Chapter 33

I will now translate the provided text into English:

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**"The Battle Begins Suddenly! The Secret of the Pioneer Village" (7 Episodes Total).** This story takes place 7 years ago.

Today, I will post 2 episodes. The second episode will be at 9 o'clock.

Thank you for your support.

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The story goes back 7 years.

The Kingdom of Anzela had severed ties with the Arles Empire, and Noel supported it as a bestowal mage. This is a story from that time, shortly after the royal couple got married.

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Noel looked around the neatly organized workshop with satisfaction.

—This will do.

She was about to create a new weapon enchanted with bestowal magic.

At a ball, Noel had been mocked by a princess who prided herself on her large chest.

—But I had another strength. That princess was good at sensing and exploiting people's weaknesses.

Noel thought she was tough, but she was wrong. She had been upset just by being compared to a Golden Squirrel and had carried that feeling with her for a long time. The princess's malice had hit Noel's insecurities directly.

In reality, Sirius had never thought of Noel and the Golden Squirrel together. He hadn't even remembered the squirrel he used to keep when he first met Noel. He was just drawn to Noel's earnestness, and he later confessed this to her.

Noel and Sirius met during the entrance exam.

Sirius supervised Noel's practical exam.

At the time, Sirius felt something was off about Noel, who looked extremely nervous. This was because the other examinees were more relaxed during the practical exam, where they demonstrated their specialties.

Noel, on the other hand, seemed overly desperate.

According to the records, Noel had four magic attributes and a lot of magical power. It should have been easy for her to demonstrate her specialty.

Even those with less magical power were handling the exam with ease.

Whether it was creating a clod of earth, generating water, warming water with fire magic, or creating a small tornado, any of these could be done with a little magical power. The academy wasn't that strict; as long as the examinees used the best magic they could with their available magical power, they would pass.

Noel didn't have this information, and she was prepared to run away or even die if she wasn't accepted as a scholarship student.

Despite this, Noel managed to perform the rare magic of bestowing a barrier. This left a strong impression on Sirius, and he was concerned about Noel's situation.

He wanted to protect her and volunteered to be her supervisor.

The thought that his wife resembled a Golden Squirrel came to him only after the princess reminded him of the squirrel she used to keep.

In any case,

The princess who had hurt Noel's feelings did a good job.

She had angered Sirius and incited her father to deceive the minister, leading to the drastic measure of halting trade. Thanks to this, the Kingdom of Anzela was able to stop the unreasonable trade with the empire.

Noel had already heard from the head of the knights about the poor quality of the empire's "defective magic tools."

The defect rate was between 10% and 20%, which was unacceptable. It was on a different scale. However, the initial agreement had been made in such a way that Anzela couldn't complain. The contract included the defect rate. Noel thought, though she didn't say it out loud, that the king who made such a contract was a piece of shit and a scumbag. Everyone probably felt the same way in their hearts.

Since these were attack magic tools, the defects directly affected the safety of the knights using them.

The appraisal magic tools were used, and the appraisers and palace mages checked the magic tools from the empire.

Even in this process, mages sometimes suffered serious injuries by accident.

If any were missed, the knights would suffer serious injuries.

There were mages and knights who had lost limbs, and some had even died.

Noel heard these stories from Professor Theo, who had once been a palace mage.

After hearing about the empire's defective products, Noel started to accumulate ideas gradually.

However, there was a limitation: she could only bestow magic that she could perform herself.

—My magic attributes are "Wind" and "Fire."

I also have "Earth" and "Water."

I can handle "Earth" and "Water" even though they are weak, but "Wind" and "Fire" are much easier and more comfortable to use.

Noel was also skilled at mixed magic. She was very dexterous.

Thanks to this, she was also good at lightning magic.

Lightning is an evolved form of mixed fire and wind magic.

—So I could make a lot of lightning-enchanted throwing knives.

They say lightning magic is effective against magic beasts. I got a bit carried away. Some magic beasts are more vulnerable to fire than lightning.

Magic beasts that can use lightning magic are less affected by it. Some are simply more vulnerable to fire.

For plant-type magic beasts and those with thick fur, fire attacks are more effective.

To use against such magic beasts, "high-power fire-enchanted throwing knives" and "kama-enchanted arrows."

Kama is a wind magic attack. Noel thought of arrows that would slice through a magic beast's body just by piercing it.

She planned to make the blades of the throwing knives a bit longer. This would be discussed with the knights who would use them.

—This is the way to go. First, I need to prepare.

For now, she would practice kama at the attack magic training ground.

Becoming proficient with the magic to be bestowed is the foundation of good bestowal magic.

While training, Noel thought:

—If I'm going to attack targets this much, wouldn't it be better to just defeat the magic beasts?

That way, I could be of some use to the country.

There are still many magic beasts in the areas where the Demon Forest has spread.

Since Sirius ascended to the throne, the damage from magic beasts has decreased dramatically.

It seemed the protection of the national deity had become stronger.

As a result, magic beasts rarely attacked towns and villages.

—But in areas where the Demon Forest has already formed and become infested with miasma, the magic beasts are still a problem.

Wouldn't it be a good idea to go there and practice kama and fire explosions?

The Demon Forest near the capital isn't that far by horse. It should take about 4 hours.

She visualized the map in her mind and concluded, "I can make a day trip."

She immediately took action, informing her close aides of her purpose and declaring, "I'm going to the Demon Forest," before going to see the head of the knights.

Noel, completely absorbed in her plan, had forgotten one crucial thing:

To consult with her husband.