Chapter 1 Part 2
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Led by Alma, as soon as Reid and Elria stepped into the headmaster’s office, which they had already entered multiple times before this ――
“―― I-I-I’m really, really sorry!!”
They were greeted by a little girl who prostrated herself.
“Ah…? Headmaster, what’s going on here?”
“I don’t want to get scolded anymore! So, I decided to apologize from the beginning!!”
“Could you please tell us the detailed reason for apologizing?”
“First, promise me you won’t get angry! I did my best!! I explained that Reid-kun isn’t at fault, even though everyone else stared at me!!”
With tears in her eyes, Elise pounds the floor like she is throwing a tantrum. It seems she is throwing away even the slightest remnants of her dignity as the headmaster.
Seeing Elise in such a state, Alma scratches her head and lets out a sigh.
“…Well, various things were mentioned from the higher-ups regarding the previous incident.”
“…With such a flashy act, it’s only natural.”
The ‘Armament Dragon’ had the property of nullifying magic, making it difficult even for the faculty members to deal with. Even Alma, a special rank mage, had her magic’s power greatly reduced.
Although it was to eliminate such a magical beast, Reid’s attack completely changed the terrain. So it would not be surprising if some form of punishment was imposed.
Perhaps Elise also intervened and mediated in that regard.
“Although Reid-kun went overboard, he protected not only the students but also the faculty members. Elria-kun, through Alma-chan, evacuated the faculty members and students to a safe place in advance. Taking those actions into account, I proposed that they should be rewarded by the royal family…”
After wiping her teary eyes, Elise bows her head once again.
“However… not just the royal family, I was also rejected by the Mage’s Association as well…”
“Well, I think that’s a natural decision.”
This is a world where magic reigns supreme.
The royal family, who governs the Vegalta Magic Kingdom at its pinnacle, and the Mage’s Association, which manages the mages who can be called iconic mages, would never acknowledge Reid’s existence.
“A person who can’t use magic, using a power clearly different from magic… If it were made public that such a person defeated a magical beast that not only the faculty members at the academy but even a special rank mage had trouble dealing with, in a single blow, it would shake the very existence of ‘Magic’ that has been built up until now.”
That was why Reid’s achievements were rejected.
From the perspective of the royal family and the Mage’s Association, it would be safer and better to attribute the achievements to Elria, who has shown her talent since childhood as a reincarnation of the Sage.
“With a commoner background and using an unknown power, on top of that, if an unknown magical beast suddenly appeared, there would have been people suspecting me as the culprit and the possibility of it being a staged act.”
“T-There were indeed people with such opinions! I denied everything ――”
“But there is no clear evidence. However, it is a fact that I protected the students and the faculty members, and they decided to offset those achievements with the incident of the destroyed surrounding land. Since they haven’t found the culprit on their side, they probably don’t want to worry about unnecessary matters.”
“…Er, it seems like the discussion ended up that way.”
“I have no objections to that decision. If I were to raise objections, I would be asked to explain my own abilities, and I cannot provide a satisfactory explanation. Making objections in such a situation would only create a negative impression on the other party.”
“Before I could explain, you already said everything until its conclusion!!”
Perhaps because her role as the explainer was taken away, Elise started pounding the floor again. She is certainly an emotionally turbulent little girl.
“…But Reid-kun, is it really okay for you?”
“Yeah. The headmaster protected me and that alone is enough.”
“In that case, what about Elria-kun ――”
“……………”
“You look incredibly dissatisfied!”
Elria puffed up her cheeks as if to say she was not satisfied with the situation.
“In that case, I don’t need recognition for my achievements.”
“Huh…? No, that would cause inconvenience to many people ――”
“It’s fine to attribute it to me. But I don’t need recognition or evaluation. If that were to happen, it means I’m taking credit for Reid’s achievements.”
“It’s not a big deal. Just take what you can get.”
“No.”
Elria turned her face away with a pout. It seems that she is not willing to accept anything that was said.
Elise seemed to have sensed that as well, so she cleared her throat and nodded.
“Okay, I understand. I’ll convey Elria’s intentions to the other party… There’s one more thing that has been decided regarding Reid-kun through this incident.”
After saying that, Elise changed her expression.
“Reid-kun’s abilities are undeniable, not just to me but also to the royal family and the Mage’s Association. However, in order to formally acknowledge it, it became clear that it would be difficult without clarifying your abilities.”
Even if Reid had clearly shown his abilities, if the power he wields is different from magic, it would be difficult for them to acknowledge him as a mage.
“That’s why they will investigate the details to determine whether to treat you as a mage or establish a separate category as someone with new abilities.”
“…What does that mean specifically?”
“Alma Kanos, a special rank mage who currently teaches your class, will be assigned to investigate and evaluate your abilities in detail. Additionally, since the evaluation of the regular examinations taken by ordinary students are biased towards magic-related abilities, the Mage’s Association has established separate examinations that will be imposed on you.”
The meaning of those words is clear. If Reid’s power is different from magic, they cannot acknowledge his existence. In that case, they can simply give him an impossible examination to achieve ――
“―― It has been decided that all of your examinations will be conducted by special rank mages.”
The individuals who were recognized as the pinnacle of magic by demonstrating their overwhelming power through the use of tenth tier magic, considered to be the highest level in magic currently, even capable of subduing super-sized magical beasts. Elise understood just how difficult it would be to face such individuals, as she herself was such a mage.
“I was against it until the end. It’s the same as saying I have no intention of acknowledging that ――”
“I understand. I have no problem with those conditions.”
“Reid-kun!! I’m not done talking yet!!”
“I was aware from the beginning that it would be a difficult position, and I was ordered by the head of the Caldwen family, who became my sponsor, to demonstrate power and results that would silence others. And I was also told to crush those things with force.”
As he answered, Reid displayed a fearless smile.
Ever since his previous life, Reid had felt joy in confronting strong opponents. Being called a hero, a monster, it distracted him from the loneliness of having no one standing as his equal.
That was why… he was strongly attracted to Elria, who was also a formidable opponent like him. And that has not changed to this day. That is the foundation that makes up Reid Frieden as a person.
“If they are special rank mages ―― then there would be no shortage of opponents for me.”
Seeing Reid’s smile, Elise swallowed her breath, feeling overwhelmed. Then she turned her gaze towards Elria, who had been silently observing.
“E-Elria-kun, is this okay for you?”
“Mm, I have something I want to say, too.”
“That’s right! If Reid-kun were to fail the examination, it would reflect poorly on the Caldwen family’s reputation ――”
“I also want to fight against the special rank mages.”
“Elria-kun!! Please don’t complicate things further right now!!”
“But, it was fun when I fought against Alma-sensei… And if the others are equally strong, it would be really exciting to see all kinds of magic.”
It seemed like something clicked within Elria, as her eyes sparkled, and she nodded repeatedly. It appears that like-minded individuals think alike.
“In that case… Reid, let’s split it in half.”
“Oh, that works perfectly. There are nine special rank mages, with one of them being an overseer, so we exclude them. That leaves eight people, which can be divided in half to cover four comprehensive examinations.”
“I’m a genius for coming up with such an idea.”
“Wait… Don’t leave me, the headmaster, behind and have fun without me…!!”
Elise groaned as she slumped to the floor. She truly is a constantly worrying little girl.
“Mmm… It’s true that simply placing restrictions on Elria-kun may not be enough, and considering that she will become a special rank mage in the future, it seems reasonable to let her gain experience now…”
Seeing Elise rolling her eyes, Alma let out a sigh and spoke.
“Elise seems to be excessively worried, and it looks like she might be getting sick. Perhaps it would be better for us to leave the room for a while, don’t you think?”
“Yeah… but you know, I recently got good medicine from the doctor…”
“It’s not funny to have a little girl doped up on medication, so take care of yourself.”
After lightly patting Elise’s head, Alma left the room with Reid and Elria.
And after walking down the corridor for a while ――
“―― Well, how was that? I did well, didn’t I?”
Looking back, Alma smiled mischievously.
Upon hearing her words, Reid also smiled and nodded.
“Yeah, you did a good job.”
“Hehe. Well, that’s expected from the descendant of someone who served the Hero.”
“What’s the connection with the new faculty member who joined the class?”
“Philia was a fellow student at the academy. She’s not only skilled, but also trustworthy. At the very least, she can handle any situation that arises.”
“I see. You’ve found a good person.”
If they were going to investigate Reid’s abilities and monitor him, there was no one more suitable than Alma. As the teacher in charge, she could closely observe Reid’s abilities, and if any unforeseen circumstances arose due to his abilities, a special rank mage like her could handle it on her own.
Since the culprit from the other day has not been found, and their objectives and forces remain unknown, it becomes crucial to have not only Reid but also multiple special rank mages or individuals with similar capabilities who can handle various situations.
That was why he advised Alma to take on the role of “Reid’s overseer” in the discussion and instructed her to assign another trustworthy individual as the teacher in charge.
“With this, we have a justifiable reason for me and Alma to interact, and someone in the position of a special rank mage can handle various aspects and processes more efficiently than us.”
“Well, even someone from the distinguished Caldwen family can’t just get confidential information or investigation details that easily. So I’ll handle the research in that area.”
“Got it. I’ll count on you.”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll do as Your Excellency commands.”
As they laughed and said so to each other, Elria nodded in agreement.
“Come to think of it, Reid was also good at using other people.”
“I was a general in the past, after all. Besides, a certain Sage created an army that could use powerful magic, so I had to make good use of other people as well to handle everything.”
“Yeah, that’s why Reid is amazing.”
As Elria clapped her hands and praised Reid, Alma cleared her throat.
“…Can we continue the conversation?”
“Why did you stop the conversation midway?”
“Because you two were about to go to your own world.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Reid, it might be a conversation on the theory of deploying unique multidimensional spaces using magic.”
“…Ah, yeah. It seems wise to continue the conversation.”
With a sigh of exasperation, Alma resumed the conversation.
“For the time being, Your Excellency’s treatment has been determined. I’ll report the progress of Your Excellency’s ability investigation, and if there is any other information, please let me know ――”
“I became like this by eating and training.”
“…If you give such an answer, no wonder Elise is at a loss.”
According to Elria’s explanation, there seemed to be a difference in the quality of magic power, but Reid currently had no clue about the cause. Therefore, he had nothing to answer regarding that matter.
“What do you think His Excellency’s abilities are, Elria?”
“Mm… If I had to say, it feels like Reid’s physical body became abnormally strong to prevent it from collapsing due to some factor that gave him unique magic power.”
“…So, being strong is just a byproduct?”
“Yeah. That’s why Reid is simply a strong individual.”
“But a regular strong individual wouldn’t be able to rewrite maps…”
“That’s true, it wasn’t just physical strength… But from what I actually saw, it gave me the impression that he simply channeled the overflowing magic power from his body into the sword and forcefully struck with it. It wasn’t even magic, let alone sorcery.”
Elria nodded in agreement as she expressed her thoughts.
“On the contrary, if we say he ‘just struck with magic power’, it means he possesses highly dense and complex magic power. That’s why our magic, which is inferior in terms of magic power density, gets negated.”
“Inferior in terms of magic power density…? Does that mean it surpasses even the magic power of the ‘Sage’?”
“Yeah. At least ―― it contains an unknown quality of magic power in large quantities, which exceeds the density of the six known magic power qualities, including mine and other mages’ that we have confirmed.”
In the context of using magic, there are six essential elemental colors in magic power qualities: red, blue, green, yellow, black, and white. Humans possess magic power with these six characteristic colors, and they construct ‘Magic’ by assembling spells or magic formulas that correspond to these colors.
And it is the foundation of magic that humans possess at least one or at most six elemental attributes. There have been no reports of the discovery of new attributes or qualities of magic power during this millennium.
“It sounds impressive when you hear about it… But from my perspective, it’s just inconvenient.”
“Yeah. Even if I had the same magic power as Reid, I’d probably say the same thing.”
“Is that so? I thought you would be able to handle it well since you used a massive amount of magic with techniques like ‘Weighted Multiplication Deployment’.”
“Even I probably wouldn’t be able to handle it. It seems challenging just to extract the necessary magic power for the desired magic, and if unnecessary magic power gets mixed in, the magic itself won’t activate.”
“If even skillful Elria finds it difficult, then it’s impossible for me.”
In essence, it is like selecting the desired colors from a mess of spilled paint. Discerning and picking them out from a small palette, all the while ensuring they do not mix with other colors.
“Also, I don’t think that magic power is something Reid naturally possessed from birth.”
“…So you’re saying it wasn’t something I had since I was born?”
“Yeah. Reid mentioned that he had frequent fevers when he was a child.”
Indeed, Reid had often been bedridden with high fevers during his childhood.
Hating his weak state, he decided to train his body, only to end up with another fever and bedridden again… And before he knew it, his body had become as strong as it is now.
Alma then lifted her head as if she had realized something.
“Could it be… a compatibility reaction to a different type of magic power?”
“Yeah. That’s what I think.”
“That’s… if I remember correctly, it’s like when a different type of magic power flows through your body, temporarily causing a reaction where your body rejects it, right?”
“Oh my, surprised to see you so eager to learn.”
Saying that, Alma lightly patted Reid on the head with a playful smile.
Magic power is considered the force generated during the circulation of blood. While the arrangement of the main blood vessels flowing through the body remains unchanged, the shape and route of the thin veins vary from person to person. These differences and trends determine the nature of magic power.
However, if blood with a different quality of magic power temporarily mixes via blood transfusion or other means, the body, unaccustomed to that magic power, may exhibit mild reactions.
It is only a temporary reaction, as the different magic power eventually merges with the original magic power quality through blood circulation and gradually becomes compatible with the body over time.
“Fever is a major symptom of a rejection reaction. So, it’s highly plausible.”
“I understand the theory, but… that would lead to various oddities.”
“Yeah. It’s definitely strange.”
Reid experienced those symptoms during his childhood.
At that time, Elria might have already completed her study of ‘Magic’ theory, but it was not common knowledge that was widely spread in society, and the existence of magic itself was not known.
So that means ――
“―― Someone deliberately infused Reid with a different magic power.”
Due to being exposed to a magic power that should not exist, Reid’s body reacted with rejection. Undoubtedly, it was caused by the hands of a third party.
“Children have immature and developing blood vessels in their bodies. So, if a different magic power enters their bodies during that time… instead of adaptation or compatibility, it can actually cause a change in their magic power quality.”
“That’s right. I’ve also seen reports of a different magic power quality manifesting when a severely injured child undergoes a significant blood transfusion.”
However, the expressions of the two as they spoke were grim.
“That’s something we can understand now because we’re in the present, but it’s a different story if we go back a thousand years.”
“Yeah… Moreover, if rejection reactions occurred multiple times, it means they replaced a large amount of blood each time, right?”
“…Well, I was weak as a child, but I never had any injuries.”
“Yeah. So it means they only infused magic power into Reid’s body. But… even with modern technology, magic power infusion hasn’t been established. Moreover, they were infusing a type of magic power that hasn’t been discovered in the present, and they knew that it would be compatible with Reid.”
And then, Elria quietly narrowed her eyes as she spoke.
“It’s as if ―― someone from a distant future gave power to Reid.”
That is something that should normally be impossible. But ―― if impossible things overlap, it could be said to be inevitable.
Even if something unknown to Reid and Elria had happened a thousand years ago, it would not be surprising. However, one thing is certain amidst it all ――
“Well, if it’s thanks to that, then I am who I am now, so I won’t complain about it.”
“……Are you okay with that?”
“Yeah. Considering the era we were in, without this power, I would have died a dog’s death. But thanks to it, I could meet you and lead an enjoyable life. I could even say I’m grateful for that.”
“……I see.”
Swayed by Reid’s words and his smile, Elria also formed a small smile of her own.
Certainly, he ended up living a lonely life, but he has never resented that life. Because it was through that extraordinary power that he became the person known as ‘Reid Frieden’. It would be wrong to resent or deny that power.
“Either way, at present, I can control it with my will and there aren’t any major problems occurring. So it would be safer to focus on other matters.”
“Yeah. If we report the current situation gradually, it will buy us time and it won’t be too late to investigate about His Excellency afterwards ――”
“Ah!”, as Alma was speaking, she suddenly let out a small gasp. And gradually, her expression turned pale.
“Come to think of it, I forgot to give something to Your Excellency, as I was told…!!”
“……Something to give to me?”
As Reid asked in response, Alma took out a piece of writing paper from her pocket.
It was a high-quality writing paper. And on the wax seal, a crest that everyone recognizes was engraved.
“It seems like a direct message from the royal family to Your Excellency, I suppose?”
said Alma with a strained smile.
