“Come down!”
Relin shouted furiously. He was struggling even more than Deculein. His face had turned so red it looked about ready to burst.
“Professor Relin. Calm yourself.”
“Pardon? Ah... but that...”
Unable to watch any longer, Deculein personally calmed Relin down. Then he walked slowly and stood in the spot facing Epherene.
“...Can I really?”
Though she had lost her temper and shouted it out, Epherene asked with half-doubt.
“I said you may point to anyone present here. I did not place any restrictions on the target.”
After saying that, Deculein struck his cane against the ground. Thud—! The resounding boom and wave scattered Epherene’s hair.
“However, moderately unfavorable conditions will be necessary. I will not attack you, and if this cane leaves the ground, it will be your victory.”
“...Yes.”
Epherene nodded and clenched her fist.
Deculein over there, and me standing before him.
Her heart was pounding like mad.
That was how much she had longed for this moment.
It was something she had once dreamed of.
Whooooo... After taking a deep breath, she first poured mana into her bracelet.
“Begin.”
At Deculein’s words, currents of wind wrapped around her entire body.
Acceleration. Embodying and accepting the element of wind—this, too, was an application of pure elemental magic.
To add a note, many people misunderstand, but Acceleration acts not only on bodily movement but also on the speed of magic. The intervals between spell projections become lighter, allowing for more rapid fire.
“...”
Having completed her warm-up, Epherene gathered mana into her bracelet.
Combat between ordinary mages usually takes the form of an attribute battle. Each leads the fight with the element most suited to them.
However, Epherene had no need for that.
Because Epherene’s attribute was not an element, but an object.
In other words, the “bracelet” itself was her attribute.
Her bracelet served as a “catalyst” for casting magic, allowing her to use all four elemental attributes without any reduction in performance or penalty.
“Hup!”
Epherene emitted flames. It was the intermediate-level pure elemental magic, “Firewind.” “Firewind” spread violently and enveloped Deculein.
Deculein vanished from sight, trapped within the scorching wind.
Epherene added the attribute of earth to those flames. More precisely, she scattered particles such as coal that amplified the blaze, and generated highly concentrated oxygen inside it.
Fwoooooosh—!
Flames filled the arena.
The fire demon came into contact with the magical combustible dust and oxygen, causing a chain of oxidation and combustion, and as a result—
A dust explosion.
─────!
A terrifying explosion erupted. The blast that surged up once rode the dust in the air and continued dozens of times.
Thud—! Boom—! Baaaaang—!
It was a scene of devastation that even Professor Relin found alarming. The strength and magnitude of the explosions were visibly tremendous.
Kuuuuuuung—!
It was a lethal secret technique Epherene had mastered.
A bombardment spell that combined three attributes to maximize the power of “fire,” the most destructive element.
“...Haa.”
Having consumed her mana, Epherene exhaled heavily and looked there.
Almost the entire arena was blazing. Acrid smoke filled her vision.
She did not let her guard down with thoughts like, Did I get him? Naturally, she did not worry with thoughts like, Did he die?
Because...
A cold wind blew, clearing the smoke.
Beyond it was a sphere of fire.
A firm shell of flame, as if wrapped around an egg.
Crackle, crackle— crackle, crackle—
Through the cracks burning like a heat haze, Deculein could be seen.
Within the flames, Deculein’s blue eyes were radiant. Without the slightest agitation, he was looking at her.
Deculein was not scorched in the least.
It was exactly the figure she had expected.
Shiiiiik—!
At that moment, the flames scorching all around died down. In an instant, all firepower vanished, and Epherene could not even understand why.
“...”
She bit her lip.
Then she unleashed magic one-sidedly. It was “Grenade Mortar,” which poured out grenade-shaped masses of mana.
Dududududu—!
The magical bullets fired in simple succession, however, stopped the moment they reached Deculein’s range.
Their ownership had been seized.
Deculein did not even use those grenades, but extinguished them all.
It was his promise not to attack.
“Ah...”
Deculein was merely watching.
As though playing with a child. As though teaching a lacking student.
In that case...
Epherene condensed her magic.
Crackle—
However, there was an error in the process of realizing the spell. The magic Epherene had been trying to manifest merely sparked and broke apart.
Epherene quickly realized the reason. It was Deculein’s “mana interference.”
Belatedly, Deculein spoke.
“Your magic has habits.”
He could see magic with his “Naked Eye.”
However, directly observing a spell and analyzing and dismantling it with “Comprehension” in an extremely short time consumed a tremendous amount of mana, making it nearly impossible.
“The larger the movement of the spell, the more prominent those habits become.”
However, if he had already experienced the caster’s magic several times...
And if that caster definitely had a certain “habit”...
The mana consumption decreased exponentially.
In other words—“Comprehension” had already learned Epherene’s magic, and because of that, Deculein had instantly grasped the “core circuit” of the magic she was trying to use.
“High-ranking mages hide their habits. No, they do not have habits to begin with.”
Deculein said it in a tone as if admonishing a child who had failed.
Epherene continued trying to form magic. She tried to pull up the spells she had memorized.
However, nothing manifested.
Only crackle— crackle— the sound of something burning repeated.
“You will not be able to use magic before me.”
“...”
Epherene gritted her teeth. She had given up on manifesting magic, but she had not given up on the fight itself.
There was one method left.
She simply had to deny him distance—in other words, time.
What if I break through at a single point and close the distance? What if I release mana right in front of Deculein’s nose?
He won’t even have time to dismantle or interfere with my magic.
She had confidence.
Epherene was not a mage from the Academy, so she had not allowed her body to become weak. Physical training, discipline, and calisthenics were among her hobbies.
“Hraaaap!”
Thus, Epherene charged. Her body, accelerated by Acceleration, quickly reached right before Deculein’s nose, and just as she was about to fire her magic—
Epherene saw a certain finger.
A middle finger curled into a circle.
As if to flick her forehead...
Snap—!
The pain was immense.
Epherene, who had been charging forward, clutched her forehead and staggered backward. She wobbled like that, then sank down onto the ground.
“...However.”
At that moment, Deculein’s voice was heard.
Deculein was looking at her from over there.
Epherene looked at his face.
A smile lingered at the corners of his mouth.
His gaze was far clearer than before, seeming more satisfied than ever.
A kind of smile she had never seen even once.
“That was not bad.”
It was lavish praise.
Deculein, to that extent...
Liked the cane.
Unaware of that fact, Epherene stared blankly at his face, then flopped down spread-eagled on her back.
Did I... get acknowledged?
Thinking that as she fainted, her friends ran over and carried her down from the arena.
“Next.”
“Um, Professor. The arena for a moment—”
Relin tried to speak. Since the arena had been ruined, perhaps they should take a short break—
Deculein restored the arena. With “Telekinesis,” he raised the earth, and with “Refinement” and “Transformation,” he manufactured tiles.
The tiles made that way were, if anything, much cleaner than before.
It was not difficult magic, but the speed and refined manifestation were astonishing.
Literally, it was the magic of a noble.
“Next. Lucia.”
Class proceeded as it was.
However, the duel from moments ago continued to replay in the mages’ minds.
They all came to see Epherene in a new light, and even more than that, the mage named Deculein—
They clearly came to understand the fame and dignity of the head professor said to have stopped a train with Telekinesis.
If Epherene was an earthworm, Deculein was a tiger.
There was that much of a gap between the two mages’ skills.
* * *
The following Monday.
The first day of midterms.
...Mmm~ Then this becomes like this?
...Yes. That’s right.
After finishing her first exam, Epherene had been napping in the clubroom when the sound of conversation made her open her eyes. Stuck to the sofa like scorched rice, she only poked her head up.
“Ah, this was something I was totally confused about. Thank you so much.”
“No need to thank me. Ask anytime.”
It was Julia. Julia was with a certain man. He was a handsome senior with an easygoing air.
Are they dating or something?
Epherene wiped away the drool she had spilled with Cleanse and sat up, disheveled.
“Oh, Ephy. You’re awake? You know Ephy too, right, senior?”
When Julia spoke, the senior turned around as well.
“Of course. How could I not? She picked a fight with Professor Deculein.”
It was Drent, a senior of the “Solda” rank who had passed the promotion exam last year. His fine appearance and ability, and his character of not discriminating by status despite being the child of a famous magical family, made him quite well-known among commoner mages.
“You’re that girl, right?”
“...Ah, yes.”
“Ephy. I was asking Senior to look over Deculein’s assignment. There are five days left until the deadline, right?”
“Huh? Yeah. Exactly five days...?”
Scratching the crown of her head, Epherene suddenly looked at the bundle of her own assignments sitting on the desk.
She had dozed off while writing that. Surely not?
Did he peek?
Drent noticed her gaze and smiled as he spoke.
“I didn’t read it. That wouldn’t be polite, would it?”
“...What? Ah, haha, hahaha... Well, it’s not really like that.”
Epherene put the assignment into her bag.
I shouldn’t leave things like this lying around. For nearly two weeks, she had been sleeping only three to four hours a day, so her mind was a little off.
Drent chuckled and held out his hand.
“Epherene, shall I check yours too?”
“Pardon?”
“Give it here. I’ll review it for you.”
She knew Drent’s reputation well. A hexagonal mage who had evenly learned magic of all six branches.
However, Epherene shook her head with a bitter smile.
“No. I’m fine.”
“Hm? No, it’s all right. I was just reviewing Julia’s assignment too.”
“No, no. It’s not well-written enough to show anyone.”
Julia, who had been watching the two of them with some discomfort, suddenly stood up, using the time as an excuse.
“Oh! It’s almost four! Then we have our next exams, so we’ll be going! Thank you, senior!”
“Hm? Ah... sure. Take care~”
The two left the clubroom.
As they walked down the corridor, Julia tried probing with words like, “Senior Drent is handsome, isn’t he?” but Epherene shook her head.
“Not really, for me.”
“Why? What don’t you like about him?”
“He seems like he’d be kind to any woman.”
“Ahang~ That’s true. But Senior Drent is attending the public hearing this time.”
“The thesis hearing?”
“Yeah. That.”
About a week after midterms ended, the thesis public hearing would be held. It was a place where seniors who had been promoted from Debutant to Solda publicly presented their magic theses and received evaluations from the professors of the Magic Tower.
If they wanted to remain mages of the University Magic Tower, it was a process that Epherene and Julia would someday have to go through as well.
Epherene muttered.
“I’m jealous. For us, even at the earliest, it’ll be a year, right?”
“Right. Ah, Sylvia might be able to do it within half a year.”
“...Why?”
“She takes a ton of classes. I bet her only day off is Sunday. She’s completely crazy about magic.”
Meanwhile, the Magic Tower’s elevator arrived.
The two pressed the floors where they would each take their exams. Julia pressed the 4th floor, and Epherene the 11th.
Ding—
They reached the 4th floor first, and Julia got off while waving her hand.
“I’m going! Good luck on your exam, Ephy!”
“Yeah. You too. Do well.”
Huaaaaaam...
Just as she was yawning, ding— the doors opened on the 6th floor.
Epherene flinched in surprise when she saw the blond mage standing before them.
It was Sylvia.
“...”
Sylvia boarded the elevator without showing any reaction.
Thus, the two stood side by side.
“...”
After fidgeting for a while, Epherene asked first.
“Your exam, um, did it go well?”
“...”
Sylvia nodded.
She had nothing more to say. So much for “See you.”
Efrin awkwardly looked over the names of each floor for no particular reason.
Suddenly, [Floor 77: Head Professor Declain’s Office / Declain’s Laboratory] caught her eye.
Ding— The doors opened again.
It was the 10th floor.
Efrin tried to wave goodbye, but Sylvia muttered clearly as she stepped out of the elevator.
“Don’t mess with the professor next time. You’re lucky you didn’t die that day.”
“…?”
That languid yet cold voice lingered like an echo.
Ding—
The elevator closed, and Efrin stared blankly at the doors, muttering to herself.
“…What’s with her?”
* * *
Floor 77, Head Professor Declain’s research laboratory.
I was analyzing a research paper.
Having already submitted the exam questions, this was all that remained of my work at the Magic Tower.
“At this point…”
The outline of the paper, which had been vague and distant, was gradually revealing itself.
The paper’s idea was brilliant.
At first, I had been bewildered by the constant talk of wood, fire, charcoal, pencils, diamonds, and the like, but after prolonged [understanding], I came to realize:
This concept was related to “carbon.”
The potential of the element called carbon was immense, so if one succeeded in establishing it, one could more or less found a new school, something like a “carbon-type” magic.
Of course, this did not mean utilizing the element of carbon itself.
Rather, by grafting carbon’s unique properties and characteristics—that is, its allotropes and near-infinite bonding methods—onto magic, it could grant magic tremendous flexibility and possibility.
However, it was difficult for me to actually master.
Because to “Memorize” and “Manifest” the magic devised based on this paper, one needed a talent for almost all attributes; otherwise, mana consumption would be extreme.
Of course, this distinction between “magic development” and its “practical mastery” was a common story.
If compared to modern science, it was like how theoretical physicists and experimental physicists were thoroughly separate.
In this world, the renowned figure “Linnel,” who occupied a major branch of the magic arts school—though of course possessing some practical ability—could not actually wield the destruction-type magic he had created as well as his disciples.
But no one could curse at Einstein for “not conducting experiments himself.”
“The insight is remarkable, but…”
In a world lacking in science, Efrin’s father had discovered that charcoal, pencils, and diamonds were actually the same element, and harbored thoughts of utilizing those properties through magic.
“Did he quit in the early stages of research?”
The process itself had not even reached halfway. There were many incorrect and empty parts, and most of it was intuition.
Of course, a magician’s thesis usually consisted of seventy to eighty percent intuition and twenty to thirty percent theory. As long as it reached that level, there was no difficulty in understanding the paper and wielding the magic.
Anyway.
Returning to the main point, one magician came to mind who would suit this magic.
“…Efrin.”
That audacious magician from the last class. The talent who had handled all four major elements using a bracelet as a catalyst.
Efrin.
“…”
However, the more I thought about it, the more my questions about Efrin’s father grew.
I took out a pendant that I had placed in the corner of the laboratory drawer.
A pendant containing a picture of Efrin as a child.
But why was the father’s face cut out of this photograph?
Wasn’t there something profound about simply accepting it as “the photo just happens to be like this”?
“…”
After staring at the pendant for a long while, I soon left the laboratory. And returning to my office, I took out a book.
At that moment.
A certain gaze pierced my awareness. I hurriedly turned around.
“…?”
It was a hawk.
Some hawk was perched on the Magic Tower’s window frame, looking at me.
I looked at it too. It tilted its head as if to ask what I was staring at. I also tilted my head slightly in puzzlement.
Then the hawk—trembling as if scolded by someone, flutter-flap, flutter-flap—hurriedly flew away.
“A hawk with an owner, huh.”
Its feather grooming was one thing, but it was also rather cute for no reason.
I drew the window curtains.
* * *
…To the west of the empire, in the port city of “Lukan,” within the Yukraine territory.
In the harbor of that place, famous as the empire’s resort for its clear and warm weather all year round, the “Crimson Garnet Adventurer Party” was waiting for a ship.
“Is that the ship?”
Today was the day a child would arrive from the archipelago.
Ganesha pointed at the ship visible in the distance, shielding her eyes with her hand.
“Yes. That’s right.”
For now, there was only one girl. Two of the child’s relatives remained in the archipelago.
“The ship is quite slow.”
“Isn’t it just that you’re impatient, Captain?”
“Are you picking fights with me a lot these days?”
“It’s not a fight, it’s the truth.”
While they were bickering, the ship arrived, and finally the child disembarked.
The moment she saw that cute sight, Ganesha waved her hand and her hair simultaneously.
“Here. Over here.”
Seeing the red hair fluttering like wings, the child smiled brightly.
“Ganesha, long time no see.”
There had been many children met in the archipelago, and among them, three possessed exceptionally special talents, but the child Ganesha was particularly fond of.
They were all precious, but she was especially like a sore finger.
“Lia~ Didn’t you miss me?”
Lia was a mature one. A child with black hair and brown eyes.
Precocious beyond her years, but a child harboring grand talent. She even knew herself what she had to do and how to do it.
However, because of her excessive maturity, she did not even act spoiled, which made her all the more pitiful.
“I wouldn’t say I missed—gah!”
Ganesha hugged that Lia tightly.
“Lia, I missed you!”
“Ah, it hurts. It hurts. This is child abuse, really…”
That steamed-bun-like face poking out from her embrace was so cute it drove her crazy.
“Your birthday has passed, so under imperial law, you’re not a child anymore~”
“No, so what if… ah, I said it hurts, let go, let go, you idiot…!”
A child so mature, and thus so cute.
“Captain. Let her go. She said it hurts.”
“Let go… let me go…”
“Ah, sorry.”
Ganesha finally released her, and Lia glared at her with deliberately fierce eyes.
“Really… Are you a complete fool?”
“Sorry, sorry. Shall we go? I’ll buy you something tasty.”
“…What are you going to buy?”
Watching how much, and how far, this child would grow.
It seemed it would remain quite a lovely hobby for the foreseeable future.