Binary Soul

> Kira PoV <

“Hey Kira! Here, this is from me and Nano!” (Ellie)

Ellie smiled pleasantly at me while presenting me with a staff.

“Wow, already? It’s barely been fifteen minutes!” (Kira)

{That’s mostly because you gave me so much information earlier. I followed what you said almost exactly.}

Admittedly, I only knew the theory and never crafted a staff for myself before, but did Nano actually do a proper job?! No! Bad Kiressara! This is Nano and Ellie’s goodwill so you need to gratefully accept it!

“I see. Thank you very much.” (Kira)

I take the staff from Ellie’s hands and curiously inspect it. It’s got a perfectly straight shaft. Moving it around I see the sun reflecting off the shiny surface. Looking at it closely, I can see a very fine checkered pattern, almost like a woven basket. Yet the surface is completely smooth! It’s surprisingly pleasant to hold!

“Wow… It looks impressive!” (Kira)

The staff head is in the figure of a shape with eight faces, like two small pyramids glued together. It’s glistening and somewhat transparent, almost like a black diamond! I give the staff a few swings.

“Ohh! It’s so light! Are you sure this is wood?!” (Kira)

{It’s not exactly wood, but it should be similar on the inside. It’s a material from our world called <>.}

“... What? Oh, let me guess - no words for it?” (Kira)

{That’s right. Well, let’s call it Black Sap for the moment.}

“Kira! I want to see Kira’s magic!” (Ellie)

“Ah, right. Then, let me start off with something small.” (Kira)

I turn away from Ellie and focus my attention on a part of the wall. It’s made of metal so a little flame won’t do much harm!

“-- [Firebolt]” (Kira)

A fist sized ball of flame shoots out of the staff in the direction I’m pointing it in! It impacts against the wall with a small hissing noise!

“Wow! It came out! It really came out!” (Ellie)

…

Wasn’t that a little too easy? Usually you feel a bit of resistance when putting mana into a staff, but this time it flowed into it like throwing water on dry sand!

“-- [Firebolt] -- [Firebolt] -- [Firebolt]” (Kira)

Even a triple consecutive cast flowed out so smoothly!

“More! Kira! Do more!” (Ellie)

Ellie jumps up and down excitedly. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone this happy about basic-level magic. Alright, time to show off a bit!

“---- [High Fireball]” (Kira)

A noticeably larger mass of flame was launched this time. As expected, it flowed out easily! It’s moving considerably slower than the [Firebolt] but that much is expected!

*FAHWOOSH*

It expanded into a giant torrent of flames when it hit the wall! Oh no! I think I overdid it! No, wait, the metal is completely fine... Well, that’s good. It’s not like I was expecting to melt that thing with a single spell. It survived much worse on the way down yesterday!

“Stand back Ellie. I’m going to run wild a bit!” (Kira)

“Okay!” (Ellie)

She jumps backwards a bit. That should be good enough. I grip the staff a bit tighter and lick my lips!

“------ [High Waterspout]” (Kira)

A column of water burst out from the ground like a geyser. This quantity is good! Next is-

“----- [Freeze]” (Kira)

Now it’s a column of ice. There are no problems altering a spell in progress either!

“---- [Wind Blade]” (Kira)

An invisible blade strikes the ice, leaving a shallow cut. As expected, Wind magic isn’t very good against hard targets, but the cut is nice and clean, looks like there’s no issues with control!

“----- [High Beam]” (Kira)

A white ray of light shoots out from my staff, punching a hole through the ice column. Power is there too! The pillar of ice is starting to tip over as expected.

“---- [Fissure]” (Kira)

I strike the staff head into the ground while releasing the spell.

*RRUMBLE*

The dirt splits open while shaking, creating a small chasm according to my mental image. The pillar of ice crashes magnificently into it with a loud noise.

“---- [Fissure]” (Kira)

Now for the counter spell! The chasm closes itself around the ice, crushing and crunching it until all that’s left is uneven ground with shards of ice sticking out of it. I triumphantly return my staff to its upright position and strike a small pose.

“Fufufu. I could get used to this.” (Kira)

“*Sob* Kira… *Sniffle*” (Ellie)

“Huh? Ellie!? What’s wrong?” (Kira)

“You were *Sniffle* too cool! *Sob* The tears won’t stop! *Sniffle* Thank you so much for showing me this! *Sniffle* ”(Ellie)

Wow! Okay. To be moved to tears… was it really that great? Her reaction is like a little kid’s! Ah, no, that’s normal since it’s her first time seeing magic, isn’t it?

{So I take it the staff is satisfactory?}

“It’s fantastic! It’s hard to believe you made this on your first try! It’s almost as smooth to use as one made out of Treant Heartwood!” (Kira)

Ah, that takes me back to my days in the Magic Academy! One of the instructors let me try out his staff once as a special reward! It was almost fun to use magic with it! Unfortunately I got a little too into it and the staff head cracked… The built-up mana then made a shockwave that shattered several windows. The teacher was furious with me, but I was only twelve so I got off with just a scolding.

Come to think of it, I’ve broken about fifty or so staves since that day, haven’t I? About half of those were during my adventuring days. The magic shop owner refused to give me any discounts on staves though! Even though I was his best customer! What’s up with that! Doesn’t he know how much of my income I had to spend on his wares!?

Hmm, actually…

“Say Nano, you can make another one of these easily, right?” (Kira)

{Indeed. I can make an identical one if you want.}

“I see. Then you don’t mind if I try and break this one, right? I’m curious how much mana it can take before it bursts.” (Kira)

{Oh, stress-testing huh? Go right ahead, it’s only a prototype anyway!}

“Understood!” (Kira)

I grip the staff with both hands again. Let’s see… perhaps try that barrier spell from yesterday? Yes, let’s do that!

“-------- [Grand Barrier]” (Kira)

The transparent dome appears as expected. It perfectly covers the entire tower. Grand tier spells are perfect for this since you can pour as much mana into them as you want!

“Alright. Here. I. GO!” (Kira)

I start pouring more mana into the spell.

…

{Kira? Is the-}

“Concentrating!” (Kira)

I have to focus! Even though it may break, I should get a feel for how much it can take! And then release the mana before it bursts the staff!

…

…

It’s still flowing in so easily. I’m using three times more mana than yesterday, yet it doesn’t even vibrate from the strain! Just how tough is this thing?!

…

…

Alright, let’s pick up the pace!

…

...

“Woooow!” (Ellie)

{Would you look at that…}

I open my eyes and stare at the sky. The transparent barrier has grown large enough to encompass the entire wall. It’s more than three times larger and at least five times thicker than the one from yesterday.

“...” (Kira)

“Kira? What’s wrong? It stopped growing?” (Ellie)

“I... can’t…” (Kira)

I drop to my knees and lean weakly against the staff. Can this thing really exist? I’m holding it and yet...

{Is something wrong with the staff?}

“No… I just… I ran out of mana…” (Kira)

This staff took almost all of my mana and it’s not breaking. Somehow… I feel like even putting in twice that amount would not be enough…

"...uuuu uUWAAAAA!" (Kira)

"Ugeh! Nano! We made her cry!" (Ellie)

{I’m… not sure how to respond to this.}

I cry loudly, tears running down my face like a waterfall.

{I know! Ellie, begin Operation There-There!}

"Roger. It's okay Kira, Ellie's h-" (Ellie)

*GLOMP*

I hug Ellie with all my might. I want to hug Nano too! Ah, but Nano isn't a person. But he’s inside Ellie so I will just hug her more!

"Dank yuuu! Dank yuu! Im zo habbeeeee!" (Kira)

So this is what it feels like to let out years of anxiety and pain… I’m so glad I have a shoulder to cry on for once… I don’t think I can ever repay these two for what they’ve given me.

> Narrator PoV <

Kiressara was born with an abnormally large mana pool. So much so that when the Magic Academy in the capital caught wind of it and tested her, they accepted her with a special tuition. Excited at this prospect, she went to live and study in the capital at the age of 10.

She was diligent and studious, a natural talent. A prodigy. That was what they called her initially. The other students - sons and daughters of noble households - could not bear to watch this filthy commoner oustage them. And then, a problem revealed itself when it came to putting their studies into practice. Kiressara had too much mana.

For most mages, it was a simple matter to use precise amounts of mana for their spells. Like pouring water out of a bottle into a small glass, it was no trouble at all. But for Kiressara, the bottle was replaced with a whole tub, while the glass was still as tiny as ever.

Her output was so high, no staff could contain it. The very first time she tried to chant a basic spell, the wooden staff split open at the head - the focal point where the mana concentrates. The old, cheap and worn out staves the Academy had her practice with regularly burst open.

Kiressara became gloomy - she didn’t know why these things had happened. She assumed the problem was with her. That she was somehow at fault. The teachers knew the true reason, but they could do nothing about it, but urge her to focus on control. If it was just that, things might have been better.

But nobles and their kin are ugly creatures. Sensing weakness, they began teasing and bullying Kiressara incessantly.

‘How dare this filthy peasant presume themselves above us! We should put them in her place!’

Such things were said and repeated throughout the Academy. The teachers could do nothing to stop it. Because nobles were ugly creatures that failed to look at themselves objectively, therefore these troublemakers had the unconditional support of their powerful parents.

At first, it was just some light teasing. Kiressara brushed it off and focused on her studies.

Then things got violent. The boys would hit her regularly and she would instinctively fight back. She never won, though. She was left beaten and bruised on a regular basis. The kind old nun that served as a nurse healed her with magic no matter how many times was needed. It was painful, but Kiressara understood it would pass. Such abuse merely drove her to keep studying more fervently.

Then came the real problem - the girls. At least with boys, the bullying was to her face and was easily healed. With the girls it was much more sinister. They shunned her, hid her clothes, messed with her food and made sure she would have the crappiest, most useless twig of a staff for every practical lesson.

That is what really hurt. For nearly three years Kiressara had shut herself from the outside. The friends she had made in the first and second year were bullied just like her. Even those that refused to bully her on principle got mistreated! It was like the gaggle of noble offspring decided she was an eyesore that exists only to be despised!

So Kiressara studied as a means to escape. She endured, determined to show those people that she was not someone they could push around! But such a day never came. Even after graduation, the forced reputation they had forced on her seemed to follow her like a dark cloud.

‘Freak’ was what she was now called.

‘Crackhead’ was her new name.

‘Out of control and violent’ was the general opinion.

‘The face is good, but the head is bad’ was repeated like it was common sense.

The rumors spread out of control. Even after becoming an adventurer and moving back to Runetap, those five years in the Magic Academy had taken their toll. The cheerful little girl was gone, all that was left was a bitter, high-strung and short-fused wreck.

She would show them! Those idiots who had everything given to them! Kiressara would attain status and power with her own hands! First she would become Rank A, then she would use the special privileges that came with it to climb higher and higher!

After two years, this misguided resentment had warped into something else entirely - a deep distrust of every single person she ever met. She was either hostile or indifferent to everyone around her. This often put her at odds with others, which meant the City Guard got involved. Which in turn meant fines and guaranteed her miserly lifestyle would continue.

Deep down, Kiressara yearned for companionship, yet she blindly rejected everyone without question. She tormented herself without realizing it. That is, until she met Ellie. The impact of that meeting was so strong that it broke her out of the daze she was in for nearly six years.

This strange blue-haired girl had undoubtedly gone through a much harsher childhood, but she found joy in the smallest of things - a plume of flame, a simple spell, a warm meal or a sincere hug. Little by little, Kiressara’s closed off heart was readily accepting and trusting another person.

The staff? It was a good weapon. It gave Kiressara something she’d longed for - the ability to control her magic without holding back. However, that was not what she was truly grateful for. While it was a magnificent gift, it’s the thought that mattered.

The thought that Nano and Ellie would actually support her with all their power. The thought that she could rely on them for the things she was not able to do. The thought that, much like her magic, she would finally be able to take control of her life.