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Published at 28th of December 2019 11:00:41 PM


Chapter 10

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「Ossan, Gains A New Pupil」

Selestina raised her mace and smashed a mud golem’s head in.

Without minding the splattering mud, she turned on a dime and delivered a blow to the next target.

The strike destroyed the golem’s core causing it to collapse into a mound of mud.

The golems’ movements were monotonous and quite easy to read.

As several golems raised their arms to attack her, Selestina leapt back and simultaneously struck them down.

If they had human-like thoughts, the golems would’ve raised their arms to defend themselves or tried to catch the mace.

Their number advantage was counterbalanced by their slow and simplistic movements.

However, they were indeed numerous, and the caster could replenish their numbers faster than she could kill them.

When Selestina cast a quick glance towards her teacher, Zeros, she saw him conjuring three more golems as he observed her progress.

(Three reinforcements…… It’ll take them twenty seconds to join others, so I need to defeat three of them in that time.)

She attacked the closest golem, gauging its core out before bringing her mace down on the attacking golem on her right, in the same motion she spun around and knocked the approaching golems head off.

Over the last couple of day, she’d reached the point in her training where could calmly cope with the golems.

Though she started with less mana, she had the talent to excel at the Istal Magic Institute.

Despite not having taken part in the class combat training, her situational awareness and analytical ability were abnormally high.

Although it was called combat training, it mostly involved shooting magic at goblins, but one misstep would result in a student getting injured.

While stuck on the sidelines, she analyzed her classmates’ train until she could run battle simulations with herself in their place.

Their injuries were caused by their own carelessness and lack of situational awareness because they were among friends they didn’t exhibit the necessary amount of caution and ruthlessness.

“The mud golems are slow, but they sometimes attack in strange ways…”

She wasn’t careless, but that didn’t mean she was safe either.

Seeing an opening, Selestina steadied herself as she tripped over one of the golems before kicking that golem to pieces.

Although it was awkward to use in combat, similar techniques were used to deal with slimes.

“Strong stone, become my spear 『Rock Lance』!!”

The earth magic she fired dropped several of the golems and gave her time to strike down their reinforcements with her mace.

But, all of the golems suddenly disappeared.

“!?”

Selestina was caught off guard.

The only thing that came to mind was that golems lost their ability to maintain their forms.

However, that assumption only lasted a moment.

The now, liquid-like mud golems crawled along the ground and captured Selestina’s feet.

At the same time, two pillars shot out and captured her arms, completely sealing her movements.

“Is this checkmate?”

“Not yet! 『Power Boost』!!”

“Oh? Chant-less magic. Faster than expected.”

Thanks to the power provide by the body reinforcement, Selestina managed to free her arms and proceeded to splatter them all with her mace.

“Well done. You can safely handle threats of this level already. I think you’re ready for actual combat……”

“Is that true?”

“Yes, I just need permission from Creston.”

Hearing Zeros’ comment, Selestina turned to her grandfather, who had been watching this entire time.

When he saw her bright eyes filled with expectations, Creston was overwhelmed by her cuteness.

“Umm…… I think it’s too soon for real combat……”

“No, it’s not! Don’t students my age at the academy already have experience fighting slimes and goblins? I’m rather late!!”

“But that’s…… if you were to take part in actual battle here……”

The only suitable location for real combat training was  the【Dark Forest of Fafuran】.

The monsters of that area were stronger than average and even the small fry could kill those who were careless.

While the powerful monsters resided deeper in the forest, the shallower areas were still considered dangerous.

Creston’s reluctance wasn’t unreasonable.

(Real combat?! What would I do if anything happened to her!! Several types of monsters went after girls her age!! If they get ahold of Tina…… If that happened, Hehehehahahaha!!)

Another worry occupied his mind.

Though it didn’t matter, he wanted to apologize to his granddaughter for what he imagined.

While she was worried about her growth, he was caught up on dirty things.

Well, the danger of what he thought off still existed……

“Grandfather? What’s wrong?”

“Eh! No, i-it nothing…… nothing.”

(That geezer…… what did you imagine just now?)

Zeros couldn’t read minds, but he had an idea.

“Yes, I understand! Let’s prepare a guard squadron immediately!!”

“A squadron!? Seriously, grandfather?!”

“Too many!! Wait if they attract the attention of a strong monster and it attacks the group!!”

“For Tina’s sake, the troops will make themselves monster bait!!”

“A terrible remark came out!! How much of grandchild lover can you be!!”

“It’ll be fine so long as the bereaved families receive a substantial payment.”

“That’s the worst thing a person in power could do. What are you thinking!!”

The idiotic old man was serious.

He was willing to throw away the lives of others to protect his granddaughter.

Zeros couldn’t help but insert tsukkomi into the conversation……

What are you thinking? Entering the forest with such a large number of people would place everyone in danger!!”

Being Tina’s substitute is the highest honor. They’ll pass on with smiles on their faces.”

“Is sacrificing people without their consent the noble thing to do?!”

“We are nobles, we hold the lives of others in our hands…… Luckily, the knight commander has been lamenting his troops’ diminishing skills, it’s fine if we recruit them for this task.”

“Wicked!!”

Creston was borderline useless in situations involving his granddaughter.

There was no end to his craziness.

However, Zeros remained steadfast.

“At least prepare some superior equipment. I can make the tools if I must……”

“Hou…… then can you make equipment suitable for a mage?”

“It depends on the material. What abilities do you want it to have?”

“Hmm. could you be more specific?”

“Even magicians need adequate defenses……how about some leather armor?”

―――Pish!!

For a moment, one could hear the air freezing.

At the same time, Creston’s face became stiff.

“Well. with leather armor…… accurate measurements are necessary……”

“When can I take those? Wearing ill-fitting armor is dangerous……”

“Zeros-dono…… Isn’t that a little in·ap·pro·pri·ate?”

“Why!?”

The grandfather’s eyes turned feral.

“It means…… that you would have to extensively examine Tina’s body, Hehehhaaaehe!!”

“You’re acting a bit strange there, old man!!”

“Throwing my cute Tina to the wolves…… I’m not letting that happen…”

“You’re over-thinking thiー aaaahhhh!!”

The old fool’s love for his grandchild was turning deviant.

His bloodshot eyes and rough snorting was enough to frighten Zeros.

“I’d understand if she was a bit older, but she’s still a child! What’s the issue!!”

“A-A child… I’m still treated as a child……”

“Are you calling my cute Tina unattractive you beast in sheep’s clothing!!”

“You’re the one that’s saying all of this!!”

The leaps in the fool’s logic were incomprehensible.

For Selestina’s sake, he was more than willing and able to start a war.

On this day, the emotions of one old man started flowing in a strange and worrying direction.

In the end, it was decided that Selestina’s equipment would be created by a private craftsman, with Zeros applying finishing touches afterward.

Also, the fierce back and forth between the foolish grandfather and the ossan continued well into the night.

◇  ◇  ◇  ◇

Someone watched Selestina’s training from a second-story window.

He was the Archduke’s eldest son and Selestina’s half-brother, Schweith.

Though he was was the heir to the family, he was under house arrest for abusing his authority to win over a woman.

He’d come to this villa to have his grandfather retrain him.

The majority of this country’s nobles were called magic lords, a title derived from each family passing down unique spells to their descendants.

One was officially recognized as an official member of those families until they acquired the inherited spells.

The magic of house Solisthea was considered a magic treasure and one of the nation’s most significant forces.

Schweith obtained the inheritance at 13 and was recognized at the family successor.

The destructive power of the family’s unique spells were unmatched by other magicians and earned them the epithet 【Purgatory Clan】.

However, a single mage managed to tear down Schweith’s confidence in himself and his magic.

Moreover, the mage defeated him with martial arts, not magic.

To add insult to injury, the mage frequently visited Luseris, the woman that he’d been chasing after.

Schweith could do nothing but watch at a distance as the magician had casual conversations with Luseris.

He was on the verge of becoming a complete stalker.

Despite his personal setbacks, what surprised him the most was the change in his sister, who was said to have no magical talent.

“Is that really Selestina…? I can’t believe it. What happened in such a short amount of time……?”

Every day she wholeheartedly took part in combat training, mana control lessons, and lectures.

The most shocking development was how well she’d taken to close combat.

The Selestina he knew was an eerie doll of a girl that rarely showed any emotions whatsoever.

Schweith remembered being happy about making her cry because those were the only times her expression changed.

However, that meek creature was a shadow of the vibrant girl that excelled in combat.

She calmly observed the opponents’ movement before dispatching them with ruthless efficiency. Her skills haven’t been refined yet, but she was showing remarkable growth.

The self-proclaimed Great sage, Zeros, was responsible for her improvement.

“Controlling so many golems alone…… How much mana does he have? Shit!”

When the training began, he produced and controlled a seemingly endless number of golems for more than an hour.

An ordinary magician would collapse from exhaustion if they attempted such a feat.

Zero’s mana pool far exceeded the realms of common sense.

As far as he knew, even the highest-ranking magicians could simutaniously  pilot two or three golems.

Some could make six of them at most, but the mental strain increased in tandem with the number of golems, and their movements tended to be monotonous.

However, Zeros easily managed to make and control more than twenty golems with unique movements.

He clearly had abilities that defied common sense, and the fact that such a powerful man existed was frightening.

The shortcut to the wealth and power that every magician sought was through the academy and joining a faction.

It was incomprehensible that Sage class sorcerer sought a hermit’s life over power.

Despite his display of overwhelming strength, a mage that didn’t cling to power could be considered a foolish magician.

However, that wasn’t to say that common sense was utterly wrong.

Magic research costs money and the safest and most efficient way of acquiring funds was joining a powerful faction.

While there was friction between the factions, the monthly stipend provided ensured that mages didn’t suffer in poverty.

Moreover, there was no end to the number of crimes committed by a factionless magician, all of whom were discovered to live in destitution.

Coming across money wasn’t easy, and there was no use for mages in everyday life unless there was an emergency.

For a magician like Zeros to exist, it meant he had to earn his own funds, conduct magic research, and develop powerful spell all on his own.

In other words, he was a genius, but Schweith couldn’t accept that.

“How… can I control that many golems…… It’s strange.”

“Is something wrong? Schweith-sama.”

“Whoa?! When did……”

A woman in a maid’s uniform seemed to appear at Schweith’s side out of nowhere.

She was Selestina’s exclusive servant, Misuka.

An essential figure within the mansion, she was highly educamated and a trusted member of former Duke’s staff.

She was also Schweith’s childhood caretaker.

“What is it? What’re his secrets?”

“Zeros-sama doesn’t seem to have any secrets tricks. He explains everything to Selestina before every session.”

“Preposterous! He’s told her how he manipulates the golems so easily? That is the type of secret you take to your grave.”

“Is that so? But, it seems to a rather trivial thing for a Great Sage to accomplish, no?”

“Tch! Are we’re even capable of reach his feet… huh? How are you controlling so many golems?”

He was a magician too, and the unknown technique had piqued his interest.

It was a testament to his role as a magician that his inquisitive mind hadn’t been overtaken by a need for power. More than the combat potential they offered, he was interested in learning the secrets of the spell.

“Are you interested?”

“Don’t joke, I’m a magician too. Of course, this unknown technique caught my interest.”

“Then, I can tell you what I little, I know.”

Misuka pushed up her glasses and happily started explaining what she’d picked up.

As stated before, the more golems you created, the harder it became to control them.

However, Zeros’ method of manipulation wasn’t the direct control that magicians usually utilized.

Instead of controlling each golem individually, Zeros input a list of command into a squad leader, within turn delegated simple instructions to other golems.

The creator, Zeros, give the leaders and order, and the leaders, in turn, dulled out commands to the foot soldiers to execute strategies.

The chain of command implemented by the army was incorporated into the golems.

The leader golems were much stronger than the foot soldiers because Zeros implanted magical stones into them so that they replenished their mana on their own. Also, the mental burden was reduced to the point were long-term warfare was possible.

“The lack of mana is supplemented by the magic stones, and defeating the pseudo-monsters help Selestina-sama raise her status. He said the mana in the stone were replenished later.”

“But, there’s still not enough mana. The leader squads at least burn through a lot of mana.”

“It may have something to do with the golems magic formations. Zeros-sama said something about 【Spell Circuits】, but I can’t understand the details.”

“You can create a legion with your own magic…… monsters…”

“Zeros-sama said, ‘This amount is no big deal. My former companions could do much more amazing things’ when asked about it. While experienced in multiple fields, offensive magic is his specialty.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, that guy’s companions……”

“Well, they were crazy magicians that challenged a behemoth with only five people. It’s something we can’t understand.”

“They were all magician?! A behemoth?! That’s utter insanity!!”

There were a lot of eccentric researchers.

While there were lunatics within his own faction, Zeros was far more dangerous.

Only a madman would challenge a disaster-class monster for the sake of their research. A shiver ran down Schweith’s spine as he tried to comprehend the level of insanity required to do something like that.

At the same time, it showed him how vast the world really was and how small he, who floated his scarlet robe about, was in the magic world.

“I’m…… I’m not even immature, I’m a small fish in a miniscule pond……”

“That’s right. It’s a bad match-up, the enemy is a great sage after all.”

“This world is full of mysteries. That there is such a crazy mage……”

“Isn’t that what exploring the unknown is all about? You must devote yourself, Schweith-sama.”

Schweith was reminded of his foolishness yet again.

“Speaking of mysteries…… Misuka.”

“What is it?”

“I’ve been thinking about it since I was a child… how old are you? I don’t really care, but your figure hasn’t changed at all…… aah?!”

The moment the words left his lips, Misuka began emitting a frightening aura.

The invisible black tendrils coming off her induced sheer terror in Schweith.

Despite his fear, he instinctively realized that there was no escape.

Death was all but assured.

Merely being aware of his previous foolishness didn’t stop him from stepping into a new mess.

“A……Ah…”

Misuka’s whited-out lens, and the act of placing her hand on his cheek only fanned the flames of Schweith fear.

“Do you know…… it’s impolite to ask a woman her age? It’s a good idea to do things with a smile…… don’t you think?”

“I’m sorry!! I won’t do it again!!”

“……Now, what did you hear about my age?”

“Not a single thing!!”

He dropped to his knees and apologized to Misuka.

He was defeated by the fear of the unknown.

Now he knew firsthand that there were things in this world not meant to be learned.

At the same time, he could see his own shallowness……

◇  ◇  ◇  ◇  ◇  ◇  ◇

“Eh? You want me to train you? What is that?”

That night, having been forced to recognize his smallness, Schweith begged for Zeros tutelage on his hands and knees.

“I’m already over level 50. But, after seeing your abilities, I know you’re far ahead of other magicians. I don’t want it to end at this stage!!”

Zeros was utterly confounded by the sincerity of the request.

Selestina had been bullied by him, and he was part of the reason her confidence was so low.

Could two people that shared such a history be taught at the same time? Although that question weighted on his mind, Zeros saw it as a chance to change things.

“Don’t you have a master magician I don’t care for them…… but aren’t already apart of a good faction? Wouldn’t what you’re asking for mean leaving that faction?”

“Ugh?! Damn…… I forgot about those annoying bastards.”

Schweith was already apart of one of the country’s two major factions, the 【Weisler Faction】.

It was a militant sect that believed that the true essence of magic was found in its destructive capabilities and mainly focused on researching offensive magic.

Receiving instruction from Zeros meant leaving that group and would be seen as a betrayal by the other magicians.

He couldn’t be allowed to leave with the faction secrets and magic research he’d been privy to during his time with them. If his exit was handled poorly, an assassin would be the least of his worries.

However, it was an unfortunate truth that the faction had hit its ceiling in their research.

“Even if you say you want to learn the essence of magic, what’s stopping you selfishly playing around with what you learn from me. You’d just become a nuisance.”

“What you say is strangely persuasive.”

“My epithet is 【Annihilator】. Well, I was one of those with that name……”

“What did you do to get such a name……? If I may ask.”

“Please don’t ask. I don’t want to relive the faults of my youth……”

Although his crimes had occurred in a game, he was guilty of wiping out other players during raids, PKing to further extend his research, and forced cursed items on others as a bad joke.

When magic became a reality, he realized just how much of a threat he was to others.

His actions would denounce him as a certifiable madman.

“I was too rough around the edges back then…… More so than you……”

“No…… What are you thinking of with such distant eyes?”

“When I got impatient, I accidentally caught my friends in an area of effect destruction spell. Their retaliation was quite frightening…… I thought I was gonna die.”

“Insane!! What the hell were you doing!? Wait, they managed to survive something like that?!”

“They had high enough magic defense to be considered abnormal. They wouldn’t die from something of that degree. I just wanted to know if there was a way to kill them.”

“Just for that?! You unleashed annihilation magic for something like that!? Hold up, aren’t you the same as them!?”

“The collateral damage was only exasperated by the proceeding magic battle.  The whole region was turned into a desert.”

“What were you thinking!!”

Although all of that had taken place in a game, Schweith had no way of knowing that, so he accepted everything as truth.

Just listening to what Zeros’ was straining his sanity.

Zeros was utterly different from himself, who only wanted history to remember him as a great magician. He lived a hazardous life without regards for prestige, notoriety, or other people. Something was wrong if such a person is a Great Sage.

“It was fun……”

“In what sense of the word?! You tried to kill each other?! Is such destructive behavior how you normally conduct research?!”

In his mind, a Sage was a philanthropist wholly separated from the common sense of the world, a scholar that perused research on his own behalf.

There was no room for other peoples’ will in their pursuits, sages would decimate entire battlefields to conduct their experiments.

Zeros personified the notion of doing as I say not as I do.

“Anyway…… what type of magician are you aiming to be? Given your previous foray with power, it doesn’t seem all that grand a pursuit.”

“That still hurts…… I want to leave my mark on history. I want to be a hero……”

“Heroes are convenient tools for those in power to kill each other. Mercenaries can get away with anything so long as they say they’re protecting something.”

“Huh? Doesn’t being a strong fighter make you a hero?”

“It depends on what you accomplish. Heroes that can distract the masses from the loss of loved ones are celebrated in their countries, but are also the enemy’s first target.”

As far as Zeros was concerned heroes where simultaneously loved for having the power to save their comrades and detested for slaughtering the comrades of their enemies.

Such an existence could be the trigger for continued conflicts.

It wasn’t a safe position to have in this climate, as it would force you into nobles’ faction conflict or you’d be killed for your neutrality.

That’s why Zeros didn’t want to become a hero.

“A hero without the support of others is a ludicrous notion. No matter how small their accomplishment, those who obtain postmortem hero status are better off. If you step into a tavern, how many people would recognize you as the country’s hero? That’d be a good indication of your progress.”

“Do you think I’m wrong for chasing after such a vague dream? To Clarify, I want to become a magician that can surpass my grandfather’s accomplishments.”

“I’m not saying it’s a mistake. However, I believe that magicians are driven to do research because of personal interest and unrelenting will. Those that drown in their power are less than third-rate hacks.”

While a hero was an annoying existence, becoming first-class magic was an admirable pursuit. With enough drive, acquiring the Great Sage occupation was possible.

After all, you could fortify your position by producing incredible results, and then pursue heroics with the support of the people.

Fighting wasn’t the only means of accomplishing that goal.

By the way, the thought that occupied Zeros mind was, 『I’m saying some pretty lofty stuff…… I’m in no position to say such things…』.

The gap between his front and his internal self was massive.

“Well, it’s fine. There are still two months left in my tutoring contract, so adding one more student won’t hurt, but I’ll end this arrangement of things become too awkward.”

“Thank you. I’ll be in your care until I return to the academy.”

“What you obtain depends on you. Since I basically did whatever I wanted, you can’t learn like I did.”

“I understand that. I just want to break free of my current self.”

A man that knew the size of the world could walk his own path, but that didn’t mean that his direction was decided.

“Then we’ll start your combat training with Selestina tomorrow. You can’t move forward unless you break the habit of chanting magic.”

“Okay, I’ll do it!! I’ll aim for the pinnacle of magicians!!”

Schweith’s overwhelming defeat had left an impact on his heart.

He didn’t know if it was a good thing or a bad thing, but for the first time, he wasn’t blinded by greed.

In the end, you had to find your own answer by your own power……

The next day…

“Fuck!! How did things turn out like this?!”

“Brother… why did you run at the enemy like that…? This place is too crowded……”

“They’re made of mud, so I thought I could run through them!! This is too much!!”

“Their movements are simple, but they’re crafty. That’s why I told you to be careful.”

“Mud golem’s are strong!! This is just wrong, Aaaaahhhhhhh!!”

The siblings were surrounded on all sides by golems.

Zeros saw this as an excellent teaching opportunity. Some times you had to team up with people you didn’t get along with.

With the introduction of that one element, a battle that Selestina could quickly deal with turned into a desperate struggle.

The direct Schweith wasn’t good at this type of battle.

“Hmm…… Not yet……”

“Tina is struggling… this is for the best.”

Elsewhere, Zeros was scoring their performance.

It goes without saying that the Moe grandfather squirmed every time his granddaughter was hit.

In several ways, he was useless.





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