The Summoning Genius of the Necromancer School
Simon swallowed hard.
After examining Kamibarez's wounds once more, Lena spoke calmly.
"You fought with other students, didn't you? If there's a problem, it's better to handle it while you're still under student protection. Just suffering in silence won't solve anything..."
"It wasn't a fight with students."
Although he had been attacked by a priest who had betrayed Kizen, he couldn't speak the truth.
The very existence of the Kizen organization was a secret that could shake everything, and if things went wrong, Lena could be in danger too.
"Then what was it?"
"There are some complicated circumstances, so I can't tell you everything. I'm sorry."
"......"
Lena pressed her fingers to her forehead with a stern expression.
Through the curtain, Simon's silhouette could be seen bowing his head.
In truth, she knew from long experience that a lackey's involvement in student affairs would change nothing. 'First, let's treat him.' She took out an emergency kit along with various medicines from the drawer.
She wiped away the blood with gauze and skillfully disinfected the wound.
Kamibarez, who was asleep, frowned and let out a soft "Umm."
After finishing the disinfection, she gently applied a healing slime medicine to ensure no scars would remain and then placed a bandage over it.
Fortunately, there were no major injuries.
The worst was the thigh, which she wrapped with a bandage.
Kamibarez's expression relaxed a bit.
"Simon."
Lena pulled back the curtain and stepped out.
"Take off your clothes."
"...... Yes, what?"
Simon's pupils shook.
She crossed her arms with an expressionless face.
"Don't you need to check your wounds too? Take off your upper clothes."
"Ah. Yes!" Simon thought he was surprised too many times today as he took off his uniform.
He removed his jacket and shirt, rolling up his uniform pants to just above his knees.
"I'll disinfect you first."
Lena crouched down in front of Simon with a cotton ball soaked in disinfectant.
Cough.
Seeing Simon's bare body, her face involuntarily flushed.
No, why does this student have such a good body for no reason? What is this six-pack at his age?
'......
Ah, how embarrassing.
Don't act up, heart.'
There is a pride in adulthood; she couldn't harbor any impure thoughts about a minor whose blood hadn't even dried on his head.
Steeling herself, she disinfected the wound with a professional mindset.
Simon screamed and twisted his body intermittently.
"Ugh, it hurts too much!"
"Just a little longer."
Lena slapped Simon's leg lightly.
The kid was clearly being overly dramatic.
After finishing the disinfection, she applied the medicine carefully and wrapped it with a bandage.
"Since the wound might get worse, it's best not to overdo it for a while."
"Thank you!" Simon bowed politely.
A student saluting a lackey; Lena was a bit taken aback and stepped back, then cleared her throat awkwardly.
"I don't know what happened today, but... there's nothing more important than health in this world. As long as your body is fine, you can survive in Kizen or not. You understand what I mean, right?"
"Yes!"
"The girl behind you is safe too. I'll quietly call some trustworthy colleagues from the girls' dormitory to take her away."
"Thank you so much! I won't forget this kindness."
Simon bowed again politely.
After Simon left the duty room, Lena sighed and sat down in a chair. '......
I wonder if I can see that student for a long time.' She thought he was a boy with a rare human charm that was hard to find in Kizen.
A strange aftertaste tickled her.
"Si, Simon! You're safe!"
As Simon entered the dormitory room, Dick, who had been pacing anxiously, rushed over.
"What happened? What about Kami?"
Simon calmly explained the situation.
He recounted how he had been chased by the guards deep into the forest and lost his way.
Of course, he omitted the details about the priest.
He thought he would have to discuss that part separately with Kamibarez later.
Dick had also arrived a bit late after evading the guards, and he said that Meilin, who was left alone in the practice room, was trembling with anger and sorrow.
Once he explained the situation about the guards, she seemed to understand.
In the end, Dick had safely gathered materials from Rochester, so it seemed they could make the potion tomorrow.
Boom!
"Ah, you scared me!"
The door burst open, and Kazan Edvalte entered.
Perhaps he had just come from the bath, as he had a towel draped over his wet hair.
"You're here? Kazan."
Simon greeted him with a smile.
Without answering, Kazan tossed his uniform aside and climbed onto the second-floor bed, covering himself with the blanket up to his head.
And within exactly one minute, the sound of snoring could be heard.
"...... I really don't know what he's doing."
Dick shrugged and went to his own bed.
Simon stared at Kazan's sleeping figure for a moment before gathering his blanket and heading to his own bed.
Today had been exhausting.
The next morning.
Simon told Dick to go to the classroom first and waited at the entrance of the building with his back against the wall.
Among the familiar faces of Class A students passing by, he spotted Hector and his faction arriving at school.
They looked at Simon with a bit of surprise and whispered among themselves.
'It's late.'
Simon glanced at the wall clock, his face tinged with anxiety.
Class was about to start, yet Kamibarez was nowhere to be seen.
What could be the reason? Was she too sick? Or was she too shocked by what happened yesterday to come to class?
In fact, whenever Simon recalled the sight of the priest praying in the forbidden forest last night, he felt a chill run down his spine.
He had even had a bit of a nightmare last night.
Fortunately, Simon was somewhat used to seeing a priest pray since his mother was one, but for Kamibarez, the mental shock must have been several times greater.
'I need to check on the girls' dormitory after class...
Huh?'
At that moment, a girl with a familiar face passed by with a bag slung over her shoulder.
As soon as she made eye contact with Simon, she broke into a bright smile.
"Ah, Simon! Good morning!"
Kamibarez came running with quick steps.
Contrary to Simon's worries, she looked lively.
"...... Wait, I need to talk to you, Kami."
The two moved to a quiet spot behind the building.
"Were you scared yesterday? Are you really okay?"
She nodded slightly.
"Yes, I'm fine. I just... think I had a dream."
"A dream?"
A pleasant night walk after a long time.
Picking mushrooms happily with Simon.
Running away from the guards.
Simon holding her and jumping over a cliff.
Finally, that terrifying moment facing the priest.
"It felt like the dream turned into a nightmare, and I woke up with a blank memory... What should I call this? It feels a bit unreal."
She brushed her elbow lightly.
'Did she take it as a dream to lessen the shock?'
Whatever happened, it was a relief to see her looking fine.
Simon got straight to the point.
"That priest ran away when he saw the guards. It's highly likely he didn't see your face."
"Ah......."
"Don't tell anyone else, just act as usual. I'll find out who that priest is."
"I want to help too!"
Suddenly, she stepped closer and stood on her tiptoes.
"It's unfair to say I should just sit this one out because my face wasn't seen! This is our matter!"
Taken aback by her enthusiasm, Simon instinctively pulled back his head.
"Okay, okay. I'll ask for your help when the time comes."
"Yes!"
Just then, the bell signaling the start of class rang.
The two hurriedly dashed to the classroom.
The first class was on the Curse of Bahil.
Once the class began, the events from the forbidden forest last night faded from Simon's mind as he became engrossed in the lesson.
Bahil finished explaining the theory and immediately moved on to practical work.
"I noticed many students relied on correction tools in the last Exgest class. So, this time, we will practice with an easier curse."
"The Curse of Transference" uses a formula that grants the target creature a shade of black, serving as the foundation for all curses.
The goal of this lesson was to successfully float this magic circle in the air without using correction tools.
Hiss.
Focusing his mind, Simon spread his palms facing each other, as if holding a large fruit in his hands.
Now, he had to let the blackness flow from his palms to draw the magic circle in the air.
Simon’s dark blue shade flowed out, forming the basic stage of the magic circle: a "circle."
'......
This is tough from the start.'
Struggling to lay down the base circle, he tried to draw the runes in the center.
However, things didn't go as smoothly as he hoped.
As he attempted to add the runes, the base reacted against him, shaking, and his hands trembled as if he had a nervous disorder.
Still, Simon clumsily wrote the runes and formulas.
It was supposed to look neat, like a picture from a copier, but Simon's magic circle appeared with letters wriggling on their own.
'Ugh.'
Deciding to try casting the spell as it was, he noticed a tall, straight plant on the desk.
This plant grew by feeding on the shade, and if he succeeded with the Curse of Transference, buds would bloom from its body.
With a desperate heart, Simon activated the magic circle.
Boom!
However, instead of activating, the magic circle exploded with a loud noise and scattered.
Simon sighed in disappointment.
'It really isn't easy.'
He had to catch a Cyclops next week, and he didn't have time for this.
Gritting his teeth, Simon spread his palms again.
"How is it? Can you manage?"
At that moment, he felt a warm hand on his shoulder.
Turning his head, he saw Bahil smiling brightly, though he didn't know when he had arrived.
Simon tensed up and replied.
"Ah, yes! I'm working hard......."
"Core operation."
Simon’s words abruptly halted.
"Your core operation is lacking, which causes the hardness of the shade to drop, and the subsequent construction of the magic circle isn't being done properly."
"Ah......."
His heart raced.
This was something he had been feeling all along, but hearing it directly from Professor Kizen felt completely different.
"There probably isn't a place to learn core operation properly. It's too basic for Kizen to teach, and everyone has a different way of operating it."
Bahil raised his finger from the hand resting on Simon's shoulder.
"Excuse me for a moment."
Then he pressed his finger firmly on Simon's shoulder.
Thud.
In an instant, Simon's mind went blank, and he heard the sound of droplets falling.
The noise of the surrounding students vanished as Simon's body drifted into a world separate from the classroom.
"There is a prejudice that curses are only harmful. It's a pity as someone involved."
Bahil said with a wry smile.
Perhaps because the surrounding noise had disappeared, his voice was exceptionally clear.
"Professor, this is......."
"Don't be surprised. I've merely maximized Simon's senses through a modified sensory curse. Now, focus again."
With Bahil's soothing voice echoing, Simon felt inexplicably at ease.
It didn't seem like he was trying to do anything bad.
"Take a deep breath and try to draw the mana from the air into your body."
Simon followed the instructions and drew the mana into his body.
This time, Bahil placed his left hand on Simon's shoulder as well.
"Now, we will pass the mana through the core. First, watch closely as I do it."
Among the mana in his body, Simon felt a thread of mana he couldn't control.
It entered the core beneath his heart.
But it didn't just pass through the core.
The mana was rotating along with the core, undergoing a thick transformation process.
"Simon’s shade is different from that of ordinary people. The image of simply extracting it will inevitably be less efficient."
"So then......."
"Circulation."
The mana rotating in the core naturally transformed into shade and was released externally.
It resembled the image of the corona of a black sun.
"Forget the images of transformation, modification, and alteration. Think of the core as a living being, and gently coax it along. Wait for the shade to naturally fall outside."
"Ah......!"
"Now, it's Simon's turn."
Simon nodded and concentrated on the mana in his body.
Not transformation, but circulation.
The image of circulation.
Repeating the words in his head several times, Simon visualized them with mana.
As if responding to his will, the mana flowed into the core.
"There’s no need to struggle to control the core. Keep your mind at ease and observe. Let it do as it wishes."
Following Bahil's words, the core truly moved on its own.
The core rotated the shade, drawing in the surrounding mana, and the shade gradually gained strength.
Soon, the core was filled, and the shade was released outside.
'Ah......!'
Finally.
The black sun was completed within Simon's body.
"Well done! Now, let's try reducing the senses to 50%."
His hazy vision returned.
From the feeling of being completely detached, he could now hear the lively voices of the students sitting next to him.
"Now, try again."
"Yes!"
Simon repeated the process several times.
The shade didn't move freely as it did when his senses and concentration were maximized, so the first attempt failed, but he caught the feeling on the second try and succeeded on the third.
"The shade has a tendency to remember."
Bahil said, tapping his forehead.
"It's like a person's hands and feet. After repeating the same action hundreds or thousands of times, it will later try to reproduce the learned flow without conscious thought. Isn't it fascinating? That's why repeated practice and forming the right habits are crucial."
He felt good.
It was as if the realization was firmly embedded in his mind.
He had thought Bahil was just a cold and calculating person, but now he felt he was seeing a new side of him.
"Now, shall we try the curse as well?"
With Bahil's voice, Simon's senses were heightened again.
All other distractions vanished, and he could focus solely on his body, the shade, and the plant in front of him.
"Try to raise the shade."
At Bahil's command, Simon raised his hands, palms facing each other.
The shade spread from his fingertips like paint.
"Rest assured, I'm assisting you. Complete the magic circle as you wish."
"Ah, yes!"
It was a distinctly different sensation from when he was alone.
The magic circle floating in the air was perfectly stable, allowing Simon to raise the shade as much as he wanted.
It was an astonishing feeling.
Just moments ago, when he had been struggling, now seemed laughable, and in an instant, the magic circle was completed.
"Now, activate it!"
As all his senses returned, Simon opened his eyes wide and activated the magic circle.
A streak of shade, reminiscent of lightning, shot out and struck the plant.
Boom!
Then, an amazing spectacle unfolded.
Countless buds exploded and bloomed from the plant's body.
The flowers soon covered Simon's desk and spread around him.
In an instant, he was buried in a sea of flowers.
"Wow!"
"What’s happening?"
Gasps of astonishment erupted from all around the students.
"Pro, Professor. This is......!"
"This is the potential you possess."
Bahil said in a voice just loud enough for Simon to hear.
"Don't misunderstand. I merely assisted you in achieving stable output; soon, you will be able to reach this level on your own."
That statement was true.
The flowers blooming were undeniably Simon's power.
"Your shade is special. Simon Polentia."
Bahil's finger, resting on Simon's shoulder, twitched.
The blue flowers were growing even now, covering Simon's chest.
"Please think carefully."
Bahil's expression turned serious.
"What is the best way to bloom your talent? And in what direction should you move to utilize this special shade to its fullest 200%?"