When I said, "You can be a hero," to a child with no talent, he really started to become a hero, so I acted like I knew what I was doing, like I was a wise master. - Chap 30: The New Disciple

The finals for Candy are about to begin. The moment she steps out, the venue bursts with excitement. She has been overwhelming up to this point, after all.

“Candy. She’s quite impressive.”

It’s rare for Kaguya to offer praise. Generally, she doesn’t even show interest… Maybe Candy is exceptional.

“She’s a student at the school where I teach. Though, I don’t interact much with her.”

“Really… Maybe I should try teaching, too.”

“I wouldn’t recommend it.”

Sakura and Kaguya are chatting happily. For some reason, Lin is growling softly as she stares at Menmen, who’s standing next to Will.

“Hey, Will, want to grab some food after this?”

“Huh? I was planning to head to the weapon shop afterward. Want to come with?”

“Ah, sure. Then let’s get some food after that. There’s this restaurant that interests me, but it’s couples-only…”

“Oh? Sounds good!”

“Yes, awesome!”

“You’re so happy about it… Menmen, you love food, huh?”

“It’s not exactly about the food… but never mind.”

Menmen is probably delighted about visiting a couples-only restaurant, but Will doesn’t notice.

Lin has been watching the dynamics between Will and Menmen all this time. Then, she gazes at Menmen once more.

“This feeling… she has the same scent as me.”

Menmen and Lin might be using the same perfume. The final opponent is a wizard named Meril, who is said to have the dual-casting ability, “Double Order.”

“Meril… I don’t know her.” 

But on the contrary, Lin seemed to know.

“You know I have a Gift called Multi-Task, which allows for parallel casting of multiple spells, right?”

“Yes, I know. Lin, you’re overpowered. Magic One also provides huge amounts of magical power, allowing for the fivefold casting of twelve-tier spells. You’re a monster.”

“If you compare it to Dan, it’s nothing big. This girl Meril has a Gift called Double Order, which allows her to cast two spells simultaneously.”

“So she’s similar to you, Lin.”

“Furthermore, she can use up to the sixth tier of magic. Candy is impressive, but her previous opponents were melee fighters so she could mimic them. She’ll have to face two simultaneous spells from someone with considerable magical skill this time. It’ll be a tough battle.”

Wow, the ability to simultaneously cast two spells is fantastic. I can’t do that; I can only use one bit at a time. In my opinion, though—magic isn’t essential in most fights. A good slash usually ends things.

“You think you don’t need magic in a fight, right? Just a few blows in close combat, and it’s over.”

“Ah, no, not really…”

Did Lin read my mind?

Now, the finals have started. Meril begins by casting water and fire magic simultaneously. She releases five fireballs in one go and immediately rains down spears made of water.

“This opponent is different from the previous ones…”

Candy is dodging skillfully. Wow, she’s good at evading. I thought it would be a tough fight, but she handled it efficiently. However, her opponent, Meril, can supposedly use up to the sixth tier of magic, so she probably hasn’t shown all her cards yet.

If Candy has to face sixth-tier magic, it will be dangerous. She should try to finish her off before that happens.

“Indeed, it’s clear why you’ve made it to the finals, Candy.” 

Meril casts spells repeatedly with her wand, but Candy keeps dodging them. Maybe Meril thought it was becoming a futile effort, so she stopped waving her wand.

“I shall show you the power of sixth-tier magic. You’ve proven that you’re a formidable opponent…”

“…Such a hassle.”

Magical patterns emerge around Meril. The audience looks surprised, so her magical power must be quite formidable. I’ve been with Lin the whole time, so it doesn’t feel that amazing.

“Ice Blizzard Strike! And… Fire Emblem Bird!”

A beam of ice is unleashed, along with a bird made of fire flying next to it. This must be the decisive moment! At least, that’s what everyone, including me, seems to think.

Well, it’s sixth-tier magic. It’s swift… Candy should’ve finished it before this spell was cast. Or maybe she didn’t know what magic was coming, so it was better not to get too close.

As I ponder these things, the spells seem to be hitting Candy. Uh-oh, this might be not good for her.

“Is it over?”

“Did she do it?”

“No one could survive those spells.”

The crowd is buzzing… and just when we all thought the spells would hit Candy, her mouth opened wide. Huh? What is she doing?

Then, like a black hole, the spells disappeared into her mouth. Furthermore, her fist began to glow as if imbued with fire and ice.

“Magic Eater is my special ability. I can consume magic and temporarily imbue myself with the spells I’ve eaten.”

“What?! I wasn’t informed about this!”

This is like a cheat. That ability is too convenient.

Meril looks shocked that her magic was consumed. I wasn’t aware of this ability, so I’m also amazed.

“I usually don’t use it because it doesn’t fit my refined image… but facing sixth-tier magic head-on seemed risky.”

“Stop joking! This is not fair! It must be a trick! Earthquake Earthdon! Ultra Water!” shouted Meril.

“Munch munch… gulp.”

Ah, she ate it again. Now, she’s imbued with fire, water, ice, and earth. What will happen now?

“Not over yet!”

“Candice Punch!”

“Ugh!!”

Candy’s enhanced punch sent Meril flying out of the ring. Does she even need me? Why not just let her get stronger on her own?

Eating magic to empower herself… I wasn’t prepared for this. Well, congrats on the win, I guess.

“Wow, she’s powerful.”

“Yes, she is.”

“Do you think you can beat her?”

“I’m not sure. She seems to be cheating-level strong. I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s hiding more abilities. It feels like we haven’t seen her full potential.”

“You also have hidden depths, don’t you?”

Regarding the extent of my strength…Honestly, I don’t know. I haven’t seriously fought since I was around 13. I’ve been active but never really went all out.

The air friction would disintegrate my clothes if I used more than 20% of my power. Even legendary armor couldn’t withstand it when I ran a bit seriously.

This trait of melting due to air friction when I exert more than 20% of my full power is such a poor match for me. Masks made of iron melt instantly, and it’s not just a matter of getting nervous that my ordinary face will be revealed.

If I fight at full power → “What kind of speed is that? I can’t even see him!” people like Lin would be surprised → My iron mask melts, and my face is exposed → “Wait, he was acting like such a hotshot, but he’s just ordinary?”

That was my biggest fear, so I always thought I couldn’t go all out. But then again, nobody could see me if I went all-out due to the extreme speed. But still… my clothes would be melted off due to air friction, right? I’d be naked, huh?

No, I don’t have a hobby of walking around naked, thank you very much. I do want to wear clothes. Thinking it’s OK to be nude just because you can’t be seen is perverted invisible-man logic. I never wanted to open that particular door.

While lost in these past musings, I noticed Candy was being honored for her victory. Congratulations!! Well done. Though, she probably could’ve won even without me there.

◆◆

Menmen were out picking flowers by themselves. After finishing, she headed for the stands where Will was. She was a bit nervous since she had what she considered a date with Will, the man she had feelings for, after this.

However, she had a problem. Will was utterly oblivious to her feelings.

“Will… he never notices how I feel…”

“Let me solve that problem for you.”

“W-Who are you?”

Suddenly, a voice came from behind her. The person’s face was covered with cloth, but from the pointed ears, they seemed to be of the Fairy tribe.

“Stay away, suspicious person!”

“No, no, I’m not suspicious! Look at this face!”

“What?! The great sage, Linlin!”

In front of her, the fairy removed the cloth to reveal a beautiful woman, the image of beauty itself.

“Uh, why are you interested in me?”

“Hehehe, you remind me of myself when I was younger, so I wanted to give you some advice. You like that guy, Will, don’t you?”

“What!?”

“Yes, yes, I know everything. Calm down.”

“O-Okay.”

“But you haven’t been able to make any moves, and you’re troubled because you keep pushing him away with strong words, right?”

“How do you know all that?”

“Hehehe, because I was the same.”

“Oh, you mean the Hero Dan?”

“Exactly. So, as your senior, I’d like to give you some advice.”

“…Um, I’ll pass.”

“What!? Why!?”

Lin hadn’t expected Menmen to decline. After all, she was part of a legendary hero party, and her reputation was incredible.

“Well, it’s just that you traveled with him for years and still couldn’t get married. Learning from you might make things worse for me.”

“You know how to stab a knife into my heart, right? But I like your uncompromising attitude toward love.”

“No, even if you like it…”

“Listening to my failed love stories can’t hurt, and things have started to go well between the Hero and me lately.”

“Really?”

“I’ve even seen what’s under his iron mask.”

“What!? No one’s seen that!”

“Yes… I’ve even thought about inviting him to my hometown next time.”

“Like a pre-marriage introduction!?”

“Huh? Oh, yes… that’s right!”

(Oh, I bragged about a pre-marriage introduction…)

Lin indeed reached out to Menmen with good intentions. Watching her interactions with Will reminded her of her troubled times with Dan. Unable to stand by, she spoke to Menmen out of sympathy.

However, she ended up bragging about a pre-marriage introduction.

“It’s just that this marriage is still a secret, so… keep it quiet, OK?”

“Ah, understood. I thought you would turn forty without ever confessing, but I guess that was an unnecessary worry. Maybe it’s OK for me to learn from you after all.”

“Y-Yes… that sounds good!”

“Then, please guide me, Lady Lin.”

“Ah, sure. Leave it to me.”

“By the way, have you decided where you’ll live?”

“Ah… um, we’re still discussing things like how many children we want, so we haven’t decided yet.”

“Wow, marrying a hero? You’re winning at life!”

“I guess so! Because I’m on the winning team!”

“Who confessed first?”

“It was him, I think? He’d liked me for many years, so he finally told me that’s how it went.”

“Wow! I want to get a confession like that, too! Please guide me!”

“Alright… I’ll also check your magic since your quality seems good. Maybe I can heal you with healing magic, giving us more chances to interact.”

“Ah, that makes sense. I look forward to learning from you, Lady Lin.”

“Ah, yes.”

(What should I do? I’ve been bragging about all this, but everything about marriage and a house is a lie… Well, it doesn’t matter since I’ll make it accurate eventually… right? Right?)

Menmen became Lin’s disciples.