Perhaps, Lecty and the others didn't even realize it?
In truth, when Misora and Rico cried out, Rozen had already understood the situation.
After all, Rozen wasn't a fool; he wouldn't fail to grasp the current circumstances.
However, Rozen didn't stop; instead, he continued.
Because Rozen's original intention was to give Lecty a bit of a jolt.
Even though there's now a ring with suggestion properties, it would still take Lecty quite some time to completely overcome her timid personality.
So, Rozen wanted to give Lecty some stimulation during normal times, hoping that it might speed up the process.
It was with this intention that Rozen planned to help Lecty put on the ring, using a bit of physical contact to stimulate her.
However, the act of kneeling on one knee was not part of Rozen's original plan; it just happened naturally.
With this in mind, when Misora and Rico called out, Rozen immediately realized what was happening but decided to go all the way and placed the ring on Lecty's ring finger.
Anyone witnessing this scene would likely think Rozen was proposing to Lecty and that he even put a wedding ring on her finger, right?
How much of a shock this situation would give Lecty could be gauged by looking at her completely flushed face.
"Ro-Ro-Ro-Ro… Rozen-senpai…!"
Lecty looked at Rozen, who was kneeling in front of her, putting a ring on her finger, her face redder than ever and completely flustered.
"What do you think? Do you like it?"
Rozen stood up and, determined to follow through with the act, flashed Lecty a perfect smile cultivated under Natsuki's training, presenting a flawless image.
In that instant, it was as if his entire demeanor became noble and elegant, transforming Rozen into the perfect man.
"N-nothing…!"
Lecty hastily lowered her head, even her ears turning red.
As a result, both Misora and Rico were visibly shaken by the scene.
"Wh-what…! Suddenly doing something so out of the blue…!"
Misora stammered, looking at Rozen's perfect smile.
"Ahem…"
Rico pretended to cough, seemingly trying to divert her attention elsewhere.
It had to be said that, for girls who were only in the second year of preparatory school and merely fourteen years old, Rozen's actions were extremely overwhelming.
Although Misora and Lecty were still in shock, Rico quickly realized the situation and spoke up.
"Setting aside my floating lenses, the fact that Misora and Lecty received a collar and a ring from the Alchemist Division—Rozen, you didn't do this on purpose, did you?"
Rico attempted to downplay Rozen's actions to regain her composure.
But it wasn't entirely without reason; a collar and a ring as gifts, especially for girls he just met yesterday, would seem incredibly inconsiderate.
In response, Rozen rolled his eyes.
"Who do you think all this was for?"
It's important to know that creating Magic Armaments isn't as simple as engraving runes on tools.
To allow mana to flow more smoothly, and to effectively activate the inscribed techniques, considering the need for combat and the use of Battle Skills, Magic Armaments require not only the engraving of necessary Runes but also the use of special materials that are highly compatible with mana.
Although it's not as extravagant as when Rozen creates Living Weapons—using the heart of a high-grade golem, the blood, scales, and claws of a dragon species, and various other advanced magical materials—Magic Armaments still require the use of high mana conductivity and compatibility materials, including some parts from Armored Beetles, to create the best possible Magic Armaments.
That's why Rozen had to apply for the team's necessary funds from the Sky Wizard Division. These expenses were essential, not to mention the scholarships and privileges that high-level teams enjoy, which are often spent on acquiring or commissioning high-level Magic Armaments from the Alchemist Division. This is a necessary expenditure directly tied to one's strength and future survival, requiring the best possible preparation.
For these reasons, ordinarily, it would have been difficult for a team of E601's level to obtain good Magic Armaments. Rozen had gone out of his way to handcraft these three Magic Armaments, giving E601 a special advantage. Without his efforts, the three of them wouldn't have had their current circumstances.
However, even though Rozen was willing to personally craft Magic Armaments, it had only been a day since he met the E601 team.
In other words, these three Magic Armaments were crafted by Rozen in just one night.
And while one night was enough to engrave the runes, it wasn't enough to make everything from scratch.
Given this, Rozen had chosen three pre-made Alchemist Division stock items that were most suitable for engraving the techniques required by the E601 team, which were still empty shells without any techniques engraved. He then inscribed the necessary Runes for the Telekinesis, Suggestion, and Virtual Aether techniques onto them, completing these three Magic Armaments.
In other words, choosing the collar and ring was not something Rozen did on purpose; it was just the only choice available at the time.
All of this was done to give the E601 team a new possibility today, showing them the potential for transformation.
So, if anyone thought he did this maliciously, Rozen would have to say this:
"If you're not satisfied, you can pay for it yourself, and I'll make you another one from scratch, with materials of your choosing. This time, it'll be completely handcrafted, and I guarantee you'll be pleased."
Rozen said this, causing the three girls to immediately fall silent.
Pay for it themselves?
That's impossible, never in this lifetime.
In the system of Mistgun, as the weakest E-rank team, the E601 team members already had the lowest treatment in the entire floating city, with minimal activity funds and scholarships. How could they possibly afford to pay for it themselves?
As for their family situations, Misora was just from an ordinary family, Lecty had left the support of Oichis and was now rooted in Mistgun, and Rico, due to her sister's overly strict upbringing, didn't receive much allowance either.
So, how could they possibly afford it?
"Therefore, you should just behave and continue training."
Rozen concluded with this statement, prompting the E601 team to reluctantly disperse and focus on their training.
Rozen, on the other hand, took out a stack of reports from the Alchemist Division, sat at the edge of the training ground, and began reading, attending to his own work.
Completely unaware, at a distance from the training ground, a pair of eyes was watching this scene.
While the E601 squad was training in Rozen's dedicated training grounds, evolving toward new possibilities under Rozen's guidance, a figure floated high in the sky at a distance from Mistgun, from where the training grounds could be directly observed.
"Ah...!"
The figure, holding a telescope and watching the training scene below, suddenly let out a voice full of turmoil after a moment.
The reason was simply that the figure's owner had seen something.
She had seen Rozen kneeling on one knee before Lecty and putting a ring on her finger.
Seeing Lecty blushing furiously, flustered and at a loss, while Misora and Rico stood speechless on the side, the figure's owner finally gritted her teeth in frustration.
"So, that's why senpai who was so focused on transferring to the Alchemist Division became the instructor for an E-rank squad? So, this is the reason?"
The figure's owner was none other than Yuri Flostre.
Ever since meeting Rozen in the Sky Wizards Division Head's office and learning that he was currently mentoring an E601 squad, Yuri had been unable to shake the unease, turning the matter over and over in her mind, even losing sleep over it.
"Mentoring…"
This wasn't the first time Rozen had taken on such a role.
In the S128 special team, everyone had received Rozen's guidance and had grown to their current level under his tutelage.
Including Yuri.
Thus, Yuri knew very well that Rozen had a surprising affinity for nurturing talent and was highly skilled at teaching others. Even for those like Kanata Age and herself, who specialized in frontline combat and excelled in close-quarters battle, Rozen could offer a certain level of guidance, allowing them to grow significantly.
Yuri herself had grown into one of Mistgun's most renowned ace Sky Wizards under Rozen's mentorship. She had never doubted Rozen's abilities.
Thus, even though Freon Flamel questioned whether Rozen could elevate the E601 squad to the level of the S128 special team, Yuri had no doubt whatsoever, fully believing in Rozen's ability to do so.
However, despite her faith in him, Yuri could not suppress her unease.
Why she felt so uneasy, Yuri didn't understand.
All she knew was that after learning about Rozen mentoring the E601 squad, a huge sense of resistance welled up within her.
This resistance was so strong that it rivaled the feelings she had when Rozen had announced his intention to transfer to the Alchemist Division and leave the S128 special squad.
This showed just how much Yuri was bothered by this matter.
In the end, Yuri couldn't resist the agitation in her heart and, during the time Rozen was mentoring the E601 squad, secretly snuck into the sky above to spy on them with a telescope, desperate to know what Rozen was doing with the E601 squad.
As a result, Yuri witnessed this scene.
This made Yuri feel as if something snapped in her mind, leaving her unable to stay calm.
Yuri's emotions were completely overtaken by anger, leading her to a heavily biased conclusion.
"What nurturing talent? Clearly, you just find those girls cute and can't help but want to be close to them...!"
Yuri's thoughts were completely consumed by this idea.
Perhaps, when Yuri calms down later, she'll realize how unreasonable her current thoughts are.
But at this moment, Yuri simply couldn't calm down.
"So much for being straightforward! You're certainly true to your desires!"
Yuri trembled with rage, staring at Rozen, who was sitting at the edge of the training ground reading a report, with a strong impulse to rush over and confront him face to face.
However, despite her impulse, Yuri didn't follow through.
"Senpai... You're the worst...!"
Leaving those words behind, Yuri turned and stormed off, landing on one of Mistgun's streets, her steps heavy as if venting her anger.
In her state, Yuri failed to notice that she had been followed. Someone had been secretly trailing her, also using a telescope to spy on her actions.
In other words, this person had witnessed Yuri's every move.
The observer also knew exactly who Yuri was angry at.
This caused the observer's expression to twist.
"Why... why can't you notice me...!?"
The person muttered in a low voice.
Yuri might not recognize this person, but Rozen might have some recollection.
It was the same person who, during a quarrel between Rozen and Yuri on the street, had nervously held a letter, summoning the courage to give it to Yuri, only to be completely ignored by her.
The person was a male student dressed in the standard uniform of a regular undergraduate, indicating that he was from the Machinas Division.
However, unlike most Sky Wizards, he didn't wear an emblem representing a squad on his chest.
All Sky Wizards wore squad emblems on their chests, with their squad numbers marked on them.
For example, Rozen, Yuri, Chloe Sevegny, and Kanata Age all had emblems bearing the "S128" insignia, while Misora Whitale, Lecty Eisenach, and Rico Flamel had emblems with the "E601" insignia.
But this undergraduate student didn't have an emblem, indicating that he wasn't part of the Sky Wizard Division.
Yet, his face twisted with resentment as he muttered.
"Rorelai Arneet..."
Uttering this name, his voice was filled with hatred.
But he knew all too well that with his abilities, he was no match for Rozen and would be nothing more than a joke in Rozen's eyes.
"Rorelai Arneet...!"
He could only hide in the shadows, growling in a low voice.
Apart from this, he had no other options.
...….
Time slowly passed.
Not long after, dusk arrived.
After finishing reading the reports and issuing the necessary instructions to the Alchemist Division through the communication crystal, Rozen stretched and looked toward the training grounds.
There, three girls appeared to have made different levels of progress after a whole afternoon of training.
"Haaah...!"
Misora was shouting meaninglessly, her collar glowing as it released her telekinesis like a shockwave, kicking up a cloud of dust around her.
Clearly, Misora still hadn't successfully controlled her telekinesis. Rather than applying it to herself, she was just wasting it on random outbursts, creating a scene that made one think she might as well abandon her magic sword and use telekinesis directly as her combat method.
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Rico was still practicing long-range shooting, and her magic bullets were now hitting the clay targets in the sky with pinpoint accuracy, showing rapid progress and standing in stark contrast to Misora.
However, Rico was still exploring how to use the Virtual Aether, probably trying to find a quicker, more efficient way to activate it while conserving magic power and adjusting the spell's power.
As for Lecty, she was standing alone in a corner, fiddling with her ring, the engraving on it glowing and dimming intermittently. Her expression constantly changed—sometimes blank, sometimes full of anxiety, sometimes tense, and sometimes confused.
It seemed that Lecty was also practicing using the suggestion to achieve fine control, hoping to avoid making herself do something strange.
The three girls each made some progress, though none had reached perfection yet.
Rozen stood up.
"Alright, that's enough for today."
Rozen called out to everyone.
"You can all dismiss now."
After saying that, Rozen prepared to leave.
Seeing this, the girls hurriedly called out to stop him.