On that same day, Linfel was asked to give it a try with their latest prototype. The development of that new rune was still a ways off, but with the acquisition of someone like Linfel, the tests went smoothly, giving much better results and data than expected.
As the day drew to a close, Linfel departed from the Vaxwel Research Facility, having been a key part of various tests in Wosley, Comat, and Philia's projects. Despite the rigorous work, a sense of contentment washed over him as he glanced at his MCOM and saw the additional 1000 Academy Credits credited to his name. This amount, a testament to his hard work, would be added daily, regardless of whether there was a task for him or not.
'Too bad they don't work during weekends. Otherwise, it would get 7000 per week. Still, 5000 per week is way more than one could expect,' Linfel thought excitedly.
Returning to the Academy, Linfel went straight to Alvin's room, although he still wasn't back. "Hum? Where is he?"
*Plin!*
Suddenly, a message reached his MCOM. "Oh! So, he is still in the Floating Blades Faction. Uh? A party? And I should come too? Hum..." Linfel pondered about it for a moment. He didn't really have an interest in things like that. "Oh well, whatever. I can't do anything without Alvin and Felia here anyway."
Arriving at the Floating Blades Faction, Linfel ws quickly received by the attendant of that time. "Linfel, they are on the third floor. You can just go direct there."
Linfel nodded and went up. When he finally entered the room, everyone's eyes turned to him.
"Linfel!" Pamil immediately came forward. "Is that true?! Was it really you who helped William?"
"Hum?" Linfel nodded. "Well, I did give him a little push. But I only showed him what his body was already capable of doing. Ultimately, he Leveled up on his own."
William got close and bowed to Linfel, something extremely rare to see from him. "Thank you. You were right. I am indeed able to use the top and bottom meridians to keep a flow of Magic Energy going in and out. I always cursed this dwarf body of mine, but it turns out it isn't completely useless."
Natalie immediately spoke. "Completely useless? You are doing something none of us can. We all can only absorb or withdraw our Magic Energy at a time. Doing both means you could even fight forever as long as you have Magic Stones to replenish yourself. It is amazing!"
She looked at Linfel right after. "He told me how you controlled the Magic Energy inside his body. Although it is possible to be done as long as he kept his Core open to outsiders, it is still not an easy feat."
Linfl just waved his hand. "It is nothing that impressive as you all put it. I told you, he already could do it naturally. I only intervened to show him his own capabilities. Besides, it is not so overpowered as Natalie is putting it."
He turned to William. "If you go into combat and keep absorbing and drawing your Magic Energy all the time, you will only be capable of showing half of the strength of a normal Magus at the same level. After all, half of your Meridians will be occupied absorbing Magic Energy. I don't find it a good idea. At such moments, direct clashes are commonplace. Suppose you have to revert the flow of Magic Energy of half of your meridians at the last moment to match your opponent's power. In that case, you will most likely be vulnerable. It is truly not worth the risk."
"This..." The others hadn't thought about that possibility. Indeed, the power you can show using only half of your meridians will obviously be much lower than your enemy.
William wasn't surprised, though. "Yes, I'm aware of this flaw. It will all come up to how well I can adapt to this newfound method. I've never been the type to rush things, so I will take my time and will definitely not try such risks."
"That's good for all of us then," Linfel smiled and nodded.
"Anyway!" pamil intervened once again. "We are here to congratulate William for achieving Level Three. Let's party!"
*WoW!*
As they commemorated, Alvin took a chance to pull Linfel to a corner. He then used his Magic Energy to guide his voice so that only Linfel would hear. "Linfel, you didn't use Master Familiar Connection with him, right?"
"Of course not!" Linfel quickly shook his head. "What I did was completely different from Master Familiar Connection. Our Magic Energies never merged, nor did I match his Soul Waves Frequency. First of all, you don't need to open your Core to use Master Familiar Connection. Doing so leaves your Magic Energy exposed to anyone who wants to mess with it. Master Familiar Connections would be meaningless if such a thing was necessary."
Alvin sighed in relief. "Then that's good." Alvin then looked at William, who, although he didn't smile much, seemed to be quite relaxed. "Pamil told me about William's condition. You truly did a great deed, Linfel. I'm happy to be your friend."
Linfel smiled in response. "And I'm happy to have found people like you and your father." It was then that Linfel asked. "By the way, did you get to talk to Milia already?"
"Yes," Alvin nodded, feeling even happier. "I still don't know why she avoided me before, but she seems to be back to normal. Well, that means she is back to being her cold self, but it is better than being ignored."
"Hey, Linfel!" Pamil called him over. "Come here."
Linfel could only go. "What is it?"
"This help you gave William. Would it be possible to help others, too?" Pamil asked, curious. Naturally, that attracted the attention of the others.
"Help others?" Linfel pondered a bit. "It depends, I guess? I only showed William what he already could do. Is there something you can't do that would need my help guiding Magic Energy?"
"Hum..." Pamil couldn't think of a use for that, indeed. "Not really..."
"There you go." Linfel shrugged again.
And yet, no one noticed, but Rin's eyes shined as she looked at Linfel after she heard his words.