Yonaire, understanding the situation, gently patted Yi-Han's shoulder in consolation.
"Spirits are like capricious unrequited loves; no matter how well you treat them, often you can't win their hearts," she mused. In such cases, acceptance was the only option.
"Yonaire, I'm really okay," Yi-Han insisted.
"Uh-huh..."
"I am, truly."
"Sure, sure."
Usually, when 'really' was prefixed, it was often a lie. Yonaire decided to let it slide this time.
Nillia was flustered when the Water Spirit clung to her, an entity Yi-Han had desired to contract with, making it impossible for her to reciprocate.
"Hey, go away! Contract with Wardanaz over there!" Nillia pushed the Water Spirit away, but it persistently clung to her, clearly taken with her.
This saddened Yi-Han slightly. 'I only ever attract the senile Lightning Spirits,' he thought. But even in sadness, there were times to celebrate for a friend's sake.
Yi-Han spoke coldly, "Nillia, I think there's a misunderstanding. I have no intention of contracting with the Water Spirit."
"What? Really?" Nillia's ears perked up in surprise.
"But you were about to propose a contract earlier."
"You must have heard wrong."
Yonaire marveled internally. Yi-Han had many talents, but his unrivaled skill was lying blatantly with a straight face. His earnest lies swayed even the most skeptical.
"Nillia, I'm not interested in that spirit."
"But... you've wanted to contract with a spirit since before. And you said the Water Spirit was good."
'If only she didn't remember such trivial details so well,' Yi-Han thought irritably.
"It seems you're mistaken. Of course, I talked about contracting with a Water Spirit, but it was about a renowned one, Nillia."
"Ah...!"
Nillia smacked her palm with her fist as if it made sense, especially considering Wardanaz's talent. The Water Spirit clapped its hands in surprise at this revelation. Yi-Han felt an urge to smack the spirit.
"Understand? So, if you want to contract with that spirit, feel free. It doesn't concern me."
"Hmm... What should I do..."
Nillia pondered. She hadn't ruled out contracting with a spirit, but this was unexpectedly sudden.
"What do you guys think?"
At Nillia's question, Yi-Han and Yonaire exchanged glances.
In their opinion...
'Nillia could use more friends.'
'A spirit friend would be even better.'
They nodded in agreement.
"A Water Spirit seems like a good idea," Yi-Han said.
"I think so too!"
"If you both say so..."
Nillia nodded, and the Water Spirit jumped joyously.
After spending the weekend on an island with the undead summon, Yi-Han found Professor Boladi's face welcoming.
Yi-Han was frightened by his own gladness to see him.
'I've heard there's no cure for Stockholm Syndrome.'
"Good day..."
"Last time, you used lightning magic," Boladi noted without exchanging pleasantries or asking about the weekend.
"Yes..." Yi-Han sighed internally, having braced himself for this. He had a sad certainty about it since meeting Professor Boladi in front of Professor Garcia.
-"Ah, Professor Boladi is going to teach lightning magic as well."-
And such a foreboding feeling had never been wrong.
"Lightning element is less commonly mastered among mages than the water element."
"I see."
"It's harder to handle than water."
"Yes."
"But since you used lightning magic last time, you should be able to handle what I'm about to teach."
Yi-Han remained silent. He almost suggested to Professor Boladi to take a course in .
"...Professor, it's already dark. Do I really need to cover my eyes? Wouldn't it make dodging more difficult?"
"You can do it."
Professor Boladi gestured dismissively, indicating he would entertain no further discussion. The handkerchief smoothly rose and covered Yi-Han's eyes.
A world of absolute darkness enveloped him.
Then, the sound of sparking. A lightning bolt was generated.
'This is madness.'
Yi-Han felt a creeping sense of fear.
But he couldn't just stand still in fear.
Just like detecting magic traps or a mage's mana, Yi-Han focused on sensing the location of the lightning bolts around him.
He wasn't sure how effective it would be, but he had no other choice.
Professor Boladi crossed his arms, watching Yi-Han intently.
As Professor Garcia had acknowledged (at least in Boladi's view), Professor Boladi held unwavering confidence in his teaching methods.
'If the students can't keep up, that's their problem, not mine.'
It wasn't without reason that the skull principal was close to Professor Boladi.
Unfortunately for Yi-Han, his encounter with Professor Boladi only reinforced the professor's conviction.
'The basics of elemental shape transformation and control are solidly established.'
When Boladi saw Yi-Han using lightning magic, he didn't show it, but he was very pleased.
The difficulty level of the lightning element was among the highest.
Using it meant Yi-Han could smoothly advance to more complex stages of elemental shape transformation and control training.
Originally, Boladi intended to start with lightning magic...
...but he had a reason for conducting elemental detection training. It was based on the skull principal's testimony.
When Boladi heard that Yi-Han had injured his arm fighting an undead summon, he was shocked.
It was unbelievable that Yi-Han would make such a mistake.
Of course, the question should have been 'Why is a freshman fighting a giant undead summon?' But Boladi failed to consider this aspect.
'If I were that boy from the Wardanaz family...'
For the first time, after stopping Yi-Han from adding a rotational attribute to his water element magic, Boladi tried to see things from Yi-Han's perspective.
Once he started to empathize, it wasn't difficult. Putting himself in Yi-Han's shoes, Boladi quickly came to a conclusion.
'If I were the boy from the Wardanaz family, right now, I would most want to learn the art of evasion, not just attack and defense.'
Professor Boladi could have simply asked Yi-Han, but he chose not to, preferring to think and conclude on his own.
In magic combat, evasion was a skill distinct from attack and defense, and in some ways, more advanced and difficult.
The key to evasion was perception.
Understanding where and how an enemy's attack was coming from, and instantly grasping the nature and structure of the magic, was essential for smooth evasion.
'The fool blocks, but the wise evade.'
Such sayings didn't exist for no reason.
Then, how could one enhance this perceptive ability?
In truth, the boy from the Wardanaz family had been unknowingly training himself.
Regularly engaging with and discerning magic would inevitably improve one's perceptive skills.
Today, Professor Boladi had focused solely on detection, excluding control and shape.
As a result...
With a snap, Professor Boladi dispelled the lightning bolts that had appeared in the darkness.
Yi-Han was panting heavily. No matter how fit one was, not feeling exhausted in such circumstances would be more unusual.
Remarkably, the boy from the Wardanaz family had perfectly evaded every attack.
In complete darkness, where he could see nothing!
Yi-Han couldn't see it, but Professor Boladi was smiling.
When he first heard other mages speak of the 'joy of teaching', he had wondered what they meant. But now, he seemed to understand.
Teaching was truly enjoyable.
In the air, there were now far more lightning bolts and small flames, along with water orbs and compressed air, among other elements.
Even blindfolded, Yi-Han sensed something ominous and called out urgently.
"Professor? Professor???"
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