Overpowered Archmage Doesn’t Hide His Talent

Chapter 18: Do You Like Meat?

In the end, I interfered with Aria Fontaine’s magic until I had exhausted all my mana.

The surrounding students looked at Aria with troubled expressions.

They all wore the same look, as if to say, *Shouldn’t you stop now?* But no one actually spoke up.

I released her mana circuits that I had been holding onto one by one. Now, there would be no more disruptions in her flow.

At the same time, with a tremendous sound, a mana crystal shot forward.

“Ah, it worked!”

Aria, whose face had been deathly pale, finally regained her color. It was almost like watching a corpse come back to life.

The distance the crystal extended was quite impressive. Aria jumped around, cheering.

“I won! There’s no doubt, I totally won!”

At that moment, someone slowly picked up the mana crystal. Long, slender fingers with nails sharp as a witch’s.

“…?”

Aria’s expression turned more serious as she made eye contact with the owner of that hand, eventually going completely cold.

It seemed she had finally realized why the surroundings had gone so quiet.

“Sigh… Aria Fontaine.”

Violet let out a deep sigh, her gaze fixed on Aria. Aria could only stammer, unable to respond.

“I clearly told you to wait and do nothing.”

“……”

I watched as Aria visibly shrank in front of Violet.

Then, suddenly, I felt Trixie staring intently at me.

Our eyes met in mid-air.

Trixie brushed aside her lake-blue hair and, with a subtle expression, quietly approached me.

“How ridiculous must the professor’s words have seemed for you to behave like this—”

“I’m sorry….”

Aria was still getting scolded by Violet. Meanwhile, Trixie cautiously opened her mouth.

“You.”

Her voice was cold and hard, nothing like the drunken mess she had been.

“Did you do something just now?”

Does she have a keen sense for detecting magic?

It wouldn’t have mattered much to tell the truth, but I decided to answer her differently.

“Have you sobered up?”

“…?”

Trixie hesitated for a moment at my words. Then, deciding I was spouting nonsense, she turned her head away.

◈

After class, the academy’s cafeteria was incredibly noisy.

The chatter of students, the clinking of dishes as others moved about…

To me, it wasn’t an environment fit for eating, so I eventually just grabbed my food and went outside.

I intended to eat alone, but someone insisted on sitting beside me. A girl with striking red hair—Becky.

“What’s this?”

“I’m going to eat here too.”

I pondered for a moment.

“Don’t cause a scene.”

“…All of a sudden?”

But my warning had no effect. Becky, after a few bites of salad, started chattering away like a sparrow.

“Did you see Aria struggling with her magic? It was so satisfying to watch.”

I didn’t respond to her. I was more concerned about why the cafeteria’s meat was cooked so poorly.

“She always bragged about being so good at support spells, so why did she keep failing? It was so satisfying, really satisfying, extremely satisfying!”

Then, suddenly, Becky’s expression twisted.

“Aria Fontaine~ That’s a deduction~ Never underestimate the professor’s words~”

She mumbled in a strange tone. It took me a while to realize she was mimicking Violet.

I decided to ask her a question.

“Do you have any idea why Aria might have made that mistake?”

“Maybe she just messed up on her own? She was babbling something about it being a curse from the gods… but who believes in that nonsense?”

Becky, who seemed to be enjoying her meal more than usual, stuffed a large piece of meat into her mouth.

“Someone interfered with her magic? That’s nonsense too. If that were the case, don’t you think someone would have noticed? There were so many students around.”

It was amazing how much food Becky could fit into her small frame. Did she perhaps learn spatial magic?

A thought occurred to me, and I asked her another question.

“Until the day of the exploration task, are all the lectures going to be like this?”

“Like this?”

“I mean, are they just going to check our use of scrolls?”

If so, I was considering skipping the lectures altogether.

From the start, I’ve never been particularly fond of scrolls.

It was an influence from the previous world. There was even a derogatory term used for magicians who relied on scrolls, calling them ‘corpses wielding magic.’

I would be forced to participate on the day of the task, but I had no desire to attend a lecture just to practice using scrolls.

I had always lived my life that way—avoiding spending time on things I found magically worthless.

“No way, of course not.”

But Becky shook her head vigorously.

“The official announcement will be made tonight, but… Oh, right. Flan, you really need to be careful, okay?”

Becky tapped my shoulder.

“Of what?”

“Aria is seriously holding a grudge. Isn’t it funny? She picked the fight first, and now she’s the one holding a grudge….”

I quietly pictured Aria Fontaine in my mind. The girl covered in earrings and piercings.

I wasn’t worried about facing her one-on-one or even if she gathered a group against me.

So I listened to Becky’s words with one ear and let them go out the other.

“Professor Violet loves pitting students against each other. She even used to arrange magic duels when she taught the upperclassmen.”

“If I don’t engage, that’s the end of it.”

“You can’t avoid it. The professor counts that against your grade too.”

That was something I couldn’t ignore.

I had promised Scarlet to get the highest possible grade by the midterm evaluation.

“But if you do get a high grade, the rewards are solid. The seniors who scored high under Professor Violet, they’re all doing great now—getting opportunities to present papers and conducting research in the magic tower….”

My ears started to hurt. I’d heard enough.

I carefully chose my words to cut her off.

“Do you like meat?”

“I really want to get a high grade so I can study in a unique region someday… Huh? What did you say?”

Becky tilted her head, puzzled. Instead of answering, I pointed to the meat with my fork.

“Oh, yeah. Who doesn’t like meat?”

I placed some of my meat onto Becky’s plate and then stood up.

What a convenient way to get rid of leftovers.

…In a way, wasn’t it environmentally friendly?

“What’s this? Why give it to me… Hey! Where are you going?”

I ignored Becky’s voice calling after me. There was still a lot I needed to do today.

◈

At the Magic Department store, which reflects the latest magical trends, just browsing is a delight for magicians.

However, there was one female student whose expression remained entirely flat in this cheerful place.

“Oh, Aria, look at this. Isn’t this wand decoration pretty?”

Aria Fontaine paid no attention to Hailey, who was chattering beside her. No, to be precise, she couldn’t pay attention.

Flan.

That insolent commoner was the only thing on Aria’s mind. The thought of being deducted points in front of everyone still made her shiver with anger.

“They’ve added new scrolls too. Aria, is there anything you like?”

When Aria didn’t respond, Hailey leaned forward, sticking her face in front of her.

“Aria?”

“Oh, yes.”

Hailey shook her head knowingly, as if she understood exactly what Aria was thinking.

“Don’t worry too much. How could you have a mana blockage at that exact moment? Flan is just really lucky.”

“Mana blockage….”

Mana blockage, a phenomenon where the body experiences fatigue due to mana becoming entangled, causing a sensation similar to muscle cramps. Despite Hailey’s comforting words, Aria’s expression didn’t improve.

“Uh, why? Wasn’t it a mana blockage? That’s what I saw.”

“Huh? Yes. It was a mana blockage.”

“Right? If Professor Violet had arrived just a little later, we could have seen Flan drop out.”

Aria answered hastily, but she still felt uneasy.

*‘It wasn’t exactly a blockage.’*

Recalling the sensation from that time, Aria instinctively straightened her posture, tension gripping her.

Calling it a simple blockage was a gross understatement.

She couldn’t grasp the strands of mana needed to construct her spells. The flow that should have been smooth was erratic, and the circuits she painstakingly formed were slashed apart, as if by a blade.

A terrifying sense of never being able to use magic again washed over her. It was like suddenly being struck by a severe disability.

*‘Could it have been… interference?’*

As Aria’s thoughts reached that point, she let out a small, involuntary laugh. She realized how absurd she was being, letting herself entertain such ideas.

Interference required the caster to have a higher understanding of magic than the one being interfered with.

*‘Someone like Flan, better than me?’*

She shook her head vigorously, dismissing the thought entirely. It was utterly impossible.

Hailey, standing beside her, gripped Aria’s arm tightly.

“I’ll buy you a coffee! Let’s drink it with Louis later. Aria, that serious look doesn’t suit you.”

“Oh, thank you.”

“Sure. Now, let’s check out the scrolls. We need to prepare for tomorrow’s lecture, right?”

Arm in arm, Hailey and Aria began inspecting the scrolls

one by one.

Levitation scrolls, throwable scrolls, volatile scrolls… The variety was wide, and the prices were equally diverse.

At some point, Hailey’s gaze landed on a particularly bright red scroll.

“Oh~ That one’s not recommended for freshmen~”

Just as Hailey reached out to examine it, a fairy clerk suddenly appeared.

She lifted the scroll, which was almost as big as she was, and continued speaking.

“This is a highly toxic scroll. It’s used to poison orcs, but if it accidentally touches a human, it can have side effects.”

“What kind of side effects?”

“They experience paralysis~ But if they’re really unlucky, they could end up in a vegetative state, so we don’t recommend it for freshmen.”

Hailey swallowed hard and grabbed Aria.

“We should stay away from that one, Aria. The side effects sound pretty scary….”

Hailey furrowed her brows, as if just imagining it was horrifying.

The two continued to browse the store. Suddenly, Hailey widened her eyes as she checked her Trivia.

“Oh, tomorrow’s lecture announcement is up. It’s earlier than expected.”

“Where? Let me see.”

Both girls’ eyes focused on Hailey’s Trivia as she unfolded it.

[ Simulated Magic Combat ]

▶Combat is essential in the process of competition. The aim is to train students to perform their best in real-life combat situations.

▶Results from the simulated combat will be reflected in grades.

▶Note: Due to the upcoming exploration task, the use of scrolls will be exceptionally allowed.

*Scrolls cannot be brought personally. Three will be distributed randomly on the day.

▶To ensure fairness, Professor Leonard will be observing.

Hailey nodded.

“The seniors were right… Professor Violet really does love simulated combat.”

Muttering to herself, Hailey suddenly looked outside the shop. Her face lit up, and she raised her hand.

“Oh, Louis is here! Louis!”

Hailey rushed out of the shop, but Aria remained rooted to the spot.

Aria Fontaine replayed the upcoming Violet’s lecture in her mind.

And as she continued to imagine it, she finally made a decision.

“Excuse me.”

Aria called for the clerk. The fairy appeared swiftly, as if she had been there all along.

“Yes~ Did you call for me~?”

“Please wrap that scroll for me.”

A slender finger pointed to the bright red scroll. The fairy tilted her head.

“Um~ Wait, the highly toxic scroll?”

“Yes.”

“Um… Why would a freshman need that?”

“I’ll definitely need it.”

Aria nodded with a strange expression.

“There’s an exploration task coming up soon.”