Chapter 51: Special Adventurer Club (3)
He clearly saw it. The magic Ophelia had initially attempted to use was a type of blood magic, similar to Cita’s. Ronan opened his mouth as if possessed by something.
“…You’re in.”
He didn’t even consider asking interview questions. Ophelia, upon hearing the word “You’re in,” slowly turned her head. Her white skin, contrasting against her red eyes, seemed so pale that it almost felt transparent.
The moment he observed this contrast, a certain race came to Ronan’s mind. One of the three beings predicted to have influenced Cita. A race that, unable to realize coexistence with humans in the past, eventually left the Imperial Territories and established their own kingdom.
“Ophelia. Perhaps···.”
Ronan was about to ask a question driven by curiosity. Ophelia’s voice resonated in Ronan’s mind.
[…You’ve indeed seen it.]
It was telepathic magic. It was only audible to Ronan, not Adeshan. Ophelia spoke.
[You’re right about it… but for now, keep it a secret.]
Even through telepathy, her voice sounded cautious. Ronan nodded subtly. Ophelia let out a relieved sigh.
[Thank you.]
She responded and slowly approached. Cita stared at Ophelia with wide eyes.
“What are you doing?”
“Can… I touch it?”
It was like a child asking if they could eat a candy they were holding. Ronan scanned Ophelia’s face and gave a slight nod. He now perfectly understood the type of person Cita liked.
“Yes, well… it might like it.”
“Hehe.”
Ophelia laughed bashfully and reached out to touch Cita. Cita didn’t show any sign of resistance and immediately placed its face on her palm.
“Beah~”
Truly a consistent guy. With the interview concluded, Ronan left the Galerion Manor with Ophelia. There were so many things he wanted to ask.
Leaving the Galerion Manor, they headed to the Grand Plaza. There was no one passing by, and the wind blew fiercely, making it a suitable place for secretive conversation.
“Is it okay to talk here?”
“Yes.”
“Weren’t all of your kind supposed to have left the Empire?”
Ophelia didn’t answer. Silence took the place of the conversation. After a few minutes of walking, telepathy resonated in Ronan’s mind.
[…Not all of us.]
“I see. You don’t have to say if you don’t want to.”
[No, it’s just that a tiny minority of us vampires are still living in various parts of the Empire. I’m the only one who entered the Philleon Academy.]
“Do other people not know at all?”
[Apart from Headmaster Kratir and a few professors, no one knows. Revealing our true identities would only lead to trouble.]
Ophelia fell silent. She didn’t explain the circumstances or background behind her enrollment in Philleon. Ronan didn’t press further either. Sensing the atmosphere becoming heavy, Ronan changed the topic.
“To be honest, did you join the club because you’re interested in Cita?”
[Yes.]
“It’s nice to be honest. It’s probably not just because it’s cute, right? What’s going on?”
[I sensed the aura of our race’s magic… I mean, the aura of blood magic.]
With those words, Ophelia raised her index finger. A rose made of blood appeared on her slender fingertip. Cita, who had been perched on Ronan’s shoulder, stretched its neck and blinked its eyes.
“Beahh!!”
Suddenly, Cita’s eyes brightened. The shape of the rose transformed into a bird resembling Cita, with its petals crumpling. The blood bird was absorbed into Cita’s feathers. Ophelia stroked Cita and smiled.
[As expected.]
“That monstrous-like magic is called blood magic, huh?”
[Yes. It’s fascinating… I felt the mana of blood after a long time, but to think a non-vampire race would use blood magic… What’s the principle behind it?]
Her tone carried a scholarly curiosity, reminiscent of conversations among academics. Strangely, he felt a similarity to her conversation with Dydican, the werewolf blacksmith. Suddenly, Ophelia, who had been stroking Cita’s wings, chuckled.
[But what kind of animal is this…? It has wings just like Orsego, all four of them.]
“It’s a dreambird, a phantasmal species. I don’t know how it ended up like this, but I found out it can manipulate blood.”
Ronan explained the characteristics of the dreambird and the story of how he met Cita. When Ophelia heard that Cita was less than two months old, her eyes widened.
“Two months…?”
“Yes. Is there a problem?”
“Just a moment… But did it just manipulate the form of blood?”
“…Was that surprising? It has done even more amazing things.”
Ronan recounted Cita’s feats. In the battle with Dullan, it exacerbated bleeding to create openings. In Gran Cappadocia, it manipulated the blood of survivors extensively to create pillars that indicated their positions.
With each elongated explanation, Ophelia’s face gradually stiffened. Between her slightly parted lips, pointed fangs glistened. Cita, who had been gazing at her with concern, suddenly brightened its eyes.
“Beah.”
Suddenly, a blood-made rose appeared before Cita’s eyes. It had the exact same form as the one Ophelia had created. As if giving a gift, Cita asked for the blood rose and extended it toward her.
“Unbelievable…!”
“Why?”
“This… This is truly amazing. Did you say its name was Cita?”
Ronan nodded. Excitement flowed from Ophelia’s voice. Emotions began to show on her previously expressionless face.
“Perhaps… Perhaps with it, it might be possible. By the way, can I ask for a favor…?”
“Just tell me.”
“Could you give me a few of its feathers? Or rather… just two?”
“Feathers?”
Ronan raised an eyebrow. He suddenly recalled how he had followed Varen to retrieve Marpez’s feathers. Ophelia spoke with an entreating tone.
“Originally, I didn’t plan to do anything actively, just research… But I’ll participate fully. So could you give me three, no… two feathers…?”
“Calm down. What do you plan to do with them?”
“I want to use them for researching new blood magic. I’ve got a feeling this time. I promise I’ll teach it as well when I’m back… Okay?”
“…Teach magic? To Cita?”
Ronan’s eyes widened. It was an intriguing proposal. He had been sensing it, but Cita learned and applied things at an incredibly fast pace.
‘Yeah, even the biggest rascals get smarter when they learn…’
The problem was that due to the grotesque nature of the magic it dealt with, there was no one to teach it. In this situation, the idea of someone teaching it blood magic was a highly appealing suggestion. Ronan stroked Cita and asked.
“Cita, are you okay?”
“Beah!”
Cita nodded its head. Ronan, after verifying its approval, plucked three feathers and handed them over. Ophelia trembled as she accepted Cita’s feathers.
“Thank you… By the way, Ahayute…? What does that mean?”
“It’s the name of a monkey with a toothache.”
“What a strange name… Anyway, thank you. I’ll definitely come back…”
With those words left behind, Ophelia turned around and walked away. Soon, within the shadows cast by the Galerion Manor, a silvery bat emerged and flew.
The bat flew westward at a speed almost matching that of a bird of prey. Ronan watched its back, now indistinguishable from starlight, and murmured.
“…It’ll be okay, right?”
****
Training continued daily. Fortunately, the club members actively participated in club activities. Otherwise, it would have been inevitable since Ronan would have gone to catch Lamancha.
Aselle, Marya, and Braum dedicated themselves to training whenever they had free time. Thanks to their natural talents and passion, their growth rate was swift.
“No, can’t you do this? Just swiftly enter and slice.”
“Hahaha! I’d like to shave your head with a slice! Is that what you mean, jackass?”
“Hold on, Braum.”
“I can’t understand. Let’s do it again. Twist your waist swiftly like this!”
Ronan tried his best to teach the two. Of course, one couldn’t really say he had the talent of an educator.
For the most part, most martial arts were something Ronan could pick up after seeing it once. So, the inadequacy of Marya and Braum felt like a type of developmental delay.
“In my view, it’s just because your efforts are lacking. Who will win? Let’s try.”
Ronan ultimately introduced a punitive training system. If they can’t do it, they get hit until they can. However, he couldn’t bring himself to hit the chicks whose feathers had yet to dry, so he substituted rigorous training for the agonizing beatings.
“Wow, seriously…! What lap are we on now…!”
“The most important thing is stamina. Without stamina, it’s all futile. And with improved stamina, you’ll be able to train longer.”
“Wauahaha! Spare me!”
Ronan pursued not only stamina but also strength training. Before long, they became well-known figures in Nest. They used the training facilities more actively than anyone else could be seen doing anywhere else.
With daily rants, changes naturally occurred in their bodies. One day, after finishing training, Marya called Aselle.
“Cute one, try touching it.”
“Huh? Uhh?”
“Don’t pull away, do it quickly.”
Marya took Aselle’s hand and placed it on her stomach. Through her sweaty clothes, Aselle’s fingertips felt the sensation akin to touching a stone. Marya wiped her sweat and smiled.
“How does it feel? It’s amazing, right? I really like how my body is getting stronger.”
Aselle couldn’t sleep that night. Originally, Braum also enjoyed showing off his body, but after getting mistaken for a monster three times at night, he was becoming a bit modest.
After about two weeks, Marya was able to showcase the Imperial swordsmanship with her own greatsword. The next day, she came back with a certificate of early completion for Imperial swordsmanship class.
“Ha! Did you see!”
“Good job. Now, you need to complete hand-to-hand combat.”
“Aaaargh!”
The next day, Braum completed intermediate hand-to-hand combat early. He received praise from the instructors for achieving an overwhelmingly impressive result among the second-year students.
“Wow Haha! It’s all thanks to you guys, thank you!”
“It’s Braum being Braum!”
“Oof!”
Thunk!
Instinctively, Braum’s leg came free from Marya’s punch. However, he didn’t fall down like the first time.
Seeing this, Ronan nodded with interest. Perhaps a different weapon, not a greatsword, would suit Braum better. Maybe a one-handed sword and a massive shield.
‘By the way, when is that rascal coming?’
More than two weeks had passed, but Shullifen still hadn’t returned. Only rumors of large-scale oppression occurring in Gracia were gradually filtering in.
Navirose had conveyed that information gathered from Cyril and Dallan was being documented and reported to the upper echelons of various realms.
“The Emperor seems to have learned about this incident too. I’ve heard rumors that a specialized organization targeting Nebula Clazier is about to be established.”
“Things are bound to get even more chaotic.”
“That’s right. Anyway, what have you been up to, running around like that? Varen’s concerns aren’t without reason.”
“Actually, I’m getting ready to run around. It’s just as secretive as the instructor’s pajamas.”
In the first training arena, Ronan’s screams echoed. He had come to fear showing his ears to others for a few days.
Another ten days passed. Maya and Braum both succeeded in early completion for two more classes each. They displayed their certificates of early completion on the cork board in the club building.
“This makes it our third!”
“I’m at four!”
“Everyone worked hard.”
Ronan applauded. Now, the schedules of the two weren’t much different from Ronan’s or Aselle’s. After coordinating schedules, all club members, including weekends, had a four-day break.
“Finally, we’re ready to go.”
Ronan had been receiving periodic letters from Ophelia. Three days ago, he received a letter stating that they were finally in the finishing stages, but he couldn’t wait any longer.
It was time to depart. Ronan immediately contacted a guild named ‘Pale Horse.’ They were the only company that could provide a rental service for ghostly horses, capable of riding on the wind.
While planning, Ronan discovered that by riding a ghost horse, they could reach Baydian within half a day. Of course, it came at a considerable cost, but that wasn’t Ronan’s concern; it was the school’s problem.
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