Necromancer Academy's Summoning Genius Chapter 32 Simon finally got to attend Aaron's Summoning Studies class again. The class topic was 'Restoration'. It was a lesson on dismantling the Island Ratman skeletons they had assembled last time and restoring them. "The greatest advantage of skeletons is their restorative power." Aaron, who had come to work today with his usual messy hair and shabby shorts, raised a finger. Whoosh! Whiz! Bones scattered throughout the classroom gathered in the air at incredible speed. As the skeleton, assembled in mere seconds, landed on the floor and even gave a stylish bow, cheers and applause erupted from all directions. "The principle of restoration isn't difficult. Even if a skeleton's body is scattered by a strong impact, residual Jet Black remains in the bones." Aaron pulled out one of the skeleton's bones with his hand. "By activating this Jet Black, you simply maximize its 'attractive property' to return to its original form." Then, as he released the power from his hand, the bone flew back and stuck to its original place like a magnet. "Alright, practical training begins." Since the class topic was restoration, Simon had, by chance, already studied ahead. While other students practiced restoring by separating the torso, arms, and legs, Simon succeeded in restoring the entire skeleton in one go. Even Mei-rin and Hector struggled with restoration. It was a realm of pure talent that couldn't be reached 100% through practice and training alone. In skeleton restoration, Simon was unrivaled in Class A. So, Simon, who was always busy just keeping up with classes, enjoyed a rare moment of leisure. He even had time left over after helping Dick and Kamibarez with their restorations, so he was scribbling in his textbook. "Hey, can you really just mess around like that?" Mei-rin grumbled, seemingly annoyed. Simon, instead of answering, waved his hand in the air. The bones scattered on his desk clicked into place, completing the skeleton's torso. "......You're, you're good." Mei-rin was struck speechless. Dick, sitting behind her, chuckled gleefully, then quieted down after catching the eye of a passing teaching assistant. "D-Don't act so smug just because you're good at restoration!" Mei-rin said, her competitive spirit flaring. She was the type who wasn't satisfied unless she was first in every class. "You said you'd leave Kizen if your Summoning Studies score didn't surpass mine next month, right? If you think I'll go easy on you just because we're in the same group......!" "Don't worry. I'll definitely surpass it." Simon replied, resting his chin on his hand and flipping through his textbook. She trembled with frustration, but at least in this restoration class, she wasn't in a position to criticize Simon. "Haa, if only I'd solved problem 20, my Summoning Studies score would have been in the 90s......" Simon, hearing her mutter to herself, raised his head. "Problem 20 in Summoning Studies? The one on the very last page?" "Yeah." "That one was easy." Her brows furrowed. "......Hey. Why are you suddenly acting so cocky? Are you better at Summoning Studies than me?" "No." "Then how did you solve problem 20? By using a formula?" "I don't know any of that." That was impossible. Problem 20 was a question that required applying the Theron formula. Mei-rin, who got it wrong, had personally gone to Aaron to hear the solution. But Simon, who hadn't even pre-studied, solved problem 20 without knowing the Theron formula? "What was your answer?" "1,200,146." Mei-rin's eyes widened sharply. The answer was '1,200,000', so it was practically correct. "Spit it out! How on earth did you solve it?!" "I combined as many formulas as I'd learned at Kizen so far. Hmm, I don't remember the exact problem, so I can't explain it." She bit her lip tightly. She decided she would definitely get a copy of the problem later and make him solve it again. As Mei-rin quieted down, Simon's attention returned to his textbook. Summoning Studies had so much interesting content, no matter how many times he looked at it. Just skimming through the new undead and dark magic he would deal with in the future made his heart pound. 'I want to make a Golem as soon as possible. If I just buy the materials from Rochester, I wonder if I can self-study it?' "Simon Pollentia." Startled by the voice that suddenly pierced his ears, Simon turned around. "What are you doing right now?" Aaron was looking down at him with menacing eyes. Simon's face turned pale. He'd been caught slacking off! There was no excuse, as he had a completely different page open than the other students. "Answer me." Aaron asked in a cold voice. He looked genuinely angry, so Simon decided to tell the truth. "I succeeded in restoration, so I was briefly looking ahead at the next lesson's content." "......." Of course, Aaron knew. Simon was the only student in this class who had succeeded in complete restoration in under 10 seconds in one go. But despite that, Aaron's expression looked incredibly grim. "Stay in the classroom after class." Aaron said only that and turned his back, walking away. A deep dread enveloped Simon's body. "Si-Simon...... Did you get on his bad side?" Dick muttered with a stiff face. Mei-rin pouted and crossed her arms. "See? I told you. Can you really mess around like that?" Even as she said that, Mei-rin couldn't help but glance at Simon, seemingly concerned. Of course, Simon couldn't hear his friends' voices. *** Summoning Studies class ended. It was time to eat dinner and return to the dormitory to end the day, but Simon had to remain in the classroom. Aaron approached Simon, who was worrying about what would happen in the empty classroom, with his hands in his pockets. "Follow me." The two left the classroom. Simon walked behind him, his head bowed low. '......I should have just kept practicing restoration.' Aaron didn't say a word. It was clearly his own fault, so he could accept any reprimand, but Aaron was treating Simon as if he didn't exist. This silence was more agonizing for Simon. The two passed through the building and entered an empty lot. It was a spacious area surrounded by trees, with no one else around. "There are a few things I cannot tolerate." Aaron pulled an old cigar from his pocket and put it in his mouth. He flicked his finger, and a spark flew, lighting the tip of the cigar. After taking a puff of smoke, Aaron's eyes turned serious. Simon felt himself shrink further, lowering his head. "A student who has the will, yet fails to learn in my class." "......Yes?" "Take out your skeleton." What did he mean by that? Simon was flustered, but he did as he was told and took out his skeleton from his subspace. "Restore it in front of me." Aaron flicked the hand opposite the one holding the cigar, and the skeleton flew apart with a pop. As the connection was severed, Simon felt a sharp headache and swayed, but he instinctively extended his right arm. 'Restoration!' With the skull on the floor as the center, the bones stuck together like magnets, and the skeleton was completed at a rapid pace. "......Indeed. I know you are unrivaled in the field of restoration. Now, I will teach you the advanced techniques of restoration." Simon's eyes widened. "W-Weren't you going to scold me?" "It's an extra lesson." Aaron said, holding the cigar between his fingers. "Just in case you misunderstand, it is also a professor's role to provide extra lessons to students who have surpassed the achievements of regular classes." Simon's eyes welled up with emotion. "......Professor Aaron!" "Quickly, get into position. Don't eat into my quitting time any further." "Ah, yes, sir!" Simon's face brightened, and he focused intently. And Aaron took out a skeleton from his own subspace. 'Wow.' It was a skeleton much larger and more intricate than Simon's. Its bones were black, and the variety of bones used was incomparably greater and more precise than an Island Ratman. It wore a red cloak on its back and carried various armaments. "This is a skeleton made from the bones of a demon." "It's amazing!" A magnificent sword. Splendid armor. A beautiful horse. Simon, who was usually indifferent to any kind of wealth, felt an immense desire to own this skeleton. "I won't show you twice, so watch carefully." Aaron flicked his finger, dismantling the skeleton. Then he raised his arm and pointed at a nearby tree. Rustle! Rustle! The bones, scattered haphazardly on the ground, stirred and then flew into the air like arrows. Thwack-thwack-thwack-thwack! Hundreds of bones pierced the tree like skewers. "An attack technique using restoration. Bone Piercing." A squirrel gnawing on a fruit nearby was startled and ran away. Aaron's slender arm waved, pointing at the squirrel. Swish-swish-swish-swish! The bones, flying like rays of light, tightly blocked the squirrel's surroundings without any gaps. "A binding technique using restoration. Bone Prison." Aaron raised his index finger, and the cage flew upwards and scattered, allowing the squirrel to escape. "Finally." Aaron clenched his fist tightly. The skeleton's bones, which had been scattering in the sky, now flew rapidly towards Aaron's body. Clack! Thud! Aaron's body became covered in bones. It was as if he was changing into a suit made of bones. Empty joints clicked into place, Jet Black flowed out into the empty spaces between the bones, blocking them like fibers, and a red cloak settled on his back. Finally, the skeleton's skull covered Aaron's head like a helmet. "This is a defensive technique using restoration. Bone Armor." "Wow......!" Simon trembled with a chilling thrill. Aaron, clad in the skeleton, looked truly dazzling. 'So cool!' Aaron extended his right arm. The armor then peeled off like living clothes, returning to the form of a skeleton kneeling on one knee. "A skeleton can be a weapon, a prison, or armor, depending on the necromancer's ability. These are all dark magic applications of restoration. Do you understand?" Simon nodded frantically. "Of course, these restoration techniques are usually taught in the second year...... but your achievement in restoration is exceptional. I'll teach you how to arrange them so you can use them too." "Th-Thank you!" "For now, the only technique you can imitate is Bone Piercing. Get ready." Aaron had Simon perform restoration once more and analyzed it. "You deploy restoration centered around the skull." "Yes." "From this moment on, break that habit. The key is to guide the skeleton to the desired direction. I'll give you a tip." Having had the experience of training his will with Pier's help, Simon immediately understood Aaron's explanation. 'Gather in front of me!' After a few trials and errors, the scattered skeleton bones gathered in front of Simon. Of course, the speed of the subsequent bones was determined by the speed at which the skull, the core of the skeleton, arrived, but just being able to perform long-range restoration was a great gain. "Restoration and Bone Piercing are distinctly different. Think of it as a completely different technique, even though it applies restorative power." "When calling bones with restoration, get into the habit of tilting the bones sideways. That way, the sharp parts will dig into the enemy's flesh." "If you concentrate the Jet Black remaining in the bones in one direction, you can make them like sharp blades. For bones that don't have a piercing part, just aim to attach them to the target's body. That alone will give a significant binding effect to the opponent." Simon absorbed Aaron's teachings like a sponge. He then immediately moved on to practical training. Clatter-clatter-clatter! The skeleton bones stuck to a nearby bamboo stalk. The sharp parts of the bones dug into the surface of the bamboo, and other bones clung to it like magnets. 'Restoration!' In that state, as Simon clenched his fist, the bones tightened their grip on the bamboo more and more strongly. And finally. Snap! He succeeded in breaking the bamboo. "Alright!" Simon clenched both fists and let out a triumphant shout. In just a few hours, he had acquired a new, groundbreaking technique. 'Ugh, I'm so happy!' A tremendous sense of accomplishment that made his whole body tremble. This was truly an addictive sensation, like a drug.
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