Wizards (2)

He sensed someone running out from the lecture hall a moment later. The people who were attacking the school in broad daylight were…

“Huh, Ezra, you motherfucker! I said you shouldn’t even add the [Acceleration] formula!”

“It’s real~ You got the test result right~ Don’t be angry, Daria~.”

“Ahhh! When Professor Zebedee returns, he’ll try to kill us! I didn’t tell you to break the external barrier!”

“Ah, what did I break? The mana stone is only slightly scratched~. Are you still scared of the professor?”

A gorgeous woman in a coat was fighting a man with white hair.

“And when the royal wizard protests, you’ll have to write a hundred papers. Deputy Director, I won’t help you this time.”

From a distance, the man walking around the edge of the school replied instead.

“Aremis, don’t be so cold.”

They didn’t even seem to notice Kleio’s existence. Hearing their conversation, it appeared that they were wizards who arrived to reinforce the barrier.

‘…Weren’t they an assault team?’

“I’ve done it too!”

He heard the young woman’s voice shouting with [Amplification] magic. At the same time, the school’s external barriers were restarted.

Vwooom.

Despite the great explosion a moment before, the outer barriers were shining brighter than ever. The strength of the barrier was definitely different.

‘I guess there are wizards who are capable of that.’

The scroll of Memory went through Kleio’s mind, finding the names Ezra and Daria quickly. They were supporting characters mentioned several times in the second half.

‘I know they are wizards who are heroes in the war…’

The appearances before him seemed far from heroic, however.

‘Well, that is the disparity between reality and history.’

At that moment, Professor Rosa’s assistant, Calvin, ran to the front gate at a tremendous speed.

“No! Ezra, you’re no longer a student, but here you are causing an accident?!”

“Hey, Calvin, long time no see! An accident? As soon as I arrived in the capital, I was ordered to come here and restart the external barrier without even a chance to change.”

“You’re the one who received the order, so it’s clear that the administration department made an error. I’ll figure it out.”

“Hey, even if I dropped out, I was skilled enough to be admitted. Don’t be so cold. There was just an overload while I tried to shorten the start-up time. No problem!”

“The dean will decide if it’s a problem or not. Come in and wait.”

About that moment, Dione, parasol in one hand and Kleio’s coat in the other, reached the front door. Calvin turned around and headed for the school, party in tow, as Dione gently placed the coat on Kleio.

“Young master, what should I do if you run out in this weather without a coat? It doesn’t seem like a big deal, but please head in.”

The lady didn’t care at all about the fuss happening outside, instead of concerning herself with Kleio’s health.

“I thought a raid might be happening.”

“No, if it were an attack, you have to avoid it. My goodness! You’ve been hanging out with Prince Arthur too much, haven’t you?”

“That…”

As Dione and Kleio began to turn around, the white-haired wizard shouted loudly.

“Oh! Isn’t that Dione Grayer?”

Dione, who usually moved boldly in front of others, acted like a startled deer as she turned back with terror on her face.

“Oh!”

‘They know each other?’

“Young master, what bugs are there in school? I need to quarantine. Now, let’s head in quickly.”

Kleio, being dragged by Dione, glanced back at the wizard. Of course, there was no need to look around.

Thud!

The man had crossed the distance at a tremendous speed unbelievable for a magician to arrive in front of Dione and Kleio. Dione was trembling slightly as she stood in front of Kleio.

‘I guess this is a really weird guy.’

“Dione~! You’re still so cold! Let’s not have any bad feelings between friends~.”

“I don’t know; I don’t engage in illegal magic experiments or collude non-gentlemen who practice magic.”

“Well, then, is that kid a gentleman?”

“A great gentleman and knight.”

The white-haired man in the uniform of the Defense Force looked at Kleio somewhat rudely. Kleio met his eyes without hesitation. Not only his hair, but his eyebrows and eyes were a pale ivory color.

‘Is this wizard suffering from albinism…?’

“He’s a kid without any blood on his head~.”

“Please refrain from insulting Sir Kleio Asel, vice-captain of the Magic Corps.”

Ezra’s voice grew grumpy, and in response, Dione’s own words grew short.

“Kleio Asel? Hey, are you the rumored disciple of Zebedee?”

“I received an offer but haven’t yet accepted it.”

“Are you looking around? Do you think your skills are that good? Huh?”

“The rumors have been exaggerated…”

Shaaaa-

Ezra developed his circle at a tremendous pace, covering a 200m range in platinum-colored ether. Kleio’s plan to get rid of him by acting moderately was ruined.

[Level 6 Wizard

Title: White Leader]

‘His level is high!’

Kleio tried to open his own circle against him, but he encountered tremendous resistance within Ezra’s circle. At that moment, the content of the third volume of the magic book came to his mind from Memory.

‘You can’t open a circle within an opponent’s circle if there’s a huge difference in level. Damn.’

He tried to push it, but his etheric circulation was blocked, so he could hardly pull the ether from his body.

“What is it? Still about 4th level as you can’t open a circle when you’re pressed like this? Hmm~ I guess the rumors are exaggerated~.”

Ezra, who was walking around Kleio, took a few steps back to watch his struggle. Then, he took a piece of a beast’s paw out of his pocket and threw it at them.

“Go and bite this cheeky little boy!”

The paw was wrapped in ether, turning into a gold-colored, rabbit-mouse animal. It was a complicated six-formula magic, using [Transformation], [Regeneration], and [Acceleration].

‘What is that?!’

Kleio, using Perception, moved to Dione as he avoided the rushing rabbit.

Kiii!

The ethereal beast revealed sharp teeth that contrasted with its small and cute appearance.

‘That’s no rabbit!’

Suddenly, Dione drew her sword from her umbrella and stepped forward skillfully, stabbing at the rushing rabbit. The sword and the beast clashed, making a metallic noise. Dione’s skill was great, but the blade couldn’t penetrate the grotesque beast’s hide.

“Ugh!”

Kyaaahahah!

The angry beast now jumped for Dione, as fast as lightning.

“Dione!”

At that moment, the ether shaking fiercely inside Kleio burst out to form a circle. Kleio shouted out the most powerful mantra of [Defense] as it did.

“[This is my wall, my shield, my horn of salvation, my high tower, my refuge!] 1)”

A magic circle of [Defense] as solid as a rock wall wrapped around Dione and Kleio. The rabbit-rat thing hit the shield several times before it collapsed on the floor, fading.

‘The magic resembles its caster. He’s in such a hurry.’

Shaaaaa-

Before long, both Kleio and Ezra’s circles faded, and Ezra let out a joyful laugh.

“It’s quite a bit for level 4! Your ether sensitivity is terrifying! The report to the Defense Force was accurate.”

“Did you do this dangerous thing to test that? You even got Lady Dione caught up in it. Apologize properly.”

“Ah, you weren’t hurt. Dione was the most versatile wizard of her class, too.”

Dione ignored Ezra, her voice colder than the winds over the northern sea.

“Alright. It’s not a person, but a bug, so there’s no reason for it to take responsibility. Young master, let’s head in now.”

She didn’t even see him as human.

“Now, ~ Wait, wait a minute.”

Ezra moved to block Kleio and Dione.

“Let’s just bet something. Huh? If you win, I’ll apologize!”

“There’s no need for a conditional apology.”

“Hey, really. Junior, don’t talk like that. It’s scary~.”

Even Kleio, who didn’t usually get angry due to his lack of energy, was growing annoyed with Ezra. Of course, he continued to respond with a flat tone.

“I don’t want to have any more unnecessary or unpleasant conversations. Please move away.”

“It’s the final exams soon. How about I teach you something? Or can you not do the stuff I could at level 4? If you win, I’ll accept any orders!”

“Instead, if I lose, you will want something.”

“Please participate in my experiment. I’ve never seen an intermediate wizard full of the ether like you. How can you force a circle despite the level difference? I saw it but can hardly believe it!”

Ezra’s pale cheeks were slightly flush as he spoke excitedly. Although he was handsome, his attitude and tone were no good.

“You want to replicate that stupid double load you did when you were in third grade with Sir Kleio?”

“Oh, if it’s a genius you praise, wouldn’t that be easy?”

“It’s a stupid proposal that has no worth. No matter how good Sir Kleio is, how could you do a double load right now?”

“Why?! It’s perfect! It’s also the end of the year, festival season; let’s show off something interesting!”

Kleio also agreed with Dione’s opinion, but at the same time, he had other calculations going on.

‘There’s no way to stop this human. He lives the way he wants and won’t be dissuaded.’

It was the type who had accomplished remarkable things since they were young. Such people really raised his blood pressure.

‘I was thinking about how to find an in with the Capital Defense Force’s magic team, but they came to me. Regardless of his personality, if he’s a vice-captain, his position is quite high…’

The beast’s blood had clearly passed from the magic team to Aslan, so it was necessary to find out how that had happened. Kleio decided to play along and raise his temper. He just needed some keywords, like “No” or “I can’t; it’s impossible.”

“Double loading isn’t learned during the first-year course. It’s natural that I, as a student, cannot succeed at such a thing.”

He felt Dione’s eyes open wide, but he didn’t look back. Arthur hadn’t even told Isiel about Kleio’s magic. Only Fran and Arthur knew he was capable of double loading magic formulas.

“Ah, why don’t you try it instead of saying no?! You still have a week left. That’s it; if you practice, it’s okay. Hmm?”

Ezra pulled a ring from his little finger and passed it over to Kleio.

“Okay, this is a magical snow quartz ring. If I succeed, I won’t ask for a price, and if I fail, I’ll get it back. Instead, you have to do my experiment. As long as I’m in charge of this school barrier!”

Dione intervened.

“Ezra Sergey! This isn’t adult-like! Take back your family ring.”

“Why?! If Kleio does it, I’ll apologize~.”

“Are you even listening?”

“Ah? What’s that?”

Ezra continued to provoke Dione, who looked like she wanted to clock him. Kleio nodded, taking the ring.

“Okay. I may be lacking, but I will try my best from now on to show off the double load next Friday.”

‘And Sergey’s family ring won’t be returned.’

“Hahahaha! I thought so! I’ll experiment gently, so don’t be scared~.”

“Ezra!”

For the next five minutes, Kleio had to use all his remaining power to calm Dione, who was trying to draw her blade again.

1) 『King James Bible』, 「2 Samuel」, edited.