Volume 1 - CH 10

When all the students returned with their wands, the teacher, as Wendy had expected, said

"We are going to do some chopping, so get your stones ready."

students went to  another wooden box with flat stones the size of their palms

Almark had seen the stone chiseling technique before as a street performance in Nakahara.

An apparently impotent old man tapped the surface of a hard stone with a wooden wand several times, and the stone broke in half. When he first saw it, I didn't realize it was magic and assumed it was some kind of trick.

"Okay, let's begin."

Under the teacher's instruction, the students began to hit the stone with their wands.

Unlike the magic of the light , the students' abilities differed greatly here.

Wendy was the first to break the stone with a dry sound.

Then Torque. Almost at the same time, Leila.

After that, the other students broke the stone smoothly, but some of them could not break it easily because the surface of the stone kept peeling off. Morgen and Norisch also seem to be struggling.

More than half of the stones are broken, and while waiting for the rest, some try to break more stones, while others do nothing and start chatting.

Among them, Almark noticed one student who was acting strangely.

The student seemed unable to crack the stone yet and was facing the stone with a wand in his hand, but he was using the wand in an odd way.

Instead of tapping the stone like the other students, he is slowly tracing the surface.

(What is he doing?)

When Almark looked closely, he could see intricate geometric patterns floating on the surface of the stone.

(He's carving patterns into the stone. ......!)

He adjusts the magic power to break the stone to a very small degree and continues to emit it at a constant force.

It is a difficult task just to break the stone, but he is carving intricate patterns on the stone by manipulating the magic power at will.

It is not that he is unable to break the stone, but that he is voluntarily challenging himself to a much more advanced technique.

You're very diligent, Wallis,"

The teacher called out to the student as he walked by, and the student and a smile on his face .

He had long, golden hair and a face that was surprisingly well-shaped.

He seemed to be the Wallis that Morgen had mentioned earlier.

“Hey, newcomer!”

Almark turned head to the side and before he knew it, Torque was standing there.

I've brought a wand and a stone, why don't you give it a try ?

Torque smiled thinly.

"No, there's  no  way i can do it"

"I'll teach you."

He replied

Almark looked Torque in the eyes.

Torque looked arrogantly back at Almark with a provocative smile stuck to his face.

When Almark nodded, Torque said, "Okay," and began to speak.

"Close your eyes and breathe deeply. Feel your own magic power in your body. Imagine your magic power concentrated at the tip of the wand. Then, as you exhale sharply, imagine the magic penetrating the back of the stone, and ...... the wand."

As he said this, he poked the stone in front of Almark with the tip of his wand.

He probably did not intend to break the stone at all, but rather just pushed it with brute force and without putting any magic power into it. The wand made a dull thud on the surface of the stone.

"Do you get it? It's easy, isn't it? Try it."

Almark nodded.

This is a good opportunity. He was a difficult person to teach, but he was bored just watching.

Almark did as he was told, closed his eyes and inhaled deeply.

(I don't know what a magic power ...... is inside me, so I can't feel it. But I imagined something like another blood flowing slowly through my body. I imagined it gradually gathering from my hands holding the wand to the tip of the wand.

Okay, now.)

Exhaling sharply, Almark lightly poked the stone with the Wand.

There was a dry thud.

When Almark opened his eyes, the stone was still there, completely intact, not a flake missing.

Toruk, who had been watching silently, burst out laughing, as if he could no longer hold back his laughter.

"Kukku, no, this is no good. I've never seen a guy who couldn't break a single piece just because it was his first time. You have no talent."

He hit him on shoulder .

"It's good that you came all this way, but you might not make it to the middle class and you might have to leave after one year,"

He whispered, and walk away

(I thought i could do that ......, but, well, that's just it’s my first time .)

Almark thought as he twisted his neck.

The lowly provocation of the Torque didn't bother him at all. It was too classy compared to the provocations of fights in the north. In fact, he was grateful that he had been taught how to do it. he could have since he didn't seem to want to.

The class ended when Norris, the last one left, broke the stone in a sweat.

As he did it , Almark said to Wendy

“You guys are amazing. I've never seen such delicate magic before."

Wendy looked delighted as she spoke to him.

"Really? But you'll be able to do it soon, Armark. I'm sure teacher is waiting for you after school. If you need help, let me know."

She answered,

" I'll help too!"

Morgen, who had been following behind them , also called out to him .

"Thank you, both of you. I'll do my best to catch up with you guys as soon as possible."

Almark replied with a smile, thanking them .

After the students had left, the empty magic practice room was suddenly filled with a dry, crackling sound.

It was the stone that Almark had just poked at the end.

The stone, which had been placed back in the wooden box, cracked and rolled in half in no time around the spot where Almark had poked it with his wand .

T/n Final chapter for tody . See you tomorrow. Thanks for reading !