"Ahem, I'll… clean it up right away."
Ron's awkward smile was all he could manage as Nami stepped out of her room, froze at the sight of the wrecked living room, and let her killing intent roll out like a storm.
Her fists clenched tight, teeth grinding, eyes blazing. She wanted nothing more than to beat him senseless. But when her gaze fell upon his battered body, still wrapped in wounds, she hesitated. She swallowed her rage, silently regretting ever saving this troublesome man.
But regret was useless now.
Her voice cracked through the air like a whip. "Next time before I come out of that room, this place had better be back to normal!"
"And on top of that… an extra five thousand Berries cleaning fee!"
Bang!
With those sharp words, Nami slammed the door behind her, leaving Ron standing in the living room with a helpless look.
"Cleaning fee? I'm the one cleaning, why do I have to pay her for it…"
He sighed. If this was what Nami was like at only fourteen, then in the future, without billions of Berries, no one could possibly live with her for more than half a month without being drained dry.
Still, this time he really was in the wrong. Ron crouched down and began picking up the scattered charts one by one.
While sorting, he summoned the Achievement System once more.
Tip: Host Ron has achieved 'First Training.' Reward: 1 Achievement Point.
"So my earlier attempt counted after all. Even if it failed, it was recognized as training. That means I was on the right track."
Ron nodded thoughtfully and placed the newly earned point into Spirit again.
As a proper mage, all points should go into Spirit. Strength, agility, vitality, those could be trained with the body. Spirit was his true foundation.
Half an hour later the room was restored to order.
This time, instead of recklessly trying again indoors, Ron stood by the open window, facing the sea. He closed his eyes and began to reconstruct the rune in his mind.
The increase to his Spirit and his earlier experience helped. He formed half the rune with ease. But the further he went, the harder it became to stabilize. At the final third, the structure collapsed again.
A faint breath of wind stirred the dust on the floor before fading away.
"Again."
His voice was steady.
Third attempt.
Fourth attempt.
Fifth attempt.
Failure after failure, yet each collapse taught him something. He began to understand.
The rune was a magical array, a bridge that converted spirit into elemental force. Forming it consumed energy, and once complete, it would channel Spirit through itself to draw the element and release it as magic.
After nine tries, his vision darkened. His legs gave way and he collapsed onto the sofa, head spinning.
So this was the cost of exhausting his Spirit.
He closed his eyes and emptied his thoughts. At once, a peculiar state embraced him. He felt half-awake, half-asleep. He could drift into slumber if he wished, or rise back into clarity at will.
"Meditation…"
The word came unbidden. This was what mages used to recover and strengthen their Spirit.
Ron realized just how different he had become. With his seven points of Spirit, his soul had already far surpassed that of a normal human. In meditation, his exhaustion melted away, energy surged back, until at last his Spirit brimmed full once more.
And then he felt something new. His Spirit, no longer healing, began to circulate and refine itself, like a hidden seed quietly dividing and growing stronger.
"So staying in meditation after recovery actually increases the essence of Spirit itself…"
The discovery thrilled him, but he opened his eyes. For now, mastery of magic was more urgent. Without it, he was powerless, barely able to even match Nami.
Two hours had passed in the real world. Nami had come out once, seen the tidy room and Ron apparently "asleep" on the sofa, and left him undisturbed.
Ron rose and returned to the window.
"Once more."
With Spirit full and mind steady, his focus sharpened like a blade. The rune took shape smoothly, line by golden line, until the final stroke completed it.
At that instant, a whirlpool formed in his spiritual sea. One third of his Spirit was drained in an instant.
Reality answered.
Before Ron, azure light gathered. A blade of wind, nearly the length of a girl's skirt, shimmered into existence and flew forth with a sharp hiss.
Shhh!
It carved across the floor, gouging a visible scar in the ground.
And then the System's voice rang in his ears.
Tip: You have mastered First-Tier Wind Magic: Wind Blade.
Ron's eyes shone. At last… magic was his.
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