Quit The Hero Party

EP.28 First Class (4)

The lecture ended.

It was a one-hour lecture. An hour is not a short time. However, Resti felt that hour passed like a moment.

She closed her eyes and then opened them again.

Countless thoughts rushed past her.

Her mind was in chaos. She couldn’t organize her thoughts properly. She saw something. She felt something. Those vague impressions floated around in her mind.

She saw it.

The most perfect magic.

Having seen it, she realized how to refine her own magic.

“Interesting.”

Her heart was racing.

It was the first time in years she had felt her heart race like this.

“Fun.”

Magic was fun.

Learning something was enjoyable. She didn’t know how long it had been since she felt this way.

At least since she rose to the position of the next Master of the Tower, magic for Resti had been a duty rather than something fun. Something she had to do. Something she couldn’t avoid.

For Resti, magic was like that.

But.

“Not today.”

Today, magic was fun.

She wanted to sketch out a circuit right away. She didn’t want to forget what she learned in class; she wanted to make it her own. A pleasant thrill coursed through her.

“I want to hear a little more.”

She wanted to talk to her about anything.

“…”

Resti silently stood up.

The aisles were crowded with those already leaving the auditorium. Knights guided the way, but it wasn’t properly controlled.

However, Resti was a student of Apuria.

She didn’t need to follow the crowd of outsiders.

She walked down a path forbidden to outsiders. Her steps quickened for no reason.

“Was it okay? Master?”

“Not bad.”

And.

“To be honest, I don’t think she taught us much. She just kept chanting spells, right?”

“If one cannot learn from that, they’d be a waste of a mage’s name. That was sufficient.”

Two figures came into view.

Rosel Elder and the woman who had just stood on stage.

‘Rania van Trias.’

Recalling that name, Resti stood before her.

“Hmm?”

At last, she turned to Resti.

Their eyes met.

Gulp.

Resti swallowed hard and slowly opened her mouth.

“Professor Rania…”

“Professor Rania!”

However, she couldn’t finish her sentence.

Resti was not the only one wanting to speak with Rania. Countless students approached the professor.

“Oh.”

As those frozen in place rushed past Resti, they made their way to Rania. Unable to squeeze into the throng, Resti watched their retreating figures in a daze.

“That was really amazing, that magic…”

“Professor of Elemental Magic, Elness. I was truly impressed. How can one…”

Compliments flowed endlessly.

Like releasing the heat that had not yet cooled, they surrounded Rania, calling her name consecutively.

Should I try to push through this crowd?

Resti thought about it but…

“Oh boy.”

The moment she saw the familiar pattern of a robe, Resti unconsciously took a step back. It wasn’t just Resti who stepped back.

“Those people are…”

“That robe, the Ashen Tower…”

The gathered students and professors murmured and parted ways. As the crowd split, they headed toward Rosel.

“Indeed, you’re a disciple of Rosel, after all. It was a truly fundamental lecture.”

“What’s this? You came too?”

A robe with a pattern of ash.

The embroidered designs on that robe were flamboyant. Only those not ordinary mages but positioned at the pinnacle of the Ashen could wear such patterns.

“Wasn’t it your disciple’s first lesson? As your friend and fellow elder, this is basic courtesy.”

“You sure speak well, considering you haven’t even contacted me properly since Laniel left.”

“Haha! Well, when you put it that way, I have nothing to say.”

The elders of the Ashen Tower.

“The mages of the tower were clamoring to meet your ward, but… they decided to hold back for now. It seems they needed to cool their heads.”

“Even we can hardly contain our urge to draw circuits right now; how desperate must those youngsters be?”

And it wasn’t just one or two.

Three out of the six elders of the Ashen had gathered here. Resti slowly stepped back before their presence.

“I believe her name was Rania.”

“Yes, Rania van Trias.”

The elders called her name.

“To reiterate the basics, that was indeed a new approach. It reminded me of my youth, when I had just stepped onto the path of magic.”

They praised her class.

“Continuous formation of extremes, a truly beautiful magic that is firmly grounded in the basics.”

They praised her mastery.

As their praises continued, Resti took a few steps back. She felt uncomfortable around the elders. Especially, the elder standing before them.

– I wish she would at least measure up to the next Master of the Tower. It’s incredibly disappointing.

– Is this fool the next Master of the Tower? The elders must be getting old. Tch, with this…

The voices Resti had heard long ago echoed in her ears.

She remembered their disdainful expressions, their icy glares.

Thud.

As Resti stepped back, she collided with someone. She dropped her notebook. She dropped her pencil case. The pens spilled out of the open pencil case, bouncing on the floor with a loud clang.

“…”

Resti slowly lifted her head.

The elders were looking at her.

Tch.

A short sound of a tongue clicking.

The elders’ gazes didn’t linger long. They looked her over as if she were some filth and quickly turned their heads away.

A momentary glance.

The barely audible sound of a tongue clicking.

If this were the tower…

If this were the tower, Resti would have been indifferent to their reactions. She had been accustomed to such looks within the tower for too long.

But this wasn’t the tower.

“…What’s going on?”

“What did the Ashen Elder just…?”

Some students witnessed the elders’ overt disdain. An uneasy atmosphere filled the air between the students. Professors glanced at Resti with sidelong looks.

Under their gazes…

Resti lowered her head.

The excitement faded.

Her racing heart cooled down.

Forgotten was the act of picking up her notebook, as she stood in a daze.

2.

After the lecture ended, numerous people came looking for me. Students and professors, and even the elders of the Ashen Tower.

‘This is quite unexpected.’

I never thought those slow-moving elders would come all the way to Apuria.

‘It has been a while.’

Isn’t it almost been about five or six years since I last saw them?

That much time has passed, so I thought they might feel a bit nostalgic, even if they were once an annoyance as active members.

But no.

No matter how much time had passed, the moment I saw those old faces, what welled up inside me wasn’t nostalgia but discomfort.

That old man is still acting like that?

One could say it was rude, but considering the nonsense that old man put me through when I was the next Master of the Tower…

It was only natural to react this way, not rudeness.

– Where did this nobody come from…?

– At least show a bit of dignity…

They grasped at every aspect of my background, and when I pressed down with my results, those old crones shut their mouths.

‘If I had stayed another year, I would have completely replaced them.’

That was a bit regrettable.

“Phew…”

I exhaled sharply and glanced around.

There were still many people waiting in line. As I scanned the faces of the crowd, the person I really wanted to see was nowhere to be found.

The master of the Ashen, the current Master of the Tower.

The Elder for whom I hold the utmost respect after my Master.

‘Well, he’s probably super busy.’

Eventually, I started to get annoyed.

“Master.”

“What is it, Rania?”

“Can’t we just send them all away? It’s getting annoying.”

“…You can put up with it for a day. This was your stage to earn recognition.”

I whispered to my Master, but it seemed this time it wouldn’t work. I sighed internally.

“Ugh, move!”

At that moment.

“Make way!”

The surrounding area became chaotic.

“What gives you the right to tell me to move…?”

“Don’t you know me? Have you been a mage longer than I have? Are you better than me??”

“No, it’s just the order…”

“Ah, I said move!”

Someone was trying to make their way to me through the crowd.

A knight standing near tried to deal with the commotion at the center but…

He returned looking embarrassed.

“What’s going on?”

“Well, um, the Master of the White Tower…”

My Master asked, and the knight replied.

Eventually, a woman who was causing a stir ignored the order and boldly approached me.

“Hey, White! Where’s your dignity…!”

“You shut up, Black! Do we have time to just wait? I’m in a rush!”

The flustered Master of the Black Tower was led by the woman until she stood before me. Her face looked familiar.

‘Oh, that Sara lookalike.’

And the woman who had left a shoe mark on my shoes.

Remembering that, my voice naturally grew sharper.

“…What do you want?”

“Um…”

The White started watching me for a moment before speaking.

“I… I’m sorry about before?”

“What?”

“I’m sorry for ignoring you. I didn’t know you were such a high-level mage.”

What does she expect me to say?

“Um, you?”

“Yes.”

“If you want, I wouldn’t mind making a position for you as my personal assistant at the White Tower…”

Chuckle.

Laughter came from somewhere.

I turned my head quickly aside.

Hah, haha…

My master covered her mouth, trying to stifle her laughter.

“…What is it, Rosel?”

“Did you say assistant, assistant, White?”

“Is there a problem? Did I say something wrong?”

“Maybe your appearance after reconstructing your body with mana couldn’t fix that old visage of yours.”

Her words made the White tilt her head.

After a second, two… It seemed she finally grasped the meaning of my master’s words, and her face turned bright red.

“What, what?! Rosel, did you say everything?!”

“Let’s go, White. Stop causing a scene…”

“Ah, let me go!”

“Sorry, I’m sorry…”

Eventually, the Black Tower grabbed the White by the scruff and dragged her away as the situation settled.

“…What was that?”

I could only tilt my head.

After that, I exchanged pleasantries with a few more magic users from outside, fielding simple questions from professors and students.

Time passed.

I eventually stood up. Although some people were still left, I had greeted everyone at least once.

“Students go to the classroom, and outsiders should return under the knights’ guidance.”

Once my Master said so, the crowd finally began to disperse. The remaining professors waited a little distance from my Master.

“Rania.”

My Master pointed to the departing crowd and asked,

“Are you leaving too?”

“Excuse me?”

“Tomorrow is a day off, so let’s go have a light meal today. If you’re going, I’ll go too.”

“No, I don’t want to go.”

“I figured as much.”

My Master nodded as if she knew. I brushed off my robe and started to walk away. My steps quickened.

“Do you need to go somewhere?”

“Um.”

I responded to my Master’s question.

“The café is about to close.”

“…What?”

“I haven’t had time to go there for the past few days while preparing for the lecture.”

It’s one of my few hobbies.

Since I hadn’t been able to enjoy it properly for the past week, I had to go today.

“…Can’t you just have coffee at home? That high-quality coffee you bought not so long ago…”

“When I make it, it doesn’t taste the same.”

“Is that café coffee really so good?”

“Yes.”

My answer had no hesitation.

My master looked at me with a very strange expression.

“…Well, go ahead and check it out.”

3.

Resti, who had been standing dazed, slowly bent her knees. She began picking up the pens that had fallen on the floor. They were hard to grasp.

Roll.

A pen slipped from her fingertips and rolled away to a little farther spot.

“…Phew.”

Resti let out a long sigh.

What am I doing here?

Despite trying to shake off the stress of these little matters, her body felt rigid and unmoving.

“Why do I keep doing this?”

By now, she should have grown accustomed to it.

It was only natural to receive gazes like that. Compared to the previous next Master of the Tower, her skills seemed trivial.

Rania van Trias.

The previous next Master of the Tower before her.

That legendary mage was essentially someone like a Master of the Tower. During the two years she stayed as the next Master, the Ashen Tower achieved remarkable advancement.

The most glorious two years in the history of the Ashen spanning over a hundred years.

Those who remember that moment now comprise the current Ashen Tower. And most of them harbor disdain for Resti.

It was not envy or jealousy.

It was hatred.

To them, the next Master of the Tower is Laniel. A position that must be saved for the person who will return someday.

That’s what they think.

Resti was merely an invader who seized that position.

‘Why do they treat me like this?’

Resti hated their gazes.

‘It’s not like I wanted to do this.’

The Elder had wished that.

She’d told Resti she had talent.

‘No, I really don’t like it.’

Roll.

Resti watched the pen rolling on the floor aimlessly. The pen came to a stop, tapping someone’s foot.

“…”

Slowly, Resti lifted her head.

There stood a woman looking down at her.

Ashen-haired.

With blue eyes.

‘Rania van Trias.’

Resti involuntarily sighed.

“Oh.”

The person she had so desperately wanted to meet was right before her. Resti held her breath. She had many questions she wanted to ask.

However, the words wouldn’t come out properly.

“…”

With her narrow eyes.

That sharp gaze shut Resti’s mouth.

It was like the gaze of Elder Rosel.

It was like the gaze of the other elders.

In that moment, the look pierced deep into Resti’s core, causing her to hold her breath. She lowered her head to avoid that gaze, waiting for her to walk away.

However, that pair of shoes showed no sign of moving.

At last, there was a rustle as her robe brushed against her leg.

“This…”

A voice reached her.

Resti lifted her head.

“Did you draw this?”

She was kneeling down, making eye contact with Resti. In her hands was a notebook.

“…Yes.”

Resti carefully nodded.

“Hmm.”

An expression as if she found it interesting.

“You drew well.”

“…What?”

“You drew well.”

Flip.

She quickly flipped through the notebook.

“You didn’t miss a single detail, did you?”

It was a voice that seemed satisfied.

“You were fully engaged while everyone else was just staring blankly.”

She picked up one of the pens that had fallen to the floor.

And began to draw something on a blank page.

Scratch.

The pen danced across the white page, moving from curves to straight lines and back to curves again.

At a glance, the process looked chaotic.

But within the chaos, the pattern being completed was intricate.

‘…A circuit?’

The completed design was a circuit.

A complex intertwining of multiple circuits that was hard to recognize at a glance. Finally, she stopped the pen and handed the notebook to Resti.

“If you can follow all that, I think you’ll be able to do this.”

She then asked.

“Can you solve it?”

Resti met her gaze.

Those eyes still held a cold blue light. However, within them, Resti saw the hint of expectation.

“See you in the next class.”

That was the last thing she said before making her exit.

“…”

Resti looked at the circuit drawn in her notebook.

It was complex. It was not just one, but a jumble of several circuits. Yet, it was not merely a chaos of knotted wires.

It wasn’t like the intricate problems she had dealt with before.

A circuit bound by set rules.

If only she understood the method, it was a circuit she could solve right away.

“Can I solve it?”

That single comment echoed in Resti’s ears.

Difficult.

But challenging enough to take on.

Resti slowly rose from her spot.

The pen she retrieved from the floor no longer rolled around.

The author’s note (Author’s afterword)

I put in a bit more than usual today.