Chapter 28
Chapter 28
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 28
>Chapter Title: You Were a Loyal Dog After All
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Karahen’s sub-space pouch. Unlocking it wasn’t all that difficult.
Finding the mana pattern input by the user might seem like a daunting task at first glance, but with an understanding of security magic principles and a bit of mana sense, it was actually quite straightforward.
Of course, that’s easy enough to say...
‘It’s been a month already.’
A stone chamber about 9㎡ in area.
This was a training room provided to academy students, mainly used for practicing breathing techniques or personal training sessions.
Lately, I’d been visiting the training room morning and night, all to crack the lock on Karahen’s sub-space.
It didn’t have any identifying markers, but attempting to unlock it in front of others felt too awkward.
Anyway, a full month passed like that.
Pzzzzzt, crackle.
Dark purple sparks danced over the pitch-black sub-space pouch before fading away.
It was finally unlocked.
To be honest, it shouldn’t have taken this long.
‘If only I’d had the right equipment.’
With a few tools that magitech engineers use, it would’ve taken less than a week.
But a whole month?
‘Well... I wasn’t just doing this.’
I’d fully dissolved the medicinal properties of the premium elixir into my mana, and even increased my total mana capacity.
On top of that, the academy classes had been pretty useful, letting me absorb a fair amount of helpful knowledge.
There really is a difference when you’re being taught properly.
You gain new perspectives, I suppose.
Truth be told, I’d never really had much in the way of perspectives.
In my past life, I’d just grabbed whatever secret arts seemed necessary at the time, puzzled them out with my comrades, and cherry-picked the principles that seemed usable.
In this life, the only “learning” I’d done was from Henji’s magic books, which wasn’t much different from self-study.
For someone like me, the academy professors’ classes were a great chance to reflect on my existing knowledge.
Anyway.
“...Let’s see.”
I cautiously opened Karahen’s sub-space.
Because of the security magic, unlike other sub-spaces, I had to inject a small amount of mana, but soon its contents were laid bare before my eyes.
And what was inside was this.
‘This... is a potion.’
It was the drug Karahen had chugged back at Professor Parun’s mansion when the mana backlash hit.
Still, better to confirm for sure, so I popped the cork and took a whiff.
Pop.
A refreshing scent spread through the stone chamber.
‘Definitely.’
It was a potion that helped suppress mana backlash.
Five vials of the stuff, just like that.
Did a Decullan Magic Division vice-captain get paid differently? Or was he just that well-supported? This wasn’t something you’d normally carry around in multiples.
‘Well, it is Decullan.’
Not hard to understand.
That said, the sub-space was laughably barren otherwise—no useful items bearing Karahen’s name.
Mostly junk I wouldn’t bother with, or stuff stamped so clearly with the Decullan crest that even if it was useful, I couldn’t use it.
‘Damn bastards, so annoyingly meticulous.’
I glared at the robe emblazoned with the Decullan crest and the Crimson Jade Magic Division seal, then shoved it back into the sub-space haphazardly.
‘Yeah... can’t use this.’
Not with the Decullan crest so prominently stamped on it.
Somehow, erasing the crest was turning out harder than unlocking the sub-space itself.
The crests were engraved using ancient magic artifacts—one per crest—and the time investment just didn’t add up.
The most useful thing I salvaged so far was a pair of bracelet-shaped defensive artifacts.
‘Defensive power...’
I triggered a Collision Formula to stress the artifact.
Soon, I felt resistance in my grip.
Zing—
As I gradually ramped up the Collision Formula’s power, the artifact’s recoil grew fiercer.
After a moment.
Ziiing—!
With a shrill noise, the bracelet artifact shuddered violently. I withdrew the Collision Formula right after.
‘Not bad at all.’
It wouldn’t match the force field I could deploy at full power, but no mage expects that kind of defense from an artifact.
As long as it could block a spell or two in a pinch, or at least mitigate some damage, that was plenty.
I stowed the artifact in my own Henji sub-space, then kept rummaging through Karahen’s.
How long did I search?
By the time the training room was overflowing with stuff from Karahen’s sub-space, I’d salvaged a few more artifacts.
But no secret manuals in sight, even after scouring every inch.
Tsk.
“No way he kept it separate.”
Now all that was left were what seemed like war trophies.
Bloodstained swords, dented shields and armor too ruined to use. Magic staves with shattered orbs, robes torn to rags.
Even a robe so massive you’d question if it was meant for a human.
I was about half ready to give up when.
“...!”
There it was.
A single book wedged between the junk.
‘Of course...’
Karahen didn’t strike me as the type to trust anyone.
Guys like that always keep their most important possessions on them.
A smug smile crept across my face as I pulled out the book, revealing on its cover...
[Crimson Flame]
The engraved title.
Seeing those words deepened the smile on my lips.
Decullan’s pride, the Azure Flame—an eternal, unquenchable fire. Crimson Flame was a secret art in its subcategory, a vile spell that could burn through force fields.
‘Karahen, you really were their loyal dog.’
Who would’ve thought Decullan would bestow Crimson Flame on him.
That’s when it hit me.
Bang bang bang!
Someone pounded on the training room door.
Followed by a voice.
“Friend! Time for class!”
It was Damian.
‘Time flies.’
I swept the junk cluttering the training room back into Karahen’s sub-space haphazardly, straightened my disheveled academy uniform, and stepped out.
* * *
I wanted nothing more than to devour the Crimson Flame manual right there, but it wasn’t something you could master overnight anyway.
‘Flames that burn force fields—but that’s only at full mastery.’
If Karahen had truly unleashed Crimson Flame’s potential, neither I nor Professor Parun would’ve survived.
Anyway.
The place Damian and I headed wasn’t our usual M3 class classroom. It was the shared grounds for basic classes 1st, 2nd, and 3rd years.
Specifically, the central area of the three grounds, used only for special events.
And the special event that had drawn us here was the midterms practical evaluation.
Unusually, students from Magic Division M1 through M3 were all gathered in one spot. Amid the crowd, Chenbi waved us over.
“Aster, Damian! Over here!”
Chenbi, waving from afar, still had dark circles under his eyes— the result of nonstop training day and night.
He hadn’t crumbled from the shock of the wide world out there; he’d taken a new step forward.
Not that he’d fully shaken off that shock, of course.
“How about it? Get some good sleep?”
“Slept great!”
“Yeah... I see.”
Talking to Damian, his voice always seemed to lose some of its energy somehow.
He was fighting his own battles, day by day.
“Oh, you hear the news?”
“What news?”
“For this practical eval, I overheard some M1 kids say the event’s been decided.”
“Event?”
“Yeah, they usually don’t say if it’ll be the Trial Gate, canyon breakthrough, simulator run, or whatever.”
“Right.”
The midterms practical was all about hands-on performance, no written tests.
That’s why every Magic Division student from M1 to M3 was gathered here.
The facilities for those trials—Trial Gate, canyon breakthrough, simulators—were all clustered in the shared grounds.
But the event hadn’t been announced yet...
“A few M1 kids overheard some admin staff griping the other day. Said they had to prep the canyon right when they’re swamped. So, what does that mean?”
“Canyon breakthrough?”
“Exactly!”
I just nodded coolly.
Truth be told, I didn’t care much what the practical event was. Damian felt the same.
But for Chenbi, desperate for academy grades, it was vital intel he couldn’t ignore.
“See? If it’s canyon breakthrough, all these kids’ll swarm it at once...”
Now he was even strategizing.
Only Damian responded to him, while I tuned them out and expanded my mana sense widely.
‘...’
It was a habit from my past life, revived after the close call with Karahen.
Periodically scanning the surroundings—just in case I missed something.
But nothing caught my attention.
‘Not surprising...’
The incident with Professor Parun had been pinned on Karahen acting alone.
I didn’t know what deal went down between the Empire and Decullan, but Decullan must’ve taken a hefty hit.
Naturally, the academy’s own defenses and Hazen city guards had been beefed up too.
But still.
‘You think they’d let it go that easily?’
Of course not.
Regardless of whether Professor Parun was Henji’s ally, Karahen’s sub-space—and now the Crimson Flame manual—had been snatched.
‘The surviving Troubleshooters must’ve reported me, so they’re obviously hunting for the sub-space.’
They probably couldn’t track me down.
So they’d dig and dig until they had nothing left to sell, and then Decullan’s only option would be the academy.
‘Planning to use a vassal family?’
From what I’d gathered, there were no Decullan vassal families among the basic 1st-years.
But 2nd-year or higher? Couldn’t rule it out.
For reference, Decullan direct bloodline members don’t attend Jenion Academy.
They’ve got too many skeletons in the closet to let their kin wander freely, even going so far as to set up their own academy for bloodlines.
Vassal heirs normally go to Decullan’s academy, but second sons or sidelines sometimes end up at Jenion.
‘They might make a move that way.’
I sorted my thoughts.
Around then, the chatter among students died down.
“Quiet, everyone.”
An assistant professor who’d appeared called for attention.
Students lined up in neat rows and columns as usual, and soon a professor stepped forward in crisp academy regalia.
“Greetings. I’m Parun, homeroom professor for Magic Division M1. I’ll be overseeing this practical evaluation.”
Professor Parun spoke in a curt, businesslike tone.
Like he wasn’t glad to see them, they all knew who he was anyway, but protocol demanded greetings.
Even so, student opinions of Professor Parun were overwhelmingly positive.
Why wouldn’t they be?
Word had spread far and wide that Decullan’s Karahen had been killed by Professor Parun.
After Decullan declared it a solo act, they’d even made it official, so academy students knew too.
For whatever reason, the masked man’s involvement stayed under wraps.
Pola, back at the academy, had kept his mouth shut too.
Thanks to that, the looks students shot Professor Parun were pure admiration.
Amid it all, his gruff voice rang out.
“The practical evaluation event is the Trial Gate.”
The words spread, and starting from M1, some students let out bewildered gasps.
Chenbi was no exception.
“Uh, wha...”
He groaned like a goblin who’d lost its tribe, and that’s when Damian drove it home.
“Liar.”
“...”
Damian wasn’t mad that Chenbi had led him on or anything. If anything, he didn’t care what the event was.
He just found Chenbi’s reaction hilarious.