[V13C33] Amateur Squirter

Nine days had passed since their return to Sazandol.

Under the refreshing morning sky, Monica was instructing her disciple on the art of mana manipulation in the backyard of her house.

Since Isaac had been practicing magic indoors earlier today, his mana was already below half capacity.

He had reverted to his original face with the scar above his right eye, so further mana exertion would not have any effect on him. It was safe for him to practice magic outside, where the neighbors may be watching.

Monica observed Isaac’s training with a tense look, her fists clenched in front of her chest. She was prepared to intervene with chantless magic in case Isaac lost control over his magic.

That said, water was relatively safe compared to the other elements, so such mishaps were unlikely. Even if Isaac happened to make a mistake, accidentally getting splashed was the worst that could happen.

(Element: Water, Shape: Arrow, Quantity: 1, Power: 5, Distance: 8.5, Target Vector Set… Ready.)

Isaac was currently practicing a spell for shooting arrows made of water.

This was one of the most basic spells in the school of elemental magic, with only three steps required: creating the water, shaping it into an arrow, then launching the arrow.

However, Isaac was having trouble with the third step.

He completed the first step perfectly, creating a ball of water about the size of a fist at the tip of his practice staff.

Then, he shaped it into an arrow. No problems there either.

Finally, he attempted to shoot the arrow. But rather than flying at the target, the water arrow fell to the ground at his feet, splashing into a small puddle.

(There’s no mistake in the magical formula. The problem must be with my mana manipulation.)

Isaac lowered his shoulders, dejected at his repeated failures.

He was adept at imbuing mana into objects, such as when he created a magic sword on his dagger, but he struggled whenever he had to launch his mana as a projectile.

“Um, don’t get too down,” Monica said in an encouraging tone. “It’s partly an issue with your affinity. Your understanding of the formula is perfect, so you just need to practice until you get used to it.”

Like Monica mentioned, skill at mana manipulation was generally dependent on one’s elemental affinity.

Mages with a fire, wind, or lightning affinity generally found it easy to launch their mana as projectiles, but had a hard time shaping or imbuing their mana.

Those with an affinity for water, ice, and earth were the opposite, skilled in shaping and imbuing mana, but struggled with launching mana.

This trend became more pronounced after considering the difference in weight between elements.

For example, suppose a mage casts a fire arrow spell and a water arrow spell. The water arrow would be heavier, thus taking more mana to launch. Ice and earth spells had a similar disadvantage.

Cyril sometimes launched arrows of ice, but that was the result of years of training. Solid ice had a considerable amount of weight.

(This seems a lot different from reconnaissance magic… Maybe I can try launching water in a different way to grasp the feeling better.)

Isaac had a sudden flash of inspiration. He drew the concealed dagger from his back and infused it with water magic, turning it into a magic sword.

(So far, so good…)

While maintaining the magic sword, he chanted another spell for manipulating the water coating his blade.

Then, right as he finished the second incantation, he swung the dagger diagonally downwards with his right arm.

The water enveloping his dagger flew out in a crescent-shaped arc, hitting the stone serving as the makeshift target.

(I did it!)

Isaac had divided the process for launching a projectile into two steps.

First, he used the magic sword spell to generate and shape the water. Then, he used another spell to launch the water forward, while simultaneously swinging the dagger to compensate for his lack of propulsion.

Since this technique required a two-step process, it was not fit for practical use. It did, however, seem good for grasping the sensation of projectile spells… or so Isaac thought.

“You divided it…” Monica muttered under her breath.

“Oh.”

Isaac involuntarily let out a gasp as he turned to Monica.

Her face was unusually tense and her lips were quivering..

Isaac had essentially divided the magical formula for launching a water projectile into two parts.

…And unnecessary formula division went against Monica’s values as a mage.

Isaac quickly calculated whether it was better to give an apology or an explanation. Monica did not like formula division, but she was willing to accept it if necessary.

That said, was this formula division actually necessary? If Isaac’s skill in mana manipulation had been sufficient, he shouldn’t have needed it in the first place.

However, Isaac’s internal struggle was interrupted by the appearance of Lana, walking around the corner holding a parasol.

“Oh Monica, there you are.”

“Ah, Lana.”

Monica’s grim expression quickly disappeared once she saw Lana.

After offering a polite greeting to Isaac, Lana gestured for Monica to come over.

“Monica, I finished what you asked for… Do you mind checking it right now?”

“Sure, I’ll be right there.”

Monica hurried over to Lana, before pausing to look back at Isaac. The tension on her face from before was completely gone.

“Ike, I have to go out for a bit. I’ll be stopping by the Mage Association, so I don’t need dinner.”

“…Got it. Take care.”

Monica left, following after Lana with a spring in her step.

As always, her brightest smiles were reserved for Lana rather than him or his rival in love. Isaac knew this well, but it still stung, as he harbored a desire to monopolize her.

“…Alright.”

Isaac faced the target and began chanting again.

As Monica’s disciple, he had the privilege of seeing Monica’s smile after he performed a spell successfully.

In other words, mastering this spell without formula division would let him have Monica’s smile all to himself.


…Unfortunately, he ended up practicing until sunset without a single success. Perhaps this was due to his less than pure motivation.

Formula division still seemed like the best approach, but Isaac did not want to betray his beloved master.

Monica had yet to return, even as night set in. Meanwhile, Nero had also gone for a walk, and Wildianu was resting inside pocket watch.

Isaac ate dinner alone at the usual restaurant, then headed to the Mage Association. Since Monica seemed to be staying late, it was his job to escort her home.

Even at night, the Mage Association building looked very active.

This was not an organization known for forcing its employees to work late into the night, but it seems the aftermath of the Gluttonous Zoe incident still kept them busy. Isaac could see the lights on in almost all of the workrooms.

Isaac walked through the front door. His beloved master was nowhere to be seen, but he did find the Fourth Thorn Witch, Melissa Roseberg, wearing a gaudy robe over a flashy dress.

Melissa had been in the capital for the award ceremony, but it seems she quickly returned to Sazandol to wrap up some unfinished business.

Upon seeing Isaac, Melissa clicked her tongue with a visibly irritated expression.

“Tch. Just so you know, the Little One isn’t going home today. She’s staying the whole night.”

“If Monica has a lot of work to do, then I want to help her. Where is she right now?”

Isaac was familiar with the Mage Association building, so he intended to rush to Monica’s aid as soon as he learned which room she was in.

However, Melissa crossed her arms in front of her ample chest and scoffed at his question.

“There’s nothing for you to do. Hurry up and leave.”

“I don’t mind taking care of miscellaneous chores. Shall I prepare a midnight snack or sweep the floor?”

Melissa glared at Isaac and scoffed again.

“You don’t even know how to ‘sit’, huh? Guess you’re even useless as a dog.”

Deep wrinkles formed on her brow from how hard she was frowning, and her fingers were tapping her crossed arms restlessly. Melissa was clearly exuding ‘get out’ from her entire being.

“If you want a reward from your master, go ‘sit’ at home. Got it?” Melissa said, pointing her red-painted nail at the door.

Seeing Isaac’s refusal to budge, Melissa twisted her bright red lips into a smirk as she continued.

“In the first place, you have some gall passing through the doors of the Mage Association when you can’t even squirt water without formula division! Come back when you’re not a complete amateur!”

“…!”

Isaac widened his eyes, stunned completely silent. Meanwhile, Melissaa deepened her smirk, having found his perfect weakness. Isaac couldn’t think of any other woman with such a vulgar and malicious smile.

“Honestly, Moni-Moni is such a softie. If you were my disciple, I’d have kicked you out ages ago.”

Amateur. Kicked out. Those words echoed repeatedly in Isaac’s mind.

Of course, Monica was too kind to kick Isaac out. But what if he remained an amateur forever? What if he kept relying on formula division? Would Monica still keep him at her side?

Since Melissa knew about Isaac’s struggle to shoot water without formula division, Monica must have consulted her for advice.

(…Why am I wasting my time here?)

Isaac knew what he must do: master the water arrow spell without formula division before Monica’s return. For that, he should continue his training as soon as possible.

With a grim expression on his face, Isaac turned toward the exit and started heading back to Monica’s house.

＊　＊　＊

Melissa chuckled as she watched the panicked Isaac leave. She had finally gotten him back.

To tell the truth, Monica had told her about Isaac’s struggle with water magic just a short while ago.

Melissa’s affinity was earth, and earth mages tended to struggle with projectile magic even more than water or ice mages. In fact, many earth mages chose to specialize in imbuement magic or magical tools instead of earth magic.

On the other hand, Monica’s affinity was wind, one of the easiest elements when it came to projectiles.

Thus, Monica had sought help from Melissa, thinking that she could provide Isaac with more useful advice.

Of course, Melissa flat-out refused to help. She instead burst into laughter, saying, “You’re telling me that guy can’t even squirt water! After flaunting himself as such a capable guy! Ahahaha!”

“Heh, serves him right!”

Melissa chuckled to herself again, recalling Isaac’s dejected expression.

Suddenly, a pair of weasels leapt through the window, landing on her shoulders. It was Thule and Pikeh.

“Hey, don’t jump on me. You’ll get my clothes dirty.”

Ignoring Melissa’s displeased tone, the white weasel Thule spoke nonchalantly.

“Is Ike here?”

“He was, but I kicked him out. We can’t let him see Moni-Moni in her current state… More importantly, get off of me already.”

Melissa tried to brush off the weasels, but Thule and Pikeh nimbly dodged her attempts.

“Then can you give us some food?” Thule asked.

“There’s a potluck party tomorrow,” Pikeh followed.

Melissa furrowed her brow at the unexpected revelation.

The mythical white dragon and a legendary greater spirit, at a potluck party? Who in the world could have invited them?

It certainly wasn’t Raul, Monica, or Cyril; they had other commitments tomorrow.

“You’re weasels, so can’t you just catch some bugs and mice or whatever?”

“Cyril scolded us for putting bugs on the bed,” Pikeh said, tapping Melissa with her tail.

“Frogs got us in trouble too,” Thule followed.

“He doesn’t get angry about nuts and flowers. But he says not to take them from other people’s yards.”

This was a sobering glimpse into the struggles Cyril faced on a daily basis.

“…Good grief,” Melissa sighed. “Fine, I’ll give you some pastries or something, so come back later.”

“Thank you.”

“Thanks.”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re welcome.”

Q: When Isaac used the water rope in the battle against Black Dragon Theodore, wasn’t that a projectile spell?

A: No, that was his physical strength. He simply attached the water rope to his dagger and threw it really far.


Element Ranking
(These are general rules of thumb, so exceptions exist)

Mana Efficiency (how much mana spells cost, less mana consumption is better)
Wind > Lightning = Fire >>> Water > Ice = Earth

Mana Launching (how easy it is to launch your mana, affects projectile speed)
Wind = Lightning > Fire >>> Water = Ice >> Earth

Mana Shaping (how easy it is to shape your mana)
Water > Ice > Earth >>> Fire > Lightning > Wind

Mana Imbuement (how easy it is to imbue your mana into objects)
Earth > Water = Ice > Fire = Lightning > Wind

Power Efficiency (how easy it is to boost the power of spells)
Fire = Lightning > Ice >> Earth > Wind > Water

Fire, lightning, and ice are considered most practical for combat, so those elements are often employed by the Magic Corps.

Earth magic does not appear often in this story because of its poor mana efficiency. Those with an earth affinity generally focus on imbuement magic and magical tools, or decide to specialize in barriers or a different element.

Melissa can throw around rocks and earth arrows, but she prefers to use rose vines because they’re stronger and way more mana efficient. Her imbuement magic works better with roses too.

Glenn is bad at mana shaping, so he throws fireballs instead of shaping them into arrows or spears.

Cyril can launch ice spells faster than Glenn’s fire spells, despite the natural disadvantage, because he trained really hard. That said, launching them into the air costs more mana than sending them crawling across the ground, so he switches based on necessity.

Bradford is a genius at mana manipulation, so he can shape his fireballs into a fancy-looking dragon or goddess. However, he doesn’t bother because it all goes boom in the end.

Monica and Louis are pretty out of the ordinary, so they’re not useful as references.

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