Chapter 56: Thought Projection

Nate couldn't help but chuckle as Ultear quickly apologized after his teasing. Of course, he would never actually post anything on the forum.

Sigma Male: "Scared now, huh?"

Witch of Pain: "I don't believe you'd actually post it. [Rolling Eyes Emoji]"

Sigma Male: "Then maybe I'll just show it to your mom. [Smiling Emoji]"

Witch of Pain: "You wouldn't dare! I'll stop sending pics forever! [Pouting Emoji]"

Sigma Male: "Don't care. [Shrugging Emoji]"

A minute later, another message popped up.

Witch of Pain: "[Lifting Skirt Emoji]"

This time, Ultear sent another photo of her leg, clad in black stockings, with her skirt lifted just high enough to almost reveal something more intimate, drawing Nate's full attention like a black hole.

He immediately saved the image without hesitation and replied.

Sigma Male: "That's it? Disappointing. [Wooden Fish Emoji]"

Nate suspected that if he pushed a little more, he might get something even more enticing.

Meanwhile, on the other side…

In her luxurious bedroom at the Council's headquarters, Ultear felt her cheeks flush. Initially, she had approached Nate through a forum reply with less-than-innocent intentions, but now she simply found herself enjoying chatting with him over the past few months.

After a long talk with her mother, Ultear had reconciled the misunderstandings from the past, and they were on good terms again. Although her mother, Ur, was currently a spirit, Ultear felt content. She even held hope that one day, they could fully restore her.

And she had Nate to thank for all of it. This made her increasingly bold with her photos.

"Still not enough, huh?" Ultear muttered as she saw Nate's message but resisted falling for the bait this time.

Her fingers danced across the keyboard, and she quickly replied.

Witch of Pain: "Come to the Council, little brother. I'll show you something even better in person~ [Playful Emoji]"

…

Lying in the bath, Nate felt a twinge of disappointment that she didn't take the bait. But her next message sparked his curiosity.

Sigma Male: "I heard the Council is nominating me for the Ten Wizard Saints?"

There was a pause. It seemed like Ultear needed a moment to process the sudden shift in the conversation. After a while, she replied.

Witch of Pain: "I checked with the chairman; apparently, it's true."

Witch of Pain: "But the Ten Wizard Saints are currently full, so you'll have to wait for a spot."

Witch of Pain: "Still, it's incredible. You're the first person in magic history to be nominated based purely on the creation of a new magic!"

So, it really was happening. Nate rubbed his chin thoughtfully. While such a title wouldn't increase his magic power, it would still be quite satisfying to earn.

Sigma Male: "Maybe it won't take too long."

Witch of Pain: "When it happens, I'll definitely vote in your favor. Say 'thank you, big sis'~"

'Will you even still be a councilor by then?' Nate thought, considering that Jellal's plan would soon unfold, and the current Council was bound for disaster.

Hmm… But now that Ultear had reconciled with Ur, perhaps her behavior would change. Would she still go through with her original plan to destroy the Council?

Nate realized he had unintentionally influenced many events, not on purpose, but his impact on the storyline was growing.

As he mulled over this, Ultear sent another message.

Witch of Pain: "By the way, have you mastered Thought Projection yet?"

Witch of Pain: "Come to the Council, and big sister will personally teach you—among other things~ [Flirty Emoji]"

Sigma Male: "I don't believe you! You won't even send proper pictures, yet you claim you'll teach me more than magic. [Smirk Emoji]"

Witch of Pain: "Big sister's going to bed! Beauty sleep is important! [Moon Emoji]"

Nate watched as her status turned to "offline." She had run away from the teasing again, yet still dared to flirt with him?

However, Ultear's reminder did jog his memory. He had plans to develop 'Magic Net Delivery' soon, but before that, he needed to master Thought Projection to handle the coding more efficiently.

"This magic is more complex than the previous ones. It'll take at least two weeks to complete," Nate muttered to himself.

He opened the magic book that Juvia had "borrowed" from the guild's library and frowned as he skimmed the instructions. Following the steps, he closed his eyes and focused, circulating his magic according to the method outlined in the book, attempting to split off a part of his mind.

But it failed again.

Nate opened his eyes and wondered if he should ask the guild master for advice.

Just then, Ur emerged from the Deep Web.

"Hey, Nate, taking a bath, huh?" she said, momentarily startled before she casually started examining him, grinning. "Need help scrubbing your back?"

Nate gave her a sideways glance. "You're a ghost. Please don't."

He wouldn't mind the help, but the problem was that she couldn't actually touch him.

Ur stood by the tub and glanced at the magic book in front of Nate. After reading a bit, she recognized it immediately.

"Ah, Mind Magic—Thought Projection?"

"You know it?" Nate asked in surprise. "I've been trying to learn this magic, but I haven't had any luck so far."

"Mind magic like Thought Projection is an advanced magic. You need either a lot of magic power or exceptionally strong mental strength to pull it off."

Her words reminded Nate of someone: the leader of Cait Shelter, Roubaul, who had an entire guild of Thought Projections—a testament to his immense spiritual power. Not to mention, he was also a ghost.

"Why do you want to learn Thought Projection, anyway? It's hard to master, and it's not particularly useful in combat."

"It's not for fighting…" Nate explained his reasoning.

Ur chuckled once he finished. "So it's just to be lazy, huh?"

Nate sighed. "There's no need to put it that way."

Ur laughed. "If that's the case, you don't need to follow the book's method so strictly."

"There's another way?" Nate asked, intrigued.

"The book teaches you to create a strong Thought Projection, but if all you want is a helper to write code, you don't need as much magic power."

Ur nodded and began teaching him an alternative method.

Under her guidance, Nate quickly got the hang of it.

Soon after, a Thought Projection appeared next to the bathtub.

Nate examined the projection and couldn't help but comment, "It's got lifeless eyes, it doesn't move, and there's hardly any magic in it—it's just an empty shell."

Other people's Thought Projections could act independently. His couldn't, requiring his direct control like a puppet.

It was essentially the same as working himself, just with added multitasking.

When he poked it, the Thought Projection rippled like water, as if it could vanish at any moment.

Ur burst out laughing. "I've never seen such a weak Thought Projection! Haha!"

"Hey, I've only been working on this for a few days. It's impressive I got this far," Nate retorted, annoyed.

"As long as it can code, it's fine. I don't need it to fight."

"You've only been working on it for a few… days?"

Ur's laughter abruptly stopped. She stared at him in shock.

Nate thought for a moment. "Yeah, about two or three days. People said this was a tough magic, but it didn't seem too difficult."

Ur fell silent.

"I'm sorry for laughing earlier. This is what life as a genius mage is like?"

…

The next day, after being seen off by a group of maids and Jude himself, Nate mounted his obsidian bike, with Lucy riding behind him, and the two of them headed back to Magnolia.

~~~

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