Reunion with a Childhood Friend
I unexpectedly reunited with my childhood friend in such a peculiar place.
On top of that, according to Tricia, the Student Council President, she’s an exceptionally skilled magic herbalist.
While I’d love to bring her into the Gallard Company as a member, for now, Connie’s condition must take priority.
I pleaded with Claire to examine Connie’s state.
Though hesitant at first, she eventually agreed, saying, “If it’s to help you, Lake.”
“I never expected you to know Claire. Thanks to that, the conversation moved along smoothly.”
“President, did you truly not know about my relationship with Claire?”
“Not at all.”
Apparently, Tricia genuinely had no clue about the connection between me and Claire.
Claire had assumed that since our last meeting was several years ago during childhood, I wouldn’t remember her, so she hadn’t mentioned it.
Well, to be fair, I hadn’t realized it myself at first.
Given the time constraints and the necessity of returning to the dorm, we moved quickly.
—And so, we arrived at the girls' dormitory. Naturally, I couldn’t enter.
While Claire examined Connie, Lucina and I waited in the shared dormitory lobby for about thirty minutes.
“Thank you for waiting.”
Claire and Tricia returned.
“How did it go?”
Suppressing my impatience, I asked. Claire quickly responded—however,
“—it’s—due to—this—”
Her voice was still too quiet! Tricia took the liberty of interpreting for her.
“It’s due to mana fever. It occurs when a large amount of mana is consumed at once, but it’s not particularly rare. It’s commonly seen in novice mages during training.”
So it’s like the magic equivalent of measles?… No, maybe that’s not quite right.
In any case, if it’s not uncommon, there should be a way to address it.
“How can she recover from this condition?”
“That’s the issue. Normally, mana fever subsides within a day at most.”
“A day?”
Connie had already been in this condition for about a week. If mana fever was the cause, she should have recovered long ago.
Tricia offered a hypothesis to address this discrepancy.
“It’s likely due to the drawbacks of her Select Magic Attribute.”
“What does that mean?”
“Connie doesn’t typically use her Select Magic Attribute, correct?”
“Yes, she usually focuses on a single attribute.”
It’s incredibly rare for anyone to possess multiple magic attributes, let alone someone like Connie, who can freely switch between them.
Apparently, individuals like her are one in tens of thousands.
At the auction hall in Ganos, driven by her anger, she used her mana in an unprecedented way—utilizing nonexistent ice magic.
She claimed it was a combination of multiple attributes.
Among the few with the Select Magic Attribute, Connie might very well be an extraordinary prodigy.
—Ah, I can’t let myself get sidetracked. I still need to hear the solution.
“What can we do to bring Connie back to normal?”
“……”
Claire whispered something to Tricia, seemingly reluctant to open up further.
“She’s currently in a state where mana is overflowing uncontrollably, causing the fever. The fever itself can be reduced with a magic herb remedy, but that won’t resolve the root cause.”
“So we need to suppress her mana?”
“In essence, yes.”
Suppress her mana, huh? That could work—if we use that item.
“I think I have a solution.”
“You have a way to seal her mana?”
“Of course.”
At the academy’s workshop reserved for the Gallard Company, various items are always in stock for emergencies. Among them is an artifact I can use to craft a device to control Connie’s mana.
“Now that I know what to do, I need to get back to my room and start planning! Looks like it’ll be an all-nighter!”
“In that case, I’ll prepare some strong coffee.”
“Thanks, Lucina! And Claire, thank you for sharing your knowledge. Thanks to you, I can save an important friend.”
“!”
When I expressed my gratitude, Claire smiled softly.
—Yet, her smile seemed forced, as though she was hiding something.
It concerned me, but my mind was already racing with ideas.
After saying our farewells to Claire and Tricia, I hurried back to my room.
On the way, Lucina suddenly started talking out of nowhere.
“Master Lake, I simply adore dramatic confrontations. Be it fierce battles or the complexities of relationships… Don’t you agree?”
“Why are you bringing this up out of nowhere?”
And no, I absolutely do not share that sentiment.
“No particular reason… None at all.”
That’s the biggest red flag if I’ve ever heard one!
Why do Claire and Lucina always have to say things that pique my curiosity?
… Once everything’s resolved, I’m going to get to the bottom of this.
What do you think about this chapter?
