The Absolute Beings Obsessed with My Defeat Addiction

The personal interview with Propad Youngsik was quite fruitful.

“D-do I really have the qualities of a magician?”

“Yeah, from what I see, you have decent conditions.”

His lack of self-esteem was evident as he smiled brightly at even the smallest compliment.

“B-but the professors said I have no talent.”

Despite receiving praise, his self-doubt dragged him back into the pit of self-deprecation, reflecting his low self-esteem and confidence.

This was likely due to the bullying he faced from various jerks at the academy.

‘Silvesta and Youngae probably played a small role in that too.’

He couldn’t even make eye contact with the person right in front of him, and every time I spoke, he flinched, displaying an anxious demeanor.

I could understand why Helen Silvesta thought of him as a ‘loser.’

‘It’s much worse than during class.’

Perhaps it was because he had a purpose to focus on during lessons.

He had at least been staring intently at the blackboard.

“Well, it’s true that you lack talent in the Blaster school, which emphasizes destructive magic, and in the Life Magic school.”

“Ah….”

His shoulders drooped again at my words.

This was a bit annoying.

“However, you have enough talent to succeed in the Meister school. For instance, your ability to maintain focus once you concentrate during class, or your understanding of circuits.”

I recalled the one thing Propad Youngsik had said during class.

– So, if I find the central circuit that composes the illusion magic, does that mean I can naturally find the core?

His understanding of circuits was quite high.

He grasped the essence of the lecture, which had only skimmed the surface, in one go.

That was considerable talent.

He penetrated the core of a story that others might dismiss as trivial.

That was the kind of talent the Meister school desired the most.

‘It’s fortunate that I now have a suitable excuse to call him out separately.’

“W-what about illusion magic, like you, instructor?”

“Illusion magic?”

“Yes!”

“Hmmm….”

I shook my head.

“Don’t bother. There’s no vision here. It’s better not to pursue it.”

“Is it that I have no talent?”

“It’s not that you don’t have any, but your talent in the Meister school is much higher.”

“Ah….”

“You didn’t come to the royal academy just to become a magician, did you?”

The royal academy was a place of education to learn various knowledge to become a central talent of the empire rather than focusing on magic.

Knights, administrators, priests using divine powers, spirit masters, etc.

They learn basic magic, but their treatment is inevitably lower than that of magicians from the magic schools.

Propad Youngsik nodded.

“But it wouldn’t hurt to learn. If you have nothing to do after graduating from the academy.”

“Ah, yes….”

“Anyway, have confidence. If you want, I can write you a recommendation letter anytime.”

“Th-thank you.”

That was enough.

Though it was a short consultation, I was able to understand Propad Youngsik’s personality, behavioral habits, speech patterns, and his position at the academy.

With this, I could capture more details than before.

“By the way, what’s your name? I need to write it down when I submit the recommendation letter later.”

“Ah, I’m Aeson Propad.”

“Aeson Propad… Okay. Thank you.”

I handed him my business card.

“Contact me if you want.”

“Th-thank you.”

Gratitude.

I should be the one thanking him.

***

“Hey! Illusion Magician!”

“Are you not going to call me instructor now that we’re outside the academy?”

“Instructor? You were just a one-day instructor anyway.”

Helen came to see me two days after I had taught as an instructor.

Without even a single attendant.

“Did you come to find out about Lord Yuris’s weaknesses again today?”

“D-did you think I came here for that?”

“Is that so? Then what’s the matter?”

“I came to ask what you talked about with that loser on the day you were an instructor.”

So that was it.

She seemed quite concerned.

After all, she had acted as that loser in the illusion, so she must be worried.

She might be wondering if I said something to that loser.

“Didn’t Propad Youngsik tell you?”

“He did. He said he thinks he has talent in magic and that he would write a recommendation for the Meister school, right?”

“Since you heard everything, why come all the way here?”

“Do you think I would believe that? What talent could that loser possibly have?”

Hmm.

I didn’t want to gossip, but I had no choice.

If I didn’t say it directly, she wouldn’t believe me.

“Compared to you, his talent may seem meager, but it’s true that he has considerable talent compared to other magicians. That’s why I recommended him.”

“Is that true…?”

“The recommendation is sincere. And I said I wouldn’t mention your worries, so why don’t you believe me?”

“…….”

“Well, since I’ve given you the answer you wanted, I’ll take my leave now…”

“W-wait a moment!”

As I was about to close the door, Helen called out to me.

“What is it?”

“I have one more thing to discuss.”

“What is it?”

“…….”

Helen looked at me and fell silent for a moment.

“If you have nothing to say…”

“About the method to break the illusion magic that you taught me back then. Is it really true? That there are other methods besides just finding the gaps?”

“Of course. Finding the parts where the flow of mana is disrupted or locating the circuits that appear to have been used for magic is also a method. Of course, this only applies to low-level illusion magic. If it’s a high-level magician’s illusion, the finishing touches are perfect, making it hard to find.”

“Then how can you dismantle high-level illusion magic?”

“Are you asking me to tell you the method to break my own weapon?”

“I-I didn’t mean it that way. I just…”

“It’s the teacher’s desire to want to teach students who show enthusiasm in class. But…”

I could guess what her intention behind this question was.

She probably wanted to hear the method to break the illusion magic and break free from it.

It was a question that came from Helen, who had always succeeded and had a high sense of pride.

“I can’t tell Lady Silvesta.”

I continued while pretending to look behind her.

“By the way, you still don’t have any attendants today. Does that mean this isn’t an official schedule for Silvesta?”

“Well…”

Helen De Silvesta always brought several attendants with her whenever she had official duties.

The name Silvesta carried that much weight.

If it were an ‘official’ duty, she would never be left alone.

The fact that there wasn’t a single attendant near her meant…

“Right. You can’t come here for official business.”

Helen didn’t deny it.

She just turned her head and avoided my gaze.

Her face was slightly flushed.

“Then let me ask you one thing. Did you come as Lady Silvesta? Or as a student of the academy?”

“Does it matter?”

“Of course. If you came as a lady, I would chase you away, but if you came as a diligent student, I would be willing to give you supplementary lessons.”

“…….”

She fell silent for a moment.

“I came as a student of the academy.”

“Then you need to have the appropriate attitude.”

At my words, Helen bit her lip as if she had heard something insulting.

“…I-I’ll tell you, instructor.”

Alright. This much effort from Silvesta is commendable.

“Come in. I’ll start the supplementary lesson.”

This is why there’s no teacher who can beat their student.

She stepped inside, and I closed the door.

Thud.

And that sound felt particularly loud today.

***

“Sit down.”

Helen frowned at Max’s words pointing to the center of the illusion magic circle.

“What are you doing…?”

“You said you wanted to learn. If you came as a student, you should experience it properly.”

“No, what I want is…”

“Then go back. If you came as Lady Silvesta, I won’t accept you.”

This wasn’t what she wanted.

Helen pressed her forehead.

The reason she had returned to this shop after two days of contemplation wasn’t just to ask if Max had really told that loser what he saw.

It was because she was annoyed that he had come all the way to the royal academy to pry into her private life.

So she had intended to point this out accurately and confront him.

But when she actually faced Max, that thought momentarily faded, replaced by…

A sense of defeat.

The deep sense of defeat she felt in the past when she had been completely at the mercy of this man’s illusion magic.

That must have been it.

The reason her first question was about the method to break the illusion magic rather than her private life.

She wanted to win.

She wanted to beat this man who had defeated her with illusion magic, something she had never experienced before.

“If I look at that again, I’ll have to go through that embarrassing situation again.”

“No, you won’t.”

“What?”

“Would I throw you into the field without teaching you a simple theory?”

“…….”

“If you sit in the center of the magic circle, I will teach you the method to break this illusion magic. And you will experience it physically.”

“Is that possible…?”

“It depends on your talent. If you are Lady Silvesta, who possesses brilliant talent, it might be possible.”

Max provoked her.

It was obvious to anyone that this was a clever trick to get her into the magic circle.

But the pride of being Silvesta and the competitive spirit born from never having lost to anyone ignited a fire in Helen’s heart.

“You said you would tell me if I sat here.”

“Of course.”

“Alright.”

She knew it was a trap, but her competitive spirit flared up.

She would crush this arrogant instructor’s nose.

As long as she knew the theory, there was nothing she couldn’t do.

Back then, she had lost simply because she didn’t know how.

“If I win, you better tell me Yuris’s weaknesses properly then.”

“Of course. I will reveal it to the world myself. The desires of the Iron-Blooded Knight.”

She sat in the center of the magic circle.

“So what’s the method to break it?”

“It’s simpler than you think. You need to realize that this is not reality.”

“……Is that all?”

“Yes. Illusion magic inevitably differs from reality. You need to find that sense of dissonance. For example, if a flying car suddenly appears in the sky, or if clouds that shouldn’t be there suddenly appear.”

“…….”

“And if you use that dissonance to slightly disrupt the order of the illusion, it will naturally unravel.”

“What about circuits and such?”

“That’s the most basic mistake made by beginner illusion magicians.”

“Earlier, you clearly said that high-level magicians have perfect finishing touches, making it hard to find…”

“That’s right.”

Helen finally realized.

That she had been deceived by this man.

“Hey, you trash…”

“Look closely. I made it deliberately noticeable so that a student could find it easily.”

The world turned upside down.

***

“Hey! You bastard!”

Max, who had to hear the curse I shouted, was nowhere to be seen.

Once again, it was the academy.

The central corridor.

The very space where she had first fallen into Max’s illusion.

“Damn it…”

She had been foolishly deceived.

Why did she do that?

She should have suppressed her competitive spirit.

‘Anyway, I have to find it.’

He had clearly said he made a flaw in a noticeable place.

At least in a competition like this, he wouldn’t lie.

If he had tried to deceive her with falsehoods…

‘When I go back, I’ll destroy it no matter what the cost.’

– The free wind and the land of order, come forth and fulfill the contract.

Helen recited the contracted spell in spirit language for confirmation.

And at that moment.

– Siiiii~.

– Pwooow.

The high-level spirit of wind and the high-level spirit of earth stood before her.

Huh?

“Are you connected to the spirits?”