episode_0010

“Unfortunately, it seems like another failure this time as well.”

“Shut up… please…!”

Karina, looking completely unfazed, gazes down from mid-air with no hint of regret. The arrogant pink ponytail is getting irritated.

“So, are you making dinner again today? I’ll leave it to you~”

“Seriously annoying!”

Since arriving at the cabin, the ongoing bet continues, spinning around the cabin once without falling over, adapting to the cabin’s gravity.

Just when she thought she had adapted, she complained about the increasing gravity pressure, but Karina seemed unaffected, watching from a rocking chair with amusement.

“Since we can’t find any evidence…”

“Oh, do you want to see your master starve to death?”

“Yes.”

“This guy has lost his mind, additional punishment!”

Furthermore, whenever something displeased her, she would reverse the gravity and send it flying towards the sky. Just like now.

“Thud!”

“Ugh, darn it!”

“Hmm, quite a sight to behold. Stuck to the ceiling like a frog.”

“Quick, put me down!”

“Oh, until you reflect on your actions, you stay as you are.”

It’s been a week since their arrival, still unable to swing a sword even once, just practicing like this is frustrating. However, as instructed to find the cabin, there must be a reason, so he tries to understand the essence of this training.

“So, any progress in your analysis?”

Karina makes a face as if she already knows what I’m doing.

“No, unfortunately. None at all.”

“Well… that’s really unfortunate.”

“Sigh… that guy…”

“Ugh, noisy, let’s go prepare dinner now.”

“Yes, understood.”

***

Clatter, clatter

Lost in thought while looking at the boiling pot of rice.

“Why specifically gravity magic? I was supposed to train my weaknesses, right?”

“Is it physical strength? There could have been other ways. Strength? Same thing.”

Sizzle…

“Oops!”

Lost in thought, he quickly gets up to deal with the overflowing pot of rice.

Wait. Deal with it? Could it be that Karina wanted me to enhance my ability to deal with magic?

Come to think of it, I’ve never directly confronted magic. When sparring with David, I faced an illusion, and when facing Sabi, I faced him enhanced by some means.

So, suddenly reversing or enhancing gravity as a punishment makes sense.

“But even if I figure it out, what can I do about it…”

You don’t suddenly learn how to deal with magic…

Come to think of it, initially, I didn’t notice due to the increased gravity, but when the flow from Karina became stronger, the gravity also intensified. If the flow intensified slightly, the gravity would strengthen too. If the movement suddenly changed, the direction of gravity twisted.

“I need to tackle that flow…”

It feels like understanding the pattern of a boss monster in a favorite game, making my heart beat a little faster.

“Kidney… what about that rice…?”

“Oh, right.”

***

“Burning the rice while daydreaming, that’s very careless of you.”

The direction of the flow emanating from Karina, who finished eating the rice, changes again.

Anticipating a collision, he quickly raises his left hand towards the flow heading towards the left wall.

“Oh… am I really getting used to this now?”

He didn’t fall over, but failed to balance and ended up hitting his shoulder.

“Now, onto the next stage.”

“What’s next this time?”

“Well, it won’t be boring.”

Watching Karina with an amused look, I lose my mind.

***

“To the right!”

“Thunk!”

Suddenly shouting “to the right” during work, but I flew upwards instead.

“Are you seriously going to do that sneakily?”

“Hmph, did I say I would throw you to the right?”

Annoyed, I get angrier as she only says what’s correct.

“Ouch!”

And then, to top it off, now I have to dodge objects flying at me from somewhere.

“I need to focus, or I’ll end up getting hit, right?”

The face that’s being shredded is so annoying that I want to punch it.

“Just wait and see.”

“So what can you do?”

“Ugh, damn!”

***

Things don’t just fly at you out of nowhere. The lines of magic flowing from Karina transfer onto objects, and when the objects reciprocate, they fly towards you.

Swish!

“That was close…”

I barely avoided the chair grazing past my nose.

“I’m starting to get used to this. Not fun.”

“Well, you may not find training fun, but I do. I have room for retorts, and now I need to raise the difficulty level.”

“Oh, life…”

***

“Hey, isn’t this going too far?”

“This is basic stuff at the academy!”

As I try to balance while reversing gravity, Karina sends objects flying from all directions. She seems a bit hesitant, perhaps feeling a twinge of conscience.

“It’s your fault if you can’t dodge!”

“This is really frustrating.”

There’s nowhere left to retreat. I realize I need to focus on not avoiding but confronting.

“If I target her weaknesses like last time, maybe I can make it through somehow…”

“Well, do as you please.”

“This is getting intense.”

The currents grow stronger. From Karina, to the left, and from the nearby table, upwards. Upon closer inspection, not all lines of flow are of the same thickness. I need to find the weaker ones among them.

I discover the thinnest line emanating from Karina. Though lacking black, I try to channel the sensation of wielding a sword.

I grab a ladle rolling nearby and strike the end of the thin line.

“Thwack!”

Karina, who was focused, jerks her head back as if caught off guard. Isn’t this the perfect opportunity?

“Are you okay?”

I lift the ladle higher and move forward slowly.

“Thwack! Thwack! Hey… What did you do?”

“Thwack, why are you raising the ladle?”

“That’s why!”

With two weeks’ worth of frustration, I swing straight down towards Karina’s pink hair.

Smack!

“Wait a moment!”

“Be quiet!”

Bam!

***

“Oh… Geez. Where’s the disciple who surpasses the master like the sky?”

“In the world, there’s something called an apprentice surpassing the master.”

“Alright, enough. What did you do?”

“What do you mean? Did I break the master’s pot?”

“You’re talking nonsense, anti-spell!”

“What’s that?”

“You did it without knowing… Well, there was no sign of using magic either.”

“You cut off the weakest line flowing from the master.”

“Oh, strange ability. I knew I could see the flow of magic, but I didn’t expect to be able to interfere directly.”

“Is that good?”

“Not good at all! Most magicians in the world lose to you in terms of compatibility.”

“Me!?”

“Well, not to that extent now. But even among magicians, there’s something called anti-spell. It predicts the magic the opponent is trying to use and disrupts it in reverse.”

“Is what I did similar?”

“Well, for anti-spell to work, the opponent’s level must be much lower than the caster’s, or it’s a matter of luck. You can disrupt spells regardless of the opponent’s level difference.”

“But it didn’t seem that powerful. Gravity continued to affect my body.”

“Yes, I could maintain gravity magic, but the mana I was sending out with reverse magic was blocked. It felt like choking on candy.”

“So I saved you, right?”

“Is hitting someone on the head saving them?”

“Just the outcome matters, right? It worked, didn’t it?”

“This is so frustrating… Seriously.”

Thinking back now, there was a cute side to her. Whether it was a concept in her usual way of speaking, Karina would return to her normal tone when irritated or when there was something urgent, like earlier.

“So, is the training over now?”

“Yeah, it’s time to go to the academy.”

As Karina bid farewell with her prominently raised red forehead, I almost laughed instead of tears, but endings should be decorated nicely.

“If someone bothers you, call the master, and there are all kinds of books in the library there. Find a way to return to your original self.”

“Wasn’t that your nature?”

“Of course not. It’s a curse. A curse cast by a jealous witch.”

“Why would a witch be jealous of the master..”

“It’s because I’m too good, isn’t it?”

“Okay.. I understand..”

“Go and contact using this.”

Karina tossed a small pink talisman. Catching it and looking closely, it had Karina’s pink hair color. This should definitely help me not forget.

“Now, it’s time to say goodbye to your family.”

“Aren’t you also family, master?”

“What are you talking about! We’ve only known each other for just 2 weeks!”

Excited, cheeks reddened like her forehead

“For 2 weeks, we ate together, I made sure your magic stayed on while sleeping, I took care of nearby demons so you could focus on training, what else is family.”

“You knew..?”

“Yes, thank you.”

“Yeah. The experiences we’ve built in 2 weeks are certainly dense. But it’s too early for us to become a family, little one!”

Karina shouted with a wide smile. It seemed like the first time she smiled so brightly, a joyful moment.

“If you break my curse, think about it, pussy!”

“Are you the Little Mermaid..”

“Now let’s say our final goodbyes.”

“Final goodbye.. Okay.”

Approaching, she opened her arms for a hug. Even though my body hadn’t fully grown, I gently patted her forehead, feeling sorry.

“What are you doing! I meant to shake hands!!”

Struggling here and there, she let go of my arms and smiled mischievously.

“Next time, see me in a more grown-up form. Then ask me to teach you swordsmanship.”

“Yeah.. This meeting was too short. Let’s meet for longer next time.”

“I’ll keep seeing you in the future. To grow taller, you need to eat well, okay?”

“Go! Leave quickly!”

“Hahaha..”