“Elodie. Did I do something wrong?”
“Frondier, are you really learning magic for the first time?”
“Huh? Ah, that's not… quite right?”
“What do you mean by that?”
I've probably learned it before.
The reason I think that is because Frondier, before I possessed him, must have learned about magic.
The Roach family, who protect people from monsters. It's unthinkable that I, as a member of that family, wouldn't have been taught these things.
Frondier would have been taught both combat and magic, with Enfer hiring renowned teachers.
Of course, it turned out he had no talent for either.
‘Frondier was under the curse of Sloth back then.’
Besides, even 'Weaving,' which is currently helping me use mana, wasn't originally Frondier's skill.
If Weaving is a skill that came about because I possessed him, as Jeanne d'Arc said, then the original Frondier didn't have the Weaving skill.
Frondier was originally unrelated to Weaving, and deciphering ancient languages was his true talent.
But I guess it would have been difficult to learn anything while suffering from the curse of Sloth, whether he had Weaving or not.
“I have a vague memory of learning it briefly when I was very young.”
Even though I have no such memory, I told Elodie that because it's probably what happened.
“I-Is that so? Is that why you're so fast……?”
Elodie tilted her head and muttered. I asked her,
“Of course it is! You managed to create a wisp without even chanting or using a trigger word!”
So they shorten Will-o'-the-Wisp to just 'wisp,' huh?
“I thought I had no talent because I kept failing……”
“That's impossible. It's a spell that takes a week to master even after you've learned the chant and trigger word!”
Elodie sighed, looking at me as if I was unbelievable.
So the reason Elodie's expression remained calm even when I failed wasn't an act, it was her genuine reaction.
“Maybe the metaphor helped.”
“Even so, to be this fast……”
Elodie seemed genuinely shocked.
Oh, am I more talented in magic than I thought?
Still looking shocked, Elodie murmured,
“Only an hour slower than me……”
“Were you just trying to brag by praising me?”
This guy, she just wanted to boast. Though I guess her shock wasn't fake.
Right, it's ridiculous for me to even think about competing with Elodie in terms of magical talent. People usually take a week, so it'll be better for me to believe that and think positively.
“Was the Headmaster similar to you? Since he's a Great Magician, the universe seems fitting for him.”
“Headmaster Osprey? Hmm……”
At my words, Elodie's eyes drifted upwards as if recalling Osprey's image. Her brows furrowed in thought, and for a moment, her expression seemed almost cute. But then, a spark of a magician's thought process seemed to flicker in her eyes.
“……No. Perhaps the Headmaster doesn't have a metaphor at all.”
“He casts magic by seeing the formulas as they are, without using an image?”
“Yes. It's not impossible to do it without a metaphor. The reason I didn't teach you about metaphors from the beginning is because it's closest to the most orthodox method. The magic you're learning now is basic, so you'll be able to do it without a metaphor if you put in the time.”
“But why doesn't the Headmaster use a metaphor? It's harder to use magic without one.”
Even I kept failing until I pictured the gears. There must be a reason why he doesn't use a metaphor, right?
No, before that, how can Elodie guess that Osprey doesn't use a metaphor?
“The Headmaster's magic, I think it's 'coordinate designation.'”
“Coordinate designation……. Is that how he can use magic from a distance?”
Osprey's magic isn't cast from his side. It burns, explodes, and freezes the very spot where his enemies stand.
Even a simple flame makes a huge difference depending on whether it ignites from afar or burns from within. Not only is it harder to dodge or block, but the damage it inflicts is also fatally different.
Perhaps even the Will-o'-the-Wisp I'm using now, if cast by Osprey, could inflict serious burns by igniting inside an enemy's body.
“But you can't designate coordinates if you're using a metaphor.”
“Because coordinates are always changing. Enemies are always moving. As easy as images are to understand, the problem is that you end up trapped within that image. You can't constantly change variables within a fixed image.”
Having just used magic while imagining gears, I understand.
Trying to use my method for magic that requires constantly changing coordinates would be as reckless as trying to shove something into a completed gear system and hoping it'll still work.
“The Headmaster is just ridiculously smart. He can perform magic as if he's doing elementary school math, without even needing an image.”
“……As expected of our Headmaster.”
“Well, not our Headmaster anymore.”
Elodie chuckled, making a joke based on reality.
“Anyway, you have a talent for magic. It'd be a shame to let it go to waste.”
“I didn't know I did.”
Frondier's body, burdened by the curse of Sloth, couldn't properly utilize many things. That means there's a lot of catching up to do.
Conversely, it could also mean that his dormant talents have yet to bloom.
I pondered for a moment.
It may not sound like much, but this metaphor is better than I thought. I managed to cast the spell right away, and it's something I can understand intuitively.
‘Elodie creates magic like the movement of stars, but to me, magic is similar to engineering. That's probably why I thought of gears.’
And today, I learned the symbol for the formula 'stasis.' This symbol doesn't change much even when applied to other spells. Since I have a wealth of knowledge stored in the workshop, I can immediately cross-reference it.
“Engineering, engineering……”
Just as Elodie tilted her head, curious about my mumbling,
Someone knocked on the front door.
“Master Frondier, it’s Arald.”
And a familiar voice followed.
As soon as Arald entered my room, he spoke with a delighted face.
“The prototype for the stereoscopic map is complete!”
“Yes, it’s the stereoscopic map we created by referencing the stereoscopic blueprints!”
Arald nodded enthusiastically at my words.
Elodie, noticing the disconnect in our conversation, looked back and forth between me and Arald.
[T/N: Wdym MC isn’t OP enough, he now needs OP magic too?!]