The Grown-up Toltoli (2)

Even after rubbing my eyes and looking down at the status window one more time, the result was still the same.

'What the hell is this.'

It was only natural to be flustered now that the thing I’d half expected had turned out to be true.

I couldn’t make sense of the situation at all. I’d felt her clinging a little too hard, sure, but I never would’ve imagined she’d grow in this direction.

'This is...'

I was so dumbfounded I kept letting out crooked little laughs.

Maybe it was because I’d been gone for so long. I’d thought I’d spoiled her and doted on her plenty, but maybe, after being away and not showing my face for such a long time, she’d come to believe she wasn’t being loved enough—and that bizarrely twisted the quirk into existence.

'What’s with the hashtags, too.'

The line about Mom being annoying was basically a nail driven straight into Dialugia’s heart. She’d been looking at nothing but Toltoli, and now this was happening to her.

The only thing that reassured me even a little was that her tendency still hadn’t been decided, but…

'Can a quirk that’s already formed still change?'

I was just as uneasy as ever.

At this point I could only pray that at least her tendency would come out well. It seemed a little late, but from here on out I’d have to devote myself to her education with everything I had.

'If I can change the quirk, I’ll change it... and I need to make sure her tendency comes out as good and safe as possible.'

Only then would I have a chance of turning this extreme situation around.

Whether I knew what was in my heart or not, Toltoli was still glaring suspiciously at her surroundings, and the sight was ridiculous.

“You were told to stay still, weren’t you?”

“Huff, huff!”

“You can’t go around threatening other people.”

“Kieek!”

“If you behave quietly for today, I can keep you with me. If you don’t, I’m sending you right back to your mother. Understand? Got it?”

“Kieeeeeeek!”

She looked full of complaints.

And yet, seeing her nod so furiously, it seemed she didn’t want to go back to her mother after all.

That reaction made sense, really, since it had been months since they’d seen each other, but unlike the cute little thing I’d always seen before, a nameless anxiety kept surging up inside me.

Honestly, I felt like sending Toltoli back to Dialugia this instant.

But if I thought about how exhausted she already was, I couldn’t do that. For now, controlling this one with a sort of half-threat was the top priority.

Still, every time the female trainees walked by, she shook with suspicion, glaring at them all the same.

Most of them seemed amused by her big, blinking eyes and the little snorts she kept blowing out, but… I was certain she’d bite if anyone got too close the wrong way.

Lost in those thoughts, I walked into the lecture hall and found a number of the trainees looking at me with tense expressions.

Pretty tense, in fact.

As soon as I took my seat, they greeted me.

“Good day, Instructor.”

“Yes. It’s good to see you all.”

Predictable enough, but their attitude was different from before.

Of course, that was partly because they’d learned a thing or two about me, but another reason was that most of them had chosen alchemy as their main field.

The more they dug into it, the more they’d realize exactly how unmatched I was in this area.

There might be stronger people than Cha Heera somewhere in the continent if you searched hard enough.

There might even be a mage more familiar with magic than Jung Hayan.

But as far as I knew, there was no alchemist in the continent who was better than me.

Especially not among the Players.

The unique Legendary-class job, Dragon Alchemist.

Even if there were someone with a deeper understanding of alchemy than I had, there was no way they could compare to me in anything related to dragons.

In other words, to them I’d go from being some insignificant production-line guy to a figure who had risen to the top through alchemy alone.

I was, after all, the man who had changed the way people saw alchemy and whose name had been inscribed among the continent’s Eight Seats.

And since I’d even devoted myself fairly seriously to this class, it wasn’t strange that one or two people would end up admiring me.

'Even I think I’m kind of amazing...'

Unlike at the beginning, it was obvious that they didn’t want to miss a single word I said.

Even Han Sora, standing at the very back and staring this way, looked like she was trying to learn as much as possible.

Unfortunately, I had no intention of teaching a regular class today.

“There won’t actually be a lecture today.”

“Ah...”

The moment I opened my mouth, I could see disappointment flash across their faces.

Alchemical experiments were the part most of the trainees enjoyed, but sadly, I’d already taught them everything I could teach.

Anything beyond this was their territory now.

“There are exactly three days left until completion, and... I’ve already taught most of what I can at the basic level. Some of you have already advanced into alchemists, so you know this, but the knowledge I’ve given you is much more extensive than the basic knowledge injected at the moment of advancement.”

'It’s basically from Introduction to Alchemy by Ramus Tucker...'

It was advanced knowledge written in a Heroic-rank text.

If they followed even a quarter of, no, even a quarter of that quarter, they’d have no trouble making a living.

“Even if we were to do an alchemical experiment today, you wouldn’t change all that much. From here on out, this is an area you need to study on your own. Until now, I’ve been showing you the path; from now on, how you grow depends on you.”

That was when one of the men listening attentively to the lesson raised a question.

“Then today’s class is...?”

“It’ll probably be a little more interesting. Hmm... let’s change it into a time for answering the things you’re curious about. I think this will be more useful. I’ll accept any question, no matter what it is.”

“Ah!”

Only then did I see them nodding.

I didn’t know what questions would come flying at me, but I assumed most of them would be academic.

However, the very first question that came in was rather unexpected.

Actually, when I thought about it, it made perfect sense.

“I-Instructor Lee Kiyoung. If it’s not rude, may I ask about the creature attached to your back...?”

They were probably distracted by Toltoli, who was still glaring at the trainees.

It wasn’t a question I couldn’t answer, so I opened my mouth casually.

“She’s a dragon.”

“Ah...”

Immediate murmurs broke out around the room.

“I-I’m Kim Minyoung, a trainee who’s been slated to join the Magic Guild. I’ve heard about the dragon that chose Instructor Lee Kiyoung, but could that dragon perhaps be...?”

“The dragon that chose me is this child’s mother. If you go to Lindel, you’ll be able to see her with your own eyes. There’s a huge nest on the outskirts of the city. In size, it’s probably several times larger than this training center.”

“Wow...”

“I’d like to tell you more, but most information about dragons is classified. The guild doesn’t even need to stop it—the Empire itself controls that information. Of course, the most basic facts are already out there in circulation, but anyway, let’s leave that there. Any other questions?”

“I-Instructor Lee Kiyoung?”

“Yes.”

“If it’s not rude, could I ask about... the Mercenary Queen...?”

“Yes. I am indeed seeing her.”

'You’re seriously asking that too?'

The one asking was the oldest of the trash trio.

She didn’t seem to realize just how valuable this time was.

“D-Do you perhaps want to take on more lovers?”

The next question was even more ridiculous.

Apparently they thought this was some sort of session where you asked your homeroom teacher questions at high school.

I had no idea why the trash trio cared whether I added more lovers, but unfortunately, I had no interest in them.

“Kieeeek!”

Frustrated by their questions, Toltoli started glaring at them too, making angry kieek noises for no reason.

I was a little irritated, but...

'I was the one who said I’d accept any question.'

Ignorance about how precious this time was was a sin in itself.

From their perspective, they were throwing away a chance to pick up useful advice.

I answered vaguely and waited for the next question.

“Yes. That’s right.”

It was then that Han Sora suddenly shot her hand up.

“I’m Han Sora. About what you said earlier—that from here on, each of us needs to study on our own... I’d like to know exactly what you meant by that.”

“Yes.”

'Good.'

That was the most realistic question of all.

“Could I take that as a question about what direction we should grow in?”

“I’m embarrassed to say... yes.”

They were probably standing in front of a pitch-black future.

“Hmm... to put it simply, think of it as entering an advanced course in a single discipline. Let’s say what we’ve been learning and studying is a car. You’ve now realized what a car is. You know what it looks like, and you understand its role.”

“Yes.”

“Now let’s think about specializing it. Yes, specializing. Since you’ve grasped what a car is, now you can dig in more deeply. Of course, which direction you dig in is entirely up to you.”

“Ah...”

“Some of you may study the car’s exterior, while others may focus on the engine or some internal mechanism. Maybe someone will even decide to change direction and think about motorcycles instead. Alchemy is no different. You just need to specialize further.”

“......”

“Potions, homunculi, chimeras, catalysts—the fields are all different. Naturally, there are bound to be areas even I don’t know.”

“If it’s not rude, may I ask what field you studied, Instructor?”

“Of course. I first majored in biology. I touched on other fields too, but the main things I began researching were potions and biological studies. After that, I specialized in dragons.”

“Ah...”

“Being a pioneer in one field has its advantages. Anyone who thinks, ‘What can you even do with alchemy?’ is, frankly, not fit to be an alchemist in the first place. Look.”

I slowly gathered mana in my hand, and with a crackling sound, it sparked and snapped there.

Then, with a light flick of my finger, a pair of dragon arms began to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠materialize on both sides of the blackboard behind me.

They were obviously not simple models, and I was sure the trainees understood that too.

Even though the arms were shrunk down to fit inside the classroom, the moment they started moving I could see the trainees’ faces go pale.

“Th-That’s... impossible...”

“Hm?”

The emotion written on their faces was a kind of awe.

“How... How is something like this even possible? This... this doesn’t make any sense. How can you do something like this?”

'Effort, experience, job bonuses from advancement, support from a genius mage, a devoted dragon, endless resources, and natural-born luck.'

Truthfully, the last three were the most important, but there was no way I could say that.

“That question is a little hard to answer. What I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠just showed you is basically my bread and butter.”

“......”

“If you think carefully about why alchemist is an advanced class rather than a standalone one beneath mage, the answer should come to you.”

“Ah...”

“Maybe you can realize the absurd things you’ve only ever imagined in your head. Maybe you’ll make a potion that can turn someone into a superhuman just by drinking it... or maybe someone will truly create a homunculus or the Philosopher’s Stone. Of course, there will also be people who live their entire lives without understanding even half of what we covered in class today, but... well, that last question was pretty good, Han Sora.”

“Th-Thank you.”

“We’ve spent a lot of time on useless questions, so... let me say a few things and wrap this up.”

“Ah...”

“You’ve all worked hard.”

“......”

“I’m sure most of you have already received offers from guilds or clans?”

“Yes.”

“Some are mid-sized, some are large, and some are small, but that’s not really important. What matters is that Lindel needs you.”

“......”

“The reason I took part in this class was because, on a city level—no, on an Imperial level—I was asked to share some of my alchemical knowledge. If you think about it that way, the answer becomes clear. The world has changed. On the Imperial level, they now need alchemists, and clans and guilds have realized it’s worth investing more in alchemy and other production-based professions.”

“Ah...”

“You’re now part of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a project being carried out at the Imperial level. I’m not going to tell you to produce dazzling feats, but at the very least, make sure you don’t go out there and embarrass yourselves. If you fail to prove your worth, you’ll be discarded again and forced to live by begging on the streets.”

I wasn’t sure how much of that they’d actually understood, but the room suddenly fell quiet.

They were probably all thinking of a thousand different things inside.

“The reason I taught ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you to the best of my ability wasn’t because I like you. It was because this was a state project, nothing more. I’m sure you understand what I’m saying.”

“......”

“Don’t make my name look bad. And...”

“......”

“If you’re having a hard time, come find me. I’ll at least give you advice. You’ve all worked hard.”

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