“Excreting, eating, bathing—a creature can only constantly maintain a magic barrier if they have no need to take in or expel anything. That notion also doesn’t take into account the possibility of getting killed in your sleep. Only a knight from a fairy tale would introduce themself in an open space and come at you head-on.” Falke’s response left the girl at a loss for words.
Among researchers, some high-ranking mages fantasized about combat scenarios they had no experience with and thought about them in an overly idealistic way. The most extreme of these fantasies assumed conditions favorable to the mage and excluded surprise attacks or dirty tricks.
“Besides, even barriers aren’t the ultimate defense against swordsmen,” Falke declared that magic barriers, which should be practically impossible to break through using physical means, were imperfect.
“You can say that again.” Lara nodded at her son’s words as she glanced at her husband next to her.
“High-ranking swordsmen, with those of the Clovis School being first on that list, can cut through barriers. They aren’t an absolute defense,” Falke explained.
“I can’t really believe that unless I’ve seen it in practice.” The girl refused to back down.
“Then allow me to demonstrate. Can you put up a magic barrier?”
“Y-Yes.” Although she got confused by Falke’s statement, her finger shined and she deployed a wall of light around her.
Many believed that the strength of a magic barrier against magic was influenced by the user’s skill, but that against physical attacks, they were guaranteed a definite level of strength regardless of who used them. But Falke and his close friend Clovis asserted that this was wrong.
“There is an uneven and frayed spot.” Falke spotted the barrier’s weak spot and casually swung an ordinary wooden sword, making the barrier disappear.
“Huh?!”
“Whoa!”
Several students screamed in response.
For Sazaki’s disciples, striking at a magic barrier’s weak spot was only natural, and to that end, they had polished their skills to differentiate between which parts of a barrier were easy and which were difficult to cut.
So it really was there. Connie, Sazaki’s youngest descendant, was the same. He was a genius who could discover the weak areas in magic barriers with the same keen eye as his great-grandfather.
“This technique isn’t unique to me. As I said earlier, it’s one that has been mastered by many swordsmen, including those of the Clovis School.”
Lara looked away from the students who were astonished at Falke and once again glanced at Sazaki, who stood next to her. Around seventy years ago, this man had looked at Lara, the greatest magical genius in all of human history, and said simply that while it would be a pain, he could definitely cut her down.
While the two parents were observing their son’s class, one man—Stein—was fully enjoying his visit to the academy in a completely unrelated fashion.
I also wanted to observe that class, but it would cause problems if there were more visitors. Stein was also interested in watching a class being led by the son of his comrades. However, he refrained from doing so because he believed it would be a burden for him, practically a stranger, to be in attendance as well, since Falke’s parents were already there troubling him.
Besides, I don’t want to get in the way of Sazaki and Lara either. Stein also didn’t want to impose on a couple observing their son’s work. He could be considerate as long as muscles weren’t involved.
In any case... Stein now stood at the back of a classroom, observing a class of around thirty students. I wasn’t mistaken! And he was elated.
“As we do every year, we conducted a survey on the academy’s students and have discovered that students hailing from areas where livestock farming is thriving and meat and dairy products are widely distributed, particularly the town of Lime, tend to be taller and more robust than students from other areas. But unfortunately, as we are unable to take detailed measurements from other countries, the number of comparisons by country is a little insufficient. Furthermore, just like our predecessors did, we will be entrusting this research to our juniors, and since long-term investigation will be necessary, we will continue asking for your understanding and cooperation. Now for the detailed numbers...”
Once Stein heard that there was a class on the human body, he immediately came to this classroom, where he found out that the contents of the lesson were exactly what he’d hoped for. He’d stayed in Lime because he believed that, as a rule of thumb, people growing up in an environment where they could eat meat would grow taller, but there was still no scientific proof of this.
“In addition, it’s believed that the lack of food was responsible for the shorter stature of people during the great war and the generation right after it.”
I remember that. But I heard that the school building collapsed once, yet they recorded these values right after that? As the student’s presentation went on, Stein nodded as he thought back to his generation, and he was impressed by the Academic City-State’s numerical data. This relationship between nutrition and the body was something many knew from personal experience, but the Academic City-State had actually proven it based on numbers they had collected over the years, far surpassing someone like Stein who had only his personal theories.
“Lastly, this is a guess of my own. A thousand years from now, meat will become commonplace on dining tables around the world, specialized ingredients for building muscle will be developed, and competitions will be held to showcase the best bodies.”
Stein was so overwhelmed by the student’s grandiose vision that he was left unable to ask any questions about the presentation.
Wh-What a magnificent future this student can see! I’d expect nothing less from the academy Lara helped rebuild! It’s truly a school for the wise! After leaving the classroom, Stein was deeply impressed by the greatness of the academy his comrade in arms was involved with. Master Albert, it seems that what you said is true: The world is a vast place, and ability has nothing to do with age. Albert, Stein’s mentor, had told him these words to warn him against becoming conceited, and he’d probably never have imagined that a student’s presentation would remind Stein of this.
Hmm, they have wonderful muscles despite being so young. I’d like to talk to them for a moment. Stein suddenly looked toward a group of students running outside. Their toned physiques were easy to distinguish even through their clothes, and some of them were even muscular enough to rival Stein in his youth.
“Excuse me. May I speak to you for a moment?” Stein approached the students who’d stopped to take a break, speaking in a courteous tone that he never used with his comrades.
“Yes? What’s the matter?”
“All of you are mages, correct? Despite that, you’re all really well-built.”
“Oh, I see. We want to prove that training the body stimulates the brain and improves academic ability. Unfortunately, some people believe that the time spent at a desk is what’s necessary and that the exercise recommended by the academy is only meant to maintain your health, but we believe that there is a close link between the brain, muscles, and exercise.”
“M-Magnificent... You understand the truth of the world despite being so young. I would expect nothing less from the students of the world-class Academic City-State.” Stein’s eyes went wide. He was overwhelmed with emotion to hear the student put forward a theory that echoed his own.
“Th-Thank you very much.” The student was a little taken aback.
As an aside, when Stein had been training at the Boiling Mountain, he had also excelled at his studies, and his mentor Albert had strongly expected that Stein would one day succeed him. Unfortunately, because he had been such an outstanding student, he’d discovered a path that was neither life nor death, and his future had ended up completely different than what Albert had anticipated.
“Umm, well, our academy has a saying that you should first learn to run before studying flight magic,” the student said, trying to change the subject.
“How...how magnificent!” Stein was deeply moved for the umpteenth time today. “The world’s future is bright!” one of the people who’d saved the world declared confidently. In his head, muscles were apparently closely linked to the light of this world. If that theory were to be applied, Ferd would be the most muscular person in the world. “I’m glad I came here...” Stein was filled with so many emotions that, in a way, he was the one enjoying his tour of the academy the most.
“How about we go to that classroom?” Ferd suggested.
“All right, honey,” Elrica agreed.
“Okay,” Max replied.
Unlike Sazaki and the rest, Ferd, Elrica, and Max didn’t have any specific objectives at the school, so in the meantime, they simply picked a random classroom that caught their eye and decided to drop in. However, perhaps they should have at least found out what kind of lesson it was that they were about to view.
“Today, we will be learning about Ferd the Hero and Elrica the Saint.”
Ugh! Ferd realized what the teacher had said a beat too late. His inner voice squawked like a dying chicken.
Oh my... Elrica averted her gaze.
Oh boy... Max sent his friends his condolences with his eyes.
Perhaps by some god’s mischief, this particular classroom was having a history lesson—on the Hero and the Saint, of all things.
“So, there is a lot of mystery surrounding Elrica the Saint. She’s said to be the daughter of a high-ranking priest or a child of the gods, but the specifics of her birth are unknown at present.”