Volume 1, Chapter 62 – Beyond Words

Fia was stunned once again.

In a sea of colorful elemental energy, Claire stood out like an anomaly. Every element that came close to her was transformed into silver light before touching her. These silver glows, like luminous spirits in the night, drifted slowly around Claire.

Fia had seen this scene once before—the first time she met Claire. Back then, Claire had been standing in the moonlit garden, her silver hair floating amidst the glowing orbs, her fair skin radiating a holy, translucent glow, like a fairy of the moon. Unfortunately, Fia had never seen those silver orbs around Claire again since that night, to the point where she had begun to doubt whether she had imagined it. Now, with the help of [Mana Vision], Fia finally understood the true nature of those orbs.

The glowing orbs she had seen back then were manifestations of elemental energy.

Seeing Claire bathed in silver moonlight once more, Fia momentarily forgot what she was supposed to be doing. Unlike the first time she had seen Claire—when she had merely admired her beauty—this time, Fia felt something else, something warmer and more indistinct.

It was a feeling beyond words.

“Wh-what is it? Is there something on my face?”

Under Fia’s intense gaze, Claire tilted her head slightly, self-consciously wondering if something was stuck to her face.

“Ah, no, it’s nothing. I just realized that those silver orbs have always been around you.” Snapping out of her daze, Fia awkwardly rubbed her nose. “I’ve learned [Mana Vision] now.”

“Eh? You can see the elements around me?” Instead of acting like it was normal, Claire widened her emerald eyes in shock. “No one besides me has ever been able to see them. I thought only I could perceive them.”

Actually, I saw them even before learning [Mana Vision].

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Fia quietly answered in her heart.

Claire looked as though she didn’t know what to say.

“Fia… you wouldn’t happen to be like me—someone with an unknown origin, would you? You’re immune to my curse, and now you can see the elements around me. This goes beyond what [Mana Vision] should allow.”

No, no, I’m just a visitor from another world. There’s no way I’m the same as Claire.

Just as Fia was struggling to respond, Claire steered the conversation back on track, as if her earlier words had just been a joke.

“Let’s try [Torrent] next.”

“Okay.”

Taking out the magic crystal containing [Torrent], Fia channeled mana into it.

A stream of water, about the thickness of an arm, shot out—but it only traveled less than ten meters before losing momentum and pathetically splashing to the ground. The entire spell lasted less than five seconds.

Aside from creating drinking water in a drought, Fia couldn’t imagine any practical use for this magic.

No wonder it only costs one silver coin.

“How was it? Can you use it directly?”

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Rather than criticizing the spell’s effectiveness, Claire was more concerned with whether Fia had learned it. Her beautiful face leaned in close, and the herbal fragrance that accompanied her made Fia shyly avert her gaze.

“Let me see… I’ve got it.”

Claire pulled back and gestured toward the far wall with her chin.

“Try it out. And remember to use the Cloud Moon of the Illusory Sea.”

“Okay—huh?”

Fia let out a small gasp.

The reason? Claire had just wrapped her arms around Fia from behind the moment she raised the Cloud Moon of the Illusory Sea.

“Hold” wasn’t quite the right word—it was more like an instructor guiding her student, lifting Fia’s arm from behind. Since Fia was holding the staff in her right hand, Claire placed her hands on Fia’s right arm, nearly touching the Mana Surge on the back of her wrist.

The height difference meant that something incredibly soft pressed against the back of Fia’s neck, followed by warmth and the intoxicating scent of a young girl enveloping her senses. Fia didn’t dare move, only managing to whisper a question.

“Claire, what are you…?”

“This way, I can feel the flow of mana in your body more clearly. Little Fia, when you use magic, there’s no process of communicating with the elements at all. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

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She’s too close.

Fia couldn’t focus on what Claire was saying—every part of her was hyper-aware of the sensations coming from the girl behind her.

Warm breath brushing against her earlobe, the tingling friction of fabric against skin, the ticklish sensation of silver hair grazing her cheek, soft panting, and an even stronger herbal fragrance. All these uniquely girlish traits combined made it impossible for Fia to concentrate on casting the spell. She even felt that if she tilted her head just slightly, her cheek would meet Claire’s.

Of course, if Fia could see Claire’s face right now, she might have been able to regain some composure. In truth, Claire’s cheeks were also slightly flushed—but since she was standing behind Fia, she didn’t have to worry about her embarrassed expression being seen.

“Alright, go ahead and cast the spell.”

A gentle voice sounded in her ear, the warmth of Claire’s breath making Fia grateful that casting magic didn’t require much focus—otherwise, she’d never be able to pull it off right now.

Claire is like a demon from a romance novel, deliberately toying with my heart.

Taking a quiet breath and ignoring the delightful sensations from behind, Fia activated [Torrent] according to the knowledge in her mind.

In an instant, a massive water column over two meters in diameter erupted in the underground training ground. The surging current, like an enraged dragon, slammed straight into the far wall. The recoil nearly sent Fia stumbling back into Claire’s embrace.

If I aimed this at the ground, I might even be able to fly—or if I were on a carriage, I could make a water-powered vehicle.

Fia glanced up at Claire’s beautiful face. The latter had already released Fia’s arm, her expression deeply complicated.

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“I still couldn’t sense any communication between your mana and the elements. And Fia… I’m starting to think you’re not a genius, but a saint chosen by some god. If I hadn’t seen it myself, I’d never believe that it was [Torrent]. That was the power of a second-tier spell—something [Torrent] could never achieve.”

Realizing that further astonishment wouldn’t solve anything, Claire sighed helplessly.

“Haah… but as long as you can cast spells normally, it doesn’t matter if your process is different from others’. I thought this would take at least a few hours, but we finished everything in less than fifteen minutes.”

As Claire took a small step back, the wonderful warmth enveloping Fia’s back vanished, leaving her with a faint sense of loss.

“Next, do you want to learn [Enchanted Blade], or should we go upstairs and deal with our stomachs first?”

Though phrased as a question, the choice was obvious. Both Fia and Claire had only eaten breakfast, and it was already well past noon.

Since [Enchanted Blade] required the use of incantations, Fia would first need to learn magical language, as well as the rhythm and pitch of chanting. Compared to that, filling their stomachs was clearly more urgent. Not to mention, ever since arriving in this world, Fia hadn’t yet tried street food—a must for experiencing the local culture.

Of course, the most important thing was that magic could be learned anytime, but time alone with Claire wasn’t always available. Sharing a delicious meal with her was an absolute must for any romantic outing.

Fia couldn’t help but imagine the scenes from dating sims, where the protagonist went on dates with the heroines.

“Let’s go fill our stomachs first.”

Looking up, Fia smiled with the innocent cheer of a little girl.