Frey Blake had changed!
The rumor quickly spread through the student body.
"Did you know he successfully faced Professor Kevin's
barrage of questions? 5 times!"
"Unbelievable. Isn't he the first person other than Peran.
Even fourth-grade students might get them wrong!"
"Besides, he even fought with David during a lesson and
destroyed him."
"I heard about it too. Weren't his vocal chords and both his
legs broken?"
If he doesn't get healed then he's done being a wizard.
Frey's environment also changed.
It was the next day. After the lessons, someone approached Frey,
who was reading a book in the library.
These days he had been getting along well with Isabelle, so he
thought it was her, but when he raised his head, there was a man
standing there instead.
"Are you Frey Blake?"
"That's right."
"…you don't say much. Don't you know me?"
As he was trying to recall, the man frowned unconsciously.
'What kind of look is that…'
The man coughed lightly to break the awkwardness and introduced
himself.
"I'm Douman Milost. A fourth-grade student."
Since he was only a second grader, Frey bowed his head without
any complaint.
"So you are a senior. What's the matter?"
Douman sighed slightly in relief at the attitude that he was more
familiar with from his juniors.
"Join the Traumen Rings."
"Troman Rings?"
"You don't know it?"
Frey nodded at that.
The thing that he was curious about was the 'Traumen' part.
That was Lucas' own last name in the past.
"We are a group of students who represent the Westroad
Academy. Of course, it's not just a social gathering. The
Traumen Rings is a club with a long standing history within
the academy and only those who are selected can join."
At this, Douman showed off the ring he was wearing with a
confident expression. It was an orange colored flat ring that was
covered in runes.
"Even after you graduate, as long as you possess this ring, everyone will look up to you. From a simple village tower to a
royal mage or even a mercenary…you'd be able to pick
whatever career you want."
"Hmm."
Douman licked his lips. An ordinary student would be quivering
with excitement after hearing this but this guy's reaction was very
dry. It was the first time he'd seen such a reaction.
So he took out his trump card.
"Peran Jun is the current leader of the Traumen Rings."
"Peran Jun?"
Come to think of it, he'd heard that name many times before.
Like a world record that would continuously be boasted in the
history of the academy. He was a celebrity of the academy in a
completely different sense from Frey.
"That's right. Peran Jun, the heir to the Jun Family which is
one of the Three Great Noble Families of the Empire. When
you join the Traumen Rings, you'll be able to form
connections with children from many aristocratic families,
including Mr. Peran. We can even rely on our senior students
and professors to help us improve by point out our
shortcomings "
Douman's expression seemed to say, 'could you possibly refuse
that?'
Frey nodded at his words.
"I understand, but I will have to reject your offer."
"What?"
Douman's eyes widened substantially.
He thought that Frey was only pretending to be unimpressed, but
he never expected him to directly refuse.
"Wa-, wait a minute. Think this over carefully. I don't know
if it's because you're just a second grader, but if you join…"
"I'd like to practice by myself now."
"…"
Douman's face became red. Then he turned around. He hid his
face because he wasn't confident that he could hide his shame and
anger. No matter how upset he was, he couldn't display his anger to
his junior.
Frey on the other hand, maintained his nonchalance.
'I'm a bit interested in this Peran though.'
Genius.
Frey had taught, been taught by and shared opinions with geniuses
before.
In his life he had seen countless geniuses.
Nevertheless he had never seen a genius who surpassed all, form a
group of friends. In his experience, geniuses didn't form groups. Of
course, Peran, who stands out among the crowd could be a bit
different.
But right now he wasn't too interested. Frey had a lot of work to
do.
Frey Blake rejected the offer of the Traumen Rings!
The rumors spread very quickly. Maybe it was Douman's handiwork.
The students' reactions to the news varied. There were those who
wanted to befriend him, those who showed hostility and those snuck
glances at him from a distance.
Of course, Frey had a common response to all of them.
Ignore.
Frey became isolated.
"He got a bit stronger and now he acts pretentious."
"Was his personality always like that?"
"Just leave him alone, he even refused the Traumen Rings
Scout."
"He's a lone wolf."
The students began to see Frey as an 'Arrogant brat' because he
had improved his skills.
It was a rather biased opinion, but Frey didn't care. Rather he felt
like it was easier now because he didn't have to bother with
socializing.
Of course, there were exceptions.
Isabelle murmured depressedly and Frey looked at her.
"I still couldn't find anything about battling. When I asked
the professors, they said it was a very dangerous training
method, so there are no records of it in the academy library."
"That sounds about right."
It was very dangerous. When Frey was Lucas, only wizards who had reached at least 5 stars were taught how to do it.
"Then where did you learn it?"
"Book."
"Can you lend it to me?"
"No."
Frey responded briefly and went back to reading the book in his
hands.
Isabelle pouted her lips as she saw him begin to focus on reading
properly.
She knew that in that state, he wouldn't answer anything.
As Frey read the book he had a different idea in his mind.
It had been about a week since he left the abyss. In the meantime
he steadily gained information from the professors lectures and
books.
The existence of those 'guys' was not revealed yet. It was quite
different from the past.
Conversely, there was little distortion of the history of Lucas and
his companions. This was quite unexpected.
'We were a thorn in their side. If they gained complete
control of human society, it would have been logical to erase
all traces of our existence.'
That's why he came to a conclusion.
It was likely that there were those who took up the will of him and
his companions to fight against them.
For a whopping 4000 years.
'Finding them is my top priority.'
"Who is the best wizard in this academy?"
"…you ignored all of my questions."
"If you answer in detail, I will answer one thing that you're
curious about."
At that, Isabelle's expression became extremely bright. She
gathered her thoughts for a moment before opening her mouth.
"Among the students, Peran Jun. Among the professors is
Professor Dio or Professor Adelia. But the strongest overall is
my aunt."
"Your aunt?"
"Yeah. Syris Triznine, the Head of Westroad Academy.
She's a 6 star wizard who was granted the title 'Glacier' by
the Empire."
6 Star.
It wasn't a low level to attain.
But Frey was confused.
Something he'd realised while looking at the books was that there
were no wizards who had reached the 9 star level in this era. The last
9 star wizard had appeared more than 3000 years ago.
Thanks to that, the 9 star level was considered a legendary myth,
almost like a dragon.
8 star wizards were called Archmages and were praised as the
strongest under the heavens. Fewer than 10 people had reached that point.
'The magic that protects the Academy is not simply at a 6
star level.'
Frey hadn't realised it at first.
But there was clearly magic surrounding the entire academy.
There were also various types. From simple location tracking, to
alerts, defense and power increments.
'If she's the head of the academy then she should be the
one who installed it.'
If it was a wizard of that level then she might know something
about 'them'. However she could be hostile toward him. No, it is very
likely.
'I need to raise my level to at least 7 stars first.'
If Frey was at the 5 star level then he would be able to defeat
wizards at 6 stars.
However from 7 stars and up it was different.
In the past, Frey classified all wizards at and aboe 7 stars as
'Arcmages'.
'5 star wizards can beat 6 star wizards. But 6 star wizards
couldn't beat 7 star wizards.'
Mana reserve, casting speed, magic power and mental power.
There was a big difference in every aspect.
Because the difficulty to reach the 7 star phase could not be
compared to what you experienced before.
That meant that Archmages had one or two mysterious means. It was power that David's Vision Magic could never compare to.
In order for him to defeat a 7 star wizard, he had to at least enter
the beginning state of the same stage.
'A month should be enough to reach 5 stars.'
It would be possible even if he only did morning training in the
empty lot near the dormitory.
However it would be difficult to reach level 6 with the poor mana
there. And it would be even more difficult to reach 7 stars.
'Should I just give up my status as a student now?'
Frey contemplated for a moment.
In any case he had already been abandoned by his family so they
wouldn't care if he went missing.
He was sure that if he asked Professor Dio about the expulsion
related procedures it would be easy.
But he soon shook his head.
'It would be difficult to come back in if I leave.'
It was best for him to maintain his status as a student until he
knew the true identity of Syris Triznine.
'Then I'll just wait for a vacation in a month.'
When the vacation began, students usually returned to their
hometowns to take a break.
Although a few tasks were given, they were not difficult as it was
only a formality. Even if you didn't do them the punishment wouldn't
be too serious.
The vacation was two months long, that was enough time.
'I should go to Schweiser's Dungeon.'
Perhaps his dungeon had collapsed or been robbed already, but it
didn't matter.
In the past Lucas Traumen had quite a few stashes.
You could say that in his dungeons one could find books that he'd
read in the past, a few golems he'd made out of interest and other
miscellaneous things(junk).
But Schweiser was different. He gave his dungeons a lot of care
and affection.
'His dungeon shouldn't have collapsed yet.'
Moreover, the dungeon was positioned in a place unimaginable by
ordinary people. If someone was able to find it, then they deserved to
take some of the stuff inside of it.
'I'll need to go to the Ispania Mountains in the North.'
He was well aware of the strength of the monsters there.
Even at 6 stars it was impossible to guarantee that you can come
and go as you pleased.
'Good.'
Frey's goal was set.
First, he'd wait and hone his skills.
Then, on his vacation, he'd go to the Ispania Mountains to find
Schweiser's Dungeon.
After reaching the 7 star stage with the help of the magical equipment there, he would come back and meet the Head of the
Academy.