Shion Lan looked sharply at the Water swordsman. Before the situation could escalate, Pearl Jewel said,
"Excuse us, Mr. Riv, but I need to speak with Shion."
She tried to pull Shion away, but he did not budge. He kept staring at the man called Riv and said,
"Tell me, do you have a problem with me?"
Before Riv could answer, the Fire swordswoman beside him dragged him away and said,
"We apologize, Lord Lan! He didn't mean any of that!"
When Riv tried to resist, the woman struck him on the head, knocking him unconscious. She then looked back at Shion apologetically.
"He just had a bad day and wanted someone to vent his anger on. But still, he crossed the line. It's unacceptable for him to speak to a Karath Academy student that way, let alone a noble like yourself. Please forgive him. I promise you won't see his face again."
Shion replied,
"Pearl, they are your employees. You can handle this however you see fit."
Then he left without caring about the matter any further and headed toward the mages.
"Lady Lucius, can we?"
"Yes, Lord Lan."
The mages went away leaving the place.
Pearl was furious.
"Lady Ember, take this man away. We no longer need him. I'll pay the remainder of his wages."
Ember sensed the anger in Pearl's voice, obeyed immediately, and dragged Riv away who wanted to apologise but his screams didn't enter Pearl's ears.
Pearl then moved to observe Shion's training, but a soft hand landed on her shoulder.
"And where are you going, little one?"
Pearl turned around and saw Solan Neumann.
"As a fourth-circle Spirit Mage, doesn't that make you think of something?"
Pearl raised an eyebrow.
"And what might that be?"
Solan replied,
"For example, sponsoring me as well!"
Pearl laughed.
"If I had sent you an invitation before, would you have accepted it?"
"You know why I'm here. So you should value your life and let me join!"
Pearl ignored the threat.
"Shion Lan is currently training his magic and shouldn't be disturbed. You can pass that message on to Solan Neumann."
As she turned to leave, Solan glared at her angrily, but Pearl continued,
"There's no relationship between Shion and me, so you can relax. I have plenty of participants I need to sponsor."
She started walking away, then paused.
"Though my father did want me to sponsor you as well..."
She sighed.
"He'll be angry if I leave you out. I can prepare a contract for you too."
Solan looked surprised before smiling warmly.
For the first time, Pearl realized how beautiful Solan's smile truly was.
"Sol, remember not to interrupt Shion's training until he's finished. And give my regards to Solan."
As Pearl left to prepare the contract, she heard loud cheers and decided to investigate.
"What is that now?"
What she found was an incredible battle between Harry Gill, Baro Ferrer, and Fiore Tai.
Pearl stared in astonishment.
Harry charged at the two with overwhelming force.
"(Raging Wind)!"
He activated a technique that intensified the violence and rotation of his aura, greatly increasing both his power and the strength of his techniques.
He rushed toward Baro, who thrust his spear forward.
"(Spear of Light: Line of Light)!"
Aura gathered around the spear, forming a luminous streak that shot toward Harry.
Sensing danger, Harry blocked with his sword, but at the same time Fiore appeared in front of him and unleashed his technique.
"(Whirlwind of Destruction: Shatter Defence)!"
The attack crashed down with tremendous force, shattering Harry's defensive aura.
While defending against the spear, Harry was pushed backward.
Baro instantly retrieved his spear and lunged forward.
"(Spear of Light: Light Acceleration)!"
A close-range battle erupted.
Baro's attacks targeted vital points, forcing Harry to dodge repeatedly.
With every miss, the spear met no resistance, allowing it to accelerate further and further until avoiding it became increasingly difficult.
Harry decided to block.
The moment he redirected the sword's body, Baro withdrew smoothly, gripped his spear, and unleashed,
"(Spear of Light: Line of Light)!"
At that incredible speed, the technique erupted with explosive power.
"Taste my spear!"
In a single step, Baro appeared before Harry and slammed his spear into the flat of Harry's sword, sending him flying and crashing to the ground.
When Harry tried to stand, he found another monster waiting.
Fiore's attacks descended relentlessly, never allowing him a moment to rest.
If Harry hadn't possessed four Aura Stars, his energy would have run dry long ago.
He gritted his teeth.
'These bastards! One distracts me while the other attacks. When I defend, one breaks my defense and the other takes advantage. In a one-on-one exchange, when one gets tired, the other takes over! I want to kill them!'
He decided to use a sound-based technique.
"(Symphony of Destruction)!"
His sword sliced through the air, producing disruptive sounds.
Fiore was affected immediately, missing his target and striking the ground instead.
Even his aura weakened.
Seeing an opening in Fiore's defenses, Harry moved to attack—
Only to be met by a spear rushing toward him.
"You brat!"
He barely managed to deflect it.
Baro returned to close combat, but he too was beginning to tire.
Harry sneered.
"You're finished. Why keep resisting?"
Fiore answered while gathering his aura.
"To finish you."
Harry felt danger immediately.
Fiore stood surrounded by a violent storm of wind aura.
Harry attempted to stop him, but Baro rushed from behind and restrained him.
"Do it!"
Baro shouted.
Fiore roared,
"(Whirlwind of Destruction: Total Destruction)!"
Combining all aspects of his technique, he created its ultimate form.
A massive vortex of aura surged toward Harry, whose movements had been restricted.
Seeing it, Harry activated another technique.
"(Thunder Drum)!"
He raised his sword and met Fiore's attack head-on.
Aura exploded across the arena.
Even after Baro's strike landed on him, Harry continued the technique.
The collision detonated violently, blasting everyone backward.
"Damn it!"
After crashing into the ground, none of them could stand properly.
The match ended in a draw.
At that moment, Pearl stepped in.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Harry replied irritably,
"What do you think? Can't you see?"
Pearl gave him a thin smile.
"I see you wasting the guild's money, damaging the facility, and wasting time in a fight that benefits none of us."
Harry immediately realized who he was speaking to.
"Sorry..."
But Pearl spoke calmly under her teeth with anger.
"We signed a contract with you to achieve a respectable ranking in the tournament. Instead, you got beaten up by people younger than you. On top of that, it looks suspiciously like you were trying to injure other participants. This is unacceptable."
Harry lowered his head and remained silent.
Pearl then turned to Baro and Fiore, who were looking rather proud of themselves.
Reality quickly caught up with them.
"You may be talented, but don't think that gives you the right to abuse your fellow partners. If either of you causes trouble again, I'll terminate the contract. And I believe you know the consequences regarding compensation fees and penalties."
The moment they heard the word penalties, all traces of battle spirit vanished.
"We're sorry..."
Pearl ignored them and walked away.
'We have first-year students with incredible talent, along with Harry and his four Aura Stars. I have to admit his skill is impressive. Our guild should dominate this tournament with ease.'
After preparing Solan's contract, she thought further,
'With Sol Hart, the greatest Spirit Magic genius and the disciple of Solan Neumann, added to the roster, we have nothing to fear in the first- and third-year divisions. But the second-year division is full of monsters: Shion Lan with the Power of the Stars, who is in my class; Ken Light with the Power of the Moon from the Noble Alliance Class; and finally Glass Sano with the Ice Power of the Sano Family, who is directly supported by his family.'
Yet, for some reason, she smiled.
"Shion Lan... I'm counting on you."
...
Meanwhile...
Shion had also exchanged a few spells with the two mages.
He concluded that he had already become stronger.
The only thing he lacked was a self-created fourth-level spell.
Looking at Fery Lucius, he asked,
"Your magic is quite refined. But how exactly do you use a Mage's Mind?"
Fery replied,
"You can think of the Mage's Mind as recalling a memorized flow of energy before casting a spell."
She raised her hand and fired a water projectile.
"(Water Ball)."
A small ball of water got its shape on her palm and said,
"It's a basic spell any mage can use. It doesn't require magic circles, but it can still be cast through the principles of simple magic."
Then she cast another water spell without chanting or hand signs.
The water flowed like a serpent.
"(Serpent Flow)."
Shion noticed that it was a spell of three magic circles and listened carefully,
"This is a simple water spell that normally requires two magic circles. Yet I can still cast it like a basic spell because the Mage's Mind allows me to reproduce the spell's magical flow without chanting."
She paused before continuing.
"As for how to achieve it..."
She looked at Shion, whose interest had reached its peak.
"You need to memorize and reproduce the spell's flow itself. If gestures and chants move magical energy through the spell's pathway, then you must remember that flow and recreate it without them."
Shion lowered his head in thought.
'What if I used aura to guide the magical energy? No... that would count as an external catalyst. Everything now depends on my ability to reach the Mage's Mind and complete the magical formula.'
While deep in thought, he sensed a familiar presence.
Turning around, he saw something stunning.
"Huh?!"
Solan was walking toward him beside Pearl.
He froze.
'Is this the end of the world?! They're walking together without arguing!'
Pearl spoke first.
"Lord Lan, Lady Hart insisted on helping with your training. Since she can use multiple elements and spirits, she claims she can help train both your aura and your magic. I'm not entirely sure how, but I'd like your opinion."
Shion looked at Solan.
"I don't want to interrupt your training. You should focus on preparing for the tournament."
Solan replied,
"I was ordered to help you train, so please don't send me away."
Shion could only smile.
"Tell Solan that I'm grateful to her, but she should take care of her student as well."
His eyes were full of warmth.
Had Solan's face not been hidden behind a mask, she would have blushed deeply.
Pearl, however, sensed something strange.
'What was that feeling just now?! Does both the teacher and the student love Shion?!'
After her initial shock, annoyance followed.
'First a dead spirit falls in love with him, and now an average-looking girl. This has nothing to do with me, but Shion deserves better than that.'