Chapter 161
Chapter 161
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 161
Chapter Title: Autumn, New Semester (4)
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There is a mage named Lania van Trias.
Her name first started to become known at the beginning of this year, on a spring day when the cherry blossoms were in full bloom.
"The adopted daughter of the Trias family."
"Lord Rosel's second disciple."
From the very start, she stood apart from other mages. As the adopted daughter of the renowned Rosel van Trias, she made her name known to the world. The public took notice of her. Nobles lined up to meet her. Reporters desperately called her name, clamoring for interviews.
Yet she never showed her face.
Rosel van Trias remained silent as well.
Time passed without anyone laying eyes on her.
And so, when rumors and baseless speculation about her had filled the air... she finally made her debut. As a professor at Aphria Academy, no less.
All eyes turned to her.
Interest focused intensely on her.
And amid that attention, the incident occurred.
Less than a month after taking her position as a professor at Aphria Academy, she was assigned private lessons. That unprecedented treatment drew questions from countless scholars of magic. They grumbled that it was tarnishing the merit-based world of magical academia.
Dean Aaron addressed those doubts.
He boldly flung open the doors of Aphria.
"A public lecture."
And so, a lecture lasting just over an hour dispelled all suspicions. By the end, no one doubted her qualifications.
"Her lecture was elegant and full of grace. Even if any other mage had been there... even if an Ashen Mage had stood in her place, they would have received a standing ovation. It was a lecture of that caliber."
"It was beautiful. Incredibly beautiful."
"The pinnacle of magical scholarship. The essence of enlightenment."
Articles poured in.
Praise from mages of all stripes filled the newspapers, all about that single hour-long lecture. It was the moment when the public's image of Lania van Trias was set in stone.
An elegant, graceful, and mysterious woman.
A professor who delivered the most flawless lessons imaginable.
...But that was merely the perception from the 'outside.' Those who saw her every day—the students of Aphria—told slightly different stories.
Unfortunately.
The girl who had nurtured her dreams from exaggerated newspaper reports knew none of this. Swallowing hard, she lifted her head.
'This is the cafe run by a top-tier alchemist...'
Chloe.
The girl taking her first steps into Aphria today looked up and scanned the cafe interior. This was another place she'd seen in the papers. A cafe inside Aphria... one that Professor Lania frequented.
'The rumors were true...'
Chloe glanced toward the protagonist of those rumors with such idle thoughts.
"The usual, two cups."
"This isn't a bar..."
"Come on, between us? Hmm, the usual plus some cake, please. Allen."
"Yes..."
The embarrassed shopkeeper and the ash-haired professor chatting amiably with him came into view.
'Professor Lania.'
Chloe stared intently at Lania.
This was the person she'd imagined countless times while reading the papers. She couldn't even begin to describe how thrilled she'd been to learn this professor would handle her education.
'...Someone I really wanted to meet.'
That had surely been the case.
Just a few days ago, at least.
"What are you staring at like that? Something weird?"
"Oh, it's nothing."
Now that the long-awaited meeting had finally happened, Chloe found it hard to feel any joy. The reason was simple. They'd already become acquainted—just a few days ago, no less.
Flinch.
Every time Lania took a step forward, Chloe's shoulders trembled. Lania gave a wry smile at the sight.
"Still hung up on that incident? I told you it was a misunderstanding."
"Ah, ahaha..."
She sat down next to Chloe with a firm thud.
Then she patted Chloe's shoulder and teased her. Chloe couldn't even meet her eyes, just staring holes into the table.
"You think I'm going to hit you or something?"
She just might. It felt all too possible.
Even though it was said in jest, it didn't sound like a joke to Chloe. Her face drained of color.
'Run. Run. Run?'
The stars sang of despair.
Cold sweat trickled down her spine.
Perhaps because it was so obvious, Lania continued in a slightly gentler tone.
"You don't need to be so tense."
"...Huh?"
"I'm just here to chat today. Since I'll be teaching you from now on, I figured it'd be good to learn a bit about you."
"Ah..."
The soft, melodic voice eased Chloe's guard a little. She nodded hesitantly. Lania smiled with her eyes and pressed on.
"If you've read so many papers, you must've seen the ones about this cafe too?"
"Yes, they said you come here often, Professor Lania..."
"The coffee here's genuinely amazing. Once you try it, you won't forget it. Want some?"
Lania offered her coffee cup.
Chloe met Lania's gaze. Sunlight streamed in through the window seat, shining between them. In the warm rays, Lania's ash-gray hair sparkled.
Silken ash-gray locks cascading down.
Lake-blue eyes and porcelain skin.
An appearance that always drew the eye, no matter when you saw her. A gentle impression that lowered one's defenses... the kind people called trustworthy. Chloe nodded without thinking.
"Here."
Chloe took the proffered cup.
Warmth seeped into her palm.
"Let's talk while we drink."
Lania brought her own cup to her lips first.
An elegant motion. A refined gesture. Chloe stared blankly, as if entranced.
'...A beauty rivaling even elves.'
An article from the papers flashed in her mind.
Even as the facts contradicted many of the reports upon actually meeting her... Chloe was convinced the praise for her looks was spot on.
Slurp.
The coffee was delicious.
Savoring the rich aroma, Chloe relaxed. She wondered if perhaps she'd been too quick to judge.
'Maybe... I don't need to run...?'
Even the stars fell silent before such pure goodwill.
Unaware of what might lurk behind it... Chloe took another sip.
"Good, right?"
"Y-yes..."
...Maybe she's not so bad after all?
The first impression had been awful, but she was being so kind now. Perhaps Chloe herself was at fault for judging too hastily.
"Here, have some of this too."
Gazing at the cake before her, Chloe let her guard down completely.
All too easily.
2.
'Anyone would think I was about to devour her alive.'
I gave a wry smile and sipped my coffee.
I had no idea why she was so terrified. It reminded me of my first meeting with Rak. I couldn't understand why everyone reacted to me this way.
'I'm not approaching with any ill intent.'
I approached with pure goodwill, solely for their growth. Their fear of that... well, it saddened me quite a bit.
But that's all in the past now.
'I've learned better.'
My master once said that no matter how good your intentions, you can't expect the other person to always see them as such.
"That's why you have to package it."
"Constantly think about how you appear to others. Make yourself seem kinder. Choose your words carefully."
"That's the 'basics.'"
To make them lower their guard.
To make them listen to what I say.
To make them see me as a 'good person.'
"Anyway, put in the effort, Raniel."
Effort. That's what my master advised.
Following that advice felt a bit like scamming, but so what? I wasn't doing anything wrong.
'It's all for the kids' sake.'
So I put in a little effort.
And the results... well, you can see for yourself.
"I think I was just a bit nervous."
"Yeah?"
"Yes. I might've misunderstood based on first impressions... sorry about that."
"It happens. How's the coffee?"
"It's really good! The cake too..."
"Good, take your time."
Quite effective.
I nodded with a subtle smile.
'Master's advice is never wrong.'
The tension had melted away.
My prey had bared its neck. No reason not to strike. I gathered mana at my fingertips. Just a tiny amount, unnoticeable.
'The property to imbue... control.'
A trick my master had once used on me.
'Something like this, right?'
Recalling that time, I channeled mana into my finger. Then I quickly tapped the back of Chloe's neck.
"Ow!"
Chloe winced.
She clutched her nape and looked around. But there was nothing there, of course. I sipped my coffee casually and asked,
"What happened?"
"Nothing, maybe a bug bite..."
She muttered while rubbing her neck.
I silently observed her reaction. I'd injected mana to temporarily block her flow. This was to gauge her aptitude.
A mage's talent and potential.
Opinions varied, but the basics boiled down to mana. How much innate mana did she have? How well-formed were her circulation pathways?
The test was simple.
Force a blockage and see.
It was a method usable only against vastly inferior opponents, but even against a hero, this girl was just a novice dipping her toes into magic.
'A newbie like this? No problem.'
"Mm, ugh..."
Chloe let out a groan.
She pressed firmly on her chest, as if something was stuck in her throat. Her brows furrowed.
"......"
I narrowed my eyes and checked the mana flow through her body. Centering on the blockage I'd created, I assessed the overall pattern.
'...This.'
My eyes narrowed further.
It was beyond expectations. The pathways spread cleanly through her body. Perfect formation.
'The stars' blessing is no joke.'
A heavenly miracle dwelled in this human body. No doubt she was the hero. Her pathways were a flawless work of art.
The pathways were perfect.
All that remained was total mana capacity.
I eyed the mana I'd used to block one section of her pathway. Ash-gray mana obstructed the flow. But it wouldn't hold long.
Tick, tick.
The ash crumbled.
Like a dam cracking, platinum streams leaked through the fissures in the gray. The streams thickened bit by bit.
Crack.
Platinum mana devoured my own. It was mana beyond description. Starlight. Starlight coursed through this girl's body.
"Mm, ah."
Chloe exhaled shortly, as if relieved. Watching her, I cracked my knuckles.
She definitely had talent.
Exceptional potential.
So, how far could it take her?
How much could she endure?
'I'm curious.'
This needed thorough checking. Knowing her limits would let me train her more efficiently.
"Cough, hack!"
"You okay?"
With her mana blocked, Chloe coughed.
Patting her back as if to help, I strengthened the blockage a bit more.
"Ate too fast...? My stomach feels..."
"I told you to take it slow."
Chloe made a gagging motion.
Yet she steadily cleared the blocked pathway. I was impressed by the instinctive process.
'She endured that?'
Then this.
"Gack, kehack!"
...Endured this too?
"Cough, ughhh..."
I repeated the experiment until Chloe slumped over the table. The results were significant. Her potential exceeded my imagination.
'At this level...'
I could push harder than planned.
Patting her back, I said,
"Feeling better?"
"Y-yeah... I think so now. Thanks for patting my back..."
Recovers fast too.
"If it's hard to talk now, we can do it next time?"
"...That okay?"
"Of course. It's not just today."
I smiled brightly.
"We'll see each other plenty from now on, so no worries. Catch you later."
"Professor Lania..."
Chloe looked at me with slightly touched eyes. I saw no need to correct her misconception. I waved casually as she left.
A promising kid.
Very much so.
3.
"Professor Lania was super nice. Really kind. I think I misunderstood her."
"Are you insane?"
Belnoa stared at Chloe in shock.
Chloe tilted her head, puzzled.
"...Insane? Out of nowhere?"
"Or maybe hallucination magic... No, you couldn't be affected by that..."
"...Why are you like this all of a sudden?"
Chloe eyed Belnoa suspiciously. She had no idea why her friend was acting up.
"She even bought me cake. And packed some bread to eat back at the dorm."
"...Professor Lania did?"
"Yeah."
"You sure it was her?"
"I said it was."
Chloe shook her head while munching bread.
Her childhood friend Belnoa could be overly suspicious at times. She had trouble trusting people. Since Belnoa had acted like this before, Chloe let it go in one ear and out the other.
"Anyway, you're dueling, right?"
"...Yeah, it came to that."
"Against Young Master Rak?"
"Calling him 'young master' feels awkward, but yeah, that's him."
The battle for top spot in the Combat Magic Department.
The duel heating up Aphria. Even now, sitting in the central hall lobby chatting, some students glanced at Belnoa.
"...You don't usually like that stuff, do you?"
Chloe tilted her head questioningly.
The Belnoa she knew didn't care for formal duels like this. Even when she'd become a disciple of the Black Mage Tower Lord, there had been mock battles with the tower's mages... but Belnoa had always treated them irritably.
No real combat value.
Purely ceremonial.
This sort of thing didn't suit her.
That's what Belnoa would grumble in front of Chloe.
"...I don't like it."
"Then why?"
Which was why the current situation puzzled Chloe a bit. She pointed at Belnoa's hand. More precisely, the shadow dagger she'd been tending to.
"Why are you prepping so hard?"
"Feels like I should."
"You said you hate it."
"Still, it's courtesy to the guy."
Chloe smiled at the answer.
"...You two must be pretty close?"
"Eh."
"Introduce me sometime?"
"Maybe."
Seems her antisocial childhood friend had made a new pal. Chloe beamed at the thought.
It was the night before the duel, two days away.
Author's Note
Professor Lania, who has mastered the most efficient way to leverage her appearance.
*I've written the overdue sponsor thanks.
I'll strive to update the sponsor thanks every Monday :D