response.
¡°Thank you for your generosity, your majesty, but it¡¯s quite alright. As you can see, I am just a manaless helper and merely assisted Marchioness Irisveil from the sidelines during the battle. I am not deserving of any grand reward, even the chance to meet your majesty in person is more than enough of a reward for me.¡± (Kyle)
The Emperor let out a surprised cough as I saw a faint bead of sweat roll down his forehead and he struck a wry smile on his face. My eyes shone with a sharp glint as I heightened my eyesight to its limit.
I knew it. Did you really think I was stupid enough to fall for such an obvious trap, you old pervert? How stupid do you think I am? If you want to plant some contraband on me, you¡¯ll have to place it in my cold, dead hands.
¡°Nonsense, even just assisting Marchioness Irisveil from the sidelines is enough to merit a reward. After all, you were facing a dragon, and surviving the battle with a mere arm injury is proof of your capabilities. Not many have the bravery necessary to face a dragon, especially as a manaless.¡± (Emperor)
Goddamnit! Just let me go! It was an accident, I won¡¯t do it again, I promise! These lips are sealed, I¡¯ll take the damn secret with me to my grave, so give it up already! What do I do now? Should I try to stall?
¡°Thank you, your majesty, but I did not expect a reward so suddenly. If I may ask, would it be possible to discuss this at a later date? I am afraid that I must put some more thought into my decision.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I see, but it would be rude of me to let you leave with just a verbal promise, and it would be difficult to set up another meeting without a definite time. Hmm¡ Ah, I have an idea. How about I leave you with a blank imperial edict and you can write down whatever you want when you make your decision. You merely need to send it to me through the guards afterwards, and if it is reasonably within my power, I will make it official with the imperial seal. Well then, it is getting late and I would like to retire to my room for the night. Someone fetch the deed to the former mansion of House Irisveil for Marchioness Irisveil and a blank imperial edict for Sir Kyle, then send them on their way.¡± (Emperor)
¡°Ah, wai-¡± (Kyle)
¡°Thank you for your favor, your majesty, I¡¯m sure Sir Kyle will not forget your kindness either.¡± (Aria)
I tried to call out to stop what was happening, but Aria cut me off with an urgent voice and immediately dragged me out of the audience chamber where we were handed the deed to a mansion in the capital and a piece of high-quality paper with the symbol of the Empire printed on it before being promptly escorted out.
We left the castle stiffy and returned to our carriage outside where Aria and I stood facing each other for a moment. After letting out a deep breath, Aria immediately grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me violently.
¡°What the hell did you do!? Why did his majesty give you a blank imperial edict!?¡± (Aria)
¡°Goddamnit! He got me, that sly dog! I¡¯m telling you right now Aria, this edict¡¯s worthless! I don¡¯t even want to touch this cursed piece of paper! I¡¯m one hundred percent confident that if I ever use this blank edict for anything, my head will be on the chopping block by the next day!¡± (Kyle)
¡°That doesn¡¯t answer my question! In fact, it just makes me more worried! Tell me now! What the hell did you do!?¡± (Aria)
¡°I can¡¯t tell you! The whole reason he gave me this blank edict was as a threat to buy my silence!¡± (Kyle)
After about half an hour of back and forth yelling, along with a nostalgic beating from Aria, I finally spilled the beans without giving out too many specifics and managed to convince her that as long as we never used the edict, we would be perfectly fine. Aria and I were currently sitting next to each other on the carriage with forlorn expressions as our bodies slumped down on the seats.
¡°... Hey Aria.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah?¡± (Aria)
¡°Where are we gonna go now?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Where do you think we¡¯re going?¡± (Aria)
¡°Is it back to Delhurst? Because I kinda miss my inn room right now. Guess that fortune teller back in Delhurst really was a quack. What kind of good luck is pissing off the Emperor the same day I enter the capital.¡± (Kyle)
The life came back to Aria and she whacked me in the head one last time before sighing, but after a moment, she started to giggle.
¡°Argh!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Are you an idiot?¡± (Aria)
The sound of her gentle laughter echoed around me, and I got up and held my head as Aria stepped out of the carriage before facing the moon with her back to me. Her hands hung loosely by her side and her silhouette radiated a sense of tenderness as it covered a part of the beautifully clear moon in the night sky. I exited the carriage too and stared at her standing there for a moment until her soft voice drowned out the sound of the night breeze.
¡°... You know, I still remember when I left the capital. That morning as I was packing up my things, I was trying to toughen myself up mentally, but deep down inside, I was scared. I thought maybe I wouldn¡¯t ever return to the capital, maybe this would be the last time I ever saw the city I grew up in and the people I knew.¡± (Aria)
Aria took a deep breath of the crisp night air before spreading her arms out as wide as she could.
¡°But, I¡¯m back now. It¡¯s all over and done with, and it feels like I¡¯ve finally gotten rid of a huge weight on my chest. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever been so happy in my life. So¡ we¡¯ve been through a lot together, haven¡¯t we, Ky? Well, I¡¯ll be honest with you this time. Thanks for being my partner, Ky. I wouldn¡¯t be standing here right now if you weren¡¯t always there for me. You told me before that I¡¯m an important person to you, and it¡¯s my turn to tell you that you¡¯re an important person to me too. Sometimes I wish that we could just go back to those dreamlike days in Delhurst, just adventuring without a care in the world, but everything has to come to an end, and it¡¯s the same with our party. You can do whatever you want now, and as much as I would like to, I can¡¯t force you to be by my side anymore, so I¡¯ll only ask you once¡ Hey, Ky... if you have nowhere else to go, then...¡± (Aria)
Aria dropped her arms again and held them together loosely behind her back before doing a cute twirl on her heels and turning to me with a lovely beaming smile.
¡°Will you stay with me?¡± (Aria)
Then it was as if time slowed down to a crawl for me.
The gentle moonlight was ethereal as it danced around Aria, and a pleasant breeze swirled past both of us. The soft breeze made her dress billow slightly and her silky red hair flowed in the wind.
I don¡¯t know what it was. Maybe it was the tender atmosphere that enveloped us, maybe it was her adorable genuine smile that finally made her look like a girl her age again, maybe it was the way she finally made my heart skip a beat, or maybe it was a combination of everything, but at that moment, to me... Aria was even more beautiful than the moon in the night sky.
A feeling of warmth slowly filled up my chest, and when I finally came back to my senses, I had a slight tinge of blush on my face. The edges of my mouth unconsciously curved upwards into a smile as I hid my mouth before sighing. I took a deep breath and reoriented myself before staring into Aria¡¯s eyes with the same smile.
¡°Do you even need to ask? Where else would I go? I¡¯m already home. After all, I¡¯m standing right next to you, aren¡¯t I? So come on, let¡¯s go to the mansion. I¡¯ll even make your favorite for dinner tonight, beef and potatoes.¡± (Kyle)
Aria stood there smiling for a second as tears started to flow down her face. She buried her face in her arm before wiping away the tears and giving a cute sniffle as her crystal clear voice rang out again.
¡°... Yeah, let¡¯s go.¡± (Aria)
Hello everyone, my name is Reynard Charbert Raidion, current Emperor of the Raidion Empire, and I¡¯ve just narrowly escaped castration. You see, I lost myself to temptation and got caught flirting around with one of the maids. I was scared out of my mind thinking that my wife would find out I was harassing the maids again. The last time she found out, she told me if I ever did it again, she would castrate me!
At first, I thought it was a new servant who caught me, and I was going to have the guards stop anyone from leaving the castle so I could deal with it after the urgent meeting with Marchioness Irisveil, but imagine my surprise when the guy who caught me, Sir Kyle, walked into the audience chamber and stood behind the Marchioness. I initially panicked and just tried to get them out as soon as possible, but after a bit of thought, I took the chance to bribe him under the guise of a reward for helping Marchioness Irisveil.
But man, that Kyle fellow really was scary. I told him he could have anything he wanted as long as it was in my power, and I thought he would just ask for some gold or a title of nobility, but I couldn¡¯t believe my ears when he actually rejected the reward.
I got nervous for a second there, showed an instant of weakness, and tried to cover it up with a fake smile, but the moment I slipped up, the glint in his eyes immediately sharpened like he was looking at prey. It scared the daylights out of me. I¡¯m sure I was just a fat meal in his eyes. He even tried to leave right afterwards to put some more pressure on me. But I managed to keep my cool this time on the outside, and pushed a blank imperial edict on him. I kicked them out after that and even told him he could just mail in the edict so I wouldn¡¯t have to ever see him again. It¡¯s a good thing Marchioness Irisveil dragged him out of there in time though because I was about to blow my act if he didn¡¯t take the edict. Well, now I¡¯m just stuck in bed for the rest of the night. I didn¡¯t even have dinner yet.
I stared at the ceiling as tears leaked out of my eyes and the sound of my rumbling stomach filled the room.
[Chapter 9] [End of Prologue Arc] Two Blocks Is a Little Far, Dont You Think?
You know, I¡¯m getting a weird sense of deja vu right now, like I¡¯m back in my natural habitat, but I guess after doing housework for a thousand years, you tend to adapt to it. Either that or slowly go insane. Well, here¡¯s hoping it isn¡¯t the latter.
I ran my mop over the dusty floor as it erased any traces of uncleanliness from wherever it touched, and a strange sense of satisfaction bubbled up inside of me. It kind of felt like I was making a zen garden, and the mop slid across the floor as the clean wooden boards that were originally buried in dust began to reveal themselves to the outside world.
Yes, here I was again, cleaning the floor of someone else¡¯s house, almost like I was back at Eliza¡¯s place except this time, the house I was cleaning was way bigger and, at this point, probably more dust than house.
You see, when Aria and I arrived at the mansion in an excited hurrah, we failed to take into account one very important issue, nobody has lived in this house for a few dozen years. When we saw the state of the mansion from the outside, we didn¡¯t think much of it, but after walking through the house, we realized just how run down it was. The place was alright on the outside, and the lights and water seemed to still be working, but the inside was caked in enough dust to fill a swimming pool, and all the furniture was gone too. It desperately needed a deep clean if we were even going to attempt to live in here, so we had to get down to work. I was currently mopping the second floor, while Aria was using some water magic to lightly flood out the dust on the first floor.
After mopping all the hallways and rooms on the second floor, I opened all the windows and looked outside to see water flowing out from the front door onto the lawn. The sound of gushing water was present the background as I got a wet rag and started wiping down the windows and windowsills.
A while later, I let out a sigh, took off the makeshift mask I was wearing, and leaned out the window as I finally got the chance to breathe some fresh air again. I stared outside at the street and waited for the second floor to air out. The streetlamps outside shone almost as bright as the stars in the sky, and I could even occasionally see a person or two still passing by on the road.
A few minutes later, the wet wooden floor finally dried, the sound of running water from outside died down, and there was finally fresh air circulating throughout the second floor again. I double checked every room one last time to make sure all of them were clean and dry before going downstairs to check on how Aria was doing.
Aria was lying down on the now clean floor of the living room as her arms and legs were spread out like she was trying to make a snow angel. I let out a short laugh as Aria looked over from the floor to see me standing in the doorway.
¡°Aria, I finished cleaning the second floor, how¡¯s everything going down here?¡± (Kyle)
¡°It¡¯s finally all clean again.¡± (Aria)
¡°Hey, come on, get off the floor.¡± (Kyle)
Aria sat up on the floor and stared at the empty room around her with a faint smile.
¡°So, this is our home from now on, huh?¡± (Aria)
I looked around with her at the blank walls as I couldn¡¯t help but crack a small smile too. The walls were tinted a little beige, which showed the age of the mansion, but I think that honestly, it gave the mansion a bit of a homely feel.
¡°Well, it¡¯s a little empty so we¡¯ll have to pick up some furniture soon, but yeah, it is.¡± (Kyle)
I walked up and extended my right hand out towards Aria.
¡°So, welcome home, Aria. Now, come on, it¡¯s getting late, so help me move our stuff in. We can make dinner afterward. You said you have somewhere to go tomorrow, right? Let¡¯s finish this early then.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Alright.¡± (Aria)
Aria grabbed my hand and pulled herself up before we went outside together and started unpacking our things from the carriage.
***
I stretched my back lightly as I walked out of the front door to the mansion. It was about 10 in the morning and I just finished cleaning up after breakfast as Aria was waiting for me by the gate. Yesterday, we unpacked our things before we chose which rooms we would be using and moved our stuff in. After that, we went to the kitchen and Aria helped me cook dinner. Luckily, the stove was built into the kitchen counter, so we didn¡¯t have to start a campfire on the lawn to cook dinner, and after eating dinner we went to sleep on the floor in our sleeping bags as I once again had another strange sense of deja vu...
Anyway, today, the plan was that we were supposed to go meet with Aria¡¯s friend, Max, and then go furniture shopping for the rest of the day. I walked over to the gate and followed behind Aria as she began to lead the way with a smile on her face. We walked around the middle district and passed mansion after mansion, until eventually, Aria stopped in front of a gate to one of them and called out to a servant.
¡°Excuse me.¡± (Aria)
There was a gardener clipping the hedges on the lawn who stopped his work and walked over to greet us.
¡°Good morning, miss. Are you here to see Master Almus?¡± (Gardener)
¡°Yes, could you please tell him that Marchioness Irisveil is here to visit?¡± (Aria)
¡°I¡¯ll let Master Almus know right away.¡± (Gardener)
The gardener left and we waited outside for a few minutes before the front door to the mansion burst open and a young man with short brown hair and a pair of similarly colored eyes rushed towards us chaotically.
¡°Aria, is it really you!?¡±
He ran over as fast as he could before shoving the gate open and grabbing Aria by the shoulders.
¡°Yeah, I¡¯m back, Max. How have you been?¡± (Aria)
Max stared at Aria, who smiled back for a moment.
¡°Thank god, you¡¯re ok. I was always worried that something had happened to you, that you wouldn¡¯t make it back.¡± (Max)
¡°Hey, I¡¯m right in front of you, aren¡¯t I?¡± (Aria)
¡°Yeah, you are.¡± (Max)
Max took a deep breath as he wiped away the faint tears from his eyes before putting a smile on his face. Max let go of Aria¡¯s shoulders and finally noticed me after his emotional outburst.
¡°By the way, Aria, who¡¯s this?¡± (Max)
¡°Oh, this is Kyle, my adventuring partner from back in Delhurst. He helped me out a lot, and I couldn¡¯t have made it back without him.¡± (Aria)
Max turned to me with a friendly grin and extended his hand out for a handshake.
¡°Nice to meet you then, Kyle, I¡¯m Max Almus. Thanks for helping out Aria.¡± (Max)
I grabbed his hand and we shared a firm handshake as I smiled back at him.
¡°Nice to meet you too, Max. You can just call me Ky.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Alright then, Ky. Anyway, you two should come in, we have tons to catch up on, so we can talk inside. Just let me change out of my training clothes first.¡± (Max)
Max led us into the mansion, and one of the servants led us to a guest room on the second floor which had two sofas and a coffee table. There was a painting on the wall next to an armor stand with a suit of full plate armor on display, and a few expensive looking vases on small tables lined the walls. Aria and I took a seat next to each other on one of the sofas and we waited in silence for a while as I stared out the window right next to my side of the sofa at the sunny skyline outside.
You could see the castle and the other mansions lined against the vast blue sky as a background, and hordes of people scattered about here and there in the far distance where the shopping district seemed to be.
¡°So, that was Max, huh? Seemed like a pretty nice guy. He¡¯s pretty well off, and good-looking too. Looks like you¡¯re pretty lucky that someone like him likes you, Aria.¡± (Kyle)
Aria whacked me on the back of my head before angrily staring at me.
¡°Oi, what¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± (Aria)
¡°Well, I hope he at least has a thick skull too, otherwise you¡¯ll crack it in a week if your constant physical abuse of me is any indication.¡± (Kyle)
I laughed a bit as Aria grumbled cutely behind me while pouting and turning away from me, but after a moment, both of us quieted down and silence pervaded the room again before Aria¡¯s soft voice sounded out behind me.
¡°... Hey, Ky... what do you think about me marrying Max?...¡± (Aria)
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes for a moment before holding my right hand open against the window. For a moment, it covered the endless blue sky in front of me, and I grasped at seemingly nothing before replying in a soft tone while a melancholic nostalgia bubbled up inside me.
¡°... A long time ago, I once tried to hold everything together as it was. I was happy in my static little world, and I was scared that one day, it would all eventually change, which of course, it did. The only thing I could do was endlessly struggle as I desperately tried to put everything back together, but, in the end... I couldn¡¯t even stop a single thing from slipping through my fingers. All I did was end up hurting everyone around me that I cared about in my vain attempt to try and relive a distant past... I would be lying to you if I said that I didn¡¯t have mixed feelings, but, where I¡¯m from, there¡¯s a saying, ¡®if you love something, set it free.¡¯ It means that you can¡¯t force something you love to stay around forever, and the truth is, these days won¡¯t last forever. Neither you nor I can force things to stay as they are.¡± (Kyle)
I retracted my hand and turned around to Aria with a gentle smile.
¡°One day, you¡¯ll leave my side, or maybe I¡¯ll leave your side, but for now, I¡¯m still here. So as long as you¡¯re happy, then I could care less about some minor changes. If marrying Max is what you really want, then I¡¯ll support you no matter what, until the day that we have to separate... And in the end, if one day, we ever meet up again, I would prefer to see you happy.¡± (Kyle)
I caught a glimpse of redness on Aria¡¯s face as she turned away from me again and meekly replied.
¡°...Ok...¡± (Aria)
We sat there for a few more moments with a warm atmosphere in the air before the door opened and Max entered, this time dressed in typical nobleman¡¯s attire. He greeted us and handed both of us a cup of tea before he sat down on the couch across the table.
The next two hours consisted of a chat between Aria and Max, and by chat, I really mean that Aria basically started narrating her time at Delhurst as I chimed in occasionally to make sarcastic remarks while we laughed together at Aria¡¯s reimagining of her grand adventure. Honestly, Max was starting to grow on me too, after all, it was fun being able to talk to a friend who was a guy after being stuck around women for so long.
And everything was going great, we were all happy, until someone showed up who was very important to our relationship dynamic...
We were in the middle of another one of Aria¡¯s stories about the time we cleared out a giant monster turtle from one of the big lakes near Delhurst when the door opened, and a pretty woman with long dark blue hair entered the room. She looked like she was around her early to mid-twenties, and her dress was a similar color to her hair, but the most notable thing about her was her swollen belly that indicated she was late into her pregnancy.
She had a surprised look on her face before walking over to Max¡¯s side and greeting us.
¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t know we had guests over, why didn¡¯t you tell me, dear? I was looking all over for you. Nice to meet you two, my name is Karen Almus, Max¡¯s wife. What are your names?¡± (Karen)
The woman waved at us with a kind smile on her face as Aria and I froze up. There was an awkward silence for a moment before Max introduced us to Karen with an awkward smile.
¡°This is Aria and that¡¯s Kyle, they¡¯re my friends who just returned to the capital recently, and... I have some important things to discuss with them right now, so could you please give us some privacy for now, honey?¡± (Max)
¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t know I was interrupting. I¡¯ll see myself out then, it was nice to meet you two.¡± (Karen)
Karen walked out and closed the door lightly before silence spread through the room again. Max had a heavy face as I looked over at him and he took a deep breath. He stood up and lowered his head in a deep bow to Aria as we stared at him waiting for an answer.
¡°... I was thinking about how to tell you later on, but I guess that¡¯s been ruined now. I know it probably doesn¡¯t mean much to you, but I truly did love you Aria, and I¡¯m still unbelievably glad that you¡¯re safe and sound. It was just that while you were gone¡ I couldn¡¯t take it anymore. I was worried about you every day. There were nights when I stayed up thinking about whether you were ok or if you would ever make it back, and as the days went on, my parents kept pushing me to marry soon. Initially, I decided to wait, and the agony tore me apart as I sat there not knowing if you were even alive, until one day, Karen came into my life. Just being around her eased my anxiety. It made me happy and filled up the emptiness in my heart. And eventually, I realized that I fell in love with her. So, I¡¯m sorry, Aria, but I can¡¯t marry you...¡± (Max)
There wasn¡¯t a single sound in the room as I looked over at Aria. She just sat there frozen with her head down as her hair covered her face. I could hear my heart beating as an indescribable feeling rose up in me. Countless scenes of Aria struggling towards her goal ran through my head, and anger filled my head as I turned back to Max before speaking in a low voice.
¡°Hey, Max... you said you couldn¡¯t take it anymore?... Well, let me ask you something, do you have any idea how hard Aria was trying? Any idea how many times she put herself in danger? All the pain, all the fighting, all of the killing... all of it just to get back to you, and now this is all she gets? Just a sorry?... I heard from her, all about your promise, you promised you would wait for her, didn¡¯t you?¡± (Kyle)
I got up and grabbed Max by the collar with my right hand.
¡°I did¡ I¡¯m not proud of my lies, but... I can¡¯t lie to my heart, so, all I can say is... I¡¯m sorry.¡± (Max)
¡°Sorry? If you¡¯re so sorry, then don¡¯t make promises that you can¡¯t keep in the first place!¡± (Kyle)
I raised my left arm cast and was about to hit Max with it when suddenly, I felt someone hold me back. I turned around to see Aria with an expressionless face. She pulled my arm back down and separated my hand from Max¡¯s collar before turning to me.
¡°That¡¯s enough, Ky... Don¡¯t hurt yourself anymore for my sake.¡± (Aria)
¡°Aria¡¡± (Kyle)
Aria turned back to Max and I took a step back as the emotions from my outburst began to die down.
¡°Just tell me honestly, Max, how long have you been married?¡± (Aria)
¡°Almost a year...¡± (Max)
¡°I see.¡± (Aria)
Aria stood there for a moment before she lifted her right hand up in the air. The crisp sound of a slap broke the silence and echoed through the room as Aria¡¯s hand left a mark on Max¡¯s face.
¡°Goodbye, Max.¡± (Aria)
Aria turned around, grabbed my hand, and pulled me along as we left Max¡¯s mansion.
We walked through the streets silently until we returned to the front of our house again. Aria opened the gate and walked up to the front door as I followed behind her.
She entered, and a moment passed before suddenly, she stopped and stood still in the middle of the mostly empty living room with her back to me.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
¡°...Ari-¡± (Kyle)
¡°Sorry, Ky, I completely forgot about the furniture... but is it ok if we go tomorrow? I kind of want to just sit down for a little bit and sort out my feelings right now.¡± (Aria)
¡°...Yeah, take your time.¡± (Kyle)
Aria walked up to the second floor as I entered the living room, and after a few moments, I heard the sound of a door being slammed shut. I stood there a little lost for what to do before I looked at the clock and saw that it was a little past noon.
¡°I should at least make lunch for her or something...¡± (Kyle)
***
A few hours have passed since Aria and I returned to the mansion. It¡¯s evening now, and I¡¯m sitting on the living room floor surrounded by luggage cases. Earlier, when I went upstairs and tried to give Aria the sandwiches I made for lunch, she told me to just leave them there. So I left them outside her door before I came back down to the living room to wait for her. The sound of people outside was beginning to die down and I closed the book I¡¯ve been reading this whole time before I got up and stretched a bit.
Man, the writing level really has improved over the last millennium, hasn¡¯t it? That novel was actually a pretty fun read, way better than what I was expecting. Back then, it was just generic heroic myth after generic heroic myth about god X or god Y¡¯s exploits and they all felt the same, but now we have actual variety in genre and well thought out plot. No wonder Eliza got hooked to reading so many romance novels.
I looked out the window and saw that it was dark outside before throwing the book back into one of the luggage cases.
¡°Hmm, it¡¯s getting late. I should probably make dinner soon.¡± (Kyle)
I was about to walk to the kitchen as I thought about what to make for dinner when I heard the sound of footsteps from the stairs. I turned toward the stairs and saw Aria coming back down holding a plate with a faint smile on her face.
¡°Alright, Ky, what do we have for dinner?¡± (Aria)
I stared at Aria with a puzzled look on my face as she walked downstairs like nothing happened today.
¡°Aria, are you ok? I thought you would be a bit more, well, depressed after what happened with Max.¡± (Kyle)
¡°It¡¯s ok. I¡¯ve gotten over it.¡± (Aria)
¡°You don¡¯t have to put up an act. I¡¯m the only one here, so just let it all out.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I¡¯m fine. I was sad and angry at first, but after thinking about it for a while, I realized that I can¡¯t blame Max for what he did. After all, I did the same thing. When we came back to the capital, I was just happy to be back in the city I grew up in, but when I saw Max again, I didn¡¯t have that same sense of pure joy, it was more... bittersweet. I didn¡¯t know why at first. I told myself that I should be happy. I finally accomplished the dream I inherited from my father, and I was about to get married to the man I loved, I should¡¯ve been all smiles, but after what happened with Max, I finally realized why it felt bittersweet. It¡¯s because somewhere along the way, I¡¯ve fallen for someone else too. I¡¯m the same as Max, just being around him makes me happy, and, honestly, I¡¯m a little relieved right now. I¡¯m finally free, there¡¯s nothing holding me back anymore, there¡¯s no more waiting, no more promises, and I can finally be with the person I really love... Max was right, I can¡¯t lie to my heart.¡± (Aria)
The edges of my mouth curved up into a smile as Aria walked over to me with a happy smile.
I feel like a father watching his daughter grow up. I can¡¯t deny that I¡¯m proud, but it¡¯s leaving a bittersweet taste in my mouth. Well, I guess this isn¡¯t too bad sometimes, after all, life isn¡¯t always just sweet or bitter. Ah, but before I forget, there¡¯s one more thing I have to do as a self-proclaimed overbearing father figure.
¡°Glad to see you¡¯re ok, Aria.¡± (Kyle)
I smiled at Aria for a moment as she entered the living room.
¡°But, I¡¯ve learned from my mistake, so let me actually do something for you this time. Who is it? I¡¯ll go scout them out for you first, and maybe some ¡®interrogation¡¯ might even be in order depending on their personality. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll make sure it works out for you this time.¡± (Kyle)
I held up my fist threateningly as Aria froze for a moment before bursting out in laughter.
¡°What? What¡¯s so funny?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Nothing, it¡¯s just that... Sorry Ky, but you¡¯re the only person in the world who can¡¯t investigate him.¡± (Aria)
¡°What? Is that a challenge? Trust me, all I need is his name, just tell me his name, and I¡¯ll have every last detail about him in a week.¡± (Kyle)
¡°His name? Well...¡± (Aria)
Aria walked past me and flicked me on the forehead before going to the kitchen entrance, twirling around, and giving me a grin.
¡°It¡¯s a secret! Now, come on, let¡¯s make dinner, I¡¯m getting hungry.¡± (Aria)
I stood there flabbergasted as Aria giggled at me.
¡°...Look, how am I supposed to help you if you won¡¯t even give me a place to start?¡± (Kyle)
I sighed as I realized Aria was going to be stubborn and walked over to the kitchen to make dinner.
***
The moon and the stars outside lit up the night sky while I laid there on the floor, surrounded by darkness. Faint, ethereal moonlight shone in through the window, dimly illuminating the walls of the room as I stared at the ceiling in silence. A strange sense of melancholy overtook me as I thought about what happened with Aria before and held my right hand out in front of me. I gazed at the outline of my hand as the moonlight washed over it while the sound of my soft breaths echoed through the room.
...Love, huh? Well, I¡¯m not a complete idiot yet, am I?...
I might be dense, but after thinking through everything again, even I can tell that the person you love is me, Aria. And the truth is, deep inside, there¡¯s a part of me that loves you too.
It looks like a small fragment of light, glowing softly, yet bright enough to illuminate my world. Around it, there are a few more fragments too. And it¡¯s only when I hold these small fragments, when I can feel the warmth radiating from them, that I¡¯ll feel human again. But as tempting as it might be to touch them, I never can, because surrounding these precious fragments is a sea of darkness, and should the day come when I wade through the darkness to reach for that warm light, I know that the weight of my sins will drag me down to the depths.
So, I¡¯m sorry, Aria. I¡¯m just a coward who can only stand alone by the edge of that darkness and lie to himself about being content with the faint light that pierces through, but the one thing that I can do right now is stay by your side, just like I did for everyone else¡ even her¡
I stared at the hand in front of me. Four slender fingers and a thumb spread out, illuminated by the somber moonlight. And I could faintly make out the tendons that moved those fingers. There wasn¡¯t even a single sign of a callus or scar on the smooth skin that covered that hand. It just looked like the hand of a young man who hadn¡¯t done a day of work in his life, much less held a sword. It was the hand of a man who enjoyed cooking, the hand of a man who didn¡¯t mind helping those he cared about, even at his own expense, and most importantly, the hand of Aria¡¯s partner. Yet, I knew better than anyone just how many times that hand had swung a sword, just how much destruction that hand had caused, and just how many lives that hand had taken. It wasn¡¯t the hand of a young man I was looking at, it was the blood-soaked hand of a thousand-year-old monster wreathed in an aura of massacre.
And attached to that blood-soaked hand was the thousand-year-old monster himself, a man who was afraid of drowning in the darkness, a man who was desperately trying to atone for his sins, a man who didn¡¯t deserve love.
¡ But you know what, Aria? I¡¯m just glad that you seem happier now. I don¡¯t see the same loneliness in your shadow that I saw when I first met you, so, at the very least, I can say that I¡¯ve helped someone else now. It might not be much, but I¡¯ve done a lot of bad things already, so if I ever want to atone, I¡¯ve gotta start somewhere, right?
They say everything that happens is fate, but honestly, I don¡¯t like the idea that everything is predetermined. I believe in karma a lot more than I do in fate. Today I might be the one dragging you out of your darkness, but one day¡ maybe you¡¯ll be the one who gives me the courage to face mine.
So until then, I think I''ll lock these feelings of mine away.
... I''ll forget it all... just like I always have...
I released all the tension from my hand and it fell limply to my side as I closed my eyes again with a faint smile. I took a deep breath and cleared away all the depressing thoughts in my head before thinking about what to make for breakfast tomorrow.
Today was a particularly warm day, and the sun shining intensely in the sky was as good of an indication as you could get. Aria and I walked along the street until finally, we stopped at the front gate of a large, dojo-style building with a plaque on the front that was labeled ¡®7th Squad.¡¯ It¡¯s been three days since the whole incident with Max, and yesterday, the official ceremony for bestowing Aria¡¯s title was held. She was awarded the open position of the, recently retired, former 7th knight captain along with her title of Marchioness, and apparently, she was supposed to take over the role of supervising a few members of the new generation of knights while they all trained and helped out the city guard.
And so, today we came to the former 7th squad barracks to check out the state of things and tidy up as well as move into the office. Aria was holding a box of miscellaneous office supplies and I was right behind her with a pile of paperwork in my arm. We entered the building using the key that Aria received from the Emperor and walked along the halls inside until we reached a door labeled ¡®Captain¡¯s Office.¡¯ The door was open, and when we entered, we were surprised at how clean the office was. For some reason, there was barely any dust and all the furniture was still neat and tidy.
Aria plopped the box of supplies down and opened the window to the courtyard. Light shone through the curtains as the picturesque scene of sunlight illuminating the well maintained small garden and pond outside met our sight. I plopped down the stack of papers next to the box of office supplies and turned to Aria.
¡°Alright, nice, looks like we don¡¯t need to clean.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah, just leave everything here for now, we can check out the other rooms first.¡± (Aria)
¡°Ok.¡± (Kyle)
We left the office and went down the hall, checking the rest of the rooms, which were all basically in the same state as the office. The dorm-style bedrooms were all spotless, albeit a little empty, the main lounge was the same, and there was even a cafeteria on the left side of the building.
Aria and I were walking through the outdoor hallway that surrounded the courtyard and the sunlight shone through the pillars and warmed up our bodies while we made our way towards the entrance to the training room on the right side of the building.
¡°All, that¡¯s left is the training room. We can wipe down all the dust later on and air everything out.¡± (Aria)
¡°Yeah, hopefully it¡¯s as clean as everywhere else, otherwise my sealed left arm will have to descend upon this world and activate its mop truth again.¡± (Kyle)
We walked briskly for a bit before we reached the large door to the training room, and Aria was about to push it open. However, instead of Aria opening the door to an empty training hall, the door slowly opened by itself from the inside. White smoke floated out, and three voices sounded out to us one after the other from the inside, but what greeted my eyes was the last thing I ever thought I would see here, it was a power this world was not made to withstand.
¡°Marchioness Irisveil, correct?¡±
¡°We¡¯ve been eagerly awaiting your arrival.¡±
¡°We heard that you were coming over today, so we decided that we would come over to greet you.¡±
From the darkness of the training hall emerged three men, one from behind the left side of the door, one from behind the right side of the door, and one from the middle of the room. All of them were extremely muscular, at least a full head taller than me, and wearing clothes that clearly outlined the musculature of their upper bodies.
The one that emerged from the middle had blue hair in a short crew cut and the one on his left had long blonde hair in a braid while the one on his right had short spiky black colored hair. They walked up and stood next to each other before flexing their muscles and simultaneously posing together menacingly as intense music echoed from behind them.
Yes, that¡¯s right, actual music was playing. If you looked into the training hall behind them, you could faintly see an orchestra inside the training hall. The light from outside barely illuminated the first row of musicians, but just judging by what looked like rows of silhouettes behind them there were definitely more people in the back.
The black haired man talked first.
¡°Greetings, I am Reginald Balmar, First Lieutenant of the 5th Squad.¡± (Lieutenant Balmar)
After him was the blonde one.
¡°I am Morden Polum, Vice-Captain of the 5th Squad.¡± (Vice-Captain Polum)
And finally, it was the blue haired one in the middle.
¡°And I am Ozwald Gyffard, Captain of the 5th Squad. Nice to meet you, Marchioness, or should I say, Captain Irisveil.¡± (Captain Gyffard)
That¡¯s impossible. I never expected to meet them here, they shouldn¡¯t even exist in this world. Could it be? Does their power transcend even worlds, or is it just that it¡¯s universal.
I stood in front of Aria before facing the three men with a distressed look on my face.
¡°Their builds that resemble bricks of pure muscle, the hyper-defined jawlines, the way too tight clothing, the synchronized posing, the theme music in the background, the borderline homosexual tension in the air, Aria, there¡¯s no doubt in my mind, I¡¯m 100% sure that these guys... are stand users!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait, what? What are you talking about?¡± (Aria)
Aria stood there with a confused face as I pulled out a purple colored alchemy stone with a formation carved into it and held it in the palm of my hand.
¡°Run away, I¡¯ll keep them busy!¡¾Lightning Ball¡¿, single cast, activate!¡± (Kyle)
The stone shone with purple light as a ball of purple lightning spread out with the stone at the center and enveloped the area around the stone along with most of my right hand while small bolts of lightning shot off it occasionally. I felt a tingly feeling in my right hand as I was about to shove it towards the stand users when I felt a heavy impact on the back of my head.
Aria punched me in the back of the head and I fell over as the lightning in my hand died out.
¡°Argh, no! My Chidori!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Ky, what the hell are you doing!? They¡¯re knights from the 5th squad! That¡¯s Captain Gyffard!¡± (Aria)
Aria turned towards Captain Gyffard as she stomped on me while I was on the floor.
¡°Sorry about that Captain Gyffard, it seems that my companion has some brain damage.¡± (Aria)
¡°Haha, no problem Captain Irisveil. Don¡¯t be too hard on him, he was just playing along, wasn¡¯t he? It was just a practical joke for a little bit of fun. Anyway, you¡¯re gonna be taking over the 7th Squad tomorrow, so as the fill-ins for the old 7th Squad, we at the 5th Squad took it upon ourselves to help you out by cleaning the place a bit as a welcoming gift. But we should probably be getting back to the 5th Squad barracks soon, we¡¯ve been gone for a while after all.¡± (Captain Gyffard)
The orchestra in the back stopped their music as Aria finally let up with the kicks and I got up off the ground as I turned towards the 5th squad members.
¡°Eh, how long have you been in there?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Hmm, since about 5 AM. We didn¡¯t know what time you were coming over, so we¡¯ve been waiting here since dawn.¡± (Captain Gyffard)
¡°Wait, you guys are the top three members of the 5th Squad, aren¡¯t you? Don¡¯t you have important duties that you should be attending to or something?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Not really, it¡¯s been pretty peaceful these last few years, and if anything, these days we¡¯re just patrolling around the city doing nothing most of the time.¡± (Captain Gyffard)
¡°Well, at least spend it doing something else then instead of forcing a whole orchestra into a room for several hours just for the sake of a practical joke! Didn¡¯t you get bored?¡± (Kyle)
¡°The wait wasn¡¯t too bad, we just talked with the orchestra members for a few hours, and we even had a deck of cards to pass the time afterward.¡± (Captain Gyffard)
¡°I mean, your dedication was respectable, but don¡¯t you think that this was kind of a waste of time? What were you going to do if we decided not to show up today, wait until tomorrow? If you just wanted to pull a practical joke on us you could¡¯ve done this way more efficiently! Just show up outside our house next time, it saves both of us time!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Hahaha! You¡¯re right, I never thought about that. I like your spirit kid! What¡¯s your name?¡± (Captain Gyffard)
¡°Kyle.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Sir Kyle is it? Well, I¡¯ll remember it! You¡¯ve got a clever subordinate here Captain Irisveil! Anyway, the new 7th Squad members should be arriving tomorrow to move in. Good luck!¡± (Captain Gyffard)
I stood there facepalming as the 5th Squad members walked past us and left the 7th Squad barracks while the entire orchestra got up and shuffled out into the street behind them. I walked into the room and switched the lights on as the training room lit up before turning to Aria and sighing.
¡°Well, at least the place is clean. Actually, you know what? It¡¯s clean enough, let¡¯s just go home for the day so I can wait in the closet for five hours with a trombone or something.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Look, I¡¯m tired too, but we have to at least sort out the office first. Come on, we can go home after, and I swear, if you actually pop out of the closet with a trombone, I¡¯ll break your other arm too.¡± (Aria)
¡°Alright, alright.¡± (Kyle)
I gave another sigh as Aria dragged me back to the office and we began sorting out the supplies.
***
I sat out on the backyard porch and yawned as the sound of birds chirping in the background faintly filled my ears. I heard the front door open and Aria¡¯s voice sounded out from inside the house as I leaned back to lay down on the wooden porch.
¡°Hey, Ky, I left my plates in the sink and cleaned the table. I¡¯m going to work now. By the way, the 5th Squad¡¯s taking over patrol later today so I¡¯ll be back early.¡± (Aria)
¡°Did you remember to grab your lunchbox.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah.¡± (Aria)
The sound of the door closing sounded out a moment later as I held up my now fully healed left hand to block the sunlight shining into my eyes. The doctor said my left arm would take years of physical therapy to heal and regain the former function it had before getting mangled, but looks like it didn¡¯t take too long with my freakish body. I didn¡¯t even need any physical therapy, but honestly, I¡¯m not surprised. After all, I¡¯ve come back perfectly fine from way worse injuries before.
Well, moving on, it¡¯s been a few months, summer has finally come around again, and the lethargy has been getting to me recently. After the grand reopening, the 7th Squad has been up and running for about six months, and Aria¡¯s been taking care of everything. Apparently, they even made her start training some kid recently as her apprentice, while I¡¯ve basically been a housewife, err, I guess househusband would be a more apt description.
Honestly, it kind of feels like I¡¯m right back in prison, doing nothing all day except cooking and taking care of the house, but if anything, at least this time I¡¯ve got a lot more freedom. I don¡¯t have a collar attached to me at all times anymore, and Aria is also a lot tidier than Eliza, so I¡¯ve had a lot more free time. I¡¯ve taken up reading to pass the time, and I even recently got a library card so I can borrow books. Ah, but I guess I¡¯m gonna have to give it all up soon, huh?
I reached over to my right side and grabbed the sheet of paper next to me before holding it up and staring at the numbers to do some mental calculations.
Honestly, this is probably the first time I wished I was too stupid to do math. The sheet of paper in my hands was a bill, in fact, it was our tax report for this month, and by the looks of it, we were about to go into debt. Yep, that¡¯s right, debt. You see, when the Emperor gave Aria this old mansion, he failed to mention how goddamn high the property tax was. I mean I knew it was gonna be pricey to live here since it was in the middle district where all the nobles live, but Aria¡¯s entire income as a Knight Captain is barely enough to keep us afloat, and we spent most of her initial promotion reward buying new furniture and daily supplies for the mansion.
I held the paper in my hand and dropped my arm to my side again before sighing. Yeah, looks like I¡¯m gonna have to get a job.
¡°Ugh, someone kill me.¡± (Kyle)
Should I go for the best paying job? Or should I prioritize free time? Well, I mean preferably both, but I doubt there¡¯s any dream job like that. Wait, first of all, what skills do I even have?
Swordsmanship? Nah, I¡¯ve had enough of adventuring back in Delhurst, the city doesn¡¯t lack guards, and nobody would want to learn my swordsmanship comprised of literally only the absolute basics no matter how streamlined or efficient it is.
Cooking? Nah, being a chef would probably mean being trapped in a kitchen 24/7 and no matter how much I love cooking, I¡¯d probably run out of passion real quick.
Housework? Well, that probably wouldn¡¯t amount to much pay, and I don¡¯t think I can pass off as a very good maid.
What else do I have? Well, there¡¯s alchemy, but I barely understand a thing about modern alchemy, and even beginners can pump out generic alchemical materials.
Hmm, actually, wait, if I don¡¯t understand modern alchemy, then... can¡¯t I just teach ancient alchemy? Yeah, that¡¯s perfect, if I teach at some prestigious university or something, the pay probably won¡¯t be that bad, and I¡¯ll even get the whole summer off! The school year¡¯s about to start too, so this is the perfect time to apply!
I sat back up as I stared at the sky and began to think about where to apply as a professor, but as far as I knew, there were only two well-known places that taught alchemy in the capital, the High Institute of Alchemy, which was run by the Alchemy Guild, and the Raidion Royal Academy, which was funded by the Imperial family.
¡°Eh, well the Academy¡¯s two blocks closer, so Academy it is I guess.¡± (Kyle)
The noontime sun shone through the curtains, lighting up my desk as I yawned and continued to look through the dozens of applications piled up in front of me. The stamp in my hand left an ink print of the Royal Academy¡¯s official seal at the bottom of the application that I was reading and I tossed the application to my left where it landed in a small, messy pile of accepted applications on the floor next to me. I spun my office chair around and stretched before covering my eyes with my hand to shield them from the sunlight outside. A light moan inadvertently left my mouth and the slight pain from stretching made the stiffness in my back fade. Outside, the beautiful campus lawn and the people rustling through the streets behind the fence painted a peaceful scene, and I felt my will to continue doing paperwork start fading away. There was a part of me that didn¡¯t want to turn around and acknowledge the truth, but the reality was that behind me on my desk was a pile of applications I still had to go through.
¡°Ugh¡ You know what, I think I deserve a little breather. Maybe I¡¯ll have a small tea break and come back in half an hour. Yeah¡ that sounds good.¡±
Hopping out of my chair, I stood up and turned around to face the door with a smile on my face. I was about to leave, but the moment I took a step, the sound of footsteps echoed in the hallway and a foreboding sense of exasperation overtook me for a second before the door to my office opened, revealing an old man with a head of grey hair and a similarly colored beard. He was wearing a blue robe that covered his whole body and in his hands was an opened envelope.
I could already tell this was gonna be a nuisance just from the anxious look on his face when he walked in.
¡°What is it, Professor Balrum?¡±
¡°Headmistress, I just received another application for the alchemy department. What should I do with it?¡± (Balrum)
Professor Balrum, who was the current head of the Royal Academy¡¯s alchemy department, pulled out some papers from the envelope and placed them onto my desk. I felt a sense of fatigue bubble up inside me and averted my eyes from the papers while sighing.
¡°The application period ended yesterday, so we¡¯re not accepting any more applications. Just throw it out. Whoever it was, they were late anyway.¡± (Headmistress)
¡°I already considered just throwing it out, but unfortunately, this application has a letter of recommendation from the House of Irisveil.¡± (Balrum)
¡°Irisveil?... Oh, Marchioness Irisveil. The dragonslayer, right? Isn¡¯t she the Captain of one of the Knight Squads now?¡± (Headmistress)
¡°Yes, precisely. So, what should I do with it? I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s acceptable to just outright reject it.¡± (Balrum)
¡°What do you think we should do then?¡± (Headmistress)
¡°Hmm, well, he looks a little young, but it says that the applicant specializes in ancient alchemy and we don¡¯t have anyone who teaches that. So I was thinking that we could hold a small private test for him to get on the Marchioness¡¯ good side. If he¡¯s not up to the challenge, we can at least say we gave him a chance, and anyway, we wanted the best of the best for the golden generation this year, right? He might even be a hidden expert, and if he is, we¡¯ll be one step closer to the Institute.¡± (Balrum)
One step closer to the institute, huh? Well, I guess I can understand how Professor Balrum feels. After all, the alchemy department is the smallest one in the Royal Academy, since most talented students interested in alchemy would rather enroll in the Institute where they can build connections with Alchemy Guild members. If I remember, we barely had any alchemy professor applicants at all, even with the huge hiring campaign this year.
You see, this year¡¯s student population is what they call a golden generation, a wave of talent that only occurs once every few centuries. The testing scores for this year¡¯s incoming students were off the charts, and we¡¯ve had to react accordingly. After being the headmistress for so long, I¡¯m well aware of how we compare to the other top institutions, and while the quality of our professors is significantly above average, only a few of them are truly at the top of their fields. So I set off a huge hiring campaign to search for the best of the best, the top experts to come and raise the golden generation this year.
The application period for professors lasted a month and we¡¯ve had applicants come from all over the Empire. Even after a rigorous preliminary test, there were still dozens of applicants who passed, so after weeding out a few more through one on one tests with some of our current professors, it was now up to me to personally sort through the remaining applications to figure out who the most qualified applicants were. As of yesterday, the testing period has ended and honestly, I¡¯d rather not see another application on my desk...
¡°Eh... Well, I guess it¡¯s fine if you want to give him a chance, but I¡¯m not filling out any more paperwork for it. So that means I won¡¯t approve any requests for materials and I¡¯ll leave his skill to your judgment. If you wanna test him, you¡¯ll have to do everything yourself.¡± (Headmistress)
¡°No problem!¡± (Balrum)
¡°Alright, then you go handle it. I¡¯m going to go get a cup of tea and take a short break.¡± (Headmistress)
Why did it have to be today that I decided to show up?... Why couldn¡¯t they have just extended the testing period until next week or something?... No, better yet, why is it that I¡¯m unlucky enough to show up the day after it ends? Well, I guess it¡¯s my fault for being a borderline shut-in these past few months... If I went out more often, I probably would¡¯ve heard about the huge hiring campaign sooner.
It was currently right after noon and I was standing outside the front gate to the Royal Academy in a dress shirt as the summer sun slowly roasted me. Time passed as I made some small talk with the security officer in the booth next to me who gave my application to the department head about 15 minutes ago.
You see, when I showed up earlier and told him I was here for a job interview, he informed me about the testing period for new professors and how it just ended yesterday, but fortunately, he was a pretty nice guy and still helped me hand in my application. So hopefully, that completely legitimate recommendation letter that Aria definitely wrote and stamped for me with her personal seal will be enough to convince them to give me a second chance, otherwise, I¡¯ll have to make do with the Institute, and that means it¡¯ll be a total of four entire extra blocks I¡¯ll have to walk every day.
The security guard and I were talking about the warm weather recently when I saw the main entrance to the academy open out of the corner of my eye. An old man wearing a blue robe walked out holding my application and recommendation letter in his hand. The security officer greeted him and opened the gate, as the old man walked over to us before speaking to me.
¡°So, I assume you¡¯re Sir Kyle, correct?¡±
¡°Yep, that¡¯s me.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Hmm, a manaless? How unusual... Well, it¡¯s not like you can¡¯t practice alchemy as a manaless. Nice to meet you, Sir Kyle. I am Professor Oliver Balrum, head of the alchemy department here at the Royal Academy. I¡¯ve looked over your application and have decided to conduct a private examination to test your qualifications on the grounds of your recommendation letter.¡± (Balrum)
My eyes lit up as I shifted my body back into a proper posture after slouching from the heat before.
Nice! I knew forging, ahem, asking Aria nicely for that recommendation letter would help.
¡°Really? Great! So what do I have to do?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Just follow me inside for now. It¡¯s a little too warm out here, so we¡¯ll be holding the test in one of the training gymnasiums.¡± (Balrum)
Professor Balrum turned around and walked towards the main entrance again as I followed behind him. We entered the building and quickly made our way down a few hallways until we reached a large gymnasium. He walked to the middle of the gymnasium before turning around and tossing me a few small bags.
¡°Alright, since your application was a little late, I didn¡¯t have the time or resources to set up another preliminary test. So instead, I will be personally testing your skill. You wrote in your application that you specialize in ancient alchemy, correct?¡± (Balrum)
¡°Yes.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Perfect, then this will be simple. If I remember correctly, ancient alchemy was originally optimized for combat, so your test will be to break this barrier.¡± (Balrum)
Professor Balrum held up a large pendant which looked like a polished light element monster core on a chain. The yellow-colored monster core was covered with intricate engravings and inside the grooves of the engraving, there was some sort of sparkling ink which drew out the pattern of several alchemy circles.
¡°Inside the bags I just gave you are some high-quality alchemy materials and monster cores to work with. Your time limit will be ten minutes, and you can attack me at any time during the duration. Your test will start¡ now.¡± (Balrum)
As soon as Professor Balrum announced the start, he silently activated the alchemy stone pendant and it shone for a moment before a pale yellow barrier covered him from all directions like a bubble.
¡°So, wait. All I have to do is break the barrier, right?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Correct.¡± (Balrum)
¡°Ok then.¡± (Kyle)
I placed the bags on the ground and shifted my body into a basic fighting stance as Professor Balrum gave me a confused look. My left hand was held openly in front of me, resembling a loose spear-hand, while my other hand was clenched into a fist as I held it by my right side. A breath of air entered my lungs and a moment later, I exhaled as my leg pushed off the ground and shot my body forward.
It wasn¡¯t even a second before my other leg smashed into the ground right in front of the barrier, fracturing the floor and stopping a good portion of my momentum as my fist extended out from my right side, smashing into the barrier while a crazed wind burst outward from the air around me. The moment my fist made contact, a sound similar to glass cracking rang out as the barrier shattered and the broken shards evaporated into particles of mana. My fist went straight through the barrier, albeit having lost a good bit of its force, but just before it reached Professor Balrum¡¯s head, I held back as much of my strength as I could, which resulted in me just bonking him lightly on the head.
I retracted my hand and returned to a loose standing position as I smiled wryly at Professor Balrum who stood there dumbfounded for a moment.
¡°So, did I pass?¡± (Kyle)
Professor Balrum fell backward and sat down on the floor as he took deep breaths and held his hand to his chest.
¡°W-Were you trying to kill me!? I think I just saw my life flash before my eyes! What the hell were you doing!?¡± (Balrum)
¡°What? I just broke the barrier like you said, it sounds like a pass to me.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I meant break the barrier using some sort of alchemy!¡± (Balrum)
¡°Eh? Then say that in the first place...¡± (Kyle)
¡°You¡¯re taking a test to be an alchemy professor, not a knight squad tryout! What made you think that breaking the barrier without using alchemy would be any indication of your skill as an alchemist!?¡± (Balrum)
I gave a sigh before walking back to my original position and picking up the bags off the floor.
¡°Alright, reactivate the barrier and let me do the test again then. I¡¯ll use alchemy this time. Ten minutes haven¡¯t passed yet, right?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait! You know what? Let me get a training dummy this time instead.¡± (Balrum)
Professor Balrum ran over to the supply closet nearby and rummaged around in it for a few moments before returning with a training dummy with a target painted on it. He placed the dummy where he was originally standing and backed up towards the exit.
¡°Alright, your new test is to destroy the training dummy. And use alchemy this time!¡± (Balrum)
¡°Ok, got it.¡± (Kyle)
I opened the bags and rummaged through them. Inside were various materials for making alchemy stones like enchanted ink, engraving tools, and raw monster cores, but all I really needed was a monster core. I picked out a decently sized red monster core and pulled out a pen before quickly scribbling an alchemy circle on it.
Usually, when making an alchemy stone, I would engrave the alchemy circle on monster core since pen can rub off when I¡¯m carrying the stones around. But since this one¡¯s going to be used immediately, a pen is perfectly fine and a lot easier than engraving anyway.
After I finished drawing the alchemy circle, I put the pen away as I held the monster core in my fingers, and the glint in my eyes sharpened. My hand shifted like a blur and I threw the alchemy stone at the training dummy before activating it.
¡°¡¾Explosive Lance¡¿, full power cast, activate!¡± (Kyle)
The alchemy stone shone with a red light in mid-air before transforming into a vague spear shape made of flames. A moment later, the flames stabbed into the training dummy, and a deafening explosion occurred. Fire spread out in all directions, engulfing the area around the training dummy as everything burnt to cinders. After the initial explosion, streams of smoke burst outward, making my clothes and hair flutter in the wind as the fire died down. When the smoke finally cleared up, there was only a charred crater left where the dummy used to be and the floorboards nearby were all either cracked or uprooted.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
¡°Alright, I used alchemy this time like you asked, so did I pass?¡± (Kyle)
I turned around to look at Professor Balrum, who was just standing there and staring at the crater with his mouth agape. We stood in mutual silence for a moment before his eyes lit up and he finally spoke again.
¡°Y-Yeah, you passed.¡± (Balrum)
¡°Great! By the way, here¡¯s the rest of your stuff back. What should I do now?¡± (Kyle)
I handed the rest of the materials back to Professor Balrum as he gulped.
¡°I-I¡¯ll have to go inform the headmistress. Just wait here. I¡¯ll be back in a few minutes.¡± (Balrum)
¡°Ok.¡± (Kyle)
Professor Balrum was about to turn around and leave when suddenly, a strong gale blew open the doors, and a girl dressed as an office lady burst into the gymnasium. She looked like she was around 15 years old, a little younger than what Eliza looked like. The wind blew in from behind her as it made her long blonde hair float in the air, and her skin was light with a slight peachy tint while her piercing sky-blue eyes with pointed ears indicated that she was an elf. She called out to us in a serious tone as Professor Balrum froze up.
¡°Professor Balrum, is everything ok!? I was in the office when I heard an explosion!¡±
I looked over at the little girl¡¯s panicked face before trying to reassure her that everything was ok.
¡°Are you a student here, young lady? Don¡¯t worry, everything¡¯s ok. It was just some alchemy being used on a training dummy.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Who are you? Professor Balrum, what¡¯s going on?¡±
¡°Headmistress!¡± (Balrum)
Eh? Headmistress?
¡°I¡¯ve made my decision. Please, hire this man right now!¡± (Balrum)
¡°What? Wait, just calm down and tell me what happen-¡± (Headmistress)
¡°Quick, before the Institute finds out about him!¡± (Balrum)
¡°Professor Balr-¡± (Headmistress)
¡°I won¡¯t let them steal away another talent like this! He will be a part of my alchemy apartment if it¡¯s the last thing I do!¡± (Balrum)
Hey, Professor Balrum, I¡¯m excited here too, but uh... it kind of looks like the headmistress is a little angry.
There was a scary smile on the headmistress¡¯ face as waves of anger radiated off her. Instantly, half a dozen light green magic circles appeared in the air behind her and small tornadoes formed, extending out from the center of the circles. Blades of wind radiated from the tornadoes as they hovered in mid-air, rotating around the headmistress while she spoke in a low tone with a furious glint in her eyes.
¡°Oliver, I appreciate your enthusiasm, but I¡¯ve had a long day, and I¡¯m not in the mood to deal with your incoherent rambling or the extra paperwork I¡¯ll have to fill out afterward to clean up this mess. So first of all, you¡¯re going to tell me exactly why my gymnasium is in pieces, ok?¡± (Headmistress)
I flashed a nervous smile and took a step backward from the headmistress as I was about to let Professor Balrum take the fall for me, but the moment I moved, the headmistress¡¯ head snapped over to stare at me with the same angry smile on her face.
¡°And just where are you going, Mister? You saw what happened too, right? Well, I¡¯ll be having both of you tell me exactly what the hell happened and why you¡¯ve destroyed the gymnasium.¡± (Headmistress)
Come on! Why is it always me!? Does every woman around have to be so violent and tyrannical!? Can¡¯t I just meet some normal people for once!?
My fake smile twitched a little as the wisps of wind coming from the tornadoes made my clothes and hair flail in the air while my internal screams echoed uselessly into the sky.
***
About half an hour later, I was sitting in the headmistress¡¯ office next to Professor Balrum as the headmistress looked at us with an angry look on her face.
¡°So, you¡¯re telling me that you two almost tore the entire gymnasium down just to hold a test?¡± (Headmistress)
The headmistress stared at us with a scary smile on her face after we told her everything that happened and I averted my eyes to break eye contact before nervously answering her.
¡°Uh.. y-yeah.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Alright then. Professor Balrum, let me ask you something. If you were going to have a combat test, why didn¡¯t you hold it outside? Be completely honest. We had plenty of open training fields, so what genius epiphany made you decide that it would be a great idea to hold one in the gymnasium instead?¡± (Headmistress)
¡°W-well, it was a little too warm outside.¡± (Balrum)
¡°A little too warm? You destroyed an entire gymnasium because it was too hot outside!?¡± (Headmistress)
¡°A-Ahem. Well, technically, yes. I didn¡¯t expect it to get so out of hand though.¡± (Balrum)
The headmistress just sighed and held her head down with both her hands as she closed her eyes with a distressed look on her face. Professor Balrum and I sat there stiffly while we watched the headmistress bang her head on the table in silence. After a few moments, she finally got up and looked at us before sighing again and talking in a disappointed tone.
¡°I¡¯ve had enough. Professor Balrum, just go for now, I¡¯ll interview him and discuss the details of your punishment with you later.¡± (Headmistress)
¡°Yes, headmistress!¡± (Balrum)
Oliver, you damn traitor! Don¡¯t just ditch me here! I thought we were in this together!
Professor Balrum got up immediately and bolted out of the room with a relieved expression on his face as I sat there and smiled nervously at the headmistress. She picked my application up off her desk and glanced over it before staring at me again.
¡°Alright, so your name was... Kyle, right?¡± (Headmistress)
¡°Yes, ma¡¯am.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, you passed Professor Balrum¡¯s test. And while he may be stupid enough to hold a combat test inside, I at least trust his discernment as an alchemist. So judging by how desperate he was, there¡¯s no problem with your level of skill as an alchemist. However, there are a couple more glaring issues with the rest of your application. First of all, do you have any other identification besides your guild card? Guild cards are technically a form of legal identification, but with how easy it is to get one, they aren¡¯t exactly the most trustworthy. Your guild card doesn¡¯t even have your last name on it.¡± (Headmistress)
Damn, I knew this would come up eventually. What else do I have on me for ID?... Come on, think, Kyle, think...
¡°Uh¡ well actually due to some personal reasons, I¡¯ve renounced my last name, but as for other methods of identification, I do have a library card, if that counts.¡± (Kyle)
I pulled out my library card from my pocket and held it in my hand to show the headmistress as an awkward atmosphere filled the room. She stared at me for a second with a disappointed face before facepalming and sighing.
¡°Looks like that¡¯s a no. So¡ what exactly is your relationship to Marchioness Irisveil then?¡± (Headmistress)
¡°I¡¯m a former member of her adventurer party.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, judging by the fact she wrote a letter of recommendation for you, she at least trusts you, and I¡¯ve heard that the Emperor was fond of one of her party members, who I assume is you.¡± (Headmistress)
The headmistress leaned back as all the tension left her body and she slouched backward into her chair.
¡°So now for the second issue. I want to know. Why did you come to the Royal Academy? With your skill, the Institute of Alchemy would definitely hire you, even if you applied late.¡± (Headmistress)
¡°... Do you want me to be completely honest?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Of course.¡± (Headmistress)
The headmistress picked up her cup of tea and took a sip out of it as she waited for me to answer. I sheepishly scratched my head as I kept up my nervous smile and answered.
¡°Ahem. Well, the Royal Academy¡¯s two blocks closer to my house, so I wouldn¡¯t have to walk as far every day.¡± (Kyle)
The headmistress put her teacup back down and bonked her head backward into the chair cutely as she sighed again with a distressed face.
¡°How did I just know it would be something stupid... Fine, I guess you¡¯re hired then.¡± (Headmistress)
She tossed my application into the pile of papers next to her and sat up straight in her chair again before turning around and opening the window behind her. The warm afternoon sunlight shone in through the glass as a light breeze entered and cleared out the stuffy air in the room. The sound of the city outside could be faintly heard in the background and the headmistress took a deep breath before twirling around in her chair again with a professional smile on her face. The gentle breeze made her long hair flow in the wind and the soft sunlight reflected off her face as she spoke with a strong voice.
¡°Welcome to the Royal Academy, Professor Kyle. I¡¯m Mari Sylfey, the Empire¡¯s Grand Mage of Wind, and your new boss.¡± (Mari)
Eh? She¡¯s one of the Empire¡¯s Grand Mages? No wonder she was able to chantlessly activate such high-level wind magic before. Wait, I heard before that the Grand Mage of Wind looked young because she was an elf, but isn¡¯t this a little too young? She¡¯s basically a little girl. Well, anyway, appearances aside, I probably shouldn¡¯t get on her bad side.
I gave a gentle smile back before I saw Mari¡¯s professional demeanor instantly collapse after she gave me that line. She melted back into her chair and took another sip of her tea before letting out a relieved breath and holding out her teacup towards me.
¡°Alright, now that you¡¯re hired, your first job is to go get me a refill.¡± (Mari)
¡°Eh? Wait, don¡¯t I start working on the first day of school? I¡¯m a professor, my job is to teach, right?¡± (Kyle)
Mari gave me a smug chuckle and sat back up in her chair before reaching over the desk and placing the teacup in my hands.
¡°Well, the first day of classes is in a week, so yeah you¡¯ll be teaching then, Professor Kyle, but for now, you¡¯ll be working as my lackey, ahem, I mean my assistant. After all, I¡¯m gonna have to do a lot of paperwork to get the gymnasium repaired, and since you were the one who destroyed it, it only makes sense for you to help me fix it, unless you want me to dock your salary instead. The teacher¡¯s lounge is right next to the stairs at the end of the hallway. I want chamomile tea with two teaspoons of sugar. Even if you¡¯re manaless, you can still make some tea, can¡¯t you?¡± (Mari)
¡°What about Professor Balrum then!? He¡¯s not completely innocent either!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Professor Balrum still has to sort out the budget and class placement for the alchemy department, and I already told him I would discuss his punishment with him later. Anyway, why would I choose an aging old man over a young new hire like you for menial labor? It¡¯s alright, just think of this as a sort of hazing. Now, hurry up Professor Kyle, we¡¯ve still got the rest of the applications to sort through, then the department budget distributions, and the personal facility check to make sure everything¡¯s running fine among just the major things. Oh, and I hope you don¡¯t mind if I just skip the titles, since technically, you¡¯re not a professor yet, right, Kyle?¡± (Mari)
Of course. It always just comes back to me doing menial labor, doesn¡¯t it? First it was Eliza and Olivia, then Aria, and now Mari. I guess it¡¯s just my destiny to eternally be a butler...
Mari went back to reading through the papers on her desk as I let out a sigh before getting up and leaving the room with teacup in hand.
¡°Just call me Ky then¡¡± (Kyle)
***
Goddammit. Why the hell did I actually try to help!? I made a major mistake. I should¡¯ve just acted utterly incompetent at everything until Mari let me go, but no, I just had to go and actually try, didn¡¯t I?
It was about an hour or two into the evening by now, and the lamps in the office lit up the pile of papers I was sorting through as I sat on the floor. Mari was sitting in her chair as she occasionally laughed while nonchalantly reading a newspaper. Approximately an hour ago, she finished sorting through about half of the applications, and immediately lost all will to continue. She loosened up her clothes a bit to relax, deflated all the tension in her body again, and took off her shoes so she could sit cross-legged in her office chair while I was still sitting on the floor sorting through more papers.
Oh? Why am I sorting through the papers when it should be Mari¡¯s job you ask? Well, you see, after I came back with her cup of tea a few hours earlier, she made me do some menial tasks for a while like organize the messy piles of papers she had on the ground and hand her more papers from a pile, but as I was looking over her paperwork, I noticed that she made a small mistake, and the moment I pointed it out to her was the exact moment my downfall started.
When I showed her that I was competent enough to do paperwork, she made me help her process some easy documents at first like stamping papers that she already looked over and approved with the Royal Academy¡¯s seal, but I was stupid enough to actually try completing the menial paperwork quickly since I thought if we finished everything early, I could go home sooner. However, instead of letting me go early, Mari just piled up more and more paperwork on me and only vaguely told me what to do with most of it, until eventually, I was the one who had actually finished most of the paperwork Mari was supposed to do today.
I was currently sorting through the budget requests from the magic department that Mari was supposed to finish by tomorrow, and the sound of me flipping through papers echoed around the room as I wrote down numbers in the notebook next to me. Mari glanced at the clock before twirling around in her chair and kicking me in the back lightly.
¡°Ky, how¡¯s the magic department¡¯s budget coming along? You don¡¯t need to finish it today, but I¡¯ll definitely need the numbers to double check by the end of tomorrow. Oh, and we need to send in a request for funds to repair the gymnasium tomorrow too, so you might have to make an errand run to the castle.¡± (Mari)
I was about to cry as I realized just what I had gotten myself into before Mari kicked me lightly again, this time in the back of the head.
¡°Hello? Ky, you there?¡± (Mari)
I turned around and yelled at her as I closed the notebook and threw the papers to the side.
¡°Argh! What was that for? I¡®m pretty sure at this point, this qualifies as cruel and unusual punishment! I swear, I¡¯m gonna report you to the authorities!¡± (Kyle)
¡°And exactly what authorities are you going to report me to? I am the authorities. I¡¯m the Empire¡¯s Grand Mage of Wind, and even if I did abuse my power, you wouldn¡¯t be able to do a thing about it. Who do you think the bureaucracy would believe, the headmistress of the Royal Academy or a newly hired Professor whose only legal identification are his guild and library cards? Besides, all I did was outsource some of the less important tasks to one of my subordinates. There was nothing wrong with my course of action.¡± (Mari)
Mari nudged me lightly again with her leg as she gave me an evil laugh. The tears finally flowed out of my eyes as I handed her the budgeting notebook and cleaned up the pile of papers next to me.
¡°Give it back! Give back the small amount of professional respect for you that I had before! I heard that the Empire¡¯s Grand Mage of Wind was a noble elven lady with decades of experience and a kind heart, but you¡¯re just an evil witch!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Hey, I¡¯m a noble lady through and through! Stop whining just because I made you do a little paperwork.¡±(Mari)
Mari pouted before quickly flipping through the book and double checking the budget. After a moment she slammed it shut and threw it on the table.
¡°Anyway, looks like there¡¯s no problems with the budget. You know, if Professor Balrum wasn¡¯t so hellbent on having you teach, I¡¯d steal you in a heartbeat to work as my assistant.¡± (Mari)
My heartbeat sped up in fear as I thought about the hell that being Mari¡¯s full-time assistant would be. I put on a nervous smile and spoke with the most sincere voice I could currently muster as I tried my best to put on an act.
¡°I deeply apologize, but unfortunately, I must decline your offer, headmistress. Being your temporary assistant was my sincerest joy, but alas, my heart tells me that teaching others is my true passion. So with the greatest of woes, I must courteously abstain.¡± (Kyle)
¡°You¡¯re an awful actor, you know that? Alright, I¡¯ll let you go soon, but before you go, give me a shoulder massage, my neck is kind of stiff from all the paperwork today.¡± (Mari)
Mari rubbed her shoulder with one arm as she swung her other arm around a bit to loosen up her back.
¡°Just let me go home already!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Hey, don¡¯t forget that I¡¯m your boss, which means I can dock your pay for any reason I want.¡± (Mari)
I gave a sigh before I walked behind Mari¡¯s office chair. She leaned over with a triumphant smile on her face and rested her upper body on the desk while stretching out her arms as I reached over and started lightly massaging her shoulders. A look of bliss appeared on her face and she let out a relieved sigh as tears started poured out of my eyes again.
About fifteen minutes later, my hands finally stopped and Mari was half asleep on her desk. I gently shook her to wake her up, and after a moment, she got up and rubbed her eyes cutely.
¡°... Ugh. How long was I out?¡± (Mari)
¡°About 15 minutes. Now, can I go home already? I¡¯m gonna be late for dinner at this rate.¡± (Kyle)
Mari let out a yawn and stretched a bit before finally telling me I could go home.
¡°Alright, you can go now. By the way, we¡¯re starting at 8 AM tomorrow, so don¡¯t be late.¡± (Mari)
¡°Yeah, yeah¡¡± (Kyle)
I finally left the headmistress¡¯ office as I slowly shambled home while thinking about how much of a pain tomorrow was going to be. When I got back, I quickly made dinner for Aria while complaining to her about my new job. And after dinner, I told her that I would probably be home late for the next week before going to bed early to prepare for my inevitable torture tomorrow.
[Chapter 11] Welcome to Ancient Alchemy 101
I opened the door and entered the office as the sound of pages being flipped echoed throughout the room. Sitting behind her desk, Mari marked the last of the renovation documents with the Royal Academy¡¯s seal before tossing them to the side and calling out to me.
¡°Ky, did you finish double checking all the facilities?¡± (Mari)
¡°Yeah, I finished it about ten minutes ago. Anyway, since I was already down there, here, I got you your tea.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Thanks.¡± (Mari)
I placed the cup of chamomile tea in front of Mari and sat down in the chair across from her as she slumped her upper body over her desk and let out a sigh. The morning sunlight illuminated the office, and I slouched backward in the chair while staring out the window to see the slow trickle of students walking onto campus while the faint sound of birds chirping outside was drowned out by my sigh. Mari got up off her desk again and took a sip of her tea before complaining to me.
¡°Ugh¡ finally, we¡¯re done with everything. Seriously, it was way too much, even with you here to get through the brunt of it, we still barely finished in time.¡± (Mari)
¡°It¡¯s your own damn fault for lazing around so much this last week! Do you know how much extra paperwork I had to sort through because you kept taking breaks every two hours!? We probably would¡¯ve finished by yesterday if you just actually tried to do your work!¡± (Kyle)
¡°But why would I try when I have my handy dandy assistant right here to try for me?¡± (Mari)
Mari gave me a lazy smile and leaned back into her chair again before beckoning me to come over.
¡°Anyway, since we¡¯re finally finished, give me a massage. I think I slept funny last night, so my back is really stiff right now and I have to go give the opening speech in two hours too.¡± (Mari)
¡°Your back is stiff every day! Are you sure your bed isn¡¯t a rock? What kind of office assistant gives their boss a daily back rub anyway?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eeeh? Well, you¡¯re not quite an office assistant. You¡¯re more like my personal assistant, and as my personal assistant, it¡¯s your job to make sure I¡¯m in tip-top condition for important events, like, for example, the opening ceremony in two hours.¡± (Mari)
¡°You know what, I don¡¯t care anymore, just let me get it over with... After the ceremony, I still have to teach too. So please, at least give me a little break before class starts.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Alright, alright. I¡¯ll give you a break after this, so come on.¡± (Mari)
Mari stretched a little and leaned her upper body over onto the desk again as I got up and walked over to give her a massage before sighing. My hands moved over to her back and began to delicately apply pressure along her spine as Mari¡¯s gave out a blissful grin. I used my fingers to push against her soft skin under her clothes for a few moments before Mari inadvertently let out a satisfied moan.
¡°...I know I¡¯ve already asked you this before, but can you not let out erotic moans whenever I give you a massage? Especially since there are other people in the building now. If anyone overhears this, I¡¯m sure the city guard will be here in a few minutes to arrest a lolicon.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, who told you to be so good at giving massages? You always use the perfect amount of strength and it feels heavenly when you press on just the right spot. The stiffness just melts away and I can¡¯t help but let out my voice.¡± (Mari)
Argh! Why does everything I do have to eventually end up screwing me over someday!? Of course I use the perfect amount of strength every time! If I couldn¡¯t control my strength so precisely I would¡¯ve ended up snapping your spine like a twig the moment I applied any pressure! Back when I first imbued myself with natural laws, I had to train intensely to perfectly control every part of my abnormal body, otherwise, I wouldn¡¯t even be able to walk. Every step I took would¡¯ve crushed the ground under my feet and shot me forward hundreds of feet.
¡°What happened the first time I gave you a massage then? You didn¡¯t let out a sound then!¡± (Kyle)
Mari¡¯s face tinted a little pink before she muttered in a quiet voice.
¡°Well, the first time it was a little embarrassing... so I held my voice in as much as I could and tried to ignore all feeling in my body until eventually, I fell asleep.¡± (Mari)
¡°If you thought it was embarrassing, why are you doing it so brazenly now then!?¡± (Kyle)
¡°You didn¡¯t say anything when I couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore the second time and let my voice slip out, so I thought you were ok with it.¡± (Mari)
¡°You just moaned randomly out of nowhere, what was I supposed to say!? ¡®Hey, excuse me, could you not lewdly moan, I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll get registered as a lolicon in the sex offender database?¡¯ Yeah, that definitely wouldn¡¯t have made the atmosphere ten times more awkward than it already was.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, it¡¯s already too late for regrets. I¡¯m already used to letting my voice out, so you¡¯ll have to deal with it. Besides, everyone else should be making last-minute checks in their department, and I already told Professor Balrum to set up everything for you beforehand since you were here helping me. There¡¯s no one around, so don¡¯t worry. Anyway, I¡¯m sure that my reputation would be impacted a lot more than yours.¡± (Mari)
Mari had a blush on her face as she pouted cutely before telling me where to push a little harder.
¡°Mmm, right there, Ky... A little harder.¡± (Mari)
I gave out a defeated sigh before continuing to massage Mari with tears in my eyes as she let out indecent sounding moans over and over again.
Dear god, please don¡¯t let there be anyone around! I think more than just my reputation is at stake here!
Hmm, will the headmistress approve the budget request? I tried to minimize our spending as much as possible, but with how much we¡¯ve already used for the hiring campaign this year, I¡¯m afraid she won¡¯t be able to... Well, I guess I¡¯ll at least try to ask her.
I walked down the hallway towards the headmistress¡¯ office with a few documents in hand.
Just ten minutes ago, everyone in the alchemy department office was nagging me to go get more funding from the headmistress so they could get better materials to use, and all I could hear everywhere was ¡®Professor Balrum this, and Professor Balrum that¡¯ until I couldn¡¯t take it anymore, so I just gave in and drafted up a quick request for a budget increase. I hate to bother the headmistress just before she has to go give the opening speech, but honestly, it¡¯s true that the materials we have this year are a little subpar compared to previous years.
I was about to reach the door to the headmistress¡¯ office and knock on it when suddenly, I heard faint, muffled voices from inside.
¡°Mmm, right there, Ky... A little harder.¡± (Mari)
I recognized the headmistress¡¯ voice coming from inside the office saying a suggestive line, and immediately afterward, I started hearing erotic moans. My face immediately blushed beet red, and I froze in my tracks right outside the office doors. After a moment, I decided it was best not to interrupt as I turned around and started to silently sneak back towards the alchemy department office while trying to clear my mind of all dirty thoughts.
Well, looks like this is¡ a bad time to ask¡ But, who would¡¯ve thought that the headmistress liked them so young? Or that Professor Kyle had such¡ special tastes¡
Well, I shouldn¡¯t judge them too much, I guess I can understand a little bit. I¡¯ve heard that the normal lifespan for elves is around 300, and the headmistress just passed 100 a few years ago. While elves might physically reach adulthood at around the same time as humans, their period as young adults is much longer, around 150 or so years, with 100 years old being around the time that most elves should be married. The headmistress would be around her mid-twenties if we translated her age to human terms, so it¡¯s only natural that she would be looking to find a partner soon.
And after all, she¡¯s been alone with Professor Kyle in a small office for hours on end every day this past week. With a handsome young man treating her like she was his queen all day, eventually, there was bound to be some feelings budding between them. And I guess a younger man would probably be with the headmistress a little longer if we take lifespans into account.
Ahem.
Anyway, they have my blessings for the future should they ever need them. So for now, if anyone asks, my request was rejected by the headmistress due to budget constraints, and I returned immediately afterward without hearing or seeing anything.
A few minutes have passed since Ky started giving me a massage, and the last tingles of pleasure slowly faded as his hands finally stopped. I let out a satisfied breath and lifted my upper body off my desk with a blissful smile as my originally stiff back now had a slightly springy feeling to it.
¡°Huaaa, I feel alive again.¡± (Mari)
¡°Yeah, I do too now that you¡¯ve stopped moaning! I thought I heard faint footsteps outside before and my heart stopped for a moment!¡± (Kyle)
¡°What are you talking about? I didn¡¯t hear anything.¡± (Mari)
Ky let out a relieved breath as he moved his hand away from his chest and slouched over.
¡°Whew, I guess I was really just hallucinating then... Anyway, can I go now? I have a class to prepare for, and even if there are only five students, it¡¯s still a class.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Honestly, I¡¯m surprised you even got five students to sign up with how late we opened up registration for your class. Alright, you can go for now. You¡¯ve still got more or less an hour and a half before the opening ceremony starts.¡± (Mari)
¡°Wait, really?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah.¡± (Mari)
Ky immediately shot back into an upright posture as all of his energy returned and he started to celebrate.
¡°Finally, I¡¯m free at last! Sweet, sweet freedom! Ahahahahaha!¡± (Kyle)
He opened the office doors and his maniacal laughter echoed through the hallway as he threw his arms up in the air and stepped out of the room.
¡°See you later, you abusive witch!¡± (Kyle)
Ky gave me a smug smile as he saluted me before turning back around, and I don¡¯t know why, but I felt my blood pressure rising once I saw how happy he was to leave my side while a strong urge to wipe that smile off his face rose up inside me. I unconsciously reached out for the closest thing to my hand, my cup of tea, and enchanted it temporarily with wind magic before chucking it at him.
¡°Ah!¡± (Mari)
Oh no! I forgot he was manaless!
The teacup was covered in a layer of green mana and it shot towards him like an arrow before nailing him in the back. Ky fell over face first onto the floor and the tea spilled all over him as I immediately ran to his side with a worried expression on my face.
I kneeled down next to Ky and flipped his body over in a panic before taking a quick look at his complexion. My hand slid across his face, pushing his hair out of the way as I moved closer to get a better look at his slightly pale face. I could feel the warmth from Ky¡¯s smooth skin through my hand, and my face tinted a bit pink once I realized how close I was to his face.
Leaning back, I held my hand to my chest and waited a moment for my rapid heartbeat to calm down once I saw that Ky seemed to just be knocked out. I let out a sigh of relief before calling out his name and shaking him slightly to try and wake him up. After a few moments of shaking, he was still out cold, and I gently placed him on the ground before running back into my office to grab my first aid kit. However, as I started to rummage through my cabinets, I heard a faint noise from outside my office.
My head snapped around to see Ky laying there with his eyes closed and slowly trying to creep away by pushing himself along the floor using his arm. After I started staring at him, he slightly opened one eye, glanced at me for a moment, and closed his eyes again before he began to speed up scooting away on the floor. My face went fully red from a mixture of anger and embarrassment as I ran over, kicked him to make him stop, then dragged him back into the office while sighing.
¡°Why did I even try to feel concerned about you?¡± (Mari)This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
¡°Why did you throw that teacup at me then? You even used magic!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Ahem. Well, that was a small mistake on my part.¡± (Mari)
¡°That was attempted murder.¡± (Kyle)
I crossed my arms and looked out the window with a tint of embarrassment on my face as I pouted.
¡°Look... I¡¯m sorry, alright? I shouldn¡¯t have thrown that teacup at you.¡±(Mari)
Ky sighed before grabbing his shirt and wringing it as tea dripped out.
¡°Being sorry doesn¡¯t fix anything... Look, you even got my favorite shirt wet. How am I supposed to show up to class like this?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Hmm, well, I guess you can borrow one of the student uniforms for now. It¡¯s probably better than showing up soaked in tea. There should be a few spares in one of the storage rooms.¡± (Mari)
Ky gave me a sigh before turning around to leave my office again with an exhausted look on his face. I got up out of my chair and extended my hand towards him before calling out as he walked through the door.
¡°Wait, are you sure that you¡¯re ok? If there¡¯s anything wrong just tell me and I¡¯ll take you to a doctor right away.¡± (Mari)
¡°It¡¯s alright, I¡¯m fine. Don¡¯t worry, the only thing I¡¯ve got going for me is how tough I am.¡± (Kyle)
Ky waved his hand nonchalantly before closing the door behind him.
I stood there silently for a few moments and stared at the closed door as the background noise from outside slowly drowned out the faint sound of his footsteps. A strange sense of loneliness started to bubble up inside me.
It felt jarring to finally to hear silence in my office again.
It kind of felt like something was missing. Maybe it was just the sound of pages flipping and pen scratching on paper that I missed, or maybe it was that I subconsciously expected to hear a familiar voice start complaining about something stupid... but after a few more moments the feeling faded and I sat back down in my chair while staring at the ceiling. After a bit, I got up, rummaged through my shelves, and pulled out the same speech that I used every year for the opening ceremony before returning to my seat to jog my memory.
***
Half an hour passed by in silence as I sat at my desk and reread the speech before I heard someone knocking on my office door.
¡°Come in.¡± (Mari)
The door opened after my voice sounded out and a young elven girl with short blonde hair, sky-blue eyes, and a pair of red-rimmed glasses timidly walked into my office. She was wearing the Royal Academy¡¯s student uniform, a light green blazer with the Academy emblem sewn on it, a black skirt, and a red tie.
I immediately recognized her once she walked into my office with a shy smile and my spirits were immediately lifted. The young girl standing in front of me was my older brother¡¯s daughter, my niece, Reina Sylfey. She was one of the new incoming students of the golden generation this year, and even without my, ahem, ¡®help,¡¯ her talent and proficiency in magic gave her one of the highest scores in magical ability this year.
¡°Is that you, Reina?¡± (Mari)
¡°Hi, Aunt Mari, how are you? I¡¯m here to visit.¡± (Reina)
My face immediately turned into a beaming smile once I saw my favorite niece and I got out of my chair to lead Reina to sit down.
¡°I¡¯m doing fine. In fact, I feel better than ever. Come in and take a seat, we have tons to talk about. By the way, how are your parents doing?¡± (Mari)
¡°Oh, they¡¯ve been well. Thanks for asking.¡± (Reina)
¡°That¡¯s great. You seem to be doing better too. Looks like letting you work as a receptionist in the Adventurer¡¯s Guild these past few summers was a good idea. You look like you¡¯re a bit more confident now. So, have you decided what class you want to take? If you still haven¡¯t chosen, then just pick whatever class you want right now. Don¡¯t worry about whether or not registration is closed, I¡¯ll find a way to get you in!¡± (Mari)
¡°Eh? It¡¯s ok, Aunt Mari, I¡¯ve already registered for my class and there wasn¡¯t any problem at all.¡± (Reina)
¡°Really? Great! What magic class did you take? I¡¯ll make sure you have the best Professor in that section.¡± (Mari)
¡°Um¡ actually, about that¡ I decided to register in the alchemy department instead.¡± (Reina)
¡°The alchemy department? Why alchemy? I remember your father told me you came here to polish up your magic skills.¡± (Mari)
Reina scratched her head adorably and looked away for a moment before looking at me with a rarely seen, determined expression on her face.
¡°W-Well, because of some personal reasons, I¡¯ve decided that instead of magic, I want to study alchemy. So please let me learn about alchemy here, Aunt Mari!¡± (Reina)
My maternal instinct kicked in as I saw the determination in Reina¡¯s eyes, and I rubbed my cheek against hers while hugging her as tears flowed out of my eyes.
¡°It¡¯s ok, Reina, you can do whatever you want! I¡¯ll always support you, no matter what you want to do in the future. So if you want to be in the alchemy department, just say the word! I¡¯ll make sure the department head is the one who personally teaches you! And if there¡¯s anything wrong, come tell me and I¡¯ll help you take care of it immediately!¡± (Mari)
¡°Eh, the department head? No, no, no, it¡¯s fine Aunt Mari. Um, I already signed up for the class on ancient alchemy, and there¡¯s only one professor for that class, right?¡± (Reina)
Ancient alchemy? Who was the professor for that again?... Ah. Wait, Ky! It was Ky! I remember his application said he specialized in ancient alchemy, which means that Reina is one of the five students in his class.
I grabbed Reina by the shoulders and looked her straight in the eyes as my face turned serious.
¡°Reina, I¡¯m telling you right now, drop that class and register for another one. It doesn¡¯t matter which class you pick, I¡¯ll get you in. So just choose another class. Please, any class but ancient alchemy. The professor for that class is a reckless lunatic, and you¡¯ll definitely get hurt!¡± (Mari)
¡°A lunatic? What are you talking about? Anyway, my primary choice was ancient alchemy, and I already registered¡ I can¡¯t tell you why, but I have to take that class! I won¡¯t take any others!¡± (Reina)
The determined look in Reina¡¯s eyes returned, and once I saw it, I knew I wouldn¡¯t be able to stop her.
I sighed and let go of Reina¡¯s shoulders before holding my head in my hands for a moment.
What do I do? Should I let her follow her dreams? Or should I hold her back for her own good? On one hand, I want to support her, but on the other hand, her professor is Ky. Ngh¡ I guess I¡¯ll have to go set Ky straight later then... for Reina¡¯s sake.
¡°Alright. If you¡¯re dead set, then I¡¯ll let you go. Just be careful. I¡¯ll need to have a ¡®talk¡¯ with your professor later too.¡± (Mari)
Reina¡¯s determined look faded and she let out a sigh of relief as I planned out what I would do about Ky.
¡°Anyway, enough of that. Let¡¯s move on to something else. How was your summer, Reina?¡± (Mari)
¡°Oh, it was great.¡± (Reina)
Reina¡¯s voice drowned out the background noise from outside as she went into detail about her summer working at the adventurer¡¯s guild, and we chatted with each other until it was time for the opening ceremony.
I felt the warm summer breeze run over my face as I took a deep breath of the fresh air outside. Students in uniform walked past me on the paved pathways, and I stood on the lawn while loosely dressed in a similar light green blazer, which had the Royal Academy¡¯s emblem sewn over the left chest, as a satchel hung over my shoulder. A relieved breath left my mouth and I cracked a small smile before starting to walk around aimlessly with a newfound feeling of freedom.
It¡¯s been over a millennium, huh?
Picturesque scenes of a vibrant school campus filled my eyes as I slowly drifted away from the main roads and picked a spot under a random tree a short distance away from one of the side roads to sit down. The leaves glistened as the summer sunlight seeped through the gaps in the branches, illuminating small spots in the shade. I made my way over silently, took off my satchel, and plopped down at the base of the tree as I leaned my back against the trunk.
I sat there for a moment and stared at the clouds while reminiscing about the past¡ or at least I would have if it weren¡¯t for those damn couples! Yep, I guess I accidentally wandered into Eliza¡¯s domain again or something because while there were a fair amount of normal students walking by, there were also a bunch of couples flirting nearby everywhere, like they were mocking me about my status as an all-powerful arch-wizard.
Look, some of them are even sneaking glances at me! I know I should be more mature about this after over 1000 years of being single, but just because I¡¯m an arch-wizard, doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m emotionless!
I leaned my head backward to avert my eyes and look at the sky when I heard a voice from behind me.
¡°Tsk, damn couples. They should all just go jump off a cliff together!¡±
¡°Ah.¡± (Kyle)
I glanced around the tree and met face to face with another student sitting down against the opposite side of the tree trunk. He had a slim build, short, spiky green hair, and brown eyes while his outfit consisted of the student uniform and a pair of glasses with a black rim on the underside of the lenses.
The moment I saw him, I sensed a similar feeling from him, and I could tell that he was a true comrade, a wizard-in-training. I gave him a salute as I scooted around the tree, sat down next to him, and patted his shoulder with sympathetic tears in my eyes.
¡°I understand your pain, comrade.¡± (Kyle)
I sat grumpily under in the shade of a tree as couples flirted with each other all around me. The aura of love was thick in the air, but unfortunately, there was a vacuum in my general area, and the exasperation only built up more and more in me as no matter where I looked, there was a couple nearby flirting. Eventually, I couldn¡¯t handle it anymore, and I finally let out a bit of bitter soliloquy.
¡°Tsk, damn couples. They should all just go jump off a cliff together!¡±
Stuck in my own little world, I muttered my thoughts to myself, when suddenly, I heard a voice from behind me.
¡°Ah.¡±
Crap! When did someone get so close!?
A shock ran through my system as a sense of anxiety invaded my thoughts and cold sweat started running down my back.
Did he hear me? Please, tell me he didn¡¯t!
I mechanically turned my head to my side, and it was then that I met face to face with another man who was loosely wearing the student uniform. He had a slightly slender physique, a handsome pretty boy face accented by soft amber, almost gold-colored, eyes, and long, white hair that was tied into a ponytail.
Argh, of course! It just had to be a super popular-type guy, didn¡¯t it!? Look, I can even spot a few girls sneaking glances at him in the background!... Ah, I guess my reputation is done for. Everyone will hear about my true colors within a week... My academy debut hasn¡¯t even started yet. Of all the people to overhear me, why did it have to be someone like him?
My anxiety finally overcame my reason and I was about to start begging the other guy to keep quiet about what he heard when suddenly, he saluted me with tears in his eyes before scooting over next to me and patting me on the shoulder.
¡°I understand your pain, comrade.¡±
¡°Wait, what?¡±
The unexpected series of events brought me back from the pit of despair I was in, and once I regained clarity in my mind, I sensed it. It was an unthinkable anomaly, but somehow, I felt a familiar wavelength from him. It was the same one that I had, the wavelength of someone cursed by the goddess of love.
¡°I-Impossible, could it be? Despite your looks, a-are you actually, a fellow wizard?¡±
¡°Trust me, I¡¯m already beyond the level of an arch-wizard¡ You know, sometimes, I wonder to myself... why are we wizards still here? Just to suffer? Just to live out our lives being mocked by those happy couples around us? You feel it too, don¡¯t you?¡±
¡°Ah.¡±
Tears spilled out of my eyes too as I extended my arm out and grabbed his hand in a manly handshake.
¡°Yeah. I never thought I¡¯d ever find another wizard out here. My name is Zane, what¡¯s yours?¡± (Zane)
¡°I¡¯m Kyle, but you can just call me Ky for short. Nice to meet you, comrade.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah, nice to meet you too. So, are you new here?¡± (Zane)
¡°Yep. I just started this year.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Really? Me too. Well, actually, to tell you the truth, I only really enrolled at the Royal Academy because my two best friends did. I don¡¯t even know what they decided to come to here for, but as for me, I have a goal that I definitely have to accomplish in my time here.¡± (Zane)
¡°Eh? What is it?¡± (Kyle)
Flames started burning in my eyes as I pumped myself up again and remembered my one true purpose for coming here.
¡°By the time I graduate from the Academy, I¡¯ll definitely get a cute girlfriend and escape from this accursed path to wizardom! I¡¯ll do it! I¡¯ll become a winner in life, I''ll become a popular guy!¡± (Zane)
As I made my proclamation to ascend into a popular guy, Ky grabbed my shoulder again and wiped the tears off his face with the other arm.
¡°Become a popular guy, huh? To escape from the path to wizardom is a long and perilous journey, but I can already tell from the burning resolve in your eyes, you¡¯re gonna fight till the end! So you know what, I believe in you, Zane!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah. I swear I¡¯ll get out, even if it¡¯s the last thing I do!¡± (Zane)
The background noise slowly blended in with our conversation as I sat in the shade next to Ky, and we chatted with each other about our experience as wizards for the next hour before the opening ceremony started.
The sound of a page being flipped sounded out into an almost empty campus as I sat alone reading a book under the tree. The opening ceremony started a while ago and Zane left to meet up with his friends while I sat here passing time until classes started.
The surroundings blended together as I was enthralled by the romance novel that I picked up from the library earlier this month when suddenly, a loud bell started ringing and brought me back to my senses.
I stared around to see nobody nearby, waited until the ringing stopped, then went straight back to my book afterward. However, after reading through another page in my book, I felt like I was forgetting something important.
Wait, wasn¡¯t the bell the signal for something? Uh, what did Mari say it was again?... Oh, right. It¡¯s supposed to ring at the start of the semester... Ah. Wait, that means the semester started already! Crap! I¡¯m gonna be late for class!
I slammed the book shut before chucking it back into my satchel and swinging it over my shoulder as I ran into the school building.
What room did Professor Balrum say was mine again? Room 208? No, wait, it was 207!
I ran through the empty main hallway before jumping up the stairs and turning right into another empty hallway. As I sprinted down the hallway on the second floor, I glanced at the signs above the doors looking for my classroom.
204... 205... 206... There, 207!
I stopped in my tracks before grabbing the door to the classroom and thrusting it open. My legs propelled me forward and I stumbled into the room while glancing around. The classroom was built like a small lecture hall, with a blackboard behind a large desk in the front of the room and four rows of long tables facing the blackboard. There was a slightly lively atmosphere in the room as I saw five students sitting in the front row, which meant I was the last one to arrive...
Next to the window were two girls dressed in student uniforms smiling and talking to each other. One of them had long silky black hair and dark purple eyes, while the other one had short blonde hair, blue eyes covered by a pair of red-rimmed glasses, and pointed ears which showed that she was an elf.
On the other side of the room were three boys talking amongst themselves. One of them had a head of black hair and similarly colored black eyes along with a kind smile on his face while another one had a grumpy look on his face, blue hair, and sharp green eyes. However, the last one was actually someone I recognized, Zane.
¡°Crap. I¡¯m late, aren¡¯t I?¡± (Kyle)
All eyes in the room turned to stare at me as I sighed, and the blonde elf girl suddenly held her head down while Zane called out to me cheerfully.
¡°Hey, Ky! You¡¯re in this class too? What a coincidence. Anyway, don¡¯t worry, you¡¯re not late, the professor hasn¡¯t even shown up yet!¡± (Zane)
I sighed, walked over to the desk in front of the room, threw my satchel down on top of the table, and took a seat in the chair as I slouched backward.
¡°Of course the professor hasn¡¯t shown up yet... I¡¯m the professor.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh?¡± (Zane)
Zane had a dumbfounded look on his face as I waved my hand around at the class and gave them a lackluster greeting.
¡°Alright everyone, welcome to Ancient Alchemy 101. I¡¯m Professor Kyle.¡± (Kyle)
[Chapter 12] A Thousand Years of Alchemy, and One Year of Budget Cuts
The warm sunlight outside was beginning to seep into the room as an awkward silence simultaneously spread through it. I casually leaned forward while I sat my chair and stared back at everyone in the room to maintain the deadlock, but eventually, Zane gave in and broke the atmosphere.
¡°Wait! Ky, didn¡¯t you say before that this was your first year!?¡± (Zane)
Zane abruptly jolted up from his seat and I turned to him with a smile before giving him a thumbs up.
¡°Yep, this is my first year teaching.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Why do you have a student uniform on then!?¡± (Zane)
¡°Uh¡ long story short, I had to borrow a spare uniform since someone spilled tea on my shirt.¡± (Kyle)
I was about to go into more detail, but before I could say another word, one of the girls by the window, the one with long black hair and purple eyes, stood up with a serious expression.
¡°Well, if you really are our professor, do you have some way to prove it? Even if you weren¡¯t wearing a student uniform, you look a little too young, and I didn¡¯t come here to mess around.¡±
Eh? Wait, do I actually have anything that proves I¡¯m a professor?... I don¡¯t remember Mari giving me a badge or anything like that. And I still don¡¯t have any ID other than my guild and library cards.
¡°...Uhhh¡ Well, you see¡¡± (Kyle)
I tried to stall for time as I was thinking about how to prove my identity when I heard a knock on the door and the voice of my savior sounded out from behind it.
¡°Excuse me, may I come in for a moment?¡±
Professor Balrum¡¯s voice echoed in from the hallway outside and a moment later, he opened the door before stepping in.
¡°Hello everyone, I¡¯m just dropping in to check if everything¡¯s well. I hope I¡¯m not interrupting anything.¡± (Balrum)
¡°Oh, perfect! Professor Balrum you came at just the right time. I need your help for a bit. I already introduced myself as their professor, but my students say they don¡¯t believe me...¡± (Kyle)
¡°Uh, sure, but... Professor Kyle, why are you wearing a student uniform?¡± (Balrum)
¡°The headmistress got my shirt wet while I was in her office earlier so she told me to go borrow a spare uniform, but honestly, looking at how much trouble it¡¯s caused, I should¡¯ve just kept my original outfit... Now can you please tell my students that I¡¯m not lying?¡± (Kyle)
Maybe he was getting sick or something, but while I was explaining my unfortunate situation to him, for some reason Professor Balrum¡¯s face turned red and he let out a few surprised coughs before making an announcement to the class.
¡°Well, it looks like due to some¡ personal circumstances, Professor Kyle has been forced to borrow a uniform for now. So with him being a manaless young man, I can understand why you all might have had your suspicions, but as the head of the alchemy department I can verify that Professor Kyle is indeed the professor of this class.¡± (Balrum)
¡°Eh, manaless?¡± (Zane)
Zane¡¯s voice faintly echoed around the room as everyone in the class had a surprised look on their face after they probably tried to sense my nonexistent mana signature. The black haired girl sat down and crossed her arms once Professor Balrum verified me.
¡°Anyway, if there isn¡¯t anything else, then I¡¯ll be leaving now. I still have to check in on the rest of the professors.¡± (Balrum)
¡°I should be good now. Thanks, Professor Balrum.¡± (Kyle)
¡°No problem. Good luck with your class then.¡± (Balrum)
Professor Balrum subsequently left the room and the awkward silence returned as I turned to face everyone with a smile on my face before clapping my hands together to get their attention.
¡°Alrighty then. Let¡¯s get started. I guess everyone should introduce themselves first. Just tell everyone your name and your goal. You can start us off, Zane.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh, me?¡± (Zane)
Alright buddy, this is all I can do for you right now. I believe in you! So take this chance and make a good first impression on the girls. It doesn¡¯t have to be anything special, just show them you¡¯re a nice, sociable guy. Break through and accomplish your dream, Zane!
The glint in my eyes sharpened a bit as I sent out a passionate telepathic message to my fellow wizard. Zane froze for a second and stared at me back before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. A moment passed before he came back to his senses with flames of passion in his eyes. He stood up confidently and cleared his throat before giving a brief introduction of himself.
¡°Ahem. Hello, everyone. My name is Zane Royhardt, and my goal¡ no, my life¡¯s purpose is to get a girlfriend!¡± (Zane)
Argh! Zane, you idiot!
I slammed my head on the table as Zane immediately threw the chance I gave him right out the window. Cold sweat ran down my back while I sat back up and desperately waved my hands to signal him to stop, but alas, all it did was make the passion burn even brighter in his eyes.
¡°It¡¯s no use Ky, I¡¯m grateful for the chance you gave me, but I won¡¯t stop! You don¡¯t understand yet. There¡¯s no way I can compete with these two, so I need something to make me unique! And even if I lie about my personality now, I can¡¯t hide it forever! Everyone will find out eventually anyway, so I might as well be honest!¡± (Zane)
While I admire your resolve, Zane... please stop! I¡¯m begging you! I can¡¯t watch my fellow comrade suffer like this anymore, it¡¯s getting pretty sad to watch! Look, one of the girls is staring at you like you¡¯re a weirdo, and the other one can¡¯t even bear to look at you, she has her head down!
¡°I¡¯ll get a girlfriend by the end of this year! Even if it¡¯s the last thing I do!¡± (Zane)
And with that last outburst, I let out a pained sigh as Zane sat back down in his seat.
¡°... Um¡ Alright, I guess you can go next.¡± (Kyle)
I made eye contact with Zane¡¯s black-haired friend, who was whispering to Zane in a panic, and he stood up awkwardly before introducing himself with a slightly embarrassed smile.
¡°Hi, everyone. Sorry about my friend here, he¡¯s been a little¡ on edge recently. A-Anyway, my name is Halbert Alyon, and due to some special circumstances, I have to get stronger soon so I can save those who need my help and protect the people around me. I¡¯ll be giving it my all, so thanks for having me!¡± (Halbert)
Halbert¡¯s embarrassed smile changed to a kind, yet determined one as the radiance of his main character aura illuminated the room after he finished his introduction.
Argh! My eyes! It¡¯s too bright! The level of his main character aura is insane! It¡¯s too much to handle for a small side character like me!
I averted my eyes from the radiance that Halbert was emitting and gave Zane a distressed look before sending another telepathic message to my fellow wizard.
Zane! I¡¯m sorry I doubted you! You were right, any nice guy persona you could¡¯ve faked would¡¯ve been overshadowed instantly by this monster. He even has the black hair and eyes of a generic self-insert protagonist! You don¡¯t stand a chance with any woman when he¡¯s around. They¡¯ll all inexplicably fall for him just by being within 500 feet for an hour.
Zane looked back at me as he wiped the tears from his eyes and nodded as he sent a mental reply back to me.
Now you see what I¡¯m up against, Ky? There¡¯s no way I can beat Halbert at being a nice guy, I¡¯m better off trying to be myself!
I exhaustedly gasped for breath and rubbed my eyes as Halbert sat down while his radiance finally started to die out.
¡°Ok, you can go next then.¡± (Kyle)
I stared at the last member of the trio of boys, the one with the blue hair, and he stood up from his brooding with a slightly stoic expression on his face.
¡°My name is Regnis Siegfried, and I¡¯m only here for one reason, to get stronger, strong enough to surpass a certain man.¡± (Regnis)
Regnis glared at Halbert for a moment when he made his declaration before closing his eyes and sitting down again.
Ah, I see. So he¡¯s the edgy rival. Let me guess, his whole motivation to get stronger is probably extremely one dimensional and fueled by something along the lines of ¡®I¡¯ll prove that I¡¯m stronger than you, Halbert!¡¯ or ¡®I¡¯ll show you that I¡¯m better!¡¯ Well, that is until Halbert¡¯s natural plot armor eventually pulls a Deus ex Machina when he¡¯s about to lose, gives him some sort of incredibly broken power from thin air that¡¯s powered by friendship or something stupid like that, and Regnis is forever delegated to the impossible feat of trying to catch up to a main character¡¯s plot armor. He¡¯ll be stuck forever as the Vegeta to Halbert¡¯s Goku.
No wonder Zane showed his true colors immediately. His friends have already got the nice guy and bad boy positions filled, and they¡¯re damn good at it! From what I can tell so far, one of them is just a real body away from being a literal cardboard cutout protagonist with almost no personality besides being nice, and the other one just needs a set of spiked black clothes before he¡¯ll be teleporting behind people and cutting paper from ten feet away with just the edge radiating from him. There¡¯s no way Zane¡¯s acting could compete with these two character tropes on legs.
¡°Um, ok. Nice to know. Let¡¯s move on then.¡± (Kyle)
I turned my head and looked towards the other side of the room at the black haired girl as she stood up and introduced herself while glancing around the room.
¡°I¡¯m Sophie Chryselle, and my goal... is to become a master of every type of alchemy, a Grand Alchemist.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Eh? Wait, your motivation actually makes sense! You¡¯re surprisingly normal.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Normal?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Oh, thank God. I thought I would be stuck in here with a bunch of weirdos after the first three. We only needed a few more walking cliches before we formed the time-honored fantasy RPG hero¡¯s party, but it looks like at least one of you is normal, err, well, normal enough.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Ky, you traitor! Who are you calling a weirdo!? You¡¯re in the same boat as me, aren¡¯t you!?¡± (Zane)
I wiped the sweat off my forehead with a relieved smile as I ignored the verbal complaints of my good green-haired friend while Sophie sat back down with a slightly confused face.
¡°Alright, last one.¡± (Kyle)
We all looked towards the blonde elven girl who was sitting next to Sophie. She still had her head held down, and we stared at her for a moment in awkward silence before Sophie nudged her arm while whispering to her. She slowly looked up at everyone with a red face as she stood stiffly like a robot. After a glance in my direction for a moment, she immediately averted her eyes and looked down while fiddling with her hands.
¡°H-Hello, e-everyone.¡±
Hmm, wait. Actually, now that I¡¯ve had a good look at her face, she seems faintly familiar, like I¡¯ve seen her somewhere before¡ Yeah, I¡¯ve definitely met her before, but I just can¡¯t put my finger on when.
I stared at her intensely while trying to delve into the depths of my memories, but the longer I stared at her, the more nervous she became, and eventually, I just gave up and asked her.
¡°Have we met before?¡± (Kyle)
¡°A-Augh¡ W-We have, P-Professor Kyle.¡±
She let out a surprised whimper before stuttering out her confirmation, and I finally remembered where I met her after hearing that faintly familiar whimper. She was the receptionist at the guild in Delhurst when I registered as an adventurer! I remember now, the one who ran away from me!
¡°Ah. Wait, you were the receptionist at the guild the day I registered. Small world, huh? Who would¡¯ve thought you would end up as my student? Anyway, I¡¯m sorry if I frightened you last time, please don¡¯t run away again...¡± (Kyle)
I gently smiled at her as she went fully red to the tips of her ears and covered her face with her hands, before ducking behind the lecture hall desk.
It¡¯s just gonna be a repeat of last time, isn¡¯t it!? Seriously, what did I do wrong!?
¡°Ah, I see... Well, sorry, but I guess you¡¯ll all have to take another class. I¡¯ll be handing in my resignation by the end of the day since it seems like whether it¡¯s the adventurer¡¯s guild or even my own classroom, I¡¯m not wanted in either... Maybe one day I¡¯ll even see one of you again.¡± (Kyle)A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Tears flowed out of my eyes as I picked up my satchel and began to walk towards the door with a depressed smile on my face.
¡°...W-Wait! P-Professor Kyle.¡±
I stopped in my tracks as the girl¡¯s nervous voice sounded out from behind me and I turned around to see her head peeking over the desk. She made eye contact with me for a moment before turning around and muttering to herself as she lightly slapped her cheeks with both her hands. The receptionist girl stood up again and turned around to face me with a burning red face while talking in a soft voice.
¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t mean to run away like that the first time. I¡¯m just very shy, so please forgive me if I seem like I¡¯m running away. Honestly, I¡¯m happy to see you again, Professor Kyle. So please let me finish my introduction! My name is Reina, Reina Syl- ack!¡± (Reina)
She bit her tongue¡
There was a moment of fluffy silence as we all watched Reina cutely cover her mouth then duck under the desk again with a red face before I called out to her in a gentle voice.
¡°Umm, it¡¯s ok. You don¡¯t have to talk so fast, just take your time. There¡¯s no rush.¡± (Kyle)
Reina slowly stood up again while trembling slightly before continuing with tears in her eyes.
¡°... Reina Sylfey¡ And my goal, is to overcome my shyness, s-so I¡¯ll be in your care. Thank you very much!¡± (Reina)
Reina gave a quick bow towards me before sitting back down in her seat and releasing all the tension in her body. She melted backwards into her chair with dead eyes and a blank smile as she muttered something under her breath while Sophie consoled her.
¡ I don¡¯t know what ancient alchemy can do for your shyness, but to each their own I guess¡ well, at the very least, her goal¡¯s probably the most reasonably achievable one out of all of them.
Actually, wait a second! Did she say her last name was Sylfey!?
¡°... Uh, Reina, are you by chance related to the headmistress?¡± (Kyle)
As I asked Reina with a nervous smile on my face, she immediately snapped back to life with a small exclamatory squeal and fumbled around for a moment in her seat before answering me.
¡°Y-Yes, Headmistress Sylfey is my aunt. I-Is there something wrong?¡± (Reina)
Looks like I haven¡¯t escaped Mari¡¯s reach just yet, huh? What is this, a bloodline curse!? Even after I finally escaped that paperwork-filled hellhole, she sends her niece over to remind me of my suffering under her hand! What¡¯s next? Will she start showing up to my class herself?
¡°N-No, nothing¡¯s wrong¡ I was just wondering.¡± (Kyle)
I let out a dry laugh before sitting back down and letting out a sigh with a depressed smile on my face as I slumped forward onto my desk.
¡°Well, I guess it¡¯s about time I start class.¡± (Kyle)
After a moment, I slowly got up out of my chair, turned around, and picked up a piece of chalk before writing ¡®self-study¡¯ on the board in big letters.
¡°Alright everyone, your first assignment today is to do some serious self-reflection on why you decided to learn ancient alchemy. Don¡¯t worry, I get paid by the hour, so take your time.¡± (Kyle)
I returned to my seat and reached into my bag to pull out the book I was reading earlier before nonchalantly leaning back in my chair and opening it up to where I left off. There was silence in the room as everyone stared at me in disbelief before Sophie finally lost her temper and stood up.
¡°What the hell do you mean self-study!? We¡¯re here because we want to learn ancient alchemy! We don¡¯t even have a textbook or any material to study! What¡¯s the point of coming to your class, if you¡¯re not even gonna teach us anything!?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Uh... well, I believe that first, you have to look deep inside yourself and find peace with your inner soul before starting to learn ancient alchemy. Trust me, it¡¯s an age-old tradition.¡± (Kyle)
¡°That¡¯s the most idiotic and pointless tradition I¡¯ve ever heard of! If you¡¯re gonna make an excuse, then at least make it believable!¡± (Sophie)
¡°Damn. Well, it was worth a try at least. Alright, fine, you guys can study this then.¡± (Kyle)
I rummaged through my bag again and pulled out the first monster core I could find as Reina held Sophie back. The small crystalline monster core in my hand glistened with a light green as I moved my eyes away from Sophie and Reina to glance at it for a moment. Once I confirmed that it was a wind-element monster core, my field of vision moved back to my book as I placed the monster core on the table, got up again, and erased the ¡®self-study¡¯ that I wrote on the board a few moments ago. My free hand picked up a piece of chalk again and I quickly scribbled the first alchemy circle that came to my mind as I continued reading my book.
¡°There, done.¡± (Kyle)
Once I finished lazily drawing the circle, I placed the chalk back down as Sophie¡¯s angry voice sounded out behind me once more.
¡°What do you mean done!? Do you think I¡¯m an idiot!?¡± (Sophie)
I returned to the table and picked up the monster core as I ignored Sophie¡¯s rambling before placing the monster core against the alchemy circle.
¡°There¡¯s no way an alchemy circle like that would work! Look, one of the lines is even-¡± (Sophie)
¡°¡¾Gale Burst¡¿, single cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
The alchemy circle and monster core both immediately lit up with a green light and a strong burst of wind blasted out in all directions as everyone immediately hung onto the desks and covered their heads. When the wind finally died down, their bags had been thrown to the back of the room and their clothes were still fluttering a bit.
There was absolute silence as I sat back down, placed the half-used monster core on the table, and turned to the next page in my book. Everyone stood there with a dumbfounded expression as they stared at the alchemy circle for a few moments before Sophie ran up to the chalkboard to inspect it.
¡°T-That¡¯s impossible, how did it work? This is just regular chalk, and the circle doesn¡¯t even look like it was drawn correctly.¡± (Sophie)
She gazed intensely at the alchemy circle for a while before running back and grabbing a notebook to copy it down as everyone else walked up to the blackboard. I glanced at the clock to see that about half an hour had passed since class started, and I clapped my hands again to get their attention.
¡°Alright, there you go. I guess your new assignment can be analyzing this alchemy circle. Just tell me what you all have at the end of class today.¡± (Kyle)
I picked up my book again before I saw Zane run over to me with an excited look on his face.
¡°Ky, how did you do that!? That was insane, it was almost as strong as a third-circle wind spell!¡± (Zane)
Hmm, third-circle? If I remember correctly,¡¾Gale Burst¡¿should be somewhere around the level of a solid fourth-circle wind spell, but I guess this one was kind of weak for some reason. Well, maybe they¡¯ll find out why after analyzing it.
At least they still use the circle system for magic. I just assumed that the current modern magic system was similar to the old one, just with a few new tricks here and there and maybe some new terms, but it looks like they still call them circles. I guess the magic system hasn¡¯t changed much at all in the last thousand years, but honestly, I doubt they could create a completely new system for magic unless there was a huge overhaul in how it¡¯s fundamentally used.
You see, the way most magic works is that a person channels mana into their surroundings and that mana naturally forms into a magic circle based on the mental image of the person, the type of mana being channeled, and the specific way they channel it. Most chants are only there to help build up the mental image of the person casting the spell, which is why if someone is skilled enough at controlling mana and has a strong enough mental image of a spell without a chant, the chant can be shortened or even omitted entirely. And even among chants, while there was a standard chant for almost every basic spell back then, the chants for most spells don¡¯t need to be the standard ones at all, and they can even vary depending on the person.
However, the natural formation of magic circles does have a limit, as mana can only condense naturally to a certain point, and while it is far from the absolute critical limit possible, after the natural limit is reached, mana can¡¯t be condensed anymore unless the person casting the spell artificially condenses it themselves, which requires extremely precise control of mana. In the beginning, most high level mages did exactly that and trained specifically to raise their control of mana to an insanely high-level so they could artificially condense tons of mana into a naturally formed magic circle. This level of mana control usually took decades or even centuries of training for a normal person to acquire, and even after that, once you got to the higher-level spells, the slightest mistake during the process of condensing mana could lead to the whole spell backfiring and exploding, so there weren¡¯t that many high-level mages at first, but eventually, mages found a different solution.
One day, some mage came up with the revolutionary idea that since condensing mana into a single magic circle beyond the natural limit wasn¡¯t very efficient, then they would just use more than one circle. And thus the magic circle system was born. So instead of artificially condensing tons of mana into a single circle, mages formed multiple circles layered on top of each other and let them all reach the natural condensation limit. This still took a decent amount of mana control, but the level necessary for this was nowhere near as high as it needed to be for the original method, and eventually, they created a system where magic was separated and classified based on the level of naturally formed magic circles required to cast it.
The most basic spells still only used one circle, but as the spells got more powerful and complex, the number of circles needed to cast it increased until it hit the limit of normal spells, which was nine circles. Any spells above the level of nine circles tended to be unstable and usually needed to be formed by natural laws instead of mana, which, despite being vastly more concentrated and powerful, was usually much more difficult to form into magic circles or wasn¡¯t even able to naturally form magic circles at all. And as such, many mages who reached the level of using natural laws to replace mana either fell back to the original condensing method of using a single magic circle, or completely dropped the use of magic and magic circles and instead, learned to manipulate the special properties of natural laws to generate supernatural phenomena or techniques, which was basically equivalent to circle-less magic in some cases. Anyway, I think I¡¯ve rambled on a bit too long with my history lesson on magic.
After returning to my senses, I turned to Zane with a serious face as I put my book down for a moment.
¡±Zane, do you want my answer as a professor... or do you want the real answer?¡± (Kyle)
¡°T-The real answer.¡± (Zane)
¡°Don¡¯t regret your decision then.¡± (Kyle)
I grabbed Zane¡¯s shoulder as his face turned serious too before he nervously gulped.
¡°Look, Zane, the truth is¡ I have no idea.¡± (Kyle)
I wiped the serious expression off my face in a heartbeat and gave Zane a wry smile as I casually shrugged my shoulders.
¡°Eh?... What do you mean you have no idea? Aren¡¯t you a professor of ancient alchemy? How did you draw that alchemy circle then!? You¡¯re supposed to be the one who knows how it works!¡± (Zane)
¡°Well, truth be told, I don¡¯t really know the specifics. It just works. As long as you draw the circle exactly like I did, it¡¯ll function perfectly. And once you get enough experience drawing alchemy circles, you get an idea of the basic shapes and markings and what they end up doing when put together. It¡¯s like a chemical reaction, you don¡¯t need to know how it works, just what the reactants are to make a certain product.¡± (Kyle)
Zane just stood there with a disappointed expression as I patted him on the shoulder.
¡°Hey look, I could¡¯ve lied to you about knowing everything and given you some fake answer to keep the wonder and curiosity alive, but you were the one who wanted to know the truth, so there you go.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I mean, you¡¯re right, but I¡¯m still kind of disappointed...¡± (Zane)
Zane sighed as he went back to the rest of the class gathered around the blackboard, and it almost seemed like he was being interrogated about his conversation with me, but that¡¯s none of my business.
I moved my chair over to the window and opened it a bit as I leaned back in my seat again and continued reading. The sunlight shone in through the window, illuminating the pages of the book in my hands as a faint breeze blew by and the scene of five students talking and standing around a blackboard played out next to me for the next few hours.
***
After Zane told them about his conversation with me, the rest of the class didn¡¯t believe him at first and they, by they I mean Sophie, came over to ask me some complicated questions about the alchemy circle, like what the directional flow of the mana was or what the minimum necessary mana attunement level for the drawing material was, but I didn¡¯t know any of the answers to their questions and Zane already told them the truth anyway, so I just honestly gave them the same answer I told Zane, ¡®it just works.¡¯
A little bit after that we all had lunch, but it was mostly just me talking with the boys about random stuff since Reina and Sophie ate together on the other side of the room. And after lunch, I just sat by the window again to read for a few more hours as the class gathered once more together to analyze the alchemy circle until the end of class.
I let out a lazy chuckle and flipped to the next page of my book as the sound of everyone chatting in the background began to die down. A few more minutes passed, and I was about a quarter of the way through a page in my book, when I heard Sophie call out to me.
¡°Professor Kyle, here, we¡¯re done with the analysis.¡± (Sophie)
I lowered my book to see Sophie standing in front of me with a sulky pout on her face while holding out a small stack of papers. I took the stack of papers from her and flipped through them quickly to see pages upon pages of densely packed diagrams and notes on the alchemy circle.
¡°Umm, g-great job, everyone. I¡¯ll look it over and get this back to you, uh, sometime soon.¡± (Kyle)
I gave the class a sheepish smile and threw the stack of papers into my bag as Sophie let out a sigh.
¡°Look, while I can¡¯t say much for your work ethic or your theoretical knowledge, after analyzing that alchemy circle, I have to admit you¡¯re at least a professor capable of using high-level ancient alchemy, and probably one of the best I¡¯ve met when it comes to your field. To be honest, your idea of drawing outside the outer edge of the alchemy circle is a innovative concept I¡¯ve never seen before, and you even somehow made it work with just regular chalk. So please, let me at least keep some level of respect for you, if not as a professor, then at least as a fellow alchemist.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Wait a second. Going past the outer edge of the circle? What are you talking about? There¡¯s no way an alchemy circle like that would work properly.¡± (Kyle)
I gave Sophie a puzzled look and she gave me a similar expression back while we stared at each other for a moment.
¡°Eh? Wait, what do you mean? It¡¯s right there in your own damn circle! Look.¡± (Sophie)
Sophie pointed to the blackboard behind me and I turned around to look at the alchemy circle I drew this morning. After following the trajectory of her finger, I noticed a stray mark that slightly went past the outer edge of the alchemy circle.
¡°Ah. Crap, you¡¯re right, there¡¯s a small line sticking out. Sorry everyone, I guess my drawing was a little sloppy. I probably didn¡¯t lift the chalk completely off the board when I finished, and it went past the outer edge at the end. No wonder it was a little weaker than usual.¡± (Kyle)
I walked up immediately and erased the bit that went past the outer edge of the circle as I grabbed the monster core again with my other hand and held it up to the new, correctly drawn alchemy circle.
¡°Alright, there we go, it should be a little stronger now.¡¾Gale Burst¡¿, single cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait! A little stronger!?¡± (Sophie)
I turned around with a smile, but what met my eyes was terror on my students'' faces as those in the back ducked behind the desks for cover. Sophie desperately looked around for cover too before a green light shone from behind me and I finally realized my mistake.
Ah, wait... I shouldn¡¯t have activated it¡
I immediately dove forward and grabbed Sophie to cover her with my body as a deafening explosion of air blasted out from behind me. Every window in the room shattered instantly, the door was smashed out into the hallway, and I was hurtled into the wall at the back of the room. I hugged Sophie tight in midair to shield her body from the blast and managed to turn myself so that my back slammed against the wall instead of Sophie¡¯s. The wall cracked under the impact as we crashed into it before the vestiges of the raging wind ruffled our hair and clothes.
There was absolute silence as the wind finally died down again and everyone poked their heads out from behind the lecture hall desks to stare at the back of the room with dazed expressions. I crawled out from behind the last row of desks as I loosened my grip on Sophie, patted the dust off her head, and placed her down on the ground again safe and sound. After looking around for a second at everyone staring at me, along with the destruction in the room, I promptly made an announcement to calm them all down.
¡°Ahem. Unfortunately, it seems that a small mishap has occurred on my end, so with that, class today is dismissed. Umm, don¡¯t worry too much about the damage, I¡¯ll get the classroom fixed up by tomorrow. See you all then.¡± (Kyle)
Alright, whose budget should I slash to fix this¡ the magic department? No, they¡¯re already running dry. The business department? Well, they¡¯re almost self sufficient. Ah, I got it, the weapons department! They just got that new training field too so they probably won¡¯t need anything else for a while. Well, looking at last year¡¯s budget, they¡¯ve had it too good for too long anyway.
I promptly walked through the rubble to my satchel and pulled out the master budget notebook that Mari gave me earlier before I began to flip through it and make some changes.
[Chapter 12.5] Commence Operation Unpaid Magical Girl Internship!
¡°Urgh¡ I want pancakes¡¡± (Eliza)
A sigh left my mouth as I threw the romance novel in my hands on the floor before stretching my arms and rolling around on my bed. The sunshine outside shone in through the open window, warmly illuminating the bottom half of my bed while a faint breeze spread throughout the room. It was the same as always, just another peaceful day, but despite the picturesque scene, there was a lonely tone in my voice. Nothing but melancholic silence answered my request as I laid there, staring at the ceiling. A few moments passed before I sat up and stared outside at the clouds floating in the vast blue sky.
It¡¯s been about a year since Ky left, and things have changed a bit since then. There¡¯s a lot that isn¡¯t the same anymore. This house just feels empty without him, and there¡¯s a part of my heart that still believes that one day he¡¯ll walk through the door to call me and Olivia over for lunch or something like nothing ever happened, but I know that¡¯s just a hopeless wish.
A year is a long time, even for a god, and Olivia and I have learned to live with his absence, but if I¡¯m going to be completely honest, the thing that affected us the most is not having Ky around to do chores anymore. I mean I miss Ky... a lot. And mixed feelings bubble up in my heart every time I think of him, but I don¡¯t think that the house can survive much longer without him to clean it up every day, I¡¯ve even had to resort to cleaning up after myself recently.
My room¡¯s currently a bit messy, but the truth is, this is actually the cleanest it¡¯s been in a while. I remember about a month after Ky left, Olivia and I were both still depressed, so neither of us cleaned up at all and the house¡¯s cleanliness slowly deteriorated until eventually, it got to the point where it wasn¡¯t even fit for living in anymore. After that, we had a huge trash purge and got the house back to a barely livable state again, but we knew it was only a temporary solution. We needed to change something, so I agreed to try and clean up after myself while Olivia would clean out the house a bit every week, and we¡¯ve been doing that ever since.
I buried my face in the pillow and let the sound of the light breeze outside overtake the silence as I thought about what to do today. A few minutes passed and I was deep in thought when the faint sound of the front door opening reached my ears. I snapped back to my senses before letting out another sigh and getting out of bed. I picked my book up from the floor and gently placed it on my desk as I held my hand up to shield my eyes from the sunlight. I stood there for a moment and gazed at the scenic view outside again before reassuring myself about my decision for what to do today. I closed the window and left my room with a smile on my face as I walked over to the living room where Olivia was.
¡°Olivia, do we have anything urgent to do today?¡± (Eliza)
¡°Urgent? Not really... Today we¡¯re actually pretty free. Why? Was there something you had in mind, Lady Eliza?¡± (Olivia)
¡°Yeah. You know, since Ky left, I¡¯ve been thinking about it for a while, should we find a new heroic spirit?¡± (Eliza)
¡°A new heroic spirit? Well, I guess it has been kind of quiet around here recently, and someone new to talk to would be nice.¡± (Olivia)
¡°Great!¡± (Eliza)
¡°Then I¡¯ll go and send out a request to his highness to transfer over someone. He usually has a few heroic spirits on standby, and we have a pretty good relationship with him because of Ky, so he¡¯ll probably send over someone qualified.¡± (Olivia)
¡°Transfer? No thanks, especially if it¡¯s one of his cronies. They¡¯ll probably just complain about how run down this house is, or praise how magnificent ¡®his highness, the God of Light,¡¯ is compared to us. We¡¯ll never hear the end of it! I think we should find a talented rookie instead.¡± (Eliza)
I held my fist up in the air and struck a confident pose as my eyes sparkled with determination, but it looked like Olivia wasn¡¯t as keen on finding a diamond in the rough as I was. Her eyes glazed over and she looked at me with an empty smile before letting out a dry chuckle.
¡°A talented rookie? Lazy Eliza, are you sure you understand what you¡¯re saying? What talented person in their right mind would want to be hired by us? Let¡¯s be real, just look at us. We have nothing except your divine domain and this house, which by the way is always messy thanks to your antics. The only reason we¡¯re even getting by nowadays is because of the salary we get for being Ky¡¯s jailers. Why would someone with talent join us over one of the high gods or even one of the other lesser gods? I don¡¯t think we can even afford to pay them much.¡± (Olivia)
Olivia¡¯s arguments shot through my plan like arrows and the luster in my eyes began to fade as I finally faced the facts of our situation while the depression began to set in again. I let out a sigh as I plopped onto the sofa and slouched backward. A few seconds passed while I reworked my plan with our limitations in mind before calling out to Olivia again.
¡°Well, whoever we find doesn¡¯t have to be strong. We don¡¯t need a fighter, hell, they don¡¯t even have to be qualified to be a heroic spirit. Honestly, just someone else to talk to around here is good enough. Uhh¡ anyway, since we can¡¯t afford to pay them, can¡¯t we just have them on an unpaid internship? Just call them a heroic spirit trainee or something.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Unpaid internship? What¡¯s that?¡± (Olivia)
¡°I heard about them from Ky. Where he¡¯s from, they have this thing called unpaid internships. It¡¯s where you have someone who¡¯s new work for you for free. Apparently, it¡¯s so they can gain experience in the field and eventually get a job afterward, but Ky told me it was really just a shady way to exploit free labor from inexperienced newbies.¡± (Eliza)
¡°That sounds stupid. Who would ever fall for an obvious trap like that?¡± (Olivia)
¡°That¡¯s what I said too, but Ky told me never to underestimate the stupidity of people. According to him, thousands of people fall for it on a yearly basis. Anyway, we can¡¯t pay any of our new hires, so let¡¯s try it out. We¡¯ll have something to do now at least.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Well, it still sounds to me like this is just a waste of time, but if you insist, I guess we could give it a shot. So what do we do now?¡± (Olivia)
Olivia let out a sigh and I lifted myself off the couch as the sparkle in my eyes returned.
¡°I¡¯m glad you asked, Olivia. Actually, there¡¯s been a plan that I¡¯ve been meaning to put into action for a while now. Wait here for a second.¡± (Eliza)
I ran over with gusto to the closet nearby as Olivia watched me with a confused look on her face. The door to the small closet was torn open and a small cloud of dust flew out as I dug through the miscellaneous knick-knacks to find a magical staff. It was a long stick of slightly pink colored wood, and the bottom of the staff had a fist-sized crystal embedded in golden metal, while the top of the staff took the shape of a large hook, decorated with light golden colored feathers and tiny magic circles arranged to look like runes.
I held the staff in my hands, patted the dust off of it, and threw the rest of the junk I dug out of the closet back in before running over to Olivia with a smile.
¡°Tada! This here is a bonafide, one-of-a-kind magical girl staff. It¡¯s the only one in the entire world, and it was co-designed by yours truly.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Wait, a magical-what?¡± (Olivia)
¡°A magical girl. Ky told me about them too. They¡¯re mysterious female heroes that use magic to fight against the hidden forces of darkness in the name of things like friendship and love, a perfectly fitting theme for someone like say, me, the Goddess of Love. I heard from Ky that a magical girl usually has a cute familiar and a magical staff that allows them to transform into their costumes. So while we can¡¯t provide a cute familiar, we can provide a magical staff. Now, let¡¯s see if this still works.¡± (Eliza)
I channeled mana into the staff, and it flowed around inside the wood before reaching the numerous fake runes at the top of the staff. Immediately the magic circles all began to light up with a pink glow and mana shot out of the runes to form a glowing ball of pure pink mana in the open center of the hook. A blinding pink glow spread out into the surroundings from the center of the ball of mana, and music mysteriously appeared from seemingly nowhere as a thin, yet solid layer of mana molded over my body to form clothes.
When the transformation sequence finally finished, the pink glow abruptly died out and burst into particles of pink mana like shattered shards of glass as the glowing ball of mana reformed on the staff while the music faded out, revealing me standing there, striking a pose.
I was wearing a short pink and white dress lined with gold-rimmed accents, along with a pair of long pink gloves that reached past my elbows, white stockings, and a pair of cute, pink shoes. Puffy frills and ribbons were lined all over my outfit, and on the side of my head was a single golden colored hairpin in the shape of a bundle of feathers just like the ones on the staff.
Olivia stood there staring at me with a dumbfounded look on her face as I put my hands on my hips and let out a triumphant laugh.
¡°Yes! It still works! Alright, Olivia, commence Operation Unpaid Magical Girl Internship! I¡¯ll send you down to the main plane along with the staff, maybe near where I sent Ky, and you can go scout out our magical girl candidates!¡± (Eliza)
¡°Wait, before we do anything, where did you get this!?¡± (Olivia)
¡°Didn¡¯t you hear me before, I co-designed it. It¡¯s completely powered by alchemy. Ky helped me out with all the technicals, and after hearing his descriptions about outfits, I designed how the costume and staff looked. It¡¯s our pride and joy. Here, take a look.¡± (Eliza)
I handed the staff over to Olivia and she held it in her hands before beginning to inspect it.
¡°When did you make this? I don¡¯t remember ever seeing this before.¡± (Olivia)
¡°Hmm, if I remember correctly, it was around 200 years ago. It was pretty fun at first, but we got bored of it after a few weeks, so it¡¯s been sitting in the closet ever since.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Wait, is this crystal a dragon heart!? And these are phoenix feathers!? The wood for this staff is even from the World Tree! Where the hell did you get the money to buy all this!?¡± (Olivia)
Ah. Crap, I remember why we never showed it to Olivia now! Think Eliza, think! Where could we have found this?
My face immediately cramped up and I plastered a nervous smile on my face as cold sweat ran down my back.
¡°Uhh¡ I found them¡ outside.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Ah, now I remember! About 200 years ago, there was a suspicious hole in our savings after I came back from visiting my family for a month. You and Ky told me that it was just a mistake in our records, but no matter how many times I redid the budget, I could never find the mistake and I always felt that there was something you two were hiding from me!¡± (Olivia)
Olivia looked over at me with an angry smile as sweat poured down my face and my nervous smile started to tremble.
¡°Lady Eliza, what do you have to say for yourself?¡± (Olivia)
Olivia¡¯s voice was terrifyingly monotone, and I slowly backed away from her, towards the couch as she stood there.
¡°Now, Olivia. I know what I did was wrong, and I definitely should have told you, but everyone deserves a second chance, don¡¯t they? Hehe.¡± (Eliza)
I winked at Olivia with my nervous smile and stuck my tongue out cutely as I knocked my fist lightly on my head, but it seemed that Olivia didn¡¯t care much for my adorable acting because immediately after I struck my pose, Olivia held the staff like a club and took a stance as I turned around and started running for my life.
I kicked the door open and ran outside as Olivia started to chase me with the same angry smile on her face.
¡°Wait! Olivia, I don¡¯t care if you hit me, but don¡¯t hit me with the staff! You¡¯re gonna break it! Do you even know how much that staff cost to make!?¡± (Eliza)
A light breeze blew by and I let out a sigh as I walked down the street towards my house. I turned right from the main road and entered a small pathway between two buildings as I navigated further away from the busy street behind me. I had just finished stalk-, ahem, observing Sir Kyle from behind the bookshelves at the library earlier today, and my social anxiety was already kicking back in as I made another turn. My keys jingled in the pocket of my guild receptionist uniform as I walked along the alleyway and I finally arrived at the front door of my house when suddenly, a strange person dressed in a brown hooded cloak appeared from around the corner.
I could tell by the stranger¡¯s figure that it was a woman, and there was a long pink and gold staff strapped to her back. The hood of her cloak shrouded the top of her face in darkness, but I could faintly see a pair of green eyes staring intensely at me from behind what seemed to be glasses. An awkward silence filled the alleyway as we both froze, but after a few moments, I heard her muttering something to herself.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.
¡°... Lady Eliza, are you sure about her?... Yes, I know, but why do I have to do it this way?¡¡±
I stood there trembling as I watched the suspicious hooded woman talk to herself like a lunatic before she let out an annoyed sigh and reached out towards me with a smile on her face.
¡°Umm, excuse me miss. This might be a weird question to ask, but... would you be interested in becoming a heroic spirit trainee? Look, I¡¯ll even give you this magic staff.¡±
The suspicious hooded woman pulled the staff out from behind her back before showing it off to me like she was trying to sell it to me. After getting a closer look at the staff, I could tell that it was definitely an expensive magical item.
I-Is she a con artist? If I touch it, it¡¯ll definitely break, won¡¯t it?
I turned around and ran towards the main street as I screamed out for the guards.
¡°G-Guards! Someone, help! There¡¯s a suspicious person here!¡± (Reina)
¡°W-Wait! I¡¯m not suspicious, I swear!¡±
I made it about halfway down the street when suddenly, a large yellow magic circle appeared below my feet and a barrier of light-element mana materialized in front of me, trapping me inside with the hooded woman. I chantlessly cast a second circle wind spell and two light green magic circles layered on top of each other appeared in front of me before a small arrow made of wind shot out towards the barrier. The arrow crashed into the barrier and exploded into a small burst of wind as a spark of hope lit up in my heart, but that spark was quickly extinguished when I saw that my second circle spell didn¡¯t even scratch the barrier. The sound of footsteps sounded out behind me and I fell backward onto the ground as I turned around to face the hooded woman with a terrified look on my face.
¡°S-Stay back! I-I¡¯ll blast you with magic if you come any closer!¡± (Reina)
¡°Please, miss, calm down. I¡¯m not here to hurt you.¡±
The hooded woman took her hood off to reveal that she was an elf too. She had a wry smile on her face and platinum blonde hair a little longer than mine, tied into a long ponytail while her deep green eyes were covered by the pair of glasses hanging off her pointed ears.
She slowly walked closer and extended her hand out to me on the ground as I sat there trembling in fear.
¡°Are you ok, miss? I¡¯m sorry about trapping you so suddenly, it must have been scary, but I¡¯m not here to hurt you. I just want to talk with you for a bit.¡±
The woman softly grabbed my hand to help me up off the ground, the barrier behind me was dispelled a second later, and everything returned to normal except for the woman now standing in front of me.
¡°Ok, now I know this will definitely sound unbelievable, but here goes. My name is Olivia Faevaris, and I¡¯m a heroic spirit serving under the Goddess of Love.¡± (Olivia)
A glowing white halo appeared on top of Olivia¡¯s head as soon as she finished speaking, and I felt an indescribable pressure radiating from her for a moment before the halo disappeared again along with the pressure.
W-Wait! She¡¯s actually a heroic spirit!? Oh no! What have I done!?
My body immediately stiffened up and I began to profusely apologize as Lady Olivia stared at me with a confused smile.
¡°I¡¯m so sorry! Please forgive me, your holiness! I didn¡¯t know you were a heroic spirit!¡± (Reina)
¡°Wait, calm down! Look, it¡¯s ok. I¡¯m not angry. Honestly, I would¡¯ve done the same if some random person in a suspicious hooded cloak came up to me in an alleyway and asked me a ridiculous question. Isn¡¯t that right, Lady Eliza?... This is your fault in the first place!... What?... Bring her up?¡± (Olivia)
¡°Eh?¡± (Reina)
I stopped bowing and looked up for a moment to see Lady Olivia staring up at the sky with an angry smile on her face while crossing her arms. After a moment of awkward silence, she let out a heavy sigh and facepalmed before calling out to me again.
¡°By the way, what¡¯s your name, miss?¡± (Olivia)
¡°R-Reina Sylfey, your holiness!¡± (Reina)
¡°Miss Reina, I¡¯m sorry, but I¡¯m going to have to borrow you for a moment.¡± (Olivia)
Lady Olivia stretched her hand out towards the ground and suddenly another magic circle formed at our feet. I immediately began to panic before a flash of bright light blinded me and suddenly, I wasn¡¯t in front of my house anymore.
I ran outside and got into position in front of the ritual grounds as I thought about what pose to strike for the arrival of our new hire. You know what they say, first impressions are the strongest, and if we¡¯re gonna have someone new around here, the first thing we have to establish is the pecking order... Oh, looks like she¡¯s here already.
A magic circle formed in the middle of the ritual grounds and shone brightly for a moment before Olivia and our new hire appeared in front of me. I immediately put both hands on my hips and leaned my head back as I began to laugh evilly.
¡°Mwahahahaha! Welcome to my divine domain! Once you¡¯re in here, your fate is in my hands!¡± (Eliza)
¡°Stop that, you idiot! You¡¯re just scaring her more!¡± (Olivia)
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Olivia angrily throw something at me and I instinctively took half a step to the side to avoid it at first, only to realize as it was flying past me that Olivia had actually thrown the magical girl staff.
¡°Ah! Wait, the staff!¡± (Eliza)
I instantly pounced towards the staff and caught it in mid-air before hugging it tightly as I tumbled along the lawn while protecting the staff with my own body. After I finally stopped rolling, I promptly got up and ran back to the ritual grounds with the staff in my hands.
¡°Whew, that was close.¡± (Eliza)
¡°The only thing close here is my temper to snapping! I told you that we shouldn¡¯t have been so shady about it! Why did you think making me dress up suspiciously while standing around in alleyways looking for magical girl candidates was a good idea!?¡± (Olivia)
¡°Well, I thought it would be cooler for our new hire to get the staff from a mysterious hooded figure appearing from the darkness. It really gives you the sense that it¡¯s an ancient, sacred artifact being passed on to a chosen one instead of a toy that we made for fun then got bored of a few weeks later.¡± (Eliza)
I stood there pouting meekly as I hid the staff behind my body and avoided eye contact with Olivia. She let out a sigh and stared at me in disappointment before facepalming.
¡°You know what, I¡¯m done. You just handle the rest. I¡¯m gonna go take a break.¡± (Olivia)
Olivia walked past me with an exhausted look on her face and entered the house leaving me alone with our new hire. The awkward silence lasted a few moments as I stared curiously at the trembling elven girl on the floor in front of me.
¡°So... what¡¯s your name?¡± (Eliza)
¡°... R-Reina Sylfey.¡± (Reina)
¡°Alright, Reina, today¡¯s your lucky day. You¡¯ve been personally chosen by me, the Goddess of Love, to be a heroic spirit trainee in our new unpaid magical girl internship program.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Wait, what!? Heroic spirit trainee!?¡± (Reina)
Reina slowly got up off the ground with trembling legs and a flabbergasted look on her face as I snickered at her a little.
¡°W-Wait, y-your holiness, I don¡¯t think I¡¯m the right person for this!¡± (Reina)
¡°No need to be so stiff, just Eliza¡¯s fine.¡± (Eliza)
¡°L-Lady Eliza, I have no idea how to do anything like this! P-Please, I just want to go home.¡± (Reina)
¡°Eh? Nonsense, you¡¯re perfect. Have a little more confidence in yourself. You don¡¯t need any experience either because this is exactly how you¡¯ll be getting all of it. That¡¯s why it¡¯s an unpaid internship. And anyway, it¡¯s not like you have much of a choice in this. Like I said before, once you¡¯re in my divine domain, you can¡¯t leave without my permission so your fate is in my hands. Now come on, newbie! Let''s go back inside. Your first assignment will be cleaning the house.¡± (Eliza)
¡°...augh¡¡± (Reina)
I twirled around and started walking back to the house as behind me, Reina let out a defeated whimper and slumped down in depression for a few moments before catching up to me with tears in her eyes.
***
¡°Lady Eliza, I finished cleaning up the house, what should I do now?¡± (Reina)
I was lying down on the sofa, halfway through another sappy romance novel, when Reina¡¯s voice brought me back to reality. I closed the book and looked up to see Reina staring at me with a broom in her hands and a helpless expression on her face. A quick glance around the now tidy living room showed me that Reina really had finished cleaning the whole house, and after a moment, I sat up while nodding in approval.
¡°Alright, good job Reina, you¡¯ve passed your initiation test with flying colors. Follow me, it¡¯s time for you to be officially hired. And I¡¯ll send you back home afterward.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Y-Yes, Lady Eliza.¡± (Reina)
Reina saluted me while tears ran down her face and I grabbed the magical girl staff that was leaning against the arm of the sofa before walking outside again to the ritual grounds. After we arrived outside, I stopped in front of the ritual grounds and turned around to see Reina with the same helpless smile plastered on her face.
¡°Alright. With my authority as the Goddess of Love, true name, Eliza Strateous, I hereby announce that Reina Sylfey will be officially granted the position of heroic spirit trainee. She will be appointed the title of ¡®Magical Girl of Love¡¯ along with a divine artifact as a reward for her excellence.¡± (Eliza)
I put on my serious face for a moment and inducted Reina into her unpaid internship before gently handing over the magical girl staff. Immediately after handing over the staff, I wiped the serious expression off my face and the grave atmosphere disappeared along with it.
¡°Congratulations, you¡¯re now officially Reina Sylfey, the Magical Girl of Love. Wow! Yay!¡± (Eliza)
I clapped my hands to cheer for her and mimicked an imaginary crowd as Reina stood there scratching her head with a confused face.
¡°Umm, Lady Eliza... what¡¯s a magical girl?¡± (Reina)
¡°Oh. Uh, well, to put it simply, you¡¯re now a magical warrior who fights in the name of justice and love.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Warrior!? Wait, who am I going to fight!? I might have some natural talent for wind magic, but there¡¯s no way I could beat anyone even remotely strong!¡± (Reina)
¡°Don¡¯t worry, of course I don¡¯t expect you to beat anyone too strong as is, you¡¯re still only a trainee so I won¡¯t be throwing you into the fire just yet¡ probably. Anyway, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m just sending you out there by yourself. What you¡¯re holding in your hands right now is a genuine divine artifact. Just try channeling mana through it and you¡¯ll see exactly how powerful it is.¡± (Eliza)
I gave Reina a confident smile as she skeptically channeled mana through the magical girl staff.
The ball of pure, pink mana formed in the hook of the staff and the glow completely enveloped Reina as she let out an astonished cry that was immediately drowned out by the music from the transformation sequence. After a few moments, the mass of pink mana burst into particles, revealing a completely lost Reina dressed in the magical girl outfit as I nodded approvingly at her again.
¡°See, I told you that you¡¯d be perfect for the job! The three basic requirements for any magical girl are an unrequited love, a natural talent for magic, and most importantly, the ability to look good in costume. The moment I saw you, I knew that you would pass all three criteria with no problem and I was definitely right. We might need to work on your pose for the end of the transformation sequence later, but for now, just test out the staff and try to use some magic.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Magic? Is it ok to fire it here?¡± (Reina)
¡°Yeah, just fire it that way.¡± (Eliza)
I pointed to the open field past the ritual grounds and Reina pointed her staff in the same direction before letting out a small cry as the small ball of pink mana in the hook of the staff turned a light green. Immediately a dozen double-layered magic circles formed in front of her staff, and wind arrows shot out before converging on the ground in the middle of the open field. A massive explosion of air blasted out from where the arrows converged, making our clothes and hair flutter around for a moment before the raging wind from the explosion died down.
¡°Eh?¡± (Reina)
Reina stood there dumbfounded as I gave another approving nod and turned to her.
¡°Great, looks like the staff is still working properly. I told you, didn¡¯t I? That¡¯s a genuine divine artifact. If I remember correctly, it should act as both a magical amplifier and a spare mana pool. Even the outfit should be tougher than a suit of heavy armor, so at the very least, you should be able to protect yourself from most people for now.¡± (Eliza)
¡°W-Wha-¡± (Reina)
¡°Anyway, I promised I would send you back after this, so you can go for now. Here, take this pendant with you, I¡¯ll contact you through the pendant tomorrow so be careful not to lose it.¡± (Eliza)
I pulled a heart-shaped pendant out of my pocket and placed it in the hands of a bewildered Reina as I cast a teleportation spell. The white magic circle lit up with a sharp glow as Reina let out a final confused shriek before she was sent back to the main plane.
¡°Alright, I¡¯ve worked a lot today. I think it¡¯s time for a well-deserved nap.¡± (Eliza)
I let out a yawn as I turned around and started walking back towards the house with a goofy smile on my face.
¡°Lady Eliza, please wake up. It¡¯s already noon.¡± (Reina)
The sunlight shone in through the window in the living room as I gently shook Lady Eliza, who was sleeping on the couch, but even after shaking her vigorously for a few moments, she wouldn¡¯t wake up. I stood there and panicked a bit as I thought about what to do when I heard Lady Olivia enter the room.
¡°Reina, don¡¯t bother. Lady Eliza won¡¯t wake up until she feels like it, trust me I¡¯ve already tried too many times.¡± (Olivia)
¡°Eh? But won¡¯t she be cold sleeping out in the open like that?¡± (Reina)
¡°She¡¯ll be fine. Anyway, yesterday his highness gave us some sandwiches when I went over for our monthly meeting so I left one for you. It should be in the fridge.¡± (Olivia)
¡°Oh. Thank you, Lady Olivia.¡± (Reina)
Lady Olivia smiled at me as she pointed toward the kitchen. I walked over and opened the fridge to see a sandwich on a plate. I took the sandwich out of the fridge and sat down at the kitchen table before starting to eat it.
It¡¯s been about another year since I was forcibly hired as a magical girl by Lady Eliza, and at first, I thought I would be risking my life, but luckily, the only thing I¡¯ve done since then is clean up around the house and talk with Lady Eliza and Lady Olivia every once in a while. I never expected them to be so nice after what happened the first day, but it turns out that Lady Eliza is just a klutz while Lady Olivia is her voice of reason. To be honest, I even kind of enjoy coming over to talk with them. I¡¯ve always been shy, so I¡¯ve never had many friends, and while I have been improving on my social anxiety by working at a few different adventurer¡¯s guilds these past few summers, the only ones I feel like I can freely talk to have been Lady Eliza and Lady Olivia.
As I finished the sandwich, I heard Lady Olivia¡¯s voice call out to me again before she entered the kitchen.
¡°Oh, by the way, Reina, you said that you would be starting school again soon, right?¡± (Olivia)
¡°Yes, I¡¯ll be attending the Raidion Royal Academy, where my aunt is.¡± (Reina)
¡°Hmm, I guess you won¡¯t be coming over as often for a while then, right?¡± (Olivia)
¡°Y-Yeah. Sorry...¡± (Reina)
¡°No need to apologize, you¡¯ve done more than enough for us. Actually, let me help you a bit this time. Come here, I¡¯ll read your fortune for your unrequited love again.¡± (Olivia)
¡°Eh?¡± (Reina)
The blurry image of a gently smiling man with white hair that was tied into a ponytail resurfaced in my memories again and a blush spread across my face as I remembered the delicate mix of emotions that ran through my mind when I met him for the first time. A faint, fuzzy warmth spread through my chest as Lady Olivia held my hand, closed her eyes, and stood still for a moment before opening them with a smile on her face.
¡°Well, it¡¯s a still little vague like always, but I can tell you that you¡¯ll definitely have some good luck in terms of love at the Royal Academy. Just make sure you take the class on ancient alchemy.¡± (Olivia)
I looked out the window with a soft smile on my face before I lightly slapped my cheeks with both hands and put on a determined expression.
¡°Ancient alchemy, huh? Alright, the Magical Girl of Love, Reina Sylfey is on it!¡± (Reina)
[Chapter 13] Yep, It鈥檚 Definitely Too Late, He Already Has Severe Brain Damage
Royal Academy, Second Floor Hallway (Kyle POV)
The sound of hurried footsteps echoed throughout the hallway as a few late students ran to their classrooms while I yawned and continued to slowly make my way towards room 207. A few moments passed as the hallway emptied out before I finally arrived at the entrance to my classroom. Right above the new door that I installed yesterday, a simple sign with the number ¡®207¡¯ written on it was attached to the wall.
¡°Well, it might be a little shoddy compared to before, but at least there isn¡¯t a crowd here anymore.¡± (Kyle)
You see, after class ended yesterday, everyone nearby gathered around the entrance to the classroom to investigate the cause of the loud sound and I had to drive them all away before being able to even make my way out of the room. But despite being unfortunately labeled a dangerous individual by my peers on my first day, I persevered and went to the shopping district to get some building supplies, where I managed to find a new door and some window panes as replacements. However, while installing the new window panes and door was easy enough, I wasn¡¯t exactly an expert on fixing walls so I just left the crack in the wall untouched and decided to find a professional later.
I stared at the door for a moment and wiped the sleepy expression off my face before grabbing the door handle and entering the classroom. The warm morning sunlight shone in through the newly installed windows, illuminating the classroom as six people locked their eyes onto me. Yep, that¡¯s right, six. On one side of the room, Halbert, Regnis, and Zane were lightly huddled together, chatting to each other, while on the other side of the room sat Sophie, Reina, and¡ Mari. There was silence as I locked eyes with Mari who was smiling angrily at me while crossing her arms, and a moment passed before I cleared my throat and stared back with a smile on my face.
¡°Ahem. Sorry, wrong room.¡± (Kyle)
I immediately turned around, closed the door behind me, and started walking back the exact same way I came, but I only made it about ten feet down the hallway before I heard the door being slammed open behind me along with Mari¡¯s voice.
¡°Get back here, Ky!¡± (Mari)
I ignored her voice, the sound of running footsteps, and the light gust of wind behind me with a blissfully unaware smile as I took two more steps forward. Then I felt someone dropkick me in the back. A strong force blasted me in the middle of my spine and I fell over onto the floor face first as wind blasted through the hallway, ruffling my clothes. Mari mounted me like she was riding a horse and sat down on my back while I was still on the floor before talking to me in a cold voice as her eyes shone with an angry glint.
¡°So, Ky. What do you have to say for yourself?¡± (Mari)
¡°I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about, my dear Mari.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Oh? Then I wonder what could have possibly been the cause of the cracked wall in your classroom? I guess it must have been an intruder or something, seeing as there¡¯s no way you would¡¯ve negligently put your entire class in danger while also wrecking half the classroom yesterday.¡± (Mari)
¡°You know what... you¡¯re absolutely right. In fact, let me go and I¡¯ll make sure to find the true perpetrator right now.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Who the hell are you going to find!? The true perpetrator¡¯s right here! You¡¯re lucky that Reina insisted it was an accident, otherwise, you wouldn¡¯t have a job anymore!¡± (Mari)
¡°But it actually was an accident!¡± (Kyle)
Mari started lightly whacking me with her fists as she continued yelling at me and while it didn¡¯t hurt me physically at all, it felt like I was being punished for a crime I didn¡¯t commit. Aggrieved tears flowed out of my eyes as I popped my head up, and we sat there like that for a second as Mari bonked my head some more before a familiar grey-bearded figure rounded the corner into my line of sight.
¡°Quick, Professor Balrum, help me! The headmistress has gone crazy!¡± (Kyle)
I reached my arm out towards Professor Balrum to call for help as Mari continued her beatdown on me, and it looked like he was about to say something in my defense when Mari turned to sharply glare at him before calling out in a frighteningly cold voice.
¡°I suggest you keep walking, Professor Balrum.¡± (Mari)
Professor Balrum froze in his tracks for a moment and I saw my last hope die out as he softly cleared his throat before turning around and quickly strolling back the way he came while nervously muttering to himself.
¡°... I didn¡¯t see anything...¡± (Balrum)
¡°Oliver, you damned traitor!¡± (Kyle)
My indignant voice echoed down the hallway before being drowned out again by Mari¡¯s yelling and the sound of Professor Balrum¡¯s hurried footsteps in the distance.
Another two minutes passed before Mari¡¯s flurry of fists died down, and she sat on top of me hunched over in exhaustion. Her arms were now loosely dangling by her sides as she wheezed for air on top of me with a dazed look in her eyes.
¡°Why the hell is your head so hard!?¡± (Mari)
¡°... I¡¯m sorry that I don¡¯t have the ability to soften up my skull so you can violently beat it in, but if you¡¯re not going to let me cut today, then at least let me start class¡¡± (Kyle)
I peeked my head up again and rolled around onto my back before grabbing Mari and lifting her off of me. After getting up, I propped her over my shoulder like a bag of potatoes and began to walk back to the classroom as she began to flail her limbs at me again with a red face.
¡°Hey, let me go! I¡¯m your boss! This is mutiny!¡± (Mari)
¡°Yeah, yeah.¡± (Kyle)
I made my way back to the classroom under the watchful eyes of five heads popping out the door as Mari hit the back of my head painlessly a few more times. Once I made it back inside the classroom, I put Mari down, threw my bag next to my desk, and took a seat in my chair before sighing.
¡°Alright, so why are you here?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Isn¡¯t that obvious? I¡¯m here to make sure I won¡¯t have to attend Reina¡¯s funeral next week! Since you obviously can¡¯t be trusted with your students¡¯ safety, I¡¯m going to be supervising your class from now on.¡± (Mari)
Goddammit, I knew this was a blood curse! Why did I even ask? I can¡¯t even slack off now that she¡¯s around. I¡¯ll actually have to teach them something.
¡°Don¡¯t you have more important things to do than continue to torture me?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Nothing is more important to me than Reina¡¯s safety. And besides, you would know best that there¡¯s nothing important I have to do, seeing as you were the one who did most of it.¡± (Mari)
¡°Don¡¯t remind me, damn it! I never want to see another empty form again!¡± (Kyle)
Tears started flowing out of my eyes again as I remembered that paperwork-filled hellhole. Mari seemed to take some delight in my agony though as she let out a dry chuckle before waving her hand at me while she walked back to Reina.
¡°Heh. Alright, you can start class now.¡± (Mari)
¡°... Ah, I see. So you just wanted to make me suffer a bit to fuel your sick schadenfreude before letting me go¡¡± (Kyle)
I slammed my head onto the desk and kept it there for a few seconds before letting out a sigh as my muffled voice announced the start of class.
¡°Alright everyone, in lieu of yesterday¡¯s... unfortunate accident, I¡¯ve decided that it would be best to study something a little more simple today.¡± (Kyle)
I got up and rummaged through my bag with an exhausted look on my face before pulling out the first monster core I could find. It was a small water-element monster core and it shone with a deep blue gleam as I got up and turned around to pick up a piece of chalk with the other hand. The sound of chalk scratching against the blackboard echoed out as I quickly drew a simple alchemy circle on the board, this time double checking that it was drawn correctly. However, when I put the chalk down and held the small monster core up to the board, the sound of loud clattering and a faint gust of wind came from behind me. I turned around to see Halbert, Regnis, and Zane taking cover behind the desks on one side of the room as they anxiously peeked their heads over the top while on the other side of the room, Sophie and Reina were doing the same, except that in front of them there was a third-circle wind spell that Mari had cast. Three light green magic circles lined up in front of each other to form the spell, and they slowly rotated as a large wall made of wind was shielding the girls.
¡°All it does is make some mist... Look.¡± (Kyle)
I tapped the monster core to the alchemy circle on the board behind me and activated it with a helpless expression on my face as everyone braced themselves.
¡°¡¾Mist Cloud¡¿, single cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
The circle faintly glowed with a deep blue light for a moment and everyone ducked behind the desks before a light cloud of mist started spraying out from the center of the alchemy circle. Complete silence filled the room as it poured out, and it wasn¡¯t until the alchemy circle stopped glowing that Mari¡¯s head peeked over the edge of the lecture hall desk, followed slowly by the rest of the class.
¡°Do you guys really think I¡¯m that untrustworthy?...¡± (Kyle)
I sat back down at my desk with a defeated look on my face as Mari stood up from behind the desk and pointed to the large crack in the wall at the back of the room as the wind spell disappeared.
¡°Of course! Just look at what happened last time!¡± (Mari)
¡°I¡¯m telling you, that was an accident!¡± (Kyle)
A sigh left my mouth as I opened up the window to clear out the mist before turning around to see everyone returning to their seats. When everyone was seated again, I put the monster core down and pointed to the alchemy circle on the board.
¡°Alright, so what can you guys tell me about this alchemy circle?¡± (Kyle)
I took another glance around the room as Sophie¡¯s hand immediately shot up. She had an excited smile on her face and an obsessed glint in her eyes.
¡°Well, looking at the structure of this circle, it¡¯s much less complicated than the one we studied yesterday and comparing its effects to the last one, it¡¯s likely on the scale of a lower end first- circle water spell. The fact that it¡¯s drawn in chalk and the size of the monster core used to power it means that the mana density of the circle should be very low, yet the circle still activated, so we can infer that the flow of the mana should be unhindered, which may be due to a multitude of reasons, for example-¡± (Sophie)
Wait! Sophie, please! Stop! I couldn¡¯t even understand a quarter of your report yesterday, how am I supposed to answer any of this nonsense about mana flow!?
¡°Ahem. Thank you, Sophie. Your explanation was very, uh, detailed, and I believe that you have a lot of interesting points, but before you get into the specifics, maybe we should let someone else share their opinion.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Oh... ok.¡± (Sophie)
I had a nervous smile on my face as Sophie finally stopped spewing out a bunch of complicated terms like mana density with a slightly disappointed look on her face, and I felt a slight headache come on as I glanced around desperately for my new victim to push this onto. Mari stared back at me with an annoyed expression, while Reina broke eye contact with a slightly red face the moment I tried to establish it. When I looked over to the other side of the room, Zane was nonchalantly staring at the wall with a nervous smile on his face and Regnis was sitting there with his arms crossed and his eyes closed, so naturally, my attention fell to my last potential scapegoat, er, student.
Alright, sorry Halbert, but please do me a favor and take one for the team here. Just give me something, anything simple that I can work with! Even something really stupid like literally what it does is enough!
¡°Uh, how about you, Halbert?¡± (Kyle)
¡°E-Eh?¡± (Halbert)
I sent my mental pleas over to Halbert through my eyes while his original unfazed demeanor quickly transformed into another nervous smile.
¡°Uh¡ well, it makes mist¡ so that¡¯s kind of cool¡ I guess.¡± (Halbert)
Perfect! Halbert, you¡¯re a lifesaver!
I gave Halbert a small thumbs up with tears of joy in my eyes as I pointed to the alchemy circle again with gusto.
¡°Great point there, Halbert! As you all can see, this alchemy circle is probably around the lower tiers of first-circle magic like Sophie mentioned before, and its only function is creating a thin mist of water vapor, which, by the way, I can confirm is very cool. Now, are there any questions about this alchemy circle?¡± (Kyle)
The moment I finished speaking, Sophie¡¯s hand shot up again and the scary, obsessed glint in her eyes returned in full force.
¡°Well, I distinctly remember that when we asked you about the specifics of how the alchemy circle yesterday functioned, you told us that ¡®it just works,¡¯ and if we drew it exactly like you did, it would always function perfectly. Could you please elaborate on why exactly it functions like this, Professor Kyle?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Wait, what kind of stupid answer is that!? It just works? Ky, what have you been teaching them!? Why the hell am I paying you if you¡¯re not even going to do your job!?¡± (Mari)
Mari¡¯s voice burst out as she stood up from her seat, slammed her hand on the desk, and pointed at me with the other hand while she had an angry look on her face. I stared back for a moment with a weary expression on my face before letting out a heavy sigh.
¡°Are you sure you even hired me as a professor at this point? If I didn¡¯t remember coming in and asking for this position myself, I would¡¯ve been 100% sure you hired me as an office assistant or a secretary!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, maybe I¡¯ll promote you to my full-time secretary for real after this if you¡¯re not going to teach them anything!¡± (Mari)
¡°No, wait! I¡¯m sorry! Please, anything but that! I¡¯ll teach them everything I know right now! Just get me as far away from that accursed office as possible!¡± (Kyle)
Mari sat back down with an annoyed pout as I fell to the floor while hyperventilating in fear of my possible promotion. After a moment, I calmed my breathing down and got back up before slumping over in my chair with a worn out expression.
¡°Honestly, the best possible explanation that I could give you is that it just works. Like I said yesterday, I don¡¯t know any of the complicated stuff either, so all you guys need to know is what all the symbols do when you draw them together and you¡¯ll be fine. Alchemy circles are composed of the base circle and the symbols on the inside of the circle are what dictate its properties. As you all saw yesterday, some magic circles still might kind of work if you go outside the circle, but they probably won¡¯t function properly. A specific combination of these symbols will always yield the same result, and if even one of these symbols is changed or drawn incorrectly, the magic circle could have a completely different result or might not even work at all. So basically, if you draw it exactly like I did, it really will work perfectly. Well, no need to sweat the details for now. You guys can practice drawing this one, and we¡¯ll discuss it later." (Kyle)
After finishing my little lecture, I melted into my chair and a few moments later, the class started trying to copy down the alchemy circle on the blackboard. I let out a sigh and drowned out all the background noise as I sat there taking a well-deserved break while thinking about what to do after the class finished copying the alchemy circle down. However, it wasn¡¯t long before I heard Mari¡¯s voice call out to me.
¡°I can¡¯t believe your best explanation for your literal field of expertise is ¡®It just works¡¯... What did Balrum even see in you?¡± (Mari)
I opened my eyes and sat up straight to see Mari standing in front of me while sighing with a disappointed expression on her face.
¡°Well, it¡¯s too late to regret it now... Anyway, since you¡¯re not busy right now, go get me a cup of tea. I¡¯m a little thirsty after all that yelling. Come on, you know what I like.¡± (Mari)This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
¡°Wait, I thought I wasn¡¯t your personal assistant anymore! What happened to being a professor? Does that mean nothing to you anymore or do you just insist on tormenting me?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh. What can I say? It¡¯s just so nice to have you around. Now go get me my tea before I start missing you enough to promote you.¡± (Mari)
¡°I swear, one day you¡¯ll face retribution for your crimes, you abusive witch!¡± (Kyle)
I cried out in indignation, but despite my vow for vengeance, Mari just gave me a smug smile and shrugged nonchalantly as I got up with tears in my eyes and left the room to make her a cup of tea.
***
A while later, I entered the classroom again holding a cup of freshly made chamomile tea with two teaspoons of sugar and saw Mari relaxing in my chair. We locked eyes and I walked over and handed her the cup of tea with an aggrieved look on my face. A moment passed as she took a sip of the tea with a smile before letting out a satisfied breath.
¡°Ahh, perfectly brewed as always. Good job, Ky.¡± (Mari)
After taking another sip, she picked up the cup of tea and returned to her seat next to Reina. I took my chair back and sat down with an exhausted sigh, but it wasn¡¯t long before Halbert called out to me.
¡°Professor Kyle, we¡¯re all done copying down the alchemy circle. What should we do now?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Eh? Uh¡ I guess we can move onto some variations or something then.¡± (Kyle)
I opened up my bag and lightly rummaged through it again before pulling out two more water-element monster cores. After a moment, I stood up and grabbed the chalk again before erasing a few parts of the alchemy circle on the board and adding a couple of new symbols.
¡°Alright, well, if you change the circle like this, it should shoot out a stream of water instead of creating a mist. Something like this would probably be around a mid-tier single-circle water spell.¡¾Aqua Stream¡¿, single cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
I held up one of the monster cores and held it against the magic circle as a deep blue glow appeared once again. A small stream of water gushed out of the center of the alchemy circle, forming a small puddle on the floor, and I turned back at the class to see everyone looking over curiously. Luckily, it seemed like the new alchemy circle managed to distract them for now. I took a seat at my desk again when something surprising happened, Regnis raised his hand.
¡°Professor Kyle, could we move on to a more powerful alchemy circle? It doesn¡¯t need to be as strong as the one you drew yesterday, but I don¡¯t think this or the previous circle would actually help much in a fight, so something a little more practical would be nice.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Even if these circles seem weak, you shouldn¡¯t underestimate them. Even for something as basic as spraying out a stream of water, there can be a variety of uses in actual combat. Alright, does anyone else have any questions before we move on?¡± (Kyle)
Regnis lowered his hand with a slightly disappointed face as he reluctantly accepted my explanation. It seemed like no one else had anything to say too, so I was about to move on when I heard Mari call out to me.
¡°Oi, what kind of professor just glosses a student¡¯s question like that? You can¡¯t just tell him that ¡®it just works¡¯ again. If you¡¯re going to claim that it¡¯s practical in combat, then at least give him an example!¡± (Mari)
¡°Fine.¡± (Kyle)
Mari¡¯s voice grated on my nerves a bit as I begrudgingly rummaged through my bag again and pulled out a pen while a petty revenge plot quickly formed in my head. I quickly drew the circle for¡¾Mist Cloud¡¿on one monster core and the circle for¡¾Aqua Stream¡¿on the other before putting the pen down with an irritated smile on my face.
¡°Regnis, while these alchemy circles definitely aren¡¯t strong enough for a direct attack on the enemy, they can still be used to create diversions or interfere with the enemy¡¯s senses in a fight. For example, with¡¾Aqua Stream¡¿, you could blind your enemy for a moment like this.¡¾Aqua Stream¡¿, single cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
I held the alchemy stone with¡¾Aqua Stream¡¿drawn on it towards Mari, and another deep blue glow appeared as a stream of water shot out from the stone and drenched her face like I shot her with a squirt gun. Mari froze in place and water dripped down her face into her cup of tea while the room was completely silent except for me laughing hysterically at her. It was barely a second later that Mari put her cup of tea down, stood up with a furious smile on her face, and stared at me with a frightening glint in her eyes as Reina fumbled around next to her trying to hold her back.
¡°Alright, so do you have any last words, Ky?¡± (Mari)
¡°If it means anything to you, I¡¯m sorry.¡± (Kyle)
My laughter began to die down as I let out one last chuckle before activating the other alchemy stone in my hands.
¡°And now,¡¾Mist Cloud¡¿can be used to create a diversion to escape.¡¾Mist Cloud¡¿, full power cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
I dropped the other alchemy stone in my hand on the ground and an explosion of thick, foggy mist billowed out from the stone like a smoke bomb as I immediately dashed forward and kicked open the door before running back and hiding under my desk.
Haha! My plan is perfect. Mari can¡¯t sense my mana to find me because I¡¯m a manaless, so she¡¯ll obviously think I ran out into the hallway once she sees the open door. She¡¯ll probably be out of the room for a while looking for me, hopefully for the rest of the day, and I¡¯ll deal with the fallout later on after she¡¯s calmed down. Anyway, she was the one who wanted an example, so all I did was give her one.
I cackled evilly in my mind as a strong gale blew the mist out of the room. Footsteps sounded out behind me and I held my breath as the wind got slowly stronger before everything suddenly stopped. A moment passed before I saw Mari¡¯s head pop over the edge to the desk with an even scarier expression as the smug smile on my face immediately froze up while cold sweat started to run down my back.
¡°... Like I said before, any last words, Ky?¡± (Mari)
¡°H-How did you find me!? Didn¡¯t you see the open door!?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Do you honestly think I¡¯d be dumb enough to fall for that? Who do you think the Grand Mage of Wind is? Even if I can¡¯t see you, the air currents will tell me exactly where you went... So, I guess you don¡¯t have any last words, huh?¡± (Mari)
¡°W-Wait! Mari, i-it was just a little prank. All I wanted to do was show my student an example like you said before. L-Look, I¡¯m really sorry. I promise I¡¯ll make it up to you. Whatever it takes, just say the word and I¡¯ll be on it. Want some paperwork done? No problem. Want a massage? No problem. I¡¯ll even carry you home and cook you dinner if you want me to! I know you have a big heart, so come on, won¡¯t you forgive a small-time jokester like me?¡± (Kyle)
I winked at Mari and did a cutesy knock on my head while I did my best to stop my nervous smile from trembling as even more cold sweat ran down my face, but unfortunately, it looked like all I did was make Mari even angrier.
¡°You know, you¡¯re pretty brave to try and make an example out of me, Ky. Maybe I¡¯ll even mention it in your eulogy.¡± (Mari)
Think, Ky! think! H-How can I get out of this? Give up and turn myself in? No way, she¡¯ll keelhaul me! Doesn¡¯t seem like she¡¯ll listen to reason either, so my best shot is probably escaping somehow and hiding until later. Wait, can I even hide anywhere, she¡¯ll just read the air currents to know exactly where I went. Urgh, fine. I didn¡¯t want to resort to this, but I guess I¡¯ll have to just keep running until she tires out! I just need a second or two and I can jump out the window, she might be able to find me through the air currents inside where the air is stagnant, but I doubt she¡¯ll be as accurate with the wind outside interfering. Anyway, she¡¯s already pissed, so might as well keep going! This¡¯ll be a battle of attrition!
¡°¡¾Aqua Stream¡¿, full power cast, activate!¡± (Kyle)
I held the remaining alchemy stone in my hand up towards Mari¡¯s face again as it shimmered deep blue and another stream of water about twice as big as the last one blasted Mari in the face. I immediately rolled out from under the desk and kicked off the ground, shooting towards the window, and I was just one step away from lunging out of the room when I finally realized. I forgot to take something else into account when planning out my escape.
My foot hit the ground as I tried to stop myself in time, but alas, on the ground was the instrument of my downfall, a product of my own negligent actions. It was the puddle that formed after I activated the alchemy circle on the board.
So, this is how it ends, huh?
Unable to stop the massive amount of momentum from my initial burst forward, I slipped backward and landed on my back as the spray from the second blast on Mari rained down on me.
Welp, sorry Aria, looks like I¡¯m done for. You¡¯ll have to take care of yourself now, remember, get at least eight hours of sleep every day and eat your greens, it¡¯s for your own good. It was nice knowing you all as well, kids. Maybe one of you will even show up to my funeral.
I laid there and stared at the ceiling with an accepting smile on my face as I prepared myself for my inevitable mauling. A moment later, I saw Mari loom over me menacingly while staring at me on the floor. Droplets of water slid off her wet hair onto my face as she crouched down and brought herself closer to me before I let out a sigh.
¡°Alright, Mari. Just make it quick.¡± (Kyle)
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Zane POV)
A soft wind blew in through the open window as I sat in my seat with a terrified smile and saw Ky face his certain doom. The headmistress grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the room like she was pulling along a bag of garbage as Regnis was guiltily clearing his throat. On the other end of the room, Sophie was somehow completely unfazed by the unbelievable turn of events and she just walked up to the board to inspect the magic circle as Reina followed behind her in a panic. I turned my head back to Halbert and Regnis as I sat there at a loss.
¡°So, uh... what do we do now, guys?¡± (Zane)
¡°I don¡¯t know. Regnis, do you have any ideas?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Well¡ I don¡¯t think there is much we can do except wait¡ I guess I¡¯ll go copy down that magic circle. Professor Kyle might never be seen again, but he was right, this alchemy circle be useful later.¡± (Regnis)
Regnis got up and walked over to Sophie as the two of them stared at the circle on the blackboard while Reina fell on her knees with a hopeless expression behind them. I turned back to Halbert and he gave me a puzzled shrug before pulling out his notebook and getting up to join everyone else.
Well... I¡¯m sure Ky will be fine. After all, the headmistress wouldn¡¯t actually kill him just for spraying her with water¡ right?
***
A few hours passed by as we all awkwardly waited, and everyone was now back in their seats chatting to pass the time after finishing their analysis of the alchemy circles. We heard a few muffled explosions from outside about an hour ago, but for the sake of my own mental health, I decided to blissfully ignore it.
It was just about to be lunchtime, and I was chatting with Halbert and Regnis when the sound of the classroom door opening caught my attention. I turned my head to see Ky shamble in with a worn out look on his face. There were several rips and tears, ranging from tiny to large enough to stick a hand through, in his now battered looking clothes and his hair was a disheveled mess, but somehow it seemed like he was barely wounded at all. Following behind him was the headmistress with a gleaming satisfied smile on her face as Ky lumbered his way back to his desk and collapsed into his chair.
¡°Alright, you know what? How about we have a break for lunch, then continue with class later.¡± (Kyle)
After a moment, Ky pulled his lunchbox out of his satchel, slowly got up, and walked over to us as the headmistress joined Reina and Sophie on the other side of the room.
A few minutes later, we were all having lunch together as he munched on a homemade sandwich while tears ran down his face. I unwrapped the sandwich that Halbert bought from the school cafeteria for me and took a bite out of it before my curiosity finally got the better of me.
¡°So... what was that explosion sound earlier?¡± (Zane)
¡°It was Mari using a fourth-circle wind spell on me! I swear she was actually trying to kill me this time!¡± (Kyle)
I was about halfway through a bite of my sandwich when I choked a little once I heard what happened.
¡°Wait, fourth-circle!? How are you still even alive!?¡± (Zane)
¡°Well, I ran for my life and managed to barely get behind a wall before the explosion of air from the spell blew me about a dozen feet into the air.¡± (Kyle)
I stared at Ky in astonishment as Halbert and Regnis gave him concerned looks before Halbert asked him if he was ok.
¡°A-Are you sure you don¡¯t need to go to the hospital!?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Eh. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m fine.¡± (Kyle)
¡°You don¡¯t look too fine to me¡ What do you think, Regnis?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Well... it doesn¡¯t seem like he¡¯s too injured. I¡¯m just surprised you managed to get out of this whole thing without losing a limb.¡± (Regnis)
Ky swallowed another bite of his sandwich before letting out a dry, lifeless laugh.
¡°Actually, Mari tried beating me up at first, but it didn¡¯t work too well and all she did was hurt her hands, so then she started using magic, and that was when I had to run. It was like running through a battlefield, everywhere I went there was a razor-sharp blade of wind or a small tornado flying straight at me, but luckily, I managed to keep dodging everything. Eventually she got irritated though and just decided to blast the entire area with a big fourth-circle wind spell. Well, it worked, and even though I managed to avoid direct impact, it still blew me up into the air where she caught me. After that, she beat me up again until she felt satisfied, this time with body strengthening magic.¡± (Kyle)
The three of us sat there flabbergasted as we heard about the hectic series of events Ky somehow made it through without sustaining a mortal wound. Halbert wolfed down his sandwich as quick as he could before turning and whispering to me.
¡°Hey, Zane, he looks fine on the outside, but I think the headmistress might¡¯ve hit him in the head a few too many times or maybe even ruptured an internal organ. We should take him to a doctor right now just to be sure. Look, Regnis and I will try to keep him distracted, just lie about going to the bathroom or something and get the school nurse, quick.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Alright.¡± (Zane)
After we ended our little huddle, I was about to get up to ¡®go to the bathroom¡¯ while Halbert started to whisper to Regnis when Ky finished another bite of his sandwich and stopped me.
¡°It¡¯s ok, I don¡¯t have internal injuries or anything like that. No need to get the school nurse.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? Wait, how did you know?¡± (Zane)
¡°Halbert¡¯s whispering wasn¡¯t exactly the most inconspicuous thing, you know. Anyway, like I said, I¡¯m fine. Trust me, if there¡¯s one thing I¡¯m sure of, it¡¯s how much of a beating I can take. The headmistress could probably whack me in the head a hundred times using body strengthening magic and I¡¯d still be fine. In fact, I used to get hit in the head much harder on an almost daily basis by someone else.¡± (Kyle)
I turned to Halbert and Regnis with a concerned look on my face, and they looked back at me with similar expressions as the three of us mentally agreed on one thing.
Yep, it¡¯s definitely too late. He already has severe brain damage.
¡°Uh, well, since you seem like you¡¯re¡ mostly intact, I was actually wondering about something. Ky, what exactly is your relationship with the headmistress?¡± (Zane)
¡°Zane, our current relationship can be summed up as superior and subordinate, with me being the unfortunate subordinate. She¡¯s just an abusive witch that holds my salary hostage to make me do as she says. When I got hired, she unofficially made me her personal secretary and pushed off all her paperwork onto me for a week while she slacked off. I didn¡¯t even get paid for it!¡± (Kyle)
Tears gushed from Ky¡¯s eyes as he finished the rest of his sandwich before taking a swig from his water bottle. And after a few more minutes of talking about random things, Ky started to clean up.
¡°Alright, looks like we¡¯re all done eating. Let¡¯s just get on with class.¡± (Kyle)
Ky let out a sigh and returned to his desk with a defeated look on his face as we all threw out our trash from lunch before the classroom quieted down so class could start again.
Royal Academy, Headmistress¡¯ Office (Mari POV)
¡°Mari, wake up. It¡¯s already sunset.¡± (Kyle)
I heard a familiar voice call out to me as some soft shaking slowly woke me up. When the shaking stopped, a light groan left my mouth before I stretched a bit as a small blanket slid off my back. After rubbing my eyes for a bit, I opened them to see a small pile of papers neatly stacked in front of me with Ky behind them in his torn up outfit.
¡°Look, I finished all the paperwork, and it¡¯s getting late, so can I go home now.¡± (Kyle)
I let out a small yawn and slowly spun around in my chair. A deep breath entered my lungs as I gazed out the window at the beautiful purple sunset outside. After a moment, I finally realized that today was already the second day of the semester as I started to groggily recall what happened earlier.
After I beat up Ky, he finished the rest of class without any major incidents, but since I was still a little angry, I dragged him back to the office to be my assistant for the rest of the day. It was mostly because I didn¡¯t want to do my paperwork, but I managed to pass it off as some extra punishment for him, and he was the one who offered to do my paperwork anyway, wasn¡¯t he?
¡ Well, it looks like he was nice enough to put a blanket on me after I dozed off... but it¡¯s still not enough to forgive him...
I spun around in my chair to face Ky again with a small mischievous smile as I thought about what else I could make him do.
¡°Hey, where do you live, Ky?¡± (Mari)
¡°Over that way. Why?¡± (Kyle)
Ky pointed out the window towards the direction of the middle district as he looked at me with a confused look on his face.
¡°What a coincidence, I also live in the same direction. You know what, my legs feel a little tired, so you can go home, but carry me home first, Ky. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll tell you which way to go.¡± (Mari)
¡°... Haven¡¯t you tortured me enough already?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, you were the one who said you would do anything I want to make it up to me, even carry me home and cook me dinner, weren¡¯t you?¡± (Mari)
I got out of my chair with a giggle and opened my arms towards Ky as he let out a defeated sigh before walking over with tears in his eyes, turning around, and kneeling down to give me a piggyback ride. A faint warmth enveloped me when I got on his back, and I leaned my arms over his shoulders to hug his neck for support before unconsciously snuggling into a more comfortable position as I declared the start of my unusual journey back home today.
¡°Alright. Onward, Ky!¡± (Mari)
***
What the hell was I thinking!?
The warm evening sunset painted the surroundings a light lavender color as Ky steadily carried me down an almost empty road. The gentle ebb and flow of his footsteps made me shake up and down slightly on his back as I hugged his neck a little tighter and felt the familiar warmth from his back with a burning red face.
I must have still been half asleep or something when I decided that having Ky give me a piggyback ride home was anything near a good idea. When we started, I didn¡¯t think about it much, but over the course of the last couple of minutes, I finally realized just exactly what I was doing. Here I was, alone with a young man on an empty road at sunset, having him carry me home on his back while I hugged him from behind.
¡ W-Well, I guess I never really saw Ky as a man after ordering him around like a lackey so much, but right now I think that I¡¯m a little too aware of it! I mean, he might act stupid sometimes¡ most of the time, but that doesn¡¯t mean he isn¡¯t a man, and¡ if I¡¯m going to be completely honest¡ at least he¡¯s capable when it counts and, when you think about it... he¡¯s even p-pretty good looking...
I sat there on Ky¡¯s back lost in deep thought for a moment when suddenly, Ky¡¯s voice and an abrupt shake finally snapped me back to reality.
¡°... Mari... Mari... Hey, Mari, you there?... Mari!¡± (Kyle)
I let out a cute yelp from Ky¡¯s sudden shout as I looked around and realized that we were in front of my house.
¡°Mari, you ok?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Y-Yeah, I¡¯m fine.¡± (Mari)
I buried my head in his back and put some space in between our bodies as the raging blush on my face spread a little more from my embarrassing yelp. I was about to tell him to let me down when I noticed the rips in his clothes again. They ranged from tiny to ones big enough to fit my whole hand in, and I could even catch a few glimpses of his skin through the bigger ones.
¡°Well, we¡¯re here.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah... thanks, Ky.¡± (Mari)
I popped my head back up and looked over his shoulder to stare at the front of my house as my voice softened. I hugged his neck a little tighter as the blush reached the tips of my ears.
¡°... Hey, by the way¡ sorry about beating you up earlier. I think I overreacted to your prank a bit too much¡ So, I¡¯ll find some way to make it up to you later.¡± (Mari)
¡°Eh? It¡¯s fine. At least you apologized. What¡¯s done is done, and I¡¯m already used to getting beaten up anyway, so it¡¯s not much of a difference to me. If you really want to make it up to me, then¡ just let me teach my class the way I want to.¡± (Kyle)
I slowly let go of Ky¡¯s neck as he crouched to let me down in front of the gate to my house, and I stared at him for just a moment before looking away again.
¡°Alright, you¡¯re home, so can I please go now? Or do you really want me to cook you dinner too?¡± (Kyle)
¡°You can go now, this is enough... Besides, who would want to eat your terrible cooking anyway?¡± (Mari)
I immediately twirled around to hide my blush from Ky, and a gentle evening breeze blew by as I ran over to my front door before fumbling for my keys and quickly opening it. I bolted inside and slammed the door shut behind me with my body before holding my hand to my chest to feel my quickening heartbeat. A moment passed by before I slid down the side of the door onto the ground while letting out a cute whimper.
¡°...a-augh¡¡± (Mari)
Solria, Middle District, Outside Mari¡¯s House (Kyle POV)
¡°You can go now, it¡¯s enough... Besides who would want to eat your terrible cooking anyway?¡± (Mari)
Mari twirled around in front of her house and ran inside once I let her down, and I stood there with my blood boiling as every cell in my body screamed at me to go prove her comment about my cooking wrong, but despite the passionate urges from my chef¡¯s soul, I restrained myself after thinking about the consequences for a bit.
Calm down, Ky, just calm down. You learned from your mistakes last time, didn¡¯t you? You could go up to her door, knock on it, prove her wrong right now, and watch her grovel at your feet for a while, but if you do, you¡¯ll definitely be stuck cooking breakfast, lunch, and dinner for her too! Aria already eats enough as it is, you don¡¯t need another mouth to feed!
I stared at Mari¡¯s house for a moment before taking a deep breath and mechanically making my way back home for dinner as the faint breeze cleared out the humid summer air.
[Chapter 14] Once upon a Time, There Was a Fool Who Feared Change More Than Anything
The Goddess of Love¡¯s Divine Domain, Eliza¡¯s House (Eliza POV)
The sound of slurping drowned out Reina¡¯s panicked cries as I sipped the last of my fruit juice through my straw before tossing the empty cup to my side. The straw fell out as the cup rolled around on the floor next to the sofa where I was currently lying down on my side while watching Reina flail her arms around in a panic.
¡°W-What do I do now, Lady Eliza!?¡± (Reina)
¡°Calm down, Reina. You definitely poked your aunt with the arrow, right?¡± (Eliza)
¡°Y-Yeah, I went straight to her office after you gave me the arrow and poked her in the arm with it as soon as my professor left the room.¡± (Reina)
¡°Did she fall asleep right after?¡± (Eliza)
¡°S-She did. I just left her there after I poked her too, just like you said.¡± (Reina)
¡°It¡¯ll be fine then. She fell asleep right after you poked her, which means the arrow¡¯s working. It might take a bit to get through her system, but once she wakes up, the arrow should be in full effect within ten minutes.¡± (Eliza)
¡°W-What do I tell my aunt though!? To her, it just looked like I came into her office and stabbed her with an arrow the moment we were alone!¡± (Reina)
¡°Eh, you¡¯ll be fine. Being the absolute genius that I am, I already anticipated that problem with the arrows when I made them, so I had them enchanted with a spell to erase any memories before getting stabbed. All the arrow will do is amplify her innermost feelings, there aren¡¯t even any side effects.¡± (Eliza)
¡°R-Really? That¡¯s great then...¡± (Reina)
Eliza held her hand up to her chest and let out a relieved sigh before holding out an arrow in her hands as she stared at me like a cute puppy.
¡°What do I do with this arrow now though?¡± (Reina)
The simple looking arrow in her hands was on the smaller side, about a foot and a half long, and the original pinkish luster that coated the surface of the arrow was now faint and beginning to dull.
¡°Here, just give it to me.¡± (Eliza)
I snatched the arrow out of Reina¡¯s hands and threw it behind the sofa into a small wooden box full of dozens of similar looking arrows as I let out a yawn.
Now, I bet you¡¯re wondering what these arrows are. Well, they were the result of a failed plan to get some new believers a few hundred years back when I was running a little low on faith energy. The arrows were imbued with the natural law of love by yours truly, along with a number of additional smaller effects, and the basic idea was that anyone who got poked with one would have the natural law of love injected into them.
You see, the natural law of love is one of the milder natural laws, and since people who have good mana control or the ability to manipulate natural laws would be able to sense the injection and expel it, I enchanted the arrows with a spell to erase any memory of getting injected, along with a high-level sleep spell so anyone who got poked would immediately fall asleep to help ease the assimilation of the natural laws of love into their system. The end result was the one time use arrow that Reina just handed back to me.
By the time the victim wakes up, the injection of natural laws would¡¯ve melded in to the point of being virtually undetectable, and the deepest feelings in their heart towards the first person they see would be amplified for the next 24 hours. Even after the effects of the arrows end, most of them end up with more feelings while trying to chase that after that high again. The level of amplification varies depending on how strong the person getting poked was, but on an average person, it should be around a hundred times.
And so, you¡¯re probably thinking that this arrow sounds great, why am I not using it more? Well, you see, that¡¯s what I thought too, and I spent a lot of time and effort making the few dozen arrows in the box behind me, but the moment I proudly showed off my creation to Olivia for her ok, she got angry and started ranting about my complete and utter violation of personal rights or some nonsense like that so I just threw them in a box that¡¯s been sitting in storage ever since. I mean, I admit the arrows did kind of force things a little... but Ky told me that if we wanted to get new believers, some more severe measures would have to be taken, and I believe that in times of crisis, petty things like personal rights can be partially ignored.
Anyway, about two hours ago, Reina came over crying about how she was afraid her aunt was going to kill her professor or something like that, and since Olivia wasn¡¯t here when she came by, it fell onto me, the beautiful and kind Goddess of Love, Eliza Strateous, to help my loyal subordinate. So after rummaging around the closet for a bit, the old box of arrows caught my eye and I bestowed upon my loyal subordinate another divine artifact to aid her in her plight. Judging by what Reina told me about her aunt, she¡¯s a pretty strong magician who¡¯s already on the level of manipulating natural laws, so the arrow¡¯s effect should be largely diluted, but I¡¯m estimating that it¡¯ll still be around ten times amplification. Well, anyway, if she really, truly hates Reina¡¯s professor deep on the inside, there¡¯s not much I can do there, but from what I heard, even when Reina¡¯s professor really pissed her off, he still got out of it relatively unscathed, so my divine intuition as the Goddess of Love is telling me that she kinda likes him on the inside and she¡¯s just too embarrassed to openly express her feelings. As long as Reina¡¯s aunt has even the tiniest bit of goodwill in her innermost feelings, all the arrow¡¯s gonna do is help mend the rift between them. So by giving Reina the arrow, not only am I solving her problem, but I¡¯m also doing my job as a goddess properly and speeding up the development of a possible new relationship. Everything will turn out fine.
Hmm, I should probably send Reina back now. Her problem is solved already and honestly, I¡¯m feeling kinda sleepy too.
¡°So, is there anything else you need help with?¡± (Eliza)
¡°No, this is more than enough. Thank you, Lady Eliza!¡± (Reina)
Reina gave me a flustered bow as I stretched my arms out a little on the couch.
¡°Alright, then I¡¯ll send you back down. By the way, you said that your professor was going to be alone in the office with your aunt for a while right?¡± (Eliza)
¡°Yeah, I think so.¡± (Reina)
¡°Perfect. All you have to do is make sure that your professor is the first person your aunt sees when she wakes up and everything will be fine, so don¡¯t let anyone else get in or else this whole plan might go down the gutter.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Got it! No one else will get into that office without going through me first!¡± (Reina)
Reina gave me a salute with a determined look in her eyes as I slowly got up off the couch and started making my way outside. She followed behind me and once we got to the ritual grounds, I quickly sent her back down to the main plane.
After going back into the house, I walked by the sofa and stared at the empty cup and straw on the ground for a moment before turning and walking over to my room.
Well, I should pick up after myself, but I¡¯m pretty tired and Olivia will be back soon anyway, so it¡¯s all good.
I jumped into my bed and pulled the blanket over myself as its warmth slowly enveloped me. I began to drift off into sleep when suddenly, I remembered something really important that I forgot to mention to Reina about the arrow earlier.
Ah, wait. Now I remember why I didn¡¯t just ignore Olivia and use the arrows anyway. The person who gets poked will have the natural law of love build up in their body over the course of the day and they need to interact with the first person they see as an outlet or else it might result in permanent brain damage¡ Eh, Reina¡¯s aunt and professor are co-workers aren¡¯t they? They¡¯ll be in the same place for work tomorrow anyway, I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll be fine.
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Mari POV)
W-What do I do now? Should I just go in and act like nothing happened?... But what do I say to Ky!? Argh!
I held my head in my hands and furiously shook it back and forth as I hid in the empty hallway near the open door to room 207. My hair was slightly disheveled from the almost sleepless night yesterday hugging my pillow and rolling around in bed for hours while desperately trying to get the fuzzy feelings about Ky out of my head, and I barely even made it to work by noon today.
I quickly popped my head past the door frame slightly and peeked inside to see Ky leaning back in his chair with a relaxing smile on his face and a book in his hand as the sunlight pouring in through the window illuminated the peaceful scene in the room. I shyly stared at him in silence for another moment as memories of yesterday evening came flooding back into my head again and a slight blush began to form on my face. I immediately ducked back around the corner and leaned against the wall as I held my hand against my chest and closed my eyes while feeling my heart beat rapidly.
I stood there in silence for a few more minutes as my heartbeat calmed down and I took a deep breath before peeking around the corner again while preemptively plastering an annoyed expression on my face and glaring intensely at Ky, who was starting class again after lunch ended. I saw him freeze up for a moment once I glared at him, and my eyes shone as I saw my opportunity to enter like nothing ever happened.
Alright! Calm down, Mari. You¡¯re gonna walk into the room and make your way over to Reina like nothing happened at all yesterday, so whatever you do, don¡¯t let anyone know about what happened yesterday night, especially not Ky. Remember, you¡¯re just here to make sure Reina is ok, not for Ky.
I took another deep breath and nodded to myself in reassurance before straightening my back and proudly walking into the room with a sense of resolve. The sound of my exaggerated footsteps interrupted the class and everyone stared at me walk into the room as I took a quick glance around to take in my surroundings. My legs went into autopilot as my line of sight scanned over the three boys in Ky¡¯s class sitting together on one side of the room before making its way over to Reina sitting together with her friend on the other side of the room, and finally, it came to a stop on the person standing right in front of me, Ky, who was staring at me with a nervous smile on his face. My entire body froze up and I stopped in my tracks as my previous facade of confidence melted away instantly like an ice cube in a fire while sweat poured down my back as I struggled to keep the fake expression plastered on my face.
Argh! Mari, you idiot, why did you just mindlessly walk towards him!
I just stared back awkwardly at Ky without a word as my internal screams echoed around in my mind before Ky¡¯s voice brought me back to reality.
¡°Uh¡ hey Mari, what¡¯s up?¡± (Kyle)
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Kyle POV)
It was a beautiful sunny day in the capital city and I was sitting in my chair waiting to start class again as I passed the remainder of the lunch period reading another cheesy romance novel. The sound of chattering permeated the room and I had a relaxed smile on my face as I basked in the warm sunshine blanketing me. The last few dregs of the lunch period passed by while I relished this rare peaceful moment before I moved my line of sight from my book over to the clock where I saw that it was about time to start class up again. I put my book down before getting up and glancing around the room to see that everyone was ready. For some reason, Mari wasn¡¯t here today, but she probably just had something more important to do.
¡°Alright guys, it¡¯s about time to resume cla-¡± (Kyle)
The classroom quieted down and I was about to finish my sentence when suddenly I felt an intense glare from behind the door focus on me. I froze up. And out of the corner of my eye, I saw the top of Mari¡¯s head peeking past the door frame as she glared at me ferally like a predator stalking its prey.
Hey! What did I do this time!? I taught class normally today!
Her eyes flashed with a sharp glint and she revealed herself from behind the door frame before entering with slightly disheveled hair, messy clothes, and an irritated expression on her face. There was silence as everyone watched her glance around the room and mechanically walk up to me before stopping in her tracks. She stared at me for a moment with blank eyes and cold sweat rolled down my back as my originally relaxed smile started wavering.
¡°Uh¡ hey Mari, what¡¯s up?¡± (Kyle)
We stood there in awkward silence for another moment before Mari grabbed my arm with an empty look on her face while I stared back with a mixture of nervousness and confusion.
¡°Um¡ do you need something?¡± (Kyle)
¡°K-Ky, gimme the budgeting book, I need to double check it.¡± (Mari)
Crap! Is she onto me!? Did she finally find out about the budget I stole from the weapons department to fix the room!? Or was it the custom-made mithril spatula I used the magic department budget to buy!? Maybe it was even that time last week I used the cafeteria budget to buy groceries! A-Anyway, no matter what it is, I definitely can¡¯t let her have the budgeting book back!
¡°Sorry, I, uh, left it at home today. You know what, I¡¯ll give it back to you first thing tomorrow.¡± (Kyle)
I could feel my heart rate rising as I gave Mari a panicked smile, but she just tilted her head down so that her hair obscured her face and stared at the ground in silence while still holding onto my arm. I stood there desperately pleading in my head for Mari to just let it go and sit down as even more cold sweat ran down my back.
After a moment she slowly let go of my arm and walked over to my desk in a hurry, then proceeded to open my satchel and rummage through my belongings before pulling out the budgeting book. She turned around and began to walk over to her usual seat next to Reina when I ran over and grabbed her shoulder to stop her as I used my other hand to snatch the budgeting book out of her hands before giving Mari a nervous laugh.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
¡°Mari, please don¡¯t invade my privacy like that. This is my... lesson planning notebook. Like I told you I left the budgeting book at home today, so just wait a little bit, and I¡¯ll give it back to you tomorrow.¡± (Kyle)
A few seconds passed as I slowly let go of her, but the moment my arm completely let go of her, I caught a glimpse of her shaky smile as she twirled around and jumped for the budgeting book in my hand. I immediately threw the book behind her towards the boys where Halbert accidentally caught it in a panic.
Damn it, looks like she won¡¯t just let this one go. Sorry kids, but I guess class is postponed today. I¡¯ll have to get Mari as far away as possible and keep her busy for a while until I can find a chance to sneak back and hide the book somewhere!
¡°Halbert, take that book and run for your life! It doesn¡¯t matter what you do with it, just keep it away from the headmistress!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh!? What!?¡± (Halbert)
He fumbled around with it in his hands as I hugged Mari tightly to hold her back before a few light green magic circles appeared between me and Mari. A large blast of air separated me from her and I helplessly flew backward into the wall as Mari ran up to Halbert, quickly snatching the budgeting book from his hands before making her way over to Reina¡¯s side, sitting down, and opening the book.
Crap! I¡¯m done for! She¡¯ll kill me after she finds out what I actually did with the budget!
I slammed my fists against the floor in reluctant defeat for a few seconds before letting out a depressed sigh as I slowly got up off the floor under the confused looks of my students and restarted class for what could very well be my last day teaching.
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Mari POV)
I gave Reina a shaky goodbye as all the students in Ky¡¯s class began to leave the room. It was well into the afternoon now and Ky was sitting dejectedly at his desk while I stayed in my seat. I slightly lowered the budgeting notebook that I was using to shield my red face before sneaking another glance at Ky as memories of his sudden hug from earlier ran through my head.
In my panic, I tried to ask for the budgeting book as a cover, but Ky wouldn¡¯t give it to me for some reason so I ended up having to take it by force. After that, Ky just went over a few low-level alchemy circles and I jittered around in my seat pretending to go over the budgeting book while secretly watching him.
S-So now what do I do?... Class is over. Should I head back to my office?
I held the book up to cover my face again as I stared down at the table in front of me. I shook my head a little to calm myself down. It rubbed against the pages of the budgeting notebook as I contemplated whether or not I should just take the rest of the day off when suddenly the sound of Ky¡¯s voice made my heart skip a beat.
¡°... Alright Mari, now I know you¡¯re probably really angry about my blatant abuse of the budget, but I¡¯m genuinely sorry this time. You can fire me if you want to and I¡¯m even fine with paying back the money I embezzled from the budget, but whatever you do please don¡¯t make me give up Neo-Excalibur! I¡¯m not gonna lose another one, not after the terrible fate that Excalibur the First met!¡± (Kyle)
I let out a small, surprised yelp and lifted my head up to see Ky bowing down in front of me with tears in his eyes. I desperately tried to contain the raging blush on my face as my heart rate immediately sped up and everything Ky said flew straight out of my head. A moment passed by as I stared at him in silence while the blush on my face reddened even more, but eventually, Ky realized I wasn¡¯t saying anything and raised his head.
¡°Come on, at least say something, Mari! Just tell me, what¡¯s my punishment!?¡± (Kyle)
We made eye contact for a split second before I immediately averted my eyes and the budgeting book in my hands shot back up to conceal my face again.
P-Punishment? W-What is he talking about?
¡°W-Why would I punish you?¡± (Mari)
For some reason, there was complete silence after I finished speaking, and I sat there awkwardly for a moment, hiding behind the budgeting book before Ky suddenly grabbed it out of my hands. I immediately scrambled to try and get it back, but he held it up high out of my reach and I raised my head to find Ky¡¯s concerned face just inches away from my own.
¡°Mari, are you ok?¡± (Kyle)
I froze up as he stared intensely at me. The blush on my face frantically spread to the tips of my ears as I desperately thought about how to get away and after a moment, I tried to tell him that I was fine, but the only sound that came out of my mouth was a whimper as I felt my brain slowly melting into mush.
¡°...a-augh¡¡± (Mari)
Ky put the budgeting notebook down on the table next to me and held his hand against my forehead as my face started burning up so much that I thought steam would start coming out of my ears. I felt my heart almost leap out of my chest as the anxiety and embarrassment mixed together with the fuzzy feelings to make all my blood rush to my face. We stood there in awkward silence for another moment before Ky walked around the desk and picked me up in a princess carry without a word.
W-W-What are you doing!? Stop it, Ky! My heart can¡¯t take this much longer!
My brain was fried at this point as all I could do was barely cover my furiously blushing face with my hands while Ky carried me down the hallway. Faint warmth radiated from Ky¡¯s body as I unconsciously snuggled closer and the only thing my brain was telling me at this point was that it hoped this moment would last forever, but after a few minutes I heard the sound of a door opening and we entered into a room as Ky called out in a serious voice.
¡°Excuse me, is the school nurse here?¡± (Kyle)
I opened the gaps between my fingers a little and looked around as I realized that we were in the nurse¡¯s office before another voice answered Ky and a middle-aged lady, the school nurse, Miss Sirona, walked out from around the corner.
¡°Yes, that would be me, what¡¯s the problem?¡± (Miss Sirona)
¡°Please take a look at the headmistress, there¡¯s definitely something wrong with her!¡± (Kyle)
Ky walked over to an infirmary bed and gently placed me down before Miss Sirona walked over to me with a serious face. Both of them stared at me for a few seconds before she closed the curtain around the bed to speak to Ky, but I could still hear the sound of their voices even from behind the curtain.
¡°Looks like she had a good amount of blood rush to her head. It might have given her some pretty bad vertigo. Do you know when the symptoms first started showing up?¡± (Miss Sirona)
¡°I¡¯m not sure when it started, but I brought her here immediately after seeing how red her face was. Her forehead was burning up and there was even a moment when it seemed like she couldn¡¯t speak properly.¡± (Kyle)
¡°What did she do?¡± (Miss Sirona)
¡°I don¡¯t know. She was just sitting and reading through a book for the last few hours.¡± (Kyle)
The sound of their voices droned on for a while as they discussed my symptoms while my heart rate finally began to return to normal. I took a deep breath before burying my face in the pillow to cool my head down as I rolled around on the cold sheets and let out a light squeal. The freshly made memory of Ky princess carrying me swirled around in my head, and I desperately tried to clear out of my mind when the sound of the curtains opening caught my attention. I looked up to see Miss Sirona holding an ice pack. She put it against my forehead and stared intently at my face again for a moment before the curtains were closed again.
¡°Hmm, it seems like she¡¯s calmed down a little. Well, it¡¯s probably not too serious if she was able to recover so fast. I would recommend just letting her rest quietly for a bit and checking up on her again in an hour or two.¡± (Miss Sirona)
¡°Alright.¡± (Kyle)
After that, I heard the sound of the door shutting and silence returned to the nurse¡¯s office again.
***
About an hour has passed since Ky left the nurse¡¯s office, and I think my heart has finally settled down, enough for me to face reality again at least. And I¡¯ve been laying here in silence ever since. I¡¯ve had a while to reorganize my thoughts, but no matter what I did, I just couldn¡¯t get Ky out of my head. He was just sitting there in the back of my mind. I let out a depressed sigh and hugged the pillow a bit tighter before quietly muttering to myself as mixed feelings spun around in my heart whenever I thought about my relationship with Ky.
¡°... What am I doing?...¡± (Mari)
Why am I getting so flustered?... Let¡¯s be real, a relationship between me and Ky would never work out. What have I actually done for him except take advantage of our positions to make him help me? To him, I¡¯m probably just an annoying, abusive boss...
And without our connection from work, we have nothing. We¡¯re from two different worlds.
I¡¯m the Grand Mage of Wind, a pillar of the Raidion Empire and a high ranking noble, while he¡¯s just a manaless commoner who has a bit of skill in activating rocks. We could never be together...
¡ These feelings inside me make me sick... They¡¯re too warm¡ warm enough that I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll lose myself to them one day. Like a special kind of sweet, the kind that you can¡¯t help but crave, even when reason tells you not to. And deep down inside, I admit that there¡¯s a part of me that wants nothing more than to drown in that sea of tenderness, to feel the euphoria for even just a moment, but even more than that, I¡¯m afraid. I¡¯m afraid of the pain that comes after that moment of happiness. I might feel this way, but Ky probably doesn¡¯t, and then... what will I be left with?
Even if by some miracle he feels the same way too, even if by some miracle we can ignore our status, I¡¯ve seen enough to know that there are some things that love just can¡¯t conquer... After all, we can¡¯t change fate. I¡¯m an elf... and he¡¯s a human. He might be young now, but how long will I really be able to feel his warmth? How long will I be able to feel that happiness? Eighty, maybe ninety years if he¡¯s lucky? Maybe I¡¯ll be holding his hand on his deathbed while still looking just like I do today. Then after those blissful days, all I¡¯ll have to myself is painful memories and a broken heart.
I moved my hand to cover my chest and felt my now steady heartbeat as reality finally shattered my daydreams like fragile glass. It was like the world around me became colder all of a sudden, and the colors faded a bit as I laid there wallowing in my depressive episode. I turned myself over to my left as I saw the sunlight shining in through the windows project a hazy light onto the curtains and thoughts about how to lock away my feelings forever meandered their way through my head.
Then, I heard the door to the nurse¡¯s office open again.
Faint footsteps sounded out before the curtain behind me was opened. My heart leaped out of my chest for a moment as Ky called out to me with a worried voice.
¡°How are you feeling, Mari? The nurse told me you were looking a lot better when she checked up on you again a little bit ago.¡± (Kyle)
I desperately suppressed the surge of emotions rocking my heart as I continued to face away from Ky while answering him with a wistful tone in my voice.
¡°Yeah, I¡¯m feeling a lot better...¡± (Mari)
There was a moment of silence as Ky stood there before letting out a sigh and sitting down on the bed behind me before speaking to me softly.
¡°Alright, what¡¯s wrong?¡± (Kyle)
¡°What do you mean?¡± (Mari)
¡°Do you think I¡¯m an idiot?... Er, actually, let me rephrase that... I can tell from your tone, there¡¯s obviously something wrong. Normally you would have nothing except absolute confidence in your voice, and admittedly it¡¯s leaning slightly towards an arrogant kind of confidence, but still, it¡¯s a familiar confidence. So maybe it''s the borderline Stockholm syndrome in me speaking up, but even though I might complain all the time, I have to admit, you¡¯re someone who can definitely back up that confidence. And the truth is¡ your voice is one that I¡®ve come to kind of enjoy hearing every day. So just tell me what¡¯s wrong... Tell me so I can help you... And, at least for me, I would consider us friends, so if you feel like it¡¯s something you don¡¯t want to tell your employee, Professor Kyle... well, then I hope you can at least tell your friend, Ky.¡± (Kyle)
A wave of emotion shook me as Ky¡¯s tender voice made just a bit of the warmth and color come back, and after a moment, my quiet voice broke the silence.
¡°... Hey, Ky, what would you do if there was someone in your life that you loved, someone that you wished you could always stand next to, but it was that exact same person who you knew that you could never be with?¡± (Mari)
¡°Hmm, well, I do know a self-proclaimed expert in this subject, but in my experience with her, she¡¯s always caused more trouble instead of helping, so I guess this time, I¡¯ll let you know what I think.¡± (Kyle)
Then there was silence again before a voice tinged with a mixture of nostalgia and melancholy gently rang out.
¡°... Let me tell you an old story, Mari. Once upon a time, there was a fool who feared change more than anything. And one day, that fool fell in love... He held his love in his heart, hid it deep from the outside world, but eventually, the fool lost even that small joy he had kept to himself. The woman he loved died in his arms and the fool blamed himself... So perhaps he yearned to feel that feeble sense of happiness again, or perhaps it was his way of coping with his laments, but the fool set out to try and reverse the change that he feared so much. He did a lot of terrible things and drove away all but one person in his twisted attempt to change fate. But ultimately, there was nothing waiting for him at the end of his path. Nothing except a cold, desolate emptiness... And it was then that he turned around to see what he had done... the pain and suffering he had caused, the realization of what he had become, and finally, he saw the last person in the world who cared about him. The fool fell to his knees, a hollow shell of who he once was as he talked to that person one final time and saw that the fool himself was the one who changed. The fool told the other person to kill him, but... the other person spared the fool. He left the fool to atone for his own sins. And the two eventually went their separate ways again... Time passed, and the fool finally found happiness again. But he knew better than anyone that he didn¡¯t deserve that warmth, that he could never be with them. And so, he became content with just staying next to the people he cared about. The fool finally understood that no matter how much he dreaded it, change would always come, so he decided that instead of trying to stop the change, he would just accept it. He would watch over the people he loved until the end... whether that be theirs or his...¡± (Kyle)
Ky ended his story with a slightly remorseful tone as silence returned to the nurse¡¯s office. We sat there without a word before I spoke quietly again.
¡°... Ky, you-¡± (Mari)
But before I could ask, Ky cut me off.
¡°So you know what, Mari? I think that just being next to the people you care about is more than enough. If you truly can¡¯t ever be together, then just stay by their side until the end... I''m sure they''ll cherish your company.¡± (Kyle)
¡°... Yeah... Thanks, Ky.¡± (Mari)
A tenderness washed away the mixed feelings in my heart and after a few seconds I slowly sat up in the infirmary bed before turning to face Ky with a gentle smile on my face.
You¡¯re right, if we truly can¡¯t ever be together... then just staying by your side until the end is enough... But still, I can¡¯t just forget about this fuzzy feeling in my heart so easily, so you know what? This time, I think I¡¯ll be a little selfish and reach for just a bit more...
¡°Hey, Ky, I think I¡¯m gonna take the rest of the day off, but I¡¯m still feeling a bit dizzy from all the blood rushing to my head earlier, so... could you do me a favor and carry me back home again?¡± (Mari)
¡°Again!?¡± (Kyle)
Ky¡¯s face quickly morphed from a bittersweet smile to a tired expression and he let out another sigh as I let out a few cute giggles.
¡°Yeah! Sorry, Ky.¡± (Mari)
Middle District, Irisveil Mansion (Kyle POV)
The sound of sizzling echoed throughout the kitchen as I poured a small amount of oil into the skillet on the stove in front of me while cheerfully humming a tune. I came home approximately two hours ago after piggybacking Mari back to her house again, and it was currently about time to start cooking dinner. I looked past the raw, handmade hamburger patties on the counter, through the entrance to the kitchen, and into the living room to see my bag on top of the coffee table right next to a certain budgeting notebook that I was able to ¡®resecure¡¯ from the classroom a while ago.
Sorry, Mari. I don¡¯t know what happened to you today, but you were stuck in the nurse¡¯s office and you obviously didn¡¯t read the budgeting notebook, so how could I not take such a great chance to save my job. I¡¯ll give the budgeting notebook right back to you tomorrow morning with some inconspicuous charges written down in lieu of my, ahem, questionable purchases.
Don¡¯t worry my dear Neo-Excalibur, you¡¯re not going anywhere! I¡¯ll make sure you stay safe and sound! I¡¯m sure it¡¯s what Excalibur the First would have wanted.
I rubbed the shiny metal spatula, which gleamed with a slightly bluish tint, against my cheek with a blissful smile on my face when suddenly, I heard the sound of the door opening.
¡°Ky, I¡¯m home!¡± (Aria)
Aria¡¯s voice called out to me and I popped my head past the kitchen entrance to see her taking off her shoes by the door with a slightly worn out expression on her face.
¡°Welcome back, I¡¯ll be finished with dinner in a few minutes. Tonight we¡¯re gonna have some homemade hamburgers.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Ok. Oh, by the way, are you doing anything this weekend?¡± (Aria)
¡°This weekend? No, why?¡± (Kyle)
¡°I might need your help picking up some things from the blacksmith. I put in an order a while ago for some stuff we needed at the squad barracks, and I just got confirmation yesterday that everything would be ready by this weekend.¡± (Aria)
¡°Eh? Sure, no problem.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Thanks, Ky!¡± (Aria)
Aria flashed a cheerful smile at me before she walked over to the couch and sat down with a sigh of relief while I popped my head back into the kitchen and plopped the patties onto the skillet as a loud sizzle and the smell of hamburgers spread through the house.
[Chapter 15] You Can Grow out of Hobbies, but Terrible Fashion Sense Is for Life
Solria, Shopping District (Kyle POV)
The hustle and bustle of the capital city surrounded me and Aria on this lazy summer morning as we slowly made our way through the streets of the shopping district. It¡¯s been a few days since the whole fiasco with the budgeting notebook, and I¡¯ve already handed a notebook with some perfectly reasonable ¡®expenses¡¯ back to Mari, who seemed to be all better after that day. The rest of the week passed by peacefully as I went over a few more basic elemental magic circles with the class.
Today though, I¡¯m helping Aria pick up some supplies from the blacksmith.
She was dressed casually in a light blue blouse and brown pants while I was just dressed the same way as always, but as we made our way down the street together, I noticed that a couple of people glanced over at Aria every now and then like they had something to say. They all just turned away after staring for a few moments though, so after thinking about it for a second, I turned to Aria with a confused look on my face.
¡°Hey, Aria, now that I think about it, aren¡¯t you supposed to be pretty famous? After all, you are a Knight Captain. Normally, everyone would either be avoiding us like they did in Delhurst or swarming you to get your autograph or something, but there are only a few people even noticing your presence.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, I haven¡¯t made much of a public appearance yet. I stay in the barracks all day for work, so the only people who know that I¡¯m the new Knight Captain are the nobles who were at the ceremony when I was appointed and the rest of the knights. The public probably only knows bits and pieces of how I look from rumors, and I don¡¯t have my uniform on today, so I doubt anyone will recognize me. Anyway, look, we¡¯re almost there, The blacksmith is just up ahead. Come on, Ky!¡± (Aria)
Aria gave me a short laugh before she grabbed my hand with a beaming smile on her face and started to pull me along with her to a smithy on the side of the road. A few seconds passed before she stopped under a small sign board hanging from a wooden beam. ¡®The Ironclad Forge¡¯ was engraved on the sign board and the front of the building was made of bricks and stone with a large chimney above pouring out smoke. The sound of metal banging against metal was faintly ringing out from inside as Aria softly let go of my hand and stood there for a moment before opening the door and barging into the shop. I walked in behind her as a blast of heat hit my face while her voice echoed around the shop.
¡°Uncle Grayhill, are you there? It¡¯s me, Aria. I¡¯m here to pick up my order.¡± (Aria)
I stared inside the shop where I saw several gleaming weapons ranging from swords and spears to axes and shields lined up against the walls next to a few mannequins with armor on them. A few of the weapons and pieces of armor even gleamed with colorful lusters indicating that they were made of precious materials like mithril or orichalcum. There was a large, unmanned counter directly across from the entrance, and behind the counter, there was an open door to a large forge room with quite a rare sight around these parts standing in it. Inside was a dwarf. He was stereotypically short, only looking like he was a little over two-thirds of my own height, and a ruffled mound of dark orange hair sat on top of his head to which a large beard, braided into a knot at the bottom, was attached.
You see, the Raidion Empire, being situated close to the border of the Elven forests, has a population mostly made up of humans and a few elves, but since it¡¯s not too geographically close to the kingdoms of many other races, such as the dwarves or the beastmen, any trade or interaction between them is few and far between. As a result, races besides humans and elves tend to be somewhat rare in the Empire.
The dwarf seemed to be in the middle of forging something as he hammered a piece of red-hot metal on top of an anvil, but once he heard Aria¡¯s voice, he stopped and looked up at her with a smile as he called out from the other room.
¡°Oh, it¡¯s you, lassie. You¡¯re pretty cheery today, ain''tcha? Anyway, your commission and the rest of the order¡¯s in the back. Just park your carriage outside, I¡¯ll even help ya load it up.¡±
¡°It¡¯s ok, you don¡¯t need to help me load it up, I don¡¯t have a carriage anyway.¡± (Aria)
¡°Eh? Then how are ya gonna haul all this over? There¡¯s no way you can move all this by hand.¡±
¡°That¡¯s what he¡¯s here for.¡± (Aria)
Aria grinned at the dwarf before stepping aside and pointing to me standing behind her as the dwarf quickly quenched the piece of hot metal he was working on in a water basin next to him before placing it back on the anvil and coming out of the forge room. He stood behind the counter and glanced at me with a confused look on his face before scanning me up and down and turning back to Aria with an even more confused look on his face.
¡°You can¡¯t be serious, lassie. You¡¯ve got about four full boxes of equipment, includin¡¯ your new blade. You might be able to carry two, but just look at him, he¡¯s got no muscle! I doubt he¡¯ll even be able to carry one!¡±
¡°Don¡¯t worry, if there¡¯s anything he¡¯s good for, it¡¯s carrying stuff. He might not look like it, but I guarantee you, he could carry it all if he wanted to. He¡¯s a genuine freak of nature.¡± (Aria)
¡°... That freak of nature is standing right here, you know.¡± (Kyle)
I slouched a bit and turned to the dwarf with a defeated look on my face before letting out a despondent sigh. Aria laughed a bit and turned around to face me before introducing me to the dwarf.
¡°Ky, this is Uncle Grayhill. He was a good friend of my father, and he¡¯s been smithing for the House of Irisveil before I was even born.¡± (Aria)
The dwarf turned to me with a hearty laugh before taking off his gloves and extending his hand towards me for a handshake.
¡°Nice to meet ya boy, the name¡¯s Boerand Grayhill, but since you¡¯re the lassie¡¯s friend, you can just call me Uncle Grayhill.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°Nice to meet you too, Uncle Grayhill. I¡¯m Kyle.¡± (Kyle)
I reached out with my hand to accept his handshake and we shook firmly for a moment before he came out from behind the counter.
¡°Well, if you¡¯re sure you can carry it all, follow me to the back then, I¡¯ll at least box everything up for ya.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
Uncle Grayhill led us through another door to the right side of the counter, and we entered a hallway which led to a large storage room behind the store. The sunlight gleaming in through the windows illuminated the dozens of weapons and pieces of armor littered everywhere. Wherever you looked there was a box of swords or a full set of armor there and I called out to Uncle Grayhill as he walked down further into the storage room.
¡°Wow, there¡¯s a lot. Did you make everything here?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, most of these are just failed or unsold products that I¡¯ve gathered up over the years, but yeah, a majority of it was made by me. Anythin¡¯ else is either something that¡¯s been pawned off to me or the work of my apprentice, Lucas. The boy can be a strange one sometimes, but his talent for smithin¡¯s definitely no joke. Smithin¡¯s in my blood, but the boy¡¯s not even a dwarf and he¡¯s still three times as good as I was at his age.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
I stared around again at the piles of metal as Aria¡¯s voice sounded out from behind us.
¡°Speaking of which, where¡¯s Lucas? He wasn¡¯t at the counter today.¡± (Aria)
¡°Well, today¡¯s been a real slow day, and I was at the forge anyway, so I let the boy take a break. He¡¯s probably just out back messin¡¯ around again. Here, I¡¯ll call him over.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
Uncle Grayhill walked over to a window at the end of the room, opened it up, and stuck his head out before yelling for his apprentice to come.
¡°Lucas, where are ya!? We have some guests over!¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°Who is it?¡±
The voice of a young boy answered Uncle Grayhill¡¯s, and a moment later, the back door of the storage room burst open to reveal a young boy holding a small hammer. He looked like he was about fourteen or fifteen years old with blue eyes and short brown hair. A pair of goggles sat on top of his head and he was dressed in a brown leather apron with similarly colored leather gloves on his hands. He glanced around the room for a moment, before his eyes lit up as he saw Aria.
¡°Miss Aria! Welcome back! How are you?¡±
¡°I¡¯m fine, how are you, Lucas?¡± (Aria)
¡°I¡¯m doing great! So, what are you here for today, Miss Aria? Just say the word and I¡¯ll be on it!¡± (Lucas)
Lucas ran over with an excited smile on his face as Uncle Grayhill closed the window and turned to him with a sigh.
¡°Boy, stop botherin¡¯ the lassie, she¡¯s just here to pick up her order.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°Oh, the order! Alright, where did you park your carriage? I¡¯ll help you load it up right now!¡± (Lucas)
¡°She ain¡¯t got no carriage, boy.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°No carriage? Then how are you gonna move all this equipment? You¡¯re not gonna carry it all the way are you?¡± (Lucas)
Lucas turned to Aria with a puzzled look on his face before Uncle Grayhill came over and pulled him back by the collar as he pointed over to me standing by the side.
¡°The lassie ain¡¯t movin¡¯ it all by herself. She¡¯s got help.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
Lucas stared at me like he finally noticed I was even there as I smiled back at him and waved while Aria walked over to my side and introduced me.
¡°Lucas, this is my friend. He¡¯s here to help me pick up my order.¡± (Aria)
¡°Hi there, nice to meet you, Lucas. My name¡¯s Kyle, but you can just call me Ky.¡± (Kyle)
There was silence for a moment as he glanced back and forth between me and Aria while Uncle Grayhill slowly let go of his collar. Lucas crossed his arms and slowly walked over to me as he looked away with an irritated expression before turning to Aria.
¡°Tsk, look at how slim he is, I bet he couldn¡¯t even lift one box. If you need someone to help you carry this all, Miss Aria, let a real man help, like me! I don¡¯t care if it takes the whole day, I¡¯ll get all this stuff wherever you want it!¡± (Lucas)
Oi, listen here you little brat! I came here out of the kindness of my heart to help Aria move all this stuff, and I don¡¯t need your condescending attitude along with it! You need to learn to respect your elders more!
I turned to Uncle Grayhill with an annoyed expression on my face as we stood there together and watched Lucas fawn over Aria while she tried to no avail to turn down his offer to help.
¡°Is he always this rude?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Aye, sorry about that, the boy¡¯s got a bit of a fancy for the lassie. Every time she comes over, he drops everythin¡¯ he¡¯s got and runs over. The boy¡¯s just rude cause he wants her attention, he doesn¡¯t really mean it, so forgive him this time, won''tcha?¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
Uncle Grayhill gave me a hearty chuckle as I let out a sigh before repressing my anger. After a moment, it seemed like Aria finally got it through to Lucas that she didn¡¯t need his help, and Uncle Grayhill walked over to a corner of the room where a few large boxes of assorted blades and armor were sitting on the floor next to a large, sheathed greatsword leaning against the wall. There were about a dozen longswords and a few daggers in one of the boxes, and another one had a small metal chest plate with some light arm and leg guards in it, whereas the last two had a cover on top. Uncle Grayhill picked up the sheathed greatsword carefully before handing it over to Aria with a smile.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
¡°Alright lassie, here¡¯s your new blade.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
Aria walked over before gently picking up the large greatsword, and despite it being such a large blade, there was an air of elegance to it as Aria slowly unsheathed it. The full sword was about the same size as her previous one, and it was a light steel color which gleamed with a reddish tint, indicating that it was at the very least made of an alloy with a large percentage of orichalcum if not completely made of it. The edges of the blade were razor sharp, and it had an inscription, which consisted of Aria¡¯s name and the Irisveil family crest, running along the flat of the blade. The sunlight shining through the window reflected off the blade as Aria held it in her hands and took a few practice swings in the air before turning around to face a grinning Uncle Grayhill.
¡°So, how do ya like it, lassie? It¡¯s a beauty, ain¡¯t it? Your last one was probably one of my best works, so when you told me it broke, my old bones got fired up again. The boy and I took a whole month to make this one special, and this time, I can definitely tell you that this is my greatest masterpiece. Right now, it might not be too impressive in anything ¡®cept how tough and sharp it is, but once you get some enchantments on it, you¡¯ll be holdin¡¯ one of the best swords in the Empire!¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°That¡¯s right, Miss Aria. Your new sword is definitely the toughest blade I¡¯ve ever seen, the entire thing is made completely out of pure orichalcum.¡± (Lucas)
¡°Yeah, it¡¯s perfect! Thanks, you two!¡± (Aria)
¡°Look, I even engraved the blade with your name and family crest. Here, let me show you.¡± (Lucas)
¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough, boy. Why don¡¯t you come with me to go get the nails so we can close up the rest of these boxes? Let the lassie check out her new blade in peace.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
Uncle Grayhill grabbed Lucas by the collar again and dragged him off to the front of the shop as I walked over to Aria, who got into a stance and took a few more practice swings before sheathing her sword.
¡°Wait, where did you get the money to buy all this orichalcum?¡± (Kyle)
¡°I didn¡¯t. The Captain of the 12th Squad returned to the capital about three months ago and her cousin is one of the knights in the 7th squad, so she heard about how my previous sword broke during our fight with the dragon and gave me a bunch of orichalcum to forge a new blade as a late welcome gift.¡± (Aria)
¡°Who just gives out this much orichalcum as a gift!?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, she¡¯s the head of one of the richest families in the Empire, the House of Leonora, so it was basically a drop in the bucket for her. This isn¡¯t even all of it. There was a little bit left over after the sword was made, so I gave the rest of it to Uncle Grayhill as payment for forging my new sword, but he told me it was too much and threw in all this extra equipment.¡± (Aria)
¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me? We could¡¯ve just paid him with money for the new sword, then sold the rest of that orichalcum to pay the bills! More new equipment is nice, but our primary concern should be putting food on the table!¡± (Kyle)
¡°We¡¯re doing just fine, aren¡¯t we? It¡¯s not like we¡¯re in debt or anything.¡±(Aria)
¡°Just because we¡¯re not technically in debt doesn¡¯t mean our finances are great. Until recently, we were just barely getting by. We don¡¯t even have any savings right now. How are you gonna manage your finances if you keep spending everything you get on stuff like this?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, I don¡¯t need to manage my finances, do I? That¡¯s what you¡¯re here for. I mean you did it before when we were in Delhurst, so what¡¯s the difference now? Besides, it¡¯s not like we desperately need money for anything right now, and what¡¯s done is done.¡± (Aria)
Aria let out a cheerful laugh and grinned at me as I sighed and facepalmed.
¡°Anyway, I thought you got a new sword after you got appointed as a captain, but obviously you didn¡¯t, so if you didn¡¯t have a sword, what have you been using until now?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? Well¡ I¡¯ve just been using a practice sword that I borrowed. It¡¯s dull on the edges, but it¡¯s made out of metal at least. And since all I do is train with the rest of the knight squad, it¡¯s been enough to get the job done so far.¡± (Aria)
I stared at Aria with a look of disbelief on my face as she told me about how she¡¯s been using a practice sword for the past few months with an embarrassed blush.
¡°Even if it isn¡¯t made of the most high-quality material, I¡¯m sure that just a normal steel greatsword from a decent blacksmith¡¯s shop would¡¯ve been better than a practice sword! I could¡¯ve at least gotten you one of those to use until your new sword was ready. How am I supposed to know you need something if you don¡¯t tell me?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, of course you didn¡¯t know, it¡¯s not like you ever ask me about work. You haven¡¯t even been to barracks again since the day we moved everything in. Hmph.¡± (Aria)
Aria looked away from me with a cute pout on her face as she crossed her arms and hugged her new greatsword while I let out another sigh.
¡°Alright, I¡¯m sorry for never asking you about work, ok? So, before we go to the barracks, let me just ask you right now, is everything else going fine at the barracks? Let me know if you need something and we can pick it up on the way there.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Nope, we don¡¯t really need anything else, everything besides my equipment has been in tip-top shape. Thanks for finally asking though, Ky.¡± (Aria)
Aria gave me a satisfied grin as the sound of the door opening behind us caught my attention. I turned around to see Uncle Grayhill walk in holding a couple of large nails and a hammer in his hands while Lucas followed behind him with some rope.
¡°Alright, lassie, just give me a minute to nail up these boxes, and you¡¯ll be good to go.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
Aria and I stepped aside as Uncle Grayhill walked over and started nailing the boxes shut. A few moments passed as the sound of Lucas chatting with Aria was drowned out by the banging of a hammer and I took a closer look around at the various items around the storage room before a hint of red amidst the sea of silver caught my eye. Amongst the dozens of weapons which blended in with the similarly colored armor, there was something that vaguely looked like a long red piece of cloth laying flat on top of a metal table. I stared at it for a moment with interest before turning to Uncle Grayhill and asking him about it.
¡°Hey, what¡¯s that sitting on the table over there?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Hmm? Oh, that. It¡¯s just one of the boy¡¯s strange creations again, he¡¯s always making these random knick-knacks. A while ago, I gave him a small chunk of the leftover orichalcum from the lassie¡¯s blade to play with and a few days later he made that thing. I put it out front for a few days after the boy begged me to, but like I told him, no one would buy that piece of junk. I can¡¯t even melt it down again because of the way he made it, so now it¡¯s just taking up space. I¡¯ve been meanin¡¯ to throw it out, but the boy insists on keepin¡¯ it. Actually, why don''tcha just ask the boy yourself? Hey boy, the laddie here¡¯s interested in your work! Why don''tcha show him what ya made?¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
Lucas walked over with an annoyed expression on his face before asking me what I was interested in.
¡°So, what do you want to know about?¡± (Lucas)
The tone of his voice irked me a bit, but I took a deep breath and managed to let it go as Uncle Grayhill¡¯s voice sounded out again.
¡°I can¡¯t believe it, but the red thing you made caught the laddie¡¯s eye.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°Really!? See Uncle Grayhill? I told you someone would be interested in it! That coat is definitely a masterpiece!¡± (Lucas)
Lucas¡¯ attitude instantly transformed into excitement and he gave an enthusiastic smile to Uncle Grayhill as a passionate twinkle appeared in his eyes before he turned over to me with a newfound friendliness.
¡°Ky, right? Follow me, I¡¯ll show you what I made.¡± (Lucas)
Lucas ran over to the table as I awkwardly followed behind him to get a closer look at the coat. The coat itself was a slightly dark, reddish color with several streaks of straight white running along the edges, forming a cool design. A small trim of soft white fur lined the collar and bottom edge while a few black leather belts sticking out at angles around the waist and chest area functioned as a substitute for buttons to hold the coat closed.
Argh! Stop it, Ky, you¡¯re better than this! Don¡¯t let your inner chuuni take over! I know it looks really cool, but resist your urges! Remember the consequences! You know better than anyone that you definitely can¡¯t be seen in public wearing something like this. Not again. And anyway, what would you even do with something like this? You¡¯re a professor at the Royal Academy for god¡¯s sake, not a cosplayer! It¡¯s still summer too, so there¡¯s absolutely no use for a coat right now!
I stood there for a moment staring at the long coat with a dazed look in my eyes as I mentally struggled against my inner edgelord before Lucas turned around to me with a beaming grin on his face and a zealous glint in his eyes.
¡°So, what do you think, Ky? Isn¡¯t it super cool?¡± (Lucas)
¡°Goddammit, I guess this is my limit, huh? I can¡¯t hold it in anymore, I can¡¯t deny my true self. You¡¯re right, it¡¯s so damn cool!¡± (Kyle)
The passionate flames in Lucas¡¯ eyes went on full blast as the conclusion of my inner turmoil resulted in my inner edgelord finally awakening again from its long slumber.
¡°I know right! It took me months to draw the blueprints. Just look at the colors and design! The entire thing is made of a special alloy fabric infused with the perfect amount of orichalcum to give it this deep red color and the white outlines are made of cloth mixed with snow iron from the north! The fur lining the edges is from a frost ferret and the belts are even made of dread boar leather. But even though the thing I¡¯m most proud of is the style, the coat isn¡¯t just looks either! Because of how I made the alloy fabric, the whole thing is tougher than steel armor while still being as flexible as a normal coat!¡± (Lucas)
Lucas rambled to me about the different features of the coat and how it was made with a fervent tone as I listened to him intently before Uncle Grayhill walked over to us and sighed.
¡°Well laddie, I don¡¯t know how the tacky design hasn¡¯t put you off yet, but let me be straight with ya. The boy¡¯s coat might be tough, but that¡¯s because the boy made the material so dense! The whole thing¡¯s practically made of metal, and even though it¡¯s stronger than most steel plate armor, it¡¯s also about three times as heavy! Even if ya managed to put it on, you¡¯d barely be able to move! And anyway, it¡¯s still summer. You¡¯d probably be roasted to death standin¡¯ out in the sun with that coat on. There¡¯s a reason nobody bought it when I put it on display out front.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°A coat three times as heavy as steel armor? That is probably the single most impractical thing I¡¯ve ever heard in my life¡ I¡¯ll take it.¡± (Kyle)
I pulled out my wallet as Uncle Grayhill gave me a look of disbelief and Lucas pumped his fist up in the air with a cheer.
¡°I knew someone would want it! Everyone who ignored it before just didn¡¯t understand my vision! Alright Ky, you know what, I won¡¯t even charge you, you can have it for free.¡± (Lucas)
¡°Really? I can pay, you know? It wouldn¡¯t feel right just taking it from you after you worked on it for so long.¡± (Kyle)
¡°It¡¯s ok. Uncle Grayhill¡¯s been trying to throw it out anyway, so I¡¯d rather give it to someone who truly understands and appreciates my work than have it sit in a trash heap somewhere. I¡¯ll even adjust it for you if I need to, so try it on and see if it fits. Just think of it as my gift to a new friend!¡± (Lucas)
¡°Well, if you say so. I guess I owe you one then, Lucas. If you ever need anything, just let me know!¡± (Kyle)
I gave a friendly grin and held out my hand as Lucas and I bumped fists before Uncle Grayhill sighed at both of us.
¡°Well, since the boy seems willin¡¯, knock yourself out, laddie, but you might need to trim off some of it to make it lighter if you wanna use it¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°Eh? I don¡¯t think it¡¯ll be that bad. Let me see.¡± (Kyle)
I walked over to the front of the table and grabbed the coat by the collar before lifting it up with one hand. It was a little weighty at first, but after adjusting the amount of strength in my arm, I picked up the coat relatively easily and held it in front of me. After staring at it for a moment, I grabbed it with both hands and waved it around a bit to air out the coat before trying it on. The cuffs were a little long, reaching just past my wrists, but it fit me pretty well in terms of length, and after rotating my arms around a bit to see if there was any stiffness near the shoulder area when moving, I turned around to see Uncle Grayhill and Lucas staring at me in astonishment.
¡°It fits great, the only problem is that the cuffs are a bit long, but that shouldn¡¯t be too hard to fix, right?¡ What? What¡¯s wrong?¡± (Kyle)
¡°... I guess the lassie wasn¡¯t kiddin¡¯ when she said you could carry the whole order if you wanted to...¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
I stared back at them with a slightly confused look on my face as Aria walked over to us from the corner of the room and broke into hysterical laughter once she saw what I was wearing.
¡°What the hell are you wearing, Ky?¡± (Aria)
¡°A coat. It¡¯s pretty cool, isn¡¯t it?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, I wouldn¡¯t say it¡¯s cool, but it¡¯s definitely something.¡± (Aria)
¡°Oi, what¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± (Kyle)
I gave Aria an angry smile as I stood there wearing the coat with my arms crossed. After a moment, Aria¡¯s laughter finally started dying down and she wiped away the tears in her eyes before covering her mouth and letting out a few more giggles.
¡°Anyway, I think it¡¯s about time we go. I told everyone I would be at the barracks with our new equipment by noon. Come on, Ky, take that tacky coat off and let¡¯s get going.¡± (Aria)
I let out a sigh before taking off the coat and putting it back on the table as Aria turned around and walked back towards the boxes with her order in the corner of the room.
A few minutes later, I heard the hustle and bustle of the city envelop me again as I stepped out of the door and into the sun with three boxes of equipment in my arms. Aria stood next to me with a box in her hands while her new greatsword hung from her back just like her old one did back when we were adventuring. She said her goodbyes to Uncle Grayhill and Lucas, who were standing by the entrance of the shop before following me out into the street.
¡°Alright, see you guys!¡± (Aria)
¡°Aye, come by again soon, lassie. You too, laddie.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°Goodbye, Miss Aria! Hope you drop by again. Oh, and Ky, come back in a few days, I¡¯ll have the coat ready for you!¡± (Lucas)
¡°Thanks, Lucas! See you then!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Alright, Ky, to the barracks!¡± (Aria)
Aria turned to me and gave me a carefree grin before starting to walk towards the 7th Squad barracks while humming a tune as I followed after her.
Hmm, speaking of which, this really will be the first time I¡¯ve visited the barracks since I helped Aria move in. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever met any of her subordinates either. Eh, well, it looks like Aria¡¯s a lot more cheerful nowadays, and she always seems happy whenever she comes home, so they¡¯re probably nice people... right?
[Chapter 16] A Smile Is Worth a Thousand Words, but a Picture of My Little Sister Is Priceless
Solria, Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Aria POV)
¡°We¡¯re almost there, Ky.¡± (Aria)
My cheerful voice rang out as I walked down the familiar, yet sparsely populated road holding a large box of armor in my hands, and I couldn¡¯t help but have a beaming smile on my face as I heard the sound of Ky¡¯s steady footsteps behind me. We made our way out of the crowded shopping district and into the middle district a while ago on our way to the barracks and it was currently almost noon. After a few moments, the familiar sight of a large metal gate greeted me as I came to a stop and took a deep breath.
Alright Aria, I know today¡¯s been a great day so far. The sun¡¯s shining in the sky, it¡¯s nice and warm outside, and the cool breeze feels refreshing when it blows in your face. You finally got your brand new sword too, and¡
I quickly twirled around to sneak a quick peek at Ky before I immediately turned back around to face the gate again. I looked down at the box I was holding in my hands while a slight blush began to spread through my face.
W-Would this count as a date with Ky? I mean he¡¯s just helping me move some equipment, b-but we¡¯re alone together, aren¡¯t we? We walked through town together, and we¡¯ll probably have lunch together after this too. So i-isn¡¯t that just a date?...
Well anyway, even if it is, you can¡¯t let it show on your face! I don¡¯t know who¡¯s here at the barracks today, but you definitely can¡¯t let them see you smiling like an idiot. Come on Aria, you have a reputation to keep! Just act serious like usual. Think about work or something¡
Argh! I can¡¯t do it! This stupid smile just won¡¯t come off my face!
I dropped the box at my feet with a loud thump as the armor inside clanked around. My hands squirmed all around my face as I tried desperately to force it from a smile back into a neutral expression, but despite my efforts, my face would just instantly revert back into the same goofy smile every time. After a few moments, I gave up trying to manually make my face return to a blank expression, so I took another deep breath while trying to calm myself down before suddenly, I heard the sound of Ky¡¯s voice from behind me.
¡°What¡¯s wrong, Aria? Did you forget your keys or something?¡± (Kyle)
My heart rate began to speed up as I heard the sound of another thump followed by some more clanging before I felt Ky¡¯s hand softly touch my shoulder. My hands immediately shot back up and covered the bottom half of my face as I spun around to face him with a blush a few shades redder than before. Ky stared at me with a concerned look on his face and I averted my line of sight to the ground after making eye contact with him for a moment.
¡°No, seriously. What¡¯s wrong?...¡± (Kyle)
What do you mean, what¡¯s wrong!? You¡¯re what¡¯s wrong right now! How am I ever going to return to normal if you keep making my heart rate skyrocket like this!?
We stood there in awkward silence as I stared at the ground before speaking out in a quiet voice.
¡°Well, because I just got my new sword, along with¡ some other reasons... I¡¯m a little too happy right now and I can¡¯t wipe this dumb grin off my face no matter what I do.¡± (Aria)
¡°Eh? That¡¯s it? I thought you were in serious pain or something with how suddenly you dropped the box. Anyway, you¡¯re happy right now, right? You¡¯re a person, not a rock. Just express it instead of bottling it up. Who cares if you¡¯re smiling or not?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, maybe it doesn¡¯t matter to you, but I have a reputation to keep around here! I¡¯m a Knight Captain! I¡¯m not supposed to be grinning like an idiot, I¡¯m supposed to be stoic and resolute!¡± (Aria)
¡°Even if you¡¯re supposed to be serious normally, it¡¯s just a smile. It¡¯s not like everyone will think any less of you for smiling every once in a while, will they? Even back in Delhurst, you were never too serious unless it was a fight. I mean I guess you could have been seen as stoic, but that was just because everyone was too scared to talk to you. What did you do to start the charade, this time?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well¡ the first day the new recruits came in, some of them got a little conceited and pissed me off. One even challenged me to a duel for the position of captain. So I beat them all up to show them who was boss, but after that, I¡¯ve been treating them decently. At least I think I have...¡± (Aria)
¡°... Well, at the very least, it looks like you haven¡¯t changed a bit since our days in Delhurst. You might not actually be a rock, but apparently your social skills sure are at that level.¡± (Kyle)
¡°What do you mean by that? Back in Delhurst, you were just as much of an outcast as me, weren¡¯t you? Hmph.¡± (Aria)
Ky took a seat on top of the boxes of equipment he placed on the floor earlier and let out a sigh while I crossed my arms and pouted at him with a slightly annoyed look on my face. After a moment, I looked back at him and opened my mouth to say something, but the moment I did he cut me off.
¡°Oh. Well, there you go. Looks like you¡¯re back to normal Miss ¡®stoic and resolute¡¯ Knight Captain. Now, where do you want me to put all this stuff?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh?¡± (Aria)
I held my face in my hands with some slight disbelief, but after a moment I confirmed that my face was back to a neutral expression again.
¡°Huh, you¡¯re right. Anyway, just put all the stuff in the training room. Here, let me open the gate for you.¡± (Aria)
I watched Ky pick up the stack of boxes again and a warm, fuzzy feeling filled my chest as I unconsciously smiled at him again.
¡°Thanks, Ky. Ah¡¡± (Aria)
Crap...
¡°... Well¡ just think of this as your subordinates learning about a new side of you I guess. It¡¯ll, uh, promote friendship...¡± (Kyle)
Solria, Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Kyle POV)
A few minutes passed as I sat there taking in the scenery while Aria finally managed to plaster a stoic expression on her face again. I stopped staring at the dojo style barracks building and hopped off of the stack of boxes I was sitting on as Aria opened the gate before picking up the box she dropped on the ground earlier.
¡°Alright, follow me, Ky.¡± (Aria)
¡°Sure.¡± (Kyle)
I picked up my own stack of boxes and let out a small yawn as Aria led me through the open gate and down the small path leading up to the front door of the barracks. She pushed open the door with her leg and the slightly familiar sight of a large, but quaint lobby room greeted my senses as I made my way over to the hallway on the right side of the building before calling out to Aria who was closing the door behind us.
¡°If I remember, the training room was this way, right?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah, just go straight and it¡¯s to your right.¡± (Aria)
¡°Ok.¡± (Kyle)
I walked out into the courtyard with a faint smile, and a breeze blew past my face as I turned to my left to see the garden. The sunlight shining in beautifully illuminated the pond and garden in the middle of the courtyard just like the first time I saw it, but this time there was an extra. In the middle of the courtyard was a young woman crouching down by the garden. She had medium length blonde hair that reached down a little past her shoulders and her skin was slightly tanned while her light-brown eyes had a lively atmosphere to them. Her attire consisted of a white military uniform with black trims and yellow buttons, but she had a small watering can in her hands as she tended to the garden while humming a tune with a smile on her face.
It seemed like she noticed me right after I walked into the courtyard though because she looked up and made eye contact with me awkwardly for a moment before getting up and calling out to me.
¡°Umm, excuse me, who are you?¡±
¡°I¡¯m Kyle.¡± (Kyle)
The girl stared at me in confusion, but after a moment, she placed the watering can on the floor and walked over with a suspicious look on her face.
¡°... So, is there something you need from the 7th Knight Squad?¡±
¡°Umm, I¡¯m just here to drop off some stuff.¡± (Kyle)
¡°A delivery? Who¡¯s it for?¡±
¡°Well, technically it¡¯s for you...¡± (Kyle)
¡°For me?¡±
The suspicious look on the girl¡¯s face flashed with a hint of surprise for a split second before immediately shifting into a serious expression.
¡°I didn¡¯t order anything though. Please stop lying and tell me the truth, otherwise, I¡¯ll have to apprehend you for trespassing.¡±
She took a few steps forward and it looked like she was about to attack when Aria walked into the courtyard hallway behind me and saw me standing still.
¡°What¡¯s wrong, Ky?¡± (Aria)
¡°Ah! Captain Aria! Careful, there¡¯s a suspicious intruder here!¡±
¡°Intruder? What are you talking about?... Did you do something stupid again, Ky?¡± (Aria)
¡°Why did it just default to it being my fault!? I just walked into the courtyard, I didn¡¯t do anything!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh?¡±
The girl in the military uniform immediately dropped her fighting stance and the confusion on her face was back in full force as she stared at me and Aria standing next to each other.
¡°Aria, you did tell them that I was going to be helping you pick up the new equipment today, right?¡± (Kyle)
¡°... Sorry¡ I forgot...¡± (Aria)
I stared at Aria for a second before letting out a defeated sigh and turning to the girl in the uniform as Aria called out to her.
¡°Lillian, it¡¯s ok, he¡¯s not an intruder. He¡¯s my friend who¡¯s helping me pick up our new equipment from the blacksmith.¡± (Aria)
¡°Well, like I said before, my name¡¯s Kyle. Nice to meet you.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I¡¯m so sorry, Sir Kyle!¡±
I stood there as the girl in the military uniform started rapidly bowing to me with a panicked look on her face, and it was only after a few minutes that we finally got her to calm down and introduced herself to me, albeit with a guilty look in her eyes.
¡°My name is Lillian Leonora, nice to meet you, and once again, I¡¯m sorry about accusing you before.¡± (Lillian)
¡°I¡¯m telling you, it¡¯s ok.¡± (Kyle)
¡°It¡¯s not ok, I almost attacked an innocent person who was just trying to help, not to mention you¡¯re manaless, so I could¡¯ve ended up seriously hurting you!¡± (Lillian)
So she¡¯s the 12th Knight Captain¡¯s cousin, huh? Well, at least she seems pretty well mannered for being a member of such a wealthy family, a little too well mannered even... I thought she¡¯d be a lot more snobbish.
I let out a dry chuckle as Aria walked past me towards the training room.
¡°We can talk all we want later, let¡¯s just put this stuff down first.¡± (Aria)
¡°No problem, Captain Aria!¡± (Lillian)
Lillian quickly gave a traditional Raidion knight¡¯s salute to Aria before turning to me with a determined look on her face.
¡°Sir Kyle, let me carry some of this for you! Helping you out a bit is the least I can do to make up for my blunder earlier, as both a noblewoman and a knight!¡± (Lillian)
¡°Eh? It¡¯s alright. We¡¯re just dropping this off at the training room.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Even so, I insist!¡± (Lillian)
Lillian pumped her fists together and stared at me with a stubborn glint in her eyes. I let out a sigh as I realized she wasn¡¯t going to give up so easily and put down the boxes with a thump before handing her one.
¡°Fine. Then here, make sure you get a good grip.¡± (Kyle)
I took the top box off the stack and held it towards Lilian as she stood in front of me.
¡°You can give me more, it¡¯s ok. Even if I don¡¯t look like it, I¡¯m still a knight, I¡¯m sure I can at least carry more than a manaless civilian!¡± (Lillian)
¡°Uh, well just make sure you can hold this one first, it¡¯s kind of heavy.¡± (Kyle)
Lillian stretched out her arms and accepted the first box from my hands with gusto, but the moment I let go, the box in her hands plummeted down and she almost fell over with a shriek.
¡°Uwah!¡± (Lillian)
¡°See¡ I told you¡¡± (Kyle)
I looked at her with a dry smile on my face as she strained a bit to hold it before saying a small chant to activate her body strengthening magic.
¡°May the will of strength flow through my body!¡¾Body Strengthening¡¿!¡± (Lillian)The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.
A moment later, she stood back up again and put on a fake smile to try and act tough while a bit of sweat dripped down her forehead.
¡°See, it¡¯s no problem! Here, hand me another box!¡± (Lillian)
¡°Uh¡ I think I¡¯ll be ok, just one box off me is more than enough. Thank you, Miss Lillian.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait! I swear, I can help! Just give me another box, Sir Kyle!¡± (Lillian)
I picked up the other two boxes again and caught up with Aria as Lillian scrambled to our side while rambling about how she could help more.
After a moment, we finally reached the door to the training room and Lillian ran in front of us to open the door.
¡°Here, let me help, Captain Aria!¡± (Lillian)
Lillian pushed against the door with her leg, and it opened up slowly to reveal the training room. About five large windows lined the wall on each side of the room and there seemed to be several practice weapons sprawled out on the wooden floor or leaning against the walls while directly across from the entrance was another large door that opened up to the yard outside. Standing in the middle of the room was a man doing practice swings with a two-handed battle axe which was almost as tall as him. He had short light-brown hair along with blue eyes, and he was also dressed in the same white military uniform that Lillian was wearing.
Lillian entered the room first with a confident smile on her face before Aria walked in right after her while I trailed in last. However, as we entered the room, the man seemed to have noticed us, and he stopped doing practice swings before looking over at Aria with a surprised expression while scrambling to do a sloppy knight¡¯s salute.
¡°Urk. When did you get here, Captain Aria?¡±
¡°Oh, there you are, Alain. I just arrived. Where¡¯s everyone else?¡± (Aria)
Aria walked over to a corner of the room and placed the box in her hands down on the floor with a thump before Lillian ran over and did the same as she spoke to Aria.
¡°Umm, I think Edward and Charlotte are out right now, and the rookie¡¯s with his friends today so it¡¯s just me and Alain here. Is there something important you needed them for, Captain Aria?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Not really. If they¡¯re not here, then they can just pick up their new equipment when they get back.¡± (Aria)
The man put his axe against the wall as Aria finished talking and walked over to us with a confused look on his face as he stared at the boxes on the floor.
¡°Wait, new equipment? When did we get this?¡±
¡°I just picked it up from the blacksmith earlier. The new gauntlets you wanted should be in one of these boxes, Alain. Ky, just leave your boxes here next to mine, I¡¯ll go grab something to open them with.¡± (Aria)
¡°Eh? Sure.¡± (Kyle)
Aria left the training room while I put down the rest of the boxes in the corner too as the man turned to Lillian with a confused look on his face.
¡°By the way, Lillian, who¡¯s this?¡±
¡°Alain, this is Sir Kyle. He helped us bring all the new equipment back to the barracks. Sir Kyle, this is Alain. He might be a bit... weird sometimes, but trust me, he¡¯s a good guy on the inside.¡± (Lillian)
Lillian introduced me to the man with a wry smile on her face and he stood there for a second before extending his arm out with a friendly smile for a handshake.
¡°Nice to meet you, Sir Kyle. I¡¯m Alain Reidson. You can just call me Alain though.¡± (Alain)
Weird? I mean, he seems pretty normal to me, kind of a nice guy even.
¡°Nice to meet you too. Also, ¡®Sir Kyle¡¯ feels a bit stiff, so just call me Ky. It¡¯s fine.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Then you can call me Lillian too.¡± (Lillian)
I smiled at Alain and Lillian as I accepted the handshake. A warm friendly atmosphere filled the room, but it didn¡¯t last long as the moment Alain and I finished shaking hands, he walked up close to me with a grave look on his face. Lillian stared at him with a demoralized look on her face as a passionate fire lit up in his eyes before he spoke to me with a serious tone in his voice.
¡°Alright, now that the introductions are over with. Ky, I need to show you something really important.¡± (Alain)
Eh?
I stared at Alain with a puzzled smile as Lillian let out a defeated sigh in the background. I watched in bewilderment as Alain reached inside the inner fold of his uniform jacket, pulled out a small slip of what seemed to be paper, and showed it to me. On the small slip of paper was a picture of a young girl that looked similar to Alain. She looked like she was around the same age as my students, and she had a head of brown hair tied into twin tails along with blue eyes that were the same shade as Alain too.
¡°Now, Ky. Tell me what you think of this girl here.¡± (Alain)
Alain stared at me with a ferocious glint in his eyes as I started getting more and more creeped out.
¡°Um¡ well, she looks very, uh, nice.¡± (Kyle)
¡°You¡¯re goddamn right! Just look at how cute she is! Her eyes are as blue as the vast open sky, you could just lose yourself staring into them! And her hair flows smoother than the finest silk!¡± (Alain)
¡°Uh... could I ask who this is?¡± (Kyle)
¡°She¡¯s my pride and joy, my one and only little sister, Lucy Reidson! Isn¡¯t she the cutest you¡¯ve ever seen? I can say with absolute certainty, nobody in this whole entire world is cuter than my little Lucy! She¡¯s a pure angel, and mere mortals like us don¡¯t deserve her, but she¡¯s kind enough to let us stay around her anyway. So, I¡¯ll make sure at least that the people around her are good! If anyone thinks they can mess with her, they¡¯ll have to get through me first, understand?¡± (Alain)
Ah, I see. So he¡¯s a super sis-con...
I glanced past Alain with a dazed smile and locked eyes with Lillian who was panicking a bit as Alain finally took a step back and returned to his friendly smile from before. Lillian walked up to me with a sorry expression and apologized for the incident as Alain stared at the picture of his little sister before putting it back into the inner fold of his uniform jacket.
¡°Um, sorry about what happened with Alain¡ he¡¯s like this with everyone he meets at first, but I swear, he¡¯s still a good guy, just a little bit¡ obsessed with his sister...¡± (Lillian)
How did I just know there was gonna be at least one weirdo here¡ I mean I can understand loving your family, but this is a little too far isn¡¯t it? If Alain has this much of a sister complex, everyone within Lucy¡¯s vicinity will probably have to watch out for their lives!
¡°I think this constitutes a little more than obsessed¡¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah¡ you could say that...¡± (Lillian)
Lillian gave me a dry laugh as the door opened again and Aria walked back in. She didn¡¯t have her new sword on her anymore, but had a crowbar in her hands instead.
¡°Alright, here we go.¡± (Aria)
Aria walked over and pried the boxes open as we all gathered around to see what was inside. Lillian glanced around before she pulled out a couple of daggers from it with a smile, whereas Alain walked over to another box and pulled out a pair of metal gauntlets with a strange metal square on the back into which he promptly mounted two pictures of Lucy that he pulled out from his jacket. I did my best to ignore Alain hugging the pair of gauntlets behind me as I watched Aria pry open the box she was carrying earlier and toss the crowbar aside before lifting a few pieces of light metal armor out. Lillian and Alain gave her some space once they got their equipment and tested out their new stuff in the background as I walked over to Aria with a curious expression.
¡°Did you get a new set of armor too?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t really wear armor all that much anymore since we stopped adventuring, but since some parts of my old armor are broken, it doesn¡¯t hurt to have a new set just in case I need it. Here, hold this while I try it on.¡± (Aria)
Aria handed me everything she was holding except one gauntlet which she wore on her right arm before gripping her hand a few times to test out how easy it was to move. After that, she started taking pieces from me one by one and trying them on until she was only missing the chest plate. The shiny new set of armor consisted of two shoulder plates, gauntlets that went up to her elbows, a pair of metal boots that went up to her knees, and finally the chest plate that I was still holding. Aria grabbed the chest plate from my hands and tried to put it on before realizing that she couldn¡¯t completely reach behind her back with her shoulder plates on. She turned to me with an embarrassed look on her face and handed the chest plate back to me before asking me for my help.
¡°Ky, I can¡¯t reach with the rest of this armor on. Could you help me strap on the last piece?¡± (Aria)
¡°This is why you always put the chest plate on first¡ I know it¡¯s been a while, but you¡¯re still technically an A-rank adventurer, aren¡¯t you? This is like the basics of the basics.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I got too excited to try on everything and I forgot, ok? You¡¯re not exactly some expert adventurer either, and you¡¯re a B-rank adventurer, aren¡¯t you? Anyway, it¡¯s not like it¡¯ll hurt you to help this one time, will it?¡± (Aria)
¡°Alright, alright, I¡¯m sorry Miss Crimson Rose. Won¡¯t a famous A-rank adventurer like you have some mercy on a poor support character like me?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Don¡¯t call me that embarrassing name again, or I really will make you suffer this time. Hmph.¡± (Aria)
I let out a light chuckle as Aria turned around and hugged the chest plate against her chest while she pouted with an embarrassed blush on her face. I tightened the leather straps on the back of the chest plate and tugged on them lightly to see if they were good before taking a step back.
¡°Alright, it should be ok now.¡± (Kyle)
Aria stopped hugging her chest plate and let go before slightly flailing her limbs around and sending out a few punches and kicks in the air to test the armor. After a few moments, she turned to me and faintly smiled before starting to take off her gauntlets.
¡°Yep, it fits perfectly. Thanks, Ky.¡± (Aria)
¡°No problem.¡± (Kyle)
I smiled back at Aria as she placed her gauntlets back into the box before turning around to see Alain and Lillian staring and pointing at me in shock from a corner of the room. They both looked slightly pale and whispered intently to each other as I walked up to them with a confused look on my face.
¡°What¡¯s wrong? Are you two ok?¡± (Kyle)
Alain and Lillian stared at each other for a moment before each of them grabbed one of my shoulders and dragged me outside as Lillian called out to Aria in a shaky voice.
¡°C-Captain Aria, we¡¯re going to borrow Ky here for a moment.¡± (Lillian)
Once all three of us were in the courtyard hallway outside the training room, Alain and Lillian cornered me against the wall as they both stared at me for a moment before Lillian spoke up with a serious tone in her voice.
¡°Ky, just who exactly are you?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Me? I¡¯m Aria¡¯s friend.¡± (Kyle)
¡°There¡¯s no way you¡¯re just her friend. You¡¯re definitely more than that.¡± (Lillian)
¡°More? Well, I¡¯m also a professor at the Roya-¡± (Kyle)
¡°No, I mean what¡¯s your relationship with Captain Aria? How do you know her?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Oh, that¡¯s what you meant. We used to be partners back when we were both adventurers.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait, adventurers? How? I don¡¯t mean to be rude, but how could you have been an adventurer? You¡¯re a manaless, aren¡¯t you?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Well, you see, I was really more of a supporter than an actual adventurer. Back when we were in a party together, Aria basically did all the fighting while I just sat in the back and took care of everything else like cooking food or setting up camp.¡± (Kyle)
¡°But, even disregarding your eligibility as an adventurer, you have to at least be a little more than just ex-party members. I¡¯ve never ever seen Captain Aria smile before. I can¡¯t even think of a single time she¡¯s showed us even a hint of a smile, no matter what we did. Right, Alain?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, it¡¯s like talking to a rock. Until just now, I was 100% certain that she was incapable of showing any emotions besides anger. Her face didn¡¯t even budge an inch when I showed her every one of my top fifty pictures of Lucy last week!¡± (Alain)
¡ I¡¯m more surprised that Aria managed to sit through it all with a blank expression instead of immediately glaring at you with disgust...
Alain held his chin up and nodded repeatedly to affirm his own thoughts as I stared at him a creeped out before Lillian cleared her throat and put the conversation back on track.
¡°Ahem. Anyway, the point is that we¡¯ve never seen her even show any emotion even remotely close to happiness, so how did you manage it?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, what did you do?¡± (Alain)
Alain and Lillian stared at me with curiosity and started slowly closing in on me before I leaned against the wall, let out a sigh, and muttered to myself.
¡°I didn¡¯t think Aria would go this far with this dumb facade again.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait, facade? What are you talking about?¡± (Lillian)
The curiosity on Alain and Lillian¡¯s faces was replaced with confusion as they took a step back and looked to me for an explanation.
Crap, I didn¡¯t mean to let it slip like that. Well, should I tell them?... Ah, screw it. They already heard it, and even if one of them is a little¡ strange, as long as it doesn¡¯t involve his little sister, it looks like he¡¯s pretty normal. Anyway, they both seem like they actually care about Aria, and it¡¯ll probably help her get along with them better if she doesn¡¯t have to keep pretending to be emotionless. I think that she deserves at least this much¡ more than I do anyway.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before facing Alain and Lillian again as I asked them a question with a soft tone in my voice.
¡°So... how much do you guys actually know about Aria? Has she ever told you anything about herself?¡± (Kyle)
Alain and Lillian looked at each other for a moment as they racked their memories before turning to me with serious faces.
¡°Well, besides the fact that she¡¯s insanely strong, almost nothing. I can still remember the first day we met her she beat us all up because Edward challenged her to a duel and made her angry, but nowadays, she treats us pretty well as long as we listen to her. She hasn¡¯t personally told us much about herself and I heard from my cousin that none of the other Knight Captains besides the Head Captain know much about her either. It¡¯s kind of hard to hold a personal conversation with her too, right Alain?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, it feels like it¡¯s impossible to find something to talk about that isn¡¯t related to training. I don¡¯t think that even Edward has had an actual non-work related conversation with Captain Aria yet.¡± (Alain)
¡°So she really hasn¡¯t given you anything at all to work with, huh? Alright, well, you two seem like you actually care about becoming her friends, so I¡¯ll tell you about Aria if you want, but promise me you two will keep what I tell you a secret.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Will do. I swear no one will hear a word of it from us.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, I won¡¯t tell anyone. At the very least, I¡¯m a man of my word.¡± (Alain)
I smiled kindly at Alain and Lillian as they made their declarations with confidence before I began to narrate what I knew of Aria¡¯s past. A few minutes passed as they listened to me intently while I told them about how I met Aria, her promises with her father and Max, our days adventuring in Delhurst, her fight against the dragon, and what happened once she returned to the capital. When I finally finished, it was silent except for the sound of the gentle breeze and some sniffling from Lillian. A few tears rolled down Lillian¡¯s face before she wiped them off, and Alain stood there with a somber expression before Lillian¡¯s sad voice rang out first followed by Alain¡¯s solemn one.
¡°...I never would have thought so much happened to Captain Aria... I can¡¯t believe she made it through all that. We¡¯re about the same age too, but I wouldn¡¯t know what to do if any of that happened to me.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah¡ I always knew Captain Aria was strong, but it looks like she¡¯s even stronger than any of us thought. I can¡¯t even imagine what it would be like to just travel alone to the edges of the Empire like that, especially if my father had just passed." (Alain)
A gloomy atmosphere began to spread through the courtyard hallway as Alain and Lillian stood there lost in thought for a moment before I smiled at them with a tint of melancholy. My line of sight moved up to the clear blue sky behind them as a sense of nostalgia overtook me and I started to talk in a gentle voice.
¡°You know, when I first met Aria, I thought she was just a violent woman by nature. She and I would always argue over this and that, and she even hit me sometimes when I got her really angry, but I still stayed with her, even through all the trouble. At first, I didn¡¯t know why I did. Honestly, I could¡¯ve easily just left her and went my own way, but eventually, as the days passed by, I finally realized why... It was because whenever I saw Aria, it was like I was looking back at my past self again. She was alone. Alone without a single person by her side, just like I was... I know what it¡¯s like to lose someone you love. It¡¯s painful, it¡¯s cold, and the only things you can feel are anger and despair. The dead don¡¯t come back¡ no matter how hard you try to change that¡ and eventually, one day, you realize that you¡¯re finally alone in this world. I hated it. I hated every second that I saw Aria like that. I hated every second that I saw her bottle up her loneliness until it turned into anger and violence because all it did was remind me of the past. I didn¡¯t want to see her walk down the same path I did, clawing desperately just to try and grasp that faint happiness again. Because at the end of that path, there is no happiness. There¡¯s just emptiness. An emptiness that hurts even harder than losing someone you love... So I decided that I would try to save Aria, just like someone else did a little too late for me. I tried my hardest you know, but I don¡¯t think Aria¡¯s change was completely because of me. There was only so much I could do, so there¡¯s at least one thing I have to say to you two. Thank you for sticking by her side. Every time I see her now, she seems happier and I¡¯m sure that she enjoys your company, even if she¡¯s not the best at expressing it.¡± (Kyle)
I bowed deeply to Alain and Lillian as I finished my monologue, but what I saw after I finished bowing was the scene of Alain and Lillian uncontrollably crying their eyes out.
¡°Don¡¯t worry, Ky! We¡¯ll make sure that Captain Aria stays happy!¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, I swear that from now on, everyday she has with us will be a fun one! You too, Ky! You¡¯re welcome here anytime! You and Captain Aria deserve at least this much after what you¡¯ve both gone through. In fact, Lillian, do we have anything to do today?¡± (Alain)
¡°Nope. Edward and Charlotte are taking care of the squad¡¯s duties today.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Perfect, we should start having fun right now then. Let¡¯s go! We can all get lunch together then go sightseeing or something.¡± (Alain)
¡°Eh?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Great idea, Alain! You know what, lunch is on me today. We can even go to one of my favorite restaurants! You two wait for me outside, I¡¯ll go get Captain Aria right now!¡± (Lillian)
Lillian wiped away her tears with a small handkerchief before running back into the training room with a determined smile on her face. I watched her run off as Alain grabbed my arm and dragged me with him to the main lobby while he rubbed his face dry with the sleeve of his uniform.
¡°It¡¯s ok, you two don¡¯t have to do this! Just doing what you usually do is enough!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Don¡¯t worry, Ky! This¡¯ll be what we usually do from now on anyway! Come on, we¡¯re gonna make sure Captain Aria can smile again!¡± (Alain)
[Chapter 17] You Can Forget Your Wallet, but I Shouldnt Have to Call the City Guards Afterwards!
Solria, Shopping District (Kyle POV)
A strange sense of deja vu blossomed in my head as I walked through the shopping district for the second time today. I turned to my side with a wry smile to see a blank-faced Aria as we followed behind Alain and Lillian. It felt like I was right back in Delhurst as I watched the crowd of people in front of us respectfully split down the middle to let us pass through unhindered. The sound of Lillian humming a happy tune was slightly drowned out by the noise of the people around us, but the smile on her face was apparent for all of us to see.
The four of us passed by dozens of shops and stores on our way to Lillian¡¯s favorite restaurant while Alain tried to chat to Aria and me about Lucy before Lillian called out to us.
¡°It¡¯s right around the corner here. Follow me!¡± (Lillian)
Lillian led the way as we all rounded the corner into a large alleyway that split off from the main road before stopping in front of a quaint looking tavern. A large wooden sign which had the words ¡®Silver Dragon Tavern¡¯ written below a picture of a silver-colored dragon silhouette was mounted above the doors. Lillian stared at the front of the tavern for a moment before turning around to us with a lively look in her eyes.
¡°Alright, everyone! Welcome to the Silver Dragon Tavern. It might not be the most high-class place in the capital, but it¡¯s my own little hidden gem that I¡¯ve found recently. Admittedly, I¡¯m a bit of a self-proclaimed gourmet, and I¡¯ve been to almost every restaurant here, so just trust me when I say it¡¯s got some of the best food in the capital. There¡¯s even a nice cozy ambiance to boot. So what do you think?¡± (Lillian)
Lillian stood there with her hands on her hips as she proudly smiled at us with twinkles in her eyes like she was waiting to be praised.
Hmm, I honestly expected something more... aristocratic. I thought for sure that she was gonna drag us to some super expensive restaurant reserved for the upper echelons of nobility when she mentioned it was her favorite one, but this is fine too. It might even be better to just enter a nice, simple tavern like this so I don¡¯t have to deal with any stuck-up members of high-society. Besides, I can¡¯t help but get a little bit nostalgic when seeing such a perfectly generic RPG-style tavern like this. And she said it even has some of the best food in the capital, right? Well, let¡¯s see just how good it is then.
I smiled back at Lillian and gave her a thumbs up as a sense of anticipation bubbled up inside of me.
¡°Well, I¡¯ve always had a soft spot for cozy aesthetics like this, so nice job, Lillian!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah, me too. I always hated it whenever I had to dress formally and act like a snob for some dumb dinner party, so something like this is more of my style. If the food¡¯s as good as you say, I might even bring my little angel, Lucy, next time.¡± (Alain)
¡°What about you, Captain Aria?¡± (Lillian)
¡°It looks good.¡± (Aria)
¡°Alright, let¡¯s go, then!¡± (Lillian)
Lillian twirled around again and began to lead us in as we followed her into the tavern. The doors smoothly opened as the dozen or so customers sitting at the wooden tables looked over at us while we made our way through the entrance. People ranging from well-dressed merchants to lightly armored adventurers seemed to recognize Lillian as they laughed and called out cheerfully to her instead of avoiding us like the people on the street did, and Lillian waved to everyone with a smile on her face too.
¡°Looks like Miss Lillian¡¯s back today!¡±
¡°Yep, how¡¯s everyone doing today?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Oh, we¡¯re all trudging along. Oi, Miss Ellie! Miss Lillian¡¯s back and it seems like she brought some friends with her today too! Why don¡¯t you come out and take her order like usual?¡±
One of the rough looking adventurers dressed in leather armor called out towards the kitchen area at the back of the tavern, and a moment later a female voice sounded out from the back as the curtains covering the entrance to the kitchen separated to reveal a young woman who looked like she was around Lillian¡¯s age.
¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll be right over.¡±
She was wearing a waitress outfit and ran over enthusiastically while holding a few menus in her hands.
¡°Hey, welcome back, Lillian. What can I do for you today?¡±
¡°Hi, Ellie. Get us a table for four, please.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Sure, no problem. Follow me.¡± (Ellie)
The waitress, Ellie, smiled at us before turning around and leading us to an empty table near the back. We took our seats and she handed us some menus, but right after we all settled in, the sound of the front door opening again caught her attention.
¡°Ah, please wait right there. I¡¯ll be over in a second. Sorry, I guess you all can just look at the menu for now. I¡¯ll be right back.¡± (Ellie)
Ellie turned to us with an apologetic smile on her face before running back to the front counter and grabbing another menu to go help the person that just came in. I opened up the menu in my hands and gave it a quick glance as Lillian called out to us with a proud smile on her face.
¡°Alright. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve already had every dish here, so since Ellie¡¯s busy right now, just ask me if you have any questions.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Ok, will do.¡± (Kyle)
The Silver Dragon¡¯s menu matched the cozy, rustic atmosphere, and most of the dishes looked like they were just simple, home-style cooking that even I could make. There wasn¡¯t too much on the menu and there was no sight of any flashy entrees with rare, premium ingredients or anything like that, but all the dishes were neatly lined up with a few pictures here and there, and the names were straightforward enough that you could tell what the food would be like just by reading it. A few moments passed as everyone except Lillian scanned the menu before Ellie returned to our table and pulled out a notepad as she got ready to take our orders.
¡°Alright, sorry for the wait. What can I get you all?¡± (Ellie)
¡°I¡¯ll just have the usual, Ellie.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Sure, no problem, Lillian. What about the rest of you?¡± (Ellie)
¡°Give me the porkchop skewers with a side of pasta.¡± (Alain)
¡°Ok, and what about you two?¡± (Ellie)
Ellie stared at me and Aria after taking Alain and Lillian¡¯s orders. A moment passed by as I thought about what I should have before pointing to the menu.
¡°Hmm, let me get the roast chicken over rice then.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Ok. And you, Miss?¡± (Ellie)
Ellie turned to Aria, who was still reading through the menu, but it seemed like she didn¡¯t notice Ellie until Lillian tried to get her attention.
¡°Would you like some more time, Captain Aria?¡± (Lillian)
Lillian¡¯s voice seemed to surprise Aria a bit as she stopped staring blankly at the menu and cleared her throat before placing her order.
¡°Ahem. No, it¡¯s alright. Just give me the beef and potatoes.¡± (Aria)
¡°Ok, no problem. I¡¯ll put your orders in right now. Your food should be ready in a few minutes.¡± (Ellie)
Ellie finished writing in her notepad with a smile and returned to the kitchen as I took another look around at the decor. The tables were spread out a bit sparsely, but the lively background noise and occasional prop weapon hung up on the walls made me feel like I really was sitting in a genuine RPG tavern. Sunlight shone in through the windows by the entrance and I propped my chin up on my hand as I stared across the tavern and out the window to see a few people walk by the storefront. A faint smile crept its way onto my face as I took in the scenery before I heard Lillian talk to me in a gentle voice.
¡°It¡¯s a nice atmosphere isn¡¯t it?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah. You know, I think it¡¯s nice to just have some ordinary peaceful days like this.¡± (Kyle)
¡°We should come here more often then. This tavern just opened about two months ago, so not many people know about it right now, but I¡¯m pretty sure it¡¯ll be packed every day by the end of the year.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Really now? Well, guess we should enjoy the atmosphere while we still can then.¡± (Kyle)
I turned back to everyone else with a smile as Alain cheerfully asked about possibly meeting up next week too.
¡°Yeah, we should all go out together next week too. There¡¯s this famous pastry shop that my little Lucy always goes to, so we can get dessert there afterward.¡± (Alain)
¡°Yeah, that sounds great. How about it, Captain Aria?¡± (Lillian)
¡°... It¡¯s fine to relax every once in a while, but as knights of the Empire, we should devote ourselves to training instead of slacking off.¡± (Aria)
¡°...Understood, Captain Aria.¡± (Lillian)
Alain and Lillian leaned back in their seats with disappointed faces and I stared at them moping for a second before letting out a sigh as I turned to Aria with a defeated look on my face.
¡°Lighten up a bit, would you?¡± (Kyle)
¡°I think I¡¯ve lightened up a bit too much already. As a knight captain, I should be a hardworking role model for my subordinates, not goofing off with them.¡± (Aria)
Role model? Well, you know what they say, never meet your heroes, because they''re sure to disappoint you. I don¡¯t get it. It¡¯s not like they¡¯re gonna lose all respect for you just for opening up to them a little more.
¡°Again with this? Look, your subordinates are literally trying to get to know their role model better, and their role model is rejecting them.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Getting to know me better won¡¯t change our relationship. I¡¯ll still be their captain, and they¡¯ll still be my subordinates. If anything, they¡¯re wasting time that could be spent training.¡± (Aria)
Aria crossed her arms with a slight frown on her face as she leaned back in her chair. I sighed before slamming my head into the table once I saw how stubborn she was gonna be.
I don¡¯t know what I expected. I figured that she wouldn¡¯t budge so easily, but come on, at least try. Should I just tell her the truth? Well, knowing her, she probably won¡¯t let up unless I¡¯m blunt about it, and I feel like just letting this go on is only going to make it worse, so I might as well go all in.
¡°What, you think that they won¡¯t accept you if you¡¯re not a ¡®serious knight captain?¡¯ Well, they already know about your fake personality, and even after they found out they were being lied to all this time, they still tried to get to know you. So just be honest with them for once and be yourself. I¡¯m trying to help here, and you¡¯re making it really hard.¡± (Kyle)
¡°...Eh? Wait, what?¡± (Aria)
Aria sat there and stared blankly at me for a moment as she tried to process everything my muffled voice just said before turning her head mechanically to Alain and Lillian who had guilty looks on their faces. Lillian gave out a dry chuckle as she looked out the windows for a moment to try and avoid eye contact before telling Aria about our conversation earlier.
¡°Haha, about that¡ sorry, Captain Aria! Ky already told us the truth. It¡¯s ok if you¡¯re not serious all the time, you¡¯re still our Captain, and we wouldn¡¯t think any less of you if you weren¡¯t serious. We¡¯ve heard about what you¡¯ve been through, and neither of us can deny that you¡¯re someone who¡¯s experienced a lot. You¡¯re definitely a strong knight who¡¯s completely worthy of our respect, but we don¡¯t want to just know ¡®Knight Captain Irisveil¡¯... we want to know our real Captain Aria too. So if you¡¯re ok with it, please be the real you.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, honestly, it always kind of felt awkward when you were like that anyway. We¡¯d much rather have a captain that we can talk to and have fun with.¡± (Alain)
Alain and Lillian stared at Aria with determined glints in their eyes as they finally let out their thoughts. Aria stared back at them for a moment before an embarrassed fluster crept up on her face. She dropped her arms and lowered her head as I sat back up again before turning to her.
¡°See, they don¡¯t care if you¡¯re super serious or not. They genuinely just want to get to know you for who you really are.¡± (Kyle)
¡°...Wh-...Wh-...¡± (Aria)
¡°What?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Why did you tell them!?¡± (Aria)
Aria sprung towards me angrily as she grabbed me by the collar and violently shook me back and forth.
¡°Didn¡¯t I specifically tell you to keep quiet about it!?¡± (Aria)
¡°Argh! Stop! I just wanted to help!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait! Captain Aria, it¡¯s not his fault! We were the ones who asked in the first place!¡± (Lillian)
After a moment, Aria finally stopped shaking me and I collapsed on the table while she covered her face with her hands and muttered to herself before Lillian guiltily called out to her.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
¡°...Um, Captain Aria, if it means anything to you, we¡¯re really sorry. If you don¡¯t want us to know, then we can just leave right now and forget any of this ever happened.¡± (Lillian)
An awkward silence surrounded the table for a moment before Aria let out a sigh and finally put her hands down to reveal a defeated look on her face.
¡°It¡¯s fine. You two already know the truth anyway¡¡± (Aria)
¡°Yeah, I already told you two the truth, so don¡¯t let up and keep trying, otherwise she¡¯ll never come out of her shell and all this pain I¡¯ve suffered through will be in vain.¡± (Kyle)
¡°This is your damn fault in the first place!¡± (Aria)
Aria started whacking me as I was trying to get back up and I helplessly reached out to Alain and Lillian with tears in my eyes.
¡°Don¡¯t look away! These are Aria¡¯s true colors! Are you sure this is the person you two want to know!? Go on, you can still run!¡± (Kyle)
A few minutes later, Aria sat there with her head held in her arms after she finally stopped beating me up. She was in the middle of talking with Alain and Lillian when Ellie finally came back holding a large tray with our meals.
¡°Sorry for the wait, you guys. If there¡¯s anything else you need, just let me know.¡± (Ellie)
I stared at the plates of food as Ellie laid them out on the table, and a delicious fragrance permeated the air as we all grabbed our respective meals before Lillian¡¯s voice rang out.
¡°Alright everyone, let¡¯s dig in!¡± (Lillian)
Alain and Lillian began to wolf down their food while I poked at the roast chicken on my plate with my fork before taking a small bite. The chicken was crispy on the outside while still maintaining a tender juiciness on the inside indicating that it was cooked at the perfect temperature. The taste was a little bland for me, but that was probably because of the light seasoning. However, other than that, I had to admit, Lillian was right when she said the food was good. After all, whoever cooked this probably didn¡¯t have the time to get as much experience as me in cooking, so being this good was already beyond my expectations.
A slight smile showed itself on my face as I thought about a few ways this recipe could be improved while taking small bites of my meal, but after a moment, I was brought back to my senses by Lillian¡¯s voice.
¡°How is it? The food¡¯s great, right?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, it¡¯s fantastic! I¡¯m definitely gonna bring Lucy next time.¡± (Alain)
¡°Well, I gotta admit, this is probably the best restaurant I¡¯ve ever been to. Nice find, Lillian.¡± (Kyle)
I replied to Lillian cheerfully before taking a sip of water from my cup. However, as I put my cup down, I saw Alain turn to Aria and ask her what was wrong.
¡°Is there something wrong with your food, Captain Aria?¡± (Alain)
I looked to my side to see that Aria was just staring at her plate after taking just a few bites.
¡°No, nothing¡¯s wrong. It¡¯s just that I can¡¯t get used to the flavor.¡± (Aria)
¡°Is the taste weird? Let me ask Ellie to remake it then.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Eh? It¡¯s alright, it still tastes good. It¡¯s just that it¡¯s a bit different compared to what I¡¯m used to.¡± (Aria)
¡°Different? Did they put in some seasoning or something? Here, let me see.¡± (Kyle)
I reached over to Aria¡¯s plate and stabbed a piece of beef with my fork before popping it into my mouth. The juices spread out as I chewed on the beef and the consistency and texture were almost the same as how mine usually turned out, but Aria was right, the taste was slightly different compared to how I usually made it. I sat there for a second thinking about what the difference was when Aria turned to me after taking another bite of her food.
¡°See, it¡¯s not as sweet compared to what you usually make.¡± (Aria)
¡°Ah, you¡¯re right. Why didn¡¯t I think of that? Anyway, I¡¯m impressed you could even tell there was such a minute difference compared to mine.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Of course. How many times do you think I¡¯ve had your cooking, especially your beef and potatoes?¡± (Aria)
Aria crossed her arms with a proud look on her face as Lillian stared at us with a slightly flushed face.
¡°Eh? Wait, Captain Aria, what do you mean by that? Ky cooks for you?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, he does every day. In fact, I think you¡¯ve seen his cooking before.¡± (Aria)
¡°I have?¡± (Lillian)
¡°He¡¯s the one who makes all of my lunchboxes.¡± (Aria)
Aria pointed at me as Alain put down his fork and butted into the conversation.
¡°Wait, I always thought a chef from your household made them, or maybe even you yourself, Captain Aria.¡± (Alain)
¡°I¡¯m only good at chopping vegetables and I can¡¯t cook at all, but at this point, Ky is basically my chef, so I guess you¡¯re sort of right. Anyway, back to the point. Like I said, the food¡¯s still good, just a little more bitter than I¡¯m used to.¡± (Aria)
¡°Well, they do say that the taste of love makes everything a little sweeter.¡± (Lillian)
Lillian giggled a little bit as Aria coughed in surprise before covering the lower half of her face with her hand, but I ignored my surroundings for a moment as a serious glint shined in my eyes while my chef¡¯s soul got riled up from what Lillian said.
¡°Taste of love? Well, I admit I do love cooking a lot, but let me tell you, Lillian, there¡¯s no such thing as nonsense like the taste of love. Cooking is a series of purely physical interactions between ingredients that¡¯s guided by a chef¡¯s hand. For example, the slight decrease in sweetness was probably due to the chef not cooking the onions enough. You see, when onions are heated up they turn brownish in a process called caramelization, which makes the large, complex sugars inside the onion break down into smaller, simpler ones, releasing a sweet flavor, which is then usually absorbed by the meat in dishes like beef and potatoes. It¡¯s a complicated chemical reaction, and it¡¯s reactions like this that are usually attributed to some fake, immaterial factors like the taste of love by people who know nothing about cooking. Well, since you probably don¡¯t cook, I can¡¯t blame you this time, but it irks my chef¡¯s soul whenever people think that the art of cooking is so easy.¡± (Kyle)
¡°...Eh?¡± (Lillian)
Alain and Lillian stared at me in utter confusion as I relaxed before starting to eat my food slowly again with a smile on my face.
A while later, a table full of empty plates filled my field of vision and Aria was talking with Alain and Lillian when Lillian finally asked Ellie for the bill.
¡°Ellie, we¡¯re all finished, so could we get the bill?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, sure.¡± (Ellie)
¡°Thanks!¡± (Lillian)
Ellie started making her way towards the front counter while Lillian turned back to us all with a smile.
¡°I think it was really fun having lunch together like this, and I promise that we won¡¯t slack off even a bit in training, so if you don¡¯t mind me asking again... Captain Aria, would you like to come out for lunch with us again next week?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, we won¡¯t tell anyone else about your act if you don¡¯t want us to, but at least come out with us for lunch every once in a while so we can actually talk.¡± (Alain)
Lillian gave Aria a gentle smile while Alain looked towards her with an expectant look in his eyes as Aria sat there for a second with her arms crossed. After a moment, a slight fluster crept up on her face as she looked away in embarrassment before replying with a quiet voice.
¡°Well... as long as you two don¡¯t slack off, I guess I can put aside a little time next week.¡± (Aria)
¡°Alright!¡± (Lillian)
¡°We did it!¡± (Alain)
Alain and Lillian started celebrating as Aria¡¯s face got a little bit redder and I looked to my side before nudging her lightly with my elbow as I couldn¡¯t resist teasing her a bit about it.
¡°Wow, it must be tough being this popular. I wonder what your secret is?¡± (Kyle)
¡°S-Shut up!¡± (Aria)
I laughed at Aria a bit as Alain and Lillian finished their little celebration and Ellie came back with the bill.
¡°Alright, here you go. Just bring it up to the counter whenever you¡¯re ready.¡± (Ellie)
¡°Sure, no problem, Ellie. Don¡¯t worry guys, I said I would pay for lunch today, and I¡¯m a knight of my word.¡± (Lillian)
Ellie walked back to the counter as Lillian cheerfully reached into her right pocket and rummaged around.
¡°...eh?...¡± (Lillian)
She pulled out her hand out of her pocket and stared at her empty palm for a moment before rummaging through her left pocket with a panicked look on her face.
¡°...Eh!?...¡± (Lillian)
Lillian pulled out her empty hand again and the cycle repeated itself as she checked the inner pockets of her jacket to no avail before she finally stared back at us with a nervous smile plastered on her face.
¡°...U-Um, it seems that I left my wallet back at the barracks¡¡± (Lillian)
We all sat there at a loss for words before Alain stood up with a determined look on his face.
¡°It¡¯s alright, Lillian. I was the one who suggested we go out for lunch in the first place, so let me pay for it this time.¡± (Alain)
Alain smiled at us all before tears burst out of Lillian¡¯s eyes as she started apologizing.
¡°I¡¯m sorry, Alain! I even promised to pay and everything! I¡¯m a failure as a knight and a noblewoman!¡± (Lillian)
¡°Err, calm down. You¡¯re not a failure, you just forgot your wallet this time. Look if it makes you feel any better I was going to try and pay for next week¡¯s meal anyway, so you can just pay for it next week instead.¡± (Alain)
Alain picked up the bill and started making his way towards the counter as we all got up after him and followed. I gave a dry laugh and Aria sighed as Lillian¡¯s wailing finally died down right before we reached the counter. Alain placed the bill down on the countertop as he called Ellie over.
¡°Excuse me, Miss Ellie. We¡¯re ready to pay.¡± (Alain)
¡°Sure, no problem.¡± (Ellie)
Ellie smiled at Alain, and he smiled back for a moment before taking a step back and grabbing the front of his uniform with both hands. A passionate flame lit up in his eyes as he pulled open his uniform jacket with gusto to reveal the horrifying sight of hundreds of pictures of Lucy lining the inside.
¡°Alright. You can have any picture of my little angel, Lucy, so take your pick. Personally, I recommend this one right here. It¡¯s one of my favorites.¡± (Alain)
Crap! I knew I forgot about something! He was acting so normal before that I actually believed he was a good person for a second there! Should I call the city guard over? No, wait, even if he''s a lunatic, he''s still a knight, so they probably can''t do much to him.
Ellie stared at Alain with a dumbfounded expression and a slightly frightened look in her eyes as he pointed to a picture of Lucy standing by a lake. We all stood there at a loss for words before Aria immediately whacked him in the head and sent him flying to the floor.
¡°Who the hell tries to pay for a meal with a picture of their sister!¡± (Aria)
¡°I didn¡¯t want to part with one of my most precious belongings either! Every one of these pictures is priceless, but I also left my wallet at the barracks!¡± (Alain)
¡°Then why try to pay!?¡± (Aria)
An awkwardness pervaded the atmosphere as Alain¡¯s muffled and indignant voice from the floor was drowned out by Aria¡¯s yell before she cleared her throat and apologized to Ellie.
¡°Ahem. I would like to formally apologize for my subordinate¡¯s behavior, Miss Ellie. It seems that he¡¯s currently not right in the head. I¡¯ll make sure that he¡¯s a bit more disciplined next time, so please just ignore what you just saw.¡± (Aria)
¡°Sorry about that Ellie. Alain¡¯s a little¡ abnormal sometimes, but usually he¡¯s a nice guy¡¡± (Lillian)
¡°...O-Ok¡ Well then, I¡¯m, uh... ready whenever you are¡¡± (Ellie)
I let out a sigh as I watched Aria kick Alain a bit while he was on the ground before stepping past him on the ground.
¡°It¡¯s ok, I¡¯ll just pay for it this time, and don''t worry, I have actual money on me.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I-I¡¯m sorry, Ky! Making the guest I invited out for lunch pay for my meal, I really am a failure! Not just as a knight and a noblewoman, but as a person! I can¡¯t, no, I won¡¯t let you do this!¡± (Lillian)
¡°Lillian, it¡¯s ok! You¡¯re not a failure! You just forgot your wallet! It happens to everyone! So, get off of me already!¡± (Kyle)
Lillian clung to me as she started crying her eyes out about how she was a failure and Aria had to help me wedge her off before holding her back while I walked over to the counter. I pulled out my wallet and put some actual money onto the counter as I let out a sigh.
¡°Alright, that should cover it. Sorry about this whole fiasco¡¡± (Kyle)
¡°... No, it¡¯s alright. Haha¡¡± (Ellie)
Ellie gave me a dry laugh while she handed me back my change to the sound of Lillian¡¯s unintelligible cries in the background and I thanked her before Aria and I dragged Alain and Lillian out the door.
¡°Thank you.¡± (Kyle)
¡°...Uh, sure, no problem. Hope to see you all again... I guess...¡± (Ellie)
Solria, Middle District (Aria POV)
The beautiful purple sunset behind me filled the sky as the sound of steady footsteps mixed in with the light breeze. It was now early evening, and I was currently walking home with Ky following right behind me.
After eating lunch, we returned to the barracks so Alain and Lillian could pick up their wallets before going off to explore the city together. We visited a few historical landmarks and even the castle before returning to the shopping district to check out the market, where we parted ways once the sun began to set.
Well, I guess I didn¡¯t get to spend the day with Ky the exact way I wanted to... but today was still pretty fun. And anyway, it¡¯s not like it was a complete waste of time. I got this at least, didn¡¯t I?
I held my hand out in front of me and opened it up to reveal a small hair ornament as the edges of my mouth curved upwards into a gentle smile. The simple-looking hair clip had the design of a small white flower on it and I stared at it before closing my eyes.
While we were shopping at the market before, Lillian dragged us into an accessory shop. Since I never really wore any accessories, Lillian told me I should try a few, but I didn¡¯t really like the showy ones made of jewels or precious metals that Lillian said would look nice on me. So once everyone split up on their own in the store, I just waited by the entrance for them to be finished. But after a few minutes, Ky walked over and handed me a small gift bag. And inside was the hair clip I was holding in my hands right now.
After a few moments, I finished running through my memories. Ky and I continued to walk along the road for a bit while I was deep in my thoughts when suddenly, the sound of his voice brought me back to my senses.
¡°Today was pretty nice, wasn¡¯t it?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Even though all we did was waste time today, I have to admit, it wasn¡¯t too bad.¡± (Aria)
¡°Well, did you enjoy yourself at all?¡± (Kyle)
¡°...Yeah, a bit.¡± (Aria)
¡°Then you had fun. And honestly, that¡¯s all that matters. Look, people are emotional, and sometimes the most trivial reasons will drive them to do the stupidest things. That¡¯s just the way we are, and nothing can change that. So, I think that as long as something nice happened, even something as insignificant as the fact that you had some fun... then today wasn¡¯t a waste of time at all.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Really?¡± (Aria)
¡°Yeah.¡± (Kyle)
The most trivial reasons drive people to do the stupidest things, huh?
The slight warmth from the waning sunlight enveloped me and the noise from my surroundings slowly disappeared as I held the hair clip close to my chest. I could feel my heartbeat as a fuzzy feeling spread out from deep inside of me and circulated through my body. I stopped in my tracks as Ky stopped behind me too and a moment passed while I silently gathered my courage. And then, the warmth from that fuzzy feeling overtook the sunlight¡¯s warmth.
¡°...Hey, Ky... Can I ask you something?¡± (Aria)
¡°Sure, what is it?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Why did you give me this hair clip?¡± (Aria)
¡°... What kind of dumb question is that?¡± (Kyle)
Eh?
I heard Ky let out a disappointed sigh and I gripped the hair clip in my hands before twirling around with an angry face. I was about to yell at him, but before I could even finish a single word, he cut me off.
¡°Wha-¡± (Aria)
¡°Are you stupid? Of course it¡¯s because I thought it would look good on you.¡± (Kyle)
The scene that met my eyes was Ky with a beaming smile as the brilliant colors from the gentle sunset behind him streaked across the evening sky. The street was illuminated with a faint purple glow and I could just barely make out the beautiful city skyline slightly downhill as a breeze blew by and made his hair flutter a bit in the wind. But despite the stunning backdrop to this scene, I couldn¡¯t help but stare at Ky.
I immediately shut my mouth and felt blood rush to my head as a deep blush covered my whole face, even to the tips of my ears. One of my hands shot up to cover my uncontrollable, shaky smile while the other one held the hair clip. And I turned right back around before responding in a quiet voice.
¡°R-Really?... T-Thanks, then¡¡± (Aria)
I stood still for a moment as I tried to calm my nerves before Ky called out to me again.
¡°Hey, are you ok?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Y-Yeah, I¡¯m fine. Let¡¯s go home and have dinner.¡± (Aria)
I started walking as fast as I could, almost like I was running away from Ky, but a few unsteady steps later, I let out a short squeal as he caught up with me and swept me off my feet into a princess carry. I unconsciously curled up a bit in surprise and I could feel his heartbeat at my side as any remaining blood I had left rushed to my face making my blush turn a brilliant crimson red. I tried to open my mouth and say something, but the only thing that came out was some faint gibberish as Ky let out a sigh and began to slowly walk back home while carrying me.
¡°Alright, you¡¯re obviously not well, so just go back home and rest for a bit. Look, you have to start telling me when there¡¯s something wrong, otherwise, it¡¯ll be like the whole practice sword situation all over again!¡± (Kyle)
[Chapter 18] The Greatest Teachers Learn from Their Students
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Kyle POV)
I looked out the hallway windows to my side to see a beautiful sunny day outside and a light yawn inadvertently left my mouth as I slowly made my way over to the classroom. I was a little light on sleep today since I stayed up last night trying to make sure Aria was ok, but I don¡¯t think I helped much. Ever since we finished hanging out with Alain and Lillian yesterday, she¡¯s been a little fried in the head.
She was barely able to talk last night and got flustered everytime I tried to talk or even enter the room. It seemed like she was on edge the whole night too, but I think it might have been my fault. I bought a small hair clip for her yesterday when we were shopping with Alain and Lillian in an accessory shop because it was the first time I¡¯d ever seen her do anything even close to hanging out with friends and I knew that in order to make any progress in curing her social anxiety, I would need to make sure yesterday had a lasting impression on her.
From what I saw while we were hanging out yesterday, I was pretty sure that she was having at least a bit of fun, so I thought that buying her a small gift as a reminder of the fun she had yesterday would be a good strategy to trick her brain into associating fun with hanging out yesterday, and consequently, Alain and Lillian too.
I was racking my head when we went shopping yesterday thinking about what I could buy, since, it had to be something she would use often enough to actually be an effective reminder, it couldn¡¯t be too much of a burden on my wallet either since we were already a bit strapped on cash, and most importantly, it couldn¡¯t be too suspicious. It had to be something I could reasonably give her as a present. Eventually, I figured that a cheap accessory or something like that would be perfect and I managed to secretly convince Lillian to inconspicuously bring us into an accessory shop while we were shopping. After that, Lillian kept Aria busy while I looked around the store and found a nice, simple-looking hair clip that wasn¡¯t too pricey. I bought it and gave it to her after Lillian signaled to me that she was alone, and we all went home a little after that. Aria nearly gave me a heart attack too when we were walking home and she randomly asked why I bought the hair clip for her. I just came up with some random excuse while putting my best smile on, and I thought she was onto me for a second there, but it looked like she bought it.
Anyway, I feel a little guilty now though because when I silently peeked into her room last night to check if she was ok, she was just sitting in her bed, completely silent and hugging her knees while staring blankly at the hair clip I bought her as her face was burning up. I bought her the hair clip as a small keepsake, but it looks like I underestimated exactly how crippling her social anxiety was because instead of reminding her about how much fun we had with Alain and Lillian yesterday, it was just triggering a prolonged anxiety attack or something like that. And this morning it was even worse. I woke up to make breakfast and she was just sitting in the living room wearing the hair clip while looking like a disheveled mess with bloodshot eyes and bags under her eyes like she barely got any sleep yesterday. She ate breakfast as fast as she could and tried to make a break for it by telling me she was leaving for work, but I stopped her before she went outside. After double checking to see if she was ok, it seemed like she got over some of the anxiety by herself last night, at least enough to talk to me a bit again, but I wasn¡¯t about to let her walk out of the house looking like a ghoul, so I cleaned her up a bit and fixed her hair. She curled up again and refused to make eye contact with me while I was cleaning her up, but when I tried to take away the hair clip, she immediately resisted, so I just left it on. Anyway, she seemed normal enough afterward to go to work after I was done, so I just handed her lunchbox over and sent her on her way.
So now, thanks to my great idea, I¡¯ve probably made it harder for Aria to open up and I¡¯m late to class too because of the time I wasted cleaning her up earlier, since, of course, everything nice I do has to eventually end up screwing me over some way, doesn¡¯t it? Well, whatever, I guess I¡¯ll just have to burn that bridge when I get to it.
I let out a sigh as I stopped in front of the door to room 207 and opened it before stepping into the room. The sight of everyone talking to each other in their seats met my eyes as I walked in and they all turned to stare at me while I walked over to my desk, pulled out the chair, and took a seat.
¡°Hey, everyone.¡± (Kyle)
I put my satchel down and leaned over on top of my table while stretching my arms out with a blissful sigh as Mari yelled at me.
¡°You¡¯re late, Ky! Class was supposed to start fifteen minutes ago!¡± (Mari)
¡°Yeah, sorry about that I had to do something.¡± (Kyle)
I got up and rummaged through my bag to look for alchemy materials as I pulled out the first few stones I could find, a few ice elemental monster cores. I threw them on the table and rubbed my eyes before calling out to the class.
¡°Uh¡ anyway, I guess we can just go over some more ice element circles today or something. We already did a couple basic ones last week, right? So I guess we can do some more advanced ones today. Any questions?¡± (Kyle)
I got up off the table and looked around at the room as I saw Sophie swiftly raise her hand and call out with a curious glint in her eyes.
¡°Professor Kyle, what are the differences between the magic circles we studied last week and the more advanced ones we¡¯ll be studying today?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Eh? Well, uh¡ they¡¯ll have more lines in them.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Is that it? Is there a change in mana density or the flow of the magic circle?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Seriously Sophie, why even ask at this point? Do you really think Ky knows the answer to any of that?¡± (Zane)
¡°Hey, come on, don¡¯t say that. Professor Kyle might be a little bit¡ ok, very unreliable when it comes to his knowledge of the specifics, but at least the magic circles always work if we draw them the way he does, and hey, maybe he even knows something about what Sophie¡¯s asking this time.¡± (Halbert)
Halbert looked over at me with an expectant smile, but unfortunately, his trust was misplaced as I averted my eyes from his blinding aura of kindness and turned to Sophie with tears in my eyes from letting Halbert down.
¡°Sorry, but I have no idea.¡± (Kyle)
¡°See, I told you.¡± (Zane)
¡°Haha¡¡± (Halbert)
¡°Ok, got it. I guess I¡¯ll just have to analyze these myself later too.¡± (Sophie)
Zane sighed and shook his head as Halbert gave a dry laugh with a slightly disappointed face while Sophie wrote something down in her notebook with a passionate smile on her face.
¡°You know what? How about we just start class.¡± (Kyle)
I walked up the board and picked a random ice magic circle that was around a second level spell before picking up a piece of chalk. A complicated magic circle took its form in a few seconds as the chalk in my hand flew around the board and I grabbed a monster core before going to the corner of the room to get the large bucket that I¡¯ve been using to catch all the ice bits after I learned my lesson last time. Back when I was running around fighting all the time, I never really thought about anything that happened after I used a magic circle except whether or not it hurt the enemy, but the last time we studied after an ice element magic circle in class, I got ice bits everywhere and had to clean it all off the floor afterward. So my genius solution was to just use a bucket to catch any side products from the magic circles and toss it all out after class. I put the bucket below the magic circle on the board and held the monster core up to the circle to activate it.
¡°¡¾Frozen Snare¡¿, single cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
An icy blue light shone from the magic circle on the board as soon my words left my mouth and a chunk of ice encased my hand after the magic circle activated. After a moment, I shook my hand and broke free as a few chunks of ice fell into the bucket with a loud clunk.
¡°Alright, there you go. This magic circle is more or less around the level of a second circle ice spell, and it¡¯s meant to be used as a trap because once it¡¯s activated it¡¯ll try and encase anything touching it in a layer of ice. So ideally you could set it up on the ground and set it off when an enemy steps on it, or even draw it on the palm of a glove with a few channels to connect it to a monster core and activate it when you grab something to freeze whatever you¡¯re grabbing. Well, that is as long as you don¡¯t mind getting your hands a little cold like I did.¡± (Kyle)
I placed the monster core back onto the table and rubbed my hands together while breathing on them to warm them up a bit as everyone looked over with curious expressions on their faces. The sound of pens scratching against paper resounded through the room and I moved the half-full bucket of ice chunks back over to the corner of the room before taking a seat at my table. Sophie was the first to run up to the board to inspect the magic circle as I deflated backward into my chair. I pushed the monster cores on the table towards her direction before flopping down on top of the table with a yawn while watching everyone else slowly walk up to the board.
¡°Alright, here¡¯s some monster cores if you guys want to experiment, just be careful with what you freeze, and make sure you catch all the ice in the bucket. As for me... well, I¡¯m a little tired today, so I¡¯ll just be taking a little nap. Do me a favor and wake me when it¡¯s time for lunch will you?¡± (Kyle)
I closed my eyes as everyone turned to me with awkward expressions, and I was beginning to drift off into sleep when a light impact on my side and Mari¡¯s yelling brought me back to my senses. I opened my eyes to see Mari standing in front of me with an angry face as she held her fist up while Reina stood behind her with an awkward smile on her face.
¡°I don¡¯t care how tired you are, Ky! You¡¯re the professor, so do your job! What am I even paying you for if you¡¯re just gonna come here and sleep!¡± (Mari)
¡°Eh? They can just wake me up if they need anything, and it¡¯s not like I do much after I give them a circle to study anyway. Usually, it¡¯s just them copying down the magic circle then experimenting with it by themselves while I sit and read a book or something in the corner. So cut me a break this time. I¡¯ll only be sleeping until lunch, so I¡¯ll be awake for the rest of class. It¡¯ll be fine.¡± (Kyle)
I waved my hand at Mari as she stood there like she wanted to say something back, but she just shut her mouth after a moment and let out a sigh as she shook her head in disappointment while Reina tried to comfort her.
¡°What¡¯s wrong, Mari?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Nothing, I¡¯m just realizing how little you¡¯ve actually been doing as a professor.¡± (Mari)
¡°Well, Professor Kyle already wrote a magic circle on the board for us to study, and he seems like he¡¯s really tired today, so how about we let him rest for a bit, Aunt Mari?¡± (Reina)
Mari stared at Reina for a moment, who was smiling at her, before staring at me for a bit and letting out another sigh.
¡°Alright, fine. You can take a small nap until lunch, but just this time, alright? You¡¯re lucky that Reina¡¯s nice enough to plead for a lazy professor like you.¡± (Mari)
Mari turned around and walked back to her seat with a disappointed look on her face as I turned to Reina with a grin before extending my hand out and gently patting her head.
¡°Thanks, Reina.¡± (Kyle)
I closed my eyes as I heard Reina let out a soft whimper and mumble some incoherent gibberish, but I ignored it as the sound of everyone chatting softly in the background slowly lulled me to sleep.
***
Some light shaking woke me up as I heard the sound of Sophie calling my name.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
¡°Professor Kyle, wake up. It¡¯s lunchtime.¡± (Sophie)
I got up and let out a yawn before groggily rubbing my eyes open to see Sophie standing in front of me.
¡°Alright, I¡¯m up, I¡¯m up. Thanks, Sophie.¡± (Kyle)
¡°No problem.¡± (Sophie)
Sophie turned around and walked over to Mari and Reina to have lunch as the sound of the door opening caught my attention. I looked over and saw Halbert, Regnis, and Zane walk into the room holding their lunch from the school cafeteria before Zane called out to me.
¡°Ky, you¡¯re finally up. Come on, let¡¯s have lunch.¡± (Zane)
¡°Sure.¡± (Kyle)
I stretched a bit before reaching over to my satchel to pull out my lunchbox as Halbert, Regnis, and Zane sat down at their seats and waited for me. A few moments passed as I pulled my chair over and sat down in front of them while they all opened their wrapped sandwiches and started eating. After taking a seat, I placed my lunchbox onto the table and opened it up as Zane took a bite out his sandwich before taking a swig of his juice.
¡°Bleh. Man, these sandwiches really are tasteless.¡± (Zane)
¡°Yeah¡ It¡¯s not the greatest. But hey, at least it¡¯s cheap.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Just man up and eat it. It¡¯s not tasty, but it¡¯s enough to fill our stomachs, isn¡¯t it?¡± (Regnis)
¡°Well, if the school lunch is so bad, why don¡¯t you just bring in your own.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, we live in the school dorms, so none of us have the luxury to have someone make us lunch every day like you, Ky.¡± (Zane)
Zane peered over at my lunch with an envious look on his face before taking another bite of his sandwich with tears in his eyes.
¡°If you don¡¯t have anyone to make you lunch, just make it yourself like I do.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait, you make these yourself?¡± (Zane)
¡°Yeah, every day in the morning before I come to class. Who do you think made these?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? I always thought someone else made these for you too, Professor Kyle.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Well, there is someone else that I live with, but uh¡ when it comes to cooking... let¡¯s just say that terrible wouldn¡¯t even begin to describe it. Anyway, like I said you can just make your lunches yourself if the school ones are so bad. I¡¯m not saying you need to cook, but I¡¯m sure all of you are at least capable of putting together a sandwich or two.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Hmm, I never thought about that. Well, I could probably make a decent sandwich, but I¡¯ll be honest, I don¡¯t really want to. It seems like a drag to go buy all the ingredients, and I¡¯d rather just sleep in during the mornings instead of waking up early, and stomach this stuff later. At the very least, it¡¯s edible.¡± (Zane)
¡°I would make lunch for everyone in the morning if I could, but my schedule¡¯s pretty packed usually, and I¡¯m busy most mornings. So I can¡¯t really take out the time to make us lunch.¡± (Halbert)
Halbert gave me a sheepish smile and helplessly scratched his head while Zane finished his sandwich with an unenthusiastic face.
Huh, I thought for sure Halbert would say something along the lines of ¡®don¡¯t worry guys, I¡¯ll make everyone lunch from now on because that¡¯s what friends do¡¯ since he¡¯s the designated nice guy who seems like he would go out of his way for anyone even remotely acquainted with him, but I guess he has other things to do too. Well if he¡¯s not the one making lunch, I guess Regnis is left out of the trio, but I highly doubt he¡¯s going to do it considering his whole bootleg Goku and Vegeta dynamic with Halbert.
I started taking a sip of water as I looked over at Regnis to see him crossing his arms with his eyes closed like he was thinking about something, and a moment passed before he cleared his throat and turned to Halbert and Zane.
¡°Well since Halbert¡¯s so useless he can¡¯t even take ten minutes out of his day to make sandwiches, I guess I¡¯ll just have to pick up the slack and make lunch for us all.¡± (Regnis)
Wait, what?
I immediately coughed up a bit of water as Regnis looked away from us with an embarrassed frown while Zane thanked him with a carefree grin and Halbert turned to him with an apologetic one.
¡°Oh, cool. Thanks, Regnis.¡± (Zane)
¡°Sorry, Regnis. I guess we¡¯ll have to rely on you again. Thanks.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Eh?¡± (Kyle)
¡°What¡¯s wrong, Ky?¡± (Zane)
The trio looked over at me in confusion and I gestured them to stop before turning to Halbert and Regnis.
¡°Wait, wait, wait. Hold up. I thought you two had the whole rivalry thing going on. What happened to ¡®I¡¯m only here for one reason, to get stronger, strong enough to surpass a certain man¡¯ when you introduced yourself?¡± (Kyle)
Zane started laughing at my impression of Regnis and Halbert let out a light chuckle as Regnis had an embarrassed look on his face.
¡°Let me tell you a secret, Ky. Regnis might look like he¡¯s a jerk on the surface, but ever since we¡¯ve been kids, he¡¯s always been helping us out. He¡¯s really a nice guy who always looks out for everyone, he¡¯s just too shy to show it.¡± (Zane)
¡°S-Shut up! I¡¯m not like I¡¯m specifically looking out for you two. I¡¯m just trying to make my lunches better, and making lunch for you two is just something extra to make sure that you¡¯re both on the same level as me, since beating you two wouldn¡¯t count as much if I had a huge advantage like better nutrition.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Yeah, yeah. It¡¯s ok, you don¡¯t need to tell us the truth, Regnis. We already know, so thanks, buddy!¡± (Zane)
Ah, I see. Thought I had him all figured out as the cardboard cutout rival with an inferiority complex, but it looks like he¡¯s really just an edgy tsundere. Well, I guess his act was good enough to fool me at first, so he got me there at least.
Regnis looked away from Halbert and Zane with an embarrassed blush on his face and crossed his arms again as I turned towards him with an understanding smile.
¡°I see, never thought you¡¯d be such a tsundere, Regnis.¡± (Kyle)
I let out a light-hearted laugh and reorganized the trio¡¯s relationship dynamic in my head as they all turned to me with confused looks on their faces again.
¡°What¡¯s a tsundere?¡± (Zane)
¡°Oh. Sorry, I guess a little, uh, ¡®hometown dialect¡¯ slipped out there. You see, back where I¡¯m from, a tsundere is someone who always acts like they don¡¯t care about you even though they really do on the inside, and they usually say things along like lines of ¡®I had nothing else better to do¡¯ or ¡®I just made it for you because it was an extra,¡¯ when they really did it for your sake, but were too shy to say it outright.¡± (Kyle)
Zane started laughing hysterically after I told him what a tsundere was, and he pointed to Regnis as he could barely stop laughing.
¡°I¡¯ve never heard someone so accurately describe Regnis! I guess he really is just a big tsundere!¡± (Zane)
¡°Yeah¡ the description really is uncanny... Well, I guess I learned something new today.¡± (Halbert)
¡°I¡¯m not a tsundere or whatever! My goal is to surpass Halbert fair and square, and it won¡¯t count if he¡¯s at a disadvantage, alright?¡± (Regnis)
A few more minutes passed as we teased Regnis a bit before we finally finished lunch and it was about time to start class again. I put away my now empty lunchbox and walked back up to the front of the room as I gathered everyone¡¯s attention.
¡°Alright, I guess we should start class again. So, what did you guys learn about the magic circle?¡± (Kyle)
I looked around the room and saw Sophie¡¯s hand shoot up instantly with a passionate look in her eyes. I let out a sigh and got out of my seat as I pulled out a notebook and pen from my satchel and brought my chair with me to the corner of the room.
¡°Alright, just come up here and tell us what you¡¯ve got, Sophie.¡± (Kyle)
Sophie immediately got up and sprinted to the front of the classroom with her notebook in her hands before stopping in front of the magic circle on the board and beginning her lecture.
¡°Well, after analyzing it a bit, I¡¯ve learned that this magic circle in particular,¡¾Frozen Snare¡¿, has a more complex design like you mentioned before, but as such, it also requires a higher quantity of mana and therefore, higher mana density to function, especially in these areas, indicated in this diagram I¡¯ve drawn.¡± (Sophie)
I scribbled down some quick notes on Sophie¡¯s explanation of the magic circle in my notebook while Sophie opened her notebook to reveal a small copy of the magic circle on the board with a few circles and arrows pointing to certain parts. She showed it off to the rest of the class with a beaming smile on her face and pointed to the important parts of it while giving her explanation.
¡°You see, the circled parts have about double the mana density of the previous ice element magic circle we studied last week, Ice Shard, while the parts with an arrow pointing to them have about the same level of mana density. However while the differences in the mana density might lead you to believe that the mana flow might fluctuate in some areas, it¡¯s actually very smooth and the flow is unimpeded in most parts of the circle. The only problem area I could find is a small point at one of the super-high-density areas in the middle where the mana tends to build up, but I believe that¡¯s where the mana from the monster core is converted into actual ice, so it would make sense for it to have a higher mana density. That¡¯s all I have on the design of the magic circle so far, but I do have some theories about the different functions of the sub-designs in the circle.¡± (Sophie)
Sophie turned towards me with an expectant look in her eyes like she was waiting for me to give her some praise before she started talking about her theories and I finished writing down what she said in my ¡®research notebook¡¯ for my lesson plans next year before giving her a smile.
¡°Alright, good job, Sophie. That¡¯s some nice analysis of the magic circle there. Anybody have any questions?¡± (Kyle)
I looked around the room to see Halbert and Regnis writing down things in their notebooks, while Zane was just fumbling around with his pen and Reina had an awkward smile on her face as she was consoling Mari, who was facepalming as she shook her head.
¡°It seems there aren¡¯t any questions from the class, so would you please elaborate on what your theories are, Sophie? Also, send me a copy of that diagram later if you can so I can, uh... grade it for you.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Alright, so as I was saying, for the first sub-design on the top left of the magic circle, my theory is that it functions as the indicator for what form the ice takes. You see, when we compare it to the previous magic circle, Ice Shard, you can see that many of the sub-designs are similar or the same, but this one on the top left is one of the few sub-designs that has changed. I¡¯m not completely sure if this hypothesis is correct, however, if I had another ice elemental magic circle around the same level, I could cross-reference them and maybe even figure out what some of the other ones do, Professor Kyle.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Uh, sure. Give me a second and I¡¯ll draw you another one.¡± (Kyle)
Sophie turned to me again with another expectant look on her face and I stopped writing in my notebook as I picked another random ice elemental magic circle.
Which one should I draw? Well, I mean she¡¯s right about that symbol because when you change it the ice will make different shapes, but if I tell her that outright, I¡¯ll probably have to actually teach the rest of the class something else, so I should probably just give her a magic circle to study that has to do with the shape of the ice. Uh¡ oh, I got it. It¡¯s a little more complex than what we¡¯ve been doing, but how about¡¾Frost Blade¡¿. I¡¯m sure that Sophie will figure it out by the end of the day like she does with every other magic circle we study anyway. Her talent and intuition for alchemy are leagues above mine, to the point where it¡¯s borderline scary. At this rate, I¡¯ll run out of things to teach her after a few months. Hmm, maybe we should have some more practical training so I don¡¯t have to constantly throw magic circles at Sophie and watch her process them within a few hours. Regnis was asking about practical uses for magic circles last time anyway, so maybe some controlled combat might be in order. I guess we could go out of the city and practice on some monsters. I¡¯m sure that there are a few weak ones like slimes or something in the forests nearby. Actually, I can probably just drop by the guild and ask them about the safe areas for beginner adventurers too, since the safe areas usually just have weak monsters.
I walked over and picked up a monster core from my desk as Sophie took a seat before taking a piece of chalk off the chalkboard, drawing another magic circle right next to the¡¾Frozen Snare¡¿circle, and activating it.
¡°¡¾Frost Blade¡¿, single cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
An icy blue shone out from the chalkboard again as moments later the monster core in my hands was completely used up and a longsword made of ice emerged from the magic circle. It felt cold to the touch as I held it in my hands and I swung it around slowly a few times to test out the weight as a nostalgic, yet frighteningly familiar feeling rushed into me through my hand gripping the sword.
Man, how long has it been since I held a sword? I almost forgot how natural it felt to be gripping one. Looks like my days of fighting and killing might be over, but the memories stay forever, huh? Well, they can haunt me all they want, but I¡¯m technically retired now, so I¡¯m too lazy to go fight. And hopefully, I¡¯ll never have to experience that feeling of cutting into another person again... but, hey, if I need to, I can at least cut some inanimate objects, can¡¯t I?
A feeling of melancholy flooded my senses as I stared blankly at the sword in my hands for a moment before I threw the piece of chalk I was holding into the air and swung the ice sword in my hands. My thousand year old muscle memory kicked in and I unconsciously used a good portion of my strength to slice the chalk cleanly into two pieces as the edge of the ice blade cut through the air following the same utterly refined motion that I had used a real blade for countless times in the past. A strong wind blasted through the room from the pure air pressure of my swing as the blade of ice in my hands instantly shattered into bits after making contact with the chalk and a burst of tiny ice crystals covered the floor. I came back to my senses after I heard the two pieces of chalk hit the ground, and I looked around at the mess on the floor surrounding me as I held the now bladeless hilt of the ice sword.
Ah, crap. I used too much strength, didn¡¯t I? Well, I guess I¡¯m on cleanup duty again then¡ Maybe I should invest in a tarp too.
I let out a sigh and turned back to the class to see everyone staring in astonishment as I sheepishly smiled and scratched my head.
¡°So, uh, that was¡¾Frost Blade¡¿and it makes, well, a blade of ice as you saw. It¡¯s around the level of fourth circle ice magic, and it¡¯s a legitimate weapon so it¡¯s a bit dangerous, but it seems I used a bit too much force when I tried to show off how sharp it can be and accidentally broke the blade. Sorry about that. Anyway, I hope this magic circle helps you prove your theory, Sophie. I tried to pick one that was related to the shape of ice changing. Now, if you¡¯ll excuse me, I¡¯m going to go grab a broom to clean up this mess. You guys can start studying the magic circle while I¡¯m gone, just be careful not to hurt yourselves.¡± (Kyle)
I gave a dry laugh and dropped the sword hilt made of ice in my hands into the bucket before leaving the room to go get a broom as I took a deep breath and calmed down the urge to fight and kill that was beginning to bubble up again after so long.
[Chapter 18.5] Heroes and Magical Girls Arent Too Far off from Eachother, Are They?
Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Halbert POV)
The screech of metal grinding against metal rang in my ears as my hands shook from the shockwave that blasted through my hands. The silver blade of the greatsword in front of my eyes shifted in a blur as I put strength into my legs and rolled off to the side. Immediately after I moved, the sound of the ground cracking reached my ears and I regained my balance as I saw the flash of an indistinct red figure out of the corner of my eye.
How is she still this fast?
I held my own greatsword up to see the sunlight shine through the crystal clear blade that seemed like it was made of pure glass and I immediately shifted it to my left side before channeling mana into my body strengthening magic while simultaneously activating¡¾Reinforcement¡¿on my greatsword as I grit my teeth and braced for impact. A hazy white light shone out from my greatsword and the crimson red blur stopped in place for a split-second before another heavy shockwave was transmitted into me through my hands. The pure force blasted me a few feet away and I barely managed to flip myself over mid-air before landing shakily. As soon as I stood up again, I glanced around to see if I could catch even a glimpse of the opponent, but this time all I could see was an empty field in front of me.
Damn, I lost sight of her. Where is she?
The sound of a single footstep behind me reached my ears and I immediately swung my head around to see the crimson red blur dash towards me before an arc of silver met my blade in another head-on clash. I desperately pumped mana into my body strengthening magic and pushed as hard as I could against the ground, but after a moment, I was just barely overpowered and my legs gouged out the earth beneath me as I was pushed back while the vague red figure slipped past me using the momentum from the previous swing. I twisted my head around as she disappeared from the corner of my eye again and began to dance around me always attacking from just slightly out of my line of sight. There wasn¡¯t even a moment to reposition or even move my legs as one strong impact after another was barely being blocked by my greatsword after pushing my body to the limit every time just to be able to react.
I can¡¯t keep this up much longer. She¡¯s already in control of my tempo. I need to find an opening. Faster! I need to be faster! I can¡¯t win if I¡¯m this slow! I need to at least be able to see her!
My eyes widened and the mana flowing around my body increased as a good portion of it flooded to my eyes. It felt like I could see clearly again as my kinetic vision was pushed to its utmost limit, and I could finally catch a clear view of Captain Aria as she danced around me. A small sense of confidence built up inside of me as I began to ever so slightly speed up before, there was finally an opening. Another arc of silver clanged against my greatsword as I kicked against the ground with my legs and the momentum from the blade dance stopped abruptly after finally meeting its match as I pushed her back after blocking her swing.
This is it! The opening I need!
I let out a yell as lightning element mana coursed from my body, through my hands, and into my blade. A brilliant blue glow shone out from my greatsword as arcs of blue lightning swirled around it like serpents and I took a heavy step forward before swinging with all my might towards Captain Aria. But, it seems that I was underestimating her a little too much as she instantly reacted by ducking under my blade and kicking off the ground before swinging from below. A solid hit connected with my chest plate and my stomach churned from the impact as I hacked out a cough before being blown into the air again. A moment later, I crashed back onto the ground and barely managed to even get up this time as I gasped for breath and stared at Captain Aria who was standing there with a sharp glint in her eyes.
¡°Are you giving up?¡± (Aria)
I felt my strength return a bit as her crystal clear voice rang out in my ears before I looked up and held my greatsword again as I called out raggedly that I could go on.
¡°I-I can continue.¡± (Halbert)
This¡¯ll probably be the final strike... I don¡¯t have anything else left in me.
A pair of piercing red eyes just stared at me for a second while I prepared myself for the final attack. I inhaled a deep breath as I grit my teeth and time seemed to slow down. I saw Captain Aria kick against the ground again in slow motion and start to make a straight dash towards me as she readied her sword to swing from below. A moment passed in that sensation of slow motion as I tried to put strength into my legs, but no matter how much I tried, they wouldn¡¯t budge.
Come on! Is this your limit!? You can¡¯t even beat Captain Aria when she¡¯s going easy on you!?
How the hell are you going to be a hero like this!?
How the hell are you going to beat Regnis and Zane like this!?
Just be stronger!
Just be faster!
Just move, damn it!
She¡¯s getting closer! She¡¯s dashing right in because she believes you can continue, so show her that she¡¯s right!
I screamed internally at myself as my legs were beginning to give out, but that only served to fuel my rage at my own weakness before finally, I felt a jolt enter me through my hands and spread through my body instantaneously as something inside of me clicked.
A cool feeling flooded out from deep inside of me and I felt strength enter my legs again as a strange sense of tranquility encompassed me.
I need something. Something strong. Something fast. Something to show her that she was right to believe in me.
Should I use a sword technique again? No, she¡¯ll just dodge it.
What I need... is a single swing. The strongest swing I know. One that¡¯s fast enough and strong enough that she can¡¯t dodge it!
I emptied my mind and closed my eyes as I searched deep inside for the form of the strongest sword swing I could imagine. However, what showed up in my head was an unexpected figure.
Captain Aria is the strongest opponent I¡¯ve ever had the chance to cross blades with, and I¡¯ve witnessed her training countless times, so I completely expected it to be an image of Captain Aria that showed up, however, the image I saw instead was of a solitary man.
He had a head full of snow white hair that was tied into a ponytail, along with golden eyes that seemed to see through your entire being. In one hand he held a sword made of pure ice, and in the other, a single piece of chalk. He threw the piece of chalk up into the air, and after a moment he took the sword in his hand and swung it. I couldn¡¯t understand anything at the time. It was too quick and too subtle for me to understand. But now I finally realize just how terrifying that swing was. That single swing was beyond even the level of a swordmaster. It was closer to the absolute peak of swordsmanship. It was a sword swing that had been utterly refined to the point where it was ingrained in his very being, and for the single instant that the sword made contact with the piece of chalk in the air, it felt like even I was being sliced into pieces.
I fell into a hazy trance as I finally opened my eyes to see Captain Aria directly in front of me and every last bit of mana I had left was driven straight into my body strengthening magic as I gripped my greatsword with both of my hands before clumsily imitating that single swing.
The air surrounding my greatsword screeched as I sliced through it, and the sight of the crystal clear edge of my greatsword making contact with another silver one surrounded by a hazy white glow was the last thing I saw before the accompanying burst of wind made me pass out.
***
I let out a light groan and slowly woke up as I felt my body cramp up a bit before taking a look at my surroundings. The familiar sight of the medical bay in the 7th Squad barracks met my eyes as I sat there for a moment before going through my memory.
Ugh, what happened?... The last thing I remember was sparring with Captain Aria. She was completely controlling the tempo like usual, but I somehow found an opening, used a sword technique, and swung at her. Then she dodged it and hit me in the chest, but¡ what happened after that?
I sat up in the medical bed and cleared my head as I tried to track my memory to no avail. I distinctly remembered what happened up to the point where Captain Aria dodged my sword technique and counter attacked, but all that was coming up after that was the image of an extremely vague, shadowy figure. I held my hand up to my chest as I could still feel a bit of pain from the clean hit to my torso earlier, and I slowly got out of the bed when suddenly I heard the door open.
After turning to the door, I saw Captain Aria walk in and sit down in front of me. The sunlight shone in through the window and illuminated her figure as she looked at me with a slightly concerned expression on her face. She was dressed in her uniform instead of light armor like before when we were sparring, and her beautiful red hair and eyes contrasted with the pure white color of her knight captain uniform along with the small hair clip of a white flower that she¡¯s been wearing recently. I think everyone was a little surprised when she started wearing that hair clip a few days ago since it never seemed like Captain Aria was the type to wear accessories, but honestly, it looked really pretty on her.
¡°You¡¯re awake, Halbert. Are you ok?¡± (Aria)
A light afternoon breeze blew in through the open window and made her hair flow in the wind as I couldn¡¯t help but stare at her speechlessly for a moment. My face blushed bright red and a warm feeling bubbled up from inside of me as I felt an urge to confess my feelings for her right there, but after a moment, I suppressed those feelings as I reminded myself about the situation.
No, you can¡¯t, Halbert. I know Captain Aria¡¯s perfect. She¡¯s beautiful, strong, and although she can act a bit cold at times, she¡¯s genuinely kind and gentle on the inside. But, no matter how much you want to tell her your feelings, remember, you can¡¯t.
She¡¯s just your assigned master in swordsmanship, and you¡¯re just her coincidental student. Your relationship is nothing more, nothing less. And not only that, you¡¯re also the hero chosen by the God of Light. You¡¯re destined to go fight the new demon lord in a few years with Regnis and Zane by your side, and even if you could ignore everything and run away with her, I¡¯m sure that with her sense of justice, she couldn¡¯t. She knows you¡¯re the hero, so even if she felt the same way, she would definitely follow you out onto the battlefront and fight alongside you¡ but she¡¯s not meant to be out there fighting with her life on the line every day, and you wouldn¡¯t want that anyway. So just be content with this. Just enjoy these carefree days while they still last.
I took a deep breath once I came back to my senses and I looked down before answering her with a slightly melancholic tone in my voice.
¡°I¡¯m fine, Captain Aria. I just overdid it a bit when we were sparring earlier... but I¡¯m ok now.¡± (Halbert)
¡°... That¡¯s good to hear.¡± (Aria)
¡°Sorry. To think that I lost the spar badly enough to end up in the medical bay and make you worry about me, even after personally requesting you got a little serious this time¡ I guess I really am a failure of a hero.¡± (Halbert)
I let out a disappointed sigh and held my hands in front of me as I stared at them. A moment of silence passed as I looked at the bandages covering my hands before Captain Aria¡¯s voice broke me out of my trance.
¡°You didn¡¯t lose though.¡± (Aria)
¡°Huh?¡± (Halbert)
I raised my head and stared at Captain Aria in confusion as she crossed her arms.
¡°The rules were that I couldn¡¯t use any sword techniques, only body strengthening magic up to a certain level and pure swordsmanship, but I used a sword technique to block that last swing you made. So I lost.¡± (Aria)
¡°Wait, but didn¡¯t you dodge that last swing and hit me in the chest from below?¡± (Halbert)
¡°No, the one after that.¡± (Aria)
¡°I passed out after that one though, didn¡¯t I?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Do you not remember the last swing you made?¡± (Aria)
¡°The last thing I can remember was you dodging my sword technique and hitting me in the chest. What did I do after that?¡± (Halbert)
¡°... I asked you if you could continue, and you said yes, so I decided to make the next strike the last one. When I closed in on you though, your last swing at me was unexpectedly fast, enough that I couldn¡¯t dodge it, and strong enough that I had to cast¡¾Reinforcement¡¿to block it. So I did, and you fainted right after you finished your swing. Who taught you how to swing like that?¡± (Aria)
¡°Who taught me? I¡ I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t remember being able to swing like that, and I genuinely can¡¯t remember anything past your hit to my chest.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Well, it doesn¡¯t matter who taught you. Just try and recall the feeling of that swing. It was a swing close to the level of a swordmaster. Maybe one day, that swing will save your life against the demon lord... You have somewhere important to go tomorrow, right? So just rest for now.¡± (Aria)
I watched silently as Captain Aria got out of her seat and began to leave the room, but when she got to the door, she paused and stood there. I stared at her for a moment as an awkward silence spread through the room before she called out to me in a quiet voice.
¡°... Someone told me recently that I should be a little more open with my feelings, but honestly, I still can¡¯t communicate them very well, so I guess I¡¯ll be a little blunt this time. Stay alive, Halbert. I would be sad if you died.¡± (Aria)
Captain Aria left the room and closed the door after she finished what she was saying, but the warm fuzzy feeling came back in full force as I stared at the door for a moment before whispering quietly to nothing in particular with a smile on my face.
¡°...Will do, Captain Aria.¡± (Halbert)
The Goddess of Love¡¯s Divine Domain, Eliza¡¯s House (Eliza POV)
My eyes scanned through the page of the book I was currently reading as I laid down on the couch in the living room. A few more moments of peace and quiet passed by as I flipped to the next page, when the sound of the door opening caught my attention. I got up slightly and peered over to see Reina, who was dressed in full cleaning attire, walk into the living room while holding a broom.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.
¡°Lady Eliza, I finished cleaning the house, what should I do now?¡± (Reina)
¡°Hmm, I think Olivia mentioned that she needed you to do something, but I don¡¯t remember what it was, and she¡¯s not here right now, so I guess you can take a break until she gets back. She¡¯s just at the monthly meeting with the God of Light anyway, so she should be back soon.¡± (Eliza)
I returned to my original position on the couch and was about to open my book again when I heard someone bust open the front door.
¡°Welcome back Lady Olivia. I just finished cleaning the house and Lady Eliza mentioned that you needed me to do something, right?¡± (Reina)
¡°Never mind that, Reina. You can do it later. We have a more important issue to deal with right now.¡± (Olivia)
I turned to the door to see Olivia standing there with a serious face before she ran over to me while holding an envelope in her hands.
¡°Lady Eliza, I just finished the meeting with his highness, the God of Light, and he told me that we¡¯ll be having some visitors soon. His highness¡¯ chosen hero and two of his allies will be coming over to visit.¡± (Olivia)
¡°Eh? The hero? H-He sounds like someone really important. Lady Eliza, what should we do!?¡± (Reina)
His chosen hero? Was there someone like that?... Oh, right. I remember now. Faust, that old geezer, was rambling about the rise of a new demon lord who would turn against the gods or something like that a few years ago. He even made us all gather up for some dumb meeting to plan for it. I think I slept through most of it, but I do remember at the beginning he couldn¡¯t even tell us any characteristics of this supposed new demon lord or even how they were going to rise to power. Apparently, his visions of the new demon lord were being ¡®masked by the power of one of the rogue gods,¡¯ and only the destined hero and his fated allies would be able to stop the new demon lord, but personally, I think he was just making up some nonsense to stay relevant. After all, no one visits that senile idiot anymore after he failed to predict what happened with Ky, so he probably just wanted some company, and what kind of vision can¡¯t even tell us anything about the ¡®new demon lord¡¯ except that they¡¯ll exist? Some God of Fate he is. I mean seriously, even if there was a new demon lord, we¡¯re gods for god¡¯s sake! We could just crush the new demon lord the moment they show up! There¡¯s no need for a hero, and I highly doubt anyone on the level of anomaly that Ky was will be showing up anytime soon. After all, I heard that Ky was powerful enough to kill several gods without a divine spark himself, and we still managed to seal him, even after he got one, so what¡¯s a puny little demon lord compared to the former blight of the gods, Ky? And it¡¯s not like everyone who sealed Ky is dead because of it either. In fact, they all lived, and the main guy who sealed Ky, his former best buddy, the God of Justice, what was his name again? Uh¡ it Kazuki or something like that. Yeah, him. He¡¯s still alive and well. In fact, he¡¯s even stronger now since he got a pretty big popularity boost after everything was said and done, so he took the easy road to becoming a high god a while ago.
¡°The hero and his allies? Well, what do they want?¡± (Eliza)
¡°I¡¯m not sure. His highness, the God of Light just told me to hand you this letter as soon as possible, and that it was your choice whether or not to tell me why after you read it, Lady Eliza.¡± (Olivia)
Olivia handed me the envelope she was holding as Reina stood next to her with an anxious look on her face. I held the envelope in my hands and inspected it for a moment before breaking the seal on the back and pulling out the actual letter inside to read it.
Dear Eliza,
Hey, it¡¯s me! Long time no see, Eliza. Well, it wouldn¡¯t be so long if you would ever show up to our scheduled monthly meetings instead of just sending Olivia over all the time. She¡¯s been running ragged because of you since I met her, and she still somehow finds the time to take care of everything you won¡¯t do. I heard you hired someone else recently, so just give the poor girl a break, would you? I feel guilty every time I see Olivia come visit then immediately leave after her business is done because she has to get something else done for you by the end of the day. But anyway, onto more important things. Faust told me yesterday that he finally had a new vision on the new demon lord. Apparently, there was still a lot of interference by the same rogue god, but this time it was a little weaker for some reason, so he managed to figure out what he believes is the new demon lord¡¯s alias, ¡®The Tyrant.¡¯ Now, I know what you¡¯re thinking, while this alias isn¡¯t exactly the same as the one on everyone¡¯s mind once you hear ¡®Tyrant,¡¯ it is eerily similar to it, especially at this time when we¡¯ve just recently released Kyle. So, with this in mind, I, the God of Light, Alba Lux, would like to formally request that the Goddess of Love, Eliza Strateous, grant my chosen hero permission to enter her divine domain and search the former residence of The Tyrant of Eternal Calamity and current True God of Death, Kyle. Look, I know that you might miss him a lot, and I¡¯m sorry if this reminded you of him, but I can¡¯t allow another tragedy like what happened a thousand years ago to happen again and any possible lead is a good one. Don¡¯t worry, we won¡¯t hunt down Kyle again. I promised him his freedom after his sentence, and I will stay by my word as long as he does not violate the terms of our agreement. Kazuki has vouched for his innocence too, and I myself have already seen how much he¡¯s changed, so I believe that he won¡¯t commit the same sins again. It¡¯s your choice to decide whether to tell anyone else about the circumstances, but please make sure that you only let those who are trustworthy know. As of this moment, besides you, me, and Faust, only my chosen hero and his allies, along with a few other gods know about the new demon lord¡¯s alias. Anyway, I¡¯m sure that you¡¯ll understand and accept my request, so I¡¯ve taken the liberty of assuming your agreement. I¡¯ll be sending over my chosen hero and his allies approximately an hour after Olivia returns, so I hope you cleaned up recently. Toodles.
Yours truly,
Alba
I let out a sigh as I stared at the poorly drawn smiley face at the bottom of the letter and after a moment I ripped up the letter in my hands before burning it to ashes using some simple fire magic. I turned to Olivia and Reina as they stared back with concerned faces and let out a tired groan before getting off the couch.
¡°Is it something we shouldn¡¯t know, Lady Eliza?¡± (Olivia)
¡°No, it¡¯s fine. Apparently, that old coot, Faust, had another vision about the new demon lord and found out that their alias is ¡®The Tyrant.¡¯ So that superstitious idiot, Alba, is just going to send over the hero and his buddies in about an hour so they can check the basement.¡± (Eliza)
¡°...¡¯The Tyrant¡¯... I see, so they want to look through his things, huh?¡± (Olivia)
Olivia had a bitter smile on her face as she slowly turned towards the door to the basement and I followed suit while Reina looked at us with a confused look on her face.
¡°Wait, I have so many questions! There¡¯s a new demon lord!? What does ¡®The Tyrant¡¯ mean!? And what¡¯s in the basement!?¡± (Reina)
¡°Don¡¯t worry, Reina. I¡¯ll explain it all after the hero and his buddies come over. Just change out of your cleaning gear because they¡¯ll be over soon.¡± (Eliza)
The Goddess of Love¡¯s Divine Domain, Ritual Grounds (Reina POV)
¡°Augh¡ I know I¡¯m supposed to be a magical girl, Lady Eliza, but do I really have to wear the outfit?¡± (Reina)
I let out a whimper and hugged my staff as I turned with an embarrassed blush to Lady Eliza, who was just wearing her pajamas like usual in stark contrast to Lady Olivia who was dressed in a formal robe as she let out a disappointed sigh. The three of us stood in front of the ritual grounds in the backyard while we waited for the hero and his allies to show up. Lady Eliza turned to me with a proud smile on her face before replying to my question with a haughty tone in her voice.
¡°Of course you do! The outfit is basically half of what it means to be a magical girl! It¡¯s basically your uniform, and I was the one who personally designed it, so there¡¯s nothing wrong with wearing it. What do you have to worry about anyway? Even if you¡¯re only a trainee, you¡¯re still the one and only Goddess of Love, Eliza Strateous¡¯ genuine heroic spirit in name, compared to some no-name hero that Alba picked.¡± (Eliza)
¡°But, it¡¯s embarrassing! The skirt on this outfit is too short, and these stockings barely even go past my knees, so my legs are showing! Besides, don¡¯t you think a bit too much of my chest is exposed!?¡± (Reina)
I cried out desperately as I complained about the amount of skin I was showing, but it was all to no avail as Lady Eliza just ignored me and looked up at the sun in the sky to tell the time before crossing her arms with a confident smile.
¡°Alright, it should be about time. Stand proud, Reina, and don¡¯t forget to pose!¡± (Eliza)
¡°Wha-!?¡± (Reina)
I let out a surprised yelp as a large magic circle began to form in the middle of the ritual grounds and a bright white light shone out from the magic circle, blinding me for a moment as I heard some strangely familiar voices say a few things before Lady Eliza called out to them in a smug tone.
¡°Ugh, my eyes. Where are we Halbert?¡± (Zane)
¡°Well, I think this is the Goddess of Love¡¯s divine domain, right?¡± (Halbert)
¡°It should be, unless something went wrong with the teleportation magic.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Welcome to my divine domain, hero and his allies! I hope Alba prepared you well because you¡¯re now in the Goddess of Love, Eliza Strateous¡¯ hands!¡± (Eliza)
Eh?
I hesitantly lowered my hand from in front of my face as my vision slowly came back to me, revealing three unexpected figures, Halbert, Regnis, and Zane. All three of them were dressed in light training attire with the Church of Light¡¯s symbol on it and Halbert was even bandaged up in a few places. Zane was rubbing his eyes as Halbert wobbled around a bit before replying to Lady Eliza while he slowly regained his vision.
¡°Greetings, your highness. I am the hero, Halbert Alyon, and my allies and I¡ Eh?¡± (Halbert)
Halbert raised his head and stared at me in surprise after he regained his vision and a moment of awkward silence passed between us as Regnis stood there silently and crossed his arms while Zane stared at me too with a surprised face.
¡°Reina? Is that you? What are you wearing?¡± (Zane)
¡°... Don¡¯t worry, Reina, I won¡¯t say anything about your choice of attire.¡± (Regnis)
I¡¯m finished... My social life is done for. Of all the people who could¡¯ve been the hero and his allies, why did it have to be people I know!?
I dropped down to my knees in defeat while tears ran down my cheeks as Lady Eliza turned to me with a curious look on her face.
¡°Wait, Reina do you know them? Because they seem to know you.¡± (Eliza)
¡°... Y-Yes, Lady Eliza. They¡¯re my classmates.¡± (Reina)
¡°... I¡¯m sorry, Reina. If I had known, I would¡¯ve never let Lady Eliza make you wear that outfit¡¡± (Olivia)
¡°Wait, wait, wait. Can someone please explain what¡¯s going on?¡± (Zane)
Zane waved his arms around and cried out in confusion as Lady Eliza stared at the three of them before letting out a sigh.
¡°You three are lucky that you¡¯re also Reina¡¯s friends in addition to being Alba¡¯s chosen hero, otherwise I would¡¯ve made you suffer a bit in place of that idiot for sending you all over without even asking first. Well, I guess you all can come in for now. I¡¯ll explain everything inside.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Eh? T-Thank you, your highness.¡± (Halbert)
Lady Eliza turned around and started walking towards the door with a tired expression on her face as Halbert gave her a deep bow before everyone slowly followed her inside.
A few minutes later, Lady Olivia left to go finish some work in the study room, while I was standing behind Lady Eliza, who was lying down on the couch nonchalantly after explaining the situation to everyone as Halbert, Regnis, and Zane were all on their knees on the floor in front of her.
¡°To think that you were actually a heroic spirit... I would like to formally apologize for any rudeness we might have committed towards you before, Lady Reina. If there¡¯s anything I can do for you to make up for my earlier discourtesy, just let me know.¡± (Halbert)
Halbert lowered his head towards me and apologized as I panicked a bit and hugged my staff.
¡°N-No, you don¡¯t have to be so formal with me. I¡¯m not a real heroic spirit, just a trainee. The only thing I even do around here is clean the house.¡± (Reina)
¡°That¡¯s no excuse though. Even if you¡¯re just a trainee, you were still chosen by her highness so you¡¯re on at least the same standing as me, if not higher.¡± (Halbert)
¡°See, Reina. I told you earlier. What¡¯s a measly chosen hero to one of my heroic spirits.¡± (Eliza)
Lady Eliza turned towards me with a smug smile on her face before letting out a pompous laugh and I let out a sigh as I tried my best to communicate my feelings to the trio on the floor.
¡°Look, I¡¯m not anyone great of anything like that. I was just lucky enough to meet Lady Eliza and Lady Olivia, so if you want to do anything for me, then just treat me like normal... and please don¡¯t tell anyone else that I wore this outfit.¡± (Reina)
¡°Will do, Reina. Your secret will go to the grave with me.¡± (Halbert)
¡°I won¡¯t tell another soul.¡± (Zane)
¡°I promise I won¡¯t say a thing about this, and I¡¯m a man of my word.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Thank you.¡± (Reina)
I let out a sigh of relief as I felt my knees go a little weak from having such a huge pressure lifted off me before I thought about the bigger situation we were in and my knees began to shake again.
¡°Anyway, now that we¡¯re done with that. What should we do about the new demon lord? Don¡¯t we only have a few years left?¡± (Reina)
¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, Reina. Trust me, the gods aren¡¯t so weak that just anyone can come here and push us around, and it¡¯s even not your problem to worry about in the first place, it¡¯s theirs. According to that old coot, Faust, and that idiot, Alba, these three will be the ones destined to take down the new demon lord, not you. So just sit back and relax. Anyway, moving on, even though I don¡¯t want to admit it, I do owe Alba, so you guys can check out the basement, just let me know when you want to so I can open it.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Really? Thank you, your highness. If it would be possible, we would like to investigate the basement as soon as possible.¡± (Halbert)
Halbert smiled at Lady Eliza and was about to get up when suddenly Zane grabbed Halbert¡¯s shoulder with a frighteningly serious look in his eyes.
¡°Wait. Before we investigate the basement. Halbert, Regnis, don¡¯t you think there¡¯s something even more important we need to do? We¡¯re sitting in front of the Goddess of Love, so we should take this once in a lifetime chance to have our luck in love be read!¡± (Zane)
¡°I don¡¯t need anything like that.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Well, just because you don¡¯t need it, doesn¡¯t mean that we don¡¯t! Right, Halbert?¡± (Zane)
¡°Well, for me... even if I do get mine read, I don¡¯t think it¡¯ll help much¡¡± (Halbert)
Halbert replied with a slightly sad tone in his voice while Zane slammed his head down onto the floor as he begged Lady Eliza to read his fortune, but Lady Eliza just took a casual glance at Zane on the floor before getting off the couch and walking towards the basement door.
¡°Please, I¡¯m begging you, your highness. Tell me, will I ever get a girlfriend?¡± (Zane)
¡°Not likely.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Eh?... Wait! You didn¡¯t even do anything yet! Don¡¯t you have to read my palm or something!?¡± (Zane)
¡°Who do you think I am? I don¡¯t even need to do anything to tell that you¡¯re not the type who¡¯ll get a girlfriend anytime soon. Trust me, I¡¯m the one and only Goddess of Love, and when it comes to matters within my expertise, my word is the hard truth, so if you can¡¯t handle it, then don¡¯t ask.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Damn it! Damn it all! Am I really going to be a wizard for the rest of my life!?¡± (Zane)
Zane slammed the ground with his fists in despair as tears poured out of his eyes and a few moments passed before he got up with a depressed look on his face and joined the rest of us following Lady Eliza to the basement door as Halbert patted him on the back while letting out a dry laugh.
We walked up to the entrance to the basement together and Lady Eliza held her hand out towards the door as we all took a step back. A large magic circle that glowed with a hazy white light appeared on the surface of the wooden door for a moment before a sound akin to glass breaking resonated in my ears and the magic circle shattered into bits of light.
¡°Alright, there you go. It¡¯s open. Might be a little dusty down there though.¡± (Eliza)
I looked at the door curiously as Lady Eliza opened it slowly to reveal a staircase down into a room with stone walls.
¡°Speaking of which, Lady Eliza, what¡¯s even down there? The door¡¯s always been locked even when I clean, so I¡¯ve assumed it was something important, but it doesn¡¯t look like there¡¯s much there, so why are we even searching it? Is it something related to the new demon lord?¡± (Reina)
The moment after I finished asking, Halbert, Regnis, and Zane all put on serious faces as the atmosphere turned grave and I got a little scared as Halbert asked Lady Eliza a question in a serious tone.
¡°Your highness, does Reina not know?¡± (Halbert)
¡°I-Is it something I¡¯m not supposed to know about?¡± (Reina)
¡°No, it¡¯s fine. You¡¯re trustworthy enough, so I¡¯ll tell you about it right now. There¡¯s nothing down there except a jail cell with a small bed, a wooden desk, and an old clock. It¡¯s just that the person who used to sleep in that bed, use that desk, and tell the time with that old clock was a bit... extraordinary.¡± (Eliza)
¡°W-Who was it?¡± (Reina)
¡°The current True God of Death, also formerly known as The Tyrant of Eternal Calamity.¡± (Eliza)
¡°E-Ehhhh!!? W-W-Wait, what do you mean the current True God of Death!? Why was he living in the basement!?¡± (Reina)
I started panicking as Lady Eliza closed her eyes and took a deep breath before turning to me with a narcissistic grin and laughing evilly.
¡°Muahahaha! Are you scared, Reina? Well, don¡¯t be. After all, you¡¯re my heroic spirit, and have you forgotten who I am? I¡¯m the one and only Goddess of Love, and even the True God of Death had to submit to my infinite power! Now, come on, follow me. I¡¯ll show you around the basement.¡± (Eliza)
Lady Eliza confidently strode down the stairs into the basement and led the way as Halbert, Regnis, and Zane followed behind her before I shakily made my way down after them.
C-Calm down, Reina. Lady Eliza¡¯s right, you have nothing to be scared of! You¡¯re the one and only Magical Girl of Love, Reina Sylfey, and you can do this!
[Chapter 19] Declarations to the Gods and Digging Holes Are My Expertise
Middle District, Irisveil Mansion (Kyle POV)
Hey there, everyone! It¡¯s me, your friendly neighborhood Kyle. Come join me today as I sit here and eat my dinner in silence because Aria still refuses to talk with me!
The sound of Aria wolfing down her dinner was the only thing I heard as I sat across from her and stared intently while slowly taking bites of my food.
You see, today we met up with Alain and Lillian again, and this time we decided to go see a play together, but although I enjoyed myself, our day out also amplified the issue that¡¯s been sitting in the back of my head for the past few days. Aria¡¯s been avoiding me since last week. Her morning routine for the last couple days could basically be chalked up to waking up, coming downstairs, and taking her lunchbox before immediately leaving for work, and after she gets back from work, she just wolfs down her dinner without a word then makes an excuse before running upstairs to her room for the rest of the night. She¡¯s barely spoken to me at all recently, and even earlier today she was stuck to Lillian like glue while avoiding any contact with me.
A loud sound echoed out as Aria slammed her empty bowl down on the table and I watched her down her entire glass of water in a few seconds before she immediately got up and announced her departure in a shaky voice.
¡°T-Thanks for the meal. I¡¯ll be in my room if you need me.¡± (Aria)
She turned towards the living room and started to walk away, but I already made my decision to confront her about her recent behavior today, so I wasn¡¯t going to let her just weasel her way out so easily. I put my utensils down and ran to the entrance to stop her as she let out a surprised yelp.
¡°Hold it! Where do you think you¡¯re going? You¡¯re not leaving this room until you sit down and tell me exactly why you¡¯ve been avoiding me this entire week.¡± (Kyle)
I stared at Aria with a slight frown on my face as she made eye contact with me for a moment before looking away with a nervous smile on her face.
¡°W-What are you talking about, Ky? I haven¡¯t been avoiding you at all.¡± (Aria)
¡°Really? Then why are you looking away from me? I¡¯ll believe you when make eye contact and say it!¡± (Kyle)
A moment of awkward silence passed between us before Aria slowly craned her neck to face me again.
¡°I h-haven¡¯t¡¡± (Aria)
The glint in my eyes sharpened the moment she started speaking and I stared even more intently at her while she stuttered. Before long, she couldn¡¯t handle it anymore and the blood rushed to her head while she covered her face with her hands.
A few minutes later, Aria was sitting on her chair in front of me with a dazed look on her face. I could hear her muttering to herself and there was a blank look in her eyes as she stared at the floor in front of her. I leaned back against the table with a stern expression before crossing my arms and directly addressing the main issue.
¡°So why have you been avoiding me this week, Aria?¡± (Kyle)
¡°I don¡¯t want to say it, it¡¯s embarrassing!¡± (Aria)
¡°No one¡¯s here except me and you, so what¡¯s there to be embarrassed about?¡± (Kyle)
¡°You being here is the reason it¡¯s embarrassing in the first place!¡± (Aria)
¡°Eh? Well, just tell me anyway. Come on, I won¡¯t hold it against you.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Alright, fine. If you really want to know why, the truth is, I can¡¯t look straight at you anymore!¡± (Aria)
Aria stood up with a red face as she finally told me why she had been avoiding me this past week, and I slouched over with a bitter smile while a few tears leaked out of my eyes before I grabbed my face for a moment.
¡°... Look, I know I¡¯m not the best looking guy around, but just because I¡¯m ugly, doesn¡¯t mean you have to be so blunt about it¡ I¡¯m sorry Aria, but my face is just something I can¡¯t fix. I mean, I guess I could start wearing a mask again¡ Actually, maybe just a paper bag will do. I think I¡¯ve overstayed my welcome with masks already.¡± (Kyle)
¡°That¡¯s not what I meant, you idiot! What I meant was that¡ that every time I look at you now I start to get flustered.¡± (Aria)
¡°Eh? Why?¡± (Kyle)
¡°What do you mean why? It¡¯s because of you in the first place!¡± (Aria)
¡°Wait, is it because I gave you that hair clip?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Of course it¡¯s because you gave me this hair clip!¡± (Aria)
Aha! I knew it! Looks like another victory for Great Detective Kyle! You see, Aria¡¯s been acting strange ever since we went out with Alain and Lillian last week, and after logically eliminating all other possible causes from that day, my hypothesis for the probable cause was down to either the hair clip or Alain and Lillian themselves since those two factors were the only things she¡¯s had extended contact with every day since our outing last week, but seeing she acted, er, mostly normal around Alain and Lillian today, it had to have been the hair clip. Now the question is, why was it the hair clip? I was pretty confident in my choice of gift and I thought I had every angle covered, but I guess I missed one or two.
¡°So I was right, it was the hair clip. Well, I thought it was a pretty nice gift, but I guess it¡¯s caused more problems than it¡¯s solved. After all, last week you were just sitting there staring at it for a couple of hours after I gave it to you, and that¡¯s definitely not normal.¡± (Kyle)
¡°W-Wait, you were watching!?¡± (Aria)
¡°Ah. Wait, it¡¯s quite unlikely, but there¡¯s another possibility, and if what I¡¯m thinking is true, then this might be a more serious issue than I originally thought. After all, it would explain all your strange behavior recently. I¡¯m sorry Aria, but I think I might have given you a cursed item. Don¡¯t worry though, if there¡¯s anything I¡¯ve learned about cursed items, it¡¯s how to get rid of them. We could try and get it purified at the church, but I think just destroying it completely would be the safer option. We should have a sledgehammer out back somewhere, so we¡¯ll be fine. Oh, and don¡¯t worry about what I saw you doing last week either, it¡¯s ok, I won¡¯t tell anyone.¡± (Kyle)
I turned to Aria with a smile, but all I saw was her slowly walking over with a dazed look on her face after taking a knife from the kitchen. My smile immediately shifted to a shaky nervous one and cold sweat ran down my back as a scary aura began to protrude from Aria.
¡°Eh? W-Wait, what are you doing? P-Put down the knife! Did the curse already take over your body!? Wake up, Aria! At least put up a fight!¡± (Kyle)
I slowly backed up against the wall as she inched closer with the knife in her hand before I saw the life in her eyes return and she stared at me for a moment before she got flustered again and slumped back into her chair.
¡°A-Aria? Are you ok? Did you regain control of your body from the curse yet?¡± (Kyle)
I observed her cautiously and took a step closer before she suddenly stood up with an angry look on her face again.
¡°I¡¯m not cursed, you idiot!¡± (Aria)
¡°I don¡¯t know¡ that¡¯s exactly what a cursed item taking over Aria¡¯s body would say¡¡± (Kyle)
I stared at her with a suspicious look on my face, but Aria just whacked me in the head again as she began to yell at me with a red face.
¡°Are you really going to make me spell it out for you!? Just how dense are you!?¡± (Aria)
¡°Aria! You¡¯re ok! Whew. I was getting scared there for a second that I¡¯d have to bring you to the church to get purified after all. Anyway, I know I might be a bit dull at times, but you¡¯re not giving me enough information to work with. Look, you¡¯ve been acting strange recently and I¡¯m trying to help you, so just tell me what¡¯s wrong.¡± (Kyle)
I looked at Aria with a concerned face as she stared at me for a second before letting out a sigh as she sat back down and covered her face with her hands again before letting out a muffled voice.
¡°L-Look, last week we went out together for the whole day, and even though Alain and Lillian joined us as extras for lunch and everything afterward, we still went out for lunch together, then went sightseeing around the city together, and after that we went shopping together, so isn¡¯t that just a d-d-date?¡± (Aria)
¡°... Eh?...¡± (Kyle)
W-Wait... she¡¯s right! We were alone when we went to the smithy, and it¡¯s not like Alain and Lillian did anything to butt in between us, so if you took them out of the picture, i-it really was just a date! And even if you do count them, you could still just say it was a double date!
It was my turn to be embarrassed this time as a light blush began to form on my face while my eyes widened a bit from the realization. My hand rose up immediately to cover the lower half of my face and I looked away from Aria before replying in a shaky voice.
¡°W-Well, it seems that I missed a few perspectives when it came to the events last weekend. After thinking it over again, I can see why you would interpret it like that, e-especially after I gave you the hair clip as a present, but honestly, I really just gave it to you b-because I thought it would look nice on you. T-There wasn¡¯t any hidden romantic meaning behind it.¡± (Kyle)
An awkward silence filled the room as we both avoided eye contact and I stood there while thoughts raced rapidly through my mind. A few moments passed as I felt my heart rate increasing before I finally suppressed my embarrassment and thought about what to say next.
Alright, Ky. I know you¡¯re a bit flustered right now, but calm down and think about the situation you¡¯re in. Aria¡¯s self-esteem is on the line. Come on, even if you¡¯re an arch-wizard of unimaginable power, you¡¯ve still been hanging around Eliza for a millennium, at least a bit of her expertise has gotta have rubbed off on you, right? You¡¯ve read tons of romance manga too, so what¡¯s the right thing to do in this situation?... W-Well, usually in shoujo manga, there are only two choices for this kind of situation. I either have to deny it and hide my true feelings or just straight up confess! So, let¡¯s just slowly go over the options. My first option is denying it, but even if she¡¯s been a lot more open and happy since our days in Delhurst, Aria¡¯s still on shaky ground, and saying that I don¡¯t think of her as a woman at all is the conversational equivalent of kicking her off a cliff¡ so, I guess that leaves option number two, confessing¡
But what do I confess to?... I¡¯m an arch-wizard for god¡¯s sake! What do I even say in this situation?...
Alright. Despite how low it is, I guess you¡¯ll just have to work the old charisma stat again and go for it, Ky. Just pretend you¡¯re a shoujo protagonist¡¯s love interest and say some cheesy lines to make her feel better or something. At the very least it¡¯ll probably save her self esteem, and hey, it might even give her some more confidence in herself. If it ends up screwing you over later on, you¡¯ll just have to burn that bridge when you get there, the number one priority right now is Aria¡¯s mental state.
I took a deep breath as I closed my eyes and calmed down my furiously beating heart before slowly walking over to Aria. Trying my best to ignore the raging blush on my face, I pulled my chair over and sat down in front of her. She peeked out from the gaps between her fingers to see what was happening and a moment passed as we made some light eye contact before I started to talk to her in a gentle voice.
¡°Look, you can look back at what we did together last week however you want to see it, whether you call it a date or just having fun with our friends, I won¡¯t mind it at all, but please just act normally around me again.¡± (Kyle)
I slowly moved Aria¡¯s hands away to reveal her furiously blushing face before grasping one of her hands with both of mine while staring straight into her eyes.
¡°I¡¯ll be honest, ok? It might not seem obvious all the time, but you¡¯re an important person to me, Aria. Otherwise, why would I have stayed by your side for so long? I care about you, and it scares me when I see someone so important to me just suddenly start avoiding me. I¡¯ve already driven away enough of the people I care about, and I don¡¯t want to lose another.¡± (Kyle)
I saw my reflection in Aria¡¯s crimson red eyes, and it seemed like her face was beet red as she let out a surprised jolt.
¡°It¡¯s ok if you¡¯re not ready to just start talking to me again like normal, but as long as you¡¯re trying, that¡¯s good enough for me. I told you before, right? I¡¯m your partner. There might not be a single other person in this entire world that cares about you, but just know that I always will, because that what being your partner means. So take as much time as you want, I¡¯ll be waiting for you. I know I haven¡¯t been leading by example very much when I told you to start being more open with your feelings, so let me start by telling you how I really feel. Aria, I lo- urk!¡± (Kyle)
Whew! That was a close one. Glad I stopped myself just in time there. Looks like I got a little too into character there and almost said something I couldn¡¯t take back so easily.
I finally looked away from Aria after my awkward pause and cleared my throat before continuing in a quiet voice.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
¡°Ahem. Aria, I would love it if you would just start acting normally around me again.¡± (Kyle)
There was complete silence as I stood back up and awkwardly turned around to stare at the wall before the blush on my face got a little redder. A part of me wanted to just run away while another part of me wanted to stay and see if my act worked, but eventually, my curiosity got the better of me and I slowly turned back to see Aria sitting there with tears flowing down her cheeks.
W-Wait, what did I do wrong!? She wasn¡¯t supposed to cry! I did the calculations and everything! W-What do I do now? I didn¡¯t account for this even being a possible result!
I tried my best to hide my nervous confusion as she pulled her hand out from my grasp and wiped the tears from her eyes before getting out of her seat and hugging me.
Eh?
I froze up. Aria was lightly her rubbing her face into my shoulder and I could faintly hear her breathing before her voice rang out with a tender tone.
¡°...Hey, Ky. Looks like I¡¯ve forgotten about a lot since we moved to the capital, huh?... Maybe it¡¯s been the peace that¡¯s dulled my feelings, or maybe I¡¯ve genuinely just changed, but you know, I think I¡¯ve finally remembered what it was that drove me to wake up every day during our days back in Delhurst. I promise I won¡¯t avoid you anymore... And I¡¯m sorry that I took so long to finally tell you this, Ky. You¡¯re an important person to me too... You¡¯re irreplaceable to me... because you¡¯re my one and only partner.¡± (Aria)
My breathing turned shallow as mixed emotions filled my heart. It was a tender warmth I hadn''t felt in a long time, yet at the same time, there was a faint tinge of a vaguely familiar sadness. I closed my eyes and the melancholy started to overwhelm my thoughts as I stood there.
When I opened my eyes again, in front of me was a hand. It was a cold, blood-stained hand that had taken countless lives. It was a hand eternally chained down by the weight of its sins. It was my hand.
Yet, that hand moved. It slowly wrapped around Aria''s back, and when it pulled her closer, I finally realized why.
It was just for a moment... but that hand finally felt warm again. It felt human again.
Then my other hand moved too. It gently held Aria''s head before pulling it a little closer as the melancholy faded. After a moment, a soft blush made its way onto my face and I stood there in complete silence with a flustered smile as Aria hugged me.
... Partner, huh?...
It wasn''t until a few minutes later that she finally let go, and we sat down to have our first actual, albeit slightly awkward, conversation in a week.
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Kyle POV)
I flipped to the next page in my book as I leaned a little farther back in my chair. The sunlight from outside shone in and illuminated the page in front of me as the subtle background noise was interrupted by the sound of a familiar voice.
¡°Hey, Ky. Come on. It¡¯s lunchtime already.¡± (Zane)
¡°Eh? Sure, I¡¯ll be right over.¡± (Kyle)
I lowered the book in front of my face to see Zane beckoning me to come over and eat lunch with him, Halbert, and Regnis, but for some reason, there were a few new additions to our little group today. Sitting next to the trio were Reina and Sophie. A quick glance around the room showed no signs of Mari being back from her meeting yet, so I grabbed my lunch box from my bag and walked over to join them all as I brought my chair over to the table with me.
Regnis and Zane were already eating some homemade sandwiches while Reina and Sophie each had their own lunch boxes. Halbert, however, was sitting there with his sandwich still untouched as he continued to focus on the book he had been reading since this morning whenever he was free. After a moment, it seemed Halbert finally noticed me and lowered the book in his hand a little to smile at me as I stared at them all with a puzzled look on my face before taking a seat at the table.
¡°So, what¡¯s with the gathering today?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Oh, well, we had some stuff to talk about with Reina, so I thought it would be nice to talk over lunch.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Eh? Really?¡± (Kyle)
I turned to Reina with a curious look on my face as she replied in a timid voice.
¡°Y-Yeah.¡± (Reina)
¡°So what about you then, Sophie?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, it¡¯s no fun eating alone, so I joined everyone else.¡± (Sophie)
Sophie took a bite out of her lunch before turning away with a slightly embarrassed look on her face. I chuckled a bit at her small plight before turning to Halbert who had bandages on his hands and face for some reason and I opened up my lunchbox before asking Halbert about his wounds.
¡°By the way, Halbert, I¡¯ve been meaning to ask you this since this morning, what¡¯s with the bandages, did you get hurt?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Don¡¯t worry, Ky. He just got a little scratched up while training a few days ago.¡± (Zane)
¡°Training? How did he get so roughed up from training? Did he go to the wild and fight monsters all day or something?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Haha¡ Well, about that, I actually got beat up pretty bad by my swordsmanship instructor when we were sparring.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Swordsmanship? Wait, if you¡¯re interested in swordsmanship, then why are you in my ancient alchemy class?¡ Shouldn¡¯t you be in the weapons department instead?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Uh, well, actually, it¡¯s my dream to become a knight, and somehow I managed to be taken in as a student by a really strong swordswoman a few months ago, so I decided that instead of trying to learn swordsmanship from two masters at once, it would probably be better to try and focus on learning swordsmanship from one while going to school to learn something else that might help in a fight, like ancient alchemy.¡± (Halbert)
Halbert scratched his head with a sheepish smile on his face as he let out a light chuckle and I took another bite of my lunch as I stared at him a bit.
¡°Hoh? Well, I can see the reasoning behind your actions, but since you caught the eye of a strong master, that means they saw enough potential in you to pass on their sword techniques. Which means you probably at least have some talent for the sword along with decent mana control, right? So even if you didn¡¯t want to learn swordsmanship from two masters at once, wouldn¡¯t enrolling in the magic department and using your talent at controlling mana to learn magic from one of the professors in that department be better then? Trust me, Mari had a huge campaign this semester to hire the best of the best, and her reputation as the Grand Mage of Wind attracted a lot of powerful mages in particular, so most of the professors in the magic department are at the top of their field. Look, I¡¯ll be honest with you, I¡¯m not exactly the best teacher, and if your main focus is swordsmanship, then magic as a secondary focus is probably a better option than ancient alchemy since it¡¯s more versatile and you don¡¯t need to prepare anything beforehand to use it in a fight.¡± (Kyle)
The glint in my eyes grew a little sharper as I explained my revised reasoning to him, and I saw him get a little nervous as he panicked a little before giving his reply.
¡°Eh? W-Well, I, uh, thought about enrolling in the magic department too, but I decided that ancient alchemy would be better since I don¡¯t need to chant to use it like I do for magic. Of course, I know that if you train enough, you can cast spells chantlessly, but I heard that takes a lot of time and practice, and I don¡¯t exactly have that much time to put into learning magic since my main focus is swordsmanship. So even if I have to prepare materials and draw a magic circle beforehand, something like ancient alchemy that doesn¡¯t require a chant from the start would be better and easier to use in a fight, I think... After all, I only have a few years left before I have to... pass the knight cadet exam.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Eh¡ Well, I guess both magic and ancient alchemy have their own advantages and disadvantages, so I can¡¯t say which is better for sure, but you are right about the chanting part.¡± (Kyle)
I continued to eat my lunch as I compared the usefulness of alchemy and magic, but while I didn¡¯t care all that much about which was objectively better, it seemed that my lackluster support for my own field of expertise ticked Sophie off. She put down her food with a loud slam as I saw passionate flames light up in her eyes.
¡°Well, since Professor Kyle doesn¡¯t have any pride as an alchemist, I guess it¡¯s up to me to tell you the truth, Halbert.¡± (Sophie)
Sophie immediately stood up with gusto as she raised her hand up and pointed to the sky.
¡°Alchemy is definitely, without a doubt, completely superior to magic! What kind of idiot doesn¡¯t prepare for a fight beforehand anyway? And if you¡¯re always prepared, then in every situation, alchemy is ten times better than magic!¡± (Sophie)
The tension in the air from Sophie¡¯s passion was almost tangible as she finished lecturing Halbert before turning and pointing to me.
¡°And who said that magic was more versatile than alchemy? Alchemy can be just as versatile than magic, if not more! Magic is just letting mana fill a predetermined natural form by having an image in your head, it¡¯s all up to nature after that, but alchemy goes beyond nature! Alchemy is taking one of those predetermined natural forms and changing it to be stronger, or faster, or even function entirely differently! For every spell circle, there¡¯s a countless amount of alchemical variations that can all do the same or different things! I know that you might think that having the choice of what spell to cast when using magic is what makes it more versatile in a fight, but I believe that having to make the choice of what the optimal spell is to use in that situation, then picturing the spell before chanting for a while if it¡¯s a spell you didn¡¯t practice, is much less versatile than just having one reliable alchemy stone that you know how to use instantly and chantlessly, without having to think about it in most situations! Hmph.¡± (Sophie)
After she finished her outburst towards me, Sophie crossed her arms and finally sat down. We all stared at her with awkward speechless smiles as she went right back to eating her lunch like nothing ever happened.
¡°T-Thanks for the insight, Sophie. A-Anyway, moving on. Don¡¯t worry too much about the knight cadet exam, Halbert. I have a few¡ connections, so if you don¡¯t make it, I can probably still get you in. So just relax and eat your lunch. I like reading too, but I think eating is more important, isn¡¯t it?¡± (Kyle)
Halbert gave me a dry laugh in response and closed the book in his hands before starting to eat his sandwich.
¡°By the way, what book are you reading? I don¡¯t really mind what you do in my class, but I¡¯ve seen you reading it since this morning, so now I¡¯m kind of curious what book had you so hooked.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Oh, this? It¡¯s actually a book about an old myth.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Myths? I didn¡¯t know you were into that kind of stuff.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Y-Yeah. I got into them recently...¡± (Halbert)
Myths, huh? Well, I always kind of found them a little boring to read, but despite how formulaic they are, I can definitely see why a young boy would find myths interesting. I mean it¡¯s usually just a generic story of a hero rising up and overcoming all odds to defeat the demon lord or something along those lines, but aren¡¯t heroes and demon lords what a young boy¡¯s romance is all about? Anyway, I might not know much about the newer ones, but if it¡¯s a myth about someone from around my time, I should be able to tell him a few details, right? After all, it¡¯s a teacher¡¯s job to ignite his student¡¯s curiosity, isn¡¯t it?
¡°Well, I¡¯m glad you¡¯ve found a hobby. Which myth is it anyway? I¡¯ve read a couple of myths too, so maybe this is one I¡¯ve read before.¡± (Kyle)
¡°W-Wait, Halbert. I-Is this the one about¡¡± (Reina)
¡°...Yeah.¡± (Halbert)
Halbert had a bitter smile on his face as he closed the book and stared at the cover for a second while I took another bite of my lunch.
¡°The Tyrant of Eternal Calamity.¡± (Halbert)
As soon as that name left Halbert¡¯s mouth, I immediately froze up with a nervous smile on my face while resisting the urge to violently cough my lunch out.
Ah. I see. So this is what it feels like to be an adult finally looking back on his edgelord teenage years. I never thought I¡¯d ever hear that name again, especially from one of my students, yet here I am. Life really finds a way, huh? But with that being said. Ahem. Argh! Halbert! Please don¡¯t say that name again! Otherwise, I¡¯m going to have to go outside and find a hole to crawl into!
A moment passed as I sat there in complete silence while my face twitched a bit before Sophie¡¯s voice broke me out of my blank daze.
¡°The Tyrant of Eternal Calamity? Who¡¯s that?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Eh? Well, it seems like it¡¯s a bit of a forgotten legend around here because I looked through the entire library when I went there yesterday, and this was the only book I could find about The Tyrant of Eternal Calamity, so I¡¯d be surprised if you knew. The only reason I even knew about it was because a¡ friend told me this myth a while ago. Do you know about it, Professor Kyle?¡± (Halbert)
Know about it? Well, I guess you could say that considering the fact that I am it!
I screamed internally to myself as I let out a light cough while cold sweat ran down my back before barely gaining enough control of myself to reply to Halbert¡¯s question in a nervous voice.
¡°N-No, not at all. Never even heard of it.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, then if you or Sophie would like to know about it, I guess it wouldn¡¯t hurt to tell you.¡± (Halbert)
No! Halbert! Please! I¡¯m begging you! At this rate, I¡¯ll never be able to show myself in this classroom again!
¡°I¡¯m alright. Doesn¡¯t really sound that interesting, and The Tyrant of Eternal Calamity is kind of a lame name too.¡± (Sophie)
Well, thank you for helping me avoid that bullet Sophie, but you seem to have shot me with another one after pushing me out of the way¡ I mean, even if I didn¡¯t make it up myself, I still think it¡¯s kind of cool¡
¡°Well, I don¡¯t think the name is that lame. It has that kind of mysterious and dark feel to it, doesn¡¯t it?¡± (Regnis)
I knew you were always my favorite of the trio, Regnis! Looks like only a fellow edgelord can understand the complicated internal mechanisms of my taste in names. Actually, you know what, I think I¡¯ll even buy you a souvenir the next time I¡¯m out shopping.
¡°Eh, I mean it¡¯s alright, but it¡¯s a little too over the top, isn¡¯t it? I mean if I were a villain, I¡¯d probably name myself something that rolled off the tongue easier.¡± (Zane)
¡°Well, actually, according to the myth, The Tyrant of Eternal Calamity¡¯s name was based on a declaration to the gods that he made. He didn¡¯t actually name himself that.¡± (Halbert)
¡°E-Eh? A-A declaration to the gods? W-What was the declaration?¡± (Reina)
¡°Umm, it was about stealing back his happiness or something like that. Wait, give me a second. I¡¯ll pull up the page.¡± (Halbert)
Wait, my declaration to the gods? Which one was it? There were several of them. My memory¡¯s a little shot after so long, but I mean if it¡¯s just a random line I said, there were plenty of cringy one-liners. All I remember about my name was that all the gods started calling me that one day. I mean, back then I did refer to myself as ¡®a tyrant¡¯ in the third person because I thought it was cool and intimidating, so I know where they got the ¡®The Tyrant¡¯ part of the name from, but I didn¡¯t even know the ¡®Eternal Calamity¡¯ part was based on something I said.
Halbert opened the book and began to flip through the pages for a moment before stopping on one.
¡°Ah, here it is. The declaration went like this, ¡®This world has taken away the happiness that this tyrant held dear. It has torn asunder everything in this tyrant grasp but the throne of death upon which this tyrant sits. And so, this tyrant will bring eternal calamity to this world until this tyrant seizes back what he has lost.¡¯¡± (Halbert)
Ah. Now I remember. It was right after I killed the demon lord, wasn¡¯t it? Kazuki was there too if I recall. Boy, I was real mad that time, wasn¡¯t I? Well, mad enough that I randomly screamed at the sky like a lunatic while holding up the demon lord¡¯s decapitated head... But I guess on the bright side I wasn¡¯t completely crazy if the gods really did hear me... unless it was Kazuki who told them... haha¡ Wait! I¡¯m not supposed to be calm about this! Halbert, stop! You¡¯re going to give me a heart attack! The Tyrant of Eternal Calamity himself is about to be finished off unknowingly by his own student!
¡°Eh? Professor Kyle, are you ok?¡± (Halbert)
Halbert put the book down and turned towards my direction with a concerned face as I was hiding behind the table by sitting on the floor and hugging my knees while muttering quietly to myself with a blank look in my eyes.
¡°E-Eh?¡± (Reina)
¡°Oi, Ky what¡¯s wrong?¡± (Zane)
¡°Do you need to go see the school nurse?¡± (Sophie)
¡°I can take you there right now if you need me to.¡± (Regnis)
Everyone turned to stare at me and after a moment of awkward silence I got up and faced them with a dazed smile.
¡°It¡¯s alright, everyone. Professor Kyle is fine. He just remembered he had something important to do. In fact, he¡¯ll be right back. haha...¡± (Kyle)
Reina started to panic while everyone else stared at me in confusion as I gave a dry mechanical laugh to them before marching stiffly out the door.
There should be a shovel or two in the warehouse, right?
About two hours after that, Mari came back from her meeting and found me outside crying in a hole with a shovel on the ground nearby, but that¡¯s a story for another time.
[Chapter 20] Im Just Your Normal Average Adventurer Here Today to Subjugate Some Slimes
Solria, Shopping District, The Ironclad Forge (Kyle POV)
The sound of scraping metal filled the room as I accurately carved out the circle for a barrier spell on a throwing knife before placing a monster core into the slot on the bottom of the handle. I held the throwing knife in my hands and inspected it a bit before inserting it into the holster attached at my left waist. After making sure everything was in place, I pulled on the diagonal belts lining my long coat to make sure they were strapped tightly before placing the engraving tools on the counter and turning to Lucas with a grin.
¡°Alright! Finally finished. Thanks for lending me your engraving tools, Lucas.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Sure, no problem, Ky. By the way, everything fits fine, right?¡± (Lucas)
¡°Yep, perfectly!¡± (Kyle)
I ran my hand through my hair and struck a pose as I stood there in the middle of the empty shop. I was wearing the red long coat that Lucas made, and a pair of black pants covered my legs while on my hands were a pair of thin black gloves. On the back of each glove was an alchemy circle with a small metal bezel in the center holding a monster core, and the different circle design and color of the monster core on the back of each glove indicated that they were two distinct spells.
I let out a confident chuckle as I let my hands drop to my sides before turning to Lucas again.
¡°But, man. Good thing you finished preparing everything so soon. Today¡¯s the first time I¡¯m gonna be doing practical training with my students, so it would¡¯ve been really awkward to show up in my normal clothes after telling them all to gear up for a fight. I honestly only expected the coat to be adjusted, but you even finished my order of throwing knives in time.¡± (Kyle)
Lucas turned to me with a beaming smile and a sparkle in his eyes before replying with a proud tone in his voice.
¡°Of course, Ky. You¡¯re a paying customer right now, and it¡¯s our duty to make sure we complete our customers¡¯ requests to the best of our ability. Anyway, even if you weren¡¯t a paying customer right now, how could I not put my best efforts into the first test run of my masterpiece! I made sure the coat would fit as perfectly as possible according to your measurements, and the throwing knives were all individually forged by me yesterday. Uncle Grayhill should be done with your sword any second now too, so if you have any additional requests, just let me know.¡± (Lucas)
¡°Nope, this is more than enough! Thanks, Lucas!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Like I said before, no problem! Just make sure to tell me how your practical training session goes later. Some results from actual fights would help me a ton for my next masterpiece. Oh, and if any of your students can actually understand the magnificence of my masterpiece, then do me a favor and let them know that it was me that made it!¡± (Lucas)
Lucas let out a prideful laugh and I smiled back at him for a moment before the door to the forge in the back opened up. Uncle Grayhill walked out carrying a longsword in a sheath, and after placing it on the counter, he looked towards me with a grin.
¡°Alright, laddie. Here¡¯s your sword. It ain¡¯t exactly made out of orichalcum like the lassie¡¯s, but I tried to make it as close to your specifications as possible, and I guarantee that it¡¯s a quality blade.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
I picked up the sword on the counter before unsheathing it. It was just a simple unengraved longsword made out of regular steel, and the blade shone with a silverish gleam while the edge seemed razor sharp.
Man, I guess I really underestimated Uncle Grayhill¡¯s skill, huh? Even with the needlessly detailed requests I made for the sword, he still managed to follow them down to the letter. The weight and length are perfect, and although I don¡¯t know the first thing about blacksmithing, even I can tell that forging something to exact specifications is insanely difficult.
I held the longsword in my hand and tested out the balance of the sword by taking a few slow practice swings. At first, it was slow enough that it looked more like I was waving a metal stick around than it did a sword swing, but after making sure that the center of gravity was in the right place, I decided I should test out how the sword would hold up once I moved a little faster.
Wait, how fast should I go? I mean the best test would be to swing as fast as I can, but thinking about what happened last time with the ice sword¡ well, perhaps holding back a bit this time wouldn¡¯t hurt. After all, if I swung hard enough, the wind pressure would probably make a mess of the shop. And anyway, I¡¯m only bringing a sword in case we run into any dangerous monsters, so hopefully, I won¡¯t need to use it to fight at all. If we stick around the designated beginner areas, we should be fine.
I grabbed the handle of the sword and precisely controlled the amount of strength in my arm as it shot diagonally outward. The blade cleanly sliced through the air and while the speed of my swing wasn¡¯t very fast, I could tell that the sword had a solid core to it, at least enough that it could survive a few full power swings. After turning back to Lucas and Uncle Grayhill, I sheathed the sword again.
¡°How is it, laddie?¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°I don¡¯t know how you did it, but it¡¯s perfect. Thanks, Uncle Grayhill.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Don¡¯t mention it, laddie. Just do me a favor and say hello to the lassie for me when you see her.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°Yeah, tell Miss Aria I said hi too!¡± (Lucas)
Uncle Grayhill gave me a hearty chuckle as I waved goodbye to him and Lucas before grabbing my small bag of supplies off the floor and walking out of the shop. After leaving the shop, I reoriented myself before turning towards the direction of the adventurer¡¯s guild.
As I took a step forward, my left hand holding my new longsword in its sheath naturally fell to my left side and tried to hang it at my waist, but it seemed that I forgot my throwing knives were already there.
Ah, crap. Looks like I¡¯m still not used to carrying around an actual sword with me, huh? Hell, even just having a sheath for it in the first place feels weird when you¡¯ve been used to making everything out of thin air for the past thousand years¡ Well, at least Uncle Grayhill thought ahead and gave me a sheath with a strap on it. I guess another leather belt to add to my growing collection it is.
I stood there awkwardly in the middle of the street as I fiddled around with the leather strap on the sheath of my new longsword before figuring out how to sling it over my shoulder. After attaching it to my back, I double checked that I had everything I needed on me before making my way over to the adventurer¡¯s guild where I told everyone to meet me today.
Solria, Southern District, Solria Adventurer¡¯s Guild (Kyle POV)
The adventurer¡¯s guild in the capital city was massive. It was a huge building that looked more like a mansion than an adventurer¡¯s guild. It was three stories tall, nothing like the small wooden building in Delhurst, and the ornate main entrance was carved out of what seemed to be marble, while the arched windows lining the light gray brick walls gave the whole building a kind of noble feel to it, despite that fact that most of its inhabitants were anything but.
Today seemed to be a slow day though, probably due to the last dredges of the summer heat, as there were barely any people. There were maybe a few dozen adventurers coming in and out at most, not nearly as many as when I saw the guild for the first time last fall, so, while the guild was huge, it barely took more than a few seconds to spot out where the class was.
I saw them gathered together standing by the entrance as they talked to each other and looked around the crowd, presumably to find me.
Halbert was wearing light armor with pieces of metal strapped here and there, and a huge greatsword almost as tall as him was strapped to his back. The way he had it strapped to his back kind of reminded me of the way Aria did it, but maybe it was just the fact that I was at the adventurer¡¯s guild again that was filling my head with memories of our time in Delhurst.
Standing next to Halbert was Regnis, who was also donning similar looking light armor. However, attached to his back was a slim, silver colored spear with a simple, unadorned spearhead instead of a large greatsword like Halbert had.
Moving on to Zane, he had full leather armor on and a small cloak covered his shoulders. There was a metal staff in his hands, and he stood there hunched over while using his staff like a cane.
Reina was dressed in a brown hooded robe that went down to a little past her knees, and underneath her robe, it seemed like she was wearing some loose clothes which let her move around easier. She also had a staff like Zane, however, hers was wooden and it was also just slightly taller than her as she held it to her side.
Finally, standing next to Reina was Sophie, who had some pieces of leather armor on to cover her vital points. Her abdomen and limbs were basically unprotected, and a small pouch was attached to the right side of her belt while a pole-shaped object about the length of her arm and wrapped in cloth was being worn horizontally at the back of her waist.
Speaking of which, this is probably as good of a time as any to explain why we¡¯re all out here in adventuring gear today. After all, today is a Wednesday, so you¡¯re probably wondering why we¡¯re not in class right about now. You see, after Mari came back from her important meeting two days ago and found me crying by myself in a hole outside... well, first of all, she yelled at me for ruining the academy¡¯s lawn¡ but after that, she mentioned that her presence was requested for another important meeting involving the Empire¡¯s Grand Mages and that she would probably be busy for the whole day today. So, of course, I had to take this opportunity to finally get some practical training in. After all, Sophie might be perfectly ok with how things have been going so far, but I doubt anyone else, including me, could stand just sitting in a classroom and studying circles every day.
Anyway, Mari told me that she didn¡¯t care what I did in class today as long as I stayed out of trouble, so technically this isn¡¯t breaking the rules at all if we¡¯re just out here in the safe zone for beginners to test out some alchemy circles on slimes and whatnot. We¡¯re in the heart of the Empire, so everywhere nearby is basically a safe zone since almost all the strong monsters have been cleared out already, and because of that, there¡¯s basically only beginners in the guild. Occasionally, there¡¯s the rare uproar over a few A-rank or S-rank adventurers reporting back to the guild after specially assigned quests, but most of the time, the guild here¡¯s packed full of newbies, so they¡¯ve put a lot of work into making sure everything around here is safe and accounted for. I heard they even make your guild cards for you on the spot when you register here, so there shouldn¡¯t be any long wait for everyone to get their guild cards like there was for me in Delhurst.
But anyway, now you might be asking me, why are we out here then if we just want practical training, wouldn¡¯t just going out and setting up some training dummies in the academy¡¯s field be safer? Well, you would be correct¡ but I know that Regnis is always thirsty for ways to use ancient alchemy in a real fight, so I think that getting some first-hand experience fighting monsters is much more valuable than just blasting some stationary target dummies. Coincidentally, there just also happens to be a problem with the slime population around here right now since most of the newbies don¡¯t want to work in the summer heat so no one has been keeping the slime population under control, but I assure you that the high rewards on slime subjugation missions right now have absolutely nothing to do with why we¡¯re all out here today. It¡¯s just happenstance that I¡¯ll be taking a slime subjugation quest today. After all, I live in this beautiful city and walk through its streets every day, don¡¯t I? So I have to do my part and keep it safe from the upcoming slimy crisis. Any monetary gain from my actions is purely accidental.
Ahem. Anyway, getting back on track, I¡¯m sure that we¡¯ll all be fine. We¡¯re just doing some practical training out in the woods nearby, and we even have with us a seasoned adventurer, me. It isn¡¯t like before when I had to be cautious of everything because I didn¡¯t know how strong the monsters had gotten. I know about all of the common monsters nearby, and none of them are a problem for anyone even remotely competent. So theoretically, anyone from the abnormally talented student population this year, or the ¡®golden generation¡¯ as Mari puts it, should be able to easily defeat dozens of monsters. And in case we¡¯re really unlucky and somehow do run into something dangerous, I might take a bit of a beating, but I can at least distract it while everyone else runs away, right?
I started walking towards everyone, and it looked like Reina spotted me as I saw her hug her staff and get everyone else¡¯s attention before pointing at me. The rest of them looked over and Halbert waved at me as I made my way over to them.
¡°Professor Kyle! Over here!¡± (Halbert)
I looked up in the sky to check the position of the sun, and it looked like it was approximately 10 AM, a little earlier than our intended meeting time, but since everyone was already here, starting early wouldn¡¯t be bad.
¡°Hey, everyone.¡± (Kyle)
I waved to everyone before Zane cried out in disbelief while beads of sweat dripped down his forehead.
¡°Wait! Ky, how the hell are you even alive in that tacky long coat!? I only came out here in the sweltering heat with full battle gear on because you said we were gonna be fighting some monsters today, but we haven¡¯t even done anything yet, and I¡¯m already dying!¡± (Zane)
¡°Eh? Well, I¡¯ve gotten used to working in the heat after spending so much time running around in the southern part of the Empire, but... is my coat really that tacky?...¡± (Kyle)
I looked down at the red coat Lucas gave me and patted it a bit before looking to everyone else for their opinions.
¡°Well, it¡¯s, uh, pretty unique, I guess.¡± (Halbert)
¡°U-Umm, yeah! It really makes you stand out!¡± (Reina)
¡°You don¡¯t have to lie... Just tell me that you think it¡¯s tacky. It¡¯s alright, I won¡¯t be mad.¡± (Kyle)If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.
Halbert and Reina had awkward smiles on their faces as they let out dry laughs and tears flowed out of my eyes before I turned to Sophie and Regnis. Regnis just stood there with a slightly embarrassed look on his face and crossed his arms while I could see that Sophie was covering her mouth with her hand and struggling not to laugh. However, after a moment, she finally couldn¡¯t hold herself back anymore and burst out in hysterical laughter as she pointed at me.
¡°W-What the hell are you wearing, Professor Kyle!?¡± (Sophie)
¡°A coat, ok!? And I think it¡¯s pretty cool¡ A-Anyway, let¡¯s just get going. I think I¡¯m starting to feel the heat too, so come on, follow me inside.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Huh? Inside? Inside where?¡± (Zane)
¡°The adventurer¡¯s guild. Where else? Why do you think I had you all meet up with me in front of it? After all, you need to be a registered adventurer if you¡¯re gonna be out there fighting monsters. It¡¯s the law, right, Reina?¡± (Kyle)
¡°E-Eh? Y-Yeah, if I remember, the law states that self-defense against monsters is fine, but you do need to be registered as an official adventurer or have some sort of permit from a local authority if you¡¯re going to be actively hunting monsters within the Empire¡¯s territory.¡± (Reina)
¡°Wait, we¡¯re registering as adventurers!? Why didn¡¯t you just say so!? Lead the way then, Ky! Quick!¡± (Zane)
Zane immediately popped back to life as a passionate sparkle appeared in his eyes and I could see him jittering around in anticipation as he looked towards the guild hall.
¡°It¡¯s just registering as an adventurer... Why are you so excited?¡± (Kyle)
¡°What do you mean? Don¡¯t you get it, Ky? We¡¯re registering as adventurers! Genuine adventurers! It¡¯s every young boy¡¯s dream to become an adventurer, roaming around the world fighting monsters and getting the ladies! Besides, haven¡¯t you ever looked up to a famous S-rank adventurer when you were a kid? Like Blue Flame Seraphina, or Ryton, The Dragonslayer of Stone!¡± (Zane)
¡°Eh, well, when I was younger I was pretty¡ busy dealing with other things, so not really. And trust me, going out into the woods and fighting monsters for a living is a lot different than what you think it is. Same goes for dragon slaying.¡± (Kyle)
I scratched the back of my head with an unenthusiastic look on my face as I waved to everyone to follow me. My legs dragged me slowly towards the door, and we all entered into the large guild hall together.
However, the moment I stepped foot into the guild hall, my lethargy disappeared and I was overcome with a strange sense of nostalgia. The late summer sunlight shone in through the windows, illuminating the clean wooden lobby, and a myriad of adventurers stood in line at the large receptionist desk, crowded around the several large bulletin boards with quests of all kinds pinned to them, or just sat at the tables nearby chatting with each other. It was a picturesque scene straight out of a fantasy anime, and for a moment I was overwhelmed. It finally felt like I was walking into a real adventurer¡¯s guild for the first time.
¡ I see. So this is what it feels like to be in a real adventurer''s guild, huh?... Well, I guess I can understand you a bit more now, Zane. Looks like I¡¯ve forgotten just what it means to be a true adventurer. To be someone who fights monsters for a living, someone who¡¯s favorite pastime is bragging about their death-defying feats over a round of drinks with friends, and, most importantly, someone who isn¡¯t immediately singled out and avoided like the plague when walking into a room full of his peers! This is what the genuine adventurer experience is! It¡¯s nothing like what happened with Aria!
I took a deep breath while a smile inadvertently made its way onto my face. There was only one receptionist at the counter today since it seemed to be quite a slow day, but I didn¡¯t mind at all as I led everyone over to wait in the short line before turning around to them. Zane had an enthusiastic smile on as he quickly glanced around, while Regnis and Halbert took in their surroundings with a sense of wonder. Reina wasn¡¯t too moved since she was probably used to this kind of atmosphere after working as a receptionist at an adventurer¡¯s guild herself, but it seemed that Sophie felt more like I did, as she inspected the inside of the guild hall with a faint smile.
¡°Alright, everyone. Looks like there¡¯s only one receptionist today, so it might take a bit longer than expected to register, but we started a little early so we should be fine. Anyway, I can just hold our place in line for now, so if you guys want to, you can go explore around while we wait.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Then, I¡¯ll be heading over to the quest board if anyone wants to come check it out with me.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Well, I guess it wouldn¡¯t hurt to see what quests are available, so I¡¯ll tag along for now.¡± (Regnis)
¡°How about the rest of you?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Sure, I¡¯ll join you.¡± (Sophie)
¡°E-Eh? Well, i-if you don¡¯t mind, then I guess I¡¯ll join you too.¡± (Reina)
¡°I¡¯m good. You guys can go without me, I¡¯m gonna go see if there are any famous adventurers here today instead.¡± (Zane)
¡°Alright, then we¡¯ll be back in a few minutes.¡± (Halbert)
Everyone except Zane walked off to go check out the bulletin board full of quests as Zane started looking around to see if he could recognize anybody famous. Eventually, after a few moments, it seemed like spotted someone as he pointed over to a table in the back of the main lobby.
¡°Wait. H-Hey, is that Mountain Axe Lloyd!?¡± (Zane)
¡°Who?¡± (Kyle)
I looked towards the table that Zane was pointing at with a curious look, and the person who landed in my sights was a large middle-aged man with a large battle axe at his side, leaning against the table. He had short black hair and a rough beard, while his outfit consisted of metal armor, and he held a mug of what seemed to be ale in his hands as he laughed with a few other adventurers sitting with him.
¡°Mountain Axe Lloyd? Is he famous or something?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait, Ky, you don¡¯t know about Mountain Axe Lloyd? He¡¯s the B-rank adventurer who took down a giant stone python by himself! They say he chopped its head off clean in one swing with his axe!¡± (Zane)
¡°Nope, never heard of him. Actually, I don¡¯t know about any of the adventurers around here. I was only active as an adventurer near the Zolran Mountains at the southern edge of the Empire before I retired, so this is the first time I¡¯ve even set foot in the capital¡¯s adventurer¡¯s guild.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Hmm, I guess that kind of makes sense then. After all, Mountain Axe Lloyd is only active around the capital. But he¡¯s still a veteran B-rank adventurer, so you must have really been in the boonies down south if you didn¡¯t even hear his name once.¡± (Zane)
¡°Why? Is B-rank supposed to be really famous?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, most B-rank adventurers are only well-known locally, but most of the stronger ones have had their names spread somewhat. When you get to A-rank and S-rank is when you start to genuinely become famous.¡± (Zane)
¡°Eh? Really, now?¡± (Kyle)
Huh, looks like Aria¡¯s a lot more famous than I thought. Well, I guess there¡¯s the whole knight captain thing too, but she hasn¡¯t actually made any public appearances yet, so she¡¯s probably still a lot more well-known as the Crimson Rose, at least in the southern part of the Empire. I mean I¡¯ve never really heard much about any other famous adventurers either, but I guess barely talking to anyone back in Delhurst kind of does that to you. Anyway, Aria hasn¡¯t taken on any quests in a while, so her fame, err, well, perhaps more like infamy, has probably died down a little after becoming inactive.
¡°Anyway, I¡¯m gonna go see if I can go get his autograph. I¡¯ll be back in a bit, Ky.¡± (Zane)
¡°Alright then.¡± (Kyle)
Zane ran off to the table where Mountain Axe Lloyd was sitting with an excited glint in his eyes as I turned around to face the receptionist desk again. A few minutes passed by as I waited peacefully in line and the indistinct chatter in the background gave me a warm sensation inside before I finally came back to my senses. There was only a single person left ahead of us in line, and I was about to call out to the class, but when I turned towards the direction of the bulletin board, they were already coming back together.
¡°Hey, guys, we¡¯re next in line.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah, glad we made it back in time.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Hey, Ky, I think the guy in front is done already.¡± (Zane)
¡°Huh?¡± (Kyle)
I turned around to see the man previously standing in front of the receptionist desk start to leave.
¡°Oh, you¡¯re right. Well, looks like we¡¯re up then.¡± (Kyle)
Standing behind the counter was a young lady with long brown hair and blue eyes who looked like she was around her mid-twenties.
Alright, Ky. She doesn¡¯t seem to be scared of you like Reina was. Your starting point is already miles ahead of where it was last time, so just act normal and don¡¯t mess this up.
I walked up to the receptionist desk with a smile as she greeted me.
¡°Hello, sir. How can I help you?¡± (Receptionist)
¡°Hi, I¡¯m actually here today to reactivate my guild card since I¡¯ve been inactive for the past year or so.¡± (Kyle)
¡°No problem, sir. I¡¯ll just need your guild card for a few moments.¡± (Receptionist)
¡°Sure.¡± (Kyle)
I rummaged through my pockets and pulled out my guild card before handing it over to the receptionist.
¡°Here you go. Oh, by the way, there aren¡¯t any rules against partying up with newly registered adventurers, right? The kids behind me are actually going to be registering as adventurers today, and I would like to form a party with them.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? There shouldn¡¯t be any problem. It¡¯s just recommended that you do lower level quests when in a party with beginners.¡± (Receptionist)
¡°Really? That¡¯s great then. I was a little scared that I wouldn¡¯t be able to form a party with them since my rank is a bit on the higher side.¡± (Kyle)
I let out a relieved sigh as the receptionist lady giggled a bit and took my guild card before walking into the office behind the counter. A few moments passed by as I waited peacefully before I suddenly heard the door burst open. The receptionist lady came out of the office and walked up to the counter again, but this time there was a bit of a scared look on her face before she bowed deeply towards me.
¡ Eh?... Why do I have a bad feeling about this?...
¡°E-Excuse me, sir!¡± (Receptionist)
A brief moment of panic ensued before I immediately held my finger up to my mouth and gestured to her to be quiet. Her hand shot up and covered her mouth the moment she saw me gesture to her, but it seemed that her initial outburst still caught the class¡¯ attention as they all stared at me with confused faces.
¡°Is everything ok there?¡± (Halbert)
I turned around slowly with a nervous smile on my face before responding to Halbert¡¯s question.
¡°Don¡¯t worry, everything¡¯s fine. The receptionist was just a little surprised.¡± (Kyle)
I let out a dry laugh before facing the receptionist again. The class stared at me for a second, but after that, they seemed to let it go as they started chatting amongst themselves again.
¡°Please, quiet down a little, miss. I don¡¯t want to make a big scene. I won¡¯t hurt you or anything, I just want to reactivate my guild card and take a slime subjugation quest with my students, so just treat me like you would any other normal adventurer.¡± (Kyle)
I whispered to her while pleading to her to be quiet, and after a moment, it looked like she calmed down a bit. There was still a bit of fear in her eyes, but it seemed that she got the message as she took her hand away from her mouth before beginning to speak softly to me.
¡°I a-apologize for the inconvenience, sir. I didn¡¯t realize before that you were so h-high ranked. I promise, it won¡¯t happen again, so p-please, have your guild card back.¡± (Receptionist)
The receptionist held my guild card shakily with both hands before handing it over to me respectfully, and it was then that I realized my mistake. On my guild card was a glowing letter ¡®A¡¯ where my guild rank was supposed to be.
Ah, I guess I did get promoted after all, huh? Well, I was already a B-rank after completing so many high-level quests with Aria back in Delhurst, and we did report slaying the dragon on the mountain range to the guild, so looking back, it really was only a matter of time before I was promoted. I mean, I never really bothered checking my rank because I retired and moved to the capital with Aria right after we killed the dragon, and it¡¯s not like I even had the mana to activate the spell on my guild card and check my rank, so I just kind of forgot about it. Well, since I was promoted, chances are Aria was probably promoted to S-rank too. Eh, at least she deserves it unlike me. She¡¯s a genuinely strong swordswoman, while I always just tagged along on her quests and barely ever did anything, so I always kind of felt that my rank was undeserved, but looks like the guild doesn¡¯t care about my feelings much. Anyway, I hope no one else saw my rank. I don¡¯t want this to be a repeat of what happened in Delhurst and I¡¯m perfectly content with just being treated as an average adventurer.
I took my guild card back from the receptionist with a helpless smile on my face before slipping it back into my pocket as it looked like the receptionist finally regained control of herself.
¡°Is there anything else I can help you with today, sir?¡± (Receptionist)
¡°Umm, well, my students still need to register as adventurers, so if you could help us with that too, that would be great.¡± (Kyle)
The receptionist stiffened up a bit as she gave me a salute before replying in a determined voice.
¡°Don¡¯t worry, sir. I¡¯ll make sure that their registration goes as smoothly as possible.¡± (Receptionist)
¡°Really? Thank you, miss.¡± (Kyle)
I gently smiled at her and she stopped saluting me before lowering her head and staring at the countertop. For a moment there, it seemed like her face turned a little red, but I didn¡¯t even bother thinking about it as I breathed an internal sigh of relief for finally navigating through that minefield of a conversation.
Solria, Southern District, Solria Adventurer¡¯s Guild (Halbert POV)
I saw it.
It was a simple metal card, thin and seemingly made of a silverish metal. The adventurer¡¯s guild symbol was inscribed into the metal of the card itself, signifying that it was a genuine guild card issued by the guild itself, and next to that inscribed symbol was some text. The first line of text read ¡®Name: Kyle¡¯ and there was nothing unexpected about that, it was just Professor Kyle¡¯s name, but what was written underneath that was something unbelievable. There was another line of text that simply read ¡®Rank:¡¯ and to the right of that line of text was a softly glowing letter ¡®A.¡¯
It was only for the briefest of moments that I caught a glimpse of that small metal card before Professor Kyle put it back into his pocket, and I probably wouldn¡¯t have even noticed it if the receptionist¡¯s yell before didn¡¯t make me alert, but none of that changed the undeniable truth.
Professor Kyle is an A-rank adventurer.
I don¡¯t really know much about adventurers, and I never really cared enough to learn about them in detail. However, one thing I do know is that an A-rank adventurer was definitely someone who was strong. Much, much stronger than me...
I stared at Professor Kyle¡¯s back. There was a simple sheathed longsword strapped diagonally to his back, and the tacky red coat he was wearing hid the shape of his body, but despite all this, I could still make out the outline of his shoulders. His shoulders weren¡¯t very broad. In fact, I always considered him to be more on the slender side, and the image of him in my mind was always someone who was lighthearted and goofy. He was always just someone who you could laugh with, and, even with his usual aloofness, he looked like he would help you out if you ever needed it.
I mean, I always realized in the back of my head that he had probably been in his fair share of fights if he was skilled enough to be teaching what was essentially battle alchemy, and I still remember that time he ended up swinging so hard with a Frost Blade that it shattered, but perhaps it was the mere fact that he was manaless that made me see him the way I did.
I never saw him as someone strong.
I took a deep breath and tried my best to hide my shock as I glanced around at the rest of the class. Reina, Sophie, and Zane seemed to be preoccupied with talking to each other about something, so they probably didn¡¯t see it, but when I locked eyes with Regnis, I could tell. He saw it too. In his eyes was the same disbelief that was in mine, and we stared at each other for a moment before Professor Kyle turned around to face us.
¡°Alright. I¡¯m done, so you guys can register now. Luckily we¡¯re in the capital, so it shouldn¡¯t take more than a few minutes to get your guild cards.¡± (Kyle)
He called out to us with the same carefree smile on his face that he always had and it seemed like the receptionist was already prepared as there were five registration forms placed on the counter neatly. I walked up to one of the registration forms and started to fill it out as I reformed my mental image of Professor Kyle before I heard Regnis whisper to me from my side.
¡°... A-rank, huh?...¡± (Regnis)
¡°... Yeah¡¡± (Halbert)
After that small exchange, neither of us said a word to each other until we got our guild cards.
[Chapter 21] Slimes and Forest Fires Dont Mix Very Well
Outskirts of Solria, Silvia Forest (Kyle POV)
We were finally at the edge of Silvia Forest.
About half an hour has passed since we left the city, and we were currently standing at the entrance to Silvia Forest. Lush foliage surrounded the dirt path leading deeper into the forest and the sound of the birds chirping echoed out while a light breeze blew past us.
Hmm, I should probably warn them all before we enter. After all, the ideal scenario is that no one gets hurt at all.
I turned around to make an announcement about safety to everyone.
Halbert and Regnis had serious expressions on their faces, but Zane was still rubbing his guild card with his hands as he looked around at everything with an excited sparkle in his eyes, while Reina and Sophie seemed to be taking this more leisurely.
¡°Alright, we¡¯re finally here. Now, before we start our little field trip, I¡¯m going to warn you all. Silvia Forest might be classified as a safe zone for beginners, but you shouldn¡¯t let your guard down. It¡¯s still a monster-filled area, so stay alert. And just so you all know, we looking for slimes, so tell me if you see any!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Ah. Ky, there¡¯s one right there!¡± (Zane)
¡°Where!?¡± (Kyle)
Zane pointed behind me and I immediately pivoted around while my eyes lit up.
I spotted a slime next to a tree nearby. It looked like any normal slime, just a light blue gelatinous ball with a small sphere inside of it acting as its nucleus. My greed almost got the better of me as I was about to immediately pull out a throwing knife and kill it, but I managed to hold myself back after reminding myself that I should explain how to kill slimes to the class first. I cleared my throat and let go of the throwing knife I was grasping before asking everyone what they knew about slimes.
¡°Ok, so we¡¯ve located our first, uh, practice target. But before we begin practical training, let me just double check. What do you all know about slimes?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, they¡¯re a good source for low-level water element monster cores, aren¡¯t they? I don¡¯t know much about fighting them though.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Actually, it¡¯s been a while since I saw one, but there used to be a few roaming around my hometown.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Yeah, back when we were kids we used to see them here and there. They were pretty weak too.¡± (Zane)
¡°If I remember correctly, their weak point is the ball in the center, right?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Yep. If you try to hit them with a weapon, you¡¯ll have to aim for the ball thing, but it¡¯s way easier to just blast the whole slime with magic.¡± (Zane)
¡°Exactly, which is why they¡¯re the perfect practice targets for our practical training today. One of the advantages of alchemy is that using your own mana is technically optional, so if you¡¯re ever out of mana, or you¡¯re manaless in the first place like me, you can still use alchemy stones to damage enemies that can¡¯t be hurt by regular physical attacks. For example, if I didn¡¯t know alchemy, I would have to do something like this to kill a slime.¡± (Kyle)
I¡¯m sorry Mr. Slime, but looks like you¡¯ll have to die. It¡¯s for my retirement fund¡¯s sake!
I pulled a throwing knife out of my holster. The glint in my eyes sharpened before I tossed it lightly at the slime, and the knife cut through the air as a nostalgic feeling bubbled up inside of me again.
Man, it¡¯s been¡ well, let¡¯s just say ¡®a while¡¯ since I¡¯ve thrown a knife, but looks like my aim hasn¡¯t gotten that rusty.
An audible clink rang out as the throwing knife tore into the slime and pierced its nucleus. The slime died almost immediately as it popped like a balloon and my throwing knife landed on the floor next to a small blue crystal, the slime¡¯s monster core.
¡°See, normally I would have to aim for the slime¡¯s weak spot since most physical attacks would just go right through the slime.¡± (Kyle)
After walking over and retrieving my throwing knife, I picked up the slime¡¯s monster core too, which served as proof of its subjugation for my quest, and returned to the class before showing them the small alchemy circle etched into the blade of the throwing knife.
¡°But if I had used the alchemy circle on the knife, I wouldn¡¯t have had to worry so much about aiming exactly for the core.¡± (Kyle)
I glanced around to see if there were any more ¡®volunteers¡¯ nearby for my little demonstration, and, luckily, I spotted another slime out of the corner of my eye.
¡°Perfect, there¡¯s another one right over there. I¡¯ll show you how to kill one with alchemy first, then you guys can practice.¡± (Kyle)
I put the first slime¡¯s monster core into a bag and made my way towards the other one as the class followed me.
¡°There are tons of ways you can use alchemy to fight. You can set up a hidden alchemy circle on the ground as a trap, you can use alchemy to add extra magical effects to your weapon, and you can even draw a circle on your gloves, shoes, or armor if you¡¯re going to be in close combat, but the easiest and most direct method is probably just throwing something with an alchemy circle on it at the enemy.¡± (Kyle)
I waved my arm again and threw the same throwing knife I used before at the other slime.
¡°¡¾Tempest Arrow¡¿, single cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
Goodbye, Mr. Slime Two!
The knife flew through the air again, but this time, it shone with a green light as the alchemy circle on the knife activated. Gusts of wind wrapped around the knife like serpents, forming the vague shape of an arrow and a split-second later, the knife stabbed into the dirt in front of the slime as small, yet razor-sharp blades of wind tore the slime apart. The turbulent winds carved a few small marks on the tree right next to the slime, but by the time the wind got to us, it was just a breeze.
¡°Well, usually something like a throwing knife would be preferred since it''s easier to aim with and there¡¯s more room to draw a complex circle if you need it. But if you don¡¯t have anything like that, even just throwing a monster core is fine as long as you draw a proper alchemy circle on it.¡± (Kyle)
The wind died down, and I turned to the class again with a nonchalant shrug as my hair settled.
¡°Alright, with that being said, let¡¯s go find some more slimes so you all can try it. There should be a ton around here.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Finally! The moment I¡¯ve been waiting for! Lead the way, Ky, it¡¯s time to do some real adventuring! They¡¯ll all be talking about me by the end of the month!¡± (Zane)
¡°I feel like that might be a bit of a stretch¡¡± (Halbert)
¡°Don¡¯t call it a stretch, Halbert. That implies there¡¯s still a chance that people will be talking about this idiot.¡± (Sophie)
¡°It¡¯s ok, Zane. I doubt you¡¯ll make a name as a famous adventurer, but if you make a big enough fool of yourself in public, I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll be talking about you in no time.¡± (Regnis)
Regnis walked over and patted Zane on the shoulder before Zane cried out in indignation.
¡°Oi, let me dream at least!¡± (Zane)
We all laughed a bit at Zane¡¯s expense before I walked over to Mr. Slime Two¡¯s final resting place to pick up my knife again along with my second monster core.
We started to walk deeper into Silvia Forest while keeping an eye out for more slimes, but fortunately, it wasn¡¯t even a minute of walking before we ran into two more of them on the side of the road. They were slowly moving along the trees and I stopped in my tracks a few feet away from them as I cheerfully called out to everyone.
¡°There are two slimes right there, so who wants to go first?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Me!¡± (Zane)
¡°Sure, go ahead. Be careful though, it might just be a slime, but keep in mind it¡¯s still a monster.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve got this!¡± (Zane)
Zane ran up to my side as the excited sparkle in his eyes returned stronger than ever, and he held his metal staff in his hand while taking a stance that almost looked like he was holding a spear instead. A moment passed before he started chanting to activate his body strengthening magic.
¡°The deepest potential of this body, I desire thee. Let mana course through, and may the will of strength flow through me to transcend my limits!¡¾Body Strengthening¡¿!¡± (Zane)
Immediately after he finished chanting, Zane kicked off the ground, sprinting towards the three slimes while letting out another, shorter chant for what seemed to be a wind spell.
¡°Ethereal wind of this endless sky, I command thee, come forth and strike!¡¾Storm Drive¡¿!¡± (Zane)
A green, two-layered magic circle formed on the tip of Zane¡¯s staff and he stopped in front of the first slime to jab his staff towards it. The moment the magic circles made contact with the slime, a blast of wind blew the slime away while Zane took another step forward. He shifted his stab¡¯s momentum to the side and swept the end of his staff straight through the nucleus of the other slime in one smooth motion. The wind from his spell died down as he turned around, slammed the bottom of his staff against the ground, and struck an edgy pose with a proud smile on his face.
¡°See, slimes are nothing to the Great Adventurer, Zane Royhardt!¡± (Zane)
Zane started to laugh arrogantly, but I just stared at him at a slight loss for words before bursting his bubble.
¡°Uh, well, you¡¯re definitely strong enough to handle a couple slimes by yourself, but there¡¯s no point to this practical training if you don¡¯t use alchemy to kill them¡¡± (Kyle)
¡°Ah, crap. I forgot...¡± (Zane)
¡°Nice job, you dolt.¡± (Sophie)
¡°It¡¯s fine. We¡¯ll just find some more slimes. Come on.¡± (Kyle)
The rest of us walked over to Zane and I picked up the two new monster cores before we moved on.
A few minutes later, we found another slime. Sophie walked up next to me and pulled out a monster core along with a pen from the bag at her waist before turning to me with a confident smile.
¡°Alright, let me try this time. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll actually use alchemy.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Ok, but like I said before, this is a real monster. It can be dangerous, so treat it as such and try to eliminate it as efficiently as possible.¡± (Kyle)
¡°It¡¯ll be fine. It¡¯s just a slime, isn¡¯t it?¡± (Sophie)
Sophie started to draw an alchemy circle on the pale blue monster core she held in her hands and after a moment, she put the pen away before tossing the alchemy stone towards the slime.
¡°¡¾Ice Shard¡¿, single cast, activate!¡± (Sophie)
The alchemy stone shimmered as it shot towards the slime, and a moment later, it transformed into a sharp chunk of ice. The ice shard easily impaled the slime¡¯s nucleus and the slime dropped a small monster core on the floor as it died. Sophie turned to me with a proud smile and a twinkle in her eyes that made it obvious she was looking for praise, but despite her stellar performance, I was a little more concerned with something else.
¡°How was that, Professor Kyle?¡± (Sophie)
¡°... Well, your aim was pretty good, but, uh, why did you yell out the name of the alchemy circle?¡± (Kyle)
I looked at Sophie with a puzzled look on my face as she stared back at me with a similar one on hers.
¡°I was just activating it. Did I say it wrong or something?¡± (Sophie)
¡°No, what you said was perfectly fine, but I told you to treat this as a real fight, didn¡¯t I? It might seem cool and flashy to activate alchemy stones by yelling their names out, but it isn¡¯t optimal at all in actual combat. In fact, it might even put you at a disadvantage, so just activate it normally next time, ok?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? Normally? Wait, you mean this isn¡¯t how you normally activate ancient alchemy circles!? How do you activate it normally then!?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Just trigger it with your mana, like any other alchemy circle¡ What made you think activating alchemy circles verbally was normal?...¡± (Kyle)
¡°You did! You¡¯ve been activating everything verbally, so I just assumed that was how ancient alchemy circles were activated! How was I supposed to know that using my mana was even possible!?¡± (Sophie)
Ah. Wait, I guess I never explicitly told them that they could activate alchemy circles with their mana, did I? I mean, they always verbally activated circles in class, but I thought it was just because they wanted to look cool or something while doing it...
¡°... Uh, well, I¡¯m kind of a special case since I don¡¯t exactly have mana, so I have to activate everything verbally... Ahem. Sorry if I gave you all the wrong idea there, but just so you know, you can activate ancient alchemy circles with your mana just like any other alchemy circle. After all, it wouldn¡¯t be very advantageous for combat if you had to announce exactly what you were about to do, right?¡± (Kyle)
I waved my hand a bit as I smiled at everyone sheepishly and a moment passed as they stood there at a loss for words before Sophie facepalmed with an exasperated sigh.
¡°A-Alright, so with that being said, let¡¯s go find some more practice targets for now. I¡¯m sure there are a few more slimes nearby, and if we keep following this road, there should be a rest area for adventurers where we can eat lunch.¡± (Kyle)Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
I let out a nervous laugh and picked up the monster core before starting to walk down the road again as everyone followed me.
***
About an hour later, we were fairly deep into Silvia Forest and I was humming a tune as we walked along. A few horned rabbits ran by in the bushes a few feet away from the path, but because of how difficult it was to hit them, they weren¡¯t very good practice targets for the class.
Horned rabbits are another monster native to Silvia Forest, and they¡¯re exactly what you think. Just a rabbit with a single horn on its head. However, despite being low-level monsters, they¡¯re relatively fast and, as such, they¡¯re often hard to subjugate for beginners.
Anyway, I don¡¯t have a quest to subjugate them or anything like that, so we¡¯ve mostly just ignored them and hunted all the slimes around here instead. Everyone¡¯s already gotten a few chances to practice using alchemy on slimes and the collection of 70 or so small, blue monster cores currently jingling around in my bag as we walked was a good indication of just how many slimes we found on the way here.
Actually, I think the overpopulation problem was a bit more serious than I previously thought. I heard it was because the weaker monsters have started migrating for some reason. And the main hypothesis from the guild right now is that a strong monster has probably taken an area nearby as its territory, driving all the weaker ones out. But, honestly, it¡¯s kind of ridiculous how many low-level monsters there were in Silvia Forest. There weren¡¯t that many at the edge of the forest, but as we ventured deeper, they just kept coming. And there really weren¡¯t many adventurers out here either. The only other adventurers we¡¯ve seen so far were a small party of three that we passed by earlier. They were hunting slimes just like us.
Well, besides that though, everything was going smoothly and we were currently heading towards the rest area to take a break for lunch.
¡°K-Ky, are we at the rest area yet? I don¡¯t think I can take this heat much longer.¡± (Zane)
Zane¡¯s tired voice rang out and it seemed like he was on his last legs as he panted for breath while trudging along beside me.
¡°Well, according to the map, it¡¯s just past the right turn up ahead.¡± (Halbert)
Halbert stared at the map he held in his hands, while Reina walked over to Zane with a gentle smile to console him.
¡°Don¡¯t worry, Zane. I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll be there in no time.¡± (Reina)
¡°Yeah, stop whining. The heat¡¯s not even that bad.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Maybe for you it isn¡¯t! I¡¯m dying over here!¡± (Zane)
¡°Well, you were the one who decided to wear full leather armor. You even brought your cloak...¡± (Regnis)
¡°It¡¯s fashionable, ok!?¡± (Zane)
¡°Hey, I think we¡¯ve arrived, guys.¡± (Kyle)
¡°What? Really? Finally!¡± (Zane)
We approached a sharp right turn in the dirt path and after we rounded the corner, there was a short distance to a clearing, which I assume was the rest area.
The warm sunlight shone in, illuminating the small grassy glade, and a few birds flew around in the open air chirping here and there. It was the perfect place for us to have a nice picnic and eat lunch together. Well, it would¡¯ve been if it weren¡¯t for the countless gelatinous blobs roaming around. But fortunately, with our current circumstances, a congregation of so many slimes was probably more of a blessing than a curse.
Muahahahahaha! Looks like lady luck¡¯s finally on my side for once! I hit the jackpot!
I laughed evilly in my mind as Halbert put away the map with a helpless smile and Zane fell to his knees with a defeated face while he held his staff with one hand like a cane.
¡°Well, looks like we¡¯ll have to do a bit more work before we can take a break. Sorry, Zane.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Damn it! Damn it all!¡± (Zane)
Zane¡¯s distressed cry echoed into the sky as he slammed his fist on the ground, and I let out a light chuckle before turning to the class with an excited smile.
¡°I think everyone¡¯s already gotten the hang of using alchemy and with the rate we¡¯ve been finding them, there¡¯s clearly no shortage of slimes, so let¡¯s just clear them out normally for now. We can have lunch when we¡¯re done and go find more practice targets to resume practical training after that. How¡¯s that sound?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Sure. Sounds good to me.¡± (Sophie)
¡°That¡¯s fine with me.¡± (Halbert)
¡°No objections here either.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Well, if nobody else has a problem¡¡± (Reina)
¡°... Do I even have a choice?¡± (Zane)
¡°Alright, then let¡¯s get started!¡± (Kyle)
¡°I can clear out the back area over there.¡± (Halbert)
¡°I¡¯ll take care of the middle then.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Ugh... You guys can handle it, right? I¡¯m gonna sit down for a bit.¡± (Zane)
Halbert pulled his greatsword out and stepped forward. The sunlight gleamed off of the steel greatsword in his hands and his voice rang out as he activated body strengthening magic.
¡°Before me stands an enemy. One who I must defeat, so grant me the strength to go beyond!¡¾Body Strengthening¡¿!¡± (Halbert)
Regnis¡¯ voice rang out right after Halbert¡¯s, and he pulled out his spear before activating his body strengthening magic too.
¡°Silent storm flowing through this body, I desire thy rage. Rage strong enough to break any barrier!¡¾Body Strengthening¡¿!¡± (Regnis)
Hmm, looks like Halbert and Regnis¡¯ have unique chants for their body strengthening magic. They¡¯re a little shorter than Zane¡¯s too, but that might just be a result of their different specializations. Speaking of specializations though, we actually fit most of the generic RPG party roles if you take into account everyone¡¯s ¡®class.¡¯ We¡¯re just missing a healer.
Zane¡¯s fighting style looked like it was based around controlling the midrange, and he reminded me of a battle mage. He could still sit in the back and use magic normally just like any other mage, but close quarters combat was no stranger to him. And with the help of his metal staff, a few short spells, and body strengthening magic, he could probably put up a pretty decent fight.
Halbert, however, was definitely a full-on swordsman, and because of that, he was probably much more familiar with the intricacies of body strengthening magic compared to Zane. Regnis was kind of in the same boat too since it looked like he was similar to Halbert, just with a spear.
On the opposite end of the spectrum was Reina who, judging by her outfit, was a pretty traditional mage. If I had to describe her role in our little imaginary party system we¡¯ve got going on, she would be our damage dealer. The immobile kind that stands in the back and blasts the enemy with magic while the frontline tanks, aka Halbert and Regnis, keep the enemy busy.
Sophie was kind of an enigma though. Her light leather armor indicated that she definitely wasn¡¯t a front line tank like Halbert and Regnis, so my best guess was that her fighting style probably relied more on speed instead. It was the kind of armor you would find on an archer, but I doubt she¡¯s an archer because if you look at her, she¡¯s lacking the most essential aspect of an archer, the bow. The closest thing she had to a weapon was the rod-shaped thing wrapped in cloth that she had strapped to the back of her hip and I don¡¯t know what it was, but it definitely wasn¡¯t a bow.
Well, assuming it is a weapon though, it¡¯s too short to be a staff or a spear, leaving the two most likely possibilities of a wand or a shortsword. But she isn¡¯t dressed like a traditional mage at all, so it probably isn¡¯t a wand. And while her attire would match up with a shortsword user, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a shortsword either since it would be much easier and more efficient to wear a shortsword openly on your hip rather than wrapping it in cloth, which would make it terribly hard to take out in a real fight if it was a sword...
When I came back to my senses, Halbert had already kicked off the ground toward the slimes and he began to mow his way through to the back while Regnis followed behind him.
Sophie had an excited smile on her face while she stood there watching Halbert and Regnis wreak havoc in the field of slimes. I stared at her intently as I tried to figure out what was strapped to her back, but after a moment it seemed that she noticed because she stared back with a puzzled look on her face and a bit of an embarrassed blush.
¡°What? What is it?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Well, I was just wondering what that thing wrapped in cloth is.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah, now that I think about it, it¡¯s pretty strange. What is that?¡± (Zane)
¡°Is it something you don¡¯t want to show us, Sophie? You don¡¯t have to show us if you don¡¯t want to.¡± (Reina)
Zane and Reina were now looking over at Sophie with a curious look on their faces too, but unexpectedly, Sophie actually smiled once we asked her about the thing strapped to the back of her hip.
¡°It¡¯s ok. I was just about to reveal this thing anyway since we were going to clear out the slimes normally.¡± (Sophie)
The passionate flames in Sophie¡¯s eyes lit up again as she unmounted the object from her back and placed what I assume was the bottom side of the object on the floor with a light thump before starting to unveil the object with a smug smile while holding it steady at the top. However, what I saw under that cloth was something¡ quite surprising.
¡°This is one of the latest advancements in the Empire¡¯s modern alchemical technology! It¡¯s called-¡± (Sophie)
¡°Ah, it¡¯s a gun...¡± (Kyle)
Yep, the thing Sophie carried around all day was a gun, well, to be more exact, a rifle. The whole thing was made of shiny silverish metal with some stylish purple designs on it, and for some reason, there wasn¡¯t a hammer on the end of the barrel. However, there was a slot on the side, right above the trigger, with a large red monster core embedded into it.
Huh. Never thought I would ever see a gun again. I didn¡¯t think it would be necessary to develop in a world full of magic, but this one probably shoots magic bullets or something judging by the fact there¡¯s a monster core embedded in it. I guess technology really has advanced over the past thousand years. Either that or some other poor sap from Earth is here now too, spreading our technological advancements around¡ Actually, it¡¯s probably the latter considering it¡¯s still called a gun. Well, looks like I¡¯ll have to keep an eye out in case any reincarnators or summoned heroes come knocking on my door. I¡¯ve had enough of demon lord this and chosen hero that a long time ago. I want nothing to do with it!
I was slightly shocked for a moment after seeing a gun again, but Sophie ran up to me with an excited look on her face right after I cut her off.
¡°Wait, Professor Kyle, you know what a gun is?¡± (Sophie)
¡°... Uh, well, the guns I¡¯m used to seeing are a little different from this one, but yeah. You could say that.¡± (Kyle)
¡°What does it do?¡± (Zane)
¡°From what I can tell, it looks like it¡¯s a type of gun called a rifle. And judging from the design of this one, my best guess is that it shoots out some sort of magic projectile. Think of it as a kind of crossbow, but instead of shooting arrows, it shoots magic.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Exactly! You load monster cores into the side slot as a mana source and the internal alchemy circles inside the gun compress the mana into a spherical projectile called a bullet before launching it out the end. It might be a bit of a hassle to carry around, but the firepower is no joke. Watch!¡± (Sophie)
Sophie picked the gun up and took aim at a group of slimes near the front. A moment later, she pulled the trigger and a red light shone from the monster core on the side before a small glowing bullet easily pierced the slime closest to us. A small explosion of flames eradicated four slimes, and their monster cores dropped to the floor as flames started to spread from the immediate edge of the explosion to the grass nearby, setting a few other slimes ablaze.
¡ And this is exactly why you don¡¯t use fire magic in a forest¡
Sophie turned back around to us with another proud smile on her face as she loosely hugged the rifle in her hands while slimes ran around in the flames behind her.
¡°So, what do you think?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Ah! S-Sophie!¡± (Reina)
¡°Hey, there¡¯s a fire!¡± (Zane)
¡°Eh?¡± (Sophie)
Reina shakily pointed at the scene of destruction behind Sophie as Zane shot up on his feet again in a panic. Sophie turned around and saw the fire at about the same time Halbert and Regnis noticed it.
¡°Hey, what happened!?¡± (Regnis)
¡°Is everything ok over there!?¡± (Halbert)
Our frontline duo called out to us with concerned voices as they started to make their way back, but I don¡¯t blame them though. After all, I would be pretty concerned too if I was in the front drawing aggro and my backline DPS just set everything on fire while I wasn¡¯t looking...
¡°We¡¯re ok!¡± (Kyle)
I yelled back to Halbert and Regnis while giving them a thumbs up to tell them that we were fine before turning back to Sophie again.
¡°... Now, Sophie, I know that it¡¯s cool to blast things with fire magic, but please, take the surroundings into account next time¡¡± (Kyle)
She stared at the fire for a moment before turning away with an embarrassed look on her face as she cleared her throat.
¡°Ahem. Sorry, looks like I got a little too excited and forgot to switch out the type of monster core¡¡± (Sophie)
¡°Why did you even have a fire elemental monster core loaded in the first place?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, I didn¡¯t know we were going to be in a forest today, ok? Hmph.¡± (Sophie)
Sophie crossed her arms and pouted as I let out a sigh before turning back to face the raging fire.
¡°Alright, I guess I shouldn¡¯t have been so vague with where we were going today. Anyway, let¡¯s just put this fire out before it spreads any further.¡± (Kyle)
Outskirts of Solria, Silvia Forest, Rest Area (Halbert POV)
It¡¯s been about an hour since we finished securing the rest area and despite a couple, uh, ¡®unfortunate occurrences¡¯ near the start, we successfully cleared out the slimes roaming around the rest area with no problem and ate lunch together afterwards. However, right as we finished eating lunch, a wave of a few dozen slimes came along and ran through the clearing while completely ignoring us for some reason. We managed to kill some of them as they ran past us, but the majority of them ended up running away and Professor Kyle told us he would be back shortly before running off to chase after them, so currently, we were talking to each other while waiting for him to return.
¡°I still can¡¯t believe you set the clearing on fire¡¡± (Zane)
¡°It was an accident! Professor Kyle even said it was!¡± (Sophie)
¡°Hey, speaking of which, when do you think he¡¯ll be back?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Well, hopefully not soon. I finally got a break, so let me enjoy it while I can.¡± (Zane)
Zane let out a relieved sigh as he sat in the grass next to me.
¡°Do think he¡¯s ok? That was a pretty big wave of slimes he went after.¡± (Reina)
¡°It¡¯s only been about 15 minutes, Reina, I¡¯m sure he¡¯s fine.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Yeah. Besides, there might¡¯ve been a lot of them, but they¡¯re still just slimes.¡± (Zane)
¡°Hmm, I wonder what was up with those slimes though. I heard there was a problem with the monster population migrating right now, but they just completely ignored us and ran through. It seemed kind of strange.¡± (Halbert)
¡°Eh, not our problem. We just have to sit here and relax until Ky comes back.¡± (Zane)
¡°But what if he gets lost afterward? Shouldn¡¯t we go help him?¡± (Reina)
Zane slouched over his knees and dangled his arms in front of himself as he deflated a bit while Reina still looked like she was a little worried. I was about to reassure her that everything would be ok, but the moment my voice rang out... a cold eeriness ran down my spine. And I wasn¡¯t the only one who felt it.
¡°I-¡± (Halbert)
I immediately shot up with an alert face and activated my body strengthening magic.
¡°Before me stands an enemy. One who I must defeat, so grant me the strength to go beyond!¡¾Body Strengthening¡¿!¡± (Halbert)
Mana pumped throughout my body and I instantly felt lighter as I pulled out my sword and took a stance.
¡°Silent storm flowing through this body, I desire thy rage. Rage strong enough to break any barrier!¡¾Body Strengthening¡¿!¡± (Regnis)
¡°The deepest potential of this body, I desire thee. Let mana course through, and may the will of strength flow through me to transcend my limits!¡¾Body Strengthening¡¿!¡± (Zane)
Regnis and Zane got up right after me and readied themselves for a fight too as Reina and Sophie pulled out their weapons. Without a word, we all grouped up with grave looks on our faces.
Then, I heard a noise. From between the trees in front of me, there were two strange mana signatures and the faint sound of clanking armor rang out, drowned out slightly by the rustling of the bushes.
It seemed like everyone else heard it too. They all turned to stare at the trees with me as we watched two humanoid figures emerge from between the bushes.
A full suit of old scratched up plate armor with faded blue designs and a tattered cape encased the first figure, while a sleek, rounded helmet hid its entire head. And in its hand, it held a badly chipped broadsword. But despite its appearance, I could immediately tell what this thing was. The almost corrosive sensation of its mana signature along with the two softly glowing dots floating in the middle of hollow eye sockets, just barely visible through the slit in its helmet, gave it away.
The first figure standing before us was an undead knight.
And standing behind the undead knight was the second figure, a slim man. A black hooded cloak covered his entire body, and in his hand, he held a long staff with a large black crystal on the tip. His skin was pale and his left eye glowed faintly with a dark green while his right eye was simply brown. However, despite his bizarre and haggard appearance, I was certain that this man was much more dangerous than the undead knight standing in front of him.
The man¡¯s mana signature was like an abyss. No matter how much mana I spread near him, it all disappeared after a moment, almost like it was absorbed.
He¡¯s not an undead, which means he¡¯s probably the necromancer in control of that undead knight... Can we defeat them?... No, we have to defeat them. Now that we know they¡¯re here, there¡¯s no way they¡¯ll just let us get away and inform the Empire about their existence. They¡¯ll definitely try to kill us.
The undead knight stopped and the man stepped past him with a twisted smile as his voice rang out in a gleefully wicked tone.
¡°Ah, I finally found you... So, which one of you is the hero?... Oh! How terribly rude of me. I almost forgot. When asking others to introduce themselves, you must introduce yourself first. Ahem. Greetings, hero and his allies. I am the Sin of Envy, Zeon. Pleased to make your acquaintance.¡± (Zeon)
Hero!? Is he the demon lord!?... No, he called himself the ¡®Sin of Envy,¡¯ not ¡®The Tyrant.¡¯ Which means, he¡¯s probably one of the demon lord¡¯s subordinates instead.
¡°So, hero, I¡¯ve already introduced myself. Will you not grant me the same decency and introduce yourself? I do believe this is the first time that you¡¯ve met a Sin, and I¡¯m honored to be the first, so let¡¯s make this meeting a good one.¡± (Zeon)
Zeon cackled like a lunatic as I glanced at the sword in my hands.
Thanks to the high-level illusion magic that I had the high priestess apply this morning, the phantom image of steel covered up the crystal clear blade underneath, but in reality, the greatsword in my hands was the sacred sword that his Highness gave me when I was first chosen as the hero.
After a moment, nobody had moved, and we all waited in silence before Zeon spoke again.
¡°Now, come on, hero. You¡¯re not even going to tell me your name?... Well, that¡¯s fine. After all, I think I can guess who you are.¡± (Zeon)
Zeon let out another low chuckle as he stared at me for a moment before the soft glow in his left eye instantly turned harsh, and a moment later, his staff transformed into a copy of my greatsword.
¡°Oh?... I see. Illusion magic, huh? Sneaky little rat, aren¡¯t you, hero?¡± (Zeon)
W-What!? Impossible! That was a sixth circle illusion spell! He didn¡¯t even chant!
¡°Since you¡¯re going to make this difficult, hero, I guess I¡¯ll have to be the honest one out of the two of us. Ironic, isn¡¯t it? Well, to tell you the truth, all I want is his Majesty¡¯s sword. Personally, I could care less about whether you live or die, but unfortunately for you, I still have a debt to pay back to her Highness for this left eye, so it looks like you¡¯ll have to die.¡± (Zeon)
Zeon laughed maniacally into the sky again as he dispelled the illusion magic and I felt cold sweat drip down my back as he slammed his staff on the ground with the same twisted smile on his face.
¡°Now, shall we begin?¡± (Zeon)
[Chapter 22] A Guilty Resolve, a Sword, and a Sin
Outskirts of Solria, Silvia Forest, Rest Area (Halbert POV)
I tightly gripped the handle of my greatsword as every muscle in my body tensed up in preparation. Mana pumped through my body as my kinetic vision sharpened and I watched Zeon, ready to react the moment he moved.
¡°I apologize, hero, but I¡¯m not particularly fond of fighting directly, and I¡¯m not too confident in my body strengthening magic either... so I hope you don¡¯t mind if I borrow yours for now.¡± (Zeon)
Zeon¡¯s chuckled and his left eye shone brightly again as he stared at me before slamming the tip of his staff down again, this time cracking the ground beneath it.
¡°Not too bad.¡± (Zeon)
¡ Borrow?... Wait. Magic! It was the same with the illusion magic on my sword earlier!
I yelled out to everyone else as it finally clicked into place. It was his left eye. It was somehow copying our magic!
¡°Careful! He can steal our magic with his left eye!¡± (Halbert)
¡°Oh? Looks like my little secret¡¯s out. I guess I said too much again. It really is a bad habit of mine. Ah, but it¡¯s fine. After all, I¡¯ll be silencing you all right now anyway.¡± (Zeon)
Zeon pointed the tip of his staff at us and the undead knight immediately started to charge towards us. It stomped against the ground with a hoarse growl, dashing forward as I screamed at everyone.
¡°Get ready!¡± (Halbert)
The undead knight was fast, but I''ve seen someone faster before. Compared to Captain Aria, the undead knight was slow!
The undead knight¡¯s sword flew towards me horizontally from my right side as I channeled mana into my own sword. The tip of my blade stabbed into the ground while I simultaneously activated¡¾Reinforcement¡¿to prepare for impact.
Our only chance is to eliminate it in one go before Zeon can do anything. I¡¯ll block its swing first! Then Regnis and Zane can attack it afterward while Reina and Sophie get to a safe distance to finish it off!
It was the best plan I could think of considering the circumstances, but unfortunately, there was a fatal miscalculation that I failed to take into account.
I''ve heard about the undead from the high priestess before, which is why I immediately recognized what the knight was. Low-level undead were usually just shambling corpses, barely able to even walk, while the higher-level ones often had somewhat enhanced strength and speed compared to a normal person. However, this particular undead knight was far stronger than any undead I had ever heard about.
Its sword clashed with mine and an insanely strong impact hammered my arms. I was blown away a few feet to my left before the undead knight moved its sword again with dexterity beyond what should be capable for even a high-level undead. It easily parried both attacks from Regnis'' glowing spear and Zane¡¯s empowered staff before knocking them away as well.
Luckily, Reina and Sophie managed to make some distance while the undead knight blocked the attacks, but after knocking Regnis and Zane away, it turned towards Reina and Sophie. I grit my teeth and started to dash towards the undead knight again, but the moment I took a step, I heard Zeon¡¯s voice ring out.
¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going, hero?¡± (Zeon)
The black crystal on his staff started to glow and instantly, a third-circle darkness spell appeared underneath me. Three black magic circles stacked up on top of each other, slowly rotating as I immediately slammed my leg against the ground and rolled to my right before darkness-element mana surged out of the magic circles to form spikes that shot upwards and pierced the air where I was a moment ago.
Damn! The undead knight!
The first thing I did after getting back up was glance over at everyone else. The undead knight swung its sword at Reina and Sophie, but as it started its swing, Zane managed to chantlessly cast a first-circle earth spell below the knight¡¯s leg. The dirt beneath the small brown magic circle disappeared, shifting the knight¡¯s stance mid-swing while two large magic circles appeared in front of Reina and Sophie. Raging wind filled in the gaps of the green magic circle, forming a circular barrier which the undead knight¡¯s sword smashed against. The wind scratched at the metal sword, and sparks flew off from where the blade made contact as Reina¡¯s wind magic barely blocked the swing. Regnis got up and attacked the knight again from its side as Sophie shot at it with her gun, but the undead knight just turned to its left and held its sword up again to block Regnis¡¯ glowing spear. Regnis¡¯ spear was deflected slightly and shot to the left of the undead knight¡¯s helmet as it scraped against the undead knight''s sword. Bits of ice formed as Regnis¡¯ spear technique froze the edge of the sword and immediately afterward, a small explosion of light-element mana hit the undead knight from its right side. Suddenly, it let out an agonizing roar of pain as it almost stopped moving for a moment. Regnis took another step forward and swept the end of his spear at the undead knight¡¯s chest, encasing a part of its armor in ice before Zane struck it with a second-circle wind spell, pushing the undead knight back a few steps.
¡°Light! Its weakness is light magic!¡± (Sophie)
Sophie yelled out to everyone else right after she figured out light magic could stun the undead knight temporarily, but unfortunately, I was forced to shift my attention away from them as Zeon¡¯s voice drowned out the sound of the wind and clanging metal in the background.
¡°Oh? How rude, hero. You shouldn¡¯t ignore others when they¡¯re speaking to you.¡± (Zeon)
It seemed like Zeon wasn¡¯t going to let me go help everyone else so easily. I turned to him and he walked a little closer to me as I tightened my grip on my greatsword.
¡°Now that¡¯s more like it.¡± (Zeon)
So he¡¯s coming after me, huh?¡ That¡¯s fine though. I¡¯ll keep him busy while everyone else runs!
Zeon came to a stop about a dozen feet away from me. His black cloak ruffled in the breeze as we stared at each other for a moment before suddenly, Zeon pointed the tip of his staff at me and instantly he cast seven second-circle darkness spells. I felt mana gather in the air to form rotating black magic circles behind him, and arrows made of darkness element mana emerged from the circles before shooting towards me.
Covered in a hazy white glow, my sword swung in an arc in front of me, shattering three of the seven arrows while I dodged the rest by jumping to the left.
I need to close the distance between us!
After landing, I pivoted on my left leg, shifting my body to face Zeon and charging forward with a yell, but before I even made it halfway to him, another third-circle darkness spell appeared in front of me.
Crap!
A hazy white light once again covered my blade as I channeled mana into my blade, activating reinforcement to shield myself by holding the flat of my sword against the magic circle. Spikes made of mana stabbed towards me, slamming against my sword as another strong impact knocked me back a few feet. There wasn¡¯t even a moment of respite as seven more magic arrows shot at me immediately afterward. Then, Zeon¡¯s crazed laughter echoed out before he started chanting in order to cast a higher-level spell.
Three swift slashes with my sword barely intercepted the new volley of arrows, and as my last swing finished, Zeon was also about to finish his short chant. However, right before he finished, the tip of a metal staff swung towards him from his left.
¡°Shadow beyond the blackest pitch, reveal thyself and- Kuh!¡± (Zeon)
¡°Uwooooh!¡± (Zane)
Zeon¡¯s chant was interrupted by Zane¡¯s yell as he thrust his staff towards Zeon¡¯s head and the clang of metal sounded out as their staves made contact. Zeon managed to block the swing from Zane¡¯s staff with his own, but it seemed like Zane didn''t just charge in without a plan because right behind him there were four green magic circles lined up and rotating in unison. Zane¡¯s body was blocking the fourth-circle wind spell from Zeon¡¯s field of vision so he couldn''t copy it!
Zeon still had my body strengthening magic active so he shoved Zane away easily after blocking his attack, but right as he was shoved out of the way, Zane activated the same earth spell he did before, caving in the ground beneath Zeon¡¯s right leg and breaking his balance. And the moment Zane was out of the line of fire, Reina finished her chant and activated her wind spell.
¡°¡¾Gale Lance¡¿!¡± (Reina)
The four magic circles spun rapidly as the surrounding air converged to create a lance made of razor sharp wind blades. It hurtled towards Zeon, but somehow he was able to react in time as his left eye shone with a green light again while he held his staff up to cast another spell. Three third-circle darkness spells lined up in front of him and mana burst forward from the magic circles, forming three barriers as the lance of wind shredded through the first two before just barely being stopped by the third one.
Zane and Reina''s plan didn''t work, but... thanks to them, I had an opening!
Blue bolts of lightning coursed through my blade as I channeled lightning-element mana into my sword and dashed past Zane, finally closing the distance between me and Zeon before I swung my sword at him with every last bit of strength in my arms.
Zeon twisted his head to look at me and held up his staff as I swung straight down at him from above. Darkness-element mana gathered in the air again, forming another two barriers to block my sword technique. The two barriers were shattered by the explosion of blue lightning, but it stopped my sword for a moment, long enough for Zeon to leap back a bit.
My swing ended up hitting nothing but the air and the moment the barriers shattered I realized that I just fell for the same trick Zane just used on Zeon. Since the barrier was made of black mana, I couldn''t see the third-circle spell behind it that Zeon had chantlessly cast.
I leaned backward immediately and sent a kick at Zeon¡¯s stomach before pulling my sword up to block just as the spell activated. More spikes shot out of the magic circle, scraping against my sword and armor, but I managed to get out relatively unscathed whereas Zeon was blown back a good distance by my kick.
What? Why did he get knocked back so far? He has the same body strengthening magic as me. Wait, he copied Reina¡¯s spell and now he¡¯s suddenly weaker. Did he lose my body strengthening magic? Can his eye only steal one spell at a time!?
I lowered my sword after blocking Zeon¡¯s spell, but what met my eyes was a fourth circle wind spell. It was the same spell Reina had just used only this time, it was aimed at me. I pumped mana into my legs and kicked against the ground, shoving my body to the left. I managed to barely dodge the spell, but even though I dodged it, Zane didn¡¯t. The lance of wind smashed into the ground next to where Zane was and blew him away.
Zane!
Zane¡¯s body bounced along the ground as Zeon started to chant again.
¡°Come forth, cursed hands of the fallen!¡¾Shadow Grip¡¿!¡± (Zeon)
Instantly, a few dozen small magic circles surrounded me. They were all arranged to form fifth-circle spells and clawed hands with a wispy look to them shot out from the circles, grabbing my limbs, throat, and torso to hold me in place. The hands even drained my mana slowly as they held onto me. I glanced behind me and Zane was being held against the ground by a few hands too as Zeon walked up to me.
¡°Well, I must admit, hero, you and your friends gave me a little trouble, but I do believe that our fight is now finished. I¡¯ve had enough fun and you have lost¡ Darkness as-¡± (Zeon)
Zeon held his open hand out towards me and started to chant again as the spectral claws held me down in place, but before he even got two words out of his mouth, a yellow ball hit the left side of his body, followed instantly by an explosion of light-element mana.
¡°Insolent pests!¡± (Zeon)
Zeon roared out in anger after Sophie shot him, and pointed his staff at the rest of the class fighting the undead knight.
A fourth-circle darkness spell appeared on the ground in between the undead knight and the rest of the class. Regnis jumped backward, while Reina created another barrier of wind to protect her and Sophie before an explosion of darkness-element mana razed the ground. Shards of rock from the shattered earth shot out from the center of the explosion as everyone was blown away in separate directions. Regnis was mostly fine thanks to his quick reaction and body strengthening magic while a good portion of the explosion was blocked by Reina¡¯s barrier. Despite the barrier absorbing the brunt of the explosion though, Sophie was still nicked in the leg by one of the rocks.
However, Sophie¡¯s injury was probably the least of her worries. The only reason they could even fight with the undead knight in the first place was because Reina and Sophie had been keeping it stunned with light magic while Regnis kept attacking it to force it to continuously block, but that entire plan crumbled with just one spell from Zeon.
The constant assault from the three of them had stopped, and the undead knight was now free to move.
It let out a bestial roar and charged towards Sophie as Regnis sprinted forward desperately to try and intercept it, but it was already too late. Regnis wasn¡¯t going to make it in time.
It was like time slowed down as I helplessly watched the nightmare unfold before my eyes.
Sophie was going to die. She was going to die and it would be because of me. She had nothing to do with Zeon. She''s not a hero. She doesn¡¯t even know about any of this demon lord stuff. She was dragged into this all because of me.
... It¡¯s all my fault...
Stop.
Stop!
STOP!!!
I screamed desperately in my head for the undead knight to stop over and over again, but it was useless. All I could do was watch the undead knight slowly get closer until finally, it reached Sophie and swung its blade diagonally downward towards her as she sat on the floor with a scared look in her eyes.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.
Then, I saw another figure appear.
He was fast. Unbelievably fast. I didn¡¯t even see him clearly until he suddenly appeared in front of Sophie.
A long red coat covered his body while white hair tied into a ponytail fluttered in the wind as he finally stopped in place before holding up his left arm. The undead knight¡¯s sword made contact with the sleeve of his coat and the screech of grinding metal echoed out as sparks flew off the point of contact. The ground beneath him fractured from the force of the impact, but despite all this, he didn¡¯t move. Not even one single step.
The undead knight¡¯s swing, the same swing that blew me away easily, was blocked by Professor Kyle.
Outskirts of Solria, Silvia Forest, Rest Area (Kyle POV)
A strange feeling rose up inside of me as I stood there blocking the blade that would have killed Sophie had I been late even a single moment. It was regret, it was sadness, it was relief, and in the depths of my heart there was even a sick sense of excitement, but after a moment... it was all drowned out by anger.
I glanced around me.
To my right, Regnis was in the middle of sprinting forward, covered in dirt and scrapes, while Reina reached out in desperation towards Sophie. To my left, Halbert and Zane were being held down by several hands from some sort of magic. And although I didn¡¯t turn around to look, I knew that sitting on the ground behind me was Sophie. She had fear in her eyes, and amongst the small scratches and cuts, there was a large bleeding wound on her leg.
In front of me stood an enemy dressed in a suit of armor. I could see the soulfire in its hollow eyes through its helmet. It was an undead, just a mere soulless puppet, commanded by who I assume was the black-robed man standing in front of Halbert a few dozen feet to my left.
And it was this necromancer and his undead that had attacked my precious students.
It was because of these two that Sophie had a bleeding cut across her leg, that Zane was pinned to the floor, that Halbert was being held down, that Regnis was injured, that Reina had a hopeless look in her eyes.
A furious glint appeared in my eyes before I shifted my left hand forward. The sudden motion knocked the sword away, and I grabbed the undead¡¯s right arm, pulling it to my left side while stepping forward. It started to fall forward and my cold voice rang out as my right hand formed a fist.
¡°¡¾Impact¡¿, full power cast, touch-trigger activation.¡± (Kyle)
My legs rotated to turn me to my left, and the force from the instant shift traveled through my torso up to my arm before my fist smashed into the undead¡¯s chest, right where its center of gravity was. The force that had built itself up starting from that initial rotation of my legs exploded as it made contact with the undead, and its metal armor was crushed by my punch before the glove on my hand shone with a white glow.
The alchemy circle activated, and an insane amount of force rushed out of my fist. The undead was blown away straight towards the necromancer before a crazed wind burst out from where I had hit it.
The necromancer barely managed to react in time and dodge as the undead shot into the forest behind him, smashing through about four or five trees before coming to an unmoving stop. Then I reached into my holster and pulled out a throwing knife before my left hand shifted, and a knife shot towards the necromancer.
¡°¡¾Thunderbolt Spear¡¿, full power cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
The alchemy circle on the knife shone with a piercing blue light before thick bolts of lightning burst out from the knife, forming the vague shape of a spear, but as it flew towards the necromancer, his left eye shone with a green light and the alchemy circle for¡¾Thunderbolt Spear¡¿appeared in front of him. It immediately activated and an identical spear of blue lightning emerged before shooting towards my throwing knife. The two spears of lightning collided in mid-air and the resulting explosion of electricity charred the grass around it before my knife fell on the ground below the explosion.
¡°Watch out! He can steal your alchemy with his left eye!¡± (Halbert)
Halbert¡¯s distressed voice rang out and I stood there for a moment while the necromancer watched me with an alert look on his face.
He can steal my alchemy... which means my best option is¡
My right hand reached behind me and grasped the handle of my longsword. A melancholic feeling bubbled up inside of me, but it was overpowered by my anger as I thought about the consequences of my actions.
Are you too scared to even unsheathe your sword? To save the people you care about?
What are you afraid of? Just move, you goddamn coward.
Air entered my lungs as I took a deep breath.
Strength entered my hands, and I finally pulled out my longsword and held it towards the necromancer. The sunlight shone off the tip of the blade giving it a silverish grey gleam, and a terrifyingly familiar feeling bubbled up inside of me again... but this time, I didn¡¯t reject it.
I exhaled, and my grip on the handle tightened before I took a stance.
My left leg moved forward half a step as my right hand held the longsword softly at my side with the tip of my blade and the fingers of my loosely open left hand pointed in the same direction, towards the necromancer. It was my personal stance, just a lazy variation of my master¡¯s stance that I modified slightly to fit my own sword style, but despite my lackluster stance, my swordsmanship was anything but normal.
¡°Oh? Another one? Ah, but I can¡¯t exactly call you a pest, can I? After all, you¡¯re not like the rest of them. You¡¯re strong. I can¡¯t afford to go easy on you.¡± (Necromancer)
The moment he finished speaking, the necromancer pointed his staff towards me and three fourth-circle spells appeared in the air before spears made of darkness-element mana shot out towards me.
¡°Stop!¡± (Reina)
¡°Professor Kyle!¡± (Sophie)
¡°Watch out!¡± (Regnis)
Worried voices echoed out from behind me and I could see in the distance that the punch earlier wasn¡¯t enough to finish off the undead either. There was a large dent in its armor, but it got back up and roared before charging towards me again.
My body was screaming at me. Just taking a stance wasn¡¯t enough. It wanted to move. It wanted to swing a sword. It wanted to fight again. And so... I let it.
It was an almost instantaneous flash of steel. I took a step forward and my sword swung outwards, striking the tip of the first spear aimed at my chest. A strong impact entered my arm through my sword, but my arm slightly shifted, transmitting the force through my body and nullifying as much as I could using a series of small rotations before driving the rest into the ground with my legs. The ground beneath me cracked slightly and my sword smashed through the first spear, shattering it into particles of mana as I grabbed the second spear with my left hand. The spearhead grinded against my palm and once again, I nullified the momentum again before gripping my hand into a fist, crushing the second spear. Then my right arm moved again and the last spear was shattered by my sword just like the first one as the necromancer finished casting his next spell.
¡°Spectral warrior from an ancient abyss, emerge and indulge thyself once more in battle.¡¾Guardian of Dusk¡¿!¡± (Necromancer)
A seventh-circle spell materialized on the undead¡¯s chest plate and darkness-element mana flooded out of the circle, completely devouring the undead before the mass of mana started molding itself, taking the same form as the undead knight. Wispy black mana radiated off the newly born specter, and blood-red flames ignited in the visor of the helmet as a blade of mana formed in its hand.
The necromancer¡¯s left eye shone as he stared at the specter before another seven-layered magic circle appeared in front of him a second, identical specter emerged. The new specter moved to guard the necromancer as the first one dashed towards me, but the moment it kicked off the ground, I already arrived in front of it.
My leg smashed into the ground in front of the specter, stopping my momentum as I rotated my torso to shift the momentum from my legs to my sword. My sword thrust forward towards its heart and the specter held its blade in front of its chest to block it, but right as the tip of my blade was about to make contact with the specter¡¯s blade, my sword suddenly shifted. My initial thrust instantly transformed into a swing, then back into a thrust as the tip of my blade slipped past the specter¡¯s sword and pierced its neck. Then I took another step forward, transitioning into a swing again and just like that, it was dead. I separated the specter¡¯s head from its body and it dissipated into black wisps of mana. Strength poured into my leg as I was about to dash towards the necromancer, but the moment I turned towards him, I froze.
The necromancer held his staff out. The tip was pointed towards Halbert¡¯s head and he turned to me as I stood in place.
¡°Oh? You work fast, don¡¯t you? That was my ace in the hole, but it barely took you a second to kill it, so the second one probably won¡¯t give you much trouble either. I do wonder though, are you faster than my magic? Unfortunately, I¡¯m running a little low on mana, so there¡¯s no doubt in my mind that I would lose if I fought you now, but I assure you, I have more than enough for one or two more spells.¡± (Necromancer)
The necromancer let out a chuckle before turning to Halbert again as his left eye lit up.
¡°Ah, this whole meeting really was a mess. But it¡¯s over now, isn¡¯t it? Well, aren¡¯t you lucky, hero? You¡¯ve escaped death this time, but remember this, as long as you hold that sword, I, Zeon, will find you all again. And next time, it will be different. Your deaths are no longer just a favor to be repaid to her highness, it is now also his majesty¡¯s will that you all die. And as his faithful servant, it is my duty to execute his command, no matter the cost. In due time, his majesty, the True God of Death shall descend and drown this world in eternal calamity once more. So rejoice. It is the greatest honor for lowly beings such as yourselves to contribute to his majesty¡¯s divine reawakening¡± (Zeon)
Zeon¡¯s wicked laughter echoed around the clearing and I lowered my head to stare at the ground in front of me.
Ah¡ so that¡¯s why he was attacking them¡ I understand now¡
He said it himself, didn¡¯t he? He¡¯s nothing more than a faithful servant of the True God of Death. He¡¯s a deluded lunatic who was drawn to my legacy. He almost killed the class as a part of his vain attempt to ¡®revive¡¯ me, and he would no doubt hunt them down again if it meant he would be a little closer to his goal.
Everyone was attacked because of me. Everyone was injured because of me. Everyone almost died because of me.
It¡¯s my fault. It¡¯s all my fault. Everything is because of me.
It was because I left them alone. It was because I decided to even come out here in the first place just to make some pocket change.
They should have been safe and sound in the classroom. They should have been going through another peaceful day.
Their wounds, their pain, their fear...
... It''s all my fault...
Again and again... A thousand years ago... and even now...
... It¡¯s always because of me...
¡ Atonement? What a joke.
I can lie to myself all I want about atonement, but in the end... I know the truth better than anyone else, don¡¯t I?
Only when these accursed hands are stained with blood, can they ever hold anything close. It¡¯s always been that way.
Nothing¡¯s changed.
I opened my mouth, and broken laughter echoed out to match Zeon before he stopped to look at me while I muttered quietly to myself.
¡°... You know, despite all my talk about atonement, I¡¯m really just selfish, aren¡¯t I?... But that¡¯s fine¡ If it means I can see the people I care about smile happily again¡ what are a few more sins?...¡± (Kyle)
¡°Oh? Is there something I¡¯m missing? Or have you actually started to lose your mind?¡± (Zeon)
Zeon stared at me with a puzzled look on his face, but I just ignored him as I slowly called out to the rest of the class with the most gentle voice I could currently muster.
¡°I¡¯m sorry, guys. It¡¯s all my fault... But don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll be back home soon. I promise... so just do me a favor and look away for a moment... Professor Kyle¡¯s about to be a little scary...¡± (Kyle)
As soon as I finished speaking, I closed my eyes. My fake smile was replaced with a cold expression, and then, I released it.
The class was still nearby, so I couldn¡¯t release the full extent of my bloodlust, but this much it was enough. The bloodlust I had been holding back burst outward, and what met Zeon¡¯s stare was a pair of piercing golden eyes, tinged with a hint of frenzied, murderous rage.
My bloodlust swirled around me before I concentrated it directly on Zeon.
Then Zeon fell to his knees, clutching his throat as he struggled to breathe.
I gripped the handle of my sword and moved forward. In an instant, I was in front of the specter.
Sword swing from the top left.
The specter¡¯s sword swung downwards toward me from the left, but it was too slow. My left hand shot forward, grabbing its helmet while my sword flashed diagonally upward to the right. The specter¡¯s blade scraped against the shoulder of my coat, while my blade smashed into its side, crushing its armor at the point of impact before ripping straight through and slicing the specter completely in half. Then I let go of its head and its upper torso fell on the ground as it dissipated into wispy black mana before I took another step.
Zeon shakily held his hand out towards Halbert, barely managing to choke out a few words to cast a third-circle spell at him as my voice simultaneously rang out.
¡°¡¾D-Dark Spike¡¿!¡± (Zeon)
¡°¡¾Radiant Barrier¡¿, full power cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
A throwing knife stabbed into the ground at an angle in front of Halbert, and a brilliant yellow light shone from the alchemy circle etched into the blade of the knife as a large shield of light instantly formed in front of him.
Pulses of mana continuously rippled through the shield of light as the tips of the mana spikes scraped against it while Zeon¡¯s eye lit up.
I arrived in front of Zeon and my sword flipped around in my hand to point down before I held it with both hands and stabbed downward towards him. He leaned back slightly, raising his head to look up at me as the same barrier I had just used to block his spell materialized above him. Pulses of mana rippled through the shield as it stopped my blade for a moment before my cold voice rang out again like a death sentence.
¡°¡¾Accel¡¿, full power cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
A white light shone from the glove on my left hand, and my sword violently burst downward at an incredible speed. The sound of glass shattering reached my ears as my sword pierced the shield and just like that, it was over.
The blade went straight through Zeon¡¯s chest, impaling him and pinning him to the floor before I finally restrained my bloodlust again.
The clawed hands holding Halbert and Zane down disappeared, and silence returned to the forest.
Zeon weakly reached up to the sky with his hand and quietly whispered as blood poured out of his mouth.
¡°... y-your... m-majesty¡¡± (Zeon)
He was calling out to his god.
He was calling out to me.
You can pray, you can beg, you can cry, but in the end, you¡¯ll receive no salvation from the gods of this world. If there¡¯s one thing I¡¯ve learned, it¡¯s that the gods of Aias have no sympathy... and that includes me.
So... I¡¯ll see you on the other side, Zeon.
After a moment, Zeon¡¯s hand fell to his side as the last bits of life in him faded.
Outskirts of Solria, Silvia Forest, Rest Area (Halbert POV)
The moment Zeon¡¯s hand fell, a green light shone from his left eye again. What looked like a small green ball of light rose up from Zeon¡¯s left eye, floating in mid-air for a moment before green flames burst out, completely devouring it. It burned away into nothingness. Then it was once again silent. The only evidence that there was even a fight were the holes around the clearing and Zeon¡¯s body. Peace returned to the forest and Zane walked up to my side.
¡°... He¡¯s dead¡¡± (Zane)
¡°... Yeah¡¡± (Halbert)
It was all over.
I finally lowered my sword as I felt a sense of relief flood my system before turning to Professor Kyle, but he just silently stood there until Zane called out to him.
¡°...Ky-¡± (Zane)
But before Zane could even finish a word, an arm wrapped around me and I was pulled into a hug along with Zane as Professor Kyle whispered to us.
¡°Thank God you¡¯re still alive...¡± (Kyle)
The arm hugging me was soft and it felt like any slight movement from me would let me easily break away, however, I couldn¡¯t help but look over Professor Kyle¡¯s shoulder at Zeon¡¯s corpse. In front of me was a reminder of just what the same arm currently hugging me was capable of, and a chill ran down my spine as I thought about the insane bloodlust I felt from Professor Kyle just a few moments ago.
It was like light and day. It felt like I could barely breathe before, but now¡
Professor Kyle had a worried look on his face, but other than that, he was back to his normal self. And after a moment, he let go of me and Zane before running over to the rest of the class. We silently walked behind him as I stared at my open hand.
If Professor Kyle hadn¡¯t returned in time, if he wasn¡¯t strong enough to save Sophie, if he wasn¡¯t strong enough to kill Zeon, everyone would have died. If I was stronger this wouldn¡¯t have happened. If I was stronger no one else would have been hurt.
My right hand slowly closed into a tight fist as I grit my teeth and swallowed my anger at my own weakness.
Goddess of Chaos¡¯ Divine Domain, Throne Room (Goddess of Chaos POV)
In front of me was a small green ball of light, glowing softly as I held in between my fingers. It was something that shouldn¡¯t exist according to the laws of this world. It was my second greatest creation, an artificial divine spark, a heretical imitation of the world will¡¯s gift. The Sin of Envy, one in a set of seven sin sparks that I had created to raise the new demon lord, and the fact that it had returned to me meant that the chosen possessor of the Sin of Envy, Zeon, had perished. But I couldn¡¯t care less about his death right now.
Zeon was a traitor. And despite being chosen by me as a potential candidate for the new demon lord, he was loyal to another god. No, I should say that he envied another god. His deluded obsession was to the point that instead of competing with the other Sins for the title of demon lord, he sought out his god¡¯s divine relics in a pitiful endeavor to steal his god¡¯s identity. He revered that god so much that he himself wanted to become that god, and that was exactly what made him the perfect Sin of Envy despite his lack of loyalty to me.
Ah, but it¡¯s fine. With his death, Zeon¡¯s sin spark had returned to me, its creator, along with something else.
I held the sin spark in my hand, and the natural laws of chaos enveloped it before a mirror materialized in front of me. Illusions played out in the mirror recounting Zeon¡¯s last moments, and in those illusions, there was a certain man. His long hair was a pure white color, tied into a ponytail, and he was dressed in a red coat while holding a longsword in his right hand.
A pair of sharp golden eyes peered at me from inside the illusions like they had seen beyond even dimensions to gaze into my very soul as a long-dead feeling reignited inside of me again.
Was it love?... No, it was more like ecstasy.
A twisted smile made its way onto my face.
I found him. I found him. I finally found him again.
My greatest creation, The Tyrant of Eternal Calamity.
It¡¯s such beautiful irony though, isn¡¯t it? The very same god Zeon revered was the one who extinguished him in the end.
¡°Now, what will you do? It¡¯s all crashing down around you again, isn¡¯t it? But don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll always be here for you. Now and forever. So keep me captivated again this time, my dearest Ky.¡± (Goddess of Chaos)
[Chapter 23] This Arrogant Young Master Will Have to Use Ten Percent of His Power
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Kyle POV)
The sunlight shining in from outside warmed me up slightly as I leaned back in my chair, and a faint sigh echoed around the empty classroom while I continued to stare vacantly at the ceiling.
I was early today, much earlier than usual.
Yesterday, after a thousand years, I finally killed another person again. And it was still the same, even after all this time. There was no remorse, no sorrow, all I felt was a cold indifference, and after that, there was nothing more. Instead, I was more worried about the class.
Luckily though, no one was seriously injured. Halbert, Zane, and Regnis managed to get away with just a few scrapes and bruises while Reina was just exhausted from using most of her mana. Sophie only had that cut on her leg, and after performing some simple first aid, I managed to stop the bleeding.
But before we left the clearing, Halbert stopped everyone and asked us to keep what Zeon said to ourselves. Halbert said something along the lines of how he didn¡¯t want to get anyone else involved as he got down on his knees and begged us with a trembling voice, so what could I do but agree?
I don¡¯t know what he wanted to keep us out of, but I¡¯m sure he has his secrets¡ just like I have mine, so I didn¡¯t ask. After that, we all returned to the city and I carried Sophie to the hospital before reporting to the guild that we were attacked in Silvia Forest by a necromancer. I left out the details of what Zeon said just like Halbert asked, but I did mention that I killed him in self-defense.
Our cover-up story for Mari was that we were in the classroom like normal yesterday, and if she asked, Halbert, Zane, and Regnis were bruised from sparring after class while Sophie accidentally cut her leg at home yesterday.
I¡¯ll say it now, I¡¯m not a very good professor.
I¡¯m always just barely on time for class, I can¡¯t teach very well, I slack off all the time, and¡ I even put my students in danger. I¡¯m an awful professor, but as awful as I am... I still care about my students.
They¡¯re not meant to be out there fighting for their lives. They should be right here, safe and sound, happily wasting away their youth in this peace, just like everyone else their age...
I raised my right arm up and spread my hand out in front of me as I whispered to myself.
¡°... They shouldn¡¯t have to go through what I did... no one does¡¡± (Kyle)
My hand slowly closed and I took a deep breath before slumping over on my desk as I stared at my fist on top of the table.
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Sophie POV)
The door opened with a loud click as I entered the classroom before shutting it behind me. I was early to class like usual, but today, instead of an empty room, there was an unexpected figure. Slumped over on his desk with a sad expression on his face was Professor Kyle.
Eh? But wait, class doesn¡¯t start for another hour. Am I¡¯m actually late? No, it can¡¯t be. There isn¡¯t anyone else here either, which means¡ Professor Kyle was actually early today!
He turned toward me and we made eye contact as I slowly walked over to his side while he sat up in his seat. I stood there for a moment, staring at him with a puzzled look on my face before he asked me what was wrong.
¡°Umm... what¡¯s wrong, Sophie?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Nothing¡ it¡¯s just... Are you sure the clock in your house is adjusted correctly?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Oi. What¡¯s that¡¯s supposed to mean? Is it that strange for me to be early for once!?¡± (Kyle)
After replying, Professor Kyle slumped over on his desk again with tears flowing out of his eyes, and I couldn¡¯t help but giggle a bit at his comical retort while he mumbled grumpily to himself.
¡°The moment I decide to actually be a good professor for once, my own student doesn¡¯t even appreciate it! Hmph.¡± (Kyle)
When I saw Professor Kyle pout cutely and turn to look out the window, I couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore and burst out laughing.
¡°You know, just being early doesn¡¯t make you a good professor.¡± (Sophie)
¡°It¡¯s a start, alright!?¡± (Kyle)
After my laughter finally died down, silence returned for a moment before Professor Kyle¡¯s voice softened to a gentle tone as he continued to stare outside at the clouds in the sky.
¡°Anyway... is your leg ok, Sophie?¡± (Kyle)
I looked down at my left leg wrapped in bandages. It was injured yesterday during the necromancer¡¯s attack, but the cut wasn¡¯t too deep, and after some treatment at the hospital, it was basically healed up already.
¡°Yeah, it¡¯s fine. When I was at the hospital, the doctor there used some light healing magic and told me my leg should be completely back to normal in a few days.¡± (Sophie)
¡°That¡¯s great¡ I¡¯m glad you¡¯re ok, Sophie...¡± (Kyle)
He turned back around and I could see the relief in his eyes as he gently smiled at me.
¡°... I really am¡¡± (Kyle)
I wasn¡¯t sure exactly why. Maybe it was because that lonely, melancholic atmosphere around him had finally disappeared, or maybe it was because I finally saw him smile again after everything that happened yesterday, but as I continued to stare at him, a warm feeling started to bubble up inside of me as my heartbeat gradually sped up. A moment of silence passed by before I quickly twirled around so I wouldn¡¯t have to face him anymore, and after bringing my hand up to touch my face, I realized it was burning up. I covered my mouth as my voice lowered to a whisper with a tender tone.
¡°... Yeah¡ Thanks for carrying me back to the hospital, Professor Kyle¡ ¡° (Sophie)
¡°Sure, no problem. It¡¯s the least I could do.¡± (Kyle)
I held my hand against my chest until my heart calmed down before turning around to face Professor Kyle again. I was about to say something when the door behind me suddenly opened, and I heard Reina call out to us.
¡°Eh? Professor Kyle, why are you here so early today?¡± (Reina)
¡°Why is it that me showing up a bit early is so unexpected? Am I really that lazy in your eyes?¡± (Kyle)
¡°N-No, it¡¯s just that¡ you usually show up right before class starts...¡± (Reina)
Reina replied with a helpless look on her face as indignant tears began to flow from Professor Kyle¡¯s eyes again, and I turned around to face Reina as I giggled a bit.
¡°I know right. That¡¯s exactly what I thought too!¡± (Sophie)
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Kyle POV)
¡°Ky, I¡¯ve done it. I¡¯ve found my future girlfriend!¡± (Zane)
I took another bite of my food as I stared at Zane, who had passionate flames burning in his eyes while he pointed to the ceiling in a victory pose.
It was lunchtime now, and although Mari asked earlier about why everyone was bandaged up, it seemed like she believed our cover-up story after hearing it from everyone. I guess the exp from the fight yesterday boosted everyone¡¯s friendship level though because today we all gathered to have lunch together again, Mari included.
¡°You know, I doubt you actually did, but I guess I¡¯ll bite. Who is it?¡± (Kyle)
¡°I don¡¯t know what her name was, but I saw a really cute girl when I was rushing to class this morning, and after I tripped on a rock, she even came over to help me up.¡± (Zane)
Sophie let out a sigh and Regnis just went on eating like nothing even happened while Halbert and Reina stared at Zane with helpless smiles.
¡°Here we go again¡ She was just showing you some basic human kindness. You probably won¡¯t ever even see her again.¡± (Sophie)
¡°That¡¯s where you¡¯re wrong, Sophie! She had our school uniform on, so she¡¯s definitely somewhere in the academy! I knew the moment I first laid eyes on her! She¡¯s my soulmate! I¡¯ll find her if it¡¯s the last thing I do!¡± (Zane)
I took another bite of food before nodding once and turning to Mari, who was sitting to my right.
¡°Hey, do we have something like a witness protection program here?¡± (Kyle)
¡°A witness protection program? No, what¡¯s that?¡± (Mari)
¡°Oh, well it¡¯s basically a program that provides protection to people who may be the target of criminal activity. Anyway, it¡¯s fine if we don¡¯t have one. We can probably just ask one of the security guards to make sure Zane doesn¡¯t stalk the girl after we find out who she is.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Oi! I¡¯m right here, you know!¡± (Zane)
Sophie laughed a bit after Zane¡¯s outburst, while Halbert let out a dry chuckle before patting Zane on the shoulder.
¡°That¡¯s a great idea, Professor Kyle!¡± (Sophie)
¡°Hmm, how well do you think it¡¯ll work though? I doubt the security guard could be there all the time.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Well, I¡¯m sure that-¡± (Kyle)
I was about halfway through my sentence when the sound of the door opening interrupted me, and everyone turned to look at the entrance as a man burst into the room.
He had long black hair that went a little past his shoulders along with a pair of sharp, brown eyes while his outfit looked like it came straight of a wuxia drama, consisting of a white swordsman robe with a sash at his waist that had golden dragons embroidered on it, and not the kind of dragon that you would find out in the wild either, it was the serpentine kind of dragon that you would¡¯ve found back in eastern mythology back on Earth.
Everyone watched him as he glanced around the room for a moment before locking eyes with me.
Then I felt a familiar feeling wash over me.
I never thought I¡¯d see someone else besides Halbert at this kind of power level, but I guess this world really is big, huh?
This man is definitely a wuxia protagonist! His main character aura is off the charts!
Can¡¯t a small side character like me catch a break!? Right after adjusting to Halbert¡¯s monstrous main character aura, another one shows up!
Wait, since he¡¯s here... a-am I the next arrogant young master acting as a stepping stone for him!? Come on! If you¡¯re gonna make me an arrogant young master, at least let me enjoy the position for a bit first!
I¡¯ll be here minding my own business, and next thing you know, he¡¯s gonna use his sect¡¯s forbidden technique on me for just standing in his path today!
The man opened his mouth and it looked like he was about to say something when Mari cut him off.
¡°Uh... Professor Yong, right? Were you looking for me? What¡¯s the problem?¡± (Mari)
Eh? Professor?
¡°Oh. I didn¡¯t realize you were here, Headmistress Sylfey. I apologize for my sudden entrance, but actually, I have some business with Professor Kyle.¡± (Professor Yong)
Professor Yong turned to stare at me again before walking up.
Argh! Why is it always me!? I¡¯ve never even met the guy, and he already has a problem with me!
Please, sir! I¡¯m just a poor little side character! I have nothing to offer you, so go play protagonist with Halbert or something!
My internal screams echoed out into pointlessly as I met Professor Yong¡¯s sharp stare with a nervous smile.
¡°Umm¡ Can I help you, sir?¡± (Kyle)
¡°You¡¯re Professor Kyle, correct?¡± (Professor Yong)
¡°Yeah¡¡± (Kyle)
¡°I see, so I have come to the right place. My name is Raven Yong of the House of Yong, and I challenge you to a duel, Professor Kyle!¡± (Raven)
¡°Wait! We¡¯ve never even met! What the hell did I do to you!?¡± (Kyle)Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.
¡°What did you do?¡± (Raven)
Raven crossed his arms and started to chuckle before pointing at me dramatically.
¡°I already have confirmation from a reliable source, so there¡¯s no use denying it. You were the one who cut the budget for the weapons department, right?¡± (Raven)
¡°Wait! Cut the budget for the weapons department!?¡± (Mari)
Mari turned to me and grabbed me by the collar with an angry smile as cold sweat ran down my back.
¡°So, what¡¯s this about cutting budgets, Ky?¡± (Mari)
I let out a dry laugh before explaining myself.
¡°Well, remember the hole in the wall from the first day of class? Where do you think I got the money to fix it? I had to cut someone¡¯s budget to get everything sorted out, and obviously, I couldn''t cut the alchemy department''s budget. I don¡¯t have access to the business department¡¯s budget either since they¡¯re basically self-sufficient, so only the magic and weapons department were left, and the magic department was already running a little dry while the weapons department just got new stuff last year. I just made the logical choice and cut a little of the weapons department budget.¡± (Kyle)
¡°A little!? The budget was almost cut in half compared to last year!¡± (Raven)
Cut in half? I shouldn¡¯t have used that much... Ah. Wait, I remember now. I bought Neo-Excalibur and all that other stuff with their budget too, didn¡¯t I?¡
¡°Ahem. Ok, well, admittedly it may have been more than a little, but it doesn¡¯t change the fact that it¡¯s gone. What¡¯s done is done. I¡¯ve already had the room repaired. I can¡¯t do anything at this point.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Tsk. Fine, then since you¡¯ve already spent the weapons department budget, we¡¯ll duel for the alchemy department¡¯s budget.¡± (Raven)
¡°So you¡¯re telling me that if I lose this duel then I have to transfer some of the alchemy department¡¯s budget to the weapons department?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Precisely.¡± (Raven)
I freed myself from Mari¡¯s grasp before turning to face Raven while crossing my arms.
¡°Perfect, then I can say with absolute certainty that... I refuse!¡± (Kyle)
¡°What? Have you no honor, Professor Kyle?¡± (Raven)
¡°Honor? What¡¯s that? Can I buy alchemy materials with honor? Well, let¡¯s say that hypothetically I do accept your duel. Now if I lose, then you¡¯ll get your budget back, but what do I get if I win? Will I take the other half of the weapons department budget too? What will you do then?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Kuh. That¡¯s a fair point.¡± (Raven)
Raven closed his eyes for a few moments as he thought about the terms of the duel before nodding to himself in confirmation.
¡°Then should you be victorious in our duel, the House of Yong will owe you a favor. However, I doubt it will be a problem because... you won¡¯t win.¡± (Raven)
¡°Oh? Really now?¡± (Kyle)
Oi. I know you¡¯re a protagonist, but at least show some respect for your supporting cast. Even side characters like me have a limit, you know? Fine, if this is how you want to do it, then this arrogant young master will have to play his part and take out the trash. Oh wait, he heard about the budget cut from someone else, didn¡¯t he? So there might be some loose ends to tie up too after this.
¡°Then I accept your duel.¡± (Kyle)
I chuckled evilly to myself while cracking my knuckles, but before I could get up, Halbert let out a nervous laugh and held me back in a panic.
¡°W-Wait, Professor Kyle! I don¡¯t think this is a very good idea. L-Look, if you two want to duel, then instead of a fight, how about you two compete in something more peaceful, like a game?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Hmm, a game? Well, considering Professor Kyle is manaless, I don¡¯t think a fight would be very fair either, so a game doesn¡¯t sound like a bad idea. If it¡¯s a game, we can hold our duel indoors too. Headmistress Sylfey, may I ask that you act as the witness to our duel?¡± (Raven)
Mari let out a sigh before slumping backward into her chair with a tired expression on her face.
¡°Fine. I guess I¡¯ll be the judge for your dumb game then.¡± (Mari)
¡°Great. I¡¯ll even let you choose the game, Professor Kyle.¡± (Raven)
¡°You¡¯ll let me choose? Don¡¯t regret it then, Professor Yong.¡± (Kyle)
Hmm, what game should I pick?... Well, how about chess?¡¯ it¡¯s been awhile since I played, and I¡¯ll have to make the board and pieces, but it shouldn¡¯t take too long.
¡°Mari, is it ok if take some of the scrap wood from the storage room?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? Nobody¡¯s using it, so sure.¡± (Mari)
¡°Thanks. Then I¡¯ll be back in a bit.¡± (Kyle)
Everyone stared at me in confusion as I left the classroom, and after a bit, I returned from the academy storage room with a plank of wood about half the size of my desk.
¡°Ok, so I¡¯ve decided on what game we¡¯ll play.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Oh? What game is it?¡± (Raven)
¡°It¡¯s a board game from my hometown called chess, but since I don¡¯t have a playset with me, I¡¯ll need a bit of time to make the board and pieces first.¡± (Kyle)
I walked over to my desk and rummaged through my bag, pulling out the small carving knife that I usually used for engraving monster cores before sitting down and carving out the pieces as I explained the rules to everyone while they watched me curiously.
A few minutes later, a simple-looking chess set was sitting on the table in front of me. The board was just a square plank of wood with an eight by eight grid drawn on it, while the pieces were small wooden sculptures with half of them colored black using a pen to signify which side it was from, but despite how crude my craftsmanship was, it was still a perfectly functional chess set.
¡°...and those are the basic rules of chess. Simple enough, right?¡± (Kyle)
¡°I see, so chess is a game where we command equal armies while defending our respective lieges. A battle between two generals, how fitting for our duel. Very well, I accept this battle of wits.¡± (Raven)
Raven nodded his head in acceptance as I put my knife away and placed the board between us before setting up the pieces so that he was the white side.
¡°Well then. Since I chose the game, you can make the first move.¡± (Kyle)
¡°The first strike, huh?¡± (Raven)
I gestured toward him to start and he held his chin with his hand as he stared at the board, deep in thought. A few moments passed before he slowly reached out and moved one of his pawns forward, but the instant he let go of his pawn, my hand shot out and immediately moved a pawn forward to match his. He let go of his chin and looked up at me in astonishment, but I just gave him a wry smile back before telling him it was his move.
¡°What¡¯s wrong, Professor Yong? It¡¯s your turn to move, isn¡¯t it?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Y-Yes, I suppose it is.¡± (Raven)
He cleared his throat nervously before taking another few moments to make his next move, but the same thing happened again as I instantaneously made my move before the cycle started to repeat itself.
I told you, didn¡¯t I, Raven? This arrogant young master would put you in your place, so let me show you the true power of a side character! Just try and pull through this with your plot armor, I¡¯ll shatter it myself! I wasn¡¯t the hidden ace of my high school chess club for nothing!
***
About five minutes later, I quickly moved my queen into place as I announced the end of the game with a smile.
¡°Oh, I do believe that¡¯s checkmate, isn¡¯t it?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Y-Yes¡¡± (Raven)
¡°So what¡¯s the verdict, Mari?¡± (Kyle)
¡°You won the duel, Ky.¡± (Mari)
¡°Cool. It was a good game, Professor Yong.¡± (Kyle)
My hand extended out toward a frustrated Raven as he slowly grasped my hand for an awkward handshake.
Well, I guess I can¡¯t blame him for being so shaken though. After all, his strategy was so basic that I read him like a book. It must¡¯ve felt like I was in his head, always one step ahead of his every move. But he started this, so I¡¯m showing no mercy.
A smug smile made its way onto my face as I shrugged nonchalantly after we finished our handshake.
¡°So now that I¡¯ve won, you owe me a favor, right?¡± (Kyle)
¡°... Yes, I do.¡± (Raven)
¡°Alright. Then since the duel¡¯s over, you can return to your class now. Just make sure you don¡¯t forget about that favor. After all, you were the one that said that there was no way you would lose.¡± (Kyle)
I started to clean the chess set up while chuckling mockingly at an angry Raven, but before I could pick up the board, Raven slammed his hand down on it while mumbling to himself.
¡°... A rematch...¡± (Raven)
¡°What?¡± (Kyle)
¡°I said I want a rematch, Kyle!¡± (Raven)
Come on, buddy. I gave you a chance to escape and everything, but since you insist on getting your ass kicked again, let me do my part as a member of the supporting cast and accommodate your wish.
¡°Sure thing then.¡± (Kyle)
I set the pieces back up again before spreading my arms out with a sly smile, almost like I was presenting the board to Raven.
¡°Your move, Raven.¡± (Kyle)
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Raven POV)
Again. It¡¯s happening again.
The clack of wood echoed around the room as I placed my piece down before Kyle instantly made his move in response. I glanced up at his mocking smile as an indescribable mental pressure washed over me.
This was already our fifth, no, our sixth rematch, and despite so many matches, it was the same story every time.
It was like he could read my mind. Every move I made, every thought I had, he knew it all. I just fell for trap after trap as my army slowly died out. It wasn¡¯t like two generals facing each other, no, it was more like a beast toying with its prey.
I glanced towards the clock before thinking about my next move.
Looking at the time, I¡¯ll have to go back and start class again soon, so this will probably be our last match¡ Fine. I didn¡¯t want to have to use it, but this is the only way I¡¯ll even have a chance against him.
I covered the right side of my face with my hand before preparing myself to activate my right eye.
You see, despite how normal my eyes looked, they weren¡¯t normal at all. When I was young, my eyes were blessed by the two guardian spirits of the House of Yong, and as a result, my right eye gained the ability to gaze into the future, while my left eye was able to slow down my perception of time.
Using my right eye only shows me a still image, a single second in the future, and it makes me nauseous afterward too, but seeing as Kyle always moves immediately after I do, it won¡¯t be too much of a problem to just activate it once and see his next move.
I picked up my knight and carried it over to where I was originally planning to move, but right before it touched the board, I closed my left eye while channeling mana into my right eye.
My hand hid the silverish glow of my right eye, and my sight was replaced momentarily with a vision of the future. Kyle had made his move immediately afterward just like I suspected, and when I came back to my senses, I held down the urge to puke as my hand stopped in its tracks before swiftly moving my knight to another spot where Kyle¡¯s next move would have resulted in his rook being captured.
I moved my right hand to cover my mouth as I felt my stomach churn a bit while looking up at Kyle again. However, this time he didn¡¯t make his move immediately. Instead, he stared at the board for a moment in thought.
Heh. I¡¯ll admit it, Kyle. You¡¯re the most frightening opponent I¡¯ve ever faced. No more underestimating you. There¡¯s no way I can beat you without my full power, so I¡¯ll give you the respect you deserve and go all out!
A passionate smile made its way onto my face as a long-lost sense of excitement bubbled up inside of me again after so long. Finally, I was on an equal playing field again, facing a worthy opponent.
Now, make your move, Kyle!
I cried out internally as I pumped myself up, but before I could even think about my next move, Kyle¡¯s mocking voice rang out.
¡°Oho? Not bad, Raven. I guess I¡¯ll have to use ten percent of my power!¡± (Kyle)
I-Impossible... Ten percent? You mean he wasn¡¯t even trying before!?
My eyes widened in shock as Kyle¡¯s gaze sharpened.
¡°Wha-¡± (Raven)
I barely even saw him move.
Before I could even get a single word out, I was interrupted by the clack of wood as Kyle had already finished his move. A small burst of wind made my hair ruffle a bit, and when I finally looked down at the board again, the same pressure as before washed over me, only this time, it was much stronger.
¡°Check.¡± (Kyle)
That single word was like a death sentence. His bishop had taken one of my pawns and moved to a spot in between all of my pieces to put my king in check. It wasn¡¯t like before where he was playing defensively, always reacting to my move and slowly closing in on my king. This time, he was on the offensive. It was an insanely aggressive move, a suicidal blitz by his bishop.
D-Do I take it?... Or move my king to safety?... No, I have to take it! I¡¯m already too far behind! Even if he wants a war of attrition, I need every advantage I can get!
I grit my teeth and moved my knight to take his bishop, but the moment I placed my piece down, I saw a blur as Kyle¡¯s arm instantly reached past mine, and once again, the clack of wood rang out along with another small burst of wind.
¡°Checkmate.¡± (Kyle)
Ah, I see. So, I wasn¡¯t even an opponent in his eyes this whole time, huh? Even with my right eye, my full power was nothing compared to him.
¡°Do you want another rematch, Raven?¡± (Kyle)
¡°...No, I have to get back to my class now. You may be the victor today, but... I¡¯ll be back tomorrow!¡± (Raven)
¡°See you tomorrow then, Raven.¡± (Kyle)
After making my declaration, I left the room with a determined look on my face while passionate flames burned in my eyes.
Just wait, Kyle! I swear I¡¯ll surpass you!
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Kyle POV)
Ah, that felt refreshing. You know, even if he wasn¡¯t much of an opponent, I¡¯ll admit, it was pretty fun playing chess with Raven. Maybe tomorrow, I¡¯ll even go a little easier on him.
After Raven left the room, Halbert turned to me with a helpless smile on his face as he finished the last bite of his sandwich.
¡°Professor Kyle, maybe you should¡¯ve eased up on Professor Yong at the end there.¡± (Halbert)
¡°He started it, didn¡¯t he? At least it ended more peacefully than a fight.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Yeah, but he seemed kind of on edge after losing so much.¡± (Zane)
¡°W-Well, he did let Professor Kyle choose the game...¡± (Reina)
¡°Yep. What did he expect would happen?¡± (Sophie)
Sophie shrugged and put away her empty lunch box as I glanced at the clock before turning back to the class with a satisfied smile on my face.
¡°Eh, I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll be fine. Anyway, it¡¯s about time to start class again.¡± (Kyle)
Everyone cleaned up before gathering in front of the board again to study the alchemy circle we were going over today as I started to put away the chess set, but as I was gathering up the pieces, I felt something tug at my sleeve.
I turned around to see Mari grabbing my arm. She stared at me for a moment before clearing her throat with a slightly embarrassed look on her face.
¡°Ahem. Ky, do you have anything to do right now?¡± (Mari)
¡°Eh? No, not really. Why?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, then... if you¡¯re free, w-would you mind playing a game of chess with me?¡± (Mari)
¡°Oh? Are you sure you want to play such a dumb game with me?¡± (Kyle)
I gave Mari a smug smile and she lowered her head to stare at her arm while mumbling quietly to herself.
¡°What did you say, Mari? Sorry, I couldn¡¯t hear you. I''m a little busy cleaning up the pieces for this dumb game.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I said I was wrong, ok!? I-It looked kind of fun. There, I said it! Hmph.¡± (Mari)
I couldn¡¯t help but let out a light laugh as I sat there watching Mari pout cutely while crossing her arms.
¡°Sure then. Just give me a second to set up the pieces.¡± (Kyle)
A few moments later, Mari sat down across from me as we started our match. It was set up the exact same way as before, with Mari being the white side while I was the black side.
Well, this isn¡¯t a duel, so maybe I should go a little easy on her. Of course, I won¡¯t let her win so easily, but I should at least give her a chance, right?
¡°Alright, you can go first then.¡± (Kyle)
***
A couple of minutes later, I casually moved my last piece into place as I announced my victory.
¡°And that¡¯s checkmate.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Ah.¡± (Mari)
Mari stared at the board in surprise for a moment before immediately grabbing my arm again.
¡°I want a rematch, Ky!¡± (Mari)
¡ Just like Raven, huh? Well, I guess it¡¯s fine. It¡¯s nice to just relax every once in a while, and there¡¯s already an alchemy circle on the board for the class to study, so it¡¯s not like I¡¯ve got anything else to do anyway.
¡°Sure, but could you let go of my arm? I can¡¯t set the board up if you keep holding it like that...¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? S-Sorry.¡± (Mari)
Mari released her vice grip on my arm with a slightly embarrassed face before I set up the pieces again for our next match.
¡°Your move then, Mari.¡± (Kyle)
[Chapter 24] Lunchboxes Are the Best Type of Weapon for Attempted Assassination
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Kyle POV)
It was another beautiful day today. The sunlight outside was pouring into the classroom from the window and the sound of the birds chirping outside gave me a peaceful sense of tranquility, one which was immediately interrupted by the clack of wood, followed by Sophie¡¯s crystal clear voice.
¡°Checkmate.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Not again!¡± (Raven)
The sound of a chair scraping against the floor followed the outburst as Sophie jumped out of her seat with a proud smile on her face and turned to me with her hands on her hips while Raven fell to his knees in defeat.
A little over a month has passed since I had my duel with Raven, and after that first match, he¡¯s been coming over every day during lunchtime to play chess with me so as a result, we¡¯ve become pretty good friends. Surprisingly, the class eventually joined in on chess too, so to deal with the new influx of players, I had two new, more professional-looking chess sets made, and after about twenty or so games, we¡¯ve basically established a loose skill ranking.
At the top, of course, is yours truly, and right after me is Mari. Next, in third place is Sophie, while fourth and fifth place go to Halbert and Regnis, who are at about the same level. Sixth and seventh place are Reina and Zane who are also close to being equally skilled, and in last place... is Raven.
Honestly, I don¡¯t know where he¡¯s finding the determination to keep going after losing so much, even Mari lost most of her steam after losing to me about ten times in a row the first day I played against her.
I mean, occasionally he makes a good move or two, but he rarely learns from his mistakes, and after a few more games against him, I noticed that he only makes those good moves after covering his right eye. Furthermore, for some reason, it only works when he¡¯s playing against me.
Well, the mere fact he has some sort of secret weapon against me alone is probably why he keeps trying to play against me despite our levels being so vastly different, but I don¡¯t think he properly understands that I¡¯m the final boss, the level ninety-nine demon lord if you will, while he¡¯s still a level one hero who just started off on his journey. Just because you have one attack that¡¯s super effective against me doesn¡¯t mean you can just go ahead and skip past the other ninety-eight levels!
Unfortunately for Raven though, even a demon lord gets bored after a while, and just stomping him like usual isn¡¯t much fun anymore. I came to the conclusion that he can¡¯t improve much from only playing against me either, so recently, I¡¯ve begun to outsource my games against him to my loyal demon generals, aka my students, while I sit by and play against someone else, watch the match, or read a book.
¡°How was that, Professor Kyle? It only took twenty-two moves to beat him this time.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Hmm, nice job, Sophie. As expected of my first general.¡± (Kyle)
I held my chin up with my hand as I nodded in approval while looking at the final state of the board. Sophie had systematically hunted down most of Raven¡¯s pieces before cornering his king, making this her fourteenth win against Raven.
¡°Hmph. Naturally.¡± (Sophie)
I held my hand out towards Sophie and we exchanged a quick high-five before we both turned to stare at Raven who was looking up at us from the floor.
¡°Alright, are you ready, Sophie?¡± (Kyle)
¡°On the count of three like always, right?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Yep.¡± (Kyle)
Sophie and I simultaneously plastered smug grins on our faces as I held my closed fist up.
¡°One¡¡± (Kyle)
I extended my pointer finger upwards to start the countdown while Sophie held her hand up to cover her mouth.
¡°Two¡¡± (Kyle)
My middle finger followed my pointer finger forming my hand into a peace sign as I could hear a few faint giggles already starting to leak out from Sophie.
¡°Three!¡± (Kyle)
Finally, my ring finger shot up, completing the countdown as Sophie finally couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore and we both pointed at Raven while laughing hysterically.
¡°Damn it! Damn it all!¡± (Raven)
Raven slammed his fist against the ground in frustration and Sophie and I danced around him while we continued to make fun of him.
¡°I¡¯ll get you back for this humiliation one day, Ky!¡± (Raven)
¡°Oh? You¡¯ll get me back, Raven? Let me ask you then, how are you going to defeat me, the demon lord, when you can¡¯t even beat one of my loyal generals?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Kuh!¡± (Raven)
A few moments later, after our laughter finally died down, Halbert let out a dry chuckle before calling out to us with a helpless look on his face.
¡°Umm, maybe you should give him a break, you two.¡± (Halbert)
¡°A break? Those are some bold words coming from my second general himself.¡± (Kyle)
I gave Halbert a hearty chuckle as Regnis and Zane each grabbed one of his shoulders with understanding smirks on their faces.
¡°The enemy¡¯s humiliation deserves no remorse, Halbert.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Yeah. After all, we have to celebrate our victory somehow, don¡¯t we?¡± (Zane)
¡°Well said, my third and fourth generals.¡± (Kyle)
We all exchanged a few more laughs at Raven¡¯s expense before Mari¡¯s annoyed voice interrupted us from across the room.
¡°Oi, can you idiots quiet down!? I¡¯m trying to play a game here!¡± (Mari)
After yelling at us, she turned back to Reina and the annoyed look on her face instantly transformed into a blissful smile as she cheerfully placed her piece down on the board in front of her.
¡°Alright, it¡¯s your turn, Reina.¡± (Mari)
¡°... Mou¡¡± (Reina)
Reina let out a cute groan as she held her head in her hands while staring at the chessboard in front of her with a distressed look on her face.
¡°It¡¯s ok, you can take your time.¡± (Mari)
I¡¯m sorry, my fifth general, but even this demon lord himself can¡¯t save you this time, so all I can say is that I¡¯ll make sure to remember you. Thanks for your service.
I sent off my fifth general with a short salute before turning back to the rest of the class and clearing my throat to get their attention.
¡°Ahem. So like I was saying, it¡¯s fine, Halbert. At this point, I¡¯m sure he¡¯s already used to it, and it¡¯s not like we really mean any of it. It¡¯s all in good fun, right?¡± (Kyle)
I turned to Raven, who let out a sigh before getting up with a bitter smile on his face while patting off his clothes.
¡°Yeah¡ Anyway, I have to get back to class now. But I¡¯ll be back tomorrow like usual! So just wash your neck and wait, Ky!¡± (Raven)
¡°Eh? Is it already time? See you tomorrow then.¡± (Kyle)
I waved goodbye to Raven before he stormed out of the classroom with a glint of renewed determination in his eyes. A few minutes passed by as I cleaned up the chess set while Mari and Reina finished up their game, and shortly after, Reina joined the rest of the class again with a defeated look on her face. Sophie consoled her with a smile as I led everyone up to the chalkboard where a complicated light-element alchemy circle was drawn on the board.
¡°Ok, so what can you guys tell me about this alchemy circle?¡± (Kyle)
I pointed to the alchemy circle on the chalkboard as Sophie opened up her notebook before her hand immediately shot up.
¡°Yes, Sophie¡± (Kyle)
¡°This alchemy circle is the one for¡¾Radiant Barrier¡¿. It¡¯s a light-element alchemy circle that generates a flat, circular barrier of mana, similar to many basic defensive spells. Here, I¡¯ve drawn another diagram detailing all the sub-designs I know the function of that are in this alchemy circle. Can you double check if everything¡¯s right, Professor Kyle?¡± (Sophie)
Sophie held her notebook out and showed us the absurdly complicated diagram that she drew before handing it to me as I let out a light cough.
Urgh. So this is what I get for actually trying to teach, huh? She¡¯s looking at me with that excited twinkle in her eyes again. What do I do? Uh¡
My eyes darted around the room as I desperately searched for something to help me get out of this situation before eventually staring out the window. Luckily, the weather outside today was nice and warm¡ in fact, it was almost perfect weather for practical training!
Yeah, practical training! Now that I think about it, we haven¡¯t practiced drawing alchemy circles at all, so we can just do that for the rest of the day. It¡¯ll be a nice break from just regurgitating random alchemy circles on the board every day too.¡¾Radiant Barrier¡¿is even a pretty good circle to test their skills. It¡¯s not insanely difficult to draw, but it¡¯s not too easy either, and it¡¯s easy to test. We can just set up their alchemy circles on some training dummies and I¡¯ll whack the barrier a couple of times to see how strong it is. It¡¯s perfect!
I stared at the diagram for a moment before closing her notebook and handing it back to her.
¡°Uh, everything looks correct to me. Anyway, just to make sure, you¡¯ve all copied down the alchemy circle somewhere, right?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah. Why?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Well, I was just thinking, it¡¯s a beautiful day today, so how about we move class outside and practice drawing this alchemy circle? After all,¡¾Radiant Barrier¡¿is a pretty useful one to know, so I want to make sure you can all draw this one correctly.¡± (Kyle)
I smiled and pointed towards the window at the clear blue sky outside, but unfortunately, my enthusiasm was met with a mixture of confusion and concern. Reina, Regnis, and Zane had varying degrees of surprise written on their faces, while Sophie and Halbert were giving me worried looks.
¡°Wait, you mean we¡¯re actually going to be doing something other than staring at the board today!?¡± (Zane)
¡°Professor Kyle, are you sure you don¡¯t need to sit down for a moment?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Is it that surprising for me to actually do my job for once!?¡± (Kyle)
Royal Academy, Training Field (Kyle POV)
A deep breath of fresh air entered my lungs as I stared at the wide-open training field in front of me before shielding my eyes from the sun with my free hand as I gazed at the clouds in the sky.
Ah, it really is nice out today. I guess summer hasn¡¯t completely disappeared yet, huh?
A light breeze blew past me, making my hair flow a little in the wind as the corners of my mouth couldn¡¯t help but edge upwards into a light smile before I slowly walked over to the middle of the field to place down the wooden training dummy I was carrying.
Mari opted not to join us and went back to her office for the day after I told her that we were moving outside, so what met my eyes when I turned around was the class lined up in front of me holding their notebooks.
¡°Alright, so we¡¯re gonna be testing out your circle drawing skills today. Who wants to go first?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Is that even a question at this point, Ky? We all know who it¡¯s gonna be.¡± (Zane)
Zane let out a dry laugh as Sophie pulled out two vials of golden-colored liquid along with a similarly colored monster core before turning to me with an excited smile.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
¡°Of course. Leave it to me!¡± (Sophie)
¡°Well, I think just using a regular pen would be fine, but I guess you can use enchanted ink if you want to. I¡¯m warning you though, it¡¯s pretty hard to get it right on the first try.¡± (Kyle)
¡°It¡¯s fine. I have plenty of enchanted ink.¡± (Sophie)
Sophie walked up to the wooden dummy and a few minutes later, a complete alchemy circle for¡¾Radiant Barrier¡¿was neatly drawn in the middle of the torso. She held the light-element monster core up to the circle before silently activating it with her mana as a bright yellow light shone from the alchemy circle and a circular shield made of light-element mana formed in front of the dummy. It was large enough to cover the whole dummy and the shield itself was faintly transparent, which meant that Sophie had drawn and activated it correctly.
¡°Alright, how¡¯s that?¡± (Sophie)
I lightly knocked on the middle of the shield like I was knocking on a door, and every time my hand made contact, a small wave of mana rippled through the shield from the point of contact, canceling out the impact from my knocking.
¡°Looks good to me. Ok, so now that we have a shield, the first thing I want you guys to know about is the shield¡¯s limit. A single cast activation of¡¾Radiant Barrier¡¿can just barely block a third-circle spell, so while it is a decently strong shield, don¡¯t think you¡¯re invincible just because you¡¯re standing behind it. You have to keep its maximum durability in mind.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Maximum durability? I only did a single cast activation, but since I used light-element enhancement ink, it should be more durable than usual.¡± (Sophie)
I stared at the shield again for a moment before turning back to the class with a nonchalant shrug.
¡°Hmm, well, I¡¯m not exactly sure how durable it is if the circle was drawn with enchanted ink, so I guess we can test it out.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Alright, looks like it¡¯s my turn to shine then. Everyone stand back, I¡¯ll hit it with a third-circle wind spell to start.¡± (Zane)
¡°Eh? It¡¯s fine, you don¡¯t need to.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Huh? Wait, then how would we test it?¡± (Zane)
Zane stared at me with a confused look on his face as I lightly knocked on the shield again.
¡°Well, we can just hit the shield directly, can¡¯t we? Why bother casting a spell and wasting your mana?¡± (Kyle)
¡°H-Hit it?¡± (Reina)
¡°Yeah.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Uhh, we don¡¯t have any weapons with us though...¡± (Halbert)
¡°We don¡¯t need a weapon. A fist works just fine, doesn¡¯t it?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Magic and martial techniques aren¡¯t your only options to attack, you know. Sometimes just straight-up punches and kicks are viable too.¡± (Kyle)
I cracked my knuckles and turned around to face the wooden training dummy before calling out to everyone.
¡°For example, like this.¡± (Kyle)
My body struck a simple stance and I pulled my fist back, holding it against the side of my waist before sharply exhaling as it shot forward. The moment it made contact with the shield, a huge pulse of mana rippled through it and I felt some resistance for a moment before my fist broke right through. The sound of glass shattering rang out and my fist stopped right before it smashed into the wooden dummy as the small burst of wind generated from my punch made my clothes and hair flutter a bit.
Damn. I might be a little off, but it seemed like it could¡¯ve taken a good bit more than just a single third-circle spell, maybe even two third-circle. Even if it was drawn using enchanted ink, the fact that it¡¯s this durable in the first place means that Sophie drew it almost perfectly. On her first try too. I knew she was talented, but this is kind of unbelievable. The first time I drew¡¾Radiant Barrier¡¿, it took me about three attempts before I even got it barely working. I guess Mari was right. This really is the golden generation, huh?
After breaking the shield, I returned to a casual standing position before turning back around to face the shocked class with a shaky look on my face as a cold sweat ran down my face.
¡°That¡¾Radiant Barrier¡¿was almost twice as strong as normal. Your talent for alchemy¡¯s pretty scary, Sophie.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait, I¡¯m the scary one!? You¡¯re the one who can punch straight through barriers without body strengthening magic!¡± (Sophie)
***
The sound of glass shattering rang out again as I smashed Zane¡¯s¡¾Radiant Barrier¡¿before I turned around to see him collapse to the ground in exhaustion while letting out a sigh of relief.
¡°Hmm, it¡¯s a little weaker than usual, but considering you just used normal pen, I think you did a pretty decent job this time, Zane. This one gets a pass from me.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Urgh. Finally. What was that, my thirteenth try?¡± (Zane)
¡°Fourteenth, actually.¡± (Regnis)
¡°How the hell did you do it so perfectly on your first try, Sophie!? Ky was right, your talent really is scary.¡± (Zane)
¡°Well, it¡¯s not my fault you suck at drawing circles.¡± (Sophie)
¡°You¡¯re just a freak! Do you even know how hard it was to get all those tiny details right!?¡± (Zane)
Actually, what time is it?
Zane and Sophie started to bicker in the background again while Reina and Halbert tried to stop them, but I just ignored the whole spectacle and stared up at the sky again. Judging by the position of the sun, it was about time for class to end. Luckily though, everyone already managed to draw a working¡¾Radiant Barrier¡¿at least once, and honestly, they were all pretty good at it. Reina only took about five tries before she managed to draw a decently working one and it took Halbert eight attempts to get a working one, while Regnis took nine. As mentioned before, Zane took fourteen tries and Sophie¡ well, I kind of expected her to be a monster at alchemy from the beginning, but let¡¯s just say she really lives up to her reputation. Anyway, that¡¯s good enough for today I think. I should probably dismiss them now.
¡°Hmm, it looks like we¡¯re out of time for today, so I guess class is dismissed. See you all tomorrow.¡± (Kyle)
Solria, Middle District, Irisveil Mansion (Aria POV)
The first thing I heard when I woke up was the faint sound of the birds chirping outside, and a moment later, I slowly opened my eyes to see my ceiling, illuminated by the morning sunlight. After sitting up in bed, I rubbed my eyes for a bit and let out a yawn before turning to gaze out my window at the clouds leisurely floating through the sky as a sense of lethargy spread through me. A few more moments passed by while I stared blankly at the vast blue sky outside before the sound of light knocking on my door snapped me back to my senses.
¡°Aria, you awake yet? Breakfast is ready.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Y-Yeah.¡± (Aria)
I moved my legs over and leaned back on my bed again while stretching when suddenly the door opened to reveal Ky standing there with his apron on. We locked eyes and I froze up mid-stretch as he stared at me for a moment before giving me a slightly disappointed look.
¡°You just woke up, didn¡¯t you?...¡± (Kyle)
¡°N-No, I¡ ¡± (Aria)
I scrambled through my head to think of an excuse, but before I could come up with one, Ky let out a faint sigh as he walked over to me. I sat up in an embarrassed panic as he got closer, but after a moment, he was already standing right in front of me.
¡°Come on, it¡¯s almost seven. Here, let me fix your hair.¡± (Kyle)
Eh?
¡°W-Wait!¡± (Aria)
I felt his hands softly plop down on my head. They were radiating with a familiar warmth, and a moment passed by before he started to run through my hair, straightening it out as a faint blush spread to the tips of my ears.
I¡¯m pretty sure Ky only took about a minute to fix my hair, but that one minute felt like ten to me and when he finished, he took a step back to look at me before giving me a gentle smile. I immediately broke eye contact with him and lowered my head to stare at my legs as I felt my heart rate rising.
¡°Ok, all done. Go wash your face and change out of your pajamas then meet me downstairs for breakfast. Today¡¯s gonna be eggs and bacon.¡± (Kyle)
Ky left my room after that, and when I finally heard the last of his footsteps disappear, I immediately picked up my pillow and buried my face in it as I let out a cute whimper before starting to calm myself down.
¡°... augh¡¡± (Aria)
Solria, Middle District, Irisveil Mansion (Kyle POV)
Soft sunlight shone into the kitchen from the window and warmed me up slightly as a faint breeze made the curtains flutter before spreading the delicious aroma of eggs and bacon into the living room. It was a picturesque scene of a peaceful morning and I couldn¡¯t help but cheerfully hum a tune while I sat at the dining table reading a book. Two plates of eggs and bacon were sitting in front of me and just as I flipped to the next page, I saw a hint of red out of the corner of my eye. I lowered the book in my hands and turned towards the kitchen entrance to see Aria¡¯s head popping out from behind the wall.
¡°Hey, what are you waiting for? Sit down and eat. You¡¯ll be late.¡± (Kyle)
We made eye contact for a moment and she let out a soft grumble before walking into the room.
¡°Mmm¡¡± (Aria)
She took a seat across from me and picked up her utensils as I put my book down and followed suit, but before I could even say anything else, she abruptly stood up in her seat as she glanced at the clock.
¡°Ah. Wait, is it half-past seven already!?¡± (Aria)
¡°I told you that you¡¯d be late if you didn¡¯t hurry up, didn¡¯t I?... Well, it¡¯s too late to regret it now. Just eat quickly.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Urgh.¡± (Aria)
A few minutes later, Aria dropped her utensils onto her plate with a clang as she finished wolfing down her breakfast before running out of the kitchen in a panic while I took her empty plate and put it in the sink.
¡°Thanks, Ky. I¡¯m heading out.¡± (Aria)
¡°Alright, see you later.¡± (Kyle)
After that, I heard the sound of the door opening and closing before quiet returned to the house as I finished eating breakfast myself.
***
I placed the last of the dishes on the drying rack with a light clang and turned off the sink as I glanced over at the clock on the wall.
It¡¯s almost eight already, huh? Guess I should start heading to class.
A moment passed by as I stretched my arms a bit after cleaning the dishes, but as I walked out of the kitchen, I saw something unexpected. Sitting on the living room table was a familiar-looking lunchbox. It was Aria¡¯s lunchbox. I walked over and stared at it for a moment before letting out a disappointed sigh.
¡°... Of course she forgot it¡¡± (Kyle)
Well, looking at the time, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll make it to the 7th Squad barracks and back to the academy before class starts so¡ I guess I¡¯ll have to go drop it off it to her during lunchtime.
Solria, Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Kyle POV)
The faint hustle and bustle of the city echoed out in the background as I made my way towards the 7th Squad barracks with Aria¡¯s lunchbox in hand. It was about a quarter past noon, and lunchtime for the class started a while ago. Raven came over to visit like usual rambling about how today was the day that he would finally defeat me, but unfortunately for him, I had a certain idiot¡¯s lunchbox to drop off today, so after pushing my match with him onto Mari, I went on my merry way, bringing us to my current situation.
After a few minutes of walking, I finally arrived in front of the large metal gate to a familiar dojo-style building. The same old plaque labeled ¡®7th Squad¡¯ that was stuck on the front of the building told me that I was indeed at the right place, but it seemed like there wasn¡¯t much happening today because I didn¡¯t see anyone behind the gate when I walked up to it.
Damn, I was hoping someone would be out here to let me in. Should I climb over?... Eh? Wait, it¡¯s open.
Yep, that¡¯s right, the gate was open. You see, when I walked up and nudged it slightly I was prepared to vault myself over it, but it just opened by itself.
I guess someone forgot to lock it¡ Well, whatever. Easier for me I guess.
After closing the gate behind me, I started to walk over to the front door of the 7th Squad barracks, when suddenly I saw someone round the corner from the right side of the building.
It was a young man who was dressed in the 7th Squad uniform with a sheathed longsword hanging at his left hip. He had a head full of blonde hair, which contrasted against his bright green eyes, and a moment passed by while we stared at each other before he started to dash over with a serious look on his face.
Oh, looks like someone actually is here today. Perfect, I can probably just drop off Aria¡¯s lunch to him.
¡°Ah. Hi, are you-¡± (Kyle)
I smiled nicely and raised my free hand up to wave hello, but before I could even finish my sentence, the tip of his longsword was held at my throat as he yelled at me while radiating ill-intent.
¡°Who are you!?¡± (Knight)
Ah, I see. So it¡¯s gonna be one of those days, huh?
Solria, Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Edward POV)
I could feel a light breeze blowing past my face as I stood there with my eyes closed while the chirping of the birds blended in with the faint drone of the city. Then, I opened my eyes, and the background noise was drowned out by the sound of my sword slicing through the air as I took a step forward. A few swift swings later, I resheathed my longsword at my left hip and let out a sigh to release most of my body¡¯s tension after finishing my daily practice routine.
Looking up at the sky told me that it was a little past noon, about time for me to head back inside and eat lunch.
Speaking of which, Captain Aria said she lost her lunchbox today, right? Well, if she didn¡¯t find it yet... maybe this is my chance to impress her. I¡¯ll give her some, no, all of mine. After all, it¡¯s a proper gentleman¡¯s duty to help a beautiful maiden through her troubles, and well... it wouldn¡¯t hurt if she saw how nice I was and fell for me too.
The mental image of a beautiful woman with flowing, crimson-red hair surfaced in my mind as I held my chin in my hand while the corners of my mouth curved upwards into an expectant smile before I reminisced about the first time we met.
I¡¯ll admit, when I first met her, I didn¡¯t think much of her. She was very pretty, but I¡¯ve seen a lot of pretty women in my time, and just being pretty wasn¡¯t enough for me. However, if there¡¯s one thing I¡¯ll never forget, it¡¯s those cold, yet beautiful, red eyes staring down at me as she helped me up after easily crushing me with just a practice sword during our duel for the position of captain.
That was the first day we met, and also the exact moment that she stole my heart. I don¡¯t know what everyone else thinks of her, but to me, Captain Aria was more than just a pretty face. She was strong, she was noble, and despite her cold outward demeanor, she was even gentle.
A few moments passed before I let out a sigh and finally returned to my senses.
Well, I should head inside. Everyone¡¯s probably waiting for me.
I turned around to walk towards the door to the training room. However, as I was about to enter the training room, the sound of the faint creaking of the front gate caught my attention.
Hmm? Did someone go out?
I spread my mana out as I tried to sense who it was, but I could vaguely tell that everyone else was inside... whereas there wasn¡¯t a single mana signature by the gate.
Hmm, strange...
I immediately turned suspicious as I changed directions and started to walk towards the front gate instead. When I finally rounded the corner, what I saw was a man in a dress shirt with a red tie loosely tied around his neck. He had a head of long white hair that was tied into a ponytail, and his golden-colored eyes met mine for a moment as we stared at each other, but his appearance wasn¡¯t the important part, what was important was that in his hand, he was holding a familiar looking lunchbox, one that I had seen plenty of times. It was Captain Aria¡¯s lunchbox.
Once I saw him, I immediately tried to sense his mana signature again, but it was the same as before, absolutely nothing.
He has no mana signature¡ Is he a thief trying to steal Captain Aria¡¯s lunchbox? No, probably not. Since he¡¯s capable of completely hiding his mana signature, he¡¯s definitely skilled, not the type of petty thief who only steals food, and there are plenty of things more valuable than Captain Aria¡¯s lunch that he could steal instead¡ Wait. Could it be? Is he an assassin of some sort trying to poison Captain Aria¡¯s lunch!? That would make sense seeing as it looks more like he was trying to sneak in!
After coming to my conclusion, I immediately dashed over to apprehend the intruder as I grabbed the hilt of my sword.
¡°Ah. Hi, are you-¡± (Intruder)
I heard him call out to me in a friendly voice to try to lower my guard, but the instant I saw his hand move, I pulled out my sword. It flashed through the air before stopping right at his neck as I yelled at him.
¡°Who are you!?¡± (Edward)
Nice try, but I¡¯m not so easily fooled. I¡¯ll make you pay for this. How dare you make an attempt on Captain Aria¡¯s life!
[Chapter 25] Everyone Has to Enter for No Reason, Its a Time-Honored Tradition!
Solria, Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Edward POV)
¡°Who are you!?¡± (Edward)
In front of me stood an intruder, frozen as the edge of my sword pressed close to the base of his neck. Bright, noontime sunlight reflected off the metal blade in my hands as I channeled mana through my body, chantlessly activating my body strengthening magic. My vision sharpened and I instantly felt lighter as mana coursed from my core through to the tips of my fingers.
My eyes shifted, and a quick glance let me look over the intruder again. His average looking outfit, no, his disguise made him seem like a harmless civilian, but in contrast, the look on his face told me he was definitely a dangerous individual. I made eye contact once again to see a fake, lifeless smile plastered on the intruder¡¯s face, and despite his efforts, it was quite obvious that under that fake smile he was quite angry.
Thoughts about what to do next ran through my head like lightning, but in the end, it all circled back to one thing.
I should apprehend the intruder first.
¡°This is private property of the 7th Squad Knights.¡± (Edward)
My eyes sharpened and I glared intensely at the intruder, making sure there were no sudden movements from him while adjusting my footing a bit so it would be easier for me to immediately get into a stance. After all, if he really was an assassin, then it was likely he had some kind of hidden weapon or spell.
¡°Yes, I¡¯m well aware.¡± (Intruder)
¡°How did you get in here?¡± (Edward)
¡°How did I get in? Simple. One of you idiots left the gate open.¡± (Intruder)
I took a quick glance at the open gate behind him before shifting my line of sight back onto him.
Huh? Left the gate open? What kind of fool does he take me for?
I opened my mouth to say something when suddenly his arm holding Captain Aria¡¯s lunchbox moved outwards towards me.
¡°Look, I¡¯m just-¡± (Intruder)
A hidden weapon!?
I kicked against the ground with my leg, taking a step forward as I smoothly shifted into a proper stance before counterattacking the intruder. Mana flowed through the blade of my sword as I activated¡¾Mana Edge¡¿. It swung inward, flying straight towards his arm while a hazy white light covered my blade, but right before my sword made contact, his arm disappeared in a blur. The intruder stepped back while simultaneously retracting his arm out of the way at an incredible speed to dodge my swing.
As my right arm completed the arc of my swing, my legs shifted and carried that momentum by spinning around before rushing forward to close the distance. A diagonally downward swing from my right side sliced towards the intruder, but once again his body blurred as he took half a step out of the way, just barely dodging the swing.
Tsk. He¡¯s fast, huh? I¡¯ll have to get serious then! I can¡¯t let him escape!
My left leg stomped forward to chase after the intruder as he leaped back a few feet. As the arc of my swing ended, I reversed the momentum to make another wide, horizontal swing at him while simultaneously channeling light-element mana into my sword. A yellow glow replaced the hazy white light covering my sword and a blade of light-element mana emerged from the tip of my sword while I swung. After activating my sword technique, I immediately dashed forward again, following right behind my sword technique as it flew towards the intruder, who yelled at me.
¡°Oi! Are you crazy!?¡± (Intruder)
The intruder jumped upwards into the air to avoid my sword technique while the edge of my sword shot towards him in the air.
Even more light-element mana surged through my sword as I activated a Novarel-style sword technique. The yellow glow covering my blade solidified into a razor-sharp edge and I put strength into my legs as I lunged forward with my full body weight into a diagonal upwards swing. In an instant, my sword was just inches away from the intruder while he was still mid-air.
I¡¯d like to see you try and dodge now! Take this!
I was sure I about to slice straight through him or at least wound him severely, but unfortunately, it seemed that in my rush to try and land a hit, I had the misconception that he would only dodge.
His hand shot out again, however, this time, it moved toward my sword. It made contact with the flat of my blade and a violent impact resonated through the sword into my arms as the intruder knocked my blade out of the way.
What!?
My sword flew wildly in a different direction and I clenched the handle of my sword a little harder to stop the shaking in my hands before immediately shifting the momentum into another wide horizontal swing, but it was too late. The intruder had already reached the ground, and a step to the side put him just barely out of the range of my swing. I took another step closer to chase after him again before making another swing at his legs while he continued to yell at me.
¡°Wait! Stop! I¡¯m not an enemy!¡± (Intruder)
Streaks of light from the mana coating my sword formed into afterimages of the arcs of my swings as I lashed out several times with a familiar chain of attacks I must have practiced at least a thousand times before. My mastery of Novarel-style swordsmanship was on full display as I gradually sped up with every attack, seamlessly bending the momentum from each swing into a new one at a different angle. However, I wasn¡¯t the only one who sped up.
A step forward into a straight thrust, a spin followed by a wide horizontal slash, an almost instant shift back into a downward cleave, none of it even touched his clothes. No matter what angle I swung, thrust, or slashed at the intruder from, my sword either just didn¡¯t connect at all or was knocked away just enough to barely miss him, and even with my enhanced kinetic vision, there were a few times where the intruder¡¯s movements were just a blur.
It was like he was dancing around my blade.
¡°Just listen to me for a second, damn it!¡± (Intruder)
The intruder cried out for me to stop, but I ignored his request as I pumped more mana into my body strengthening magic.
I have to be faster! One hit! One hit is all I need!
A frenzied surge of mana spread through my body, my kinetic vision sharpened to its limit, and a split-second later, the ground beneath me cracked a bit as I instantly shot forward with a yell to make one last swing at the intruder¡¯s right side.
¡°Uwoohhhh!¡± (Edward)
Then he moved.
The intruder threw Captain Aria¡¯s lunchbox straight up towards the sky before stepping closer, past my sword to grab my arm. He kicked forward at a low angle, sweeping my legs while he pulled me inward to break my balance, and before I could even react, my sword had left my hands as I was thrown into the air behind the intruder.
Crap!
I grit my teeth, held my arm out towards him, and started a short chant to fire a second-circle light spell at him while I was still upside down in mid-air.
¡°¡¾Brilliant Arrow¡¿!¡± (Edward)
Two magic circles appeared in front of my open palm, rotating in opposite directions as an arrow made of light-element mana emerged and shot towards the intruder¡¯s back. I flipped around to land upright on my legs before immediately looking back up at the intruder, but instead of an injured intruder, what met my eyes was an instantaneous flash of steel. The intruder spun around to face me, and a single swing from my own sword easily shattered the arrow of light into particles of mana. I started to get up again to try and cast another spell at the intruder when suddenly he shifted forward. The ground beneath his legs cracked before a small burst of wind made my hair rustle as my sword was held at my throat. A sharp pair of golden eyes pierced through me and I froze as a chill ran down my spine while his cold voice rang out.
¡°Have you calmed down now?¡± (Intruder)
Solria, Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Kyle POV)
¡°Have you calmed down now?¡± (Kyle)
A moment passed as I stood there holding a 7th Squad Knight¡¯s own blade up to his throat before letting out a sigh, dropping my death glare, and stabbing the sword into the ground in front of him as I facepalmed.
Well, it seems like the idiot looking for a fight in front of me finally stopped, all it took was an immediate threat to his life. I try to do something nice for once, and of course, the first person I meet is the one guy who¡¯s way too eager to let his sword taste blood! He wouldn¡¯t even stop to listen to me for a second! All I wanted to do was drop off Aria¡¯s lunch quickly and leave! I didn¡¯t even have mine yet!... Wait... Why do I feel like I¡¯m forgetting about something¡ Ah.
Aria¡¯s lunch!
I immediately turned around in a panic to face where I just came from to see a lunchbox a few feet above the ground and strength poured into my legs as I dove forward to catch the lunchbox. Luckily, I managed to barely just save it in time as I pounced forward and grabbed it in mid-air before hugging it close so I could break the impact from the fall with my body. After rolling on the ground for a bit, I finally came to a stop and my limbs flopped over to my side as I laid there on the ground with a perfectly safe lunchbox sitting on top of my chest.
¡ Why is it that every time I come to the 7th Squad barracks, I immediately get attacked?...
A moment passed as the knight and I both sat there frozen in silence before suddenly I heard the sound of a door being slammed open followed by Lillian¡¯s voice.
¡°Edward! We heard screaming! What¡¯s wrong!?¡± (Lillian)
Lillian burst out into the front yard of the 7th Squad barracks followed shortly by Alain and another woman. She was dressed in the 7th Squad uniform too and long, sky-blue colored hair along with a pair of similarly colored eyes contrasted against the white of her uniform.
Three pairs of eyes vigilantly scanned across the yard to assess the situation, and I don¡¯t know about the bloodthirsty idiot over there who I assume is Edward, but there wasn¡¯t much fight left in me. A moment passed by as I locked eyes with Lillian, Alain, and the blue-haired knight before the distressed looks on Lillian and Alain¡¯s faces transformed into confusion.
¡°Eh? Ky?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Oh, Ky, is that you?¡± (Alain)
I lifted Aria¡¯s lunchbox off my chest and slowly got up before patting my clothes off as I let out a tired sigh.
¡°Yeah, it¡¯s me¡¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait! Do you guys who the intruder is!?¡± (Edward)
¡°I was trying to tell you this whole time! I¡¯m not an intruder!¡± (Kyle)
I turned around to yell at Edward who had also gotten back up, picked up his sword, and was now pointing it toward me again.
¡°Uh... What happened?¡± (Alain)
Alain stared back and forth between us as I turned to him to explain when Edward¡¯s voice cut me off.
¡°So-¡± (Kyle)
¡°Alain, I found this suspicious person trespassing a few minutes ago! He was standing near the front door, and when I interrogated him about how he got in, he lied about the gate being open!¡± (Edward)
¡°I¡¯m telling you! The gate really was open! You¡¯re the one who immediately put a sword to my throat when I tried to say hello and explain myself!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Lies! The gate¡¯s been locked since this morning! I was the last one to use it, and I distinctly remember locking it!¡± (Edward)
¡°Ah, I see. So it looks like you really won¡¯t listen unless I beat it into you, huh?¡± (Kyle)
I stepped forward while cracking my knuckles and Edward grit his teeth before taking a stance again when Lillian got in between us and waved her arms around frantically with an embarrassed look on her face to stop us.
¡°W-Wait, you two! Stop!... Umm, Edward, I think Ky¡¯s telling the truth¡ I, uh, may have gone out earlier because I forgot something at home, and, uh, well, I guess I forgot to lock the gate when I came back¡ Hehe...¡± (Lillian)
Edward was at a loss for words as he lowered his sword while Lillian laughed dryly and twiddled her fingers with a sheepish smile on her face, and a rejuvenating sense of satisfaction filled my heart when I saw Edward turn to me with a resentful look on his face while crossing his arms.
¡°Fine! Maybe I was wrong about the gate, but it doesn¡¯t change the fact that he was sneaking around! And look, he even has Captain Aria¡¯s missing lunchbox!¡± (Edward)
Edward turned to Lillian while pointing to Aria¡¯s lunchbox in my hand as everyone turned to me.
¡°Oh, right. Thanks for reminding me. Here, Lillian. I just came over to drop this off, so give this to Aria.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh?¡± (Lillian)
After turning to Lillian, I plunked Aria¡¯s lunchbox down in her hands as Edward yelled out for Lillian to stop.
¡°Lillian, careful! That food might be poisoned! Quick, just help me capture the intruder first!¡± (Edward)
Edward picked up his sword again, but Alain immediately ran over to hold him back as Lillian tried to convince him to calm down.
¡°W-Wait! Edward, calm down! He¡¯s not a suspicious person or trying to poison Captain Aria!¡± (Lillian)
¡°Not suspicious? Why is he hiding his mana signature then?¡± (Edward)Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.
¡°He¡¯s not hiding his mana signature, he doesn¡¯t have one! He¡¯s manaless! And anyway, he¡¯s Captain Aria¡¯s friend who usually makes her lunch! Why would he try to poison her!?¡± (Alain)
¡°M-Manaless!? Impossible!... W-Wait, but that means I-!¡± (Edward)
Edward stared at me in shock as an embarrassed fluster spread through his face before I saw another head pop into my field of vision from my side.
A pair of eyes scanned over me as the blue-haired knight from earlier pulled out a small notepad and a pen before circling around me with a curious look on her face like she was inspecting something.
¡°Umm¡ Can I help you miss?...¡± (Kyle)
I stared at her with an awkward smile, but only the sound of her pen scratching against paper answered me as she scribbled in her notepad.
¡°Hmm¡¡±
A few moments passed as she circled me one last time before stopping in front of me, crossing her arms, and nodding to herself.
¡°So just to confirm, you¡¯re only Captain Aria¡¯s ¡®friend,¡¯ right?¡±
¡ Why do I have a bad feeling about this?...
¡°Y-Yeah.¡± (Kyle)
The moment I answered her, her eyes lit up with a sparkle and before I could even get another word out she introduced herself.
¡°Perfect! Nice to meet you then, Sir Ky. My name is Charlotte Linne. Now, this might seem a bit strange to ask, but could you do me a favor and quickly fill out this form for me?¡± (Charlotte)
Charlotte pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to me as she stared at me with an excited smile. After a bit of hesitation, I reached out to received the piece of paper from her, but just as I grasped it, I heard Lillian yell out to interrupt us.
¡°Wait, Charlotte! Stop!¡± (Lillian)
I turned to my side and saw Lillian rush towards us with a panicked look on her face before snatching the piece of paper out of my hand and crumpling it up while letting out a sigh of relief.
¡°Ah! The registration form!¡± (Charlotte)
Eh? Registration form?
¡°Charlotte, didn¡¯t Captain Aria tell you to stop with the forms!?¡± (Lillian)
Lillian scolded Charlotte with an embarrassed look on her face as Charlotte crossed her arms and lowered her head a little to stare at the floor before answering in a serious voice.
¡°... Heh. Stop? If there¡¯s one thing I¡¯ll never do, it¡¯s stop! Captain Aria could beat me up a hundred times, and I still wouldn¡¯t stop!¡± (Charlotte)
Charlotte raised her head again, and passionate flames burned in her eyes as she pointed to the sky with a fiery resolve in her voice.
¡°I can¡¯t stop! Not until I achieve my dream, no, my life¡¯s purpose! I swear on the name, Charlotte Linne, that I will obtain a harem of pretty boys to spoil me rotten or die trying!¡± (Charlotte)
I stood there at a complete loss for words as Charlotte turned to me with gusto and flipped through her notepad before pointing to me with a proud smile.
¡°And you meet the requirements to be a harem member, Sir Ky! Being manaless was a pretty big initial loss of points, but you¡¯ve definitely got the looks, and you even cook! Coming all the way out here just to drop off lunch for a friend got you some points in the kindness section too, so you passed the harem member entry evaluation with 82 points out of a possible 100! Not bad for being a manaless! In fact, since you¡¯re manaless, you¡¯d be perfect as the shy, gentle cutie in my harem who wouldn¡¯t hurt a fly! The kind that¡¯s always worrying about me and taking care of me!¡± (Charlotte)
Charlotte scanned me over again and nodded to herself in approval as Lillian and I both stood there at a loss for words.
¡°Oh, and don¡¯t worry too much about the morality of the whole harem thing. Her divine holiness, the Goddess of Love, accepts polygamy too as a valid form of marriage. It¡¯s all a-ok as long as it¡¯s with pure intent and all members consent.¡± (Charlotte)
Charlotte gave me a cutesy smile and a thumbs up before pulling out another piece of paper and holding it out towards me.
¡°Anyway, since you¡¯re the first harem member, you even get a head start on everyone else! Remember, love is war, and any lead is a good one. So, do both of us a favor, and fill out this marriage registration for me, would you, honey? Here, you can borrow my pen.¡± (Charlotte)
¡ Ah, I see. It all makes sense now. I was really wondering what kind of environment could possibly allow an innocent-looking young woman like her to become such a depraved, harem-obsessed weirdo, but turns out she¡¯s just one of Eliza¡¯s followers¡
And so, now that I¡¯ve mentioned it, you¡¯re probably curious about Eliza¡¯s followers. Ahem. Well, considering my circumstances back when I was in jail, I wasn¡¯t exactly very involved in Eliza¡¯s religion, but from the little bits I¡¯ve seen for myself, along with some more graphic details from Olivia¡¯s occasional complaint-driven tirades, I have a pretty good idea of what Eliza¡¯s religion is like. Most of Eliza¡¯s shallow followers are just people looking for some good luck with a crush or an unrequited love, but as for her more devout followers... Let¡¯s just say most of them are quite¡ special in some way or another¡
Well, I can¡¯t really say I blame them though. After all, when the big boss herself is too lazy to even try and manage her subordinates, eventually they¡¯re bound to get out of control.
Honestly, the only reason Eliza¡¯s religion still even functions somewhat properly is because Olivia was competent enough to find the few fairly normal people out of Eliza¡¯s devout followers and appoint them as the higher-level priests.
My eye twitched a bit as my expression slowly morphed into a dazed smile before I tore the marriage registration that Charlotte handed me into pieces, but unfortunately it seemed like all my rejection did was get Charlotte even more fired up.
¡°Oh? Playing hard to get, honey? Well, that¡¯s fine with me! After all, it wouldn¡¯t be much fun if you just gave in immediately!¡± (Charlotte)
The passionate flames in Charlotte¡¯s eyes burned a little brighter as she immediately pulled out another three registration forms before Lillian grabbed her to try and restrain her while she started yelling at the sky about how she was going to gather a harem again.
¡°Wait! How many forms do you have!?¡± (Lillian)
A moment passed as I watched the spectacle before Alain and Edward ran over. Edward looked like he was still a little on edge as he stared at me with a frown on his face, but Alain stood there for a second before turning to me with a sigh and apologizing for Charlotte¡¯s behavior.
¡°... She did it again, didn¡¯t she? Sorry, Ky. Charlotte can be a bit... weird sometimes.¡± (Alain)
You¡¯re one to talk, you damn sis-con! With your weirdo level, you probably worship Eliza too!
¡°She did the same thing to me, Edward, and even the rookie too when we all first met, and well, as you can see, she gets pretty fanatical about it, so her first impressions usually aren¡¯t the best... I sort of pity her though. She¡¯s pretty hell-bent on the whole harem thing, and while her divine holiness may accept polygamy too, I personally believe that a pure love is something you should dedicate to one person. Love that¡¯s split between several people will never be as strong as love that¡¯s completely dedicated to one person.¡± (Alain)
¡ Why did I have to be right?¡
I let out an internal sigh as passionate flames that were eerily similar to Charlotte¡¯s lit up in Alain¡¯s eyes before he reached into his uniform jacket to pull out a picture of Lucy and hold it up to the sky.
¡°Just look at my little angel, Lucy! My love for her is completely pure and at least ten times as strong!¡± (Alain)
¡ See? What did I tell you about Eliza¡¯s devout followers?...
Alain joined Charlotte in passionately yelling at the sky as I walked over to Edward with a pitying smile while he stared at me with a cautious look on his face. An awkward moment passed by as he flinched a bit when I patted him on the shoulder while the occasional quip about how perfect Lucy was or how a certain someone would collect every pretty boy in the Empire for her harem echoed out from the two idiots yelling at the sky in the background.
¡°Edward, right?¡± (Kyle)
The cautious look on Edward¡¯s face turned into confusion as he hesitantly replied.
¡°... Yes.¡± (Edward)
¡°Look, I¡¯m sorry about what happened before, but I really was just here to drop off a lunchbox. And well, considering that I¡¯ve already accomplished my task along with the... unfortunate current circumstances, I¡¯ve decided that it would be best if I just left, so I¡¯ll be leaving this mess to you, buddy. Thanks!¡± (Kyle)
A light chuckle left my mouth as I turned around and walked quickly towards the front gate before I heard Edward¡¯s distressed voice behind me.
¡°Eh. What!?¡± (Edward)
The sound of footsteps and more yelling echoed out behind me as I immediately shuffled towards the gate even quicker.
¡°Wait! Come back, honey! You didn¡¯t fill out the registration yet!¡± (Charlotte)
¡°Charlotte, stop!¡± (Lillian)
¡°Uwooh! Lucy!¡± (Alain)
¡°For the last time! I¡¯m not joining your damn harem!¡± (Kyle)
I yelled back at Charlotte as I broke into a mad dash and ran into the street before making my way back to the Royal Academy.
Solria, Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Aria POV)
How did I forget it at home!?
I cried out internally as I sat there with a red face in front of the door to my office while hiding from everyone.
A few minutes ago, I heard the faint sound of yelling from the front gate, so I ran over to the lobby to see what was going on, but when I made it there, I heard Ky¡¯s voice outside and w-well¡
I leaned against the door to my office as memories of what happened earlier this morning ran through my head and I unconsciously started to twiddle with my hair while the blush slowly spread across my cheeks.
¡ I-I froze up, then panicked a bit, peeked through the window, and saw him hand over my lunchbox to Lillian. After that, I ran back to my office to hide until now...
A soft sigh left my mouth as I hugged my knees before whispering to myself in embarrassment.
¡°... I can¡¯t believe I managed to forget my lunchbox... Ky even had to come drop it off¡¡± (Aria)
I stared at the ground in front of me in silence, when suddenly the sound of someone knocking lightly on the door made my heart skip a beat.
¡°Captain Aria, are you there? We found your lunch.¡± (Lillian)
Lillian¡¯s bubbly, carefree voice echoed into my office as I immediately got up and dashed over to my desk in a fluster. A muffled bang rang out as I accidentally kicked my desk before sitting down.
¡°Captain Aria, are you ok?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Y-Yes, I¡¯m fine.¡± (Aria)
I covered the bottom half of my face to hide my blushing and tried desperately to regain my composure as the door opened and Lillian stepped into my office with a concerned face. She placed my lunchbox down on my table and we stared at each other before I averted my eyes and stared down at my lunchbox while clearing my throat awkwardly.
¡°A-Ahem. W-What¡¯s wrong, Lillian?¡± (Aria)
I continued to stare at my lunchbox as a moment of silence passed before Lillian¡¯s voice rang out again with a mischievous tone.
¡°You know, Ky was nice enough to come by and drop it off. In fact, he¡¯s sitting in the lobby right now, so why don¡¯t we all have lunch together. I¡¯ll go get him.¡± (Lillian)
¡°W-W-Wait!¡± (Aria)
My heart almost leaped out of my chest as I immediately raised my head with a burning, red face and reached out to stop her. I was ready to stop her by force if necessary, but instead, what met my line of sight was Lillian giggling.
¡°Sorry, Captain Aria. Seeing you so flustered was too cute, I couldn¡¯t resist teasing you a bit. Don¡¯t worry, Ky left a little bit ago. I¡¯ll keep everyone busy for now, so just come join us when you¡¯ve calmed down.¡± (Lillian)
I sat there frozen as Lillian laughed a bit before calling out to me again in a gentle voice as she left the room.
¡°I don¡¯t know what happened between you and Ky, but I¡¯ll be rooting for you, so go get him, Captain Aria!¡± (Lillian)
I finally regained control of myself as the sound of the door shutting echoed out and I sat there for a moment before burying my face into my desk with a whimper.
¡°... augh¡¡± (Aria)
How am I supposed to calm down after that!?
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Kyle POV)
A relaxed sigh left my mouth as I stared out the window wistfully at the academy grounds with a satisfied smile on my face. Class was about to end in a few minutes, and I was sitting in my classroom surrounded by¡ well, mostly normal people. But even if they¡¯re not the most normal, the important thing is none of them worship Eliza.
At least I hope none of them do¡
¡°Professor Kyle, we¡¯re done drawing our circles. Can you come check them out.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Oh. Let me see.¡± (Kyle)
Sophie¡¯s voice snapped me back to my senses, and I turned around to see everyone standing by the board with a few alchemy circles in front of them. Sophie¡¯s was perfect as usual, and Reina¡¯s was almost perfect. Halbert and Regnis¡¯ circles were both fine, and judging by the faint chalk smudges around parts of Zane¡¯s circle, it took a few tries, but it looked like he managed to draw a pretty decent circle in the end.
¡°Alright, looks good to me. Nice job, everyone. If this was a test, you all would¡¯ve passed with no problem.¡± (Kyle)
I was about to dismiss the class when Mari walked over and pulled on my sleeve to get my attention.
¡°Oh, speaking of which, Ky, when are you going to be giving them their first exam. I think the deadline for grades for the first half of this semester is coming up soon.¡± (Mari)
¡°Eh? Wait, I have to hand in grades?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh?¡± (Mari)
Mari and I stared at each other in confusion for a bit before she started to berate me.
¡°Wait. Didn¡¯t Professor Balrum give you a grade book at the beginning of the semester?¡± (Mari)
¡°Grade book?... Oh. I remember now.¡± (Kyle)
I reached into my satchel and rummaged through it for a bit before pulling out a notebook with the Royal Academy¡¯s seal on it.
¡°This thing, right?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yes!¡± (Mari)
¡°Eh, do I really have to hand in grades? It kind of seems like a pain in the butt...¡± (Kyle)
¡°What do mean ¡®do I really have to hand in grades?¡¯ Of course you do! You¡¯re a professor, aren¡¯t you!?¡± (Mari)
¡°Urgh. Fine, I guess everyone gets a 100 then.¡± (Kyle)
I pulled a pen out of my bag, flipped to a random page in the grade book and was about to write in a few perfect scores when Mari grabbed my arm to stop me with an angry look on her face.
¡°Real grades. They need real grades.¡± (Mari)
I let out a sigh and closed the grade book.
¡°Alright, I guess we¡¯re having an exam next week then.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Next week? Wait, don¡¯t we have the next two weeks off? It¡¯s the Empire¡¯s anniversary next week.¡± (Zane)
¡°Ah.¡± (Kyle)
Damn, I forgot. The anniversary of the Empire¡¯s founding is next week, and for some reason, the entire week of the anniversary and the week after are both national holidays¡ Well, I guess I shouldn¡¯t complain too much since I get the next two weeks off too...
We can have an exam the week after we get back then I guess¡ Urgh, wait. If I¡¯m remembering right, the annual academy tournament is right after we come back, and I just know Mari¡¯s definitely going to try and make me help her out with the tournament prep...
Wait! The tournament! Can¡¯t I just make that their exam? Yeah, if they make it past the preliminaries, they¡¯ll get a 100 or something like that.
I turned back to Mari with a twinkle in my eyes, hoping that for some reason the stars aligned and everyone was going to randomly enter the tournament.
¡°Hmm, Mari, since ancient alchemy is meant for combat, would it be ok if I held a more practical exam instead of a written one?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Oi, if I find out you hurt a single hair on Reina¡¯s head, I will personally rip you into pieces.¡± (Mari)
Mari grabbed me by the collar and pulled me close with an angry look on her face to make her point clear.
¡°C-Calm down! I¡¯m not gonna hurt anyone!¡± (Kyle)
¡°What are you going to do then?¡± (Mari)
¡°W-Well, we have the academy tournament after we get back from break, right? So I was thinking, how about I just make the tournament their exam? It¡¯ll be a good test to see how well they can utilize ancient alchemy in a practical situation.¡± (Kyle)
¡°You¡¯re going to force your class to enter the tournament!?¡± (Mari)
¡°Of course not!... But, uh, if they¡¯re all entering already... well, why not?¡± (Kyle)
I gave Mari a sheepish smile before turning back to the class with a hopeful look on my face.
¡°Hey, how many of you are going to be entering the academy tournament?¡± (Kyle)
An awkward silence filled the room for a moment as the look on everyone¡¯s faces slowly turned serious before Halbert raised his hand.
¡°I will.¡± (Halbert)
Damn, are none of them except Halbert competing? Come on guys, have a little more drive! This is the obligatory tournament arc that always happens in every magic school! It¡¯s a time-honored tradition that literally everyone has to compete for absolutely no reason!
I was about to let out a sigh and shelve my genius plan for now, when suddenly a new spark of hope lit in my heart as Regnis raised his hand, followed by Sophie.
¡°I¡¯ll also be entering.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Me too.¡± (Sophie)
Then, before I could even say a word, Reina and Zane joined them.
¡°Yeah. Count me in.¡± (Zane)
¡°I-I¡¯ll be competing!¡± (Reina)
Mari immediately let go of me with a worried expression on her face and ran over to Reina as soon as she heard Reina say she was entering the tournament.
¡°Reina, are you sure? You don¡¯t have to enter the tournament just because this idiot wants you to.¡± (Mari)
¡°I¡¯m not forcing her to enter! Look, Reina if you don¡¯t want to enter the tournament, it¡¯s ok.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah, there¡¯s no need to-¡± (Mari)
It seemed like Mari was about to continue rambling when Reina turned to her and cut her off as an intense determination swirled around in her eyes.
¡°I¡¯m sure, Aunt Mari.¡± (Reina)
All it took was four words to make both Mari and I stop dead in our tracks. In fact, as Reina said those words, I could see the unexpected resolve burning in everyone¡¯s eyes as I sat there frozen for a moment before the corners of my mouth inadvertently curved upwards into a smile.
Heh. I knew I could count on you guys!
A faint sense of pride in my students welled up inside of me as I stood up from my chair and made an announcement to the class.
¡°Perfect. Then the academy tournament will be your first exam. Make it out of the preliminaries to pass. And with that, class today is dismissed.¡± (Kyle)
I waved my arm to dismiss the class as I reconfirmed the fervent determination I felt from them.
I can tell you¡¯re all serious about this, so do your best and don¡¯t let me down!
[Chapter 26] Finals and Phantoms
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Regnis POV)
A strange uneasiness filled my heart as I sat there waiting patiently for my turn to talk to Professor Kyle. Class ended a few minutes ago, and Halbert, Zane, and Reina had already left the classroom earlier while Headmistress Sylfey seemed to be nagging Professor Kyle about something, but after a few more moments, she left the room as Professor Kyle let out a tired sigh.
Now¡¯s my chance!
I immediately got up, but the moment I did, I heard someone else do the same. I turned to my side to see Sophie, and our eyes met for a moment as we both stood there in silence.
¡ So... you need his help too, huh?...
Halbert and Zane are lucky.
Halbert¡¯s master is still in the capital so he can hone his swordsmanship with her and the high priestess is always at the church for Zane if he wants to improve his magic skills, but my master isn¡¯t here currently. Captain Lars is still on duty at the northern edge of the Empire, so right now¡ the best option I have is the only A-rank adventurer I know... Maybe I can¡¯t learn any spearmanship from him, but I can at the very least, I can learn some more alchemy.
I took a deep breath as I could sense a similar resolution burning in Sophie¡¯s eyes, and we nodded to each other before walking up together to Professor Kyle¡¯s desk where he was slumped over with a blank, forlorn look on his face.
Royal Academy, Room 207 (Kyle POV)
I stared out the window at the clouds floating by as I said my final goodbyes to my break. As I expected, Mari wants to make me come along with her as her little assistant to set up everything for the tournament, but I guess if we¡¯re looking at the bright side, at least I don¡¯t have to write up an exam for the class too...
Damn it. I just can¡¯t catch a break today, can I? First I had to deal with the idiots at the 7th Squad Knights, and now I come back to find out I have to work overtime!
I was about to resign myself to the inevitable when suddenly Sophie¡¯s voice brought me back to my senses.
¡°Professor Kyle.¡± (Sophie)
¡°W-Wha-¡± (Kyle)
I scrambled around in a slight panic before sitting back up to see Sophie and Regnis standing in front of my table with serious faces.
¡°We have a request.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Huh? A request?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Please train us. We need to get stronger.¡± (Sophie)
Sophie¡¯s voice was tinged with a soft, almost begging tone as she bowed deeply to me before Regnis did too.
¡°... Please, we have no one else to turn to...¡± (Regnis)
Eh? Train? Thanks to Mari, I won¡¯t even have any time to relax, so where am I going to find the time to trai- Ah.
A surge of hope flooded my heart as I stood up with an excited twinkle in my eyes.
¡°Sure, no problem!¡± (Kyle)
Sorry, Mari, but it looks like two of my precious students need my help over the break, and what kind of professor would I be if I didn¡¯t do everything I could to help them over the entirety of the break? So I guess you¡¯ll just have to finish all the preparations for the tournament by yourself.
I laughed to myself triumphantly as Sophie and Regnis slowly stopped bowing with confused looks on their faces.
¡°What? What¡¯s wrong?¡± (Kyle)
"Wait, that¡¯s it? You¡¯re just going to accept like that? There¡¯s no requirement, or a test or anything like that?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Why would we need a test? You¡¯re already my students, aren¡¯t you? So as your professor, of course I¡¯m going to help you two out. And, well, to be honest, this will help me avoid some extra work too, so it¡¯s not like I don¡¯t have any incentive at all...¡± (Kyle)
I let out a dry laugh and scratched the back of my head sheepishly before clearing my throat.
¡°Ahem. Anyway, you said it yourself, Regnis. We only have two weeks, so let¡¯s get going!¡± (Kyle)
I grabbed my bag and pointed out the window towards the front gate as I made another announcement with a smile on my face.
¡°Alright, your first task will be to go get your weapons and rendezvous at the front gate of the academy within half an hour!¡± (Kyle)
***
A while later, I was making my way over to meet up with Regnis and Sophie again after informing Mari about the ¡®unfortunate¡¯ request from my students, and the subsequent change of plans. The academy campus was still bustling with activity even though classes ended almost half an hour ago and dozens of students walked past me as I lightly jogged over to the front gate of the academy, where Regnis and Sophie were already waiting for me. They stood on the side of the main path while clutching their weapons, and I waved to them before running over.
¡°Alright, are you two ready?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yes.¡± (Regnis)
¡°What are we going to do, Professor Kyle?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Hmm, well, before we start, I should probably get a general idea of how you two are right now. So let¡¯s head over to the training fields first. We can have a small spar there. Follow me.¡± (Kyle)
I turned around and started walking towards the training field with a smile as Regnis and Sophie followed behind me.
We weaved our way through the crowds of students leaving campus to move to the training fields. However, when we finally arrived at the entrance to the training fields, despair flooded my heart as I saw it again.
There it was, my mortal enemy in all its abhorrent glory. In front of me wasn¡¯t the clean, empty academy training fields I was used to. In front of me was¡ another line!
Yes, a line. There was a multitude of students in uniform following behind who I assume were their respective professors as they all waited in line for their turn to use the training field. I scanned through the huge line of people before finally spotting a familiar figure standing in the middle.
Wait a second! I¡¯d recognize that tacky outfit anywhere!
A man with long black hair who was dressed in a white robe held together by an embroidered sash was standing in line, talking to a student who had short, dark brown hair and similarly colored eyes. The student had a longsword sheathed at his waist and was nodding at the man with a stoic look on his face when I called out to the two in line.
¡°Oi, Raven!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Oh, Ky. You¡¯re here too?¡± (Raven)
Raven waved at me nonchalantly as I ran over and grabbed him by the shoulder.
¡°Raven, what¡¯s going on? Why is there such a huge line to use the training fields?¡± (Kyle)
¡°What are you talking about? Obviously, it¡¯s because of the academy tournament coming up.¡± (Raven)
Raven stared at me with a puzzled look on his face as Regnis and Sophie finally caught up with me.
¡°Everyone wants to use the training field right now, so I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll have to wait for your turn, Ky. But if you get on line now, you¡¯ll probably be able to use it before nighttime.¡± (Raven)
¡°Damn it! I should¡¯ve known this would happen! There¡¯s no such thing as a tournament arc without everyone having their own training montage!¡± (Kyle)
Raven nodded to himself in confirmation as I muttered to myself when suddenly the brown-haired student Raven was talking to before interrupted us.
¡°Professor Yong, who is this?¡±
¡°Oh, right. You two haven¡¯t met yet. Jin, this is my friend, Professor Kyle from the alchemy department. Ky, this is my best student, Jin.¡± (Raven)
¡°Pleased to meet you, Professor Kyle.¡± (Jin)
¡°Uh, same here...¡± (Kyle)
Raven¡¯s student, Jin, turned to me while still completely straight-faced and bowed slightly as we stood there awkwardly for a moment before I cleared my throat and turned back to Regnis and Sophie with a defeated sigh.
¡°Well, looks like we can¡¯t use the training field¡¡± (Kyle)
¡°Where do we go then?¡± (Sophie)
I rubbed my temples as I stood there thinking about where we could go, but nowhere else came to mind except the academy training fields.
¡°Ugh. There¡¯s no way we can do any training like this. Alright, maybe we can borrow a training field from the adventurer¡¯s guild then. If I remember, they should be just outside the southern part of the city.¡± (Kyle)
Regnis and Sophie looked like they were startled a bit after I mentioned leaving the city, but after a moment, they recollected themselves and nodded to me with serious faces before Raven¡¯s voice suddenly rang out again from behind me.
¡°Oh? Looks like I was right. You came here to train your students, Ky. Which means they¡¯re entering the academy tournament too, right?¡± (Raven)
¡°Yeah.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I see. Then¡ ¡± (Raven)
I stopped and turned around to see Raven with a smile on his face as he patted Jin¡¯s shoulder before extending his open hand out towards me.
¡°... let¡¯s see who¡¯s students come out on top! It¡¯s a duel, Ky, and this time, it¡¯ll be different! So don¡¯t get eliminated before our battle!¡± (Raven)
Oi, calm down, you duel-obsessed idiot! You¡¯re not even the one competing, your student is!
Raven clenched his hand into a fist before he turned to Jin with passionate flames burning in his eyes.
¡°Jin, we have no time to waste!¡± (Raven)
¡°Yes, Professor Yong! I won¡¯t let you down!¡± (Jin)
Jin nodded at Raven intensely before Raven called out to me again.
¡°We¡¯ll see you at finals, Ky!¡± (Raven)
¡°Uh, ok¡ See you then, I guess...¡± (Kyle)
A quick glance around let me see that a few people were beginning to stare at us after Raven made such a scene, so I quickly waved goodbye to him before leading Sophie and Regnis back towards the front gate of the academy.
Southern Outskirts of Solria, Adventurer¡¯s Guild Training Field No. 3 (Regnis POV)
A gentle breeze rustled the grass around us as Sophie and I followed behind Professor Kyle. About two hours have passed since we left the academy to go to the adventurer¡¯s guild and we were just now arriving at the entrance to one of the training fields that Professor Kyle managed to rent for today from the guild. A locked gate attached to the large fence that surrounded the entire area was the entrance to the field and I could spot a few training dummies in the distance, set up near the center along with some trees dotting the landscape here and there.
¡°We¡¯re here.¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle walked up the to gate and pulled out the key that the receptionist at the guild gave him before unlocking it and kicking the gate open. We all entered the training field and he closed the gate behind us before we walked about two-thirds of the way to the center of the field.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
¡°This spot seems good enough, so looks like we can finally have our spar. Are you prepared?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah.¡± (Sophie)
Sophie¡¯s determined voice rang out as I picked up my spear and got into a stance before answering too.
¡°Yes.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Ok. Then you two can say when we start. I¡¯ll go easy on you, but you two should treat this like an actual fight. Don¡¯t hold back.¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle repositioned to a few feet away from us before turning around and slowly taking a stance with a surprisingly serious look on his face. His left hand was open with his fingers held loosely together and extended outwards towards us while his right hand was held at the side of his waist in a fist. Sophie pulled out her gun and held it steady in Professor Kyle¡¯s direction, whereas I lowered my spear a bit so that it was pointing forward. I looked over my shoulder at Sophie and we nodded to each other before I yelled to announce the start of the fight.
¡°Go!¡± (Regnis)
I began my chant to activate my body strengthening magic right after starting the battle, however, as soon as I said a single word, Professor Kyle dashed forward.
¡°Silent storm-¡± (Regnis)
I couldn¡¯t even get past the second word of my chant before it was cut off by a sharp spin kick and I barely managed to bring my spear up in time to block the kick at my chest as I was blown a few feet backward while Professor Kyle spun to face Sophie who was caught off guard by the immediate assault. She aimed the gun at him in a panic, but before she could pull the trigger, his left arm shot out and grabbed her wrist. He pulled her inward while breaking her balance by kicking low at her leg before he almost instantaneously disarmed her as she fell over. A moment later, Sophie was lying on the ground with the tip of her gun pointed straight at her head.
It was over in a matter of seconds.
¡°Alright, I think I have a general idea of what level you two are at right now. Are you ok, Sophie?¡± (Kyle)
¡°... Y-Yeah...¡± (Sophie)
Professor Kyle lowered the gun and extended his other hand towards a shaken Sophie to help her up as I ran back over.
¡°Wait! You attacked before I could even activate my body strengthening magic!¡± (Regnis)
A faintly indignant tone in my voice alluded to my frustration, but Professor Kyle just turned to me with a slight frown on his face as he patted the dirt off of Sophie before handing her gun back to her.
¡°Well, of course. What kind of idiot would wait for you to finish casting your body strengthening magic before attacking? I even let you start the battle, so if you¡¯re not going to activate it beforehand, then as your opponent, naturally I would take any advantage I could get, especially in a case like this where I¡¯m unarmed against two people, one of which has a ranged weapon.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I¡¡± (Regnis)
I tried to make an excuse, but nothing came out of my mouth as Professor Kyle spoke again.
¡°I told you to take this seriously, didn¡¯t I? You¡¯re lucky this wasn¡¯t a real fight and I wasn¡¯t a real enemy, otherwise you would both be dead.¡± (Kyle)
It was those last few words that shut me down.
Professor Kyle was right.
I stood there in silence for a moment as a scene from my memory played out in my head again.
Halbert and Zane were on the other side of the forest clearing, held down by spectral hands from some strange spell, Reina was reaching outward with a desperate look in her eyes, and Sophie sat there in absolute terror right before the undead knight¡¯s sword was about to reach her.
¡ I was knocked away that time too, wasn¡¯t I?... I ran as fast as I could to try and save her, but I wasn¡¯t fast enough. I fought as hard as I could to try and beat the undead knight, but I wasn¡¯t strong enough. I...
I lowered my head to stare at my hands before I whispered to myself in frustration.
¡°... Damn it¡ I couldn¡¯t do anything... It¡¯s just like the fight against Zeon again¡¡± (Regnis)
I grit my teeth and my grip on my spear tightened as my surroundings began to slowly meld together into a vague mess of colors and noise before suddenly, the sound of a soft sigh brought me back to my senses.
I raised my head again to see that Professor Kyle had abruptly stopped in his tracks. He tilted his head back a bit to look up at the clouds as we all stood there in silence before Sophie tried to ask him what was wrong.
¡°... Professor Kyle, what¡¯s wrong?¡± (Sophie)
¡°... Hey... let me ask you two something¡¡± (Kyle)
His voice had a sort of somber nostalgia to it as he continued to stare into the sky with his back turned to me and Sophie.
¡°Why do you two want me to train you?... I know there¡¯s the academy tournament coming up in two weeks, but... ¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle turned around to face us, but for some reason, his usual listless aura was missing. Instead, the air about him was tinged with a faint melancholy.
A pair of golden eyes stared straight at me and Sophie.
It was the same pair of golden eyes that I had seen plenty of times before. The ones that twinkled whenever he got excited. The ones that dulled whenever he felt lazy. And the ones that were terrifyingly sharp when he fought Zeon.
But this time, it wasn¡¯t like any of those. This time, there was a lonely, wistful glint in his eyes as he gently smiled at us.
¡°... to me, it kind of seems like it¡¯s because of something else...¡± (Kyle)
¡ Why?...
I stood there frozen as dozens of reasons ran through my head, but before I could even say a word, the sound of a single footstep broke the silence. Sophie had taken a step forward and Professor Kyle and I both turned to her as she started to speak in a quiet voice.
¡°... When we fought Zeon... right before the undead knight was about to kill me, I looked around one last time. I was scared. I thought it was going to be the last thing I would ever do. I thought I was going to die. My leg was injured, and it hurt a lot... but everyone else had injuries too... Even though they were hurting too, even though I¡¯m sure they were all afraid too, despite all that, they all still tried desperately to save me. I saw them. Every single one of them... You too, Professor Kyle¡¡± (Sophie)
Sophie tightened her grip on her gun before she raised her head to stare back at Professor Kyle.
¡°I don¡¯t want to see that despair in their eyes again. That¡¯s why I need to get stronger... I need to get strong enough that nothing like that ever happens again. Honestly, I don¡¯t care much about how well I do in the tournament. I just want to tell them all something. I want to tell everyone that I''m strong now, that nobody else needs to hurt themselves to save me again!¡± (Sophie)
Her previously soft voice slowly got louder until it reached the point where it was almost a yell, and Sophie finally ended her speech as she gazed right back at Professor Kyle with a fervent resolve surging in her eyes.
¡ Pathetic¡ Absolutely pathetic, Regnis...
You were personally handed this sacred spear by his Highness, you¡¯ve been taught by one of the strongest spearmasters in the Empire, you¡¯re someone who¡¯s fated to help defeat the demon lord! But Sophie? She has none of that. No sacred weapon to use, no powerful master to guide her, no grand destiny to fulfill! And yet, despite the fact that she¡¯s just a normal girl, she¡¯s still trying her best to get stronger! Stronger for your sake!
I grit my teeth again and my left hand moved to grab at my heart before I stabbed the bottom of my spear into the ground in frustration.
So how can you catch up to Halbert and Zane like this!? How can you protect anything if you¡¯re so pathetic you can¡¯t even take a single step forward like the normal girl standing right next to you!?
Just move, damn it!
I screamed at myself internally as my anger at my own weakness finally overcame my fear. I took a step forward. Then, I opened my mouth. And this time, my voice followed.
¡°I hate it. I hate that feeling of helplessness I had when we fought Zeon. I hate being so weak that I couldn¡¯t do anything to the person hurting my friends, that I couldn¡¯t do even a single thing to stop the undead knight that was about to kill one of those friends right in front of me. All I could do was watch as everyone else struggled to survive¡ It¡¯s not just about beating Halbert and Zane¡ I have to get stronger. Strong enough that next time I can do something! And I¡¯m sure that everyone else feels the same way right now too, I¡¯m sure they¡¯re trying their hardest! So I have to show them that I¡¯m not falling behind either!¡± (Regnis)
I finished yelling out the last of my speech with a hoarse voice as I gazed straight back at Professor Kyle. A determined glint shone in my eyes as we stared at each other for a moment before he closed his eyes, and whispered something to himself.
¡°I see¡¡± (Kyle)
Then, Professor Kyle sighed faintly again before relaxing his shoulders a little. The bittersweet smile on his face was gone. In its place was a proud grin, and when he opened his eyes again they were shining clearly.
¡°... Well, I already kind of knew, but looks like I¡¯m not a very good professor, am I? After all, it seems that my students have already gone and grown up splendidly without even a bit of my help... It takes a lot of courage to be able to face your fears like that, a level that I definitely didn¡¯t have when I was at your age. Even now, I still don¡¯t. Ironically, I think I have more to learn from my students than they do from me, but even so... I¡¯m still a professor, aren¡¯t I? So I think this time, for the sake of what little pride I have left as one, I¡¯ll have to try my best to match up to the courage and expectations of my precious students¡¡± (Kyle)
Sophie and I stood there for a moment as a breeze blew by. It came from behind Professor Kyle, and his clothes and hair ruffled softly in the wind as the atmosphere around him instantly transformed. There wasn¡¯t so much as a hint of melancholy anymore. No, right now his aura was different.
It was intense.
It was overwhelming.
It was the aura of someone who was strong.
¡°If you two really want to get stronger, then I¡¯ll help you get stronger, but don¡¯t complain if I¡¯m a little strict. We¡¯ll start your real training with a training camp next week. Unfortunately, looks like renting out this field for today was a bit of a waste since I¡¯ll have to go make some preparations for the camp if I¡¯m going to take this seriously. So let¡¯s head back to the city for now. Meet again tomorrow morning by the front gate of the academy at 10 AM. Training for today is dismissed!¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle waved his arm outward to dismiss us before spinning around to lead us back to the city as Sophie and I answered in unison.
¡°Yes, Professor Kyle!¡± (Sophie & Regnis)
Solria, Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Halbert POV)
The clang of metal crashing against metal rang out in my ears. I struggled to keep my mana flowing through my sword while my grip on my sword¡¯s handle was starting to loosen from continuously blocking Vice-Captain Edward¡¯s swings. His blade was covered in a coat of light-element mana as it flowed smoothly from one swing to the next, drawing countless glowing streaks of light in the air as he slowly pressed forward, but despite his leisurely pace, there wasn¡¯t even a moment of rest for me as I was forced back several steps from the endless assault in front of me. Sparks of blue lightning flew off my sword as impact after impact pounded against it before eventually, I couldn¡¯t keep up anymore. Vice-Captain Edward¡¯s sword smashed against the side of mine and a loud clang sounded out as I felt a violent force tear it out of my hands. It spun in the air a few times before landing on the ground a few feet away, but by then, the tip of Vice-Captain Edward¡¯s sword was already pointed at my throat.
¡°You¡¯ve lost, Halbert.¡± (Edward)
I froze for a moment before I fell backward onto the ground, gasping for breath as Vice-Captain Edward sheathed his sword again.
¡°Well, you¡¯ve improved a bit, but you still have a long way to go.¡± (Edward)
¡°T-Thank you, Vice-Captain Edward¡± (Halbert)
I put strength into my legs and got up again as I heard Sir Alain call over to us from the side.
¡°Don¡¯t be so tough on the rookie, Edward. You even used one of your family¡¯s signature sword techniques!¡± (Alain)
I turned my head to my side to see Sir Alain walking towards us with a smile. He helped me up before Vice-Captain Edward turned around and spoke in a stern voice.
¡°He lost this time because his swordsmanship wasn¡¯t refined enough. Not everyone he fights will be around the same level as him... And anyway, I still went a little easy on him, didn¡¯t I?¡± (Edward)
¡°Vice-Captain Edward¡¯s right, Sir Alain. I¡¯m still too weak... In a real fight, no one would just let me win.¡± (Halbert)
I let out a disappointed sigh before Sir Alain patted me on the shoulder.
¡°Eh, don¡¯t worry too much, rookie. You¡¯re already pretty strong. Edward¡¯s just mad that he lost earlier and now he¡¯s taking it out on you. Honestly, I think he should be more like my little angel, Lucy, and learn to let it go. Isn¡¯t that right, Edward?¡± (Alain)
Sir Alain poked Vice-Captain Edward in the arm playfully before Vice-Captain Edward immediately yelled at him with an angry, flustered face.
¡°I¡¯m not mad!¡± (Edward)
¡°Really? It kind of seems like you are to me.¡± (Alain)
Eh?
I stared at them with a confused look on my face as Sir Alain laughed a bit while Vice-Captain Edward grabbed him by the collar of his uniform.
¡°Wait, Vice-Captain Edward lost to someone?¡± (Halbert)
¡°I didn¡¯t lose! I-It was a tie!¡± (Edward)
¡°D-Did another Knight Captain come by to visit or something?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Oh, right. You weren¡¯t here, rookie. Captain Aria¡¯s friend came over earlier to drop something off for her, but Edward thought he was an intruder and attacked him on sight even though he was unarmed.¡± (Alain)
Unarmed!? How did they break through that barrage of swings!? Even with my sword, I could barely handle it and he was going easy on me! I knew Captain Aria was insanely strong, but I didn¡¯t think everyone around her would be so strong too...
¡°Like I said before, he was acting suspiciously by the front door! I didn¡¯t know Lillian left the front gate open and he had Captain Aria¡¯s missing lunchbox!¡± (Edward)
Vice-Captain Edward grumbled about it a little more before turning to me with an annoyed look on his face as he tried to change the subject.
¡°Anyway, Halbert, didn¡¯t you say that you had something to ask Captain Aria about after our spar?¡± (Edward)
¡°Y-Yeah.¡± (Halbert)
That¡¯s right¡ I need to ask her for an important favor...
Vice-Captain Edward walked over, picked my sword, and tossed it over as he pointed towards the front door to the barracks.
¡°Then get going. She should be in her office.¡± (Edward)
¡°Yes, Vice-Captain Edward!¡± (Halbert)
I gave a knight¡¯s salute to Vice-Captain Edward before making my way over to Captain Aria¡¯s office as he waved to shoo me away.
***
The door to Captain Aria¡¯s office stood right in front of me as a surge of anxiety filled my heart. The hallway was silent, silent enough that I could hear my own heart beating in my chest. I wanted, no, I needed to knock on the door, but despite me telling my hand to move, it just wouldn¡¯t¡ All I could manage to do was stand there frozen.
It was like I was being held down by Zeon¡¯s spell again.
A deep breath entered my lungs as I stood there with a distressed look on my face before I closed my eyes for a moment.
In my mind, the shadowy, phantasmal figure of a man dressed in a black hooded cloak emerged, and in his hand was a staff with a black crystal embedded at the tip. He had a twisted smile on his face as he slowly pointed his staff at me before wisps of darkness gathered behind him to form an undead knight covered in old, scratched up armor with faded blue designs and a tattered cape.
The shadowy figure and I stared at each other for a moment. A cold feeling of death swirled around in his eyes before he let out a crazed, yet absolutely silent laugh and disintegrated into wisps of darkness himself, disappearing into nothingness along with the undead knight.
And then, I was alone once more.
¡ You know better than anyone what you need to do, don¡¯t you?¡
Everyone almost died because of you, because you weren¡¯t strong enough to defeat the Sin of Envy, Zeon.
You need to get stronger¡
So what are you afraid of, Halbert? You¡¯re lucky Captain Aria¡¯s right here to help you. Regnis and Zane don¡¯t have that luxury, and yet I¡¯m sure that they¡¯re still trying their hardest to get stronger right now! They¡¯re already far ahead of you!
So how?... How the hell are you going to face them if you can¡¯t even gather up the courage to knock on a door? How are you going to save anyone like this?
I opened my eyes again and looked down at my right hand. It was trembling, trembling from my anger at my own weakness as I screamed at myself internally one last time.
What kind of hero can¡¯t even protect the people around him!?
My hand slowly tightened into a fist before the trembling stopped.
And finally, I moved.
I raised my hand and knocked on the door as a burning resolve lit up in my eyes.
... Two weeks¡ You only have two weeks, and this time, you¡¯re the one who has to catch up!
[Chapter 27] Figuring out How to Activate This Sacred Weapon Was a Breeze
Solria, Middle District, Irisveil Mansion (Aria POV)
The sound of my steady footsteps softly echoed around the empty street as I stared blankly at the ground in front of me while walking home. My surroundings were tinted a light purple from the beautiful sunset behind me and a gentle breeze blew by, cooling down my head a bit as I let out a faint sigh before falling a little deeper into my own thoughts. It was just another lazy, peaceful evening with nothing to do except go home for dinner, but I had to admit, I was a bit sentimental right now.
A while ago, Halbert came into my office to talk to me. When he showed up, I was still a bit flustered from my chat with Lillian, but I snapped out of it once I saw the serious look on his face. I wanted to ask him what was wrong, but before I could even say a word to him, he fell to his knees to ask me for a favor
He asked me to help him get stronger.
At first, I was confused. After all, I was already training him, and as far as I knew, there wasn¡¯t any emergency concerning the demon lord so there wasn¡¯t any rush to get stronger, but despite that, I could hear the desperation in his voice as he quietly begged me for my help. So I asked him why he was in such a hurry.
I was worried that something had happened with the demon lord, but Halbert¡¯s answer was unexpected. It wasn¡¯t complicated, or even related to the demon lord. All he said was a few words.
¡®I finally realized that I have people I can¡¯t afford to lose.¡¯
That was it. And yet, that was all he needed. That alone was more than reason enough, and I knew that better than anyone because back in Delhurst, no, even now¡
I placed my hand over my heart and closed my eyes before quietly whispering to myself.
¡°... I also have someone I can¡¯t afford to lose¡ Someone who¡¯s irreplaceable¡¡± (Aria)
The back of a familiar, white-haired figure emerged in my mind. And a moment passed before that figure turned around to face me. A pair of soft, golden eyes met mine and the figure smiled tenderly at me as I felt a faint warmth spread through me.
¡ He¡¯s an idiot sometimes, he¡¯s lazy sometimes, and well, he¡¯s dense a lot of the time, but in the end, he¡¯s still¡
"... my one and only partner, isn¡¯t he?..." (Aria)
The edges of my mouth couldn¡¯t help but curve upwards into a gentle smile as I opened my eyes again to see that I was already standing in front of the mansion. The gate creaked a bit as I entered, but I just ignored it and walked up to the front door. Then, I opened it. And my voice rang out as I entered the house.
"Ky, I''m home." (Aria)
The delicious aroma of food filled the house along with sizzling sounds from the kitchen as I saw Ky pop his head out from the kitchen entrance.
¡°Oh, welcome back. In fact, perfect timing. Dinner¡¯s almost ready.¡± (Kyle)
I took off my shoes and put them down on the side as he walked out of the kitchen with his spatula in hand.
¡°Alright, what¡¯s for dinner today?¡± (Aria)
I giggled at Ky before getting up with a smile.
Well, looks like I¡¯m pretty lucky. My irreplaceable person is right here, isn¡¯t he? Always by my side, no matter what happens.
¡°Oh. Right, speaking of which, sorry. It¡¯s a bit sudden, but unfortunately, I¡¯ll be gone for most of the next two weeks.¡± (Kyle)
Eh?
¡°Wait! Gone!? What do you mean!?¡± (Aria)
I immediately ran over and grabbed Ky by his arm as he explained everything to me.
¡°Well, long story short, I¡¯m on break for the next two weeks, but my students asked me to help train them for the academy tournament coming up, so I¡¯ll be conducting a training camp for them over the break. Oh, but don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ve already prepared everything for you, so you¡¯ll have no problem even if I¡¯m gone for a bit. There are enough meals to last a whole week in the fridge, and I¡¯m sure you¡¯re at least competent enough to reheat them by yourself. Even if you overcook it a little, it should still taste relatively ok. As for the house... well, there¡¯s no way it can get too dirty while I¡¯m gone, right?... Actually, wait. Let me correct myself. As long as it¡¯s someone like you who¡¯s reasonable and capable of cleaning up after herself, there¡¯s no way the house can get that dirty... Ahem. Anyway, it¡¯s only two weeks, and I¡¯ll be back next weekend to check up on everything and make more food for you so I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be fine. Now come on, let¡¯s eat dinner before it gets cold.¡± (Kyle)
Ky finished his explanation and patted me on the head before walking back to the kitchen as I fell to my knees with a defeated look on my face.
What happened to staying by my side!?
Royal Academy, Front Gate (Kyle POV)
It was another beautiful autumn day. The sun was shining in the sky, and a gentle breeze blew by as I walked over to the front gate of the Royal Academy to meet up with Regnis and Sophie. There were still some students training here and there, and as expected, the training fields were just as busy as yesterday, but that didn¡¯t matter because today we were going to take a trip to an adventurer town a little south of the capital.
¡°Hey! Regnis! Sophie! Over here!¡± (Kyle)
I spotted Regnis and Sophie standing near the gate and I called out to them while waving to get their attention. They both had backpacks on and were holding their spear and gun respectively as they waved back at me, and I ran over before asking them if they had everything they needed.
¡°Did you two bring everything I asked you to?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yes, but are you sure this is all we¡¯ll need?¡± (Regnis)
¡°Yeah, just a week¡¯s worth of clothes, a tent and sleeping bag, and our weapons seems like it might be a little lacking.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Don¡¯t worry, you have a seasoned adventurer with you who has more than enough supplies on him.¡± (Kyle)
I smiled at Regnis and Sophie before pointing at the large backpack I was wearing. It was filled with my old adventuring equipment that I used when Aria and I were still running around in Delhurst, along with some special supplies for the training camp, and I even felt a bit nostalgic as I heard the rattle of my cooking utensils inside, but unfortunately, despite my enthusiasm, Regnis and Sophie still looked a little worried.
¡°Well, even if our supplies are a bit light, I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll be fine. After all, we¡¯ll be near a town too. And it¡¯s not like we¡¯re going to be gone for two weeks straight. We¡¯ll be back in the capital for the weekend to restock on supplies. But anyway, before we set out, I¡¯d like to drop by somewhere first.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? Where?¡± (Sophie)
¡°A blacksmith. After all, we need to get some new weapons made for you two.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait. New weapons?¡± (Regnis)
Regnis and Sophie stared at me with confused looks on their faces as I nodded to them.
¡°Yep. Well, actually, Regnis, you might be fine with your spear, but the main problem here is with your gun, Sophie.¡± (Kyle)
¡°My gun? What do you mean?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Well, the gun you have is a rifle, which, unfortunately, is not optimal for the one on one combat that you¡¯ll be experiencing in the tournament. A rifle is more suited to long range, team-based combat, where you¡¯ll have someone to distract the enemy for you while you attack them from afar, but in the tournament, you¡¯re probably going to be restricted to just a small area with only you and your opponent.¡± (Kyle)
Sophie stared at her gun for a moment before looking back up at me with a concerned frown.
"Then what will I fight with? I haven¡¯t really used anything other than a gun.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Wait. Who said you need to change weapons?¡± (Kyle)
¡°You did! You just said my gun isn¡¯t good for one on one combat, so I¡¯m changing to a new weapon, right!?¡± (Sophie)
Sophie yelled at me as I scratched the back of my head sheepishly before replying.
¡°Well, just because your particular type of gun isn¡¯t the most suitable, doesn¡¯t mean you need to stop using guns entirely.¡± (Kyle)
¡°What are we going to do then?¡± (Sophie)
Sophie crossed her arms and pouted angrily before I dramatically pointed at her with a proud smile on my face.
¡°Simple. If your current gun isn¡¯t optimal, then we¡¯ll just have to design a new one for you.¡± (Kyle)
As I mentioned my plan, I could see the curiosity light up in her eyes before she begrudgingly replied with a slightly excited tone.
¡°Design a new one?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Yeah. You said before that your gun was the latest in the Empire¡¯s alchemical technology, right? Well, then we¡¯ll just have to make another advancement! In fact, I already have a design in mind, and I refuse to believe that with our combined understanding of alchemy that we can¡¯t at least create a functional prototype! But before that, we¡¯ll need to have the physical frame for the gun made first, so we¡¯re going to head over to a blacksmith to put the order in right now. That way it should be done by next weekend when we get back. And since we¡¯re going to a blacksmith anyway, I thought why not have something made for Regnis too.¡± (Kyle)
I turned towards Regnis as he stared at his spear for a moment.
¡°So Regnis, would you like a new spear?¡± (Kyle)
¡°I think I¡¯ll be fine with this one. It¡¯s a little¡ special to me, so I don¡¯t want to replace it.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Hmm, how about some new armor then?¡± (Kyle)
¡°My armor¡¯s still in good condition too, so honestly, I don¡¯t think I need anything. Thanks for the offer though.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Alright, suit yourself.¡± (Kyle)
I shrugged before gesturing for Regnis and Sophie to follow me.
¡°Ok, let¡¯s get going then.¡± (Kyle)
Solria, Shopping District (Sophie POV)
The hustle and bustle of the capital¡¯s shopping district surrounded me as Regnis and I followed behind Professor Kyle. Indistinct chatter from countless people was only drowned out by the sound of several carriages running through the streets, and I glanced around as my sense of excitement only grew stronger. Our small group of three squeezed our way through the crowds of people before finally, we arrived in front of what seemed to be a small blacksmith¡¯s shop on the side of the street. A wooden sign above the entrance read ¡®The Ironclad Forge,¡¯ and Professor Kyle stopped in his tracks before barging in through the front door.
Inside the quaint looking shop there was a large counter directly in front of us, while a variety of weapons and armor lined the walls. Behind the counter was a brown-haired boy with a pair of goggles on his head. He looked a little younger than us, and when he noticed that we entered, he called out to Professor Kyle with a friendly tone in his voice.
¡°Oh. Hey, Ky. Welcome back.¡±
¡°Hey, Lucas. How are you?¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle waved at the boy, who waved back before answering.
¡°I¡¯m doing great.¡±
¡°Where¡¯s Uncle Grayhill?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Well, he¡¯s out on a delivery, so I¡¯m stuck watching the shop by myself for now.¡±
The boy laughed and exchanged some small talk with Professor Kyle before finally turning to me and Regnis with a curious look on his face.
¡°By the way, Ky, who are they?¡±Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
¡°They¡¯re my students.¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle pointed to us with a grin before Lucas readjusted the pair of goggles on his head and smiled at us as Regnis and I introduced ourselves.
¡°Nice to meet you. The name¡¯s Lucas. What are your names?¡± (Lucas)
¡°Regnis.¡± (Regnis)
¡°I¡¯m Sophie.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Well, welcome to The Ironclad Forge. The best smithy in the capital!¡± (Lucas)
Lucas smiled proudly and gave us a thumbs up before turning back to Professor Kyle.
¡°So, did you need another sword or something, Ky?¡± (Lucas)
¡°Nope. I have to give my respect to Uncle Grayhill. That sword survived a lot more abuse than I thought it would, though it¡¯s currently sitting in my room collecting dust.¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle let out a dry laugh before changing the topic of the conversation.
¡°Anyway, I¡¯m actually here today to commission something for one of my students.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? What do you need us to make? A spear? Or, uh...¡± (Lucas)
Lucas stared at my gun for a moment with a confused look on his face before Professor Kyle spoke again.
¡°Umm, well, it¡¯s a little hard to explain... I think just drawing the blueprints and showing you would be easier, so could I borrow a pen and some paper?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Sure. Give me a second.¡± (Lucas)
Lucas ducked behind the counter before pulling out a pen and a piece of paper.
¡°Here you go.¡± (Lucas)
¡°Thanks, Lucas. Just give me a second.¡± (Kyle)
Then Professor Kyle turned to me with a serious look on his face.
¡°Sophie, can I see your gun for a moment? I need to figure out how the alchemy circles in it work before I can implement them into the new design.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? Sure. Here. The alchemy circles are right under the panel on the side.¡± (Sophie)
I handed my gun over to Professor Kyle and a moment passed by as he just stared at it intently from a few different angles before nodding to himself.
¡°Hmm. Just as I expected¡¡± (Kyle)
What!? Did he already figure out how it works!? But he didn¡¯t even see the circles yet! Could it be? Is his intuition as an expert alchemist just that good?
I stared at Professor Kyle in shock and was about to ask him how he could tell how my gun functioned when suddenly, the serious look on Professor Kyle¡¯s face disappeared and he cleared his throat with an embarrassed look on his face before sheepishly handing my gun back to me with a dry laugh.
¡°Ahem. I have no idea how to open this thing...¡± (Kyle)
I stood there for a moment at a loss for words as the realization that he just had no idea what he was doing shattered my previous sense of awe like a rock going through a window. Eventually, I let out a sigh and took my gun back before opening up the panel for him. Underneath the tube where the bullets were fired out, there was a long panel with decorative designs on it that opened up to reveal ten complex alchemy circles etched into the metal of the gun with enchanted ink, and I held the gun up to show them to Professor Kyle before starting to explain how each of the alchemy circles worked.
***
A few minutes later, Professor Kyle pointed to the first alchemy circle that had a line drawn to connect it to the slot where monster cores were loaded.
¡°Alright, I think I sort of get it now. So when the trigger is pulled, it activates this first circle, which draws out mana from the inserted monster core and channels it to the second circle, which then compresses most of it into the shape of a small sphere. If the mana from the monster core has an element, then one of the next six circles activates depending on what element the mana is and converts the rest of the uncompressed mana into non-elemental mana so that it can power the ninth circle, which launches the sphere at a high speed.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yep. And the tenth alchemy circle is there as a safety switch. The mana flow is in the opposite direction so it can immediately cancel out the process in case anything goes wrong with one of the previous circles, and thanks to the enchanted ink¡¯s high mana attunement level, the whole system flows lightning fast and as smooth as butter.¡± (Sophie)
¡°I see.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait, stop. My head hurts.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Uh, well, it sounds pretty cool¡¡± (Lucas)
Regnis rubbed his temples with a defeated look on his face while Lucas gave me a dry chuckle after I finished explaining the function of the last circle with a satisfied smile.
¡°Well, I understand the basic idea behind each part of the system¡¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle held his chin and frowned slightly before immediately throwing his arms out in frustration and yelling at the ceiling.
¡°... but why the hell are the circles so stupidly complex!? All it does is fire a ball of mana out of a tube, doesn¡¯t it!?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Of course they¡¯re complex. Every circle has an incredibly specific function and it¡¯s all part of a larger system where even a small mistake would result in total failure, so everything has to run perfectly.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Urgh, fine. Then looks like I¡¯ll have to change the new design a bit to compensate for the room that the alchemy circles will take. Umm, I guess I can make some extra room on the barrel, though it¡¯ll be a bit heavier¡¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle let out a sigh and began to mutter to himself as he turned around and started drawing on the paper Lucas gave him earlier.
¡°... Ah. Wait, can¡¯t I just condense the system a little?... Right, I can just use that one circle¡ but is it compatible with modern alchemy?¡ Actually, I should leave enough room for the whole system anyway in case it doesn¡¯t mesh too well with my alchemy¡ Eh. worst comes to worst, I guess we¡¯ll just have to put the alchemy circles for the extra features on the handle or something...¡± (Kyle)
A few more minutes passed as I watched Professor Kyle sketch out a strange shape before holding it up and turning around to show the new design off to me and Regnis.
¡°Alright, Sophie. Here¡¯s the new design for your gun.¡± (Kyle)
The new design still had a vaguely similar shape to my gun, but the main body of the gun was considerably shorter. It was basically a long rectangular box about twice the length of the handle, and the actual tube to fire the bullets was on the upper half of the box whereas the lower end reached down past the trigger and merged with the trigger guard. The angle that the handle came off of the main body of the gun was also a bit different, with it being almost at a right angle, but the slot to insert monster cores was still above the trigger.
It looked quite strange compared to my current gun, but an exciting sense of curiosity welled up inside of me again as I stared at the new design.
¡°So you know how I said before that your rifle wasn¡¯t very good for direct one on one combat?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yeah.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Well, this type of gun is called a handgun, and it¡¯s much more effective in a one on one situation. It¡¯s smaller and lighter, which makes it easier to carry and handle compared to a longer gun like your rifle. It also only requires a single hand to use, which means you can wield two of them at the same time. I tried to make this design focus more on mobility and skill, but don¡¯t worry, I didn¡¯t forget about firepower. In fact, if everything goes according to plan, then theoretically, the new alchemy system will have an even higher potential output than the one in your rifle.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? A higher potential output?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Yep. We¡¯ll need to do some testing first with the new system, but that can come after we have the physical prototype in our hands.¡± (Kyle)
An excited spark lit up in my eyes again as Professor Kyle nodded to himself before handing the blueprint over to Lucas.
¡°The shape might be a little strange, but I¡¯m sure you and Uncle Grayhill are skilled enough to handle it.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Hmm, well, it doesn¡¯t look impossible at least.¡± (Lucas)
Lucas picked up the blueprint for my new gun and inspected it for a moment before turning back to Professor Kyle.
¡°So what should we make them out of?¡± (Lucas)
¡°Uh, I guess just steel would be fine. How long do you think it¡¯ll take to make two of these?¡± (Kyle)
¡°I can¡¯t be completely sure, but... I think we can probably finish it in a few days.¡± (Lucas)
¡°Perfect! I¡¯ll be back this weekend to pick them up then. How much do I owe you?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Umm, well¡ taking into account the material costs and¡ wait, what would be the cost of labor for something like this¡ Argh. Whatever, I¡¯ll just put it on your tab when I figure out the final price.¡± (Lucas)
Lucas let out a defeated sigh as Professor Kyle thanked him.
¡°Thanks, Lucas! Tell Uncle Grayhill I said thanks too!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Sure, no problem. See you later, Ky.¡± (Lucas)
Lucas waved goodbye to Professor Kyle as the three of us finally left the shop. The sun was still shining bright and the noisy atmosphere of the shopping district enveloped us again, but somehow, the sound of Professor Kyle¡¯s voice was still crystal clear as he turned to stare at the sky for a moment before calling out to me and Regnis with a smile.
¡°Alright, come on, you two. I already reserved a carriage for us on one of the caravans heading south today, and they should be leaving in about an hour, so let¡¯s get going.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yes, Professor Kyle!¡± (Sophie & Regnis)
Royal Academy, Headmistress¡¯ Office (Mari POV)
The sound of pages being flipped was the only thing that broke the silence in my office as I sat there with a strange sight in front of me. Bowing to me in the middle of my office was one of the students from Ky¡¯s class, Zane, but instead of his usual carefree appearance, this time, he held a long, metal staff in his hands and was wearing light training attire with the Church of Light¡¯s symbol on it. A few moments passed, but he still didn¡¯t say a word. All he did was stay there, frozen like he was a statue until finally, I let out a sigh and stopped filling out my paperwork before speaking to him.
¡°So before we start, would you mind telling me exactly who you are?¡± (Mari)
My voice had a tinge of coldness to it as it rang out, and after another moment, Zane responded quietly.
¡°... So, they really didn¡¯t tell you anything, huh?...¡± (Zane)
¡°No, they didn¡¯t.¡± (Mari)
He took a deep breath before raising his head again while I continued to speak.
¡°His majesty only requested that I teach you magic, and there was that high priestess from the Church of Light too, but she didn¡¯t tell me anything that I couldn¡¯t already figure out on my own. All she said was that I would be doing a great favor for the Church of Light by taking you under my wing and that you were someone extremely important, but I think the latter was obvious enough considering the fact that you managed to get a high priestess and even the Emperor himself to move on your behalf.¡± (Mari)
I sat there with my arms crossed after finishing my little recap of what happened last night, and silence pervaded the room again as Zane grit his teeth before lowering his head a bit to stare at the ground.
¡°Is your identity something I can¡¯t know?¡± (Mari)
¡°... No¡ even if it¡¯s something I¡¯ve been given... it¡¯s still mine... and I have the right to decide who I tell¡¡± (Zane)
Zane raised his head again, but this time there was an unexpected determination burning in his eyes. His sight was unwavering as he stared straight at me, and my eyes sharpened in return as I spoke again.
¡°Then, let me ask again. Who are you?¡± (Mari)
¡°I¡¯m¡ a fated ally for the God of Light¡¯s chosen hero...¡± (Zane)
¡°What? The God of Light¡¯s chosen hero?¡± (Mari)
¡°Yes, hero... I know this might be a bit much to take in right now, but¡ according to the God of Fate, a new demon lord will soon descend upon this world again... and the ones destined to defeat him are the hero along with his fated allies. I¡¯m¡ one of those fated allies¡ ¡± (Zane)
Zane had a bitter smile on his face as he explained everything to me, but I just stared back at him like he was a crazy person.
¡°... You don¡¯t believe me, do you?¡± (Zane)
¡°No, I don¡¯t.¡± (Mari)
¡°Well, sorry, but if you¡¯re looking for proof, then this is all I have...¡± (Zane)
Zane held his staff out.
¡°This was the sacred weapon that his highness, the God of Light gave me when I was chosen as one of the hero¡¯s fated allies...¡± (Zane)
His grip on the staff tightened a bit as I reached out towards him. Then he let go completely, and it dropped into my hand.
The simple looking staff was unexpectedly light. It felt more like it was made of wood, yet it was still cold to the touch and shone with a shiny, silverish gleam just like metal. A few decorative patterns were etched along the whole length of the staff, and I inspected them for a moment before raising my head again with a skeptical look in my eyes.
¡°How exactly is this a sacred weapon? It just looks like a fancy metal stick to me.¡± (Mari)
¡°I¡¯ll be honest with you, Headmistress Sylfey, even to me, it just looks like a fancy metal stick, but¡ I swear on my life that it¡¯s a sacred weapon. When his highness handed it to me, he told me that there was a power hidden in the staff and I would only understand how to use it when the time came for me to. It¡¯s just... that time hasn¡¯t come yet... so, I have no idea how to use it. All I can say right now is please, believe me.¡± (Zane)
Zane bowed deeply again as his voice quieted down, almost to a whisper.
¡°... I need your help to get stronger¡¡± (Zane)
He was silent again after that, and I could even see him trembling a little as he stood there bowing.
Should I believe him?... Well, he doesn¡¯t seem like he¡¯s lying, but it¡¯s all a bit ridiculous, isn¡¯t it? And even if what he¡¯s saying really is true, I¡¯m not too keen on venturing into the territory of heroes and demon lords¡
I stared at him for a moment before letting out a sigh.
¡°You said this staff was your only proof, right? Fine, then let¡¯s put that claim to the test.¡± (Mari)
Zane stopped bowing as I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. A surge of mana burst out from within me, and it flowed into my right hand as I condensed it before delicately controlling it, almost like a thread. My mana swirled around in my palm, and when I opened my eyes again they were glowing hazily with a light green as the air around the room started converging inward while the sound of paper fluttering in the wind filled the room.
The natural law of wind enveloped my right hand. And then, I touched the staff.
I was honestly expecting nothing to happen, but instead, all of the natural law of wind concentrated in my right hand was instantly absorbed by the staff, and the designs on the staff lit up with the same hazy light green.
The light jingle of a bell echoed out in my mind with an eerie clarity while what looked like an almost spearhead-like shape composed entirely of the natural law of the wind emerged from the tip of the staff. It glowed with a hazy light green too as wind began to rage around it like a small tornado. Then, I heard a strange voice echo in my mind with the same eerie clarity of the bell earlier.
¡°... You are not the one chosen by the God of Light¡¡±
It sounded like the quiet whisper of a young girl, and after the voice stopped, the sound of a bell echoed out again. The natural law of wind in the staff completely dissipated as everything went back to normal, and silence returned to my office again before Zane ran up to my desk with a shocked expression on his face.
¡°Headmistress Sylfey! What did you do!? H-How did you activate it!?¡± (Zane)
¡°Well... I¡ just channeled the natural law of wind into it¡¡± (Mari)
¡°The natural law of wind!? Is that the key!?¡± (Zane)
Zane started to ramble, but I just sat there for a moment and thought to myself while zoning out the rest of his nonsense in the background.
I¡¯m not the one chosen by the God of Light¡ That was the voice said, right? Which means¡
I came back to my senses before raising my head to see Zane staring intently at his hand while trying to concentrate wind-element mana into it.
"Come on, Zane! Concentrate harder!" (Zane)
¡ this idiot was telling the truth, wasn¡¯t he?¡
I let out a tired sigh and took another moment to think over everything again before cutting Zane off with a calm voice.
¡°Fine, Zane. I believe you now. And I¡¯ll teach you magic too." (Mari)
"Eh? Really!?" (Zane)
"There''s one condition though...¡± (Mari)
I tossed his staff back to him and he caught it in a panic as I stood up from behind my desk and pointed at him with a stern look on my face.
¡°... I don¡¯t care if you¡¯re one of the hero¡¯s fated allies, or even the hero himself! If you want to learn magic from me, then you¡¯ll have to follow my orders. No exceptions.¡± (Mari)
After my declaration, I saw Zane freeze up, but after a moment, he saluted me as the determination from before returned to his eyes.
¡°Thank you, Headmistress, no, Master Sylfey!¡± (Zane)
[Chapter 28] Birds of a Feather Flock Together
Outskirts of Adventurer Town Siel, Training Camp (Kyle POV)
A breath of fresh air entered my lungs as I took in the beautiful scenery surrounding me while stretching my arms a bit. Spread out in front of me was a rocky clearing with a gentle waterfall, which emptied into a small, tranquil lake at the base. The faint breeze blowing by ruffled my hair and clothes a bit while bright sunshine sparkled off the soft ripples on the surface of the crystal clear lake, completing the serene atmosphere of the rocky clearing. Although, I will admit the peacefulness was slightly ruined by the sight of Regnis and Sophie desperately running back and forth across the clearing while covered in sweat¡
Ahem. Well anyway, a few hours ago we arrived in the Adventurer Town of Siel, a small town to the south of the capital. I remember staying there for a night when Aria and I were traveling to the capital from Delhurst, and while the town itself was actually quite ordinary, one of the mountains nearby was the perfect setting for our training camp. There was water here, there was a large clearing nearby with plenty of room, and it was far enough out of the way that we probably wouldn¡¯t be disturbed.
And anyway, if we¡¯re talking about a training camp, it has to be on a mountain, doesn¡¯t it? It¡¯s almost a natural law of the universe at this point that training on a mountain increases the effectiveness of the training, especially for Regnis and Sophie, who have both had contact with main characters like Halbert and Raven. Some plot armor has probably rubbed off on them already and I¡¯ve even assembled all the necessary training arc buffs for them. They¡¯ve been in contact with two main characters, they¡¯re training in the mountains, and I guess I count as an old master, right? Well, anyway, I¡¯m even helping them cheat a bit, so I¡¯m fully expecting that somehow they¡¯ll defy every single expectation I have of them and learn some overpowered forbidden techniques through sheer willpower or something by the end of their training montages.
I smiled and nodded to myself in anticipation before turning around to complete the aforementioned cheating device for Regnis and Sophie. Three small tents surrounded a fire pit and our backpacks were laid out on the side next to a few bags of supplies I bought in Siel, however, in front of me was something that seemed out of place for our quaint little camp. At my feet was a pool of warm water which I dug out and filled using alchemy earlier. It looked like just a small hot spring with nothing too special about it, but the key to its specialness was the blue, palm-sized alchemy stone I held in my hand. It was engraved with a series of complex alchemy circles, and a faint, hazy glow surrounded it as I held it in my hand.
The alchemy stone was something I prepared yesterday for the training camp. Since today was the first day of training, I thought I would keep it simple, and just told Regnis and Sophie to just run back and forth across the clearing 100 times without body strengthening magic so they could improve their base physical strength. You see, the way body strengthening magic works is that it¡¯s like multiplying your original strength and speed, so the higher your base stats are, the stronger and faster you¡¯ll be with body strengthening magic. For example, if your body strengthening magic was at the level where it doubled everything and your base stats were at 10, then your body strengthening magic would raise them to 20, but if your base stats were at 15, the same level of body strengthening magic would raise them to 30 instead.
Unfortunately, I can¡¯t teach them how to use a higher level of body strengthening magic since I could never use it myself in the first place, and as for imbuing their bodies with a natural law like I did¡ Well, let¡¯s just say even if they were at the level where they could manipulate natural laws, they probably wouldn¡¯t be able to endure the insane amount of pain from the process so our best option right now is to do some physical training and raise their base stats to increase the effectiveness of their body strengthening magic. However, the problem is that eventually their bodies will give out from the constant physical strain and exhaustion, right? So that¡¯s where this cheating device comes into play.
You see, back when I had just been summoned to Aias, I used to do a lot of physical training with Kazuki since swordsmanship was my main method of fighting. But thanks to being a manaless, I usually had to train at least twice as hard as him to even have a chance of keeping up and as a result, I was no stranger to running out of stamina, passing out in the middle of training, and waking up the next day with crippling muscle pain from pushing my body to its physical limit. So in order to try and fix that problem, I did some research into alchemy circles that were related to healing. Eventually, I managed to find an alchemy circle, Revitalization, which relieved the target of all physical fatigue and restored them to a normal state, but unfortunately, just like healing magic, it also sapped the target of their vitality. Revitalization was basically the equivalent of borrowing energy from your future self, which was why it wasn¡¯t used often except for urgent situations where your life was on the line. However, it was basically my only option if I wanted to even try and keep up with Kazuki¡¯s insane rate of growth. And well, although it was kind of expected that his strength would skyrocket compared to mine with him being the chosen hero and all that, my pride, or I guess I should say my pettiness, wouldn¡¯t let me just sit back and watch him run so far ahead of me...
So I got to work, and after a few months of research and experimentation, I finally managed to modify it into a new alchemy circle which could use vitality from sources other than the person being targeted, and with a few other alchemy circles to help supplement its effects, it could even affect multiple targets through the use of a medium like, for example, a small pool of water. Unfortunately, I still had to find a source of vitality other than me to power it and since most external sources of vitality were extremely rare and expensive, running it was basically equivalent to burning money, but luckily, abusi-, ahem, utilizing my authority as an ally of the hero let me ¡®convince¡¯ the Church of Light to help me cover those expenses.
I named the new alchemy circle¡¾Sanctuary of Revitalization¡¿, which I know is a pretty unoriginal name, but you know, a few months of constant research kind of wears out your creativity...
Anyway, moving on, normally I would¡¯ve needed to spend an astronomical amount of money to get enough objects with vitality stored in them to run this thing constantly, but wouldn¡¯t you know it, turns out that we have someone here who coincidentally has an infinite amount of vitality, me. And the stone¡¯s already starting to absorb some of my vitality from me just holding it, so if I activate it and let it absorb a ton, it should keep the thing running for a while. Hopefully, at least enough to help Regnis and Sophie get through the physical training I have planned for them. Well, there are also a few small side effects like having to eat a lot more to keep up with the amount of energy being used, but I turned out just fine after using it constantly for almost two years, so it shouldn¡¯t be too much of a problem, right? And anyway, I brought my cooking utensils for a reason.
What? Is it ethical to help them cheat like this? Well, trust me, if my experience with Kazuki was any indication, then they¡¯ll need all the help they can get to even stand a chance against a main character like Halbert. In fact, I¡¯m sure he¡¯s off somewhere right now discovering some hidden bloodline ability or mastering a secret skill that he found on the side of the road one day. There¡¯s no way they, Regnis especially, will be able to catch up to Halbert without some sort of boost. Besides, all I¡¯m doing is relieving them of all their physical exhaustion, their mental exhaustion I can¡¯t do anything about, so it¡¯s really up to how strong their wills are to see if they truly can complete all this training I have planned. Just think of this as¡ accelerating their growth rate a bit.
¡°¡¾Sanctuary of Revitalization¡¿, continuous cast, activate.¡± (Kyle)
The moment I activated it, an intense blue glow burst outward from the stone and I felt it violently absorb as much of my vitality as it could before I dropped it into the pool. At first, the glow pierced through the water too, but after a second, the alchemy stone sunk to the bottom and the glow slowly dissipated as the water finally calmed again.
For a moment, I felt slightly lightheaded as I stood there staring at the small pool, but after sitting down on a nearby rock and taking a few deep breaths, the lightheadedness disappeared and I was back to normal. The sight of Regnis and Sophie running back and forth filled my field of vision again as I let out a sigh before quietly talking to myself.
¡°Well, it¡¯s all up to you two now... Honestly, I didn¡¯t think both of you would last this long, but it looks like I¡¯ve underestimated you two. You¡¯re both keeping up, so give it all you¡¯ve got and show me what you¡¯re made of.¡± (Kyle)
The edges of my mouth couldn¡¯t help but curve upwards into a smile as I watched them try their hardest to continue running, and for the faintest of moments, I really believed that they would complete the first task of my hellish training schedule with ease.
Then, Sophie tripped and fell over.
Ah.
Regnis stopped running and started to slowly walk over to see if Sophie was ok, but after he made it about halfway there, his legs gave out from exhaustion and he fell over and collapsed himself.
I sat there at a loss for words for a moment before getting up and walking over to the middle of the clearing to go help them.
¡°... Well¡ On the bright side, at least they lasted until I finished setting up everything, right?...¡± (Kyle)
Royal Academy, Headmistress¡¯ Office (Mari POV)
The sound of pages being flipped echoed through the room for a moment before being drowned out by my voice as I called out to Zane.
¡°Zane, are you finished with the academy seal? Also, how much longer are you going to take with the approval forms for those budget requests? They were supposed to be done as soon as possible!¡± (Mari)
¡°E-Eh? Wait, didn¡¯t I leave the seal on your desk earlier? And I¡¯m going as fast as I can with the approval forms!¡± (Zane)
I raised my head a bit to stare past my desk. Zane was sitting on the floor surrounded by piles of papers. He scrambled around looking for the academy seal in a panic before I stopped writing for a moment and let out a sigh.
¡°How am I supposed to get anything done if you¡¯re going to take this long with just some simple approval forms?¡± (Mari)
¡°How am I supposed to go any faster!? There¡¯s way too many! I¡¯m only about halfway through them all, and I still have to double-check all the math afterward! Give me another hour at least!¡± (Zane)
Zane cried out in indignation as I closed my eyes and rubbed my temples while mentally rescheduling everything I needed to do after taking Zane¡¯s speed at filling out paperwork into account.
¡°Well, hurry up then. I don¡¯t have all day to teach you magic, you know.¡± (Mari)
¡°What kind of teaching is this!? I¡¯m just helping you do your work! All you¡¯ve done so far in terms of actually teaching me magic was tell me how to cast that first circle wind spell yesterday!¡± (Zane)
¡°Well, why do you think we¡¯re rushing to finish everything? It¡¯s so I can clear up next week to teach you full-time. What? Did you think I would just drop everything and immediately start to train you all day just because you came in and asked? I have things to do too, so the longer you take, the less time I¡¯ll actually have to train you afterward. Also, that first circle wind spell I taught you has a name! It¡¯s called¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿, and it¡¯s my own original spell, an evolving spell with infinite potential! You¡¯re lucky I even showed you how to cast it in the first place, and the fact that you can¡¯t push it past a first circle spell means that your skill at controlling mana is terrible!¡± (Mari)
¡°Well, where am I supposed to find the time to even practice it if you¡¯re making me do all this paperwork? I have to sleep too, you know!¡± (Zane)
Zane continued to rummage through the piles of papers around him as I slumped over on my desk before letting out a tired groan.
¡°Ugh¡ Well, this wouldn¡¯t be a problem if you just finished everything I gave you on time like Ky did. If he were here, he would¡¯ve finished the approval forms, reviewed the entire budget, and made me a cup of tea by now¡¡± (Mari)
¡°Well, I¡¯m not Ky! Besides if he would''ve finished everything faster, then why didn''t you get him to help you instead?¡± (Zane)
¡°I would¡¯ve if I could, but he ran off yesterday with Regnis and Sophie for a training camp or something.¡± (Mari)
I pouted after grumbling about Ky¡¯s absence for a moment, but surprisingly, what answered my grumbling wasn¡¯t another remark from Zane like I expected. Instead, the sound of papers fluttering slowly died down and I looked over to see that Zane had stopped rummaging through the piles of papers around him. He had a serious look on his face as he stared at his own empty hand in front of him while quietly mumbling to himself.
¡°... so he¡¯s with Ky¡¡± (Zane)
¡°Hey, stop slacking off and get back to work.¡± (Mari)
I called out to Zane again, but he just pushed around a few piles of papers, pulled out the academy seal, and tossed it over to me while still staring at his open hand in silence. I immediately sat back up and caught it before yelling at him for throwing it over so suddenly, but the moment I said a word, Zane cut me off with a quiet resolve in his voice.
¡°Oi-¡± (Mari)
¡°You said¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿was an evolving spell, right?...¡± (Zane)
I sat there for a moment before I answered Zane with a confused look on my face.
¡°What?¡± (Mari)
¡°Regnis is training with Ky, right? And Halbert is probably with his master right now. Those two are already charging straight ahead, so how am I going to catch up to them like this?¡± (Zane)This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
His open hand tightened into a fist for a moment before he turned to me and raised three fingers.
¡°Three days. I¡¯ll raise¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿to the second, no, the third circle within three days! And I¡¯ll finish the approval forms right now too! Just give me half an hour! Now come on, let¡¯s finish this before we waste any more time!¡± (Zane)`
Zane began to sort through the approval forms again with a burning determination in his eyes as I facepalmed.
There¡¯s no way he¡¯ll be able to make it to the third circle in three days. Maybe the second circle if he¡¯s lucky, but he would need a miracle to make it to the third circle! If I say anything though, he¡¯ll probably lose all his motivation to keep working!
A moment passed before I slumped over on my desk again with an exhausted sigh.
Reina, where are you? I miss you already!
The Goddess of Love¡¯s Divine Domain, Eliza¡¯s House (Reina POV)
¡°Lady Eliza, I finished cleaning the house.¡± (Reina)
A light sigh of relief left my mouth as I walked over to the sofa where Lady Eliza was lying down and reading a book. She flipped to the next page before turning away from her book to look at me.
¡°Oh, you did?¡± (Eliza)
A moment passed by as Lady Eliza slowly sat up before glancing around the living room.
¡°Alright, looks clean to me. Nice job, Reina.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Thank you, Lady Eliza, but¡ what do I do now?¡± (Reina)
¡°Hmm. Well, Olivia should be back with Sera soon, so I guess just take a break for now. After all, it¡¯s probably better if you rest for a bit before learning magic from Sera.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Um¡ I know I asked this before already, but are you sure it¡¯s ok to have her holiness come over to teach me magic?... I mean, she¡¯s a Goddess, isn¡¯t she? I feel like I¡¯m wasting her time asking her to come over and teach me magic¡¡± (Reina)
I fiddled around with my fingers nervously as Lady Eliza just slumped back on the sofa before reassuring me.
¡°Trust me, it¡¯ll be fine. Despite the way she acts, Sera loves slacking off, so there¡¯s no way she¡¯ll give up the chance to come over and cut work for two weeks to teach you magic. Besides, what are you scared of? She might be a Goddess, but you¡¯re the one and only Magical Girl of Love, aren¡¯t you? So don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s not like she¡¯ll bite or anything.¡± (Eliza)
Lady Eliza let out a chuckle before starting to read her book again as I pulled my fist close to my chest and closed my eyes.
Anxiety and fear, those were the two emotions that swirled around in my heart knowing that I was about to meet another Goddess, but despite my unease, I tightened my grip on the broom in my hand.
Lady Eliza¡¯s right. I¡¯m the one and only Magical Girl of Love¡ and I need to get stronger. Strong enough to protect the people important to me!
I opened my eyes again, and this time, they shone with radiant determination as I nodded to Lady Eliza.
¡°Ok.¡± (Reina)
I walked over to the closet to put the broom back before making my way over to the kitchen to take a small break and prepare myself.
***
¡°Come on, Reina. You can do this...¡± (Reina)
I hugged my staff a little tighter as I whispered to myself while Lady Eliza and I waited at the empty ritual grounds in the backyard for Lady Olivia to return. A light breeze blew by the picturesque scene, making my hair flutter for a moment before suddenly, a magic circle formed on the floor in front of us.
Here she comes!
A blindingly bright light shone outwards from the magic circle as I held my arm up to shield my eyes before I heard an unfamiliar voice ring out.
¡°Eliza, I¡¯m here. Where¡¯s the kid I¡¯m supposed to be teaching?¡±
It was a woman¡¯s voice, dainty and light, yet somehow tinged with a hint of feistiness to it. And after a moment, I finally lowered my arm to see who it was as Lady Eliza called out to her nonchalantly.
¡°Oh, hey. You¡¯re finally here, Sera. Been a while, hasn¡¯t it?¡± (Eliza)
The first thing I saw was a familiar sight, Lady Olivia, but behind her was an unknown young woman with a confident smile. She had silky black hair which was tied into the shape of a short folded ponytail and her eyes were a brilliant vermillion red while her outfit consisted of a sleek, sleeveless robe the same color as her eyes as well as two slim, light-purple arm covers that spanned from just below her shoulders to her wrists. A combination of ethereal elegance and liveliness radiated out from her as she stood there for a moment with her hand on her hip before answering Lady Eliza.
¡°Yeah, it has. By the way, why didn¡¯t you tell me sooner that the obnoxious idiot finally left? He was so annoying, especially after he opened up! I liked it a lot better when he barely opened that aggravating mouth of his. Honestly, I don¡¯t know what you two both saw in him to fall for him like that.¡± (Sera)
Eh? Fall for?
Her holiness crossed her arms and let out a disappointed sigh before Lady Olivia cut in with a slight blush on her face.
¡°Ahem. Lady Sera, I know it¡¯s been a while, and I¡¯m happy to have you over again as well, but please don¡¯t just openly reveal our personal matters like that!¡± (Olivia)
¡°Eh? Reveal? Wait. Does the kid not know?¡± (Sera)
Her holiness glanced at me with a confused expression for a moment before the edges of her mouth curved upwards into a mischievous grin as she poked Lady Olivia to tease her.
¡°Oh? Are you embarrassed about your little crush on that idiot? It¡¯s ok, we¡¯re all friends here, aren¡¯t we? And the kid¡¯s gonna find out eventually, so why not just tell her now?¡± (Sera)
Her holiness shrugged playfully before turning around to face me again, but before she could even say a word, Lady Olivia instantly grabbed her holiness¡¯ shoulder and stopped her. Lady Olivia had a scary smile on her face and her grip tightened as she spoke with a threatening tone in her voice.
¡°Lady Sera, Lady Eliza asked you to come over to help teach wind magic to Reina, right? Well, it¡¯s understandable if you want to relax a little before starting, but if all you¡¯re going to be doing here is gossiping about my personal matters, then perhaps I should send you back to your own divine domain so you can finish up the rest of the work that you just handed over to Lady Kris before coming over.¡± (Olivia)
Her holiness froze up for a moment before turning to Lady Olivia again, this time with a panicked look on her face.
¡°Wait! I¡¯m sorry, Olivia! Don¡¯t send me back! Kris is still angry at me because of that time I went down to the main plane to mess around a few years ago, she¡¯ll kill me if she finds out I dumped all that work on her again to come over and slack off! L-Look, I¡¯ll start teaching her right now.¡± (Sera)
¡°Then get to it! Honestly, you and Lady Eliza are exactly the same. You¡¯ll both take any chance you can to skip work, hmph.¡± (Olivia)
Lady Olivia¡¯s scary smile finally faded as she crossed her arms and pouted before she and her holiness walked over to me and Lady Eliza.
¡°Alright, Reina. Lady Sera here will be teaching you wind magic, and while I can¡¯t speak for her personality or work ethic, at least her skill at wind magic is top-notch. Also, speaking of work ethics, thanks to a certain someone lazing around all the time, there¡¯s still some work I need to take care of, so I guess I¡¯ll leave you under Lady Sera¡¯s watch for now.¡± (Olivia)
Lady Eliza let out a dry chuckle and avoided eye contact as Lady Olivia turned to her before letting out a tired sigh.
¡°Anyway, if you need me, I¡¯ll be in the study room like usual, so good luck, Reina.¡± (Olivia)
¡°Thank you, Lady Olivia.¡± (Reina)
Lady Olivia smiled gently at me before entering the house, leaving me and Lady Eliza with her holiness.
¡°So I guess you¡¯re the kid that I¡¯m supposed to be teaching. Reina, right?¡± (Sera)
¡°Y-Yes, your holiness!¡± (Reina)
I immediately straightened my back and saluted her holiness while Lady Eliza energetically stepped forward to introduce me.
¡°Yep. She¡¯s my new heroic spirit trainee, the Magical Girl of Love, Reina!¡± (Eliza)
¡°Magical Girl of Love? What¡¯s that?¡± (Sera)
Her holiness stared at me in bewilderment for a moment before Lady Eliza explained what a magical girl was while making a few punching motions in the air to mimic the action of a fight.
¡°Well, a magical girl is basically a mysterious hero who uses the power of her magical staff to transform and battle against the forces of evil in the name of love and friendship! Think of it as a heroic spirit with a secret identity. Come on, show her your transformation, Reina.¡± (Eliza)
Eh?
Lady Eliza turned to stare at me with a shining, expectant look on her eyes as all of my determination from before immediately shattered while an embarrassed blush spread through my face at just the thought of showing off my costume to another person, much less one who happened to be a goddess.
¡°D-Do I have to? It¡¯s embarrassing!¡± (Reina)
¡°Of course you do! What kind of magical girl doesn¡¯t transform? Besides, what are you embarrassed about? You¡¯re the one and only Magical Girl of Love chosen by yours truly, aren¡¯t you? So stand proud, and don¡¯t forget to pose when you finish the transformation sequence!¡± (Eliza)
Lady Eliza grinned at me as I dropped to my knees in defeat before slowly getting up again with a flustered face and channeling mana into my staff to activate it. A ball of pink mana formed in the middle of the hook of the staff and music started playing from seemingly out of nowhere as a bright pink light enveloped my body before shattering like glass to reveal me dressed in my magical girl uniform, posing shakily as tears flowed from my eyes.
¡°Tada! Isn¡¯t the design for the uniform cute? I designed it myself!¡± (Eliza)
Lady Eliza closed her eyes and nodded to herself with a satisfied smile while her holiness just stood there and stared at me awkwardly.
¡°I mean, the costume looks fine, maybe a little too frilly for my tastes, but that¡¯s not the problem. She¡¯s supposed to have a secret identity, right? Shouldn''t she have a mask or something too so everyone can¡¯t see exactly what she looks like?...¡± (Sera)
¡°Ah.¡± (Eliza)
A moment of awkward silence passed by as Lady Eliza stood there and stared blankly into space before turning to me again with a worried look on her face.
¡°Quick, Reina, I need to design a mask for your costume!¡± (Eliza)
¡°Eh?¡± (Reina)
Lady Eliza stared at me intensely to inspect my costume before patting me on the shoulder and making a declaration with a determined look on her face.
¡°Don¡¯t worry, Reina, I¡¯ll get the design for your mask done by the end of the week! In fact, I¡¯ll redesign the whole costume! Sera, I leave Reina to you for now!¡± (Eliza)
Wait! Lady Eliza!
Lady Eliza promptly ran back into the house with gusto, leaving another awkward silence between me and her holiness before suddenly, her holiness called out to me.
¡°I guess I should start by actually introducing myself.¡± (Sera)
She crossed her arms as a light breeze blew by, making her hair flow lightly in the wind as her crystal clear voice rang out again.
¡°I¡¯m the Goddess of Fire, Sera Kuon. Nice to meet you, Reina.¡± (Sera)
¡°W-Wait, Goddess of Fire? With all due respect, your holiness, aren¡¯t you supposed to be teaching me wind magic?¡± (Reina)
¡°Well, I might be the Goddess of Fire, but that doesn¡¯t mean my wind magic is weak. After all, I¡¯m a True Ancestor Phoenix, so my mastery of wind is second only to my mastery of fire.¡± (Sera)
Eh? P-Phoenix?
I scanned over her holiness a few times, but no matter where I looked, there were no feathers or anything. She just looked like a normal person.
¡°Actually, I guess in terms of my physical body, I¡¯ve already completely transformed into a human a long time ago, even before I became a Goddess, but technically, I¡¯m a sacred beast since my original form was a True Ancestor Phoenix. Although, as much as I loved my original form, I have to admit, it really was a pain in the butt to do anything! Being a human is much easier. I¡¯m not gigantic anymore, I don¡¯t accidentally set things I touch on fire, and having actual hands is great! There¡¯s a reason every sacred beast eventually ends up trying to turn into some sort of person. It¡¯s just way too convenient.¡± (Sera)
Her holiness waved her hand a few times to dismiss my concerns before continuing.
¡°But anyway, that¡¯s enough about that. Since I¡¯ll be your magic teacher for now, you can just call me Master Sera. I¡¯ve heard enough of ¡®your holiness this¡¯ and ¡®your holiness that.¡¯ It¡¯s annoyingly formal, and all it does is remind me of work!¡± (Sera)
¡°Y-Yes, Master Sera!¡± (Reina)
Master Sera spun around and stared at the open field behind the ritual grounds for a moment before calling out to me again as I hugged my staff.
¡°Alright, I guess we should get started then.¡± (Sera)
¡°W-What should I do, Master Sera?¡± (Reina)
I hugged my staff a little tighter as I asked Master Sera about what our first course of action would be, but she just ignored me and took a step forward before holding her hand out towards the ritual grounds. Instantaneously, wisps of wind tinted with the same brilliant vermillion red as her eyes materialized from seemingly nothing. Then, the red wind swirled and churned around us like a storm as I held up my arm to block my face from the raging tempest before suddenly, all the wisps rapidly converged right above Master Sera¡¯s palm to form a slightly transparent red feather that subsequently burst out in a blazing flash of flames.
After a moment, the air around us finally calmed down and Master Sera turned around to face me again with a smile on her face.
¡°Well, first I need to know what level your affinity with wind is at, so here, eat this.¡± (Sera)
Eh?
I stared at the burning feather in Master Sera¡¯s hand for a moment before she urged me to eat it again.
¡°I can¡¯t come up with a lesson plan unless I know what level your affinity with wind is at.¡± (Sera)
¡°W-W-Wait! How will eating this help me figure out my affinity to wind!?¡± (Reina)
¡°This is an original spell I¡¯ve developed that artificially refines your body. After you eat it, you¡¯ll pass out for an hour or two and the spell will burn away any internal impurities. It does have a small side effect though where you randomly emit elemental mana during the process, mostly fire-element.¡± (Sera)
I¡¯ll explode! I¡¯ll definitely explode when I eat it, won¡¯t I!?
¡°Luckily, it¡¯s not really a side effect for us, since I can tell what level your affinity with wind is by sensing the concentration of any wind-element mana your body emits. Also, there might be a few hallucinogenic dreams while you sleep, but I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be fine¡ Probably¡¡± (Sera)
Master Sera took a step closer to me, but I immediately backed away as I hugged my staff a little tighter and called out in a trembling voice again.
¡°I-Is there no other way to figure out my affinity with wind!?¡± (Reina)
¡°Well, there are a couple other methods that I know, but they all take way too long, and most of them require that you stay constantly focused too, so this is the quickest and easiest way! Not only that, but you¡¯ll also be getting physically stronger without even trying, so we won¡¯t have to put that much effort into training your body strengthening magic either. Now come on, we don¡¯t have all day. Look, it¡¯s even strawberry flavored!¡± (Sera)
Master Sera stepped closer again as I started to slowly back up towards the door to the house before opening my mouth to refuse. However, it seemed like that was my first and final mistake.
¡°I- Ack!¡± (Reina)
The moment I opened my mouth to speak, Master Sera¡¯s hand instantly shot forward and shoved the flaming feather into my mouth. An intense strawberry flavor immediately gushed out from the feather and covered every last corner of my mouth as an incredible sense of drowsiness started to overwhelm me.
Why is the strawberry flavor so strong!?
Then, a strange sense of weightlessness enveloped my body before I felt a cozy warmth surge through me. It swirled around inside of me and spread out to every last inch of my body as I faintly heard Master Sera¡¯s voice ring out one last time before passing out.
¡°See, I told you it tasted good.¡± (Sera)
[Chapter 29] Omelettes Are Earned Not Given
Dream (Reina POV)
I slowly opened my eyes. In front of me was emptiness... An endless expanse of blank white spread out as far as I could see and a quiet peace blanketed the surroundings as I took a moment to reorient myself.
¡ Where am I?...
I glanced around, hoping to find something to help me understand my current situation, but there was nothing. Nothing except empty, white space.
¡ What?...
Still in a groggy daze, I stumbled forward, but as soon as I took two steps¡ it was like reality itself shattered.
The endless white around me shattered like glass into countless pink fragments of light to reveal a brilliant night sky filled with twinkling stars. I stared blankly into the darkness that stretched infinitely in every direction before finally, I snapped out of my stupor and looked around in a panic.
Then, gravity changed. It spun, swirled, reversed. And I desperately reached forward as if I was trying to grasp at something that could save me from the chaotic weightlessness, but unfortunately, there was nothing. Pink light started to ripple outwards from me as I tumbled aimlessly through the almost abyss-like sky. I opened my mouth to scream, yet the only thing that came out was silence before gravity shifted once more.
I was suddenly propelled downwards again as I looked up and saw the moon of this endless night sky, faintly radiating with a gentle moonlight as it floated peacefully amongst the stars. Pink flames suddenly ignited from the nothingness around me. They enveloped me as the turbulent wind rushed past my ears, making my hair and clothes flutter while I started to accelerate. Then, I spun around in midair before starting my descent from the heavens headfirst like a pink meteor streaking through the night sky.
But as I shot downwards, it was like the sky started to rotate. The moon slowly lowered, hiding behind the horizon on my left side while simultaneously, the sun slowly rose from the horizon on my right side. I raised my arm to shield my eyes from the radiant sunlight as it illuminated the clouds below me with a faint mixture of pink and orange.
It was strange.
I should¡¯ve been terrified. After all, I was in an unknown, incomprehensible sky all by myself, falling from an unknown height. Yet, for some reason, none of it mattered to me. All I could think about was how warm the gentle, ethereal sunlight felt, how breathtakingly beautiful the endless night sky above me looked, how soft and fluffy the clouds below me seemed.
What filled my heart wasn¡¯t fear, it was surreal tranquility.
And after a moment, I gave in to that tranquility.
I lowered my arm and slowly closed my eyes as I continued my freefall towards the clouds. The tender warmth of the sunlight, the faint sound of the wind brushing past my ears, the quiet, mellow serenity of the sky, I just absorbed it all for a moment before gradually losing consciousness again.
The Goddess of Love¡¯s Divine Domain, Ritual Grounds (Reina POV)
When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was the clouds floating in the afternoon sky and I sat back up before glancing around at my surroundings. Then I heard Master Sera¡¯s voice ring out again.
¡°Oh, you¡¯re awake, Reina. How do you feel?¡± (Sera)
I was currently in the middle of the ritual grounds and crouching by my side was Master Sera. In her hands was my staff, and the feathers lining the hook of it were softly glowing with a vermillion red as she stopped inspecting them for a moment to stare at me with a slightly curious look on her face.
¡°I feel¡ calm.¡± (Reina)
A sense of serenity filled my mind as I took a deep breath. Fresh air entered my lungs and energy spread out to every last inch of my body before I stood up.
¡°... Like my body is somehow lighter.¡± (Reina)
¡°Good. Try casting a spell.¡± (Sera)
Master Sera pointed towards the empty field past the ritual grounds. I turned towards the empty field and held my hand out in front of me.
A spell, huh?... How about¡¾Storm Arrow¡¿then?
The mental image of an arrow made of wind filled my mind as I was about to cast the simple, second circle wind spell, but as I stared out at the open field, something inside me told me to stop. Then, as if by some unknown instinct, I closed my eyes and stood still. The gentle breeze blew by, making my silky hair flutter lightly as I started to gather wind-element mana inside of me before inhaling another breath of fresh air. And after a moment, I released it all. I exhaled, and the wind-element mana inside of me surged into my arm almost instantaneously.
Strange. It¡¯s never flowed this smoothly before.
The mana rocketed through my shoulder and straight to the tips of my fingers like a raging stream as I finally opened my eyes again to see three light-green circles in front of my open hand. They spun rapidly before a spear composed entirely of wind-element mana emerged from the center of the three magic circles and shot into the distance at an incredible velocity. After a moment, it struck the ground and an explosion of air burst outward from where it landed.
Eh? Wait, wasn¡¯t that supposed to just be a¡¾Storm Arrow¡¿?
The last bits of my previous calmness finally disappeared as I stood there in shock for a moment while Master Sera walked over to my side.
¡°Alright, it looks like you¡¯ve successfully refined your body, but I do have something to ask you, Reina.¡± (Sera)
¡°Eh? What is it?¡± (Reina)
Master Sera stared at me again with the same curious look she had before.
¡°Have you ever used fire magic?¡± (Sera)
¡°Eh?¡± (Reina)
I stared back at Master Sera with a blank face before immediately jumping to the worst conclusion.
Wait, I¡¯m learning wind magic, right? C-Could it be? Is my affinity with wind so bad that it isn¡¯t even worth it to teach me wind magic!?
After a moment, I collapsed to my knees with a despondent look on my face.
¡°N-No... I-Is my affinity to wind that terrible?¡± (Reina)
I raised my head to look up at Master Sera as tears began to form in my eyes, but what I saw was a confused Master Sera.
¡°Terrible? What are you talking about? Your affinity to wind is one of the strongest I¡¯ve seen in a while.¡± (Sera)
Eh?
¡°S-Strongest!? (Reina)
I slowly got up again before staring at Master Sera with my own mixture of anxiety and confusion.
¡±T-Then why are you asking me about fire magic?¡± (Reina)
¡°Because somehow your affinity to fire is even higher.¡± (Sera)
¡°E-Ehhhhh!?¡± (Reina)
¡°I have no idea why, but your affinity to fire is incredible. In fact, I think yours is on par with some of my heroic spirits. I was wondering why you wanted me to teach you wind magic.¡± (Sera)
¡°W-Wait!? It¡¯s that high!?¡± (Reina)
¡°Yeah. At the level your affinity to fire is at, it should be significantly smoother for you when casting fire magic. How have you never even noticed?¡± (Sera)
How have I never noticed?... Ah.
Umm¡ now that I think about it... Have I ever really tried studying fire magic?...
¡°Err, well, everyone in my family specializes in wind magic, and my mom and dad always told me I was great at it. So... I always just kind of thought it was my specialty too... I mean I¡¯ve used some basic, first circle fire spells before, but every first circle spell is kind of easy to use, isn¡¯t it?¡¡± (Reina)
I twiddled with my fingers in embarrassment for a moment as Master Sera¡¯s expression slowly shifted from being at a loss for words to pity.
¡°W-Wait! Don¡¯t stare at me like that! I swear, I¡¯m not stupid!¡± (Reina)
My eyes started to water again as Master Sera let out a disappointed sigh before suddenly tossing my staff back to me. I caught my staff in a fluster and the glow faded from the feathers as her voice rang out again.
"Well, whatever. I heard from Olivia that the reason you wanted to learn wind magic from me was to get stronger." (Sera)
¡°Y-Yes!¡± (Reina)
I immediately snapped back to my senses and plastered a serious look on my face as my grip tightened on my staff.
¡°... I need to get as strong as I possibly can." (Reina)
¡°Then, I guess we¡¯ll change the lesson plan a bit. You¡¯ll be learning fire magic, and I guess we can work on your wind magic too later. But with your affinity to fire, you should have zero problems understanding everything even if I just show it to you once, so it¡¯s less work for me anyway.¡± (Sera)
Master Sera shrugged nonchalantly as I answered with a determined look in my eyes.
¡°Yes, Master Sera!¡± (Reina)
Outskirts of Adventurer Town Siel, Training Camp (Sophie POV)
I slowly sunk towards the bottom of the small pool of water as I felt mana slowly seep through me followed by a strange warmth. It spread outwards from the center of my body to the tips of my fingers as the warmth melted away the fatigue, and after it completely enveloped me, I gently opened my eyes again. Rays of faint sunlight shone through the crystal clear water as I floated peacefully for a moment before finally snapping back to my senses.
¡. Eh? Wait...
Despite the tranquil scene and how refreshed I felt, my current situation was... a bit of a difficult one...
My mouth opened, releasing what little air I had left in a burst of bubbles as I immediately started to panic after realizing I was underwater again. And after flailing around for a bit to regain my sense of balance, I started swimming upwards. The sound of splashing water was the first thing I heard after I surfaced, and I hacked out a few coughs before glancing around.
It was currently sunset and everything was illuminated with a soft lavender sheen as Professor Kyle stared back at me with a relieved look on his face while crouching at the side of the pool.
¡°Oh. You¡¯re awake, Sophie. You took a while this time so I was starting to get worried that something had happened.¡± (Kyle)
¡°If you were so worried, then why did you dunk me completely underwater in the first place!? I almost drowned this time! Can¡¯t you at least leave my head above water next time!?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Err, well, if you aren¡¯t completely submerged, then the effects of the pool won¡¯t affect your whole body. After all, the pool only works when you come into contact with the water. And besides, the drowning isn¡¯t even that bad once you get used to it.¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle nodded to himself as I pushed my wet hair out of my face before crying out in indignation again.
¡°Can¡¯t I just keep my head underwater for a bit after I wake up then!? All I have to do is come into contact with the water, right? So what¡¯s stopping me from just taking a small dive after I¡¯ve woken up?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Ah.¡± (Kyle)
For a moment there, I repressed my urge to strangle Professor Kyle as he abruptly stopped nodding to himself like he suddenly had an epiphany before answering in a slightly nervous tone of voice.
¡°A-Ahem¡ As expected of you to come up with such an ingenious plan the moment I mentioned the problem, Sophie, but I¡¯ve definitely, one hundred percent already tried that before, and uh... it didn¡¯t work well. It was¡ too slow! Y-Yeah, it was too slow since you had to wake up first, then keep your head in the pool for a while, effectively doubling the time it takes to recover! B-But after thinking about it again, we¡¯re not in too much of a rush. So starting tomorrow, how about we try using your method instead. Haha¡¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle let out a nervous chuckle as he scratched the back of his head sheepishly.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.
You definitely just realized, didn¡¯t you!?
Water dripped off my body as I pulled myself out of the pool with an angry look on my face before suddenly, the growl of my stomach echoed out.
Ah.
It seemed like reality finally caught up to me as I felt a wave of hunger spread through me despite my body being full of energy. My anger faded as a bit of embarrassment took its place, and a slight blush spread through my face while Professor Kyle got up and stared into the distance behind me.
¡°Oh, right. It¡¯s been a few hours. You two should be getting hungry about now.¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle turned back to me with a strangely passionate grin on his face.
¡°Well, you¡¯ve been working hard non-stop, so I guess it¡¯s my turn to put in some effort. Just go dry yourself off and take a break for now. I think you¡¯ve earned it. I¡¯ll go get Regnis then make us some dinner. Don¡¯t worry, even if we¡¯re out camping in the middle of nowhere, I swear on my pride as a chef that it¡¯ll still be delicious. The least I can do is feed you two well after you¡¯ve given it your all today.¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle swung his arm around to loosen his shoulder as he walked past me before making his way over to Regnis who was still running, but looked like he was on the verge of collapsing.
¡°Alright! The passionate flames of my chef¡¯s soul are burning bright again!¡± (Kyle)
¡°What?¡± (Sophie)
***
It was like time slowed down to a crawl for me.
Each second that ticked by felt like minutes, no, hours as I sat there in agony, and even the exhausting pain from running until I collapsed earlier was nothing compared to the torture I was currently experiencing.
Reflected in my eyes was the soft, orange flicker of the campfire, a stark contrast to the beautiful purple twilight of the night sky, yet I couldn¡¯t care less about it if I wanted to. The entire world around me could have crashed and burned at this very moment and I probably wouldn¡¯t even have noticed. The only thing on my mind right now was the campfire right in front of me. The simultaneous source of both my endless torment and my fondest hope.
Set up around the campfire were a few fish skewers. Drool leaked out from the side of my mouth as the fragrant aroma of grilled fish filled the air around me, making my hunger pangs feel more like punches directly to my gut. With every breath, my stomach was screaming at me to just give in to my instincts and rush over to completely devour the fish, but somehow I was just barely able to restrain myself for what seemed like an eternity until finally, my salvation arrived.
¡°Three. Two. One. Perfect.¡± (Kyle)
Professor Kyle¡¯s voice rang out as he pulled out some light seasoning and sprinkled it over the fish skewers, making the aroma just that much more enticing. And before I could even let out a word, Professor Kyle handed the freshly seasoned fish skewers over to me and Regnis with a confident smile.
¡°Sorry to keep you two waiting. Unfortunately, it¡¯s a little simple, but I still tried my best to make it as delicious as possible, so here, eat up. I¡¯ll make some more in the meantime, so don¡¯t worry too much about running out.¡± (Kyle)
I stared at the fish skewers in Professor Kyle¡¯s hand like a predator eyeing its prey as I slowly wiped my drool away before finally snapping and giving in to the rumbling of my stomach. Every muscle fiber in my arm tensed up as I immediately swiped two fish skewers and finally took the long-awaited first bite.
¡°Ah. Wait! Careful, it¡¯s hot!¡± (Kyle)
My teeth sliced through the incredibly tender fish with ease as I tore a chunk out of its side like a frenzied animal before suddenly, my sense of taste was overwhelmed. It was like time froze for me as a tsunami of deliciousness surged through to every last corner of my mouth.
The taste was beyond heavenly. It was on a whole other level compared to anything else I had eaten before.
The subtle blend of seasoning perfectly complemented the succulent taste of the grilled fish which was cooked to perfection. It was like everything melted together in my mouth, and the only thing that kept me from instantly devouring both skewers in my hands was the burning sensation left behind after I swallowed it. I immediately opened my mouth and stuck my tongue out to try and cool it down, but after taking only two quick breaths, I couldn''t resist my stomach anymore.
One more bite¡ Just one more bite!
I started to bring one of the fish skewers closer to my mouth again, however, this time I felt someone stop me. Professor Kyle grabbed my arms and held me back as my stomach let out another rumble while I tried to chomp at the fish skewers in vain.
¡°Sophie! Stop!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Let me go! I just want another taste! Just one more!¡± (Sophie)
¡°You¡¯ll burn your mouth! You can eat as much as you want in a bit! Just let it cool off first! Wait! Regnis, not you too!¡± (Kyle)
¡°I¡¯m sorry! I can¡¯t help it!¡± (Regnis)
Professor Kyle¡¯s grip on me loosened as he presumably shifted his attention to Regnis before I finally managed to wiggle one of my arms free and take another bite of fish. I tore another bite of fish off the skewer before experiencing heaven once again as I couldn¡¯t help but shed a few tears from finally reaching the end of my arduous torment.
Although admittedly, maybe a bit of it was from the burning sensation in my mouth...
Eventually though, I swallowed the second bite. And it was then that I realized I wanted more. Just one more bite wasn¡¯t enough. I needed another one, no, another two! My grip tightened on the fish skewers in my hands as I stared at them before strengthening my resolve.
I don¡¯t care if my mouth is on fire, I¡¯ll cool it down with the taste of fish!
Outskirts of Adventurer Town Siel, Training Camp (Kyle POV)
It was another beautiful sunny morning. The sun was shining high, making the water sparkle like diamonds, the morning dew still clung to the grass around us, and a breath of the crisp, cool mountain air entered my lungs as I stared at Regnis and Sophie lined up in front of me.
¡°Alright, how do you two feel?¡± (Kyle)
Regnis stretched his arms a bit while Sophie looked down at her legs.
¡°Honestly, much better than I thought I would.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Yeah. After all that running we did yesterday, I was expecting to be much more exhausted.¡± (Regnis)
Well, looks like the pool is still working fine so plan A is a success. Kicking the training up a notch and pushing them to their physical limits multiple times a day shouldn¡¯t be a problem. I guess I should give them a little more motivation though, otherwise, they¡¯ll reach their mental limit fast.
¡°Good.¡± (Kyle)
I smiled at them and was about to continue when suddenly, Sophie raised her hand.
¡°I have a question though.¡± (Sophie)
¡°Eh? What is it?¡± (Kyle)
I stared at Sophie with a slightly confused look on my face as her eyes twinkled brightly for a moment.
¡°When are we having breakfast?¡± (Sophie)
Regnis¡¯ eyes sharpened the moment the word ¡®breakfast¡¯ was mentioned as both of them started to emit an aura of raging curiosity.
¡°Eh? Breakfast? Well, I was planning to start cooking it after you two did some warm-up exercises.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Warm-up exercises? No problem. What are we going to do?¡± (Regnis)
¡°Heh heh. Well, yesterday, I went a little easy on you two to help you get used to the type of training we¡¯ll be doing for the next week, so get ready to constantly be reaching your limits starting today. We¡¯ll start it off with some more running. Just run around another 100 times or so like you did yesterday. You two should be faster now, so it shouldn¡¯t take too long compared to yesterday. And don¡¯t worry if you collapse, I¡¯ll throw you into the pool right away so give it your all again.¡± (Kyle)
Just running around again shouldn¡¯t be too hard, right? I mean, judging from the width of the clearing, it¡¯s only a little more than what I used to run every morning back when I was training.
I gave the two of them a thumbs up, however, it seemed like they didn¡¯t exactly share the same level of enthusiasm as I did.
¡°Urgh.¡± (Sophie)
Sophie flinched a bit and let out a small groan of dismay as Regnis seemed to get a little pale after presumably remembering the suffering they endured yesterday.
¡°Um, how about we just have breakfast first? We can run at any time, but we can only have breakfast in the morning, right?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Yeah, any later and it becomes lunch instead.¡± (Regnis)
Sophie let out a dry chuckle as Regnis nodded in agreement while the color returned to their faces.
Oi! Where did all your determination go!? What happened to getting stronger to show everyone you can protect yourself!? What happened to catching up to Halbert and Zane!?
Ugh. Looks like they¡¯re already closer to their mental limits than I thought¡ Guess I¡¯ll have to find something to bait out their courage again. Well, they seemed to be pretty intent on eating breakfast, so let¡¯s try that.
Sorry, you two, but since you both intend on being lazy, it looks like my only option left is to go full instructor from hell.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before plastering a serious look on my face to get into character. It seemed to work though since they immediately perked up and stared back at me in silent anticipation.
¡°I don¡¯t know what kind of training you two have had before, but if you think that you¡¯ll get through mine without putting in any hard work, then you¡¯re sorely mistaken. If you want breakfast... then you¡¯ll have to earn it.¡± (Kyle)
My cold voice rang out with a sting as I held up two fingers before continuing.
¡°In two hours, I¡¯ll start making breakfast, and if you don¡¯t finish by the time I¡¯m done cooking... then you won¡¯t get any.¡± (Kyle)
Regnis and Sophie looked devastated once I mentioned there would be no breakfast if they didn¡¯t finish in time, and after a moment, they slowly collapsed to their knees in despair as I turned around before dropping the fake expression for a genuine, nervous one.
Crap! Was that too much? I didn¡¯t think they would just give up so easily! In fact, with the amount of actual interaction they¡¯ve had with main characters like Halbert and Raven, they¡¯re, at a minimum, members of the major supporting cast! Their willpower should be the one thing they have that¡¯s somehow endless... Should I give them more time?
I was about to turn around again and make an excuse to extend my previous time limit when suddenly, I heard Regnis¡¯s voice ring out from behind me. It was a little quiet, but for some reason, it seemed like every word was filled with deep resolve.
¡°It¡¯s just another 100 laps, right?¡± (Regnis)
¡°Y-Yeah, basically.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I see.¡± (Sophie)
Eh? Wait...
I immediately put on a serious expression and turned around again to see what was going on, but what greeted me was the sight of Regnis and Sophie slowly getting up with raging flames of determination burning brightly in their eyes before they both took a deep breath and started to sprint madly towards one side of the clearing. I couldn¡¯t keep my excitement from showing on my face anymore as a victorious grin replaced the serious expression on my face while they ran off.
Yes! Hook, line, and sinker!
Outskirts of Adventurer Town Siel, Training Camp (Sophie POV)
It was like my lungs were on fire. Every breath I took just made the stinging pain in my chest worse, and my sweat drenched me as I struggled to even move my legs anymore, but even so, I strained my body to keep on going. I had to keep going because... my breakfast was on the line!
I still vividly remember the taste of the grilled fish from yesterday. The fragrant aroma, the juicy tenderness, the explosion of deliciousness! I¡¯ve already lost count of how many times I¡¯ve collapsed so far, but I don¡¯t care if I have to run until I collapse a million times, I swear I¡¯ll taste that kind of heavenly flavor again if it¡¯s the last thing I do!
Besides, I¡¯ll be fine after floating in the pool for a bit anyway!
I grit my teeth as I pumped all my remaining energy into my legs to take a few more steps forward before finally, my body gave out and I fell over again.
***
When I finally opened my eyes again, the first thing I saw was the sun shining in the clear, blue sky. A few clouds slowly floated inwards from the edges of my vision as the morning sunlight warmed my face slightly. I silently drifted in the tranquil waters for a moment, taking soft breaths as a familiar warmth melted away the aching pain in my body before finally, I snapped back to my senses.
I immediately scrambled to stand up before glancing around. The sound of splashing water mixed in with the pleasant chirping of the mountain birds as I turned to my side to see Professor Kyle standing by the campfire with a cooking pan in his hands while Regnis was sitting nearby with an expectant glint in his eyes. I wasn¡¯t sure about how long it had been since we started running, but looking at the current situation, it seemed that we finished in time.
Professor Kyle was about to say something after noticing that I woke up, but before he could even say two words, I immediately cut him off with a sparkle in my eyes similar to Regnis.
¡°Welcome ba-¡± (Kyle)
¡°What¡¯s for breakfast, Professor Kyle?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Oi, calm down. You didn¡¯t even finish healing yet.¡± (Kyle)
¡°I¡¯ll finish in a moment.¡± (Sophie)
My eyes sharpened with determination as Professor Kyle just sighed and mumbled to himself for a moment before finally answering my question.
¡°Well, we can¡¯t exactly have fish for all three meals every day, so I was thinking maybe omelettes.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Omelettes are fine.¡± (Regnis)
Regnis nodded to himself in anticipation as I dunked my head underwater for a moment to finish recovering before leaping out of the pool and running over to the campfire with an expectant look on my face and an excited smile.
¡°Alright, I¡¯m ready for omelettes!¡± (Sophie)
¡°I need time to cook!¡± (Kyle)
The Goddess of Love¡¯s Divine Domain, Ritual Grounds (Reina POV)
I slowly exhaled one last time as I finally opened my eyes and swung my staff forward while letting out a light shout.
¡°Ei!¡± (Reina)
I felt it. The flaming mana flowing through me was a relatively new sensation, yet for some reason, it was strangely familiar. Like it had always been there, but it was only now that I noticed. It raged from the core of my body, through my arm, and into my hand before finally being absorbed by my staff.
The soft shine of my unwavering, sky blue eyes contrasted brilliantly against the radiant, vermillion red glow of the feathers lining the top of my staff as I stared past my staff at the open field in front of me while mana from my staff concentrated on a single point in the distance. Five magic circles appeared where I concentrated my mana. Each one was the same dazzling vermillion color as the glow of the feathers on my staff, and they all rotated rapidly in opposite directions before the name of the spell I was casting echoed clearly in my mind.
¡¾Ignition Burst¡¿.
Suddenly, an enormous explosion of flames burst outward from the center of the magic circles, engulfing the space a few feet in every direction. The grass near the explosion was all instantly burnt into ashes and I held up my arm to shield my face from the wave of warm wind that followed the thunderous roar of the spell.
After a moment though, the air finally calmed down and most of the fire disappeared as I lowered my arm to see a crater with a few residual wisps of flame still rising from it.
¡°Oh. That was a pretty good one. I¡¯d give it a solid nine. What do you think, Sera?¡± (Eliza)
¡°Nine? No way! That was a seven at best. Her mana control was good, but that was way too weak for half her total mana pool. She even has that staff you made with those feathers that I gave you ages ago. The explosion should¡¯ve been at least 50% bigger.¡± (Sera)
Lady Eliza¡¯s and Master Sera¡¯s voices rang out from behind me as I leaned on my staff and let out an exhausted breath before turning around to see both of them sitting at a small table a few feet away. Lady Eliza was in the middle of drawing what I assumed was the new design for my costume while Master Sera waved towards me.
¡°Come on, Reina. Put a little more effort into the next one.¡± (Sera)
Was that still not good enough!? How much longer will I have to do this!?
¡°It¡¯s already been over a day since you finished refining your body. If chantlessly casting an easy fifth-circle fire spell is already giving you trouble, then how are you going to control the natural laws of fire by the end of the week? At this rate, we won¡¯t even get time to work on your wind magic before the tournament or whatever that you mentioned. So try a little harder.¡± (Sera)
¡°... augh¡ Y-Yes, Master Sera.¡± (Reina)
I let out a tired whimper as I shakily replied to Master Sera before Lady Eliza let out a devious chuckle.
¡°Heh heh. Don¡¯t worry, Reina. Worst comes to worst, just ask your aunt to push the tournament back a week or two. After that, it won¡¯t matter how strong you are because I¡¯ll definitely get your new upgraded costume done by then, and I¡¯d like to see someone even try to break through the defense of a costume that¡¯ll be designed and enchanted by yours truly! Muahahaha!¡± (Eliza)
¡°... Thank you, Lady Eliza, but there¡¯s just one problem with that plan.¡± (Reina)
¡°Eh? What¡¯s wrong?¡± (Eliza)
Lady Eliza¡¯s evil laugh finally died down as she turned to me with a curious glint in her eyes while I stared back for a moment with a blank smile on my face before taking a deep breath and screaming into the sky.
¡°There¡¯s no way I¡¯ll wear something so embarrassing to the tournament!¡± (Reina)
[Chapter 29.5] Detective Lillian Is on the Case!
Royal Academy, Headmistress¡¯ Office (Mari POV)
¡°Urgh.¡± (Mari)
The sound of a short groan left my mouth as I leaned backward a bit in my chair before slumping on top of my desk face first. I sat there for a minute, taking in this rare moment of silence as I rolled around slightly. The sound of pages being flipped had been a constant in this room for the last few days, but right now, the only thing I could hear was the sound of the birds chirping peacefully outside. It seemed that everything good was destined for an end though because as much as I wished I was one of those birds outside singing their songs without a single care in the world, unfortunately, I was an adult with way too much work and responsibility. And after a few more moments of my much needed break, I finally lifted my head again with a sigh to see the disappointing reality around me again.
The gentle morning sunlight shone in through the windows, illuminating the piles of papers scattered around my office as I blankly stared off into space. The will to work that I had so painstakingly built up over the past few minutes of rest immediately poured out of me like water being squeezed out of a sponge. And after a few moments, I was back to feeling lazy as I turned to stare at the clock on my wall before banging my head against the table again.
¡°... Where the hell is Zane?... He was supposed to show up an hour ago¡¡± (Mari)
It was quite a nice day today, which only made it feel that much worse that I was stuck in my office doing paperwork alone. It wasn¡¯t even like I could just finish the paperwork up quick and go relax either. The annual academy tournament was already a big event for the academy, but with the influx of so many talented students this year, the amount of requests from the teaching staff has grown exponentially. I mean, with the level of talent our first-year students have shown so far, I can at least understand the increase in requests for the first-year tournament, but even the second-year and third-year tournaments have been riddled with pleas for more resources.
Well, I guess this was bound to happen with the increase in budget thanks to our current golden generation of first-years, but I didn¡¯t expect to have to rush everything so much because of Zane.
Another sigh left my mouth again as I tilted my head upwards a bit to stare at my office while still laying on my desk.
In a way, I¡¯ve already committed myself to this kind of work with the hiring campaign last summer, haven¡¯t I? But back then I at least had Ky to help me finish a lot of it. His sarcastic remarks were a little annoying at times, but I¡¯ll admit, he¡¯s definitely reliable when it comes to getting paperwork done¡ and well¡ I guess it was nice having him around to keep me company too.
A slight feeling of lethargy was starting to spread through me as I continued to procrastinate when suddenly, I saw someone slam open the door.
¡°Ah.¡± (Mari)
I immediately jolted up again before I saw Zane walk in with bags under his eyes.
¡°Oi! You¡¯re an hour late! How are we going to finish in time for your training like this?¡± (Mari)
I yelled at Zane, but he just stared into space for a bit before walking towards me slowly like a zombie.
¡°Hey, are you even listening!?¡± (Mari)
I was about to continue chastising him when suddenly, he held out his hand and started to chant in a low voice.
¡°Wind of eternity, break free and spiral beyond this endless sky.¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿.¡± (Zane)
As soon as he finished his chant, three magic circles formed in his palm and began to spin in unison as gusts of wind began to gather from every corner of the room, scattering piles of paperwork everywhere before converging into a vortex in the palm of Zane¡¯s hand. And after a moment, he compressed it all into a sphere about the size of his hand as I stood up in shock.
¡°What!?¡± (Mari)
Unfortunately, it seemed like Zane was out of mana though since the sphere of wind dissipated as soon as I got out of my seat, but even if he was only able to hold it for a moment, what I just saw was undoubtedly a third-circle¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿.
Yesterday he was still struggling with the second-circle! Did the hint about rotation I gave him yesterday push him that far already!?
I was about to ask Zane about how he went from first to third-circle seemingly overnight, but the moment I opened my mouth again, Zane¡¯s voice rang out.
¡°... Heh, I told you I¡¯d get it to third-circle, Master Sylfey...¡± (Zane)
Then, he dropped his arm, fell backward, and collapsed on the floor behind my desk.
¡°Zane, what happened!?¡± (Mari)
I immediately ran behind my desk to check up on him in a panic, but after checking his breathing and vital signs, it seemed like he just passed out. I let out a short sigh of relief before sitting there as the sound of fluttering papers finally died down.
Well, from the looks of it, he just passed out from exhaustion. But judging from the bags under his eyes, he probably practiced¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿all night instead of sleeping!
After deducing how Zane raised his¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿to third-circle, silence filled the room again and I started to mumble to myself about what to do next.
¡°Urgh. Even if he got to third-circle, we¡¯re gonna be behind with the tournament preparations at this rate¡ And since he passed out, I¡¯ll have to make up for his portion of today¡¯s work too...¡± (Mari)
After a moment, I stood up again and resigned myself to my fate as I let out an exhausted sigh, but when I raised my head and finally looked around the room again, it was then that I finally realized.
¡°Ah. Wait!¡± (Mari)
Zane¡¯s¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿had made a mess of my office and scattered paperwork everywhere, which meant¡
¡ I had to reorganize everything too¡
I fell to my knees with tears in my eyes as I thought about how much extra work I would have to do now.
¡°... Where are you Ky? I won¡¯t mind a few more sarcastic remarks if you help dig me out of this bottomless pit of paperwork¡¡± (Mari)
Solria, Middle District, Irisveil Mansion (Aria POV)
The sound of birds chirping was the first thing I heard when I woke up, and I slowly opened my eyes to see the sunlight shining in through my window. After a moment though, I finally sat up in bed. The sunlight was still blinding me a bit as I rubbed my eyes and let out a yawn, but all in all, it was another peaceful morning. Although, there was something, no, someone missing from this typical morning in the Irisveil household.
It was like I was waiting for him to open the door and call me down for breakfast, to hear his voice again and have him gently wake me up, but the reality is... that Ky isn¡¯t here today. And I¡¯ll admit, I never realized just how empty it was without Ky here.
It wasn¡¯t like I had never lived by myself before, in fact, I lived by myself for a long time after my father passed, and even after I left the capital, I lived alone for another year in Delhurst before I met Ky. Living alone never really bothered me back then, so... I wonder why it¡¯s so lonely right now. The only thing that¡¯s changed is that my house is bigger.
My eyes drifted from the window revealing the sight of the beautiful blue sky outside down to the blanket covering me as I hugged my knees for a moment before letting out a quiet sigh. There was a strange silence to the house, and I could feel my heart beating as a sense of loneliness slowly overcame my lethargy.
I guess after living together with Ky for so long, I¡¯ve forgotten just how it was to be all by myself again...
A few minutes passed as I sat in bed contemplating what to do next, but eventually, I decided to just get ready for work. I let go of my knees and turned to sit on my bedside before getting out of bed and standing up. Looking around my room, I could see the morning sunlight illuminating everything as I walked over to my desk to pick up something very important to me. Sitting on my desk was a hair clip that looked like a small white flower. I picked it up and held it in my hand before staring at it for a moment. The sunlight reflecting off of it made it gleam as I held it, and admittedly, it felt a little cold in the palm of my hand, but still, to me, it was warm in a different way.
The edges of my mouth couldn¡¯t help but curve upwards into a small smile as I gripped the hair clip and closed my eyes before taking a deep breath. After a moment, I exhaled and opened my eyes again as I felt the cold loneliness in my heart subside a bit.
Well, Ky will be back this weekend, won¡¯t he? It¡¯s only three more days until he¡¯s back. That¡¯s not too long, right? He¡¯ll be back before I know it. Besides, I have other things to worry about right now. Everyone will probably be waiting for me at the barracks if I¡¯m late, and I still need to help Halbert get stronger, so I should probably go warm up something for breakfast, then pack my lunch instead of sitting in bed and feeling lonely.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
I made my way over to the door and took one last look at my room before closing it and walking to the bathroom to fix my hair before getting ready for work.
Solria, Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Lillian POV)
¡°Hmm¡¡± (Lillian)
I peeked my head around the corner of the wall as I stared curiously at the scene in front of me. Arrows flew and flashes of blue lightning crackled through the training field behind the barracks as the rookie was sparring with Charlotte, but despite the flashiness of the battle before me, my focus wasn¡¯t on them. Instead, I was spying on Captain Aria who was observing the spar between them.
I wasn¡¯t sure what was wrong with her, but for some reason, it seems like she¡¯s been a little depressed over the last few days. At first, I thought it was just my imagination since her stone-cold demeanor was the same as always, but over the last three days, my intuition was screaming at me that there was something wrong. And after looking a little deeper into it, there was definitely something off about her.
Ever since Alain and I found out about her real personality, she¡¯s been slowly trying to interact more with everyone in the squad little by little, but the last few days, it felt like she¡¯s pulled back again. She hasn¡¯t been talking as much and I even spotted her eating lunch outside by herself yesterday while silently staring into the sky, which coincidentally also brought me to the biggest clue, her lunch box itself.
For the last few days, her lunch box has been different. The way it¡¯s packed was different from her usual lunch box, which immediately tipped me off to my first suspect, Ky. I haven¡¯t seen him since he delivered Captain Aria¡¯s lunch last week, and unfortunately, the only person who knows about what he¡¯s been up to recently is Captain Aria herself. My current hypothesis was that something happened with her relationship with Ky, but with no way to contact him directly, my only option right now was to keep observing Captain Aria.
I continued to stare at Captain Aria from behind the wall as I held a small notepad in my hands and thought about any leads that her behavior could give me. A few more moments passed as I watched her before I suddenly heard Alain¡¯s voice ring out behind me.
¡°Hey, Lillian, what are you doing?¡± (Alain)
¡°Kyah!¡± (Lillian)
I let out a surprised shriek before immediately covering my mouth in a panic to not blow my cover. After pulling Alain back behind the wall, I glanced over at Captain Aria again, but luckily she didn¡¯t seem to hear my shriek over the noise from the spar. After watching her for a few more moments to reassure myself that I was still unnoticed, I signaled to Alain to be quiet before whispering to him as he stared at me with a confused face.
¡°Alain, be quiet. Don¡¯t let Captain Aria notice us.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Eh? Why? What happened?¡± (Alain)
Should I tell him? Well I guess he already knows about Captain Aria¡¯s true personality too, so it wouldn¡¯t hurt, and to be honest, any help at all would be nice¡ Now the question is, will he believe me?
¡°Well, it¡¯s mostly my intuition for now, but I think something happened between Captain Aria and Ky. It¡¯s a little hard to tell, but she seemed to be bothered by something these last few days, and it doesn¡¯t look like Ky has been making her lunch like he normally does.¡± (Lillian)
After a few more moments of explaining the situation and my suspicions to Alain, he took a second to think about it before reorienting himself to hide behind the wall too.
¡°I¡¯ll help you out then, Lillian. After all, how could I face my little angel, Lucy if I don¡¯t even help out when my friends are in trouble. And anyway, we can¡¯t let Captain Aria crawl back into her shell like before. Now, what do we do?¡± (Alain)
¡°Hmm¡¡± (Lillian)
I closed my eyes as I stood there for a moment going through all the options we had at our disposal.
Well, one option is to tell everyone else, but Charlotte, Edward, and the rookie don¡¯t know about Captain Aria¡¯s real personality since she still mostly keeps up the act in front of them, and I don¡¯t think Captain Aria would like us telling them all the truth... I don¡¯t think just spying on her the whole day would actually help much either since I''ve already watched her for the last few days and her schedule seems to be full with training the rookie for now... I guess our only option is some sort of confrontation, huh? But we can¡¯t just do it at any random time, she won¡¯t open up for real unless she¡¯s alone like she was at lunch yesterday, which means one of us will need to keep everyone else busy somehow while the other talks to her to weasel out some more information.
After thinking through our limited options, I explained the plan to Alain.
¡°I think our best option is to try and get some more clues by talking to her, but since only we know about her real personality, I don¡¯t think she¡¯ll let up her act unless she¡¯s talking to one of us. Which means we¡¯ll need to keep everyone else busy while we talk to her. My plan for now is that one of us will keep everyone else away while the other person tries to talk with her.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Sounds good to me. I¡¯ll be honest though, I don¡¯t think I¡¯m the best person to talk to her when it comes to delicate emotional matters like this. You would probably be better at that, Lillian, so let me try and take care of everyone else.¡± (Alain)
¡°No problem. Anyway, Edward and Charlotte shouldn¡¯t be too hard to keep away, but it seems like Captain Aria has been mostly training the rookie these last few days though, so he¡¯ll be the biggest problem. We need some way to separate them for at least a few minutes so I can talk to her. Any ideas?¡± (Lillian)
Alain stood back and took a few moments to think before turning back to me with a confident look in his eyes.
¡°I think we can try it in a little bit. I heard from Edward that he was going to head out to the shopping district in about an hour or two, so I¡¯ll just tag along with him and drag Charlotte and the rookie with me too while you stay behind and talk to Captain Aria.¡± (Alain)
¡°Perfect.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Alright, I¡¯ll give you the signal later then. I swear by my little angel, Lucy, that we¡¯ll save Captain Aria if it¡¯s the last thing we do.¡± (Alain)
Alain pumped his fist with determination and I couldn¡¯t help but smile a bit as a sense of camaraderie bubbled up in my heart.
¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s split up for now. You go work on convincing Charlotte to go, and I¡¯ll keep an eye on Captain Aria until then.¡± (Lillian)
¡°I¡¯m on it.¡± (Alain)
***
This is your chance, Lillian!
I walked down the hallway before stopping in front of the door to Captain Aria¡¯s office. A moment passed by as I took a deep breath before gathering my resolve and putting a smile on my face.
It was just past noon, and Alain made sure everyone else set off for the shopping district a few minutes ago. The whole building was silent except for the faint sound of the birds chirping outside, which was subsequently drowned out by the sound of me knocking on the door a second later.
¡°Captain Aria, are you there?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah. What happened, Lillian?¡± (Aria)
After I heard Captain Aria respond, I slowly opened the door to find her sitting at her desk with her lunch box on top of the table. It seemed like she was about to eat lunch by herself again.
Looks like Ky didn¡¯t make her lunch today either¡
After glancing at her lunchbox, I closed the door behind me and walked over to Captain Aria¡¯s desk.
¡°Were you about to have lunch, Captain Aria?¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah. Halbert went out to the shopping district with everyone else earlier, so I thought that I would be efficient with my time and eat now instead of later when I could be training Halbert. Actually, I thought you went with them too.¡± (Aria)
The moment Captain Aria answered, my eyes sharpened a bit as countless possible responses ran through my head before I finally decided on being a little more direct.
I can¡¯t waste this golden opportunity that Alain gave me. Even at this very moment, the clock is ticking down. It¡¯s now or never!
¡°Umm, well, I decided to stay behind this time. Heh heh.¡± (Lillian)
I let out a light chuckle and scratched my head sheepishly before continuing.
¡°Oh, speaking of which, your lunchbox looks a little different than usual today.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Eh?... Err, well, I had to pack it myself today. I guess it¡¯s not the same as Ky¡¯s after all, huh?¡± (Aria)
Captain Aria finally dropped her act a bit as she answered in a slightly forlorn tone.
I knew it!
I plastered a surprised expression on my face as I reignited my determination before continuing.
¡°Did something happen with Ky? I thought he made you lunch every day.¡± (Lillian)
Here we go! This is it!
¡°Well, he¡¯s out of the city until this weekend, so I¡¯ve been packing my own lunch recently.¡± (Aria)
Eh? Out of the city?... That¡¯s it!? I thought it was something way more serious! Wait, could it be?
After hearing the truth, I couldn¡¯t help but let my actual surprise show on my face as I lost all restraint and let my true thoughts slip.
¡°Wait, so you mean you were just lonely!? I thought something terrible happened between you and Ky, and that¡¯s why you looked so sad these last few days!¡± (Lillian)
¡°E-Eh?¡± (Aria)
Captain Aria stared blankly at me for a moment before an embarrassed blush rocketed through her face.
¡°W-W-Was it that obvious!?¡± (Aria)
Captain Aria immediately slammed her head onto the table in embarrassment to hide her face as I stood there for a moment before going into a panic after realizing what I just said.
¡°Ah. Umm, c-calm down, Captain Aria! It wasn¡¯t that obvious! I-In fact, the only reason I even noticed was because my intuition told me you seemed a little down! I don¡¯t think anyone else realized anything at all!¡± (Lillian)
A few more minutes passed as I tried my best to console Captain Aria and it was only after a while that we both calmed down and it seemed like Captain Aria was finally willing to at least face me again, albeit still with a bit of an embarrassed blush on her face. She slowly raised her head again as I stared at her with a wry smile before I couldn¡¯t help but burst out laughing.
¡°What? What is it? Do I really seem that lonely!?¡± (Aria)
Captain Aria barked at me with an aggrieved tone in her voice like a sad puppy as I took a moment to get some control over myself again and managed to stop laughing.
¡°No, it¡¯s just that¡ I couldn¡¯t help but laugh after seeing you so flustered.¡± (Lillian)
A few more giggles leaked out of my mouth before my voice rang out with a gentle tone.
¡°But, you know what?... I¡¯m glad that you¡¯re ok, Captain Aria.¡± (Lillian)
The sides of my mouth couldn¡¯t help but curve upwards into a beaming smile thinking about the situation, and I continued to talk with Captain Aria until everyone else returned from the shopping district.
Solria, Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Aria POV)
A sigh left my mouth as I stared at the purple sunset outside my window. A few hours had passed since everyone came back from the shopping district, and now, it was about time to head home for dinner. I finished training with Halbert a few minutes ago, and another day had gone by in a flash, but judging from the silence permeating throughout the barracks, it seemed like everyone had already set off for home.
A few more moments passed by before I left my office and walked around the barracks to check that everything was ok. After making sure everything was locked up properly, the only thing left to lock was the front door. The sound of my footsteps echoed as I walked through the empty hallways, and a slight sense of loneliness crept up on me again as I finally entered the front lobby. But when I opened the front door and stepped outside, I saw something unexpected.
¡°Ah, finally! There you are, Captain Aria, we were all waiting for you!¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, hurry up, Captain Aria. At this rate, we¡¯ll be late for our reservation.¡± (Charlotte)
¡°I don¡¯t think we need to rush Captain Aria too much¡ After all, the reservation is for eight o''clock, right?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Yeah. Don¡¯t worry, Captain Aria, we still have plenty of time.¡± (Edward)
¡°Hmm, well, I think we should still try to get there before it gets dark.¡± (Alain)
Lillian was standing on the path leading to the barracks and waving at me with a smile as Charlotte stood behind her while Alain, Edward, and Halbert were gathered near the front gate.
¡°Wait, didn¡¯t you all go home?¡± (Aria)
¡°Nope. Sorry about the short notice, Captain Aria, but tonight we¡¯ll all be having dinner together, including you.¡± (Lillian)
A gentle breeze blew by as I stared back at everyone smiling at me, but for some reason... it felt more like it was a warmth melting away the loneliness that had just crept up on me. A moment passed by before I turned around, and despite my best efforts to keep up my blank face¡ I couldn¡¯t help but smile as I locked the front door.
Sorry, Ky¡ I know you worked hard cooking all that food for me, but... it looks like I¡¯ll be having something else for dinner tonight.
[Chapter 30] Back Pain Is the Nemesis of a Dignified Knight Captain
Edge of Middle District, 7th Squad Barracks (Halbert POV)
¡°Are you ready?¡± (Aria)
The sound of Captain Aria¡¯s calm voice rang out across the empty training field as I faced my opponent and took a stance before confirming that I was prepared to start the spar.
¡°I¡¯m ready.¡± (Halbert)
Reflected in my eyes was Vice-Captain Edward and in the background nearby, I could hear the rest of the 7th Squad Knights faintly cheering me on.
¡°Go get him, rookie!¡± (Alain)
¡°Give it your best shot!¡± (Lillian)
¡°If you beat Edward, it¡¯ll bump your score up a bit!¡± (Charlotte)
The sound of their cheering gave me a bit of courage, but after a moment, I took a deep breath and quietly emptied my mind to focus all of my attention on the fight. I watched intently as Vice-Captain Edward took a stance before confirming he was prepared to start too.
¡°I¡¯m ready.¡± (Edward)
A greatsword with a crystal clear blade and an elegant looking longsword were the only things between me and Vice-Captain Edward. The noontime sunlight rained down on us, making the sharp edge of Vice-Captain Edward¡¯s blade glimmer while mine glistened beautifully as Captain Aria¡¯s voice rang out again.
¡°Then, begin!¡± (Aria)
The second Captain Aria announced the start of the spar, I immediately activated my body strengthening magic with a short chant while Vice-Captain Edward chantlessly activated his in response.
¡°Grant me the strength to go beyond!¡¾Body Strengthening¡¿!¡± (Halbert)
I have a long way to go before I can activate my body strengthening magic chantlessly like Captain Aria and Vice-Captain Edward can, but I¡¯ve at least managed to shorten the chant down to one phrase!
Mana flooded my body as everything suddenly felt lighter and my kinetic vision sharpened. Then, I put strength into my legs and kicked against the ground, dashing towards Vice-Captain Edward. The distance between us closed in an instant as I made a quick slash at his waist. The instant before my sword made contact, I quickly channeled mana through it and activated¡¾Mana Edge¡¿to sharpen the blow, however, the sound of clashing metal that echoed in my ears when I dashed past him told me that Vice-Captain Edward had blocked it with ease.
Didn¡¯t work, huh? Well, I expected that. After all, everyone in the 7th Squad Knights is incredibly strong. I know the best that I¡¯m the weakest out of all of us, but that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯ll give up so easily!
The moment my foot touched the ground, I immediately spun around while twisting my body to take another swing at Vice-Captain Edward.
¡°Haaah!¡± (Halbert)
But it ended with the same result as the last swing. Vice-Captain Edward blocked it with ease as I shifted my legs again to return myself to my normal stance while Vice-Captain Edward called out to me.
¡°You¡¯ll have to do better than that, Halbert. Show me how much stronger you¡¯ve gotten!¡± (Edward)
The moment Vice-Captain Edward finished speaking, light-element mana instantly burst outward from his sword, solidifying into a yellow coat of mana that covered the blade as he counterattacked by swinging towards me.
Here it comes! His signature technique,¡¾Luminous Stream¡¿!
The moment our blades clashed, a strong impact entered my arms through my sword as I took a step back before Vice-Captain Edward transitioned into another swing at me from overhead. I held up my blade and blocked it, but he just instantly shifted into another swing that I followed up to block again before the cycle repeated over and over again while his sword left streaks of light in the air as an afterimage.
After a few moments, our swords had clashed dozens of times and sweat was dripping down my face as I rolled out of the way to just barely dodge a swing. The intense pressure from Vice-Captain Edward¡¯s assault finally eased up when I managed to get out of his attack range, but I was already starting to run out of stamina and my instincts were telling me that it wasn¡¯t over. As soon as I got up, I could see him readjusting his stance before his body started to lean forward again.
If this keeps up, I won¡¯t even get a chance to strike back. I¡¯ll definitely lose in a battle of attrition. I have to break through his defense with one big hit!
I calmed down the turmoil in my mind and inhaled another breath of the cool air while realizing what I had to do to win. However, that was easier said than done. After all, my hands were already slightly shaking from blocking Vice-Captain Edward¡¯s sword technique and my legs were only in marginally better condition. My body was telling me that I would not be able to endure the next exchange of blows, which only accentuated what I had to do even more. Vice-Captain Edward¡¯s sword technique had no openings. My only chance at victory was to attack before he did!
Don¡¯t collapse, Halbert. You¡¯ve already gotten this far, so don¡¯t give up now!
My mind raced through all my options as I thought about what sword technique I could use.
A basic sword technique definitely won¡¯t work, and I can tell my normal lightning-element sword techniques won¡¯t be strong enough either. Damn it, what can I even use?
It was like time slowed down as I watched Vice-Captain Edward start to dash towards me, before all of a sudden, a strange sense of tranquility spread throughout my body. It was like a wave of calm that washed away the fear and panic running rampant in my mind. My hands stopped shaking, and the uncertainty clouding my eyes finally cleared up as I heard Captain Aria¡¯s voice bubble up from the depths of my memory.
¡°Fast and powerful, yet inherently violent. Those are the attributes of lightning. And if you let your lightning run wild, it will strike you before your opponent. So the most important thing about using lightning is to control it. Control the violent nature of your lightning, then concentrate it. Focus its speed and power into your sword before releasing it all in a single instant. Watch closely, Halbert. This is¡¾Levin Flash¡¿.¡± (Aria)
The image of Captain Aria using a lightning-element sword technique appeared in my mind. One that was on a completely different level from any of my sword techniques.
It was the sword technique of a swordmaster.
The speed and power were incomparable. All of it was concentrated into a single swift motion. There wasn¡¯t even a trace of the violent nature of lightning as it sliced through the air at an incredible speed, and even though it was only cutting through empty space, it felt like there wasn¡¯t a single thing in the world that could stand up to the crimson flash of that sword. The only things left behind in the arc of that swing were the sparks of scarlet lightning from its afterimage.
Control it. Condense it. Concentrate it, Halbert. Remember how Captain Aria did it.
I gripped the handle of my sword tightly as an incredible sense of clarity rushed through my heart.
Then time returned to normal speed as Vice-Captain Edward took a step forward to chase after me while I strained every muscle fiber in my arms to swing horizontally at him while channeling lightning-element mana into my sword. Every last ounce of mana I had left shot through my arms and converged into my blade as I struggled to crudely recreate the brilliant glow of Captain Aria¡¯s sword technique.
I could tell that it wasn¡¯t even close to Captain Aria¡¯s, but still... Even if it was just a clumsy imitation, it was still the strongest sword technique I had right now!
My sword was fast enough to be a blur even to my enhanced kinetic vision as it shot towards Vice-Captain Edward¡¯s side, but he held up his sword and activated a sword technique of his own as he grit his teeth and blocked my swing head-on. A brilliant yellow glow covered his blade the moment our blades made contact before a burst of blue lightning propelled my sword even further forward.
This is it!
I could feel my swing start to break through his defense before suddenly, the resistance from his sword lightened up and another force hit the flat of my blade from below, shoving it upwards slightly.
What!?
My line of sight honed in on his blade and it was then that I realized the force that pushed my swing upwards was his sword.
Vice-Captain Edward had just barely deflected my swing.
My sword missed him by an inch as he leaped backward to mitigate some of the initial impact from my swing before shifting his sword again, and in an instant, the tip of his sword was pointed at my throat.
¡°You¡¯ve lost, Halbert.¡± (Edward)
¡°Edward is the winner.¡± (Aria)
Captain Aria¡¯s voice rang out once more to announce the winner of the spar and I finally released all the tension I had before as my legs buckled and I fell backward onto the ground. After a moment, Vice-Captain Edward sheathed his sword before extending a hand to help me up.
¡°That last swing was good, Halbert. For a moment there, I thought I was fighting against Captain Aria herself.¡± (Edward)
¡°But it still wasn¡¯t enough to beat you, Vice-Captain Edward¡ I gave it my all, but in the end, you deflected it so easily. Even after all this training, it feels like I¡¯ve barely made any progress at all...¡± (Halbert)
I grabbed his hand with a bitter smile on my face, but as he was pulling me up, I heard him sigh before his voice rang out again.
¡°It wasn¡¯t easy.¡± (Edward)
¡°Eh?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Halbert. You¡¯re not the only one training, you know. After my tie against that bastard, I¡¯ve been training hard too. One week. It took me this entire week to just barely get the hang of the same deflection skill he used. And I can only do it successfully about half the time. It was just luck that I managed to deflect your last swing this time, but if it was the Edward Novarel of one week ago, he definitely would have been hit by that last swing of yours. Don¡¯t say that you¡¯ve made no progress, Halbert. You¡¯ve gotten stronger. Your efforts have not betrayed you.¡± (Edward)
After I regained my balance, Vice-Captain Edward let go of me and let out an embarrassed cough before turning away, but what greeted him was the rest of the 7th Squad Knights gathered behind him.
¡°Edward, I always thought you would be too snobby and arrogant to ever show someone else your gentle side, but it looks like you finally found the courage inside of you. I¡¯m so proud.¡± (Lillian)
¡°Yeah, despite your narcissistic tendencies, you still have what it takes to encourage the rookie like that. It was almost as touching as that one time my little angel, Lucy drew a picture of me. It¡¯s still framed on my bedroom wall to this day!¡± (Alain)
¡°Oi, I¡¯m not snobby or arrogant! Just what kind of person do you think I am, Lillian!? And the last person that should be lecturing me on narcissism is a sister-obsessed weirdo like you, Alain!¡± (Edward)
Vice-Captain Edward started to yell at them as his face tinted red from a mixture of embarrassment and anger, whereas Sir Alain and Miss Lillian had tears in their eyes as they crowded around us. Miss Charlotte, on the other hand, was writing on a notepad while staring at Vice-Captain Edward with a smile.
¡°Hmm, this side of Edward is pretty good. The gap between the usual high-born noble side and the rare caring superior side is cute. This¡¯ll add at least 3 points to your harem member score!¡± (Charlotte)
¡°I guess this is what it feels like to be a mother watching her child grow up¡¡± (Lillian)
¡°Grr! You guys-!¡± (Edward)
It seemed like Vice-Captain Edward finally snapped as he chased the rest of the 7th Squad Knights back towards the barracks. I just stood there, a bit at a loss for words as I watched their antics, but right before he ran back inside, I could hear Sir Alain call out to me.
¡°Just take a break for now, Rookie! You must be tired! We can have our spar tomorrow if we really need to!¡± (Alain)
Haaa. Well, he¡¯s probably right. I should take a break...
I looked down at my hands that were starting to shake again after that last exchange of blows before raising my head to gaze at the sky. The sunset was beginning to dye the sky a beautiful shade of purple. It was getting late.
I took a deep breath and exhaled as the sound of steady footsteps approached me.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.
¡°Captain Aria... Have I gotten stronger?¡± (Halbert)
¡°Yes. You have...¡± (Aria)
Her quiet voice rang out again to answer mine as I continued to stare at the sky. But this time, her voice was different compared to earlier. Her voice sounded a bit warm, and the calmness in her words eased the doubt in my mind more than anything else.
Yeah. Captain Aria would know better than anyone, wouldn¡¯t she? I¡¯ve gotten stronger. Regnis, Zane, just wait for me, you two. I can¡¯t just keep staring at your backs forever. I¡¯ll catch up soon.
The shaking stopped. My hands weren¡¯t trembling anymore. And a smile couldn¡¯t help but form on my face as I lowered my head before turning towards Captain Aria.
¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s get back to training then.¡± (Halbert)
Solria, Shopping District, The Ironclad Forge (Kyle POV)
¡°Ah. It¡¯s pretty late, isn¡¯t it?...¡± (Kyle)
The evening twilight had already settled in on the Imperial capital, blanketing the shopping district that we had just returned to after the long first week of our training camp. However, despite the dark night sky, the noisy atmosphere of the shopping district was still in full force as the alchemical lamps lining the streets lit our surroundings with a warm tint. Dozens of people walked by us as I stopped staring at the sky and lowered my head with a bitter look on my face.
¡°... Which is probably why the Ironclad Forge is closed¡¡± (Kyle)
Yes, in front of us was the same brick and stone smithy with the same chimney sticking out of the building, but the inside of the store mirrored the night sky outside. You could see through the windows that there wasn¡¯t a single light on.
I let out a disappointed sigh as I turned around to face Regnis and Sophie.
¡°Sorry. I thought we would make it back sooner.¡± (Kyle)
¡°It¡¯s fine. We¡¯ll just come again tomorrow.¡± (Sophie)
¡°They¡¯re already closed so there¡¯s nothing you can do, Professor Kyle.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Yeah, you¡¯re right. Well, I guess we can just proceed with the original plan for now then. Go home and rest, you two. After surviving this past week of hellish training, I think you two deserve it.¡± (Kyle)
Well, the source of their determination may have changed a bit during this past week, but they still passed the first part of Professor Kyle¡¯s training camp with flying colors, didn¡¯t they? Although, unfortunately, neither of them have unlocked a hidden bloodline power or anything crazy like that yet, but we still have another week before the tournament, so who knows what will happen?
I smiled at the two of them as a sense of pride welled up inside my heart. Regnis nodded silently in agreement to our plans while Sophie mumbled something to herself before quietly letting out a disappointed sigh.
¡°... Tsk, just as I feared. No dinner today, huh?...¡± (Sophie)
Actually, the truth is I may have heard what Sophie had mumbled to herself, but luckily, it was something that I decided to completely ignore.
Perhaps for my own sake it was better to just pretend that the resolve in their eyes was still purely because they wanted to get stronger to protect their friends and completely untainted by my previous mental manipulation.
After I chuckled dryly to myself for a moment, I made plans with Sophie to meet up at the Ironclad Forge tomorrow morning before we all split up and went home.
***
It was now well into the evening, and the twilight had silently given way to the darkness that covered the sky. I could see the stars shining beautifully as I made my way back home with my backpack slung over my shoulder.
¡°Haaaaa~¡± (Kyle)
I let out a relaxing sigh as I rounded the corner towards the Irisveil Mansion while enjoying the quiet atmosphere that pervaded the noble district. It was a world of difference from the liveliness of the shopping district and a strange sense of anticipation bubbled up inside me as I thought about seeing Aria again for the first time in a while. A breath of the crisp night air entered my lungs as I walked up to the front door.
A moment later, I opened it to see the same old living room as always. The only difference was that it was slightly disorganized, but it was like a weight was lifted off my heart after seeing that and the corners of my mouth couldn¡¯t help but curve upwards into a relieved smile.
I thought the house would be an absolute mess after I was gone for a week, but it looks like I worried too much. I guess I¡¯ve been so used to Eliza¡¯s shenanigans that I¡¯ve forgotten. Aria¡¯s a proper adult who can take care of herself.
¡°Aria, I¡¯m home.¡± (Kyle)
I gently called out to Aria as I entered the house, but after a few moments, it was clear that the only response I was going to get was silence.
Hmm, I guess she isn¡¯t home yet. The lights are on though. Did she forget to turn them off? Well, she already exceeded my expectations with how clean the house still is, so I guess it¡¯s fine to let something small like this slide every once in a while. I¡¯ll go unpack my stuff first then make dinner. Ah, should I make Aria¡¯s favorite? Well, it will be her first fresh meal in a while so I guess making it a bit special wouldn¡¯t hurt.
The familiar scent of home eased my heart as I walked over to the stairs while thinking about what to make for dinner.
Solria, Middle District, Irisveil Mansion (Aria POV)
I hugged the pillow in my arms a little tighter as I let out a quiet sigh.
¡°Haaaaa~¡± (Aria)
What am I doing?...
I couldn¡¯t help but glance around at the slightly familiar room as I sat on the bed in my pajamas. The room was a bit plain and it only had the essentials in terms of furniture, but everything in it reminded me of a certain person who was important to me.
Well, actually, it was probably because this was that person¡¯s room, but that wasn¡¯t the main issue at hand.
The real problem was¡ I was lonely. I missed Ky.
I hadn¡¯t felt this lonely in a long time. And even though I had everyone at the barracks to help me ease the loneliness during the day, in the end, I still had to come back to this empty house every night¡
It¡¯s like being able to eat as much delicious food as you want before suddenly starving again...
I glanced over at the desk which had some notebooks and a few bags of alchemy materials before moving my gaze out the window. It was Friday night. The stars were shining brightly with the moon in the beautiful night sky, but all I wanted was for the moon and stars to disappear as fast as possible so that the sun could rise and it would be tomorrow already.
Just one more day.
A few moments passed as I continued to stare out the window before I slumped backward onto Ky¡¯s bed while hugging his pillow. Then I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before starting to fantasize about what tomorrow would be like.
Tomorrow. He''ll be back tomorrow morning.
He¡¯ll open the door, walk back in, and call out to me like usual. Then I can cure my crippling Ky deficiency, and everything will be ok again.
The corners of my mouth couldn¡¯t help but curve upwards into a soft smile as the sound of a familiar voice suddenly echoed through my mind.
¡°Aria, I¡¯m home.¡± (Kyle)
Yeah, he would sound just like that.
¡°Hehe~¡± (Aria)
I giggled softly to myself and rolled around in Ky¡¯s bed while hugging his pillow as I continued to daydream before suddenly, I heard the sound of a door opening followed by a thud.
Eh?
I immediately froze before slowly sitting up in Ky¡¯s bed. And it was then that I saw a certain person who had just awkwardly dropped his backpack while standing at the entrance to the room. A head full of snow-white hair that was tied into a ponytail poked its way past the door as a pair of golden eyes stared straight at me.
I swore that my heart stopped while I blankly stared back at Ky, but for some reason, there was still blood rushing to my face as it started to burn up.
¡°... I¡¯m sorry¡¡± (Kyle)
After a moment, Ky broke the awkward silence and turned away with a dazed look in his eyes as he smiled blankly at me. I could see a slight blush on his face as he tried to close the door, but I immediately threw his pillow away, leaped out of his bed, and grabbed his arm to stop him before he could leave.
¡°W-Wait! I-It¡¯s not what you think!¡± (Aria)
***
¡°So you were in my bed because your back was aching?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Y-Yeah. My back has been aching a bit since this morning! T-They say a firm mattress is better for back pain, right? But my bed was too soft, so I was planning to u-use yours. It was only for today though!... O-Only for today...¡± (Aria)
I just barely managed to choke out my response in a shaky voice as I averted my eyes from Ky and glanced around the rest of the dining room before taking another bite of food. It was the first time in a while I had some of Ky¡¯s cooking that wasn¡¯t reheated, and today¡¯s dinner was even my favorite, beef and potatoes, but my mind was currently more preoccupied with my current situation than eating. I couldn¡¯t tell if my face was still completely burning red, but I could definitely still feel some heat when I touched my cheek.
Kyaaaaa!
My embarrassed scream echoed out internally in my mind as I quickly swallowed the food in my mouth in a panic before hiding my face from Ky.
It¡¯s red, isn¡¯t it!? It¡¯s definitely still red! C-Calm down, Aria! If you don¡¯t calm down, then Ky will be able to tell you¡¯re lying!
W-Wait, actually, now that I think about it¡ my story is super suspicious, isn¡¯t it!? I made it up on the spot so of course it¡¯s not going to be the perfect alibi, b-but aren¡¯t there too many holes in the story?
He just saw me jump out of bed and tackle him with no problems! And it¡¯s not like I¡¯ve been pretending my back hurts either!
I held my hand up to my chest. I could feel my heart racing after thinking about how suspicious my explanation sounded, but I tried my best to calm down before thinking about what to do next.
It¡¯s too late to change my story now! I need to change the subject to something else!
I raised my arms and pretended to stretch a bit before trying my best to stop the shaking in my voice.
¡°A-Ah, but for some reason, I¡¯m feeling fine now. S-So just forget about it, Ky.¡± (Aria)
I let out a fake laugh and smiled awkwardly at Ky.
¡°Y-Yeah¡ Well, I¡¯m glad you¡¯re ok then.¡± (Kyle)
Ky¡¯s awkward response had a slightly embarrassed tone in it as he answered, and there was a look in his eyes that seemed to say he wouldn¡¯t pry any further for the sake of my dignity...
¡°Wait! I¡¯m telling the truth, I swear!¡± (Aria)
¡°It¡¯s ok, Aria. I¡ believe you.¡± (Kyle)
He doesn¡¯t believe me! He definitely doesn¡¯t!
My face was now bright red again and I lowered my head to hide my raging blush from Ky for a moment before reaching across the table to grab Ky by his shirt while mumbling to myself.
¡°... Forget it¡¡± (Aria)
¡°E-Eh?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Forget it! Wipe it from your memory! Forget everything you saw!¡± (Aria)
My scarlet blush had already spread out to the tips of my ears and I raised my head again in a flustered panic to yell at Ky to forget everything before starting to shake him roughly.
¡°How!? I don¡¯t have the power to erase my memory at will!¡± (Kyle)
¡°Just smash your head against the wall or something until you forget!¡± (Aria)
¡°It doesn¡¯t work like that! All I¡¯ll end up with is a broken wall!¡± (Kyle)
¡°I¡¯ll do it myself then! Just hold still! All I need is one clean hit!¡± (Aria)
¡°Oi, why does it sound like you¡¯re trying to put me out of my misery instead!?¡± (Kyle)
Royal Academy, Boys¡¯ Dormitory (Zane POV)
You can make it, Zane¡ Come on... just a few more steps, and you can finally rest!
I let out an exhausted breath as I slowly took another step towards my room. My legs felt heavy, my head was starting to hurt from the sound of the birds chirping outside, and the morning sunlight shining in through the windows was making my eyes sting as I slowly walked down the hallway towards my dorm room, but it was nothing compared to the suffering I had endured this past week while helping Master Sylfey finish the preparations for the tournament.
My line of sight wavered for a moment as my mind drifted back to a few minutes ago when I finally escaped from that hellhole of paperwork.
Master Sylfey was sitting at her desk while surrounded by piles of paperwork like usual, except this time, she had dark bags under her eyes even worse than mine. They made it seem like she hadn¡¯t slept in days, and she was halfway through an application from the magic department when she finally gave in to her fatigue and fell asleep at her desk, which then allowed me to quietly make my escape.
I know we¡¯re really behind schedule, but she¡¯s crazy! It¡¯s a miracle how she even lasted that long. It¡¯s only been a night without sleep for me and I¡¯m already close to my limit, but I don¡¯t think she¡¯s had a wink of sleep in two days until now! At this rate, she¡¯ll probably end up collapsing from exhaustion before she even starts teaching me!
Damn it. If only Ky stayed instead of running off to train Sophie and Regnis. Then I could have pushed all this onto him and I would be relaxing right now instead! Why am I the only one who has to suffer so much before even starting my training!?
I finally arrived in front of the door to my room as aggrieved tears were starting to well up in my eyes and my body was screaming at me to just give up and collapse right there, when all of a sudden, I heard the sound of a door opening followed by a yawn. I turned towards the source of the sound to see Regnis leisurely walk out of his room.
¡°... Ah. I must be going crazy too... I¡¯m already starting to see things¡¡± (Zane)
I mumbled to myself before chuckling bitterly for a moment as I convinced myself that this was just an illusion. However, right as I decided to just ignore everything in front of me, Regnis finally noticed me and the uncharacteristically relaxed look on his face instantly morphed into confusion as he called out to me.
¡°What have you been doing, Zane? Why do you look like an absolute mess?¡± (Regnis)
Eh?
¡°Y-You¡¯re real!?¡± (Zane)
¡°What are you talking about?¡± (Regnis)
I stared at Regnis in disbelief for a moment, but after rubbing my eyes to reaffirm that he was, without a doubt, standing right in front of me, I came to a certain realization.
Wait. If Regnis is here, then that means¡
¡°If you¡¯re back then he must be too!¡± (Zane)
¡°What?¡± (Regnis)
¡°Where¡¯s Ky!?¡± (Zane)
I¡¯ll find him. I¡¯ll definitely find Ky and push all this off onto him if it¡¯s the last thing I do!
It was like I sprung back to life as I grabbed Regnis with a desperate look in my exhausted eyes while a good portion of my fatigue was shoved to the back of my mind to be ignored until I managed to dump my responsibilities onto Ky.
¡°Professor Kyle? He should be at the blacksmith-¡± (Regnis)
¡°What are you waiting for then!? Let¡¯s go!¡± (Zane)
Solria, Shopping District, The Ironclad Forge (Kyle POV)
¡°Alright, here you go, Miss Sophie! It was a bit tricky to shape the finer details at first, but all it took was a few tries to get used to for someone with my level of talent!¡± (Lucas)
¡°Ah. Thank you.¡± (Sophie)
Lucas let out a prideful laugh and handed Sophie her new handguns as Uncle Grayhill let out a disappointed sigh.
¡°That¡¯s enough, boy. Where¡¯d your modesty go?¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°Well, I think it¡¯s fine to let him be a little prideful of his work. After all, it genuinely was a difficult request and from what I can see, Lucas recreated my blueprints almost perfectly.¡± (Kyle)
¡°A little pride¡¯s fine, but if ya let him run his mouth freely like that, he¡¯ll never learn to be humble. A true blacksmith is one who doesn¡¯t need to brag about his skill because his work does it for him!¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
Uncle Grayhill crossed his arms and nodded to himself with a smile on his face, but Lucas¡¯ angry voice cut him off before he could continue preaching about the virtues of a true blacksmith.
¡°Hey! A few months ago, weren¡¯t you bragging about Miss Aria¡¯s sword to everyone you met? You should¡¯ve seen it, Ky! Even the mailman couldn¡¯t hear the end of it from the old man!¡± (Lucas)
¡°Ah.¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
Uncle Grayhill¡¯s face turned a little red from embarrassment as he cleared his throat awkwardly before gushing about Aria¡¯s sword.
¡°A-Ahem. Well, the lassie¡¯s sword was different! It was pure orichalcum! How many blacksmiths in the world do you think dream of even touchin¡¯ a bit of orichalcum, boy!? And we had the chance to forge a whole sword out of it! How could I not brag!? Ahhh~ It was incredible. The orichalcum must¡¯ve been at least five times as hard as steel, yet it still folded so cleanly. Even the sharpenin¡¯ was smoother than any other sword I forged before!¡± (Uncle Grayhill)
¡°Tsk. Whatever, you hypocrite.¡± (Lucas)
Lucas clicked his tongue at Uncle Grayhill then turned to face me and Sophie again as Uncle Grayhill continued to reminisce about forging Aria¡¯s sword in the background.
¡°Anyway, what are you two going to do with them now? Aren¡¯t they supposed to shoot magic or something?¡± (Lucas)
¡°Oh, right. Sophie, you brought the alchemy supplies, right?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Of course.¡± (Sophie)
I turned towards Sophie who handed her new handguns over to me with an excited sparkle in her eyes. She placed a few bottles of enchanted ink on the counter before pulling her old rifle off her back and unveiling it.
¡°So how are we going to modify the alchemy system?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Well, I already have a general idea of what circles to modify. The real problem will be blending in the new alchemy circles in so it runs smoothly, but it shouldn¡¯t take too long. If we start now, we can probably get a working prototype done by lunchtime.¡± (Kyle)
"Actually, about lunch-¡± (Sophie)
Sophie wiped away a bit of drool from the corner of her mouth as she began to ask me about lunch when suddenly, she was cut off by the sound of the door being kicked open.
I turned towards the entrance to the shop to see Zane run in while Regnis followed behind him.
¡°Kyyyyy!¡± (Zane)
Zane was panting heavily as he entered the shop, and his disheveled appearance along with the dark bags under his eyes made it obvious that he was almost at his physical limit as he stumbled over before collapsing to his knees in front of me. I turned to Regnis for an explanation, but the bewildered look on his face told me that he had just about as much of an idea of what was happening as I did.
¡°Zane? What¡¯s with the bags under your eyes?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Quick, come with me to the academy!¡± (Zane)
Eh?
Zane grabbed my leg with a desperate glint in his exhausted eyes as suddenly, my intuition warned me it was going to be something tiresome.
¡°Please, Ky! I need your help! You¡¯re the only one who can save me!¡± (Zane)
Ah. Why do I feel like this is going to be a pain in the neck?...
[Chapter 31] Fruit Juice and Paperwork Is a Recipe for a Change of Plans
Royal Academy, Headmistress¡¯ Office (Mari POV)
¡°Mhmm¡¡± (Mari)
A soft groan left my mouth as I slowly regained my senses. It was warm, cozy, and the heaviness that was present throughout my body faded as I gradually opened my eyes. Initially, everything was a bit fuzzy while my sense of vision slowly adapted to the light, but after rubbing my eyes a bit, the familiar sight of my office told me that I was behind my desk like usual. For some reason though, I was nestled comfortably into a blanket as I sat at my chair.
I stared blankly into space for a moment as the feeling floated around in the back of my still hazy mind that there was something off about the situation. Suddenly, the sound of the door opening caught my attention. I quickly looked towards the door just in time to see a certain person walk into the room.
¡ Ky?...
It was Ky. He had a stack of papers under his arm as he entered, and the moment I saw him it was like the fog clouding my mind started to clear up a bit.
¡ This is a dream, isn¡¯t it? The office should be a complete mess right now from the tournament preparations, and Ky shouldn¡¯t be here either¡
Once he noticed me, Dream Ky froze for a moment before calling out to me.
¡°... You¡¯re finally awake?... Well, took you long enough.¡± (Dream Kyle)
He let out a disappointed sigh before starting to mutter to himself while he held his head with his other arm.
¡°I can¡¯t believe that I went out of my way to avoid this torture and still ended up suffering in the end anyway¡¡± (Dream Kyle)
Dream Ky just stood there for a moment monologuing to himself as I stared blankly at him. A sense of amazement bubbled up inside me over how weirdly realistic this dream felt.
... This dream Ky is pretty convincing. I almost thought I was looking at the real one for a second...
¡°Oi. Mari, are you there?¡± (Dream Kyle)
Dream Ky quipped at me with a slightly tired tone to his voice, but unfortunately, my mind was more preoccupied with thinking about what I should do.
This is a dream, right? So doesn¡¯t that mean I can do anything I want?
¡°Hey, since you¡¯re part of my dream you¡¯ll do whatever I want you to, right?¡± (Mari)
Despite the listlessness that still filled my body, I managed to free myself from underneath the blanket before smugly extending my hand out towards Dream Ky like a spoiled princess.
¡°Hehe~ Carry me over to the sofa, Dream Ky.¡± (Mari)
However, a few seconds passed by awkwardly as Dream Ky just silently stared at me with a blank smile on his face.
¡°Come on. What are you waiting for?... Ah! Do I need to tell you how you should carry me? Hmm... Then I guess a princess carry is fine.¡± (Mari)
When the real Ky princess carried me, it was surprisingly cozy. Even if this is only a dream, it should still be pretty similar, right?
I waved my hand a bit to gesture Dream Ky to come over, and for a moment, it seemed like it had worked. I was full of anticipation as he walked up to my desk before placing the stack of papers in front of me, but what happened next was not the future I had imagined. Instead of the pleasantly cozy princess carry that I was expecting, what I got instead was the sound of a cold, angry voice.
¡°I see. You¡¯re still asleep, huh?¡± (Dream Kyle)
Eh?
I quickly raised my head in confusion, but the only thing I saw was the angry smile on Ky¡¯s face as he reached over and started to pull on both of my cheeks.
¡°Ow! Dat hurts!¡± (Mari)
Instantly, all of the remaining haziness in my mind was blasted away as the sudden sensation of Ky pulling on my cheeks made me cry out cutely in pain before he responded to my exclamation with a sarcastic tone in his voice.
¡°Of course it hurts. After all, pain is the best way to tell if you¡¯re in a dream or not, isn¡¯t it? And I can assure you that this is reality.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Awwight, I¡¯m awake! I¡¯m awake! Stop pwulling on my cheeks!¡± (Mari)
A few seconds later, Ky finally stopped his ruthless assault on my face and took a step back while letting out a satisfied breath.
¡°Haaa~ For some reason, that felt strangely refreshing. Hey, Mari, did anyone ever tell you how soft and squishy your cheeks are? Maybe the next time I feel stressed, I¡¯ll just do this again.¡± (Kyle)
¡°What kind of sadist are you!?¡± (Mari)
I cried out in indignation while rubbing my cheeks to ease the residual pain a bit, but Ky just shrugged before replying nonchalantly.
¡°Well, if we¡¯re talking about sadists, I think you would fit the role better than me. Anyway, I¡¯m sure I could rant for hours about how much I¡¯ve suffered under you, but unfortunately, we don¡¯t have the time. What¡¯s important is that you¡¯re finally awake, which means you can start working again too.¡± (Kyle)
Ky patted the pile of papers he dropped down on my desk earlier before pushing them over to me.
¡°Here, I¡¯ve looked through about half of the remaining applications for the third-year tournament and picked out the more reasonable ones. All you have to do to approve them is stamp the forms. So after you finish stamping them, help me go through the rest of the applications for the third-year tournament. It¡¯s only the middle of the afternoon right now so as long as you don¡¯t slack off, we should be able to finish most of them by tonight.¡± (Kyle)
¡°What?¡± (Mari)
I sat there in shock for a moment before flipping through the first few forms in the pile of applications that Ky had looked through.
¡°Wait. Ky, why are you here? Weren¡¯t you holding a training camp?¡± (Mari)
¡°Zane told me about the situation and wouldn¡¯t let go of my leg until I promised to come help you out so I guess I¡¯ll be your assistant again for now.¡± (Kyle)
Nice job, Zane! You finally did something good for once!
After mentally praising Zane for the first time, I pulled out the academy seal and started to cheerfully stamp the approval forms while Ky continued to speak.
¡°But only on one condition.¡± (Kyle)
¡°A condition?¡± (Mari)
Ky¡¯s request piqued my curiosity as I looked away from the pile of applications. But just as I raised my head to face him again, he reached over and poked me in the forehead.
¡°Ack!¡± (Mari)
¡°Don¡¯t overwork yourself to the point of collapsing again, you idiot.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh?¡± (Mari)
Wait. Was he¡ worried about me?...
My heartbeat started to speed up as I thought about the meaning behind Ky¡¯s condition. And I could feel my face getting a little warmer as a faint blush spread across it. Luckily though, my cheeks were still a little red from before so I was pretty sure they hid the pink of my blush from Ky.
I thought he would ask for a raise or maybe some more time off... D-Did he really choose me over anything else?
Countless thoughts ran through my head, but just as my fantasies were starting to run wild, Ky¡¯s next statement brought me back to reality.
¡°You¡¯re the only one who can teach Zane wind magic.¡± (Kyle)
Ack!
It was like someone took a hammer and suddenly shattered my daydreams into a million pieces as I finally realized what Ky actually meant with his condition.
I should¡¯ve known it would be something like that¡ I guess it was silly of me to expect something more, but still... I can¡¯t help but feel somewhat disappointed...
¡°Yeah, I got it. I¡¯ll be sure to drill wind magic into his head properly.¡± (Mari)
I let out a quiet sigh as I finally got my head out of the clouds before returning to stamping duty. However, it seemed that my heart was destined to be racing today because as soon as my head came crashing back down to the ground, Ky immediately made it shoot it back up into the clouds again.
¡°And more importantly, if you collapse again¡ Well, I would care too much about you to not be worried. So promise me you¡¯ll get enough rest, or else I won¡¯t help you at all.¡± (Kyle)
Ky crossed his arms and turned away with a pout while I sat there in a daze for a moment before mindlessly answering him.
¡°A-Ah¡ Yeah. I will¡¡± (Mari)
My heartbeat was already starting to skyrocket again, but it was almost like Ky was determined to make it leap right out my chest as he smiled gently at my answer before patting me softly on the head.
¡°Good. Anyway, it looks like your cheeks are still a little red. I guess I pulled on them a little too hard, huh? Wait here, I¡¯ll go grab some ice for you.¡± (Kyle)
After that, Ky promptly left the room to go get ice for me while I just sat there and blankly stared at the door while still in my flustered daze.
¡ H-Hey... That¡¯s not fair, Ky... You can¡¯t make my heart race like that and then just leave!
Solria, Middle District, Irisveil Mansion (Aria POV)
A cool breeze blew by, making my hair flutter a bit in the wind as I walked along the paved path towards home while the last of twilight was starting to fade. And it wasn¡¯t long before I finally rounded the last corner and saw the familiar front gate of the Irisveil Mansion.
After making my way past the gate and up to the door, the jingle of my keys interrupted the gentle evening melody of the noble district as I opened the door to see the same old living room as always. However, the person in the middle of that same old living room was undoubtedly the key piece to this familiar scene.
¡°Ky, I¡¯m home.¡± (Aria)
It felt like everything was back to normal as I called out to Ky who was sitting on the sofa. He was in the middle of looking through a large pile of papers as he turned to welcome me back home.
¡°Oh, welcome back, Aria.¡± (Kyle)
¡°What are you doing?¡± (Aria)
The pile of papers he was looking at made me curious and I called out to him as I took off my shoes. He leaned back into the sofa before letting out an exhausted sigh.
¡°Haaa~ I¡¯m fully experiencing the repercussions of what it means to be someone who can¡¯t say no.¡± (Kyle)
Someone who can¡¯t say no, huh? I don¡¯t believe you. I think it¡¯s just your bad habit of intruding too much in other people¡¯s business. Ah. But well, I guess without that terrible tendency of yours, I wouldn¡¯t be here today, so... I¡¯ll admit, it isn¡¯t always bad. After all, I don¡¯t think anyone else would have had the guts to stick himself right in the middle of the Crimson Rose¡¯s life like that.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.
I couldn¡¯t help but find the situation a little comical as I thought about our past days adventuring in Delhurst. And after a moment, I walked over to Ky¡¯s side with a mischievous giggle.
¡°Hehe~ So what did you get roped into this time?¡± (Aria)
¡°In a moment of poor insight on my part, I decided I would be a good professor for once. I promised one of my students I would help him out, but his situation¡¯s a little complicated, so I ended up having to help the headmistress finish the preparations for the academy tournament instead.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Tournament preparations? That doesn¡¯t sound too bad.¡± (Aria)
¡°That¡¯s easy for you to say, you¡¯re not the one drowning in paperwork. At this rate, I¡¯m going to change my plans for the training camp next week.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? Really?¡± (Aria)
¡°Well, if we somehow manage to finish all the preparations by the end of this weekend, then maybe I can get back to the original plan, but I doubt it¡¯ll happen. I¡¯ll probably end up having to sort through all this paperwork in the mornings next week, then just holding the training camp nearby for a few hours in the afternoon instead.¡± (Kyle)
Ky held his head while letting out a tired sigh, but contrary to his exhausted mood, I was secretly excited as I thought about the prospect of keeping Ky around for the next week.
But wait, if he finishes the preparations by the end of this weekend, he¡¯ll go back to the original plan. He said it probably wouldn¡¯t happen, but¡ that means there¡¯s still a possibility, right? I can¡¯t just leave it to chance!
¡°Well, if you¡¯re going out of your way to help, then there¡¯s bound to be some unavoidable compromises, right? I think it¡¯ll be fine if you just have the rest of your training camp nearby. I¡¯m sure everyone will understand as long as you explain the situation to them.¡± (Aria)
¡°Yeah, I guess so, but it¡¯ll still be a pain in the neck for me...¡± (Kyle)
Ky had a bitter look on his face as I cleared my throat nervously before proceeding to the next countermeasure in my plan to keep Ky at home.
¡°Anyway, ahem. I¡¯m a little thirsty so I¡¯m going to grab a drink.¡± (Aria)
Ky returned to sifting through his papers as I quickly made my way over to the kitchen. After opening the fridge and pulling out a random carton of fruit juice, I poured two glasses and made my way back to Ky while mentally preparing to execute my devious plan.
I just have to spill some juice all over his papers, then he definitely won¡¯t be able to finish in time. If I make it look like an accident by pretending to spill it while passing it to him, it shouldn¡¯t seem too suspicious either.
¡°Here, Ky. I got a drink for you too.¡± (Aria)
¡°Oh. Thanks, Aria.¡± (Kyle)
Right after he thanked me, Ky extended his arm out towards me and waited for me to hand his drink over while he continued to read. Suddenly, my eyes glimmered with determination for a split second as I realized this was the opening I needed and I quickly tossed the cup towards him at an angle where it would spill all over his papers. However, unfortunately, it seemed like Ky was paying just enough attention to react in time.
¡°Oi!¡± (Kyle)
He immediately reached out with both hands and just barely caught the cup in mid-air before letting out a sigh of relief.
¡°Whew~ That was close.¡± (Kyle)
Damn, he caught it! What should I do?
I started to panic a bit once I saw that Ky had safely avoided my sabotage. And a quick glance around didn¡¯t help me much in thinking of another option either, but after a moment, I remembered something important.
I was also holding a drink.
¡°Hey, be more careful with-¡± (Kyle)
After placing the cup down on the table, Ky started to turn towards me while berating me about my carelessness, but before he could even finish his sentence, the sound of juice splashing everywhere interrupted him.
¡°Ah.¡± (Aria)
There was a moment of awkward silence as Ky caught me red-handed in the middle of pouring juice all over him and his papers. And it was only after the last of the juice dripped down Ky¡¯s face that he asked me a question with an angry smile.
¡°Aria, would you mind explaining to me what you¡¯re doing?¡± (Kyle)
¡°S-Sorry, Ky. It was an accident.¡± (Aria)
¡°An accident? How strange. Because, to me, it kind of looks like you just poured juice all over me and ruined my documents.¡± (Kyle)
Ky¡¯s stare was starting to make me feel nervous as I scratched the back of my head innocently before reassuring him it was just a clumsy mistake on my part.
¡°It must have been your imagination. I swear it was just an accident! A-Anyway, I have to go, uh, prepare for tomorrow... So good luck with the rest of your tournament preparations. H-Haha~¡± (Aria)
Beads of sweat were beginning to form on my forehead as I let out some nervous laughter before averting my eyes from Ky¡¯s suspicious gaze. I turned around and started to scurry towards the stairs, but before I could make my escape, Ky grabbed me by the shoulder.
¡°Oi, you¡¯re not getting away that easily!¡± (Kyle)
Damn it!
¡°Regardless of whether it actually was an accident or not, you made this mess so at least help me take care of it.¡± (Kyle)
I could feel Ky¡¯s grip on my shoulder get a little tighter as he cried out in indignation, and when I turned around again, he was pointing at the juice-soaked pile of papers.
¡°O-Oh. Let me grab a rag then. I¡¯ll have it all clean again in no time.¡± (Aria)
¡°That¡¯s not what I meant.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh?¡± (Aria)
***
¡°How much more is there?¡± (Aria)
¡°About half the pile.¡± (Kyle)
Ky took a quick glance at the remaining request forms before handing me the next one in the pile. The bottom half of the page was stained a faint green from the fruit juice that I had previously spilled on it, but fortunately, it was still mostly readable. It was a request to purchase some more practice equipment for one of the classes in the weapons department, but after some calculation, I realized that the requested amount of funds was ridiculous in comparison to the budget Ky said we had.
There¡¯s no way practice equipment costs this much! I could probably get real equipment for cheaper!
I placed it into the ¡®needs some adjustments¡¯ pile where surprisingly few of the requests had even made it to. However, compared to the ¡®accepted¡¯ pile, the ¡®needs some adjustments¡¯ pile was still pretty big. Most of the requests had met their cruel fate by Ky¡¯s hand and were unhesitantly dumped into the ¡®rejected¡¯ pile, which seemed to be getting larger by the minute.
Well, maybe it seemed a little harsh to reject so many of these requests considering that these were the heartfelt wishes of countless students and professors, but to be fair to Ky, from what I¡¯ve seen so far, a lot of these requests had close to no sense of reality with the scale of their requests. One of them even requested that an entire 100ft tall statue be built to raise the morale of the magic department students before the tournament...
Well, at least this one was a pretty normal request compared to previous ones.
I peeked at the slowly growing ¡®needs some adjustments¡¯ pile one last time before asking Ky to hand me the next request.
¡°Pass me the next one, Ky.¡± (Aria)
¡°Here.¡± (Kyle)
But just as I reached out to grab the next request form from Ky, the sound of my stomach growling echoed through the room. Ky just stared at me for a moment as my face started to faintly dye itself red from embarrassment.
¡°A-Ah.¡± (Aria)
¡°Oh, you¡¯re hungry. Is it that late already?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait! What¡¯s that supposed to mean!? Am I an alarm clock!?¡± (Aria)
¡°Nope, just a glutton that I¡¯m all too familiar with.¡± (Kyle)
I pouted cutely in response to Ky¡¯s joke as he chuckled a bit before reaching over and patting me on the head.
¡°Anyway, since it¡¯s getting late, I¡¯ll go make us dinner so I guess you¡¯re off the hook for now. But you¡¯re back on duty after dinner, ok?¡± (Kyle)
After giving me a break, Ky walked over to the kitchen, but I just continued to pout before hugging my knees as I grumbled to myself.
¡°... I¡¯m not that much of a glutton¡¡± (Aria)
The Goddess of Love¡¯s Divine Domain, Ritual Grounds (Reina POV)
¡°Advice for sensing the natural law of fire? It just comes to you naturally.¡± (Sera)
The image of Master Sera shrugging nonchalantly appeared in my mind as another breath of fresh air entered my lungs while I continued to meditate. It was like I was constantly on the verge of sensing something other than the gentle breeze blowing past me, but every time I tried to hone in on that faint feeling, it would quickly start to fade away.
After one last attempt, I finally decided it was time to take a break from this seemingly fruitless endeavor as I opened my eyes to see Lady Eliza chatting with Master Sera while she continued to work on the new costume design.
¡°Did you have any luck this time, Reina?¡± (Eliza)
¡°Not yet...¡± (Reina)
I couldn¡¯t help but let out a disappointed sigh before standing up and walking over to them with a groan.
¡°Ugh¡ I¡¯ve already meditated so much, but it feels like there¡¯s just one tiny barrier left that I can¡¯t seem to break through no matter what I do. To be honest, I¡¯m starting to think there might be something wrong with me.¡± (Reina)
¡°Maybe there is something wrong with you. After all, with the level of affinity to fire that you have, the natural law of fire should be beyond easy to sense.¡± (Sera)
¡°Wouldn¡¯t you normally try to cheer me up in this kind of situation?...¡± (Reina)
Tears began to well up in my eyes as Master Sera stared at me like I was some sort of rare creature.
¡°Don¡¯t be too down, Reina. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll get the hang of it in no time.¡± (Eliza)
¡°... Augh¡¡± (Reina)
I whimpered in response before Master Sera gave me a suggestion.
¡°Well, if this isn¡¯t working, maybe you should try using another method.¡± (Sera)
¡°Another method?¡± (Reina)
¡°Yeah, but I can¡¯t think of anything right now¡ Hmm¡ Maybe if I surround you with the natural laws of fire, it¡¯ll make it easier to sense them.¡± (Sera)
Won¡¯t I die if you surround me with the natural laws of fire!?
¡°I... think I¡¯ll stick with meditation¡ L-Lady Eliza, you can use the natural law of love, right? How do you do it?¡± (Reina)
I turned towards my last hope, Lady Eliza, with a desperate glint in my eyes. But after seeing the confused look on her face, I was forced to face the cruel reality that neither she nor Master Sera would give me any useful advice.
¡°Eh? How do I do it? I don¡¯t know. I just kind of... feel it.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Right?¡± (Sera)
¡°... That doesn¡¯t help much...¡± (Reina)
¡°Sorry, Reina, but honestly, that¡¯s just kind of how it works for me.¡± (Eliza)
¡°At least give me a description of what I¡¯m trying to sense then. Master Sera, what does the natural law of fire feel like?¡± (Reina)
Lady Sera thought about my question for a moment before answering in a slightly unsure voice.
¡°Uh¡ It¡¯s kind of an intense, hot-blooded feeling I guess.¡± (Sera)
¡°That¡¯s way too vague!¡± (Reina)
¡°Well, how am I supposed to describe it? To me, the natural law of fire just feels like the natural law of fire. It¡¯s like if I asked you to describe what being yourself feels like.¡± (Sera)
¡°Urgh¡ What about you then, Lady Eliza? What does the natural law of love feel like?¡± (Reina)
¡°Hmm¡ I guess if I had to describe the natural law of love, it would be... warm and fuzzy? It¡¯s kind of like how your heart flutters when you interact with the person that you like. Hehe~¡± (Eliza)
After answering my question, Lady Eliza giggled to herself before Lady Sera moved on with the conversation.
¡°Well, if you really can¡¯t sense the natural law of fire, then there¡¯s no point in trying to force it. It¡¯ll just be a waste of time.¡± (Sera)
¡°I guess so¡¡± (Reina)
Maybe I should just give up on the natural law of fire for now¡ I¡¯m sure just normal fire magic is enough.
After making my decision, it felt like a weight was lifted off my chest, and I let out a sigh of relief just as Lady Eliza called out to me and Master Sera.
¡°Anyway, I think the new costume design is done. What do you two think?¡± (Eliza)
Lady Eliza held up the drawing of the new costume design that she was working on with a triumphant smile. The color scheme was the same, but the new design was less frilly compared to the old one. It had a more sleek feeling to it, and a few parts of it even resembled Master Sera¡¯s outfit. However, the most noticeable change was the addition of a new pink mask that covered the top half of the face.
Well, there are still a few small problems in my opinion, but I would definitely rather wear this than the previous iteration.
¡°It looks great, Lady Eliza.¡± (Reina)
¡°Yep. I like this one a lot more compared to the old one.¡± (Sera)
After Master Sera and I gave our approval, Lady Eliza let out a smug laugh.
¡°Of course it¡¯s great! After all, it was designed by yours truly! It took me a while, but I think the profoundness of my creative genius really shines through in this one. Now, all I need to do now is change the alchemy circles on the staff.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Eh? How are you going to change it without that idiot around?¡± (Sera)
¡°Well, since he¡¯s not here, I was planning on just asking someone else. If I remember, he mentioned once that one of Alba¡¯s heroic spirits knows alchemy pretty well so she could probably do it. I think her name was Sel or something. I just have to have Olivia deliver the staff and the new design over to her and it should be no problem.¡± (Eliza)
Lady Eliza nodded to herself in approval as I stared at her and Master Sera with a confused look on my face.
¡°Wait, who are you talking about?¡± (Reina)
¡°Oh, right. I forgot. I didn¡¯t get to tell you last time because Olivia got angry at me. Although I¡¯ll never understand how it happened, both Eliza and Olivia ended up falling for the same good-for-nothing idiot.¡± (Sera)
Master Sera sighed after telling me Lady Olivia¡¯s secret, however, I was full of curiosity towards this kind of love gossip as I turned to Lady Eliza with an excited twinkle in my eyes.
¡°Eh? Really? Who did you fall for?¡± (Reina)
¡°The God of Death.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Ack!¡± (Reina)
Lady Eliza responded with a gentle smile on her face, but contrary to her innocent atmosphere, the name that came out of her mouth was terrifying.
¡°T-T-The God of Death!? Y-You mean the one that used to live in the basement!?¡±(Reina)
¡°Yep. That idiot.¡± (Sera)
Master Sera just responded in a casual tone while I was beginning to tremble in fear after hearing about the God of Death again.
¡°Don¡¯t worry. Despite how scary his alias sounds, on the inside, he¡¯s just a big softie. Although, I guess I agree with the fact he¡¯s an idiot sometimes, especially when it comes to himself. He¡¯s the kind of knucklehead that thinks he can never move on from his past. Even to the point of ignoring his true feelings.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Ignoring his true feelings? Are you sure? Whenever I saw him, he seemed more than content to annoy me with them.¡± (Sera)
¡°Yep, I¡¯m sure. Just the fact that our relationship has barely changed is more than enough proof. He¡¯s been together with me and Olivia for almost a thousand years and yet he still pretends to be dense even after all this time. He definitely knows that Olivia and I love him, but he¡¯s just way too stubborn to accept it. I¡¯m sure if you asked him about it, he would say ¡®I don¡¯t deserve love¡¯ or something dumb like that.¡± (Eliza)
Lady Eliza pouted cutely after finishing her short rant about the God of Death, but after a moment, she let out a soft sigh.
¡°Although, now that I think about it, I guess Olivia was kind of in the same boat too.¡± (Eliza)
¡°Lady Olivia?¡± (Reina)
¡°Yeah. Don¡¯t tell her, but the whole reason the Church of Love accepts polygamy is because of her. I don¡¯t know why, but she used to have this idea that only one of us could be happy so she always ended up supporting me instead of trying to obtain her own happiness. And it was the same when it came to love. But I won¡¯t accept anything less than a happy ending for both of us, so of course, being the genius that I am, I easily came up with a solution, polygamy. I¡¯ll admit, it was a bit of a hassle for us to suddenly start accepting polygamy, but nothing can stand up to some effort from the one and only, Goddess of Love.¡± (Eliza)
¡°You mean some effort from Olivia, right? I¡¯m sure you did nothing, but sit around after telling her to start accepting polygamy.¡± (Sera)
Master Sera chuckled dryly as she seemingly hit the nail on the head before Lady Eliza continued.
¡°... Well, it was for her benefit. And it did help boost our popularity a little, so think of it more as me making the executive decision, and her taking care of the details.¡± (Eliza)
Lady Eliza had a smug smile on her face as she waved her hand and carried on with our conversation for a while longer.
The Goddess of Love¡¯s Divine Domain, Ritual Grounds (Olivia POV)
The inside of the house was still as I leaned against the door while hiding from them. And it was the tranquil silence that allowed the gentle breeze to carry their voices over to me. But despite my best efforts to keep up my eavesdropping, even I couldn¡¯t help but let out a quiet sigh after hearing Lady Eliza. And the corners of my mouth curved upwards into the shape of a gentle smile as I whispered tenderly to myself.
¡°Lady Eliza, do you think I¡¯m an idiot? It was obvious from the beginning¡¡± (Olivia)
[Chapter 32] Restraint Is a Valuable Asset When It Comes to Both Teaching Magic and Cooking Steak
Southern Outskirts of Solria, Adventurer¡¯s Guild Training Field No. 3 (Kyle POV)
¡°Guess we¡¯re back here again. Haha...¡± (Kyle)
I let out a sardonic chuckle and scratched the back of my head awkwardly after greeting Regnis and Sophie who were standing by the gate to the training field that I rented for this next week from the Adventurer¡¯s Guild. Two days had passed since I started helping Mari with the tournament preparations, and it was now the beginning of week two of Professor Kyle¡¯s now downgraded training camp. The sun was high in the sky directly above us, which meant it was almost about to be noon as I walked over to the two of them before unlocking the gate. And despite the fact that we were technically on break, it was starting to feel more and more like a normal day of class as I showed up a bit late like I always did. Although, this time it wasn¡¯t on purpose.
¡°Sorry if I kept you two waiting. I got caught up with the tournament preparations and lost track of time.¡± (Kyle)
A short sigh of disappointment left my mouth before Sophie replied.
¡°Honestly, it wasn¡¯t too long of a wait.¡± (Sophie)
¡°It was bearable.¡± (Regnis)
¡°Yeah, but what¡¯s about to be unbearable is my hunger¡ What are we going to have for lunch?¡± (Sophie)
Regnis silently nodded as if he was reaffirming Sophie¡¯s claim while she stared at me with twinkling anticipation in her eyes.
It seemed like the small break I gave them only made them yearn even more for my cooking, but thankfully over the break I¡¯ve also had some time to think about the ethicality of dangling tasty food in front of them as a reward and I¡¯ve come to the conclusion that what¡¯s done is done. I¡¯m no moral paragon in the first place, and if you think about it, it¡¯s all to their benefit in the end. They¡¯re growing stronger super fast while getting to eat tons of delicious food along the way. Besides, I¡¯m sure that delicious food is as good a motivation as any to get stronger.
Well anyway, I¡¯ve already come too far with the carrot and without the stick, so I might as well commit fully to the carrot! Or I guess in my case it would be some delicious carrot stew...
¡°We might have a bit of a downgrade in terms of our training area, but one benefit of being near the Capital is that we don¡¯t have to worry about what ingredients we have since the market¡¯s nearby too. So lunch can be whatever you want it to be as long as I can cook it.¡± (Kyle)
It seemed like that gave them quite a shock as the moment I told them they could have whatever they wanted, they both stood there for a moment in absolute silence while deep in thought about what to have for lunch.
The first one to speak again was Sophie, although it was more like a soft mutter at first as she continued to stare into space.
¡°... Everything has tasted plain recently¡ the only thing that came close was that steak¡ but even that wasn¡¯t the same, and it was from some famous chef or something... so¡ what would a steak cooked by Professor Kyle taste like?...¡± (Sophie)
I could already see the drool leaking out of Sophie¡¯s mouth as she muttered to herself about steak before finally, she made her decision and wiped the drool away.
¡°... Steak. I want a steak with roasted potatoes on the side!¡± (Sophie)
A pair of eyes sparkling with a mixture of excitement and determination were reflected in my own eyes as Sophie brightly exclaimed her order for lunch.
¡°I guess it¡¯ll be grilled chicken skewers for me.¡± (Regnis)
Regnis¡¯ cool voice followed shortly after Sophie¡¯s lively outburst, and I thought about their requests for a moment before replying with a smile.
¡°A steak with roasted potatoes on the side and some grilled chicken skewers, right? Sure, no problem. They¡¯re both relatively simple meals to cook.¡± (Kyle)
After confirming their requests, I took a quick glance at the landscape past Sophie and Regnis.
The training field that the Adventurer¡¯s Guild lent me had a bit more of a clean and practical feel compared to the rocky clearing we were at last week. To me though, it was a welcome change from the stuffy office I was just stuck in for the last few hours. Looking around, you could see the outline of the capital city in the distance, yet it was quiet and the air around here felt pretty clean despite being so close to a major city.
It¡¯s not exactly the same, but... I guess this feeling of a fresh start isn¡¯t so bad.
¡°Well, it looks like we won¡¯t have the same cozy, campfire atmosphere we had before, but on the bright side, I can use my own kitchen this time. So today¡¯s lunch will probably end up a lot tastier than the simple campfire cooking I was doing before.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Eh? Tastier?¡± (Sophie)
Sophie¡¯s eyes lit up even more the moment I mentioned the word ¡®tastier,¡¯ and this time even Regnis¡¯ normally stern demeanor cracked a bit as his head perked up a bit in anticipation, but after a moment, Sophie managed to settle down before clearing her throat.
¡°Ahem. So what do we have to do to earn lunch today?¡± (Sophie)
The determination in her voice was clear as day, but in stark contrast to her rigid resolve, I just replied with a slightly lazy tone in my voice as I waved nonchalantly.
¡°To be honest, I didn¡¯t have much planned for today so I guess I¡¯ll cut you two a break this time.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Wait, really!?¡± (Sophie)
Sophie¡¯s eyes widened in shock like she couldn¡¯t believe what she was hearing as Regnis stood there with a bewildered look on his face.
¡°... We¡¯re not running across the field a few hundred times like usual?¡± (Regnis)
¡°Nope.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Not even push-ups? Or are we going to push a big rock around like that one time?¡± (Sophie)
¡°... I already said you don¡¯t need to do anything, didn¡¯t I?...¡± (Kyle)
¡°So we¡¯re just doing nothing for our lunch?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Well, I guess we''ll have to go buy the ingredients before I can cook, but that shouldn¡¯t take too long. We can probably buy everything and make it to my house in half an hour. Come on, let¡¯s go.¡± (Kyle)
I pointed in the direction of the path back to the capital city before starting to walk back. And after a moment, it seemed like Sophie and Regnis finally accepted the fact that they would be getting a bit of a break today as they followed behind me, albeit with slightly hesitant expressions.
¡°It feels kind of weird not having to do anything...¡± (Sophie)
¡°Yeah¡¡± (Regnis)
Royal Academy, Academy Training Gymnasium (Zane POV)
Finally! This is it!
I couldn¡¯t help but feel excited as I followed Master Sylfey into one of the school¡¯s training gymnasiums, and with every step I took, the drab office atmosphere that enveloped me a few minutes ago evaporated a little more from the passionate flames of my determination.
I quickly took a deep breath before taking in the new change of scenery with an exhilarated grin on my face.
After everything that I¡¯ve suffered through¡ I¡¯ve finally made it to my original objective! I might be a bit late to the starting line, but that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m out of the race yet. Halbert. Regnis. Just you two wait. I swear I¡¯ll dash past you both with all I¡¯ve got, even if it¡¯s the last thing I do! It¡¯s finally my turn to start catching up!
My soul was on fire as I followed behind Master Sylfey to the middle of the empty gymnasium before she turned around and called out to me to grab my attention.
¡°Alright, now that we¡¯re here, I guess it¡¯s finally time to start teaching you wind magic. Are you ready?¡± (Mari)
¡°Yes, Master Sylfey!¡± (Zane)
I replied with a sense of anticipation in my voice while giving Master Sylfey a firm salute.
¡°Good. Then first we¡¯ll start with a little lecture.¡± (Mari)
¡°Eh?... Wait! A lecture!?¡± (Zane)
It was like my enthusiasm ran right off the side of a cliff as my heart dropped upon hearing the word ¡®lecture.¡¯
¡°Of course. How am I going to teach you if you don¡¯t even understand the basics?¡± (Mari)
¡°Uh, I already know the basics though¡ Can¡¯t we just skip the lecture and move onto some more practical training? I may not look like it, but I¡¯m a decently experienced mage, you know.¡± (Zane)
I was about to break out into a bit of a tirade about my accomplishments in magic when Master Sylfey cut me off.
¡°I¡¯m not talking about the basics of magic, you moron. Since you were accepted into the Royal Academy in the first place, I¡¯m confident that you know at least that much. What I¡¯m going to talk about right now is the basic principle behind¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿.¡± (Mari)
Master Sylfey pointed at me as the annoyed look on her face subsided a bit, but I just stared back in confusion.
¡°The basic principle behind¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿?¡± (Zane)
¡°Zane, do you know what the most powerful aspect of wind magic is?¡± (Master Sylfey)
After asking me that, the expression on Master Sylfey¡¯s face slowly transformed into a more serious one as I stood there stumped by her sudden question.
What? The most powerful aspect of wind magic?
¡°Uh¡ Wind magic is usually pretty fast compared to other elements of magic, isn¡¯t it?¡± (Zane)
I gave her my best answer after racking my head for a bit, but Master Sylfey just stared at me like I was an idiot for a moment before letting out a disappointed sigh.
¡°Wrong. Not even close¡ It¡¯s true that wind magic is generally pretty fast, but there are other types of magic that can be just as fast or faster than wind magic. The correct answer is its ability to be manipulated. Wind magic has a strong emphasis on control, and¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿is the epitome of that emphasis on control. It is a spell that relies almost completely on your ability to manipulate wind-element mana.¡± (Mari)
Master Sylfey held her hand out with her palm facing up towards the sky before three magic circles appeared in the palm of her hand and began to spin rapidly in unison. It was almost instant as the air in our surroundings converged into the shape of a spinning ball of wind, which was then gently held by Master Sylfey. It was a third-circle¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿.
¡°¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿is based on rotation in particular, and maintaining each and every gust of wind spinning in it takes a level of fine mana control equivalent to simultaneously casting several spells. You have to control it all in unison otherwise¡¡± (Mari)
The perfectly spinning ball of wind in Master Sylfey¡¯s palm suddenly exploded outward in a violent burst of wind mid-way through her sentence as I flinched a bit in surprise.
¡°... the whole thing shatters, but since you were able to evolve¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿to third-circle. I assume you¡¯ve already experienced this multiple times." (Mari)
I slowly nodded in response as I remembered the sleepless night of grueling practice I had just gone through recently to be able to barely advance to third-circle. My¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿had popped exactly like that too many times to count!
¡°It¡¯s simple in theory, but extremely difficult in practice. Although, depending on how skilled you are at controlling mana¡ something like this isn¡¯t out of the realm of possibility.¡± (Mari)
The second Master Sylfey finished speaking, six magic circles appeared in the palm of her hand. They spun even faster than before as wind from every corner of the room once again instantly spiraled and converged into a sphere to form a sixth-circle¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.
What!? T-That¡¯s insane! A chantless sixth-circle wind spell just like that!?
The¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿in front of me was on a completely different level compared to the third-circle one before.
The rotation of this sixth-circle¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿was multiple times faster than the previous one at a minimum and I had to raise my arms to brace myself against the raging wind just passively emanating from it. But before I could even think about how powerful a ¡®pop¡¯ from a sixth-circle¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿would be, Master Sylfey canceled the spell, and the sphere abruptly dissipated into nothingness before Master Sylfey continued.
¡°Of course, something like that is only possible after you¡¯ve mastered your control of wind-element mana though. In your case, you¡¯re only just barely able to reach third-circle with your¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿and casting it is all you can do. You have no idea how to even fight with it. So our first order of business is teaching you how to use¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿in combat.¡± (Mari)
Master Sylfey cast¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿one more time as she started another demonstration, but this time, it was just first-circle. A gentle ball of wind rested in the palm of her hand as she started to explain how to use¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿effectively.
"¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿naturally takes the shape of a sphere since that¡¯s the shape that makes it the easiest to conserve rotation in a three-dimensional space, however, that doesn¡¯t mean it always has to be a sphere. By controlling the flow of the wind within the sphere you can change its shape, size, and its method of usage. For example, expanding it into a barrier around you would be the basics of using¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿defensively.¡± (Mari)
The magic circle in the palm of Master Sylfey¡¯s hand disappeared before reappearing on the ground beneath her. It continued to rotate slowly as the ball of wind in her hand suddenly expanded outward to form a thin shell around her. The barrier made of her¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿honestly seemed fragile like I could break it just by waving my arm around a bit in the opposite direction of the wind, but despite that, my intuition told me not to underestimate the familiar green glimmer of wind-element mana that flickered in between the gentle-looking gusts along with the serious glint in Master Sylfey¡¯s eyes.
¡°When using¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿like this, you can block attacks from any direction, however, keep in mind that spreading it out like this will make it weaker, so if you can react in time or you know in advance where an attack is coming from, shifting the wind and condensing the rotation to a small area will be much more effective.¡± (Mari)
The magic circle once again disappeared from the floor beneath Master Sylfey before reappearing vertically in front of her as the winds swirled around in front of the magic circle to form the shape of a small, circular shield.
¡°The more you condense the rotational force, the stronger it will be, but keep in mind that it will also be harder to control.¡± (Mari)
I stood there and took a moment to process all the new information I had just been given before gripping my fist in anticipation as the shield of wind in front of Master Sylfey reformed into its initial shape of a small sphere in the palm of her hand.
¡°Alright, I think I understand.¡± (Zane)
¡°Ok. Then let¡¯s move on. Next, I¡¯ll teach you how to make¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿evolve.¡± (Mari)
¡°Eh? But wait, I already know how to make it evolve. I got it to third-circle already. All you have to do is keep building up rotation with more and more gusts of wind.¡± (Zane)
¡°That''s technically correct, but let me ask you this. How do you gather that rotational force?¡± (Mari)
¡°How? You just make more gusts of wind and add them to the spell, right?¡± (Zane)
¡°Well, that¡¯s the simplest method, but it¡¯s also the most inefficient method that takes the most mana since you¡¯re the one generating all that rotational force from nothing.¡± (Mari)
¡°Wait, but how else can you generate that kind of rotational force if you¡¯re not going to use more gusts of wind?¡± (Zane)
I looked at Master Sylfey with a confused look on my face, but she just let out another sigh of disappointment before continuing.
¡°Think about it, you idiot. The wind itself is not what you¡¯re after, it¡¯s the rotational force! The wind is just the medium you¡¯re using to hold that rotational force, and there are plenty of sources of rotational force. Even other forms of force like a straight impact can be converted into rotational force, so why should you take the difficult route of manually generating it if you don¡¯t have to? Just take the force from another source, like an opponent''s attack, and convert it into your own to add to your¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿. That¡¯s the most efficient way to gather rotational force and make¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿evolve.¡± (Mari)
¡°What!? That¡¯s possible!? Isn¡¯t that basically an unbreakable shield then? It¡¯ll even make you stronger when it blocks an attack!¡± (Zane)
My mind was flooded with shock as I thought about how strong it would be if I could absorb anyone else¡¯s attack.
¡°Oi, be careful of thinking that way. While it is a strong defense, it is not a perfect one. The kind of complete nullification you¡¯re thinking of isn¡¯t so easy. There is a limit to how fast you can convert the impact of an attack into rotational force and even how fast you can gather gusts of wind to hold that force. So if you try to absorb an attack that is beyond your limits, you¡¯ll definitely still take a good portion of that attack directly. Also, depending on what kind of attack it is, the effectiveness of¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿can vary. However, the easiest kind of attack to absorb is wind magic since you can absorb both the force and the wind from a wind spell. Here, I''ll show you. Zane, shoot a wind spell at me.¡± (Mari)
¡°E-Eh? Right now?¡± (Zane)
I let out a surprised exclamation as Master Sylfey suddenly requested that I attack her with a wind spell.
¡°Yeah, what are you waiting for? Weren¡¯t you the one who wanted to speed things up in the first place?¡± (Mari)
¡°... Alright then.¡± (Zane)
The surprised look on my face slowly morphed into a serious one as I took out my staff before channeling some wind-element mana through it.
¡°Ethereal wind of this endless sky, I command thee, become the swiftest arrow that pierces my foes!¡¾Storm Arrow¡¿!¡± (Zane)
Two magic circles appeared at the tip of my staff and an arrow made of wind shot out towards Master Sylfey, but right as it was about to reach her, the¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿in her palm spread out to form a barrier around her again. Then, right as my arrow of wind made contact with the seemingly fragile barrier, it was almost like it just disappeared as a small burst of wind was released from the point of impact before suddenly, another magic circle appeared on top of the first one on the floor. The barrier of wind surrounding Master Sylfey was now spinning faster, and you could tell at a glance that it was thicker than before as Master Sylfey stood in the middle of that barrier completely unfazed.
¡°Did you see what happened, Zane?¡± (Mari)
I could hardly believe my eyes as she recompressed the barrier back into a small sphere before she stopped casting the spell, making that sphere dissipate.
¡°Yeah. That was incredible.¡± (Zane)
The excited smile slowly returned to my face as I put away my staff before thinking to myself that maybe this lecture wasn¡¯t so bad. But little did I know, in a few minutes, I would be heavily regretting not asking for a longer lecture...
¡°Alright. Now, it¡¯s your turn.¡± (Mari)
¡°Eh?... M-My turn!?¡± (Zane)
¡°You wanted to get the lecture over with fast and move onto some practical training, right? Well, coincidentally so do I. It¡¯s a lot more fun than me just explaining everything to you. Judging by the time we have left though, I won¡¯t be able to teach you much about the offensive uses of¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿before the tournament starts so we¡¯ll just skip that and focus completely on raising your defense for now.¡± (Mari)
Master Sylfey had a mischievous smirk on her face as she held out her hand and chantlessly cast the same spell I just shot at her earlier,¡¾Storm Arrow¡¿, before quickly explaining the practical training to me while the arrow of wind that emerged from the two magic circles hovered quietly in the air.
¡°We¡¯ll be starting with some weak spells like¡¾Storm Arrow¡¿, but it won¡¯t be very effective training if we just keep it easy all the time, so once you get the hang of it, we¡¯ll be moving on to more powerful spells. Oh, and by the way, if we break anything, you¡¯ll be fixing it yourself after the tournament ends. So for your sake, try your best to absorb the spells completely.¡± (Mari)
¡°W-Wait, I¡¯m not ready yet! At least let me cast¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿first!¡± (Zane)
¡°Well, hurry up then. We¡¯re losing precious training time.¡± (Mari)
¡°W-Wind of eternity, break free and spiral beyond this endless sky!¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿!¡± (Zane)
I yelled out in a panic as I quickly pulled my staff out again before scrambling to cast¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿. Despite my best efforts to quickly build up my¡¾Zephyr Gyre¡¿to third-circle though, I didn¡¯t even get enough time to take a good look at the sadistic smile on Master Sylfey¡¯s face before she let out an evil-sounding chuckle while firing the¡¾Storm Arrow¡¿at me.
And from that point onwards, the only sounds that would come out of the gymnasium for the rest of the day were my panicked screams, the sound of small explosions, and some faintly maniacal laughter.
Southern Outskirts of Solria, Adventurer¡¯s Guild Training Field No. 3 (Kyle POV)
¡°Alright, we¡¯re back.¡± (Kyle)
It was finally time to restart the training camp as I turned around triumphantly to face Regnis and Sophie. I expected to see my enthusiastic students replying with gusto and a burning determination to get stronger, but unfortunately, things don¡¯t always work out like you want them too, and what actually greeted my high expectations was¡ let¡¯s just say a bit far from my initially high expectations.
¡°Hehe~¡± (Sophie)
Sophie was standing in front of me blissfully giggling to herself with a satisfied smile on her face while Regnis seemed to be deep in thought as he held his chin and muttered an entire monologue to himself with a shocked expression on his face.
¡°... When he said we would eat at his house, I thought for sure it would be something along the lines of a small, cozy home, not a mansion! The style of the mansion was a bit old, but I¡¯ve heard that having an old style of architecture can sometimes add a level of antique value to a house. Even the inside was filled with furniture that looked way more high-quality than what I have at the dorm. How much must that all have cost?... No, wait. Now that I think about it, he¡¯s an A-rank adventurer and also a professor at one of the most prestigious institutions in the entire Empire, the Royal Academy! I¡¯m not sure how much money an A-rank adventurer usually makes, but it can¡¯t be a small amount, and I¡¯m sure he gets paid just as much by the Royal Academy, if not more. After all, he seems pretty close with the Headmistress¡¡± (Regnis)
Urgh, they¡¯re both totally out of it¡ Actually, I¡¯m not sure why Regnis is zoning out, but maybe I shouldn¡¯t have gone all out on that steak for Sophie...
After ignoring Regnis¡¯ unintentional inquiries into my current financial situation, I called out to my two promising young students before they both finally snapped out their respective dazes.
¡°Umm¡ So are you two ready to start today¡¯s training?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Ah.¡± (Sophie)
Sophie let out a surprised yelp as she finally came back to her senses while Regnis cried out to himself like he had just remembered something important.
¡°Oh, right! Training!¡± (Regnis)
An awkward chuckle left my mouth as I watched them plaster serious expressions on their faces after fumbling around for a few moments. Once they finally settled down though, I opened today¡¯s training with a bit of a strange question.
¡°Sophie, do you know how to use body strengthening magic?¡± (Kyle)
¡°Nope, not at all.¡± (Sophie)
A short, immediate answer was what followed my question as Sophie straightforwardly told me that she had no idea what she was doing when it came to body strengthening magic.
¡°I figured¡ Well, I guess you¡¯ll have to be doing most of the teaching for today then, Regnis.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Huh? Me?¡± (Regnis)
Regnis pointed to himself while staring at me with a surprised expression on his face as I started to explain the plans for today¡¯s training to him.
¡°Yep. You¡¯ll be teaching Sophie how to use body strengthening magic. After all, you¡¯re the only one out of the three of us that can use it, so sorry to make such a sudden request, but you¡¯re the most convenient option right now. If you don¡¯t teach Sophie, then I¡¯ll have to ask someone else to do it another time and she¡¯ll lose a day of training.¡± (Kyle)
I chuckled awkwardly at Regnis for a moment before Sophie suddenly chimed in.
¡°Why do I need to learn body strengthening magic though?¡± (Sophie)
¡°Ah. Well, the whole point of all that physical training we did last week was to improve the effectiveness of your body strengthening magic. So of course you¡¯ll only gain the full benefits of your training once you activate body strengthening magic.¡± (Kyle)
¡°How did it improve the effectiveness of our body strengthening magic?¡± (Regnis)
¡°Your overall strength and speed have improved greatly even without body strengthening magic thanks to the hellish endurance training you two experienced last week, but with body strengthening magic, that improvement should be amplified by a significant degree. Just try it yourself and you¡¯ll see what I mean, Regnis.¡± (Kyle)
Sophie and I turned to stare at Regnis for a moment as he took a deep breath before getting serious again and activating his body strengthening magic.
¡°Silent storm flowing through this body, I desire thy rage. Rage strong enough to break any barrier!¡¾Body Strengthening¡¿!¡± (Regnis)
As soon as Regnis activated his body strengthening magic, the determination in his eyes quickly turned into shock as he lowered his head to stare at his own hands held out in front of him.
¡°How do you feel?¡± (Kyle)
¡°W-What happened? It¡¯s incredible. My body feels as light as a feather. It¡¯s like¡ like I took a breath of fresh air after feeling suffocated for an eternity.¡± (Regnis)
¡°What you¡¯re feeling right now is the strength that you¡¯ve earned, the culmination of your efforts. Remember that feeling well.¡± (Kyle)
After taking a good look at Sophie and Regnis standing in front of me, I couldn¡¯t help but grin proudly after thinking about just how much both my students had grown since last week.
¡°Well, you two still have a long way to go, but I can definitely say that, compared to last week, you¡¯ve both grown a lot stronger.¡± (Kyle)
It seemed like what I said was a bit of a surprise for both of them, but after a moment, Regnis and Sophie both replied with a nod before I started to explain what we would be doing for the remainder of the training camp.
¡°Anyway, since it¡¯ll be a bit of a slow day today, let me outline our plans for this final week before the tournament. Unfortunately, like I said earlier, we can¡¯t really do much intense practical training today since the recovery pool isn¡¯t set up yet, so you two will just be focusing on learning body strengthening magic while I set that up. The training for the rest of the week will be split into two parts though. In the first part, I¡¯ll be teaching you two some basic martial arts and hand-to-hand combat.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Martial arts?¡± (Regnis)
Regnis replied with a slightly bewildered tone in his voice as I held up a finger before explaining the importance of basic martial arts.
¡°Yeah. Although you''re definitely both physically stronger now, having a strong body doesn¡¯t mean much if you don¡¯t know how to utilize it effectively. You should at least know how to throw a simple punch or kick, and probably how to throw someone as well. That way, not only can you incorporate some simple hand-to-hand combat into your fighting style, you can also still fight back in case you ever get disarmed.¡± (Kyle)
Well, unfortunately, I won¡¯t be able to teach them anything fancy since my martial arts are mostly self-taught, but when it comes to the absolute basics I¡¯m more than confident in my own self-taught style! After all, that¡¯s literally all it is, just the absolute basics taken to an extreme¡
¡°As for the second half of our training though, it¡¯ll be pure combat training. The fastest way to perfect your fighting style is by honing your skills through substantial amounts of actual combat, so we¡¯ll be sparring as much as possible during those last few days while working on your techniques. I¡¯ll be trying to mimic as many different fighting styles as possible too so you can get at least some experience against more than just my style of fighting.¡± (Kyle)
After finishing my explanation, I reached into my bag to pull out a few decently-sized alchemy stones before announcing the official restart of Professor Kyle¡¯s training camp.
¡°But anyway, for now, I still have to dig a hole and set up the recovery pool so you two should go ahead and get started with learning body strengthening magic as well.¡± (Kyle)
¡°Yes, Professor Kyle.¡± (Regnis)
After a moment, we split up as I started to look around for a good spot to put the recovery pool while Regnis and Sophie made their way over to an empty part of the training field. But as the two of them were walking away, I inadvertently overheard a... slightly concerning conversation...
¡°Wait, what were we doing again?¡± (Sophie)
¡°... I¡¯m going to teach you body strengthening magic... Weren¡¯t you listening at all?¡± (Regnis)
¡°Ah. Sorry, I kind of zoned out again after Professor Kyle¡¯s explanation about body strengthening magic. For some reason, I just can¡¯t stop thinking about eating more steak...¡± (Sophie)
Ah, I definitely should not have gone all out on that steak for Sophie...