One week later, Edol's control over his new earthen ability had increased greatly. After consistently practicing every night, he had managed to come up with a battle style that fits this weak earth magic.
With a single thought, a small knob shot up from the ground two meters away. At this distance, it seemed impossible to control the shape of the displaced earth, but that didn't phase him.
A few meters out of his attack range stood Ugly. In the last week, Edol had been subject to constant verbal attacks from the demon.
"Oi goblin, how do you like that gift? Are you going to use your "Humanity's mastery of magic" on me today, or is it still just as useless as you?"
The demon spit a wad of phlegm from the side of his mouth, then wielded his sword and advanced on Edol. Despite all his mocking, Ugly knew he needed to be wary of his foe. After fighting constantly for over a month, Edol could no longer be considered a rookie.
Edol brandished an earthen spike of his own creation, shaped into the form of a dagger. It was much easier to grip and use than the randomly shaped earth spike remnants from Ugly's past magic.
A light sigh fell from the human's mouth as his focus topped out, every bit of his being was focused on this incoming nemesis.
Five meters…
Three meters…
Almost there…
The instant Ugly stepped into the two-meter radius around Edol, the young man sprang into action. All of his mana rushed out from where it had been waiting in his left foot, shooting to the ground left of where Ugly's next step would land. Edol lunged towards the demon's right shoulder, and his enemy quickly sidestepped left. Edol's left side was entirely open, but a triumphant grin covered his face.
Ugly's foot landed on the ground, preparing to pivot his weight into a slash at Edol… but there was no friction. The once firm dirt had turned to slick mud, and even Ugly's rough feet stood no chance of gripping onto the soil. The demon felt something tear as his legs spread apart in an unexpected splits.
"AAAAAH!!! My crotch! Sadistic bastard, I will kill you!"
A moment later, the demon respawned.
"48."
Ugly glared at Edol but then shifted his gaze toward the ground warily. It wasn't hard for him to figure out what had happened- Edol's magic had softened up the ground beneath his foot, resulting in his unfortunate demise.
"I'm not sure why you look so joyful, goblin. With that trash legacy, you only have one shot at tripping me up each time you die. You will never catch up to my score!"
The demon charged back at Edol, not paying any attention to the ground. After all, he had given Edol a small portion of his own legacy. Ugly naturally knew how much mana Edol possessed, and knew that his last attack had to have used up all of his energy.
"Die, gobli- Ack!!!"
A small knob had appeared right as the demon stepped down, and the uneven ground caused him to trip, twisting his ankle. With Edol's new experience fighting, there was no way he would let his injured foe fight on any longer.
"49."
"What the hell is going on?!? Tell me how you're doing that, goblin!"
Inside Edol, the tiny whirlpool circled vigorously, pulling in what little mana resided in the dim red realm. Thanks to its tiny capacity, Edol's energy was completely refilled in just a moment.
'Now that I think about it, Ugly here always seems to run out of steam after using mana. Even after a night of rest, he hardly recovers any mana at all.'
In the past week of practicing and learning magic alone, it had completely enchanted him. All of his past mathematics and science courses knowledge floated to the top of his brain as he tried to define what exactly this mana was.
For the most part, it seemed to act as energy, almost like electricity. When directing it mentally, it was able to move through his body smoothly but faced much greater resistance when pushed through the ground.
Similarly, copper is a great conductor of electricity. Edol's body was copper to the mana, allowing it to flow around freely. The earth still conducted the energy, but with much more resistance, while the air stopped the mana nearly in its place, acting as an insulator.
'So then other elements can be conducted by different materials? Ugly has even made fire from nothing, so I don't think it is as simple as this.'
A spark of curiosity had already been lit inside Edol, and he needed to learn more.
"Oi Ugly!" Edol lifted up his foot, showing off his sturdy steel-toed boot, eliciting a shiver of fear from the demon, "Teach me more about magic."