Chapter 5: The Truth about Magic, and Being an Apprentice.

“It’s …… Hermes.”

　I have a lot of questions, but since she asked me my name, I answered her honestly.

　I don’t feel any pain anymore, as if she had healed the wounds I had suffered from the assault.

“Thank you for your help.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it. Those guys only attacked me because they were pissed off.”

　In contrast to the hostile rampage she had just gone through, Rose was now speaking to me in a friendly manner.

　Her change in attitude, which could be described as a kind of innocence, combined with her beauty, makes her seem as out-of-this-world as before.

“But it’s strange.”

　Then, Rose suddenly noticed something and tilted her head.

“You’re a pretty strong wizard, judging by your sensing abilities earlier, aren’t you?　Sure, those guys were a bit strong, but it doesn’t look like someone as strong as you would be caught quietly. ……?”

“!”

　He knew that she meant no offense in her words.

　But the question reminded him of something.

　Hermes is a wizard who is a failure, who is so poorly developed that he is abandoned by his parents.

　The magic he had just admired, the embodiment of the great wizard he had dreamed of, would never be attained in his lifetime he thought.

“That …… is …….”

“?!”

　Perhaps it was the fact that my life was saved that made me relax, or perhaps it was the fact that I was made aware of my own misery once again.

　I tried to tell her why, but I couldn’t put it into words, and eventually I couldn’t hold back my tears anymore.

“What’s wrong?!　Does the wound hurt? I thought I healed it perfectly…….”

“n-no you got it wrong….”

　In front of a panicked Rose, I sobbed and tried to speak.

“I …… wanted to be a wizard like you ……, but I can’t …….”

“You can’t ……?”

“I don’t have any …… magic of my own. ……!”

　Even after he was told that day that he had no bloodline magic, he didn’t give up.

　Someday, surely, somewhere. I kept searching for my own magic, and as a result, I was able to gain the high ability to manipulate magic and the sensing ability I had just shown.

　But…that’s why I can’t stop thinking about it.

　There’s not a hint of magic in my blood. I’m pretty sure I won’t be able to find it in the future.

　The sweet fantasy of …… awakening the magic inside of me that no one else knew was only a dream.

　Because of my sharpened sensing abilities, I can be absolutely confident in that conclusion.

　The irony is that the training I’ve done so far has been the best guarantee of my own despair.

“So no matter how …… hard I train, no matter how good …… I am at handling magic, it’s all for nothing!　Everything is useless. ……!”

　I guess once I said it, I couldn’t stop myself from saying it.

　Hermes then continued to talk as if he had burst a dam. He told her how his family had abandoned him, how he had been treated, and how the girl who had believed in him had gone away.

　There must have been a lot of explanations that she didn’t understand, but Rose listened to all of them with a serious face.

“I… see”

　After Hermes had finished talking about the whole thing.

I know I’ve only just met you, so it’s not like I’m supposed to feel sorry for you. …… That must have been hard for you.

　Slowly, she gave me a hug.

“!”

　The warmth of a person I hadn’t felt in a long time. The surprisingly soft and gentle touch of skin and the sweet scent of flowers enveloped my whole body.

　As she slowly stroked my head, my heart relaxed and I began to cry again.

“Don’t worry about it, Hermes. I’m not sure what to make of that. Those aristocrats are nothing more than a bunch of pretenders with borrowed power. ……They really haven’t changed at all, have they?”

　As it is, she whispers in my ear. The first half is gentle, the second half a little darker.

“You don’t have to take them seriously. Even if you don’t have bloodline magic, ……………… Eh?”

　But then it happened.

　Rose’s voice stopped in mid-sentence and she began to shake uncontrollably.

“No, wait, wait, wait. I was a little too distracted by your awful background and listened to it smoothly. …… You don’t have any bloodline magic!?”

　Quickly separating herself, Rose questioned again with a shocked expression.

“Eh, EH”

　After all, even from this amazing wizard, not having bloodline magic is fatal. …… and Hermes’ mind is about to be dominated by darkness again, but.

“—–That’s amazing!”

　But soon after, something unexpected came out of her mouth.

“Oi oi oi, I thought I was having a bad day when I met those lowlifes, but this is the best day of my life!

　For some reason, Rose’s eyes lit up and she put her hands in Hermes’ sides and lifted him up.

“Eh”

“You have such high magic power, first-rate basic skills in manipulation and sensing, and to top it off, you don’t have any bloodline magic?! It’s too perfect for me to believe that it’s a trap!”

　I thought she was making fun of me, but there was not the slightest hint of that in her childlike eyes.

“You’ re a good boy with an honest personality and a cute face!　You’re too ideal, I’m in love with you!　I want to raise you just the way I like you!”

“EEEEEEHH!?

　At the end of the day, Hermes’ confusion reached an extreme level when he muttered something ridiculous.

“Oh, um, …… what are you talking about ……?

“I’m sorry. I got a little too excited for my own good.”

　She lowered the Hermes to the ground, looking embarrassed, as if she was aware of me being present.

　Rose then took a few steps back and cleared her throat.

“Well, …… what shall we talk about?”

　After a brief pause for thought, he asked that in a calm tone.

“…… Hermes. Do you like magic?”

“Eh—-“

　I was a bit taken aback by the abrupt question.

　But her face, while smiling, was more serious than anything I had ever seen.

　That’s why he replies head-on.

　Fortunately, there is no hesitation in answering.

“—-Yes. I love it.”

　Magic.

　A miracle performed by a human body. The work of making wishes come true.

　From the time he was born, he was fascinated by it. he thought it was more beautiful than anything else. he wanted to find my own wonderful magic.

　Something that he would be willing to risk his entire life for. That was the magic for him.

　Rose nodded her head in satisfaction at his reply.

“But I……” (Hermes)

“I have no bloodline magic. That’s why I can’t be a good wizard—” (Hermes)

　After picking up on his continued negativity, she smiled wryly against the setting sun.

So, let’s correct that misunderstanding first.”

“!”

　My heart skipped a beat.

“It’s true that bloodline magic is an amazing thing. I know this because I have it myself.
　I’m not sure what to do.”

　Rose lightly turns her fingertips to the side.

　Immediately after, with a thud. A ray of light from the sky pierced the ground at the tip of her finger and made a huge hole.

　The bloodline magic that she just showed me – |Meteor Throne Frizzle Calv|.

“I can handle this from birth, with no effort, unconditionally. It’s outrageous. It’s so powerful that most people would be satisfied with it.”

　But.

“But-I can’t use it’s full potential.”

“Eh…..?”

“Most people, including the nobles, have it all wrong. Magic is not something given by God, it is the work of man, built on solid principles and logic. Anyone should be able to handle any kind of magic if they follow the proper procedures.”

　I had a strong feeling that my world was about to be turned upside down.

“Bloodline magic is not a nice ‘natural gift’. It’s a binding curse that allows you to use only one magic unconditionally from birth.”

　Magic is essentially something that is learned by building up logically. It is something that is acquired through hard work.

　It’s the kind of magic that skips the process of learning it and allows you to use it innately.

　However, as the price of bloodline magic, it restricts the use of other magic that could have been learned.

　It is a contraindication to gain unconditional power at the expense of potential. That’s what she calls the ” Binding Curse ” of bloodline magic, she says.

　Rose thrust her fingertips at Hermes, who was shocked by the shocking fact.

“And you don’t have the bloodline magic.”

“!”

　Again, my heart jumped.

　But this time it wasn’t just surprise. It contained a faint but definite expectation.

“Do you undestand?　It’s not that you weren’t chosen by the gods. Rather, in their words, you are the only wizard not cursed by the gods with the potential to handle all magic to the fullest.”

　Rose continued to deploy a wide variety of magic around her. A wall of light, a ball of flame, a blade of wind… all of the magic of tremendous power that she had just shown.

“You have the gift of being able to do all of these things that I just showed you. No, ……, it’s more than that. You’ re stronger, cooler, and more beautiful than me, who can only handle so much due to my bloodline magic. You can be the most powerful wizard in the world!”

　His heart was already beating painfully.

　Abandoned by his family, despairing about his talent.

　He had been wandering around at the bottom of the world, and now he found a hope that was bigger than anything he had ever seen before.

“As I said before, I’m in love with your potential. I want to see what kind of wizard you will become. And hopefully I want to see what kind of wizard you’ll become, and hopefully I can be a part of that. …. That’s why”

　Finally, her cheeks flushed and she giggled like a girl in love.

“I’ve been looking for a boy like you. If it’s okay with you, …… will you be my apprentice?”

　…… is a terrific and fishy invitation, if I think about it normally and objectively.

　No matter how much she saved me from a dangerous situation, her last words were “Be my disciple” after she talked about upsetting the common sense that I had lived by.

　It would be strange if I didn’t think there was something more to it than that.

　However, strangely enough, I didn’t feel that way.

　It’s a lie to say that I don’t have any favoritism towards the fact that I was saved or the excellence of magic.

　More than anything else, she was really very lively when she talked about magic.

　Hermes thought.

　Oh, she loves magic, too, I thought.

　For him, it was a convincing that was more eloquent than a thousand words.

　So, without a moment’s hesitation, Hermes replied.

“I’m looking forward to working with you!”

　And so, the boy who was cut off from his family and became just Hermes became the disciple of Rose, the Witch of the Sky.

　Five years have passed since then. After studying under her, Hermes returns to the royal capital.

　He and those who were involved. The time when the fate of all of them would change drastically was drawing nearer by the minute.

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