Quit The Hero Party

EP.13 An Unexpected Encounter (2)

Master dropped me off at the Royal Library and mentioned that he would leave for a bit, saying there were a few people I needed to meet. Of course, I only needed his help to enter the library, so there was no issue.

‘It feels a bit neglected, but…’

Well, who cares!

I don’t need Master to read books.

“Hmm.”

I quickly scanned my surroundings.

The Royal Library.

A library accessible only to recognized mages or their disciples by the royal family.

‘I used to hang out here all the time.’

When I was younger, before I started seriously racking up achievements at the Ashen Tower, I used to come here every day. It was the kingdom’s best library, so it had everything!

I learned the history of magic here.

I learned the origins of countless spells.

To exaggerate a bit, this Royal Library was practically my second mentor.

‘It’s been about six years since I last visited.’

I got busy after becoming the next Master of the Tower and couldn’t come by.

I wondered how many new books there might be in those six years as I made my way forward.

The first thing I wanted to check was the monthly recommended books.

This place, which operates like a bookstore alongside a library, has librarians who categorize the most popular books from the world each month.

– Category: Magic Studies.

It seems that method hasn’t changed in six years. There were about twenty books floating in the air thanks to buoyant magic. I picked out about four of them.

Basics of Combat Magic.

The concept of Battle-Mage.

The Cradle of Stars, Apuria Academy.

The Hero chosen by the Stars, Kyle.

I put one book back on the shelf the moment I saw the title. Why the hell are you in a magic book?

“Hmm…”

I thought about picking up another book, but they all seemed pretty similar, talking about Battle Mage and combat magic and whatnot.

‘Come to think of it, didn’t the Dean and Master keep talking about combat magic and all?’

What the heck is a Battle Mage anyway?

At least, I’ve never heard of such a class.

‘Well, I’ll find out if I read it.’

I took the book and sat down in the corner.

Just as I was about to open it, my gaze suddenly landed on a piece of paper stuck to the corner of the table. Specifically, the name on that piece of paper.

-Academic.

-Twelve Circuits.

I had forgotten about those.

I remembered that if you solved it all and submitted your answers, you would get a small reward. I used to solve them often when I was young.

Rustle.

I tore off the paper, which seemed untouched by anyone, and pulled it closer. I was curious about what kind of questions had come out lately.

– Items 1 to 12…

Twelve questions.

This format was a little different from the difficult questions Aaron the Dean had given me last time. This one wasn’t made for problem-solving but focused on interpreting circuits that appeared in real-life situations.

For example, traps in dungeons or interpreting ancient spells left in ruins and such.

‘Shall I give it a try?’

I narrowed my eyes as I examined the problems.

The first seven were easy problems to solve. The really tough ones started from number eight.

Since I didn’t particularly care about the prize, I decided to start from number eight. The overall appearance of the circuit came into view through my narrowed vision.

Countless curves and straight lines intertwined to form the circuit.

At first glance, it looked messy, but there were clear rules and patterns embedded within it.

I searched for that pattern.

It didn’t take long.

‘If it were a long time ago, it might have taken a while…’

Unlike six years ago, I seemed to have grown as well.

After all, I’ve been facing thousands and thousands of circuits on the battlefield every day, so just glancing at them gives me a rough idea.

‘The center of this shape is here.’

‘It centers around the intersection of curves and lines.’

‘The diagonal is a distraction. The solid line is this.’

My intuition, honed over the years, derived the method of solving the circuit as soon as I saw it.

I took out my pen, which I always carried, and infused it with mana.

Soon, the pen glided across the paper.

-Squiggle.

I wrote down the simple proof process and answer, fueled by mana. There was no blockage in writing the answer. Just as I finished writing the answers for 8 and 9, I was about to move on to 10.

Scratch.

The pen tip scratched across the paper.

The mana that was supposed to glide smoothly over the paper didn’t come out.

“…?”

Mana was not coming out from the pen tip.

I tilted my head at the slightly crumpled paper.

‘Is it broken or something?’

I spun the pen this way and that, tapping it a few times. Then I realized—there was nothing wrong with the pen itself. The problem was with my mana.

It felt just like when I was bitten by a mana eater.

My mana wasn’t being properly drawn up. It wasn’t coalescing. The mana scattered into the air, making me frown.

Is someone conducting a mana-blocking experiment somewhere?

Normally, you’d give a warning about such things.

“Phew…”

Feeling a bit annoyed at the interrupted flow, I exhaled sharply, trying to regain my breathing.

One second, two seconds, three seconds…

I concentrated on the flowing mana while counting in my head. I tried to rip apart whatever was binding my mana.

Snip, snap.

Before long, mana began to flow out from the pen tip again. I adjusted my grip on the pen and focused on the problem once more. Where was I? I was definitely here…

“Excuse me.”

Just as I was focusing on the problem, someone touched my shoulder. With my concentration broken twice in a row, irritation bubbled up.

“Phew…”

I sighed and set the pen down. Then I turned around and froze at the unexpected figure standing there.

“What are you looking at so intently?”

Platinum blonde hair braided to one side.

Narrow golden eyes.

Her attire wasn’t formal, nor did it reveal her status, but she didn’t need such clothes in the first place.

The golden eyes revealing her royal lineage explained everything.

The Fourth Princess, Ayla.

The Child favored by the Stars (Stella).

She was looking down at me.

2.

The last image I had of the Fourth Princess was from six years ago when she was around twelve.

She was still young but had a certain spark to her.

At the time, she was the girl who caused quite a stir in the royal capital, being blessed by the stars.

I had taught her magic.

Of course, it wasn’t in an official capacity.

Every time I visited the library, she would come and ask for lessons.

‘…She has grown a lot.’

Looking at the girl who gazed at me, I felt the passage of time acutely as I noticed how mature she had become.

“Is there something on my face?”

“…No.”

I slowly stood up.

To apologize for my earlier rudeness.

“Your highness…”

“Don’t do that. I don’t like it very much.”

However, Princess Ayla lightly waved her hand to stop my gesture, looking as if she was disgusted by such formalities.

“You were focused, weren’t you? It’s only natural to sigh since I’ve interrupted you. Sorry?”

Saying that, she pulled out a chair and sat right next to me.

“I came here to read, not to be treated like a guest. Go ahead with what you were doing.”

While she said that, I wonder why she sits next to me.

I subtly glanced at her, but she was simply staring intently at the problem I was solving.

“Ah, Academic, huh?”

Her gaze was filled with curiosity.

She alternated between looking at me and the academic paper I was working on before letting out a little “Wow.”

“Are you a mage?”

“Yes.”

“Can you cast spells well?”

“I can cast as much as required.”

As I nonchalantly replied in a disinterested manner, I suddenly realized my mistake.

‘Oops.’

This was my attitude towards her as Raniel.

If an unknown mage treated a princess like this, they’d have more than just a few words to say about it.

“…”

I glanced at Princess Ayla for her reaction.

Fortunately, she didn’t seem to be offended.

“Hmph.”

Instead, she smiled and pulled her chair a bit closer to me. Then she stretched out her finger and pointed at the problem I was working on.

“Why did you skip the first problems and start from number eight?”

“Excuse me?”

“Is it because they’re difficult? Though, the first one is certainly…”

“This one?”

I tilted my head.

“Problems one through seven are simple. I was saving them for later.”

“…Simple, you say?”

“Hmm, they’re simple but tedious, aren’t they?”

I glanced at problem one.

Sure enough, it was easy to solve but belonged to a tedious category. This wasn’t a question asking for an ‘answer’ but for a ‘method of solving.’

“It’s kind of a bother to explain.”

“Really?”

“Those types of problems exist, right? You can solve them if asked, but when you have to explain the process, it becomes annoying.”

“Ah… Like in Mana Trading Studies?”

“It’s somewhat similar, I guess.”

As I tried to brush it off and get back to the problem, it seemed the princess had no intention of letting me go.

“Well then?”

The princess pointed at number one.

“Could you solve it here for me?”

“…Excuse me?”

“I was stuck on this problem when I started with number one. Watching you solve it would be really helpful.”

Princess Ayla tilted her head slightly and looked up at me.

“Would that be okay?”

She continued to ask, making it seem like she had no plans to let it go before I solved it. Reluctantly, I moved my pen to problem one.

A beautifully intricate circuit spread out before me.

This wasn’t just a ‘single’ circuit, but one made up of ‘multiple’ circuits.

‘It’s that skull-headed idiot’s circuit again.’

I feel like I’ve been seeing it a lot lately.

This is the circuit used in the ‘Barrier’ spell by the ancient lich, Skebal, one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon Lord’s Army.

‘Why the hell is this a difficult problem?’

I don’t understand why everyone loves the circuits of Skebal so much, whether it’s the puzzling one Aaron showed me or this Academic’s number one problem.

‘It’s a stupid circuit that could collapse with a little poke.’

I checked what the problem was asking for.

[1. Describe the process of finding the ‘real circuit’ hidden within the given circuit and a streamlined method that can ‘shorten’ the existing formula.]

Why does it have to focus on the process of solving again?

I could solve it quickly if it was just asking for an answer, but asking for the process is such a hassle.

“…?”

I looked at the princess as if questioning if it really had to be done, but she simply smiled.

Sigh…

I exhaled inwardly and began to move the pen tip. I decided to first write the answer, then add the reasoning on top.

– There’s no need to dismantle every circuit.

– Instead of dismantling the circuit…

As I tried to add a short two- or three-line explanation, I hesitated for a moment. Since the princess would be reading, I should probably make it comprehensible.

‘Now that I think about it, I did explain this once.’

I think I explained how to unravel Skebal’s barrier to the mages of the Knights Order at Heinkel’s request.

‘They didn’t really understand much back then.’

Should I elaborate more?

How annoying…

I stealthily glanced at the princess.

She wasn’t smiling playfully anymore. Her expression had hardened since I started writing the answer.

“Next?”

She asked when my pen tip stopped moving.

“…I’m organizing my thoughts.”

The princess nodded slightly, then shifted her gaze back to my writing.

I moved the pen silently.

Writing so meticulously is a first for me as well, and I felt a bit awkward.

Eventually, I continued explaining until the princess was satisfied, with her eyes fixed on me.

Strange.

I definitely didn’t come here for this.

3.

“That’s nonsense.”

In the absence of the mage.

Sitting alone in the library, Ayla propped her chin in her hand as she looked at the cryptic problem left behind by that mage.

The first problem of the Academic series.

A circuit analysis question involving the ‘Ancient Lich’ Skebal, which had firmly held its place for three years.

“Simple, you say?”

Ayla chuckled hollowly.

“Because of that simple problem, several battlefields collapsed…”

The ancient lich Skebal.

The barrier he created completely severed contact with the outside world. It completely isolated those inside.

To dismantle that barrier takes a minimum of six hours. That’s assuming dozens of mages can focus on the dismantling work without distractions.

And, six hours is more than enough time for the isolated Knights Order to be annihilated.

How many mages pushed their heads together to try to shorten that time by even a second?

And yet, the unsolvable puzzle has been the circuit of Skebal.

But just how much time did that woman spend solving this problem a moment ago?

‘Thirty minutes.’

And that was mainly spent on adding explanations. The moment she saw the problem, she immediately wrote down the answer. If we consider only the time it took to write the answer…

‘Only about thirty seconds.’

As far as Ayla knew, there was only one person capable of such a feat. Just her absence had caused the frontlines to falter due to the lack of someone to dismantle Skebal’s barrier.

“…”

Ayla silently reread the answer left behind by that woman over and over.

Perhaps it was just non-sensical reasoning.

Maybe she just scribbled down what came to her mind, wanting to catch the interest of a princess like herself.

‘I can’t decipher this circuit.’

As the child of the stars, she could vaguely understand what spell was encapsulated within the circuit.

But that understanding ran only skin deep.

Ayla did not know precisely what the circuit meant or how to dismantle it.

Therefore, she couldn’t determine whether this reasoning was correct or not.

She couldn’t say for sure whether it was the right solution or not.

‘But why…’

The explanation left by that woman suddenly felt oddly persuasive. Even with her limited grasp of the circuit’s interpretation, it gave her an inexplicable sense of confidence.

‘Should I send this to Heinkel?’

It might only add unnecessary confusion.

After all, it was the answer left behind by a mystery mage.

Her rational mind suggested it would be better not to send it.

But on the other hand, her instincts were ringing alarms.

This must be sent to the knight’s order on the battlefield.

It simply had to be.

“…Hmph.”

Ayla tilted her head.

Today, for some reason, her index finger felt particularly tingly.

---