As a Reincarnated Aristocrat, I’ll Use My Appraisal Skill to Rise in the World (LN) - Volume 5 - Chapter SS

Side Story: Musia's Growth

One morning in the magical training grounds near Castle Canarre, Musia was hard at work practicing her spellcraft. It was one of the mage battalion’s days off, officially, so Musia was the only mage in the area.

There were many different ways for a mage to practice their magic, from actual, practical spellcasting to training the speed of their incantations. Practical training consumed aqua magia, and while that was by no means prohibited, Musia wasn’t the sort of person who could bring herself to request permission to do so during her own private training sessions. She felt bad for consuming resources on her own, and so she prioritized forms of practice that didn’t need any expenditures.

“Working pretty hard for a day off, eh?” Charlotte called out as she stepped into the training grounds.

“Ah, Charlotte! Good morning,” Musia replied with a polite bow. “What are you doing here? I thought we didn’t have any training scheduled today.”

“Just out on a walk. I was in the area and figured you might be in here, so I decided to take a peek, and looks like I was right!” said Charlotte. “Practicing your incantations, huh?”

“Yes!” replied Musia.

“You know it’d be better practice if you actually cast the spells, right?”

“W-Well, yes, I know that, but considering how much aqua magia that would use, it just feels wrong to go that far when nobody even asked me to be practicing today…”

“Oh, no worries there. I talked Rietz into getting us a whole supply of aqua magia just for practicing with the other day. Having a stock ready for battle’s important and all, but if we wanna be useful when the time for fighting comes, we need to get in as much practice as we can─or that’s what I told him, anyway.”

“Oh, wow!” said Musia. “You managed to talk Rietz into something this time? That’s amazing!”

“Heh heh!” Charlotte chuckled proudly, then paused. “Wait, was that a compliment, or were you making fun of me?”

“Oh… I-It was a compliment, of course! Hurray! Having lots of aqua magia for practice sounds amazing!” shouted Musia, playing up her excitement as best as she could manage. Fortunately for her, Charlotte seemed convinced by the act and grinned as she crossed her arms.

“All right, then─I’ll take you up on that and use some right away,” Musia continued, then set about preparing to cast a proper spell.

Musia brought out a small catalyzer for her practice. Canarre’s mages occasionally practiced spellcasting using medium or large catalyzers as well, but never in this training ground in particular. Medium and large-scale spells were too powerful, and risked blowing the whole place to pieces. As such, those drills were almost always conducted far outside the city limits. The variety of spells that could be cast using a small catalyzer was limited, but one could still get used to the feeling of casting a destructive spell and refine one’s aim using the smaller variety easily enough.

Musia faced one of the targets that had been set up for Fire Bullet practice and cast her spell. The resulting ball of flame slammed right into the target, producing a blast far larger than one would expect from a small catalyzer.

A typical mage’s Fire Bullet would result in a modest explosion, at most. Hitting a person with one would cause some nasty burns, but a single blast wouldn’t be enough to finish anyone off. Musia’s Fire Bullets, however, produced a very respectable blast. Even a fully-armored warrior would be killed by a direct hit the vast majority of the time. It was a very impressive spell…and yet, Musia didn’t seem satisfied. She knew very well, after all, that her spell’s potency paled in comparison to the Fire Bullets that Charlotte could cast.

Charlotte’s Fire Bullets brought about truly massive explosions, on a scale that most mages could only rival by casting with a mid-sized catalyzer or using explosive-aspected aqua magia. Compared to hers, Musia’s spells were nothing special.

Musia went on to cast several more Fire Bullets. The power of her spells had been inconsistent at the beginning of her career as a mage, but recently, she’d managed to reach a degree of stability. These days, her spells were powerful across the board.

“You’ve grown,” Charlotte said quietly. She looked almost moved by Musia’s progress.

“I’m still nothing compared to you. I have have to work even harder,” Musia replied in a rather serious tone.

“Oh? Trying to catch up to me, are you? Somebody’s getting ambitious.”

“Huh? Ah, N-No, that’s not exactly… I just thought I could try to follow your example and get a little closer to you, that’s all…”

“Oh, really? Well, sounds like I’d better get some practice in so you don’t blow past me,” said Charlotte. Musia’s determination, it seemed, had lit a fire in her. “Let me in on this session.”

“Ah, o-okay!” said Musia.

The two of them spent the morning practicing their spells together.

“You really are incredible, Charlotte,” said Musia, admiring her fellow mage after they had wrapped up their practice session. Musia’s magical power had grown as of late, but it was still a far cry from the sort of power that Charlotte wielded.

“Can’t deny it,” replied Charlotte, who was enjoying the praise. “Anyway, we can’t go using any more aqua magia than this for just the two of us, so we’d better head back for today.”

“Oh, right! Of course!”

With that, Musia and Charlotte packed up and headed back toward the castle proper.

“Come to think of it, I’ve heard that some new mages will be joining the unit tomorrow,” Musia said, striking up a conversation during the trip back.

“Huh? That so?” asked Charlotte.

“Y-You hadn’t heard?”

“Hmm… Actually, now that you mention it, that does sound sorta familiar. Slipped my mind up until now, though.”

“You forgot about it…?” said Musia, her expression aghast.

“How many are we getting this time, again?” asked Charlotte.

“Five, and Lord Ars’s Appraisal identified all of them as having a talent for magic! I have a feeling that they’ll surpass me in no time if I’m not careful, so I’ll have to be even more diligent about practicing from now on…”

“Just five, huh? Wish he could get a whole bunch of ’em all at once, one of these days.”

“I-I don’t think that finding capable mages is quite that easy.”

“Yeah, I guess, and a few new people’s sure better than nothing. I think I’ll have to step in and give everyone a personal lesson in magic tomorrow.”

“Th-That sounds great!” Musia replied, though in truth, she was somewhat conflicted about the proposal.

Charlotte, for all her strengths as a mage, was not much of a teacher. Musia herself had struggled to understand Charlotte’s directions early on in her career, so she knew that very well. She’d gotten a grasp of Charlotte’s unique manner of giving instructions, but she worried that the new mages wouldn’t be able to follow their commanding officer’s logic.

I guess I’ll have to step in and help her, if that’s what it comes to…though I’m not sure I’ll be able to do any better than she does, Musia thought to herself. For better or for worse, she would do what she could to help the unit’s new mages through the early stages of their training.

○

The next day, the five new mage recruits gathered up at the magical training grounds to meet the rest of the unit. All five of them were men. Although one’s sex made no difference when it came to magical ability, society at large viewed warfare as a man’s world, and so the majority of those who responded to Ars’s recruitment drives were male in spite of his best efforts to the contrary.

“I’m the leader of Canarre’s mages, Charlotte Lace. Good to work with you!” Charlotte said to the new recruits.

A stir ran through the mages as they heard their commander’s name.

“So she’s the Charlotte Lace?” said one.

“I heard that back in the war with Seitz, she turned the battlefield into a real hell on earth…” whispered another.

Charlotte’s reputation preceded her not just in Canarre, but all throughout Missian. Many of the rumors revolving around her were unsettling, to say the least, and people tended to look upon her with terror more often than with respect.

“Starting today, I’ll be teaching you everything you need to know about magic. If you ever have any questions, don’t hesitate to speak up,” Charlotte continued. The new soldiers let out a collective sigh of relief as they realized that their leader wasn’t as scary as they’d anticipated.

Musia and the rest of the unit’s mages introduced themselves next, and the new mages followed their example. After that, it was time for their training to begin. The new mages were each given a catalyzer and told how to cast their spells. Musia watched over Charlotte, worrying all the while how her instructions would go over.

None of the new mages had ever cast a spell before. Although magic did have practical applications outside of battle, the majority of magical tools were far too valuable for common folk to ever afford them or even have the chance to use them. All five of the new recruits came from modest backgrounds, and their lifestyles would never have led them into contact with magic if they hadn’t been taken into Ars’s service. That being said, Ars’s power proved its worth once again as they each succeeded casting spells one after the other, producing remarkably powerful results for their first attempts─though none of them came close to equaling Charlotte’s destructive potential, of course.

“Not bad for your first try, but none of you have what it takes to make a difference in battle just yet. ’Course, that’s what training’s for! You’ll get there,” Charlotte said after she’d finished observing the new mages’ spells.

“What should we do to make our magic more powerful, Ma’am?” asked one of the new recruits.

“More powerful, huh? Hmm,” Charlotte began. She spent a moment pondering the question. “Basically, you just pack your spells full of all the take-that-guy-down energy you can work up,” she finally answered.

“All the…what?” said the new mage, a look of blank incomprehension on his face.

Musia couldn’t take it.

“U-Umm,” she said, sliding into the exchange, “essentially, Charlotte is trying to say that if you want to make your magic more powerful, you have to focus on succeeding. The more clearly you can envision the way you want your spell to play out, the more likely it will be to turn out that way!”

“Right, that’s the ticket. It’s all about visualizing!” said Charlotte with a nod.

“Losing your composure will also cause your magic’s power to lessen, so you need to keep a clear head at all times,” Musia continued. “It’s also a skill that you can build up over time! Your magic is like a muscle─the more you use and train it, the stronger it grows. There are also certain foods that make it easier to raise your magical potential, so the longer you spend training with our unit to be a mage, the more your power will develop!”

The new mages all seemed quite impressed by Musia’s explanation─and they weren’t alone.

“Oh, huh! Really?” chimed in Charlotte herself.

‘Ch-Charlotte, why are you surprised by that?! You should know all of this already!” said Musia.

“Not really? My magic was plenty strong from the start,” countered Charlotte.

Musia let out a sigh of exasperation. Her fears had been justified: when it came to magic, Charlotte was simply too much of a genius to be a half-decent teacher.

The training of the new recruits continued, and Charlotte’s explanations remained borderline incomprehensible to her pupils. Musia’s attempts to clarify those explanations, on the other hand, were exceedingly straightforward and easy to follow, allowing the new mages to get a grasp of the essentials. Thanks to Musia, by the time their first day of practice came to a close they had become capable enough spellcasters that no one would ever have guessed they’d only picked up a catalyzer for the first time earlier that same day.

“You’re incredible, Musia─I can actually use magic now! Thank you so much!”

“I’d never cast a single spell before today, so when I heard I was going to be a mage I couldn’t stop doubting myself, but I managed it without a problem! This is such a relief, and it’s all thanks to you, Musia!”

The fledgling mages Musia had taught thanked her one after another, and she found herself unsure of how to react.

“Oh, um, well… I think today going well has more to do with your talent than my teaching, really… I’m glad to hear that I was at least a little helpful, though,” she said with a slight blush.

“Hmm…” Charlotte muttered as she watched the scene play out. “You know, I think you might be a better teacher than I am. Not that I ever wanted to teach anyway, I guess. Okay, that settles it─you’re in charge of training the newbies from now on!”

“Huh?” Musia grunted. “W-Wait, I’m in charge of them?! I-I couldn’t possibly! That’s way too much responsibility!” she protested.

“It’ll be fiiine, trust me! This feels like one of those right person in the right place at the right time sorta deals, or whatever they say!”

“I’m…the right person…?”

“And while we’re at it, why don’t you give everyone else some pointers too? I know some of our troops are starting to lag behind the rest, so I figure they could use it.”

“What? I-I don’t know… You mean you want me to train mages who joined the unit before me? I couldn’t possibly…”

“Why not? I’m the only one in the unit who knows her stuff better than you, at this point. Actually, I’m pretty sure everyone’s dying to know how you got so good so fast.”

“A-Are they, really?” asked Musia.

“Yup! They’re chomping at the bit to find out, I’m sure of it!” Charlotte insisted. “I’m not forcing you, though. If you’re too busy with your own training to deal with ’em, I’ll give up on that idea.”

Musia paused to consider her options.

Is this really all right? I’m so inexperienced myself…how could I possibly train other mages? she wondered, a sense of unease beginning to grow within her. But then again, it did seem like my advice helped the new recruits improve…and if this is the one thing I can do to help out the unit as a whole…

Musia wavered for just a moment longer, then made up her mind.

“All right. I’ll do it!” she replied.

“Thanks! You start tomorrow, ’kay?” Charlotte said with a grin.

Musia began instructing the rest of the mages in her unit the very next day. Just as Charlotte had predicted, many of their mages-in-arms were excited to learn all the tips and tricks she had to teach them, and that’s exactly what she did, in a manner they all found easy to digest. Her friendly attitude made a difference, as well, helping improve the mages’ motivation to improve their skills. In no time at all, they were practicing away with a far greater fervor than their usual sessions prompted.

Just two weeks later, Musia’s lessons had already borne fruit. The mages of Charlotte’s unit had improved their skills dramatically, and Charlotte was more than a little pleased to see it.

“I can’t believe how far they’ve all come in just a couple weeks! I owe you one this time, Musia!” said Charlotte.

“B-But I didn’t do much at all! It’s thanks to everyone’s hard work, not me!” Musia protested, though in spite of her humility she was clearly pleased by her leader’s praise.

“Sorry about all this, though,” Charlotte continued. “You’ve been so busy teaching that you haven’t had much time to practice yourself, right?”

“It’s true, I haven’t, but, actually… I think that teaching everyone has helped me improve my own magic, as well,” Musia replied.

“Huh? How’s that work? You haven’t been practicing, have you?”

“Well, no…but I think that teaching them has helped me notice all sorts of little things that I could be doing better, I suppose…”

“Huuuh! That’s sure something. Here─try showing me just how much better you’ve gotten.”

“All right!” Musia agreed, then began preparing to cast her spell.

Once again, she set up a small catalyzer and conjured up a Fire Bullet. This time, however, the resulting explosion was remarkably large. She had almost never been able to manifest magical power of that scale before, and yet now, she was able to cast several Fire Bullets in a row, each as destructive as the last. It was plain to see that she had grown since the last time she’d trained with Charlotte.

“Wow. You really have gotten better,” said Charlotte, her eyes wide with shock. Musia’s spell hadn’t quite reached the levels of power that Charlotte could put out, but the gap between the two of them had shrunk. Suddenly, Charlotte came to realize that Musia catching up to her wasn’t such a laughing matter after all. “Seriously, having you train everyone was the right choice in all sorts of ways! You’re improving, everyone else is improving, and I got to spend the whole time slacking off!”

“I-I’m not so sure that last part was an upside, really,” Musia interjected.

“I think things are gonna be pretty busy for you from now on, but keep up the good work!” Charlotte replied. All responsibility for the unit’s training had been handed off…

“I-I will! Thank you!”

…but fortunately, Musia was ready and willing to accept it.

○

“So, yeah─thanks to Musia, the mage unit’s better than ever!” said Charlotte as she wrapped up her report at one of our regular meetings.

Musia, who was sitting beside her, looked mortified to see herself put on such a pedestal. The way Charlotte had described it Musia had proven to be an incredibly skillful teacher, and thanks to her guidance, the majority of the mages in their unit had improved their skills by leaps and bounds.

I’d known that Musia had the talent to be an incredible mage, but the fact that she was a skilled teacher as well had escaped me.

Actually, my skill doesn’t display anything about people’s teaching ability in their status blocks, so there was no way for me to figure that out from the get go!

“I have to wonder, though─if it was this easy for them to improve this quickly, then what the hell has their old teacher been doing this whole time?” Thomas muttered─though not quietly enough for Charlotte to miss it.

“H-Hey, was that supposed to be an insult?! I’ve been doing my damndest to teach them, I’ll have you know!” Charlotte shouted.

Oh, right. I guess she’s been handling all the instruction up until now.

When I really thought about it, considering that Charlotte had been capable of casting mind-bogglingly powerful spells from the start without ever receiving any instructions, asking her to teach anyone about magic was a lost cause.

“Oh, right, one more thing! Looks like teaching all the other mages helped Musia get way stronger too,” Charlotte added.

That came as a surprise to me. I’d expected that Musia’s progress would have slowed since she’d been paying so much attention to tutoring the others, but apparently, I couldn’t have been more wrong about that. I decided to appraise her and see for myself.

Charlotte was right─all of Musia’s stats had improved, and her Valor score was getting very close to its maximum value. Generally speaking, the closer stats got to their caps the harder it became to increase them, but I had a feeling that Musia would reach her maximum Valor in no time at all. Her Leadership had grown dramatically as well, and I had to wonder if the respect she’d gained from her fellow soldiers had something to do with that increase. Regardless, it seemed that her skill with magic wasn’t the only area she’d improved in thanks to her lessons.

Considering that all of her stats had been in the forties when I first met her, it was remarkable just how much she’d improved. Not just remarkable, actually─given how little time had passed since I’d recruited her, the rate she’d grown at was nothing short of unbelievable.

People with Valor scores in the seventies or above weren’t too rare, but people with Valor that high and a high Mage Aptitude were very hard to find. Charlotte and Musia were the only ones in Canarre’s whole fighting force, in fact. Considering how important mages were in modern warfare, it seemed safe to say that Musia had become one of our army’s most valuable assets.

Now that I was looking at Musia’s stats again, it also struck me how balanced her maximum values were. I was starting to consider giving her command of her own unit of mages in the future. After all, if we kept bringing in more capable casters, Charlotte would probably have difficulties commanding all of them.

“Thank you for providing guidance to the rest of our mages, Musia,” I said. “Having more capable mages on our side is a massive asset to Canarre, and as such, I’ve decided to grant you a reward for your efforts on top of your usual salary.”

“What?!” Musia yelped. “A reward?! F-For me, of all people?!”

“Consider it a sign of how valuable I consider the work you’ve been doing. I trust nobody objects?”

None of my other retainers spoke up to protest the decision. And so, Musia’s reward was set in stone. A few days later I presented her with twenty gold coins─a sum of money so large she literally fainted on the spot the moment I handed it over to her.