Casting Bullet Catastrophe
"...That's... basic attack magic?"
"Even the beginner magic my brother used wasn't that strong...?"
Karnaroff ignored the students' reactions and stated flatly,
"It's a properly executed 1-Rank basic attack magic."
...I was speechless.
I thought back to the training camp hunter. A C-Rank hunter whose ability was Fireball. I'd learned how to handle mana from him, and I roughly knew his maximum output too. He could probably incinerate that dummy as well. But from that distance, at that speed, with that accuracy? Impossible.
And Karnaroff called it "basic" attack magic.
...So what else is out there?
"Heh."
Drool slipped from my mouth without me realizing. I hurriedly tried to wipe it with my sleeve, but Aris handed me a handkerchief.
I realized it then. Properly learned magic is total bullshit.
"To cut to the chase, I'll teach you how to use it right now. Here."
He drew a magic circle on the blackboard. Even though the shape was pretty complex, he filled it in fluidly, without missing a single rune on the edges.
"Memorize this magic circle in your head, chant the incantation, and use it. If you can activate it, you're free to leave this classroom."
With that, he sat down on the chair below the blackboard and crossed his legs.
"...What?"
"How are we supposed to do it without any explanation?"
The students' murmurs didn't die down.
"Seems like there are complaints."
One student protested.
"The explanation is too unfriendly."
"You need to figure some things out for yourself to truly gain something from it... Tsk. Fine. Here's a hint."
He wrote one more thing on the blackboard.
[A magic circle is a sentence, a sentence is a magic circle]
Suddenly, a student stepped forward.
"Robert?"
"What's so hard about this?"
"Casting Bullet!"
Then, with a faint beep, a sliver of light emerged from the staff. The light stretched downward like a weak stream of urine before vanishing.
"Not bad. Pass. You can go. Though it looks like you need to boost the power."
Karnaroff's reaction wasn't bad.
"Ah, again, let me try again!"
"I said go."
Robert didn't seem satisfied, but Karnaroff was merciless.
"He did it in one try...!"
"As expected of the Carter family...!"
But Aris and the surrounding students looked shocked.
Next to me, students were chanting incantations feverishly too.
"Casting... Bullet!"
"Casting Bullet!"
But fewer than half succeeded.
"Casting Bullet."
I tried chanting it too. Without really thinking, just reciting it, a faint light gathered at the tip of my staff.
Aris saw it and exclaimed in wonder.
"Whoa, how did you do that!?"
"No idea."
There must be some secret to that magic circle, right? The blackboard was too far to see clearly. Karnaroff's stupid height wasn't helping either.
I moved closer to the magic circle where the kids were crowding around.
But there was one uncomfortable thing.
"Professor."
"What is it? Yumia. Don't tell me you don't get something?"
Not that.
"No. Mind if I borrow that seat?"
"...Pardon?"
"You already know everything anyway. Yield it to someone with sore legs."
The atmosphere froze instantly.
But Karnaroff surprisingly stepped aside.
What? He actually listens?
That comfy-looking chair had been tempting me for a while. No kids dared approach because it was near Karnaroff.
Turns out the bold claim the seat.
"I-is she... insane?"
"Does she have no fear?"
I ignored the murmurs. Just like I ignored the vein bulging on Karnaroff's forehead.
Why's he like that? Bad sleep?
Anyway, what the hell am I supposed to do...?
I stole the chair, settled in, and started scrutinizing the magic circle from the front-row seat.
[Magic Circle Mathematician]
At that moment, a message rang in my head.
What the?
I instantly understood the entire structure of the magic circle on the blackboard.
Come to think of it, similar messages had popped up the first time Dragon Eye and Natural Affinity took effect. After that, they just activated automatically.
I got it. Why you have to store the magic circle in your head. Why math was on the entrance exam too.
I grabbed the chalk from the blackboard and started drawing on the classroom floor.
"What the heck is she doing?"
"Dunno. She'll clean it up herself, probably."
I ignored them.
A magic circle is a sentence. A sentence is a magic circle.
The meaning of a magic circle is turning mathematical formulas into patterns.
Then!
I raised my staff.
Memorizing the formula is like storing the magic circle in your head. Thanks to Language Blessing, I can grasp the meaning of the characters. Gather mana, shoot it forward.
Super basic magic. I knew it instinctively.
You don't even need to understand it—as long as you follow the magic circle, the spell activates.
But understanding it changes everything. Adjusting the numbers lets you tweak power, mana cost, stability, and more!
"I think I get it."
"...Huh?"
I took a deep breath. Aimed my staff at one of the standing targets, drew up mana, and chanted.
"Casting Bullet!"
Something felt off. My mana got sucked into the staff whoosh.
A dangerously large amount.
"Ah. Hold on."
"...Huh?"
"Miscalculated."
So this is the mana value? I swapped it with stability.
Original magic circle: stability 90, power 15.
I flipped them. Stability tanked. Power skyrocketed.
"Wha. Wh-what?"
"Wait, look at her!"
"Why is her body glowing!?"
"R-run, get away!!!"
And a beam of light shot toward the wall.
Right before it hit, I saw Karnaroff chanting desperately.
—BOOM!!!
A small crater formed in the floor. My vision blurred.
"At least... it activated..."
I grinned as I collapsed.
I woke up to a white ceiling and the smell of medicine somewhere.
"You're awake?"
A woman with bright light-green hair in a white gown spoke to me.
"...Who are you?"
"I'm Celine. I handle medical classes. You're fine. Just basic mana exhaustion."
She removed the wet cloth from my forehead.
"Your mana pool is tiny."
"Is my mana that low?"
"Enough for maybe five proper basic attack spells, with a tiny bit left? Pushing max output like that, even once is dangerous. Yep."
"Can't you increase mana?"
"Ways to grow it: elixirs or training. Elixirs are rare, so training's more realistic."
"How long?"
"Basic mana training method? About 3 years for five times the capacity?"
...Too slow.
"You have talent, so maybe not that long... But that's how it is with mana."
"What about elixirs?"
"Let's see... Cheapest Dryad Essence goes for about 5 gold lately."
"Gyaah..."
Felt like a hammer to the head. 5 gold. 500 silver. That's 166.666... meals...
"Of course, if you become a promising student, getting one won't be hard. That'd let you cast basic attack magic about fifteen times?"
Efficiency sucks too... Hitting a wall here? Am I not the cheater character??
Then something fell from my pants pocket. The blue potion from Isabel.
"What's this? You had this?"
Celine said, intrigued.
...Right, it lets you use more mana than your max.
"This is pretty pricey. Isabel clings to them tight. Wanna sell it to me?"
She gave this to me?
"Rare on the market, mid-low grade... I could give you at least 50 silver."
A month's worth of B-dining hall meals—two meals a day—covers a week of A-dining plus staff rental.
I was tempted. But...
"Pass."
This had a good use. Couldn't hand over a cheat item like this.
"Suit yourself. Too bad. Wanted it for research, but she won't sell to me 'cause I blow them up."
Celine turned away without regret.
"Head back to the dorm now? Cute girl."
It was already dark outside. But problem: I didn't know the way.
Had to ask people... But I'm bad at approaching first...!
"Um, excuse me... got a question..."
Was gonna ask where the dorm was.
"Ah, sure! Ask away!"
The boy blushed as he answered. Being pretty really makes life easy. Guess it applies here too.
"Which way's the dorm?"
"Straight that way... Wait. Are you... Yumia?"
"Yeah."
"Th-the walking bomb! Human landmine?!"
He bolted.
How'd it come to this...?
I somehow made it back to the dorm, where Aris greeted me.
"Um... you okay?"
"Starving like hell aside, yeah..."
"Want some of my snacks?"
Aris's cute face was filled with worry. A sweet smile and an even sweeter offer.
I munched the cream bun she offered while hearing about the rest of class.
"The professor said to draw the magic circle in your head. Even without understanding, just imagining it activates the spell."
"That was the explanation?"
"Most commoners come in without prior training. So you're amazing, Yumia! Not only did you succeed right away, but the power was insane! Didn't expect you to collapse though..."
"My mana's that low, huh..."
"...Yeah. Homework's to practice basic magic at least ten times a day and write a report by next week..."
"...Ten times."
After hearing five was my limit, now ten. I went to wash up.
When I came out, Aris was already asleep.
But what about tomorrow? Can't live like this every day. Need a plan.
Trouble is, planning's a pain...
"Nyaah."
My small body flopped onto the bed. Nice bed, nice scent.
"Current problems..."
Low mana, empty stomach, Karnaroff's a dick, starting to stink in these dirty clothes.
Way to solve 'em all at once? To get abilities and enter the Tower...
Wait. The Tower?
Why was I climbing the Tower in the first place? To get strong.
Climbing gives stat bonuses, artifacts, extra abilities or traits. And stats include mana.
Can I climb the Tower now? YES.
Will climbing make me stronger? YES.
Am I hungry? YES.
It was midnight now; dorm main gate's closed. Hallways risky with the dorm monitor.
I opened the dorm window. But this is the fourth floor.
"Hmm."
"Won't die."
I jumped.
"What kind of bastard is that?"
Karnaroff muttered to himself in his office.
He recalled Yumia from earlier. After she passed out, the top student—who'd executed the spell flawlessly—left the classroom.
As expected of the top.
The runner-up seems... dangerous. Pretty, though...
The other kids praised her, saying the top was on another level.
"Idiots."
The others had succeeded too. They could intuitively adjust output and stability like the top student.
But only Yumia properly interpreted the magic circle and adjusted power and stability.
He wasn't seeing things wrong. She was definitely a gem.
If Yumia joined his lab. Another person to fulfill his family's secret wish.
If only not for that arrogant attitude...!
Of all the promising talents, she had to be a brat like this. Unbelievable.
But Karnaroff quickly changed his mind. He smirked.
At 3-Rank, she'd hit a wall anyway. Or her tiny mana pool would stop her.
She'll come crawling to me eventually.
Then he could instill some respect for his teacherly dignity in that cheeky brat.
At least she had some common sense.
He prepared materials for the next class and opened the classroom door.
The lesson was basic math—the subject he valued most. Interpreting and debating magic circles from the basic magic class.
This time, he'd point out Yumia's mistakes and humble her.
A faint smile—not noticeable unless you looked closely—spread across Karnaroff's face.
But when calling roll, one was missing.
"Yumia."
"Yu-mi-a."
"Professor."
"Robert, I didn't tell you to answer."
"She didn't come."
"...? You're saying she skipped my class?"
"No, she bolted. Out of the school."
"What?"
Veins bulged on Karnaroff's smiling face again.