Chapter 9: Blueprint for a Breakthrough

Fortunately, there was a doctor in the infirmary.

The middle-aged doctor in a white coat immediately lifted my roommate, whom I had supported, onto his back as soon as he saw her.

“You there. Get some cold water in that bucket over there as fast as you can!”

And then he walked straight out of the infirmary.

Why?

Why would he take a patient outside?

With that question in mind, I filled the bucket in a corner of the infirmary with water.

The place I arrived at with a bucket in each hand was none other than outside the building.

The doctor laid my roommate down in a cool place out of the sunlight.

And then, holding the bucket I had brought.

Splash-!

He literally just poured cold water on my roommate’s body.

“Wait, wait! What are you doing!”

Even I, with my limited medical knowledge, knew that pouring cold water on a patient with a fever wasn’t particularly good.

Was the common sense related to medicine also lacking in this world because healing magic was so developed?

But the doctor spoke to me, who was in such a fluster, as if it were nothing.

“Calm down. This is the best way.”

He then poured the water from the other bucket as well.

Then, surprisingly, I could see my roommate’s face gradually becoming more comfortable.

When I got closer and touched her skin, the heat had decreased significantly compared to before.

“How? You didn’t even give her any antipyretics. Did you sprinkle some holy water or something?”

“We don’t need that crap. Not for Zelia.”

“Zelia…?”

“You don’t know? Zelia Esdar. A half-blood dragonkin who entered as the top student in all combat subjects. She should be pretty famous both inside and outside the academy.”

I just learned her name a moment ago.

So her name was Zelia.

And more than that, she was a half-blood.

I had vaguely guessed she was a beastman because of her tail and scales, but today was the first time I learned she was a half-blood.

“If she’s a dragonkin… they’re a race with an immense amount of magic power from birth, right?”

“That’s right. Dragonkin have a larger vessel for receiving mana than ordinary humans. And their biggest characteristic is that the more magic power they use, the more heat builds up in their bodies.”

Heat builds up.

Hearing that, I got a sense of it.

Why her body was abnormally hot.

“Zelia’s human blood is on the stronger side. Because of that, her internal organs are much weaker to heat than a pure-blood dragonkin’s, and the emission organs that would cool the heat are not in good condition either.”

In short, her current state was no different from continuously injecting heat into a sealed space.

Suddenly, I remembered the parchments rolling around next to her where she had collapsed.

I didn’t know what kind of magic circles were engraved on them, but they were probably used to cool down the heat.

Cooling magic circles or something.

It must be something like that.

“Tsk. I told her not to overdo it so many times…”

The doctor clicked his tongue, muttering to himself.

From the way he spoke, it seemed this wasn’t the first time she had pushed herself like this.

I placed my palm on the nape of her neck.

Beyond the rough texture of her scales, I couldn’t feel the same intense heat as before.

Collarbone.

Shoulder.

Upper arm.

When my palm reached her forearm, I stopped my hand abruptly.

There was still heat left.

And it was distinct enough to be clearly felt with just my hand.

The doctor had definitely spread the water quite evenly.

Does that mean the amount of heat that builds up is different for each part of the body in the first place?

“Excuse me…”

The doctor looked at me.

He had a somewhat troubled expression.

“Thanks for bringing the collapsed student, but shouldn’t you be getting back to your own business?”

I looked around.

There was no one but me.

I pointed to myself and asked back.

“Me?”

“Yes. Judging by your attire, you seem to have come to deliver goods to the academy. Is it alright for you to waste time here?”

“I’m a student here.”

……

An awkward silence lingered for a moment.

It took me quite a while to explain to the doctor that I was a student at this school.

---

Only after proving to the doctor that I was a student of this school and confirming that Zelia’s condition had stabilized could I finally leave the infirmary.

Naturally, I couldn’t even enter the library, let alone look around.

I hurried my steps towards the Swordsmanship Hall.

The class must have started quite a while ago.

Fortunately, it seemed the full-fledged training hadn’t started yet.

I hurried into the locker room and changed into the provided training uniform.

When I came out, many students were already warming up in the wide training ground.

They were largely divided into two groups.

The physical types, who boasted muscles that looked solid at a glance.

And the non-physical types, with relatively slender builds and awkward movements.

The thought that even those frail-looking non-physical types could probably subdue me with a single finger if they put their minds to it kept making me laugh helplessly.

“Alright. Is everyone warmed up?”

Once everyone was warmed up, a tall man walked to the front of the line.

It wasn’t William.

A male instructor I had never seen before scanned us once and raised his voice.

“Good! Then let’s start with basic physical training. First, a light 20 laps around the training ground!”

…What?

I looked around.

The size of the training ground was about half that of a soccer field.

And he wants us to run 20 laps?

Lightly?

‘Does he not know the definition of ‘lightly’?’

While I hesitated, the students started running without a word of complaint.

I couldn’t say anything and was pushed to the tail end of the line.

And then hell began.

The students ahead, thanks to their body reinforcement, showed no signs of slowing down.

But me?

A body that moves with 100% pure muscle!

And even though I’ve done some hammering, it’s still a woman’s body!

“Hah… hah… cough!”

I had only run half a lap, but my lungs felt like they were going to burst.

It was a mistake to try to match their pace from the beginning.

My legs were as heavy as lead, and my side ached as if stabbed with a knife.

When I barely lifted my drooping head, the front runners were already far ahead.

In the end, I couldn’t even complete one lap and collapsed right next to the track.

“Ugh… I’m gonna die…”

I lay spread-eagled on the grass, gasping for breath.

My stomach churned and the sky spun.

This… is the academy’s basic physical training?

Are they just telling the magicless to die?

I couldn’t move for a long time, just catching my breath.

How long had I been like that?

A shadow fell over me, and a familiar voice was heard.

“You’re in quite a state, Miss Tarsha.”

It was Instructor William.

He was looking down at me, clicking his tongue.

“How was your first class?”

“Forget about how it was, I feel like I’m going to die right now.”

I answered with a hoarse voice, coughing.

“Hmm. I did tell them to lower the intensity of your training compared to the other students.”

“..This was lowered?”

At my question, William’s expression subtly hardened.

It seemed there had been a problem in the communication process.

“…My apologies. I will make sure to convey it clearly again next time.”

He cleared his throat and changed the subject.

“Ah. And about the seminar in a week. The presentation order has been decided. You are last, Miss Tarsha.”

“Last?”

Usually, the last spot in a seminar is taken by the most recent hot topic or project.

Honestly, even though the sword I made was quite popular among adventurers, I didn’t think it was enough to be the finale.

“You don’t have to feel so pressured. The pattern-welded steel technology you’ve shown is worthy enough. Many people are looking forward to it.”

Pattern-welded steel.

Of course, by this world’s standards, it is a great technology.

It’s also a good opportunity to open a new perspective on the properties of materials and manufacturing processes in this world of magic omnipotence.

But…

“Many magic professors will be at the seminar, right?”

“Of course. Students interested in magic can also attend, and many outside guests from beyond Ceylon Academy also come.”

A situation where such people gather in one place is unlikely to happen often.

At such an event, for a magicless person like me, the opportunity to even be the finale of a seminar is a chance that, if not now, may never come again.

My father, who was completely ignorant about tempering and annealing.

The Ceylon Grand Bridge, whose structure was a complete mess.

The inefficient structures that were incomprehensible from a mechanical standpoint.

To break the deep-rooted magic omnipotence in this world, simply creating new things is not enough.

What I need to show is more than that.

To shock them, I must use the language they use.

Magic.

Magic and engineering.

When I show them the synergy that can be created when these two are combined, their infinite possibilities.

Only then will they be able to break free from magic omnipotence and gain a new perspective!

‘…Come to think of it.’

At that moment, a perfect subject crossed my mind.

My black-haired roommate.

Zelia Esdar.

A half-blood dragonkin who possesses powerful magic but cannot perform at her best due to the heat she cannot control.

She was the top student in the combat department at the time of her admission, and among the first-years, there is no one who doesn’t know her.

What if I could solve her problem?

With an engineering method combined with magic, what if I could help her display the best performance she has ever had?

I am sure.

There will be no more certain proof than this.

“Instructor William. Would it be possible to demonstrate something else in addition to the pattern-welded steel at the seminar?”

“As I said before, many people from outside the academy also attend the seminar. If you demonstrate something unverified, it could have a negative impact on the evaluation of the pattern-welded steel.”

“Then I just need to verify it before the seminar, right?”

William fell silent.

He thought for a long time before opening his mouth again.

“Alright. However, if it does not meet the standards, you will not be able to present the ‘other thing’ you mentioned at the seminar. How about it?”

“That’s fine. Then I’ll do my best to have it ready by the day before the seminar.”

“But will you be alright? You have to study, and you have to visit the forge. It seems like you’ll be too busy.”

William’s concern is valid, but it’s not really something to make such a fuss about.

I have to visit the forge anyway to make something, and the magic classes are manageable.

As for the physical training classes… if push comes to shove, I can just skip them.

“You don’t have to worry about me.”

Of course, magic itself is an unfamiliar concept, so it might take some time…

Well.

It doesn’t matter.

Because I, in my past life and now.

“I can just sleep less.”

Pulling all-nighters was my specialty.