The All-Rounder’s Unsettling Talent

“Alright, class, that concludes our lesson for today. Class dismissed!”

With Vivian’s declaration of dismissal, everyone was finally free to leave. As the students began to disperse, Ai Ou approached Vivian.

“Teacher Vivian, thank you for lending me your notes yesterday. Here, I’m returning them now.”

As he spoke, he produced two notebooks and handed them to her. Vivian accepted the notebooks, a look of surprise gracing her features.

“You’re returning them so soon? There was no need to rush, you know. To me, these notes are merely crystallized knowledge from the past, all of which I’ve committed to memory. It wouldn’t have been too late to return them after you’d thoroughly assimilated all the information within.”

Vivian smiled, holding her two notebooks. She assumed Ai Ou felt awkward about keeping her notes for too long. After all, for mages, knowledge was paramount. Truth sprang from knowledge, and the source of a mage’s power lay in the knowledge they commanded; the more they knew, the stronger they became. Magical notes, in particular, contained the most crucial essence of knowledge. In Vivian’s estimation, Ai Ou likely felt uneasy due to the perceived preciousness of her notes, prompting him to return them so swiftly.

“No, Teacher Vivian, I’ve already learned all of it.”

“Is that so? You’ve already learned… What?! You’ve learned all of it?!”

Vivian initially paid little mind to his words. However, after re-reading them a few times, she realized he hadn’t just *looked* through them but had truly *mastered* them, causing her to exclaim involuntarily. This encompassed all the basic water-elemental magic from the first to third tiers! He had mastered it all!

Vivian’s eyebrows involuntarily twitched a few times. Ai Ou snapped his fingers. Without incanting a single spell, a puddle of water appeared on his right hand, condensing into a mirror-like crystal. This was a second-tier water-elemental spell, Mirror Image, which functioned like a looking glass and could be used to tidy one’s appearance outdoors.

Then, Ai Ou snapped his fingers again, but nothing happened. Still unconvinced, he snapped them once more. Seeing no reaction, Vivian finally felt a sliver of relief within. She began to offer comforting words.

“Mastering magic cannot be rushed. For spellcasting, impatience is the greatest taboo. The difficulty of magic increases in tiers; first to second tier is one level of difficulty, and second to third tier is another. Failure is the mother of success. Your talent is exceptional, so a few failures are all it will take. You know, I also failed back then…”

Before Vivian could finish her encouraging words, Ai Ou snapped his fingers again, and finally, a pillar of water erupted from the ground.

‘Damn it, not allocating all my free attribute points to water affinity made me a bit rusty!’ Ai Ou silently cursed.

He then looked up at Vivian, bewildered. “Teacher, what were you saying just now? You failed too? How many times?”

Vivian blinked in confusion, her eyes darting about before she spoke. “Ah, nothing. I meant that when I was learning second-tier and third-tier magic, I also failed over a dozen times. It’s perfectly normal for you to fail two or three times. Indeed, your talent is truly outstanding.”

Vivian’s pretty face flushed, for she had lied. When she learned second-tier magic, she had failed hundreds of times. For third-tier magic, it took her three full days of failures before she could barely grasp it. Even so, the teachers at the academy had praised her as a genius, and she had always reveled in that self-satisfaction. It was only upon meeting Ai Ou that she truly understood what it meant to be naturally gifted. In truth, whether she lied or not was irrelevant. She simply felt that as a teacher, being too far behind her student would be too humiliating. Her pride as an elder would not allow her to lose too much to a student, so she could only go against her conscience, striving not to fall too far behind Ai Ou.

Then, Vivian watched Ai Ou effortlessly demonstrate various water-elemental spells from the first to third tiers right before her eyes. Initially, he was a little unpracticed, but as he continued, Ai Ou grew increasingly proficient. She opened her mouth, intending to say something, but in the end, she closed it again. She was utterly speechless by Ai Ou’s performance.

Did such talent mean other mages couldn’t possibly survive?

“Ai Ou!” Vivian suddenly called out to Ai Ou. She no longer wanted to be continually disheartened by him. Fearing her pride as a teacher would be shattered into a thousand pieces by Ai Ou, she made a swift decision to stop him. “Your magical proficiency, your teacher already understands. Alright, I get it. You no longer need these notebooks, so I shall take them back.”

“Teacher? Aren’t you going to check my mastery of basic potions?”

Ai Ou blinked at Vivian.

“No need. Your teacher trusts you. You’re a good student and certainly wouldn’t lie.”

‘I’m just afraid my mind will collapse if I witness your extraordinary mastery of potion-making later, so it’s better not to look,’ she thought. Vivian had been disheartened enough.

“Then, Teacher, I wish to learn more about potion knowledge. Could you teach me?”

Hearing Ai Ou’s words, Vivian’s eyelids twitched. She had wondered why her eyelids had been twitching so rapidly during class today. It turned out Ai Ou wanted to drain her knowledge—’spiritually drain her,’ that is.

“Very well, how about this: I have a few books on potion-making here that I can lend you. These are Common Medicinal Herbs of the Monster Mountain Range, Everyday Potion Recipes, Various Introductions to Monster Organs, and Basic Theories of Potions.”

As she spoke, she pulled out several books and handed them to Ai Ou. Ai Ou casually flipped one open, revealing pages densely filled with elegant handwriting. Each page was meticulously detailed, complete with various insights and experiences. Compared to Oreo’s magic notes, these were truly proper magic notes! Oreo’s had been nothing but a sycophant’s chronicle, filled with self-praise—a complete fraud who had swindled his own father out of hundreds of gold coins.

“These two magic notebooks are yours to borrow for now. Take them back and study them. If you encounter anything you don’t understand, come and ask me, or compile your questions, and I’ll address them when I have time.”

Vivian spoke to Ai Ou with earnest intent. She had never lent these magic notes to anyone before; Ai Ou was the first, and he was her student.

After thanking Vivian, Ai Ou hurried towards the library. He needed to quickly learn more advanced potion knowledge. Ever since he discovered yesterday that he could allocate skill proficiency points, Ai Ou no longer feared lacking talent. Potion crafting heavily relied on experience and talent, but yesterday, Ai Ou had already maxed out his proficiency in basic potion knowledge. He now felt he could craft a basic mental power elixir even faster than Vivian.

Watching Ai Ou’s retreating figure, Vivian’s face was a mixture of complex emotions. Generally speaking, possessing one unique talent was already powerful. For example, strong magical affinity might enable one to cast powerful spells, but perhaps their magical power wouldn’t be sufficient, like a certain ‘Hatake Kakashi.’ Alternatively, some might be born with immense magical power but lack learning talent, mastering only a few spells in their lifetime, like a certain ‘Naruto’ who makes Rasengan.

Or, everything might be above average but not quite top-tier—more magical power, faster learning, greater potency—like a certain ‘Schwarzenegger.’ These individuals could all be called geniuses. Some might not be powerful mages but possess an extraordinary talent for crafting potions, making them geniuses whom many would curry favor with; virtually no one dared offend a potion crafter. Or perhaps some had high alchemy skills, capable of creating powerful magical weapons. Such individuals were also sought after by many mages. It was rare to find an all-rounder in the magical world.

This was because humans could not be perfect; there were always some flaws. However, as Vivian gazed at Ai Ou, an unpleasant feeling stirred within her. ‘This world truly has all-rounders after all!’ she thought. His learning ability was strong, he casually mastered basic water-elemental magic, and his mana reserves… while untested, seeing him cast all first to third-tier spells without tiring suggested his mana level was not low. As for the power of his magic, the scene at the dueling arena yesterday proved its significant potency. And regarding a mage’s weakest point, their physical body—it was a joke! He could punch a twenty-year-old into semi-consciousness; how could his physical fitness be low?

He felt like the ultimate life form. Vivian shook her head. Having a student like Ai Ou brought her both joy and a headache.

“…Sigh, in short, he’s truly a monster.”

****

Ai Ou arrived at the library. Saint Roland Academy, being the strongest mage academy in the Augustus Empire, also boasted the largest library in the entire empire. Its exterior was as opulent as a palace, and it comprised four floors, corresponding to elementary, intermediate, advanced, and forbidden knowledge, respectively.

Students could freely enter the elementary first floor to borrow books. However, from the intermediate level upwards, only teachers or those with a teacher’s permission could freely enter and exit. Each floor’s bookshelves were meticulously organized. As far as the eye could see, everything visible was knowledge. The library’s ceiling resembled a vast, rotating nebula of stars, symbolizing the infinite nature of knowledge.

As Ai Ou prepared to ascend to the second floor, a pleasant female voice suddenly called out to him.

“Student! Above the second floor, only teachers are permitted. Students can only browse books on the first floor.”

Turning his head, Ai Ou froze. He recognized the girl.