Training Addict Magician in a Growth-Focused Story

Training Addict Magician in a Growth-Focused Story

EP.6 Ria’s Master

General Quest

▶ Basic Magic Training (0/10)

The quest content changed after Leon awakened his mana. It now instructed him to train in magic more seriously. Currently, the only magic books in Leon’s possession were a book titled “Basic Earth Magic” and the “Brem System Elixir Manufacturing Magic (Lower)” he had previously noted in the old magical archive.

Leon planned to gradually search the old magical archive for magic books related to his attributes—water, wind, and earth—but for now, he intended to proceed with training using just these two books. As an apprentice-level mage, he didn’t need advanced magic yet. High-level magic or unique spells established by high-ranking mages could only be used by mages at the arcane mage level.

With an excited heart, Leon began reading the Basic Earth Magic book. The book slowly explained the process of manifesting magic in reality. The most basic step was the calculation of the spell formula. Whether it was a formula created by someone else or one established by oneself, if the calculated value was the same, it was considered the same magic, differing only in efficiency and strength.

Once the spell formula was calculated, it went through the stage of mental visualization, where the formula was brought to mind, followed by the incantation stage, where the consciousness was called forth externally. In summary, magic was manifested through the three stages of ‘Calculation – Mental Visualization – Incantation.’

An apprentice mage had to go through each of these steps without skipping any. Each step was awkward and difficult, making the realization of magic a lengthy process. Even at the next level, the arcane mage, the time taken for each process was significantly reduced. However, apprentice mages like Leon had to learn memorize magic to reduce this process even slightly.

Memorize magic allowed one to store spells in advance so that simply uttering the activation word would immediately manifest the magic. An apprentice 1st-grade mage could memorize one spell. Leon focused on learning memorize magic, a few basic earth spells, and the elixir manufacturing magic.

Memorizing the spell formula made calculations easier, requiring academic study. To use magic more skillfully or increase the total amount of mana, one had no choice but to repeatedly practice the magic.

“Master of the earth, respond to my call. Earth Wall.”

As he extended his hand and chanted, a person-sized stone wall rose in the middle of the dense forest.

“Huff… huff.”

Leon had already cast several spells. Normally, an apprentice 1st-grade mage would be exhausted after casting 2-3 spells. Leon was no exception, but the dense mana in the orb space helped. Even after casting spells, his mana was continuously replenished. The long time it took him to manifest magic also contributed to this.

Of course, after 6-7 spells, his mana would still be depleted. However, sitting in a lotus position and breathing would quickly recharge him. This was definitely a positive sign for his training, but Leon faced a dilemma. He couldn’t practice magic while working as a librarian in the magical archive. Moreover, there was no suitable place for magic training in reality.

As a result, his quest progress was sluggish. He filled this void by consuming the elixirs he had collected.

“Nom.”

With his mana depleted, Leon exited the orb and sat down, consuming an Essence of Nol. Heat surged through his body, and a strong force gathered in the core located at his solar plexus.

“Whew…”

He felt his core grow slightly larger, albeit very faintly. Consuming elixirs wasn’t affected by the orb space, so he preferred to take them in reality and spend time stabilizing the effects. After stabilizing his mana for a while, Leon returned to the dormitory and fell asleep.

A month had passed since Leon arrived in the magic city Widia. His solution was to focus on memorization for the time being.

Leon spent his working hours at the magical archive finding and memorizing all the magic related to water, wind, and earth. After reading, he practiced inside the Orb of Time. Recently, he had confirmed all the basic magic related to his attributes and was now exploring slightly different spells. Being an old magical archive, it certainly had many intriguing magic books, although most of them were obsolete.

The quiet space, filled only with the sound of Leon turning pages, was suddenly interrupted by the door opening and someone entering. Leon closed his book and turned his head, recognizing a familiar face. He stood up in excitement.

“Ria!”

“Leon!”

Ria ran towards Leon, and he hugged her impulsively. It was a reflexive action driven by the emotion of seeing her after a long time. Ria, who was jumping up and down in his arms, soon stepped back. It was rare for the usually quiet Ria to show such excitement. Knowing this, Leon set aside his surprise and asked with a smile.

“Did you know I was here and came to find me?”

“Yeah. I asked some of our friends, and they told me.”

“Oh, our friends from the orphanage?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Ria seemed to be in a good mood. Her short gray hair swayed as if reflecting her feelings. She glanced around the library and asked cautiously.

“Are you… learning magic properly?”

“Me? Of course.”

Though her words seemed to show concern for Leon after seeing their other friends from the orphanage, Leon responded confidently, indicating there was no need to worry. Ria looked at Leon for a moment and then smiled softly.

“Your confidence is still the same.”

“There’s no reason to hide it from you.”

At his words, her expression suddenly turned somber, as if she was lost in thought.

“I’m sorry for disappearing alone that day…”

Leon briefly glanced over her attire. She was dressed in such luxurious clothes that it was hard to believe she came from the same orphanage. It was clear how well she was being treated now. She seemed to be aware of the difference in treatment between herself and their friends from the orphanage.

“What could you have done when a mage took you away?”

There was nothing she could have done, and even if there had been, it made no sense to refuse the opportunity once her talent was discovered, Leon thought.

“Still… Oh, do you need merit points?”

“Merit points?”

“Yeah, I heard from my master that there’s going to be a competition soon involving the residents at the entrance.”

“What kind of competition?”

The term “residents at the entrance” referred to ordinary people doing odd jobs, like Leon.

“It’s a strength competition, and the first-place winner gets 50 merit points.”

Ria hesitated for a moment before continuing.

“Actually… my master needs a strong worker, so he’s hosting the competition. You might be called to work for him for about a week.”

“Oh… really?”

Leon understood why she hesitated. The competition was ostensibly to award 50 merit points to the residents at the entrance, but it was essentially a way to recruit a worker. If Leon participated, it might seem like he was falling for a trick. Normally, he would have disliked the idea of reduced training time, but he welcomed this news. He couldn’t train during his librarian hours anyway, and he needed the merit points.

Currently, he had 20 merit points.

The merit points Leon had earned were from a month of work and herb errands. A private room assignment required 100 merit points. If he could gather 50 more, he could secure a private room soon. Most importantly:

‘Lower Strength Magic. By Spinel.’

It was the magic book he had been reading just moments ago.

*****

The news about the strength competition Ria mentioned was soon announced to the residents at the entrance. On the day of the competition, Leon used the lower strength magic he had memorized in advance and participated.

The competition was modestly conducted. Participants simply had to come out one by one and move heavy stone slabs. The crowd in the square consisted entirely of the residents at the entrance. Even the host was an ordinary person. It was a competition that failed to attract the interest of the mages. Fortunately for Leon, who had used magic beforehand, there were no mages present to notice.

The final two remaining participants were a muscular man and Leon. The weight of the stone slabs had reached a point where even an adult man using both hands couldn’t budge them.

“What kind of strength does a kid like you have…?”

When Leon lifted and moved the slab first, the muscular man’s face turned to one of shock.

“Oh, where does such strength come from in that small frame? Next up, the muscular man! It’s Gale from the repair shop!”

Gale ultimately failed to lift the slab, and the competition ended with Leon’s victory. Having won using magic, Leon felt little excitement as he received his merit points and returned to the dormitory.

The next day, Leon followed Ria early in the morning to the center of the city.

For the first time, Leon arrived at the central part of the city, his eyes sparkling at the distinctly different scenery. Unlike the ordinary people he saw every day, the people here clearly looked like mages. They wore light robes, conical hats, and carried staffs in their hands.

As Leon curiously observed his surroundings, Ria spoke to him.

“When you become a mage, you’ll dress just like them. No, I’ll be the first to gift you these once you awaken your mana!”

Leon had already become a mage, but he didn’t mention it. There was no particular reason to hide it from Ria, but he felt it wasn’t the right time to say it.

While chatting with Ria, they arrived in front of a building. It wasn’t very tall and looked more like a personal residence than an office. They went inside and headed straight to the second floor. Following Ria into a room, Leon saw a woman with long silver hair cascading down her back, sitting in a chair.

“Is it you?”

The woman’s red eyes fixed on Leon. Her slightly sharp gaze made Leon choose his words carefully.

“I am Leon, working as a librarian at the old magical archive.”

“Ria’s childhood friend?”

“…Yes.”

The woman stood up and approached Leon with long strides, looking down at him.

“Interesting.”

What’s interesting…?

Leon, who had expected questions like how he won the competition with his small frame or whether he could do the job properly, was taken aback. The woman then spoke again.

“When did you awaken your mana?”

A chill ran down Leon’s spine.