〈 Chapter 248 〉 To Handle the Star (3)
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Chloe had grown rapidly.
Having sufficiently built her foundational knowledge under the Master of the Black Tower, she solidified her base while remaining at the Apuria Academy.
All that remained was to construct her own tower.
And now, Chloe had just laid her first brick. She had taken a step into her own magic (??). Just that alone achieved the purpose of the special class, but…
“I’ve recalibrated my direction.”
Chloe didn’t seem satisfied with that.
“To catch the rampaging mana, I need to modify the circuit, right? So I thought about tweaking that concept a bit and applied it…”
Chloe handed me a piece of paper.
There was a circuit drawn on it.
“I’m thinking of changing the basic circuit. I want it to overlap with the characteristics of my mana… I’m going to make gradual modifications.”
“…You’re going to modify the circuit?”
“Yes. I’ve been reviewing the ‘Limits of Basic Spells’ handout Professor Rania gave me recently.”
Chloe scratched her head shyly.
“After seeing the phrases and examples in there, I thought, wouldn’t this be possible? For now, I’m starting with the basic circuit.”
I examined the paper Chloe handed me silently.
It detailed how to modify the circuit, its direction, and a brief overview.
While I was reading the circuit…
“…Huh?”
I blinked a few times.
Of course, closing and opening my eyes didn’t change what was drawn on the paper. After alternating my gaze between the circuit and Chloe, I posed a question.
“Chloe?”
“Yes, Professor Rania.”
“Have you ever had a lesson on ‘Circuit Modification’ from the Master of the Black Tower?”
“Uh? No, I don’t think I’ve learned that.”
“…You’ve never learned it?”
Then what is this?
I glanced at the paper again. Though it was inexperienced and chaotic, there was undoubtedly a process for circuit modification laid out on it.
‘…This is supposed to be taught in the third year?’
The only student who could manage this would be Resti, who had already received all related education before entering the academy.
‘But, this kid who hasn’t even been in magic for long mimicked circuit modification? On her own?’
It was absurd.
Dumbfounded, I asked Chloe once more.
“How did you do this?”
“Uh…”
Chloe hesitated before answering.
“Well, it just worked.”
The moment I heard that response, my breath hitched.
Is this what it feels like to have your words caught in your throat?
Staring at Chloe with a dazed expression, I finally managed to respond.
“Um… right. You’re doing well. Just bring it to completion, and I’ll help you review it together.”
“Yes, Professor Rania!”
Chloe nodded vigorously and hurried out of the professor’s office. I watched her for a while until the office door closed, then turned my head.
“Okay.”
Turning my head, I found my Master sitting there.
With a mountain of assignments submitted by students piled high before him, my Master looked at me.
“Do you understand my feelings now, Rania?”
“Yes, yes?”
“When I was raising you, I was making a face exactly like the one you’re making now. How about taking a look in the mirror?”
I glanced at the mirror placed on the desk.
Reflected in the mirror, I was making an expression that mixed disbelief with astonishment, roughly like, ‘What on earth am I doing?’
“Do you understand my feelings now?”
Indeed.
Now I understood how my Master felt.
2.
After several years, I finally found common ground with my disciple.
Feeling a subtle joy in that realization, Rosel stood up. He walked toward the kettle that was set up in one corner of the professor’s office.
A kettle prepared for his discerning student, particularly picky about coffee, along with various tools for brewing.
Standing before it, Rosel checked the coffee brewing recipe he had received from the alchemist managing the academy’s café and began to handle the tools one by one.
Clatter.
While skillfully brewing coffee, Rosel suddenly chuckled.
‘At this rate, I might end up running a café after retirement.’
One cup of coffee was in his hand, while another was placed on his disciple’s table.
“So…”
Sipping the coffee, Rosel opened his mouth.
“What do you think of that girl, Chloe?”
“To be honest, I’m a bit surprised.”
“Surprised?”
Rania, who rarely praises others, squinted her eyes in interest at the word “surprised” that slipped from her lips.
“Didn’t you say something similar to Resti, Lac, and Belnoa? Is she at a similar level?”
“They’re impressive too, but… Chloe, she feels like she’s headed in a completely different direction.”
Rania stroked her chin.
“Fast learner? Quick comprehension? It’s really hard to summarize in one word…”
A sudden sigh escaped her lips.
“Her way of thinking feels fundamentally different.”
Rosel flinched and halted the coffee cup just before reaching his lips. He glared at Rania with half-open eyes.
“…You mean her approach is different?”
“Yes. She’s only just taken a step, and yet she’s already pulling up concepts that should be far ahead… Tackling things I haven’t taught her yet.”
Strangely, this didn’t sound unfamiliar.
“It’s fascinating to watch. Even a slight misdirection might send things spiraling out of control, so it forces me to think a lot.”
“Uh, Rania?”
“Yes? Master.”
Rosel looked at Rania with a somewhat skeptical expression.
“Are you perhaps talking about yourself?”
“No? I’m talking about Chloe.”
Rania blinked, tilting her head.
Seeing her expression, Rosel rubbed his temples. Memories from when Rania first started coming to mind.
「…Raniel? The circuits you were supposed to finish this week, if I remember correctly, had to do with intermediate circuits. What on earth is this?」
This was back when I taught intermediate circuits.
「Um, I thought it’d be cleaner this way, and I figured it’d increase the power.」
「What?」
「It felt incomplete while I was looking at it. Like it hadn’t been finished. So I sketched out a cleaner version ‘cause I had time left.」
Showing me that she had independently created sixteen types of advanced circuits by merely filling in the gaps after I taught her the intermediate!
「…How?」
「Huh? It just worked.」
「What?」
Skipping processes at will, she’d somehow run off the rails and made surprising progress.
Hehe…
Every time that happened, I’d burst out laughing in disbelief. And now, time has passed, and here we are.
“Anyway, listen.”
Rosel looked at his disciple sitting before him.
“What do you think of Chloe when she says, ‘It just worked’?”
It just made him laugh. She didn’t seem aware of how ridiculous her actions were.
“…Is that so?”
“Yes. I was speechless! I couldn’t help but laugh.”
Hahaha, Rania chuckled, sipping her coffee. Even though it was absurd, she didn’t seem to feel bad about it.
“I wonder how to teach her.”
Her expression almost seemed anticipatory.
Seeing that look on Rania’s face, Rosel thought to himself.
That kid definitely had a disciple reminiscent of myself.
“Right, well…”
Rosel sipped his coffee and muttered.
“Do your best.”
“Yes, Master…”
“Teaching is exceedingly complicated, and while you teach, you will often ponder what exactly you’re teaching… and at times you will feel a deep sense of unease, and worry that if you teach incorrectly, you might ruin everything.”
“Yes, Master.”
Rania was about to reply when she looked at Rosel instead. Rosel, gazing dreamily out the window, continued without pausing for breath.
“I am raising a monster. If I’m not careful, it might all come crashing down. My fifty years of magic might all be sucked up by this kid, those thoughts will surely cross your mind.”
“Master, I’m only twenty-seven…”
“You’ll be burdened with endless worries. They’re advancing so quickly, what more should I teach? Ethics? Do I need to teach them ethics?”
…Ethics?
It felt like that discussion was somewhat off-topic, but Rania listened intently to Rosel’s words.
“Well.”
Only after his coffee cooled did Rosel finish speaking. After quenching his thirst with the cold coffee, he turned to Rania with a wry smile.
“You should be fine. It’s a monster raising a monster. Honestly, while Chloe is amazing… she won’t measure up to you.”
“…What?”
“There won’t be another like you.”
Rosel ruffled Rania’s hair lightly.
“No magician like you has existed and will exist.”
Rania blinked in surprise.
Rosel playfully flicked Rania’s forehead.
“Above all, take good care of her. Since I raised a Wise One, you should raise at least one Hero, shouldn’t you? Only then will the name of the Trias family be honored.”
It was said in a playful tone.
Rania nodded and smiled.
“Yes, Master.”
It won’t just be “one” Hero.
3.
The special class progressed smoothly.
Chloe, Ayla, Lac, and Belnoa were all on a consistent upward trajectory. The plan was going without a hitch… and there were no significant issues.
Rania called in the students she had been closely observing to check on the progress from the special class.
“I’ve noticed considerable growth in your spell power compared to the start of the semester. You’ve also improved in martial skills and physical enhancements through repeated training, but…”
As she asked Rania about the progress of her teaching, Belnoa hesitated before answering.
“…Not yet, I haven’t grasped it.”
Encasing shadows in the form of armor.
Belnoa had completely mastered this aspect. After a month of relentless training, Rania was aware of this.
‘What’s lacking is application and practical skills.’
Of course, that remained vital.
“You’re saying you can’t move on to the next level?”
This was Belnoa’s issue.
Despite realizing that the dragon spell existed in the lineage following shadow armor, she still couldn’t grasp how to use it effectively.
“Yeah.”
Belnoa nodded.
“During the trial, Belial said that shadow dragon sorcery was the next step after shadow armor. But I can’t quite get the hang of it.”
Belnoa clenched and unclenched her fists repeatedly.
“It feels like it’s almost there, yet it isn’t. He said I need some kind of trigger to realize it…”
“Well, it wouldn’t be easy to learn.”
Rania lightly patted Belnoa’s shoulder.
“For now, just think of it as laying the foundation.”
Though she seemed troubled by the lack of results, Rania believed it was an unwarranted worry.
‘…Even Belial learned shadow spells at nearly thirty. What are you complaining about?’
Rania recalled the memories she had seen in the northern tower.
The verification with Cardi showed that Belial had mastered the shadow sorcery only by the time he was thirty-two. Even that ancient hero took that much time to acquire such magic. For Belnoa, it was quite a fast pace.
When she completed it, the power was insane.
With a single flap of wings, storms would be summoned.
Claws that ripped the sky apart.
The shadow dragon sorcery she saw in her memories had no weaknesses if one kept themselves within certain bounds.
“Don’t be too hasty. Just grasp it before the next trial.”
“…Yes.”
She nodded, but Belnoa still didn’t look particularly relieved.
“I can now fell a tree that I previously couldn’t chop down with an axe on the first strike. I can take it down with just one swing, not ten.”
Lac beamed, showing off his dazzling white teeth.
“With just one swing, my axe can bring down a massive pine tree. I’ve grown stronger…”
He seemed quite satisfied.
Lac fondled the axe strapped to his waist lovingly, nodding his head vigorously.
“I’d already secured the first place in the ‘Wood Splitting Race’ when I return to the North.”
“There’s such a race…?”
“A time-honored competition.”
What a… unique culture.
Muttering to herself, Rania assessed Lac’s progress. Over the past two months and throughout the year, it was evident that Lac had significantly developed.
‘Physically, he was already complete.’
It was merely a matter of learning how to handle it.
And Lac had been continually studying it for the past year. Ways to effectively use spells, managing his body properly… and lastly.
‘He even felt the wall.’
An encounter with the Sword Demon, Draka.
That moment when he faced the wall, and the experience of having stepped onto it, briefly, was with Lac now.
“You just need to keep progressing as you are.”
Rania nodded.
His growth might not have been steep, but Lac was steadily improving, step by step.
“But, Lac.”
“Yes, Professor Rania.”
“About that tree you mentioned being able to knock down with a single swing. Where have you tried that?”
“Uh? That would be…”
Rania silently handed Lac a piece of paper.
It was a recent notice that came through the academy.
“Recently, there has been a catastrophe in the back mountains of Apuria and Harmain Forest, where entire trees are being felled. The cut trees have been neatly arranged like firewood, but the intent behind it is difficult to determine. We request your cooperation in identifying the perpetrator…”
“…”
Lac fell silent.
“Lac.”
Rania tapped the paper lightly.
Lac broke into a cold sweat.
“Let’s be careful.”
“Yes…”
There were some minor issues, but the special class continued to sail smoothly.
Both Belnoa and Lac appeared to be laying solid foundations at present. By regularly checking in and administering continued training, Rania provided the aids needed for them to ground their foundations.
For the others, Rania found that there wasn’t much left for her to intervene.
“I’m also figuring out how to manipulate stars and handle authority. I still feel like there’s a lot I don’t know.”
Ayla researched into her authority.
“I’m studying the ‘Method to Control Servants’ taught by Kelharlem. By splitting circuits, I can implant them into the servants… increasing the number of entities I can control at once, but…”
Resti was currently delving into summoning, yet both seemed to require little intervention from Rania.
At least for now, analyzing the results brought to her weekly and providing feedback seemed sufficient.
‘It’s still too early for me to teach anything officially. I’m planning on tackling that in the year after next…’
And finally…
“Professor Rania!”
The next hero candidate, Chloe.
“I finally succeeded!”
If I had to pick a student who had undergone the most change over the past month, it would undoubtedly be Chloe. A faint smile touched Rania’s lips at Chloe’s achievements.
These students all had immense potential to nurture.
And that didn’t only apply to those she had been monitoring closely. The overall level at Apuria was steadily moving upward.
‘Even though I’ve increased the tempo of the lectures, they seem to be keeping up well. There are no significant problems.’
I had increased the workload a bit, but everyone seemed to be following along without complaint. Regardless, they were all growing. Rania stretched, feeling the reward of being a professor.
If this continues, there won’t be any issues.
And as always.
Problems have a way of arriving suddenly.
4.
Early in the morning, a knight arrived in front of the mansion. Rania, in her pajamas, opened the door, blinking at the knight visiting the mansion.
‘That face looks familiar.’
From a little while ago, perhaps.
After staring hard at the knight’s face, Rania snapped her fingers.
“Roks, the Unyielding!”
He was a knight she had encountered on the battlefield.
At Rania’s words, Roks blinked.
“…Do you know me?”
“Of course! You’re the one who wiped everything out in a landslide on the Western Front! Thanks to you…”
Rania’s voice grew fainter as excitement took over upon meeting someone from the battlefield. By the end, it trailed off to a whisper.
“We were able to pull the military situation off smoothly, according to… Raniel brother.”
“Lord Raniel, you mean?”
Fortunately, Roks focused on the latter part.
Eyes gleaming, Roks looked at Rania.
“It seems the Ashen Mage, Lord Raniel, shared my tale with your sister. This is an honor.”
“Yeah, it was impressive…”
“Haha. I threw myself into battle with determination, and Lord Raniel remembering me feels like my efforts were not in vain.”
Feeling somewhat bashful, Roks scratched the back of his head.
“So, what brings you here?”
“Ah, I have a letter to deliver to you, Lady Rania. It’s a principle that has to be conveyed in person.”
A knight who remained on the battlefield had come all the way to the royal capital to deliver information personally. Knowing he had sufficient skill, Rania nodded, sensing that the information would not be ordinary.
“To be delivered to Rania van Trias, the instructor of the next hero candidate, Chloe.”
Holding the artifact hanging around his neck tight, Roks conveyed the words of the Knights Order Leader to Rania.
“The trial for the next hero candidate, Chloe, has been decided. The date of the trial is next spring.”
Rania narrowed her eyes.
Roks finally spoke the last words.
“It will take place three months from now.”
The date for Chloe’s trial had been set.
It was a timeline that came much sooner than Rania had anticipated.
*
