I laid my head on the desk, somewhat bored. At least this was a bit more interesting than the previous classes, and the professor didn't seem to care whether we were paying attention or not — even if he looked a bit cold. What a great teacher.
Lycos and Selina Slike didn't pay much attention either, as if they were in their own little worlds. They were kind of alike in that way. Aria Louisbarne, no surprise, was the perfect student among us. She seemed to be the only one actually paying attention to the professor — expected of the church's saintess.
Alkaline, meanwhile, was talking to himself like a madman, a devious smirk plastered on his face as he occasionally glanced at me.
"I wonder how this chapter will turn out… hehehehe," he muttered.
Some of the first-years seemed surprised to see another person with black hair. I was even a little surprised that the academy allowed a black-haired person to teach here.
He began lecturing about something called mantra circuits, which caught my interest.
"Mantra circuits run through vital points of the human body and allow us to resonate with mantra. Unlike most people who don't have these circuits, we can perform arts unparalleled to people who can use mana."
"What's the difference between mana and mantra?" one of the students asked.
"Great question," Professor Rye said. "When resonating with mantra, you circulate your own energy throughout your body and release it outward. Think of yourself as the energy source. But with that comes a higher chance of corruption — though we'll get to that in a later lecture."
He continued, "When resonating with mana, you absorb the natural mana in the air and environment, then filter it into pure mana to perform mana arts."
Professor Rye turned, crossed his arms behind his back, and walked to the chalkboard. He picked up a piece of chalk, wrote Mantra Resonance Training, and forcefully added a period at the end.
"If you'll all follow me."
It was much colder than the other day — leaves falling from the trees, a cold breeze in the air, beautiful signs of autumn approaching.
We left Citadel Island's main grounds for the outskirts of the forest. The land surrounding the island also belonged to the academy. There, we gathered around Professor Rye.
Lycos sat up in a tree with Selina, a little farther off. She lay in his lap like a cat. It was… a somewhat wholesome scene. Were they in some kind of relationship? Or was it a coincidence? I didn't know. Thinking about it made my head hurt and put me on edge. What the hell am I thinking? Why should I care? We're strangers!
"Mantra works in mysterious ways compared to mana. It flows throughout the entire body. To use it, you need a certain feeling — focus it through points in your body, focus your mind, and find your mantra points. From there, you'll naturally learn to resonate and suppress it to your will."
He walked away, leaning against a nearby tree. "Don't bother me until you can resonate with your mantra circuits."
I could tell he was observing me more than the others. It was a little nerve-racking. So what are we supposed to do, figure it out on our own, Great teacher, huh?
"Ughhh…"
Thirty minutes later…
Frustrated, I threw my hands out. "HOW THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO DO THIS?" I pouted, crossing my arms. I don't feel a thing. Maybe the measurements are wrong? Though… they're never wrong.
I glanced around. The first-year students were doing their best, but they hadn't made as much progress as I expected. I guess it was harder than it looked.
The two "wholesome" students, Lycos and Selina, were fast asleep. Figures. Probably already mantra masters, considering what Lycos did to the prince. And Selina Slike was the so-called prodigy… She might even be the next Author, for all I knew.
Alkaline was still rambling to himself. "I can't wait. It's about to get better… just a bit longer."
No surprise — the only one making actual progress was none other than Aria Louisbarne. A bright yellow light formed in her hand. Isn't that just basic light magic with a brighter glow?
"Look, Professor!"
"Impressive," he replied. "Not just light magic — it's imbued with mantra. It's transformed into holy magic. Not many priests, priestesses, or paladins can manage that, especially at your age."
Somewhat annoying. Not everyone's as good as you, you know.
Little by little, the other students started resonating with their mantra circuits. Their bodies glowed with different colored outlines — red, green, yellow.
"As you can see, students," the professor said, "mana resonance surrounds the body with a blue outline. Mantra resonance colors change based on the trait of one's soul."
And then… There was I. Standing there, dumbfounded.
The professor noticed me standing around looking clueless. He crossed his arms behind his back and walked over, his expression a little disappointed.
"Seems you're having trouble, Chloe. It might take… other means to awaken your mantra circuits."
He paused, muttering under his breath, "…through desperation."
Then, he glared at me and snapped his fingers.
『Forced Partial Activation: Perfect Vision』
For a split second, it felt like time froze.
A student burst through the crowd with a sword in hand, slashing at me. I leapt back.
I barely dodged that — that could've killed me!
The other students surrounded us. Lycos stirred, opening one eye to glance over. Aria stepped forward, alarmed.
"Professor, this is wrong! Is this necessary for her to resonate with her mantra circuit?!"
The professor put his hands behind his back. "Yes, it is. The best way for her is to be in a life-or-death situation. If any of you try to intervene, I won't hesitate to deduct points… or report your disobedience."
Aria gritted her teeth and stepped back, falling silent.
Yesterday at XX:XX
The Author stood behind his desk, looking almost giddy. Lycos stood silently behind the Author, arms behind his back like a guard.
"Professor Nikolas, I did some research on that commoner Lycos dragged here. She's… more extraordinary than I realized. She's important to our plan. Do everything you can to make her resonate with her mantra circuits."
Back to now.
I noticed something. The student coming at me looked… off. Wooden. Could no one else see this? Whatever. Puppet or not — I have to destroy it.
A couple of seconds passed. My eyes blurred, then cleared — it was a perfect replica of a student, but fake. No wonder no one else noticed.
I unsheathed my katana and blocked its next strike.
"–Keuk!"
My posture broke. My hands left wide open. A wicked smile on its face.
Does it have a personality? Weird.
『Forced Partial Activation: Perfect Vision』
Once again, everything slowed to a crawl — the student-puppet moving sluggishly, the world dulled around me, only my eyes moving freely.
At least this gives me a couple of seconds to think.
I glanced around. None of the other students moved to help. Scared of the professor's threats.
"I don't need help anyway!"
I squinted my eyes, noticing thin, darkish-yellow threads made of mantra connecting the puppet to… Professor Rye! He was secretly controlling them from behind his back.
I shifted my weight into a backwards walkover, regaining my footing just as the puppet thrust its blade at me. I parried, then countered — my katana curving unnaturally, maneuvering around the puppet's sword and disarming it. Its face, or whatever it had for one, looked momentarily shocked.
I brought my katana up vertically to my chest.
"There's no way she'd kill another student!" someone shouted from the crowd.
I feinted a thrust, dashed past the puppet, confusing it. If mantra is like mana, then it must share similar properties. Resonating my blade with mana, a bright blue outline formed along the edge.
"Sword Art: Mana Slash!"
A flash of energy cut upwards, severing the threads. The puppet's human guise vanished, replaced by a lifeless wooden figure. Gasps erupted from the other students — either because I cut a professor's control threads or because I'd just outsmarted his puppet.
"I'm not the only one seeing this, right?"
My eyes, enhanced by what some might call 'perfect vision' — though it never really felt perfect — caught a glint from a tree branch. Selina hung there for dear life. I barely had a second to react before a shiver ran down my spine.
I turned.
The puppet was still moving?! It was about to strike — I froze, bracing myself…
Nothing.
To my shock, Lycos held the puppet's wrist, overpowering it like it was nothing. Summoning his modified flintlock, he aimed it at point-blank range.
"You're in my range."
–zzzzzZZT–
Mantra Art: Simeío Kenó.
–KABOOOM–
A massive beam tore through the puppet, obliterating its upper half. The rest collapsed to the ground, charred and smoking. Professor Rye looked visibly irritated, grumbling.
"Annoying brat…"
Akaline ran up to me, eyes wide in awe.
"That was amazing, Chloe! As expected from you."
As expected of me? I wasn't sure what that meant, but I appreciated the compliment.
"Hehe, thanks…"
After that, we parted ways as I made my way to my next class: Physical Training. It was mandatory for first-years, but I didn't mind. It meant I could hone my swordsmanship against actual people instead of just the kids from my village.
The damp, book-filled halls smelled like wet wood and forgotten magic. Hidden artifacts, blood-drawn magic circles… and two professors staring each other down.
Professor Nikolas. Professor Lycos.
The tension between them was suffocating.
Nikolas slammed his fist into the wall. "Why did you interfere? You had your orders."
Calmly, Lycos folded his arms behind his back. "I only take orders from the author — not you. He needs that girl for his plans. You were about to kill her. That's a hindrance."
"You should be thanking me."
Nikolas gritted his teeth. The room crackled with unspoken fury.
He leaned in, whispering, "Listen well. You are nothing but a tool for the author. Remember your place in the hierarchy. He would have killed you if not for me. You're a mindless lapdog."
Later…
I took my usual spot in the classroom — middle row, perfect sunlight, and less likely to be called on.
"Hey, Chloe~"
I stiffened. Oh god, no.
Forcing a polite smile, I turned. "H-hey."
It was Kaioh Ryo. Great.
He usually had a flock of girls trailing after him, but today he was alone. Small miracles, I guess.
"Didn't expect to see me here!"
"Yeah… me neither."
"Mind if I sit here?"
Panic. Not again.
"Oh, uh—" My eyes darted around. Lycos was seated a row up. Perfect. Without thinking, I grabbed his collar and yanked him down beside me.
Lycos looked confused but went along with it. Bless his obliviousness.
"Well, you see — Lycos is already sitting here!" I stammered, beads of sweat trailing down my face.
Kaioh scowled. "Picking someone with black hair… You realize interacting with them brings bad omens, right?"
That again.
Even commoners believed that crap. All because of a hair color? It made my blood boil.
"So what if he has black hair?" I snapped. "I find it kinda unique. Besides, no bad luck has happened yet." Wait — did I just compliment him?
Kaioh's smile turned strained. "So be it." He stormed off to another seat, gritting his teeth.
"How annoying. That black-haired bastard… stealing what should be mine."
I could practically hear the bitterness.
Slamming my head onto the desk, I groaned. "Why me?"
And then —
"Oh, Chloe~"
Not again!
But it wasn't Kaioh. It was Lilia. Finally — a friendly face.
"Lilia! What're you doing here?"
"Mandatory Physical Training, remember?" she grinned, eyeing Lycos and then me with a devilish smirk I knew far too well.
"Seems you two are getting along nicely."
My face turned crimson. "It's not like that—!"
"Relax, I won't interrupt your little moment," she teased, walking off.
"Ughhhhh…" Kill me.
The bell rang. A tall, broad-shouldered man with a gruff voice introduced himself.
"Name's Elliot Kine. I'm your instructor. The person next to you is your partner for the semester. Don't like it? Well, too bad."
I sighed and glanced at Lycos.
"Maybe it won't be so bad…"
Kaioh, seated nearby, looked visibly irritated seeing me, Lilia, and Akaline paired up.
Professor Kine marched us to the training yard.
"Alright, little shits! Today's joint sword arts and basic weapon training. You'll face your partner. You are not allowed to use any mana enhancements."
"This'll be fun," I grumbled sarcastically.
Weapons were wooden, but the matches would still sting. Lycos chose a dagger — an odd choice as a primary weapon.
He stood before me, taking up a reverse dagger stance. Then, in a flash, he dashed forward.
"!"
Instinctively, I blocked. He moved fast — faster than anyone I'd seen. He sidestepped, slashing from my blind spot. I barely kept up, relying on reflexes alone.
"I can't sense him… it's like fighting a wild animal!"
He feigned a retreat, baiting me. I took the opening.
Too late, I realized — it was a trap.
He dropped on all fours, moving inhumanly, sweeping my legs.
–thud!
"Ow…"
Before I could react, he pinned me down, dagger at my head, his face close to mine. Our eyes met.
『Forced Partial Activation: Perfect Vision』
And in that instant… I saw it.