Chapter 241

After Elena was successful in casting a spell for the first time, Elena used Nowems mana a few more times to continue practicing. It really was an insignificant level of magic, but Elena was extremely happy every time her spell worked.

Lyla asked, Are you happy?

Yes!

Elena was able to reply to Lylas question with great energy.

Theres a clear difference between having experience with using mana or not, and Im sure this will be very helpful in awakening your mana.

Yes! How great would it be if that turned out to be true? Regardless of how things turned out, Elena thought that this was definitely a good experience for her.

Then, lets end todays lesson.

Yes? Cant we practice for a bit longer? Elena wanted to feel the sensation of using magic for a bit longer.

Lyla firmly shook her head. Just look at your face right now.

Elena touched her face. Even though she couldn't see her face right now, she could roughly judge the state of her face with just her hands. Her face was covered in sweat, and her skin seemed to have gotten rougher.

Thats normal since its your first time using mana, especially mana that is not yours. Since youre in a good mood, youre probably not feeling it right now, but Im sure the mental strain on your mind has been very intense.

Now that I think about it After Lyla pointed that out, Elena felt that her head was slightly spinning. Her whole body was fatigued and strained as if she had been wrung dry like a rag. Her eyelids felt heavy as if big rocks were pressing down on it, and she wanted to immediately fall asleep.

Teacher, I really do feel tired. I think Im going to faint if I practice more.

Elena, today is not the only day you can use mana. Well be helping you out for a while, so just focus on getting a lot of rest for the rest of the day.

Yes, Teacher. Even though Elena felt deeply regretful, she obediently nodded. She looked at Nowem who was sprawled on her shoulders as if this was his house; it seemed as if he had gotten very comfortable on her shoulder in such a short amount of time.

You said your name was Nowem, right?

Koo.

Thank you for today. Would I be able to ask for your help in the future as well?

Koo!

Nowem easily nodded his head. She carefully laid out her hand in front of Nowem, and Nowem jumped down from her shoulder to her hand.

And youre Mr. Snoc, right?

Yes, youre right.

Elena put out her hand that held Nowem towards Snoc. Thank you for letting me borrow Nowem.

Miss, this is what Nowem chose for himself. I didnt do anything to receive your thanks. And I didnt let you borrow Nowem, because he is not an object that can be borrowed.

Ah, Im sorry! I didnt mean it like that! Elena was startled and put her head down.

Its fine. You just need to be more careful next time.

I will definitely be more careful!

When Snoc put out his hand, Nowem, who was on Elenas hand, jumped onto Snocs hand.

Elena stole furtive glances at Snoc and asked, Would you be able to help me out in the future?

You received permission from Nowem, so Im not going to go against his decision.

Thank you. Elena made a bright smile and said her goodbyes to Snoc.

Like this, Elenas first day of using magic was over.

* * *

Zich and his companions rode a carriage to go back to their lodging. Walwiss had given them a carriage from his mansion. As expected of a carriage from a highly esteemed family, the carriage ride was very smooth. Zich and Snoc sat next to each other, and Lyla sat across from them. Nowem lay down on Snocs lap and rolled around.

Nowem.

Koo?

Nowem raised his head. He tilted his head as he saw that Zich was staring at him.

You let Elena borrow your mana today. Did you feel anything strange?

Anything strange? Snoc blinked his eyes a few times. He thought that they had just come to help Elena with her magic studies. However, judging by Zichs words, it seemed as if there was another reason.

Snoc looked in front of him, and he saw that Lyla was also looking at Nowem with a serious expression. Naturally, Snoc also looked at Nowem.

Koo?

Nowem was startled that suddenly everyone was looking at him.

Zich said, Theres no reason to get startled. Even if you didnt feel anything strange, Im not going to do anything to you. Just tell me your thoughts.

Koo

Nowem closed his eyes and fell into deep thought at Zichs words. However, he didnt need to think for long.

Koo!

Snoc asked, What? You sensed something?

Koo! Koo!

Lyla and Zich showed interest as Nowem enthusiastically nodded.

Zich asked, What did you feel?

Koo! Koo! Koo, koo! Koooo! Koo!

Nowem stood up with his hind legs and waved around his front legs while letting out sounds. Nowem was expressing something as he kept moving around Snocs knees. However, Lyla and Zich were unable to understand. Naturally, they both stared at Snoc to translate.

Snoc answered, Ah, please wait a moment.

Snoc listened to Nowems words(?) very intently. Even though he couldnt exactly understand Nowems words(?), he was still Nowems contractor; he could roughly understand what Nowem was trying to say.

Snoc said to Nowem, So youre saying that you felt some kind of foreign substance when you poured mana into her body?

Koo!

And you also felt a bit of your mana slightly disappear, but youre not sure if you were mistaken or not?

Koo!

Thats what he said.

After listening to Snocs translation(?), Zich and Lyla began sharing their thoughts.

Lyla said, A part of his mana disappearedAs expected, is there some kind of weird device or substance inside Elenas body?

Since Nowem is unsure, maybe he was mistaken. But its still definitely suspicious.

Its something we need to look into, right?

Yeah. Then Zich looked at Nowem and said, Well be bringing you and Snoc to Elenas lessons for a while, so try to carefully look for anything strange inside her.

Then Zich took out an apple from his magic box and handed it to Nowem.

Koo!

Nowem cried out in happiness as he received an apple that was a third of his body size and took a bite out of his apple. Lyla smiled slightly as she watched Nowem chew his apple and lightly flicked his nose. Nowem shook his head side to side and took one more bite of his apple.

Koo~!

The carriage slowly moved with the sound of a magical beasts happy cry.

* * *

Elenas magic training, which utilized Nowems mana, continued. Even though she was borrowing another beings mana, Elena dearly looked forward to Nowems visit. Since she was borrowing mana from another being, her physical body easily became tired; however, the happiness she felt from being able to use mana made her forget about her tiredness. In the meantime, Nowem searched with his mana that was inside Elenas body and became more certain of his belief.

Although the amount is almost microscopic, Nowem says that his mana inside Ms. Dwaynes body disappeared by a bit.

Both Zich and Lyla nodded at Snocs words.

As we thought, theres something wrong with Elenas body.

What are you going to do? Lyla asked.

In response, Zich crossed his arms and said, Truthfully, we didnt gain much by just finding out that theres a problem with Elenas body. I mean, its what we thought since the beginning.

Thats true.

Both Zich and Lyla knew that Elena Dwayne would become an outstanding magician with overwhelming expertise in fire magic in the future; thus, they both knew that it was strange that she hadnt been able to free her mana yet.

Also, we dont have a way to awaken Elenas mana. At the same time, I think the fact that Nowem directly found something rather than us guessing means that we are making some progress.

Koo? When he heard his name, Nowem raised his head while chewing the apple that Zich had also given to him today. However, Zich gestured to Nowem to continue eating, so he quickly plunged his face into the apple again.

Then, what are you going to do?

I am going to let people know, Zich laughed. I am going to tell people that theres something strange about Elenas body, and if that problem gets fixed, she could possibly use magic.

To whom exactly are you going to tell?

Im going to let Elenas family know, of course, Zich said. Most people like Snoc would have thought that Zich was saying this in consideration of Elena and her family.

However, Lyla, who knew that Zich suspected Elenas family members, specifically Walwiss and Orland, thought differently. He is planning to force his suspects into action.

If one of them had done something to Elena, it was likely that they would try to do something after finding out that Zich and his companions knew the truth.

Arent Ms. Dwaynes parents renowned even at the magical tower? Wouldnt that make solving Ms. Dwaynes problem easier? Since Snoc had accompanied Nowem whenever he let Elena borrow his mana, Snoc also knew about Elenas situation. Although they only knew each other on a surface level, Snoc was quite happy that someone he knew could solve her problem.

Well, of course, Zich said. Although Zich agreed with him, Snoc knew to close his mouth. After being with Zich for quite a long time now, he could guess what Zichs response meant.

I don't know who this person is, but they are Sir Zichs targets now. Snoc didnt know the target, but he offered a silent prayer for themof course, it was a very short prayer since being targeted by Zich meant that the person was evil.

Koo Even Nowem had realized the meaning behind Zichs words, as he squeezed his body behind his half-eaten apple and hid.

* * *

Lyla taught Elena without missing a day. However, no matter how much Lyla enjoyed teaching and how much Elena loved learning, they couldnt prevent their fatigue from building up. It was especially true for Elena who was continuously learning complicated, academic magic. She had reached a level where she couldnt recover from a one-day rest.

As a result, Lyla had to forcefully halt her lessons for a couple of days. Elena said that she was all right, but she couldnt change Lylas mind; and in the end, she decided to devote all her efforts to recovering while resting quietly inside her house. It was also due to Lylas threats that she would no longer teach magic if Elena didnt rest quietly that made Elena follow this order well.

The next day, Lyla dragged Zich to places like they did when they first arrived at Sunewick.

Its been a while since Ive had free time! Lyla exclaimed while stretching out both of her hands.

Zich asked, Were the lessons hard to do?

No, theyre fun. Elena is a cute and talented disciple. There wasnt a shred of a lie in her words. Lyla certainly felt enjoyment and fulfillment from teaching Elena. But I feel like I have only been focusing on these lessons because they were fun. I couldnt do any of the things I planned to do.

Before they came to Sunewick, Lyla had been excited to collect information about different kinds of magic. Besides, they had to search for more information about the ancient empire, Clowon, and decipher the books, which seemed to have belonged to Clowon, that she got from the Great Adrowon Forest. But now that she thought about it, she hadnt accomplished any of her goals.

Thats true. I hadnt been saying anything since you teaching Elena was also part of our plan, but I think you have gotten too deep into it.

You are right. I should start deciding on rest days now. It will make the learning process more efficient too.

I agree. But right now, we have a more pressing matter to deal with. Zichs pupils moved sideways. You sensed it too, right?

How couldnt I when they are moving so openly like that? Lyla tapped the ground with the staff she was holding.

It seems like the humans I wanted to see have finally shown themselves.

Thank goodness. We have been purposely wandering in places with few people for this to happen.

Its always a great feeling when a plan works out. Zich pulled down Windur that was hanging from his back. Then, he looked around his surroundings and announced, You guys have already been found out, so come out. Let me look at your faces.

Shadows gathered around Zich and Lyla.