"There's no use in bringing him along. Just follow me."

"Consider it your duty to protect me at all costs. I'm going to be the Empress one day."

"Don't worry. Neither of us will die here."

Rie, in contrast to her usual cunning attitude, raised her voice in anger, revealing her true nature.

That's right; this is how she should be.

I found this attitude more comfortable.

Her typical behavior might be more appealing to the nobility, but for me, who knew about the real Rie, it was disconcerting.

***

***

Eventually, we reached the library entrance after walking for some time.

Until now, we had only been in the corridor leading to the library, so there were no flames; however, the situation inside was dire.

Thick smoke billowed out.

The magnificent library was engulfed in black smoke, small flames flickering here and there.

Fortunately, the books and shelves were safeguarded by a magic barrier, which prevented the fire from spreading rapidly.

Still, other objects were ablaze, and the fire seemed to be intensifying.

"First, remove your clothes."

"…What? Have you lost your mind? Is this your true self emerging?"

Rie retorted with a sharp tongue.

"No, I meant the coat you're wearing."

I removed my academy coat and tossed it on the floor.

"The coat?"

Rie glanced at me with a perplexed expression before looking at her own coat.

"Hmm..."

She cleared her throat and took off her coat, handing it to me.

"Water Ball."

I used magic to drench the coats.

"Cover your nose and mouth with these. Though the books are safe, the burning tables and chairs can pose a danger."

"I understand."

Rie blushed as she took her own coat from me.

"Stay as low as possible and follow me."

"I said I understand."

Though Rie grumbled, she followed my instructions diligently.

Luna's likely whereabouts were fairly predictable - the desk where we used to study together every day.

I cautiously approached it.

The surrounding desks were burning, and the fire was spreading.

Fortunately, the books were still undamaged, but if the fire continued, they might be affected.

For now, I couldn't afford to worry about the books and focused solely on moving forward.

As I passed the space where librarians waited and organized books, the flames grew larger.

"Ugh…"

As I neared the location, it appeared as if Luna was there, but burning debris blocked my path.

I tried to force my way through with just my body, but it proved difficult.

Should I use magic?

As I hesitated, I heard Rie's voice from behind me.

"Wind Blaster."

As Rie chanted, a strong wind surged forward.

It swept away the burning desks obstructing our way forward.

Seeing my astonished expression, Rie gestured ahead.

"Quickly, take the lead."

Following Rie's instructions, I advanced, and Rie used magic and spirits to deflect the embers descending toward us.

We made our way deeper into the library until we reached the desks we had used every day, we found Luna lying on the floor.

Thankfully, she didn't appear to have serious injuries.

However, fire and wind swirled around her.

"Luna!"

As I called her name, a violent storm erupted from Luna's body.

"Ugh...!"

It wasn't just an ordinary wind; it was a barrage of wind blades.

Should I dodge?

No, I couldn't.

Rie was behind me.

If I dodged, Rie wouldn't have time to react and would be struck.

I shielded my face with my arms.

The wind blades flew towards me, grazing my arms and legs as they passed by.

I avoided a direct hit due to my distance from Luna, but several scratches formed on my body.

"Hey! Are you okay?"

Rie looked at me, concerned.

The wounds were minor, stinging a bit but not hindering my movement.

"Let's save Luna first."

There was a reason I took us here without relying too much on magic.

"What should we do?"

When magic went out of control like this, there were two ways to handle it.

First, endure until the person exhausts all their mana. This method was impractical since we didn't know when faculty members would arrive.

Second, give Luna a significant shock to wake her.

This was the most effective method.

Magic going out of control was dangerous because the person would continuously cast spells while unconscious.

If the person experiencing a mana rampage regained their senses, even momentarily, they could stop the situation, and their body would automatically regulate their mana.

Waking them up was simple: give a physical shock to make them regain consciousness.

However, the problem was determining how much shock was needed to wake them.

In fact, I could use magic from my current position to deliver a shock to Luna.

But a direct hit might seriously injure her.

No matter how talented Rie and I were, we were still beginner wizards.

To reach Luna, we needed to break through the magic surrounding her.

We had to penetrate the magic without causing harm to Luna, which required delicate control.

But as beginner magicians, we weren't capable of such precise control.

So, there was only one option left.

We had to approach Luna physically.

We would break through the wind and flames and wake her up.

This was the plan I came up with.

"I'll move forward while deflecting the wind attribute magic, so make sure fire attribute magic doesn't reach me."

"What? If we do that..."

Rie looked at me, surprised.

"Don't worry, I value my life too."

My number one priority is survival. I wouldn't gamble my life recklessly.

Hearing this, Rie gave me a faint smile.

"Alright. Give it a try."

With that, I dashed towards Luna.

I wanted to run faster, but the powerful wind gave heavy resistance.

However, there was a way to break through.

"Wind Blaster!"

I aimed the spell slightly above Luna.

A strong gust of wind surged from my hand, creating a counter wind from my direction.

While studying for the midterm exam, my magic had improved by one level.

I reached LV8, and my wind attribute magic had become stronger than before.

Luna's magic was currently being cast haphazardly.

Of course, she was in a mana rampage state, so each spell was more potent than mine.

However, she wasn't focusing her magic at a specific point.

That's why, by focusing my magic on a single point, I could break through.

Using magic to create a counter-wind, the resistance on my body disappeared.

I seized the opportunity to run towards Luna.

As I did so, flames surged from her body.

Since Luna could control both wind and fire attributes, I had anticipated this.

"Sylph, block it."

At Rie's command, a green light flew towards me.

It then generated a gust of wind, pushing the flames away.

I followed the path made by Sylph, pressing forward.

But as the flames and wind continued to blow, Sylph struggled to keep up, and our progress slowed down.

"Wind Blaster!!"

I used the spell again to repel the flames and wind.

However, the closer I got, the more potent the magic became.

"Wind Blaster! Wind Blaster!"

I had no choice but to continue using magic to advance.

I directed the wind upwards, and Rie used Sylph to push away the oncoming flames.

As we moved forward, I heard Rie's voice.

"Hey! Sylph can't push any further!"

Now, Luna and I were less than 10 meters apart.

At this distance...

"Water Ball!"

I used water attribute magic to drench myself.

"Rie! Push back the magic one more time!"

"Uh... Sylph! Push the magic upwards!"

Then, the green light beside me intensified.

Sylph created a powerful gust of wind, sending the flames upwards.

After generating such a strong wind, Sylph's form vanished with a 'pop!'

It had used all its power and was forced to unsummon.

Everything was sent flying upwards by the wind Sylph created. A path opened up.

Without hesitation, I dashed toward Luna.

Flames stood in my way, but I threw myself through them.

"Luna!"

I immediately grabbed Luna's shoulders and shook her.

"Luna! Wake up!"

However, this was a big mistake. I should have given Luna a proper shock.

"Ah...?"

As I shook her, an even more potent surge of magic expelled from her body

-Boom!!

"Ugh...!"

The powerful wind sent me flying backward.

I took the full brunt of the blast, and my body was hurled through the air, landing far away.

"Ouch!"

Mid-air, I collided with a bookshelf.

-Ooof.

Thankfully, the bookshelf's protective magic reduced the impact.

But it still hurt.

"Ugh..."

"Rudy Astria! Are you alright?"

Rie rushed over after seeing me being sent flying.

It felt like a punch to the solar plexus, and I struggled to breathe.

"Cough, huff huff... Hiccup..."

After gasping for air a few times, I started to regain my senses.

Pushed away, huh?

I assessed the situation as I adjusted my position.

My body's condition... it wasn't to the point where I couldn't stand.

Seeing I was somewhat okay, Rie began to scold me.

"Hey! You should have woken her up in one go! What did you think would happen if you just poked her like that?"

"Uh... I didn't know she would suddenly release such powerful magic."

"When you touch her, her body will instinctively release magic to protect itself! Isn't that obvious?"

I understood Rie's point after her explanation. She should have told me sooner.

"Ugh."

There was no point in blaming Rie, as it was my mistake.

I stood up and looked at Luna, who continued to expel flames and wind. Rie sighed as she looked over as well.

"Rudy Astria, give up. Sylph was unsummoned and can't be summoned again today. And if you try to go in there again, it could be disastrous."

Rie was right.

To stop someone experiencing a mana rampage, one usually needs someone several levels above them.

People usually can't use all their mana at once.

If they do, they would be unable to use magic for days due to the backlash, and their body would be a mess.

They might even lose consciousness during use.

However, someone in a mana rampage state doesn't consider this and pushes their mana to the limit.

That was why I was continuously pushed back even though my magic was superior to Luna's.

"One more time. Let's try just one more time."

Still, I couldn't give up.

"Ugh... If you fail this time too, I'm leaving you behind."

Rie sighed once more.

"I've figured out how to wake her up, so we just need to break through."

I tried to stand up by grabbing the bookshelf behind me.

"...Ouch!"

However, the bookshelf moved, causing me to fall once again.

"...What are you doing?"

Rie looked at me with pity as I fell over again.

I rubbed my hips and scowled. Why did the bookshelf move?

"What's this?"

The bookshelf had wheels attached, allowing it to move.

"Someone must have forgotten to lock the wheels."

Rie glanced at the wheels before refocusing on the main issue.

"Let's try again. I'll help as much as I can."

With that, Rie walked back toward Luna.

I let her be and focused my attention on the bookshelf that had shifted.

"What are you doing? We don't have much time."

"Let's use this."

"What?"

***

I was trying to re-edit everything (for all novels) before releasing more chaps but uhh I underestimated how long that takes... Anyways heres 1/4, the re-edit will have to take a little longer and I don't want to release any advance chaps until the re-edits are done. How long? No idea, before Monday would be nice.

Enjoy the chappy!