NoveLight ™
“My apprentice? It might be difficult, but can you try to maintain the current state for a moment?”
“Leave it to me.”
Bang!
Just as Rishir confidently responded, the mana and wind gathered in his hands scattered in all directions.
The magic, which was created based on a momentary intuition and instinct rather than refined experience and knowledge, collapsed the moment his will intervened.
“...‘Leave it to me?’”
“Oh, rebellion.”
Roera, her hair tousled by the wind, casually brushed it back and chuckled playfully.
“Rebellion, you say? Rishir would never do such a thing, Roera. Actually, it’s probably my fault. I meant to tell him to cancel the spell immediately, but my tongue slipped. Rishir just figured it out.”
“Damn it, Pamon. That’s pitiful. Even a discarded husband wouldn’t be as pathetic as that. How did you fall so far?”
“Master, I’m sorry. I tried to focus, but suddenly I got distracted—it seems it’s because the magic was cast relying purely on my instincts.”
Despite her playful banter, Pamon was already analyzing the dispersed mana in the area. Her silver eyes gazed into the air, and with long, delicate fingers, she seemed to probe the space around them, as if gently touching droplets of water.
“Indeed—there’s a lack of cohesion in the mana.”
“You’re lucky you managed to complete this type of structured magic using such a brute force method.”
“Duran~ you should take my apprentice’s level into account~”
“What I mean is, it’s absurd.”
After a brief conversation with Duran about the magic, Pamon suddenly began looking around.
“What’s going on? Could it be an intruder—”
“No, no. It’s not that—”
Pamon calmed Roera, who had started to reach for her sword, and continued speaking.
“I was just checking the state of this place. Just in case I missed any unusual signs, like particularly strong wind currents.”
“Oh. So that’s why he was able to create something like that wind arrow earlier?”
Roera’s words brought a meaningful smile to Pamon’s face. She looked over at Rishir and spoke.
“My apprentice?”
“Yes, Master?”
“How are you feeling? No discomfort anywhere?”
Rishir paused to assess his condition at Pamon’s question.
“I’m a bit tired, but nothing too serious.”
“That’s a relief. Then, my apprentice? Could you try reproducing what you did earlier, one more time?”
Rishir nodded and immediately began focusing.
...
A lump of mana began to form—
But it dispersed before it could take the shape of an arrow.
Rishir tilted his head in confusion and tried again. And again. And again.
“Hoo... Hoo...”
The process repeated several times, and Rishir’s breathing became noticeably rougher. Sweat dripped down his face, soaking him.
...
Roera didn’t know magic.
Thus, she couldn’t understand Rishir’s current state, and that made her all the more concerned.
She glanced over at Pamon.
Is this okay? Should he keep pushing himself like that?
She wanted to ask but swallowed the question. Pamon’s current expression was far too serious for her to interrupt with an uninformed opinion. Her usual smiling silver eyes were now gleaming with sharp intensity as she focused on Rishir.
...
How much time had passed?
“Huff... Huff...”
Rishir’s clothes were drenched in sweat, his legs trembling.
Thud.
Finally, his legs gave out, and he collapsed on the spot. Panicking, he looked down at his palms.
“Phew...”
A smile of relief spread across his face.
The wind arrow he had formed just moments before remained stable in front of him.
Though it was much smaller than before, it was steady.
Rishir could clearly feel the magic arrow he had created. Moreover, he could control it.
“Oh...”
A gasp of admiration escaped Roera’s lips.
The wind arrow, now about the size of a marble, moved freely according to Rishir’s hand gestures.
“Master?”
Rishir immediately raised his head to gauge Pamon’s reaction.
“Pfft.”
That’s when he heard it.
Pamon. She was laughing at the sight of Rishir.
“Master...?”
“Haha. What’s this, Rishir? Whatever you did, it must’ve been a really silly mistake. You were acting all high and mighty, and yet—”
Roera, interpreting Pamon’s laughter in her own way, smirked and mocked Rishir. The scene of the bastard child, collapsed on the ground with the tiny wind arrow hovering over his hand, seemed pathetic in its own way.
“What’s this? A scene of collective bullying? The bastard child could never escape his fate of being looked down upon?”
Pamon’s small laughter seemed like it would pass as a trivial moment.
But—
“Pfft...”
Once again, Pamon burst into laughter.
She sank to the ground, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably.
The sound of her stifled laughter echoed intermittently.
After a moment, she finally lifted her head.
“I’m sorry, Rishir. You just looked so adorable playing with that tiny magic arrow.”
“...I feel slightly hurt by that.”
“And—”
Pamon fell into thought for a moment.
“Pfft...!”
And then, she burst into laughter again.
“Rishir?”
“Yes, Master.”
“What on earth did you do?”
“...Pardon?”
Pamon reached out and pinched Rishir’s cheeks.
“Where did this strange and precious being fall from?”
“Masht...er?”
“My apprentice?”
“Yes, Master.”
“Congratulations on becoming a full-fledged mage.”
“...Pardon?”
To sense mana.
To handle mana.
And to shape it into the form one desires—only then can one qualify as a mage.
Structured magic.
It was the standard by which mages proved their qualifications.
Pamon recalled the progress they had made in their last lesson. Rishir had been at the stage of merely handling mana. Normally, this stage would take several months, if not years, of arduous practice.
But now, here he was, casually forming structured magic.
Not just barely managing to form shapes, but applying it in a practical way.
Pamon gave up trying to understand his unfathomable growth rate.
She just laughed.
---
Rishir, having poured all his mental and physical energy into his brief moments of focus, soon fell into a deep sleep.
Roera, watching Rishir as he lay on the bed, thought to herself.
Ranks are the realms of those who can handle mana.
The ranks of mages and knights were not all that different.
Just as mages prove their worth through structured magic, knights prove theirs by applying mana in the form they desire.
‘How long did it take me to reach from rank 2 to rank 3?’
‘Six months? Wow, that’s not bad.’
‘Six is much smaller than thirty, after all.’
“Heh...”
A weak chuckle escaped her lips.
Pamon, Roera, and Duran resumed their conversation.
The topic was thoroughly centered around Rishir.
The treasures of the Vendell family.
Of those, what would be most helpful to Rishir right now?
It was then that the secret vault of the Vendell family was mentioned.
Though, calling it a ‘secret’ was somewhat misleading.
For a noble family like Vendell, it was almost expected to have a secret vault for their family’s most prized possessions.
It was an open secret known to all who were in the know.
The problem was the location of the vault and its contents—
“Only the family head knows.”
“Oh~ that’s convenient~”
“...Convenient, you say?”
Leaving those cryptic words behind, Pamon left the house.
A few hours later.
Pamon returned as if nothing had happened.
With a grotesque plant zombie by her side, carrying a large chest.
“...”
For a brief moment—just a moment—Roera thought.
Maybe I should’ve just gone back to Vendell?
With Rishir and Pamon by her side, Roera felt her world crumble with every passing second.
“Well then, now that we’re done with business, shall we get ready to leave? Haieorn.”
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[Title: What’s this Rank System?]
Content: They keep talking about ranks in the story. Is it pretty much like levels?
Reply 1: Yeah, levels 1–4 are considered Rank 1.
Reply 2: Levels 5–9 are Rank 2.
Reply 3: Levels 10–19 are Rank 3.
Original Poster: Damn, people were hyping me up for being Rank 3, but I’m just a weakling?
Reply 4: From a player's perspective, sure, but within the game world, you’re still pretty strong, haha.
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[Title: How Do You 100% Clear Haieorn?]
Content:
[Image]
Here’s my list of completed fates. What else do I need to finish?
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■ A party has been formed ■
Rishir
Roera
Pien
Pamon
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TL NOTE:
This section of the chapter gives readers a glimpse into the game-like elements of the story. The world of Dark Fantasy Normalized operates under a system that resembles RPG mechanics, where characters' ranks are tied to their levels and abilities. This rank and level system becomes crucial in understanding the characters' power and growth throughout the story, as well as setting the tone for their future battles and challenges.
Thank