"Let's start with the simplest step—gathering magic power," Ronen said calmly.
As he spoke, a small cluster of glowing energy flickered to life at his fingertip.
"Without a magic slot granted by the Falna, the process of casting magic is unstable. The gathered magic might spiral out of control at any moment. So we begin by gathering only a tiny amount—just enough for you to handle."
In this world, the gods' blessings granted adventurers something called a magic slot—a structured framework into which magic could be injected. By simply chanting the spell's incantation, one could activate magic with remarkable stability and unleash tremendous power.
That was a natural advantage of the gifted—a luxury not available to those with innate, unslotted magic like theirs.
"I'll give it a try," Meteria said softly.
Sitting with her back to Ronen, she watched the small orb of energy at his fingertip and tried to gather her own magic.
But it was clearly a struggle. For her, controlling magic power was anything but easy.
Ronen noticed her difficulty and offered a gentle suggestion, "Even just gathering magic can be assisted with incantation. Like this—'Gather.'"
At his word, the energy at his finger expanded noticeably.
"Then—'Condense.'"
The magic compressed into a small, swirling vortex of wind.
"And finally—'Roar, Magic Bullet.'"
The three-line chant flowed smoothly. Gather. Condense. Fire.
With a boom, the invisible magic bullet shot forward and struck the nearby wall. The impact wasn't strong—it didn't even leave a mark—but that was simply because Ronen had used very little magic power.
With a bit of practice, Ronen estimated that in just two days, he could control enough magic to shatter an enemy's skull using only one-fifth of his total reserves.
And if he used all of it?
He could blow a man's head clean off.
The power of magic scaled with two things—quantity and quality of magic.
What Ronen had just used was a basic magic bullet created by compressing raw magic. And the more he compressed it, the more destructive it became. What he had shown Meteria was merely the "condensed" version, not true compression. The spell still had much more potential to unlock.
"Come on, you give it a try," Ronen said with a warm smile. "But remember, don't use too much at once. Go beyond your limit, and you'll end up hurting yourself."
"Hmph! Ronen, are you treating me like a child?" Meteria puffed out her cheeks. "I'm not that clumsy, you know!"
After all, even without an incantation, Ronen could gather magic effortlessly.
Now that she had been walked through the explanation in such detail, even someone slower than average would be able to get through the first step after a few tries.
And indeed, that was the case.
Though Meteria had no talent as an adventurer, she wasn't talentless. With Ronen's encouragement, she managed to successfully complete the first step—gathering magic.
"Now, the second step—condense the magic," Ronen instructed, forming a dense orb of energy in his hand. Meteria could faintly feel its outline with her own senses.
Though magic power was intangible by nature, she focused carefully, trying to trace the unseen shape. And before long, she had learned the second step.
The third step was activation.
With a clear voice, she chanted the spell—and successfully released her first spell.
"I did it!!"
Her face lit up with joy.
"Yep. You really did," Ronen said, ruffling her hair. "You're amazing, Meteria."
"No way—it's just because you taught me so well!" she replied, her expression glowing.
Meteria knew full well that she was no genius—just an ordinary girl, maybe a little slow. But Ronen was a good teacher. He broke down the essence of magic theory into something she could grasp and taught it in the simplest terms.
Starting with chants, she would eventually learn to cast without them. One step at a time, they began with the most fundamental exercises and slowly built toward proficiency.
This wasn't wasted effort. It was growth. It was the foundation of something greater.
Giving up just because innate magic was weak… refusing to even try because something seemed impossible… that was a privilege of those born with talent.
But those who surpassed even the talented—the ones who led an era and pioneered the future of magic—were the creators.
In this world, the convenience of the gods' blessings had made such people rare, if not nonexistent.
But Ronen had made a decision.
He would become such a person.
And Meteria would support him with all her strength.
Together, they walked this path forward.
"Let's keep going," Ronen said, still holding Meteria gently from behind.
Magic swirled in his palm again, compressing into a spell.
"Mm!"
Meteria, excitement in her eyes, chanted again, "Gather, condense, roar—Magic Bullet!"
The simple three-line chant cast the simplest of spells, but it launched a neatly-formed blast of magic.
Boom!
Boom!
Again and again, the spells echoed through the air, and small dents began to appear in the stone wall.
Minor damage. But compared to their progress, it was nothing.
"Let's take a little break," Ronen suggested, noticing the rosy flush on Meteria's cheeks.
After all, magic came from the mind. Overuse caused headaches, nausea—even unconsciousness. A good mage knew their limits.
"Okay…"
Her earlier excitement fading, Meteria sank into a chair, clearly tired.
"I never thought… learning magic could be this fun," she murmured, resting her head on Ronen's shoulder.
Her white hair brushed against his cheek, tickling him with its soft strands.
With one arm wrapped gently around her, Ronen smiled. "That's because you never had a good teacher before—or someone to stay by your side."
"Companions and lovers are different. They're strong in ways you're not. So they can't always understand what you're going through."
"But I do. I try to stand in your shoes—to see from your point of view, to stay with you."
He rubbed his cheek against hers affectionately. "To adventurers, practicing magic is a means to grow stronger. But for us? It's a kind of… intimacy."
Intimacy—shared emotion and joy.
Whatever the task, interest was always the best teacher.
"Intimacy…" Meteria repeated softly, a pink hue rising in her cheeks.
Then she smiled—a gentle, content smile.
This kind of day… was happiness.
If not for the worry about her sister out on the expedition, Meteria could have given herself over to the moment entirely.
After a brief rest, Ronen stood again, feeling his magic gradually restored.
This practice, for him, was essential.
He didn't want to just understand magic in theory—he wanted to experience it, master it, and ultimately create something new.
And just now, during their training, Ronen had gained an insight into the essence of the Magic Bullet spell.
Magic, even shaped into a projectile, carried no real force on its own.
It wasn't like fire, which had inherent destructive power. It was more like a brick—harmless until thrown.
So the real source of a magic bullet's power…
Was impact force. The kinetic energy created by compressed magic
being violently propelled.
That was the key to unlocking its full potential.