Field Training (3)
Field Training (3)
The first guest was Ayla.
Madam skillfully seated Ayla in a chair and busied herself with preparations.
Ayla quietly looked around with a demure posture.
The neatly arranged interior almost resembled a laboratory.
The place felt so academic she half-expected a research paper to spring out at any moment; a peculiar sense of stability settled over her, and she shifted her gaze toward Madam.
'This isn't a dream, right?'
To her, Madam was the first Elf she had ever met in her life.
What was more, she was a Dark Elf, said to be extremely hard to encounter, with pointed ears and skin that seemed to hold darkness—all of it was striking.
Compared with the Elves she had read about in the Magic Tower Library, Madam came as a refreshing shock.
She directly contradicted everything Ayla thought she knew.
No matter how she looked, there was no sign of a twisted personality or any trace of a stubborn old fossil.
Instead, she marveled at her elegant appearance and captivating charm.
Who would have ever guessed that just the act of offering a glass could seem so graceful?
If she had to pick one unusual point, it was that a Dark Elf who preferred solitude was living among humans, rubbing shoulders with them.
This didn't particularly strike Ayla as significant.
She thought it was no different from how anyone else lived.
While some people befriend many and build vast networks, others simply get by with a small circle.
Of course, since she had set aside her own preference and chosen differently, there had to be a hidden reason.
This stirred a strange curiosity in Ayla.
"I have something I'm curious about."
"Hm? Tell me."
Madam, who had been busily preparing the Mana Circuit tuning, stopped her hands.
She half-turned and fixed her gaze on Ayla.
"Um, well…"
Because Madam was staring so intently, an awkward air filled the space.
When Ayla awkwardly averted her eyes and cleared her throat, Madam chuckled and finished her preparations.
Afterward, Madam pulled a wooden chair over and placed it behind Ayla.
She opened a well-worn notebook and spoke in a gentle voice.
"Before we begin, would you tell me your name?"
"It's Ayla."
"Ayla, what a pretty name."
Madam carefully placed her hands on Ayla's shoulders.
She tapped them slowly as a sign to relax and carried on the conversation.
"So, what are you curious about?"
"It might be a sensitive question, but why did you come here?"
At that, Madam felt that anyone connected to Karon was somehow different.
After all, only Flora had ever asked her that.
She figured that while Flora had approached her to gauge what effect she might have on the organization, Ayla was simply curious.
The combination of a girl who hid a sword in her clothes and a girl who knew nothing but magic was intriguing.
She looked forward to seeing what color would emerge when paints that could never meet were mixed together.
"Hmm~ It's nothing special, but do you want to hear it?"
Madam tapped Ayla's shoulders with her fingertips, rhythmically, as if playing a piano key.
Ayla did not miss the opportunity.
"Yes, please."
"Then I suppose I'll have to start with how I met Karon."
As promised with Karon, Madam told the story while revealing as little personal information as possible.
"Before settling here, I wandered alone. Then, up in the Northern Region of the Continent, I first met Karon."
"In the Northern Region of the Continent?"
"Yes. He was so relaxed in a land dangerous for humans to travel that I grew curious."
Madam calmly recalled those brief memories.
At the same time, she examined Ayla's Mana Circuit with delicate hands.
"What could he be doing there? Why was his expression so dark?"
While checking the Mana Circuit, Madam kept the atmosphere light so Ayla wouldn't feel uncomfortable.
"So as I watched closely, Karon was observing some man. It felt like he'd tossed him into demonic territory."
"Wh-What?"
That moment, a fading word resurfaced in Ayla's mind.
It was similar to a course briefly mentioned on the first day of class, the Crash Course.
Realizing that a course she'd thought half a joke actually existed, she was speechless.
Madam, who couldn't possibly know that, emphasized Karon's strength.
"Karon is much stronger than he looks. He just doesn't like to show it."
"Ah-ha…"
"Anyway, when we talked, I found we could communicate surprisingly well. So I decided it was time to end my long journey."
In the meantime, she reached the core of the Mana Circuit.
From this point, all she had to do was briefly awaken the part that was still dormant.
"Hmm?"
Madam discovered something strange in Ayla's Mana Circuit.
The circuit that governed Mana was slightly different from the mages she had seen until now.
'Is it because of this structure that she can't produce enough power?'
Even after tuning, it seemed likely she would struggle to pull out the desired level.
Perhaps there were issues like Mana wastage even under normal conditions.
To be on the safe side, Madam rechecked the circuit.
Naturally, no problems were found.
Then the possibility narrowed down to one.
Even a long-lived Dark Elf had rarely seen such a Mana Circuit.
"How interesting…"
As Madam, deeply absorbed in the Mana Circuit, clicked her tongue, Ayla asked in a cautious voice.
"What's wrong?"
"Ah, it's nothing."
Madam paused the tuning for a moment and transferred the circuit she'd seen into her notebook.
She wanted to help the girl who didn't know how to handle her own Mana Circuit.
So she absolutely had to pass this on to the one mage she knew who stood unrivaled.
She resolved to show it to Karon no matter what.
"I'll finish up."
Madam hurriedly completed the tuning, then placed her hands on Ayla's shoulders.
Then she peeked over Ayla's shoulders.
"How do you feel?"
"It's really amazing. It feels like a blocked passage has been cleared, really refreshing."
Ayla let out a soft hum, then gave a more precise description.
"To be exact, I'd say the Mana flow is smooth."
"You've pinpointed the effect of tuning exactly. It'll last for one minute, so check quickly."
"Yes!"
Ayla hastily took out a Resistance Stone and injected Mana into it.
She did it the same as usual, but a new horizon opened before her.
She could only stare blankly at the sight.
"Wow…"
While she was lost in endless admiration, the one minute passed like the wind.
Slowly, the effect of the tuning faded and returned to normal.
"I never knew one minute was so short."
"It's a fleeting moment for everyone."
"It would be nice if I could keep doing this forever."
As Ayla put away the Resistance Stone with a deeply disappointed expression, Madam closed her notebook and rose from her seat.
"There's no need to be sad over a brief happiness. It's a state you'll reach someday."
"Really?"
"Of course. A Dark Elf's discerning eyes are special."
"Thank you."
As Ayla rejoiced at the unexpected praise, Madam smiled subtly and went out first.
Ayla followed with a buoyant step, already thinking of bragging to Karon.
"Instructor! Look at this."
"Oh, you got results."
The person Ayla sought right after finishing the field training was, of course, Karon.
She showed him the Resistance Stone and boasted about her achievement.
She even revealed that Madam had praised her, and she didn't know what to do with herself.
Seeing that, Karon let out a quiet laugh.
While the warm atmosphere continued, Madam addressed Karon.
"Karon."
"What is it?"
To Karon, Madam seemed genuinely serious about something.
It wasn't just to exchange light banter.
As he expected, Madam tilted her glass slightly and spoke in a low voice, hinting.
"Looks like we'll have a lot to talk about later."
"Is it important?"
"Extremely important."
Then she glanced at the bottle and cocked her head.
"You weren't drinking on the sly, were you?"
"I'm busy. Please go on to the next one."
"Alright~"
Karon gave an incredulous reaction and waved her off brusquely.
On the other hand, satisfied with the response she'd gotten, Madam called out the next person.
"Next is the young lady beside Karon. Come along."
Madam pointed to Flora, then went straight into the room.
Flora said nothing, merely gave a slight bow to Karon, and moved.
Since Flora had visited several times before with Karon, the atmosphere was different from Ayla's.
She sat down in the chair with familiarity and waited for the tuning.
Thus, Madam could also treat Flora casually.
She gazed at Flora, who sat vacantly staring ahead, with half-lidded eyes.
"Flora, it's been a while, hasn't it?"
"Yes. It's been two years."
Flora glanced at Madam and ended with a short reply.
Madam brought a chair and placed it in front of Flora.
"Aren't you going to do the tuning?"
"Hmm~ This time I figured we'd just talk."
"Now you're not even doing the tuning."
"We already know everything about each other anyway."
Flora had no intention of avoiding this.
Because Madam was always like this whenever she visited.
She simply let herself be carried until the waves stopped.
In the end, the tuning was put off, and the course shifted to asking after each other's well-being.
On behalf of the expressionless Flora, Madam was the first to break the ice.
"Nothing's different from two years ago, is it?"
"Well, that's right."
"But compared to then, you look awfully bright today. I wonder who that could be thanks to?"
As Flora's answer was delayed, Madam met her eyes and probed gently.
"It must be because of Karon."
"…!"
In that instant, Flora flinched minutely.
For Flora, who always maintained her composure, Madam was the one person who could get under her skin.
"Let's see…"
Madam brought a clock and placed it neatly on the table.
Depending on the Level, the time required for tuning was usually around ten minutes.
Including some small talk, she could easily fill twenty minutes, but Madam found this situation a shame.
Normally, not just twenty minutes—she could have spent an hour without Karon saying a word—but since he'd drawn the line saying he was busy, she had no choice.
So whereas she usually swept things along slowly, this time she intended to rush it all at once.
Madam leaned far forward, exploiting any opening.
"That reaction is rather suspicious…"
To prompt a reply, Madam thought up a slightly mischievous prank.
She expected that after hearing this, Flora would deny it, telling her not to talk nonsense.
"Don't tell me you're interested in Karon?"
"…"
"Uh, oh?"
Instead of denying, Flora chose silence.
Instead, the faint blush that spread across her cheeks without her realizing said everything.