Elena watched the girl sitting upright on the sofa with curiosity.
A reformer in magical potionology, a pioneer in the field of magic, an unparalleled genius of the Holy Capital, a once-in-a-millennium Great Magician—Lady Kelly—now had her eyes slightly narrowed.
She crossed her legs, revealing white silk stockings beneath her robe, and carefully sipped a cup of freshly brewed tea.
Although Kelly herself didn’t have the habit of drinking tea, in front of her future disciple, it was necessary to strike a pose and leave a small, unfathomable, mysterious, and charming impression.
“So, Elena. This little one will be your next magic teacher——”
Meeting Elena’s puzzled gaze, Fen grinned and patted Kelly on the head.
The “Great Magician aura” she had built up for less than two minutes—mysterious, powerful, charming, and dangerous—was ruthlessly shattered by Fen.
Kelly immediately became like an angry cat with its fur standing on end and protested to Fen in dissatisfaction:
“Hey——don’t pat my head like I’m a child!”
“I’m the famous Great Magician of the Holy Capital! I’ve learned more spells than you’ve eaten meals!”
The scene of the purple-haired little girl waving her fists and shouting was hardly convincing.
“Senior! Y-you’re actually that renowned Great Magician Kelly!”
The silver-haired girl’s eyes sparkled with admiration.
“Wh-what did you call me…?”
“S-senior…? Or… Master?”
Elena asked hesitantly, worried she had said something wrong.
“I’ve heard of Master before! The new potion Master concocted helped many injured members of the Knight Order…”
“Ahem…”
Seeing that Elena was about to let something slip, Fen quickly stopped her.
The two of them looked at Kelly worriedly—she had her head lowered, back hunched, body trembling slightly, her expression unreadable.
‘Oh no… Did Kelly… figure something out?’
“Wuwuwu——”
Kelly looked up, her eyes brimming with tears, as if she were truly a crying child.
“?”
“Ten… ten years… Finally… finally someone called me senior——”
“Those nasty women at the Magic Association… they only call me little one… little cutie…”
‘So that’s it…’
“My position is higher than theirs… and my seniority is greater than these little girls…”
‘So the Great Magician is actually that easy to please…’
Fen silently complained in his heart.
“…”
…
Kelly finally stopped crying.
The three of them carried heavy books into the study, and the first lesson was about to begin soon.
“Just now you said… senior… so how old are you really?”
Fen put down the magic book and looked at the girl again.
“Asking a lady’s age is very rude, Tin Can.”
Kelly glared back at him crossly.
“Tsk——pretending to be young as expected.”
“You should learn a thing or two from your little sister.”
Kelly pointed at the silver-haired girl sitting obediently on her knees nearby.
“Eh!?” The girl was flattered.
“Same siblings… but what a difference…”
“Hmph, I’m not good at saying insincere things.”
Fen found it quite fun to tease Kelly.
“My sister is just too kind—so kind that she tells a little white lie…”
“You!…”
“F-Fen… um… Brother!”
“It’s getting late… Don’t you have duty to attend to? Hurry and go——”
Seeing that Kelly was about to start again, Elena quickly intervened and pushed Fen out of the study like shooing away a chick, physically separating the two bickering parties.
“M-Master! My brother is just like that… Please don’t mind what he said…”
Hearing the girl call her “Master” so naturally, Kelly nodded with satisfaction.
“Not bad——very well-mannered… As for your brother…”
Kelly glanced out the window; Fen had already left the house.
“Hmph, if only he could be a little sweeter-tongued like you——”
“Alright, alright—enough small talk. Let’s start the lesson.”
Staring into the silver-haired girl’s expectant eyes, Kelly cleared her throat and brought the topic back on track.
“Your brother said you’re a beginner, so I need to explain some basic magic concepts to you.”
“First, we need to understand that humans are not creators. Magic can never create something out of nothing.”
‘Magic can’t create things?’
Before awakening her mana, Elena envied those who could use magic the most—summoning wind and rain, capable of anything.
But now her teacher told her this wasn’t accurate.
Seeming satisfied with Elena’s surprised reaction, Kelly smugly continued.
“In this land, no matter where you go, ‘mana’ exists—gentle water elements, restless fire elements, cold ice elements, shining light elements… and so on. Their only difference is their concentration in the air, varying by region and terrain. So, those various, magical-technique-like spells are essentially humanity’s utilization of nature——”
“Master——”
Hearing this, Elena raised her hand in confusion and asked the question that had been bothering her for years.
“Since ‘mana’ exists everywhere on the Aetherial Continent, as you said, why can some people use magic as easily as you say, while others spend their whole lives with mana and yet never get a glimpse of the door to magic?”
“Heh heh, it’s simple——”
Kelly waved her hand.
“Everyone has ‘magic circuits’ inside their body that can resonate with different elements and then release them in different ways. Some people have smoother magic circuits, so they are naturally better at using elements. Some have average aptitude, with more blocked circuits, so they must gradually unblock and develop their circuits through later training. And some… their circuits are even necrotic… that cannot be changed after birth… In fact——it’s unfortunate… these people are naturally cut off from magic…”
“It’s like the molds used in a blacksmith’s shop to cast weapons—every person is like a ‘mold’ created by the Goddess. Some are born as superior, well-fitting products, able to convert mana into sharp weapons, even immortal divine arms. But some unfortunate people are like clumsy rejects accidentally created when the blacksmith’s mind wandered—from the moment of birth, these defective waste products are doomed never to be forged into weapons.”
Recalling the time when she herself had no magic and struggled every step, mocked everywhere, Elena knew it must be painful.
‘I was a noble back then… and it was still like this. What about those truly at the bottom of society who have no magic?’
“How… cruel…”
The silver-haired girl’s tone held a hint of pity and unwillingness.
“Alright, alright——”
Kelly, whose little girl stature was about twenty centimeters shorter than Elena’s, had to stand on tiptoe and awkwardly pat her shoulder.
“This doesn’t concern us. Your brother told me your magic aptitude is pretty good…”
Kelly pulled a perfectly round and crystal-clear “big glass ball” from her robe and placed it on the desk.
“Place your hand on the crystal ball. Whichever color of element gathers, that’s the element you’re best suited to learn…”
“What’s this?”
“This is a magic crystal ball for testing aptitude. It ‘imprisons’ all the known elements on the Aetherial Continent…”
When it came to her area of expertise, Kelly’s mouth never stopped in excitement.
She eagerly explained the principle to her disciple.
“Place your hand on it, and the elements that resonate with your body will be ‘awakened,’ gathering together to form a visible color. — In other words, this magic ball tests which element is more ‘obedient’ to you and which one your body can handle more skillfully…”
Elena carefully placed her fair hands on the ball.
The crystal ball was cool…
That was Elena’s first thought, but soon she felt a faint heat source emanating from the center of the ball—and it was becoming scalding.
“Oh——here it comes!” Kelly cheered.
The magic ball began to tremble gently.
The transparent interior suddenly became turbid, with all kinds of substances mixing together, but then they separated again soon—finally forming a very dazzling golden color.
“It’s the light element, and it’s abundant.”
Kelly nodded in satisfaction.
“It seems that kid Fen didn’t lie to me… Your aptitude is indeed high.”
“Light element, huh…”
She lowered her head and pondered.
“Light element magic is mostly healing and support… Let me think what to teach you first…”
“W-wait!? Master!?”
The sudden exclamation from Elena startled Kelly.
“Hey… don’t be so jumpy like Fen…”
She looked up and saw an unforgettable sight.
The silver-haired girl’s hand was about to withdraw from the ball, but unexpectedly the crystal ball suddenly shook violently, causing the desk to tremble as well.
Then, the dazzling golden light inside the crystal ball gradually faded, becoming soft and calm.
The inside of the ball became chaotic again, but in the end, the various elements subtly ceased intertwining and settled into their own positions.
“Th-this… impossible…”
The Great Magician’s mutterings of disbelief reached her ears.
‘In theory… even if a person has good affinity with many elements, the magic ball should only select the element they are strongest in…’
However, inside the ball, all kinds of elements had gathered simultaneously, forming a rainbow of colors that Kelly had never seen before.
As if soothed by Elena’s hands, the elements no longer tussled with each other but instead, like obedient children listening to their mother, arranged themselves distinctly in different colors.
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