Chapter 42
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: This Is Getting Really Fun, Isn't It?
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However, Tail just chuckled softly in response.
"It's fine."
Tail's expression was as impassive as ever.
Khan raised his voice in surprise.
"...Really?"
Khan asked Tail once more.
"Last chance. You're sure you won't regret it?"
Tail leaned back on the sofa and continued.
His face was as calm as always.
"Khan. It's been five years."
Five years.
In the early days of those five years, he had thought of them, remembered them, and ached in his heart.
But five years turned out to be longer than he'd imagined.
The pain and wounds gradually faded and healed.
At the same time, new people slowly filled the space around him.
Just as they had forgotten him.
Tail had forgotten them too.
That fact felt strangely bitter.
"Then what's the point of going to the academy? Wasn't it to see them?"
Khan's voice carried a strange excitement.
Tail answered firmly.
"Khan. I don't want to live bound by the past anymore."
Khan fell silent.
Tail let out a soft chuckle at Khan's reaction.
As Chloe and Cecilia left.
When they refused even to accept his letters, Tail had despaired at first.
The moments of happiness they'd shared.
The times they'd enjoyed together.
All those moments they'd spent side by side—it felt like he was the only one holding onto them.
The immense affection that had pursued him every day, which he'd never returned, flickered before his eyes.
So yes, he'd taken up the sword to approach them.
But.
As he swung it day after day.
Other things began to enter his sight.
Yujin worrying over him when he collapsed from training.
Abbot Noha quietly looking after him from behind.
Khan always welcoming him back.
Even the monastery folk who cared for him when he struggled after Chloe and Cecilia left.
And in that moment, he realized.
Ah. I've been so fixated on the past that I haven't seen what's right beside me.
That 'past' wasn't just the time with Cecilia and Chloe.
It included his previous life too.
All his desperate efforts had ended in death.
But.
On the flip side, that's why he was here now, able to meet so many people who cherished him.
So he decided to look to the future and move forward.
To shed his stubborn pessimism.
"I'll protect the people by my side first."
This time, he vowed not to lose them the same way.
Tail's words left Khan silent.
"I see."
Khan's voice was dry.
"I understand, Tail."
Yet somehow, he seemed oddly pleased.
Tail crossed his arms and spoke up.
"But. In exchange, I have another favor to ask."
"What is it?"
Not news on Chloe and Cecilia—what could he want?
Curiosity seeped into Khan's tone.
And Tail's lips slowly parted.
"Get me a book on how to develop a mana core."
Without a mana core, Tail had relied on the 'Use Mana!' skill to borrow ambient mana floating in the air.
But air mana was riddled with impurities, making it terribly inefficient.
'Fortunately, I got a mana core this time.'
Now it was time to fill it.
In other words, time to learn a mana cultivation method.
But hearing Tail's request, Khan let out a short hum.
"Hmm..."
"What? Too hard?"
"Not hard, but I don't think it's a good idea."
Not a good idea?
Tail stayed quiet, waiting for Khan to elaborate.
"Do you know there are countless mana cultivation methods?"
"Of course."
In this world, mana cultivation methods—breathing techniques to infuse mana into one's core—came in endless varieties.
Depending on which one you learned, and how well it suited your body.
Your mana control could differ vastly.
"It's better to learn from a real teacher than to fumble through a book."
With that, Khan added.
"Once you're in the academy, why not find a master there?"
A master, huh.
In that instant, a figure popped into Tail's mind.
A girl with pink hair and pink eyes gazing at him.
Her head bore tiger ears symbolizing the white tiger, complete with a swishing tail.
'Ugh. What am I thinking.'
Tail roughly shook his head.
As if that war hero would take him as a disciple.
She'd cherished her first disciple immensely.
Even proposing it herself.
'No way it'd be me.'
Tail dismissed the thought.
At that moment, Khan chuckled at Tail's expression.
"Looks like someone came to mind. Don't tell me it's another girl?"
"Yeah. But she won't take me."
As he answered, Tail twitched an eyebrow.
"Wait. Another girl?"
"Seems like girls are overflowing around you. Classic casanova."
Tail let out a hollow laugh at Khan's teasing.
"What are you talking about? I've got plenty of guys around me."
"Name them."
At Khan's provoking words, Tail declared confidently.
"My best friend Yujin is a guy. Abbot's here too. And you. Tons of guys. See?"
Khan burst into snickers.
"Your friend Yujin? You really mean that seriously?"
"What."
Khan seemed to be desperately holding back laughter.
"Heh. Never mind. You're really dense about this stuff."
"What's his deal."
Tail stared incredulously at Khan cackling away, then glanced at the clock.
It was nearly eight already.
"I'm heading out. Yujin's waiting."
"...Yeah. Take care."
Once Tail left.
Enis emerged from behind the bar, erupting in laughter.
Puahaha!
Her long silver hair swayed with her shaking body.
Really.
That guy was hilarious.
He truly had no clue.
"This is getting really fun, isn't it?"
Enis's black eyes sparkled.
At that hour, one room in Pharaoh Academy still had its lights on late into the night.
The spacious room boasted luxurious sofas, desks, expensive rugs, and all sorts of fine furnishings.
And in the gleaming center, oddly out of place, stood a large dartboard setup.
Noble ladies had gathered in front of it, chattering away.
Darts had become the latest fad among them.
Then, one lady sighed as she spoke up.
"Sigh. Starting this school year, commoners are coming in, right?"
The others grimaced and chimed in one by one.
"So filthy. Just filthy."
"Even if it's for scouting talent, what do lowly commoners know?"
"Yeah. As long as they don't tarnish our academy's reputation."
The ladies burst into giggles.
Then one picked up a dart, took aim, and threw.
Whoosh.
The dart flew weakly and barely stuck to the lowest score.
But that alone sent the ladies into a frenzy.
"Oh my!"
"Lady Kablen! You hit the board!"
"Your skills have improved so much."
At the praise, Lady Kablen shrugged, forcing down her smug smirk.
"Not student council president level, but I practice every day. You can do it too."
"Oh, how impressive."
"We need to step up our game."
Then, as it was her turn, one lady gripped a dart and spoke.
"But did you hear?"
She whispered conspiratorially.
"The top entrant this time is a commoner too."
The others gasped dramatically.
"Oh my!"
"What?!"
The ladies' eyes widened.
"Does that even make sense?"
"Crude as it is, they're insane."
Excited by the fresh gossip, they set down their darts and dove into chatter.
Specifically, to tear into the faceless commoner top student.
They moved to the sofas and kept talking.
"Seriously. Is the school even sane?"
"No matter how you look at it, we need to protest formally."
As the ladies babbled on, a sound came.
Rustle.
The page of a book turning.
Lady Kablen turned her head and asked.
"What do you think, Student Council President... in this situation?"
All eyes followed at Lady Kablen's words.
At the end of their gazes sat a girl at a wide desk.
A mountain of cotton candy piled before her, she processed paperwork bit by bit, nibbling on it with each task.
Under the barrage of stares, the girl smiled faintly.
Her lips parted slowly.
"I agree with you all."
Her voice was clear and pure.
With the student council president's affirming words, the ladies finally looked away.
"See? Even the president agrees."
"Should we push back?"
The ladies resumed their talk.
The girl said nothing, just watching them.
She merely brushed back her golden hair and stuffed a big bite of cotton candy into her mouth.
A familiar, nostalgic sweetness filled her mouth.