Chapter 52: A Prank, A Change, and a Sparring Session

“You’ve been spending a lot of time with Emelly and Sowol lately. What are you up to?”

“Yes, I’ve been wondering about that too.”

Euru and Nell’s sudden interrogation during their after-lunch tea time caught Sayo off guard. It was true; she’d been spending a lot of time with Emelly and Sowol, even on days without sparring, hoping to improve her combat skills and mend their strained relationship. Sowol wasn’t thrilled about it, but she always went along with Emelly’s suggestions. However, this meant Sayo had been neglecting Soine, Miner, Euru, and Nell.

‘Yes, that’s my fault.’ Sayo averted her gaze, unable to meet their accusatory stares.

“As you know, I was completely defeated in that first sparring match, so I asked Sowol, a skilled Reinforcement Magician, to help me improve.”

“Ah, I see. So, you ditched us and met with them over the weekend for practice? Right?”

“That’s…” ‘How does Euru know that? Surely she didn’t have me followed… Did she happen to see us while she was out and about?’ ‘Do I even need to explain myself? I haven’t done anything wrong.’

“Do you… not want to spend time with us anymore?”

Nell’s voice and expression were filled with hurt. Seeing such sadness on her sweet face made Sayo feel like she’d committed a terrible crime. ‘I just spent some time with some new people…’

“Nell, it’s not like that at all! I just wanted to become friends with them, since we’ve been distant. It’s not that I dislike you or anything!”

Sayo was flustered. She hadn’t realized Nell was this upset. Her mind raced, struggling to find the right words.

“Pfft.” As Sayo panicked, Nell’s sad expression vanished, replaced by a smile. Euru, who had been giving Sayo a cold stare, also softened her expression. ‘Wait a minute…’

“…Were you two just teasing me?”

“A harmless prank, considering how much you’ve been neglecting us lately.”

“I’m sorry. But it was amusing to see you so flustered and at a loss for words.”

“…” ‘It was all an act?’ The emotions and expressions had seemed so genuine… ‘I didn’t know they had such acting skills.’

‘But… come to think of it…’

Nell had always been quiet and reserved, rarely initiating conversations. This wasn’t like the Nell Sayo knew.

Euru, too, was usually more serious and unlikely to play such lighthearted pranks. This wasn’t like the Euru Sayo knew either.

Sayo knew this wasn’t the game world anymore; things were bound to be different. But most things had remained consistent with her knowledge, so seeing this side of them was jarring.

‘It’s probably my influence, isn’t it?’ They had seemed closer to their original personalities at first. The only variable was their friendship with Sayo. ‘Hmm… Ahrin, Miner, and Soine barely appeared in the game, and even when they did, they only had a few lines, so I don’t really know their true personalities.’

As Sayo’s thoughts drifted, Nell continued, “But it wasn’t all an act.”

“We were genuinely hurt, Sayo.” ‘So, they’re not master actors. They incorporated their real feelings into the prank, making it seem so real.’ Their eyes still held a hint of reproach. Uncomfortable under their gaze, Sayo looked away. ‘Yes, I’m at fault. I need to reflect on my actions.’

“You’ve been changing gradually, Sayo, but lately, you’ve become much more expressive.”

“Huh? Have I? I feel like I’ve been acting the same as always…”

“No, I agree with Euru. You smile more often now, Sayo, and your speech has become more casual and relaxed.”

‘Really? I haven’t noticed.’

“Do you two also think so?”

“Yes! You’ve changed a lot since you first… well, you know.”

“We know best, since we’ve been with you all along.”

“I see…” Sayo still spoke formally, and her demeanor as a refined noble lady came naturally. Maintaining a poker face wasn’t difficult either.

‘I don’t feel any different, but if they all say so, then I must have changed subconsciously.’ ‘I should ask Ahrin later. She’ll tell me the truth.’

“I’ll be in your care today, Sowol.”

“Yes. I hope you last a little longer today.”

Thanks to the sparring sessions and their weekend outings, Sowol had softened towards Sayo recently. Sayo’s efforts to be serious and dedicated during their training, avoiding any antagonistic behavior, had finally paid off. ‘I was honestly quite happy the first time she responded to my greeting and actually spoke to me, even if it was in her usual gruff manner.’

Sowol stood in the distance, practicing with her spear staff. It seemed far, but for a skilled Reinforcement Magician like Sowol, it was just a short dash away.

Sayo prepared herself.

“Alright.” Emelly raised her hand, gathering mana and creating a small orb of light. The signal to begin would be when the orb exploded. ‘Just saying “start” would be much simpler,’ Sayo thought, amused by Emelly’s little performance.

Emelly looked at Sayo, then at Sowol, and launched the orb into the air. And then—

Bang!

With Emelly’s signal, Sowol pushed off the ground. Or rather, she tried to, but the sudden surge of mana beneath her feet forced her to change course, leaping backwards. The ground where she’d been standing exploded. It wasn’t a powerful explosion, but if she hadn’t dodged, the force and the upturned earth would have thrown her off balance.

‘And then she would have been vulnerable to my follow-up attack.’ Sayo watched as Sowol dodged and deflected the stone pillars that erupted from the ground. It was a simple tactic: a small, mana-efficient explosion to disrupt the opponent’s balance, followed by a stronger attack. Sayo had seen this tactic many times during their sparring sessions but still couldn’t think of a good counter.

Sowol had been surprised by Sayo’s ability to cast magic instantly from a distance, something she hadn’t seen from other Magicians. The first time, she’d been caught off guard and suffered a significant blow. She’d managed to win that match, thanks to Sayo’s subsequent lack of offensive maneuvers.

After that, it had been easy. Once Sowol dodged or blocked the initial instantaneous spell (even in the game, it didn’t have a fancy name; it was called exactly what it was), dealing with Sayo wasn’t difficult.

Sayo, constantly losing to Sowol, continued to think and strategize. She learned to differentiate between effective and ineffective magic against a Reinforcement Magician, improving her tactics with each match.

‘But I’m still not good enough.’ Sayo conjured dozens of fire arrows and launched them at Sowol, who had retreated after Sayo’s initial attack. The fire arrows, weaving through the air, weren’t particularly fast, but they covered a wide area and had a slight homing effect, making it impossible to dodge them all. Sowol chose to break through the area with the fewest projectiles.

Dodge. Dodge. Deflect. The moment Sowol deflected an incoming arrow with her spear staff—

The arrow exploded, aiming for Sowol, but she had anticipated it, leaping to the side and resuming her advance towards Sayo. The fire arrows lacked piercing power and were slow, but they exploded on impact like fireballs. It was one of the many techniques Sayo was experimenting with. It was mana-inefficient, but altering the properties and attributes of her magic was useful for surprise attacks and psychological warfare.

It wasn’t very effective against Sowol, who had grown accustomed to it, but it forced her to think and react, slowing her down, even if only slightly.

Sparring with Sowol had taught Sayo a valuable lesson: to defeat a Reinforcement Magician, a Magician needed to be two or three steps ahead.

They needed to restrict the Reinforcement Magician’s mobility, find a way to penetrate their defenses, and possess the firepower to damage their mana-reinforced bodies. Without all three, it was impossible to inflict significant damage.

Powerful magic required time to cast, but without using smaller spells, it was impossible to keep a Reinforcement Magician at bay. This created a vicious cycle.

Naturally, Magicians’ tactics revolved around enhancing their own mobility, using small spells to keep Reinforcement Magicians at a distance, manipulating the terrain to create obstacles, and stalling for time, hoping for reinforcements.

Even Sayo’s smaller spells, amplified by her exceptional talent, weren’t enough against Sowol, a main heroine with impressive stats. She couldn’t simply overpower her.

After buying some time with her instantaneous magic and fire arrows, Sayo chose Ice Ball. Dozens of mana-infused ice balls, disregarding efficiency, hurtled towards Sowol, who had reached the midpoint of the training area.

Like the fire arrows, they covered a wide area, but the gaps in the barrage were almost inviting, a tempting path towards Sayo. Sowol suspected a trap, but charging through the denser areas wasn’t the best option either, and she was curious about Sayo’s next move, so she played along.

Sowol extended her spear staff, piercing the closest ice ball. The ice ball exploded, and a chunk of ice clung to her spear. She frowned, trying to use the ice to deflect other ice balls, but they just stuck to it, making it heavier and more cumbersome.

As she paused to shake off the ice, Sowol realized she’d stepped into a trap. Sayo had been focusing on developing her unique magic, realizing the limitations of simply honing existing spells—

Sowol felt the surge of mana beneath her feet and knew she’d been caught, but it was too late. Magic erupted around her, encasing her feet in ice, immobilizing her.

‘No…’ She could easily break free, but the ice balls were already upon her, exploding against her body and her spear staff.

‘This is my chance!’ Sayo channeled her mana, preparing to cast a powerful spell.

“This ends now.” Sowol’s spear pointed at Sayo. ‘I thought this was my chance, but I failed again.’ Sayo still lacked the ability to follow up effectively after her instantaneous magic. Sowol had shaken off the ice faster than Sayo expected, forcing Sayo to abandon her planned spell and switch to a weaker one, buying her a little more time, but ultimately leading to this.

“Good work.” Sayo had heard that her ability to stall against a Reinforcement Magician was impressive, but her goal wasn’t to stall; it was to win. She wasn’t satisfied.

“You can use that ‘instantaneous remote activation magic’ twice now?”

“Yes. Using it in different ways has definitely helped me improve.”

After a brief exchange of feedback, the sparring session ended.

Despite the loss, Sayo had learned something valuable. ‘Instantaneous remote activation magic’… that was too long. ‘I’ll just call it Instant Magic.’ She knew that if she mastered this technique, she could defeat not only Sowol but even Kierre.