"Weren't you clearly laughing at me just now?", Serie just glared at him unhappily.
"One thing at a time. I'm just asking for proper compensation."
"At a time like this you're talking about 'one thing at a time'. You're not even planning to take care of this branch."
"That's still one thing at a time."
Even though it felt like what he said made sense and didn't make sense at the same time, she was probably just fed up with him. And she realized that if she didn't agree, this guy would definitely keep pestering her for a long time.
So to get rid of him, Serie waved her hand impatiently, reluctantly agreeing.
After that, the exam continued. Although... all the candidates who came later, after being surprised by Ash's presence and intimidated by Serie's magic power, also gained one more thing to be shocked about: the heavily damaged sky garden at the top.
But the whole exam process still ended quickly. Ash got special privileges in advance, and through transfer magic, he obtained from Serie, decomposition and reconstruction magic.
Actually, those should be two separate spells. But he kept insisting they could count as one, which annoyed Serie enough that she just cursed under her breath and gave him both.
It let him experience the joy of freeloading. And simply put, those two kinds of magic were: with a light touch, he could instantly break an object down from the inside out, or when touching something, reconstruct it, restoring it to its original form or reshaping it into something entirely different.
Right there on the spot, he pressed his hand to the ground. The shattered glass all over the tower top flew back as if time had reversed, returning to the ceiling and reassembling itself, restoring everything to its original appearance, even the garden and the stone floor returned to how they were before.
"But the flowers are still dead," He crouched beside them, reaching out to sense them, but there was no sign of life anymore.
It was like something that had been completely frozen, then rapidly thawed by special means without damaging the surface. It looked the same on the outside, but...
"It's just an empty shell. It won't absorb any water anymore. In a couple of days, the stems will dry out completely. If you try to use this to treat wounds, you'll get the same result. The restored flesh won't survive, it'll just rot over time," Serie glanced at it disinterestedly, immediately stating the condition of the plants, and casually reminding him.
"These were lives you created with magic. Why can't magic bring them back to life?"
Even though it was a very simple spell, creating a field of flowers out of nothing did count as creating life, so Ash couldn't help but feel confused.
"Creating life is easy. But have you ever seen the dead come back to life? If that existed, would the powerful who died still stay dead in this world?"
Life could be created, could even be twisted into undead, but resurrection wasn't possible. At least, there had never been a precedent in this world, and Serie had never heard of one.
But with normal magical technology, it should have been achievable long ago.
"A technological blockade, huh."
"In a way, it's also for humanity's own good. Otherwise, if that technology spread too widely, humans would have filled this world long ago."
"That... actually makes some sense?", Ash casually picked a flower, holding it in front of him as he examined it, nodding thoughtfully.
Serie didn't look at him. She just said on her own, "Flamme had a lifespan that was practically nothing compared to me. In just a hundred years, she became the origin of human magic. And you've completed your basic setup in just over eighty years. You're about to go destroy the Empire, right?"
"What about it?"
"Let me give you two pieces of advice, my most greedy and most foolish disciple," Sitting by the restored pool, Serie stared at the goldfish at the bottom, whose body had been reconstructed but still showed no sign of life.
"You're living too hastily. Things that could be left alone for hundreds, even a thousand years, you insist on resolving them so quickly."
"What's wrong with that?"
"The way you handle distance with others, how is it any different from me?", Serie suddenly asked.
Ash answered frankly, "Sometimes you're too cold, and your words are too harsh. So even your disciples feel distant from you and don't know how to deal with you."
"Keeping an appropriate distance from humans is the correct way. Why can't you learn that? You're not that foolish."
"What you said makes sense. But sometimes, when people die and you regret not having treated them better, it feels a bit too late."
"Forget it," Faced with such a completely different viewpoint, Serie didn't try to persuade him further. Instead, she said meaningfully, "Second piece of advice. Why do you think the Empire has lasted for a thousand years, and even eighty years ago wasn't destroyed by the Demon King?"
"Because the Empire has plenty of trump cards."
"Then you should be careful. If you can't quickly eliminate the Empire, the balance of this world will become even more chaotic. And at that point, it'll go against the goal you're aiming for... though, it doesn't matter to me anyway."
After finishing the two pieces of advice, they chatted a little more, and then Ash left.
Serie glanced at the door as it closed again. Her gaze seemed to pass through it, seeing the guy outside petting Sense's head. But soon, she lowered her eyes again to the dead goldfish at the bottom of the pool and muttered to herself, "Right now you don't regret it, and they won't feel bad either. But in the future that'll arrive in the blink of an eye, when all those humans are dead, won't you regret it even more? You don't even understand your own situation, yet you're pretending to be human, playing the good guy. In the end, none of these stupid disciples are smart, utterly foolish."
———
When Ash came down from the top of the tower, the orange glow of the sunset had already spread across the entire city.
Inside and outside the Magic Association, everything was bathed in a reddish hue. But at the scene, some were happy while others were upset.
For example, Kanne, who had failed, was lying face down on Lawine's lap, unusually obedient as Lawine, wearing a helpless expression, stroked her head.
"What are you looking at? You, the one who got in by default, are you here to laugh at Kanne?", Lawine noticed his gaze and glared directly at him.
"Honestly, without you pulling her ponytail, it feels a bit strange."
"Kanne and I aren't fighting every day!"
"Even so, there's no need to be so prickly toward me. I really will get hurt," With a troubled look, he sat down beside Lawine, casually reaching out to stroke Kanne's head as she lay sideways on her lap.
"Habits don't change that quickly," After saying that, Lawine felt a little embarrassed herself and turned her face away, mumbling unhappily.
Her shy tsundere expression was unexpectedly interesting. He moved his hand from Kanne's head and placed it directly on Lawine's silver hair.
"Anyway, as an apology, how about letting me touch your stomach?"
"Go die!"
"Old man... pervert!"
Lawine and Kanne, who had flipped over onto her stomach on Lawine's lap, unexpectedly spoke in perfect sync, throwing cold words at him one after the other.
"What? I just said your stomach. Is this what they call cold violence?", Ash shook his head in distress, but he noticed Kanne's expression was colder than expected.
That made him think of something. He cleared his throat and changed the subject, "Ahem! By the way, Lawine... your older brother, he hasn't gone to the Empire again, right?"
"Not for now. I heard it was because of what you said. The elders at home have forbidden them from leaving the Kingdom. After all, we're basically fully part of the Kingdom now."
"I see? You're such a good girl, passing along my thoughts so well~"
"Stop touching my hair! It's really unpleasant... seriously!"
Even though she said that, Lawine's protest stayed only in her words and eyes. She didn't even move his hand away from her head.
That made him feel a strange kind of excitement when dealing with this kind of girl who says no but doesn't resist.
But Kanne, lying on Lawine's lap, was staring at him in a way that felt oddly sharp. So he had no choice but to reach his other hand toward her orange hair as well.
"It's okay, Kanne. You'll have another chance in three years~ Just try again next time."
"Lawine won't be there... I definitely can't do it alone," As soon as the topic came up, Kanne sank into gloom.
"Don't say that. If it really doesn't work, I'll find a way to pull some strings for you."
Unable to bear seeing her so dejected, he casually suggested, "As long as when the time comes, you let me touch your stomach again. How about it? That's a great deal, right?"
"Th-That... I need to... think about it...", Kanne actually looked troubled, which surprised him quite a bit.
"Something that simple, and you still need to think about it??"
"Don't underestimate a girl's feelings! Do you think everyone's like you, old man?", Kanne pouted and snapped back.
He could only shake his head helplessly at that. Then he casually patted her exposed stomach. As the girl on the bench cried out and curled into a ball, he stood up coolly and walked away.
Because... he had already noticed that Fern was not far away, staring at him without blinking.
———
At the entrance of the Magic Association, Fern had been staring at Ash from afar, watching all his actions. As he approached, she immediately puffed up her cheeks and looked up at him, questioning, "Lord Ash! When did you get so close to Kanne and Lawine?"
"Close?"
"Just now, you touched Kanne's stomach, right? And even when you touched Lawine's hair, she didn't really get angry."
"That's probably... personal charm?", Ash gave a vague smile, trying to dodge the unhealthy topic.
"I admit you have that charm, Lord Ash. But it shouldn't work on Lawine and Kanne, right?", Fern stared at him suspiciously, not giving him a chance to argue before continuing, "If it really worked, your relationship with them wouldn't have been so bad for so long."
"It's just that there wasn't the right opportunity. Once there is, things like that aren't a problem."
"Lord Ash."
"Speaking of which, have you decided what kind of magic you want? It's rare to get magic from Serie, so you should choose something valuable."
"Of course."
Even though she knew he was changing the subject, the serious Fern still puffed her cheeks and answered unhappily.
At that moment, Frieren, who had been chatting with others nearby, walked over quickly and teased with a smile, "Ash, I heard you mocked Serie just now~"
"Of course. When it comes to judging people, I'm much better than her," He even looked quite proud, but Fern shot him a cold look.
"I didn't say anything in front of others just now, but didn't you also keep trying to push me onto someone else?"
"Did I?"
"Lord Ash, don't you have anything to say to me?"
"I regret it, and I do feel sorry," Under the girl's stern gaze, he finally couldn't avoid the issue again and had to lower his head and apologize.
"And?"
"And what?"
"Hmm~"
Alright, even though he apologized, Fern was clearly expecting something more. She puffed up again.
At that moment, Frieren quietly slipped away to avoid getting involved, leaving him to stare at the distant sunset with an indescribable sense of trouble.
But as he stared off, he suddenly noticed an abnormal gaze. When he instinctively looked over, he felt a headache coming on.
Fern noticed his reaction and looked too, but didn't see anything unusual. Confused, she asked, "What's wrong, Lord Ash?"
"No... nothing."
He silently withdrew his gaze, pretending nothing had happened.
Then he greeted the mages still present one by one.
After that, just as agreed, he called Kanne, Lawine, and the others like Ubel, and they all went to have a big meal together.
In a way, it could also be considered a farewell dinner. At the tavern table, dishes filled the space, rich in color, aroma, and taste. People raised their glasses to celebrate the past and to wish for the journey ahead.
Laughter and conversation intertwined. In that rare harmonious atmosphere, they passed from sunset into night, until the meal gradually came to an end and the noise slowly faded.
———
After dinner, when they returned home, Frieren hugged her round, full stomach and rolled around on the living room carpet, while Fern was already packing.
Ash, on the other hand, used the excuse of going out for a walk to digest, stepping out of the house. But as soon as he pushed open the courtyard gate, he saw Lawine wandering outside.
Under the dim glow of the magic stone lamps, the silver-haired girl looked like she was hesitating about something. He stopped, slightly puzzled.
"What's wrong, Lawine? If you came to see Fern, you can just go inside."
"N-No! I came to see you, old man!"
"Me?"
"Yeah... you!", On the quiet, empty street, Lawine took a deep breath before finally making up her mind.
"If you hadn't helped me at the end, I definitely wouldn't have been able to become a First-Class Mage. So... I have to thank you for your help."
"Getting so formal all of a sudden? That's not like you," He shook his head with a smile, then stepped forward and gently stroked her silver hair.
"No need to take it so seriously. If you really want to, just treat me to a meal."
"I will! B-But... um... also... th-this too!"
With her lips pressed tightly together, her fingertips trembling slightly from inner struggle, the girl looked around to make sure no one was there. Then, her face flushed red as she used both hands to lift the hem of her skirt.
Just like recreating the previous scene, she revealed her smooth, bare stomach, and... unlike last time, pure white, alluring fabric.
Time seemed to freeze at that moment. It was as if the girl stood in a quiet world where only she and Ash existed.
A light breeze passed by now and then, gently lifting the strands of hair on her forehead, adding a subtle charm. Under the light, her whole face looked softer and prettier than usual.
Even so, the embarrassment and awkwardness still clung tightly to her, making her face flush even deeper.
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