The Fruit of Wisdom (5)
I learned something while teaching people. Teaching someone is an incredibly frustrating task. To put it in perspective, it's like watching someone crawl and fumble their way along a path I've already walked. What usually comes to mind in that moment? It's simple. 'Why are they crawling when they could just walk?'
A frog doesn't remember its tadpole days. It can't recall that it once crawled and fumbled too, so it just stares in frustration at the person climbing in the exact same way it once did. Of course, I was still a tadpole that hadn't become a frog yet. Naturally, I understood Noah's feelings one hundred percent. It was just... frustrating.
In times like that, eating a lightning bolt would be really effective....
“Master.”
“Go ahead.”
“No matter how much I think about it, eating magic doesn't seem like it would help with training at all.”
So frustrating. So very frustrating. Was this how Kelton felt every time he looked at me? Though Kelton never nagged me not to eat magic, did he? Hmm. Well, there are people like Kelton in this world. I suppose I should understand that Noah doesn't eat magic.
“But lightly shocking your body with lightning would be good, right? Just lightly. Only lightly.”
“You're probably the first master in history to recommend something like that to their disciple.”
“I doubt I'm the first.”
There must be others somewhere. They're just rare.
“If you don't like that, at least use static electricity.”
“I'm already doing that.”
Noah kept going through the process of directly savoring fragments of lightning with static electricity and observing them with his eyes. How much time had passed like that? Noah's breathing grew ragged. His mana had run dry.
Thinking this was perfect, I urged him on.
“Squeeze it all out. Don't leave a single drop of mana behind.”
“Okay.”
One of Noah's strengths was that he followed my instructions without complaint. Ah, as long as it wasn't strange things. In Noah's mind, eating lightning or shocking his body with it was categorized as strange behavior.
A moment later. After one final crackle of light static electricity, no more lightning flowed from Noah's body. That was the signal.
“In that state, try using magic one more time. The amount of mana will increase noticeably.”
“You want me to use it again... in this state?”
“The important thing is willpower. In my case, I focused on the reason I absolutely had to use magic in that state. Don't you have a reason like that, Noah? Something that makes you absolutely need to become stronger?”
“......”
Noah's eyes sank. It seemed he did have a plausible reason after all. Unlike how he'd refused at first saying he wasn't interested in magic, the fact that he was so diligent once he started learning seemed related.
Noah gritted his teeth and activated the magic. Pouring in all his longing, desire, anger, and sorrow with desperate fervor.
“......”
“......”
“It's not working?”
“It isn't?”
But it failed. The magic didn't even leave a trace. Sitting down on the ground, Noah asked,
“Is this even supposed to work?”
“I did it. Almost every day, in fact.”
“Really?”
Did my words give him strength? Noah focused on using magic once more. He concentrated on his memories, searching for a reason he had to use magic even in this exhausted state where he wanted to collapse immediately. Eventually, Noah's eyes glowed with a dark light. He'd found his reason.
And then.
“......”
“......”
“It's not working?”
“It isn't?”
It failed again. But that was understandable. This wasn't an ordinarily difficult task. This mana training was, to use a metaphor, like being told to stand up when every muscle in your body had been torn apart. Humans are mysterious creatures. Sometimes, people do stand up even when every muscle is torn. If their child is in danger, someone might rise even then. But that doesn't mean it's something you can do whenever you want. It's only possible in extreme situations, when you squeeze out extreme willpower. Asking someone to do that in everyday life was an unreasonable request from the start.
“Let's give up on mana training. It's strange that it would even work, so don't be too discouraged.”
“But you did it, Master.”
“That's because I'm special.”
I puffed out my chest, and Chris whispered from the side.
“As you probably know, Noah, Lady Ruina is a strange person. You shouldn't try to copy that.”
“I understand.”
This succubus. She'd already gotten close to the pure paladin Leon, and now she was trying to sink her claws into my disciple too? That wouldn't do.
“Keep your hands off my magic storage! Succubus!”
“Lady Ruina. I'm not a succubus. And Noah said it wasn't a magic storage.”
“It was a joke.”
Do I really look like the kind of person who would steal her disciple's magic? It was obviously meant to be funny. Everyone, please laugh. Thank you.
I ordered Noah to rest and left Elera's workshop. The weather was nice. It was cold because it was winter, but clear. I took in the pure white world covered in snow, then pulled out my pipe.
Chik.
I lit the pipe, exhaled a long stream of smoke, and muttered.
“Where did Sir Jerry go? It's lonely without him.”
Jerry was currently going around the village with Leon, gathering information related to the Holy Grail. The Witch of Wisdom didn't seem connected to the Holy Grail, but just in case. We were investigating every possibility. The reason I called for Jerry despite knowing that was, again, just in case. I thought if I called his name, he'd pop out saying, 'Yes? Me?' I wasn't sure when that image had gotten attached to Jerry, or even when he'd naturally joined us, but wouldn't that be just like him? Unfortunately, it wasn't.
“You're the type who wants to leave traces in clean places.”
A voice came from behind. It was Elera. I kept my gaze fixed on the village and spoke.
“It's not that I have that kind of desire, but I don't mind doing it.”
“It's the same thing. How is Noah doing?”
“He's following along well.”
In just a few days, Noah had reached the First Circle. The average was usually a week, so compared to me who took a whole month, it was clearly a fast pace. He might not be a genius, but he'd at least be a prodigy. Honestly, the moment he was born with the lightning attribute, he was already far from ordinary.
“I thought he'd be the same type as me, but it's a shame.”
“Don't turn Noah into a lunatic.”
“All mages are lunatics, aren't they?”
“I'm saying don't make him an especially insane one among them.”
How demanding. I'll try, but you know raising a disciple doesn't always go as planned, right? It won't matter what you say later, so just remember that.
Elera said,
“About Noah.”
“You're suddenly going to tell me about Noah's past here? Shouldn't I hear that from his own mouth later?”
“His parents died.”
I knew it. It would have been strange if his parents were alive and well but he came to Elera's house every day.
“How did it happen?”
“The village was attacked by priests of the Evil God.”
Priests of the Evil God. A name I kept hearing. These guys really butt into everything.
“Fortunately, many people survived thanks to a passing Archmage, but unfortunately, Noah's parents weren't among them.”
“Was that Archmage you, Lady Elera?”
“Who would call themselves an Archmage and gild their own reputation? Especially someone without the skill to back it up.”
“I do it.”
Specifically, I'd said I was a talent who would soon become an Archmage. Elera let out a small sigh.
“I wonder if it's okay to leave Noah with someone like this.”
“Then why are you getting involved, Lady Elera? From what I've heard so far, there's no point where Noah would feel any affection toward you.”
“I was there next to that Archmage. So I took in Noah, who had nowhere to go as an orphan, and brought him to this village. Leaving him with the village chief was an added bonus.”
“So there was a story like that.”
Then it made sense why Noah felt grateful toward Elera. The one who saved his life was the Archmage, but the one who gave him a life afterward was Elera.
“What was that Archmage's name?”
“Why do you ask?”
“I'm curious.”
“It's someone you know too.”
Adelian Croft. It's you again. Just how active is this person? They keep showing up everywhere.
“Noah has nowhere to go. No place to stay. He's a pitiful child.”
“After my master died, I ran away from my family home, so I'm in a similar situation. Nice to meet you.”
“Keep this in mind. Noah has nowhere to go.”
“Lady Elera.”
“What is it?”
“So why are you suddenly telling me this?”
I'd been curious from the start, but her expression was so serious that I only asked now.
“......”
“Is there some reason?”
“......”
“You have a reason but don't want to say it? I know one of the three things you shouldn't do to a prophet mage. 'Don't ask a prophet mage for reasons. If they don't tell you, it's because it involves the future.' Right?”
“If you know, then stop asking.”
Elera answered in a curt voice and went back into the house. I followed her inside. Then I called for Chris.
“Miss Chris. Please prepare some food that warms the heart.”
“Why?”
“There's a reason.”
After hearing Elera's words, a good idea came to me. This should make Noah awaken and his mana would surge.
*
“Master. Do you have no human heart?”
It failed. Noah made an incredulous face and went back home. I hung my head. I won't write in detail what I did that caused it to fail. My heart hurts too much for that.
“But the attempt was good, right?”
“That's not what I told you to do... haa.”
It wasn't? Then you should have said so.