Chapter 2

Recently, it had become difficult for Kantō to distinguish between himself and Ricardo. He felt his mind being pulled by the physical youth. When he concentrated, he could develop clearer thoughts than when he was a math teacher, but when he let his guard down, he reverted to the childish thinking of the dazed Ricardo.

About two months after he started working at the mansion, Alessandro returned after a long absence.

Ricardo, who also served as the gatekeeper, opened the gate to welcome his master. Alessandro, entering the mansion, shouted loudly.

"Massimo, come here!"

Massimo, his disciple, usually studied the magic books Alessandro had collected in the second-floor study. As Massimo came down the stairs and saw Alessandro's stern face, he tried to run down but missed a step.

Rolling down like a ball, Massimo knocked Alessandro over like a bowling pin at the bottom of the stairs.

Ricardo, who had been watching, whispered softly.

"Nice strike."

Alessandro, who had fallen, grumbled as he got up.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Alessandro approached the unconscious Massimo, trying to help him up. It seemed heavy, so he looked at Ricardo.

"Don't just stand there. Help me get him up!"

Ricardo ran over and helped Alessandro lift Massimo.

Massimo opened his eyes and groaned.

"Is there any pain... Did you hit your head?"

Massimo, with his heavy body, struggled to get up and checked for any abnormalities. It seemed he was fine.

Alessandro, worried, also patted Massimo's body to check for any issues.

"It's fine, stop it. You have something to do, right?"

Alessandro, who had been worried, became serious.

"I have a job for you. The viscount's second son is starting to study magic. Copy three beginner's textbooks."

Massimo was an overweight boy who liked to laze around in his room and was not good at practical work.

Since he had never seen magic being used in real life, it was unclear if he was really bad at it. This was just a feeling Alessandro had from their conversations.

"When do I need to finish the copies?"

"The first one in five days, the second in ten days, and the last one, which is thick, in a month."

Massimo's face twitched. He would have to keep copying for a month to follow his master's orders.

"Will you be having dinner here today?"

When Ricardo asked, Alessandro frowned and shook his head. The mansion's meals were prepared by an old lady who lived nearby. They were the same as what the common people in the city usually ate. The black bread was hard but there was plenty of it.

However, Alessandro, who ate in the castle's dining hall, might have been dissatisfied.

After Alessandro left the mansion, Massimo called Ricardo.

"Can you write, right?"

"Uh... Yes."

When Ricardo answered, Massimo smiled slyly. He could already guess what would happen next.

"I'm busy with my studies, so you'll have to copy the books for me."

...As expected. A magician who cheats like this will never amount to anything. On the other hand, people like this do get promoted. When he was a teacher, the head of the grade, who was this type, became the vice-principal the next year.

Ricardo, who had been given the copying job, entered the study for the first time. The study contained two hundred books. He thought there would be many magic-related books, but there were more history books, novels, biographies, philosophy books, and studies on magical beasts.

The magic-related books were only one shelf, about thirty in total.

Massimo pulled out a textbook from the magic-related shelf and handed it to Ricardo.

"The first one is due in five days. Make sure you finish it."

Massimo provided the paper and writing tools. He told Ricardo to do the copying in his own room. There were many more important books in the study than the textbooks, and he didn't want them to be seen.

Ricardo was not satisfied with being given the copying job. After thinking for a moment, he made one request.

"Since it's my first time copying, I think I'll make a lot of mistakes. Can I have extra paper?"

Massimo made a bitter face. But, thinking it couldn't be helped, he agreed.

"Paper is expensive, so don't waste it."

"Understood."

Ricardo took the first magic textbook, writing tools, and paper back to the attic room.

There was a table with one leg missing in the corner of the room, which he had repaired and used as a desk. He used a part of a large pillar as a chair.

He opened the magic textbook. The title was "Basic Concepts of Magic."

Reading through it, he understood what magic was. The magic power used in magic apparently floats in the air. It is taken in by humans and magical beasts through breathing and stored in the muscles of the heart.

The amount that can be stored varies from person to person, which is reflected in the difference in magic power.

To activate magic, a catalyst and a magic language are required. For fire, ash or charcoal is used; for water, fish scales or shells; for wind, bird feathers or bones; and for controlling plants, tree fruits or flowers are generally used.

However, significant magic cannot be performed with commonly used catalysts.

To perform major magic, materials from magical beasts are necessary. For example, the charcoal of the magical tree Elbir for fire, and the horn of the one-horned magical fish for water.

Combining the magic language with the catalyst activates the magic. There are various methods, and a typical one is to scatter the catalyst and recite the spell.

The textbook described how to ignite kindling. He thought about experimenting but stopped, thinking it would be clumsy to use fire in the room, and decided to try a wind spell instead.

He had a bird feather he had picked up to use as a pen, so he had the catalyst. The spell was written in the textbook.

There was only one small window in the attic room, which he opened. Ricardo took the feather, a catalyst, and placed it on the edge of the window.

He imagined releasing magic power from the tip of his right hand toward the feather and recited the "gentle breeze" spell.

"Shena Win"

Nothing happened. The wind from the window blew the feather away.

He felt a surge of embarrassment. ...This is just like a young child imitating the protagonist on TV and making a fuss.

He returned to the table and looked at the textbook. It seemed that magic power is not released just by imagining it; proper training is required.

"Training methods for magic control, huh?"

He wanted to be able to use magic, but first, he had to copy the books.

He took a pen and started copying the textbook onto the paper. He realized it was a tougher job than he had thought.

On the first day, he only managed to complete about ten percent.

The next morning, he showed the copied pages to Massimo in the study.

"Not bad. Try to write faster at this pace."

After pushing his own job onto Ricardo, he acted superior. Ricardo's handwriting was quite neat and looked good overall. The original textbook, being a handwritten copy, had difficult-to-read words and errors.

As a former teacher, he felt like correcting it and ended up making the copy better than the original.

"Um... Can I take a break from cleaning and other chores?"

Massimo thought for a moment and then instructed Ricardo to work as usual in the morning and use the afternoon for copying.

"Got it? Make sure you finish by the deadline."

He finished cleaning the first floor and, after lunch, resumed copying.

On the second and third days, he increased his pace and mastered the technique by the fourth day. He memorized the content of one page of the original and visualized it in his mind while writing. This method, which would have been impossible for him in Japan, was possible for Ricardo. Something had changed.

His copying speed doubled, and he finished the first book by the fourth day.

Since there was one day left until the deadline, he wrote down the key points of "Basic Concepts of Magic" on a separate sheet of paper. He wanted to create his own magic notebook.

On the night of the deadline, he handed the completed copy to Massimo. After checking it, Massimo pulled out the second textbook from the shelf and handed it to Ricardo.

"Don't slack off."

Massimo's words irritated him. He wanted to retort that the one slacking off was Massimo. But, he held back, knowing that if Massimo got upset, his life here would become difficult.

He remembered the story of Cinderella he had read in a picture book as a child. He remembered feeling sorry for Cinderella, who was ordered to clean and do chores by her stepmother and stepsisters.

It felt like his current situation. Cinderella had a kind magician, but he didn't think one would appear for him.

He thought of Alessandro. ...He is not the type of kind magician. He thought Alessandro's smile was just a facade, and he couldn't tell what he was thinking.

The second book, "Catalyst Theory in Magic," was completed in three days of hard work.

He also wrote down the key points on a separate sheet of paper.

There were two days left until the deadline. When he handed it to Massimo early, he was looked at strangely.

"Pretty fast. You didn't cut corners, did you?"

He was starting to dislike this magician's disciple. He decided to avoid such people as much as possible.

Massimo checked the content, seemed satisfied, and handed him the next textbook.

The third book, "Fundamentals of Magic Language," was a thick one and took seven days to copy. However, he did not hand it to Massimo immediately. Instead, he wrote down the key points and combined them with the key points from the first and second books to create his magic notebook.

Ricardo started studying magic in the unexpected free time.

He reread and practiced the training methods for magic control written in the magic notebook.

The basic of magic control is to face the palms of the right and left hands toward each other and move magic power from the right to the left. The magic power is described as looking like a white mist.

He tried it but couldn't even see a fragment of magic power. Since it is a well-established training method, it must have been developed through much trial and error by predecessors. It might be important not to give up.

He wanted to use magic in a world where real magic exists.

He decided to practice every night before going to bed. At nine years old, he had plenty of time to train.

However, he did not intend to waste time. His life as Kantō was full of regrets.

If he had studied harder as a child, if he had chosen his job more seriously, if he had paid more attention to his surroundings at that time...

He didn't want to regret anymore.

He decided to value each day. But, being a naturally lazy and weak-willed person, he found himself getting used to the dazed and lazy personality of Ricardo.

Scary as it was, he sometimes spent time in a daze. At such times, his mind was "dazed" and he felt happy.

It seemed that the original Ricardo liked such dazed and lazy times.

Nine days later, while practicing magic control, he felt a sensation as if something several times heavier than water existed inside his body. He couldn't describe it, but it was a definite feeling, not an illusion.

In the next moment, he saw a white mist-like substance being released from his right palm.

"Wow"

Thinking it might be an illusion, he concentrated again and tried to move the magic power. He saw the white mist again. It seemed he could move the magic power, but the flow lacked strength.

"Why is that?"

He remembered the part in "Basic Concepts of Magic" that said magic power is taken in through breathing and stored in the muscles of the heart.

"Maybe the starting point was wrong."

The training method described was to imagine and focus on moving magic power from the right palm to the left. It was described in more detail, but there was no mention of the heart.

He tried again. This time, instead of focusing on the right palm, he imagined the magic power flowing from the heart and being pushed out from the right palm.

A strong white wind burst from his right palm and was absorbed by the left. He couldn't help but smile, and his concentration was broken.

"It took me ten days to realize such a simple trick. Maybe I don't have any talent."

Ricardo didn't know, but it is said that it takes an average of six months of continuous training to master magic control. To master it in just