My Disciples Grind, I Get 100x Their Progress

[Disciples Insight]

Name: [Ilunia Novarin]

Rank: [F] — [1.60%]

Talent: [Fate Listener] — [D]

Potential: [Oracle] — [SSS]

Skills:

• [Unbidden Prophecy] — [D] — [8.70%]

• [Fate’s Blind Spot] — [E] — [6.70%]

Suitable as Disciple: Yes, highly suitable, strongly recommended.

’...Oracle?’

Julian could barely manage a word. Beyond just working, wandering around, and enjoying his life, Julian had genuinely spent a fair amount of time wondering and scanning his surroundings.

Maybe, just maybe, he’d stumble across another talent like Kina somewhere and manage to bring them in as his disciple too.

But the system had never once flickered even slightly. It simply refused to react whenever the target he happened to be looking at wasn’t suitable to become his disciple. Which was exactly why Julian had assumed it might take months, maybe even years, just to uncover a single hidden gem like this again.

But here he was, as though fate itself had guided him straight to her, having stumbled onto a girl carrying this level of overwhelming potential.

’Oracle... that doesn’t sound remotely trivial.’

Unlike Kina, who’d started from F-Grade, it turned out Ilunia was actually starting from a much stronger position, D-Grade.

Her Rank progress sat lower than Kina’s, but her Skill progress was remarkably high. Her Grade had apparently started right off at D-Grade and E-Grade to begin with, but as for actual progress, once you hit E-Grade and D-Grade, let’s just say the difficulty of pushing progress forward at those tiers became painfully obvious.

So seeing Ilunia already reach this height, given her starting position, made Julian realize that Ilunia, despite how fragile she looked, despite her disability, had to be genuinely sharp and gifted.

”Y-you beat up Roland?”

”Pretty much...”

”Isn’t that a problem? You know his family is...”

”Hehe~ there’s nothing to worry about there.”

Julian noted that Kina seemed to be fairly close with Ilunia already. That only cemented Julian’s resolve that he was never letting Ilunia slip through his fingers.

’Yeah, she’s going to be one more addition. An emergency lifeline for my uncertain future.’

Two potential SSS-Grade disciples, if Julian could actually get his hands on both of them, his future life was going to be genuinely wonderful.

”Are you here to register for the tournament...?”

”Yeah. That’s right, I’m actually heading to the registration room right now.”

”Ah, so... um, is he your guardian?” Ilunia obviously couldn’t see, so she was only gauging Julian’s rough position based on where his voice seemed to be coming from.

Ilunia didn’t actually need confirmation for that question. She’d only brought it up deliberately, to make Julian aware that her attention had shifted his way. Then, dipping her head slightly, Ilunia said, ”Sorry for bumping into you earlier, sir. I can’t see.”

Julian immediately felt uncomfortable hearing that apology, giving a bitter internal smile while answering calmly on the outside.

”That wasn’t your fault.”

Ilunia smiled sweetly, though the smile carried a fragile edge, nodding once, then, after a brief pause, she pursed her lips and suddenly asked, ”Um... if you don’t mind, could I ask you something, sir?”

”What is it?”

”...Are you wearing white gloves?”

Julian blinked at that oddly specific question. Even Kina looked puzzled, tilting her head with her mouth slightly open.

’Yeah, I am, what about it? Are gloves just not a thing people wear around here?’

Julian glanced at his own gloves, running a hand over them gently. If this civilization genuinely found white gloves this unfamiliar, then they’d clearly lost something incredibly valuable along the way.

How could anyone possibly live without gloves keeping their hands comfortable and clean?

Still, despite his hesitation, Julian nodded and answered, ”Yes.”

”Oh... do you have black hair? And are you wearing a distinctive black coat?”

”...”

’What’s with these questions?’

”What’s with that question, Ilunia?” Kina, equally confused, voiced the exact thought running through Julian’s head.

Meanwhile, Ilunia simply smiled sweetly. ”I was just curious. So, is that right?”

”....Yes.”

Julian confirmed it. The next second, Ilunia’s smile shifted slightly, though only for a fleeting moment, so brief it was nearly impossible to catch. Whatever was going through her mind was something Julian couldn’t begin to guess.

For a moment, Ilunia simply stood there in silence, her breathing growing a touch heavier, though still within normal range, subtle enough that no one else noticed.

Then her face flushed slightly red, and she took a single step toward Julian, bowing her head.

”...I see. Well then, sir, I’ll be heading off now, alright?”

”Okay...?”

’That’s it? Just like that?’

So it really had just been some random question after all.

Julian let out a small sigh, listening to the sound of Ilunia’s footsteps finally moving off, accompanied by the steady tap of her cane against the floor.

Then, right at that moment, the girl suddenly stopped.

”Oh, right,” Those words made Julian turn around, along with Kina. Ilunia turned back too, wearing a smile that was strangely difficult to place. ”May glory be with you.”

After saying that, Ilunia finally walked away for good, leaving Julian standing there in silence before he turned to Kina.

”Is that some kind of religious greeting? Is there a god worshiped in this world with a phrase like that?”

That’s what Julian assumed, but Kina’s reaction didn’t seem to support that theory at all. She looked back at Julian, just as confused, forcing an awkward smile.

”Eh... Master, do you actually believe gods exist? I’ve never heard of anything like that.”

Kina started walking alongside Julian again toward the registration room, turning the question over in her head for a moment before letting out a small sigh. ”Ah, now that I think about it, there are some crazy people out there like that. They genuinely believe in some god and start worshiping it, some of them even form dangerous cults that terrorize people.”

Julian shuddered. ’People like that actually exist?’

For the love of everything, for the love of god, he prayed he’d never once cross paths with people like that.

He let out a small sigh, calming himself down. What Ilunia had just done was admittedly a little unsettling, but Julian didn’t want to dwell on the possibility that something might be genuinely off about her, so he quietly pushed his concerns aside.

If there was anything worth actually thinking about, wasn’t it exactly how he should go about getting Ilunia to agree to become his disciple?

Unlike Kina, Ilunia’s situation was clearly different. A different situation called for a different approach entirely.

Julian also didn’t want to rush into anything recklessly. It’d be worth keeping a closer eye on Ilunia for a while longer, because what if he ended up taking on a disciple who turned out stubborn, or someone whose mindset wasn’t entirely stable?

That would render the whole effort completely pointless.

And with Kina already here, Julian figured he could ask her to keep a personal eye on things for him.

Once he’d settled his thoughts properly, he stepped into the registration room.