Stone fragments shaped like spears appeared in the air.
Soon after, flames began to ignite on each of these stone fragments.
"Slowly. Now maintain it. Don't let the mana arrangement falter. The flames are weakening right now. Think of it as slowly infusing more mana to maintain a steady flow..."
Berial's words shook my already confused mind.
What I'm doing right now is maintaining the mana and distributing its power.
"Ugh."
I tried to hold on as best I could.
For Dark Magic, due to my Gifted talent, I could perform Double Casting, but for Elemental Magic, even composite spells that mixed magic with magic were difficult. Of course, without my mana talent, I wouldn't even have attempted such training.
"Now, you're doing well. Let's add an incantation to it."
"Yes?"
Instantly, my focus wavered, causing the Rock Sphere to tremble.
However, I quickly regained my concentration.
"There should still be some mana left. Slowly draw the incantation for Wind Cutter using the remaining mana. Don't draw it separately—just gently add it to the existing magic that's floating around."
It sounds easy enough in words, as if anyone could become a high-level magician this way.
But if you think of it as a kind of training, I began to slowly add the new incantation as instructed.
'First, arrange the mana...'
Fwoosh.
The flames extinguished.
It seemed I had overestimated myself.
It was probably too much.
The Headmaster was not one to know what "just enough" meant.
Certainly, in Berial's eyes, teaching me directly probably wasn't a concern.
But what could I do? You were the one who wanted me to do this.
"Start again. Listen carefully. When arranging mana, you don't necessarily have to arrange it sequentially. Ultimately, it just needs to take shape in the desired form. So, for now, after instinctively identifying the easiest parts to stack, add the mana..."
Surprisingly, despite being a genius, Berial was quite good at providing guidance.
One could say he excelled in teaching.
Even when it came to instructing in magic, it felt like he was giving lessons to a prodigy.
—Ring!
[Talent 'Elemental Magic (Master)' acquired.]
[Talent 'Elemental Magic - Water Affinity (Intermediate)' will be deleted.]
[Conditions have been met.]
[An evolvable entity has been detected.]
Once again, while I was attempting the composite magic from before, a strange sound filled my ears, and my vision was obscured. Suddenly, a status window popped up, breaking my concentration and canceling the magic.
"Adrias student, your focus seems to be lacking today."
"I apologize."
I quickly apologized and continued reading the newly appeared notifications.
[Adrias Cromwell's Talent: Evolution Possibility of Elemental Magic (Master) - 30%]
[Would you like to proceed with evolution?]
I was astonished.
Finally, I had obtained a major magic-related talent.
And what's more, it seemed that the experience I had gained until now had already pushed the evolution possibility beyond 30%.
Immediately, I decided to test it out by using magic.
With the acquisition of the Elemental Magic (Master) talent, the synergy between my pre-existing mana talent and the new Elemental Magic talent made the composite magic I had failed at earlier become much easier to create.
"...?"
Suddenly, I felt Berial's sharp gaze on me.
It might seem strange, but since he was observing, I couldn't discern any unusual aspects from his perspective.
"Headmaster, is this correct?"
"Excellent. Teaching you feels worthwhile."
He nodded casually and observed the magic I had created.
Then, he checked his pocket watch and raised his head.
"Adrias, I have a prior engagement today, so I'll have to leave first. Let's conclude our instruction here."
"Yes. Thank you."
Although it was an unexpected interruption, it wasn't something unusual.
In fact, it was about time to wrap things up.
'Finishing instruction right after successfully casting magic is quite obvious, but...'
With that, I could sense the conclusion of our lesson.
He's such an enigmatic person, so I should just let it be.
After all, I had my own appointment with Lucia.
As I was about to bid farewell, Berial swiftly used his original magic and disappeared from my sight. If only that sudden action wasn't there, I might have been able to adapt a little.
'No need to adapt, really.'
There's no point in adapting to Berial.
I stopped pondering and headed towards my private research room where Lucia was waiting.
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"Dianne?"
As I arrived in front of my designated research room, I blurted out a word.
In front of the research room, Lucia, who still seemed half-asleep, and Dianne, who was in the middle of a conversation with her, turned to look at me.
"Ah, senior. You're here."
Lucia pretended to know me first, and as my name was called, Diene turned her head elegantly to face me.
"Adrias Cromwell. Why did you come so late?"
"Sorry... I mean, why are you here, Dianne?"
"Coincidentally, I ran into Lucia and heard that you two are conducting some research together. I was curious, so I followed along."
I turned my gaze back to Lucia, who seemed a bit embarrassed, but did she really think she could just brush it off like that?
"Is it alright?"
I asked Lucia if it was okay to show Dianne our research, implying that I would reveal our work to her.
Considering that we were working on developing her cure, her opinion mattered.
Lucia checked Diene's reaction and then approached me, whispering softly into my ear.
"Maybe getting help from Senior Dianne would speed things up? Plus, she's Lord Bart's daughter. If it were to be known to Lord Bart, perhaps we could receive some assistance?"
Her words sent a tickling sensation to my ear.
She wasn't entirely wrong.
But still, Dianne is quite proficient in magic, and Bart, well, he's a formidable archmage; mentioning this might just hurt more than it helps.
"What's this? Am I being excluded because it's just the two of you? Am I being bullied?"
"No, senior. Please join us."
Lucia giggled and flattered Dianne, an unusual sight. It was quite a sight to see someone who can bend and adapt so easily. Yet, there's something unsettling about being able to do that at any time.
"By the way, now that I think about it, this is my private research room..."
As I uttered a word, both women's gazes were fixed on me, making me feel uneasy.
I awkwardly turned away and quickly opened the door to the research room.
"I should tidy up a bit."
As Dianne entered, she immediately noticed the mess inside the research room and rolled up her sleeves.
Indeed, over the past month, Lucia's personal items, scattered trash, and unorganized materials had ended up strewn about everywhere.
I wasn't particularly meticulous about tidying up, given my personality, so I simply left things as they were and focused on research. However, Dianne immediately started cleaning and organizing.
"Wow, it's a good thing Senior Dianne came with us."
"Am I the janitor here? Hurry up and help with the tidying!"
Upon Dianne's words, both Lucia and I began tidying up together.
A while later, with a clean and organized research room, Dianne nodded in satisfaction while Lucia seemed to have melted into a slump, as if she had turned into a noodle.
"Shall we get to work now? Can you show me the research notes and journals?"
Lucia, who had been slouched, quickly stood up and brought over a journal.
Since I already knew the ingredients that went into Lucia's cure, revealing them to Dianne wouldn't likely yield significant results. However, it was worth noting that an intelligent helper had joined the effort.
'In the end, I have to continue calculating various possibilities, so having one more person is beneficial.'
Moreover, we had already achieved quite a bit over the past month.
With just a bit more progress, my potion talent would be honed, and I'd be able to create the cure.
After glancing through the journal, Dianne nodded her head.
"Creating unique potions, is it? Some kind of remedy? Interesting. Let's get started."
Having Dianne, who was practically a broken record, here made the research room feel complete.
I wondered if this sensation was only in my head or if others were feeling it too. Lucia's eyes sparkled, sending an eager gaze towards Dianne.
So, we started our research and continued until late into the night.
With Dianne's addition, the level of immersion in the research went up a notch.
"Let's call it a day for now."
When Dianne spoke, Lucia woke up with a surprised expression and stretched lazily.
Who is the one creating the cure right now? Why do you look so refreshed?
"Adrias."
"Yes?"
"How's the upcoming evaluation? Are you confident?"
"I just have to do my best."
Do your best and make it to the top.
I'll make sure to take the treasure your great-grandfather left behind.
Of course, that's a fact not known to Dianne or the Alben family.
So, you can drink without worry.
"It's already tomorrow, isn't it?"
I wish I could have evolved my elemental magic talent a bit further, but oh well.
Still, I'm fortunate to have prepared various new potions in advance for the evaluation.
The byproducts from making Lucia's cure turned out to be useful for potion talents, which evolved into a prodigious talent, making it easy to create potions.
Dianne chuckled at my vague response.
"Yeah, that's what I expected you to say. Let's wrap it up and head in. I'm getting hungry."
"Oh! In that case, let's have a dinner gathering. You know, Senior Adrias and I have dinner together every week."
At Lucia's words, Dianne exchanged suspicious glances between me and Lucia.
"Just the two of you? You... No, it's not my place to say."
What was she trying to say?
It's probably not something very important.
With that, we left with our new research member, Dianne, heading toward Alben Street.
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Squeak!
A sharp energy emanated from the sword as it was wielded with unwavering precision.
The scene seemed to reflect the resolute heart of the person holding the sword.
"Hoo."
Louis Artman lowered the sword slowly and straightened his posture.
Surveying his surroundings, he saw many students engaged in their individual training.
'They're not here again today.'
At some point, both Serena and Chris had disappeared from sight.
Serena always wanted to train together, and Chris used to flaunt his skills. But at some point, they started avoiding the public training ground.
'They said they had a sparring session with Senior Adrias.'
I had been curious about the reason and had asked Serena. She said that after her sparring session with Adrias, she had started using the private training room. The reason behind her shift to private training had intrigued me, but I was also surprised to hear that she had actually sparred with Adrias.
'The request I made was not accepted. They said he sparred against Serena and Chris together. If I had asked to spar with them, would he have accepted since it was two against one?'
I heard that they had faced a 2v1 challenge and still suffered a humiliating defeat.
Even Louis himself wouldn't think of challenging Serena and Chris together, so hearing that he defeated them handily was indeed remarkable.
The sense of danger he had felt during his initial challenge was clearly not unfounded.
'But I'm going to meet Senior Adrias soon. I should strike up a conversation with him again.'
Tomorrow was the day of the midterm evaluation.
Coincidentally, or perhaps fated, he had been assigned to work with the fourth-year students from the Magic Department.
Among those fourth-year students were Dianne Alben, the tournament champion, and Adrias Cromwell, the recently talked-about magic swordsman.
'I'm really looking forward to it.'
Though they had encountered each other during the Academy's events, they hadn't had many opportunities to interact due to being divided into different departments. However, there was a chance they could work together during this evaluation period.
He wouldn't know for sure until the evaluation's details were announced, but Louis wasn't losing hope.
'To prepare for tomorrow, I should head in early.'
As Louis prepared to leave, the other Knight Department students who were training around him turned their attention towards him. Being a prominent figure within the Academy, his presence naturally attracted attention.
Exchanging polite greetings with those around him, Louis headed back to the dormitory.