The Principle of a Philosopher by Eternal Fool “Asley”

“Hey, Eigul. My shift now.”

“Hello there, Sir Bruce, Miss Haruhana. I see Sir Asley and Miss Pochi are here as well!”

“Hello, hello! Good evening!”

“Thanks for your hard work, Eigul.”

Here we are, the four of us, at the entrance to the magic classroom venue.

After Bruce and Haruhana briefly greeted Eigul, they remained at the entrance to take over guard duty. Where are Blazer and the others, though? I can’t sense their arcane energy anywhere around here.

…Ah, right, when we were in the bath, Bruce mentioned something like, “Everyone else’s gonna be here in a bit.”

Was that because he thought I’d be staying at the mansion?

Maybe they’ve gone back there and we just missed each other.

The number of arcane energy sources in the magic classroom venue has decreased considerably, too — probably a sign that the so-called selection process is drawing to a close. Now, what kind of selection is this even for, anyway?

“Oh, Asley. I wasn’t expecting you.”

“Good evening, Warren. Uh, you see, I don’t remember what happened the past few days…”

Upon hearing this, Warren said nothing and widened his eyes, though it felt like his way of saying he understood.

“I’m so sorry, Warren! My Master must have caused you so much trouble!”

Pochi, noticeably more accustomed to Warren compared to before, chimed in.

Well, what she said was probably true, so I’m not about to complain about that.

“That’s fine. Now, Asley, you should head inside. The selection process is already over, and we’ve found the suitable candidates.”

“C-candidates? …For what?”

Pochi and I exchanged puzzled looks as we followed Warren, who proceeded to walk toward the main lot of the magic classroom venue.

The first person we saw there was… Tūs. Of course, his enormous form is hard to miss, but what he’s looking at are two delicate figures that hardly even compare in size.

“That’s right, Natsu, Fuyu. You both are on the right track. Follow the rhythm of your breathing as you draw. Don’t worry, the others will match their rhythm with you later.”

“”All right!””

There’s the gigantic monster named Tūs, then there are the two girls breathing in sync with each other. What are they doing, putting on a show?

“Hmm? When’d you get here, Asley?”

“Just now. Quite a unique combo I’m seeing here — I don’t think I’ve seen you with these two before.”

“HAH! And they catch on WAY faster than you ever did!”

“Yeah, that’s probably true.”

“Not even gonna defend yourself, eh? Ugh, whatever. Warren, we done here yet?”

“Yes, I think that will be enough. Thank you very much, Master Tūs.”

Warren bowed to Tūs, who proceeded to draw a Teleportation Spell Circle on the ground and leave the place through it. Now, what was that giant man up to?

“Hahaha… Sir Asley… Long time no see…”

“–Whoa there! You all right, Fuyu!?”

“Natsu’s down, too!”

I carried Fuyu in my arms while Pochi let Natsu lean against her back.

In an instant, I realized that both of them had severely expended their arcane energy.

“Rise, Giving Magic: Count 2 & Remote Control! Rise, Holy Virgin’s Boundary: Count 2 & Remote Control!”

I placed the two of them down on the venue’s external corridor and invoked the magic and magecraft underneath them. 

Pochi stepped in and became a pillow for them to lay on, her concerned gaze fixed on the exhausted pair.

“And… Storeroom! Have them drink this when they wake up.”

I took out two vials of Pochibitan D and placed them next to Pochi.

“Yes, sir.”

Hearing Pochi’s response, I proceeded to turn to Warren.

“What exactly happened?”

It’s unlikely that Warren forced them to do whatever that was.

If Warren asked them to do something and they complied, then this result makes sense. But what exactly were they up to? What could have pushed them this far?

“Take a look at this?”

Warren handed me a piece of parchment.

Neat, intricate symbols — written by someone I can’t identify — adorn the page. The magic formula on it is beyond high level — it’s complex, almost impossibly intricate.

“What in the…?”

“This is the spell you created, Asley.”

“What? This isn’t my handwriting, though…”

“Of course it isn’t. This spell was meticulously rewritten by Sir Dragan with not even a millimeter of error. Still, you were able to instantly mimic it for your own use, Asley-kun. Your reflexes and concentration were incredible.”

“S-so, you’re saying I actually made this?”

“Yes.”

Warren smiled warmly. 

What kind of magic was this, even? …Wait, no, it’s starting to come back to me.

“Oh! I see… it’s an arcane energy-draining spell we made to counter Lucifer!”

“Oh, now you remember! Quite unusual of you, Asley.”

“Well, the look of the formula reminded me! So this is intended for Lucifer… uh, wait, will this actually work?”

The contents of the parchment are indeed something I have written. However, in the midst of battling Lucifer, drawing this Spell Circle would be extremely difficult, if not impossible.

“No — not on its own. It’s only the magic formula you have completed, Asley.”

“Huh?”

“And THIS, on the other hand, is a new authentication-based Spell Circle that you have refined.”

I was handed another piece of parchment, the contents of which I proceeded to skim through.

“…! What the hell!?”

“Yes, it’s an authentication-based Spell Circle for use by others. Naturally, entrusting this to a single mage would be impossible. Not even Master Tūs can — it’s so extremely difficult that even he could barely manage it. But once the war breaks out in full, Master Tūs’ role becomes important in another way — It’s unlikely he would have the time needed to perform this magic. Of course, if it were the drawing of simple Circles, it would be possible. Master Tūs would be capable of buying that amount of time. And for that to happen, he needs to make it to the final stage of the selection process — which he did, so there’s no need to worry about that anymore. He was passed as the second best candidate for the one to draw this twelve-part Spell Circle.”

“Ooh, so we’re dividing the complex formula into parts! Nice! With this, everyone can invoke it together after I imprint the Circle on Lucifer! …Huh? Second? Tūs passed as the SECOND BEST!?”

The way Warren grinned at me suggested that he had already anticipated this surprise.

“Yes, indeed, I’m quite proud to call her my successor… back in school, at least.”

Warren pushed up his glasses.

“…Her? Successor?”

A successor back in school… Warren was probably referring to someone from the Magic University.

Someone who could learn magic at a speed surpassing even Tūs?

Before I could formulate an answer in my head, a voice came from behind.

“Sir Asley!”

Turning around, I saw… Lina.

“Is something the matter? I thought you said you needed some rest. Oh, I see Fuyu and Natsu are exhausted. They’re sleeping so soundly… Hahaha, I wish I had little sisters like them…”

Lina smiled as she gently pinched Natsu’s and Fuyu’s cheeks.

Observing her, it finally clicked who Warren’s ‘successor back in school’ was.

“Y-you mean…?”

I pointed at Lina and looked at Warren, who responded with a firm affirming nod.

“Yes, she turned out to be the best among the qualified candidate.”

“Whoa…”

As I let out a word of admiration, Warren added,

“The difficulty of a magic spell’s formula doesn’t merely hinge on its complexity. It’s also about the individuality of the spell’s creator — and this particular spell bears your unique style. Quite strongly so.”

“Hahaha…”

“Lina here was the one who had seen your magic more than anyone else. That is why she’s the most suitable candidate.”

It’s true — I have spent more time with Lina than with Tūs, and I provided her with a great deal of special guidance when it comes to magic. So, a mage’s traits also manifest in their magic formula, huh… That sounds likely, seeing that Lina managed to pass the selection process like that… Huh?

“Wait, so Natsu and Fuyu passed, too!?”

“Yes, the two of them are among the top twelve who passed the selection. Once again, it’s probably due to the time they spent with you, Asley. They achieved what three of the Six Archmages — Miss Amil, Sir Russel, and even Headmaster Tangalán — considered impossible.”

“That’s incredible…! S-so, who are the ones who’ll work with this twelve-part spell formula!?”

“Lina, Natsu, Fuyu, Master Tūs… oh, and I’m sure you’ll be quite surprised to hear the remaining eight…”

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