Reincarnated as a failed hero?! Watch me Defy Fate!-Chapter 246: The Magic Nerds

Lyra and I were caught off guard as a cloud of smoke engulfed us the moment we stepped inside.

We immediately rushed forward, worried something might’ve gone wrong inside the lab.

I feared the worst—had the team failed to analyze Lilith’s teleportation formula and accidentally hurt themselves?

"Salvador-sama! Xerion! Arsene! Saintess! And, uh... the blonde-haired Magi—are you all okay?!"

I shouted their names, but the smoke was too thick. All I could hear was coughing echoing through the room.

Then suddenly, a voice called out, casting a spell:

"[Wind Magic: Air Purifying Wind]"

A cool breeze swept through the space, swirling around us and filtering out the choking smoke until the air turned fresh and clear.

Finally, we could see them all.

"Hah! That was close!" Salvador laughed heartily. "Looks like we drew the lower-right portion of the circle wrong again."

"Hm, you’re right, Father," Xerion said seriously, pointing out the section he meant. "We might need to extend the line just a bit further here..."

Next to him, Arsene clung lightly to his arm, though Xerion seemed too absorbed in the magic circle to even notice.

"Yes, that might help. Perhaps we should lengthen both sides for balance," Arsene added thoughtfully, equally focused.

I blinked. The two of them looked really close... maybe Salvador-sama had already given them his blessing?

Nearby stood Orion—the Braveheart Division’s barrier magic specialist.

A tall man with flowing green hair and dark eyes, dressed in the elegant robes of a royal magus.

"We could also try adjusting this portion here," he suggested calmly, gesturing toward another segment of the diagram.

Beside him stood the Saintess, her aura as serene as ever.

Though her eyes were covered by a white cloth, she turned toward us as if she had sensed our presence.

"Ah, Lyra—I’ve been expecting you. And you, Naoki... what brings you here?" she asked gently.

"I’m just accompanying Lyra. She wanted to see you. And... I was curious about the progress your team’s made."

"That’s right, Master," Lyra added. "I asked Naoki-sama to come with me. I thought it would be good for you two to talk as well."

I wasn’t sure what she meant by that, but the Saintess seemed to recall something.

She explained that she had originally planned to train Lyra earlier in the day alongside the other heroes, but had been summoned to the lab unexpectedly.

Then she turned to me.

"I’ll be joining the hero training session tomorrow. I’ll be teaching them about Divine Magic."

Ah... so that’s why Lyra wanted me to come. She wanted to make sure I could coordinate tomorrow’s training with the Saintess’ lesson.

I thanked her for the heads-up and looked to Lyra with a grateful smile. She nodded, blushing slightly.

"...By the way, they haven’t noticed us at all," I said, gesturing toward Salvador-sama, Xerion, Arsene, and Orion, who were still buried in discussion over the magic circle.

All of them were now wearing thick-rimmed glasses and sweatbands that said "I ❤️ Magic" across the front.

In my mind, I could hear Envi laughing at how they looked—like a group of total magic nerds.

Honestly, I couldn’t disagree. They looked like hardcore otaku deep in a heated debate at an anime convention.

I held back my laughter. If I laughed now, they might just throw me out of the lab.

The Saintess let out a long sigh and said,"Sorry you had to see this... I didn’t realize Salvador-sama, Xerion, and Arsene would all be this alike. They’re completely obsessed with magic. They could spend an entire day discussing a single spell circle."

Lyra and I exchanged awkward smiles, unsure how to respond.

"But what surprises me most," the Saintess continued, "is that even Orion’s starting to act like them. Maybe it’s because this spell involves barrier magic—his specialty."

She looked a little overwhelmed by the whole group.

"Um... speaking of which, where’s the blonde-haired Magi?" I asked curiously, glancing around.

The Saintess sighed again and pointed beside us.

There he was—sprawled out on a nearby table, completely exhausted.

"Hey... are you okay, blonde-haired Magi?" I asked, stepping over to check on him.

He suddenly bolted upright, eyes blazing despite his fatigue.

"My name is Char, not ’blonde-haired Magi,’ you idiot!"

"Ahh, okay—Char then," I chuckled. "What happened to you?"

He let out a groan and sat up, rubbing his temple.

"How wouldn’t I be exhausted? Try working with those magic maniacs all day!" he snapped, gesturing toward the group still arguing over the circle. "We already finished analyzing five of Lilith’s magic formulas today—and they’re still going!"

"Five in one day? That’s impressive." I nodded in agreement. "You’re right. I’ll talk to them and try to convince them to rest."

"Tch... good luck with that," he muttered, crossing his arms.

I looked over to the Saintess again. She quietly confirmed that yes, it really was time for a break—but they’d been ignoring her too.

With a sigh, I walked toward the table where the magic maniacs were still hard at work.

....

"Umm... Salvador-sama, it’s already late... maybe it’s time to rest? We can always continue tomorrow." I spoke gently, hoping not to interrupt his focus too much.

But he didn’t even hear me.

I tried the same with Xerion, Arsene, and Orion—but none of them paid me any attention either.

These people are insane... I muttered in my mind, and Envi burst out laughing.

He suggested I’d need a different tactic to get their attention.

And just then—my stomach growled. Loudly.

I realized I was hungry... and if I was, chances were, they were too. They were just too obsessed to notice.

An idea sparked in my mind. Food. That would get their attention.

I shared the plan with the Saintess, and her eyes lit up. She nodded enthusiastically in agreement.

Without another word, I grabbed Lyra’s hand and pulled her with me. She flushed with surprise, blinking in confusion.

"W-Where are we going?" she asked shyly.

"To the kitchen," I replied with a grin. "We’re going to cook for them."

Lyra smiled and let out a small giggle. "Alright."

We made our way to the academy kitchen. It had been a while since either of us had stepped foot here.

As former top graduates, we were allowed to use the academy’s facilities freely—and that included the kitchen.

I started gathering the ingredients, and Lyra stood beside me, tying up her hair and rolling up her sleeves.

Inside my mind, Envi gasped dramatically, "Nao... Lyra looks adorable! She’s absolutely stunning like this!"

I couldn’t disagree. He was right. I gave a small, amused smile, stealing a glance at her.

"Let’s begin," I said. "We’re making steak with mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables. Lyra, can you help with the sides?"

She gave a cheerful salute. "Leave it to me, Naoki-sama!"

We began cooking—me handling the steaks while Lyra focused on the potatoes and vegetables.

Somehow, my cooking skills hadn’t dulled one bit, even in this world. I was grateful—this was one of the few practical skills that still carried over and mattered.

Lyra was a huge help. Her timing and rhythm matched mine perfectly, and thanks to her, we finished everything faster than I expected.

"Thanks, Lyra. You’d make a great wife someday." I said it naturally, ruffling her hair.

Her face turned bright red. "Th-thank you for the compliment, Naoki-sama..."

In my mind, Envi groaned, "Hey, Nao! Don’t forget you already have Serena and Amelia... You planning to make Lyra your third fiancée too? Heuheuheu~"

"Shut up, idiot. I’m not thinking about that," I muttered internally, brushing off his teasing.

...

With the food done, Lyra and I brought it back to the magic laboratory.

There was a break room attached to the lab where people could rest and eat, and we set everything up there.

I then carried one of the plates over to where Salvador-sama, Xerion, Arsene, and Orion were still huddled in deep discussion.

They hadn’t moved an inch.

I gently lifted the lid off the dish—and immediately, a delicious aroma wafted through the room.

Grrrrrrhh!

All four of their stomachs grumbled at once.

"Huh?! Naoki—you’re here?! Why didn’t you say something earlier?" Salvador-sama exclaimed in surprise.

"I did say something. You just didn’t listen."

"Ohh, Naoki’s here with Lyra!" Arsene beamed. "Welcome to our lab!"

"What you’re holding... that’s... is that steak?" Xerion blinked, suddenly aware of what I had brought.

Orion looked around. "Wait a second... We haven’t eaten all day."

Finally, reality hit them.

They put down their notes and turned toward the break room without hesitation.

Char was still half-asleep, lying across a bench. He was promptly "woken up" by Salvador-sama—via a light smack to the head.

With that, everyone sat down to eat together.

They dug in immediately, savoring each bite. Their smiles said it all.

Lyra and I shared a small, proud smile. Watching them enjoy the meal we made—it made everything worth it.

...

After dinner, I finally asked about the progress of their research.

Salvador-sama leaned back, satisfied. "For our first day, things went smoothly. We managed to analyze five of Lilith’s spell circles. But there are still 45 more to go if we want to create a barrier spell capable of blocking her teleportation magic."

Xerion, Arsene, and Orion nodded in agreement.

I let out a relieved sigh. They hadn’t hit any major obstacles yet.

If they did, I’d help however I could—just like it said in my side quest.

I praised them for their work, and their tired but calm expressions showed they appreciated it.

But then... Char spoke up, his tone more serious than before.

"This is good and all... but we need to move faster. The sooner we finish, the sooner the kingdom will be safe from Lilith."

His words hit hard—and everyone nodded in agreement.

Then he turned to me, with a sly grin forming on his lips.

"I’ve got an idea... Why don’t we have Naoki help us?"

He said it sweetly, but there was a mischievous glint in his eye.

...What is he planning?