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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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Chapter 22: Ah, I Understand Your Level Now.
As the magic circle radiated light, the classroom fell into a hush, as if silence itself had been cast upon it.
Clap, clap—!
To the land of dreams.
Into a dreamscape.
And so, silence descended.
A summoner from a noble house, who had spent the previous night in restless anxiety, quickly closed her eyes and slumped over her desk.
In her dream, she was able to say the words she hadn’t been able to voice for so long—the words "I like you"—with pride.
She could even apologize for avoiding them out of shyness.
With a bashful smile, she mumbled sleepily, confessing her feelings in a dream.
Meanwhile, the woman hailed as the "Hope of the Blue Tower" and called the "Ice Blossom" frowned slightly but soon surrendered to the drowsiness.
Memories of a carefree childhood drifted back, and her expression softened.
The tension in her body eased as she was enveloped in rare tranquility.
Creak, crack—
Gradually, frost began to form on the hem of her robes, and the surrounding air grew cold.
It wasn’t just them—
A young spirit-caller with wolf ears also drifted into a gentle slumber.
And the woman known as the next sect leader of the Mystic Clan, the academy’s valedictorian, closed her eyes as well.
All the students in the classroom, without hesitation, gazed at the magic circle and soon shut their eyes.
They were ensnared by the trap cast by the professor—
Sent off to the land of dreams.
And so, it was only natural that they fell asleep...
“...Hmm?”
Yet, one person remained awake, completely unfazed by the spell.
As if nothing had happened.
Shin Yuseong.
The only male student in Combat Studies Class 1,
And by a narrow margin, the top-ranked student from the level test.
The professors praised him as a model student,
Describing him as the ideal disciple with flawless skills and impeccable class conduct.
He was indeed as outstanding as they claimed.
However, there was one thing that bothered the professor...
Even though dispelling a high-level mage’s spell in an instant was a remarkable feat,
He instead wore an apologetic expression, as if regretful for reacting too slowly.
That peculiar demeanor lingered in the professor’s mind.
Aris Severus, the Combat Studies magic professor,
Unconsciously rubbed the bridge of her nose, pondering:
...Why does he look so vaguely remorseful, despite having broken the spell?
Could it be that he hadn’t actually dispelled the spell deliberately?
Perhaps he was merely lost in thought at the right moment,
And by coincidence, his mind was preoccupied—making him immune to the dreamscape spell?
If he had simply been dozing off when the magic struck,
It would explain the awkwardly apologetic look he was giving her.
Though the professors had sung his praises,
It was conceivable that even someone like him could have made such a mistake.
There was no need to reprimand him.
After all, even seemingly perfect students are bound to slip up occasionally.
‘But if he didn’t break the spell intentionally, it means he hasn’t truly mastered the countermeasure.’
Even if his incredible talent was bolstered by luck,
Without a proper grasp of the dispelling technique,
He wouldn’t be able to consistently resist future spells.
Thus, Aris Severus narrowed her eyes slightly and flicked her fingers.
Snap—!
A trigger spell,
An enhancer designed to strengthen the magic.
The magic circle’s light, the soundwaves traveling through the air,
The meticulously constructed spell woven with the mana of a high-level mage—
Every intricate element aligned perfectly,
Leaving no room for coincidence.
Snap—!
This was a flawless illusion spell, impervious to mere luck.
A second-level hallucination spell—
Unplanned, but specifically crafted for him.
A second-level test,
Just for Shin Yuseong.
── Open.
“Infuse the world with illusion.《Magical Illusion Manipulation.》”
To the land of dreams, once more.
...
Blink, blink—
“…Ah.”
Aris Severus blinked a few times,
Staring blankly at the still-conscious young man who calmly met her gaze.
His expression was utterly unfazed,
Devoid of any sense of exertion or triumph.
There was no indication that he had braced himself against the spell,
No sign that he had resisted it through sheer willpower.
Instead, he looked almost bored, as if the spell had merely washed over him unnoticed.
Aris blinked repeatedly, questioning her own senses.
‘Is this real? Or am I dreaming, too?’
As she doubted her own reality,
Shin Yuseong—having inadvertently dispelled the spell again—
Realized his mistake and widened his eyes slightly.
“Ah…!”
“……”
For Aris, who had so meticulously woven the complex spell,
His sheepish, accidental reaction was far more infuriating than any deliberate defiance.
* * *
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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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In the dreamscape,
Where she married him,
Bore two children,
And scolded them with a loving "You should listen to your father"—
“...Mmm, huh?”
Sephine Alavad suddenly shifted, blinking herself awake.
‘Huh? Wait, when did I fall asleep?’
Having never dozed off so easily in her life,
She was genuinely startled.
She quickly scanned her surroundings in a mild panic,
Not out of concern for how others might view her.
Some people in this world hold the honor of noble families in high regard and take great pride in being mages, but she couldn’t care less.
At the very least, she prayed that the Hero wouldn’t have seen her dozing off.
Sephine kept glancing nervously at Shin Yuseong, hoping he hadn’t witnessed her moment of weakness.
But for some reason, he was nowhere to be seen.
Blinking blankly, she turned her head this way and that, searching for any trace of him.
Even so, she couldn’t spot him.
Murmur—murmur—
It was only when she noticed the students around her looking equally confused that she realized what had happened.
For a brief moment, her mind went blank, but as the situation dawned on her, Sephine Alavad figured it out.
‘…Ah, I must have been under a spell!’
It was a bit embarrassing as a mage, but there was only one person in this place who would do such a thing.
Naturally, her eyes moved to the magic professor, Aris, standing at the lectern.
‘Oh, I see. She must have cast the spell to give everyone a lesson in vigilance.’
Sephine reasoned, assuming the professor was about to teach them how to break free from magic.
With that perfectly logical conclusion in mind, she gazed at Aris expectantly.
“……”
But instead, Aris Severus simply stood frozen on the platform with a colder expression than usual.
It wasn’t the anger of a professor disappointed by her students' inability to resist the spell.
Rather, there was a faint melancholy in her eyes.
For a long while, she remained still, even after the students had snapped out of the spell and were staring at her.
Only then did Aris finally move.
Tap, tap
She rapped her knuckles against the green chalkboard, but her movements seemed oddly devoid of strength.
“……Let us resume the lesson.”
Eager to impress the Hero, Sephine quickly focused on the lecture again.
* * *
[The goddess feels disoriented, as if she’s done something terribly wrong.]
I got kicked out of class.
Not even during my middle school phase when I was obsessed with my “Dark Flame Dragon,”
nor during my hot-blooded first year of high school, had such a thing ever happened.
I wasn’t sure whether to be baffled or embarrassed.
It genuinely felt like I had unintentionally done something wrong.
‘…You don’t need to attend this lecture. You pass. Go rest.’
Actually, it wasn’t wrong at all.
The professor had praised me, saying I’d done exceptionally well…
‘The professor looked a bit disheartened, didn’t she?’
[The goddess solemnly clarifies that it wasn’t just a little—she looked absolutely devastated.]
…Hey, come on. "Devastated" is a bit much.
“Hmm.”
I actually wanted to be affected by the spell.
I had even mentally prepared myself to react accordingly.
But the spell’s power came at such a vague level that I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to feel anything,
so I ended up not reacting at all.
I mean, I was expecting it to slam into me with a massive force or something.
‘Is the professor weaker than I thought?’
No, it’s probably more that I’m just absurdly resistant to magic.
Which makes sense.
Even though I’ve never formally studied magic,
I’ve fought and slain countless demons and devils.
To counter their spells, I reforged my soul and body through relentless battles,
building up resistance by enduring their curses directly.
It had simply been so long since I’d been targeted by a human mage that I’d completely underestimated their spell’s effectiveness.
…Yeah, I see now.
This was definitely my fault.
Anyway, since I’d effectively passed the course,
I lay on one of the beds in the men’s lounge, staring at the ceiling.
Eventually, I muttered to myself.
“Ah, I see now. I know your level.”
So this is the magic of this world, huh?
Even the weakest of the Four Heavenly Kings would be at this level.
How laughable…
[The goddess sternly advises you never to say that out loud in front of others.]
“I wasn’t going to, okay?”
* * *
Step, step
After the lecture, Aris Severus slumped into a chair,
her expression dazed as if she had just woken from a nightmare.
That morning, she had been brimming with confidence for her first lecture of the semester,
but now, the strength had completely drained from her body.
“……Hah.”
She let out a hollow sigh.
Until the phone on her desk rang, she simply stared into space,
blinking vacantly.
Riiing—Riiing—
When the incessant ringing refused to stop,
Aris exhaled and finally picked up the receiver, shaking off her lingering daze.
─Ah, hello? Have you finished your lecture, Professor Aris?
“……”
It was none other than Shin Arin, a combat professor currently on assignment for a regular extermination expedition in Africa.
They weren’t particularly close,
but since she had overheard Arin’s lunchtime conversations recently,
Aris, a seasoned mage, easily predicted where the call was headed.
She sighed and pressed her palm over her eyes.
─But wait, did our Yuseong really get hit by the spell? I honestly didn’t think he would. Right? Isn’t he amazing? I just love how not only is his mana barrier incredibly sturdy, but also how much effort and passion he must have put into building it up. Oh! Right! I wanted to hear if our Yuseong resisted the magic. So, Professor Aris? Are you still there?
…Ah, she suddenly wanted to disappear.
* * *
Ding!
Suddenly, I received a message.
It was from the campus alert app that I’d downloaded on a whim.
I hadn’t received a single notification in three weeks,
so it felt oddly novel.
[The goddess covers her mouth with both hands and cautiously glances around after reading the message.]
But the content was unusual.
<Today’s lecture is canceled due to health issues.>
“……Oh.”
It was probably just a coincidence,
but after only two lessons,
the grand mage had already sent out a class cancellation notice.
…No way.
There’s no way this had anything to do with me, right?
Momentarily in denial, I opened the follow-up message.
When I saw the attached sick note, I smacked my lips and admitted the truth.
The professor, ever so diligent, had even included a photo of the diagnosis.
[Diagnosis: Mage's Heart Syndrome]
…Ah, I see.
That explains it.
“Hmmm.”
Yeah, it was definitely my fault.
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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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