Sword, Magic and Academic Society

"Hey, you're still at it...? Even Knight Caprine, who boasts top-class mana capacity, raised her hands in defeat and stopped to take a break. How's your mana right now?"

With the time already being noon of the next day, Hugo flashed a bitter smile as he called out to Al while approaching him.

"Err, I’ll take a break after 2— no, 3 hours."

Hugo checked his pocket watch and squinted his eyes.

"One every five seconds, huh? Frankly, your pace isn’t that great compared to the other explorers. I was sure you’d be down for the count after going through your seasickness… but man, you sure are rocking a huge mana capacity, huh?"

Al, however, shook his head.

"I would say it's more of a difference in technique than mana capacity. I wanted to increase my pace a bit, but then I would outpace my mana regeneration and drain myself before I could fill my reserves back up using mana compression during the activation and movement of my magic. So this was what I settled on instead."

Hugo's eyes turned as wide as saucers.

"Mana compression...? You're saying you can focus on mana compression while doing strenuous actions that strain both your mind and body at that age?"

Al confirmed with a casual node.

"Well, yeah. Then again, I’m still a beginner in it. According to Allen, you should be able to complete the mana compression in the split second your leg leaves the ground and lands back down again while running. Though the best I can do is compress it gradually at a slower jogging pace, and that too after participating in the club activities every day."

"Pfft! Fuhahaha! What a bizarre lad. But yeah, this technique is indeed a godsend given the situation, very much so… However, I can't imagine where you’d need such a huge pool of stamina except in some rare scenarios. Just what is your end goal that you would keep doing this bland basic training, a battle of attrition? For how many hours?

I mean, after getting this far, there should be thousands of other methods you can use to raise your strength, right? Is it because of your coach's command, or was it Sir Godorfun's suggestion?"

Hugo asked Al out of profound curiosity.

"Well~, Godorfun-sensei doesn't often say anything in our club activities. Allen is our coach, but even he doesn't give us specific directions. He just shows us the value of something, and then the rest of us just pick it up voluntarily...... though I can't deny if we had just been unknowingly led to think this way. In the end, you just never know what goes on in the head of that guy."

As Al awkwardly said so while scratching his head, Hugo chuckled and signaled the three assistant personnel to take a break.

"Forgive me for stopping you guys, but I’ll take the hammer from here. You may return to your duties."

Hugo then casually carried away an egg and swung the hammer down on it.

"Ahh!" The assistant who was watching Hugo in action made a startled cry. The egg was flattened and smashed with a thwack. A faint 'scree' echoed amidst the egg's death throes, but even that died down soon enough.

“Don't worry, I’m eyeing things carefully. You guys check on Ravel and see where your assistance is required."

After finishing his words, Hugo once again brought down the hammer on another egg. Al also resumed freezing the eggs after confirming that.

He aimed his wand at an egg, bringing an accumulation of white frost over it. Hugo would then carry it away and smash it.

Though they had some silly talk in between, they mostly stayed quiet while working for nearly two and a half hours. Finally, even Al started to feel the fatigue creeping in. Right around then, the aide Ravel called out to Hugo.

“Stellar work there. However, you should take a break right now. Your mana control is slowly slipping. Hard work is appreciated, but accidents can easily set you back.”

It had been fourteen and a half hours since the mission started.

After freezing around ten thousand eggs, Al wrapped it up and took a nap.

◆◆◆

"He had been at it since last night without stopping… What do you think of him, Commander Hugo?"

Hugo narrowed his eyes and told him how Al had been working while performing mana compression.

"But aside from that, hmm... His control over lowering temperature is phenomenal compared to other mages. One usually starts by freezing the water, but he can freeze something to its very depths far beyond the norm. That’s why I simply crush the eggs as it would be a waste to spend time checking the dormant state of the Hellrowcast inside otherwise.

It's like he's in a ‘form’ of a loop. He's able to ascertain that each spell has the same output. Then there's also that wand of his. It's made out of a somewhat special material from his hometown, but it fits his hand exceptionally well for his age.

I heard he’s been holding it like a toy since he was a toddler, long before his mana organ developed. It's quite a valuable piece of craftsmanship, though they took quite a gamble on a child whose talent was uncertain at that time.

He also has a good temperament, and his base magical power seems quite high. In two years, there'll be a scuffle over him among the Knight Order legions to get him in their ranks. You might want to keep an eye on him."

Ravel appeared astounded. He hadn't expected such rave praises coming from Hugo.

"Oh? I'm quite surprised to hear such praise for a mere student. I don’t have the eye to ascertain a mage's strength like you, Commander, but is he really that exceptional?"

Hugo promptly nodded.

"Yes, very much so. He’s a born prodigy, but that doesn't eclipse the bland, tasteless basic training that he's been doing for so long without giving up. A look at his magic makes that apparent. If I have to assess him right now for Knight Order employment, his potential would be...... B+."

Hugo uttered with a narrow gaze.

"......B+? That means he has sufficient caliber to join the Knight Order... but have you found anything noteworthy?"

"Well~... given his age, I wouldn't say it's that much of a flaw, but…"

Hugo's hand glided up and down his arm as he dragged his words, his eyes sharp.

"He's too reliant on Allen Rovenne. That's why his spirit is so soft despite his strength. In the future, when he meets a nigh impossible wall, whether he can surpass it, or face the setback… would be the moment where his true worth would be laid bare.

Well, he's just 13 years old now, so I'll give him that. Plus, he appears aware of his naivety and is even challenging it. His crazy foundation is proof of that. The broader and firmer one's foundation is, the higher their leap will be— were the words of Shell-san."

"......Oh, what? After all that talk, you still respect him, don't you? Though, you could have discarded that 'slipshod' attitude of yours, at least......"

'No way,' Hugo shrugged off Ravel's murmur with a wave of his hand and asked him to report the team's overall progress.

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