Ryuu Kusari no Ori

This chapter was brought to you by the collaboration between PolterGlast and Saekano Translations.

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Volume 1 Chapter 3.2

Old Wound that Hurts Part 2

Translator : PolterGlast

Nozomu went back to the academy with a sense of fulfillment for the first time in a long time, but in the afternoon he had to attend Caskell's class again.

What's more, this time it was a practical class regarding ritual magic, a class that Nozomu, who couldn't use magic by any means, was completely unable to participate in.

Nozomu had no choice but to sit at the edge of the training ground where he observed the practical training of his classmates.

"As I mentioned in the previous lesson, ritual magic is one of the most classic forms of magic. Therefore, if you follow the procedure properly, you can even use the lowest level of magic. Unless you're extremely untalented..."

Caskell said so while glancing at Nozomu, who was sitting at the edge of the training ground, and as he did so, some of Nozomu's classmates started snickering.

"You pebbles. Just how bad is your brains that you can't understand it even after I teach you over and over again?...”

As Nozomu frowned at the sneers directed at him, his homeroom teacher, Caskell, let out an angry yell.

"U-, umm, that’s- … -mmph.”

At that moment, Caskell grabbed one of the girls who was snickering at Nozomu by the chin and looked down at her with an intimidating gaze.

"I don't give a damn about you feeling so great by snickering at the bottom of the pile. But if you're not here to study, then get out of here. By any chance, do you want me to expel you? Then just say so. I'll have you out right away."

"N-no, that's not-..."

"Then why are you disrupting my class? Can't you understand how your own actions will come back to you?"

The female student was completely overwhelmed by Caskell, who was staring at her with piercing eyes. After being grabbed by Caskell, the girls' eyes moistened and wandered as if looking for help, but the other students all looked away in unison as if they didn't want to be noticed by Caskell right now.

However, at that moment, an annoyed voice interrupted the isolated female student and Caskell.

"Oi, Caskell, leave that small fry alone and get on with it. We're running out of time."

The voice belonged to Mars.

He glared at Caskell and the girl with his arms crossed, looking unhappy.

There was no sign of protecting and defending the female student who was on the verge of tears.

It was this girl who was the one provoking Caskell, who didn't like having his class disrupted, and the fact that she was being subjected to this was entirely due to her own fault.

"... Certainly, I don't have time for this garbage."

Caskell released his hand that was holding the girl's chin.

He then resumed the class, ignoring the female student who slumped on the spot.

"As I mentioned earlier, this class will be about ritual magic. I will explain the effects of the magic to be practiced, the necessary tools and procedures, and then each of you will put it into practice."

Caskell pointed to the edge of the training ground.

There was a strange magic circle painted on it, with a wooden altar and wax candles in the center.

"This is an altar that recreates classic ritual magic. Each of you will recreate the altar and use ritual magic on it."

This time, it was practical training regarding ritual magic, so they would start by actually making an altar.

"The magic will be activated by chanting the spell words according to the predetermined procedure while channeling the magic power at the center. Oh, rest assured. The magic invoked will be limited to lighting a fire or sprinkling water, depending on the capability of the caster."

After listening to the explanation, everyone gathered the necessary tools, then moved to the training ground, and began to work.

The materials for constructing the altar were pre-arranged in a predetermined pattern, and the basics could be easily constructed as-is. The problem was the construction of the magic circle, which was a little more difficult.

The accuracy of the magic circle would be directly correlated to the accuracy of the technique. In addition, it was also important to take into account the capability of the caster.

Nevertheless, the students gathered here were, after all, those who were able to enroll in the highest academies on the continent.

They quickly created the altar and magic circle, and successfully performed the ritual magic one after another.

"Alright, I'm done ......"

"Phew, is this about right?"

"Hey, look at Mars. He's pretty amazing."

The one who excelled the most in such a situation was, unsurprisingly, Mars.

While the others created enough wind to blow out the candles on the altar or palm-sized flames, he created a whirlwind that enveloped the entire altar he had prepared.

Although it might be hard to imagine if one were to judge by his crude speech and behavior, Mars was one of those exceptional people who were able to use magic and Qi-jutsu at a fairly high level.

The main source of Qi and magic power, also known as life force and spiritual power, are all rooted in the power of the soul, called the "origin element", but they cannot be blended together and when they are inclined toward either one of them, they tend to oppose each other.

Therefore, people's capabilities tend to be inclined towards either magic or Qi-jutsu, or even both. Of course, there are exceptions, such as those who show a high aptitude for both Qi-jutsu and magic, but the percentage was less than 10%. Moreover, when it came to those who could actually use magic and Qi-jutsu simultaneously, the number was even smaller.

"I've always thought, Isn't it strange that such a guy is in the tenth class?"

"Well, even before he entered school, he seemed pretty violent in town, and after he entered school, he would snap at people everywhere. It's not difficult to see why he was assigned to the tenth class."

"Wha, idiot, you're talking too loud. You'll draw his attention to us."

The boys who were whispering to each other glanced at Mars and awkwardly moved away from each other.

With his golden hair fluttering in the wind, Mars looked pissed. With an annoyed look on his face, he quickly erased the wind he had created and quickly moved on to the next task. Meanwhile, Nozomu sat on the edge of the training ground and continued to watch his classmates' lessons with a blank expression on his face.

No one called out to him nor paid any attention to him.

He had been subjected to something like this for almost all of his practical magic classes since his first year, not just once or twice. It all started ever since he was deemed a liability due to his lack of magical power due to his [Ability Suppression].

"You have no capabilities. You are a liability. Don't get in our way.", they said things like that to him.

He had been treated as someone who didn't exist.

Since then, he only went to class to get attendance and not to fail any evaluations.

(I'm used to it now...)

With resignation in his heart, Nozomu turned his attention to the neighboring training ground as if to escape from his class.

Next to his class, two other classes of the same grade were having practical lessons.

The class was a fairly high-ranking class, and apart from the practical lesson teacher, several assistant teachers were seen in the same training ground.

The content of the class seemed to be one-on-one combat training, but the atmosphere was clearly different from those of Nozomu and his classmates.

The assistant teachers would prepare potions for students who had finished combat training and sometimes act as training opponents themselves, including many other things that were not done in Nozomu's class.

Solminati Academy provides preferential treatment based on each rank in order to nurture talented students in a better environment.

Preferential treatment exists even in everyday classes, and higher ranks thus have more opportunities to get guidance from teachers.

Furthermore, the adventurer guild and many stores in the city also provide special treatment in the form of granting requests, goods, and services based on this priority.

Nozomu was observing the atmosphere of a class which was different from his own, but his eyes suddenly widened when a distinctive long black hair suddenly came into sight.

"She is the one I met in the Spasim forest yesterday... So that class is the first class."

What caught Nozomu's attention was Irisdina Francilt, whom he had just met yesterday in the Spasim forest.

She strode to the center of the training ground as her homeroom teacher urged her to do so. Standing in front of her in opposition was a female student with red hair tied in a ponytail. Nozomu's eyes widened as soon as he saw that person.

"Lisa……"

Irisdina's opponent was Nozomu ex-lover whom he had promised his future to. Nozomu's heart was pounding when he saw her. It was the first time he saw her in a long time.

Since advancing to the second year, Nozomu and Lisa had never met at all. In the meritocratic Solminati Academy, there was a wide gap between each class, and only a few students visited other classes, even during breaks. No wonder, Nozomu's chances of seeing Lisa were also drastically reduced.

He hadn't seen her for almost a year, and she seemed much more dignified and stronger than she had during the first grade.

Even from a distance, he could notice her growth. Realizing this, Nozomu felt even more pain in his creaking chest.

He clenched his fists to cover the pain. Without realizing it, Nozomu had forgotten everything about his own class.

Lisa and Irisdina, facing each other in the center of the training ground, raised their respective weapons. Irisdina was at the ready pointing the tip of her dummy sword that resembled a rapier, while Lisa stood with a ready stance while holding two dummy swords, a long and a short one, reminiscent of sabers.

Lisa's stance was reminiscent of an agile cat, while Irisdina's stance was graceful, reminiscent of an elegant orchestra conductor. Both were on their toes, keeping their eyes on the other, and were breathing in unison.

It was Lisa who made the first move.

She casted a spell to strengthen her body and immediately moved toward Irisdina.

(~, fast!)

Nozomu was surprised to see her acceleration, which was so fast that he could barely follow it from a distance.

On the other hand, Irisdiina calmly intercepted Lisa despite being shown such a high acceleration. Five magic bullets created by her ability [Immediate Deployment] were fired at Lisa who was rushing forward at high speed.

"Haaa!"

Lisa did not slow down at all either, even though she ran while using her dual swords to deflect and knock down the five dark-colored magic bullets.

Lisa, who had closed the gap between the two, raised her Qi and swung her right longsword.

*Clang!*

Irisdina, using her [Immediate Deployment] to instantly cast body strengthening on her own body, skillfully parried Lisa's powerful slash, which carried a fierce momentum.

She then spun her body to shake off the impact she received and circled towards the side of Lisa's body.

Irisdina counterattacked with body movements reminiscent of a graceful dance. A precise thrust with momentum and body rotation was executed, slamming into Lisa from the left side of her exposed abdomen.

"Haa!"

But the current Lisa is also one of the best in her grade.

She brought her left dagger down on her abdomen to parry the approaching rapier and jumped wide upwards due to the force of the oncoming thrust.

*Clang!*

A strong metallic sound resounded, and Irisdina’s expression clouded slightly.

Apparently, Lisa had an advantage in terms of body-strengthening magic.

Moreover, Irisdina, who had exposed an opening due to the bounce of her weapon, was met with Lisa's follow-up attack.

With the help of the twin swords and powerful body-strengthening magic, a swarm of slashes, just like a storm, struck Irisdina.

Irisdina managed to handle the swarm of slashes with precision while retreating backward.

(She could even handle that, huh...)

Whilst admiring Irisdina's swordsmanship, the flow of battle was tilted towards Lisa.

At this rate, Irisdina might eventually be driven to a corner. However, just as Nozomu was thinking so, something unbelievable happened.

"~!"

Suddenly, Lisa, who had been attacking, stopped her attack abruptly and turned her head to the side. Immediately afterward, magic bullets ran past her eyes at high speed.

If one were to look closely, one could see two magic bullets being formed surrounding Irisdina.

(How could she construct a spell while being attacked like that...)

Following the previous shot, the remaining two magic bullets attacked Lisa from close range.

Lisa raised her twin swords to block the fired magic bullets, but due to that, her momentum was completely lost.

Irisdina’s casting speed gave Nozomu a chill once again.

"~!”

With Lisa's offensive momentum interrupted, Irisdina moved forward to launch a counterattack. She slashed toward Lisa as if dancing with her rapier, and then fired magic bullets as if overlapping with the slashes.

She also began to use more varied magic in succession, such as applying additional strengthening magic to the rapier she was wielding to increase the power of her slash, trying to entangle Lisa's legs with black chains, and creating a mist of darkness to block her vision.

(The magic she can utilize amidst all that isn't just magic bullets, huh? Even though she had already wielded her rapier so fiercely...)

Thus, once again, being shown the heights of the top overall rank in the school year, Nozomu could do nothing but be stunned.

On the other hand, Lisa also kept trying to outwit Irisdina's ever-changing attacks and kept slashing without taking even a step back.

She used her twin swords to deflect the magic bullets coming at her from blind spots, breaking the magic chains that were trying to wrap around her, and blowing away the mist of darkness. The dance of the twin swords brought forth the image of a storm, and the continuous oncoming attack brought forth the image of a clear stream.

The sound of swords slashing and magic exploding from them echoed throughout the training ground like a rushing waterfall.

However, in the midst of the completely balanced attack and defense, Lisa suddenly leaped back with a huge leap and opened a gap.

Nozomu wondered why she, who had been carrying out an offensive-oriented battle, was suddenly taking distance from Irisdina.

However, as the twin swords Lisa carried were crossed on top of each other, a burst of magical power erupted. Flames coiled around the stacked blades, and they gradually gained momentum as they slithered like snakes. The dummy sword blades became crimson hot, and the wind, raging due to the heat, shook her hair violently.

"... Haaa!”

And the moment Lisa swung the twin swords that were stacked crosswise, the accumulated heat was released all at once.

*Boom!*

With a roaring sound, as if a volcano exploded, a torrent of flames erupted and engulfed Irisdina.

Facing the oncoming torrent of flames, Irisdina held her rapier over her shoulder and stared at it in a meditative manner.

The blade, which was enveloped in a pale light due to the enhancement magic, somehow began to shine so brightly that it could be seen from a distance.

The blade of the rapier glowed in a dark color. Perhaps because Irisdina kept casting her spells, the blade of magical power, reminiscent of the night under a new moon, flickered and twinkled like a beating heart, gradually increasing its brilliance.

As the radiance of the magic sword increased, the Qi emanating from her body grew stronger.

Then, at the moment when the increasing magic power and Qi reached a critical point, the blade was swung.

"Haaaa!"

The magic sword was swung as if to reap the torrent of flames that rushed towards it while gouging the ground.

A sword, reminiscent of a meteor, sliced through the flames and extinguished them.

"Oioioi, whoa!”

Nozomu involuntarily let out a cry of astonishment as the exploding flames scattered across the training ground along with the wind.

The scattered flames quickly disappeared, and silence enveloped the area.

The billowing smoke slowly dissipated, and the two figures that appeared seemed completely unharmed.

But Nozomu was shocked by the destruction that had been etched into the training ground. The ground, scorched by heat and charred black, forming a line leading down toward Lisa's feet.

The ground, burned by the extremely hot burst of flame, was still oozing smoke, showing the tremendous amount of heat inflicted in just a few seconds. And the black lines carved into the ground were split into two in front of Irisdina and faded away as if they had been erased by drops of water.

"She can even stop such flames..."

The magic that Lisa unleashed was not the kind of power that even a high-ranking mage could unleash. Without a doubt, it was as powerful as Tima Lime's [Wind Tunnel of the Hungry Beast], which Nozomu saw in Spashim Forest. However, Irisdina, who managed to slash through Lisa's flames head-on, was also outstanding.

"No way..."

What about me? Am I getting stronger? Can I really become stronger?

Nozomu subconsciously swallowed those words.

Unaware of the words that crushed him, he felt suffocated, as if he had been submerged under water.

His hand naturally stretched out to his chest, his fists clenched tightly, and his teeth creaked as he gritted his teeth.

"…………”

Without saying a word, Nozomu turned around to avoid the pain. He was unaware of someone waving behind him.

◆

As soon as the billowing smoke subsided, Lisa and Irisdina lowered their respective weapons.

Irisdina's dummy sword exuded white smoke, probably due to being exposed to multiple reinforcement magic and intense heat.

To begin with, the dummy sword was made of low-grade metal. Compared to her own rapier, it was inferior in every aspect.

Irisdina let out an exclamation of amazement as the sound of the blade cracking flowed into her ears.

"Phew, that was tough..."

"How can you say that after slicing my attack in two with one slash?"

Lisa also relaxed her shoulders and let the sabers in her hands fall to the ground.

The dummy swords she was using had already been rendered useless.

The dummy swords, which had melted and lost its blade halfway through, made a dry crackling sound.

"When did you start preparing that magic sword?"

"Since I began exchanging blows with you. However, your offensive was so fierce that it took me almost a minute to prepare it. If had kept attacking without retreating, I'll probably be defeated."

"Hmm, Is that so? I'll take that as a compliment then."

Irisdina quietly watched Lisa as she turned and walked away.

(Lisa Hounds. So she's his ex-girlfriend huh? I heard that she is now dating Ken Notice, who was also from the same hometown...)

Irisdina's gaze fell on the blonde classmate who walked towards Lisa.

Ken Notice. He has a gentle smile on his face, and when he made his way to Lisa's side, his gentle smile bloomed even brighter as he handed over the potion in his hand.

Lisa accepted the offered potion with a smile on her face and slowly sipped the contents as she began to talk.

It was easy to see that they were quite close, as Lisa occasionally jabbed Ken with her elbow, and Ken muttered something into her ear, causing Lisa, who was drinking the potion, to gasp and choke.

This was a scene Irisdina had seen many times since they were in the same class.

(Hmm. So they're lovers, huh? Well, I wouldn’t know anything based on that alone...)

Irisdina herself would never do such a rude act of stepping into someone else's love path out of curiosity, nor would she have even thought of it.

She is the next head of one of the noble families in the kingdom of Forsina, and has never been involved in romance before.

She is a person who had always been focused on studying and working hard to fulfill the duties befitting that title.

So, although she had heard stories about the so-called romances, she had never actually experienced them.

(And I didn't know anything about them. So, judging them only based on the rumors and the atmosphere around them was just plain foolish.)

Putting aside the relationship between Nozomu and Lisa for the time being, Irisdina began to reflect on the combat training that had just happened.

(If I could have deployed the [Lunar Eclipse] a little faster, I would have been able to push her back... I guess I still have a long way to go)

A magic sword that took more than ten seconds to deploy. She was wondering how could she deploy it in half a second like Nozomu Bountis.

While imagining the blade she saw in the forest in her mind, Irisdina kept pondering on how to reach a greater height.

"Ah...”

Probably because she was thinking of Nozomu. She suddenly turned her attention to the neighboring training ground, and there she saw that person, the one she was currently most interested in. While remembering the encounter in the Spasim forest in her mind, Irisdina gave a small waving hand towards Nozomu, as if driven by her curiosity. But Nozomu turned around immediately and walked away.

"Eh..."

Ignored. Such a thought came to her mind, but she reconsidered that perhaps he hadn't noticed her.

She breathed out a heavy sigh to dispel the look of frustration that appeared on her face for a moment and walked over to her best friend, who was waiting at the edge of the training ground to receive her share of the potion.

"Here you go, Ai."

"Ah, thank you."

She drank the potion offered by her best friend and recovered her exhausted strength and magic. She could feel her vitality was revived, and her mind was rejuvenated.

The next match was already underway in the training ground, and once again the sounds of excitement and battle resounded in the air.

Normally, she would watch her classmates fight and try to devise a move that might help in her future fights.

But then she realized that her gaze naturally drifted to the neighboring training ground.

"Ai, what's wrong?"

"N-no, it's nothing."

After being called by Tima, Irisdina tried to focus on the combat training in front of her.

However, at the back of her mind, Nozomu's figure was constantly flickering.

Irisdina had forgotten the rumors about him until Tima had mentioned it to her, and had originally only heard about it and never learned the details.

"Tima, may I ask you a few questions?"

"Yes, what is it?”

"It's about Nozomu Bountis... Can you tell me more about the rumors?"

Tima's eyes widened upon hearing such an unexpected question.

On this day, Nozomu's image at the back of her mind made it very difficult for Irisdina to concentrate even after she finished her afternoon class.

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After school, Nozomu's steps felt heavy as he passed through the school's main gate. The day went on as usual, but he felt as if his entire body was dragging a heavy lead. He was being weighed down by the scene of the first class being held next to his class. He was confronted with the difference between himself and the girls in a way that could not have been starker. In the face of this heartbreaking reality, various emotions flashed through Nozomu's mind.

Why was I dumped?

Why am I being ostracized?

Why am I not getting stronger?

Why am I in so much pain?

These were thoughts that had floated through Nozomu's mind many times before. And at the same time, the ones that made him get lost in the maze with no answers.

He could not think of any reason why Lisa had dumped him. [Ability Suppression] was also chaining him down and preventing him from moving forward.

And he couldn't even return to his hometown. He came to Arcazam against his father's disapproval after all. The reality of being surrounded by a sense of entrapment made Nozomu subconsciously stop thinking.

He let his feet lead him into the Spasim forest, lost in the hazy mist of mindlessness, clouded by the reality and heartache he had just witnessed.

It was a habit he had been doing for over a year and a very common defensive behavior for mentally broken humans. Of course, he didn't start out this way either.

For a while even after the emergence of [Ability Suppression], he kept trying, believing that he could still manage, and when Lisa dumped him at first, he kept asking her the reason.

However, contrary to his efforts, his abilities and grades did not improve, and Lisa only returned a cold glare and did not answer Nozomu's questions.

From then on, whenever he repeatedly faced questions that could not be answered and was faced with the reality that he could not change, his heart was completely broken.

(I should go back to Shisho and train more rigorously...)

And in an attempt to mend even his broken heart, he tried to expose himself to harsher training.

But just as Nozomu was about to walk through the central garden in a gloomy state of mind, a girl's voice could be heard from the side as if she desperately needed help.

"Wait, wait~~!”

"Hmm? W-whoa!”

Suddenly, a small shadow jumped out from the nearby grass. The larger shadow that came out following it caught the smaller shadow that came out first.

"Gotcha... -kyaa!”

The large shadow that caught the small shadow lost its balance in front of Nozomu and almost fell to the ground. As quickly as he could, Nozomu reached out and supported the shadow that was about to fall.

"Nozomu-san?”

"Somia-chan?”

The shadow that appeared was Somia, whom he met at lunch break today.

They looked at each other and looked surprised.

"What's the matter? It looks like you came out of the grass in a hurry..."

"Umm, Kuro-chan did it again."

If one were to look closely, one could see a black cat resting on her propped-up arm. The black cat was wearing Somia's bracelet around its neck, which also showed that this black cat had behaved badly again.

"Well... I left it in the classroom during my afternoon practical skills lesson, and I think Kuro-chan came in through the open window..."

"Haha, what a mischievous cat."

Nozomu slowly lowered Somia to the ground, her shoulders slumped.

Somia removed the bracelet from Kuro's neck and put it back on her own wrist. Kuro was still scratching the bracelet on Somia's wrist with its claw as if it still had some unfinished business with it.

"Well, I'll take my leave now..."

"Ah, Nozomu-san. Wait a moment."

Seeing that she had recovered her bracelet, Nozomu decided that it was okay to go and tried to leave at once. However, Somia stopped him.

"Hmm? Do you still need something?"

"U-umm, well... can we meet again tomorrow?"

"... Eh? Meet? Why?"

"You've helped me not once, but twice, and I'd like to talk more with you, Nozomu-san."

Nozomu was troubled by Somia's gaze as she stared at him.

Perhaps it was because of the child's own purity and curiosity, but to be honest, his treatment at school was terrible.

In particular, the bullying and harassment from some of his classmates were so severe that he was afraid that if she were to be seen by his side, they would hurt her. Besides, he had to go to Shino after school for training.

"You don't want to?"

Perhaps sensing Nozomu's atmosphere and feeling his attempt to refuse, Somia looked at him with a pleading gaze before he could refuse.

As expected, it was difficult for Nozomu to refuse when being looked at with such a gaze.

"... Sure. But I can't do it after school, so we can only talk a little at lunchtime..."

"Really? That's great! I'll see you tomorrow then!"

"Eh? No, wait, hey..."

The moment Nozomu agreed, Somia smiled like a blooming flower, and with the cat in her hand, she left in a flash with tottering and nimble footsteps.

Nozomu, who had been left behind, watched her disappear into the shadows of the city in the distance for a few moments in a daze, before smiling wryly.

"What can I say, she's a girl with terrific momentum ......"

Despite her petite stature, she was so full of energy, more so than befitting her age, and before Nozomu knew it, the gloom he felt before somehow faded away.

◆

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