After hearing my answer, Putri muttered and began chanting, a magic circle began forming beside her. It was clear—a hexagonal magic circle slowly took shape. From some of the segments forming, I was sure it was an offensive spell.
I had guessed it might turn out this way, but I didn't expect it to really happen.
Putri hadn't lied about anything she said since our meeting yesterday, even when she told us about the Magic Community targeting Violet, but I knew she was hiding something. Even though she said to speak and act as we wished, she hadn't said it, even though she clearly wanted to convey something.
Responding to Putri's attack, I didn't try to dodge. But I also didn't intend to take it with my body. I wanted to try something, something I've been training lately.
Putri felt her magic circle was ready and aimed to cast her spell. But when she tried, nothing happened.
"What's going on!?" Putri was confused, and her expression displayed a little surprise, something rare for her.
She didn't understand why her spell failed. A fireball should've launched toward me unhindered. But the magic didn't fire.
She didn't think she made a mistake, yet didn't know what was wrong. The structure of the spell was still there, but it wasn't working properly.
Looking closer at her magic circle, Putri realized something was wrong. Elements that shouldn't have been there had appeared from nowhere. Something was disrupting the magic circle.
"You really, actually can make expression."
"You did this!?" she asked me in disbelief. Her expression was calm again, but her reaction was not.
"I just tried something small. Nothing much…" I shrugged, letting her know it was a minor action on my part.
I knew full well why her spell didn't work, because I was the one who altered it.
This was my first time using it. No one knew anything about it because I'd never shown it to anyone. Maybe it's better to say I just never had a partner to try it with. But luckily, it worked.
"You'll understand if you focus a little more," I suggested.
Putri looked puzzled for a moment, but followed my advice and concentrated harder. She focused more intently on her surroundings, sensing carefully.
"!!... This… did you really do this!? You shouldn't be able to…" she stammered. Her face didn't show much, but the tremble in her voice told me she couldn't believe it.
I focused my own senses too. A gentle flow was around me, not wind, but something I could feel through my senses. This was mana. I'd previously only sensed it crudely, but after several attempts, I could now feel its flow.
"I didn't mean to hide it… But I guess we're even now." I chuckled lightly after.
Even though she seemed to be hiding something from me, I'd also hidden something from her. Strangely, the mood felt light, and I wasn't burdened by it. I just laughed, even if she looked shocked by it.
"You're not supposed to have magic!" Putri exclaimed. She wanted to deny what she saw, she didn't believe what she felt.
"Even if you say that… do I look like I'm lying?" I replied with a shrug.
I knew we could understand each other, so I didn't argue and just turned the question back to her, relying on our mutual understanding. Better not to draw this out. Let Putri reach her own conclusion.
"N-no," Putri answered honestly, though her emotions were mixed.
"I do trust you, but let me ask again… are you part of the Magic Community?" I asked softly, not trying to threaten or pressure her.
The air went still for a moment. Only the sound of trees rustling in the night wind could be heard.
Putri thought for a moment. I simply waited for her answer.
"I am… one of their members," she said quietly, lowering her head as if trying to reject the truth.
At first, I wasn't sure she was part of the Magic Community, but my doubt grew when I joked about it, saying she must be a member because she knew so much.
Even though she could've hacked her way in, she always deflected the question, claiming she was just looking for information on me. Oddly, even then, she wasn't lying, and I thought she was telling the truth.
This is just my opinion, but I don't think she fully understood the situation herself.
I mean, when she first told us about the Magic Community's plans, she didn't seem to be fully aware of their goals. Only after that day did she reveal all the information she had.
"How about we talk one more time?" I suggested. I wanted to hear the full story from her directly.
"If you drop out of the tournament, then I'll agree. If not, then I'll fight you."
It felt like a threat, but also a desperate plea for me to agree. I couldn't bear seeing her look so desperate. Her face didn't change much, but she bit her lip. And her eyes… they didn't carry the will to fight.
I sighed deeply. I think I understood her reason.
She was trying to push me away from the problem. Trying to divert my path and make me hate her. But knowing all this, how could I possibly hate her?
Even so, I hadn't achieved my goal yet, so I rejected her offer.
Maybe our mutual understanding is what's turning everything against her now.
If she hadn't been interested in me, she wouldn't have gotten involved with the Magic Community. If we didn't understand each other, maybe she would've just endured it alone. Everything happening with me is pushing her into a corner.
"I'm not quitting the tournament," I said firmly. "And if you fight me, you won't win. Our previous fight already showed that," I added casually, hoping she'd drop it.
"You never know unless you try!" Putri clenched her fists, angry, not because she couldn't convince me, but because she couldn't deny what I said.
I didn't want to make her feel worse, but I also didn't want to fight her. Her thoughts would only get more weighed down like this. We could just talk it out without a fight. I sighed again.
"My physical strength is way above yours. If we fight on stamina, you'll lose. You can't use all your abilities, because I'm an Esper. Lastly, I can disable your magic," I said, trying to reason with her again.
Magicians don't have as much stamina as Espers. Most rely on long-range attacks, unless they specialize in body enhancement. In our previous fight, Putri only used elemental magic to attack from afar.
As she once explained to me, her special ability is
And then there's the fact that I can disable her spells. Technically, this isn't an original move of mine; I copied it from my friend, Evan. He doesn't have a special magic ability, but he's considered one of the top magicians.
He never intended to teach me this technique because I'm an Esper, but we often exchanged information. We both love learning about Skills and Magic, even though we can only use one or the other. I shared my power with him, and he shared his with me. A fair trade.
This technique is about controlling the ambient mana. It's the most basic magic principle, mana manipulation. The idea is to slip into the opponent's magic circle and alter its function, or simply disrupt its structure.
To do this, you need deep knowledge of magic circles. As one of the first magic users, Evan obviously knew more than most.
I gained my understanding from our information exchange. Magic circles vary greatly in form, so this isn't easy. Understanding them is the key to making this work. And after I have Mana on my own, I can practically do it now.
"Of course, I can't disable all magic. I'm sure you already knew that," I added. Not like I told her on purpose, but Putri would've figured it out.
My limitation is my own mana. To manipulate environmental mana, you have to combine it with your internal mana. Since I'm not a magician, I have far less mana than others. At most, I can use this three times in my current condition, and since I've already used it once, I only have two attempts left. And just to guarantee, let's just say I have only one more chance.
Putri went silent. Her knees gave out, and she sank to the ground, looking weak. I couldn't see her face well, but sadness radiated from her.
"Why?.. Why won't you listen to me…" Her voice trembled, barely audible to my ears.
"You're the first person who's ever understood my feelings after all this time. I don't want the one person who truly gets me to disappear after waiting so long…"
Tears fell. Not much, but her expression is showing. Look like she cannot control her expression well lately. And for that much emotion, her expression is breaking.
I moved closer to her, trying to comfort her. Seeing her cry made me sad, but I held it in.
I couldn't stand seeing her like that. I wanted to say something to ease her pain, but didn't know how.
After hearing her story, it was hard to imagine she'd been waiting for someone who truly understood her for so long. I couldn't relate—I'd never experienced that.
Putri hadn't cried in years. She didn't even remember the last time. Maybe it was when she was a baby, before she had control over herself.
"It's okay… I can handle this. I don't want to brag, but I often worry about people around me, but I always come back. So don't worry," I said gently, crouching in front of her.
Moved, I placed my hand on her head, gently brushing her hair. I knew it wasn't proper, but something compelled me to, like with Helena before. Even the atmosphere felt the same.
That mood lasted until Putri calmed down. I kept stroking her head until she was okay. Then we moved to the nearest park bench; it felt wrong to keep her sitting on the ground. That's when we began to talk.
"Can you explain your situation to me?" I asked as gently as I could. Sitting next to her, I leaned forward, supporting my body with my arms resting on my thighs, looking at her.
For this, I'm glad I didn't push myself into fighting Putri. Sure, I could say I'd win, but my body wouldn't be okay afterward. Using magic too long would drain my mana, and using my power again would worsen the side effects since this would be my second use today.
Speaking of side effects, I just remembered I last used
I'm glad there were no side effects, but it might lead to something worse. I should think about that later once I'm back.
"I'm a member of the Magic Community. I just wanted a place to get information and knowledge, but without realizing it, I became part of their intel system. I gathered detailed data on everyone in the school, and that started after you asked me for info about the tournament. But I didn't know they had other plans beyond that."
Just as I suspected. She had no control over their darker goals. I felt relieved hearing it. Even if she was a member, she wasn't involved in their malicious plans.
"I found out about their real goals while looking into you. That was before I met you in the garden outside Protea. I planned to come to your dorm, but on the way, I saw you all in that garden, and that's when I approached. But apparently, I was already being followed by one of their members, so I couldn't tell you directly at the time."
"I see. You told me right away, but it was followed. They must have been monitoring you since you posed a risk."
That meeting in the garden was a stroke of luck. If we hadn't been there, Putri might never have delivered the message.
!!
While talking with Putri, I felt the air shift. I suddenly felt like I was being watched. Scanning the area, I spotted a shadowy figure in the woods. He looks like blending with the environment, using a hood and dark clothes.
"You've gotta be kidding me!"
I shot up from the bench and chased the figure, ignoring everything else.
He was startled that I noticed them and tried to flee. They were fast—but not fast enough.
Darkness might slow down the untrained, but I'd camped and traveled outdoors so often that forest shadows weren't a problem.
We weren't far apart. I reached out, trying to catch them. As I was about to, they turned around and threw a piece of paper. I knew it was dangerous; my instincts screamed it was a magic talisman.
Damn, I didn't expect an attack. How stupid of me to think this would be easy.
I shielded myself with my arms in front of my face, cocooning myself. Even if it wouldn't kill me, they could still get away.
The paper looked like it would explode, but then it stopped. The blast then slowly absorbed, sucked behind me, and vanished without a trace, like some water drowned in a sink.
I didn't know what had happened, but I focused on the attacker.
Reaching forward, I caught his hood and pulled him toward me. And because he fights back, I punched him in his shocked face, knocking him down. They lay there in pain, clutching the spot I'd hit.
I turned around. A magic circle glowed beside Putri, who had followed us. It was hexagonal, with intricate details. I knew it was one of her special spells.
"Thanks, you really saved me."
"No… I should be the one saying that to you."