NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 37
“Ugh!!”
Magic Arrow.
The only offensive spell among basic magic shot straight at the face of the adventurer holding Luceia.
As if he was punched in the face, he staggered backward, causing his companions to twist their faces like demons.
It’s commendable that none of them screamed out loud at that sight.
Lena, despite trembling, did not stop glaring at them.
“This cheeky brat!”
“How dare you touch us with just some beginner magic?!”
‘What, what should I say? Should I tell them not to cause a ruckus here? Or… Or… Or…’
Countless words swirled around in her head before disappearing.
But from all those words, only one came out of her mouth.
“Magic Arrow.”
She used magic once again.
The arrow of light created flew toward the angry man’s face.
But maybe because he was ready?
He merely swatted the Magic Arrow away with his sword.
Lena recalled what Lee Hyun had told her.
Just because it’s magic doesn’t mean it’s all-powerful.
If magic manifests and interferes with reality, it can be blocked by strong physical force.
Remembering that seasoned adventurers could handle such things, Lena opened her mouth again, filled with fear.
“Magic Arrow.”
The light arrow shot again, only to be swatted away by the sword.
What should she do?
The adventurers were closing in, baring their teeth.
“Magic…”
One won’t do.
Then how about using multiple?
She hadn’t learned from Lee Hyun yet, but couldn’t she just combine what she knew so far?
Lena quickly accepted the magic of nature.
Combining it with her own magic, she recited the incantation in her mind.
In magic, the incantation serves as self-suggestion to create a framework for the magic.
If that’s the case, she wouldn’t need to say the activation words out loud.
So, she minimized the incantation.
Just one act of concentration would be enough to trigger it.
Whoooom…!!
Two Magic Arrows formed in the blink of an eye, suspended in the air.
Startled, the adventurers rushed toward Lena.
“You brat!!”
“Die… Gag!”
One of the light arrows hit a man’s face.
Writhing in pain as they tried to regain their stance, they were left speechless at the sight before them.
Whooooooom!!
The air trembled.
It was because powerful magical energy started to concentrate.
As they trembled and readied their weapons, one of them uttered, “M-m… God.”
One became two, two became four, four became eight, and eight became sixteen.
And they didn’t stop.
The number of light arrows being created in midair increased exponentially.
As the sheer number of light arrows turned toward them, the adventurers broke out in cold sweat.
“Wait! We can t-talk about this…”
‘Ah, ugh. If we talk, I’ll lose!’
Drawing magical energy to the limit, Lena extended her hand toward the terrified adventurers.
“Magic… Arrow.”
“What kind of Magic Arrow… Gag! Uwaaaaaah!!”
Countless light arrows were shot.
Two adventurers charging in couldn’t even resist and were pummeled down, causing the adventurer holding Luceia to stumble back in panic.
“Uh, uh, uh… Someone, save me!!”
In the end, the terrified man fled.
But behind him, hundreds of Magic Arrows flew as well, and the fleeing man collapsed, fainted.
The once noisy market fell silent.
Slowly stabilizing her magic, Lena was taken aback by the awkward atmosphere.
‘Did I overdo it?!’
Everyone was staring at her. As Lena froze in surprise at those eyes,
“Big sis!! You’re amazing!!”
Lorian’s shout marked the beginning.
“Wooow!! This is impressive?!”
“Such incredible magic?! Lena-chan!”
“I heard you’re Lee Hyun’s student, and you’re actually learning well!”
“You’re a hero! A hero!!”
Applause, praise, and cheers poured down.
Everyone in the market was clapping and praising her.
“Ah. Um. T-that’s. Uh. Um.”
Unable to handle the heat of the situation for the first time, Lena was overwhelmed with a thrilling excitement flooding her spine.
The corners of her mouth loosened, and her face felt like it was melting.
Unknowingly scratching the back of her head, Lena began to grin, and Lorian hugged her tightly with a bright smile.
“Sis! You’re really amazing!!”
“Ehehehe! Is that so? Ehehehe!”
Lena, now basking in applause and praise from everyone, returned home.
While cleaning, Lee Hyun, seeing Lena’s expression all relaxed, asked in wonder.
“What happened?”
“Ehe. Th-that, well. Ehehehe~!”
Lena, grinning, recounted what had happened in the village.
She chased away the adventurers troubling Luceia and restored peace to the market.
In short, that’s what happened, but desperately inflating her own accomplishments, Lena sparkled her eyes, expecting praise from Lee Hyun.
“You did well.”
“Ah, ahhh! Really?! I used what I learned from you, Master…”
“I didn’t expect you to already be able to use Shadow Spear and multiple magic at once.”
“Y-yes?! W-what’s that?”
“What you did. Completing the spell in your head without saying it out loud. And casting multiple spells at once. It couldn’t have been easy. Try it once more.”
“Y-yes!!”
Lena hurriedly tried to use magic the same way she had before.
“O-o-o… Huh?”
But it didn’t work. She tried to line up and shorten the incantation in her head, but it wasn’t as easy as she thought.
What had she done just now? She was sure it worked!
“…I-I’m sure it worked…?”
“It seems you unleashed a hidden power in a moment of crisis. Well, that’s okay. The fact that you did it once means you can do it again.”
“Ah. Is-th-that so?”
“Yes. But above all, what’s commendable is…”
Lee Hyun raised his hand and patted Lena’s head.
With his gentle touch, Lena blinked at him.
“You used your power for others. They say those with power have responsibility, but in reality, that’s not the case. Those with power can be seen as having the right to use their strength as they please.”
“Heh, hee.”
“The fact that you used it for others means you choose the path of goodness. As a teacher, that makes me happy.”
“Ehehehe…”
“I’m proud of you. Just keep doing this.”
“Y-yes!!”
“Alright! Now that’s settled…”
Lee Hyun extended his hand.
Gazing at it blankly, Lena gently placed her hand on top of it.
Looking like a puppy wagging its tail, Lee Hyun smiled kindly and asked,
“Did you buy the vegetables?”
“Ah.”
“…..”
“I-I’ll go get them right away!!”
.
.
.
The next day.
As usual, Lena headed to the clearing behind the hut for class.
Approaching Lee Hyun, who was sitting cross-legged, he opened his eyes at the sound of her light footsteps.
Seeing Lena sitting quietly, he stood up.
“If it were a normal day, we would have done magic lessons, but since there may be battles like yesterday, I want to give you a little gift for light defense.”
“A-gift?! Hehe. Th-thank you! O-overwhelming gratitude!”
‘What could it be? Cake? Cookies? Or maybe some pretty earrings? Or…’
“Here. This is it.”
Lee Hyun pulled out a small ring.
Lena tilted her head at the rugged-looking ring that seemed to lack any special decoration.
“W-what is this?”
“It’s called the Ring of Spirits. With this, you can summon a spirit.”
“Spirit… what is that?”
“They can be seen as entities that manifest the forces of nature with a will. It gets complicated if you dig deeper, but just know this much. It’s not crucial.”
“Y-yes…”
“Now, wear this and pour out your magic.”
“Y-yes!!”
Lena hesitated for a moment before trying to put the ring on as Lee Hyun instructed.
Noticing her hesitation, Lee Hyun sighed and placed the ring on her right index finger.
“There. Done?”
“Yes! I-I will pour out my magic!”
In a hurry, she sent magic into the ring. But nothing happened.
While Lena was puzzled, Lee Hyun, as if he expected this, handed her something from his pocket.
“If you keep pushing in your magic, a spirit will be drawn to you. Try to get to know that spirit.”
“Y-yes?!”
Get to know someone she had never seen before, or even a spirit?
What a dreadful thing to say.
“M-m-m-m-m-what, are you serious?!”
“I believe you can do it. If you manage to do that, I’ll give you this.”
“This… what is it?”
“It’s candy.”
“….”
Wrapped in paper, there were two pieces of candy.
Staring at it blankly, Lena looked at Lee Hyun with wide, glistening eyes like a abandoned puppy, but he just walked away.
“W-where are you going?!”
“To do laundry.”
Lena, unable to stop him, looked at the ring.
What to do?
Should she stop channeling her magic and wait for Lee Hyun to come back?
As she seriously contemplated that,
– …………
Suddenly, a beautiful green girl, feeling the wind, appeared in the space that had just been empty.
As the girl stared at her, Lena was taken aback.
“Yikes… Yikes…”
‘Ahh… Is this, a spirit? Ugh. I wish it would just say something…’
But the spirit remained silent.
Just standing there awkwardly.
As the silence stretched, Lena clenched the candy bag in her hand and finally spoke up.
“Um, um…”
– Um, um…
“…….”
-……
Awkwardness filled the air.
In the continuing silence, Lena was at a loss.
‘What do I do?!’
– Um, first. Uh, um, speak.
The green girl, the spirit, cautiously opened her mouth.
There was a crack.
Now, it was time to call for the master’s help.
“I-I, d-do you want some, uh, candy…?”
– Oh. Uh, uh-huh. Th-thank you…
As Lena rustled the candy out, the spirit carefully took it.
Then, after putting it in her mouth, there was silence again.
‘Oh no! Master! Can’t you do something?!’
Lena was utterly clueless about how to handle this awkward atmosphere, sitting with an uncomfortable distance and glancing awkwardly at the girl who was sneaking glances at her, silently screaming in her head.