143: You know, when shock hits you one after another, you just go numb.

Wait, wait, wait—no way.

First shock? The little girl with purple hair was the teacher.

Sure, that was shocking enough, but even more so—she was Jabir Halyan, the famous alchemist.

A renowned alchemist. A renowned healer.

She founded an academy, made public dozens of magical techniques and spells that sorcerers had kept secret for ages, and pushed human progress forward by years in just a few years. Great woman.

Oh right—there was that rumor about her failing her research on the Amrita youth elixir.

Seeing her look so young now… yeah, makes sense.

Shock keeps coming.

I stared, jaw dropped, at the magical formula being written on the blackboard by Professor Jabir.

I was stunned—yeah, even by the clean, polished spellwork—but then this kid, barely older than me, scribbling away in his notebook, nodding like he actually got it!

You’re telling me he can even *read*?!

While Professor Jabir lectured from the dais, a black-haired alchemist moved through the classroom, checking on the students’ progress.

He leaned over my notebook, gave a satisfied nod.

…Something’s pissing me off.

“Guess you’re the grandson of a Seal Officer, huh. Real diligent.”

“…Just means Professor Jabir’s a good teacher.”

“True, but you’re picking it up fast for your age.”

Don’t bother praising me. I don’t care.

The alchemist stopped by the quiet, blonde-haired girl, Maina. He stared at her notebook for a while, then reached out and added something to her page.

Then, Maina—usually expressionless—suddenly lit up with a bright look.

Nodding repeatedly, she stared straight back at the alchemist, unblinking.

Something… I can’t put it into words, but her gaze felt hot. Like she was buzzing with energy.

No idea why, but a strange anger and jealousy bubbled up toward the alchemist.

I shook my head, forcing my thoughts back to class.

Missing a single word of Professor Jabir’s lecture? Not happening!

…Do the others even realize how incredible this is?

And so, with a dozen unresolved thoughts, the lecture ended.

Then came the next shock.

Seriously? There’s more?

I nearly collapsed from dizziness when I saw it.

We’d moved from classroom to courtyard—yes, hands-on training.

…No way.

Magic depends a lot on talent, but you can learn it with enough training.

Still, you gotta know how to read and write at minimum, plus basic math—and you’ve gotta memorize magic theory too.

That’s why someone without a mage-class heraldry can’t learn magic unless they’ve got a damn good teacher.

Shouldn’t be able to, anyway…

“Craft brother! Look! I made more water with magic than last week!”

Edd, the wolf beastman, shouted with a grin.

Huh?

Beastman doing magic?

No heraldry?

“Huh. Not bad, Edd. You ain’t cut out for being a mage, but learning stuff like ‘drinkable water creation’ or ‘ignition’? That’ll come in handy if you ever go adventuring.”

“Yeah! But I wanna learn attack magic too…”

"Role distribution matters too. Leave the attack magic to Kai, and you stay in the front line with sword and shield. That’ll keep things balanced."

"Hey, that’s one thing, this is another!"

"True. Then focus on 'ignition' next. You can’t pull off the most practical fire magic without that."

"Got it!"

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Magic’s actually working… like, really working.

Even just common folk using magic is shocking enough—but a beastkin?

Not that I’m prejudiced or anything. I’ve never heard of a beastkin using magic before. The shock is real.

And a kid without a mark, no less.

"Craft, can I practice attack magic?"

"Hmm? Then go ahead—hit that target over there. Keep your distance."

"Yes."

Now it’s Kai, the lesser panda beastkin, refining his spell formula.

Wait, no way. That formula… that’s…

“Hellfire Bolt!” ……no way, not this.

No way, no way, no way!

Hellfire Bolt’s an advanced version of Fireball, right!?

Even adventurers’ mages can’t pull it off! How the hell’s a kid supposed to manage it!?

Ignoring my shock, the alchemist keeps checking Kai’s spell formula.

“Just a bit more. Pour more power here, but be delicate with this part—think of it like pouring thin, long streams of magic into it.”

“Yes!”

Kai fails spell after spell. Finally, his magic runs dry. He just drops to the ground.

Then the alchemist pulls a test-tube-shaped potion bottle from his belt.

“About done, huh? Drink this. …Oh, Faydral’s hitting the wall too. You drink it as well.”

The potion’s handed to me and Kai.

I’ve been watching everyone else, keeping up with my own magic practice too.

I’d been taught the basics by Grandfather and my father, and by my tutors too, so I could cast simple spells from the start.

And thanks to today’s lesson, I finally got a grip on parts I’d only vaguely understood before—now I’ve been throwing magic around like crazy.

“What’s this?”

“A mana potion.”

“Huh!?!”

The alchemist waved a hand, calm as ever.

“Compared to the one I gave Genelis, this is a cheap knockoff. I diluted it heavily with alchemy. Even compared to the ones sold outside Goldendown, it’s weak as hell.”

“No way… you’re seriously giving this to students!?”

The budget’s coming from Kyle, so don’t sweat it. Oh, but keep your mouth shut, okay? Magic potions use rare ingredients and aren’t exactly market-ready, so saying they’re weak might just stir up the wrong kind of rumors.

I don’t think anyone’ll believe me even if I say it, but I got it.

It’s been diluted pretty heavily, so full recovery’s out of the question, but it should restore enough magic power for class. Good luck.

It’s the same quality as what rookie adventurers keep on hand as backup… and they’re handing it out for free!?

I don’t even know what that’s supposed to mean!

Oh right, stamina potions are free for the taking here too. This school’s insane.

“Flameburst!”

I’m still half-dazed when a thunderous boom cuts through the air.

I turn—there, the wooden dummy shaped like a monster is blazing.

“Got it! It worked!”

“Hell yeah! You did it!”

The alchemist praises him, and the students start crowding around.

"Damn, that's awesome! Kai! Congrats!"

"Uh-huh."

"Damn, that’s cool!"

"Hehe."

"...Incredible."

"Thanks, Maina!"

"Teacher~! The other dummy’s catching fire too~!"

"Ah! 'Water Bolt'!"

The alchemist scrambles, hurling a water spell to douse the flames. Javir, face twisted in disbelief, steps in front of the alchemist.

"Master Craft, you must prioritize safety above all."

"Yes."

I smirk inside—too bad, you goof. But damn… can he actually handle offensive spells too?

Who the hell is this guy?

I glance around at the other students again.

Not all of them can cast spells yet, but plenty can already shape magic circles with their mana.

Most haven’t triggered them yet—but it’s just a matter of time.

...

Where the hell is this territory even headed?

You planning on founding your own kingdom and going independent?

By the time everyone hits adulthood, they’ll probably be at soldier-commander level, won’t they?

I finished the class, shivering.

◆

Back in the classroom, the alchemist spoke up about an announcement.

"Coming-of-Age Ceremony is coming up soon."

"Yay!"

"It’s a festival!"

"I can’t wait!"

The students erupted in cheers, but the alchemist waited until their excitement settled a little before quieting them down.

"The fifteen-year-olds in the other class are getting their heraldry carved today. Everyone in this class has to attend as observers, so memorize the steps."

"““Yes, sir!””"

"Oh, Faydral, you’ll be helping Genelis on the day."

"Understood."

A festival’s fun—but helping old man Genelis too? Perfect.

"Also, this year’s festival lasts three days."

"Whaaat?"

"Yay!"

"I gotta get my allowance!"

"Teacher! Is school off today!?"

That’s something I’m wondering too.

"Five days total—before and after the festival—are off. But this class will gather the morning of the first day and the morning of the final day to observe the Coming-of-Age Ceremony."

"Yesss!!!" "Yesss!!!" "Yesss!!!"

Watching my classmates shout and scramble, I think.

"This is gonna be a mess."

Of course. It turned into a mess.

Seal Officer’s Grandson, concluded w.

Live strong w.