Chapter 34 : Chapter 34

Chapter 34

After returning from Pasquier, Eddie visited the academy’s mana training ground every night.

Thanks to Marcel keeping his distance, he had freedom of movement, and Leodimir needed time to investigate the Mana Bloodstones.

That time couldn’t be wasted.

Eddie devoted every moment to personal training.

Whoosh—Crackle!

Boom—Crack!

Seven spells burst consecutively from Eddie’s wand.

All were 3-star or lower, compliant with academy regulations.

They were basic for Eddie, but such training had value.

Being simple spells, he could cast them instinctively, pushing himself to the limit.

Anger, frustration, sadness, and regret.

These emotions clouded his vision and muddled his mind, but this training was the best way to drive them out.

Eddie filled the training ground with 3-star spells, refining his precision.

Swish—Boom!

Zzt—Whoosh!

Striking a massive ice wall with a flame whip, Eddie vaporized it.

He cleared the resulting steam with a single swish.

“Phew…”

Regulating his breathing, Eddie assessed the mana flowing through him.

‘9:50 p.m.’

Soon, all students would need to return to the dorms.

Eddie used restoration magic to tidy the disheveled training ground and prepared to leave.

But then—

“…What’s that?”

He sensed mana nearby.

His head turned toward it.

“…The Ninth Training Ground.”

Gauging the mana briefly, he cloaked himself and left the training ground.

He had a hunch about who was casting magic there at this hour and why.

***

Swish—Boom!

Swish—Clang! Clang!

Joy’s wand unleashed spells with unsteady force.

Swish—

With a stern expression, she swung her wand at a training puppet.

But—

Zzt—Boom!

The blue lightning from her wand missed the puppet, striking the floor beside it.

“Ugh… Damn it…”

Joy closed her eyes tightly, sighing.

Her grip on the wand tightened instinctively.

She’d never resented a wand’s disobedience more.

“Fooled again…”

The day before the entrance ceremony, Joy had scraped together all her savings to buy a wand from the black market.

The seller swore it wasn’t defective or illegally modified.

Unlike before, it came in a fancy case, so she handed over her money, believing it was her last chance.

But it was another scam.

“Even after being tricked, I went back to them. That’s my fault.”

For the first week at the academy, the wand worked fine.

But a few days ago, its range and power began deviating from her calculations.

At first, she thought it was her miscalculation and swung more carefully.

But after a few more tries, it was clear.

Grind.

Her teeth gritted in frustration.

‘Tomorrow’s the deadline for Professor Arno’s report…’

She couldn’t even hit a puppet properly, let alone spar with another student.

At this rate, she couldn’t write a decent report.

Joy glared at her wand with resentment.

But she steeled herself and adjusted her stance.

‘Let’s try again.’

As she raised her wand toward the puppet—

“No matter how many times you try with that wand, it’s useless.”

A firm voice stopped her.

Startled, Joy whipped around toward the voice.

There stood Eddie, arms crossed, watching her.

“H-How are you there? I didn’t sense any presence!”

“That’s not the important part right now.”

Brushing off her question, Eddie strode toward the flustered Joy.

He took her wand and swung it lightly at the puppet.

Swish—

…Boom!

The wand emitted mana seconds after Eddie’s swish.

Even at a glance, it was severely defective.

Eddie had always believed a great mage didn’t need a perfect wand, but this was absurd.

Chuckling in disbelief, he rolled Joy’s wand in his hand.

“Where on earth did you get this ridiculous thing?”

“…”

Joy’s expression hardened at his reaction.

Snatch!

She roughly took her wand back.

This was the second time she’d shown such an embarrassing side to a contemptible tail.

She was angrier about that than the malfunctioning wand.

Coldly, she snapped, “It’s none of your business, so can you leave?”

“Sorry, but it is my business. If you used that wand in a sparring class, someone could get killed.”

Despite her hostility, Eddie didn’t back down.

His blunt words made Joy flinch.

“…!”

She froze, facing the puppet.

Humiliation mixed with a touch of sorrow, and she bit her lip harder.

“You’re practicing against the puppet for the assignment, right? You know using that wand in a real duel could be disastrous.”

“…”

Joy remained silent instead of answering.

But both knew her silence was affirmation.

“I’ll help you. I needed a sparring partner for my assignment anyway.”

“…Why would you?”

“What?”

“Don’t you have to serve your young master? Isn’t it a tail’s job to assist noble heirs with their assignments or training?”

“…”

It was the longest Joy had ever spoken to him.

Eddie looked at her, then nodded as if realizing something.

“I see. That’s why you’ve been so hostile despite barely knowing me.”

“What?”

“You don’t dislike me. You dislike tails.”

“…”

Joy’s silence confirmed it again.

The atmosphere in the training ground grew heavy.

Eddie broke the silence with action, not words.

Tap—

Pushing the puppet aside, he stood in its place, drawing his wand.

In a flat, emotionless tone, he said to Joy, “Whether you hate tails or not, I don’t care. But…”

Swish—Swish—

“…!”

“I can’t just watch the only student who grasped the assignment’s intent miss a learning opportunity because of a garbage wand.”

Speaking as he once did to his hotheaded disciples, Eddie swung his wand overhead.

Mana from his wand formed a dome large enough to enclose them.

Hide Mana.

Anti-Magic Hemisphere.

Stronger than the Anti-Magic Shell he’d used in Shainborough to retrieve his techniques, it perfectly shielded them.

“From now on, no magic cast inside this dome will escape.”

Eddie pointed his wand at Joy.

Her eyes widened, still processing the situation.

When he nodded toward her arm, she instinctively raised her wand.

Meeting her trembling red eyes, Eddie said firmly, “Swing your wand with all you’ve got. Opportunities like this don’t come often.”

.

.

.

…Whoosh… Flicker…

Blue flames flickered unstably at the tip of Joy’s wand.

Watching them threaten to flare or extinguish, Joy steadied her breathing.

The only way to control a defective wand was through a mage’s mana manipulation.

To fully control mana, she needed to regulate her breathing and focus entirely on her mana circle’s reactions.

“Hoo… Hah!”

With a short inhale, Joy swung her wand at Eddie.

…Zzt… Zzzt… Flash!

The 2-star fire spell Fleogor transformed into blue lightning and shot forward.

Eddie, noting the lightning’s mistimed release, moved his wand.

Whoosh—

The 3-star defensive spell Imbaibio.

Whoosh!

A shimmering barrier enveloped Eddie’s body.

Just before their spells clashed, Joy’s lightning veered suddenly.

It wasn’t aiming elsewhere.

Zzt… Boom!

It completely missed, striking the inner wall of the mana dome.

“…”

Joy bit her lip, staring at the mark left by her Fleogor.

Her calculations and mana control were utterly meaningless.

This was her third failure.

Despite meticulous calculations and control, her magic hadn’t come close to Eddie’s.

‘If this keeps up… forget the assignment, I might not even stay at the academy…’

As her wand grew more uncontrollable, the worst-case scenario flooded her mind.

Failure leading to repeating a year or expulsion.

Noble heirs might only face a repeat, but commoner students faced harsher penalties for failure.

Blood welled on her lips from frustration.

“Maybe you’re worried about hurting me,” Eddie’s firm voice cut through.

“You know it’s foolish to control your mana with a wand like that, right?”

“…!”

“You can’t even land a hit with full power because the range is off…”

Eddie tilted his head slightly.

“Yet you’re still holding back… Does that mean your full strength is so great you think I can’t block it?”

Swish—

Eddie aimed his wand at Joy again.

His expression showed no emotion as he looked at her startled face.

“I appreciate your concern, but now’s not the time for misplaced kindness. Give it everything you’ve got. Then I can help you.”

Flinch.

Joy gripped her wand tighter at his cold, resolute words.

Click—

She aimed at Eddie again.

But this time, something was different.

Without regulating her breathing, Joy drew maximum mana from her mana circle.

Her eyes glowed a vivid red with mana manipulation.

‘…That’s it.’

Eddie met her blazing eyes, certain his choice was right.

This was why he’d pegged Joy as a potential future Palamedes.

She must be brimming with questions about him.

His seasoned demeanor, as if he knew everything.

Why he suddenly approached and pushed her like this.

Above all, why he helped her despite her hostility.

She’d want answers, but Eddie didn’t give them easily.

Joy, too, chose to engage in the duel rather than demand explanations.

Instinctively, she knew this duel with Eddie was a rare chance to grow.

A chance she couldn’t miss.

‘Not bad.’

Golden light filled Eddie’s eyes as he met Joy’s red gaze.

When he told Leodimir he needed to grow stronger, he didn’t just mean personal strength.

He meant cultivating talents—regardless of age, gender, or background—more diverse than in his past life.

To raise them as reliable allies.

That was why Eddie risked revealing his power to her now.

“Hoo…”

Regulating his breathing, Eddie drew up his mana.

Mana Expansion to amplify his spells’ effects.

Layered with Piling, it boosted Imbaibio’s power.

Whoosh!

The barrier, previously just enveloping him, expanded to cover a wider area.

Seeing this, Joy chanted with resolve.

Unlike before, the haze from her wand lingered around her.

Then—

Zzt… Zzzt!

Dozens of blue sparks erupted from the haze.

Bright blue light speckled and illuminated the air.

“Hah!”

With a fierce shout, Joy swung her wand powerfully.

Zzzzt! Crack! Boom!

Dozens of lightning bolts shot toward Eddie.

He smirked, watching the onslaught.

‘Impressive. Far above her peers.’

Despite the defective wand causing over half the bolts to lose trajectory, it was a remarkable feat.

A typical student would be seriously injured by even one hit without a barrier.

And it wasn’t just power.

‘With full effort, her magic’s individuality is emerging.’

A mage with individuality.

This was crucial for Eddie, who saw Joy as a future ally and disciple.

Talents who went beyond standard spells to show unique traits.

Honing them to become unparalleled mages.

That was his approach in his past life and now.

Swish—Whoosh—

Eddie’s wand moved toward the blue-lit air.

The third spell layered with Piling was simple: the 1-star attack spell Discussio, which unleashed a shockwave.

As Discussio activated, his red barrier shimmered.

Then—

Swish—

Boom! Bam! Boom!

Joy’s blue lightning was obliterated.

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