Chapter 15: Self-training

I woke up to the chirping of birds.

“Hmm…”

As I sat up in bed, I noticed Hina sleeping on the same bed as me. She was supposed to have slept with my mother last night. She probably sneaked into my bed sometime during the night. It happens occasionally.

Looking up, I saw my mother quietly asleep in the bed next to mine, but there was no sign of my father.

Looking at the clock, it was 6:30 in the morning.

Where on earth did he go… I wondered as I got out of bed. There was a note on the desk that said, “Going for a morning bath,” written in my father’s handwriting.

Come to think of it, my father didn’t go to the hot spring last night because he didn’t want his scars to be seen. The only option for him to bathe without being seen would be in the morning.

I left a note saying “Going for a short walk” next to his, then left the room.

I went downstairs and walked out of the inn, passing by a few people.

Once outside, the cool morning air brushed against my body. Looking ahead, I could see the guardrail and hear the sound of the river flowing beneath it. My business lay in that direction, by the river.

I crossed the road and descended the stairs between the guardrails.

The area next to the stairs seemed to have been paved with concrete, but now it was completely covered in weeds, which had turned brown and withered, perhaps due to autumn. As I extended my gaze further, I could see the calm flowing river and the rocky riverbank.

Focusing on the riverbank, I could see a faint white mist rising from the surface of the water.

It was the magic infused in the river, rising up.

I had come down to the river specifically to explore how to make effective use of this magic.

First, I needed to get closer… I thought as I stepped onto the stones by the riverbank, but the moment I did, I slipped.

“Whoa!”

I slid, but hastily shot out a thread of Silvate to grab onto the guardrail above, stabilizing myself just in time. I breathed a sigh of relief.

“That was close.”

Looking at the stone I had just slipped on, I saw that it was covered in slippery green moss.

That’s what caused me to slip. I wrapped my shoes in Silvate and underwent a “transformation”, creating non-slippery soles, then walked towards the flowing river.

When I reached the edge of the river, I touched the surface of the water with my hand.

It felt slightly warm… or so I thought. Maybe it was just my imagination.

Well, the temperature didn’t really matter.

What mattered was that magic was flowing in the river.

“Hmm…”

With that, I looked around to make sure no one was watching.

After confirming that no one was around, I tentatively dipped my left hand into the water.

“Hmm, will it move?”

When using magic, the most crucial aspect is magic control.

Through “Kaijutsu,” the technique of manipulating the magic within our bodies, we prepare to use magic. This is the same for fairy magic.

If that’s the case, when handling the magic flowing in nature, it makes sense to start by trying to manipulate it.

Using “Recollection”, a technique I use in fairy magic to solidify the magic I release outwardly, I focused on solidifying the magic flowing in the river, especially the portion near my hand.

“Hmm…”

However, this attempt failed.

The magic that had blended into the river simply flowed away without success.

Maybe it wasn’t a good idea to do it without any assistance.

I performed “Element Transmutation” within my body, releasing the magic outwardly. Just like when using fairy magic, I condensed the magic flowing in the river tightly.

Then, I felt the magic in the river gathering around the magic I had condensed.

I lifted the gathered magic up, but…

“Hmm…”

Seeing the amount of magic that had gathered, I couldn’t help but express my disappointment.

To be frank, the amount of magic that had gathered there was disappointing. It was only about 1.1 to 1.2 times the amount I would normally generate when using fairy magic.

This wouldn’t be usable in real combat. I’d be killed by monsters while I’m at it… Besides, I might not be able to use the magic flowing in the river unless I’m in a land overflowing with ley lines. Maybe what I’m trying to do isn’t suitable for actual combat.

I didn’t know, but I still had the desire to try to make effective use of it.

As I was about to try again to use the magic in the river, I was called out from behind.

“Itsuki, were you here?”

“Oh, dad.”

I turned around to see my father with a refreshed expression.

It seemed he had finished his morning bath.

“When I got back to the room, you weren’t there, so I went looking for you. I don’t appreciate you approaching the river alone, even if it’s nearby.”

“…Sorry.”

“So, what were you doing?”

My father accepted my apology with a nod and then peered at my hand with curiosity.

“You see, magic flows in the river, right?”

“The ley lines, you mean? Ah, yes, they’re flowing.”

“I was thinking if I could use that.”

“Hmm…”

My father seemed to ponder my words for a moment, placing his hand on his chin.

“But you see, even if you try to solidify the magic like you do with fairy magic… it doesn’t solidify at all.”

“Because it’s external magic. It behaves differently from your own. However… Itsuki, you’re thinking of interesting things.”

As he said that, my father, just like me, dipped his hand into the water.

“Is it impossible to solidify it then?”

“What do you mean?”

“Magic flows along with the water, right? So, I think you just need to give it a similar starting point as you do when you use fairy magic.”

Saying so, my father wrapped his hand dipped in the water with Silvate Thread.

Then, as the Silvate Thread began to rotate, slowly but surely, the magic flowing in the river seemed to be attracted to my father’s magic movement and started to revolve around it.

With momentum, the magic began to swirl, drawing in water as it continued to rotate.

I was mesmerized by the sight of the magic, which had been completely motionless just moments ago, now moving so effortlessly.

“That’s roughly how it goes.”

As my father said that, he withdrew his hand.

His figure was truly that of a magician.

“D-Dad… That’s so cool!”

“Hmm? Haha, I guess so. It’s amazing, isn’t it?”

“Yeah! I couldn’t do it.”

As I said that enthusiastically, my father hugged me tightly.

While still being held, I asked about what had been on my mind.

“But, how can we use this?”

“…Even I can’t think of any particular use for it.”

Still holding me, my father wore a thoughtful expression.

Previous chapter | TOC | Next chapter