Some who had originally made good progress in magic and ranked among the best now unconsciously spoke in much softer voices.
In the beginning, Shulim and her two companions' early mastery of magic made people feel they were amazing. But once they learned magic themselves, their minds began to drift. Since they could use First-Tier magic too, were they really any worse than those few? Maybe before long, they would be able to surpass them.
However, comparing themselves now, any arrogant thoughts were completely wiped out.
They were well aware of how massive the gap between Second-Tier magic and First-Tier magic was.
To put it simply, if someone spent half a year just to get started on First-Tier magic, even if they continued to learn at this pace, it would be impossible for them to master Second-Tier magic without four or five years—and that was only if they had the talent and reality permitted it.
To put it in overly realistic terms, the only ones in this class who could possibly step into the Second-Tier before graduation were Shulim, Fran, and Ander—and even that was just a “possibly”!
This was also the consensus mutually accepted by Collette and the other teachers of the school.
...
“【ᚣᛃᛋᛖᛚᛜᚢᚪᛖᛡᛞᚠᛟᛃᛜᛃᚾᚪᛜᛓᚠᛏᚱוᚠᛃᛖᛜᚢᚪᛖᛡᛓᛗᚠᚺ】”
“Fire Barrier!”
Boom!
A surging fire appeared out of thin air, like a wall of flames separating Shulim from the others on the playground.
“So strong!”
“Is this Second-Tier magic?!”
“It feels ten thousand times stronger than my Ignition!”
The others on the playground craned their necks, staring unblinkingly at Shulim's magic.
Whoosh—!
The flames dispersed.
“Alright, alright, quiet down, students!”
After calling for quiet among the rowdy students, Collette turned and said,
“Shulim, thank you for the demonstration. You may return to your spot.”
As Shulim returned to the crowd, everyone's eyes still fell on her from time to time, accompanied by whispered discussions.
“How did Shulim do that? She can actually use Second-Tier magic already. I've only just gotten started with First-Tier.”
“You're already doing well. I can't even cast First-Tier magic yet...”
Hearing the others praise and envy Shulim, Shulim herself remained indifferent, but Fran lifted her chin proudly.
“Hmph! How could you guys possibly know how amazing Shulim truly is~!”
“...What? Hey, Shulim is the amazing one, why are you getting all proud? Don't make me laugh.”
“What did you say?!”
Fran glared at the person who had just spoken, looking extremely angry.
“Fran—do you have something you want to say?”
“Ah... Sorry, Teacher Collette.”
Her voice had been too loud and was directly heard by Collette. Fran lowered her head in shame, while simultaneously glaring fiercely back at the crowd.
Seeing that the students had quieted down, Collette spoke.
“Students, what you just saw is indeed the Second-Tier fire magic—Fire Barrier. It's a spell that can defend against attacks while dealing damage to enemies. Don't look down on it just because it's Second-Tier; its practicality is excellent, and many Third-Tier mages use it frequently. Of course, most importantly, this magic was used by one of our own!”
“This proves that these seemingly distant and powerful spells are not actually far from us. In fact, they are within arm's reach. As long as everyone studies hard, you can also use magic like this! Well, then? Does everyone want to cast such cool and powerful magic?”
“Yes!!!”
On the playground, the students answered in unison.
Under Collette's few brief words, their original envy of Shulim and their feelings of inadequacy transformed into motivation.
“Excellent! Seeing my students so motivated makes me incredibly happy! Without further ado, let us begin our studies for the new term!”
In the new term, the practical magic classes didn't change much, but the theoretical knowledge of magic increased significantly, and its depth was also rapidly rising.
This was understandable. After all, asking preparatory school students to learn highly powerful magic was a bit too demanding. However, knowledge was different; there were no bottlenecks to it, and even young children could possess it.
However, in the days that followed, this change also gave quite a few students major headaches.
...
“Teacher Collette, how was that?”
After casting her spell, Shulim looked up and asked.
Because Shulim's magic was vastly different from the others, she received individual guidance from Collette.
“Hmm...”
Collette fell into deep thought.
“Shulim, does your family have a magic tutor or someone like that? To be honest, your proficiency in magic has shocked even me. The common mistakes of beginners are completely absent in you. This is simply unimaginable without the guidance of an excellent, highly capable teacher.”
“...”
Shulim was silent. Just as she was thinking of how to reply, she hadn't expected Collette to fill in the blanks herself.
“Well, that makes sense. After all, you are a descendant of that great person from the Hayeral family. Having such a professional teacher isn't surprising!”
Although Collette's assumption got her out of a tight spot, the other's inexplicable faith in her family made her feel slightly awkward inside.
“Ah, but—”
Collette suddenly spoke up.
“Though this teacher is extremely outstanding in their magical attainments, they don't seem to have a clear grasp of the magic user's personal situation. Could it be that they haven't received professional training as a teacher?”
“...?”
Shulim was somewhat puzzled.
“Teacher Collette, what do you mean by that?”
“Well, Shulim, when you cast your magic, the pronunciation of your incantation seems to excessively imitate someone else.”
“Incantation pronunciation? But the incantation I chanted can successfully cast magic?”
Collette shook her head.
“Shulim, you've misunderstood. Variations in pronunciation won't have too much effect on successfully casting a spell, but they will affect the speed at which it is cast, and they can even affect mana efficiency and the magical effects.”
“Because everyone has their own pronunciation habits. This is the result of the coordination between the body and the mana circuits. That's also why people experience fluctuations in power and other aspects when casting magic—the fundamental reason is the level of coordination.”
“If you haven't found the most suitable pronunciation habit for your own body, then it will inevitably affect the outcome of your magic.”
“It's just like shoes. Everyone has a size that fits them. Although other sizes can be worn, and you can still walk in them, they certainly won't be as comfortable as a size that fits properly, and you'll walk faster and easier. The pronunciation issue is like shoe size. You bought a pair of shoes that is identical to someone else's, but those shoes don't actually fit you.”
So that's how it is...
Hearing Collette's explanation, Shulim also understood the crux of the issue, and she now knew why she hadn't realized this before.
To put it simply, Semilis didn't need incantations at all to cast magic. It was only because Shulim needed them that Semilis spoke them.
Under these circumstances, Shulim had naturally overlooked the fact that incantations could vary from person to person.
Right from the beginning, she had completely imitated Semilis when casting her magic. Because the spells were successfully cast, she hadn't noticed that the pronunciation habits she used were Semilis's, rather than her own.
“Um... Then what should I do, Teacher Collette?”
“Don't worry, Shulim!” Collette said with a smile. “We just need to correct it. The pronunciation that belongs to you is engraved in your body, so it will be very easy to find again. I'll help you next.”
Then, with Collette's help, Shulim began practicing to correct her pronunciation.
“Ah, that doesn't feel right. The casting of the magic actually feels slower.”
“Did I go back to the old way again?”
“...Don't worry. Calm your mind, and leave everything to your intuition.”
“The effect of the magic is better now. It seems you're close. Keep it up!”
With Collette's assistance, Shulim didn't spend too much time before successfully correcting her magic casting habits.
And this incident also let Shulim know that everyone could have blind spots, and everyone had things worth learning.
From then on, besides her daily, unshakeable training under Semilis, Shulim had another person she could consult for magic.
Even though the current Shulim was technically a Third-Tier mage just like Collette, Collette had received an education from a higher-tier magical academy. Her understanding and insights into magic were far beyond what Shulim currently had. Things that Shulim didn't notice, or that Semilis overlooked, might not be minor matters in human society, and Collette was able to teach Shulim about them.
Rate on N.U.