"...."
"...Are you feeling okay?"
Upon hearing my words, Isis and Isabelle looked at me with incredulous expressions.
Providing immediate feedback after observing someone else's magic is something a well-learned mage can do for their juniors or students.
But they probably never expected that an assistant teacher, especially one as notorious as me, who isn't much older than them, would say such a thing.
'I have zero credibility among mages.'
Lee Ji-han, Seo Yerin, and Noh Yura had seen me wield a spear, so they acknowledged me to some extent.
But Isis and Isabelle, who walk a different path from martial arts, were skeptical of my abilities.
Well, it's understandable.
Martial arts, as they say, "all streams flow to the same sea," so there are commonalities.
But magic is a bit different.
Teaching magic, which ranges from hundreds to tens of thousands of spells depending on the school, specialization, and focus, is no easy task.
Especially since Isis and Isabelle each showed talent in ice and light-related magic, respectively. Both have talents quite different from mine.
I specialize in flame magic, with telekinesis, curses, and incantations as secondary focuses.
There's no overlap with what they do.
Most professors would have already given up in this situation.
But I have no problem teaching them.
Thanks to my unique trait, [Magical Genius].
"When you cast your magic, I'll provide immediate feedback."
"Is that even possible? Only someone like Professor Nam Hwa-yeon or at least Professor Emilia could do that."
"It's somewhat subjective, but I can spot weaknesses. Don't underestimate me too much."
I waved my hand, urging them to go ahead and cast their spells.
Isis and Isabelle gave me skeptical looks, but, having no other choice, they assumed their stances and began gathering mana.
A fierce azure mana and a pure white mana enveloped each of them.
The first to release her mana was Isis, with her azure mana.
Swish—!
As she extended her hand, runes and symbols began filling a circular frame.
Once the circle was filled with various runes, a fierce northern wind swept through the training room.
The wind was immediately dissipated by the magic on the walls, but a chilly air lingered in the room.
I could see the problem.
'...She has no control at all.'
I had noticed it before when I saw her at the valley, but Isis couldn't properly control her icy aura.
Because of this lack of control, her freezing magic had high power and scale, but she couldn't manage fine control at all.
In contrast, this one…
"How's this? Do you think there's anything more to add?"
"...You're controlling even the tiniest photons."
"Seeing that you noticed it at a glance, I guess you weren't completely lying. Still, you won't be able to find any flaws in my magic that my grandmother refined. No, there probably aren't any flaws to begin with."
As soon as Isis finished her spell, Isabelle flicked her finger.
With just that, multiple circles intersected in the air, and various lights poured out from each circle.
The lights split into multiple beams, illuminating the floor.
Where the lights touched the ground, they mixed to form intense lasers or turned into salt, showcasing various effects.
A magic that creates diverse effects by combining the colors of light.
'Impressive...'
Is it precise control of the three primary colors of light?
Or is it control over the primary colors themselves?
Whether it's the former or the latter, it's definitely not my area of expertise.
I've read many magical texts, but none of the ones on light and color described a spell like Isabelle's.
This must also be the talent of a main character.
All I could do was marvel.
While the power of her magic is weaker than mine, that's because Isabelle's magic focuses more on harmony and perfection rather than destruction or killing.
In fact, it might even surpass my [Pyrokinesis].
At this level, it's no wonder my words seemed ridiculous.
Isabelle's attitude and behavior weren't arrogance—they were justified.
Still, with my talent, I should be able to spot some weaknesses.
[Magical Genius is analyzing the trait 'Northern Wind and Cold Snow.']
[Magical Genius is analyzing the skill 'Sea of Photons (S).']
[It is expected to take a considerable amount of time! Current progress: 0.7%...]
Just relying on my talent alone seemed insufficient, so I opened my eyes as well.
[Demon Eye is fully activated to assist Magical Genius]
[The Ten-Mile Eye embedded in Demon Eye observes multiple outcomes and derives results.]
[Progress has increased significantly!]
[Current progress: 27.9... 43.2%... 74.1%.]
[Successfully analyzed each trait and skill!]
It took about five minutes.
The process was fast, but it took a heavy toll on my body.
My eyes were bloodshot, and my nose felt like it was about to bleed. Fatigue was creeping through my entire body.
I might have pushed myself too hard.
But at least I completed the analysis, so I can now guide them based on it.
By the way, while analyzing, I realized something—I had no idea Isabelle's magic efficiency was this high.
'Is this the difference between a main character and an extra?'
Isabelle's talent and skill, which go beyond being a simple main character and qualify her as a heroine, far surpass those of other mages her age.
Isis isn't far behind, but bridging the gap between them doesn't seem easy.
In my opinion, Isis's magic is specialized for large-scale destruction.
In a team of six, a mage like her, who can deliver powerful blows, would be highly valued. But beyond that, I couldn't think of other applications.
Isabelle, however, is different.
She can handle large-scale magic like Isis, as well as intricate and precise processes. Both are geniuses, but…
It's just that Isabelle's magical talent and skill are overwhelmingly superior.
'This is problematic. The mage position in our team is supposed to be Isis, not Isabelle.'
Well, I'll just have to keep teaching them.
With that thought, I added some advice for Isis's magic.
"Isis, you need to focus on controlling your ice freely. Can't you fully control your trait?"
"I'll try to minimize it."
She cast the same spell as before, floating the runes in the air.
Once again, a frosty wind swept through the training room.
It was definitely weaker than before.
"How's this? Is this okay?"
She froze the area around her and looked back at me.
"Can you reduce the scale of the magic a bit more?"
"Reduce the scale? Got it. I'll try."
Not lowering the power, but reducing the scale.
That was the first task I gave Isis.
She seemed to have grasped something, as she began concentrating hard.
Now, the problem is this one…
"...."
"Why are you staring like that? There's no way there's anything to point out in my magic, which my grandmother refined."
"No, there is."
Her magic does have flaws.
I can say that with certainty.
But I'm not sure yet what exactly the problem is.
I asked Isabelle for some time, and that day's lesson ended like that.
***
Four days had passed since the start of proper training.
After finishing lecture preparations and work in the morning, I spent the afternoons checking the students' training results and correcting their stances and techniques one by one.
Once that was done, I spent the nights reading theses or magical texts, and in the early mornings, I trained alone in the training room.
"Oh, my back. I'm going to ruin my body at this rate..."
Rest was out of the question, and even sleep and meals were tight in my schedule.
I made sure to maintain the minimum physiological activities so my work wouldn't be affected, but the fatigue gradually building up in my body was unavoidable.
"...Still, I'm getting used to it."
The time it took to prepare Professor Nam Hwa-yeon's lecture scripts became shorter.
My overall work efficiency improved as well.
Teaching the students was also getting on track, and they were doing well on their own. Looking at it this way, it's all good news, but…
There was the risk of collapsing at any moment.
With my mental strength, I could handle all-nighters, but the problem was my fragile body.
Working overtime and pulling all-nighters every day with this time bomb of a body, it's a miracle I haven't collapsed yet.
At this rate, I might develop a resistance to overtime and fatigue thanks to [Weak Body Resistance]. But the real problem was something else.
"No matter how used to the pain I get, it still disrupts my concentration."
I could endure the fatigue.
But even if I could endure the pain, it severely disrupted my concentration, making things difficult.
The pain of my blood vessels slowly heating up and burning due to [Solar Severed Meridians].
The sensation of being pulled closer to death by burning and scorching wasn't pleasant. An ordinary person would have rolled on the floor screaming in agony from this pain, which struck me irregularly every day.
The only silver lining was that this pain didn't affect my lifespan.
'My lifespan has already been shortened as much as it can be.'
My remaining days were too short for my body slowly burning to further reduce my lifespan. I'm not sure if that's something to be grateful for, though.
It's definitely a relief that my lifespan isn't getting shorter than what's left.
"...The pain is making it hard to focus on reading."
Using painkillers was also tricky.
Those things tend to build up resistance over time.
Feeling the pain gnawing at my body, I closed my eyes.
Is there no good solution?
'I'm wary of drugs because of resistance, so maybe I should look for a skill or hidden piece instead?'
I tossed around various ideas, but nothing practical came to mind. Ah, I almost miss the days when I was a half-cripple lying in bed.
Back then, I was truly on the verge of death, so I didn't do anything.
Maybe I should study traditional medicine or herbs.
Just as I was struggling to come up with a good idea…
...Wait a minute.
"Herbs...?"
A sudden thought.
Yes, why didn't I think of that before?
Herbs. More specifically, poisonous herbs.
My [Weak Body Resistance], which includes [Hundred Poisons Immunity], analyzes all kinds of poisons and builds resistance and antibodies against them.
If I use this properly, I can build resistance to various poisons and even use herbs with strong medicinal effects—classified as poisons—for pain relief and stimulation.
"...Ordinary poisonous herbs won't do."
I need poisonous herbs so potent that an ordinary person would face death just by putting them in their mouth.
As they say, too much medicine becomes poison.
Herbs with extremely potent effects.
There aren't many places that deal with such things, from what I remember.
Coincidentally, there's one just outside the premises.
As soon as that thought crossed my mind, I prepared to go out.
'I hope I don't run into the kids on the way.'
I thought that as I put on my shoes.
Since I wasn't heading to a place I could openly enter, it was natural to feel a bit nervous.
But whenever I do this, I always end up running into them outside.
I had a strong feeling that would happen again.
A very strong one.
***
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