Vol 1 Chapter 6 – The Time I Taught My Childhood Friend Magic【Vol 1 — A Happy Childhood】

“Got it? You absolutely have to keep this a secret.”

“Yeah, I won’t tell anyone, I promise! Really really!”

As I press my index finger against her and repeatedly emphasize the point, Aria yells back, looking exasperated.

But you know.

There’s a certain someone who made the exact same promise six months ago and then broke it.

That someone is me.

Outside the defensive barrier that surrounds the entire village, in the dense forest adjacent to it.

In a small open clearing freshly covered with pristine snow, just inside the treeline, Aria and I face each other.

This is the spot where Sophia and I practice magic. It’s surrounded by the same type of defensive barrier that encircles the village, though on a smaller scale.

A defensive barrier is a convenient thing that repels creatures and monsters harmful to humans.

It’s got a pretty complicated structure, and it’s definitely not the kind of magic I can handle.

The barrier here was constructed by genius Sophia onee-chan.

As I’m once again impressed by how amazing Sophia is, Aria stares at me with an impatient, adorable glare.

“Aria won’t lie like Will does!”

She’s certainly got a point there.

“O-Okay. Then let’s get started.”

“Yeah!”

Aria nods enthusiastically, her eyes sparkling with excitement. She’s fidgeting, unable to wait any longer.

Well, Aria does keep her promises properly when she actually makes them, and somehow, maybe because she’s spent her early childhood with me, she’s pretty sharp for her age.

Nothing to worry about should happen.

Or so I thought at the time, completely unaware of the disaster that would later befall me.

◯

Amidst the freezing cold, Aria lets out a cute “kushun!” sneeze.

Should I tell her that her nose is running…?

It’s actually an incredibly endearing sight, so I decide to leave her be until she notices herself.

“Hey, what kind of magic are you gonna teach me?”

She says, bouncing with energy, and then sneezes again.

Ah, there goes the nose drip…

I can’t just watch anymore, so I use my sleeve to wipe her nose. Aria makes a puzzled face.

And now my sleeve has the nose mucus of a beautiful girl—no, a beautiful little girl.

As a man, how should I handle this…?

Some pretty degenerate thoughts start floating through my mind, so I shift my focus to the magic I’m about to teach Aria.

At first I considered teaching her fire magic to help ward off the cold, but then I realized that’s basically handing a lighter to a toddler, so I rejected that idea.

I decided to teach her wind magic, which is relatively simple and less dangerous.

“Then let’s go with wind magic.”

“Wind!? You mean that whooshing thing?”

“Yeah yeah, that wind.”

Smiling at Aria as she flails around gesturing wildly to represent wind, I begin constructing the magic.

Handling magic is, simply put, the exercise of mana.

Manipulating mana—that mysterious substance that flows inside and outside the body—to affect the outside world or oneself, thereby causing various phenomena.

I imagine the flowing wind and pour power into it. Then, in response, I can feel wind being generated that obeys my will.

I twist that wind around, blowing away fallen leaves scattered around us, and as a finishing touch, I make Aria’s blue hair flutter in the breeze.

Aria’s eyes are sparkling.

“Did you do that just now, Will!?”

“Yeah, I did.”

“Amazing! Magic is amazing!”

Screaming with excitement, Aria is so worked up she can’t sit still.

I kind of wanted her to say that I was amazing…

Well, whatever. It’s fine. It really is.

And so, my heart-pounding secret magic training with Aria began.

Vol 1 Chapter 7 – The Time I Despaired【Vol 1 — A Happy Childhood】

I despaired intensely. I trembled more than I ever had before.

To think that something like this would happen…

I was on my hands and knees, desperately holding back frustrated tears.

“Waaaah, amazing! Will, you’re amazing! This is so amazing!!”

Laughing like a small child, Aria ran around inside the circle protected by the defensive barrier.

The pristine fresh snow was being thoroughly trampled by the innocent and carefree Princess Aria.

All around her, wind danced, water spheres twirled, and the ground rose up.

This is weird… why did she succeed at everything on the first try…?

It took me nearly a month just to learn one spell, you know?

Before I knew it, water shaped like rabbits, flowers, and butterflies was floating around Aria with a soft bobbing motion.

First of all, the fact that water is staying suspended in mid-air confirms that she’s using wind magic and water magic simultaneously.

And on top of that, she’s freely changing the shape of the water.

Your adaptability is too high. I didn’t teach you that.

The ground swelled up with a fluffy rumble, gradually taking shape, until finally something like a pyramid was completed. It must be about two meters tall.

Just how much mana and technique does it take to manipulate and solidify this much earth…?

Honestly speaking, I can’t pull off a feat like this.

“Aria… what is this?”

“A castle!”

Ho ho, a castle…? Certainly, depending on how you look at it, a pyramid is a king’s house. Though I wonder, did pyramids even exist in this world?

“Wiiill!”

As I’m crushed by despair and in a daze, Aria comes flying at me from the front.

“Whoa, what’s up?”

I manage to catch her without getting knocked over, and ask.

Aria pulls her face out from my chest and turns an expression full of joy toward me.

If she shows me such a happy face, then it was worth teaching her.

Though there were some shocking parts. No, it was pretty shocking…

“Magic is amazing, it’s so fun!”

No, it’s not the magic that’s amazing, it’s you.

“Thank you, it’s all thanks to Will! I love you, Will!”

Is this a confession?

Yesterday you cried about kissing me, and now suddenly it’s a love confession?

I guess I need to give an appropriate response…

Just kidding.

I know. I know this isn’t a real confession.

Children are creatures that live on momentum alone. They say whatever they’re thinking right away.

Really, they’re sinful creatures indeed.

As I’m thinking such enlightened thoughts, Aria says something a bit troubling.

“Will, don’t you have any other different ones?”

“…Uh, well.”

What should I do?

I’ve already taught her the three basic magics: wind, earth, and water.

There’s one more magic I can teach her.

The final basic magic: fire.

But I’m wondering if it might be a bit dangerous to teach her this—I’m mulling this over with my head bowed when something white and fluffy darts quickly across the edge of my vision.

It’s probably a rabbit.

While this forest is home to monsters hostile to humans, ordinary animals live here too.

Since it managed to enter this barrier, it can’t be a monster, so there’s no particular need to be wary.

Relieved, I continue mulling over my thoughts.

Whether to teach Aria fire magic, or not.

I didn’t think she’d learn the other magics this easily…

Knowing Aria, she’d probably master fire magic right away too.

Should I just teach her everything?

Make Aria promise not to use it unless I’m around.

But still, letting her handle fire seems dangerous.

Aria is a girl, after all. If I accidentally let her get burned, it won’t end with just a joke.

Alright, I’ve decided not to teach Aria fire magic yet!

Having reached that conclusion, I raise my head with a refreshed feeling.

…A shudder of fear runs through me.

Unrelated to the winter cold, the core of my body freezes.

No way?

Recognizing the reality I don’t want to accept, my feelings of panic rage wildly.

Bad bad bad bad bad.

Aria was gone.