DPAA 39

chapter 39

“The most indispensable element in bio-magic is the lightning attribute.”

The moment I sat down, the professor continued her lecture.

She drew a current-shaped magic circle on the blackboard, marking its center with an arrow.

“What you see here is the most basic of lightning spells — the ‘Discharge’ magic circle. The activation itself is quite simple, so I’m sure most of you have used it at least once.”

Then, sparks burst from the board — bright, crackling lightning.
Some students flinched and covered their eyes, startled by the flash and the electric snap.

“However, the output varies greatly depending on the caster’s ability. To generate this much power, it’s impossible for a student.
Ah, of course—”

“……”

“There is one student here who’s managed to do the ‘impossible.’”

Naturally, she was talking about me.

The stares that followed were something I’d long grown used to.

“Lady Kanis Escleif.”

“…Yes.”

“In the last match, you overpowered your opponent using nothing but ‘Discharge,’ correct?”

“That’s right.”

I answered indifferently.

I could already guess what she’d say next.

“To be frank, your output was remarkable. But the way you achieved it was crude and highly inefficient.”

And what do you want me to do about that?

Of course, I didn’t actually say it. I had no reason to pick a fight with the professor.

Bernois? That bastard was the one who threw chalk at my head first.
Honestly, I might have overreacted a little back then — maybe a bit of anger management issues.
Getting a flashback to having my head pierced through didn’t help either.

“I have a question, Professor.”

A voice from behind — familiar. Deon.

Of course. The study-obsessed freak was in this class too. That guy probably signed up for every elective available.

“If high output is the goal, wouldn’t it be faster and easier to just electrocute the enemy to death?”

“Not a wrong answer — if your opponent is human.”

If the opponent is human.

The implication was obvious.

“But the reason we study magic so intensely is to fight monsters, isn’t it?”

“…That’s true.”

“Their hides are far too thick and tough for a human’s output to pierce.
Some species are even shielded by external barriers, rendering discharge attacks completely ineffective.”

“…Hh.”

Someone let out a nervous breath.

“When faced with such an enemy alone — would you simply allow yourself to be torn apart because you’re ‘by yourself’?”

The weight of experience in her tone silenced the room.
Every student, even the chatty ones, turned their eyes toward her.

Resolve flickered in those eyes.

“‘Bio-magic’ sounds fancy, but in my class, what you’ll truly learn is how to enhance your body with magic — and how to apply it.”

A small magic circle appeared in the air.

It attached itself to her slender arm, sparking faintly blue.
Then she slammed her arm down — Bang! — the iron desk in front of her dented inward.

“My goal is simple. By the end of this course, every one of you will be strong enough not to die a meaningless death.
Can you promise me that?”

“Yes, ma’am!”

A resounding reply filled the room.

Most of the students here, except for a few nobles like me and Deon, were commoners or from minor families.
That meant many would likely end up as mercenaries or knights after graduation.

For people like that, talk of ‘survival’ and ‘combat’ naturally stirred something solemn inside.

Even nobles needed accomplishments before being recognized as heirs.

So this really is a prestigious academy, I thought.

Having a professor like her proved it.

In the original novel, classroom scenes were rarely shown — except history class.

Why history?

Because in every academy story, the author uses it to dump world-building info.

Obviously.

“Now then… Line up according to your attributes.
Before that — is there anyone who can use more than one element?”

Out of twenty students, only two raised their hands.

Not me, of course — it was Deon Grace and Aspodel Luxelrod.

“I’ve heard you, Grace, can handle both Water and Lightning. Which one will you take?”

“I’ll go with lightning, Professor. …There’s someone I’d like to work with.”

He said that while very obviously looking my way.

The professor’s pink eyebrows twitched.

“I’ll take the Water attribute,” said Aspodel.

“…Fine.”

The rest of the students lined up according to the groups she’d prepared.

Out of twenty, there were only two attribute types total — lightning and water.
A surprisingly narrow variety.

The professor soon explained why.

“Lightning and water, huh. Well, aside from those two, bio-magic isn’t worth taking.
After all, those are the only ones I teach.”

She wasn’t wrong.

Among the four classical elements, only water could directly influence the inside of living beings.

And electricity? Even more so.
One little jolt to the right synapse, and you could fry a nervous system.

Of course, not just anyone could do that.
In this world, I might be the only person capable of manipulating memories through it.

Not that I’ve ever tried — the side effects could leave me a drooling idiot.

“Water-element bio-magic requires living organisms for practice, so we’ll postpone that…”

Her voice trailed off.

Normally, classes involved duels between similarly skilled students,
but you couldn’t exactly ‘practice’ by necrotizing someone’s skin.

“So, we’ll begin with the basics of lightning bio-enhancement.
Even if it’s not your element, listen closely — there will be a theory exam later.”

“You seemed pretty good with theory earlier. Did you study this ahead of time?”

Deon whispered near my ear.

I ignored him. Why was he trying to act friendly all of a sudden?

“The principle behind lightning-based enhancement,” the professor continued,
“is to stimulate the muscles with weak electric currents.
By modifying the magic circle — like I drew earlier —
you can trap the current inside the body instead of releasing it outward.”

She demonstrated as she spoke.

I watched carefully.
I’d already read the bio-magic textbook at the Duke’s estate,
but seeing it firsthand was still different.

When I tried to follow along, a question popped up.

Why is she doing it like that?

Her technique differed from what the textbook described — simpler, yes,
but less efficient.

“At first, fine control will be difficult.
But after about a month, you should—”

Professor Remembral stopped mid-sentence.
Her eyes had landed on me.

“Why aren’t you doing anything, Escleif?”

“…Pardon?”

“Like the others, you should—”

Then she seemed to sense the magic surrounding me.

That I’d already completed the same process —
but in a more perfect way than her own demonstration.

Our eyes met.

“Well,” she murmured, expression unreadable,
“I suppose you don’t need to do it like the other students.”

“Are there no more lectures after this?”

“No.”

“Good. Then you have time. Bring your textbook and follow me.”

I followed her at a calm pace.

Professor Selena Remembral — the name said it all.
She was Larissa’s older sister, the eldest daughter of the Remembral family.

Her signature pink hair swayed in front of me as we walked.

A pink-haired woman with a face like that…

The warm image her hair color should’ve given off
was completely devoured by those blood-red eyes.

Unlike her cute younger sister, Selena had the fierce beauty of a predator.

She led me into her office — or rather, a room that looked far more luxurious than I’d expected.

It resembled a noblewoman’s private chamber more than a professor’s workspace.

I wasn’t sure whether all academy professors lived like this,
or if it was just her family’s wealth — but I was betting on the latter.

Even though the academy was wealthy, its funding came mostly from noble houses.
Especially from magical families like my own, the Escleif Dukedom.

For someone so young to hold such influence here,
her surname Remembral certainly helped —
since the Remembral family had long been vassals to House Escleif.

“Tea or coffee?”

“I’ll take tea… wait, did you just drop the formal speech?”

“Class is over,” she replied casually.

I’d assumed the teacher-student dynamic would stay, even after class —
but apparently not.

Then again, that made sense. The succession line in the Escleif family
was already painfully clear.

Claude still thought he had a chance, but…
he was only digging his own grave.

The only reason I hadn’t dealt with him yet
was because the current Duke was still alive and well.

“I apologize for my rudeness in class, My Lady.
I thought you had only recently awakened and were unfamiliar with proper technique.”

“It’s fine.”

The casual tone slipped out naturally.
I checked her reaction, but she looked unbothered — almost like she expected it.

Good. Dealing with stiff people was exhausting.

“As for the tardiness earlier…” I began carefully,
“I had unavoidable circumstances. I’d appreciate your understanding.”

I didn’t want to start racking up penalties already.

“I’m afraid that’s not possible,” she said firmly. “Rules are rules.”

“……”

Coldly rejected.

Ruthless.