Chapter 31
Chapter 31
Inferiority Complex
“Who is the most outstanding mage among us?”
All the students of Dunice Academy were curious.
They were all people who had been called prodigies in their hometowns.
They were confident in their abilities.
However, when such prodigies are gathered in one place, distinctions are bound to emerge.
Everyone was already ranking each other in their minds and acknowledging it.
“First, there’s Isolde Polchen. She’s the top of the year. Needless to say, she’s brilliant and full of passion for magic.”
“But the one who destroyed the Crystal Golem was the Saint, Marie of Astraea.
Which of us could even dare face a Crystal Golem?”
“But she’s last place in the class….”
“Even so, her magical power is overwhelming. At the very least, that level of power far surpasses us fledgling mages. That kind of mysterious strength is exactly what you’d expect from a Saint.”
“Then what about Lord Karl Gustav Oxbach? I’d say he’s the strongest right now.
He’s trained with the Black Iron Warriors and is said to possess strength capable of splitting even rocks.”
“We’re talking about magic, so why bring him up? If that’s the case, what about Crown Prince Rudolf?
His swordsmanship—and surely his magic as well—must still have plenty of reserve.”
During their short break, the students argued back and forth about who among them was the strongest.
And at least for this moment, in the domain of spirit summoning, that question was about to be answered.
“Now then, begin!”
At Magram’s signal, Marie’s Angel of Flame once again released sacred characters.
The powerful divine script shook the air.
But what about Idnia’s spirit?
This small, unimpressive, bizarre spirit kept its distance from Marie’s Angel of Flame, minimizing the damage.
At close range, the sacred characters could instantly send spirits back to the Spirit World.
It was only natural that ordinary spirits couldn’t stand against it.
That being was both a spirit and an angel.
Possessing two attributes, it boasted overwhelming firepower in battles against other spirits.
“From the start, there’s a trap in fights between fire spirits. Techniques like flame projection are almost useless, aren’t they? But now there’s a spirit with a holy attribute… Hmm. What should I do?”
From the beginning, battles between fire spirits were decided by whoever could implement physical force or different attributes.
In other words, normal spirits could not defeat Marie’s Angel of Flame.
However…
-Bang!
Idnia’s spirit began to fire.
Flame bullets with absurd velocity shot out from the muzzle, striking the Angel of Flame.
The first hit shook it violently.
Then came a double shot.
-Bang! Bang!
That was the end of the duel.
“Eh?”
“…What?”
There was no flashiness whatsoever.
The bullets were so fast they were almost invisible.
Faster than the eye, they arrived like thunder.
A delayed shockwave followed the explosive sound, shaking the air…
And the unique power of Idnia’s spirit eliminated even the Angel of Flame in an instant.
“…What?”
Everyone watching was stunned.
Even Magram, the genie of the lamp, was surprised.
“Winner: Idnia Kache Betelgeuse… Ah, but that was dangerous.
Now I understand why Student Idnia refused the duel.
As you all know, while spirits duel, I place a barrier around them to ensure their attacks do not reach people.
However, the attack from Student Idnia’s spirit was incredibly fast and concentrated.
Though it is small in energy, it is focused into a single point with tremendous speed, resulting in immense impact and high penetration.
It nearly broke through the barrier—you understand what that means, don’t you?
Student Idnia, what do you call this spirit?”
“Ah, a name? It doesn’t have one yet.”
“A spirit of this caliber?”
“Yes. Today is actually my first time summoning a spirit.”
At her words, everyone was shocked.
Isolde Polchen was so stunned she couldn’t even blink.
She had already mastered summoning even low-level spirits before entering the academy.
But Idnia… without any prior training, was displaying this level of power purely through innate talent.
Isolde, who had never once been surpassed by anyone in talent, now saw two people who exceeded her.
Marie, the Saint with an absurd amount of mana.
And Idnia Kache Betelgeuse, who possessed a mysterious power that even surpassed that Saint.
“You… You are born of a noble family and possess such talent as well.
Unlike me, the daughter of a concubine!
A proper lineage, dazzling prestige—none of that matters.
You already had what I desired most, and yet you cast it aside like trash.
Ah, how unfair fate is.”
Countless magic trainees must have lamented after being crushed by Isolde’s talent.
Back then, Isolde never cared.
She even took pride in her natural gifts and mocked those who resented her.
But now, even she found herself lamenting the unfairness of the heavens.
“Ah…”
Marie was just as shocked.
To be honest, when her spirit had been winning one after another, she had felt a quiet joy despite her modesty.
Born a poor farmer’s daughter and surrounded by noble elites, she couldn’t help but feel intimidated.
Though she had earned many points, the disgrace of being last in the entrance ceremony still clung to her, leaving her with little confidence.
Yet her summoned spirit had defeated even Isolde Polchen, the top-ranked student.
How could she not feel happy?
But against Idnia, she was nothing.
The problem was Idnia’s attitude.
It was as if she had known this outcome from the beginning, trying to avoid the fight altogether.
As if there was no need to compare, she had even tried to concede victory to Marie.
Why?
“Why… am I angry?”
Marie was a simple country girl, but she knew this wasn’t mere mockery or deception.
Why would the only daughter of such a noble house go to such lengths just to deceive her?
But realizing that the desperate struggle she made to earn points and recognition was meaningless to someone else…
That realization stirred a complicated emotion within her.
If that feeling had a name, it would be inferiority.
Marie clicked her tongue at herself.
“How dare I feel inferior to the only daughter of a grand ducal family?
Her lineage has even produced emperors, and her parents are the hero and saint who saved the world—legendary figures.
How could a mere country girl like me dare feel inferior to her?”
Even if she thought that logically, the burning in her chest would not subside.
As Marie and Isolde fell into despair before Idnia’s overwhelming spirit, Magram clapped his hands, drawing attention.
A wave of heat spread outward from him.
“Now then, give that spirit a name. That will make it easier to summon next time.
If your mental image changes, the spirit that answers your call may also change. I would hate for you to lose such a remarkable one.
And all of you, name your attack techniques as well.
By calling their names, you can more easily control your spirits.
Now then, as promised, I will award 1 point to Student Idnia for overwhelming all spirits.”
With this, Idnia’s total reached 4 points.
She tied for second place with Rudolf, just behind Isolde, who had 5.
The Euros Dormitory also widened its lead with a total of 7 points, pulling further ahead of Notos and Boreas.
“Now then, that concludes today’s lesson. However, Student Lorenzo Medici Mazdari… please remain and speak with me.”
“Pardon? About what?”
“Nothing serious. I simply have some advice regarding your spirit summoning.”
Magram smiled as he spoke.
“Huh? Come to think of it, what kind of spirit did Mazdari summon?”
“Just an ordinary one. He was eliminated early.”
“Really? I barely remember… But the genie is calling him separately?”
The students were puzzled, but the temperature in the classroom was rising.
As heat radiated from Magram’s body, the students, still in their outerwear, could no longer endure it and hurriedly fled the room.
After Magram’s class ended, the students were left with complicated feelings.
He had openly toyed with them, wounding their pride as allies—an undeniable humiliation.
Yet the magic he taught was so extraordinary that they couldn’t help but admire it deeply.
Truly, a genie of the lamp.
A being from fairy tales who grants wishes, possessing immense power and wisdom.
Even after seeing the pitiful state of the assistants who had fallen in pursuit of that power and knowledge, they still couldn’t help but marvel at it.
“In the end, they’re just graduate students… calling it a downfall might be a bit harsh… Haah. I wanted to make Marie first in points before the midterms to trigger that event…”
Before midterms, the student with the highest points would receive a special meeting with the principal.
Idnia wanted to give that opportunity to Marie.
If Marie, the Saint, didn’t grow, the future would be uncertain.
But somehow, it kept turning into Idnia trampling over her instead.
“As expected of the Hero’s daughter. Truly amazing, Lady Idnia.”
“With Lady Idnia here, our Euros Dormitory still has hope.”
The students of Euros gathered around her, filled with admiration.
Even students from other dormitories were impressed.
“Wow, incredible. Duchess Idnia Kache Betelgeuse. Truly the daughter of the Hero who saved the world.”
“What’s even more amazing is that despite possessing such overwhelming power, she remains endlessly humble. Did you see how she tried to avoid the duel at first?”
“And even after winning, she doesn’t boast at all. Remarkable. If it were me, I’d be bragging nonstop.”
Everyone admired Idnia’s mature attitude.
And that only made her more irritated.
“Ah, could you all just be quiet? You really love talking about others. I need to check on Marie.”
Idnia called out to Marie, who must have been hurt.
“Marie. Are you alright?”
“Ah, Lady Idnia. Yes, I-I’m fine. If I weren’t fine, that would mean a mere peasant like me dared to feel competitive toward you, the only daughter of a grand ducal family and the Hero’s child. How could someone like me possibly….”
“……”
Listening to Marie’s worsening self-deprecation, Idnia sighed.
Her pride had been completely shattered along with her spirit.
Watching her sink into self-denial, Idnia felt frustrated.
The other students felt the same.
“So you’re saying even after beating Isolde Polchen, you still have to act like that? Then what, should the rest of us just go kill ourselves?”
Sendia Aspinall snapped sarcastically.
“Eh? N-no, that’s not what I meant…”
“Then what did you mean? How else are we supposed to take it? Hey! You idiot Saint! I’ve been called a genius plenty of times during private lessons too! And I got completely crushed by you! Yet you don’t even spare me a glance and only focus on Idnia! Do you have any idea how annoying that is?”
“But… that was just luck. I couldn’t even summon a spirit before, and even now I can’t…”
Not just Marie—many students tried summoning again but failed.
As they moved farther from Magram, their connection to the Fire Spirit World weakened, and the spirits no longer responded.
“That’s the same for everyone! You’re not special! It’s probably because we’re farther from that Ifrit or whatever! So why are you the only one acting like this? Do you think the rest of us aren’t anxious?”
For once, even the usually reckless Sendia made a point everyone could agree with.
Marie was clearly not thinking straight.
“That’s enough. Both of you.
Our dormitory is small—we can’t afford to fall apart. I don’t want everyone’s morale to drop because of me.”
“But…”
Just as Idnia tried to stop them, other students suddenly began running.
“There’s a fight!”
“A fight?!”
“It’s at the cafeteria!”
“……”
Sendia, Marie, and Idnia had no choice but to stop arguing at those words.