Chapter 2: Showing Magic (Patreon)

Her hair was tied into two large blue ponytails. She looked remarkably pure and lovely... A Saint-rank water magic teacher — Roxy. She stood quietly at Rudy's side.

Curious, she asked, "Rudy, is it??"

Rudy nodded and smiled politely. "Yes, Teacher Roxy."

Roxy figured that a three-year-old child surely wouldn't understand anything about magic. Mostly, it was the parents' hope that had led to the request for a magic tutor in the first place. But since she'd already come, Roxy decided she'd properly teach this three-year-old in front of her. Of course, if the child truly had no talent for magic at all, then there wasn't much she could do about it.

Nodding, Roxy said softly, "Let me first explain the ranks of strength for mages."

"In this world, mages go from the very beginning to the final stage of strength. They are, in order: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Saint, King, Emperor, and God. Seven stages in total, but most people basically hit their limit at Advanced. Those who can reach Saint-rank are, in truth, extremely rare. Also, regarding mana..."

Rudy listened to Roxy's meticulous explanation of the state of magic. But he only gave the bamboo pole beside him a gentle pat.

He smiled. "Teacher, I already know all this basic information about magic. When you arrived, you mentioned you're a Saint-rank water mage, right?"

Roxy glanced at Rudy and sighed. "You want to actually see some real magic, don't you. Fine, fine. I'll show you the simplest water ball spell next... So make sure you watch carefully..."

She raised her staff, and just as Roxy aimed at the sapling in the yard,

Rudy smiled. "Teacher, don't aim at the sapling — that's my mother's treasure."

"Ah!!!??"

Hearing this, Roxy hastily redirected the water ball spell toward the open ground. After reciting a fairly lengthy incantation, a water ball about the size of a palm was launched by Roxy.

But the very next instant!!! another water ball arrived first, despite coming later. It forcibly shattered the water ball spell Roxy had just fired.

!!??

Her eyes went wide. Roxy, unable to believe it, turned around, and there was Rudy, slowly lowering his hand.

Seeing this, Rudy smiled. "Teacher... As for basic magic, I've pretty much already mastered it. So the reason I asked you to come here is that I wanted to learn from you. The magic knowledge above Intermediate level. Also, I wonder — do you happen to have knowledge of even higher-level magic???"

Hearing Rudy say this, Roxy was, for a moment, completely stunned. Three years old. This was a three-year-old!!! Had a three-year-old really already mastered Intermediate magic!!?? After all, plenty of people only reach Intermediate mage by the time they're old!!!

Whew... She let out a long, heavy breath.

A little unwilling to admit defeat, Roxy asked curiously, "What kind of knowledge do you want to learn?"

Rudy smiled. "How to better coordinate with the elements... How to better compress the elements' form and properties... How to more quickly activate a spell... How to better convert active magic into passive magic..."

As he spoke, Rudy didn't wait for Roxy to respond. He crouched down and pressed both hands into the soil.

In the next instant!! A tube nearly two meters long, like a cannon barrel, rose up from the ground. Then, with a tremendous roaring boom, a massive burning shell shot straight out. In an instant, that mound of earth several hundred meters away was blown into a pile of scorched, blackened rubble!!!

Sizzle, crackle...

Rudy let go, tossing the shattered barrel aside. He smiled at Roxy, whose eyes were still wide, staring at the spot hundreds of meters away.

"Just now, I mixed earth magic with fire magic. That produced a certain explosive effect. But since I hadn't found a really good compression ratio for the mix, the power came out a bit underwhelming, honestly."

Listening to Rudy, Roxy felt something inside her take a hard blow. That mixed spell just now — and cast without an incantation, at that. This little kid in front of her, using nothing but a spell he'd developed himself, had already reached power close to Saint-rank!!!

At the same moment, Paul Greyrat, startled by the explosion, and Zenith Greyrat, and the maid Lilia, came rushing out of the house.

First, Zenith Greyrat demanded of Roxy, "Teacher, what were you just doing!??"

Startled by her mother's tone, Roxy reacted half a beat too slowly to answer.

Rudy stepped forward first. "Mother... That spell just now — I was the one who cast it."

Zenith Greyrat looked utterly baffled. "Ah!!??"

Paul Greyrat looked utterly baffled. "Ah!!??"

Lilia, too, stared at Rudy with wide, disbelieving eyes.

They turned and looked, hundreds of meters away, at that pile of rubble still smoking faintly. Then they looked back at Rudy, who was beaming with a brilliant smile.

For a moment, everyone's hearts were a genuine mess of mixed feelings.

After a deep breath, Zenith Greyrat frowned and asked, "Rudy, why would you create such a dangerous spell!??"

Rudy said earnestly, "Mother has told me a lot of stories before... I've also heard many stories from Father. The more I heard, the more I felt that if I don't want to be bullied, I have to make myself strong. Whether for myself, or for my family. Only by becoming strong can I and my family avoid being humiliated. Only by becoming strong can I and my family live the life we want. So that's why I developed this kind of magic. It's dangerous, yes, but I have to have it!!! I might never need to use it — but I can't be without it the moment I truly do!!"