CHAPTER 76: ARRIVAL AND TROUBLE

The Obsidian Spire stood in the northern part of the Capital.

Surrounded on three sides by tall mountains, the school was built in a valley where the weather stayed cold most of the time.

Arthur sat inside a small motel, his gaze fixed on the tower of the school in the distance.

A small town had grown near the academy—mostly for parents who visited their children often, and for travelers looking to enjoy the peaceful beauty of the valley.

It was early morning, and a light fog clung to the window.

Arthur let out a slow breath, watching a small cloud form in front of his mouth.

He didn’t feel too cold, thanks to the warm, woolen clothes he was wearing.

If he hadn’t been dressed properly, he might have used water magic to raise the temperature and balance out the chill in his body.

He looked back and saw that his father was still asleep. His left leg was sticking out from under the blanket, but the rest of his body was covered. His mouth was open, and a line of drool ran down his cheek.

"He must be really tired," Arthur thought. Even though Arthur had offered to drive the carriage last night, his father insisted he rest so he’d be fresh for the assessment. So, his father had driven all day and night.

They could have arrived at the valley a day earlier, but one of the carriage wheels broke. That delay cost them half a day.

"Hmm... should I go find something to eat?" Arthur wondered. He didn’t feel like training so early in the morning, but finding an open food shop at this hour was unlikely.

As he leaned against the window, still thinking about what to do, something in the corner of his eye caught his attention.

He quickly turned his head and saw someone running down the street, carrying a small child in their arms.

Right behind them, another person shouted, "STOP RIGHT THERE!"

Arthur frowned. Without wasting a second, he jumped out of the window and landed on the roof’s shade below.

He crouched low, then dashed forward—leaping onto the roof of a nearby house and running above the street to follow the person who had taken the child.

Arthur kept his eyes on the culprit, but the thick fog made it hard to see.

"Spirits... a little help, please," he whispered.

Right away, the fog covering the street faded, as if the air had warmed up. Now he could see everything clearly.

"That’s far enough," Arthur muttered, aiming carefully. The spinning wheel above his head launched a sharp water needle, hitting the culprit in the thigh.

"Aghhh—mmfhh!" the kidnapper screamed, but the woman chasing her quickly covered his mouth to stop the noise from waking up the neighborhood.

Arthur landed in front of them and grabbed the child from the kidnapper’s arms.

"Huh?" he blinked.

"It’s... a doll?"

The ’child’ was just a lifeless toy.

"Don’t feel too bad. Look here," the woman said, and as she moved her hand, several gold coins fell out from inside the thief’s shirt.

"Mmfh-ffhh!" the thief tried to break free, but the woman held firm.

"You’re choking him..." Arthur said awkwardly. He gently moved her arm from the thief’s neck to his collar.

"...There, that’s better."

The silver-haired woman gave a quick smile. "Oh, thanks."

A few guards soon arrived, and she handed the thief over to them. Then she picked up the doll, collected the coins, and turned to Arthur.

"Thanks for your help."

Arthur didn’t respond to her thanks. Instead, he asked, "I can sense mana from you, and you’re clearly strong... so why did you have a hard time catching him?"

The woman leaned back slightly. "So you really are a visitor."

Arthur tilted his head, confused.

She explained, "There are magic sensors all over the town. Magic use is forbidden here. If I had used any spells, the alarms would’ve gone off and woken up the whole town."

That made her ask, "Then... why didn’t the sensor go off when you used magic just now?"

He remained silent—not because of her question, but because of a sudden realization.

"Wait... humanity has developed tools that advanced?"

The woman grinned. "You won’t find them anywhere else but here and in the capital. They were made by one of the academy’s alumni."

Arthur slowly nodded, arms crossed, clearly impressed.

"So, who are you?" she asked casually.

By now, Arthur had guessed she was part of the academy staff—especially with how respectfully the guards had treated her.

So, he replied with a smirk, "Telling you my name might actually help me. After all, I’ll be taking the assessment in a few hours."

Her eyebrows rose. "Oh? So you’re aiming to become a student. In that case, I could tell you a few of the questions that’ll be on the test today."

Arthur gasped and covered his mouth in fake shock. "Gasp! A corrupted teacher! What would the headmaster say if she found out?"

The woman shrugged, "She’s a close friend. She’d understand."

Arthur chuckled. "It’s fine, ma’am. I’m confident enough in myself not to fall for sweet temptations."

After saying that, Arthur gave her a wave and headed back to the inn.

The woman kept watching until he leaped onto a rooftop and vanished from sight.

"Quick reflexes, silent steps, movement like a soldier or assassin... and that unusual magic. I’ll make sure he gets into the Academy," she said to herself with a smirk.

....

When Arthur returned to the room, his father was still sound asleep.

Finally giving up on waiting, Arthur went downstairs to ask for breakfast.

He got nothing in return... except for two curses.

Sighing in defeat, he went back to his bed and sat down to train. There was no food left from what his mother had packed, so training was the only thing left to do.

That’s when he heard a voice call out to him:

{Arthuuuuur!}

It was a familiar voice.

’Long time, Tinker,’ he thought, recognizing the first spirit he had ever bonded with—the one who had been watching over his brother, Kevin.

Now that Arthur was here, he told her it was okay to return to him.

The small spirit flew over and rubbed her cheek against his, crying softly in joy.

{I missed you sooo much! Please don’t leave me again! There are so few friends here... I was so lonely!!}

Arthur frowned a little at that. He had noticed it too—there were fewer water spirits in this region. The land here was rich in earth and wind spirits instead.

’Thank you for taking care of my brother, Tinker,’ he said warmly.

’I wouldn’t have trusted anyone else with the job.’

He shared a few more words with her and meanwhile, around him, several birds made of water floated and roamed freely.

After a bit, he checked his stats.

’Wakey~wakey, Lily.’

[Name: Arthur Stronghart]

[Age: 15]

[Bloodline Abilities: None]

[Str: 91/100]

[Spd: 97/100]

[End: 92/100]

[Mana Core: Beginner]

[Spiritual Tongue: 63.1%]

[Spirit Proficiency:

Water Spirits: 82.45%

Terra Spirits: 34.2%

Wind Spirits: 4.2%

Fire Spirits: 3.8%]

[Spells:

Water— Water Orb, Great Fall, Water Needles, Water Prison, Water Serpent, Rainfall, Water Dragon, God’s Hand, Ice Prison, Ice Age.

Terra— Mud Pillar, Mud Bomb, Stone Lock, Stone Prism.

Wind— Wind Blade

Fire— Fire ball.]

He leaned back against the wall, arms folded behind his head, and asked, "What happens once I hit the hundred mark, Lily?"

[Once you cross the first threshold, your mana core will evolve. It will allow the host to channel a larger volume of natural mana.]

"Huh?" His brow furrowed. "I’ve never heard of that before."

He had always assumed his mana core would stay the same. After all, the sheer amount of mana he could command through spirit magic was already overwhelming by most standards.

Sure, he used natural mana for physical reinforcement and detection—but ever since bonding with the spirits, he’d leaned more and more into the path of a mage.

[Given the strain that spiritual magic places on the host, your body was designed accordingly. Through gradual progression, your core will adapt and expand—so you can bear even greater magic.]

He narrowed his eyes.

That’s...convenient.

He was steadily developing his physical stats through training. Though he would admit he has lessened his training hours because he was more focused on magic.

He has the experience of a battlefield. He still has the confidence to hold his ground against a dozen trained soldiers with nothing but a glass shard. That’s why he was more focused on the subject of which he lacked knowledge.

"Art ...you are awake." Hearing his father’s voice, Arthur turned to look over his shoulder.

"You slept well," he said as he got down from the bed—only to hear a thud.

Arthur instantly looked up and found his father has fallen.

He rushed towards him and flipped him, "Dad?!" He asked, his voice holding urgency.

"Ah...I felt dizzy."

Arthur touched his forehead and instantly knew the cause.

"You are going back home. And that’s final."

******

A/N:- Thank you for choosing my novel.