Mightiest Melee Magician

After letting out a short laugh at my response, the Crown Prince said,

“I don’t usually ask people their reasons, but this time, I will. Why? Is it because of patriotism, or a trust in the princes, or something like that?”

“No. I just want to live my own life.”

“Ruin Ardell’s life… Sure, that is a reason. You’re at the age where you would be seeking adventure rather than stability, and chasing ideals rather than reason. However, the existence that you dream to become doesn't exist on these lands. You will soon come to know that the only thing waiting for you will be the uncaring reality.”

The Crown Prince had a point.

I, too, once felt that dreams and ideals were something that were never achievable.

I felt it for all my first five years in the Academy.

However, at the end of that dark cave, I had seen a miracle.

I even told my juniors to not settle down and to keep trying harder, so if I was to compromise here, I would be too ashamed to hold my head up high.

“I do not wish to be the Crown Prince’s magician. I want to just be Ruin Ardell.”

“......My words don’t seem to be reaching you.”

At my stern tone, the Crown Prince shook his head with disgust.

“I’ve already given you a warning before. There isn’t a jewel in the world that I cannot obtain.”

“Yes. And you told me that jewels that you can’t obtain are destroyed.”

“I can destroy you right this instant.”

“......”

My gaze moved toward the Fire King, who was standing behind the Crown Prince.

It was said that the gaze of the magician at the boundary was enough to kill.

And those killer eyes were looking directly at me.

I simply nodded.

“You could do that. However, you won’t.”

“I won’t? Why are you so confident?”

“Because the Crown Prince that I know isn’t someone so vulgar to use Disguise to hide himself and sneak in just so he could command the great magician at the boundary to kill a mere 16-year-old student.”

“......You think you’re a ‘mere 16-year-old student’?”

I smiled brightly.

“Until the graduation ceremony tomorrow, yes”

“......”

This was no different to saying that, if he attacked me, he was a ‘vulgar’ person.

Yes, this was a gamble.

This might even worsen the situation.

However, I hadn’t just said this thoughtlessly.

I at least had the certainty that the Crown Prince and Fire King I knew wouldn’t choke me out with a method like this.

And this… was the answer.

“…I don’t know if you have guts or if you’re good at guessing.”

The Crown Prince smirked as if intrigued, and then turned his back.

“I’ll leave for now, but you can look forward to the next time we’ll meet. For it shall be as enemies.”

“......”

And then, he faded into the shadows with the Fire King and disappeared off to somewhere.

* * *

After getting past the Academy walls in an instant, Fire King Teron asked the Crown Prince as they walked eastward toward the Raynac Empire,

“Are you really thinking of leaving him alone?”

The Crown Prince replied with a joyous smile,

“Yes, Godfather. I do not want to kill him today.”

“Although the relationship between the Empire and this small nation isn’t bad, if you leave him alone on the basis of fleeting emotions, he is a child that could very well come back later as a major obstacle in the future. It’s good to uproot troublesome seeds before they—”

“Yes, he may trouble me in the future. Godfather, have you ever loved before?”

“......Do you love Ruin Ardell?”

Teron narrowed his eyes, and the Crown Prince laughed at the notion.

“No, how could that be? You know me quite well, Godfather. I love girls. Pretty girls.”

“......Then why did you ask me that?”

“Well, I feel my current emotion is similar to a first love that was never fulfilled. It’s a bit bitter.”

“......So you loved him.”

“No. Never.”

“......”

“I don’t know why I’m trying to justify myself to you.”

As the topic of conversation turned in a weird direction, the Crown Prince cleared his throat.

“In any case, for normal people, one’s first love is said to be a faint memory that they could never forget. However… it’s a little different for me.”

No longer did emotions like possessiveness and jealousy for Ruin Ardell cloud his eyes.

That empty spot…

“It’s only a humiliating dark history that I want to erase from my memory.”

…was filled to the brim with only the instinct to destroy.

The history of rejection?

It would be erased.

After all, he was the perfect Crown Prince who couldn’t allow even a single spec of imperfection.

The Crown Prince Chaurmetan Raynac looked back at the Academy and smiled.

“Soon, a good justification for this will appear. But till then, I’ll leave this as a distant memory of first love.”

Then, they shimmered once more and disappeared.

* * *

As soon as I returned to the graduation party area, a warm blast of air hit my skin.

And…

“Ruuuiiin! Where were yew?”

“......”

Facing Straang, who grabbed my shoulder while stinking of alcohol, wasn’t the easiest task in the world.

“Did you go drinking?”

“I drank a biiit. Why? Is it obvious?”

“......”

She boasted about how she was the great Incarnation of Strength and whatever…

But she was a light drinker?

Also, I’m the one who’s graduating. Why are you the one who’s drunk?

“Just how much did you drink?”

Burp!

“......”

“One cup.”

Ah, so just a single cup was enough to turn the great Incarnation of Strength into a fool like this?

But as I noticed the bottle held in Straang’s hand, I nodded knowingly.

Damon’s Dragon Kiss.

How much trouble was I in after drinking that in the Grand Festival?

My body remembered it.

It was a drink that I needed to get away from.

Flop!

“......Get some rest.”

I put a blanket over Starang, who had already fallen limp, and then went back inside.

* * *

* * *

The mood of the graduation party was already through the roof.

“Oh, oh, oh! Ruin! No, no! Sir Ruin!”

“Heeeeey! Ruin! Why is the main character of the party here so late?!”

“......”

Outside, I was toeing the edge of death, and yet, in here, everyone had become absolute idiots after drinking too much.

Students and nobles were all huddled around the Twin Princes, and the one closest to the princes was none other than Jason.

“Do you know how much our princes were looking for you?”

Already addressing the princes so casually?

This guy’s friend-making skills really were something.

Jason was probably going to be a big player in the future.

Well, anyways…

“Here, here! Come have a drink.”

I was pushed along by Jason and found myself standing right next to the princes, and in an instant, a mug of beer was pressed into my hands.

Strong drinks, women, and pleasure!

Ah, not that.

Lukewarm beer, magician employment contracts, and the smell of ink.

That’s what filled the room.

“Drink!”

But still, it wasn’t bad at all.

Taken away by the mood, I downed the beer in one go.

Hmm, it’s been a while.

This lukewarm beer with its bitter but grainy taste…

“…Why is it like this?”

Cough.

It was strong.

The heavy alcohol hit my throat and burned it the whole way down.

Even after checking the mug again, it was definitely beer.

But why did ‘that’ drink’s smell come from it?

I opened my eyes wide and looked around.

Father and Ruina were looking at me while covering their mouths and shaking their heads.

Irene and Seta, who had already seen me drunk once before, put a hand on their foreheads and said while expecting something that would happen soon,

“Ah, it’s starting again.”

“Yeah. Someone go and stop him.”

“......”

What?

What happened?

And finally, I looked at Jason.

Jason, wearing a perverted smile, pulled out the drink, ‘Damon’s Dragon Kiss’, from behind his back.

“It’s tradition to make drinks better by mixing them. Don’t you agree?”

“…Ah.”

God, please punish that alcoholic.

My head hit the table in front of me right then and there.

Bang!

Ouch, my head.

* * *

Uhhhh…

How much time had passed?

When I opened my eyes, it was early morning, before the sun fully rose.

“Are you awake now?”

“Eh? Ah, yes.”

Most of the nobles had left the Academy, and the students had returned to their dorms by now.

I was still resting my head on the same table.

“You have drooled on your…”

“Eh?”

Ssp.

I wiped my face with my sleeve.

Irene Prius was sitting next to me.

But what was this squishy thing under my legs?

“What is this guy doing?”

“......You don’t remember?”

As I lifted the table cloth, I could see Jason under the table snoring while grabbing onto my legs.

Just what had happened here?

As Irene tried to open her mouth, I quickly raised my hand.

“Ah, you don’t have to tell me.”

I really wasn’t interested in knowing what kind of dark event happened yesterday.

I easily pushed away Jason, who was still grabbing onto my legs.

Haah.

“He dared to poison my beer.”

“To be precise, it’s not really poison.”

“It’s practically the same as poison for me.”

“......That’s true.”

But also, what was Irene doing here at this time?

Irene’s cheeks looked a little red from the drinks, and she took another sip of her beer.

“I heard that you’ll be returning with your friends to Ardell?”

“Eh? How did you hear that?”

“I heard it from Jason. He was boasting about it a lot. Team Triple A, or something.”

“…Ahem.”

Why did it feel a little embarrassing?

In any case…

“That’s right. Jason needs someone to take care of him.”

“Really? From what I saw, it looked like Jason was the one taking care of you, Ruin.”

“What?”

“Just before, when you were drunk and making a scene, Jason was the one who tried to stop you by holding onto your legs.”

“......”

So it was like that?

Now I felt a little bad for shaking him off just a moment ago.

I got up from my seat and got a blanket to put over Jason.

He was sleeping quite soundly.

Then, Irene asked me,

“Should I come down with you?”

“Huh? To where?”

“To Ardell. It was a pretty good place last time I went.”

“......”

Irene was going to come as well?

It’d be a cakewalk for her to become a top magician of the Empire.

If she was going to reject all those good offers and choose Ardell…

I wanted to ask her why, but I stopped myself.

I think I could guess a little what her reason was.

Instead, I nodded and smiled lightly.

“Thank you.”

“It’s nothing. I’m only going for myself. I need to get strong quickly to beat you in a fight.”

“......”

Ah, was that the reason?

I thought it was something else.

“Hmm. It’ll be pretty hard to follow me. I’m thinking of getting much stronger than my current self.”

“More than now? Is someone chasing after you other than me?”

“No. I need to chase someone.”

“If you’re chasing someone, then I don’t think there are that many people in front of you…”

Looking at her expression, she seemed to know who I was talking about.

Yeah.

Fire King Teron.

Although I didn’t need to face him now, I would definitely need to in the future.

On top of that, to face the authority of the Crown Prince, I needed to get much stronger much faster.

They were still very scary and fearsome entities.

However, I wasn’t going to psych myself out.

After all…

“It’s getting quite cold now. Should we get going?”

“Shall we? But will it be fine to leave Jason here?”

“It’s fine. This guy does this all the time.”

“Hmya… Why are you drinking by yourselves… Me too… Hmnya…”

“See?”

“Pfft. He’s drinking even in his dreams.”

…I also have many good friends.

——