The Unwanted Talent
Please, let me have no talent... I had possessed the body of someone in a fantasy world. It was just another day, sitting through a lecture, when it happened.
"Kyle!"
I snapped my eyes open at the sudden roar, only to find the white-haired priest glaring at me with eyes that seemed to be burning with rage. I blinked, completely lost.
"Yes?"
"You have some nerve, daring to sleep in my class!"
"I really wasn't sleeping..."
"Then what were you doing?"
"I was just closing my eyes."
"Is that supposed to be an excuse? Stand out in the hallway!"
Just like that, I was kicked out into the corridor. We were learning basic arithmetic that even an eight-year-old could master. As a man who had lived in modern society, wasn't it perfectly normal to close one's eyes and meditate?
"Sigh..."
I was a tired office worker in my past life, and after falling asleep, I woke up possessed by this fourteen-year-old boy in another world. Honestly, I was satisfied with the appearance, but everything else was a disappointment. How could I take basic math like multiplication and division seriously? A month had passed, but I still couldn't believe this reality, and I rubbed my face in frustration.
Of course, it wasn't all boring classes; there were some interesting ones. History was quite fascinating. It was like reading a novel, with the world-building of this fantasy realm laid out exactly as it was.
Ding-dong—
The bell signaling the end of class rang. As soon as the sound echoed, the children began to dash out of the classroom. I waited for them to leave before heading inside to pack my things, when Arhan called my name.
"Kyle! Did you doze off in class again?"
For a kid who was barely taller than an elementary student, he sure had a booming voice. It seemed all his nutrients went straight to his vocal cords. Aside from his height, he was a decent-looking guy and a fellow orphan like me. Arhan was the model student, the kind you’d see in modern society too. At fourteen, we were just on the verge of becoming adults, as people were considered adults at fifteen here.
"We're almost adults, how long are you going to act like a kid?"
"I only closed my eyes, but the priest misunderstood on his own."
"What's the difference? You follow the lessons well enough, Kyle, but you still need to show some manners before you become an adult!"
There were twenty-eight students in total. Even if I took first place among them, it didn't feel that great. Competing against children who were so much younger—if I lost, it was embarrassing, and if I won, it was just expected.
"Closing your eyes in class is still wrong. Right? Don't you think?"
Honestly, I had no one on my side. I made a gesture as if to flick his forehead, and Arhan raised his arms to block it. He flinched for a second, then frowned and swatted my hand away. It was a quick and excellent reaction for his age.
"What are you doing all of a sudden?"
"Compare it carefully."
The fact that he couldn't tell the difference between sleeping and just closing one's eyes... I decided to use my hands to teach him the exact difference.
"What is it? You want to have a staring contest?"
I glared at Arhan for a long time. Just as he went into a defenseless state, looking at me with suspicion, wondering what I was up to!
Thwack!
My fist landed directly on Arhan's head.
"See? It's definitely different, right?"
I thought this was the perfect way to show the difference between sleeping and just closing one's eyes.
"Ouch! What the hell are you doing!"
"Exactly. That's how I feel."
"Phew... today is a good day, so I'll let it slide!"
"Come to think of it..."
I remembered the nun saying that Imperial mages would be visiting the village. The reason for their visit was clearly to find children with the talent to manipulate mana. Honestly, I wasn't interested at all. In a world like this, having talent for mana meant putting your life on the line. I had been planning to hide carefully, but Arhan looked at me with curiosity.
"Kyle, do you hope you don't have mana talent? If you have talent, you could become a noble! Or maybe even a famous Archmage!"
Hearing that, I debated hitting him one more time. As Arhan said, having mana talent in this world meant success. I understood why kids like Arhan admired it. But he only knew one part and was completely ignorant of the rest. In my opinion, it was a truly dangerous path.
"What's so good about having talent?"
I decided to hear him out first.
"You could become a noble..."
"No, Arhan."
To be precise, having mana talent didn't automatically mean becoming a noble. There was a process or a 'single word' missing in between. If you had 'outstanding' talent at the Academy and graduated with top honors, maybe you could become a noble. I admit the probability was decent. But if you were born with mediocre mana, you'd only have a chance after surviving the battlefield. Even if a commoner orphan had innate potential, it wouldn't be easy to stand out against nobles who had already finished advanced studies at the Academy. Those noble brats who thought they were something special would have already finished their prep work and would be positioned at the level of upperclassmen. Breaking through that ceiling... well, that's a fantasy even for a fantasy world.
Did my passionate speech reach Arhan?
"Still, I want to dream. I want to find my parents..."
"Ah."
When he brought up his parents, I had nothing left to say. If I had told him this much, I had done my duty as a friend. I told Arhan I wished him the best of luck and turned to leave to find a place to hide, but someone grabbed my sleeve. I turned back to see Arhan throwing a tantrum for the first time.
"Let go."
"Please! Come with me! Yeah?"
"Please, let me go!"
"Why! It's good to get it checked, right?"
"I told you to let go while I'm asking nicely!"
Just then, the nun walked toward the hallway and smiled brightly.
"Oh my! Kyle, Arhan, you were here!"
"..."
"Sister, I was holding onto Kyle! Did I do well?"
"Why were you holding Kyle? I don't know what it's about, but you did well!"
The nun patted Arhan's head as if he were precious. Feeling good, Arhan giggled, hugged the nun, and said, "Sister, I'll make sure to make you happy!"
"I'll be looking forward to it."
In that warm atmosphere, I had no choice but to remain silent. Since it had come to this, I could only hope that I had no talent for mana. I held one of the nun's hands and slowly headed toward the city square outside. As we approached, the crowd grew, and I could see the excited expressions on the children's faces.
"Oh, God..."
After saving me, if there is any prayer of mine left, please save them too. I prayed with all my heart, calling upon God for the first time in my life. If I had mana talent, please, I begged, take it away from me. While I started praying in the line, the nun and Arhan began to pray as well.
"May the children have mana talent..."
"May Kyle and I have mana talent..."
Damn it. They were wishing for the exact opposite of me. I heard God was fair, but he was lacking in numbers. He wouldn't consider majority rule and grant the wish of the larger group, would he? Eventually, the people in front of me disappeared, and it was my turn. A crystal ball was placed in front of me, and as I faced it, I couldn't help but swallow hard. One of the Imperial mages muttered in a low voice, looking bored.
"Name."
"Kyle."
"Place your hand on it."
"..."
I nodded and placed my hand on the sphere, and a streak of purple light began to take shape. This meant only one thing. I had the damn talent for mana. The Imperial mage smiled and gestured toward the back. Looking in that direction, I saw several carriages.
"Go to the carriages."
The guy who had been gesturing so lazily suddenly used a polite tone, which made me feel incredibly uneasy.
"Yes..."
I looked back, and Arhan, who was next in line, was looking at me with envious eyes. Then, as if he had made up his mind, he clenched his fist and shouted confidently as he walked out.
"I'll follow you soon, Kyle!"
"Sure..."
Please don't come. God, if you are there, please, at least save that guy. After finishing my prayer, I waited by the carriages, and Arhan came over, waving his arms in excitement. It seemed he had passed.
"Sigh..."
As soon as I saw him, I let out a deep sigh. God did not exist in this world.
After the final evaluations were completed, the carriages began to roll out onto the dirt road.
Clatter—
Inside the carriage, which shook occasionally as it hit stones, Arhan just stared at the scenery outside as if he had been looking forward to this for days. Arhan, who had been staring blankly at the landscape, turned his head and smiled brightly.
"Kyle. You have to work hard. Always stay healthy."
"Huh?"
His tone was a bit strange. We were going to see each other all the time, so why did it sound like he was saying goodbye?
"Let's both succeed and meet again!"
Well, I suppose it was possible we'd be in different classes, so the frequency of our meetings might decrease.
"Since it's come to this, I guess I'll have to work hard. It'll be tough to keep up with the students' levels, but let's do our best."
The carriage came to a stop. I had thought we would arrive soon since the forests were disappearing and fields were appearing, but the coachman gestured for the children in the back to get off.
"You can get off here!"
I watched them get off one by one with smiles on their faces, and eventually, even Arhan got off, leaving only me in the carriage. As I moved to get off, the coachman told me to sit back down.
"Wait a moment. You need to go a little further."
"Am I not getting off?"
"Yes. Everyone getting off here has already left."
"What's the reason?"
Why wasn't I getting off? Was I being sent straight to the battlefield? The only fortunate thing was that Arhan got off right in front of the Academy. In the case of the Academy, there were quite a few nobles. Below them were the majority of commoners. The problem was that we were commoners, but commoners without parents. It wasn't just the nobles who divided people by class; commoners did the same. Well... I wasn't in a position to worry about anyone else.
"We're just hired hands, so who knows."
"Kyle! You must write to me when you arrive!"
Arhan shouted in a loud voice with teary eyes, and the carriage started moving again, sliding forward.
"What on earth is going on?"
How did Arhan know I was being assigned somewhere else? I tore open the fabric separating the coachman's seat from the cargo area and asked.
"Sir, do you happen to know where I'm going?"
"You're going to the Imperial Royal Academy, aren't you? Didn't you get the notice?"
Why on earth would I be going there?