Chapter 48
Chapter 48
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 48
>Chapter Title: Blood Magic
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"This is…… what on earth."
I blankly stared at the fading orb of light.
The duration wasn't all that long.
Perhaps just one or two seconds at most.
Given the size of the light orb, it was an absurdly short time, but honestly, its power wasn't worth much consideration.
‘This defies common sense.’
The mechanism of magic.
The caster emits mana to stimulate ambient mana, manifesting phenomena.
While the methods varied slightly depending on the type of magic, the basic framework was like this.
And the key point here……
‘The caster.’
All magical acts revolved around the caster as the center.
But what had just happened?
The light orb.
My will had ignited the magic, but the reference point—the caster—wasn't me.
It was truly something that defied common sense.
"Wait…… if that's the case?"
I immediately stood up and began several experiments.
Having to draw blood for the experiments was quite annoying, but it was tolerable effort.
How much time passed like that?
Munch, munch.
After finishing several experiments, I chewed on bread I'd brought from my subspace to fill my stomach.
First off.
‘……Let's call this Blood Magic.’
Blood Magic.
Just the name alone sounded as sinister as forbidden magic.
But since it was just a name for myself, it wasn't a big deal.
Anyway.
To sum up the experiment results, Blood Magic was…… what to say.
‘It seems pretty useful.’
Magic without the caster at its center. This implied a lot for combat.
I could manifest spells from blind spots to strike enemies unaware or seize the high ground in tactical exchanges.
However.
Tzzzz……!
A light orb rose from the training room wall.
The familiar manifestation of Blood Magic during experiments.
But compared to the first time, its size wasn't that large. It had only gotten a bit faster in activation.
‘The output…… is iffy.’
Increasing the blood volume would solve it, but that wasn't a great method.
It was like the cost outweighing the gain.
Of course, it wasn't without solutions.
‘Proliferation Formula.’
A formula used in healing magic, excellent for regenerating blood and flesh.
It would surely help increase blood volume in the body.
But that wasn't all.
‘Let's see…….’
I applied the Proliferation Formula to a drop of blood on the floor.
Tzzzz…….
The blood soon began multiplying on its own.
It only expanded two or threefold at best, but it was quite significant.
This proved the Proliferation Formula affected not just blood in the body, but blood outside it as well.
However……
‘To use it properly, an ordinary Proliferation Formula won't cut it?’
I crossed my arms and stared at the enlarged drop of blood.
As the crimson hemispherical blob shimmered, I recalled the Light of Healing secret tome I'd received from Henji.
What if I could extract just the ‘Proliferation Formula’ from the Light of Healing secret tome?
What would happen then?
The thought didn't last long.
‘It won't be easy.’
I shook my head.
Extracting formulas from an already composed spell was several times harder than combining formulas to create magic.
Impossible without mastery of the spell in question.
The best option would be getting the Proliferation Formula from the Blandoga Family.
‘I don't need the highest level.’
Even the version provided to non-bloodline retainers would suffice.
That level of Proliferation Formula often circulated in academic exchanges anyway.
"I could probably get Ransi to hand it over willingly through Henji……."
No, he might even give the top-tier version.
But I soon shook my head.
‘Best to avoid tangling with that madman if possible. Come to think of it, didn't Ransi say he'd visit before returning?’
It wouldn't hurt to bring it up.
Nothing to lose.
Blood Magic had enough value to withstand any loss.
* * *
Ransi came looking for Damian the morning after the Phestinike Festival curtains fell.
"Take care of yourself, okay?"
"Listen well to your professors. The midterms are coming up soon, right? I heard the schedule got pushed back a bit, but don't get too complacent."
The cafeteria in the temporary dorms was packed with parents visiting injured students.
‘Normal classes resume next week, was it?’
Once classes restarted, parent-teacher meetings wouldn't be this free, so they were saying goodbyes before leaving.
But amid the noisy bustle, one table remained utterly silent.
Ours.
‘…….’
I took a sip of the coffee on the table, rolling only my eyes to survey the group.
First, Ransi sitting across from me.
His usual stoic self.
A face devoid of expression, eyes softly gazing downward.
The picture of perfect calm……
I glanced to the side.
"……."
Damian, wearing a sullen expression.
Pouting, perhaps. His cheeks puffed out oddly, his eyes a perfect mix of half frustration and half grievance.
That gaze was fixed on Ransi.
Here's what happened.
- Young Master Damian, I've come to say goodbye before returning to the family.
- Yeah, safe travels! Go on! Hurry up!
Up to that point, Damian had been perfectly cheerful.
I hadn't seen him smile so brightly in ages, but it seemed Ransi's presence grated on him quite a bit.
‘Can't blame him.’
In a way, this stoic, oblivious butler managed Damian better than even Matriarch Bianca.
But that bright smile didn't last.
- Oh, and Matriarch has a message for you. To deliver after the festival ended, precisely.
- Yeah, what is it?
- Regarding the ‘proposal for lake construction and statue erection on Blandoga premises’ you suggested during the recent procession.
The lake was sweat-tears-blood No. 1.
The statue was No. 2.
Apparently, he'd handed the proposal to the Blandoga procession that visited the academy over the Tower of Trials incident.
- Yeah! What do you think? Cool, right! Great, huh!
- I don't know whose help you got, but it was surprisingly well-formatted. The proposal itself was decent.
Damian beamed at the unexpected praise.
Up to here, it sounded like positive feedback from the matriarch.
But.
- Matriarch's response is……
- Her response?
- Denied.
- …….
The backstory was obvious without seeing it.
‘Someone must've rushed straight to the matriarch and begged.’
Warp gates made it a day or two to Blandoga.
They'd probably dashed off, bowed their heads, and pleaded.
That it couldn't be done. Please reject the young master's request.
That must be why Matriarch Bianca's swift reply came.
For me, it was quite regrettable.
‘Tch.’
Honestly, I didn't care much about actually building the lake or statue.
A lake was a lake, a statue just a statue.
How impressive could it be?
What I wanted was the sweat, tears, and blood of the Blandoga retainers poured into making them.
In other words, the process mattered more than the result.
After that, things got noisy.
- Ransi, really? It was really denied? Why? Why not? It's so cool!
Damian desperately trying to persuade Ransi, and……
- Matriarch says it's nothing but fiscal waste.
Ransi reciting Matriarch Bianca's words like a parrot.
It was a clash of an impenetrable spear and an unbreakable shield.
And after that.
"……."
"……."
An awkward silence had dragged on.
"Um…… may I be excused now?"
Unable to bear the silence, Chenbi cautiously lifted his hips.
But Ransi shook his head.
"I'm sorry, but please stay seated a bit longer, Chenbi."
"……Ah, yes."
Chenbi shrank back into his seat.
His face screamed pure grievance, like ‘Why me…….’ But no one at the table paid him any mind.
Ransi was too stoic and oblivious, Damian too busy stewing in anger.
And me……
‘Hmm.’
My brain was spinning, searching for a way to shift the mood.
‘This is problematic.’
A rejection tied to sweat-tears-blood.
On the surface, it seemed Damian's issue alone, but not quite.
When Ransi mentioned ‘whose help you got’ regarding the proposal.
That gaze had definitely been on me.
‘……Busted.’
I'm an erudite Troubleshooter.
I'd dug up old memories to help craft the report for sweat-tears-blood construction.
Others' misfortune is my joy, so I used my full abilities without holding back—only for this stoic, oblivious butler to catch on.
I'd thought my Black-White Slums urchin image would shield me, but alas.
In that situation.
‘Ask for the Proliferation Formula?’
Bad timing.
How would Blandoga see me?
As the bad influence luring their already wayward young patriarch further astray?
Y'know, the classic bad friend.
‘Yeah…… that's me.’
That was the reason.
‘Ugh.’
My plans were hitting snags.
‘I wanted to wrap up Blood Magic research before heading to Hamern Great Forest.’
Plenty of time.
The trip was set for vacation, with just over three months left.
So, what to do.
‘Senior?’
Senior could hand over a Proliferation Formula without much fuss.
Blandoga's were top-tier, but this was just testing potential—efficiency didn't matter much.
But.
- Like a damn highway robber.
- Kururuk! Peck peck!
‘Took too much already.’
No. 1 glaring at breakfast, senior eyeing me even sharper.
Approaching now would end badly.
She wouldn't kill me, but a few smacks? Possible.
‘Professor Pellina…….’
Still awkward between us.
‘Parun…….’
Not great.
Even if Decullan stepped back post-Tower of Trials, that was just for show.
Their watchful eyes wouldn't stray.
‘Rapiter might have formulas…….’
Conveniently, I'd gotten an entry pass from senior.
But it had an expiration.
Earliest entry: right before vacation. I.e., before the forest.
‘Sigh.’
Half-resigned, I blankly stared at my empty coffee cup.
‘Karma I sowed.’
As I thought that.
"Really no way?"
Damian's slumped shoulders.
His face, a perfect half-and-half of frustration and grievance, now shone with resignation.
That was when Ransi's lips twitched upward slightly.
‘……?’
It vanished instantly, but I'd seen it clearly.
‘Why…… smile?’
Was he plotting something?
As that thought crossed my mind.
The now-expressionless Ransi spoke.
"It's not impossible."
"……Really?!"
"If I speak earnestly to Matriarch…… but then, Young Master, you'd have to do something too."
"What? What?"
Damian lit up.
Ransi soon spoke.
And when he finished, despair settled on Damian's face.
"Place in the top 16 of the overall midterm rankings."
Top 16 overall.
High if high, low if low.
Achievable for diligent academy students.
But.
For Damian, it was impossibly distant.
"1,160th?"
"16th, Young Master."
"……."
The stoic Ransi smacked the reality-escaping Damian back to earth.
Ignoring the despairing Damian, she continued.
"16th seems doable. Then I'd have grounds to plead with Matriarch."
"……."
That's when I realized.
‘Matriarch's scheme!’
Ransi was favored, but not enough to overturn Matriarch's decisions.
Yet her confident tone meant this was Matriarch's ploy to boost Damian's grades.
But Matriarch's scheme didn't end there.
"Don't worry too much, Young Master Damian. You have good friends around, don't you? Surely they'll help you plenty."
"……Really?"
Damian looked up, grasping at hope.
But that hope froze cold upon seeing me.
Why?
"……."
I was no different from Damian.
It briefly flickered back toward Chenbi……
"I, I…… actually struggle with my own studies. I'll help as much as I can, but I don't think I can offer much……."
Chenbi's finisher snuffed out the embers.
Frankly, it was the truth.
‘Chenbi's a model student, but…….’
Not enough spare capacity to tutor others.
His offer to help as much as possible showed his kind heart—that was his limit.
But Ransi's next words.
They ignited Chenbi's resolve.
"Chenbi, Aster. If you help Young Master Damian this time, Blandoga will offer fitting compensation. Would that…… still be too hard?"
Ransi deliberately emphasized ‘Blandoga.’
Chenbi got the picture.
So, naturally, his answer was……
"Honestly, my grades don't matter that much. Friends come first."
Accepted.
His attitude flipped in an instant—baffling, yet Ransi's gaze turned to me.
"And you, Aster……?"
"Yeah, sure. Let's give it a shot."
Not a bad deal for me.
Perfect chance to snag the Proliferation Formula.
Anyway, Damian, moved by our capital-fueled friendship, gazed at us with touched eyes.
"Friends! Chenbi!"
But.
"Ahem."
Chenbi awkwardly looked away.
"We're good friends, Damian. Right?"
I shamelessly extended my hand.
One month until midterms.
Thus began……
The Project to Turn Damian into a Model Student.