Gauss had always been someone very clear-eyed about things.
He did think he worked hard; even when he wasn’t going out to take on commissions, he would squeeze out time to secretly practice Magic on his own. You could call him diligent and tireless, but he still wouldn’t attribute everything he’d achieved so far purely to effort.
If not for the powerful talent bonuses provided by the Adventurer’s Handbook, then even if he practiced Magic around the clock without a break, he still wouldn’t have reached his current level.
Besides, effort itself is also a kind of overlooked talent.
His physical recovery, total Magic Power, and Magic Power circulation naturally determined that, within the same amount of time, the volume and intensity of training he could endure were superior to others.
In other words, his physical talent determined that he could work harder than other people.
...
Class ended.
Gauss headed toward the academy’s library.
It was a three-story building.
Aaliyah was looking all around as they walked.
She, like Gauss, was someone who had never "gone to school" before, so she was understandably curious about the Magic academy.
"Thank you, Teacher Evelyn. You can go take care of your own things now, we’ll just wander around by ourselves."
After parting ways with Mage Evelyn, who had been accompanying them, Gauss and Aaliyah walked into the library.
The first and second floors were book areas open to students, while the third floor was a space open to teachers and professors.
Since she was an outsider, Aaliyah couldn’t check out books, but the staff probably recognized Gauss’s identity and didn’t stop her at the entrance.
"You look around here for a bit first, I’ll go upstairs and find the books you need."
"Okay."
The atmosphere in the library was excellent.
The reading area was spacious and quiet, potted greenery could be seen everywhere, and sunlight poured into the hall through transparent floor-to-ceiling windows and cascades of pothos, making for a very pleasant scene.
The students reading here were basically upperclassmen. They needed to complete their graduation assignments before leaving school, so they came here to borrow books.
Before going up the stairs, Gauss took a few extra glances around.
He really liked this kind of tranquil atmosphere; it reminded him of what it felt like going to school in his previous life.
After passing the check on the third floor, Gauss got down to business.
One book, two books, three books...
The pile of books in his hands grew higher and higher.
However, all the books were tagged using Magic Items; once they were put into a Magic device, an alarm would go off.
He also had to register them before leaving.
He ended up borrowing about thirty books in total, covering specialized subjects like smelting, mineralogy, Magic botany, and extraction.
Only then did Gauss head downstairs, satisfied.
Meanwhile, Aaliyah, who had been casually browsing on the first floor, had picked out a few more books. Together they had close to forty.
"Let me help you carry some."
Aaliyah rose up on her toes and took half the stack from Gauss’s arms.
Though to be honest, this bit of weight wasn’t heavy for either of them.
They came to the front desk by the first-floor entrance.
"Hello, I’d like to check out these books."
Gauss presented his professor identification.
"All right."
The guy at the front desk nodded, then his gaze fell on the little mountain of books, and his expression turned a bit odd.
To be honest, he’d been working as an administrator in the academy library for two years now, and it was rare to see a professor do a "bulk purchase" like this—checking out so many books in one go.
Moreover, according to the rules, you could check out at most thirty books at a time. This was to prevent someone from borrowing too many at once and then leaving them unread, which might affect other borrowers.
That number was already quite a lot; under normal circumstances, no one would exceed it.
Out of professional habit, he gave the pile a quick glance and could roughly tell that the number of books Gauss was borrowing definitely exceeded the limit.
Realizing this, a slightly troubled look surfaced on his face.
He knew who Gauss was.
At the all-faculty meeting held not long ago, even though Gauss himself hadn’t been present, the vice dean had still introduced this super genius who had joined the academy.
"From now on, the number of books Professor Gauss can borrow is not subject to the limit."
Just as he was hesitating, a vigorous voice, both familiar and unfamiliar, suddenly echoed by his ear.
The vice dean’s voice?
He hesitated for a moment, then put his smile back on.
Since the vice dean had spoken, he naturally wasn’t going to make a fuss.
He quickly ran all the books through the process, then politely handed them all over to Gauss.
"Is there a time limit?" Gauss put the registered books into his Storage Pouch.
"No, you can return them whenever you’re done reading."
There actually was a limit; it was just that things were a bit special with the man in front of him.
Having smoothly obtained the books he wanted,
Gauss and Aaliyah returned to the Red Dragon Team’s base.
...
"Captain, these are the Tricks and 1st-level Spells collected over the past few days."
"Thanks for the hard work, just put them here."
Gauss looked at the stack of Spellbooks on the table and nodded.
Strictly speaking, the number of Spells he’d learned so far was already more than enough. From 0th Ring Tricks up to 4th Ring Spells, he had far surpassed what a normal Master Level Caster would have.
If other Master Level Casters went this "overboard" like he did, their brains would probably feel like they were about to burst.
But he still felt completely at ease.
He didn’t feel like he had hit the upper limit of what his Spiritual Power could carry; that meant he could still learn more Magic.
"Color Trick, Dancing Pen, Calm Livestock, Taste the Air..."
Looking at the Tricks in front of him, Gauss nodded in satisfaction.
He knew that, just like some of the Spells he’d already learned, these Tricks and 1st-level Spells would, for the most part, be pretty useless. Aside from practice, they might see actual use only a handful of times, if ever.