The Genius Magician Hides His Swordsmanship - Chapter 9

Chapter 9. Rio’s Test

Each prestigious family has its own rituals that have been practiced for hundreds of years or longer.
Insights from masters of swords and magic. These mysterious rites are passed down from generation to generation, improving and evolving.
It was not uncommon for a 5 star swordsman who had learned those rituals to defeat a 6 star swordsman.
A family’s rituals have power beyond common sense, such are the secrets that keep the lineage of great families alive.
Of course in my past life, I, a commoner, had never learned such things.

‘I had always struggled against those from prestigious families.’

It’s unfair. It’s a blessing to have grown up so well, just by being born into a good family. The way I gained strength was barbaric.

[That’s why your hobby was to take advantage of family festivals.]

That’s exactly why I did it. Fighting and dueling with people from other families, expanded my own enlightenment. Feeling their movements and breathing their air, I felt like I understood a little bit of the mystery.

‘Well, that’s probably why I became a 9 star.’

[Your omnivorousness is your greatest strength, and you’ve accepted everything regardless.]
‘That’s because I was always hungry for learning.’

That eagerness is what gave me the name Geomje.

TL/N: Geomje is a sword hero that manipulates his sword to defeat his enemies with continuous attacks.

[Since becoming a 9 star, you started making your own festivals. That wasn’t bad either.]
‘That’s right. A little more refinement and I would have created a masterpiece. If only it wasn’t for the Pentagram…’

We took a moment to reminisce. The nostalgia didn’t last long. Before I knew it, we were facing Rio Delemar.

“Aloy, you can go back now. The children will be sent back to the dorms soon, so don’t worry.”
“Alright.”

Aloy lowered his head and turned around.

“Hello Mr. Rio.”
“Hah, I told you to just call me uncle, don’t make it seem like I’m old.”

His hand ruffled my hair.
Rio Delemar.
He was a little different from the other adults in the family. After I picked out the card with dark magic at the judgment ceremony, everyone else called me a cursed child.

“So, is the academy life okay these days?”

He was kind without discrimination, so I couldn’t help but like him.

‘Yes, thank you for your concern.’

As if he didn’t want to see us like that, McDuff came over and intervened.

“Uncle! Why did you call us here? Are you going to tell us about the rituals now?”

The boy’s eyes shone brightly. I didn’t show it, but I felt the same.

“It’s the season for the Delemar rituals…”

Rio laughed and then punched Mcduff in the head.

“You little bastard, it’s still 100 years early. That’s something you can only learn when you graduate from the mage tower or become a 5 star mage or higher. Don’t be greedy for things like that now, just lay a solid foundation.”
“Huh? Then why did you call me?”
“To give you homework.”

The corners of his mouth twitched strangely as he looked down at us.

‘I’m a little nervous.’
[I know, what is he trying to do?]

Rio fumbled in his pocket, and then pulled out two objects.
One in his left hand and one in his right, he held them out towards me and McDuff, respectively.
It was a fist-sized glass ball.

“What is this?”

I asked, and McDuff scoffed.

“Can’t you tell? It’s a marble!”

This guy has a way of pissing people off.

‘Don’t you think I know that, you idiot?’

Rio didn’t just suggest we play with the marbles. I asked for his intentions, but he just said some random stuff.

[Suck it up, what else can you do?]

I couldn’t bring myself to argue with Rio, so I just accepted the glass marble without a response.

“That’s my homework for you.”
“This?”

At McDuff’s dumbfounded expression, Rio continued.

“It’s a bead that can capture mana from the surroundings. It’s usually used to practice mana control. I’ll give you one week to fill it with mana.”

I was skeptical. If it’s this size, I should be able to fill it right now, not in a week.

‘This is way too easy.’

McDuff was also confident, so as soon as he received it, he injected mana into the bead.
Poof!
However, the mana that was piling up in the bead rarely increased.
Shuuuuu…
Apparently, mana kept escaping through a hole on the bead.
The amount of escape was greater than the speed of accumulation.

“This is strange!”

He soon began to breathe heavily.

“I put a special spell on it.”
“What is it?”
“It’s a spell that constantly leaks mana out. See the hole right there? It’s similar to a hole in a water bottle, as you can see.”

I didn’t completely understand. He gave us homework to put mana in it, and then he put magic on it so we can’t put mana in it.

[What, isn’t this just like riding a horse while drunk?]

Rio smiled at us while we were tilting our heads.

“Don’t forget, a mage is created by nature. After a while, most mages only practice and work magic in a prescribed way, and that’s not how it should be. A mage must be able to think outside the box, to create. That way, you can create freely without being stuck in a box.”

His eyes, which had always been consistent with a smile, hardened for a moment. There must be a message he wants to convey through this homework.

“Try your best! And I will grant a wish to those who succeed in their homework. Then, I’ll see you here next week, kids.”

With that, Rio left.
Seeing his back, McDuff sighed. He said he couldn’t teach me magic, but he gave me strange homework.

‘Stupid.’

It was clearly part of an effort to educate us. Maybe it was a test of quality, and he wasn’t here to bully us.

[You’re still a kid, what can you do?]

Still, the message was clear.

“Revo…Revolution…”

Drew was still sweating in my room.

“What are you holding onto, anyway?”

He looked at the bead in my hand.

“Oh, just something personal.”

For hours now, my head had been wrestling with the bead. Yet, it was still empty.

‘This is hard.’

I was confident in my ability to attract and channel mana.
Woosh!
But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t seem to get any mana to build up inside the orb.

[Hmm, is your mana sensitivity still insufficient?]
‘Well, Rio must have known our level before giving us this homework.’

I still couldn’t find a way to fill the bead with mana.

‘I don’t feel bad about it, though.’

It’s always exciting to learn something new. If I can solve this problem, it means I can grow to the next level.

‘It doesn’t matter if I get it wrong.’

I knew he’d give me the answer anyway.

“Ian, I’m done for today!”

Drew had just finished his workout of the day.

“Good job, did you sense the energy we were talking about today?”
“Yeah! It’s weird, but I do feel the energy.”

As expected, the blood of a swordsman family could not be deceived. What he feels must be aura. He is an incredibly talented guy.

“Well, where are we going to practice tomorrow?”

Drew asked as he stood up. I told him that tomorrow’s class would be replaced by an outdoor practice.

“Yeah, I’m curious too.”

Aloy’s teaching style was never predictable. As always, we could only try.

* * * 

“Okay, today’s field practice will be in groups. Everyone, get into groups of three!”

Aloy divided the kids outside the auditorium into groups of three.

“Ian, you’re with me, right?”

Of course Drew, sticks by my side like gum.

“Um… can I join you guys too?”

A child named Bella also decided to join us. She was a girl with decent magic talent.

“Then everyone, follow me!”

The children headed out following Aloy’s lead.

“Oooh, there was a place like this here?”

Drew looked around. Our destination was a remote forest near the House of Delemar.

“Ian, do you know this place?”
“No, it’s my first time here too.”

It was an unfamiliar space to me as I had never ventured out of my family house while growing up. However, the space of the forest was so familiar.

‘It’s been a long time since I’ve smelled this thick grass.’

As a swordsman, I especially liked the forest. It was good to feel the aura thanks to the abundant energy, and the smell of grass made me feel at ease.

“Now! Attention everyone!”

Aloy drew the children’s attention with an applause.

“Today, we’re going to practice outdoors. We’re going to be active with the team members we’ve divided up before.”

Gamp, who usually has the most questions, raises his hand.

“Gamp, what’s your question, this time?”
“Instructor Aloy! What are we doing as a team?”

He didn’t wait for an explanation, he was quite impatient.

“There are many mana stones that can be found in this forest. Your quest is to explore the forest and find the mana stones everywhere.”
“Exploration? We haven’t learned how to explore yet.”
“You don’t have to use magic. Mana stones always emit mana. You guys can feel mana, so you’ll find enough of it.”

Gamp nodded. Aloy then added a word.

“Oh! And the team that finds the most is the winner. And the winning team will get all the mana stones! Did you know that mana stones are very precious items for mana practice?”

He was an instructor that loved competition.

[Can he really do this to the kids?]
‘I don’t know.’

Anyway, the instructor’s words at the academy were like heaven.

“Argh!”
“Let’s go!”
“Ugh, us too!”

The children ran into the forest side by side.

* * * 

I picked up a transparent stone from the ground. Drew was delighted to see the stone with a subtle blue light.

“Wow, Ian! That’s amazing.”

Bella had something to say as well.

“How did you find 5 already? Truly, the Delemars are different. All you did was close your eyes and open them, and you found the stones.”

She was right, sensing mana was my specialty. I had to be better than the other kids.

‘How about Ariel or McDuff?’

There are only those two children to be wary of. I put away the mana stone I picked up and looked around.
Boom!
A stream of water shot out of Ariel’s fingertips, heading somewhere.

‘I see, she’s really talented.’

She had been using the water to dig for the mana stones earlier. It was a much different application than that of our classmates.

[Isn’t she from a fairly normal family?]
‘I’m curious about her, too.’

Not even of a magical family, but a normal one. One could wonder where her talent came from.

“Wow!”
“That’s so cool!”

The children exclaimed. In the area where Ariel released streams, mana stones leapt from the ground. The problem came when Ariel’s teammates ran to collect them.

“What do you mean, cool!”

Flames rose around the mana stone.
Cheeeeee!
Eriel’s stream of water turned into steam.
The stream of water supporting the mana stone disappeared. The mana stones plummeted to the ground.

[That brat is at it again.]

It was McDuff. The flames he created dispelled Ariel’s magic.

“What are you doing?”

Ariel’s cold gaze pierces him.

“What am I doing? Picking up mana stones?”

McDuff picked up the mana stones that had fallen to the ground.

“Those are what I found.”
“What are you talking about? I just found something floating in the air and picked it up.”

Awkwardness was the best way to describe McDuff.

“Give it to me.”

Ariel did not back down easily either.

[Oh! Are they finally going to fight today?]

As usual, the two often quarreled. Ariel’s talent was at the top of the class, and knowing McDuff, there was no way he would leave Ariel like that.

‘She usually puts up with it, but today it looks a little different.’

Ariel always backed down. She couldn’t help it. No matter how young she was, she couldn’t ignore the Delemar name.

“Oh? And what if I don’t?”

But what Mcduff did today must have surpassed the little girl’s patience.
Fwoosh!
Water droplets formed around McDuff’s body. They were created by Ariel.

“What are you doing? Are you trying to attack me? You dare to go against a Delemar?”

At the word Delemar, Ariel’s fingertips stopped. As a result, the drops of water heading towards McDuff also stopped.

“Yes. Don’t mess around. You’re from a stupid family.”

The fire Mcduff had kindled evaporated the droplets. Then, McDuff approached Ariel.
Bam!
And with his right hand, slapped Ariel.

‘Oh, look at that bastard.’

Perhaps that action was unexpected, Ariel just froze in a state of silence.
McDuff eventually left, having won the mana stones. The guys on McDuff’s team even dared to throw words at Ariel and then disappeared.

“Who do you think you are messing with?”
“Be careful in the future.”

Ariel sat with a stunned look on her face and shaking fists.

‘He really is a bastard.’

At 11 years old at that.

“Ariel.”

Ariel raised her head towards me. Her reddish cheeks were slightly swollen.

“What? Did you come to make fun of me too?”

She looked at me with her eyes filled with hostility.

“No, I’ll help you take revenge on him. I realized something thanks to you.”

I held out my hand to Ariel.