Chapter 67: Passed

Somehow, I managed to get them to understand where the money came from, and I also received a copy of the account number for my father’s account at the Merchants’ Guild. After that, however, the wine bottle ended up in my father’s hands and was promptly drunk dry by my parents.

I kept quiet about the fact that a single bottle cost ten gold coins.

If I carelessly mentioned the price, I’d definitely be scolded for wasting money, so there was no way I could say it out loud.

I managed to defend the other bottle, so I should be able to enjoy it little by little now and then—but at this rate, it looks like I’ll end up working just to earn more money for booze.

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“Did I keep you waiting?”

“I just got here myself. If possible, could we go somewhere where people won’t see us using magic?”

“I know. Make sure you teach him properly.”

“Since he can already use magic to some extent, I think it’ll mostly be a matter of corrections. It shouldn’t take too long. How are the four of them doing?”

“I’ve been training them hard, so in another year they should be able to reach Bronze rank.”

“They can sort of manage scouting too. They don’t skip practice, so they’ll get better eventually.”

“Leon, what happened to those two?”

“When I went back to the capital after we split up, they were waiting in front of the guild for Steve and the others. The moment they saw me, they ran up and started making a fuss, asking me to lend them money. They said they’d borrow from Steve and pay it back later.”

“All that money was gone in just two or three days?”

“So just as expected, Namul got completely stripped by a prostitute, huh?”

“What about Toma?”

“Toma had injuries on his face, and both of them were lamenting that they only had a few silver coins left.”

“Looks like we were right to run away from them.”

“Good grief… just cutting ties with those guys makes coming here worthwhile.”

“We’ve been strict with ourselves, but I think we’ve definitely been improving—little by little, at least.”

“You talking about the ones you left behind?”

“Yes. We were right to follow your advice, Leon.”

“They were twisted by nature to begin with.”

“One was greedy for booze, and the other would wag his tail the moment he saw a woman.”

“On top of that, they had awful personalities.”

“They were disgusting guys, always acting like they were in heat. Honestly, I’m relieved they’re gone.”

“The funny part is, after splitting from Steve and the others and heading to the capital’s guild, they were waiting out front almost unarmed. Just as expected, but the looks on their stupid faces were priceless.”

“So how about you? I heard you can make a dome for camping using wind magic.”

“Yeah, that one. Your magic is pretty strange, you know.”

“Leon, I can use magic now too, more or less, but there are things I don’t understand. Please teach me!”

“Once we’re somewhere no one can see us, I’ll take a look at your magic, Gale.”

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Because Mintz and Scott were being noisy, I started by showing them my shelter and dome. Both of them tilted their heads in confusion.

“I can’t see anything.”

“Please hold your hands out in front of you and take two steps forward.”

Scott did as I said, sticking his hands out and stepping forward, then shouted.

“What the heck is this?!”

“This is a modified version of the ring spell I call a shelter.”

“A ring spell, huh? Then it must be sturdy.”

“You can attack it seriously if you like. It can withstand a charging armored buffalo.”

“An armored buffalo?!”

“You’ve been dealing with monsters like that?”

“I’ve heard about them—apparently they have insane charging power and smash everything in their path.”

“And spears or swords don’t work, so you have to defeat them with magic.”

“While traveling after we were kicked out of here, I reunited with a party I knew in the capital. They were taking a request to hunt an armored buffalo and asked me to handle the defense. I only defended—those guys handled the attack.”

“Well, with your attack power, you could probably defeat some pretty tough enemies yourself.”

“Yeah, if you spin them around, most things would go down.”

“I’ll make the dome visible this time. Please watch closely, Gale.”

Wrapping Mintz and Scott as well, I slowly formed the dome, kicking up dust as it rose.

“Oh, so that’s how it works. If it can withstand an armored buffalo’s attack, you’d be safe anywhere.”

“Yeah, you could focus entirely on making money without worrying.”

“Leon, your magic really is amazing.”

“It’s nothing like mine. Why is that?”

“Well, the one teaching and the one being taught make a big difference.”

“And your magic types are completely different too, so of course there’s a difference.”

Their voices carried clearly from outside, with Mintz and Scott laughing.

When I made an entrance and stepped out, Gale was stroking the dome, tilting his head in thought.

“Could you show me your barrier, Gale?”

“Yeah. Dome… form! …Hah!”

A barrier dome rose from the ground, coiling upward—but it looked exactly like the example I’d shown earlier.

I’d deliberately shown the formation process from the ground up, and he’d copied it perfectly.

“Well? What do you think?”

“How’s the strength?”

“Against sword attacks, it breaks about one out of every three times.”

“With a spear, it shatters in one thrust.”

“Gale, do you remember how to make an entrance or open a hole?”

“Yes, I remember.”

When I asked him to release the magic, he glared at it and shouted, “Dome… vanish!” and it disappeared.

He seemed to remember most of what I’d taught him, but he also seemed to think magic only worked if he strained himself, and the strength was clearly lacking.

“How many times can you cast magic before you run out?”

“Until my body feels sluggish… about three or four times.”

“How far up your arm are you storing magic?”

“From my wrist… about this much.”

He pointed to a spot about a third of the way above his elbow. It looked like I should teach him about strength first, then how to compress his magic.

“You can tell how hard a barrier or dome is by hitting mine—it’s as hard as rock and can withstand magical attacks. From now on, when you make a shelter or dome, don’t forget this level of hardness. If that’s hard to grasp, touch a big rock and imprint the feel of it on your body. Now, about shields—normally they’re square, but you can make other shapes too.”

As I said that, I created a round shield filled with swirling dust at the spot I pointed to.

“With wind magic, I can only make round ones, but you can make other types of shields.”

Mintz and Scott were watching with grins on their faces—it was the look of people reassured that they’d now have reliable barriers.

When I formed a ring around all of us, they asked, “You make something like this too?”

“A square shield is effective for blocking attacks from the front, but if you’re facing many attacks, you need full-circle defense. You can adjust the size and height depending on the situation. And as for incantations—don’t say them out loud. If you don’t use internal chanting, you’ll get interrupted when trying to put up a barrier, just like before.”

“Ah… yes, that’s right.”

“Also, if someone else might overhear, you should say it’s a shortened chant and use something like, ‘Lady Felicienne, grant us a protective barrier,’ when you cast it.”

“Why is it better to call it a shortened chant?”

“Gale, adventurers aren’t supposed to reveal all their cards to anyone outside their party. If it’s known to be a completely shortened chant, then in an emergency you might lose your means of counterattack or defense.”

“Exactly. Even Leon must have techniques he hasn’t taught us.”

Scott grins as he explains this to Gale.

“For now, go ahead and hit or punch my barrier if you like. Get a feel for how hard it is, then try making a Shelter or a Dome.”

They really do test it, pounding and kicking the dome to check its hardness. Then Gale still chants aloud, ‘Lady Felicienne, grant us a protective barrier… ha!’

This time the dome is completed noticeably faster. Rings and Kyle cheer, and Steve looks satisfied as well.

Mintz and Scott exchange glances and grin, then pick up their sword and short spear and move toward the dome.
Those two really have nasty personalities.

Unable to withstand the full-force blows and the sharply driven thrusts of the short spear, the barrier collapses and vanishes.

“Hmm, it’s gotten quite good, but—”

“It still feels weak against thrusting attacks.”

“Gale, please make one more that won’t lose to their attacks.”

Oh—his expression has changed. He looks motivated now, or maybe just stubbornly competitive.

‘Lady Felicienne, grant us a hard and strong barrier to protect us… ha!’

Gale’s chant has evolved.

Steve and the others clench their fists, nodding along in approval as Gale chants.
A dome forms again at the same speed as before—but Gale suddenly slumps down to the ground.

“Hey, what’s wrong, Gale?”

“What happened?”

“I’m fine. I’m just on the verge of running out of mana.”

“So this is what it’s like to be almost out of mana.”

Kyle pokes Gale to confirm that he really can’t move from mana depletion—what a cruel guy.
Behind them, Mintz and Scott unleash another round of full-force blows and sharp spear thrusts, but this time they give up, overpowered.

“Phew… as expected of Leon, the master of magic. He improved fast.”

“He said he could cast magic four or five times, but it seems he used a lot of mana to make such a hard dome. Once he learns to control and conserve his mana, I think he’ll be able to use it five or six, maybe even seven or eight times.”

“If it’s just barriers, four or five uses is more than enough.”

“Yeah. Barrier magic isn’t something you spam, and we’re not going to places where we’d need that anyway.”

“Thank you very much, Leon.”

“Just from what you taught us back then, I learned to use magic, and with your advice just now, I was able to create a proper barrier.”

“We’ll feel safe even if we run into wolves or dog-type beasts.”

“You should keep honing your detection and presence-sensing skills. If you panic and try to hide inside a barrier, sometimes you won’t make it in time. Relying on it completely is dangerous.”

“True. I said I’d teach you how to conserve mana, but it looks like that’ll have to wait until another day.”

“Then we’ll be staying here overnight. Mintz, Scott—you two go back to town and come here again tomorrow.”

After seeing the two off as they headed back to town, he had Steve and the others gather deadwood to prepare for camping.