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Humans are exceedingly inferior beings compared to elves.

Only the royals and nobles, occasionally those who have inherited exceptional bloodlines, stand on the same level as us. And that’s it.

The vast majority of them are nothing but inferior short-lived species with nothing to boast about except for their numbers compared to us elves.

The abilities bestowed upon humans at birth and those given to the offspring of our forest differ greatly in terms of lifespan as well.

Unless one is a human who inherits a grand destiny by exceptional fate,

They will never catch up to us.

Among all, the gap in spirit magic is absolute.

Humans have the least talent for spirit magic compared to all sentient races, and the limits imposed by their nature result in a low level of competence.

On the contrary, elves possess superiority in spirit magic greater than anyone else. The divide between the two can aptly be termed absolute.

Thus, for a human to claim an advantage in spirit magic when at a point of contact with elves is akin to reaching for the stars.

“…You’re more adept at handling spirit magic than I expected?”

Ray was different.

His utilization of skills was quite splendid.

According to my investigations, he was supposed to be a lowly-born among the wretched humans.

Moreover, how could a man like him gather mana and attain such an understanding of spirit magic?

‘There seems to be no master involved.’

Common-born.

If he had revealed to the slave trader that he could wield magic,

A male slave who could use magic would be a highly coveted prize.

Those who thrive on money would certainly spread the word throughout the continent to dispose of him at a much higher price.

A rare male slave with confirmed abilities would draw the attention of the royal families or major merchants from various nations, who would pay a hefty sum impossible for a mere lord to afford.

But until such tales spread, it implies that Ray has concealed his abilities…

‘How intriguing.’

Since he had hidden his abilities, there wouldn’t have been anyone to take him under their wing as a master or mentor.

How then could he display operations so skilled and seasoned as if he was immersed in spirit magic for years under a capable master?

Moreover, to maintain the secret of his ability to wield magic, he must have had extremely limited time to practice spirit magic.

Friel, who had been gauging his level, began to smile deeply, showcasing her dimples.

‘Could it truly be a talent bestowed by the heavens?’

As my thoughts grew branches, my interest deepened.

Furthermore… it seemed like this was not enough for such playful magic; I could even smell a thicker aroma of spirits rising.

Given the situation, suppressing the greed that began to resurface, which I had temporarily set aside for our important young lady, was quite the struggle.

As Friel quietly observed him, Ray, wearing a somewhat chilly smile, spoke.

“I merely acted as my instincts guided me.”

Thud. Thud.

Just as his words ended, the sound of footsteps could be heard.

It was Elisa, who had been quietly watching from behind Friel.

She too seemed quite impressed by the previous display, her expression revealing thoughts not often seen.

Elisa, normally adorned with a neutral poker face, had her expression crumble.

With wide eyes, she absorbed the swirling winds that danced on Ray’s hand.

Then, Elisa swiftly hid behind Friel and whispered softly.

“…Lady Friel, did you perhaps lend a hand to that human?”

“Hmm—”

Turning her head to glance at Elisa, Friel shrugged with an endearing smile.

“While it’s true I didn’t engage seriously, it’s also true that I had no intention of letting it slide.”

“…I see.”

“Rumor has it that a single arrow wrapped in magic annihilated a demon. Wouldn’t you like to see that with your own eyes, Elisa?”

“Yes, I definitely would like to see that.”

“Alright, then let’s have you witness it.”

With that, Friel shifted her focus from Elisa back to Ray.

“Ray, the arrow that pierced the demon. Can you show us the magic that surrounded that arrow?”

Ray looked at Friel Arielte and gently shook his head.

“I’m sorry. Conducting such dangerous operations here would be quite difficult. However, I did say I can show something equally entertaining to Lady Elisa.”

The sphere in Ray’s hand gradually swelled in size.

Once it had puffed up considerably, it suddenly transformed into a radiant red source of light, casting a scarlet glow around.

Boom!

The sphere erupted, scattering the encapsulated winds in all directions.

The wide-spreading gusts resembled a staff of five lines on a blank score, where flames flowed as if they were notes themselves.

“Wow….”

Shione, who stood behind me, suddenly let out a dazed voice as she was entranced by the beautiful spectacle unfolding in the bright daylight.

Ray, yes, I smiled softly at that voice and continued.

“I’ll show you a considerable display of magic, even if it’s not as grand as before.”

I focused my attention.

Right now, I had neither the magic-bound arrow nor a simple pebble in my hand.

So I needed to fill the miracle I would conjure from the air, steadily suppressing the flowing world around me.

My vision gradually narrowed. There wasn’t a need for any sight beyond the range of my magic.

I dulled my senses. I had no need to feel the breeze or the warmth of the sun.

I dulled my five senses and opened only the sixth sense, the one to feel and manipulate mana.

‘First, the wind.’

The atmosphere began to tremble.

As my mana was consumed, turbulence began to swirl around me.

The lowly-grown weeds surrendered their bodies to the wind, and the recently sprouted leaves rustled noisily.

The essence of the condensed and concentrated winds.

‘Next, the fire.’

I squeezed mana out of it to create the essence of fire.

After heating it even further and changing its color from red to blue, I carefully dropped it in. The colorless current, like a drop of red paint in water, spread forth with blue energy.

‘What happened, my mana is already…’

It seemed I hadn’t done much, yet over half of my mana had already vanished.

There was no need to continue, as simply maintaining this took significant mana.

I shot the compressed magic skyward without hesitation.

Whoosh!

The essence of fire rose on the powerful currents.

At a certain altitude, it burst forth, releasing beautiful flames.

Like a fireworks display. Blue flames bloomed vividly and lit up the world, cooling to flames whose mana supply had ceased below.

Once again, the flames returned to red and burst forth, spreading beautifully in accordance with the chaos.

The embers that followed rained down as a beautiful shower, touching the ground and disintegrating.

‘Though it was a waste of mana.’

From gathering turbulent winds to producing tiny flames,

Unless one had considerable understanding and a bit of talent in spirit magic, it would be a tremendous waste that would be too lofty for a man cursed by mana in this world to even attempt.

Surely, this would be quite enjoyable for the elves as well.

‘Moreover—’

What I shot forth a bit more aggressively and sharply was akin to the magic that pierced the demon.

Thus, if there were elves confident in spirit magic, they would surely understand that what I displayed was not merely a performance.

I steadied my breathing and looked at the elves before me.

As expected.

“How was it? This time—”

Friel and Elisa were staring at the sky without a word, before turning their solemn gazes onto me.

The fact that they were glancing at my spirit magic with such serious eyes hinted that they somewhat acknowledged my skill.

“Did you enjoy it?”

It didn’t matter if they didn’t break into bright smiles.

The inferior short-lived species, whom they had always disregarded, beautifully wielding a magic they considered a domain only the elves could master, would undoubtedly elicit some surprise.

I could sense their inner astonishment.

Yet, I enjoyed this situation more than they did.

In this moment, it was enough that Shione showed her awe,

“Wow. Wow.”

Gazing back and forth between me and the sky with a bewildered expression was sufficient for me.

*

A maid in servant attire entered the training grounds.

She was always a maid serving Ainel Shianella and had come to find Siabel and Diolia, and the two welcomed her.

“Lord Father is looking for you, Diolia.”

“Lord Father, you say?”

“Yes, he mentioned he has something important to discuss, so tidy yourself up and go see him.”

“Hmm. In that case…”

Diolia, who had been resting for a moment, rose from her seat and bowed her head to Siabel.

“Siabel, I think I must visit Lord Father now.”

“Your mother is calling, so it can’t be helped. You’ve worked hard.”

“Yes, as the duel continues… Siabel, your swordsmanship has become more intricate of late, so I believe visible results will appear soon. I enjoyed today as well.”

“Heh, what if the one destined to become a knight excels more in flattery than in swordsmanship? Hurry and go. If you’re too late, your mother might not be pleased.”

“Then… I will take my leave for now.”

Just as Diolia was about to leave with the maid, something caught my attention.

“Hmm…?”

A fireball ascended into the sky.

Boom!

And then the subsequent explosion.

The flames spread across the not-so-distant sky.

“What on earth is…?”

Siabel, who had been gazing quietly at the sky, furrowed her brows and spoke.

“An attack…?”

Siabel grabbed a real sword instead of a training sword and exited the training grounds.

 

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