Chapter 58. Hongok
The meeting with Ransi wrapped up neatly.
After a simple meal, Chenbi and I were able to discuss the reward for making
A proliferation formula, huh... It's not that difficult a matter. The core formula would be too much, but there are ones that get disclosed for the sake of magic-studies exchange. Among those, I'll give you an especially upper-grade formula.
As if she didn't even need to ask her family, Ransi accepted on the spot without hesitation.
It was an unexpected gain.
'To think she'd actually hand over an upper-grade formula.'
Unlike how lightly Ransi said it, the Brando family's formulas related to the healing branch were rare knowledge that any healing-type mage would crave.
Among them, upper-grade formulas were only disclosed to qualified individuals while maintaining a thick relationship of trust with Brando.
'Hmm.'
It was also a part that let me glimpse how Brando evaluated me.
But the one who gained the biggest profit, as expected, was Chenbi.
Chenbi, sir... Honestly, I'm sorry to say this, but I looked into you. It seems your household has a few problems—big if you call them big, small if you call them small. Are you aware? ...Ah, yes. But lately it has been getting better.
After the Hall of Trials ended.
He seemed to be referring to how the parents of students Chenbi helped had been supporting him quietly, one by one.
But it looked like it couldn't solve everything in the household.
Brando can resolve all of it for you. Not only that—if you wish, we can provide your family with a better environment.
For Chenbi, it must have been an offer that was hard to refuse.
Whatever Chenbi had in mind as repayment, what could be more precious than his family's well-being?
But.
Chenbi's answer was unexpected.
I'm grateful for the words... but it's okay. Why? You don't need to think of it as improper or a burden. For Brando, it's not a troublesome matter at all, and this is a fair trade.
But Chenbi shook his head.
And he said—
I... want to stay friends with Demian forever. What do you mean... Ah.
It was a line that made no sense at first.
So even Ransi tilted her head, then seemed to realize what he meant.
With deep-set eyes, she nodded.
Silence fell.
Something like a lump-in-the-throat current seemed to be flowing, so I added a word of my own.
Then I'm the only trash here. ...Huh? I came into the academy on Brando's money, and I'm even using some allowance, too. ...Ah.
Chenbi visibly panicked.
Thanks to that, the emotional current shattered in an instant.
Chenbi showed me an apologetic look, and I smiled and reassured him.
It's a joke. I get what you're trying to say. Ah... right?
Everyone's standards are different.
Sure, I could drain the Brando family's pillars dry and still think of Demian as a friend—
but for someone else, if they keep receiving help, the friendship thins out and only expectation remains.
That line is different for each person, and Chenbi knew his line exactly.
So, what Chenbi asked for was this.
If it wouldn't be rude.... Please, go ahead. Anything is fine. Someday, if I get the chance, I want to study magic at the Brando family.
An opportunity to learn.
Someday—he wanted to go to Brando and broaden his knowledge.
Really, is that enough for you? Yes, of course.
Ransi asked again as if she was worried, but Chenbi's intent didn't bend.
It was an attitude like that alone was plenty...
'It is plenty.'
Brando is a prestigious family.
A great house that has repeated research into magic over hundreds of years, developing its know-how and system with time.
No matter how great the academy's education is, if you look at "magic" alone, it's impossible to catch up to a prestigious family.
In fact, for members of prestigious families, the academy was merely a "social venue," or a place to broaden "experience."
A place they're sent to learn a world beyond magic.
That was why Chenbi could be satisfied with that much.
Then... I will convey that part as such.
Unlike back in my day, Ransi avoided giving a definitive answer.
That day, Chenbi's reward ended like that.
But perhaps Chenbi's attitude pleased Gamo Bianca.
A letter from Brando flew to Chenbi.
What did that mean?
Not supporting Chenbi as an individual, but supporting him in the name of Brando itself!
Chenbi was quite flustered, but since it was a notice sent by the solemn command of Gamo, he couldn't bring himself to refuse.
He only...
Thank you, Demian. Thanks to you, thanks to you our house....
—expressed gratitude to Demian.
By now, every problem Chenbi's household had was probably resolved.
When Brando sponsors someone, it means they will create an environment where that person can focus solely on magic.
Maybe that's why.
From that day on, Chenbi's face grew noticeably brighter.
Before, you could see an obsessive look—like he was being chased, throwing himself into studying—but now it was more like he was purely enjoying magic.
'Not bad.'
It wasn't bad.
Of course, the most excited one was Demian.
I want there to be a No. 2 next to Blood-Sweat-Tears No. 1, and I want there to be fish living inside No. 1 too. Oh, and No. 2 should breathe fire from its mouth... I will be taking my leave now.
To the point that even Ransi, who was in charge of keeping Demian marked, got fed up and left.
Anyway.
And then, time passed.
As usual, classes ended.
And around when the midterm evaluation was starting to fade from memory, one notice came down to the academy students.
The person-to-person combat period was approaching in earnest.
For Basic Division first-years only, all liberal-arts classes are completely suspended, and every class proceeds with a practical-combat focus.
This was something all students already knew well.
However, this year's person-to-person combat preparation period was different from previous years.
End-of-day homeroom time.
At this message delivered by the professors, the students stirred.
"Discretion means...."
Arjen, the model student of M3, raised his hand and asked Professor Jeira.
But the one who answered was Yorby.
"Discretion means exactly that. You may participate in classes, or you may not. And...."
Even as he spoke, Yorby tilted his head as if something didn't sit right.
But he continued soon after.
"...They say you may even return to your family and train."
At those words, the students stirred again.
But it seemed even Assistant Professor Yorby didn't readily understand it either.
His expression wasn't pleasant.
Still, none of the students voiced complaints.
"Don't worry too much. The preparatory classes will be fully conducted by the professors, and a large number of active combat mages working under the imperial family will be invited."
Because the academy had taken its own precautions.
"Active-duty means...."
"At the very least, imperial-certified Grade 5 mages will be coming."
At that, the students let out a "Waa!" of amazement.
Imperial-certified Grade 5 meant people seated in key imperial posts—on a level comparable to the current professors.
Excluding prestigious families, they were at the absolute top of mage society.
Meanwhile.
"...Hmm."
I narrowed my eyes at the suddenly changed schedule for the person-to-person combat preparation period.
'From the looks of it, even the assistant professor doesn't seem to know about this event.'
If it was a matter of this scale, it wouldn't be a decision from professors, but something 내려진 from higher up.
Then—who was above that?
Senior.
'Why all of a sudden?'
It might be excessive conjecture, but something felt like it was flowing strangely.
Sure enough.
Grrrk, grrk.
After dinner, when I entered my dorm room, Breakfast No. 1 brought me Senior's note.
<8 o'clock.>
No place was written—only the time, hanging there by itself.
I stared at the note for a moment, then started walking.
A little earlier than the appointed time.
"Hmm."
I stood before the abandoned warehouse I was visiting for the first time in a while.
No—should I call it an abandoned warehouse?
The area around it had changed so much it was hard to find the old 모습, and the most obvious change was the clearing.
'...For someone who doesn't even train.'
Calling it a training ground, he'd cleared out all the brush near the abandoned warehouse and packed the earth down.
And that wasn't all.
If I spread out my senses wide, I could catch a faint presence.
'He even put up a barrier.'
The radius wasn't that large.
A barrier that covered just the area near the abandoned warehouse.
It wasn't a high-level barrier, but it was enough to hide the abandoned warehouse.
Meaning, he had turned the abandoned warehouse completely into a hideout.
"And someone like this managed to be Headmaster."
I clicked my tongue.
Life as the academy Headmaster must be quite suffocating, with no time to even breathe.
So he made his own space where he could avoid eyes.
Anyway.
"Hoo."
I took a short breath as I looked at the sun slowly setting.
It was only a week ago that Brando's proliferation formula arrived.
The proliferation formula was filthy complicated.
Complicated enough to make you think, 'You can insert this into magic?'
'Well, you can't cram all of this into a spell as-is.'
That's why creating magic is difficult.
And even harder than that is extracting formulas out of completed magic.
After transforming and extracting these dozens of pages of formulas and compressing them, inserting them into magic—how was that even possible?
'Well, still....'
Interpreting it wasn't that difficult.
Because it came with kind annotations.
A directive came down to the Magic Studies Hall, and I heard the circumstances.
In principle, we should provide the original, but in hopes it may be a small help, I have added annotations.
Deputy Hall Master of the Magic Studies Hall, Henji von Brando
Compared to the letter I'd received before, it was a content so plain it bordered on austerity.
Probably to avoid revealing familiarity in case of surveillance.
'Without the "my dear" and all that, my heart feels so comfortable.'
I was satisfied in many ways.
Henji's annotations, and the concise letter content, too.
Anyway.
The reason I came earlier than the call time was to test the proliferation formula today.
And, unexpectedly, the place was also convenient.
The private training rooms at the academy didn't have enough space for this.
"Then...."
I slightly straightened my index finger and circulated mana, drawing a drop of blood from my fingertip.
Woooong....
A drop of blood floated in the air as if gravity didn't exist.
It was a simple mana manipulation.
Since the blood drop itself also contained my mana, it wasn't a difficult act.
The real part started now.
"...Let's see."
A "formula," strictly speaking, is unprocessed magic.
It's harder to handle and less stable, so it isn't used much individually.
But I made up for that part with experience.
And then...
Tzzzzz—!
Countless hongok (紅玉) splitting.
No, they weren't hongok. They were simply vivid drops of blood reflecting the setting-sun light, making them look like hongok.
From one to two. From two to four.
The splitting stopped after the process repeated a total of ten times and the surroundings were filled with hongok.
I stared at the row of red jewels, then measured the efficiency of the proliferation formula.
'Maximum output... 1,024.'
In truth, the number doesn't matter.
What matters more is whether each object holds mana fully.
That.
To be honest, I couldn't say I didn't feel doubtful.
'Even if proliferation increases capacity, will even the mana inside increase? What if only the shell grows?'
With a basic "proliferation formula," I confirmed that even the mana was amplified...
but once the scope grew, who knew what would happen?
But the result was...
"A success."
Hongok suspended in midair like they were nailed there, reflecting the red glow of dusk.
Inside them was a vivid aura of mana.
'Was the mana copied?'
No.
It simply drew in natural mana during the splitting process and followed the original's state.
Of course, the mana inside was still insufficient.
At most, enough to maintain a light orb for a short time.
"But if I do this...."
Ssssss....
As if pulled by magnets,
the blood drops each found their pair and merged.
1,024 became 512, 512 became 256 again....
I kept combining until I felt the mana contained in the hongok was sufficient, and what finally formed were 64 orbs.
"This is exactly the minimum mana needed to use Collision Style."
Then now I needed to test its power, but...
That was when a voice reached me.
"...What the hell are you doing."
"Ah, Senior. You've come?"
Senior approached without a sound, but I welcomed him without panic.
In the first place, I came to the abandoned warehouse because I'd received Senior's summons.
"What are those orbs? I can feel mana... An artifact? No, it doesn't look like an artifact. What is it?"
Senior looked doubtful at the blood drops fixed in the air, his eyes full of curiosity as if he found their nature fascinating.
"What do you think it is?"
"Huhm, let's see... What's inside is your mana. Strange. It's not processed at all?"
When you store mana in an artifact, processing is essential.
If you put mana into an artifact that produces fire, you could say the use becomes fixed the moment it's stored.
The same is true for other artifacts.
Non-mages might say, "So what?" but for mages, this was truly important.
"Then can you use any magic with it?"
"Yes, well."
Using two hongok, I cast two different spells.
A luminous body blooming in the air, and a fireball.
Casting two spells at once required quite a bit of mental effort, but for me and Senior, it wasn't anything special.
But.
"Huh...!"
What startled Senior was something else entirely.
"You can store unprocessed mana, and you can manifest spells with that mana? What about distance! How far can it go! No, before that—where did you get that?"
I thought his eyes might roll back.
Especially for a war mage like him.
Just imagine it.
Alone, raising magic from all directions.
The sky would be covered in magic, and all heaven and earth around would become the enemy's 죽을 자리.
If that isn't a one-man army, what is?
For example, something like this.
'Professor Parun.'
Unlike how he pressured Troubleshooters with monstrous mental power and computation ability,
with this hongok, you could follow that feat.
'...Of course, you still need a certain level of mental strength and computation ability, but the difficulty drops drastically.'
If Professor Parun gained such a feat?
That wouldn't be anything less than an army.
That was why Senior was this excited.
I wore a faint smile at Senior's questions.
'Perfect timing.'
I needed a target to test the power on.
"Senior, I'll tell you everything. But before that, please grant me one request."
"What is it. Say it."
"Please take a spell for me once."
"…What?"
Senior frowned, staring at me.
He held me in his eyes with clear displeasure, then threw out a blunt question.
"Are you telling me to play a dummy right now?"
"If you put it that way, yes."
"So that's it... Hmm."
Senior glanced at the hongok and answered.
"Fine. It's annoying, but it's not a difficult problem."
At those words, I smiled.
'Excellent.'
Where else would you find such a perfect sandbag in the world?
No worry about it breaking, and a dummy you can test magic on to your heart's content!
Mages don't pay expensive money to use training grounds for no reason—yet no matter what training ground you go to, it's hard to find a dummy like this.
"Senior, then we begin. Brace properly."
"Hmph. No matter how much you thrash around, you won't even touch a single hair on my body. Just do it already."
I nodded at that.
Then.
Tzzzzzz....
Hongok emitting vivid blue sparks.
Senior's urgent voice came right after.
"What the— hey, hey! Hey, you bastard!"
Before his urgent voice could even finish—
Kwa-ga-ga-gang! Peo-beo-beong!
Dozens of thunderous booms erupted simultaneously, completely sweeping over the area.