This was something I had to do. There was almost no reason for me to pick up this skill. Why would there be? As Gennady said, I was good at magic; the best in the world, as evinced by the ease at which I learn new spells. And yet, that was not something born from me. It was something that jerk god gave me when he tricked me into coming into this world after murdering me.
I was a practical girl: I would use whatever tools I had available as a means to survive. And yet, my time as a slave made me realize that I hated having no control over my own life. The feeling of uselessness— as though I had no say in how things went— was overwhelming. I did not want my only achievement in this world to be something I was given at birth, especially considering that it was not even chance, luck, or fate that determined this. It was by the hands of that false god who seemed hellbent on making my life miserable.
Of course, I would still use magic. But I was going to learn this as well— as a backup if magic ever failed me.
"I’ll do it," I repeated myself. I turned to Gennady, meeting his gaze. He nodded slowly in response.
"Very well then," the Dwarf said. "But first," he coughed politely into his hand, "you might want to put down the carving needle. That’s not needed until later."
"Oh," I said, blinking.
"You can’t just etch the symbols onto any mana crystals surface. It has to be smoothed out first, lest it ruins the runes you want to create."
"Right, of course."
Duh. Don’t get ahead of yourself, idiot!
Chapter 19: Adrian III - Field Trip
"Are you excited?" Alice asked, plopping her bag on the table.
Adrian glanced up at the blonde girl, then down at the large pack she placed on his desk. "Are you really bringing all that?" he asked.
"Of course!" the girl exclaimed, a smile spreading across her face. She brought her face over excitedly— maybe a little too close— chattering as she did. "Come on, Adrian. We’re going on our first field trip! They’re bringing us to Defenor Forest, and they’ll have us investigate the flora, observe the wild animals, and even hunt some Monsters!"
The boy leaned back on his chair, and shrugged. "It’s just Kobolds, Alice. They’re everywhere, and they’re not really that menacing. I wouldn’t even normally consider them to be Monsters. They’re just like… rats."
"They’re like rats that can bite your head off and walk on two feet." Alice folded her arms petulantly.
"Really big rats," Adrian said, nodding.
Alice stared back at the boy blankly for a moment. Then she sighed. "Fine, maybe Kobolds aren’t too much of a problem for adults, and sure, they do keep the population of Kobolds in the forest down specifically for us students to train in— but we’re finally getting our chance to prove ourselves. Everything we’ve learned in the past six months can finally be put to use!"
"I guess."
"What kind of a reaction is that?" the girl asked. "Don’t you have any passion for what we’ve been studying?"
Adrian paused. He considered this, thinking about his time in Xander’s Academy so far and how it had been marked with mostly boredom, highlighted with some strokes of bullying and getting reprimanded by the teachers.
"No," he said. Alice glared at him, and he just shrugged. "What do you want from me? History is boring, mathematics is boring, science is boring— classes are boring."
The girl snorted. "And somehow, you’re among the top in the class for all those subjects." She shook her head. "I don’t know how you do it. I can’t dedicate as much time into studying as you do if I don’t enjoy it."
And that’s the difference between you and me, Adrian thought. He was not a noble. Sure, Alice was not one either. But she was born into a rich family— a family that ensured all her needs were tended to. A family that expected her to inherent their legacy and excel in everything she did.
Meanwhile, Adrian knew what it was like growing up with no particular ambitions, and simply living day after day. He thought he would have simply grown up in Villamcreek and eventually replaced his father as the village hunter. He thought, perhaps, he could grow up and marry Melas, living a peaceful life with her. That did not happen, of course.
So that was his drive. That was why he came to Xanderia. And that might have been the reason why he was able to push himself so hard day after day. If he were to use all the resources at his disposal, he might be able to find Melas again.
The classroom door swung open, and their martial and combat arts teacher came strutting in. "Enough chit chat," he said, silencing the noisy classroom. "Back to your seats."
Alice quickly grabbed her bag, but before she left, she hurriedly said, "I hope we’re in the same group. I’m not sure what I’d do if I’m alone with a bunch of nobles."
"Don’t worry," Adrian reassured her. "There’s no way they’ll miss the chance to pair up the only two commoners in our class."
The girl raised an eyebrow at that, but did not respond. Adrian watched her quickly run back to her seat as the class slowly organized itself.
The teacher, a man named Lucas, stood behind the desk in front of the blackboard. He placed both hands into the wooden table, leaning his body weight into it as he addressed the class.
"Alright, I know you lot have been excited for our trip to the Defenor Forest," he spoke with a gruff voice that seemed unbefitting of a noble. However, he was a Knight— or at least, he had been a
