episode_0032

Dormitory move-in happened 3 days before the entrance ceremony.

That was only the case for students entering Wizelle. Students assigned to other dormitories had already finished moving in much earlier. This was because students with lower grades were moved in first, thanks to which Ashel had to receive quite a lot of attention while moving his luggage into the dormitory.

“Is that him? The one who ran around like a mad dog in the exam?” “That was Grace. He’s the mage Grace was looking for.” “Why was she looking for him?” “I don’t know? Because he’s handsome?”

Most of the gazes were quite favorable. However, there were also a few gazes that were not. These were mostly freshmen using the Piollen dormitory, which was one level lower than Wizelle. Their eyes held more caution than curiosity. Ashel also sensed this, but he didn’t bother reacting to each one.

Unless they approached him first, Ashel had no intention of doing anything either. He wanted to avoid getting involved in troublesome matters when the entrance ceremony hadn’t even taken place yet. Thinking this, Ashel ignored the attention of others and neatly stacked his luggage in his room.

He stored the everyday clothes he brought in the closet and changed the arrangement of furniture like the bed and desk to his liking. He also replaced the curtains with ones brought from Wihaim and converted one empty room into a research lab.

He didn’t plan on making potions or crafting magic tools, but since he had to create and test magic, he cast protective magic over the walls and ceiling entirely. He placed the notebook he usually used to record magic on the research desk and stuck papers with spell formations drawn on them to the wall. He organized the magic books by type on the bookshelf for easy selection.

It was best to avoid exposing his magic research, so he cast shadow magic on the window. With this, unless Ashel wished otherwise, outsiders wouldn’t be able to look inside. He nodded in satisfaction and left the research lab.

He had wished Evelynn could come with him if possible, but unfortunately, Evelynn had been going through a very busy period recently. She had accidentally discovered that she had talent in magic engineering and had begun proper studies.

It was the result of her efforts trying to find out what her talent was, finally shining through.

It was a good thing. Ashel recalled Evelynn’s face, who had promised to show him lots of magic tools she made herself when she returned, and flopped down onto the bed. Just then, someone knocked on Ashel’s door.

“Are you there? This is the maid head.”

Before he could even figure out who it was, they identified themselves first. Ashel jumped up from his seat and opened the dormitory door.

The first thing that caught his eye was short black hair that reached her shoulders. Her face had a slightly sharp impression like a cat, and her expression was dripping with solemnity. It was a look that didn’t suit the cute maid uniform she was wearing at all.

Having only seen free-spirited maids like Hayley or Evelynn, seeing such a serious maid felt like a new experience.

“It is a pleasure to meet you for the first time, Young Master Ashel. I am the maid head who manages the Wizelle dormitory. My name is Lacey.”

She slightly lifted the hem of her skirt and offered a greeting. Ashel responded with a smile.

“Pleased to meet you. My name is Ashel.”

“There is no need for you to use honorifics with me. Please feel free to be comfortable.”

Lacey offered those words, but Ashel let out a sigh with a lukewarm expression.

Academy dormitories are divided into 4 halls for each grade.

Wizelle is where students with the highest grades stay. Piollen is where students who are not as good but are still in the upper ranks stay, Gale for the middle ranks, and Wimble for the lower ranks. The living spaces for each grade differ in direction (East, West, North, South), but all dormitories are composed of 4 buildings.

Among them, Wizelle is not only used by students with the highest grades but also by people of noble status. As a result, many of the maids who manage the dormitory are from noble families. It is true that it feels burdensome when such a person tells you to speak informally first.

So Ashel vaguely glossed over it and asked her for her business.

“I will do so once I get used to it. More importantly, what brings you here?”

“There is no major reason. I simply wished to meet the freshmen staying in Wizelle. The previous maid head I worked with used to do this.”

“Did you work at another dormitory?”

“Yes. Originally, I worked at the 2nd-year Wizelle dormitory. Thanks to the Dean’s favorable view, I have been assigned as the maid head for the 1st-year Wizelle dormitory starting this year.”

In a word, it meant she was promoted. Could it be that besides her noble status, her skills were also excellent?

“Therefore, I intend to carry out my duties with a sense of responsibility. If you have anything you need to order from the maids or any requests, please press the button next to your bed. If you have something to say to me, you can press the button twice. Ah, I cannot fulfill sexual demands. The moment such a demand is made, you will be immediately expelled.”

“…I had no intention of doing that.”

“Is that so? However, there have actually been several people who ordered maids to fulfill their desires, so from last year, we make sure to inform everyone of this. Please understand.”

Lacey said so, slightly bowing her head. Ashel nodded with a reluctant expression.

“Then I shall take my leave. I sincerely hope you have a happy academy life.”

“Yes. Please go safely.”

After giving Ashel, who was seeing her off, a soft smile, she walked down the hallway with elegant steps. Since Ashel’s room, located at the end of the hallway, was the last one she visited, she didn’t visit other rooms again. She went down to the first floor and returned to the maid head’s office.

Ashel only entered his room when her back was no longer visible. He closed the door, sat on the bed, and slightly opened the closed window.

Ashel’s hair swayed in the blowing wind. Perhaps it was a sign that spring was approaching, a strong scent of flowers drifted in on the wind. The weather was clear, and the sun was moderately warm. He often went for walks on days like this, but since Ena, who was always with him, wasn’t there, he didn’t feel much like it.

Thinking about Ena, he suddenly recalled what she had said just before he left for the dormitory.

-I’ll be leaving Wihaim for a while. Lately, devil worshipers have been rampant, so I think I need to look around a few places.

-Ah… Then when will you be coming back?

-I’ll be back before vacation. Or I can go visit the academy myself.

-It’s not dangerous work, is it?

-No, so don’t worry. I’ll write often. Send replies right away.

Ena finished speaking and briefly kissed Ashel’s forehead. It was the utmost expression of affection towards a disciple she wouldn’t be seeing for quite a long time. Ashel recalled Ena’s face, which had let out a cough as if embarrassed at the time, and wore a wry smile.

Sending letters can be done through a carrier pigeon. The metal-bodied pigeon he brought from Wihaim. Ashel saw it casually rolling around on the desk and closed the window.

It was merely a lump of scrap metal for now because magic power hadn’t been injected, but it was a magic engineering device capable of quickly moving to its destination the moment it absorbed magic power. It was an object that worked differently from magic tools.

He wanted to take it apart and look inside, but if he did and it broke, he would lose the means to send letters to Ena. That had to be avoided.

‘I’ll send one after the entrance ceremony… and usually, one per weekend should be enough.’

One per week should be enough. Any more than that would likely make his master uncomfortable too.

Thinking so, Ashel changed into the student uniform he had received beforehand.

An outfit consisting entirely of simple black pants, a shirt, a tie, and a black coat. He liked how plain it was.

Furthermore, it was even imbued with magic that absorbed external impact to some extent, so it seemed it wouldn’t be much trouble to use it as combat attire.

‘Guess there’s no need to specifically buy armor or a helmet at the blacksmith’s.’

Was this why the blacksmith shop he visited to sell his dagger had a massive display of only weapons? Ashel loosened his tie a bit more, took off only his coat and hung it on the hanger, then shifted his thoughts.

There were 3 days left until the entrance ceremony. Until then, it didn’t significantly matter how he acted freely. As long as he didn’t cause trouble, there wouldn’t likely be any restrictions. Ashel pondered how to utilize this period and decided to visit the academy’s library.

While it would be good to conduct magic research alone in his lab, curiosity about how the academy library was structured was strongly surging within him. He had heard that they intentionally left ancient texts untranslated or packed in all sorts of books for the students. As a mage, he couldn’t resist.

‘A mage without curiosity is a corpse.’

Ashel rose from his seat, recalling the proverb he often heard in Wihaim.

He left the coat he had taken off untouched without specifically wearing it. The weather wasn’t that cold, so just wearing a shirt was warm enough.

The library was in the basement of the academy’s main building. Ashel headed straight there the moment he left the dormitory. The freshmen who had been assigned to dormitories earlier than Ashel glanced at him sideways, but Ashel’s interest was already directed towards the library. Their reactions were too lukewarm to divert the attention of a mage who had already started moving.

‘It would be best to first peruse the magic books donated by the Magic Towers, and then read books related to magic engineering theory, mana academia theory, and spell calculation arrangements.’

After that, there were still mountains of things to read. Ashel arrived at the academy’s main building with a smile filled with anticipation. Entry was easy. The personal information of the freshmen had already been uploaded to the academy. Simply showing his face at the main gate allowed him to pass through easily. Ashel quickly moved his steps past the open door.

There weren’t many people in the academy’s main building. Only assistant professors and assistant students whom Ashel had seen running around with Plum were scattered here and there.

Ashel greeted them as he went down to the basement. Before long, a wooden door welcomed him. Ashel immediately opened the door and entered the library. At the same time, the unique paper scent of books tickled his nose.

“Oh…”

Ashel exclaimed in admiration as he took in the full view of the library. A storehouse of knowledge that didn’t fall short even when compared to Wihaim’s public library or the Witch’s Council archives was spread out here.

Dozens of bookshelves stretching so high they reached the ceiling. Walls packed full of books and magic circles rotating while drawing geometric patterns. Magic books that returned to their places on their own and spirits that had taken up residence here and there.

In terms of size, even Wihaim’s library would have to concede. How much time would it possibly take to look through all of this? Ashel felt a pounding excitement and began to truly stroll through the library’s interior.

First, he gathered magic books about fire magic and ice magic and found a seat. To use ice magic more freely and smoothly, he had to perfectly understand the theories behind these two types of magic.

The fire magic Ashel used had completely different characteristics from general fire magic.

The fire magic handled by the Ignis Magic Tower simply uses the caster’s mana as fuel. It involves pre-heating the mana and then using a spell formation to release it explosively.

On the other hand, the fire magic Ashel had learned could use not only the caster’s mana but also external mana resources, embers, temperature, and even specific concepts as fuel.

Furthermore, unlike general fire mages whose magic power and thus the power of their magic weakens as they use it, the Witch’s Council’s fire magic did not diminish in power even when used to its limit. It was possible to project the same power as when the flames were strongest at the beginning.

It was not without disadvantages. The Ignis Magic Tower’s fire spell formations do not significantly affect the caster, no matter how much they are used to the extreme. However, the Witch’s Council’s fire spell formations, the moment they are used to the extreme, use even the caster as fuel and turn them into ash in an instant.

‘Meaning, if you mess up, it could lead to suicide.’

Therefore, maintaining balance was important. If the spell formation ran wild by mistake, the caster themselves would also be consumed by the flames.

As it was a unique magic that significantly boosted destructive power at the cost of stability, the price for not handling it properly was great.

Of course, this was a risk Ashel would never experience. He continued reading the magic books on fire magic, raising flames in his hand. Though it was the same element, it was completely different fire magic. Still, as he read, he was able to accumulate a certain amount of knowledge.

How much time had passed like that?

Just as he was starting to get a precise feel for ice-attributed mana and fire-attributed mana, the library librarian approached Ashel and spoke.

“Um, excuse me…”

“……?”

“It’s, it’s library closing time… If you could please leave soon…”

“Ah.”

Had that much time already passed? He had been so focused on reading that he hadn’t even known how much time had flown by.

Ashel offered her an apology and returned all the books he had taken to their places.

‘Simultaneous manifestation of mana existing at opposite extremes. I’ve got a rough sense of it, so all that’s left is to solidify the concept by re-reading the magic books I brought from the Witch’s Council and testing it through mana fusion theory.’

He hadn’t even spent much time contemplating ice magic, yet results were already about to emerge. Every time this happened, Ashel realized his talent and wore a wry smile.

What kind of life would he have lived if he hadn’t been able to make such talent bloom and had just continued to rot in the slums? Perhaps at this very moment, he might have been captured by Zervil and tortured as an experimental subject. The more he thought about it, the greater his gratitude towards Ena grew. He traced his forehead, where Ena had last kissed him, with his finger and let out a small smile.

“Should I write a letter when I get back?”

He had planned to write it after the entrance ceremony, but since he thought of it, he should write it right away. Ashel stretched his body fully to loosen his stiff muscles.

When he shifted his gaze, the bookshelf where novels were gathered came into view. He checked the title of one of them, and Ashel slightly furrowed his brows.

‘Fifty Ways to Train Her, huh. What a flashy book title.’

Just as Ashel thought that and was about to turn his head, he saw someone smoothly pull out that book. Without thinking, he naturally checked the owner who took the book.

Ash-colored hair that reached her waist. She was a girl with striking golden eyes resembling a bird of prey and slightly downturned eyes.

It was a face he remembered. During the entrance exam, the mage who had acted with a man named Paul and used sacred magic.

“Ah.”

Ashel unconsciously voiced out with realization. At the same time, she was startled and turned to look at Ashel.

“……?!”

“……”

The gazes of the two people met in the air. Celine immediately hid the book she was holding behind her back.

She knew well that it was already too late.