The Academy Regressor is Obsessed

The massive walls of Wiheim are artifacts created by a magician named Graimvel, who reached the level of an archmage in armament magic.

While ordinary armament magic can only construct weapons like swords, shields, and spears, Graimvel was a monster who went beyond that, reaching a level where he could create fortresses and siege weapons. He not only elevated armament magic, originally a third-rate magic, to orthodox magic but also created a new magical system for armament magic. He was a great master.

It’s not for nothing that Graimvel is mentioned as one of the great magicians who founded Wiheim. The head of the Federation honored him by composing the guards of Wiheim’s walls only of those who had learned armament magic like Graimvel.

This tradition continues to this day.

“Is this an officially issued pass?”

Hans, one of the magicians guarding the wall, said as he waved the pass handed over by the merchant. The merchant nodded with a confident expression.

“Why are you asking such an obvious thing? It’s an officially issued pass through the Federation.”
“Hmm……”
“More importantly, please let me in quickly. I’ve been waiting for over an hour already. It would be better to enter quickly for the sake of the people behind me too.”

The merchant shouted, pointing to the long line stretching behind him. But Hans didn’t budge.

He took out a perforated crystal ball that guards would normally carry and inserted the pass into it. It was a magical tool made to check if the pass was genuine. If it was genuine, the crystal ball would emit a yellow light, and if it was fake, it would emit a red light. The pass handed over by the merchant emitted a red light as soon as it entered the crystal ball.

There was nothing more to see. Hans clicked his tongue and tore the pass to shreds. At this merciless action, the merchant jumped up and turned red in the face.

“Ah, no! No, how could you tear it like that!!!”
“Your pass was not genuine. Therefore, following the proper procedures, I deny you entry.”
“What nonsense is this! Do you know how much I paid for that pass!”
“Most passes not directly issued through conversation with the Federation are fake. Please inquire about fraud at the place where you purchased the pass, and now please step aside. As you said, there are many people waiting behind you.”
“Th-This is…!”

The merchant approached Hans with veins popping on his neck. But he couldn’t take more than one step. A golden longsword had suddenly appeared at his waist where there was nothing before. The longsword constructed with armament magic exuded ominous magical power just by existing.

“…Damn it.”

The merchant swore and turned around at Hans’s cold gaze. Then he got on the carriage he had brought and started moving in the opposite direction from Wiheim. Hans only turned his head towards the next visitor when the merchant’s figure was no longer visible.

“…?”

It was then. Hans saw a child wearing a pointed hat walking towards the wall, having left the line.

The sight of him walking while gazing at the towering wall with interested eyes, dressed in shabby clothes unlike his fancy hat, was quite incongruous.

“…Haa.”

‘There are many tiresome things today.’

Thinking this, Hans asked for understanding from a magician who was next in line after the merchant, and called out to the approaching child.

“Hey.”

Although he didn’t raise his voice much, the voice imbued with magical power was more than enough to reach the child. The child turned his head towards Hans at the voice that gently penetrated his ears. Then his face, which had been hidden by the hat, was fully visible.

‘He’s pretty.’

That was the extent of his appreciation. Hans made a gesture as if to say ‘go away’ towards the child looking at him, seeming annoyed.

“Kid, if you want to enter Wiheim, get in line. Or hold your mother’s hand tightly.”
“I don’t have a mother though?”

A sudden critical hit. Hans cleared his throat, feeling the gaze of the magician looking at him like trash.

“Ahem… Then join the line. I won’t let you in first just because you came from the side.”
“But my master told me to come here?”
“Master…?”

Master, he says. Hans frowned and glared at the child.

‘Has he developed delusions at such a young age?’

Becoming a magician’s disciple at a young age? It’s a common thing. But that’s a story that applies to the children of noble families, not to citizens wearing such shabby clothes.

To begin with, people like that might see a magician once or twice in their lifetime. Even nobles find it difficult to see magicians a few times, let alone commoners. And yet he says ‘master’. Moreover, claiming to be the disciple of a magician who can freely pass through Wiheim without formal entry procedures. It was unbelievable.

Still, Hans opened his mouth, thinking ‘what if’:

“What’s your master’s name?”
“Ena Renatus.”
“…Who?”
“Ena Renatus. She said everyone would know if I mentioned Kaepyeok?”

Of course, it’s a name he knows. He knows the alias Kaepyeok too. But Hans couldn’t help but freeze on the spot.

The first reason was that the name of a big shot he couldn’t have imagined came out of the child’s mouth, and the second reason was that upon closer inspection, the hat the child was wearing was exactly the same as the one Ena usually wore.

Moreover, when he overlaid magical power on his eyes, he could even see lightning sparking from the hat.

There was no room for doubt. There was only one person on the continent who possessed such destructive and threatening lightning-natured magical power.

“I greet the disciple of Lady Ena.”

Hans immediately bowed his head towards Asel.

The disciples of archmages belonging to the Federation gain high status just by being who they are. The first meeting with such people was extremely important. After the first meeting, it didn’t matter much, but for the first meeting, one had to treat them according to their status. That was the tradition.

So it was natural for Hans to suddenly change his attitude. But Asel was bewildered by the sight of this burly stranger suddenly bowing to him.

“Uh, um……”
“……”

An awkward confrontation continued like this. Asel scratched his cheek while looking at Hans’s gradually balding crown, and Hans blinked his eyes while staring endlessly at the ground.

‘When will he tell me to raise my head?’
‘When will he raise his head?’

Parallel thoughts passed through the minds of the two. Asel had no experience of casually speaking down to someone much older than him, and Hans didn’t think that Ena might not have told him about Wiheim’s traditions.

This confrontation between the two continued until Ena and Evelyn returned, having miniaturized the carriage.

“…What are you doing?”

Ena asked, blinking her eyes at the strange scene unfolding before her. Asel shook his head as if to say he didn’t know either, looking at Ena who was adjusting her hat. Ena lightly ruffled her disciple’s hair and shifted her gaze to Hans.

“Stand up.”

Hans immediately raised his upper body at that low voice. Even while doing so, he didn’t directly meet Ena’s gaze. There was no particular need to do so, but Hans showed the utmost courtesy to one of the top archmages even within Wiheim.

He immediately knelt on one knee, slightly lowered his head, and said:

“I greet the archmage of the Federation.”
“Mm. Can we go in?”

Ena went straight to the point. Hans answered as if familiar with this:

“Of course.”
“Alright. Good work.”
“Yes! Travel safely!”

Ena waved her hand towards Hans and moved her steps inside the wall. Asel and Evelyn followed right behind Ena. As Asel passed by Hans, who was keeping his head deeply bowed, he muttered in a small voice:

“Take care.”

Evelyn also added a word:

“Why is your head empty?”

Hans didn’t hold back.

Thump.

“Ouch!”

“This is the newly released external magical power source! Magicians who want to test it, please line up here!”
“An ancient magical text brought from the Demon Realm will be auctioned today. Those interested, please drop by.”
“Th-This is a new reagent my master made! If you eat it, your fallen hair will grow back—”
“Five gold coins!”
“Six gold coins! Bring it here right now!”
“Kyaa, kyaaaa!!!”

Boisterous sounds came from all directions. Asel looked around with interested eyes as he walked through Wiheim’s bustling area. Although he had expected a static atmosphere in the city of magicians, the streets were more lively than expected.

As he shifted his gaze, he saw huge golems walking, making heavy footsteps. Their backs were filled with brilliantly sparkling gems, all of which were high-quality items that had grown by containing mana for a long time.

“Those are gems provided to gem mages. The better the quality of the gem and the more mana it contains, the higher the efficiency of the magic formula.”

Ena explained, reading his gaze. Asel let out an “Ah” of admiration and nodded.

Gem mages, huh. So there are also magicians who handle magic using gems as a medium.

Asel wondered how many types of magic currently exist as he continued to follow Ena. Meanwhile, something moved quickly across the sky. A huge shadow fell on the ground, and Asel and Evelyn raised their heads.

Screech!

What was gliding over the vast land was a monstrous bird covered in flames. The overwhelming size and the massive heat it scattered around as it moved made it feel mysterious just to look at. Asel stared at the bird circling in the sky with his mouth open.

‘It’s a being made of mana.’

He instinctively realized the essence of that bird. The magical power he had vaguely awakened while watching the battle between Zerville and Ena had expanded his senses. Thanks to this, he could faintly detect not only the essence of the bird but also the remnants of numerous spells spread throughout Wiheim, and the barriers.

[Hmm?]

At that moment, the giant monstrous bird sensed Asel’s gaze and slightly lowered its head. Then Asel’s and the bird’s gazes met. Asel flinched at those fiercely burning eyes, but regardless, the bird observed him up and down, then muttered in a voice mixed with laughter.

[Well, well, another strange monster has entered.]

That voice was transmitted to Asel through mana. More precisely, it was transmitted only to him. The messages sent by spirits could not be heard by anyone except the designated target.

“……”

But Ena detected that faint remnant of mana and slightly raised her head towards the monstrous bird. The bird, meeting her blue gaze, twisted its mouth crookedly and flapped its wings.

[Looking again, it seems a monster has brought a monster? A being brought by the magician who tears the sky with lightning……]
“Parnin.”

Ena murmured in a low voice. Then the monstrous bird called Parnin burst into giggles.

[I get it, I get it. I’ll continue on my way. My contractor is urging me to come quickly anyway. Probably trying to do some strange experiment again.]
“……”
[Well then, see you next time. Two monsters and one human.]

Parnin left those words and gave one big flap of its wings. At the same time, its figure turned into a single flame and disappeared instantly beyond the horizon. Asel’s eyes sparkled as he looked at the red trajectory left in the sky. Ena stared at him blankly for a while, then soon smiled and turned her gaze away.

‘Let’s just leave him to marvel at it.’

There was no need to rush over to Asel right now and tell him that Parnin was actually a high-ranking fire spirit who had escaped from the spirit realm because it was bored, and its contractor was a crazy arsonist.

Instead, she just lightly patted Asel’s shoulder as he stood still. Only then did Asel come to his senses and start walking again, following Ena.

About 10 minutes passed like that. By now, a lush forest had spread around the three people instead of the busy downtown area. The eerie atmosphere characteristic of forests wasn’t felt at all. Only massive mana and vitality floated in the air.

Asel detected the mana circling around him and lightly waved his hand. Then the mana gently brushed past between his fingers. Although he couldn’t feel it in detail, Asel thought that the sensation was like a child throwing a tantrum, asking to play.

The mana that brushed past didn’t just move away but started to wrap around Asel again.

Suddenly, he recalled what Zerville had said. That he had excellent mana affinity and resonance. Although he didn’t know exactly what that meant, Asel guessed that it might mean that mana acts friendly like this.

He couldn’t feel it in the slums, but after vaguely awakening to magical power and coming to a place rich in mana, he could clearly recognize their presence. Although he couldn’t feel their self-awareness, he could clearly perceive the purity that mana possessed.

‘It feels good.’

Asel slightly shook his bangs, feeling the remnants of mana passing by, and smiled a small smile.

Ena, who already knew of his talent, smiled gently at this sight.

On the other hand, Evelyn covered her mouth with her hand, thinking that her brother might have suddenly gone strange. But Asel paid no attention to them and enjoyed the mana wrapping around his body.

As they walked a bit more like that, Ena suddenly stopped and opened her mouth.

“We’ve arrived.”

At that calm voice, Asel, who had been intoxicated by mana, returned to reality. He raised his head and shifted his gaze to where Ena was pointing.

“This is our home.”

There stood a mansion so imposing that just looking at it made one feel intimidated. Snow-white lightning roughly wrapped around the main gate, and lightning writhed above the lightning rod stuck at the top of the mansion, scattering electric currents all over the place.

Crackle.

Small sparks fly where the lightning touches. Along with this, magical tools carelessly scattered in the garden began to wriggle as if they had come to life.

An object shaped like scissors cut the sparsely grown raw wood, and white lightning poured from a teapot, burning fallen leaves and twigs. Besides these, the sound of lightning striking could be heard from all over the place.

No matter how you looked at it, it wasn’t a normal mansion. Asel gaped at the lightning striking down all around, and Evelyn trembled her lips and muttered softly.

“…Is this an execution ground?”