Chapter 326
Chapter 326
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 326
Chapter Title: Second Outing (4)
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“Ten snowballs for ten silver? That’s one silver each? That’s really expensive.”
For Shirone, who had grown up in the mountains and never experienced a festival, it was a culture shock.
But Amy acted as if it were perfectly normal.
“Tourist souvenirs always have a premium. Besides, that stuffed Ice Queen doll is pretty famous. It’s strategically made by the autonomous district, and you can only get it during the winter festival. The type of doll changes every year, so there are even collections.”
“Oh, is that so?”
Shirone’s eyes sparkled.
If it was a festival-exclusive, it was only natural for its price to increase over time.
If he could win the game, paying ten silver for ten snowballs wouldn’t be such a bad deal.
“Alright, I’ll give it a try. Just you wait.”
Shirone paid the ten silver.
“Ten snowballs, please.”
“Ah, another brave soul has joined the challenge. May the Ice Queen’s blessing be with you.”
It didn’t seem like the Ice Queen’s blessing would be a good thing, but since her character itself was a tourist attraction, he let it slide.
Shirone was handed a box of snowballs.
As he entered the game area, he saw someone was already taking their turn. While waiting, he picked up a snowball from the box. It was mixed with water, making it hard and heavy.
*‘Hmm, this should have a decent range.’*
Throwing it wasn’t the problem.
However, watching the challenger, he realized he could only get the snowball to the spire across the way by throwing it through a window in the wall.
The restricted throwing angle made it difficult to get enough power, not to mention that it would significantly reduce accuracy.
“Whew, that’s harder than it looks.”
The challenger, having failed, wiped his sweat and stepped back.
People who came to the winter festival every year knew how difficult it was to win the Ice Queen collection, so he wasn't too disappointed.
Following the announcer’s instructions, Shirone entered the game area, set the box down beside him, and picked up a snowball.
He rolled it in his fingers to gauge the distance, then opened up his body and threw the snowball with all his might.
The snowball passed through the window, then fell under the pull of gravity, shattering against the fortress wall below the watchtower.
He could hear the cheerful laughter of the tourists.
Normally, Shirone would have laughed it off, but with Amy watching, his face flushed.
Not daring to look back at her, he hastily picked up the next snowball and analyzed his failure.
*‘I can’t raise the angle, so I can’t get enough power. This is much harder than I thought.’*
Then again, it was a game with a festival-exclusive prize, so it wouldn’t be designed for just anyone to win.
“Hnngh…!”
Shirone gritted his teeth and threw the snowball.
His determination paid off, as he barely managed to get the distance right. But the snowball flew past the soldier target and landed somewhere else entirely.
“Hah! Hah!”
Growing stubborn, Shirone threw one snowball after another.
He had succeeded with Thunder Break on his first try, so he thought if he just kept reducing the margin of error, he would eventually succeed.
But after throwing five, he realized something.
*‘This is harder than Thunder Break, isn’t it?’*
The rules were simple, but the game was by no means carelessly designed.
It was made to look like anyone could win, but the throwing angle and distance were cleverly adjusted so that only someone with natural strength or a professional could succeed.
After throwing all ten snowballs, Shirone was panting.
Despite the cold weather, his body was hot, and sweat beaded on his forehead. He couldn't take off his coat because he was wearing Arman.
Shirone stuck out his tongue sheepishly and returned to Amy.
“Ugh, sorry. I failed.”
“What’s there to be sorry about? It’s just a game. But wow, that looks really hard.”
From watching Shirone's attempt, Amy had guessed that the game's difficulty was top-tier.
Analyzing it with her Red Eyes, she calculated that after factoring in force, gravity, and air resistance, there weren't many possible trajectories to reach the target.
“Hahaha! What a spectacular failure. And you call yourselves magic academy students. How pathetic.”
Shirone and Amy turned around at the same time. A boy with shaggy hair was approaching them with a sneer.
Behind him, a tall, curly-haired young man and a girl with heavy makeup stood with arrogant postures, as if guarding his rear.
“Long time no see, Amy.”
As Zokre extended his hand, Amy stood still for a long moment, lost in thought.
Since entering the magic academy, she didn't really know anyone outside of her school friends.
Especially not boys.
“Um, sorry… who are you?”
Zokre’s face crumpled.
How could she not remember him?
Even if she had rejected him, being confessed to by someone should have been an unforgettable memory.
At least, that’s what Zokre thought.
In truth, he had never been confessed to by a girl, but if it ever happened, he was confident he would make it a lifelong point of pride.
“Do you not know, or are you pretending not to know? Zokre. Alpheas Magic Academy. You really don't remember?”
“Zokre? Zokre…”
Muttering, Amy’s eyes widened as she pointed at Zokre.
“Aaaah, ah! Wow! It’s really been a long time.”
She didn’t seem happy to see him, but her exaggerated surprise was enough to make Zokre’s shoulders puff up in front of his friends.
After all, the person who recognized him was none other than the great Carmis Amy.
But he hadn't approached her just to catch up with an old classmate, so he lifted his chin and looked down his nose at them.
“Hmph, shouldn't you greet me properly?”
“Huh? What kind of greeting?”
Zokre gestured with his arm toward his friends behind him, then pointed to himself with his thumb.
“I hear you’re still attending the academy, but we’re official mages. In other words, unofficial 10th-class mages.”
Official mages.
Amy’s heart lurched. It was a phrase that had never left her mind since she had entered Alpheas Magic Academy at the age of twelve.
Praying her expression wasn't stiff, Amy extended her hand to Zokre.
“I see. Congratulations. You finally graduated.”
At the time, Amy had been thirteen. She barely remembered anything about Zokre, but she clearly recalled looking down on him when he transferred out as if he were fleeing.
A smile spread across Zokre’s lips.
Amy’s poker face was perfect, but he could see into her heart without even trying.
How humiliating must it be for the world-renowned genius of the Carmis family to be looking at him after failing her graduation exam?
*‘Hmph, how do you like that? I felt much more miserable than this when you rejected me.’*
Zokre turned his gaze to Shirone, who was standing there blankly.
“Well, look who it is. A celebrity. Shirone Arian. The kingdom’s most promising talent, I hear?”
Shirone remained silent for the moment. He could tell from their demeanor that they hadn’t approached with friendly intentions.
“Should I give you a piece of advice as your senior? A promising talent is just that—promising. The real competition begins after you become an official mage. Then again, for a commoner, you’ve done pretty well for yourself. Hahaha!”
Amy shouted, her face flushed with anger.
“Zokre! What kind of thing is that to say? Apologize to Shirone right now!”
“Why should I? It’s not like I said anything untrue. Ah, was it an open secret? But it’ll be better for your mental health to just give up. It’s already been published in the academic journals. There isn’t a student who doesn’t know.”
“Is that so? Then how about I just say whatever comes to my mind? Are you sure you can handle that?”
Zokre’s eyes narrowed. He didn't know what she was about to say, but he couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt.
*‘Amy…'*
Amy, whom he met again after five years, had grown into a much prettier girl than when she was a child.
Her hair was permed in a style he'd never seen in the academic journals, and she had chosen bright, cute clothes. Anyone could see she had put effort into her appearance.
*‘Tch! I bet this is a side of her only Shirone gets to see.’*
Amy was the girl who occupied the most mindshare among the male students of Ains Magic Academy.
Across the entire kingdom, that number would be much larger.
The thought that she would put on makeup and carefully choose pretty clothes for just one person made him feel like he had lost to Shirone without even fighting.
*‘I’m disappointed, Amy. You’d have to be out of your mind to date a commoner. No matter how skilled he is, that bastard is still just a student.’*
Seeing Shirone just frowning without talking back, even after being insulted as a commoner, irritated him even more.
*‘He should be protesting, but he’s not saying a word. Is he ignoring me? No, he must be intimidated by the fact that I’m an official mage. Pathetic, a man hiding behind a woman… Tsk tsk.’*
Zokre was mistaken.
To Shirone, who had even fought against Bosun, a certified 4th-class mage, the title of ‘official mage’ was not much of a threat.
The reason Shirone was frowning was not because of Zokre, but because of the Arman at his waist.
The human mind flows like water.
And Arman's Precise Control was a delicate function that approached 100 percent synchronization with its master's mind.
If he couldn't perfectly control his emotions, Arman would move before he even had a chance to compose himself.
That was why it was a demonic sword.
Of course, it wouldn't have mattered to its former master, Zion. He would simply eliminate whatever his emotions dictated.
But Shirone had to continue his school life normally.
As a commoner with no one to rely on, committing murder would put him in an irreversible situation.
Above all, the problem was that it had become harder to control his emotions since returning from Kazra.
The demon god Behemoth was trapped in a sealing formation, but it was connected to Shirone's mind through the keyword of ‘anger.’
If his emotions amplified to an uncontrollable state, Arman would slice off his opponent's head without a second thought.
*‘Maybe I shouldn’t have worn it out. I’ll have to be more careful from now on.’*
Seeing Shirone ultimately not rise to the bait, Zokre clicked his tongue, then pointed at the game area and said to Amy,
“Looks like you can’t believe everything you read in the academic journals. Can’t even win a doll for his girlfriend. Mind if we show you how it’s done?”
Amy shrugged.
It was a game anyone could play as long as they paid, so what was there to permit or deny?
“Sure, go ahead if you want.”
Zokre’s group entered the game area.
As if conscious of Shirone's challenge, Vivian spoke loudly enough for them to hear.
“Hey guys, if you win the Ice Queen, you have to give it to me.”
“We’ll see. Though, it should be easy for Rudvans.”
The announcer handed over a box of snowballs. Zokre was the one who paid, but Rudvans was the one who received the box.
Zokre looked back at the intrigued Shirone and Amy and pointed to Rudvans with his thumb.
“Rudvans is our school’s ‘Tugu’ representative. You can expect great things.”
Tugu was a combat sport derived from ancient warfare, a game where two teams of five tried to hit each other with rubber balls in an arena with cover.
Among amateurs, it was a game even children could enjoy, but at the semi-pro level, like inter-school competitions, fastballs could reach speeds of 160 kilometers per hour.
On top of that, with tactics involving three-cushion shots and a wide variety of breaking balls, it was a thrilling yet high-risk sport.
Rudvans was the school’s ace, and the Ains Tugu team was strong enough to make it to the quarterfinals in last year’s national tournament.
“Alright… let’s start with a feeler.”
Rudvans’s posture was distinctly different from an ordinary person’s. Each part of his motion had its own mechanics, and they linked together fluidly to generate maximum throwing power.
He whipped his arm forward as if toppling over, and with a *whoosh*, the snowball flew through the air.
It struck the target dead-on, and Vivian cheered.
“Yes! A success on the first try! That’s our school’s ace for you!”