Silent Witch
chapter-ex16

Glenn Dudley was just an ordinary boy that could be found anywhere.

His family consisted of his parents and two younger sisters. He had a bright and cheerful personality and many friends.

Though he struggled a bit with arithmetic and often made mistakes giving change while working at the store, Glenn's natural charm endeared him to the adults in town.

He had always thought that someday he would marry a smart wife who could count money correctly and take over the family butcher shop, but Glenn's life took a drastic turn on his twelfth birthday. Suddenly, ministers and officials, or some kind of important-looking adults, showed up at Glenn's house and made this proclamation:

"The Star Oracle Witch of the Seven Sages has foretold that if Glenn Dudley inherits the Dudley Butcher Shop, this country will be doomed."

To be honest, Glenn's initial reaction was something along the lines of "What on earth is this?" At first, he thought it might be some kind of joke, but after listening to the story, it seemed to be a serious matter.

Even Glenn, who wasn't particularly good at academics, knew the name of the "Star Oracle Witch." She was the most renowned prophetess in the kingdom of Ridill.

Afterward, Glenn was taken to the castle, and his magical power was measured, which astonished the adults around him. His magical power far exceeded the average of an advanced magician.

Though he had never learned magic and had hardly seen it in action before, Glenn was astonished but also excited.

It seemed he had some incredible hidden power within him. It felt somewhat like being the protagonist of a story.

Following this, Glenn enrolled in Minerva, the most prestigious institution for magician training with the expensive tuition fully covered by the kingdom.

His family was overjoyed at his remarkable success, and Glenn was proud. He imagined himself learning powerful magic at Minerva and eventually becoming a hero like Ralph to save the kingdom from crisis.

Well, he couldn't quite imagine what kind of crisis the kingdom would face.

However, contrary to his expectations, life at Minerva wasn't enjoyable.

Most of the students at Minerva were from noble families, which meant that the difficulty level of the basic subjects was much higher than that of ordinary schools.

Glenn struggled in magical classes, and he barely passed his basic courses. His classmates openly looked down on him.

"Why is a guy like him even at Minerva if he's not noble? He's just an idiot with a lot of mana…"

It frustrated him so much that he wanted to prove himself to those who looked down on him. So even though it had just three months of enrolling, he began practicing practical magic.

At Minerva, practical training didn't start until six months into enrollment. But driven by the determination typical of boys his age, Glenn secretly started practicing combat magic.

Though he struggled with the magical formulas taught in class, he excelled at manipulating mana.

Concentrating his internal mana into his palms, he could change its form like molding clay. By incorporating half-remembered magical formulas and adding attributes and directions, magic could be cast surprisingly easily.

His first successful attempt was with fire magic. The fireball Glenn conjured was about as big as two adults holding their hands in a circle.

It was rare for a student at Minerva to create such a large fireball.

Thrilled, Glenn practiced shooting fireballs repeatedly.

＊ ＊ ＊

One day, while Glenn was engaged in his usual secret training, a male student approached him while humming a tune.

"Hmm hmm. Hey there, newbie. That's some impressive power you've got there."

It seemed this male student had been secretly observing Glenn's training. He was grinning joyfully as he looked at the scorched rocks from the fireball.

This male student was tall and slim, and his fiery red hair left a huge impression on him. While Glenn was relatively tall for his age, this student was about a head taller than him. Presumably, he was a bit older than Glenn.

"Hey, have you ever done magical combat? Using magic inside a barrier to fight."

"I've heard of it, but never actually done it."

After all, Glenn hadn't even started practical classes yet. So he practiced secretly.

The male student rested his hand on his pointed chin and grinned as he made a proposition to Glenn.

"Well then, how about we give it a shot? Magical combat. Inside a barrier, you won't have to worry about getting hurt, and you can have practical combat training safely, you know?"

"But, I'm not supposed to do practical training yet…"

"No problem at all. Just use the training grounds secretly at night. I can activate a simple combat barrier myself."

Naturally, it would result in severe consequences if the teachers found out. However, the idea of secret midnight training tickled Glenn's youthful heart.

With a mixture of excitement and reluctance, as he tried to convince himself otherwise, Glenn found the male student narrowing his eyes and raising the corners of his mouth in a mischievous grin.

"Your magic is incredible. I've never seen a newcomer conjure such a massive fireball."

"Well, hehe, I, I guess so…"

"Yeah, if you get some combat training, you'll improve even more, you know?"

Glenn's lips twitched unconsciously.

Ever since he joined Minerva, he had been branded as an underachiever, starving for compliments all along.

So, he accidentally succumbed to the male student's temptation. He nodded.

"I want to try combat training!"

"Sure thing! I'll give you a workout, newbie."

Little did he know, that upperclassman of him would turn out to be the worst troublemaker in all of Minerva.

＊ ＊ ＊

In the middle of the night, Glenn desperately fled through the forest.

There was no time to wipe the sweat from his cheeks, only a harsh breath punctuated by stifled screams and sobs in between.

How had things ended up like this?

As Glenn repeated this internal dialogue, a burst of flame erupted behind him.

"Ah!"

Instinctively rolling on the ground to evade, a rain of fiery arrows came down on the spot he had just vacated.

He couldn't avoid them all, and a few of the arrows pierced his arm.

The searing pain of flesh being torn. But in reality, there were no burns on his arm. Not only that, but his clothes weren't even singed.

Inside the simplified combat barrier, attacks driven by magic wouldn't cause physical damage. However, the pain was real, and for each hit, his mana decreased.

What is this? What is this? What is this?!

Glenn tried to cast a spell to retaliate, but fear had numbed his mind, rendering the incantation impossible to recall. He was so panicked that he could mess up even simple arithmetic. Let alone complex magical formulas were far from his thoughts.

"Hmm, hmm hmm? Hey, hey, hey, don't stop running, okay? If your prey doesn't run desperately, the hunt won't be any fun, you know?"

The upperclassman who had lured Glenn into this magical combat grinned mischievously, approaching leisurely as if to demonstrate his superiority. And so, he conjured flaming arrows using shortened incantations and attacked Glenn.

Crawling on the ground in a sorry state, Glenn desperately evaded while flames pierced his legs, causing him to writhe in agony.

Though there were no physical wounds, the sensation of skin being torn and the intense pain of burnt flesh were perfectly replicated. He felt like he was going mad.

Mana dwindled with each hit. He wished his mana would deplete quickly. If that happened, he would be freed from this torment.

However, Glenn, who had extraordinary mana capacity more than most people, still had plenty of mana left.

"I can't take it anymore! …I can't, I can't do this…"

As Glenn cried out, the upperclassman frowned as if his enthusiasm had waned.

"Don't tell me you're giving up already? Hm? You still have plenty of mana left, don't you? Come on, come on, try shooting me once."

With those words, the upperclassman spread his long, slender arms wide, inviting Glenn to attack freely.

With a mix of fear and anger swirling within him, Glenn focused his mana.

He couldn't bear this pain any longer. If that was the case, then everything, everything, everything, everything should just disappear.

As he channeled his mana into a haphazard magical formula, he felt something snap in his mind. At the same time, everything went white before his eyes.

"Ah…"

The absentminded voice of the upperclassman reached Glenn's ears just as he completely lost consciousness.

Unaware of the consequences his massive surge of mana had brought about.

＊ ＊ ＊

When Glenn regained consciousness next, he found himself in the disciplinary room.

The magical rampage Glenn had unleashed had not only shattered the simplified combat barrier but also damaged a part of the school building adjacent to the training area.

Fortunately, it was the dead of night, so there were no people inside the building, and there were no casualties. However, it's needless to say that had things gone slightly differently, it could have led to a major accident.

Taking the situation seriously, the professors at Minerva restrained Glenn and held discussions regarding the incident.

Glenn Dudley was a child who had received a prophecy from the Star Oracle Witch. If this boy inheriting the family were to bring about the nation's downfall, they couldn't leave it unattended.

However, if this problematic child couldn't be handled even at Minerva, a prestigious institution for training magicians, wouldn't it be better to confine him for life?

And so, as weeks passed with Glenn confined to the disciplinary room, a magician came forward expressing interest in taking custody of Glenn.

The magician's name was Louis Miller, the Barrier Magician.

Despite his young age, this man served as the commander of the Ridill Kingdom's Magical Corps. He appeared before Glenn, who was feeling downcast and dispirited, and smiled elegantly and beautifully as he said:

"Well done! You've certainly given those old fogies at Minerva a shock. Let me give you some praise."

It took about ten seconds for Glenn to comprehend what had just been said.

"Uh, um… I mean… huh?"

At that moment, Glenn realized that it had been a while since he'd had a conversation with someone, and he was starting to forget how to speak.

Seeing Glenn's mouth opening and closing, Louis cheerfully spoke up.

"To think you'd destroy that old-fashioned school building! It's absolutely exhilarating that you accomplished something I couldn't even manage during my time there. And to top it off, the room blown away was Professor Rutherford's study… Serve you right, damn old coos! Poking at people's pasts like that… All the evidence went up in smoke, so they won't be able to act so smugly anymore…"

Louis's once elegant upper-class tone gradually crumbled, interspersed with more ominous words. Moreover, an evil grin seemed to play across his beautiful face.

Dumbfounded, Glenn asked, "Um, uh… So, who are you?"

"I am Louis Miller, the commander of the Magic Corps and known as the Barrier Magician. Starting today, I'll be your mentor."

As Louis lifted his monocle lightly and bent over, he peered into Glenn's face.

Mystical eyes tinged with a purplish-gray color, framed by long lashes, reflected Glenn.

Being scrutinized so closely by a handsome man, despite Glenn's throbbing heart, Louis declared:

"I see, you have the look of someone not quite bright."

Glenn thought, "Isn't this person a bit too rude?"

However, Louis paid no mind to Glenn's vexed expression.

"Considering you've probably been using magic with only your instincts and not really grasping magical formulas, someone like you doesn't fit Minerva's educational approach. I'll make sure to train you thoroughly to be useful in real combat situations."

"But… I… don't want to use magic anymore…"

Muttering because he was scared, Glenn was met by Louis extending two slender fingers right in front of his face.

"You have two choices. Spend your life in confinement or become my apprentice."

"That's so tyrannical!"

As Glenn involuntarily exclaimed, Louis tilted his head in a refined manner.

"Tyrannical? Isn't having choices itself a form of happiness? Well, personally, I would choose a third option."

"…A third option?"

"If you become my apprentice, I'll tell you."

It did sound somewhat like a scam. Nevertheless, the fact remained that Glenn didn't have any other options.

When Glenn pursed his lips into a faint frown and softly said, "I'll become your apprentice," Louis responded with a cheerful smile.

"Oh, how delightful! If I take in a problem child that Minerva can't handle, those old coots will lose their ground in front of me. They won't be able to act so pompous anymore."

He spoke boldly and freely. But for Glenn, there was no other path than to become this seemingly overbearing man's apprentice.

With a slightly sullen expression, Glenn asked with a hint of irritation, "So, what's this ‘third option' you mentioned?"

In response to Glenn's question, Louis smiled beautifully and elegantly, and said:

"It's obviously to ‘destroy a building on your own to escape,' isn't it?"

Shortly after this incident, Monica enrolled at Minerva. She joined the school not long after Glenn, almost around the same time.