Subscriber of the Gods Chapter 316 - I'll Give It a Try

Following the Introduction to Practical Studies class and the joint training in the auditorium, Ethan called his favorite disciples separately for one more training session.

It was a personalized training tailored to the characteristics of his disciples, conducted a bit more intensively.

“How was the training with the special golem? Nevermind. I can see from your condition that you worked hard. Mason and Ron, you have improved quite a bit. And Yuna, it seems you worked the hardest?”

At those words, Yuna beamed with pride.

“You noticed, teacher! Look at these hands. They’re all damaged from drawing magic circles. These guys insisted that there’s nothing to get physically hurt from when creating magic circles and using magic, except for the mana drain. They said their palms were all torn up, claiming it as proof of their training.”

As Yuna laughed while looking at the two, they jumped in surprise and protested.

“What?!”

“Th-that’s not true.”

Mason and Ron exclaimed urgently. Ron, in particular, was even stuttering.

“For Yuna to be at this level despite having a main job outside of studying…”

“I really worked hard too. If you look here…”

“I worked so hard that there were days when I skipped dinner.”

“I’m not saying you didn’t work hard.”

Ethan smiled slightly as he looked at the two.

“It’s just that Yuna worked extremely hard.”

At that moment, Roanna, who had newly joined, raised her hand enthusiastically.

“I didn’t do it!”

“Right, because it wasn’t necessary for you, Roanna.”

The special golem training was unnecessary for Roanna.

“I understand that Roanna’s talent is extraordinary, but does she not need practical experience?”

Ethan nodded at Mason’s question.

“That’s right, Roanna was born with it. She doesn’t need to learn about practical situations here. Roanna instinctively understands these things.”

It was an unreasonable statement, but it couldn’t be helped.

That’s what talent is.

Something infinitely unreasonable and unfair.

Talent creates differences that can’t be reached through effort because everyone is born with different innate abilities.

“Of course, you all have your own talents that Roanna doesn’t have. Instead of trying to catch up to Roanna’s talent, you should develop your own talents.”

There was no need to compare since everyone had different talents.

The talent one possesses is absent in others, and the talent others have is absent in oneself.

“I’m going to bring out the talents you have to Roanna’s level.”

Ethan intended to maximize their abilities this time.

‘Since I’ll probably have to quit the academy after reaching Master rank this year.’

It was courteous to take full responsibility until the end, having taken them as disciples.

“And.”

As Ethan clapped his hands, one person entered through the door.

“He won’t participate in the joint training in the auditorium, but he will participate in personalized training.”

Oz Lazarus entered and greeted.

“I won’t ask you to be lenient about what has happened so far.”

Oz said. For a moment, Mason’s and Oz’s eyes met.

“I won’t cause any harm. If you think I’m causing even a little trouble for you, I’ll train separately, so please let me know.”

His voice and eyes were completely different from before. The three looked at Oz and then quickly shifted their gaze to Ethan.

What on earth did he do to change Oz so much in such a short time?

Coincidentally, the person responsible for that was right in front of them, so the three stared at Ethan with questioning eyes.

Ethan quickly read those looks.

“We communicated well.”

So he explained briefly with a slight smile.

They were doubtful whether this level of issue could be resolved simply by communicating well, but they could only nod as they strongly felt Oz’s will to live differently from before.

“Thank you.”

Yuna’s eyes wavered once more.

To think she would hear words of gratitude from that Oz.

“It’s hard to get used to.”

“You’ll get used to it soon. Just think of Mason from the first semester.”

The image of that arrogant Mason from the first semester came to mind.

Yuna quickly nodded.

“Well then, first, you three, show me directly how much you’ve done during the break. Let’s start with the most basic. It’s a duel. All three of you, come at me at once.”

“!”

Mason and Ron were the ones who lit up their eyes the most at Ethan’s words.

They had trained really hard during the break. Even after such intense training, they were outperformed by Yuna. The two wanted to clearly demonstrate to Ethan that their skills had improved through this duel.

“Oz and Roanna, watch. You’re next.”

“…Yes.”

“Yes!”

Ethan picked up a wooden sword.

On the other hand, Mason held a real sword, and Yuna immediately drew a magic circle.

“It suits you well, Ron.”

In Ron’s hand was a knuckle.

It was a black knuckle that looked quite high-quality at a glance.

“The elders from my hometown supported me.”

That’s why he needed to prove himself even more.

“You must live up to the value of their support.”

“Yes.”

With Ethan stomping his foot as a signal, the three moved simultaneously.

The training with the special golem was of considerable help to them.

A stationary enemy.

An approaching enemy.

An enemy that suddenly disappears.

The special golem showed numerous tactics, and through its movements, they learned how to deal with various situations.

Ethan stomping his foot meant he would stay still in that spot.

If so, they should move to inflict maximum damage and even incapacitate the stationary enemy in an instant.

All three had practiced this exhaustively through the special golem, so they quickly understood the positions each should take just by making eye contact with each other.

First, it started with Yuna’s magic.

They already knew well that it was meaningless to try to restrain Ethan.

So they turned in a different direction.

In a direction to support Ron and Mason in increasing their destructive power.

Flash!

An incredible light burst from Yuna’s magic circle.

Impact Light. It was a magic that emitted light so intense it could blind for a moment.

Ron and Mason, who had grasped Yuna’s intention through eye contact beforehand, had their eyes closed.

“There’s one thing you’ve overlooked. Excellent magicians can predict their opponent’s magic even before the magic circle is fully complete.”

It wasn’t just Ron and Mason who had their eyes closed.

Ethan also closed his eyes at the right timing, and Yuna’s Impact Light ended up in vain.

“But it was a good attempt.”

Although the strategy failed, Yuna’s speed in completing the magic circle was quite fast.

She drew the magic circle so irregularly that it would never be detected if it were another student, making it difficult to be certain about the magic until the moment it was completed.

It only failed because the opponent was Ethan.

Eventually, Ethan raised his wooden sword and knocked away the weapons of the charging Mason and Ron. The two stumbled greatly backward as their stances were broken.

Ron and Mason, who had tumbled on the ground, immediately regained their posture.

They couldn’t give up just because Plan A had fallen apart.

From the beginning, the goal of this duel was to land even one effective hit.

“Good momentum, good will. And.”

Ethan looked at the two quickly regaining their composure and charging.

From the moment you get hit once, adrenaline starts to secrete. Especially these two had personalities that got excited easily.

“Yes, you’ve learned well.”

But now the two were infinitely calm.

It was an intentional calmness created through practice. Ethan was quite satisfied with their growth.

As a reward, he took a stance with a grinning face and planted his fists into their faces.

“Ugh…”

“Huk…!”

The two immediately fainted and collapsed.

Ethan caught the two falling forward with his shoulders.

Then he checked Mason, who was gripping his shoulder.

Even at the very end, there was a glimpse of the will to land a hit on Ethan.

“Satisfactory. Quite.”

End of the duel.

Ethan hadn’t moved a single step from that spot.

Yuna exhaled, showing her disappointment, but Ethan was very satisfied with the rate of improvement of the three.

“Oh…”

“Hmm.”

Roanna also confirmed that Ron and Yuna’s skills had improved considerably.

It was her first time seeing Mason, but his movements were also extraordinary.

“Roanna, you don’t particularly need a duel. I’ll give you this.”

Although practical experience wasn’t necessary, Roanna needed various experiences as well.

“Its name is ns-2. It’s a special golem for situation training against multiple enemies.”

It was a special golem with the safety features completely turned off, containing various situations that a magician could encounter.

What Roanna needed now was the experience of dealing skillfully in various situations.

Rather than practical experience, she needed to learn how to use and apply the abilities she had.

This golem was optimized to teach that.

“Roanna, your individual lessons will be conducted with this golem, so practice with the golem after school as well.”

“Yes! I understand, teacher!”

Roanna was overflowing with enthusiasm.

Receiving the same special golem made her feel like she was officially recognized as Ethan’s disciple.

“And I’ll conduct separate magic classes with Yuna.”

“I’m ready.”

Yuna swallowed hard. Having classes with Roanna meant witnessing her talent up close.

Too great a difference in talent tends to break one’s spirit.

He probably planned this considering that as well.

Yuna looked at Ethan with eyes full of determination.

“And Oz, you saw it clearly, right?”

“Yes.”

Oz had just witnessed the combined efforts of the three.

If it were someone else, they might not have properly seen its true value due to how quickly it ended.

But Oz could see clearly.

How much their level had improved.

Although not everything was polished yet, this was certainly thanks to Ethan’s teachings.

“I will work hard.”

Now he could no longer say that he couldn’t trust Ethan.

It was impossible to blame the education for being wrong.

Now all that remained was his own will.

“I’ll give it a try.”

Oz’s eyes burned with determination.

Yuna remembered that burdensome look Mason had shown before when she saw Oz’s eyes.

And suddenly she sighed.

Her own eyes probably looked the same.

“Yuna, Roanna. Wake up Mason and Ron.”

“Yes.”

Yuna unhesitatingly slapped Mason’s cheek. Roanna, after carefully observing Yuna’s movement, slapped Ron’s cheek in the same manner.

Slap-!

“Huh!”

Ron woke up startled and touched his cheek.

Seeing this, Yuna looked at Roanna with surprised eyes.

She had just slapped him. But Roanna had added magic to her slap. That’s why Ron, with his big build, couldn’t help but wake up startled.

“Senior, I’ll learn a lot from you.”

Roanna bowed her head to Yuna with a bright smile.

“Now that you’re awake, we’ll start the real training. From now on, I’ll become a special golem. I’ll move accordingly, so try to block my movements.”

Ethan spoke with force.

“I’ll correct the parts you’re lacking.”