Reunions Doubled (4)

I lay on my bed, fiddling with the blue stone. It looked like an expensive gem at a glance, but in truth, it was far more valuable than the trinkets noblewomen used for decoration.

'A mana core.'

A mana core was essentially a storage unit filled with mana. Even if a mage had depleted all their internal mana until they were completely empty, they could still cast spells as long as they had one of these. Of course, once the core lost its glow, it meant it was fully spent too.

'The world's come a long way.'

But these hadn't existed five hundred years ago. Mages back then could only draw on the mana inside their own bodies. Casting large-scale spells or chaining them together naturally drained their reserves, so they'd have to rest or meditate to refill.

Now, though, it was an era where you could extract mana from other creatures ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠or gather the tiny amounts scattered in nature to craft mana cores.

'And with them, endless possibilities for progress.'

A prime example was Father's mana-powered airship, plastered with countless cores to keep it afloat in the skies. Even the makeshift "magitech leash" that had controlled the giant serpent beast ran on one of these—the one Yustina had popped out and handed me, saying it wasn't needed for analysis. I had no idea what to do with it, though.

'Professor Dane mentioned self-blessings.'

Suddenly, it hit me: if I honed my skills further, I could use this core to keep layering blessing-type spells on myself nonstop. Thinking back to how Yustina had continuously reapplied the stamina blessing last time, it seemed like a real game-changer. Overcoming my chronic stamina issues with blessing magic? Huge.

That said, the fact that this core came from a leash designed to control beasts—or worse—left a bad taste. What kind of twisted mind cooked this up? If it could control humans too, not just beasts, things could get ugly fast.

'Gotta be careful.'

And then there was Elfin, popping up out of nowhere. Her showing up at the academy right now felt like the calm before a massive storm—I just couldn't shake the unease. The imperial family sending her was suspicious too, and I wondered what she'd been up to for the last five hundred years.

"Ugh."

But dwelling on Elfin was giving me a headache, so I decided to call it a night.

……Tomorrow was the first day of special class, and I still had no clue what to expect.

The six students for the special class had been decided.

Combat division: Konet and Yozef, as picked by Professor Perrin, plus me.

Magic division: Yustina and Charlotte from Professor Dane, along with a cat beastkin summoner named Gines.

Somehow, it ended up with all guys in combat and all girls in magic—like some mixer—but no one else seemed to notice except me.

"I'm just glad I made it—I didn't think I would…."

"You undervalue yourself too much."

"But Yuz-nim is on a whole other level from the other students, as you know, and Gines-nim is an amazing talent too. Compared to them, I'm barely scraping by…."

"No, you're not. Tsk. Anyway, that Gines girl seems pretty sharp too."

As I'd always thought since she was little, Charlotte was a naturally gifted mage. She might not have had formal training, but in defensive magic, she was untouchable.

I didn't know much about Gines, but comparing herself to Yustina—who was in a league of her own—felt kinda pitiful.

"Just do your best from here on out. Let's head out already."

Heading to the academy's back mountain for the special class with Charlotte, more than half the six students were already there.

Konet and Yozef were warming up diligently, while the cat beastkin Gines twitched her ears, peeking at the boys from behind her massive staff.

Yustina and Elfin hadn't arrived yet, it seemed.

'Elfin….'

While getting ready that morning, I'd pondered how to handle her. At least, I wasn't planning to pretend I didn't know her like I did with Yustina at first. I'd wanted to see both of them from the start; I'd just chickened out with Yustina briefly.

So this time, no point hiding that I wanted to see Elfin.

'I wonder if she talked to Yustina?'

Plus, if Yustina had told her about my reincarnation, Elfin would come knowing everything. Even if not, she'd recognize me in a heartbeat. No need to flash ancient script or shadow stealth techniques; she'd spot it just from my sword swings.

She'd had the strongest talent of anyone I'd seen back then, and after five hundred years? Unimaginable.

'She's definitely stronger now—maybe even dragon-level.'

That's when I sensed Elfin lurking in the brush. Her presence didn't pale next to dragon Yustina's at all.

Presence didn't always mean raw power, but Elfin could definitely hold her own against Yustina now. Worst case, if Yustina tried locking me in the academy forever, Elfin's help could change everything.

'I've already met Yustina and Elfin—Liwin next?'

Two of the three girls I'd longed to reunite with, check. But that didn't mean I could give up on the last one.

To find Liwin, I'd eventually need to leave the academy. And if Yustina blocked me—or worse, refused to even talk—I'd need backup.

Elfin's hand would be perfect.

"Everyone here?"

Right on cue, Elfin appeared—with Yustina trailing behind.

The boys' eyes went wide at her outfit: same as yesterday, just bandages wrapped around her bare torso. Thank goodness for the overcoat, or….

'How'd her fashion sense go off the rails like that?'

Five hundred years ago, she'd only worn what I gave her. What happened in my absence?

I shook my head with quiet regret.

"You all probably know, but I'm Elfin, the external guest professor handling your special class from today."

"Hmph, 'external guest' my foot…."

"Yuz… pfft, you go join the other students."

Yustina bumped shoulders with a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠few as she slipped in, sticking right by my side. Then she spotted me and pulled a sulky face.

Figures—she was the chairman pretending to be a student, busted by someone she knew. Embarrassing.

'Does that mean she can drop the student act now?'

She'd disguised herself to confirm if I was Dane, after all. Mission accomplished, right? Back to Chairman Yustina?

'Or did she get hooked on playing student?'

Ultimately, it was her call. These weren't the girls I'd had to spoon-feed five hundred years ago; they had their own minds. I'd let it slide.

"Yuz, Charlotte, Gines, Konet, Yozef, Deneb… good, all present."

Elfin quickly took roll and dove into the class intro.

"You've been briefed, but this special class is combat-focused overall. I don't have much experience teaching, so think of it as self-study. I'll just assist from the sidelines."

"Combat means leaving the academy to fight?"

As usual, Konet raised his hand. Elfin answered readily, surprisingly.

"Sometimes. But we'll start with the back mountain. It's close, but outside the academy barriers. Don't worry—I'm here, and contingencies are in place."

Yustina pouted at "contingencies." Ah, you're the contingency, Yustina.

Makes sense—between her and Elfin, protecting five students from anything short of a powerhouse was no sweat.

"Today, we'll hunt back-mountain beasts to start. Word is, this school's mountain is crawling with them."

"They're all under the chairman's watch. They might attack, but they won't kill students, so no worries."

"Well said, Yuz. As expected from the chairman's daughter—sharp as a tack… pfft!"

"Eek…."

I tugged Yustina's sleeve as she glared daggers at Elfin—she was already on edge from the recent beast incidents.

"You okay? What if more get leashed like before?"

"Good point. That's why I just checked the mountain—all beasts accounted for. No leashed ones. Culprit still at large, though."

"Culprit? On this mountain?"

"Was gonna explain later… oh well."

Even her whisper drew eyes our way. Yustina cast a quick spell to dodge the attention.

Yustina's voice echoed not in my ears, but my mind. I'd experienced it a few times living with her back then, so no shock—just nostalgia.

Downside: I couldn't reply. Or couldn't before.

I shot back mentally via her spell. Yustina chewed her lip, then replied.

Somehow I'd ended up hiding only from Yustina. I chuckled awkwardly and tuned back in.

She glared at Yozef and Elfin in turn. Not Yozef's fault, but it showed the imperial pressure on Denebergen Academy.

Kill to silence? …Nah, too far, even ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for them.

A bitter taste lingered. Of course—five hundred years unchanged would be weirder. People, elves, dragons—they change with circumstances, not just time.

Pre-reincarnation: ten years in a rural shack. Post: nearly seventeen in a noble mansion. Mental age near fifty? Physically, no.

Yustina spent most of hers holed up as chairman.

'Elfin, though—she's been everywhere.'

Imperial politics, shadows with fake identities. Hard to believe the lively girl I knew was using students as mission bait now.

Felt like realizing the eternal kid had grown up.

"Elfin…."

Before heading out to hunt, as Elfin tested each student's skills one-on-one, I murmured her name softly.