Chapter 62
"Ha-ha, I don't know what I'm saying, dragging a junior so far beneath me into this. Forget it."
Having blurted that out and realizing he'd slipped up, Senior Gaios gave an awkward laugh and swept his hair back.
Thank goodness. So his delusions of grandeur weren't that severe after all.
I quietly looked into my senior's eyes.
His sunken eyes were deeply recessed.
Those were tired, hollow eyes, staring at a place no amount of thrashing could reach.
...Scratch that. It's severe.
Wow, this is seriously bad.
At that point, he needed counseling or an examination right away.
I absentmindedly rubbed the back of my neck and casually tossed out a remark.
"What are you talking about? Graduation is the beginning."
"...Hm?"
"Once you join the Imperial Knights, you'll be back to being the rookie again."
Scratch that about being jealous of Senior Gaios.
Come to think of it, after graduation he won't be enjoying some carefree jobless life—he'll be hauled straight into imperial servitude, won't he?
"Once you're there and get chewed out and run ragged by your superiors, you'll be too busy to even complain about stagnation."
At this rate, he might even miss this exact moment, when he's so swamped he can only ramble nonsense in a dawn-drunk haze.
Senior Gaios blinked at my practical observation.
He stared at me blankly, then let out a dry laugh.
"Ha-ha, you're right. I guess I was getting carried away with arrogance for a moment."
His expression, which had been worrying about the ending before he'd even started, looked much lighter as he shook his head.
Of course, a thirst that still hadn't been relieved seemed to linger in a corner of his eyes.
Well, I wasn't exactly ignorant of Senior Gaios's feelings.
I had thought pretty much the same thing in other situations, too.
Because if I stopped working for even a moment, it felt like I'd be crushed by a mountain of debt.
Back when I was forcing myself onward by pounding caffeine.
The days when I forced myself to keep running, afraid I'd fall apart if I stopped.
But, senior, once I threw all that aside and just flopped down on the bed, I realized something.
Panic-running around isn't always the answer.
Sometimes, just flopping over and sleeping is the right answer.
Of course, if I told that to him now, it wouldn't sink in.
"Well, for now I just can't shake the feeling that I'm standing still."
"Why not set a new short-term goal for the semester?"
"A goal?"
"There are all sorts of things, aren't there? Like beating the chief professor, or beating the dean. Anyway, something like that."
"True..."
Senior Gaios suddenly lifted his head.
Then he quietly stared at me.
For some reason, that stare felt unsettling. Must be my imagination, right?
"Perfect. A very good target is right in front of me."
"...Huh?"
I absentmindedly looked around.
What the—there's no one behind me.
...Wait, no way.
"Are you talking about me?"
"Yeah."
When I pointed at myself and asked back, he nodded.
An eerie light, almost mad, flickered in his eyes.
It was far too different from the hollow look he'd had just moments ago.
"Since we've met like this, let's have a spar."
No, there are plenty of other people, so why are you picking on me?
"I'm too lazy. Besides, I don't even have any energy. I actually came out because I woke up hungry and was looking for something to eat."
"Exercise is most effective on an empty stomach."
"How is using magic exercise?"
"It's the same in that it consumes energy."
"It's not the same at all. As expected of a sword-saint nut... no, a sword-saint worshipper."
"Did you just insult me?"
"No. Anyway, I'm going."
Just as I was about to set off again.
"Besides, the cafeteria's probably closed anyway. I'll make you something after the spar."
An awkward voice suddenly stopped me.
"It's nothing to brag about, but I've been in the cooking club for all four years. In my underclassman days, I also worked part-time in a restaurant kitchen in the Imperial Capital."
The gears in my head started spinning fast.
Hunger had definitely beaten laziness for now.
Still, finding tree fruit would definitely be easier than sparring with Senior Gaios.
I ran the numbers one more time. There might or might not be tree fruit, but the senior cooking for me was a sure thing.
"...Can I really go all out?"
"It'd be more of a problem if you weren't."
"Nice."
I nodded in satisfaction.
I'd overwhelm him, crush him in the blink of an eye, eat my fill, and go back to sleep.
Yep, an absolutely perfect plan.
"But what if you pass out, senior? What about the food?"
"Don't worry. Even like this, I'm confident in my toughness."
That's how it is: everyone has a plan at first.
Until they get hit.
Senior Gaios picked up the wooden sword he'd left on the floor.
His eyes were no longer empty.
"I'll learn a thing or two."
"When does the spar start?"
"As soon as you're ready..."
"Then right now."
"...?"
—Whoosh!
At the word "start," I raised my right arm high into the sky.
The natural mana drawn up by telekinetic magic and my own mana mixed together and swirled.
"...!"
Senior Gaios's eyes flew wide.
He probably hadn't expected me to unleash high-level magic without any warning.
The flustered senior tried to gather mana around his body, but it was already too late.
I swept my left arm and grabbed at the air.
—Krrrk!
"Kgh?!"
Telekinetic magic bound Senior Gaios's body in place.
The sound of muscles tearing rang out clearly.
Because he hadn't prepared to counter magic, he was left unable to move.
Wow, and his raw strength really isn't normal.
For a normal person, that kind of power might have crushed their body.
One careless lapse, and I'd be the one getting taken out instead.
So absolutely, I wouldn't let my guard down until the very end.
I learned one thing from the last magical exchange tournament.
That trying to get by with only basic magic because I didn't want to use too much power only made things more troublesome in the end.
What's more, my opponent was the top fourth-year student and a bona fide knight of the Imperial Knights.
And by his own account, his toughness was top-notch.
Then I won't hold back either. Full power, and I'll send him flying in one shot.
—Wooooong!
Around Senior Gaios's body, five overlapping magic circles of varying sizes unfurled in metaphysical arcs.
This was, once again, the very spell that had sent the ancient magical golem packing.
Also called the 'Starlight-Calling Magic.'
The first time I used it, it just fit so naturally in my hands.
It's a spell I always use at least once whenever I duel Dean Raymond in magic.
Soon, the starlight of the night sky gathered overhead.
"Top-tier magic...? N-no way, already a grand spell..."
"That's still too lofty a title for it."
This is the only thing I really know how to handle properly.
I brought my right arm, raised high overhead, straight down.
Then, a star flashed before my eyes.
—KWA-AAAAANG!!
Starlight swallowed every sound in the world.
The pillar of light that ripped down from the night sky slammed into the very center of the training ground.
The air screamed, and the dirt floor evaporated in an instant.
Soon, the light faded and the thick cloud of dust cleared.
...
I stared blankly at the training ground.
There was a huge crater in the ground, as if a meteor had really fallen there.
And at its center...
Uh...
Something pitch-black and charred was puffing out smoke—fwoooosh.
His clothes were completely burnt to shreds, and his short hair had puffed up like an afro perm.
You might mistake him for someone else, but that was indeed Senior Gaios.
"Mm, mm..."
Without thinking, I scratched the back of my head.
"Was that a little... too much?"
No, you definitely said you had a tough hide.
You were bragging that you could take it.
So I believed you and fired.
What am I supposed to do if you get roasted well-done like this?
Then, with a weak cough, the lump of charcoal(?) twitched.
Judging by the occasional spasms and the white smoke puffing from his mouth, he didn't seem dead.
An involuntary sigh of relief slipped out.
As expected of someone earmarked for the Imperial Knights, he was different.
A normal person wouldn't even have left bone ash.
But my relief was brief, and soon my lips puckered out.
"But seriously... what if you faint?"
I complained, poking the fallen senior with my finger.
"You said you'd make me something. You boasted you absolutely wouldn't faint, and then you collapse? Then who's going to take responsibility for my midnight snack?"
Just as I was letting out a low sigh...
—Wiiiiing!!
A shrill sound, sharp enough to tear my ears apart, suddenly rang out.
It was an emergency alarm from the magic barrier installed throughout the academy.
"Huh?!"
I snapped my head up and looked at the sky.
Red magical signal flares were dotting the night sky.
Before long, the voices of the patrolling professors could be heard from far away.
[Emergency! Emergency!]
[An irregular mana reaction has been detected in the Second Training Ground area near the Swordsmanship Hall!]
"What, what is it...?"
[Measured mana wavelength: top-tier!]
[Suspected intruder rank: at least Archmage-class!]
[W-we... we have to request backup from the Imperial Palace!]
[Too late! Bring Dean Raymond!]
[The dean isn't here either! He attended a Mage Tower meeting and won't be back until tomorrow!]
[Damn it! Are we supposed to handle this ourselves?]
This looks like a big problem.
[All faculty and on-duty guards are to report to the scene immediately!]
[Students remaining inside the academy are not to leave their dormitories! This is not a drill! This is an actual emergency!]
I could see lights popping on one by one in the faculty building far away.
The hurried footsteps and voices were drawing closer and closer.
I glanced down at Senior Gaios sprawled on the ground.
"Um... I'll take you up on that meal later."
Without hesitation, I condensed mana into both legs.
Then, with a bang, I burst the air and shot high into the sky.
"Hey! He's getting away!"
"Catch him! Don't let him escape!"
Leaving the sharp voices behind me, I flew at full speed toward Linea Hall.
Ah, seriously... I just wanted a late-night snack, so how did it end up like thisyyy...!