Chapter 71, Like That Famous Story

Translator: Barnnn

 

Morning came, and Ize changed into her nicer off-day clothes — tailored trousers and a crisp shirt,. As she stepped out from behind the folding screen, Hal was already dressed, waiting for her.

 

“How about we go shopping for dresses or skirts later?” he suggested.

“I dunno… do I really need them?”

“Just one isn’t enough, is it?”

“But I’ll be spending my rest days on horseback practice for a while. When would I even wear them?”

“Good point, but still…”

“If it ever becomes necessary, I’ll buy one then.”

Hal sighed, shaking his head. “You really have no greed, huh?”

“I’d say I have pride and gluttony, at least… C’mon, let’s go eat. Fieda — are you up!?”

“Ugh, you’re too damn loud,” A groggy grumble drifted in from the side room. “Hard to believe you’re actually an adult now…”

 

Fieda emerged sluggishly, raking a hand through his hair, his expression sour. His morning voice was always rough, but today, it was even worse. He’d been drinking last night, a rare sight. Apparently, it was tradition for fathers of newly adult daughters to be “consoled” in this manner.

The custom had its roots in the past — back when marriageable age was much lower, and daughters often left home the moment they came of age. The neighborhood, in turn, would rally around their grieving fathers, plying them with drinks and sympathy. The practice had long outlived its original purpose.

According to Hal, it was just an excuse for old men to keep drinking — and Ize found that reasoning hard to argue against.

They enjoyed the usual breakfast sets, and at one point, Ize turned to Hal, picking up the thread of their discussion from the night before.

 

“We can practice at the Guild,” Fieda said between bites.

“There’s a facility for that?”

“You gotta pay, though.”

“What if we don’t want an audience?”

 

Hal exchanged a glance with Fieda before they both nodded toward Ize. It made sense — she didn’t want anyone watching while she practiced light and dark magic.

 

“There’s a warded training room,” Fieda said. “Costs extra, but Jasted’s Guild should have one.”

“Let’s go with that. I want to test a few things too.”

“If we have time afterward, can we stop by and see Hiro and Take?” Ize asked.

“Yeah. Even if we don’t squeeze in riding practice, we can at least say hi.”

 

With their plan settled, they finished eating and headed out.

 

◆

 

At the Guild, they took their usual place in line at Kikuno’s reception desk. When their turn came, they handled Ize’s registration card update and rank promotion paperwork.

Kikuno glanced up at Ize with her usual thin, understanding smile.

 

“Congratulations on coming of age, Ize. As of today, you’re officially a full-fledged adventurer. We look forward to your continued success.”

“Thank you. I’ll do my best.”

“Anything special needed for the rank-up?” Hal asked.

“Her records meet the requirements, and she’s already received approval from the higher-ups. The update is complete.”

“Nice! Way to go, Ize!”

Ize sighed, allowing herself a small, satisfied smile. “Glad I won’t be left behind.”

“After some time in the archive, we’d like to use the training facility,” Fieda said to Kikuno. “Is the warded room available?”

“There’s one open this afternoon. Would you like to reserve it for three people?”

“Yes, please.”

 

While Fieda finalized the booking, Ize and Hal skimmed through the terms and conditions.

 

“…The walls are reinforced with various resistances,” Ize read aloud, trailing a finger down the page. “But if we somehow exceed those limits and cause damage, we’ll be responsible for part of the repair costs.”

“Don’t read that while staring straight at me,” Hal grumbled. “We’ll be fine. Probably. But just in case, do you two want to wait outside?”

“If we do that, we won’t know what’s happening in there,” Ize countered. “We’re staying. I — I trust y-you, Hal…”

“C’mon, don’t laugh — commit to it. And don’t let your eyes dart around like that!”

“My eyes… they’re possessed by the ghost of a tuna.”

“…You know tunas die if they stop swimming, right? Cut it out, that’s creepy.”

“My head’s starting to spin… urgh.”

“Hey, you two idiots,” Fieda cut in, exasperated. “Stop messing around. We’re going to the archive.”

“Don’t lump me in with him,” Ize protested.

“Yeah, same here,” Hal added.

Fieda groaned. “You’re like rabbits comparing horns.”

“…A what now?”

“Ugh… what’s a similar idiom from where you’re from again? Let’s see… ‘pot meets kettle,’ I think?”

“…That doesn’t sound like a compliment,” Ize muttered.

 

She and Hal exchanged a glance before turning in unison — only to find Fieda already disappearing into the archive. Nudging each other with their elbows, they followed him inside.

 

“I’ll focus on gathering information for the 40th floor and beyond,” Fieda said as they stepped between the rows of bookshelves.

“I’ll help Ize,” Hal said. “See if I can find anything on the basics of light magic.”

“I’ll look into dark magic,” Ize said.

 

With their tasks decided, they split up to browse the shelves. By now, they knew the layout well enough that it didn’t take long to find what they needed.

Ize and Hal sifted through the available books, but information on light and dark magic was scarce.

 

“Are there just fewer people with these affinities, or do adventurers rarely use them?” Ize mused.

“I’d bet on the latter,” Hal replied. “Light magic is probably monopolized by healers and religious organizations, while dark magic is military-grade.”

“Like, what, the secret service?”

“Sounds about right.”

Hal snapped his book shut. “This should be enough for now. I read the basics too, but all the spells I actually use are self-taught. As long as you grasp the core principles, you’ll be fine.”

“Got it. It’s reassuring to have a senior mage around. I would’ve happily handed dark magic over to you, though…”

“No, no, I’d never dare defy the will of the Goddess!”

 

Hal let out an exaggerated laugh — so over the top it might as well have spilled out of his mouth in floating, three-dimensional letters. Then, still grinning to himself, he grabbed a book and headed for a desk.

Ize sighed, scooped up a few more volumes, and made her way over to Fieda, who was already seated and flipping through his own reading material. As she set down her books, he glanced at her stack and offered a piece of advice.

 

“Oh, yeah… have you read any of the Sages’ Encyclopedias yet?”

“Just a little.”

“All the food-related stuff, thanks to Ize’s tastes.”=

“Ugh…”

“There were Sages in the past who had the same elemental affinities,” Fieda continued. “You don’t have to check them now, but if you hit a wall, they might help.”

“That makes sense. If anyone left proper research behind, it’d be the Sages. Thanks, Fieda. You really know your stuff.”

 

Fieda didn’t reply, simply lowering his gaze back to his book.

Ize and Hal exchanged knowing smirks — half-hidden behind their own books — before following his lead and settling into their reading.

 

◆

 

A few hours later, they found themselves at a seafood restaurant of Fieda’s choice, indulging in a spread of tomato-braised swordfish, sea bream soup, and crisp-fried silver-striped herring. By the time they left, pleasantly full, the afternoon sun had shifted lower in the sky.

Back at the Guild, they retrieved the key to the training grounds and followed the directions to a part of the building they had never entered before. From the outside, it appeared to be a standard three-story structure, but stepping inside revealed something entirely unexpected. The space opened into a vast atrium, its ceiling soaring two stories high — perhaps even higher than a gymnasium’s.

 

Ize tilted her head back, taking it in. “I wasn’t expecting it to be built like this.”

“Now that you mention it, the ceiling in the reception area isn’t nearly high enough for magic practice,” Hal said, eyes flicking upward.

“If you’re casting high-level spells, a low ceiling would make it hard to contain the impact,” Fieda added.

“Hmm. Makes sense.”

 

Ize scanned the spacious room for any visible mechanisms, but nothing stood out. As she pondered the layout, Hal activated his Eye of Appraisal.

 

“This is insane,” he muttered, eyes darting from wall to wall. “The interior’s enchanted to neutralize every kind of impact. There’s layered fusion magic here — barrier, concealment, structural reinforcement — all stacked together. The way they combined them is SUPER clever, like…” He trailed off, now mumbling half to himself, utterly absorbed in his analysis.

 

Ize decided to let the magic fanatic have his moment. Instead, she turned to Fieda, who had already moved to the center of the room.

 

“No point wasting time,” he said. “Let’s start.”

“Right. Light magic first?”

“Yeah.”

 

They had already gone over their findings from the archive during lunch. Now, it was just a matter of putting theory into practice — see how well Ize could actually manifest her magic.

Ize stepped forward, inhaled deeply, and slowly exhaled.

There was nothing in front of her, but then–

 

“Light!”

 

A blinding flash detonated through the room.

 

“Gah!”

“My eyes! My eyes!”

“Oh — sorry! Heal!”

 

Ize hurriedly cast a minor healing spell, easing the sting in their vision.

 

“Damn, that was something,” Fieda muttered, blinking rapidly.

“I almost turned into a Miyazaki movie villain,” Hal groaned.

“Wait, who’s Miyazaki?” Fieda asked, puzzled.

“Umm, Hal–”

“Oh, you know,” Hal said, suddenly animated. “There’s this famous story back on Earth where the villain calls people trash, and then he gets blinded by a flash of light, and he screams, ‘MY EYES!'”

“Hal, stop–”

“Ah, that one,” Fieda nodded. “You mentioned it before.”

“I did?”

“Pretty sure you did.”

“Um… Are you both all right?” Ize cut in, exasperated.

 

No real harm done, it seemed — and her healing magic had worked fine enough.

 

“No issues,” Fieda confirmed.

“Yeah, but that light was brutal,” Hal said. “Was it the bangle’s amplification?”

“Should I try without it?”

“Yeah. We need to gauge your power without any enhancements.”

“Understood.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” Fieda cut in. “Give us a second to prepare.”

“Huh?”

“We’re going to the far end of the room. No way I’m standing near you when you cast that again.”

 

Without further discussion, Fieda strode to the farthest corner and turned to face the wall. Hal followed, raising a thumbs-up over his shoulder.

 

Ize watched them go, suppressing a sigh. [But then they wouldn’t even see the magic being invoked…]

 

Shaking her head, she removed her bangle and tried again.

 

“Light!”

 

This time, the flash was still intense, but more controlled. If the first had been like a stadium floodlight, this was closer to a car’s high beams — harsh, but at least not searing.

 

“Still too strong,” Fieda called from across the room.

Ize frowned. “Why do you think that is?”

“…Honestly, I have no clue.” He turned to Hal. “Did you have the same problem when you started out?”

“No, can’t say I did… My water control was decent from the start.”

 

Hal crossed his arms, thinking back to the days after his Coming-of-Age Ceremony. He had never flooded a room or lost control of his spells the way Ize was struggling with her light magic.

 

“So it’s not because she’s a Sage — it’s because it’s Ize?” Fieda mused.

“If taking off the bangle didn’t change anything, then it’s gotta be something about her, yeah,” Hal agreed.

“But I don’t see how any of my other skills would affect this…”

“Waaait a second…”

 

Fieda suddenly narrowed his eyes at her, his expression shifting from contemplative to sharp focus.

 

“…Your stare is kind of intense,” Ize murmured, shifting under his gaze.

“Yeah, it’s piercing,” Hal added.

 

Fieda ignored them, furrowing his brow, as if piecing together a puzzle in his mind.

 

Then he muttered under his breath, “No way… But if that’s the case, could it really last this long?”

 

His serious tone sent a shiver down Ize’s spine.

 

Even Hal hesitated before cautiously asking, “Fieda? What are you on about?”

“Ize, when did you start using Camouflage?”

“…Huh?” Ize blinked.

“Your Camouflage skill. When did you first activate it?”

“Uh… back when we were at the Royal Castle,” she answered honestly, though she had no idea why it was relevant.

“So… eight months ago. And you’ve kept it on this entire time?”

“I never really had a reason to turn it off. Aside from briefly removing it yesterday.”

Fieda exhaled, shaking his head. “That’s crazy. Have you ever felt exhaustion, weakness, nausea — anything like that?”

“Well, after the Blood Bear fight, I was drained, but that must’ve been from spamming Fleet Foot so much…”

“That was it,” Fieda said, nodding as if confirming something to himself.

 

Hal and Ize exchanged glances, both starting to catch on.

 

“You think skill overuse is affecting her magic?” Hal asked.

“There’s a theory among scholars — prolonged skill usage optimizes the body’s magical circuits, making spells more efficient. But the effect is supposed to be negligible.”

“Because no one can sustain a skill for months?” Hal guessed.

“Exactly. At most, people can keep a skill running for a week before they burn out. And they lose it when they sleep.”

“But Camouflage doesn’t take conscious effort once it’s on…” Ize murmured. “So even when I’m asleep, it’s still running.”

“That’s the only explanation that makes sense,” Fieda grumbled.

 

The three of them exchanged tired looks and sighed. They had come here to train magic, and instead, they had stumbled upon something far bigger than they’d expected.

 

“–Fieda, I just realized something,” Hal said.

“I already know what you’re going to say. Don’t.”

“But–”

“What is it?” Ize asked, exasperated.

Hal crossed his arms. “This problem… is probably never going away.”

“Why not?”

 

It was frustrating that the two of them had already put the pieces together, while she — the one actually dealing with the issue — was still grasping for answers.

Even if despair awaited her in the explanation, she had no choice but to hear it.

 

“Because, Ize…” Hal sighed again. “You’re going to keep using Camouflage almost all the time, right?”

 

Ize blinked. Then realization struck.

 

“Ahh! You’re right!”