Magic refers to the act of refining concepts for a specific purpose and shaping mana by borrowing the form of incantations.

Therefore, incantations include concepts for the corresponding action.

Only the exact amount of concept is allocated.

It’s more efficient and less burdensome for calculations that way.

To simply create light, you can use the <Light> spell, but.

You can’t utilize <Light> beyond that.

The concept of that incantation merely evokes light that illuminates darkness.

But Borka’s magic is different.

If Borka uses <Light> and gets bored, wanting to do something else.

She can add concepts and twist laws in real-time.

If she wants, <Light> can even evolve into <Light Saber> shaped in the form of a sword.

Borka intuitively understands ‘concepts’ and ‘calculation results’ and comprehensively incorporates them into incantations.

This is possible because she has the skill and computational ability to support it.

So Borka could use magic that deals with concepts themselves, which only archmages found in history books would attempt for research purposes.

It was advantageous for actively extending or modifying magic according to the situation.

Her judgment was accurate.

Even after being hit directly by <Magma Sphere>, Targan was still fine.

Targan knew well that there was a time lag in mages’ attack spells.

He made the very rational judgment that if he rushed in and twisted the neck of the tiny child, it would be over.

But that was a misjudgment.

Borka had already deployed concept magic.

Therefore, all she needed to use the final stage <Magma Sphere> again was to use the previous stage <Reconfiguration>.

There was no need to re-cast the incantation.

The magma scattered on the floor condenses again.

With the concept of <Heating> equipped, there’s no chance of it cooling and hardening.

This would have been impossible for an ordinary mage.

That’s why Targan let his guard down.

“<Magma Prison>.”

The magma gathered above Targan’s head poured down on him all at once.

He tried to dodge belatedly, but the dense magma net constricted Targan like a fisherman’s net herding fish.

-Sizzle.

“Guh!!”

Targan, prepared to have his flesh burned even as he tried to break through the magma net, soon realized he couldn’t.

Even swinging his greatsword imbued with evil energy, the mana maintaining the magma didn’t break at all.

No, even if it broke, it regenerated quickly like a troll.

“To use such a vicious method!”

The mana gathered in Borka’s body and staff continuously melted the magma.

It also strengthened the bonds so they wouldn’t break easily.

Targan was slowly burned while unable to move an inch.

His screams were like a sweet cheer to the subjugation team.

Along with the golem Dolly, progress began to be seen in tackling the stone worms.

“Your mana will, ugh! Eventually run out too, urgh!”

But Borka’s magic alone couldn’t finish off Targan.

Only priests of the church bestowed with divine power or holy knights can deal with demon races.

Mana can inflict damage, but can’t finish them off.

Targan watched Borka intently with his face scrunched up as if accustomed to pain.

He endured the pain while threatening that he would rush in and tear her to pieces as soon as her mana ran out.

Though her magical talent was excellent, Borka was still a 10-year-old little girl.

It was natural to be scared seeing a monster that didn’t die even while being burned by magma, but rather tried to intimidate her.

On such Borka’s shoulder.

Someone’s hand was placed.

Borka, who had been deeply concentrating, turned her head in surprise.

“You did well.”

“Ethan-nim?”

It was Ethan, who had approached with Greg’s support.

“It must have been hard, but you showed courage.”

Ethan gently patted Borka’s head as if proud of her and.

“Let’s finish this.”

He held up his sword emitting fierce light.

“You coward!”

“Who’s the coward! The stagnant water pretending to be weak in front of a newbie is more cowardly, you bastard!”

Targan swung his greatsword at Ethan who was rushing in fiercely, but.

“Where do you think!”

Borka doubled the output.

Her pupils shook and cold sweat flowed.

She was on the verge of collapsing due to the overload on her body from refining and using a vast amount of rough mana on the spot without a single mana stone, but.

“Hang in there!”

Elyssia’s two hands touched Borka’s back.

Knowing that divine power disrupts mana, Elyssia didn’t use her skill, but.

Realizing it was her friend who supported her when she was about to collapse, Borka was able to grit her teeth and endure.

“Aaaagh!!!”

As Borka’s <Magma Prison> constricted him even more strongly, his movements were disrupted.

Targan failed to block the strike he should have blocked.

-Swoosh!!!

A trail of light stretched long where the Sword of the Divine Tree passed.

“Kaha!”

Targan fell with a thud, letting out his death throes.

Ethan walked over step by step and.

Lifted the head of the pathetically fallen demon race.

“We’ve defeated him!!!”

“Wooooah!!!”

The soldiers’ morale soared high enough to pierce the ground.

The stone worms that had climbed up proudly began to be repelled one after another.

Ethan held out his hand to Borka and said.

“Now, Borka. Shall we go together?

“…What?”

Borka was perplexed.

‘Why are you being so nice to me?’

Of course, while learning magic from Teacher Yuria, she learned that southern people don’t despise mages.

But she had only learned it in words, and the contempt and criticism she had received while using magic so far were deeply engraved in her mind.

She didn’t mind using simple magic in front of the friends she met after following Albert.

That’s why Borka liked her friends.

But she still couldn’t fully trust Ethan.

The expression he showed when she was riding Dolly around the yard wasn’t much different from that of other adults.

So she was reluctant to step forward this time too.

If she used big and dangerous magic recklessly, wouldn’t they fear her as a ‘witch’ or ‘cursed child’?

That’s what she was worried about.

To protect the warm home she had finally obtained.

Because she wanted to settle down from her long wandering life and stay with her precious friends for a long time.

Borka tried not to use magic.

Magic had always only brought sadness to Borka.

But Ethan, whom Levi praised so much, was pushed back by the horned monster.

Why?

Looking closely, he kept glancing behind, so Borka came to think ‘He can’t fight with all his strength because of us.’

While feeling Ethan’s warmth.

She felt ashamed of her past behavior of acting gruffly, thinking he was still untrustworthy, and greedily focusing only on cookies.

Ethan was pushing himself, her friends were trembling in fear, and though it served Levi right to some extent, she didn’t want her to die.

In the end, Borka mustered up the courage to be hated.

She used magic to bind the enemy’s feet and enlarged the golem to face the monsters.

Finally, the enemy was defeated, and the time to be hated had come.

But.

“Now, Borka. Shall we go together?”

“…What?”

Borka couldn’t understand.

Ethan didn’t look surprised or make a harsh expression like that day.

Instead, he smiled brightly and gripped Borka’s hand tightly.

“Let’s go finish this. I need you.”

He was saying he needed her.

“Why?”

She couldn’t understand.

Using magic should bring contempt.

It should be normal for people to be surprised and wary when dangerous magic is used.

Ethan didn’t seem surprised at all.

“Because we can save people with Borka’s power?”

Saving people.

Elyssia alleviated the pain of the wounded and brought peace to their minds and bodies.

She had just watched that from the side.

“My magic can save people?”

“Of course. Didn’t you just save me?”

She had never thought of it that way.

No, more precisely, once in the past.

When she saved a child who had fallen into a well, she thought so.

-I can save them with my magic!

The aftermath was so cold and painful that Borka had buried it deep in her heart.

As the memory of that day came to mind, her eyes naturally turned red.

“R-Really?”

“Yes. Because Borka is a good child.”

A good child.

Not cold and sharp words like witch, cursed child, or disgusting girl.

It was a soft and pleasant word.

Borka nodded while sniffling.

“Okay!”

The tip of Borka’s staff shone and.

The mana wrapped around it passed judgment on the stone worms.

The subjugation team rode the momentum to successfully eliminate the 3rd colony with ease.

The long subjugation battle came to an end.

“Ow ow ow, it hurts. Ouch! Don’t grab my tail!”

“Hehehe.”

Hwaryon was playing with Ponya’s tail, who had just regained consciousness.

They were both fine as if it was unbelievable that they had just fought a fierce battle.

Both body and mind.

“Are you awake now?”

“Levi unni~”

As Hwaryon hugged Levi.

Ponya asked.

“Is it all cleared up?”

“That’s right.”

“Phew, thank goodness. I was honestly a bit scared until I collapsed.”

Just before entering the battle, Levi gave one instruction to Hwaryon and Ponya.

-Don’t kill the opponent, but lose moderately.

When asked why, the answer was:

-It seems He wants to see the talents of the new children.

Ponya understood that immediately.

That was also the reason Ethan took her to the labyrinth.

As a result, it led to salvation for Ponya in the form of reunion with her parents.

“I knew you’d do well, but it’s more amazing than I thought?”

For even Levi to admire like this.

Ponya nodded, thinking ‘I guess so~’

And when she turned her head.

“W-What…”

Traces of melting and hardening all over the cave.

Countless stone worm corpses strewn around.

And even the miserable corpse of the fallen demon race.

Even at a glance, traces of a terrifying battle entered her eyes, and Ponya was appalled.

Levi explained with a smile on her face.

“That’s the kind of being mages are. If they have talent, they can move mountains and twist rivers. Terrifying beings.”

Only then did she realize whose doing it was.

“Borka.”

Ponya instinctively felt threatened by the result achieved by the soul rival she would have clashed with on the battlefield in the distant future if not for Ethan’s intervention.

‘No way. It’s hard enough to reach Levi unni, but there was another being this strong?’

A momentary sense of helplessness.

And then a burning sense of competition blazed up in Ponya’s heart.

‘I have to work harder.’

To reach the realm of ‘Sword Master’.

That she had once heard from Sir Rashid.

The iron ore mining site where the 3rd colony was located.

Ethan advanced in the direction the first root of the World Tree was pointing.

It was a dark and ominous place, but.

“<Light>.”

Thanks to Borka clinging tightly to his side, there was no need to fumble in the darkness.

“Well done, Borka.”

“Hehehe.”

After going down a passage in the corner for a while, artificial stairs appeared.

Going down those.

“Found it.”

Another root emitting red light on top of an altar.