Training Addict Magician in a Growth-Focused Story

Training Addict Magician in a Growth-Focused Story

EP.41 Joining the Party

“If you don’t mind, could we measure your skills…?”

Leon nodded, thinking it was only natural, and the bearded Maxius led him to the backyard of the building.

‘For a Third-Class…’

Leon flipped his palm and pretended to recite the incantation of a memorized spell.

“Fluvia.”

Water droplets began to gather above Leon’s palm.

The droplets grew larger than his palm, eventually becoming twice the size of a human face.

This was the lowest-level water magic that Peter had given him when he became a regular disciple.

Since Arpina’s familiars were too specific, showing this much was enough to prove his Third-Class skills.

“You’re a water-element magician.”

“Ah, I can also use wind and fire.”

“Triple attribute…”

Maxius scrutinized Leon.

Though his face was mostly covered by the robe, his physique still seemed far from that of an adult.

His youthful face peeked out from beneath the robe.

Maxius had seen magicians before.

He knew that to reach Third-Class at such a young age required ‘talent.’

And that talent was often linked to elemental affinity.

Though he didn’t know the specifics, Maxius’s long experience told him.

The atmosphere was different.

‘He seems like a young master from a prestigious school, out for a stroll?’

Maxius recalled the adventurer magicians he had seen so far.

Most were Apprentice First or Second-Class, and even those were treated as rare and valuable here.

Given enough time, they could hunt a large number of monsters in an instant, so parties were eager to take them along if they could. As a result, their eccentricities grew more pronounced by the day. It was as if they were trying to vent some long-held frustration, doing everything their own way. Despite this, the demand for them in parties did not decrease.

There were higher-ranked magicians as well. Third-Class, Fourth-Class, and Fifth-Class magicians were rare but did exist. The higher their rank, the more difficult their personalities became. Magicians of even higher ranks were extremely rare. Even if seen once every few years, they exuded an aura that was untouchable. These magicians didn’t have much interest in adventurer, they obtained badges for convenience, completed a mission or two, and then left the city. They had no reason to soil themselves hunting monsters.

Leon exuded a similar aura. Of course, Maxius knew better than to speak carelessly about this. Offending someone favored by the magic tower could lead to unforeseen consequences, even with the kingdom’s protection.

“Your skills are more than sufficient, so I’ll issue you a bronze adventurer’s badge.”

“Thank you.”

“May I ask why you became an adventurer?”

Leon, feeling awkward at Maxius’s courteous demeanor, finally spoke.

“I plan to visit the Western Beast Forest.”

“Ah… You’re not here to sell monster carcasses, so it’s for ‘experience’…?”

“Well, you could say that.”

Leon answered vaguely, and Maxius nodded.

“Of course.”

Soon, they were back inside the building, and Maxius handed Leon the bronze badge.

“What is your name?”

“…Theo.”

To register as an adventurer, Leon needed to provide personal information, but he decided to use an alias.

Maxius didn’t find it strange and completed the bronze adventurer registration under the name Theo.

“You’re not planning to go alone, are you?”

“Is it difficult to go alone even to the entrance?”

“Since magicians need time for incantations… it’s better to accompany a party. Otherwise, I can introduce you to a verified party.”

“Hmm…”

Leon pondered for a moment.

Claiming to be an apprentice magician brought its own set of issues.

‘If I had said I was a Arcane magician…’

The reaction would have been even more intense, so saying he was an apprentice was the right choice.

“A verified party, right here!”

At that moment, someone interrupted Leon and Maxius.

It was a burly man whose leather armor seemed ready to burst.

A greatsword was strapped to his back.

“Dave.”

“I can ensure the magician gains the experience he seeks!”

“They are a somewhat verified party among the bronze adventurers.”

Maxius didn’t show much resistance to Dave’s loud voice and supported his claim.

Leon looked at the brown-haired man and then scanned the party members waiting behind him.

One was a woman with short red hair.

She carried a dagger and waved cheerfully when she made eye contact with Leon.

The other was a woman with long yellow hair, carrying a bow.

She had a stern expression but nodded politely at Leon.

Leon also bowed his head in greeting, somewhat taken aback.

It seemed to be a mixed-gender party of three.

“We specialize in Zone 1, so if you want to explore the entrance area, it would be good to come with us.”

“Let’s be honest. You want to take the magician to move into Zone 2, don’t you?”

Dave scratched his head as if he had made a mistake.

“Ah… I wasn’t trying to deceive you. I was going to discuss it with you after we checked out Zone 1 together.”

“Zone 1 is the entrance area… and Zone 2 is deeper inside?”

Leon asked, and Dave nodded.

“That’s right. The monsters that appear are mostly gnolls or lizardmen, though…”

Gnolls and lizardmen.

Although these might be common monsters here, Leon had never seen them in person.

‘I’ve really been stuck in the training room all this time…’

As Leon fell into his thoughts, Dave, sensing the mood, spoke cautiously.

“Bronze adventurers can easily enter Zone 2, so it shouldn’t be a big problem.”

“Is there a contract for joining the party?”

“No!”

Sensing Leon’s interest in joining the party, Dave beamed.

“When we receive a mission, we just need to write our names as the same party in the log!”

“What mission do you have in mind?”

“As I mentioned earlier, how about we first explore Zone 1? To see if we work well together.”

“If we do work well together, will we head to Zone 2?”

“That will be entirely up to you, magician.”

“Sounds good.”

With limited time, Leon decided to explore the entrance of the Beast Forest with them for about two days.

“The mission…”

Just as Leon was about to ask where to receive the mission…

Dave hurriedly pulled out a piece of paper he had hidden behind him.

The crumpled paper was a mission sheet for collecting monster carcasses in Zone 1.

Monster carcasses contained magic stones, which were sold at high prices among adventurers.

It seemed they had a system similar to mana stones.

Their hides were also used to make armor.

“Is there anything I need to prepare?”

“We originally prepared for three people, so you just need to come as you are. Ah… if you need time, we can wait.”

“No, I’m fine.”

Leon wrote his name on the mission sheet and joined the party with Dave.

“Nice to meet you! I’m Karin!”

“I’m Linne.”

“I’m Theo.”

The four of them introduced themselves and headed straight to the Beast Forest.

The red-haired woman who introduced herself as Karin kept glancing at Leon during the journey.

Leon, who was preoccupied with Kito squirming inside his robe, noticed her gaze and turned his head.

“Do you have something to say?”

“No! This is my second time seeing a magician, but it’s my first time seeing one so young…”

“Karin.”

Dave warned her, and Karin exaggeratedly covered her mouth.

“Oh! Did I make a mistake? Are you perhaps older than you look…?”

“Hey, cut it out!”

Dave, who was walking at the front, approached Karin and grabbed her by the scruff of her neck.

“Sorry about that. She’s quite the troublemaker…”

“…You all seem very close.”

“We’re from the same village. By the way, is this your first time in Crest, magician?”

“Yes.”

The inexperience shown when encountering something for the first time couldn’t be hidden by lies.

No matter how much he wanted to conceal his identity, Leon decided not to tell obvious lies.

“Shall I show you around?”

Karin, who was hanging onto Dave’s hand, brightened up.

“The mission will be over by today, so when we get back, I can show you around the city, and if we get tired, we can have a drink toge—ow!”

Dave smacked the back of Karin’s head.

“What’s this about drinking? Cut it out. I’m being serious.”

Dave didn’t want to be rude to a magician who had joined their party after a long time.

When Dave first came to Crest and became an adventurer, he had once formed a party with a magician.

Back then, he didn’t realize it was beginner’s luck and had parted ways, fed up with the magician’s unreasonable personality.

Three years later, he finally had another magician in his party, but this immature Karin couldn’t contain her curiosity.

‘Save that for after you get to know him…!’

Dave had become seasoned enough to understand how rare it was to form a party with a magician of such a considerate nature.

“Oh… you don’t have to be so formal with me.”

See? How thoughtful this magician was.

While an excited Karin chattered away, they reached the Beast Forest.

“This is Zone 1.”

Dave set Karin down and took the lead again.

Leon turned his head, surveying the surroundings.

The forest didn’t quite live up to its name, Beast Forest.

The green-tinged forest wasn’t much different from any other forest.

After about another hour of walking, with Dave tensing up, Leon remarked,

“There don’t seem to be many monsters.”

“Other adventurers have probably already taken care of them. If we go a bit further…”

As soon as Dave finished speaking, seven green figures appeared in front of them.

“Goblins?”

“You know them.”

They were goblins wielding crude weapons.

Like gnolls, they were also classified as F-rank monsters.

‘Does this mean these goblins are considered F-rank?’

By that logic, they should be equivalent to Apprentice First or Second-Class.

Leon shook his head.

‘It’s absurd to say that a single magician’s skill matches that of a single monster.’

Even as an apprentice, Leon knew how powerful a well-prepared magician could be.

A warrior capable of easily hunting F-rank monsters against an Apprentice First-Class magician?

Leon was confident that, assuming the magician had learned common spells, there was no way they could lose.

This was because the mana infusion technique would undoubtedly surpass the movements of a bronze adventurer.

‘Well, it’s not strange considering it takes hundreds of F-rank elixirs to advance in rank.’

He thought it would be a good opportunity to test.

Were goblins truly F-rank in terms of skill, as their classification suggested?