Chapter 147
Chapter 147
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 147
Chapter Title: Chapter 53: The Girl Who Is a Genius, But Not a Genius (2)
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Jamie thought it was utterly ridiculous.
He had considered it before. Raising a disciple meant creating an ally.
But the sense of deprivation, rage, and sorrow he felt when his disciples turned their backs on him had been unbearable.
Of course, not all of them had betrayed him. Some had no choice but to leave.
The girl who came to mind when he thought of Anne was Sia Another. She had been a good kid—one who always looked out for her master and faithfully carried out his orders.
Yet the 12 Gods refused to let Diablo Volpir live happily, stripping everything away from him.
They stoked greed, laid traps, took hostages—resorting to every despicable tactic imaginable.
In the end, Diablo Volpir was left utterly alone.
What followed was the Fourth Great War. Defeated, Diablo encountered the Shadow Spirit King Venus in the Shadow World and created black mana.
He could still vividly recall the moment he forged that black mana.
‘Just me. With my power alone, to slay the 12 Gods.’
No disciples. No comrades.
That was his resolve.
The outcome hadn't been favorable, but even if he were sent back to that time, Jamie was certain he would make the same choice.
His wounds had run that deep.
And now, to such a Jamie, Siegfried had suggested taking Anne as his disciple.
It was probably meant as a joke, but Jamie knew there was some sincerity behind it.
“A disciple...? No way...”
Anne's situation was unfortunate, but given a little time, she would figure out what she needed to do on her own.
That was as far as he was willing to think about it.
The teaching assistant position lasted only a month anyway. After that, he could forget all about academy affairs.
With that in mind, Jamie headed back to his dorm.
A week had passed since the new semester began.
It was the day of practical class.
Anne stole a glance at Lennon, who sat at the far end.
A week earlier, on her way back after asking Teacher Jamie a question, Lennon had approached her and asked, “How did you do it?”
Assuming it was an innocent question, Anne had straightforwardly shown him the three-dimensional magic circle. Upon seeing it, Lennon had screamed as if in despair.
Since then, he had ignored her completely, even when she tried speaking to him.
“Staring at that jerk again?”
Finn, who had taken the seat beside her once more, asked.
Anne drew her legs in and nodded.
“Don't mind him~ He's transferring to the high division next month anyway. The guy's on a whole different talent level from us. It'll just leave you feeling deprived if you dwell on it.”
Finn's advice, oblivious to the full context, wasn't particularly helpful, but Anne knew he meant well, so she smiled and nodded.
“Anyway, you look way better these days. Full of energy in the mornings, concentration sharper than usual. Feels like you'll nail today's practical.”
“You'll do great.”
“Time for me to move up to the middle division too.”
Finn was too old for the elementary division.
He was probably the oldest student there overall. Anyone older had already dropped out.
In fact, Finn had received plenty of such suggestions himself—that magic wasn't the only path forward.
“I'm finally hitting my stride. Gonna prove all those adults who looked down on me wrong.”
“Yeah! You can do it.”
“So buck up. You're super smart—you should outshine a guy like me.”
“...You sound like you're way older than me.”
“Well, I am.”
The two shared a small laugh as they looked at each other.
At that moment, the practical instructor arrived.
“Did everyone enjoy your break?”
“Yes!”
The instructor smirked at the students' lively response and walked to the center of the training ground.
Today's practical was mana capacity evaluation.
They would measure possessed mana by firing the most basic 1st-class spell, Magic Arrow, at a target.
It was an annual practical and evaluation held at the start of each semester.
“Let's see how much you've all grown over the past year.”
Every student's face grew tense.
This wasn't just about confirming high or low mana levels. Class assignments and student evaluations could change based on the results.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say an entire year at the academy hung on this mana evaluation.
“Number one, Heon. Come forward.”
The small girl named Heon walked to the training ground with a nervous expression.
She stood before the mana-measuring gauge and simply needed to hit the target with the easiest attack spell, Magic Arrow. It was a straightforward test.
Yet under the circumstances, she seemed under immense psychological pressure.
‘Heon's been stuck in place for two years already...’
Heon was ten years old, the same age as Anne, and they had enrolled in the same year.
Judged talented from the start, she had been placed in Alpha Class, but after two years, she was still there.
Considering that most Alpha Class students promoted to the middle division within a year, it was a regrettable situation.
Which made today's results all the more crucial.
“Ready?”
“Yes.”
Heon nodded tensely, extending only her right index finger toward the target.
She supported her right hand with her left and slowly drew up her mana.
The instructor glanced sideways at Heon's condition with cold eyes, jotting something down on the evaluation sheet.
That sound only added to her burden.
‘I can do this.’
She prided herself on having trained harder than anyone during the break.
This time, she would graduate from the elementary division and advance to the middle division—just like her classmates who had started in Alpha Class with her.
Heon gritted her teeth and concentrated her mana at the tip of her index finger.
A blue light gathered, flashed once, and the mana arrow shot out, slicing through the air to strike the target in an instant.
Thung-!
The target shook violently, and the gauge began beeping.
Numbers spun rapidly across its surface before settling on her mana value.
MP stood for mana points—the amount of mana contained in the Magic Arrow.
“328... That's 20P up from last year. An improvement, but you'll need to work harder.”
At the instructor's words, Heon returned to her seat with a defeated look.
20P wasn't a small amount, but for a girl in the midst of her growth spurt, a year's progress of just 20P was practically no growth at all.
“Next, Flore.”
Students completed the test one by one and returned to their seats.
Some had made tremendous strides in the past year, others were like Heon, and some had done even worse.
In the midst of this mix of joy and sorrow, the instructor called another name.
“Lennon Simon. Come up.”
“Yes.”
Lennon rose from his seat. All eyes turned to him.
The second son of the Simon mage family—one of the foremost magical houses in the Kingdom of Seldam.
The news that he would transfer to the high division in a month had already spread throughout the school.
Some looked on with admiration, others with envy and jealousy, and some with indifference.
Lennon approached the instructor on the training ground.
“So you're Elder Simon's second son? A pleasure.”
“Ah, yes.”
“Care for some tea after class?”
Lennon frowned.
No matter where he went—students or faculty—most who approached were sycophants.
Tsking under his breath, Lennon turned to the target. He roughly aimed with his index finger, concentrated his mana, and...
Bang!!
The target exploded outright.
The instructor stared in bewilderment at the shattered remains.
The gauge vibrated loudly with a beeping sound before displaying Lennon's mana value.
Lennon's mana had already far surpassed student levels.
“I'm done.”
As if it were nothing, Lennon returned to his seat with an irritated expression. On the way, he suddenly glanced toward Anne.
She was covering her mouth, staring at the gauge in disbelief.
But that only irritated Lennon more.
‘Stupid girl.’
She apparently had no idea that her talent for perfectly replicating something after seeing it just once was vastly superior to this.
That made it all the more infuriating.
“...He's actually insane.”
Finn muttered, covering his mouth and nose with both hands.
Anne felt much the same. That seemingly casual Magic Arrow had obliterated the target.
And the readout exceeding 2,000 points.
No student across all academies, including Phoenix Academy, could produce a score like that.
They were in a different league entirely. That was the only thought in her mind.
‘But then why me...?’
It made her question even more incomprehensible.
Lennon possessed talent beyond her reach.
Anne had no confidence she could ever post a score like his, even with a lifetime of effort at the academy. If anything, she should have been the one gaping in shock at his display.
Her mind grew troubled.
“Finn. You're up.”
At that moment, the instructor called Finn.
Anne looked at him, and Finn flashed a grin, giving her a thumbs-up.
“I'll be right back. Watch your big bro shine. Got a good feeling today.”
“Yeah. Go for it.”
Finn walked to the training ground with light steps.
Lennon had shown an absurd score earlier, but knowing they were on different levels kept the pressure off.
No—the psychological burden that had tormented him daily for the past few days had vanished entirely.
Ever since he started taking Apophis X, that is.
‘Great stuff. Today's gonna be good too.’
Finn grinned, aimed at the target, and unleashed his Magic Arrow with full force.
Sizzle—blue sparks crackled in the air.
Boom!!
It didn't shatter like Lennon's, but the sound was plenty loud.
The students who had been chattering about Lennon all turned to Finn simultaneously. A hush fell, broken only by the lonely beeping of the gauge as it measured.
“Wooooaaah!!”
Finn shouted at the result.
Far below Lennon's, but the students couldn't take it that way.
They knew his previous score.
The instructor stared at the gauge in disbelief before speaking.
“...Finn. You've put in tremendous effort. That's a 700P increase from last year.”
An unbelievable leap.
Anne looked at Finn with a face more shocked than when she'd seen Lennon's score.
Finn returned to his seat beaming and said to her,
“See that? I did it. So you can too.”
Up close, Finn's pupils seemed to be spinning strangely.
As if he were addicted to something...
“Anne!”
“Hey, Anne! Why are you spacing out?”
Snapping to at the calls around her, Anne shot to her feet.
“Y-Yes!”
“It's your turn. Come on down.”
Anne scrambled to the training ground.
‘Must be my imagination.’
Finn had worked hard. For a better today than yesterday, a better tomorrow than today.
A staggering growth spurt, but if it was the fruit of effort, it wasn't impossible.
‘I've worked hard too.’
“Begin.”
Anne fired her Magic Arrow on the instructor's signal.
And the result was...
No significant change from last year.