Chapter 47: The Ice Giant
Noah thought for a moment, then said to them, "Do you know what is most needed for great strength?"
"What is it?"
"A foundation. Only with a sufficient foundation can you support true strength. I have several thousand books in my home, and I have read every single one. I've also read most of the collection in the guild's library. That is my foundation in knowledge. And every day, I train my body and my magic power. You all know about Ultear's condition, right? She had problems precisely because her magic was stronger than her body. You can see from that how important physical conditioning is."
Noah took a sip of water from a nearby glass and continued, "Ever since I started learning magic, I have read books, trained my body, and conditioned my magic power every single day, without interruption. That comes first. Only then do I learn various kinds of magic. You two have been learning magic for less than two years, right? Build your foundation first before you think about anything else. Never forget your foundation. The kind of foundation you have will determine the kind of strength you can achieve."
Gray and Lyon both looked thoughtful after hearing this. After all, these were the words of the incredibly powerful Noah; there was naturally truth to them. And it was true that Noah had a library in his house, with books protected by various spells and many reading notes beside them, proving he read often. In fact, he had just been reading a book. As for his physical strength, after seeing him trade blows with Deliora, they never again doubted his physical prowess. And his magic power was simply staggering; the pillar of light that had pierced the heavens said it all.
Seeing that they had understood, Noah went back to reading his magic book.
After Ur and the girls finished their bath, the boys went in. Then, they all wished each other goodnight and went to bed.
The next day, after waking up and eating breakfast, Ur planned to start teaching her disciples and Noah Ice-Make magic. Since they were going to the snowy mountain, Erza and her group split off from Noah to go to their own usual training spot. Noah then took Ur and the other four to the nearby mountain.
Upon arriving, Ur, Gray, and Lyon began to strip off their clothes, leaving only their shorts and underwear. Ultear stared, completely dumbfounded. Noah leaned over to her and said in a solemn tone, "Whatever you do, don't learn this habit from them. Gray and Lyon already have a tendency to unconsciously strip off their clothes anytime, anywhere."
Ultear nodded frantically. After they had undressed, Ur said to Noah and the others, "To understand ice, you must have direct contact with it. That's why you have to expose yourself to the cold wind as much as possible. You two should join in."
Noah shook his head. "I'll pass. I'm here to learn shaping, I don't need a deep mastery of ice itself."
Ultear also hid behind Noah, shaking her head vigorously. Seeing this, Ur had no choice but to give up on making them strip.
They began their basic training. Lyon was originally not very interested in basic conditioning, but seeing Noah doing it as well, Noah's words from the previous night came back to him. If a wizard as powerful as Noah was still training his foundation, he had no choice but to obediently follow along.
Noah, feeling their training intensity was a bit low, placed everyone except Ultear under his Gravity Magic. Lyon and Gray were instantly pressed to the ground, unable to move. Ur, however, was able to move freely after a moment of adjustment.
"Look at you two. Your physical conditioning is too poor. Even Erza is better than you. She also just started learning magic, but her body is much stronger. At the very least, she can move freely under this level of gravity."
Hearing this, Gray and Lyon were filled with indignation and struggled with all their might to stand up. After a great effort, they finally managed to get to their feet, trembling, their legs shaking.
"If you can't handle it, you shouldn't push yourselves. Look, your legs are already shaking," Noah advised kindly.
"Who... who says we can't handle it? We're fine," Lyon said, his teeth chattering.
"Th-that's right. We're fine," Gray added, his whole body trembling.
Noah ignored them and divided the gravity spell into three zones: the strongest for himself, the second strongest for Ur, and the weakest for Gray and Lyon. He then began his own physical training. Ur also began to train after gradually adapting, while simultaneously guiding Gray and Lyon. Ultear, meanwhile, did some basic, low-intensity exercises on the side, following Noah's instructions.
When he saw that Gray and Lyon were about to collapse, Noah released the Gravity Magic. The two of them immediately fell to the snow, gasping for breath.
"Mmm, their physical conditioning definitely needs to be strengthened," Ur mused, beginning to plan a future path for her disciples. When Noah was around, they could use his Gravity Magic to train, and the effect was remarkable.
After a short rest, Ur began to teach Gray and the others Ice-Make magic. Based on Noah's diagnosis, Ultear was now able to handle magic training, so she also began to learn. While Gray and the others continued with their basic magic training, Noah focused on learning the art of shaping—how to make ice take on the exact form he envisioned.
Ur taught Noah everything she knew about shaping without reservation. And because she was using Ice-Make to explain, she also passed on all her insights about the nature of ice to him. Noah benefited immensely from this. In just over ten days, he could already clap his hands together and create a stable, multi-story-tall ice giant with a clear face, standing firm on the ground. Noah stood on top of the giant's head, and the giant's face was his own. The ice giant settled into a horse stance and threw two punches, the force of which whipped the snow into a blizzard.
Ur's family, watching from the side, each had a different reaction to the sight of the ice giant.
"Are we even learning the same magic as him? I'm pretty sure we started first, right?" Gray scratched his head vigorously, knocking the snow from his hair, completely baffled.
"We did start before him, but..." Lyon didn't know what to say. He was so stunned he didn't even bother to brush the snow off his own head. The blow to his confidence was severe. His dream was to one day surpass Ur, so he was constantly working hard. But watching Noah use the same magic to rapidly approach Ur's level in less than two weeks was a huge blow to him.
"There are people in this world who are true geniuses. Noah is probably one of them. You don't need to compare yourselves to people like that. As long as you are better today than you were yesterday, that's enough." Ur comforted them from the side, swatting away the snowflakes that flew towards her. But internally, she was also filled with shock and incomprehension. No one who saw their own magic, which they had spent years researching, be understood, learned, and applied by someone else in a matter of days could remain calm.
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sorry i uploaded the wrong chapter here the correct one enjoy.