Field Training (5)
"...Is this about Flora?"
I tilted my head at the sudden question.
For a moment, I thought she was already drunk.
I had no idea what Madam was talking about.
I slowly rubbed my chin and thought it over. I hadn't misheard.
"Tell me why you're asking so suddenly."
"Well, it's just..."
Madam trailed off, running a finger along the rim of her glass.
Her complicated expression hinted at a deeper conversation.
'Is she hiding something from me?'
I pressed my fingers to my forehead and recalled recent events.
Aside from the Academy, the only place we'd gone together was the Order.
There hadn't been any situations involving the Inquisitor, the person I needed to be most wary of.
If that were the case, she would have reported it immediately.
Other than that, I'd only entrusted her with developing the Resistance Stone mine.
Flora was handling that steadily, so there were no issues.
"Hoo."
Of all times, my thoughts were muddled by the alcohol.
I was fiddling with my glass with my head half lowered when I heard Madam's voice.
"Relax. It’s nothing bad. With that look on your face, you’d think you were about to kill someone."
"It's not that bad."
"Really? You looked just like you did when those idiots messed with Flora."
Hearing that, I realized I hadn't been managing my expression.
I closed my eyes and slowly exhaled.
"So, what is it?"
I finally shoved the alcohol's influence aside and focused on Madam.
Only then, seeming willing to answer, did Madam touch her lower lip and reveal the reason.
"I was wondering if you knew why Flora is still Level 5."
"I'm sure she has her reasons... but I don't know exactly either. I never pressed her about it."
Madam had touched on a rather sensitive issue.
Why was Flora stuck at Level 5?
Even I couldn't give a definite answer.
I'd asked her a few times before, but she just brushed it off.
Didn't she imply just recently that she could reach Level 6 anytime?
I didn't know what Madam would say next.
For some reason, my throat felt dry.
I knocked back some whiskey to put out the fire in my throat.
Glug-glug.
Madam immediately refilled my empty glass and spoke.
"Even I can tell it isn’t a Mana Circuit problem. Most likely, it’s environmental."
"Do you have a guess as to the cause?"
"What comes to mind right now is... you might be one of the causes."
The answer was so unexpected that I had nothing to say.
A myriad of thoughts swirled through my mind in an instant.
'So I might be what's holding Flora back...'
While I was responsible for her, I had no idea.
What could have made her that way?
No matter how hard I thought about it, I couldn't make any headway.
As I remained silent, Madam watched me carefully.
Since I couldn't solve this alone, I sought Madam's help.
"Why am I one of the causes?"
"I don't know either. It's between you and Flora."
Madam shrugged and added an explanation.
"You've been by Flora's side the longest. Naturally, your influence would grow. Isn't that right?"
Madam wasn't wrong.
After all, I was the one who brought Flora out of the slums.
Maybe the time had come to reach out to Flora once more.
I had to remove whatever obstacle was blocking her path.
"Madam."
"H-Hmm?"
I hadn't done anything, yet Madam looked extremely flustered.
If asked if I looked as fierce as before, I absolutely did not.
Watching her closely, I could tell there was something else she wanted to say but was holding back.
Sometimes, a gentle prod in these situations revealed hidden secrets.
"Seems like you have more to say. Is that all?"
"Yes. I had to tell you because Flora is important to you."
"Hmm."
I tilted my head and looked at Madam.
Madam smiled and tilted her head as well.
I quietly observed her reaction, then withdrew my suspicion.
"Well, if you say so."
It felt wrong to keep prying when she'd taken the time to share valuable information.
It was probably just some trivial gossip between women.
Meanwhile, Madam brought over her Mana Circuit Tuning notebook and set it on the table.
Her gestures alone showed she was quite excited.
"Next must be Ayla."
"Yeah. It was really interesting, for once."
Hearing that from Madam, who was unmatched when it came to Mana Circuits, only made me more curious.
I was especially curious about her opinion on Ayla's unnecessary mana waste.
I gladly emptied the rest of my whiskey and held out the glass to Madam.
"That makes three glasses. Let's get straight to the point."
"Don't be too surprised after you see it."
Madam opened the notebook and placed it so I could see at a glance.
The moment I saw the mana circuit, I realized it was extraordinary.
"This is..."
"Isn't it fascinating?"
As Madam said, it was truly fascinating.
There was no other word to describe it but fascinating.
Everyone's mana circuits differ slightly, but the basic framework is the same.
Just as a house needs a foundation and pillars no matter how different it looks.
But Ayla's mana circuit possessed a minor distinction.
They were building the same kind of house, but with different materials, so the approach had to change.
It was a truly small change, but it altered the circuit's operation.
It was pursuing a different path from the methods mages had built up until now.
"Wouldn't this mean it doesn't fit the existing magic system?"
"I thought the same. I checked it while I was waiting for you, and there was only one answer."
Madam calmly pointed to the core of the mana circuit drawn in the notebook.
With a structure this different, there was only one way to draw out its full potential.
"We must approach it with the concept of burning mana, not consuming it."
"Exactly. This is a structure I saw only once, 130 years ago."
According to Madam's subsequent detailed explanation:
Ayla's mana circuit appeared so rarely that you'd be lucky to see it once in a generation.
Moreover, it had no distinct characteristics, making it hard to notice.
She guessed that, due to these characteristics, most cases ended without ever seeing the light of day.
But occasionally, someone would appear who learned to handle that power.
She emphasized its strength, and that when the mana burned, the surroundings of the caster would sparkle beautifully.
She recalled that seeing it sweep the battlefield was like a painting.
Hearing Madam's full explanation, I realized Ayla's potential was immense.
If not for the field training, it would have been hard to notice.
That made me wonder what Madam thought—whether the Magic Tower Master already knew about it.
"Do you think Ayla's mentor knows about this?"
"If he's skilled, there's a possibility."
"Rodein Adrian, the Magic Tower Master."
"Oh my. If it's the Magic Tower Master..."
Madam, seeming surprised for a moment at the words 'Magic Tower Master,' rested her chin on her hand and casually swirled the glass.
"He probably already knows."
"What if he doesn't?"
"Then he’d be disgracing the title of Magic Tower Master. How could he fail to recognize this?"
Madam showed an expression that said it would be strange not to know, and drained her glass before me.
"Honestly, isn't sensing mana circuits a privilege of the elves?"
"Oh, come on~ Even a human can do that much once they reach Level 8, right?"
Madam tapped her wrist with a languid expression and mentioned the artifact hidden in her sleeve.
"You would have noticed it right away too, if not for that. The force suppressing it is suspiciously strong."
"Even without that, it's not easy since I've dropped to Level 5."
"That's tough. What were the conditions for your release?"
"That's a secret."
Madam chuckled and tilted her head back and forth for a long moment.
It seemed she was guessing what kind of conditions I'd accepted.
"Are you cleaning up after someone?"
"I'm not sure."
"Any hints?"
"I doubt I can give one."
At that, she pouted her lips and, as a sign of protest, filled my glass to the brim with whiskey.
Then she lightly clinked my glass and spoke in a low voice.
"This makes the fourth."
"Isn’t that a bit much just because it’s the last glass?"
"I was just collecting what we drank before. You expected this much, didn't you?"
I was hoping to comfortably finish my last glass and get up...
The final question seemed to be asking again if a greedy man could embrace two girls.
Madam grinned broadly and put a finger to her chin.
"So? Can you do it?"
"It won't be easy. But I must do it."
It definitely wouldn’t be easy to pull off.
Regardless, I would not stop, and would keep moving forward.
I didn't want to repeat my previous life, which had ended in regret.
I carefully lifted it so the whiskey wouldn't spill on the table.
Without stopping, I drank it all.
"Oh my. Seems you're serious."
This much should have been more than enough to convey my firm resolve.
Madam seemed not to have expected me to act this way, covering her mouth with wide eyes.
I barely endured the heat spreading through my body as I stood up.
"Already leaving?"
"Flora will be worried, so I'll be going. It was a great help, thank you."
"Okay. Good luck. See you next time."
Madam softly waved her hand at me.
I waved back and stepped out of the Magic Device Shop.
Lifting my head, I looked at the already darkening sky and let out a deep breath.
"It was satisfying, aside from the world swaying a little."
Flora, Ayla, and the Academy.
Thanks to Madam, the wave of tasks that had surged in had quietly subsided.
Since my stage of operations had become the Academy, the Magic Tower, the cradle of mages, seemed hard to avoid.
With a presentation scheduled, it was only a matter of time before I stepped into the Magic Tower.
Until then, rather than blindly dealing with Ayla's matter alone, it was right to hear the truth from the Magic Tower Master and act accordingly.
Therefore, I planned to prioritize Flora.
In the meantime, I would teach my assigned students and make every preparation I could.
I was already looking forward to the Running Crew with the new members starting tomorrow.
"It’s been a while since I felt like having a proper run."
I stretched out and took a step forward.
Maybe because the tension was gone, a drowsy feeling washed over me.
My body staggered briefly, but I caught my balance.
If I went back like this, Flora would obviously smack me for drinking too much...
But sometimes, a day to put down your burdens was necessary.
I chuckled involuntarily.
"Let's go back quickly."
With that resolution, I moved my feet forward in a good mood.
* * *
The next day, at dawn.
The Running Crew started without fail that day as well.
Because I got caught up in Madam's pace yesterday, the hangover remained, but it was bearable.
If I skipped after coming this far, I'd only break my momentum.
Since there were new members starting that day, I decided to set out a little earlier than usual.
Just as I finished my brief preparations and was about to leave, Flora swiftly blocked the doorway.
"Boss, I have a favor to ask."
"What is it?"
"I mean, please drink just a little less next time."
"Ah, ahem... Sorry."
What on earth did I do yesterday?
No matter how hard I searched my memory banks, I just couldn't recall.
My last memory was cut off after leaving the shop Madam ran.
I gave up on the idea of running away.
Preparing myself for a slap on the back from Flora, I asked carefully.
"Did I do something weird, by any chance?"
"No. It wasn't anything like that."
There was an odd shyness in her movements.
I didn't know what to make of the way she seemed to draw close while still keeping her distance.
"Ah, there's one more thing..."
"Huh? Tell me."
Flora took a deep breath and then said,
"Next time, please drink with me. Just the two of us."
In that moment, one conviction flashed through my mind.
'I definitely screwed up.'
To let it pass quietly, I had no choice but to nod.