The Reincarnated Archmage’s Journey Chapter 39

Episode 39. Increased Bullying (1)

The peculiar smell of medicine in the infirmary tickled my nose.

As I regained consciousness, drawn by the smell, I was forced to open my eyes by a burning, heavy feeling near my chest, as if a lump of lead had been placed on it.

“Ha, why does it still hurt?”

It was a word I blurted out reflexively as soon as I opened my eyes.

The bed I was lying on was also next to the window, so there was a large window on the right and white curtains on the left.

It's the white curtains that are characteristic of hospital beds and infirmaries.

I turned my head towards the window and checked the weather outside.

It looks like he didn't sleep for that long, as the sun hasn't set yet.

“Ugh…….”

It still hurts every time I move my body.

Especially, seeing that my chest was feeling tight, I could tell that it was wrapped tightly in bandages without even having to check.

That was when I finally managed to adjust my posture, leaning back on the bed, groaning more than twice for every movement of my body.

“Are you awake, Artel?”

Hey's voice was heard from beyond the left curtain.

I was worried that he was going through burnout in class 1, but judging by his voice, he seemed to have recovered a little.

Of course, it was still the same as not having any power.

“Hey, you? You seemed to be in a state of burnout. Are you okay?”

"How do you know about burnout? I first heard about it from the school nurse today, and it's my first time experiencing it."

"I studied hard. There was a book I read that explained this phenomenon."

“Oh, really? So you didn’t just study how to implement magic.”

“What, how did it come to this?”

The phenomenon of burnout was never explained in class or in textbooks, so naturally, Hey didn't know its official name.

There is no need to tell you this, as it is not a phenomenon that a beginner magician of class 1 or 2 can experience.

Consuming mana to its limit.

It's easier said than done. Is it really possible for students in their early teens to use mana beyond its limits?

To give you a somewhat similar example, imagine running 200 meters at full speed while drunk, with a shaky gait and the ground appearing as two layers.

For adults, it is a simple problem that can be solved with the intention of falling down, but for young first-class students, it can be seen as a task that they would not even dare to attempt.

It seems that the reason Hey was able to overcome such limitations was largely due to his uniquely strong body, despite being a wizard.

“Anyway, how is your body?”

"I'm a little sleepy… and a little weak, but I'm not sick. But I'm not going to class for a week and I'm going to rest in the infirmary."

There is only one way to recover from burnout.

The brain is overloaded, so the only way to cool it down is to rest.

If an adult or a wizard of class 4 or higher experiences burnout, they can recover quickly with a day or two of rest, but for Hei, who was only class 1, it took a relatively long time of a week.

“By the way, Artel, are you okay? Your whole body was red and you looked like you were dead.”

“Oh, it’s okay.”

As the conversation paused and silence began to fall, something occurred to me that I wanted to ask Hey.

“Oh, hey. I have something to ask you.”

“What is it?”

"When you spar with me, why do you push yourself so hard? It's to the point of burnout."

“Ah… that?”

Hey's expression soon became heavy and he answered.

"Just. They say Kiena is a stronger summoner than the Elementalist, and you're a double caster. If I keep falling behind like this, I don't think we can go to the main school together. Kiena's on a five-game winning streak, too. Compared to her, I…"

Although he pretended to be fine on the outside, he always had his own worries and concerns.

"Don't worry. From what I saw today, it seems like the only student who can beat you in the fire element is Banshee."

“The lie is so obvious.”

"Really? Was there anyone in Class 1 who could perform two magic spells simultaneously?"

“You and Banshee.”

“Except?”

“Hmm… Now that I think about it, there isn’t really any.”

"It's definitely amazing that you can do something we didn't even teach you in class. So don't overdo it next time. Burnout will quickly go away with rest, but it's still dangerous."

Hey thought about something for a while, then suddenly burst out laughing.

“Poohaha!”

“What? Why are you laughing all of a sudden?”

"It's funny when I think about it. From orphanage onward, all the way up to Class 0, Kiena and I worried about you, who was weak, every day. Now you're worried about me."

“Is that something to laugh about?”

“It was just yesterday that you were playing around and telling me to call you hyung, and now I’m the one calling you hyung?”

But the good news is that the disturbed feelings seem to have definitely recovered.

“Oh my, it’s so noisy I can’t sleep.”

Then an unexpected voice filled the infirmary.

The sound came from the bed next to mine.

That is, it was the bed next to Hey's.

“Banshee?”

"huh."

The fact that the banshee is in the infirmary… …is it because I forced too much mana consumption while in the linking state?

No, if that's the case, does that mean that the request to make the fire element 6th place and 2nd place ended in complete failure?

Startled, I opened the curtain on the left.

Then it was Hey who met my eyes.

The bed next to Hey, where Banshee was, had the curtains drawn.

“Even Banshee got burnout.”

Heyga explained instead.

As expected, even though I injected my mana in a hurry, it was definitely too much.

So even a 6th class banshee won't get burnout.

“So I’ll take a week off just like Heyrang.”

Next, it was Banshee who explained her condition, but that didn't matter.

What's most important to me now is the outcome of the sparring.

Slurp.

As if he had accurately grasped my state of mind, Banshee opened the curtains on his own and approached my bed, asking.

“I have something to talk about. Should I go out for a bit?”

What I'm talking about is what happened in the training hall after I lost consciousness and collapsed.

“Okay, let’s do that.”

As I tried to force myself to get out of bed, Hey started to stop me.

“The good teacher told me not to let you go anywhere, Artel.”

"It's okay. It's just for a moment, what's the big deal? The school nurse isn't here right now anyway."

But rather, it was Banshee who answered first.

Hearing that, I instinctively knew that it was important enough to convey it quickly, so I held back a groan and barely managed to get out of bed.

"As Banshee said, the school nurse isn't here, so it'll be okay. Then let's go, Banshee."

"okay."

***

The place they arrived at was the school garden.

Luckily, there are no students in the garden today.

My physical condition was so poor that I couldn't go down the deep hallway like before.

So I chose this garden, which was closest to the infirmary.

I got straight to the point.

"Tell me. Why are you suddenly burning out? Even if you were in a linking state, was it really that much of a stretch?"

"no."

But I couldn't help but tilt my head reflexively at the unexpected answer.

“Burnout?”

“To be exact, I lied and said I was burnt out.”

“Why? Why bother?”

“Professor Need’s suspicions were so severe that I deliberately pushed myself too hard at the last minute and pretended to be burned out.”

"ah……."

I thought I lied pretty well, but did I make a mistake?

Or maybe Professor Need is far more skilled than I expected.

Anyway, what's certain is that Banshee analyzed the situation after I fell and made the best decision.

"If that's the reason, then you did well. So, what was the result of the sparring?"

"Darkness element 9 wins in a row, 1st place. Fire element 6 wins in a row, 2nd place. Summoning subject 5 wins in a row, 3rd place."

In the meantime, I was incredibly grateful that he granted all my requests.

"good job."

I spoke sincerely, stroking Banshee's hair as if I was ruffling it.

Then, the banshee's face turned slightly red, and she bowed her head slightly, leaving only a word of thanks.

“Is that why you called me out?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Anything else special?”

"doesn't exist."

"Really? Then let's go in now. This hurts so bad."

“Ah… I… there’s something I want to ask you before you go in.”

The banshee had a very serious expression on its face.

I've never seen such a serious expression.

“What is it?”

"The way you demonstrated this in this sparring. Especially the way you used your body while sparring. I haven't seen that kind of training method in any of the books I've read. But how did you, Arkis-sama…"

“Oh, that?”

Fortunately, what she was curious about wasn't a sensitive matter.

"Even I, in my previous life, before becoming a great wizard, never even considered it. Surrounding myself with magic and fighting with the physical body. I learned it after meeting him."

“That guy…? Was he the wizard I was close with? Judging by the fact that you call him that guy.”

"No, I hate him as much as Tyrant. Did I sound friendly?"

"sorry."

“I wonder what that guy’s identity is?”

To my question, Banshee nodded cautiously and slowly.

“Sailored.”

“…….”

“It means that it wasn’t just a fluke that he became the worst and strongest magician in the history of magic, but that he killed eight swordsmen with stronger bodies than magicians in the Battle of the Full Moon.”

“Learning and knowledge exist everywhere, even among enemies….”

That's what the banshee muttered.

And those words were very familiar to me.

So I couldn't hide my surprised expression.

“How do you know that? My teacher often said that.”

"It's a secret that's been passed down in our family. Its origins lie with Arkis's teacher, Lady Alize. We didn't even know where it originated."

"That's strange. Master and I weren't actively involved with the Emmet family, so how did he know?"

“I’m curious too.”

"Anyway, Cyrus is that formidable and dangerous. Honestly, if we faced him again, I doubt I could win. I'm actually scared."

Siler is not dead.

It is simply sealed at the top of the main building.

Besides, Tyrant killed me to absorb his power.

It may be someday in the future, or someday in the near future, but he will come out into the world again.

During the Battle of the Full Moon, my Master and eight other swordsmen were together, but now that everyone is gone, I must fight alone.

But I couldn't give up.

Even if it's to keep the teacher's will.

“Is that all you’re curious about?”

"yes."

"Then let's go in. Help me up. I'm having trouble walking."

"All right."

So I put one arm around Banshee's shoulder and walked slowly towards the infirmary.

Back at the infirmary, a young woman with red hair and eyes and black horn-rimmed glasses was scolding Hey, grumbling.

“Hey, student! I told you to keep a close eye on Artel, didn’t I?”

Her attire consisted of a thin, long white gown worn over her regular clothes.

I could tell by her attire and the way she spoke that she was a good teacher.

“Ah… I fell asleep for a bit, and I think I lost consciousness. I’m sorry….”

The moment Hey started making excuses, his mouth automatically shut as he met my eyes as I entered the infirmary.

At that moment, Teacher Yang's gaze also turned to the door, and soon she started yelling at him.

“Artel student!”