The Obsessive Regressor of The Academy

36. Entrance Ceremony (5)

After hearing Lacey’s words, Asel left Grace behind, who mentioned wanting to freshen up, and started heading towards the Dean’s office first.

Along the way, he encountered newly enrolled students, giddy with excitement for the entrance ceremony. There were faces he recognized, but even more he’d never seen before.

Most of them were students from non-combat departments. Those from prestigious noble families, those aiming for a career in politics, or those with a strong interest in alchemy and magic engineering were the ones who would enroll in non-combat departments.

Asel gave them a cursory glance before continuing towards the Dean’s office.

Perhaps because the entrance ceremony was about to begin, there were no students inside the main building, unlike outside. Since the entrance ceremony was an event for both new and returning students, everyone had probably already moved to the venue. Thanks to this, Asel was able to reach the Dean’s office without any issues.

He checked once to ensure his tie wasn’t askew, and knocked on the Dean’s door.

Knock, knock.

“It’s Asel. May I come in?”

“Enter.”

The reply came without delay. Asel carefully opened the door and stepped into the room.

Seated on the sofa, the elf Friede was the first to catch his eye. Asel bowed deeply towards her.

“It’s been a while, Dean.”

“Indeed. Good to see your face again. Take a seat.”

Friede gestured to the sofa opposite. Asel nodded and slumped down in a suitable spot.

Those who had arrived before him were already seated beside him – the heads of their respective departments, just like him. The Department of Combat Studies was divided into two, so there were only two heads, Asel and Grace. But it wasn’t so for the non-combat departments. With so many departments divided, so too were there many heads.

“Grace hasn’t arrived yet, so until then, feel free to converse amongst yourselves.”

Friede said this as she sipped her tea. That was the signal. Those who had been silent until now slowly began to open their mouths.

“Olivia Famillion. Head of the Department of Alchemy, and the eldest daughter of the Famillion family. And you are?”

“Lando Lumil. Head of the Department of Theoretical Martial Arts.”

“If it’s the Lumil family, surely it’s the barony guarding the front lines? It’s an honor to meet you in a place like this.”

“The pleasure is mine, meeting the lady of the Famillion family.”

A woman with blue hair and a man with a cold expression exchanged greetings. Asel listened to their soulless conversation, sipping a mouthful of the tea placed on the table. As he did, he recalled the words of a Wieheim mage who had graduated from the academy, and let out a small groan.

‘So the academy really is a political playground for young nobles. Guess he wasn’t wrong.’

Asel knew something of the nobles’ way of speaking. As a mage, he would inevitably become entangled with nobles someday. Ena had directly taught him to accurately understand the words they spewed. Thanks to that, he had become adept at speaking in circles and recognizing hidden meanings.

But that didn’t mean he liked their way of speaking. Like most mages, Asel preferred direct communication. Hiding what they wanted and wielding their tongues like knives was not to his liking.

Grace, and the other nobles he already knew, didn’t use such antiquated, elegant language. Perhaps they too used a similar tone to the head of the Department of Alchemy when the need arose. Asel pictured the stiff-as-a-board Ellen forcing a smile and laughing along and chuckled to himself.

Somehow, he didn’t think she would ever be able to do that.

“May I come in?”

As he was thinking, Grace, who had arrived in the meantime, knocked on the Dean’s office door. As soon as Friede granted her permission, she barged through the door and sat down naturally beside Asel. Everyone’s gaze turned to her, but without any change in expression, she placed the sword she had brought with her beside the sofa.

Friede watched her before speaking.

“Since everyone seems to be here now, let us begin the explanation.”

Clink.

She placed her teacup on the table.

“As you know, everyone here has achieved the position of head in their respective departments. First, I want to offer my congratulations. I sincerely congratulate you all on entering Luminous Academy with your excellent grades.”

“……”

“Now then, let’s get down to business. At the upcoming entrance ceremony, all the heads will enter at the same time as the awards ceremony begins. Until then, you will wait. When the awards ceremony begins, I will present each of you with an award.”

“…”

“And then, the valedictorian representative from the freshmen gives a speech, and that’s that. After that, you’re free to mingle as you please. Any questions?”

Olivia cautiously raised her hand. Friede turned her head toward her.

“Speak.”

“Who becomes the valedictorian representative?”

“Well, we first take applicants, and from amongst them, select based on overall academic performance. Speaking of which, let’s get right to it. Anyone interested?”

At her words, more than five students immediately raised their hands. Asel watched the scene unfold, quietly sipping his tea.

Already this year, he’d endured two welcoming banquets centered around the freshman standouts. Not that he disliked them, but he didn’t particularly feel the urge to step forward and attract attention again. He wasn’t one to particularly enjoy banquets, and with the fatigue that had been building up over the past few days from balancing magical research and studying, he didn’t want to be stuck in the banquet hall any longer than necessary.

‘There’s no need to stick my neck out unless I get something out of being the valedictorian representative.’

Tomorrow was already the start of the academy’s first semester. It was right to shake off all fatigue with today as the last day, and then focus on classes from tomorrow. Asel thought so, and set down his teacup.

Turning his head slightly, he noticed two people who hadn’t raised their hands. One was Grace, and the other was a girl busy nibbling on a cookie.

If he remembered correctly, she was the valedictorian of the Magical Engineering department.

Given the nature of the department, the Magical Engineering department was inevitably often intertwined with the Department of Magical Studies. So Asel kept her face in his mind, watching those who were discussing the valedictorian representative position. After a while, it was eventually decided that Olivia would step up as the representative. She smiled with satisfaction and looked at Friede.

“So, I should prepare right away?”

“Indeed. The rest of you, get moving too.”

Friede said that, and rose from her seat, beginning to walk towards the banquet hall where the entrance ceremony would be held. The valedictorians, including Asel, followed behind her.

They arrived at a dressing room set up behind the banquet hall. A room where one wall was entirely a mirror, filled with all sorts of cosmetics and clothing. Asel furrowed his brow the moment he saw the familiar space. He immediately approached Friede and declared,

“I won’t be putting anything on.”

“Hmm? Even just a light touch-up would be good, wouldn’t it?”

“I have a condition where I go into spasms if I put anything on my face.”

“What kind of ridiculous condition iㅡ”

“My master vouches for it.”

“ㅡit may exist. Then just wait patiently.”

Friede patted Asel’s shoulder with a smile. Asel nodded in satisfaction, plunking down in a chair in the dressing room and waiting for the commencement ceremony to begin. The nobles, including Grace, seemed used to such makeup, receiving it quietly. Only the Magical Engineering department’s valedictorian grumbled.

“Ugh, why do we have to put this stuff on our faces? It’s suffocating.”

“You must bear it. This is how you capture men’s hearts.”

“Isn’t it wrong to capture them with something like this? You should do it with your usual self. Are you perhaps insecure?”

“…”

The makeup was completed relatively quickly in about 30 minutes. Grace, who finished first, glanced at her face in the mirror, then approached Asel with a flustered expression. At the same time, she asked shyly.

“H-how is it, Asel? Does it suit me?”

“Quite lovely.”

The reply came not from Ascel, but Rando. He nodded, wearing a smile that anyone would find agreeable.

“More beautiful than any lady I’ve seen. An appearance that would only shine brighter should she dance with me at a ball.”

“…What’s with this, crazy b*stard?”

Grace muttered, glaring at Rando as if he were something repulsive. Ascel let out a bewildered chuckle at her attitude, which had flipped like a coin.

“…Which one is the real you?”

“Huh? What did you say?”

“Nothing, I just said you’re pretty.”

“Oh, really? Hee hee. He he.”

Grace giggled, sounding quite foolish. There wasn’t a trace of falsehood in it. She was genuinely delighted by Ascel’s words. But there was no lie in the words she flung at Rando either.

Confusion clouded Ascel’s face.

Meanwhile, everyone’s preparations were complete. Almost as if on cue, Friede entered the room.

“Time to enter.”

Olivia nodded.

The group stood before a door at the back of the ballroom, awaiting Friede’s signal. Friede killed the magical engineering device controlling the ballroom’s lights, then gestured toward the group with her chin. Rando and Olivia, as if familiar with the routine, opened the door and strode confidently through.

‘I thought we’d be moved by magic, but they use a rather barbaric method.’

Ascel thought, then smiled wryly.

If this were Wiheim, mystery would naturally stir and all manner of miracles would fly through the sky. But here, such a flow of magic couldn’t be felt. The faintest traces of magic could be detected from time to time, but even those were weak. Only the magic power contained within the magic tools shone brightly.

A landscape utterly different from Wiheim. A sensation he must now grow accustomed to.

Ascel stuck close behind Olivia as he entered the ballroom.

A darkened hall. Only the stage at the far end was brightly lit. The group ascended it and stood in a neat row. Silence fell within the ballroom, followed by Friede stepping onto the stage.

Plume, her assistant, followed with a ring and a commendation certificate. She raised a voice amplification device to her lips and spoke.

“We will now commence the award ceremony for the top-ranked freshmen. Olivia Familion, please step forward.”

The award ceremony began. Starting with Olivia, the top students lined up one by one before Friede to receive their rings and certificates. Eventually, Ascel’s turn arrived. He walked toward Friede as Plume called his name. Friede met his dark eyes and began to speak.

“Ascel.”

“Yes.”

“You have achieved the highest academic performance among the students belonging to the Academy’s Department of Magical Engineering based on your combat abilities, magical skills, magical sensitivity, control, and innate speed of formula expression. Therefore, your abilities are more than sufficient to earn the title of valedictorian. Thus, we hereby appoint you as the valedictorian of the Department of Magical Engineering. Are there any objections?”

“None.”

Ascel answered with a smile. Friede’s lips twitched into a slight smile as she handed him the commendation certificate.

“Congratulations on being valedictorian.”

He accepted the certificate, returning to his place. He waited for the ceremony for the other students to conclude.

Perhaps five minutes passed thus. Bianca, valedictorian of the Magical Engineering Faculty, was the last, and with her, the entire event concluded. The cohort, leaving only Olivia on the platform to deliver a representative speech, exited through the doors they had entered through, back into the banquet hall.

“I want to go back…”

Bianca grumbled, walking behind Asel. Though he didn’t reply, Asel inwardly agreed with her.

It wasn’t that he was particularly tired. Both his body and mind were sound. But he held no desire to linger in the banquet hall. He simply wished to return to his laboratory and resume the experiments he had planned.

Simultaneous mana manifestation, creation of interception formulas, imbuing formulas into gems, recreating frost magic based on simultaneously manifested mana… These alone were enough to occupy him. If inspiration struck as he continued his research, the possibilities would likely double, maybe more.

‘I’d like to finish a few before the midterm exams.’

To do so, he would have to frequent the lab diligently from today onward. He would have to pour in insane amounts of time, and likely live with shadows beneath his eyes for days to come. Even while doing that, he had to keep up with the Academy lessons, maintaining at least a minimum amount of sleep.

Roughly three hours should suffice. If insufficient, he could add another hour. Asel considered this, organizing his thoughts.

At the end of the hallway, an assistant professor from Friede stood. He turned towards the group, a smile playing on his lips.

“Congratulations on the award ceremony. You are now free to do as you please.”

“Yes. Much obliged.”

Upon hearing the assistant professor’s words, Asel replied promptly and started to quickly leave the banquet hall. Lando, who had been waiting for a chance to speak with the Great Mage’s disciple, grabbed him, but Asel brushed him off with the excuse that he was tired. Grace trailed after him, hot on his heels. Lando’s face twisted slightly as a result.

“…Just because a mage from humble origins has a Great Mage as a master, does he think he’s something special? The arrogance is reaching the heavens.”

The instant he uttered those words, mana rapidly coalesced directly in front of him. There wasn’t even time to register it. The mana instantly shifted form, becoming dozens of bolts of lightning connecting the ceiling to the floor.

[Thunder Divide (雷分)]

Pajijijijijijik!!!

The divided lightning flashed madly, detonating with a thunderous roar. Even with the power minimized and the number of divided lightning bolts reduced, it was still a menacing electric formula. Upon contact, the lightning, carrying a vibrant blue current, would begin to necrotize the cells of the entire body starting from that point.

Just standing nearby made the skin prickle. Hairs stood on end, and fingers twitched uncontrollably. The instinct for self-preservation screamed to flee this place immediately. But Lando couldn’t move. His legs refused to obey his will, and his mind had been completely bleached by the sheer terror of this unfamiliar, lethal magic.

“…Ah.”

Ultimately, Lando, pupils trembling, drooling, collapsed in place. Asel, calming Grace, whose eyes were brimming with murderous intent, waved towards Lando.

“See you around.”

With those words, Asel turned away. Simultaneously, the electricity blocking the hallway vanished as if it had never been there.

“A refreshing friend, wouldn’t you say? I like him.”

Bianca, valedictorian of the Magical Engineering Faculty, smirked at the sight.

Lando, on the other hand, could only stare, unable to speak.

For a long while, he sat there, his lips moving silently.