Magic Academy Bans Harem

Chapter 232 The Day After the Exchange Meeting

a new day.

This day was the second day after the Magic Academy Exchange Conference officially began, and it was also the day when the winner of the Magic Ball team competition was determined.

As the first official event to determine the winners of the exchange, the two semi-finals and one final are expected to have large audiences. As a nominal advisor to the New Magic Ball Seminar, Ritas is also required to attend on this day.

After a quick wash and tidying up, Ritas felt somewhat uneasy as he walked down the stairs from the second floor.

After going downstairs and seeing the items placed on a windowsill on the first floor, Ritas seemed to realize what he was missing.

"Professor, are you really going to keep dragging this on?"

At midday, at the Magic Ball Arena.

Elise looked at Ritas, who was carrying a flowerpot, speechless, and couldn't help but ask.

The fact that a goddess resides within the white disc is no longer a secret. At least, that's the case for the Yewwood Class.

After a long time, Elise realized once again that it wasn't the white disc that turned Professor Ritas into a monster. Rather, Professor Ritas was always a bit off. In fact, he seemed more normal when he was holding the white disc.

“Don’t worry, Cadet Elise. Rosemary is a plant that loves sunlight and can adapt to all kinds of weather and environments.”

I'm not worried about rosemary.

Elise sighed softly.

As she exhaled, Elise suddenly realized that her body, which had felt as if it were bound by some heavy weight due to tension, was now beginning to feel light.

Therefore, it's unlikely that the professor was deliberately using this method to soothe her emotions.

In Elise's eyes, Ritas seemed to possess a magical power that made people forget or ignore many unnecessary things simply by talking to him or just looking at his strange figure.

After calming herself down, Elise started to wonder if her two teammates were also feeling lost and stressed, just like her.

Then, she discovered that Xia Lu, a great figure in every sense of the word, was smiling behind her back, using her free hand to pluck the tips of rosemary leaves.

Xia Lu may never be associated with the word "nervous" in her entire life.
Thinking of this, Elise turned her gaze to her teammate from the Blue Tide class.

The female student seemed quite nervous. Because she was hunching over so tightly, her body appeared smaller. However, Elise felt that she was more nervous about Ritas, their advisor, than about the competition itself.

Before long, with all parties having finished their preparations, the competition was about to officially begin.

Three girls formed a circle and shouted a simple yet powerful slogan, "Victory is certain!" before stepping onto the field.

For Ritas, now that they've come this far, he still hopes that Elise and the others can achieve excellent results. That's why he's made a point of setting aside a lot of time today.

But after the Ellingo ball flew back and forth between the two sides of the field for a few rounds, Ritas knew what he needed to do to fill the time that would soon be vacant.

After a short while
During this time, Ritas also tried to offer some advice to Elise and the others.

Despite the overwhelming difference in skill, Elise and her teammates still lost the semi-final by a large margin.

Since there is no third-place match in the Moneyball tournament, after their defeat, Ritas led the three members of his Moneyball team away from the area surrounding the venue.

However, they didn't go far, or rather, they weren't able to go very far.

Because, after losing the match, Elise kept crying, feeling very unwilling to accept defeat.

Seeing Elise crying, Ritas, one of the most learned people in the academy, couldn't think of a solution for the moment.

Thinking about it carefully, aside from Charlotte, Ritas had basically never witnessed anyone else crying. He figured he wasn't alone; the opportunity to witness someone else's tears was inherently very limited.

"Please don't be too sad, Cadet Elise. Our defeat wasn't due to a lack of skill; it was because that academy, whatever their name is, was too cunning. They managed to make the magic orb invisible—the only word I can think of to describe them is 'cheap'." "Mmm!"

Xia Lu and the students of the Blue Tide class gently comforted Iris.

Despite losing the match, Xia Lu remained completely unconcerned. The female students from the Blue Tide class, however, initially nearly shed tears as well, but their emotions calmed down once their attention shifted to Iris.

"I"

I don't want to cry either!
Elise longed to shout that out loud.

As a young girl, it's understandable that she doesn't want to be seen in an embarrassing situation. Elise especially didn't want to show her vulnerable side to Ritas. Because if she were to burst into tears in front of someone who acted like a "parent," it would sound like she was just being spoiled.

However, this sense of resentment and sorrow is something that reason cannot control.

Having grown up under various strange gazes since childhood, Elise can be said to have faced herself for the first time at the end of last semester by accepting her stigmatized "talent".

Then, she devoted herself to Magic Ball, a competitive activity that allowed her to utilize both her physical talents and her "enhancement rate" ability, and which she also enjoyed.

Elise, do you still remember what Ritas said to her?

"Don't hate yourself."

That's why she wanted to prove that her "differences" from others were not an innate curse, but an innate gift.

Of course, a single defeat doesn't mean anything.

It can only be said that things turned out this way because Elise was "careless".

She never imagined that her excessive investment, persistence, dedication, and hard work would not yield the best results, and that this would be such a heart-wrenching feeling.

"The next one won't be for another two or two years."

While sniffling, Elise said with a wronged expression.

In a college life that lasts only four years, two years is undoubtedly a long time. Therefore, Elise was not confident that she could persevere for two years and then find an opportunity to prove herself.

“Student Elise, you seem to have misunderstood something. Although the academy exchange meeting is indeed held every two years, there are quite a few tournaments and competitions related to Magic Ball. Moreover, Erls Academy encourages students to participate in such competitions, and will provide certain assistance in terms of courses.”

Ritas, seemingly having found the crux of the problem, explained.

Although Ritas knew that the new Magic Ball workshop was composed of a group of freshmen and lacked qualified advisors, he hadn't expected that the participants would lack even some basic relevant knowledge.

etc.
He said all this, but will it turn out that he accidentally became an official consultant for the Magic Ball seminar and has to lead the students to play Magic Ball in other places from time to time?
"Moreover, although it doesn't receive as much attention as the team battles, the individual battles of this year's competition are not over yet. Elise, you still have a very good chance. The techniques used by the Blasche Academy players are difficult to apply in individual battles."

Hearing Ritas's addition, Elise, who remembered that the one-on-one battle wasn't over yet, gradually brightened her eyes. Moreover, she could feel Ritas's hand gently patting her back in comfort.

Even Professor Ritas, who always kept his distance from others, actually did it for his own sake.
So, it’s time to cheer up!
Thinking this, Elise sniffed hard, stopping her tears from flowing.

Wiping away the blurriness around her eyes, Elise looked up, intending to thank Professor Ritas for his genuine encouragement. Then... she saw...

The hand patting his shoulder wasn't Ritas's at all, but rather the rosemary from the flowerpot in his hand, woven into the shape of a hand.

"."

"."

"Wow--!"

Elise's tearful cries rang out again.

"Professor, are you sure you didn't do this on purpose?"

Although she cried for a while, Elise, thinking that she still had the Magic Ball singles tournament to participate in later and could not waste any more time, left with the other members of the new Magic Ball seminar.

Only Xia Lu stayed.

"I'm not sure what Xia Lu's words specifically referred to. However, I can say that I was simply fulfilling my duties as a teacher. And I had no reason to deliberately make Elise cry."

Ritas said in a very serious tone.

The rosemary in the flowerpot in his hand, having been woven into the shape of a hand before, seemed to have acquired some kind of spirit, and was constantly wriggling.

"But Xia Lu, didn't you sign up for the individual competition in the Magic Ball event?"

After watching the previous semi-finals, Ritas felt that the Erles Academy team actually had a chance to win.

And that hope lies in Xia Lu.

It's not that Charlotte slacked off in the previous matches, but rather that she basically relied solely on brute force. Since the Ellingo ball has many features designed to prevent injury to players, it's inevitable that someone like Charlotte, relying solely on brute force, would encounter obstacles at some point.

Although Xia Lu's grades were poor, she wasn't completely incapable of using magic. However, she definitely didn't know anything about magic orbs, and probably didn't even understand them.

Therefore, the so-called "hope" actually lies in Xia Lu's early and serious approach to the competition at the exchange meeting.

"Hehe. I won't participate in the individual competition. I only tried it out because I was invited by Elise. I'm already very satisfied to have made it to the finals."

Listening to Charlotte's words, Ritas recalled Adeline's comments about Charlotte.

"She doesn't want to do anything; she just really enjoys the feeling of doing something."

After thinking for a moment, Ritas continued to ask,
"Since that's the case, and Xia Lu has some free time, why don't we bring forward or extend the individual course to allow you to make full preparations for the 'Mograine Art Appraisal Meeting' that you're scheduled to attend?"

After quickly calculating his spare time, Ritas realized he could still squeeze in a few more appointments, and thus made this suggestion.

However, Xia Lu simply shook her head.

“I think it’s better to stick to the original plan, Professor Ritas.”

"Do you really believe that your work can stand out in an art appraisal competition with just about an hour of intensive practice?"

Ritas didn't know whether Charlotte's actions stemmed from overconfidence and arrogance or something else entirely.
"I believe that even if I don't get selected, it will still be a valuable experience."

Lack of motivation.

After saying these words, Xia Lu politely bowed and turned to leave with a smile, Ritas frowned slightly.

Since Charlotte was "captured," the more Ritas learned about her, the more he realized that Charlotte's lack of motivation had reached an abnormal level.

Now, he was beginning to wonder why Xia Lu was in this condition.

Since he had more time than planned, Ritas decided to meet with the few people he absolutely had to see.

Currently, there are two candidates who are relatively easy to meet within the college.

One of them is "Meimei," which is involved in the forced two-choice situation that appears in the "Star Pattern" game world this semester. Because "Shrimp Emperor" Rodrigo was squeezed out of his spot and cannot come to Erles Academy, the forced two-choice situation has now become a forced one-choice situation.

Although Ritas had done some investigation into Meimei, she was ultimately from another school, and Ritas didn't have a clear picture of her. Furthermore, the Goddess of Bath wasn't there either.

Therefore, to avoid any misunderstandings, Ritas chose another one.

In the special dormitory area of ​​Earls Academy, in the garden attached to a magnificent two-story mansion, Langna, a student of the Greenthorn Class of the Earls Academy's advanced division, was staring blankly at her hands.

Langna's dormitory residence was clearly much more luxurious than that of an ordinary dormitory residence.

But given the preferential treatment that Earls College gives to special students, a high-class dormitory that can be used by one person is nothing special.

Moreover, Langna is not an ordinary or special person.

The last person to attract attention in the magical world while still in school was the one who became a professor of magic just a few years after graduation and is now a living legend at Erles Academy.

Although, after that legendary figure returned to work at the academy, the feeling of being a legend was actually gone.

After staring blankly for a while, Langna began to look around warily.

So, how exactly did that silver-haired student from the elementary school accidentally get lost here last time?
This location is so difficult to find, even if you look hard enough!

Thinking of what had happened not long ago, Langna, her face slightly flushed, patted her face with both hands.

"No, Langna, you shouldn't do this again. You've already embarrassed yourself once; you should use that as an opportunity to break this bad habit!"

Langna muttered to herself,

"But, in this situation, how can we get through it without finding an outlet for the pressure!"

Langna muttered to herself again, as if demons and angels were fighting above her head.

Although it was unclear whether the angel or the demon had won, Langna eventually took out a small box and placed it flat on the table.

(End of this chapter)