“Wow… I really look absurdly good.”
“Isn’t that usually not something people say about themselves?”
“No, but I really do look like that.”
Standing in front of the mirror, I stared blankly at my reflection.
Features so perfectly sculpted that it was hard to believe they belonged to a human.
Even the gray hair that had always been cursed as ominous now blended naturally with the atmosphere around me.
On top of that, perhaps because my stats had risen, my body had become solid and well-built.
‘With just this face, I probably wouldn’t starve to death.’
I was currently experiencing just how powerful a maxed-out Charm stat was.
If my life ever went completely to hell, I might even seriously consider becoming a male courtesan.
Well, first I’d have to get into the academy.
“The academy, huh…”
“Isn’t that an educational institution for humans? Are you going to enroll there?”
“That’s the plan for now.”
My immediate goal was to graduate from the academy at the top of my class.
After all, the top graduate of the academy received love calls from all sorts of places, like knight orders and magic towers.
When that time came, I planned to abandon my hateful family and live while rising steadily in the world.
‘The world ending? The protagonist bastard can take care of that, so it’s none of my business.’
Even if I had the ability, I had no intention of going out of my way to join in saving the world.
I had no lingering attachment to this world that had looked down on me for ten years.
“Lilia, if it looks like I’m going to die, help me.”
“Y-Yes!? Die!?! If you die, Master, I’ll disappear too…!”
“That’s why you need to watch carefully.”
“N-No, with me here, there’s no need for you to do something so dangerous…”
She probably couldn’t understand why I was doing this when a high-ranking demon like herself was right beside me.
But to pass the academy entrance exam, I had to learn.
No matter how good my stats were, they were useless if I couldn’t make use of them.
“Stop talking and watch.”
“Hic… I-I’ll watch carefully.”
Leaving Lilia behind as she hiccuped, apparently startled by my sudden words, I sat cross-legged on the bed.
What I was about to do was the foundation of foundations when it came to magic.
I was going to engrave a Circle into my heart.
—Wooooooong!!!!
When I closed my eyes and regulated my breathing, I felt the mana within my body resonate.
Mana that had certainly accumulated, but merely circled in place where it was.
With this mana, I would create a Circle in my heart.
‘I wondered if I’d ever use this in my life, but here I am.’
The Circle Cultivation Method of the Count Vergilius family.
Since I was still a direct descendant, I had at least been able to learn it, so it remained clearly in my head.
I created torrents of mana on both sides, centered on my heart.
And if I aligned the direction of these torrents and made them collide with each other…
“Ghk…”
As the two torrents slammed together, pain surged through me as if my heart would burst at any moment.
If I stopped here, I would die just like this.
I had to force the colliding torrents to flow to either side.
“I’ll help you.”
Before I knew it, Lilia had placed her hand on my back and added her strength to help move the mana.
Thanks to that, the mana began moving much more smoothly.
[Talent: Mana Affinity assists in the completion of the Circle.]
[The Altar of Original Sin has been engraved into the Circle of Torrents.]
When the pain subsided and I opened my eyes, I saw a blue status window.
If the status window said this much, then that meant I had successfully created the Circle.
“Ignition.”
—Fwooooosh!!!!
The moment the word left my mouth, a strand of flame bloomed in my palm.
It was only a 1st-Circle spell, but… was this the first magic I had ever used?
“Lilia, how is it?”
“How fascinating… Normally, you can’t use magic immediately.”
“Oh, really?”
Could this be thanks to Mana Affinity too?
Since it was the greatest talent for assisting magic, it did make sense.
‘Still, one way or another, I’ve taken my first steps.’
I had laid the foundation for using magic.
What I needed now was the application and study of magic.
Normally, this part would be the hardest, but it didn’t matter.
“Lilia.”
“Yes?”
“Teach me some magic.”
Because I had a slave teacher who stood at the very pinnacle of this field.
***
The day of the Arcadia Academy entrance exam.
“There are seriously a lot of people.”
Waiting at the exam site, I found myself marveling at the bustling crowd.
Even if this was the empire’s most prestigious institution, there were about three times more people than I had expected.
‘Well… it’s not like I don’t understand.’
An academy was a place of opportunity where one could display talent and change one’s life, regardless of status.
On top of that, despite being the most prestigious school, its scholarships were generous and tuition was on the cheap side.
If anything, it would be stranger if people didn’t flock here.
“Master, Master.”
“Hm? What is it?”
“Those women over there are talking about you.”
“Huh?”
I’d had Lilia turn into a spirit and look around in case there was any useful information…
But to think they’d be talking about me.
“What are they saying?”
“They say you’re incredibly handsome, Master.”
“…Oh.”
I’d wondered if it might be something related to the rumors about me.
‘This appearance certainly does stand out a bit.’
It wasn’t simply a matter of being handsome; it stood out far too much.
My hair was gray, and the atmosphere around me itself felt different from others.
“Now they’re saying they want to try talking to you, Master.”
“…You don’t have to tell me about my looks anymore.”
I’d sent her to gather information, so why did it feel like this wasn’t very helpful?
I was sure she was a high-ranking demon… but she was so innocent that she didn’t feel like a demon at all.
“Department of Magic, number 2191. Dante Vergilius.”
As I sat in my chair and let out a deep sigh, I heard my name being called.
‘Is it finally my turn?’
I rose from my seat, slowly loosened my body, and headed toward the exam hall.
“Dante… Isn’t that him? That perverted pig noble.”
“Huh? But I don’t think that’s him… He’s too handsome.”
“Oh, you’re right. But there’s no way the surname could be the same. It’s him… Ah, did I hear wrong?”
With every step I took, voices about me reached my ears.
Well, of course they’d be confused. The rumors about me spread throughout the empire and the current me were complete opposites.
“Shall I kill all those human bastards?”
“No, why go that far? If you killed everyone who insulted me, the empire’s population would probably be cut in half.”
I threw a joke at Lilia, who had asked in all seriousness, and entered the exam hall.
As soon as I entered, I saw three examiners sitting there, looking at me.
Each of them was wrapped in a considerable amount of mana, pressing down on me.
“…Hm. You look quite different from how I remember you. Did you use some sort of black magic in the meantime?”
“Professor Barhen. Watch your words.”
“Tsk. I’ll be careful.”
There was a man clicking his tongue as if displeased while looking at me, and two women watching me with interest.
So these were the entrance examiners for the Department of Magic.
“Rumors truly can’t be trusted. You’re very different from what I heard. To think you had already reached the 3rd Circle.”
“Thank you for the compliment. While preparing for the exam, I exercised and did various other things.”
“Exercise… Hmm. It doesn’t seem like it’s simply that. Well, very good. Shall we begin the exam for now?”
The woman who looked the youngest among the three naturally led the conversation.
[Talent: Insight activates.]
‘She’s covering her face. Why bother?’
I felt a slight sense of doubt, but there was no need to ask.
As she said, all I had to do was take the exam well.
“Would you cast the spell you’re most confident in at that target over there?”
“Understood.”
I slowly regulated my breathing.
—Wooooooong!!!!
Centering on the Circle in my heart, I rotated my mana and slowly unfolded the spell.
A dark crimson magic circle naturally formed before my eyes.
“Oh… That’s rather impressive.”
“Tsk. So what? As if Lightning Spear is an easy spell.”
“Everyone, quiet. Let’s focus and watch for now.”
The examiners’ voices reached my ears, but I didn’t need to pay attention to them right now.
What mattered was immersing myself in this sensation.
‘Lightning Spear.’
A single bolt of lightning shot out from the dark crimson circle.
[Talent: Mana Affinity assists your magic.]
[The spell’s effect is amplified.]
—Kwa-gagagagagagang!!!!!
With an enormous roar, the target in front of me—the mana measuring device—vanished completely.
It disappeared so utterly that it looked as if it had never been there in the first place.
“…Huh? D-Did the mana measuring device just evaporate?”
“He’s definitely 3rd Circle, isn’t he? That power is…”
The measuring device, which was supposed to withstand up to 5th-Circle magic, had completely evaporated.
Then did that mean the magic I had just used was above the 5th Circle…?
‘I didn’t know this either.’
I had only practiced magic over and over, so I had no idea its power was at this level.
A 3rd-Circle spell surpassing the power of a 5th-Circle spell normally made no sense.
“H-How did you do that?”
“…I just did it, and it worked?”
“Pardon?”
“What?”
No, seriously, it worked when I did it, so what was I supposed to say?
“…Department of Magic, number 2191, Student Dante.”
“Yes?”
“…Congratulations on your admission in advance.”
The three examiners looked at me with hollow smiles.
Only then did I realize it.
Ah.
My talent is starting to go berserk.
***
Around the time Dante entered the exam hall.
A blue-haired woman waiting outside for her turn could not believe her ears.
“…Dante?”
“Pardon? My lady, what is it?”
“No… I thought I just heard the name Dante.”
The woman tilted her head as she thought of her former fiancé.
“Well… there’s no way.”
Because he’s far too handsome to be him.