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Chapter 151: Academy Heroine's Right Diagonal Back Seat

Chapter 151



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The demonic beasts rushed in, letting out shrill screams.


They were charging at the terrified people who were fleeing without any defense.


The beasts’ gleaming claws and teeth surged toward the people’s backs.


Just as someone was about to scream,


Suddenly, a magic circle appeared in the air, as if to protect the people, and it restrained the beasts in their tracks.


As the bewildered people looked on, a blonde boy with drowsy eyes slowly walked forward and spoke.


"Don’t worry. I’m here to save you."


With that one sentence, the boy calmed the people down. As Dwight Neinhart waved his hand in the air, sharp ice pillars erupted from under the feet of the restrained beasts.


Dwight was observing the beasts, now skewered on ice, with a curious look in his eyes when another scream echoed.


Another group of beasts appeared, targeting the people on the opposite side of where Dwight was standing.


Before Dwight could cast a spell on those beasts, a sudden burst of flames erupted, engulfing the entire group of monsters in an instant.


Dwight looked at the scene and muttered as if complaining.


"…There was no need for you to jump in. I could have handled it myself."


"I know, but it’s a cooperative assignment… I have to do something, too."


As I approached after dealing with the beasts, Dwight frowned slightly.


It was clear that he was thinking something like, 'What a waste. This was a precious opportunity to test my magic on the beasts…'.


Honestly, I knew that Dwight had the skills to handle the beasts without any problem even if I hadn’t intervened, but today’s exercise was all about cooperation.


The purpose of today's training was to simulate a scenario where beasts invade the city, and to experience working with your assigned partner to rescue citizens as cleanly as possible.


My partner was Dwight from Class B, and when I pointed out that it was a cooperative exercise and that I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing, Dwight seemed to understand, though a bit reluctantly, and relaxed his frown.


As we were protecting and evacuating citizens in a city conjured by Eve’s illusions, Dwight looked over at me and spoke.


"…By the way, you’ve gotten noticeably stronger since I first saw you. I’m genuinely impressed by how quickly you’ve progressed—how much effort did you put in to improve like that?"


"Ah… well, I wouldn’t say it was anything special…"


I lowered my head unconsciously at Dwight’s words.


Effort, huh?


It was true that I had participated diligently in every class, and even during difficult training sessions, I endured and worked hard.


If that was why I had gotten stronger, perhaps I could have felt a bit prouder.


But in reality, my heightened physical abilities and the intensity of the flames that emanated from my body...


Lately, I’ve been realizing that every time I came into contact with demonic energy, I grew stronger.


It wasn’t the result of effort—it was simply that my body was naturally becoming more witch-like.


So being praised for my effort by someone like Dwight just felt embarrassing.


Dwight was probably someone who, in terms of sheer effort, outdid everyone else in the Academy.


The kind of guy who showed up with dark circles under his eyes every day, so obsessed with magic training that you wondered if he ever slept.


As I lowered my head in embarrassment, Dwight snorted and continued speaking.


"Ha, so what you’re saying is, you’re just a genius? Is that it?"


"Ah… No, I’m not a genius… A genius is someone like you…"


I shook my head in surprise at the word "genius" that slipped from his mouth.


After all, at least within the Academy, no one fit the term "genius" more than the boy standing in front of me.


Dwight Neinhart, the magic prodigy, was described in the original work as none other than Yoon Si-woo’s rival.


So when someone with monstrous talent like him called me a genius, I was flustered and said so, but Dwight responded calmly.


"Of course, I am a genius. An extraordinary one at that."


It was true, but hearing him say it so confidently about himself made me stare at him blankly in surprise. Dwight spoke up again.


"I’ve known for a long time that my talent is objectively exceptional. Being called a genius means I can see more than the average person. But even to someone like me, your growth stands out significantly, which is why I brought it up. That means your rate of growth is clearly backed by a tremendous amount of effort. Isn’t that right?"


I couldn’t exactly tell him the truth about my connection to the witch, so I intended to deny it when he mistook my situation. But just as I was about to respond—


"Physical abilities or the strength of powers might fall under the realm of talent, but your skills have improved remarkably, and that is purely a result of effort and practice."


Dwight’s words made my open mouth close again.


"I never once thought in my life that I would be lacking in talent compared to anyone else. But then I met someone who had even more talent than me. I felt that difference in talent when I lost to that white-haired guy in a duel. But it didn’t shock me. It’s something that couldn’t be helped."


Dwight spoke quietly with his eyes closed.


When he opened his eyes again, they were piercingly focused directly on me.


"But I never imagined in my life that I’d be outdone in effort by anyone. That’s why I was shocked. Watching you repeatedly challenge and finally reach the end during Natalia’s special lessons, for the first time in my life, I felt that I’d been beaten in effort. That was the first time I ever experienced the feeling of defeat in my life."


At Dwight’s words, I recalled that moment.


The memory of pushing through, enduring hardship, and finally succeeding.


The result was achieved purely through my own effort, unconnected to the power of the witch.


And then, Dwight spoke to me.


"I am a wizard. Wizards only believe in what they see. And you, at least from what I’ve seen, are one of the most hardworking people out there. So, stand tall. Don’t undervalue your efforts. You’re someone who should take pride in your dedication. You’re the one who made me feel defeated."


At those words, I felt something welling up inside me.


It was a joy unrelated to anything witch-like, the feeling of having my efforts recognized.


I nodded, feeling a little happy.


After that, a brief silence fell. 


As the intense emotions subsided, a wave of embarrassment and confusion crept up on me.


To be honest, Dwight and I had only talked a few times and weren’t really close, so I didn’t expect him to say such things. 


Most of all, I never thought he was the type to say something like that…


“Hey, I appreciate that you noticed my effort, but why did you suddenly say all that…?”


I asked out of curiosity, and Dwight, now back to his usual lazy demeanor, replied with a drowsy look in his eyes.


“I was just wondering if you’ve been pushing yourself too hard in your training lately. Hmm… You seem fine today, but it looked like you hadn’t been sleeping for a while recently, right?”


I was startled by his words.


It wasn’t because of training that I hadn’t been sleeping…


I thought I’d hidden my sleeplessness well at the Academy, so how did he know?


As I flinched and eyed him cautiously, Dwight answered in a nonchalant voice.


“Wondering how I knew? Well, it seemed like you tried hard not to show it, but I’m an expert in that field since I constantly cut down on sleep for training. Besides, like I said before, geniuses like me see a bit more than others do. I can tell just by looking.”


So that’s how it is… Geniuses are kind of scary…


While thinking that, I realized I still hadn’t addressed the fundamental question, so I asked Dwight again.


“By the way, does that mean you were worried about me?”


“Yes. Staying up all night is fine, but I got the feeling you weren’t taking care of yourself. I’ve been feeling inspired by you lately and started seeing you as a sort of rival, so I didn’t want you to break down. And more than anything, we’re classmates at the Academy. Working hard is good, but everything should be done in moderation. Moderation.”


Dwight responded calmly, but his answer moved me deeply.


I never expected the word "comrade" to come from someone who seemed as indifferent as Dwight…


Is he actually a tsundere, hiding his true feelings behind a cold exterior?


As I snuck a sly smile and looked at Dwight’s profile, I suddenly noticed a glaring contradiction in his words and called him out on it.


“You know, when you tell someone else to take it easy while you’re walking around with those dark circles under your eyes, it’s not very convincing.”


“Unlike some people, I meticulously calculate how much my body can handle before cutting down on sleep, so it’s fine. And for me, this is moderation. I can’t bear the thought of having less time to study magic because I’m sleeping.”


Seeing Dwight answer so earnestly, I felt something akin to madness.


It was like the feeling I got watching that guy who stayed up all night studying because he found it fun.


With a slightly exasperated look, I asked him.


“...You really do love magic, huh. What makes you like it so much?”


“It’s a field with limitless potential. It’s impossible not to be captivated by it.”


Just as you’d expect from a magic otaku, Dwight’s eyes sparkled, and his voice grew slightly louder as soon as the topic of magic came up.


“Combat magic used to slay beasts is appealing, but don’t you think the other types of magic that are useful in everyday life are awesome, too? If you have the ability, magic is a discipline that can contribute to humanity’s survival more than anything else, like the barrier my ancestor cast over the city. My dream is to create magic that can help people for a long time, just like my ancestor, the great mage Viole Neinhart. To achieve that dream, there’s no time to waste on something like sleep.”


“...You really respect your ancestor, huh.”


“Of course. The magic of the barrier is beautiful in itself. It keeps out demonic intrusions and serves as a seal… In any case, it’s undoubtedly a magnificent spell. From that standpoint, today’s training devised by Teacher Eve is not particularly practical. With the barrier in place, there’s no way beasts would ever run rampant inside the city like this.”


“...Still, you never know, right? Like when the beasts controlled people last time.”


“Ugh… That was only because we didn’t account for a weakened beast that could control people. Barring such special cases, ordinary beasts lose all their power the moment they cross the barrier.”


While talking with Dwight, we soon arrived at the shelter with the evacuees.


I wondered if the other groups had arrived yet, and at that moment, I heard loud footsteps coming from behind.


“Yoo-hoo~ Looks like you guys are done, too!”


“Ugh…”


At the sound of a cheerful voice, Dwight frowned and cast a protective shield with magic, but it was useless against the pink-haired girl tank charging at terrifying speed.


The charging girl, Florene, hugged Dwight’s shield with all her might, and it crumbled like a snack, shattered to pieces.


As a result, Florene clung stubbornly to Dwight’s back, who wore an expression of utter disgust, and asked me with a bright smile.


“Looked like you were chatting away as you came here. What were you talking about with Dwight?”


“Oh… Just a bit about magic?”


“Haha! Dwight loves magic so much, doesn’t he? Wherever magic is needed, it seems Dwight is always there! He’s even helping with some magic circle construction that Florene’s Papa is doing!”


Construction?


When I tilted my head in confusion, Dwight pried Florene off him with an exasperated look and replied.


“Haa… I’m helping the Dolos family set up an anti-teleportation magic circle. It’s an important task, and it’s a good experience to work on such a large-scale magic formation.”


“…Weren’t you working as an assistant to Teacher Eve at the hospital not too long ago?”


“I’ll go anywhere that needs magic and offers me a chance to gain experience.”


…He’s really something, isn’t he?


As I marveled and shook my head, Florene, having peeled herself off Dwight, ran towards me, shouting.


“Heheh, since Dwight doesn’t like it, I’ll go to Scarlet!”


I quickly ignited flames around my body to prevent another disaster, recalling the last time I had unwittingly let Florene cling to me for an hour straight.


Seeing my strong rejection, Florene giggled and muttered regretfully.


“Aww, too bad. I thought I could get closer to Scarlet.”


…Come to think of it, when I received a gift of cosmetics, Florene also noticed that I hadn’t been sleeping well.


So, could Florene be a genius, too?


Just as I was pondering that thought, Marin came rushing over from a distance, scolding Florene with a flick to the forehead, “Florene! I told you not to act on your own during training!” causing Florene to pout.


A genius, my foot.


As they say, there’s a thin line between a genius and a fool.


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Comments

  1. "With the barrier in place, there’s no way beasts would ever run rampant inside the city like this.”

    Thanks Dwight!!! Now, we know exactly what the next arc is going to be about.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for the chapter

    ReplyDelete
  3. What happened to FictionRead xyz? Is that website yours?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, you used to upload there; I had wondered why you started to upload there randomly.

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    2. i was testing something that time but it didn't worked so i'm back :)

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    3. Oh ,I was heartbroken to learn that you are moving there. I'm glad you decided to continue the series here. :-) The series seems to have complete; I had hoped it will continue. This is my first web novel and the only one that I truly enjoy, thanks to its great translator and community. Haha.😎

      Delete

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