Chapter 25
The place Karnarov summoned Aris and me to was a large lecture hall.
No, it would be more accurate to call it an auditorium.
That wasn't all.
There were only about thirty chairs in the back, and a spacious magic practice field up front.
The walls were made of black stone that looked like it could easily withstand a few spells.
This doesn't seem like a place for us to be.
The others who'd been called here had a similar reaction.
There were about fifteen of us here.
“This is... a classroom upperclassmen use, right?”
“I heard it's hard to book?”
Aris asked me.
“Why were we called here?”
“How should I know.”
I looked around.
Quite a few students had been dragged here without knowing why.
“Hmm. So you were called too, after all.”
The one who spoke to me was Robert.
Even after pulling that stunt, he's surprisingly easygoing.
A grudge-free guy is likable. I'm seeing him in a new light.
“I'll never forget the gift you gave me for the rest of my life.”
No, wait.
He was just the usual Robert.
I can ignore him.
“It also has a cooling function, so use it well.”
“...Hmph. The item itself seems fine, so I'll forgive you.”
What a tsundere bastard.
And he's handsome too, so he probably does pretty well with the girls.
A little jealous.
All I attract, aside from Aris, are weird people.
That bastard included, of course.
“Ugh, what a pain.”
I flopped down and thought.
Should I just leave since Karnarov still isn't here?
It's about dinner time now too, so I'm hungry.
As I always think, this body has terrible fuel efficiency.
Thinking that, I was about to leave the classroom when someone lightly poked my back with a finger.
“Aris? I was just going to leave if he didn't show up on the dot... huh.”
“Yawn. You're Yumia, right?”
A girl with dull pale pink long hair stood out as she called to me.
“...Who?”
But this girl's mana is no joke.
She has more pure mana than anyone here.
“I'm Liniya. I'm always grateful to you. I don't like being in the spotlight.”
Liniya said that and left.
What was that.
I'll take the thanks for now and count it as a good thing.
***
Unfortunately, Karnarov appeared the moment it hit the hour.
And from behind the auditorium blackboard, as if he'd always been there.
“Now then, enjoy your delightful extra class.”
Half the students were happy, and half were miserable.
There were even more happy students.
For the record, I was on the miserable side.
“Naturally, you all satisfied my criteria this time.”
Karnarov paused for effect.
“You didn't. Except for two of you, that is.”
The mood started to rise, then sank again.
Two people?
I don't know if I did everything perfectly.
But even counting that, only two?
“However, even if your levels don't reach that point, the submitted data shows that you did properly learn basic attack magic.”
Mm-hmm. That's right.
Because that's all I busted my ass for.
“For students like that, mere repetitive practice of basic attack magic isn't the answer. It's more efficient to learn new magic in parallel.”
I wanted to stop with Casting Bullet already... what?
“So, I will teach you defense magic.”
“This is an accelerated course in the second-semester basic defense magic curriculum, and if you master it properly and pass the final test, you don't have to take the class. Of course, you'll still have to take the exam.”
“Yes?”
“Really?”
“So we can drop one class in second semester!”
“The basic magic classes are held way more often too!”
“It's a gift for all of you who've worked so hard on your assignments, you could say.”
“Really? Really, nothing else?”
“There are no reports. Instead, you'll be given the additional assignment that the top student and runner-up did for the basic attack magic assignment. That's fine, right?”
“That's fine!!”
“It's okay!! Please let us do it!!”
Uh.
Then that means a hellgate is opening up over there?
Do those bastards even know what kind of situation they're in?
Or are they being swept up by Robert's incitement and not realizing their situation??
The homework hadn't gotten any lighter.
In fact, wasn't a defense magic assignment just being added on top of it?
...Is this what a professor is like!
Amazing. If I had a tongue like that too...!
'Of course, I'm different.'
This side of me is already well-seasoned when it comes to writing reports.
As for incantation changes, I can now finish the whole report in two hours and still have time left over.
I should finish a whole week's worth in a single day and then go conquer the tower!
“This is the magic circle for defense magic.”
About as difficult as the magic circle for basic attack magic.
My head spun from the magic-circle math.
Okay, memorized.
Karnarov demonstrated defense magic.
“Casting, Shield.”
A transparent, spherical barrier enveloped Karnarov, except for a slight distortion of the light.
Suddenly, a knight dummy standing against the wall began moving with a clattering sound.
One student shouted.
“Ah, Professor! It's dangerous...!”
The knight dummy quickly approached Karnarov and swung its sword with frightening force.
Clang!!
And it was blocked without even a struggle.
“As a rule, it can block any attack except aura or magic, as long as there's enough mana to sustain it.”
“Oooooh!”
“It... blocked the sword?”
Even I couldn't help but focus.
Honestly, I thought that if I used my inventory shield technique, I wouldn't need defense magic at all.
But after Karnarov's demonstration, that was definitely a cheat spell.
“Having us do the transformation too... would be too much, I suppose.”
Mm-hmm. Right, right.
Making us do that too would be too much.
And even without transformations, it's already useful enough.
No, it was more than useful—it was overpowered.
'But if that's the case, isn't this way too advantageous?'
If I could get defense magic, I figured I'd be able to climb the tower more easily—and higher.
A shield has mass, and it blocks your vision while you use it.
Even Dragon Eyes can't see through a shield.
But defense magic doesn't add any burden to me.
On top of that, once activated, it seems to stay up until it's broken or the mana supply is cut off.
“Does that mean I can even rush in with defense magic up!”
My heart raced.
Now I could finally become a true damage tank...
“Huh?”
Ah. I'd forgotten Aris was next to me.
Maybe sensing danger, Aris's radar started going beep-beep-beep.
If she catches me, I'm getting a hundred percent guaranteed earful...!
Nothing.
“I thought I heard something weird.”
“You heard wrong.”
While we were doing that, Karnarov flicked his staff once and returned the knight dummy to its place.
What?
He just made a gesture and the knight dummy went back on its own?
Is that a unique spell too?
'No, now's not the time! I need to run...!'
“Then I'll hand out the magic circles, so disperse. And.”
I quickly snatched the paper with the magic circle on it and tried to slip out.
“Yumia, Robert, Aris, Liniya. The four of you stay behind.”
Ah.
I knew this would happen.
***
So Liniya was that pink-haired girl from earlier.
No wonder her mana felt unusual.
She must have been the top student who got the same assignment as me.
She was standing there even while yawning.
“You practiced by changing the incantation and mana infusion pattern. Your understanding of basic attack magic is also quite high. So I gathered you separately.”
“But I can understand why Liniya and I are here. Why are those two here?”
“Hehe. I also watched over their shoulders from halfway through and copied them.”
Aris smiled bashfully.
They're doing this voluntarily?
Aris wasn't normal either.
“But how did you know?”
“Wasn't it obvious? The moment I heard the top student and runner-up had received different assignments, I kept pestering the top student about it.”
Liniya looked at Robert with a tired expression.
“You're really relentless.”
As expected, I had to be the only sane one among them.
Mm-hmm.
“So, since the four of you have been confirmed to have mastered basic attack magic...”
“Wait!”
“What is it.”
I pleaded.
I was really desperate.
If my assignments increase here, I'll die...!
“Please, no more homework...”
But Karnarov spoke as if he had no idea what I was talking about.
“What are you talking about? I was planning to give you a proper reward.”
“Huh.”
“Well, since it was a special assignment, I can't give you any more points, but I can give you anything else we have here.”
With that, Karnarov took out his staff.
With a gesture, a small hole appeared, and Karnarov put his hand inside.
What he pulled out with his hand were two short artifacts.
Then he handed one each to Liniya and me.
They were slim, straight daggers.
The scabbard was engraved in silver with a dragon breathing fire.
I could feel a soft, warm mana from it.
“It's a fire magic sword. Its name is Mayeomdo. Congratulations. You have successfully met my standards.”
“…Huh?”
An artifact?
It does look fancy, but...
Ignoring my reaction, Karnarov continued.
“You can infuse it with mana to use elemental magic, and it can also be used offensively. It should be convenient in many ways.”
“A-a real magic sword!?”
“Something like this...?”
Aris and Liniya seemed surprised too.
Of course I'm the only one who doesn't know, as usual.
“Two of them should be fine. Elemental magic is part of the second-year curriculum, so they should come in handy until then.”
“Oh, a lighter substitute. Thanks a bunch.”
Now I wouldn't have to light cheap lighters just to set solid fuel or candles on fire!
Yay!
“I don't know what a lighter is, but even for a low-rank item, that's a rather insulting way to describe something that could become an imperial treasure.”
“No way.”
My real feelings got a little exposed.
So this really was a good thing.
It certainly had a luxurious scabbard and hilt.
“If you infuse it with mana, flames will surge from the blade. Make good use of it.”
I immediately tried infusing it with mana.
I liked the pleasantly scorching feel quite a bit.
If I used this on a skeleton, wouldn't it slice through like a hot-wire cutter?
After Liniya finished thanking him, Karnarov continued.
“And here is the reward for all of you.”
He handed each of us a stapled stack of papers.
“These are variant incantations for basic attack magic.”
I skimmed them briefly.
“…Isn't this the real reward?”
Applications you can use once you've mastered basic attack magic.
Additional magic circles that let you fire multiple shots with a single cast.
There were also techniques useful for making sharp turns, and more.
They were incredibly useful.
“I hope they help.”
Karnarov said indifferently.
Honestly, I was surprised.
I thought slogging through the assignments would only ever earn us improvement, nothing more.
At this rate, it's worth the effort.
Today's a good day.
I turned to leave like that, but...
Karnarov cut in with a jab.
“Ah, and just to be safe. Stop practicing in the western forest.”
“…You went there again?”
Ah. Caught.
Aris's gaze was sharp.
Damn it.
I knew it was going too well for a reason.