Tou No Madoushi

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Lynn awoke early morning, and after getting ready he set out for the elevator that would take him to a lower strata of the tower . Today was the day he would finally partic.i.p.ate in an expedition of the forest of magical beasts, as a member of the Magulheim guild .

First he met up with Elios and co’ in Renryll, before leaving the tower with them and piling into a rail car that would take them into the forest .

The forest’s thick, bristley wall rose up just north of the tower .

“How does it feel, to be the only one in your cla.s.s to skip cla.s.s today?” Agul asked, with a big grin on his face .

“I feel great!”

Seeing Agul’s infectious grin, Lynn broke out in a broad smile .

The expedition would require them to be out there in the forest for a whole week . Back at the academy, cla.s.ses would of course be running as usual, despite his absence .

His absence from cla.s.ses would be permitted on the grounds that his partic.i.p.ation in the expedition was an extracurricular activity . Students absent for any other reason would be punished .

It was a strange feeling, to be outside doing something entirely unrelated to his cla.s.ses, while his peers would at that very moment be cooped up inside a cla.s.sroom, taking notes or listening to a lecture, or engaged in some other kind of studious activity .

“Lynn, this is your first time right? To go into the forest of magical beasts”, Elios asked .

“Yeah . Are we not in the forest yet?”

Looking out of the rail cart around at their surroundings, Lynn saw the land they were going through was already dense with thick trees and greenery .

“Not yet . Look at it, this is still a normal ecosystem . Hedin forest has been exposed to the influence of magical power for a long, long time, so it has trees and vegetation that are unique, and that don’t grow in any normal forest . Just wait, you’ll see what I mean when we get there” .

After about an hour of being shaken around by the rickety rail cart, they arrive at the entrance to Hedin Forest .

Looking around at the vicinity of the entrance to the forest, Lynn at once understood what Elios was talking about earlier .

A normal forest was thick with a dark colour palette of browns and greens, but the forest of magical beasts was composed of not only green, but also rich reds and oranges .

Just one glance at the poisonous tint of the forest was enough to intuit the danger which surely lurked within .

They were at the end of the line . Between where they were, the terminus, and the entrance to Hedin forest, there was a kind of buffer zone where a strip of land had been cleared . Where the trees had been cut down, a kind of naked impression was left on the land .

There were no benches as such, but there were a number of felled logs which one could sit on to relax, and even a lodge which was built there so that one could use it to take shelter from the wind and rain, if necessary .

It was common practice for guilds that explored the magical forest to first a.s.semble at the lodge here, to discuss logistics, before setting out into the forest .

Lynn noticed that they were by no means the first to arrive . Already a large number of students had gathered in the clearing and around the lodge .

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Many were sitting on the logs . Some were chatting idly, while others discussed what seemed to be more serious matters, as they poured their eyes over huge maps they had spread open .

Instead of the usual crimson robes, which were status symbols that showed they were students of the academy, today the students were wearing white hunting gear .

Shila, who usually wore her hair down, had it tied up at the back in a ponytail .

Lynn found himself unintentionally stealing glances at the nape of her neck, which wasn’t usually visible .

He decided to try to find Teedro, but after a quick look around he couldn’t find him anywhere .

“Looks like Teedro isn’t here yet”, Elios said as he gave a quick glance about their immediate vicinity . He knew Lynn wanted to see him .

“I wonder if there are any other Magulheim members around… Oh, there’s Illia . Illi!”

Shila called over to her acquaintance, trying to draw her attention . She was sitting on a log just a little ways away from them, and had lush, chestnut coloured hair .

Wait a second, I think I recognize this person…

Recognition flashed across Lynn’s mind . He remembered her from the day when the elite n.o.bles had appeared at the factory . She was the one who made the bridge of light .

Is she a member of Magulheim?

“Oh, it’s you! Good morning Shila san,” she said, before noticing her friends at her side, “Elios san, Agul san” she added, greeting them too .

The girl called Illia was smiling at them from where she sat . Lynn felt himself grow weak at the mere sight of her smile .

That elegance and modesty, Lynn thought to himself, was no doubt befitting of a true elite n.o.ble .

She was wearing the same kind of Kariginu gear as Lynn and his friends, which was regulated by the academy, and her hair was braided . Despite her clothes being the same as everyone else’s, she exuded a certain type of elegance and refinement that simply couldn’t be hidden .

So this is what you call a true n.o.ble . She’s nothing like Yuven .

Just then Illia noticed that at Shila’s side was not only Elios and Agul, who she frequently spent time with, but also another boy who she hadn’t seen before .

“Shila, who might this be?”

“I’ll introduce you . This is Lynn . He’s the beginner student everyone’s been talking about, who was selected for Magulheim’s hunting party” .

“So you’re him”, she said as she let her gaze fall on Lynn .

Lynn felt his face go red, and he cast his eyes downwards .

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“Be proper, Lynn . She’s someone really important…”

“I know, I know . High cla.s.s n.o.ble right? I saw her that day at the factory, I saw her crossing the bridge of light” .

“That’s not quite it though” Agul said, laughing .

This was how Agul usually acted whenever he was trying to shock someone .

“Well then?” Lynn urged him on .

Shila cleared her throat and shot Agul a reprimanding look, before turning to face Lynn .

“She’s the fifth in line for the throne of the Kingdom of Wingold . She’s Illia Lim Wingold” .

“What? Really? So in other words…”

“Yeah, she’s royalty . Or what you call a princess” .

A princess…

Lynn narrowed his eyes .

He couldn’t believe that he was standing before an actual princess .

To Lynn, a princess was a being who lived above the clouds, far removed from everyday life- and certainly far from Lynn’s life .

“You must be joking, Shila . That a princess would really be in a place like this!”

He let out a tentative laugh . He couldn’t quite believe what they were telling him .

“What’s this now? Are you doubting what I’m telling you?”

Shila raised an eyebrow .

“She really is a princess . Even the aristocrats have to come to the tower in order to become wizards, so it’s only natural that it’s the same for royalty too” .

Hearing her explanation, Lynn immediately regretted what he had said, and was seized with terror .

“Oh I- I’m sorry . I didn’t realize you’re really a princess . Forgive me for being so rude . I forget my manners…”

To any onlooker he must have been an odd sight to behold, as he fidgeted and squirmed on the spot .

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Illia simply let out a soft giggle .

“Please, don’t worry about it . It’s okay” .

Her gentle demeanour was what impressed Lynn most .

“n.o.bles or commoners . No matter our social standing, we’re still just fellow wizard apprentices . Our standing in the tower isn’t dictated by the standing we were born into, it’s decided based on what floors we belong to . As for us, well we’re academy wizards who belong to floor 50 [1] . So please, would you treat me as a peer?”

“That’s right Lynn . Illi’s our friend, so you don’t need to worry about correct manners or whatever”, Shila said .

“Oh, ok” he replied hesitantly .

Despite Shila’s rea.s.suring words, somehow he still felt a part of him resist the idea of interacting with her as an equal .

It was true that, on the surface level, the academy had a policy of treating its students as equals irrespective of their social status, but in his cla.s.ses there was definitely a kind of wall that seperated the commoners and the n.o.bles .

Besides, Shila, Agul and Elios were commoners, whereas Lynn was born a slave .

Perhaps the reason Illia was happy to treat him this way was because she a.s.sumed he was a commoner . If she discovered his true birth origins, would she readily change her att.i.tude towards him the same way Yuven did?

He had countless such experiences since entering the academy, and it wasn’t just the n.o.bles who did this . It was often the commoner kids as well .

“Oh look, it looks like Teedro’s arrived” Agul said, having spotted Teedro .

He followed Agul’s gaze, and he saw Teedro walking into the clearing from inside Hedin forest . He had just emerged from the forest of magical beasts .

What on earth? He already entered the forest, by himself?

He was perplexed . It surely wasn’t already time to enter the forest, but here Teedro was, having just emerged from within, and now walking into the clearing .

“Good grief, that Teedro, he’s gone off ahead by himself again” Shila said while shaking her head in amazement .

“I suppose his motto is advance-advance-advance, after all”, Elios said in a defeated tone .

Seeing Teedro, Illia stood up .

“Well then, I should be going . Teedro’s here, so the meeting should be starting soon” .

“Okay . Look after Lynn for us will you?” Shila said, as if she was leaving a child in someone’s care .

“Of course . Okay then Lynn, shall we go over together?”

Without time to settle his nerves, Lynn went along with Illia towards the lodge .

At first he didn’t know whether he should walk behind her or beside her . He did his best to hide his awkward nervousness .

Teedro spotted Lynn and called out in greeting .

“Hey Linn, did you get here ok?”

“Yeah . Thank you for letting me be here today” . [2]

“Hazel, give him the crest” .

“Sure”, the deputy leader of Magulheim said, and walked up beside Lynn and placed a hand on his shoulder .

Just as Lynn was wondering what on earth was going on, she chanted an incantation . A crest of a lion then appeared on his shoulder .

“What’s this?”

“That’s the crest of our guild . You’re still a temporary member at this point, so it’s a bit different from everybody else’s”, she explained .

He looked around at the others, and compared his crest to theirs . His was similar, but the colour and shape were definitely a little bit different .

“Lynn . I heard about your social status”, Teedro said in a stately tone of voice . Lynn didn’t know how to respond to that, so he simply waited for his next words .

“I’m sure up until now, whenever you’re in the cla.s.sroom you worry about your social status . In the beginner cla.s.ses there can be a closed, insular kind of atmosphere, right? However in Magulheim, your ability is more important than your social status” .

“Okay” he replied, nodding .

While it’s true you’re a temporary member, that doesn’t mean you’ll be treated differently . I’m looking forward to seeing you work with us . If you do well, the way your cla.s.smates look at you should change . Today’s a good opportunity for you to hunt an impressive magical beast . Show me what you’re made of” .

Lynn felt nervous under Teedro’s straight forward, piercing gaze, but he gave his answer clearly .  

“I understand . I’ll do my best!”

“All right then . Let’s begin as usual and divide up the groups” .

Next time… Chapter 33, ‘Group Selection Lottery’ .

TRANSLATION NOTES

[1] I think the way it works is that a wizard’s floor cla.s.sification is stated as the floor threshold a wizard has most recently pa.s.sed . So Lynn has access up until floor 99, and the most recent threshold he pa.s.sed was floor 50 .

[2] ‘Thank you for letting me be here today’ is derived from ‘よろしくおねがいします’, which can be translated a mult.i.tude of ways depending on context . The reason I chose to translate it the way I did, as opposed to ‘I look forward to working with you’, or ‘Please treat me kindly’ for example (which wouldn’t have been incorrect), is because in this situation Lynn is expression grat.i.tude for the opportunity Teedro has given him . It’s definitely not normal for a beginner cla.s.s student to get to venture into the forest of magical beasts!

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