Early TBAGM Vol. 2 Chapter 1 Part 2

Full title: The Banished Advisor’s Guild Management

Note: If you found any typos/mistakes, pls write them in the comment. Thanks.

Translator: Canon

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After leaving the guild, we rode the carriage for about two hours before arriving at the Magic Academy. Since Char was bound to be bored if left behind, I brought him along.

“This is the Royal Magic Academy.”

“Whoa—!”

Nero let out an awed cry as he gazed upon the academy.

The building, majestic in white, carried an air distinct from most other structures in the kingdom. Streetlamps, doors, and many other features were run by magic—an institution worthy of the name Magic Academy.

Even though five years had passed since I graduated, standing here again brought back a flood of memories.

We headed toward the school gate to request entry. Beside the gate stood a small guardhouse with a single security officer stationed. Without presenting a permit to him, entry was impossible; the academy’s defenses were notoriously strict. Thanks to him, I had been late countless times and scolded for it—no, best not to remember that.

“Excuse me, we’d like to enter the academy.”

“Show me your entry permit… wait—Lloyd?”

“What!? Guard old man!? You’re still working here!?”

I immediately bumped into someone from my student days, and my head ached.

If memory served, his name was Zebral or something along those lines—but I had never once called him by name. Everyone else simply called him “old man,” and he himself accepted it.

If we were only guard and student, it wouldn’t be awkward. But he had been one of the people I interacted with most during my academy years.

“Hahaha! Don’t make such a sour face! It’s been a while! What is it now, planning to reenroll?”

“Ahaha… no, of course not.”

I averted my gaze and answered timidly. The old man frowned at my demeanor.

“Hmm? You’ve changed your aura somehow. Quieter, maybe…”

“――――”

I knew exactly why he’d think so.

“The boy behind you—your companion?”

“He’s Nero. My… friend.”

I stumbled over the word.

Not because I disliked introducing Nero, nor because the old man was unpleasant. It was simply that I could already foresee the troublesome reaction. So I blurred my words as “friend,” and—

“Ah, nice to meet you! I’m proud to call myself Mr. Lloyd’s friend! I work as an adventurer in his guild! I’ll never be able to repay him for inviting someone like me—”

“N-Nero!?”

Instead of a brief greeting, Nero launched into an overly long introduction. It was like a nervous boyfriend meeting his girlfriend’s parents to ask permission for marriage—though why that analogy came to mind, I couldn’t explain. Hopefully you get the picture.

“Lloyd’s guild? What do you mean by that?”

“...Huh? I mean I work under Mr. Lloyd as an adventurer in Veiled Moonrise.”

Nero tilted his head innocently as he answered.

But that was the very thing I had most feared—what I least wanted revealed. Because—

“Gahahaha! Lloyd’s guild!? You’re killing me!”

The old man doubled over, laughing until tears welled in his eyes.

Nero, confused, added:

“It’s true. I’m serving under Mr. Lloyd.”

“Hah! Enough with the jokes—wait, serious?”

“Yes. Mr. Lloyd’s an S-rank adventurer, after all.”

With a proud grin, Nero puffed out his chest. He simply wanted to boast of my accomplishments, his intent was earnest.

I should’ve warned him beforehand. I never dreamed that old man would still be here.

“What the hell!? This guy, an S-rank adventurer!?”

The guard roared, eyes bulging and jaw slack. The contrast between the Lloyd he once knew and the me of today was simply too vast.

Because back then, I was—

“That tardy, no-good delinquent Lloyd!?”

“…Haah. This is why I didn’t want it mentioned.”

I muttered beside him.

He wasn’t wrong. Any classmate from those days would say the same.

Yes—I was a troublemaker. Always late. Slept through class. Homework? Forget it. Faked sickness constantly. There wasn’t a student alive who didn’t know my bad reputation.

Looking back now, it was youthful folly.

“Now that you mention it, that troublemaker vibe has faded—that’s why you seemed different!”

His words weren’t unreasonable. Compared to the past, I really did carry myself like a proper young man now. Like many boys, I’d once been wild; but no one in Veiled Moonrise knew that side of me. And it had to stay that way—though Nero had already learned some of it by accident.

To end this quickly, I forced the topic back.

“Old man, I’m here because Professor Rosaria summoned me. Nero is my subordinate, so he can come in too, right?”

“The headmistress called you, huh. Well, if he’s with you, fine…”

“Thanks. Let’s go, Nero.”

“Hey, Lloyd! You’d better tell me that whole story later!”

“Maybe on the way back.”

I brushed off his nagging and passed through the gate.

He might be a hassle, but the truth was, he’d looked after me for three years. Enough that he remembered my name. Maybe I owed him a bit of conversation on the way home.

As I thought that, Nero fidgeted beside me.

“M-Mr. Lloyd… I’d like to hear about your delinquent days too.”

“You absolutely may not! Now hurry up.”

“Ehh? Even if you used to be a bad kid, I wouldn’t dislike you. I’d like you even more, Mr. Lloyd.”

Nero pouted, sulking.

I had no idea what “like you even more” was supposed to mean.

When we first met, Nero had an air of a lone wolf. Yet here he was—acting more like Ellis by the day.

Maybe he truly saw me as competent and upright. I did strive to be that kind of person.

Which is why my past could never be exposed to him.

I resolved firmly: Nero must never learn of my dark past.

With that vow, I stepped into the Magic Academy.

—

“Not much has changed inside.”

“W-what’s with all these endless, creepy corridors!?”

Upon entering the Magic Academy, a labyrinthine network of passageways unfolded before us.

Like an anthill, the layout was so complex that newcomers struggled to understand which hall led where. Once memorized, it was simple, but first-years always got lost.

“They say these corridors were designed long ago, back when nations warred constantly—to confuse any enemies that infiltrated.”

The Magic Academy was a critical facility to enemy states, a treasure chest filled with knowledge of spells and magical tools. Defensive structures and devices like this, built to protect it, still remain to this day.

“There are so many people here.”

“Yeah. Maybe even more than in my time.”

The area outside had been crowded, but inside was no different. Every few seconds someone passed by—density on par with a capital marketplace. Though, that was only near the entrance; deeper in, the crowds would thin.

“Do you still remember the way, Mr. Lloyd?”

“Of course. Even the route to the secret classroom no one knows about—ah, never mind. Let’s go.”

I cut myself off just in time, nearly confessing how often I had skipped class.

Trusting my memory, we advanced through the maze of halls.

“You two over there, wait a second!”

A woman who had just passed stopped us.

“Se-Senpai? You’re Lloyd-senpai, aren’t you!?”

“Hm? Tina! Been a while.”

She wore a lab coat for experiments and round spectacles.

Her name was Tina. When I was a third-year, she was a second-year underclassman. Apparently she had stayed on after graduation as a researcher—no surprise, given her insatiable curiosity for magic.

“Wow! I can’t believe I ran into you! I must have used up all my luck for life!”

She giggled sheepishly.

Back then, unlike now, I spent most of my time alone. Even if I created that distance myself, no one wanted to hang around a problem child. But Tina was different. She had practically shadowed me like a stalker. Still, she was likely the junior who admired me most.

“Perfect timing. Tina, why don’t you spar with him?”

I gestured toward Nero.

The training grounds for mock battles were inscribed with advanced healing circles. Their effects were so overwhelming that even a severed arm regenerated instantly. Even a lethal blow would be undone at once. The arrays could even be adjusted to suppress pain, making combat training entirely safe.

They were a crystallization of the academy’s wisdom. No wonder some students here reached incredible heights—after all, they could repeatedly experience life-and-death combat.

Hearing my request, Tina pouted.

“Ehh, but Senpai, you won’t spar with me?”

“I’ve been summoned by the headmistress. I need to go.”

The headmistress—Professor Rosaria, the one at the pinnacle of the Magic Academy.

At that name, Tina bit back her protest.

“Damn that old hag, always in my way…”

I thought I heard something, but best to ignore it.

Then Tina turned her gaze to Nero.

“So, what exactly is your relationship with Lloyd-senpai?”

“Huh? My relationship with Mr. Lloyd? Hmm… I guess I’m his right hand.”

“What!? His right hand!? That can’t be true, Senpai!”

Nero’s smug declaration left Tina visibly shaken.

I had no idea why either of them was overreacting.

“I’d say it’s accurate. Nero’s been at my side these past two years.”

“Guh! How enviable…”

Tina let out a groan as if she’d taken real damage.

Nero seized his chance to ask in return:

“And what are you to Mr. Lloyd?”

“To me, Lloyd-senpai is my aspiration!”

““Aspiration?””

I had thought of her as fond, but never imagined she aspired to me. Back in my student days, what about me could possibly inspire anyone?

“Always late, never doing homework, sleeping through class—yet still posting the best grades of all! You were my idol, Senpai—”

“Th-That’s enough! Tina, just take Nero with you already.”

“Fineee. But you’d better join me for tea later!”

After nudging Nero and Tina off, I made straight for my destination.

I climbed stair after stair, then used a lifting platform—a device much like the one in the blacksmiths’ guild, the “One-Eyed Workshop”—to reach the academy’s highest floor.

On my shoulder, Char turned his head left and right in fascination.

At the end of the corridor atop the academy was a single, imposing door. Beyond it lay the office of the headmistress.

“Please, come in.”

Before I could even knock, a woman’s voice rang from within the room.

Whether through magic or a magical device, she had clearly sensed my arrival.

I opened the door and bowed.

“Excuse me, it has been a while, Professor Rosaria.”

“It has indeed, Lloyd.”

Professor Rosaria should be about sixty years old this year.

Yet her beauty was such that people even whispered she might be an elf.

Even though five years had passed since we last met, she had not aged a day.

“There’s no need to be so formal. I didn’t call you here today to lecture you.”

Saying this, she placed a cup of tea before me, and even poured milk for Char.

Whenever she meant to scold me, she would always offer water—so this time truly wasn’t a lecture.

“You’ve changed so much. Compared to you eight years ago, you’re like a different person. And you’ve even taken to carrying around a cute little animal.”

Eight years ago—before I entered the Magic Academy.

At that time, I had been utterly spent, after a certain incident.

I had even been ready to abandon life itself, refusing any hand extended to me, willing to sink into darkness.

The one who forcefully dragged me here back then was Professor Rosaria.

“I can still vividly recall when you forced me into the Academy.”

“Oh, I had such trouble then—how to enroll a boy who couldn’t even use magic properly. In the end, I had to invoke my authority as Headmistress to push you through.”

She made the remark so casually that I chose to ignore it.

“To see you grow so splendidly makes it all worthwhile.”

She had scolded me countless times, given me painful “lessons” in the name of education.

But not once had she ever stood against me. She had always been my ally.

Back then, that meant more to me than anything.

Once again, I bowed deeply to her.

“Professor Rosaria, I truly thank you.”

“My, my… to think that the problem child would mellow out this much. Life really is full of surprises.”

She smiled with evident joy.

For a while, we both fell silent.

And yet, that silence was strangely comforting.

Returning to the Magic Academy had indeed been the right choice.

“Now then, let’s get to the reason I called you here today.”

When our cups were nearly empty, she finally broached the subject.

“Do you recall a student named Sothia?”

“No, I can’t say I do…”

Because I had so few relationships, I remembered everyone I had ever dealt with.

Which meant I could be certain I didn’t know any student by that name.

“And what about this Sothia?”

“Well, it’s about her—”

Just as she began to speak, her words were cut off by an insistent knock at the door.

With a faint frown, Professor Rosaria turned toward it.

“What is it? I’m in the middle of something important.”

“M-My apologies, but it’s urgent…!”

“…Enter.”

At the word “urgent,” she reluctantly gave permission.

A woman stepped in, sweat on her brow and breath ragged, clearly having run full speed.

“So, what is this urgent matter?”

“The mock battle arena has turned into an uproar… Professor Gaius has gone to deal with it.”

“An uproar?”

“Yes, apparently some outsider has been taking down students one after another.”

“Someone that strong?”

“Rumor has it he’s a gladiator who can cut through magic…”

“Cut through magic? Exaggeration or not, that’s a problem.”

The professor sighed, pressing a hand to her temple.

That “outsider” was without a doubt Nero.

No one else could cut through magic.

“Ah, that’s probably my companion.”

“Yours? I thought you came alone?”

“Not at all. One of my guild members has been troubled lately, so I wanted to show him the mages here.”

I knew Nero had been brooding, frustrated by his declining skill as a swordsman and the fear of drifting further from A-rank.

I hadn’t brought him here just for company.

There was something I wanted him to realize. If he did, not only would he grow stronger, but his worries would vanish.

“Still, if Professor Gaius is involved… your boy is pitiable.”

“Ha ha… yes, that man truly is terrifying.”

I nodded at her words of sympathy.

Gaius—the grim-faced instructor dreaded by every student.

And once an S-rank adventurer himself.

He was known as the Academy’s absolute guardian, his strength said to far surpass even the Headmistress’s.

That very man was now facing Nero.

It seemed matters were progressing more quickly—and more favorably—than I had expected.

“Excuse me, I’ll go take a look.”

Lifting Char into my arms, I hurried toward the arena.

†

When I arrived, Tina was the first to rush over to me.

“Ah, Lloyd-senpai!”

“Tina, what about Nero?”

“Well…”

She cast a nervous glance toward the arena.

“So Professor Gaius really did come.”

Peering in, I saw Nero and Gaius standing opposed at a distance, the fight not yet begun.

“I fought him myself, but no one could beat him. In the end, Professor Gaius had to step in…”

The place was packed. Normally, these mock battles drew only sparse crowds.

Now, as I had been told, it had turned into something like a festival.

“Tina, tell me what happened from the start.”

“Alright. Let me explain.”

She began from the moment we parted ways.

First, Nero had fought her in a mock battle.

“At first, I thought I could win—he was just your guest, after all.”

Tina had honed her research with a strong focus on combat, and her strength within the Academy was significant.

In adventurer terms, she would rank about B-class.

Given that Nero’s overall ability had fallen to C-class level, their match should have been even.

But Nero possessed the mage’s natural enemy: the skill 【Magic Breaker】.

“I couldn’t believe it. My strongest spell was cut apart in a single strike.”

She gave a wry, exasperated smile.

Every spell she unleashed had been destroyed, even her trump card shattered.

In the end, she had to admit defeat herself.

“And once I lost, the other students started lining up… one after another.”

They challenged Nero, only to have their magic cut down in turn.

It had turned into an impromptu “magic-cutting contest.”

That was when Gaius had arrived to intervene.

Now Nero and Gaius were moments away from clashing.

“So, you’re the source of this commotion.”

“You’re a teacher? My apologies. I never intended to cause a scene.”

“No, the fault isn’t yours. I’ve heard reports that a certain brat is here. No doubt he’s pulling the strings behind this.”

“Brat?”

Nero furrowed his brow at the unfamiliar insult.

But Gaius dismissed it with a curt “Pay it no mind,” even as his hand gripped the hilt of his sword.

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