Her presence wasn’t strong, yet she always filled various needs just right, like a shadow blending into the background.
"Do you remember the weather the first time we met at the workshop?"
Lilia suddenly asked, her voice almost drowned out by the sound of the rain.
Ron was slightly taken aback, then recalled the scene from that day: "The sky was clear."
"Yes, the sky was clear," Lilia softly repeated, looking up at the gray sky:
"That day the sun was bright, and it was my first time stepping into the workshop, full of expectations and anxiety. But whenever I return to the herb store, it’s always raining, just like now."
Ron didn’t know how to respond and could only walk alongside her.
The rain grew heavier, making a dull sound on the raincoat, as if pouring out some unspeakable emotion.
"I want to tell you." The girl’s voice was particularly vague amidst the rain: "I won’t give up."
She stopped, turned around, and looked straight into Ron’s eyes.
Raindrops slowly slid down the edge of her raincoat, forming a small puddle at her feet:
"I know I’m too weak, that’s why I’m a burden. But I will work harder until one day I can catch up with you."
At that moment, Ron saw a kind of obsessive determination in the girl’s eyes.
No longer the always submissive girl with lowered eyes, but a pathfinder who has found her path.
This transformation of will was surprising, as if a long-hidden spark had finally begun to burn.
"Let’s head back." He eventually said simply: "The rain is getting heavier."
Lilia nodded and kept pace with him.
The rain formed a blurry curtain around them, blurring and making uncertain the boundaries between the past and future.
.........
After returning to the workshop, Ron didn’t stop to rest.
Instead, he went directly to the training ground to start intensive magic practice.
Time waits for no one; he must complete all preparations before the "Star Ring Convergence" arrives.
Mastery of magic is crucial to becoming an Official Wizard.
Especially since he chose the Path of Truth, which requires at least three magics to reach the Master Level.
Currently, his "Sound Wave Vibration" and "Ring of Brilliance" are both close to breaking through, just a few experience points away.
"I must conquer the final obstacle." Ron frowned slightly, his eyes gleaming with calm determination.
He stood in the center of the training ground, took a deep breath, and began constructing the "Sound Wave Vibration" magic model.
Spiritual Power flowed like mercury in his Consciousness Space, forming an extremely complex energy structure.
When released, "Sound Wave Vibration" appears effortless, with a wave of the hand producing sound wave ripples, but internally its magical construction is extraordinarily intricate.
It is required to create invisible yet substantial damage-causing vibration ripples in the air.
He must also precisely inject Spiritual Power into each node at specific frequencies and intensities.
Ron adjusted the parameters of the magic model again and again, trying to find the best energy distribution method.
Every fine adjustment demanded a high level of Spiritual Control; a slight mistake could mean the loss of all previous efforts.
Sweat dripped down his forehead, soaking his collar, but his gaze remained focused, not daring to relax for a moment.
After many attempts, the semi-transparent panel finally gave a hint of feedback:
[Sound Wave Vibration (Proficient) Experience Points + 1]
[Current Progress: Sound Wave Vibration (Proficient 98/100)]
Outside the training ground, Lilia saw the red sign hanging on the door, sighed softly, and walked back.
She prepared to put the already cooked meal back into the warming compartment.
.........
During a few days of intense focus training, Ron closed his eyes, with Spiritual Power circulating in his body like a trickling stream.
"Concentrate," he whispered to himself, constructing the magic model with his hands in front of his chest.
As Spiritual Power was injected, the surrounding air subtly distorted, with nearly invisible ripples spreading from his hands.
Ron controlled the ripples’ frequency and intensity, letting them intersect in complex ways to form specific interference patterns.
"Just a little more," he murmured, frowning slightly, sweat beading on his forehead.
The continuous output of Spiritual Power made him feel slightly fatigued, but he didn’t stop to rest, instead attempting more complex frequency combinations.
The ripples no longer spread in a single direction but formed a stereo sound field structure that could attack from multiple angles simultaneously.
An entire hour passed, yet the progress bar remained stuck at those last two points.
This bottleneck was quite common, especially in the critical moments of skill breakthroughs.
Ron wasn’t impatient, continuing to try various different frequency combinations in hopes of finding a breakthrough.
After countless attempts, the semi-transparent panel finally provided feedback:
[Sound Wave Vibration Experience Points + 1]
[Current Progress: Sound Wave Vibration (Proficient 99/100)]
"Just one last point," Ron whispered to himself, a mix of excitement and pressure in his voice.
The last step is often the hardest.
Just like his Basic Swordsmanship, also stuck at 99/100 experience points, unable to突破 the final bottleneck.
In such cases, mere repetitive practice could no longer bring progress; comprehension and innovation of the magic essence were needed.
He closed his eyes, starting to sort through all his understandings of sound waves.
Sound wave is a form of energy transmission, propagating through the vibration of molecules in a medium (such as air).
Normal sound waves can only exert weak pressure on the surface of objects.
But "Sound Wave Vibration" can interfere with material structure at the micro-level, causing substantial damage.
This is because the sound waves in the magic are infused with special magic frequencies, capable of resonating with the natural frequency of matter, amplifying the amplitude to achieve destructive effect.
Wait... resonance?
Ron’s thought suddenly froze on this keyword.
Resonance is a physical phenomenon where the amplitude of vibration dramatically increases, and the energy transfer efficiency greatly improves when an external force’s frequency approaches a body’s natural frequency.
However, his previous "Sound Wave Vibration" seemed not to have fully utilized this principle.
He had been trying to increase destructive power by increasing energy input, yet ignored the possibility of tuning frequency to achieve the best resonance effect.
Once this thought emerged, it took root and sprouted rapidly like a seed in fertile soil.
However, to verify this idea, he needed to observe a real resonance phenomenon as a reference.
Suddenly, he recalled Dale’s Charm Song ability— a special sound wave that could directly affect the target’s mind.
"Dale!" Ron called through the Spiritual Link, with rare urgency in his voice.
Soon, the Little Sea Siren stepped lightly into the training ground, her golden eyes filled with curiosity and expectation: "Master, are you looking for me?"
"I need you to demonstrate your Charm Song ability."
Ron said directly, his voice calm and focused: "Not targeting me, but at that stone."
Dale looked puzzled at the solid stone Ron pointed to, but still nodded obediently:
"Okay, Master, but... what’s the point? The stone has no mind to be bewitched."
"Just consider it an experiment," Ron answered briefly, his eyes flashing with a cold calculating glow.
Dale took a deep breath and began to sing.
The sound wasn’t describable by any human language; it was some ancient sea siren spell.
The voice contained subtle Rhythm and tempo, like the ebb and flow of tides, orderly yet full of changes.
As the singing continued, fine vibrations appeared on the surface of the stone, as if countless tiny ripples flowed across it.
Ron watched intently while using Spiritual Perception to sense those vibration patterns invisible to the naked eye.
Through this dual perception, he discovered that the sound waves emitted by Dale indeed resonated with the stone at some level, although the effect was limited.
This discovery was like a lightning bolt, instantly lighting up inspiration in his mind.
So this is it... The reason sea sirens’ Charm Songs can affect material and mind is that they can precisely capture the "natural frequency" of the target and then adjust the frequency of the sound waves they emit to achieve the best resonance effect.
It’s like a key perfectly fitting its lock—when the frequency matches completely, the energy transfer efficiency increases exponentially.
"Thank you, Dale."
Ron nodded in gratitude, a rare smile appearing on his lips: "You can go back now."
Dale looked curiously at the stone and then at Ron, her golden eyes full of confusion.
But she still nodded obediently and left the training ground.
Ron sat down cross-legged on the ground again, closed his eyes, and began to completely reconstruct the "Sound Wave Vibration" magic model.