chapter 7
* * *
Philip walked lightly to Felicia’s side.
I didn’t have to do anything to get attention. All eyes were on him except for one or two distracted freshmen.
“nice to meet. Dear students. Some people may know me, some may not, but one thing is for sure, you guys are lucky to have met me here.”
Even looking in the mirror, you can feel jealous, and your voice has a good, low-pitched sound.
‘If I had been like this in my previous life, my annual salary would have exceeded 100 million.’
Philip thought so while looking at the freshmen and their parents.
No one opened their mouth openly, but I could read the atmosphere.
Amid a gaze full of suspicion and contempt, Philip smiled.
“You seem to be asking what I’m talking about, but if you experience me a little more, you’ll understand. Maybe if you come to me when you face a problem you can’t seem to solve on your own, it’ll be easier to find out, for example dating counseling. You are an expert in your field.”
A chuckle broke out among the freshmen. Boys and girls around that age laughed profusely.
Philip turned to Felicia.
‘… ?’
She was tilting her head with her eyes wide open like a frightened rabbit, but when Philip noticed, she cleared her throat once before opening her mouth.
“Keuheum, then the instructor should also show off his skills to the students.”
“yes. professor.”
Philip bowed his head and drew the sword from his waist. Of course, it was ‘talkative Neria’.
-Are you going to do that? that? That’s what I was practicing yesterday.
“okay.”
After giving a small answer, Philip stood in front of a training doll made of leather and sand. Unlike the one Diana Prenhal had cut, it was a doll wearing cheap iron armor.
Last night, Philip fought over thirty virtual battles in a dream Neria showed him.
Although he was unable to get started with the ‘Moonlight Sword’, Philip succeeded in acquiring one of the possibilities the Moonlight Sword showed, and Neria’s third owner, who possesses magic armor and outstanding magic power, became a very good practice partner.
Now, Philip was about to show off the skill he had perfected by killing the unknown knight dozens of times.
“Suck!”
Neria’s blade struck the steel armor on the training doll and passed by.
It was a light touch, as if playing a joke.
“… ?”
The eyes of everyone who saw it went back and forth between the training doll and Philip several times.
“Philip… Oswald… .”
Felicia glared at Philip with tears in her eyes. Something beyond hatred was sprouting in her heart.
‘I, I’m crazy. I was crazy for believing such a fool. To me… why are you doing this to me What grudge do you have against me… ?’
And at that moment, the training doll Philip had touched collapsed.
The grit and torn leather that had filled the doll flowed through the steel armor.
Only then did people, except for a few, realize that Philip had done something. At the same time, Felicia’s expression brightened rapidly.
She looked pretty on her sister’s face for the first time in a long time.
“… What did you do? What’s so great about that?”
In the silence, someone muttered, and an answer was immediately heard.
“Of course, isn’t that great? You mean it ignores armor and deals damage? In that brief moment of contact with the sword, an aura was formed inside the armor. No one can do that.”
“… Putting aside your ingenious ideas, you are born with the ability to manipulate magical powers.”
“There was a reason you weren’t kicked out of the count’s family.”
At least half of the parents and guests who attended were masters of sword training for over 20 years.
Even those who taught the knights who swore allegiance to the family couldn’t easily copy the skills Philip had just shown.
It was different from Diana Frenhal, who showed off her skills earlier.
The cleavage of sword skills she showed was just an outstanding achievement for her age, but it did not give as much shock as Philip.
The atmosphere in the hall changed. The 22-year-old’s extraordinary talent was shocking enough to make him forget about Philip’s rumors for a while.
“If you follow Professor Oswald’s lessons well, some of the students sitting here might be able to do like me.”
Philip bowed, bowed, and returned to his original seat.
Classes resumed, but the eyes of several distinguished guests did not seem to leave Philip’s face.
– It’s successful. Yes?
“Looks like it. It seems that the danger of being cut is almost gone now.”
—… Ah yes. You mean you were worried about that?
“Look over there instead.”
Philip looked at Felicia and let out a small laugh.
As if she had regained her composure, the observation class was proceeding smoothly, but Philip noticed that her pulse had loosened once.
It was because her slender legs trembled intermittently.
―The owner is really mean. You did it on purpose to see her reaction.
Neria grumbled.
“It is not. I picked it because it was the most difficult skill I could do.”
‘… It worked better than I thought, though. I knew this would work. In the first place, you can’t take off the crazy image right away. Even if my personality isn’t good, my goal was to put up with it based on my skills.’
This is what Philip was aiming for, just as a sports player with good skills appears on TV every game or every time even if his personality is not good.
‘If there is no replacement, you can survive. If no one can replace me, that’s it. I’ll have to hone my skills so that no matter how selfish I behave, I will never be able to throw them away.’
Philip thought so and focused on the observation class.
“From now on, I’m going to actually use a wooden sword and hit a doll. Since it is the same length and weight as the real sword, it can be heavy and dangerous for someone who has never held a sword yet.”
After completing the simple practice, the observation class was over.
“profit… !”
Philip, seeing a freshman girl whimpering and holding a wooden sword, hurriedly approached.
“Your wrists will hurt if you listen like that. Now, since you’re still weak, you have to lift with two hands, one hand on the pommel and the other firmly under the guard here… yes. you’re good. Shall we swing it?”
* * *
It was the afternoon after all the observation classes had ended.
It is time for faculty to return to their undergraduate rooms and prepare for the semester, and for students to return to their dormitories.
However, Philip did not have time to engage in leisurely undergraduate work.
―Neria doesn’t know anymore. Isn’t it time to be like this? Aren’t you supposed to go back and do something or something?
“… Are you surprisingly common sense?”
―The owner is strange.
Philip thought Neria was right.
He was climbing the mountain behind the academy at this time when his fellow instructors were busy.
“It must be around here.”
―What are you looking for?
“Two little kids. brown-haired twins. I am a freshman.”
What Philip was looking for were the main character twins.
Orphaned twins who were taken in by an unknown man and raised in the mountains. They should have been on this mountain now.
―Aren’t these the kids who entered school today? why are they here?
“… Well, the kids are a bit adventurous, and they can be.”
The twins who grew up in the mountains said goodbye to the man who raised them up until now and entered the academy.
It wouldn’t be strange to go to the mountain to soothe your anxious mind in a situation where there are no guardians or adults to rely on.
“Here.”
Philip soon found a brown-haired boy and girl perched on a large rock.
“Louen, what’s wrong with your expression? i like it here It’s very spacious, the building is high, and the bread is so delicious, right? God, I’ve never had bread so soft.”
“… I don’t know. Lua. I’m just… anxious I wanted to continue living there.”
The name of the lively and excited ponytail girl is Lua, and the name of the boy with straight bangs is Ruen.
Philip stared at the children with a strange feeling.
“You are always like that. Luen. i like uncle too But how long can you live in that little cabin? Uncle was like that too. See the bigger world, Lua, Luen. you deserve it I think you are right.”
“But… .”
“Eh, really! Come on. Luen.”
The girl, Lua, hugged her twin and stroked their hair.
“You are with me now. Luen. If you’re so anxious, then I’m also anxious. just… Can’t we just think of the happy things that will happen in the future? I made a lot of friends… Maybe a pretty girl who likes you might appear… .”
“I’ve never thought of that before.”
It was a pretty look. Philip thought so.
It hurt Philip to think that these little animals, such as rabbits and squirrels, were embracing each other.
It was all the more so knowing that the affectionate brother and sister would soon separate from each other.
Philip thought he had to step in at this point.
“What are you guys doing here?”
At his appearance, the twins were startled and jumped off the rocks.
“who… Are you saving?”
The sudden appearance of an adult made the siblings uneasy. However, after confirming that Philip’s outfit was an instructor’s uniform, he was somewhat wary.
“teacher… ? Instructor? What should I call you?”
Lua tilted her head and asked.
“Call me whatever you feel comfortable with. Sooner than that, it’s time to check the number of people in the dormitory. What were you guys doing here?”
“uh… Aren’t you supposed to be here?”
“… hmm. That’s not true, but since you guys just entered school today, aren’t you sure if this is the right time to be here? Wouldn’t it be okay to be here without knowing that?”
“Oh, sorry.”
“No one has been harmed yet, so there is nothing wrong. Even if only an hour had passed, the professor in charge of the dormitory would have been in a cold sweat… … Wait, come behind me, come on.”
Philip yanked them by the arms and sent them behind him. Then, she pulled out Neria and aimed at empty space.
– Huh? Master, why are you suddenly like this?
‘What is this?’
At one point in the air, a terrible sense of distance was felt. It feels as if the damaged parts were roughly patched up with a compositing program.
‘… That’s her.’
Philip sensed that what was to come had come.
One of the only three great sages in this world, Iloxi or Taramire, had come here to take one of the twins.
“Wait, calm down. I am not the enemy.”
Then, tearing through the space, the great sage appeared.
The great sage Ilroxiina.
One of the world’s most powerful wizards and the owner of the yellow mage tower that handles time-space and wind magic.
She had been over seventy for a long time, but she looked like she was in her twenties, perhaps because she held on to her youth with magic.
She inspected Philip’s appearance and for a moment had a surprised expression on her face.
“I would like to ask how you discovered my magic, but this is not the time. I am the yellow mage lord, Iloxi or Taramire. Do you need any proof?”
He was the person Philip knew. She showed courtesy and caution to Philip, who was much younger than herself.
Philip looked straight at her, nervously passing saliva down his throat.
“… Can you doubt it just by looking at it? I’m just wondering why the tower lord is here. Seeing that you don’t know me, I don’t think I have any business, and if you have any business with our students, please let me know.”
The great sage, Illocina, looked at the twins and Philip in turn, then let out a small sigh.
“Rosello Graham, I have already spoken with the dean. I’m sorry, but I think we need to bring one of the students.”
“What do you mean?”
“I have come to take a boy named Ruen.”
Then Lua jumped out in front of Philip. Embarrassment and fear could be seen on his face, his eyes wide open like those of a frightened rabbit.
“yes? why?”
Ruen was so frightened that she hugged Lua’s arm and trembled.
Illocina bit her lip. She knew very well what she was about to do.
Having to separate siblings who have been together for all their time from the moment they were born. Thinking of the loss and pain those innocent children would feel, she was not at ease either.
But in the end, it was something I had to do for my children.
“My child, I cannot explain everything to you. However, if your brother continues to stay here, you and the other children at the academy will be in danger. please forgive me… .”
She said and raised her left hand.
Philip felt the magic move through her hand.
And at that moment, an unbearable level of drowsiness poured in.
“… ah.”
Young Lua and Ruen fell asleep on the spot, but Philip endured with bloodshot eyes.
Grinding my teeth, I forced my eyes open enough to make my eyelids twitch.
Ilroxina had something to say and something to hear from her.
“Don’t resist! I am sick!”
As Philip tried to resist her sleep spell, Iloxinas shouted urgently.
Even though it was the lowest level of 5th tier magic, it had a different meaning if it unfolded in her hands called the great sage.
If it wasn’t a person with innate anti-magic, the magical power inside the body could be twisted and lead to serious injury.
However, Philip forced his lips apart with his bloodshot eyes wide open.
My head was dizzy, my eyes were blurry, and my whole body had no strength at all.
“Promise me that you will take good care of him.”
“… I promise.”
“Can you love Ruen as much as that girl sleeping over there? You’re taking away the only family of two children left in the world right now. It means destroying the world of two children. Is this like a sacrifice for the world? What do those little ones know!”
Philip raised his hand and wiped away the bleeding nose. I couldn’t stand it any longer.
“Again, promise, do it. Really, well, can take care of… Are you there?”
Unfortunately, Philip did not hear back from Iloxinas. Philip, who reached the limits of his mental powers, soon lost consciousness and collapsed.
The great sage looked at Philip with shaky eyes.
He seemed to know why he was taking the boy named Ruen. It was something she couldn’t let go of.
‘It must be someone who has nothing to do with it.’
The mental strength to endure her magic with will, and the personality to stand up for a brother and sister who have nothing to do with him.
Besides, she has the talent to subconsciously see through her magic.
‘I think I’ll meet this man again someday.’
“… I will do my best.”
After answering the fallen Philip, she hugged Louen.
“… .”
Feeling the weight of the child in his arms, the great sage disappeared from the academy.