RATH 35

TL: Eevee

5. Welcome to the summoners’ school. (5)

“I see that you have great potential as a summoner. Have you considered coming to Yugrasia?”

“M, me?”

-Ow, owner you nuts? This kid’s your ex-disciple! At the very minimum all owner’s disciples are either future murderers or future perverts that’d either knife you in the stomach or put a chain around your neck and let alone running away, you’re approaching them first! Owner was a pervert all along!

As I weaved and dodged people sticking to me here and there, I spotted a familiar face so I grabbed her into a conversation and as I thought!

Unlike those common novel protagonists, I had no problem recognizing people.

But were you quite surprised miss metal bat?

Although what it’s saying in an excited voice unlike normal was a bit frightening, but since it was pretty much true let’s just let that slide.

“Uh? Ah, really?”

And No. 17 who was caught by me also had a surprised expression on her face.

Yes, if a human who looked identical to the one who ran her into the ground in the past appeared right in front of her of course she’d be surprised!

-But, if this kid goes to an academy then it is destined that we meet! No, she was probably watching the speeches as well. In that case, landing the first strike to make it hard for her to suspect something is also a way!

-Haaang? Suure you would. I bet my little sister that one day you’ll lose first strike, and get hit with a counter first strike!

-Huh? If you mean the wooden bat it’s already gone over to Rein.

-Uwiiit! She did! My poor little sister! She got sold to a sparrow because of owner!

But what the heck is a counter first strike.

Does this rascal also know the great proverb that if you cannot land the first strike it’s not a first strike?

-Owner smiling all happy is disgusting. As I thought, since you made my voice a loli, owner’s preferences were also for loli? Although it’s quite iffy to call her a loli, but you were aiming for a girl that’s not even 20?!

-Mm, well although she has gotten a lot prettier in these last few months, she’s still not my preference.

Perhaps because it was because I’d always seen No. 17 wearing ragged clothes, unable to wash properly during training, she’d always seemed grimy and sullen, but now her appearance that was half-way between a girl and a young woman was fresh, but by no means was it my preference.

It was just, what do you call it. Clothes give you wings?

“Excuse me, do you really feel the apt.i.tude for a summoner from me?”

No, how the h.e.l.l does a person who can’t even sense mana feel something like that.

It’s just because I know you’ve contracted Surtr that I’m throwing it out there first.

But if I said that as is then that’s a direct express line to the shackles empire life.

“Yes, I can feel a strong force of fire. It seems that you have contracted with a highest-rank fire elemental or stronger.”

“Indeed, Master Nicerwin’s fame was not for nothing after all!”

As if he were greatly surprised, the middle-aged man standing beside her made a shocked expression.

Hm, it doesn’t seem like this man’s her dad, so would he be a cousin or a branch family member.

“Ah, excuse me. I am this child’s uncle, Viscount h.e.l.leid.”

“Ah, the younger brother of the famous Lord Nermia. Even in the elven woods I heard a lot about the five Nermia brothers.”

“Hahaha, no, it is we that have heard a lot of the legends of Master Nicerwin.”

Even as we exchanged greetings No.17’s eyes sparkled.

Ho, would you look at this rookie move.

It’s good to be able to use see-through magic instantly, but making it obvious like that is a bad habit.

If she’d learned for just another year, she would have learned the specialized angles where the sparkles aren’t visible.

But it’s a good move.

Although there’s no plastic surgery, this is a world filled with what can smack aside plastic surgery, no, something that can do a triple flip into an aerial leap off the shoulders of the opposition into a triple crit stab exists, named disguise magic.

In a place where there’s reason that makeup does not develop, if you don’t want to be baited by someone’s face then see-through magic that can see through disguise magic is a necessity.

But, I am not using disguise magic.

I just made a few wrinkles to make me look a bit older, dyed my hair white and used natural elven-made hairs to plant a beard.

Of course, the key is to copy the famous elven flower garden smile full of hopes and dreams!

This flowery smile is something that only those who have not yet set foot in the human world, only pure and kind elves can make!

Although oddly enough all the elves I know can’t make this smile!

-The kid’s falling for owner’s concept!

-This is the famous archsage cosplay!

Unfortunately, I couldn’t get my hands on an owl.

Normally, great sages always go around with a white dove or a giant owl on their shoulders.

“Really, are my talents that impressive?”

“Hoho, indeed. But unlike your talent, it seems that you cannot handle your summon that effectively. It seems to be because that you have made a contract with a very high-ranked being.”

“As I imagined! Exactly that!”

Oooh, that last one was from the person whose reactions were so heated that I thought for a moment he was one of my paid shills, what was his name, hmm.

Viscount h.e.l.lwhatever! At his reactions the surrounding gazes are gradually beginning to center on us.

-Promotion and bringing in talents! How good a method is this!

-Although if they were normal, they wouldn’t go to owner.

Indeed. Naturally. Of course, not because of me.

This girl was a child of the Nermia family after all.

Of course she’d go to Marcis? But to stop that from happening, like a computer repair shop owner greeted by a tech illiterate, I opted to use the method of convincing the customer that a problem that could be solved with a simple part replacement was actually a serious problem that warranted buying a new computer.

“She contracted with a high-ranking contract at too young of an age. Because of that the powerful aura of fire is leaking out so much that even I can feel it. Summons that don’t fit with the contractor’s soul often have drawbacks on the summoner. Summoning is a promise between souls. But if one soul is too big or small, the other will find it difficult to use their strength correctly. No, there is even the risk of the user facing a backlash because of their summons.”

“Re, really?”

Ah, of course not.

It would if it was a normal case, but she slave-contracted the archdevil Surtr.

Because of the nature of the contract, the power that Surtr can exert in practice is very small.

And there’s no way that Surtr and his slave contract-shredded pride would allow him to unconditionally obey No.17’s orders.

Because of that, No.17 is actually very safe.

The case I explained just now, were only cases were small-minded summoners tried to contract high-rank summons by giving them the position of master and themselves as the servant.

To the absolute master No.17, there’s no way that Surtr could do anything to her.

“Then what can we do about it!”

-Splashy splashy! It’s a big one, owner!

The Viscount whashisname made a shocked face and charged into me seeming like if I told him that everything could be solved with a hundred thousand gold, he’d pay up on the spot.

Very well. Those rough thoughts and your uneasy eyes. I who have been watching it all will solve it for you!

“If it’s this child, I feel like I could pa.s.s down my everything to her. I suppose her capabilities as a magician would also be very high. But, if she were to learn summoning at Yugrasia now, and learn magic at the Nermia household in the future, this child could be a summoner and magician that could leave her name in history.”

In a state where I’ve already tossed out my bait on summons I stressed the words ‘leave her my everything.’

If it’s this kid she’s already a genius that could make a name for herself with just what I know, with that, she’s more than capable as combat potential that could wipe out at least ten enemies in the empire festival!

-Now, do it now!

-Ya really? Really? Finally fweedom!

Very naturally, the metal bat that had been taking the form of a bracelet on my wrist shine brightly before she turned into the shape of a little girl.

“Uwuuu~ can’t you listen to my master?”

When she tilted her head slightly, her long hair that seemed to reach her feet shimmered.

Her sparkling silver eyes were rimmed with wetness. At the appearance of a girl not much older than ten, a little girl that you didn’t even have to be a lolicon to find cute, you could hear small gasps and cheers from the surroundings.

Of course, the contents weren’t a pure spirit, but the evil metal bat!

But the people around us don’t know that!

“A spirit came out on her own to help her master!”

“No less from Nicerwin. Incredible.”

It is very rare that a spirit comes out to without a chant, or a command.

Because if they, who are bound by a contract, appear on their own initiative, there could be severe penalties applied onto them.

But in rare cases such as their summoner’s life being endangered, or when the feelings of both master and summon were aligned into one, there were cases when the summon moved on their own initiative, and that phenomenon meant that the summoner capable of achieving that was a very high-cla.s.s.

Of course, this kid is different.

“How does it sound?”

“Hoho, if you put it like that…”

The viscount looked at No.17 with a face agonised with indecision.

But it seems that No.17’s already made her mind up?

Come, you must.

If it’s this much coming is the normal thing to do.

You can learn magic at home, right? All the knowledge of summoning in the world is waiting for you!

“Hm, although I am quite interested, but I think I need to talk with Father at home, Uncle.”

“Ah, that’s true.”

But No.17 bowed her head apologetically and dragged away her uncle Viscount whatever by the sleeves.

Hmph. Your family will also choose Yugrasia!

I believe that!

And shortly afterwards.

-Owner, owner’s favourite saying. I think it fits here. Get your foot cut by your trusted axe?

The metal bat’s words emanating with smugness!

d.a.m.n it, d.a.m.n it all! No.17 you b.a.s.t.a.r.d, you meet me and immediately hand in your enrolment application into Marcis?

I will make you regret not coming here!

***

“There’s a lot.”

“There is a lot.”

“There’s so many.”

“I didn’t think there would be this much…”

-I think owner works too well as always.

What we could see was a mountain of doc.u.ments.

We said that we were accepting less applicants than normal, and also hiked the tuition fees, but they say that there’s more than double the normal number of applications for Yugrasia.

We need to check all this and choose the shortlist the first round of successful applicants, then we need to interview the chosen applicants in person to choose the final enrollments.

-Owner, what’s owner’s standards?

-That’s obvious. What I normally said.

-Kids good at summoning?

-Now how would I know that?

-Then there are no standards!

-Of course there are! Family backing!

-Uwiiit! That’s my owner! So superficial!

Even in the organization named Howling, I knew perfectly well how fearful those things called geniuses were.

Of course it would be nice if those things were among this batch as well, but there’s no way I would know that.

In that case, I need faces to become the stars of our promotion efforts.

-Securing those from famous n.o.ble families, or famous n.o.bles themselves so we can say, “even these n.o.bles came!” and promoting ourselves like that. And once that happens people that want to be able to say ‘I went to school with these kinds of people!’ will come flocking in, and after reading the mood and state of the school, if we gradually raise the tuition then the school finances are full! My own finances are full!

-Owner? Owner’s finances are getting full from your increased salary, right? You’re not going to fill them up with embezzlement, right?

Do you even have to ask.

Of course my savings become plentiful with my increased wages, and I can sneak away some more to make them even more plentiful.

Of course that’s not all.

-And among the commoners and low-ranking n.o.bles, if we pick up some truly desperate kids to fill up the roll then that would be perfect.

-Why the desperate ones?

-Because they can’t say anything even if they get the c.r.a.p beaten out of them.

Two methods I picked up in my instructor days to very quickly raise talents.

First, if you hit them with the bat then they get strong. They get stronger by themselves in order to survive.

With Rein and Sia’s cohort, the moment the metal bat came out their skills all drastically increased so they graduated early and left.

There’s no law saying that these students won’t do the same.

-Uwaan! ‘zat mean I can attack them myself?

-Yes, run free and rampant!

-Owner, awesome! Sho awesome!

Her lisping voice echoed through my head.

It seemed that she was really excited.

Of course to maintain her mana I need to have her discreetly eat the magic stones used for summoning. If I say I failed three times and succeeded on the first try then I can pocket two magic stones.

Well others barely succeed once every ten attempts, if I succeed once every three attempts then it’s a profit for the academy too!

Everyone, this isn’t fraud!

It’s a way for everyone to be happy together!

-That’s my owner! The master of self-justification! So cool!

With the cheers of the metal bat, we began our war against the mountain of doc.u.ments.