The Academy Regressor is Obsessed

The day after the entrance ceremony ended.

The new first semester of the Academy officially began. Asel woke up early in the morning, washed up, changed clothes, and then checked the schedule that Lacey had brought last night. It was a schedule with combat department and magical studies department classes evenly distributed. Since he hadn’t applied for elective courses yet, there were quite long breaks in between.

‘With this much time, I should be able to do research in between.’

He wasn’t sure how it would be when elective courses were added to the schedule, but for now, there was plenty of free time. While he might not be able to do research related to magic creation, it seemed possible to investigate applied formulas or take apart magical tools.

Both were nearing their final stages. Applying formulas to jewels was already somewhat progressed. Now he just needed to start proper crafting and infuse magical power into the formulas to finish everything. Thanks to this being much easier than other research, he could finish it relatively quickly.

Taking apart magical tools was the same. However, this wasn’t as easy.

The formula contained in the magical tool was a kind of defensive magic that automatically reflects attacks the wearer doesn’t perceive. Although it was the type of magic Asel wanted, it was difficult to directly test its effects for that reason.

The condition of ‘attacks not perceived’ was the problem. It’s not about attacks invisible to the eye. It was impossible to activate the magical tool’s ability to discover and reflect external attacks that don’t enter the sensory range, whether alone or even with the help of others.

So while he had taken apart the formula, he couldn’t try using the magic. He could change the activation conditions, but that would deviate from the purpose and be meaningless.

It’s fortunate that he at least grasped all the formulas.

‘I don’t know what the first assignment will be, but I hope the magical tool activates then if possible.’

Asel thought this as he got up from his seat.

It was getting close to the time for classes to start. Although there wouldn’t be formal classes today since it was the first day of enrollment, there was still an explanation session for the magical studies department curriculum. He had to attend before it was too late.

He put on the coat he had taken off and left his dormitory room. Then he moved his steps towards the auditorium where the magical studies department explanation session would take place. Fortunately, the distance wasn’t too far, so he was able to arrive before long. He opened the door of the auditorium and rolled his eyes looking for a suitable empty seat.

“Oh, Asel!”

At that moment, Elena, who was sitting in the back, spotted him and shouted. Asel looked at her beaming smile and burst into laughter in response.

“You came early.”

He said as he sat down next to Elena. Elena nodded with a chuckle.

“I had nothing to do, so I just came first. Ellen and Grace left first, and I felt a bit odd being alone.”
“You should have waited for me.”
“I thought about it, but I didn’t want to wake you up and feel sorry. So I came first.”

Elena said, cutely twisting her body. Asel smiled softly at her appearance.

He had thought this when they first met, but she was such a bright child. A girl full of laughter who likes people. Just talking with her made his complicated feelings ease a little. Although her excessive clinginess was a flaw, even that didn’t seem bad if he thought of it as part of her charm.

‘She doesn’t cling to other people much, but she does it especially to me and Ellen.’

He wasn’t sure of the reason. Perhaps she simply thought of them as her closest friends. They had taken the entrance exam together, and now there was no awkwardness between them. Asel also considered Elena quite close.

It was natural since there was no reason to dislike or avoid her. He lightly patted Elena’s head and leaned back against the backrest. Then Elena made a playful expression and poked various parts of Asel’s body with her finger. But her fingers couldn’t pass through Asel’s shield and stopped in mid-air.

“Hup!”

Even when she applied force, the shield remained unmoved. Elena’s cheeks puffed up.

“That’s unfair! Remove this!”
“I don’t want to.”
“Eek…!”

Elena made a strange sound as if upset and kept poking her finger towards Asel’s side. Asel left her alone and turned his head towards a familiar presence approaching.

He saw Selene standing with an indifferent expression in his view.

“Hello.”
“…Why are you sitting in the back? I was in front, but you didn’t come to the side.”
“I didn’t see you. When did you come?”

Selene answered as she sat down next to Asel.

“A while ago. I thought you’d come nearby if I waited. But here you two are, being all lovey-dovey. Are you two dating?”

She asked this without any particular emotion. Asel, who realized it was a joke, smiled bitterly, but Elena didn’t. She flushed red and hurriedly dropped her hand that had been poking Asel. It was an unexpectedly intense reaction. Both Selene and Asel’s faces turned towards her.

Elena rolled her eyes in confusion as she received their gazes. As she did so, her lips trembled.

“I-I think that should be done after getting to know each other better…”
“……”
“Of course, I don’t mean I dislike Asel! B-but we’re still just friends…”
“Still?”

Selene grinned as she picked up on Elena’s slip of the tongue.

“Then later?”
“…Don’t say that!”

Elena couldn’t hold back and shouted loudly. Selene chuckled and shook her head left and right.

“Sorry, sorry. It was a joke. But if you react like you dislike it so much, won’t Asel get hurt? Right, Asel?”

Selene asked, poking Asel’s side repeatedly. Asel decided to go along with her playfully.

“I am a bit hurt. Do you dislike me that much? I’ll move seats then.”
“N-no! Don’t go. I don’t dislike you…”

Elena hurriedly pressed down on Asel’s thigh and said in a whimpering voice. Her eyes became moist, and tears slightly welled up in the corners of her eyes. Asel, who hadn’t expected her to cry, comforted her with a bewildered expression.

“I-it’s a joke, Elena. I didn’t mean anything by it at all. I’m not hurt at all.”
“…Ungh, really?”
“Really.”
“…I’ll believe you.”

Elena muttered this and then buried her head in Asel’s shoulder. Judging by her not shaking, it seemed she wasn’t crying. Asel let out a deep sigh of relief and patted Elena’s shoulder. As he did so, he glanced at Selene.

She immediately lowered her gaze.

“I’m sorry.”
“Bad woman!”

Elena grumbled in a muffled voice. Selene caught the meaning of what she said and chewed her lips.

‘Bad woman?’

“Quiet.”

At that moment, a man climbed onto the platform in the auditorium. The bustling atmosphere instantly settled, and the gazes of the seated students fixed on the man. Asel looked at him and narrowed his eyes.

‘Roughly 7th rank upper level.’

Not quite at the level of approaching the 8th rank. But he was clearly counted among the strong ones even within the 7th rank.

Just because they’re the same rank doesn’t mean magicians are at the same level. In the first place, ranks themselves are just a concept created to divide magicians’ levels more intuitively. It couldn’t be an absolute indicator. If you look, there are quite a few cases where magicians of lower ranks win in duels against magicians of higher ranks than themselves.

‘That man probably can’t beat a great magician though.’

Still, he had clearly reached a similar level. If a great magician were careless, it might not be entirely impossible for him to take their life.

‘The magic he’s mastered is… wind-based?’

Wind magicians’ magical power has the characteristic of flowing faster and more refreshingly than others. That man was like that.

It was Asel’s first time seeing a high-level wind magician too. He stared with interest at the magical power floating around the man.

“Nice to meet you. I am Professor Firenze Killian, in charge of wind magic and magical combat studies. I also belong to the Airos Magic Tower.”
“…Airos Magic Tower?”
“It’s the magic tower that handles wind magic. I heard they turn a blind eye to their magicians wandering around, is that why he’s also working as a professor?”

Students whispered. But when Firenze opened his mouth again, it became quiet as if it were a lie. The words of a high-level magician carried that much weight.

“There are surely some among the new students here who belong somewhere. Or you might be children of noble families. But your status in the Academy is all the same as students. Keep in mind that any attempt to oppress others with your affiliation or status will immediately lead to suspension or expulsion once discovered. There will be no leniency.”
“……”
“Well, that’s enough warning. Let’s start the explanation session right away.”

Firenze said this and then asked a question to a student sitting in the front row.

“You. What do you think magic is?”

The student answered without hesitation in a confident voice.

“Magic is a miracle that can directly cause various mysteries existing in the world, and a study that explores the secrets of the world.”

It was truly an exemplary answer. When you read books about magic, almost all books describe magic like that. But Firenze’s expression wasn’t very good.

“Wrong.”
“…Pardon? What do you mean…”
“I said it’s wrong. If magic is a study as you say, why are you in the combat department? Shouldn’t you just sit like a bookworm and study endlessly?”

The student was at a loss for words. Firenze didn’t even pay attention to him and spoke looking at everyone in the auditorium.

“As that guy said, magic is a miracle. But this isn’t a study. It’s a miracle of killing designed to protect myself and kill others on the battlefield. The first magic was born like that. It’s a power created by stealing the power of demons and reversely creating it to kill them.”
“……”
“That’s why we classify magic under the combat department. We won’t do that stupid education of learning magic by just sitting and reading books. We will teach you by directly using magic, dueling, gaining intuition, and making sure you can do your part even if thrown onto a battlefield. Those who don’t like this should submit a withdrawal form within a week.”

Firenze stares straight at the students who are frowning.

“I’ll speak my personal view. I despise those who brag about being magicians just because they can handle a bit of magical power. I also despise those who can use magic but tremble in fear when it comes to actual combat. And I have no intention of producing those I despise in the form of ‘graduation’. I don’t know about other professors, but at least that’s what I think.”
“……”
“If you’ve entered the Academy, it means you’ve basically reached the 4th rank. But it takes an average of 6 years to go from 4th rank to 5th rank. 5th to 6th rank takes 8 years, and 7th rank takes 15 years. I plan to thoroughly shorten this period through classes. My goal is to produce strong magicians by doing so. The Chancellor also looked favorably upon this goal of mine and personally gave us the first assignment.”

First assignment. Asel’s face frowned at those words. He never imagined that phrase would pop up from the very first day of enrollment.

“The first assignment starts in just two days and continues for a total of 2 weeks. It’s a group assignment and you’ll be doing it together with non-combat department students.”
“Wait a moment, together with them?”

A student sitting in the front row questioned. Firenze nodded.

“The participating students are from the magical engineering department and alchemy department. These two. The group consists of 4 members in total, and the affiliation of the members is all random except for 1 non-combat department student. In other words, everyone except you could be from non-combat departments.”
“Isn’t that too unfair?”
“Why is it unfair? I didn’t say a word about the assignment being combat.”

The student’s mouth closed. Firenze pushed up his glasses with his index finger and continued speaking.

“The group members will be randomly composed. Groups will be determined by drawing papers and following the numbers that come out, and if there’s a gold circle on the paper you draw, it means you’re the group leader, so keep that in mind.”
“……”
“Now I’ll explain about the assignment. The assignment starts with solving requests that have been reviewed by external guilds and deemed safe for the Academy to handle. These requests are very diverse, ranging from simply gathering herbs to hunting magical beasts and investigating strange phenomena.”
“……”
“You will choose and solve such requests, and end by creating items related to the non-combat department student’s major using the money, goods, etc. that can be obtained as rewards. If there’s an alchemy department student in your group, you should make potions, and if there’s a magical engineering department student, you should make magical engineering machines.”

The students’ faces changed subtly. But Firenze didn’t care and had an assistant professor bring a box for drawing group members.

“The scoring will be primarily based on the completeness of the created items. As it’s an assignment that will also be reflected in your first semester grades, I hope you won’t do it carelessly. And buying items for the assignment is only possible with money received from solving requests.”
“……”
“What you can buy with your own money are only things necessary for solving the requests. I plan to ask for submission of receipts later, so make sure to record the items purchased and the amount spent whenever you buy something. If it’s discovered that you purchased tools needed for item creation with your own money, you’ll be immediately disqualified. Any questions up to here?”
“…Is this really an assignment given by the Chancellor? It seems like it’s rigged.”
“Be quiet. You call that a question?”

Firenze rebuked the student who asked the question, and when no more additional questions came out, he called the students to draw papers from the box. Asel quietly waited for his turn while crossing his arms. As he turned his gaze, he saw Elena and Selene rubbing their hands together.

“Please let me be in the same group as Asel…”
“Please don’t let my request overlap with this crazy guy…”

There’s no sane person here.

Asel thought this and chuckled. Not long after, Elena was called. She took out a paper from the box with a solemn expression and checked the number.

[13●]

It meant she was the leader of group 13. She nodded with satisfaction and returned to her seat. Then she immediately started rubbing her hands again.

“Please let Asel come to group 13…!”

Asel laughed at her desperation. At that moment, Firenze called his name. Asel patted Elena’s shoulder and then stood up.

“Draw.”

As Asel approached Firenze, he held out the box and said. Asel took out a paper from the box without hesitation and checked it.

[2]

It was group 2. He immediately showed the checked paper to Elena. Elena’s eyes widened and her mouth drooped at the number that was different from hers from the first digit. Selene, who drew her group after Asel, showed a similar expression.

“Which group are you in?”
“…Group 11.”
“That’s quite far.”

As Asel said this with a chuckle, Selene lightly hit his back with her fist like a cotton bat. Firenze looked at this scene and then created a wave of magical power to silence everyone and said:

“Then I’ll end the explanation session. There are no more classes today, so act as you please, and attend regular classes normally tomorrow. After that, from the day the assignment starts, all schedules will be focused on solving the assignment instead of Academy classes for two weeks, so you only need to pay attention to that. That’s all.”

As soon as Firenze finished speaking, he instantly disappeared riding the wind. Along with him, a bustling atmosphere formed in the auditorium. Asel looked at the students who started complaining loudly as soon as the professor disappeared, then looked down at the paper in his hand.

A black arrow had appeared on the paper that previously had nothing written except the number. Since Elena, who drew the leader, didn’t have one, it seemed to be an arrow indicating the leader’s location. It looked like the group drawing had ended in other departments as well.

Asel quietly thought while staring at where the arrow was pointing.

‘Should I go take a look at their faces?’