episode_0208

“….”

Lilith, who had schemed to create a rift between herself and Agnes as a prelude to dispelling MacHeart’s suspicions, provoked Agnes with her words.

Agnes felt momentarily flustered, unsure of what to say in response to Lilith’s provocation.

Their plan was to engage in a fake argument, with each of them taking turns to provoke the other, as previously discussed. They had even predetermined the topic of their argument – the affinity with elemental spirits that Agnes had criticized Lilith for in the past.

However, Lilith abruptly changed the subject to criticize Agnes’ magic circle, leaving Agnes feeling quite perplexed.

‘Wasn’t our argument supposed to be about elemental affinity? Why the sudden change in topic?’

Despite her confusion at the sudden shift in conversation, Agnes calmly tried to understand the reason behind Lilith’s choice of topic.

It didn’t make sense for Lilith to criticize a magic circle that even their professor had praised for its efficiency. Agnes couldn’t help but wonder if there was a hidden motive behind Lilith’s actions.

A memory from a previous test where Agnes had struggled with elemental affinity suddenly flashed through her mind.

“Agnes, your affinity with elemental spirits is so poor that even lesser spirits can’t absorb your mana properly and end up regurgitating it, right?”

“Yeah, that’s… I can’t handle even lesser spirits properly on my own, so if it weren’t for Lilith…”

“Wait, Agnes. Don’t sound so gloomy. You should counter me. After all, there’s nothing better about you than your affinity with elemental spirits. You can easily crush someone like me even without relying on spirits.”

“What do you mean there’s nothing better about me than my affinity with elemental spirits?!”

“That’s too melodramatic. Can’t you show a bit more anger?”

“I… I don’t know. I did my best. Using this method instead of another…”

“Fine. I’ll figure out a way to improve your lackluster acting skills. But we’ll stick to our plan of creating discord between us.”

Agnes quickly recalled their last conversation where they had devised a plan to feign discord between them.

She never expected Lilith to deviate from their prepared dialogue and criticize a different aspect of her. It was an unexpected turn of events, but in a way, it was a brilliant solution.

By abruptly changing the topic to catch Agnes off guard and provoke a genuine reaction, Lilith had outsmarted her.

“Agnes?”

“…Yes?”

“Why have you been silent all this time? Was it so shocking to hear that your magic circle was subpar?”

“Uh, no… it’s just…”

“Or did you not understand? A magic circle with no clear symmetry or starting point is nothing but a self-consolation circle with no practical utility. Should I explain it more clearly?”

“….?!?!”

Lilith, feeling insulted by Agnes’ lack of response, repeated her words, this time with even more biting criticism.

Agnes was taken aback by Lilith’s harsh words, wondering if they were just part of her act.

If she hadn’t been thinking about this beforehand, would it be possible for her to speak on the spot like this?

Even though she knew she was deliberately provoking herself, Agnes couldn’t help but wonder if maybe the content was sincere to her heart, and as a result, a rebuttal naturally sprang from her lips.

“Oh, that’s not even funny.”

“What?”

“Are you saying it’s not practical because it’s full of curves with no symmetrical structure and no clear starting point? It’s not like you lack the intelligence to understand my magic circle, right?”

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s a well-known fact even among first-year academy students that a curved structure is advantageous in reducing magical power loss and increasing effectiveness in magic circles. Claiming that my assignment, which is entirely composed of curves, lacks practicality is a foolish answer. Of course, it may seem impractical to you, as you can’t even properly memorize my magic circle and can only copy it by looking at it. That’s why you’re saying my magic lacks practicality, right?”

…Yes, I can do this.

No matter how inexperienced an actor I may be, I can easily counter this kind of verbal sparring.

Although the sincerity of this situation with Reilis is a bit confusing, I had no choice but to think of it as genuine and respond accordingly.

If I didn’t do this, it wouldn’t be easy to deceive the academy students and Reilis.

“At best, saving 1-2 magical power with such a complex structure in a magic that consumes only about 50 magical power, what’s the point?”

“If you use it 30 times, you can use the same amount of magical power one more time. Can’t you do the math because you’re stupid?”

“What’s the point of using such a simple magic one more time? And rather than focusing on drawing a curved magic circle, wouldn’t it be better to focus on multitasking or preparing for the next magic?”

“Do you need to focus on drawing an easy magic circle that you can draw with your eyes closed? The premise is wrong from the start.”

What started as a strategy to deceive Reilis’s eyes turned into a genuine interest in magical debate for Agnes as time passed.

Although it may seem like a quarrel about to break up to anyone watching from the outside, in reality, Agnes and Reilis were passionately discussing serious matters about magic.

Especially for Agnes, who had hardly any friends, talking about her favorite subject, magic, was naturally enjoyable. Even if it looked like an emotional argument on the surface.

…And it was almost natural for Agnes to make a momentary slip of the tongue in her excited emotions.

“Why are you having a hard time drawing such a simple magic circle? Did all the nutrients that should go to your brain go to your chest and make you stupid…oops.”

“….”

As long as they were just talking about magic, it didn’t matter how sharp their words were. After all, it was a debate disguised as an argument, a discussion disguised as anger.

But the moment personal attacks were added to the argument, the conversation could no longer be called a debate.

When Agnes, carried away by the atmosphere, accidentally mentioned physical characteristics, she felt a momentary panic and wondered if she should apologize.

Instead, Reilis responded nonchalantly with a sly smile.

“Ah, that was just a slip of the tongue…”

“Is it because all the nutrients that should have gone elsewhere are going to your head that you’re so flat in both height and chest?”

“….Huh?”

Sadly, Agnes had overlooked one crucial fact.

If only they had discussed the topic with a focus on magic, they could have pretended to be knowledgeable and carried on a plausible conversation. However, from the start, Lillis was subtly outshining Agnes in the field of magic, skillfully imitating a debate with their eloquence.

If a debate were to shift to a topic outside of magic, Agnes had no way to outwit Lillis, even if they were to die and be reborn.

“Well, it certainly doesn’t apply to Agnes. Agnes has a limited area where nutrients reach compared to me. Their brain can only function better than mine.”

“Th-that’s… I mean…”

“Come to think of it, could it be that Agnes’s fiery temperament is due to a lack of warmth in their heart? When expressing a kind-hearted person, the phrase ‘warm-hearted’ is often used. In that sense, Agnes possesses a colder and more pragmatic heart than anyone else.”

“L-Lillis…? P-please stop with the jokes…”

“I was lacking consideration. I momentarily forgot about the physical differences between Agnes and myself.”

As Lillis crossed their arms and raised their chest as if to show off, Agnes, overwhelmed by Lillis’s relentless attacks, was becoming increasingly dizzy.

What is this one-sided and unjust conversation filled with grievances?

Just a while ago, they seemed to be having a magical debate disguised as an argument. Why did the topic suddenly change like this?

Of course, the subject of the argument shifted after their initial mistake, but was it really necessary to go this far?

Weren’t we friends, Lillis? Why are friends saying such things to each other?

While Agnes was experiencing hell in real-time, Lillis calmly continued the verbal sparring, including personal attacks.

Initially, Lillis had no intention of bringing up such a topic in their argument. However, knowing Agnes’s complex about their height and chest better than anyone else, it was the slip-up about their chest that became the spark.

Agnes had inadvertently mentioned their physical flaws, which Lillis had refrained from mentioning deliberately. From Lillis’s perspective, Agnes had opened the door to discussing their physical weaknesses, allowing for a conversation on that topic. Engaging in an argument on this subject meant that the outcome was predetermined even before Agnes could defend themselves.

Naturally, from then on, Agnes could only suffer a one-sided onslaught in the argument.

Eventually, the argument, which had turned into a one-sided attack at some point, began to build up anger in Agnes’s heart, and Lillis’s final words became the last straw that broke the camel’s back, unleashing Agnes’s wrath.

“Come to think of it, I can now understand why Agnes’s magic circle is full of curves. Since there isn’t a single curved part on Agnes’s body, only straight lines, the magic circle must be a way for them to experience the curves they lack…”

“Have you said enough?! Y-you chunk of lard!!!”

In the end, Agnes exploded.

Completely forgetting the original purpose of starting this conversation.