Lesson
“Hmm……it’s been a while, and it’s a seal that I too can’t use, so the beauty is lacking huh. Well, I guess it’s fine if we’re going for speed”
Asch mutters while staring at his fingertip.
“……”
Lily glares at him annoyedly.
The seal the ill-natured Magician drew earlier, is a unique seal called 『Holy Dark Magic』. Hazen＝Heim, who’s constantly venerated as the『The Greatest Magician In History』, is the only one who can use it. Lily admired him and practised the seal several thousand, several tens of thousands of times, but even so, not once did she draw a seal as beautiful as Asch’s.
“Then, next is Lily-kun”
Lioar flips two tarot cards over.
Magician x Wands (V)
“……6 seconds”
Heartlessly, she’s informed of her time. It’s on the faster side for her personally, but it’s incomparably slower than the ill-natured Magician.
“Kuku……”
“The, the match has only just begun!”
“Well then, next is Asch-sensei”
Justice x Pentacles (III)
“……3 seconds”
Asch draws a breathtaking seal at the exact same speed.
“Wh, why……”
Something impossible had unfolded. Both the earlier seals take three seconds at the very least. Taking that into account, that means he’s drawing the seal with zero thought the moment the cards are flipped. Something like that, it won’t work out unless he decided on it beforehand, but the chances are 1 out of 1232, so it’s realistically impossible. In reality, the Zale Yearly Champion’s average time is 4.31 seconds, and Asch’s time surpasses that by far.
“Fuu……you people have had the wrong idea. The moment you’re competing with『Speed』in Zale, you’ve misinterpreted the creator’s intention. In the first place, something like speed is the minimum criteria, and it’s not something worth competing over”
Asch answers like it’s nothing.
“Next, Lily-kun”
The Chariot x Swords (X)
“……10 seconds”
She hoped for the best, but it missed magnificently and became slower instead.
“Lily-kun, are you perhaps releasing your Magic at the table?”
Already desperate at drawing the seal, she realises that she’s drawing the seal while staring at the tarots, and her face turns bright red. However, it’s no longer the time to be concerned with the appearances.
“Next, Asch-sensei”
Judgement x Chalices (I)
“……3 seconds”
No longer, is she surprised. The man before her eyes is obviously drawing the seal with zero thought. Two rounds left……in two rounds, she has to catch up with the『Speed』at least.
“Next, Lily-kun”
The Star x Pentacles (VII)
“……5 seconds”
Slow……have to concentrate more.
Concentrate……Concentrate……Concentrate……Concentrate……
“Kuku……one more round, huh”
“……”
“Last, Asch-sensei”
The Devil x Chalices (VI)
“……4 seconds”
“It’s a freebie”
“……”
Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate Concentrate
“Last, Lily-kun”
Wheel of Fortune x Pentacles (XIII)
“……”
“Puhah! How many seconds was it? How many seconds?”
“……it’s a disqualification, Lily-kun. The seal didn’t form”
Lioar answered quietly.
・・・
Announced with the disqualification, the inside of her head turned white.
“Kukuku……what a pity huh. Lily＝Schwarz-kun”
Asch’s voice reverberated quietly.
“……”
Lily continued facing down, unable to say anything. Even though she wants to refute this man, she doesn’t even have anything to say to deny the loss like a bad loser.
“If I remember correctly, you’ll be dropping out of school, right?”
“Asch-sensei, she is an exceptionally excellent student. She had always put in her incessant effort until now. I hope you can take that into consideration”
Lioar, he couldn’t stand by and watch, and he opens his mouth. Lily was self-aware of her pathetic self that is praying, relying on that for help.
“Hmm……indeed, you were saying,『I was the number one in the school year for both theory and practice in this Hogner Magic Academy』. Just as Lioar said, it’s marvellous huh. Taking into consideration your past accomplishments, dropping out of school may be a slightly heavy punishment huh”
“……eh”
Lily looks in Asch’s direction.
“Oops……but, your thoughts were different huh”
The ill-natured Magician makes a twisted smile like he recalled something.
“……what”
“No, I was impressed by your opinion. You said it when I introduced myself just now, didn’t you.『Who cares about your titles』. I was mindful about having you have a deeper understanding of my capabilities as much as possible, but you wanted to see and evaluate me as I am here in reality. It was a fresh opinion”
“Like I said……what do you want to say!?
“You don’t understand? I thought of adopting your opinion as well. Well, if I put it in your words, I guess it’s like this. Who cares, about your titles”
“……”
Asch, who confirms Lily’s pale expression and makes a delighted expression from the bottom of his heart. His forte is, dissecting. It’s not just the dissecting a living thing’s body, but even the dissecting of the heart as well. Now, he peeled off a layer of her heart; he’ll carry on like this, slowly, and furthermore, tormentingly.
“Isn’t it marvellous. You said to cast away the past effort and glory with 『Who cares』, and『Look at the current me』. Hence, I saw at the current you. Just like you said”
“……I didn’t mean”
Tears overflowed from Lily’s eyes. She was desperately closing off her heart so she doesn’t hear Asch’s words, but the knife of his words easily peels it.
“The current you in front of me is, a miserable loser, and an insolent fool”
“……I mean”
Lily muttered.
“What is it? If you have an argument, go ahead? Since you’ll end up dropping out of school at this rate”
Asch presses for her words with a smile.
It was blissful; this cocky beautiful girl making a twisted expression in agony. More, struggle more; scramble to refute, and drive yourself into a corner more. I’ll tear down every argument and draw out your agony.
“You too……you too said something rude didn’t you!”
“Hmm……my words were rude? For that, I apologise. However, did I say something? I would like you to enlighten me if you don’t mind. Depending on the situation, I will revoke you dropping out of school”
At those words, Lily’s strength slightly returned.
“You said『you sure have aged』, to Board Chairman Lioar! Board Chairman said he doesn’t mind at all, but it was extremely rude……I think”
At the politeness1 she supplemented at the back, one can tell she’s being overwhelmed. She knows that her argument point is off the mark. But, she couldn’t not say anything.
“What about those words were rude?”
“……eh?”
Lily reflexively asks in return at Asch’s question.
“I saw the phenomenon of ageing in Lioar. Hence, I put it into words. What part of that are you saying is rude?”
The sadistic Magician’s way of speaking was not that of criticism, but that of a plain question.
Of course, it’s an act.
He understood that doing that, he’ll hurt Lily more. By showing her, who’s fastidious and pure, the impurity that she’d want to avert her eyes from.
Now then, show it to me. Your expression(face).
“……”
Why……why……it goes round and round and round and round inside Lily’s head. That went around over and over and over again. Why she thought it’s rude. And then, she understood that the answer that she arrives at is not what she desires.
“……well, it’s good to have a proactive attitude. Even if, they’re words that you didn’t think through. Now then, let’s continue. I shall logically explain what you said emotionally”
“……”
Lily’s cold sweat wouldn’t stop. If, it’s the same as the answer that she came up with……then, she has no more room for argument.
“I had thought about my words earlier. Why it is that you reproached me, saying that I was rude. And then, I arrived at a single conclusion. Aah, you have deemed ageing as,『deteoriation』”
“……”
“Ageing is a change. It’s a phenomenon that occurs to everybody. You take that as deterioration and treat the reality that’s occurring as rude. To be living is, to be ageing. For living itself to be rude. You instinctively came up with such an extremely arrogant and twisted thought. Isn’t that right, Lily＝Schwarz-kun?”
She didn’t have any strength to refute anymore. But……she won’t tear up for a fellow like this no matter what. And then, Lily somehow endures it with all her strength. However, she’s aware of that arrogance and vulgarity of herself, and embarrassment, frustration, and patheticness fill her entire body.
Lioar, who couldn’t stand by and watch, held Lily’s shoulders and made her turn her back to him.
At the very least to put an end to it.
“Lily-kun. For today, please go home. Regarding your treatment, we will follow up and contact you”
“……es”
The response that she mustered her strength to give is incomprehensible. Lily, she left the classroom with her shoulders trembling.
“Oops, it’s already this time huh. Alright then, have a nice day”
Asch, who made a refreshed expression from the bottom of his heart, left the classroom.
While walking down the corridor satisfiedly,
“Mira, how was it?”
, he asks.
“……it was the worst lesson in the history of the continent, let me say that at least”
Indifferently, the butler answered.
- This sentence is trying to say that Lily ended her sentence with ‘Keigo’, which is a polite way of speaking.
Lily ended her sentence with ……思います(omoimasu).
