Yes, she was Ayra’s daughter, the one I met during the magic evaluation.
Come to think of it, Ayra and the others were visiting our house today. They were discussing something related to Kurt and the Magus Bane.
Fine must have come along with her.
I imagine the adults told her, “It’ll be boring, so go play in the yard,” and after going outside, she must’ve run into trouble with some random kids.
I quietly climbed down from the wall and approached the two to observe the situation. When I got closer, I noticed that two other boys were hiding behind the house, not visible before.
“Just because you’re a noble, don’t get cocky. I can use magic.”
“Yeah, Utts is great at fire magic.”
“You’re gonna cry, aren’t you?”
“…”
The boys were acting intimidating, while Fine looked frightened and couldn’t say a word.
So that’s what this is.
The boy called Utts seems to be the leader, and as an older kid who’s learned a little magic, he’s probably desperate to show off his power. A typical problem child.
He likely picks on people weaker than him to assert his dominance. It’s despicable behavior. From what he said, it also sounds like he’s envious of nobles.
The other two were just tagging along, hiding under Utts’ umbrella.
“If you don’t want to get burned, eat that dirt over there. Then I’ll forgive you.”
Utts pointed to the ground with his eyes and created a small fireball in his right hand.
But I immediately knew.
That fireball is nothing. It’s not magic that can change form or be thrown. It’s barely good enough to be used as a light.
I could tell because with my special eyes, I could see his magic core. His magic core is just a single line, classified as second-grade, which means he couldn’t become a Magus Bane. The girl he’s bullying, on the other hand, is far superior with a fifth-grade core.
“Come on, eat the dirt.”
“Heh heh heh.”
Utts and his friends smirked as they cornered Fine.
Hey, come on… Ganging up on a child younger than you? If you keep that up, you’ll turn into a rotten adult.
I can’t just stand by and watch this happen. As an adult (on the inside), I had to intervene.
“That’s enough.”
“Huh? Who the heck are you?”
Utts and his friends turned their attention to me. Fine also seemed to realize who I was and looked surprised.
“Hah, just another small fry.”
Utts sneered, and one of the boys next to him spoke while looking at me.
“Hey, I know this guy. He’s the homunculus from the Almstar family.”
“No way.”
It was clear that they were immediately taken aback.
“He’s not human? Gross!”
“Homunculi can’t use magic, right? Lame.”
“Why’s a weakling like you acting tough?”
They were saying all sorts of nasty things.
Up until now, I hadn’t thought much about being a homunculus, since my parents always supported me. But I guess this is how society sees us.
But honestly, I didn’t care at all about that right now.
“You should leave while I’m still calm.”
“Huh? Are you blind? Can’t you see this?”
Utts flaunted the fireball in his hand.
That’s when I started thinking.
What’s the most efficient way to make them leave?
If I used magic on these kids, they’d die. But magic is the quickest way to show them the difference in power.
The problem is my magic is too strong.
How do I weaken it?
Wait… Could this be…?
“Are you scared now? Haha!”
Just as Utts laughed with the fireball in his hand, I conjured a small water ball in my palm and shot it at his fireball.
The magic collided, resulting in a small explosion of steam.
“Waaah!”
Utts screamed in a high-pitched voice, shocked as his fireball suddenly blew up. He was clearly surprised that I used magic.
I could tell he was trying to hide his nervousness but failing.
“Tch… This isn’t fun anymore. Let’s go.”
Feeling embarrassed, Utts and his friends quickly left.
I was pretty proud of myself for how well I handled that. After all, I figured out how to compress magic in this very situation.
I had been completely misunderstanding it. It wasn’t that I couldn’t compress the magic. I was simply using too much mana.
Without thinking, I had been channeling all the mana in my body into my magic core. Trying to compress that much mana is impossible, like trying to stuff five or six blankets into a bag meant for one.
I realized I needed to adjust the amount of mana depending on the situation.
I can’t believe I didn’t figure out something so basic sooner… What was I doing?
But now that I can control the mana flow, I feel like I can experiment with different approaches.
Just as my excitement for future magic research was rising, I heard a soft voice beside me.
“Um…”
It was Fine. She seemed to want to say something but couldn’t find the right words.
“Are you okay?”
When I asked her, she seemed to calm down and slowly opened her mouth.
“Yeah… Thank you.”
“You should probably play in the courtyard so you don’t run into those guys again.”
“Okay…”
She answered quietly, and I noticed her eyelashes looked a little wet.
Well, of course. If this were my previous life, she’d be about the age of a kindergartner. Being surrounded and threatened by older boys must have been terrifying. She was brave for not crying.
“Let’s head back.”
I told her since there was no point in staying there, and I turned to leave. But then she tugged at my sleeve. Of course, it was Fine.
“What is it?”
“Um… Your magic… It was amazing…”
“Hm?”
Her sudden comment took me by surprise, and I didn’t immediately understand what she meant.
“Oh, thanks.”
“I want to be strong like you…”
“What?”
I never expected those words to come out of her mouth.
She must have been inspired by me driving off the boys.
Fine has a fifth-grade magic core. She has more than enough potential to become a Magus Bane. With training, those bullies would be no match for her.
“You can do it, Fine.”
“…”
She smiled shyly.
“But… How?”
“Your mom doesn’t teach you?”
She looked down sadly at my question.
“She says I’m still too young, so I should take it slow…”
“I see.”
Ayra must have her own thoughts or educational approach behind that decision.
I wasn’t in a position to interfere, but it seemed like a waste to ignore a child so eager to learn.
“Could you… teach me?”
“Huh? Me??”
Fine nodded.
But that’s impossible.
I’m still a beginner myself and don’t understand a lot. If I teach her the wrong way, it could do more harm than good.
“I can’t do that.”
“Why…?”
“You need to be taught by someone who really understands magic. Otherwise, you might not reach your full potential.”
“…”
She looked disappointed.
As I said, I couldn’t ignore her enthusiasm.
“Well, how about I ask my parents if you can learn with me?”
“Really?”
Her eyes sparkled.
“Yeah, leave it to me.”
“Okay!”
She responded energetically, but I should probably clear this with Ayra first.
