༺ Social Gathering (1) ༻
“Sir Issac, are you an idiot?”
Kaya assaulted me with a displeased expression on her face.
She even suggested that if I chose her, Zhonya’s Staff would follow.
I couldn’t choose Kaya even as a joke. It would seem like I was taking her feelings lightly.
Fortunately, Kaya’s expression quickly eased as if she were treating it as a joke.
After some casual conversation, we parted ways.
Lastly, Kaya said, “You’ll probably think of me a lot before going to sleep tonight,” and sent me off with a sinister smile.
‘This is awkward.’
As I walked back to my dorm, I became engrossed in thought.
Kaya’s affection was becoming overly aggressive, causing me problems.
I felt the need to establish a clear stance on how to treat her… in the future.
As I expected, Kaya’s demeanor returned to normal the following day.
“I-I apologize for acting so presumptuous yesterdayyyy—-!”
As soon as Kaya saw me, her face flushed red, as if she were remembering what had occurred yesterday, and screamed out an apology as she ran away.
I couldn’t help but feel uncertain about when I would be able to have a proper conversation with her.
It was now evening, and the hue of the setting sun was prevalent in the sky.
After classes, I headed for the butterfly garden. Putting the issue of Kaya aside, I wanted to test out Zhonya’s Staff.
It had been a while since I last visited the butterfly garden, and the atmosphere was quite tranquil.
Only the sound of grass being swept in the autumn breeze could be heard.
It was a stark contrast to the bustling training grounds where many students had gathered to train. I could feel a sense of relaxation wash over me.
“Oh…”
When I caught sight of a female student leaning against a zelkova tree, I couldn’t help but make an exclamation of admiration.
Her long, violet hair cascaded down her shoulders from beneath her navy blue hat.
With both legs stretched out in front of her, she silently gazed into the evening sky.
She was a second year student and my senior, Dorothy Heartnova.
[Dorothy Heartnova] Level: 181
Race: Human
Elements: Wind, Rock, Starlight
Danger: X
Psychology:[★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆]
‘Keogh.’
Is there an image more beautiful than this? No, Dorothy is just that beautiful. Ahh big sis is so beautiful and good to me, I’m gonna die.
I was currently discussing what had occurred on Elt Island with her, assuring my story matched the one I had given to the Truth Investigation Committee.
Dorothy advised me to refrain from such dangerous actions, but didn’t forget to express her relief that I was safe. She still had her moments of being a respectable senior.
Anyways, as I was admiring her goddess-like appearance, Dorothy’s gaze focused on me.
Soon after, a bright smile blossomed on her face, akin to a flower in full bloom.
“President!”
“Senior.”
We exchanged identical smiles as we responded to each other.
Dorothy suddenly got up, hopping towards me before leaning closer to my face.
“Have you eaten–”
“Be my partner!”
Cutting off my words, Dorothy suddenly shouted a request at me.
‘Her partner? Oh, she’s talking about the social gathering.’
The scenario was currently moving towards 「Act 5 Scene 1: The Four Constellations」.
To explain, excluding the student council, the four factions that were involved in the Academy’s administrative policies were dubbed as the Four Constellations. Each of them were named after a constellation that existed in this world’s night sky.
Act 5 focused on our protagonist, Ian Fairytale, entering one of the four factions, the ‘Blue Wolf’, where he found himself confused about everything.
Originally, the final boss of this act should have been Heinkel the Hoarder, but because I had already killed him, I couldn’t predict how the story would unfold.
The four factions would gradually begin to recruit their members amongst the freshmen.
But before that, they would host a social gathering, a large-scale party that had become part of a tradition at the Märchen Academy.
At the social gathering, students interested in romance would attend in pairs. It evoked similar romantic emotions to that of a cherry blossom viewing event or a festival.
While attendance was open to anyone, to enter the party’s central area, one must receive a separate ‘invitation’ from one of the four factions. There, you could meet the key representatives of each faction.
‘Having a partner would be nice.’
In the ❰Magic Knight of Märchen❱, the events afterward would unfold differently depending on which heroine you chose as your partner. I remembered it as a very enjoyable Act.
It seemed Dorothy wanted to take me to the party as her partner.
“You’re talking about the social gathering, right?”
“That’s right.”
“I’m touched.”
With shining eyes, I replied sincerely, from the bottom of my heart.
Dorothy had opened her heart to me, expressing her wish to take me to the gathering as her partner.
If I were to express my current emotions with body language, not even a backflip would be enough.
As if my response satisfied her, she giggled.
“Nihihihi, as expected of my fan, you’re so straightforward!”
“But I don’t think I’ll be able to go.”
“But why?!”
Dorothy responded immediately, looking clearly discontent. Her expression hurt my heart.
“Because I have to train.”
I responded whilst shrugging, giving off the impression of someone who chose to study in the library alone in the midst of a festival.
My desire to have fun with Dorothy was higher than even the Tower of Babel. I also thought that it wouldn’t hurt if I were to take the occasional break.
However, going with her would attract a lot of attention.
I had already attracted the attention of other 1st year students by hanging out with Luce.
Moreover, this particular social gathering was a place where students from all grades attended.
If I were to go with Dorothy, who was hailed as the Academy’s greatest talent and someone who had received the blessings of Manhalla…
The eyes of every student in the Academy would gather upon me,
What was worse, the student council president, Alice Carroll, would also be in attendance.
Therefore, it became necessary for me to avoid becoming Dorothy’s partner and attending the social gathering.
Dorothy squinted her eyes, giving me an intense stare before letting out a sigh. It was clear that she was annoyed by my response.
“Training fanatic. You’re no fun.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Never mind that, where’d you get that thing?”
Dorothy snuck a glance at the Zhonya’s Staff I was holding in my left hand.
“I received it as a gift. For the time being, I plan on practicing with it.”
“Hmm…”
Dorothy didn’t seem to have any interest in knowing who gave me the gift. Maybe she thought it wasn’t an important detail.
Turning her back on me, she began walking toward the zelkova tree.
“I changed my mind. I don’t want to go to the gathering either.”
“Senior?”
“As a training fanatic, you’re no fun at all, President, but going to the gathering without you would be even less fun.”
Letting out a grunt, Dorothy leaned against the zelkova tree as she pulled a book out of her witch’s hat.
‘Who keeps something like that in their hat?’
Regardless, I had to continue with what I had planned.
Before practicing with Zhonya’s Staff, I decided to work on my rock magic as I felt I could unlock a new skill today.
As I channeled my elemental mana, a rock spell began to take form.
Time passed.
[Rock Elemental Spell [Rock Wall (★4)] has been unlocked!] [Rock Elemental Spell [Rock Avalanche (★4)] has been unlocked!!]
The small golem familiar I had summoned earlier, Eden, was celebrating as he watched me use [Rock Avalanche].
Perhaps due to devouring high-quality rock mana on Elt Island, his growth accelerated, as he had already reached level 85.
When I checked Eden’s status window, it now noted him as a ‘★4 familiar. I was quite satisfied with his progress.
‘Ah, what’s his [Synchronization]?’
While avoiding Dorothy’s gaze, I cautiously scrolled through the status window.
[Familiars] Eden (Level: 85)
Grade: ★4
Race: Magic Beast
Elements: Rock
Friendship: 90
Synchronization: 75
Mana Consumption for Summoning: 350
“Oh, it went up a lot.”
If one’s [Synchronization] with their familiar was high, they would be able to use some of their familiar’s abilities.
It was like a partial summoning. For example, a high synchronization with an avian type familiar, would make one able to manifest its wings on their body.
In the case of someone like Eden… it would allow me to make a rock fist. Eden’s skill of attaching and detaching rocks from himself would likely come into play.
Something like a rock armor might be useful, but it seemed to be difficult to raise my mana manipulation to achieve something like that, so I elected to move on.
Compared to just encasing one’s fist with rocks, making sure each individual plate of armor fit one’s body exactly without affecting their mobility would significantly increase the difficulty of mana manipulation.
‘Next…’
I was now focused on my primary goal for today. I picked up Kaya’s gift, which I had left aside for the moment, Zhonya’s Staff.
The sensation of gripping the staff was rather satisfying.
[Zhonya’s Staff] A rare magic weapon crafted from the Philosopher’s Tree. Adorned with a gemstone infused with the natural essence of dawn. It works especially well with the elements of water, ice, wind, and rock.
Rank: Tier 2
I gazed at the staff quietly, its outward appearance suiting me perfectly.
Let’s try it.
Extending the gemstone part of Zhonya’s Staff forward, I began to channel my mana.
‘Now, I’ll cast magic… huh?’
For some reason, the mana I channeled into the staff seemed to be stuck, becoming tangled like threads.
Magical weapons increased the power of one’s spells, but control over one’s mana became increasingly difficult, which was why many students struggled to use them.
I was now experiencing why.
This is harder than I thought…
“Ugh…”
[Kyuu?]
Grinding my teeth, I attempted to cast a spell using Zhonya’s Staff.
I barely managed to manifest the spell at the tip of the staff.
「Fr?t?fire (Ice Element, ★4?)」
Hwaaa─!
But all that appeared was a weak cold ember.
Turning on a gas stove would have been far more spectacular than this.
“Nyaha!!”
Behind me, I could hear a peculiar laughter.
As I turned, I could see Dorothy, who was still leaning against the zelkova tree.
“Nyahahahaha-! Was that supposed to be a fart?”
Grabbing her belly, Dorothy continued to giggle gleefully.
While a wave of shame washed over me, I couldn’t help but admit to myself how beautiful her laughing face was.
“Ah, what should I do with you. President, you’re so cute…”
Tears began to well up in Dorothy’s eyes, clearly greatly amused by the sight.
I couldn’t help but admit that it really did look like a fart.
“I feel more motivated. Thank you for making fun of me, Senior.”
“Nihihihi, I’ll make fun of you as much as you want.”
[Kyuu!]
Eden also seemed prepared to make fun of me whenever I needed it.
“Well… What happened just now couldn’t be helped since I just started practicing with the staff. Even if it’s as feeble as a fart right now, the end result will be magnificent.”
“I wonder how long it’ll take before it becomes magnificent. Nihihi.”
Eden raised one arm in agreement with my words.
Truly, the only one on my side was Eden.
***
‘I feel like I’m losing it…’
It was a pitch-black night.
Navigating the ground using Zhonya’s Staff, I headed toward Briggs Hall, a middle-tier dorm.
In order to properly wield a magic weapon, you were required to go through an intricate mana control process, which was quite taxing mentally.
If I had to compare it to studying, it would be like reading a textbook with hundreds of problems written in tiny characters, each requiring a precise answer.
“Hmm?”
As I was about to enter Briggs Hall, I noticed the mana stone in my mailbox emitting a faint blue light.
The fact that it was glowing meant something was inside my mailbox.
‘Did I have anything I should be receiving?’
There shouldn’t be anything though.
When I opened the mailbox and saw a letter addressed to me, I pulled it out and held it up.
“…?”
My mind, already exhausted from wielding a magic weapon, became even more confused.
On the bright red envelope, a red elephant, the symbol of one of the Four Constellations that represented the ‘Red Elephant’ was engraved onto it.
‘Why am I receiving this?’
This letter was an official invitation to the social gathering hosted by the Four Constellations. This gave me the right to enter the central area of the party.
It could also grant me the right to join the Red Elephant constellation.
「Act 5, Chapter 1, The Four Constellations」 of ❰Magic Knight of Märchen❱ began with Ian Fairytale receiving an invitation.
These invitations were primarily sent to exceptional students or special individuals like Ian, who possessed the light element.
This was all to increase the influence of their respective faction.
In other words, this invitation wasn’t meant for someone like me.
“…”
My intuition began to scream at me.
It felt like Act 5, which I had brushed off without much thought, was entangling me in something very bad.
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