Three Lives Remaining

Three lives remaining.

Three F's, and the disciplinary committee would convene. Once it did: expulsion. Game over.

Four classes left.

Introduction to Artemisian Archery. Classical Exorcism Theory. Introduction to Sacred Healing. Combat Magic.

Sacred Healing was a lost cause. He didn't even know who the professor was, and he had no divine power to speak of. He would simply assume an F was coming. If he could just avoid F's in two of the other three, he would survive the week. At the very least, he would dodge the failure penalty on the side objective.

This is basically my last shot.

Introduction to Artemisian Archery. Classical Exorcism Theory. Combat Magic. He had a rough grasp of those three professors' profiles.

The archery instructor's personality is a nightmare, so… my best odds are Classical Exorcism and Combat Magic.

He purchased Mana Affinity from the Talent Shop without a second's hesitation.

A sensation of his entire body's skin twisting ran through him. Then a strange energy lingered across his skin and in his breath. The feeling of that current moving through him was something his instincts recognized at once.

So this is mana. My mana right now is… wait.

Fortunately, buying Mana Affinity had changed his stats as well.

Stamina, Intelligence, and Agility had finally reached ordinary human levels — the fruit of all the grinding he had done so far. And thanks to Mana Affinity, his mana had climbed all the way to 0.5. It was genuinely encouraging.

Thank god. I almost wouldn't have been able to use magic at all.

The method of moving mana surfaced in his mind as if it had always been there. He spun a thread of blue light across his palm and started laying out a plan.

I need to have something usable locked in before Combat Magic.

The concept art from the setting bible Elysia had given him rose behind his eyes. He could still see the shapes of the various magic circles from those pages — and they matched the forms this world actually used. If he could just reproduce them, he could fake his ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠way through a passable imitation.

Lucky the memories came back. Let's at least try.

The simplest 1st-Circle array: Magic Arrow. He called up the pattern and the structure, and poured mana through it. He failed a dozen times and picked up a little more of the knack with each attempt.

Exact direction. Steady flow…

He was just starting to get a feel for it when—

Paat—!

A blue-white arrow took shape in empty air. Clumsy. But unmistakably magic.

"Yes…! With this, I can get through Combat Magic."

All that remained was to keep pulling remembered spells out of the back of his mind. The sample concept art had covered all kinds of magic from the 1st Circle through the 3rd.

This is enough for now…

He was cycling through spells without a pause when another thought snagged him.

Right. I still have this.

The Mystery Gift Box he still hadn't bought. An item he could purchase a full fifty times. The name alone made it impossible not to recognize a gacha. Given how malicious the System was, ignoring it would have been the sane choice — but X shook his head.

I don't have that luxury. I have to scrape up any chance I can find.

He still had 850 points. Even if he bought every last box, he would have 350 left. Fine. He purchased all fifty on the spot, hoping something — anything — would drop that could break his current situation. If a god existed, a god would give him something worth five hundred points.

A System window unfurled in front of him and revealed the results.

Garbage clattered down in front of him in a heap. Real garbage. Unusable for anything.

"Ah, fuck! I knew it was gonna be like this…!"

He had held off on buying them precisely because his Luck was so low. And sure enough, most of the results were duds. Not all fifty, though. A handful of actually usable items had come through — about five.

"…Jackpot?!"

Enhancers. Nullification. Concealment. The names alone looked like a gold mine. Anything that raised his base stats was welcome at any hour, and items like that you swallowed the second you got them. X hurried to check the details.

"…They're all single-use?!"

Sadly, they were not what he had been picturing. The enhancers only raised a stat by 1 for ten minutes. The oil nullified a single spell and vanished. The Presence Concealer erased his presence for a fleeting moment.

"I just burned my points for nothing…!"

God is dead.

The first-year faculty office of the Academy. In the lounge there, the professors were taking tea.

Distinguished women in faculty robes traded conversation over the cups.

"Professor Amanda, today's your first Combat Magic lecture, isn't it? How does it feel, being newly appointed? This is your first time facing so many high nobles, I imagine?"

The woman who asked had eyes that curved into crescents — a beauty whose black bob suited her perfectly. Michelle Eve, professor of Auxiliary Magic.

Amanda looked at her and answered evenly.

"Professor Michelle. They're all the same students, in the end. Status doesn't mean much inside the Academy."

Michelle smiled at that and studied her. Neat attire, rimless spectacles, black hair gathered up in a bun — a woman whose tidy bearing suited her down to the ground. Amanda Lansbury, professor of Combat Magic.

Michelle went on, still smiling.

"Even so, it's hard to ignore a noble background. We have princes and princesses from every kingdom, after all. The Crown Prince and the Imperial Princess as well."

"I agree that caution is warranted. That said, I intend to keep my teaching methods fair."

Amanda's gaze drifted, belatedly, to Michelle's clothes. A rather seductive outfit. The intent to catch the eye and tempt the opposite sex was not even thinly veiled.

Why would anyone wear that at the Academy… Shameless.

Of course, no one knew what Amanda was thinking.

A woman who had been listening quietly from the side finally spoke up.

"Ah, that's right. Have you heard the rumor?"

Oversized magnifying spectacles. Dusky skin. She looked every inch a researcher. Ruwendolin Brilli, professor of Understanding Magic Casting.

Ruwendolin gave her loosely tied hair a shake and launched into the gossip.

"That student who screamed at the entrance ceremony — apparently Professor Maria has taken quite an interest. She's been asking around about him everywhere."

Michelle's eyes went wide.

"Really? That Screaming Herb boy can't even sense mana. You have no idea how awkward it was when he showed up in my class…"

"Is that so? I heard they had some kind of serious conversation."

Amanda listened in silence and thought it over. She already knew that student would be walking into her lecture as well. How frightened she had been when the homeroom professor, Roxwell, had shown up out of nowhere and leaned on her.

Still. The evaluation will be fair…

Michelle cut across her thoughts.

"I hear a disciplinary committee is about to be convened for him. Too many F's in class participation, apparently. His attitude in my class wasn't much either. How was he in yours, Professor Ruwendolin?"

"Was he? He was fairly quiet in mine. Of course, he couldn't use magic, so he couldn't keep up with the lesson. Not a student who draws much interest."

Amanda pictured the typical delinquent. That such a student existed at the Empire's foremost academy was, in her view, an outrage.

Michelle leaned in toward her, voice dropping to something insinuating.

"Professor Amanda — if you give him an F in class participation as well, the disciplinary committee will definitely convene. It opens once you fail enough of the twenty electives, doesn't it? By now he has to have at least nineteen."

"…I'll see him for myself and judge. It's too early to evaluate anyone on rumors alone."

"I hear he doesn't even have a backer. Just an ordinary commoner. Even if you give him an F, there shouldn't be any fallout."

"…"

Dong— dong— dong—

The bell rang for the end of the period. Michelle and Ruwendolin rose from their seats. Michelle sent Amanda a meaningful look and added one last thing.

"Do think it over. That student is taking every single elective. Expel just one of them, and everyone else is happy. It all resets next week, so chances like this don't come often."

"…"

"Anyway. Good luck with your first lecture."

Michelle left. Amanda knew exactly why she had said all of that. There had been a deal, no doubt, to open a seat for some noble student. Roxwell forcing X into the class had created a problem.

Even so. The evaluation will be fair…

That was what she thought. Michelle's words still circled in her head. Unable to settle the matter, she sighed and headed for the lecture hall.

Introduction to Artemisian Archery: F.

Classical Exorcism Theory: D.

Introduction to Sacred Healing: F.

Results he had expected. The Classical Exorcism professor had been, as anticipated, a reasonable human being. The only person with an actual personality among the divine-arts faculty, which was a mercy.

Next is Combat Magic. Amanda Lansbury. Treats students fairly regardless of rank.

She was one of the professors the original novel mentioned often.

I bought Mana Affinity for this class. Barring a disaster, I should be able to dodge an F.

He stepped into the lecture hall. A woman with rimless spectacles and her hair in a bun stood at the lectern, calmly studying the incoming students as she prepared the lesson. Her manner and her bearing laid her personality out in the open.

"Peasant! Get over here, now!"

Sure enough, Lola was already waiting.

"What's with the sword sheath? Aren't you supposed to be going for magic?"

"You were the one who gave me grief for not being able to use magic…. It's a precious gift from my benefactor. I'm going to treat it as a family heirloom."

"Well, a peasant who can't even use magic insisting on taking this class — that's because of me, isn't it? Have you finally realized what an honor it is to attend me?"

"I can use magic."

He showed her a flame, conjured on a fingertip. The product of practicing himself half to death with every spare minute he had. Lola's eyes went round, then her mouth opened and closed without a sound.

"H-how? You can't use magic!"

"…People around this age suddenly awaken to mana sometimes. Growth spurts."

"I've never heard anything like that! What kind of trick did you pull?!"

"Hey, keep your voice down…! It's not like I'm going around advertising it!"

He was already drawing enough attention without her help. Fortunately, the other students weren't looking their way.

Except for Circe, over on the far side.

She had seen X use magic, and her eyes had gone as round as Lola's. Then they sharpened, and she shot him a sidelong glare.

Time passed, and the lecture began. A few students came in late; Amanda issued a warning at once.

"If you are late to lecture, I will deduct class participation regardless of the reason. Write your names here before you sit."

A professor who was exacting to the bone. In the original story, the Hero's party had suffered more than once under that exacting nature.

Amanda's eyes lit as she looked over the students.

"We will now begin Combat Magic."

"Combat Magic is the study of every form of magic whose purpose is to suppress or attack an opponent. In other words, you are here to learn combat magic."

Spheres of elemental force hung in the air. The power in even one of them looked like it would put a person in the ground.

"When people hear 'combat magic,' they typically think of elemental spells. The variety, however, is far greater than you imagine. You there. Tell us a combat magic you know."

Amanda dismissed the floating magic and pointed, with precision, at X. The look in her eyes was a test.

He sorted his thoughts and answered evenly.

"Illusion magic. Curse magic."

"…Good. Then what is the premise of combat magic?"

"That there must be a target in order to produce a result."

"Isn't that premise strange? In the case of elemental magic, as I just demonstrated, it is possible to manifest the spell with no target at all."

"But that would simply be wasting mana. You would have manifested it with no relation to the spell's purpose."

Amanda sent him a sharp look and took a moment to think. He was answering more properly than she had expected; she wondered if she had pointed at the wrong person.

"Your name is X, is that correct?"

"Yes, it is."

"You have more knowledge of magic than I would have guessed. I had heard you couldn't use it."

"I can now. I awakened to mana today. I've always liked magic, so I've studied it on my own."

A skeptical glint touched Amanda's eyes. She did not look inclined to take him at his word.

Her questions kept coming after that. He could not answer all of them. Conceptual questions he handled properly. The problem was the fine-grained calculation work.

"Derive the result of this formula according to the imaginary-dimensional calculation."

"…I don't know."

Of course he didn't. It wasn't in the setting. His Intelligence was only average, which made the math difficult besides. Every time he gave an answer like that, her eyes narrowed a fraction. He understood why soon enough.

It's the infamy, isn't it. With a personality like hers, of course she finds me distasteful. I need to stay sharp.

His evaluation was probably oscillating somewhere around the middle. Even ordinary mages botched calculations that detailed. He should still be fine.

Hah…. At least I'll dodge the F.

The lecture went smoothly, and the theory portion ended.

"We will begin the practical."

Amanda told the students to stand, then used magic to turn the lecture hall into a sparring field.

"Pair off and complete a total of five matches. Apply the magic you learned in the theory lecture as much as you can. I will determine class participation based on what I observe during the spars."

"Professor? What happens if we lose all five?"

"I will be checking whether you applied what was taught. If you simply lose without having learned anything properly, it will be difficult to receive a good mark."

That was what she said. He knew that showing genuine effort was enough to get on her good side. There was no need to get worked up about it.

X paired off with Lola, reasonably enough, and took his place on the sparring floor. It had been a while; he needed to test the magic he had learned.

"Don't complain if I attack you."

"I'll have you know I'm a 3rd-Circle mage? Someone at your level— Kyah!"

Lola reacted a beat late to the mana arrow that came flying at her without warning, but she still got a barrier up in time to stop it. Contrary to what Roxwell had said, she had cast the spell without a chant.

"Wh-what. You're using magic without chanting?"

"You don't chant for a shield either, miss."

"That's because shield magic is a basic 1st-Circle spell…"

Casting without a chant meant you had mastered the spell. For a basic 1st-Circle, chantless casting was only natural if you put in even a little work.

After that, X kept experimenting — Flame to raise fire, Shield, and the rest. Sparring with Lola taught him more than he had expected.

Is it the sword talent? Knocking spells aside with a blade is more doable than I thought…. Ah.

In the space of a blink he failed to bat away an arrow spell Lola had loosed, and it slammed into his torso. He watched a blue veil on the surface of his body wink out — the sparring field's protective magic.

"That's four in a row! Don't you dare look down on me!"

"Nnh. Stopping several at once is pretty hard."

A quicker reaction might have made it possible, but this wasn't the time to be swinging a sword, so he didn't dwell on it.

"Flame magic blocks more of your vision than I expected."

"The senses do tend to be surprisingly sharp."

He analyzed the results of the four matches as they went, stacking up genuinely useful knowledge. He was about to start the last one when—

"You. Duel me."

"…Circe?"

Of all people, she was the one who walked over. He couldn't say he hadn't seen it coming. He had been feeling a hostility from her lately that he couldn't parse. She was someone he could not afford to get entangled with, though, so he refused first, pointing at Lola beside him by way of excuse.

"Sorry, but I'm already in the middle of a match. If you want to spar, let's do it next time. Or we can meet after class."

"…That's not going to work."

Circe's eyes narrowed, sharp and unfriendly. She did not look like she intended to back down. He had wanted to stay uninvolved if he could help it, but there was no helping it now. There was only one practical match left anyway. If he played along for a spar, she would probably stop bothering him.

Winning and losing isn't what matters here anyway…

He was about to concede, reasonably enough, when—

"If you spar with this one, who am I supposed to go with?! If you want a partner, find someone else!"

Lola, who had been standing quietly, raised her voice at Circe. The sudden intrusion had soured her mood too. She had finally been enjoying a class, and now it was being interrupted. If the other girl was going to be rude, Lola saw no reason to be polite.

The lecture hall grew noisy, and students' attention swung toward them. Anyone could see it was getting emotional; of course they stared. Amanda's gaze cut toward them, sharp as a blade. Circe's eyes narrowed as well, her own temper clearly turning.

"I just want to spar with him. Move."

"Who do you think you are, giving me orders…!"

"Fine. I'll spar with you first, then."

The instant Circe flicked her hand and moved her mana, ten arrows of frigid ice crystal formed in the air. Ice Arrow — a 2nd-Circle spell — ten of them at once, without a single chant. In that moment, her level as a mage was no longer in question.

Circe stretched out her hand as if conducting. The ice arrows shot toward Lola in a blink.

"Eek…!"

Lola flinched hard and threw up a defensive spell. The sound of ice arrows punching into the barrier tore at the ears. Incredibly, they did not punch through.

A barrier's strength should scale with the amount of mana in it…

Stopping that many spells would take far more than ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠an ordinary quantity. Circe, who knew that as well as anyone, scowled.

"You can use a barrier reasonably well, I'll give you that. But if you think that's the end of it, you have no talent for magic."

Circe immediately began chanting a spell of the next tier. A 4th-Circle working took shape as naturally as breathing. While Lola hurriedly prepared her next spell, the ice arrows already embedded in the barrier shuddered violently. The moment the vibration hit its critical point, cracks spiderwebbed through the ice like fracturing glass.

Sensing no danger, Lola started preparing an offensive spell. True to what Roxwell had said, her casting was slow.

Circe closed her outstretched hand into a fist, as if crushing an insect.

"Let's wrap this up. You're wasting my time."

The ice arrows detonated.

Shards became razored blades and scattered in a lethal spray, tearing toward Lola through the barrier. It was more than the sparring field's protective magic could handle. The instant the ice blades were about to run her through—

"You've got to be kidding me…!"

X threw himself forward and snatched Lola out of the way. She barely cleared the attack. If he hadn't grabbed her, the angle would have opened her face. Instead, a small ice fragment buried itself in X's back.

Ah, I'm gonna die…!

He had gotten a barrier up of his own, so he wasn't badly hurt. Fragments had still worked their way through, though, and he was bleeding. Blood had been drawn, and Circe realized her mistake.

…I overdid it.

The barrier had been harder than she expected, and she had used a spell that was far too strong. She had assumed they could take it. She had failed to keep in mind that her opponents were mere students.

"What is the meaning of this."

The moment the spar turned into a bloodletting, Amanda stepped in. She took in the situation, then bore down on Circe.

"Miss Circe. This appears to have gone well beyond the level of a spar. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

"It was a situation I had fully under control."

"And you call this a controlled situation? I told you to spar. I did not tell you to draw blood!"

"So what. Are you going to dock my class participation?"

"…I will pretend I did not hear that."

While the two of them went at it—

"You're not hurt, are you?"

X set Lola down out of his arms. She grasped the situation a beat late and turned her worry on him.

"Y-you got hurt?"

"It hurts, but I'll be fine. A healing spell will take care of it."

"Why… why did you do that. There's protective magic for spars…"

Lola's voice shook as she spoke. A thin line of bright blood ran down her pale cheek where an ice fragment had caught her.

Of all things, it called up that sight from a year ago.

My daughter was about this age when she died.

It had been bothering him since the first time he saw her. Of course she didn't look like his girl — but ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠she was exactly that age, and it kept catching on something in his chest.

At least she isn't badly hurt. That's something…

A drop of blood that had fallen from Lola's cheek beaded on the back of his hand. She hadn't fully cleared the fragments; one had grazed her.

"…"

He felt something boiling up from inside. A memory he had thought he'd buried in his chest was tearing loose and running wild.

Stay calm. If I just keep still, I can still dodge the F.

Circe would be sanctioned by Amanda. If he let it pass quietly, the situation would end. Get through this one incident, avoid the F, and he would be spared expulsion.

"As it happens, I've got one match left myself."

He forced himself to think a little more coldly. Even if he ducked it now, a clash with Circe would happen again. In that case, it was better to simply do what the other party wanted. He didn't know why, but Circe ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wanted to see his skill. Showing it to her now was the better play.

X stepped up onto the sparring floor and came to a stop in front of Circe.

"Fine. Let's duel. If that's what you want."

And so he did his best to ignore how tightly his hand was closing on the hilt.