Chapter 10

Under a clear blue sky, I sat down in the grass by the side of my house, practicing the release of magic.

It has been ten days since I first succeeded in releasing magical power.

The amount of magic within me had grown to exceed the equivalent of twenty softballs.

"Maybe this is good enough for now."

I had started in the morning and already had ten orbs of magic in each hand.

I was releasing the equivalent of twenty orbs of magic.

When I was practicing gathering magic, the sensation changed and it became easier to handle, but the release of magic was a different story.

Until then, I had imagined gathering magic from all over my body, but now it gathered easily in my hands just by focusing on them.

Releasing magic also required almost no concentration.

It was like typing on a keyboard without looking at it; I could handle it freely.

The amount of magic increased day by day.

On the day I first succeeded in releasing magic, I collapsed afterward and refrained from practicing.

The next day, I cautiously tried again, but creating two orbs of magic the size of softballs did not make me collapse.

When I tried to create a third, the gathering of magic became difficult, so I stopped there.

However, the next day, I could create five orbs without feeling too bad.

I wondered if the amount of magic increased by the amount I used to create the orbs, but it didn't seem to be that simple.

The rate of increase varied from day to day, and I couldn't figure out the pattern.

But I was impressed by the steady growth.

(If I have to make ten thousand of these orbs to reach the qualifying line, I'll cry, seriously.)

The motivation to practice was high as I could feel the growth of my magic, but I wondered how long it would last.

(Well, for now, this practice is fine. Even if I try to make each orb larger or improve them, the direction is fine for now. I'm still... in the early stages.)

Since I understood that the amount of magic increased through the release of magic, I decided to continue this practice.

However, I also had a growing doubt: Is this enough?

I lay down in the grass and gazed up at the sky.

I thought about going to talk to Rady, but quickly gave up.

If I asked him now, I felt he would strongly discourage me from practicing magic.

Even though he is called the "Laughing Mother," he is genuinely worried about Mika.

If he seriously told me to stop, I couldn't ignore it.

After a short break, I started making magic orbs again.

Lying down, I carefully made one at a time.

When I realized how easy it was to release magic, I got carried away and made orbs one after another, which suddenly made me feel nauseous and I vomited.

I made more orbs before I realized I was feeling unwell.

From the first time, I practiced outside so I wouldn't dirty the room, and I learned to slow down after a certain number.

I alternately made orbs with both hands and took a break after making ten.

I wasn't feeling unwell yet.

In just ten days, the amount of magic in me had grown from two orbs to over thirty.

(... Magic... Magic... Magic. Ah... I want to use it soon.)

In a game, you automatically learn new abilities as you level up, but in this world, it seems you need to pray to a god.

(Chant and consume magic to activate the spell, right?)

Why do you need to "pray" and go through such a complicated process?

I sighed deeply.

I closed my eyes and calmed myself.

The smell of the grass and the gentle breeze helped my agitated heart to calm down a bit.

(There's no point in wishing for what you don't have. You just have to do what you can do now.)

I took a deep breath and exhaled.

I stretched my hands toward the sky.

In my mind, I saw a blob of water.

A scene from a movie I saw as a child.

It wasn't magic, but I think it was a ball of water created by an alien's superpower or scientific technology.

The blob of water was floating in the air, large enough for dozens of people to fit inside.

It was a movie from several decades ago.

If I saw it now, it would probably look like cheap CGI.

But as a child, I was captivated by the beauty of the image.

I can still vividly remember it.

Perhaps, because I'm more accustomed to modern CGI, my imagination is even more beautiful.

Memories are often idealized.

If I can use magic, I might be able to create something fantastic, not just an image, but a real thing.

(That would be a nice dream.)

Thinking about the nostalgic movie, I was able to calm down completely.

Suddenly, the magic inside my body started to move.

I opened my eyes in surprise, and a blob of water fell from in front of my hands.

"Huh?"

The blob of water, larger than a large watermelon, fell directly onto my face.

Splash.

"Choke!?"

A large amount of water entered my mouth, which was slightly open.

"Ugh!? ...Cough! Cough!"

I choked on the water that entered my trachea.

"...What... is... this!? Cough!"

After choking for a while, I got up.

I still felt a bit off.

"What is this? Why!?"

I was drenched, which felt unpleasant.

Not only was it unpleasant, but I also started to feel really bad.

It was a sign that I had released too much magic.

"Ah... This is bad."

I wasn't about to vomit, but I felt dizzy.

I decided to stay still and wait for the feeling to pass.

I wanted to change my clothes, but moving was a bit difficult.

I decided to wait and see.

With a slightly confused mind, I thought.

What was that blob of water?

Looking at my wet clothes and body, it seemed like just water.

It didn't have any particular smell.

It couldn't have been a sudden rain like a bucket being overturned, and it was impossible for such a large blob of water to fall from the sky.

If it had fallen from the sky, it would have been broken apart by air resistance.

It was impossible for it to fall as a single blob.

Thinking about it, I realized my mind was unconsciously "running away," like avoiding something I didn't want to see.

"...Could I have done it?"

What happened, and how did it happen?

I didn't understand the process.

But the cause was magic, and the result was a blob of water.

Could it be that I did it?

If so, it would be my first magic, but I didn't feel any joy or happiness.

On the contrary...

"......This is the worst. Besides, it has nothing to do with gods."

There was no need for prayer or chanting.

Just by imagining it, it happened.

It sounds like a dream, but this is more like a nightmare.

Even if I had to concentrate and imagine it specifically, the fact that what I imagined came true is already terrifying.

If I imagined something burning or breaking, it would happen.

That's not human; it's more like a walking disaster.

(Maybe this is a really bad situation...)

I couldn't confirm if I really did it.

But if this is what happened, it's a serious problem.

I wanted to try to reproduce it, but I didn't have enough magic left.

If I pushed myself now, I would definitely collapse.

"What do I do...?"

I squatted down and held my head.

...

Let me get to the point.

It was me. I was the one who did it.

The next day, I tried again, and although it required some concentration and a specific image, I could easily reproduce it.

No prayer or chanting was needed.

To say the least, I was utterly despondent.

I was seriously worried about what would happen if this continued.

But I had an idea for a solution.

On the day I first used magic, I couldn't continue practicing because I had little magic left.

I wasn't in the mood to practice anyway.

So, I thought about it.

If I really could make magic happen just by imagining it, what should I do?

The answer was simple.

I needed to impose constraints on myself.

In other words, "conditioning."

The answer was simple, but it took effort to actually do it.

I needed to make it so that magic would only manifest when I said a specific "spell name," and conversely, that saying the "spell name" would unconsciously manifest magic.

The key was to make it so that magic would only manifest under certain conditions.

How could I achieve this?

The answer was simple: just repeat it over and over.

Repetition and practice.

"Water Splash!"

I extended my right hand and said the spell name aloud, and a burst of water shot out from my palm.

The movement of magic in my body was exhilarating, and the clear, ringing sound was pleasant to the ear.

I said the spell name aloud, clearly and loudly.

For two weeks, I had been repeating this over and over since I first manifested magic.

"Phew... For now, this is good enough."

I had been practicing magic in the forest near Rish Village since morning.

The sun was already high, and it was almost noon.

I sat on a fallen log and took out the package I had placed there.

The log had been left for a long time, with holes from insects in some places.

It was about five meters long and over fifty centimeters in diameter.

To Mika, it looked quite large.

Moss was growing on the part close to the ground, but the log was still solid overall.

I opened the package on my lap, and inside were hard bread and fruit.

It was lunch I had brought from home.

In this world without refrigerators, there were no prepared soups for lunch.

This was the case even before I switched bodies with Mika.

Especially in the summer, if you ate something prepared in advance in this world with a weak concept of hygiene, you would definitely get food poisoning, and it would quickly spread and wipe out the village.

Even if it didn't completely wipe out the village, it was a terrifying future to imagine.

"Water Ball."

I washed my hands in the basketball-sized blob of water that appeared in front of me.

I blew the "Water Ball" away and shook off the water, then took a bite of the bread.

I had once bitten off more than I could chew, but after eating it every day, I learned to control the amount.

I swallowed the appropriate amount and said "Water Ball" again.

This time, a small blob of water appeared in front of me, and I took a bite of it.

I had once seen an astronaut drink a floating ball of water like this.

I imitated it to be able to hydrate without a water bottle.

However, it took a lot of courage to drink the magic-created water.

The first time, I was drenched, but I carefully tested if it was safe to drink.

I tried spitting it out immediately after putting it in my mouth, or swallowing a small amount.

After several days, I confirmed it was harmless and could drink it without hesitation.

Now, I even wondered if I could add flavor or make it carbonated, though I haven't succeeded yet.

After finishing lunch, I took a break.

The forest, where sunlight filtered through the leaves, was quiet and cool.

It was only about 20 to 30 meters into the forest.

Since Rish Village had an extremely low population density, I could practice magic near my house without being seen.

Even so, if I practiced every day, someone might notice, especially since I was making a lot of noise.

So, I started practicing in the forest.

"I don't listen to you at all, do I?"

I chuckled.

I was breaking the rule of not entering the forest.

To enter the forest, I had to cross the fence surrounding the village, but there were places where it was broken.

It wasn't a large gap, but with my child's body, I could easily slip through.