LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 54 - "You surpass my imagination. You truly seem like a human magician."
Chapter 54 “You surpass my imagination. You truly seem like a human magician.”
After winning the first event, the battle in the Sword Demon Emperor Tournament, the Magic Department students finally had their first weekend.
The sky was as blue as if it had been painted, and the weather, needless to say, was superb.
On such a day, when everyone felt the urge to go out, there was a girl who still maintained her regular routine.
Trixie von Fritz.
She was sitting on a bench in the training grounds, deeply engrossed in looking at her Trivia.
With her jacket off, tightly-fitted Academy uniform pants, and blue hair damp with sweat, she looked like a living painting.
It was something only she could pull off.
[ ▷ Are you having a nice weekend? ]
[ ▷ My disciple performed amazingly, you know ]
[ ▷ I want to be like that someday too ]
Studying, training, ballet, meals… As regularly as she did these things, she had also recently been absorbed in Trivia.
While waiting for a reply from Mr. Guidance, Trixie recalled Flan’s performance in the match.
“Hmm.”
The ‘sharpness’ that radiated from his appearance wasn’t limited to just his looks.
Against Yvonne, the first-year prodigy of the Knight Department, he proved that it wasn’t just his attitude that was sharp.
He spoke without hesitation and ultimately proved his point.
_’It’s coming soon.’_
— Fight with flames.
On the day of the physical examination at the Magic Tower, she vividly remembered the conversation she had with Flan.
They had agreed to have a match after the Sword Demon Emperor Tournament ended. The time was approaching.
It would be a lie to say she wasn’t nervous. After all, Flan’s performance in the match had been extraordinary.
But she had no intention of making a fuss. She wasn’t about to show any signs of anxiety or restlessness.
The competition was centered around ‘flames’. Thus, Trixie simply needed to do her best without any worries.
Fritz meant blue flames, and blue flames meant Fritz.
She would never lose. She was determined to win and become Mr. Guidance’s best disciple.
“Ah.”
At that moment, she received a reply on Trivia, causing Trixie to let out an involuntary sound.
[ ▶ There’s no reason why not. ]
His words seemed unusually kind today. Or maybe not.
Imagination is free, after all. Trixie decided to think about it in whatever way made her feel comfortable.
But there was one battle scene that remained particularly vivid in Trixie’s mind.
It was the moment when Flan deflected Yvonne’s swordsmanship at a very close range.
_’A magician engaging in close combat?’_
It was as thin as a sheet of paper.
If the movement had been even slightly off, some part of his body would have been cut. That strange scene was particularly clear.
It wasn’t an awkward or clumsy deflection. It was smooth and natural.
It was as if he was reading every move of his opponent, guiding the swordsmanship to stray off course.
She quickly moved her fingers.
[ ▷ Did you also teach him those moves? ]
[ ▶ Did you like them? ]
“…!”
Trixie’s eyes widened for a moment.
[ ▷ That can’t be true. ]
[ ▷ You’re annoying. ㅡㅅㅡ ]
[ ▷ Your comments and your bragging are too much! ]
But a moment later, she received a somewhat shocking reply.
[ ▶ I directed both the moves and the comments. ]
“Huh.”
Trixie’s hand trembled slightly as she held Trivia. What was the right way to reply in such a situation?
Actually, Trixie didn’t know. Mr. Guidance was the first person she had ever communicated with.
[ ▷ Hold on. ]
She couldn’t leave the message unanswered, so she simply sent that reply and quickly closed Trivia.
She would gather the maids’ opinions and send a reply if they came up with a good suggestion.
_’By the way,’_
Trixie’s thoughts drifted toward what it would feel like if Mr. Guidance executed those elegant moves and impressive comments himself.
…It would probably be close to an ideal.
In ballet terms, it would be like an arabesque or a penché. Trixie roughly mimicked the movements.
And while striking the pose, she thought,
_”A magician defeating a knight is just about that much.”_
But at that moment, the door to the training grounds suddenly burst open, and Becky peeked inside.
“Ah, I’m so sleepy I could die… Huh?”
Their gazes met in mid-air.
“…!”
“…!”
Without any need to say, both of them were equally startled. If one had to rank it, Becky seemed a bit more surprised.
One second, two seconds, three seconds.
They both remained frozen like that for a while, until Becky broke the silence first.
“Uh… So you think the same way, Trixie?”
“Get out.”
“Okay.”
◈
_”What a strange woman.”_
I muttered as I examined the blank sheet I received from Dean Conette right after waking up.
It seemed like an item with no special effects at first glance.
But it was a little different in reality. After a set period, ink would naturally appear on the blank sheet.
It was an item with no particular magical effects, which was rather inconvenient for me.
This mechanism wasn’t magical, but rather mundane, making it impossible to interfere with and advance the timeline.
_”Well, it doesn’t matter. It’s not essential right now anyway.”_
I put it into my inner pocket.
[ Master, please take care of me from now on~ ]
And so, I finally made a contract with Hera.
The black glove that covered only my left hand felt a bit awkward.
But, as I had felt the moment I first saw Hera and from what she had told me, I was quite satisfied with its performance.
_”An ethereal being is still an ethereal being.”_
The ability to assist with magical calculations wasn’t helpful to me at all…
But the fact that all acts involving mana were enhanced in dark spaces and that I shared Hera’s total mana pool were undeniable advantages.
[ The more time we spend together, the better we’ll get along, right? So, please stay with me all day if possible! ]
_”Hera.”_
[ Yes, Master! ]
_”Come to think of it, I don’t recall telling you to speak.”_
I gripped Hera’s circuits tightly and left the dormitory. Of course, Hera couldn’t even scream in the process.
It was the weekend, and the weather was so pleasant that the Academy grounds were already crowded with students.
…And simultaneously, I began to feel annoyed.
Crowds were something I was used to. The best educational institutions were always bustling with students, faculty, and various residents.
But it was the level of attention that was the problem.
“Isn’t that him? Look over there.”
“Isn’t that Flan? I heard he was the only first-year to win the battle event….”
Of course, even with all that attention, I wasn’t going to cower or get swept up in it. The problem was that annoyance never becomes less annoying, no matter how accustomed you are to it.
[ Master, you’re very popular? Oh, right. I shouldn’t speak. ]
Hera suddenly started to talk, then quickly shut her mouth.
Clicking my tongue once, I started to walk faster. I would only find freedom in the library.
Upon arriving, I deliberately sought out the least popular section.
It was H-42, a place where many magicians found the ‘Harmony’ category books boring. I checked the notice for the upcoming midterm evaluation there.
[ Midterm Evaluation Notice ]
▶ Midterm evaluation will begin tomorrow.
▶ Location: Magic Exhibition Agency ‘Saphora’
▶ Supervising Professor: Brody
▶ The detailed evaluation method will be announced after the exhibition.
_”The Magic Exhibition Agency, huh.”_
I didn’t feel any pressure about the evaluation, but the mention of the Magic Exhibition Agency piqued my interest.
Exhibitions were one of the few things I was interested in, even in my previous world.
It’s hard not to be intrigued by an exhibition where all sorts of magic, aimed at improving, developing, and promoting magic, are gathered.
But at that moment.
A woman stood beside me and naturally picked up a book.
_’How Elves Utilize Harmony Magic’_
The translation quality was awful, I thought, as she muttered in a low voice.
_”In the northern Lumen, there was a case where a sudden appearance of a mercenary turned the tide of a battle.”_
It was such an out-of-context statement that I wanted to ignore it.
But I couldn’t. In the H-42 section, it was just her and me.
As she continued to turn the pages, she spoke again. She was clearly addressing me.
_”In the central Grand Forest, a merchant suddenly appeared and shook up the market. It caused an uproar.”_
With a snap, she closed the book.
_”And now, in the eastern Merhen Academy… an F-rank student is performing miraculous feats.”_
After finishing her statement, she suddenly bowed deeply.
_”Master of disguise. Pride of the clan. It’s been a long time, Maiev. You’re enjoying another remarkable pastime, I see.”_
“….”
My name wasn’t Maiev. Nor did I have any such nickname.
As I turned my head to get a good look at her, my eyes narrowed involuntarily.
Snap─.
I closed the book.
Her mana was pure, but it wasn’t blue; it was crimson. In other words, she wasn’t human.
As I silently observed her, she continued speaking.
_”Your sense of perception remains excellent. And your disguise techniques… they surpass imagination. You truly seem like a human magician.”_
She smiled brightly.
_”It’s an honor and a relief to meet you. It hasn’t been easy for us to find you, Maiev. The clan’s concerns were considerable.”_
Disguise, clan, concerns.
Just from those three words, I could tell I had been caught up in something.
The things she was saying were anything but ordinary. But they didn’t seem to be lies either.
_’Did she say Maiev?’_
It seemed there was someone named Maiev who had caused major incidents in the east and center by using disguise techniques.
And now, she was mistaking me for Maiev.
I needed more information.
There was no harm in playing along for a bit.
I slowly opened my mouth.
_”What’s the matter?”_
_”First, when do you plan to transport the item? The Princess is eagerly awaiting it.”_
Her gaze shifted to my left hand. It seemed that the ‘item’ she referred to was Hera.
Come to think of it, this was originally a stolen item. It wasn’t surprising that someone was after it.
What was unexpected was that the pursuers weren’t human.
The fortunate thing was that she thought I was the transporter, not the thief.
I openly frowned.
It was fine. She thought I was the superior here.
_”Shouldn’t I be the one to receive the report?”_
_”Ah, I apologize.”_
The woman bowed her head.
_”Since we operate as a point organization, it took a bit of time to clear out the traps. Who would have thought there’d be so many rats in the Academy….”_
Rats, she said.
Perhaps this was related to what Yusia mentioned about the recent increase in Demons.
I subtly tested her.
_”You made quite a spectacle.”_
She bowed even more deeply.
_”I apologize. The rats were quite large this time, so we had to cut off their limbs, gouge out their eyes, and… slowly burn them to death.”_
Maybe they weren’t as bad as I thought.
There were still a few things I needed to confirm. Before mentioning transportation, she used the word ‘first.’
That meant there was something else.
_”The transportation is my concern. Isn’t that right?”_
_”Y-Yes, that’s correct.”_
_”I’ll delay punishment for your impertinence. First, give me the main report briefly.”_
She nodded as if she understood.
_”Yes. The clan’s placement at the Saphora Exhibition Agency is complete. Both the VIP assassination and item theft are likely to proceed smoothly.”_
Item theft.
Naturally, my attention shifted in that direction.
Items worth stealing from the Magic Exhibition Agency… most likely magical tools.
I asked her indirectly.
_”What do you think?”_
_”Pardon?”_
_”That item. Is it valuable?”_
As our eyes met, the woman made a flustered expression, hastily moving her lips.
_”How could someone like me dare…? It’s the item you’ve long desired, Maiev. Without a doubt, it must be exceptional.”_
Hearing that, I found myself smiling unknowingly.
_”Is that so.”_
I didn’t feel any anxiety or worry.
Instead, curiosity about what that item might be rose first.