Chapter 10 : Another Beginning (2)

Chapter 10: Another Beginning (2)

At first, everyone kept running without showing any signs of fatigue.

But once ten, then twenty laps had passed, the air began to change.

Footsteps grew heavier as if weighed down by the ground, and rough breathing spread from all directions.

“Huff… Huff…”

“Uwek…!”

One by one, more and more students began to fall behind.

By the time those falling behind had become the majority, a sharp tak! rang out as Deiara stomped down hard with her horseshoe, her voice cold as ice.

“Physical strength is the basis, the foundation, and the starting point for everything.”

Deiara swept her cold gaze across the students as she spoke.

Even though her voice was no louder than a whisper, it rang clear in my ears as if she were speaking right beside me.

“This is the same no matter what you do or which dormitory you belong to. Even if you are a mage, a priest, or someone in a normal office position—if you lack stamina, you will accomplish nothing. I believe all of you, being sharp-minded, already understand this without me needing to explain further.”

Before I knew it, we had reached the thirtieth, maybe the fortieth lap.

By now, more than half the number of runners had been reduced.

This was thanks to the assistants increasing the pace and immediately weeding out anyone who lagged even slightly behind.

“Haa… Haa…”

I was clinging to the very back of the group, somehow managing to keep up with them.

“Ugh… Huff…!”

Looking back now, I hadn’t done any sort of training or exercise at this time.

In other words, my stamina was at rock bottom.

Sure, I had done some basic training in the past few days, but there was no way I could have built real stamina in just a week.

Normally, I should have been knocked out long ago.

‘In my past life… what was it, about… five laps before I gave up?’

Even as I panted heavily, I gritted my teeth and forced my legs to move faster.

Allen was running right next to me, subtly adjusting his pace so I wouldn’t fall behind.

“Stop!”

At that sudden shout, I collapsed right where I was, falling onto the ground.

As I gasped for air, Allen gave my shoulder a light tap, as if telling me I’d done well.

“Huff… Huff…”

While the students caught their breath, the assistants moved around the training ground, cutting the students from the front of the line and grouping them separately into teams.

One male student, watching the scene while catching his breath, muttered,

“Are they grouping us in the order we dropped out?”

Then, under Deiara’s orders, the assistants began pulling out some students and mixing them into different teams.

Allen, who had been standing next to me, was also reassigned into another team along with them.

“What the…?”

“Guess they have their own rules for this?”

Some students voiced their confusion, but no one stepped in to explain.

Only after roughly twenty teams had been formed did Deiara give a small nod.

She looked over us once and spoke again in that same quiet, yet distinctly echoing voice.

“These teams were formed based on the performance you have just shown.”

Tak, tak.

She walked slowly among the gathered teams, speaking as she passed.

A few curious students stared openly at her, but quickly lowered their gaze under the sharp stares of the assistants.

“Over the course of the year, your performance will be evaluated relative to the other members of your assigned team. What you just went through was a basic examination to determine this grouping. Of course, those who deliberately held back and dropped out mid-way—”

“…There were some of you who gave it your all, and others who took it lightly, but I can say with confidence that those people will still receive a fair evaluation in the end.”

At Deiara’s words, several students flinched.

She simply walked slowly back and forth across the hall, as if none of this particularly mattered to her.

“As I mentioned earlier, over the course of the year, I will be improving your basic stamina while also teaching you the fundamentals of various weapons and fighting styles, as well as basic self-defense. Of course, for those who wish to pursue more advanced training, I can provide that as well, but…”

She jutted out her lips as if it couldn’t be helped.

“This is, after all, a shared class. I’m not foolish enough to overlook that.”

Then she muttered in a tone that sounded sincerely concerned.

“Above all else, you are all as soft as down feathers right now. If I push you too hard, it will only hinder your growth.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she clapped her hands sharply. The assistants, who had been waiting, straightened up like soldiers and turned to face her.

In their eyes was a deep, unwavering respect and affection for her.

“Then, I leave it in your hands, everyone. As I’ve already announced, for a while we’ll be focusing on building basic stamina and shaping your bodies. Please guide them carefully, but strictly.”

At her words, the assistants stomped their feet in unison and answered with a powerful shout.

The one assigned to lead my team was a man with short, light-blue hair.

“Alright, let’s start with quick introductions.”

He swept his gaze over us and spoke.

“I’m Pappleton, graduated last year. You can call me Assistant Pappleton, or if that’s too much, Assistant of Team 4. And if that’s still too much, just call me ‘Assistant.’”

Pappleton spoke while idly touching the long scar running across his eye.

“For the time being, as the professor said, we’ll be working on stamina. Since it’s the first day, we’ll take it light, so don’t worry too much. We’ll focus on building stamina and assessing your individual skills for a while. After that, the professor will personally teach you the basics of weapon handling, the strengths of widely known styles, and how to counter them.”

He finished his explanation with military-like precision, then looked around at us.

“Any questions?”

When a few raised their hands, he nodded toward one of them.

“Do Hilts’ common classes always work like this?”

“Like this? Can you explain what you mean by ‘like this’?”

“I mean, splitting us up and doing things in big groups like this…”

Pappleton nodded.

“Good question. The answer is, unfortunately, it can’t be helped. How could we give one-on-one instruction to this many people? And we can’t just sit everyone in a big lecture hall and teach theory like other classes. So we focus on building the basics without touching the advanced parts unnecessarily.”

He then pointed to another student.

A particularly large-framed student asked in a low tone,

“The professor said she’ll be teaching us personally, right?”

“Yeah. For theory and weapon handling, she’ll give direct demonstrations.”

“Is that even possible?”

Several students glanced at the male student at that remark.

The meaning behind his words and tone was blatantly clear.

Even though his lips were pressed shut, the corners of his eyes curved slightly.

It wasn’t hard for Pappleton to catch his meaning. He stared at the student in silence for a moment before letting out a small sigh.

“…Yeah, I know exactly what you mean. And I’ll give you some honest advice—don’t ask that kind of question to anyone else here, especially not that red-haired girl over there.”

Because you’d probably get beaten to death right there.

Muttering that, Pappleton stared him straight in the eye.

“In short, what you mean is: ‘Can a Centauros, known for being savage and violent, really teach properly—and does she even have the right to?’”

“Uh, no… I didn’t mean it like that…”

“Yeah, right. Like I haven’t seen dozens like you before.”

The flustered male student tried to make excuses, but Pappleton gave a short, mocking laugh.

“You know who founded Arpentia Academy, right?”

“…The Grand Sage and Bojador Arpentia.”

Pappleton asked again.

“Then you know Bojador Arpentia had many disciples?”

“…Yes.”

Arpentia’s disciples—people so talented they were worthy of being called the Sage’s own students.

Among them, the most famous of all was the archmage Edas, a name known to everyone.

Three of the five living archmages were his disciples, and the current headmaster of the Academy was also one of Edas’s students.

“That’s it.”

“…Huh?”

“That’s the answer.”

His words were light, but the meaning behind them was anything but.

As shock spread across everyone’s faces, Pappleton gave a faint smile.

“Now you can stop worrying about that nonsense, right?”

Pappleton then gestured toward the training equipment set up on one side of the yard.

“Alright, enough talking. Let’s move on to the next stage.”

Although he was smiling pleasantly, anyone could tell it wasn’t a simple smile when he muttered the words as if spitting them out.

All around, I could hear groans and grumbling voices.

“…Now I get why Hilts classes are in the morning. If they did this after lunch, everyone would just throw up.”

“My legs are killing me. But seriously, did they have to go so overboard on the first day?”

“My stomach muscles are so sore I can’t even sit properly…”

Leaning back into a soft chair, I let a few students’ spoiled complaints wash over me.

Thankfully, since class had ended a little early, we were allowed to rest in the auditorium.

I moved to sit next to Allen, who, unlike me, looked only mildly tired—not exhausted in the slightest.

‘Figures, his stamina’s insane.’

Well, this was the same man from the stories who fought for days without sleep.

I gave a slight nod and spoke.

“So, was it as good as you expected?”

“It’s the first day, so I can’t say for sure, but…”

Allen, who had grown much more comfortable around me, nodded in return.

“From what I saw—how she spotted the slackers and those trying to take shortcuts among all those people—I’d say she’s got an exceptional eye. I think we can expect a lot.”

“Speaking of which, I heard that Deiara was one of Arpentia’s disciples.”

“Is that so? That’s impressive.”

Allen clicked his tongue and shook his head slightly.

A little while later, the bell rang for the third period—the Wands’ class—and he let out a slow breath.

“Who do you think it’ll be this time?”

He muttered with a look of quiet anticipation.

And he wasn’t the only one feeling it.

“This is a Wands class, right? So it’s probably about the basics of mana.”

“Who’s going to come, I wonder?”

Other students whispered with eager voices.

Yul Runberg and Deiara—

The two who had taught the earlier classes were anything but ordinary, so it was only natural for expectations to be high.

Creak—

Finally, the door opened.

In walked—or rather, floated—what looked like a small woman who could easily be mistaken for a child.

“Yaaawn…”

Drifting in like a balloon, she yawned widely, entirely unfazed by the eyes of thousands fixed on her.

Still hovering, she slowly floated to the podium and cleared her throat.

“Nice to meet you, everyone.”

Curly green hair.

A childlike body and face.

Her eccentric appearance sent excited murmurs through the crowd.

That was because everyone already recognized who she was.

“My name is Windy May—Windy May Maddown.”

After finishing her introduction, she tilted her head in mild surprise.

“…Huh? You’re not shocked? I was sure you’d be surprised.”

Windy May Maddown—

A half-elf, half-human, and one of the five living Archmages.

She had once defeated both the Summer Dragon and the Winter Dragon single-handedly, though in the process she had been cursed into her current form.

Like all Archmages, she was extraordinary, but she was particularly famous for having absolutely no interest in worldly affairs.

She was also the only one among the five Archmages who had never taken a single disciple in over a hundred years.

‘Well, that record’s going to be broken this year.’

And not just by one—she had shocked everyone by taking on two disciples at once.

I knew exactly who they were.

The Third Imperial Princess, Mercedes Latina Bestrang, who would one day be called the Great Sage and become a renowned magus scholar.

And Cecilia Everglenn, currently mocked as the cursed child of House Everglenn, but destined to become the Spirit King’s Covenant Bearer.

Those two.

‘Looking back, she really had an incredible eye for talent.’

Even if she didn’t look the part, she clearly hadn’t been given the title of Archmage for nothing.

“Yaaawn…”

Professor Windy May yawned again, stretching her mouth wide, then flicked her fingers.

From behind her, stacks of floating papers drifted toward the students, each one landing neatly in someone’s hands as if moved by a will of its own.

“What I’ll be teaching you is the basics of mana, and how to handle it efficiently.”

She spoke in a drowsy voice.

“Oh, before we start, let me explain a little… So… well… To put it simply, humans are warm-blooded mammals that walk upright, but each has a different appearance and personality. Mana is the same.”

It was an explanation that was hard to follow.

Allen also wore an expression that said he wasn’t sure what on earth she was talking about.

The other students looked equally confused.

“…Basically, if there are a hundred people, there are a hundred different types of mana.”

Only then did everyone nod as if they finally understood.

Windy May covered her mouth with one hand and continued explaining.

“Mana has its own individual properties and traits, which vary greatly depending on race, gender, ethnicity, bloodline… and countless factors such as environment. You can group together those with similar properties and traits, but that doesn’t mean a single standard applies to all. At most, you can apply a broad standard that fits to some extent.”

Her sleepy eyes kept blinking slowly, as though she were half-dreaming.

“For example, some mages, myself included, take commonly known magic formulas and alter them slightly—or drastically—before using them. In other words, we modify the formula so it suits the nature and properties of our mana. Whether or not one can do this is what separates the second-rate from the first-rate. Understanding and mastering your own mana—this should be the foremost virtue of a mage.”

Before long, all noise had faded, and only the sound of pens scratching on paper filled the auditorium.

Everyone was now feeling the reality of the fact that the person before them was one of only five Archmages in the entire continent.

“This isn’t something limited to mages. Knights who use mana to enhance their bodies, priests who wield the power called divine strength… While the details differ, in broad terms, the principles are similar enough to group together.”

She suddenly snapped her fingers sharply.

“Alright, now pick up the sheet of paper in front of you.”

The sound of rustling paper rose from all around.

“That paper is something I specially crafted… It can reveal the properties, traits, and potential of your mana without any particular effort. Of course, it only gives an approximate result, so don’t put blind faith in it. Also, keep in mind that mana traits can often change later in life through various events.”

After finishing her explanation, she held up one sheet of paper.

A moment later, blue and red flames burst from her hand like an explosion.

“If you put in a bit of energy, you’ll see a reaction like this. The reactions vary greatly, so don’t panic no matter what happens. For those who don’t know how to channel mana into it, just focusing will trigger a reaction, so don’t worry too much.”

She sighed again before continuing.

“Once you’ve infused it with mana, put the reacted paper into the envelope you were given, and write your name and dormitory on the outside. As for what properties and traits each of you has… hmm, I think I can tell you in about a month. Or maybe two months… or three…?”

I knew exactly what would happen after this.

Windy May—she was indeed here to help the students and teach them, but her biggest goal was to find someone worthy to become her disciple.

And just as she wanted, she would find not one, but two disciples.

“What is this supposed to mean?”

“I don’t know. The professor will tell us later.”

Allen was staring at his sheet of paper, which had been shredded into fine pieces, with a perplexed expression.

I answered casually and infused my paper with divine power.

In my past life, it had simply crumpled, so I figured this time wouldn’t be much different.

‘As expected.’

Just like I remembered, the paper in my hand crumpled on its own.

With nothing more to wait for, I was about to put it into the envelope—

“…Huh?”

It happened in that instant.

A small, pure-white flame ignited.

Clear and intense.