When Hermoa saw the gigantic meteor falling from the sky, her breath caught in her throat.
It was magic she had never seen before, but just the immense pressure she could feel through her skin told her this was no ordinary spell.
In truth, there was no need to analyze it through mana synesthesia at all.
The enormous mass of metal plunging down, enough to fill the entire training ground, was visually violent in and of itself.
Ludger, too, looked up at the massive meteor as it fell—and let out a low whistle.
“Did you activate a 6th-Circle spell of your own will?”
A 6th-Circle metal-attribute spell.
Heaven-Collapsing Meteoric Iron.
A magic that crushes everything beneath it with overwhelming mass of metal—essentially no different from dropping a meteor.
What was even more shocking was that Mina had not used a single spell formula to deploy it.
‘Without any spell formula or preparation, the magic manifests and falls with nothing more than a verbal warning.’
Using a 6th-Circle spell without a formula was something even Ludger himself could not do.
To any ordinary mage, it would have been a sight so absurd they’d lose their reason and fall into panic.
But if one looked closely, it was clear that this Heaven-Collapsing Meteoric Iron was not a properly completed 6th-Circle spell.
‘The surface is different. The real Heaven-Collapsing Meteoric Iron has a smooth exterior, with golden circuits beautifully embossed along the grain of its surface. This one imitates it, but it’s crude beyond belief in places.’
The size, too. And the falling speed.
Compared to the real thing, its shortcomings were impossible to ignore.
Because it wasn’t a spell constructed through a proper spell-formula process.
It was closer to something Mina had manifested purely by manipulating mana with her own will.
Even so, it was still incredible.
Using a pseudo–6th-Circle spell without any formula at all.
“Incredible.”
Ludger smiled gently at Mina, who was sending him a look that clearly said he should surrender already.
Students with rare magic lineages, students with multiple Magic Eyes, students with unusual constitutions—
All of them inevitably paled in comparison before Mina.
A girl loved by mana.
Her very existence was close to pure mana itself, a constitution that had reached the stage where mana reacted automatically to her will and manifested magic on its own.
Truly—
She felt like someone worth teaching.
“Since you’ve gone this far, I’ll show you as well. Just how capable the teacher who will be guiding you really is.”
Using an 8th-Circle spell would take too much time even for him, and a 7th-Circle would be far too stimulating for children.
So in response to Mina’s pseudo–6th-Circle spell, he decided to show them a real 6th-Circle magic.
A mist of mana formed around Ludger’s body.
Densely gathered mana particles flowed into currents, embroidering spell formulas in midair as if painting with a brush.
Blue magical lines spread out like constellations across the night sky, and harmonized mana manifested the form it sought amid beautiful light.
A 6th-Circle wood-attribute spell.
[Giant Tree, Willows Become a Forest]
From the center of the training ground, a colossal tree erupted upward.
As if watching the growth of a tree fast-forwarded, the giant tree grew at an incredible speed, spreading countless branches and catching the falling Meteoric Iron from the sky.
The spell Mina had used was certainly destructive, but a crudely manifested 6th-Circle spell could not defeat the real thing.
Heaven-Collapsing Meteoric Iron was stopped by the giant tree, unable to fulfill its original purpose of crashing into the ground.
“Un... unbelievable...”
The students all cried out in shock at the sight of Ludger completing a 6th-Circle spell in such a short time.
Mina was just as stunned.
She had never imagined her magic would be blocked so easily.
She had even worried that the opponent before her might be gravely injured—but that had all been nothing more than excessive arrogance on her part.
When the two spells that had achieved their purposes vanished, Mina collapsed weakly onto the empty training ground they left behind.
The overwhelming scene Ludger had shown while casting his spell had completely stripped her of any will to fight.
“I... I lost.”
Ludger walked over to Mina.
“Mina. Your talent is undeniably extraordinary. You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone like you even if you searched the entire continent.”
With talent like Mina’s, one would need to dig through all of recorded history to compare.
Even as raw ore, she was already close to a jewel in brilliance.
If properly polished, she could become a hero remembered for generations.
Ludger thought it was almost fortunate that his own teacher, Grander, had vanished from this world and gone to Earth.
If she had remained in the capital, she would have been watching Ludger closely—and upon seeing Mina, she would have shown overwhelming interest.
The possibility was slim, but she might even have taken Mina in as a new disciple.
That was how exceptional Mina’s talent was.
“But possessing such overwhelming talent and then neglecting your own training—that would be nothing but an insult to that very talent.”
“But... I didn’t want to become like this.”
Mina spoke with her shoulders completely slumped.
She believed her talent was a curse.
Because she had been born this way, she had never received proper love from her parents.
Her overwhelming mana burned anyone who came close.
Even her own parents, who had given birth to her, could not hold her.
On top of that, her hair and skin color were strange, her growth slow—she had even been bullied and ostracized by children her age.
Mina could not understand why she had to live like this.
Naturally so.
She was still young.
The talent she bore was far too great for someone her age to carry.
“I’ll help you.”
Ludger extended his hand toward Mina.
Seeing that, Mina flinched.
She knew all too well what happened to people who touched her—she had learned through countless experiences.
But Ludger did not withdraw his outstretched hand.
He simply looked steadily at Mina.
His eyes were saying this:
Trust me. The teacher who will guide you is far greater than you imagine.
After hesitating, Mina seemed to make a decision and extended her small arm, taking Ludger’s hand.
Tap.
The moment she grasped his hand, Mina opened her mouth without realizing it.
“Ah.”
Nothing happened.
The mana that both protected her body and reacted instantly to external threats with excessive hostility calmed down.
It was like an unruly hunting dog meeting its true natural predator and tucking its tail.
But what shocked her even more was the warmth she felt through her palm.
Tears streamed down Mina’s cheeks.
She had forgotten.
After living so long without touching anyone, she had forgotten the warmth of another person.
She had grown so accustomed to that life that she no longer even knew what she had lost.
But now—
Mina remembered again.
That a person’s hand could be this warm.
Ludger pulled her hand and helped her to her feet.
“So you manifest magic just by imagining it?”
“Huh? N-no. It’s not imagination. If I want something, the mana in my body just figures it out on its own and uses the optimal magic.”
“Then had you seen Heaven-Collapsing Meteoric Iron before?”
“That spell’s name is Heaven-Collapsing Meteoric Iron?”
Judging by Mina’s reaction, it seemed ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) she had never seen a 6th-Circle spell at all.
Despite that, she had manifested one.
Even if its completion was low, the fact that she realized it from a blank slate with no knowledge whatsoever was astonishing.
‘A girl loved by mana.’
Ludger recalled Mina’s constitution once more.
Her body itself was composed of vast quantities of mana.
The amount she possessed was truly transcendent—and she could use it effortlessly.
As long as she simply wished it.
In fact, her Heaven-Collapsing Meteoric Iron against Ludger had been the manifestation of her desire to strike her opponent as powerfully as possible.
Mana responded to that will and used the most optimal magic available to her.
‘Its power is weak because Mina herself lacks willpower, knowledge, and experience.’
If she had actually seen a true 6th-Circle spell and cast it based on that experience, the result would undoubtedly have been far more precise and powerful.
A talent that outright denied the effort of all other mages—one that would leave them feeling robbed.
But such excessive talent was ultimately a double-edged sword that cut even its wielder.
Because of her talent and constitution, Mina had been unable to form proper human relationships.
Simply touching others hurt them, and that left her with deep trauma.
So Mina kept running away—to avoid hurting others.
And to avoid being hurt herself.
She must have known, on some level, that even that behavior isolated her further and made her lonelier.
But what other choice had been given to this girl?
If Mina had been just a bit more experienced or wiser, she might have found a way forward.
But as she was now, she was still a student.
She needed an adult to teach and guide her.
“I’ll help you live a better life from here on.”
“Yes, teacher.”
Ludger wiped away Mina’s tears.
Even the tears she shed were filled with vast mana.
In environments where mana is excessively concentrated, beasts and plants undergo mutation.
Beasts that continue to evolve in such conditions are said to become spirit beasts.
Then what would happen if a human underwent something similar?
Would they be called a spirit human?
Even Ludger didn’t know. A case like this had never existed before.
Turning to the other students, Ludger spoke.
“The test is over. From now on, you will attend my classes in the Special Class.”
Overwhelmed by the might Ludger had displayed, the students listened quietly.
“There’s one thing I can say for certain. My teachings will be nothing like any of the stale classes you’ve felt dissatisfied with before.”
* * *
“You really went all out, didn’t you?”
The empty training ground after the students had left.
That was the first thing Elisa said as she entered.
And it was only natural. The specially reinforced training ground had been severely damaged.
Not to mention the massive mana shockwaves caused by the use of 6th-Circle spells.
Students and staff passing nearby had been badly startled—it was inevitable that strange rumors would spread.
“It was something that had to be done.”
“Students aren’t easy to handle, are they?”
“It’s hard to understand where on earth such children were all gathered into one place.”
“I feel the same way. Still, it seems my choice in selecting you, Professor Ludger, wasn’t wrong after all. To firmly rein in such unique children.”
“If I let my guard down, I’d end up struggling too. I had no choice but to give it my all.”
“How modest. Even though you weren’t, really.”
Considering Ludger’s true ability, what he had shown in the training ground today didn’t even amount to half of half his real strength.
“Still, I feel relieved. Those children—talented as they are—each carry wounds deep in their hearts.”
“Yes. I feel it as well.”
Talent that is difficult to handle often becomes poison that destroys its owner.
The fact that those children hadn’t died young and had safely enrolled in Seorn was nothing short of a miracle.
“By the way, do you have anything scheduled next?”
“Yes.”
Ludger answered crisply.
“I’ve finally returned, haven’t I? It’s time to go see some old colleagues again.”
“Hehe. That’s true. If I tagged along, I’d only ruin the mood.”
Elisa readily agreed and withdrew.
Ludger stood in the training ground for a moment, reviewing his sparring matches with the students, then slowly headed outside.
Walking through the estate, which hadn’t changed much from three years ago, he could truly feel that he had returned.
And when he arrived at the meeting place—
There were still thirty minutes left until the appointed time, yet people had already arrived.
“Looks like I’m the last one.”
“Professor Ludger!”
The first to greet him was Selina.
Standing beside her was Merilda.
“Professor Merilda, it’s been a while.”
“It really is you, Professor Ludger. I heard you’d returned, but I wasn’t sure I believed it.”
Merilda said, her eyes wide as she looked him up and down.
“Professor Brino, it’s been a long time as well.”
“Goodness... this isn’t a dream, is it?”
Brino, who taught Golem Studies, pinched his own plump cheek as if to check.
The first time they had gathered here was four years ago, when the students of that cohort—now graduated—had just enrolled.
And now, after many years—
They, who had joined at the same time, were gathered together once more.