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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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“Amazing! That was amazing!”
Anya bent over, then straightened up abruptly. She looked as excited as if she had just discovered a hidden treasure.
“I haven’t been beaten this badly in ages!”
“Really?”
“Yeah! It was so much fun!”
They watched Anya. Her massive hammer shrunk to a manageable size.
Shrink, hammer, hammer.
“I was completely destroyed!”
They knew.
Anya, true to her Kargon blood, loved to battle. Most members of the Kargon tribe craved strength and reveled in combat.
“So… take me as your disciple!”
Her sudden declaration stunned both Ethan and Lien.
“Please! Please! Take me as your disciple!”
Lien looked at me expectantly.
I had forgotten.
This world was based on a nonsensical web novel with a plot that defied all logic.
“I’ll serve you as my commander, and Ethan as my captain!”
Anya pointed at Lien, then at me.
“I swear on my grandfather’s honor!”
Shouldn’t you be swearing on your own honor?
I felt a headache coming on.
[What should we do?]
[Let her be. She seems to be enjoying herself.]
I scratched my head and looked at Anya.
“Please, take me as your disciple! Should I kneel?”
Anya was about to kneel.
Her current weakness stemmed from her reliance on brute force, a characteristic of the Kargon tribe.
She had the potential to become much stronger if she learned to properly control her mana.
“Captain! Master! Teacher!”
My headache intensified.
I still had so much to learn at the academy.
And I couldn’t teach her mana control.
I was the last person who should be teaching anyone about mana control.
“I, Anya Kargon, was awestruck by your courage and skill when you single-handedly defeated the zombies and ghouls, and then faced the commander!”
Anya thumped her chest proudly.
I could practically feel the sweat dripping down her back.
I had to get out of this situation.
“I’ll accept you as my disciple… when your Mana Control reaches level 6!”
I declared in a stern voice, mimicking my master.
It was my way of telling her to practice mana control.
Anya’s eyes widened.
“So… you’ll accept me as your disciple then?”
I couldn’t refuse her hopeful gaze.
“Go train!”
“Okay!”
Anya nodded enthusiastically.
I quickly returned to my dormitory, Lien disappearing into my shadow.
I collapsed onto my bed.
‘I managed to get rid of her, for now.’
Anya shouldn’t learn from me.
She was a self-taught prodigy, someone who learned and grew through her own experiences.
Teaching a self-taught genius?
I would only hinder her growth.
And it took a long time to level up a skill from 5 to 6. It required twice the time and effort compared to previous levels.
‘Anya will probably focus on practicing mana control for a while.’
I also needed to practice my mana control.
It was a win-win situation.
‘I didn’t know Lien would be this strong after evolving into a Chaos Knight.’
[You’re incredibly strong.]
[I didn’t expect to become this powerful. It’s all thanks to you, my lord.]
I should probably ask Lien for combat training.
[Is there anything you want to do? Anyone you want to meet?]
[I do not understand your meaning, my lord.]
[You’re alive now, with your own will.]
[There is nothing. This empire is different from the one I knew.]
Ah.
I hadn’t meant to hurt Lien’s feelings.
[Ah… sorry.]
[Haha, my lord, what is there to apologize for? You’re more sentimental than I thought.]
This wasn’t just a fictional world.
I felt a headache coming on.
I had been thinking about this a lot lately.
Who was I? What would happen if I returned to my original world after forming close bonds with the people here?
What if I decided to settle down in this world, got married, and had children?
And then I was suddenly forced to return?
Would I be stuck in this world even after the novel ended?
There were no answers to these questions.
There was no point in worrying about things I couldn’t control.
I would follow this motto and live in the present.
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In Sepia’s room.
Sepia sighed.
She had been trying to forget. She had been trying not to think about it.
‘Worry about your own arranged marriage.’
Tia’s words from Arvis Island kept echoing in her mind.
“So annoying.”
Ethan liked her.
Vivian had confirmed it.
And yet, that Tia girl was flirting with him.
‘Wearing perfume to visit someone in the infirmary…’
And it was a new, expensive Luzel perfume.
She might be a rich heiress, but Sepia was also wealthy.
‘That bitch…’
Sepia’s hand trembled as she lifted her teacup.
Tia had spied on them during their walk, and then she had clung to Ethan while drunk at the social gathering.
And now she had been stranded with him on a deserted island.
Whenever Sepia imagined what might have happened between them, her thoughts spiraled towards the worst-case scenario.
“My lady, is something bothering you?”
Vivian poured tea into Sepia’s cup.
Sepia had asked her to join her for tea.
“Vivian, I…”
Sepia bit her lip.
She wasn’t engaged yet.
But following tradition, she would soon be betrothed to someone.
“I… I don’t want an arranged marriage.”
“My lady…”
It was always comforting to talk to Vivian. She was a good listener and always offered helpful advice.
‘It’s not my place to comment on family matters.’
That’s what she had been taught. And she had always followed that rule.
“Is there… any way to avoid it?”
Sepia asked directly. The thought of marrying a stranger and spending the rest of her life with him was unbearable.
“My lady, many people find happiness through arranged marriages.”
“But I don’t want to… I don’t want an arranged marriage…”
Vivian paused.
Ethan was working hard to become Sepia’s equal.
‘Vivian, I love Sepia.’
A year ago, Ethan had confessed his feelings to Vivian, his gaze fixed on Sepia’s retreating figure.
It had been before he lost his memory.
After that day, Ethan had dedicated himself to training, honing his swordsmanship and magic skills.
He had trained for 10 hours a day.
And he had passed the entrance exam for Neydia Hero Academy.
It seemed like he had enrolled in the academy because he loved Sepia.
‘But… did he really lose his memory?’
It was difficult to know what was truly in someone’s heart.
“My lady…”
Some people found love even in arranged marriages.
But she couldn’t tell Sepia that marriage was just a formality.
After all, this was Sepia’s first love.
“I’m just a servant. It’s not my place to interfere in family matters.”
“……”
Sepia’s expression darkened as she sipped her tea.
Vivian, noticing her mood, quickly changed the subject.
“My lady, would you like to tell me about what happened on Arvis Island?”
She even put on an eager expression.
Sepia had promised to tell her about it.
“Okay. So, what happened was…”
Sepia recounted the events of the school trip, from the demon and necromancer attacks to Ethan defeating and resurrecting the death knight.
“Ethan was so cool… Ah…”
Sepia stopped mid-sentence, embarrassed.
“A-anyway… after that…”
Vivian listened patiently, nodding occasionally. Sepia’s story was genuinely intriguing.
“That Tia girl! You know what she said to me? She told me to worry about my own arranged marriage!”
Sepia clutched her teddy bear tightly.
“I’m so angry! I want to kill her!”
Her anger stemmed from the fact that Tia’s words were true.
“If only Ethan was a powerful mage… Ah!”
Sepia suddenly gasped, as though she had just had a revelation.
‘Why didn’t I think of this before? I can teach Ethan!’
Ethan had an abundance of mana.
She could teach him how to use it properly. Magical ability was largely dependent on talent, but it wasn’t impossible to improve.
“I’ve decided! Vivian, I’m going to teach Ethan!”
If Ethan became powerful enough that her father wouldn’t object to her rejecting an arranged marriage, then that’s what she would do.
She would turn Ethan into a magical prodigy.
Sepia made up her mind.
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Weekend.
A peaceful morning.
My communication crystal hadn’t even gone off yet.
But the peaceful morning was shattered by the insistent buzzing of said communication crystal.
―Ethan! Ethan!
―Ethan, text me back!
―Are you still asleep?
Buzz, buzz, buzz.
I woke up to a barrage of messages from Sepia.
What was going on?
First Anya, now Sepia.
[My lord, the mage girl seems to be eager to see you.]
Should I just mute my crystal and go back to sleep?
I’m still recovering. I’ve been taking mana recovery pills with every meal.
I muted the crystal and laid back down.
But I couldn’t fall back asleep.
I sighed and replied to Sepia.
―What?
―Meet me. I need to talk to you.
―Just tell me over text.
There was no reply.
A sense of dread washed over me. I had a feeling I had made a mistake.
―Come here, while I’m still asking nicely.
There she goes again.
I asked her where we were meeting.
She told me to go to the club room.
I headed towards the club room.
Sepia was sitting near the window, bathed in sunlight.
“Why are you in such a hurry?”
“Ethan, sit down.”
“Am I your servant?”
“Hey…! My dear friend Ethan, please have a seat.”
She had sounded annoyed for a moment, but she quickly softened her tone.
That’s more like it.
It felt like he was taming a villain.
Just to be clear, I have no intention of being bossed around by Sepia.
I sat down across from her.
“I’m going to turn you into a magical prodigy.”
Sepia declared, slamming her hand on the table.
“I’m going to teach you all my secret techniques!”
It was a tempting offer.
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Ethan on the next page.