The World Is Not Equal
After coaxing Lirith for a long while, her sobbing finally quieted. The sight of her sleeping soundly, like a tired child who had worn herself out from tantrums, was heartwarming.
I prodded her cheek with a finger, poking it lightly a few times to tease her awake, then rose from my seat.
If our minds were truly aligned, I would have stayed by her side until she woke, but it was time to check the new skill.
Heading to the training grounds had crossed my mind, but there were too many eyes watching there.
In the end, my feet carried me to the academy garden.
The cold night air settled pleasantly over the garden, where not a single trace of anyone could be felt.
I debated where to test the first skill I was using, Magic Inscription, and picked up a suitable pebble.
At that moment, I muttered “Magic Inscription” in my mind.
Whoosh.
Blood trickled down.
Eh?
The world in front of my eyes began to flicker.
And then came the pain, as if something was stabbing my brain with a needle.
I collapsed to the ground without even a scream, overwhelmed by the excruciating agony.
Something supported my body, and the dizziness in my head slowly eased.
Strange characters began floating in my mind.
They weren’t of this world.
Even though I had never seen them before, they felt as familiar as if I had always known them.
Some time passed, and the pain gradually subsided.
I wiped away the blood, slowly rose to my feet, and the tingling sensation from the pebble I was still gripping pulled my thoughts back to reality.
I slowly reviewed the usage methods of the skill that had appeared in my mind.
After that, I gripped the pebble and gathered the mana of the surrounding air in front of my eyes.
According to my will, the mana that had gathered before me began to engrave characters denoting explosion into the air.
ᛖᚲᛊᛈᛚᛟᛋᛁᛟᚾ
With a brilliant blue glow, the string of characters that had lingered in the air descended onto the pebble.
It settled there like a simple gray drawing, as if the aura had been drained away.
Yet I could sense that it was far more than mere scribbles.
When I poured mana from my hand gripping the pebble, the engraved characters began to glow with blue light once more.
With all my strength, I hurled them into the air.
BOOM!
The pebble exploded into pieces in the air and detonated with a resounding crash.
Even though I had thrown it quite far, the heat reached my standing position.
“Shit.”
It was also an impression of the skill that had turned a mere pebble into explosive power on par with a grenade…
“Who… who is it!”
“Intruder!”
It meant trouble if I got caught.
Without savoring the explosion’s power, I hastily fled the spot.
Worse images were out of the question, after all.
..Of course, even if worse images existed here, that was a separate issue.
***
It was clear…!
Serena’s guess had become a certainty.
Caron had suddenly collapsed as if he had caught anemia.
The blood he had spilled and the cold sweat dripping down.
And the inexplicable magic with that terrifying power.
A skill of unknown origin that had turned a mere pebble into explosive magic power in one breath.
Serena felt goosebumps all over her body at the sight.
And she calmly thought.
What on earth was he willing to sacrifice his life for.
The paths he showed after changing.
He had saved her on the measurement day.
He had protected his maid.
And… he had confronted Adrian for the sake of female students.
Everything pointed to one thing.
He was acting for women.
But why?
Serena quickly recalled her memories.
Even while using mana that he had only used when swinging a sword.
And she remembered a few remarks.
“That girl is special.”
“Talent.”
The blunt words he had spat out.
In the end, all of them had been helpful to her.
“Could it be… me!?”
Serena’s face flushed as red as her hair.
She shook her head, convincing herself it was due to excessive mana use.
She didn’t know what he was moving for or what lay at the end of that path, but…
“It must still be right to help.”
To keep him from deviating.
To not push him too hard.
Of course, her own selfishness had entered the judgment a little, but…
“There is still a debt of gratitude to him.”
She muttered to herself to convince herself.
By the time the girl’s resolve solidified, the voices of the guards rang out nearby.
“Explosion traces detected!”
At that voice, Serena snapped back to her senses and hurriedly fled the spot.
She hated receiving groundless misunderstandings, after all.
***
“Yesterday, the guards discovered traces of an explosion in the garden. Many students said they heard the sound as well.”
Next day, during Magic Academy class, the professor was staring at me intently as usual.
“Do you have no knowledge of this, top student?”
Damn… Is the professor a ghost?
I answered calmly, hiding the bored expression.
“No? I have no idea at all.”
Lie or Truth
The status window that appeared before my eyes became a shield hiding Adrian’s expression.
He stared at me for a moment, then began class as if his interest had faded.
The content of the lesson was similar to yesterday’s, but easy parts were mixed among the difficult ones.
Of course, for me it was all difficult…
When I shifted my gaze to Lirith, she was nodding her head and diligently taking notes.
It was the complete opposite of yesterday’s panicked expression.
A strange sense of pride that I had done something welled up.
Eventually, Lirith drew a small, tightly wound blue magic circle with her tiny hands.
The mana output was insufficient, but looking at the shape of the circle, her magical sense was clearly excellent.
..Unlike everyone else.
Hah.
I swallowed my sigh and reached out to gather mana near Lirith’s magic circle.
To make it easier for her to draw the circle a little.
Well, it wasn’t for the points.
Recently, simply being kind to Lirith hadn’t been bringing in points anymore.
I just wanted to help because her focused appearance was cute.
Of course, I did have the expectation that if she became stronger, my life would get easier…
With a slightly bored expression, I watched a small spark appear from her magic circle and gave her a thumbs-up.
Lirith smiled bashfully, as if she had sensed it was a good sign.
Her eyes were sparkling, probably because the red light from the spark shone on her.
***
Time flew by quickly.
After listening to the lecture and reviewing, I repeated the creation of magic tools using Magic Inscription during free time.
Of course, I engraved them on Lirith’s clothes too, not forgetting the secrecy for her abilities.
Watching her happily put on the new clothes, it felt strangely satisfying, though it wasn’t the intention.
From what I had felt in the meantime, Magic Inscription was a skill to “engrave concepts.”
Creating clothes that maintained a constant body temperature and exploding paper was evidence.
I seriously considered engraving “reinforcement” on my damn body, but I postponed that for now.
I didn’t know what effect directly engraving on a living being would have.
Anyway, the weekend came three days later.
According to academy rules, weekends allowed free outings, so I began preparing to leave.
I had to move diligently to find Rachel Goldwin, who would become my limbs.
“I have the money and clothes… and magic tools to prepare for any possible bloodshed.”
I searched through my pockets, checked that all items were inside, and gave a short greeting to Lirith sitting on the bed.
“Then I’ll be back.”
She had her head bowed low, clearly disappointed.
It was only natural, after I had warned her several times not to follow.
Honestly, it would have been nice if there was someone to talk to on the way, but I couldn’t bring her to a place where any danger might be.
Just visiting the baron’s house was already a hassle… but it would still be safer than the academy.
“Take care of the house and practice magic diligently.”
It was a line I might say to a cat when leaving home.
But it suited the current situation, since Lirith’s appearance was so similar to that of a cat blocking her master’s return.
***
The carriage ride was still miserably uncomfortable.
If there were no eyes watching, I would have wanted to tear the carriage apart with Magic Inscription.
I clicked my tongue and began to seriously ponder a way to convince Rachel.
Using status difference to press her down?
It would be the easiest method, but also the most dangerous.
I didn’t want the Rachel who would become my information network to betray me.
..Sweet talk?
Honestly, it seemed possible just from looks, but I was Caron.
The author of the book 223 Ways to Torment Women.
Well, the second method was even more hopeless.
Well… is this the only option?
Monopoly on sales rights for magic tools made through Magic Inscription.
If it was enough, she would likely agree to the deal.
While I was still pondering, the academy carriage reached the baron’s gate.
It wasn’t on par with the ducal mansion, but a wide, grand building appeared.
It looked like it had been adorned with multicolored jewels.
I briefly debated what to say to get it opened, then headed for the gate.
And that turned out to be completely useless pondering.
When I reached the gate, the guards,
“Lord Rudaipe!”
“Make way!”
Bent at a ninety-degree angle, they opened the gate.
This… is this really allowed?
I was a near-terrorist with a bomb stuffed in my pocket?
Well, since it was advantageous in the situation, I walked in calmly without arguing.
The moment I stepped onto the garden connecting to the gate, a woman with golden hair and green eyes ran out.
Rachel Goldwin.
She looked exactly as I had seen in the setting book.
The strange thing was that she was wearing maid attire.
‘Did she have this hobby?’
While I was wondering, she lowered her head and asked.
“It is an honor to meet Lord Rudaipe. May I ask what brings you to this humble place?”
Since I couldn’t say “I came to see you,” I turned the words around.
“I came to find Rachel Goldwin.”
“..!”
A moment of surprise passed over the girl who had lowered her head.
When I stared at Rachel,
“Miss Rachel is currently away. Please have mercy… ”
..Eh?