Prologue Story

I thought that the more I used Illusion Magic, the stronger it became.

It was similar to how a constant breeze eventually settles into a dream.

The more realistic the illusion felt, the more it empowered the next spell I cast.

Having only recently started to study magic professionally, I was beginning to truly feel this with my whole body.

It was a time when I couldn’t help but focus on magic.

At first, I had started with Written Magic, but before I knew it, Illusion Magic was firmly establishing itself as my main magic.

In terms of application, Barrier Magic and Written Magic were still superior, but my main magic was definitely Illusion Magic.

This conviction grew stronger as I continued to grow.

With Written Magic, capable of achieving so many things, and Barrier Magic, which I couldn’t even dream of evolving into Space-time Magic, I was in a period where I had no choice but to devote myself to magic practice.

The days grew colder, and everyone’s magic steadily improved.

In-ho oppa’s familiar, the Blue Dragon, had grown strong enough to generate small lightning bolts, and Yoo-jung unnie could now create an ice block the length of her arm.

Hyun-ho once playfully bound Han-soo with water, meaning he’d succeeded in creating solid water.

Of course, that spell was immediately shattered by Han-soo’s magic, which sliced through it with a sharp, wooden blade in an instant.

Min-hee could now freely manipulate about ten magic projectiles with different attributes, and In-ha had learned to shape light into distinct forms.

And yet, I was growing the fastest among all of us.

Really, to the point where I didn’t understand why.

Winter arrived.

In November, the school became lively, as the festival would be held soon.

Although elementary classes weren’t required to participate, the kids in our grade eagerly discussed ideas with excited expressions, hoping to contribute something to the festival.

I was also looking forward to my first festival at Daehyun.

Like the sports day, it was a large event held jointly by the elementary, middle, and high schools.

And above all, it was my first “festival of the magical world.”

Since it would last for three days, I thought I’d be able to enjoy it to the fullest.

It was two weeks before the festival on a certain day.

That day also marked exactly two months since I’d begun physical training.

Around the time the level-based class was wrapping up, Teacher Joon-hwi suddenly said something in front of me—no, in front of all of us—without any warning.

“Starting next time, Eun-ha, you’ll be learning martial arts for magic combat.”

“……!”

I opened my eyes wide at the rather unexpected words.

No, thinking about it carefully, it wasn’t really an unexpected announcement without any warning.

After all, it had been planned that I would learn martial arts for magic combat about two months after starting physical training.

Still, it felt like I’d just been hit out of nowhere.

I opened my eyes wide in surprise, then soon clasped my hands in joy and delight.

Finally, it was finally happening.

For me, that was how it felt, but it seemed like a sudden announcement for my friends.

Han-soo and In-ha raised objections, looking incredulous.

“Wait, Teacher! Why just Eun-ha? Isn’t that unfair?”

“Yeah, why is it suddenly just Eun-ha…?”

Not only those two, but everyone else looked displeased as well.

Even Yoo-jung unnie and In-ho oppa grumbled, saying they were a year older and didn’t understand why only I would learn first.

Ah, I supposed it was understandable for them to feel that way.

While I was still taken aback, Teacher Joon-hwi explained the reason with a troubled expression.

“Do you remember when she hurt her arm a while ago?”

“……Yes.”

In-ha answered with a puffed-up face, which was unusual for her.

Teacher Joon-hwi explained the reason, bringing up an incident from months ago.

“The reason that happened was because, when she used her magic at full strength, her body couldn’t withstand her own power. Eun-ha’s magic has been growing at an extraordinary rate, beyond what her developing body can handle. So, physical training is necessary. Her body needs to be strengthened to endure powerful magic.”

Everyone opened their eyes wide at this revelation.

They seemed to grasp the meaning of his words.

“What? You can get hurt if your magic is too strong?”

“Yes, if your body can’t handle it.”

When Min-hee murmured in a daze, Teacher Joon-hwi nodded without hesitation.

In-ha looked up at Teacher Joon-hwi and then turned to look at me.

Her eyes, which were focused intently on me, trembled slightly.

“…Is that how it is?”

I nodded with an awkward expression.

In-ha clenched her lips tightly, a look of discomfort in her eyes.

“Um, then…doesn’t that mean we could get hurt too if we use our magic with all our strength? Shouldn’t we be learning too?”

Yoo-jung Unnie raised her hand and asked with a worried expression.

Teacher Joon-hwi shook his head.

“You all aren’t at that level yet. Right now, the issue is only with Eun-ha.”

“Well… it’s true that Eun-ha has the most magic among us…”

Min-hee, looking dissatisfied, frowned and asked.

“Is it really that much of a difference? Enough to justify only her learning this?”

“Yes. In terms of magic capacity, she has at least five times more than all of you.”

“…!”

Hyun-ho and Han-soo’s mouths dropped open.

Han-soo grumbled with a pout.

“That’s overpowered. Seriously.”

Honestly, saying it’s five times more was a simplification; the actual comparison was more nuanced.

Young children naturally have different limits compared to adults in how much magic they can hold.

Comparing smaller capacities doesn’t reveal drastic differences, but relatively speaking, the gap is around that much.

Even so, that difference seemed to be quite a burden on a child’s body.

But it was indeed a staggering difference.

I’d thought I’d eventually be overtaken, assuming it was just a talent that could be caught up with over time, but it seemed I might have more talent than I’d realized.

Really.

The kids couldn’t raise any further objections, only letting out groans.

“Ugh. As expected of Eun-ha. It’s just unfair,” Han-soo said, with a hint of sarcasm.

And In-ha… stayed silent.

She kept her head down without saying a word.

I was about to say something to In-ha, feeling uneasy, when the bell rang.

We were half-pushed out of the classroom by the teacher, and each headed to our respective classes.

Since Yoo-jung unnie and In-ho oppa were second-year students, they left with many things still on their minds, and we walked back to class together.

“You, do you like being the only one learning that? Do you?”

“Oh, come on! Eun-ha’s body is at risk, isn’t it? She obviously needs to learn!”

On our way back, Han-soo kept pouting and teasing me.

Min-hee and Hyun-ho were as lively as ever.

But only Han-soo and In-ha seemed different from usual.

Han-soo’s sarcastic tone was nothing new, but this time he seemed genuinely disappointed.

And as for In-ha…

In-ha, unlike usual, walked in front of me with her head down and her mouth shut.

Not being able to see her expression made me feel strangely uneasy.

I glanced at In-ha, wearing an awkward expression.

What’s going on? She seems mad.

I’d never seen her like this since we’d gotten close.

“But if you’re going to learn martial arts, shouldn’t you also do, you know, physical training, like in the books?”

As I watched In-ha worriedly, I looked up at Min-hee’s question with a blank expression.

“Huh?”

“You know, they say it’s important to not only learn martial arts, but also to build up physical strength… Someone said that… Oh, who was it? I forgot. Anyway, aren’t you doing that, too?”

“That’s right. Books say a strong foundation is important for learning martial arts!”

“Right?”

“Yeah!”

Min-hee and Hyun-ho were in perfect sync, as usual.

Han-soo sighed and asked.

“What book is that from?”

“The martial arts book Chunho oppa was reading!”

“I knew it…”

Han-soo sighed again.

Then Min-hee put both fists in front of her chest with a pouty look.

“Anyway, that book said they did push-ups and running to learn swordsmanship!”

“Yeah, yeah! You have to exercise too, to get stronger. Eun-ha, you get tired right away when you work out. If you learn martial arts like that, you’ll just end up exhausted.”

I scratched my head, feeling sheepish as I listened to their conversation.

After hesitating briefly, I replied.

“I am doing it.”

At that, everyone turned to look at me all at once.

Even In-ha, who had been staring at the ground until now, did the same.

What? I could read their surprise in their wide-open eyes.

“That whole thing about learning martial arts came up once before. So since I recovered, I’ve been doing physical training around the neighborhood. I’m not great at sports, so I haven’t improved much, but still?”

“…I’m hearing this for the first time?”

In-ha asked me in a calm tone.

In-ha was looking at me with quiet eyes.

I tilted my head.

“Really?”

“So…you’ve been doing physical training for two months?”

“Yeah. Every night.”

“…Now that you mention it, I think you have been going out every evening. Why didn’t you tell me?”

Her voice, usually calm, sounded fractured this time.

Suddenly, I felt something strange.

An ache in my chest.

It was…a vague anxiety, the kind that comes right before something erupts.

My instinct, which was particularly sensitive to unease, sounded an alarm.

Why? Not understanding, I continued speaking.

“Oh… Did I really not mention it? I just thought of it as something I needed to do for training…”

“…”

“It wasn’t something I felt I needed to tell you about…”

“Stop it already!”

In that moment, In-ha shouted.

I looked at her, startled.

It wasn’t just me—everyone else was just as surprised.

Even the kids in the hallway looked back at us, surprised.

In-ha was making an expression I’d never seen before.

With a look of utmost anguish, one that seemed as though she was on the verge of tears, she looked at me.

“You always… I never knew anything! I didn’t know anything until I saw it for myself, whether it was your physical training or when you got hurt before! Why! Why didn’t you tell me any of that?”

She looked like she might cry, like she was overwhelmed with emotions she couldn’t contain.

Either way, her face was filled with anger that seemed to drive her crazy.

Flustered, I moved my lips to speak.

“W-why are you reacting like this, In-ha? I just didn’t think it was a big deal…”

“Not…a big deal…?”

In-ha’s eyes grew wide at my words.

Her face twisted with a trembling expression, like she was about to burst into tears at any moment.

Biting her lip once, In-ha shouted.

“I! I like you the most, Eun-ha! You’re my best friend!”

Her sudden confession made my eyes widen.

“But do you really see me as your best friend? You don’t tell me anything important!”

“W-wait, In-ha…”

“It’s always been like that! You never tell me anything! Even about the uniform! If you’d told me beforehand, we could have bought it together! And…!”

“In-ha, um…hold on…!”

“I always want to be with you, but you keep going around by yourself… And training! You don’t even tell me properly, you just do it on your own! And I hate it so much when you go around with other kids or are nice to people you don’t even know! I’m your friend!”

…What, what’s this? This adorable jealousy?

I almost burst out laughing.

No, no, wait a minute.

The further she went on, the cuter her words sounded, and for a moment, I almost forgot the situation.

For a moment, I could only cover my mouth, unable to say anything.

Seeing this, In-ha, perhaps misunderstanding, whispered with teary eyes.

“…You’re so mean.”

In-ha then turned and began running away.

Only then did I panic and shout.

“W-wait, In-ha?!”

But she had already disappeared down the other end of the hallway.