I’m Not Becoming a Graduate Student! – Chapter 49

The Magic Tool Shop visited with Serenne.

As the name suggests, there were many amazing magical tools there.

“What is this…?”

Squeak.

White mice trapped in a square cage.

Why are they selling mice in a magic shop? Just when I thought that.

Serenne, who was beside me, answered my curiosity.

“They’re lab mice.”

“L-lab mice?”

“Yeah, they’re not meant to be killed. They’re mostly bought by support-type mages for buffs.”

“Ah… I see.”

Of course, there are people who use them for killing too.

“…”

Sion and Serenne slowly wandered around the magic tool shop.

Magical scrolls were stacked neatly, like various types of paper at a stationery store.

There were cores used for making golems, a set of bones used in summoning magic, and fancy pointed hats, too.

‘So many fascinating things. Magic really is interesting!’

Sion’s eyes sparkled like a child’s.

Lately, he hadn’t felt much interest in class, but now it felt like his passion for magic was being reignited.

As they earnestly roamed the magic tool shop, he felt a strong gaze.

‘…What’s that?’

When he looked around, the strong gaze had vanished in an instant.

What was that? Was Serenne looking at him?

But Serenne was busy looking at a magical parrot beside them.

“Hmm? Sion, what’s wrong?”

“Uh…? It’s nothing.”

“Really.”

“Sion, this one is cute, isn’t it?”

The magical parrot was indeed a parrot used for magic.

To be precise, it was said to have its intelligence enhanced by magic and could speak quite like a friend…

Not that he had a thing for parrots, but Serenne, looking at the parrot, was a bit cute.

‘If she just stays still like this, she’s quite picturesque.’

There are people like that sometimes.

People who look pretty or handsome but break the illusion once they start talking or acting.

…Serenne gave off exactly that vibe.

“Not going to look more?”

“Hmm?”

“Sion, it seemed like you didn’t know much. Can we look around a bit more?”

“Is it okay?”

“Yep, I’ll explain everything to you.”

As Serenne was looking at the parrot, she suddenly focused on Sion’s face.

‘Did I give off too much of a country bumpkin vibe…?’

Sion awkwardly cleared his throat and stepped back.

To think he seemed like someone who didn’t know much.

That comment poked at his chest.

However, Serenne, seemingly unconcerned, looked a bit sleepy.

“Did you say you came to buy a staff? Then let’s go look for one.”

“Sure.”

The staves were displayed right in front of the large glass window.

Probably to entice passerby into entering.

The designs of the staves were certainly eye-catching.

“Staves used for magic are generally divided into two types: staves and wands.”

“…I think I get it. The long ones are staves, right?”

“Yep.”

The staves clearly appeared to be over one meter long and quite thick, while the wands appeared to be small and portable, about 30 cm.

…Sion had played games often, so he had some knowledge.

“Wands are portable and relatively cheap. However, they are less effective and difficult to use in hand-to-hand combat.”

“…So staves must be the opposite?”

“Yup, that’s right.”

“Hmm…”

Sion’s gaze was drawn more towards the wands than the staves.

‘If it’s portable and the price is relatively low… I guess I’d prefer a wand.’

There were various types of wands as well.


Colors, shapes, materials, presence of a handle, and more.


It was quite difficult to choose.

But if there was only one wand he could buy…

“Then I want to buy that one.”

“That one seems the best.”

“…Really?”

Serenne tilted her head and examined Sion’s choice of wand.

On the wand’s handle, a price tag and performance indicator were attached that read as follows:

[Product Name: Manifestation Armut]


[Size: M/30cm]


[Effect: Magic Manifestation Speed +30%]


[Price: 1 Gold Coin 50 Silver Coins]

“Sion, the effect is too low.”

“…It makes my manifestation speed 30% faster.”

“But look at the other wands.”

Serenne grabbed any random wand and showed him the price tag.

[Product Name: Holy Bertina]


[Size: S/25cm]


[Effect: Holy Magic Power +20%, Holy Magic Manifestation Speed +10%]


[Price: 1 Gold Coin 30 Silver Coins]

“This one has more effects. But that one’s too low.”

“…I can see that perspective. But I think this one is better.”

“…Why?”

Sion gripped the ‘Manifestation Armut’ wand.

It felt good in his hand, and he liked its simple and straightforward performance.

‘All the other wands are specialized by attribute.’

Just like how the ‘Holy Bertina’ wand boosts the power of holy magic, other wands boasted specialized performance for elemental, summoning, illusion magic, and so on.

“I can use all kinds of magic. So a specialized wand isn’t that great.”

“…Is that so?”

Sion had a unique ability called ‘Magic Codex.’

He could learn magic just by seeing it without regard to type.

Thanks to the ‘Magic Codex,’ Sion could learn and use most magic, making a specialized wand of little use to him.

“Yep. And a 30% increase in manifestation speed can completely change the tide of battle.”

“…Manifestation speed?”

“Exactly.”

“But there’s no power increase. There’s no advantage for specific attributes either…”

“The increase in manifestation speed outweighs all those advantages.”

“…How?”

The manifestation speed of magic.

It refers to the speed from the moment magic power emanates from the heart, travels through the veins, and manifests through either a wand or staff.

“Let’s assume there’s a mage of the same class.”

“Okay.”

“They each have a wand. Mage A holds a wand with a 50% power increase, while Mage B holds a wand with a 50% increase in manifestation speed. Who do you think would win?”

“……I don’t know.”

“I think Mage B would win.”

In swordsmanship terms, the manifestation speed is like ‘sword drawing technique.’


No matter how sharp and powerful the sword is, it will inevitably lose to the speed of drawing a sword.

‘Moreover, if I want to bring out my strengths, this one is the right choice.’

Sion was the kind of person who casts magic without incantation.

He believes in maximizing strengths over alleviating weaknesses.


That was Sion’s winning strategy as a mage.

“You talk pretty well for a rookie.”

“…?!”

“I never thought there’d be someone who could recognize the value of this wand.”

Squelch!

Sion felt a strong pressure on his shoulder.

Startled, he turned around and…

There stood a tall woman.

Her chest was firmly pressed against Sion’s shoulder.

“W-what?!”

“Hmm? Are you the new student of the Magic Department? Picking a wand as a beginner… you’ve got talent.”

Sion stumbled back in surprise, but the woman seemed completely unconcerned.

Instead, she just smiled broadly at him.

“W-who are you…?”

“Hmm? Oh, you don’t know me? I am…”

Swipe.

She pointed at herself with her thumb, like a superhero.

“The owner of the Kainstoth Magic Workshop! I am Igdrasil from Kainstoth!”

“…Igdrasil?”

“Yeah, have you heard of Dark Elves?”

If Igdrasil is mentioned, she’s like Professor Lunia.

Meaning, she belonged to the same elven race as Professor Lunia.

Yet, her skin color was quite different.

‘Dark… Elf?’

Unlike Professor Lunia, who had pale skin, Kainstoth’s skin was brown like chocolate.

Her ears were long like an elf’s, and her hair was white.

The unique points were her confident, boisterous expression and… an even more boisterous chest.

In the meantime, her attire was a rather stained crop top, as if she just came out of the workshop.

…Because of her revealing crop top, it was quite difficult to know where to look.

Even while looking at her face, for some reason, his gaze kept drifting down—

“…Sion.”

“W-what?”

“Where are you looking?”

“……”

Serenne pulled Sion’s hand.

As usual, her sleepy eyes, but her cheeks were a bit puffed up.

A bead of cold sweat rolled down Sion’s forehead.

He felt that saying the truth might turn out dangerous.

“Kainstoth, why are you here?”

Just when Sion felt his life was threatened, the owner of the magic tool shop blocked Kainstoth’s path.

“Of course, it’s for product delivery. Here, this is for this month.”

Thud.

Kainstoth casually handed over a huge bag.

It was so massive that Sion couldn’t fathom how she brought it.

Did she use some magic or something?

As Sion stared blankly, Kainstoth approached him.

“By the way, I want to confirm something.”

“…Huh? What do you want to confirm?”

“Just a little confirmation. Hmm, you seem a bit special, so I thought I’d check.”

“What do you mean… ugh!”

Suddenly! Grab, squeeze!

Kainstoth started to muddle Sion’s arms and legs.

Caught off guard by her rough hands, Sion didn’t know how to react.

Meanwhile, a grin blossomed on Kainstoth’s face.

“Oooh! This is amazing! For a 2nd Circle, you made such a thin circle?”

“…H-how do you know that?”

“Just touching tells me. Just touching. Oof!”

“Ugh, hey!!”

…About a minute later.

Sion’s limbs were thoroughly twisted by Kainstoth.

As soon as her hands stopped, Sion immediately hid behind Serenne.

‘What the heck… who is she?’

Her boldness aside, the fact that she was the owner of a magic workshop was unnerving, as well as that she was a Dark Elf he was meeting for the first time in this world.

“Hey, kid.”

“…Huh?”

Swipe!

Kainstoth reached into her cleavage.

What on earth was she doing? He couldn’t take his eyes off the situation.

After a moment, she pulled something out and threw it at Sion.

Instinctively, he caught it with his hand, and it was…

‘…Gold coins?’

Two shiny golden coins landed in his palm.

…They felt oddly warm.

Kainstoth grinned and spoke.

“Kid, what’s your name?”

“…I’m Sion. I don’t have a family name.”

“So, you’re a commoner, huh? Hmm, good. You can keep that wand.”

“…Huh?”

The wand Sion was holding was priced at 1 gold coin 50 silver coins.

With two gold coins, he could buy the wand and still have 50 silver coins left.

…Was she saying she would buy the wand for him?

“You’re a kid worthy of my wand. Use it well.”

“Th-thank you.”

“Forget the thanks. Later, drop by my workshop. If you participate in a few experiments, I’ll pay you. Well then, I’m off!”

“Ah….”

Jingle, jingle!

Kainstoth burst out the door in an instant.

The bell’s sound was the only thing indicating her presence.

…She came like the wind and disappeared like the wind.

‘Kainstoth Magic Workshop… right?’

She said she would pay if I participate in a few experiments.

If she throws gold coins around so casually…

Maybe she earns more than what adventurers make in the guild.

As Sion toyed with the gold coins, someone poked him lightly in the back.

What was that? He turned around.

“…Serenne?”

“……….”

“What’s wrong?”

“……I don’t know.”

Serenne’s cheeks were puffed up more than ever.