CH 13

༺ Opal Black Class (3) ༻

“What classes are you going to take, Oz?”

“This one and this one.”

“Really? You didn’t choose Elemental Magic. Can’t we take Mana Manipulation together?”

“Why?”

“Huh? It’s nice to have someone to take the class with.”

“…Alright.”

In the instructor’s absence, the students freely filled out their timetables in the classroom.

Some, like Oz and Titania, exchanged opinions with those who had the same or overlapping majors, while others simply filled out their timetables alone.

Marian was the latter. She had already planned what she would learn in the first semester before entering the academy, so she was the first in the class to complete her timetable. Then she immediately left the classroom and headed to the faculty office.

As the orientation hadn’t finished for other classes yet, only Eon was in the freshman faculty office. Marian looked around the faculty office and thought it was fortunate.

“Instructor Eon.”

“Marian? Do you need a consultation?”

“No, I’ve completed my schedule and came to submit it.”

To be honest, that wasn’t the only reason. Marian wanted to have a one-on-one conversation with Eon. However, she didn’t want her classmates to see that side of her, so she hurried to the faculty office as quickly as possible.

Marian had some minor resentment towards Eon. But after calming down and reflecting, she realized it wasn’t something to be so angry about.

She might have gone through some trouble dressing up, but she didn’t suffer any losses, and maybe Eon really couldn’t come due to an urgent matter. Besides, they would be seeing each other for a long time, and there was no point in holding a grudge.

So, um, if there was a valid reason? She secretly thought it would be better to let bygones be bygones…

On their first meeting, Marian thought Eon looked better than she had expected, and she found him reliable when he immediately took action during the incident at the dormitory yesterday. But this had nothing to do with her feelings. Nothing at all.

Eon nodded as he checked Marian’s timetable.

“Meditation, Mana Sensitivity, Mana Control, and Manipulation… all mana-related. Have you decided to focus on raising your mana during the first semester?”

“Yes. I don’t really like physical activities.”

To be precise, she didn’t like using her body in front of others. She didn’t want others to see her sweating and looking disheveled.

Eon seemed to think it wasn’t his place to judge a student’s choice, so he put Marian’s class schedule on his desk.

“Alright. I’ll submit your schedule as it is. Do you have any other matters to discuss?”

Marian hesitated for a moment.

Should she speak up?

Should she just ask?

Yeah, since it’s not a big deal.

“Instructor Eon, did my grandfather give you any instructions?”

“Instructions? I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Did he tell you to come to our house when you arrived at the academy, or give you our address or something like that?”

“Oh, that.”

Eon seemed to recall something and nodded slightly.

“He did give me the address of the house.”

“Did you have any difficulties visiting, or were you involved in some sort of incident…?”

At Marian’s question, Eon raised one eyebrow as if to ask what she meant.

“Why should I go?”

“…Pardon?”

“I was told to visit when needed, but there was no specific need.”

“I was preparing to welcome you, thinking that you would come…”

“…Is that so?”

“Yes…”

Eon’s expression hardened for a moment. He seemed somewhat embarrassed.

“I didn’t know.”

“……”

“Are you done?”

Huh?

So, he’s saying…

There was no particular reason why he couldn’t come or was busy… Is that what he’s saying now?

Just because he didn’t want to go, he made no one else but me, Marian von Kalshtein, spend a whole five hours getting dressed. And left me waiting without any promise until late at night.

He didn’t know. Is that it? Really?

Even if I give him the benefit of the doubt a hundred times, shouldn’t he at least say something like “It wasn’t intentional” or “I’m sorry for making you wait”? Isn’t that a normal man’s reaction? I’m Marian von Kalshtein! Nobody in the social circles has ever treated me like this!

This man is really…

Terrible!

Marian frowned and grabbed her timetable. She took out a pen and crossed out one of the classes, filling the empty slot with Combat Practice. Then, she slammed it down on the desk as if to show off.

“Combat Practice? Why all of a sudden?”

Didn’t she decide to focus on raising her mana during the first semester? That was the intention behind his gaze.

Marian chuckled sarcastically and said,

“It’s my decision!”

Originally, she had no intention of taking Combat Practice. She planned to focus solely on theoretical classes and self-improvement during her early years, as the name of the class itself seemed to imply learning practical skills.

However, her thoughts changed.

She didn’t deserve to be treated like this, and it seemed that man didn’t know how extraordinary she was. Then she would just have to show him herself.

What if she scored the highest in all his classes and showed a much better performance than other students?

Marian, you’re truly amazing.

Marian, as expected, you’re the best.

Marian, I didn’t recognize you as such an outstanding student. I’m truly sorry.

Just imagining those words coming from that brusque man made her happy.

As an instructor, he would naturally have to pay attention to an excellent student. Even if it wasn’t a romantic interest, it didn’t matter. Eventually, his eyes would follow his heart.

Why? Because the student receiving that attention will be me, Marian von Kalshtein!

Marian left the faculty room with confident strides.

Eon watched her retreating figure in bewilderment.

***

I’ve never received formal training.

I don’t know the most efficient way to build muscles or systematic martial arts techniques to overpower opponents. Everything I have is just what I’ve learned by rolling around like a dog in actual combat.

However, Dean Heinkel told me to teach what I’m best at.

So, I decided to follow his words.

“Gasp, pant…!”

“Haa… Haa…!”

Now is the time for basic physical training.

The only physical training method I know is mountain climbing.

So, the entire Opal Black class was climbing a mountain.

There was a mountain of just the right size near the Opal Black dormitory, neither too steep nor too gentle. Since the area was densely wooded, they didn’t notice it at first, but after casually looking around, they started calling it the “back mountain.”

Today, they decided to go back and forth on the back mountain just twenty times.

“Gasp, pant! Hey, how many times do we have left?”

“Huff, five more…! And, pant, don’t talk…! Whew!”

Schultz asked, sweating profusely, and Saladin replied, frowning. Saladin sped up, seemingly irritated by Schultz walking beside him, but soon slowed down again, unable to go far.

Even if it’s a gentle mountain, I know that going back and forth 20 times is not easy. I’ve done it myself, so I know that using brute force can have adverse effects on the body.

But it’s necessary. There’s nothing better to test each student’s physical strength and mental fortitude.

Even with the same climb, some people climb easily, and others struggle. Some walk as if they’ve given up halfway even though they still have energy left, while others grit their teeth and walk even though their energy has reached its limit.

The expressions of the students climbing the mountain were mostly grim. However, if someone really seemed to be in danger, they could be immediately stopped. By closely observing the students climbing, I could gauge their individual levels.

First, the top three: Gwyn, Batar, and Elizabeth.

The three of them had finished their 20 round trips and were resting next to me. I had roughly expected Gwyn and Batar since they were combat majors, but honestly, Elizabeth was unexpected.

She was sweating slightly from her forehead and her breathing was a bit ragged, but she didn’t look completely exhausted. Perhaps she hadn’t grown up entirely like a greenhouse plant in the royal family.

Next, the middle three: Schultz, Saladin, and Titania.

Schultz and Saladin were still climbing the mountain, but they had almost completed the required number of trips. If they keep going like this, they should achieve 20 round trips without any problem.

Titania, being an elf, showed confidence in climbing. And true to that confidence, when the class first started, Titania was the first to take off. She climbed the mountain much faster than the top three.

The problem was that this wasn’t a race, but a test of endurance. Titania had run out of energy precisely after 11 round trips. Now, she was practically crawling up the mountain using sheer willpower.

Lastly, the bottom two: Oznia and Marian.

At first, Oznia had cast various body-strengthening support spells on herself and started running.

Obviously, using magic would defeat the purpose of the exercise, so I disqualified her. As a result, she collapsed before even completing one round trip, and I had to carry her down myself. Now, she was lying down as if unconscious.

Marian’s physical strength was better than the average woman’s, but that was about it. She had barely completed half of the required round trips, and her stamina seemed to have run out long ago. She was struggling to climb the mountain, panting heavily. At this rate, it would be difficult for her to complete 20 trips.

I shouted to her as she paused to catch her breath.

“Marian, are you going to give up?”

“No…!”

Marian forced out a strained, whimpering voice and hastened her steps.