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Translator: Lizz
The following spring, six mages left Ceres’ apprenticeship. In previous years, at most two would join the guild, and there were even years when none joined, but this year saw a large-scale recruitment.
The ones who joined the guild included three senior apprentices who were a year older than Leon, two boys of the same age, and a girl who was a year younger. Seven remained with Ceres. Leon, at seventeen, was the oldest, while the others were still too young to join the guild.
Letters from parents wishing to apprentice their children to Ceres frequently arrived, and it was customary for two or three new students to join each year. However, since Gray and Yuri joined, Ceres had not accepted any new apprentices. Was it because no one met her standards, or was there another reason?
“Well, it looks like you were left behind after all.”
Ceres’ mansion was one of the larger residences in the village, with three rooms on the first floor and two rooms on the second floor, making a total of five rooms. These were allocated as Ceres’ study-cum-bedroom, as well as the apprentices’ bedrooms. Each room was not very large, and both meals and lessons were conducted at a large table placed in the spacious area just beyond the front door. During the day, most of the apprentices spent their time there, making it convenient for receiving visitors. However, there were also those who would enter without announcing their visit.
Leon silently kicked his friend, who had greeted him with a smile as soon as he entered the mansion.
“Just as expected.”
“Ouch… Yeah, well, that’s true. But if by any chance you had joined the guild, it would have been lonely.”
Gateau said shamelessly while rubbing his kicked leg.
“It’s a bit much for a knight to go visit a guild mage.”
‘So I’m glad you stayed’, Gateau said casually. For Leon, however, it was a matter of life and death.
Gateau, who was officially knighted last year, came from a family of knights for generations. Leon didn’t know much about it, but apparently, his family was quite prestigious. Despite that, both Gateau and his father were rather eccentric.
“Where is Lord Hilden?”
“My father went straight for the study window.”
The study, which was also Ceres’ private room, faced the south side of the mansion, and was the place where she was most likely to be. It seemed that the knight, who was infatuated with Ceres, chose the shortest route by entering through the window rather than the front door. Despite being a knight, he had no sense of etiquette. Leon couldn’t help but make an amazed face.
Ceres didn’t talk about it much, but it seemed she had known Lord Hilden since her time at the Iron Fortress. Lord Hilden, who was unusually fond of her, would visit her from time to time after she left the place. Whether his feelings were of friendship or love, Leon couldn’t tell. Ceres wasn’t unattractive, but she wasn’t considered a beauty by general standards, and she wasn’t young anymore. Above all, she was a mage. It was common sense that an ordinary man wouldn’t be interested in her, but Lord Hilden was anything but ordinary. He found the often-hated magic fascinating and was greatly interested in it.
The unconventional blood was certainly passed down to his son. Gateau, like his father, grew into a young man who loved mysteries and showed interest in mages, which was unusual for a knight.
He and Leon had been friends since they were young, when Lord Hilden had brought his son along on his visits. While an ordinary person would avoid an apprentice mage, Gateau approached Leon with a face full of curiosity and became his friend, almost forcefully.
“You’re still as eccentric as ever, both your father and you.”
Or rather, fearless.
“If you ask me, it’s the others who are strange for not being interested in mages. Swords and bows can be used with training and are made by human hands. But magic, you can’t even see it, or understand how it’s ‘made’. There’s no way it wouldn’t be fascinating.”
Because it was invisible and beyond the scope of understanding, people feared and shunned it. From a general perspective, it was the father and son who were strange for finding it fascinating. However, Leon understood that he was saved by them.
As a mage from the Iron Fortress, Ceres was not openly despised by the villagers. While there was a certain level of respect to it, the fear of what she might do if angered was more significant. The villagers kept their distance from Ceres and her apprentices, and seemed uneasy about her mansion being within the village, even if it was on the outskirts. They lived with a subtle sense of discomfort, as if there was a single poisonous plant among a field of colorful flowers.
Children were more straightforward and cruel though.
Among Ceres’ apprentices, Leon included, there was no one who hadn’t experienced some form of harassment from the village children. It was like a rite of passage, something they couldn’t escape or avoid.
Having magic ability, Leon had given up early on being treated like everyone else or having close friends. However, the presence of Gateau certainly saved him. Sometimes, he thought that Ceres might feel the same way. Despite greeting the brash knight’s visits with a cold gaze, she had never told him not to come.
“It’d be nice if you could stay in this village forever.”
“Yeah.”
Leon also thought it would be nice if he could continue to assist Ceres. However, he knew that it was an unattainable dream.
A few months later, in the first month of the Crimson Blossom season, when the heat gradually increased, Leon was suddenly summoned to the study by Ceres. ‘The day has finally come’, he thought. Nodding to the junior apprentice who had come to call him to convey his acknowledgement, he instructed Gray and Yuri, who were studying magic, to continue before heading to the study.
He knocked on the door and received permission to enter. He faced Ceres, who was sitting at a desk piled with grimoires.
Just by meeting her stern yet sincere gray gaze, he realized that the reason he was called was exactly as he had imagined. And perhaps, by looking into Leon’s eyes, Ceres also realized that he knew the reason for his summon.
“Leon, how old are you?”
“Seventeen. I’ll be eighteen in a few months.”
Ceres nodded slightly.
Most mages either joined a guild or waited to be invited by one at this age. Next year, if there were as many recruitments as there had been this year, there would be more people from this private school joining the guild. But that would not be Leon. He would never be called.
“Unfortunately, your ability as a mage is below third-rate.”
Ceres said plainly. It was typical of her to be straightforward, as she wasn’t good at sugarcoating things. Leon accepted the fact he knew too well with a heavy heart. Although he had told himself this many times, hearing it from his mentor made his heart race and his vision darken.
“Your guiding vein is too weak.”
“Yes.”
Leon barely managed to reply, and Ceres frowned slightly.
“…It’s truly unfortunate. You have worked harder than anyone, memorized every spell and mastered all the magic I can use. And I mean it. Your knowledge and magic control are the best among all my disciples. In fact, you might even rival any mage I’ve ever met, including those from the Iron Fortress.”
Even so, Leon was below third-rate. There were things in this world that could not be overcome by effort alone. Talent was a wall that could not be surpassed no matter what.
“You will not be accepted into the guild. You are wise, so you may have already anticipated this… Have you thought about your future plans?'”
Leon couldn’t answer that question. He had tried to think about it, but no matter how much he thought, he couldn’t see a future. When he was sent to Ceres, it was as if his family had cut ties with him; he couldn’t imagine them accepting him now. On the other hand, at seventeen, it was too late to become an apprentice or work for a merchant house. As a mage, he couldn’t marry into a family and inherit their land. Even if he wanted to become a farmhand to support himself, he doubted there would be any place that would accept a mage.
There was no path. Apart from being a mage, Leon had no value. If even that meager value was denied, he was no different from a stone by the roadside.
“…No, nothing in particular.”
After a long silence, Leon answered as calmly as he could. Ceres also nodded without changing her calm expression. Then silence fell again. Despite the atmosphere in the room, heavy as if they were discussing the end of the world, a refreshing early summer breeze blew in through the open window, and the cheerful chirping of birds echoed in the air.
Ceres broke the silence.
“It seems that you’ve been giving some rather interesting lessons.”
“Huh?”
“To Gray.”
At the mention of that name, Leon lowered his eyes like a child caught in mischief. He had suspected that Ceres was aware, but being directly confronted made him feel awkward.
“I overstepped. I’m sorry.”
“The method you employed belongs to a forbidden type of magic, considered inherently dangerous. Connecting to the guiding vein of another person recklessly can cause a reverse flow of magic. If the amount of magic exceeds what a person can handle, the guiding vein can burn out from the inside, potentially harming internal organs.”
Leon was startled by his mentor’s calm voice. He had never considered such a possibility. As surprise mixed with a chilling sensation in his gut, he realized that one wrong step could have led to an irreparable disaster.
“It’s understandable that you didn’t know. In principle, it’s one of the ancient forbidden magics that was once researched at the Iron Fortress. Normally, it’s not something an ordinary mage would perform.”
The thought that he had unknowingly dabbled in something so dangerous terrified Leon. He felt cold sweat trickling down his forehead.
“…However, your guiding vein is too weak, and the amount of magic it can take in is minimal. Even if a reverse flow occurred, the other party – in this case, Gray – would not have been in any danger. There’s no need to worry.”
“Is that so…?”
Ceres nodded with the same calm expression that could almost be taken as emotionless, as Leon remained skeptical.
“They say ‘practice makes perfect.’ Sometimes, experiencing something once is more educational than trying to understand it through theory, and repeating that experience can be even more effective. Especially for someone with rare intuition like Gray. Your teaching method is very interesting, Leon.”
Leon wasn’t quite sure if he was being praised, but he understood that at least he wasn’t being criticized, and he let out a sigh of relief. However,
“Would you like to take over this private school?”
Ceres’s next words left him blinking in surprise.
“What?”
“Actually, I received a message from my estranged older sister saying she wants to live together. Given my status as a mage, I cut ties with my family when I was young and have lived without any connection to them. But I thought this might be a good opportunity to have something called ‘family.'”
“So, are you going to live together?”
“Yes. My sister lost her husband, and her children have moved far away, so she must be feeling lonely. She lives in the house her husband left her in Weil, so I plan to go there.”
“What about the school then…?”
“I will be responsible for Gray and Yuri. Until the end of this year should be enough for that. So, I’m asking if you would take over after.”
It was an unexpected offer. However, Leon realized it wasn’t a hasty proposal thought up overnight. Ceres hadn’t taken on new students because she was considering closing the school. And because she was thinking of entrusting it to Leon, she had tacitly allowed the assistance he had given to Gray.
“I don’t think anyone would come to a private school run by a mage with no real ability like me.”
“That’s not true. While there are many private schools in big towns, there are few in rural areas. There are no other private schools around Lille. However, that doesn’t mean children with guiding veins aren’t born in the countryside. For families who can’t afford to send their children to towns, this place is necessary. If you wish, I can contact people and gather apprentices for you.”
Leon shook his head at the offer. Even if he used Ceres’s reputation and name to gather apprentices, it would be meaningless since he didn’t have the same ability as his mentor.
“But as you said, I’m a third-rate mage at best. If I were to take over, it would tarnish your reputation and name.”
“As mages, our existence is already tainted from the start. My name won’t be hurt by a few scratches. More importantly, while you may lack capability, I am proud to have you as my student.”
Those words were enough. His mentor trusted him and opened up a path for him. All that was left was to live by her teachings.
Feeling a surge of gratitude towards his mentor, Leon lifted his head and looked straight into Ceres’s eyes.
“Please allow me to take over for you.”
Silavin: Do note all photos from the Light Novel will only be posted in the Patreon. A little troublesome to post it here.
