Chapter 46
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 46
Chapter Title: A Leisurely Morning
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A morning when countless college students were diligently attending their morning classes.
I was leisurely basking in the sunlight streaming through the window, taking a break.
It was true that I needed to make various preparations to deal with the underground tunnel, but there was little I could do alone.
Most things required coordinating with others to get done.
A strange time that was busy yet not busy.
As I calmly tried to soothe my fatigued body, Elin was fidgeting restlessly beside me in real time.
“…What about your classes, Elin?”
“I have a free period today.”
“…I recommend previewing or reviewing your lessons. Or perhaps returning to your dormitory.”
“Why?”
“…I’m just saying there’s no need to lie around in my lab specifically.”
That honey bee was sticking to my lab more and more ever since she’d planted herself there, growing increasingly lazy.
A yearning for the top? An endless upward drive?
‘No way…’
“Have you given up on becoming the best?”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
Elin scrunched up her face as she shot back.
Should I count that as a relief, or call it rude to look at me like she was displeased?
One thing was certain: it was a bit surprising that a beauty like her could make such an ugly expression.
“…I understand what you’re saying, Professor, but I’ve hit a bit of a plateau lately.”
“Has Elize’s power not fully settled into your body yet?”
“It feels like I’ve mastered it on the surface, but I can’t delve any deeper. And…”
She looked at me.
“Even if I want to be the best more than anything, being by your side makes me realize how necessary rest is.”
“I don’t go too easy on my students.”
Elin shoved her assignments in my face as if to say, what are you talking about?
There was a thick stack of papers.
All of them were my assignments.
I ignored her look that said, are you sane?
They weren’t that hard; I could cut her some slack.
My assignments consistently required students to learn about themselves.
People usually think they know themselves best, but my tasks were designed to make them go, ‘You really expect me to know even this?’
‘Assuming a hypothetical situation, what would I do?’
Thinking vaguely about it was different from writing it down with your own hand.
Since aura embodied mental images, the clearer the image, the easier it was to grasp.
In other words, understanding oneself was essential.
Elin let out a groan.
“…Even without assignments, just having your seal of approval makes it so tough. Me… or Senior Radia. Or Senior Isel.”
“The better the student, the harder they need to be pushed. In that sense, having you all attend classes at the same intensity as other students is practically giving you leeway.”
“So you drag us to dangerous places?”
Places where we could sense life-threatening danger?
“……”
Of course, they were spots where a single misstep could lead to serious injury… but I had my say too.
“You’ve grown a lot because of it.”
“That’s why I need rest. I still aspire to be the best, but following your pace exactly would lead to burnout.”
With that, Elin slumped like glutinous rice taffy warmed by fire.
She was steadily working her pen, but her posture was far from ideal.
She was lying on the foldable storage bed I’d put there for on-duty shifts.
‘Though on-duty shifts aren’t really necessary…’
The Martial Arts College was hard to classify as either humanities or sciences.
It was somewhere in between, a hybrid.
Setting aside the Magic Department, which was a monster encompassing humanities, sciences, and even medicine, the Martial Arts College was generally ambiguous.
Professors seriously pondering and experimenting with aura leaned toward sciences, while those like me were closer to humanities.
That extended to the lab atmospheres too—labs of experimenting Martial Arts professors ran late into the night.
Me? I…
‘Clock out at 6 on the dot.’
Or so they said.
Naturally, there was no need for on-duty shifts, and without those, no need for a foldable storage bed.
It was just standard university equipment, in case of emergencies.
They’d assigned me a spacious, top-tier lab befitting a Master, but still.
“…You should be more aware that I’m an adult man.”
What was I supposed to say to a female college student rolling around on the bed while doing assignments?
She was defenseless, light, and seemed like she’d topple over with a single touch.
Elin smirked smugly, flashing a broad grin.
“Why? Afraid to touch?”
No way, no way—you’re conscious of me? She poked as if testing, making me squeeze my eyes shut and rub my cheeks to toughen up my skin.
My head throbbed, so I pressed my forehead firmly.
She’d been like this ever since I’d put that necklace on her.
‘Grumbled a bit to cheer her up, spent some money, and now she’s spoiled.’
Her mischievous smile held both allure and cunning.
Teasing, yet provoking as if inviting a dizzying thrill…
‘She’s no teenage girl.’
That was why I sighed whenever I looked at Elin.
And finally, she hooked her finger on the necklace chain, showing it off like a trophy.
Complete with a sultry gaze.
“Don’t act like that with your professor.”
“What do you mean, with my professor? I only do this with Professor Aiden.”
“That’s why I’m saying it as your professor.”
“If you teach me Runes, I’d welcome it anytime?”
“You’re quite skilled at polite rejections.”
I ignored her narrowed eyes and tended to my paperwork.
Then Elin casually opened the conversation as if tossing out idle chatter.
“The age gap between you and me is only seven years.”
“That’s plenty. Focus on your assignments. I’ll do my work.”
“That’s just by normal standards. We live long lives, you and I. Seven years is barely two years our time?”
I stopped my paperwork and listened intently to Elin.
Wondering what she’d say next.
“The Empire’s Sword Master is said to have lived three centuries, and the Saint Kingdom’s Master, who claims to wield the Sword of God, has watched over six. But the average Master lives around three or four hundred years.”
“I don’t want to live that long.”
Elin grinned brightly.
“Half-elves live about that long too.”
“……”
I looked at Elin.
My gaze asking what her point was.
Having successfully drawn my attention, Elin giggled delightedly.
“My situation is so weird. If I marry a full elf, I’d die three hundred years sooner, but marrying a witch hybrid like Professor Prezel… I’d outlive her by a hundred fifty.”
“Tricky.”
“And marrying a human? They die at seventy or eighty, leaving me with another two hundred fifty years alone.”
It was more serious than expected, so I set down my papers.
I’d never really thought about this aspect.
‘Is that it? You, and only you, will live on alone after we’re all gone.’
I’d never considered it.
Once the original story ended, when Isel, Radia, and everyone else from our journey had fulfilled their lifespans, Elin would be left alone for her remaining years.
Lonely, no doubt. Perhaps reminiscing about the past in solitude.
Elin smiled bitterly yet innocently.
“But with you, Professor, our lifespans match perfectly.”
“……”
“You wouldn’t want to spend centuries alone after your lover passes first. I wouldn’t either.”
As if drawing a line under the heavy topic, Elin rolled around.
“Just… something like that.”
‘……’
The weight behind those casually spoken words.
Elves typically had only one lifelong partner throughout their long lives.
Half-elves might be similar; those who lost their lovers to accident spent their remaining days with spirits, commemorating the departed.
That was their culture.
Remarriage was rare.
If Elin thought the same, her middling lifespan meant inescapable, endless loneliness.
I mulled it over and lowered my eyelids, swallowing my silence.
“Ah, that was pointless talk? Forget…”
“…If I’m still alive then, I won’t leave you lonely.”
If I saw a happy ending in this hardcore bad-end-riddled game, sticking by her side was the least I could do.
Our eyes met, and Elin’s pupils widened as she fell silent for a moment.
Her lips pressed together in a faint smile, she let out a nasal hum.
“Hmm…”
Her face melted into bliss, a sly smile creeping in.
“I never forget things like this, you know? You okay with that, silly Professor?”
“I’m not silly. Correct that.”
“You are silly, Professor. And sneaky too.”
She laughed. What was so delightful?
Haa…
I gripped my forehead amid the unintended flirtatious air.
‘Gotta change the subject first.’
“…You said you couldn’t delve deeper into Elize’s power?”
“Why? Got a method?”
Elin responded swiftly.
Gone was her earlier soft allure; now she was bundled tight with determination and stubbornness.
Childish energy included.
From fox to honey bee.
It suited me fine—she was easier to handle this way—so I didn’t argue.
“Do you remember when I suggested visiting Elize?”
“Oh, right. Yeah, we did.”
“Since you have a free period, how about going now?”
“Sounds good to me. Starting to feel stiff anyway.”
Anyone wouldn’t feel stiff lying around doing assignments.
But I stopped teasing, shrugged on my coat.
Elin gathered her old oak staff.
“Back to the rear mountain again?”
“Probably.”
Spirit Mountain behind us was Elize’s abode.
A botany professor had scattered a clone there before, causing some contamination, but Elin had purified it all.
Now the pristine environment had slimes fattened on sap crawling around.
Elin twisted her face.
I easily guessed why her mood soured so suddenly.
“Still thinking about the magic wolves?”
“You think I’d forget?”
I swallowed once and nodded.
“Then, what about now? Could you beat a pack of magic wolves?”
Elin pretended to ponder, then toyed with her necklace.
She probably thought it’d still be tough with her own abilities.
But factoring in the memorized spell changed things, and she voiced it.
“If I play it smart.”
Judging by the mana total in the memorize, it held about three upper mid-tier spells’ worth.
If it packed something like a massive explosion, it’d wipe out a clustered pack of magic wolves in an instant.
Elin’s assessment made sense.
“Good.”
“You pushed me hard, Professor. A lot.”
“And how about mid-tier spirits excluding Elize?”
“I can summon them without a wand now.”
“How many can you command at once?”
“Mid-tier… four. Including low and lowest, around sixty? But how do you know that?”
I walked straight ahead without looking at her.
“You’re my student, aren’t you?”
“…Dodging with vague praise.”
Elin grumbled.
Professors couldn’t know every detail about every student.
Elin knew that and was saying it like, what kind of student gets that treatment?
“Fine, if you won’t tell.”
She seemed to take my evasion as an excuse.
I didn’t deny it, slowing my pace.
Yeah, that worked too.
“I noticed because I was paying attention.”
“…Even the stuff I don’t tell you?”
Her skeptical glare lingered, but my answer remained the same.
“Let’s leave it at that.”
Because I’m interested, I see it.
Even if that wasn’t the whole truth, let’s call it that.
Elin pouted.
“You always skip the process and jump to conclusions, Professor.”
“There’s nothing good in explaining.”
“You do it every time.”
I let her complaints flow pleasantly as we reached a lakeside.
“It’s because I know too much.”
With that, I began chanting a spell in front of Elin.
Soon, Elin turned to me in shock.
Before me was the rune word for ‘water’ engraved.