[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
Chapter 73
At my warning devoid of any humor, Roan actually let out a chuckle.
"Heh, are you saying you're going to kill now?"
His eyes narrowed.
"Do you even have the strength to do that?"
"..."
He beca even more obnoxious in the ti I hadn't seen him.
But I had nothing to refute him with.
I didn't want to admit it, but Roan was indeed stronger than at the mont.
Even if he tried sothing strange, there was no way for to stop him with my current abilities.
However.
"Strength is sothing you can build up."
No matter what level he was at, what kind of power he possessed... it didn't matter.
I had the growth potential that wouldn't lose to anyone.
I was confident that I could catch up to him sohow.
Did he sense that determination?
"Haha, don't make that kind of face. I was just kidding."
Roan, who had a rather serious expression, suddenly relaxed his face.
"Kidding?"
"Yes. Threatening Kayla, emitting dangerous mana like this, it was all a joke."
Swoosh.
The blue mana that had been surging around him subsided.
"Well, I guess you thought I had bad intentions... but there's no reason for that, is there? I've never t Kayla before, and we haven't been on bad terms."
He wasn't wrong.
Rather, from my point of view, I was just bewildered by him suddenly showing such a different side.
Maybe it was all a joke, as he said.
Even if it was a bit bizarre...
'He was always like that.'
He had been like that from the first ti we t.
Hadn't I already firmly labeled him as a psycho once?
Of course, this was just a possibility.
It was hard to simply dismiss this incident as a joke.
'The killing intent back then was real.'
The mont he launched the ice spear at Kayla, he was undoubtedly serious.
How could that be called a joke?
Sothing must have happened, that much was certain.
But since he was acting like this... I couldn't argue.
What was the point of ranting? He was saying it was a joke.
"...Okay, I hope you're being serious."
"I assure you, I am. There's no malice, just... a feeling of joy at seeing you again after a long ti?"
"You didn't seem particularly happy."
"Oh no! I'm sorry if you felt that way."
"..."
With his exaggerated gestures and tone, Roan left speechless.
Feeling that there was no point in continuing this conversation, I changed the subject.
"So, what have you done to your body?"
To sothing related to Roan's power.
Honestly, I was curious about how he was able to grow so much in such a short period.
If possible, I wanted to know if I could use that thod too.
Of course, I realized that wasn't possible from Roan's following answer.
"I received so help from my clan after a long ti."
"Family?"
"Yes, even if it doesn't seem like it, my clan is quite renowned for magic. ...Well, I cut ties with them for a while."
I had also heard of Roan's family, the Vilgef clan, to so extent.
A clan of frost mages with a history of 100 years, wasn't it?
100 years wasn't a very long history for a clan, but they were famous for most of their mbers having outstanding magic talent.
In short, it ant they were a prestigious clan that was second to none when it ca to magic.
'Family...'
I thought about ways to grow related to that.
One thing ca to mind imdiately.
'Secret Technique.'
In this world, prestigious families usually had at least one secret technique.
For example, knight families had their own unique aura techniques, and mage families had exceptional mana breathing techniques.
Of course, there were various kinds, such as mana operation, high-ranking magic passed down through generations, and so on, not just mana breathing techniques.
'...This is why being born a noble makes the ga easier.'
It was a growth thod I couldn't even dream of, having been reincarnated as a beggar.
Anyway, the 'help from family' that Roan was talking about must have been this.
"What kind of secret technique was it?"
"Hmm..."
Whoosh.
As soon as I asked, a chill suddenly started to spread, and an ice crystal ford on top of Roan's staff.
A complex yet beautiful crystal.
It was like looking at ice magnified.
"It was a secret technique to handle coldness like coldness."
"What does that..."
"I can't tell you any more. Or do you perhaps have any thoughts of joining our clan?"
"...No, thanks. I'll pass."
"That's a sha. Soone like you, Yuhan, would be a welco addition to our clan."
I tried to dig up more information, but Roan blocked with a difficult question.
Well, if it were this easy to find out, it wouldn't be called a secret technique in the first place.
While I was thinking about that, Roan held out his hand.
"Then I look forward to working with you in the future."
"Working with you on what?"
"Hmm, friendly competition?"
Sohow, I could see a competitive spirit in his eyes, a desire to win.
Just like when we first greeted each other in Aldeon.
It was a suggestion to compete with magic once again.
"Sure, just wait a little bit."
As I said that and accepted his handshake, Roan smirked and turned around.
Thump, thump.
Roan gradually walked away.
After confirming that his back had completely disappeared, I opened my hand.
It had been itching for a while now.
Thump, thump, thump!
'It seems possible...'
Shwaaaa-
The frost I generated gathered on my hand, forming a shape.
Soon, an ice crystal was revealed.
"...Huh."
It wasn't as intricate as Roan's, but it was still a beautiful crystal.
It was hard to believe it was my first ti using it.
"...This is a truly monstrous talent."
Roan, who had beco even stronger by inheriting his clan's secret technique.
It seed like it wouldn't take long to catch up to him.
***
The dean's office where Asion Gale resided.
After my conversation with Roan, I headed straight there.
To bring back Thompson, who must be feeling awkward.
However.
"Oh, Mr. First Place."
"Yuhan, you're here?"
Contrary to my expectations, the dean and Thompson were there, sipping tea and chatting.
It seed like the timing had luckily worked out.
"It seems you made up a story that wasn't true, Yuhan?"
"...I apologize. There were circumstances."
"Well, it's fine. It was sothing that had to be decided anyway."
"How did it go? Did the talk go well?"
The dean nodded, and Thompson answered instead.
"I'm going to receive body transformation magic training three tis a week."
"Oh, that's great. Three tis a week shouldn't interfere with other schedules."
"Hehe, the dean said this is the first class and it will be one-on-one training. It's a truly glorious opportunity."
One-on-one training for the first class.
That ant that other academy students hadn't learned body transformation magic.
It seed like Thompson had caught the dean's eye...
"What's the reason, Dean?"
When I asked for the exact reason, the dean replied as follows.
"Until now, there hasn't been a suitable talent to pass this magic on to."
"Talent?"
The dean nodded and began to take off his clothes one by one.
Until his bare skin was revealed.
"What are you doing...?"
As I was bewildered by the sudden exposure,
The dean pointed at his body, urging to look.
His body was covered in scars, ranging from those as small as fingernails to those that seed life-threatening.
But what was even more surprising was...
"His body..."
"Wow..."
The muscles that covered the dean's entire body.
His body, hidden under his clothes, was so well-maintained that despite his middle age, he was incredibly muscular.
His fra was also large, as if Thompson and Barundel's bodies had been combined.
Only then did I understand the prerequisite for body transformation magic.
"You have to have a body like that to use this magic?"
"That's right. That's why I couldn't teach it even if I wanted to."
It made sense.
Most mages were, on average, frail.
If it was magic that could only be learned by training the body to that extent, it wouldn't be easy to teach, even if he wanted to.
"Moreover, this is magic that can only be handled by those who wield earth attribute magic."
At this point, I understood why the dean called Thompson a talent.
A mage with a strong body and earth attribute as their main attribute.
"Mr. Thompson is the perfect candidate."
He would probably be hard to find even if they openly recruited.
The dean nodded in agreent and asked with a curious look,
"I heard he's volunteering for the war rcenaries, is that true?"
"Ah, yes. It's not confird yet, but I think that's the plan."
"Most people would try to avoid war, but you've made a strange decision."
"I thought it wouldn't be bad to experience war at least once."
"I see."
The dean seed to buy my vague excuse as he put his clothes back on and nodded.
"Anyway, Thompson's body transformation magic will take quite a while. He'll probably be able to use it little by little after the war is over."
"That's fine. It wasn't in the original plan anyway."
"After the war is over, I'm thinking of increasing the training schedule from three tis a week to five. Is that okay with you, Thompson?"
"Oh, I'm just grateful that you're teaching ."
Thompson showed his clenched fist as if to express his eagerness.
anwhile, I rembered sothing I had missed.
"Ah, what about Kayla's admission?"
She lost the duel, but that didn't an she couldn't enroll.
The dean himself had said that he would judge it separately from the duel's results.
As he said,
"I've decided to allow Kayla to enroll as well. She should have been inford already."
The dean announced Kayla's acceptance.
It was a natural outco, in a way.
Even though she lost the duel, the magic Kayla displayed was clearly beyond the level of an academy student.
"You've made a good decision. She's also very talented. And passionate."
"I've heard. She's currently receiving special training from Professor Ziren, isn't she?"
"Ah, yes."
Did he receive a report through telepathy?
The news traveled faster than I expected.
"Then Kayla's skills will improve quickly."
"Has this happened before?"
"Three tis in total, I think. The students who received Professor Ziren's special training improved their skills quickly."
It wasn't my imagination that Kayla seed to be growing.
Of course, I couldn't expect too much from just a few hours.
As I was thinking about that, I brought up the last topic.
"What happened to Roan?"
The dean probably hadn't spoken to Roan yet, but I still had to ask.
A mage superior to might have seen sothing.
As expected, the dean knew quite a lot.
"Looking at his mana... it seems he's inherited the Vilgef clan's secret technique. It was definitely that kind of energy. ...It's unfortunate that he ended up receiving that power."
The dean shook his head with a regretful expression.
"Why do you say that?"
When I asked for the reason,
"The Vilgef clan's secret technique has a side effect. A side effect of gradually losing emotions."
He revealed a fact I didn't know.
'...Losing emotions?'
It was the mont I realized what was strange about Roan.
[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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