Because I Can Use It Without Thinking

About a week had passed since the commotion. The snow that had blanketed the mountaintop had mostly melted away, and NyaNya, who had been shivering uncontrollably, had recovered most of her strength after just a week. Her mana core had softened up too, which was pretty surprising. It shouldn't have melted that much in merely a week.

Is the goddess's power this good?

Of course, it wasn't fully melted—she'd definitely die if she tried using her ice wand again—but she could handle simple spells now.

"That's amazing~."

"It's not cold at all anymore. Feels like I ate one or two ice creams?"

"Then you can keep up with training."

"Yep."

"Sit ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠over there."

NyaNya nodded at my words and plopped down on a small tree stump. Beside her were Kazen and Haring, heroes who had formed their first stars over the past week and joined the proper training. Looking at them like this, Yongba—the second one to arrive—was actually progressing pretty slowly.

"NyaNya learned basic defense and attack magic last time, so now it's your turn to learn the same spells."

"I'm a swordsman, though?"

"Swordsmen benefit from it too. And it's not like you're learning it just to use it or anything~."

I summoned a staff in response to Haring's raised hand. A white jade staff embedded with a round purple gem. The heroes' eyes sparkled at the sight of it.

"To fight mages, you gotta know what magic is first. Otherwise, you'll die quick~."

"Hmm..."

"Plus, there are a lot of mages among the demon race."

I didn't know about regular monsters, but demons—especially legion commanders—often specialized in magic. You had to understand spell structures to prepare for them.

"Even heroes who wielded weapons like swords handled basic magic."

"Yeeeah..."

"Heh. This should be interesting."

"Think of it as review for NyaNya. You can't cast advanced spells in that state anyway."

"Yep."

"Magic splits into two main types: defense and attack."

Whirr.

The staff glowed, and a red barrier floated up on my left. Shaped like a circle, it flowed with flame-infused mana, big enough to cover my upper body.

"Mages are strong, but their flesh is weak. That's why you must master defense magic. Unless you wanna die to a stray arrow."

"Oho..."

"So that's why NyaNya focused on defense in fights..."

"You don't need to go that far on defense."

I dispersed the red ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠barrier—Shield—floating in the air and shook my head. NyaNya had only used defense magic because she was scared; normally, you mix defense and attack appropriately.

NyaNya looked sheepish. Haring's eyes sparkled as she watched the mana afterimages scatter in the air.

"So even swordsmen can use high-level magic?"

"Obviously. Once you've got a star in your heart, nothing's impossible."

"Ooh...! I think I saw somewhere that you do it like that?"

"?"

"From what I know, by understanding mana ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and transferring it to a specific spot, you can manifest—"

"Nah, that's not it."

Thud.Thud.Thud.

With a tap of my staff, worn old tomes dropped in front of the heroes. Made of decent paper, but faded from age. The covers read Basic Magic Tome Vol. 1.

"It's a book on Shield magic. I'll give you half a day—memorize it all."

"...Huh?"

"Pardon?"

"Memorize it."

Magic is just drawing a magic formula and pouring mana into it. Mana manifestation at its simplest. In my past life terms, magic is the output, mana is electricity. The staff? Like a remote control to make output easier.

Haring and Kazen stared blankly at the tomes in shock, while NyaNya casually picked up her Basic Magic Tome like it was routine.

"Haring, Sir Kazen. If you don't memorize fast, the staff'll drop on your head. Like when we cleaned the nest."

"Ah."

"...Quite a lot."

The two heroes opened their books too.

＊

Flip. Flip.

"Hmm..."

Flip. Flip.

"Hoo..."

Flip. Flip.

"Aha...?"

"Quit just oohing and aahing."

"I-I am studying!"

Haring sighed as she watched me wandering around. This was magic far from her fantasies—maybe the fundamentals themselves.

Simply draw the formula in the air and fill it with mana. 'Thought it'd pop out with a click...'

It differed from magic in recent novels, comics, or anime, but it wasn't impossible. 'Big circle, hexagon for defense inside, toss in a few runes...'

Haring drew in the air, using mana ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like a pen. Normally, it'd destabilize and scatter instantly, but she had her star—a mana core—to condense it.

Shaaa...

The star aided the casting. After about a minute...

Whirr...!

"Whoa."

A blue circle appeared before Haring's eyes. Shield. Basic defense magic—more essential to mages than breathing.

Haring poked the floating shield curiously. She didn't know its durability, but from NyaNya's past fights, it seemed decent.

'But use this in combat?'

In a battlefield where every second counted? And how did rankers like NyaNya and Husk spam spells like this?

'Skills? But NyaNya said she used learned magic.'

Haring dispersed the shield with mana and approached NyaNya. They'd been strangers a couple months ago, but now they were close—fellow rare female players in the nest. 'Similar age too.'

"NyaNya."

"...Five at once is still tough. Huh? What's up, Haring?"

"How do you just spam this? Even at my fastest, a minute's the limit."

"Staves speed up casting. And I got used to it after a few tries."

"Ah, gotcha?"

Item crutch, huh. Haring nodded in self-conviction. A swordsman swinging a staff like a mage would have issues anyway. The point of this training was understanding structure, not maining magic. NyaNya or jobless Kazen might go deep, but Haring didn't need to outpace in magic too.

'Still, a staff would be nice...'

This wasn't a one-off; training without staves long-term was inefficient. Haring raised her hand again.

"Lady Lea!"

"Yeah?"

"Casting's slow without a staff. Lend me one?"

"You can use it without."

"C'mon, casting speed matters. Right?"

"Hmm..."

"I'm dumb at this stuff. Just one staff, pleeease..."

"You stupid?"

"...Yes!"

"Yeah. Dummy."

Lea shuffled over and handed Haring the staff she'd been holding. Felt like a loss, but Haring took it.

'This one's pretty nice too...'

"Shiel..." Whirr.

"?"

The spell activated.

"Shield." Whirr.

Another activation. Shields spawned in the blink of an eye. Before, she'd painstakingly drawn for a minute; now, it felt automatic on command. The essence of Haring's dreamed 'click magic.'

Ecstatic, Haring drew ten formulas.

Whiiiirrr!!!

"Whoa."

Ten shields in just three seconds. Even fumbling from unfamiliarity, that speed. Glancing aside, NyaNya stared in disbelief.

Trembling, Haring inspected the staff's specs.

"Huh?"

"Ah. Not that one—I'll give you something else. That doesn't fit training."

"...Wha? Why's it restricted...?"

"Former Magic Tower Lord's staff. You can use it with just one star."

"One star???"

"She made it that way. Magic Eye's closed anyway, so no big issue."

Lea skipped over, took the Staff of the Forerunner from Haring's hand, and gave her a wooden staff instead. Utterly shabby compared to the previous one.

Haring tried Shield again—casting dropped from a minute to 30 seconds, but not the insane speed before. Her face fell.

"My staff..."

"It's mine."

"You said it was the Magic Tower Lord's..."

"It's mine now. FYI, even if you earn usage rights, I ain't sharing. Don't covet it."

"...Yup."

Haring grew even more depressed.

"Is it that essential for you, Lady Lea?"

"Yup."

"Why?"

NyaNya asked curiously. Lea never clung to treasures before—this was unusual possessiveness.

Lea nodded matter-of-factly.

Because...

"I can use it without thinking much."

How could I resist a six-times-faster magic remote?