episode_0013

She did think about wanting to try using a staff, about casting magic like Erica-senpai that emits coldness around, and she also wanted to try various other kinds of magic, such as the sculpture magic that Seresria suggested, but as Seresria said, and if I were to ask Erica-senpai, I’d probably get the same answer.

With a glass bottle in my right hand and mana gathered in my left, I concentrated mana. Since it was obvious that if I gathered the mana into a small circle and immediately put it into the glass bottle, it would break just like before, I followed Seresria’s advice and held magical power in my mouth to command the mana.

“Stop.”

And at my voice filled with magical power, the mana stopped flowing and remained still in its place, and I moved the gathered mana on my left hand to my right hand to transfer it into the glass bottle. Thinking about the method from the position where it seemed to touch the glass bottle, whether to open the lid of the glass bottle and transfer it or to directly put the mana into the glass bottle.

Yesterday, Seresria moved the mana without touching it and put it into the glass bottle. I thought that method still seemed impossible, so I opened the lid of the glass bottle with my left hand, put the mana inside, and closed the lid. The mana inside the glass bottle didn’t fluctuate.

Holding the glass bottle slowly with my right hand and squeezing it slightly, the glass bottle didn’t break.

“Phew…”

A sigh of relief escaped my lips. Certainly, it seemed that I couldn’t erase the fear yet. I checked again to see if there were any broken parts in the glass bottle and took out another glass bottle.

“It’s a success.”

“It’s not perfect, but thanks to Seresria. This time, I’ll try putting the mana directly into the glass bottle.”

She smiled brightly at my response, and as I looked at her and then back at the glass bottle, I spoke.

“But why are you just standing there watching without doing anything?”

“I don’t want to use a staff to practice magic because I don’t want to burn people.”

“Did someone who thinks like that attack me?”

“Hmm… that’s because the judgment about you hasn’t been made yet. As I said, I thought Astan might be a villain.”

“What kind of villain would roam so boldly?”

“Is that so?”

In that conversation, I took out a glass bottle from my pocket and handed it to her. Taking the bottle, she looked at it once, then at me with a puzzled expression, and I said to her, “You said you can’t contain flames in a glass bottle yet. Why not practice now?”

“It’s not a skill I need.”

“As the goddess of wisdom Phea said, ‘If you are prepared, there is nothing to fear.’”

“The god of war Rune said, ‘Rather than sharpening a weapon, look at the direction the weapon will go.’”

I looked at her without saying anything in response to her words, then slowly spoke.

“I don’t think it’s appropriate to slack off during class time, Your Highness.”

“Slack off… Is watching a friend’s magic considered slacking off?”

Seeing her smile mischievously as she said that, I felt a slight headache. Not saying a word, I raised the glass bottle in my right hand.

Just now, containing mana was easier than I thought. However, I thought it would be difficult to contain mana in a glass bottle immediately, just like Cerestia did. Should I stop the mana first and then contain it, or contain it and then stop it? Lost in thought, I stared blankly at the glass bottle.

Senior Erika contained coldness in this. If I open the glass bottle and contain coldness just like before, what would happen? No, I didn’t even have to think; the answer was already decided. The glass bottle would either freeze or shatter, one of the two.

Erica senior is someone who is familiar with handling cold. So, she must have been able to spread the cold around her without any difficulty. As for me now, it’s impossible for me to spread the cold to that extent, and even if I could, I would freeze from my own body.

How can I do it?

Filled with thoughts and thoughts, I focused on this and poured mana into the raised glass bottle in an attempt to clear my head. As soon as I poured the mana, I commanded it to stop with my mouth, but the glass bottle that had already received the mana began to turn into gold and eventually shattered. The method was wrong.

Then should I try the opposite? With that thought, I tidied up the glass shards and took out the glass bottle from my pocket. However, upon reconsideration, can I stop and put in the mana? If it’s not directly moving, but controlling the mana to move… What could be the method? And at that moment, a thought came to me. What if I gather a small amount of mana and then put it in the glass bottle?

And I looked at the glass bottle containing Erica’s cold. It contained cold, but the amount was small. However…

Surely Erica senior’s cold had enough cold to freeze the entire lounge. In that case… Ah.

At that moment, with disappointment, a sigh escaped from my lips.

“It seems you’ve realized the method.”

“…It’s really like a child’s prank.”

“It’s called a change of mindset. Because the most common mistake magicians make is not being able to restrain themselves.”

“Restraint… I see.”

It seemed embarrassing and laughter was about to burst forth at the fact that I hadn’t even considered such a simple thing. It wasn’t about filling the maximum amount. It was about the amount of the glass bottle, or even less than that.

Now that I knew the method, putting mana into the glass bottle seemed ridiculous. Oh, what a fool I was. Once again, as I looked at the glass bottle, laughter bubbled up.

“Did you understand the saying that it’s easy in your head but difficult in your body?”

“Now that I understand the method… I get it. If you understand it in your head, you have to take the strength out of your body.”

“Learning magic is one of the first things that magicians do. What would happen if you always used all your mana to cast spells?”

“You would end up not being able to do anything by using up all the mana.”

“Right, because at least a minimum amount of mana is needed to use magic. The more complex the magic, the more mana is consumed, and the less complex it is, the less mana is consumed. If it’s impossible to control, you won’t be able to use magic when you need it.”

I slowly nodded at her words and looked at the glass bottle. It was similar to the mana-filled glass bottle I made earlier, but the amount was different. Of course, the feeling was different.

In the moment of satisfaction for achieving the first step, her voice came.

“Astan.”

When I looked at her voice, she was holding a glass bottle in her right hand. A glass bottle containing flickering flames.

“Now, can I show off my talent?”

Certainly, it felt like hitting a wall of talent again. As I sighed softly, wiping the tables in the tavern, Toa approached and spoke.

“If you sigh, customers won’t come.”

“I’m sorry.”

A definite wall of talent. I wondered if this was another breakthrough of her idea. Didn’t she say it wasn’t at that level? How did she grow so fast? She already knew, but did she deliberately hide it?

Such thoughts made me sigh again. It’s difficult, very difficult.

“If you’re going to sigh like that, go outside and do it!”

After Toa’s words, I once again held the apology in my mouth and thought I should go out and get some fresh air, saying I’d go to the warehouse for a while.

Arriving at the warehouse, after taking a deep breath and exhaling, I took out Erica’s senior’s glass bottle from my pocket and looked at it.

How was it made? It seemed like a small amount of mana was contained and transformed into its property… If it contained coldness, wouldn’t the coldness flow and break? Cerestria’s flame was the same. Clearly, the flame was flowing.

Then maybe it didn’t stop. A sigh escaped my lips, and as I rose from my seat, I heard a cat’s meow in my ear. When I turned to look at the cat, it was staring at me.

“Hello.”

The cat seemed to understand me and let out a meow, and I slowly approached the cat. It won’t run away. And just as I reached out my hand towards the cat, I heard a sound in my ear.

A sound of something breaking, collapsing.

At that sound, I suddenly thought Seresria had arrived.

“Every time you come here, you cause an acci…”

But to my surprise, when I turned my head, there was a man there. He wore a hat that obscured his face, but despite that, I extended my right hand forward, thinking he might be a fleeing person and dangerous.

“Before I call the guards, reveal your identity.”

He ignored my words, got up from the ground, and looked at me. The eyes visible through the hat of his robe were red.

“…A sorcerer.”

A voice echoed in my ear. The tearing voice made my ears ache. The thought of danger moved through my whole body. Should I run, should I shout, no matter what method I chose, there was no sign of fear disappearing.

Even though it’s our first meeting, seeing him so aggressive, is he a criminal, is that why he’s running away?

As I slowly pondered in my mind, the man took out a wand from his pocket.

And at that moment, a voice burst from my lips.

“Save me!”

Along with my voice, murmurs grew louder everywhere. Sounds of someone running, the clinking of armor, amid such sounds, I spoke.

“Surrender. The guards will be here soon.”

“… Foolish.”

And at that moment, the man extended his wand and began to chant a spell. Before the spell could even be heard, I reached out my right hand and contained the spell in my mouth.

“Mana, protect my body!”

The small shield that unfolded at the same time as my order collided with the lightning magic flying towards me, resonating loudly through the back yard of the tavern.

My fingertips trembled at the thought that I would have died instantly if I had been hit by the magic. The enemy that hadn’t disappeared yet was still facing me, and I bit my lip. I have to run, but is it possible? No one can run faster than lightning.

“You have good instincts.”

“I don’t want to hear your praise.”

As soon as I replied, the man’s wand once again aimed at me. Typically, magic tends to aim in the direction the caster is looking. However, this time was different.

As soon as the man’s spell ended, what appeared was lightning tearing into multiple branches. Even if I expanded the shield widely to weaken its power, I couldn’t stop it.

I’m going to die.

With that thought, just before the incantation flowed from my lips, I naturally closed my eyes in the face of the lightning rushing to engulf me.

I’m going to die.

However, I didn’t feel any pain. Not feeling any pain, I cautiously opened my eyes as I slowly took a breath, and someone was standing in front of me.

Silver hair sparkling in the moonlight, a staff with a blue gemstone clutched in the right hand.

“Surrender, attacking an academy student is a serious crime. If you want to die here, keep coming at me. If you surrender… well, I might be able to spare your life.”

It was Senior Erika.