novelraw Chapter 5
Chapter 5
Chapter 5
Training
My thoughts continued.
Kiena, Hei.
They were the only two friends of Artel, the original owner of this body, and they were close companions who grew up together in an orphanage in the lower world.
It felt somehow unsettling to abandon those two students so coldly and climb upward alone.
The three of us were practically in a state of unity between self and others.
No, wait, let me think about this differently.
‘Should I raise these two students myself? How about turning them into my reliable followers?’
I had been an Archmage in my previous life.
I thought that if they received guidance from me, they would rise to a certain level even if they had no talent.
The reason I came to think this was very simple.
It was because of Etar and Tylant.
Tylant would surely try to kill me if he found out I had resurrected, but I didn’t know what kind of mage Etar was now.
On the day I resurrected, would he try to kill me like Tylant, or would he welcome me with joy?
Since I couldn’t be certain, I had to assume for now that Etar would try to kill me.
If Etar harbored such intentions, and I had reached the 6th Circle and my identity was exposed, Etar would, with high probability, try to kill me.
So I, too, needed subordinates who followed me, to make it easier to deal with him.
Even if he had once been my Disciple, 300 years had passed, and I didn’t know what kind of growth he had achieved.
And every teacher in this school was effectively one of Etar’s subordinates.
Facing multiple high-circle mages at the same time could be difficult even for me.
Therefore, to prepare for emergencies, I needed my own faction.
Since Kiena and Hei had always been close to Artel, they seemed like students who would step in immediately if I were in danger.
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
No matter the situation, climbing together rather than alone would definitely be helpful.
Even if Etar retained the same personality he had 300 years ago, the final enemies were Tylant and Sylarid.
I believed it wouldn’t be a bad decision to start raising these two students from now on.
‘You two should know how lucky you are. You’ll be learning magic directly from an Archmage.’
With that decided, I headed to the library.
Strangely enough, the pain that had been poking at my chest disappeared completely once I started thinking about raising them.
Since they were already in their fifth year and still didn’t know whether they were elemental mages or summoners, they needed to strengthen their foundations.
And I knew a perfect book to build those foundations.
At least for the beginner stage, reading that book would be much faster than learning directly from me.
---
A library lined with ten-tier bookshelves arranged in tight, even spacing.
I started searching through the wide library for the book.
《Elemental Guide》
《Mage Guide》
《Guide for Beginner Students》
《Differences Between Elementalists and Summoners》
《How to Easily Find Elements》
《Understanding Elements》
As expected of the Class 0 library, also called the beginner’s floor, most books were extremely basic.
But since they weren’t what I was looking for, I didn’t spare them a glance.
Still, no matter how long I searched, the book I sought did not appear.
“That’s strange. It’s not some forbidden grimoire, nor is it rare enough to be hard to find……”
Having no choice, I used the Mob to search for the book.
“《Beginner’s Guide》.”
That was the title of the book I wanted.
But after the Mob displayed ‘searching’ for quite a while, it suddenly asked an unexpected question.
-Is it true that you searched for 《Beginner’s Guide》?
“……?”
Did the Mob always ask a follow-up question like this?
I didn’t think so……?
It seemed I must have remembered wrong.
The Mob had been developed not long after I became my Master’s Disciple.
The Mob existed solely for Magic Academy students.
Thus, at the time, I had little need to use one, so I only knew very basic operations.
Since I had been the Disciple of the Archmage, I hadn’t needed to study at the school.
My Master hadn’t taught me separately how the Mob was made, either.
The Mob asked another question.
-What is the name of the author of the book you are searching for?
“Alarize Petra.”
After another lengthy ‘searching’ display, the Mob finally revealed the book’s location.
“……Found it.”
《Beginner’s Guide》
Author: Alarize Petra
It seemed abandoned in the deepest part of the library, wedged at the topmost tenth tier where young students could not easily reach.
Other shelves had ladders, yet the shelf containing this book seemed to be telling people not to look, as it had no ladder.
This was precisely the location the Mob had informed me of.
All the books on that shelf were thick with dust, showing how long they had gone untouched.
If I pressed my finger into the dust, my fingerprint came out clearly.
The book’s author, Alarize Petra.
My Master.
I held the book in my arms, climbed down the ladder carefully, and descended.
Then I returned to the dorm with the book.
I placed my Master’s knowledge-filled book on the desk and lay down on the bed.
‘Ah, I’m looking forward to this.’
Teaching someone—the last time I had done that felt so long ago.
My heart beat for no reason.
---
As soon as the next day came, I contacted the two students via Mob, and we gathered in the school garden.
Since there was no separate training area, this was the only place to train.
“What’s going on? Why did you suddenly call us both?”
Hei rubbed his eyes as if he still wasn’t fully awake.
“What’s that old book, Artel?”
Kiena gave her attention especially to the book.
“Let’s train during the break.”
I said it outright to the two students.
They both showed puzzled expressions at the same time. But Kiena quickly brightened and asked:
“Training?”
“If we don’t figure out whether we’re elementalists or summoners by this winter, we’ll be expelled. So it’s training to find that out.”
I had to train these two while hiding my identity as much as possible.
If someone like me, who had never been diligent, suddenly showed deep knowledge about magic, they would surely feel something was off.
“I was searching through the library yesterday and found a good book.”
With that, I opened the book.
“《Beginner’s Guide》? I’ve never seen that before.”
Kiena lifted the book cover slightly and said so.
Then Hei looked at me with a questioning expression.
“Kiena goes to the library every day, so if she’s never seen it, where did *you* even find out about that book, Artel?”
This girl named Kiena seemed to be a student who studied diligently.
A student who poured her soul into studying.
The complete opposite of Artel.
But despite being on this beginner’s floor for five years, it seemed she had never gone deeper inside.
Since all the necessary books were displayed right near the entrance, she probably never felt the need to explore further.
But did this mean she had truly never searched for this book once in five years of student life?
Even more, if even Kiena—who visited the library daily—didn’t know it…
This book I brought back from the library wasn’t anything rare.
Long ago, it had been so widely and effectively used that it was practically a beginner’s textbook.
Maybe, since 300 years had already passed, it was now on the verge of disappearing into history?
Three hundred years was a very long time, so it wouldn’t be strange if far more efficient books had replaced the one my Master wrote.
However, I had no idea what the other books were like or how helpful they might be, so I chose this book.
Thus, I needed to give some excuse.
Because unlike these two students before me, my memory had stopped 300 years ago.
“I saw in some book that if you read this one, you can find elements easily.”
“There was a book like that……?”
Kiena reacted with puzzlement, but I didn’t bother answering.
“Look, Kiena. I actually found this book last night and tried doing exactly what it said.”
It seemed it was my turn to act.
I closed my eyes, spread both palms wide, and raised them to chest height.
Sarararak—
A breeze swept across the once-quiet garden, making the grass sway left and right.
Then I opened my eyes.
“I managed to do at least this much. I haven’t found an element yet, but isn’t this clearly an impressive achievement?”
“Really……?”
The two students looked utterly shocked.
In truth, the magic I had just used merely drew upon a bit of the wind element.
I hadn’t materialized it enough to be visible—only created a gentle breeze.
If Artel, who had been an unmotivated student who only slept every day, suddenly succeeded in full materialization overnight, they might become suspicious.
I shot them a look.
How is it? Seeing that lazy Artel you know reaching this level in just a single day—doesn’t it make you want to read the book?
“It’s all thanks to that book……?”
Hei asked.
As expected, they had no room to refuse.
“Yeah.”
And the moment I answered, the two of them practically snatched the book away as if afraid it would be taken, immediately absorbed in it.
‘Success.’
They had enough motivation.
Now then, I would simply sit back and observe.
“A bird is resting on a tree. Do you see the bird, or do you see the tree?”
Kiena read from the book.
That was a question to predict whether someone was more suited to being an elementalist or a summoner.
Go on, concentrate all you want.
This would be on a completely different level from the lessons they’d been receiving until now.
“I see the bird.”
Kiena’s inclination leaned more toward summoner.
“I see the tree!”
Hei would be an elementalist.
Kiena read the next question.
“You who see the tree—what is your favorite color?”
Each element had its own unique color.
Since one’s preferred color was closely related to the element they would eventually handle, this question was meant to deduce that.
“I like black.”
At the words that came from Hei’s mouth, my expression stiffened.
Of all colors, black.
The color I hated most in the world.
Because Sylarid and Tylant both possessed that color.
‘High chance he’ll be a darkness elementalist……’
Not confirmed, but it wasn’t something I could ignore.
“You who see the bird, imagine you call the bird by gesturing to it. Practicing with a real bird, or using a bird model or drawing, is also an option.”
That instruction applied to Kiena, who was predicted to be a summoner.
“Hmm, I see. I definitely get the feeling now. Wow, this book existed? It’s so easy to understand!”
As expected, she must have always studied diligently.
Kiena didn’t just grow interested—she understood quickly.
“In class, I could never understand anything, so I always went to the teacher separately. But this is way too easy to understand.”
“Yeah. Since it doesn’t talk about magic this and manifestation that, whatever that is, I also find it easier.”
Hei didn’t seem like a student who neglected studying either.
As expected of a book tailored to beginner-level comprehension—the effect showed immediately.
“Alright, let’s get started.”
Both of their paths were now somewhat decided, so it was time to walk them.
“Artel, could you be a wind elementalist?”
Hei asked.
“I don’t know either. Come on, let’s practice together. The break is long anyway.”
It wasn’t an important question, so I brushed it aside, and we immersed ourselves in training.
About thirty minutes later—
Chaejack—!
A bird cry echoed across the quiet garden.
‘No way.’
Had Kiena already succeeded in summoning?
In just thirty minutes?
Of course, since she was in her fifth year and had always studied hard, it wasn’t impossible—but it was still far too early.
I originally expected it to take around two weeks.
‘It can’t be.’
And the moment I looked at Kiena, I, too, was shocked.
“Artel…… this book is amazing!”
A brightly glowing sphere.
Chaejack—!
There was no bird shape, but the sphere was clearly making the sound of a bird.
‘This wasn’t in my expectations.’
Their progress was so fast it left me bewildered.