In our entire lifetime, my friends and I only found six out of the twenty-two Arcanas.
Of the six;
The Fool was lost to our memory.
The Devil was given to the Demons
And the remaining four were kept in our Base which existed in the Forgotten Lands.
I spent the last three years—which were extended to over a hundred—within the Base. I learned of their nature, studied the powers they had, and made them my own.
Of course, those weren't the only things I focused on.
Alchemy. Core Formation. Familiar Nurturing. Magic Expansion… and other phenomenal changes that occurred within those years.
I made progress by leaps and bounds.
Still, since my attention was spread to several areas, I couldn't completely make the Arcanas my own. In essence, to utilize the full capabilities of these miraculous items, I needed to use them directly.
Arcanas had nigh infinite durability.
They contained Phenomenal Magic that could change the world and its concepts.
They contained a vast stream of energy, and could be simply refilled using the essence of their surrounding—most times, their wielder themselves.
The full depth of these items was currently beyond my purview, and so, I had to rely on them on rare occasions.
One of those scenarios came up.
'The Tower!'
Having the ability to warp the very concept of space, the Arcana gave me access to any location I wanted to get to—so far as I knew its geographical position. Of course, it had several other abilities, but… this was plenty enough.
>VWUUUSSSHHH!<
In a flash, I left the regular place I stood, and found myself at my desired destination.
The effects of my coat still made me perfectly undetectable, and the use of 'The Tower' gave me a smooth appearance—almost as though I had always been there.
"Finally…" I whispered.
A smile formed as my lips were curled up. I took in the fresh fragrance of the lush flowers and the serene atmosphere. It had been too long.
"… It's good to be back!"
The vast landscape of Ainzlark Academy greeted me with its splendor.
The lovely structures, towering buildings, and colorful plants, all welcomed my sight as I witnessed them.
I could see students walking along the cleared paths of the Academy—most likely heading for class.
'It's still morning, after all…'
My smile grew broader as I saw groups of students discussing as they went on to class.
It wasn't just their faces that I focused on—but their Cores as well.
"Hm…"
Of the five who walked to class, two had amazing Mana Cores—the Yellow Core Grade, almost at the Blue stage. Their white uniforms indicated that they were still First Years, causing me to marvel at their talent.
The remaining three of the five had average Mana Cores, yet all five conversed normally and were heading in the same direction.
'Those two would have belonged to the Upper Class… but since they are all heading toward the same classroom, then…'
Anabelle was right, after all.
'… The Class System has been abolished!'
That brought a smile to my face, allowing me to draw closer to the students.
'I should ask them…'
Undoing the 'Unknowable' Magic Function of my Coat, I casually approached the five of them—making sure I had a genuine smile on my face.
"Excuse me, students."
"ARHH!!!" They jointly yelped—with the exception of one, who still appeared shaken.
'He must have good control of his emotions…'
My voice seemed to have startled them, causing the five to sharply turn in my direction with apprehensive expressions.
'C'mon… I tried my best to be natural…'
They created some distance between me and huddled to form a tight circle. As I awkwardly stood from them, they began speaking in hushed whispers.
"W—who is this guy?"
"We've been training our Mana detection ability… how could we not sense him?"
"Is he a powerful senior?"
"No. He's not dressed in the Uniform."
"T—then, maybe he's…"
"No. There's no way. He looks too weak and plain."
As they kept talking, mixing some clearly offensive words in their statements, I gave a wry smile.
'I can hear everything, you know…?'
Of course, I wasn't actually offended, but… it didn't feel very pleasant for kids to actively ignore me—especially when I approached them for a purpose.
Thankfully, before I lost my patience, their circle disbanded and the five of them looked at me. Their gazes rang with suspicion and caution.
"W—who are you?" The one who seemed to be the leader spoke up.
He was the most powerful, based on his Mana Core quality—though I knew, more than anyone, that it was dangerous to assume strength based on only that factor.
The group of students awaited my answer, staring at me with interest.
'There's nothing really spectacular about me, though…'
Sure, I had a very handsome face, and my clothing was made up of only the best materials—my hair also had a regal quality to it—but, I made sure not to stand out too much.
"Ah, yeah… I'm an acquaintance of one of your Lecturers here. I came to visit him."
That was good enough… right?
As expected, the guards of the students dropped, and they slowly began to loosen their tense muscles—at least from what I observed.
"O—oh! We're sorry for our rude actions."
"Sorry!" The others chimed in after the leader spoke.
'Even though the Class System has been banned, the strongest will be recognized as superior. That hasn't changed…'
It wasn't necessarily bad, though. That was simply the way of the world.
Even the previously suspecting students had a change of attitude because I mentioned my connection to someone superior to them.
Since I must have passed the layers of security that existed before entering the Academy, and I also knew a Lecturer, they must have assumed that I wasn't a threat to them—though the latter proved I was someone deserving of respect.
"It's been a while since I last stepped foot in Ainzlark Academy, so… I would like to ask of his whereabouts from you."
"Please tell us their name. We'll guide you accordingly!" They said with enthusiasm.
'Now, that's more like it!'
"He goes by the name of Neron Kaelid."
Immediately after I said this, the students appeared shocked—and then confused.
'Have I missed the mark? Or is Neron no longer here?'
After a short moment of hesitation, the leader finally mumbled something that shattered my expectations.
"Professor Neron Kaelid is actually…"
