I moved to a different location.
It was a large facility arranged in the basement of the same building.
The floor, walls, and ceiling were all pure white. Upon examining the materials, I could tell that this space was designed specifically to resist magic.
While the previous classroom was a kind of design room, this one was a laboratory for performance testing. The facility could not be harmed by magic below the intermediate level, and if any damage occurred, the system would automatically repair itself.
"Shortly, we will conduct an experiment to test if the magic constructs are functioning smoothly. Rather than evaluating abilities like attack and defense, we will focus on whether the constructs can maintain normal operation," said the professor, who was leading the students into the basement, clapping his hands.
"Will this experiment be reflected in our grades?"
"Since it's the first test, it will not be part of the grading. However, depending on your achievements, there will be small rewards such as store credits or behavior evaluations, so do your best," the professor answered, scanning the room as he responded to a student's question.
"The space is large enough, so keep your distance, and during the limited time, please construct your magic formations according to the design from the classroom. If you have additional questions, feel free to ask. Now, let's begin."
With the brief announcement, the students paired up and spread out in different directions.
As the professor had mentioned, the space was so vast that the students kept an appropriate distance from each other. At least it seemed unlikely that a magic mishap would lead to someone being accidentally hit.
The atmosphere quickly became lively.
As they hurriedly set up their magic formations, students pointed out issues or questioned each other's designs, exchanging ideas in a rather friendly manner.
Looking around, it seemed like many of the students knew each other well.
"Magic factions tend to be well-connected," I thought to myself.
Magic is a technology that is relatively easy to pass down in knowledge. While other techniques, like martial arts, can also be documented, magic, with its "formation" concept, is much more intuitive.
Even if the user dies, the spell remains. The outcome may differ depending on the user, but the basic structure remains the same.
As accumulated knowledge grows, it becomes a valuable asset for future generations.
Thus, families or factions with a large amount of magical knowledge will share their expertise with each other, as long as it doesn’t leak their core secrets.
They exchange a variety of knowledge and also build personal connections.
During this process, it’s even better if future leaders form bonds. Fewer enemies and more allies are always good.
This applies to me as well. No matter how much the gap widens later, it won’t hurt to create connections now.
"Hmm..."
I briefly observed my surroundings and then shifted my focus again.
[How about we start here?]
"Yes, the distance is just right. That sounds good," said Baize Dietrich, who nodded while tapping his staff on the ground.
...
The conversation stopped.
In the bustling basement, an awkward silence lingered around me.
Baize, with a somewhat awkward expression, looked around, and I too absentmindedly opened my mouth before closing it again.
"Ah! Right, greetings."
Come to think of it, we hadn't had the chance to greet each other immediately after pairing up. As I approached him, I extended one hand slowly, making my presence known.
[Sorry for the late introduction]
[I’m Iha-yul from the Ippchunban group]
[Nice to meet you.]
"Oh, yes, I look forward to working with you. I’m Baize Dietrich, from the Gyeongchipban group, specializing in magic."
His skin had returned to normal, but he was still wearing arm sleeves on his right arm, which had a strange feel to it, like wearing socks. It felt a bit off for him to extend an artificial arm.
"Since calling me by my last name can be confusing, please just call me Baize."
[Alright, Baize.]
Baize Dietrich... Baize gave a small smile and took my hand.
After shaking it up and down a few times, he let go.
...
Again, the conversation halted. Baize seemed to be cautiously observing me, so I went back to setting up my magic formation.
‘...What should I do?’
I knew it would be good to build some rapport. My head understood that. I had received help in the original story from making connections. More allies are always better...
But how do I make allies? Thinking about it now, I realized... I didn’t know how to make friends...
Updat𝓮d from frёewebnoѵēl.com.
Of course, I have the knowledge from the original story. While it might not be perfect, it should help me in becoming close to others. If not that, I could predict the situation the other person is in and offer help to gain their trust.
But Baize Dietrich didn’t seem to have that tendency.
He was the second son of the Dietrich family, a well-known magical lineage.
He wasn’t struggling with poverty or anything like that.
His family relationships were smooth.
His father and mother, based on the original story, were not bad people either.
Baize’s older brother, the first son, was a genius skilled in both martial and magical arts, and his temperament wasn’t bad. He was set to inherit the family leadership, but Baize didn’t seem to mind it.
His talent was exceptional enough to enter Siyoram, and he received plenty of support.
He didn’t covet the head of the family position, so there was no rivalry with his older brother, and he was showered with love from his parents.
The location of their family was also peaceful, not a dangerous one, so he had a peaceful childhood.
Of course, his hometown was destroyed later by the Tower's invasion... but before that, it was a peaceful area.
So, there really wasn’t anything lacking for him.
‘......’
As I thought about this, I recalled how Baize and the fifth round became close.
There wasn’t anything particularly special. I hadn’t gone out of my way to approach Baize. I just happened to run into him during a group project for Siyoram, and somehow, we ended up growing close due to the direction of the fifth round’s development.
Tap, tap... Baize tapped the ground with his staff.
He drew out the core’s mana and released it outward. Calmly, he began to shape the formation from the ground up. Unlike some other students, there was no need to keep switching between different interpretations of the spell.
He had already thought through everything in his head about how to unfold the formation, and the calculations were already done. Now he just needed to manipulate the mana.
And that was something I was quite good at.
"...This is..."
Baize’s eyes widened as he was constructing his formation.
He quickly turned his head and stared directly at the formation I was preparing.
Normally, I would have mixed in a concealment spell to prevent detection, but since I had kept the formation simple, I hadn’t added any concealment magic. Thanks to that, Baize could clearly recognize my spell.
He stared at my formation for a while, his eyes gleaming with intrigue.
‘This is exactly the same as the original story, thank goodness.’
Baize had grown up in an excellent environment, so he didn't experience many deficiencies in his life.
However, he did have one deficiency.
Curiosity about magic. A common deficiency that most traditional mages have.
To become a mage of a certain caliber, not only talent but also an almost fanatic willpower is required, as it is commonly said.
Baize was the second son of the Dietrich family, with the potential to receive the title of a certified mage from the Mage Council. He was more interested in studying magic than inheriting his family’s position.
"Mana Strike... This is a modified version of the original formation, isn’t it?"
[Yes, I modified it to suit my preferences.]
"You've sacrificed stability but maximized the power," he noted.
[To use it based on the original version, it was too weak, so I increased the power.]
"You haven’t included any tracking magic? Without it, you’ll have to manually adjust each spell, and it’ll be nearly impossible to hit the target..."
[Even without tracking magic, I can still hit it.]
"How...?"
[It works by linking with real-time detection ability.]
"Oh, detection ability..."
Though he tried to act indifferent, Baize’s expression subtly changed.
He leaned toward me with curiosity in his eyes, peeking around the magic formation I was constructing and bombarding me with questions.
"It’s a flawed spell," he commented seriously, analyzing the formation.
It was a flawed spell... He was right.
The mana strike I was using was a modified version that I adapted to suit my needs. I had been using it since the beginning of the semester with my insufficient skills, and after some modifications, it had become more functional.
I drastically increased the power but sacrificed stability, which could put strain on the user.
But it was fine. I could manage it.
There was no tracking magic, as it used too many resources, so I removed it and boosted the output. As a result, the accuracy plummeted, but with my enhanced observational ability, I could ensure every shot landed.
It would be impossible for anyone else to use it, but for me, it worked fine.
"However... it’s still working properly. No, it’s working even better than the original."
Baize loved magic and wanted to learn everything about it, but he also had a particular preference.
Other mages had preferences too, and there were different talents.
Some focused on simple mana manipulation.
Others specialized in elemental magic. Some dived deep into barrier magic, summoning, traps, complex attacks, curses, defense, or support... there were many branches.
Baize, among all these, had a unique preference.
He had a talent for what could be considered ‘proper’ magic. This talent earned him the title of "Wise Mage" in the fifth round.
"Impressive... to think this is functioning properly."
At the same time, he was also interested in the bizarre, unconventional magic that had been used in the fifth round, which was rooted in an abnormal approach to magic.
So, he had become quite close to the fifth round.
Despite learning magic, the fifth round had used their body’s internal circuits to cast spells, making conventional magic impossible for them.
The fifth round had once chosen artillery but then charged into the enemy’s ranks, using their limbs to crush opponents.
Even among mages, they were considered mad, and the title of "Mad Mage" was attached to them.
The fifth round’s title was "Foolish Mage Against the Way."
It was a sharp contrast to the title of "Wise Mage."
[Yes, as Baize said, it’s a dangerous and incomplete spell.]
"Eh...eh? Oh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to say something so rude..."
I smiled softly and walked toward Baize.
As soon as he saw me entering his line of sight, he jumped back in shock as if he had been splashed with cold water.
‘?’
His reaction made me tilt my head slightly, but I continued adjusting the confession necklace.
[So, I’m asking other mages for advice.]
[If I can control all the risks, how can I increase the power even more?]
[What would you do, Baize?]
Since I was soon going to enter the Knowledge Tower, and Baize hadn’t fully developed yet, I thought I could still gain some advice from him based on his potential.
[Player correction system: Affection]
Iha-yul → Baize Dietrich
●●●○○○○○○○(35/100)
"Normal"