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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Silverriver
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“Are you mocking me?”
Professor Akdin’s voice boomed, and I squeezed my eyes shut. The nurse had shrieked the moment I brought Lee Han to the infirmary.
“I distinctly remember telling you that sparring was forbidden a week before the ranking matches.”
“….”
Did he really? I honestly hadn’t been paying attention in class. Professor Akdin glared at me.
“The ranking matches are just around the corner. What were you thinking, putting his arm in that state?”
“He was relentless. I couldn’t stop him.”
“Sigh…”
Damn it. I hadn’t expected that either. Who would continue fighting with a broken arm?
He hadn’t even shown any sign of pain. If I hadn’t heard the crack, the spar would have continued.
I had intended to push him further, to help him develop his Formless Sword Style.
He was the protagonist, after all. Just like I had my status window and the Genius trait, Lee Han had his own hidden abilities supporting him.
He didn’t need talent. He could reach the pinnacle with effort alone.
‘He’s the protagonist, after all.’
The protagonist, that unreasonable existence, always found a way to improve. Even during a spar with me.
“Sigh… Lee Han won’t be participating in the ranking match.”
Professor Akdin clutched his forehead. He was likely having a headache. A student had suddenly dropped out of the competition.
He looked at me intently.
“Deron.”
“Yes.”
“Will you be participating in the ranking matches?”
“What?”
What a ridiculous question. I tilted my head, confused.
“There are no bypass in the ranking matches. No one receives special treatment. That’s not how the academy works.”
“A bypass is a matter of luck, isn’t it?”
“Even luck is a form of talent. And a bypass means someone loses their opportunity to fight.”
“Is that how it works…?”
He sounded like a character whose stats were all allocated to combat. Professor Akdin continued,
“Deron. You should drop out of the ranked matches. Instead, I’ll grant you one favor.”
“Very well.”
I didn’t quite understand his reasoning, nor did I particularly care to. But I wanted to forfeit the ranking matches anyway.
I had only intended to participate because of the Dukedom.
“May I substitute a question for my request?”
If I could ask Professor Akdin anything… there was one thing I desperately wanted to know.
Professor Akdin nodded, and I spoke.
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“What did he mean by that?”
Professor Akdin simply answered my question and left the infirmary. But I couldn’t understand his answer.
“How did you reach the advanced level as a mana user?”
I was currently at the intermediate level. And I needed to reach the advanced level to complete the quest.
I had reached the intermediate level by brute-forcing my way through with the Genius trait, but the advanced level was different. It felt like I was standing before a large cliff.
Was this the proverbial wall? The first wall I’d encountered since possessing this body.
To overcome it, I had asked someone who had already done so.
“Advanced level? Ah, that’s right, you’re at the intermediate level.”
“Yes. I’m stuck trying to reach the advanced level.”
“Hmm.”
Professor Akdin stroked his beard, the short hairs soft against his skin.
“What was it like when you transitioned from beginner to intermediate? How did it feel?”
“Um… I didn’t feel anything in particular.”
“…?”
Professor Akdin looked at me, puzzled.
What? What did he expect? I had simply… transitioned smoothly.
“Do people often tell you you’re… unlucky?”
“I’ve heard it a few times.”
Mostly from the black lizard lady chattering in my head. Professor Akdin nodded, as if he’d expected that answer.
“Most people encounter a wall when striving for advancement. Beginner to intermediate, intermediate to advanced, advanced to master.”
I had, and so had he, Professor Akdin muttered.
“When transitioning from beginner to intermediate, a mana user imbues their mana with color. Yours is violet, correct?”
I nodded. Professor Akdin drew his sword. A verdant meadow, its turquoise waves, materialized on the blade.
It was too vivid, too solid, to be intermediate-level Aura. This was advanced level.
I had seen it during the Morax subjugation, but advanced mana possessed an inherent beauty.
“Once you’ve imbued your mana with color, you must then add an attribute. Fire, water, a meadow like mine… it doesn’t matter.”
The key was to find your own unique attribute and imbue your mana with it. Even if that attribute was a hammer, mana obeyed its user’s will.
A concept not fully explained even in the original story.
‘It only mentioned that the advanced level was a stepping stone to the master level.’
The aura emanating from his advanced mana… it truly felt like standing in a meadow. Cool and refreshing.
Then…
“What about the master level?”
A level so transcendent that it considered even the advanced level a mere stepping stone. It was beyond my comprehension.
I hadn’t seen it in the original story. Even the protagonist had stopped at the advanced level.
Or rather, his progress had been halted.
Professor Akdin seemed to consider his answer carefully, then said,
“That’s a bit beyond your current level. Reach the advanced level first. I’ll answer your question then.”
He sheathed his sword and left the infirmary. I stared at his retreating figure.
The advanced level. My own unique attribute.
I didn’t know. Could I even find it? It felt like my burdens were increasing. I sighed and left the infirmary.
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“Ugh.”
No matter how hard I tried, it wasn’t working. I withdrew my aura.
I couldn’t grasp it. It didn’t feel like I was making any progress. So many people must have shared this goal, yet there was no clear path.
‘By the way…’
I recalled the message that had appeared when Lee Han forfeited the ranking matches.
[An unknown god chuckles.]
I had altered the future countless times, so why was this message appearing now? I had undoubtedly changed the future. Jeolyeong, the Spring Festival… I had twisted the original story significantly.
So this meant…
‘The changes were significant enough to warrant a message.’
The future had diverged even further than before. More so than my altered handling of the Spring Festival or the Morax subjugation.
And who was this unknown god?
Tap
I put down my cane and stood on my own two feet, then walked around. My body felt fine. I had just sparred, so it was understandable.
I clenched and unclenched my fists. I no longer coughed up blood from climbing stairs. The headaches and fatigue had lessened as well.
That’s why it was even stranger. I had roughly eight months left. I hadn’t even reached a full year of lifespan.
Yet, my condition was no different from when I had surpassed the one-year mark.
“What the hell is this damned terminal illness?”
I scratched my head. It wasn’t even mentioned in the original story. There was no way to identify it. I wasn’t even sure if it was an illness.
Neither Archxius nor Headmaster Crepon had been able to figure it out.
Archxius’s illusion nudged my shoulder. Since when could she do that?
‘Is this also because of your Dragon Words?’
She nodded.
‘There are beings higher than dragons?’
An outer god? I tilted my head, but Archxius waved her hand dismissively.
With those words, Archxius vanished.
“Deron?”
“Senior?”
It wasn’t Crena, but Bell Cardia. The one who had emptied my wallet.
She approached me, hiding something behind her back.
“What are you doing standing here?”
“Nothing.”
She couldn’t have heard my conversation with Archxius. I must have looked like I was just standing there, lost in thought.
“Hmm… are you… one of those, Deron?”
“One of… what?”
“You know, that thing. The illness that fifteen-year-old boys often get.”
Ah.
I vehemently denied it, waving my hands. I was long past the age for such concerns.
“Well, whatever.”
“What are you doing here, Senior?”
“Me?”
Bell seemed to consider her answer. She opened and closed her mouth, then finally spoke.
“Deron, you said you were just standing here?”
“Yes.”
“So you’re free?”
“I… suppose?”
She grinned and pulled a bottle from behind her back. A half-empty bottle filled with what looked like strong liquor.
“Wanna drink?”
What the… Wait a minute.
“Are we even allowed to drink?”
“Of course not. Alcohol is forbidden at the academy. Especially for minors like us.”
“Then how did you get that?”
Bell just grinned, avoiding my question. Something felt suspicious.
But regardless…
“So, are you in or out? If you’re not drinking, I’m leaving.”
I grabbed her wrist as she turned to leave, bottle in hand.
“It’s rude to refuse a drink offered by a senior.”
I couldn’t resist that enticing alcoholic liquid.
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