The Inept Mage's Infinite Regression - Chapter 7

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Translator: Ryuu

Editor: Gorm

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◈ The Inept Mage’s Infinite Regression

Chapter 7

A mage flew in and hovered midair. Where the mage’s head should have been, there was instead a pot with a maple bonsai tree. Perhaps because winter was approaching, all the leaves had fallen off, leaving it bare.

Then the bonsai head spoke. <Bain, do you intend to continue?>

"Hmph."

Bain withdrew the mana he had stored in his staff, and the crystals that had been floating above Boen's head fell to the ground.

"Headmaster Aincher,” Bain said. “You don’t believe everything that half-wit says, do you?"

Aincher Durmus, the headmaster of the Yurmus Magic Academy, replied, <Whether I believe it or not is not the point. The other professors all witnessed it.>

"Will you stop me if I say I’m going to the Empire?"

<I’m the headmaster, Bain. I must follow the school’s rules.>

"You’ll regret this."

<We’ll see. Go home now. Boen, return to your dorm room.>

The two did as Aincher instructed.

Ethan turned to Rivielton and asked, "Is it really okay to let them go like that?"

"Should I call the guards and have them dragged away violently? I could, but Bain is a count and holds a seat on the Mage Council. He won’t defy the headmaster so easily."

The headmaster descended to the ground.

<You’ve done well, Rivielton.>

"I’m just protecting a student, haha."

Ethan looked at Aincher Durmus and replied, "Yes, Headmaster."

"Ah, thank you."

"…That’s not necessary."

"Huh?"

Aincher Durmus bowed his head slightly toward Ethan and said, <You coincidentally found evidence of the Inquisitor, accidentally discovered your life was in danger, and luckily managed to expose the two on the spot. But what happens next isn’t a coincidence; it is the inevitable consequence. Do not blame yourself.>

"Huh?"

With that, the headmaster floated back into the air and left.

Rivielton asked, "What did the headmaster say?"

Ethan realized the headmaster had spoken only to him.

"He said I did well."

Ethan watched Aincher Durmus disappear into the distance.

REAPER SCANS

Translator: Ryuu

Editor: Gorm

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A few days later, Rivielton summoned Ethan to the Combat Magic Society’s shared workshop and said, "You have the right to know what happened after that."

Rivielton proceeded to explain what had happened with Bain and Boen since then.

Boen had been held in the Yurmus prison before being exiled to the Empire, and Bain was confined to his estate in Yurmus.

"The professors are still holding meetings to discuss Bain’s punishment."

"What’s the most likely outcome?" Ethan asked.

"Exile, probably."

Ethan nodded. "That makes sense. The Yurmus Council won’t be able to properly punish a count of the Decarune family."

"Still, Bain won’t be able to threaten you anymore. He won’t even be able to return to the academy. Can you be satisfied with that for now?"

Ethan nodded again. "Of course."

And why wouldn’t he be? He had successfully completed the quest and received his reward. He thought back to the skill he’d obtained…

∞

[Quest: Defeat Bain Wiz Decarune (C) – Success!]

[Reward: 36 Experience Points]

[Reward: C-Rank Lottery Coupon]

Ethan considered using the C-Rank Lottery Coupon with the merchant, but the merchant had informed him that wasn’t possible.

"Why not?"

<That’s the agreement.>

The merchant added, <If you want, I can sell you three D-Rank items for one C-Rank coupon.>

But Ethan felt like that wasn’t a good deal. Ethan currently owned only one C-Rank item: the Glock 45. And it was far more useful than all of Ethan’s other D-Rank archives, items, and skills combined. The expected value of a C-Rank item was quite high.

"All right. I’ll use the coupon, then."

If the coupon would allow him to purchase an item outright, it would be better to hold on to it. But it didn’t, so it was wiser to prepare for various situations by acquiring items in advance.

Ethan handed the C-Rank coupon to Demi and drew his lot.

However, when he saw the result, he was somewhat disappointed.

[Skill acquired!]

[Skill: CPR (C)]

Upon acquiring the skill, Ethan understood what CPR was, when to use it, and why such a procedure was necessary.

"I get that it’s meaningful."

<Yes.>

"It might come in handy someday."

<Yes.>

"But what good does this do me right now?"

Having heard this before, Ethan decided not to complain further.

∞

It had been a few days since Ethan acquired the CPR skill through the lottery. Rivielton’s information seemed quite delayed.

'They must be facing procedural issues.'

But Ethan didn’t think Rivielton would have summoned him to the shared workshop just to share a few words. He could have been called to Rivielton’s own workshop for that.

"Is there something else you wanted to say, Professor Rivielton?" Ethan asked.

Rivielton smiled. "Of course there is."

"What is it…?"

"I heard you made a request of Boen. You asked him to teach you magic."

"Ah, yes."

Ethan tensed, wondering if Rivielton was about to bring up the issue of him threatening Boen. It wouldn’t be a big deal now, but as far as Ethan knew, Rivielton was an upright person. There was no guarantee the professor wouldn’t make a fuss.

"Couldn’t you have threatened him some other way?” asked Rivielton. “I hear he barely receives any support from his family."

"That’s possible. But to continue attending the academy, tuition isn’t the only concern—what’s more important is the ability to use magic. Even if I fail and get expelled in the second semester, at least I’ll have learned more magic during the break."

While his real reason had been to get closer to Boen, Ethan had also seriously considered the additional benefits.

Rivielton nodded. "What if I offered to teach you magic? Do you still want to learn?"

"I’ll learn from you?"

Rivielton nodded again. "Good answer," he said.

"No, Professor. My ‘answer’ just now ended in a question mark…"

"However, there are limits to the magic I can teach you. To be precise, it’s not that I can’t teach you certain magic but rather that there are limits to what you can learn."

"Are you listening, Professor?"

Rivielton continued, "The magic I intend to teach you is Body Magic."

Ethan knew about Body Magic. It was magic that allowed the user to run faster, jump higher, and lift heavy objects. While magic could temporarily grant such abilities, that fell under Enhancement Magic or Body Enhancement Magic. Body Magic, on the other hand, was a type of magic that maintained such physical conditions through gradual mastery.

"Even if it’s Body Magic, it’s still magic. Can someone like me, with no talent, learn it?"

"Based on what I’ve observed of you over the past six months, yes, it’s possible. Among the three issues you have—magi sensitivity, mana control, and magical composition—only magi sensitivity matters when learning Body Magic. Body Magic channels mana to the lower abdomen rather than the head, so control isn’t difficult, and since it’s not released externally, magical composition isn’t an issue either."

Ethan was surprised that Rivielton had been observing him so closely despite his lack of talent, but since he had thought about Body Magic before, he couldn’t help but ask, "I’ve tried learning Body Magic before. How do I solve the magi sensitivity issue you mentioned?"

"That’s a matter of your breathing technique. Body Magic uses a different breathing method than conventional magic. In Damarth, they stubbornly try to use conventional magic breathing techniques for Body Magic, but that causes problems. I can teach you the breathing technique I devised."

Hearing this, Ethan felt like it might just be possible. Were anyone else telling them this, he’d doubt it, but Rivielton was a specialist in Body Magic.

Demi, who had been listening to Ethan’s explanation, spoke up.

<Congratulations, User.>

<Thanks. But it’s not all good news.>

<Knights.>

Body Magic was not considered a mage’s domain. Typically, knights and adventurers learned it. For mages, using their bodies was not seen as a virtue. A proper mage should be able to achieve their goals without lifting a finger, after all.

Rivielton asked, "Are you disappointed?"

"No."

"Really? You come from a good family. I’d think you wouldn’t want to learn something like Body Magic."

Ethan had no prejudice against Body Magic. Whether it was done with his hands or his magic, it didn’t matter. It was all the same as long as it got done.

"I’m worried about something else."

"What’s that?"

"Are you only teaching me Body Magic because you’re disappointed in me?"

Rivielton seemed intrigued by this. "Oh? Is there something else you want to learn from me?" he asked.

Ethan had heard rumors from his childhood about the distant northwestern Great Wall. The Great Wall, which separated the lands of humans and other races, had once faced a massive invasion and nearly collapsed. But then, a combat mage from the Great Wall’s garrison—a master of swordsmanship and combat magic—had won victory after victory, turning the tide of the war.

The combat mage had used such fierce and ruthless swordsmanship that even the trained garrison soldiers had feared being caught in its wake, and enemies had fled at the mere sight of his shadow.

There was a famous story about him: His unit had been retreating along a narrow cliffside road, with 300 pig-headed beasts chasing them from behind. The combat mage had told his unit to flee quickly while he held off the enemy from the rear. The rest of the unit had thought he was sacrificing himself, prepared to die… But their concern had been unnecessary. The next day, the combat mage returned to the unit with the noses of all 300 pig-headed beasts.

There was a style of swordsmanship used by hunters from the land of the beastmen: Ruure. It was a technique for hunting magi-enhanced beasts, or magical beasts. The combat mage had unified and systematized the techniques of various hunters, adapting and integrating magic to create a martial art for killing not just magical beasts but beastmen as well.

Later, this combat mage had earned titles like "Hero of the Great Wall," "Beastmen Hunter," and "Pig Butcher." From a fallen noble family, he’d risen to the rank of baron and even became a professor at the Yurmus Magic Academy, earning recognition from both kings and the Mage Council. That man was none other than Rivielton Fabier.

"What if I said I wanted to learn your 'Hunting Swordsmanship,' Professor?"

Rivielton let out a hearty laugh and said, "Of course I’d teach you."

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