Chapter 80
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 80
Chapter Title: A Token of Gratitude
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“Yeah.”
“We can all go together?”
“Of course. We’ve got more than one villa. Just let me know in advance.”
“Oh. Sounds good.”
Daniel nodded and turned to Abel.
“What do you think?”
“Works for me. I don’t have any plans set in stone anyway.”
“Then it’s settled. I’ll check with the others.”
“Yeah. I’ll let my side know too. Shouldn’t be any issues.”
With that, the trip talk wrapped up, and light chatter followed.
As they walked and talked, they soon reached the dorm entrance. Before heading in, Hena spoke up.
“Abel. Can we talk for a sec?”
“Huh? About what?”
Hena glanced at Daniel, then said,
“Not here. Just us.”
“Oh…….”
Daniel, who’d been listening quietly, caught on and started backing away.
“I’ll head in first! See you at the training room!”
Daniel slipped inside before anyone could stop him. Abel turned back to Hena.
“Let’s sit over there and talk.”
“Okay.”
They walked over and sat on the benches near the dorm.
Silence fell.
Hena, who’d asked to talk first, wasn’t saying anything.
Abel had a pretty good guess why she’d pulled him aside, so he didn’t push.
It took Hena a while to finally speak.
“That…… back then. You helped me, right?”
“Oh, yeah.”
Abel nodded.
Hena probably didn’t remember the details clearly.
She’d been out cold from the rampage for a long time, and even after waking, she was in a daze.
She’d remember holding hands and running, though.
Hena fidgeted with her lips for a moment, then bowed her head deeply.
“……Thanks.”
“Huh?”
Abel turned at the faint sound, locking eyes with Hena, who’d lifted her head.
“Thanks. For helping me.”
“Oh, uh. It was nothing.”
“It was something. I don’t remember much, but I know I was this close to dying.”
“Well, yeah…….”
“That’s what I wanted to say. And this.”
Hena pulled something from her pocket and handed it to Abel.
It was a small box—heavy, so something solid inside.
“Open it later inside.”
“Got it.”
Abel didn’t refuse.
Hena watched him pocket it, then let out a relieved sigh and stood.
“Sorry for holding you up. See you tomorrow!”
“Yeah. Night.”
“Right!”
Hena jumped up and hurried off.
Abel watched her go, then slowly stood and headed in himself.
Back in his room soon after, Abel pulled out the box and opened it.
Click-.
Inside the opened box was a metal ornament.
“This is…….”
Abel recognized it right away.
Commonly called a talisman—a kind of protective charm.
Said to bring luck or protection to its owner.
“A talisman, huh.”
Abel slipped it into his inner jacket pocket instead of putting it back.
That whole incident wasn’t just for Hena’s sake.
He’d mostly wanted to stop it from turning into a bigger disaster.
Still, getting thanks like this didn’t feel bad.
Abel smiled faintly.
* * *
“Phew.”
Back in her dorm room, Hena let out a sigh of relief.
Like she’d just wrapped up something huge.
She stood by the door for a bit, then flopped onto her bed, mumbling.
“Did he…… see it?”
It’d been over ten minutes since she’d thanked Abel and given him the gift.
He was probably back in his room by now. And he’d have opened the box, no doubt.
‘He saw it.’
Hena fidgeted with her fingers.
It wasn’t her first time thanking someone or giving a gift, but her heart was pounding anyway.
Of course, she knew exactly why. Crystal clear.
‘That day…….’
After the incident.
Hena had to go through a physical exam and all sorts of investigations right away.
The official story was different, but she’d been the cause.
She remembered it.
‘I suddenly felt dizzy.’
Her heart raced weirdly, and then an uncontrollable power surged from inside.
Panicked, she’d fought to control it with everything she had, but failed.
The longer it went, the weaker she got, her mind fogging until she couldn’t do anything.
In that despair, as she lost consciousness.
She saw a bright light.
A radiant glow.
It wrapped her warmly and whispered in her ear.
-Hena.
The voice was thick with worry.
The anxiety crushing her vanished right after.
The voice kept talking to her, and she’d responded somehow.
‘I don’t remember the exact words.’
She’d tried recalling the conversation later, but nothing came.
She did remember her mind clearing up the more they talked.
And when she finally snapped out of it.
Abel was there.
-Hena! You okay?
That voice—it was the one that pulled her from the darkness.
“Ughhh.”
Hena curled up, groaning as she pictured Abel from then.
Weirdly, thinking of him always did this.
Her face flushed, heart pounding like crazy. Even her fingertips tingled.
She’d tried brushing it off as nothing, but seeing him again today confirmed it.
It was something.
Just a simple greeting had her heart racing.
Talking in front of the dorm, she’d felt like hiding—her face burning.
Recalling it now, Hena buried her face in her pillow.
Somehow, she had a feeling sleep wouldn’t come easy tonight either.
* * *
Weekend morning.
Abel finished breakfast and headed straight out to the front of the dorm building.
He had plans today.
‘Not here yet?’
Still time before the meetup, so Abel stood off to the side, gazing at the sky.
Not a cloud in sight—perfectly clear.
‘Great weather for heading out.’
Not exactly a trip, but the nice day lifted his mood.
“Abel.”
Lost in thought, he heard a familiar voice nearby.
Looking down, Iolin stood there.
“Yeah. Morning.”
“Morning.”
Iolin gave a light greeting, then pointed outside.
“Shall we?”
“Let’s go.”
Abel fell into step beside her.
Walking side by side toward the carriage stop, sure enough, eyes followed from all around.
‘Can’t avoid it…….’
Iolin went without saying, but Abel drew plenty of attention too.
When it came to Gigants, he was undeniably the top first-year.
People were getting used to seeing them train together in the field, but out here, walking together, all eyes locked on them.
‘Gotta get used to this attention.’
Considering his goals, the spotlight would only grow, not fade.
He’d gotten better at hiding it outwardly, but the pressure lingered.
As he thought that, quiet Iolin spoke up.
“Abel.”
“Yeah?”
“Anything lacking in your recent training?”
Sudden question, but Abel answered easily.
“Nah. I’m actually pretty satisfied.”
Iolin had taught him mana control; he’d taught her swordsmanship.
Her lessons were mostly spars, which helped Abel a ton.
“I’ve got some real combat experience, but I was weak on fundamentals.”
“Hmm. Yeah, I got that vibe.”
“Right?”
Some think battle-honed swordplay is the best.
Totally wrong—deeply misguided.
‘Swordsmanship wouldn’t have evolved otherwise.’
If combat was tops, long-time mercenaries would crush most knights.
But that doesn’t happen.
Swordsmanship is all about researching efficient ways to drop foes.
Abel’s skills had gaps there.
He knew a few techniques, but couldn’t compare to Iolin, trained systematically since childhood.
Iolin spoke slowly.
“But your techniques aren’t just tricks. They’ve felt threatening plenty of times.”
“Thanks. Means a lot.”
“I mean it.”
She paused after her short reply, then continued.
“Then, anything lacking when I taught you?”
“When you taught me?”
“Yeah.”
She nodded slightly.
“Handling mana isn’t easy. Fine for swordplay, but…….”
“Hmm.”
Abel got it right away.
Iolin’s mana talent was solid—upper tier, even.
Problem was, the academy was packed with prodigies.
‘Iolin’s sword and Gigant talents are top-class. Mana’s mid-to-high.’
Others had monstrous mana gifts.
Like Hena.
She hadn’t shone yet, but her potential was insane.
‘She’ll end up lugging siege mana cannons around later.’
No wonder Iolin felt impatient.
She was competitive by nature.
“For Gigant riders, mana control matters for two reasons.”
Abel explained calmly.
“First, operation time. Use it efficiently, and the same amount lasts longer, more stably. What’s the second?”
“Instant burst power…… right?”
“Exactly. Long operation just needs more mana capacity. Burst is different.”
Probably why Iolin struggled with mana control.
Abel nailed it and kept going.
“I’ve been focusing on basics, so it must feel frustrating.”
“N-No, it’s not.”
“It is. For now, I’ll drill burst power. Basics still need separate practice, though.”
“……Thanks.”
Abel grinned at her gratitude.
“No prob. Let’s focus on real artifacts for burst today, then.”
“Got it. Oh, carriage is there.”
Chatting as they walked, the stop was right ahead.
Abel boarded the carriage Iolin had arranged, and soon it rolled out of the academy.
Their first outing beyond the walls was just beginning.