----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Help with the festival performance?"
"Yes. You could say she's kind of like my advisor?"
Professor Camilla Lucia smoothed the ends of her disheveled hair.
"You're going to showcase applied magic to people?"
"Yes."
"In front of other professors, seniors, juniors, and even outsiders?"
"Yes."
After a moment of contemplation, Camilla's eyes began to sparkle.
"Okay."
"Thank you, Professor."
"The performance is in a week, right?"
"Yes."
"You better be prepared, Davian Naone. I hate anything sloppy."
"I hate anything sloppy too."
"Where are the others?"
"I rented a practice room."
"Let's go."
"Right now?"
"You said there's only a week left. No time."
Camilla got up and headed to the bookshelf.
She started pulling out thin books.
Before long, she had stacked dozens of books on the desk.
"Carry these. You can carry them all, right? You're also majoring in swordsmanship."
I didn't double major in swordsmanship to do book errands, but...
Of course, I can carry them.
"What are all these thin books?"
"My papers."
Papers usually come in plain, rough covers, but...
The thin books Camilla took out were bound in high-quality leather.
"Oh, they don't look like papers, do they? I paid for all the covers myself. The old fogeys in academia don't recognize me, so I have to take care of myself."
"Ah... yes."
The preparation process for the performance was more exciting than expected.
The applied magic of sprinkling snow in a dry classroom that Professor Camilla showed in the lecture hall was very basic.
She also created rainbows by passing the light of mana stones through water droplets sprayed in the air.
She also created flames that defied common sense and burned from top to bottom... or rather, burned downwards.
To the eyes of the swordsmanship students, it was as amazing as the avalanche coming uphill that they had encountered on Mount Ebeterre.
"The performance will be divided into three parts: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. Part 1 is about practicing and performing some of the things you've shown so far. It's kind of like a gala show? And Part 2 will show how to apply it in real combat situations. That's when the three of you from the swordsmanship department will play an important role. And the final Part 3... is about showing real lightning magic."
After dividing each role and kindly explaining the principle of applied magic manifestation, Professor Camilla took Davian to an empty auditorium.
A space used as an auditorium but also as a magic department practice room.
The entire building is protected by powerful protective magic.
"Now, you and I are going to complete Lightning Bolt."
"Is that possible in a few days?"
"We have to make it possible."
"Well, the performance hall is surrounded by a mana shield, so there's no chance of lightning flying out and hitting the audience."
Camilla Lucia shook her head.
"I told you I hate anything sloppy, right? Down to hitting the target accurately. We have to show that too."
"I think just having lightning coming out of your hand would be a big hit with the audience."
"That's not enough. Then it'll be treated as useless and flashy magic again."
Davian looked at Professor Camilla Lucia.
'It feels like I'm being used in reverse.'
Now that I see it.
Camilla isn't helping the sophomore's festival performance.
She's trying to fulfill her own desires through the festival performance.
Among the outsiders who come to see the festival performance, there are many ordinary Elton citizens, but...
There are also quite a few key figures from all walks of life.
"You're trying to bring Lightning Bolt back into the world on this occasion, aren't you?"
"I won't bother denying it. That's right. When I first introduced this magic, I was a bit young and stubborn. If I hadn't insisted on it being recognized as 5-element magic, my Lightning Bolt wouldn't have been so ignored in academia."
"You can just publish the paper again without the 5-element magic stuff, right? And demonstrate it again."
Camilla smiled.
"My pride won't allow it."
'She still seems young and stubborn.'
Her pride won't allow her to reintroduce the magic that was thoroughly ignored.
Her intention is to use Davian on this occasion to reintroduce Lightning Bolt to the world.
'But it's not a bad thing.'
If Camilla gives me intensive Lightning Bolt lessons on this occasion, that would also be a good thing for Davian.
'It's an opportunity to reduce the time it takes to complete Lightning Bolt.'
Davian nodded.
"Let's do it."
Camilla stared at Davian.
"You figured out what I'm trying to do by helping with the performance, didn't you? And you're still saying you'll do it."
"It's not a bad thing for me either."
"You know you're being used by me, but you're just going along with it because it's also helpful to you?"
Davian shrugged in response.
"Davian Naone, you little rascal. You're quite the old soul."
It's natural that Davian is a bit different from the other classmates.
He's been attending the academy for 11 years already.
"Good. We've succeeded in creating lightning, so now we have to practice firing it in the direction we want. Watch carefully."
Pzzzt.
Lightning seemed to be created in front of Camilla's outstretched hands.
Boom!
It hit one of the targets lined up on the opposite wall.
"It's too late to decide on the direction after you create the lightning. It has a tendency to go anywhere it wants. You have to decide where to send it before you create it."
Camilla pointed to one of the targets.
"You know how to do mana acceleration, right?"
"Yes."
"It's similar to that, but not exactly the same. I'll do it first, so watch carefully. You have to feel the flow of mana."
The mana that came out of Camilla's palm reacted with the mana.
The mana that stretched out in a straight line reached the target.
"I created a mana path. It'll quickly fall apart if you leave it like this, so before it disappears, immediately."
Pzzzt.
Boom!
Lightning Bolt was embedded in the target.
"How about that? Can you do it? Did you feel how it's different from mana acceleration?"
"I understand it for now."
If it were real lightning, it wouldn't move along this clumsy mana path.
But it's lightning created by magic, anyway.
It's natural for it to react with mana.
"Then practice. Come find me if you get stuck."
"You're not going to watch me do it?"
"Me? Here? I have no desire to get struck by lightning and become a roast."
Ah.
I forgot for a moment because I've been double majoring for so long.
Camilla Lucia is a magician.
She has movements and defense that are similar to or even worse than ordinary people.
"Then I'll do what I can and come in."
"Okay. Remember the flow of mana you saw a little while ago. If it's you, you'll be able to do it quickly. It took me over a year just to figure out what I showed you just now."
That's likely.
She must have accidentally discovered it after trying all sorts of things.
'What a great determination, Professor Camilla.'
It's magic that she completed with so much effort.
But she stuck to her useless stubbornness and was completely shunned by academia.
Her stomach must be churning.
Professor Camilla left, and Davian stayed alone and began practicing.
Creating a mana path.
And Lightning Bolt right in that direction.
Pzzzt.
Boom!
The lightning was embedded in the 2nd floor iron railing.
Completely divorced from Davian's intention.
'It's not going to be easy.'
The third day of the festival.
It is the only day of the three-day festival that allows outsiders to enter and has performances by grade.
The fan-shaped audience seats were filled with people.
The emcee took to the stage to introduce the performance schedule from the 1st grade to the 7th grade.
After introducing the schedule, the emcee pointed to the pillars that were circling the stage.
"Some performances may be dangerous. But! You don't have to worry about being caught up in mana collisions or summoned monsters running out of the stage."
The mana stones on the twelve pillars surrounding the stage began to shine.
Whoosh.
A translucent barrier was placed between the pillars and gradually turned transparent again.
"The culmination of Elton Academy's magic technology! It is a mana shield. It looks like nothing on the outside, but when it is activated, nothing, no matter how big the magic, can pass through this shield."
The emcee created a large fireball and threw it towards the audience.
Boom!
"Eek!"
While some of the audience members flinched in surprise.
The fireball that collided with the mana shield exploded in the air.
The emcee went down, and the 1st grade performance began.
Sarah, who was watching the stage from the audience seats, tapped Mons' shoulder.
"There! It's Bellus!"
"Oh, it is?"
Bellus, a friendly face, was among the ten or so students.
Mons asked.
"So. You rolled a bomb in there last year when young master was performing inside there?"
Sarah smiled awkwardly.
"Ah, it was almost a success. If Davian hadn't caught me..."
"What do you think of young master?"
"But there's still something I'm curious about."
"What?"
"How did he know to follow me? Just by feeling? In that crowd?"
In fact.
Mons is the one who has the biggest question about Davian.
He's been watching young master since he was a child.
He became a completely different person as soon as he came to Elton City.
Not only did his personality and speech change.
He used to be a weak young master who was only good at mana affinity and didn't make any effort, but he casually used amazing magic.
At first, he did some research.
About the identity of the suddenly changed young master.
But Mons couldn't find out anything.
In the end, the conclusion Mons made was.
"Our young master is special."
Sarah chuckled.
"He is special. There! The performance is starting."
The 1st grade performance went on without anything special.
They briefly showed a swordsmanship demonstration and then a sparring demonstration.
The magicians exchanged fireballs and fought against each other.
Some of the ordinary people who came to the Elton Academy festival for the first time exclaimed.
But to the people involved in swordsmanship or magic, it was a boring performance.
Inves Meridiem, who came from the Magic Tower, said to the group.
"There doesn't seem to be a particularly special student in this year's 1st grade."
"That's right. Moreover, a student named Davian Naone completely swept last year, so it can't help but feel that way. The 2nd grade performance that will follow soon is something to look forward to."
"Both the 2nd grade performance and Greddy Buttler's performance, who has become a graduating student this year, are very much anticipated. It will be his last performance at the academy now."
"Greddy Buttler. He is a great student. I don't think he had decided on his career path after graduation yet. Our Magic Tower must bring him in."
"Of course. That's why we came today, after all."
At that time.
Bellus walked to the front of the stage.
"Everyone, come out and show your faces?"
Comments
Post a Comment