“Cedric Guardner. Your senior, who graduates next week.”
Fluttering blond hair.
And bronze skin that contrasted with it.
Having introduced himself, Cedric raised his head slightly.
Four golden lines were clearly embedded in his high collar.
Cedric, now naturally looking down at him, asked Kawin,
“Do you happen to know the saying going around about this mark?”
“……The Four Proofs?”
“Oh. You know it well.”
Cedric snickered as he slowly approached.
The rumor about the golden lines embedded in the uniform.
Most Tesca students had heard it at least once.
-The first line is proof of Circle
-The second line is proof of knowledge
-The third line is proof of combat
-The fourth line is……
‘Proof of genius.’
Three hundred entrants.
And ten graduates.
With each year, the number of students dropped exponentially.
An academy where, never mind graduating, even surviving year after year was hard as hell.
An academy that awarded the qualification of Initiate immediately upon graduation.
What kind of pride Cedric took in having survived three years there.
That downward gaze showed it.
“But there’s something different from what I knew.”
“Oh. Is that so? What’s different?”
“I didn’t know the fourth proof was running amok.”
“Ha, haha!”
Cedric gasped as if he couldn’t believe his ears.
‘Judging by his reaction, he isn’t an idiot.’
Kawin had said it to mock the blatant shoulder check, and it seemed the intent had landed.
Judging by how rough the guy’s breathing had become, that is.
“You’ve got quite a mouth on you.”
“As you can see, I’m late for class. Is this Graduation Challenge thing, or whatever it is, your goal?”
Twitch.
A vein popped up on Cedric’s bronze forehead.
“Yeah. I was planning to leave quietly, but you keep smearing shit on the Imperial House. Looks like you need a proper lesson.”
As expected.
So that was it.
Kawin snorted.
The surname Guardner.
It was the bloodline of the ‘Imperial Guard,’ which had protected the Imperial House for generations.
For generations, they had awakened the abilities of the ‘Mana Brawler’ and served the Imperial Family over a long period.
“Consider it an honor. A Graduation Challenge isn’t granted to just anyone.”
“……Sure.”
Well then.
With that farewell, Kawin turned his back.
Cedric didn’t chase after Kawin any further either.
Instead, he smacked his lips once.
“Lucky kid. I was going to start by planting him face-first into the ground.”
Well, it didn’t matter.
He had already pronounced the sentence that he would give him a proper lesson.
Guardner swept the blond hair above his forehead back with both hands.
On the back of each hand was a round emblem.
It was proof that Cedric Guardner was a 2-Circle mage.
***
The Grimoire kept at Tesca Academy.
Kawin wasn’t sure whether ‘kept’ was the right word.
After all, the Grimoire’s true identity was the red carpet laid out inside the main building.
And that red carpet connected to the doors of exactly eight professors’ rooms.
To decipher the entire Grimoire, he needed the professors’ access permits.
Not one or two, but a whole eight of them.
The conclusion Kawin reached was this.
‘I need a strategy.’
He would swiftly win over the professors who already favored him first.
Judging by Professor Oracle’s case, if they liked you, they seemed willing to grant an access permit on the spot.
There were several professors who openly showed interest in Kawin.
Professor Oracle of ‘Cognitive Magic Studies,’ who had already granted him an access permit.
Professor Valeria of ‘Illusion Magic Studies,’ who had had her eye on him since the entrance exam.
And there was one more professor…
CLICK.
Kawin opened the classroom door.
His gaze went to the seated students.
‘Late after all.’
Exactly one minute.
Because Cedric had gotten in his way, he had ended up late for class.
To get an access permit for a professor’s office, he needed to get on the professor’s good side.
Being late was what every professor hated most.
However, Kawin wasn’t disappointed.
He had something to count on.
The reason Kawin had run all the way to the classroom without using ‘Lightning Flash.’
It was closely related to the access permit.
“Oh ho! Kawin!”
Penalties related to lateness.
At least in this teacher-student relationship, they didn’t apply.
“Come sit down, dear. I saved the seat right at the front for you.”
“Yes, Professor. I’m sorry I’m late.”
Judging by her expression, she wasn’t even thinking about penalty points.
It was a privilege so great that even Kawin himself felt awkward.
But it wasn’t without reason.
This professor, whose eyes were practically dripping with honey, taught
‘Rune Language Studies.’
“Now then, since Kawin’s here, shall we begin class in earnest?”
Dazzling silver hair swayed below her waist.
Distinctive dark skin and achromatic eyes.
A form-fitting one-piece dress revealed her curved silhouette just as it was.
Her name was Morvael.
The Academy’s only Dark Elf, who taught ‘Rune Language Studies.’
“Professor.”
A freckled boy sitting off to one side raised his hand.
A voice full of discontent poured out of his mouth.
“Your name?”
“It’s Joel.”
The expression of the student named Joel crumpled even further.
Someone gets called by name the moment he walks in, while someone else doesn’t even have his name remembered.
“Honestly, I can’t see this as anything but favoritism. Instead of giving Kawin penalty points for being late to class, you even saved him the best seat.”
“Favoritism. Favoritism, is it.”
Morvael muttered while gnawing on her long fingernail.
An innocence that could hardly hide uncomfortable feelings.
It was a trait unique to Dark Elves.
But only for a moment.
She rifled through her grade book.
“Joel. On the last Rune Language quiz, you took an hour and twenty minutes? And you scored 57 points.”
“Y-yes. That’s…… right.”
When his test score was suddenly thrust at him, Joel’s voice lost its edge.
“Kawin, on the other hand, turned in a perfect 100-point answer in 15 minutes. But I counted everyone as having passed the quiz. So who’s getting favoritism? Kawin? Or Joel?”
“I’m…… sorry.”
Joel hung his head and buried his gaze in his desk.
He had raised an objection for nothing and failed to even recoup his losses.
“Now then. Shall we start again? My Kawin. Are you ready?”
The students around them all smiled bitterly.
‘My Kawin.’
It was a moment that made the conversation with Joel just now seem pointless.
But no more students voiced complaints.
No matter who looked at it, there was no one as unrivaled as Kawin in this ‘Rune Language Studies’ class.
“This problem on page 38. Anyone want to try it? Nobody?”
“It can’t be helped. Then will you try this one too, Kawin?”
“Correct! That’s a problem even second-years struggle with, and you solved it in one go!”
“Did you get private tutoring at House Anper or something?”
“Kawin. Just once is fine, so could you ask a question? I really want to know what you don’t know.”
It felt like Kawin’s name was called dozens of times during class.
‘Fuck. Is this ‘Rune Language Studies’ or ‘Kawin Studies’?’
‘How does he solve these complex formulas?’
‘He looks like he’s just skimming it…… I seriously feel the wall here.’
Whatever about the other classes, this ‘Rune Language Studies’ was bound to become Kawin’s one-man show.
Because Kawin’s ability in Rune Language was far superior to that of Morvael, who had been deciphering Runes for hundreds of years.
A professor teaching a fake language and a student who had already seen through the truth of magic.
It was blue drawn from indigo proving bluer than the indigo, right from the start.
The strongest feeling Kawin had toward Morvael was, arrogantly……
‘Pity.’
Kawin recalled stories he had heard in his past life.
Stories of mathematicians who met miserable ends while trying to solve difficult mathematical problems.
Scholars who were born geniuses and became mathematicians but weren’t capable enough to solve those problems.
Their images overlapped with Morvael.
‘At least those people weren’t chasing a wrong answer from the start.’
Rune Language contained principles that had been imperfect from its very birth.
What would it be like to spend 300 years clinging to a script that was impossible to solve in the first place?
Kawin couldn’t even begin to guess.
That didn’t mean he could help her, either.
According to Dharma’s Grimoire, Kawin was the only one who could decipher this Braille.
One side dripping with honey, the other looking on with complicated pity.
That was the teacher-student relationship between Morvael and Kawin.
“Is it all right if my question isn’t related to the subject?”
“Oh! Of course. Anything is fine.”
“I heard the upperclassmen who’ve completed their courses will soon hold their graduation ceremony. I’m curious about Graduation Challenges.”
“Aha. So that’s what you’re curious about.”
Morvael snapped her fingers and took her place at the center of the magic blackboard.
What was in her head was transferred directly onto the blackboard as text.
“The Graduation Challenge is a long-standing tradition of Tesca Academy. It’s been over thirty years since I came here, and it was already being held back then. It’s an event where the proud graduates of Tesca Academy hold Challenges with current students and pass on ‘advice.’”
Then Joel raised his hand once more.
“A Challenge is about trading blows, so how does it become education?”
“Haha. It feels different from the Challenges we usually have. It’s less about both sides competing with everything they’ve got and more like one-on-one coaching. Of course, it’s fine for the current student to go all out, but graduates never fight for real. It’s basically handing down pro tips.”
Exclamations of “Ah” burst out here and there across the lecture room.
Tesca Academy, where only the geniuses among geniuses could graduate.
Pro tips handed down by graduates who had passed its strict examinations.
“In a sense, it might be even more valuable than classes from professors like us, right? Because they can give advice from the same standpoint as a student.”
“So that’s why so many upperclassmen applied.”
“That’s right. Third-Years, who have to make their attempt at graduation, would dearly want a Challenge with a graduate. So the competition is pretty fierce. They won’t accept freshmen like you even if you apply, but later on, you’ll absolutely have to apply.”
Perhaps because of her affection for Kawin, Morvael’s explanation was as kind and detailed as her ‘Rune Language Studies.’
Thanks to that, Kawin came to understand the Graduation Challenge clearly.
And on top of that,
‘In my case, it’ll be different. From an ordinary Challenge.’
Neither pro tips nor advice.
Cedric had literally announced a ‘proper lesson.’
The feeling that he was dead set on it had come through clearly in his breathing and the smell of his sweat.
Why on earth?
When this was the first time they had even talked?
Kawin’s interpretation of that question was simple.
‘It’s probably because the guy’s from an Imperial Guard family.’
Someone who, upon graduating, would devote his loyalty to the people of the Imperial Household.
And Frasel was the only member of the Imperial Family at this Tesca Academy.
The lowest-ranked entrant had beaten such a person in a Challenge, and on top of that, she was even fussing helplessly over him.
From the standpoint of a future Imperial Guard, it could only be an eyesore.
“Graduation season really is here. To hear a question about Graduation Challenges from my Kawin.”
As if her curiosity had been sparked, Morvael’s achromatic eyes sparkled as she bent at the waist.
Naturally, her eyes and Kawin’s met at close range.
“Why have you become curious about Graduation Challenges, Kawin?”
“Ah. About that.”
Kawin paused to steady his breath.
After hearing Morvael’s explanation, he could predict how those around him would react.
“I received notice from Senior Cedric Guardner.”
“What…… notice?”
“That I’m the opponent for his Graduation Challenge.”
“Eeeeeeeeh?!”
Just as expected.
Around a hundred students who had been sitting still all shot up from their seats at once.
Some even toppled sideways with a clatter.
“Heh……”
Morvael’s reaction, on the other hand, was a little different from what Kawin had expected.
“You’ve already won over a graduate’s heart. You’re simply amaaazing!”
As if she had known it all along, her achromatic eyes filled with countless new morning stars.