– Bang!
"Argh!"
Caught off guard by the explosion spell, Professor Glast was engulfed in smoke and vanished from sight.
Just before disappearing, I confirmed that he had taken defensive stance. It' unlikely that he was subdued by single attack.
At the moment of the explosion, he had effortlessly manifested sound suppression spell to prevent commotion—an indication of his astonishingly fast reflexes and agility.
However, with him blocking the entrance, I couldn' act rashly. Instead, I quickly dove under Professor Glast' desk.
As long as I didn' directly expose myself to the hierarchical mana of the 'Time Prison' spell, it would have no effect on me.
Essentially, the dark red mana is incredibly difficult to handle, and without sharp focus, it disperses and vanishes, so by quickly dodging, it couldn' touch me.
"You catch on quickly, Ed Rothtaylor. Your response is almost too smooth."
A gleam of light sparked in the still-rising smoke.
"Have you perused all my research papers and administrative logs in such short time?"
It seemed he thought I had discerned his intentions after going through his documents.
But, there was never need for that. I had already known for some time what course of action Professor Glast would take.
The only thing I hadn' anticipated was getting caught up in the crossfire myself.
"I can feel that your movements and measures anticipated my attack. However, it' strange… just glancing over few documents wouldn' reveal my true intentions."
"Professor Glast, is there really need to suppress me?"
I readied fire spell at my fingertips, the desk still between us.
Before Professor Glast had arrived in the office, I had gathered all the documents and stacked them near the research desk.
At this moment, it would be impossible to distinguish between essential and non-essential documents.
But setting this stack ablaze would certainly be problematic.
Losing few documents is not the end of the world.
While losing them wouldn' disrupt all of his plans immediately, it was certain to cause hiccup in his affairs.
With the resonance ceremony so close, any disruption would be inconvenient.
Thus, these documents could act as form of hostage, albeit very minor one.
After all, it' token resistance.
If things went south, he could sacrifice the papers and suppress me. But Professor Glast would prefer to deal with me cleanly, using his hierarchy magic, without damaging the documents.
I aimed to exploit this hesitation. If I sensed any reluctance, it was an opportunity to negotiate.
"Professor Glast, this may be an unfounded conjecture, but isn' it the sensibility to hierarchical magic that Aila possesses that you need? Since you've suppressed Aila, your goal has been achieved. There' no need to suppress me as well. I am known for keeping secrets."
"If that was all, I would not have summoned you to this study."
If it was just Aila, wouldn' his plans proceed without hitch?
It made no sense to me why he would go out of his way to suppress me too.
"I have my own reasons. Don' think too poorly of it for your own sake."
Dismissing me with such vague words felt unfair. Perhaps some explanation was in order.
But considering he hadn' uttered word when taking down Aila, maybe this was to be expected.
If I got overpowered like this, I' end up dragged off to Professor Glast' secret lab along with Aila.
I was thoroughly familiar with the spells Professor Glast used and the countermeasures.
Furthermore, this was study in the middle of Triss Hall. An escalation would benefit no one, so he would aim to subdue me only with minimal magic to avoid collateral damage.
Then the idea of breaking through the walls of Triss Hall to escape seemed doable. Suddenly, new possibility sprung to mind.
… Maybe getting kidnapped wouldn' be so bad? A sort of reverse thinking.
The 'Time Prison' spell consumed lot of mana, so there was clear time limit. With both of us subdued, his mana would deplete in few days.
As with the Sage' Seal, he' likely lock us in room of the secret lab once the Time Prison spell was undone.
Wouldn' that practically provide direct bus to Glast' secret lab, without paying price?
Even if the plan went south, tail' group intended to raid the secret lab and wreak havoc. I could take advantage and flee with anything useful—wouldn' that be perfect?
I was too familiar with the layout of the secret lab. There was no need to complicate things by entering the sewers, secretly following the hunters, and putting Yenika through hardship.
Tail' skills were more than sufficient, and the hunters were certainly not weak.
Maybe… I should just let myself get kidnapped?
"Hmm…"
My mind started racing again.
Even if I managed to escape, Professor Glast wouldn' just sit by. Chasing after me would only bring more complications to the resonance ceremony.
But deliberately allowing myself to be kidnapped wasn' risk-free either. If things go awry in my absence and the scenario gets messed up, there' be nobody to take charge.
I had to carefully weigh which option posed greater risk and ultimately make choice.
"It' better not to resist needlessly. I'll omit lengthy explanation, but it won' be terrible news for you, Ed Rothtaylor."
With that, he began to draw upon the sinister mana once more, his presence commanding my attention.
I cautiously emerged from cover behind the desk and faced Professor Glast head-on.
"Oh? Have you decided to confront me, or have you perhaps come up with some plan?"
I stood silently, staring straight at Professor Glast with wide-open eyes.
The amassed mana began to launch towards me.
*
– Swish!
By Professor Glast' telekinetic magic, various documents and grimoires returned to their places.
In the neatly tidied personal study, two figures stood completely petrified.
One, Aila, lay on the floor with face twisted in terror.
The other, Ed, remained upright, having taken the brunt of Glast' magic head on without flinching.
Professor Glast sat at his work desk, unfolding Ed' investigative records once more.
The discussion with Assistant Professor Claire about past reports came flooding back.
– 'Magical history, elemental studies, elemental magic notes, magical creature ecology, common mana theory, resonance analysis, thaumaturgy, principia mechanica, herbology, sigil fundamentals, different elemental studies… written work was nearly perfect across the board.'
– 'Yes, it' incredible! All of his marks shot up during his second year. While his practical grades are bit ambiguous, they're consistently improving. Overall mana is still slightly under the average for second-year students, but his growth rate is absurd. He' even managed spirit contract, which makes sense considering he collapsed from exhaustion.'
Assistant Professor Claire excitedly thumped through the files as she spoke.
– 'When I first saw the trend in his grades, I couldn' believe my eyes. To achieve so much academically while leading such wild life. One would think he lives 48 hours day!'
Claire was skimming through Ed' academic records, provided by the academy.
With too many students to manage, she couldn' possibly keep track of every single fluctuation in their grades.
However, once her attention was drawn to Ed, delving into his background left no choice but to marvel.
While Claire had her quirks, she was respected for her managerial abilities.
Despite appearing scatterbrained, she was young professor, and that alone spoke volumes.
Her insights allowed her to recognize the sheer effort embodied in Ed' daily schedule.
– 'This… speaks of absolutely exhausting dedication. You know as well as I do, Professor Glast, that Ed' raw talent alone couldn' be considered extraordinary.'
Gradually, Claire' enthusiastic tone subdued.
– 'I can' even fathom how much effort that must have taken.'
– 'Funny how when we enjoy gossiping about dark secrets, the conversation changes. Assistant Professor Claire.'
– 'Well, yes, but…! I didn' expect the records to be like this…!'
Professor Glast closed the folder and tossed it onto the desk.
Sinking back into his chair, he regarded the paralyzed Ed, who was immobilized by the Time Prison spell.
Despite the ominous mana overwhelming him, Ed hadn' blinked. Not hint of anxiety crossed his face—in the face of Glast' magic, he showed an odd conviction.
Perhaps being descendant of the esteemed Rothtaylor house, his life before expulsion was likely fit for king.
Now, less than year since, his hands bore calluses, his body was scarred, and his once frail form was now lined with lean muscle, evident even beneath his clothes.
The combat sense he displayed behind the crystal orb couldn' be taken lightly.
His strategy of orchestrating battlefield, thoroughly analyzing opponents, and utilizing all available means to pursue victory marked abilities he couldn' possess solely through inborn talent.
It was the strategy of the disadvantaged.
Admitting to being weaker than the opponent and still refusing to give up on victory—such prowess comes only when the spirit is stronger than the body.
The reflection provoked thoughts of 'loss.'
Scars that were thought to have healed.
Memories of his daughter, once proudly professing to elevate her father' name through her accomplishments, marching off to combat magical creatures, surfaced anew.
"…"
As Glast sat, organizing his thoughts, he failed to notice—
─A small bat slipping from beneath Ed' collar, hastily flying out the door.
Even Glast, attuned to elementary spirits, couldn' catch the brief opportunity amidst his plethora of thoughts. The original plan only entailed kidnapping Aila, yet the impromptu addition of Ed was somewhat impulsive.
Still, Ed' limited social circle and complicated reputation meant his disappearance wouldn' immediately raise alarms. A few days would likely pass without issue.
It wasn' caprice that would majorly upset the plans.
With this reassurance, Professor Glast relaxed as he finished his considerations.
The scent of campfire filled the air.
In the northern forest, chicken soup simmered over fire, waiting to be tasted.
A young female spirit specialist hummed as she stirred the soup, while diminutive mage snored atop the cabin roof.
Though it seemed like typical scene, the rightful owner of the camp was noticeably absent.
The approaching examination period and the culmination of the semester justified his delayed return.
Busy as always, the young spirit specialist thought, gazing blankly at the night sky.
Amidst her reverie, fiery bat pierced through the bushes, landing hastily on her shoulder.
The bat whispered urgently into her ear and, ever so gradually, the girl became still.
The wind blew, shaking the trees of the forest.
Autumn night deepened around them.