Chapter 57. Cloix’s Troubles

Seeing my sincere eyes, Cloix couldn’t hide the flutter in his eyes for a moment.

But soon, as if he had made up his mind, he bit his lip.

“Student Dekan, I am willing to help you with anything except going to the Shadow World with you. Please don’t consider this matter anymore.”

Then Cloix resolutely closed the door, leaving the stunned me standing outside.

The last time I was rejected was… well, the last time.

“Sigh.”

I sighed.

Although I greatly admired Cloix, I hadn't expected the other party to so resolutely refuse to join our squad.

But a mage like Cloix should be in high demand, right?

Although his healing was painful, in terms of healing output alone, it was probably unmatched by any healing-type profession.

I walked home alone with some regret.

When I reached the door of my dormitory, my hand hesitated on the doorknob for a moment.

I silently turned my head and stomped hard on my own shadow.

“Meoww!”

Along with a familiar cry, the Cat Teacher emerged from my shadow, bouncing a couple of times like a spring.

“Your ability is not that great. It can’t even defend against physical attacks.”

I sneered, looking down at the Cat Teacher on the ground with a playful expression.

The Cat Teacher rubbed its head aggrievedly and said to me:

“…Give me a bottle of that potion, meow.”

Hearing the Cat Teacher’s naive words, I laughed out loud.

I squatted down and unceremoniously grabbed the scruff of the Cat Teacher’s neck, bringing its gaze level with my own.

Looking into its eyes, I said:

“You owe me a favor now, right? You have to repay me for saving you before we talk about any deals.”

“…I can teach you a few spells, meow.”

“No, learning spells is too troublesome, and it’s hard to learn spells that don't match my own mana affinity. It’s much more convenient to use spell cards directly.”

“But the number of cards you can carry is limited, meow. It’s always good to learn a few more spells.”

“My mana attribute is very ordinary, and the effect of most spells I cast isn't good. For me, spending time studying magic is not as good as honing my card-making skills.”

“Then what do you want, meow?”

The Cat Teacher seemed to be prepared to be extorted by me.

“Just tell me something about Cloix.”

My request surprised the Cat Teacher. This guy actually didn’t take advantage of the situation.

But it was very hesitant.

“Mmm… What do you want to do to him, meow?”

“Don’t worry, I just want him to be my companion. Of course, I won’t do anything to harm him, nor will I force him. You can rest assured.”

“Alright, then ask away, meow.”

“What puzzles me the most is why Cloix was held back. It’s my first time seeing someone in the school with such an exaggerated amount of mana.”

If my guess was correct, the reason Cloix lived on the fourth floor was that he had been held back.

He definitely couldn’t be a first-year student.

Just now, even through the air, I could feel the terrifying mana fluctuations that Cloix couldn’t contain.

It was simply more terrifying than elves and demons.

“…Cloix is actually a good student with excellent character and grades, meow. But he has never successfully conquered a Shadow World, so he can’t graduate as a Mage Academy student. Either he successfully clears one this year, or he has to transfer to the Alchemy Academy, meow.”

“How is that possible? Even someone like him can’t clear it?”

Even if Cloix couldn't deal damage.

Bringing some support spell cards and acting as a healer would be completely overpowered.

The divine blessing on Cloix wasn’t absolutely beneficial, but it wasn't malicious either.

The reason Cloix couldn’t clear the Shadow World was definitely not because of the blessing.

“…”

The Cat Teacher was silent for a while.

“Besides the god’s blessing, Cloix also has a god’s curse, both of which he cannot resist or remove, meow.”

I frowned.

“What’s the curse?”

The real reason Cloix couldn’t clear the Shadow World must be this curse.

“He is cursed—his entire life will be accompanied by disaster. Not only is his own luck extremely poor, but he will also cause the death of his teammates.”

“In a Shadow World with him, the difficulty will increase dramatically.”

“It can also be understood that although he is sixth-rank, the Shadow World will consider him as seventh-rank during matchmaking.”

“So some students… call him the Party-Wipe Engine.”

The Cat Teacher explained.

This made me fall into deep thought.

I roughly understood why Cloix looked so dispirited.

Something must have happened when Cloix was conquering the Shadow World in the past.

He probably brought his teammates into a higher-difficulty Shadow World.

Then, because the difficulty was too high, they failed.

In order to save his teammates, he had to desperately heal them with all his might.

With his kind of healing method, even if his teammates were spared death, they couldn’t escape suffering.

“No wonder Cloix resolutely refused to team up with us…”

I murmured.

Cloix didn’t refuse because he found me netherworldly.

But because he was afraid of jinxing me and Cornelia to death.

Even if Cornelia and I both reached the fourth rank in the future, if we teamed up with Cloix, we would probably be dragged into a sixth-rank Shadow World.

“As expected, powerful teammates come with great risks. But he’s underestimating Cornelia and me too much.”

I thought about it carefully and increasingly felt that Cloix was a good teammate.

Conquering a Shadow World one rank higher with Cornelia should be a casual mode, and two ranks higher should be a normal mode.

Even without teaming up with Cloix, there was a chance of bad luck dragging us into a high-difficulty dungeon.

It would be better to bring along such an incredibly strong interrogator, ah no, healer.

If we had Cloix in the Demon Academy, things would have become much more interesting.

I could probably chain Baron Bach and clear the entire exploration progress of the Demon Academy.

It was a pity that Baron Bach didn’t meet an angel like Cloix and burned out so quickly.

“Now that I understand the reason for his refusal, this will be easy to handle.”

I still needed to ask for Cornelia’s consent for the new member to join.

Of course, she would definitely agree.

After all, who could refuse such a great philanthropist from joining the Beautiful Mind Squad?

I decided to take Cornelia with me after class next Monday to persuade Cloix.

As I was thinking, the Cat Teacher climbed onto my shoulder again and shouted in my ear, “Give me that potion, meow!”

“For now, we’re just even. If you want the potion, you still have to trade something of equal value for it.”

“…Just say it, what do you want, meow.”

“You go and let Cornelia pet you for a while.”

“Is it that red-haired girl, meow?”

“Yes.”

“Impossible! Absolutely impossible, meow!”

“Then no deal.”

“Meoww!”

The Cat Teacher lay on the ground, flailing its four limbs, seeming very unhappy.

Even if I blackmailed it, it would be better than making a life-threatening request.

Suddenly, it seemed to think of something, turned over, looked at me and asked:

“How about I give you a 【Transfiguration: Elf Cat】 card, meow?”

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