EP.179 Sign, Battle Mage! (5)
“Seniors. “Rania Van Trias, what exactly is that girl?”
Kalt narrowed his eyes at the question suddenly asked. The Hound who asked the question, perhaps because her gaze was quite sharp, flinched and her shoulders shook.
“No, it’s a little strange.”
Finally, as if making excuses, he continued speaking.
“I know she’s a professor at Aplia and a girl who excels at magic. Since we are from the same family as that gray wizard… I understand that it is special to some extent.”
But, as he muttered that, the Hound looked quite aggrieved.
“Anyway… how can you move freely under that pressure?”
The pressure that superhumans give off.
It is the mana that presses down on the air itself. Even the Hounds who had undergone numerous trainings and experienced actual battles could not lift a finger under that pressure.
By the way, Aplia’s professor.
Even though her background is exceptional, how can a girl who is only about 20 years old move under that pressure?
“It doesn’t make sense, does it?”
It made no sense.
“···Phew.”
Looking at the Hound’s aggrieved expression, Kalt frowned. Certainly, it was a situation where the Hounds could be suspicious.
‘I’ll be amazed.’
Kalt listed the excuses he had prepared in advance in his head. Among them, Kalt selected a few useful ones and opened her mouth.
“I guess that’s because he is the former disciple of the Gray Wizard.”
“···yes?”
While the Hounds gathered in the office tilted their heads, Kalt continued his explanation.
“You know I was his aide on the battlefield, right?”
The hounds nod.
Know. In the first place, the fact that Kalt was able to join the Hound was largely due to the letters of recommendation from the Gray Wizard and the Knight Commander.
“The battlefield is basically a place where everyone is divided. “Superhumans are no exception, and even heroes are no exception.”
Kalt tapped the table.
“The same goes for Raniel. Just in case, he was planning to create a successor in case of an unexpected situation. “That’s Rania, that girl.”
“···Successor, you mean?”
“I don’t know much, but they say wizards are like that. “No matter how much he had to change the Demon King’s army on the battlefield, he was also a scholar belonging to the Demon Tower.”
The next magic tower lord of the Gray Magic Tower.
Although he is better known for his actions on the battlefield, Raniel’s roots are scholarly. This means that he needed someone to whom he could pass on the knowledge he had accumulated.
“And scholars are afraid of their knowledge being lost. “You know this because you have dealt with many magicians who tried to touch forbidden books and taboos, right?”
“Yes, what is that…”
I knew it.
The Hound’s role was to research magic that violated taboos and clean up wizards who had dug up banned books.
“What was your reaction when they burned the research they had done?”
“I had a huge seizure.”
“Yes, that is the knowledge accumulated by wizards. “I’m saying it’s not much different for Raniel.”
Kalt said, resting his chin.
“I needed someone to pass on the knowledge I had built up, the spells I had developed, and that kind of thing… That’s who that lady Rania became.”
“Where did you find such a young lady…”
“I don’t know that. I don’t know the details either. “I can only make a reasonable inference from the letter Raniel left before he retired.”
Kalt trailed off.
The longer the speech and the longer the explanation, the more loopholes are revealed in the lie. Kalt trailed off and shrugged his shoulders.
“So the fact that it is known to the outside world that you are Lord Rossel’s disciple is a lie?”
“That’s half right and half wrong. “If it is known that you are Raniel’s enemy disciple, they will try to tie you down here and there.”
Kalt spoke in a solemn voice.
“Wouldn’t that girl have her own life too? It’s a bit weird to live your whole life under Raniel’s shadow. “I guess you were wary of that.”
Oh oh···.
‘I’m so good at packaging, sir.’
While the hounds were admiring, Kalt frowned and muttered to himself.
‘I’ll have to talk to you again later.’
This is something that could be reported to the royal family through hounds. Kalt is a Hound with many privileges, so he won’t have to report everything… but other Hounds won’t be like that.
‘There will be some talk from the royal family…’
It’s better than having the Hounds report with suspicion. If that happened, it was clear that surveillance would follow.
And, that much had to be prevented.
Kalt opened his eyes and strengthened his will.
If the hounds start following Rania, if they offend her even just a little in the process…
‘That day will be the day of Hound’s destruction.’
It will definitely happen that way.
“Whoa…”
Kalt sighed for an unknown number of times.
Without knowing Kalt’s complicated thoughts, the hounds repeatedly asked questions about Rania in front of Kalt.
“So that young lady was able to move under the pressure of a superhuman? “There must have been some method passed down by the Gray Wizard…”
“Yes, I guess so.”
Nodding his head moderately, Kalt looks out the window. Students moving between campuses. The voices of students echo among the yellow and red street trees. As such, the scenery of Aplia is extremely peaceful.
“haha···.”
Kalt let out a dry laugh.
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Surely, no one would imagine that there would be two superhumans residing in this peaceful academy who would change the Demon King’s army.
‘Senior, please.’
Kalt prayed inwardly.
‘No more here. It’s hard to say more. Please, please, be careful about any behavior that might make the Hounds suspicious. please···!’
Did that earnest prayer reach my senior?
Kalt hoped he had reached it. really.
2.
“I really don’t want to lose, but it hurts my pride…”
Thump, thump, thump.
I sank down on the sofa and repeatedly hit the wall with the back of my head. I couldn’t quite organize my thoughts.
‘No, to be honest, it’s not a complicated enough situation to sort out…’
If you think about it rationally, it is right for me to lose. If you read the constraints appropriately and then lose cleanly, the picture is really good. It’s good, though…
‘Defeat.’
Defeat (敗北).
Being pressured by your opponent and losing miserably.
Admitting defeat and bowing your head.
‘I lost to the wizard.’
If you lose to the ultimate summoner, you have an excuse. But what is Kelhalm’s class? That guy was a Wizard. Wizard!
A class I should never lose to.
This is a class that you must not lose no matter what happens.
This was a matter of pride, a fundamental matter.
I have pride as a fellow wizard.
I even developed a fighting method to defeat the Wizard. The practicality of that combat method was recognized and even a class was created, so am I going to lose to the Wizard?
‘Seriously, in front of all the students? I’m giving a lecture about beating up a wizard to death, and in the middle of all this, I have to lose to the wizard?’
Even to the guy who started the lecture?
“Sippaal…”
I covered my face with both hands.
Defeat. The students’ laughter. Students of the Department of Combat Magic who hang their shoulders in despair. Situations to come in the near future pass before our eyes.
But the water has already been spilled.
A duel was challenged in front of the students, and the duel was scheduled. It is an irreversible situation.
“You have to lose.”
must be defeated
That one line of sentence lingered in my mind. I tilted my head back and rolled my head. Now that I am faced with a complex problem, I think of my past experiences.
‘It’s a fight you can win, but has there ever been a situation where you had to lose?’
There was, quite a bit.
You can win, but even if you win, the losses outweigh the gains. I had the experience of enduring humiliation and retreating in such a situation. I recalled the situation at that time in my head.
It was like that in the early days of my adventure.
When I encountered Skebal, I hadn’t yet developed a way to beat the skull.
‘If Kyle lunges at you to kill you, you can catch him.’
However, if that happens, the battle line collapses.
It may have been Kyle right before he faced the Demon King, but Kyle back then was weak. Because I had to risk my life to catch Skebal.
Even if you kill Skebal, he will not die.
But here, you have to risk your life.
Losses outweigh gains. That’s why we had to step back. At that time, I said something while tapping Kyle’s shoulder while grinding his teeth.
“Spread your shoulders, kid. “I didn’t lose.”
Probably, definitely.
“I didn’t lose. You could win, but you lost. “Next time, next time the same situation comes, I will definitely win.”
I think I said something like this…
‘No, this is too ugly.’
It wasn’t a helpful method for the current situation.
I tried to think in a slightly different direction.
‘Okay, spectator.’
person watching.
I’m a student now, but back then I was a knight in the hundreds. To them we are a symbol of victory. Still, when I had to lose… what did I do?
“ah.”
I let out a short sigh.
“We will lose as realistically as possible.”
It was such an obvious answer, but I clapped as I remembered something I hadn’t thought of before.
“You can win by a close… really, but you lose by a little mistake, by a little… by a very small margin.”
So you can excuse yourself later.
So that the knights can think, ‘It’s not that we lost, the situation wasn’t good this time.’ So that we can still remain a symbol of victory for them.
‘This is it!’
Compared to back then, the situation is infinitely lighter, but whatever. Even if it is light, a duel is a duel. Victory is victory, defeat is just defeat.
“We lose as close as possible…!”
I made up my mind.
Although you must be defeated and have to endure it again… there is no law that it is necessarily a bitter defeat. All you have to do is lose.
“As close as possible!”
3.
『Professor Rania and Professor Rutia are dueling.』
A rumor circles Aplia.
This is a rumor about an incident that occurred not long ago. I don’t know the reason, but friction arose between Professor Rania and Professor Letia… and Professor Rania threw down her gloves and challenged them to a duel.
『Professor Rutia touched a student?』
『I insulted the gray wizard in front of Professor Rania. Insulting the class called Battle Mage…』
『Just jealous?』
『Anyway, there is some reason…』
There are many speculations, but nothing is certain. Resty, a student who was there, simply shook his head moderately in response to the students’ questions. In the end, rumors gather according to the situation.
『Battle Mage and Wizard.』
Two very different classes.
It has been quite a while since a subtle confrontation between students in each class was created. Through the two special lectures offered this semester, the conflict between classes has become a little more serious.
This is a duel that took place in such a time.
If we think about the language Professor Rania habitually uttered during lectures, we can roughly guess the purpose of the duel. In the end, if we put the situation together, it is like this.
『The practicality of a battle mage.』
『Doubts about Wizard’s efficiency.』
in short.
『When faced with each other, which of the two is stronger?』
This is the most provocative topic.
Just as provocative things usually attract attention, students’ attention is drawn. With the students’ attention focused, a detailed notice about the duel is posted.
* * *
“······.”
The madman, Kelhalm, checked the precautions handed over by the Hound. The contents are the same as what we have already heard. Just before the duel, restrictions are placed in advance.
Threatening one’s life is prohibited.
The magic that can be used is down to the basics.
In addition, there are various restrictions.
Although it is limited, allowing Kelhalm to use magic within Aplia… is a situation in which even the Hounds are very cautious. As if to express their concerns, there was no end in sight to the list of restrictions.
This has become a hassle.
With that thought in mind, Kelhalm raised his arms. A red handprint remains on his wrist. This is an incident from a few days ago. Kelhalm closed his eyes.
Sarah.
Gray hair fluttering before my eyes.
The figure that immediately wiped away the flowing mana and grabbed his wrist… clearly resembled someone else.
“The madman, Kelhalm.”
Close your eyes and think of that person.
“Relax. “I’ll take care of everything.”
The Gray Wizard, Raniel Van Trias.
“Right now, it seems like there is no other way.”
A wizard who proudly told himself to remove his restrictions.
Kelhalm opened his eyes, remembering the wizard who proved his skills by keeping what he said.
…It’s still just a doubt.
We can’t be sure, and common sense makes it impossible.
However, if, just in the unlikely event, this guess turns out to be correct.
“Really, this is going to be a hassle.”
Kelhalm smoothed the back of my neck.
Click, the pharmaceutical made a loud noise. Kelhalm slowly stood up.
