Chapter 56: The Teacher, Verdi

“Huh?! Kanna!”

The moment Deneb spotted the egg behind me, she dashed over and scooped it up.

A chuckle escaped me. Anyone watching would think long-lost family had been reunited.

“Did Ms. Verdi find it for me?”

“Yeah. I found it while you were taking down the boss.”

“As expected of Ms. Verdi! You act like you don’t care, but you’re really warm-hearted!”

He didn’t have to tack on that useless remark at the end.

More importantly, it was time to keep the promise I’d made to Deneb.

“Like I promised, I’ll teach you.”

“R-really?! But the Gate’s about to close…”

“It’s fine. There’s enough time before then.”

Usually, after a boss is defeated, there’s about three hours of leeway in dungeon time before the Gate fully closes.

That’s plenty. Besides, today was just the first lesson, and I planned to teach the absolute basics anyway.

“How’d you take down the boss?”

“Hehe, I took it down with my magic, of course.”

“Can you show me?”

“Yes! O radiant saint, shine brightly!”

Deneb immediately cast a spell. It was the same divine magic as before. Light blossomed around her and shot straight toward the target.

BOOM!

Flashy, but pathetic in reality. His aim was off, so it all still missed. I’d have to work on his focus and aim first.

‘This isn’t going to be easy…’

Honestly, I’d planned to teach Deneb how to make a sword out of mana. When I’d thought about how to teach her last time, a Mana Sword was the first thing that came to mind. Deneb was the daughter of the Lucius family, famous for swordsmanship, and her brother was Wilhelm, a Hunter renowned for his sword skills. I figured if she could handle a Mana Sword, she’d get strong fast.

But thinking about it now, if she wanted to learn swordsmanship, couldn’t she have just asked Wilhelm to teach her, or asked someone from her family? Yet Deneb hadn’t done that. From that, I guessed that maybe Deneb didn’t actually like swords.

‘I’ve never once seen her use a sword.’

So I changed my mind. I didn’t know much about divine magic myself, but even just getting the basics of aim down would be a huge help.

Still, I have no idea how a kid who can’t even do this became a D-Rank Hunter. She must have skill, since she took down the boss alone…

Anyway.

“Listen carefully. I’ll only give you advice once.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

I grabbed Deneb’s hand that was holding the staff.

“Right now, what you lack most is focus and aim. Because you can’t lock onto a target, your magic goes all over the place. See that tree in front of you? Make that your target.”

“Y-yes…”

‘Huh?’

Why is her face so red? Like she’s caught a cold. Did the boss have poison? She doesn’t look like she’s struggling, though.

Anyway, holding her hand like this and standing quietly beside her, I started to feel Deneb’s mana little by little.

It was a faint, yet wildly fluctuating mana. A beginner’s trait.

I wonder how she became a D-Rank Hunter with this.

Plus, she finished off the boss I ordered her to take down pretty quickly.

She’s a mystery in many ways. Honestly, is Deneb just pretending to be clueless in front of me?

“First, watch carefully.”

Before Deneb practiced, I demonstrated.

I reached out my hand and formed a green magic circle.

[ Vacuum Element — Vacuum Bullet Lv.1 ]

The vacuum bullet I fired pierced the tree precisely.

“Ooh…”

Deneb marveled at the sight.

…That’s the lowest-tier spell I use.

“It’s nothing hard. You can easily do it too once you lock onto your aim.”

“Yes! I’ll try!”

Deneb held out her staff again. I don’t know why, but her hand was trembling badly.

“Take it slow. No need to rush. It’s a tree, not a Demon Beast. It’s not going anywhere.”

“Y-yes, ma’am!”

“Why are you so tense? You weren’t like this when we fought skeletons together last time.”

“Well, it’s… because Ms. Verdi is too close.”

“…?”

“With Ms. Verdi right next to me, I guess I get nervous without meaning to…”

…Aren’t we both girls now? Why would being close make you nervous?

If anything, I’m the one who’s never been around a girl before, so shouldn’t I be the one getting nervous?

But I’m not sure what Deneb would think if she heard this, but even if I knew she was a girl, I’d never fall for her.

Deneb feels more like a kid than a girl.

‘Ah, that’s it.’

As I was thinking that, I could guess why Deneb was trembling.

He must be feeling pressured by my gaze. I understand that feeling.

After all, if someone’s watching you, it’s bound to get on your nerves. Maybe the reason he took down the boss so easily on his own was because no one was watching?

“Don’t mind me, just focus entirely on the tree.”

So I said it firmly.

“I’ll try my best!”

He’s good at answering.

‘Now do the magic that well too!’

I’m teaching him myself, so I wish he’d learn the magic properly too, to make it worthwhile.

“Keep thinking that you’re concentrating the light you create into a single point and pouring it all out.”

“Yesss…”

“Don’t lose focus, be aware of your mana. Start chanting the spell now.”

“Yes, ma’am! O radiant saint, shining brightly—!”

As Deneb chanted the spell, a halo of light began to spread out behind her.

To evaluate Deneb’s magic as someone who’s reached the pinnacle of wizardry… frankly, it’s terrible.

In other words, he still has a long way to go. Still, it’s not like there’s nothing to praise.

‘Divine magic is all hard to master.’

Usually, only Hunters with an aptitude for priesthood learn it; wizard-type Hunters mainly use elemental magic like the Flame Series or Ice Element that I favor.

The Flame Series, Ice Element, Lightning Element, and Vacuum Element are the most famous elemental magics, while others like Life Element or Gravity System are relatively minor compared to those. Even rarer than those are wizard Hunters who learn Divine magic.

I don’t know why Deneb chose Divine magic, but it’s a type of magic that’s hard to learn unless you have talent for it, like a priest. The fact that Deneb, a D-Rank Hunter, can use Divine magic to that extent is proof that she’s put in a lot of effort. That’s worth praising.

If only I could fix that pathetic accuracy somehow.

“Fire!”

“Hahp!”

Taking my hand’s release as the signal, Deneb thrust out her staff with a shout. At that, the halo of light all turned into light bullets and shot toward the tree.

*Thud-thud-thud-thud-thwang!*

The light bullets flew wildly. I watched the scene without taking my eyes off it for a moment.

When Deneb’s self-made bombardment ended.

‘…’

I couldn’t tear my gaze away from the tree I’d called the target.

The reason was… that tree was perfectly fine, as if nothing had happened…

“Huh… huh?”

Deneb wore a face that said even she couldn’t understand what she’d done.

“Hoo…”

I let out a sigh of frustration.

Well, it’s the first day. I expected this.

We’ll just have to keep repeating it and zero in the aim.

I just didn’t expect it to be this pathetic…

Still, if there’s a positive side, the power isn’t half bad.

“Um, Ms. Verdi…”

“Again.”

I said it short and concise to Deneb, who was checking my mood.

“We keep going until it works.”

“Ah, yes, ma’am!”

And so Deneb’s shooting continued until the sunset, and the area around the tree was already a wreck.

Even so, our training didn’t stop. Because the target tree was only slightly battered and still standing strong.

“Huff… huff…”

Having run nonstop, Deneb was starting to gasp for breath, as if she was reaching her limit.

His mana seemed almost depleted too. The power, brightness, and speed of the light bullets had weakened a lot compared to the beginning.

“—Protect us!”

Still, I didn’t end the training. Deneb was tired, but she didn’t complain. She’s got guts.

*Thud-thud-thud-thud-thwang!*

The projectiles shot out, and this time, quite a few hit close to the tree.

‘He’s improving little by little.’

Just a little more.

I want to say that, but it seems like this is about the last chance.

*Koo-woong-*

The vibration under our feet was growing stronger. The Gate would close soon.

Indeed, when I turned my head toward where the Gate was, I could see it had shrunk quite a bit.

“Deneb, the next one’s the last. Be careful.”

“Al-Already the last one?”

“The dungeon’s closing soon. You want to get trapped in here?”

“N-No, not at all!”

“Well, getting trapped might not be so bad.”

The thought suddenly crossed my mind.

If I could just take care of food, clothing, and shelter, the inside of a dungeon might actually be something like paradise.

Here, I wouldn’t have to see the bastards who brand me a murderer.

The Transfer Mage wouldn’t be able to find us either. They’d never even think we were trapped inside a dungeon.

I wouldn’t have to worry about the anxiety of my identity being exposed.

And I wouldn’t have to worry about someone targeting our lives.

But.

“V-Verdi! What do you mean by that?!”

“…Just talking to myself.”

Deneb was so utterly horrified that I had to explain.

Yeah, it’s not like before when I was alone. This isn’t something I can decide by myself.

If I suggested living in the dungeon, the two people in my party would be dead set against it.

And.

‘…That doesn’t suit my nature.’

Let me be clear.

I’m not a murderer, so I can face their stares head-on, and I’m not running from the teleport mage.

I just hesitated for a moment because of a fleeting temptation.

And didn’t I set a goal?

To change my — Yoschuko Verdiol’s — reputation.

So that even if my body goes back to normal, or my identity is exposed, I can stand tall.

“Deneb.”

“Yes!”

The moment I called Deneb’s name, as if she’d been waiting, she began chanting a spell.

“—Protect us!”

Soon after, a halo of light spread out from behind Deneb, who had finished her incantation.

‘…Oh?’

Something’s a bit different from before?

The direction the light was shooting off wasn’t ordinary.

The light, gathered precisely in one spot, shot toward the tree without wavering.

*KWAANG!*

The explosion blanketed the entire area in dust.

“D-Did I do it…?”

Deneb muttered cautiously.

We waited for the dust to settle.

A moment later.

The dust cleared, and what came into view was the tree, reduced to a pile of ash.

“I-I did it!”

Having finally succeeded, Deneb burst into tears, then started hopping up and down, celebrating.

“I did it! Verdi! I did it!”

“Yeah.”

I wanted to say he’d only just managed the basics, but this wasn’t the mood for that.

‘He’s really, really happy…’

Even as I thought that.

For some reason, a feeling of pride swelled warmly in my chest.

Is this what a master feels when teaching a disciple?

Maybe it’s not so bad.