Chapter 28

Chapter 28: Problem Child Damon (3)

Saengterminum had various lectures depending on the department, but Saengterminum’s freshmen took common classes conducted by their departments for a while.

Application of Holy Magic.

That was the name of the lecture I was currently taking, and it was one of the few theory-based lectures at Saengterminum.

When I looked down at the paper placed on the desk, rune characters and all sorts of shapes were gathered together, forming a geometric pattern.

So this is a Holy Magic formula.......

“Since this is your first proper class, I will check the approximate skill level of all of you students. Look at the formula written on the paper I handed out and cast it exactly as shown. Depending on your individual ability, I will give extra points if you can improve the formula for the better.”

The name of the Holy Magic spell was written in the heading of the paper.

<Elementary Holy Magic, Holy Light.>

After slowly examining the formula, I swallowed a low groan.

...I was not mistaken.

It was definitely similar.

Similar to the magic formula for ‘Light,’ one of the basic spells cast using pure mana.

I had vaguely noticed it since ‘Holy Light Forging’ used the exact same formula as ‘Mana Forging.’

The Construction Formulas of Elementary Holy Magic spells were not greatly different from the formulas used to handle pure mana.

Although there were parts of the ‘Holy Light’ formula that differed slightly from the ‘Light’ formula... the basic framework was similar to the ‘Light’ formula.

Even Black Mages did not learn only Black Magic.

Since Black Magic was still magic, they thoroughly learned the basic formulas that formed the foundation of magic.

And who was I? 

I was a Black Mage who had mastered every type of Black Magic and had even returned to the past using Black Magic.

It had been a long time since I had memorized all the basic formulas.

“At this level, it is worth trying.”

Because of that, I could understand the Construction Formula of ‘Holy Light,’ which consisted only of basic formulas, without much difficulty.

Flicker.......

When I raised Holy Power in my right hand, the Sacred Mark engraved on the back of my right hand shone faintly.

To prevent my Holy Power from rampaging, I sent the Holy Power generated from the Sacred Mark to my heart.

Then, I gathered the Holy Power stored in my heart at the tip of my right index finger.

Swish... swish.......

I carefully manipulated the Holy Power and traced the ‘Holy Light’ formula with my fingertip.

Whirrrrr.......

Once the formula had been fully drawn, a faint activation sound rang out from the completed formula.

Holy Light.

FLASH!

Soon, a sharp light began radiating from my fingertip in several strands.

It was a success.

“Now, this is it.”

Coming to Saengterminum had been the correct answer.

If I had remained only in the Dark Empire, I would not have had a chance to encounter Holy Magic from the position of a learner.

If I continued to learn Holy Magic at Saengterminum in this way, it would be enough to serve as a variable in the future to come.

After canceling ‘Holy Light,’ I took a folded sheet of paper out of my pocket and unfolded it.

Unlike the ‘Holy Light’ formula, this paper was filled with rune characters and geometric shapes packed at least ten times more densely.

<Mid-Rank Holy Magic, Grace of Strength.>

This was a Mid-Rank Holy Magic formula. 

After hearing through Yulia that I wanted to learn Blessing Magic, Viole had drawn the magic formula for me and told me to take a look at it.

According to Viole, the blessing she had cast on me in the Artificial Rift had been an advanced form of this magic.

“Mm.......”

After staring intently at the formula for several minutes, I ruffled my hair.

“Damn it, I still do not understand this no matter how many times I look at it.”

The black parts were ink, and the white parts were paper.

No matter how I looked at it from here or there, I could not grasp how the formula written on it worked.

I had spent the entire class racking my brain to understand the formula, but I had only wasted innocent time.

If I had understood about ninety percent of the ‘Holy Light’ formula the moment I saw it, then for this one, the parts I understood barely exceeded fifty percent.

The remaining fifty percent consisted of formulas I was seeing for the first time in my life.

“These formulas do not seem to have been created to handle mana.......”

If they were mana-based formulas, I would not have thought they were this unfamiliar.

In that case.

“...It is Holy Power.”

The formulas I could not understand had clearly been created to handle Holy Power.

Just from looking at them, the casting difficulty seemed high enough to rival Mid-Rank Black Magic.

Could Yulia understand such complex Holy Magic formulas just by looking at them?

Even I had suffered for years in the previous round while learning types of Black Magic other than the Curse Type from old hag Rienna.......

Though it was rather late to realize it anew, I could feel just how outstanding her talent was.

Well, I had thought of a method of my own.

Unlike Yulia, I could not understand formulas I had never learned simply by looking at them.

But... what if I drew the Holy Magic formula myself and used it myself?

I recalled the time when I had learned Black Magic.

No matter what kind of Black Magic it was, I had to understand the Construction Formula itself almost perfectly before casting it.

If Black Magic was cast incorrectly, the side effects were severe.

One’s personality could collapse, the arm constructing the formula could undergo necrosis and require amputation, or one could become crippled and never use mana again, and so on.......

Because of that, when Black Mages learned new Black Magic, they strongly tended to avoid casting it at all unless they had completely understood the formula. 

I, as a Black Mage, had been the same.

However, Holy Magic was different.

Unlike Black Magic, Holy Magic did not cause severe side effects.

“Hmm... I feel like this might work.......”

It just so happened that this was a Holy Magic practice class, so I wanted to ask the professor whether I could practice Mid-Rank Holy Magic, but...

“Ahem... the weather is quite nice today.......”

The female professor who met my eyes pushed up her horn-rimmed glasses and desperately avoided my gaze.

She was very openly ignoring me, but in truth, it was not unreasonable for her to act like that.

The name of that female professor with dark brown hair and black eyes was Noel Ludmila.

She was a professor who taught Holy Magic at Saengterminum, and... an examiner who had personally witnessed the atrocities I had committed during the Entrance Exam right before her eyes.

So it was only natural that she avoided me.

Tsk. 

To think I would end up taking a common lecture from the very professor whose first impression of me I had ruined.

I could not help wondering how my luck could be this bad.

My image was already a complete mess, so if I persistently tried to talk to the professor for no reason and my relationship with her worsened even further, that would become a problem in its own way.

...Should I just try drawing it once?

I copied the ‘Grace of Strength’ formula exactly as it appeared on the paper.

I did draw it, but.......

“...Huh.”

Crackle! Sizzle! Rumble!

Far from activating the spell, the formula was wildly shaking while scattering golden sparks.

It stood out so much that the students sitting around me slid their chairs back and slowly put distance between themselves and me.

This was a phenomenon that had occurred because I did not fully understand the ‘Grace of Strength’ formula.

Since I did not understand the formula, it was only natural that the formula was incomplete, but...

“Well now.......”

Even so, the corners of my mouth bent like a bow.

“This is insane, is it not?”

There were no side effects.

If this had been Black Magic, my body would have already started breaking the moment the formula ended up in this state.

But right now, aside from Holy Power being consumed at an absurdly rapid rate, there was not even the slightest sign of any side effects appearing.

If the formula was stable to this degree, it was worth trying the method I had thought of.

“D-D-Damon?”

Professor Noel approached me with a bewildered expression.

She had looked businesslike during class, but now she seemed quite flustered.

“Why did you suddenly draw a Mid-Rank Holy Magic formula? You even cast ‘Holy Light’ cleanly and well.”

“There are no side effects, so is it not fine to practice a little?”

“You are saying that has no side effects?”

“Other than the formula throwing off sparks and using a lot of Holy Power, there is nothing.”

Professor Noel’s eyes grew cloudy.

“Most people would call that a side effect, you know?”

“Oh....... Now that I think about it, that is true.”

“No, are you joking right now?”

It was troubling even if she protested like that. 

Considering the side effects of Black Magic, this did not even belong in the category of side effects.

It was just practice. 

She was being too harsh.

“No matter what kind of magic it is, if you try to force a spell to activate without even understanding the formula, that formula will only meaninglessly consume the mana stored in your heart. Of course, Holy Power is no exception. Just like the formula you made now.”

Professor Noel was right. 

Even now, whenever the formula shook, Holy Power that had lost control was scattering uselessly into the air.

“Haa....... Well, fine. If you cut the connection between the Holy Power and the formula, the formula will naturally disappear, so do not worry too much. It is fortunate this is only practice. What would you have done if this had been an exercise or a real battle?”

Wow, to think she was still concerned about me even after seeing this deranged formula. 

Was this what a professor who cared for her students was like?

I found myself reflecting on having cursed the professor for ignoring me.

Unfortunately, however.

I had no intention of ending it here.

When I spread both hands toward the manifested formula, the formula began absorbing Holy Power from my palms even more quickly.

Throb!

“Cough!”

My heart began aching madly, and a murky cough burst out of me on its own.

Wow, damn....... This really is no joke.

It was the first time in my life I had felt this sort of pain.

The Holy Power stored in my heart was being drained away in clumps and absorbed into the formula.

The sense of exhaustion was worse than when I used High-Rank Black Magic.

To think this would put such a burden on my heart.

Even so, I calmly steadied my breathing and continued moving Holy Power from the Sacred Mark to my heart.

“See? Even your heart looks like it is struggling to endure, so what exactly are you doing without cutting the connection to the formula?”

“Kh....... Professor, Holy Power has a property of interweaving with itself, does it not?”

At the off-topic question, Professor Noel frowned slightly.

“It does, but....... Why are you asking that?”

Holy Power had a property of interweaving with itself.

Because of this damned characteristic, I had no choice but to store Holy Power in my heart in order to control a vast amount of it.

It was a problem that had arisen because the amount of Holy Power provided by the Sacred Mark was absurdly large.

Because of this, I had been able to clearly feel the specific nature of Holy Power.

That was right. 

Because I had felt it directly, it struck me even more deeply.

The nature of Holy Power was not something that should be dismissed as only a weakness.

“If one can continue providing Holy Power to an incomplete Holy Magic formula... I thought the Holy Power would interweave with itself and repair the problematic parts on its own.”

Even if it was... a half-finished formula I did not completely understand.

Hummmmm.......

As soon as I finished speaking, the Holy Power filling the formula interwove organically.

The characteristics of Holy Power were beginning to be displayed to their fullest.

If I continued maintaining the formula like this, the formula would be completed.

Professor Noel, who had been slowly looking back and forth between my face and the formula, adjusted the frame of her glasses.

“...Did you hear about that method from someone else?”

“Whew....... I did not hear it from anyone. The characteristics of Holy Power are peculiar, so I thought about it separately. I wondered whether this would work.”

“I heard from the Headmaster. Apparently, it has only been a few days since you began handling Holy Power properly....... It is surprising that you came up with such an idea on your own. However.......”

After briefly setting up her next words, Professor Noel glared at me through the lenses of her glasses.

“You are far too short-sighted. There have been countless pioneers who handled Holy Magic before us. Do you think no one has ever had the same thought as you?”

I had not been thinking anything that arrogant.

It seemed she thought my knowledge of magic was quite shallow.

She sure was saying all sorts of things to a Black Mage who had even returned to the past through Black Magic.

“The method you thought of has already been named ‘Auto-Casting’ in Holy Magic Studies. There is also a reason why no one uses this ‘Auto-Casting.’”

Oh, so this was called ‘Auto-Casting.’ 

I should call it that from now on as well.

“‘Auto-Casting’ consumes roughly ten times more Holy Power than the Holy Magic being cast originally. And even that is a very generous estimate. It means the caster has to handle enough Holy Power for ten people alone... and there are very few people who can do that.”

It was the very peak of inefficiency.

“Your Holy Power will certainly be exhausted before the formula is completed.”

It consumes more than ten times the Holy Power normally used, huh.......

That certainly was not a small amount.

The pain striking my heart directly proved it.

Even so.

“Cough! Ha.......”

The corners of my mouth drew an arc.

“...Well, I wonder about that?”

Bzzzz.

Because the Sacred Mark engraved on the back of my right hand was clearly sparkling with golden light.