I stood on one side of the hallway, as it wasn’t a story that needed to be told quietly.
The hallway in front of the Department of Magic’s lecture hall was very wide and open, so even with many students passing by, it wasn’t noisy. It seemed the Swordsmanship Department’s Children were always busy running around, while the Department of Magic’s Children walked quietly.
I stood still and glanced down at Angela Sting. Angela Sting, as always, had a pitiful and melancholic face, and opened her mouth in a soft, singing voice.
“…Now that half the semester has passed…. Young Master Ernhardt…. Has he memorized all the handouts I gave out at the beginning of the semester…?”
“Yes, Professor.”
I answered immediately. I even felt proud.
There were still some shortcomings in the subtle parts of the pronunciation, but I had succeeded in memorizing all one thousand words with effort over the past two months. It hadn’t been long since I could answer all the questions Marianne suddenly threw at me.
It was sometimes confusing to write down the position of the emphasis, but it was a very encouraging achievement.
“Then… I’ll ask you a few questions…. What is Red Pain?”It is Ser-Beni Bo.””What does Judia Pan-Jem mean?””
“It is the Memory and Repetition Ritual.”
“The Verdure and Greenery Ritual is…?”It is read as Off-Jainung.””
A bright smile spread across Angela Sting’s face. I was very proud. I was ready to answer any question. It seemed she was planning to give an exam soon, so I stood quietly with my hands folded, waiting for the next words.
She spoke in a kind voice.
“Good. Then, let’s consider the exam taken.”
“…Yes?”
“I saw that Young Master Ernhardt… studied really hard, so I’ll trust you…. You worked really hard.”
“…Ah.”
…For some reason, I couldn’t immediately say thank you. It was a good thing to take fewer exams. It was a good thing, and I should be happy, but for some reason, I felt wronged.
I was momentarily flustered and couldn’t answer, standing blankly for a while before finally opening my mouth.
“…Is that alright…?”
“Yes, of course. If you didn’t answer well…. I was going to give you time until next month to memorize it, but I’ve already seen you working hard enough…. I’m also looking forward to your final exam score…?”
“…Yes.”
Why do I feel wronged?
I watched Angela Sting’s back for a long time as she smiled brightly and turned away.
I had always thought she was a quiet, calm, and gentle person…. Angela Sting was also a Wizard among Wizards. Her temperament was extremely unique….
I stood still in the hallway, and Marianne, who had organized her bag and came out, tapped me on the back.
“What is it? What did the Professor say?”
“….”
“Huh? What is it, what did she say…?”
“Let’s run twenty laps from tomorrow.”
“Pardon?”
What more could I say? It was true that Marianne had helped me memorize the words, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that I had been thoroughly deceived. Marianne sighed, imitating me, and then laughed loudly.
“What is it? Really? No, it seems like Michael has developed a strange hobby. Every time, he keeps increasing the number of laps in the Martial arts training ground. He’s not really holding a grudge, is he?”
“No, he is not.”
“But really, why? Did the Professor give you more homework? Or an assignment?”
“….”
Without answering, I dragged the Child to go eat. For some reason, the back of my head felt numb all day.
❖ ❖ ❖
Thursday afternoon.
The surging aura tore apart everything it touched. The barrier that surrounded the huge auditorium, spanning dozens of layers, let out a painful scream. Wooong, it rang out loudly once, then keoeong, it made an animalistic sound and flickered, losing its light.
My vision was obscured by darkness.
It wasn’t that I couldn’t distinguish the front with just this much darkness, but it was natural to be flustered when faced with something unknown. After a few breaths, the defensive magic Formula flickered back to its light and brightly illuminated the auditorium.
I was dumbfounded and watched the scene blankly.
These days, I often wondered if what I was creating wasn’t the Monarch Sword Style, but something that should be called the Overlord Sword Style or the Tyrant Sword Style. I couldn’t understand why the surrounding objects were swept away and tumbled around every time I swung my swordplay.
Clearly, the Thunderclap imbued in the sword that the previous Namgung family head unleashed fell straight from the sky to the ground in a single line, but the lightning imbued in the sword I wielded scattered in all directions. No matter how gently I tried to appease it, it wouldn’t listen.
Douglas had suggested trying to imbue it with a different aura instead of lightning, and I had tried a few things he recommended, but water and fire couldn’t permeate my Sword energy, which was a mixture of internal energy and aura.
Leaving those who were pondering the reason, I thought to myself that it might be because the Great expansive divine skill of azure sky was an Internal energy cultivation method based on the sky. That I didn’t have the talent to draw what I hadn’t seen, that the imagery couldn’t quite draw it.
But I didn’t know if this was the right answer, so I didn’t say it out loud. Douglas and Boulder believed that I had seen the shape of the Monarch Sword Style in a dream, that it was just a form I had imagined.
It was an experiment that had started with several layers of Shield created in advance. Douglas’s face was gaunt because he had to block the aura that was scattering in all directions with his sword, as Mage Boulder’s Shield had been broken in the middle. Mage Boulder, clinging to Blanc’s shoulder and coughing, also looked quite distressed.
“…Why did it turn out like this this time?”
“First of all, the first problem is that the balance between aura and internal energy is not right again…. More than that, it seems the problem is that more and more power is gathering.”
“A lot of power?”
“Yes, looking at it today, it seems Young Master Ernhardt is using about… 320mq of internal energy.”
“….”
Having read several reports to the point of wearing them out, I now knew that this unfamiliar unit was one of the units used to express the absolute amount of Mana. I listened quietly.
“Aura uses the same Formula every time, regardless of the surrounding Mana concentration, right?”
“Yes, I can’t estimate that amount….”
Blanc Cooper added Divine Power-based healing to Mage Boulder. It was a frequent occurrence, so I didn’t pay attention to it. Douglas stepped back and showed me what he had written down, continuing the explanation. The paper he was holding tightly so it wouldn’t fly away in the strong aura was crumpled.
“We talked about the Mana concentration in the capital last time, right? It was originally 13.4mp, but when we measured it last time, it was 14.1mp.”
“…Yes.”
“Since then, the Mana concentration has been steadily increasing below the third decimal place. Of course, even if that’s not the problem, Young Master Ernhardt won’t only be using Sword energy in this place, in this spot, and the Mana concentration is higher in the Yuil Mountains, so you need to practice how to adjust the amount of Mana you directly convert into aura.”
“Ah. I understand.”
“Teaching you how to handle aura without relying on Formula is, after all… my specialty…. For now, it would be better to try adding attributes after you become more proficient with aura.”
“Yes. I will.”
I quickly agreed, thinking that I would kill someone if I resumed the experiment as it was. Mage Boulder, not knowing how precious his own life was, kept nagging to try it just one more time, but I didn’t listen.
When I took Douglas Mustang’s Mana and aura class before, I learned again in detail about the parts I had carelessly known and skipped over in order to inform him about Internal energy cultivation method, as I didn’t value aura.
I was now barely accustomed to Sierren’s method. If I had heard it back then, it would have been difficult to understand no matter how many times I had heard it. It was fortunate that I heard it now. I was once again reminded that there is a time for everything.
Then suddenly, I remembered something I had put off, thinking I should definitely mention it next time.
“…Um, when you have a person in front of you…. Is it possible to transmit messages using Mana or aura?”
“Hmm? Uh… Are you talking about something like voice amplification magic?”
“No, more secretly…. Like.”
[I’m talking about using it like this.]
Mage Boulder, who had been rolling on the floor, lamenting that he was going to die of regret, sat up straight as soon as he heard the Sound Transmission.
Sound Transmission was a Martial arts… no, a technique that could directly transmit words to the ear of the targeted person using internal energy.
When I lived in the Central Plains, most Martial artists who had reached the Peak realm or higher could generally use Sound Transmission. Those with lower realms showed the shape of their lips moving, but experts could hide their intentions by speaking and using Sound Transmission at the same time.
It was said that those with very high realms could even eavesdrop on other people’s Sound Transmission, but I had never used Sound Transmission in front of an expert of that level. I also had little knowledge of Sound-Based Skill, and I didn’t have many words to secretly convey, so I didn’t use it often. However, the Rising stars of the Nine Sects used Sound Transmission every time, even for trivial matters, as if they had so much to say to each other.
I had asked just in case, but seeing their reaction, I could tell even without hearing the answer. It seemed Sierren didn’t have something like this.
“This is, like…. Did you talk into my head? Just now? Young Master Ernhardt?”
“No, it’s not that…. Um, like blowing breath to create wind…. Isn’t it possible for a Sword Expert of the highest level to use aura?”
“That’s, that’s right.”
“It may be difficult to increase the density and handle Sword energy…. But it’s possible to just touch the aura spreading in the air like this…. Using that, transferring the vibrations of speech…. Next to the ear of the listener….”
“Wow, no, no…. How did you come up with this idea? Are you really a Dragon?”
“No, I am not.”
“I know. I know, but….”
Mage Boulder begged me to show it again, so I cast Sound Transmission on each of the three people once more. Douglas’s gaze was fixed on my mouth, and Boulder pricked up his ears, carefully examining something. I couldn’t tell what their eyes were reading, so I felt awkward.
[I have only used this method with internal energy, but after learning more about aura and Mana, I thought it would be possible for both of you, so I asked.]
[…The priests call it Divine Speech.]
I was startled. Douglas’s and Boulder’s gazes were also fixed on Blanc Cooper.
Blanc Cooper, who had been standing quietly next to me, watching me, added an explanation in a calm voice. I couldn’t read what kind of emotion was in his eyes. It was so still and so indifferent.
“In some sanctuaries where making loud noises is prohibited, priests use Divine Speech to communicate. It’s not a widely known method. In the first place, there is no secret conversation in a close distance in Sierren.”
“…What is the reason for that?”
“Unlike the Five Kingdoms, Sierren values the sharing of information.”
The story about the Nobility Yearbook management department came up again. It seemed everyone knew that all matters in Sierren were inspected and coordinated by them. Seeing Douglas and Boulder standing in a posture of listening quietly, I also adopted a polite posture.
“Wizards and Swordsmen have violent auras themselves, so if you shake Mana or aura like this right next to their ears, the listener can be injured. So usually Knights use more hand signals, and Wizards use magical creatures. Professor Mustang was closer to Wizards than theologians, so I understand why you’re surprised.”
“…Ah.”
“Divine Power, unlike magic or aura, is a pure aura that does not harm people, so it is often used close to the body. The fact that Ernhardt Young Master can use Divine Speech naturally is….”
I thought he was going to talk about the arrangement of Divinity again. But Blanc Cooper smiled kindly without adding unnecessary words.
“…It’s a very surprising thing. Is this also one of the things you just naturally came to know?”
“Yes.”
Douglas and Boulder asked a few more questions about the Divine Speech, and Blanc Cooper calmly answered them. It was decided to include this in the research project as well.
For some reason, I felt like his Golden Eye was reading even my Soul Spirit.