Chapter 26 — The Talent Found at the End of Jealousy (1)

1

Manus arrived at the library.

There was no better place to spend time until nightfall.

Countless books.

Letters, formulas, the scent of paper.

Isn’t the library said to be a treasure trove of knowledge?

To Manus’ eyes, that saying seemed to be true.

A tower built by stacking knowledge in the form of letters.

That’s what the library was.

‘In the past, I used to avoid books like the plague. Who would have thought a change in mindset could make such a difference.’

Time continues to flow.

In the past, he lived without realizing how terrifying that was.

Days spent meaninglessly.

Paths that had to be walked without gain flashed through his mind.

[Magician’s Mindset — 68 days XX hours]

[Essence of Attack — 17 days]

‘Things are progressing well.’

Now, meaningless time no longer existed for Manus.

The passive talent system greatly improved the quality of his time.

Visible growth became the driving force of his life, and the world with an end in sight constantly urged him on.

He had already read through the book he first opened when he woke up in his room that first day several times.

He had challenged himself with more difficult books many times.

Manus, a second-year student, was already searching for materials that graduates or professors would read.

“Hmm-.”

The new skill he was going to learn this time was [Essence of Attack].

It was a very simple skill that gave +30% to basic attack power.

And it was a powerful skill.

An additional 30% damage without question.

No conditions were needed, and it didn’t cost more mana.

This brute force yet incredible skill was, of course, not one that players could normally learn.

‘This was a skill that the second Demonium had, right?’

A boss commonly known as the newbie cutter.

It was one of the passive skills of the boss that appeared on the second full moon.

The boss’s techniques and skills discovered through data mining.

The game was flooded with strategies based on that information.

Manus was able to search for and learn not only player character skills, but also those of bosses, demons, and NPCs.

This Essence of Attack was one of the must-learn skills.

“I guess it’s about time to start learning 5th-Class magic.”

He muttered softly as he skimmed through an advanced magic tome.

He went to the innermost part, where students rarely reached.

The books were spotlessly clean, as if maintained by magic.

[5th-Class Magic Theory]
— By Caesar Uphron –

Uphron.

Probably one of Caesar’s ancestors.

He naturally picked up the book.

What would a book written from Caesar’s perspective be like?

He was absorbed in the book, losing track of time.

As the day waned, not only Manus’ time but also that of others flowed.

Each with their own thoughts, reaching crossroads of choice.

“Is this where the Leveli-Malito kids gather?”

“-Who are you?”

Bauer Livy went to find the Black Eagle class.

Unlike the Snake class where nobles held tight control, the power in the Eagle class belonged to the executives of this Leveli-Malito.

Livy, though noble but living a life no different from commoners, approached them without hesitation.

“Hello? I hear you guys are quite good at fighting?”

“…Well, we’re aspiring knights after all. What brings you here? From the Snake class?”

“I wanted to make a request, what do you think?”

Request?

Executive Castro frowned slightly.

It was very rare for mages to come all the way here to make requests.

They usually paid little attention to each other, like cows looking at chickens.

But to suddenly come and blurt out a request?

There must be a reason for coming all this way, so he decided to at least hear it out.

“A request from a high-and-mighty noble… Alright, let’s hear it. What is it?”

“You know the Harry family, right?”

“Of course we do. Who wouldn’t know that infamous merchant noble family.”

Merchants had close relationships with commoners too.

Everything stems from money.

Money is needed for everything in life.

In a sense, the Harry family was far more famous than most noble families.

Their ruthless and cold business acumen even earned them the nickname “money-wielding magicians”.

Could it be that she had business with that family?

-This is getting interesting, isn’t it?

“I’d like to harass that family’s daughter a bit.”

“I heard rumors that she has some connection with that senior Caesar Manus-.”

“Who cares. As long as there’s no ‘direct’ violence, it’s fine, right?”

Livy gave a sinister smile.

What scheme did she have in mind?

Well, let’s hear what this clever noble lady has to say.

Messing with merchants is quite dangerous.

Retaliation between families is strictly forbidden, but money can be used to cause direct and indirect harm in countless ways depending on how it’s circulated.

“It’s simple. Just call her out at night and keep her confined for a day.”

“What, that’s just kids’ play.”

“Right, just play. I’m just in a bad mood-. Wanted to pull a little prank. That’s not too bad, is it? Who knows, maybe some prince charming on a white horse will appear out of nowhere to save her.”

“We’re not inclined to go along with that prank. But… there might be some among us who hold grudges against the Harry family.”

Livy nodded.

The Harry family has many enemies.

She just wanted to harass her a bit without getting caught directly.

Livy wanted to torment her subtly.

If she could feel even a fraction of the pain she was experiencing-.

This self-loathing and helplessness.

The suffocating pressure of grades.

‘You need to feel this terror too.’

Looking into her eyes, Castro sensed that something interesting was about to unfold.

Those eyes filled with such hatred reminded him of someone who, having lost all their fortune, would shoot such a look before dying consumed by evil.

“Tonight, right? Got it. Where should we go?”

“Let’s do it at the club room, if possible.”

“Alright. Since it’s just a ‘prank’, we don’t need any compensation, but could you bring us some information occasionally?”

That much is fine.

Livy nodded readily.

The Class B is also high.

The cong line is high too.

Livy was sociable and had many friends.

If she passed information about the Snake class to Leveli-Malito, they could also extend their reach into the mage faction.

Then they might be able to use that influence to some extent.

And she was determined to prove her skills, aiming for the Class A and the student council.

‘I can do it.’

She believed she could definitely do it.

No, she had to.

Because she came here staking everything her family had.

2

For the first time in a long while, Melanie was having a truly happy time.

In the club room.

Simply calling itself a social club, yet it had three Class A students and the top two second-year students.

Could someone like her from the mere Harry family really join here?

“So there I was, hiding in that knight family’s carriage for three whole days without getting caught! With that musty smell and dirty curses, it was just-“

Melanie was caught by Pearson, continuing to listen to his story.

He talked way too much, but had a strangely captivating charm.

His bubbly charisma made you listen to Pearson’s words whether you realized it or not.

Of course, only if you had plenty of time-.

Melanie sipped her warm tea, enjoying the interaction with them.

For some reason, even the spirits that were usually so noisy hadn’t said a word since coming here.

How long had it been since she’d heard only human voices? To think it could be this peaceful-.

“Hey, what kind of magic do you use?”

Anais sat down next to her and asked.

The magic she was most confident in-.

For a moment she thought about mentioning her ability to communicate with spirits, but shook her head inwardly.

She preferred support-type magic.

Lowering and weakening the enemy’s stats.

Slowly choking the life out of the enemy was her preferred combat method.

-So she said:

“I prefer weakening or strengthening magic over direct combat.”

“Oh— Just like me! I’m terrible at attack magic too. I really had no idea my talent was Class A level-.”

“Be quiet for a bit. So? Want to go practice?”

“Is, is that okay?”

Anais smiled brightly.

Just exchanging a few words, she could tell.

Shy friends feel burdened by lively and proactive people.

But that doesn’t mean shy people need to match them.

Melanie sensed a shining kindness within Anais’ liveliness.

A friend who initiates conversation, matches your pace, and helps you laugh together.

-I wanted to make friends with someone like this as much as possible.

“Of course! We usually train and play together. We’ll be able to help each other out.”

“Yeah, thanks.”

Melanie smiled broadly.

After seeing many people, she could infer someone’s personality just from their expression and way of speaking.

Her experience of observing countless clients of her family since childhood came to life.

Yes,

I think I can trust these friends.

She smiled a slightly deeper smile.

“Let’s go. To train.”

Kael, who had been quiet, suddenly stood up.

Anais stuck close to Melanie’s side, while Pearson kept chattering away, showing off his abilities.

If only this time could continue flowing-.

‘With these friends, I really…’

She felt like she wanted to stay with them until graduating from this school and standing tall as a full-fledged magician.

They had just met, and who knows what might happen.

Only God can know the future after all.

Still, she didn’t want to lose this happiness, this warmth.

It was a peace that had come to her after a long time, and they were the only friends who treated her without pretense.

She hoped they wouldn’t change in the future.

‘I’ll be a good friend too.’

They were friends she wanted to stay with until the end, at least in this academy.

3

Melanie returned to the dormitory after a satisfying day.

If today ended just like this, it would be the happiest day.

Days like this didn’t come often.

She flopped down on the bed, recalling the events of the day.

She saw spirits floating around, but even they looked cute now.

-Was it fun?

-I was scared.

-Yeah! Scary! Scary!

The spirits chattered and laughed.

Scary?

Who’s saying it’s scary?

Melanie chuckled and enjoyed the fatigue.

-Knock knock.

There was a knocking sound.

Ah, she didn’t want to get up.

But it wasn’t polite to keep a guest waiting.

At times like this, her father’s words came to mind unnecessarily.

[There’s nothing more foolish than keeping a guest waiting.]

So she got up.

Melanie rose from her seat and opened the door.

When the door opened, an unfamiliar face was standing there.

“…Who are you?”

“Hello?”

What could this be about-.

Surely they’re not here to harm me again?

Melanie looked at the nameless woman with a stiff face.

She mentioned Livy’s name.

“Livy says she wants to apologize for a moment?”

“Apologize?”

“Yeah, she says she feels like she’s been acting badly. She’s waiting downstairs right now.”

Could it be true?

No, Livy isn’t that kind of person.

Could eyes filled with such hatred change in an instant?

She knows that best herself.

She had watched such people more than anyone else by her father’s side.

Melanie’s lips quivered.

“…not.”

“Huh?”

“It’s not. She’s not here to apologize.”

“…”

The nameless student’s expression hardened.

Could she really be this suspicious?

“You can’t even trust a friend’s word? She really came to apologize. Just believe it once.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. She said she’ll wait outside until you come out. She’s embarrassed someone might hear inside the dorm.”

Melanie quietly shook her head.

The nameless girl spoke once more.

“Then I’ll just relay the message and go. She said this is Mythos Academy after all. She thinks it’s right to put aside family matters for now.”

“…”

“As expected of a merchant family, you’re more cold-hearted than you look, huh?”

That shook Melanie’s heart.

It’s not true.

Just once.

Should I believe them just this once?

The thought of wanting to shatter their values almost made her move.

-But.

“-Huh?”

“Sigh… Even acting is tiring.”

‘Why… like this…’

Her eyes slowly closed.

She tried to force herself awake, but her body wouldn’t move as she wanted.

Her peace had not yet arrived.

With her vision going completely dark, she collapsed with a thud.

–TL Notes–
Hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you want to support me or give me feedback, you can do it at patreon.com/MattReading

Join my Discord! https://discord.gg/BWaP3AHHpt