CHAPTER 4
I could see the back of a girl who seemed somewhat frail.
The blue-haired girl's name was Shishiroka.
She was the one who let me in while I was arguing with the gardener.
I made sure to save the gardener's pathetic expression in the photo album of my mind for all eternity.
She was currently guiding me.
Thankfully, she knew how to read and understood the contents of the recommendation letter.
This is why people need to study.
As we walked, I casually asked, and it turned out she was also a Holy Mage.
Seeing as she had no surname, she didn't seem to be a noble.
But her mannerisms were quite refined.
Following her, I saw a luxurious hallway.
A fine carpet was laid out, and not a speck of dust could be seen on the windows or the surroundings.
It looked like the servants cleaned it daily.
How much money would you need to live in a mansion like this?
It was a world apart from me, who slept with cockroaches every night in a cheap inn.

“We’re here.”

As I was admiring the mansion, Shishiroka stopped walking and looked back at me.

“This is Lady Rapiel’s office.”

Shishiroka raised her small hand and knocked on the door. A reply to come in came from inside.
When the door opened, a woman was there.
A woman in a formal suit.
Unusually, there were feathers on her ears.
The woman, with her striking peach-colored hair, stared at me quietly.
Sharp eyes were revealed above her business-like glasses.
Rapiel Vaniola.

She was the Holy Mage master that Bulldog had introduced me to.
Shishiroka approached her and handed her the recommendation letter.

“It’s a letter from Master Bulldog.”

The moment the name ‘Bulldog’ was mentioned, Rapiel’s eyebrow twitched.
I had a slightly bad feeling about this.
Thinking it would be best not to stand out, I subtly hid my body in the shadow of a wall painting. Meanwhile, Rapiel slowly read the letter.

"Haaaaah."

A moment later, a sigh full of irritation escaped Rapiel. That woman clearly had some kind of bad history with Bulldog.
Rapiel’s eyes turned toward me.
Her venomous gaze was unbelievably fierce.
If Bulldog was, literally, a bulldog, this one was a Doberman.

“The name written here is Harua, is that correct?”

“Yes, my name is Harua.”

“Right. So that mutt sent you without an ounce of shame.”

Just as I thought, they have bad blood.
Rapiel frowned as if she couldn't even stand to look at the letter.

“Bulldog is not a mutt.”

Rapiel’s eyes turned back to me.

“He is the one who taught me how to survive in this world. At the very least, he’s a good enough person to write a letter of recommendation for someone like me, who has no connections.”

The only reason I was here was because of Bulldog’s letter.
This was purely a kindness he had shown me.
Even if Bulldog had done something shameless to her, he still recommended me despite that shame.
I had no intention of quietly listening to him being insulted.

"Ha."

Rapiel laughed as if she was dumbfounded.

“That mutt screwed me and ran off.”

“What a fucking son of a bitch!”

No wonder his name was Bulldog! An animal with his dick for a brain!
Seeing me fly into a rage, Rapiel laughed in disbelief.
Shishiroka, who was standing beside her, had a face as red as a tomato, clearly not immune to this kind of talk.

“Well, yes, I was the one who followed him around, and I was the one who cried and clung to him, seducing him when he tried to leave in the end. But the person he chose wasn't me.”

She revealed a melancholic gaze, speaking of a complicated past.
So, Rapiel had been in love with Bulldog, but Bulldog’s heart belonged to another woman.
In the end, Rapiel resorted to using her body as a last-ditch effort, but Bulldog’s heart never turned.
So that's how he ended up marrying his current wife.
There was some deep history here.
The bottom line was, Bulldog was the only one who benefited.
More importantly, for that man to send me to a woman he had a one-night stand with, he truly had no shame.
It was no wonder Rapiel spoke of him that way.

“Right. And after all this time with no contact, he sends you with a letter of recommendation.”

She waved the letter lightly, staring at me intently.

“That must mean your talent is anything but ordinary. Am I right?”

“He did say I had outstanding aptitude.”

"We can confirm that for ourselves."

Rapiel walked toward me.
As she got closer, her long legs became more prominent.
She was quite tall.
Bulldog must have saved a country in his past life.

"You're even paler up close. Have you ever seen the sun?"

“I’ve been rolling around like a dog every day.”

“Then you were born with it. It’s quite fascinating.”

She looked me up and down with intrigued eyes.
It seemed she coveted my jade-like skin.
Honestly, I don't know why I'm so pale either.
I just got noticeably paler after coming to this world.

“Offer me your shoulder, please.”

Since I was a little taller than her, I lowered my posture, and Rapiel pressed down on my shoulder.
Rapiel’s eyes closed behind her glasses.
After some time passed, she slowly opened her eyelids, her eyes widening.

“Well, I'll be. That Bulldog had a good reason to send you to me. You’re a Light Attribute Grade 1.”

“Grade 1?”

Even Shishiroka, standing behind her, showed a surprised reaction.
As for me, I just blinked.
Though I had followed Bulldog around, I was a complete novice when it came to magic.
All I knew was that magic went 'boom' and was complicated.
That was why I had intended to learn from Bulldog.

“You know that magic attributes are divided into a total of seven types, right?”

“Yes, I know that much.”

Fire, Wind, Lightning, Earth, Water, Darkness, and Light.
Magic attributes were divided into these seven categories.

"Each of these attributes is assigned one of ten grades. From Grade 1 to Grade 10."

Typically, someone with a talent for magic is around Grade 5.

“If you have a Grade 5 attribute, you can usually handle all the other magic attributes as well. The other attributes also come out as Grade 5 on average.”

On the other hand, the higher you go above Grade 4, the lower the grades of your other attributes become.
This is because the more outstanding one attribute is, the worse its compatibility with other attributes.

“Since you are a Light Attribute Grade 1, your other attribute grades are all Grade 10.”

Now I understood why Bulldog said I wouldn't be able to learn other attribute magic.

"Is that a good thing?"

“Goes without saying. Besides you, there are only two other people with a Light Attribute Grade 1 in this entire world. And they are the highest-ranking elder Holy Mage of the Grace Magic Tower and the Saintess belonging to the Temple.”

Hearing it put like that, it was truly an insane talent.
Hmm, at this rate, living as a Holy Mage might not be so bad after all.
Suddenly, my resurrection magic was starting to look a little more appealing.

“A guy who’s about to make history just showed up. It’ll be rewarding to teach you.”

Rapiel’s eyes gleamed.
It seemed my talent was very much to her liking.

"Lady Rapiel, can Holy Mages fight?"

But more than holy magic, I needed a way to protect myself.
In order to survive in this savage world, a means of self-defense was essential.

"What? Puhahahaha!"

At that moment, Rapiel burst out laughing.

“Do you know why the Temple’s Holy Knights are so feared?”

“Because they’re strong?”

"That's part of it, but it's because they are an immortal legion that does not die."

Rapiel raised a finger.
A streak of light gathered at her fingertip, sharpening into a blade.
With that blade of light, Rapiel casually slit her own skin.
But the skin healed the very instant it was cut.

“See? Once Holy Magic surpasses a certain level, it remains constantly active within the body, healing it like this.”

I didn't know that.
No.
Let me correct myself.
This was something I had already experienced.
My ability, Resurrection.
Resurrection wasn't a magic that was meant to revive me in the first place.
It was because it could revive others that it applied to my own body, bringing me back to life.
Only now did I understand the principle behind my resurrection magic.

“Thanks to this, unless it’s truly instant death, a Holy Mage doesn’t take much damage. Of course, not many have a recovery rate like mine. But auto-recovery is more than useful in a fight.”

The Holy Knights actively use this advantage when they go into battle.
An immortal legion that charges forward fearlessly even when wounded.
I could feel the fear they inspired.
I'd known it since dealing with those cultists, but the religion in this world was insane.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to fight, but the answer is yes. A Holy Mage can fight plenty well.”

That was enough.
I clenched both my fists.

“I will learn Holy Magic with all my heart! Please, take me as your disciple!”

“I welcome it. A Light Attribute Grade 1 is a rare thing.”

On this day, I gained a new master.

Afterward, I decided to live in Master Rapiel's mansion.

As her disciple, I would have to learn diligently from now on. It wasn't something I could do while commuting from the outside.
So, I excitedly packed my things and moved into the mansion. It was only natural, seeing as I'd be living in a noble's estate.
I shared a final goodbye with my best friend, the cockroach.
It was nice knowing you, and let's never see each other again.
When I arrived at the mansion with my luggage, the gardener I had argued with at the entrance had a face like he'd chewed on something sour.
But he had no choice but to bow his head to me carefully.
Ah, the sweet taste of a status upgrade.
It was just so delightful.
On the way to my room, I asked a female maid and learned that Rapiel was an even more incredible person than I thought.
She was the daughter of the Master of the Grace Magic Tower, the center of Holy Magic.
My god, I could only admire Bulldog, who had a one-night stand with someone like Rapiel and then left her without a second thought to follow his heart.
In any case, I had become the disciple of the Grace Magic Tower Master's daughter.
A Tower Master is recognized by the Empire and granted the rank of Viscount.
Therefore, Rapiel, the daughter of a Tower Master, was also a noble.
Since I was her disciple, let's just say I was basically a noble now too.
With this, I was one step further away from the savage This-worlders.
No, wait. We were different species to begin with.
As I was feeling extremely satisfied in my spacious and clean room, I heard a knock on the door.

"Come in."

“Oh, y-yes.”

The person who entered with the knock was Shishiroka.
She looked at me quizzically for a moment before composing her expression.

“Lady Rapiel says she will begin your instruction immediately, so please follow me.”

“As you wish.”

Shishiroka made a face as if she’d seen all sorts of strange people.

“Oh, Shishiroka is Lady Rapiel’s first disciple.”

So Shishiroka was also Rapiel's disciple.
I had a feeling that was the case.

“Therefore, Shishiroka is Harua’s senior.”

Shishiroka puffed out her chest slightly, looking proud.

“Understand?”

“Yes, Sunbaenim.”

“G-Good.”

Shishiroka seemed a little flustered, perhaps not expecting me to call her 'Sunbae' right away.
It seemed she had been trying to establish some discipline in her own way.
A senior must be treated as a senior.

“Sunbaenim, your legs must hurt from walking on your magnificent legs, right? I shall become your legs, Sunbaenim.”

“Wh-What?”

I immediately rushed over to Shishiroka and lifted her up in a flash.

“Kyaak!? Wh-What are you doing!”

“I cannot bear to see you walking on your own two feet, Sunbaenim! The entire world must know of your greatness!”

Shishiroka was as light as she was small.
Thanks to that, I could lift her up with all my strength as if she were a cat.

“Now, let’s go!”

"Kyaaaaaaah! P-Put me down! Please put Shishiroka down!"

“Behold, world! This is Shishiroka-sunbaenim!”

“I won’t be your sunbae! I won’t be a sunbae anymore!”

Regardless of Shishiroka’s screams, I ran with all my might.
It was a firm resolve to announce Shishiroka’s greatness to the entire world.

“What are you two doing.”

Then I was caught by Rapiel and got a smack on the head.

“Shishiroka’s body is weak, so don’t bully her.”

“I was merely trying to announce the greatness of my sunbaenim.”

“You’re not quite right in the head either, are you.”

The world did not understand me.
Thinking Shishiroka might understand my intentions, I looked her way.
She flinched in surprise and immediately ran away.
Ah, how lonely.

“More importantly, get ready.”

“For what?”

I was out on the training ground with Rapiel.

“Do you know the easiest way to learn Holy Magic?”

For some reason, Rapiel was holding a menacing-looking club.

"It's to get your body wounded and then pour Holy Magic onto it."

“What kind of crazy talk is that?”

“You’re a Light Attribute Grade 1. It’s faster for you to learn by feel than to learn theory one by one.”

This crazy master.

“You said you wanted to get stronger, right?”

Rapiel wore a murderous smile.
That’s a witch. She’s definitely a witch.

“Get stronger with all your might.”

I decided to curse Bulldog for all eternity for introducing me to Rapiel.

Author's Note
All illustrations are uploaded on 'Muhwa Kkotran's' SNS.