It was the second day of training with the heroes—and of the ongoing analysis of Lilith’s magical formula.
As usual, I made my way to the training hall alongside Runa.
She looked unusually energetic this morning. Probably because she was excited to spend more ti with the other familiars. Yesterday, she had played with Ei until she was practically frozen solid, tried speaking to Cain’s still-unhatched Salamander egg, and even attempted to bond with Theresia’s Byakko.
She’d also tried to talk to Freya’s Phoenix, though it never revealed itself. Judging by the glint in her eye, she was determined to try again today.
When I stepped into the hall, I noticed that King Aslan and Alia weren’t present. They were training in a separate space today—King Aslan needed to help her grow accustod to the Durandal sword and form a bond with Hyperion.
I was genuinely looking forward to the day Alia completed that bond. Maybe I’d sneak a peek at their training session later.
That thought led to Julius.
He was still at the Starlight family estate, undergoing the Starlight Hero’s trial to earn his title and prove himself as the next family head. He’d sent a ssage not long ago saying he was taking on the mission alone, accompanied only by Termina and Luna.
He also ntioned training with the legendary Sword of Justice—the weapon once wielded by Lucius himself, the forr Starlight Hero.
I had offered to help with his quest, but he declined, saying it was sothing he had to overco on his own. It made realize just how far he had co. Julius had matured—he was no longer the reckless kid I used to worry about. He was soone I could rely on now.
I made a ntal note to be there when he took his final trial next week.
But for now, my focus had to remain on the others.
Back in the training hall, I observed the familiar faces.
Serena had already summoned Ei and was working hard to communicate with him. Cain had summoned his familiar too—or rather, his egg, which was wobbling around on the floor like a restless spirit. He looked frustrated, but he was holding it in.
Theresia was channeling mana through her body, trying to stabilize it and use it to summon Byakko properly.
And Freya—calm and composed—was deep in ditation, her sword resting on her lap. No doubt, she was trying to reach Phoenix’s realm.
A quiet pride swelled in . They were starting to understand what needed to be done.
I greeted them and explained today’s goal: they would maintain their familiar summons from morning until midday. It was an endurance test—to see how long they could sustain their connection.
For the next few hours, I gave them guidance, helping them improve their control, offering tips on mana circulation, and pushing their limits just enough to challenge them.
By midday, I gathered everyone and asked how they felt.
Out of the four, only Serena reported real progress. She said she was starting to hear Ei’s voice—faint and distant, but unmistakably there.
Runa stepped in to help translate what Ei was trying to say. Soon, the three of them were happily chatting away, even laughing together.
I smiled and praised Serena."Nice work, Serena. If you keep this up, I’m sure you’ll be able to speak with Ei fully before long."
"Hehe, I’ll do my best," she replied with a warm smile, gently stroking Ei’s snowy feathers.
She looked so beautiful in that mont. I wanted to tell her... but no, we were still in the middle of training. I had to stay focused.
Next, I checked on Cain.
His Salamander was still in egg form but circling him tirelessly. I could tell he was embarrassed by the situation.
So, naturally, I teased him.
"Maybe you should sit on it and incubate it. Who knows? That might speed up the hatching."
Runa instantly relayed the ssage to the egg, and to everyone’s surprise, it enthusiastically rolled over to Cain’s backside and started nudging him like it agreed.
Cain’s face turned red with fury.
"You little—!!" he barked and lunged at , but I was already sprinting away, laughing like an idiot. Even Runa was rolling on the floor, barely able to breathe from laughter.
When else would I get the chance to make soone like Cain lose his cool?
Next, I turned my attention to Theresia.
She was still struggling to properly channel her mana into her summoning circle.
"Ugh, this is so frustrating... My mana won’t go where I want it to," she muttered in defeat.
I walked over to her and gently took her hands.
"Huh? N-Naoki... you..." Her cheeks instantly flushed pink.
"Let help guide your mana flow."
She hesitated a mont but then nodded.
Carefully, I let my mana flow into her system and gently directed her mana into the correct channels.
Bit by bit, the magic circle began to glow, more stable than before. Theresia’s eyes widened as the faint outline of Byakko’s three-dinsional form began to take shape.
"This... This is incredible, Naoki!"
Her voice trembled with excitent as she gripped my hand and bounced on her feet like a child.
"Keep practicing this," I said. "If you can master it, Byakko will fully manifest."
"Thank you so much," she said, holding my hand tightly again. Her eyes sparkled like stars.
"Wow, Master... That was bold of you," Runa muttered dryly beside .
"Huh? What do you an?" I asked, confused.
That’s when Envi’s voice scread in my mind:
"NAO, YOU IDIOT! LOOK TO YOUR LEFT!"
I slowly turned my head—and froze.
Serena was staring at with a mischievous smirk, her finger twirling with a small spark of ice magic.
I instantly let go of Theresia’s hand and bolted over to Serena.
"Uhh, Serena... it’s not what it looks like. I swear I was just helping her control her mana. That’s it. I’m not taking any more fiancées. Promise!"
I was practically sweating. The last ti I upset Serena, she encased in ice for an entire day. I had no intention of repeating that horror.
To my relief, she chuckled and waved it off."It’s fine, I know Theresia. She’s like a puppy sotis."
I exhaled, relieved, and joined her laughter.
Finally, I made my way over to Freya. She was completely still, her breathing calm, her body glowing faintly.
Even when I sat beside her, she didn’t flinch.
Runa whispered, "Master, let’s leave her be. I think she’s finally making contact with Phoenix."
I nodded, respecting her space. She was so close now—I could feel it. And I believed in her.
With that, our training session ca to a close.
The heroes were growing stronger. Closer. Their bonds with their familiars were taking shape—and with each passing day, I could see the glimr of sothing extraordinary on the horizon.
....
That night, Char, Lyra, Orion, and I gathered to study Lilith’s intricate spell formation—composed of fifteen concentric magic circles.
We began dissecting them one by one. Our goal was to complete analysis on five of them by the end of the night.
Char took the lead as the primary researcher. He was incredibly skilled, expertly deconstructing each circle into its individual magical components and translating their chanisms with precision.
"Hm... this one’s tied to the shifting of atomic and molecular structures in the air," he muttered confidently, eyes focused on the glowing diagram in front of him.
Orion confird that he also got the sa results.
I stepped in to assist. My knowledge of magic circles—passed down from the late Professor Alden—helped understand their foundations. I also activated [Eclipse Foresight] to peer deeper into the hidden layers of the spell’s composition.
"You’re right," I said, astonished. "This formula manipulates atomic and molecular shifts into mana, affecting both space and ti. This is... incredible."
Char glanced at , looking faintly surprised.
"Heh... not bad," he replied, though his tone was difficult to read.
He then leaned back slightly, arms crossed. "These circles are insanely complex. And to think—Lilith’s teleportation magic structure uses fifty of these. Her brilliance is unreal."
I nodded in agreent, deeply impressed. Then, curiosity got the better of .
"By the way, Char—what’s your magic specialization?"
There was a long pause.
Char looked at for a second... then turned away silently, completely ignoring the question.
I clenched my fist, doing my best not to let my irritation show.
Lyra, perhaps sensing my frustration, stepped in with her usual gentleness.
"U-um... Char-sama, if we knew your magic specialty, we could coordinate more effectively moving forward—"
Before she could even finish, he cut her off.
"Non-elental magic. That’s my specialty," he replied flatly, eting Lyra’s eyes with a serious expression.
Inside my mind, Envi exploded.
"What the hell?! That bastard ignored you but answered Lyra! Nao, he’s a damn two-faced creep trying to get close to her!"
Honestly, I agreed with Envi for once. I didn’t know why, but sothing about it rubbed the wrong way too.
Lyra gave a stiff, awkward smile and subtly stepped behind for cover.
"Ahh... I see. I didn’t know anyone could specialize in that. It sounds really unique," she said with an uneasy laugh.
"Non-elental magic is the fundantal root of all magic," Char added smugly. "As for how it works exactly... hmm, I guess I won’t tell you just yet. Maybe if Lyra praises a little, I might change my mind."
He shot a look as he said that—clearly trying to provoke .
I took a slow breath, keeping my cool. Then I gently took Lyra’s hand in mine.
Her face flushed instantly, turning pink as she looked away shyly.
I smiled and said to Char with a calm tone, "Not happening."
"Tch... boring," he muttered, looking genuinely disappointed.
Seeing that scene made Orion laugh awkwardly and calm us down.
With the tension diffused, we returned our focus to the magic circles.
That night, we successfully completed the analysis of five circles—far more than we expected.
Lyra carefully recorded all our findings in her notebook, her handwriting as neat and elegant as always.
It was solid progress.
Just two days remained before I would et Lilith again.
I needed to ensure I had real breakthroughs in this research—sothing aningful to show her. Sothing that proved I was keeping up.
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